“They had come into the fort under the guise of wanting to join Rivea,” Heria said. “Once they were inside they turned and began to overwhelm us. We could not defend ourselves against them, we had to guide the refugees away.” Heria stared at Ares, waiting for him to speak up.

“I’m very glad you did so,” Ares said with a smile on his face. He was glad, for it seemed that Heria understood him and his ideals.

“We had given up the fort in exchange for the refugees,” Heria said, “for that I am responsible.”

Ares nodded and then looked out to the fort. “What happened to the soldiers that remained behind?”

“They are dead,” Heria said as she looked over to the wall in the distance.

Ares followed her gaze and then raised his brow towards her before then walking out towards it as Heria walked beside him.

When Ares came to the wall and walked around it, he looked down at the path that had been dug in order to create the wall. Some parts of the area had been filled in.

Ares walked up to the area and then dropped down to a knee beside it. He reached down to touch the dirt. It was cold and hard. Ares looked to Heria, who held a stone cold expression.

Ares then shifted the earth away to reveal a group of dead bodies all withered together. Some of them were oxfolk and some were Riveans. The smell struck him quickly, but soon the bodies were gone within his ring. There were a number of other piles of earth that Ares then began to systematically go through each one.

“You are taking all the bodies?” Heria asked.

“Yes, I am,” Ares said. “They fought for what they believed in. I can’t fault them for that. Of course, if they had done anything to my family then… perhaps I wouldn’t show as much mercy.”

Heria remained silent. Ares finished collecting all the bodies before he returned back to the group.

“We will leave the Reptai at the fort and return to Rivea,” Ares said. “I’m tired and there has been too much that has gone on for me to really concentrate on anything right now.” He sighed.

Ares dropped out a pile of meat for the Reptai. “Take this for now. I will return in a few days to speak with you about our future relationship.”

Zika nodded towards Ares. She no doubt could see the exhaustion on his face.

Ares and his allies then made their way through to Rivea. Ares could feel himself grow tired with each step, but he tried to seem as though he wasn’t.

Xan walked around at the front with him, with Heria and her soldiers, a few hundred strong, brought up the rear. The oxfolk had apparently tried to flee and she had run them down with her warriors. Heria seemed to find more glee than Ares would have liked, but he couldn’t really blame her.

Then Ares was finally back home.

He looked out to see his people. They were far healthier than himself, or at least they seemed so. They looked out to see him, and though he wanted them to feel relaxed when they saw him, he could tell by their looks that he did not inspire such a feeling at this moment.

It all felt so silent, like death. Ares looked out, seeing all the faces, before he finally caught the faces of Rori and Lana. His children were near them, held by their milk mothers.

“It’s good to see you again, Ares,” Rori said.

“Yeah…” Ares said. “Yeah.”

Rori motioned with his head to the home that Ares had missed. Ares followed the bearman towards it. The people of Rivea remained outside, now speaking with one another, whispering and muttering no doubt about the state that Ares was in. Many of them had seen him in a dishevelled state before, but now it felt so different.

Ares fell down to his usual spot and Lana sat beside him, holding onto his arm. Ares then went to rest his head on her shoulder.

The milk mothers had come inside too, but they soon left once the children were down. They crawled over to Ares and he wrapped his arms around them, feeling their warmth spread through him. Runar head-butt his chest and then hugged him tight.

“Yes, yes,” Ares said as he pet the top of the little girl’s head. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

Ozar and Ozri tried to crawl and climb around him, but soon Lana took them from him. They cried for a few moments, but seeing as no one was trying to soothe them, they soon stopped.

“You are injured,” Rori said.

“Yeah.”

“What happened?”

Ares then began to tell the pair of what had occurred. He spoke quietly, not to keep it a secret, but because that was all he had strength for. He mentioned the lionfolk and the hyenafolk, then the Bitan and what had happened with them, then the deal he had made with the Reptai.

“I would ask about what has happened here but…” Ares looked between the pair. “I’ll ask around tomorrow if that’s alright.”

Rori nodded. “Would you like to rest now?”

Ares replied with his own nod. Rori took Runar away from Ares, though she started to cry and head-butt Rori, who kept the girl a little ways away from him in order to not get hit. He carried her out and then Ozar and Ozri were also taken away by their milk mothers.

Ares sighed and looked over to Lana, who pulled him close to her breast. He embraced her tight.

“I would like to see,” she said.

Ares slipped out of his top and revealed his wound to her. It was dark and gross, though not quite as awful as it had been originally. Lana stared at it and then placed a hand onto his side.

She felt so warm. Ares looked up into her eyes.

“I didn’t want you to leave,” Lana said.

“I know…”

“I’m not surprised that this happened.”

“Me neither.”

“I won’t let you escape.”

Ares smiled. He pulled her in to kiss her. “That’s fine by me.”

They melted against one another.