The gusts of winds shattered themselves upon the highest of balconies, but She was protected from the tempestuous weather through the will of the gods. The city was astoundingly beautiful, her glass of grive wine was cool and clear, and her daily affairs had gone exactly how She had wanted them to go.

Her gaze was upon the west, lost in dark thoughts.

“You finally lost it, Rö. Why? Humans like you, innocents. Is it really me who pushed you to this?”

A tall man with fiery red hair, barely looking over twenty, joined her on the imperial terrace, and put a knee to the ground behind her.

“Mother.”

She did not look at him.

“I told you.”

“I had to try.”

“True. What about Pearl and Agate?”

“They wait for the waters to subside.”

Hyn sighed.

“You shall oversee the construction sites.”

“Yes, mother.”

She turned around.

“Not right now, idiot. Come and sit by my side, drink with me.”

The smile of the most beautiful woman in the world was soft and generous.

On the bright side of Zenith mountain.

“Do you have something to hold my arm in place?” Nay had removed her cape.

“Why…Lebe, your arm is broken. Young girl, you need to go to the village doctor, or if you’ve got gold, go see a specialised God-Touched. What is…”

“Please.”

The old man seemed upset but left to look for something that could help the young Legio.

The old man’s house was big, but empty. It testified of a man that had lived alone for a long time. Made of stone, like all the others, it was not situated far away from the central square, and it had more flowers at the door and glass windows than its neighbours. Nay was forced to ask him for his aid, pushed by the pain. She had the feeling he would help, no questions asked, and she hadn’t been wrong.

“Show me.” He said, his hand was trembling. She removed her leather armour; the pain of her action making her groan in pain. She caught her breath before talking again.

“I can put the bone back, but I need something to make a brace and…”

He stopped her.

“I’ve had my fair share of fractures; my children were quite the rough little devils. And I cannot let the person with the broken bone fix it herself. That is just asking for things to go from bad to worse.”

Nay squirmed on her seat, not knowing what she could retort to that.

“May I?” He asked as he moved his hands towards her arm.

She nodded.

He seemed to hesitate, then turned around to take a glass and fill it with a white clear-ish liquid.

“Drink this first, it’ll help.”

“What is it?”

“Corn liquor.”

“I don’t like to drink.”

“Which is a very good thing, but in this case, I insist.”

Nay looked at the glass, sighed, then gulped it in one go. The alcohol burned her tongue, mouth, and throat. She started coughing.

“Good. Now, let us reset this bone.”

This time, Nay could not stop a full-fledged scream to escape from her lips.

“I didn’t imagine doing this today when I invited a lovely young woman in my humble abode.” Despite his words, the old man was smiling. “My name is Alfer.” He continued.

“Nay.”

“Were you aware, young Nay, that the expressions concerning moat cats were only used in the bordering city of Giamen, and in Gite? In the Empire, those are the two only cities with roaming cats inside and around moats. My family lives in Giamen, and you don’t look Hymerian to me.”

“I…”

The old man sipped his cup of tea, seemingly satisfied by his deduction.

Nay stopped, understanding that he would not push deeper than that. She smiled back to him.

“Thank you.” She said.

“You’re welcome. I’m the one thanking you. It’s been a long time since something interesting happened to me.”

“I’d have enjoyed a peaceful nothing, honestly.”

Alfer laughed. “I’m not the one with the broken arm, that is true.”

“You are Hymerian, I collected?”

“Yes, I came here thirty-six years ago. In the past, there was very little work available in Giamen.”

“And your family?”

“They stayed.”

There was a short silence. Nay felt that the question that she had thought trivial, had not been.

“You shouldn’t worry, young Nay. I enjoy talking, even about that.”

“Why didn’t they join you?”

“For the same reason I’m not going back. The Hymere.”

“The jungle?”

Nay felt Alfer’s Rreico waver. Fear.

“Crossing the jungle is far too dangerous, especially for an old man like me. I always refused for my wife or my children to take that risk. I send them my money through naval cheques.”

She had heard the stories about one of the two only roads crossing the jungle having been unusable for years, about the Hymere being the most dangerous place in the Empire. She knew some ships crossed the southern sea, but they were rare, and the ones with space for extra passengers were even rarer, and extremely costly. Even nobles would not have been able to pay the voyage more than once or twice a year.

“I have hope still. They are building an Iron road to the east as well, and if my old bones hold until then, I’ll be able to use it to see my family again.”

There was a long silence, Nay drank some of her tea.

“What about you, young woman? What are you doing here?”

The young Legio hesitated slightly before answering.

“I’m looking for my mother and my sister. They were gone on holiday in Leïn, I hope to find them.”

“Mhhh…the city is infinite; it will be quite a difficult task. You can always ask at a police station; every city district lists who lives there. If your mother works, she will have to be in the list. It is mandatory.”

Nay’s expression lit up.

“Really? What is a police station? Where can I find one?”

“Oh, it’s like a guard post, but they are paid and obey the district officials, not the army. You can’t miss the buildings, they are very recognizable, and there are maps on billboards scattered around the city. Well, if things haven’t changed since I was last there.”

Nay felt her hopes vanish. She could not exactly stumble in such a secure place. Maybe ask someone to go in her stead?

No, it would be too suspicious. And even if her mother were on such a list, something Nay was far from certain, she would be under heavy scrutiny.

Of course, she could reach the information she coveted with a less legal route, but to plan such a thing would take weeks, months considering her broken arm. Nay wasn’t waiting that long to meet with Ra’fa and Lisana.

“You don’t look happy about this news.”

“I…well.”

“Is it related to the sword around your belt?”

“…I told you, I’m no innocent.”

“No one is.”

In the shadow of the room stained by a sole candle, Nay stopped talking.

