Naomi rested on the roof of Villtur's Keep, her spot cleared of the falling snow. Nighttime had come soon, which was expected during the Frost. She sighed as she rested against a protruding chimney, her gaze moving over the island. If she allowed her imagination to run a little, she could believe that she was back in Central Kasan, watching over the city of Yakino.

Naomi closed her eyes at the thought, remembering the cool nights spent running on sloped roofs and jumping between towering buildings. An exhilarating experience that brought both good and bad memories. She opened her eyes and let out a deep sigh.

"He tried to kill himself today," she muttered aloud to the figure who had joined her on the roof.

"I heard," Jarl Villtur muttered as he steadied himself on the sloped ramp. "Do you suppose he'll regain his nerve?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure," Naomi admitted. "His reaction wasn't what I'd expected. I know he nearly died from the experience, and the men he lost were friends, but…"

There was a pause after the words, and her sentence was left unfinished. The Outlander closed her eyes, jaw set as she rubbed her brow. The bandages there were still loose from earlier, her cursed left eye threatening exposure to the world.

"You supposed there was something more to it?" Lukas asked softly, breaking the silence. "Something more to his erratic behavior?"

"Of course," Naomi said. "He kept saying that he needed to do it. That it was the only way he could fix things. Balance the scales, so to say."

Lukas grunted at that. "Scales?"

Naomi nodded. "Kept rambling on about that and… fate. I think he's talking about Iendis. About what she showed him."

Lukas audibly cursed something under his breath, head shaking as he balled his hands into fists. "Then I suppose we don't have the choice or the time to drag this out," he said with barely contained frustration. "We'll have to tell him tomorrow. Yorktown. The siege."

Naomi blinked. "He just tried to kill himself. I don't think he's in the right state of mind to handle that kind of news."

"Do we have a choice?" Lukas growled. "Time is of the essence, and he will need to prepare. Tomorrow, we will tell him."

Naomi opened her mouth to argue, to tell the Jarl off, and to go fuck himself. Instead, she held it all back. She needed to control herself. Lukas was right. The time for rest was up. James needed to prepare to defend and save his people. If he was any ounce of the man Naomi believed him to be, then she knew he would pull through.

'For strength to come, one must pick themselves up and press forth.'

Those words echoed in her mind. They sounded so stupid now that her anger pulsed through her like a tempest. With a deep breath, Naomi clenched her fists and set her jaw as her thoughts raced through her head.

Why did she have to get involved in this mess? The quest, of course. The one Thien had offered to her months ago. It had caused her so much trouble already, placing her in the midst of brutal politics and drama. Naomi had trudged through it all because she felt the need to kill the man responsible for ruining her life. To bring him to justice, so to say.

'Justice? Or just plain revenge?'

Naomi felt a pang of guilt run through her as she recalled words of the past.

"Revenge fixes nothing. It only festers a new kind of hatred that will eventually ruin you."

She felt how her nails dug into her palms, leaving deep marks of pain as she tightened her grip. With a shake of her head, Naomi stood up and turned to the other side of the roof, ready to change her spot for the night.

"Tell me, Outlander," Lukas suddenly said. Naomi stopped at that. She didn't turn to meet the Jarl's gaze. "Why do you choose to help me?"

"I'm not helping you," Naomi said bluntly. "I'm only here because James is my only lead."

"Lead?" Lukas questioned.

"I aim to kill a man who wronged me a long time ago," Naomi answered. "James will lead me to him eventually. Whether by coincidence or intention."

"That's it?" Lukas sounded almost confused. "There is nothing more you want?"

"No," Naomi murmured, her voice faint. She adjusted her scarf, the air growing ever so cold as the night prolonged. "There's nothing left for me in this world. Not anymore, at least."

'My life is already one of ruin. What's the worst revenge can do to it?'

Without another word, Naomi Miller disappeared into the night, leaving behind Lukas Villtur as he watched her go.

James felt numb. He sat in his bed, hands clenching the sheets as he thought about the day before. It was morning now, the rising sun's light muddled by falling snow and gray clouds. He had awoken not long ago, frantic and confused. His hands had been shaking ever since, their sporadic movements still noticeable even as he gripped the blankets.

'How much have these past days been real?'

Of course, none of it seemed right. It was like a fever dream almost, a result of his dying brain firing off neurons before it finally succumbed to lack of oxygen. The morbid idea was reminiscent of James' first impression of Valenfrost, back when he had attributed his experience as a result of his car crash.

'Maybe I'm still in that car. Frothing at the mouth while my body seizes,' James thought as he stared out the window to his left. The snow piled into mounds outside.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

The idea that his entire experience was a result of brain death didn't seem so haunting to the Outlander. After everything he had been through, James found himself praying that it was the case. It'd be a lot more fathomable and easier to handle. He wouldn't have to feel guilty if this was all some elaborate nightmare, right?

"I want to wake up now," James whispered softly. "I've had enough of this hellscape. This godforsaken world. I want to go back home, even if I'm paralyzed or whatever. I'm done."

No answer came. Not even from the guards that were posted by the door; their job clearly was to be on the watch for any more suicide attempts. James glanced at them, his focus on their heraldries. The Boar, which represented the Villtur clan. That made no sense to him. Why would Lukas Villtur care about him?

That itself was proof enough that this was all some elaborate hallucination. Some dream he hadn't woken up from yet. That made sense. Yes, this was all some big—

"You are dismissed," a voice called out from the doorway. James blinked, finally noticing Naomi walking into the room. The two guards nodded and left without a word. Once they left, Naomi closed the door behind her. Both of the Outlanders stared at each other, not a single word spoken.

