Months had passed since the heart had attacked the quaint village. The birth of his daughter was nearing. Now more than ever, Magnus wished he had taken Marella with him. He hoped beyond all hope that she was okay. In a few days' time, he would leave, and make his way back to Anoisn. And after witnessing the birth of his daughter, he would organize a rebellion and destroy The Empress. Not much had happened between those months. The Heart had killed many people and destroyed a bit of the town. Magnus helped in the rebuilding process after Xavier left, and didn’t come back. Brigitte and he oversaw much of the building and had grown to know each other quite well. Even though she shoved him in a cell and almost got him killed by a living heart monster, she was alright. He kept Drake’s heart very close to himself at all times. He was not about to lose it again. Hopefully, Drake was doing okay. Magnus thought about all of them every night before he fell asleep, and it was one of his first thoughts when he woke up. 

Now, he was polishing Snaggletooth, making sure that there were no blemishes or blood on it. Soon he would leave. “I’ve always been curious,” a voice said from behind him. Magnus turned around to look. “Where did you get that blade?” Magnus hesitated to answer, thinking. 

“It was made by my brother,” Magnus said. 

“It is broken in two,” Brigitte went on. “Do you need someone to reforge it? We have a blacksmith in town.” Magnus looked down at the two halves of Snaggletooth. He was going to wait for Drake to do it himself. It would have been the perfect moment. But sometimes those moments never came. Sometimes you waited for the perfect set of events, and it didn’t work out the way you wanted. 

“I would like to meet this blacksmith,” Magnus said. 

Brigitte led her through town. There were few people out. Most of them had been killed by the heart, but there were enough people to keep the place running. Brigitte made her way between two buildings and approached a small booth. A large burning fire was in the center, and next to it was a bucket of water. There was a grindstone, a tanning rack, and a myriad of different weapons. Standing at an anvil was a muscular woman, almost more muscular than Brigitte. She raised a hammer periodically and brought it down over and over again. The sound sent a chill through Magnus’ spine as she hammered the sword out. 

“Vanessa!” Brigitte said. 

“Mm!” The woman acknowledged the Reeve, picking the sword up and shoving it into the water. It hissed and bubbled, steam rising from it lazily. 

“I have a job for you,” Brigitte said. Vanessa continued hammering, and then looked up. She regarded Magnus and saw the two halves of Snaggletooth. This was enough to make her stop, and she walked over to the blade. Magnus stepped back a bit, but she began to feel the blade. 

“Interesting,” she said. “It’s serrated at the sides. I have never seen a blade of such craftsmanship.” 

“Could you fix it for me?” Magnus asked. “I need to leave the village post haste. As soon as it is done, I will be gone.” Vanessa thought for a moment, rubbing her chin. 

“Three hundred gold pieces,” She said. Magnus’ eyes widened. She was really milking him for all he was worth. Sighing, he went for his coin purse. After this, he would have fifteen gold pieces to his name. Vanessa took the bag and shook it. She grunted to Magnus and reached her hands out again. Magnus reluctantly handed her both the pieces of Snaggletooth. “Two days,” she said. “Come back in two days.” Magnus nodded, and both of them left as Vanessa got to work. 

“Where are you going?” Brigitte asked, walking next to Magnus as he went ‘home’. His home was really an abandoned general store, the owner was killed by the heart. He slept in the pantry. 

“My wife is in Anoisn,” Magnus said. “I need to be back to witness the birth of my daughter.” 

“Anoisn?!” Birgitte said, adopting a more frantic tone to her voice. “No! You can’t go there!” Magnus stopped to look at her. 

“Why?” He asked. “What’s going on there?”

“I haven’t heard much,” Brigitte started. “Travelers come and go, you know? Work gets around. There’s talk of The Empress going mad, the castle bleeding, and an explosion. Some even say that the city is overrun with creatures.”

“Creatures?” Magnus asked quizzically. 

“Shambling corpses,” Brigitte said, shivering. “The walking dead, and all that.”

“That sounds like Allura,” Magnus said as if he knew her. It wasn’t untrue. Drake and Allura were to be wed at one point. Nothing ever came of that, though, as the day before the wedding the rebellion started. Magnus sighed. “Once that sword is done. I am going. I need to keep my family safe.” Brigitte bit her lip, rubbing the back of her neck with her hand. 

“I’m coming with you!” She suddenly said as Magnus began to walk off. Magnus turned around, giving her a confused glare.  

“Are you sure?” Magnus asked. “Don’t you need to protect this village?” 

“Look around you!” Brigitte waved her arms around. “There is barely anything to protect. I can always find someone to watch the village in my place. I want to protect a real city!” 

