“I suppose we should start by introducing ourselves,” the warrior said, glancing around at his companions. “I am Leonov Barric, sir. As you can probably tell, I’m a former sergeant in the forces of Attos.”

Eric nodded. “Your patch indicates that you retired honorably, sergeant. How many years were you in service?”

“Ten years,” Leonov replied a quiet sense of pride in the words.

“Were you involved in the attack on Milagre?”

“I was positioned towards the rear, but I was there.”

The rear, Eric thought. That meant he was right in the thick of things when Grimr’s and Samuel’s forces had launched their attacks. “It’s remarkable that you survived that. I saw how much destruction was caused at the rear.”

“I’d call it more blind luck than anything else,” Leonov answered. “The regiments to my left and right were obliterated, but I commanded my men to surrender before they could be attacked too viciously.”

Smart move, Eric wanted to say. But he kept the thought to himself, instead turning to the druid girl. “Who are you?”

She gave a small start as he addressed her as if she hadn’t expected that he’d give her any attention at all. “Uh, I’m F-Falynn, sir. Falynn Shaso.”

“Shaso,” he said quietly. The name was vaguely familiar, but it took him a moment to place it. “Are you at all related to Elder Shaso of Shallow Brook?”

“That’s my mother,” the girl replied shyly, casting her eyes down.

“Ah. Please pass on my thanks for her willingness to heal my daughter.”

“It was we who transported your wife and daughter to them,” this came from the tallest of the four, a Nihon-Jan female clad in full plate. At least, Eric thought she might be female. The features were androgynous enough to make him wonder, but he had a sense he was right. She straightened under his gaze and offered him a polite bow. “I am Taiki Sato, Master Breeden.”

“I remember you,” he said, frowning as he tried to capture another memory, this one of the day he’d attended Ehran’s ceremony. “You’re the apprentice that Sato sent in. So you joined the Adventurer’s Guild then?”

She gave a solemn nod, and he returned her bow. Just knowing that another member of Issho-Ni, even a newly made apprentice, was involved, was reassuring. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Apprentice Sato. You seem strong.”

“He-, I mean,” Falynn said, clearing her throat awkwardly, She is! She’s helped a lot when we needed to fight. We had to kill some corrupted wolves, and she saved my life.”

Eric noticed the slight flush that appeared on the druid girl’s cheeks as she thought about that event, and had to hide a grin. He remembered what that felt like when he’d grown to know Emma. The early stages of infatuation, the happiness mixed with fear and worry that it might not be reciprocated, was a heady sort of rush. He decided not to comment on it, however, to spare her the embarrassment. Instead, he regarded the fourth member, who had so far not spoken.

“Roni,” the elven girl said, without being prompted. “I’m a hunter.”

“A hunter of Minerva,” Eric noted, spotting the silver pendant that was just barely visible above the neckline of her tunic. “An honorable path, you’ve chosen. I know another Maiden of Minerva myself. Proud.”

She gave him a silent nod, not expanding further on the topic. He was interested in the lack of a family name. He suspected that it hadn’t been concealed out of a sense of caution, but rather that she didn’t have one. Not that it made a lick of difference in his mind, of course. Family names just showed where you came from. Except in Ahya, of course, where in some cases you could gain some inherited power from your ancestry. But it was clear that she wasn’t a descendant of Bora Bora, so if she had ancestral powers, he didn’t see any signs.

“Well,” he said, leaning back in his chair and gesturing to the men on either side of him. “You already know me. I’m Eric Breeden. This is Johan Welsik and Jerik Barr. They’re part of my company, and are traveling with me for the time being.”

Johan grinned widely at them in his usual mischievous way, even throwing a wink toward the poor druid girl, who looked confused. Jerik merely waved one hand as he was introduced, not bothering to glance up from his meal.

“Where is the rest of Issho-Ni?” Taiki asked, leaning forward to put her elbows on the table. “I’ve only seen a few scattered around, but there’s been no news of the leadership.”

“They’re scattered around the country,” Eric told her. When he spotted the flash of misgiving in her eyes, he hurried to add, “But by no means finished. They’re working to fortify the areas around Milagre, and stop the Infernals from spreading further.”

“There was an attack on Sheran yesterday,” Leonov commented. “It was routed before we could get to the gate to lend a hand.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Eric nodded. “I heard about it from the guards. A settlement along the road was also hit. So they’re trying to spread outward, but it’s not working.”

They looked heartened to have finally gotten some positive news about their situation, it seemed. He was glad he hadn’t thought to mention that outside of Issho-Ni, no fighting force was mustered, meaning that they were still technically on the run. If he found it frustrating and depressing that they were still fleeing even weeks later, he didn’t want to witness their reactions.

“So,” Falynn said, clearing her throat. It was a small noise, but her companions turned to look at her at once, willing to hear her out. So they trust her, at least, he thought. “I was told by, err, someone to come here, because you would have instructions for us.”

“I do,” he agreed, giving Johan a discreet hand signal. The warrior rose to his feet and stretched his stiff joints, taking the moment, disguised as a natural action, to cast a look around the tavern. After a few seconds, he sat down again and tapped twice on the wooden surface of the table. It was so subtle that nobody else would notice, but it told Eric that nobody was listening in on them at the moment. He breathed out a sigh of relief and leaned forward again.

