Breaking the News

---Katherine---

It was the first time I saw Lionel lose control of his emotions. I felt so bad for him and so helpless that I couldn't help him. I stood at the entrance of the cave and watched as Lionel screamed profanities into the roaring blizzard and sliced through sheets of swirling snow with his sword.

"Lionel, come back! You're going to get hypothermia if you keep this up!" I shouted at him.

"Come face me, you coward! You're a $!@%#?&*! A piece of #$%@! *&^#$@ you, Lord Victor!" was his reply.

"Lionel, you need to be in top shape if you're going to rescue Indigo! You can't help her if you hurt yourself!" I shouted back.

Aaron appeared beside me at the entrance of the cave. "Why is he so upset? He's going to die from the cold if he doesn't come back in."

"Aaron, he loves Indigo. Can't you tell? Indigo means a lot to him, and knowing that she is in Lord Victor's grasp while he can't do anything is killing him." I sighed. "You shouldn't be here either; go sit back by the fire. I'll go get Lionel."

As I walked out into the snow, Aaron followed me. He called out towards Lionel, "Hey, Lionel! Why don't we discuss what to do instead of screaming?"

A few seconds later, Lionel stumbled through the snow towards us. He caught sight of Aaron and sped up into a sprint with his sword still brandished in his hand.

"Woah!" Aaron and I dove out of the way as Lionel's sword struck the stone wall behind us. Chunks of rock and snow rained down onto the ground. "Lionel, what are you doing?!" I demanded as I turned around to face him.

"Aaron Kane! Why didn't you protect her?! Why didn't you keep her safe?!" Lionel retracted his sword and leapt at Aaron. I stared in disbelief. "I didn't want Indigo to go back, but you promised nothing bad would happen. I expected you to protect her, and you didn't!"

"It's not my fault!" Aaron's anger flared up too. He unsheathed his own sword. "This blizzard is so damn strong; I couldn't even see three feet in front of me. I was knocked down too, and by the time I got to my feet Indigo was already gone. She was kidnapped in an instant! How was I supposed to fight against someone I couldn't even see, especially when that someone is Lord Victor?"

"I don't understand why Indigo would like someone like you. You can't keep her safe, you can't protect her, and you don't even care that she's gone!" Lionel shouted at Aaron as he stabbed toward Aaron in a fit of rage. "If it was me who was with her, I would never have let Indigo out of my sight!"

"Then why didn't you offer to go back with her?!" Aaron shot back as he brought his sword forward to block Lionel's attack.

"Because Indigo trusted you!"

Clang! The two swords clashed, and Aaron skidded backwards from the force. Lionel was superior to Aaron in terms of swordsmanship, and Aaron was already weak from almost freezing to death in the blizzard. If this went on, Aaron would definitely get hurt.

"Lionel, Aaron, stop it! Stop fighting!" I yelled at them, but both boys ignored me. They clashed again and again in the midst of a blizzard, seemingly unaware of the cold winds. It was clear that Aaron was only barely holding his ground. I gritted my teeth and pulled out my own sword.

The next time Lionel brought his sword down on Aaron, I darted in between them and blocked the blow. My arms tremored from the heavy attack. "Lionel, stop it! Fighting isn't going to solve anything!"

"Katherine! This doesn't concern you; get out of my way!" Lionel pulled back his sword and tried to strike Aaron again. I blocked him once more.

"Lionel, listen to me. Fighting isn't going to bring Indigo back. We need to figure out what we're going to do next and how we're going to rescue her, not fight amongst ourselves!" I held Lionel's intense gaze as I held my ground against him. Our swords trembled in midair, locked together. "This is what Lord Victor wants, don't you see? He wants us to fall apart before we even reach him. You're a commander, Lionel. Think about all the men you brought with you and all the people who put their faith in you. You cannot let your emotions cloud your judgment. You have to see the bigger picture and what's at stake here. So, stop fighting and go back inside. Don't make me force you."

Lionel glared at me for a full minute. Our breaths made white puffs in the cold air. Finally, he yanked back his sword and slammed it back into his sheath, before stalking back towards the cave. Aaron stuck out his tongue at Lionel's back. I turned my glare on Aaron and shoved him hard on the shoulder.

"You too, Aaron. Why did you engage in combat with him? You knew Lionel was just upset about losing Indigo; why did you provoke him further?"

"Kath, you heard what he said! He blamed it all on me and it wasn't even my fault! I nearly died out there too!" Aaron crossed his arms and huffed angrily. "He's not the only one who cares about Indigo!"

"We know it wasn't your fault; no one blames you. Lionel is just upset; he doesn't really mean it." I ushered Aaron inside the cave. "Let's go inside. You're going to freeze out here again if you don't go back inside too. Do you want to proceed to stage three hypothermia?"

Inside, the soldiers were eyeing us curiously. Lionel sat with Rachel and Lucian by a campfire a little ways apart from everyone else. His shoulders were tense, and his posture was rigid. Aaron and I joined the circle around the campfire, though Aaron, clearly still angry, sat as far away as he could from Lionel.

"So, what's the plan now?" Lucian asked. "Are we sending a rescue party? Are we proceeding as planned? What are we going to do?"

Lionel stared into the fire, his sword in his lap. He gripped the scabbard tightly. "We're going to make Lord Victor pay." Each word was forced through gritted teeth. "I'm going to make him regret ever being born."

"That's the spirit," I said with a small smile. "So, Commander Lionel, what do you propose?"