Author's Note: This chapter was inspired by Chronicles of Narnia music, Asian candy, and random trips to Michael's. Don't ask. It's time that we get into Charden's head! Are you ready? Don't worry if you don't understand him. I don't think he really understand himself either.
A Week in Tokyo
Chapter Fourteen: The Twins and the Atlantis Pendant
It was the evening after Charden had talked with his father about getting revenge on all of the people of Gaea using the Tarndulosk and Kebarean Pendant. Instead of heading straight to Egzardia like Charden had originally intended to do, he was paid a visit by someone he could have gone without seeing. The man had been summoned by Vlad to help Charden with his mission, which set him back a day because he had to prepare a second horse and pack extra provisions for the additional traveler.
Charden was still in a bad mood due to the orders his father had given him to steal the remaining Atlantis Pendants from Egzardia and Basram. He thought it would be a better idea if his father just let him invade the neighboring kingdoms with their family's personal army. Charden was confident that he could use his extensive knowledge of military warfare to pressure the rulers of the adjacent kingdoms to bend to their family's will by force. In his mind, all of his father's plotting didn't seem to be getting them anywhere.
However, Charden knew he would never convince his father to do something like that. His father was the type of man who was always thinking up schemes that were part of a larger strategy. Charden was rarely filled in on all of the details of Vlad's plans. At least this time Charden had some idea of what was going on, although he still didn't understand why his father didn't just send him to start a war with the neighboring kingdoms. Charden felt like it was pointless to keep taking all of these unnecessary precautions.
To say that Charden was frustrated with the orders his father had given him the night before would not be enough to describe the battlefield of emotions that was raging in his mind. All he knew was that somehow his father's personal vendetta with Fanelia had grown to be a personal vendetta with the entire world of Gaea. He didn't know the exact reason for his father's anger, but he guessed a lot of it had to do with the things he had been upset about long before he had become a member of the Fanelian Royal Council.
Charden and his family had originally come from Zaibach. His family lived in the palace of Emperor Dornkirk because his father had one of the highest positions in the Empire. Vladimir Kent was originally the Head Sorcerer for the Zaibach Empire and answered directly to Dornkirk during the Gaean War. He was responsible for inventing the liquid metal technology and upgraded Guymelef modifications that made the Empire as deadly as it was during that time. When the Allied World Forces had defeated Zaibach and reduced it to nothing more than a pile of rubble, Vladimir found himself without a job or a kingdom to live in. He moved his family to Fanelia because he heard that it had a wealth of energists in the surrounding valleys, which he needed for his scientific research.
Eventually, because of his family ties and wealth, Vladimir managed to become the head of the Fanelian Royal Council. He brought five war orphans with him to Fanelia. The five young men each came from wealthy families in Zaibach and Vlad raised them like they were his own family. When the boys came of age, he gave them high seats on the Fanelian Royal Council since he knew he could use them later on. They were the same five men who were expelled from the royal council for their loyalty to Vlad before Van and the others got transported to the Mystic Moon. Vlad sent the men to dispose of Van and his companions during their ill-fated hunting trip, knowing that the ex-council members would more than likely fail their mission and die at the young king's hands. The ex-council members were merely a distraction so Vlad could lure Van's hunting party to the shrine outside the city and transport them somewhere far away from either Fanelia or Asturia in order to prevent them from causing trouble for him later on.
During his office term, Vlad purchased the manor that he and his current family members lived in. The manor rested above the city of Fanelia on a grand cliff looming over the houses below. Vlad was living the life he was accustomed to while he was the Head Sorcerer of the Zaibach Empire. His house was filled to the brim with servants that waited on him hand and foot. He owned his own freestanding army and had legions of guards who stood at attention around his estate. His house was a regular fortress which was something that made the other council members nervous about during his time on the council, not that Vlad ever paid attention to their concerns and actually did anything about it.
For five years, Vlad had sat on the Fanelian Royal Council as the Head Council Member. While Charden was sure his father was attempting to find a way to put him on the Fanelian throne, it turned out that Vlad was using his position as the Head Council Member to distract the council while he worked on a lager plan that not only involved Fanelia but the entire world of Gaea.
When Vlad had worked as the head sorcerer of the Zaibach Empire, he had been interested in reconstructing the Tarndulosk because he saw it as more of a destructive device than the Atlantis Machine, which only granted wishes. Emperor Dornkirk was not interested in using the Atlantean technology for destruction so Vladimir's requests to build the machine had been declined. Charden knew that his father had wanted to rebuild the machine ever since he became the head of the Fanelian Royal Council. He also knew that part of the reason his father had brought him into this world was to help realize his dream of constructing the Tarndulosk, but beyond that, Charden had no idea what his father was planning.
