The Same, But Different

"Not used to the branches yet?" Kyro asks, chuckling as he looks at the folded Tanzide sitting before him. The boat pulls out from the large tunnel of the Stem, the switching gravity causing the nose of the vessel to right itself, wooden hull down to the land of Raj. A land that is now covered in snow.

Krash releases a wheezing sigh, his fur-covered hands wedged under his dented cuirass to hold his stomach. His white mane flips as he shakes his head quickly, earning a loud bout of laughter from more than just Kyro.

Kyro wipes a joyful tear from his eye, still chuckling, "Don't be embarrassed, we were all like that once," he says, peering past the Tanzide at the one controlling the vessel, "You remember, don't you, Ingen? You told me that your first trip through the branches was, well... unsavory."

Ingen sniffs, "Half the time I was blinded by those damned lights. The other half I spent too busy leaning over the side of the boat," he says, the memory seeming just as Kyro had said.

As if reacting to Ingen's story of vomit and disorientation, Krash scrambles over to the side of the boat, his claws digging into the wood as a full day's worth of food pours back out from him.

Cage cringes at the guttural sound coming from the Tanzide, "I've felt a bit queasy in the branches, but never enough to do that," he says, gesturing to Krash, who now drapes tiredly over the side of the boat, panting.

Kyro scoffs, "You'd actually have to eat for that to happen."

"Touche," Cage responds, nodding. He looks over the side of the boat. The bodies he had once seen the first time arriving on Raj are now piles of white snow. Weapons and body parts poke out here and there, and a few beasts prowl over the land, looking for dinner that is not frozen.

"Drop us low, Ingen," Kyro says, turning and pointing to the forest in the south, the usually colorful trees now sprayed white, "We can use the trees as cover just in case. Once we get close enough to Yellen, we'll land in the forest."

Ingen nods, twisting his hand on the Control Orb, the whisps of light within swirling with the movement. The boat turns toward the forest. As it flies above where the snow-covered trees begin, Ingen loosens his grip on the orb and the boat falls slowly until the leaves nearly brush the hull.

There is silence for a while, three of the four hearts aboard the vessel thumping with anticipation. The remaining heart is just beginning to calm from a different kind of thumping. Krash straightens his back, sighing, "Glad that's over," he mutters to himself.

Krash looks at Kyro, then Cage, who are both staring at the mountain and tall wall in the distance. The Tanzide rests his eyes on Kyro, rubbing the fur on the back of his hand nervously, "Kyro," he says, earning the Rajin's attention, "I need to tell you something."

Kyro raises a brow, as if already suspecting something. However, he only nods, "Go ahead."

Cage looks at the Tanzide as well, watching as his massive pant-covered leg begins to bounce on the floor of the boat. Now that Cage thinks about it, Krash never answered his question. Of course, the mass of stone that fell upon them is to blame.

"I, uh... I know that your sister is Yoru. I've heard stories about both of you, as I'm sure many others have. The bloodhound and the Head Scribe, siblings destined for great things, as they say," Krash says, his voice muffled with nerves.

"I'm not very fond of that name," Kyro says, eyes narrowing at the Tanzide, "What is this about, Krash? Why bring up my sister?"

"Well, I..." Krash clasps his hands together as if to keep them from shaking, "...Yoru is the one that told me about the Rage Stones. I knew there was something that allowed the Rajin army to remain free for so long, but she wouldn't give it up. I was desperate, so I threatened her," Krash says, avoiding eye contact with either man before him.

Kyro stares at the Tanzide, eyes narrowed, "Look at me," he says with a commanding voice, and the order is followed. He leans forward until his nose is mere inches from Krash's snout, "Did you touch her?" Kyro asks sternly.

Krash twitches, "Well, I um..."

"Did you..." Kyro hisses through his teeth, spit flying into the Tanzides face, "...Touch her?"

"N-no! No, I never touched her! I only threaten-" Krash is interrupted by a familiar force cracking into his snout. He reels back, hands to his snout to stifle the blood flow. Ingen pushes him back forward as Krash nearly falls into his lap, "I don't need any more blood on me," Ingen says annoyedly.

"Be glad you only threatened her," Kyro says, brows furrowed, "If you did, you wouldn't be on this boat anymore."

Cage stares up at the Tanzide as bleeds through and stains the fur on his fingers, "Do you know what happens to Rajin people who talk about the Rage Stones to anyone?" He asks.

