They were already walking toward the sound when Solace slowed. "That's not a horse."
King Wonek's mount emerged from the tree line in full, and the word horse suddenly felt insufficient. It stood close to nine feet tall at the shoulder, broad as a wagon, with a thick, dark coat. Its legs were tree trunk solid, and its hooves looked like it could crack stone if they wanted to. Steam curled faintly from its nostrils as it breathed.
Arlenna stopped short, and stared at the horse. "You think I could lift that?"
Solace squinted, "You absolutely could." She started studying the horse, "No question about it."
Thiago glanced at her. "You'd throw your back out trying, and the horse would roll its eyes."
King Wonek chuckled. "That's Great Dane." The horse flicked an ear, like it acknowledged the name. "He weighs a few thousand pounds, give or take."
Arlenna crossed her arms. "Yeah, that's lightwork." Great Dane lowered his massive head just enough to look at her. Arlenna stared back. "I think he knows I just lied," she muttered.
Able swung down from his own horse nearby, up close, he looked older. "This is Able," King Wonek said, "He helps watch the borders."
Able gave them a small nod, "You're the ones who brought the kids back."
Solace nodded, "Yeah."
Able smiled, "That's amazing."
Jeffrey hovered a few steps behind Great Dane, hands clasped tight like he wasn't sure where to put them. Up close, his buck teeth were even more noticeable.
"And that's Jeffrey," King Wonek said.
"Hi." Jeffrey said, waving awkwardly. Wine, Dine, Solace and Arlenna immediately waved back, and Jeffrey relaxed a little.
"Where's your horse?" Solace asked, "I don't, uh," he said, rubbing the back of his neck, "I don't really like riding, I run better."
Solace blinked. "Run... instead of riding?"
Jeffrey nodded. "Yeah."
Arlenna stared at him. "You're built different."
Able patted his own horse's neck. "I'm not heading back to the castle," he said, "You can take mine, along with the other two." He held the reins out to Solace first, then paused. "The horse knows the way, just tell him when you're done, he'll come home."
"He just... goes?" Solace asked.
Able smiled. "Always has."
King Wonek gestured to the group, "I'll take the kids on Great Dane, you guys can follow."
Thiago moved his eyes between King Wonek and jeffery, then to Great Dane. "I'll take Wine with me."
Solace glanced at him, understanding flickering across her face.
King Wonek studied Thiago for a moment, not offended, not even surprised, then he nodded. "Fair."
Thiago shrunk the spear down and put it in a pouch. "Nothing personal."
King Wonek smiled, "Of course it is." He chuckled, "That's fine."
Wine hesitated, fingers tightening in Arlenna's sleeve, Dine mirrored her without thinking. Arlenna exhaled through her nose, already recalculating. "Then Dine will ride with me."
Thiago looked at her, "You sure?" Arlenna nodded her head.
"Yay, I can take my own horse." Solace said, and Able handed her the reins.
"We don't split sightlines," Arlenna said. Thiago nodded, and Solace stuck her thumb up.
King Wonek glanced over at jeffery who looked a little annoyed, "I'll fix this, don't worry about it." He glanced over at Thiago watching him and continued. "I'll get the kids home safe, you guys can go, I'm sure you were busy before all of this."
Able nodded, "As you wish."
"Yes my king," Jeffrey said, making strong eye contact with King Wonek. "I'll be in touch."
King Wonek swung up onto Great Dane, the massive horse barely shifting under his weight. "You don't trust easily?"
Thiago lifted Wine then swung up on the horse. "Nope."
"Good," King Wonek replied. "Neither do I." Great Dane started walking forward.
Arlenna boosted Dine up first, then hauled herself up after. Solace mounted last, and the horse shifted smoothly under her weight.
They moved fast, too fast for talking. The land rose gently beneath them, the forest thinning into wide dirt paths that curled like veins through the hills. Flowers grew freely along the road, reds and whites, deep violets and pale blues, some faintly luminous, as if holding leftover sunlight in their petals.
Solace sat turned in her saddle, riding backward, eyes tracking everything they passed. The road widened, and without walls or gates, they passed straight into the town of Thrymmhold Summit. Packed earth slowly gave way to fitted stone. The shift was subtle, but Solace felt it immediately.
She rode up alongside Thiago, "Can I get the earmuffs again?"
