Private Tales Brothers

[Gaage Eberwhit]

"He requested you specifically for this, Eberwhit."

Gaage had known something wasn't right the moment Gilram had a task meant solely for him; He wasn't one of the Archon's trusted circle. He'd made it quite clear his personal distaste for the rogue Dreadlord powerhouse, and he only continued to serve his cause for purely selfish purposes. The city wouldn't ever take him back at this point, and he'd promised Chasmine his support in returning her to some sort of normalcy.

He was done breaking promises,

"Yeah? Spit it out then." The ember-haired Exile growled at the messenger Gilram had sent. How had he even tracked him down? The little cottage the two of them stood in front of was out of the way, tucked into one of the Falwood's many dense forests. He'd finally saved up enough coin to buy himself a meager plot for privacy and sanity's sake, but already he'd been found. Turning around, Gaage dropped the wooden planks he'd been cutting for a fence in a pile, wiping his hands on his dusty trousers. "The suspense is killing me, really."

The other exile, a shorter guy, hell if Eberwhit remembered his name, raised an eyebrow as if he was unimpressed with the disrespect he was being shown. Gaage wagered he was expecting some heavy hitter when Gilly-boy sent him to personally deliver this message. Instead, he'd found a disillusioned young man who'd devoted his entire life to fighting and killing-- and now was becoming so very tired of it.

The messenger tsk'd softly and crossed his arms over his chest. That he bothered now was only by the order of his leader.

"The Republic is getting more aggressive. They've launched offensives at several cities they have reason to believe people associated with us are hiding in. The issue is that, in this case, they were right." A sigh and a shake of his head seemed to display his disappointment in the situation, as he gestured vaguely to the north. "There's a quaint little city just outside of Falwood, on the brink of Republic space. Vel Farris. Least, there was. They've practically razed it down when they caught wind of Castomir being sighted in the area."

Castomir.

Whereas Eberwhit hadn't looked to give a single shit about the words being spoken to him, that name drew his full attention. His shoulders broadened, and he stepped forward with shock blanching over his face. "What? Did you say Castomir? What the fuck does he have to do with us? Why would they raze a city over him?" With an inhuman speed, Gaage reached out and grasped the other man by the collar of his shirt, pulling him inches from his face as he growled like an angry mutt. "If you're fucking with me, I swear I'll send you back to Gilram in two halves..."

The courier looked about as surprised as the man throttling him did, his eyes darting across Gaage's face in genuine confusion as he planted his feet to pull back against the exile's grip. "D-did nobody tell you? He left, too, you idiot! That's why Gilram wants you to go an--" Eberwhit didn't let him finish, tossing him haphazardly aside and leaving him sputtering to catch his breath as he quickly made for his horse, strapping his satchel bag on and pulling himself up.

"Forget it. Vel Farris, I'll be there in no time."

---

Damn it, Zael. What the hell are you thinking?

Gaage raced towards the edge of the Falwood, pushing his horse as fast he could without getting unceremoniously bucked off. Sheets of rain, as heavy as blankets, had begun falling from the quickly darkening sky, soaking his clothes through. Flecks of mud kicked up from the legs of his mount stained and splotched his boots, but the chill of the storm didn't bother him nearly as much as the idea that Zael Castomir had somehow convinced himself to let himself be a part of this mess too. Fucking hell, why would he even consider it? Zael wasn't like him, he had things back in Vel Anir to fight for. What about Ebersol? Gaage was about as well tuned to the female mind as a slug and he knew that purple-haired nutjob was head over heels for him. Even putting her aside, Eberwhit had seen what these people did-- what they wanted.

It wasn't him.

No, something had to be wrong. There had to be something messing with his head. It didn't matter, though, whatever his reasoning was didn't change the fact that the Republic was tearing down a damned city looking for him, and he was going to need backup to get out of it. So Gaage pushed the concerns as to his brother's mindset from his thoughts and focused instead on his mission. The most important thing was correcting the mistake he'd made in that forest. He'd already left his brother behind once, without a second thought.

He wasn't leaving him behind again.

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

Funnily enough, Zael wasn't even in Vel Farris when the fighting started. He was in the region, yes, but not actually there in the city. It was in fact the fighting itself which brought him there. And what a surprise it would be if and when he actually caught wind of the Guard's intent, if he knew that they really wanted the Slayer of Ganfarred dead this badly.

What he did know: that the unit involved in attacking Vel Farris was the 9th Homeguard, Army of the East. Who knew, maybe in a different life Zael could have been with them, doing something like this, reducing an Anirian city to ash for Kress-knows-what-reason (again, imagine him being tickled pink by the 9th's true purpose).

