As the declaration of war spread over the land of Chess, in a small pub in Meritage, one man sat, downing glass after glass of ale. He hated himself at that moment, for what he had done. When he agreed to spy, the Master had kept it secret from everyone. He thought he would go in and live among enemies. He had never counted on making friends. He had never counted on falling in love with one of them. It had seemed the easiest way to be promoted and gain influence with the Master. When he had decided to take Vienna with him, he had visions of them living in seclusion and growing closer. How everything had backfired! How could he have been so stupid as to think the Master would allow him his own bits of happiness!

As he drank yet another glass, he thought of her cutting her beautiful hair for a clandestine mission to find Mathis. Such a waste! But what would that even matter now? Who knew what they were doing to her there. With her being such a high ranking chesspiece, he knew she wouldn't simply be locked away. But what would they do to her?

He barely paid any attention when a figure all in white approached him. He could tell from her build that she was a woman, though her face was concealed by a hood and she wore gloves on each hand. Truthfully, though, he had seen stranger manners of dress in this town, so he didn't think anything of it until she stood right in front of him.

"What do you want?" he drawled.

The Empress shook her head in disdain. She had never formally met Russell, or the Tower, as he was known here. She had made a bargain with the Master many years before, allowing her to live freely and happily in Chess in exchange for a single vow from her lips. So content she had been, she thought the Master had forgotten all about it. But the Master never forgot and he called on that vow, forcing her to return. All joy and compassion had dissolved from within her the moment she stepped foot back on Numbers' shore. To her, "West" was no more. All that remained was "The Empress."

Without a word, she laid some money on the table and gestured that he follow. Having no real judgement due to his inebriation, Russell complied. They walked out of the pub and she indicated that he step into a carriage, which was a rather unusual sight. But he did and she climbed up next to him.

He didn't know how long they rode. He fell asleep on the way, but the Empress nudged him awake and he came to just enough to be led down a long cement walkway, up to an enormous, lavishly decorated mansion. The double oak doors opened and the Empress exchanged a knowing glance with the man who answered. He escorted Russell in and closed the doors behind him, dismissing the Empress. She had completed her task.

The man brought Russell to room and said, "You can stay here tonight. Rest well. The washroom's over there," he pointed. "And you'll find some clothing in the wardrobe."

After the man left, Russell barely had any time to notice his surroundings before he collapsed on the bed and fell asleep still fully clothed.

Seika nearly collapsed to the ground as soon as Mathis and her teleported into Hotaru's chambers. She was exahusted, and having pushed herself all day, she reaching her limits. The constant teleporting she did nothing more then strain her body beyond their normal limits.

Kai caught her before she fell as Hotaru tend to the remainder of Mathis' wounds. "You okay Seika?" he asked.

Seika adjusted her balance and stood up. "Yeah I'm fine. Where's Ita?" All she wanted now was to find Ita and sleep.

"He went after you. I'll call him back now. Think you can stay awake for a few more minutes we have a few problems," said Kai.

"If it's about Vienna and the war, then I already know," Seika mumbled. She didn't tell Mathis about Vienna or the war yet because frankly she was tired. She would leave that task to Kai or Hotaru. Seika just wanted to sleep and hope that everything was all a bad dream.

Hotaru meanwhile was scolding Mathis for the foolish thing he had done and had threaten to kill the poor boy the next time he decided to pull a stunt like that. "Sorry," he mumbled. He figured the four people Seika was talking about were Hotaru, Ita, Dunn and Vienna. Still it was good to be home.

Hotaru looked at Kai. "Dear, could you go get Dunn? Wake up Arashi too after you call Ita back. Kyo too. Actually you know what? Wake everyone who is Rook or higher. We need to inform them of everything."

Kai nodded as he help Seika get stable on her feet. "Right." He left to fetch his friends as Hotaru checked Seika for any serious wounds.

"How are you holding up?" Hotaru asked.

Seika sighed. "It's been a long day Hotaru. I just want to sleep."

"Hey, what about Vienna?" asked Mathis, noticing his friend's name wasn't mentioned.

Hotaru looked at Mathis with a sad look. "I'll explain that when everyone else gets here, Mathis." Seika choose that moment to crash on the couch. A few minutes of sleep would be better then nothing at all.

Vienna felt someone nudging her awake and she slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was still blurred and her head still hurt from the magic used earlier on her to force her to speak the message that she wouldn't have otherwise spoken. "What--?" she was disoriented and couldn't remember much of what had happened except for Russell turning out to be the traitor and handing her over on a silver platter. After that, everything was a blur.

Someone held up a small glass of the sparkling amber liquid and forced it to her lips. Again, it was warm and tingly going down. "Time to move, chesspiece," a feminine voice said.

"Move?" Vienna asked as White Angel pulled her to her feet.

"To your new quarters. You're far too valuable to Master to leave here, even with the extra security precautions in place. I don't know how you did it, chesspiece, but you are a very lucky woman. Most others from your land would not still be living at this point here. They certainly wouldn't be virtually untouched as you have been. So consider yourself very fortunate," the woman replied. "And I have to say...well done! You were so convincing."

"What are you talking about?" Vienna squeezed her eyes tight and then opened them again in the hopes of clearing her vision a little. White pulled her hands together and she felt tight shackles clamp around her wrists.

"You don't remember your little speech? Oh, of course you wouldn't." The woman laughed and in any other circumstances, Vienna would have joined in, her laughter was so infectious. "My dear chesspiece, you started a war a few hours ago when you publicly confessed your crime."

"What crime?"

"Attempting to infiltrate and assassinate."

"That's ridiculous. I wouldn't have done either of those things. I was just looking for a friend."

White nodded. "That's what all would-be assassins claim when they come to our nation." She guided Vienna toward a long staircase. "Think you have the energy to climb those?"

Vienna looked up at the vast number of steps and shrugged as she took her first step. She had to admit, having been weakened from the magic and the suppressing drug she had been administered, by the time she reached the top, she felt a little winded. "You still didn't tell me where we're going."

"That's because I don't have to tell you everything!" White laughed. "I don't have to tell you anything, speak to you at all, actually."

"Then why do you?"

"Because silence can be very boring," the woman nodded. "Here we are." She opened the door and led Vienna in. The room was lavishly decorated and a man stood at a window, his back to the two women. "I've brought the chesspiece," White said.

"Good," the man replied, still not turning around.

"What is this?" Vienna whispered as White led her to a small compartment with glass walls. She pushed her inside and released her shackles. Vienna didn't have time to protest before White shut the door and it disappeared seamlessly into the glass, leaving no way in, no way out. Vienna pounded on the glass, but White ignored her.