“You would be going against the Empire,” Magnus warned. “The penalty for that is death, if we fail.” Brigitte didn’t answer, and Magnus shrugged. 

“Alright then,” Magnus said. “You may come along.” 

…

Rebecca ran down the hallway quickly. Something was chasing her. She could hear the footsteps approaching her from behind quickly. She was breathing fast, her heart racing. “I’m going to get you!” a deep voice said from behind her. She looked behind herself to see the silhouette of a great big person chasing her. Rebecca screamed as a pair of arms wrapped around her chest and hoisted her up. It shoved her face into the crook of her neck… and blew a raspberry. Rebecca started to giggle, kicking her legs uselessly. “I got you!” Clarisse yelled triumphantly. 

“No! Put me down! Put me down!” Rebecca giggled. Clarisse set her down, and she immediately sprinted off. 

“Oh no, you don’t!” Clarisse grinned, running after her. It had been eight months since Allura had gone mad. Things seemed to have calmed down now. However, Ember had to take constant trips to the castle to help out since Allura had killed the rest of her servants and charge. She took on the rebuilding of the castle, and the rehiring of many impoverished people to be servants. Allura had done her best to rectify the issue. But usually, it just ended in threats to keep her loose grip on power. Everyone was terrified of her now. She ruled with fear, not with love or kindness. Since Ember came to the castle a lot, Clarisse and Rebecca had to find a way to entertain themselves in the long empty halls of the palace. They had both gotten to know each other very well, and Rebecca had told Clarisse all about her adventures with Xavier. The poor girl had seen a lot, even before she had met that man. 

Rebecca giggled as she turned the corner, passing a servant as she bounded down the hallway. She could hear Clarisse behind her, pretending to stomp and thump as she looked for her. Quickly, Rebecca pushed open some double doors and went inside. She giggled silently as she shut the doors behind her. She had to look for a place to hide. Turning around, she screamed. In the middle of the room was a cauldron, bubbling green with a strange fluid. Leaning on the rim of the cauldron was a living skeleton, drumming his fingers on the lip. 

“Hello there,” the skeleton said, waving a bony hand. 

“Who are you?” Rebecca asked hesitantly, approaching the cauldron.

“Drake is my name,” he said. “And you are?”

“R-Rebecca!” Rebecca chewed on her lip. 

“Listen, Rebecca,” Drake said. “Could you tell me what's going on out there? I have been stuck here for months with minimal visitors. I think they forgot about me. I’m supposed to be getting my body back soon.” 

“Um…” Rebecca trailed off, and Clarisse burst through the door. The smile on her face instantly faded when she saw Drake. She approached Rebecca slowly and put her hands on Rebecca’s shoulders. “This is Drake!” Rebecca pointed up to the skeleton. Drake gave an awkward wave. Clarisse backed up a little, pulling Rebecca with her. 

“Wait!” Drake said. 

“It talks?” Clarisse said, mortified. Drake sighed and repositioned himself in the cauldron. 

“What has been happening?! I’ve been alone here for months!” Drake said. “Please tell me!” Clarisse hesitated and then told Drake all that happened. She told him about the Empress’ fit, the bleeding castle, and the explosion. “Wow,” Drake said. “She is psychotic… but a deal’s a deal, I suppose.”

“A deal? What deal?” Clarisse asked. 

“She gets me my body back and I don’t help topple her Empire with my brother in return,” Drake said. “Among… other things,” he looked to Rebecca and did not elaborate. Clarisse bit her lip and looked down at Rebecca, who stared back up at her innocently.

“Okay… we’re going to go now,” Clarisse said. Drake didn’t answer, and Clarisse and Rebecca both backed out of the room slowly. “Okay,” Clarisse knelt next to Rebecca. “I don’t want you going in there anymore, okay?” 

“Okay…” Rebecca trailed off, looking behind Clarisse’s shoulder and to the double doors. She was so monumentally curious about why there was a living skeleton in the castle. 

“Are you hungry?” Clarisse asked. Rebecca nodded, and Clarisse hoisted her up over her shoulder. “Let’s go find something to eat, okay?” 

As Rebecca ate her soup, Clarisse sat across from her in thought. This place just kept getting weirder and weirder. Every time she came there was some new door or passage that she found. Sometimes she would find stairs extending downward into darkness. She didn’t want to think about what was going on here. And then there was the boy Allura paraded around like a trophy. Jacob was his name, with long blond hair and immaculate skin. He may as well have been stitched to her, he hung on her arm like a dog to its master’s leg. Something really strange was going on between them. It couldn’t have been normal or healthy. The doors to the mess hall opened, and Ember stepped in. She was wearing a pants suit, with the brooch of the Eloux family on her right breast. Clarisse smiled when she saw Ember. At least she could look forward to one thing in this castle. 

