‘Transport one, this is a command; the duchess wants to talk to you.’ A female voice came from the radio on the truck.

  Edmund grabbed the radio, looked at the two soldiers beside him, and noticed they were holding on to their seats and sweating a lot.

  ‘Command, this is transport one; we need to think better to communicate, for example, by saying over after finishing talking and over and out when the conversation is done.’ Edmund gave a weak chuckle.

  At the central command, Ariadne saw the young lady, the operator, rolling her eyes. She was an A-dam lady, and like the others, there was something like a tiara over her head with circular and fluffy cup-shaped objects on its end covering her ears, and on the desk, there was a small pole with an iron sphere she spoke into and two squared-shaped iron cubes. Like the others, the tablet was on the desk to her side. Its numbers ranged from nine to zero. In the middle of the room, a map faced the desks.

  ‘Put it for me to listen to, please, and what is the name of this thing in front of you?’ The duchess padded the radio operator’s shoulder.

  ‘It’s a microphone, Your Highness; this on my head is a headphone, and those square cubes are speakers, Edmund named them.’ The young lady gave the microphone to Ariadne.

  The young lady got the tablet again, and after messing with it, Edmund’s voice came out from the squared-shaped metal cubes.

  ‘Hey, are you rolling your eyes?’ Edmund’s voice sounded annoyed.

  ‘Peasant, is it me? How are you doing?’ The duchess spoke into the microphone.

  ‘Ho, hello, duchess, I’m fine; I’m just bleeding out and almost passing out driving a high-speed vehicle, just another day.’ The young man's voice now sounded more tired.

  ‘How close are you to the city?’ Ariadne bit one of her nails, showing a worried expression.

  ‘I’m closer to them... a go, in five.. we will be at the front... I guess something like it.’ Edmund closed his eyes for moments and was shaken by the soldier to his side.

  ‘Don’t sleep; if I need to, I will give you an order.’ She elevated her voice.

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  ‘Don’t; the last one is almost... It needs to be more complex; if you give the order, I may... everyone die.’ His vision was blurring out.

  ‘Peasant!!!’ She shouted.

  ‘Command, he passed out; we were already slowing down; I can see the city from here.’ Another voice came from the speakers.

  ‘Soldier, they don’t have space at the doctor's office; pass by there and bring him and Eliza with you here to my mansion.’ Ariadne looked at Alon.

  ‘Yes, duchess, transport one over and out.’ He replied with conviction.

  Ariadne put the microphone on the table, looked at the young lady looking at her, and smiled. The radio operator's reaction was one of surprise and, immediately after, happiness, as if her duty had been fulfilled. As Ariadne walked out of the room, she looked at Alon again.

  ‘Talk to Rita and prepare their rooms; use everything you can.’ She nodded to him.

  ‘Thank you, your highness.’ Alon bowed to her.

  She walked through the mansion as soldiers and maids walked around, trying to get places for the wounded to be treated; they were getting everything to two rooms on the left side of the mansion. She exited the mansion and waited for the truck to come, with Alya by her side and soldiers gathering around, also waiting for them.

  ‘I hope they are fine.’ Alya spoke while looking at the entrance of the mansion.

  ‘To be honest, Alya, I thought he was invincible; his problem was that he didn’t care or didn’t want to help when he could.’ Ariadne sighed.

  ‘Every time someone asked Edmund for help, he never said he wouldn't do it; when he talks with Your Highness, I think it's more of a joke.’ The maid looked at Ariadne’s back while giving her a light bow.

  ‘Maybe he does this as a way to get back at me for being my slave and the fact that I will never let him go.’ The duchess looked at the maid with the corner of her eye.

  ‘Perhaps, but he has a better life than the majority in the duchy; I could even say better than the majority in the kingdom.’ Alya's head continued to be slightly inclined.

  ‘Freedom doesn’t have a price, Alya; it doesn’t matter how good he has.’ Ariadne looked again to the entrance.

  ‘Indeed.’ Alya looked at the duchess with a sad expression.

  The truck passed the entrance, Ariadne clutching her fists, waiting to see the state of the soldiers. As soon as the truck stopped, everyone around was helping them unload them one by one, carrying the ones that couldn’t move inside the mansion; some maids were just there, paralyzed by the amount of blood on the soldiers.

  As this was happening, Ariadne walked to the front of the truck. The door opened, and one soldier got out. As another was holding Edmund’s body down, seeing this, she ran and pushed the soldier to the side, making him fall to the ground.

  ‘I’m sorry, let me do this.’ She looked at the soldier on the ground with a sad expression.

  ‘Not a problem, duchess.’ He studs up.

  Only when Edmund was in her arms did she notice that he was covered in blood, and some of it was dripping from the arm that was close to his leg. Alya held her mouth as soon as she noticed Edmund’s state.

  ‘Is he... dead?' Alya asked.

  ‘No, I would have known if he was, but he needs treatment fast.’ The duchess walked toward the mansion.

  Eliza was finishing healing the arm of a soldier who was close to passing out because of blood loss; as she hovered her hand on top of his arm, a glow was emitted, and the wound began to close. Her eyes closed, trying to concentrate on the task at hand.

  She looked for other injuries that didn’t need immediate attention. Looking out of the truck, she saw Ariadne, with Edmund in her arms, walking toward the mansion among the injured, assisted by soldiers and the mansion's staff.

  ‘What? He was here?’ Her eyes widen.

  She glanced at the soldier again to see if everything was okay. Then, they got up, jumped out of the truck, and ran after Ariadne.