The Southern Mage- Sookai

Freedom in Hiding

Kai wasn't even in the castle. He stood
outside, by the waters edge, to feel
the chill on his skin.

Last time he was out there, he was making snowpeople with his sisters. They were practicing their magic. It was all 4 year old Bahiyyih's idea. With help from dad, the kids started rolling the snow into large balls. White spheres were stacked on top of each other. Lea and him ran to the shoreline to collect rocks for the faces. Then their dad taught them a spell to make their creations come to life. A few spoken words later, the snowpeople danced with them. It was a party.

He distinctly remembered how quickly it snowed that day. Winter was always his mother's favorite season. It was never his father's. Kai was shocked when he was told that one night before bed. His dad said that the only reason he moved to an ice desert was because he always wanted to see his mother smile. "She always looked beautiful but happiness looked the best on her. You'll do crazy things for someone when you get older. I only hope it's for the right person like me and your mom."

When five year old Kai was tired of dancing, he tried to catch snowflakes with his mouth. His dad came up to him, told him to close his eyes and look towards the sky. When he was told to open them, he saw the clouds formed a large heart. All of the snow fell from that heart. It was so thick, it looked like a solid white streak pouring down onto the earth. He was then told a simple spell. Once he spoke it, the clouds disappeared. A blue sky and endless sunshine replaced it. The snow from the heart created a giant mountain. The last thing he remembered from that day was jumping into it with his family.

Soobin finally found his way outside.
He turned around to see what the castle
really looked like. It was just an igloo.
No taller and no wider than himself.
That wasn't the grand castle he just left.
Confused as hell, he looked towards the
horizon. His assistant was just standing by the edge of the water. That man had a lot of explaining to do. He started to march towards him; the cold freezing his body with each step. He hated winters for this reason.

Kai took his shoes and socks off then sat
down. His feet submerged in ocean. It was cold but it didn't really bother him. He could hear the Prince chattering his teeth from a quarter mile away. That disturbed his peace. When those footsteps stopped behind him, he closed his eyes. "It's beautiful here isn't it?"

Soobin looked down to see Kai's feet in
the water. "You're fucking insane."

"That's not very proper of you."

"I swear with my friends quite often
actually. