"So..." Yun mumbled, glancing around him at his gathered companions. "We have horses, but... can everyone ride?"

Ezra held up her hand. "I can't."

"I can," Jaeha chimed.

"Zeno can ride one even standing up!" Zeno announced.

"I can ride as well," Kija said.

"Shinah, you've never ridden before, right?" Yun asked.

Shinah nodded in response.

"I can't really ride either," Yona said.

"Oh." Yun sounded surprised. "Well, you ride with the Thunder Beast then. I'll ride with Jaeha." He strode off towards the Ryokuryu.

"Can I ride with you, Zeno?" Ezra asked the Ouryuu.

"Of course, miss!" Zeno said brightly. He hoisted himself onto his horse before turning to offer her a hand. "Come on up!"

She took his hand and settled on the saddle in front of him.

"Are you sure you're feeling alright, miss?" Zeno asked.

"I'm fine," Ezra assured him. Her eyes drifted to Shinah, who was riding with Kija. "Besides, it was worth it."

A memory flashed through her mind; a time when she'd lain on the ground, battered, concussed, and pinned beneath a bandit's foot as Shinah had bled in front of her. She'd been forced to watch helplessly as he was pierced by his own sword, frustrated by her own uselessness and inability to protect him. It was one of the most terrifying moments of her life.

"I saw what you did." Zeno's voice changed; it became deeper, more serious, more mature. "You're one brave warrior, Ezra. And I can see that you'd do anything to protect those you love."

Ezra shook her head. "It wasn't that brave. I did what anyone else would do."

She felt the Ouryuu's long hair tickle her cheek as he shook his head. "No. You completely abandoned your own fight in a reckless attempt to protect Shinah. What if they'd stabbed you? You had no way of knowing that you would be kicked instead."

Ezra sighed, more than aware of her recklessness. "I took a leap of faith, and I don't regret it one bit."

"Next time," Zeno's voice grew even deeper, "you may not be so lucky. Would you do the same, even then?"

Not too far from them, Shinah chuckled at something Kija said. In that moment, Ezra was assaulted by a tidal wave of emotions; fear, worry... and an overwhelming joy. Shinah was alive, unharmed, and laughing. And she was sure, more sure than she'd ever been of anything in her entire life, that she would do everything in her power to keep him that way. "Of course," she said without an ounce of hesitation.

When Ezra lost her mother two years ago, her world became dreary, dark, and lifeless. Ironically enough, despite her dislike of promises, it was only her last vow to her mother that had kept her going during that time. Ezra had continued to put one foot after the other. She went through the motions, hunting game, working odd jobs in whatever town she stumbled upon, bathing when she came across a river. But she could not find any joy in the life that her mother had given with her with her last, shuddering breath.

Then Shinah had entered her lifeless world, lighting up her dreary existence with brilliance and color.

And Ezra knew now, looking back on the depression and hopelessness that had nearly swallowed her in the years following her mother's death, that it was no exaggeration to say that Shinah had been her salvation.

"Wow!" Zeno's voice resumed its normal boyish lilt, his seriousness lifting like clouds dispersing after the rain. "The miss is one brave girl!"

