Chapter 2: The Ways of Arthdal

She didn't notice it before.

Benetbeots. Eunseom and Saya were identical twins, from the size of their hands to the shape of their ears to the curve of their lips. When she had first met Saya, and even weeks and months after, she had still seen Eunseom in Saya's face. At times, when she had looked into Saya's eyes, she would hope that he suddenly laughed out loud and said, "Tanya, it's me, Eunseom. It was me all along. Sorry for making a fool out of you." That was how much alike they looked.

Or so she had thought. Saya was gone and Eunseom was here now, lying in Saya's bed. He was wrapped in bandages, not even his hair visible beneath them. There would be no telling them apart like this. But she didn't see Saya. She saw Eunseom only.

How didn't she notice it before? How didn't she notice it the last few weeks she had been tending to him? There was a tiny mole right beside Eunseom's right eye that Saya didn't have. Eunseom's skin tone was darker than Saya's, kissed by Iark's sun. He had a faded scar on the side of his face from when he had been stupid enough to pick up a fight with a wolf back in Iark. She knew he had many other scars like this from tumbling around the hills and fields of their beloved home. But even more than these little details, it was his overall demeanor. The way his eye twitched when he was annoyed, the way he pouted his mouth and furrowed his brows when he was sad. He looked completely different from Saya, and if she noticed, others would too.

Tagon would.

So, as Tagon strode into the room, his eyes trained on Eunseom's form in the bed, Tanya felt as powerless as she had on the day her life had fallen apart. For a fleeting moment, she was back to being that girl, watching how her brothers and sisters were slain and their home was set aflame by the men who had come from the Great Black Cliff. If Tagon found out that the man lying in the bed wasn't Saya but Eunseom, she didn't know what would happen, but it would probably end in Eunseom's death.

As if things couldn't get any worse, Eunseom was awake. He had been fast asleep just a moment ago, but Tagon's entry must have roused him. Maybe Tagon could be fooled into believing Eunseom was Saya when Eunseom was asleep, but not with him awake.

Frozen to the spot, Tanya held her breath as she watched them.

Tagon sat down on a chair next to Eunseom, the wood creaking beneath him. Eunseom's expression was something between incredulous and horrified, and in any other situation, Tanya would laugh at how funny it looked. Not now though, and she hoped Tagon wrote Eunseom's behavior off to Saya being in pain because of his injuries.

"You've been through a lot," said Tagon, looking down at Eunseom. "How do you feel, son? What news do you bring?"

Eunseom's breathing was labored. His good hand was clutching the blanket covering his legs in a painful-looking hold, like he was holding back on strangling Tagon right here and now. His current state thankfully prohibited it anyway; when he had been conscious yesterday, he could barely even lift his arm.

Tanya knew she couldn't rely on Eunseom to deal with Tagon on his own. It was likely that he was missing crucial information. Did he even know that he had a benetbeot in Arthdal? And that his twin was Tagon's alleged son?

This was bad. Tanya had to act now, or this would go downhill quickly.

"Are you quite all right?" asked Tagon when Eunseom didn't answer.

Before Eunseom could reply and let something slip, Tanya decided to swallow down her panic and take charge of the situation. She cleared her throat and sat down on the other side of the bed, trying to make Eunseom look at her instead of Tagon. "Listen, Saya," she told Eunseom, emphasizing Saya's name. "I know you don't remember, but this is King Tagon. He's your father." She felt sick saying it.

Eunseom gave her a perplexed look. She ignored it.

She then looked up at Tagon. "I was hoping I didn't have to break the news to you yet, as I still wished for a wonder to happen." She faked an unhappy sigh, hoping it sounded believable. "Saya doesn't remember anything. The doctor you kindly sent for him said his head injury is severe. That must be the cause." She held Tagon's gaze, trying not to show any hint of unease.

It was a good thing Tanya had become accustomed to lying as was the ways of the people of Arthdal. The helpless girl she was before couldn't have pulled this off.

