59 RAVEN AND EAGLE

The settlement was illuminated by lamps, everyone was on guard, knights stood with their swords and shields, and gun carriers with their large flintlocks laid their backs on the mound they just made, on one of the houses, Michaela and the others circled around the lamp which illuminated table and the map.

"Everyone, we only have one chance, if we make this successful, Princess Rara Popannus, you would be able to retake the empire, and for us, in Ethareri our citizens can sleep without the fear of the enemy." Michaela spoke, while wearing her usual golden armor, "So I want you to focus on how you will defeat the emperor, if he is really-, ahem, if the soul inside of him is the cause of all of this, this should come to an end hopefully"

Hearing this the others made a nod, Andrei felt quite anxious about what will happen to the hostages, but he didn't want to upset Michaela anymore, so he didn't question her further.

"Erneis, Gideon, Claire, Andrei I'm counting on you on that, unfortunately, I can't go, my magic is more suited to deal with the numbers of a large number of enemies we can't just leave our men to die.

"Yes your highness," Erneis put his hand on his chest.

"As you will," Gideon spoke and made a kneeling gesture. Claire and Andrei nodded,

"Then that concludes our meeting, have some good rest and food, according to the scouts the enemy will be arriving by noon, I thank Gideon for lending us his men who have the gift to turn to birds" Michaela spoke while confidently putting her hands on her hips.

"So those two can transform into birds huh?" Andrei remembered the two scouts that reported to Michaela who made the same gesture as Gideon, and who wore weird commoner clothes. "Flight, bombs... " he thought as he put his hand on his chin, just like thunder an idea came into his head, "Awesome! maybe we could try this!" He immediately held the shoulder of the only other guy in the room,

"Hey Gideon, can I have a minute?" Andrei asked him.

"Me?" The middle-aged viscount pointed to himself.

"Yes, how many of your men have the ability to do that?" Andrei asked excitedly, while the others listened to them.

"It's already a rare gift, so only those two, why are you asking me this, your highness?" With his curiosity he stared at Andrei with his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Really? That's awesome! And how much weight can they carry?"

"One of them can transform into a raven, he can carry at least a sack of rice, the one can transform to an eagle, he can carry up to two sacks," Gideon explained.

Andrei then turned to Michaela who was curious about the questions Andrei asked Gideon.

"Awesome! Michaela! We don't have a plan yet to rescue the hostages right?" Andrei was smiling the whole time and his face was brighter this time. "I have a plan! I'm sorry everyone, I know you are tired, but please listen for a bit!"

Andrei explained a plan to them, hearing it Gideon made the first comment.

"Brilliant! Your highness! Truly you are a smart man! With this we can defeat them!" He held Andrei's hand and shook it.

"You're awesome, commander! I never thought such a thing would be possible!" Geraldine did the same.

Claire's face had a hint of excitement with it, but she was silent the whole time, looking at Geraldine and Gideon.

Michaela could only look at Andrei with astonishment, Andrei who noticed this went near her.

"You don't have to think about it anymore, you don't have to choose between abandoning them or not," Andrei tapped her shoulders and flashed a big smile.

"If the others aren't watching I would have sat in the ground with relief," Michaela thought while looking at the eyes of her beloved, "really, just how much are you going to make me fall in love with you, thank you, thank you Andrei" she muttered and pulled his head towards her.

"Wha-" Andrei couldn't speak another word, as she pulled it closer and closer until, his lips met hers. Andrei's heart pounded in his chest as his knees got weaker. He could only focus on how soft he felt against her mouth, how addictively she invaded all his senses.

Meanwhile, Claire covered Rara's eyes, Erneis covered his eyes and turned a 180 degree,

and Gideon had a playful expression, "whew wheeww," then his wife pulled him at the ear and took him outside, the others followed shortly.

In a few seconds, Andrei and Michaela parted with no words to say to each other, embarrassed they held each other's hands.

"That was embarrassing," Michaela turned red realizing that the others went out.

"Couldn't hold it in?" Andrei asked playfully.

"That just shows how relieved I am," she tiptoed her feet and gave him a peck on the cheek, "and just in case something bad happens-" Michaela couldn't continue what she wanted to say, Andrei gave her a kiss on the forehead.

"Nothing will happen, we'll make sure to defeat the emperor immediately, and come back to you safely"

Michaela couldn't hold her feelings anymore and hugged him tightly. With just a little lamp and a map as their witness, she sunk deeper into his warmth as if time had stopped, his touch made the room warmer somehow, her future seeming a little less bleak.