As THRAX tracks behind a CHRIS-dragging TRITHAL, AXEM remembered that THRAX wanted to take a second look at the note they found in the shed. AXEM calls over to THRAX before he enters the Inn, and hands the note to him and instructs him to examine it while AXEM is comforting Ali. Axem turns to Ali.
AXEM, being the smooth stone pillar that he is, puts his hand on the small of her back while saying in a comforting voice, "Hey, are you alright?"
Ali nods in silence and tears.
Ali (quietly raising her voice to an audible volume): "It's not so much that I may never see my fiancee again....what's worse is that we are dealing with an evil here so passionate about the insurgency, so powerfully-evil......."
AXEM: "I know. It's crazy. Don't worry, it's gonna be OK. We'll figure out a way to win this."
In realizing that he is alone with Ali, he begins to think about all the familiarity he was sensing everytime Ali was around. Not wanting to be callous about what just happened, he begins to interrogate her while staying somewhat-close to the topic.
AXEM: "How did you meet Evan?"
Ali: "He is the son of Curtas, leader of the town of Muika and close personal friend of the Kountain King. He was chosen by my Uncle to accompany me in a social gathering we were having for my sixteenth birthday. I was disgusted that a date for my own birthday party was chosen for me. After a while Evan sort of grew on me... and we happened to get along alright, so I didn't think it was totally bogus for my Uncle to choose such a feminine guy to be my betrothed husband. He doesn't wanna see me end up with a piece of trash or anyone less than royalty. I'm sure you know how it is when you are in a postion of power like I am: you don't get to choose who you want to be with per se', candidates are chosen for you. Evan was the only person Midus approved of."
AXEM (curiously antsy): "Where was this social gathering?"
Ali: "It was held in castle of an ally of my Uncle's. Because of his condition, we couldn't risk having a social gathering like that at the Mountain Castle in Mount Sabretooth which, obviously, would've lowered our defenses due to the fact that the guards and soldiers would be occupied with the palace ball."
Ali is suddenly aware of the fact that she is being asked a lot of questions.
Ali: "What's with all of the questions?"
AXEM, taking a nod from TRITHAL's 'withholding more than he obviously knows' tactic, says, "I just wondered how you two met, that's all."
Ali: "You know something, Axem, if you want to have any chance of being with me, acting like your comrade Trithal is exactly the way to not go about accomplishing that."
AXEM: "Look, forget about Trithal for a minute: this has nothing to do with him. I am just trying to figure out why there is something so familiar about you.....something very familiar....something from the past."
Ali (growing a little irritated with having this conversation): "Yeah, there is something familiar about you from my past....you belonged to the quartet that sabotaged someone's journey back to her palace....wait a second, that was me a couple weeks ago!"
AXEM is picking up on her sarcasm and simply suggests that they just join TRITHAL and THRAX in the Inn, and to forget about it for the time being.
The two walk towards the Inn. As they are walking, AXEM's mind begins to make sense out of what they talked about. He still can't figure out why there is something so familiar about Ali. He is certain that is has something to do with the fact that she appears to be totally immune to his mutant pheromones. The rest of the quartet can attest to the fact that AXEM manages to "bag" any female that comes in contact with the quartet. He doesn't even have to try sometimes and he still manages to get the girls. By the time AXEM's little thought had completed itself, they had reached the entrance of the Inn.
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