Since yesterday when she had found out that the man who had been brought back from the war and had been recovering in the Fortress of Fire for the past weeks wasn't Saya but her childhood friend, she had wracked her brain for a plan to protect him. This was what she had come up with. But that plan included bringing Eunseom into the loop before he'd encounter anyone from Arthdal, let alone Tagon of all people.

Sorry, Eunseom.

She went on, still holding Tagon's gaze, "Saya is very confused right now. I fear speaking to him about the war is of no use." She took Eunseom's hand and squeezed it, hoping to convey her apology for talking about him as if he wasn't right in his head.

She watched him out of the corner of her eyes and could see something like understanding in his expression. She hoped that meant he'd keep quiet for the remainder of Tagon's visit.

Tagon scrutinized Eunseom. "He doesn't remember?"

Tanya nodded.

"Is that so?" said Tagon, still looking Eunseom up and down. After a while, he hummed, as if he was amused by the news more than anything. "That's unfortunate, although it's no surprise he didn't last the war." Tagon looked at Eunseom with a disdainful smile. "I knew Saya wasn't made for the battlefield and here's the proof."

Then why did you send him to war, to begin with? Tanya wanted to ask, but she held back.

Tagon continued watching Eunseom for a few more moments. Then, as if there was nothing more to talk about—now that it was clear Tagon couldn't draw any useful information about the war happenings out of Saya—he stood to leave. "Well, as you know, I'm busy with our baby just born and nation matters to attend to," he told Tanya. "Keep me informed about any changes." He went to leave the room, not sparing Eunseom another glance.

The moment Tagon turned his back to Tanya, she no longer could suppress the grin spreading over her face. Her plan was a success. Tanya, you've managed to see through the minds of the people of Arthdal. They, and Tagon in particular, were all the same. If someone was weak and useless in their eyes, they lost interest—even if it were their own family. Although she felt sorry for Saya—because who deserved such a family?—right now her top priority was to make Eunseom look as uninteresting as possible to Tagon.

The door fell shut. Tanya listened to Tagon's steps until they had died away and the room was blanketed in quiet except for Eunseom's unsteady breathing. Only now did she dare look him in the eyes. If she'd done so any earlier, her conscience would have gotten the better of her.

Eunseom looked tired and in pain, but also confused. "What was that?" he asked, and to Tanya's ears, it sounded like judgment.

A confused feeling, something akin to shame stirred in her. Just now Eunseom had witnessed the kind of person she had become in Arthdal: a betrayer to the teachings of the Wahan Tribe. Yes, she, the next Great Mother of the Wahans, had become a liar, a schemer, someone trying to outsmart and manipulate others, and not even batting an eye whilst doing so—even if it was to protect what was dear to her. This was the way of survival in Arthdal and she had chosen this path to fight back. She was fine with everyone seeing her like this. Or was she?

Tanya mentally shook her head at her thoughts. This was not the time. She needed to clear things up with Eunseom. "I'm sorry for what happened earlier," she said, really meaning it because she had never intended for things to go this way without letting him in on her plan first, "but I couldn't let Tagon find out who you are."

"Don't worry," said Eunseom, and he gave her one of his small, warm smiles. "I caught on to that." The sincerity made her feel a surge of relief.

"But…" said Eunseom, the smile fading. "Tagon thinks I'm his son? What the hell? What name did you call me earlier?"

So, he didn't know about Saya.

"Right," said Tanya. "About that…" This was going to be a long talk and she didn't even know where to start.

Eunseom yawned, then winced in pain. Was he even up for this in his current condition? Tanya studied him. He looked close to nodding off again, his eyes barely open. Tanya had to remind herself that he had been close to death and had only woken up yesterday. Recovery took time.

She once more squeezed his wrist gently. "I'll tell you everything eventually, Eunseom," she said. "But for now, I need you to promise me something."

"Promise you what?"

