I'll always have you in my sights.

"So please, my love, do not let me pull the trigger."

https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5653/2...0eed3a23ef.jpg
Art By: Nachomolina @ Deviantart.com

Boats. They held a fond memory for Alyssa. She remembered the first time she ever experienced one. Only a few years ago, she and a young man from a foreign place sailed to the desert nation of Fallien. His smile and quick wit helped put her at ease during rough waters. When the sails were full and the seas were calm, he shared tidbits of his personal experience. Back then, so much was new to Alyssa that every word off the tip of his tongue hooked her. She wanted to know more. She wanted answers to so many simple questions.

Now, she sat in silence stowed away with inanimate, yet always shifting objects. The slosh of gained water did not calm her during the rough seas. Full sails and calm depths yielded nothing new. Her company of crates, barrels, and sacks kept to themselves: dull, boring. Muted and rehearsed words from the crew above barely escaped past the dripping planks. Yet as she sat patiently waiting, Alyssa's mind remained hooked on him. She wanted to know more and this time, the questions were not as simple.

Equally, the answers would not be so easily waned.

Two words - a question - continued to repeat in her mind like a maddening chant. Two words that hungered for an insatiable amount to slake them:

"Why, Tobias?"

Quote:

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Tenative Solo. Open by invite only.

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"Yeah, he was convinced it was the ambrosia of the gods. They're probably serving pizza during mass, now!" Vincent shouted, surrounded by the friends and family of the Tarot. Laughter erupted among them.

"I'm sure the Jya will appreciate that," Alyssa managed through a soft giggle.

She looked to Vince and the others at the table, all with warm smiles, full plates, and ample drink. They all bounced back so well after the events of that day. Even Bertha had been rebuilt and stood idly above them as their silent guardian. So much happened during the Red Crusade that by all means should have the mood somber and quiet. If it weren't for the shenanigans and antics of their new Emperor, Vincent Cain, the Tarot Hierarchy's morale would still be suffering.

"Hey, you gunna eat that?" Vincent asked with a nudge, pointing at the untouched slice of pizza on her plate.

"No, no." Alyssa waved her hands, then slid it toward him. "I'm more than full."

"Sweet!" he declared and with no time for a second thought, he swept up the slice and jammed it into his mouth. Vincent's zeal managed to get a smattering of sauce on his nose. Alyssa couldn't help but laugh and shook her head.

These days, the Tarot kept high spirits and focused on repairing their facilities instead of mourning losses and harboring rage. The current gathering marked a celebration for finishing their mess hall. All the once rusted and grime caked stoves now sparkled with clean polish. The dents were removed, and a collaborated effort between Alyssa and Rayleigh worked out all the runic and mechanical kinks. With some contributions from John and the curious little creature, Hawl, all the furniture was replaced with beautiful Raiaeran Redwood - purified of its poisons, of course. So many others pitched in, rekindled the magelights, replaced the onyx floor, masoned the old, crumbled walls...

Alyssa felt proud of them. Their strength showed as a whole. They were family.

"Empress! Emperor! Judgment! Anyone!" shouted a voice from the hallway. A panicked redhead with messy hair staggered to a stop in the doorway. In her bloody hand she clutched a letter.

And thus, all good things must come to an end.

Like that, the smiles faded. Alyssa leapt from her seat and clamored over as quickly as she could.

"Daire!" She shouted, arms out. The weight of the redhead fell forward and into Alyssa. Together, they fell to the floor.

A myriad of concerned voices replaced the laughter as Alyssa brushed her close friend's bangs from her sweaty brow.

"Daire?" She asked again. No reply. Alyssa held her hand just above Daire's nose and mouth, waiting.

"Hey, she alright?" Vincent asked, hand on her shoulder.

"I don't know." Alyssa felt the warmth of breath on her palm. "She's still breathing."

Vincent looked the redhead over.

"She's pretty," he remarked. Alyssa shot him a piercing scowl. "Woah, woah. That blood doesn't look like hers. I don't see a cut."

Alyssa redirected her attention to Daire. As more onlookers cast their shadows on the two, Alyssa pried the parchment from Daire's hand. Even before she could read it, Alyssa felt her heart quicken. Amidst the blood, her eyes fell on a familiar wax seal.

The Merchant's Crest.

"Hey, what's going-- Woah, yeah." Alyssa turned to see the shock on Logan's face. She replied with a look of utter dismay. "We should get her to the Infirmary. Shall I?"

Alyssa nodded, struggling for the words. Logan, one of her more trusted colleagues, gently scooped his arms under a lifeless Daire Chance and lifted her from Alyssa's lap. He made way for the hall, but Alyssa caught his leg.

"If she wakes up..."

"I'll make you the first to know," Logan finished in his strong, confidant tone. Alyssa let him free and Logan vanished from the mess hall.

"What's the letter say?" A soft voice inquired. The young Empress looked to the parchment in her hand.

