Six Hours Earlier
The convoy rolled to a halt at the edge of the Two Rivers' front yard. Dozens of vehicles idled as UNSC personnel and their allies from the twenty-first century disembarked. Some of the newer arrivals still struggled to adjust to Vahrian's strange surface and landscapes, though others had grown accustomed to its perspectives after repeated visits.
Still, no one could ignore the weight of what had come before—the battles that had scarred this place.
Among the soldiers was Koa, otherwise known as five.
"How's it going, Five?" Frederick-104 asked, his voice steady as Blue Team and Green Team split, moving to secure opposite flanks and give the nearby villagers space.
"Unfamiliar situation," Five replied, tone flat, eyes fixed on the descending sun.
Grace paused in polishing her combat knife and tilted her head toward him. "Unfamiliar how?"
Five hesitated before speaking. "My biological relatives. Blood kin."
Fred frowned. "You say that as if they aren't."
Five turned his helm toward the Blue Team second in command. "I don't mean it like I don't care, Fred. It's just… Strange. Standing before my siblings and my mother—I don't know what to say to them."
Before anyone else could weigh in, Spartan Tedra stepped forward, placing herself beside Velvin-121.
"Maybe it feels strange because it's still new to you," she offered. "But take it from me, I lost my family at a young age. My parents' sides were split by bad blood for years. Only my mother's insistence finally forced them to reconcile. My point is… It takes time to mend family ties. Don't expect it overnight."
Though she may be youngest one in the group of the older generations, the forty year old tedra's words carried a weight that struck home. Five understood. Rebuilding something lost for so long would take more than a single meeting.
"In some ways, you're right," he admitted, his visor turning toward the distant figures of his mother, Nalia, and Jane Harrow, deep in conversation. "Truth is, I almost hoped the fighting would continue so I wouldn't have to deal with this."
Velvin, seated on a boulder near Chief, looked up from cleaning his visor. "There's a first time for everything. Took me two and a half years to reconnect with my family."
"You too?" Five asked, curiosity breaking through his usual reserve.
Velvin smiled faintly. "Yeah. Two sisters, one brother, six cousins. Back when Arcadia was glassed in '49, I thought they were all dead. When I found out some had survived, I didn't know how to face them."
Kelly lowered her shotgun and leaned forward, her voice teasing. "We met your niece earlier. She looks just like you did when you were young, just not as ugly."
Velvin groaned. "I'm not that bad. Besides, I heard a certain someone's been seeing you, Kelly."
Five chuckled quietly at the exchange, but his amusement earned quick glances from John and the rest of the team.
"I wasn't ready for that," he muttered, trying to deflect. "So—who's the lucky man?"
Kelly had wished she had stayed behind on Trevelyan for this was what she feared, that her spartan brothers and sisters would evantually find out about her first love life. From her side she could swear that grace was smirking despite her head concealed inside her helmet.
However, she answered Koa's question with a merely professional response. "Kasey Vander. He's a law enforcement officer on Trevelyan. Good man." Kelly mentioned to Koa, observing that the others were paying close attention, as this was an unusual situation for them. "I Used to work with him for a short time, before John called us all back together."
"Lucky man," echoed a familiar voice. Miranda approached, three children trailing at her side.
At once, the Spartans straightened. Behind the Vice Admiral walked several others, including a courtly Nahara holding a scroll sealed in crimson wax.
Miranda stopped before Five, resting her hands on two of the children's shoulders. "You've met Morgan. These two are Daley and Jacob Keyes."
Jacob gave a nervous wave. "Hello!"
"Hello, Jacob." Five inclined his head, his massive frame looming over them. Then he turned toward Daley, who shrank back under his gaze.
He knelt, his voice gentler. "You must be Daley. Morgan has spoken about you and your brother."
"Yes, sir. I—I mean… Dad."
The word caught him off guard. For the first time in years, Five faltered.
Miranda smiled softly at the moment. "I've told them about you, Koa. They've always wanted to know who their father was. I waited until it was the right time to tell them."
"I see," Five murmured, rising back to his full height. "Last time I saw you three, you were only a month old. I'm glad to see you've grown well."
Grace broke the tender atmosphere with a grin. "They take after their parents."
