WAR has fallen upon the World of Roulit. Six months have passed, since the relative peace between three very different kingdoms, turned to hatred and bloodshed. In one dark day, the war began. In one dark day, the kingdom of Kantle struck against both the castles of Rose and Eve simultaneously. Many lost their lives that day. Soldiers, as well as civilians, were slain mercilessly. Innocent people were terrorized and killed by those knights from Kantle. The less powerful armies of Rose and Eve were only narrowly able to defend their kingdoms and prevent Kantle's forces from overtaking them.

There was no doubt about the reason behind Kantle's sudden strike. The king of Kantle was already a very powerful man, yet he is never satisfied. He has become a man twisted with desire. Desire to posses the four magic stones. Desire to use the power of the stones to become like a god among men; perhaps even a god above the gods.

Though Kantle's wicked kingdom was a threat to them both, the kingdoms of Rose and Eve were anything but allies. A rift was still between them, for each of their rulers, are desirous of possessing the four magic stones as well. And in secret, they plotted, even against each other. The ruler of Eve desires to collect the stones, return the world to its proper form, and place the stones deep within the sacred tombs to be protected by the gods themselves. Yet they expected to gain great rewards from the gods by doing so, and become a blessed nation. The ruler of Rose desires to posses the stones, and use the great power to bring peace between all the people...so that they would all become more like the "good people of Rose Kingdom."

The armies of Kantle were ceaseless. Every day they marched against the two kingdoms. The heavy steal boots of the vast army could be heard like a dark roar as they marched upon the sacred road. Soon, it became evident that the war was all but lost. There was but one last resort. Rose and Eve were forced to form an alliance, and together they took one last and desperate measure to stop the aggressivly advancing armies of Kantle. In the earliest hours of one day, as the first light began to grace the sky, and the silhouettes of the dark army could be seen marching up the sacred road, they struck. Three carefully timed explosions, broke apart the road, causing it to crumble rapidly, and sending the mass armies plummeting into the emptiness below, falling ceaselessly to a, no doubt, agonizing and horrible death. Finally, they believed it was over.

Yet, Kantle was undaunted. For they had been laying in wait, with their next move ready. Moments after the sacred road lay broken, even as the screams of the falling soliders could still be heard, an order went out on the island of Kantle. To the soldiers, knights, and even those willing civilians, it was ordered that every immigrant found upon the island, was to be executed immediately. The innocent victims were stuck. Many people from the other kingdoms had become stranded in Kantle when the road was destroyed. Whether they were residing, visiting, or merely passing through on their way to the next island; they were all executed. They were murdered without question, or hesitation, and left to lie in the streets like dogs. Many innocents were slain, and only a very few were able to find hiding or escape.

But such gruesome horrors were only the beginning of the strategy Kantle held. Seemingly unfazed by the loss of so many foot soldiers, they struck again. Without faltering, while the blood of the innocent immigrants was being spilled upon the dark streets, Kantle Knights rode out, upon a fierce fleet of wicked looking black dragons. They attacked the two kingdoms yet again. The dark king had been ready, long before the road was ever destroyed. He was prepared to let nothing stand in the way of his wicked desire. The aerial soldiers prepared by the other two kingdoms, were no match against the ferocity of the black knights. This day became known as "the Day of Night" because along with all of the horror and mourning which overshadowed that day, so was the way in which the great fleets of Kantle Knights riding upon black dragons blocked out the sun from the sky and cast a very real darkness upon the islands.

In time, though they battled together with Rose, the warriors from Eve took a sudden and drastic action...they fled from the battle, and left Rose's soldiers to fight alone. This was the act of treason which finally severed the connection between those two kingdoms. Now is the time that the islands and the people have become divided. The royal ones of Rose decided that for the safety of their own people, anyone found upon the island from either of the other islands, was to be imprisoned. An order went out to the people, commanding them to stay upon their home island. Travel was no longer an option. But it didn't stop everyone.

Just the same, Eve ordered that all citizens remain upon the island, and anyone from the other islands who was found, would be imprisoned, although more often than not, the warriors or even citizens would take matters too far, and those supposed to be imprisoned would end up dead. Those ones would receive a quiet burial in an unmarked grave. And though this became a common practice, the rulers of Eve seem to take little notice or concern. The armies of Eve focused their power protecting the castle, and the sacred ruins so that the gods may not be displeased.

The war wages on, though Kantle has slowed in its attack. Some think that the kingdom has sacrificed too many soldiers and has had trouble finding winged mounts for their army. Yet, others feel it is just the quiet before the storm. Rumors have spread from those who were able to escape, that Kantle is readying for an attack unlike any other. People speak in hushed tones of "great flying beasts, with no heart, no lungs, and no soul" and of "the massive war chariots which need no horses to pull them, for they glide upon the air." As the rumors carried through the kingdoms, fear crept up into the hearts of all those ones.

This is not a mere tale of kingdoms and wars, as so many stories which have already been told. This is the story of those ones, who lived within that time of war, a time when hope was more valuable than all else. Now let their stories begin.

The twenty first Count of Urik strode brazenly towards the end of the hall, brilliant robes in hues of blue and gray and gold streaming like standards in his wake. Gold and silver, rings with various stones and adornments surrounded those icy fingers which gripped intensely the scroll within their reach. The scroll itself was innocuous enough, much unlike its holder, an irony, an enigma as to why someone so important would be holding something to trifling. Count Urik approached the large oak doors at the end of the halls in a rapid manner, an action which caused the soldiers who stood guard there no small manner of agitation. 'S-stop, the Lord Marquis is in a meeting!' Count Urik barely paid the man any attention. Such dim-witted fools were the fodder of Kantle's army, the real power behind the throne. Sure their lord the King ruled with an iron grip but at the end of the day it was the armies that enforced his commands, armies which remained loyal only because they received a stipend at the end of each season. "He's expecting me." A blatant lie, but the force and measure by which the phrase was uttered was enough to cow the two men who stood by, pale faced and loose-handed.

The oak doors burst open to reveal to the Count their secret quarry. The two men inside, His Lordship the Marquis of Lycia and the Count of Renais both bolted upright, clearly perturbed by the violent interruption of their meeting. The two men waited for the doors to shut secured behind him before speaking. 'Your Lordship Urik, what brings you here?' It was the Marquis who spoke, hands fidgeting idly at his sides. In the meanwhile, Count Renais seated himself, seeing no reason to stay standing simply because his inferior was doing so. "Your charade is over. These documents prove your subterfuge; I'll admit, funneling money away from the wayward garrisons was a neat trick, but as you no doubt know the King will bridge no betrayal of his trust. The palace guards are on their way, what say you in your defense? Admission is much superior to torture." By now both men had caught the frightful set of jitters the Marquis had previously displayed. This time, it was the Lord Count who spoke, 'Supposing your bluff was true, we'd be taken to the courts, a place where your power does not extended. Begone Count Urik, regardless of the outcome our weight in gold will secure our future stability.' Count Urik only smiled as the doors behind him burst open, the room filling to the brim with men in stunning black armor. "We shall see your lordships, we shall see."

