Fendros understood what Lorag was trying to say. It did not make his last question any less jarring. He looked at Sabine, she looked back. They knew each other's capabilities -- they had fought side by side for over a decade. Still, Fendros was uncertain.

After a moment, Fendros looked to Lorag again. "I don't know."

Sabine had her suspicions of where this was heading. She looked at the ground with worry.

[hr]
"Don't worry about it." Rhazii shrugged and walked forward. "They're old, right? If I see some old Imperials, our chances are good." He put a hand on the low, decorative stone wall and vaulted over. "I'll just be a minute."

Rhazii quietly padded along the grass to the base of the tree he pointed out and jumped up to the lowest branch, pulling himself up effortlessly. A few branches later and he was standing with his face lit up yellow from the window across, looking in. He craned his head curiously, raising an eyebrow. Then his face turned neutral.

He was still watching for about half a minute before it became clear that he wasn't looking at an old Imperial couple.