Five ignored her, his visor settling on Daley again. He'd spotted the bandage on her hand before she tucked it quickly into her jacket.
"What happened?" he asked.
"It's nothing," Daley mumbled, avoiding his eyes.
Grace chuckled. "Tell him, kiddo. He won't be disappointed."
Daley swallowed and admitted, "A girl at school poured… waste in my locker. She and her friends mocked me, insulted me, so I fought back. Punched her, broke another's nose, and—kicked the boy where it hurts."
Silence. Daley braced herself for anger.
Instead, Five only said, "At least you won the fight. That's what matters. Though your mother may see it differently."
"Yeah, I do," Miranda interjected, irritated. "But that's not the point. We have something more urgent."
At that, the Empress Nahara stepped forward, scroll in hand. Hannah Lopez made space for her.
"This message," Nahara said, offering the sealed parchment, "was given to me by a friend in Everolden. Evidence links those who visited that kingdom to my granddaughter's kidnapping. I ask you, Spartan—bring her home."
"I'll do so, ma'am," Five replied, already analyzing her words for hidden meaning.
Before he could move, Nahara clasped his armored forearm. "Take this scroll to Lady Pelkan. She must read it."
"Why not send it yourself?" Five asked.
"We've had our… differences," the empress admitted. "She'll tell you why."
Five studied the scroll, then nodded. "I'll deliver it. No promises she'll read it."
"She will," Nahara said firmly, bowing her head. "May the light guide you."
Turning from her, Five's gaze swept across the gathered faces—his comrades, his siblings, his children.
"It's good to see you all again," he said at last, his voice steady.
Miranda huffed a quiet laugh at his dry farewell. Grace tossed him a weapons case, which he caught instinctively.
But before he could depart for the waiting Pelican, Rose, his sister, called his name. She stood with their mother and two more siblings.
"Hello, Rose. What do you need?" he asked, his tone unreadable.
Her voice trembled, though her words did not. "So that's it? You're just leaving again?"
"Yes."
Rose's face fell, but Sandra—his mother—stepped forward. "Koa." She struggled, but finally raised her necklace and pressed it into his palm. "Take this. Please."
He closed his fist gently around it. "No need," he said, but she smiled through tears.
"Thank you, son."
Kathy threw her arms around him in a sudden hug. His hand came up awkwardly, patting her back—too firmly. She yelped, and he pulled back. "Sorry. I forget my strength."
Elizabeth followed with her own hug, joking, "Take care, thirteen-minute."
Confused, Five tilted his head until Sandra explained with a faint smile, "She was born thirteen minutes before you."
At last, he nodded. "It was good to speak with you. I must go now."
"Goodbye, son. Come back safe."
"Goodbye, Koa!" the sisters called as he boarded the Pelican, leaving them behind once more.
__________
Shortly after the five departed for Everolden, four small silhouettes slipped through the shadows, stealthily weaving past soldiers from all three centuries.
At the front was a girl with raven-black hair, moving with the quiet confidence of a leader. Behind her crept her siblings and one unlikely companion, their breaths held as a dozen soldiers rumbled past in a UNSC Warthog.
Suddenly, the girl froze mid-step. The halt was so abrupt that the others nearly collided into her.
"What the hell, Morgan!?" Jacob hissed, rubbing his nose where it had bumped her shoulder.
Thanks to their augmentations as children, he'd nearly forgotten how unyielding his sister's body was.
"Oh, quit your whining, Jacob. Stay quiet unless you want every soldier in this place on us," Morgan murmured sharply.
Daley poked her head from behind Jacob's shoulder. "How far are we from the stealth ship, sis?"
Morgan didn't answer right away. Her eyes scanned the landing fields, searching intently for the one ship she had marked in her mind. Then her expression lit up with triumph.
"Yes. There it is," she whispered, pulling back into cover.
"Why exactly am I here with you humans?" Aurelia, the elven teenager, asked in a low, uncertain voice.
"Because, Aurelia," Jacob muttered, "you're the only one we know who won't snitch on us."
"Snitch?" Aurelia frowned, clearly confused. "What does that mean in your tongue?"
Daley smirked. "It means you won't tell anyone about what we're doing."
"Oh." Aurelia nodded slowly in understanding.
