Chapter - 13

Although tempting, something he had even considered, Kai knew saying yes would come with consequences. Kara had been kind with her invite for him to stay at her place, which he politely refused, surprising himself. Stupid Mon-El and his stupid feelings had messed up with Kai's and all the older twin wanted was for these sudden, unnecessary feelings to disappear.

He stayed back at the DEO, in the little hellhole as he had termed the room he was sharing with Mon-El. He stayed by his brother's side the entire evening. But when Winn and Kara asked him to join them for dinner at the cafeteria, he didn't refuse.

Kai went back to his room after the dinner, which had been a quiet affair since he wasn't in a mood to talk or even joke. Removing his jacket and the t-shirt he wore, Kai undid his jeans and fell on the bed. Blood bonds performed between siblings usually didn't have a lasting effect, but since Mon-El was in a coma, Kai knew his brother would barely feel any different. That is, if he forgets about all the sudden powers he had gotten.

Closing his eyes, Kai drifted back to the time they first performed a blood bond. Oh, what a big cheat they had done that day!

5 years before the fall of Daxam

Kai was pacing his room; furiously yelling at Hal-An to take away the woman he had taken to bed the previous night. He didn't like them sleeping on his bed. Once he was done with them, he expected them to leave. But this one dared to stay and hinted on becoming his Queen someday.

"Take her to Acrine," Kai barked an order. "She is not to set a foot into this town ever again. Do you hear me, Hal-An? GET HER OUT!"

Hal-An nodded and bowed a little. "Yes, Your Majesty. It will be done as you wish." He then turned towards the girl who was huffing and walking out of the room. Sighing, he followed her out.

The blood bond of Val-Or with his future bride had happened last month. He was turning twenty next week and the final task to claim the throne was nearing.

Daxam followed great many traditions. And for the Crown Prince to claim his rightful place as the next King, there were tasks the Prince had to go through. The first happened two weeks ago. It was a combat he had won with ease. The second was last week, brewing a potion of the Elixir of Life. A potion many failed to brew since it was not easy to master in a short time. But he had a great teacher, Zak-Dar. The alchemist was proud when Kai brewed the potion excellently. Though the portion was little, it fit a small vial, and Kai got to keep it.

When he returned to the castle that day, he found Mon-El in the astronomy tower their father had built for his youngest.

"I heard you brewed an excellent potion," Mon-El called, without turning back.

Kai smirked, leaning against the wall, watching his brother observe something through the telescope. "How do you always know it's me?"

Mon-El shrugged, finally turning around. "You are my brother, Kai. I will always know it's you."

Moving towards Mon-El, Kai handed over the vial to him. "What's this?" Mon-El asked in surprise. "Not the Elixir of Life, I hope."

"That is right. It's the same one I brewed for the task. I want you to have it."

Mon-El shook his head. "Thank you, brother. But I cannot accept it. You brewed it. You earned it."

"Mon, you are the reckless idiot who runs off searching for adventures! Did you forget that time you disappeared and Aermy came back to find me and I followed her to find you in the middle of the desert, almost dying of dehydration! Don't be a fool. Accept it."

"But, Kai-El—"

"As your Crown Prince, I command you to take the vial, Mon-El." Kai's voice was stern. He rarely used this tone on Mon-El but sometimes his brother was just so stubborn.

Mon-El nodded without a word, he took the vial from Kai with a quick thanks and pocketed it. Smiling, Kai pulled him into a hug and patted his back. As long as Mon-El was safe, he knew he would be okay too.

Back to the present, Kai was still fuming as he got dressed. The varlet held the cloak out for him. It was rather chilly outside, and Kai found out that Mon-El was once again hanging out near the gardens. Giving the varlet a quick nod, Kai walked out of his room. He headed downstairs and saw Mon-El talking to Hal-An about some girl.

Hal-An stood up straight and bowed when he saw Kai. Mon-El simply greeted his brother with a bright smile.

Kai looked at Hal-An and spoke, "Give me a minute alone with my brother, will you? And has she been taken to Acrine?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. She is to never return as per your orders," Hal-An replied.

"Very well. You may leave us now." Kai turned around and grabbed Mon-El's arm and dragged him into the gardens.

"Brother, is everything alright?" Mon-El asked. Once they were out of earshot, he let out a small chuckle, making Kai frown at him. "I heard you woke up to some drama. Who was she?"

"Mon, do you think I bother to ask their names? They all look the same to me. This one… she was feisty, so I took her to bed. But the nerve of her!"

"It's been a month since you were bonded to your future bride," Mon-El started. "Isn't it the right time to stop all this?"

"Stop what? Seeking pleasure?" Kai's eyes narrowed at him. "Are you even listening to yourself? I take the throne when we turn thirty, which means I have to wait for another ten years to be married to my bride. Do you expect me to abstain for ten years, Mon-El?"

"There is nothing wrong in abstinence."

