Kaid's rage surged in a charge, the pent up emotion boiling over uncontrollably as he continued to stab the torso over and over again. He couldn't even hear the punctured organs or sounds over his own furious screams, just repeating the motion as blood spilled everywhere. The claw of the knife made it easier to cut into the flesh, digging in as he rutted the blade, grinding it so harshly he could feel the tip puncturing through to the stone floor. When he stepped away, taking the moment to catch his breath, his eyes laid upon his victim.
Jessamine, almost practically unrecognizable, laid beneath his feet, bleeding on those throne room stairs to stain that already red carpet.
Kaid felt no surprise, no sympathy, nor pity. He felt relief, the shadows of burden had been burned away, the chains around his legs broken, and his mind finally unable to be penetrated by this witch. His gaze moved to the knife, seeing his own hand shaking, brown skin covered in deep red blood. The emerald karambit in his fingers dropped, clanging to the floor as Kaid took a few steps back.
It was over. He had done it. He won.
His eyes flashed open as he heard violent grunting, groaning and screaming, as if items around his room were being thrown around. His first thought was of that dream, Kaid almost able to feel the residual rage in his heart. It felt almost the same dream as before, the one that had repeated so many times before. Only Jessamine had been on the receiving end of that blade, not Kaid. And all of a sudden that had changed, the fate of that nightmare. Why?
A bitter coldness swallowed Kaid, almost making his eyes and limbs heavy, his heart rate slow despite the nightmare. His entire body was sluggish, legs numb as if he were frozen. To some extent, he was. However he had just enough momentum and strength to turn his head from the freezing cold bed, seeing a real nightmare unfolding before him. The entire room was a mess, his things thrown all over the place, furniture knocked over and snow still pouring in from an open balcony.
Jessamine dodged a blade sliced towards her hip, jumping up to leverage herself on top of the creature. One thigh wrapped around its neck, the other pinning his arm with the knife away, preventing herself from being stabbed. Her hands gripped the skull as she sat atop its thin shoulders, one fist bashing and bashing it over and over again to no avail. She's crushed bones harder than this, but this thing felt unstoppable. Every amount of force she used against it was useless. Everything she had learned from Payne to defend herself against an armed opponent was futile. What she really needed right now was a blade. Whether that was the blade in its bony, skeleton hand or something else, Jessamine needed to not exert her energy in a wasteful manner. She tried reaching for his blade with her hands, but with him swinging it around, she didn't want to risk getting cut.
The being thrashed as Jessamine still held him from above before slamming her backwards into the wall, the force exerting a gasp from Jessamine. With the grip around its throat loosened, one hand grabbed her and threw her across the room into the pile of snow. She winced in pain upon feeling the sting of the iced snow, wishing nothing more than a brief respite but she had no idea how much time she had. Jessamine backtracked in the snow upon seeing it approach, balling ice cold snow in her hand knowing that would be just as useless as her fists had been.
"Jess!" Kaid shouted, seeing her glance over, relief and surprise on her face at the sound of his precious voice. Kaid had reached for his folded blade upon his bedside, slowing time to unravel it as he tossed it her way. It crashed into the snow beside her left hand, Jessamine immediately grabbing the handle of his sword, ready to strike. But he was already close enough to step firmly on the blade, his hand slashing across her face. She was able to move back just in time, feeling a stinging scratch against her throat. Luckily, it was a scratch and nothing more.
Kaid had gathered enough strength in that moment to push forward, tackling himself into the intruder, throwing him against the wall. They fought, tangled together, Kaid feeling the effects of the cold blood in his system cry for warmth. His body felt on the verge of collapsing, his heart not capable of supporting such action after just hardly able to keep his body awake and alive. But it was enough. Kaid felt pinned, his hand gripping the bony wrist holding him down, seeing the dead shadow prepared to strike. The skeleton thrashed, Kaid hearing the grinding and chopping of his rotted teeth as he wondered if the damned thing would bite him.
Kaid witnessed his blade punctured right through the rotten skull, freezing its entire motion. Jessamine ripped the blade out before slicing it clean off the neck vertebrae, the entire body collapsing to the floor, head rolling alongside with it. Jessamine panted heavily, letting the sword collapse to the ground so she could finally catch her breath. But she looked at Kaid with heavy relief. Heavy relief he was alive, and mostly heavy relief he was able to assist in intervening. She didn't know how long she had to fend herself off that creature. Five minutes? Two? It felt like an excruciating lifetime to her.
