"Unbelievable!" Chariya shouted as she kicked a stone down the path leading away from the Antapeñan Senate Hall. "Absolutely unbelievable! There was absolutely no flaw in my rhetoric, and yet, they choose the path of pacifism!"

Hannah offered the princess a reassuring grin. "Whelp, there's nothin' else to do but go elsewhere. I'm sure someone'll help us."

"I can only hope so, but my mind still lingers on what just happened here." Chariya said, "I strongly suspect their many objections are in reality a shield to cover up cowardice."

"Likely so, for many of them." Baird replied, "But don't lose hope, your highness. Sometimes, the Senate will initially reject a motion, but then have further discussion behind closed doors and change their minds. I suspect that's the kind of outcome we can look forward to."

Chariya nodded. "I suppose that is possible."

"So," Baird began, "what's your plan now?"

"I am torn." the princess replied, "My next diplomatic destination would have been Innutuk, but I am unsure whether it is of higher priority for me to return to the base in Jasmidian and learn what has truly transpired."

Baird shrugged. "Well, Innutuk's just across the border, so it's more efficient, at least, to stop off there first."

"Well, also," Hannah said, "it's only an assumption at this point that anythin' really happened over there. Whether it was destroyed or is still standin' strong, it wouldn't hurt to bring some backup."

Chariya scratched her chin. "At the same time, it is possible that a handful of survivors remain, and desperately need our aide."

Baird cleared his throat. "Actually, that only strengthens my point. If we go to Innutuk first, we can get men and supplies to return to the base with. And if our worst suspicions are confirmed, even still, we're poised for success, as we'd only need to cross the border to reach Kemaria."

"You are right." the princess conceded. "After lunch, we shall set out for Innutuk. I can only hope our success is greater there."

Wendy laughed. "The real challenge is getting those bloody nutters not to fight."

Baird smirked and nodded. "Not only that, I understand their relations with Alconte have been rocky at best, as it is. Once they hear about the wrongdoings, it probably won't take a whole lot of persuasion to convince them to arm themselves."

A hint of a smile crept to Chariya's lips. "That is true. I suppose persuasion shall also be easier, as their monocratic system means I only have one person to convince, not a whole committee."

"That's also true." Baird affirmed.

"Will you be able to accompany us, Amergin?"

The swordsman nodded. "Most likely so. I'll have to double-check with my wife, but it's an almost guaranteed 'yes'."

"Excellent."

The group continued on the road to Baird's home with no further conversation, each engulfed in their own thoughts.

********************

Late that evening, under the cover of darkness, the Sand Dollar crept up to the last grove of trees before the tower-infested field surrounding the Forbachean fortress. The ship cruised mere inches above the treetops before slowing to a stop.

Inside the vessel, Brant stood near the closed exit hatch, steadying himself with a firm grasp on a nearby grab rail. Then, when the ship's movement ceased, he released it and cast a glance at Ace and Keira. He received an emotionless nod from the former and a sideways grin from the latter.

"Alright, guys," Aaron's voice crackled over a speaker, "we're here. Keira, you've got the secure communicator?"

The brunette stepped over to the speaker and pressed a red button underneath it. "I've got it, yep."

She clicked the button again, and Aaron's voice came through. "Awesome. Just give me a holler when you're ready for pickup. Good luck out there, guys. And stay safe."

"Thanks. Love you." Keira replied, making a kissing sound with her lips into the intercom.

"You too, sis."

Ace nodded and pressed a button on the wall. The exit hatch slid open and the rope dropped down. He met Brant's gaze and took the line into his hands before sliding down.

Brant waved Keira on next, and after her, he finally descended the rope. Once he reached the end, he dropped the last few feet to the ground and rolled to break his fall. Then, he hurried after the other two as they scuttled into the cover of the last line of trees.

Ace cleared his throat and glanced at Brant. "Okay, listen. This stuff is my area of expertise, but even still...look at that."

Brant followed his finger and inhaled forcefully at the sight of a cluster of lookout towers, irregularly spaced and countless in numbers. High-intensity spotlight beams swept in circles around the spires, unpredictable in both speed and timing. He swallowed a large lump in his throat. He held a hand to his chest, as if that would calm his rapidly-beating heart.

"So you see what I mean." Ace continued. "Even I can hardly imagine making it through there undetected. But we've gotta do it."

"That's right." Keira affirmed.

Brant sighed. "If you have a point, please get there someday."

"You two have got to follow my lead, or you're gonna die. Now, I'm not saying that for my sake, because let's be honest. I don't care. But if you two wanna live, you'd better follow my instructions to the letter. Do you understand?"

"Perfectly." Brant replied.

