“You better have a good fucking explanation for this mess. You understand what you’ve just done!?” Vrah gripped Alec by his collar, dragging him towards him in the sands. The two stood on a far remote part of the Sand Castle Isle with nobody to witness, the scorching sand burning the skin beneath their sandals, igniting their fury for one another.
Vrah was furious. Alec had never seen the man so red, veins forming on his smooth privileged forehead…or the quivering twitch of his lips. He was afraid. Maybe he had every reason to be.
“You think I’m happy about this? I was forced to kill my own Aunt!” Alec spat, shoving the Emperor Consort off him.
“What the fuck happened?!”
“You lied to me. You told me from the start that my sister and Kaid hated each other. I thought everything she did for him in Uhkhtar was just to make up for what he did for the Time Paradox. Instead, that man is fucking my sister! I could have killed him in Uhkhtar if you let me,” Alec yelled.
“Your orders were, and still are, not to kill him. What about that don't you understand? Killing him is of no use to us or to anyone,” Vrah insisted, “Especially now. The longer this goes on, the harder it will be to remove him. Killing him only makes him a martyr. Do you understand how wars are fought?”
“On fucking battlefields, Vrah. Not in the shadows.”
“Wrong. Wars are fought in the mind. If you’re losing the mental, spiritual, and emotional part of the war, you will lose the physical one every time. Do you understand that Lungor soldiers will have no motivation going into a war such as this? Do you realize that because wars are fought in the mind, someone like Jessamine will always win if we don’t do this right?”
Maybe Alec wanted his sister to win.
“I don’t see how that is my problem,” Alec shrugged, “You started this mess and hired me to finish it. And you failed to give me truths that would have helped in my mission.:
“Except you keep fucking making it worse. Do you understand that your sister will now think Lungor killed Ingrid?”
“I’ve made steps to ensure the blame is shifted elsewhere,” Alec insisted.
“Did you, now?” Vrah laughed at the audacity, “And if this fails and we go into our second plan, you realize that you will have to face your sister with the truth? All of this could be fixed if you just took some fucking accountability and stepped forward.”
“It won’t come to that.”
“You told me that a few weeks ago when you devised this plan,” Vrah tsked, “Your usefulness is running out. You inspired all that fear as Pestilence, you know that? You had villages and towns full of hidden Oblivionists locking their doors at all times, neighbors distrusting neighbors. You created a Caladin outside its own white walls. Yet, when the moment came to take Kaid’s Oblivion…moments, I should say, you’ve failed every single time.
“I can understand the first failure. Kaid is an excellent fighter despite not fighting for long. He caught you off guard. You cut his hand off and had you done anything further, Mara would have killed you. So, you stuck close, gained your sister’s trust, and you finally have the opportunity to do it without Mara around…and you fail. If you are to continue with this mission, I need to know why.”
How could Alec explain it all? Of course he had been careful and calculated this. He had made it so far into Kaid’s room, fingers pressed against that broad forehead of his. He had reached the inside of his nodule, right where his Oblivion was located. But before he could remove it…he heard Zarya’s voice, clear as day. Grief had overcome him since the day she died so much that he forgot just how soft it was.
Zarya was somehow inside Kaid’s mind, which was impossible. Zarya didn’t have Oblivion, Alec knew that. So how the hell was she there? It had frightened him so much he had lost concentration, nearly stumbling over his own feet. And when he saw the pale hand that was his sister’s wrapped around Kaid’s waist in their sleep, he knew he couldn’t hurt Kaid that night. He knew that Jessamine would know one way or another, that if his intentions were strong enough in his mind to kill Kaid, she’d sense it.
And then she’d know it was him.
“I didn’t expect Jessamine to be in his room. Again, I didn’t think they were in a relationship. When I got close enough, I could smell it, smell her…” Alec explained.
“Smell her? You mean, her Oblivion?”
