Title: Blood and Snowflakes
Warnings: Just about as A.U. as it gets...Based on what could have happened if Lady Nafia had been killed in Dragon Bone Valley and the twins encountered each other in Asheeda forest. Lots of violence, mental and physical torture, eventual yaoi and twincest ADULT MATERIAL!!!
Summary: Lady Nafia is killed by Drakyr and Kharg becomes somewhat...unbalanced.
A.N. I can only appologise for the horrible things I'm about to do to the characters, and trust me, it will be horrible. I came up with this five years ago and I'm using that as my excuse... I do it out of love, really I do. I just sometimes have a very unconventional way of showing my affection....also, the deimos and humans don't speak the same language in this...it just makes more sense that way

Disclaimer: the characters do not belong to me...it's probably just as well o_O I mke no profit from this

Kharg attempted to hide his impatience as he waited for Ganz to complete the repairs to the airship. Though he was feeling somewhat ambivalent about their forthcoming journey to the continent of Aldrow, he could not deny that the most prevalent emotion he was experiencing was excited anticipation. He felt a deep sense of love and commitment towards the country of his birth and was prepared to sacrifice anything for the good of his people, yet there was a part of him that could not help feeling somewhat...stifled.

There was a lot riding on his shoulders, he knew the people of Nidellia viewed him as their shining light, someone in whom they could trust to protect them and to continue to lead their country to greatness; he had felt this more acutely than ever since the tragic death of Lloyd, the former Commander of the Defence Corps and the closest thing he ever had to a father. He fully intended to embrace the responsibilities bestowed upon him and would do so with the grace and vigour expected of a member of the former royal family, yet sometimes he would catch himself wondering whether his thoughts were truly his own or merely the product of what others expected of him.

Pushing the uncomfortable thought away, Kharg glanced over at the mysterious stranger who had facilitated his opportunity to escape Nidellia and the stifling press of responsibilities it represented, at least for a little while. Although escorting this girl, Lilia, to the World Alliance in Cathena was yet another thing he felt obligated to do, not just because it was what his mother had requested but also because to leave her to continue her mission alone would have been wrong and unjust, this particular obligation held about it an air of excitement as it extended the promise of experiencing an exotic land he had never visited before, one that seemed so very far beyond the world he knew.

'How're the repairs coming?' He questioned Ganz as casually as he could.

'Almost done,' the large ex-mercenary responded without looking up.

'OK. Thanks again for doing this for us, we're really grateful,' Kharg smiled his practiced smile.

'Kharg!' Lilia called out from her position near the windows, 'isn't that Lady Nafia out there?'

'Hmm?' The former prince frowned, wondering if he had heard her correctly.

He knew his mother was familiar with the area, she had spent an unusual amount of time visiting Dragon Bone Valley when he was younger, but over the last few years her visits had seemed to dwindle away to nothing. He had thought this was due to the fact that the threat from the deimos was ever increasing and she had decided it was too dangerous to attempt the journey anymore, a sentiment that Kharg himself shared.

'I guess she must have come to see us off,' he mused aloud as he glanced out of the window and ascertained that the figure Lilia had seen was indeed his mother, 'I better go out there and say goodbye, I'll be back shortly.'

Turning his back on his companions, he quickly strode through the exit and into the biting cold of Dragon Bone Valley. Wrapping his arms around himself to keep off the chill and blinking furiously in an attempt to shift the snowflakes that had settled on his lashes, Kharg made his way towards the approaching figure of Lady Nafia.

'Mother,' Kharg greeted, a slight tone of concern colouring his voice, 'you didn't need to come all the way out here just to see us off. This is Drakyr territory, it isn't safe.'

'Don't worry about me,' she smiled warmly, dismissing her son's concerns, 'I know a route that even the Drakyr are unaware of.'

'Then how do you know about it?' the blond questioned, his curiosity piqued.

There was so much about his mother that he didn't know. On the one hand, she was the gentle, loving woman he had known all his life, the woman who had instructed him on how to live a just and valiant existence. Yet, the townspeople of Yewbell had often regaled him with stories of the strength and bravery she had displayed during her youth, even referring to her as the Warrior-Queen. There was also the added mystery of the journey she had been on before he was born, on which she had met his father and about which he knew almost nothing.

'Don't worry about that now,' Nafia brushed aside his question as she always did when she accidently let some intriguing particle of information slip, 'I just wanted to tell you...I wanted to let you know how proud I am of you, and how proud your father Windalf would have been if he could see you now.'

