On all accounts, Seang thought they had all done much better in Xinhou than they should’ve.

But group morale was at an all-time low. Worse than when they had to flee Aotearoa. Worse than when they left Jambudvipa. It didn’t help that they were forced to stay underground days at a time, fearing Nikan patrols.

People barely talked to each other, save for a few murmured words each night to those each person was closest to. Shahla and Najeem talked only to each other, as did Vai and Lokapele. Shahla only spoke to Seang. Seang was the only one who spoke to everyone and the only person who spoke to Kameko at all.

Everyone practiced with their Shedim, but lacked any enthusiasm. Shakti drew random shapes with no passion. Lokapele hummed tunes that brought the mood down even more than it already was. Vai drew the same diagram in the dirt every day to guess the position of the stars.

At one point, Seang found Kameko quietly sobbing in the darkness and that’s when she realized that, frankly, her allies had no experience in the real world.

Shakti and Vai had spent their days in a whimsical version of the world where they could go wherever they wanted. Shahla was a sheltered royal. Lokapele was a religious icon and thus, only knew peace. Najeem was a killer, but he wasn’t used to failure. And Kameko, while a warrior, had just lost everything she’d ever known.

Most of these people were still young.

One night, as they were eating their supper of an incredibly light soup, Seang put an end to all their moping around.

“Listen up!” the volume to Seang’s voice caught everyone’s attention, “After tonight, all this sulking ends. I don’t give a damn if you feel awful or tired or guilty! What are you going to do about it? You’re going to make it through these tunnels, walk all the way to Koinelia and come back to kick Nikan’s ass! Kameko tells me the tunnels will come to an end tomorrow, so I want you all ready to face whatever’s on the other side of this ceiling, understand?”

Najeem scoffed before everyone returned to what they were doing, ignoring her.

Seang clenched her fist, “So what, you all just suddenly stopped caring about my authority?”

“What authority?” Lokapele muttered, “You just gave it to yourself, mother.” The Aotearoan said that last word with a mocking ichor dripping from her lips.

“Maybe I wouldn’t have to mother you all if you weren’t acting like petulant children.” Seang murmured.

“Wanna say that to my face, you glimmery bit-”

“I think what Seang was trying to say,” Shahla interrupted loudly, then continued quieter, “I-is that moping around isn’t really helping our situation. I know it looks bad, but...we can get through it. We’ve survived two massacres and a whole siege. I-if we don’t rise to the occasion and put a stop to this, who will?” Shahla grew more and more bold with her tone as she continued, “I know we’ve lost a lot. All of us. And it’s going to be a tough journey. But at least we have each other. We should take comfort in that. And since when has anything worth doing been easy? This world may be cruel, cold and uncaring to human life, but one thing we know for sure is that no matter what it throws at us, we can overcome it. We have to.”

Seang nodded, “Well said. Don’t weaken yourselves with isolation just because you don’t know everyone that well. Bond with your allies. Know them, and they will be infinitely more helpful on the battlefield.”

Everyone murmured in guilty agreement before the surrounding dirt started rumbling.

“Earthquake!” Shakti shouted.

“No!” Lokapele said, her eyes closed in intense concentration, “Hoofbeats. Footfalls. Explosions. There’s a battle above us.”

“Quick! Get moving! This whole tunnel is going to collapse on us!” Kameko urged.

Seang took up the rear as everyone sprinted through the tunnel.

Dust and dirt drifted down from the ceiling as the loud blast of explosions rippled through the earth.

Najeem led the way out as he climbed up the ladder and peered out of the trapdoor. He hopped up and started pulling people up as fast as he could.

Seang Was the last up and closed the door just as the ground suddenly indented from the tunnel collapsing.

In the moonlight, they all stared in horrified awe as bright glimmers from thousands of fire lances fell on the charging horde of Khongirats.

The steppe warriors flew the black banner of their Great Khan as they ran circles around the Nikan infantry.

“We need to leave. Now.” Seang turned just as a block of heavily armored horsemen crested over the hill behind them.

“Scouts!” one of them shouted in Nikan, “Kill the horse fuckers!”