"Promise me that you'll act like you don't remember anything, not even your name. Can you do that for me?" she asked, searching his eyes for understanding. She added, "Absolutely no one must find out who you are." After all, Eunseom was known as a criminal in Arthdal, as the murderer of Sanung Niruha. Tanya didn't want to imagine the consequences if his identity would be discovered.

"I get it," he said. "Look, I don't know what's going on or how I even ended up here, but I do know how this place works and..." He trailed off as another yawn interrupted him, then smiled up at her. "I'll be careful, so don't worry." He closed his eyes, seemingly unable to keep them open any longer. "Sorry, 'm tired."

Tanya returned his smile, infected by Eunseom's optimism. She fixed the blanket, draping it up to his chest. "It's okay, go back to sleep."

For a while, Tanya watched Eunseom's sleeping form, still unable to believe that it was him lying in that bed and not Saya. She tried to remember the last time she'd seen him, that day on the fields of Iark when she had cast a spell on him and named him Dream. It seemed like a lifetime ago, with all that had happened in between.

Arthdal had changed her, and she wondered if Eunseom had changed, too. Was he still the same impulsive, kindhearted boy? Through the bits and pieces Chaeeun and Seucheon had told her, she had heard enough to know that Eunseom had experienced one horrible thing after another since he came to Arthdal. Many moon cycles ago, though, news about him had stopped coming, leaving her clueless about his wellbeing. And now, for some unexplainable reason, he was here, sent back to Arthdal from war instead of Saya. Did he fight in the war? On which side? Had he been simply mistaken for Saya or was there more to it?

Seeing him like this, swathed in bandages and looking much too vulnerable for her liking, she swore to herself that she would protect him, the same way he had protected the Wahans when they had first arrived in Arthdal and had been helpless. Now it was her turn. Now that he was in her reach, she wouldn't let him go. And she wouldn't fail. Here in Arthdal, she had power. Even if that power wasn't fully hers yet.

Leaning over, she felt Eunseom's forehead for his temperature. Warm, but less so than yesterday. At least compared to the last weeks when he had been plagued by feverish dreams, he seemed to be resting easier now. She took the wet cloth from the basin on the table and wiped away the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead. Then she looked out the small window. The sun was high up. It was already nearing noon.

Tanya sighed. Reluctant as she was to leave Eunseom's side, she had duties to perform. She righted the blanket again, took one last glance at Eunseom, and stood to head towards the door.

She would hurry back to the Great Shrine, perform the Ollimsanis that couldn't wait another day, listen to reports of today's happenings, and then return to the Fortress of Fire right after. She didn't want to risk a chance of Eunseom waking up, or even worse, someone visiting him in her absence.

Yangcha was waiting outside of Saya's room, patient as always. "Let's go," she told him, and he followed her down the flights of winding stairs with his silent grace.

She didn't like the Fortress of Fire. The halls were cold and silent, with no light or sound from outside reaching inside. To Tanya, this place had come to symbolize the unbridgeable gap between Arthdal and the Wahan Tribe. The fortress was the heart of Arthdal's technological advance, the birthplace of all those strange appliances the people of Arthdal were so proud of and the source of the deathly weapons that had killed the majority of her people.

If she could hate this place even more, she'd hate it for Saya's sake. Although Saya was by no means innocent, she knew that he'd never had a choice at a different life, all because of this prison. Just thinking about Eunseom being stuck in this place, surrounded by the people who had locked his brother away for years and would kill Eunseom the moment they found out who he really was, left a bad taste in her mouth. But she couldn't move him somewhere else without causing suspicion.

Once she and Yangcha made it out of the fortress, she breathed a sigh of relief. Even in late fall, the streets of the city were stuffy and didn't compare to the clear and crisp air of Iark, but being out in the streets was better than being confined to Arthdal's stone buildings that obscured the view of the sky.

The moment they made it to the crowded main street, all eyes were on Tanya. The people gasped in recognition, then hastily bowed and raised their hands in her direction, mumbling "Niruha". Wherever she went these days, it was like this. She was used to it by now, but the never-ending attention made her miss the times when she could walk the streets without getting noticed, even though back then she had been a mere slave.

