“They won’t move unless told to and they won’t eat unless…” Han’s lip trembled uncontrollably.

“Finish your work here and then get some rest.”

Han nodded before walking towards his men.

I looked at all the Rendaro we’d saved and like Han said, they were all… still. Their eyes half closed and their faces expressionless.

I bit my teeth as there was not much we could do.

We just had to hope that the light in their eyes would eventually returned.

I sighed before leaving the building and making my way to Farin’s house.

After letting Yna and I in, he led us to his living room where after siting, I detailed the entire battle.

Farin appropriately dubbed it, The First Battle for Coh.

“Do you think Petrus’s defeat will push the vanguards advance forward in any way?” Farin asked.

“No. He said that he was acting on his own. We’ll interrogate him more later, but I don’t think this will affect things in the long run.”

“He was also the last knight in his Legion meaning that his hometown wasn’t able to provide suitable knight candidates. That and the fact that he came here with all those men means that Llendor is a prime target for us once the war begins.” Yna added.

“Good point.”

“Why would he come all the way here just to lose?” I asked. More to myself than anyone.

“You saw him. His legion gone and his mind was… not very stable. My non existent money says that he wanted to come down here and ravage the dark expanse again. He probably didn’t think about training his men or appropriately arming them because he probably didn’t think he’d face any resistance. Especially not on this scale. After seeing me, he probably realized that I could end his misery-“

“So why did he try killing himself?”

“Umm… we Golden Knights can still feel pain, ya know. He knew I was gonna torture him before killing him so I’m sure he decided to make his death as quick as possible.”

“Well, that didn’t work out at all for him.” I said while Farin wrote various things down.

“What I’m more concerned about is what killed off his legion. He said that it was a den of Deathwings which had small bodies and four wings…” Yna droned.

“Deathwings?”

“Oh yeah, I guess I should explain: some Dragons can use magic too. Dragons who can control heat are called true dragons. There’s also Frostclaws, Whitewings who can manipulate space, Darktalons Brightwings and Deathwings. No one has ever seen a dragon who can heal other dragons and I don’t think an organism that has control over the aspect of time exists.” Yna explained prompting Farin to jot down notes even faster.

“I see. Do dragons normally have four wings?” I asked and Yna shook her head.

“Nope. Typical dragons are enormous lizards with two wings. Not only that, Petrus said that it was an entire den full of dragons that killed his men. This is impossible since dragons at a certain age became more solitary beings. Maybe it was a nest of hatchlings.”

“Or maybe he was lying.”

“Why would he?” Yna asked.

“I don’t know…” I droned.

Yna’s eyes then widened.

“Farin! Continue writing what you’ve learnt. Katsíki and I have to go… somewhere.” She said before grabbing me and dashing out of Farin’s house before he could even say anything.

She then ran to our cabin wherein a certain Rendaro woman sat. Her hands and legs bound.

Yna ignored her before grabbing various things and dashing out of the cabin with me still in her arm.

She then dropped me on the ground near the stream before rushing away.

I chuckled to myself before sitting upright on the grass.

I looked up at the clear morning sky before finally realizing that a several weeks if not a few months had passed since my arrival on Edenton and I had done and seen so much-

My eyes widened as I remembered the execution of those men.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

I remembered all of the screams as theirs bodies were reduced to dry husks.

The old knot in my stomach tightened a little more as I sat in the relative silence of the centre of Coh.

Yna returned with a basket in hand which she placed next to me before taking off her armour.

I followed her lead and it wasn’t long before we were both completely naked.

Yna took my hand and pulled me into the water where she undid my braid.

She then looked me in my eyes and smiled.

“Congratulations on your first victory!”

I awkwardly smiled before lowering my eyes.

“What… what was it like… the first time you killed someone?” I asked weakly.

“Mmm… I can’t say. My first kill was a dragon and those are basically oversized and overpowered lizards. My first human kill however… it was one of many actually. A lord in northern Aurenia began worshipping the dragons and converting his people into heretics. This wasn’t a problem until he stopped paying taxes. We were sent to straighten him up, but he resisted and sent his villagers to attack us. I killed them all as they approached me and… that was it. We moved on and ended up killing the noble. I heard that his land was given to another lord, but at that point, I was long gone.” Yna said as she washed my hair.

“Don’t you ever feel… bad? Those villagers all had families, right?”

Yna looked up in thought.

“Do I feel bad? No. If they didn’t want to die, they shouldn’t have started worshipping dragons. As for their families… I can’t say.”

“I see. Turn around.”

Yna did as I instructed.

I undid the knot that held her hair up before removing any dirt that had landed on her white locks.

We eventually finished getting cleaned and after exiting the stream, Yna slipped into a certain blood red gown while I wore one of my many grey ones.