All residual anger Kaid had held towards her from the previous day and nightmare faded in an instant, Kaid getting up to inspect her wounds. He noticed blood dripping from her neck, seeing the slight cut. Parts of her face and cheek were bruised, along with her arms during the fight. Her hot hands met his skin, touching his own neck before realizing just how freezing cold he was. The man who always ran hot in his sleep was practically on the verge of hypothermia.
"Gods, you're freezing," she whispered, pressing her fingers to his pulse to feel it was fairly faint. She glanced around for some sort of blanket or warm covering to wrap him in, knowing her priority right now was to get him warm.
"Are you okay? Are you alright?" Kaid asked, not evening worried about himself. He was so worried about her, worried about what had happened. What had happened? Was this a result of her decision? No doubt it screamed a form of revenge or vengeance. Did she go against Vrah? Was this him attempting to get rid of her once and for all because she went with the Arillian blackmail?
"I'm okay," she nodded, moving to wrap her arms around him, embracing him, "I am now that you're here. Gods, I thought you were dead. You weren't responding and I..."
Kaid held her as well, arms wrapping around her torso to soak in her warmth. He could feel her body shivering and not from the cold temperatures. At that moment, Kaid knew he never wanted to lose her, never wanted to see her hurt. Just waking up to her screaming and attacking that...whatever it was, it scared the shit out of him.
"Jessamine, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean what I said earlier, and if I hadn't said that-" he apologized fervently, begging for her forgiveness before he paused. The body that was at their feet was no longer there, as if it disintegrated into dust. Fuck. That was evidence, that was something that might be able to assist in figuring out who was the cause of this. And it was gone.
Kaid immediately slowed time, forcing himself to go backwards. He saw Jessamine's neck wound, the blood moving up her neck to the wound rather than downward. He saw the relief in her eyes turn into anguish and fear. And then he finally had the time to look upon the intruder: a rotted corpse, half covered in clothes, half in maggots eating at his bones and remaining flesh. The sight of it alone almost made him sick on the verge of vomiting the dinner he didn't have. Fuck. What the hell was this?
All the nausea came to an end and he felt his heart stop, just as time had around him. His eyes caught the blade that had fallen from its bony hands. A curved blade, emerald hilt with tints of gold. No. No no no. There was no way this was the blade in his dreams, the blade that had been stabbed into his own stomach multiple times, more than he could count. And for the first time tonight, stabbed in Jessamine's, a nightmare of even greater consequence. Time moved forward slowly, Kaid watching that blade along with that body disappear like ash. He had to revert time again, this time picking up the blade to hold firmly, praying it wouldn't disappear. He needed to know what this blade meant, how the hell it could've gotten here, and why it was constantly in that recurring nightmare.
Kaid flashed back to the present, against his control mostly due to his consumed mana. Jessamine stood before him, eyes bewildered, knowing for certain he had not only stopped time but gone back. One second she was still in his arms, the next almost three feet away. She saw the blade in his hand, recognizing it as the one her assailant held. How far did he go back, maybe thirty seconds, a minute? It didn't matter. He possessed the attempted murder weapon, and that was something they'd need to trace this back. Without it, they would have had nothing other than each other's personal accounts, and only a cluttered fucked up room to show for it.
Gods, he was so damn smart.
Guards immediately broke the door down against the lock, rushing in with Payne quickly behind. Everyone's eyes held a bit of confusion in them, glancing at the mess in the room. Snow covered half of it, still some pouring in from the balcony. Jessamine looked torn to shreds, her nightgown ripped, bruises all over skin, and Kaid looking as pale as his mocha skin would allow it. Before anyone could say or take the moment to observe further, Payne was already at Kaid, pinning him harshly against the dresser. Kaid felt his spine slam into the drawer pull, nerves shooting up and down his legs at the pain. But he allowed the knife to slip into the pocket of his cotton pants, wanting to conceal that for now.
"Payne?! What are you-" Jess shouted, seeing the Arillian guards just as surprised at the aggression.
"Do you have any idea of what you've just done? Do you realize the damage you caused? Twenty seconds. What's next? A minute, an hour, a day? How far will you go back, you stupid fuck!?" Payne spat, "You think you can just play with time and nobody will notice? Everyone awake right now is going to know about the phenomena, wonder why they were one place and then back twenty seconds prior. You've created irreparable damage, especially if the entire continent figures out it was you. What happened to staying fucking subtle?"
