The carriage swayed, a rhythmic cradle of creaking wood and rattling brass that did little to soothe the disquiet in its sole passenger. The masked man stared out the window, watching the blur of sun-drenched fields and scraggly copses, but his focus was turned inward. His gaze drifted down, settling on the inert weight of the cast-iron gauntlet that served as his right hand. He saw not the polished black metal, but the ghost of the violence it had inflicted moments before, the phantom crunch of a man's ribs giving way.

  Pocna's voice, steady as the rhythm of the horses' hooves, cut through his reverie from the driver's seat.

  Pocna: "Everything alright back there, sir?"

  The Lion leaned outward, his obsidian mask peeking from the carriage window.

  Lion: "Everything is fine, Pocna. Why do you ask...?"

  Pocna kept his eyes on the road, though his grizzled head tilted slightly, his concern evident in the line of his shoulders.

  Pocna: "You've been especially quiet since that altercation. You know, you don't have to ride inside that damn cage for the entire journey."

  The Lion exhaled. With a fluid grace that belied his size, he unlatched the carriage door and swung himself out, clinging to the frame as the vehicle rolled on. He moved along its side, his boots finding purchase with practiced ease, before settling onto the driver's seat beside the older man. The bench groaned under his added weight.

  Lion: "Better...?"

  Pocna allowed himself a small, weary smile.

  Pocna: "You tell me. Doesn't it feel nicer out here? You can feel the fresh air on your skin, the bright sun shining down on you..."

  Lion: "Slow down. Wild boar."

  Pocna's hands tightened on the reins, his brow furrowing as he eased the horses' pace. A moment later, a tusked shadow burst from the tall grass, a blur of brown muscle and panicked energy that shot across the road just ahead of them before vanishing into the opposite foliage.

  Pocna: "Hah... Senses are as sharp as ever. I wonder what got it so agitated."

  Lion: "You do? Seems obvious enough to me. We're approaching the loudest damn city on the planet."

  Pocna: "Heh... 'Technological progress,' I believe is what they call it."

  Lion: "Sure. Ever ridden in a carriage pulled by no horses...?"

  Pocna's eyes widened, his weathered face etched with disbelief.

  Pocna: "I-I've heard tales... but I imagined they were just bollocks."

  A smile touched the Lion's lips.

  Lion: "Oh, they're quite real."

  Pocna: "You've seen one, then?!"

  Lion: "This isn't my first time in Aesice. Didn't I tell you I used to have a friend here?"

  Pocna's fleeting excitement soured into remembrance.

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  Pocna: "Ah, right... The one who went missing?"

  Lion : "... Yeah."

  A heavier silence settled between them, broken only by the steady clopping of hooves. In the distance, the horizon was beginning to change. Spires of brass and smoke-stained iron clawed at the sky, their impossible height hinting at the sprawling, mechanical metropolis that lay ahead.

  Pocna: "You can already see it... Even from here, it looks enormous!"

  Lion: "Well, it had better have no shortage of restaurants amidst all of that hissing show-off. I'm starving."

  Pocna: "And here I was hoping you could serve as my tour guide...!"

  Lion: "Sorry to disappoint. The only place I know in there generates more heat than the busiest of kitchens... but if you try and take a bite of what they have to offer, all your teeth will end up cracked."

  Pocna: "Is that supposed to be a riddle?"

  The Lion exhaled again, a soft chuckle this time.

  Lion: "It wasn't my intention. But you can take your guess, if you like."

  Pocna: "Heheh... If I didn't know you as well as I do, I'd say it's a whorehouse!"

  The Lion let out a sudden, hearty laugh, the sound rich and surprisingly unguarded.

  

  

  Lion: "I hope you really do know me better than that, you dirty old man!"

  Pocna: "Eh, it's not like it's that unlikely. You used to fancy a tumble or two in the hay with the maids, back when you were younger...!"

  A touch of colour rose on the lower cheek just beneath the Lion's mask.

  Lion: "Different times, Pocna... different times. That sort of thing is behind me now."

  Pocna: "Right... If young little Virno could look at you now. A renowned tournament champion! Do you think he'd be proud?"

  Lion : "I think we're losing ourselves. The riddle, remember?"

  Pocna: "Bah! To hell with the riddle, I'm terrible at them."

  Lion : "Hah. The answer is a smithy, Pocna. Supposed to be a very good one, too."

  Pocna: "Darn, of course...! Makes sense. Well, why don't we stop by at some point? Maybe even get yourself some new armour!"

  Lion: "... I'm not sure they'd appreciate the visit."

  Pocna's smile faded, his expression turning serious.

  Pocna: "Oh. I didn't realize."

  Lion: "Yep. Not sure if I've made more friends or enemies over the years..."

  Pocna: "Well, if I may pitch in, your acquaintances certainly don't seem to be getting any more amicable..."

  Lion: "Talking about that idiot by the inn? Tch. He barely registers. He might have wanted my head on a platter, but he could never take it. Unlike him, however, there are those out there that might stand a chance."

  His living hand clenched into a fist.

  Lion: "And if I hadn't been so lucky, they'd have had it by now. But that was before."

  Pocna: "... 'Before' you showed up out of nowhere at my doorstep for our reunion, I take it."

  Lion: "Right."

  Pocna's gaze was steady, probing.

  Pocna: "... I'm starting to think this isn't about realizing childhood fantasies anymore, sir."

  Lion: "It's not. Little Virno would look at me and be proud of who he was to become... but only if he saw me skin-deep. If he knew what was lost on the journey here..."

  Pocna's gaze flickered for a moment to the stump of the Lion's right arm, where the heavy iron gauntlet was bolted on.

  Lion: "That's still skin-deep, Pocna."

  He looked up, his masked face tilted towards the vast, empty sky.

  Lion: "Titles, fame, and riches mattered a great deal to me once. They mattered to my family. But not anymore."

  Pocna: "So what *does* matter, then?"

  A slight smile pulled at corners of the Lion's mouth . An emerald flare, sharp and unnatural, pulsed for a heartbeat within the dark eyeholes of his mask. Suddenly, an impossible wind slammed into them from nowhere. It was not a natural gust; it was a silent, invisible hand that lifted the entire carriage, horses and all, a foot off the ground. The animals whinnied in panic, their hooves scrambling on empty air.

  Pocna: "OY... OY OY OY!"

  Lion: "Control, Pocna... Control."

  As quickly as it had lifted, the carriage was set down, so gently that the wheels barely made a sound as they met the dirt. The wind vanished. The road was empty. No one had seen.

  Pocna: "What in the devils was that?!"

  The Lion turned to him, the green light in his eyes gone, leaving only the shadowed mystery of the man beneath the mask.

  Lion: "It's all about control, in the end."