by Emily Wilson
Together, they head back to Azrian's house to wait for word from the brothers, but none of them are faring particularly well. Ronan’s biting his nails, Rhix is out back splitting logs to distract himself, and Azrian’s pacing a hole in the floor. Every minute that passes feels like an eternity. Waiting to hear something, waiting to leave, waiting for Kato to miraculously show up and wake him up from this nightmare.
The sun sets without a word, and Azrian’s nearly inconsolable by that point. His powers are going haywire and he can't get them — or himself — under control. He nearly takes off Ronan’s eyebrows as he gets a little too close to ask him how he is, and that near accident alone has him sitting down and trying to relax.
“He’ll be okay, Az. He's a Cogitare, I bet he's fine,” Ronan says softly. “He's tough.”
“Yeah, I know what he is. But I also know that something’s wrong. Syphon clearly isn't under Kato’s control, which either means something happened to him or he still doesn't know... and not even Kato’s that gullible. There's no way he doesn't know.” Azrian buries his face in his hands and tugs on his hair, wishing more than anything that something would give.
Ronan doesn't seem to know what to say to that and simply wraps an arm around his back, rubbing softly. “We’ll find him, Az. Teagon and Aleon will come soon and then we’ll go. But you should probably try to sleep, I know you didn't get much last night and it sounds like this isn't gonna be easy.”
“Is anything ever easy?” Az asks bitterly. “I swear, every time I think we can relax, something happens. And I'm getting really tired of getting attacked in my own home.”
“I know.”
The tone of Ronan’s voice reminds Azrian that Ronan had to deal with Syphon and Tripp alone before he got there, so Az sits up and tilts his body to face him. “Speaking of which... are you okay? How long were they there before me and Ax got back?”
“Just a few minutes. Long enough. They blabbered on about giving me a home like Melior had, but I said no. I'm happy here, I didn't want to go with them,” Ronan explains. “They didn't particularly like that.”
Azrian chuckles. “No, I imagine they didn't. I'm really proud of you for holding them off... and for helping me fight them. What we did with Cettia’s light was pretty cool, don't you think?”
“So cool!” he agrees excitedly. “Too bad we didn't actually get to see what it would do, though. We might have to try that again sometime when we can actually let it go.”
He's not sure anything around them could withstand such a blast, so that sounds like a terrible idea — unless they're aiming it at Syphon’s head.
At this point, he's willing to destroy quite a bit if it means taking Syphon out, and that realization doesn't make him as nervous as it probably should.
“Yeah,” Az says with a slight nod. “We’ll try it.”
“THAT WAS A GOOD ONE,” Kato encourages. “Think you have any more in you today? You shouldn’t overwork yourself, but look... there’s a crack.” He points up above Slait’s head with a grin.
“Shadows!” Slait grins and cracks his neck. “I’m not stopping now.”
As much as Kato loves the enthusiasm, he knows how it feels to overwork. “Let’s just wait until they feed us again first. Zero’s been even more annoying, huh?”
Slait snorts and takes a seat on the ground after Kato does. “You can say that again. I swear he specifically waits for us to fall asleep before he comes in. It’s like his brand of torture... at least Six is just boring.”
Kato takes a few moments to think about how strange Six is. Everything about his demeanor tells Kato he doesn’t want to be here and yet, he stays. When Kato stayed at Deadrun, it was because he literally had no idea there was another option. Even after he met Az, it was fear that kept him there, and that wasn’t enough to make him stay. When it comes down to it, Six is a coward — and when things get rough... cowards run. He doesn’t imagine Six being much of an issue once they break out and it’s only a matter of time until they do.
He doesn’t bother saying this to Slait, because Six returns with Zero in tow, and both of them take seats in chairs across from them. “No food for us?” Kato asks, standing so he doesn’t feel vulnerable. The last time Zero came in here, he talked Six into putting Kato on the ceiling just to let him fall — it hurt more than he let show.
