Crom smirked when the man asked if a mountain lion had caused the wounds. "No mate, it was something a bit larger..." He trailed off as the man worked on his injuries. "I don't know if you'd believe me if I told you." He laughed a bit. It felt good to get his wounds cleaned, and he had no doubt that he'd heal much faster now. As the man finished up on his shoulder he asked about Crom's other injury. Crom nodded, pulling his tunic off carefully so as not to irritate his newly wrapped shoulder. The wounds to his side were long closed, but likely still needed dressing. The mercenary shuddered as he looked down at his chest. The place where the werewolf's fist had connected was covered with a large blue-black bruise. He grimaced at the injury, seeing it was probably worse than he'd initially thought. "Can you do anything for this?" He said, motioning to the bruise. If the man could treat his shoulder wound, he almost certainly could handle his side, but the bruise was another matter entirely.

Alec listened intently as Boyd spoke. He was a bit surprised that they were entrusting him with a contingent of soldiers. Very rarely had any of his clients given him men to use. He'd have to inspect the force to know just what he was working with. He knew very little of the Arcartis, so their combat prowess was a complete mystery. He hoped they took orders well, at least. As the Marshal moved on to just what they would be doing a faint smile crossed Alec's lips. His gold canines protruded slightly from the corners of his mouth. So, it seemed Arcartus had some sort of unrest. He could handle that. The lord understood the mindset of a rebel, after all, he had taken the Reins nearly entirely in open rebellion himself. The lack of guidance regarding how he was supposed to deal with the threat was a definite plus. To often his clients would be very particular on the methodology that had to be used. He was glad the Arcartis seemed to be giving him free rein over the situation. The lord nodded. "You will not be disappointed, Marshal." The black clad man rose to his feet. "When will I be setting out?"

MILO

Milo froze, every muscle in his body tightened, "You can't be serious...." Milo trailed off. He'd be sent off to join this man in his operation? Milo felt sick all of a sudden. More importantly, he'd be split from the rest of the 33rd. After a moment, Milo shaped up, and regained his composure. "So, we'll be split up from each other?" Milo asked, quietly. He was staring straight ahead, trying his best to keep his stoic visage, but his concern was showing through in the form of a slightly shaking body. After everything Milo had been through in his life, simply going with Alec seemed to affect him more than any of it. The man made Milo feel uncomfortable on levels he had never really experienced before. When the man stared at you, he wasn't looking into your eyes, he was looking into your being. Thousands of thoughts ran through Milo's head, as he stood there beside his Captain.

SOAH

Soah frowned, and picked up the clothes from the ground, and then handed the sword to the girl. At this point, Soah just wanted to change clothes. "Now that our business is over, you can do whatever you like." Soah said, gruffly, as he headed into a nearby alley. Soah turned back to Adrian, for a moment, "Head to the tavern, I'll meet you there." He called back. Once he arrived in the alley, Soah quickly put on all the clothes given to him. They fitted much more tighter than he had anticipated, and disliked it immensely. Soah sighed, and ran his fingers through his hair. He looked around for a moment, seeing no one else in the alley. Soah collapsed to the ground, with his back pressed up against the wall. He was truly exhausted, still. As he relaxed his head against the stone side of a building, he closed his eyes. He could relax here, for a moment. Everything he had gone through in the past day had worn the man out. Not very many men get stabbed through the chest, twice, and live to tell the tale. Soah simply sat in the alley, lost in his own thoughts for a moment.

Loenn

---

The doctor was more than a little unnerved to hear an answer so in-line with his suspicions about the wound. Well, at the very least the man had to be pretty solid to be breathing where he was right now. Substantially more solid than his capacity to operate on a wounded man on such short notice. He wrapped the other cuts across Crom's body, feeding out spools of wrapping dabbed with antiseptic along the way. He stopped to consider Crom's chest for a moment, it was certainly a bad bruise and while there was little he could do about that other than tell the man to go lie in some snow, it did herald complications within. "Not much a man can do about cracked ribs, other than go easy on them. If you can breathe it ain't that bad, but I'm going to wrap your chest as well to keep pressure on them." He did as he said he would, and pulled a roll of bandaging around the wounded man's chest to fasten it tight, perhaps enough to cause discomfort for the first few minutes of wear until the pain dulled. "Maybe we shouldn't have hired a bunch of banged up wanderers but you look like you can take it. I prescribe a liberal application of alcohol." The man chuckled and closed his bag. "But really, go easy on yourself. Maybe take a walk to get your bearings; with any luck all we're doing is moving a single crate tonight."