General Victor Krow, commander of the first defense line of the Rosarian kingdom, was currently assigned at a forward base headquarter established near to the limits of the territory. Among these men stood many recruits freshly out of training. Of course, the new blood was assigned to the front lines...but the regiments also had some veterans. Notably, they had the general personal guards, but it was not all.

At the general's side was his trusted right arm, Lieutenant General Maria Gilder. Gilder was well known throughout the front line regiments. She managed to get such a high ranking position after only a few months in the army. Some may be jealous of such advancement, or think she had some hidden cards to allow her such a position. Such was not the case, as most would be proven upon their first meeting with the Lieutenant. Maria was a woman of few words, but emanated an aura that incited obedience. Not in a frightful way, but rather in a respectful one. She was known for taking care of the soldiers assigned under her, in a cold and seemingly emotionless way, yes, but it was more than what most were used to when assigned to the front lines.

The forward base of the front line regiments had been turned into a fortress with stone great stone walls, making it a real, and safe, headquarter. It was still early, even for soldiers, but Maria was standing atop the great walls, looking into the distance. The base was so advanced that, from it's highest wall, one could see the great sea of emptiness that extended towards the other kingdoms and, beyond that, the No Man's land. The Lieutenant was looking in the general direction of the Kantle kingdom. She had lost her childhood village to an attack from their fearsome soldiers, riding black dragons.

Despite this, she knew better that the need for revenge....

Maria, in the days she was still a promising soldier, fought shoulder to shoulder with Eve's army during the battle pitting them both against the forces of Kantle, after the Day of Night. Eve's betrayal resulted in the death of a ridiculously high number of Rosarians. Many of her close friends, among her own squad, were among them. Even and Kantle were not the only kingdom to strip Maria of her loved ones, however, since even her dearest Rose took her very own big brother's life through extensive, and forced, military service. They knew he was sick from birth, but the leading cast did not hear her family's plea.

Indeed, having lost so much to the three kingdoms, Maria knew better than the need for revenge. She knew that this was had to be stopped, so that the suffering of many stopped with it. She was not obeying orders for the good of the ''Good'' kingdom of Rose, neither was she fighting for her King or Queen, but to put an end to the conflict.

That was the only reason she'd accept, and any who served under her, in her own special squad, were to accept that cause and embrace it.

Rose Castle

The courtroom was abuzz with activity. The spacious room, with an impossibly tall vaulted roof supported by columns of carved and intricately chiselled marble, was filled with people. The noble court had gathered, though, noticeably, at least a third of the seats that were designated for them were empty or filled with much younger people than the majority. Marren sat amongst them, leaning forwards on his tall backed wooden chair with his chin propped up on entwined fingers as he watched the proceedings unfold below him. He wore what amounted to the 'standard' garb of the Rosilian elite, though due to incredibly differing tastes and variety of design the word standard wasn't an apt description.

He wore a long, loose sleeved white silk shirt embroidered with green vines with golden flower bulbs sprouting from them. Over it went a green cloth vest with embroidered black vines and trimmed with gold thread on the edges. His trousers were also of similar design and material as his shirt, tucked into knee high, black leather boots trimmed with gold and embroidered with silver.

“....the threat is quite real, you're majesties” the man on the podium below, Lord Kaster, addressed the rulers of Rose dressed in a white and purple toga. There were some murmuring at his words though they sounded dismissive. Kaster pressed on however “Kantle will not stop, King Bolivar will not stop. The breaking of the road will not halt Kantilian advance. Their dragon riders dominate the sky while we sit behind our walls and defences under the foolish illusion that they cannot invade us!”

The grumbling grew louder though the King, sat forward with one hand holding his chin waved for the noise to die down. The Queen remained ever passive. Kaster continued as the noise died down “Those poor wretches who could flee Kantle tell of tales of Kantle's ambitions, Bolivar's new mounts. Massive beasts who can transport entire cohorts of Kantilian soldiers”

“Those are mere rumours” someone called out “Spoken by frightened and mad fools. Some of them are probably spies, sent here to sow fear!”

Kaster turned towards the voice, anger on his face “And you are an ignorant fool who knows has no idea of the lengths Kantle will go to finish this war!”

More shouts rose from the crowd. Kaster had his supporters, but they were very clearly outnumbered by those who opposed them. Then, the queen raised her white gloved hand and the guards banged the butt's of their spears against the ground. Silence came quickly. The queen spoke, her voice carrying across the room. “Thank you lord Kaster, we will think about this matter. The war is obviously our main concern as of this moment and any moves made by Kantle must be considered” her gaze swept the crowd, blue eyes seemingly piercing those she looked upon. Then they settled on Marren. He swallowed a lump in his throat.

“Lord Marren” she began, the assembled crowd turning their gazes upon him. His heart beat faster, thumping like a deep war drum. “I believe you have a proposal relating to this matter”

All he could do was nod, seemingly unable to look away from her gaze. “Well then, step on the podium and present it”

He licked his suddenly dry lip as he got up and moved towards the podium. As he passed by Kaster the older man gave him a glance, looking unsure but not hostile. That could not be said for some of the gathered nobility who looked at him with barely disguised hostility. They are like vultures, he thought as he stepped up on the podium facing the King and Queen, 'they will circle a weakened prey, but, you will find no weakness here'.

“Speak, Marren of house Kolkochi” The King spoke.

He nodded, taking a breath. “I have come here to propose a definitive solution to the problem of defending against Kantle”

The silence that came after was as sudden as it was clear. One could even hear the birds outside the castle. The King furrowed his brows at him, moving his hand from his chin to place both arms on his knees. The Queen, ever expressionless, had raised a curious brow. Many of the nobles were stunned, either in the sheer audacity of the statement or just confusion.

Marren was suddenly self-concious, sweat forming at the back of his neck. “My explorations have given me ample evidence that point to the location of the Sapphire of Mystery”

If they were not shocked before, that got their attention. “The ruins I had found, combined with the research I had commissioned on the matter point to a location deep within No Man's Land that has been rarely explored due to difficulties of weather and wild beasts. I believe there is the place that the Sapphire is located”

The room suddenly erupted into shouting, many calling Marren ridiculous and foolish, telling child's tales and accepting myth as truth. Marren for his part simply stood in silence, looking at the royals. The King had taken on a serious expression and the Queen regarded him with her piercing eyes. The queen raised her hands, the guards banged the butts of their spears, and the noise died down again.

“There are some who had tried to go there Lord Marren, you are aware of their fate?” The King spoke.

Marren nodded “Yes, all disappeared and presumed dead. But” he looked at them with a determined expression “There may be a way to reach that far and beyond” he swallowed. “The warmongers of Kantle, they are determined to cross the gap that lay between us. I have questioned some of the refugees that came over and, as Lord Kaster pointed out, they are indeed creating something big. These...chariots of the sky, I believe are transports-”

He was cut off by mocking laughter, then shouting from Kaster and his supporters, then an argument. The King's brow twitched and his expression darkened. “SILENCE!” his voice boomed throughout the court and cut short any other noise as those who were arguing now suddenly looked down or away. His gaze returned to Marren “Let me assume what you are getting to, you wish for a sky chariot of your own to cross No Man's Land?”

