Burias was not much of a conversationalist, but I did manage to learn that he was a clanless outcast. His family had lost their connection to their clan when his ancestor resorted to cannibalism to survive a particularly harsh winter. Vash’s camp was made up mostly of outcasts that she’d been joining under her banner since she herself was forced to join their ranks.

When the camp first came into view I was surprised to find that it looked more like a military installation than a bandit camp. There was a small pit dug around it, guards at the entrance, and orderly rows of tents. The guards began yelling and passing messages as I approached and by the time I got to the gate I found myself surrounded by roughly a dozen orcs.

“I believe this is yours.” I said gently lowering Burias to the ground. I gave him some space and an orcish woman carefully approached, hefted him up, and helped him through the gate.

“Not a smart move, removing your only leverage,” said a particularly large orc with a scar across his eye. He was holding a massive hammer loosely in one hand and seemed to be placing himself so I’d be within reach of it.

“I was hoping you’d take it as a gesture of goodwill. I’m here for Vash.”

“I’m afraid she doesn’t speak to dead men.” The scarred man moved quickly, slinging his hammer at my helmet. I decided to let it hit, my head flying into another orc and knocking him to the ground.

“Was that really necessary?” I asked from my now disembodied head.

The orc holding it screamed and dropped me to the ground.

My body strolled back and placed my head back in its rightful place. The entire group just stood there, dumbfounded. I walked back to the orc with the hammer. “My turn.” I punched him in the side of his head and he crumpled. I then drew my sword and placed it at his throat as his companions began closing in. “Since you seem to insist on me having a hostage, bring me Vash or I’ll do to this Orc what he did to me.”

A few orcs broke off and went back into their camp. I stood where I was and maintained what I hoped was a relaxed pose, while I held my sword to the downed orcs neck. It was nice not trying to hide what I was anymore. Things moved a lot more quickly and I could take advantage of strengths I wasn’t able to use when I was pretending to be a man.

After a few moments Vash made her appearance. She looked much the same as she had when we’d met on her ship. Her teeth were particularly sharp, her skin the color of charcoal, and her eyes shone like gold coins. She was dressed differently now, all black leather armor covered her, with iron gauntlets on each hand. There were two of the hook swords she’d used on me before at her waist and when she saw me her hands went to them.

“You’re bigger than the last time I saw you," she said.

“You look different without a ship underneath your feet.”

“What do you want?”

“Information.” And her head, but I’d start with a different priority.

“Why?”

“I’m not sure I can ask that without you telling your siblings what I asked and inferring things I don’t want them to infer.”

She spat. “Damn my siblings, damn my father too. Come into the camp. I’ll tell you what you want to know.”

I returned my sword to its scabbard and fell in behind Vash, leaving my hostage behind. Now that I was near her, he wasn't necessary. This was going far better than I’d expected, so I naturally became paranoid and stayed ready to start fighting at a moment's notice.

There was some grumbling from the other orcs when I passed by, but a look from Vash shut them right up. She escorted me through to a large tent in the center. The inside was more spartan than I expected, with just a small hammock to one side, a large table in the center with some chairs, and two chests to the side. I’d grown used to the Children of Aurum having much more expensive tastes.

She poured herself a cup of water and sat at one end of the table, she had to sit on it sideways in order to keep from sitting on her tail.

“So tell me monster, what would you like to know?”

“Just like that? No trading barbs, or sword fighting, or killing someone before you’ll answer anything?”

“Nope. Just ask me what you want and I’ll answer as best I can.”

I stayed still and thought for a moment. “I guess my first question is why?”

“Why what?”

“Why aren’t you trying to kill me? Why are you making this so easy?”

“Because I no longer wish to be a part of my family. I think the world would be better off without them and I’m guessing you’re seeking answers on how to make that a reality.”

“What happened?”

She sighed. “You happened. You cost me everything. All that I’d worked to accomplish ended all because I thought I could use a favor from Talen to further my own goals. I lost my ships, the dignity I’d earned despite being without a clan, and worst of all the lives of my crew. Though I didn’t fully understand how terrible that loss was until later.”

“What do you mean?”

“Imagine growing up as nothing. An outsider in your own society. Then imagine you say and do the right things long enough to create a place for yourself, a ship in my case. Then one day you feel something new. You hear a voice and that voice tells you that you have the power to do anything you want. You’re part of a family that is of the noblest bloodline imaginable. All others around you exist only for your advancement or your pleasure. The voice not only promises this, but delivers immediately on those promises. You think more clearly, move more quickly, are stronger, and often the exact words you need to say become clear before you even need to say them. Now all your dreams are becoming real, and even better you are a part of a clan greater than anyone else's, something you’d been denied your whole life.”

She paused to take another sip of her water.

“Two members of your new clan are killed by a monster, but they were lesser members, not valuable like you were. A brother offers you a favor for killing the thing responsible and you accept. You let the gears turn and start spinning a plan that would lead to something grand, a fleet, an admiralty, perhaps even godhood. You fail, miserably. The status you gained is wiped out in an instant and you realize people were always waiting for you to fail. They were hungry for it. Without that status the clan you were a part of sees less of a use for you and ceases communications beyond attempts to order you around like a servant. At a certain point you realize that the status and power had less meaning than the crew you had with you, the people who trusted you with their lives in spite of what you were born as.”

