Asural, Desmond, 10416 P.C.

9:37 AM. Todd frowned at the numbers on the wristwatch Benjamin had given him, and then looked up at the activity around him. The TR room was a usual spot during the morning, especially since Benjamin had been coming down a lot more often to train Todd, and the kids loved to be involved. So far, Todd had sparred with two kids half his age and had managed to win against them. The sixteen-year-old boy he faced was a bit harder, but with some moves he had picked up from Stephanie he managed to knock his opponent's stick out of his hands.

Small victories, but he'd take what he could get.

Now, though, he was waiting on Benjamin, fiddling with the wristwatch to ignore the large bruise on his calf he had been dealt in his last duel. Benjamin had given Todd the watch the night before and Todd was trying to figure out the extent of its usefulness — Benjamin wouldn't have given him just a boring old wristwatch, would he? So far, all Todd had managed to do was find the timer and set the alarm, which seemed to be all it did. It really was just a boring old wristwatch. He was almost disappointed.

He looked up again when he heard Benjamin's voice. The man was on the other side of the room, carrying something wrapped in a blanket and talking to a couple of the girls on the obstacle course. Todd eyed what the man carried. Benjamin had told him to wait while he went to get something, and he was mildly annoyed that the man was taking his time coming back. Todd wanted to know what the man was holding.

Finally, Benjamin turned and started toward him. Todd stood up from where he had been perched on the stairs to the emergency exit, holding the railing in one hand as he watched Benjamin carry his cargo over and set it on the floor.

"What's that?" Todd asked.

Benjamin stayed crouched on the ground, pausing to look up at Todd. "This, Deliverer," he started as he flipped over the cloth, "is the next step in your training."

Todd found himself looking down at a sword and shield. The sword was different from Annabella's longsword — he recognized the build as a hand-and-a-half sword, which was shorter than a longsword and didn't always require both hands to wield. Its sheath was decorated with symbols, and when Benjamin unsheathed it Todd saw that there were engravings on the blade as well. The shield was decked out in its own engravings: it bore the engraving of a sword with an infinity symbol through its middle connecting four crowns. Eight different circular rune-like symbols encircled it, and the crest was completed with several decorative lines surrounding it.

Todd accepted the sword as Benjamin handed it to him. It was well-balanced and only weighed a couple pounds. He studied the runes carved in the blade. They weren't like letters — they were symbols, delicate and even beautiful.

"Mercy, Forbearance, Hope, and Peace," Benjamin said, pointing to each symbol as he spoke their names. "This sword belonged to me when I was on the palace guard. Each sword was engraved with these symbols, reminding us to be merciful, patient, hopeful, and peaceful." Benjamin looked up at Todd, his tone soft as he continued. "Always be slow to draw your weapon, son. A sword is designed for taking life. Life is precious. We should always be slow to take it."

Todd dampened his dry lips with the tip of his tongue, taking the scabbard from Benjamin's hand and sliding it back over the blade. The symbols were again carved in the scabbard, along with a word.

"Valiant," Todd murmured, looking up at Benjamin for confirmation.

"Yes," Benjamin replied. "Courage and strength are both needed when wielding a weapon of any kind. The Immortal One knew of the trials to come. He knew we would be tested, and that we would need to be valiant." Benjamin shifted on the ground to pick up the shield. "This may be one of your most powerful assets in a battle."

Todd tilted his head, studying the crest again. "Is that the royal crest?"

"Yes. The infinity symbol and sword represent the Immortal One's place as Emperor and King. The four crowns are the four kingdom that once ruled beneath Him. These symbols—" he pointed at the eight runes encircling the design— "are the symbols of the Gifted."

Todd picked out the ones that had been on the sword. "Mercy, Forbearance, Peace, and Hope," he said, his finger finding each one. "What are the other four?"

"Humility, Faith, Joy, and Love."

Todd studied them for a moment, wondering. "Why don't the history books mention these?"

"The story of the Gifted was erased from history by the Veiled Lady."

"Why? Wait, isn't she a Gifted?" He couldn't imagine any of these beautiful symbols belonging to her.

Benjamin rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I wish I could tell you, son, but I'm afraid I never knew the full story myself. Yes, the Veiled Lady was Gifted — Athriian, as they were referred to later on, I believe. They became condemned when they turned against the Immortal One. That's all I know."

Todd frowned at the symbols on the shield. "But... these symbols represent love and peace and faith, you said. I don't understand."