And what Zael knew more was that this was a prime chance to do more damage to the Guard, and therefore to the Republic. That was how you could bring the whole edifice crashing down, because Vel Anir without its military could not sustain itself. And the 9th? They were full of veteran soldiers. Not year-boys, people conscripted without choice to service their year long term who had every intention of getting out once it was done, but career soldiers; they were the ones Zael needed to target, because they had all the experience and, more importantly, the mindset that Zael was against. They were the established order. They were the people who would hang him, hang Gaage, hang Edric, hang anyone and everyone who was a Dreadlord and who didn't buy the life the Republic was selling.

So this was it, man. This was the next step. And that's how this thing was gonna be won, one step at a time until every Dreadlord was finally free.

Zael stood presently far to the outskirts of Vel Farris, among the dense Falwood trees, near to the road but as a precaution not too near. Even from this vantage the stacks of smoke choked out the canopy above, the glow of the fires inside the town shimmering brightly in the distance.

He gripped his sword. Held it with a sureness down at his side.

"So these motherfuckers like playin with fire, huh."

He'd give 'em plenty to play with.

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

The city came into view through the thick trees enveloping the path ahead of him, plumes of black smoke rising over the canopy into the sky, the distant whisper of far-away screams and shouts reaching his ears. They'd said it was a razing, but... this was way beyond the scope of what he'd expected to see. Even he hadn't done this much damage without a damned good reason to.

"Fucking hell.." Gaage muttered to himself as he cleared the forest and rode down the path that led into town. "The shit did you do, Zael?" They wouldn't be coming after him like this for no reason. Something had gone down between his best friend and their home city. Something big. Honestly, Eberwhit wasn't a huge fan of the implications...

Maybe if he was expecting said friend to be parked outside of the city instead of fighting in it, he would have paid more attention to the area surrounding the road he traveled. Instead, the exile blew past Zael in a flurry of hooves and unsheathing steel as Gaage readied his sword for a messy fight. As far as he knew, Castomir was down there somewhere, and he was going to need help.

Vel Farris was in complete chaos. At least, the end he rode into was. Quickly, Eberwhit was faced with dense groups of the Guard, going door to door and ransacking homes and shops, before setting fire to them when they were finished. They didn't care if Zael was here; They'd decided this place was finished either way. To avoid getting horded right off the bat, Gaage left his horse by the crumbling gates, hitching her to a tree and waiting for the crowds to clear so he could slip into the smokey alleyways. From there, maybe he could start picking the bastards off.

It wouldn't be easy.

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

Zael glanced over from his vantage when he heard the distant sound of hooves on the road. A loner. Messenger to the 9th, maybe, delivering new orders to fuck up the next town over because they got the faintest whiff of anti-Republic sentiment. Didn't much matter. If Zael couldn't wipe out the 9th in its entirety, he'd send 'em limping and crippled back to their fort to lick their—

He did a double-take. Caught a glimpse of some wild and familiar red hair on the rider flashing by him.

"What the...no way. No fuckin way."

But it was. Zael was sure it was. One of the few things he could look forward to in his turn from good little boy for Vel Anir to dashing Rogue was the chance to see Gaage again. Gaage Eberwhit, the man who took him for his brother and Zael had so taken in his own turn. There wasn't anybody Zael'd rather jump through the portal to Pandemonium with, no one he'd rather die fighting alongside, and there he was, against all the odds, right here in Vel Farris.

Kress, did they have some catching up to do.

But first things first, Zael had to actually, not figuratively, catch up to him.

So he went running. Broke into a flat-out, haulin' ass sprint after Gaage's galloping horse. Zael figured it might be a little too showy right now to go flying into the air, announcing his presence thereby in the loudest and most visible way possible. Save that for when the fight was joined and the 9th knew he was here. Zael did have to flick his Fireblood on and off though, to get some speed so as not to fall too far behind.

Thankfully, Gaage didn't go plowing right through gates. He got off his horse. Set to hitching it to a tree. Began to turn and face those crumbling gates. And that was when Zael tackled him. The two men went down hard into the dirt, but Zael was all smiles when he raised himself up and sat on his heels.

"Been a while, ain't it?"

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

"Fuck's sake, how am I gonna pull this off?"

Looking into the great shitting mess that was Vel Farris from the gates, Gaage couldn't fathom how anybody could still be alive and fighting against the Guards in the labyrinth of fire, death and steel before him. Zael was good with fire, yeah, but Eberwhit was pretty sure even that stubborn bastard has his limits.

"Maybe... I'm too late." He grumbled, knowing he'd still be diving in headfirst either way. Not a chance in hell he was leaving anything to chance with Zael. Even if he did kick the bucket, he wasn't staying here. He deserved to be somewhere he'd be remembered well. That in mind, he checked once more to make sure his weapons were secure, and prepared to dart inside the clusterfuck and get out of sight as soon as possible.

He shoulda just looked behind him.

