Katrina blinked tears of rage out of her eyes while she stood outside her small dwelling. She and Delmos had assumed the identities of two Volsung scouts, waiting for assignment in the village of Vul Rama. Using her new ability, she was able to alter her own appearance and look like a Dae. The several weeks of rest that the two weary travelers enjoyed were shattered by news from Vul De Rah.

Delmos stood next to her, looking at the bustling village around them. The orange he wore now didn't suit him, and he had often groaned in disapproval while donning it, but that wasn't what soured his mood. He held up a small scroll, with the announcement of the new King of Visgo.

"Unbelievable…" he said, squinting his eyes. "The man betrays us… essentially kills my sister, Daniel, our Hego, and conquers our city." He held the scroll up and crumpled it in his hand. "And gets mated to a damn queen. There is no justice in this world."

Katrina hissed and began to walk, then stopped and turned around. "We can't let this go, Delmos. We have to do something… he doesn't deserve this."

"What are we going to do?" Delmos shot back. "You've seen the frequency of the patrols all over this area. We can't just sneak our way to Vul De Mar. We've discussed this; our best bet is to wait for the counterattack and join the fray."

Katrina clenched her fists and let out an angry groan. "This is bullshit."

"Well, it's certainly something's shit," Delmos growled, unable to control himself.

"I need a drink." She looked to the small inn of the village that had been giving them free room and board since they arrived. The innkeeper was, of course, assured by them that clan Volsung would reimburse them for their troubles.

The two of them went into the inn and took seats at the tavern on the first floor. As always, the Dae who were sitting at various tables stood and moved as far away from them as possible. This always made Delmos shake his head in disappointment, but it was for their own good. The occupying forces of Volsung warriors were convinced of their identities, and they were content to play the part.

Katrina raised her hand as they sat, and a young Dae serving girl placed a plate of bread and a jug of wine down before them. They nodded in thanks and silently began to drink. Katrina still struggled to wrap her mind around the strange circumstance of Robert's ascension into Rexunii royalty. The whole story just didn't seem believable. Then again, their entire situation was strange and unimaginable.

"I know it's hard," Delmos finally broke the silence, but kept his voice low. "But we have to keep to the shadows. Better to do that for now, and do our part when the time comes."

"I just wish we had some guidance…" Katrina drank deeply from her bowl of wine. "Everyone's dead or scattered to the wind."

Delmos nodded in agreement, and the two remained silent until they finished another jug of wine. As the sun receded, and night fell on the village, Katrina retired to her room. She took a moment to let the illusion of her disguise fall away, and her pink human skin reveal itself. She let out a sigh of relief and began to disrobe.

"That is quite… a neat trick…" a lithe and small voice said.

"AHH!" Katrina yelped, startled by it. She looked to the floor to find a strangely familiar serpent creature looking at her with green gems for eyes.

"Koh?" she asked, leaning forward to get a better look. "What are you doing here?"

"So… you remember me… that is good." The small spirit raised its head and cocked it to the side. "I had hoped… you would…"

Katrina let out a deep breath and sat on the side of the bed.

"I have been looking for you…" Koh said, sliding up the leg of the bed, and coiling himself beside her. "For a human… you are quite hard to find."

"Well, I guess that's a good thing." She sighed, "You haven't answered my question yet though. What are you doing here? And how did you find me?"

"You are not as concealed as you believe, child… the spirits can see through your little disguise fairly easily. However, it was… unexpected. As for… why I have come… you must know that I do not condone what happened to Vul De Rah… I was quite fond of all that had been accomplished by the Hego there… and his children…"

Katrina nodded, her thoughts drifting to Boros.

"The line has nearly been severed… With the Hego and Prince Oros dead… Prince Boros finds himself in a dangerous situation in Vul De Mar… with King Yomen attempting to take advantage of his age and… inexperience…" Koh's voice rang with apparent apathy. "He is too far for you to help him… but his sister, Princess Illya… you can help her."

"Illya?" Katrina asked, her back straightening. "What happened to her? I thought she was with Boros?"

"I'm afraid not… she was mourning the loss of her family when the final push came… she was outside the safety of the palace… and was nearly killed. She has managed to hide her true identity however… and remains a refugee a day's travel… to the North of Vul De Rah…"

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"But… Vul De Rah is weeks away from here." Katrina bit her nail. "I can't do it alone either. I'll have to convince Delmos to help me."

"If he chooses to help you… or not… there is a fast-marching Volsung war-group that is heading back to Vul De Rah to rest and recuperate… this is how you will get back… I will do what I can to help you… but you must attach yourself to them… I can create false credentials for you… just keep to yourself… and you will be undetected."

Katrina stood to exit her room, but stopped and looked at the little spirit. "Why are you going through all this trouble for Illya? I thought spirits didn't care much for the Dae."