Sometimes, Ezra wondered if Zeno was truly as carefree and childish as he appeared.

~~~

As they approached Hiryuu Castle, Ezra saw Kan Soo-Jin and Li Hazara's troops slowly retreating from the castle. The Sky Tribe's army stood in front of them, protecting the castle gates, and from behind the Fire Tribe and Sen Province troops, another army was approaching.

"Is that the Earth Tribe's army?" Ezra gasped.

"Sure looks like it!" Zeno said. "That's amazing. General Lee Guen-Tae of the Earth Tribe only mobilizes his forces for kings he truly respects."

"That means that the Fire Tribe and the Sen Province armies are surrounded," she mumbled. "It's over for them."

And then she saw the forces from the Sen Province turn... but not to retreat.

"They're going after the neighboring village!" Ezra's eyes went wide. It seemed that Li Hazara, realizing his defeat was inevitable, decided that he wanted to take as many people down as he could.

In front of them, Hak kicked his horse's sides, spurring the beast into a gallop.

"Not if we can help it!" Zeno cried. "Let's go!"

They circled around Li Hazara's army, cutting through the village so that they could confront Hazara personally.

Ezra heard Hazara screaming at his men, ordering them to loot the village and take out anybody in their way.

Hak galloped in front of the Sen Province army, swinging his glaive with deadly force. He knocked a soldier off of his horse before leveling his glaive at the foreign commander.

Hazara's eyes narrowed into deadly slits as he glowered at Hak and Yona. "Who are you?" he hissed at them. "You aren't soldiers from the Wind Tribe, right?"

Yona fixed the general with a steely glare. "Sen Province's Li Hazara, be still. You invaded Kouka Kingdom and frightened our citizens." Her eyes flashed, burning dangerously with violet fire. "Don't think you'll get off lightly."

Ezra and Zeno pulled up alongside them, and Ezra jumped off the horse, unsheathing her swords with one fluid motion. She stood at her friends' side, crouching in a fighting position with a fierce expression in her lavender eyes.

Hazara didn't pay any attention to Ezra. "Get rid of them," he commanded with a wave of his hand.

The soldier at his side spurred his horse forward, heading towards Hak, Yona, and Ezra. Just then, Kija leaped off his horse, grabbing the man's face and slamming him to the ground with his dragon claw.

"What's with his hand?" Uneasy murmurs spread throughout Hazara's ranks as Kija stood up straight, his white dragon claw resting at his side. His narrowed blue eyes promised death to anyone who neared him.

"Shoot them!" someone commanded.

Suddenly Jaeha appeared, leaping gracefully over the archers with his small knives in hand. He released the weapons, sending a rainfall of blades into the archers' ranks. Chaos ensued as Jaeha landed beside Kija.

"Who are they?"

"How is he flying?"

Hazara ignored his men, his beady eyes fixed on Yona's group with hatred burning in their depths. "Attack!" he screamed.

"Let's go!" Ezra said gleefully, throwing herself into the fight.

After plowing their way through two thousand soldiers in the middle of their camp, this skirmish was an easy victory.

"What... what are these monsters?" Hazara gasped, backing away. "Kouka has monsters!"

He began to retreat, calling for his troops to follow him. Yona and the others watched the Sen Province army run away, not bothering to follow after them.

Ezra turned her attention away from the retreating troops, glancing at the Fire Tribe army. "Looks like something's happening over there," she told her companions. "I think Kan Soo-Jin is screaming his head off."

Indeed, the man's face was contorted his fury. The veins popping out of his forehead were visible even from where Yona's group stood, hundreds of meters away.

"Let's go," Hak ordered, getting off his horse.

He and Yona led their group of monsters to approach the angry Fire Tribe General. Kan Soo-Jin was yelling at his soldiers about honor and refusing to surrender as they approached.

Yona slung her bow off her back as she took the lead position. "General Soo-Jin!" she called. "Pull back your troops."

Yona's voice rang with authority, and power exuded from her confident posture despite her small stature. Ezra's jaw dropped.

Yona was the true princess of Kouka Kingdom; of that, there was no doubt.

Soo-Jin turned, his eyes widening in shock when they lit on Yona. "So you're alive," he said.

Oops. They'd just completely blown their cover. Nobody was supposed to know that Yona had survived the coup in Hiryuu Castle.

"Even though you are one of Kouka's five generals, you've turned on the kingdom and sacrificed the lives of your own soldiers," Yona said, her voice hard. "Will you let their deaths be in vain?"

Soo-Jin's mouth twisted into a mocking smile. "Heh. A little girl dares to lecture me?" He raised his voice. "Right now, I am King Hiryuu! I will take back Hiryuu Castle, which rightfully belongs to me! My soldiers will gladly pave a path for me, as that is what it means to be an honorable Fire Tribe citizen!"

He's stark raving mad. What does he know of what it means to be a Fire Tribe citizen? Ezra thought to herself.

"Don't be so full of yourself," Yona sneered. "You don't even know what you make your own people live through. You are unfit to be king."

Soo-Jin's eyes widened, his jaw snapping together. "Kill them," he hissed venomously. "Kill them all! Erase them from my sight!"

Ezra stepped back, finding herself shoulder to shoulder with Shinah and Jaeha as she and her companions formed a protective circle against the enemies that surrounded them on all sides. She was about to reach back for her swords when Shinah grabbed her wrist and tugged her behind him.

"Oh, no you don't," she murmured, stepping up beside him. "You're not fighting without me by your side."

Shinah's mouthed turned down in a frown. "You're hurt. You need... to stay safe."

"I'm fine," Ezra responded. She gave him a lopsided grin. "And we'll keep each other safe. How does that sound?"