"I-" Kaid spoke weakly.
"Payne, let him go right now. Stop this!" Jessamine shouted again, seeing it was to no avail. Fine. Fuck it. She mustered the last of her energy, closing her eyes briefly to enter his mind. She hated entering it, hated how the darkness swirled inside him, hated feeling like it was a part of her. But it was enough. Payne let go of Kaid against his will, stepping back before looking at Jessamine with an aghast disgust.
"How dare you-" he spat, raising his arm up as if to strike before a figure ran into the room with urgency, stumbling into the guards.
Vrah ran into the room, wearing nothing but very thin and tight underwear, Kaid having to glance away at the indecency before wondering what the hell he was doing here. Was he here to finish the job? Hope to find both their bodies laying on the floor dead? It didn't seem so, seeing relief in his eyes upon seeing everyone somewhat okay.
"Gods, Kaid, it was you," he spoke, heaving heavily. Shit. Kaid knew this was exactly what Payne meant, what he had tried to prevent. It was one thing to have speculation, it was another to have actual proof. Proof that with many observers of the incident could provide insight and opinion on.
"It's not what you think, Vrah," Jessamine moved, stepping in front of Kaid to protect him.
"You saved my life," Vrah exclaimed, surprising everyone in the room, "there was this...this thing in my room. I had to fight it off, but it stabbed me. Right here." He showed a spot on his torso which showed no sign of a stabbing, let alone a bruise. But the fear in his eyes spoke truth, as if he truly believed himself to be stabbed. And maybe he was right.
"And the second I tried to control the bleeding, I felt time move back. I knew exactly where it would stab and dodged it before taking it down. If you hadn't done that, I'd be dead right now," he breathed heavily, assurance and thankfulness in his voice.
Kaid's first thought in all of this was that Vrah was the prime suspect. But if what he was saying was true, which it certainly seemed like, then how could it be him? And who was strong enough to control two beings, undead at that?
What decision had Jessamine made just hours prior?
"Any witnesses, Vrah?" Payne asked, as if questioning his story. Maybe it was nonsense and he could gaslight him into not believing what had happened. The less people knew about what Kaid had done, the better.
"Uh...I had...have a woman in my bed. Jane. She saw the whole thing," he explained, embarrassment in his voice. As much as he wouldn't want to admit to sleeping with a servant, especially being in line for the Lungor throne...he couldn't deny the truth. His father might be angry upon finding out, but at least he was alive. And it would certainly create an alibi he had nothing to do with this murderous attempt. In fact, he was a victim to this atrocity.
"I will need to speak with her, and then we need to immediately hunt the entire city," Payne spoke, looking at the Guards, "I want every report of a necromancer in this empire, I don't care how old or new. We will enter every home and house if we need to, to find whomever attempted to kill two royal figures tonight. We will not sleep until he or she is found. Is that understood?"
"Payne, allow my own security to assist you in this search. I want this fucker found," Vrah nodded, wanting his own men involved in this investigation as well.
"I want to help," Kaid insisted angrily. He was furious, not the same fury he felt hours prior, but angry someone would attempt to kill Jessamine, and maybe even himself as well if she didn't intervene. Payne immediately shook his head at that.
"You stay with the Empress, as is your job, to protect her. I don't need your help," he scowled, Jessamine moving to touch Kaid's arm out of comfort. The way he hinted Kaid hadn't helped in this matter didn't help Kaid's frustration and anger.
"Payne, on your way out please get Cadize," Jessamine demanded gently. She would have used a more gentler tone with him, if he hadn't completely assaulted her lover. Panye glared at her momentarily, as if still angry she had controlled him even if only briefly, but nodded, knowing both of them could use medical attention. Kaid wasn't in any good health to join the search, and Jessamine was too frightened at the moment to want to be alone. It was their first night alone in months...and the one night she didn't feel safe in his arms was the time someone tried to take advantage of it.
"You five, with me," Payne ordered, immediately leaving the room. Vrah stayed behind briefly, still catching his breath.
"Kaid, thank you-"
"You don't need to thank me," Kaid interrupted, glancing up at him. He didn't. Hell, he hadn't done it intentionally. If anything, saving his life had been an entire chance of luck, pausing time at the right moment and going far back enough to create an escape. Vrah got very very lucky, and Kaid didn't want him to feel indebted in the slightest.
