Wooden swords clanked in the training grounds near the mansion of Blood Denegis, drowning out the chaos of the house.
Kael and Lune had begged their parents for freedom all day. And at last, they'd escaped the prison their home had become.
"Focus, Kael, you are barely doing more than blocking," said Lune, visibly angry.
"Give me a second, Lune. I'm thinking over here."
"For Vita's sake," she groaned, lowering her sword. "What is it? We've barely been at it for twenty minutes."
"I've been thinking… You know, about Blanc, and where he could have gone," Kael lowered his gaze.
"I heard you made him mad. What happened?" she asked, drawing closer.
Kael sighed, "Well, I only asked him to play with us and maybe tell us the story he started last night."
To Lune, this did not sound bad, not a reason to get angry, "But- wait, that is it?"
"Yeah, well, that's what I thought too, but…"
"But what?" she tilted her head, waiting for an answer.
Kael sighed, seeing his sister's impatience. A normal trait of hers that corrupted even her swordsmanship, making her very aggressive.
"I don't know, he looked mad, or too lost in thought, I couldn't tell. Have I done something?"
"I don't think so," Lune shrugged, "But can you blame him? With everything going on, I would be the same, but he still took the problems away from me and took them onto himself."
Kael looked confused at his sister, "Aren't you happy about that?"
"Well, I am, really am, he saved me once more, but… now he is the one who has to suffer."
"I guess so," Kael thought, tilting his head, "But you don't have to blame yourself for that; it was his choice."
"I know, nor should you then. He probably was stressed, that's all." Lune smiled before clicking her tongue, "Now I don't feel like training anymore. Let's take a break."
"Yeah," Kael nodded, walking to a ground patch shaded by a tree near the training ground, "But where could he have gone with his bow? The Forest?"
"It would be stupid to think otherwise," Lune said, taking a seat in the shade near him.
"Was that an insult?" Kael asked, offended.
"Most definitely," Lune nodded.
"And what does that say about you, dear TWIN sister?"
"Nothing," she shrugged, "You took it all for yourself, didn't share a single bit with me."
Hearing her, Kael sighed, lying flat on the ground, "You think he will be back soon?"
"Yes, he doesn't leave for long if he is alone, I think he only went to take his mind off everything for a little bit," concluded Lune.
"Let's hope so," Kael muttered, watching the leaves swaying around in the wind.
No other words were spoken between them for the next few minutes as they stood in silence, only Lune humming a song or two as she played with the grass.
Kael thought of many things.
Blanc, the future, the colossal army on its way. But little of it made sense to him. And it wouldn't, for some time.
He was a kid and was treated like one. He did not mind it, not in the slightest, most of the time. It meant more hours for the books he loved.
But in such chaos, he couldn't read, couldn't focus, couldn't help.
Maybe, for the first time, he wanted to understand more than just, It will be alright, little love, as his mother kept saying since yesterday.
The silence between the twins did not stop their talks, as shorter conversations could be had between them without the need for a single word to be spoken.
Neither of them could understand it, but they could somewhat tell what the other was thinking or feeling.
This bond between the twins would, however, soon be tested as at least twenty highly decorated Wardens passed behind them, walking towards the back of the mansion.
At the far end of the row of soldiers, there was a woman, younger than their mothers, perhaps close to Sera in age.
She had gorgeous red hair that fell long and straight down her back as she walked.
Though her hair looked like burning fire, her face and the way she moved felt cold, distant, deliberate.
Her dress was of pure white, faintly flickering in the fading dusk, covering her from neck to heel.
It was charming, even beautiful to Kael's eyes, finding himself entranced by the sight of her.
But what entranced him more was the mystery she carried around. A woman who was part of an Order just as mysterious as she was. He did not know what she truly was.
With a glance from Lune and without a word spoken, Kael understood what she meant and what he was also thinking.
Message received, sister, he thought, nodding.
So there they stood waiting until the group of people passed them. And once they took the corner of the mansion, the twins followed, moving quietly but fast, trying to catch up.
As they peered around the corner, they saw the Wardens and the Daughter gathered before their father, with Valar, their elder brother, standing beside him, perhaps as a witness to their father's work.
The guests took their positions while the Daughter stood quietly to the side.
"Gentlemen," Elion started, nodding.
"Patriarch!" the Wardens saluted.
"Lady," he added, turning and doing a quick bow towards her.
"Patriarch of Blood Denegis, a pleasure to see you so soon," she bowed as well, the pleasure she mentioned above not quite reaching her voice, "And Lord Valar, a pleasure seeing you in good health."
"Thank you, Daughter," bowed Valar.
"I bow to you, Sirs, Daughter, for gathering here on such short notice, but as you perhaps heard, there are issues that need our immediate presence. I doubt, Daughter, you haven't heard anything about it."
"I have," she replied flatly, "An hour after it happened."