His frown relaxed slightly. He nodded.

I'll protect him, Ezra vowed to herself.

I'll protect her, Shinah thought in determination.

She reached behind her, smoothly unsheathing her swords.

"I wonder if we'll be able to get out of here alive," Jaeha said, flicking his wrist. Three throwing knives immediately appeared between his slender fingers.

"Don't say that, Jaeha," Yun chided in a light tone of voice, but his blue eyes darted every which way uneasily.

"What are you saying?" Kija asked, holding up his dragon claw with a smirk. "This will be an easy victory."

"That oddly positive outlook is your only redeeming quality, White Snake," Hak said, his lips curving into a maniacal grin.

"Zeno will cheer for all of you!" Zeno announced, raising his arms into the air.

Soo-Jin's eyes narrowed. "Attack!"

Immediately the fighting broke out on all sides of the group. Ezra leaped forward with Shinah at her side, each of them swinging their blades with practiced ease. Jaeha kicked ferociously with his dragon leg while simultaneously releasing knife after knife. Kija's claw enlarged as he threw himself into the fight with vigor. Hak ushered Yun and Yona behind him as he swept his glaive, keeping the soldiers away from the nonviolent members of their group. Zeno stayed close to Yona and Yun with a shield Ezra didn't remember him having.

"Be careful!" Kija called out, knocking out a soldier with a solid blow to the head. "Killing these misled soldiers will defeat the purpose of our mission!"

Ezra clenched her jaw as she whirled, carefully using her blades only to maim. When she could, she used the hilts of her swords to render her opponents unconscious.

For an immeasurable amount of time, she slashed and spun and struck, protecting Shinah just as much as he protected her. The dragons, Ezra, and Hak kept as close together as they could, ensuring that they maintained a protective circle around Yun, Yona, and Zeno.

Sometime during the fight, blood began to pour into Ezra's left eye from a cut she didn't remember receiving. Her ankle hurt when she put her weight on it; maybe she twisted it? At her sides, her companions weren't faring much better. Everyone seemed to be sporting some kind of injury as they fought for their lives against the enemies they didn't want to kill.

Kija gasped as a blade opened a wound on his shoulder. "We need to retreat!" he called, gritting his teeth against the pain. His white clothes were stained with red in several places. He'd fought too recklessly.

Ezra let out a cry of pain as a soldier managed a lucky kick to her already bruised side. She stumbled back, and Shinah sprang forward to deflect an incoming spear aimed at her. "I never thought I'd say this, but I agree with the White Snake. We need to fall back," she shouted. "Yona! What should we do?" She received no response, and she glanced behind her. "Yona?"

The princess was staring off into the distance, her face frozen in a wide-eyed expression of shock. Ezra followed her gaze and found a blonde-haired man staring back at Yona with an identical expression on his elegantly handsome face.

"Hak!" Ezra shouted. If Yona wouldn't respond to her, maybe her protector would. "We should leave!" Hak didn't answer.

Ezra leaped forward, intercepting a sword swing meant for Shinah. She forced the soldier's blade to the ground and spun, slamming her elbow into the man's jaw.

When she dared a glance behind her again, she found Hak staring at the same blonde man in the distance. The only difference was... Hak didn't look shocked or confused. The former general's handsome face was contorted in a murderous expression. A vein popped out of his forehead and his jaw was locked in a fearsome snarl, his pupils narrowed to deadly slits.

The kind of fury rolling off of Hak in nearly tangible waves scared Ezra. It was like looking into a mirror and seeing herself of two years past staring back.

Beside Ezra, Shinah let out a gasp of pain. A bleeding slash wound on his chest was visible beneath his ripped clothes. He clenched his jaw and snarled in defiance.

"Yona!" Ezra screamed. They were all tired and injured; they couldn't keep fighting like this.

Yona shook her head, attempting to snap out of her reverie.

"We need to retreat!" Yun shouted, keeping close to the princess.

"...Yes." Yona finally turned, swiping a hand through the air. "We're retreating! Hak, Kija, clear a path!"

"Leave it to us!" Kija answered.

Hak said nothing, his murderous glare still pointed in the direction of the elegant man.

No way... could that be King Su-won?! Ezra thought to herself. She'd only seen Hak this angry a handful of times before, and all those instances had involved the mention of Su-won's name.

"Hak!" Yona called, trying to pierce through the haze of fury that surrounded him.

Hak clenched his jaw, tearing his gaze from the man at last. "Understood."

He and Kija forged forward, mowing down the soldiers who stood in front of them. Ezra protected Yun and Yona as they weaved through the path the warriors created. Shinah, Jaeha, and Zeno brought up the rear.

Ezra glanced behind her as they ran. Her eyes widened when she noticed Soo-Jin holding up a bow, an arrow pointed directly at Su-won's heart.

If Su-won dies...

Ezra was no supporter of the young king, but his death would plunge Kouka into a power struggle of untold consequences. The entire point of their presence in this battle was to keep exactly that from happening.

If Su-won dies... we've failed.

Just then, a blade bloomed in the center of Soo-Jin's chest, piercing through the general's armor. One of his own men had stabbed his commander in order to put an end to the bloodshed.

The soldier's eyes were wide as he tugged the weapon out of Soo-Jin's chest and dropped it on the ground, staring at his shaking hands.

Ezra put her head down, ushering for Yun and Yona to quicken their pace. Even though she wasn't looking in that direction, she could've sworn she felt the ground vibrate when Soo-Jin's body hit the floor.