[b]"You know, the rounds."[/b]

Xanxus muffled his voice slightly, not wanting to divulge into his previous journey the night before. Darrian's frequent tantrums of the furious anger he commonly expressed around the denizens of the palace never ceased to entertain him; he'd known his friend for a good six years and he never seemed to change a bit. Most people were either disgusted or, in most cases, terrified of the Exalt's two shades of character and morality, Xanxus himself was not bothered by it in the slightest. Moreso, he respected his friend deeply for his insatiable desire to seize a future he craved for, which was to unite the countries of both continents under one banner of his ruling. No matter how positive or negative they were, people with dreams to fulfill were real humans to him. He cared not for those with or without the power to change things, rather, he searched for the root of ambition nestled deep in their being. There were few in the world with true motivation, and Darrian was one of them.

Just then, Lantus entered the dining hall and stood a few feet from Xanxus' side, earning a salutation from Darrian. Lantus was a particular fellow that he did not revere nor detest, like most; the old man was merely an associate who happened to work alongside him. He knew that the veteran had a daughter within the ranks of the Shepherds, and considered the large possibility that she had been among the thousand and a half casualties. He had killed many weaklings that night, and individually, decimated the seventh and eighth barracks without his detached unit. He knew the old man knew of Xanxus' involvement in the mass slaughtering of the Shepherds, and wondered if Lantus despised him for such. Folding his arms and leaning to the side, he quietly listened to his friend.

[center][i]Lie.[/i][/center]

Xanxus scoffed at the mention of that word, masking disdain in his mind as Darrian went on to further explain their objective. [b]"Like I said before, I need not lift a finger and I could take Plegia by myself. My men's participation is not required."[/b]

[b]"Perhaps Lantus could bring his own troops to tag along. It'd be great exercise for them, not to mention the desert heat'll get 'em sweating a bit to burn some calories,"[/b] He joked, taking another bite out of his apple. Xanxus turned over to Lantus and bumped him slightly on the shoulder, yawning. [b]"Let's get to it, then."[/b]

---

[b]"... Xanxus?[/b]

[b]"Oh, my."[/b] Zaino watched as Xanxus, almost as if he was just as surprised as he was, lean in to get a closer look at Zaino's face. He seemed to appear a bit troubled, lowering his sword and extending a hand out to Zaino as he continued:

[b][i]"Quite the fiery reunion, don't you think? Whatta ya doing here, grumps?"[/b][/i]

[center]***[/center]

Zaino tilted his head briefly at the startled woman, halting the advance of his sword that hovered over his head. He was mildly confused by the act; [i]why would someone who was after him plead for mercy?[/i] He took a quick look at the woman's bow and noticed its fine quality; though the Shepherds had some access to the Ylissean Armory, their arsenal had consisted primarily from scavenging off of bandits and such, or the common wares you would always see being sold at an average armory. Such a weapon of its material was expensive and somewhat rare for these parts.

[b][i]"Enough of your games! I won't be fooled again!"[/i][/b] Zaino shouted, not willing to show any hesitation as power returned to his hand and resumed his sword's plummet.