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Prologue
Two rough hands gently came together in the form of a cup, as they dipped in the cool water of the fountain. Moonlight rippled through the surface, yet the young man refused to clearly look at his reflection. Bringing his calloused fingers and palms to his face, he drank the few swallows of water he could manage to get as the drops slid through the small openings. His hands then fell to his sides as he tilted his head sideways, his hazel eyes focusing on the dark dagger besides himself. Grabbing it, he placed it in his boot, in the carefully designed pocket inside.
He stood slowly, his hair barely grazing his shoulder, his face set in a grim expression. Slowly, he started to walk back towards his quarters, shooting the briefest of looks over at the castle. His stroll around the courtyard had been short and sweet, yet his mind was still muddled. Unaware that there were two men staring at him from their spots on one of the many balconies, he raised his head to the moon and slowed his pace.
The first man leaned against the marble railway, tilting his head. “You know, there’s nothing I would’ve liked more than to trap him in a dark cellar and keep him there forever.”
The second, older, man took a sip of the drink he was holding, taking a few seconds to consider his answer. “Why do you say that, son?”
The first shrugged lightly before explaining his earlier statement. “I don’t know… doesn’t it feel like he’ll just skip over to the enemy anytime, now? He’s changed a lot in the last few years, though he’s always been the dark one, you see—””Do not call him so, son,” the interlocutor chided. “He may have an air of negativity that floats around him, but he does not deserve the title of ‘dark one’. He is on our side at the moment, and we both know that only the enemy would be worth such a vile name.”
”See!” the youth called out, jumping away from the balustrade. “Even you said ‘on our side at the moment’, so you know too that he’ll betray us someday! Why don’t we just lock him up right now before he does something terrible?!”
The old man stood up, finishing his glass before setting it on the small table. A maid would pick it up later. Walking slowly to the white railing, he peered out in the obscure at the retreating man before exhaling deeply. Closing his eyes, he shook his head, which made the white hair shake slightly with the movement. Quietly, he whispered, “Could you look Kael in the eyes and tell him we’re imprisoning his brother because we suspect him of possible treachery? Tell me, son, would you do it?”
The youth turned bleak as he shook his head rapidly, not even hesitating a single second. “No sir, I wouldn’t be able to. Not to Kael.”
”No one could,” the elder sighed. “He’s done so much for us; it’s only fair that we return the favor. If he trusts him, so should we.” He then turned around after staring at the retreating figure one last time. “It’s late; we should both go to sleep. Don’t you have training tomorrow morning, son?”
Nodding, the youth followed the other person back inside the castle. But just as he was about to cross the balcony doors, he turned around to notice the man entering his small apartment. His last thought before going inside was, ‘Poor Kael, he never deserved this…’
The man’s focus was only on the bed pressed on the left side of the room. Lowering himself to a sitting position onto the mattress, he trained his eye on the second one. The moonlight that slid from the lone, small window outlined the other man sleeping on the bed. He wasn’t wearing any shirt and his chest rose and fell with every even breath.
As the awoken brother pulled off his shoes, his eyes fell to the small dagger in his boot. Gently, he pulled it out and, holding his boots in the other hand, made his way to the other side of the room. Looking down at his sibling, an act that made the hair fall in front of his face, he lifted the dagger in the air and paused. The moonlight reflected on the sharp blade as he brought it down, securing it back in the boot. Shooting his brother a last, hard look, the man went to slide in his own bed after discarding his footwear to the floor.
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