Deceiving Past & Darkening Future

Chapter #7: Reunion

The pain was the first thing that came to Luciana's mind when she stirred and attempted to sit up. Only to find that she was bound to a chair and a hood covered her throbbing head. She bemused for a moment why she ended up in a situation like this before the previous events came crashing down her mind. Panicking, Luciana struggled against the manacles around her wrist, resulting in scraping her skin raw.

"Welcome back, soror Parva." Her elder brother chuckled softly as he strode toward her gracefully. His lips curled up into a scoff when he took in Luciana's appearance.

"What did I do to be graced by your presence, my dear brother?" Luciana retorted. Her body posture was rigid, showing how nervous she was with her brother.

"Always the defiant one," Her brother, Aiden, purred and he lifted the hood covering Luciana's head. "Don't worry, we'll get rid of it soon enough."

Luciana suppressed a shudder of the promised pain and torture her brother could inflict on her. She glanced around, unsurprisingly, they were in a dim dungeon. The eerie tools on the table didn't help calm her rapidly beating heart. Forcing her breath to be steady, she gathered her courage to ask the question that had been nagging at her ever since she was awake. "Where's Christina?"

A predatory grin appeared on Aiden's intimidating face and he leaned closer toward Luciana. He grinned at the palpable fear in her eyes when he whispered, "I think you haven't forgotten the proper punishment for traitors. I have drilled that knowledge into your pathetic mind, dear sister. As for your lovely friend, she has already been taken care of."

"I will never join your cause and him," Luciana said stubbornly, her eyes flashed with hurt and resentment. "How can you not see that man is insane? Father and Mother had given up their lives for our freedom and you just threw all that away as if it was nothing but filth and trash!"

For a moment, a look of regret flashed in Aiden's eyes and he looked away from his sister. However, before Luciana could say anything, Aiden's face became unreadable, his usual impassive mask firmly in place. "Prepare yourself for tomorrow. He requests your presence, sister." Aiden hissed coldly before striding out of the dungeon, slamming the door closed.

As soon as her brother left, the temperature in the dungeon began to drop rapidly and Luciana shivered in both fear and chilliness. Between consciousness and unconsciousness, her mind wandered off to the first time they had met him.

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The lively family was enjoying their precious time beside a beautiful lake. The sun was already near the horizon, painting the sky in a deep pumpkin color. The brunette young girl with sapphire eyes was laughing at a joke her father had said, her innocent face filled with immense joy and delight. The other child, the one with pure white hair and obsidian eyes identical to their father, was looking at her sister with fondness, the usually serious boy had an imperceptive smile on his lips. Their parents beamed in happiness as their daughter snuggled further into her brother's embrace, yearning to be within his warmth. It was a rare sight to see the family being so close to each other as all of them had lots of work to do most of the time.

"Sir, there's a visitor that wants to see you," one of the servants informed the father, who frowned and stood up gracefully. "I am not expecting any visitors. Didn't I order you to keep out anyone seeking my company?" He said in displeasure. "He insists on seeing you, sir," The servant replied dutifully.

The father got up from his previous position and sighed, "Honey, look after-"

"Can we go see this visitor with you, father?" the gorgeous boy asked hopefully, his face flushed with the excitement of seeing the people that his father had worked with. "I promise that Lucrecia and I will be on our best behavior."

"No, Aiden, you are too young." Their mother said softly, caressing the boy's long white hair, "Let your father deal with those powerful men. Play with Lucrecia and relish the pleasant sunset."

"But..."

"If we go with you, father, then the man will know that you are having a vacation with your family. Therefore, he may finish his business quickly in order not to show disrespect. This way, Brother can satisfy his desire to see the powerful man and you can finish your business instantaneously," Lucrecia said earnestly, wishing to support her brother in every single way.

Their father hesitated at the children's hopeful faces and those brilliant pairs of eyes that were so indistinguishable to his own. After half a minute of consideration, their father finally relented, "Fine, you both can go with me, but remember how a Phosphorus should behave."

They nodded in unison. "Fortifier in re, suaviter in modo. Never bow to another, never fear. With strength and wisdom, we conquer. United we shall prosper and strive for power to our name," they recited from their earliest memory.

"Good," their father said with a smile, and the family disappeared into the house.