Seonghwa kept in the heart of the group, surrounded on all sides. His husbands formed the inner wall of protection, and the elven troupe completed another circle around them. Everyone had their weapons drawn, cautious in their approach towards the village.

Smoke rose from the open fireplaces. The fort of wood spread out rather than towering into the sky and it was surrounded by a moat filled with sharpened spikes. They pointed outward, warding off any intruder who might infiltrate the empty walkways. Even their smaller villages were closed off. The inner affairs within the orc lands were in constant tension, even without the influence of the empire. Various tribes battled to come out on top and prove their strength towards each other. Their leadership was ever-changing, and those who gathered the most heads earned the most respect. If they wanted to keep safe from attacks, they needed to seal away from their kin.

"Do you wish to approach, Your Majesty?" The head of the troupe ducked behind her shield, watchful of an attack from above. Seonghwa encountered soldiers shot by orkish crossbows before and the injuries from the splintered wood were grisly.

"If they are Kane's accomplices, we will play right into his hands. It's too risky," he replied. "Even if they don't attack us as outsiders, we make easy prey. If we-" He cut himself short at movement near the moat. First, he thought an orc patrol had spotted them and was about to make trouble, but the body winding between the wood was much smaller. An elf, one trapped by the orcs, trying to worm their way out through the spikes. It was a dangerous gamble, and they could easily be spotted in the open field.

With his heart in his throat, Seonghwa watched as the others picked up. The head of the guard hissed.

"Your Majesty-" She began, but Seonghwa was faster, shifting his pregnant body, hidden behind their defences. Since his agility was impaired, he was no good match, but he knew whom to trust.

"Hongjoong, disguise us near those trees. We will wait as Wooyoung gets that person out of there. If the orcs find them, it's their last day on earth."

The gryphon-born's eyes flared with the challenge.

"Count on me."

"If you get discovered, retreat immediately. I don't doubt your skill, but your safety is most important. Even if it agonises us to leave any elves behind, we will resolve the affair with the orcs soon, and then they all can run free." Though that might not save this flighty one, fuelled by the madness to escape. They had to try. Seonghwa had to trust them.

Confident, Wooyoung ruffled his feathers.

"Count on me, Your Majesty. I will bring you a delightful gift."

They tucked into the shade of the trees, hidden under a dome of Hongjoong's magic. While their mounts took a break, Yeosang mingled with the trees. He grew out his crown, filled in the empty spots. Wooyoung perched on him, hidden from sight as his eyes spied into the orc camp.

It was risky to free their prisoners, especially if the order came from Seonghwa personally. The orcs might take it as a declaration of war from the empire. But as he counted on Wooyoung and his instinct, Seonghwa prayed it would work.

After a few minutes, Wooyoung dropped between them on powerful talons.

"I see several elves milling around. Watch the master at work," he grinned. Behind him, San leaned against Yeosang's stem, sword in hand to be ready to swoop in if their gryphon-born got trapped. As Wooyoung spread his wings, Seonghwa caught his arm with a delicate hand. His gaze lingered on the skulls on spikes, on the display of stolen weapons the orcs gathered off their enemies of many races.

"Be careful," he pleaded, leaving a breath of a kiss on Wooyoung's cheek. His eyes conveyed his worry and the blushing gryphon-born cradled his cheek in his hand.

"I will," he promised, mellow. Yunho relaxed when the arrogance left the scout's body.

While Wooyoung swung into the air, the others watched his flight full of tension. Seonghwa cradled his stomach in one hand, protecting his unborn child. Yunho lingered near, feeling responsible for it since he cherished his pregnant husband.

Mingi sat in blindness, ripping at the grass peering through the thin layer of snow.

"This sucks. Everyone else knows when to fret and I sit here like a fool," he grumbled, shoulders hunched around his ducked head. Jongho was a generic boulder by his side, offering a place for everyone to rest against.

"If something happens, you will hear him screech," he assured Mingi, dry. When Seonghwa threw them a fearsome gaze, Hongjoong clicked his tongue.

"Some trust in Seonghwa's decisions, please."

Some trust in Wooyoung.

Disguised against the grey of the skies, Wooyoung soared subtly. The orcs never expected an attack from above, disregarding winged creatures as posing no danger. Much more often, they encountered demons in the burrows they dug.

The village remained peaceful. Most of the orcs rested or were busy raiding a different place. Either way, no chimes sounded when Wooyoung angled his wings and shot straight down into the protected area. Seonghwa held his breath when he disappeared, nervous to hear a scream next.

It came, but it wasn't from Wooyoung. And neither was it in pain.

A moment later, Wooyoung emerged with powerful flaps of his wings. He had closed his claws around the upper arms of a scrawny elf, narrow and malnourished from the time she spent out there. She was dressed only in thin rags and flailed when Wooyoung took her away. A hiss of the gryphon-born had her quiet. Even if Wooyoung were a predator, being carried off by him might be the better outcome than staying.

As a few orcs came running, Wooyoung was long gone. He flapped away into the distance, pretending to carry his prey far. While he circled around out of sight, the orcs huffed and retreated to what they had been doing. The downside to elves was that they were easily taken away. But just as replaceable.

The rest of the group watched with their weapons drawn, but the fort calmed. They had no further interest in a single elf, and soon, the huffing orcs retreated to cooking their meat and forging their blades.

