The Dark Side #1

Chapter ~ 16 ~

It was another day until I could walk again, even with the blue sparks to help me. By then, I'm on edge more than ever. The further into these woods we walk, the more familiar it is. We're getting closer and closer, I can tell. I can feel my brother, I can feel his energy. He's close. Very close. And I can't let him down again.

"Do you think we know what we are doing?" Xavier asks as we walk in the direction my magic is drawing me to. I glance at him.

"Of course we do," I reply dumbly. "We are going in there, getting Kai, and leaving."

"So... we are just going to leave the entire Empire alive while they still want your brother?" he asked curiously. "And even if – by some miracle – we manage to get in there at all, how the hell are we going to find him with that many angels in there, and get out without them killing us? We are outnumbered by at least two hundred to one."

"We cannot just sit back and wait for them to bring about the end of the world, Xavier," I shoot back with a scowl. "And Kai must know that I am trying my hardest to find him and bring him home; if they succeed in making him believe that I do not care for him anymore... no. No, it will not happen. We are going in there and we are retrieving my brother. Dead or alive."

"We will not be much use to him dead," Xavier growls. "And he will not know any better; he is only young, and who knows what lies they have told him to get him to believe they are on his side? We cannot risk the entirety of Velori and the other Provinces because we are 'winging it'. We need a plan, Cecily."

I roll my eyes. "Well, have you got any ideas, great wise one?"

"I am the only person on your side right now," he warns, glaring at me with his demonic eyes. "Do not mock me."

"This is my brother we are talking about," I shoot back, stopping short on our path to the Volsci Empire. "I know you did everything you could to protect yours, so surely you understand how I feel right now? If anything like that happened to my brother, I would not have a reason to live anymore. I promised my parents, I am sure of it. That boy is my life, Xavier. I cannot just wait around while they manipulate him."

Xavier sighs, rubbing his forehead. "Forgive me," he muttered, shaking his head. "I just... we need to be careful, is all." I nod as we continue walking, coming closer and closer to the source of magic.

"We are being careful," I assure him with a tight nod. "If they knew we were here, we would know about it. Trust me."

"Every time someone says 'trust me'," Xavier grunts, "everything goes south. I suggest we just forget about faith and stick with what we know."

"Well, what do we know?" I question, glancing sideways at my companion. "Other than the dream I had the other night, we know nothing about what is waiting for us. I think that is dangerous."

"Well, think about what was happening in the background of your dream," Xavier suggests. "Behind the man. What did you see?"

My eyes widen. "The fort," I breathe, and Xavier looks at me. "There was a massive, stone fort; it was just beyond the cliff we were standing on. The man must have been an agent for the Empire or something."

"So he did deserve to die," Xavier comments lightly. I shoot a glare at him.

"No one deserves to die," I mutter. "They deserve punishment, to live with what they have done, but not death. Death is a coward's way out."

Xavier shrugs, raising an eyebrow. "Well said," he replied. "But he still probably deserved it."

"I said to you," I snap as I stop walking, "in the dream, that if you took that mans life, I would never forgive you. Do you want to know what your reply was? Do you want to know why I do not trust you anymore?"