"He is a child! A child yet he has escaped all of them! Is it really so hard, to capture him and keep him captured?" The voice yelled. It still rang familiar to Virgil but no matter how hard he tried he was never able to place it, and his visions have yet to show him a face to pair with it.

"It's been years since you've last interacted with the boy," another voice spoke, this time paired with the face of Ira. She looked different now than she did four years ago. Her hair black hair was beginning to gray and turn wirey. She was short, or more likely Virgil had just grown since he had seen her. Black lines occasionally appeared on her skin, showing how her use of dark magic had begun to affect her. Her eyes were narrow and pointed, as was her nose. She was standing with a straight back and her head was held high, giving an heir of superiority. "Perhaps it is you who is underestimating him."

"Whether I underestimate him or not shouldn't change that we have sent soldiers, witches, and assassins after him yet he keeps escaping them." The man turned to Ira, his face still hidden, towering over he menacingly. Ira did not seem phased. "You promised your students would deliver him Ira, yet he is not here and I am growing impatient."

"Excuse me for saying so, but if I recall my students had Prince Virgil in their custody the longest. Therefore, I have been closest to delivering him to you."

The man growled at Ira, "I need one of the princes to be on my side. Virgil is our only hope at succeeding at this."

"Perhaps send Kieran after him?" Ira suggested

"That incompetent buffoon? If he couldn't kill the light realm Prince Remus, then I don't think I can trust him to retrieve me someone who all else have failed at."

"Well, perhaps if Kieran uses a tactic that seems to be, at least partly, working here, then Virgil might be more willing to work with us."

The man with the familiar voice hummed in thought, turning away from Ira and walking towards a window, "Use someone he cares for, you mean?"

Ira grinned evilly, "Precisely. He's traveling in a group, if he's anything like his brother Virgil will behave once others' lives are put in danger. And if not, well I've never known Kieran to one who repeats mistakes, his or someone else's. I'm sure he could figure something out to keep Virgil from running."

"Yes, perhaps you're right," The man said as he turned towards the door, "Send word to Kieran then. I'm going to have another word with Janus."

He paused for a moment at the entryway, "Oh, and keep in mind Ira. I'm not the only one who needs Virgil alive. You said it yourself, Virgil may not know how to wield his magic, but he has plenty of it. If you want to bring your son back, you and I both know Virgil is your best chance of it being done properly. Especially now that Janus's hands may be nearing beyond repair."

Ira glared at the man in front of her as she gritted her teeth tightly to speak "He's the reason my son is dead if you expect mercy from me-"

"He's the only way your son can come back, besides, wouldn't it be fun?" He was smiling, he could see his smile but nothing else. He needs to see his face. "Teaching Virgil a magic his mother despised? If his mother were here to see it, could you imagine how much pain it would put her through" The look on Ira's face confirmed that she liked that idea, "I thought so. Then, you'll do as I say and keep him . Understood?"

Ira nodded, "Yes, I'll notify Kieran, immediately."

The man nodded, before leaving the room, the door shutting behind him.

Virgil gasped as he awoke. The vision he just witnessed was longer than most and it lingered in his mind like a very vivid nightmare. A cold sweat ran down his back and wet his hair. Virgil sat up, burying his face in his hands and letting out a deep breath as he tried to calm himself and analyze the vision. Luckily for him, this vision was a little more clear than most, however, the face of the man responsible for all of this was still hidden making it impossible for Virgil to place the voice.

He looked around the camp they had set up the night before. The fire was only a dying pile of embers and burnt wood at this point, paired with the cold night air and Virgil's lack of a jacket made him shiver slightly. He seemed to be the only one awake, the other three still fast asleep and hopefully wouldn't be waking up for a while longer. A canopy of trees and leaves hid most of the night sky, but from what Virgil could tell it was only an hour or two before dawn.

He figured he'd have no luck in returning to sleep and so decided now might be a good time to get up for the day. They normally left a little after dawn anyway, this would just be easier. So Virgil pulled himself out of the cover of his blankets and moved closer to the fire they had built,. After a little bit of work he managed to get it relit and he sat back against a nearby rock, resting on it while his body warmed up and he contemplated on the vision from earlier.

