Knight I
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“You didn’t have to actually tie them up, you know,” Knight said idly as they stood at the back of the train, looking at the landscape fly past them, blurs of reality moving so quickly Knight had a hard time picking out where arching trees changed to soaring stone canyon walls.
“You lost our bet fair and square,” Paladin retorted.
“You can’t bear to look civilized, even in front of total strangers. It’s baffling. Unity forbid they discover your actual calling in life.”
“Which is?” she snapped.
“Something far more delicate and powerful than the brute force you’re so fond of displaying.”
“Those Concord devotees don’t know the first thing about speechcraft.”
“Paladin, weren’t you listening yesterday? I was there, in the monastery. The ‘cocky’ one Spoke.”
“Unintentionally. The last thing we need are clueless devotees trailing behind us.”
“We can only do so much as two people, Paladin. I’ve been following them for the past eight months. I know their friends, their favorite orders at their favorite places, their extended family and their jobs. I had to do some serious digging, but I even managed to find Cirilius’s last name.”
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“And why does that matter?” Paladin asked, refusing to drop her rugged persona.
“I’m not replacing Gallant. I’m not asking you to accept them, or even like them, but we can’t change things this way.”
She was quick to look away, her hands folded across her chest. They were shaking, imperceptibly.
“And what of the Nine? You think these Concordians know something the Nine do not?”
“The Nine are more united than the Twelve, but you and I both know the two will eventually have to discover each other.”
“The Outenders won’t stop with Lazarenth.”
“And perhaps that’s for the best,” Knight said quickly, almost harshly. “Maybe more people will begin to look around, question the answers they’re given.”
“Or the ignorant will band together even more tightly, and all in the name of unity.” She stopped, sighed, and looked out at the darkening sky.
“That’s already the case.”
“And why invite them to the Holy Tournament?”
“Because,” Knight said, smiling broadly, “you and I will be there.”
“And that matters, why?”
“I figured your mood would have improved, given that you won our little bet. There’s no one here right now but you and me. You can drop the persona.” He closed the gap between them and laid a hand on her arm for a moment. “You helped me scout them out. Be honest, do you think they’ll find the Nine?”
Paladin shrugged his hand off, but she looked slightly less furious.
“Our stop,” she said abruptly. The words were simple, but the train instantly began to slow. Fighting the urge to roll his eyes, Knight simply nodded and stepped off the moving train into the darkness.
After all, they didn’t need a station to depart.