One more flashback for you before we return to the action. It has only been for reviews this time but I'll be nice :-P Didn't check for any spelling mistakes this time but I still hope you like it. :-)

*9 years ago - Nasaf*

Dastan tried hard to remember the last time he had been this nervous. He couldn't. It had been his sixteenth birthday just a couple of days ago and his father - the king - had given him two things on that day. A present and an order. The present had been a leathern and iron clad body armor alongside with a pair of swords. The order had been to follow his two older brothers to the southern borders of the empire and crush a rebellion that was underway in one of the cities there.

This was what he had been trained for for years, what his brothers had been telling him about ever since he was little, what was supposed to be an adventure and a great honor all at the same time. But still he was only one thing - he was terrified. He had seen men return from battle and somehow they never seemed to be the same. Apart from the obvious fact that some of them returned with scrapes and bruises, blodied uniforms and bandages or even missing limbs they still had when they had left, there was that look in those men's eyes that terrified him the most.

Some of them looked like they had actually died on a battlefield and only an empty shell had returned. As he had found out upon taking the courage to ask one of those men - these were soldiers who had lost good friends in battle...

Dastan felt even more afraid knowing that he wasn't the only one the king had honored with the order of assault to the bordering city that was now rising against the empire. Bis - his very best friend and the same age as him - would come with him to fight with the Persian army... Unlike Dastan though his friend seemed completely unaware of the danger. He was thrilled and couldn't wait to go.

Dastan had gone through to things ever since the king had ordered him to go to his first battle. He had been sleepless and he had felt sick a lot. It was the morning of their departure in just a couple of hours but as of now it was still dark outside. Dastan however had been lying awake for hours. He had not been able to fall asleep and he was sure those last couple of hours of darkness until the sun came up would bring him no peace either.

He got out of bed and reached for his clothes. He knew it wasn't a good idea to leave the palace at the eve of going into battle. If somebody saw him leave or if one of his brothers or the servants came looking for him and found his room empty, he would most definitely get into trouble. But he needed to get out of here, needed to get away from the palace for at least a little while and needed to clear his head.

He was careful not to make a sound when he left his chamber and looked out into the corridor. There were no guards outside but this early in the morning it had to be expected. There was an easy way out of the palace through the window at the end of the corridor. It was just two stories down to the main courtyard in front of the palace but he couldn't very well use the main gate to leave. There would be guards there for sure and he couldn't risk to run into them.

Of course there were other ways in and out of the palace and if his father or one of his brothers had known about how easily he was able to slip in and out of here, he probably would have experienced something that hadn't happened since he had first been adopted to the family - he would have been grounded... He had to grin at the thought. It was a good thing he had his chances to get awa from the royal palace from time to time. There was a life still out there, a life he had left behind a long time ago but that he still liked to return to sometimes... And that was exactly what he planned to do right now. He wanted a chance to return to the life he had left behind... Because today - and it was one of the very rare times - he wished he would have decided differently.

He slipped out of his room and walked down the corridor to the window. He climbed out the window and reached up the ornamented wall, climbing to the next two floors where the wall surrounding the palace was closest. He took a jump backwards and landed right on top of the wall. From here it was easy. On the outer side of the wall there were a couple of arrows stuck into the wall, leading the way down. It was a pretty deep fall for the last few meters, as the last arrow stuck in the wall about 3 and a half meters above ground but Dastan was used to it by now.

He always wondered why his family had never found out about this. He knew the king kept his city safe and there were regular inspections of the city and palace walls... Maybe they just hadn't been very thorough. Right now he didn't care about it very much though. He just cared that there was a way for him to get in and out of the palace unnoticed and hopefully he would feel better and less terrified when he returned. That was the goal of his little endavour.

The city lay silent when he walked down the streets and small alleys that lead towards the slums of Nasaf. He would have found the way even if he was blind. The darkness of the city streets posed no problem to him and without running into any troubles from any beggars or thieves, Dastan reached the ruin that adjourned the house he had wanted to get to. He climbed up the staircase, reaching the roof of the ruined building and walked to the very edge. He took one deep breath before breaking into the run and jumped right of the edge at the other side of the building, landing on the next rooftop with a thud.

He now was where he had wanted to go, reached for the trap door concealed by the darkness of the night and climbed down the ladder into the room below. His eyes needed a moment to adjust as it was even darker in here than it was outside but before he had a chance to make his presence known, the cold steel of a blade pressed against his throat. He gasped but didn't get a chance to explain anything. The blade disappeared as soon as it had appeared and he was spun around as somebody grabbed his shoulder. Now he was looking right into Keyla's surprised and angry face.

"Dastan?"

"I'm sorry I came here like this..."

"It's the middle of the night!"

"I know. I'm sorry..."

Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. He had come here for support but instead he had - understandably so - managed to make Keyla angry. He had no idea why he hadn't thought about this earlier but he should have known that Keyla was not the right person to go to for support. She hated the guards and the army, hated it when troupes were sent to fight for the empire in - what she called a ridiculous attempt to expand an empire already too large for it's own good - a war and she had never shared his loyalty towards the king... But still he had come here and even in the darkness of the room his friend could detect he was worried. Her voice was softer now, reaching out to him but Dastan did no longer know what to tell her.