Now, Charden's older brother Foruma had been summoned by their father to help him with his current mission and this little detail was playing on Charden's last nerve. Charden had insisted the previous evening that he wouldn't need any help, but Vlad had shot Charden a very serious glance in his direction when he caught up with his son in the manor's parlor. Vlad insisted that Foruma was more experienced than him in matters like these and that Charden had to bring him along if he expected to have his father's favor in future endeavors.
Foruma was very different than Charden. He was older by about two years and that small age difference made a big difference in his maturity level and his outlook on life. While Charden had golden blond hair and light blue eyes, Foruma had sandy blond hair and dark blue eyes. His skin was less pale and more natural looking in appearance. In some respects, Foruma resembled Folken from the kingdom of Fanelia in his features, just like Charden resembled Van.
Foruma was the calculating type like their father and never went ahead with a plan unless he was certain it worked through to the last detail. Charden was more the type of person who got an idea in his head and acted on it immediately, whether it was thought through all of the way or not. He figured he would work out the details along the way and most of the time he did because he was a very intelligent young man, despite his impulsiveness.
Foruma never seemed to be bothered by anything, or if he was, he wouldn't let anyone see that he was upset. He was an expert at masking his emotions and in all the years Charden had known him, he had never even him so much as smile. Charden on the other hand was bothered and annoyed by every little thing, from the servants bringing him the wrong breakfast item, to people not getting to a point in a conversation fast enough.
Part of this had to do with the fact that Charden's gift was reading people's minds. Since he usually knew what people were thinking before something came out of their mouths he didn't like waiting around for them to finish speaking. Their thoughts whispered to him and pointed him in the right direction before they had a chance to actually start talking, so when people kept running their mouths, it bothered him to no end. Couldn't they see that he already got the point? The only people who he couldn't read the thoughts of were his brother and father because they were both powerful spell casters in their own right and masked his abilities with their own.
Foruma's gift was telekinesis. He could levitate items of any size, which often came in handy for him in hand to hand combat if he happened to lose his sword or other fighting instrument. Foruma rarely used his gifts however, because he thought it was an unfair advantage over an opponent and insisted on winning a fight without using his abilities unless he absolutely had to. In his mind, fighting someone on equal ground was the honorable thing to do.
Charden thought his brother was very foolish for believing in something like giving an opponent a fair advantage in a fight, as he used his mind reading abilities whenever it suited him and didn't think twice whether it was the honorable thing to do or not.
Charden had a terrifying knack for robbing people's memories and playing with their minds since he had mastered the ability to delve into people's thoughts and retrieve information. He played around with his gift and realized that he could make people forget things, invent memories, and even control their thoughts if he concentrated hard enough. Foruma thought his brother's constant abuse of his abilities was irresponsible and often scolded him for playing with their servant's minds for his own amusement, but Charden blew of his brother's words and did as he pleased.
Charden and Foruma rarely saw eye to eye on anything and why their father wanted them to work together on their current mission was beyond him, but he wasn't going to argue over the matter. The truth was that Charden was terrified of his father. Vlad he had powers that neither he nor his brother could fathom. Charden would rather not invoke his father's wrath if he could help it. He knew that the fact that he was related to him would do little to curb his father's anger.
Vlad had killed their mother Escalina for questioning his position as the Head Sorcerer for the Zaibach Empire. In Vlad's mind, his wife's only purpose had been to give birth to his two sons and when her purpose was fulfilled he was not obligated to take care of her anymore. The day she had attempted to leave the palace out of disgust for what he had become, Vlad had called the Palace Executioner to cut off her head in front of his two sons.
Foruma had begged their father to spare Escalina's life and had earned himself a night in the palace dungeon as well as a beating from one of the palace prison guards. Charden didn't understand why Foruma cared. Their mother had defied their father in the most humiliating way possible, so he saw no reason why Vlad couldn't punish her for her treasonous actions. Charden stood beside his father that evening and watched in delight as Escalina's head was dislodged from its shoulders by the palace executioner and he even smiled a bit.
Vlad turned to his son after the execution and blasted him with a power bolt that he had been building up between his hands during the execution. Charden fell to the floor as his father stepped on his back as though he were a bug.
Vlad stared down at his son and said in a dark tone, "If you ever try to turn against me you will end up just like your mother. Foruma knows this too, so don't go asking your brother for help."
Vlad stepped off of his son's back and walked away without saying another word. Charden shakily pulled himself off of the floor and stared after his father with terror in his eyes. He had never dreamed of crossing his father, but any inclination he might have ever had of betraying him disappeared in that moment.
That didn't mean he had to agree with his father's current plan to take over Gaea or like the person he had to work with to see that the plan did not fail. He stood in the hall facing his brother with a large frown on his face. Foruma returned his stare in silence. Charden could tell that his brother wasn't thrilled about his father's idea to team them up any more than he was, but it wasn't like he had any choice in the matter. Foruma had a fear of Vlad that ran deeper than Charden's and he wasn't about to invoke their father's wrath by refusing to work with his brother.