She bowed to the man, though he still had his back to her, and exited the room. Finally, he turned slowly around to look at his prisoner. Vienna gasped when she saw his face. She remembered being in this very room before, but had been too disoriented at the time to take much in. Master smiled, his smile was chilling. "Pound all you like," he said. "You're not going anywhere. You might as well get comfortable." The chamber had been specifically built for his use and while others could shut the door, only his will could open it and that certainly wasn't going to happen. This chesspiece was too valuable for him to risk someone else's mistake. Therefore, he'd keep her in here with him, at his disposal, until it was time to do just that...dispose of her.

Sleepy chesspieces gather in the Queen's chambers, everyone confused and tired. Ita had just returned with a young man in tow, saying something about the boy needed to speak to Seika. Seika was still asleep on the couch and no one had the heart to wake her. Dunn had more or less punched his brother before lecturing him on why he should never do something that stupid again. No one could figure out why their normally cheerful king and queen looked so sad and depressed.

"Attention," Hotaru spoke. "Attention!"

Silence feel across the room. At the sound of her command, Seika snapped awake, alert and ready to move if possible. "I have some very bad news to tell you. First off one our own has been capture by the Tarots."

A heavy silence loomed over the room. "Who," Mathis asked, the first to speak up.

Hotaru sighed. "Vienna... as a result the Numbers have decided to declare war on us. They will be here by daylight. Already across the country we're urging people to flee to saver farther edges of the country, and we... we must prepare for war."

---------------

Black stood outside the Master's door and pushed it open. There he stood, and Vienna locked up in the glass chamber. Vienna grew quiet as she entered. "Black Angel," the Master spoke. "What do you have to report?"

Black threw her cargo to the floor. Fahd, still unconscious, moaned slightly. "The leader of the rebel hideout," she said.

"And the boy?"

"Seika beat me to their hideout first, though I must say, she made my job a bit easier. She killed over half the rebels. I got to see her snow magic first hand for the first time in years. It's gotten stronger," Black said.

Vienna took small comfort in that at least Mathis and Seika were safe. Black stared at her. "Isn't that?"

"Yes, Our chesspiece hostage," said the Master. "You are dismissed, Black. Get some rest, we carry out the rest of the plans tomorrow morning."

Black nodded, bowed and left the room. If Vienna was only being held by the glass chamber then it would be easy to retrive her. Master had forgetton was her shadows could go anywhere and break into anything. All she needed was a shadow in the area, and breaking in was easy. Black walked down the stairs, planning her step.

Master looked thoughtful for a few minutes after Black left the room. Vienna had settled in the corner of the chamber and hugged her knees to her chest, keeping alert to what was going on around her. The man turned toward her and then looked back at the door that Black had walked out. He had sensed something...different, though he couldn't put his finger on what was wrong.

What would he do with the girl? Torturing her wouldn't solve anything. She had been gullible enough to share virtually everything she knew with Russell, as was evident from the infospheres he had returned to them. Vienna's name came up on numerous occasions as the source of his information. So there was nothing left to learn from her. Killing her would bring pleasure, as would killing any of the chesspieces. But at the same time, there was something not entirely satisfying about that. He could recruit her to their side, though that sometimes got messy, as it involved much more than the simple influence magic that had been cast upon her earlier, getting her to relay the message.

Then he smiled. Knowing what this girl meant to Hotaru, he knew what he would do. His smile faded as he sensed something in the room and with one more glance back at the door and an accompanying frown, he walked toward the glass chamber and pressed his hand against it. All of the sudden, an intense light illuminated all sides of it as well as the top and bottom, banishing all shadowy spaces around it within a 10 foot radius. He pulled out a small blade and cut a tiny slit on his arm. Blood dripped out and seemed to dissolve before it hit the floor. Vienna looked up and glared at him, not entirely sure of what he was doing.

"Must take my precautions," he smiled. "Even those most trusted can fall." He was not unaware of the lies and deceit that was so commonplace in Numbers. He was in fact, the master of them all and had taught the others well. It wasn't entirely unreasonable to think that Black had her own agenda. Afterall, it was not like her to be so careless and today, she had been careless twice as the other boy had slipped through her fingers. He would put her loyalty to the test in the morning, as he sometimes had to do with anyone who worked for him. But until he could verify where she stood, he wasn't going to let any shadow near his prize. Nor would he let any physical being near his prize either. That's where his blood came in. The extra barrier wouldn't be detected, but anyone who approached the chamber would be ensnared in a very nasty trap.

As for the rebel leader, it was who he had suspected...the man known named Fahd. He had been after him for years! He would be very useful in training his army to use multiple forms of magic. Master could imagine Hotaru and Kai's surprise when his army decimated their own with skills both in weaponry as well as powerful magic. And each man wouldn't be limited to just one, but rather would have a host of skills to use.

He looked at Vienna and grinned wickedly. "Soon, Hotaru. Very soon..."

---

"How'd she get captured?" Mathis asked. He looked around the room and noticed the absence of another presence in the room. "It was him, wasn't it? I knew it! I tried to tell everyone he was bad news."

"Don't be so quick to judge. Part of it was you, Mathis" Hotaru interjected and Mathis hung his head, ashamed. "And part of it was me. And Seika. And Dunn," she pointed to the blue haired man and paused. Then she looked up and raised her voiced ever so slightly. "And everyone else. One person doesn't steer another toward making an error in judgment. We all influence in our everyday dealings and the things we choose or choose not to do or say." She glanced at Kai who nodded to her encouragingly. "Yes, Russell Marlowe was a traitor and yes, he took her away. But there's evidence he didn't take her by force, but rather she chose to go with him."

"So her message was true? She went to infiltrate and assassinate?" someone near the back of the room asked.

Hotaru shook her head. "I don't believe that for one instant. Of course, we can't know what her exact intentions were. She could have been trying to save a friend," she glanced at Mathis, "or avenge one. The point is, we can't start shifting blame around. Bad decisions have been made left and right lately and now it's come to this. However, do we need to keep reflecting on those bad decisions or shall we simply band together and start making good ones?"

(Wow xD you guess the master's ability dead on! Or did I mention itand just forget it.)

Black bit her lip as she felt the shadows disappeared from room. It would seem he was taking every precaution needed. Still he always seem to forget, that by closing one door, another one just open. Of course it made things harder on her sure, because the only two who could move through light. White was one of them. The other one, Black was sure the master didn't know. The only reason why she knew, was because her shadows reacted so badly to the presence of light magic.

