Requiem Aeternum

**"Requiem Aeternum"**is the sixteenth episode of *War* and the 65th episode overall.

The episode was published on April 11, 2021.

In the episode, the Stag wrestles with the byproducts of his merciless experiments, while the survivors seek vengeance.

## Appendix

Episode Title Card**A:** Map of the War, 720**B:** Cervidian Royal Family, 720**C:** Felexan Royal Family, 720**D:** Leprolian Royal Family, 720**E:** Talonclaw Castle, Former Felexa**F:** Antlerstag, Lyme, Cervidium**G:** Burrow Court Palace, Sylvia, Leprolia
**A:** Note the annexations of Mallardia, Willie, and Felexa.

## The Episode

*—Diary of Lana Loudoun—*

*-July 13, 720-*

*The map of war is rapidly changing. Nearly all of Capricon has been recovered by the Summer Sun, including the capital of Baahaa. Canis alone maintains control of their occupation zone. Simeone and Phantine have been breached for the first time. The most drastic changes are the annexations, which became official this morning with an Edict from the Summer Sun, which I’ll transcribe here:*

*Summer Sun Edict #51*

*As of the thirteenth of July in the year 720, the Kingdom of Vulpus has formally annexed the former territories of Mallardia and Willie. The Kingdom of Cervidium has formally annexed the former territory of Felexa. These borders are absolute and not to be altered, having been rightfully conquered by these nations of the Summer Sun alliance. Resistance to the new regimes in these provinces is therefore illegal and will be punished accordingly. Those who refer to themselves as monarch of Mallardia, Willie, or Felexa, is henceforth a pretender to Vulpine and Cervidian authority and shall be designated an outlaw.*

*O Camp is afire with talk of the Edict, as the question certainly lingers: will Porcinia eventually be annexed by Psittancyna? The conquest of Cartonia has begun in earnest. The Summer Sun made their intentions plain. Will no one rid us of these evil leaders?*

—Talonclaw Castle, Tabitha, Cervidium—

—Former Felexa—

-July 14, 720-

Deirdre Elkton, once the regal Doe of Cervidium, was cowering in her cage. They imprisoned her in an iron cell deep within the dungeons of Talonclaw Castle. Food was slipped under the door, often with so much force that the contents spilled out. Deirdre ate what she wanted, but ultimately did not care if she lived or died. She once attempted a hunger strike, but no one bothered to check on her. The only time she saw someone was when the deer jailers entered and jabbed her with a sedative. They’d then drag her to the laboratory for more experimentation.

She was changed, biologically. It was nearly two years ago—going by Deirdre’s recollection, though time was a sluggish drip here—that Deirdre was brutally mutilated by the doctors in the castle. They had tried to make her invincible, but instead gave her an unnatural ability to set things on fire. It was not the intended result, but the side effect was still intriguing to the experimenters.

Nothing in Deirdre’s cell was flammable, and the iron was supposedly some of the strongest, to prevent her from escaping. There was nowhere for her to run anyway. She did not know how to use her ability by herself, and didn’t try. The only time she made things ignite was when the experimenters demanded it of her. They usually had to poke and prod her with something sharp to activate the power.

Experiments used to be frequent, almost daily. Lately, they had stalled but no one told Deirdre why. She once glimpsed someone like her, a cat who could make things levitate. There must be others, perhaps all over the continent. Deirdre could never forget the catalyst for her misfortune, the night she went into the basement in Antlerstag and saw the cages full of test subjects. They all could be like her, cursed with a supernatural ability.

Deirdre pulled her dirty tan prison dress over her knees and shivered from the cold. Her mind was blank, her life destroyed. She was not a person anymore, just a variable in some grand experiment. Her letters to the leaders of the Granite Bloc had fallen on deaf ears; no one was coming to free her. The war could be over by now. Either side could have clenched victory in the years that Deirdre spent out of the loop. Despair assailed her.

A cry escaped her lips, and a spark shot out of her fingertip. She shivered, as she always did nowadays. The power of fire came with the curse of constant chills. The spark fizzled on the ground, a single ember, before blowing out.

—

Stag Ellis of Cervidium wrinkled his nose at the pungent smell as the Special Doctor of Talonclaw Castle led the way down the staircase into the dungeons. This was the Stag’s first visit to the former capital of Felexa since the invasion that toppled Queen Roxanne II. It would also be his first glimpse of his wife in four years.

When he learned that Deirdre had not only survived the experiment but somehow killed the doctor and attendant, he was shocked. All testing was halted as specialists attempted to discern how she, and apparently others, had developed supernatural abilities. The experiments were not designed to give their subjects the capability to fight back with a vengeance. It could be exceptionally valuable, the Stag knew, to harness the power to bend fire. They could afflict their armies with that power, and level communities with ease.

The experiments overwhelmingly resulted in failure, and as the doctors got more bold, the fatalities increased. For a stretch of time, no one survived the surgery itself. Then a few did, with Deirdre being first. She was the only one who killed the doctors, however. Nine of these survivors—all with some power—were housed in Talonclaw Castle. It was imperative that they were kept hidden. The Stag’s allies in the Summer Sun could turn against him if they learned what was going on underneath some of his castles.

The purpose of the experiments—at first—was to achieve immortality and invincibility for deer. The parrots also commissioned them to test the restoration of their ability to fly, though all experiments resulted in failure. The only “success” was the survival of nine specimen and their new powers.

The Special Doctor of Talonclaw was in charge of supervising ongoing tests with the nine freaks of nature. Could their powers be harnessed? Transmittable? Were they hereditary? Dangerous? Assets? What sparked them? Could they be destroyed?

Last month, the Stag ordered the tests stopped for the time being. He wasn’t sure the near-decade of experimentation was paying off. They had not achieved a single one of their goals, and instead opened up a whole other box of uncertainties. He went on a tour of all the castles and facilities to see if there was anything further he could do to hasten the success of the project’s purposes. Talonclaw was the final stop.

“These are the cells,” the Special Doctor remarked, gesturing to a line of twelve iron doors. A guard was posted outside each of the nine occupied ones. The Stag pressed a cloth to his nose to block out the smell.

“Which is Deirdre’s?”

The Special Doctor pointed to the third on the right. The Stag approached and slid open the viewing window, a one-way mirror. Deirdre was rocking back and forth, curled on the ground. Her fur was matted and grimy and her clothes were disgusting. The image caught him off guard, and he almost felt sorrow. He did not realize the squalor in which his wife was living.

Barrow, their adult son, asked about her often. The Stag could not blame him for that; he was curious about his mother’s wellbeing, even though they both knew what they’d sentenced her to.

“Is she…” the Stag muttered, but stopped himself. He mustn’t show emotion.

“Her tests are going well,” the Special Doctor commented. “She never uses her power when she’s alone in her cell. We seem to have to draw it out of her, which is a difference from the others. Now, that may be reservation on her own part. Her power is the most destructive.”

The Stag nodded.

“Have you any issues with confidentiality among your staff?”

The Special Doctor ardently shook his head.

“Absolutely not. We uphold a strict code of silence, and tell no one what goes on here. The Granite Bloc must not find out.”

“No one must find out,” the Stag added. “These…biological freaks are dangerous. They’re honestly more dangerous to us than anyone else. We’ve gone too far…”

The Stag shut the viewing window. Deirdre had lifted her head as he spoke; did she hear him?

