Chapter Two: Tomáš The Skeptic, The Twin

Castle Vrbada, Prague, Czech Republic, 12pm.

"Mother...quit fussing...!" Tomáš Vrbada all but whined when he sat at his vanity mirror in his bedroom. His mother was behind him fixing up his hair, preparing him for today's festivities. He swatted away her hand, and she rolled her eyes. "You were the one who cut your beautiful hair, Tomáš, I'm just trying to make it look better."

In the doorway, Bi Han chuckled as Queen Jindřiška brushed her son's hair back. "Oh come on, my lady, he looks fine." Kuai Liang said, "Don't say anything, you two! It was you who convinced him to cut his long locks! Do you know how rare long hair is in our family?" The Queen snapped.

"You have no idea..." Tomáš said to himself, rolling his eyes.

Not that he could tell her the real reason why he cut his hair, his mother would never believe his story of abuse within these halls. When his father's advisors and strategists grabbed the young prince and held him down by his hair. "You're eighteen now, welcome to the real world." he recalls a man saying in his ear. The man smelled of sweat and cheap cologne, "King Václav's son is growing up so handsomely.."

A wordless scream left the young prince's lips, in defense, he grabbed the advisor's wrist, burning it to ash. His eyes flashed an angry white, and he turned into a formless smoke vapor, killing the man.

Paralyzed in fear, Tomáš stared at his hands as they returned to normal. Sweat forming down his body, he tried to hold his ripped shirt together before running out of the strategy room as his abuser writhed on the floor dying.

He ran past Kuai Liang and Bi Han, stopping at a corner, holding his face in his trembling hands. His heart was racing, this was the first time this has ever happened to him, Hopefully, the last.

"máš..."

"Tomáš!"

The white haired prince looked up for his reverie and into the severe eyes of his mother, staring at him through the mirror. "Zlatíčko.." she said endearingly. Tomáš blinked, looking at her in confusion, a small blush forming on his cheeks. "You haven't called me that in years.." he said. She smiled. "I knew it would get your attention. Is everything ok, my son?"

"Yes. Just fine." Tomáš replied. He took his mother's hand off his shoulder and kissed it, rising from the chair in front of his mirror. "Very well then. I will have you report to the ballroom at 8pm tonight." she said, leaving the room.

Tomáš rolled his eyes. "Of course, Mami."

"Kill me." Tomáš said, sighing, sitting on the edge of his bed. "Would you like to be dismembered, frozen solid or burned to death, we can do all three, you know." Bi Han said, taking the seat beside his friend. Kuai Liang joined him as well, sitting on the floor next to Tomáš' legs that were hanging off the bed. Tomáš wrapped his legs around Kuai Liang's shoulders, and the younger Lin Kuei rose up, lifting the young prince off the bed. "Kuai!" he yelled in laugher, reaching out for the elder brother as Kuai Liang leaned back, throwing Tomáš on to his bed.

With him laying on the bed, both brothers joined him on each side, and wrapped their arms around him. Tomáš leaned into their embrace with a sigh, curling his face into Kuai Liang's neck. "Why would I want to get married, I'd lose this. Lose having you guys around.."

"Well..we wouldn't leave you, we'd still protect you and your bride." Kuai Liang said. "Listen, that woman would want to be with me all the time, and probably complain if we wanted to have a guy's night." Tomáš sighed. "Hmm...you have a point." Bi Han said,"say goodbye to our whiskey and coke nights."

Tomáš laughed. "Do you remember when we thought mom found our coke stash? I can't believe Sektor told her it was feta cheese." "And she believed him!" Bi Han laughed. "I have no idea how!" Tomáš shouted, laughing as the three curled into each other. "You know you ruined all the hard work your mother did on your hair, Tomáš." Kuai Liang said, causing the young prince to shrug.

"Maybe one day I'll show up to one of these parties smelling like a trash dumpster. That will really get the girls' attention."

"Your mother would kill you." Kuai Liang said with a smile. "Hell, she might bring out the paddle like when I was little." Tomáš said,"I won't say that I didn't deserve a few bops here and there." The three were quiet for a few seconds, until Kuai Liang shifted closer to the prince. "I hope you won't leave us after you get married, Tomáš."

"Don't worry." Tomáš said, planting a kiss on Kuai Liang's forehead, "I'm not getting married. All these horrible women can keep dreaming."

"They aren't deserving of you anyway, my liege." Bi Han said. At his attempt to sound professional, Tomáš cracked a smile, causing the two brothers to laugh. "Fucking perverts, all of them anyway. I'm eighteen, and they're looking at me like a piece of meat." he mocked his mother's voice, rising off the bed, shaking his hips as he walked towards the door. "My Tomáš is the most eligible bachelor in Praha."

