...

In Rosemarble, Raquila and Shelia were still chained in the dungeon at Stonehill. They were fed a daily portion of gruel in a bucket slipped through the door by Grunda and had another bucket to relieve themselves. Raquila's bloodied stump was now dried and crusted and attracting flies, as well as the bucket of dung beside her. Both women were pallid and sickly from their confinement and no Rosemarblian, not even Grunda, had spoken to them since Raquila had slapped Grunhilda.

"We shall die here." Shelia lamented, "The paleskins will let us starve."

"If only I had my strength." Raquila said, "I'd drown that old hag in my filth."

At midday, nearly four days after they had been imprisoned, the two women finally had another visitor, Captain Jeanine.

"I bring good news to you murderous maggots." she announced, "By divine miracle, the countess has survived her wound and also graciously requested your release."

"Liar!" Raquila screamed in what hoarse voice she had left.

"Tis no lie." Jeanine said with a smirk, "You did not kill Valaria. Now do you seek freedom or not?"

"Bring her here!" Raquila demanded, "Prove it to me! I'll make her swallow this dungbucket!"

"Yes, you've been collecting quite a bit of that." Jeanine remarked, "The smell is unbearable. I think I'm going to vomit."

"I'll kill you!" Raquila screamed as she attempted to lunge at Jeanine with her good arm, only to sprain her wrist on her shackles.

"Fool." Jeanine taunted, "Bring her to me."

Jeanine stepped aside to let four soldiers in who surrounded the two women. One soldier produced a key from his belt and unlocked Raquila's shackle. Before the prisoner had time to react, two soldiers wrested her to the ground and dragged her away, kicking and screaming.

"Where are you taking her?!" Shelia demanded.

"To the surgeon's table." Jeanine said with a smile, "Your foul-smelling friend has been breathing in too much of this bad air. We'll have to tend to her arm. You may watch if you please."

Three more soldiers marched down from the floor above and attempted to crowd into the dungeon cell. One soldier unlocked Shelia's shackles while the others tried to pin the large woman down. She managed to barrel through them just long enough to grab the dung bucket and pour it over Jeanine's head. The captain instantly vomited as she frantically scraped the waste from her face.

"Flog...her..." Jeanine managed to sputter through her own bile.

The soldiers struggled to carry Shelia out and pushed her into the dungeon corridor. One soldier quickly went upstairs to the armory and came back with a whip. Jeanine grabbed the whip herself and blindly lashed out, striking both Shelia and some of the soldiers.

"Captain, stop!" one injured soldier cried out.

Another soldier fetched a bucket of clean water from upstairs and doused it over his captain's head. Jeanine was now a sopping, furious mess and charged at Shelia with her bare hands. Shelia had finally had enough and wrapped her muscular arm around Jeanine's neck. Jeanine gasped for air as Shelia tightened her grip, considering snapping the captain's windpipe.

"Unhand her!" shouted a familiar voice from upstairs.

"Val..aria..." Jeanine tried to call out.

Valaria made her way downstairs and brushed the soldiers aside. She looked straight at Shelia, but not with her usual stern expression. Valaria gave pleading, pitiful eyes.

"You still live." Shelia said in tranquil fury, "Your captain will not."

"Have you ever even taken a life?" Valaria asked.

"A few." Shelia answered, "How many lives have you stolen?"

"More than I care to admit." Valaria said, "But please listen...I never meant to...it's true that I killed Raquila's mother...I do not have time to explain...if you spare Jeanine I will give you 300 gold coins."

"Your life for hers." Shelia offered.

"I would gladly give my life if I could." Valaria answered, "But for...reasons I am invulnerable. I could not even die by my own hand."

"A lie." Shelia countered.

"Evil magic." Valaria explained.

"Your captain dies." Shelia decided.

Shelia was about to snap Jeanine's neck when she heard a tormented shriek from upstairs. Knowing it was Raquila, she instinctively cast Jeanine aside and shoved past Valaria. In an open side room, Raquila was strapped to a wooden table with rope and the rotting part of her stump was being cut off by a heated longsword, glowing orange with heat. A soldier-surgeon had dipped into into the small iron hearth filled with burning kindling and coals.

Raquila quivered in agony as Shelia stared at her seared, smoking flesh. She was about to attack the "surgeon" who brandished the still glowing sword. Valaria herself suddenly grabbed the "surgeon" from behind and flung her aside.

"Take her and go!" Valaria shouted, "The way is clear!"

Knowing that she only had a little time to escape, Shelia broke Raquila's ropes with her bare hands and flung the woman onto her back. Finding Valaria true to her word, Shelia encountered no further resistance as she ran to the main hall and out onto the lowered drawbridge. Shelia also found the nearby knight's stable unguarded and found a massive grey horse suitable to her own frame. The horse was a stallion named Greystone, one of Valaria's own. Shelia quickly strapped Raquila's legs to the saddle, mounted him herself, and galloped into the distance.