Najeem was the first to strike, leaping from a shadow and hijacking one of their horses. The Asasiyun slashed another one across the throat.

Seang unleashed a flash of light when he wasn’t looking, blinding the men and spooking the horses. She pulled one man off his horse and mounted his steed in the chaos.

Though, responding to the ambush didn’t go as smoothly for others.

Shakti nearly got her head sliced off by a glaive, if it weren’t for Vai pulling her to the ground.

Seang started to pull Shakti onto her horse, but abandoned it as a detachment of horse archers from the Khongirats came into view. Arrows flew at them and the Nikan skirmishers indiscriminately.

The skirmishers, eager to close the distance, charged at the archers.

Kameko created a small orange light between her hands before sweeping her arms apart, the light exploding into flames that drew a circle around them and diverting the horses away, preventing them from getting trampled.

Shahla squeezed her eyes shut and spread her arms as the marks on her eyes glowed silvery white. The clash surrounding them died down until the horses were merely trotting on their own, their riders dazed or staring off into nothing.

“We’re going towards the Khongirats!” Seang shouted, “Follow me!”

Kameko extinguished the flames surrounding them as they escaped the frozen skirmish. The further away they got, the more of them woke in confusion and started fighting again.

Flaming arrows and fire lances filled the night sky with orange light like stars. The ground rumbled with the trampling of hooves and boots. Seang’s ears were filled with the cries of men and clashing of steel.

Heading right towards the Khongirats themselves would likely be a poor choice, given that Kameko was Nikan. But the other direction led straight back to the Empire.

The battlefield was vast, proportional to the massive grasslands of the steppe. Finding a place to hide wouldn’t be easy. So instead, they just ran until they couldn’t continue on.

When they were far enough from the fighting, Seang slowed down.

“Vai, where’s west?” she asked.

Vai looked up at the sky, pausing for a moment. He muttered to himself, hastened by the present danger of the expanding battlefield, “Akau is Northeast.” he raised his open hand to the sky, “Twenty degrees from the horizon. Twenty-two days have passed...orient to Hokulea…” Vai pointed off a bit to the left, “That’s west.”

“Najeem, we should travel by shadow.”

“I can only take us until sunrise. Not a lot of things to create shadows out here.” Najeem said. He sank into the ground, taking everyone else with him.

Shakti let out a sigh of relief, “That was...well, it wasn’t Xinhou. But at least in Xinhou, one of the armies didn’t want to kill us.”

“Let’s get as far from here as we can before sunup.” Vai agreed.

Seang huffed, “With any luck, this’ll be the last battlefield we see for a long time.”

___________________________________________________________________________

Taya staggered to her feet in a daze after failing twice. She wasn’t injured, but they had still knocked her unconscious. Despite being unable to sustain any real damage, it was still entirely possible for her to move so violently her consciousness flittered.

But it was incredibly difficult to make that happen, whether it be falling through the air or receiving a blow to the head.

She heaved like a dog with each breath as she tried to reorient herself.

“Bjorn!” she called out, her voice scraping against the insides of her throat, “Ruhak! Peng! Cecile!”

Her cries went unanswered.

“Gustave!” she shouted, hoarseness creeping into her voice. “Anyone!”

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Taya stumbled about aimlessly, her blood pounding like a thousand drums in her ears. Her constant whipping around of her head to scan her environment certainly didn’t help her head trauma.

Despite all this surveillance, she hadn’t noticed the profane stench in the air until a good while after awakening.

The cawing of crows and raven registered to her ears.

She drew in a breath, accompanied by an epiphany.

Crimson stained the dirt under her feet. Bodies lay splayed out, torsos carved open like a buffet for the carrion birds. Refugees and Duskbreakers alike had been massacred by the princes and his Bane Knights.

For the first time in a long time, panic was allowed to course through Taya, if even for a millisecond.

They were all dead. Who knows who would be amo-

NO! They’re alive. Bjorn and the rest are alive. They have to be.

And if they weren’t?

Taya grimaced at her own question. If they aren’t...I’ll start anew. I’ll have to.