I listened to her quietly, taking in her story at first with a grain of salt, but as she continued I found myself believing her in spite of myself. I wondered if it was Lythia’s residual feelings, but I couldn’t tell. When she was done talking all I could think to say was. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t need your sympathy.”

“You have it anyway.”

She grunted. “Your questions, what are they?”

“Aurum, what is he?”

“A god or something as powerful as one. Beyond that I’m not sure. He’s got something to do with dragons though if my tail is any indication.”

“That’s all you know?”

“Yes, he doesn’t talk about himself so much as what he can do for you.”

“What does he want in return?”

“He says he does it in order to see his descendants prosper and that whoever prospers the most will be his heir.”

“He’ll make them a god?”

“That’s what he tells us.”

“You’re skeptical?”

“The gifts he gives, they do come with a price. The initial ones, the increased strength and knowledge, those felt more like something being unlocked. This,” she gestured at her tail, “felt like he took something from me and replaced it with a piece of himself. He’s always offering more too. Even now I’m hearing whispers of claws that could rend your armor, fire that could melt you, or wings to fly away.”

“He can see what you’re doing?”

“Yes, and he almost never stops talking.”

“Does he tell other children of aurum what you see?”

“No. We can communicate through him, but he doesn’t give us any advantages like that over one another. He wants us to compete and not cooperate, unless it’s against mutual enemies. Like you.”

“What do you think his ultimate goal is, if not to choose an heir?”

“To do whatever he wants.”

“What?”

“He only wants to indulge himself. Wine, women, blood, riches, games, fights, he wants all of it.”

“Do you know how to stop him?”

“No. Even if you killed all of his current children I’m sure he could find more descendants and start over. He’s spread himself across the world.”

“He’s letting you tell me all this?”

“He’s not ‘letting’ me, but he isn’t trying to stop me either. If I had to guess, he likes you.”

“He likes me? Didn’t you just refer to me as a ‘common enemy’ to be fought.”

“You’re creating pressure that didn’t exist. You and your friends. He likes what it’s doing to us.”

I paused at that. I didn’t like the idea that I was helping him, but I also didn’t know what I could do except for stopping as many of his children as I could. “Your brothers, Talen and Caedus, do they suspect Aurum may be deceiving them?”

“No. They’re royals, they think to a certain extent that they were always meant to be gods anyway.”

“Talen’s a genuine son of the Duke then?”

“He’s as genuine as a bastard can be. His maid mother whispered all the grand things he was meant for into his ears from the day he was born. He can’t see past his idea that he deserves godhood and power and so he hasn’t questioned anything our father has offered.”

“Any idea what they’re up to now?”

“A vague one. They’re both working to create opportunities with two of my other brothers on the border of Sylfen. After that I assume they’ll be going after each other.”

“Do you know-” I hesitated, not sure if asking the question would reveal too much, but I decided with all she’d freely shared she could be trusted. “Do you know if my companions are okay?”

“They’re alive, and free, but they’re being watched. I think Caedus believed that they didn’t know what you were. Either that or he thinks they’ll be useful somehow anyway.”

“Thank you. For all your answers.”

She nodded and finished her water. “Where are you headed now?”

“Usulaum. I still need more answers on the exact nature of Aurum, and of dragons in general and I feel like I’ll find them there. I almost feel like I’m being pulled in that direction.”

Vash smiled. “Sounds like you're a puppet too.”

“Almost certainly, but I don’t think I take as much offense to it as you do. It’s a role I was made to play. How about you, what are your plans?”

“I’m going to rob, pillage, and fight until I can give everyone here the thing they’ve always been without.”

“What’s that?”

“A clan.”

“Is that possible? To create a new clan?” I searched through Pebble’s knowledge, but found little on the subject. All the orcs he knew in Usulaum were outcasts that had been removed from clan politics for generations.

“It hasn’t happened for five hundred years, but it is possible. I’ll just have to make the right people bleed.”

I stood and considered all she had said. It was possibly true, possibly a lie, and probably a mixture of both. Whatever the case, I didn’t feel I could risk leaving someone so dangerous alive and my fury at the golden eyes in front me wouldn’t let me.

I drew my sword and slashed at her neck with as much speed and force as I could manage.

She brought up her tail just in time to block the blow and rolled with the force into the edge of the tent knocking it down around us. I cut my way through the canvas just in time for her to bring two of her hook blades down on my shoulders, they dug in and she used their leverage to throw me.

After I landed I stood up and found myself surrounded by orcs. Two of them attacked, swinging swords at me, but I blocked one with my sword and caught the other. I pushed both of them back and went to slice into their chests.

“No!” I heard Vash yell and suddenly she was between me and my attackers. There was a spray of blood and I heard people cry out all around us.

Everyone was looking at her with deep concern on their faces and dozens of warriors were closing, only hesitating for fear of what I might do to Vash. I also noticed for the first time that there were children in the camp as well as men and women who definitely weren’t warriors. They were people that could only be a liability to her.

I lowered my sword. Vash was still on her feet, but I’d cut her deeply. It was likely that if she hadn’t been enhanced by Aurum she’d be dead. I put my sword in my sheath, and walked away.

Some warriors went to attack me, but I heard Vash weakly mutter, “Let him go.”

These people needed her and I had no right to judge someone who was doing their best to be better.