M:   Esha watched Saxon leave, then let out a sigh, "I swear I want to strangle that man sometimes, every problem seems to tie to him somehow and it frustrates me. Anyway, now that Askad has shattered I'm the only viable leader of the Eternals, I know that you guys don't care for our methods so we'll try to stay out of the way, but I will be having Neflen and Odrus scout the surrounding towns since they are the only ones who have unlimited shapeshifting abilities. If they find anything useful about Sofia or the remaining Jacobites, they'll let you know."

She looked into the cell one more time, "If the interrogations don't work out, let me know, I know quite a few spells and curses that can get someone to talk, but only as a last resort. I got to go check on the others, and thank you for helping, but let's not tell Askad just yet, I don't want him to shatter further if Sofia is really dead."

N:   Both of the Brits' nodded as they all left the dungeons and while BE left to work, saying he was trying to enjoy his last free day, Royal decided to tag along with Esha.

"Just so you don't forget," the hybrid said, "although it might not be the best time, but Scotland lost the bet from the duel between you two."

M:   Esha tilted her head in confusion, but then she remembered that she and Scotland fought each other yesterday, she chuckled at the memory.

"I think I'll let him off the hook today," she smiled, "it's been crazy and we already made one insurgent run away crying, though thanks for reminding me, I'll definitely think of something nice and embarrassing for him to wear later."

She and Royal walked around for a bit, checking in on the guys and seeing what the Mandorians and Saxons were up to. They ended up bumping into Prometheus as he was showing his sister around, so the eternal stopped to chat.

"You know, when you said to help out your apprentice, I didn't think you meant go capture the man who killed everyone," she said, though not in a snarky way, "how is he, by the way, I heard Odrus had to extract venom from him and his friend."

N:   "He's coming through," Prometheus reassured her, "I was able to get the rest of the venom out and now he's on the path of recovery. Josef is staying in my room for the time being, so try not to make too much noise when you're passing by there."

Before Esha could answer, Royal suddenly piped up, Vivian having caught her eye. "Who are you," she demanded, "I don't recall you being here before, where are you from?"

 "I'll show you," Vivian replied as she reached to touch the hybrid when Prometheus stopped her, grabbing onto her wrist.

"You are not to enter into anyone's mind without my permission," he said firmly, "is that understood?"

"Fine," the woman snapped as she pulled her wrist free, then she turned to Royal with a smile, "I was the cat that tried to attack your legs." The Brit stood dumbfounded as she continued, "To be honest, you're getting too close. I'm Vivian by the way, Prissy's sister."

"I see," the hybrid muttered, not able to trust the woman.

"So," Prometheus butted in, "I was wondering if you have seen British Empire? It's just that Josef is now his answer for a cure for your venom, although it is out of him, he had to fight it, so now in his blood there are antibodies that can be used to make a cure. Unfortunately, we will have to wait a while until Lady France arrives to make the cure, and blood cannot be stored for a long time."

"Can this Josef not just stay here," Royal questioned.

The tailor hesitated, "It's- it's not a good time to be here, especially ... never mind, he just cannot stay here, but he can come when Lady France does."

M:   Esha raised a brow at Prometheus's hesitation but decided to turn a blind eye for the moment, "yeah, he was trying to get his duties done while he has the chance. Celtica, Scotland, and I decided that he, Ireland, and England need to learn a thing or two about being a family rather than enemies and have plans for them for the next few weeks."

Esha chuckled to herself as she thought about what she had planned, but then her smile faded into a more serious one, and said, "Now I'm sure you already somehow know what happened in the caves, and what happened to Askad. I know I shouldn't be asking this, but if there is any way you can help us find her, we would appreciate it -"

She was cut off by a startled scream, and all of a sudden Heinrich came running by, then Edel charged past them, and last but not least Johann and Rowen were running after the reptile, the latter shouting, "Edel, what have I told you about bathing people without consent, get your scaly ass back here!"

Esha blinked at the spectacle for a moment, then rolled her eyes with a smile and said, "Men, they can never stay out of trouble, am I right."

N:   "Aye," Royal smirked as she watched them disappear, "and they never cease to find a new way too. I might go and see what's happening," and with that, she jogged away to watch the spectacle.

Once she left, Prometheus replied to Esha, "I wish I could, but this is an area I cannot intervene. You all, without my help, have to find Sofia."