"From what I can gather, these symbols belonged to eight Gifted persons, and they rebelled against the Immortal One for one reason or another. They lost their statuses, but the symbols still live on."

Todd wondered if Annabella knew the history. If Benjamin didn't know, then she probably didn't either. It made trusting in this whole story a lot harder to consider doing. How was he supposed to trust in something when he didn't know the full story? What could have caused the Gifted to rebel? Greed? Power? Or something else that could be justified?

"I want you to have these. I think they would be a proper fit for your mission." Benjamin offered the shield to Todd. Todd saw that there was a strap and handle on the inside, and he slipped his arm into the strap and grasped the handle. It was surprisingly light, resting on his forearm with an ease he hadn't expected. There was another strap with a buckle, which Benjamin explained was for carrying it on one's back. He made Todd try it on. It was a rather comfortable fit. Todd could remember reading books about warriors with swords and shields — he was now becoming one himself. Slowly, but surely.

"You'll find that fighting with a shield is much different from fighting with only a sword," Benjamin commented as a beeping sound emitted from the man's pager. He stopped short, looking down at it quickly. Todd knew what that alarm was: someone was nearing his house above. "Hold that thought," Benjamin said, groaning in his chest as he pushed himself to his feet. "We'll work on sparring with these when I get back."

"Alright," Todd said, still testing the weight of the shield on his back. He unbuckled the shield and set it down on the cloth. Crouching beside it, he fingered the sword's scabbard. There was a strap attached to it as well, for around the hip, he assumed. The word Valiant jumped out at him again, and he rubbed it with his thumb, thoughtful. In his mind, he saw himself wielding the sword and shield with ease, cutting down foe after foe in a fierce and dark battle. He danced through the carnage, every motion fluid, every strike precise.

He shook the thoughts from his mind, shivering as he covered the sword and shield back up in their cloth. Those thoughts and dreams were dumb — and horrific, even. How could he fantasize about gracefully killing people? The very fact that he had thought of it created a bitter taste in his mouth. He knew a fierce and strong warrior was what Annabella wanted him to be. Benjamin, however, had warned him to be slow in drawing his weapon, as all it would bring was death. Could battles be won without bloodshed?

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These people were changing him. He let his mind recall Michael's last moments, how the blood had bubbled at the corners of his mouth and blossomed from the hole that had been ripped in his chest.

Todd never wanted to see that again. He never wanted to be the cause.

Rubbing his stinging eyes, he sighed and rose to his feet and turned away. His awe of the weapons diminished, he scanned the TR room, wondering if he could slip away and hide from any further training. No one seemed to be paying attention to him.

Except for Colette. She was crossing the room toward him, her high-heeled boots clicking even over the sounds around them. They made her taller, as tall as Todd's six feet, and he wondered if it made her feel powerful in some way. She definitely walked as if she were important, each stride made with confidence as she joined him in the corner of the room.

"You look tired, Todd," she noted, coming to a stop at his side. She fell into her signature stance: one leg slightly bent, arms folded across her chest.

Todd shook his head. "I'm fine."

She hummed, watching the activity in the room around them. "You want to go after them, don't you."

He hadn't even been thinking about Annabella and Stephanie. He opened his mouth to say no but paused to fully consider her question. Did he want to go after them? "No," he said finally. "I wish they had never left."

"Yeah, I'm really missing Annabella's cheery company."

The sarcasm was impossible to miss. "I'm sure." He looked at her. "Why don't you like Annabella?"

"How can one like her?" Colette asked with a short laugh. "She's moody. Arrogant. Little Miss Always In Charge. You're the Deliverer and she bosses you around like you're a child."

Todd opened his mouth to argue but stopped again. Was he about to defend Annabella? Everything Colette said was true. "You said she was hurting."

"Yeah, she has issues. So does everyone else. She's so self-righteous. You'd think the Immortal One would pick someone more loving and gracious to marry His son and become the future Queen of Desmond."

"You're jealous of her."

Colette shot him a glare. "I am not. I wouldn't want her position. Motch would kill to capture her. I prefer my unimportant-ness."

Todd nodded slowly, watching the rest of the room to avoid her glare. "So why do you dislike her?"

Colette took a deep breath. "She's a jerk. She doesn't care. I still remember the first time she showed up here with Tamara. The two were nearly frozen to death and Tamara was practically in labour with Bethany."

At the mention of the child, Todd found her across the room, sitting against the far wall and playing with a cloth doll with several of the other little girls.