She then handed me a simple apple instead of the delicious looking pie.

I raised an eyebrow as Yna took a bite of her own apple.

“Calm down. Savour the moment. We will get to the pie soon enough.” Yna sang.

I nodded before taking a bite of the fresh fruit.

I turned off most of my brain and allowed myself to enjoy every bite I took.

My tired eyes closed and Yna hummed in response.

“There we go.”

I opened my eyes once more to find Yna staring intently at me.

“I think I can confidently answer you now.” She said before taking the two pieces of pie out of the basket.

She offered one to me and I accepted it graciously.

“Yes, I do enjoy watching your reactions to things in this world. Your fears, anxieties and anguish, but I also enjoy watching you succeed. I love watching you move forward in this dark world with your head high and your heart ever determined. I would not be here if all I wanted was to see you suffer. That is my answer to you. So please…” Yna said with a pained smile.

“Let me continue to watch over you.”

I took a single bite of what smelled and tasted like lamb pie.

“Alright.” I said with a mouthful.

Yna giggled before wiping off some stew that had gotten on my face.

I quickly finished my piece of pie before helping Yna pack everything up.

We then returned to our cabin where a now conscious Aevana awaited.

“Ah, hello.” I greeted.

“Don’t speak to me, Demon!” She spat as she sat in the corner.

“I know you’re probably confused about a lot of things and it seems as though you’re unwilling to talk to me, so I’ll let Yna help you out.” I said while sitting on the bed.

I undid the dark chains that bound Aevana as Yna crouched to meet her eyes.

“Before we do anything else, I must ask: did you know who your father really was?”

“What do you mean?” Aevana asked, her face a twisted scowl that did much to tarnish her beauty.

“Do you know what you father did? To the Rendaro women he kept?”

“Of course I know! Father is a Golden Knight, is he not allowed to do as he pleases?” Aevana asked.

“Did you even see how badly they were hurt?” I asked, but Aevana’s reaction made my face twisted a little.

She lowered her head as it reddened with fluster.

“Of course I know. He did all that so that he wouldn’t hurt me.”

Yna and I briefly glanced at each other.

“I think we have spoken enough. Take me to my father, now.” Aevana hissed, but I’d had enough of her crap.

“Let’s take her to the dungeon.”

Yna nodded before grabbing Aevana.

“Where are you taking me?”

I ignored her as we left the cabin.

We then made our way onto the Expanse with Han in tow.

Yna tossed Aevana into one of the cells before grabbing a semi conscious Petrus.

Aevana noticed that we were leaving with her father and so she began screaming various things that I didn’t care about.

I’d deal with her after I’d gotten some rest.

“How long will you be gone?” Han asked as he handed Yna and I two leather bags.

“Not sure. We’ll be back whenever the rage of the Foph is sated. Keep Coh safe while we’re gone. Oh and talk to the boys in the research facility and ask them to show you how the ballista works.” I said with an evil grin.

Han tilted his head in confusion, but ended up nodding as Yna and I turned to leave.

Beyond the many buildings at the foot of the plateau was the now cleansed Expanse.

Yep.

I had cleansed it and the next generation of Rendaro wouldn’t have to worry about the Dark Marks.

I wondered what other kinds of illnesses were on Edenton.

Did light or other magics cause other illnesses?

I pondered on this as Yna and I walked towards the Oasis.

.

..

Some guards from the Oasis cautiously approached us as we walked towards the large settlement.

“Err… greetings lord Katsíki and Lady Yna. What brings you here?”

One of the guards asked with genuine fear in their eyes.

Yna dropped a now awake Petrus on the ground, allowing the guards to see his face.

Their expressions went from fearful to hateful almost instantly.

They all then glanced at Yna who looked at me, prompting everyone to look at me.

“Call Calëb. Tell her I kept my word.” I said and just as the words left my mouth, one of the guards burst into a sprint and ran towards the Oasis while the other guards continued staring at my small self.

“What?” I asked.

“What should we do with him?”

One of them asked.

“Mmm… Yna, pick him up.” I said before creating a dark circular contraption.

I was inspired by the old Rendaro symbol and so I decided that it would be fitting.

Four latches could be seen at certain points parts of the ring and Yna must have caught on to my scheme because she placed his arms and leg on the latches which I closed immediately after, leaving Petrus to hang on the ring which floated in the air.

I then heard the sound of a lot of movement and so I turned around only to find what felt like the entire Foph population marching up the hill as the sun slowly set.

Calëb led them all with an expression I couldn’t quite recognize.

Its like she was fuming with rage while also being on the verge of tears.

They all stopped about ten metres away from the floating Petrus and while Calëb stared at me.

Her eyes started glowing brightly green and I knew exactly what was coming.

Well… I thought I did.