M:    "No!" Esha shouted, kneeling next to Arthur's body, "No no no, it can't be, Arther, how?"

Esha was very distraught, she and Arthur had become close friends throughout her time with the British, often going on horseback rides together, and after she knew she couldn't have Johann, her feelings for him started to grow.

"H-he wants Saxon," she said quietly, her voice  breaking as she tried to hold back her tears, "A-Arther secretly worked for him, I guess Suebi wants to ch-challenge him for the Head of Insurgents."

Esha took off her cloak and covered Arther's body out of respect, then buried her face in her hands to cry, "Why does everyone I love have to break my heart," she sobbed.

N:    Anglo quickly put two and two together and knelt down next to Esha and hugged her. "We will make sure he doesn't die in vain," he muttered, "and he will be honored. Let's take him back to the castle and have him properly buried; take care of yourself and I'll just ask BE to help me." 

Before there Eternal could protest, he added, "I want you to take care of yourself. You have gone through so much, and I don't want to load you with my problem, so please, speaking as a friend, I want you to look after yourself while I figure this out."

M: Esha wanted to argue but she didn't have the energy to anymore, so she just said, "ok, I will, but know that it's not just your problem, England is everyone's friend and family, and we all want him home as much as you do, so don't think that we won't help you."

The eternal took a moment more to collect herself, then stood up and shifted into her dragon form so it would be easier to carry Arther back.

"Hop on," she insisted, "if I'm going on the sidelines I might as well carry you back."

N: Anglo nodded as he carefully lifted up Arthur and placed him on Esha's back, making sure the human was covered before he himself hopped on. He gave the draconic eternal the signal and soon they were off in the sky, back towards the compound.

When they arrived, Royal, Wales, and BE were the first people to find them, but Anglo didn't say anything as he carefully lifted Arthur off Esha. "Prepare a coffin," he spoke, turning to Wales, "we lost a good man and he needs to be honored."

The Welshman nodded and went to get the necessary preparations, and while he was gone, BE asked, "I got the letter you sent me, have you been able to get any more information."

"We followed Suebi's clues, which led us to Arthur here," the winged country answered, "and there was a note saying that we should bring 'his master' to the entity, and according to Esha, that would be Saxon."

The empire fell silent at this information, looking at the motionless figure in his grandfather's arms, "I will see what I can do. Grandfather is still in the dungeons, and I don't have the stomach to go back down there again, but right now we have a particularly pressing matter. It will take a couple of hours to get everything ready to bury Sir Bekerel, due to the short notice, so make sure that everyone says their goodbyes."

"Yeah, their goodbyes," Royal echoed quietly, glancing over to Esha. She usually is the one watching over the cadets as they trained, and she has seen how close Esha and Arthur have been getting, so she only wondered how the Eternal felt.

M: Esha felt numb, it wasn't very normal for her to give her heart to someone, so having it broken hit her very hard.  She wouldn't acknowledge anyone or raise her vision from the ground, merely shifting to normal and following Anglo to wherever he would take Arthur's body.

Askad was there too and he felt upset at seeing Esha so depressed, he didn't even know how to help her.

"Oh Esha," he muttered to no one in particular, "why does life have to be such a bitch to her, it seems that whenever she is finally happy something always comes to take it away from her, she doesn't deserve it."

N: Royal watched as Anglo laid Arthur in a room adjacent to the infirmary room, a single bed prepared for him to lie in as his body was covered. Meanwhile, she was thinking about the letter BE showed her, and thinking about the note attached to Arthur, she quietly asked BE to talk to him privately, so the pair left them alone.

After what seemed like forever, Wales came into the room and immediately detected the somber atmosphere. "I was able to get an order in," he spoke quietly, "and we should be able to bury him this evening."

Anglo nodded, but his attention was on Esha, so without saying a word, he just walked up to her and pulled her into a hug. He didn't want the Eternal to feel alone, even if she was surrounded by her friends, and just giving her the space to let it all go.

M: Esha gratefully accepted the hug, quietly sobbing into Anglo's shoulder as she let her emotions finally spill over.  Askad was shocked, he had never seen Esha cry before, it didn't seem real to him, but it also told him exactly how to help her, by finding the one woman she trusts that understands what she's going through.

