Later in the night, around midnight, at the western shore military camp, where Elias and many others are being trained at, all is quiet. Most people are asleep, especially the enlistees, but not all are afforded that luxury. In the war room, with a large map of the island and the coast of the mainland sitting over a large table, the officers in charge of the camp stand around the table and General Knox leans over top of the map and looks down at it, examining each and every part. They talk amongst themselves while Knox stands over the map in silence as he looks down at it, and among the military personnel are Luna, Brutus, and Adrian.

After Brutus served to hold Luna and Adrian together on the first day of the training, they now talk on friendly terms with one another, at least somewhat. Adrian still has an air of pompousness, and Luna still has a knife's edge to her words and mannerisms, but Brutus is able to keep this thing they have going in balance, like a glue that holds this otherwise volatile relationship together. They discuss strategy, as in Luna and Adrian do, as Brutus is not suited for that side of things, unlike they are.

Given this, Brutus pops the question to them both, asking about what their strategies may be. "What do you guys think that we should do?" He asks them both, and they break their own personal intermingling conversation regarding it all. It's admittedly hard to get through the noise of the room with their voices unless they are fairly loud, but they can hear one another luckily. "You both have been talking for a bit, so I imagine that you've got a plan, right?" He asks them.

Although both have thoughts on how they could handle the situation, separate thoughts of how, Adrian is first to speak. Or at least he starts to, uttering hardly a full word, General Knox stands upright from leaning over the table and looks around the room at his inferior soldiers, the men and women who live to serve the nation of Lupresia. "Men, women, any battle that may soon be fought on our own shores must be met the fiercest of resistance, and we cannot allow them past our lines." He says to them with wholehearted seriousness, "With our blood, sweat, and tears this nation was birthed and fostered into one of greatness after the smoke of war cleared. So, I ask of you, please let me know any strategies that you might have. I will factor them into my final call on this daunting matter." He says to them all.

It is at this that Adrian is the first to raise his hand, beating Luna who gives him a nasty stinkeye. "Sir, if I may." He is given the go ahead, and lowers his hand, clearing his throat and beginning to speak. "If I were to suggest a plan, amongst my fellow man-" He sees the female soldiers, of which there are a few. "And woman, I would say that the closest part of the mainland, which is a part of Avantasia, is in the north-east from the isles. Some of the tertiary islands are in that direction as well, the smallest of those islands in particular, so that would be their most likely launching and landing point respectively." He says, positing his thoughts on the most likely place to be attacked first in an invasion.

The other officers seem to agree with this, and General Knox agrees as well. This is something that he himself has thought of in his own mental gymnastics, but he always values input from others, even from inferior personnel. As such, he continues seeking said input, asking again. "Thank you, mister Adrian Wart. Does anyone else have a plan? If you do, I would like to hear it. Again, some plans may be factored in if they are feasibly viable solutions to this conundrum." He explains, eager to hear more ideas, and to use them if they make enough sense and could be a viable strategy to defeat their powerful enemy, even in a nightmare scenario.

This time Luna gets her turn, as she immediately lifts her hand and manages to beat all others to the punch. She was not going to allow someone to beat her to it like Adrian did and lowers her hand after she is given the go ahead to speak. "Thank you for giving me your ear, general. Adrian and I have been trading our ideas, but he only brought up his own in his chance to suggest." She tells him with a brief glance at Adrian before looking back towards Knox. "I believe that it would be best to move our forces to an impromptu camp we could set up on the farthest north-eastern island. That is Avantasia's most likely first stop, so by doing so we could meet them there since it is uninhabited and could allow us to avoid unnecessary civilian casualties." She says to him, saluting in a respectful manner after she does.

Knox is surprised to find an idea that eluded him, but he asks a few more people and they each give a similar idea after what Luna suggested. The solution he has pieced together thanks to factoring in their ideas plus utilizing his own, is that they will move their forces, including the newly enlisted soldiers, to that small and uninhabited island to meet the army of Avantasia if they land there first. "Very well, with all of your input, I have our next move plotted. Allow me to explain the crux of this plan." He says to them all, proceeding to explain the concocted plan in great detail.

The following early hours of the morning, the enlistees wake up from their slumber, beaten by the intensive training that they partake in day after day with only one day each week allowing rest. Amongst the male soldiers who are getting dressed in their barracks, is Elias with his newfound friend named Damien. Damien is the only big friend he's made, though his hero status and swordsmanship that outclasses most of the other soldiers means that he is on positive terms with all fellow cadets, both male and female. Though he is not too close to any in particular aside from Damien, the first friend he made at the camp.

As Elias slides his shirt on and makes sure that all of his clothing is in order, Damien does the same next to him. The soldiers are required to do their own laundry to help teach responsibility in taking care of their things, and so it's important to ensure that your outfit is well kempt and not disorderly, lest you be punished for it. No severe punishments but pulling extra duties around camp. Damien makes an otherwise silly remark after they both finish, taking a jab at the workload. "Next thing you know; they'll tell us to make our own meals." He says with a laugh, as there are a few resident chefs who prepare their meals for them.

Damien's company took some getting used to since Elias has rarely hung out with anyone prior to enlisting, aside from the occasional time with Stace and/or River, but it's a nice source of relaxation for him. Damien is a very fun-loving individual, and likes to make wise cracks, which are often quite funny. As Damien says this one, Elias laughs at it and has become one to play into such jokes. "That, and they'll make us dust the mess hall each day." He says with a laugh of his own, which Damien shares with him. All in all, the two young men enjoy one another's company quite a bit.

