This is my first try (well at least the first one I upload somewhere) to write an english fanfiction. English is not my native language so I apologize for any mistakes of any nature that you will most probably find. I don't have a beta reader so…I can only relay on my own knowlegde :')
But I still hope you have fun. I am always open for critic and suggestions for help :)
It can be read as Golbez x Kain, if read as a part of a series which I'll probably upload, too (don't know yet)but can also be read independently as with no explicit pairing
Cross-posted on Tumblr and AO3 (lilnerdjo)
"Cecil!", I screamed after him.
The rubble was falling around us, I had no hope of reaching him and the girl in time, or I would die, but it was useless if I wouldn't even try. I saw him fainting the girl not laying far from him…that's not good, they were in danger. I promised Rosa I would bring him back safely. I promised her…
I felt a rock hitting my shoulder and stumbled a bit, but didn't stop running. I couldn't…
'But without him…she would be yours…'
This made me stop… I looked around me only to notice that these words originated from my own thoughts. Again I looked at Cecil and started to think. If it wouldn't be for him…she would have long been mine…I could have her all to myself.
Blinking I shook my head, self-hatred rising inside of me. And just in time for me to avoid getting hit by a boulder twice my size. I had to jump back, away from Cecil and saw the mountain collapsing, me in between the rubbish and the rocks cutting me off from Cecil and the girl.
I looked up and saw another boulder falling straight towards me. I didn't have enough time to react and was hit. I heard something crack and fell down. Everything hurt…my vision went blurry and I felt blood running down my face. Slowly I slipped out of consciousness…everything went black…
"I am sorry master, that I couldn't kill them both."
"You are lucky he is not dead, you insolent fool! The dragon will become very useful to us…to me. And with this doubting dark knight gone no one will stand in my way."
"But I don't understand master-" –
"Of course you don't, how could you! If it should occur one more time that you don't do exactly as I wish or if you step out of line once more, thinking you had the right to think on your own, I will make sure you never think again at all!"
"Y-yes, master!"
"For that matter…the dark knight is gone, right? The boy's memories just showed him and the girl unconscious."
"Y-yes…I think…I will send out troops to Kaipo, to make sure, master!"
"You better, you fool! Or I will make you go to the desert yourself!"
_._._
I woke up with a start and looked around me. Groaning in pain I laid back down and held my head slightly. Everything hurt, and the light in this room was especially bad for my eyes and therefore my head. When I looked around again, slowly this time I noticed that nothing in this room was familiar to me.
The entire room was white and looked oddly aseptic. There were a few cabinets but I couldn't make out their content. There also were a few more beds in this room but they were unoccupied and neatly arranged. Maybe this was some kind of healing chamber, but it looked nothing like the one in Baron.
As I heard the door shift I looked in it's the direction and observed who would come inside. Who had saved me from my death or was I already dead and this was the afterlife? Not this was impossible, there is no such thing as the afterlife, when you die it's over.
A man clad in a dark armor entered the room, tall and threatening looking. Had he saved me? But I didn't knew him, never saw him before. Yet I felt an aura of dangerousness emitting from him at once. His armor was darker than Cecil's, darker than the darkness itself, at least it made that impression on me.
I felt his eyes on me, as I calmly observed him and he seemed to observe me as well. Wordless he stepped to my bed and looked down on me.
"I see you have awoken, dragoon.", his voice, deep and low, resonated loudly from the walls.
I didn't dare to say anything, so I just laid still. I knew better than to endanger me in front of this unfamiliar man. It was no help at all, that my armor and weapon were missing, and that I obviously was still injured.
"Tell me your name."; he demanded.
His voice left me no choice for argument, but I still didn't dare to say something. I didn't liked this situation one bit and the fact that his helmet was covering up his whole face, so that I couldn't even attempt to read him, didn't made it better.
A low laugh resonated from him.
"How rude of me to demand your name and not introduce myself. I am the one who saved your life to, young knight. My name is Golbez.", he introduced himself.
I felt a slight warm feeling rising up inside me, but didn't want it to show. He knew my rank but not my name. But that wasn't hard to guess from the look my armor.
"Kain…Kain Highwind.", I answered his question calmly.
At least I tried to sound calm, while all my insides were stirred up and I wasn't so sure by now if it was in a good way.
He nodded, arms crossing in front of his chest.
"Good, so you remember. How are you feeling?", he asked next.
So he had known my name after all. This was a surprise for me, because the more famous unit in Baron were the Red Wings, with Cecil as their captain. The dragoons had been degraded to a defensive unit after the invention of the air ships, rendering them almost useless in times of peace. But the same could be said for the Red Wings, I guess.