"Why does this happen to me," Esha eventually asked, "Why does the universe hate me so, that whenever I am happy something goes horribly wrong, and the people I care about get hurt?  Celtica should have never saved me, the world just wants me to suffer, there's no point in living then."

N: Anglo squeezed her a bit, "don't say such things, Esha. You may not see it but you don't realize the positive impact you have had on our lives. Celtica saving you was the right thing or so many things could be different such as Wales possibly being killed by the Jacobites. You helped with the rescue of your fellow Eternals, a voice of reason when others may not, educating Wales about his heritage, and formed lifetime friendships that may have never occurred. So many things have happened, so many good things, and yes the universe may be against you, but don't neglect to see the good it gave you"

M: Esha didn't respond but she did hear what Anglo was saying, helping her calm down a little and just breathing heavily as her emotions were worn down.  Thankfully, her eyes didn't shatter, she was broken yes but her mind was too strong to shatter, she still let go of Anglo and sat down on a nearby chair to silently gather her thoughts.

Soon after, Askad came back with Celtica in tow, "I brought Celtica, she's the best person for Esha right now."

N: When the Celt walked in, although she was told what happened, she was shocked to see Arthur actually there, so she went over to Esha and sat next to her.

"If you need anyone to talk about, I'm right here," Celtica spoke softly, "I don't want to rush you; I understand that you will need time to yourself, but don't be afraid to just come up to me and vent if you need to."

She sighed deeply and gave the Eternal a side hug.

M: Esha nodded and hugged her back, she was definitely thankful the Celt was there, Anglo helped her out immensely but Celtica felt like an older sister to her, however that works.

"Thank you all, I'm so lucky and glad to have you," she murmured, "but it makes me feel more guilty that I caused England to be captured."

"Eshie, you didn't cause England's capture," Askad reassured her, "no one could have predicted what happened, and while we still don't know how Suebi came back, we will make sure he stays in Jastrem this time."

Esha smiled ruefully, then sighed and leaned further into Celtica, "I'm so tired," she muttered, barely above a whisper.

N: "She needs to rest," Anglo spoke to the Celt, "and after a good nap, and if she's in the right mindset, she could help if she wants."

The other nodded and turned to the Eternal, "let's get you to your room, hmm," Celtica suggested, rubbing Esha's back, "rest and recharge your body."

M: Esha hummed in agreement and let Celtica help her up, but before they left she wanted to say her proper goodbye.

"F-farewell Arther, may the goddess Itous lead you to the kingdom of the great beyond and your soul be forever at peace," she whispered.

Askad slithered up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, they locked eyes for a moment and then nodded.  Esha walked to the other side of Arther's body and placed her hand over his heart, she had to keep herself from crying again when she couldn't feel it beat.  Askad placed his hand over Arther's forehead, then they held each other's free hands, quietly praying in an unknown language.

When they finished their prayer and removed their hands, two glowing symbols were left behind for a moment before disappearing.  Askad and Esha both summoned two figurines, Esha had a silver wolf and Askad had a golden dragon, that they put into Arther's hands. When they were done with their ritual, Esha left with Celtica while Askad stayed behind.

"That was an old tradition we used to do," he explained, "we believe that when someone dies that their mind and heart will be judged to see if they go to the Great Beyond or to Jastrem, we pray to the guardian spirits to guide them and protect their soul, and if we didn't pray then they would be sent to Jastrem."

N: Anglo nodded, not adding anything to the conversation, and soon Royal and BE reentered h the room. The empire had asked where Esha went, so Wales quickly filled him in on what happened.

"I know that this is not the time or the place to talk about this," Royal began, "but I was wondering something, and I may play devil's advocate, but hear me out. Chrysalis is the only one who works for Suebi, and he is the only one who could tell him that England had left; however, the only people who know where England went are Anglo and Saxon, correct?"

The Englishman raised a brow, "continue?"

"Anyone could have known that England had left, I mean Suebi was able to send a messenger to deliver the eagle to BE, but only you and Saxon know where he went, so unless he has mind-reading abilities or that he has snuck out and explored the entire kingdom, how could he have told Suebi were to get England?"

She looked over to Arthur and added, "As well as that, Arthur used to be a Jacobite, as well as his fathers before him, but he would usually report to Saxon about the Jacobite movement, and when he left the group he became Saxon's inside man. So with the note about 'bring me his master', there is a chance it could be either Chrysalis or Saxon?"