"Thank you for the silence, then," he smiled at her. However, as he turned to face the Wardens, his smile faded. Making his aged face grow colder.
Elion looked over the gathered men. Their eyes were sharp, their chests proudly armored with the sigil of the Blood. And for a moment, he almost envied their ignorance.
But they had to know. Now.
"Loyal Sons of Blood Denegis, the High Monarch is dead!"
Murmurs could be heard from the very well-decorated Wardens, "My Lord, has he been assassinated? Who would have the power to assassinate one such as the High Monarch? He is considered a -" said one of the Wardens, before he got interrupted.
"Fredrick, He has not been assassinated. The High Monarch decided to leave us of His own will," Elion clarified, his tone somber.
"My Lord?" replied Fredrick, frowning at his words.
"He killed himself, my Good Sirs," Elion replied as he looked away for a breath, the weight of those words catching up to him.
Panic erupted in their ranks as they heard the words of their Lord.
Only for panic to soon turn to anger, then anger to confusion, before one of the other Wardens spoke, a Warden well known by Blood Denegis, "But my Lord, why only tell us now? We should've been told this days ago!"
"Ponca, what would such knowledge serve you with, seeing as you all panic now?" asked Elion.
"Well, I… I'm not quite sure, My Lord. But such information should not have been withheld from us or the people of your Domain," Ponca countered, sweat building on his forehead.
"It would have been a mistake to tell the common folk of such catastrophic information too early," interjected the Daughter.
"Indeed," Elion nodded, "My Wardens. Silence was necessary. Look at your panic. Now imagine that in tens of millions across the Empire. No heir, no successor. Two things would have followed. Chaos... and civil war between the Noble Bloods or the common folk." he paused, as the soldiers calmed down.
"They would never, My Lord," said a few voices between the Wardens.
"But they already did," countered Elion, "We don't know who and why, but someone, who had been close enough to the High Monarch, told the wrong people. Who the wrong people are is still unknown, as unknown as whether they are from the Empire or outside of it. But they had enough influence to turn the Iron Line towards the Noble Bloods. And at this current moment, they are heading towards us as well."
"By the Vita…", "Fuck, fuck, fuck," and many more such reactions could be heard from the Wardens as they processed the information.
Elion did not stop them or tell them to control themselves. After all, that might have been the only chance they had to break down before they had to pull themselves together and fight.
"Judging by your reaction, you know the Iron Line well, and what it's capable of, as we all do. That's why you're only hearing this now."
He paused, his voice sharpening with the weight of command. After all, Elio led armies for a reason.
"The Noble Bloods kept silent to their Domains for this very reason," he continued, "Imagine fighting an army on one front while trying to stop an entire Domain from collapsing, with people running, rioting, killing each other for scraps of power. We had to create the illusion of order. That is the reason why!"
The force behind his words struck deep. None could argue; none dared to. Feeling the truth and honesty of his words, they straightened again, standing at attention in understanding what had and was to be done.
"Any other questions?" Elion asked, letting go of the coldness from earlier.
"No Patriarch!" they responded.
Elion nodded, "Good. The Iron Line is less than a week away. Prepare all your men and tell your generals to train, and request all the soldiers to do maintenance on their armor and weapons, understood?"
"Yes, Patriarch!"
"And men, do not fret! Our time has not come, nor will it come, for we will not face them alone!"
His voice thundered across the group, carried by conviction.
"As we speak, five Noble Bloods march to our aid, bringing with them enough men to drown whatever wickedness made the Iron Line fall to madness. My beloved soldiers, let us show these rebellious bastards what one of the finest armies of the Senvia Empire is capable of!"
A roar erupted from the Wardens, echoing across the mansion grounds. Fueled by their Patriarch's words, their hearts burned with pride and resolve.
They were ready. And they knew now that they were not alone.
"And what do the two of you think of achieving by spying on Father's business?" Sera asked the twins quietly, who were busy watching the scene with complete focus.
Hearing her, they jumped frightened, but chose not to make a sound as they were too scared to be noticed by Elion.
"Ah, Sera, hello to you," said Kael, panicked.
"Brat," she grinned. "What if they'd seen you? You know Father would be furious. Should I go and tell him?"
"Shhh," panicked Lune, as Sera's voice was uncomfortably loud, "Sister Sera, please."
"Leave, go inside now, and I will not say a word," Sera giggled at the sight of their panic, motioning with her head, "Mothers are waiting."
"Yes, yes, we will be heading that way now, actually," replied Kael, taking the hand of his twin sister and trying to leave, only for a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"Where is Blanc?" Sera asked.
"I-I don't know," he panicked, even though it was the truth.
"Very well," Sera replied, letting go of his shoulder.
For a moment, she watched them leave before turning towards the setting sun that brought with it not only the night but the Noble Bloods as well.
"Where are you, little brother?" she muttered under her breath while looking at the orange hue that painted the sky.