"Empress, you look like shit. Are you alright?" he asked, seeing the state of her. Jessamine almost looked like she wanted to be offended, but she knew she probably looked completely violated and a mess given the fight. Besides, Vrah seemed to speak out of concern and not of a teasing nature. He genuinely looked worried upon seeing her look like that.
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"I am, thank you Vrah. And thank you for assisting. I hope by morning we will have more intel or a suspect in all of this," Jessamine exhaled quietly, "I'm glad you're alright. Had anything happened to you, I'm sure I would be the last person your father would try to make peace with."
The words surprised Kaid. She chose to meet with Bashir? He didn't exactly expect that of her, after all, these people had wanted her dead. She couldn't forget nor forgive that easily, yet she was open to the proposal. No wonder Payne was pissed, knowing this might be shown as a sign of weakness from Jessamine, not strength. Kaid felt so proud of her as he knew this was actually a great sign of her strength. There was nothing weak about it, about her. She had made the right decision, they had to try. And despite the atrocities this early morning, maybe it would already put them on better terms.
"All thanks to your bodyguard," Vrah acknowledged, again, "but...let me get out your hair. I think we could use some time to think about this, maybe get more rest. We will speak later." Exhaustion filled all three of them, but Kaid knew he wasn't going to get any more sleep. Jessamine didn't want to go to sleep, even though she hadn't had a wink of it since their argument. She didn't know if she could sleep peacefully tonight, knowing every time she closed her eyes, she saw that rotten corpse screaming at her.
Kaid was about to say more before feeling his body lose consciousness momentarily. Jessamine had grabbed him, forcing him to sit down on the floor. Worry and fear filled those eyes, Kaid blinking away, darkness one moment, and her face the next. Cadize finally arrived, getting a diagnosis before forcing him to drink some of that elixir. It tasted disgusting, but Kaid did feel himself not as sluggish as before.
"It's not just the near-hypothermia that's exhausting him. Him going that far back in time, it's done some damage to his neural activity. It's nothing a bit of rest won't fix, but...that can prove dangerous the more he does that," Cadize observed, "I'd advise he doesn't do anything like that again."
"Of course, Cadize..." Jessamine whispered, knowing just how tempting it could be, to feel that power, unlimited power that he knew he possessed. It was one thing to stop a millisecond of time, another to go back nearly half a minute. Payne was right to be cautious, but not right in displaying that anger, and most of all another shocking emotion. When Jessamine entered her Royal Investigator's mind, she felt something she didn't think Payne could feel: fear. Payne feared Kaid more than anything, anyone else...and Jessamine wasn't sure how to feel about that herself.
Kaid flinched awake, seeing light coming into the room, birds chirping softly in the background despite the balcony door locked and secured even more with a rope tied around the handles. The sun was bright, given the reflection off the snow from the storm of last night. When his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he glanced around the room. Jessamine was still in his arms, sitting across his lap, asleep against his shoulder as he sat on the sofa. He was glad she was getting some rest, fearing she wouldn't get anything from earlier this morning. He felt better already, more aware and alert. His mind traced back to the last couple of hours, trying to remember everything, not even knowing how much sleep he had gotten as well.
From what they observed from the slice in Kaid's bed, that corpse had targeted Jessamine specifically, believing her to be the rise in the bedsheets. All it had been was a pillow Kaid had placed there, wanting some sort of touch and belief it was Jessamine by his side that night. Whatever it was, or whomever controlled it, must have known or believed Jessamine to sleep alongside him. And that meant it was someone who knew of their improper relationship. That news only shocked Jessamine more, knowing she had been the prime target. Whether it would have killed Kaid or not after was unclear. Either way, Jessamine's intervention had saved them all.
Kaid had hid the evidence of the knife in his drawer, figuring Payne and the other guards investigating didn't need to know about it. For whatever reason, he thought it best to keep that blade a secret for now. It might prove beneficial later. The blade had such an intricate design, maybe he could find out who created it. If he could find that, then maybe he could track down its original owner too. With it being in his dreams, Kaid had the firm belief it must mean something or have some sort of significance.
Jessamine flinched in his arms sharply, her blue eyes opening with surprise. She hadn't expected to fall asleep, in fact she had avoided sitting or laying in her bed to prevent that. It seemed like she had gotten an hour or two in his arms, which part of her was grateful for. Part of her wished she never woke up, having to deal with this new nightmare, one she couldn't choose to wake up or walk away from.