But deep down, she also enjoyed it. She relished the worship in the people's eyes, she took pleasure in the power she had over the people who had once looked down on her and the Wahans. One day, she would tear their world apart and show them how wrong their thinking was. Now that Eunseom was at her side, she was one step closer to that goal. At that thought, Tanya straightened her posture and broadened her shoulders. She needed to emanate strength and authority so that her subjects would one day trust her to follow her down the path she was paving for them.

As they passed the busy marketplace, Tanya could hear snippets of gossip. These days, people mainly talked about the war. Despite Saya—or rather Eunseom—sent back injured to Arthdal, overall, the Arthdal forces were on the winning end of the war.

Tanya stopped at a stall and pretended to look at the jewelry. The vendor immediately latched on to her, promising her a hefty discount. She gave him a polite smile, but her attention was directed towards the people on the street. She always used the few moments out on the market to overhear the current gossip.

"Have you heard? They say their oh-so-precious hero has abandoned them," said a woman at the neighbor stall.

"Oh right, I've heard. What was his name? Inaishingi?" the vendor woman said, laughing. "I guess the so-called hero got cold feet when he saw our warriors."

"Even if he is the second coming of a legendary hero, he could never win against Aramun Haesulla's army."

The name of the Ago Tribe's hero piqued Tanya's curiosity. She knew Tagon wasn't Aramun Haesulla nor his second or even third coming, but she wondered about the man of the Ago Tribe. If he was the second coming of the legendary Inaishingi who was equal in strength to the real Aramun Haesulla, she would like to see him once. If he was chosen by a god, and if he had united the whole Ago Tribe, he must be a great person. What did someone chosen by the gods look like? Despite being the High Priestess, there were too many things in Arthdal she didn't understand yet, and their gods and heroes were the first things on that list.

It was moments like these she missed Saya the most. He'd have explained her everything in a manner even she understood.

But Saya wasn't here.

Her stomach felt queasy. Not for the first time, Tanya wondered: If Eunseom was here, where was Saya? Was he all right? Was he alive? For a moment she remembered Saya's face, not Eunseom's, and the uneasy feeling increased.

She stayed at the market for a while longer, but she couldn't extract any clues about Saya's whereabouts from people's gossip. Everyone believed Lord Saya was resting at the Fortress of Fire. Only Tanya knew it wasn't true.

The fingers of Eunseom's good arm were tracing patterns on his blanket. To Tanya, the patterns looked like the skull of the roe deer the Wahans hunted back in Iark, but she couldn't be sure. It was oddly fascinating to watch him do mundane things like this. A few days ago, he wouldn't have been able to do even this simple action, but he was recovering fast.

Meanwhile, she was stirring a hot porridge, trying to cool it down so Eunseom could eat it. The room was engulfed in the faint earthy smell wafting up from the bowl. She preferred it over the odor of blood and sickness that had clung to the room for the past weeks.

Eunseom was silent. It would be a comfortable silence if not for the fact that she had just told Eunseom about Saya and he had yet to say anything.

She sneaked a peek at him, but he was still busy with his blanket, brows furrowed, most likely pondering on what she had just told him. Tanya held back a sigh and continued stirring.

"So…" For what felt like hours later, Eunseom asked, "You want me to believe I have a brother here in Arthdal? A benetbeot? How does that make sense?" He raised a skeptical brow, directed at the abused fur of his blanket.

Of course, he wouldn't believe her this easily. "Yes," she said, trying to hide her impatience. "As I said, his name is Saya. He grew up here in the Fortress of Fire and was raised by Tagon and Taealha," she repeated.

Eunseom's eyes narrowed. He was most likely trying to come up with a reason why Saya couldn't be his brother. "My mom never told me anything about a brother. Don't you think she would have told me if it were true?"

