Super unedited.

Iphi ran up to Sophie, "Morretti, wait!"

Sophie smiled at the Spartan, blessed to just be in her presence. Iphi unrolled the palla from her shoulders, undoing the clip and handing it to Sophie. Sophie stared at it, her eyes wide, and Iphi just laughed.

"It is for you now. Just to keep a bit of Inalia with you in all of this godly nonsense." Iphi smiled.

Sophie took it and ran her hands over the lining. It was a pale red, faded from time, the lining a delicate golden thread to secure the hems. The golden clasp was a simple golden circle the palla ran through; there was some gentle rust adorning the sides but is still was polished.

"Sorry, it is a bit worn throughout my years, but I feel like you need it more than I do." She pointed her head up the massive mountain, "That mountain is no easy hike."

Sophie gently wrapped the palla around her shoulders and secured her fur cloak over it.

"Thank you, Iphi." Sophie smiled.

Iphi gave Sophie's arm a small nudge, smiling wide, "When you get back down, maybe I can tell you a bit about ancient Inalia. Maybe even show you some Spartan moves?" She proposed.

Though Sophie's heart slammed with excitement at the thought, she looked at the mountain again.

"What is waiting for me up there, Iphi?" Sophie asked, her voice quiet. Iphi took a deep breath, shaking her head slightly.

"No one really knows. Very few have taken the hike up there and walked back down alive. The Guardian of the Keep is fickle and temperamental." Iphi looked at Sophie with a seriousness she had never seen before, "I have a feeling the hike up there is going to be the easy part."

Sophie sucked in a breath, "Great."

Iphi's face was still stoic, but a small smiled split her lips, "We wouldn't send you up there if we didn't think you could handle it."

"And why do you think I can handle it?"

"The Morretti family has always been different than the average Vatarian, their blood and soul meant for danger and adventure. You are the Queen of the Assassins for a reason, right?" Sophie still worriedly looked at the peak, Ricin waiting for her at the gate blocking the path upwards.

"You remind me of our last Queen, you know. Before we went into hiding." Iphi whispered. Sophie tensed; the fact that she could be compared to an Inalian queen made her fumble.

"I thought you served under King Leonidas? He was the one who decided Inalia would go into hiding with the other cities." Sophie asked.

"He was only handed the crown right before the Vatarians went into hiding. His sister, Queen Kassandra, reigned before him." Iphi smiled, looking at her shoes, "She was hard to approach, brutally forthright and sometimes bloodthirsty on the battlefield. She never wanted the crown, but she ruled with honor, and though her shields were always around her heart, the Inalian people adored her. Her brother Leonidas was the Spartan Prince, my commanding officer at the time. They were close and ruled together, even though the crown was on Kassandra's head." Iphi turned to look at Sophie, taken aback by Sophie's confused face.

"You... don't know who Queen Kassandra is?" Iphi asked.

Sophie gently shook her head, "No Inalian history books mention a Queen Kassandra."

Iphi chuckled in disbelief, "No, Kassandra was the best of Inalia. The Iron Empress to her subjects and the Bloody Sword to her enemies."

Sophie still shook her head, none of the names ringing a bell. Iphi pursed her lips, "That's... not what..."

"I'm so sorry, Inalians are pretty good at keeping historical records, but-"

Iphi waved it away, "No, no, it is fine. It is just really bizarre Inalia has forgotten one of it's most legendary queens."

The Spartan straightened, looking up the mountain.

"Just, be safe, and keep your wits about you. No one really knows what is atop that mountain."

Sophie gave Iphi a nod, "I will. Thank you, Iphi."

Iphigenia watched as Sophie and Ricin pushed past the gate and ascended further up the mountain.

Tam walked in side by side with the Lith assassin. He was the last one on Allesandro's list, and hopefully, the last one they needed.

Everyone stared as the two of them walked in, all gathered around a table.

"Great, I'm sure you all know why you're here." Dimitar started. The Lith man shrugged away Tam and approached the other Assassins. They were all former Assassins, from the time of Allesandro's mentorship or even earlier.

"All I know is that this little elven runt dragged me out of the tavern when I had the most beautiful blonde in my lap." The Lith hissed, pointing at Tam. The Lith's snakelike tail swished behind him, his steps smoother because of it.

"You are all former Cyevan Assassins, yes? Well, we need your help." Ro snapped at him. The Lith man stared at the other Assassins, his arms crossed.

"Tell Allesandro I want nothing to do with him or his stupid Guild. Not anymore." He snapped.

Dimitar's face hardened. "Allesandro is dead. Has been for almost nine years now."

All of the gathered assassins went silent, their faces blank.

"His daughter, Amalia, has been running the Guild. But she has gone missing. The rest of her Inner Circle and some very important figures are stranded in Egypitnat right now, which has fallen under Neverseen control." Dimitar picked up Allesandro's journal, waving it around slightly, "Allesandro kept tabs on all of his assassins, current or former, even from the time the Guild wasn't his yet. Your names all appeared in those pages. We need your help getting them out."

