Kari had become accustomed to riding on a horse by herself and was improving dramatically. They ate on the run like before, and she carried a sack of food around her waist. She felt free as she let her hair be engulfed by the wind and flow behind her.

The men rode much slower than they normally did. Whenever she saw them ride off it was always with a sense of urgency.

A few days into their journey, Robert revealed that they were taking a detour. Robert had not consulted Jeplin on the matter and looked at him with a questioning eye.

"We are so close…”

He said looking to the west.

"I feel it would be good for Kari and myself ..." J

eplin immediately knew what he was referring to. Kari looked at Jeplin's face, which seemed to have become an even whiter shade than before.

"Where are we going?"

She asked, not sure to be terrified or excited.

Robert looked to Jeplin, waiting for the approval of his decision. Jeplin looked down and then spoke.

"We are going to the Castle of Asiroth."

Kari smiled.

"Really?”

She said excitedly.

"I thought I would never get the chance to see it!”

Jeplin tried to look happy for her, but something was visibly haunting him. Their journey became more serious and full of purpose for her. Kari was starting to learn everything she had been sheltered from her whole life. She envied Robert being old enough to remember living there. Jeplin and Robert lagged behind her for a moment and exchanged quiet words. After that, Jeplin seemed more comfortable.

They crossed the border the next afternoon, just after they ate. Kari had tons of questions running through her mind, she asked a few and held back several more because she didn’t want to bombard them with her curiosity. Robert knew she was more excited than she was letting on and he began to tell her various stories that he knew about the city and their lives.

"Is there anything you would like to know that Robert has not covered?"

Jeplin asked.

She smiled

"I personally feel keeping you in the dark would be beneficial for your safety but if you are going to be the representative of Asiroth you might as well know everything.”

Robert nodded

"It will make her decisions more informed."

She decided to ask the question that plagued her

"How did this war start?"

Robert answered

"It began as a fight for power. Asiroth and Edeagar were amazing, though not flawless, kingdoms. They were allies and everyone there was very loyal. But the aspect that bothered those who opposed them was their power. Both King James and William had access to pure energy that they could summon. Many people had the ability to summon elements and energy but the blood relatives of the royal line were much stronger. It may explain how they ended up in power centuries ago. Helam knew of the power and developed a toxic desire for even more power. . He wanted to be the most powerful king and he figured if he could recruit those with these skills he might have had a chance of unmatched rule. Many did not want to align with him so he began to kill those who refused him. He slowly killed off a whole population and his power increased by doing so. When William and James were killed, Helam thought the power struggle would be over but soon found out that their sons were both gifted and still alive. He was determined to kill the whole bloodline and focused mainly on George and Henry. Though he thought before he could justify killing such power he went to each man offering an alliance. He had a lot of money and powerful connections that he gestured as a reward. George of course declined but Henry, who had grown envious of George, took Helam's offer. He too wanted to be more powerful, but only more powerful than George. Helam promised Henry that he would keep Edeagar and be handed Asiroth."

George’s father was working with a man called the Wintok, his real name was something that started with an M but she couldn't remember it.. They had a concept, an idea, to somehow channel the energy they possessed into a beam which allowed it to be more powerful and give the person with the power better control. George continued the search and experiment after his father died. He knew that is he came up with the right design and material they might've had a chance to defeat the enemy.

Kari thought back to her father, she remembered the few times she was in his library there were dozens of sketches, he was working on the experiments. She was very sure that he never stopped. "

What were they specifically?"

She asked.

Robert continued.

"One was a method to channel the power and energy in a controlled manner."

He pointed to her hands that had scabbed over.

"The other is a bit more sinister. Rumors passed down for hundreds of years have whispered the concept of drawing power from people. Usually translated as drawing raw power from dead ancestors. This was only researched to keep the world safe, against Helam, who in fact has killed thousands of innocent people just because of their skills and abilities. It was a safety net for a time when there was little hope."

" Did they ever figure out how to do it?"

Kari asked.

Robert shook his head.

"I doubt it."

Kari remained silent for a while, she thought about all the information and thought of another question to ask.

As she cleared her mind she began to wonder how Jeplin fit into the story, she looked at him. As if he could read her mind, he immediately felt uncomfortable and rode ahead of her, hoping she would forget about him.

Imagining their home or seeing paintings of it was nothing compared to seeing it in person. They spent most of the day riding through empty fields of grass. Kari smiled even though everything in the fields were dead, she felt like she was finally home.

As they approached the city they were shocked to see that a lot of the houses had burned down, it was a desolate wasteland. Jeplin and Robert drew their swords as they approached the back gates.

The air was silent. There was not a sound coming from any direction. They waited.

They eased their demeanor as they realized that they were alone. They rode through the front lawn. Kari looked up and saw the front of the castle. Grand and ornate, though decrepit, it was still absolutely breathtaking. Kari stopped to stare in awe at the vision. The sky was a calming gray and held a solid backdrop for her former home. Kari tried to sear every image into her brain. From the archways that could have held up mountains, the marble floors, and the beautiful details on the walls.