“Food? You think you're some kind of princess?” Zero teases, and the word is just another reminder of Azrian. He’d give anything to be in bed joking with the love of his life. Zero must notice something in Kato’s face, because he makes his way closer with a sneer. “What’s wrong, K8.0? You miss your little princess?”
He’s close enough that Kato can smell him, and it disgusts him so much that before he realizes what he’s doing, he’s reaching through the bars to grip Zero’s tunic and pulling him forward as hard as he can so his head hits the metal with a deafening thud. Kato drops him as Six leaps to his feet and levitates Kato up on the ceiling again.
Kato actually laughs at the blood pouring down Zero’s face because he knows they don’t have another Sana here and no one can force Kato to heal him unless Syphon comes back. Zero will be in pain for a while, and it’s worth the broken arm he gets when Six slams him onto the floor.
His brothers disappear to go tend to Zero’s wounds, so Kato lays on the ground and tries to straighten his arm. He can hear Slait asking him if he’s okay, but the pain makes it impossible to speak — he has to pop it back in place so he can heal. Kato groans so loud it echoes around them as he shoves the bones where they belong and then slumps against the cold floor to catch his breath. Tears prickle his eyes for a multitude of reasons: he misses Az, his entire body hurts, his brothers are evil, and worst of all... he enjoyed what he just did more than he should have.
He needs out of this cell.
When he finally gets the strength to sit up, Slait looks relieved. “Thank Cettia you’re okay.”
Kato huffs a little bitterly. “Yes, let’s thank her.” He doesn’t have the right to be angry at the bright ball of light, but if something happens to Azrian while he’s in here, he’ll never forgive her. “That hurt,” he admits to Slait.
“Looked brutal. I could hear your bone snap in place, has it healed?” He grips the bars to watch Kato move it around.
They actually flinch together when he stretches it out, but he can feel the power within him doing its job. “It’s getting there, how are you feeling?”
Slait chuckles and rolls his eyes. “You just snapped your arm twice and you’re asking how I’m feeling? You’re something else, Kato.” He goes to listen to ensure they’re alone and then he closes his eyes to focus. “Let’s get out of this dump.”
The room begins to shake and when the ceiling cracks even more, they both look up and watch the dust fall around them. Excitement blossoms within them both and Slait loses focus for a moment, but he gets it back fairly quickly and the room begins to shake again — but this time, Six comes running into the room yelling at them. It all happens so quickly Kato almost misses it; Slait slams against the far wall so hard his head cracks and then he collapses to the floor, his body not moving.
“No!” Kato yells, shaking at the bars between them. “What have you done!”
“I told you guys to stop faeching around!” Six actually looks concerned as they stare at Slait’s limp body, but he shakes it off in an instant. “This is your fault.”
“Mine? You didn't have to slam him against the wall so hard!” When Kato sees the blood begin to pool around Slait’s head, panic travels up his spine and his shining green eyes become wild with desperation. “Slait! Six, let me in there.”
“No.”
“Six! Stop being such a canch and let me in there! I have to heal him!”
Six slowly backs away, his head shaking as he watches the fallen Terrare. “This is your fault. Not mine.”
“Fine! Fine... it’s my fault.” Kato doesn’t know when he began to cry, but his cheeks are soaked as he pleads, �
�Please let me fix it... it’s my fault. All of this is my fault... let me right my wrongs. Six! Please!” The door closes so hard it drowns out Kato’s scream as he collapses to his knees. “Slait... just hold on a little longer. We’ll get you help. Everything will be okay.” Deep down, Kato knows he’s talking to himself... because Slait is already gone.
ALEON’S TIRED WHEN he gets home from work — too tired to deal with the angry-looking avisim waiting for him on his porch. “What do you want?” he mumbles, stopping in front of the creature. It sticks out a thick, meaty arm and slowly uncurls its fingers to drop a crumpled letter on the ground. “That was rude.”
The avisim snorts and beats its large wings, but it doesn't do much other than mess with Aleon’s hair. He bends down with a sigh and snatches the parchment from the ground, then unfolds it and tries to straighten it out. As he reads the words, his heart sinks:
Syphon and Tripp attacked. They have Kato. We need his exact location — please hurry.