“Hello, My Love,” Ember gave Clarisse a tired smile as both of them kissed. She stared awkwardly over at Rebecca and gave her a weak smile. Rebecca and her still remembered when Ember tried to make Clarisse hand her over to Allura, who had the intent of killing her. “It’s been a nightmare, we are getting nowhere,” Ember went right into it, sitting down next to her. “No sign of Magnus, the morale of the people is dropping. The castle is as stubborn as a mule in terms of being rebuilt. I’m no architect!” She rubbed her eyes. “I’m just so tired.”

“Oh, honey!” Clarisse rubbed both of Ember’s shoulders. “I’m so sorry…” She looked to Rebecca, who was looking down at her soup as she took a spoonful. “Are we thinking of… leaving anytime soon?” Clarisse asked quietly. Ember looked at her. 

“I have a duty to my Empress I must uphold,” Ember sighed. “I have duties I must attend to.” Clarisse gave Ember a look of disappointment. “What?” Ember asked. 

“We both know that isn’t true!” Clarisse hissed softly. “All you want to do is prance around in your Raven armor and settle old debts! You don’t care about The Empress at all! You just want to feel the heat of battle again!” 

“What a horrible assumption!” Ember said out loud. Rebecca looked up from her soup. Ember’s face was turning red, she stood up. “I am loyal to my Empire, to My Lady!” She argued. 

“Oh yeah? And what will happen when you have to choose between her and me?” Clarisse asked. “Are you going to let me go?” Ember didn’t answer and instead stormed out of the room, slamming the doors behind her. Clarisse sighed and put her head in her hands after that. Rebecca could do nothing and continued to slurp at her soup. 

That night, Clarisse and Ember said nothing to each other as they got in bed together. Ember turned from Clarisse and pretended to be asleep. Clarisse sat up for a bit in silence but finally lay down in the darkness. There was a long silence as Clarisse stared up at the ceiling, not wanting to go to sleep. “Ember,” she said after a moment, turning to face her back. “Ember I’m going to leave. I’m taking Rebecca and getting out of the city…” Ember did not respond, she did not move. Clarisse sighed and rolled over on her side. “Ember,” she said, reaching out for her. Ember pulled her shoulder away before Clarisse could grab it though. Clarisse sighed, they both got no sleep that night. 

…

Magnus made his way over to the blacksmith. It was early in the morning, but Vanessa had said two days. He was holding her to her word, and he needed to leave soon. Hearing about Anoisn had given him a lot of anxiety, and he hoped that Marella was okay. Vanessa was up, and she grunted a greeting as he walked up. “I expect you're here about the sword, yes?” she said. Magnus nodded. He was still sleepy, rubbing the tiredness from his eyes. “It was a beast to reforge, but I got it.” Vanessa reached behind herself, turning around and tugging Snaggletooth out. The blade nearly reached toward the ceiling now. “Go ahead,” Vanessa said. Slowly, Magnus took the hilt of the blade in both hands. The weight was perfect. It had been so long since he had wielded Snaggletooth. He spun around and whirled the blade in all directions. It was sturdy and beautifully made. It looked brand new. 

“You do good work,” he said to Vanessa. “Thank you very much.”

“Mm,” Vanessa said, going back to forging other blades. Magnus stood there awkwardly for a moment, before leaving. He made his way over to the jail. Inside, Brigitte was sitting at the desk, her feet up on it. She was looking at her nails, grimacing. When Magnus entered, she sat up. 

“Are you ready?” Magnus asked, tightening the straps to his rucksack. Brigitte nodded, and stood up, strapping her revolver belt to her waist. She also slipped a backpack on. Both she and Magnus left. The village buildings receded over the horizon as they got further and further. They didn’t speak to each other for quite a bit. Instead, they trudged along the road. It was as if the city was emanating fear from miles away. Magnus felt it in his soul. He felt the energy seeping into his veins. There was no escaping, however. He had to get to his wife. He had to make sure she was safe. Brigitte could tell he was deep in thought, too. She said nothing as well. She could feel the energy as well. They walked through the night, only stopping to rest for a few hours. Magnus was exhausted by the time he got back to the river. This time, the two of them found a bridge. And then they saw it, coming over the horizon. The city of Anoisn. 

On the outskirts of the city, a few people were huddled up around a fire. They were talking in hushed tones. Magnus and Brigitte walked past them. But as they did, Magnus heard a familiar voice. “Oy!” Magnus heard the voice of Gabrielle. He turned, looking at Gabrielle as she waved him over. “Where did you run off to?” She asked. 

“I’ve been away,” was all that Magnus said. 