Morgan's voice cut in, firm but quiet. "Alright, enough chatter. Three of you—keep it shut."
They all looked to her as she peeked out again. There, about thirty feet ahead, sat the sleek vessel she had chosen for their escape. Its dark frame stood out like a beacon of opportunity.
"Okay," Morgan breathed, turning back to the others. "This is it. Are you ready? This might be our only chance to sneak away unnoticed."
The three glanced at each other, then nodded in unison.
Aurelia hesitated for only a heartbeat before smirking. "This may be the first time I defy my mother's rules... but I say to hell with it. I'm with you."
A dangerous grin tugged at Morgan's lips. "Glad you're in, Auri."
The elf gave her a wary look but followed as Morgan rose from cover. With the coast momentarily clear, they crept across the open ground toward the hangar.
When they reached the back entrance, Morgan gestured urgently. "Inside—quickly!"
Daley hurried Aurelia forward when the elf stumbled on her feet. "Come on, move!"
They scrambled aboard, but just as Morgan reached for the control to seal the hatch, a shout rang out.
"Hey! Stop! Get out of my ship!"
A marine—the ship's pilot—had spotted them. His food clattered to the floor as he sprinted toward the vessel.
Morgan's heart pounded, but instead of panicking, she gave him a weak, almost mocking smile, lifting a hand in a tiny wave just before the hatch sealed shut between them.
Bang! Bang! The sound of fists hammered against the outer hull.
"Jacob! Hurry it up!" Morgan shouted as her brother threw himself into the pilot's chair, frantically working the unfamiliar controls.
"I'm working on it!" Jacob snapped back, hands flying over the dashboard. Then, with a sudden flick of switches and a pull of the lever, the systems roared to life. His eyes lit up. "Ha! Got it!"
He spun around in the chair with a grin. "Strap in, folks!"
"Just fly the damn thing!" Morgan barked as she strapped herself in beside Daley and Aurelia.
Unbeknownst to Jacob, as he pushed the throttle forward, the stealth ship rose into the night sky—carrying four young rebels into an adventure none of them truly understood.
__________
Meanwhile, during the four kids travel on air within the stealth-ship, only one seems to have trouble attending to her current situation.
Aurelia stumbled slightly as she was not prepared for Jacob's decision to accelerate the ship, while he ensured it remained at a safe distance from the Pelican occupied by his father.
"Jacob could you fly any safer!?" A Distasteful Morgan told her brother.
Jacob, on the other hand, responded to her without showing much concern for her anger, as he ultimately complied with her wishes. "You said to keep up with dad, I'm doing exactly that!"
Morgan proceeded with careful steps to maintain her balance effectively. With a hand on his seats head, Morgan stared down at the plain land beneath them.
The her eyes went over to the holographic map. At just a few thousands feet from their ships current location, she could see the very Pelican her dad was in.
"It Looks like dad is not so far from where we are." Uttered Morgan turning her head back to where she saw Daley stepping forward.
Daley and Aurelia both stared at the blinking dot on the holomap, one mind thinking where her father is going to the other unfamiliar with what she was seeing.
"Is this some sort of map that you sky people use to locate your prefer destination?" Aurelia said in an inquiry who was still new to the ways of her new friends people works.
"Yes." Answered Jacob who with one hand tapped on a button. "Think of this one as a map. You know, instead of it being a piece of map on a paper, these type however, is of a technology far beyond the that of the ones you and your people are used to."
Aurelia tilted her head in bewilderment, her mind in mere awe of how the holomap zoomed in on the exact location that her friends dad was in.
"Does your father know that we are following after him?"
Both Daley and Morgan stared at each other for a moment after they've heard her.
The Morgan being the bearer of the bad news spoke up in response to the elven girl. "No, he doesn't. But let's hope he does not find out about it either."
Her brow furrowed, and her expression changed to one of confusion at the her friend's words. "So I presumed that your father is not aware that we are quietly trailing him?"
"Yes." A Casual Daley answered as she went back with Morgan following after her.
"Come on auri!..." Morgan called out to her. "We need to go suit up for the trip."
Seeing that Jacob is doing well on his own, Aurelia turned and trekked after the two sisters. "I Could've brought with me my bow, if we had enough times."