“Doctor,” the Stag said, “you have my permission to resume your experiments on the nine prisoners you have here. Do whatever is necessary to understand these anomalies.”

—

Deirdre raced to the door and pressed her ear against it. She heard Ellis! She knew she did! His voice was unmistakeable. The crushing silence was punctuated by the soft murmur of someone beyond the door. She heard the word “anomalies.”

Then, the vibrations disappeared.

“Ellis!” Deirdre cried, banging her hoof against the door. “Ellis! It’s me! It’s Deirdre!”

Silence.

“ELLIS!” Deirdre shrieked, her voice aching from being used so harshly for the first time in weeks. “Ellis, let me out! Please!”

She was crying out to a ghost. Even if Ellis was on the other side of that door, he was a different man than the one she knew. The one she wanted right now. He had changed irrevocably in the last decade, warped by war and the initiative behind these experiments. He had proven to be a wicked king, and Deirdre had been too late to change that.

“Ellis?” Deirdre tried one more time, her voice faint. “Ellis, can you hear me?”

She sunk to the floor and cried, feeling absolutely lost and hopeless. The hours drained from the day, and she remained where she lay. At some point she fell asleep and awoke against the door.

Had Ellis really been here, or was it just her imagination? Something in her drawing him back. After being entombed in Talonclaw Castle, Deirdre had come to the conclusion that Ellis did not love her, and that he had willingly and purposefully abandoned her. Those feelings exacerbated after her surgery. But even though she closed her heart to him, hearing his voice reopened her heart. Just wide enough to let all the pain back in.

Something tickled her hoof. She glanced down and saw it was on fire. The flames danced around her arm, but did not harm her. She shook her limb to extinguish the fire, but it remained. She had to use water from the jug to put it out.

Her husband had been kind once. Especially before the war. He had been a loving and devoted husband, a benevolent father, and a gracious king. Cervidium was stronger under his might, revitalized after Ellis’s father, Stag Rein, poured all the nation’s money into their hollow diamond mine at the Vixen Cliffs and nearly ruined the nation’s economy. What would Ellis’s legacy be?

War and wickedness.

Good Ellis was dead, buried in what may be eternal rest. The thought reminded Deirdre of an old poem that originated in Psittancyna, penned in the native Psittanine language. It was called “Requiem Aeternum,” which translated into “Eternal Rest.”

Deirdre found a light rock on the ground and scraped it against the wall, leaving a mark. She wrote out the translated poem as she remembered it.

*Requiem Aeternum*

*Slept upon a throne of light*

*Gone as a blessed blossom*

*Plucked from the cold of night*

*Pity not the souls below*

*Tarry not the final quest*

*All will see the heavens glow*

*Freed in eternal rest*

The poem, which she somehow remembered line for line, meant more to her now than it ever did in the time before. Eternal rest was at hand, as she was going to die here, rotting in Talonclaw Castle’s nefarious dungeons.

Her longing for the old Ellis was replaced by anger for the new one. The man who had locked his own wife away and subjected her to a brutal experiment gone awry. Who was responsible for her torment?

*Him*.

She did nothing wrong. She had only tried to surprise him for his birthday. She had only tried to understand, and the punishment was astronomically unfit for the alleged crime. Ellis deprived her of her life, her livelihood, her son, her comfort, her dignity, her privacy, her body, and her health.

He had no right to do that, even if he was the Stag. The monarchs of Cartonia were becoming too powerful. They had to be stopped.

*Ellis has to be stopped*.

Deirdre ignited. Flames erupted across her body. The door she was leaning on turned red from the heat. The former Doe of Cervidium stood and screamed, letting all of her frustration and anger and sorrow explode from within her. She squeezed her eyes shut and yelled until her voice gave out. It felt good to exorcise her inner turmoil. In her head, she saw Ellis begging for forgiveness, apologizing endlessly for his cruelty.

When Deirdre opened her eyes, the room was engulfed in smoke. Her inferno had gone out, but a breeze was blowing in from her right. From the door.

She approached the cell’s only entrance, and found a melted puddle of molten iron pooling on the threshold. The charred bodies of two guards were fused together just beyond it.

Deirdre had melted the door. She didn’t know she had the power to do something like that. Her flames had never been hot enough to *dissolve metal*.

There was no one else in the corridor. The smoke was billowing toward the air vents. It smelled out here. She wavered in the hall, unsure what to do. She didn’t mean to escape; she barely knew how to control her power. And she certainly didn’t purposefully kill the two guards.

There were many other doors. Cells, like hers. Was this where the others—the ones like her—were housed?

Deirdre crossed her arms over her naked body. When she ignited herself, her clothes disintegrated and she was cold. What was she supposed to do now? The predominant emotion at the moment was exhilaration from her own liberation. But she couldn’t just waltz upstairs into Talonclaw and escape.

Or could she?

The deer upstairs couldn’t bend fire. That was unique to her, and it was deadly. She was a weapon.

Cervidium wanted to utilize her against the Granite Bloc. They wanted to weaponize all the afflicted test subjects, which Deirdre fervently wanted to prevent.

A plan started to formulate in her head, one that would derail the Stag’s plot to harness the power of the experimentation byproducts. One that would lead her back to Antlerstag. And back to Ellis.

Deirdre closed her eyes and concentrated, and was soon on fire again. She approached the door across the hall from her and placed her hooves against the metal until nothing remained.

—Antlerstag, Lyme, Cervidium—

—July 19, 720—

-Five Days Later-

“What do you mean…outside of Lyme?”

The Stag was kneeling over his private garden, one hoof on a trowel and the other in the dirt. He was gaping at Barrow Elkton, the Fawn of Cervidium and heir to the throne.

“The…prisoners at Talonclaw were spotted outside of Lyme. Near the stadium.”

Father’s mouth was wide open.

“How did they get so close?”

Barrow shrugged.

“One of the prisoners glows in the dark and seven individual witnesses reported seeing such a luminescent figure in the vicinity of the stadium. I’ve ordered the army to search the city.”

Father wiped the dirt off his hooves and jammed the trowel into the garden bed.

“She’s coming here…” he whispered.

“Mom?”

“Yes,” Father snapped. “Melting the doors off the prison cells like they were made of ice…something’s changed within her.”

Barrow shrugged.

“I think she just wants to come home.”

Father scoffed.

“Absolutely not. She’s coming for me. Revenge.”

“Mom isn’t the revengeful type.”

Father stood to full height and glowered at his son.

“Your mother and her band of biological *freaks* have razed villages, leveled communities, burned forests, and left a trail of destruction in their wake. That’s done out of nothing except revenge. If she gets into this palace, she’ll spare you but kill me.”

Barrow shook his head with alacrity.

“Father, you are the most noble and magnanimous Stag this country has ever seen! She must understand the significance of her participation in the experiments. She could become our greatest asset!”

Father did not respond. He glanced at the setting sun and started gathering his garden supplies.

“What?” Barrow pressed. “You don’t think so? She can *melt iron!*”

“I thought your mother was a broken woman, but this disproves my assumption. She’s stronger than ever, and must be stopped. I’ve ordered the palace guards to kill her on sight.”

Barrow nodded.

“That makes sense.”

Father sighed in his son’s direction.

“I’m sorry that it’s come to this. We never should have been placed in this situation.”

“That’s okay. We made the decision together.”