Before he'd even had a chance to move, a solid mass of pure muscle collided with him from the rear, sending him to the dirt in a breathless heap as a muffled expletive forced its way from his lips. "The fuck is wrong with you, you stinking stalk of--" His hand reaches for his dagger as he rolls himself over, ready to slice the neck of whoever had the sheer testicular fortitude to try and attack him from behind...

Only to see the person he was here to save sitting on his knees and grinning like an idiot.

"Zael!"

Gaage tossed the knife down and brought his arms forward to shove his friend roughly, betrayed by the smirk on his face.

"You jackass! What if I'd stabbed before I looked? They sent me to save your sorry ass, not shank it!"

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

Zael just laughed with pure joy as Gaage shoved him; Vel Farris, in that moment, was put entirely on hold. He was having the time of his life, basking in the warm glow of seeing Gaage, his brother in all save blood, for the first time in a long time.

"Wouldn't be the first time you stabbed me," Zael said, plenty of fond memories from the Academy sparring arena on hand for this comment. Sure, the difference was here they didn't have a convenient healer nearby and the closest thing to an infirmary was likely miles and miles away, but he was a tough guy, wasn't he? Ask Kimble, that son of a bitch—couldn't quite kill him despite his best efforts, could he?

Regardless of nearly being shivved, Zael threw himself into an embrace with Gaage, clapping him hard on the back. "Fuck, it's so good to see you, man."

Of course, all good things couldn't last, and aside from Vel Farris itself burning, something Gaage himself had said suddenly registered in full.

Zael pulled back and asked quizzically, "Save me? What do you mean? I just got here."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

Gaage wrapped his arms around his old friend tightly, regardless of the ire on his face. He'd heard virtually nothing of home since he'd left, save the little he'd been told from Ysobel, but they'd been... distracted the last time they'd seen each other. The fate of his friends had weighed heavy on his mind.

It still did, but... that was a problem for later.

"Can barely believe you're alive, you big idiot." He chuckled, rapping the side of Zael's head with the heel of his hand before pulling away from his Brother. The man hadn't changed much-- His hair was longer, and it looked like he'd lost an eye somehow, but Gaage always said he fought like he only used one anyways. "With that stunt you pulled at Graduation..."

He trailed off, then shook his head. "Sorry, we can catch up on all that shit later. You said you just got here?" Gaage raised an eyebrow and looked towards the burning city. He'd assumed his job was to save Zael, but... Fuck, maybe he should have let that messenger finish talking after all.

"Uh... alright. Let me rephrase that then. Gilram sent me here to meet with you for 'something' but I left before they told me what. I assumed they wanted me to back you up, but... hell even with both of us this is a bit of an ask, isn't it?

 

[Zael Castomir]

Zael listened, maintaining that quizzical look in his expression all up until Gaage mentioned leaving before Gilram's errand boy (or whoever) had even told him what he was coming to Vel Farris for. His grin came roaring back to life. That was Gaage for ya, and weren't they both just cut from the same cloth? Don't delay, get in motion first when time was of the fucking essence, and ask questions later. What mattered was that, in Gaage's mind, his brother Zael needed some backup and man he did not hesitate did he? Zael would do the same for him.

...bit of an ask, isn't it?

"You ain't kiddin," Zael said, finally coming to stand. "I got bought in to Gilram's lot by puttin down a garrison of Guardsmen, but I had surprise and confusion on my side. Here? These boys are lookin for a fight."

He glanced up at the rising stacks of smoke beyond the town's walls.

"That and raisin hell, that's for sure." He looked back to Gaage. "They tell you if any Dreadlords are with the 9th?"

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

Eberwhit stood soon after Zael, muttering lowly in response. "Fuck, dude... a whole garrison?" He tried to hide his discomfort when his best friend openly admitted to slaughtering the Guards. It would have been different, before 'Graduation', but... It wasn't the same, gloating over killing the people you used to call family. He shook his head, as if dispelling the topic to get back to the matter at hand.

Later, he reminded himself. Don't get fuckin' weird.

"Man..." He crossed his arms and let out a sigh, looking out into the rising fire. "I don't know a damn thing." He shook his head. If Castomir was expecting the gung-ho, punch-happy attitude from him in a situation like this, he'd be disappointed. "I'm... gonna be real with you, I only came because of you. If we really have to try and drive these assholes out of here...? I sure as hell hope there aren't any Dreadlords, because we're going to have our hands full as it is."

Shit. Gaage thought to himself. What unit was Yoh in? Nah... she wouldn't be okay with... all of this."

"We could pull back and report in, but... this place will be dust before anybody comes back. Granted, it's gonna be dust anyways."

 

[Zael Castomir]

"I hope there aren't any Dreadlords either."