Lieda

---

The man's smile unsettled him. The gold fangs were simply a step too far. What kind of man had he been told to cooperate with? At any rate, he'd be out of his office and doing whatever his vile trade entailed on the outskirts of the country soon. Then it was someone else who would have to sit and contemplate what they were doing. He rose to his feet with Alec, after finishing his glass of water, and walked over towards the door as he spoke. "Your orders are effective immediately, although obviously a preparatory phase of up to a week here in Lieda was expected, however, it is a generosity and you will find that your men have been made ready to leave as soon as you have concluded organizing them."

"It's serious." Maria said, no more okay with the turn of events than her lieutenant but not as shaken up. His quick recovery was admirable, but that was a guise any officer saw in their men day to day. She stood away from the wall, her soaked jacket leaving a wet spot where her shoulders had been which she casually brushed away. The effect she was seeing in one of her own officers now was the final word on her opinion of Alec Cross. Now, she dearly hoped the doors would soon open to a beaten Marshal Boyd. She realized where her thoughts were going, and stopped with an unsolicited and deep sigh. Here she was getting worked up about a warmonger and she couldn't even keep that in check. "Yeah," she said, eyes low. "Nobody likes it, but for right now it's got to be that way. Orders are orders, right?" Not a moment after she finished speaking, the door was flung open from within and Boyd stepped out, motioning for Cross to follow.

"Your company has been wonderful mister Cross, but for now I must leave you again in the care of lieutenant Ranier. He will see to it that you find suitable lodging tonight." Boyd smiled deeply, and gestured to the lieutenant, ignoring Trinan for the time being as he was happy simply to have a chance to be alone for a while. The scouts were the best suited to handle something like this, of course, that was why they'd been chosen as escorts.

Crom nodded as the man finished his work, pulling his tunic on over his bandages. "Thanks mate." Crom said, waving to the man as he left the room. The way the man talked, they'd be doing whatever they were hired to do later that night. Despite his exhaustion, Crom decided the suggestion of a walk sounded appealing. He stood up, steadying himself. He'd have to get used to the feeling of the bandages, but it was worth it to heal more quickly. He walked out the door, grabbing the bottle of wine which he had left on a table in the room. He walked out into the main portion of the inn, taking a swig from the bottle as he walked. He shuffled through a small crowd of people before sliding out of the building through the back door. The thick wooden door opened into an alley, which was slowly darkening as the sun sank in the sky. He took another gulp of wine as he turned to walk down the alleyway, seeking to find Johnathon and Griff. He froze when he realized who was sitting at the end of the alley. Crom stood where he was, unsure of what would be the best course of action. He had no intention of getting in another fight at the moment, but he imagined Soah wasn't overtly thrilled with being banished from their party.

Alec nodded to the officer. "Excellent. We will leave as soon as possible then." He was curious to see just how well-trained these Scouts were. As the Marshal opened the door, Alec followed him out, speaking as he walked. "A pleasure doing business with you, Marshal." Alec still had the same eerie smoothness to his voice. As he exited the office, he noticed Milo standing outside along with a woman in similar attire, who he imagined had joined the young Scout during the meeting. Alec turned to Milo and nodded. "Where are we off to now Lieutenant?"

MILO

Milo stood at attention, instantly taking on the full stoic image on his face, once the Marshal and Alec exited the office, "I will be showing you your lodgings for tonight, Mister Cross." Milo replied, his normally indifferent voice now slightly shaking, but not overly noticeable, "If you will follow me, I will take you to the carriage, and then to your lodgings." Milo said, his indifferent and professional voice now back in full. As Milo lead the way, he looked back at Maria. For only a split second, Milo's face turned to worry. Would he ever see his Captain, again? What exactly was their objective on this upcoming mission? Would he die? Would Alec end up killing him? Milo didn't want to go with the man, he'd rather go through all of training, again, but orders were orders, after all.