Foruma was the first to break the silence as he walked forward, closing the distance between himself and Charden. He stopped when he was standing only a few feet away.
"It's been a while since the last time I had the pleasure of seeing my younger brother. I trust that father has been treating you well."
Charden took a step back dramatically and sneered. He wanted the physical distance between them to match the emotional distance he felt inside of him.
"We both know that father has always treated me better. That's because I follow his plans. You always try to calculate things so you don't hurt as many people along the way. I will never understand the way you think, Foruma. It always earns you the most dreadful punishments from father later on."
Foruma visibly stiffened as he recalled all of the punishments Vlad had given him over years, one of which had involved stretching him on the rack until every bone in his body had been pulled apart. Fortunately, his father had called a family healer who was able to use magic to piece him back together again, but it didn't make the experience any less horrible. He fought back the memories flooding over him like a suffocating wave long enough to relax his muscles and attempt to clear his mind. When he regained control of his emotions, he turned away from his brother with a look of disgust on his face.
"I guess that I am that type of person who values human life. I don't care what kind of punishments I get for helping others later on. The only thing that matters is that I carry out a mission leaving minimal damage in my wake. I wouldn't expect you to understand something like that. You play with people as though they are toys. I can see that after all of these years, you still have not grown a conscience."
Charden gave a small huff.
"Why would I? My temperament is what makes me father's favorite. Anyway, it's not like I can erase all of the crimes he's had me commit for him. I was born for the purpose of helping him build the Tarndulosk. Why can't you accept that too? It would earn you more of father's favor. It might even give you a shot at living when he has achieved his goal."
Foruma continued to look away from his brother as he spoke.
"And is that why you follow his orders? Because you want a chance to live? Personally, I wouldn't care if he killed me tomorrow. At least I would be reunited with our mother in the afterlife. I would no longer be subject to his control. But he won't be that kind to me. I've tried escaping that way many times in the past and he has made it clear that he needs me. He put an enchanted mark on my right arm which prevents me from doing any harm to myself. It's a pity, really. I've also tried defying him on more than one occasion, but eventually he grew tired of my rebellious streak and put an enchanted mark on my left arm that forces me to carry out his will whether I want to or not. Fortunately, the mark gives me leeway in terms of sparing people's lives, just as long as I get the main job taken care of. If you continue to be his favorite, maybe he'll spare you the trouble of bearing those curses but knowing him, he's probably subjected you to at least one of them."
Charden spat on the ground in front of him.
"What's it to you whether I have a mark or not? If you really want to know, I happen to have a mark on my left leg that keeps me from committing suicide but the reason father gave it to me isn't for the same reasons he gave it to you. He just put it there as a precaution. I think you are a fool for trying to take your life, Foruma. You will find the same hell in the afterlife as in the world of the living. Death doesn't bring people like you or me peace, it only brings eternal suffering. Now that you have told me about your pathetic life, things are coming together a bit. It's no wonder that father insisted that I get this mark put on me even though I assured him that I would never do anything that stupid. It was humiliating when he cast that spell on me like I was some patient in a mental institution. That's another thing I have to thank your insolence for."
Foruma gave Charden a kind of half smile. Part of his face was covered in shadows so it was hard to tell whether he was smiling all of the way or not, but Charden doubted it as Foruma rarely showed emotion.
"Anything for my dearest brother." He said, in a dark tone.
Charden turned away from Foruma. His brother was acting infuriating as usual. Charden could see that their conversation was getting them nowhere so he tried to move it along. After taking a moment to clear his mind he continued.
"Anyway, we have a mission to carry out. Hopefully you've thought of a plan and you didn't just summon me here to listen to you complain about our father"
Foruma didn't spare a look at his brother as he drew a map out of a satchel hanging at his side. He unfurled it slowly and pointed toward a forested area drawn on it.
"There is a power spot outside of Fanelia, located beside the trade route that leads to the beast man village of Arzas. Vlad left that power spot open intentionally for us to use. We will use the power spot to take us into the heart of the Egzardian royal palace. Father has lent me the Kebarean Pendant to help us use its energy to operate the power spot at the trade route. Once we are in the palace, we will search for the twin princesses Silha and Kolt Dravarion, who guard the Atlantis Pendant as one of their royal duties. All we have to do is whisper a mantra that will awaken their true identities. Once they realize who they are, the mantra will force them to serve our family's bloodline without question. They will willingly hand over the pendant and follow us back to Fanelia to be used by Vlad later on."
Charden grumbled.
"What good are too spoiled princess to us? Can't we just kill them and take the pendant by force?"
Foruma rolled the map up and placed it back in his satchel. He frowned, disgusted at his brother's need to spill blood wherever he conducted his business.
