"Do you love your king?" Gwen shouted, drawing the attention of passersby. The villagers of Vellaria paused in their mid-morning routines, turning toward the two young people. Maverick waited a few seconds before joining in.

"Who is your king?" he asked, spreading his arms wide and staring around. A man off to the side glanced around at his fellow villagers before calling out.

"Bainon is our king."

"Yes!" Gwen threw her arms up in the air. A few villagers let out a bark of approval. "And no." A dumbfounded silence followed as people turned to their neighbors for clarity.

"Well over a month ago, the betrayers known as the Militia came in the dark of night and slaughtered innocent people sleeping in their beds. They captured or killed Bainon's Army. The king is on the run, and a stranger sits on his throne." 

"How do you know this?" a voice asked from his left. It was Finny, strategically placed to move the narrative forward. 

"We were there," Gwen said. A murmur went through the crowd. "We saw so many die."

"Bainon is still alive. He's in hiding!" Maverick raised his voice. "Your king lives while a usurper sits on his throne!" 

"The usurper must be stopped!" Gwen said, raising a fist. "We want your help to stop them!"

"And who are you?" An old lady called, having just appeared. She looked confused, and Maverick could tell she'd just walked into the conversation.

"We're Bainon's heirs," Maverick said. "I'm Maverick Knight, son of Clarice Tremaine, and this...this is my sister." Maverick glanced at Gwen, who nodded.

They'd gone back and forth on whether or not they ought to say who she really was. The daughter of Tarvril, Lieutenant Port said, might not gain them support in certain areas. In some, Maverick would have more pull - the son of the beloved princess. In others, further north, Gwen would have just as much positive influence. But in the south, where the people under Tarvril's reign felt the full force of his insanity, her identity would be better hidden.

"Prove it!" 

The voice was joined by a chorus. They'd expected it and prepared a way to do so. As Maverick grabbed at his tunic, the sky darkened and a boom of thunder rolled. The crowd shouted as one, the blue sky vanishing as a dark grey swirl of clouds appeared overhead. 

"What's going on?" Gwen asked, grabbing hold of Maverick's arm. 

"I don't know!"

A swirl of wet, heavy snow pelted down from the skies, obscuring his vision and causing mass chaos as people fled the street to nearby shops. Another peal of thunder rumbled, shaking the ground. Something spread across the cobblestones, and Maverick slid a few inches to the left.

What is this? He stared around at the hard substance below him.

"Ice!" Gwen said, losing her footing. "Where is the ice coming from?"

Ice.

Maverick whirled around, slipping and sliding as he searched the streets. Finny reached them and helped Gwen to her feet. 

"Look!" Maverick pointed north to where the ice originated. A vortex of snow and wind formed around two beings who stood toe to toe, shouting at each other. In the din of the howling gales, Maverick couldn't see more than their outlines, let alone hear a word they were saying. 

Pushing against the forceful wind, he tried to reach them, slipping and sliding across the ice. Squinting ahead, he saw the taller of the two raise his arms and bring them down to his sides. A force stronger than any Maverick had ever felt hit him square in the chest and knocked him flat on his back.

Winded, it took him several seconds before he could move, but all around him, silence fell. The blast of wind had blown away the winter storm, leaving blue skies shining on the thick layers of ice.

Sitting up, Maverick saw the two figures, confirming who he already suspected they were.

"Eric!" he wheezed, still gasping for breath. The former Commander didn't hear him, and Maverick struggled to his feet while taking in Eric's appearance.

His hair had grown longer in the six weeks since Maverick last saw him. Gone was the military crop cut, replaced by the hint of curls as it headed to his ears. He also appeared - what was the word? Maverick cocked his head to the side, trying to place it.

Sharper.

Meaner.

Something about Eric made him think of a razor's edge, and by the look on Samson's face, he wasn't far off.

Where had the wind come from?

Before he could shout out to Eric again, the Guardian turned north and started running. Samson stood for a moment, glanced back at Maverick as if he'd always known he was there and shook his head as if to say "you can't save him." 

Samson backed away, holding eye contact with Maverick, and then turned and ran after Eric.

"Are you okay?" Port approached, reaching an arm out to Maverick. "Is everyone okay?" 

"Good." Gwen let out a groan as she got to her feet yet again. "So much for our first rallying of the troops. No one stuck around."

"We'll have to try again," Finny said, looking more like her old self as she hobbled up to them. "You have to be heard."

*

It wasn't as easy as that. The next morning they discovered many in the village had fled to family in neighboring towns for fear of what they'd seen the day before. Drawing a crowd wasn't just shouting out for people to listen, and after several in shop and door to door conversations, Maverick was ready to give up.

"No one's listening." 

"Maybe we should just move on," Gwen said, sitting at a table with her head resting on her arm. "This feels pointless."

"Where do we go next, then?" Port asked, taking out an old map and spreading it across the table.

"Not north," Gwen grumbled, shooting the map a glare. "I don't want to risk running into Eric again and having the same thing happen."

"Unless," Maverick said, an idea sparking. "Unless we used what Eric is doing to our advantage."

"You definitely think he'll do it again, then?" Port asked, looking doubtful. "The Commander was never destructive. Military precision and--"

"That was before he lost everything," Maverick said, his voice hollow. "I know what he's feeling, but he has the power to express it outwardly. He's going to keep doing it until he finds whatever it is he's looking for."

"Canya," Finny suggested, arching a brow. "Who else would he be looking for?"

"Helena," Port and Gwen said together.

"Does he know that's who killed Abigail?" Maverick asked. "We saw it, but he wasn't there."

"Helena still stole Bainon's throne," Port said, puffing his chest out. "I think all the Army would like to see her done in."

"True," Finny said. She turned to Maverick. "How do you plan to use what Eric's doing to our advantage?"

"Any number of ways. We can say this is all happening because of the Militia - they aren't protecting the people of Braskey and now they're in danger of beings much stronger than they are."

"You want them to be afraid of the Guardians?" Gwen asked.

"No. I want them to be upset about the throne not being there for them. I want them to be upset that their villages can be damaged and destroyed by one being because of what the Militia did. If they're afraid of Eric - well, most people already were."

"True," Port said. "More of a healthy, respectful fear of the Army as an extended arm of the king, but still - fear." 

"Then we go north?" Gwen asked.

"We go north." 

Thanks gang! Today got crazy so this scene was all I can give you! I hope you liked seeing it from Mav's perspective. Let me know who you'd like to hear from next! *hint, you won't be hearing from Eric for a while*

Can't wait to hear your thoughts!