Black turned down the corner. There were still other things to take of.

---------

Tsu hadn't moved from her sister's bedside in hours. Aya had survived the attack... but it didn't matter. Her sister was dying and by tomorrow morning, she would be gone.

"Tsu?"

Tsu leaned over and stroked her sister's forehead. "Aya you should rest."

Aya shook her head. She wasn't stupid, she knew she didn't have much time. She reached and grabs Tsu's hat before her sister could stop her. Aya smiled brightly as she saw the silver fox ears perk up at their sudden freedom. "Yatta~ I knew it. Big sis always took on too many things for my sake."

Tsu sighed. She didn't know when Aya figured it out, but she wasn't going to press her for answer. Aya tugged on her sleeve again. "Nee, sis? Promise me one thing."

"Anything," Tsu whispered.

Aya smiled brightly. "Big sis needs to start living her life for herself and not for Aya all the time."

The night stretched on as the chesspieces talked strategy. Outside, the sun was begining to rise and Hotaru rubbed her temples wearily. She paced back and forth to keep as alert as she was able. She knew she was probably doing herself a disservice by not sleeping, but time was of the essence.

"Uh...incoming message!" Dunn exclaimed and every person in the room crowded around the large comm orb. Someone near the back hissed when the face of Numbers' Master lit the screen.

"Ah, Queen Hotaru, I see you have a full room there. I was expecting a private audience, but I suppose this will have to do."

"Release Vienna Tetrault," Hotaru said, her voice stern and cold.

"I intend to."

"What?" Hotaru asked. She wasn't expecting that answer. She felt Kai come up behind her and place his hands on her shoulders.

"That is, I will send her home, safe and sound if and only if I get something in return. Or should I say...someone."

Hotaru grew cold. "We don't make bargains like that. If we have to come get her by force, that's what we shall do."

"Hotaru," Kai whispered, squeezing her shoulders. She patted his hand, indicating she was fully in control.

The Master's voice turned sharp. "Very well then. Let me set a little scene for you." His face vanished and all of the sudden, Vienna came into view. The others in the room gasped when they saw her short hair. She looked unharmed, though, leaning against a brightly lit wall made of what looked like glass. The Master's voice filled the room and the image was cut in half, with him on one side, Vienna on the other.

"I will send Vienna home if you, Hotaru, agree to take her place," the Master said. Several people gasped, but Hotaru didn't react. "A rook for a queen. It doesn't seem like such an even trade, but then, I don't particularly care. If I were you, however, I wouldn't delay in making your decision. For every single casualty we receive on our side, I'll release one drop of blood." He drew a dagger and sliced his palm, allowing one tiny drop to flow. It vanished into the air. On the other side of the screen, Vienna suddenly looked down at her arm in surprise and began to pick at the dark, hard, metallic substance that had appeared, roughly the size of her thumb nail. Master continued to speak. "For every hour that passes, I'll release two." Two more drops fell from his palm and the spot on Vienna's arm grew in size. "For every day that passes, I'll release ten."

"Stop!" Hotaru commanded, her voice stern, but Master ignored her and laughing, dropped ten more drops, each one vanishing into the air.

"What is this?" Vienna asked, unaware of what the Master was doing, but completely unnerved by the substance that seemed almost fused to her arm. It was now the size of her fist.

"How long until her body is completely encased, I wonder? Are you willing to find out, Hotaru. Can you, in good conscience do that to one of your oldest friends? Surrender yourself and she'll be safe. You'll, of course, be treated as a most honored guest." He spread his arms wide and the transmission vanished.

Hotaru stared at the orb, displaying no emotion on her face.

"You're not going to consider it," Kai said. "Hotaru," he shook her shoulders when she didn't respond. "You're not going to do it!"

Hotaru didn't hear Kai. Her mind was already racing back and forth between choices, plans and possiblities. There was a reason why she was Queen. Her magic was unbeatable. Once every hundred years is someone born with magic as strong as life and death, but never before had someone been born with both life and death magic as she was. No one knew the true extend of her power but it just linking everywhere. Everything was connected to life and death. Most didn't know, but she had access to other magic like nature's elements, even foresight. To take Vienna's place, would mean the Master would have full control of her magic, something that was not wise to do. It would mean the destruction of her country. But not going meant the death of her friend. One person or her entire kingdom.

Asho had to wince at the high emotions running through the room. He could literally see the magic seeping out from Hotaru. It was terrifying.

'Tell her to wait'

Asho blinked as he heard Black's words echo in his words. Wow he didn't think she would actually agree to using the bond that he had formed with her. Another plus for him!

"Queen Hotaru?" Hotaru looked at him. "She says to wait," he spoke mysteriously, knowing she would understand what he meant.

------

Those were the last words Tsu would hear from her sister's mouth. She fought back the tears and bitter thoughts of broken promises. Her magic alerted her as someone slipped into the room was incased with shadows.

"Tsu," said Black.

Tsu cut her off. "I know. You need my help." She held up four recording stones. "I've already taken everything. A timer has been set to go off an hour after Aya's death."

Black blinked in surprised. It would seem Tsu had made her decision a long time ago. She opened her mouth but before she could say anything Tsu cut her off again. "Don't, Black. I know you can't say it," she smiled at her, tears streaming down her face. "I will get the chesspiece, and you will distract the Master. I will transport her to captial, just take Aya's body with you."

Black nodded. "Very well."

-------

The master was quite happy with his work. His plans were going along quite nicely. Everything was in place. There was a knock to his chamber doors. "Enter," he commanded.

Black walked in. "Temperance wishes to inform you that she will be late to the battlefield tomorrow."

The Master studied Black, as usual his best soldier didn't have a trace of emotion on her face. "Why?" he asked.

"Her sister has just passed away a few minutes ago. She wants to bury her in the morning." Black didn't say a word as she saw Vienna starting to glow.

The Master scoffed. The foolish girl. "Very well. She has my permission."

"I will tell her. And Master... what has happened to chesspiece?"

The Master turned towards the glass cage. Vienna was nowhere in sight. He glanced back at Black, who looked puzzled. It couldn't have been her, Black could only control shadows. The only one who could control light was... "White," he growlled. He stormmed out of the chambers. As soon as he was gone, Black disappeared with into her shadows.

In the port city of Meritage, Russell opened one eye and then the other, but quickly shut them tight again, as the light seeping through the window was way too bright. He groaned as he sat up. His head was pounding from all the ale he had drunk the night before. Where was he? He tried to remember what had happened, but all he could think of was the pub. Everything after that was just a blur.