"Why are you so compelled to kill everyone you come into contact with? To be honest, I have no idea why Vlad wants them, but it's not my place to question his orders. I carry out whatever he asks of me whether he explains things to me or not. It's not like I have a choice in the matter. The mark inscribed on my left arm makes sure of that."
Charden turned back around to face his brother in protest but he found he was staring at empty space. Foruma had already started to walk toward the exit of their manor without him. Charden muttered a cuss word under his breath and ran after his brother until they were walking side by side. He stared at his brother darkly when he caught up with him.
"You could have told me you were going to leave. I can see this is going to be a very long trip."
Foruma didn't answer. He silently walked toward the horse stables which were built to the right of the manor courtyard. When he was inside, he mounted a white thoroughbred that had already been prepared for the journey. Charden followed his brother into the stables and mounted a brown mare that had also been prepared for him to ride earlier that day. The two exchanged hateful glances and then simultaneously hit the sides of their horses with their left feet. The horses reared up slightly and galloped out of the stables. The two men steered their mares toward the trade road in the distance with Foruma leading the way.
It only took about twenty minutes to reach the trade road from their family manor. When the two men reached their destination, Foruma immediately pulled the Kebarean Pendant out of his satchel.
He lifted it to eye level and said the words, "Mezel Metana."
All at once a pillar of light fell from the sky and engulfed their horses in a sea of light. They were lifted up into the light atop their horses and were instantly transported to the heart of the Egzardian royal palace. When the hooves of their mares touched the ground of the palace courtyard, the pillar of light broke onto a thousand miniature light orbs around them and then disappeared into the blackness of the night.
The two men dismounted and tied their horses to one of the trees in the courtyard.
When their horses were securely tied, Foruma closed his eyes and said the words, "Lebene Lostla."
The pendant glowed a shade of dark purple and their horses were made invisible to the people of the palace. Foruma and Charden were also made invisible with the same wish. Foruma turned to his brother, who the wish allowed him to see although no one else in the palace could.
"That wish should make us invisible to all of the people in the palace. Let's find the princesses, force them to hand over the pendant, and take them back with us before anyone notices that there is something out of the ordinary."
Charden nodded and the two made their way to a section of the palace which had a row of rooms lining the far right wall of a giant hallway. The two stopped when they were at the hallway entrance.
Foruma turned to his brother and said, "Now, this is where your mind reading abilities can help us. Use your power to discover which room the princesses are in. If you don't, we will waste time looking for them."
Charden grumbled.
"Like I needed YOU to tell me that. That's what I've been doing since I entered the place. Why do you think I led you down this hallway? You shouldn't underestimate me because I am younger."
Foruma gave a heavy sigh.
"I wasn't underestimating you. I was just making sure we were on the same page with things. If you've picked up on their thought patterns, then which room are they in? We need to hurry before someone notices something is amiss."
Charden pointed toward the third door in the hallway.
"They are in that room, but they are surrounded by eight palace servants, who apparently have been summoned to help them straighten up their room as they are expecting a visit from King Chid Zar Freid from the kingdom of Fried tomorrow morning. If we enter the room we will attract too much attention. We won't be able to sneak by that many people, whether we are invisible or not."
Foruma expelled a long sigh and rubbed his chin in thought. His brother had a point; they couldn't just walk through the door; it would look suspicious with that many people in the room. He was at a loss at what they should do momentarily but then he had a thought.
"You said there were servants in the room right? Eventually, those servants will have to leave to perform other duties throughout the palace. When they leave the room, we will rush past the open door and make our way inside. That way, nothing will seem out of place."
Charden pondered this and strained to read the thoughts of the servants. It so happened that the servants had just finished with the cleanup work and were moving toward the bedroom door to leave. The head servant was about to open the door to let her assistants out through it. Charden snapped out of his dazed state and grabbed his brother's arm, pulling it forward.
"It's a good idea but we have to act fast. The palace servants are leaving the room now."
Foruma nodded as Charden let go of his arm and the two men ran toward the third door in the hall. When the door flew open, the two men rushed inside. They made it through the open door with little trouble, much to their relief. When they were inside the room, they turned around in time to witness the serving girls leave the room one by one. The Head Servant waited until her assistants had left the room and then closed the bedroom door behind her.
When her assistants were assembled in the hallway, the two men heard the Head Servant instruct the girls to start setting up the dining room, from the other side of the wall. They listened as the group of young woman left down the palace corridor, talking about the chores they had to complete before King Chid of Freid arrived in the morning.
As the servants walked away from the bedroom door and headed off to perform their duties on the other end of the palace, the two men directed their attention to the center of the room where Silha and Kolt were sitting on their bed talking to one another. Silha had long silver hair and crystal blue eyes. Her skin was an olive color like most of the people in Egzardia. Kolt had a long gold hair, green eyes, and darker skin with an olive tint to it. The princesses looked identical except for their hair coloring, eye shade, and skin tone. Foruma watched as Silha turned to her sister and smiled mischievously.
