Radriel introduced himself before launching into an incessant rambling of Alistair's plans - Lore's Grotto, his dreams of ascension, the resurrection of Lunare's Consort - though privy only to himself and Kaelen, kept hidden of the fact that it'd require all of their magics in order to succeed. He gestured dramatically, even at times jumping on the dining table to make a particular point.

Naomi listened attentively and without interruption, while the others maintained a watchful silence. For the most part, his details matched up with Kaelen's in terms of the overall plan, along with a few extra tidbits of information she hadn't had access to. Regardless of whether or not he was telling the truth however, remained to be seen. But it was more than they had before.

More than once, Cassien's gaze flickered imperceptibly towards Kaelen. Darius caught the look, and the two exchanged a silent understanding - something didn't add up.

When Kaelen had brought Radriel in initially, she had claimed that he wouldn't reveal who he worked with - though only minutes later, referred to him by his name without having been introduced. How likely was it as well to catch a stowaway board and beat him to a bloody pulp without having alerted any of the crew? And now, he was spilling every detail of Alistair's plan as if it were a script.

It was too clean, too premeditated.

She knew him before this, Cassien thought to himself, closing his eyes in concentration. This has to be a trap.

One look at Darius's face was all Cassien needed to know that they were on the same page. All they needed now was to confirm their suspicions.

The theatrical exposure of his master's plans eventually dwindled down, the weight of new knowledge and a hundred questions sitting heavy on everyone's minds. Naomi remained silent and looked rather deep in thought, eyes flickering between the two Seravethians.

Aryn cleared his throat. "That is certainly an ambitious plan."

"I mean, we already heard it from her, but I didn't actually believe it. So he raises this consort's body, takes it over, then bam - he's a god?" Thom asked in, pinching the bridge of his nose as if he had a headache. "Good grief. I'm just a guy with a sword."

Kaelen cleared her throat, feigning a semblance of worry. "So what do we do?"

"First of all," Cassien turned cool eyes towards Radriel. "We figure out what to do with him."

"I have a few ideas," Darius said, pulling a silver dagger from the inside of his boot. "No loose ends."

Radriel squelched in fear, recoiling back on the table. "W-w-wait! We had a d-deal, I won't tell anyone!" His eyes went wide, locking right onto Kaelen in a silent plea for help.

Kaelen hesitated. If she helped him now, it would be as obvious as sounding the alarm that they were in cahoots.

She turned her head away.

He sputtered in disbelief before whipping his head at the two men; Cassien remained in his spot, arms crossed while Darius twirled the dagger expertly between his fingers. Before he could even take a step, Naomi planted herself in front of Radriel, arms outstretched in a defensive pose - Aryn joined her at the same time, the two standing side by side.

"We are not killing anyone," The two declared firmly.

Radriel nodded frantically. "I quite like that idea!"

"You probably shouldn't talk," Naomi said to Radriel before turning back to meet Cassien's eyes. "You're not telling me you're okay with killing someone, are you?"

He was entirely unfazed. "I'd take down this ship and everyone else in it if it meant ensuring even a modicum of your safety."

"Wow," Kaelen let out an exhale from her nose. "That's probably the most romantic thing I've heard out of all the other cheesy shit you've said. And that's saying something."

Naomi's pale blue eyes were tinged with a quiet plea for leniency and understanding. He couldn't stand seeing such a sorrowful expression on her face. "...We can lock him up - for now."

"What?!" Darius exclaimed, covering himself with a cough. His eyes met Cassien's, and another silent exchange passed between them in a fraction of a second. "...Fine."

Darius twisted the dagger in a flourish around his fingers. "I have some more questions for our new friend, anyway."

Radriel nearly sagged from relief at their mercy, though it was quickly replaced with a new fear at the implication of his words. His bony fingers grasped Naomi at the back of her shoulders, whispering into her ear. "T-that's not code for 'Let's kill him in secret', is it?"

She quickly shrugged off his touch, ignoring Cassien's death glare at Radriel's audacity. Naomi shot daggers at Darius. "It better not be."

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**

They decided it would be best to stow Radriel away in their communal sleeping room, to avoid the ship's crews from asking any questions on why they suddenly had a prisoner. Thom had shown off his expertise in hunting knots meant specifically for traps, fashioning an impossibly complex binding, shackling him to one of the cots at the far end of the room.

Aryn stripped him of weapons and anything else that could be used for escape, and planted himself firmly outside of the door as first watch. The rest - excluding Kaelen, who had been assigned on watch as well - remained in the dining room. The door clicked shut, and both Cassien and Darius whipped around to face the other so quickly that one would think they were about to have a show down.

"Why'd you back down?" Darius waved his arms around his head.

Cassien leaned against the door. "The others should hear about it first."

Naomi and Thom looked at one another in confusion, and he scratched his ever-growing stubble. "Did we miss something?"

Darius lowered himself down onto a seat. "Before Naomi came in, Kaelen had said she didn't know who the eavesdropper was. Then, after Cassien noticed his pin-"

"-she addressed him as Radriel without him ever saying his name," Cassien finished. "She lied. Which makes me think she's been lying about everything else."