'My father?' the blond replied, his slightly perplexed expression quickly transmuting into one of shock. His mother rarely ever made mention of his father voluntarily.

'Yes, he would have been so proud of you, Kharg,' Nafia repeated, a wistful expression stealing across her face.

'Mother, I know it's still hard for you to think of him but...can't you tell me something about him, anything?' the former prince requested, taking his mother's hand.

'It's freezing and you have a duty to fulfil, this isn't the time or place,' she replied, averting her eyes.

'It's never the time or place,' Kharg turned away from her abruptly, attempting to avoid sounding petulant. It would be unseemly of him.

'Kharg, I promise, when you come back I'll...we'll talk then. I suppose you're old enough to know now.'

Eyes widening at the unexpected words, Kharg spun around to face his mother once more. It was then that he saw the small group of Drakyr descending from the sky behind her. The former prince had always found he was able to sense the presence of those around him, particularly hostile parties, and had discovered this to be invaluable to him during battle. He was mortified now that his senses had failed him, blanketed by the snow and the heightened emotions that the unexpected conversation with his mother had provoked in him. Taken off-guard as he was, the spell invoked by one of the Drakyr hit him with full force before he had the chance to react, sending him flying though the air and crashing to the ground some distance away, his breath wrenched painfully from his body.

Dazed, he looked up in time to see the small group of Drakyr descend on his mother, heard them making the rough, guttural noises that were, he supposed, the deimos' rudimentary form of communication before his mother fell to her knees.

'Get the hell away from her, deimos bastards!' he cried, pulling himself to his feet and drawing his sword.

Snarling viciously, Kharg launched himself at the band of deimos, his fury so intense that he was barely aware of what he was doing or that his companions were already making their hasty way towards him, ready to join in the fray. Lashing out fiercely with his sword, he effortlessly ran his first opponent through, crimson jets of blood splattering his face and clothes as he pulled his blade from the already dying body of the Drakyr.

He bought his weapon down in a swooping, deadly arc faster than his vision could keep up with and as his second opponent lay maimed on the floor, he thrust the blade through the fallen Drakyr's chest, ensuring its speedy elimination. One arrow, quickly followed by another, impaled itself in the third deimos' torso as Maru came into range, causing it to drop to its knees. Before he had even registered what he was doing, Kharg bought the finely-honed edge of his sword down once more with a blow that contained all of his strength, swiftly decapitating the Drakyr, its head flying off into the snow as the lifeless body dropped to the ground.

As he stood among the carnage, his eyes fell on the fallen form of Lady Nafia, her body curled in on itself, huddled on the frozen ground. It was then that he saw the bright crimson stain which stood out in such sharp contrast to the brilliant white of the snow on which she lay, a stain that was steadily growing as he watched. Rushing to her side, Kharg knelt beside his mother and pulled her into his arms.

'How badly are you hurt?' he questioned before shouting over his shoulder, 'Paulette, Maru, someone! I need help!'

'Kharg...' His mother spoke with difficulty, her voice coming out rasping and wet. Kharg felt the blood freeze in his veins at the sound and, looking down, saw exactly where the blood was coming from. A long and gaping wound ran the length of Lady Nafia's throat.

'No!' Kharg cried, wanting desperately to save her even as he realised that whatever he did now could never be enough.

'Your father...Windalf...Drakyr,' Lady Nafia gasped before slumping forwards, her body a dead weight in the former prince's arms.

As the last of his mother's life drained out of her, Kharg threw his head back as a loud, wrenching roar of pain tore through his body and echoed through the snow-smothered valley.

******

Kharg could not remember the journey back to Yewbell. He vaguely recalled Paulette crying and someone calling his name as they shook him by the shoulders, attempting to get him to stand and to release his grip on the rapidly cooling body of his mother, yet these things seemed strangely removed from him, as though they had happened to someone else and he had been watching them through a veil of thick fog.

Even the funeral seemed to pass him by in a blur. Following his initial display of fierce emotion in Dragon Bone Valley as he held the dying Lady Nafia in his arms, he had fought to contain his feelings inside himself, only too aware of the affect his mother's death would have on his people. She may have no longer held the title of Queen, but to the people of Nidellia that is what she was, and her brutal slaying had left the entire nation in mourning. They needed someone they could rely on and look up to, someone who could be their rock during this time of turmoil, and Kharg would rise to the challenge. It didn't matter that inside he was even more wretched and broken than the rest of them, he had been bought up to put the needs of others before his own and that is exactly what he would do; it was what his mother would have wanted.

