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Harigar Rhim offered a quick pat on the shoulder and Deena a short smile but one203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO3tUIIp0ZP
that seemed like it had a long time coming. She had a harder time than the others in203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡesAA3i6VEs
holding her posture.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkKAgXN3e9Q
“Celle, Lorian... this is Red.” Dhanel Marce introduced him in such a short manner.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDmsvaN5N0
“He is an old friend of ours and a former member of the Hand.” The new figure was203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7UdMlaSOsP
a bigger man; slightly taller and larger than any other here and as he pulled his blue203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrQtDiDVyzI
hood back, he revealed his red hair and his red beard. Both coloured in vivid, almost203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgOy87cSPQr
flaming tones as if they were trying to match the very flames on his back.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vlORpUyXc
“What are you doing here? Answer me.” Celle takes a few steps forward.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAdnKpMHWXe
“You could say I still live here...” his voice matches the rest of him, deep and steady...
“No one lives here...” she insisted.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMuyS99Emx
“That is enough Celle.” Dhanel Marce requested.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVKDCqZQ7R
“Down girl.” Red did not care how much he could infuriate her; instead, his eyes203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKDhAzOikRl
were now turned to Lorian, the quiet and more aloof of the group “And you?”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSYDymEognG
“...” the silent companion looked instead towards that mountain...203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxxqDhXcKsl
“Not much of a talker I see...” Red looked at him from hood to boot “I like that.”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzZZMaOLbDC
Celle insisted: “Sir who might this haphazard figure be?”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwk1Qoc2Zdt
“Disobedient and rude...” Red barely ever looked at her, and he didn’t seem fazed203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCyEAUfkhhn
by any of her words or stares either “So is this what you drag behind you these days?”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSl0hlOTcDH
“Everyone here has definitely earned their place” Dhanel Marce manages to halt203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNyOB7Yr54L
Celle right before she can sneak in another word “just as they did in your days...” he203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhO9nltGYo1
smiles “that hasn’t changed my old friend. Nothing has really.”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0w9pJH2EWw
“I am not so sure about that.” Red keeps looking around at them, one by one...203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4X837RRIq3
“Sir I must intercede, we should not...” but Dhanel Marce cut her off once again...203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdtGDF1GSdY
“Celle, please...” he asked... “Celle here became your replacement Red, after... well,203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoXK9XAmmMT
you decided to take your leave of absence, and she has been exerting the same position203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz8k7uAtHvV
you did from day one. Needless to say, she is most capable and very much worthy of203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVKk9oVZitQ
such responsibility as my second in command. She holds my utmost confidence.”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwwk5vbh3C
Perhaps the captain of the Hand said these words with ambiguous intent, so at the203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPPlvcsRtw
same time safeguard himself against any further implications from Red, as well as203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH1sfN5yRff
to prevent any falser steps from Celle. Or perhaps he did not see that far ahead and203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO7k6Hb8zIv
simply told the truth, regardless of it worked both ways even if only for a short while.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHz8oOQJdDC
Red looked around once more and then his eyes stopped on the other two; Deena and203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBgJFIwe7w8
Harigar Rhim whom he has been friends with for a very long time, he looked straight203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCZCFLk8Yq
at them...203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd2qRRlF7FI
“No promotion for any of you I reckon. Not a single sample of acknowledgement to203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbHv5EMexRc
those serving long before this one came to join. She just tagged along and immediately203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVuOLcnFP5D
started running things? I wonder if your king might have found himself a new203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡolwm4kOLAa
favourite...” he pauses a bit as he easily reflects Celle’s harsh stare “So how do you two203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiy2GoTcqE6
fancy any of it?”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAICjxuXQvV
“We all have our orders Red...” Dhanel Marce concluded before any of the others203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47ZORqg2Hy
could toss in the slightest contribution. A short but still awkward silence followed.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUtdn4kYOYW
The storm still has them, over this entire region those clouds, always ruthless, do not203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRXICtlX5sq
know the meaning of relent and ever do they allow anyone under their gaze to stay dry203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnGw0WcoPtC
or warm, for even the slightest amount of time. Closer to the edge of what was once203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRSpfIWsOM
a lively Brosse, now six instead of five, are experiencing the local weather, an ongoing203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTg8unKZ1UW
storm that shows no signs of dispersion or the slightest weakness.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡorONkQCFWH
“You are not wearing your mask.” Deena pointed out.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUAMSWXFGps
“You don’t need that type of mask here Deena...” Red looked around once again as203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl2sZ14sKB7
if he was looking for something, and every time he did, one could tell he did not see203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI0YmfITlag
this place like any of the others “Besides I like to see the world as it really is, experience203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpw79NJ6VrL
it as it really is...”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ17eFjNYClR
“Boss,” says Harigar Rhim “we need to get moving.”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCOiZJ7P7e
“Wait a moment” Red then widened his eyes “Where is Elistia?”203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8VwvSXfOLm
“After you left, she was never the same again Red, she changed...” Dhanel Marce203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFyKnLBvUOo
ignored Harigar Rhim and kept on talking, as if the sun was shining and his own voice203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Q8JwwTbXZ
wasn’t being muffled by his mask or the heavy rain “...her focus and her strength were203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ602WGV7Ez1
no longer there as she started to often endanger the success of our missions and most203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGk069e62v
importantly, her wellbeing. More than once either I or another, had to step in for her203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU6iKTHbLTH
sake; we suddenly began finding ourselves intervening often in inexplicably made dire203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHlU5vR1cLd
situations, and whereas before she could have just handled them easily and gracefully203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH1jnoZLkq5
all by herself, now, now if not for us, she would have surely lost it all. Everyone here,203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXizJ8sbR8M
except for Lorian who took her place, has saved her life more than once, and me more203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthMTttABKi
than I would like to count.203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYNW6nYjDQ4
We slowly started noticing, all of us, that she had lost something shortly after your203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIDlsjzoS4P
departure; either her heart or her mind or maybe both. Something just wasn’t there203Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIBbpzxz0cZ
anymore after you left which is, I think, understandable.