"But it makes sense that it would be Grandfather," Wales pointed out, "there are now two Heads of Insurgents, and that would mess up the entire world order and they have history."

"That is true, but we know that he may have made a deal for Chrysalis to have England, so he could easily just ask for him so that he fulfills his side of the deal."The hybrid paused for a moment, letting the information sink in before adding, "So the two things are: how did Chrysalis know where England was so that Suebi could get him, if he even did, and who is the master?"

M: "Well it's obvious that Saxon is the master," Askad said, "Esha was able to tell me a little bit about what happened when we were waiting for Wales, she thinks that Suebi wants to challenge Saxon for the right to be the head of insurgents, just like Prussia did with Mandoria."

He paused as something came to mind, "I know this is a stupid idea, but what if Prussia has something to do with Suebi's return, after all, he's the only one we know that can resurrect people, and Suebi is German, right?"

N: "That is possible," BE hummed, "and they could be in close proximity, and somehow Chrysalis tied into this as his loyal insurgent."

"Is there also a chance," Royal spoke, "that they could be working together?"

Anglo shook his head, "even if one helps the other, they do not have the same aims: Prussia wants to get Mandoria, and I doubt Suebi has any interest in him."

The hybrid took it in and shrugged, "It would make the Yule ball even more interesting with a dying she-wolf, an extra entity, and a flamboyant bird all at the same time." She didn't say anything for a minute before adding, "Also could someone stop the two hellbent men in the dungeons? At this rate, there won't be anything left of Chrysalis."

M: "I'm pretty sure Odrus stopped hours ago," Askad said, "I wandered past one of the common rooms and saw him passed out on a couch, though thankfully he had the decency to rid himself of any blood beforehand and didn't make a mess."

"But on that note, I vote Anglo go get Saxon," he then added, "I don't want to set tail down there ever again, that was just indescribably gruesome, to put it lightly."

N: "Me too," BE nodded, "there is no way in hell I'm going back there." Just the thought of it made the empire nauseated, but he was able to keep himself together after Wales comforted him.

"Odrus stopped," Royal asked, "but I swear I heard two voices in the dungeons talking about Chrysalis."

"Alright," Anglo frowned, "now I'm worried for him. And you decided to not tell me that Saxon was there."

"You were busy-" BE began but the Englishman was already out of the room, marching to the dungeons to find his husband. However, the first thing he was surprised to see was that there wasn't a guard there at the cell, as well as the strong metallic smell that filled the area.

When he saw the state of the cell, he froze, seeing Saxon just sitting limply against the wall, his eyes closed while a crossed-shaped blood stain bleeds into the left side of his chest.

Meanwhile, Chrysalis wasn't any better, his hours of torture clearly evident on his body, although he seemed more comfortable, lying down on his bed, sleeping while he had generally stopped bleeding.

"Saxon," he gasped, rushing into the cell to check on the entity, although he was out cold, so he decided to carry him back to the infirmary, wondering what happened.

As he walked out, he glanced over to the insurgent, checking on him before he left, and he ordered a soldier to guard his cell until a replacement was brought.

When the country rushed the entity back to the infirmary, there were some people already there, and BE came along and asked what had happened. "I-I don't know," he stuttered, "he-he was just sitting there."

One of the doctors came to examine Saxon, seeing the injuries he had sustained. "It seems like there has been a deep cut," they concluded, unbuttoning the entity's shirt to show the large X on his left chest, "and the bruise on the side of his head, as well as his pupils being different sizes, may suggest that he has been hit pretty hard on the head and has sustained a concussion."

"Where was the guard in all of this," the empire wondered aloud.

"He wasn't there," Anglo quietly replied as he watched the nurses patching up Saxon's wound, "Suebi used to do that, the mark. What if he was there?"

"The wound does suggest that it was recent," the doctor nodded, "but that could range from a few minutes to an hour."

M: Mandoria and Rowen were in the infirmary with Prudoria, who they were trying to teach him about the outside world.  The country stood up and walked over to the British.

"But if it was Suebi, how did he get into the compound, let alone the dungeons," he asked, "and how do we know he even left?"

N: "We could ask Odrus," Anglo suggested, "he was the last person to see Saxon before whatever happened, so maybe he has the answers."

