James stalked through the halls, hands clenched into fists as thoughts raced through his head. Jarl Villtur, Gryff's words, the realization that he had been played.

'No, I don't know that. I can't just trust everything Gryff says.'

Yet what else could he do? There was something clearly off about Villtur. The only problem was James couldn't prove that the Jarl had ulterior motives. Lukas had saved James, gave him refuge, and nursed him back to full health. It was possible that he had done so out of the pact's requirements—James did specify that the other Jarls were required to assist him if things got dire. Still, to what extent did the pact really affect?

'I have to find out for sure. I need to find out for sure.'

James stopped midway through his walk, his body tensing as he recalled Naomi's involvement in this. Was she, too, a part of Villtur's schemes? Or was she also a pawn? James clutched at the side of his head, a headache coming on as he furiously thought of the possibilities.

'James,' Faust spoke, his voice reverberating throughout the young Jarl's mind. While he wasn't present in James' meeting with the dead knight, James did recap the events for him. 'We have to take this one step at a time. There is a very good chance that Gryff is vying to manipulate you into this. He has no reason to help, regardless of what he claims. On the other hand, if Villtur really intends to break our pact, then we must ensure that he does not suspect us of finding out. Things could get ugly.'

James nodded slowly.

'Right, thanks.'

This was a delicate matter. If Gryff was wrong and James acted upon his lies, things would fall apart into chaos. So, with a deep breath, James calmed himself and steeled his nerves. He turned to the end of the hall he had arrived at. It looked daunting with the lack of magical spell crystals, which had been plastered on every inch of this Keep.

James walked down the hall, which lacked guards or security measures. He could sense the vibrations of magical interference, a feeling he couldn't fathom where it came from, coming from beyond the door. Outside of that, the hall was dead silent.

He stopped right outside the entrance, his hands still balled into fists and his brow covered in sweat. After a second of contemplation, he opened it.

Lukas Villtur looked out the window of his study, his spine straight and his arms neatly folded behind him. He had dismissed his personal guards for the week, allowing himself to brew internally without their distracting presence. Everything was falling into place, just as Emma had insisted. All that was left was Holter's trust.

That was easier said than done, however. James was already naturally distrustful of the Jarl, even before his full recovery. Regaining those memories did not ease that distrust at all.

Lukas needed to try another route to gain the man's trust, outside of helping recover his home from those damned orcs. Despite the good will from his proposed plan, Lukas knew better than to expect the other Jarl to take it at face value. His 'good intentions' were sure to reek of betrayal to Holter despite Lukas' genuineness.

As he contemplated the troublesome situation, the door clicked behind him. Lukas turned around sharply, only to see the door close behind a certain Outlander.

James stared at the lone figure in the compact library, their guards exempt from their side.

Emma Villtur was reading some thick tome, its leather aged with years of dust and wrinkles. The pages were yellowed and flung dust with every turn the young woman made. She didn't even notice the door closing behind her.

'Are you sure about this?' Faust asked softly.

'I know what I saw. What I felt,' James responded mentally. He thought back to the days leading up to his recovery, specifically the first few. Back when Emma Villtur was his caretaker. Back then, before he had his memories, he couldn't recognize the air of familiarity about her. The soothing voice and that… strange aura.

He had doubts at first but soon managed to brush those aside during his last meeting with her. Emma was related to Iendis. As a Herald or Avatar, James didn't know. But he was sure of their connection. There was no denying that feeling of unnatural calmness.

Even now, he felt it emanating from her. It stilled his beating heart, normalized his breathing, and dampened all emotion within him. Now that he knew what to look for, the effects were glaringly obvious to him.

James took a step toward Emma, repeating the questions that bounced around his skull. There were so many things to ask and confront, but only one of them seemed to be the most important. So he settled for that one.

"What are you doing here?" Lukas asked Naomi. She closed the door behind her quiet steps, her body slouched in a perpetual stalk. She always seemed to glide and sneak around the Keep, as if she mistrusted every corner and shadow here.

"Have you seen James?" she asked, her lone eye glaring at Lukas. The Jarl shifted uncomfortably, his focus moving to her bandaged socket. As much as she assured him that the demonic eye was under control, Lukas had his doubts. Still, he had given his word to help her in her endeavors in return for help in James' situation.

"He went to visit that necromancer of his," Lukas answered. He looked back at the window in front of him, his back tingling a little. His instincts never quite liked putting his back on Naomi. Her movements never made a sound.

"He's not there," Naomi said.

"And?" Lukas raised an eyebrow. "What bothers you?"

Naomi was silent for a moment, the room filling with an uneasy air. Finally, she spoke her mind.