Marren nodded. The King continued “That is an incredibly ridiculous suggestion” Marren was about to speak but was cut off by a look from the Queen. “But, let us for now assume that these sky chariots are indeed real and possible. We have no knowledge of how to build them and, with the war, few resources to do so even if we did”. His gaze sought Marren's “So, how do you suggest solving these problems?”

Marrens heart was beating in his ears. “Kantle does” he replied, the King raised his brow. “Kantle is building them” he took a breath, nerves on edge, the tips of his fingers cold “I propose we steal the blueprints, or get someone who does know how”

The King looked at him, then at the Queen. They seemed to share a thought for a moment before she nodded and the King turned to him. “You certainly have earned your reputation. Daring and incredibly foolish”

Marren replied quickly “I need only a small team, we will infiltrate Kantle and prove once and for all that Kantle is indeed constructing sky chariots. Or we can search amongst the refugees for anyone with such knowledge”

The King opened his mouth to speak but Marren cut him off “I will pay out of my own coffers, I will outfit the team, lead it. I only need people and your blessing for this expedition. The Crown will lose nothing, and the reward will be great”

The room was quiet with some murmuring in the background. Many were looking to the royals for their reply. The King and Queen looked to each other again for a moment before the reply came form the Queen. “Lord Marren of House Kolkochi, you will be given permission to lead the expedition”. Marren sighed, smile forming on his lips “But” the Queen continued “No more than a handful are to accompany you on this journey and only one solider shall be granted to you from the crown. The rest will be up to you to acquire. Choose wisely”

The room stared in silent confusion. Had the royals actually blessed this ludicrous task? Well, to Marren, they had and he left the courtroom with a thumping heart but a victorious smirk.

The rusty blade of her old dagger scrapped along the bottom side of the large green leaf. Zoran-Theia moved the blade carefully, and continued to scrape the underside of the leaf for a moment, until a white dust began to fall and accumulate upon her fingers. She lifted her fingers just below her nose, and inhaled the powder. Her eyes closed and she let a slow breath fall from between her lips. Then, she looked up.

"I found a good one Tarek." She mumbled to her companion, the large winged wolf which crouched in the bushes nearby. The wolf threw an aggravated glare back at his master, when she spoke up and startled off the prey he had been stalking. But, she didn't seem to notice. He let out a huff, and a low yip, to let her know he was going off to hunt.

Zoran-Theia continued her work below the large leaves of the Kopal Bush. This time, as she scraped the underside of the leaves with her blade, she collected the fine powder into a glass container. It would make her a good profit once she got it to the market in Eve. The powder was a natural drug, which while at the same time it had a calming effect, it also worked to promote focus and energy. It was good to make you forget your worries, and distract yourself, basically. She should know, she used it quite a lot. The whole leaves could be crushed and brewed into a fine tea, which would give you brilliant hallucinations, if you were into that sort of thing. Zoran-Theia was convinced it was Kopal Tea that the ancients must have been drinking when they came up with so many wild ideas of gods and goddesses. But she usually kept that theory to herself, for most people among the nations held very strong belief in the mystical beings.

At any rate, she was lucky that the Kopal Bush could only be found on a few of the uninhabited islands, which most people were neither brave enough nor capable of traveling to. She wasn't even sure how many people actually knew what the Kopal Bush looked like if they did want to find it. Whatever the case, it meant good business for her.

HOME was a small house nestled in a lonely, dark spot of the great forests of Eve, far away from the towns and even the outlying villages. It had been many months since she was last able to travel to the populated areas. War had shaken the nations into such irrational fear that innocent civilians became the target of attack. On the last day that she traveled to the market, as she walked into the outskirts of town, she could see the unusual rush and bustle of the people. Then, right before her, she watched as soliders and civilians violently harassed a family from Kantle who had been stuck here on Eve since they came to buy goods from the market on the day the roads were destroyed. Zoran-Theia knew the family somewhat, the mother was a rather frequent customer, and whenever she would come to buy tea, she would talk of her loving husband and dear son. The people of Eve bludgeoned them to death when they struggled for their freedom. She saw first hand that day, what fear does to people.

She had been able to retreat back into the shadows then, without being noticed. And living as a recluse has served her so far, for the people of Eve have not yet found her. But she knew it was only a matter of time before she was forced to leave, before they did find her, for the sake of her own life. Until then, she had one connection to continue selling her Kopal. An old man who's loyalty lies more in profit than in his kingdom, buys from her to take it to the market and sell it himself. No questions. Usually no words between them. And in a time of war, when fear and grief overwhelms the masses...well, it makes business booming for her and the old man. After preparing and packaging the powder and tea-leaves, Zoran-Theia whistled for Tarek. Sitting upon his broad back, with a pack slung over her shoulder, they went to go meet the old man.

The great Sinka Tree which was the largest tree on this side of the island, marked their usual meet up spot. Sure enough, the old codger sat beneath the tree with a cloak hood pulled over his head, waiting as he always was. With a quick look around the area to insure there were no wandering hunters near, she commanded Tarek down from the sky to land next to the base of the tree. As she stepped closer to him, the hood slowly raised as the old man picked up his head to look towards her. His dark green eyes met hers, but he looked weary. As she made another step forward, a strange feeling came over her...something wasn't right. As the old man still watched her eyes, he outstretched his hand to take the pack, yet it trembled slightly. He sighed, and then spoke softly. "I'm sorry dear."

"Shit." She turned quickly, while Tarek let out a sudden howl, but it was too late. Three large soldiers of Eve stepped out from the surrounding forest, with spears aimed her way. Her blue eyes cut back towards the old man coldly. He did look upset.

"They found out what I was selling and questioned me about how I got it..." He spoke soft and sorrowfully. "I tried to put them off but..."

She nodded and turned to the soldiers. "These bastards forced it out of you." She looked to each of them bitterly. But then she heard the feeble old voice behind her again.

"Well everyone knows you from the market, but no one knew how to find you. They told me there was a bounty for your arrest." He hesitated as she turned and met his gaze again. "You're worth quite a lot, dear."

Hate flashed her eyes. "I should have never trusted you." She spat the words. "I only trusted your love of the money I could make you, but I should have known your greed would get me killed." She stepped slowly towards the man as she spoke, and though the soldiers watched her carefully, this was no concern of theirs. She stood just in front of the man now, who looked up at her with watery eyes. "Worthless piece of shit." Her voice was filled with the hatred within her. With one fluid motion she drew the dagger hidden on her hip, and stabbed through one of those sad greed eyes, until she could feel the blade buried into the trunk of the tree behind him. "I am a fool for trusting you."