He opened his eyes again and surveyed the room. He had fallen asleep on a large bed and rich tapestries hung from the walls. The floor even had gold inlays. Whoever had taken him in last night surely was well off! He slowly stood and steadied himself, waiting for the room to stop spinning. He ran his hand through his thick, wavy hair and walked toward the door. "Might as well find my host and thank him," he mumbled.

---

"I want a trace put on the prisoner who was brought here earlier tonight," Master said to one of the junior tarots in the comm room. He laid down the traveler's pass that she had carried on her person. "Pick up her signature now."

The young man leapt to action and pressed one finger to the card and the other to his temple in an effort to center his concentration. It wasn't hard to find her since she had only recently handled the card and her signature was still strong. "She's...out of city limits and moving further away every second. She's with someone, but I can't tell who. There's too much interference in the signature."

Master picked up the pass and crushed it in his fist. At that moment, he wished it were someone's head he were crushing rather than a hard piece of plastic. When he got his hands on White, it would be her head he crushed.

Still, it wasn't over. He wasn't finished with Vienna Tetrault. She would be reduced from her rook status into that of a pawn...his pawn. He would see Queen Hotaru delivered into his hands one way or another. A certain calm filled the man even though his prize had slipped through his fingers. It was a minor setback and nothing more.

"Find White," he instructed the young man. He didn't need any object to focus on White. He knew her signature well. "She's down the hall," the young tarot said.

Master frowned. If it hadn't been White, then who? She couldn't be in two places at once.

He decided to pay White a visit, at any rate. Perhaps she would have some answers. She'd better have some answers!

---

Vienna squeezed her eyes shut as she held on tight to her savior. Everything was so bright, so intense - even moreso than it had been in that glass chamber. Faster and faster, the world seemed to pass them by while it felt as if they were standing still. Light transport was even worse than transport by stone, she decided and vowed never to have to do anything like that again.

"Take me home?" she whispered and the figure, saying nothing, nodded.

White whistled happily to herself. Tomorrow would be such a grand day. She would prove her counterpart, Black, that she was just as good as her. Bubbling with excitement, White secretly hoped that the Master would move her up to rank 2 and move Black down.

"White!"

White jumped at the sound of the Master's voice. She looked at him confused. While Black rank 2, she had always been the Master's favorite. This was the first time she had seen him angry, at her no less.

"The prisoner just escaped and only way out was the use of light magic. Now, tell me, no one else can use light magic aside from you, how did the prisoner get free?"

White whimpered. She didn't know.

--------------

Hotaru had just begun to comprehend Asho's word when first event happened. Shadows swirling around her, Black appeared in center of the room, carrying the still body of a young girl. Everyone in the room leapt into action, their magic spells pointed directly at Black.

"What do you want?" Arashi snarled at Black. Black ignored him. Instead she spoke to Hotaru. "She's coming."

Light flashed, and Tsu and Vienna dropped into the room. Everyone just seem to forget that their enemy was standing in the same room when they saw Vienna. Vienna didn't have a chance to recover before she was tackling by her happy comrades. Black and Tsu retreated to where Seika was sitting.

Seika grinned. "Thanks Black."

Black gave a che sound. "Thank Tsu, not me."

Seika glanced at the Tsu. She knew the girl but this was the first time she's seen her. Temperance was one of the few cards that never left the headquarters. The silver fox ears and tail were quite a shock. "Well thank you then Tsu."

Tsu smiled sadly, stroking her sister's hair. "Just hitsuzen," she muttered.

Seika didn't asked but instead looked at Hotaru. The Angel hadn't said anything just yet.

Once Vienna had collected herself, she turned toward Hotaru. She fell to her knees and bowed low to the floor, the gesture a servant might give. "I am so sorry, Hotaru. You two were right, but I didn't listen. I was just so irritated and felt so helpless and then Russell..." She didn't have a chance to finish. Hotaru had bent down and took her hand, helping her back to her feet. She shushed her friend and instead of berating her for what she had done, she embraced her instead and held her tight.

"Don't ever scare me like that again!" she whispered where only Vienna could hear. The rook nodded as tears spilled from her eyes. Hotaru loosened her grip and the two women laughed as they saw each others' tear-filled eyes. Hotaru's gaze traveled down to Vienna's arm, which still held the blood curse Master had placed upon it. She frowned and put her hand on the spot in the attempts to heal it, but her powers didn't work. It was as she had suspected. It would only be by the death of the Master for the patch on her arm to return to normal.

"Can you get it off?" Vienna asked and Hotaru shook her head.

"I'm afraid not. Not this."

"What is it?" the rook asked, concerned.

"Just a remnant of one of Master's threats. Don't worry about him or this. It'll go away eventually." When he's been defeated, she thought, but didn't voice this. Vienna covered the patch on her arm with her hand and nodded.

"Am I the only one bothered by the fact that she's here?" Mathis spoke up from where he sat, interrupting the reunion. He looked up at Black with hatred. The others seemed to remember themselves and pointed their spells toward Black once again. "And an even bigger question," he added, "is why do you look so pleased to see her, Seika?"

Seika laided back down on the couch, snuggling closer into her pillow. Yawning, she muttered sleepily, "Ita?"

"Dear, I think you have explaining to do," Ita muttered. It was a bit unnerving to see two cards standing next to the love of his life.

"Let Hotaru do it," Seika muttered. "Remember how you wanted to have a talk? Black was included in that list of secrets."

The remainder of the Chesspieces stared at silence, looking back and forth between their Queen and best Knight. The silence was short lived though, broken as Asho pushed his way through the crowds. "Tam! Tsu!" he shouted.

He was rewarded with a pillow in his face from Black (and to Seika's protest as that was her pillow). Black grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. "Asho," she said coldly. "What have I told you about calling me by that name?"

Asho chuckled nervously. "Never to call you that?"

Tsu glanced at Black, surprised by her reaction. "Tam is your real name isn't it?" she asked. Much like the Master, no one knew White Angel and Black Angel's real names. It was well kept secret since the start of the Tarots. Tsu was one of the oldest members there, beside the founding four, the Master, White, Black and Nano. In all the time she spend going though the files, she had never come across Black's real name. How was it Asho came upon it?

Black didn't answer. Instead she pushed her way through the crowd and towards Hotaru and Vienna. A spell flew towards Black, but she merely deflected. "Arm," she told Vienna. It was a command, not a request.