"Are you alright?" Kaid asked, moving his hand to push back a thick strand of hair from her eyes.
She nodded, glancing up at him, "Yes, I just didn't expect myself to get any shut-eye. Did you? How are you feeling?"
"I got a bit, I think..." he hummed, "I'm feeling okay, much better than before."
"Good," she smiled faintly, moving back closer to kiss his jaw, feeling his skin much more warm and attune to his normal body temperature.
"Jessamine, I am so sorry. Sorry for my words, my actions...I didn't mean a single word, I regretted every syllable. I never meant to hurt you," he whispered, his voice deep but shaky.
She only moved closer to him at his apology, shifting her hips to face him entirely, straddling his waist to cup his face in her warm and soft hands. She looked at him lovingly, not an ounce of anger in her eyes or regret.
"The fault is mine. I should not have dismissed you, twice. I, of all people, know what it's like to be dismissed from private councils or political gatherings. I know how badly it hurts. I never want you to feel you mean nothing to me, that you have nothing to contribute to the conversation. Your words weigh most in my heart, if anyone in this world could persuade me, change me, sway me from a fate written in stone, it's you," she hushed, her thumb tracing gently around the scar of his eye, "I thought I was protecting you. I never wanted to drag you into this mess, Kaid. That's why I said what I said, as painful as that wretched place is, I know you'd be safer there. Freedom comes at a consequence, and I'm not sure if it is one I want you to sacrifice."
"I made the decision to escape with you, I made the decision to travel to Vitross with you. Those are decisions I made of my own volition, Jess. I chose to be your Guardian. I did not choose to love you, but I chose to cherish you, adore you, worship you, and follow you because I believe in you. My heart gave me no choice and it nearly shocked me when I realized your heart felt the same way," he explained, one arm wrapping gently around her backside, the other caressing her neck, careful of the bandages.
"I was in your room last night to tell you the truth, about everything. You deserve to know everything, Kaid. If I hadn't made that decision, I wouldn't have been in there to stop...whatever the fuck that was. And if that alone isn't a sign to tell you everything then I don't know what is," tears welled her eyes, about to speak before Kaid leaned forward to kiss her gently.
"Don't. If you believe it puts me in danger, then don't," he interrupted.
"No, Kaid you don't understand. I love you. I need to tell you," her lip quivered.
"And I assure you, I can live without it," he shook his head.
"It's about your parents, Kaid. I lied," she spoke quickly and assertively, to the point no interruptions could break up the sentence. The room fell silent, Kaid no longer hearing the birds chirp or various murmurs from people walking by in the hallway beyond the doors. All he could hear was Jessamine's heartbeat in her throat, his own hands feeling the accelerated heart rate despite the look in her eyes she had to do the right thing.
"Al-Yami?" he asked, seeing those blue eyes widen slightly.
"I...how did you...?" she asked, wondering if he knew this entire time or it was that one night she whispered it to him. She knew he was asleep, she was confident he didn't hear it. But Kaid walked and thought in mysterious ways, and all she could do was accept the truth.
"A dream, I think. Vrah also mentioned it before you stepped in the other day," Kaid spoke, swallowing hard. So she did know something. Clearly, she hid it from him for a reason. With all that went on yesterday, he knew her intentions were good but acted out in a shady manner. If anything, that sentence described Jessamine entirely.
"Al-Yami was the last name of your mother, a Priestess from Uhkhtar. Priestesses there are...or were rulers of their nation. They consider their decisions to be of divine nature, rulers who commune with deities to assist in their way of life. They were a peaceful, small nation in the desert. That changed beginning with my grandfather, whom you already know to have a spiteful reputation. There were more fears of another Great Drought and the turbines were still a brand new invention. Uhkhtar had been smart to begin stockpiling, using a dam to control the flow of their water. Emperor Haas destroyed it when Uhkhtar refused to share. He flooded half the area in water, destroying homes, killing hundreds if not thousands. It displaced everyone who survived into the mountains, changing their entire way of life.
"Things changed when your mother took over. With them entering parts of the mountains, building fortresses in the stone, they found graphite. Little did they know just how valuable it was, but your mother believed it was a gift, a way to turn their fortune around. When word spread, my father believed it to be superstitious nonsense, but one person believed it...the young Emperor of Lungor who loves all shiny things. Bashir. He believed the stone to be valuable, and it turns out he was right, just not in the way he thought. It was not a jewel for riches, but for war. And you and I just saw proof of it yesterday."