Kolkochi mansion

Marren stood over a large ornately carved table upon which lay maps, documents and papers of various kinds. Wide stained glass windows allowed the afternoon light through in shades of green and gold, illuminating the table. The map was large, taking up most of the space on the table. On it were scrawls and notes, arrows and straight lines that seemed to plot various routes from Rose to Kantle, some going through No Man's Land, some going through Eve territory, all avoiding the front line which was marked with a bright red ink.

“My Lord Marren” A voice called out behind the man. He didnt look up and simply waved his hand.

“You have the profiles Lissandra? Good, bring them here”

He was surprised when he felt a wet stain across the back of his hand. He stood straight and turned, brows furrowed but paused, his eyes widening slightly when he saw his sister stood before him. She looked as she had been when his father and brothers had died. She wore black; a black dress that reached to her ankles, black elbow length silk gloves, a thin black mesh veil and her hair, usually dyed in some bright colour she had returned to her natural black. She looked like a living shadow, so different from the bright light that she used to be.

Marren gently pulled the veil to the side to look at a face familiar to his own. Her eyes looked tired, her skin looked much paler. As he pulled the veil he noted that the wet splash on his hand was her scoring it with black paint. She held a brush on her hand.

“Well my dear brother, it seemed you had caused quite a stir” She stated as she walked past Marren towards the table.

He followed her movement “News travels fast it seems”. Their tones were neutral, his slightly cautious and hers unreadable.

She put a finger on the map, finger tracing the numerous routes. “Very complex routes, especially for” she looked at him “ 'a small, safe excursion' “.

He swallowed, looking back to the map, unwilling to meet her eyes. She approached him and put her hand to his face and turning it to face her. “This is beyond idiocy, you know that?”

He kept silent, she continued “You, the last Kolkochi son, going off on a mission that would end in nothing but your death” her expression softened “You know I cannot allow that”

He gently pulled her hand away and turned back to the map. “I already have a route and mounts ready, now all I need is to bring in the crew to travel with me. Ive found suitable candidates, amongst them a fast rising Lieutenant who, from reports on the front, leads a crack squad. Ive already sent a call to her commander and requested her presence”

As he continued to speak of his plans, his actions, what he expected to happen, his contingencies, Calliope pulled out a vial of ink from within her dress and poured it over the map, staining a large part of it. Marren slowed to a pause and watched the black ink cover Kantle, flowing outwards until only a large black stain remained.

“No” Calliope said simply then walked away, her footsteps the only sound.

Okita turned his face away as muddy water was splashed onto him from the Kantle soldiers who marched passed. He was in yet another gutter, covered in mud, clothes wet. He could not remember the previous night, but it didn't matter, there was nothing needed to be remembered. Okita was, however, still facing the effects from the previous night. A pounding headache beat a rhythm into his skull. Okita pulled out the cheap sake from his coat, now cold, and quickly swallowed the rest. Managing to pull himself up shakily, he looked around to figure out where he had ended up.

What a mess. He thought to himself as he watched the soldiers marching about and hauling supplies. Off on yet another campaign against the enemy's of there king. He sighed inwardly to himself. He finally spotted a decrepit looking bar closer to the edge of town and began to stumble his way there.

"Give me a bottle of your cheapest sake." He bluntly told the bar owner as he approached, setting the required money needed on the counter. Dropping the money he grabbed the sake bottle and drank several gulps before stopping to cough and breathe. Setting the bottle down he reached for a few more coins and set them on the counter. After getting his second bottle of sake he grabbed both with his right hand and shambled over to a booth in the corner, where he began his daily routine once again.

Eve Capital's Gates

Ichika was walking alone in what was supposed to be a trail in the forest. Supposed to because it was used mostly by animals and not so much for humans, but her own people were used to making their way through the dense forest using these trails. Her friend, Kukucan, was following her while hiding behind the trees for the simple fact that she did not know how people would react to such a rare specie. They could ask questions and remain passive, but the most probable option was that they kill it on sight or captures it. Ichika had a hard time trusting those from the cities, so she could only imagine the worst case scenarios. He would have to wait outside while she'd conduct her business form within the city. It was soon enough that the dense forest made place for more normal woods and, eventually, clearing. The Capital city was now in her sight, as big and scary as it always stood in her memory. Ichika had came here only once, when she was a child. So many large buildings put together like this had left an impression of something much bigger than herself to her mind, which was true. It was hard to feel at ease in such a place.

It was only the necessity, and her strong will for revenge, that pushed the girl into making the decisive step, and enter the city. There were guards at the gates, but they were at about mid-day and lots of people were moving around, so no one really paid attention to her. That, or she was simply lucky not to be disturbed by guards. While she was entering the town she did see a couple of guards coming her direction with what seemed like a prisoner to Ichika. The prisoner, a woman, was clothed in a different way than anyone else in this place. More akin to what Ichika was used to, actually. She was not stupid enough to simply approach them, but her curiosity was picked, and she had a hunch towards that woman, so she decided to observe at a distance for as long as possible.

General Viktor Front Line's Headquarter

Maria had been practicing with soldiers that were barely just out of training when she had the visit of one of the general's messenger. It had come as a surprise that he wanted to see her due to a message that just arrived classified urgent. She let the men dispose and immediately head up to the General quarters. It was some way from the training fields. Going through the inner courtyard of the fortress, she could see everyone get ready for the day and heading to their respective posts. Some of them would salute her as she passed by, some others would move faster to avoid doing such a thing. Opinions of soldiers about her were confused, mainly because she was harsh to the men when it came to training. Most of them were trainees, and had yet to see battle. Once they did, they would change opinion about the hardship of training.

Few moments later, Maria was in the office of the general. Viktor was sitting in a large chair that, surprisingly, did not seem all that comfortable at all. He stood up, faced her and kept eye contact as he slowly slid a letter from one end of his desk to the other. Maria slwoly picked it up and proceeded to open it, carefully. Inside the sealed envelope was a message asking her, and a few chosen men, to make their way back to the capital as fast as possible for a special mission. The Lieutenant showed no visible sign of annoyance or acceptance of this order. Rather, she simply looked to the General for instructions.

''You do realize I have no idea what is in that letter, Lieutenant?''

She nodded respectfully. ''Yes, sir. Nonetheless, I awaits your instructions.'' She said as she handed him the letter. After reading it, the general simply sighed and looked back at the window behind him.

''I have only a few good, trustworthy men here and they want to take even that away. It has been days since I had any solid reports of the enemy, but I know it from within my guts...they will strike soon, and I do not know if I will be able to hold them from harming the nearby villages.''

Maria remained silent, knowing full well what was gonna follow.

''Go, Lieutenant. I don't know what they want and I don't care, but if it's going to be helping us hold against the Kantleans and save our only civilized kingdom, then so be it. Dismissed.''

With these words, the woman turned feet and left the room with a heavy heart. It took less than an hour to ready her best canon fodder men and best mounts. Within the very next 3 to 4 hours they were descending on the capital. The only thing the letter said was that he talents had been recognized and that she was needed. The only thing she understood was that she was the only talented dispensable soldier they had found. Nonetheless, she was now standing in front of the Kolkochi mansion. It was not implied she had to go there in the letter, but she had seen the name in it and she took it upon herself to pay a visit.