"Otherwise," Vivian added, "he would probably not be able to go outside or open a window for a week, unless he wants to get a very harsh suntan-"

"But I wish you the best in your search," the tailor concluded as he pushed his sister away in the opposite direction of Edel, "and I'm sorry." With that, the pair of them turned the corner.

M:   Esha just stood there, wings lower than normal, confused at why Prometheus wouldn't help. He was perfectly fine healing her, Edel, Uskaine, and Mandoria, but he couldn't help a little girl who needs his help more than anyone. Her eyes flashed different colors as she didn't know how to feel, though the colors would always have a red saturation because she was definitely angry.

"Some god he is," she growled in her throat, "if I were him, the life of a little girl would be worth more than some sunburn, he might as well just not bother helping anyone if those who need him most are going to be ignored."

With that, she went to what she deemed to be her room, if Prometheus wasn't going to help, then she would pray for a god that would.

N:   Meanwhile, Royal lightly jogged in the direction Edel went when she heard barking, so she quickened her pace.

As she turned the corner, she saw Alcis facing off the dragon, trying his best to ward the reptile off while Heinrich stood behind him.

"He's a friend, Alcis," the Saxon spoke, while the dog bared his teeth, "calm down." But the Great Dane wasn't having it, he didn't want his owner to be hurt, and Heinz's scream earlier didn't help.

M:   Edel was confused at the aggression from Alcis, not understanding that from the dog's point of view, it looked like he was attacking his owner. The reptile ignored the canine's protests and grabbed Heinrich by the back of his shirt, carrying him away until Johann and Rowen found them.

"Edel, drop it," Rowen ordered, "that is not a toy, you don't know where it's been, put it down."

Edel obliged and dropped Heinrich, but immediately sat on him and fluffed out his fur, purring in contentment at adopting a new child. Rowen sighed in irritation and went to find England to see if he could help out.

N:   "Come on, Edel," Johann plead as he tried to push the dragon off of the Saxon, "what did he do to you?" He continued to push but when he finally gave up his futile attempts at moving the stubborn dragon, he just sighed and leaned against him. "How are you doing down there," the Mandorian asked as he nudged Heinrich's arm, which was sticking out.

All the Saxon did was try to grab onto the Mandorian, and when he failed, only showed his middle finger to him, clearly explaining his feelings.

Alcis, seeing that Johann had given up, went up to Edel, and swiftly bit down on the dragon's tail. He was able to initially not get whacked, and he rushed over to his owner, grabbed onto his boot that was sticking out, and began to poorly pull Heinrich out.

M:   Edel whined a little at everyone trying to get him off Heinrich, he was just playing and keeping the Saxon warm and cozy, why was everyone being so mean? When Alcis bit down on his tail it was the last straw, he whimpered and got off Heinrich, then just defeatedly walked away to the garden.

He found Sleipnir resting in the shade of a tree and went to cuddle with him instead, which the equine accepted and moved so the dragon would have more room, and they both settled down for a nap.

N:   "Wait, no-," Johann began as he watched Edel walk away, not sure how to react at the moment. He just looked at Heinrich, who also felt bad for the dragon, and also wasn't sure what to do.

"I should -," Heinrich muttered, observing his damaged boot while Alcis licked his face, seeing if he was alright, "- go to Prometheus, see if he could repair this," and so the pair left.

Johann only sighed as he headed in the direction Edel went, and when he got outside, he wasn't sure where the dragon went so he loudly called for him, wandering as he did.

M:   Edel perked his head up slightly when he heard Johann calling to him, but huffed and lay his head back down. Sleipnir raised his head too and lightly licked the dragon's face in comfort, to which Edel responded with purring.

After a while of Johann shouting and Edel ignoring him, Sleip got annoyed and stood to bring the human to Edel. He trotted over to Johann and nudged him in the direction of the stubborn reptile, leading him over and laying back down with Edel.

 Edel grumbled in frustration that Sleip brought Johann over, but did nothing and tried to go back to sleep.

N:   Johann crouched down in front of Edel, letting there be a moment of silence between them before he spoke. "Edel, you have to understand from Alcis's point of view," he began as he reached out to stroke the dragon's muzzle but thought against it, "he thought you were attacking Heinrich, someone he wants to protect, so you chasing him and sitting on him isn't helpful."

When he saw that Edel didn't respond he sighed, "I'm a hypocrite really, I like having fun just like you, pulling pranks, just being free to do what I want, but there are times when we just need to back down and think about what we're doing, and how it affects others."