He glanced over, "Stone, already?"
She nodded, "It's louder."
Thiago reached into his pouch, grew the earmuffs to normal size and tossed them. Solace caught them, and settled them over her ears as the road curved again. Thrymmhold Summit spread across the hillside, and market stalls lined the paths.
The smell of bread and roasted roots drifted through the air. Vendors laughed as they worked, children ran freely between adults without being snapped at. People ate as they walked, unhurried, and everyone looked fed.
Solace stayed turned in her saddle, eyes fixed on the town as it slipped past behind them. "We should stop, just for a minute."
"Next time," Thiago said, keeping his eyes forward.
Solace frowned when her eyes lingered on a stall piled high with berries dusted in sugar. As they moved, she questioned the way no one even glanced at them passing through. When the castle appeared, it was built into the rock.
Training echoed through EvergleamPeak from every direction. Inside the great hall itself, fighters were practicing with weighted weapons, repairing gear, and sparring. Inner courtyards carried heavier sounds, hammers striking metal, boots hitting stone, and voices shouting.
Solace slowed as they stepped farther inside, her eyes tracked the fighters first, then the walls around them. "Training... in a castle. No way they live like this."
"Frostpeak doesn't separate things," Arlenna said quietly, "If it matters, it stays close." Solace nodded quietly, still staring. Arlenna noticed the way Solace was holding her ribs.
As they crossed the workshop floor, a man with gentle eyes looked up from the stack of books he was carrying. He froze, his books slipped from his hands and clattered against the stone. "Winner?," Then, louder, echoing down the hall, "Winner! Dinner!"
The children turned at the sound of his voice. For half a second, they didn't move. Wine broke, and she ran over. A sound tore out of her like it had been trapped for weeks, a shaking sob ripping free as she sprinted toward him. Dine was right behind her, crying openly now, his legs moving as fast as they could carry him, while his arms reached out.
The man dropped to his knees as they reached him. The force of them hitting his chest knocked the breath from his lungs, but he barely noticed. His arms wrapped around them instantly, one around each child so tight it looked like he was crushing them, like he was afraid they might vanish if he loosened his grip. Wine buried her face against him, Dine pressed in tight, fists clenched in his shirt, and they were weeping uncontrollably.
Solace felt something tight in her chest loosen just a little, they were finally home. The man's breath hitched as his hands moved over their hair, their backs, their shoulders, grounding himself in the fact that they were warm, and breathing. Finally, he pulled back just enough to see their faces. He cupped their cheeks with trembling hands, thumbs brushing away tears that would not stop.
"My babies," he whispered. "My babies... I thought—" His voice broke completely. He swallowed hard, pressing his forehead to theirs for a moment before lifting his head again. He turned to the crew, eyes red, voice barely holding together. "Thank you," he said with a broken voice. "Thank you for bringing them home."
"No worry's man," Solace said, with an awkward thumbs up. "I'd prefer if you'd never mention it again," she mumbled.
He wiped his face with the back of his hand, took a breath he did not quite manage to steady, and straightened. "My name is Mr. Hearthwell." Emotion thick in every word. "And you've already met my children... Winner Hearthwell and Dinner Hearthwell."
Mr. Hearthwell stood tall, around six foot two, but carried a thin, almost delicate frame. His skin was pale from long hours spent indoors. He had short and curly, dirty-blonde hair that sat in loose, uneven curls, and a clean shaven face.
Thick glasses sat on the bridge of his nose. the kind that told anyone who looked at him his vision was terrible without them. He wore a long white coat, the edges were slightly frayed, and he had the unmistakable look of a doctor or someone who worked around medicine rather than violence.
"Dinner did you get taller? Winner you look so tan," Mr. Hearthwell said.
The kids puffed their cheeks in embarrassment. "Dad! It's Wine and Dine!" Wine pouted, crossing her arms.
He laughed, "Right, Wine and Dine." His smile faded almost immediately and he knelt back down. "What happened to you two?"
Wine exhaled, "We were waiting for you and mommy."
"That's the part I keep thinking about," Mr. Hearthwell said, "We were gonna go to the Island, when I was done with work. There's only a four minute gap between you getting home from school and me or mommy getting home after you."
"We never went inside, a man came up," Dine said.
Mr. Hearthwell glanced between them. "Who?"
