For me, life has been simple. I’ve known since birth what my destiny is, and never have I doubted it. Why should I? The Great Seer himself saw my destiny, and I have no reason to question him. Not everyone sees it that way, though.
“Oh, simple little Marvus. I’ve never known if you were too dumb to question anything or simply too loyal,” a silky voice taunts from the darkness, and I grit my teeth. Footsteps echo, pacing in a circle around my vulnerable body. Chained to the ground, in the middle of a damp room, I am open to any sort of attack, unable to protect myself but able to hear every step in the light coating of water.
“Poor little Korian. I’ve never known if you were too selfish to accept your fate or simply too stubborn,” I retort, and the footsteps pause. A snap in the darkness, and a light ignites over my head. Korian seems taller, thinner than I remember from when we were kids, and I can’t help the look of sympathy that crosses my face when I see the faded scar on his cheek.
“Regretting your decision now, Marvus?” Korian hisses; I sigh heavily and shake my head. “Of course you aren’t. After all, I’m just an enemy to the Crown, and to you,” he points out, and I detect the hurt in his voice. A thousand words I could say, but what would help heal the wounds time and circumstance have caused?505Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfrYmtaEpIo
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“You could come back, you know. Reclaim your position. The Great Seer… if he hasn’t said anything about you--” I start, but I’m cut off by Korian’s harsh glare. I quiet down, not out of intimidation but because even I know what I’m saying is foolish.
“Even if I could, I would not want to. Don’t you see, Marvus? There’s something greater to life than what the Great Seer dictates,” Korian explains, as if I’m but a young child, and I frown. More? What more could I possibly want? Korian resumes his pacing around me, and I simply watch him and the way his cloak flutters around his thin frame.
“You should eat more,” I gently remark after a few circles, and Korian sighs but doesn’t slow down or cease. If anything, it grows faster, and I adjust myself on the wet ground. After a bit, Korian slows to a stop in front of me; slowly, he lowers himself to sit out of reach, as if afraid of me lashing out and hurting him--again.
“You don’t care,” he bluntly states, “and you never have. I wasn’t a part of your destiny, your life, but I am now, aren’t I?” Korian laughs dryly, and I frown. That’s not true--is it? No, no. I have cared for him--I still care for him. Gods, what I would do to take his pain away, to turn back time, but how do I make him see that? How can I be loyal to him and loyal to the Crown?
“Why not just kill me?” I softly ask, and Korian’s deep black eyes stare deeply into mine. For a few seconds, the sharpness in his face fades, and it almost brings me back to when we were teenagers, staring up at the night sky and trying to ignore the futures laid out ahead of us. I suppose this has been a long time coming; since when has Korian ever sounded happy about his position? Still, to go to these lengths… why?505Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhfSv2vx9zA
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“Even if you don’t care about me, I care about you,” Korian sighs quietly to himself, and I almost get the chance to say something before he abruptly stands up. The sharpness returns to his features, and I am reminded all over again of how the world has carved us. “You’re far more useful alive than dead; after all, the Great Seer did give you quite the important role,” he bitterly remarks, a hint of mockery in his tone.
“It’s been so long. I don’t think they care, Korian,” I remind him, trying not to sigh. Doubts worm their way into my mind, and I hunch over, trying to protect my face, my emotions. Gods, what if he’s right? What if I’m right? Sinking my teeth into my lip, I struggle to keep from collapsing along with my sense of identity, but as everything I thought I knew flakes away, I can’t help but follow along, pieces of myself dissolving into the water around me.
There’s no response from him, either. Just the quiet splash as he paces around me, and I desperately try to cling to anything I can. There’s nothing, though. What could I ever have left? My family--hell, my family. Gods, if the kingdom tossed me away as they have, my family wouldn’t do anything about it. I am worth as much to them as I am to the Crown; only my future as a promising knight had me in high esteem. Here, sequestered away in some dank dungeon, I mean nothing to anyone.
“You can gain nothing more from being here,” I inform Korian, trying to earn some time to break in the darkness alone. Instead of walking away, though, he settles back down in front of me, his black eyes serious as he leans closer. I frown but don’t back away despite feeling his breath fanning across my face; the warmth even feels a little… nice.
“You aren’t understanding, Marvus. I can give you what the kingdom can’t, but you--you don’t want--you’d rather have those disgusting, selfish, rat bastards than me! I actually care! What do they do but tell to die for someone who couldn’t care less about you? You’re expendable to them, to your family, to everyone but you, yet I’m the one you run from,” Korian quietly but forcefully explains, and I can only sit in silence and watch the emotions flow through his eyes. Hesitantly, he leans forward and wraps his arms around me in a hug.
Gods, I don’t know what to do… I sigh and lean into the touch, the warmth. It’s been so long, but it’s his fault… but I don’t have anyone or anything else. If this is all I can get… it could get worse, right? I should at least play along; maybe I could get a chance to escape that way. A tear slips down my face, and I feel like I’ve crossed a line that can never be crossed again.
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