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Captain Corwin, after waiting for me to finish commanding the Order of the Blue to stand down, barked several orders to his men in rapid succession as well. I didn’t understand all the terms he used, but they all seemed to be variants of “disengage,” “fall back,” and “regroup.” I copied him almost absently, directing the Order of the Blue to the opposite side of the field while still clutching Captain Garvith’s helmet as if it somehow gave me authenticity.

“Captains,” Relias addressed us, bowing deeply. “Perhaps we can designate the middle of this area as neutral ground, a place where we can publicly promise peace between the Orders.”

“That is most reasonable, Your Holiness,” Captain Corwin agreed, returning the bow. “Captain Lightbringer?”

“Alright,” I murmured, still confused over the sudden and unwanted promotion after Captain Garvith’s passing at the hands of his brother-in-arms.

“I’ll order my men to set up a temporary pavilion,” Corwin promised, squinting at the sun in the sky. “We’ll want to start official negotiations within the next two hours.”

“Sounds reasonable,” I replied slowly.

Corwin hesitated for a moment. “Captain Lightbringer… I wish we could have met under better circumstances.” He inclined his head sadly. “I have nothing but admiration for all of your efforts in bringing about world peace.”

No matter who undertook them, all those efforts failed splendidly today, didn’t they?

“Captain Lightbringer,” Relias continued to address me formally. “Please permit me to oversee the recovery of the wounded and the administration of last rites for the fallen at this time.”

I frowned, remembering someone had taken a potshot at him earlier. “Shouldn’t someone accompany you?”

He nodded, pointing off into the distance. “With Aleph’s assistance and protection, I would fear none here.”

Aleph? I jerked my head in the direction Relias was pointing. All three of my friends, appearing unharmed, were approaching us. Out of all of them, Aleph was the one I wanted to talk to the most right now. But that wouldn’t be fair to Relias, Aleph, or the others needing their aid. “Thank you for doing so,” I approved in what I hoped was a neutral tone.

Relias placed his hand on my right pauldron. “I promise to return before negotiations start.” He sighed softly before dashing forward to meet Aleph halfway.

Tetora and Vernie, now a redhead again, met us where we stood. They glanced questioningly at Nora, who shook her head.

After staring at me intently, Tetora demanded, “Well? What happened after they captured you?”

I tried to give them the brief version, not wanting to focus on what seemed to be in the surreal past now. However, I had barely started before they decided to take matters into their own hands.

“I’ll find out what happened to Cinder!” Vernie declared and dashed off before I could stop her.

“Let me go get this Lieutenant Balor!” Tetora roared, taking off on all fours.

“W-wait!” I cried. Don’t leave me with all this! And her!

Nora, however, remained silent, focusing on the soldiers of Silver who were erecting a large white canopy a few hundred feet away.

“I… really messed things up this time, didn’t I?” I mumbled in Nora’s general direction, not having the courage to look her in the eye.

She stood motionless for a moment before answering. “I’m going to delay any comments on recent developments until you get through all of this here,” she finally answered, gesturing across the battlefield. “I don’t like kicking people when they’re down. But we do need to talk.”

“Yes… I know.”

She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

The loss could have referred to many things: someone possibly important to me in the past, my innocence, or my normal sense of self. Or maybe it was for all of the above. “Thank you,” I replied, looking over the helmet again, absently removing a few flecks of dirt.

“You’ll probably be asked to designate a new Captain,” Nora said almost conversationally. “The default would be that Balor character… if anything’s left of him after Tetora finds him.”

“Screw that,” I growled. “If I get any say in it, I’ll place Sir Armand in charge.”

“You sure that’s a good idea?” Nora asked.

“Better than the alternative,” I snorted. “Balor’s probably just a younger carbon copy of… you know.” I don’t think I could speak his name without crying.

Nora nodded and turned, shouting to two dejected boys in blue who were whispering conspiratorially. “Go fetch Sir Armand!”

The youngest appearing, with snot and tears streaked across his face, was stupid enough to belligerently question, “Why the fuck should we listen to a damn dark—”

The lightning strike missed him by a couple of feet, but his hair still stood on end for all to see.

“Y…yes, right away!” he saluted sharply before sprinting off with his terrified buddy.

“Uh…” I paused, realizing I wasn’t the only hypocrite. But should I be pointing this out right now?

“Oh, he doesn’t count,” Nora waved her arms dismissively. “He might have been down, but he wanted to take out his aggression on someone else, so I gave him something else to do. Besides, I totally missed on purpose.”