Azrian Mihr
“Shadows.” Aleon reads the words again and then meets the avisim’s eyes. “Why are you still here? Go. Shoo. Be gone.” He waves a hand to make the animal move, but he doesn't budge. “I don't have anything for you. I won't send them to their doom. Now get.”
With an angry screech, it takes off and smacks Aleon with its wing on its way past. He hisses, rubbing the side of his head and glaring at the disappearing creature until it’s out of sight, then pushes his way inside. Teagon isn't home yet which isn't rare, so Aleon simply starts to unwind and prepares dinner for the two of them. He makes enough to ensure that any of Teagon’s unannounced guests would have some too, but he’s pleasantly surprised when his brother shows up alone.
“What happened, are they fresh out of gullible people?” he jokes.
Teagon stabs a piece of meat with his fork and grunts an affirmative, then chews with his mouth open. “Yep,” he mumbles around the food. “Guess I'll have to try again tomorrow.”
“You're sick. Seriously.”
He ignores Teagon completely as they finish their food, but he doesn't seem to mind. The more time that passes, the more he wonders whether or not he made the wrong call by sending that avisim back empty-handed. He could've at least scribbled down Syphon’s location for them even though he doesn't want to get involved.
“Ale!”
He whips his head toward Teagon and tries to look innocent. “What?”
“Where’d you go?” Teagon asks. “I asked you a question and you might as well have been in Dawndrift for all the good it did.”
Aleon shrugs, not wanting to argue with his brother. “Just had a weird day. You know how it is. And, for the record, I was in Dawndrift today. Twice, actually. Once taking a little old lady that wanted to sell some crystals to an Oculare there and once to take a lady to see a play. I didn't stick around for the play.”
Teagon eyes him suspiciously. “Okay, what are you hiding from me? Did you play hooky? Finally go on a date with Riley? Did you steal something for the first time in your life?”
“Excuse me?” Aleon raises his eyebrows and crosses his arms defensively, but he blushes at the mention of Riley. “What makes you think any of that?”
“You never, ever tell me details about work unless you're hiding something. Whenever I ask you how it was or what you did, you blow off the question unless you're trying to distract me. It's your tell.”
Aleon scoffs. “I don't have a tell.”
“You do.”
“Get faeched,” he snaps, but there's no real heat behind the words. He passes Teagon to go into their living area, but Teag trips him and they tumble to the ground in the hallway. The more Aleon struggles to get away, the tighter Teagon’s grip becomes until the oaf manages to get himself completely on top of him.
“Tell me... what you're... hiding,” Teagon grunts out. A small smirk appears on Aleon’s face a split second before he vanishes, causing Teag to slam to the hard floor. “Stone it!” he yells, then gets to his feet. “Now I definitely know you're hiding something. Just tell me, Ale. How bad can it be?”
It's a lost cause and he knows it, so Aleon braces himself to get tackled again. “We got a letter today from Azrian,” he starts unhelpfully.
“Kato’s boyfriend? So what? What'd it say?”
“That Kato’s being held by Syphon, and apparently, Syphon attacked them,” he whispers under his breath. When Teagon just stares at him, he repeats himself a little louder, then takes a step back — just far enough to be out of Teagon’s reach. “So, basically, exactly what we said would happen if they got involved.”
“Why didn't you tell me the second I walked inside the door?” Teagon barks, his eyes full of confusion.
Aleon feigns ignorance. “What? Sorry, I didn't catch that. Did you ask me something?
“Stone it, Ale! Are you seriously going to sit here and tell me you don’t care about Kato?” Teagon walks closer to meet his gaze, but Aleon stands his ground.
“Don’t put that on me. You know I care about him, but you are my priority. You always have been. You might be two years older than me, but it's always just been us since Melior kicked us out of Deadrun. Even back then, Six, Tripp, Syph... they didn't want us. None of them did but Neena, and the last time we went head-to-head with Syphon, she died! I'm not prepared to go through that again for someone I barely know, especially because we warned him to stay away,” Aleon snaps. “So you don't get to sit here and poke me with your meaty, stupid finger.”