SOAH

As Soah relaxed, he could smell alcohol. Normally, the smell would just fade to him, but ever since Crom had thrown the stuff on his nose, he had figured out that the smell was now almost repulsive. Soah sighed, wondering if he'd ever be able to relax. Lazily, Soah turned his head where he could smell the the alcohol from. As soon as his eyes locked on Crom, Soah bolted up to a standing position. Several thoughts ran through Soah's head, many of them including beating Crom until the man passed out. Soah stared down the man, refusing to speak. Soah could feel the anger building in his body. Soah had spared the man's life, and Crom repaid him by sending him out into the wilderness, almost completely naked. Crom didn't seem to be in any kind of condition to carry out a fight with Soah. This would be the best moment for Soah's revenge. Soah's heart beated faster and faster, thinking of how he could twist Crom's face. After a moment, Soah spoke, "Come to kick me out of the town?" Soah called out, anger in his voice. Soah then spit on the ground in front of him, as if challenging Crom.

Son of a bitch, luck would fuck me again, wouldn't it? Crom thought, cursing to himself. He really wasn't looking for a fight. The werewolf had beaten him quite enough already. He watched as Soah bolted up to his feet and took an aggressive stance. Against his better judgement, he decided to try and take the peaceful road. There was the chance the lycan would just pounce on him, but he was willing to do whatever it took to avoid another conflict. He took a long drink from the glass bottle before swallowing and lowering it to his side. His other hand hung loosely at his waist. Because his cloak was back in the room, both hands were clearly visible. Crom made no effort to go for a weapon. Soah spit angrily and chastised him for kicking him out of the group. He knew the decision would come back to bite him in the ass, he just didn't think it'd happen so soon. Crom shook his head at the young man's statement. "No. Actually just was taking a walk." He spoke calmly. The bandage on his shoulder was clearly visible.

"Certainly," Alec replied. He noticed a slight quiver in the young man's voice for just a moment. It wasn't uncommon for people in other countries to be a bit uncertain about him, given his reputation. He wondered just what the young man had heard. The young man looked back to the woman who stood in the hallway. They seemed to both be from the Scouts, if their uniforms were any indication. Alec noted the brief flash of worry on the young man's face. He wondered just what the connection between the two was, but brushed it off for the moment. He had far more pressing matters to attend to. He continued following Milo through the Branch Office and out towards the carriage.

Soah instantly spat on the ground. "Go fuck a bag, Crom." Soah said, his voice heavy with poison. "Take a walk down another alley." Soah added, as he stood his ground. Soah was too exhausted for this, but he had felt this feeling before. Being constantly hunted, and always having to have your guard up taught you how to shut the exhaustion out and keep moving. Soah had transformed at least three times in the past half day, he had trekked through a mountain pass, and he had been stabbed in the chest twice. All he wanted was to lay down and rest, but here was Crom, showing Soah that letting the guard down for a moment was the wrong thing to do. Soah starting walking towards Crom. While Soah's stance was aggressive, he wasn't tensed up, as if ready to attack. Soah had no intentions of hitting, or killing, the old man at this point. Soah wasn't even for sure if he could swing a punch accurately at this point. "Just who the hell do you think you are, old man?" Soah spat, as he kept walking towards Crom.

As Boyd retreated back into his office, Maria held her position and prohibited herself the enjoyment of following along. There was always the responsibility to be better, and it started with discipline, regardless of how trivial it could be. She caught Milo's eyes as he turned around, and couldn't help but feel a small, painful bit of pity within her. It was a sadness that did not come easy, it was like losing one all over again. Milo was one of the good ones, although she came to believe that about all of her staff, and knew the truth was more often than not far darker. For now, he'd always been a good soldier. As her lieutenant left, she snapped a small, informal salute and called down the hallway, "Farewell Lieutenant. Make us proud," and with that turned away. She didn't want to be seen sulking, the image of the stoic captain had to survive even if her company didn't. The company came back to the forefront of her mind, she needed to find out who else was leaving before she could pack up and get back to work. There were papers that needed to be sent to Erschald, because she had already determined what she would be putting the remainder of her company to work on. Newly determined, or perhaps just frustrated, she went off down the hall in the opposite direction, to find some messengers.

