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Stephen jerked back, recoiling in alarm as Lucius offered him a thin smile.
"Hello, Stephen." He said. "I was hoping I would catch up with you here." Stephen spun around, shooting a betrayed look at the Lady of Melbourne, but she only stared at the ground and refused to acknowledge him. Stephen turned back to his former teacher, gritting his teeth as Alexis backed up behind him.
"What do you want." He snapped.
"I should think that would be obvious." Lucius said, taking another step towards them, and Cafos yanked his sword free from his belt.
"Both of you, get out." He snapped. Lucius fixed him with a look, and he wilted slightly, but stood his ground. Shrugging, Lucius stepped aside, and a group of armored guards streamed into the room.
Cafos lifted his sword just before it was struck from his hand, clattering to the stone floor, and Stephen didn't wait any longer before throwing his arms around Alexis and teleporting.
"W-wait, Cafos." Alexis gasped as they stumbled to the floor of an adjacent hallway.
"I know," Stephen shoved himself upright, dragging her with him. "I can't. Not now, we have to hide."
"He said they'd kill him." Alexis protested, her voice high-pitched from fright.
"He'll be alright for a bit." Stephen promised her. "He has to be. Come on." He grabbed her hand, and she tugged at it wearily, but soon gave up and let him lead her down the hall.
They were still on the third floor, if the stained-glass windows were any indication. Stephen hadn't had any particular destination in mind when he teleported, so he wasn't sure where they had ended up. Hopefully they were going the right way, away from Lucius. The third floor was quiet, and he couldn't hear anything more than a couple echoed voices from servants, so he was reasonably assured of their safety.
"D'you think they're gonna find us?" Alexis mumbled at his side. Stephen glanced down at her.
"It's a big castle." He told her. "They have a lot of ground to cover, and I'm sure there's a lot of good hiding places." Alexis nodded, but didn't seem quite convinced. "I won't let anything happen to you," he added softly. "Promise." She ducked her head, and gave his hand a squeeze.
Soon enough, they found a door with a handle covered in dust, which they deduced was unlikely to be frequently used. So, they teleported to the other side, and soon discovered the room was some sort of storage area filled mostly with dusty furniture.
Alexis sneezed, rubbed at her nose. "'lright… we staying here for a bit?"
"Probably." Stephen released her hand, and made a small lap of the room before returning to the door. "I don't know how far we are from them… best to stay small and quiet. Maybe tonight we can slip out."
"And Cafos?" Was her next question. Stephen caught her gaze, grimaced.
"I'll find him before we leave." He told her. Alexis nodded silently and sank down to a bare patch of carpet.
"I'm getting sick of nobility," she muttered. "Seems they're all the same."
"The same?" Stephen echoed, going to sit next to her. "No, she… didn't you see the look on the Lady's face?" Alexis gave him a bemused look, and he went on. "She looked… upset. At having to turn us in."
"But she still did it."
"She could've been forced." Stephen protested. "Not every nobleman- or woman- is like Giles." Alexis just looked away.
"Maybe. But she still betrayed us." She said sullenly. Stephen sighed, reaching over to pat her arm.
"Yeah." He said simply. For a few moments, they were both quiet.
"What do we do after this?" Alexis asked at last. "We don't have any idea where to find a portal."
"I guess we…" He shrugged. "Plead our case to some valkyries."
"Wouldn't they just tell Lucius?"
"I don't know if he has communication with other valkyries."
"Oh." Alexis fell silent again, mulling this over. "I guess that's our only option."
"Yeah." Despite their circumstances, Stephen desperately didn't want to give up on their quest. He needed to know the truth about his father, as much as he needed to know if Lucius was justified in his actions. If he could just get to Notch, surely everything would be alright.
"Think Cafos is okay?" Alexis murmured. Stephen sat back on his hands, staring up at the colored tiles that made up the ceiling.
"I hope so."
Cafos winced as the dungeon door slammed shut, followed by clicking footsteps as someone approached his cell.
"I'm disappointed, Cafos." Lucius's voice echoed down the hallway. "Out of all the trainees, you were the one I thought least would betray me."
"Well, maybe you underestimated me." Cafos muttered in response, twisting his wrists in their cuffs. He was chained with his back to the wall of one of the small prison cells, unable to sit or lay down without dangling from his wrists, which he had avoided so far but had a feeling that he wouldn't be able to stand for more than a few hours longer. He ached a bit from being manhandled down into the dungeon, but most of his discomfort came from his wings, crammed against his back where he was forced against the wall. These cuffs were designed for a human, not a valkyrie.
