Hee hee! Loved seeing this!
And for me, I'm glad I read it after The Forge. It feels perfect this way.

Oh god... That makes me sniffle a bit. I love how you can see how Kastor used to be. A sword without a conscience. All sharp edges and dangerous intent.

Lovely. It is sad to hear about how they met when I already know how that ends, but there is a certain hopeless, bitter feeling that feels at home with the rest if their story. I loved the last part ("(..)smiling the sort of cynical smile one does when one hopes and hoping hurts.") and also how Kastor's actions explain Mikah stealing his earring once they meet again.

Congratulations on a lovely piece.

Very bittersweet... Lovely sidestory.

You have a way with words.

Interesting bit of backstory on the two of them. I like how you covered something not mentioned in the main storyline, which is the details of how they met.

Oh Kastor and Mikah, Mikah and Kastor... this is a wonderful little insight into their past, and that second to last line, the one that went:

"He glanced up, and saw Kastor [...] smiling the sort of cynical smile one does when one hopes and hoping hurts."

actually nearly made me cry with the poetic melancholy of it all.

Wonderful, as ever.

This adds a beautiful depth to Mikah stealing Kastor's earring at the beginning of the first book. Lovely. :)