"She's probably been playing us this whole time, which, personally, I'm not surprised," Darius huffed.

Thom nodded slowly. "She was being evasive back in Augustine too, at the docks. Combined with 'escaping' to Tudor, knowing about the plan just enough to string us along - things were lined up a little too perfectly to be coincidental."

"I knew I was right not to trust her," Darius grumbled under his breath.

The room chilled in silence at the revelation, unsure of what to do next. Naomi bit her lower lip, a mixture of disbelief and frustration at her own naivety to befriend Kaelen - but as ashamed as she felt for her failed insight, something deep gnawed at her. Perhaps another naive hope, a desperation that she could be right - she wanted to give Kaelen the benefit of the doubt. Naomi had experienced enough sorrow and feelings of inadequacy in her own lifetime to recognize it on anyone else.

"Maybe… Maybe she didn't recognize Radriel at first?" Naomi tried in a small voice.

They looked at her, small body shrinking into her seat at their scrutiny. Except Cassien, who had sorrow written on his face while looking at the depth of her stubborn hope. He fully knew how much this stung her.

Darius shook his head. "I don't buy that."

"So what do we do now?" Thom asked, lost. "I feel like we're chasing our own tails. There's always some new bullshit."

A click of the tongue from Darius. "For now, we'll have to play along. Can't do much while we're in the middle of the ocean."

"And the second we get to land?"

Cassien straightened himself from the door. As he spoke, a hint of ice crackled at his fingertips. "I'm not going to sit and wait for them to try and kill one of us first - no more chances."

"Are you suggesting…?"

He nodded, and Darius pressed his lips into a hard line. "Yeah. Thought so."

"Can't risk one of them running back to Alistair," Thom let out a sharp exhale.

Realization shook her at what they were implying - Naomi rose from her seat. "But if we're wrong about her, if this is all a misunderstanding-"

"Be honest with yourself. Has she done anything positive to warrant us giving her the benefit of the doubt?" Darius pressed. "I know she saved us from drowning. But with everything she's said and done… I think we've looked the other way enough times."

He didn't understand how she could still try to be optimistic - like the bright spot of the sun lost behind a black thunderstorm. Naomi's shoulders slumped, but there was still a stubborn glint in her eyes as she rose from her seat a second time. She strode towards the door, stopping directly in front of Cassien.

"I'm going to go speak with her," Naomi said in a quiet but firm voice, eyes downcast.

Cassien sighed, tilting her chin up with two fingers - eyes meeting in a silent battle. "I know you want to see the good in her, but some people simply… aren't."

"We'll do it quickly, discreetly," Darius stood from his seat. "You won't see a thing. I promise."

Her lips trembled in response, indignation flaring. "How do you get to decide what we should do with two human lives?"

Darius furrowed his brows. "Naomi-"

"No!" Naomi jerked her head away, twisting to glare at him. "Look, maybe I'm being stupid or naive. Maybe I'm being played exactly in the way they're hoping. But I refuse to damn two people to death at the first sign of suspicion and because she hasn't been the nicest."

"Has it ever occurred to any of you that if Alistair has caused so much of our suffering in such a short time, that maybe she's gone through just as much, if not worse?"

Cassien stepped towards her. "It doesn't excuse the fact that she worked - works - under him. Who knows how much she's had a hand in?"

Naomi lifted her chin in angry defiance at him. "I'm not asking for anyone's permission to talk to her."

"We can't tip her off to anything," Cassien let out a frustrated breath. "If they sense we're onto them, there's no telling what they'll do."

"And it's not just us on this ship - there's civilian workers, too," Darius added from behind. "What could you possibly say that would even begin to change her mind? What makes you think she'd be honest with you?"

Naomi looked up at Cassien, eyes pleading into his storm of conflict. "Please. Five minutes. I-I…"

"She hesitated, earlier. I saw it, I know I did...." Naomi trailed off.

Words faltered on her tongue, a hundred tangled thoughts drowning out her courage, her confidence. What could she possibly say to her that hadn't already been said, or heard yet ignored?

She felt a hand on her shoulder from behind, Darius's deep accent smoothing over the intensity of his words. "Nomi… Even if we were to wait until we confronted Alistair, what do you think would happen then? If it came down to any of us - who would you choose to save?"

She couldn't respond - she knew the answer already, much to the detriment of her moral crusade.

"I know it's a hard thing to stomach," Darius continued, sympathy evident in his voice. "But it comes down to us or them - I'm picking our team, every time."

Cassien slowly reached for Naomi's hand, and this time, she didn't pull away. "I'm sorry."

She looked at him then - and it would have been better if his face had been cold, cruel - but there was only an unapologetic glimpse that only confirmed that he had no hesitations.

The door remained blocked, guarded by the dark haired duke whose every instinct screamed at him to yield to the woman he loved above all else. But he also knew that doing so would go across the very core of himself, to betray the promise he made to himself to always protect her; love demanded he prioritize her safety over her approval, at least in this moment.

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