She took hold of the fancy door metal ring they used to knock and let it's sound be heard from within the mansion.

Struggling a bit against the grips of the two Eve guards, Zoran-Theia cussed and cursed them. If anyone knew that it was wise to take a real fear from dark curses, it would be the people of Eve. The last kingdom to know the old magics; so it was said. It was regretful, though, that while she may look the part of a woodland witch, Zoran-Theia had never learned any sort of real dark curses. But at least she could make it sound good.

"The gods will have your souls for this, you sinful bastards. They know what you have done. You know not, I am the daughter of death himself, Grenth the all powerful master over life and death is my protector. He will destroy you. He will torture you for endless eternities." She struggled a bit more, twisting her shoulders, and then began to mumble and murmur in a dead language of old, of which she learnt some various phrases from that crazy old bitch who raised her. Most of them translated into offensive expressions, or a few soup recipes, but it was a generally unrecognizable dialect, which could sound fairly creepy when spoken in the right tone. Hopefully the guards dragging her along would take it as a curse upon their souls.

Already regretting her surrender, she drug her hills a bit as they pulled her along. She had thought, the only way out of the situation would have been killing the two guards. Sure she was skilled, but her training was somewhat limited, and her desire to kill innocents was little to nothing. Today she had no desire to kill innocents, of course some days the mood struck her, and she would be capable of striking anyone down without a second thought. Why couldn't I have had one of those days..? She huffed. It was probably better this way, even if she had been able to defeat both of the hefty men, it would have been a rush to gather her things and get off of the island. At least this way she had a little more time to plan. All she had to do, is find a way to sneak off into the shadows, without anyone noticing for enough time to give herself a head start.

Of course, now she was right in the midst of the largest city of Eve, and her odd appearance seemed to draw more than a few stares. If only you ignorant cowards knew, Kantle has never been much of a home to me... With a sigh she looked up at the sky and thought of her father. "I have more reason to hate that wicked place than even you bastards do." And yet...

She shook off the feeling. Never again.

Ichika looked at the group she spotted earlier for a while, but eventually decided to discard her inner hunch towards the woman prisoner as a wrong one and move on. She reaffirmed her grasp of the bag she was holding on her shoulder and turned around, but as she did so the girl heard the woman speak up. She was threatening the guards, but that is not what caught Ichika's attention. She told them of her ascendance, and how she would make them pay dearly. If her claim was true, everyone here would be in grave danger of such a curse. There was a lot of crazy people among the city folks, but as soon as the witch began speaking up in another language, Ichika's mind was set.

The people of her village, her included, held great faith in the gods. Disrespecting them or doing anything to make one self fall out of their favor was folly, and considered pretty much suicide. Over the decades they made multiple offerings and rituals their traditions, sacrifices included, though Ichika never witnessed one herself. Any mad fool could claim to be the daughter of a god, but to Ichika the tongue in which that woman spoke up was not something she could ignore. There was too much of a risk of being cursed herself, so she had to act. Calmly, but swiftly, she walked towards the guards. The pole she was using the carry her belonging on her shoulder was actually a pretty long spear, ending with a sharp and pointy blade, as well as two smaller spikes made so she could trap a weapon blade between it and the blade to disarm. There was 2 guards holding her, and Ichika did not know if the shackles holding the witch were made of simple rope of metal, so trying to cut through it was out of the question. Her plan was simple, incredibly bold for a newcomer, but simple.

She quickly walked into range and, when she was close enough for them to notice her unusual proximity, she grabbed the end of her spear and shook the bag off of it, discovering the blade under it. In one movement, she jumped forward and used the blunt end of the spear to push back on of the guard with surprising strength, using the element of surprise, and fell back in a crouching position. The sharp end of the spear now facing the second guard, Ichika simply turned her head to face him and made a quick stabbing trust aiming for the guard's torso. Her goal was not to leave them for dead, but to buy time for the witch to disappear. The exact reason why she was actually saving the woman was beyond her, but she had yet to prove her instincts wrong. The blade dug deep within the armor of the guard and, hopefully, his body. While raising from her crouched position, she used her spear as a balance to kick the stabbed guard away. The girl looked up at the air and used her fingers to emit a strong whistling noise, then looked at the witch.

''Let's fly.'' As she spoke the word, a great jade-colored snake with wings flew down form the sky to land beside them, hissing at the nearby people. The sudden emergence of such a strange creatures installed doubts within the hearts of eventual attackers. The beast was large enough for at least two persons to hold unto it so that it could fly them to the outskirt of town, where they would disappear.

Ichika jumped on her mount's self crafted saddle. On it she wouldn't be exactly sitting, bur rather had her feet in special holes made so she could hold the reins in a semi-sitting position.

''Come, witch. Or die here.''

So far this whole mess had been a gamble. Ichika didn't know if she was an ordinary woman, or a mass murderer. All of this was built on a simple 5 seconds long hunch her instincts gave her, yet it was way too late to apologize now.

Kolkochi mansion

Marren slouched deep in the plush chair face set in a half scowl as he rested his head on two fingers, the other hand swirling a silver goblet filled with wine. He had yet to leave the room, the black stained map still on the table with the ink long dried. He had been brooding since Calliope had laid down firmly her orders, words that he by tradition and parenting had to obey. With the death of his father and brother she took over the head of the family with their mother completely grief stricken. As head her word carried authority in the Kolkochi house, authority Marren simply could not ignore. Still, he had to work around that.

A knock interrupted his thoughts, a manservant leaning into the room. “Ser, a Maria Gelder is at the door”

It took a second for his alcohol filled mind to recognize the name. His eyes perked up “Ah, let her in”

The manservant nodded and he downed the wine, smooth and sweet down his throat and set about trying to make himself presentable, fetching another goblet. At the sound of loud footsteps, the tell tale stomp of a soldiers sabatons, he cast his eyes towards the door where Maria stood.

“Welcome” he said, pouring wine in a goblet and raising it in front of him, looking at the woman with a questioning look.

''Come, witch. Or die here.''

Zoran-Theia was a bit taken aback by the stranger's sudden rescue. Few people had ever offered a helping hand in her life, and all of those who had, always expected to gain something out of it. She looked on, at an even more odd creature the woman had taken as a mount, and invited her upon. Well, at least all of this craziness saved her from having to figure our some plan of her own. It was a bit conspicuous, anyone in the near vicinity now stared in their direction. Still, maybe it would give her enough time to get off this rock. Climbing onto the strange flying serpent, not a moment too soon...nearly getting her ass left here...they quickly took to the sky.