Meanwhile, BE was pacing the room, frustrated with himself that he allowed this to slip passed him. "I swear," he grumbled, "the moment I find that guard, he will get more than the punishment for desertion."

The Englishman tried his best to calm the empire down before asking, "Wasn't there one before."

"There was a new one since the usual guard was traumatized from what he saw. I mean, the new one could have easily left for the same reason."

"Who ordered the guard to be there?"

BE paused for a moment, "I ... I assumed that Royal had ordered them-"

"How," Anglo frowned, "she didn't even know what was happening?"

The empire stood there, wondering how the guard was even there before he shook his head, "That surely is a coincidence. For now, let's either wait for Odrus or Grandfather to wake up to tell us what happened." Despite that, the Brit was stiff visibly confused, continuing to wonder.

M: The Mandorians glanced at each other and shrugged, they also didn't know exactly what happened but had a relatively good idea of it.

About two hours later and Odrus stumbled into the infirmary, he looked like he was drunk and sat down on a bed, holding his head in pain.

"Are you ok Odrus," Rowen asked.

"I don't know, I feel like my head is about to explode," the eternal groaned, "and I don't even know how it happened, I don't recall drinking or getting into a fight."

N: "If you hadn't unleashed whatever you had in you," BE grumbled, "demon or whatnot, you might have remembered."

"I beg your pardon," Anglo spoke in surprise, "a demon?" When the empire had explained it to him, the winged country turned to Odrus, "If this demon of yours was the one responsible for what happened to Saxon, then you better have a tighter leash on it. If it decided to show its face, then do your business elsewhere."

"Grandpa, you're being a bit harsh."

"I am being perfectly reasonable," the country answered, staring at the Eternal, "because if you were the one who made the mark, you may have just opened a whole can of worms, one that has affected both Saxon and I because of his Vater."

The country then walked over to Saxon and sat on a chair next to him, avoiding any eye contact with Odrus. BE still felt that the man may be over-exaggerating, so he walked over to the Eternal and asked, "Is there anything you do remember? Anything at all?"

M: Odrus looked utterly confused, he hadn't the faintest clue of what was going on.

"What are you talking about, a demon, that's utterly absurd," he stated, "what in the five realms of Jas-"

He paused, it started coming back to him, not what he did to Chrysalis, but the overwhelming anger he felt towards him, that's when he covered his mouth in shock.

"Oh my god, he's still with me," he gasped, "that was millions of years ago, why is he still here?!"

"Who is still here," Mandoria asked, though his question went unanswered as Odrus walked to Anglo and Saxon.

"No, he wouldn't make this mark," the eternal explained as he tried to heal it, "I can't believe he's still here though, I thought he left after our deal was finished."

N: "Well, clearly he hasn't," BE pointed out, "the dungeons look like hell, you tore the insurgent apart, and one of my guards is traumatized for life-" The empire suddenly stopped when he realized something, and rushed out of the room without saying a word.

Anglo only watched as Odrus did his best to heal Saxon, not minding the fact that BE had left. "If you didn't do it," he asked, "then who bloody did it? This is what Suebi did to Saxon when he was younger, but how could have he entered the dungeons undetected?"

M: "I don't know, I'm not a psyche," Odrus defended himself, "the only one who probably knows that is Saxon."

The eternal seemed panicked as he thought about what could have happened while he was "out", and it scared him.  "I never wanted this, all that work trying to gain Chrysalis's trust has gone to waste, now he'll never tell us anything."

"To be honest, after hearing what happened, I'd be surprised if he could even speak again," Mandoria muttered, earning an elbow to the ribs to be quiet.

N: "It's true," Anglo admitted, "seeing him in the dungeons, I doubt he will utter a word."

BE soon returned, and with him was the previous guard to Chrysalis' cell, who still looked pretty shaken up. "I just had a conversation with the guard here," the empire explained, "and he said that he had never seen the previous guard before."

"When he came to take over my post," the guard spoke, "admittedly, I wanted to leave the place as soon as possible; however, I recall that I have never seen him before, and I know most, if not all the guards who are stationed in the dungeons."

"So, whoever this is, they are an outsider, and it's best to assume that they are connected to Suebi." Anglo looked over to his grandson before turning to Saxon, "Well, we just have to wait until he wakes up and tells us everything, assuming he hasn't forgotten it."

