-Another Warrior-

Red looked down at the strange armor fitted precisely to her body. A keep loomed over them in the distance as snow blew, popping as it hit the roaring flames. The world seemed dark, and she didn’t think it was only the winter weather.

The men around the fire seemed to think nothing was out of place with Red’s sudden appearance. She looked at one of the men, also outfitted in the same armor as her, and said, “Where are we?”

The man either didn’t hear her or was content to ignore her, because he continued his conversation with the person next to him. There were three men, and if Red had to guess she’d say they were brothers. One, clearly the oldest, sat in between the other two men. His shoulder-length dark hair was streaked through with blond and his eyes looked strangely familiar—gray streaked through with brown.

“The Abysmals suspect nothing. Our family has been loyal for decades. In fact, Helm’s aimless curiosity and wandering led us straight to the jade and its volatile nature.”

Red shook her head as though clearing any stray thoughts lingering there. The man’s words meant almost nothing to her.

The man at the speaker’s right said quietly, “If there are any complications, Obcise, things we didn’t account for, we’ll be begging for our old lives when they find us.” He was paler than his brother, with shaggy hair, his face set in a cocky grin Red secretly assumed was permanent.

The third brother, sitting to the left of Obcise, spoke up next. He wasn’t as built or tall as his brothers, but there was something in his eyes, a fierce intelligence and spirit, that intimidated Red.

“This whole plan is based on the destruction of an entire people. And for what? Your fear is misplaced, Obcise. You may be crippling our strongest allies in a future time.”

“Oh, Helm, always the skeptic. You would prefer we bowed down and kissed their royal feet for all time.”

“Their pride will be their own downfall,” Helm argued. “You’re taking matters into your own hands. You always were the impatient one, eager for action. Eager for power.”

“And why shouldn’t I be powerful?” Obcise stood, and Red had to admit, the man held himself like a lineal. “The Abysmals have had their time. Their rule is coming to an end. And you, Helm, and Tarnen, will lead by my side when their reign is destroyed.”

“Only to be replaced by your own,” Helm said.

“That’s how life works. In the ashes of one people another is born. Our people have been in the shadows for too long, slaving away to support the lavish lifestyle of these so-called kings. Death to kings.” He slammed his fist against a large sheet of metal at his side, shaped like the head of a spear, causing the metal to rattle and roar, like a wild animal defying the elements swirling around them, causing Red’s breath to fog up.

“And now we usher in the birth of a new kind of king,” Tarnen muttered under his breath, so faint that his two brothers didn’t seem to notice.

“And would you be so opposed to my rebellion if you were named the new ruler?” Obcise demanded, facing Helm.

“I have never wanted to rule,” Helm said calmly.

“It won’t matter soon.” The look in Obcise’s eyes was almost cruel. “The Abysmals’ obsession with jade will be their downfall.”

Helm was about to jump to his feet when Tarnen reached out a hand and held his brother down, whispering something so quietly Red couldn’t make it out.

Helm remained sitting, but his pale hands clenched into fists and Red could see the anger raging under the surface of his topaz eyes.

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“You’re submitting them all to death…”

The rest of Helm’s words were lost as the three brothers faded into the air as though dissolving in the flurry of snow and the tangle of wind.

“Wait!” Red called out, but the men were gone, as though they had never been around the blazing fire in the first place. “Abysmals? Jade? Kings?”

But there was no one there to answer her pleas.

Grunting, Red stood, dusting snow out of her flaming hair and off her shoulders before striding to the castle in the distance. Someone had to be within, someone with answers. The snow was thick—it almost came up to her knees—but to Red it was nothing but a minor hinderance.

The cruel eyes of the man named Obcise haunted her. His hunger for power was palpable. This was someone capable of walking on the backs of hundreds to rise to the top. The name “Abysmal” seemed vaguely familiar. Maybe she had heard it from one of her academy history lessons.

But that would mean she was somehow trudging through the past, listening to people long dead.

Enough useless conjecture. Best to reach the keep and ask the inhabitants. The snow began to fall harder, cutting into her face, but Red ignored the cold onslaught, completely focused on her goal. It was what Captain Winsom had admired most about her, enough to take her on as one of the crew before even seeing her wield a battle ax or Orenda. When she decided to accomplish something, nothing could stand in her way, save death.

After working her way up the hill to the great doors of the keep, she pounded her fist against the thick wood and called out, “Open up!”

Unsurprisingly, no one answered her summons. Shrugging, Red took her battle ax from her back, examining it for a moment. Instead of the weapon she was accustomed to, she found herself looking at a battle ax that was heavier with a wider blade.

“Better weapon. I guess the past isn’t all betrayal and horror then.”

The door was an unworthy opponent, and in moments she was through, brushing wood fragments and splinters from her new weapon. The keep was lit with vibrant green light unlike anything Red had ever seen. It wasn’t Orenda—it felt different, not as alive as the powerful light she was used to.

And everywhere she looked was polished green stone, carved into intricate designs, hanging from the ceiling high above and sparkling, adorning the floor. Jade? Did that mean Abysmals lived here?

Curious, Red continued her way into the great stone structure. She heard voices chattering ahead of her behind yet another set of doors, these thinner and more detailed, the green stone inlaid throughout. Oblivious to the damp footprints she left on the jade stones under her feet, she approached the doors and threw them open, revealing a massive room full of people eating at long tables or dancing to a beautiful melody Red didn’t recognize.

Unlike the three brothers around the bonfire, the men and women here were unusually tall and slender, easily a foot or two taller than Red, who usually could meet the eyes of even the larger male Forlorn warriors. Their skin was a rich chocolate-brown and each of them had vibrant green eyes to match the jade embossing every surface, even strung around their necks and arms.

Their clothing was various shades of green and was loose and flowing, accentuating their regal, willowy forms. Red felt like a lumpy boulder compared to these Abysmals.

Like Obcise, Helm, and Tarnen, Red was invisible to these beings. They talked in rich, resonant voices that matched their impressive clothing, although Red didn’t recognize anything they said. It sounded vaguely like Elisian but with such a heavy accent it was impossible to follow any of the many conversations taking place among the many Abysmals.

Red was wandering the room, admiring the beautiful green stone decorating almost every surface and person, when the world exploded in a vicious torrent of jade.

The green stone everywhere exploded, jade shards piercing the Abysmals and seeming to go straight through them without leaving a scar or mark. However, as the jade struck the tall figures they all fell to the ground, writhing in pain, their faces silent shrouds of shock. Red rushed over to the nearest Abysmal and shook his shoulders.

“Are you alright? Say something, anything!”

The man seemed oblivious to her presence and began to shake, pulling his arms and legs in as his green eyes started to glow, changing, becoming lighter. His skin started to darken even further.

Red whirled around the room, noticing that it was the same for all of the regal beings. They were all curled into balls on the floor, writhing or shaking as something happened to them. One woman in the corner was wiping her eyes and crying out, her accent too thick for Red to understand the source of her distress.

She continued to cry out, the same alien phrase, raising her slender hands and wrists in a plea for help. Red rushed forward to help her, carefully skirting around the other suffering Abysmals, almost close enough to touch her when—