Barrow remembered that night well. The one when he had gone to check in on the test subjects and found his mother breathing heavily in the stairwell, her eyes filled with realization of what was going on in secrecy beneath Antlerstag. He knew then what had to be done, as she was never going to understand. Mother was too soft, and too quick to kindness. To be a leader of Cervidium, one had to have a hardened heart. Father and Barrow both inherently understood that.

Mother was arrested as she was writing in what turned out to be a secret diary in which she divulged her thoughts on the Stag’s leadership and her journey into the dungeons. The book was immediately thrown into the fire, and the Stag invented a story about a debilitating illness that required the Doe to convalesce in a quiet palace on the coast. Indeed, she was imprisoned there for a time before Barrow himself suggested that Mother participate in the experiments. They had been overwhelming failures, and Barrow thought maybe royal blood would lead to success.

As it turned out, it had nothing to do with blood. Nonetheless, Mother became the first survivor.

Now she had escaped and was traveling to the capital. Father was right; if she and the eight other prisoners left only wreckage behind them, they were going to do the same to Lyme.

“I’m going to my study,” Father murmured. “I have to think.”

“Go with the sentinels,” Barrow replied. “We must take every measure to keep you safe.”

Father acquiesced and beckoned to the guards waiting by the terrace doors.

—

Ellis was having a difficult time concentrating. His mind kept wandering to Deirdre, and the image of her circling the capital, lying in wait. What did she have planned? She was one of the most recognizable deer in the Kingdom; how did she expect to get through the palace gates?

He speculated she would sneak through the gardens, and so he summoned a chunk of the national guard from a nearby training facility to patrol the expansive greenery.

A dossier from Talonclaw Castle and the Special Doctor he appointed detailed the afflictions in each of the nine escaped prisoners.

The power to glow in the dark.

The power to change eye color.

The power to magnetize.

The power to change length of hair or fur.

The power of a perfect memory.

The power to cause levitation of objects.

The power to induce sleep.

The power to run exceptionally fast.

The power to bend fire.

Only Deirdre’s was highly destructive in nature, though Ellis heard of a government building that not only burned but was slammed with levitating beams from a nearby construction site.

The freaks were on a mission.

When Ellis heard of the prison break, finding the escapees was made an immediate priority. However, they managed to elude capture, appearing at the next community without any prior warning.

*How*?

Ellis put his head in his hooves and tried to clear his mind. He pressed against his eyes until he saw shapes swimming about behind his eyelids. Then he sighed and leaned back in his chair.

A scented candle on his desk suddenly flamed.

—

Ellis was sitting in his study, silent. He had been reading something before leaning over his desk in what looked like mental agony. Deirdre smirked. He had no idea what real pain was.

Being back in Antlerstag was a strange sensation. This had been her home for years, but it did not feel like it anymore. This was in retrospect her first prison. Only these past few days as she traveled across the country on her fiery path to redemption did she understand liberty.

Ellis sighed and tossed back his head. Deirdre felt a twinge of anticipation, causing a candle she was staring at to catch. Ellis jerked toward it. Sensing no better cue, Deirdre stepped out from behind the curtain and walked around the desk.

“Hello, Ellis.”

His eyes widened and he swallowed hard.

“Deirdre,” he gasped. His gaze dropped toward her outfit. She was decked in an all black skin-tight stealth suit that was fire-retardant. One of her fellow escapees, who had once been a tailor, had it custom-made in northern Cervidium. She worked with lightning speed, and by the end was in tears that she still remembered her craft so well.

“You have hurt me, Ellis,” Deirdre said calmly. “You have tortured me.”

The Stag had not moved from where he sat. His hoof was hovering near the phone.

“There’s no use calling for help. The guards are fast asleep outside. The phone lines have been deactivated. It’s just you and I.”

Ellis cocked his head in doubt. He tried dialing on the phone but true to Deirdre’s word, the line was dead. Two of the escapees had already returned home, but the other six were helping Deirdre enact her plan. Sophie—the one who could make anyone fall asleep—disabled the sentinels. Polina—the one who could magnetize objects or disable the magnetization—knocked out the phones. Neo could glow in the dark and was illuminating himself at random points of the city as he attempted to distract the army.

“What do you want?” Ellis asked, dropping the phone haphazardly on the desk. Deirdre crossed her arms.

“I want you to surrender to the Granite Bloc. I want you to end the experiments and free all the prisoners and test subjects you have imprisoned here in Antlerstag, in Talonclaw, and all the other palaces and jailhouses. I want you to relinquish all your territorial holdings that you’ve conquered. And I want you to abdicate in favor of Barrow.”

Ellis barked in laughter. Genuine, harsh guffaws. He rolled his eyes as further insult.

“You’re mad. I shall do none of those things, not when we are on the verge of victory.”

“Are you?” Deirdre scoffed. “Cervidium is a far worse place than it was before this war. No one should be treated by their King as you have me.”

The Stag was emotionless as he shrugged.

“You were a traitor to the crown and to the Summer Sun.”

“And you were a better man.”

Ellis’s eyes narrowed.

“This is the Stag that I have always wanted to be. Cervidium will emerge from this battle as an empire, greater than any nation on this continent. Even Vulpus.”

Now it was Deirdre’s turn to laugh.

“I cannot believe that you still don’t see yourself as a pawn in her scheme.”

He was still standing behind his desk. She felt confident that even if he summoned more guards, that Sophie and her sleep-inducing power could knock them out.

“I am no pawn,” Ellis scowled. “I am Stag Ellis of Cervidium! My name shall be hallowed in history, venerated as the victor of the Great War of Cartonia!”

“You will be remembered only for your cruelty,” Deirdre muttered. “Your experiments, and your subjugation of prisoners. War crimes.”

A look of disgust passed over his face.

“You will not succeed here, Deirdre. Surrender to me, and I will allow you to stay in Antlerstag. You can be reunited with our son.”

“The one you’ve warped to be your wicked successor?”

“You dare—“ Ellis began, but Deirdre stepped toward the desk. Ellis leapt back, his hooves splayed. “Stay back!”

“I will not leave here,” Deirdre insisted, “without your agreement to my terms. Or so help me I will burn this place to the ground.”

“*Never*.”

Deirdre sighed.

“My husband died a long time ago. I’m not sure when, but his loving presence passed from this world without my knowing. He was replaced by a disfigurement of wickedry. In these years of war, we have seen great loves and great evils. I believe so fervently in love and its power to eliminate evil. I came here to end war, and stop the phantom that consumed my husband. And I shall do that.”

Before Ellis could reply, Deirdre set him on fire. She maintained her gaze as the Stag of Cervidium was engulfed in flames. He shrieked and shook his body in a frenzy, desperate to stamp out the inferno. His form fell to the ground and began to roll, but it was not enough. Deirdre was relentless, and soon the Stag moved no more.

Deirdre crossed to his desk and skimmed through some of his notes. She saw some annotations on a surgery diagram about phosphorous being utilized in battlefield gas and poisonous darts. When she underwent her brutal surgery, the doctor had made a comment about phosphorus. Though the element may have played some role in her conversion to fire-demon, she doubted it was the main cause.

Sweeping her eyes across the room, she ignited the curtains and tapestries, as well as anything that could be flammable. She opened the study door and left it ajar as she hopped over the sleeping guards. Sophie was waiting by the stairs.

“Is he…?”

“Indeed.”

“Wow.”

