Johnathon found himself nodding along to Aldric's talking. He dearly hoped the things about the forest were true, although he didn't see himself venturing into it any time soon. His role was to help everyone else along, that was what he was good at, and experience had taught him that helping the people getting rich was the better way to get rich yourself. The idea of making it out wealthy didn't truly entice him, the thought that he might end up living a different life was strange and alien. In reality, it was simply following what he found to be his calling. Aldric wanted the group, and so did he, but before he could reply to the man they were cut off by the arrival of a fourth person. The atmosphere had changed that fast and he could feel it, a tension between the two he had no comparison for. A meeting like this wouldn't have raised an eyebrow somewhere else, but here they were in a strange land trying to get along with strangers. He found himself waiting, drawn intuitively into their drama after the sheer shock that Gideon's arrival had caused in the otherwise sturdy looking Aldric.

Gideon's froze mid-step as the all too familiar tone pierced the air. Gideon turned around, slowly, looking to face his lost brother. "Aldric." Gideon managed out, before cracking out into a smile, "I wasn't expecting to see a ghost today." Gideon replied, chuckling at his on joke, taking a step closer to his brother, "The last I heard of you, you and your company were wiped out." Gideon said as he placed a shoulder on Aldric's shoulder, patting it. Gideon then turned his grinning face towards Johnathon, and Bast, eying them. "Are these two your friends, Aldric?" Gideon asked as he placed his hand down, stretching his hand out to Bast, as well as Johnathon, in order to shake their hands. It was obvious that under Gideon's barely mild excitement, and quickness to deflect to Johnathon and Bast, that something must be wrong.

As his brother spoke his name, Aldric's faced curled into a slight smile. It was Gideon, he'd known it as soon as he laid eyes on the man. He looked him over. "I hadn't made plans to either." He tried to laugh slightly, but he was obviously still a bit in shock. "I'd heard the rebels took the Capital and the royal family, I thought the worst." His eyes fell to the ground for a moment. He remembered the day he had heard that news vividly. He had cursed himself for abandoning the empire, for leaving his brother to fight alone. One man wouldn't have made much of a difference in the grand scheme of things, but he still had beaten himself up quite a bit over it. He frowned a bit when Gideon mentioned the fate of his company. He hadn't heard what had happened after he left, though he'd imagined the majority of them hadn't made it through the war. Part of him thought they got what they deserved, but he couldn't help but feel a tinge of sadness. They had been his brothers-in-arms before that night, even if what they did stained their reputations in his eyes. He was pulled from his thoughts by his brother's acknowledgement of his companions. "Oh, I actually just met them as we were leaving the ship. We seemed to be heading to the same place." He glanced nervously back to his brother, wondering what exactly the man that now stood before him would think of his desertion. "We have quite a bit of catching up to do." A thousand thoughts raced through the young man's mind. On one hand, his brother was alive and well, despite all odds, on the other, however, he was a deserter, and Gideon had been the Captain of the Guard.

Bast couldn't help but feel slightly confused at the behaviour of these humans. They were brothers yes? Gideon had confirmed that, and it seemed they hadn't seen each other for a while, or rather each had assumed the other dead. So then why did it feel so tense between them? She could practically smell it in the air. Nevertheless, she still shook the older brother's hand when he offered it, which was polite, and introduced herself to him. She could have excused herself then and there, and headed straight for the Containment Corps to get herself on the very next trek into the forest as she'd originally planned to do, but this strange situation kept her hanging around. What exactly was going on here with these two? Either something had happened in this war that Aldric had mentioned between them, or their culture just had an incredibly strange way of showing delight.

Johnathon gingerly shook the other man's hand, not wanting to deny him politeness but still made uncomfortable by the behavior of the brothers. They were smiling at each other, but it felt to him like the smiles of agitated, distant relatives rather than the smiles of brothers. Resigned to nicety, he stood back and let their reunion carry on, his unease slowly transforming into curiosity with the comfort of distance. His blue eyes bounced back and forth between Aldric and Gideon, taking in their story's details. Brothers lost in war, a common story in his homelands, never any less tragic for the poor family. A cold ocean breeze was lashing at his back all the while, and every now and then an errant wave lapping against the pier would precipitate a gentle rain of saltwater droplets. John shivered slightly, and decided he wasn't very keen on sticking around. "It sounds that way," he chimed in from the sidelines. "Perhaps you'd like to come with us into the town? There are bound to be far more comfortable places to catch up," he suggested, although he didn't know a single tavern in the country.