"I bet you are excited that King Chid is coming to visit us. You've had a crush on him forever!"
Kolt threw a pillow in her sister's direction. Silha tried to catch it but she wasn't fast enough. It ended up hitting her square in the face. Kolt pouted from her end of the bed and pulled a second pillow to her chest.
"Shut up, Silha! So what if I like him? At least I have a crush on somebody. You never show an interest in anyone. It's like you're waiting for a prince who will never show up."
Silha removed the pillow from her face and tossed it back in her sister's direction. Kolt caught the pillow and placed it in her arm with the other one. Silha frowned.
"For your information, I am not waiting for anyone in particular. I just think dating is a waste of time. I'm too busy with my palace duties to take interest in something like that. You should take your palace duties more serious too. One day you will be the head of the Egzardian Royal Army and will help protect the kingdom from danger, while I will be the Crowned Princess. There won't be any time for crushes then."
Kolt whined.
"You always take the fun out of everything, Silha. I doubt our kingdom will be brought to its knees because I have a crush on someone. Lighten up a bit. If you do, maybe you'll find someone you like too."
Silha rolled her eyes and moved toward their shared vanity to pick out a comb to add to a braided section of her silver hair. Foruma saw this as the perfect opportunity to act.
He raised the Kebarean Pendant up and said the words, "Festminus Faren."
The moment Silha had grabbed the comb off the vanity's top surface she froze, holding the comb at eye level. Kolt loosened her grip on the pillows she was holding from her place on the bed and stared forward with a blank expression on her face.
Silha absent mindedly placed the comb in her hair after a moment of holding it in her hand and turned to face the invisible men in the room. Kolt placed the pillows at the front end of the bed and walked toward them. When they reached the place where Foruma and Chid were standing they kneeled respectfully before them.
From their place on the floor they said in unison, "We will serve the house of Vladimir Kent until we draw our last breath. What is thy master's bidding?"
Foruma looked at the girls with a hint of sadness in his eyes as held the pendant up and said the words, "Lebene Lostla."
The pendant momentarily glowed a dark shade of purple and then returned to its normal black color. The princess disappeared into the nothingness that Charden and Foruma were cloaked in. Now the princesses were invisible like they were and could see Foruma and Charden as clear as day. They no longer had to rely on their abilities to sense their presence. Foruma stepped forward and gestured for them to stand to their feet. The girls obeyed and were now standing at eye level to Foruma and his brother.
Charden had been watching all of this in amazement and was a little annoyed that his father hadn't given him the Kebarean Pendant to use during their mission, choosing his brother Foruma to bear it instead, but he tried not to think about that small detail too much. He had a mission to complete and his mind was completely focused on the task at hand. He would deal with his brother when they returned to the manor later on that evening.
He looked into Kolt's green eyes and asked, "Where is the Atlantis Pendant that the royal house of Egzardia protects?"
Kolt pointed towards her sister's chest.
"Silha wears the Jewel of Atlantis to mark her title as the Crowned Princess of Egzardia."
As if on cue, Silha took off the Atlantis Pendant that had previously been tucked into the collar of her dress and dangled it in front of her. Charden took the pendant from Silha's grasp. She handed it over to him without protest and watched serenely as he put it around his neck. Charden momentarily forgot about the harsh feelings he had toward Foruma for possessing the Kebarean Pendant. He had his own trinket now and there was nothing left for him to be jealous about. Foruma gave a dark smirk.
"Good, you are taking the Atlantis Pendant into your care. That is what father intended you to from the beginning. When we capture the Atlantis Pendant from the Basram historian, I will take ownership of it. Then I can return the Kebarean Pendant to our father. When we have the final Atlantis Pendant in our hands, we will be the only people on Gaea who possess the ancient power of Atlantis."
Charden was momentarily taken aback by the sudden piece of information his brother had shared. He was sure that his father had told him the previous evening to steal the Atlantis Pendants so he could dispose of them at a later date. He couldn't imagine why his father would have changed his mind about something like that without letting him in on the details, especially on such short notice. It just wasn't like his father to act on a sudden impulse; he was the type of man who meticulously worked out each of the steps of his plans to the very last detail.
Charden stared at Foruma with his mouth open in shock for a few moments and then gaped, "I thought that father wanted us to destroy the Atlantis Pendants when we brought them back to the manor. Why does he want us to hold on to them? I got the impression that he didn't feel comfortable having them around, especially since it is possible that an enemy could take the Atlantis Pendants into their possession and the power of Atlantis against us."
Foruma gave small, dark laugh that chilled Charden to the bone and then winked at his brother.