“The crows come for everyone someday.” A baritone female voice muttered wistfully.

“It’s a rare occasion that you ever speak.” Taya said, turning to her Shedim.

“I rarely ever need to.” it said.

The Phantom Queen walked among the bodies of the dead like a maiden in a spring field if giddiness could be replaced by a sort of...kind acceptance that death invoked in the best of circumstances.

“My kin feed on everyone someday.” the Queen said.

“You mentioned.”

“But this day, they will not lay their beaks into your allies.”

Taya narrowed her eyes, “I don’t trust anyone who claims to know the future.”

“That is a wise disposition. Fate needs no mouth to convey itself to the enemy. But this is not fortune telling. I know all who die in battle and slaughter. They pass through me before going to...wherever it is, death leads. Likely blackness. But none of your friends passed through me.” the Queen said. “I would dare to guess that prince took them prisoner.”

Taya let out a small sigh of relief. “Why would they be taken prisoner?”

“I couldn’t know, child.”

“Don’t call me that. I’m more than the girl in the woods who wanted to starve.” Taya growled.

“I know. But you have yet to complete your bond.” the Queen said, “Though to your credit, you are closer than any human my kind has come in contact with before. Push through this. Refound the Companies and you will be on the cusp of the final stage of our bond.”

“I thought I already unlocked Bonemerging.” Taya looked at her Shedim with confusion.

“I said Bonemerging was as far as any other human had gotten. There is a stage beyond it that both my kind and yours have yet to witness. However, in the meantime, I can offer you another ability. The last element of mine you’ve yet to master is Death.”

“Will it help me rescue my friends?” Taya asked.

“Likely not.”

Taya huffed, “Forget it. I don’t have time to be learning new powers right now. I’m going to have to-” she cut herself off as a quiet thunk reached her ears.

“You’re going to have to what?” the Phantom Queen asked.

Did you hear that? She thought.

The Queen shook her head, “An enemy?”

Taya waited as she heard the creak of a bowstring drawing back. As it loosed, she whirled around and caught the arrow before throwing it back at the hidden archer.

A hooded, nimble figure rolled out of the surrounding woods and flawlessly assumed a solid stance with a knocked arrow.

Taya narrowed her eyes when she saw the bright green mark on the attacker’s face glowing under her hood. The woman glanced down at her leg, which was glowing violet.

The figure let her bow return to its undrawn position but didn’t lower it. “Hm. I took you for a Bane Knight.” The woman spoke Koini with an Eastern accent.

“Who are you?” Taya asked.

“I could ask the same of you.” the woman muttered. “Who are you to Gongsun Guanyu, and where can I find him?”

Taya’s eyes flicked to her claymore, half buried in the dirt., “I’d like to know the answers to those questions myself.”

“Either you will tell me where he is or you will point me to someone who can.”

Taya then decided she didn’t need the claymore. She merely raised an eyebrow. “Or?”

“Or you die.” the woman growled.

“How about this ultimatum: either you leave me alone or we both help each other find the prince.”

“And let you lead me into a death trap?” the woman scoffed. “Fine. You’ve made your choice.”

In rapid succession, the woman loosed three arrows at Taya. Taya infused her skin with power as two of the arrows shattered on contact with her eyes and she grabbed the last one right before it pierced her throat.

The woman stood with her mouth agape as Taya kicked her claymore into her hands.

“So how about that offer, huh?” Taya asked, “Since it seems yours isn’t really working out for either of us.”

The woman glared at Taya, but slowly stowed away her bow and returned her next arrow to one of two quivers she wore on her hip. She lowered her fur-lined hood to reveal the face of a young, golden skinned woman barely of age. She had the narrow eyes of an easterner and a more angular face, which differentiated her as Khongirat from the Nikan. A head of dark silky hair cascaded down her back over a light layer of lamellar armor.

“Sila Ucar.” the woman pointed at herself.

“Taya Sergeyev. Good...well, not that bad to meet you. But that still doesn’t tell me why you tried to kill me or why you’re even here. You’re a long way from Khongira.” Taya said.