And he meant that. Not even from a practical or tactical standpoint, what with the task of striking back against the 9th that much easier if they had only Guardsmen. Zael just didn't want to kill any Dreadlords. Not even Bull's sick fuckin ass (though little did he know, he had already been slain by Kristen Pirian). He didn't want to kill Dreadlords. Period. End of story. What would be the point of fighting the good fight to free the Dreadlords if he made it a habit of killing them?

But if he absolutely had to? If push come to shove?

I'm sorry, Little Lilly.

"I ain't pullin back, Gaage," Zael said, moving past that sobering memory and those haunting words. "Nothin's ever gonna be different if we don't send any messages. Loud and clear. And this right here? The 9th burning Vel Farris for who knows what?"

He shook his head bitterly.

"Can't let em get away with it. Not without at least givin em a few wounds to lick."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

Who knows what.

That was the part that bothered him. If they weren't here for Zael, then why the hell go through all this trouble? "Look, I hear you, but..." Gaage cupped a hand over his forehead to look into the city while hopefully shielding his eyes from some of the hear. "I just feel like this is a bit overkill, even for the Guard. They can be bloodthirsty sons of bitches, but they don't usually go scorched earth without a damned good reason. We jump in there, we could come across whatever they're really after, if they aren't just hot for you, blondie."

Somehow, even as he looked back toward Castomir with that teasing smirk on his face, he knew that the increased risk of danger would only get his Brother's blood pumping more. Obviously, Eberwhit had become a bit more careful and cautious ever since exile, but something about the two of them going up against insurmountable odds sparked that fire inside him, the one he hadn't felt burn since the Academy, really.

"But since I came all this way, I suppose I could be tempted to go poke some bears with you. For old times sake, of course." The smirk on his face turned to a grin, and he gave Zael a solid smack on the back, before stepping forward towards the left edge of the gate, where he'd planned on slipping through in the first place. "Now come on, there's trouble in there waiting for us."

Reaching out and peeking around the corner into the still decidedly un-burnt alleyway, he waves for Castomir to follow, and quickly ducks through the gate and into the alley, pressing back against the wall as the heat already brings sweat to his skin. Goddamn, it was like that bathhouse he'd gone to with Lennox, only without the hot chick.

Once Zael had joined him, Gaage got serious, one last time.

"Hey man, this city is toasted either way. If we do come across Dreads, and we don't have any reason this place needs to be held, I don't think 'Voted Most Likely City to be a Pile of Ash' is worth dying over." He pats Castomir's arm. "Sending a message is one thing, but the only message we'll be sending if we decide this is the place to have our stand is 'Hey, sorry we're late, let's start killing each other before we all burn to death'."

Pausing for a moment, Gaage tilts his head.

"Okay, so I'm not against fighting, I just think we should prioritize helping the surviving civvies get out alive if it looks like things are gonna get dicey, Does that make more sense?"

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

Now come on, there's trouble in there waiting for us.

Damn right there was. And all those little playful smacks and punches had pumped Zael up for the moment, got his blood churning for a fight. Fuck man, Zael'd be a liar if he didn't say he'd had some worries about things once he learned that Gaage had gone with Gilram. But this here, despite all the other shit surrounding them, was just like old times, exactly like Gaage said.

He had his brother back.

Sword in hand, Zael followed in after Gaage.

Even in the unburnt alleyway they'd surreptitiously made their way into, the heat from the copious fires about the city was thick in the air. Zael, as ever, was aware of it, but it didn't affect him; poor Gaage, damn man, he was already sweating something fierce.

Then came what was on Gaage's mind. Zael coulda swore he was moving a bit slow, like he was thinking about something he wanted to say before they got into the coming scrap. Good to know his keen instincts about his brother hadn't diminished since they last saw each other.

"I hear ya," Zael said, especially when it came to potentially hostile Dreadlords. Kress, if the 9th had a First Level Dreadlord with them? Hell no, Zael was daring, but not stupid. "And you got the right idea. I'd love to bloody the 9th's nose, but these people here, fuck, I don't think they did anything wrong. Not to warrant this."

Zael, even with the lighthearted bark of a laugh and smile that followed, nevertheless felt the weight of the difference he and Gaage could make for those who still lived in Vel Farris.

"I guess we're slated to be heroes today."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

A wave of relief came over him as Zael relented to the idea of forgoing a fight if things looked bad. Gaage liked a good rumble as much as Castomir, but he really wanted to avoid fighting anybody who would burn down an entire city looking for him before he had more information on what the hell had happened. Once they had a moment to talk properly, he sure as hell hoped things would start making more sense.

Because as much as he loathed to admit it, something was definitely off with Zael.

He was the same, but... different.

Maybe the heat was just playing games with his mind. It was hot as a demon's nethers in the alley, and he could only imagine how blazingly hot it would be once they left it. Nothing he couldn't handle... probably. Zael's bark of laughter was enough to bring a smile to his lips again, and he nodded slightly. "Yeah, well don't try bein' so much of a hero that you lose your other eye, yeah? I ain't carrying you out of here on my back, not with that armor." He joked, knowing damn well he'd try.