Krash meets his eyes, shaking his head, "No," he says, spitting blood that has already made its way into his mouth.

"They are executed. No questions asked," Kyro sneers, leaning forward and shaking Krash a bit by his shoulder. Their eyes meet, one pair wide, the other narrowed with anger, "You will stay here until we retrieve my sister. If she is alive, then you will go back to your people with those stones. If she is dead..." Veins pop in Kyro's hand as he tightens his grip, a muffled crack sounding from Krash's shoulder. The Tanzide winces, but that murderous gaze halts any thoughts of screaming.

"...I will break every bone in your body. Then..." Kyro raises his sword, white energy appearing on the blade. The edges go from deadly sharp to a useless dull, "...I'll slowly cut off parts of you, starting with your feet. Your people will all be either dead or in chains, and you'll have to think about that as you slowly bleed out. Me? I won't feel a thing for them... I won't be able to."

Kyro releases his hand, his gaze glued to Krash's watery yellow eyes. The Tanzide holds his shoulder, shaking uncontrollably with pain and fear, "Let us hope that she is still alive..." Kyro says, "...For all of our sakes."

Cage looks between Krash and Kyro. He is reminded of the time when Yoru took Cage to the gates his first morning here, the woman had the same look in her eyes then as Kyro does now. They are siblings, after all.

He looks at Ingen, eyes wide. Ingen raises a brow as he meets the man's pitch-black gaze, "You expected a different reaction?" He says, looking at Kyro, "She is alive, Kyro. If she's been arrested, then there will at least be a delay while the stage is set up for a public execution. We have time."

"What if they've already set it up?" Cage asks, looking between Ingen and Kyro, "I can get her from a cell, but from the middle of the city, in broad daylight?... The entire Rajin army and city guard will be on me in seconds."

Kyro hums, sliding a hand through his black hair, which is tied in a ponytail as usual, "Now that I think about it, they'll be on you either way. If she's still locked up, then she'll be in Ludan's tower in the back of the city. You'll have to escort her from there to the gate, and unless every man in the city has suddenly gone blind, then..."

Ingen wipes a hand over his broad face, the scars on his massive arm stretching with the movement, "We have to go with him. There's no other choice," he says.

"We wait for night, then. Go over the walls and try to be as quiet as possible," Cage says, "Forget saving Yoru, if they see you two, we'll be swarmed before even reaching the gate."

Kyro sighs, "You're right," He looks at Krash, who sags his head, blood-stained hands limp in his lap, "Things just got a lot more complicated."

---

Cage walks down the road, bare feet slapping against the cold stone with snow crammed into each crevice. He shivers, looking around at the snow piled at least a foot high on either side of the road. Does someone actually come to clear the road? Glad it's not me, Cage thinks, my toes were already numb when we landed.

The last, and only other time he's been on this road, Alyra had been with him. He was calm then, away from the everyday struggles of life, his mind focused only on the comfortable presence walking beside him. This time, the comfort provided by Alyra is replaced by constantly racing thoughts.

He runs simulations in his mind, preparing himself for the worst and best-case scenarios. One image is of Yoru kneeling on a stage in one of the plazas, tears in her bright yellow eyes as a blade falls upon her.

Another is of Cage walking into Yoru's office to see her sitting behind that desk, scribbling on parchment as she always does. Her smile is bright in this one, and becomes even brighter as Cage escorts her through the gates of Yellen and onto a waiting vessel.

Cage hopes for the second possibility, of course. But what will he do if the first image comes to pass? What will he tell Kyro and Ingen? And what will they do with the news? Will they charge into Yellen on a suicide mission for vengeance, or will they take their own lives right in front of Cage?

Perhaps their reaction will not be so destructive, but Cage would rather be prepared for the worst. If he isn't, then the pain may just overwhelm him when things like that come to pass.

No matter what, Cage has something that he needs to do. He will leave Raj and find his brother, with company or without. Though if he is forced to go alone, Cage isn't sure he'll be able to get as close as he is to Yoru and the others with anyone else. He's already lost his home and his family once before. If he loses everything again, then perhaps Cage is meant to go on this journey alone.

It will hurt, but he will have no choice. He has to be realistic about these things. He has to be.

Cage sets his eyes on the road before him, steps firm. The walls of Yellen can be seen miles away through the falling flakes of snow. That statue of Betor stands tall atop the mountain, everything below that raised hammer covered in white. Even now, it feels a bit strange to see something like this. The swarm of bustling bodies inside those walls may be the same as in the cities on Earth, but the similarities stop there.