"I think he suspects you," she muttered. "He's been too reserved as of late. Too quiet."

"He's suffering from battle shock, is he not?" Lukas asked.

"It's something more than that," Naomi said. "I can feel it."

"Is that why you came to me?" Lukas turned to the Outlander, who was now a few paces away from him. He nearly reacted out of instinct, his hand barely a few inches away from his side sword. She had moved in so close, all without making the slightest noise. "He's not so rash as to come to me, battle shock or not."

"Of course not," Naomi murmured. It sounded like she was speaking more to herself rather than to the Jarl. Lukas stared at her, a sense of uneasiness twisting within. "He wouldn't go for you. But…"

Naomi's lone eye widened an inch, her head whipping toward Lukas. "Where is Emma?"

"What?"

Emma stared at James, clearly confused. Both of them stood in the midst of the library, the only sound being the echo of the woman's confused answer.

"Who are you?" James repeated. "Really?"

He watched carefully for a reaction, a telltale sign that she knew what he was talking about. Emma blinked a moment after his question, uncertainty in her expression. James stared at her in silence, almost judgingly.

"I… I don't know what you're insinuating," Emma muttered softly, deflecting the question. Then James saw it. Her eyes glanced away from his gaze, shame within them. She was hiding something. Just as he noticed this, a sense of distilled calmness hit him like a wave. It tried to wash away his uncertainty, his suspicion. But James held onto his convictions like a vise. He knew this woman was more than she seemed.

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'She's more than a caretaker. More than a Jarl's wife.'

James recalled what he had learned about the Villtur clan. He knew that they had tensions against Vulpesson that had only been eased when they married off their firstborn daughter to Jarl Villtur. For some reason, he figured there was more to it.

"You're Iendis' Herald," James said, taking the risk. Heralds were supposedly representatives of their Gods. The title was given to anyone who shared lineage with them. While he had no definitive proof that this woman was a Herald, he gambled on the chance regardless. He put all his trust in his intuition.

It paid off not long after, as Emma reacted to his accusation like cold water splashing upon her. She snapped her head toward him once more, her face going pale at first before turning red.

'Now, it's time to put my theory to the test.'

"I have no idea—"

"When I visited the Tree of Fates, I saw my deaths happen before my eyes," James said suddenly, cutting her off. "I saw Deimos crush my chest in, and wolves tear my body to shreds. I watched my friends die and cities burn. I was subjected to futures that I will never reach while also seeing those that could be."

As he said these words, James felt a sense of relief slowly flooding him. Bit by bit, with every truth that came out of his lips, his shoulders sagged a little less.

"I witnessed horrors done by my own hand. I've seen the darkest versions of myself. I also saw the best of me, and a perfect future that would never come. These fates were all shown to me by Iendis, the Tree's caretaker. I have seen my own fate and have confronted it, all to only further chaos in an attempt to try and achieve the perfect future. I still blame myself for it."

By the end of it, his chest heaved with a breath that seemed to have been held deep inside for far too long. Emma stared at him, her eyes wide as her hand went over her mouth.

"Almost all of my fates ended with my death or the fall of my clan," James muttered. "The perfect future was one in which peace was achieved all across Valenfrost. I was forced to watch its blossom crumble to ash, my actions dooming it to obscurity. I experienced all of this and was never allowed to share it with anyone."

Silence followed his words. James' confession had gone on uninterrupted, and there was no ethereal influence stopping him from saying it. Finally, judging from Emma's reaction, she had heard it all.

'That confirms it,' Faust said softly. 'She's connected to Iendis.'

"Where is my wife?" Lukas asked his guards, who were posted outside the Keep's rear.

"She asked for us to leave her at the library, my Jarl," one of the men answered. "She was looking to reference your book, the journal specifically."

'Yorn's writings?' Lukas thought. 'What does she intend to look for within them?'

He almost got lost in his thoughts before realizing that Emma was on her own, with an unstable man like James on the loose and unaccounted for. He cursed under his breath and turned to Naomi, who was already heading inside. He followed right after her, keeping up in stride.

"He won't try anything rash," Lukas said. "James is rational enough not to outright threaten me."

"He's grieving and jumping at shadows," Naomi growled. "Rationale kind of jumps out the window at that point, don't you think?"

Lukas didn't respond right away. He took a moment to think, to try and put himself in Holter's mindset. It wasn't easy. The only person he considered close was Emma, and she was more or less a tool rather than a wife. Still, there was a sense of warmth to her. He had always gravitated toward the young woman, even before their appointed marriage.

'What would happen if you lost her?' a part of him asked. Lukas found himself disliking the idea of that, his recently buried anger bubble deep inside. He had to force it back down not long after, his fists tightening as he prayed to Freyja that Emma was perfectly safe.