"I Know." Replied a nonchalant Morgan as she and the elf ducked underneath a metal pole of the ship. "But the armor we have might have enough for us to bear."
Aurelia stared down at herself, she tapped on her tunic long sleeve shirt. Tattered, dirty and unfavorable for the eyes to see. "I Guess you guys are right. So what exa-Wow!"
When the three girls entered another section of the ships extra room, Aurelia just ceased in her steps, eyes set on the numerous clothings, armors and weaponry's, all of which were seen hanging on the walls.
As she strolled forth, she saw how everything wasn't falling so easily, especially with the slight bump she felt just by standing on the solid metal floor of the stealth ship.
"How are this things not falling!?"
Daley reached up, hand already snatching an armor she eyed before stepping through the entrance. "Looks like this baby is mine."
Morgan who was next to her sister only commented in jest to her sibling. "You'd always loved the combat medic armor... Are you sure you want that one for this task huh sis?"
Daley glanced over to her sibling. "At least I have something to like. You on the other hand only prefers gloomy and dead things."
A regretful face appeared on Morgan's face. "Gloomy, yes. Dead no. Second, you are the one that went goth girl for at least a year."
Daley stripped an extra Mag into her Mc6 pistol slapping it on till she heard a click. "In all fairness, that was a long time ago, before I entered my seventh year in middle school.... I was just living it up during my young years!."
"Technically you are still considered young!" Jacob's voice resonated from the speaker located in the upper right corner of the armory chamber.
"Forgive me for my dissatisfaction of your people's weapons of choice." Aurelia spoke out while she scoured the walls with small amounts of weapons hanging there. "But, I am well more better in the hand of a bow, or at least a spear or sword."
The Two sisters, Morgan and Daley stopped what they were doing and stared at one another, then Daley made the first attempt by tapping on the uncertain Aurelia.
"Come on, I think I have something that'll at least earn that interest of yours auri!"
Aurelia was about to question the enthusiastic Daley on her assertion, but Morgan just waved for her to follow as the already well prepped sisters led the way.
Aurelia and the two siblings walked over to another section of the weapons room. After receiving a free allowance from her sister, Daley gladly accepted Morgan's gesture and walked over to a trio of small, rectangular windows that were six feet in size. She then raised one hand and pressed a small button, causing all three of their heads to move to the present that was in front of them. Aurelia, who was in awe of the beauty, grabbed one of the three sets of bows within four seconds.
The young elven girl's eyes shone with admiration as she swiftly turned her head to the side. "This is an amazing bow, and the strings to it don't actually break so easily, it's as if it isn't so fragile!"
With her arms crossed, eyes shone with satisfactory pride, Morgan went and grabbed the two quivers filled with various distinctive arrows. "Here, your gonna need this two girls with you knife ear."
Aurelia, disregarding the jest from her friend, graciously accepts the quivers as a token of gratitude for the offer. "So how long until we move in to the lands. Cause in case you've forgotten, the people's within the region of where Everolden is, are very territorial to those that aren't from their lands... They'll try and even shoot us down without a second thought."
Just then, in an answer to Aurelias avowal of affirmation, the metal floor in which they stood on suddenly shifted; Causing almost all three of them to nearly lose their footings.
Jacob's voice comes through the speaker again, but this time the three girls can tell he's not his usual self and sounds really upset.
"Heads up guys." Jacob said expanding the holographic red dot of something firing at him. However, his eyes sped over to a second occurance. "Shit! everybody hold onto something!"
"What's going on!?" Questioned a slightly fearful Aurelia.
Unfortunately the elven girl was ignored when Daley snatched her by the edge of her tunic and pulled both of themselves at a metal pole.
Meanwhile Morgan on the other hand was sliding down the floor as the ship was forced to fly downward at a straight line. "Jacob!" Yelled Morgan knowing her brother could hear her. "Whats going on!"
A Loud boom similar to that of an explosion occurred once every moment as the ship continues to dodge the two hostiles behind the ship. Yet, even with the two newly arrived Foes, Jacob couldn't ignore the turret that was below ground.
"Shit, I can't dodge them. There's far too many problems for me to deal with!"
"Can't you shoot it down!" Uttered Daley in suggestion.