Tetora returned, hauling Lieutenant Balor forward as he pinned his arms behind him. Despite his notably submissive position, the Lieutenant addressed me with a commanding tone. “Relinquish Captain Garvith’s helmet to me immediately!”

Why you little…

“No,” I said evenly. “You should realize by now you’re in no position to make demands of me.”

“You… never once called him Captain… even though he took care of all of us!” Balor dropped his indignance and wept openly. “Without him, we would have starved long ago!”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Starved? “…Explain yourself,” I said curtly.

“It’s all in the ledgers,” he sniffled. “Every single expense and payment for the last decade… Forced to hunt mustelids to buy food! Asking for handouts from civilians! Now they’ll be justified in cutting our salaries even more if they don’t decide to disband us altogether! The least you could do is give me his helmet as a memento…”

Pull yourself together! You’re the ones who insisted on this idiocy! He’d be ashamed, seeing you act like this!

Holding back my indignant rage at his antics, I rubbed my temples. “Get me those ledgers, and we’ll trade.” I gestured at Tetora to let him go. “But you don’t have much time.” I would need someone to help validate them before doing anything more. This was all about money, but there was more behind it, I was sure.

“You mean… during the negotiations!” he spluttered incredulously.

I rolled my eyes. “Maybe, if you hurry like I just ordered! I’ll need truthful evidence to back up my assertions, so no tricks. There better not be one single miscalculation in them!”

He started running the moment he was released. “Th…thank you, Captain!”

I’m not doing this for you, Balor. It’s for me to ease my guilty conscience, even if only a little.

“Vernie,” Tetora grunted.

I turned after watching Balor disappear. “What about her?”

“Have her review the ledgers.” He shrugged. “She’s quick and accurate with financials.”

“Are you reading my mind?” I gave him a suspicious look.

“You wear your mind on your face,” he replied flippantly. “So my skill is nothing to be in awe of.”

“… You’re not happy with me either, I take it.”

“There are not enough hours in the day for you to train as punishment,” he said with a frown. “So promise to stop scaring me, and we can consider the matter settled.”

I made a rueful face. “Can I promise to try?”

“No.”

“What if I end up lying to you?”

“Just don’t.”

“Okay, I promise,” I sighed.

“See? Easy,” he said, pulling me into a rough hug that included a friendly noogie. “Good luck with the others, though. They’re not as forgiving as me.”

“Aleph…” I whispered. “What should I say to—”

“No. You deal with him on your own. I’m not helping you there!” Tetora shook his head emphatically.

Perhaps a half hour had passed without much conflict. Nora had started pacing back and forth, stopping sometimes to intervene if nearby voices got too boisterous. She had become a self-appointed monitor over the area, though I think she was somewhat disappointed she didn’t have to summon lightning again to turn off the tension. Sir Armand still hadn’t answered our summons, and I wondered if I should enlist someone else to collect him. Before I could volun-tell someone for the job, Vernie appeared through the ranks, obviously horseless.

“You didn’t find Cinder, did you?” I asked hopelessly once she returned to our loitering patch.

“I did, but…” she sighed, “she’s very skittish. I don’t think bringing her here would be good for her.”

“Or anywhere around me…” I murmured guiltily. “Did they heal her like they promised?”

Vernie nodded. “She looks healthy. Recently groomed.”

“That’s something, at least.” I tried to sound pleased.

“About Relias...” Vernie started, causing Nora to stop her march and dart over to us.

“I haven’t forgotten my promise,” I said. “We’ll talk to him together about what you said before.” I finally plopped down on the grass, my feet tired and aching.

Nora and Vernie sat nearby to define a triangular tribunal with me before exchanging a long look.

“What was it like to see him again?” Vernie inquired, leaning forward while a strange look crossed her face. “Do you remember him?”

“Uhmm…” Was this really the time to be bringing this up?! In less than an hour, I’m going to be smack dab in the middle of religious, political, and military conflict!

Before I could answer, Nora also piled onto the interrogation. “Tell us what went through your mind. How did you feel?”

“Guilty. Very, very guilty! Why didn’t you guys tell him about my situation?”

“But, we did…” Vernie said. “I told him something’s wrong with your head. I’m sure he can fix it.”

“Is that exactly how you phrased it!?” I stood up in shock.

Nora shot up as well. “I told him you’re Rachel, and everyone keeps mixing you up for Raelynn,” she whispered, waving her hands low, silently telling me not to shout.

“Nothing like mixed messages,” I groaned.

“You didn’t answer me though!” Vernie didn’t bother to stand. “Do you remember him?”

“No! No… nothing. Anything I remember is from what I read!”

