Chapter 47: Something Colder.

“Men,” Ezra said, straightening slightly. “As your captain.”

His gaze flicked to Guy Man for just a heartbeat, a faint smirk tugging at his mouth. “His Highness has tasked me with informing you of what’s to come.”

Ezra glanced to the side. Helios was watching closely. When their eyes met, Helios gave a small nod, silent encouragement.

Ezra turned back to the formation.

“As you’re all aware, the situation with the Dark Ones has worsened over the years,” he continued evenly. “They’ve evolved. And now, living citizens can turn into Dark Ones simply by experiencing intense negative emotions.”

A few knights nodded. Others stiffened, expressions darkening as the weight of it settled in.

“I’ve been informed that all of you underwent extensive psychological training for a full year,” Ezra went on. “Training meant to help you regulate your emotions in battle.”

He paused. “That training is about to matter more than ever.”

He exhaled slowly. “Because what I’m about to tell you is nothing short of tragic.”

’Helios said none of these men are from Fleur De Lys,’ Ezra reminded himself, fingers laced behind his back. ’It should be safe.’

“Fleur De Lys,” Ezra said, voice firm, “has fallen.”

The reaction was immediate.

Eyes widened.

Mouths parted.

“The citizens of Fleur De Lys have turned into Dark Ones,” Ezra continued. “Our information is still limited, but we know this much. Their clan head turned unexpectedly. Chaos followed. People died. Others turned after witnessing their loved ones fall, grief triggering the change.”

He could see it on their faces now. Shock. Horror. A few men looked like they wanted to speak, to ask questions, maybe even to protest.

Ezra could almost guess what they were thinking.

Friends. Contacts. Maybe, a few women or two.

Fortunately, no one stepped forward. No one broke formation.

’Good,’ Ezra thought quietly. ’No violent reactions.’

Helios had warned him. Even trained royal knights had turned before. Especially the newer ones.

“As you all know,” Ezra went on, “Dark Ones can swim. They move toward the nearest living people. Toward a beating heart.” He stepped forward slightly, drawing their focus. “And near Fleur De Lys lies House Mirevale. Their dukedom. Countless villages. Thousands of civilians.”

The silence grew heavier.

“A horde is moving toward them.”

Ezra drew in a breath. “I’m sure you already understand what that means. With that number of Dark Ones, and the risk of even more forming along the way, something must be done.” His eyes swept across the line. “But not by us alone.”

“Not just us?” Guy asked, brows knitting together. “Does that mean…?”

Ezra glanced at him.

’Well,’ he noted with faint amusement, ’at least he’s being respectful.’

“Yes,” Ezra said. “His Majesty, King Samson, has ordered all three princes and their respective orders to intercept the horde before it grows further.” He paused for effect. “That means us, the Ember Guard, and the Dawnward Bloom.”

A ripple went through the knights.

“The first time,” Ezra added, “that all three orders will work together.”

“I’d like to add something,” Helios said, stepping forward. “I know many of you are hesitant. Working alongside unfamiliar orders brings risk. Friction.” His gaze was steady. “But this is also an opportunity. A chance for each order to prove its worth.”

He hesitated, then continued, more quietly. “A chance for my father to see which among us truly contributes the most.”

Ezra nodded once.

’If the king only wanted the problem solved,’ he thought, ’he would have sent the royal knights. Three hundred of them. More than all three orders combined.’

But he didn’t.

Instead, he sent the princes.

’Which means this isn’t just about stopping a horde,’ Ezra realized. ’It’s about judgment.’

Helios let the weight of the information sit for a moment before speaking again.

“We leave in two days,” he said clearly. “Tomorrow, there will be a joint meeting between the three princes and their respective orders. We will discuss strategies, assignments, and coordination.”

His gaze swept across the formation, measured and firm. “It will also be a chance for you to familiarize yourselves with the knights you’ll be fighting alongside.”

A murmur rippled through the ranks almost immediately.

“Seriously?”

“I don’t want to work with those jerks.”

“I heard the captain of the Ember Guard is unbearable.”

“And the Dawnward Bloom thinks they’re saints.”

Helios lifted a hand, and the noise dulled, though it didn’t vanish entirely.

“It’s important that you learn to work with them,” he said, tone calm but carrying authority. “Yes, you are competing. Yes, glory exists. But above that, those men are human, just like you.”

His eyes hardened slightly. “They have families. Loved ones. People waiting for them to come home.”

The murmurs faded.

“Brotherhood,” Helios continued, “must come before competition. If it doesn’t, people die for pride.”

Ezra watched the men straighten, some reluctantly, some with visible discomfort.

’That’s right.’ he thought. ’Helios prioritized brotherhood over anything, that’s why he and his brothers are close.’

“And,” Helios added, voice steady, “the king’s captain will be present.”

That did it.

The whispers sharpened instead of fading. Surprise flickered openly across several faces. A few knights exchanged looks.

Even Guy, who had been leaning back with careless confidence, stiffened for half a second before masking it.

Ezra felt it too.

His chest tightened, subtle but unmistakable.

’The king’s captain,’ he repeated internally. ’So, he’s coming?’

He kept his face neutral. Calm. Unreadable.

