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29 __th_ day of Xenar_

128 I.E.

As dawn broke, Digran's Dreadnaughts packed up their camp outside of Tran and set out for the north. They had to cross through the forest that separated the Northpine logging camp and Tran, and considering the distance, they were in for a long day of riding. The men made small talk amongst themselves, but Dane had them entirely tuned out.

He had begun to feel ill since the previous day, and though he had managed to hunt down a boar to supplement their meager supply of bread and trail rations, he hadn't eaten. He'd skipped out on breakfast as well. His appetite had left him, and he wasn't quite sure why.

What had been bothering Dane was the way he had acted in Tran. After the trip to the Langsten's inn, Aiden had distanced himself more and more from Dane, and over time the man realized that perhaps his darkening mood was the cause.

"Lieutenant, are you alright?" Elizabeth asked as she rode alongside Dane.

Snapping from his stupor, he looked up and gave a wry smile. "I'm fine, Sergeant. I'm merely exhausted from the journey, that's all."

She frowned at his words. "Right, and I have a small kingdom in the Elfin Islands."

Dane winced. He didn't think he was that bad at lying. "It's rather unnerving when you undermine me like that, Sergeant."

He remained silent as they continued north. When they passed by a small path with a thick underbrush growing over it, Dane cast a longing gaze in that direction. He knew what wa down that overgrown path, and what used to be there. He could see images in his head when he looked down the overgrown dirt road, when it had been trampled by feet daily and kept trimmed. When he stared long enough, he could almost swear he could see a line of smoke rising over the trees from a fireplace that should have been long extinguished. He must have stared for too long, because Elizabeth piped up again.

"Leave the past behind, Lieutenant. Dwelling on it will only serve to distract you from the task at hand."

Dane quickly glanced behind him to see if any of the other soldiers noticed what she had said, but none of them were paying attention to him. He didn't bother to reply to her, as he recognized what she said to be true. He merely tried to shake off his feelings and keep his eyes on the road ahead. He shifted uncomfortably in his saddle, and reminded himself that he had a job to do. The orcs would pay for what they did to the people of Northpine.

The forest passed by Dane in a blur. Not because they were moving fast, but because his eyes were fixated on the path ahead. He could hear the sounds of birds nearby and of the faint trickle of a distant stream. Everything looked so much smaller to him now, even though the trees still towered above him. It was a beautiful forest, but its magnificence was lost on him as he became intensely focused on his plans.

The journey to Northpine proved to be uneventful and quiet, giving Dane plenty of time to sort out his thoughts. He wasn't at all pleased with himself, but he also resolved that he had to stand up to Nicoli somehow. It would go in his report when they returned to Rogust. The higher ups had to know about what was happening in the north.

As the camp pulled into view, Dane led the troops towards it. The sun was starting to sink behind the tin wall of growing trees to the west, turning the sky a deep orange. The camp was quiet, save for the nearby tavern which was alive with song and the boisterous voices of the high spirited laborers. Dane went ahead of the troops and dismounted from his horse.

With the way the camp was set up, it looked like a small village. Many lodgings had been gathered in the center around the general store. The homes were log cabins, not unlike the one Jon had built for himself outside Tran. He could hear the laughter of children and when he looked over his shoulders, he saw a group of them running past the soldiers.

Watching them go by, Dane clenched his jaw and felt rage bubbling over once more. I can't believe that bastard Nicoli would steal from these people! He has some misguided notion that stealing from children is wrong. What about stealing from their parents? Doesn't that hurt the children as well? His hands hurt as he balled them up into fists so hard that his fingernails dug into his palms. I will make him pay for his crimes one day. I swear it!

No matter how hard Dane tried to wrap his head around the corrupt man's rationalizations for what he did to Tran and Northpine, he couldn't understand it. Not only that, but he was effectively abandoning the logging camp and risking its loss to the orcs, which meant putting all these young lives at stake. That wasn't even counting the innumerable others that would suffer with the lost economy should Northpine fall. Did he try to make himself feel like less of a crook by acting like he had some sort of moral code?

_The upper brass will hear about this,_Dane fumed as he moved deeper into the village.

He motioned over his shoulder and said, "Sergeant Vedray, you're with me. The rest of you, wait here."

One of the cabins was designated as the foreman's with a tacked on piece of drift wood with the words "Foreman Logan" carved into the surface. The dull glow of alchemical globes shone through the cabin's windows and out under the crack beneath the door. Dane knocked lightly once, waiting for a reply.

