Mortance: Summer's Snow

Fred Ⅱ

"They're bound for a ship bound for the Sacred Isle," I explained. "We have to go and stop the invasion somehow."

"How? There's only six of us," Clover asked.

"How many were they?" Ser Robert asked.

"About a dozen," Cypress said. "But it's not just them invading. They told me half of Elsinct's army will be setting sail by the darkness of the slower moon."

"They'll be sailing with six stowaways, I think," Ser Robert said. "Which port?"

"Gulton."

"Let us rid ourselves of this filthy inn, then," the old knight decided. "Gulton shall be our gateway to the Sacred Isle."

Those words set us on our path again. Cypress, Amber, Daisy, Clover, Ser Robert, and I all embarked westward, as the soldiers did, following the Elnut River towards the sea. Doubt sowed itself into the party soon enough, as happens when only half the party cares for the war you're running to, though nobody spoke theirs until late in the second day from the village.

"Stowing away is a stupid idea," Cypress told me. Out of all the repenting sinners, I would've expected her to have the least doubts.

"How so?" I asked.

"We don't know what we're walking into," she said. "They could be sailing out on dinghies for all we're aware. Six people is a lot to hide, too."

"Do you have something better to offer?"

"Not that you'd agree with," she said. "But I've stowed away twice to Kark and back. This isn't theory to me."

"You want to travel by land into Sacreon, then," I guessed.

"I don't want that, but-"

"We should do that," Clover broke in. "There's no need to risk ourselves when we have another option."

"The prince only tasked you with bringing us to Sacreon, the war is his to fight," Amber argued.

"The war is not his alone," I told her. "It belongs to us all."

"Not me."

"No, it does," Ser Robert said. "Every one of us shares blood with someone who's died in this milenium-long conflict. There is no escaping it."

"Perhaps not," Amber said. "But we're not compelled to fight."

"Do you know the title Ser Fred and I share?" Ser Robert asked. "Ser. It means we are knights sworn to the kings and lord of Sacreon, honor bound to defend it until the blood drains from our bodies and our hearts cease to beat."

"Good for you," Clover said. "The only knighthood Elsinct ever gave us was the badge of sinners."

"It's only shameful if you make it so," Daisy told her. "I wear mine with pride."

"Your sin is only loving who you aren't supposed to," Clover said. "You know mine is worse."

"Nobody could've known it would end like that."

"And yet, it did. I killed her."

"Killed who?" I blurted out stupidly.

Clover glared at me. "Like you'd care to know, ser knight."

I would, I wanted to say, what kind of cruel man wouldn't care for another's struggle?

"He carries no ill will for you, Clover," Cypress started.

"Surely not," the elf scoffed and turned away. "Let's make camp here, I won't be walking any farther."

"Where are you going?" Daisy called after her.