Ducking his head out of the alley, Gaage squinted against the flying embers that burned against his face to make out the road ahead of them, the main one that led into the city. He could hear shouting and crying in the distance, but it seemed most of the action was further in.

"Alright." He muttered, ducking back in. "Let's head further in. Keep an eye out for pockets of... not being on fire. I don't see anybody, but they could be hiding."

Quickly dashing out from the alleyway, Eberwhit kept his knees bent and his body low to the ground as he squat-walked across burning wood, ashen piles, and trails of flame across the ground. The heat practically baked him, but he'd endured worse.

The sharp cry that rang through the air, however, indicated somebody hadn't.

It was a woman, he was fairly certain, raising a hand to call Zael to a stop, he spun his head around to try and find the source. "You hear that? It was close..."

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

"Only if losin the other eye makes me even sexier," Zael quipped. "And you're a stud, you could carry two of me outta here."

Making light of everything was something he wouldn't have the luxury to do in a little bit here, he figured. Once they got into it with the 9th, especially once they started evacuating people out of town, then it was all gonna be serious. Best to get it out of his system now.

Zael followed after Gaage. Down the main road looked almost like the opening into a furnace, what with all the fresh fires burning. Occasional units of Guardsmen could be seen in the distance, heading here and there, likely turning everything over in their search or in their effort to destroy everything (maybe those two possibilities weren't mutually exclusive).

Zael froze when Gaage raised his hand. Some bits of training never died, huh?

"Yeah, I heard." A cynical part of him would've liked to suggest that the woman's cry was a trap, but that didn't make much sense, not in these circumstances. "Let's go get her."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

Well, Gaage couldn't claim that Zael had lost his wit. The banter was welcome-- The situation was far uglier than they were allowing themselves to address out loud, and the pair of them always worked better when they didn't take things completely seriously. Still, being called a stud drew a chuckle from him. "Studs, huh? We both have a thing for women that could kill us with a cross look though, don't we?"

The behavior of the 9th bothered him; Even in other raids he'd seen, they weren't so persistent. Normally he'd have expected them to have cleared out by now, especially in the condition of the town. Instead, the fire only seemed to make them more insistent, more tenacious. Zael claimed to have taken out a whole Garrison and yes that was bad, but... Eberwhit still wasn't convinced this was as about finding Castomir as he'd thought.

There wasn't time for that right now though; whoever had let out that shriek wouldn't have long. It sounded like it was among the cluster of small, compact homes that had been wedged between two larger structures, just across the way. Good news- It wasn't on fire. Bad news- The buildings sandwiching them were, and Gaage would have bet money the were coming down soon.

"She's gotta be in one of those tenements. Come on, you take one and I'll take the other."

Gaage rushed forward, careful not to be so loud as to catch the attention of the 9th, though they seemed busy with their own efforts. Eberwhit dove into the smokey confines of the left home, keeping low to avoid the smoke pouring in from next door.

Another shriek, closer.

The inside of the home was in disarray, and the heat was blistering. Gaage couldn't tell if the voice was from this house or the next, but it seemed to come from above. He'd have to climb the stairwell to check.

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

"Got it," Zael said. That was all either he or Gaage ever needed: just a spur of the moment plan, if you could even call rightfully call it a plan. Really they each just went with their gut, and they were so in tune with one another that words, heh, they were just a bit of a formality, weren't they?

Gaage rushed into the lucky house on the left, Zael into the lucky house on the right. Embers from the burning buildings on either side of them would soon enough see each engulfed in flames, but for now, barring some smoke that had gotten trapped within, things were clear. Good for Gaage, and good for the shrieking woman.

Zael, though he had an immunity to fire, still had to keep low so as not to breathe in the acrid smoke curling along the vicinity of the ceiling. Zael went through every room on the first floor; Kress, it almost looked like the place was looted. Maybe a few of the soldiers were set to grabbing some valuables while razing the town, figuring out some tidy explanation like "Ah, better it not go to waste" or some such. But there was no woman, alive or dead, down on the first floor.

Zael bolted up the stairs to the second, which was just a large bedroom.

And there he saw on the ground the dead man who owned the house, a dead Guardsman of the 9th, and a mortally wounded Guardsman beside him. Weapons and blood were strewn and streaked across the floor. Seemed the two Guardsmen got more than they bargained for in here.

The mortally wounded Guardsman saw Zael, and a light of recognition came through even the pain clouding his eyes. "Don't you fucking touch me, scum," said the Guard in the labored voice yet still stalwart voice. "Let me die in bloody peace."