Sophie Riffick was a cat, arrested three years ago for participating in a resistance effort against Cervidian occupiers of Felexa. They shipped her off to Talonclaw and ran their horrific tests on her. She was left with the ability to induce sleep, dreams, and nightmares. But in the days since their escape from Talonclaw, she became a friend to Deirdre. The former Doe quickly filled Sophie in on what transpired in Ellis’s study, including what she saw in his notes.

“You have to go,” Deirdre whispered gravely. “Join the others at the garden maze’s end. I’ll signal from the Great Hall’s windows when the government is secured.”

“Not until we find the Fawn.”

They had killed the Stag, but that wasn’t enough to save Cervidium. They would have to achieve the support of the court and the military, and Barrow. He was next in line and the rightful Stag. She would have to convince her son to relinquish his birthright to her, and name her Doe Regnant, reigning Queen of Cervidium.

But she had to find him first. The palace felt unfamiliar to her now, even though she’d lived here for years. Different artwork hung from the walls, furniture moved places, and the people she knew were either conscripted, dead, or changed to her husband’s cause.

She ran through the plan in her head.

Confront Ellis, demand change. If he refused, end his life. Find Barrow, garner his support. Summon the court with Barrow and tout the new regime. Recall the army, free the prisoners, and surrender to the Granite Bloc.

Turn on the Summer Sun.

Invade Vulpus.

Then, at last: peace.

The idea was exhilarating. Finally Cervidium could undo its decade of backward progression and redeem itself for all the Stag’s misdeeds.

Barrow’s bedroom was guarded of course, but Sophie easily knocked them out. Deirdre peered inside, but everything was dark and he was not in bed. They tried his study next, but that too was vacant. A pit lodged in Deirdre’s stomach. He might be in the dungeons.

Sophie and Deirdre went together to that fateful door in the corridor near the ballroom. It was unlocked.

“I don’t like this,” Sophie whispered. “You told me how hard it was to get in there the first time. And now it’s just open?”

“Maybe they don’t use this entrance anymore,” Deirdre murmured.

The parlor was exactly as Deirdre remembered it; the furniture was covered in white sheets, the room windowless, the fireplace without wood or stoking equipment. The tapestry of Antlerstag was in the same place, as was the passage. It was like reliving that night of terror all over again. The trepidation of searching this room for its secret, the key to Ellis’s transformation, and the fear of being caught. She wasn’t so scared this time. If anyone saw her, she’d set them alight. She had power now. The timid Doe of Cervidium that once lived here had died with good Ellis.

Deirdre tried the passcode *1897*, but it did not work. She attempted a few others that Ellis had been known to utilize, but they failed too.

“Go fetch Polina,” Deirdre told Sophie. “She can use her magnetization to manipulate the lock. She should be in the maze.”

Sophie nodded and hurried off at once. Deirdre waited in the parlor. She tore the sheets off the furniture. Old couches and armchairs, unused for a long time. She wondered what this room had been before Ellis used it as his secret passage to wickedness. Before that night she tried to surprise him on his birthday and caught him entering the parlor, she had barely even registered its existence. The corridor connecting the two ballrooms was scarcely used.

A noise emitted from the passageway, and Deirdre froze. She heard the door open, and then the tapestry lifted. Barrow’s antlers scraped the fabric as it fell behind him.

“Mother. I thought you’d come down.”

Deirdre stared.

“I…the password is changed.”

“Oh,” Barrow stifled a laugh. “Yes, that makes sense. Is father dead?”

“Yes,” Deirdre said after a pause. Barrow did not seem bothered by it at all. Was it possible that he disliked what his father had become, just as Deirdre had?

“Then I have you to thank. I am now Stag.”

Deirdre detected a hint of excitement in his voice. She narrowed her eyes.

“I did not come here to hand you the crown, Barrow. You abandoned your mother and cast me into perdition. You are as he was, and no Stag with evil in his heart should rule over Cervidium.”

“What?”

Barrow was gazing with confusion. Deirdre noticed he had blood on his wrists. Rings around his lower arm, as if above where gloves had been.

“I am qualified to rule this country,” Deirdre explained. “I can end this war and deliver our people to peace. I need you to abdicate in my favor.”

Barrow laughed heartily, reminiscent of how Ellis did earlier this night. They were almost identical laughs, each dripping with malice.

“Absolutely not, Mother. I have waited my whole life to be Stag, and now the moment is here. I have wanted so desperately to kill Father, but I had not the courage to do it, I suppose. I always worried it would come back to haunt me. But you’ve spared me the labor and the blame.”

He was turning into Ellis right before her eyes. The loving son she once knew was gone, thanks to Ellis. She would have to kill him too to take control of Cervidium.

But hesitancy seized her. This was her child, her own son. How could she—

“You’re a dangerous woman, Mother. And you will not have my crown. You are a threat to the Cervidian Empire and a biological freak of nature. A…BioFreak. Catchy, that. Anyway…how does that poem of yours go?”

He aimed a gun at her.

“Requiem Aeternum.”

—Highland Castle, West Terrier, Canis—

—July 21, 720—

-2 Days Later-

An edict from Cervidium was within Queen Roxanne’s daily papers. It caught her eye because Cervidium did not habitually release edicts on their own, relying on Vulpus or the Summer Sun to be their mouthpiece. She wondered what Stag Ellis was up to now.

Only…it wasn’t written by Stag Ellis.

*Cervidium Edict #2*

*July 20, 720*

*To the people of Cartonia,*

*It is with heavy regret that Antlerstag reports the death of Stag Ellis of the House of Elkton, whose reign began in June of 697. His twenty-three years at the helm of Cervidium have been marked by expansion, conquest, prosperity, and widespread national pride. Stag Ellis led his people into war and though he did not survive to see its end, he paved the way for inevitable glory.*

*Effective immediately, Fawn Barrow Elkton has succeeded his father as Stag of Cervidium. To celebrate his ascension, he has chosen Ms Marjorie Reed as his royal bride. The pair shall be coronated together on August 2 in the halls of Antlerstag. The funeral for Stag Ellis will precede this event on July 25 and last until July 31.*

*Though deer rejoice for their new Stag, they mourn the loss of the former father of the nation. It is with heavy regret, sorrow, and fear that the government announces the cause of Stag Ellis’s death. He was murdered by once-Doe Deirdre Elkton née Cox.*

*Doe Deirdre fell ill in July of 715 and was sent to Ticker Palace to convalesce at the coastal castle. During this period of confinement, it is now known that Doe Deirdre copulated with a cat. This immoral act of crossbreeding and interspecies sexual contact resulted in vile physical and biological deformities. Doe Deirdre was left with the unnatural ability to control fire. The Doe utilized this wretched abnormality to escape her convalescence and raze peaceful and tranquil communities in the Cervidian countryside en route to the capital. Deirdre sprung similar biological mutants from prison—all arrested for interspecies relationships and fornication—and broke into Antlerstag using these supernatural horrors. The Doe murdered Stag Ellis, witnessed by her own son Fawn Barrow. She threatened to kill Barrow next, but she accidentally immolated herself. The Fawn quickly elevated himself to Stag to ensure continuity of government.*