“I could say the same about you, Sklaveni.” Sila said, “Gongsun Guanyu passed through here. He caused this bloodshed. Where did he go?”

Taya narrowed her eyes. “What do you want with the prince?”

Sila knelt down in the dirt by a set of hoofprints, ignoring Taya.

“I asked you a question.” Taya towered over the Khongirat woman.

Sila sighed before standing, “If you wish to know my story, will you tell me why you’re here and what happened?”

Taya nodded, “Fair enough. I’m a Shedim Master. The prince and his sister captured my allies, who are like us after slaughtering these refugees. He’s been hunting us for a few months now.”

Sila clenched her fists. “All that bastard cares about is his glory. Look, if we don’t find your friends soon, they’ll be too far for you to help them. I’ll help you find them if I get the prince.”

Taya frowned. “You can find him?”

“I’ve been tracking him for years now. I know how he thinks.” Sila muttered.

Taya hesitated, considering her options. People after revenge for that long were dangerous to both themselves and others. It was very possible she might end up sacrificing Bjorn and the others for her own vengeance. Then she remembered the Scars on her face.

“You’re a Shedim Master as well, aren’t you?” Taya asked.

“What’s that?” Sila asked.

“The mark on your face, it gives you power, right?”

“You mean the Baianai?”

“If that’s what your people call them, sure.” Taya said, “But I suppose I can accept your help. But under one condition. I help you learn to use those powers.”

With a Shedim, it would be tight, but perhaps Taya could help Sila along her journey enough to make her care at least a little less about Guanyu.

“Fine with me. The prince has an ironclad ship awaiting him in Dimale. We should make haste.”

“Now hold on.” Taya grabbed Sila by the shoulder as she tried to start down the path she’d decided on. “You still haven’t answered my question about you. Who are you? What do you want?”

Sila glanced at Taya with a deathly cold stare that would’ve sent shivers down anyone else’s back. But Taya refused to even flinch. “You seem like you already know what drives me. I wish to kill Guanyu for all the destruction he has wrought. Now then, let’s go before they pull too far ahead.”

As Sila ran off, Taya narrowed her eyes and muttered to herself, “We’ll see how badly you want to define yourself by the prince in a few days.”

_____________________________________________________________________

Gustave groaned in pain as he shook himself awake. He attempted to rub his weary eyes with his hands, but found them bound behind his back.

He yanked whatever tied his wrists to no avail.

“Yeah, I don’t think they would’ve made it that easy, tin can.”

Gustave looked up at the Hikupti, Ruhak, who stared at him with condescension in his eye. He and the rest of his lightning-spewing companions.

“Welcome back to the land of the living, Captain.” Cecile muttered, “It’s gotten a lot shittier since your last visit.”

Gustave took in more of his surroundings. Icy rain poured down on him. They sat in a cart, across from each other, all enclosed within an iron cage. Himself, Ruhak, Cecile and the Nikan man.

“Wait…” Gustave moaned, shaking more of his disorientation out of him, “Weren’t there more of you?”

“They didn’t catch Taya for God knows why.” Cecile said, “And Bjorn? Let’s just say you shouldn’t envy him.” She tilted her head to the horse behind their cart.

The Nikan princess they’d once held prisoner rode imperiously atop a brown mare, shielded from the rain by a makeshift covering attached to her saddle and holding a chain that leashed a stumbling and muddy Ascommani. His arms were bound by a yoke around his neck and his face was swollen to all hell.

“God almighty…” Gustave gasped.

“They considered bolting a metal ring through his cheek to attach the leash.” Ruhak said, “I think we should be thankful.”

“Thankful?” Gustave exclaimed, “This sort of dishonor is...it’s barbaric! You should-”

“Shut up, you white dog!” one of the Bane Knights snapped.

A tall, black stallion slowed to let itself match the cage’s pace. It was the prince’s steed. The young Nikan man wore shit-eating grin across his face.

“How are we this fine morning?” the prince asked.

“I’m not surprised this kind of gloom is preferable to you.” Gustave spat.