Seonghwa exhaled.

"A fine scout he is. I would have expected him to creep through the grasses," Yunho chuckled, surprised by the brash attack.

"He's no assassin, but he knows to assess a situation. This was the fastest way out of there. The orcs might have smelled him otherwise," Seonghwa smiled, proud of Wooyoung's wit. He sunk to the mould Jongho formed for him, resting his heavy body. He couldn't caress his stomach through the armour, but he hoped the break calmed his ever-twisting and thrashing child. As if impatient to stretch out, they kept worming around with no regard for Seonghwa's limitations.

Definitely not a child used to being restricted, like human and elven children. Was it San's? Was there no space for their wings?

Seonghwa contemplated until Wooyoung returned. He flew low over the fields, struggling with the extra weight even when the elf was so scrawny. The moment he entered their dome, and the forest swallowed them, everyone sighed in relief. The poor elf came tumbling to the ground when Wooyoung let go, knees too weak to hold up. While Seonghwa's guards supported her, Seonghwa smiled at Wooyoung.

"My precious one," he praised, making the gryphon-born blush. He preened his wings off to the side, telling Mingi in grand exaggerated detail how well he did.

The elf trudged over on weak knees and the guards helped her sit before Seonghwa. She shook like a newborn deer and Yunho searched their cart for a flask of water to hand her. Anything more might break the brittle hollow of her bones.

Heartbroken over her state, Seonghwa sunk to the earth so they were on the same level. He watched the elf drink, eyes flickering left and right, overwhelmed by the elves in chain mail even when they were her own. Water trickled down her bobbing throat.

After the first shock subsided, the elf lifted her trembling eyes to Seonghwa. She was in one piece, not mutilated since the orcs didn't enjoy her that way. She was lucky. Seonghwa saw the corpses of some who were no more but a head and a body, all limbs cut off to ease access and stop them from fighting.

"C-Crown Prince," the elf stuttered when she recognised Seonghwa's features. Seonghwa rewarded her with a smile.

"Fear not, you are free."

"Have you come to free us from this nightmare?"

Upset, Seonghwa shook his head. One of his soldiers placed a woollen blanket around the shivering elf's shoulders.

"I'm afraid not. Recent disruptions brought me here and we chase after a certain group of orcs that went back on their promise to the crown. We passed through, so we hoped to save at least someone. I'm glad you made it out."

"Me too," the elf whispered, shivering. She rocked back and forth, clutched her body in a hug around her flimsy clothing. Yunho regarded her full of pity while Hongjoong's brows had drawn into an angry line. His eyes travelled over Seonghwa's shoulder, hidden under his armour.

"What is your name?"

"Freya. Though no one called me that in an eternity," the elf reminisced. She once had a life, parents, a family perhaps. All taken from her to reduce her to a slave.

And she was by far not the only one.

"An honour to meet you, Freya. You may call me Seonghwa if you are comfortable with that. I am not here under my title."

Though the elf nodded, she was far from the sanity to consider it. She must have spent years out here, broken, yet with enough sense left in her that she wouldn't turn around to return to the orcs. A life well saved.

"The chieftain we seek is called Kane. Are you familiar with the tribes here?"

"More than I'd like," Freya uttered. "The geography of their lairs changes constantly, but there are five major ones. Chieftain Kane rules the largest tribe in the north. If you are following him, that's where he will go."

Seonghwa glanced at the head of his guard.

"Do we have any men to spare to bring Freya home? As much of a help as she might be to us, I would rather reunite her with her family and assign her a healer."

Before the soldiers had to ponder their already so limited protection for Seonghwa, Freya lifted her hands.

"Not at all! I am free from my torment, and even these few minutes of peace felt like I've breathed for the first time in years. Please, if I can repay your compassion by guiding you safely through these hellish lands, I will. I owe you my life, Your Highness."

No one bothered to correct her. The poor girl went through enough.

Seonghwa hesitated, but Yunho stepped up to Freya's side, mindful not to touch her out of the blue.

"That improves all our chances. Let's tend to her as we go, dove. We can look out for her."

When Seonghwa gave his reluctant permission, Freya glanced up at Yunho in awe. One by one, she noticed the various races mingling around, how unique each of them was compared to the elven troupe. She contemplated Seonghwa's stomach, then their watchful eyes on him. After a moment, she pieced everything together. A gasp dropped from her lips.

"How much time has passed since I came here? Are these your husbands, Prince Seonghwa?"

"Indeed they are," Seonghwa smiled, much fonder than one would look about mere diplomats. "A lot changed in the Crystal Sphere and you will have time to catch up. For now, let's save those wrongfully taken and demand answers from Chieftain Kane."

The elf nodded, life already returning to her eyes. She wasn't broken yet, so she could heal. Seonghwa was relieved they took the difficult detour.

They waited in the shadows and backed away slowly once they were sure no orc watched. Though it took them a while to round the fort and stay out of sight, they soon were back on the path, steering north. Saving someone gave Seonghwa the confidence he had a lot to save in this place, many lives to improve. Though war was the last thing he wanted, he would closely monitor the orcs and figure out how to free the other elves. Perhaps by trade, perhaps by a secret mission, as the one Wooyoung performed. Out here, Seonghwa was bound to find a way.