Chapter 14

Abel leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding Krystal's spells. He shot a desperate glance towards Cain, who gripped his sword but wasn't poised to strike. "What should we do?"

Frustratingly gritting his teeth, Cain mimicked Abel's movements of jumping and dodging out of the way of the mage's spells. This wasn't the Krystal he knew; her eyes were pale and glassy, and her too-wide grin seemed forced and out of place. Hesitating a moment too long, he let out a pained yell as a fireball slammed into him. His arms flew up to protect his face; burns formed on his exposed flesh. Cain fell to his knees, clutching the red and raw skin with his hands.

"Cain!" Abel shouted, powerless to help as his friend crumbled to the ground. A graphic flashback seized his mind, and he felt his heart skip a beat as he realized the cruel irony of the repeated situation; Cain being struck down mere feet away, with Abel unable to do anything to help. No… I can't let that happen again! Raising his sword, he charged Krystal, unconcerned for her safety.

Krystal dodged easily, slipping underneath his blade and stepping to the side. As Abel whirled around, she flicked her wrists violently. He was lifted through the air and slammed violently into the wall; with a grunt of pain, he was momentarily stunned, unable to move. Taking advantage of his incapacitation, Krystal approached him, her right arm outstretched. She placed her hand on his temple, her disturbing grin never faltering. She leaned down next to him and whispered in a raspy voice right next to his ear.

"Time to die."


Kelgar groaned, rubbing his head and leaning up. Although his vision was blurry, he could see Cain on the ground a few feet away. Using the wall for support to get to his feet, he staggered over towards Cain, who was still gripping his forearms, his eyes squeezed shut.

"Hey. Hey!" Kelgar gave Cain a little tap, and his dark eyes flew open. He let go of his arms, revealing nasty burns that made his skin raw and red; more scars that didn't look entirely out of the place with the rest of them.

Turning his head to see Kelgar hovering over him with his hand extended, Cain grabbed it and accepted the help as he got to his feet. "Where's Abel?"

Before Kelgar had a chance to reply, a piercing scream split the air. Knowing the source immediately, Cain and Kelgar raced towards the sound. It was continuous and bloodcurdling; the thought of such anguished cries coming from Abel made Cain's stomach churn.

Abel writhed in agony on the ground, clutching his head in both hands, yanking at it as if he were trying to rip it off. Screams poured out of his mouth, and blood began to drip over his lip and down his chin. His body thrashed violently, his eyes squeezed shut as his face contorted in pain.

"Stop!" Cain shouted, raising his sword. "Leave him alone!"

Another disturbing and child-like giggle escaped from Krystal's pursed lips. "He's made such a good experiment for my spell," she teased Cain, as if testing his anger.

Any hesitation for concern over Krystal's safety was gone, and Cain charged at her, his eyes gleaming with hatred. However, before he could take more than a few steps, Kelgar grabbed his shoulders and yanked him back.

"Wait," Kelgar commanded, forcing himself in front of the enraged Cain. "Krystal… I love ya sis, but you really can be a bitch." He grabbed her small hands with his large ones, holding them in a position so she couldn't use magic. She squirmed in his grasp, but wasn't strong enough to wrench herself free from his grasp. Murmuring a half-hearted apology, he leaned back and then bashed his head hard against hers.

As their foreheads collided, Krystal's eyes rolled up in the back of her head and she collapsed into Kelgar's arms, unconscious. Supporting her with one arm and rubbing his temple with the other, he laid her against the wall.


With Kelgar taking care of his Krystal, Cain's attention switched to Abel, who was still twisting and turning on the ground. The screams had gradually grown strained and faded, but his mouth still hung open, as if he were trying to make noise but it refused to come out.

Cain dropped to his knees and lifted Abel's body up, leaning his upper half up and supporting his back. "Abel," Cain spoke his friend's name loudly, but received no response. "Can you hear me?"

The only sound that Abel made was the small noise of ragged breathing as air scraped against his raw throat. After a moment he began to cough, and blood flew out of his mouth, splashing onto Cain's bare torso. Abel's chest made the slightest motions, rising and falling in time with the raspy breathing noises. Breathing a sigh of relief at signs of movement, Cain wiped the spit and blood away from Abel's mouth with his fingers.

