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“Different sects of Abolish have different requirements,” said Nola, “but our sect is pretty simple. All you have to do is kill someone you don’t know, while three of us bear witness.”

“Hmm. I was hoping for something that would allow me to make a more favorable first impression.”

“Heh. Eager prince.” She scratched her flat nose for a moment. “Alright, well. You can’t tell anyone what I’m about to say.”

“Of course.”

“Okay, so... the old plan was to gain the public’s favor so that the war with Rendon would last longer and just generally be more ‘impassioned.’ That was how Ezmortig put it, anyway.”

“Ezmortig?”

“Desmond’s reaper. But anyway, the old plan’s been shot to hell now, and honestly, I’m glad it was. I mean, yeah, it was more ambitious, but it was just so slow. I like the new plan a lot better.”

David already didn’t like where this was going.

“Basically,” said Nola, “we’ve just decided to attack Rendon ourselves. We’ll steal a platoon of Atreyan soldiers and force them to accompany us across the border, where we annihilate the first town we see. Or maybe the first two towns. Or three. I’m sure we’ll stop eventually. When we get bored or something.”

“...I see. That is much more straightforward.”

“I know, right? It’s great!”

“When do you intend to do this?”

She grinned. “Tomorrow.”

David’s eyes widened. Worse news, he could not currently imagine. “So soon?”

“Yeah. We figured we’re already operating under time constraints here, what with that sister of yours trying to return with reinforcements. And on top of that, if the metal brat gets much more famous, then his reputation alone will probably draw the Vanguard to Atreya--which would just be a big ol’ pain in the cooch. So at this point, all we want to do is set things in motion and get the fuck outta this country.”

“What about Desmond and Andres?”

“They’ve already had over a week to rest. They should be in fighting shape again. Or close enough, anyway.”

“Ah, I see...”