"You can thank me for that. When father summoned me to talk about our current mission, he brought up his intentions to destroy the Atlantis Pendant and I told him that I thought it would be a waste of resources. I talked him into letting you and I keep the Atlantis Pendants we would eventually possess after stealing them from Basram and Egzardia to use as weapons against our enemies. I also mentioned that it would be easier for us to have our own way of generating power spots, rather than having to borrow his pendant all of the time. After bringing up a few other things we could use the pendants for, he seemed to agree that the Atlantis Pendants had more useful applications than he had originally thought and agreed to let you and I keep them for ourselves."
Charden was a bit surprised that his brother would actually suggest something like that to their father and raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously.
"You never want anything to do with father's plans, so why would you attempt to help him with something like that? You must have some ulterior motive. I know that you wouldn't suggest something like that unless it benefited you in some way."
Foruma turned away from his brother and headed toward the door.
When he reached the front entrance of the room, he turned back to look at his brother and said, "That's of no concern to you. Just be grateful that you get to keep the Atlantis Pendant after our mission is over. Anyway, we need to get the princesses out of here before someone notices what we are doing. We don't have time to discuss trivial things like this right now. Tell the girls to follow us to the courtyard. I am putting you in charge of watching over them."
Foruma turned around and cautiously opened the front door to the princesses' room as Charden stared after him with a look of disgust on his face. Any shock he had previously been held under the spell of instantly wore off when his brother's ridiculous order had finally registered in his mind.
"Why do I have to watch after them? Aren't you better at things like this?" Charden spat as he gestured for the girls to follow him to the door and they did so without question.
Foruma walked the rest of the way through the door with Charden and the two princesses following behind. When everyone was out in the hall, Foruma walked past the group and shut the door as discretely as he could. The door closed smoothly without making a single noise. Foruma sighed a breath of relief and then turned to his brother with a dark smirk on his face.
"I figured something like this might teach you a thing or two about valuing human life. You can't kill them because father ordered you to bring them back alive. Maybe if you have someone like them to care for you will understand my willingness to help protect the innocent people father involves in his schemes. It might not affect you at all, but it is worth a try. At least you won't get in trouble for it. You are just performing the task father asked you to."
Charden muttered a few cuss words under his breath and didn't say anything else. He knew there was no point arguing with Foruma. Foruma wasn't the type of man you could reason with or talk sense into; he did what he wanted no matter what the consequences of his actions were. Foruma was waiting for a response and Charden just grunted. Foruma knew his brother well enough to know that it was a grunt of approval and kept moving forward when he was satisfied with his answer.
Charden tried not to let his brother's odd request get to him. He wouldn't have to deal with the princesses when they returned to their family manor, so it didn't make a difference who watched over them anyway. Charden took the girl's hands in each of his own and followed after his brother. The princess allowed him to pull them along without saying as much as a word in protest. The men had little difficulty leading the princesses to the courtyard where their horses were still tied to a Cherry Tree. They walked over to their horses and untied them as quietly as they could manage.
They were the only people in the courtyard so it was safe to talk at their normal voice level again.
Foruma pointed at the girls and said, "They are going to ride with you."
Charden gave his brother a look.
"Why can't one of them ride with you? I don't see why I have to carry both of them on my horse."
Foruma mounted his hose and then stared down at his brother from his place on top of it.
"If I did that, you would not learn anything. Besides, if you return to the palace carrying both of the princesses on your horse, father will get the impression that you did the majority of the work yourself, which will earn you even more favor with him. That's what you want, isn't it?"
Charden grumbled and turned towards the two princesses without answering his brother. He helped lift Kolt to the very front end of the saddle, and sat her sister behind her. Charden knew that he couldn't fit on the horse with them, so he took the reins in his hands and prepared to lead the horse forward with them once they reached the trade route.
Foruma lifted the pendant to eye level when he saw that the girls were mounted on the horse behind him and said the words, "Mezel Metana."
A pillar of light instantly fell from the sky and transported the group back to the trade route where they had begun their journey earlier that evening.
When the group touched down and the pillar of light dispersed, Foruma led his horse toward their manor in the distance a walking pace. Charden pulled the reigns of his horse and followed after his brother on foot with the two princesses sitting on top of his horse behind him. Charden knew that it would probably take a while to reach the manor going at their current speed, which put him in a sour mood. Foruma seemed to pick up on his brother's negative energy and gave a dark chuckle. Charden ignored it and continued to walk forward pulling the girls along with him.
Silha seemed to regain some of the memories that contained her personality on the way there and started talking to her sister Kolt. Charden was not worried. He knew that the spell awakened their true identities and they wouldn't have any recollection of their previous life. The only thing left were their personalities and their ambition to follow the bloodline of the Kent household no matter what. Silha stopped talking to her sister after a while and leaned over Kolt's shoulder to get a look at her captor.
She smiled and asked, "Where are you taking us, member of the house of Kent?"