"She belongs to a family that I wish to live on… for many more generations…" He bristled. "Any other reasons… are my own. Your reasons however... are quite clear… she is your friend… and is in need of help."

Katrina took a moment to use her power to create her disguise again. She entered the hallway and knocked loudly on Delmos' door, which was right across from hers. She heard shuffling inside, and he opened it with a puzzled look on his face.

"Well, isn't this a surprise." He grinned. "I was wondering how long you could resist my charms."

"Shut up." She huffed, pushing past him and explaining the situation in his room.

Delmos' expression turned dark at the news, and didn't quite believe it until Koh manifested before them. After several moments of trepidation and cursing, he began to calm down. Katrina had to remind herself that the Dae rarely had much contact with the spirits. They were worshipped in most cases, so to be confronted by one was a major deal.

"So that's it." Katrina said. "Are you in? Because I'm probably leaving tonight."

Delmos pondered, looking at her, then to Koh who stared at him. "I'm not sure about this. It isn't in our original plan; it's also not going to be easy… at all."

Katrina nodded, understanding his hesitation, it was going to be extremely difficult. "I think we should do it anyway. Look how much use we are here. And we aren't sure if Lokkadonia even has the strength left to fight four invading clans. This way we might be able to sneak in and get her out."

"But why?" Delmos asked, "Not to be heartless or anything, but she isn't necessarily the secret weapon we should be looking for here."

Koh raised his head and hissed. "She is more than you know… the house of Ignos is a powerful symbol in Lokkadonia."

Delmos bowed his head to the serpent. "I am not saying I won't go. Just that this doesn't make sense to me."

"Great." Katrina said, slapping his shoulder. "Then pack your stuff, and let's go get her."

Katrina and Delmos packed what little supplies they had and staged themselves outside of the village. Koh had insisted that the Volsung element that was on its way back to Vul De Rah for rest and recuperation was indeed on its way. The little serpent spirit had also somehow come across credentials in the form of a scroll, sealed with the mark of house Varn, the seal of the Volsung King, Tophen. After several hours of waiting in silence, mostly due to Delmos' passive-aggressive attitude, they saw a long line of mounted warriors, making their way across the dark valley. The lights of floating orbs around the contingent made them stick out quite well, but with no real threat in this part of Lokkadonia, speed was much more of a priority than stealth.

"Here they come." Katrina said, looking to Delmos. "You got this right?"

Delmos took in a deep breath and slowly stood, moving to the middle of the road. With a snap of his fingers, a long bolt of lightning shot into the sky, illuminating the blackened landscape around them. Katrina noted that this was a signal to the approaching element that friendly warriors were in their path. After several moments, there was a jet of fire that shot up from the column, a response from them, confirming they had received the message.

As the group approached, Katrina and Delmos held fast on their Cro'kan. Having taken the liberty of borrowing them from the village garrison, Delmos had suggested that it would look rather suspicious if an elite scouting team like the one they were posing as, didn't have a proper means of transportation.

The column did not stop for them as they passed, but several officers did, and approached them without hesitation.

"Hello there!" The one in the middle shouted as he pulled before them. "We saw your signal, but expected more of you." He looked at them both, and raised a skeptical eyebrow. "What's this about?"

Delmos cleared his throat and dug into a slung pack at his side. "We are on a mission of great importance for the King. There have been rumors of high-blood resistance fighters in this region, as well as a spirit-sent." He held out the sealed scroll that Koh had provided, revealing the mark to the officer. "We are on our way back to Vul De Rah to pass on our findings to the King."

The officer inspected the scroll and took several glances at Katrina and Delmos. "What are your names?" He asked.

"I am Sterion, Mal of house Recco." He said, using the title Sterion which Katrina recognized as the Dae equivalent of an agent of the king. "And this is Sterion, Juyo of house Marva." Delmos pointed to her, then looked back to the officer. "The details of our report are for specific ears only, I'm afraid."

"Of course." The officer said, bowing slightly.

"And you are?" Delmos asked, leaning forward.

"I am Captain Urik of house Gotto." He said, nodding toward the passing column of warriors. "Feel free to tag along if you would like, Sterion. We have plenty of food and water for the trip. All I would ask is that you submit yourselves to my authority for the duration. In case we are attacked."

Delmos shook his head. "I'm afraid that is impossible, Captain. We are subject to the king's will, and his alone. If that is something you are unwilling to adhere to, then you may carry on without us."

Urik took a deep breath, then nodded. "Very well." He turned and gestured for them to follow. "Come on then."

"Such a strange request." Katrina whispered.

"Not really." Delmos shrugged, "He's afraid that we've been sent to root out corruption or possibly assassinate him, or someone in his circle. If we were to bind ourselves to his authority, we could be held accountable. Since I have refused, he has to take the chance. If word got back that he denied a Sterion team passage, especially one with the King's seal, his career would be over." He turned to look at Katrina, and smirked. "We better keep to ourselves as much as possible."