Vienna looked at Hotaru, who nodded. She showed her arm to Black. "More then one way to remove such a spell," Black muttered. She cut her hand with a shadow blade and let her blood fall on the spot. Hotaru and Tsu's eyes widen as they watched the blood curse disappeared.

Tsu bit her lip. What she thought she knew about Black had just turned upside. Beside the death of the master there was another way to remove the curse, but the chances of them finding such way were silm. It require the blood of a blood realtive, and since no one knew the master's real identiy it would have been impossible to locate a blood kin. Tsu's eyes narrowed. Black had some explaining to do.

Master felt a tingling sensation in his palm and released his grip on White's neck. She fell to the ground and gasped for air. "Black!" he hissed, understanding exactly what had just transpired. So you think that's it, eh? He balled his hand into a fist and closed his eyes for a brief moment and then opened them again, satisfied. She may have removed the blood curse that had been visible on the chesspiece's arm, but she had not been able to remove the hold he had on the rook. The outer manifestation had indeed been healed, but it had fused on her skin long enough to penetrate into her body and now ran through her veins, undetectable.

No, this rook would not escape unscathed and Hotaru would eventually be his, as would all of Chess. But at that moment, his plans for the chesspiece could wait. There was something much more important. He picked White up from the floor and shook her shoulders.

"Where is Black?" he demanded, his voice lethal.

"I don't know!" the girl cried. "I swear, I don't know!"

He took his hands off her again and turned his back to her. Looking over his shoulder, he said, "I want her found and brought to me. I don't care what you have to do. White, for your own sake, you had better find her and bring her to me."

He left her standing there, completely flustered.

---

Vienna fingered her once again soft, pale skin on her arm. She looked at Black, her mouth open in surprise. "Th-thank you," she said. She put her hand to her chest and bowed. "I'm indebted to you. To both of you."

"That's not necessary," Black said.

"It's custom," Vienna replied. "But even if it weren't, I'd still be determined to repay you in kind.

Black nodded, uncomfortable with the girl's gratitude. The chesspieces in the room didn't know how to react to Black. They looked to Hotaru for guidance.

"How?" Hotaru asked.

Black shrugged silently. "That only took care of the outer layer of the curse. She's can be influence by the Master's magic. Nothing I can do about that. The best I can do is stop her from becoming a blood statue." Black at Tsu, "Tsu might have the answer how to remove the inner layer of the curse, but somehow I highly doubt it is within in the records."

Hotaru stared at her. She'll continue to ask questions later, when Black was more comfortable and everyone else was out of the room. "Ahem," she addressed her subjects. "Black Angel has become our ally in the war against Chess. She's has helped us many times before, please refrain from attacking her as she is now our ally."

Mathis was going to open his mouth to speak when Hotaru cut him off. "Mathis, the reason why you're alive today is because of Black. Had she not warn us that you were going to Numbers and intercepted you herself, you would have been the same position that Vienna was in."

"Actually, his would have been worse," Black muttered. So much to explain so little time to go about it. She felt uncomfortable at the thought have to spill her entire life story to people she spent her entire life fighting. She glare at Asho. "And someone needs to control his powers," she hissed, feeling the brushing feeling in her mind as Asho accidently soul read her again. Boy would learn everything before she had a chance to explain. Between him accidently bonding with her and his constant unpredictable readings, it was a wonder she hadn't killed him yet.

"Anyways, you are allowed to return to bed, but be warn, war will be upon us in the morning," said Hotaru. Quiet mumbling rippled through the room. If Hotaru said Black was okay, it okay right? Kai hadn't said anything, in fact it looked like he had been informed.

"Black." Tsu voice rang through the room, silenting it once more. Tsu pointed out the window and towards the direction of Numbers. "5...4...3...2...1..."

-BOOM!- And explosion from the Heart of Numbers was so big, that Chess could see it in the distance.

Black grinned. "You know, it's a shame that it probably didn't kill anyone. But man, blowing up HQ was fun.'

Vienna and Dunn helped Mathis to his chambers. "I'm sure she'll heal your legs first thing tomorrow," Dunn tried to reassure his brother.

"You don't know how embarrassing this is!" Mathis exclaimed. "To not even be able to walk."

"I'd be more embarrassed by what you look like than by not being able to walk," Dunn joked, prodding Mathis's still swollen cheek with his finger.

"Stop it!"

"At least no one will have a problem telling us apart for a while!"

Vienna laughed. "I don't think anyone's ever had that problem," she said, pulling at Dunn's long, electric blue ponytail. The two helped Mathis into his bed and Vienna took off his shoes while Dunn pulled his jacket off of him.

"Alright, guys. No more, ok? Especially not you," he nodded toward Vienna. She laughed and stepped back. Mathis grew serious. "I'm sorry for what happened. I know it was my fault. If I hadn't gone looking for West, you would never have had a reason to go to Numbers."

Vienna shook her head. "No, Mat. I'm just as much to blame. If I'd listened to you about Russell..."

"He was convincing."

"I really liked him," the young rook said. "I don't know if I'm more upset about this whole war thing that I caused or about the fact that I was so misled about him. I'm a great judge of character, aren't I?"

"You're fine. You just have never had reason to believe that someone could be so deceitful. And don't you worry about that 'war thing,'" Dunn insisted. "Master would have found a reason to declare it even if you'd never entered the picture. You were just an easy solution to finding an excuse for it."

"I know that here," she pointed to her head. "But here?" she moved her finger down and rested it on her heart. "I feel responsible."

"Did he hurt you?" Mathis asked.

"No," she replied, rubbing the spot on her arm where the blood curse had been. "At least, I don't think so. I mean, I don't know what he did to me or what he can still do to me."

"I wouldn't worry about it," Dunn shrugged. "That's probably the last thing on his mind. I'm sure he'll be mad, but with the fact that we're now at war and one of his top people has defected to our side, I'm sure he's a bit preoccupied right now.

"You know what?" the young woman brightened up. "You're right. And I won't worry. I'm back, what's done is done, and now all we can do is look ahead and defeat these people. If Black's truly our ally like they say she is, we've got a really good thing going for us."

"I don't trust her," Mathis stated, crossing his arms.

"You wouldn't," Dunn quipped.

"Was I right about Russell or was I right about Russell?" the twin challenged his brother and Dunn had to concede that he was indeed. He looked up and saw Vienna's frown. "Sorry, Vie."

"It's ok," the rook dismissed his comment and abruptly changed the subject. "But what about you? What happened after you ran into Black?"