"What is it? What's wrong with you. You look shaken..."

"There's something I didn't tell you... couldn't tell you."

"Why?"

"Because I knew what your take on it would be and I didn't want to fight with you..."

Without him noticing Keyla had turned and he winced when all of a sudden a single light illuminated the room. She had lit a candle in order to finally get a chance to look at his features. She was worried as to what she was see and when she realized how sleep deprived, pale and exhausted he looked, Keyla bit her lip. He was talking in riddles though and if there really was something Dastan needed to talk to her about, he needed to try again.

"Dastan, you're not making any sense at all! What is wrong with you?"

"The king... he's sending our troupes to the borders of the empire to crush an impending rebellion before it causes an uproar..."

"I know this."

She wasn't getting where he was going with this and she was slowly turning impatient. It made it all the harder on Dastan. He loved Keyla, she was like a sister to him and he knew he could trust her with anything. He would have trusted her if his life depended on it. But whenever she reacted like this - with this harsh tone of hers like she always knew what was best and everybody else was wrong - he hated to tell her anything at all. But he needed someone to talk to and Keyla was the only one he could think of who was not utterly excited or honored by the thought of going into battle. He swallowed hard and tried to compose himself, finally telling her what he had come here for.

"I was... ordered to go with them."

"He's sending you into battle?"

"Yes."

Keyla stared at Dastan in disbelieve and horror for a long moment, unable to even say a single word. This was what she had always feared the most ever since Dastan had been adopted to the royal family. Persia was an empire epxanding by war and it was the duty of the king's sons to defend and fight for this empire... She had known ever since Dastan had started weapon's training that there would come a day when she would have to see him off to battle, hoping and praying for his safe return. But she had not thought it to be this early. He had just turned sixteen a couple of days ago... This wasn't fair!

"But he can't! You're only sixteen!"

"Garsiv was the same age when..."

"I don't care how old he was! He can't do this! It's not right!"

"He's my father, Keyla... and the king. I'm his son and a prince of Persia. It's my responsibility and a great honor..."

"Is that what they told you? Then why do you sound so terrified?"

"Because I don't know what to expect! I don't know what will happen... I don't know if I will even have the courage to show up..."

She had not meant to sound so harsh and she felt even worse about it detecting the soft shaking in her friend's voice. Dastan didn't just look afraid, he truly WAS afraid of what was ahead of him - the path the king had chosen for him and that he couldn't escape from. She would have loved to say something, anything to encourage him and put his mind at ease but she was at a loss for words. This whole messed up situation had left her speechless... Now she was truly losing her friend to the life he had chosen, to the king that had adopted him into his family...

She had never truly seen her friend defeated before but right now this was exactly what Dastan looked like. He looked like he knew there was a good chance he wouldn't return and even though Keyla logically knew that neither the king nor the two princes would ever let any harm come to Dastan, she was still just as worried about him. It was just too soon... to soon for him to become a warrior for the empire, fighting for his king and fulfilling his duty. It was too soon for him to truly become a prince of Persia. She watched him as he cast his eyes down, his voice barely more than a whisper as he turned to leave her.

"I just... I came to say goodbye."

"Stop this! Stop acting like you won't come back!"

"But maybe I won't... It's a battle Kelya... People die in battle..."

It didn't sound like good bye but like a farewell, like he was sure he would never see her again. Keyla reached out to him, holding him back without even giving it a second thought. She couldn't let him go like this. With a mindset like this, he was bound to run into trouble upon the first sight of battle. She needed for him to believe in himself and she needed for him to know that there was no doubt whatsoever of his safe return. If he didn't believe that he would make it through this very first battle his king was sending him to fight in, he wouldn't - it was as simple as that.

"Your brothers always returned. You're the king's son. They'll make sure you'll be fine... And you will have the courage, Dastan, I know this. You have never been a coward all you life even if the situation might have demanded it. You will find the strength when it's needed and Dastan please listen to me for once in your life but - even if you don't think it's right - be bold. Shying away from what is ahead of you will only get you in trouble. You cannot hesitate, you cannot doubt yourself."

They just looked at each other in silence for a very long moment and finally Keyla pulled him into a hug. She didn't want to let go again, just wanted to keep him here, hide him here and keep him out of harms way. But when she did and saw the look on his face that had changed from fear to determination, she knew he would be alright. He had just needed somebody to reassure him, to tell him he would be fine. When she let go of him now, it felt like he was slipping away but she called herself stupid. He would return - end of discussion. But still she felt the need to make him promise.

"And please come back home safely."

"I will give it my best."

"Not the answer I was looking for..."

The soft grin that appeared on his face was more reassurance than any words ever could have been. Even though she had just used a few, well-chosen words, it had been enough to reassure him and make him feel less terrified and worried about the battle he was headed into. He grabbed her by the arm, gently squeezing it once more before turning to leave for sure this time. Keyla gave him a soft smile in return.

"I will. I promise."

"Good."

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