Reylor's Lament | The Empire Saga Novella #1

Chapter Ten

Reylor would need to keep the process as simple as possible since he would have to leave with limited supplies, and not with anything that would be quickly missed by the Empire. The longer he led Treyan and the Councillor to believe he was locked away working in the library, the further he would be able to travel before they sent the palace guards out to look for him.

He thought he would feel a sense of mourning as he bid farewell to the room that had been his since he was old enough to have it, but there was nothing in the Empire for him any longer. The books, the scrolls, the material possession he had collected over the years - none of it mattered.

Not when there was still an Empress to find.

Reylor would need to find some way to return to the library undetected by his brother and the Councillor. He had seen little of his twin since their encounter and sensed that Treyan would move swiftly towards his exile, now knowing how Reylor truly felt about the matter. He should have thought ahead, he cursed himself as he finished packing his satchel, but instead he had left the Empress' Key dormant at his workstation, still waiting to be completed. He wondered if the Councillor would take the task upon himself once he was gone, but no one else possessed the same level of workmanship; even the Councillor had commended Reylor in the past on his adept ability in Key construction.

More reason he needed to take the relic with him to finish the job he started.

How the guards had not yet arrived at his quarters, Reylor could not comprehend, but he was not going to allow them a moment longer to arrive. Quietly he crept from his room, closing the door behind him so as not to draw further question about his whereabouts, and quickly headed towards the more unused and indirect corridors of the palace. Guards rarely took the servants' routes, and most of the servants would be busy turning down the castle for the night, therefore Reylor took advantage of the solitude as he prowled towards the library.

He entered through an unused door in the back of the study, and the creak of the old hinges resounded through the empty hall. The library appeared deserted, and Reylor released a sigh of relief as he silently walked along the walls of books towards his desk. His work items remained exactly how he left them the night before, with the books in their stacks, the scrolls in a pile, and the Key itself enclosed in its protective glass casing.

Keys could be given any appearance, but Reylor preferred the traditional orb-like shape. Technically, it would be the most practical as it would be bound to get shattered against a hard surface. He ran a hand over the glass, admiring his handiwork for a moment longer before setting his sights on his true objective. Picking up the glass case with caution, he secured it under his arm as he walked the length of the library until he reached the pedestal that stood before the room's large windowed wall.

The Annals sat there unprotected, and Reylor couldn't help but applaud his brother for his carelessness. Did Treyan truly believe Reylor would just walk away from everything without one final attempt at taking what was his? He knew it would come to this sooner or later, but Reylor never truly believed his brother would choose the Prophecy over him- so much for blood being thicker than water. But he was ready for it, and once he had the final item he needed to complete the transaction...

"Reylor!"

Treyan was right on time. Reylor grinned as he glanced up from the ancient tome, just as his hand was about to graze the cover. "How nice of you to join me, Treyan. I was just about to say my goodbyes."

His brother glared at him as he walked towards him from the doorway of the library. He arrived alone, which gave Reylor an advantage should an altercation occur. "What are you doing here?"

"Preparing to leave, actually. I was just gathering a few items I left here in the library..."

It was at that moment Treyan realized Reylor held the artifact in his arm, and his brother's eyes widened at the reality behind Reylor's words. "What are you doing with the Key?"

Reylor glanced down to the parcel in his arm and a sneer grew upon his lips. "I'm only bringing with me what is mine."

"The Key belongs to the Empire!"

"Did you make it? No. I did. Which makes it mine by right!"

"You don't have the right!"

"I've always had the right!"

In a fit of frustration, Reylor lashed out at the Annals' pedestal, kicking his foot against the stand with all his rage, knocking it over towards the floor. No one had ever dared touch the Annals, let alone abuse it, but Reylor was so consumed by his emotions that he didn't have a second to consider the consequences of his actions.

The Annals, however, seemed to know exactly what was happening around it, and instead of falling to the floor in a heap of leather and paper, it instead appeared to hover in the air, as though free from the laws of physics. In the same instant that Reylor realized what he had done, he saw the book in its stand-still and heard his brother yell from where he stood. Reylor had just a moment to look up to his twin and meet his stare, where their eyes reflected the same shocked look, before the Annals exploded in a flash of golden power that propelled him back against the glass windows of the library.

The glass remained solid as his backbone collided with the panes, and his body crumpled to the ground as the wind was knocked from his lungs. Whatever the Annals had done, it was over, but his body writhed as the pain and power surged through his very bones. He didn't know where his brother was and found himself not caring as he crawled to his hands and knees, gasping for breath. It wasn't until he heard footsteps crunching upon breaking glass that he finally opened his eyes.

The Key's glass casing had shattered upon impact, and the blue orb's inner workings oozed upon the floor. For a moment Reylor was grateful that he had not finished the portal, for they would all be on their way to the Otherrealm if he had. But it was only a moment before he realized that his efforts and hard work- the hours and days spent on creating his passage to the Empress- now lay in a heap of rubble before him.

It seemed as though his brother realized it, too.

Treyan stepped next to him while Reylor remained within his haze, and it was Treyan who quickly grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, shaking him close to choking as he met his gaze.

"What have you done?" Treyan demanded through clenched teeth as Reylor hung between his fists, his feet barely skimming the floor.

Reylor could barely catch his breath, unable to answer his brother, but Treyan lost his patience and released Reylor by tossing him aside, letting him fall back to the floor. Reylor coughed, trying to catch his breath as he got his legs underneath him. Treyan may have been angry with him, but none felt the pain of his actions more than Reylor himself. The Key was his only way of getting to the Empress. Now he would need to start from scratch, and there was no possible way Reylor could remain within the palace a moment longer while he created it. Not with his brother monitoring every move he made.

Reylor looked up to his twin. The look in his eyes should have made him run, but he returned it with an equal amount of distaste. Neither spoke a word to the other, but the unspoken resentment remained. Reylor was as disgusted with his brother as he was with himself and refused to solicit any additional explanation for what occurred between them.

Reylor was done and retreated from the library without another acknowledgment to his brother, nor did Treyan give chase. Every last shred of his efforts remained shattered on the floor with the destroyed pieces of the Empress' Key, but he would be damned if he ever made his brother another.