Word Prompts:
1. Introduction
2. Complicated
3. Making History
4. Rivalry
5. Unbreakable
Cecil's introduction to hatred was when he met Kain. The older boy had taunted him, calling Cecil soft and spoiled, and the foreign emotion emerged, overwhelming with its suggestion of violence. With tight fists at his sides, Cecil had sprung forward, intent to extract an apology from Kain's bloody mouth.
Kain, the bigger of the two boys, easily hauled Cecil up by his shirt, his fist hovering over Cecil's face. The added humiliation fanned the new feeling hotter.
Rosa, however, with her brilliant light, dispelled the dark urges. With her, Cecil could pretend it wasn't there, lingering in the shadows.
"It's… complicated," Odin said, holding the black blade aloft. "You inflict slight pain to yourself, which generates the Darkness you can use against your enemies."
"Darkness," Cecil echoed, distantly. Something within him was curiously stirred at this offered potential; he both did and did not like the feeling. Looking at Odin, Cecil's young heart was certain in its blind trust of the king. "Should I do this?"
Odin gripped the sword by its blade, turning it over to offer Cecil the hilt. "Does it feel right?" Odin asked, eyes full of hope as Cecil took it.
"It does," Cecil lied.
"You're making history," Cid declared with a tight smile. "The first Dark Knight of Baron, commander of my ships, I'da never dreamed it."
"But?" Cecil prompted, sensing Cid's criticism.
Cid sighed, "You? A Dark Knight?"
"I know you disapprove," Cecil said, stiffly. "But it is King Odin's approval that matters."
Cid looked wounded, and Cecil pretended not to notice. "You could tell him no," Cid insisted. "I'd back ya."
"You would?" Cecil asked, surprised.
"I'd always help you," Cid replied, uncharacteristically solemn. "Remember that."
"I will," Cecil said, touched by Cid's fierce loyalty, unsure if he had earned it yet.
Cecil and Kain's rivalry started in their childhood, as a simple test as to which one was faster, stronger, better with a sword, or who could successfully talk Rosa into their mischief.
It became serious with Odin's interference. The king would often show up at their spars, offering encouragement for one but not the other. His choice seemed random, and that uncertainty only fueled both boys to fight harder, cherishing the victories and dreading the losses.
Cecil wondered what would happen if he and Kain were truly enemies, and whether he would stop holding his darkness inside, finally freeing it.
"A Dark Knight's concentration must be unbreakable," Odin lectured Cecil sternly. "You must not let anything distract you from your studies."
"What do you mean?" Cecil asked, genuinely confused. "I have been diligent in my lessons-"
"The Farrell girl," Odin said impatiently. "You cannot court her."
"Why—"
"Because you are the future king of Baron," Odin interrupted gruffly. "If you marry, it will be appropriate to your station; your marriage is too important to waste."
"We are not even courting," Cecil said; he looked aside, embarrassed.
"Good," Odin replied, seeming satisfied. "You will have time for a mission, then."