“Mina… are you sure you want to do this?” Nikoletta asked her friend—or rather, someone who’d become far more than a mere friend—as they exited Hause’s temple.

Mina looked up at Nikoletta. “Nicky, for the first time… Hause has given me the ability to do as much for you as you’ve done for me. There’s no chance in hell you can convince me not to join your side—especially because she gave you no power of your own.”

“Alright.” Nikoletta closed her eyes, inhaling deeply. “Let’s go see Argrave.”

They walked through the city of Blackgard, pushing past the chaotic crowds as they headed toward the parliamentary hall. Once they arrived there, they saw the countless others gathered around. Duke Sumner, the whole of the house of Parbon, the rulers of the city of Jast, the Archduchess of the North and her sister, Vasilisa of Quadreign… it was the whole of Vasquer, brought together and centered around Argrave.

“Nikoletta,” Argrave called out, looking up. “Good. Come here. Elenore needs to establish connection. We’re just about to get started.”

Nikoletta joined the crowd of nobles. All of them had been taken away from their hosts, and soon, they would return with their duty bestowed by their kind. There, gods and traitors of all kinds would await them. Nikoletta had waited for this day with dread, but she would meet it fearlessly now that it would come. Such was her duty.

“I’m not going to mandate what it is you should do,” Argrave continued, speaking to all. “I’ll tell you what I know, and then expect you to use your best judgment. You’re my vassals, and I trust you. My own forces will be monitoring the situation, and should it ever grow too desperate, we’ll show up to relieve you. The fact is… this is going to be a desperate struggle. Fight every second as if the enemy has a knife at your neck, because it might only take a second for that to be true.”

“We approach the final hour,” Anneliese contributed. “The days will be long and hard for all of us, but at the end of all this lies true liberty. And with it, we can give those that come after us eras of endless peace and boundless prosperity. Fight with that image in your mind.”

“I’ve gone as deep as the planet’s core and as high as the suns, moving mountains and rebirthing stars in preparation for this day,” Argrave picked up when silence fell. “But at the end of the road… the fate of the world rests in its own hand. It rests in our hands, all of us. I’ll do my best to carry everyone I can, and if all of you can help me just a little… I know we can push it over the line.” He nodded intently, then shouted, “I’m right, aren’t I?!”

Affirmative calls filled the square.

“Then I’ll waste no more time,” Argrave said. “Let me tell you what we’re facing…”