Anna
Abstral remained where he stood as their host went to retrieve the tea. He nodded as he saw the knight Taash join them. 

He grabbed the cup of tea as it floated over to him. He tasted it, he wasn't a fan of more watered down drinks like tea, preferring coffee or some sodas that humans liked, but even he had to admit, this tea tasted quite good.

He looked up from his cup as Ochre began to once again elaborate on his plan for them to dethrone Tvoktei.

Most of the terminology went over his head, as he was of course, not from here, and hadn't the slightest idea what a "Knights of Sol" Or an "Arueian court" Was, but he nonetheless listened.

Ah, so he was planning for them to make their moves during a ceremony / war meetings hosted by the tyrant himself. Abstral supposed striking while the tyrant was busy would be a wise move, they'd draw less attention and eyes that way if they were focused elsewhere.


```"Ah, so strike while the iron is hot, so to speak, huh? Smart. This event, will it draw many eyes away from us? Though I suppose once we arrive, all eyes would be *On* Us anyway."```
Kathryn
Kuo twisted his head back, sharing a childish smile with Taash, seemingly appreciative of the hospitable enviornment he was offered and glad to see the knight out of the cold, even if like him, it didn't affect her as much. Although tea wasn't a frequent beverage Kuouo indulged in, the aroma itself was flavorful and fulfilled the whole cozy library aesthetic, further enticing the bandit for his cup. Soon enough, Ochre would meticulously serve the tea, displaying a masterful control of telekenesis for the simple task. Stemming from a world that actively encouraged the practical use of magic in day-to-day life, the bandit wouldn't think much of it and instead would eagerly partake in the tea carefully levitated towards him. 

*Sssssiiiiipppp...*




*Hrrmmm...*

The tea was even better than the wonderful smell it advertised itself to be, but it could definitely use a rise in temperature. *Weeeeelllllllllll,* Seeing as Taash still had her weapon *Technically* Drawn, the bandit would silently cast a wrapping of flame between the porcelain and palm of his left paw, displaying his own mastery of his magic as the wisp of steam suspiciously grew more into a plume compared to the others served in the room — 


*Hm?*


```bash
"𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙵𝚒𝚏𝚝𝚑 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛, 𝚑𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚛𝚞𝚎𝚒𝚊𝚗 𝙲𝚑𝚞𝚛𝚌𝚑. 𝙰 𝚙𝚘𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚘𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚎𝚏𝚝 𝙷𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚟𝚒𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚐𝚒𝚏𝚝, 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚐𝚘. 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚎."```


Kuouo raised an eyebrow, like if there were pieces of a puzzle in front of him with no reference to the picture whatsoever. Something about that was extremely *Odd,* But he couldn't put his finger on it. It was, after all, 'just some time ago' since their expedition on the first floor. Kuouo gazed up at Ochre, while comfortable, the atmosphere shifted from one of pure relaxation towards one holding thoughtful conversation with the heir ready to resume the elaboration of their plans. For now, Kuo would put his off-topic question on hold as it was only a curiosity at best.

. . .

It seemed the happy comfort that previously enveloped the bandit would shift into one of unease at the start of Ochre's conversation, however. Once again, the sin of his retaliation against the gold-and-brass clad knights took the centerpoint of conversation. Whether or not Ochre knew the true cause to their demise was undetermined...

*But whether or not the heir knew the true reasoning of their deaths, it wouldn't matter as the consequences had already been put into effect. Tvoktei was in the midst of planning a devious seizing of the first floor. A plan that put all of the bandit's valiant efforts in the Vektet so far in jeopardy.*

On top of that, the Sovereign concealed its true purpose with a disrespectful facade. Kuouo stood up, chugging down the glass of scalding hot tea in one gulp before walking down to the nearest table and firmly setting his paws down on it — He nearly slammed it, but hesitated just enough to be within the boundaries of the respite's current atmosphere. His glare, brow already furrowed, sharply turned back to Ochre. The more and more he learned of this Tvoktei, the more it became *Personal.*

```fix
"Then we haven't a damn moment t' lose. I'm not sure how things are goin' with the first floor right now, but I'm sure it's a lot... 'specially since their guardian was revealed t' be Aazkue and all. Either way, I'm gonna do everything t' ensure this asshole doesn't even SEE the first floor."```

Kuo shut his eyes, tilting his head downwards with a fiery, almost angry smile cracking on his face.