"If I did, the turret from below ground Will get me before the ship could even fire back at the two dragon riders!" A Harried Jacob replied back.
"Any big guns on this thing!?"
"Yes. But in case you've forgot, if we shoot one of this things down, it'll start a conflict between the unsc and whoever the hell this people are!"
As Jacob continues in a great effort of avoiding each and every Attacks from the dragon riders, Aurelia, Morgan and Daley hurriedly made their way over to the pilots seat.
Aurelia veered her head over to the outside of the pilots windshield. Her eyes widened for she was shocked to see who were flying alongside the ship.
"Those are the Dwarven riders of the queen pelkan and king zelnoth of everolden!" Spoke the elven girl in mere shock.
"And! Are they bad or good!?" Jacob said to her.
"What kind of stupid question is that!?" Inquired Morgan pure disbelief of her brother's dubious question.
"Im not sure why. I've only read about the Dwarven queen and her husband through the tales of others... However, I am certain that this isn't what she want to welcome someone within her kingdom!!!"
Aurelia screamed out in a surprising fear due to the sudden change in the ship when Jacob forcefully steered the entirely of the ship right.
Daley and Morgan stared over to their brother, both sisters readying to reprimand him of his foolery, as they clearly wanted to rebuke him of his action... However, they didn't get the chance to do so, as right outside of the ship window, an extremely large fire, around the same size of a small three story apartment shot forth directly at the three of them.
Immediately acting out of instinct, Jacob shifted gear whereas the stealth ships thrusters faced forth with its end. Right as it did, aircraft shot out at another direction in the left. The third dragon that had drawn the immense fireball veered it's whole body to the right, the rider on top of it lash at the the beast, commanding it to fly after the metal beast.
The rider's mount, notably it's scarred and battle hardened dragon dwarfed it's two cousins. Wings as wide as two school busses stacked together spread outward as it flew after it's target. It's lower mouth opened, bright light of fiery orange and red beginning to light out every seconds.
"Jacob!" Daley said letting out a scream of her brother's name, her hands tightly gripping onto his right shoulder.
"Can't you do anything other then avoiding this thing!?" Uttered a fearful Morgan.
Just the mere mention of his sister suggestion caused something within him to light up like a light bulb in his head.
"Yeah, there is!"
As large as the dragon was that is infront of them, the stealth-ship, otherwise known as the D102-Owl quickly flew left greatly dodging another gigantic breathe of fire. In its lack of armaments, the owl made up for its speed and camouflage ability, an ability of the ships that the pilot himself had forgotten to remember in their times of desperate evasion of their pursues.
On the other hand, the dragon riders believed they had cornered their prey and had finally captured the flying metal beast. Fortunately, the dragon riders' leader believed she had the metal beasts under control with her mounts' massive firepower... To their astonishment and disbelief the metallic creature was not only much faster than they had anticipated, but it also rendered itself invisible, effectively hiding from their sight.
One dragon rider, her lieutenant drifted towards the woman with her own mount. "Ma'am. The creature it has disappeared, what are your orders, should we chase after it?"
The woman herself hadn't spoken first yet, for she was still scouring the skies for any signs of that metal beast. "No, we shall not pursue it any longer. It is far too fast for our dragons to catch up to."
A Second rider, this one a Dwarven man, hair bushy and braided neatly into two braids. Eyes filled with unrelenting determination. "As much as I wish to chase after the metal beast ma'am, I'm afraid you are right on this matter. I've never come face to face with such a creature that can outfly my green girl here." The Dwarven man says tapping his mount by her scaled kneck.
The lieutenant had joined her leader in scouring the skies with her own eyes, and seeing that nothing of the metal beast trace was in their sight, she evantually had given up. "Ma'am, what now?"
The woman saw both her soldiers looking over to her for their orders. For a small chance she wanted to continue on in other tasks in patrolling their skies. "We shall return back to the dragon fortress and give rests to our mounts, they've spent enough time for the past hours flying. It's time we reward them of the slumber they earned."
"As you wish ma'am!" Both riders responded.
However to her expectations, the woman saw the dwarf letting out a dare to his other companions, where both riders challenged one another in a race back to the fortress.