"Who is is?" a voice asked from inside. It belonged to a man, and it sounded gruff and old. Even through the door, Dane could feel the rumble of the man's voice in his chest.

"Lieutenant Trueshot and Sergeant Vedray of the 81st Mobile Infantry Division, sir. May I come in and speak with you?"

"Doors open," the man huffed in response.

Dane headed inside with Vedray close behind. Across from them sat a tall, broad-shouldered man stooped over a number of papers on a desk. He wore a dark red linen shirt and it clearly looked as if the man hadn't shaved in some time based on how thick his beard was. As he stepped closer, the man offered his hand to Dane, and he shook it.

"Welcome to Northpine, kid. Name's Logan," the man said. Dane felt like his hand was being crashed in Logan's grip, but he tried to not let it show. "Can I interest you in a cup of coffee? Not the best in the world but you folks look like you've been on the road all day."

Before Dane could take him up on his offer, Vedray said, "No thank you, sir. We have a lot of work to do so I'd rather we cut to the chase."

"Suit yourself." Logan got up and crossed the room to where the stove was. He poured the dark brown liquid into a well used metal cup and went back to his desk. "I take it you folks are the one's sent to take care of our little infestation?" he asked.

"That we are. We're going to remove the orcish tribe from the foothills once and for all," Dane replied.

"It's about damn time. Wersgrauff hasn't done us any good. They're always asking us for more money for something they should be doing anyways with all the tax dollars we pay! Why would they go and do that?" He was yelling now, and his deep, baritone voice shook the walls.

"I couldn't tell you why. I'm not privy to such knowledge," Dane lied.

Elizabeth stepped forward and said, "Hold on just a moment. What do you mean when you say that Wersgrauff was asking for more money?"

Logan huffed and crossed his imposing arms over his thick chest. "That man in Northern HQ is crooked. I don't know what lies he's been telling you, but he's only looking out for himself."

"I've met him a couple times," Dane said, cutting Elizabeth off. "I can't say I approve of what he's been doing, but I don't have the wherewithal to be able to do anything about it. He's crooked, but at least we're here now."

"Lieutenant, you can't just say that about a superior officer!" Elizabeth said.

"Yeah? Well I just did." Dane shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "Can we move this along and worry about something that's actually important?"

"But if Nicoli really is corrupt, then -"

"Sergeant," Dane barked, "Enough. We'll discuss this on the trip back. Understood?"

With her jaw set, Elizabeth nodded her head and stepped back.

Dane cleared his throat and said. "No matter the reason why we're here, we'll take care of the problem for you. And I won't ask for any of your hard earned wages, either. I want to see the orcs removed from the region just as much as you folks do."

"Got something against the bastards?" Logan asked. "Not that there'd be anything wrong with that. Just curious."

"I'm from Tran," Dane said simply. Logan seemed to understand, and didn't pry any further into it. He went back to sipping at his coffee as he watched Dane cross the room.

A map of the area surrounding Northpine was laid out across Logan's desk. "If I may, we would like a space to set up a camp and fall back point nearby. Is it possible to requisition this portion of land here," Dane asked as he pointed to an empty space of land to the east, between the camp and a large skull.

Logan smiled weakly and replied, "I don't think I have much of a choice. This sounds more like an order than a request, if you ask me. Go ahead, use what ever space you need. Most of the nearby areas have already been cleared by the loggers so it won't be in the way of our own operations." Logan pointed to a large rectangular spot on the map to the southern edge of the camp. "We have a stable here that you should be able to use, though whether it has enough space for all your mounts is another matter."

"I appreciate it. We'll be setting up camp and moving out tomorrow evening near sundown to perform a night operation. Once we're done, we should be able to leave by the morning. Until then, my men need rest so that they're at their best for this operation." He looked to the crudely drawn skull on the map, near the edge of Northpine's territories. "Is that where the orcs are?"

"Yes, we made sure to mark it so everyone would know where they were. Problem is, they're right on the edge of our operations." Logan gestured to the western side of the map. "We've already gone as far as the coast for lumber, but we need to spread out into the mountains while we wait for the trees to grow back." The man sucked back a wad of spit and loosed it into a spittoon on the floor. "Those red-skins have halted all our operations, and it's getting to be a real pain. This isn't the first time this has happened, either."

"Have the orcs really been here this long?" Elizabeth asked.

