Eric set a quick pace as the Army marched out of Molt, something buzzing in the back of his mind. Samson walked beside him, and at a glance, Eric saw his Second's mouth downturned in a frown.

"Problem, Steele?"

"No, Sir." Samson kept his eyes forward. After a split second, he cleared his throat. "I suppose it's just...that woman. Phoenix. Did she seem familiar to you?"

Eric squinted ahead, thinking about the odd girl from Molt. Her tattoos reminded him of something, but he couldn't place them. It was like his mind couldn't remember certain things. His time seemed fuzzy, difficult to place. What happened before Molt? Achal--what happened in Achal? Something important...

And Treywick. Weren't they in Treywick for some time? Surely there was a reason.

"Sir? Did you hear me?" Samson's arched brow drew Eric back. 

"Yes, and no, she didn't seem familiar. At least, not her face. Something about her, though..."

"That's what I thought."

"Anyone in particular she made you think of?" Samson asked. "I couldn't place it. I just felt...she felt--" Samson stopped abruptly, his mouth snapping closed.

It was Eric's turn to arch a brow. "How did she feel?"

"Familiar. Just familiar." 

"Familiar," Eric repeated. "We don't have time to waste on her now."

"Sir?"

"I just remembered where we're going."

"The Pass, yes?" 

"Yes. Right. Yes." Eric shook his head, that strange buzzing sensation still there. What was happening to him?

#

"We have to go a different way," Phoenix said, standing in her and Noelle's shared room at the Molt Inn. "We can't just keep following the Army. They might notice, or, you know...get suspicious?"

"We could probably get around them," Roman said, lounging on what was going to be Phoenix's bed.

"We could run around them," Noelle suggested. "You know," she gestured between the other two, "with speed."

Roman scoffed. "You can't run as fast as me."

"Regardless, what about you?" Phoenix asked Noelle. "You don't have speed."

"Oh I'm a very good piggy-backer. Small, light, able to be pretty compact. If only I knew someone who was strong enough to carry me while running." Noelle smirked at Phoenix.

"All right, I get it. I could carry you." Roman sat up. "I've never done it before but-"

"I was talking about Phoenix." Noelle pointed with arched brows. Roman jerked back, bewildered. "Sorry."

"You're strong enough to carry her?" Roman asked. "And run? You'll hardly be able to go anywhere. I have the gift of speed. You--"

"I'm a Guardian." Phoenix said. "It's part of the package." 

"Wait, what? You're--you're a Guardian?" 

"I find it a little bit sad you hadn't figured that out by now." Noelle stood and patted Roman on the top of the head. "It's okay. I didn't even know who she was when she saved my life, and I knew her already."

Roman stared with dumb shock at Phoenix, who frowned. 

"I'm so sorry. I forgot we hadn't told you," Phoenix shook her head. "But I guess we didn't."

Shaking his head, Roman let out a little laugh. "Okay, so we run. It's not conducive to do for too long, at least not for Noelle. Too much force on the body could do damage. But we could at least get a ways ahead of them."

"This is going to be so amazing," Noelle said with a squeal. "I've never traveled anywhere in my life and now I get to travel at extreme speed." She turned to Phoenix. "I'm so glad you saved me and let me come."

"Okay, I let you know about me, is it maybe my turn to learn more about you?" Roman asked. "I mean, why did you need saving? And what does it mean to be a Guardian?"

"Looks like we're in for a long night," Phoenix said with a smile. "Noelle, why don't you start."

#

Maverick stopped at a boulder, leaning against it to drink from the skein of water. Youlden hummed along beside him, merrily pausing his jaunt as Maverick did. 

"We're making good time," Youlden said, glancing up at the sky. "At this rate, we'll be in Groschen in no time. Then you'll be able to continue on east."

Maverick's jaw clenched. "I guess so."

"You don't seem excited?"

"I guess I just don't know what I'll find." Maverick cleared his throat. "I don't know if I made the right decision." 

Youlden leaned against the boulder. "Ever since we started this journey, you've been up and down. Excited one minute, morose the next. It's fine and all that you don't want to tell me too much, but I can't be of any help to you if you won't talk."

"I'm Maverick Knight," he replied.

"I know that."

Mav shook his head. "No, I mean...my mother is--was--Clarice Tremaine. I'm the heir to the throne."

"I knew that, too." 

Maverick whirled around, and Youlden shrugged. "How---how?"

"I know a lot of things I shouldn't, but I know who you are because your father trusted me. When I saw you in my shop, I knew what it meant." Youlden glanced down at his gloved hands. "Sometimes you have to make a move that you think is right. If it turns out you were wrong later, you fix it."

Maverick too glanced at Youlden's hands. "What are you? What are those markings? I've seen them before. On a Guardian."

Youlden sighed. "I don't know. I know I'm something. These make people uncomfortable." He waved his hands about. "I keep them hidden so people can trust me. But I was alone in Shoma, with no one else like me, so no one there could tell me what it was."

"I always knew what I was," Mav said, not meeting Youlden's eye. "Didn't make it any easier."

"That's why your parents died. Because of who they were." Youlden shook his head. "The Army discovered them?" Mav nodded. "But not you or your sister?"

"Commander Lee stabbed me and they left me for dead. My sister wasn't there, and--and Eric acted like I was the only child." Maverick shook his head. He still didn't fully understand why Eric had done what he did--why he stabbed in him a spot Mav could recover from, and why he pretended Laina didn't exist.

"Commander Lee is a complex character," Youlden said. "I've met him. He seems...confused."

"He used to be my friend."

"I wouldn't count him out just yet." Youlden pushed away from the boulder. "Let's get going." He glanced back at Maverick. "If you want me to go with you beyond Groschen, all you need to do is ask."

Maverick offered a smile, straightening to join Youlden.

Another three POV chapter! Hope you enjoyed seeing everyone.
It's short, as I've been sick and inundated with edits. Sorry it's a day late. Hopefully Thursday will still go as planned! Dedicated this chapter to RoLanderW because I made sure it got up Wednesday as asked!

Roman now knows the truth. Samson suspects something, and Eric is...in trouble--what's wrong with him?

Mav misses his sister, but at least he has Youlden, right? I love that guy.