Cage passes under trees that line the road, shivering all the while. Cold wind assaults his nose and cheeks, and they soon go numb along with his toes. White, white, and more white. Ingen was not joking when he spoke about the winter. When Cage left, there was a chill in the wind, sure, but nothing even remotely close to this freezing blizzard.

Cage sees a figure curled up beneath a tree ahead. A short white dress under a thick black coat. Red skin, black hair. Cage walks up to the figure, feet crunching in the snow. The person lifts their head, meeting his gaze.

"Alyra," Cage says softly, furrowing his brows. Her eyes and cheeks are wet, and she's shaking, "What are you doing out here? You'll freeze to death." Though he's not doing much better in his dirty and tattered robe.

Alyra rises to her feet, silver eyes glued to Cage's black, her nose and cheeks a deeper shade of red than usual, "I feel so alone in those walls," She says, walking slowly toward him.

Cage freezes as Alyra wraps her arms around him and lays her head on his chest, "Worry about yourself first. At least I have a coat," She mutters.

Cage gently wraps his arms around her head, settling into the embrace. She's warm, amazingly warm against the cold wind attacking his face, "True," Cage says, chuckling lightly.

Alyra sniffles, her hot breath piercing through Cage's robe, "You smell like shit," she says, "You leave me and Yoru alone here, then come back in this state."

"I know. I never said I was the smartest," Cage says, basking in the warmth, "Why are you out here? Don't you have to be at the Archive today?"

"I quit being a Scribe," Alyra says, pulling her head back and looking up at Cage, "I, uh... I broke the new Head Scribe's nose. She's the one that told the guards about Yoru... Oh, yeah, Yoru is-"

"She's still alive, right? Right?" Cage asks with pleading words.

Alyra furrows her brows, sniffling again, "Yes, she's alive," she says, "You already knew about it?"

"I didn't know if she was still alive, but yeah," Cage says, gesturing with a nod to the forest, "Kyro and Ingen are waiting for me. We found the one that Yoru told about the Rage Stones, he's waiting with them."

"Oh..." Alyra says, "...Kyro and Ingen are there? Why are they not in the Collector Village?"

"Their trackers are gone. They're free," Cage responds, smiling.

"So you actually did it," Alyra returns a wide smile of her own.

Cage nods, staring down at her. He takes a deep breath, readying himself for rejection, "Have you thought about it? After we have Yoru, we're leaving. If you're going with us, then I need to know. Now," he says, "It's your choice."

"I don't know, Cage," Alyra responds, looking at his neck, pausing to sort her thoughts, "Why would you want me to go? I'm not as smart as Yoru, I can't fight like Kyro and Ingen, and I don't have powers like you. Whatever your powers are," she says, meeting his eyes again, "I'm useless."

"Don't say things like that, Alyra. I'm not asking you because of what you can do, I'm asking because I value your presence. I feel like I can relax when you're around," Cage says, "And don't try to say the others don't want you. Yoru is the one that brought this up to me in the first place."

"Really?" Alyra asks.

Cage nods, raising a brow, "Do you really think she wants to travel across the Preasi with a bunch of hot-breathed men? I know how close you two are, and I also know she would be a lot happier if you were with her on this journey," he says.

Alyra pauses, narrowing her eyes. She studies Cage for a moment, as if trying to find something in those black eyes.

Cage chuckles, raising a brow, "I'm a bad liar, remember?" he says.

"Obviously," Alyra says, pulling back. She stands there for a moment, looking at Cage, shivering, "Can we at least get warm before we do anything else?"

Cage grins, "I'm sure Ingen or Kyro can whip up a nice fire. We'll be spending the night in the forest, unfortunately," he says, pointing to the line of trees about a mile away.

Alyra's shoulders drop, a frustrated look on her face, "Fine," She walks past Cage and toward the forest, still shivering, whispering curses to herself. Something about being a gentleman.

Cage follows behind her and begins to shiver as well, the last bits of Alyra's heat leaving him. He had planned to head into the city to find out what happened to Yoru while they were gone. But now that he already knows, he can return and relay the information to Kyro and Ingen.

Tonight, they will infiltrate Yellen and free Yoru. Cage knows they will succeed, but whether it will be without bloodshed, well...

...Things never work out that well.