*It is now known that interspecies love will result in these monstrous deformities. Eight biological freaks of nature (BioFreaks) remain at large in Cervidium, and countless others no doubt exist in Cartonia. The Granite Bloc is known to rape victims of their battles and sieges, regardless of species. Any suspected BioFreak should be reported immediately to the BioFreak Detection Agency headquartered in Lyme, Cervidium. Rewards up to 10,000 marks will be distributed to those who successfully provide information that lead to the capture of BioFreaks.*

*Let it be known: all BioFreaks are dangerous. They have the capacity to kill with abnormally high accuracy and precision, as well as deadly force. No BioFreak should be approached, and no BioFreak should be trusted. They have proven themselves to be murderers, guilty even of regicide.*

*The Kingdom of Canis has disregarded this truth and legalized interspecies relationships nationwide. This encapsulation of evil will not be tolerated. Cervidium and its allies in the Summer Sun urge all members of the Granite Bloc to turn on Canis, as it will clearly harbor BioFreaks and pass this crime as tolerance. The wretched King Bentley II is henceforward accused of being a BioFreak himself, having copulated with Victoria Vixen numerous times in 706 and 707. Anyone who carries out the execution of Bentley II would be, in the Summer Sun’s eyes, completely guiltless.*

*Eternal rest be granted to Stag Ellis.*

*Long Live Stag Barrow!*

*Signed,*

*Stag Barrow*

Roxanne’s jaw was all the way open. Shock, confusion, and incredulity were fighting for salience. She was not the least bit saddened by Stag Ellis’s death; in fact, she was thrilled to hear that Deirdre offed him. Roxanne was skeptical of Deirdre’s role in the Cervidian war machine, even after receiving the letter years ago declaring that there was something wicked occurring inside Talonclaw Castle. She was still a member of the Summer Sun and could not be trusted.

The fact that the edict stated that Deirdre was in the coastal palace and not in Talonclaw made her doubt how much of this edict was true. She figured it was safe to assume that Ellis was actually dead and that the depraved Barrow Elkton was quick to find a wife to lock down the royal succession, but everything else was…unbelievable.

Roxanne took the edict and went to find Bentley. After all, he was named in the edict as some epitome of evil. She found him in the war chamber, holding his own copy of the edict. Mother was with him, her face drawn in concentration.

“What do you make of this?” Roxanne asked, gesturing at the edict. Madonna Jacquetta Lazoy forced a laugh.

“It’s sensational.”

“Truly,” Bentley agreed. “It is a fine work of fiction.”

He did not seem bothered at all by the international call for his death. Roxanne reckoned a part of him no longer cared if he lived or died. Was Victoria really that important to him that she was irreplaceable? Roxanne missed her husband Giulio, about whose fate she still knew nothing, but felt that if he died she could find happiness again. She was still a relatively young Queen, and without an heir.

“Our last correspondence with Deirdre suggested she was in Talonclaw, and not at Ticker Palace,” Roxanne pointed out.

“Mm,” Jacquetta murmured, “clever. I wonder if she’s still alive, and the Fawn is trying to blame his mother for murder.”

“You mean,” Bentley said slowly, “that Barrow probably killed Ellis and is framing his mother? I suppose that’s possible but why go to the effort to make up this whole story about…BioFreaks?”

Roxanne chuckled.

“What a goofy name.”

“It’s childish,” Jacquetta opined. “Demeaning too. It would be revolutionary if they did exist. The power to control fire? How…tantalizing!”

Bentley bit on his thumb.

“Do you think,” he thought aloud, “that the BioFreaks is the ‘something wicked’ that Deirdre alluded to?”

“I don’t know,” Roxanne sighed. “It seems so far-fetched. BioFreaks…and if Deirdre was one she would have said so in her letter, right?”

“Fair point,” said Jacquetta.

Bentley tapped the edict on the table.

“There is a large amount of detail in this edict. Cervidium stands nothing to gain by making up such atrocities, except the bounty they are able to place on my head. I’m almost inclined to think a lot of this is true, except the part about—“

“Crossbreeding?” Jacquetta scoffed. “I deign not even ask the question.”

“I will,” Roxanne blurted. “Are you a BioFreak, Benny?”

Bentley was amused. He placed a paw reassuringly on Roxanne.

“I am not. Neither Victoria nor I experienced any sort of biological mutation, deformity, or abnormality before, during, or after we—“

Roxanne clapped her paws over her ears. Jacquetta laughed at that.

“I think you can spare her the details, your Majesty.”

Bentley smirked. He read over the edict again.

“There’s no way we can validate any of the information in this edict. Not even Ellis’s death. For all we know Barrow has kept him alive. We cannot trust the Summer Sun at any turn.”

“You have to do something though,” Roxanne said, “about the charges in that edict. There will be people in this country or abroad who will believe the edict. Now that interspecies love is legal here, all those newlyweds may be in danger.”

Jacquetta sighed with sorrow.

“I pity all the BioFreaks, if they exist. They’ll become targets of fear and the inability to understand. Their powers may not be enough to save them.”

—Burrow Court Palace, Sylvia, Leprolia—

—August 5, 720—

-2 Weeks Later-

Ever since the revelations that there were more BioFreaks in Cartonia, that one had killed the Stag of Cervidium, and that all others were to be hunted down, Azure Oldman was determined to maintain a low profile. He had kept his affliction a secret from all except his wife Celeste, mother Carolina, and fellow mutant Trent Mallon.

News of the BioFreaks hit citizens of the Granite Bloc differently. Some washed off the accusations as absurd rumors, yet another ploy by the Summer Sun to erode Granite Bloc morale. Others believed in the existence of BioFreaks and either wanted to utilize the ones in the Bloc for military gain or leave them alone and let them live. But then there was the sect of people, of which there were many, that was terrified of potential BioFreaks and wanted them eliminated.

Cervidium released the list of names for the eight BioFreaks at large in Cervidium and the powers they possessed.

*Neo Noble, deer: Bioluminescence*

*Iris Cycla, chicken: Change of eye color*

*Polina Leman, parrot: Magnetization*

*Reginald Lightfoot, deer: Hair/Fur Manipulation*

*Eida Ettic, goat: Perfect Memory*

*Gisella Rae, cat: Levitation*

*Sophie Riffick, cat: Sleep Induction*

*Angal Blitz, cow: Superspeed*

Those that feared the BioFreaks were actively searching for levitating, magnetized, glowing Cartonians that could run fast or change their fur or eye color or seduce them into sleep. Eida Ettic was easily the safest as her affliction was not outwardly visible or even detectable. But as Azure and Trent Mallon both found, there was a curse that accompanied each of their “gifts.” He wondered what the others were experiencing.

Azure desperately wanted to find the eight and protect them, but he did not want to bring attention to himself. Not even his father or grandfather the King knew of his ability to control snow.

Azure knew from his own experience that BioFreaks were created scientifically, and not naturally through interspecies sexual contact. That was an obvious myth perpetuated by the Summer Sun to forward their own agenda and chip away at Granite Bloc unity. Unfortunately, he was hesitant to even share this with those in the government for fear that his condition would be uncovered. Years had passed since his affliction began, and though he’d learn to control it and hide it, he was embarrassed by it. He was a royal prince of Leprolia and a freak. A BioFreak.

When Trent Mallon, the other BioFreak who had been poisoned by the same battlefield gas as Azure, saw the list, he was intrigued by Reginald Lightfoot. Trent’s power sounded extremely similar to Reginald’s: the power to change his fur color. However, Trent found that he could accomplish a great deal more. He could also change the shape of his head and size of his ears, such to the point that he could be mistaken for a dog, monkey, or mouse depending on how he warped his features. It was fascinating, and he continued to practice regularly. The two had become exceptionally good friends, bonded by their shared suffering. Trent had a more positive outlook on their conditions, even though he had been left colorblind by his affliction.

