Cedric was returning home, and finally spotted the city’s walls. The city of Larkin was as he remembered, but something had changed on his journey. The biggest of which was the fact that he was not returning alone. His solitary journey from before had vanished. Now, he was accompanied by Vena and her escort. She was riding atop a bakkix. It was a feline mount that was well known for its speed. He didn’t think they were in the desert, but it was apparently her pet. Completely covered in black fur, the mount was rather fearsome-looking. However, it strangely didn’t seem all that dangerous to him. Honestly, his first encounter with it had gone well.

One of the things that happened was Vena was assigned as his near permanent guard while he had been there. She had led him from place to place, and eventually introduced him to her pet. She called her Abri, which meant something like the dark. It was a simple name but appropriate considering the color of her fur. When Cedric had seen the creature, it seemed to instinctively become a little passive. He had had no problems approaching the normally dangerous creature, and he had even fed her once. Vena had insisted he try it, and he managed it without any serious issue. The animal just seemed to be docile around him.

He walked closer to Vena and rested his hand atop the mount. Its fur felt soft under his fingers. Vena slowed significantly when he did so. He could easily keep up with the mount on foot, and they had dashed ahead of the rest of the escort. They had a carriage and were traveling much more comfortably. The journey had felt slow to him, but he liked being around Vena, who had quickly been added to his small list of friends. It wasn’t like they were especially close, but he had spent a few days with her now. And he had very literally, been assigned to repay the favor. It was probably the strangest assignment he received, but he found that he liked it more than his usual assignments.

He was supposed to watch over her while she was in Larkin, and act as her guide as she had done for him. he didn’t understand all of the reasons behind it, but he was glad for the excuse. If it meant that he wouldn’t have to go to another battlefield, then he would do whatever.

“That’s Larkin. My home. It looks like it will rain today. It falls hard here.”

The desert didn’t get rain, right? He had noticed the greyish clouds and had held off on telling her about it until now. Although, he had a feeling it would start soon and didn’t want it to frighten her. She didn’t let him continue and spoke in a broken manner. Although it was her flat tone that told him that he did something wrong.

“I know what rain is…”

“What about snow?”

Cedric didn’t know why he had responded with that and regretted it almost immediately. Even if he considered her a friend, and was more comfortable speaking with her, he didn’t know what to say. That wouldn’t change no matter who he was speaking to. She replied though, and her response made him think that she didn’t mind the question.

“I have heard of snow but have not seen it. Will it snow soon, I heard that it would need to be cold for that kind of weather.”

Cedric nodded his head, responding after looking up to the sky.

“It will after some months, but not anytime soon. Larkin is still too hot to have it come early. If you head toward Elpis, then you could see it sooner. One of the princesses can make snow though, and you might be able to meet them.”

He couldn’t organize the meeting, but Vena was a princess too. That would let her meet with another. As he got closer to the city, his eagerness had diminished. His hesitation was growing a little. He remembered that his home hadn’t been in the best state when he left, not to mention that he had no idea what his reputation would be like. It made the return a little frightening.

His fears turned out to be right, but the reception he received had been unexpected. As he approached the city’s gates, he heard the rumble of footsteps from beyond it. He could see a countless number of people crowding the gate and looking at him. Many waved and others cheered. It reminded him of when he approached with the other chosen, but he knew that this reception was for him alone. The dense crowd that lined the streets surprised him, and several knights split off and started approaching him. They were coming to greet him even before he passed the city walls.

“Will you and Abri be alright?”

He assumed that the Princess would be fine with crowds, and from her poise, he could tell that she was handling it better than he was. His own palms felt a little clammy, and he could feel some beads of moisture crawling down his neck. He was more worried about Abri. It was the kind of creature that would attack people, and he didn’t know if she could restrain herself. He kept his hand on her fur for that reason. She grew more docile around him, and he hoped that his presence would help her keep calm. Especially as the knights approached them with spears in their hands.

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They were holding the spears up and at, obviously not intending to try and attack them, but he didn’t know if an animal would be able to tell. The knights were wearing a full suit of armor but were moving faster than any normal person could. They had been chosen, or maybe they had just received the new elixir. He didn’t know how to tell, and paid attention as one of them got close enough to speak.

“Hello, sir! We were told to escort you to the command building.”

