Ren dashed directly towards his enemies, and his big-boned battle horse crashed into the speedy, lighter mount of the head Viper. Instantly, many of the Vipers went down in a chaotic pile of horseflesh and humanity. Ren launched himself off of his horse at the exact moment of the impact and knocked several more Vipers to the ground. He choked one until the Viper was unconscious, and he kicked another in the face. Then he drew his sword and pulled himself onto his horse once again. 

Ren raised his sword into the air and shouted at the Vipers, “Come and get me, you useless pieces of trash!” 

Several daggers flew through the air towards him, and he scattered them with his sword and yanked his horse back. “Cowards,” he muttered before dashing off into the night. 

He was starting to feel the pain in his arm from the stab wound. Up to this point, the adrenaline had numbed it somewhat. But now, that was wearing off. “Blast,” he complained, “She sure is a lot of trouble!” 

In a couple moments, he caught up with her. He glanced over and saw that she was riding mechanically, with eyes that didn’t see anything in front of her. He reached over, grabbing the reins of her horse, and pulled the animal to a halt. “Princess. I think we can stop for a moment,” he said gently.

He got down from his horse and lifted her down. 

She stood there, shivering in her thin nightdress with a face that was white and numb with horror. 

Ren quickly pulled off his fancy coat and put it around her. “Princess,” he tried again. “Kat. It’ll be okay. We’ll figure something out; I’m sure we can-”

“We have to go back.” 

Kathryn looked up at him, her lips trembling and her brown eyes wide and filled with fear. 

Ren shook his head. “We can’t go back right now, princess.” 

“They’ll think I’m guilty if I don’t!” 

“You’re not thinking rationally.” He gently took her by the shoulders, trying to calm her. “It was all planned. I’m sure they set up fake evidence against you, and by the time we get back, there will be even more against us. Let’s just wait and-”

“And what? This isn’t going to go away in the morning, Ren!” Kathryn’s eyes were haunted.  “If I don’t go back now…we’ll be branded as criminals. We’ll be on the run!” 

“Then we’ll go back home,” Ren said firmly. “I’m not going to let you get killed here on some false charges before your father even knows what happened.” 

“Ren, I’m ordering you to take me back!” Kathryn was frantic. She felt like everything was spiraling around her. She had to regain control; she had to fix this. 

Ren didn’t relinquish his hold on her. He said very slowly and deliberately, “I’m not taking you back, or allowing you to go back, your highness. In the morning, when you’re rational, we’ll discuss our plans further. In the meantime, we’re going to put some more distance in between us and the castle.” 

“Don’t do this to me, Ren!” 

“I’m not doing anything ‘to’ you. I’m going to keep you safe.” Ren lifted her onto her horse, keeping a firm hand on the rein, and then mounted his own animal. “Hang on. It’s going to be a little rough for the next few hours.” 