M: Odrus groaned in frustration and buried his face him his hands, unable to believe any of this was real, "I'm such a fool."

"You're not a fool Odrus," Rowen reassured him, patting his shoulder, "Chrysalis has been wracking everyone's nerves and someone was bound to snap sooner or later."

"That's the thing though, I snapped, I never snap," Odrus whimpered, "if I did it once who's to say I won't do it again, and what if my family gets in the crossfire next time?"

He sat on a bed and brought his knees to his chest, "I'm scared now, am I just a walking time bomb, that could blow at any moment and possibly hurt the ones he cares about, I don't want that, I don't want to hurt anyone else."

N: After BE had dismissed the guard, he walked up to Odrus, "You're not going to hurt anyone, you hear me," he reassured him, "we will stay by you and make sure that that demon never shows its face. However, I would like to ask, how exactly did you make the deal, and what were the exact terms of the deal?"

"Why would you want to know," Anglo asked, "it's not as if you're going to make a deal with the devil."

"I think it is in everyone's best interest to get rid of the threat altogether," the empire answered before turning to Odrus, "I have made plenty of deals, and it is always the fine print that trips people up as they think it is the least important, when in reality it is the most important thing in the whole document. So, tell me Odrus, what exactly was the contract?"

M: Odrus was silent, a look of conflicting emotions on his face before he hid it in his knees. "I-I'm ... not ready to talk about that yet," he muttered, "It's a sensitive topic."

"It's ok Odrus, you don't have to talk about it right now," Mandoria said, "you take as much time as you need to be able to open up, but remember that we can't help you yet if we don't know what's going on."

Odrus nodded and said nothing more, continuing to hide away from his fears.  It pained the Mandarians to see their friend that way, but they knew that they couldn't help him until he helped himself.

The winged country then cleared his throat before asking, "Anglo, did you and Esha find anything while you were gone?

N: Anglo paused for a moment before deciding to answer. "Esha was able to access the memory of a dead soldier we found in my old home, the same place England was staying at, and it showed Suebi taking England away. Weirdly, he also directly addressed us and sent us on his 'game' to find my son, and that was when we found Sir Bekerel's body."

The country turned away as he faced Saxon, "we found a note attached to him: 'bring me his master', so we decided to come back. One reason was that I needed to check on Saxon to tell him about the note, since he used to be in charge of Arthur, and check if the insurgent could possibly be the master, but the main reason was to make sure Esha was taken care of. It was clear that ... his death deeply affected her."

M: "I see," Mandoria muttered, regretting that he asked, "Where is Esha now then."

"In her room," Askad stated, suddenly appearing at the door, "I went to check on her, Celtica's still with her and she's stable for the most part, but she wanted me to tell you guys something."

He slithered in and held up a book in his hand, "No one in this room would remember this book except Saxon, it is what led us to find Sofia, it also led a certain deceased friend to reveal that his master was Chrysalis, not Saxon.  Suebi wants Chrysalis back, I guess he wants to trade one prisoner for another."

N: "Then that's easy," BE spoke, "exchange Chrysalis for Father, get rid of the insurgent, and get him back. Simple."

"It's not that simple," Anglo countered, "Suebi isn't that kind of person; he was the Head of Insurgents after all. He has someone that he would like to keep close, England, and he is asking for the person who he made the deal with, Chrysalis. And don't forget that he has somehow bound Ora, so we need to know how to break that seal."

M: "Not to mention he's probably going to be a little miffed at the state Chrysalis is in," Askad added, "I mean, assuming he doesn't already know, Chrysalis seems to be very loyal to Suebi and we don't know what their personal relationships are, he could be angry that his first mate is mutilated."

The naga sighed and rubbed his forehead in exasperation, "This is getting ridiculous, clearly Saxon is our only means of willful information at this point so he needs to wake up, Anglo I apologize in advance for this."

Before anyone could say anything, Askad slithered up to Saxon and slapped him upside the face as hard as he could, shouting, "Wake up, you're son is still in danger, quit being lazy and help us rescue him!"

N: "He has a concussion-" Anglo blurted out, but it was too late and Saxon jolted up, his eyes open wide as he slammed his head against Askad's. The entity didn't even register the pain as he immediately doubled over and threw up into a nearby bucket.