"Easy for you to say, you virgin!" Kai shot at him, making Mon-El wince slightly. "In a planet of hedonists, where did you come from, Saint Mon-El?"

"I'm only saving myself for the right one."

Kai laughed and went to sit near a fountain. "There's no such thing as a right one, Mon. And seeking pleasure is your right. Why do you fight it?"

"I just don't feel comfortable taking any girl to my bed, Kai," Mon-El confessed. "I know you think I'm old-fashioned, but I want to be in a relationship."

"Is that why you want to leave Daxam? Because you think you won't find your 'right one' here?"

"I know there are many beautiful women here who want to be with me. But why? Only because of my title. I am a prince and that's all they need. They don't want me for who I am."

"Why do you take a simple situation and complicate it, Mon? I'm sure there must be some woman who will take you for you. But women like that are rare. The ones who don't judge you. The ones who don't love you because of your title. Well, there's a hope you might meet someone when I finally marry that Kryptonian."

Mon-El raised a single brow. "Why is that?"

"Well, the marriage will surely mend ties between our planets and you might find a mate in a Kryptonian." Kai shrugged. Mon-El was quiet, contemplating his brother's words that he failed to notice Hal-An running towards them till his friend was actually standing in front of him.

"What is it?" Kai asked, seeing Hal-An wipe the perspiration off his face.

"Your Majesty, they have changed the final task," Hal-An replied, looking tense.

Kai's brows furrowed. "What do you mean by 'changed'?"

"It's not horse riding, Your Majesty. It's dragon riding."

Kai's face fell. Dragon riding? As the final task for him to claim the throne? There was no way he would succeed. Kai stood up, frowning. "Who dared to change the task?" he demanded.

Hal-An's eyes drifted to Mon-El, who stood by his brother's side quietly. "Your Majesty, it was her Majesty Queen Rhea's decision."

Kai cursed under his breath and turned away before furiously marching towards the castle. Mon-El's eyes widened. It was never a good sign when Kai was angry. He still didn't understand why his mother wanted the task to be changed last minute, but she was the Queen, she had the right to.

Mon-El ran after Kai and grabbed his arm before he marched into the Great Hall. Mon-El then dragged his brother towards the small door that led to the Astronomy tower. Kai was still huffing and grumbling about how unfair their mother was that he didn't notice where his brother was dragging him off to. There was a broom cupboard a floor below the observatory. Mon-El often hid himself from Val-Zee when the latter started pissing him off by asking him to stop spending all his free time at the Astronomy tower.

"Where are we?" Kai asked, finally looking around. The place, kind of small to his liking, was pleasantly cozy. Kai took a seat by the window and looked out to see the vast land that stretched ahead and the now darkening sky, showing Krypton in all its glory. "You can see Krypton from here."

"Yes. But Kai, this is not why I have brought you here. No one knows I come here. So our conversation will be safe from prying ears. The next task, dragon riding, what are you going to do?"

"I have had my doubts on Rhea for a while now," Kai spoke, making Mon-El wince slightly when he used their mother's name. "She doesn't want me to be King. She knows I don't like riding dragons, so she went out of her way to make sure that was the final task."

"Kai, you have to do this. We all want you to be King. Can't you just practice for the task? You have five days, and Aermy is really easy to control."

"No, Mon. You know very well dragons scare me! Aermy might be a big, blue ball of fluff for you; but for me, she's a real, fire breathing dragon!"

Mon-El became quiet. He started pacing the small room, scratching his chin lightly. When he finally stopped, Kai looked up to see him smiling. "There's a way," Mon-El muttered. "But it means breaking a lot of rules, literally cheating to make sure you win."

Kai rolled his eyes at him. "As if I have not cheated before! What is it?"

"A blood bond of Val-Or."

"Why do you jest, brother?" Kai smirked. "You cannot be my mate!"

Mon-El laughed and shook his head. "Blood bonds are not exclusively for mating. Think harder, you know what I'm talking about."

Kai sat quietly; trying to think of the bond Mon-El was talking about. That's when it hit him. Siblings could bond using blood, temporarily exchanging their knowledge and feelings. The bond worked even better for twins. "You want to perform a blood bond so I get your knowledge of dragon riding and your sense of comfort around the dragons?"

"The effect lasts for seven whole days if done right, even if it's not, three days at the most. I can go look around the library and find the spell to use." Mon-El turned around to leave, but Kai stopped him by grabbing his arm.

"You know what this means, right? If I get your gen, you get mine. You do not want to have my feelings, Mon-El. They will only make you uncomfortable."

Mon-El gave Kai a sad smile. "To ensure you become my King, I would happily die for you, Kai-El. A blood bond is nothing… We will do it the night before the task, right here. I hope that would give me enough time to go find that spell." Mon-El was about to open the door when he turned around, "And Kai? I want this to be a secret. A secret that dies with us."

Kai nodded before giving his brother a grateful smile.

A/N: Daxam flashbacks begin now. Yay! You will get a really good glimpse into the lives of the brothers now.

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