"I'll open it." Vince made a grab for it, but Alyssa pulled it from him.

"No." She rose from the floor, her posture and expression rigid. "We're not reading it here. Vincent, we need to speak downstairs. Everyone else, I'll fill you in as needed. Enjoy some quiet while you can."

Vince nodded and turned to those that gathered at the scene. "Go on! Shoo!" He gestured them away like children.

"I made all that pizza for y'all so you better not let it go to waste! That shit is ambrosia in Fallien now! Don't be disrespecting the sacredness of it!"

Some shook there head, some cracked a smile, but others maintained their concern. Regardless, the crowd dispersed and Vincent turned to Alyssa with his hands on his hips. Alyssa shook her head and stifled a grin before pointing to her own nose. Vince cocked a brow before he touched his own and found it still covered with sauce.

"Fuck! Really?!" he spouted as a hue of red flushed his cheeks.

"Not very Emperor-esque." Alyssa commented before voiding her expression of amusement. "Let's go."

Vincent nodded.

The two leaders of the Hierarchy silently strode toward the lower level of their headquarters. Alyssa didn't look over to Vince and he remained fixed on the letter. They made way down the stairs, but before Alyssa could get to her destination, Vincent halted her by the shoulder.

"Alyssa..." he started, compassion and concern in his tone. "What's going on? The others are upstairs, we're fine to talk here."

She hung her head low and tightened her grasp on the letter in hand. In the distance down the hall, a faint glow from the infirmary room spilled out from the doorway. Shadows danced across the light, but she couldn't hear the medics as they tended to Daire. Given the amount of movement, the situation seemed more dire than originally thought.

"Alyssa?"

She held up the letter to Vincent with the crimson wax seal prominently in view.

"Do you know what this symbol means?" Her voice quivered in suppressed distress.

Vincent leaned in to get a better look. Within the circle stood a crown and by its side balanced a set of scales. One set depicted coins, while the other weighed what looked to be a droplet or tear of some kind. The entire image was framed by a text that read: "By blood, coin, and business - Dehlos Merchantry"

Vincent stood back and his brow lowered in anger.

"I know that symbol..." He hissed. "That's from Dehlos."

She nodded, and Alyssa saw the pieces began to fall into place in Vincent's mind.

"He fuckin' didn't..." Vincent seethed through his teeth.

Alyssa took a deep breath and slid her finger under the lip of parchment still moist with crimson ichor. With a crisp snap, the seal broke from the paper, and she unfolded to its contents. Her breathing quickened.

"What, what's it say?"

Alyssa shakily held it to Vincent. He snatched it from her and read it aloud himself. The words came from his mouth slowly, painfully. Alyssa sat down against the wall.

"Don't look for me."

"It's Tobias' writing," Alyssa added, her gaze blank as she stared against the wall opposing her.

"That son of a bitch!" Vincent roared, throwing the paper to the ground in a crumple. "What the fuck has he done now?!"

"Maybe he's hurt, or he's in a with a bad crowd?" Alyssa grasped at any conclusion but the worst. She looked to Vincent with hope in her eyes, clinging to optimism.

"Naw, that's not Tobi. You know him, he'd keep fighting until he was the only one standing. He wouldn't pull this bull shit."

Vincent held out his hand for Alyssa. Before she took it, she scooped up the parchment and rose to her feet.

"That girl, Daire? Let's see how old Stoney's doing with her." Vince tried to fake a smile to his counterpart, but Alyssa only nodded to him with a flat expression.

As they got closer, Alyssa could hear noises from the infirmary. She heard two men shouting and in the midst of it all, sounds of a struggle. Alyssa and Vince quickened their pace.

"Hold her down!" Demanded the animated statue of an elderly robed man.

"I'm trying! I'm trying!" Logan returned, reaching out to pin Daire's flailing limbs. In the fray, she caught Logan across the lip with a knee that immediately started to trickle.

"Nocturnous Eternum!" The Ai'Brone shouted with a wave of his hand. Daire's lids grew heavy, her movement slowed, and eyes rolled back.

"What the hell are you doing!" Alyssa shouted in the doorway, her face twisted in horror.

The stone monk sharply turned to them and sighed a breath of relief. Meanwhile, Logan worked to tuck a limp Daire Chance into her cot.

"She had to be sedated," the monk confessed as Logan pulled the sheet up to Daire's chin.

"Why?" Vincent plainly asked. "How bad is it?"

Logan moved toward the IV insert in Daire's arm and attached a long tube that ran up to a glass of clear fluid hanging above.

"Unsure," the Ai'Brone admitted. He gestured that Alyssa take a seat. "I was assessing her condition when she leapt from her bed screaming..."

Alyssa took a seat and listened with her hands clasped in her lap. She wore a mask of worry clear on her face. Vincent tried to comfort her with a hand on her shoulder, but the effort served little benefit. Instead, she looked to the sheer where Daire's bed lie.