"Concussion, plus a head butt," the doctor shook his head disappointedly as he came over to assist the entity, helping him out until he was steady.

Saxon didn't say anything, staring into space almost as if he was seeing something in front of him, so Anglo waved his hand in front of his face, but he didn't register it. When the winged country finally touched his shoulder, the entity flinched, his eyes filled with fear as he reached his X-shaped incision.

"Was ist los (what's the matter)," Anglo spoke softly, worried about how Saxon's eyes kept flickering between the people in the room, "was dort geschah (what happened down there)?"

The entity stayed quiet for a moment before whispering, "ich sah ihn (I saw him)." He held his head, feeling suddenly lightheaded before adding, "Er fühlte sich so echt (he felt so real)."

BE and Anglo exchange a glance before the winged country sat on Saxon's bed, holding his spouse's hands in his own before asking him what happened.

"I was ... busy," Saxon began, staring at their hands, "and after Odrus left I decided to take a break, so I started to talk with the guard, but he seemed to be judging my every statement. I wasn't facing him, and when I snapped at him, he fell silent, and after a while, I turned to see if he was there, and there he stood," he paused for a bit as a lump formed in his throat, "Vater was right there, leaning against the open door, looking right at me. I don't even know how he got there, or when he got there, or where the guard went, but I don't remember much after that, and I don't want to."

M: Askad grunted as he was slammed into, holding his eye in pain and backing up a bit.

"Well that serves you right for slapping him," Mandoria scolded, smacking him with his wing, "leave him alone, he's been through enough for one day."

"I shouldn't have left," Odrus muttered to himself, "I could have stopped him."

No one heard what he said as Rowen asked, "Wait, was Chrysalis still there when you found Saxon, Anglo, because if Suebi was actually there he could have taken the insurgent himself, right?"

N: "Yes, he was," Anglo nodded, "which is something I don't understand. Wouldn't it be easier just to take him right there and then, the only thing that was different was that Chrysalis looks like he has healed a bit, his bleeding has stopped, and he seemed to be sleeping peacefully when I was there. Well, as peaceful you can get when you have one less limb."

"So it can't be him," BE inferred, "that would have been a golden opportunity just to take him; anyone knows that, and especially a Head of Insurgents could see that."

"I swear it was him," Saxon muttered, looking at his grandson, "I swear on my sword that the man I saw was Vater."

The empire sighed, "If you insist. What I don't also understand is why Chrysalis is loyal to him in the first place. Yes, he's an insurgent, but what about him attracts him?"

M: "Suebi promised him vengeance on the English family for killing his sister," Odrus blurted, finally uncurling from the fetal position, "Saxon knows about this, it's why Chrysalis isn't allowed to work with other insurgents.  I'm a little fuzzy on the details since it was back when we first caught him, but there was an English insurgent that he was very close to, and saw as his sister, but she died by English hands and he wants revenge for that."

"So you're saying that Chrysalis made a deal with the devil to get even with the British," Mandoria asked, and when Odrus nodded he sighed, "That just means that England is in even more danger than we anticipated."

N: "Thema," BE asked in confusion, "seriously, is that man still hung up about her? It's her fault that she openly rebelled; we have been somewhat lenient on what she has done because of her association with Grandfather, but she wanted war, so we gave it."

"If you were in his shoes, wouldn't you understand," Anglo frowned before explaining, "Anathema, the insurgent against us, was killed in England's advance against her some decades ago. Now knowing of their close relationship, I agree that my son is in danger and we need to find him."

"But how did you know about Anathema," the empire raised a brow, "I doubt Chrysalis just opened up about her."

M: "You forget my abilities easily, don't you," Odrus grumbled, "I can see spirits, she hangs around Chrysalis often, I allowed him to see her again too, which is why I made the connection with him in the first place."

He paused for a second, then chuckled ruefully, "She's actually here right now, she's trying to strangle BE but she can't touch him.  Clearly, she's also still pissed about her death."

N: Anathema turned to Odrus when she heard she was mentioned, then she tried once more punch to BE's gut before giving up. The insurgent then stared at the Eternal, her eyes seemed puffy as if she has been crying, and clenched her fists.

"You think this is funny," she shouted, although not a peep came from her, "you think it is a joking matter to leave Chrysalis behind. That man is too caring for his own good."