"They were settled somewhere close by about five or six years ago," Logan explained and pointed to a spot closer to the camp near a lake. "They wouldn't parley with us when we requested they move, and as our operations got closer to their home, things got violent. Back then we had some help from Wersgrauff and we were able to chase them off." The man thought for a moment. "Come to think of it, that was just before the new Colonel's time. The last person in charge of Northern HQ was a good woman and an up standing individual, too. It's a shame she had to die in that battle with the orcs."

Dane bit at the inside of his cheek nervously. Nicoli is to blame for all the problems the north has been facing. And there's not a damn thing I can do about him...

"Well, it's of no consequence to our operations now," Dane told him. "We'll have those orcs out of your hair within two days time. I guarantee it."

"Sounds like you're feeling confident. More so than those Northern HQ dogs. I'll just leave it to you and your men." Logan eased back in his chair, and the wood creaked under his weight. "Let me know if you need anything my camp can provide. We have ample amounts of food, water, and other supplies, and should your soldiers need a night to relax, we just received a shipment of Ivoryhorn Lager from Valar that they may enjoy."

Dane stared longingly out the window, towards the south. Though the tavern fell within his line of sight, he was staring off into the distance, towards Tran. "I'm amazed Northpine can prosper so well after what happened to Tran, and even while you have orcs on your doorstep. Do you trade with the Snowhoof regularly?"

"That we do, and we've been prosperous because of it. This isn't just a logging camp, it's also a village for all the people who work here and for their families. We need the trade with the Snowhoof to get what Wersgrauff and Rogust won't provide," he said, then let a sigh escape his lips. "It truly is a shame what happened to Tran all those years ago. I rather liked the many different festivals they had down there throughout the year, and it's a shame to see it gone." Logan scratched at his hairy arms.

"How have you people endured for so long?" Elizabeth asked. "These aren't simple bandits we're talking about. Orcs are, what, about twice our height?"

"Close to it, lady. So judging by your done, you haven't seen one before, have you?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

Elizabeth bristled at his remark and her shoulders stiffened, but she said nothing further. Dane could see her lips curl into the faintest of sneers, and he took a bit of pleasure in seeing her so bothered.

"To answer your question," Logan said, setting his empty cup down, "every last one of us is trained in basic combat to deal with bandits, bugbears, and whatever else lies in the woods. Orcs are just the biggest fish in the pond at the moment. Our loggers are stronger than mere peasants and farmers, too. Long story short, we won't be giving up our home without a fight if it really came down to it."

"I admire your resilience, Foreman," Dane said, noticing that Logan was not-so-subtly flexing his muscles. "I appreciate your offer to allow me and my men to join yours in the tavern. I'll make sure to let them know you extended the invitation." He held his hand out to shake again, and added, "Thank you for your time."

As he and Elizabeth were walking away from the Foreman's cabin, she called out, "Sir, may I have a word with you?"

Dane paused and huffed in annoyance. "Is this about what Logan said about Northern HQ?"

"Yessir."

"I've already spoken to Nicoli. I'll be mentioning it in my report when we return to the capital," Dane said, then turned to leave.

"But sir, he violated the law. We need to bring him to justice and -"

"And what?" Dane snapped as fire danced in his eyes. "We're lower ranking soldiers. We have no real power here. What do you expect us to do about Nicoli?"

Elizabeth averted her gaze and said, "We could apprehend him for questioning in the capital. It would be within our right."

"As much as I hate it, we're not doing anything," Dane said. Deep down he would have wanted to follow up on Elizabeth's suggestions, but he did not want to jeopardize himself or Aiden by trying to go up against a higher ranking officer. "We'll report it to Commander Digran, and go from there. Understood?"

"Yessir," Elizabeth said, and saluted.

Dane nodded his head, then excused himself to rejoin the rest of his troops. They waited patiently for him a short ways away from the foreman's cabin, taking time to relax after their long journey.

"Alright men, here's how things are going to go. Stable your horses then head to the east side of Northpine to set up camp. Once that's done, we've all been invited to the tavern to join the rest of the loggers for drinks, if you'd like. Take the time to rest up and enjoy yourselves. We'll be moving out to commence our operation before sunset tomorrow. You are all dismissed until then!"

The soldiers acknowledged their orders and then dispersed, talking happily amongst themselves. They had not expected to have any time to relax until returning to the capital, so Logan's offer came as a ray of sunshine to an otherwise bleak trip.

Once everyone left, only Aiden remained. Dane cautiously walked towards him. "Aiden, can we talk?"

The other man glanced around to see if anyone was looking in their direction. "Not here. I want some privacy first."