"She mentioned something about being sorry, and he wouldn't listen?" Logan contributed before dabbing at is split lip. He opted for some gauze and fetched it from one of the nearby medical jars. Vincent looked to Alyssa with a quirked brow.

"When I was examining her, she was extremely dehydrated, but more concerning was an odd presence in her core," the monk continued.

"Core?" Vincent asked.

"It's hard to explain." The Ai'Brone pinched at his stone nose as he searched for the words. "Think of it like the force that makes you what you are. Not a soul, but the core of your being. Mana, if you will. A life energy."

"What was wrong?" Alyssa took a deep breath, half expecting to know the answer.

"There was another presence. It was like a poison, but more volatile. I tried to remove it, but my spells only seemed to agitate it. That's when she woke."

"Yeah, looked like it hurt." Logan propped himself against the counter and held the gause to his lip, occasionally checking to see if the bleeding had stopped. "You want to tell me what is going on, Lyssa?"

"I think I have an idea, but I don't want to say until I am sure." Alyssa knew the statement wouldn't satiate their curiosity. She wanted to believe the strife came to an end after Pode. Sitting here, surrounded by concerned faces and a bloodied friend in a hospital bed, she wanted to believe it was a dream.

Vincent patted her back and gave her a nod.

"Whelp, that letter in her hands has the mark of Dehlos on it," Vince began. He opened his mouth but halted on the words when he felt Alyssa place her hand on his.

"It's Tobias," Alyssa muttered.

Logan raised a brow.

"What the hell does that mean? Is he in trouble?"

"I don't know, but Daire does," Alyssa replied.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Logan suggested, pointing to his ear. Alyssa forgot about the enchanted cufflink latched to her ear. She wore it every waking moment that it felt part of her. She gave Logan a weak smile.

"Thanks, Logan." Alyssa closed her eyes to focus.

Several months ago, she purchased the custom enchanted jewelry to help her communicate with anyone from long ranges. All she had to do was picture the face of the person clearly in her mind and will herself to speak directly to them. It immediately worked on anyone with a weak will, but for those like the Tarot Hierarchy or heroes of the land, establishing a link required more... tact.

"You got him?" Vince asked. Everyone waited and watched patiently.

Alyssa strained. Her thoughts reached out further and further until...

"Found him," she mumbled, but pain began to reflect on her face. "It's... he's... he's alive, but..."

Her eyes shot open wide and she exhaled a few deep breaths. Her hand clutched the side of her head.

"What was that?!" Logan again checked the gauze. This time, the bleeding stopped and the gauze was dry.

"He forced me out." Alyssa stated, confused. "Why would he do that?"

"Well, Alyssa, the paper did say not to look for him." Vincent's tone was sarcastic and playful, but ill suited for the room's mood. "That might have something to do with it."

"Thanks, Vince." She gave him a dissatisfied look, one he had grown accustomed to receiving.

"Well, if he doesn't want us talking to him, then he's either in deep or..." Logan looked toward the cot where Daire rested. "Or he's got something to do with that."

"Now that you mention it," the statue of Ai'Brone commented, "I do recall treating him once. It was exceptionally difficult. His body or 'core', if you will, reacted adversely to even my kind of magic. My people can undo almost any affliction or wound through abilities which transcend most magic but with him, I had to use traditional methods. Suture, splints, that kind of thing."

"Okay, but what does that have to do with Daire?" Alyssa felt she was the only one missing the point, but the sea of blank looks confirmed otherwise.

"Well," the medic continued, "To put it plainly, that poison in your friend is actually a part of Tobias. As if he exerted his own mana upon her."

"Wait, so you're saying that Tobias attacked her?" Logan stood from his seat on the counter. He looked ready for a fight.

"I can't say." The old monk took a step back and held his hands up in defense. "I just noticed a similarity. That's the only other place I've seen something like this."

"Do you see now, Logan, why I wanted to be sure?" Alyssa sighed.

"You said you heard Daire say 'he' wouldn't listen'?" Vincent chimed in. "She has to know what happened. Hey, Stoney, can you wake her back up? I wanna ask her somethin'."

"Wake her? The poor girl is in pain, if she lashes out like that again, she could get hurt even worse," the stone monk sternly stated.

"If you treated Tobias with traditional medicine, then why not her? Do you have any painkillers?" Logan pointed out.

"Ah, yes. I suppose you have a point." With a few steps, the ancient physician approached a centralized counter framed by cabinets. Within each were countless bottles, herbs, syringes, and other medical paraphernalia. "Since the injury is paranormal in nature, there's no telling how effective it'll be."

He plucked a small vile from the top shelf and brought it to his granite eyes. His lips pursed and blew off the long accumulated dust. With a squint and adjustment of his lens-less marble glasses, he nodded.