After a few minutes, she spoke again.

“I will leave.”

“With that arm? I’ve got an extra bed; you can take a rest.”

Nay shook her head in rebuttal.

“I cannot stay. I’m putting you in danger.”

“I’m an old man, true, but I’m not senile yet! I can differentiate someone aggressive and violent, from someone lonely carrying too much on her shoulders. You’d never hurt me.”

“Willingly? No. But I may not have a choice, or the guards pursuing me could hurt you trying to reach me.”

“Nonsense. I know this town’s police officers; they are respectable people.”

Nay showed a pained expression.

“I need to leave. If someone comes and asks questions, please, don’t try to protect me.”

The old man scratched his neck.

“Fine, if it is so important to you… I will not hold you back.”

“You have my thanks.”

He sighed, looking sad.

He did not accompany her to his front door. Nay checked the surrounding Rreicos before stepping outside.

She did not turn to look behind and left the old man alone with his inner turmoil.

Nay went back towards the central square. When she arrived, she saw that the train had been almost completely emptied. She could feel the metal beams that the vehicle was sitting on slowly filling up with a strange energy.

She raised an eyebrow. Wasn’t this dangerous?

“Imminent departure! Stand clear of the rails!” Shouted someone amongst the workers, as if to answer her unvoiced question.

She stepped forwards. No one was looking in her direction, and the young Legio knew no one would. They were all busy doing their respective tasks.

She swiftly climbed inside one of the empty caravans and hid in one of its corners.

She tensed immediately, sensing a familiar Rreico appear at the edge of her perception.

A few seconds later, a shout echoed on the plaza. “Halt!” Said Quar Birrebus.

He was standing barely ten feet away.

“W…who are you?” The one who answered the Virnyl guard one was the same one who had warned everyone about the rails.

“Quar Birrebus, acting Commandare, I’m looking for a runaway, it is possible she boarded your erm…train.”

“I see. Well, we are leaving for Leïn in sixty seconds. You may look for her in the meantime.”

“Are you mocking me? Delay your departure.”

“Sir…Quar, is it? Are you a big shot in Gite?”

Nay felt the anger of the acting Commandare. She would not have liked to be in the foreman’s place right now.

“Big enough to lock you up a long time for your current tone of voice.” The threat was crystal clear.

But despite the fierce intimidation, the foreman was undaunted.

“Is your search backed by the Imperatrix’s decree?”

“Wh…what?” Quar Birrebus sounded troubled.

“Because I am backed and commanded by such a decree.”

Nay felt her focus switch to something else completely. Something other was approaching at absurd speeds.

It was a Rreico. A massive Rreico in the sky and the wind. Either the animal it belonged to was ten feet high, or it belonged to a mage stronger than even Sage Jormun.

She held her breath, concentrated on the tower of infinite Rreico, pulled it back inside the most she could. Beyond even her own sight.

“You don’t understand.” Quar Birrebus’ speech had suddenly become much more respectful. “She is a murderer; she could put your work in dire peril.”

“Ah! Well then, that changes th…You are lucky, it seems we will be able to resolve this situation promptly.”

The sky opened in flames of impossible colours.

Nay thought she saw a person fall from the clouds. Her feeling of the rhythm of life immediately felt overtaken by the Rreico of this flying man. Strength, tenderness, love, and violence.

She heard a few surprised and admirative shouts from the people around the square.

Seconds passed, then Quar spoke first.

“Jarl.” He said.

“Commandare Birrebus.” Said the voice of someone barely in his mid-twenties.

Nay trembled. The man hadn’t noticed her. He had not spotted her.

“Acting Commandare.”

“Not for long, your official instatement is just waiting to happen. What are you doing so far away from Gite?”

“I am still personally supervising Nay’s capture, Marke’s daughter, and…”

“Yes, yes. I thought your artefact was going to catch her?”

Artefact?

“I…I miscalculated. She managed to escape.”

“What an annoyance. My mother has other priorities than to fix your mess, but I see she will have to involve herself in this debacle. I find there are many shadowy spots in your stories.”

“I apologize but I must ins…”

“So, why you are impeding in the Imperatrix’s work?” The God-Touched interrupted Quar Birrebus rudely.

“I have reasons to believe that Nay would try to get in the train as a stowaway to reach Leïn faster.”

“Mhhh, makes sense. Give me a second…” The God-Touched’ voice took a different tone, deeper, almost like a prayer. “Let us look for the passage of time, let us look for the passage of time, where goes the beast that loses its tail?”

The weird sentence was immediately followed with a strange ripple in the Rreico. As if an invisible wave exploded away, its epicentre being the strongest God-Touched in the kingdom of the Imperatrix.

It pierced through earth and wood, stone, metal, flesh, and bones.

Nay closed her eyes in despair. Guessing what such a spell was for was easy. She was caught.

“She’s not here.” Jarl the Bohemian announced.

Nay gasped.

“Are you certain!?” Quar exclaimed, before immediately apologizing: “Sorry, my journey has made me tired, I thank you for your assistance.”

“Mhhh. Paul, you may start your trip back.”

“By your orders, Heir to the kingdom.”

“As for you, acting Commandare. You need to go back to Gite. My mother is aware of your strategy to reinstate order in Her city, but she dislikes the waste of promising individuals to protect Her empire.”

“But…”

“Do you believe Leïn’s guards unable to capture one single swordswoman, however talented she may be?”

“No, of course not.”

The train started to move and rumble, and Nay could not catch the end of their conversation.

She accelerated, faster and faster, and after a few minutes Nay had reached a speed she was unable to comprehend.

That was when she felt free to breathe again. She had been inches away from disaster, and her heart was racing as it never had before.