Identity (Editing)

Chapter 30

We approached the castle gates which were now lined with rust from lack of care. It was logical to assume that many of our personal guards and servants had been deployed to the front end of the war, glad to serve their kingdom. Elucifer had stayed at the edge of the forest. It was safer that way since my father would most likely have him killed on the spot for being a monster. Only one guard greeted us at the front, bowing to me as Salia and I entered silently. The courtyard seemed mostly the same but more leveled. The once familiar trees that lined the edge were cut down and a threatening fence marked our border in place of it.

"Just what is this?" Salia whispered to me and I shrugged, rubbing my temples as my mind tried to wrap around everything.

"He... He tore down our garden... Did he honestly believe creatures would be lying low within the castle grounds..? That man..." I took a few deep breaths and shook my head. "No... This isn't my problem right now. I will talk to him and then we will be on our way for our own happily ever after." She smiled and lightly kissed my cheek.

"Big Brother!" I childish voice exclaimed and I looked over to see Kylee dashing towards me. In a swift movement, she had jumped in the air and wrapped her arms around my neck the second she crashed into me. I braced myself for the impact, gently setting her back down on the deadening grass. A small sob escaped her throat and she wiped frantically at her watering eyes. Kylee was about ten by this time and yet she didn't seem to have aged at all. Even that silly little pirate outfit was the same. Salia giggled a bit as I kneeled down and placed my arm on Kylee's shoulder.

"Big brother... I've missed you so much... Where have you been? Who's that woman..?" Her voice grew skeptical but she grinned weakly up at me with still teary blue eyes. I smiled and kissed her forehead softly.

"I'll tell you all about it later, little pirate, but for now, I need you to tell me where father is." She sniffled and nodded, pointing to the back half of the castle.

"He's in his throne room like he always is. He's been awful sore lately... There's a lot of yelling..." Kylee looked down at her feet and wiped her eyes again. My hand moved on its own, lifting her chin so that she would look at me.

"Okay, I need you to go to your room and I need you to stay there until later tonight. Can you do that for your big brother?" She bit her lip softly and nodded, not yet wanting to move. "It's going to be alright." I gave her a reassuring smile, and she finally moved away, running towards the front of the castle and making her way inside. I stood back up and grabbed Salia's hand as I guided her to the library entrance on the east side. It was the quickest way to the throne room. Other than the forest, this used to be one of my favourite places to relax. It was easy to lose oneself in one of the thousands of books, but when training began, my daily trips to the library became less relaxing and more of a duty. My only peace of mind came with my sister and the small forest but it seemed like my father had torn down the second one out of spite.

The halls were darkened with shadows of the high-noon sun, making our small trek seem much longer than it should have been. Finally, we arrived at the chamber doors and by then, dread had built up into an impenetrable ball of lead in my stomach. Taking a deep breath, I placed my hands on each door, leaning forward as I pushed them open. There was a faint squeak of the hinges as the doors closed behind us and I looked up to meet my father's gaze. His eyes flashed with anger when he glanced at Dein Nomos.

"You dare have the audacity to return here after you shamed our family's name and stole our sacred blade?" My glare intensified to match his in response as my grip tightened on my sword.

"Father... I've come back because I wish to have your blessing. I'm in love with this woman. Her name is Salia and she is half-human, half-elven." The second the last words passed my lips, I knew I shouldn't have said them. But Salia is who she is. She is not a monster, she is my everything. My father's eyes widened and he stood up from his throne, raising his sword to point it at her.