She marched up to him, and in a swift motion punched him square in the face, and was satisfied that it actually landed. "I watched what you did to him, how you ripped him apart, and I couldn't do anything but stand by, seeing my little brother dying in front of me just as he saw me die. And you didn't think once about how he was able to know where England was, you fucking idiot?"

The insurgent pointed at Anglo and Saxon, "They were the only people who knew where England was, no one else did, so how was he able to tell Suebi where, hmm? Did you know he had some respect for you, for what you did to him, for letting him see me, but you made a mistake."

Tears started to form in her eyes as she slapped Odrus across the face, "You assumed he was the only one who wanted vengeance on England, you assumed wrong and now an innocent man was punished for a crime he didn't commit."

Streaks of tears ran down her face as she ran away, wanting to be beside Chrysalis to comfort him as much as she could.

M: Everyone was startled when Odrus's head whipped to the side, but he just stared in shock at the doorway.

"Odrus, what happened, are you ok," Askad asked, he tried to reach out for his friend but was surprised he pushed his hand away.

"No, I'm not ok, I just made the worst mistake in my life," he muttered, on the verge of tears, "I-I ... I need to be alone."

He jumped down from the bed and rushed away, he didn't know what to do, he just needed time to think.

N: Everyone went quiet as Odrus ran away until BE spoke up, "What... what was that about? And there was no one at the door, so why was he looking there?"

"He did say that Anathema was here," Anglo pointed out while he slowly rubbed Saxon's back, "maybe she went towards the door."

"But that still doesn't explain what happened?"

"So maybe someone should check on him," the winged country suggested, "I know that he said that he needs to be alone, but someone should be there just to keep an eye on him. He's clearly not stable and isn't in the mind to be by himself."

M: The others hesitated, after what Odrus did to Chrysalis, they were scared that if they angered him they too would become hunks of bloody meat.

"If I had to guess, Ana- whatever her name was, is probably furious at Odrus for what he did and hit him," Askad said, "with that being said, however, I'm not sure I really want to intrude on him after all that, I feel like that's just asking to be gutted."  Mandoria and Rowen nodded in agreement.

N: Anglo sighed, "I understand your concern, but Odrus didn't call himself a walking time bomb for nothing. He believes that he will explode any moment and lash out at the people closest to him, and I fully agree that he should have some time to himself, but as long as he keeps everything to himself, the likelihood of him overburdening himself and crashing again only increases. So, for his sake, someone go and keep an eye on him?"

"You didn't see how he was before," BE countered, shuddering at the thought, "he was ... he's currently unpredictable."

"I saw the aftermath, and I have seen my fair share of torture, but I still stand by what I said. I can't go because I have to take care of Saxon, and if none of you are willing to go, find someone who will."

M: The others glanced at one another again, then Askad shrugged and left to find where Odrus ran off to.

Mandoria sighed and rubbed his forehead, glancing at Prudoria who was asleep with his manticore.  "At this point, things are getting incredibly frustrating,  we can't seem to have one good or calm day, it's like we're cursed or something."

N: "We have been from day one," Anglo muttered quietly so that no one heard, helping Saxon lie down so he can rest before burying his face in his hands. BE meanwhile followed after Askad to check on Odrus.

"Esha's been dealt with," he began to list, "Odrus is being taken care of; both Saxon and Prudoria are resting. Now we need to find England, free Ora, organize the Yule ball, make sure Prussia doesn't arrive, see if Wilfred has found Mandara and Derogan, and help Saxon with his nightmares ..."

The Englishman kept on going, and his shoulders and wings sunk as he was physically and mentally drained from the day. The entity heard him rambling, so he rested his hand on his head, telling him to stop, so the country fell quiet as he rested his head on the bed, facing the Mandorians.

"Tell me some good news," Anglo groaned, "what good thing has come out of your day?"

M: The two were quiet at first, trying to process what Anglo was rambling about, but Rowen eventually answered.

"Well, we've mostly been teaching Prudoria about life outside of a cell, he and Johann have gotten onto a friendly foot so that's good.  Oh, Sofia came in earlier and played with them for a bit."

Mandoria smiled at that, "It was so adorable, Prudoria let her play doctor on him and Johann acted as her assistant, they were just acting like siblings do.  I guess that even though things seem bleak, it actually just brings us closer together."