Hey, y'all! I just wanted to thank you all for the support, it has helped me get through my hard times. I am a bit better and starting to write again! Love you all bunches and I hope you enjoy this LONG awaited chapter!

Ruy was barely able to stand at the meeting with the Governor. Both from nerves, his near encounter with Sophie and Maha, along with the holes he was staring into the back of the Governor's skull. He couldn't remember that last little bit of the memory the crystal gave him; he couldn't finish it off. But he knew the Governor was an ass that was a hair width's away from Ruy kicking in his teeth. At least that much Ruy knew.

"So the Queen wants her kingdom back, but she needs your help to do it?"

"She says a naval force is the best way to attack Egypitnat, but her naval forces were weak to begin with, so she is asking for mine."

Ruy stared at Nyoka's house in the distance, hidden by the walls of the fort. The blue and yellow banners seem almost muted compared to when he saw them as a boy. But maybe that was the fascination of a child looking at a thing he had never seen before, something that he thought he would never possibly achieve. Ironically, only a few days prior, he wore a crown atop his head.

Something happened that night, and only Nyoka, Sophie, Alexios, and Allesandro know. Yet none of them can quite wrap their head around it.

Ruy wanted to know what happened that night. He often wonders if that night had gone differently, if he somehow remained with Nyoka and Allesandro, how different his life would've been. He wouldn't have had to fight against his mother during his youth or learn to pickpocket to get some proper damn food. He would've grown with the very people he calls family now.

Ruy felt a hand on his shoulder, Dom coming up behind him.

"You look like you are about to keel over." She whispered.

Ruy opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He just turned his bloodshot eyes back to the Governor's conversation. But Dom squeezed his shoulder a bit more.

"You need to do something, don't you? You have that look in your eyes- under the tears you're trying to blink back, of course." She asked. Ruy froze, still not tearing his gaze from the conversation, even though he didn't hear a single word.

Dominique swallowed but turned back to the conversation as well.

Trix and other Neverseen officials went back and forth with each other, the Governor occasionally butting in.

But Trix smiled a bit as he said, "Do it."

They all looked at him in confusion.

"Give her your fleet. Make her think you are with her. But then right as their forces are attacking, you flip and instead fire on them. You trap them in their own little scheme. They think they will stand a chance with your forces and wouldn't even suspect it." The Neverseen congratulated the idea, nodding and murmuring, clapping Trix on the back.

"You can't be serious." Dominique gasped. All eyes turned to her, but she didn't back down.

"They are already beaten, especially the Egypitnat Queen. Don't you think this is going overboard? Not to mention it will likely turn them against each other and cause more war. There are a lot of innocent lives in those cities! Not just Vatarians but ogres, trolls, gnomes, Lith, and even some elves have taken refuge in the Vatarian cities! Their lives are going to be ruined if we push the Vatarian leaders too far." She barked at all of them.

Trix just stared at her then hissed, "I didn't give you permission to speak."

Dom's fists were so tight her fingernails cut into her palms, "Last time I checked, I'm a living being. No Neverseen wannabe can tell me what to do-"

"Dom," Ruy whispered. She didn't turn to him.

Trix turned to Hathem, "I want her out of here."

"Why you-"

"Dom, please. We're all going to get in trouble." Hathem whispered. Dom gazed over their small unit and growled, stomping away from the meeting back to the hotel reserved for them, Hathem close behind her. Ruy wanted to follow, wanted to thank her for saying what he was too weak to.

But the Governor seemed hesitant. Ruy felt his confidence crumbling more and more with the ideas passed around, but the one Trix proposed seemed cruel. Crueler than all the rest. Queen Arsinoe is kind and confident, but she wants her kingdom back. Trix is right; she won't even bat an eyelash if the Governor offers his armada.

"The Vatarians will know my standing if I do that, I will no longer be able to act as a spy."

"You won't need to. If this plan works, the Vatarian leaders will be incapacitated to the point of no return. It will help with our plans in Inalia as well if you get the damn Assassins out of the way."

"Speaking of Assassins," The Governor turned his attention to Ruy, who refused to meet his eyes, "Why the hell is one of the Inner Circle sitting with us?"

Trix groaned, explaining his reasoning for being there. But surprisingly, the Governor nodded, "I understand. Apparently, Maha Abara is quite the Mesmer. King Hamidi told me all about her at the Conference when he saw her."

Ruy clutched his chair as Trix said, "King Hamidi? Is he a Neverseen sympathizer?"

"No, but he isn't exactly on board with a lot of the other leaders. This Maha kid was apparently a really big deal in Avrima a few years ago. You can imagine his surprise when he saw her walking in with Amalia."