For he feared that he'd lose control if Holter tried anything.

"I am not her Herald," Emma said, her hands holding her book to her chest. She avoided eye contact with James, who had taken a few steps back to give her some breathing room. After his confession, both of them had stayed silent for an uncomfortably long time. It was only just now that she had decided to speak.

"Then what are you?" James asked. "Avatar? Descendent?"

"No!" Emma responded a little sharply this time. "I'm none of those!"

"So what is then?" James pressed. "Because you know something about me. You know my fates, that's for damn sure. Did she send you? Was this her plan all along?"

"I am not affiliated with her!" Emma said in an outburst. Her brow focused, and her lips curled into a deep frown. "I'd rather die than further whatever cursed plans she has in store!"

James blinked at that, unsure of how to respond. Emma huffed as she shook, her hands wavering as she sat down. She took a deep breath, calming herself slowly. Finally, she spoke.

"I am a descendant of the original caretakers of Fate," Emma said in a quiet voice. "The ones who were in charge of the Tree of Fate before Bartholomew ascended and became a god. I am the last of their line who could conjure visions of the Fate Blossoms. Depending on who I touch, of course."

James had no words. He just stared at Emma, who looked back with a determined look. She wasn't lying to him. There was a conviction in those eyes, which was all James needed.

"So, you're a fortune teller of sorts?" James asked slowly.

"I'm an Oracle," Emma said. "One of few actually. Last I heard, there were only three of us left. One in Azurvale and the other in Kasan."

"So you have no connection with Iendis?" James asked.

"No," Emma revealed. "At least, not really. Iendis is a… strange case. From the stories passed down to me, her role was forced upon her a millennium ago. The Tree of Fate is more of a prison."

That explained why Iendis was chained to the tree. Now that James thought of it, he recalled how, despite her movements and wandering, her binds had never loosened against her. It was an ironic punishment to put the daughter of chaos itself in charge of a tree that dictated fates.

"You mentioned Bartholomew?" James muttered. "He's the one the Wishing Shrine is named after, right? What do you mean he ascended?"

"You don't know?" Emma asked, genuinely surprised. "Bartholomew was the one who had made the first wish. The reason behind our modern calendar. He had wished to become a deity, and so he ascended into the responsibility of the God of Fate."

James didn't know what to say to that. Surprise was the first thing that hit him, as he hadn't really bothered to learn much about the shrine itself.

'Focus, James,' Faust said. 'We came here for a reason.'

James nodded at that, his focus returning to Emma once again. She sat nervously in one of the library's chairs, her hands still clutching that book of hers. She glanced at James every now and then, but her main focus seemed to be on the door to the room.

'She's waiting for someone. Lukas most likely. I gotta hurry.'

"Sorry to cut our enlightening topic short, but I came here for a reason. What is Lukas up to?" James asked as he stepped up to Emma. He needed to be upfront with her now. Mainly because time was running out and partly because she had been honest with him.

"What are you talking about?" Emma asked, her tone coming off as defensive. She narrowed her brow at him. James took note of that and decided he would have to try his hardest not to antagonize her husband.

"I know he's planning something," James said slowly, doing his best not to come off as confrontational. "That I'm playing into something he's been setting up."

"He's helping you, and the first thing you assume is that he's stringing you along?" Emma scoffed.

James clenched his jaw. He almost wanted to say something biting but held himself back. "There's something more to this. I know this. You know this. He needs something from me, doesn't he? That's why he had you take care of me for the first week. You were checking my fates, weren't you?"

That was one of his newer working theories. Emma had just said she could peer into people's fates, so it wouldn't be far-fetched to say that Lukas had pushed her to look at James'. The problem with that, however…

"You can't tell him what you see, can you?" James asked. "Just like how I can't tell anyone what I see. So you drop him hints. You insinuate what he needs to do. Helping me retake Yorktown guides him along the right path, doesn't it?"

By this point, Emma's nervous fidgeting had grown obvious. She shifted in her seat, her grip tightening on the leather-bound tome. She avoided eye contact, leaving James to confirm his suspicions about her.

"I see," he murmured. "So you guys have found a way to break the pact."

"What?" Emma stopped, her body going still. "Break the pact?"

"That's what he's trying to do, isn't he?" James said. "Lukas wants to break our pact and take over both mine and Ivan's territory."

"That's… horribly wrong," Emma responded with clear confusion. "We were never going to break our pact with you."

"What?" James blinked at that. "Then what—"

The door to the library was swung open, revealing two new figures. James turned, a sinking feeling in his chest as he saw both Lukas and Naomi standing by the doorway.

"Ah… shit."

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