Jessamine saw his brown eyes blink rapidly, switching and ranging from all the emotions he was feeling: confusion, relief, sadness, bitterness, hatred...but most of all just a revelation of truth. He didn't speak even though he had a thousand questions, not wanting to interrupt her.
"Bashir offered them revenge in return for graphite, along with resources to rebuild. Bashir also saw it as a geographical opportunity, given Uhkhtar is a region that combines sits beside both Lungor and Vitross. The flooded river also comes straight through the heart of Vitross, into the sea. Your mother went to Lungor with the best intentions for her people, and left...with a child."
"I...I don't understand," Kaid whispered, his throat slightly taught.
"You're Emperor Bashir's son. Whether it was one night of romance, or a way for your mother to protect her people, I don't know. But she thought giving Lungor graphite would be her people's greatest blessing, instead, it was you," Jessamine answered, her own breathing unsteady, seeing the pain in her lover's eyes.
It all clicked, as if he should've seen it, known all along. It was how Vrah picked him out from the crowd. Kaid noticed similarities in Vrah that he saw in himself, that broad nose, that sly smirk, and those stupid brown eyes. Vrah would be able to pick his half-brother out of a room of strangers, even if Kaid stuck out from the crowd. It was how he knew about Al-Yami, how he felt desperate to tell him the truth or even prod him for it. Perhaps Kaid's life was in danger with this information. In fact he was in danger knowing this.
Vrah was younger than Kaid, maybe not by many years but it was enough to make Kaid the eldest. Lungor prided itself in tradition, that one of Lungor blood, one with experience and of eldest age would inherit the throne. Whatever Kaid was to them, it gave him the capability to challenge for succession, to become an usurper of his own enemy. His very existence threatened everything Lungor fought for, which was why the world shifted that day he had escaped Caladin.
"Kaid?" Jess whispered softly, noticing he wasn't saying a word. She almost thought he froze time and kept her frozen along with him. But it was just the present, Kaid trying to cope with all this information.
"Bashir found out, didn't he?" Kaid finally replied, his voice stern, not the shakiness Jessamine had expected.
"Eight years later, yes. She hid you for as long as she could, tried to prevent anyone knowing about it. Bashir and his men presumably slaughtered all witnesses, your mother included. You were sent to Caladin, believed to be an orphaned refugee like the rest of young Uhkhtar children. And you ended up being the only one from that group to survive. He thought Caladin to be the safest place for you, you were untouchable. Maybe he couldn't kill his own son, his own blood...perhaps he thought you were safer there, where nobody in the world would know. Only he would know why he spared you."
Kaid felt a tear slip knowing his mother was killed. Of course he had always come to terms with believing his parents to be dead. Maybe he was better off still believing it, that he was a nobody, his parents a nobody...and most of all, his father to be some murderous, slanderous, Emperor. He was not just an enemy to Kaid, but also to Jessamine. And now, Jessamine agreed to meet with him, all for peace.
He almost wished she had chosen war, but was it worth the cost of her soul? Of his?
"I'm sorry, Kaid. I wanted to tell you, but I thought that your ignorance of such matters was the only thing saving your life. If they found out that you knew, if anyone now finds out that you know...you'll just be another witness he needs to kill. You can't tell anyone, not a soul. Not Kassandra, not Payne. Nobody can know," she urged, fingers grasping his shoulders to make him understand.
"Panye knows, though," Kaid glanced up at her.
"He confirmed it when he infiltrated the Lungor Council looking for evidence for Caladin. He and I were both surprised at the severe reaction of escaping Caladin, thinking it it had to do with me being thrown in there...but it was about who I escaped with," she shook her head, "He told me to never tell you as it could ruin everything."
"But you just did," Kaid said. He wasn't angry. He knew why he wasn't. Jessamine could have never told him, but this morning she did. She felt he deserved to know; that he shouldn't be kept in the dark anymore. She trusted him, wholeheartedly, with her life and her kingdom. It was a lie he knew she withheld out of love, not distrust. Panye was right, in her telling him this, it changed everything. It changed how Kaid viewed everything around him, all except for Jessamine. Nothing changed how he could view her.