The Mandorian stood up, having learned long ago to not be with Edel went he was annoyed for too long.

"I hope you understand, Edel, the same way I had to understand today too," the human said, then he reached down and stroked Sleipnir's mane, "I'll be inside if you need me, but it's nice to see that you have someone now to be with in these times."

Royal watched from afar, able to hear every word, and she was going to see if they were ok when a servant came to her with a note. Confused, she took it and read the message, raising a brow as she went on.

"You have to give this to Ireland," the Brit told the servant, handing back the note, "he needs to be notified that BE is allowing this." The servant nodded and bowed before leaving, to which the hybrid left soon after.

M:   Edel finally raised his head to look at Johann, staring for a moment before purring and softly licking the boy's cheek, saying he forgave him. Sleipnir nickered in approval and nuzzled the dragon, snuggling closer to him and nibbling his horns.

"Uh oh, looks like someone is trying to steal away your mama hen, England," Rowen joked as the two walked closer, "how do you feel about having too mythical parents now?"

N:   "Let me think about it," England joked along, "hopefully he's not as attached to me. Edel is nice and all, but being sat on is a bit much."

"Come on," Johann replied while scratching under Edel's chin, "it's super soft and comfy when he does." He continued to pet the dragon a bit more before he got an idea, cautiously glancing at Rowen. "You know what Edel," the Mandorian began, "since you are England's parent, why don't you give your son a bath, huh? He's been looking a bit dirty recently."

M:   Strangely Edel didn't instantly pounce on England to give him a bath, he seemed uncertain and confused. First, he was told off for messing with people, now he was told to do it, but he didn't know which one to obey.

Sleipnir decided to step in, he nudged Edel and shook out his black mane so it was nice and messy, nickering to give the reptile the hint. Edel got it and went to groom the Sigven instead, with Sleip looking smugly at England as if saying, "he's mine now."

N:   "Well look at you," England chuckled as he crossed his arms, "so it seems that you fine now so I'll head back," and with that, he turned and walked away.

Although he tried his best to hide it, he did feel a twinge of jealousy, he cared for Edel and to see the dragon's attention turned to someone else did hurt. However, at the same time, he was happy for the reptile.

Johann was going to stay for a bit when he heard running towards him, so he turned around and saw Erna approaching him. "Du musst mitkommen (you need to come with me)," was all she could say between gasps for air, her voice full of urgency, "jetzt (now)."

The Mandorian looked into the Saxon's eyes and could see the confusion in them, so he nodded, "ok."

Erna nodded and began to run in the direction she came from, so Johann quickly followed, staying close behind.

M:   Rowen was confused by the urgency of Erna and became worried about what caused it, so he too followed after them. Unfortunately, as they were running, Esha was walking with Uskaine in front of them, as they were having a privet chat about how to help Askad, and Rowen ran straight into Uskaine's hind end and fell onto the ground.

"Woah, watch where you're going guys," the centaur said, "I can't move out of the way fast enough."

"What's going on," Esha asked," where's the fire?"

N:   Erna didn't say anything as she continued to run and rounded the corner, but Johann slowed down when he saw his father fall. He hesitated a bit, not sure if to go or to help Rowen when a call from the Saxon to hurry up echoed down the corridor. "Sorry," he muttered before rounding the corner too.

As he followed Erna, he began to hear arguing further down, and as he approached the noise saw Wolfgang trying to pass Julian, who was guarding the door to Prometheus' workroom.

"-And I already told you that you can't come in," reiterated Julian, agitating Wolfgang.

"I don't take orders from you," the Saxon snapped, "I'll ask you nicely one more time before I push you away like a bug, let me see him."

"I cannot."

"Well, let me tell you this," Wolfgang growled as he got a hold of the other's shirt, almost knocking off his sunglasses, "I need to see if what Heinrich said is true because the person he saw brought back a shitty memory."

Behind them was Heinrich, sitting on the floor as he hug his legs, slowly rocking as Alcis tried his best to comfort him, nuzzling his face to make the Saxon better. But all he did was rock, staring into space as the remnants of tears streaked his face.

M:   The Eternals and Rowen soon rounded the corner to see this scene, they were confused as to what was going on but Rowen's parental instincts kicked in and he knelt by Heinrich.