He cursed in his mother tongue, then crossed his arms. "Whatever. I guess we should be getting ready."

"I'll meet you in the boy's room." Bi Han said. Tomáš smirked at him. "Sektor brought a fresh stash, you're gonna need it tonight."

Tomáš met with Bi Han in the basement a few minutes later. Kuai Liang joined him, but he didn't partake in the festivities at the gambling table. Both Tomáš and Bi Han didn't allow Kuai Liang to take the coke, the young prince lit up a cigarette and sat down, watching Bi Han do his half of the line. Cyrax served Tomáš a small whiskey glass and took the seat across from him, grabbing his stack of cards.

"These cards are shit." the prince said, laughing as he slammed the hand on the table. Sektor grabbed his deck and gave Cyrax a knowing look. "Hey, don't get any ideas. You're not beating me tonight." the prince said, finishing his glass of whiskey. Bi Han refilled him, taking a seat beside him, while Kuai Liang kept watch.

The four weren't actually supposed to be in this room. Queen Jindřiška was unaware of Prince Tomáš's gambling, alcohol and drug use down below the concrete floors of Castle Vrbada, and they meant to keep it that way. Kuai Liang was the perfect lookout, as the four wanted to keep him pure and away from these vices. Tomáš cheered and slammed his whiskey glass to the table. "I win again!" he yelled, taking money from the two across from him. "We'll get you one day, prince." Sektor said with a smile, clinking his glass with Tomáš'.

They had stolen King Václav's whiskey stash along with his cards, and every Friday night, they would come down to this room and let out their frustrations, as well as spend time together as friends. Down here, they weren't prince and guardian, they were friends. Tomáš took in his half of the line and smiled, leaning into Bi Han. The elder Lin Kuei brother threw his arm around the prince and held him close, kissing the side of his head.

Kuai Liang looked at the time, watching as Tomáš crushed his last cigarette, and placed a breath mint into his mouth. "Mom doesn't need to know I smoke either." As it was time for the masquerade to begin soon, Sektor and Cyrax assumed their positions outside the castle to look out for invaders, and the two brothers returned Tomáš to his room to get him dressed.

"You really do look handsome, Tomáš." Kuai Liang said with a hint of sadness as his friend in the mirror. Tomáš wore a black dress shirt and black pants accented by a gold belt and gold vest. Dressed in fine cotton and silk, Tomáš growled looking at himself in the mirror. "To the meat factory." Kuai Liang helped brush his hair and added both his mask and crown to the outfit, escorting him out of his room and into the ballroom.

Queen Jindřiška and King Václav were already there, sitting at their thrones, when Prince Tomáš entered the room. He stood at the top of the stairway beside his parents, looking down at the crowd. There was gold everywhere, on the walls, on the floors, stained glass windows with maroon velvet drapes, it was all too much, and Tomáš was nearly blinded by all the color.

He held his breath as he was to address the crowd. He hated this part, really.

Queen Jindřiška looked at him expectantly, with a smile on her face, encouraging him to speak to the crowd that was now looking up at him. Bi Han and Kuai Liang watched on, keeping an eye on the crowd, serving their purpose at guardians of Castle Vrbada.

"Welcome to Castle Vrbada." Tomáš began, "have a great night, and please enjoy the festivities!"

With that, Tomáš and his parents walked down the stairs, joining with the crowd.

The three took their seat at the most prestigious table in the room, allowing all eyes to be on them at all time. Queen Jindřiška could not look any more ridiculous, Tomáš thought to himself, his mother's big hair and tall, skinny body making her look like a beast. Heavy violet eyeshadow and lipstick adorned her face, along with a large velvet violet dress with a large petticoat underneath. Her heels almost made it to where she could not walk, and Tomáš had to help her to the table, while King Václav opted for simple teal robes and a cape.

He watched as his parents engaged in talk with their friends and advisors, then looked around the room for both Kuai Liang and Bi Han, snickering when he saw Bi Han sneak up to the punch bowl and freeze it. The cyromancer quickly left, but not before winking at the young prince.

"Devious little shit." Tomáš said to himself.

Queen Jindřiška noticed Tomáš looked a little bored and excused herself from her conversation to speak with her son. "Zlatíčko..." she said quietly, grabbing Tomáš' attention. "Yes, Mami?" he asked, looking at her. She began to pull him from his seat, as Tomáš instinctively fought against her. "Why don't you talk to some of the pretty women in the crowd?" she asked, growling with Tomáš planted his feet to the floor. "My love, you are much too strong!"

Tomáš sighed. "Mami. You're going to hurt yourself like this. I will get up when I am ready."

The queen released her son and whopped him behind his head. "My son, I put these parties on so that you can meet women, not sit with us adults, surely, are we not boring you?"