“Yes. Her scent has always been interesting as a child: roses. Most days, they’d smell rotten, on rare days it was like smelling the fresh first bloom. When I got into Kaid’s mind, I could smell it. The Empress is asleep but the Mind Witch is always awake. If I had removed Kaid’s Oblivion, she would have known. And if that happened, she would have invaded every inch of my mind and found out where my orders came from…” Alec sighed, “So I did what I thought was right and walked away. I didn’t expect Ingrid to be awake when I returned. Again, she would have told Jessamine. I did my best to incapacitate her, but she fell into my blade. I had no choice.”
Vrah remained quiet, hoping that Alec would show signs of fabricating his story. But, he was telling the truth. Vrah knew now he couldn’t necessarily blame Alec at that moment. He had to make a choice, and even if it became this mess, then it was better than Jessamine finding out entirely. There would be no remorse if the details of this plan were revealed to her.
“Now, I need you to be honest with me. I never questioned it before because I didn’t care. I want Kaid to suffer, even more now than before. But…what do you mean to do with him alive and without Oblivion?” Alec questioned, knowing Vrah didn’t have to tell him.
But Alec was the only one to give Lungor what they wanted, and it was coming at a great cost.
“What does time take from us that is so…so deadly?” Vrah asked, “An eternal punishment given to everyone, but not so equally?”
Alec was getting tired of his riddles, but if this was the only way to get an answer, so be it.
“I don’t know,” he shrugged, soon realizing he had just thought of it moments prior. He had forgotten the exact pitch of Zarya’s voice. He was forgetting which side her blond hair parted. He was forgetting the look of her ingrained in his memories. Memory.
“Memories. You plan to take his away…” Alec whispered.
“Yes. All of them. Every. Single. One.”
-
Grief had many stages. But to be aggrieved for so long, those stages were no longer cyclical, they became tiers of motivation.
When she had lost her mother, denial was the stage she sung upon. When she thought she had lost Kaid, she had reached the bargaining stage. Now with the loss of Ingrid, she thought she’d cycle through another one. Depression perhaps? Acceptance?
Revenge wasn’t part of the cycle, but it would always be the final stage, greater and stronger than any acceptance.
Kaid walked up to the flat rooftop of the Sand Castle with a small tray in hand, seeing Jessamine overlook the sun underneath some shade. She turned slightly upon seeing it was him, offering a false smile of reassurance.
“That Arilla lawyer for Ingrid’s will should be arriving soon. I brought some breakfast,” Kaid placed the tray down gently, sliding it off his palm to the table.
“I’m not hungry,” Jessamine politely declined.
“Jess, you must eat,” Kaid insisted softly. She had barely eaten anything these past few days. Of course Kaid knew what that felt like. Feeling so empty inside, the stomach could feel just as void. But she would need her energy. She needed her strength for what was to come.
She sighed, almost as if wanting to pick a fight about something so miniscule as this. She knew Kaid was right, that he was only trying to be sweet and take care of her. Kaid fixed her a small plate of toast with fig and cheese spread, a few grapes on the side as well before pouring her a cup of tea.
“Here, a small plate. If you eat this, I won’t ask you to eat anything ever again,” Kaid promised, setting it down at her side on the balcony edge.
Jessamine looked at it, then at him, “Fig jam? That’s only in Northern Vitross.”
“And I requested the kitchen staff to give some to Bridger upon his portalling visit back and forth. It arrived late last night. The kitchen staff here didn’t like the idea of a fig spread but I insisted,” Kaid replied. Comfort food could be a spark of relief to pain. Even something as small as fig spread or sailing or…whatever Jessamine liked could be just enough to revive her.
Her face softened at that, feeling a quiver in her emotions but she swallowed it down.
“On days like these, I feel so undeserving of you,” she admitted with a whisper.
Kaid approached her closer at that, wrapping his arms from behind to embrace her gently. He knew grief was hard. He remembered how painful it was when he lost Sebastian, all the stages he threw himself into, how his anger had consumed him to take Caladin. The easier moments were when Jessamine had insisted on being at his side, there every morning and evening to talk or hold him. It was the least thing someone could do for the person they loved.
He kissed the side of her forehead gently as he squeezed her tightly in the embrace, “You were there for me on my darkest days, as I know you will be in the future when it gets dark again. While I can wish for a future with you of constant sunshine and light, I know that is not the truth of life. But I assure you, the sun shines bright and powerful on you, on us, and that will always overcome any clouds that try to stop it.”