"Hey, hey, it's ok Heinrich, you're safe buddy," he reassured him, softly patting his back in comfort, "Johann, go find Hein's mother, quickly."

"What is going on here," Esha asked, this time slightly angry, "Prometheus, what did you do this time?!"

N:   Johann ran as quickly as possible, and as soon as he left Heinrich began to mutter to himself. "He died, she died," he whimpered, "why did she have to die? Why did Prussia do that? Warum (why)?"

 "That's it," Wolfgang snapped after seeing his friend, "I'll beat the shit out of Josef if he's actually there."

 "You don't know if this Josef is the same as yours," Julian began but he was soon shoved out of the way and the Saxon slammed open the door. He quickly searched the room until his eyes laid on a young man lying on a table. Slowly, he walked up to Josef, confused why he looked young, and his eyes wide as if he saw a ghost. However, his face turned stony and he shoved the young man off the table, making him wake up with a start.

"Josef Wallner," Wolfgang spoke boldly, "where the hell have you been these last years, we thought you-" when he stopped, staring in shock as Josef stared right back at him, his silver eyes boring into him. "Was ist mit dir passiert (what happened to you)?" the Saxon muttered, but the other just stood there, as if a deer in headlights.

"Wolfgang," Josef mumbled, quickly glancing to Julian for help, "let me explain," but the air was knocked out of him when the Saxon punched him in the gut."You left us to the mercy of Prussia," Wolfgang shouted angrily, landing another punch, "you left your sister by herself; you faked your death; you didn't even go to her funeral." He then shoved him to the floor, to which the other stared up at the angry Saxon. "You left me to take care of them, to protect them from that fucking bastard, so you can what, prance about free after tricking everyone you died. What did I really expect from an Austrian?"

"But I did die," Josef yelled, shutting up the Saxon, "I look the same as the day I died, right? Wolfe, bitte, calm down and think."

 "I don't believe you," the Saxon growled, "you're right in front of me, how could have you died?"

M:   "Reincarnation you idiot," Esha shouted, yanking Wolfe off Josef, "have you completely forgotten about Mandoria, it's not like it hasn't happened before."

"Oh, so that's why Odrus couldn't see him," Uskaine stated, poking his head through the doorway, "he woke up not too long ago and told us what happened. Creatures who are not ageless are affected differently by reincarnation, most of the time they will become mindless corpses given life, but those with exceptionally high magic power can bring back a soul that retains their memories and personalities as servants. The way to tell that someone is reincarnated is the lack of a visible soul and the black eyes with silver irises."

"Josef, who reincarnated you," Esha asked, "if it was Prometheus then I'm going to strangle him for how he treated Mandoria earlier."

N:   Josef's eyes flickered between everyone, and when they landed on Julian, the other discretely shook his head.

"If you want to know," he answered, "fine. It was Prometheus who brought me back to life, but he wasn't alone. There was someone else who reincarnated me, but I couldn't tell who it was since ... well ... they didn't look human."

Erna and Wolfgang just stood there in shock, not being able to process what was happening, when the woman stepped forward, pulled up Josef, and pulled him into the biggest hug possible.

"I've missed you so much," she wept, but with tears of joy, "I am annoyed, don't get me wrong, you could have visited, but I'm happy you're well." The Austrian just smiled and returned the hug.

M:   Esha was less than happy, "Seriously, he brings you back to life but he bullies Mandoria because he was brought back to be someone's kink toy, where is he, I'm going to kill him!"

"Ah pa pa, hang in there Mis. Minotaur," Uskaine said, picking Esha up and bear-hugging her to keep her restrained, "let's not do anything drastic, surely there is a reasonable explanation why Josef's case is different than Mandoria's."

"Put me down, Fleabag," Esha growled, "I'm not letting some Grand Lord Aklous wanna-be get away with being a fucking hypocrite. Put! Me! Down!"

"The hell is going on in here," Rowen asked, popping in for a moment, "Esha, chill out, you're acting like Johann on bath day."

N:   Wolfgang chuckled at the comment but Josef was temporarily confused by the mention of Johann. "Wait," he spoke, "Johann is alive? Johann Kress? That little kid with way too much energy?"

Just as he finished, Johann was jogging towards them, Maria close behind, and immediately noticed that the door was open. The Saxon with him didn't care at all about what was happening and was at her son's side, giving him a big hug and telling him that everything was alright.