The woman let out a subtle chuckle, she basically raised them from a young age since their first years as cadets. As someone of her roles, she could've reprimanded them of their tomfoolery, but chose to not do so, for she knows that everyone deserves a time of fun every now and then.
Looking down at her dragon mount, she reaches down and tapped him by his scale. "You ready bud, let's show those two who the real winners of the circles are, shall we."
Instead of using its telepathy to communicate with the rider, the dragon nodded knowingly to his rider. And with it, it's enormous wings spread outward and then flapped harshly against the winds like a clap in the thunderstorm.
_______
Everolden
The night had dragged into uneasy silence since the disappearance of Five. Morgana, Carly, and their companions lingered at the edges of the port town, their senses sharpened, though no threat had yet presented itself. The sea air was thick with the salt of tides, and lanterns swinging along the docks gave the cobblestone streets a restless glow.
Though the town was calm on the surface, each member of the group carried tension like a hidden weapon. For Carly, that meant keeping one hand tight against her coat pocket where Deha rested. The A.I.'s light hummed faintly, blue pulses threatening to betray her presence. Carly cupped her palm against the fabric whenever someone passed too close.
The others knew about Deha now, but Carly still trusted no one beyond her immediate circle. Secrets, once exposed, had a way of spreading like wildfire. And Carly had no intention of giving certain eyes in the city reason to probe deeper.
Of course, Deha had her own ideas about silence.
"Boy, if I had a nose," came the bright, muffled voice from Carly's coat, "I'd definitely hate to smell the inside of this pocket, Ms. V—"
"Cut it, Deha." Carly's tone was calm, but her words were edged like a blade. "You are permitted to use my first name, nothing more. Stick with it."
There was a pause. Then the A.I. responded with cheerful defiance. "As you wish, Ms. Carly. Though, if you don't mind my boredom, might I ask where exactly we're heading?"
"Somewhere safe," Morgana interjected before Carly could respond. Her voice was smooth, commanding without being raised. "Far away from the tavern. Far away from more foolishness."
"Foolishness?" zallar spat. The dwarf's beard bristled as his voice carried its usual gravel. "Those damn Balians brought it on themselves! Everything was fine until that old bastard lit the first spark!"
"I don't blame you for your anger," Melvinia replied, her elven features composed despite the edge in her words. "But grumbling will not aid us now."
Zallar turned his head sharply, as if dismissing her with a glance. Yet even he could not ignore the sting of truth buried in her calm tone.
"You're lucky your words hold weight, knife-ear," he growled. "Otherwise, I'd have no patience for your lectures. But that doesn't mean we should let those arrogant fools trample everyone beneath their false pride. They grow bolder by the day."
"They grow desperate, not brave," Melvinia said softly. "Desperation makes men reckless."
"We had no obligation to step in," Collon Graves spoke at last, his hands resting against the hilt of his weapon. "But Five chose to act. He chose to stand for those patrons."
"Five did what was right," Deha chimed in from Carly's pocket, her voice sharp with unshaken loyalty. "He acted when others did not. That should be remembered, even if we cannot undo what followed."
"Both of you—silence." Morgana's order cut through the growing argument. She slowed her pace, eyes narrowing, and the rest of the group followed suit.
Carly stepped forward, falling in on Morgana's left while Collin mirrored her on the right. "What is it?" Carly asked, scanning the street ahead.
Morgana lifted her chin, pointing toward the sound of commotion spilling down the thoroughfare. The group moved cautiously until the sight opened before them.
Dozens—no, hundreds—of townsfolk pressed shoulder to shoulder in the main street. Their voices rang out, some in cheer, some in awe, as a procession of horses and carriages rolled past. Lanternlight glinted off harnesses of polished steel, off banners swaying with gilded threads. The air was thick with dust and perfume, a strange mixture of celebration and submission.
"What in the hells is this?" Collon muttered, as they squeezed into an opening in the crowd.
Purlan, ever the light-hearted soul, clambered up a wooden fence with ease. Perched there, she swung her legs while her tiny winged creature fluttered clumsily onto her shoulder. Its wings, still growing, beat the air with determined effort before settling against her neck.
"They look like a parade," Purlan whispered, her eyes alight with wonder. "But for who?"
