††† Siegfried †††

Siegfried retracted the spikes, jutting from his ribs, and the enforcer's lifeless body dropped to the ground. His legs were trembling, and a haze started to cloud his vision. He couldn’t relax just yet. Haylee was unconscious but breathing. Ryden seemed stunned, knowing how close he came to dying.

The female enforcer stared at Siegfried's bloody chest, her expression nondescriptive though he thought he could see a sliver of fear in her eyes.

The air was tense between the former guardsman and the auburn-haired woman.

Until Ryden started to laugh. He was bracing himself against his knees, relief and disbelief warring to express on his face.

The enforcer openly cracked a smile and sheathed her sword. Sieg let out the breath he had held until then.

"Thank you, lady," Ryden panted, holding his stomach. "I really thought I'd bite the dust this time."

As always, his smile was honest and handsome, eliciting a slight blush from the woman. She had a rather plain face and seemed to be in her mid-thirties.

"My name is Ryden, and I suppose you already know the bloody beefcake here," he joked while walking over to Siegfried.

"Uh, hi, I'm Sally," the enforcer replied, seemingly thrown off by the healer's nonchalant attitude.

Sieg stiffly waved Ryden off as the physician wanted to check on him. "Get to Haylee first. I can stop most of the bleeding myself until then." Ryden nodded, walking over to the unconscious cat-girl.

"She's fine — no concussion," he declared. "She will stay out for a bit. Better to let her body wake by itself. Now sit down and let me heal you before you lose any more blood," Ryden commanded.

Sieg knew better than to argue with his companion, even if he’d rather have Ryden conserve his energy. Many a question roamed through his mind, but ultimately it all came down to the same point. He frowned at the female enforcer and uttered a single word, "Why?.“

Sally's eyes softened as she switched her focus to Ryden. "Because of him," she declared. "Because saving a man like him will give my death purpose," she said with finality.

"That sounds as if your life was already forfeited," Ryden intercepted. "You can still go back to your squad. No one will hear what happened today. Not from us."

The enforcer gave him a strained smile. "I wish it was that easy. But there is a reason you hardly ever hear of a rogue enforcer." She fidgeted a bit under Siegfried's piercing gaze. "Those who carry Akali's gift cannot easily hide the truth from each other." When the healer shot her a quizzical look, she elaborated. "We can feel to a degree if the other is outright lying to us. It's not perfect… we can still evade giving clear statements if we are not under suspicion. But if my squad leader asks if I know anything about Damon's absence, she will dig the truth out of me."

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Ryden furrowed his brow and extended his hand. “Then you come with us.”

“No!” The word left Sieg’s lips automatically. Bolverk’s face, full of dismay and shame, came unbidden to his mind. The moment when his mentor realised what he had done years ago.

“She saved our lives,” Ryden stressed.

“And destroyed several innocent lives before that!” Siegfried felt his temper rise. The gleam of madness in Hall’s eyes stabbed into his mind. The despair when the younger man found the truth, nearly breaking from it. “You think one good deed can unmake your sins?” he spat at the enforcer, rising to his feet, ignoring the wound that burst open again.

“No, I don’t.”

The motionless tone in her words riled him up even more. “How many defenceless children did your sword cut, enforcer?”

"Enough!" Ryden roared at the top of his lungs. The sudden outburst of the usually lax healer shocked even Siegfried into silence as Ryden stepped between them, facing the still-bloody warrior. "I'm sure you have enough reasons to hate the Red Brigade, but if it weren't for Sally, that other enforcer would have cut my head off," Ryden barked, the vein on his temple pulsing as he clenched his jaws.

"She literally risked her life to save another's. And all she gets for it is scorn and mockery," he continued, stabbing his finger at Sieg's chest. "I thought you were supposed to change things for the better in the city. You have an opportunity right in front of your eyes. A way to gain knowledge to save your people."

Siegfried sucked in a sharp breath as he stared at Ryden. His muscles tensed, pumping fresh blood off his wounds. He wanted to argue back but could not get a word in.

"You did not think of the innocent either," Ryden accused, his voice bitter. "You only craved to hurt those that hurt you in turn. I consented to aid you because your goal was noble," he stated, taking a step back. "But your actions are not."

Sally stood awkwardly to the side, looking back and forth between them. "I'll leave you two alone. I also have much to think of," she addressed Ryden.

"Sally," Ryden called out quickly, raising an arm in her direction. "Please come back soon. You can still come with us if you can't return to your squad. We can think of a way to hide your identity, and I'll do my best to keep you safe. That’s the least I can do," he said with sincerity. Sally nodded with a feeble smile and slowly walked away.

Siegfried sunk to his knees and closed his eyes. The throbbing pain of his reopened wounds quickly wore him out, and exhaustion calmed his anger. Silence filled the emotional rift between him and Ryden.

The healer got to work wordlessly, and Siegfried welcomed the tingling sensation of his wounds closing at supernatural speed. The pain quickly dulled as nerves connected and flesh mended. When Sieg opened his eyes, Ryden sat before him, waiting for the warrior to make his case.

Siegfried rested in silence for long moments, ordering his thoughts. Trying to find the right words to express them.

"You were right. I let anger cloud my judgment in the wrong moment," Siegfried admitted. "I know that antagonising Sally will just hurt my chances to fight the Red Brigade and create a space for me and mine to live. Thanks for stopping me when I lost control."

Ryden’s eyes were hard, but his rigid posture slackened a bit. “I won’t ask you to lay down your life for a stranger, Sieg. If your goal aligns with a good cause, that’s enough for me.” He leaned forward, his tone serious. “But what I’m afraid of is your temper. You nearly lost it for no other reason than Sally’s existence. What if this happens a few months from now? A year?” He let the ramifications fly through Sieg’s mind for a spell. “You need to get a grip on your emotions before you can wipe out whole villages in your rage.”

Ryden stood and left Sieg sitting in a circle of dried blood. It felt symbolic after their talk, and his gut churned. He’d never been good at stifling strong emotions. It had never been much of a problem apart from the occasional broken mug or, in the worst case, a table. If a swipe of his arm could level a house in the city… But no, that was a completely different situation. He wouldn’t lose control like that. Would he?

As the spiral of self-doubt threatened to consume him, Haylee woke with a groan. Thankful for the distraction, he carefully helped her up. As Ryden said, she was fine, her gaze clear. Now he should use the time to bring her up to speed before the enforcer returned.