The other people of his squad looked at him sympathetically, as if this proves that he was under Maha's control, but Trix just scoffed.

"Whatever. Heinrich, this is what you are going to do." Trix gave a long explanation of what Heinrich was to say, what he was supposed to do, and who to contact. Heinrich, though begrudgingly, agreed to it all.

Ruy sprinted back to his room that he shared with Hathem and Dom, stopping just as he reached for the handle to listen to Dom's raging.

"I joined the Neverseen because, unlike the Council, I thought they gave a damn about the little guys. I thought they would make a change for the people who need it, but the selfish assholes-"

Ruy opened the door, staring at Dom halt her pacing to glare him down.

Ruy didn't say a thing, closing the door behind him and scribbling down the meeting notes, handing it to her.

"Since you missed the details."

Dom stared at it, but Hathem snatched from his hand and looked it over. He sighed, slumping a bit.

"This is really thought out." Was all he said. But Ruy was out of the room and down the hall again, quickly grabbing some food from the innkeeper and sitting down at one of the tables, stretching himself out.

Ruy stared to the coastal black market he was in earlier, the one where he sprinted away from Sophie, his mind drifting.

Oh shit, Sophie.

Where is she? Is she okay? Is the Governor still on her and Maha's trail?

Sophie and Maha are smart; they wouldn't be caught so easily. But the Governor knows they are in Cariana; he knows they are a danger to him. How long can they hide for?

Ruy sat down there for hours, in mind racking around it all. But he turned to Nyoka's fort atop the mountain.

He couldn't just sit around and wait anymore; he couldn't stall. He has plans and it's time to put them into action. But first, it was time to get some answers from a certain High Lady.

Sophie was a little shaky but feeling better the next morning; though she was slightly miffed, she finished off her candied orange peels in one sitting. She shook her red hair out a bit, trying to get used to it a bit more. Just until they got on the boat, then she can wash the color out of her hair. Maha walked in, her braids tight up in a knot on her head and wearing fairly simple clothing.

"Come on, the inn keep wants to meet us now."

Both women slid out of their room and towards the counter where a tired-looking Lith with blue scales for skin was washing dishes.

"We are here to talk to Jade?" Maha whispered. The Lith looked them up and down and scoffed, continuing to clean his glasses.

"She is busy right now, whatever you need you can get from me."

Maha shot Sophie a worried glance but continued, "She asked to see us though?"

"I don't think-"

"Connor, for the gods's sake, just let them come in." A voice snapped from behind the counter. The Lith, who seemed to be named Connor, grumbled as he stepped to the side, letting Maha and Sophie pass to the small room. Maha shot him a grateful smile, but Sophie just glared at him as they passed.

Jade was a surprisingly pale woman for Cariana, her dark brown hair shaggy around the top and saved along the sides. She didn't look up from her documents until Sophie cleared her throat a bit; only then did her jade-blue eyes look at them. Her office was fairly dark, even for mid morning.

"Hello Jade, it is a pleasure seeing you again." Maha smiled. Jade gave her a little hum of approval before turning to Sophie.

"You alright now, lass?"

Sophie straightened, "Yes, thank you again for the shelter for the night."

"It was the least I could do after you got rid of that tax collector Mendo earlier this year, he was biting me in my ass. Not to mention my family has always been Morretti sympathizers."

Sophie tensed, glancing at the slit underneath the door.

Jade just smiled a bit, tapping her fountain pen in some ink as she went back to her documents, "Ah, of course. You are both incognito. I will try to have a bit more secrecy."

"You asked to speak with us?" Maha started.

Jade held up a finger, making them both stand there awkwardly as she finished her document with a final flourish of her pen, setting it down in a small porcelain dish and looking up at them.

"Of course. I have a contract for you two."

Sophie and Maha stood there for a second or two, trying to make sure she was serious.

"Ma'am, with all due respect, we don't exactly have the time nor resources-"

"You need an army, don't you?" She scoffed curtly, stretching out in her chair.

Sophie tensed, her mind screaming DANGER DANGER GET OUT, but she just leaned on the heels of her feet, trying to keep her cool.

"And why would I need that?"

"I have a cousin who lives in Egypitnat. She has been able to smuggle letters out of the city that gives me details of what is happening. I have... friends, in all of the Vatarian cities, and it seems they are going to be little help for Egypitnat. But you need Egypitnat. Anyone with even the smallest of underground knowledge knows that Arsinoe is all buddy-buddy with your organization. You need Egypitnat back up and running, but since the Vatarian leaders are probably not going to help, you need to find a larger force than the one you already have."

Sophie got the sneaking suspicion Jade was wrapped up in more than just her hospitality business.