“Has she spoken to you?” Jessamine asked, “Is she there, in the Void?”
She was meaning Ingrid. Kaid knew she asked for some kind of solace, just peace that Ingrid was able to find her own. The Void was so…unknown. Kaid didn’t think he’d ever understand it and even the souls that lingered there didn’t know either. Kaid was never really meant to reach that place, so the laws of such nature were still obscure.
“No,” Kaid answered honestly, “Not yet. She will be there in her own time. I think it takes time for souls to arrive there. My mother says plenty stay away to linger in their own memories, stay in the past until they are ready to view the present. Some choose to never go into the Void. I don’t know why, I don’t know if anyone does.”
She thought for a moment in that grief, remembering how much it had overwhelmed him a few years ago, “Is…is Sebastian in the Void?”
No. Kaid had never received a hint of his presence. It was the most painful, yet most freeing aspect of the Void. Sebastian could be anywhere, and maybe he didn’t wish to speak to Kaid. Maybe he knew his young presence would only torment his father-figure. Or, he was so mad at him dying by his own hands that he couldn’t stand the thought of facing his killer.
“No,” Kaid whispered quietly, feeling Jessamine’s hands rest on his arms to caress softly, “Well, maybe he is. It is not my role to go searching there. It feels wrong to even be there, as if I’m breaking the rules.”
She nodded at that, knowing that the mysteries of life would never be completely solved, “Does it feel any different since you’ve been locked out?”
Kaid had been locked out, unbeknownst to him at the morning of Ingrid’s death, at least temporarily. His mother, and Jessamine’s as well, had no explanation. Kaid wasn’t in the Void in his sleep that night. All his mother could sense was that something was wrong, and she was the one to urge him to wake up. Yet they too, just like Kaid and Jessamine, walked into this blind. Nobody knew what had happened, but at least it felt like nothing had changed.
“It feels like there’s someone there that knows something I don’t…like it’s all a game,” Kaid sighed, “but it feels like a distraction and nothing more. I need to focus on the task at hand, focus on Pestilence and…”
“One day at a time,” Jessamine nodded, squeezing his hand before reaching for some toast. Kaid was glad she was eating, even if it was only very little. Yet that changed as she slowly finished the small plate he had made for her before looking at the tray.
“Want more?” Kaid asked, offering to make another plate for her.
“Yes, but I can retrieve it myself, make a plate for you as well,” she smiled faintly, turning just enough to kiss his lips before slipping out of his grasp.
That was the plan all along. Sometimes all it could take was a bite to get that appetite back. Kaid had a feeling as soon as she got a taste of that jam, she’d go back for seconds. That would be more eaten in a few minutes than she ate most of this week.
“So, let’s run with the Pestilence theory for a moment,” Jessamine insisted, handing him the plate of food with more carbs than fruit, figuring he’d eat the remaining toast, “Pestilence is in Uhkhtar, but it’s not the man you killed. The man who threatened to take it away from me, or rather, I believed he did until you killed him. Let’s say he was never Pestilence. Someone else was. Why?”
“Well, following Shailud and Vrah’s speculative plan, they were using you as bait, setting up a trap. What they probably didn’t expect was for me to be on that train so quickly. And if they had planned for it, they probably assumed I wouldn’t kill everyone on sight and have Mara completely derail it,” Kaid hummed, taking a big bite of toast.
“To be fair, it sounded like Mara didn’t plan on derailing the whole thing either…” Jessamine teased softly, Kaid glad she could still have some jest.
“True. She didn’t. So, maybe Pestilence wasn’t even on the train. He was at the place they were delivering you to. That way, I go for that trap. If Shailud got there before me, I’d be even more outnumbered. They subdue me, Shailud ‘rescues’ you and…they get what they want.”
“And we still don’t know what that is…”
“My Oblivion taken,” Kaid assumed.
“Even without your Oblivion, you’re still a splendid fighter and an even greater person,” Jessamine shook her head, “They’d be better off killing you, no offense darling.”