James focused on her bandaged eye, his stomach lurching at the memory of what he had seen. A Beholder eye. Implanted in the only other Outlander he thought he could trust. That was probably the most glaring clue that this wasn't real.

"This isn't real," James said suddenly.

Naomi blinked at that, confused. "What?"

"This world. It's just some dream, right?" James asked. "Makes sense. I mean, none of this makes sense. My brain is just trying to make sense of the car crash. Yeah, that's it."

He couldn't help but laugh a little, his voice straining as he forced it.

Naomi stared at him, mouth agape as she tried to find the words. "James… This… This isn't–"

"No need to explain it," James said with a raised hand. "I'm already aware of it. I'm ready to let go now. Come one, let's get this over with."

He waited, his gaze on Naomi as she watched him with an expression that was mixed with worry and confusion. After a moment, she drew her lips into a tight line, her single eye focusing on him. She took a breath and spoke.

"We found you on a ship half destroyed and sinking. You were at death's door, unconscious and unresponsive. You've been in a coma since then," Naomi explained with hesitance. "After we brought you here, Lukas—"

"How do I know you're not with them?" James' voice came out as a low mutter, yet it rang deafeningly. "I saw what I saw that day. That eye of yours. How do I know you're not with them?"

Naomi looked stunned, her hand instinctively moving to her bandaged head. She started, brow furrowed. "I'm not with them. Trust me, James."

"I'm not sure if I can."

"Then you can probably relate to having something forcibly implanted within you," Naomi said, her voice raising as she stepped forth. "Trust me, I didn't have a choice."

James looked at her for a long time. Both of the Outlanders were silent, each poised as if to expect an attack from the other. James had no idea of what to think about her words, about her insistence on trust. He almost wanted to call her out on her bullshit. There was no way someone who had one of those things implanted would be sound of mind. He didn't believe it.

Trust is something widely coveted yet hardly earned. So, believe me when I say to trust her, James.

James blinked at the sudden voice that echoed in his mind. He sat up straight, eyes widening as he recognized it.

'Faust, is that you?' he thought desperately. He hadn't heard from the Centurion in so long. He worried that the spirit was lost during his… James shuddered at the thought and disregarded that. He needed to speak with Faust. 'Where have you been, man?'

However, much to his despair, there came no answer. James blinked at the lack of a response, confusion, and panic settling in. He closed his one eye and focused.

Faust was nowhere to be found. His presence was absent from his mind, and there was not a trace left. Yet, James could swear he could feel faint pulsing somewhere inside him. At first, he dismissed it for his natural ley lines but frowned when he realized how foreign they sounded. He tried to focus on the pulses to distinguish what exactly they were.

However, before he could figure out what was happening, the door to his room was pushed open by a man James had only recently recognized.

"Villtur," he muttered as the Jarl strode in, hands behind his back as he examined both Outlanders. Lukas paused at the sight of James, his demeanor faltering a bit. James was surprised to see a sense of something genuine behind those eyes. Was this really the same man he had argued with all those months ago? Back then, Lukas had outright threatened James and his people. Now, he seemed reserved and formal. A far cry from what the young Jarl had remembered of the man.

"I suppose Miller here has briefed you on the situation?" he asked. "The events that had left you in this… state."

"I need to leave," James said suddenly. He forced himself to rise from the bed, regardless of Naomi's protesting hand. "I need to get out of here."

He didn't care if this was some kind of fucked up nightmare. Some elaborate dream his dying mind conjured. He wanted to get back home. He needed to know if they were still alive.

"No," Lukas suddenly said, hand grabbing James by his shoulder. He forced the young man to sit back on the bed.

"You won't let me fix things my own way," James muttered, his right hand gripping onto Lukas' arm. He shoved it away forcibly, his gaze meeting with the other Jarl's. "And now you won't even let me go back home?"

"You are not ready to return."

"The hell I am!" James shouted, his jaw clenched with barely contained rage. It took everything within himself not to simply fight his way out. "We can use Frostbite to return. The gate runes—"

"Your ship was captured by Jarl Falk. It is no longer in your possession," Lukas revealed. James recoiled as if he was shot, his words dying as he prepared an argument.

"What… What of my crew?" he muttered.

Naomi didn't meet his gaze, her arms crossed as she closed her eyes. Lukas did something similar, his eyes moving to the floor in sincerity. Words were not needed to tell James what had happened. The young Jarl went still, body trembling as he tried to steele himself. He tightened his hands into fists, his nails digging into his palm. Dimitri, Thorkel, and the rest of the crew were gone. Killed by Eilif, the man who claimed he was immortal. He and that Beholder user.

"How… How long has it been since you found me?" James asked softly.

"Nearly a month now," Lukas revealed. "The New Year Transition was a couple weeks back. It is currently the month of Jenari, Age 562."

"Nearly a month?" James asked in disbelief, a deep pit forming and twisting within his stomach. He felt sick. An image appeared in his mind, unwilling and haunting. Yorktown in flames, the guardsmen in shambles. The crumpled forms of those he tried so hard to protect.

'You had once thought you could control fate,' a distant part of himself spoke. 'You really thought that you'd be able to avoid risking too much. That everything would just work out in the end.'

James slumped in bed, exhaustion weighing down on his shoulders. It pressed against him, threatening to force him down. He resisted against it, barely.

"What… What happened to Yorktown?" he finally managed out. Truly, he didn't want to know. The last thing he needed was another reminder that he had failed to protect his people. But something deep inside told him that the anticipation would tear him from the inside.

Lukas was silent for a moment, the air between the two men tense like static. Then he spoke.

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