"Still good," he mumbled before shifting toward Daire's cot. Logan lent a hand and pulled the privacy sheer out of the way. Vincent and Alyssa joined the others around the bed while Ai'Brone pulled a syringe from the bedside drawer. He drew the needle and administered the painkiller directly into the IV drip.

"We'll just give her a minute," the monk stated, looking to the stone sun dial on his wrist. Alyssa never understood how the living statue used such a thing to keep track of time in fake light, but every time she challenge him, he was dead on. Just one of the many mysteries the old relic held.

"That should do. Excitare!" he exclaimed, then sat beside the girl and brushed his hand against her cheek. "Wake up, dear, wake up..."

Alyssa watched quietly and anxiously, but after some stirring, Daire opened her eyes. Groggily, she looked at all the faces gathered around her bed. So far, the girl seemed as though she was waking from a peaceful slumber.

"Ungh... What's happening?" Daire mumbled as she rubbed her eyes. She noticed the needle and tube seated in her wrist and followed it to the saline drip above her.

"Daire," Alyssa began in soft tones. "Are you okay?"

"Alyssa?" Daire's soft features scrunched together as pain seemed to grip her. Daire clutched her head and began to writhe.

"Daire! Daire, what's wrong?!" Alyssa pushed Vincent aside to get closer to her.

"He - He killed them!" Daire groaned. "He killed them all! I-I couldn't stop him... He - he wouldn't listen!"

"Daire, who did this? Who died?" Alyssa reached for Daire's hand and jumped when her friend clutched her arm. The look in Daire's bright, green eyes was wild and panicked.

"Everest, Jill, Gareth... the way he... they screamed so loud!" Alyssa tried to pull Daire's hands off her, but she only gripped tighter.

"You! I lived because of you! I tried to bring him back! I tried! I'm so sorry! Alyssa, I'm so sorry!"

"Daire, please, you're hurting me." Her friend's nails pierced the skin and began to draw blood. Fred noticed and tried to help pry Daire's grip from her.

"He said he'd kill us all if he had to! Don't follow him! For the love of god, don't--!!"

"Put her back under!!!" Logan shouted, joining the efforts to free Alyssa. The monk staggered on the words but found them amidst the chaos.

"Nocturnous Eternum!" he shouted a second time.

Daire's screaming faded into unintelligible murmurs, her inhuman grip relaxed, and the group successfully pulled Alyssa free. While Vince put himself between the two, Logan moved to position Daire back into bed. The stone monk assisted and kept her covers on her.

"That," Logan began, "was not physical. That was clearly psychological. Whatever she saw... it permanently marked her."

Alyssa clutched her arm, but droplets of blood still spattered to the infirmary's sterile floor. She pulled her palm away to check the severity of the wound and found blood coated the entire hand. The old monk hurried over to the young girl and laid his cold stone hands over her arm. Then, he began to mutter phases in some ancient dialect.

"You alright, Lyssa?" Logan asked. She calmed him with a smile.

"I'm fine. You and I both know this is nothing. I'm more worried about Daire." The air around Alyssa's wounds began to glow with Ai'Brone magic and she winced at the stinging which came with it.

"So..." Vince began as he scratched the back of his head. "When are we heading out to kick Tobias' ass?"

"Hey now, Vince! No one is kicking anyone's ass. We still don't know if it was Tobias." Alyssa shot him a firm glare. Meanwhile, the stone monk finished his old hymn and stood back to admire his work. Alyssa pulled her hand away and as if the wound was only painted on, all traces of it vanished.

"Come on, Alyssa! You can't be that dumb! It's him! The seal, the note, that shit inside Daire...! What more proof do you need!" Vince shouted, the anger worn clearly on his face and clenched fists.

"I'm with Alyssa on this one." Logan left Daire's cot and ventured out into the middle of the room. He spun on his heels while gripping his chin in thought. "We don't know what exactly happened and we don't know if the girl isn't just hallucinating. She is still rather dehydrated, and after a trauma like that..."

"Bullshit!" Vince confronted Logan face to face. "You guys just don't want to see it. All the facts are there. It's Tobias and whatever has gotten into his head, I'm going to punch it out of him!"

"Vince!" Alyssa reached for him, but he pulled away and stormed out of the infirmary.

"Well, he's pretty fired up," Logan casually stated.

"Damn it, Vince!" Alyssa clenched her teeth and exhaled in frustration. She knew violence was not the right answer and neither was going off half cocked. She appreciated his passion, but wished his approach was less direct and more thought out.

"I reckon you'll be going after him?"

"Yes, but I want you to do me a favor."

"Whatever you need, Lyssa."

"You can read minds and speak telepathically right?"

"Uh... yeah?"

"Can you dig into someone's mind and get information?"

"Like, prying it out? I mean, I can, but it's a really dirty thing to do. I don't like doing it unless I have to."

"I'm telling you that you have to. With Daire knocked out, I want you to see what you can learn."

"Okay..." Logan pulled at the neck if his tunic nervously. "Been a while, so this'll be interesting..."