“None taken,” he hummed, “that is probably in their ultimate end goal somewhere, place the blame of Caladin on me, same with the Time Paradox, ultimately get the world to hate me where they’d have no choice but to kill me. In doing so, they’d mark themselves as heroes.”
“Sounds like a very familiar plan. Lungor seems to have this brilliant idea that they can villainize us. In doing so, history will be written in their favor. And maybe it already has. They’ve done it before, tried it before with me, and ultimately will keep doing it. All because they’ve succeeded in the past.”
“Unless we show the world they’re the real villains,” Kaid sighed. He had been so close. He thought he was so close to ripping their mask off with Caladin but it hadn’t been enough. The prisoners didn’t rise with him, only turned on each other. They could have inspired change, true justice and not in just the form of blades.
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Which meant if they were going to attempt this again, they’d have to be careful.
“There is a chance Pestilence isn’t necessarily around Lungor’s leash, though,” Jessamine chimed.
“What do you mean?”
“If I were someone with that much power, someone who could cause that much fear…of course I would want the most powerful people close to me. Emperor Bashir, Shailud, hell, even myself. Everyone would, and should, be vying for Pestilence’s trust. If he could remove Oblivion just like that, it’s enough to frighten people. And if you can scare them, you control them. Lungor may think Pestilence is an ally, but he, or she, could turn on them whenever they choose.”
“Is it possible, due to that, that Lungor doesn’t even know his or her true nature then?” Kaid asked.
“No. Vrah wouldn’t let anyone get that close or powerful to his father without knowing Pestilence’s true name and form. Whatever they offer Pestilence, it’s either held against them, or…”
“Or…they’re giving Pestilence something they want,” Kaid added, seeing Jessamine nod.
Kaid sighed at that, sitting down on the daybed to run his good hand through the curls of his hair. He could hear the whispers of doubt in his mind, ghosts lingering amongst the neurons, stimulating them with their ghoulish touches.
This is all your fault.
Immediately, he could feel Jessamine sit beside him, forcibly taking his hand to hold in her lap.
“Kaid, don’t go there,” she pleaded with a whisper.
“How can I not?” he scoffed.
“If you blame yourself, then you must blame me,” she demanded, seeing the surprised look in his eyes.
His weary, wet eyes glared up at her with that statement, “Jessamine, I can’t put any of this on you.”
“If you believe this to be your doing, that this is the sum of consequences laid at your feet, then you must point your finger at the one truly responsible. It was my plan to get you out of Caladin. Under Payne’s guidance, it was me who tried to seduce you, use you, for both your power and heritage. It was me who went to Caladin and helped you kill a few more sick bastards. And most of all, it was me that fell susceptible to Payne’s disguise, all for you to stop and change the world in a matter of twenty four minutes,” she explained.
“You had your reasons, Jess.”
“Do your reasons not matter, Kaid? You do not need to justify them to the world, nor in front of a jury that can plead your guilt. All you need to do is believe your own reasons, to trust yourself, and ultimately believe you made the best decision with the knowledge you had. And there is no doubt in the forty years of your chaotic life that you’ve made mistakes. Fuck, I’ve made so many too. But I have to believe the good ones I’ve made can outweigh those mistakes. Kaid, you’re a good man, the best man I’ve ever met. And you don’t deserve to carry guilt for actions you made out of such goodness.”
He sighed heavily but nodded, knowing she was right. It was something he could accept the minute her soft voice spoke it. But to believe it in the context of him? That was different. Such belief would take time to sow. If it started from being planted in his soul from Jessamine, he knew it was in good hands.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, “I didn’t want my guilt to overwhelm your own grief.”
“We are both grieving this together. She meant a lot to both of us,” she whispered, kissing his cheek, “I have a feeling this little daybed exists solely in getting a lot of things off our chest.”
Over two years ago, she sat here under the evening stars and spilled the beginnings of her truth to Kaid, the darkness of her powers, the killing nature in her blood…and most of all what Alec had believed her to be: a monster. Maybe he had been right. Yet if vengeance was monstrous, then what did that make revenge?
Kaid smiled faintly at that, leaning into her, “We’ll find Pestilence.”