Zael glowered down at him. "I don't need to touch you to ask you a question."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

Gaage wasn't having much more luck than Zael. In fact, he was perhaps a bit worse off than his brother-in-arms; The flaming tongues from the neighboring building had begun to lap at the tenement, and fire had begun to spread across the far wall, sneaking in through the windows like a burglar in the night. What little time Gaage had to search this place had suddenly become even more limited.

Swearing at the development, Gaage covered his mouth with his arm and crouch-walked back to the stairs, squinting against the burning smoke as he ascended on all fours like a cat. The hoarse, desperate cries grew even louder and Eberwhit picked up his pace, skittering across the landing atop the stairs into one of of the two rooms nestled above the ground floor.

It seemed to be a bedroom, with a mattress wedged up against the door in a futile attempt to keep the smoke out. Gaage tried to get the door to budge with one arm, failing but earning confirmation of what he sought.

"Is somebody there?! Please help! It's so hot!"

Gritting his teeth, Gaage reared back and shouldered the door, forcing it open and pushing the mattress aside. Inside the bedroom, a small girl dressed in a long shirt and ragged pants cowered underneath the wooden bedframe, only her moppy head of frazzled brown hair sticking out of one side. Her eyes lit up as she saw him, but the shivering didn't cease.

"You're not gonna... hurt me, right? You're not one of them?"

Gaage winced. Not at the face the Guardsmen had hurt people here, but that this child had bore witness to it. He stepped forward and quickly lifted the frame off of the girl, flipping it out of the way. "I'm not, but being underneath a wooden frame in a fire is gonna leave a mark. Come on, we need to get out of--"

A terrible crashing sound interrupted his order, and Gaage spun around towards the door he'd entered from. A part of the large burning building beside them had collapsed, and its charred, splintered remnants had crashed down onto the roof of the tenement, ever so conveniently leaving a pile of molten debris in the doorway that was their escape route.

"Fuck." Gaage seethed, turning to look at his plan b: the glass window on the opposite wall, facing the main road. "Alright, come here kid. This is gonna suck, but mostly just for me."

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

"Go to hell."

"Figure after what you boys have done to Vel Farris I'm already on the doorstep. Now, ain't much I can do to you but there's a helluva lot I can do to your friends. So how bout it? You wanna play Anirball with me?"

"You're just gonna do it anyway."

"I am, if you don't do somethin about it. All I can give you is my word."

"Your word doesn't mean shit, Rogue."

"Not to you, but it does to me."

"Choke on it, then."

"This is your chance to save some of your friends. Why is the 9th here in Vel Farris?"

"Fuck...you..."

"Last chance: why is the 9th here in Vel Farris?"

"...Rogue..."

And the Guardsman's last word was one dripping with contempt.

Only a brief few seconds of stillness followed, before such was interrupted by the crashing of the building adjacent to Gaage's own collapsing in on itself. Zael felt the tremors of it even on the floor of the home he was inside. "Shit." He stood, figuring Gaage must have the woman and must be making his way out. Zael started down the stairs, leaving just in time to miss hearing the faint reverberations of the glass window shattering in Gaage's home. Not knowing, therefore, that Gaage had made a hasty exit onto the opposite side of the homes, Zael exited the way he had come in.

"Where are ya, Gaage, where are ya," he said to himself, pressing his back to the outside wall of the homes so as not to make himself too obvious a silhouette to be noticed. After a few seconds of impatient waiting, Zael said, "Fuck it," and hurried inside Gaage's home. Who knew, maybe he needed a hand with something in there.

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

There were a lot of things that hadn't been on Gaage's bingo card for the day that were coming to fruition: Getting assigned a personal mission from Gilram, reuniting with his best friend, diving headfirst into a burning town set alight by the people he used to work for... It wasn't until he was hurdling himself through a second-story window with a small child clinging to his chest like a terrified cat that he began to realize that maybe didn't miss going out on missions as much as he thought he did.

Shards of hot glass cut against his face and arms as the window shattered with the impact, and he heard himself hissing in pain, though he wasn't particularly conscious of it, his adrenaline at a dangerous high as he focused his efforts on bracing for the ground underneath them.

There was always a moment of serenity when you were falling, a few seconds of peace as you hung in the air, unbidden by gravity, or the troubles that waited for you when you hit the ground. Even in the infernal city that melted and crumbled around Eberwhit, he savored that instance of calm, carefully spinning himself in the air so that his back faced the ground, and he'd break the poor kid's fall.

"Fu-"

The rest of the word came out as empty air as his spine collided with the dirt, pushing every last bit of oxygen out of his lungs as the little girl's weight came down on his gut and nearly made him upchuck. He would've, if he hadn't skipped out on breakfast. It worked, as stupid as it was. The girl let out a shrill cry, rather delayed if you asked Gaage, and rolled off of him, sitting beside his head and bawling over him as he writhed and struggled to catch any hint of breath.

Gods, he hurt. He didn't think he'd broken anything but... he couldn't be sure until he tried to get up.