“Azure?” Celeste called from the living room of their royal apartments in Burrow Court Palace. “Phone call for you.”

Prince Azure got up from the couch where he was working absently on a crossword puzzle. He took the receiver from his wife.

“Your Highness,” a flat voice on the other end said, “I’m the Head Nurse at King Cottontail III Hospital. I wanted to call to inform you that over the past few days we’ve had several strangers visit the hospital inquiring for more information about a staff member of your household—Trent Mallon. I’m afraid to say that a nurse on our team leaked some of the details from his most recent hospitalization in 718 and there is…well how should I say this?”

Azure was squeezing the phone against his ear. People were beginning to find out about Trent’s affliction.

“Tell me,” Azure demanded. The nurse cleared her throat.

“They believe he is a BioFreak. Now whether he is or not is none of my concern. I never treated him during his stay, but I have read his report. Your Highness, I am calling you because I have been unable to get ahold of Mr. Mallon these past few days. The address we have on file must be incorrect.”

“It is,” Azure sighed. “All of his contact information would have changed since I hired him onto my staff. Thank you for calling. Please continue to keep Mr. Mallon’s records private and let me know every time someone comes inquiring.”

“Of course, Your Highness.”

Azure tossed the phone onto the counter and stared intently at Celeste. She had been listening against his shoulder.

“Trent’s running a message to the King’s Council,” she muttered. “You have to tell him once he’s back.”

Azure shook his head. This was bigger than just that.

“We cannot stay in Leprolia. If rumors are beginning to spread that Trent is a BioFreak, and if they believe that BioFreaks are created by interspecies love, then they’ll wonder why I’ve hired him. Regardless of what our family thinks, a majority of people still think interspecies romance is a sin. The only place it’s not is Canis.”

Celeste gaped.

“You…want to flee to Canis?”

“Not flee. Just…seek a respite there perhaps.”

His heart was hammering with building panic. Celeste glanced at the ceiling.

“Azure, it’s snowing.”

A flurry was coming down over his head, out of nowhere. He tried to dissipate the snow but could not get his emotions under control.

“I have to protect Trent. He’s our friend.”

Celeste nodded.

“The Summer Sun is closing in anyway. I’d feel much more comfortable if we left the capital. Before that door closes.”

—

Carolina Oldman, mother of Azure Oldman, found a note tacked to the doorframe of her bedroom that night. It startled her, as it was likely not good news. She carefully unfolded it in the dim light of the hall.

*Dear Mother,*

*The threat of discovery is looming, and Trent and I must take precautions to avoid detection. There has already been questions at the Hospital where he was treated. Celeste, Trent, and I will be temporarily relocating to Canis for a few months. I know we leave Leprolia in some of her darker hours, but I urge you tell father and the King about my affliction and why I have taken this step. Forgive me for not bidding you a personal farewell. I tried to find you before our train left. With hope I shall see you shortly.*

*Love,*

*Azure*

—Highland Castle, West Terrier, Canis—

—August 9, 720—

-4 Days Later-

Jacquetta Lazoy froze when she saw Trent Mallon at dinner, accompanied by Azure and Celeste Oldman, as official guests at Highland Castle. The rabbit noticed her during the appetizers, and his eyes locked on hers. Then, he smiled. Lionel and Zamora recognized him as well.

After dinner, she directed him into one of the lounges. She hugged him immediately.

“I never thought I’d see your face again,” she gasped. “It’s been…”

“Eight years,” Trent finished. He grinned at her. “Hard to forget the day I met you.”

Jacquetta was taken back into her memory to a day she was unlikely to forget either, the night that she and her children fled Felexa as it fell to their once-allies in Vulpus and Cervidium. When they reached the border of Leprolia, desperate for refuge, Trent Mallon had shown them kindness despite their former allegiance to the enemy. He had led them through the Leprolian trenches, delivered them to Azure Oldman—the commander of the trenches—and most importantly had dispatched a telegram to King Bentley begging him to sponsor the Felexan royal family’s exile. Jacquetta was weary of going to Burrow Court Palace in the Leprolian capital for fear that she and her children would meet the same demise as Alexander Petukinau and the Galligasque royal family. She had good reason to harbor this fear, as the late King Cottontail IX admitted to her that he had ordered the murder of the extended Galligasque royal family to protect Leprolian interests. Though Cottontail insisted that he would not have killed the Lazoys, Jacquetta believed that Trent Mallon’s telegram had spared her life, and certainly Canis was safer than Leprolia anyway. She never knew what became of Trent, but thought of him often.

“I am so grateful to be in your presence again,” Jacquetta murmured. “I never had the chance to properly thank you.”

Trent lifted an eyebrow.

“I wouldn’t say that, Madonna. You told me I was righteous. A soldier is seldom told that. The night I welcomed you and your children into my trench was a transformative experience for me, though harrowing for you. I’d never met royalty outside of Azure. You’re a great woman, Madonna. It was a pleasure to do that service for you.”

Jacquetta kissed his paw, as she had eight years ago when she passed him the telegram. She gazed into his eyes.

“Why have you come to Highland Castle?”

Trent shrugged.

“I’m Azure’s private secretary now. He wanted to visit Canis, and I had to accompany him. I’m not complaining. I’ve never visited Canis before, but clearly there’s a good reason for me to be here now. I get to reunite with you. Fate is mysterious in that way.”

Jacquetta smiled. At that moment, Azure and Celeste popped into the lounge and summoned Trent to do some secretarial work. He bowed in Jacquetta’s direction and exited.

The Madonna was thrilled to see him again, and delighted that he was to spend more time in the castle, but there was something off about him. For one, he referred to his employer and royal superior by first name, which was uncommon even for the closest of household staff members. And second, perhaps most startlingly, his eyes were different. She remembered pleading with him in the Leprolian trenches, her gaze locked onto two fiery orange eyes.

Now, they were grey.

—September 23, 720—

-7 Weeks Later-

Bentley found his visitor in the reception room. She was as she came, terrified and emaciated. Her clothes were ripped in multiple places. She was a cat with sunken cheeks and frayed whiskers. When she was found in a ditch in southern Canis, on the brink of death, her rescuers heard her gasp “Highland.” Queen Roxanne II demanded she be brought to the capital at once. This morning, her carriage arrived.

In the reception room, Queen Roxanne was kneeling in front of the cat, gripping her paw with sorrow.

“How far you’ve come…” she whispered. The cat lowered her head. Bentley cleared his throat. Roxanne jerked around.

“Oh! Benny. This is Sophie Riffick.”

It appeared that introductions was as far as they got, because Roxanne was bouncing with questions.

“You’re safe here,” Bentley said to Sophie. “We will not send you away.”

Sophie curved her lips in a weak smile.

“Tell us about yourself,” Roxanne whispered. “Tell us what brought you here.”

Sophie glanced at Bentley.

“Am I…really safe here? No matter what?”

Bentley vehemently nodded.

“Absolutely. Whatever you are fleeing, we will protect you from it.”

Sophie took a deep breath, her frail chest rising and falling.

“I am a BioFreak.”