After everyone in the male barracks get dressed in their proper attire, they head outside and meet with the female soldiers, converging in the spot of the camp where roll call is held. After Luna finishes taking roll call, General Knox steps forward to address the enlistees, as he does on occasion. This time it seems different, though. "I must inform all of you men and women that our basecamp is moving." He says, shocking all of them. "In anticipation of the potentials of an incoming invasion, we are moving to the uninhabited island off of the north-eastern coast to set up an impromptu encampment to greet their forces if they come, as that is the most likely starting point of such an attack." He explains, "Your training will continue once we arrive, but if an attack happens, your exercises will be cut short. Therefore, they must be expedited. That is all, your superior officers will lead you in packing up the necessities for our departure tomorrow." He finishes speaking, hands behind back, and starts to walk away.

As the officers start them on the path of packing up the bare necessities of the camp that will be taken with them, Captain Sheena walks down into the castle dungeon to finally interrogate Adam Weaver for the second time. Being assumed to have lied about Julian Krill being the mastermind being the conspiracy, Sheena has no choice but to probe for more information. If he is hiding anything at all, it will be uncovered one way or another. Although previously disliking it, she has resolved to even take the most drastic of measures to further this investigation, for what she considers to be the greater good.

Approaching his cell for what is hopefully the last time she must, she orders the guard on duty to unlock the door, and she enters it to find that he is in a slump against the wall, looking up at the ceiling aimlessly. He seems to be in some kind of a trance, and he looks like skin on bones with nothing in-between. This seems odd to Sheena, so she looks back at the guard who was in charge of guarding him and asks why he is like this. "What's up with him? This is new." She tells him, curious to know why Adam seems so out of it with a few mere blinks here and there and not much other movement.

"Oh." The male guard looks in the cell towards her and speaks to explain this question that she has, a very understandable quandary to bring up. "He has been refusing to eat as of late. No matter what's been tried to get him to eat, no matter what we offer, he refuses to eat." He explains, just as concerned as she is to learn this. They aren't concerned because they care he isn't eating for his health, but because if he dies then they won't be able to get any more information from him. A well of info that would be lost forever.

She knows that she can't have him passing on and leaving any information that he may have within himself to tell undiscovered, Sheena looks at him and walks over towards him, kneeling down over him. "Mister Weaver, can you hear me?" She asks and he manages to move his head to look at her, though his lack of eating is clearly taking its toll. "So, you can hear. Can you speak? I have some questions for you." She tells him, yet he doesn't respond audibly or visually. No nod or headshake, just as much as no audible answer.

For a moment he does not dignify this with any words, though he clearly is not intending to live much longer. That is why he is refusing to eat, as he wants nothing more than death at this moment, yet he isn't being sentenced to execution to make it quick. "Just... Kill me already." He says with a shaky and weary voice, coughing afterwards. "If you... If you promise to execute me, then I will tell you all that I know. I can imagine you are here for a specific reason, yes?" He asks her, having an inkling that she may have learned it was a lie that he told her.

Sheena stands and looks down at him. She knows that is she kills him it would just make his information gone forever even quicker, but he is supposedly going to tell her anything she wants to know if she promises to do so. All she has to do is promise and she could potentially get anything out of him. "Okay then, I promise. I will execute you once you tell me what I need to know." She says to him, making a false 'promise.' "So, answer me this. That man you told me was the head of your organization wasn't that, correct? And if it was a lie, then who is it really?" She asks as she holds the hilt of her sword.

He is glad to hear her promise this, as if is killed he could be martyred by people who supported his cause. That is a way for his death to have meaning in his eyes and he believes that it is a noble way to leave this world. "You're smart to have figured that out." He responds with a tired and wheeze-laden laugh. "Very well, I'll tell you the truth... The man who claims the title of king is Nicholas Collins... Of the noble family of Collins in the north..." He says, given a more substantial name. Knowing that it's a nobleman who is the leader could change politics in this nation quite a bit. And it is similar to how Xavier Homings, Elias' father who was plotting to kill River's father King Phosphorus Lucrece was also a nobleman.

This revelation definitely throws a wrench into things. It makes her realize that the idea of a nobody, with no political experience or wealth, like Julian Krill being the figurehead of an insurrectionist revolutionary organization is rather silly and makes little sense. "Is that all?" Sheena asks, still holding the hilt of her sword. "If you have any more that you can share, then please tell me." She tells him, and he shakes his head to tell her that he has no more. "We'll see about that." Releasing the hilt of her sword, she turns around to start walking out of the cell, to Adam's shock.

He is upset by this and vocalizes his frustration that she seems to not be ready to kill him as she promised loudly. "What?! Aren't you going to execute me?! You said you would!" He yells out, still sitting against the wall. "How could you lie?! Kill me, as you promised! Make my death have meaning!" He exclaims, outraged that she would go back on her word like that. Sheena does not respond however, proceeding to step outside of the cell door. She has no intention to kill him, wanting him to live just a bit longer for if they need him again.

To that end, she looks at the guard on duty and tells him something that she sees as of the utmost importance. "We need him to stay alive. If he continues to refuse to eat, then you have my authorization to make him eat by any means necessary. Be it force feeding or what have you. He must remain alive just a bit longer." She tells the soldier, who salutes her while saying that he will if Adam makes it necessary. "Good. You may lock the door." She says before starting to walk off.

Adam screams in abject rage at his inability to be executed or sentenced to death, since he wishes to be remembered, while Sheena walks back through the dungeon past lots of empty cells. She has new things to uncover, and what could've been a dead end has turned into a long road, as this lead is far more believable than Julian Krill being the figurehead, given Nicholas Collins having widespread influence in that region of the nation. He is in a far northern city surrounded by woodland, only second in size to the capital itself. This could hasten things quite a lot, and it would be a shock if his manor was the main base of this group's operations. Though that is yet to be seen.

To Be Continued...