Loenn

---

"Nothing in particular, no harm in having a look though." Griff said to Johnathon, heading off down the street towards the fort. Griff had seen the fort from the hills about the town and it didn't take the pair too long to find the market. The market was bustling and filled with stalls selling all kinds of goods imaginable. "I'm going to have a look around. I'll meet you back by the fort in a bit." Griff said, disappearing into the crowd before Jonathan could protest.

After a quick look around the market, Griff decided it was just like any other market and his time alone would be better spent looking around the rest of Loenn. He circled back around to where they had entered the market and went in search of anything that would be helpful. The nature of the town meant the layout was fairly simple. The wide roads rarely deviating from a grid like pattern, it was easy for Griff to memorise much of the roadway. Nearing the place where they had left the cart, Griff noticed Crom standing down an alleyway off the road. He began to make he day down the alley when he saw Soah walking towards Crom, spouting a tirade of insults. Griff ducked back out of the alley and onto the road, preferring to announce his presence once the werewolf was gone.

Crom sighed and took another gulp from his wine bottle. Soah was clearly not happy. He remained where he was, but made no hostile movement as the young man approached him. Crom pondered Soah's question for a moment. He wasn't really sure who he thought he was anymore. He was once a knight of Esterl, a man of honor. But those days were long passed. Now he was little more than a wanderer. He looked up at the young man after considering his reply for a moment. "An old drunk. And a traveler, like yourself." He said the words without even a hint of aggression. He was uncertain of his ability to defuse the situation, but he wouldn't go without trying. He took another sip from the bottle. He could feel a faint warmth in his stomach. Crom still made no effort to move, either to back away from Soah or to defend himself.

SOAH

Soah kept walking towards Crom, until he was inches away from the man's face. Soah butted his head up to Crom's, and stared at Crom. "Like myself? What the fuck do you know about me?" Soah said, gruffly. Soah clenched his fists, but made no move to throw a fist at Crom, "Why don't you stab me, again, old man? I'm just a monster, aren't I? You could end it right here. I won't even stop you. One fucking stab through my heart. I wouldn't even turn." Soah said, his voice rising, Secretly, Soah hoped the man would do it. Soah wouldn't always have to look over his shoulder, or go countless days without sleeping, anymore. He would be able to rest forever, then.

MILO

Milo heard Maria's words, and Milo felt a pang of sadness deep inside him. He would make them proud. He'd make them all proud. Milo led Alec outside, into the light rainfall, and towards the carriage. Milo kept silent, and kept his stoic facade up, for now. As the duo approached the carriage, the two scouts quickly gathered up things, and prepared to move out. Milo once again opened the carriage door, and stepped inside. Sitting in his previous spot. From here, they would travel to a small and quaint inn, which Arcartus had rented for the entire night, to prevent anyone else from coming into the inn. It would just be Milo, his two compatriots, and Alec, in the inn for the night. As Milo relaxed in the seat, he pulled out the brandy bottle, and eyed the glasses for a moment, before simply removing the cork, and taking a long swig from the bottle of fine brandy.

Crom stared into Soah's eyes as the young man got closer and closer to him, his words becoming more venomous as he went. Crom didn't flinch as the lycan stopped a few inches from his face. Crom shook his head as the werewolf finished his rant. "You look human enough to me, mate. Being a monster doesn't have anything to do with it." He sloshed the bottle of wine by his side. "I won't kill a man for no reason. I may not have much honor left, but I'll be damned if I throw it out the window over another man's sharp tongue." Crom narrowed his eyes at the young man.

Alec followed the young officer out to the carriage in silence. The light rain still poured from the sky. As they entered the vehicle, Milo grabbed the bottle of brandy, taking a long drink from it. Alec observed the lieutenant's action with invisible curiosity. It seemed he really was nervous. Whether it was being thrown under his command, or being separated from his comrade in the Office, Alec couldn't tell. The carriage began it's trek towards the inn. The lord stared out the window for a while before speaking. "So, Lieutenant Ranier, it seems you and some of your men will be joining me for a while. Tell me about the Scouts." Alec's voice was light, but still relatively disconcerting.

