In a damp, aromatic room in upper Idela, merely a short walk away from King Alistair’s ethereal palace, a Jubilee sat staring at a letter. He paused for a minute, letting the words dissolve into his flesh.

“Damn it!” He seethed. Crushing the latter into a ball and throwing it into the trash. In his rage, he hastily stood. He grabbed a nearby quill and snapped it like a twig. The glass of ink on his table was next. Meeting its untimely demise on the floor. The glass broke, and the ink started seeping into the wooden planks.

“Tut, tut.” A voice called. “You’ll have to pay for those with your paycheck, Orion.”

He turned towards the voice, and a dark figure leaned in the doorway of a previously closed door. He had a starkly young build and a muscular physique hidden behind the red cloak he wore. A long, grizzly-looking scar ran down the length of his upper cheek and well past his collarbone.

The Hunting Dog.

Caprian myths told about the Dog, a creature neither man nor monster but something else entirely. The story told that the Dog would only come during the night, killing anything and everything he saw. Not a man, but a weapon.

Though working closely with The Hunting Dog made him resent the man more than fear him. “Ajax,” He hissed.

Ajax’s laugh echoed in the room. “That’s my name!” He said, “Don’t wear it out!”

“What are you doing here?”

“Why, I’m just here to congratulate you!” He grinned. “I mean, you managed to take out two of the most feared generals in Amber! This calls for celebration, don’t you think?”

“The ship sank.”

Ajax’s smile slipped. “Which one?”

“The one that was transporting them here, you idiot.”

“Did you make sure that the generals were dead?”

“Of course I did. But the ship still sank.” He paused, deciding whether to tell him, but ultimately decided to. “I had a prisoner on the ship. His name was Kaiser, a lowly grunt who barely qualified as a Jubilee.”

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Ajax’s voice deepened, “But one, nevertheless.”

“You know who sank the ship then,” Orion said slowly.

“The Kitsune.”

Orion nodded.

“Still.” Ajax started. “I have bigger fish to fry. I don’t need to concern myself with things that can be easily handled by Anita.”

“Don’t you think it’s odd? After almost a year of silence, The Kitsune have started brewing trouble in Shareen again?”

“Like I said. I needn’t concern myself with annoying upstart rebellions.”

Orion paused. If he could play his cards right and have Ajax deal with Kaiser on his own, hell if everything plays out smoothly, The Kitsune will die before month’s end. Orion smiled, drawing a card he had tucked safely away for far too long.

“Saran is still alive.”

A wind current zipped past Orion’s neck. The current was so fast that he couldn’t react to it. He felt his neck sting, a slight cut was all that was left. “Don’t be idiotic,” Ajax said calmly, but there was danger in his speech. “I killed him with my own two hands.”

“An imposter,” Orion said easily. “If you don’t believe that he’s alive, follow me.”

Ajax complied, and Orion led them out. The Hunter’s dorms were secluded from the rest of the barracks, but they eventually made it to the infirmary. Orion walked in without saying a word. He opened a door which led further inside. Eventually, they stopped at one bed. The rest of the room was empty. Only he, Ajax, and the soldier.

“Tell him what you told me,” Orion ordered the female soldier. She flinched as if every sound hurt, but eventually spoke in a soft voice.

“I was the only soldier who managed to survive. The rest of them died. I pretended to have been killed, and after they sank the ship, I barely managed to swim and James. Oh, James-” She rambled off.

“We don’t have all day. Being a Hunter is important. I can’t stand here listening to you mumble about a dead lover. Cut to the chase.” Ajax commanded.

“Right…sorry- um…there were two people. I only saw a blond-haired girl, but further away a boy was fighting what looked like most of the ship. He looked like he was dancing with his legs. Killing one after another with no hesitation and no sign of slowing down.”

“What did he look like?”

“I-I don’t remember much, but I think he was Sai… and oh! I remember! He was a Jubilee. I think there were tattoos on his legs and uh… also-”

A wind current shot towards her. This time, standing right next to Ajax, he could see everything. The lifting of his hands, the small flick before a massive wave of wind blew. It was concentrated. That much was clear. Ajax could compress the air molecules to such a level that the air turned solid and shot like a deadly gun without bullets.

The girl died. Of course, that much was clear from her surprised face, and her head splitting from her body and rolling over the white floor. Blood staining everything it touched. “She was about to say more,” Orion said.

“I heard enough. That was Saran.” Ajax growled, “I’m going to Shareen. You’ll see the heads of Saran and Kaiser hanging from the tallest spire soon. Don’t worry.” With that, he darted out the door. Red cloak trailed behind him as if even his clothes had difficulty keeping up with Ajax.

Orion walked out of the room and ordered the medics to clean up the mess.