“We will. The hardest part will be what will we do when we find them?” Jessamine agreed. There was no doubt in her mind that Pestilence couldn’t hide themselves for much longer. It was very possible Pestilence wasn’t the one to attempt murder on Kaid’s life, and succeed in the murder of her Aunt and beloved butler. But if it was, Jessamine would make them pay.
Bridger poked his head from the outside stairs, “Empress, that lawyer is here.”
“Thank you, Bridger. You’ve been on the move so much this week. Why don’t you take today and tomorrow off?” Jessamine stood up, still holding Kaid’s hand.
“I don’t mind at all, Lady Jessamine,” he smiled, “But do alert me if I am needed. I am always here to help.”
Bridger certainly still felt he had quite a lot to make up for with how he had assisted Payne in his attempts to usurp. But, he was glad Jessamine didn’t seem to hold a grudge about that. And that was all thanks to Kaid, a man who could give perspective to all aspects of a crime. He was the one to show her what forgiveness looked like, and in return she bestowed it to others.
Kaid and Jessamine walked towards Ingrid’s office. Upon the sight of seeing Alec waiting outside the door as well, Kaid was quick to let go of his beloved’s hand. Yet, Jessamine snatched it back, holding it firmly. If she was going to reveal the truth she wanted to hide (all for her brother’s sake and not her own), she wouldn’t hide it any more. Kaid swallowed hard as Alec looked at them, then their intertwined hands.
“Empress! Apologies we must meet on such dreadful terms, but I assure you this should not take too long. Ingrid fully planned for a moment like this, may she rest in peace,” the lawyer bowed, which Jessamine bowed in return, following after him.
“Kaid, I’m sure you don’t mind waiting outside. Family affairs only,” Alec pointed out.
Jessamine was about to speak before the lawyer cleared his throat, “Apologies, Mister Kruzika. Kaid Al-Yami is mentioned in her will…unlike you.”
“Dear brother, this shouldn’t take long if you wish to wait outside,” Jessamine snarkily replied, still bitter about how he handled his grief a week ago. She tugged at Kaid’s hand pulling him inside. Kaid so badly wanted to retort to Alec with a silent smirk, but he had to rise above that. He had to be better than Alec.
That was proving harder to do with each day that passed.
Jessamine and Kaid discussed with the lawyer the terms laid out in her will. Jessamine was to practically inherit everything: the Sand Castle, the accumulated wealth of the Monnier fortune, and the remaining relics existing within the fortress. Kaid was bestowed all of the Sand Castle library, all the books were his to claim which Ingrid had wished him to take them all back to the Vitross Library. Kaid was glad to have known another book lover such as himself, one taken away far too soon.
Jessamine didn’t know what to do about the Sand Castle. In some aspects, she felt like it held no purpose. It would be more of a graveyard than a lively place for trade and commerce it once was. But…what if it could become that again? What if she could inspire, and also keep such an alliance strong in this region with someone willing to take this place over? Someone who felt a bit lost in the world right now.
Persephone.
Now, what to do with the relics? Kaid and Jessamine discussed it with the lawyer that it was probably best to return those to their proper cultures. While the relics had been safeguarded from pirates in the days of old, such villains did not exist any longer. This place could no longer be a museum with no occupants to enjoy such history. Instead, that history had to be returned to the people who owned it. Kaid was very excited that it would open up the possibility of meeting new people from different cultures to return these. It would also put Jessamine’s rule in a more favorable light, even if amongst the smaller cultures that had no weight in her rule.
Jessamine knew from the verbiage in the will, written by Ingrid herself, these items and gifts were not meant for her to hold on her own terms, for her own pleasures. Same as the books for Kaid, as Ingrid wished them to fill the Vitross libraries. They were meant for everyone, but they would be most meaningful at all for the two of them.
“The final note in her will is…” the lawyer paused to laugh, looking up at the two, “My final wish, one I know perhaps I will not see in my lifetime, is for Jessamine Alexandra Kruzika to marry Kaid Al-Yami. If not, I will haunt the both of you for the rest of your lonely lives.”