"Zael." He croaked out, turning his head to look around. "You around or...?"

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

Timing, as they say, was everything.

"I'm here, buddy," Zael said as he touched down on the ground close to Gaage's side. "I'm here."

He'd gathered quickly enough what likely happened after darting into Gaage's house. He hadn't found him anywhere, and there was a good section of the house already collapsing in on itself (or being collapsed on from elsewhere, Zael supposed, it all looked like a mess). So he figured Gaage had gotten the hell out of there on the other side—best check there first before he committed to rummaging around in all the debris. Fortunately, his intuition proved to be right, and Gaage hadn't been crushed in a burning building like Zael's six-year-old self. What a formative experience he wouldn't wish on anybody.

Zael had ran back out, Fire Jumped over the set of buildings, and came carefully descending down onto the other side, where he saw Gaage along with his passenger for what surely had to have been a wild ride. He looked (and sounded) like a brick that had just been pickaxed, but that wasn't the worst of it. They were on the main road through Vel Farris now. From both the north and south ends were groups of soldiers, each of these groups now with clear sight on both the Dreadlords, and the men from each group who first spotted them quickly set about alerting their compatriots.

"Are you good?" Zael said. His sword was in hand and he stood defensively beside Gaage and the girl, glancing back and forth between the two groups of assembling Guardsmen. "Because we're gonna have company damn soon here."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

"Mmh? Oh, yeah..." Gaage coughed, straining to lift his head, and then bringing his elbows up to prop his torso. Pain radiated through his body, but he was fairly certain it was just from the impact. "I'm on cloud nine, right now. A little grog and some soft music and I'll be dozing right off here." His voice dripped with sarcasm as he reached out to grip Zael's arm and pulled himself slowly to his feet, knees buckling for a moment before he was able to stand by his side.

The girl he'd saved huddled behind him, shivering and whimpering like a frightened animal. Hell, he supposed that's exactly what she was, and he didn't blame her. If anything, they were the odd ones for not being terrified at the prospect of being sandwiched between two squads of Anirian Guardsmen with sneers as angry as the welts Gaage was going to have on his back in the morning.

"Well, they look happy to see us." Eberwhit took a quick peek over his shoulder at the other group, letting out a huff of air. Damnit, he was really hoping to avoid killing any of these guys, but this wasn't looking very good. "You always this popular when you go out on the town these days?"

Suddenly, Eberwhit felt a tugging on his shirt and looked over at the child vying for his attention. Through teary eyes and red cheeks, she sputtered incoherently and pointed up towards the rooftops.

What, more of them?

Gaage followed her finger up to to the roof of the building he'd just jumped from, and his face fell just a bit further. This was no longer a situation he could hope to salvage with minimal bloodshed.

Because staring down at them was a figure wearing not a mark of the Guard, but a mark of the Dreadlords.

"Zael. Three o' Clock." He muttered, misery in his tone.

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

You always this popular when you go out on the town these days?

"I have my moments," Zael said. And he had a feeling that was going to be his last opportunity for a jest before they both had to get down to business. The girl, through no real fault of her own, was going to be a problem though. It would be one thing if all he and Gaage had to worry about were themselves and each other, capable as they both were, but they had a bystander to protect. That just complicated things.

But doing the right thing was never easy, was it? They had to make this work. Whatever the 9th was here for, that girl damn sure had nothing to do with it. And...hell if Zael wasn't struck by the fact once again that he could have been one among the 9th's number, following orders to burn Vel Farris and everyone in it to the ground just like these Guardsmen.

The two squads of Guardsmen came rushing toward them fast at first, closing those gaps, but then slowed to a cautious advance and eventually stopped, maintaining their formations at a fair distance. Gaage, as it happened, spotted the reason before Zael did.

Zael. Three o' Clock.

Zael turned and looked up, and hell if he didn't see an elderly man, with flowing salt-and-pepper hair and a Dreadlord crest, who looked all business down at the two of them. An old man. In a profession where men and women alike died young.

Fuck.

"Rogue Dreadlords...Gaage Eberwhit...and Zael Castomir," said the elder Dreadlord, putting a special emphasis on Zael's name for some reason. And true to the likeness of a Dreadlord of old, he gave a fleeting glance to the girl beside Gaage, and then to the two men, "You can both surrender now, and end all of this. Otherwise..."

And there came that smirk, the kind Proctor Malaneaux and Proctor Kimble wore so damn much.

"...there's no telling what might happen."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

This had been exactly what Gaage had feared would happen. The both of them should have known good and damn well that there would be at least one Dreadlord amongst the Guard here; The sheer scope of the destruction and the brutality on display just didn't seem plausible for the Guard, despite their reputation as being almost every bit as ruthless.

