For a moment, it felt as if the world around the two of them ceased to exist. Pax faced the rebel leader with his cocky smile and blue eyes that were so light as to be gray. Just like his.

They stood across from each other, both still and unmoving, and just stared at each other. Pax’s eyes traveled over his brother, shock and incredulity raging through him. The idea that Titus was standing in front of Pax, just two steps away, was unbelievable.

The last time he’d seen his older brother, he’d been a teenager who’d seemed so old and experienced to his inexperienced eyes. Now they stood facing each other in the middle of a battlefield. Both stood at the same height, full of their adult growth and a history of trials and violence that had shaped them into different people.

“Titus?” Pax said the name that had been bouncing around in his head like an excited puppy. He still couldn’t quite believe it. Surely, someone would start laughing, expecting him to go along with an elaborate prank. To spare his heart, Pax had spent so long convincing himself that his brother was likely dead. And now he wasn’t?

Titus nodded, sympathy flashing through his eyes as if he could read Pax’s mind and knew what he was going through. “I can’t believe it either.”

And with a suddenness that was shocking, emotions flooded through Pax. His vision swam, and his breath hitched. He launched himself into Titus’ arms, his chestplate thudding against his brother’s. Pax grabbed Titus as tightly as he could and buried his face in his chest.

Titus let out a surprised grunt before returning the embrace.

For a moment, Pax was a child again and his brother was clasping him close, whispering words of comfort while they hid from the guards who’d taken their parents. Despite the smell of leather, blood and sweat, Pax caught the familiar scent that was unique to his brother, a mix of cotton and the freshly packed earth of their simple house. The smell of home.

Pax couldn’t catch his breath, hiccupping with emotion as he felt tears on his cheeks. Pax’s thoughts slipped out of control, gibbering with shock and excitement at the same time.

Titus. It was Titus. He was here. Alive.

“Hey, hey.” Titus took his shoulders and pulled him back enough to meet his eyes. “It’s alright. I’ve got you. I’m here now.”

When Pax met his eyes, he saw Titus’ were just as damp as his as he gave Pax a tremulous smile. “You know you’re a hard kid to track down. As soon as I broke free from my indenture, I came looking for you and kept missing you.” He let out a disbelieving laugh and waved a hand at Pax. “How was I supposed to know you’d head off to the capital to become some kind of powerful mage? Though Vipersworn. I should have guessed. It’s obvious now.”

Pax sniffed and scrubbed at his eyes, reluctantly letting go of his brother. They were standing in the aftermath of a battle out in the Wilds, which wasn’t the safest place for a reunion.

Still, a grin split his face at the amazing feeling to be talking to his brother. Alive. Standing right in front of him with his familiar teasing grin. “Funny that I our names ended up the opposite of each other's. I meant to confuse other people, not you.”

Titus laughed and clapped a hand on Pax’s shoulder. “You were always the brains. I was just the muscle.” Then Titus’ expression turned serious as he examined Pax. “But not today. You saved my life. More than once, by my count. I’m supposed to be the one who comes back and saves you.” His voice cracked at the last, and he shook his head, his jaw tight as he tried to control his emotions.

Pax suddenly realized how Titus must have felt, trying and failing for years to get back to help his kid brother.

“Titus. It’s alright. We survived without you. I always knew you’d be doing everything you could to get back to me, if you were alive.”

“No, it’s not alright.” Titus took his shoulders again and met his eyes. “Nothing about our lives is alright. Losing mama and papa when we did. The bastards selling me off to another city and never giving me a chance to get back to Thanhil. And now, the flicks are too stupid to realize the empire is collapsing around them, so we have to take over and save it ourselves.”

He cut his tirade off and closed his eyes for a moment before opening them and meeting Pax’s again. “Just know that I thought of getting back to you every waking moment since they took me all those years ago. And now that I’ve got you back, I’m never losing you again.” He pulled Pax in for another hard hug and clapped his back.