"What's the big surprise in here," the Mandorian spoke as he entered, and immediately locked eyes with Josef. It took him a moment for him to remember, when he asked, "I thought you and your father went back to the Austrian Empire."

"And I thought you were killed," the Austrian added. After a moment more of confusion, he said, "where were you all this time?"

"The Kingdom of Mandoria. Where where you? And why are your eyes like that?" When Wolfgang quickly explained what happened, he nodded, slowly getting used to the whole magic world, "well that explains why you still look young."

M:   Rowen simply shook his head and sighed, "Why can't there ever be one normal day," he cleared his throat and addressed everyone, "ok, I don't know everything that happened throughout our lives to lead to this moment, but let's all take a deep breath and calm down, alright."

Uskaine nodded in agreement and gently squeezed Esha for her answer, to which she grumbled in her throat and begrudgingly nodded. The centaur set her down and she dusted herself off before crossing her arms and staring pointedly at Rowen.

"Thank you," he said, "now, I don't know who else knows about this, but for safety let's keep this reincarnation business to ourselves, if anyone asks how you guys know each other you'll simply say that your childhood friends that went their separate ways. On the topic of Prometheus, we won't bother him with any of this, we will just leave it how it is and go on with our lives, what happened in the past is better left in the past, do I make myself clear?"

Esha and Uskaine exchanged glances, then they nodded in agreement. "As much as I want to put Prometheus in his place for being an asshole, I will leave him alone and focus on more pressing matters, like finding Sofia."

Rowen smiled in approval and turned to the others for their verdict.

N:   The rest nodded in agreement, although Wolfgang did mention what happened while they were in the compound. Before someone could answer, Johann's eyes widened as he remembered something and rushed out, making his way straight to Heinrich.

The Saxon was still on the floor but now he had his legs stretched out in front of him yet he kept the same face. The Mandorian waved his hand in front f his friend, but the other didn't respond, so he sat next to him and wrapped his arm around him, giving him a gentle squeeze to show that he wasn't alone.

"Is he still there," the Saxon muttered, to which Johann nodded, so Heinrich only stood up and began to walk away.

"Heinz," Josef called, causing the other to stop in his tracks. He wore another pair of sunglasses and he gazed at his friend.

"I'm sorry for your sister," was all Heinrich said before walking off, so Maria went off after him, bidding farewell to everyone, and went to care for her son.

 "What happened to him," Johann asked to which Erna answered, "There is so much you don't know."

M:   Rowen, Esha, and Uskaine took their leave as well, they knew that they also didn't know as much as the others, and Rowen knew that Johann was most likely going to stay with his friends, so they felt that they shouldn't be involved.

Esha and Uskaine stuck together and were heading back to the infirmary where Askad and Odrus were when they bumped into Scotland and Celtica, so the draconic eternal took the opportunity to ask, "Hey guys, how's it going with BE, Ireland, and England's punishment, have we decided on anything yet? I was thinking of having them rebuild one of the outer walls but I don't know how that will get them to work together just yet."

N:   "We haven't either," Celtica replied, "but we've been figuring out who should take over their work while they are doing their punishment." She turned to her son to see if she should continue, to which he nodded. "We thought that I should do Ireland's duties, since I have the most experience in his country, Scotty and Wales would work together to do BE's, and Royal would do England's."

"Wilfred would be perfect for BE," Scotland muttered, "but when life gives you lemons."

M:   "-you make lemon meringue pie," Uskaine added, licking his lips, "yummy."

Esha rolled her eyes but retained her smile, then simply said "Alright, that's one part out of the way, surely the rest shouldn't take too long to figure out, and besides, we can give them more than one thing to do."

"Question; you guys haven't happened to have noticed any strange activity in any nearby towns, have you," Uskaine interrupted, "we have a hunch that Askad's daughter might be alive and we're trying to find her."

N:   "I'm sorry but we are literally the worst people to ask about this," Scotland spoke, "my son told me what happened, but this is not my land. The same goes for Ma; ask anything about our lands and we know, but when it comes to England, you have to ask the English."

"I'll recommend going to ask Royal," Celtica added, "just so that BE and England don't get distracted, and she knows the land as well as them."

M:   The two Eternals slumped but added nothing more, simply nodding in thanks and heading back to the infirmary.

The rest of the day went by as usual and during the night it rained quite a bit so Esha slept inside. The next morning was a late one since most everyone slept in, either tired from fighting Jacobites or didn't sleep at all because they were nervous about what was to come.