"I'm going after Vince. I'll call you if I need anything. Ai'Brone, just do what you can to help her."

"Of course, Madam."

Alyssa nodded at the two and took one last longing look at Daire. The girl didn't deserve any of this. Alyssa had to make it right and if Tobias was to blame, she'd be the one to hunt him down, not Vincent. The Homunculus picked up her pace and made after Vincent. His heavy, angry steps echoed down the stone halls. Hers deftly sped behind his.

"Vincent!" Her shout carried down the lengths of the hall at Vincent's back. He continued to storm forward and took a turn to the stairs which lead to the leader's living quarters.

"God damn it Vince! You're being an ass! Slow down!" Her feet carried her down the steps, skipping one or two to try and make headway on him. Near the bottom of the stairway, she leapt to the ground and snagged him by his purple coat. He spun around with his lightning reflexes and snatched her arm from him.

"No, Alyssa! Someone fucked with our family. Even if it is one of our own, I'm going to beat the crap out of them! No one fucks with my family!" His grip tightened on her wrist.

"I get that Vince! We both took out Pode, remember?" Alyssa pull from him and he let her free. "It's our responsibility to protect the ones that live here. I get that."

"I don't think you do, Alyssa. You're willing to stand around and waste time when more people could be getting hurt or killed by him! How does that make us look, huh? Not to mention, he's doing it to our own people. What if there are others!"

"Vince," Alyssa now wore anger on her face, and expression he rarely saw. It disarmed him. "This requires more than damage control! If we all storm off after them, and the world see's the Tarot in the wake of destruction, then how do you think that looks?! I'm going to look into it; Daire is my personal charge, and I know Tobias better than you."

"Hah! I beg to differ. He trained me for--"

"This isn't an argument, Vince!" Alyssa fetched her magnum from her thigh. "You're staying. You don't have the tact for this operation!"

Vincent eyed her gun, a scowl painted on his face. They sat in silence for a moment, her determination against his in the flickering green light of the sconces.

"You call that tact?" He gestured to her firearm clenched tightly in her hand. "Fine, have it your way then, but if I even get wind that something's happened, I'm pulling you out."

Vincent fished in his pocket and produced the card of The Empress.

"By all means, Vince. By all means."

He shook his head, lips flared in anger, and gave her his back. He stormed down the hall to his private quarters and slammed the door shut.

Alyssa's sweaty palms loosened there grip on her weapon and she sighed in relief. She knew Vincent possessed the means to overpower her, but his chivalry would prevent him from acting on her. Or so he hoped. The thought alone stirred terrible memories of the last time she engaged him, or rather, Pode's doppelganger of him.

She holstered her weapon and continued into her own quarters which was, unfortunately, adjacent to his.

Compared to the rooms up on the second floor, the living quarters of the Empress, Emperor, and Judgement seemed like houses of their own. Alyssa walked into the main foyer of her quarters and shut the door. She walked across the bear skin rug, passed the marble coffee table and leather sofa, and into the private kitchen. She headed straight for the cooling unit and pulled it open by its antique silver handle. A blast of chilled air spilled onto the slate floor as Alyssa reached into the stone box and pulled out a glass flask with red liquid.

She closed the door and carried herself to the couch where she popped the cork, took a long swig, and laid back with a sigh. Mr. Blue, tucked in the corner to her left chirped and hopped along one of the many perches inside his new, luxurious bird manor. Alyssa turned to eye him and he cocked his head to the side to return the gesture.

"Hey, bud. You want out for a bit?"

The young phoenix ruffled his azure feathers and loosed a happy warble. Alyssa smiled, slid over to his cage, and flipped the latch. Mr. Blue hopped down and pushed the door open with his head before fluttering freely about her foyer.

Alyssa took another swig of the alcoholic beverage in her hand and tried to relax. Her mind kept spinning about yet another situation to interrupt the calm after the storm. She stared into the constantly flickering mage-flame in the hearth across from her where Mr. Blue decided to perch himself just above.

"Alyssa?" she heard through the door. She recognized Logan's voice.

"Come in, door's unlocked."

Logan turned the handle and peaked his head in. Alyssa just leaned her head back on the sofa, arms stretched, but Mr. Blue gave him a chirp of welcome.

"Never seen your new place," Logan commented before he entered. "Puts my quarters to shame."

"What's up, Logan...?" Alyssa dragged out in a long exhale. She still had not made eye contact.

"Well, I heard you two going at it from upstairs. Figured I'd check up on you." Logan wandered to a free standing chair near the hearth and took a seat. He folded his hands in front of him and braced his elbows on his knees.

"I'm fine." Alyssa spouted. She sat up, and took another drag from the flask.

"You don't look the part," Logan added. Meanwhile, Mr. Blue fluttered from his perch and skidded to a stop on the floor between the coffee table and fireplace.