“You shouldn’t have come back,” she replied. “The Empress has gone insane. The castle was bleeding, and they say at night the dead walk. She is employing us under her charge. Those who enter the castle, never return.” All of the other people nodded and grunted in agreement. Brigitte furrowed her brow as she looked up at the castle. “Jean… that was your name, right?” Gabrielle asked. Magnus sighed and stood up straight. 

“No,” Magnus said. “My name is Magnus Evanteus, fallen Emperor. I am here to reclaim my throne.” 

“What?!” Brigitte asked, stepping back a bit. “You’re Magnus Evanteus?!” Magnus nodded. Everyone gathered around the fire stood up. Magnus could not tell if they looked angry or happy to see him. 

“You…” Gabrielle said. She grunted. “There you were spouting promises of anarchy when you wanted the throne all along!” 

“Yes,” Magnus admitted. “I’m sorry for misleading you. But look, if you actually want The Empress gone you will need my help! I can help! And I will think of all of you when I have ascended!” Each of them folded their arms across their chest and said nothing. 

“We will accept your help,” Gabrielle said. “But once it's over, we have a very difficult discussion. Okay?” Magnus shrugged and nodded. He supposed that was agreeable. But no matter what happened, he was getting the throne back. “We’ll be in touch. I’ll gather all of the people who are still living,” Gabrielle said. Magnus nodded, turning and walking down the street. Brigitte hesitated to follow him for a moment, but in the end, she did. Magnus made his way through the seemingly desolate city. All of the windows were boarded up, and the shops were closed. It was a strange sight. Magnus had never seen a city street in Anoisn that wasn’t bustling with patrons. Now, it was creepy and silent. 

“I can’t believe I trusted you,” Brigitte grunted under her breath. “You’re the reason all of this is happening! That’s why the bounty hunter was after you!” 

“You don’t have to follow me, you know?” Magnus said. “If you’re going to chastise me for things that happened a decade ago, you can leave me alone…” 

“No,” Brigitte said defiantly. “You’re right. We need you and your power. You need to deal with the problems you created!” She jabbed a finger toward him with those last words. Magnus shook his head and stopped as they reached his old house. It was nearly the same as he had left it, except for the boards on the windows. Magnus approached the door, which was also boarded. Without hesitating, he kicked it in. Quickly, he entered. The large house was quiet, save for the echo of the kick that was bouncing off of the marble walls. 

“Marella!” Magnus yelled. There was no response for a moment. Magnus assumed the worst. Perhaps she was dead in a ditch somewhere. But then her voice sounded from up the stairs. 

“Magnus!” she yelled. Magnus began to run, seeing Marella descending the stairs as quickly as she could. Her belly was huge. She was wearing a silken maternity robe. Magnus rushed over to her, and both of them embraced. “I missed you so much. I thought you would never return!” Marella said. 

“I told you I would,” Magnus said. “I promised I would be back to see the birth of my daughter. Is the baby okay?” Marella pushed him away and rested a hand on her stomach. 

“She is fine,” she said. “Alive and kicking!” She giggled, and then her laughter turned into sobs. 

“No, please don’t,” Magnus said softly. “You’re going to make me…” Tears welled up in his eyes as well, and the both of them embraced again, sobbing into each other. Brigitte stood awkwardly in the corner, tabbing her foot with her hands on her hips. When they pulled away from each other again, Marella finally noticed her. 

“Who is this?” Marella asked. 

“This is Brigitte,” Magnus responded. “She wanted to come with me. She is here to help protect the city.” 

“Hello, Ma’am,” Brigitte said, tipping her hat. “I had no idea you were married and expecting… weren’t you called the loveless knight?” Brigitte asked. 

“It isn’t mine,” Magnus answered. Brigitte opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it and bounced on the balls of her feet. 

“Beautiful painting!” She tried to ignore what had just happened, walking over to a portrait of Magnus and Marella. 

“There isn’t much time,” Magnus took his hands into Marella’s. “I’m going after The Empress.”

“What?!” Marella gasped. “Magnus, you can’t! She is all-powerful and insane! You won’t survive! What of the baby?” 

“The baby will be fine,” Magnus said. “The baby will grow up with a father, I promise you.”

“I want her to grow up with you as a father!” Marella hit him in the shoulder. “You aren’t going to miss the birth, are you?” 

“Of course not,” Magnus assured her. “But I have unfinished business. Ten years of unfinished business, to be exact.” Marella sighed. 

“Before you have to go…” Marella said, resting another hand on her stomach. “What should we name her?” Magnus looked at Marella, and then down to her stomach. 

“Why don’t we figure that out after she is born?” Magnus said with a smile. “When both of us see her for the first time.”