Kaid and Jessamine both laughed loudly at that, wiping a few stray tears from previous words spoken. How thoughtful of Ingrid to add a bit of playful spite to the words of love. The lawyer left the room, leaving them alone for a moment to the news and their thoughts.
“Just like she will arrive in the Void…so will we get married…all in our own time,” Kaid whispered, squeezing her hand.
All in good time. Time. Time that felt so everlasting yet so short. Time that was so beautifully good yet so painfully evil. There was no escaping that. But the best things in life were maybe the things we couldn’t escape from.
Now, the only thing ahead of them was a funeral procession, with a beautiful wedding to counter such grief. Even with a future so bleak, amidst those moments of shadows were chances to finally see a future so bright. That was what could counter the darkness.
-
Kaid and Kiev stood outside the main Sand Castle hall doors as the funeral participants and grieving parties arrived. While most of the their friends would have their hearts full of sorrow and also peace, the two men had their guards up. It wasn’t uncommon for murderers to be at their victim’s funerals, even more so, if their true target had still gotten away.
Kaid didn’t know what could have stopped Pestilence, or whomever this murderer was, from killing him.
The line of grieving souls began to linger, Kaid and Kiev slowly closing the door almost entirely as they would await the last ten minutes for any late guests. The hall was quiet. So quiet the crashing waves in the distance could be heard along with the gulls crying in their grief as well. Kaid’s eyes slowly glanced at Kiev, seeing the Captain of the Guard contemplating something. Whatever it was, Kaid did not wish to pry. Yet, it seems he didn’t have to.
“What do we do about Alec?” Kiev sighed, looking down at his polished shoes.
“Is there anything we can do?” Kaid asked, “The man can make his own decisions.”
Kiev grunted at that, knowing he was right. But it didn’t help their dilemma. Kiev no longer recognized his old friend. Or maybe it was Kiev that was so unrecognizable to his friend. Both could be inherently true.
“Kaid, I…” Kiev paused, looking across at him, “I must know.”
“Must know what?”
“Did Alec cut off your hand?” Kiev asked, his voice firm and demanding, yet there was pity in his eyes as the blue irises gazed down at the stump of his left limb.
“Kiev…I-”
“Do not bullshit me, Kaid. You won’t do any favors in protecting him. You’re my friend. No, you’re like my brother, Kaid. Maybe you do not feel the same but, ever since you defeated me in that duel, I could not hate you. I know you saw me fighting with you against Payne as me merely doing my duty, but I also believed in you. I still believe in you, especially after Uhkhtar. What I do not believe is that Alec has come here with good intentions, nor did he begin having them.”
Kaid hesitated for a moment before nodding, “It was an accident.
“I don’t get bullshit, only a half-truth,” Kiev laughed softly, shaking his head, “Alec does a lot of stupid things, but he’s never done a lot as a mistake or an accident. I don’t know how you do it. How do you wake up every day and look that man in the face and not feel…” Anger? Rage? How could anyone know there was no justice committed against the man that amputated him?
Who was to say he did not? Kaid held his rage and aggression in because he knew the dangers of it. Yet, he knew it could take the wrong ignition to set him aflame, worse than any graphite explosion. Of course he had rage. He just didn’t see what instilling that rage to Alec would change, most of all now, when everyone he loved was still grieving.
Kaid felt a shift in the wind slightly, the hairs on his arms sticking up. A presence lingered between the two men, almost as if trying to slip past. Kaid didn’t hesitate to unsheath his emerald blade, quickly slowing time to feel the physical being between them. Harshly, Kaid shoved him into the nearest pillar, the invisible Oblivion fading as Kaid held a blade to the intruder’s throat.
Held a blade to his half-brother’s throat, that is.
“Whoa, easy there brother,” Vrah laughed softly, raising his hands in surrender, “I’ve just come to give my condolences for the funeral.”
“By sneaking in?” Kiev questioned, unsheathing his sword, “I do not believe you were invited.”
“I was sneaking in because Jessamine was the one who demanded I do not speak to you, Kaid, without your permission,” Vrah reminded, soon glancing down at Kaid’s nonexistent hand, “So, it’s true? I’m sorry about your hand, Kaid.”