As they reached the edge of the city, a howl filled the air behind them. With a glance over her shoulder Zoran-Theia assured that it was Tarek, her companion the wolf, who had been waiting just in the edge of the forest. The thick hair upon his neck was bristled, and his lip curled just enough to show some teeth. He had sensed the danger and found his master, but was obviously uncertain whether those newest arrivals were friend or foe. As Tarek quickly caught up with the winged serpent and his two riders, he made an abrupt swoop downward and caught the back of his master's shirt between his teeth. Pulling Zoran-Theia off the serpent and downward as she kicked and cussed and attempted to keep her shirt from choking her. "You big oaf!! I was fine where I was..." She coughed a few times as he continued his decent toward the tree-line. "Jealous." She coughed again, and at last felt the ground beneath her kicking feet. As Tarek dropped her off, he then stepped around in front of her and barred his teeth, ready for anything.

~Within the Forest's of Eve.

Far off and alone young Aluwen sat upon the soft grass within the forest of Eve. Her back resting against the rough bark of a tree as her legs were kept together and knees bent high to hold a flat and still. She slowly dragged a brush along the surface of the paper, smearing a warm color over the canvas; as yet the picture had not come to completion. As she drew something strange appeared out of the corner of her eye. A small wisp, a tiny ball of light said to be spirits from the after life, seemed to float down from apparently non existent origin. The entity fluttering and floating down until it landing on the top of Aluwen's brush handle.

Catching her attention Aluwen's light amber eyes followed the wisp, her mouth agape in awe. She had never been witness to such a sight, where she grew up they spoke of wisps as a great blessing to behold. Aluwen dared not make a move, too scared to startle the beautiful thing and have it leave. Though it still decided to leave as it began to slowl float upwards towards the sky, bringing Aluwen's attention with it. As if on purpose from the wisps perspective her eyes catch a glance off in the far distance a pair of women riding a support, looking just in time to watch one girl be picked up be a flying wolf by the back of her collar and lifted off before slowly being brought down to the ground.

Aluwen then looked around for where the wisp had left to, though it was nowhere in sight. The wisp must have wanted Aluwen see the events unfold for some reason. Now normally Aluwen would have left them to their own, not wanting to get in the middle of things. But there must have been reason the wisp brought her attention to this two. Moving the painted piece of paper from her lap and setting it at her side she quickly pushed herself to her feet. Leaning down she picked up her bow, putting it over her shoulder with the draw string laying snug down across her upper torso. Turning to the direction in which she saw the woman fall she burst out into a steady run, practiced steps eased her fluid stride across the forest terrain. It wasn't long before she came into view of the now standing woman she slowed her steps. Quietly stepping out of the brush and into the small clearing in which the woman and her pet remained. Her soft amber hues fixed on the girl curiously as she stepped a bit closer, though not close enough to startle the wolf.

"Who are you?" She asked rather strangely. Wasn't exactly common place for a girl to come out of the brush and ask who the other was; but for some reason the wisp thought this girl in particular was important to Aluwen.

Aluwen made no threatening motions, leaving the bow over her shoulder and her hands relaxed at her sides as she stood across the darkly dressed girl. Her eyes slowly scanning over the woman taking in every detail.

(Go look at my OOC post if you did not, I'm Twinkle. Just didn't want to wait for answers since I didn't know how long it would take you guys.)

Maria waited patiently, standing in front of the great doors of the Kolkochi mansion. It was not often that a simple soldier such as her laid eyes on such a home. In fact, with the war raging on, it was not often that any soldier could lay eyes on a house, theirs or not. Eventually she was brought back to attention by the door opening up on a manservant. The man was worlds away from her, yet both of them were serving and obeying orders. Soon enough they would be call to serve the very same man at that. Maria bowed her head slightly to show her greetings and respect, and so did the servant in return. After only a brief explanation of her situation, the man ordered her to stay put while he would go find his master. Maria could hardly finish her sentence before he was gone, leading her to understand the servant was aware of the letter.

Maria was no stranger to patience, but waiting on someone she had never met before for reasons unknown, on top of having no apparent link with the military, made her think about just leaving this damned place and head back to her men waiting for her, back at the barrack. Despite this unusual lack of patience, Maria know it was not her place to leave here. She remembered the General's words, and how this mission could possibly be what she had been waiting for; a chance. When finally the door opened, the only thing Maria could think was how slow this ''chance'' had been walking up to the door.

This time she laid eyes upon whom she thought was known as Marren Kolkochi. The man looked nothing like a soldier, but definitively had the look of a man suited for ordering others around. Not in a good and respected way, however, not from her perspective. His social rank, given to him by birth right, allowed him to do so...he had not to work his way up for it, nor did he have to prove himself. People such as him could bark orders, but could hardly lead men. She knew her judgement was clouded by angry emotions towards the upper class of Rose, and that she had to shove away such emotions as much as possible which was what she did.

''Marren Kolkochi, I presume? I am Maria Gilder, at your service.'' She said very solemnly, as expected of a lieutenant. She also saluted the man as she spoke, even though he was no military. Now was not the time to risk showing disrespect.

''You sent words for me. May I know why?''

---

Ichika was still wondering what came through her mind as she was now flying away with the witch behind her. Fortunately for them, the soldiers posted in the immediate vicinity did not seem to expect any airborne assault this far inside Eve's territory, and none seemed to be armed with bows or crossbows. They escape happened smoothly up until now, but the soldiers would probably chase them as soon as things calmed down back in the city. Chances were the inhabitants would think a Kantle spy just escaped, hopefully creating some sort of panic that would require the attention of the soldiers before anything else.

Just as Ichika was imagining the worst case scenarios, she heard a howl coming up behind them. Hearing a howl was not what caught her attention, but the fact that it was getting in closer to them did. Still holding her spear, she woman turned around just in time to see what looked like a flying dog grabbing the witch and going towards the ground with it's prey. The woman seemed to be talking to the dog, but from her point of view it seemed like she was trying to break free, confusing Ichika into thinking the dog was actually trying to hurt her. As soon as she could see where they had landed, Ichika pulled on the reins of her snake to make it turn around in their direction, which it did.

As soon as they reached safe distance of the ground, Ichika jumped off of her mount. She curled up as her feet touched the ground, holding the spear vertically against her stomach, and skillfully tumbled to absorb the landing impact. In the same movement Ichika raised back up on her feet, creating a cloud of dust around her and pointing her spear directly at the dog, who was now snarling at her, teeth out.

Kukucan, her sky-serpent, actually flew down and placed itself in an arc covering behind his master's body, fully expending it's jade colored hood and hissing at yet another target. Indeed it seemed he had spotted her before Ichika did, but there was a second girl close by to their right side. She did not look ill-intended, but she was glad her companion was on the lookout. It seemed that, despite how fast she thought she had reacted, the girl had been faster than her...intriguing.

Ichika was ready to run her spear through the animal...but she noticed the witch was still intact and refused to bring an animal down without any good reason. She'd wait for the enemy to strike first. She remained silent, for now.

The woods were quiet for but a moment after they landed. But then everything seemed to catch up quickly. Tarek stood in front of her, in a guard stance over his master, as not one but two women approached, from opposite directions. One came from the woods, and the other from the sky.

"Who are you?" the woodland lady began to inquire curiously, as the other perched in a ready stance.