Colette continued. "Benjamin told me to befriend Annabella, and I tried. Trust me, I tried. I was one of the only kids our age and Benjamin actually thought Annabella would like a friend." She scoffed a bit.

"Annabella having friends?" Todd asked, only half-joking.

"Right? She brushed me off like snow. She'd march around this place with that self-important air of authority that just... just..." Colette made a noise of disgust. "We were thirteen years old, right? And everyone was treating her like some responsible adult. She was only here for a couple weeks before she disappeared. Not even a warning or goodbye, just up and gone. She came back a couple months later as if nothing had happened and she never told us where she went. But she was different. Harder. Even more of a jerk than before. I was almost scared of her. Almost," she snapped at Todd's lifted eyebrows. "I found out later that she discovered during that time that she was destined to be the son's bride — I guess no one had told her that while she was a Trainee. And also dragonmark, like what Stephanie has? Annabella had it too, once, but when she came back it was gone. Don't ask me how she got rid of it. She won't say. All she's obsessed with now is finding the son. Three long years and she's only grown deadlier, darker, and more determined." She paused after her long spiel and then laughed softly. "I wish I could have seen her face when you showed up as the Deliverer."

Todd grimaced. "Yeah."

"It would have been like a sucker punch to the gut, I bet, expecting some great warrior to match her skill and getting you instead. No offence."

"Uh-huh." Todd folded his arms, trying not to sigh. Some great warrior to match her skill. They matched in no feasible way. It intrigued him, though, to discover that Annabella had once borne the same mark Stephanie did. Stephanie had told him it was permanent, so how had Annabella gotten rid of it?

"So there, that's why I don't like Annabella," Colette said firmly. "She's impossible to get along with. She's cold, heartless, and a jerk, and Benjamin thinks she's bloody justified. She's not! Everyone has issues, and hers are no excuse to be a bloody Jaulik about it!" She took a deep breath to calm herself. "I feel bad for our future king. Destined to have a wife like her."

A part of Todd wanted to defend Annabella. The part that respected and awed the young woman, the part that understood the reasons why she was the way she was. The part that remembered how it had felt to dance with her.

It had felt right. She had read his motions, followed him without flaw, fit in his arms like a mould. He couldn't quite remember what his thoughts had been in the moment — he had been struck by how docile she had become, how her face had calmed and relaxed as she found the steps to the dance she knew. There was another side to this girl, a deeper side, a side he wished he knew. She was so guarded, so... scared. While Stephanie had grown warmer and opened up to him, Annabella had pushed him away. Todd wanted to defend Annabella, but he couldn't. She had allowed her circumstances to embitter her, to make her the way she was. He knew they all had a choice: it was their decision who they became, in the end.

He found himself vowing not to go down the road Annabella had chosen. It was lonely, dark, and cold. He wondered if she'd ever be able to find her way back from the guarded, embittered person she had become.

His chest ached. He cleared his throat, cleared his mind of those thoughts. He didn't want to think about Annabella or Stephanie. Not when it only brought on worry. "Trust your Immortal One," he told Colette, trying to smother the sarcasm in his tone. "He chose her, didn't He?"

Colette eyed him narrowly. "Yes... still, it's weird. And frustrating. She is, I mean."

Todd wasn't going to argue with that. He looked at his watch, eyeing the numbers: 9:58 AM.

The eight became a nine. An alarm blared, rattling Todd to the bone and making him jump. All movement in the TR room came to a halt as everyone looked around, confusion and alarm written on every face.

Todd clamped his hands over his ears, hating the siren as it droned on and on. It had happened once before during his time there — it was an emergency drill. The alarm was supposed to signify an attack, and evacuation drills were a monthly thing. Everyone would immediately retreat to their rooms and gather in the escape tunnels down below, waiting until Benjamin told them to resume their day.

"Why didn't anyone tell me there was a drill scheduled?" he yelled over the alarm as he started toward the doors along with the rest of the children. He stopped when he realized Colette wasn't beside him. He turned around.

Colette was frozen, face pale, eyes wide as she stared at him in horror. She shook her head slightly, saying words he only saw on her lips: Not a drill.

All at once, Todd felt lightheaded. The room was suddenly too warm as heat flushed his face, panic and horror colliding in his chest. The alarm jarred his very bones. Fear immobilized him. He barely noticed Jessie grabbing his arms, shaking him, yelling at him over the noise. The world felt far away. He couldn't breathe.

Benjamin...

The sword and shield sat in the corner, covered by their blanket.

Valiant.

Todd went for them without a second thought.