So, they were gonna send another group of people after him. And they needed him, for multiple reasons. Well, at least they wouldn't kill him immediately, he supposed that was good. However, they also planned on using people against him. People he cared about. They were right, if someone else's life hung in the balance he was more then likely going to do whatever they tell him.

He couldn't imagine what his brother was going through. Janus loved Remus more then he loved himself. He'd do anything to protect the ex-prince and Remus would do the very same for him. Anybody who had seen the two interact could easily see that and it was obvious that Ira and the others in this group knew that just as well as he did. But, also, Janus would never put the kingdom at risk, not even for Remus, no matter how much Janus loved him. Maybe thats why everytime Virgil saw them Remus was so hurt, because Janus wasn't doing what they were saying and they were hurting Remus because of it.

Virgil allowed himself to be grateful that Remy wasn't here then. At least Remy was safe. He might not be able to protect anybody else but Remy was safe. With Virgil's father dead, Remy, Remus, and Janus were the most important people in Virgil's life. They even surpassed his own uncle. It was already awful enough that Remus and Janus were there, if all three of them had gotten caught...

Not to mention that Remy wouldn't stand down and would defy any command he was given every step. He'd be trying to protect his family and he'd by trying to protect his friends, there was no way Remy wouldn't end up getting hurt if he had been caught. He was safe where he was, safer then most, and as long as he stayed where he was he would continue to be safe.

It was hard to shake off the thought that people were going to continue to come after them. But they had gotten so lucky, maybe they could find them and get back to the Light Realm without being caught. Maybe they could. Maybe. Maybe. Maybe.

Maybe wasn't very definite. And Virgil had never really been much of a positive thinker. Not to mention that Virgl hadn't yet told anybody that General Tafe, a man who was in a high position of power in the Light Realm, was a traitor to his very kingdom. He'd known for while now of course, Remus had told them exactly who had stabbed him when they met. He didn't know why he hadn't told, but would it be wise to do so now...

Would Roman even believe him? Virgil already knew that General Tafe was not only in charge of the Light Realm army, not only a member of the King and Queen's council, but he was also a close family friend to the king and queen. And while Roman had already said he didn't approve of Tafe's methods, he must trust the man at least somewhat. If Virgil told, and they didn't believe him then it would only just cause tension and unbalance the group. But if he didn't, and they did find them, then they might be unprepared for whatever was to come.

Maybe he should just tell Patton and ask him what to do.

Patton was who he was closest to in the group. He listened to, or observed, his concerns and worries. Not only about the kingdom but also on his feelings towards Logan and Roman. Logan and Roman, oh god the thought itself made his face burn with embarrassment and want to hide away forever.

Regardless of that though, Patton was his top choice of people to tell right now. Patton could advise him on if he should tell the others. And at least if Patton knew, and the others didn't, two of them would be prepared. Two was better then one.

It was decided, Virgil would tell Patton what he saw in his vision. And from there, Patton would decide whether to tell the other two or not.

____________________

"Alright," Logan said as he unrolled the map of the Dark Realm they had found the very first day of their journey and laid it flat against the ground. He pointed to a space between two towns, "We're here, we should arrive in this town here within a few days," Logan slid his finger north, "According to the map it's one of the last towns that was hit by the invaders. Once we reach the last town we'll hopefully be close enough for me to conduct a tracking spell. The stronger tracking spells require personal items of the person we're looking for, Roman still has Remus's mask. Virgil, do you happen to have anything that belongs to your brother, the closer to him the better?"

Virgil nodded and gently patted the sword at his side, 'The sword. With my father gone, it goes to him.'

Logan hummed in thought, that might work but the spell might not recognize Janus as the owner of the sword. He looked back down at the map with a shrug, "Regardless, once we pass the last town we will be traveling through nothing but forest for some time. In fact according to this map, the Dark Realm does not consider this as their land and there is no towns or villages under the rule of the Dark Realm beyond this point. It is a stretch of forest and uncharted land that will eventually lead to the ocean. If the invaders are on this side of the continent they have to be in this forest. If everything continues according to plan we should find the invaders within a week or two. From there, we send word to Roman's parents and wait in the nearest town for reinforcements."