"I don't like this, Logan. We just finished a terrible battle and now something like this has to happen..." Alyssa fiddled with the flask in her hands, staring at it blankly. "Part of me knows Vincent is right, but the other part of me just can't believe it until I see it..."

Logan sat quietly and listened as a good man knows to do when a girl begins to open herself up.

"If it is him, I... I don't know what to do," she continued.

Mr. Blue hopped up to Logan's feet and cocked a head to look at him eye to eye. Logan raised a brow.

"Well, do what you need to do. Ask him why. Well... without getting screwed up like your friend."

Alyssa failed to get his humor and opted for a long sigh before propping her forehead up with her hand.

"Listen, Lyssa, we don't know enough to make any judgement calls. We definitely don't want Vincent rushing headlong into the fray and causing more loose ends. I haven't started looking inside Daire's mind for what happened, and I want her to get some rest before I do. Whatever is going on, we'll get to the bottom of it. I'm here to help, Lyssa."

"Thanks, Logan..." She smiled at him, but followed it with another swig.

Mr. Blue emitted a muffled warble and began fiddling with the fabric of Logan's leg. He adverted his attention to the bird, but didn't interrupt it.

"You having fun there?" he asked to which Mr. Blue warbled again.

"He likes you," Alyssa stated. "He's a great judge of character."

"That so?" Logan brought his hand to the young phoenix and the bird hopped onto his finger.

"I'm going to Dehlos." The words escaped Alyssa's lips like a fit of Terrets, but her resolve was firm in its tone.

"What?!" Logan's body jerked to look up at her, and Mr. Blue startled. He cawed and flapped his wings while scuttling up Logan's arm and perching on his shoulder. The psion turned his head toward the bird half in surprise and half in confusion.

"I can't reach Tobias, the letter had the crest of Dehlos, and whatever is happening, the answers have to be there."

"Uh... the answers are in Daire's head. If you just wait, I can get them for you." As Logan spoke, Mr. Blue began to pick at his hair as if he were preening Logan's feathers.

"I didn't want to tell Vincent, but in that short moment I connected with Tobias, I saw he was one a boat. There were a banners flying above him, and they all had the same symbol on them as the letter."

"Dehlos?" Logan tried to stop Alyssa's pet from picking at his hair. Instead, the bird squawked and fluttered to the top of his head. There, it settled down as if it were nesting.

"Exactly." Alyssa managed through a giggle at how ridiculous he looked with a phoenix nestled in his hair. Yet, somehow, the pairing of the two seemed fitting to her.

"I don't know if that's a good idea, Lyssa," he managed while trying to keep his head as still as possible.

Alyssa snapped her fingers and the young phoenix leapt from Logan's head to perch on top of its cage.

"Thanks." Logan tended to his flyaway hairs courtesy of his new friend.

"I know it's not a good idea, but what is he doing on a Dehlosian boat? Why won't he talk to us? I have to know."

"Well, assuming he is responsible for attacking Daire, that's probably why he doesn't want to talk to us. Otherwise, I have no idea why he's gone dark."

Logan raised a brow and cocked his head as he stared at the distraught girl across from him.

After a short pause, he asked, "Why do you care so much? I have a feeling this is more than getting answers about what happened to Daire..."

Logan's words cut through the air like an arrow and knocked the words out of Alyssa's lungs. Her lips searched for the answer and her eyes locked on the flickering flames. She struggled to provide an answer to a seemingly simple question. Her mind raced on the time she spent with him in Fallien. She recalled the moonlight of Beinost's piers as they talked into the late hours. Then, she remembered that foul impostor wearing Tobias' face as his hands constricted around her neck.

Alyssa brought her fingers to her throat by pure reflex, and her lips began to formulate a reply by taking a gulp of her rose wine.

"Have you ever felt a connection to someone you couldn't explain?" Alyssa began as she fiddled with the glass in her hands.

"I have," Logan replied, his brows quirked with interest.

"Well..." She shifted her legs and crossed them over one another, then back again. "I've met a lot of men and women since I left Alerar. Many of them were not good people. They saw me and wanted... Well, what men want."

"Power, women, money," he added.

Alyssa nodded.

"When I first met him, I was on a boat to Fallien, looking for answers to who I was, why they did this to me. Back then," Alyssa smiled, "he was sweet. He was outgoing, kind, and he didn't care who I was, where I came form, or where I was going. He made me feel...normal."

Her head sagged and eyes fixed on the swaying red of her wine.

"He made me feel human, and not as some object of desire."

"I see, but that can't be it. Many people treat you that way now." Logan made a gesture of his hand against his own chest.

"Well, we had plenty of time to talk on that boat ride and when we landed, he inadvertently got sucked into my own personal problem. He was a rock when things got rough and saved me countless times."

Alyssa looked up to her companion across the room. Her eyes held a maelstrom of conflict and nostalgia.