Lucius ambled into view, casting a proud, disinterested glance through the bars, and Cafos glowered back.
"If you're here to gloat, I wouldn't." The younger valkyrie told him. "Or I might have to remind you that your target got away."
"Stephen won't get far." Lucius produced a key, fitting it into the lock and pushing the door open. "Nor will his girlfriend." Cafos snorted, but didn't correct him. "But no, I'm not here to gloat." Lucius took a step inside the cell, pushed the door shut. "I'm just curious what led you to fail your mission." He met his hands behind his back, turning to fix his former student with a reproachful look. "What led you to betray me."
"I had no choice." Was Cafos' response.
"No choice?" Lucius echoed. "Did he have you at swordpoint and demand your allegiance?"
"No." Cafos scoffed lightly. "He saved me from certain death."
"Ah, yes. Herobrine." Lucius took a step closer, and Cafos frowned, soon realizing that he must have been eavesdropping for several minutes. "How ironic."
"That Stephen should save me from his father, even after I tried to kill him?"
"That, yes." Lucius confirmed. "And that Herobrine was the one to kill your father. If not for Stephen's intervention, he would have unknowingly wiped out the bloodline of his wife's killer." Cafos stiffened at the reminder, a stab of adrenaline going through him. "Regardless, I do not see how that would render you incapable of finishing your mission." Lucius went on. "Even with an injured wing. I trained you to be proficient in hand-to-hand combat, and with the element of surprise you should have had no difficulty in finishing them off."
"How do you not understand? He saved my life." Cafos protested. "Do you truly not see why I couldn't hunt him down any longer?"
"I see that your emotion got the better of you." Lucius told him coldly. "I expected more from you."
"You expected the same cruelty that I showed him since you told me where he came from." Cafos said bluntly. "Isn't that right?" Lucius raised a brow.
"I expected you to focus on your mission rather than foolish sentimentality."
Cafos shook his head in disgust. "You would not understand true loyalty if it bit you, you know that?" Lucius' eyes darkened, but Cafos only lifted his chin and went on. "I have felt more true camaraderie with Alexis and Stephen since I met them than in my entire life with the Sons. They treat each other with respect, true respect, not respect born out of fear from threats of execution."
"And yet they left you behind." Lucius hissed.
"I told them to." Cafos shot back. "I hope they're long gone. And even if they aren't, Stephen knows the truth now. I told him everything. He will never come back to you."
Lucius lunged forward, one hand shooting out and seizing Cafos by the hair. Cafos gritted his teeth, trying to jerk free, but in his position he didn't have nearly enough leverage to do so.
"Out of respect for your father, Cafos," Lucius said, his voice low as he leaned close to his face. "I am offering you one last chance. Swear loyalty to the Sons, and you will be spared. Otherwise, when Stephen and Alexis are captured, I will kill you in front of them." Cafos set his jaw, and Lucius gave him a shake. "Am I clear?"
"Go to th' Nether." Cafos bit out. Lucius released him, stepping back in disgust.
"Then I've done all I can." He said, turning back to the door. "Very well, then." Cafos watched as he stepped out of the cell, shutting and locking the door again, then started to leave before pausing before the barred window. "Your father would be very disappointed in you." He told him. Finally, he left, and Cafos waited for the dungeon door to slam shut behind him before lowering himself slowly to his knees, if only to hide the way his legs were shaking under his weight.
It was silent in the dungeon for a long time. Cafos had noticed on his way down that he was the only one down here, occupying one of the three cells that made up the small prison below the Belmourne castle. The only sounds were his own breath, that, and his heartbeat that pounded incessantly in his ears. He'd accepted his death, but the thought of being executed at the hands of those who raised him…
The dungeon door creaked open again, and Cafos hurriedly stumbled back to his feet. Another visitor, so soon? A guard? Or Lucius, back to taunt him again? Surely Stephen and Alexis hadn't been caught already-?
The newcomer stepped into view, and Cafos blinked in astonishment as the Lady Eydis stopped in front of his cell.
"Make no sound, please." She said quietly, adjusting the bundle of fabric in her arms. "I will have you out of here in a moment."
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~p0tat0-g0ddess