Bentley’s eyes widened instinctively. He regained his composure.

“We are very eager to hear your tale. And we shall not judge.”

“It’s not crossbreeding that causes this,” Sophie muttered. “It’s much worse.”

Roxanne did not let go of Sophie’s paw as she told her story. Sophie was a construction laborer before the war. Her firm was repurposed for the war effort and she built trenches in western Felexa. When Felexa fell, she joined a small resistance to Cervidian rule. They attempted to coordinate a strike on capital defenses but the plot was discovered and all were imprisoned within Talonclaw Castle. Sophie was selected for a nefarious experiment, which she described in painstaking detail as the most horrifying experience of her life. She likened it to ancient torture, and Bentley and Roxanne were absolutely mortified by her description. They had no idea such wickedness was being perpetrated anywhere in Cartonia. Or that such evil was possible, despite the war. Battles were one awful form of violence, but those experiments, sponsored by the Stag…

Sophie went on about how the purpose of the tests were to achieve immortality or invincibility, perhaps other attributes. But they always backfired, resulting in death or a strange supernatural affliction. The experiments were halted to better discern where things went wrong, or if these byproducts could be replicated. The majority of the surgeries were occurring inside Talonclaw Castle, but they began in Antlerstag, according to Doe Deirdre.

“Deirdre?” Bentley interrupted. “She was in Talonclaw with you?”

“She was,” Sophie sighed. “There were nine BioFreaks total, at least that’s as many as Deirdre managed to break out.”

“Did you see anyone else in Talonclaw?” Roxanne pressed. “My husband, Giulio Lazoy…he was—“

“He’s dead,” Sophie stated. “He died two years ago in the experiments. Deirdre saw that happen.”

Roxanne was stunned into silence. Bentley gave her arm a reassuring squeeze, though he knew it would do no good. She had spent years holding out hope that her husband was alive, but he was gone.

“How long have you been a BioFreak?” Bentley asked.

“Two years,” Sophie responded. “Almost to the day. Deirdre’s surgery resulted in her having the ability to control fire, including ignition. She accidentally lit the doctors on fire and they died. They thought they may have achieved invincibility so they continued to experiment. I am neither invincible nor immortal but I do have the ability to induce sleep or manipulate dreams.”

Bentley smiled.

“Really?”

“Is it painful?” Roxanne asked in concern.

“Not anymore,” Sophie replied. “The affliction itself does not hurt, though the surgery scars took a while to heal. There is the adverse effect that I have developed insomnia, and I cannot use my ability on myself.”

Bentley gaped. That must be horrible. She could cause the nation’s worst insomniac to collapse into deep sleep but she would have to stay awake throughout.

Roxanne and Bentley would ultimately spend the next two hours with Sophie. Multiple times they offered to pause so that she could eat, drink, bathe, dress, and unwind after a horrific ordeal. Each time Sophie refused, wanting to expunge the pain from her heart before continuing on.

She told them about her life in Talonclaw, being imprisoned in a repurposed room stripped of furniture with seven other female cats. She described the system by which the deer would isolate prisoners of war by gender and species and then remove them one-by-one to undergo the surgery. Those that survived became BioFreaks and were moved to the dungeons, housed alone and deprived of nearly all comforts. The dead were buried in mass graves on Talonclaw’s lawn. The graves were visible from the trains arriving at Talonclaw Station.

Roxanne was horrified, and left the room after this part to compose herself. Bentley completely understood her grief; Talonclaw was her home and since she was forced to flee it had turned into a murder factory. The crimes against life were staggering and unprecedented in scale or scope. It was mass slaughter.

After Sophie’s surgery, she was put in one of twelve reinforced iron cells in the dungeons. Roxanne was able to testify to the veracity of this statement, as the unused dungeon cells were indeed part of Talonclaw’s extensive basement network. Roxanne said the cells were constructed back in the third century when a particularly horrible serial killer was on the loose in Felexa and the government needed an extremely secure prison out of public view. None of the cells had ever been used.

During Sophie’s time in her dark cell, she was taken out routinely to be “poked and prodded.” The leader of the pseudo medical team overseeing the BioFreaks was nameless, but had been referred to in passing as the “Special Doctor.” All the guards, jailers, and doctors in the palace were deer. For the first time, Bentley was confronted with Cervidium’s independent wickedness. Usually the Summer Sun’s atrocities were dominated by Vulpus, but they were not the lone occupants on the island of evil.

Sophie listed the identities of each of the nine BioFreaks and their abilities. She met all of them for the first time when Deirdre melted the iron doors with her fire. Sophie had been shocked to find the former Doe of Cervidium imprisoned among them. Deirdre had apparently been overcome with anger toward her husband, Stag Ellis, and orchestrated a daring escape. None of the BioFreaks protested and willingly followed Deirdre out of Talonclaw and southeast toward Lyme, Cervidium.

“Reginald Lightfoot and Eida Ettic left the group and headed to their homes. Reginald is a deer and wanted to find his parents. Eida is a goat. She was the most scarred of all of us, even though her affliction is completely invisible.”

“Remind us what that is again,” Roxanne requested.

“Photographic memory.”

During their short journey on foot from Tabitha to Lyme, the seven BioFreaks exacted revenge on the country that enslaved them by razing communities loyal to the crown. Deirdre insisted on no loss of life and only property damage. The seven BioFreaks became close friends. Deirdre was their leader and informed all of them of the evils beneath Antlerstag, and her belief that there must be more like them. Her plan was simple: pressure Stag Ellis to abdicate and surrender or else die. They would incapacitate Barrow and leave the line of succession open. The next in line after Barrow was a distant relation of Stag Ellis, but Deirdre was hoping to clench the throne in their place. With Deirdre at the country’s helm, Cervidium would surrender, freeing Felexa and Leprolia as well as large parts of Capricon. As Sophie described this arrangement—one that Bentley knew would now never materialize—he felt an even greater sadness for Deirdre’s suffering. In the end, she really was on their side.

The seven BioFreaks arrived in Lyme on the evening of July 18. The next day, Deirdre and Sophie broke into the palace together. The others distracted the army and facilitated Deirdre’s entrance. Sophie waited outside the Stag’s study as she confronted him, and only learned from Deirdre herself that the Stag was dead. They set fire to his study and hunted for Barrow. Sophie was sent from the castle to fetch the BioFreak named Polina who had the power to magnetize objects. She could be used to unlock a door near one of Antlerstag’s ballrooms that held the entrance to the dungeons. But when Polina and Sophie returned, Deirdre was dead. They immediately fled, but were caught in the gardens attempting their escape. One BioFreak—Iris Cycla—was shot and captured. Another—Neo Noble—became injured as the group attempted to cross into Occupied Leprolia. He insisted on being left behind.

The remaining four split up. Sophie took a northern route through Occupied Capricon into the Canisian sector. She finally reached Canis’s border and collapsed from exhaustion. She was found by a few army soldiers on patrol.

Throughout Sophie’s retelling, she continued to stress the importance that Barrow Elkton’s assertion of crossbreeding in his edict was false. No crossbreeding had occurred in any of the nine BioFreaks, and the rumor was created to cover up the Stag’s experiments. She insisted that hundreds of prisoners remained imprisoned in Antlerstag, Talonclaw, and elsewhere. The experiments were assuredly going to resume once the deer could figure out how to precisely create BioFreaks of their choosing.