Tarek began to circle Zoran-Thiea, snarling, and gnashing his teeth at the woman who seemed to be a more present danger. The one who held her spear ready, as he great serpent beast spread himself above her. "Calm down you big oaf!" Zoran-Thiea whined at the wolf and petted the nape of his neck. He shook his great head and snorted at the woman and her serpent, but he stood in his place.

As Tarek kept his attention on the woman who had brought her this far, Zoran-Thiea turned hers to the other who had seemed to appear out of nowhere, and observed her carefully for a moment. She appeared to be a local of Eve, though perhaps not from a pure family line; and she didn't seem to be anyone military. Truly, the girl looked more curious that threatening. But still, Zoran-Thiea kept her senses tuned to her surroundings.

The girl seemed to be awaiting an answer to the question which she had asked with a bit of a strange tone in her voice, as if she believed the reply that she was to receive may be something of great importance. Do I know this woman? Zoran-Thiea huffed at her own confusion and speculation.

"I..." She hesitated a bit, "I am someone who needs to get the hell off of this island."

Then she turned her attention back to her savior. "How can I ever thank you enough?" She hesitated. "Though I'm not sure why you would have risked yourself that way." It would seem that both of these women had a peculiar interest in her. Perhaps they were just unused to seeing someone wandering about, who looked like a woodland witch. People who believed in such fairytales of the gods and goddesses, would no doubt say that it was fate which had chanced their meeting. However, she had stopped believing in fate a long time ago.

Zoran-Thiea need not waste much time if she was to get any supplies from her home before she fled the island. The armies would begin crawling the dense forests of Eve in search of her already. What else was there for them to do, other than to hunt down any immigrants? After all, the armies of Eve had already abandoned Rose in the joint effort to push against Kantle forces. Instead they used their main military power to sit and protect the Castle and all of the sacred places. But now was not the time to think of that.

"I have no time to waste leaving this place, and it would be best if the two of you forget you ever saw me here." She spoke hastily but not unconcerned, yet she had not bothered, or else forgotten to use any of the generally accepted social niceties when speaking. Suddenly, she realized she must have offended them by speaking so bluntly. "Eh..." she caught herself and fumbled a bit in search of the quickest way to right the situation. "...If you wish to accompany me home, I have to gather a few supplies before I leave. Perhaps we have just enough time to have tea? It's the least I could do..." Tea, that's what the pleasant rich people do for other nice people isn't it..? She looked between them oddly; the witch was a bit lost.

''You sent words for me. May I know why?''

Marren raised his own salute though it was less professional than one might expect of such a gesture, with it's own variance. Apparently according to his instructor the nobility had a different salute than the more common folk. Marren found it odd but didnt much care.

The woman that stood before him at first glance didnt look much like a rising star or even a seasoned warrior. Pale skinned and violet haired Marren even wondered if she was bastard-born from nobility, certainly she looked much like any other noble girl that he saw. However on closer inspection details emerged that would indicate otherwise. The armour was not new, it was well taken care off but cleaning and hammering did not hide the dents, the scrapes and the wear and tear of battle.

But most of all was that look she gave him. Marren had to be honest, it scared him slightly. His experience of war was short skirmishes, duels in the sky with Kantilian riders and those were enough to stretch his nerves. The soldiers he fought with were nobles like him. None of them had such a look as the veteran that stood before him.

He cleared his throat and indicated for the woman to sit and poured two glasses of wine, pushing one to her.

“I have called you here because I am in need of your skills” he did make a move to drink “I have received permission from the Crown to go on a mission of great importance, one that will change the tide of this war”

He paused, sipping his drink “You know of the threat Kantle is to this great Kingdom of ours that is obvious. However do you know much about these 'sky-chariots' that rumor attests to?”

It was raining in Kantle again. Dusk had fallen and Okita was as drunk as his once remaining money would allow him to be. He stumbled into an alleyway soaked, supporting himself on the splintering side of a house. He had made his way partly down the alleyway when his soaked clothing, shivering flesh, and drunken body would allow him to go no further. He collapsed into the mud, leaning his back against the wall of a large warehouse. Blinking water from his eyes, he tried to look up into the darkening sky, seeing the dark amber glow peeking around clusters of dark rolling clouds. In the distance he could see the flashes of lighting, and hear the distant roar of thunder. Not nearly drunk enough, his thoughts began to turn toward that dark place which always lingered. Flashes of memory sprung into mind, memories of his wife's death, of there unborn child spilling out. Okita cried out, his tears mixing with the pouring rain. Without money for drink, and unable to bear the pain, he slammed his head into a nearby barrel. Slumping into the mud unconscious, the water pooled mixing with a trickle of his blood and began to divert around him. The clouds rolled on, as the lighting and thunder closed in.

The dank smell of Kantle streets was familiar, yet far from welcoming. It had not been easy to get here, but at last she had arrived. Zoran-Thiea still couldn't believe she had come back to this place. Yet, here she was, creeping in the shadows of the streets. She was anxious to arrive at her family's house. That dreadful place she had been raised. It was an odd feeling, to be returning there now, by her own choice. Yet she wondered if any of her family had survived the battles.

It was easy to tell that Kantle had become a place of war, even more than it was before. Dark clad soldiers patrolled the streets commonly, perhaps their presence served little purpose other than a display of power in order to strike fear into the hearts of any who dare forsake the kingdom. Despite being born of this Kingdom, and even bearing her father's name, she worried her appearance alone would get her thrown into a jail cell. So she strode as hastily along as she could without making herself any more conspicuous, until at last she made her way to the large looming door of that house.

Her heart was pounding in her chest, and nothing about the vibes she was receiving was good. Basically, she had a really bad gut feeling. As she finally worked up a tiny bit of nerve, she let her knuckles fall upon the heavy door three times, and then she waited. Immediately after she knocked upon the door, voices could be heard yelling back and forth awhile, and then abruptly the heavy door was jerked open. It was an unrecognizable woman who stood in the doorway. She had the sort of look that a cheap whore would if given a little more money than to which she was accustomed. The brilliant red lipstick she wore was a bit smudged, which was made more noticeable by the fact that her lips were pursed together. Her eyebrows were arched—one of them in particular—and her eyes were lined with a bit of black makeup. Most noticeably...her breasts hung in such a way that it seemed as though they may burst from her tightly worn corset at any moment. She stared at Zoran-Thiea like this awhile, until she realized she would have to speak the first word. "Yeah, what do you want?" The woman demanded harshly.

Zoran-Thiea cleared her throat and raised an eyebrow to match the bitchy expression of the other woman. "I'm looking for Draken-Lor." She said simply, and even as the words left her mouth the woman at the door huffed.

"Oh! I bet you are. Are you one of his mistresses then?" She spoke accusingly. "If you think he owes you anything you're wrong you little whore—"

"I'm his daughter. And you're the whore mistress who should be watching your mouth." Zoran-Thiea interrupt and the woman scoffed. A wild rage filled her eyes and just as she parted those filthy red lips to retort, the large shadow of a man shoved her back from the doorway as he scolded her without restrain upon his tongue.