Wine searched for the words. "Thin, I think. um, what else? oh, a quiet man."
Dine nodded his head, "He talked like he already knew us."
Something cold settled in their father's chest.
"He said there was a problem, and you sent him there to come get us." Wine looked down. "We believed him."
Mr. Hearthwell grabbed Wine's hands. "And then?"
"They put chains on us," Dine said flatly. Her father's jaw tightened.
"After that, they put us in um… an airship, yeah an airship. The quiet man stayed until then," Wine said.
"After that it was other people, they weren't gentle. When the airship stopped and the doors opened, there were like so many kids," Dine said.
"...Kids," Mr. Hearthwell echoed.
"And lights, like real bright, too bright," Wine added.
"Um… It was a big building, and they were putting people in like these super long lines." Dine said, and Wine tried to show how large the lines were with her hands.
"We almost got separated too, I heard people talking about how boys and girls got split up in that line," Wine said.
Dine nodded, "so we ran to a different line."
"That line was shorter," Wine said, "But we had to go on another airship."
Dine nodded, "They brought us to different places and told us we had to work."
"Until they got mad and put us on an airship headed to an arena," Wine said.
Dine lowered his voice, "Yeah, we heard them arguing."
Mr. Hearthwell's breath hitched, "Arguing about what?"
Wine's fingers curled into her sleeve. "About fixing it, not wanting to admit they messed up, and um someone was going to be mad. What was his name, um… Like T or something, I think, Dine what was it?" Wine asked.
"I don't know, I think I heard like 'take man' or something. One of them said, 'Just toss them in,' and called us 'lost cargo,'" Dine said.
There was silence before their father pulled them closer. "Did they feed you?"
Wine shrugged, "Sometimes. On good days."
After a pause Dine spoke again, his voice quiet. "When we got to the arena, they pushed us out onto the sand. They didn't even look at us, they just told us to fight."
"They said it was easier if we didn't come back," Wine said. After she spoke, she got teary eyed, her father wiped them away, and she put her head on his shoulder.
"That's when Solace dropped down. She fed a kid, right in front of us," Dine said.
Wine nodded, "They couldn't yell at us anymore after that."
That was when Mr. Hearthwell's arms locked around them again, tighter this time. Shortly after, he stood up and faced the crew again. "I owe you my life, and everything I have." He lifted his hand, and it glowed faintly. "I'm the Grand Mender for King Wonke's royal court, please let me heal you, it's the least I can do."
Arlenna stepped forward first, and warm light washed over her. Her cuts closed, her bruises faded, and she felt like someone had lifted a boulder off her back. "Thank you,"
Thiago stepped forward next. His ribs shifted back into place, and his breath returned clearly. "Oh finally," he groaned, stretching his spine. "I forgot what it feels like to not hurt."
Then Mr. Hearthwell turned to Solace. "May I?"
His voice was gentle, but Solace stiffened. She took a step back. "No, I'm okay, I'll heal naturally."
He made a face, then asked, "Are you sure? You look worse than they did."
Thiago opened his mouth to protest, but Arlenna shot him a look that said let her choose. King Wonek approached, dust from stone still on his hands from helping rebuild a crumbled stair.
"She doesn't like being touched, leave her be," King Wonek said simply.
Solace blinked, she hadn't said that out loud.
King Wonek leaned against a pillar. "My friend never liked healing through touch either," he said casually. "Doesn't like hands on him."
Solace tilted her head, "Who?"
"King Nick Master." King Wonek said with a smile. " Nick has a Mender who doesn't need to touch you, no idea how it works but it's a brilliant technique." He wiped his brow. "If you'd prefer, she can take care of you, no contact needed. Say the words and I can set it up."
Solace perked up slightly, "Yes, please"
King Wonek clapped his hands once, loud and cheerful. "Amazing, now then, rooms are being prepared for all of you. Lunch is being cooked as well, do any of you need a change of clothes, especially you." he pointed at Solace. "Need a new shirt at least?"
Solace blinked and looked down. Her mustard yellow shirt was torn, burned, and ripped at the sleeve. "Oh," she muttered. "I brought these clothes from home. They are made of special material that doesn't irritate my skin. I only have one more made with the same material, so I really hope it doesn't get destroyed."
Thiago raised a brow. "What does it look like?"