The others ignored her question, their gazes caught on the spectacle. Nobles leaned from carriage windows, tossing coin and flowers into the masses. Soldiers marched in tight columns, their spears gleaming like an iron forest. The crowd roared approval, though some voices carried the brittle note of obligation rather than joy.
Then Morgana stilled. Her expression sharpened, eyes narrowing on one carriage among the line.
Carly noticed immediately. "Morgan—what is it?" she asked, the unease in her gut stirring.
Morgana said nothing at first. Her gaze lingered, unblinking, on the sigil emblazoned upon the carriage's side. A crest of silver upon deep blue, crowned with the outline of an isle's fortress.
"That…" she finally whispered, her voice low enough for only her companions to hear, "is the Grand Duke of the Southern Isles."
The group reacted with varying shades of unease.
"The Grand Duke?" Collon's brows knit. "Here? What business would he have in a small port town like this?"
"Nothing good," Morgana said flatly. "His presence alone means something is stirring."
Zallar scowl deepened. "If the Duke's involved, then it means the Balians aren't just blustering anymore. They've got backing."
Melvinia's lips pressed thin. "Which means we may all be caught in a storm larger than we can see."
Deha, ever irreverent, hummed. "Well, isn't this exciting? Pocket smells aside, at least now I get to watch history unfold from here."
Carly pressed her hand firmly against the coat, muting the glow of blue light again. "Quiet, Deha. Not a word more."
But even as she said it, Carly's eyes lingered on the Duke's carriage, on the disciplined soldiers marching with him. A creeping realization clawed at her chest. The disappearance of Five, the Balians' arrogance, and now this—none of it was coincidence.
However, one misconception was what caught both the twenty sixth and twenty first centurie's attention.
Amongst one of the visiting royals and nobles alike, we're slaves. Slaves that were not so different then the regular ones on Vahrian, no, but what truly had drawn Carly's and collon's riveted attention was the familiar outfits or clothing they seem to bear in torn and tattered looks.
Those amongst the slaves was a woman who was pregnant, yet enduring in her times of suffering, the woman forced herself to walk with incoherent steps alongside those of her fellow slaves. A young man, no younger then twenty let out a grunt of pain after one of his capturers whipped him by his back.
Upon witnessing this, Carly's eyes widened in sheer disbelief, astonished by the occurrence unfolding before her.
She didn't know what compelled her to take a step forth, but thankfully, Collin who saw this stopped her before she could make a foolish mistake.
Pleased to see that Carly had gotten her bearings, Collin then glances over to morgana. "Do the kingdoms here still continue the practice of slavery?"
Morgan's eyes moved down to meet the man's own, she could tell by the looks on the two future and modern duos that they weren't used to seeing slavery being a normality in their worlds.
"Not all of them." Replied morgana who's mind flashes altogether with the whipping sounds of the slavers striking their new captures. "On some lands in Vahrian, slavery is abolished by many kingdoms and nobles... However, I cannot say the same for various ones who still relished in the suffering of others. One of them; is obviously the Balians and the kingdom of the southern isles."
"I DO not know why they are bringing brand new slaves here." Zallar says I utter hatred for the Balians and the kingdom of the southern isles. His fist tightening around the pole of the wooden fence. "They know that the lady pelkan herself does not condone this kind of behavior within her lands."
Melvinia's eyes winces as she saw one of the brand new slaves letting out a cryful scream as she was struck on her back, where she could only walk with a red mark. "I Can tell you why. The king himself, who was summoned by the emporor molt to retake alnus hill was slain in battle against the man in greens."
"What the elven girl spoke of is true." Morgana spoke agreeing with melvinia, as she also gotten the others attention. "In light of his passing, I believe that individuals from the neighboring kingdoms of Everolden have been persistently pressuring her for their own motives."
"And now with him gone, the snakes themselves have decided to make a move. Believing the now queen pelkan to be a weakened lass." Added zallar, for he knew that pelkan being a half dwarf was one of the many truth to it.
"And they won't be relishing for too long." Deha spoke, prompting her companions to glance at her with interest. "I've given those of the unsc folks at the Settlements a heads up about this. As well as the people in alnus Hill."
Collon who had heard the Ai veered his head at Carly, yet his main focus was Deha. "What, what do you mean. Have you contacted HQ on alnus?"
"Yes."