The trio separated, they each canvassed the castle in the manner in which they individually wanted. Kari knelt down on the carpet to pick up a piece that had been completely charred. She suddenly had an overwhelming urge to reclaim her home. She started to feel burning anger.

She wandered into the garden where leftover remnants of flowers littered the ground. The backgrounds sprawled out further than she could see. There were old vases lining the walkways and the remains of a giant old hedge maze. Peonies were once prevalent, and a staple of the kingdom. The beautiful flowers that once covered the yard were now long-lost skeletons of withered brown.

Kari tried to imagine what everything looked like before it had been raided. She could see the vibrant colors of the various hues of greenery that jetted throughout the sturdy branches. She imagined that the stone walkway within the maze was once cleaner. Most of the gardens had overgrown and everything was very chaotic, yet very silent and peaceful. Jeplin came up behind her as she looked out into the expanse. She heard his footsteps on the strong cobble.

"I want to stay here."

She said.

"The wall surrounding the castle is still intact."

Jeplin stood next to her.

"It may only be a dream..."

He responded,

"There are thousands of people here that are dreaming of peace."

"This is their home. It is my job to help."

She said.

"I know what you mean,"

He said looking off. She turned to him. She looked at him much differently than she normally did. Her eyes locked with his and asked the question he had been dreading since they met.

"Who are you?"

He stood silently for what seemed like an eternity.

The sun was peeking out from a handful of dark clouds. She remained silent.

"I am sorry."

He began slowly.

"Once I tell you who I am you will not want to be near me."

She looked at him and opened her mouth but couldn't mutter anything.

He began to explain.

"Henry is more evil than anyone could even fathom. He murdered people who were loyal to him and turned on every single person he loved."

She looked at him wondering how it involved him. He took a deep breath and looked into her eyes.

"Henry was my father.”

She remained silent. She could barely form words.

"What?"

She said very audibly, stepping back a bit. He grabbed her hand, "I'm not finished. Please let me finish." He said, holding back his sadness.

Kari faced him while thinking about all of the times he saved her life.

“I was with Henry when he went to kill you, Robert, your mother, and your father."

Kari looked horrified. She continued to look at him, her face was completely frozen. She tried to pull away.

She stood still for a moment, she thought about how long ago that was. A chilling realization crossed her mind.

"Jeplin?"

She asked slowly. He looked at her.

“How old were you?”

She knew he couldn’t have been old enough to carry a fully weighted sword.

"I was young and forced by my father to join him, it was my initiation into the army." As he spoke, she was still plagued with the same question, she slowly asked it.

"How old were you?"

She knew he was not older than Robert and Robert was barely past childhood when they ran away. He continued as if he hadn't heard her. "Henry went up one staircase, and I went up this back one."

He pointed to the one they were standing right next to

. "I found your father trying to hide you and Robert in a secret passageway. There was a scream, and I knew Henry had killed your mother, so I shoved you three into the passage and closed the door behind me. I then explained what was going on and George was wise enough not to turn back. I followed the three of you through the passage. The tunnel led underground and opened up in the woods. I asked if I could join him and he welcomed me without hesitation.

I trained with him, hoping that someday I could be by his side when we were attacked again."

Jeplin grabbed her hands

. "I'm so sorry I could not tell you before.

" He lifelessly let go of Kari, ashamed.

"Jeplin,"

she whispered. She grabbed him and hugged him. He was confused and relieved.

He opened his mouth to speak. She silenced him.

"I understand now. You were the only one that could have saved us and you did, you can not be responsible for your father. Forget everything."

She looked into his eyes. She grabbed one of his hands as they stood facing each other. With his other, he reached up and touched her porcelain cheek. They pulled themselves closer and their lips met. Everything around them melted away and time stood still. As they slowly separated, he still with one hand on her cheek, there was a violent sound of a horn blaring.

They were jerked back to reality. Jeplin immediately pulled his attention away and scaled the broken staircase quickly.

"Get down!"

he ordered. Kari crouched down in the tall grass beside the stairs and placed her hand on her sword. There were loud noises and screams of battle cries. Robert came into view from a balcony.

"We must leave immediately, they are coming."

"Do they know we are here?"

She said in a panic

. "I don't think so,"

Jeplin responded.

"I think they are coming to set up camp before they go to Redponn.

” "They have done it before,”

Robert interjected.

Kari pulled out her sword.

"I will not stand for this. Robert, we can't let them take our home again!"

Jeplin grabbed her and pulled her up the stairs into a room. It was a sitting room. In fact, it was the room where he first met her. He opened the secret passage.

"Robert!"

He yelled, waving for him to join them. They locked themselves in the tunnel and relived their own history.

It was an eerie parallel for them knowing what happened the last time they were in that tunnel, but it also gave them an odd sense of hope too.

"Why are we running again?"

She exclaimed stubbornly.

Robert answered,

"The three of us won't be useful against thousands."