“Oh, did you hear that? He insulted my preference of weather! However will I go on?” the prince asked theatrically, garnering a chuckle from his subordinates.

“Why’d you even take him?” Ruhak gestured at Gustave with his chin.

“I have my reasons for taking each of you. And reasons for leaving your fearless leader behind.” Guanyu grinned, “The Ascommani, for the indignity he showed my sister during her captivity, will be given to her as a pet. The three of you will be more than enough to earn a title from my father. Hell, the Tiger himself only got his after one kill.”

“The Tiger?” Cecile furrowed her brow. An odd thing to focus on.

“Eh, it’s not important. What is important is how each of you should go. My good engineer here...well, I think I’ll leave you to the populous, since they’re who you betrayed.”

“The only people who’ve betrayed the people of Nikan is your dynasty of mass murderers and criminals.” Peng, the Nikan traitor, sneered.

“That’s every dynasty, smart guy.” Guanyu said, “The one before was worse when they lost their mandate. The one after us will be just as bad. For the general...hmm...I’m thinking either we dress him up in armor and put him on the front lines or we just make it simple and melt him in a bronze pot.”

Ruhak didn’t respond to the prince’s musings to convince the royal that he wasn’t affected. But Gustave could see the anxious movement of his fingers. These weren’t threats. They were very real promises.

“And for the girl? Well, we have a standardized method of dispatching the enemy’s women. We won’t kill you, but we will make sure you can’t fight back.”

“Oh, don’t sugarcoat it with your juvenile desire to be mysterious and shit.” Cecile spat, “You’re gonna send me to one of those whore houses you have on the fronts and either fuck me to death or eat me when you run outta food.”

Guanyu flinched.

“Word gets around when you act like psychopaths.” Cecile sneered, “And honestly, you’ll be saving your men a bunch of trouble by just chopping my head off.”

“I don’t know where in that barbaric land of yours a woman of your lowly stature learned she could talk that way.” Guanyu shook his head in dismay before riding ahead.

Gustave scoffed, “Ironic how he calls us barbarians.”

“Yeah, it’s almost like calling everyone you don’t like a word like...oh, I don’t know, ‘pagan’, isn’t a great system to know the reality of situations.” Ruhak furrowed his brow.

“They’re going to boil you alive and that’s what you want to talk about?” Gustave asked.

“Well, it’s not like there’s much else to do.” Cecile sighed, “Let’s just hope Taya doesn’t take her sweet time getting here.”

Gustave frowned, “Hold on. You all plan to just sit around and wait for the Sklaveni?”

“Yeah. And?” Peng asked.

Gustave let out an empty laugh, “L-look...I don’t consider myself an expert in many things, but...you’ve been traveling with her for months, I would assume. And you’ve learned nothing?”

“What do you mean ‘learn’?” Cecile demanded, “Because I think we did learn how to summon magic ghosts from our bodies.”

“Yes! Yes, that’s exactly it!” Gustave exclaimed.

“What the fuck did I say about quiet?” The Bane Knight driving the cart smacked the cage bars with his sheathed sword, sending vibrations through each of the prisoners.

Gustave sighed and waited for the knight to pass before hissing, “You all have incredible powers. And yet you’re waiting around for Taya to come save you. She’s done more than teach you about your magic. Despite my own thoughts, she encourages you all to be self-sufficient. She wants you to be independent and strong on your own. She tries to foster your creativity and cohesion. Hell, if my men had a commander like her, they’d be able to escape any situation without Taya or magic.”

“What the fuck do you know?” Peng asked defensively.

“I know what I see. I’m a leader too. Just not a very good one. But her? She’s invested every moment she could into all of you. The least you can do is show her she built warriors, not dogs, who only act at the beck and call of their master.” Gustave muttered.

None of the others responded to him.

“Fine. Speak when you don’t want to be cowards anymore.” Gustave said, wincing at a kink in his shoulder. His arm was probably being pulled wrong.

Gustave looked behind him to check, but caught a glance at his shoulder beneath his shirt.

It was black as charcoal, marked by the Veil.