"Shut your mouth bitch...now who—" As he turned to see it was his daughter standing on their doorstep his expression was a bit taken aback. "What the hell are you doing here..?!" He swore as his tall stature loomed over her head. Zoran-Thiea was literally cast in his shadow, and it brought back chilling memories of her childhood.

"I came to see if my family lived." She said harshly, and though she had to bend her neck back to meet his gaze, she kept her chin up and her eyes cold.

"Hah!" He slapped her back as though she were a son. "You don't hold much faith in me as a protector!" Just at that moment an old woman appeared in the background behind her father, and she pointed to Zoran-Thiea and laughed heartily like a mad-woman.

"The little brat is still alive!!" She said in between bouts of cackling laughter.

"Ah shut it, you old witch!" Her father cussed and at last stepped aside to let his child in. As she stepped into the house, only very slightly less dark and dank than the streets, she looked around expecting it to somehow feel like home. Instead, it only felt cold and distant. She noticed her father's mistress had already made herself comfortable, in the corner of the room, lounging and smoking a cigarette. The old hag had wandered off and could now be heard rummaging around in the kitchen. So now, it was only she and her father who stood, watching each other.

"What has become of my mother?" Zoran-Thiea asked hesitantly. Her heart almost begged that the woman had finally passed on. Surely her father would never bring a whore to live in the same house, were she still alive. Yet he looked down and rested a large hand on her shoulder.

"She's nothing but a hollowed out body. No more than skin an' bones now. But the stubborn old thing won't die yet. I don't know why she lives any more." Zoran-Thiea's eyes widened as he spoke...surely she was not here. "She's in the back bedroom. Go an' see her then you might as well leave. We have no need for you being here." Her chest ached with pain.

"You're a worthless piece of shit!" She suddenly burst out. "Of all the horrible things you did..." Her mind blurred as she spoke. "How could you speak of her that way? How could you do this to her? How could you bring that WHORE to live under the same roof?!" She screamed uncontrollably at him. It seemed that it had all been coming back. After holding her tongue for all her life. Now she couldn't find enough words. "Damn you to the deepest depths of whatever most miserable horror awaits in the afterlife. Damn you for a thousand eternities!!" She couldn't stop herself now...until she felt the familiar pain of his rough knuckles as he struck the back of his hand across her face, with nearly enough force to throw her to the floor. Then, she looked up at him with cold eyes full of hate, and never spoke another word.

Her mother lay in the bed, looking far more dead than alive. Her face was withered and hollow and her whole body looked like a skeleton. The only motion she made was a trembling and the only sound was the raspy sound of her breathing. Her eyes were open, though milky and hazed, and they did nothing but stare into empty space. It broke her heart to see her like this. It wasn't to say that her mother was a saint, and yet she had never done such wicked things to deserve such a horrid fate. Zoran-Thiea walked over with tears collected in her eyes. She carefully removed a small glass bottle from her bag, and set it upon her mother's lips. "I'm sorry I've let him do this to you." Slowly she poured the liquid and her mother drank. The woman recognized her daughter no more. She knew nothing. And yet she was forced to live, for what? "Rest now mother." She whispered and placed a kiss upon her forehead. Slowly, the woman closed her eyes, and the raspy noize of her labored breathing ceased and the tremble of her body fell. At last, she looked to be at peace.

Zoran-Thiea stood in the middle of the cold street, with her feet sunken into the mud and her eyes turned down. It rained cold and sharply upon her. "I will make him pay for what he has done." She whispered softly to the sound of the pitter-patter of rain falling upon mud. "I will damn him myself."

Okita stumbled as he was shoved out of the tavern. It had been a week since he had a real drink, and no taverns would let him in. His pension from past service in the army had run out, and his tavern tabs had skyrocketed. There no longer was a single tavern to poor him a drink, and with no money for alcohol he could not keep his painful memories from returning. Okita looked around shivering. It was raining yet again in Kantle, as autumn gave way to the new winter months. He began to beg as people passed, most simply scoffed and ignored him, the soldiers though would push him down into the mud as they passed. As his desperation gave way to despair the night sky was eclipsing the day's and Okita found a fairly dry alley in which to sleep.

Okita awoke to yet another miserable day. Cold, wet, hungry, and worst, sober. With a deep depression within, no outward hope, and half starved, Okita knew what he would have to do. He made his way across town stumbling in the thick mud. He came to a large building and pounded on the rear door. It opened to a large woman with gaudy makeup, and red lips. She wore a look of shock, which quickly turned into a smirk. Leaning down she whispered into Okita's ear. "Ready to work hun?" He answered the woman with a resigned nod. After all, what else was there to do? The large woman yanked him through the door and closed it. "GIRLS!" she yelled out. "Girls! Get him ready! I want him making money in an hour!"

Okita was dunked into a lukewarm tub of water which had rose petals floating within. The mud was scrubbed off of him and his hair washed. The warm water felt so good as it wrapped around him, thawing his frozen body. Another girl entered shortly with a razor blade and began shaving his scraggly beard. To soon they were pulling him from the water and drying him off. They put cheap linen clothes on him and set him down to a meal of stale bread and water. Okita began to scarf his food down, it's taste exquisite to his starved body. As he finished the girls pulled him along and pushed him into a room, closing the door. It was his first chance to take a deep breath and look around. The room had rose colored walls, with wood floors. There were a few candles burning in scones on the walls and a red love seat in the corner. The most prominent piece was the large bed with fluffy pillows and rose colored sheets. A mirror hung near the door, and as Okita stared into it he could not recognized who stared back. Though his clothes were clean, his face shaven, there was a look of despair in his eyes.

The door opened and the large woman from before stepped in. "Madam" Okita managed to say softly. "Let me look at ya" she spoke and her hand was already in motion grabbing his chin and pushing his head to one side then the other. "Well your certainly a pretty man you are. If ya wernt damaged goods I could have made a killing from you. O well" she sighed "Pretty nough to make me a small fortune even without the arm. You'r client will be in any second. Do a good job won't ya." With a stare that clearly meant he had better do just that, she left. Shortly after a woman who appeared in her mid forty's entered the room. She was modestly attractive and well kept, with brown eyes. Her hair matched as the brown strands were pulled together in a bun. She smiled at Okita and walked over to him. "Don't worry you poor boy. Mommies here to take care of you." She said as she undressed him and looked over his body with lust in her eyes.

Okita sneaked out of the brothel that evening with a days wages in hand. The evening's sky was darkening as a light rain continued to soak the ground. He began to make his way to a little tavern close by to drown his sorrows away. Lost in painful memories as he dredged his way through the mud laden streets he ran into a woman who had been standing in the middle of the lane, her feet had sunk into the mud, and at the bump from Okita she began to fall. Okita was ripped from his painful thoughts, surprised and a bit shocked at having run into someone, he quickly recovered. Reaching out he had to drop the money he was holding in order to grab her arm, preventing her from landing in the mud laden street. "I'm so very sorry Mam." He said as he let her arm go.