Pax eagerly returned it, using the feel of his brother in his arms to silence the doubt that still tried to insist that it was impossible for Titus to be here.

“Now, how about we get this mess cleaned up and you show us how to get to this amazing rebel base we’ve heard about?” Titus’ voice shifted into one that made Pax instinctively want to obey, the tone of a commander in a war zone.

Pax swallowed, by a force of will, forcing himself to return to reality. Titus was right. They had an uneasy truce with their prisoners, some of the empire’s most elite fighters. And just because Captain Langley knew him, Pax was sure the wily warrior would take advantage as soon as he thought he could make a successful escape.

Anxiety stabbed through him at the thought. The worst thing that could happen here would be the empire troops turning the tables on them and dragging them back as prisoners to the empire. Or just killing them. That would be worse.

He felt the same change come over him, that of a commander considering the best strategy forward, as he looked around to see exactly what had happened while he’d forgotten himself in the reunion with his brother.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

His shoulders sagged in relief to see that everything was under control. Both his and Titus’ people had given them some space for their reunion and moved on to take care of business. Titus’ mage friend presided over the prisoners, those still in fighting shape sitting on the ground with arms bound behind them with leather cords.

Some of the captured mages had suppression manacles on. Tyrodon was moving through their ranks, putting more on. Pax shook his head in admiration. His friend really had a bit of everything in his inventory.

They’d set up a small healing station with potions being handed out and two mages who looked to have some kind of Heal Others spell. Most of the injured were already sitting up or recovered enough to be on their feet. Only four people were still prone and being ministered to, one of them the unconscious form of Rorick. Langley crouched by his side, trying to help.

Pax winced and hoped the man lived, knowing how much Langley cared about his people. Killing one of them would make recruiting him to the rebel side a lot harder. Though Langley was an experienced warrior and had to be pragmatic enough to know Pax hadn’t had a choice.

Remembering the power of the stored spell, Pax knew he’d need to get in the habit of keeping one like it in the mirror at all times for emergencies.

“It looks like we both have good people under us.” Titus put a hand on Pax’s shoulder as they stood side by side and watched their crews work together. Titus let out a half laugh, half scoff and spoke in a distracted tone, not looking at Pax. “You know, I always envisioned racing in to save you just in the nick of time. And then, when I finally find you, it’s you who saves me. I don’t know how you did all that crazy magic in the middle of the fight, but I’m so proud of you, Pax. You’re not my little kid brother anymore. If what I saw is a taste of what you can do as a student mage, the rebellion is lucky to have you.”

“Thank you,” Pax said quietly, keeping his eyes straight ahead. His face flushed with a mix of pride and embarrassment. He wasn’t sure what to do with his brother’s words. It was everything he’d always hoped to hear. But he found they paled compared to the simple fact that he had his brother back in his life, alive and well. An impish urge helped him out of the awkward feelings. “If you need some fighting tips to help you out, just let me know.”

Titus was completely silent for a long moment before Pax heard a strangled laugh. “You little—”

As many little brothers before him, Pax knew when it was time to run.

He didn’t make it.

Titus’ hand latched onto his shoulder pauldron with an iron grip he couldn’t wriggle out of and gave him a hard shake. “I have a few tips for you, little brat.”

A sudden angry hiss made Titus let go and jerk back just in time to avoid Whisk’s malleable body engulfing his hand.

“Whisk, no!” Pax got the orders out amidst his laughing. “He’s a friend. He’s my brother. We’re just playing.”

Playing? Whisk’s sudden anger instantly morphed into excitement. I want to play, too.

Titus was shaking his head, eyes traveling over the changing surface of Whisk’s body as it morphed around and under Pax’s armor. “Maybe you do have some fighting tips for me, kid. What, or who exactly, is that?”

Pax straightened, much more comfortable bragging about his companions and friends than he was with praise for himself. “This is Whisk, my Tamed Polymorphous Vorax. He and Talpa are my companions. I’m sure you noticed.” He waved a hand toward his friends. “We all have them.”