"I needed to tell you. I'm sick and tired of hiding this from you. I wanted to tell you the second I knew. I want to spill every secret of mine, tell you every darkness that plagues my soul, and affirm that light inside me only shines there because of you. If the truth ruins everything, ruins us, I accept that pain. No, I deserve it. Because I don't deserve you-"
Kaid meshed her lips gently against hers, feeling both their tears combine as their lips and chins caressed each other. Her hand moved up instantly, wiping away another tear from his eye, hiding the evidence. Jessamine knew him to be sensitive, despite her first observation of him to be a man of logic. It wasn't until she dug deeper that she knew her lover to be attuned to every emotion possible. And right now, she could feel the sorrow of this truth, but also the belief of love together.
"You deserve me, Jessamine. Your entire life you had to fight, claw your fingers in to get what you needed. You pretended to survive, lied to live, and deceived to rule. Even if you think those actions to be impure, our love certainly is not," he whispered against her lips, feeling a tremendous, unsure smile against his lips.
She moved to hold him, pressing her lips to his neck gently, knowing he needed the embrace in that moment more than she did. Her hand stroked the back of his hair, feeling his heart-rate spike before relaxing. She could feel his pain, even if she didn't need to enter his mind. Kaid didn't know or remember his mother, but he knew it was ingrained in this feeling of loss, a feeling Jessamine was familiar with too. She used to think revenge was her only remedy, but this feeling of forgiveness from Kaid only affirmed to her that love was the better choice.
How long they sat there, both of them coping with their past to move into the future, neither knew. Neither cared. The morning was already wasted and spent. Spending it here together only made up for that. Kaid couldn't describe all the emotions swirling in his soul. He didn't know how long the pain would sit there like a pit in his heart, but he knew it couldn't stop him from continuing forward. If his mother died for him, he had to make it worth it, somehow.
"I'm sorry, Kaid," she spoke those words for what felt like the hundredth time. Her hands lost their confidence running across his skin, hesitancy returning.
"I am too," he sighed, his fingers running up and down her spine gently. His heart filled with dread, wondering if he should tell her of the nightmare. She might already believe his dreams to be some sort of...window into the future. How could he tell her what plagued his unconscious thoughts? He loved her, more than anything. And he had no idea what would drive him to such madness, believing her death was a victory and not feeling the slightest upset about it.
"There's more..." she whispered against his ear, closing her eyes tightly, "the entire thing was-"
A harsh knock on the door stopped her from continuing. Jessamine moved away from him slightly, glancing at the door. As she slowly stood, she felt the ache in her joints, wincing slightly. Kaid got up, holding her hand to squeeze that he would answer the door instead. He wiped any remnants of dried tears, hoping any redness in his eyes wouldn't give away to what just happened. Kaid took a deep breath before answering the door, seeing Vrah standing there, tiredness in his eyes.
Face to face with his blood, a sibling, it almost made Kaid want to wonder what their life would've been if things were different. What if he was taken back to Lungor and not sent to Caladin? Would they have truly been brothers or rivals? Would Vrah have always seen him as a threat? Vrah looked at him now almost as a colleague, one he was thankful for saving his life.
Kaid said nothing, knowing he could show no signs of knowing the truth.
"We found him, and a surplus amount of evidence without need for a confession. Payne is concluding the interview as we speak. I thought we could talk about it over breakfast, if you'd like," Vrah suggested through his exhaustion.
Kaid glanced back at Jessamine, knowing she had heard the words. She gave a gentle nod, knowing they'd have to power through this somehow. It had to be dealt with, and they might as well face it head on.
"Okay, give us some time to prepare," Kaid nodded, sensing Jessamine behind him walking over to the bathroom, probably to prepare a shower to cleanse her wounds, "How bad is Payne torturing him?"
Vrah scoffed, not surprised Kaid knew that was Payne's primary method of 'interviewing', "Bad. But in my opinion, it's well deserved. The continent is always in need of people like Payne."
Kaid disagreed with that, letting Vrah walk away, probably to change his own clothes and freshen up a bit. But when Kaid walked into the room, seeing Jessamine discard that torn nightgown to reveal her porcelain skin littered in green and dark bruises...his opinion swayed. Kaid believed in that moment for sure that life was cruel. Maybe it was time to believe he couldn't survive this without embracing such anger, even if it reversed everything Jessamine fought so hard to preserve.
Vengeance was needed, Kaid didn't know who he needed to consume it against. His enemies were just as blurred as before, same as his friends. But someone had to pay. Someone was going to pay. If it was the world, so be it.