```fix
"What's this vulnerability y'have in mind? And how are we gonna use this crack in the system to its fullest extent?"```
Janie
```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚋𝚜𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚘𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚢," He spoke, before turning to Abstral, responding to his concern,
"𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚒𝚜, 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚍, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚞𝚎 𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍."

"𝙸𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚎𝚗𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚒𝚗𝚏𝚕𝚞𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚊 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚌𝚞𝚕𝚊𝚛 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚗𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢; 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚌𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚞𝚕𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚋𝚜𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚎𝚜. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚛𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚎𝚢𝚎𝚜, 𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚒𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚌𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗, 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚢 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚌𝚎 𝚌𝚞𝚛𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗'𝚜 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚊𝚕."```

Ochre expounded, his silver eyes caught in the reflection of the tea atop his desk. With a slight squint, he folded his hands atop the desk, closed his eyes, and took a brief pause, so to coordinate his thoughts. Indeed, he had sketched a general plan for a coup and elaborated upon it over the past hundred years, and so too did he hold powerful, if a little rough, methods to intertwine this plan with the ceremony of obsequies. Still, despite this planning, Ochre needed a moment to resurface each and every facet of this delicately-organized plan, and a further pause solely to put it all into words.
_ _

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚠𝚘 𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚖𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚟𝚞𝚕𝚗𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚋𝚜𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚎𝚜."
"𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝𝚕𝚢, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚙𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚢, 𝚒𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚜 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚛 𝚚𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚜 — 𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚞𝚗𝚏𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚎 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘 𝚏𝚘𝚛, 𝚜𝚊𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚠𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚜."

"𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒'𝚜 𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚛 𝚚𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚕𝚒𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚍. 𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚖𝚒𝚍𝚜𝚝 𝚞𝚗𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚕𝚒𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚜𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚛, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚋𝚒𝚍𝚍𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚞𝚕𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚊 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚕𝚢 𝚕𝚊𝚠 — 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚊𝚜 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎𝚍 𝚞𝚙𝚘𝚗 𝚞𝚜 𝚋𝚢 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚜."

"𝙰 𝚜𝚘𝚛𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚛𝚎-𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚍𝚎𝚏𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎. 𝙽𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚞𝚜 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒, 𝚜𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒, 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚒𝚏 𝚠𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚝. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚎, 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖, 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚍𝚞𝚊𝚕𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒 𝚘𝚗 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚢 𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚊𝚕 𝚐𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚜."

"𝙸𝚗 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜, 𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚜𝚘𝚕𝚞𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚢 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚑𝚒𝚖. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚛𝚎, 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚢, 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒."```
_ _

So he elaborated. *This* Was the shield that Tvoktei had forged. A shield built of oaths and of manipulation — indeed, what Ochre spoke of mirrored Vaazva's account to Kuouo. Tvoktei, the tyrannical Sovereign of the Second Floor, had established his rule on the backs of slaves, and secured it with the might of the unconsenting. It was physically impossible for them to challenge his rule in person, and politically impossible through the adversity of Tvoktei's careful control and corruption of the minds of the many. The commonfolk swallowed the poison of his agenda without cause nor capability to deny it, and the nobility, in fear for their livelihoods, followed after his every step and command, guided as sheep to further his pleasure and his desire to *Conquer.* The rest — the rare, dissenting few, and the especially troubled members and rightful heirs within the Lunar Harem — were bound only to helplessly watch their society and culture be trampled before their very eyes.

Though they had not met him in person nor even seen his face, every account and every known factor of Tvoktei's character painted him as the most despicable man to exist within the entirety of the *Ark.* The despicability of a degenerate soul seemed to hold no bounds; yet even a man's natural draw toward sin was inadequate to fuel a man to go this far. There seemed a greater light of ambition behind what he did, and what drove him to this point was left a wonder.

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚋𝚜𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚛 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚕 𝚙𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎. 𝙷𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚏𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛, 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛'𝚜 𝚃𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚎, 𝚒𝚏 𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖 𝚖𝚎𝚎𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚘𝚗."```
_ _

While Ochre did not openly show it, he found a strangeness in what he had described. *Conveniently* Was a key-word. Tvoktei seemed so wary of moving beyond the inner quarters, lest he would have already taken initiative and commanded Ochre himself into deeper obedience. For him to, now, up and leave from that safety, granted quite a valid reason for Ochre's suspect.

He squinted, and sighed slightly under his breath.

*If Tvoktei planned to employ some sort of gambit, Ochre would simply have to calculate beyond it. Far, far, far, far beyond it.*

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚎𝚊𝚔𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜," He spoke determinedly, shattering what faint figments of doubt might have displayed themselves on his face in his sigh earlier,
"𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚌𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖, 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚕𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒, 𝚒𝚗 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎, 𝚊𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎."```

*`You may expect me to cling to the shadows, Tvoktei—`*