“Like hell you are,” Kaid scowled, soon looking at Kiev, “go tell Jessamine, now.”
Kiev nodded immediately, although had a weary sense about leaving Kaid alone momentarily. Vrah certainly was a good fighter, but it didn’t seem he had any intentions at the moment to harm his half-brother. At least, not directly. Assassinations were much more his style.
When Kiev left, Vrah relaxed, thinking Kaid would do the same and slowly release him. Yet, Kaid had turned his blade around in his hand, digging the pommel deep into Vrah’s ribcage. The Emperor Consort immediately winced, glaring into Kaid’s eyes with shock.
“What? You thought I’d be happy to see you?” Kaid’s voice darkened, digging the pommel further.
“The last time we saw each other, we were on good terms-” Vrah exhaled sharply before holding back a groan of pain. His fingers slowly trailed down to his own belt line, but he had no intention of drawing his own blade.
“That was long before you surrounded Vitross with a blockade to try and get me, also long before you tried to get with Jessamine and use her love for me to your advantage. That’s all you Lungorians are good at: using people.”
“Don’t forget, you are half-Lungorian too,” Vrah laughed, “You think Jess wasn’t using me, too? You think I didn’t know that the only reason she bruised her knees for me was to protect you? Why’d you even still want that whore?”
Kaid moved the blade to his throat, watching the thinness of it millimeters away from his throbbing throat, “You’re the whore if all it took was sucking your small dick and faking orgasms was enough to persuade you.”
Vrah drew his own blade now at that out of anger, pushing Kaid off him. Before Kaid could trade his knife for his own foldable sword, the sound of someone approaching him from behind slowed his actions. It wasn’t the familiar sound of Jessamine’s heels or the soft clangs of the funeral bands around her wrist.
“Oh, my boy, you’re so prone to violence…” a deep voice spoke condescendingly, raising the hairs on the back of Kaid’s neck.
When Kaid craned his neck slightly, he noticed Emperor’s Bashir’s eyes resting on Kaid, not Vrah. That sentence was the first one Bashir had ever spoken to Kaid, from a father to son. Not since he had taken his memory. Even in the moment in Uhkhtar, making peace with Jessamine, Bashir had never acknowledged him. Now, that seemed to change.
“...it’s no wonder we had to put you there where we did…” he finished his sentence.
Caladin. As if Kaid had been violent beforehand. That was the place that had made him the monster Bashir seemed to hate.
The door to Kaid’s left opened, Jessamine exiting with her own blade tucked between her fingers and the edge of her black dress sleeve. She was ready to act if necessary, given the news of Vrah’s presence. Yet her aggressive, protective demeanor faltered upon seeing Bashir here as well. She slid the knife up her sleeve more to hide it, eyes scanning her beloved for any injuries before looking at the Emperor.
“Emperor Bashir, to what do I owe this interruption?” Jessamine asked, her voice laced with frustration and annoyance.
“We came to offer our condolences. Ingrid Monnier was also a great friend and ally to us as well, if you may recall,” Bashir bowed his head slightly out of politeness.
Then perhaps Alec was telling the truth. It was very possible Bashir had coordinated with Ingrid to send her younger sister, Alexandra at the time, to woo the young Emperor Kristoff of Vitross. Both would have aligned interests, one being access to gold and fame, the other having a direct line to the throne.
“You should have sent a letter or form of correspondence,” Jessamine hummed, “I don’t like surprises showing up at my doorstep.”
“We also would like to put some money towards a reward to whoever finds Ingrid’s killer. Any information may help, and some might be incentivized by a nice reward for information or location of the murderer,” Bashir continued.
“You’d just be paying yourself,” Kaid muttered under his breath, but not quiet enough.
“You think we had something to do with this?!” Vrah shouted, “Is that an accusation?!”
Kaid noticed Jessamine had taken the moment of Vrah’s outburst of emotions to pry, her eyes darkening at the use of her Oblivion. She exited his thoughts just as quickly as she had entered, hoping her infiltration wasn’t noticeable in the slightest. Given his outburst and confusion, it was rather unlikely.