Mathis stiffened and lied, "I...ah...it's too much of a blur." He wasn't ready to speak of Fahd. He knew Seika and most likely, Hotaru, were completely aware of the Brotherhood, but he was still too undecided about the group to speak of them one way or the other. It was best not to say anything at all at the moment, and feign ignorance. "Guys, I'm tired. And we do need to rest up. I'm not sure what good I'll be, but I think it's time I get a little shut-eye."

"Same here," Dunn nodded and then winked at Vienna. "You could always join me, you know."

She shot him a look. "I think I will join you in sleeping. But in my own chambers. Goodnight, guys," she said, lightly kissing both the twins on the cheek before retreating out the door.

Everyone had slowly left the room, as sleep overcame them again. They all threw distrusting glances at Black but didn't say anything for the most part. Soon only Kai, Hotaru, Ita, Seika, Tsu, Asho and Black remained in the room. Hotaru has given Tsu permission to bury her sister in the garden as soon as she returned, Tsu had some questions.

"Black, you know I've seen Nano's notes. The blood curse, it can't be removed unless the master dies, but the outer layer can be removed by the blood of a kin," she said quietly. "You're related to him?"

Black didn't answer. The room merely grew even more quieter. "What do you know about the founding four, Tsu," Black finally said.

"The founding four?" asked Kai.

Tsu nodded. "It's what we call the four members of Numbers who created the organization. They would be, the Master, Black Angel, White Angel and finally Nano. Of the four, Nano is the only who has died. She passed away two years ago, but until she did was laid the foundation of the all technology of Numbers. Include all our weapons. She had a brilliant yet terrifying mind," Tsu spoke softly. "She was probably the closest thing I had to a mother in Numbers after my own parents past away. Of course, because of that, I knew most of her work... was even the experiment once."

Hotaru was startled at the last comment. Her eyes glanced at Tsu's fox ears and tail. Tsu nodded. "Yes it's what you think, I wasn't born with Fox ears and tail. It was one of Nano's DNA splicing experiements. A success I must say. Anyways, aside from Nano, I don't know much about the remaining three. The Master never says anything about him, what I know is only from Nano, and White you never get a straight answer from. Black, I know what little you've told me, but for the most part you keep to yourself."

Black nodded. "That's about right. The only person who had more information on me would be the Master. Though Asho is doing a fine job of finding out." She glared at Asho who grinned nervously. "You'll never get an answer from White. She doesn't remember a thing before joining the Tarot. The Master wiped her entire memories. Most of mines too. But I'm stubborn, wouldn't let him. Couldn't do much about the personality changes though."

"Personality changes?" Hotaru asked.

"She use to be a really bright and happy girl when she was child," Asho replied. Another pillow hit him in the face.

"You need to stop reading my soul, Asho," Black growled.

"Sorry Tam! I mean Black! I can't help it!"

Russell didn't have to walk far. Down the hall, a man dressed in servant's garb spotted him and immediately approached him. "My lord will be pleased that you're awake. We trust you slept well?" Russell nodded, though his head was still pounding. He lifted one hand to his forehead and the servant smiled. "My lord has remedies for that. If you'll follow me?"

The man led Russell down a richly decorated hallway, to an ivory staircase. He was astounded at the visible wealth in this manor. Even Master himself didn't seem to possess the wealth seen here. The servant led him through a set of double doors and Russell saw that it was a dining room. A morning feast was spread out and he felt his mouth watering, despite the residual effects of all the ale he had ingested. He sat down in the chair the servant indicated.

"My lord will be in here momentarily," the servant said and bowed, exiting the room.

Russell grew a bit impatient as the smell of the food was so tempting to him and it would be rude to partake of any of it before his host came in. He wasn't left waiting long, however. The doors opened and a man strode in. He was old enough to be Russell's father. His hair was grey and he carried himself with an air of confidence. Russell rose to his feet and his eyebrows shot up in surprise. He knew this man.

"The Tower," the man said. "Please," he gestured to the chair. "Sit down." He poured him a glass of juice and handed it to him.

"Justice," Russell answered and sipped the juice, looking at him expectantly.

"Call me Solarr. I'm not on duty right now. Master wishes me to be, however. I think it's only fair that you know that. He's not pleased with you."

"Well, I'm not pleased with him." He took another sip of the juice.

Solarr sat back and crossed his arms. "He claims that you betrayed people close to you and knowing you were so willing to do that concerned him. What would keep you from betraying him as well?"

"He sent me to do that job," Russell argued. "And it wasn't my intention to betray Vie. Master betrayed me by taking her away." He clenched his fists as he thought of the young woman, wondering what she was going through in the Master's clutches.

Solarr stared at Russell and he felt a tingling sensation. He knew what the older man was doing. "What do you see, Solarr? Am I speaking truth?"

"I have been commanded to pass judgement." He pointed to the cup that Russell had been drinking from. "Are you starting to feel sluggish?"

Russell went cold. "No," he whispered fiercely. Justice always gave his victim a cup of drugged liquid and once the person drank, they would fall into a deep sleep, at which time their head would be shaved and their crime tattooed on their faces. They would then be tossed into an underground cavern with no apparent exit, where they would serve their time. How could he have been so stupid as to accept a cup from the man?

"And so you won't," the man smiled. "I see no crime within you." Russell gaped at him. "Unless you feel I've judged false?"

"No, of course not!" Russell exclaimed.

"Good. So now that I've spared you, perhaps you'll do something for me?"

"I'm tired of working for others. Where did it get me last time?"

"It's up to you then," Solarr shrugged. "You know the Master has it in for you now because he doesn't feel you are loyal. You can't return to Chess. Where are you going to go?" Russell didn't answer. "My name is Justice. You feel Master wronged you. Took something of great value from you. How would you like to take something from him?"

"Tam is your real name right?" Tsu asked again.

"Innocent, honest and naive. I don't deserve a name like that, Tam hasn't existed for a long long time," Black said tiredly. "With the destruction of HQ, the blood tablets that the Master will need in order to keep using his magic, are gone. But it won't last long. As long as White is alive that is."

Tsu blinked rapidly. "The blood tablets need blood of a kin. Why... oh."

Black smiled tiredly. "There is a reason why I call White, sister and it's not just to annoy her. I supposed I should start from the top.

To put it simpy, The master is actually my uncle who killed my parents, kidnapped me and my sister, brainwashed us, corrupted our personalities, and well the person you see standing before is the end result."

"That's not even the entire story!" Asho started.

Another pillow flew at Asho. "You are not helping!" This time though, it came from Seika before Black had a chance to react.