Keira nodded vigorously. "Gotcha."

Ace cast one last glance between the two before he turned to peek around the tree trunk. He sighed and slipped a gray ball from his jacket pocket. He grasped the object between his fingers and cracked it like an egg, causing a small object to fall out onto the ground.

The dark-skinned man stooped down and retrieved the object before flinging it beyond the tree-line and slipping a rectangular remote from a zippered pocket on his leg.

Brant squinted. "What's that?"

"Reconnaissance." Ace answered as his thumbs wiggled on the joysticks and his eyes darted over the dim display.

Brant and Keira waited as patiently as they could while Ace continued to manipulate the device's controls. Then they jumped as he released an uncharacteristically loud grunt.

"Dang it!" Ace hissed, "Lost signal!"

Brant tightened his lips. "Too far away?"

"Yeah." he growled. "Okay, well, from what I saw, there's no clear path, just weaving to avoid the spotlights. There're also more than a few soldiers roaming the field. We'll have to watch out for them."

Keira nodded. "So we just have to run for it?"

"Basically." Ace sighed. "Okay, I'll give you guys one tip before we go. Stealth isn't just about hiding. Equally important is misdirection."

Brant squinted. "Misdirection, okay. Why's that?"

"Face reality. You're not always gonna have convenient shadows or cover when you need to get from point A to point B. That's where misdirection comes in. Case in point, watch this."

Ace placed some strange, red-tinted lenses over his comrades' eyes, as well as his own. Then he slipped a black ball from his pocket, shook it up, and hurled it ahead of them, several yards to the left. It exploded into a light show, flashing every brightness and color imaginable in the span of a few seconds.

Brant's keen vision pierced through the lenses, to his detriment. The burst of colors blinded him. He blinked furiously to regain his vision, but to no avail.

"C'mon!" Ace urged, the sound of his rapid footsteps moving to the far right of the vivid ball's position, soon followed by Keira's pattering gait.

Brant grunted in frustration. His sight still remained as nothing but a sheet of blinding whiteness. With a huff, he followed after the squishing sound of Ace's feet on the grass. How humiliating for me, of all people.

Brant gasped when he felt Ace snatch his arm and pin his body against a cold, stony surface.

"Dude, listen!" he hissed, vigorously jolting the man's broad shoulders, "We don't have time for this! Get it together and keep moving!"

"I can't help it!" Brant snapped, "You did this!"

"How?" Ace challenged.

"You didn't warn me not to look at—"

"Oh, so now your stupidity is my problem. That makes perfect sense!" he sneered.

Keira huffed. "Ace, is there any way to cancel out the effects?"

"Not that I know."

Brant felt his entire body tense up at those words. No, he thought, not my eyes! Anything but them!

Ace sighed. "Listen, dude, you need to decide what you're gonna do. That diversion isn't gonna last forever." After a pause, he added, "And I'm not carrying you outta here."

"Look, the spotlight's coming around to us!" Keira exclaimed.

"Oh boy." Ace replied. "I'm carrying him outta here."

Brant felt his arm being slung around Ace's shoulder. He leaned his weight down and allowed himself to be led in retreat to the grove. With a sigh, he let himself be guided down to a resting position against a tree trunk.

Ace patted his shoulder. "Sit tight. We'll call Aaron for you. Now Keira, come on."

With that, the pair dashed off, their footsteps fading into silence. Brant focused on breathing while he sat and waited. Whether Aaron's arrival or the return of his sight would come sooner, he could only wait and see, if the latter would come at all.

********************

A/N: Well, a new round of trials have begun. Chariya's got a new destination, and our little nocturnal quest is underway as well! If you enjoyed that chapter, make sure to let me know by leaving a vote and some comments. 

So yeah, I don't know about you, but I found it interesting when writing, when I came across Brant's main strength (his vision) becoming a big detriment for once. Is that only me? 😆

Anyway, I personally don't celebrate Christmas, but I understand a lot (probably most) of you do. So I think I'm gonna be a little generous and post an extra update on Tuesday night (my time), Christmas Eve. A little Christmas gift, if you will. So, I hope you can look forward to that, along with a happy celebration besides!

And now for our random question. What's your favorite flavor of ice-cream?

(Okay, I hate myself for asking the most difficult question of my life. Umm...vanilla's unquestionably a great standard, though I tend to lean to chocolate more myself. I think maybe it'd be between chocolate and caramel for me, and if they're together...SIGN ME UP DUDE. 😂)

(But straight-up caramel gelato is not to be underestimated either.)

Anyway, that's it for me for a few days! I hope you have an awesome weekend, and I may see some of you quite soon! Until then...bye!