"I can get you a small fleet, maybe 15 or 20 small battleships, and about 300 elite foot soldiers that will work hand in hand with your trained Assassins," Jade said quietly.

Sophie and Maha weren't hiding their shock at this point.

"I'm sorry- how the hell can you do all of this?!" Sophie snapped.

Jade's eyes darkened, "You need to accept my contract before I can give anything to you."

Sophie was about to demand further information, but Maha dragged Sophie back a bit and looked her in the eyes. This could be the start of exactly what they need to win this war.

Sophie sighed a bit, "Alright, this contract, what is it? We accept."

Jade smiled and stood up, pulling up to a map of the Carianan Archipelago and Peninsula, along with some of the Inalian isles. She shoved aside compasses, books, and her deadly pistol to make room for the two of them.

Sophie's eyes drifted to the large island that was the fifth furthest from Inalia. Kephalonia, Iphigenia's birthplace. Maybe, if Jade holds up her end of the bargain, they could return the Ancient Vatarians to their cities faster than they thought.

"We are here on Hyda. My sister is running a fleet of pirates and various misfits all across Cariana. But she mentioned in the last couple of months she has been struggling to fight off these new types of Mirthless that have found their way into Cariana. My sister, Captain Okoye, has her base here." Jade circled a medium-sized island tucked so far away from everything else, Sophie never would've noticed it.

"She has allied herself with a general there who is fighting the Neverseen as well." Jade looked up at Sophie, "It is rumored that this general isn't commanding typical soldiers, but modern Vatarians trained as ancient Inalian Spartans."

Sophie stopped, her lungs seizing up as her eyes widened.

"The Spartan practice has been lost to the ages." Sophie stuttered.

Jade just shrugged but kept her smirk on her face as she circled a popular port city on the Cariana peninsula, "Maybe my info is wrong then."

Jade's face fell a bit as she pointed to the port, "They believe that the mutated Mirthless are coming from a lab or factory of sorts in this city, but they don't have the skills or jurisdiction to take it out."

"So they need people with skills of stealth and silent power to do the job," Maha turned to Sophie as she said, "They need Cyevan Assassins."

Jade nodded, "According to my cousin in Egypitnat as well, there are rumors going about that a certain group of Assassins dealt with a mutated Mirthless killer." Sophie's throat closed a bit at that. Even though her name will never be associated with it, she hated that Cynna's memory will be remembered in that way.

"This is your contract. You meet up with my sister, the General will play little part in this transaction as far as I'm concerned. Then, you two get into there and destroy these beasts. Once the deal is done, you can return to my sister for your payment. What that payment is, however, is questionable. You might be able to haggle some of her ships and some of the General's soldiers."

Sophie stared at the map, her eyes roaming over every little note Jade had made.

"Need I remind you, you already accepted the contract, so you have little say in this matter." Jade spat.

Sophie remembered Kassandra's words.

It might be time to be a little wicked, youngling

She clenched her jaw as she muttered, "Done."

Jade smiled, straightening up over the map, "The ship for you to meet my sister leaves tonight at 1 am. Don't be late. Get all of your affairs in order before then."

Sophie and Maha tried to say goodbye, but Jade was already striding out of her office and to the busy inn, pretending like she was your typical friendly innkeeper, leaving Sophie and Maha in her dark office.

"Alright then." Sophie sighed, crossing her arms, "Seems like we have a change of plans."

"How do you know we can trust her?"

"With what she is promising? I don't think we can exactly ignore her. This could change everything." Sophie peeked outside Jade's blinds, sighing at the busy going crowds.

"Come on, let's get something to eat and come up with some strategies."

Keefe tried to fix his hair in the small reflective puddle on the floor of his cell, trying to put the pieces back together to create his signature swooshy laid back style. He may have lost contact with his friends and family, but at least he still has his hunky hair.

Until it fell flat just as Keefe took away his hands.

"Aw, man!" Keefe flopped onto his back, staring at the prison ceiling. He hasn't heard anything from Ruy in a couple of days, and Keefe didn't know whether to be released or worried.

Keefe was honestly surprised the Neverseen haven't tried to torture him or ruin his life or something.

"Hey, guard guy-guard guy! You are just holding me here, the least you could do is get me some hair gel!"

A little down the hall from his door, the guard muttered something about "Pompous elves," but Keefe didn't cease.

"I also feel bad about calling you guard guy. I'm gonna give you a nickname-"

"Do that and I will only make this worse for you."

"Oh, I'm so scared! Whatever will I do- I'm just kidding, I couldn't care less." Keefe dramatically leaned against the cell door, "So, though I can't see your face, you sound like a... maybe a Gerald? Or maybe the ever-dreaded Bob!"

"You are the most annoying thing to ever exist, I swear-"