Vernie nodded emphatically to herself. “Now I’m certain of it. It was him.”

“How do you figure?” Nora asked her.

“You said Rae was adamant that I would never double-cross her when we first met,” Vernie explained, kicking out her feet. “But all she feels about Relias is guilt? He probably made doubly sure to erase everything about him!”

I was overloaded. “Enough! I don’t want to talk about this right now! We’re supposed to be getting ready to negotiate with—”

“Captain Lightbringer!” Sir Armand called from behind me, walking with a confident stride and little sign of his previous injuries. With him was Mother Sorine and the two army brats, staring at Nora as if she were a snake about to strike. Okay, time to play Raelynn again, who can handle everything with a cool head.

“Sir Armand,” I nodded, trying to get my heart rate under control. “You’re looking much better than last we met. I’m sorry for leaving you so abruptly.”

“Captains don’t apologize, especially when I asked you to leave me,” he smiled sadly. “Thank you for your efforts to reach him in time.”

“Don’t ask too much of Armand,” Mother Sorine said, taking his arm somewhat possessively. “He’s not in any condition to be your champion.”

“I’m not planning to fight, but I will need his help,” I said, glancing at the two of them. “You two… come as a pair?”

“We are… good friends,” Sir Armand declared, though his cheeks turned red.

“I see, then, you’ll have no trouble sharing the burden of leadership, Captain,” I replied.

“Captain Lightbringer!” Armand balked. “I’m too old to be in charge. Please reconsider!”

“Nope. I already made my decision.” I shrugged. “You’re the only one who showed concern for me, and you weren’t afraid to ask for my help, even though it would put you in an awkward position with your peers.” Better than I did recently…

“Neither observation ensures I will be a good leader,” he argued. “I have no formal training.”

“All the better. I don’t think I like the leadership training this Order would have had to offer. But here’s the deal. I’m going to appoint you as the next Captain. If you fail, it will be my fault, right? But I’ll let you keep all the kudos if you don’t.”

The two young men behind him started chattering excitedly. “Sir Armand, congratulations!”

“Captain Armand has a good ring to it!” the other replied. Look, you even have your first set of bootlickers.

Sir Armand, however, was too busy staring into Mother Sorine’s eyes. “Sorine…”

“I’ll patch you up when you need it.” She turned away abruptly. “But don’t do anything stupid. My heart can’t take it.”

“About Lieutenant Balor…” I hesitated. “Do you want me to get rid of him before you take official office?” It was the least I could do.

“No.” Armand shook his head. “I can handle him, and he’ll be an excellent counterpart to work with to keep the men in line.”

I was a bit surprised by his answer, to be honest. But my feelings were a moot point on the matter. I wouldn’t hang around long enough to see the outcome. “As you wish.”

A few minutes later, the lethargic Lieutenant returned carrying a stack of ledgers. “They’re all in order,” he explained, setting them down on the grass before us. Vernie leafed through them, seeming nonchalant. As she turned the pages, she tapped her thumb and forefingers together regularly.

“Well?” I asked as she picked up the third book.

“Hold on.” Vernie looked up at Balor in confusion. “Your budget includes all the surveyors and inquisitors assigned to the Wastelands?”

“They’re all assigned to Fort Turri.” Balor nodded.

“Councilman Procul hasn’t increased funding for them, though,” Vernie continued. “Those roles didn’t exist before the Demon King’s fall.”

“Councilman Procul…” Sir Armand inhaled sharply. “...Has told us to make do with what we have, arguing that we have less to do since the demons have relocated to the Southern Wastelands.”

“Except it’s not true,” I interjected. “We encountered demons earlier where they shouldn’t be.”

“Yes, we have also run into the like, but Procul won’t listen. It’s hard to provide evidence to someone who doesn’t want to believe you.”

Probably doesn’t help that demons don’t exactly leave anything behind after being banished which could be shown as evidence.

I addressed my final question to everyone. “What do you think his real deal is? No matter how outlandish it sounds, what is his ultimate motivation, in your opinion?”

“He wants Turri to absorb the Wastelands.” Armand shrugged. “Goddess knows why. I can only see it as a debtor to him.”

“It doesn’t have resources to speak of,” Lieutenant Balor agreed. “But if it falls under his purview, then that’s one less future councilman to worry about.” It wasn’t necessarily his personal funds getting used to deny the Wastelands representation, either…

Relias, his brow glistening with sweat, slowly made his way over, supported by Aleph. “Allow me to propose that we head to the pavilion,” he declared, pointing at the finished structure. “I believe Captain Corwin is expecting us currently.”

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