SOAH

Soah growled for a moment, half disappointed Crom didn't act, and half disappointed that Crom was taking the peaceful route in conversation, "Honor? You're a drunk old man who abandons naked men in the mountain wilderness." Soah said, his voice still rising. "Whatever honor you possessed died a long time ago, old man, that's if you ever even had it in the first place." Soah remarked, gruffly. "I have more honor than you. I wouldn't abandon a person on their own in the wilderness, no matter who it was, and I wouldn't let a person like Adrian go with a group of thugs." Soah added, as he released his tight clench on his fist. His anger was slightly subsiding, as he continued to glare at Crom, unblinkingly. Soah wanted to strike the man in front of him, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He might hate the man that stood in front of him, but he respected the old solider more than anyone else in his group.

MILO

Milo finished his swig of the bottle, corking it back up, and sitting it beside him. It was likely he would be drinking some of it, again. "The Scouts are among the most elite soldiers in the Empire. Trained to accomplish and carry out a wide variety of missions. Versatility and Adaptability are the calling cards of the Scouts." Milo said, almost disinterested now, with his voice. "Light infantry meant to act and succeed without any kind of support." Milo added. Speaking about the Scouts started to take him back to his training days, when he was a lot younger and more bright-eyed about his future. "Scouts serve without question from their superior officers, and have been taught that the word of officers are God's law." Milo finished, uncorking the brandy bottle and taking another long swig. It had been a while since he had any type of drink. It felt good. He could already feel himself starting to relax.

Adrian had made his way to one of the bigger taverns in the town, hoping that Soah would also find his way here. He sat at a table, with Sinette, looking over the room. Adrian sipped on a small cup of water, and was finally starting to relax. Everything that had happened over the course of a day ran through Adrian's head. He had come far from Aldrun, and had already made and ended friendships. Adrian took a look sip from his water, before turning and looking at Sinette, "So, why do you want to come with me and Soah, again?" Adrian asked. The girl was definitely a weird one, but the way she had wielded her huge sword convinced Adrian that she would be a huge asset to the group. Although, he had no idea if Soah actually wanted anything to do with her. Adrian finished his cup of war, and stretched himself out in the chair, trying his best to relax.

Sinette smiled, as Adrian asked his question. Honestly, she had missed traveling with people. She sipped from the whiskey she had bought, before answering the young boy's question, "You guys aren't as bad as half the people out there traveling, and I have to find my way south, eventually." Sinette replied, taking another drink from her whiskey. She could feel the effects of the drink, already. She was never one for holding her alcohol. She looked over at Adrian, a playful smile on her face, "Besides, you two probably couldn't make it half way across the country before some bandits stole everything you had." Sinette mused. She had dealt with her fair share of bandits, and a fair share of bandits were now dead in ditches. She had probably killed more men than anyone else in the tavern. "So, we now know each other. Why don't you tell me a little bit more about your friend, the naked man?" Sinette asked, laughing as she did.

Adrian fiddled with his empty cup in his hands, as he pondered Sinette's question, "Soah is a fighter. That much is for sure. He's also a very, very dangerous man. Probably the most dangerous one on the continent, right now." Adrian replied, returning his vision to the empty cup in front of him. "Everything he does, he does with some hidden reserve of anger. It powers every action he seems to take." Adrian finished, as he fiddled more with the cup. Adrian had long taken notice of Soah's seemingly infinite amount of anger. It was a nice quality to have. Anger could fuel many different type of actions, but Adrian wondered just what Soah drew off of to fuel his anger. What had him pissed off all the time? Adrian looked down into his cup, staring at the blank wooden bottom. What exactly had the man done in his life? Usually the old men, the ones who had seen the worst of the world, were the grumpy ones.