```cpp
"𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜, 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚊𝚢 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖 𝚊 𝚟𝚞𝚕𝚗𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚜𝚘𝚕𝚞𝚝𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚕 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑 𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖, 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚏𝚊𝚝𝚊𝚕 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎."```

*`—but you've underestimated my pride.`*

Ochre grinned.

```cpp
"𝑰𝒏 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕, 𝑰 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒓 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆."

"𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚜𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝, 𝙸 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚛𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒 𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎, 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚊 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚊 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚛."```

As Ochre made such a bold declaration, he placed his hand atop the book still rested on his desk. 
_ _

```cpp
"𝙱𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚚𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒 𝚐𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚜 𝚜𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚞𝚖𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚢𝚝𝚑. 𝙰 𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚗, 𝚕𝚘𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚋𝚎𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝙵𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚛, 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚗 𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚋𝚎𝚍 𝚙𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚊 𝚜𝚒𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚐𝚕𝚘𝚠."

"𝙾𝚗𝚎 𝚖𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚒𝚝 𝚊 𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚗'𝚜 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢," He spoke, lifting the book to read its contents. He, as if in second-nature, turned to a very particular page within its silver binding, his eyes of matching color resting atop the words written unquestionably in black.

"𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚙𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛'𝚜 𝚍𝚎𝚒𝚏𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚏𝚏 𝚘𝚏 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊'𝚜 𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 — 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚊 𝚀𝚞𝚎𝚎𝚗."```
_ _

```cpp
"𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚊 𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐, 𝚕𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚌𝚑. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚝, 𝚒𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑, 𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚒𝚛𝚝𝚑 𝚊 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚖𝚙𝚒𝚘𝚗-𝚐𝚘𝚍𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊. 𝙸𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚐𝚎, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚢 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚊 𝚊𝚐𝚘."

"𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚌𝚛𝚊𝚏𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚛𝚒𝚟𝚊𝚕𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚏𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚍𝚎𝚕 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚖𝚘𝚘𝚗, 𝚒𝚏 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒. 𝙸𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚍𝚘𝚠 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚋𝚜𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚎𝚜, 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚜𝚘 𝚝𝚘𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖, 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚍𝚘𝚖 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎. 𝙱𝚢 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚞𝚜, 𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚊 𝚏𝚊𝚝𝚊𝚕 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚌𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚢𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚢."```
_ _

Ochre's plan was bold, even going so far to tread into the territory of the divine to meet an ends. He would blur the line between the possible and impossible, bridging the gap between fact and myth with this borderline-outrageous yet strangely-plausible plan of his. To make it into a reality, however...

