Jacob wasn't quite sure what he was hoping to accomplish as he escalated the situation further and further. But the idea that Rose would ruin everything seemed too likely that he couldn't just sit back and let Xavier's bias and Atlas's apathy ruin it.

It only got worse when nobody seemed to side with him that working with Rose was a clear risk. And it was like a fire was burning in his gut that was getting harder to ignore with each time he glanced at Rose.

It HAD to escalate and Jacob HAD to take care of things if this plan was going to succeed. And once that bitch had blindsided him, the revolutionary knew he had to finish things.

The roaring blaze from within was still churning when Xavier yelled at them both and Jacob was pulled out of reach. Left to deal with an injury and no justice for the Kingston scum who had just attacked him when SHE was an obvious traitor.

Jacob had no regrets about his decision other than he wasn't able to stab her through the stomach. There was no other option with everyone weirdly taking her side.

The others didn't seem to understand how dire this was. They hadn't spent their lives fighting like he had and certainly hadn't lost so much because of that fight.

If this plan failed, everything Jacob had experienced his entire life would be for nothing. Losing his parents, learning to make weapons, fighting Kingston soldiers as a child, salvaging weapons hidden deep underwater, his aunt and uncle dying, and then having even his prized workshop seized and raided. It would all be worthless. The plan HAD to work and Rose HAD to die. She had to.

Marius dragged Jacob out of the tavern before Rose and Atlas left and didn't waste any time pulling the young revolutionary into the forest that populated most of the island.

Most of the trees were pine trees which left the fortunately in-season berry trees as the only source of food in the area minus the rare animal out in the wild.

Caros was kept a lot warmer than the Azure Cove and it took some time for Jacob to acclimate to the chill. If this is what it's like in the summer I can't imagine what winter is like. Jacob wondered as he plucked berries from a bush and placed them into a basket.

The injury he had received from that traitor's staff had stopped bleeding and Jacob was sure that it was bruised and swelling. The pain had gone down to a mild throbbing which was tolerable for him.

Marius sighed and looked over at Jacob. "Are you alright lad? You got hit pretty hard."

Jacob shrugged. "Hurts a bit but I've dealt with worse." Jacob was careful in choosing his tone to make it clear the fire that had been ignited in him during that tavern brawl was not put out.

"Lad, I'm not quite sure why you're so angry. You had that coming to you after how things escalated." Marius commented.

Jacob rolled his eyes. "Escalated? I was just stating the fact that she was a traitor and nobody seems to want to do anything about it!"

"She's a traitor?" Marius confirmed. "That's quite an accusation just because she's from Kingston."

"She's not just 'from Kingston.'" Jacob huffed. "She's the child of the Kingston High Mage. How does nobody get that she's a threat?"

Marius wasn't phased by this fact despite how damning it was. "And what exactly has she done to indicate she's a traitor other than being born to a Kingston family?"

Jacob began to grow irritated at this needless questioning. "She's not willing to kill Kingston soldiers! Every time I needed her to charge my sword when we were fighting them she would hesitate!"

"Lad..." Marius sighed. "Did she ever not charge your weapon eventually? Did she even have to be asked to multiple times?"

Jacob's ranting was stopped dead in its tracks. "Well... no. But that doesn't mean she won't when the time comes! Especially if she's fighting against people she knows!"

Marius set his basket down and strolled up to Jacob. "Lad, it sounds to me like despite her internal dislike for this fight that she's doing everything she can to support it because she still believes in the cause being fought. She at least is allowed a bit of hesitance."

"She isn't 'allowed' anything!" Jacob declared. "Kingston has been controlling my people and making things worse for years and I'm not going to be sympathetic to any of them when they refuse to fight for me!"

"I'm not saying you have to," Marius clarified. "You don't need to be sympathetic to her to understand the struggle when she's doing the best she can to help. Lad, I can tell you aren't listening to me."

Jacob nodded. "Finally you said something true. I've been a freedom fighter since I was a child and I'm not going to listen to some random pirate tell me how to treat Kingston scum."

Marius crossed his arms. "Lad, do you know who I am?"

"You're Marius, the Loveless Pirate," Jacob replied flatly. He just wanted to pick his stupid berries and get back to freeing his island, not play 20 questions with a nobody.

"Aye," Marius nodded. "But I'm also a Caros born native. My parents were born on Clamerates but moved to Caros. I lived there my entire life before I became a pirate. I watched the Great Battle for Caros unfold. I love Caros and I want nothing more than for it to be free."

Jacob was taken aback by the reveal and didn't have anything to say. He'd heard legends of the pirate and his incredible support for the independence movement on Caros but this was news to Jacob. So he was left to say the first thought that came to mine. "Bit odd that the Loveless Pirate is here telling me he loves Caros."

"Lad you're taking it too literally," Marius said with a laugh. "I love plenty of things and plenty of people. The crews I've worked with and the friends I've made here. I've never loved anyone in the way that I'd want to spend my life with a person. Never met anyone who could relate to that so I figured I would make it my brand."

Jacob didn't even have a stupid reply left to say. It was a line he wasn't anywhere near prepared to hear so Jacob decided he would be honest as well. "Well, I really can't relate to that. I've loved plenty of people that way. Actually, all kinds of people. I don't love every person or anything but whether it's guys or girls or anything else that's never been a deciding factor for me."

The moment of vulnerability seemed to extinguish his internal fire a bit. It was hard to be closed off and angry when you were talking about something you'd only told a few people about.

"Very interesting." Marius mused. "Sounds like we just might be opposites when it comes to love. But where we agree is our love of Caros."

Jacob was ready to put his walls back up but this time he decided to listen to what Marius had to say. "But you have to let that love drive your decision-making. Fighting to free Caros is one thing but you aren't doing anything fighting with a girl trying to be on your side. I'm not trying to say not to fight, but you have to fight for a reason."

Jacob and Marius stood next to each other in silence while Jacob tried to piece together what was being said. "I've never really thought about why I fight. I guess because the only Kingston people on the island are trying to hurt us. I've been part of the Revolution ever since I could remember and that's just how it has always been."

Marius nodded. "I understand that. And there's nothing wrong with the fiery passion you feel or your urge to fight back against the Kingston soldiers but you can't just fly into a rage whenever you see a Kingston national. It does nothing to fight with someone who isn't doing anything to make the situation at Caros worse."

"You're right..." Jacob admitted. "I still can't quite trust her but at the very least I can't let that get in the way. Xavier was right when he yelled at us... I'm putting everything at risk on a hunch and I can't let that continue."

Marius grinned. "That's an improvement lad. Now, let's gather more supplies and then get back to town and see if we can help Cannonball convince anyone else."

Jacob nodded and eagerly began to fill his basket with berries. His fire wasn't extinguished, it was just being redirected into his drive to make this plan succeed at all costs. It had to.