Tomáš flinched from his mother's small attack and took her hand, kissing it again. "Yes Mami, but as I mentioned. I will rise when I am ready. Do not stress yourself over this."

As the night went on, Tomáš found the strength to mingle with the crowd and even attempted to talk to some of the women in the room, if only to get his mother off his back.

He didn't like any of them; too vain, too boring, superficial. The women's ages ranged from fifty to twenty-one, each woman as if at an audition trying to get the young prince's attention.

"Want me to freeze up this place?" Bi Han asked, sneaking up behind the young prince with a smile. "No one will ever knowwww~~"

Tomáš smiled. "What I wouldn't give for a bloodbath right now. But I fear you would not find blood in these noble women but liquid gold and garbage."

"Just say the word, little bro. Kuai and I will cook something up. In the meantime, you better keep mingling, your mom's probably looking right at you now."

The cyromancer disappeared, and Tomáš sighed, walking back into the crowd.

One boring superficial conversation after the other, and the prince found his brain melting. How could women live like this, old widows, never married cat ladies and wannabe vapid Instagram influencers, they had nothing in common with Tomáš, and Tomáš nothing with them.

These were the kind of women Queen Jindřiška wanted him to get to know. Noble daughters and blue-blooded women. Because in royalty and politics, image was everything. That was why Queen Jindřiška dressed the way she did, in velvet, gold, jewelry and rubies upon her crown. Enveloped by an emerald shawl, she was the epitome of luxury in Castle Vrbada.

And only the finest will do for Prince Tomáš. The queen would not be caught dead with anything less for her kingdom.

The queen and the prince looked at each other, as he again disappeared into the crowd. His hands were grabbed by a woman who proceeded to pull him towards her.

She introduced herself, Tomáš didn't get her name, didn't care as he tried to pull himself away from her. But she was persistent. "So you're the hunky prince around here. It's a wonder why you have such a hard time finding a woman..."

Her hands then trailed down his vest, unzipping it.

Caution ran through Tomáš' body as again, he tried to escape.

He could not appear weak, but again, the memories of abuse began flooding in his head again.

The woman's words began to fade, the sound of his heartbeat overtaking and beating in his ears as he suddenly found his pants being unbuckled. The smell of cheap perfume emitting from the woman was nearly making him nauseous, and he finally shoved her away. "Unhand me, foul wench!" he shouted, as she hit the floor.

Everything, including the music and conversation stopped and all eyes were on Prince Tomáš as he fled the room, holding his clothing together.

"Tomáš!" Queen Jindřiška yelled, cursing to herself as she chased after him. Bi Han and Kuai Liang followed, with Bi Han blocking the queen, Kuai catching up with Tomáš.

The young prince was taken into Kuai Liang's arms while the younger embraced him around the corner from the ballroom. Queen Jindřiška snarled and shoved Bi Han to the floor, with Kuai Liang holding Tomáš tighter. "You will step no closer, my queen." he said. Her strength was something to behold, and she managed to rip Tomáš from Kuai Liang's arms, slapping the young prince across the face, causing him to fall to the floor.

"I will not stand for this, Tomáš! You are a prince and you will behave like one! I will not be embarrassed in my own castle!" she roared.

Instinctively, Kuai Liang stood in front of Tomáš, protecting him, until Bi Han yelled,"Kuai, stand down!" "But-.." Kuai Liang said, looking at his friend sadly.

"What was the meaning of this outburst, Tomáš?!" she demanded.

The strength of his mother's palm caused blood to fall from Tomáš' nose, and he wiped it away, looking down at the floor. "Answer me!" she yelled. Bi Han now stood beside his brother, watching on in fright. By now, everyone from the ballroom who could fit in the hallway stood and watched.

"She...she touched me inappropriately.." Tomáš finally admitted. "Who..." Bi Han whispered angrily, gripping his younger brother. "Lady Veronika is an esteemed member of Praha's society and would make a lovely bride, Tomáš, the point of these events is to meet women, and allow them to get to know you." she snapped, crossing her arms.

Kuai Liang almost opened his mouth, but Bi Han slammed his hand over it.

"By those words, mami, I should have allowed this Lady Veronika to take me out of my pants for everyone to see." Tomáš growled. He rose up from floor and showed off his ripped vest and his now open pants. "Is this what you want to see, mami, am I nothing but to be let to the wolves. No woman who would touch me like this is worth the noble blood."

"Tomáš..." Queen Jindřiška sighed. "Save it, mother. I will take my punishment willingly. Just allow me to go to my room and get some sleep." the white-haired man said sadly.

Upon returning to his room, Tomáš stripped off all his clothing and lay face down on the on the bed. He wanted to be rid of his royal clothes, the fine cotton and silks, curling underneath his sheets, he lay his head on the pillow and allowed himself to cry.