Titus’ eyes turned thoughtful, and Pax could see his warrior side coming to the front and evaluating the benefits of Tamed companions. When he looked back at Pax, there was respect in his eyes, and he gave Pax a small tip of his head. “Maybe I discounted the tips you could share with us a little too soon.”

Then some information from his brief scan of the scene caught up with Pax. He turned again, eyes looking over everyone. Three of his friends were missing. All thoughts of reunions and teaching his brother disappeared. A frantic look at the healing area confirmed that they weren’t among the injured.

In a few quick strides, he had grabbed Tyrodon’s arm. “Where are Rin, Amil and Tasar?”

Tyrodon looked up, startled, but seeing Pax’s face, quickly answered. “They didn’t want to bug you while you were with your brother. But once your brother’s people took over handling our prisoners and the healing, Rin couldn’t wait to go looking for Eris anymore. Amil and Tasar went along to keep her safe. You know, safety in numbers. Why didn’t you just tag her with your Echo? She’s waiting for information on where Talpa has already checked.”

“Thanks, Tyrodon. I should have done that first.” Pax sagged back in relief, feeling like an idiot. All the insane revelations had left him off balance and not thinking straight. It wasn’t safe to let his guard down out here. He resolved to finish out here and get back to base. Then he could let his guard down and take the time to catch up on the years he’d missed with his brother.

Talpa. Can you give me an update?

Couldn’t find Eris. But started looking up. I think she’s close. Be patient.

Pax tried to understand what Talpa meant. If Eris were flying up in the sky, wouldn’t she be in good enough shape to contact Rin? He glanced up and then it came to him. An injured and intelligent flying beast wouldn’t want to be caught vulnerable and hurt on the ground. In fact, Eris never liked being on the ground at all, preferring her perch or a tree.

Rin? Where are you guys? Talpa says he checked all around the area and didn’t find her on the ground. He’s checking trees or other higher perches and thinks he might be close.

Pax! Amazing news about your brother! Rin’s tone tried to be cheerful, but Pax could sense the undercurrent of sick worry about Eris. Tell Talpa thanks. I don’t know why I didn’t think about checking trees and bushes. She’s too smart to just be out in the open if she’s injured.

We’re all coming to help. We’ll find her, Rin.

Thanks. Her response was a choked attempt to sound positive.

Pax kicked himself for leaving his friend hanging like this. “Titus, we’ve got to find one of our companions who they shot down at the start of the battle. She’s our flying scout.” Pax beckoned to his other friends. “Come on. Let’s go find Eris.”

That drew the attention of those with the injured, and they opened their mouths to object to Pax taking away Dahni and Neptid with their buffs.

“Wait a sec, Pax. Let us help.” Titus moved closer. “Tell us what’s going on and maybe some of my people can help more. They can spare your healing guys for your injured scout.”

Pax knew Titus was being logical, but he felt agitated. Someone had shot Eris when she tried to get in closer to scout out the battle to help them. And they’d left her out there injured for way too long.

“Pax. Quickly. Tell me the pertinent information, and we’ll find her faster working together. I promise.”

Pax took a calming breath and looked at his brother again, considering him as a fellow leader instead of the older boy who’d watched out for him so long ago. His growing familiarity with strategies told him to listen. With a quick nod, he updated his brother.

Only a few minutes later, they’d organized groups to cover the ground around the battle quickly and efficiently. Some groups even included people with skills that might help them sense Eris, though no one knew how beast tracking and sensing skills would work on Tamed companions.

Pax, with the last of his crew, combed back and forth along the ground to the east of the battle, checking every bush and tree Eris could have hidden in.

Less than five minutes later, Pax got the message he’d been hoping for.

Found her. Come. Talpa sounded weary, but excited.

Pax immediately contacted Rin. Talpa found her. Southeast of the battlefield. We’re heading there. Watch for us.