Carine Forest — Outer Camp — Two Days Later
Sous raised one hand.
"Infernous."
Fire erupted from his palm.
A torrent of orange flame swept across the clearing.
The remaining specimen containers ignited almost instantly.
Glass blackened.
Metal warped.
Preserved roots shriveled inward as the flames consumed every trace of organic matter inside them.
One container cracked.
Darian immediately stepped forward.
"Wait."
He stared through the flames.
Nothing moved.
No twitching roots.
No black veins.
No unnatural regeneration.
Nothing.
Darian remained there for several seconds.
Then another few.
Sous watched him patiently.
Finally—
"No movement."
Darian exhaled.
"Then we're done."
Sous nodded.
Another wave of fire rolled across the clearing.
The remaining containers collapsed into glowing fragments.
The flames rose several meters before gradually weakening into embers.
Darian remained still.
Watching.
Counting.
Checking.
Then checking again.
Mirelle folded her arms.
"You don't trust it."
Darian sighed.
"I don't trust Logos."
Sous glanced at him.
"He gave up something he spent weeks studying."
"Which is exactly why I don't trust it."
Darian looked toward the dying flames.
"Logos doesn't surrender knowledge."
"He hoards it."
"He protects it."
"He practically worships it."
A pause.
"And then suddenly he agrees to destroy everything?"
Mirelle shrugged.
"Perhaps he was making a gesture of good faith."
Darian snorted.
"Perhaps."
Sous looked toward the remains.
"Are you saying he kept something?"
"No."
Darian shook his head.
"I'm saying I wouldn't be surprised if he did."
Mirelle's eyes narrowed.
"You think he secretly preserved a specimen?"
"No."
Darian sighed.
"Not necessarily."
Sous raised an eyebrow.
"That was reassuring."
"I know."
The three looked toward the ruined clearing.
Nothing remained.
At least—
Nothing that they could see.
Darian finally turned away.
"Let's leave."
They began walking back toward the camp.
After several steps, Darian spoke again.
"Are you going to Faros next month?"
Sous's expression hardened slightly.
"The negotiations?"
"Yes."
"I will."
Darian nodded.
"It wouldn't make sense if you weren't there."
Sous looked toward him.
"Why?"
"Because Adrean is going."
A pause.
"And because Lucien is dead."
The humor disappeared from the conversation.
The name hung between them.
Lucien.
The Second Prince.
Killed during the chaos surrounding the Red Tide.
Sous looked toward the distant horizon.
"Adrean has to negotiate."
"He's the First Prince."
"Heir to the throne."
"He can't arrive looking like a grieving brother."
Darian frowned.
"That sounds cruel."
"It is politics."
Sous's voice remained quiet.
"He needs to appear strong."
"He needs to show that Gab hasn't been weakened."
"And he needs people beside him who can make sure nobody mistakes grief for weakness."
Darian understood immediately.
"So he'll need us."
Sous nodded.
"I'll be counting on you."
Darian looked at the burning forest one last time.
"You can."
Mirelle glanced toward the horizon.
"And Logos?"
Sous's expression became unreadable.
"He'll be there."
---
## Southern Rail Route — Military Transport Train
The train moved steadily south.
Iron wheels hammered against the rails in a rhythmic cadence.
Beyond the windows, the landscape slowly changed.
The blackened remains of Carine Forest disappeared behind them.
Fields returned.
Villages appeared.
Then vanished.
The military convoy stretched across several carriages.
Weapons.
Supplies.
Damaged Exo-harnesses.
Engineers.
Soldiers.
And enough equipment to make the journey resemble a moving fortress.
Inside the main command carriage—
Logos sat beside the window.
A book rested open across his lap.
He had been reading for nearly an hour.
Bal sat opposite him.
He had been watching Logos for nearly an hour.
Eventually—
Bal sighed.
"Don't you think you should have shown a little more sympathy?"
Logos turned a page.
"To whom?"
"Prince Adrean."
Logos looked up.
"Why?"
Bal stared.
"Because his brother died."
"I am aware."
"And yet you barely acknowledged it."
"I acknowledged it."
"That is your defense?"
"Yes."
Bal rubbed his forehead.
"You know, most people would consider that insufficient."
Logos closed the book.
"The situation does not require sympathy."
"It requires political stability."
Bal stared at him.
"You sound more concerned about politics than people."
"I am."
That answer came without hesitation.
Logos looked toward the window.
"The death of Lucien has altered the balance within Gab."
"Adrean must now negotiate as heir rather than simply as elder brother."
"His decisions will be scrutinized."
"His emotional state will be scrutinized."
"And every concession he makes will be interpreted as weakness."
Bal remained silent.
Logos continued.
"He doesn't need pity."
"He needs results."
Bal frowned.
"And you believe the negotiations will produce them?"
"Perhaps."
"That's not reassuring."
"It wasn't intended to be."
Bal leaned back.
"What about Faros?"
Logos's expression changed slightly.
"Faros will not ignore this."
"Especially Talon Archos."
Bal's jaw tightened.
"That despot will do anything to fulfill his vengeance."