Now they were up a creek with nary a paddle in sight. The Guards that encroached on them on either side were one thing-- Troublesome but far from the most dangerous foe they'd ever tackled. This Dreadlord, a pre-revolution one judging by the age of the man, was a wildcard Eberwhit didn't like at all. He didn't recognize him, and there was no telling what kind of power the guy was packing.

If the melting city around them was any indication though... it was considerable.

"Yeah, I'm sure we'll be the exceptions to the little genocide you've got going on here as long as we give up." Gaage called in reply to the demand for a surrender. Honestly, the Dreadlord probably was under orders to take any Exiles alive for questioning but... everybody seemed extraordinarily pissed off at Zael for whatever it was he'd done. Eberwhit wasn't particularly keen on taking that chance. "You throw this party for us or are we crashing it? Either way, I've met trolls with funner themes than 'murder and arson'."

Gaage wasn't running his mouth for the hell of it, he was buying Zael time to think. The red-headed exile could bullshit and smack-talk with the very best of them, but it would only work for so long. He and Castomir had pulled this trick off upwards of fifty times when they found themselves in a jam, but this was going to be close.

"Honestly, the last thing I expected when I got here was that we'd be doing your job for you! Here I left the Dreadlords and I'm still saving kids from burning buildings like a goddamn propogandic superhero. I just can't quit you, can I?"

Zael Castomir

 

[Zael Castomir]

The Dreadlord, whose name was Volkan Obermeier, listened and was unperturbed by all Gaage had to say. He'd all the confidence of a hunter beholding his prey—prey that had no hope of escaping the trap that had been laid for it. And of course, that smirk, one that perhaps only veteran Dreadlords of old could display, what with their specific brand of callousness and sense of duty to be done at any cost.

"If the residents of Vel Farris were loyal Anirian citizens, they would have given you—both of you—up willingly. And these are turbulent times for Vel Anir—no one will shed a tear over the deaths of traitors, dissidents, and collaborators."

Again Volkan glanced to the little girl, and then back to Gaage. "It's a harsh world. One in which we do pay for the sins of our fathers. Alas, it seems the Farrisans valued your lives over the lives of their own children. More's the pity."

Zael, meanwhile, was using the precious time purchased by Gaage and Volkan's willingness to indulge him to do just what his brother was hoping, and think. The Guardsmen penning them in weren't particularly a threat, though they certainly couldn't be discounted, especially when they now had support from a Dreadlord, who alone might be more than a match for the both of them.

There was one plan that was almost too awful to even speak aloud. Zael could take the girl, take off high into the air to get the hell off the street and away...and leave Gaage to hold off the Guardsmen and the Dreadlord. Kress...fucking hell...he and Gaage had only just reunited. Zael knew Gaage wanted to save the girl's life just as much as he himself did, but...a plan like that had to be a last resort. He had to keep thinking.

Still, as a precaution, Zael with his free hand searched for and found the girl's own hand. Taking hold.

"The question is," said Volkan, "do you value your own lives over the life of this charge of yours? I promise you this, Rogues: if you make us fight, I will kill that girl. Surrender, and on my authority, she lives."

Gaage Eberwhit

 

[Gaage Eberwhit]

To hold back the scowl on his face as Volkan went on and on like a real fuckin' patriot would have been more than Gaage could manage, so he let his disdain show clear as day. Vel Anir had some real pricks, but pre-revolution Dreadlords were among the worst of the lot. Who needed morality and free will when you had blind obedience and a superiority complex that'd been hammered into you since you were old enough to wipe your own ass?

"Shows how fuckin' shit you are at your job. Neither of us was even here until you started setting fires, they didn't have anybody to give you in the first place, you bootlicking idiot!" Eberwhit snapped. That he had the gall to blame the civilians for their own deaths when they'd been asked to do the impossible made his blood boil. That he would use an innocent child for leverage, only furthered that rage. "But you don't even fuckin' care about the people! If you did you wouldn't be hanging the life of a poor kid over our heads like it was nothing at all to you."

Gaage was a realist-- Zael was sharp but there wasn't a whole lot the two of them could do to worm their way out of this, no longer how long he stalled for time. With every second they spent, Volkan's patience ran thinner, and the encroaching Guards drew closer and closer. Even Eberwhit's mind ran at a mile a minute, trying to think of something, anything that he could do to give them an opening.

There was only one thing, and he knew Zael had probably thought of it too.

Gaage didn't know what Volkan's magic was all about, and he didn't know what level he was. The fact he was here alone was... not the greatest sign, but there was still that chance, however minute...

Maybe Gaage could take him. After all, he was a Dreadlord too, in everything but name. Looking at Castomir out of the corner of his eye, he nodded his head upwards slightly. Gaage didn't need to beat Volkan, he just needed to hold him off and escape.

He wasn't dying here, nothing was killing him until he saw his kid born.

Zael Castomir