One of the other assassins cleared her throat, crossing her arms.

"And what do you need us for? Surely the Hidden Ones are keeping the Neverseen at bay." She asked.

"They have been spread thin and are being hunted by the Neverseen as we speak."

"Dimitar, for taking back the city, you will need a whole army, not just a few former Assassins."

"We aren't taking back the city. Our main goal is to get our targets out. We need your help. The Inalian sector of the Guild is unreachable, and we can't get in without your help."

The assassins glanced at each other, "What do we get out of this?" One of them asked.

Ro growled, "You won't get my fist in your face, that is what you will get."

Dimitar held his daughter back, "I promise you, I'm sure we can figure out something. But you have to understand how dire the situation is."

They were all quiet, but one of them spoke up again.

"I'm in."

The other former assassins all glared at her like she had three heads. She simply hugged herself tightly, "I miss being in the field. Besides, I was in the Guild when it was under Carlotta's mentorship, not Amalia's or Allesandro's. And if the situation is truly that dire, I think we need to take action."

A few others agreed with her, but a few others were still stubborn.

"I'm doing this for Amalia, then." The Lith assassin said, "She was just a little girl when I knew her, she had to grow up so fast. I just want to make sure she keeps the family close to her, sometimes, that is all we have."

Everyone let go of their collective breath, and Dimitar started to go over the plan. The plan was very Assassin intensive, they were the whole reason they were going to be able to get into the city.

"You are going to be too obvious." The Lith Assassin said to the ogres gathered.

"We are the ones running this operation." One of the generals snapped.

"The Neverseen have very few Ogre members, especially for what we plan to do." They argued. The assassins turned to the elven group, "You are the ones that are going to have to sneak in and escort the group out safely. We are going to make it as easy for you as possible, but it will be high risk. Can you handle this?" The Lith asked.

They were quiet for a few moments, digesting what exactly they were asking of them. But they all nodded their heads.

The assassins nodded, turning to the king.

"When we have all the targets, we will bring them to Ravagog."

The mission was in motion, the Inner Circle and other Inalian leaders were going to be saved.

Sophie and Ricin stood side by side, staring up the path to the peak of the mountain. They weren't kidding, the winds were howling so loud Sophie couldn't even hear her own thoughts. She held her brown fur cloak closer to her body, even though it was tightly secured by crossing leather straps over her chest. The shirt was thick cotton and another linen vest on top of it, all of it in dark blues and blacks to attract as much warmth as possible. The pants were a dark brown with a pressed design going along the length of her thighs and shins. The boots were also lined with fur. Ricin was fine, his thick scales and burly wings keeping him warm.

But Sophie pressed her hands over the palla resting on her shoulders. The wind was brutal, tugging and ripping at her cloak and hood, but they pressed forward. The visibility was alright, but the snow only thickened as they went higher. Sophie held tightly onto one of Ricin's horns, gripping his scales to help her keep steady.

"How much farther?" Sophie muttered, looking upwards. The sky was a thick mesh of flurrying snowflakes, the peak nowhere in sight. Sophie cursed, wondering how long she had been climbing for.

"Maybe we can-"

Sophie froze as the sound of hissing ice scraped beside her. She whipped around, trying to identify the sound. Nothing was there but snow-dusted rocks, but Sophie held her cloak closer. No gauntlets, no weapons, no powers... she felt so useless.

"Sai give me strength, I'm losing it," Sophie whispered. But Ricin wasn't moving, his dark red eyes darting around. He growled, his talons digging into the gravel.

"Bud, we need to keep moving," Sophie whispered, nudging him gently by his scales. Ricin snarled, his head turning behind them, his wing protectively curling around her. Sophie gasped as the scraping ice whisked past her ear, sounding like muted screams as it whipped past. Sophie naturally flicked her wrists to open the hidden blades in her gauntlets, but no knife slide out. No weapons... there weren't Mirthless on the mountain, were there? Mountain lions?

"Ricin, what do you see?" Sophie asked, leaning closer to him, running her hand along his rough snout. The dragon was trying to see the sound, trying to find its source. Blue lightning flickered in his mouth, his tail ready to swing.

Sophie's breath puffed in front of her in small clouds, her eyes racing as another creature whisked past her, so close her hood dropped off her head.

"Ricin, move..." Sophie muttered. The animalistic screeching made Sophie push the dragon forward, "MOVE!" Sophie yelled. Ricin and Sophie darted as fast as they could up the path, blue streaks lighting up the flurry of snow as more creatures charged from their hiding spots. Sophie held onto Ricin to avoid losing him in the storm, her feet struggling to keep up. She tripped over rocks and slid over ice in her panic.

Her natural assassin footing refused to kick in as she and Ricin ran faster and faster. The hissing of creatures never subsided, their blue trails and thick ice scraping sounds only growing louder. Sophie and Ricin turned the corner, and Sophie's feet skidded on ice. Her hand lost its grip on Ricin's horn as she plummeted towards the ground. She smacked against the uneven path, her head ringing and everything sounding muted as she groaned.