Roman laughed slightly, "You sound like your describing a battle strategy 'soldier'"

"Shut up Roman, you know I'm not a fighter."

"You're a lover!" Patton chimed in

Logan shook his head, "S-sure Patton."

"He doesn't make hate he makes love"

"Patton!" Logan said, his face flushed red as he sent a glare at his friend. Roman laughed again as he lightly poked at Logan and subtly pointed to Virgil, who had also turned a light shade of red and quickly looked away when caught their glances. "Focus. Does everyone understand the plan?"

Virgil frowned, hugging his knees close to his chest as he stared at the map. "Is something wrong Virgil?" Logan asked him. Virgil shook his head, not exactly.

"Hey Ann, why isn't the Dark Realm using this space?" Roman asked curiously "If it doesn't belong to anybody, and no ones fighting you over it then why not claim it for yourselves? It could really expand your kingdom you know."

Virgil looked up at them, a little bit of shock in his eyes and staring at them as if to ask if they were serious. When they continued to look at him expectantly he realized they were, 'It's cursed land. We don't want it.'

"Cursed? That's preposterous, it would require a very special and strong type of magic to curse that much land. I don't think Merlin himself would be able to perform such a spell." Logan said with a bit of a scoff.

"I wanna hear about the curse!" Roman cried, Patton chiming in with agreement and Logan huffing in disappointment. Leave it to Roman to ignore the facts Logan was telling and focus on stupid lies and false stories, "What kind of curse is it? A curse of love? A curse of madness? What is it?"

Again, Virgil looked surprised by the question but complied, 'Well, legend has it that anything evil or bad comes from that forest. We think it's where monsters reside. Where dark magic, evil spirits, and malevolent ideas grow and are released. The whole kingdom is afraid of the forest and has been since the beginning of Dark Realm history. None of our rulers have ever dared tried to claim that land. Anyone stupid enough to go in has never come out the same. The only things that have ever come out of the forest have always been evil.'

"Whoah!" Roman said in a hushed whisper, his eyes wide as he stared at Virgil like a child, "What else?"

Virgil didn't seem all too surprised Roman wanted to know more, but honestly, there wasn't much else to tell. 'Well, some of our people like to say that monsters aren't the only thing that comes out of the forest. Some people say that when a spirit manages to escape the forest they will take the body of a baby and use it as a vessel to conduct evil, killing the previously innocent and good spirit the baby had. Kind of like the stories of changelings, you know?'

"What kind of people?"

Virgil paused and shifted uncomfortably, 'That bit can sometimes get a little bit political. There are lots of people who have been accused of such things, like the witch Ira and previous Dark Realm rulers.'

"Have you been accused?" Patton asked sympathetically.

Virgil nodded with a sad smile, 'I have, so has Dee. My mother was accused when she first became queen. My grandfather and great-grandfather. Many rulers, really.'

"Well, then, they can hardly be true if they accuse every ruler they don't like." Logan said as he rolled up the map and put it away, "You shouldn't dwell on such harmful words, especially when they are such falsehoods."

"We don't have anything like that in the Light Realm," Roman commented, "We don't believe in changeling spirits."

Virgil smiled and laughed slightly, 'Princey, people don't stop accusing others of things just because there's a border between them; there's plenty of Light Realm people who've been accused of such things.'

"Really?" Roman asked, "Who?"

'You're not gonna like it,' Virgil warned.

"I can handle name-calling Ann, if you mean me or my family then we've been called worse," Roman said to him. Virgil frowned, here being called something of the like could be considered a real insult. He supposed Roman just didn't understand how serious of an accusation it really was. After all, Virgil had left out the bit where in the past many of the people accused would have to stand trial and if proven guilty would often be killed. "Come on, who?"

'Your parents for one. Not really so much you or 'Mus though. A couple of people on the council; like General Tafe and one of the men that sat next to Patton's mom.'

Roman hummed in thought as Logan rolled his eyes again, "Those are all falsehoods. There are no such thing as body possessing evil spirits. If any people actually accused are in fact evil; it is because they are that way on their own."

"Logan, you're so smart," Patton complimented.

"Of course I am, now, we should start moving again. Time is afoot."