Sophie stopped talking all of a sudden, and Roxanne and Bentley realized her silence meant she was done.

“Are you sure you don’t want any water?” Roxanne asked. “Some food?”

Sophie shook her head.

“I will later. But right now I want to see if you have any questions for me.”

Bentley did, but he was willing to postpone them until Sophie was restored to health.

“Thank you for telling us,” he said instead. “You’ve given us a lot to think about and act upon. I want to reaffirm my commitment to ensuring your safety. If you’d like, we can assign a sentinel to your private protection.”

Sophie nodded.

“Can we also see if any of the royal physicians can aid with your insomnia?”

“That would be…very generous…”

Roxanne sighed heavily. Bentley was emotionally drained after the conversation, but did not say so for he knew that Sophie was suffering far worse and would for far longer.

“Sophie,” Bentley muttered, “is there anything else you want to share with us before we go?”

The cat thought for a moment.

“Deirdre told me that she saw something in Ellis’s study that might suggest Cervidium may be responsible for more BioFreaks through their use of the same nerve agents in other weapons of war, such as poison-laced darts and toxic gas.”

Roxanne nodded and helped Sophie to her paws.

“Let’s go get you cleaned up.”

Bentley stayed behind in the reception room, thinking about what Sophie had said. There was too much to unpack in one evening, but she did mention toxic gas. A month ago, Azure Oldman came to Canis. He had been exposed to Cervidian toxic gas a few years ago. His arrival to Highland Castle came right after Barrow’s edict.

Perhaps Sophie was right; there may indeed be more BioFreaks in Cartonia.

—

Azure Oldman was reading in his bedroom but was let in when Bentley knocked. His wife shared the room with him, and a connecting door allowed them to interact with Trent Mallon, another person who came to visit Highland Castle who was ostensibly Azure’s private secretary. Bentley suspected that Trent, Azure, Celeste, or all three were BioFreaks. He did not think anything of their visit after they arrived. He briefly wondered why they chose to extend the original one-month sojourn but didn’t question.

Now, as Azure and Bentley sat alone together on the windowsill, he opted to be blunt.

“Are you a BioFreak, Azure?”

The rabbit’s eyes widened in fear. Bentley quickly waved his paws in reassurance. “It’s okay if you are!”

Azure began breathing heavily, but he nodded. Bentley noticed specks of—dust?—were floating around his head. He swatted the flakes away, but they melted on his fur.

“Snow?” he gasped in wonder. Azure tipped his head. “Incredible…”

Azure was not saying anything, probably waiting to see what the King of Canis would do. Since Sophie Riffick’s arrival in West Terrier, Bentley had been far more preoccupied with thinking of ways to save the prisoners around the Summer Sun than worrying about individual BioFreaks and their abilities.

“May I be candid with you, Azure?” Bentley asked. Azure swallowed hard but nodded. “Over the last decade, Canis has become home to refugees, outlaws, outcasts, asylum-seekers, deposed monarchs, tormented monarchs, individuals from all species, and now so-called biological freaks of nature. We have adopted a policy—perhaps unspoken—that we are free from judgment here. You are not a target in this country, nor are you something we should fear. In fact, I’d like to see what you can do. Have you tested your powers yourself?”

Azure regarded Bentley for a while, his eyes skeptical.

“I don’t…use the snow voluntarily.”

“What about Trent? Can he control snow? Your wife?”

“Celeste is not a BioFreak,” Azure sighed. “Trent can change his appearance. He’s more liberal with his ability than I am. I am embarrassed by it.”

Bentley nodded.

“I can understand that. It’s different, and that can be scary. It was probably painful too. It was the toxic gas, wasn’t it?”

“Yes…”

“And another BioFreak told me that there are adverse impacts of the afflictions. Is that true?”

“It is,” Azure mumbled. “I am always warm, even though I can summon snow. Trent is colorblind, even though he can change and alter his appearance and color. Have you noticed his eyes are grey?”

“Jacquetta actually mentioned it to me,” Bentley said with a chuckle as he recalled a conversation. “I’m not sure why, nor did I think anything of it. I’m sorry for you both.”

“Thank you…”

Bentley stood suddenly.

“Come on. Let’s go outside.”

Azure gasped.

“Why?”

Bentley chortled.

“Let’s build a snowman.”

The two went outside together. It was snowing, as it did every year from September until June. Azure did not want to be seen by the masses, which Bentley did not argue. They went instead to a clearing along the path up to the castle. There, Bentley left Azure to use his affliction. He seemed hesitant at first, his eyes closed in concentration. Then, snow burst from his fingertips and coated the already-snowy ground. As Bentley watched, icicles formed on nearby trees, snowbanks whirled and whipped into shape. Azure became more comfortable and Bentley cheered him on.

These powers were horribly implemented upon their subjects, and the lives of those afflicted were forever changed. Trauma would remain forever, the deepest and most painful scar. But Bentley saw no evil in Azure’s ability. The creation of snow was magical.

Bentley approached Azure as he lifted balls of snow into the shape of a snowman.

“You’re like a wizard!” Bentley called. “A blizzard wizard!”

For the first time since Azure’s arrival in the capital, he genuinely smiled.

## Production

### Continuity and Story Arcs

Deirdre Elkton, armed with the power to bend fire since “Something Wicked,” escaped her prison and killed Stag Ellis in Antlerstag. She was then killed by her son, Fawn Barrow, who succeeded to the throne as Stag Barrow.

Barrow coined the term “BioFreak,” which was later used to antagonize and vilify the results of the Cervidian experiments. Barrow and the deer alleged that BioFreaks were the result of interspecies sex, and pushed this propaganda in every kingdom.

Jacquetta Lazoy and Trent Mallon reunited for the first time since “Infamy.”

Bentley II called Azure Oldman a “blizzard wizard” for his ability to control snow. Azure’s distant descendent, Slate Oldman, was known in Toontown by that moniker. The season 1 episode “The Blizzard Wizards” also referenced this title.

### References

Lana Loudoun’s line “will no one rid us of these evil leaders?” is a reference to the King Henry II quote “will no one rid me of this troublesome priest?,” a question that led to the 1170 murder of his former friend, Archbishop Thomas Becket.

## Trivia

* The title of this episode means "eternal rest" in Latin. It is a popular Christian prayer: "***requiem aeternum**, dona eis, Domine*. Translated, "eternal rest, granted unto them, O Lord."
	+ The line was quoted in a poem scrawled on the wall of Deirdre Elkton's prison cell at Talonclaw Castle. It was a translation of an ancient Psittanine verse: "***Requiem aeternum** / slept upon a throne of light / gone as a blessed blossom / plucked from the cold of night*."
		- This poem was an original created by the author.
	+ The translated "eternal rest" was quoted several times during the episode.
* The Special Doctor is modeled after Josef Mengele, the Nazi doctor and torturer at Auschwitz.
* Sophie Riffick’s name is a play on words of “Soporific,” which means to induce sleep.
* Polina Leman’s name is a nod to polarization, since she has the power to magnetize.
* Neo Noble’s name comes from “neon,” a noble gas, since he has the power to glow in the dark.
* Eida Ettic’s name is word play on “eidetic,” or what is commonly known as a photographic memory.
* Iris Cycla’s name comes from parts of the eye, since she has the power to change her eye color.
* Angal Blitz’s name comes from the German “blitz” for “lightning,” since has has the power of super-speed.