Out of the sky's darkness, a serpentine creature of plated of ice shot for her throat.

Sophie flung her hands out even in her daze, grabbing the creature by its mandibles, grunting to keep it away from her throat. It was a thick snake made of plates of ice, held together by wind and energy, the sharpened teeth inside its jaw cutting into Sophie's leather gloves as she screamed to keep it off. Its sharp tail cut Sophie's cloak and nailed her lip, but Sophie continued to wrestle with it. Ricin cried from somewhere in the flurry, unable to see his companion.

Releasing a roar coming straight from her gut, sounding so predatorial, she felt a small bit of her animistic Pancras form smile at it. She forced the creature's mouth open further and further. With a final scream, she ripped its jaw and split its ice skull, the creature hissing and dropping into a limp snake on top of her.

Sophie panted, the two ice jaws still in her hands as she got up. She threw the jaw pieces aside, pulling up her hood and tucking her hair back into it. In the corner of her eye, as she was scanning around, her hair made her stop.

Platinum white stained small strands of her hair, before fading away back into her golden blond.

She released her Pancras form, just enough, from Kynareth's grip. Sophie didn't have time to celebrate, as more hissing from more of the same creatures echoed off the mountainside. Sophie whistled, loud and piercing, Ricin following the sound and emerging from the snow. Ricin ran to her, nuzzling her snout against her split lip.

"I'm alright. We need to keep moving, they are still out here." Sophie insisted, pushing Ricin up the path. Ricin stopped, leaning down in hopes of Sophie climbing onto his back.

"No, I can't keep a tight enough hold with the wind Ricin, flying or walking. I need to do this with my feet. We need to keep moving." Sophie insisted, continuing forward. Ricin purred, keeping close to her as they rushed away from the other creatures.

"I read about them, those things. I think they are called Ice Wraiths, they're believed to be extinct." Sophie breathed to Ricin, whos red eyes were the only source of limited light as they ascended higher into the thick storm.

Hopefully, they were the only thing on this mountain.

Biana's hands couldn't stop shaking, not even once. She often wondered about what the various Vatarian cities looked like. Though Egypitnat's charm was still there, it was gut-wrenching to see it covered with Neverseen banners, to see the various districts covered with ash and empty of all life. The Neverseen cloaks were pretty itchy but made of lighter fabric for Egypitnat's hot seasons. Biana had her hair tied up behind her head, her face clear of any products. She had seen some fo the beautiful dresses and outfits from Egypitnat, but there was no one in sight for her to admire. All citizens were in their houses, out of the streets. The once-bustling center of trade has gone cold, the loudest sound only the marching of Neverseen patrols.

Tam was beside her, their feet all in exact movement with each other. He nudged her, pointing his head to the rooftops. Above them, their small band of former Assassins jumped from rooftop to rooftop, running across clothing lines like they were tight ropes, flying into corridors and out windows. They kept a close eye on them all but were spread out so as not to be seen.

It was an improved plan of what Allesandro had originally in his journal. A small team of Assassins to distract and weaken their enemy while the central team rushes in and escorts their targets out of the city. Fitz and Dex carried the prison wagon behind them, large enough to hopefully fit everyone inside.

The Lith assassin, whose name was revealed to be Derek in passing conversation, scratched his reptilian claws on one building's side.

Three long claw marks. This should be the building they are hiding in.

Fitz and Dex dropped the prison wagon, getting the fake documents and handing them to Biana. Biana steeled herself, chanting her lines over and over again in her head. Tam gave her shoulder a little squeeze, though it did little to calm her nerves. She approached the guarded door, bulky Neverseen guards blocking the exit as she approached.

"We have the authority to investigate this building for stowaways from General Zeno," Biana announced as the guards looked over the papers. One of the Assassins, Philani, a herald turned Assassin turned Avriman government official, was a master forger.

"General Zeno? Is he the new General?" The guard scoffed, "Let's see how long it will take for Gethen to kill this one."

It seems Gethen was the one in charge of Egypitnat. Vespera was nowhere to be seen after Egypitnat was seized, along with Ruy and Keefe.

"I'm sorry, but the General must have his stamp on these forms before we can allow you to continue."

Biana's heart thrummed against her chest, "Are you kidding me? The General is brand new, the poor sod probably doesn't even have a stamp set. We came all this way to just be turned away?" Biana hissed, pointing an accusing finger at the two guards blocking the door. 10 more guards lined the whole building, so fighting their way in wouldn't work if they wanted to remain undercover.

"Get your finger out of my face. The Hidden Ones have been getting out refugees all over the place, and this is one of the Medjay's abandoned hideouts. They might come back for information or to recover. We can't take that risk. Come back with the General himself if you are so confident this is so important."

Shit. The General didn't even exist, and these stubborn assholes were in their way.

"Do you know who on earth you are talking to?!" Tam suddenly seethed. The guards turned to him in confusion, but Biana let him storm up to them.