"You know me Logan.You know I'm strong and I always find a way. I wear myself to the bone and even then I'll keep trying to stand."

Logan nodded, remaining quite as the teen poured out the welled emotions inside.

"That kind of situation happened several times in that damn desert. And when I questioned my ability to continue, he would stand there, bloody, bruised, and exhausted as a shield and support. Logan, he barely knew me. He had no reason to do what he did. Even being the monster I thought I was, he treated me like someone important."

"He was just protecting his fellow comrade, Alyssa. It's not uncommon."

Alyssa shook her head.

"You're wrong. I know what you're talking about. Allies for today, strangers for tomorrow. I've known Tobias for years. In that time, seeing him go through all he's been through, he's more than just a comrade. He... he's like me."

"Oh?" Logan leaned forward, a grin on his face.

Alyssa turned her eyes from him.

"He's lost. Misunderstood. A stranger in an unknown land. He's a warrior fighting a battle no one else can see. I can see it. I want to be a part of it. I want to help him like he helped me. I want..."

The teen choked at the words.

"I want to be with him. Let him know I care, let him know he doesn't have to push me away. Even if I have to put my life on the line to do so."

Logan rubbed at the scruff of his chin. "I see," he commented as he leaned back in his seat. His studious eyes narrowed at her.

"Do you love him?"

"What?! No! Of course not!" She spat, wide eyed and flushed in the cheeks. "I mean, I don't know. Maybe? I don't know what that's supposed to feel like."

Logan softly chuckled then looked over to the adolescent phoenix in its cage. "What do you think?"

Mr. Blue spanned his wings wide and sang out a sharp, happy tune.

"Yeah, you're right Blue," the psion nodded.

"What!? What'd he say?!" Alyssa jumped in her seat, nearly losing her grasp on the wine glass.

Alyssa's guest rose from his seat by the fire and stepped toward the door.

"He said it looks like you've got more important things to worry about than something as fickle as love. Listen, there's no changing your mind once you've made it up. So, you're going to Dehlos. Find out what that Tobias is up to and worry about the other stuff later."

Logan made for the door and placed his hand on the handle.

"I'll let you know what I learn from Daire."

He turned the knob and pulled the door open.

"Oh, and before I leave you alone, do you mind if I take a few things from the vault? I have some plans coming up and I could use--"

Alyssa, red as the leftover wine in her hands, waved him off. "Take whatever you need."

"Thanks," Logan left her room but paused with the door still cracked. "And Alyssa...? Stay safe. We need you."

The young girl managed an, "I will" before the door shut with a click.

Finally alone to her own myriad of conflict and emotions, Alyssa let out a long, exasperated sigh. She set her drink down on the coffee table at her knees and cupped her warm cheeks. Either she had too much wine, or something else had her face feeling warmer than usual. Her heart beat wildly in her chest and she felt a weight with each breath. She spun in her seat and laid across the length of her sofa.

Lost in thought, Alyssa stared blankly at the smooth stone ceiling above, her arm across her forehead. What was love? From the books and conversations she had, Alyssa only surmised it as a strong attachment to another person. She felt strongly attached to Tobias, but she also felt strongly attached to Logan, Rayleigh, Daire, Stella, Vince, and all the other members of her metaphorical family.

Alyssa gripped at the cloth above her chest.

Then why did she feel so torn when Logan asked that question? Why does it hurt? It had to be the wine. She shouldn't have drank while so upset.

Alyssa closed her eyes.

Tomorrow. She'll worry about this tomorrow, she decided. Alyssa took a deep breath and relaxed herself into a comfortable position and as she began to fade, her mind drifted into a sea of nostalgia with the image of the lone soldier fresh in her memory.

In the damp darkness of the freighter's cargo hold, Alyssa felt about for the day pack she misplaced for the umpteenth time. Losing something so invaluable to her journey went against her character but with the slew of improperly tethered barrels, boxes, and paraphernalia sloshing around for weeks, it became commonplace. The limited light that penetrated through the deck boards above usually offered some assistance, but some manner of weather or time denied the sun. Weeks as a stow away tends to skew the perception of days passed.

In her attempts, she finally grazed the familiar exotic fabric and clutched to her chest. She patted around for the clip and unlatched it so she could fish around at the contents within. Several different shapes and forms found her grip but were rejected until she plucked out a small glass flask and leaf-bound ration. Alyssa clamored back to her favorite spot in the hold, high enough to keep herself dry and free from the crushing force of loose cargo in swaying seas. Before she dug in to her afternoon, morning, or midnight meal, she tucked a few wisps of moisture tortured blonde back into place.