Solace hesitated, then gave a shy grin. "Black overalls, my favorite, they have a flower pattern on the left leg." She patted her leg. "They were a gift, I've had them forever, I don't want to ruin them."
Arlenna smirked. "Well, we're in a castle, try not to get thrown through anything."
King Wonek scratched his beard, " My hallways do collapse sometimes though."
Solace stared at him, "Why would you say that? There's no way I'm putting them on now." King Wonek smiled, but solace was serious.
As they waited for the food they sat in the room Thiago was given and talked.
"I'm happy the kids are finally home safe," Arlenna said.
"Yeah me too, they were a lot though I'm not gonna lie." Thiago yawned and stretched. "I'm good with no kids for a while."
"Yeah Thiago you really did a lot of work." Arlenna rolled her eyes. "I was up at 6 am, cooking for them."
Thiago shrugged, "The thing is though, nobody asked you to do all that, you know what I mean."
"You're a bum, who else would have kept them alive?" Arlenna asked, "Someone had to step up."
Thiago sighed, "Well, you see, I'm built different so if it came down to it… it would have been me."
Arlenna chuckled, "Can you even cook, I genuinely don't see it."
"I'm an excellent cook," Thiago replied, "That's insulting."
Arlenna shrugged,"I have to see it to believe it."
Thiago nodded, "The day I cook for the crew will probably be the last day on earth."
"Why?" Arlenna asked.
Thiago chuckled, "Nevermind it's stupid."
Arlenna rolled her eyes, "Just say it."
Thiago wagged his pointer finger at her, "Uh, uh, uh." then turned towards solace. "Why so quiet little sov?"
"This is gonna sound stupid but I only know numbers in Dimwindo," Solace said, "I've been trying to figure out what time arlenna said she woke up."
"Your bilingual?" Thiago asked.
Solace grinned, "Yes sir. Usually I have a little paper with me that I look at but I completely lost it."
"Arlenna did you know that?" Thiago said grinning. "That's actually really cool, little sov you surprised me again."
"I had no idea," Arlenna said excitedly. She counted on her fingers. "Si'orsa, I woke up at Si'orsa."
"What does that mean?" Thiago asked.
Arlenna glanced over, "Come on Thiago, we were just talking about what time I woke up."
Thiago pinched his nose, "Damn that was stupid, I genuinely don't know why I asked that."
Arlenna put a hand on his shoulder, "Because you don't think, but that's okay we'll help you get better."
Thiago rolled his eyes, and swiped her hand, "Get your hand off of me." The three of them started laughing.
"Okay, let me try the time. I think I got it," Arlenna said.
Solace smiled, "okay I'm ready."
"Sugost-Thrink'teu-enm, Fieox—" Arlenna sighed. "Damn I was trying to say seven-thirty-eight, first cycle. I don't know what cycle is in Dimwindo"
"Sicra," Solace said. "So it's Sugost-thrink'teu-enm fieox sicra, you were close though"
"That's crazy, so this is the only way you know numbers," Thiago asked.
"Yeah, I just never picked up how to say any numbers in Glish, Dimwindo is the only way I understand them," Solace said, "But now it's Sugost-Thrink'teu-Niu'net fieox sicra, and this is unrelated but I have to go to the bathroom." Solace got up and headed toward the door.
Soon after Thiago got up, as he walked toward the door he turned his head back, "I have no idea what she just said."
Arlenna grinned,"Seven-thirty-nine first cycle."
Thiago grinned back,"Wow look at you smarty pants… You're sooo smart… You're the smart per—" Arlenna pushed him out and closed the door.
"Did she just slam the door?" Solace asked, "What did you do?"
Thiago chuckled, "All I did was tell her how much I valued her as a member of the crew."
Solace rolled her eyes, "Yeah okay navi."
Thiago smirked, "Scouts honor."
"Are you following me?" Solace asked.
"No ma'am, I'm headed to the powder room to reapply my makeup and fix my hair," Thiago said.
"Oh okay weirdo," Solace replied, "People say I'm odd… I'm gonna send them to you from now on."
Thiago started laughing, "Yeah okay navi, there's Thiago weird down here, and solace weird up here. There's levels to this.
Solace made a face, "I don't know, I think people would agree with me."
"I think my worst enemy could put their feelings aside about me, and tell you I'm right on this topic." They both started laughing, then they split off in opposite directions.