Before Dane could begin his next train of thought, Aiden grabbed him by the wrist. Arcane words flew from his mouth as he worked to cast a spell. It felt like Dane was being yanked away as a blue-white portal opened up behind them and swallowed them whole.

After only a second, the portal deposited them in the middle of the forest, surrounded on all sides by a thick cover of trees. Aiden was silent as Dane worked to reorient himself and fight off the dizziness that he was feeling.

"Alright, there's no one around for miles to bother us," Aiden said.

"I guess you wanted to talk to me, too, huh?" Dane asked sheepishly, and the knorian boy nodded. Hesitant to speak first, Dane dug the tip of his boot in the dirt, then covered the divot over again. He cleared his throat and said, "You've been avoiding me today, haven't you?"

There was a slight pause. "Yes."

"Why?"

Aiden's brow furrowed in thought. "I'm worried about you. I'm not sure how to put it, but something about yesterday has me feeling really worried. I've never seen you that angry. Frankly, the thought that you're prepared to kill Nicoli, given the chance, scares me."

"Barely a year ago you got sick at the thought of taking someone's life." Aiden plopped himself down on the ground and used a nearby tree as a backrest. "I remember how bad you felt, and how for weeks you couldn't stop thinking about it."

"The Mullead Incident was hard to deal with," Dane admitted, nodding his head. He killed four people during the several week long mission. They had been the first sentient beings that he'd ever killed. They had all tried to kill Dane, Aiden, and the rest of their unit. In his sleep, he could still remember the scarred, blood caked faces of his victims.

"Nicoli pisses me off, too, but I don't want to kill him." Aiden shivered, and Dane suspected that it wasn't from the cold evening winds. "I do want to bring him to justice, if I can."

"I'm sorry, Aiden." Dane made eye contact with his partner for the first time that day, and he could see the sincerity in Aiden's features. "I don't want to kill him either, but I'm angry with Nicoli and the system that allows crooks like him to prosper. I don't know what to do other than inform Commander Digran, but that doesn't sit well with me, to be honest."

Dane swallowed a lump in his throat, realizing that he was merely trying to rationalize his behaviour. "There's no reason for my behaviour."

"Sometimes we just need to vent," Aiden said. He stood up with a grunt of effort and gave Dane a hug.

The knorian boy tilted his head to the side and kissed Dane, and the two shared a quiet moment together. When they stopped to catch their breaths, Aiden said, "Hold on a second..." and began to remove his tunic. "That's better." He tossed the clothing aside and let them crumple on the ground.

Dane smirked at him, and decided to join him. In a rush brought on by passion and urgent need, the two stripped themselves naked and lay on the ground together atop a bed of grass and clothes. Aiden channeled a small bit of magic into his finger tips and ran their cold surface along Dane's back, sending chills across his body and cuasing him to clutch harder to the warmth offered by his partner.

"You know," Aiden began in a low whisper, "We haven't had any time alone in a while..."

Dane blushed, understanding where he was going, and moved up to kiss Aiden again. They were alone, and there was no risk of anyone intruding on them. He planned to enjoy the other man's company until it was time to return to Northpine.

* * * * *

Afterwards, as they lay on the ground, Aiden rested his head on Dane's chest with a contented sigh. Even though they were on the hard ground, Dane felt like he could fall asleep right then and there.

"Do you mind if I ask what happened between you and your father?" Aiden asked suddenly, his hand roaming the other man's chest and stomach.

"Not exactly a romantic question." Dane kissed him on the forehead. "But you do deserve to know."

"I figure we won't get much privacy when we get back," Aiden said with a smile.

"I grew up believing my father hated me. He always pushed me hard, forced me to study, and forced me to fend for myself. When I screwed up, he'd yell at me and point out every detail that I'd gotten wrong. It was hard living with him. Fortunately, he never hit me until the last day I knew him, and I guess that was because despite my protests, I always listened to him."

Taking a moment to breath deeply, Dane continued, "one day, we went hunting together. I was always the one holding the bow, and my father forced me to practice tracking and shooting our prey. I failed to bag a deer and shortly after that, I missed a charging boar and it nearly gored my father before it ran off. After that, he grew angry and we got into an argument. He struck me then, and I hurt my arm after he threw me to the ground."

Dane reached up and touched the spot on his face where Jon had punched him several times on that fateful day. Though it had long ago healed, it still hurt, as if the memories had reopened his wounds.

"What happened then?" Aiden urged. He now held tight to Dane, hugging him as closely as he could.

"I ran to Tran to get away from him and to figure out what to do next. That was the night the Fleshgorger orcs came to the village and ransacked it."