He was expecting another answer, I could feel as much, but I didn't know how to answer. Obviously I could move again, but my whole body was not acting in the way I was used to.
"Sore…", I just said.
I felt my throat clenching and aching, didn't want to speak to much to him. Something inside me screamed at me to run, but then something else told me to stay and watch the matters unfold. It was the same feeling that made me think these thoughts back then…the ones of abandoning Cecil…
Cecil! I had to find him, I had to make sure he and the girl were alright, I had to get Rosa and run away, fight against the king…at least this was what we had agreed to.
Golbez, as he introduced himself, seemed to notice my slight shift in behaviour and simply placed a hand on my shoulder.
I felt something stream inside of me, filling me up with hatred…darkness. No…it wasn't filling me…these feelings were all mine, it just brought them forth. Brought forth what I had long locked up.
"Do you really care about the one who abandoned you? He didn't even try to search for you.", he said, no whispered.
I averted my eyes to the ceiling. He didn't care…he never cared particularly much about anything but his own safety. This was probably the only reason he had befriended me back then. I always had been quick to beat him up as a child, like all the other children, but as soon as I became his friend, nobody dared to step up to him, afraid of what punishment I would give them.
He was safe from this very moment on. He took Rosa from me too, when I so obviously showed interest in her, even talked to him about it. I thought I could trust him, because he always dubbed himself my best friend but not long after I revealed my feeling for Rosa to him, he showered her with affection and attention. He took her from me.
"No…", I answered.
Everything was Cecil's fault. If he didn't question the intentions of the king I wouldn't have had to step in to safe his sorry ass once again. The king would never have send us to the Mist Village. The king surely had had his reasons to destroy the village, probably he had thought of them as a threat. And thinking of it, maybe they had been a threat. People that mighty living unsupervised could always become a threat to the peace.
As if he could read my thoughts he squeezed my shoulder a bit.
"Exactly. And to make sure the peace prevails we have to gather the crystals. They are in danger of being abused by the countries that are holding on to them, I can feel it through their magic powers. The king of Baron had assured me his kingdoms assistance to gather and secure them.", he explained to me.
Again I looked up to him and he withdrew from me. Make sure the peace prevails? The crystals were in danger of being abused? It would make sense why Cecil had been ordered to get Water Crystal from Mysidia.
He said he felt it from their magic powers. He didn't look like a mage but this obviously must mean that he is a mage.
"I see…", I just said trying to see at least a tiny bit reaction from him.
He nodded and looked away from me.
"The king must have withhold this information from you to ensure that none of you falls in panic. But with your friend having gone rogue we could have a problem. If he warns the remaining kingdoms they will be on their guard.", he explained further.
Of course…if they want to abuse the powers of the crystals they would make sure that no one takes them from them. And Cecil with his false interpretation of justice will ensure it for them that they stay at their place.
"The king of Baron had praised you in every way possible Kain, so I would like to seek your assistance as well. I am not indebting you to me, it was my pure adoration for your strategic intellect and strength that made me safe you from that collapsing mountain, but it would be really helpful to me, if you could ensure me your assistance, too.", he finished his little speech.
Adoration for my skills? Never had anyone said that to me…never had anyone praised my skills, is he really saying that the king praised me more than Cecil? He wanted my help to make sure the world peace holds on…And even if he is saying that he is not indebting myself to him, I feel like I have to repay him.
If it hadn't been for him I would now be dead and that with the false assumption that the King of Baron, who had taken me in like his own son after my father had died, was doing wrongs. I owed my life to him and I would give it to him…to him only.
"It would go against my honor to repay you with anything less than what you have granted me, My Lord. For having saved me from a sure death I owe you my life and will give nothing less to you. I would already be gone if it hadn't been for your interference. So you can command over me like you want and I will fulfill your wishes as my orders.", I told him.
Now I got a reaction from him, he seemed slightly surprised but I wasn't sure if it was because of the meaning of my words or if it was because of the quantity of them. Again he nodded and turned away from me.
"I am glad to hear that, Kain and I hope I will not let you down. Together we can ensure that the peace in this world will continue to stand. But for now rest, I need you at your best condition.", he said calmly and folded his arms behind his back.
Again I felt magic flowing inside of me and almost surprising me because of it's intensity. The dark magic lulled me into sleep, showing me the vow I have just thoughtlessly made again and again. I have forfeited my loyalty to Baron and have given it to him. But did I really forfeit it, if Baron has ensured the assistance of it's army to him? Or did the king already see me as a traitor because of my actions? Did he maybe save my life again with making me swear allegiance to him?
All these thoughts, these questions were resonating in my head, but one thing was clear to me.
I would serve him as his soldier, as his dragon…I would be his to command…
Only his…
