Iree Nobelis had been called many things in her life, but one thing she’d endeavored for not one person to be able to call her to her face was a liar. She was one, but not many people knew that, and she liked it that way. It was important for her to be someone that everyone believed they could rely on without reservation. Trustworthiness combined with doing what had to be done required a certain level of tact. That said, Dorothea Atlin was forcing her hand in a big way.

Her responsibility to Sacer dictated that she take whatever measures necessary to achieve victory. An alliance with the holder of Juncture magic meant losing the war would be impossible. With a power like this behind them, they could end the violence after so long. If Iree gave that up, then she wouldn’t be fulfilling her duty to her people. She’d be a fucking idiot to just let a chance like that walk away. That said, the moment Dorothea had introduced herself, she had begun to make the necessary plans to ensure her cooperation.

It was a fairly simple situation to predict. If you gave someone a strong enough cause to fight for, they would make the effort. One of the more effective causes was revenge and the desire for justice that came with it. So, for instance, say that Dorothea just so happened to end up with nowhere to return to. Say those dastardly Ghurian rats went so far as to destroy Sirpo. It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to claim. Saying the words would be easy when the time came.

The main issue was the many ways in which it could go wrong. What if she asked to go back home anyways, see the damage for herself? Iree was willing to bet she could convince her not to, but even so. It was far too big of a risk, so she decided to turn lie into truth. She’d gone back and forth about it a lot, but the option that presented the least risk was the one that won out. If the village of Equin was truly gone, then Dorothea would be forced to remain in Sacer, and her allegiance wouldn’t be swayed. Because there wouldn’t be anywhere else to go, because she would need her revenge, she would fight for the Sacerian army.

There was nothing else to do but act. The Sirpoan people would be brought back by Dorothea’s hand, so any guilt Iree would have felt from the necessary sacrifice was assuaged. That wasn’t to say she felt nothing as she and Ariana commenced with the slaughter of innocent civilians, far from it, but it gave her strikes the decisive nature they needed.

The deed wasn’t without its small hardships; some Sirpoans had once been soldiers, after all. However, people like Shark Olyen were the exception, not the rule. Not everyone could retain the fruits of their training after the passage of so much time. Either way, the Sirpoans were at a severe disadvantage against soldiers who had abandoned hesitation and mercy before arriving. That combined with the element of surprise made Iree rightfully confident in hers and Ariana’s victory. Neither of them escaped without a few scrapes and bruises, but that was actually better. It would make their story more convincing. To be sure, Iree tore her own sleeve and made an extra cut on her forehead, letting blood drip down.

“Let’s wait a while before heading back,” she murmured once they had reconvened at the entrance to the wasted city after one last sweep for survivors.

Ariana squeezed her right hand into a fist, pursing her lips as blood squelched and oozed between her fingers. The blade her magic created emerged from her hand, slicing through her palm each time she fought. Her hand seemed to be permanently wounded, as the gouges were consistently cut through once again, slice after slice sometimes building to rot.

“How’s the infection healing up?”

“Like always.” She scooped up some snow and inhaled sharply at the biting relief. A frosty wind whipped around them, but she didn’t shiver, instead studying the bright sunlight as it highlighted the silhouettes of mountains from behind. “Are you sure this will be the end of it?”

“I am. With Atlin behind us, the last thing I need to make my plan possible is there.”

“You never have told me what your little plot is, yet you’re so confident it’ll up and end the war in one blow.” Ariana didn’t sound expectant, already having accepted a while ago that Iree would have her secrets.

“You’ll see soon enough.”

They watched melted snow mix with blood and trickle down in thin pink rivulets. “Fine by me.”

“You sure you’re okay?” Iree certainly wasn’t pretending to have stomached the whole thing without flinching. The method she had used to kill as many people as quickly as possible was to seize their faces or the back of their necks before applying a quick blast of heat intense enough to create a bubbling explosion. She’d been lucky not to get burned by the blastbacks too much. Still, the image of a wide, panicked eye peeking between her fingers before she dealt death… It wasn’t easily forgotten.

“If I wanted the easy way, I wouldn’t be here.”

Iree smiled. “That’s why I like you, Ariana. You always say what’s on my mind without meaning to. That’s almost magic on its own!” She laughed.

Ariana was unamused. “Easy to like someone when they always agree with you, right?”

“You’re such a grump.”

She sighed and patted her hands dry on her pants before drawing a book out from her coat. “I scoped out the Atlin house like you asked me to. There wasn’t much, but I did find this. It’s a… I guess I’d call it a progress report, kind of. Seems like lots of the Atlin family have written in it.”

“You keep it at your place for now. It’ll be safer.”

“If you’re sure.” One more time, she shook off her hand into the snow. “Promise me, Iree.”

“Of course.” Ariana wasn’t looking at her; still, she stared back at those mountains. Had she seen similar sights in the homeland she’d left behind, Iree wondered. In Ghuria, were there mountains just like these? “I swear it. This will all be over soon.” For Sacer, for everything behind them, and for her own goals, she wouldn’t allow any other conclusion to come to pass.