Ita looked inbetween his fiancee and Black and suddenly burst out laughing.

"What is so funny, Ita?" Seika said coldly.

Ita chuckled, trying to contain his laughter. "You," he said pointing to Seika, "and her," pointing to Black. "It just you both look and sound alike. It's a wonder why I didn't notice it before."

"We do not!" Black and Seika yelled at Ita.

It only made him laugh harder. "White hair, blue eyes and stubborn personality. You two are mirror images."

Seika and Black glared at him. "That is not funny," they said.

"What did you have in mind?" Russell asked.

"Not what, but who," Solarr replied.

"Vienna?"

Solarr shook his head. "Why would I want a chesspiece? No, Master had my nephew abducted. His name is Fahd and he's always been somewhat of a renegade. Very talented with magic. In fact, he discovered a way to unlock the full capacity of the brain. Where most people have one ability, Fahd can teach them to use multiple abilities."

Russell exhaled slowly as he thought of the implications. "He could build a virtually invincible army."

"Exactly," said Solarr, clasping his hands together. "That's why he's been chasing Fahd around for years. He, of course, is unaware of our connection. I've kept that a secret since I joined Numbers. It's always good to keep a few things in your pocket."

"So why are you telling me?" Russell asked sardonically. "After all, I'm the one who betrays his friends, remember?"

"It's a risk I'm willing to take. I'm not as young as I used to be and I prefer not to mingle with Master and his minions if I can help it."

Russell laughed. "What are you talking about? You're one of those minions too."

"Mmm," Solarr shrugged. "Perhaps." He leaned forward. "I'm not a good person, Russell. I did not spare you because I felt sorry for what you've been through or because I'm compassionate. I'm not going to simply let you walk out of here. You do realize that, don't you? You can help bring my nephew here or I can look again and see if my previous judgment holds true or if I made a mistake. Do you understand?"

Russell nodded. It wasn't a hard decision to make. Break in and release this Fahd person, spoiling Master's plans, perhaps even finding and rescuing Vienna, or wake up tomorrow to find himself locked away in a deep cavern, never to see the light of day. He held out his hand in acceptance and Solarr took it and shook.

----

While it looked as if everything around Master was falling apart, in reality it wasn't it. Not yet, at least. There were a few mutinous members in his organization, but there were many more who were loyal even to the death for him. He stood at the window and looked out, grimacing at the smoke which rose from HQ. He still had about three months' supply of blood tablets. White would ensure his supply would last much longer than that. He thought of the girl's sister and his eyes narrowed.

She would pay for her deceit!

"You don't have to tell us everything, Black, if you don't want to," Hotaru said. "We're just happy to have you here."

"Well actually I have a question to anyone who can answer it," Kai spoke up. He pointed to Asho, "I don't think he's been introduce yet."

Black looked at Asho. "I'm Asho, err former current member of Tarots?" Asho tried to word. "I was training to be The Devil, but haha I guess I'm not?"

"Asho is a soulreader, much more powerful then Russell's ability," Black explained.

"What exactly does a soul reader do?" Ita asked.

"I read souls. Stuff like memories, emotions, and stuff. I can tell when people are trying to hid something. Not to say that I can see everything. Take Black for example, until she started letting her guard down an hour ago, I haven't been able to read much on her cause she's just hide everything in her soul. It's alot easier to read if you're already remembering it that's why."

"Oh."

"He has a bad habit of bonding telepathically with people too... and not being able to control what he reads," Black muttered.

"We might want to keep that under wraps," Kai said. "The others are already a bit spooked having so many tarots, or rather, ex-tarots around."

Hotaru nodded her agreement. "It doesn't leave this room. But Asho, we do have a vacancy and it might be useful for you to fill it."

"Tower's spot?" Asho asked.

"Tower?" Kai frowned.

"Oh right," Asho said. "I keep forgetting. He obviously wouldn't have ever gone by that name here. What'd you call him? Russell?"

"Russell's a tarot?" Kai looked over at Seika, wondering if she had been aware. "I knew he was a traitor, but...wow. How'd he get this far into Chess?"

Asho smiled. "Truthseers and soulreaders can go just about anywhere. We know what people want to hear, the answer they're looking for. And so we can convince them of just about anything. But I don't know if he's still a tarot or not. Last I heard, Master wasn't too happy with him."

"Serves him right," Seika commented. "Displaced from both kingdoms."

"I should have known he was the one," Black commented. "In hindsight, I feel stupid for not realizing. Master said he had gone on an errand up to Abadonne. And then the stormy season began up there. We just figured he was being forced to wait it out. He never liked traveling by transport stone." She shrugged. "Truth be told, none of us really particularly cared one way or another."

"Tower never exactly fit in with anyone there. He always kept to himself and the times when he was around people, there was just something odd about him," Asho added.

"That's Russell, all right. Vienna was the only one he really seemed to care to be around. He followed her around like a lost puppy," Kai said.

"Speaking of Vie," Seika broke in. "What are we looking at with this blood curse inside of her? Is she going to be a threat?"

Black paused for a minute and then answered, "You don't have to worry about Master controlling her mind or anything of the sort. It doesn't work that way. She won't turn on you. If anything, he'll most likely do something similar to what he had tried in the first place, using the blood to attack her body. He'd be, in essence, holding her hostage still even though she's here. There's no telling what his demands would be to save her."

"Oh Vie," Seika whispered.

"That just makes the most sense to me," said Black. "But Seika, that's not all he can do with it. The blood curse is strong magic. Deadly magic. And there's a lot that Master does not share with anyone. In essence, pieces of him are running through her veins. You don't want her to bleed, for one, because that could just release him here. Her blood is just as potent as his now. I honestly don't know what he'll do with it. He could attack her in her sleep in the next minute or wait for years to pass, when all this is nothing more than a memory."

"So Vienna's not to train and not to get mixed up in combat," Hotaru sighed.

"They gave her a suppressing drug too. It always takes a few days for that to leave one's system and they gave her quite a lot of it. She wouldn't be able to use her abilities right now even if she tried," Black said.

"She won't be happy, but she should understand. He's taking out one of my strongest fighters but at least, he's lost his very strongest one," Hotaru smiled at Black. "Thank you, again."

Black grew uncomfortable once again with the gratitude Hotaru displayed. These chesspieces are way too nice, she thought. "Don't thank me. There's still a war and you're still at risk. Master may have lost a few fighters, but his army still greatly outnumbers your own. They'll be arriving at your shore within an hour or so." She suddenly grew quiet as she felt the communication stone in her pocket grow warm. "Could you excuse me for a minute?" she said, stepping away from the group. She fumbled with the stone, keeping it hidden from the others. But she was able to catch a glimpse of who it was trying to reach her.