Sinette's mood damper a little at Adrian's response, prompting her to finish off the rest of her cup of whiskey. As Sinette called for a bar maid to come fill her cup, again, she looked at Adrian. The boy seemed upset, or even depressed, discussing the topic. The bar maid graciously topped off Sinette's cup, and Sinette handled her two silver coins, "Maybe there is a lot more to naked man than just his asshole personality." Sinette commented, dryly, as she sipped from her new cup of whiskey. The topic had dampered Sinette's drunken mood. She thought back to the forest. She had seen Soah's face before, in the faces of animals in the forest, when she hunted. Once the animal was cornered, they would take on a certain disposition, one that let the person hunting them know that the animal had nothing to lose. Soah always seemed to have that attitude. Sinette took a big gulp from her cup, and slammed it down on the table. She was positively getting drunk at this point, "Why don't you go get the naked man? We can sit down, have a few drinks, and we can talk all night long! Figure out what makes him tick!" Sinette said, her playful attitude now back in full force.

Adrian laughed at Sinette's suggestion, "I think we'd both end up bruised and broken before he talked about himself to us." Adrian replied, now looking around the room. The tavern was fairly busy, probably usual for the current time of day. "I probably should go find him, though. It's been a while." Adrian said, voicing his concern. The group was suppose to meet at the tavern and come up with a game plan, but Soah had just wondered off with saying what he was doing. Adrian stood up from the table, and righted himself. "Stay here and drink. I'm going to go find Soah." Adrian commanded, as he picked up his cloak, and latched it on. Adrian made his way out of the tavern, determination on his face. The more he thought about what kind of Soah could get into, the more Adrian started to worry. While he was in complete faith the man could handle any kind of trouble he got into, he wondered how much of the town would be destroyed. Adrian opened the door of the tavern, making his way onto the dark streets. As Adrian began his search, he started where he had last seen Soah, which was heading into a alley way. As Adrian turned the corner to enter the alley, he could see Soah from here, but it looked as if he was speaking to another man. Adrian waited at the other end of the alley, in plain view, waiting for Soah to finish with who ever he was talking to.

Crom remained unfazed by the werewolf's retort. "A naked man who tried to tear out my throat moments before." He corrected. He hadn't been thrilled with the prospect of leaving the man, but he also didn't find keeping a man who had just tried to kill him nearby particularly safe. As for Adrian, Soah was probably right, but it was what the boy wanted to do. He doubted anyone could stop him. Crom looked to the ground for a moment. "Maybe you're right, maybe I don't have any honor left." Crom remembered back to his days in Esterl. The honor he'd had as a knight was long besmirched. Maybe hanging on to the memory of his past was pointless. He shook his head, taking a long drink from the bottle in his hand. He spoke again. "So is the boy still w-" His question was answered before he could ask it. He looked up to see Adrian at the end of the alleyway.

Alec listened intently as Milo spoke, though his blankly staring out a window might've suggested otherwise. The Scouts sounded like they would likely be able to handle themselves rather well. It'd take a bit for the lord to get used to commanding troops other than his own. "Good, good. It sounds like you all will be quite helpful." He sat in silence a bit longer before turning back to Milo, who was still nursing the bottle of brandy. Alec's eyes peered into the young man's. It was as if he could see into his very soul. "And what can you tell me about yourself, Lieutenant Ranier?"

Soah followed Crom's vision, and looked behind him. Sure enough, there stood Adrian at the end of the alley, watching the two of them. Soah sighed, and looked back to Crom. "Listen, why don't you come back with us and grab a drink?" Soah offered, feeling too tired to keep up his facade anymore. He was tired. He was exhausted. He needed rest, and more importantly, he needed to drink. Fighting with Crom would get him no where, and it was obvious the man was slightly apologetic for what had happened. Soah paused for a moment, before speaking again, "I'll buy." Soah added, as he turned and started walking away. He didn't care if Crom accepted or not, at this point. Soah had hit his wall, and keeping with his normal abrasive attitude was taking far too much energy from him.

Milo paused for a moment, staring back into Alec's deep, and slightly uncomfortable, gaze. Uncorking the brandy once more, and without breaking eye contact, Milo took another swig of brandy, "All you need to know about me is that I'm Lieutenant Milo Ranier, of the 33rd Royal Arcarti Scouts, scored high in academics and commanding during high-pressure situations during officer school." Milo replied, not very apt to share personal history with the man. While the man's gaze was as piercing as a dagger, Milo's stoic visage was nearly impossible to see through, at this point. Milo had made it a point earlier in his life to make sure that people couldn't read his emotions, and now was no different from then.