Aiden remained silent for a few minutes. Dane sat there and listened to the knorian's breathing. "Did you ever reconcile your differences?"

"We did for a brief moment," Dane muttered. "He saved me from the orcs along with the Rogarian military. He died for my sake. Afterwards, he gave me my bracers and said he was sorry. Those were his last words to me. I hate the orcs for taking my father away, even though we never got along. They destroyed Tran, too. I can't forgive them and... I'm afraid of what might happen when we run into them. I'm afraid of my anger or fear taking control like it did that day."

Aiden squeezed Dane tight. They exchanged no further words, and remained in the forest cuddling together for several hours. By the time the two men returned to the Northpine camp, the sun had long ago set and both of them were feeling hungry.

"Go on to the tavern ahead of me," Dane suggested. "I want to make sure everything is set up right."

"Alright, Lieutenant," Aiden said, and headed off without him.

While they were gone, the soldiers had managed to set up their camp. Several white, canvas tents dotted the landscape, and Dane made his way to the large, rectangular one at the center. He pushed the flaps of the command tent open and found Elizabeth waiting for him. She tapped her foot impatiently, and Dane felt like he was about to be chastised for something.

"I see that everything is ready to go," Dane said as he went to switch to more comfortable clothes. He figured he might as well act like he had no idea that Elizabeth was about to say anything out of the ordinary.

"Are you dense, sir?" she asked.

"Whatever do you mean?" Dane asked. "Have you ever known a sorcerer to be dense?"

"You are violating so many military laws and regulations it's not even funny," she told him. "Section 1, Clauce C: You may not fraternize with another soldier; Section 4, Clause F: If any man or woman is found to be homosexual, they shall be court-martialled and stoned in public; Section -"

"Sergeant, enough!" Dane yelled. He rubbed his eyes with a thumb and forefinger. "I've studied military code of conduct. I'm not as brain dead as would be implied by being stuck in Digran's unit."

"I always thought there was something funny going on with the way you and the Corporal were acting. I just couldn't put my finger on it. Then today when you both disappeared, you come back looking like a disheveled mess."

"Oh please, you make it sound like I've done something evil and wrong," Dane said, shrugging. What was she going to do to him anyways? He was a sorcerer, and a higher ranking military officer. There was nothing she could do to him.

"The Church of Laren would say you have, yes."

"I didn't realize our military's supreme commander was the Patron of Thieves and Beggars," Dane shot back, frowning. "Though perhaps he should be, with the way people like Digran and Nicoli conduct themselves."

"You'd best watch your tongue when speaking about a superior officer!" Elizabeth shouted at him. "No matter what either man has done to cross you, you will refer to them appropriately by their rank."

Dane considered his next words carefully. He realized then that his pulse was racing, and he was starting to panic. If he wanted to defuse the situation, he needed to remain calm. Elizabeth was fiercely loyal to the military and to Rogust, even to a fault. He knew that if he played his hand wrong, both he and Aiden would be dead.

"I pray to the All-Healer, Xenar," Dane stated simply. "I'm not normally a religious man, but i do believe that there's nothing inherently wrong with the kind of love that Aiden and I share."

"How can you believe the teachings of a God that forbids killing when you're a soldier?"

Dane opened his mouth to reply, but he couldn't think of a counter argument. She was right, to a degree. It was contradictory to follow Xenar when one of the ten precepts all his followers adhered to said to never take a life.

But it was Xenar and his teachings that had given Dane peace when he was so uncertain of life and of himself. He had given him reassurances when Dane was afraid of what his sexuality meant for his future. He owed much to the deity, and it would be a disservice to follow a jealous god like Laren.

"Better to be a murderer who prays to the God of Healing than a murderer who steals form innocent women and children."

"Watch your tongue!" Elizabeth snapped.

"And you watch yours, Sergeant," he said, glaring at her. "As far as I'm concerned, I've done no wrong, and you will not report this to anyone. Do you understand me?"

She stared at him for a moment, trying to match the intensity of his gaze. "How much further do you intend to subvert military law?"

"As far as I deem necessary, as long as it doesn't harm anyone." There was a long pause. "Was there anything else?"

"No."

"Then you are dismissed. I'll see you tomorrow before we begin our operation."

Elizabeth gave a quick salute and stormed out of the tent, leaving Dane to ponder the consequences of their discussion. Deciding he had the mission to worry about, Dane changed his clothes and headed to the tavern instead. He could deal with Elizabeth later.