The mention of Neena has Teagon looking like Ale slapped him. It’s obvious he remembers that day just as clearly as he does. “And you’re willing to lose another sibling to Syph? If I had to guess, he took Kato’s powers and now Kato is either lost or—” he cuts himself off, not able to say what they’re both thinking. “If there’s even a chance to help, we have to try. If Kato isn’t there we’ll leave, but at least we can say we tried.”
“And what if you're right, huh? Say we get there and find out Syphon did steal Kato’s powers. I bet he didn't take the Sana powers, which means that we’ll be going up against a Cogitare version of Syphon. It'll be a miracle if either of us survive that, let alone Kato,” he argues, not willing to budge on this.
“And you’re going to sleep well tonight, knowing our little brother is in danger? The brother we just found? Because I can’t. I won’t sit here if there’s even a slim chance I can help. I’m going... with or without you.” Teag backs away and heads for the door. Aleon knows he’s the only Itinerae he knows, or at least the only one that can help him, but his stubborn brute of a brother walks out the door all the same.
Aleon nearly rips his hair right out of his skull as he fights a silent, internal battle, but it's a battle he loses before Teagon even hits the walkway. He teleports right in front of him and grabs his chin to hold his head in place. “Teagon. Listen to me... closely. We’re going to go to the Ruins. We’re going to get our brother and take him back to Embermeadow, and we’re going to do so without being seen. Do you understand me?”
Teag nods, relief visibly washing over him as he realizes he won’t have to do this alone. They’ve always had each other, and that isn’t going to end tonight. “Sounds easy enough.”
Against his better judgement, Aleon teleports back inside to grab Teagon’s favorite throwing knife, then walks back out and hands it to him. “Just in case. It upsets me to know that you'd do more damage with your own two hands than you will with this thing. If he tries to control you, aim for his throat. I will not lose anyone else I love to him.”
“I feel the same. We may not know Kato as well, but he’s our family. He let us stay there for weeks and we saw who he truly is. The world needs more people like him, Ale. We’ll save him together.”
With a sigh and a silent prayer to every god he can think of, Aleon grips his brother’s hand and jumps them to just outside Syphon’s place in the Ruins. He only knows where it is thanks to Zero and one particularly haphazardous trip to spy on the Venandi a
few years ago, but he's sure it's the place. Wherever Syphon goes, darkness follows, and this place feels like a vacuum that could easily suck someone dry. “Okay,” he whispers. “Quick and quiet. You figure the cells are below ground? Would Kato even be in the cells?”
“Yeah, probably.” Teagon grabs his hand. “We’re not close enough, get us inside, Ale!”
He’s being much too loud, his curls bouncing as he fidgets at Aleon’s side, and Ale has to shove him lightly. “Focus. I just said be quiet.”
“Stop wasting time. Just hop us inside!”
“Shadows,” he hisses, then jumps them one more time — landing directly before Six and Zero. “Oh. Hey, guys. Hate what you've done to the place,” he says quickly, then teleports behind them.
Zero closes his eyes as the room begins to swirl, and based on the gash on his head, he isn’t at the top of his game. Teagon is able to walk directly in front of him and lay him out with one punch, the room stilling as he collapses to the floor. He then rounds on Six, who’s currently lifting up a chair to launch at him.
Aleon doesn't stay to see what happens there — he teleports around every inch of the upper floor to make sure Syphon won't be sneaking up on them, and when he returns to the entryway, he finds Teagon spinning his throwing knife in his hand and laughing at Six. The chair is in splinters on the floor and Six's eyes are wide with fear, but Aleon doesn't feel an ounce of sympathy for him. “Teag, Syph and Tripp aren’t here, but we need to hurry.”
“You’re too late anyway,” Six rushes out. “Syph is already the most powerful Praediti in the world, especially now.”
Teagon flings his knife at him and when he lunges out of the way, he takes the opportunity to kick him in the face, knocking him out cold. “I’ll tie them up, go find our brother.”