"Goodbye, Greystone." Valaria whispered as she watched them, "You have found a better keeper than I."

At Castle Rosehill, Hildegarde was looking over a large parchment map in her war room, a massive wooden table surrounded by velvet-cushioned chairs.

"I am going to send out the whole of my army." she mused, "We meet the Kotarians at the halfway point and together we shall break the Bloodmarble barrier-"

"My princess!" shouted Mariot as she burst through the door with Constave following behind her.

"How dare you come in without permission!" Hildegarde scolded, "What do you want?!"

"You are sending our husbands out into battle after they already served as envoys?" Mariot questioned, "They are too old to fight, they shall perish!"

"Sir Reginald and Sir Jimmus are still able-bodied." Hildegarde said, "Every fit soldier and knight in our army must serve. It is their duty."

"Please make exceptions." Constave requested, "They are our husbands of several years, perhaps we will sire children and-"

"If you intended to have children you would have done so long ago." Hildegarde said.

The two ladies huffed as Hildegarde gave a snide chuckle.

"Peasants breed children that they know will be made to fight, and nobles think having children excuses them." the princess said, "All I see are two arrogant, privileged brats who want to use their closeness to me to excuse their lout husbands from duty. This will not be so."

"Are you not privileged, my princess?" Mariot asked before she gasped and clasped her mouth.

"You dare speak to your princess that way?" Hildegarde barked, "Get out of my sight! And if you ask that those two fools be reprieved again then I'll send all four of you to die in Bloodmarble!"

The two ladies scurried out of the war room as Hildegarde groaned and returned to her map.

Jimmus and Reginald were at the knights' stables, tending to their horses, and speaking with two other knights, Dame Reine and Sir James. Reine and James were young, unmarried, and had been in knighthood since adolescence. Reine had brunette hair, cut at her eyes, and bright green eyes. James had blonde hair and blue eyes, and shaved his facial hair into a lazy stubble. The pair knew Jimmus and Reginald well but they were not precisely friends.

"Ready to slaughter some vampelle scum?" James asked sarcastically while taking a heavy swig from a wine bottle.

"Been a while since we had a real war." Reine commented, "Since before I was even born, oh sorry Jimmus."

"Never mind." Jimmus said with a scowl, barely being able to recall the rebellion that had taken place when he was a small child.

"You were on the wrong side of that one, weren't you Jim?" James jibed.

"Are you trying to anger the man into skewering you?" Reginald wondered.

"No, I'm sure the vampelles will do that." James said.

At hearing this, Jimmus threw down his horse-brush and walked over to James, raising a fist. Reginald quickly got in-between the two men and grabbed his friend's arm.

"Calm down, Jimmus." Reginald pleaded, "James is clearly drunk."

"Tell him to keep his mouth shut then." Jimmus warned, "Or I'll shut it for him."

"Don't be so cruel, James." Reine added, coddling the drunkard's arm and stealing a swig of wine for herself, "It may be the last few days of our lives."

"Last few days?" a soft female voice questioned.

Dame Marcella had just stepped into the conversation. She was a tall, brown-eyed woman with long black hair, kept in a ponytail.

"Yes, last few days, Marcella." Reine mocked, "Are you afraid to die? You, at least, should get to go to Heaven."

"Do not take such things lightly." Marcella scolded, "Only those who put their faith in Our Lady shall enter paradise."

"And do not preach at me, you sanctimonious slut!" Reine shouted, taking another swig of wine, and retrieving her needlepoint sword from its scabbard.

"Reine! For Our Lady's sake, put it away!" James yelped.

Marcella had her own needlepoint strapped to her side, but she would not have dreamed of drawing it, not even in this situation. She placed her hands in the air and started to back up.

"That's right, coward." Reine said, "Back away from a fight. The only reason you achieved knighthood is because Queen Blaine felt sorry for your parents. You couldn't slay a squirrel."

"That's enough!" Jimmus shouted, "If you do not put away your sword and your wine, Dame Reine, then I will show you what I did to the man who absconded my eye!"

Reine did withdraw her blade but not her wine. She instead finished the bottle and threw it on the ground. James laughed as he followed the knightess away.

"Pay them no mind, Marcella." Jimmus observed, "They are careless."

"They are sinners." Marcella said, "I pity them."

"I am off to find Constave." Reggie said, walking away.

"Oh, Jimmus, I just noticed." Marcella said with concern, "You and Reginald, you have small wounds on your neck. Did the Kotarians strike you?"

"No that is...a snake bite." Jimmus obfuscated.

"Was it venomous?" Marcella asked, "It looks a bit large for a snake bite. A serpentine perhaps?"

Without thinking, Marcella touched Jimmus' neck and rubbed the bite marks. Jimmus blushed and cleared his throat.

"I need to find Mariot." Jimmus said as he scurried away.