Charden frowned. He inwardly hated his brother for giving him this task and shot him a dark look. Foruma didn't see it. He was faced forward on his horse and was leading it toward their manor in the distance in silence.
Charden gave a huff and replied, "We are taking you to your master. You will obey him and behave yourselves or there will be hell to pay. Do you understand?"
Silha nodded.
"Yes master. We will gladly serve the house of Kent. We wouldn't even think twice about betraying our master."
Charden gave another huff.
"Make sure you don't. You can ask Foruma all about what happens to people that try to cross our father."
Foruma muttered something under his breath but did not respond to his brother's comment.
Kolt leaned to the side of the horses head and piped in, "You are the sons of our master so we will serve you without question as well. You never have to worry about us turning against you either. We will loyally follow your every command."
Charden was amused by Kolt's determination to serve his family and was warming up a little to the idea of having a personal servant that followed his every command without having to mess with their minds.
"Well, just make sure that you do. I wouldn't want father to be angry with you."
Foruma smiled from his place atop the white thoroughbred. This was a good lesson for his brother. If he hung out with those two princesses long enough, he knew they could teach him a thing or two about human relationships, which was something that Charden knew little about, especially after watching their mother get killed in front of him at such a young age. Maybe it wouldn't be enough to change him, but at least it would set him on the right path.
It took about forty minutes to reach their family manor at walking speed. Along the way, Charden had really warmed up to the princesses. He even started talking to them about some of his hobbies, which surprised Foruma.
"I guess even a person like Charden doesn't want to be alone. He wants someone to reach out to. Although I get the feeling he is more excited about having loyal servants that won't ever try to cross him than making new friends." Foruma thought to himself, as he led the group in silence.
They stopped halfway through their journey to eat some of the food they had packed on their horses and drank some water. After taking their small break the group continued to the Kent family manor with the moon shining brightly in the sky above them. When the group reached the entrance of the manor courtyard, Foruma dismounted his horse and led it to the stables. Charden helped the princesses get off of his horse and gestured for them to follow him as he led his own horse through the stable doors. He placed his horse beside Foruma's inside the stall and watched as his brother drew the Kebarean Pendant up to his eye level again.
He said the words, "Lebene Lostla" and the cloak of invisibility was lifted from the group at once.
When the wish had been granted he turned to his brother and said, "You can deliver the princesses to our father on your own. Here's the Kebarean Pendant. You can give that back to him as well."
Foruma handed Charden the Kebarean Pendant. When his brother took it in his own hand he started to walk out of the stable.
Before Foruma disappeared out the door, Charden called after him, "What about you? Won't father be angry if you don't bring the princesses to him with me? You might earn yourself another evening in the torture chamber if you don't comply with his demands."
Foruma stopped at the entrance of the stables but did not turn around.
"Father wants me to start working on a plan to steal the Atlantis Pendant from Basram. He instructed me to start working on it as soon as we returned from our trip to Egzardia. He made it clear that he didn't want to see me when I returned. I have to carry out his orders whether I want to or not. Fortunately for you, you can deliver the princesses to him whenever it suits you. You aren't cursed to follow our father's every order like I am. Why don't you show them to the guest rooms at the end of the manor where they will be staying before you take them to meet with father? I'm sure they would appreciate the hospitality."
Before Charden could say anything in protest, Foruma continued walking out the stable door and disappeared into the shadows of the night. Charden was visibly annoyed as he gestured for the princesses to follow him out of the stable. The princesses followed after Charden as he led them to the front door of the mansion. Two guards were standing at attention near the front entrance of the family estate. When they saw Charden they immediately moved to the side and opened the double front doors that led to the front entrance of the estate. Charden instructed the guards to close the doors when they entered the manor and then led the princess to the section of the house that contained the first set guest rooms.
He gestured toward the door of the first guest room and said, "I think that this room will suit you. It has two beds and two washing areas. We usually put larger families in this room, but we haven't had any visitors in a while so I don't see why it couldn't be your room while you are staying with us."
The girls nodded excitedly and followed Charden as he showed them inside. It was a spacious room that contained two wide dressers, two armoires, to beds with canopy tops, two couches, two sitting chairs, multiple end tables, two writing desks, and two chests at the ends of each of the beds. There was a door to the side that led to an outdoor patio, and two doors at the end of the room that led to two separate wash rooms. The girls squealed with delight as they looked over everything. It was just like a room out of a fairy tale.
They thanked Charden for his generosity and he merely grunted in response. He decided it was time to take the princesses to his father after they had gotten a good look at everything, so he asked them to follow him to end of the manor where his father's private quarters were located. They obeyed and silently followed him as he turned a few corners and entered the long corridor which led to his father's room. The door to his father's room was open so he led the princesses in through it.
His father greeted Charden as he stepped inside. Vlad was at his desk writing a letter to someone but he stopped when he saw his son and the new additions to his plan that he had brought to him. He walked up to Charden and the two princesses with a wicked smile on his face.