White!

While Black stepped outside, Ita turned to Tsu. "I don't know where you also fit into this, Tsu."

Tsu blinked. That was right, she wasn't known too well outside of Numbers.

"Temperance, the fifth member to join Numbers. Only other information is that she uses a katana much like myself," Seika muttered.

"Well my name is Tsu Rlan. My magic abilities, fall under the sun and moon as does my fighting style. My sister was Aya," Tsu said. "And whatever Seika said is correct. I don't normally leave HQ cause well, I never agreed to become a fighter, thus I flat out disobeyed them."

"You got a choice?" Asho asked in disbelieve. "I didn't."

Tsu looked at Asho. "That's because I originally agreed to be Nano's pet experiment. When she joined Numbers, I of course was brought along. Never once did I pledge my loyalty to the Master."

Asho muttered under his breath. "I was handpicked by him and Black. I didn't have choice, not unless I wanted to die."

------

"Serafina," Black spoke bitterly. Her sister really had no memories of the past. It left her little choice seeing as there was never a way to return her sister's memories to her. The only way to stop White, would be to kill her. Guilt gnaws at her heart at that thought.

"That's not my name," White answered tersely. "I'd appreciate if you didn't call me that again, Black." The girl held the communication stone up and saw the ivory walls with gold inlay that Black stood in front of. Those walls were only found one place and that place was nowhere in the Numbers kingdom. "Just as I suspected. You defected," she stated.

Black didn't answer. She didn't want to respond to her so White continued to rant.

"Do you know what you're putting me through? Master almost killed me. Not that you would care about that. You're only thinking of yourself. No, you're not thinking at all! How could you? You were the one that lifted the chesspiece, weren't you?"

"Not technically," Black said.

"Then who?" White demanded.

"I was the mastermind. Leave it at that." Black didn't want to get the others in the same trouble she was in.

White raised an eyebrow. "You're covering for someone. What have they done to you?" In Numbers, everyone looked out for his or herself. The fact that Black was keeping silent about her accomplices perplexed her sister. "Master will take back the chesspiece."

"And then so shall I again."

White fumed for a minute and then tried another tactic. "What about me, Black? You're so eager to work for the other side. Do you even care that I'm the one suffering for it? You've had such an attack of a good conscience lately. Why not direct that toward me and the fact that everything you're doing, I'm paying for?"

"I...I'm sorry it's come to that," Black said quietly. "But I'm not going back and I'm not changing my mind. I've made my decision, Sera--White. You can relay that to Master if you like."

"I'll do no such thing! How many times has he killed the messenger?"

"Goodbye," Black said as she pocketed the stone again, rubbing her fingers against it to deactivate it. She heard White's voice trailing away.

"Black! How dare you hang up on me!I'll see you soon and when I do...I'll make Master proud!

Black sighed and returned to join the others.

"She didn't?!" Asho said as Black entered the room again.

Black took a seat next to Seika on the couch and sulked, too tired to scold Asho about his powers. "She did."

"Who did what?" asked Hotaru.

"Serafina I mean White," Asho corrected himself.

"You're going to get confused Asho," Tsu said. "What did she do?"

Black looked at Asho. "Go ahead tell them. I'm too tired to explain anymore."

"White just contacted her. Confirmed that Black has defected and knows that someone has help her, you Tsu, and tried the guilt trip tactic."

"I am not liking the choices in regards to my sister," Black muttered.

"You're not seriously going to consider that are you," Asho asked her.

"I've considered and made my decision."

"But she's your sister!"

"And it's because she's my sister that I made that choice!" Black snapped.

"Asho, please explain," Tsu spoke up.

"She's decided the only way to stop White, is to kill her," Asho muttered. "Because there is no way to return White's memories to her, and her loyalty to the Master is too great. The fact that White has always been the Master's favorite doesn't help."

Fahd was in the most uncomfortable position, his body bound to a stone wall deep in a Numbers holding cell. He looked up when the door opened and smiled when Master himself stepped in. "I must be important," he commented, "to receive a visit from the one at the top."

"You are nothing and you'd best not forget that."

Fahd's grin widened. "Speaking with me too. Yes indeed, I must be of the utmost importance. What can I do for you?"

Master was irritated by the man's cavalier attitude. "Do you not realize your life is hanging by a thread right now and I'm the one who decides what happens?"

"I realize everything perfectly, my friend. I just choose to not be affected by it for I know a little secret." Fahd's fingers twitched and his smile faltered for an instance.

This time it was Master who smiled. "As do I." He held up an empty vial that once contained the suppressing drug. "You'll not be using your abilities on me and as long as you refuse to cooperate, you'll be administered this drug, among other things." He pretended to examine the vial. "It has a high dependency rate. They say withdrawal is quite an ordeal. Hmm..."

Fahd's smile was gone now and he clenched his teeth. "I already know what you want."

"Do you?" Master raised an eyebrow.

"You wish for me to train your men."

Master shrugged. "A simple request and everyone benefits. You walk free and my men grow stronger."

"And Chess?"

"Why would you care?"

"I met a man from Chess once," Fahd said, thinking of his newest brother, Mathis.

"It's your decision, Fahd. Your brothers have been wiped out. You're chained to this wall. You've been drugged. We've been treating you kindly. That will change if you refuse. If you accept, you'll be treated as an honored guest, will have complete freedom to move about, and will have the joy of enriching my men's lives. What do you say?"

Fahd thought about it for a minute and shrugged. "I'll do it."

"Good," Master said. The door opened once again and a young woman walked in, releasing Fahd from his bonds before leaving the room again. "I just need one thing from you."

"What's that?" Fahd asked, rubbing his wrists. Master grabbed his arm, pulled out the dagger and drew it across, slicing it deeply, but cleanly. "Ow!" Fahd exclaimed, pulling his arm back. Master swept his finger across the cut and wiped Fahd's blood on the wall, smearing it in to the point where it was not visible anymore. "What'd you do?" Fahd exclaimed.

"Something even your training methods will never unlock in another. You have your freedom now. You'll be assigned new chambers, given new clothes, and you'll report to the inner courtyard in one hour to begin training." He turned away, leaving Fahd standing there staring after them. Almost as an afterthought, he said, "And Fahd? I'd advise you don't try to step beyond the outer gate. Trust me on this one."