```cpp
"𝙸𝚝 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚠𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚢. 𝙸 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚖𝚞𝚌𝚑."
"𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚞𝚙, 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞?"```

The heir questioned, as if challenging, his smile still present on his otherwise stoic face, so to provoke their determination from within. 
_ _

```cpp
"𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚃𝚘𝚔𝚔𝚘, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚀𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙿𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚘𝚗𝚜. 𝙴𝚘, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙶𝚒𝚋𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖. 𝚁𝚎𝚞𝚔, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚍 𝚀𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙷𝚒𝚐𝚑 𝙿𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚂𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚝𝚞𝚖. 𝙰𝚗𝚍, 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚒𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚕𝚕..."

"𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝙲𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚊𝚡𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙶𝚒𝚋𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚜. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚏𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙻𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚛 𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚖, 𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚑-𝚐𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗-𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛, 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚂𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚐𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚞𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚞𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚋𝚞𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚟𝚒𝚝𝚞𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚃𝚟𝚘𝚔𝚝𝚎𝚒."

"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚖𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚢 𝚋𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚌𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚒𝚣𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚗𝚎, 𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝙸 𝚋𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚎𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚢 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚘 𝚘𝚏 𝚊 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚎. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚘𝚗 𝚖𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝙸; 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚍𝚎𝚕𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚖 𝚘𝚏 𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚜𝚘𝚞𝚕."

"𝚂𝚘 𝙸 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚝, 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚊𝚋𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚢, 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚝𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎."

"...𝙸 𝚍𝚘 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚍𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚌𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚢, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚊𝚜𝚔 𝚖𝚊𝚢 𝚋𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚖𝚎. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚛𝚞𝚡 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚗, 𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝚖𝚢𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚏𝚊𝚒𝚕𝚞𝚛𝚎, 𝚐𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚍."```
_ _

So he spoke, taking a final sip of his tea, before moving into the penultimate stage of his explanation. His eyes briefly closed, and he rested his chin atop the intertwined fingers of his left and right hand, supporting his head upright, just above the desk before himself.

```cpp
"𝚃𝚊𝚊𝚜𝚑. 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚛𝚎𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚜𝚝. 𝚆𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚒𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚖𝚎?"```

A polite question; a request, and one which he asked her to fulfill before he had even made the words of its nature known. And yet, without a moment of hesitation, following through—
Karen
*`"Yes."`*

—an immediate response of affirmation. She didn't need to know what he was requesting. Because she, through the many years she stood at Ochre's side, knew: *This rare request would push forward their dream.*
Janie
```cpp
"𝙾𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚢,"
"𝚐𝚞𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍."

"𝙸𝚏 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚗, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎, 𝚋𝚞𝚛𝚗 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚎. 𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝚘𝚏 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝚕𝚊𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚎𝚢𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚜𝚐𝚞𝚜𝚝𝚜 𝚖𝚎."```
Karen
*`"Sure."`*

The knight nodded with a slight grin beneath her visor, slinging her sheathed sword over her left shoulder.
Janie
So his gaze shifted to the outsiders and the guests to the respite, and he spoke:

```cpp
"𝚃𝚊𝚊𝚜𝚑 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚐𝚞𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚗𝚘𝚠𝚏𝚒𝚎𝚕𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚘𝚗. 𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚢 𝚌𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚎𝚛. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚊𝚢𝚜. 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚑𝚊𝚕𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚛, 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚛𝚞𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗."

"𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙲𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚍 𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚝𝚢𝚙𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚎𝚟𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚒𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚠𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙴𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚛𝚢. 𝚂𝚑𝚎, 𝚝𝚘𝚘, 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚕 𝚒𝚝. 𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚎𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚜𝚊𝚏𝚎𝚕𝚢."```

Standing tall and proud from behind the desk, the heir swiftly paced through the library, retrieving a cloak from a rack, slinging it over his shoulder with the swiftness of his determination in his long-strided gait. 

```cpp
"𝙽𝚘𝚠, 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚢. 𝚆𝚎'𝚟𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚎𝚗𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚝. 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚖𝚘𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚍."```

Ochre spoke in a general declaration, not only directing his words toward Kuouo and Abstral, but so too *Himself* And *Taash.* The two had remained within this respite for... How many years, now?—in rest and planning. Now was finally the time to set their long-planned orchestrations into motion. Now, finally, they could seek *Freedom.*

Preparing to make his way outside the respite, he would spare only a moment to wait for the responses of his guests, before making his way to the long voyage ahead of himself. There were likely to be a few questions left to be asked, and he would certainly answer them — though, the sooner they were to depart, the better.