As the crowds gradually drifted away and only the former prince and his four companions remained beside the freshly-dug grave, Kharg turned to them whilst pushing his dishevelled hair from his eyes.

'OK, I suggest we all get some rest. First thing tomorrow we're heading to Aldrow.'

'Kharg,' Lilia spoke softly, her voice filled with concern, 'It's been just twenty-four hours since...you don't have to do this. I've caused you so much trouble as it is, it would be better if I go to Cathena alone.'

'Don't be ridiculous,' Kharg retorted, his voice coming out harsher than he had intended, 'you need our help, I'm not about to turn my back on you now.'

'But Kharg...' the girl began again.

'Come on, it's been a long day,' the blond abruptly cut her off, 'I suggest you all make any necessary preparations now and get some sleep. We leave in the morning.'

With that he spun on his heal and headed out of the Castle Ruins, unaware of the troubled looks his friends cast towards his retreating form.

*****

The tense and subdued atmosphere that permeated the airship the following morning could not have been more different from their original gathering on Big Owl. The constantly falling snow had long since eradicated any traces of the bloodshed that had occurred just forty-eight hours previously, but Kharg had still been unable to suppress a shudder as he had passed the place where it had happened.

As they took off, the group steeped in morose silence, Kharg stared through the airship windows with dark and vacant eyes. Though he remained outwardly calm, the former prince felt as though he were being consumed from the inside out by the turbulent emotions that raged within him. His mother had always told him never to kill without good reason, that even deimos had a right to live and that he should always stay his hand until he was sure the situation was truly hostile, but after watching as she was slaughtered without the slightest hint of provocation so shortly after Lloyd had been killed defending those he loved, he found he could no longer abide by these rules. The deimos had destroyed the people who had meant the most to him and by killing his mother, they had also stolen any chance he had at ever knowing anything about his father.

'Kharg,' Paulette spoke gently, flinching slightly at the emptiness in his face as he turned towards her, 'what are you thinking about?'

'Before she died...the last words my mother said to me were my father's name and...and Drakyr,' Kharg spoke, turning back towards the window, 'she never told me exactly how my father died, only that it happened on their journey together, but after what she said...I think he must have been killed by Drakyr, too.'

'Oh, Kharg...' his childhood friend sighed.

'Your parents too, Paulette. They were both killed by deimos. We can't let them get away with this. I want to build a safe world for humans to live in and if that means another species must be destroyed in order to achieve it, so be it.'

Before the red-head had a chance to reply, the airship lurched violently to the side, throwing them both to the ground.

'Kharg! It's the Dilzweld! We've been hit!' Ganz called from his position beside the auto-pilot.

'How bad is it?' Kharg questioned in return, attempting to pull himself to his feet.

'It's not good...we're going down! Everyone, brace yourselves!'

Kharg moved to cover Paulette as they began to descend at a sickening speed. Almost before he had registered what was happening, the high-pitched screech of tortured metal filled the former prince's ears as Big Owl came to a bone-jarring halt.

'Is everyone ok?' Kharg called out as he climbed unsteadily to his feet, pulling Paulette up with him.

'I'm alright!' Maru responded, sounding shaken but unhurt.

'Me too,' Ganz' voice swiftly followed.

'Lilia?' The blond man glanced around, his dark eyes searching for the girl.

'I'm here!' she responded, gingerly picking herself up from the ground.

'Good. Ganz, do you have any idea where we are?'

'We were flying over Asheeda Forest when they hit us. Don't worry, we've reached Aldrow, though it'll be a bit of a hike to reach Cathena.'

'Ok, if no-one's injured I suggest we make a move. We need to neutralise the threat from Dilzweld as soon as possible. Humans shouldn't be fighting humans, we should be working together to eliminate the deimos.'

'Agreed. Let's go, but be warned, Asheeda Forest is likely to be teeming with a breed of deimos known as Orcons, disgusting creatures, but highly dangerous,' Ganz informed them.

'If we run into any, I can assure you, they won't live long enough to regret it,' Kharg spat, eyes blazing.

It seemed painfully obvious to him now that his people would never be safe as long as the deimos inhabited their world. The responsibility for protecting his country had fallen to him and he would accept it willingly. He silently vowed that he would not rest until every last trace of the deimos, particularly the Drakyr whom had caused him so much suffering, had been wiped from the face of the planet. As he headed towards the exit, thoughts of destruction filling his unquiet mind, he failed to take in the looks of frightened concern his friends were busy exchanging.