Chapter Three

Three years ago…

“You’re sure that he’s going to be safe here?”

Mhavrych didn’t turn to look at him, but Aegeus could see him nod. They continued to run, moving as fast as they possibly could through the darkness of the Kingdom. If they were seen, if any member of the Order caught even a glimpse of them, they would all be dead. He still didn’t know who had told the Panel that Casimir was involved in activities that would be considered a betrayal of the Order. The design of the trial had been so that whoever it was would be fully protected, his identity concealed so that there could be no retaliation. The fire that burned within Aegeus’ chest and made his heart pound heavily, painfully within him told him that this was, in fact, a smart choice by the Panel. If he knew who had handed Casimir up to them and put them into this position, he didn’t know if he would be able to control himself from seeking the most aggressive and brutal of vengeance he could.

The only saving grace was Casimir’s bravery and his unending, unwavering trust in Aegeus. He had gone into the trial without fear. He had faced the Panel and had remained unshakable. Though Aegeus had not been able to be a part of this particular trial, he had been present at others and knew the extreme to which the members of the Panel would go to get the information that they wanted from those who stood before them. Their goal wasn’t just to find out what they wanted to know. In most situations by the time that someone was called up in front of the Panel, the elder members already knew everything. They had no questions left. Instead, they brought the accused forward purely for the purposes of confronting them, of forcing them to admit by their own accord all that they had done and to accept not just the impact that their actions had on the Order, but the consequences that they deserved.

Casimir did not relent. He told them nothing and he admitted to less. They had always known that their clandestine meetings were dangerous and became even more so with each passing one. Every time that they came together to discuss all that they knew and to plan the next phase of their plan, they were putting themselves at greater risk. They knew that there could be a time when someone uncovered what they were doing and that they could be brought in front of the Panel. If that happened, they would be facing certain death. The only chance that any of them had to be saved was to agree to cooperate with the Panel and hand over the others. If they provided enough information and agreed to help the Order bring the others in for trial and punishment, they had a chance that the elders would have mercy on them.

Even that promise did nothing to sway Casimir. Though he knew that he was facing certain execution, he refused to betray Aegeus or Athan. The Panel knew nothing of what either of the others were doing, but if they knew that it was Aegeus who was leading the rebellion, offering him up would have not only earned Casimir his life, but may have won him favor with the Panel. He could have been brought into their fold and offered privileges and spoils not known to the other members of the Order. Yet he stayed loyal and strong. He faced his trial without hesitation and was sentenced to death.

It was only by a twist of the hierarchy, an ancient rule that dictated who carried out executions, that he was spared. For it was Aegeus who was brought forward as the Selected, the one who would be responsible for doing the Panel’s bidding. He was tasked with not only killing and disposing of Casimir but also with devising a cover story that would ensure his family didn’t know what actually happened to him.

As far as the Panel knew, Aegeus had killed Casimir and then told his family that he had drowned in the great lake. In truth, Aegeus had gone to Vyker and Galadriel, asking for their help to protect Casimir. Mhavrych had offered to bring him to a place that he knew where the Order would have no way to reach him. He would be protected from the Panel, but he would be in exile, isolated from everyone and everything, kept in stark conditions without some of the most basic of comforts. Casimir had agreed without hesitation and now they were crossing through the Kingdom, cloaked in darkness, not even hazarding lightstick or a torch for fear the shimmer of the light would draw the attention of those who might mean them harm. Aegeus wanted to trust Mhavrych, but it was difficult to put total trust and reliance in someone so young, someone who didn’t know all that had happened and the true risks that they were facing.

“I assure you, he will be safe,” Mhavrych said. “The Order won’t know how to get to this place. Even if they knew exactly where he was, they still would have no way of following the path to get to him. The only reason that you will be able to get there is because I am going to show you.

It was only a short time later that Aegeus left his friend in the ice and snow, looking forward to the day when he would be able to free him and ensure that he never had to go back.

Aegeus hung forward from the wall, the chains the only thing that supported him. He had given up struggling against them for that day. He was getting no closer to freeing himself and the harder he thrashed, the more he exhausted himself. There was a rumbling within him, a warning that soon they would be back. He didn’t know how long he had been in Ryan’s clutches or even how many days he had spent in this particular cell. The light was kept from him, dosed out only in the smallest amounts and just occasionally so that he was kept completely off-balance, never knowing when night had come and the day had passed. His body stayed awake until it couldn’t any longer and then it collapsed, sleeping as though nearly dead until it either woke or was awoken. It was the latter that came far more often.

The sound of footsteps or the heavy slamming of the cell door, or the violent dig of a boot into his ribs would rouse him from his sleep and he would be dragged into whatever else Ryan had planned for him.

He had been moved several times since the first day that Ryan had captured him, but he was always hooded. The creatures that helped Ryan, the Valdicians who were only shells of what the mighty beings used to be but were growing in their power again, would come into where he was being kept and wrestle him away from his shackles and into submission again before yanking a black hood so thick he could barely breathe over his head. This kept him from seeing anything beyond the small space where he was kept.

He tried to pay attention to where they brought him. He focused in on every twist and turn, trying to remember how they wove him through the buildings. He tried to count the steps. 100-101-102. He felt for the air that touched him, trying to tell when it changed enough that he might be outside. No matter how hard he tried, though, it was difficult to orient himself and he feared that even if he was able to escape, he wouldn’t be able to follow back through the path that they had led him down and find a way out.