"Excellent work, Charden! You managed to bring the princesses here successfully."
Vlad paused to get a look at the Atlantis Pendant hanging on Charden's neck and his evil smile widened in delight.
"And I see that you managed to bring the Atlantis Pendant here as well. I trust you had no trouble getting the princesses and the Atlantis Pendant out of the Egzardian palace?"
Charden handed the Kebarean Pendant that Foruma had given to him to Vlad, who took it in his hands.
As his father placed the pendant around his neck, Charden responded, "Of course not, father. That pendant came in real use for us. No one even noticed we had taken the princesses out of the palace. The whole thing ran like clockwork."
Vlad clapped his hands together in joy.
"This is perfect! Another piece of my plan is coming together flawlessly. I take it that Foruma has headed off to plan the next strategy for capturing the Atlantis Pendant in Basram?"
Charden nodded.
"Yes father. He set to work coming up with a plan as soon as we returned. He is probably working on it as we speak."
Vlad's smile dissipated as he thought about his oldest son.
"Well at least he is doing something useful. It's a pity that Foruma doesn't approve of my plans. I would use him to carry out more important tasks if he had my trust. His opinions are of little concern to me. Foruma has to obey whatever command I give him so at least he is of use to me that way. I still don't trust him to go on missions by himself. That is why I sent you with him to Egzardia. I knew he wouldn't blow me off if you went with him. Besides, I think he wanted to see his brother again."
Charden scoffed.
"More like he wanted to anger me beyond all reason. I really don't know why you keep him around. I know you have no reservations about killing someone who as insolent as he is."
Vlad gave a heavy sigh.
"Unfortunately, I can't kill your brother just yet. He is an integral part of my plan, so his life will be spared for the time being. That doesn't mean I haven't thought of it."
Charden felt his throat tighten. He knew his father wasn't talking out of frustration. He really meant to kill Foruma when the right opportunity presented itself. Charden wasn't quite sure what to say and there was an awkward silence between the two of them.
The silence was broken by Silha who asked, "Why have you summoned us to the palace, master? My sister and I want to serve you in any way we can. We'll even kill you eldest son for you if you want us to."
Vlad turned to his visitors with a dark smile.
"It warms my heart to know you are willing to do anything for me, but I don't need you to kill Foruma just yet. For now, I want you to serve Charden and Foruma to the best of your ability. Anything they ask you to do, I want you to carry out without question. Are we understood? An order given to you by either one of my sons is like receiving an order from me."
The two twins bowed in unison.
"Yes master. We will serve Charden and Foruma without question."
Vlad clapped his hands together in joy.
"That's excellent. Now all we have to do it find a room in the manor for you to stay in."
Kolt smiled.
"You don't have to worry about that, master. Charden already picked out a room for us. It is lovely, just like a room out of a fairytale."
Vlad looked over at his son and smiled at him approvingly.
"Good work, Charden. Now, I want you to lead the girls to their room and get them settled in for the night. I will call everyone together to discuss the plans for getting the Atlantis Pendant from the Basram historian with Foruma in the morning."
Charden nodded.
"As you wish, father."
He turned toward the two princesses and gestured for them to follow him out of the room. They waved goodbye to Vlad politely and then followed Charden out into the hallway. Charden dropped the girls off at their room shortly after and told them that they could ask any of the servants in the house for help if they needed it. They promised him that they would ask the servants for help if they needed it and then retired for the evening. Charden walked away from their room and headed towards his, which was located on the second floor of the manor, beside his brothers. He momentarily paused as he reached the front door of Foruma's sleeping chamber.
A part of him felt pity for his brother as he thought about what their father had said about him earlier. He wished that Foruma would just carry out their father's plans without resisting him all of the time. If he did, he wouldn't end up getting killed later. Charden shook himself out of his current state and walked toward his own room. He wasn't sure why he cared what happened to his brother and honestly it disturbed him that he felt things for his brother that he couldn't find a logical explanation for no matter how much he tried to find one. He couldn't understand why he had let himself feel any emotion for his brother at all as he walked through the door of his room absent mindedly.
The thoughts of his brother were instantly replaced with those of sleep when he glanced over the various furniture items in his room and paused when he found his bed. It had been a long day and how all he wanted was to get a good night's rest. He took off the multiple layers of his armor stacked on various regions of his body until only a white tunic and dark brown pants remained on his person. Then, he walked across the room until he stood at the side of his bed, pulled back the covers, and got in between the sheets. He closed his eyes and started to dream about the day his mother had been executed. His brother's face appeared out of nowhere and was stained with tears. The image of his brother crying played over in over in his mind in the few hours he was able to sleep. The dream was a memory he hadn't thought of in years and for the first time it weighed heavy on his heart.