“We have to help them.” Brenin’s tone left no room for argument, but Illian did not look convinced. The prince had convened a meeting consisting of himself, General Valen, and Brenin. The previous night, they had all been stunned to hear the ridiculous accusations of murder against Kathryn. They had been ordered to depart by Prince Gregory himself, who said, “No one from Iridalys is welcome here until the princess has returned to stand trial.” Now, they were standing in a small tent with Illian’s escort milling around outside while they deliberated what to do about the terrible events that had taken place. Illian said, “I’m not sure there is a great deal we can do, Brenin. I believe we should immediately report to his majesty and ask for his guidance.” Brenin glared at him. “Your highness, Ren and your sister are out there somewhere being chased by dozens and perhaps hundreds of Vipers, the very same people who murdered your mother. We should rejoin them and immediately take them back under our protection!” “You’re not thinking straight,” Valen told him bluntly. “I know how you feel about General Ren. I respect and care for him as a comrade as well. But regardless of whether or not the accusations are true, Prince Gregory will not have made them without considerable proof, even if false. He’ll ensure there’s no way that they can get out alive if they’re captured, and if the Prince is caught aiding them while they are fugitives, he could even be executed. This is an enemy nation we’re talking about!” “She’s your sister,” Brenin repeated. “That must mean something to you. And from what I heard, Ren was wounded, perhaps severely. The chances that they will be able to make it back to Iridalys alive if we leave them on their own are scarce.” “I’m aware of that. But if we help them, that will likely be viewed as an act of war,” Illian said gravely. “You were retired already during the wars, general. But I fought in both. I do not wish to fight in a third.” “Be reasonable, Brenin,” Valen interjected. “Ren is a powerful warrior. He will keep her safe. Hopefully, they will go into hiding for a time until this can be sorted out.” Brenin shook his head. “You don’t really believe that. The princess will not hide herself in a corner until everyone else fixes her problems.” “Then that’s her decision,” Illlian said quietly. “I don’t need to remind you of your place, Brenin. We are heading back to Iridalys while we still can.” “There was a time you cared about Ren and Kathryn very deeply,” Brenin shot back. “What happened to you?” “You’re out of line!” Valen began. “Enough.” Illian stood up. “Brenin. I’ll excuse you because I know you are concerned for Ren. But know that I do still care for both of them. I can help them better by going home and informing my father of what has happened here so that our kingdom can take official action. Or would you rather that they are fugitives everywhere they go?” He put a hand on Brenin’s shoulder. “If I thought you could catch up with them, I would encourage you to go after them and help them. But I don’t think it’s wise to send you by yourself with dozens of Vipers patrolling. So you will have to wait and trust in Ren.” He left with Valen, and Brenin remained, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth. He swore under his breath. He even half-consiered disobeying Illian and joining the two young people. But he guessed that Gregory had forces watching Illian as well, meaning that they could follow Brenin right to Ren. While Brenin naturally was concerned for the life of the princess as well, it was Ren who put his stomach in knots and made him feel that he’d be willing to undergo a court martial to support him. And the fact that Ren was strong enough to protect himself made no difference. He was like a son to Brenin and had been for the last 10 years. The memories flooded Brenin’s brain, and he lowered his head as tears prickled in his eyes for only the second time in a many years. He cursed again and muttered, “You brat, you’d better be safe!”

10 years ago…

When Ren trudged back to the quarters every day after training for the first several weeks, he collapsed on the pile of blankets that served as his bed and stared up at the ceiling. He often felt felt he would be far too tired to eat, but he was also too hungry to sleep. So he’d have to stumble over to the table to make some food. 

Not yet, though. He wanted to rest for just a moment. He tried to turn on his side to see if that was less painful than sleeping on his back, but if anything, it was worse. He shifted and finally sat up, wishing everything would stop hurting. And as he did that, he saw something out of the corner of his eye. 

There was a new portrait that hadn’t been there before hanging over the desk. The man in it was obviously Brenin, though younger and much happier, standing next to a beautiful woman and a young boy. Ren stood up and studied the picture more closely. “The old man found someone who’d marry him?” he muttered. He stood looking at it for several minutes. It stirred something strange in him; something he had never expected to feel towards his grim teacher. It was something akin to sympathy. 

Just then, Brenin entered the room. He saw Ren near the picture and shoved him away hard. “Go sit at the table,” he ordered. 

As Ren went to obey, he asked, “So, where’s your wife and your kid?” 

“They’re dead. Now shut up.” 

Ren watched as Brenin made breakfast. Then he said, “You don’t have any family left?” 

Brenin glared at him. “I said, shut up! Or do you want another training session right now?” he snapped. 

“No, I don’t.” Ren was often a bit dense, or at least that’s what his father always said, but he wasn’t too dense to realize why Brenin was such a grouch. He decided he didn’t have to antagonize him, especially because he needed to be trained by him if he wanted to beat him up some day. 

And so it was that young Ren was much more compliant after that, much to the suspicion of his new teacher. That didn’t mean those weeks were easy, though. The old man had a bad habit that meant they could never quite get along. In short, he drank. He drank enough to make him absolutely plastered nearly every other night. 

At first, Ren tried to avoid him when he was drunk But two months after his arrival, things came to a head.