“Vrah, hold your tongue. Kaid was merely making an observation,” Bashir demanded, “They have a right to be cautious. But again, you must realize all the assassination attempts against you in the past were done by the Confederation. And that terrorist organization was manipulated by Payne, not us. We are allies, Jessamine, and we hope to continue to be. Lungor is not full of killers, as you might think.”
“Is that what you tell yourself so you can sleep better at night? Is that the lie you force yourself to believe when you murdered my mother in front of me and stole my memory!?” Kaid shouted. At that, Jessamine moved towards him, her hand resting gently on his wrist. She wasn’t telling him to control himself, in fact she was more than willing to spill blood here if needed. But, she didn’t think it would be necessary if Kaid spoke wisely.
Bashir’s face held confusion in his dark brown eyes, almost shock. If he had removed Kaid’s memories, how could he have even known that? Perhaps one could recover their memories over time, even if forcibly removed.
“Tell him, father, tell Vrah!” Kaid insisted, raising his voice and Jessamine tightened her grip on his wrist, “Tell him what your plan was! You stole my memory, threw me into Caladin. You waited and you waited, not killing me, wanting to grow my powers so that you could use them. You wanted Caladin to defeat me, so that when the moment came to remove me from such prison, you could groom me into being your true heir. Isn’t that right? Vrah had no intention of being your future Emperor. He’s weak, in your eyes. But me? You wanted me for my potential, for my rage, for my violence that you just berated me for moments ago!”
Kaid…watch your temper, Farah’s voice whispered in his head.
“What is he talking about?” Vrah asked as he looked at Bashir.
“Kaid, you’ve always been an ignorant, unintelligent fool,” Bashir shook his head, “There was a reason you were in Caladin for thirty years, and if I had my way, you’d still be in there for the rest of your days.”
“Jessamine, what is he talking about?” Vrah now asked her, referring the ‘he’ now about his own father.
She swallowed hard, feeling backed into a slight corner, “It’s true. Payne and I pulled Kaid out of Caladin knowing Bashir was making his own similar plan. He wouldn’t have pulled Kaid out if he didn’t have something planned for him, wouldn’t you? Whether as a weapon of war…or as a future heir.”
“Kaid’s a weapon and nothing more, a tool to be used and disposed of. How hypocritical of you Jessamine, to wield him also as a tool under the guise of your affection,” Bashir insisted, “Vrah, let’s leave. It seems our presence isn’t welcome.”
Kaid moved gently to step in front of Jessamine, but she still nudged herself in front of him to protect him.
“It never was,” Jessamine retorted, “The same goes for the wedding. Do not show up there too, uninvited. You won’t get the same ‘politeness’ I give to you now.”
“Wait, I want answers,” Vrah insisted.
“NOW, Vrah!” Bashir shouted, shocking his son into submission. Vrah slowly nodded, still holding his blade before standing behind his father. His eyes moved to Kaid. All Kaid could decipher was hesitation, and a hint of fear. Perhaps Vrah was more victim than perpetrator than Kaid believed him to be. Regardless, they were brothers on two different sides of the fight. Vrah would be foolish to think his side was the right one.
The Emperor and Emperor-Consort left, not being able to grieve for a funeral they had no intention of shedding tears over.
Jessamine swallowed hard, her hand slightly shaking as it left Kaid’s wrist. Kaid noticed, sheathing his blade before taking her hand. She held his fingers tightly with her own, her eyes watching her enemies leave. The moment their shadows were no longer on her horizon, her eyes closed.
“What did you see, Jess?” Kaid asked, his voice now a whisper. He knew she had seen something, a glimpse of what they truly wanted in their minds.
“What they’ve always wanted, yet it’s never been so close as it is now,” she replied with her own whisper, her voice soft and delicate yet on the verge of breaking with fury. How dare they come here, show their faces after truly believing their actions did not lead to Ingrid’s death. It had to have been them. Who else could it be? Even if it was Pestilence, that terrorist had orders.
“War,” Jessamine swallowed at her own answer, her blue eyes growing cold with ice as she warned her lover, “I saw war. And after this wedding, they will get what they’ve wished for.”