Well, that was a good point. Why did his mother never tell him? "I don't know. You know her best, but she must've had a reason."

Eunseom huffed. He looked close to pouting and if Tanya weren't so annoyed with him for not believing her, she'd want to pinch his cheeks.

"I think she'd have told me. So, it's not true. And—" Eunseom's mouth opened to say more. Tanya knew there would be no end to it if she let him. He was stubborn like that.

She decided now was as good time as any to silence this man child with a full spoon of porridge, so she quickly stuffed his mouth, giggling at his affronted expression.

After swallowing down the mouthful, he said, "Hey, what was that for?"

She just so managed to still her laughter. Tanya had forgotten how much fun it was to be around Eunseom, just doing silly and mundane things. She felt lighter than she had in a long time.

Remembering what they had been talking about, she gave him a smile, hoping she could convince him with her sincerity alone. "Can't you trust me with this? I just know it. You're brothers. And he's your spitting image, believe me."

"Huh…" was all Eunseom said to that. For a while, he was quiet. He looked lost in thought.

Tanya watched him. Even when he was thinking he looked different from Saya. If Saya were sitting in front of her right now, his eyes would be calculating, his emotions reserved up until he'd suddenly stand up and bombard her with his opinions and feelings. In comparison, Eunseom's face always betrayed his emotions. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't hide them. Tanya may not know what exactly he was thinking, but she could see confusion, annoyance, turmoil, and once more confusion cross his face as he was thinking about his brother. Saya and Eunseom. Despite being benetbeots, they truly were as different as day and night.

Once again, she couldn't help wondering about Saya. Just where was he? Why didn't any news reach her? Why was Eunseom sent back instead of him? With each day passing, the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach grew stronger.

"Maybe you're right," said Eunseom, pulling Tanya out of her thoughts.

"What do you mean?"

Eunseom's eyes were wide with realization. "Maybe I really have a brother."

And here Tanya had thought he would need hours more of her attempts to convince him. She couldn't help asking, "What made you change your mind?"

Eunseom looked down at his lap where he was still clutching the fur blanket in his hand. He looked troubled about something. "I think I saw him," he said at last.

Tanya's head shot up. "You saw him? When? Where?" Maybe Eunseom knew if Saya was well and alive. Or if he was…dead.

Eunseom didn't appear to notice her unease. "On the battlefield."

"The battlefield? So, you did fight in the war."

Eunseom nodded, eyes still cast down. "Not for Arthdal, though."

Tanya had thought so. Maybe by joining the Ago Tribe side, he had hoped to defeat Arthdal and free the Wahans? It would be so typical of him.

Eunseom continued, "I think he was someone of high rank. He rode a horse. He wore my face, it was creepy. And he—I thought it was just a dream, but…" He bit his lip, the purple prominent against the white of his teeth. "What if it wasn't? Tanya, was that man my brother?"

Saya and Eunseom had encountered each other on the battlefield, after all. It was almost ironic: two brothers fighting for the opposite sides. If one of them had killed the other… Tanya felt sick at the thought.

"I'm sure it was him," she said. "Saya was sent to the forefront, as their leader..."

"Oh," was Eunseom's only response.

Tanya wanted him to tell her everything about their encounter. Maybe it would help her get rid of that uneasy feeling. "Did you…" she began, both anticipating and dreading his answer, "…fight?"

Eunseom was still biting his lip. If he continued, it would start bleeding. He kept silent. After a while, he looked down at his lap, avoiding her eyes, and said, "I'm tired, can we continue talking later?"

It was a lie, Tanya could tell. For once since he had awoken, Eunseom didn't look sleepy. What was he hiding? Tanya wished she could read his mind right now, but of course, her psychic abilities only worked when she didn't need them to.

She bit back a comment, reminding herself that Eunseom had been through a lot and that he was still recovering. "Of course," she said, trying to sound understanding, "why don't you eat up and then take a nap?"

Eunseom gave her a thin smile in response. He barely ate anything.