But inside, something shifted.

Five years.

That was how long it had been since he had stood before the man who taught him how to hold a blade without hesitation.

How to breathe when fear clawed at his throat. How to think when pain threatened to drown him.

His mentor.

The man who had broken him down without mercy and rebuilt him into something precise, disciplined, and deadly.

’So you’re watching now,’ Ezra thought, jaw tightening just a fraction. ’Figures.’

Helios glanced toward him briefly, a quick check, as if expecting something. Ezra gave him nothing in return.

“Tomorrow will be important,” Helios went on. “Not just for planning, but for unity. If we fail to work together, people die. It really is that simple.”

He clasped his hands behind his back. “If anyone has questions or suggestions, speak now.”

Several hands rose.

Ezra catalogued them without thinking. The eager ones. The cautious ones. The men who waited to see who would speak first before lifting a hand themselves.

’Same patterns,’ he noted. ’Different faces.’

Helios pointed to one of the raised hands.

“You,” he said.

The knight straightened, drawing breath to speak—

He never got a word out.

“CAPTAIN EZRA!”

The voice tore through the formation, sharp and panicked, cutting cleanly over Helios’s authority and the knights’ discipline.

Heads snapped toward the sound as one.

Ezra turned.

Fizzy came barreling down the side path, hair a mess, breath uneven, eyes wide with something close to fear.

He looked painfully out of place among polished armor and straight backs, like a crack in a painting that had no business being there.

Ezra’s stomach dropped.

’No,’ his mind went blankly. ’That’s not good.’

Helios frowned, already stepping forward. “Fizzy, what is the meaning of this—”

“Captain Ezra,” Fizzy gasped, skidding to a stop in front of him, hands clenched into fists like he was holding himself together by force alone. He didn’t bow. Didn’t salute. Didn’t even look at Helios. “You need to come. Now.”

The formation had gone completely still.

Every single pair of eyes locked onto them.

Ezra stepped forward immediately, not even sparing Helios a glance. His voice dropped, low and controlled. “What’s wrong?”

Fizzy swallowed hard. His throat bobbed. “It’s Lior.”

The world narrowed.

Just for a heartbeat.

The sound was dulled. The murmurs vanished. Even Helios’s presence faded into something distant and irrelevant.

Ezra felt the air leave his lungs.

’No,’ he thought again, sharper now. ’No. No, no, no.’

His hand tightened at his side, instinct screaming for motion, for violence, for something to do. He forced it to relax through sheer will, jaw setting hard as stone.

His expression darkened instantly.

Not anger. Not panic.

Something colder.

Ezra turned fully toward Fizzy and started walking, already closing the distance, already moving as if the rest of the world had ceased to exist.

“What,” he said, voice dangerously calm, “happened to Lior?”

Fizzy started talking the moment Ezra asked, words tumbling over each other in a rush.

“I– I mean, everything was fine at first,” Fizzy said, hands waving as if that might help him organize his thoughts. “We were just playing. Lior was laughing, you know how kids laughs when they’re happy, and we ate a bit of candy, maybe too much candy, but he kept asking and I thought it’d be fine because he’s been so good—”

Ezra stopped walking.

“Fizzy,” he said sharply.

Fizzy froze.

“Get to the point.”

Fizzy swallowed hard. “S–Sorry. I just— I suggested we go outside to burn off the energy. Play tag. He was really fast, Captain Ezra. Faster than any kid I know. At first it was fun. He kept laughing and yelling, and I almost caught him a few times, but then—”

His voice cracked.

“I tripped. I fell. Just for a second. I swear it was only a second.” Fizzy’s eyes were glossy now. “And when I got back up… he was gone.”

The world lurched.

Ezra felt his chest constrict so hard it almost hurt to breathe.

’I need to calm down. I need…to calm down.’

“How long,” Ezra asked, voice terrifyingly calm, “has he been gone.”

“I—I don’t know,” Fizzy whispered. “A few minutes? I ran everywhere. I called his name. I looked by the hedges, the paths, the fountains—”

Ezra didn’t hear the rest.

His thoughts were already racing, spiraling outward in sharp, calculated lines.

’Lior alone. Open grounds…he’s not used to this place, and–’

“Ezra?”

Helios appeared at his side, moving fast, his earlier composure cracking the moment he saw Ezra’s face.

“What happened?” Helios asked.

Ezra didn’t look at him.

“Lior is missing,” he said immediately.

The words tasted wrong in his mouth.

He turned immediately, already preparing to move, to run, to tear the entire compound apart stone by stone if he had to. “I’m sorry,” he added, not slowing. “I have to go.”

A hand closed around his arm.

Ezra stiffened, surprised enough that he actually stopped.

Helios held him there, grip firm but not restraining, eyes burning with something fierce.

“What are you doing?”

Ezra asked as he looked at him then, really looked.

“Your Highness, people are watching.” Ezra said, low and deadly controlled. “Please, let me go.”

Helios didn’t let go.

Instead, he turned sharply toward the formation of knights who had been watching in stunned silence.

“A child is missing,” Helios said, voice ringing out, sharp enough to cut through stone. “Every single one of you will look for him. Now.”

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