Logos turned another page.
"It still goes over my head."
"What?"
"How someone can hate an entire kingdom."
Bal laughed.
"For someone so intelligent, you're remarkably blind to humans."
Logos glanced at him.
"I understand hatred."
"No."
Bal shook his head.
"You understand the definition."
"That's different."
Logos considered that.
Then—
"Perhaps."
---
The train passed another settlement.
Children stood beside the road.
Some waved.
Others simply stared at the military convoy.
A young boy raised both hands and mimicked the shape of a sword.
One of the soldiers noticed.
He laughed and waved back.
Then the train continued south.
The village disappeared behind them.
Logos watched it for several seconds.
Then returned to his book.
Bal noticed.
"You've been unusually quiet."
"I am reading."
"You've been staring at the same page for five minutes."
Logos looked down.
He had.
He turned the page.
"Problem solved."
Bal sighed.
"No."
"There is another problem."
Logos closed the book.
"Laos."
The single word changed the atmosphere.
Bal straightened.
"What about it?"
"Our army has demonstrated capabilities that were previously theoretical."
"We deployed nearly everything in front of thousands of foreign soldiers."
Bal's expression darkened.
"So?"
"So now they know."
"Know what?"
Logos looked toward him.
"That Laos is dangerous."
Bal considered it.
"They already knew that."
"No."
Logos shook his head.
"Before Carine, they knew Laos possessed unusual technology."
"After Carine, they know what that technology can do."
He raised one finger.
"Rapid deployment."
A second.
"High-density artillery."
A third.
"Exo-harness mobility."
A fourth.
"Chemical warfare."
A pause.
"And coordinated battlefield automation."
Bal's expression became serious.
"So you're worried they'll copy us?"
"No."
Logos's eyes narrowed.
"I am worried they will decide we are too dangerous to leave alone."
Silence filled the carriage.
That possibility was considerably worse.
Bal leaned forward.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Nothing."
"Nothing?"
"For now."
Logos reopened his book.
"The negotiations will tell us more than another battle."
"About Faros?"
"About everyone."
Bal watched him.
"Explain."
"Who attends."
"Who speaks."
"Who refuses."
"Who interrupts."
"Who asks about Laos."
A faint smile appeared.
"And who pretends not to."
Bal shook his head.
"You've already planned half the negotiations."
"No."
Logos turned another page.
"I've planned to observe them."
---
Kleber had remained silent for most of the journey.
Now he finally spoke.
"One more question."
Logos looked up.
"Yes?"
"Why did you really agree to destroy the specimens?"
Logos paused.
Bal looked toward Kleber.
The knight continued.
"You didn't give them up because Darian asked."
"No."
"You didn't do it because the Church pressured you."
"No."
"And you certainly didn't do it because you suddenly became sentimental."
"No."
Logos closed the book.
For several seconds—
He said nothing.
Then—
"They were no longer worth the political cost."
Kleber blinked.
"That sounds remarkably pragmatic."
"It is."
"And that tells me you're lying."
Logos looked at him.
Kleber held his gaze.
For once, the older knight didn't look away.
"You don't surrender knowledge simply because it's inconvenient."
Still nothing.
"You don't destroy something you've spent weeks studying because someone tells you it's frightening."
Bal looked between them.
"Careful, Kleber."
"I am."
Kleber leaned back.
"So there was another reason."
Logos looked toward the window.
The last traces of Carine Forest had disappeared hours ago.
Nothing remained but distant fields.
"I reached the point of diminishing returns."
Kleber frowned.
"That isn't the whole answer."
"No."
Logos admitted it.
"It isn't."
The carriage became quiet.
Logos folded his hands over the closed book.
"I had learned what I could from the specimens without risking a political fracture."
A pause.
"The samples were valuable."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"But so were the people who brought them to me."
Bal's expression changed.
Kleber noticed.
"So you finally chose the people over the research."
Logos didn't answer immediately.
Then—
"No."
Kleber's expression fell.
Logos continued.
"I chose both."
He looked toward the window.
"The research can be replaced."
"The people cannot."
For once—
Kleber had no immediate response.
Bal simply stared.
Logos's gaze remained fixed upon the passing countryside.
"I am not sentimental."
"I simply understand resource scarcity."
Kleber sighed.
"There you are."
Logos looked at him.
"What?"
"That was almost human."
A faint smile touched Bal's face.
Logos frowned.
"I am human."
"Mostly," Kleber muttered.
The carriage fell quiet again.
Then Bal asked the question neither of them had wanted to ask.
"So everything related to Carine is truly gone?"
Logos looked toward him.
"Mostly."
Bal's eyes narrowed.
"Mostly?"
Logos opened his book again.
"I retained my notes."
Kleber relaxed.
"That's all?"
"Yes."
A pause.
"Probably."
Kleber stared at him.
"Probably?"
Logos looked up.
Then, after a moment—
"Don't worry."
"I checked."
Kleber sighed.
"That is somehow less reassuring."
Outside—
The train continued south.
Toward Laos.
Then, towards negotiations that would determine far more than the fate of two kingdoms.