Alyssa popped the cork to her flask and took a swig of the salt-free water within. Then, she undid the twine and unwrapped the leaves protecting the firm lump of rations. Her teeth sunk into the bitter, unsavory chunk of nutrition and winced with each unsatisfying chew. Anvil, her close friend and Dwarven quartermaster of the Hierarchy, created this semi soft lump of sustenance from his own personal recipe. She remembered him stating it lacked taste where it made up in necessity. He continued to elaborate on some old Dwarven stories about warriors and braving untold hardships, but Alyssa failed to recall the details as she choked down the mouthful of the awful stuff. Admittedly, it had become a taste less foul than the dozen which came before it. The first nearly threw her into a fit of vomit.

"Oye, mate. 'Ave a gand'r," a muffled voice sounded from the deck above. Alyssa halted herself from a second bite to listen.

"It's fuckin' the mid of night! The hell you wakin' me up for?!"

There was a slight pause, followed by some object clattering to the wood above her.

"Y'prick! That fuckin' hurt!"

"Good, now git off yer arse and take a look through th' glass."

Alyssa cautiously wrapped the ration and set it aside while tucking the glass into the neck of her shirt. She tried to avoid making a single noise as she lofted herself up onto a cross beam so she could peer through any crack or hole to get a better vantage. She found one that allowed a faint glimpse at a deck hand beside the side railing as he motioned someone over. A boot slammed against the deck, blocked her vision, and nearly startled her off her perch.

"This'd better be worth it," she heard from the second hand. "I don't go wakin' you up on yer shift. Give it here!"

The deck hand offered over a brass monocular. He pressed it to his eye in the direction his mate pointed.

"There, on the cusp of the moonlit horizon, what d'you make out?"

"It looks like... Is that...? Well wet me lips and smack 'em on Yedda's tits! A full week ahead of schedule! Bless the winds!"

"Land-ho?"

Alyssa felt her chest flutter with anticipation.

"Aye! Land-ho! Ring th' bell and I'll notify th' Cap'n!"

The ship went from the silent slosh of sea against wood to the roaring choir of deckhands preparing to make land. Their feet pounded like drums against the waterlogged planks and bellowed orders roared into the twilight. The faint hue of red began its invasion of the ships various cracks and holes into the storage deck where Alyssa busily checked her equipment. Over the barrels and boxes of merchant wares, she clamored until she found the loading gate. Through a hole that the gate's chain ran, she peered.

Land stretched for as long as she could see. Arid and dry, it seemed vegetation was scarce. The homunculi felt a rush of anticipation swell in her chest.

"Make ready!" she heard a man shout. The metallic flutter of a signalling lamp relayed a silent code to shore. Along the rocky coast, a speck of light flashed in reply.

Alyssa pulled away from the ship's hull and took a deep breath. The memory of Tobias dredged up from the recesses of her mind. From smiling adventurer to steeled gaze of a hardened swordsman. The terror fueled cries of Daire echoed loudly and the anger of Vincent felt fresh. Alyssa shook the memories from her mind and focused on her current task. Her stowing away would surely cause problems upon landing, and she couldn't afford the political delay of talking her way out of it.

Alyssa pulled her magnum from its thigh holster and pressed the muzzle against the chain of the loading gate. She pulled the trigger, washing a wave of flames over the steel. She fired again, wood hissing and screaming as the water evaporated form the grains. With a final pull of the trigger, a chilled bolt of ice crashed into the heated iron and cracked the brittle metal apart.

"Hey," she heard a voice call out above, "anyone hear that?"

Alyssa bit her lip and shifted across the rafters to the second gate chain. Again she pushed her muzzle to the chain.

"Hear what?"

She pulled the trigger, and the first fireball hit the wrought iron with a sizzle.

"That. You don't hear that?"

She pulled it again, wood screaming as water left its soaked body.

"Yeah, I hear it now. It's in cargo! Let's go!"

Alyssa fired the bolt of ice, but this time, the iron resisted.

"Shit," she cursed. The magnum slipped back into its holster and snapped shut. Instead, Alyssa pulled her enchanted knife from the scabbard on her opposite arm and pressed a small button. The blade's crystalline edge hummed, than began to glow red hot. She jammed its tip into the ring of the chain and pushed.

The sound of footsteps groaned on the stairwell in a series of two or three. Hammers of flintlock pistols cocked to the readied position.

Alyssa clenched her teeth, trying to force the blade deeper into the iron. Slowly, like a cold blade through cold butter, the iron began to give way. Its rusty surface hissed and screamed as it grew red with anger.

"There!" Alyssa heard behind her. She shot her free hand to her other pistol. The crewmen leveled their flintlocks.

SNAP!

The last of the chain gave way to her blade and as flintlocks slammed against the priming powder, the cargo door gave way to Alyssa's weight. Smoke billowed from the sailor's weapons, working to the packed black powder within. The wood gate slammed against the worn hull of the vessel and Alyssa fell toward the sea. Bouts of flame belched from their weapons and lead balls fled from their barrels. She heard them hiss as one sped through the golden strands of her hair past her ear. The others flew just above her face as gravity pulled her to safety.

SPLASH!

The sea engulfed her, pushed deep by the rolling tide of the vessel's wake.