"… Cain?" Abel croaked; it hurt immensely to talk, but he didn't have the energy to even wince.

"I'm here," Cain cooed gently, brushing pieces of hair out of Abel's face. "We need to go."

"Ah…. Sorry…." Another cough wracked the green-haired man's body, and he went limp, his dazed green eyes fluttering shut. The faint movements of his chest stopped altogether, and he slumped against Cain's torso.

"W-what?" Stunned, Cain's eyes widened in fear as panic flooded through his mind. "Abel! Abel, wake up!" Gently shaking his shoulder, Cain tried to rouse his partner, but he received no response. No… "Wake up, dammit!" His voice cracked as he pleaded to no avail.

Feeling around for any sign of a pulse, Cain desperately moved his hands across Abel's neck. His fingers pushed against the soft skin, but didn't find their target. The harsh reality of the situation felt like a slap in the face.

Cain pulled Abel closer, wrapping his arms around his unresponsive body. Tears brimmed in his eyes and spilled over, rolling down his face in waves. How cruel fate was; returning them together for what felt like mere moments before ripping Abel away from his grasp once more… Cain clenched his hands into fists, hanging his head in defeat. What else could he do?

"Please…" Whispered begs continued to come forth from Cain's mouth. He was vaguely aware of footsteps approaching, but he didn't move his gaze from Abel as Kelgar kneeled next to him.

Kelgar placed a hand on the redhead's shaking shoulders in an attempt to calm the distraught redhead. Cain wrenched away from Kelgar's touch, his hands grasping the cloth of Abel's tunic. He gently laid him back down flat on the ground, and placed his hands on the green-haired man's torso. In a last, final attempt for some kind of sign of life, Cain began to pound his hands on Abel's chest, hoping to provoke some reaction from his heart.

As tears streamed down his face, Cain put as much pressure as he could in every beat of his hands. "You can't die here, you bastard," he choked out between sobs. "Not here, not like this! Wake up!"

After one particularly harsh strike, a burst of air flew from Abel's lips. Ragged breathing sounds came from his throat as he gasped in short bursts, his chest swelling as air re-entered his lungs. Writhing temporarily in Cain's arms, Abel fell still once more, but his lips stayed slightly parted to allow air to flow, and his torso trembled ever so slightly.

Staring incredulously as Abel began to move again, Cain was stunned for a moment and his mouth hung agape. "Y-you…?" Grabbing onto Abel's arms he pulled him close, burying his face in the green-haired man's neck. "You can't leave me so easily, asshole." The relief was obvious in his muffled voice, and fresh tears spilled over and left streaks down his blood-stained face.

As Cain hugged Abel close to him, a harsh pounding sounded on the barricaded door down the hall. Kelgar jumped to his feet and ran to remove the piece of wood that blocked the handle, and then yanked it open.

Prince Marth waited on the other side of the door, a small number of soldiers gathered behind him. He gave a quick nod to the man who must be Kelgar, as he fit the description that Abel had given him a few days before. He strode quickly over towards the kneeling Cain and placed a hand on his shoulder gently. "We need to leave, immediately," he spoke softly but firmly. He didn't know how safe it was to stay in these towers, and they needed to escape as soon as possible.

Leaning down near them, Kelgar grabbed Krystal and tossed her over his shoulder, carrying her light weight with ease. Cain slipped his hand underneath Abel's back and the other underneath his thighs, lifting him up to carry him bridal-style, the unconscious cavalier's head resting against Cain's bare torso. "Is Lena with you?" He asked earnestly, his eyes shimmering with concern and still wet from old tears.

Marth shook his head. "She's waiting for us in the village. We need to go, now." With a wave of his hand, he beckoned the soldiers to follow, as he led the way out of the room and began to head out of the towers.

With his heart aching as badly as his body, Cain gripped tightly onto Abel's limp body as he broke into a run to catch up with the retreating others.