Cedric only nodded in response, secretly glad to have someone act as a buffer for the crowd. Vena had something to add, and he just hoped it wasn’t going to be a dismissal. He knew that she was accustomed to traveling without a guard or anything of the like.

“There will be four more joining us soon. They are a few hours behind us as they couldn’t match our speed.”

Cedric felt a little bad for not even considering the knights and servants who they had left behind. They had been for Vena, and they had slipped his mind. One of the knights saluted in return but said nothing aloud. Then the knights began to lead them. Four of them stood forming a square around them, giving them enough space to talk, but would obviously be able to stop anyone ordinary from approaching them.

Vena’s hands ran across the top of her mount's head, and she spoke again. This time she had spoken quietly, only loud enough for him to hear.

“Are they like you?”

Her voice carried a bit of curiosity and fear, and he quickly gave her a response, wanting to ease her worries.

“No. They are chosen, but nothing like me. I am, Uhm, the strongest. I think.”

He wasn’t actually certain, but he felt like that was the truth. At the very least he was among the strongest and didn’t feel like he was telling a lie. Although, he didn’t know why he decided to say it like that. He just felt like he needed to let her know. He didn’t know if it helped her relax or not, as she was good at keeping her expression neutral.

Nobody had anything else to say as they finally entered the city. When they did that, her expression changed, and she wore a smile that he had never seen before. Not even when she walked among her people, and he found that it looked off. It wasn’t anything like her smiles when she talked about the things that she liked. Even if it was a rare occurrence. He had thought that she hadn’t liked him very much at first, and he couldn’t really blame her considering what he had done. He was essentially just an invader, well now he was more like an ambassador.

Cedric didn’t try to smile like the princess. His attempt would be laughable. Instead, he projects his best neutral face and waved at the people amicably. It was an odd gesture where he held his hand in the air and simply turned it from side to side. He was just mimicking what Vena was doing, though his gesture would obviously come off as crude next to hers. It didn’t seem to matter to the crowd, who had begun a steady chant. Cedric was surprised to hear it, especially when it was his name that was included.

“War ender! Cedric! War ender! Hero!”

The chants mixed together. There was no cohesion to the crowd, but he could hear every word as it was spoken. Even the murmurs didn’t escape his notice. He heard the soft questioning, the doubts that some voiced in secret. Despite forming peace, they wondered why he hadn’t just acted as a conqueror. Then he heard the other conversations. Those few who directed their words toward Vena. Some of which held contempt and anger. Some even went far enough to call her a traitor or coward. He turned towards the few that had gone too far and called her something inappropriate. There were some things you just didn’t call people, regardless of what had happened between their nations.

Thankfully, Cedric’s glances were enough to quiet those people. The reputation he had built was not a peaceful one. That much was evident as the chants continued to decree him as the War Ender. The moniker felt wrong, as he didn’t think that he deserved it. All he did was follow orders most of the time. There was an implication to a title like that which he couldn’t really accept. Cedric tried to focus on something else and settled on keeping his hand on Abri. Many people children especially were watching the mount carefully. It was a wild beast and a dangerous one at that. He rested his hand on her, hoping that it would alleviate some of the fear.

As he walked through the streets of the city, he was surprised to enjoy the experience. Right before he had left on his mission, he dreaded exploring the city. Seeing people’s glances and knowing that they saw him as a monster. The expression they gave him hadn’t really changed, but he knew that it was different than what he thought. The people around Vena had looked at him like an actual monster. These people saw him as something else entirely. He imagined that the gaze they had was like the ones he gave the royal family. The looks made him a little worried for Vena’s escort who still hadn’t made it.

To his side was one of the knights, his footfalls heavy due to his metal boots. Cedric glanced down at his bare feet and felt a little embarrassed. It was just easier to move without shoes. The strength of his own legs was enough to destroy even the sturdiest of boots. It was much easier to go without, many in the desert had gone without them. He grabbed the knight’s shoulder and spoke while continuing to walk. He didn’t try to be discreet.

“Can you send someone to the gates? Tell them to bring the princess’s escorts here.”

The knight nodded, before dashing off himself. Cedric had caught a glimpse of the man’s face and saw that he was young-looking. Even younger than Cedric himself. Closer to a boy than a man. He didn’t like seeing someone so young but guessed that it was safe here. The thought of sending kids to the frontline made him shiver. The image of dead children crept into his mind, but he stared forward. The command building was in sight.