Spring

Chase stood silently at the front of his surviving teammates, watching over four newly crafted graves.

The mood was dark, and not many chose to speak as this had been the place where the entire mission had gone wrong.

They stood in the ashes of the Oasis, where beautiful trees had once stood. 

The general of Mayhem, known as Rayan had accompanied them for the funeral of the fallen members of Task Force Unity, but his presence was still quite eerie, as his power radiated far stronger than even that of King Rider. 

He stood far back, honoring the privacy of the team that had lost several soldiers to this foolish war. 

Chase's mind was still, as he clutched the single herb in the pocket of his leather pants. 

A hand gripped his shoulder, and spoke solemnly. 

"Chase... I must go now, do remember that our paths will cross again..."

Chase looked back and into Onyx's empty eyes, sighing wistfully as he loosened his grip on the herb. 

"How can you be so sure?"

Onyx grinned.

"I do not plan to face the demons of Tartarus anytime soon, and I am sure that death has no real meaning to someone with your bloodline..."

Chase shut his eyes. 

"Goodbye my friend."

Onyx left before Chase could say more, and it was just him and his handful of academy classmates behind him. 

He turned around, and giving a silent farewell to his comrades. 

"Are we all returning to Phoenix Academy after the ceremony?"

They looked around unsure, but then Vivian spoke up first.

"My father said that it is not safe to return to school..."

Chase raised an eyebrow.

"How so?"

She looked as if she did not want to clarify what she had said, as if some deeper meaning had been hidden behind her father's ask of absence. Barren was not one for foolish choices, that Chase was sure of.

"You will understand soon, just be careful... All of you."

Chase nodded, glancing at the other members of Task Force Unity.

"We are all coming with you to the ceremony as far as I'm aware, and then wherever you go after, we will follow close behind."

Equan said with a sad smirk. 

The others nodded.

The carriage ride to Rider's Kingdom was filled with little words, as Gemini, Gabriel, and Michael had already fallen asleep.

However, Equan and Chase both watched outside of their respected windows as the cold lands of Frostfang slowly shifted to the bountiful fields of Rider's Kingdom. 

"Are you alright?"

Chase asked, tracing the glass on his window. 

"How many did I kill...?"

Equan whispered, as his eyes locked onto bush after bush drifting by with the horse drawn carriage. 

Chase shook his head. 

"If I knew, I wouldn't tell you..."

Equan laughed, and muttered a swift curse under his breath. 

"We are just children..."

Chase frowned, ignoring the heavy weight resting on his shoulders. 

"No... Not anymore sadly. I don't think I really got the chance to be a child..."

Equan shrugged, as he glanced at his sleeping comrades. 

"It's not your fault..."

He said quietly, but just loud enough for Chase to catch it. 

"I know... No matter what choice I made, people were going to die."

Equan slumped his shoulders, and shut his eyes. 

"It's always gonna be like that ya know."

"I know..."

After about five minutes of zero conversation between the two, Equan perked up and grinned. 

"I want a cool name."

"Huh?"

"What? Can I not get a cool name?"

"What the hell brought this up?"

Equan shrugged, and pointed at the rune on Chase's neck that he no longer had to make an attempt to hide. 

"They call you the Grinning Devil, give me a cool name!"

"I can't just give you a name with no meaning."

Chase shrugged, scratching his head.

"I can be like a spy or something, send me into Rider's Kingdom and I'll gather as much information as you need, like those guys in the books."

Chase was left dumbfounded, as he continued to scratch his head.

"You're an archer, why would you also be a spy? Better yet, why would I even need a spy? The war is over."

"And let me guess... You feel as if you have no purpose or something? I mean your the heir of the entire kingdom, I knew we were all drawn to you naturally, but nobody knew who you really were until after we chose to follow you, but now that you avenged your father, you think that there is no goal that you care to chase? Or something like that..."

Chase raised an eyebrow, and then lowered it, glancing at the floor, not bothering to answer him.

'How could someone Equan's age be so mature...?' He thought sadly, glancing at the boy again. 

'Had he just been putting on an act just to keep the mood light all this time?'

"How about The Actor?"

Equan looked at Chase with a strange sense of confusion, as if not understanding him.

"Your codename?" Chase shrugged. 

"Oh. I was just kidding, but if you really insist, I guess I could be called The Actor."

He grinned, looking away from Chase and back outside of his window.