“All I know is that we’re preparing a counter-attack,” he said. “It’s forming in Murgan, and we all have to go there.”

“You’re coming too?” Taiki asked, her eyebrows raised. Eric could guess more or less what she was thinking. Why would he be involved in something so risky, when he could be more useful elsewhere, doing more important things? “What if it fails?”

“It can’t fail,” Eric said. “That’s why I’m going. The more help we have, the better. With most of the city’s command structure wiped out along with the Queen, we have to be decisive.”

She nodded, accepting his point. Of course, he was only half-convinced of the words himself. He’d only decided to join in on the attack because couldn’t keep wandering across the countryside without a clear goal in mind. Action helped him stay focused, so he could spend less time worrying about everything that had gone wrong. Not to mention, any successful counter-attack, no matter how small, would bolster spirits, his own included.

“So,” he said, taking a long sip of his coffee and smacking his lips in appreciation. “Now you know what’s expected of you. “What do you say?”

“What do we say?” Falynn asked, tilting her head slightly in confusion. It was a very animal-like trait, something he’d mentioned many druids doing. “We have a choice?”

“Of course you do. I can’t force you to fight. If you wanted, you could board a ship and leave the country, or even go to one of the coastal towns. I could find other mercenaries to aid the mission. There’s nothing saying that you have to take part in the attack.”

“Nothing except that it’s the right thing to do,” Taiki countered. The others nodded in agreement, and Johan let out a quiet snort of laughter. “We can’t let an enemy hold the capital forever, right?”

Eric studied the determined set to her jaw and felt a quiet flare of approval. No hint of it showed in his bearing, however. He wondered briefly if it was worth anything to point out that they were relatively untested in battle, save for Leonov, and that their enemies were a long-forgotten race of powerful beings, all wielding powerful kinds of magic that they’d never encountered.

“I appreciate your candor,” he said, deciding not to say anything about it. “It’s good to have such determined fighters on our side.”

To his surprise, Taiki seemed to puff up at his words, as if she’d been deliberately waiting to hear something of that sort from him. Once again, and not for the last time, he had a surprising realization that his words carried weight now. That had rarely happened back on Earth, where he was just another face amid billions. Only a select few, the celebrities and politicians of the world, were remembered for long back in his home world. Here, however, he’d discovered, if not enjoyed, that he was mildly famous himself. Even those who didn’t know him responded to his strength and respected him for it.

“Well,” he said, after draining the last dregs of his coffee and setting the mug down, “I say we get a move on. The sooner we get to Murgan, the better. Gather your equipment and meet us at the gate.”

“What do you need to do?” Taiki asked. “Can we help?”

He shook his head. “I’m just notifying others to meet us on the road. The new soldiers I command, for instance. I should also send a message to Grandmaster Tokugawa, informing him of my intentions.”

They parted ways then, and Eric left a small stack of coins to pay for the meal. The server came over to scoop the money up before he’d left, offering a polite bob of the head in his direction. He gave a small wave of thanks and pushed out into the busy street, Johan and Jerik at his back. Jerik was frowning thoughtfully about something, but could only shrug as Eric asked him.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m not sure,” Jerik said. “I guess I didn’t think I’d be involved in another war so soon. As much as I hate to admit it, I don’t know enough about this world yet.”

“That’s fine,” Eric said. “I hardly knew anything during my first battle. You’ll pick it up quick enough. You’ve already proved that you’re a good fighter, and that’s what we need right now.”

Still, Jerik looked doubtful. “It’d be easier if I had my old companions. Morgan was excellent at logistics, and nobody could scout better than Averin.”

“Averin?” Johan asked, half-turning to frown at Jerik. “You know the Archmage?”

“Archmage? No. The Averin I knew was a sniper. He was pulled into Menora like I was, but he had to have come from Earth.”

“Did he actually say he was from Earth?” Eric asked, glancing down the road to see if the merchant stalls were still open. “If Menora could pull people from Earth, maybe they could pull from Ahya too.”

Now Jerik’s frown deepened. He appeared to be searching his memory. After a few seconds, he let out a quiet, “Huh.”

Now Eric stopped in his tracks, that old familiar feeling that his stomach had tripled in weight returning. “What did the Averin you know look like?”

“He had long black hair,” Jerik said, his eyes narrowing. Eric could tell that he was thinking along similar lines. “Super pale, like he’d never seen sunlight, and his eyes were sort of hungry like he was always looking for a challenge.”

“Damn,” Eric muttered. “That’s identical to Archmage Averin Thunderborn.”

They looked at each other in silence for several long seconds. It was Johan that stated the obvious. “So not only does Averin know about Earth, he also knows about Jerik.”

“And he’s at the very center of the problem,” Eric added.

Jerik surprised both of them by letting out a bark of laughter, a rare show of emotion. When they glanced at him, they were shocked to see that he didn’t look the least bit worried. “Looks like we get to have that fight he wanted after all.”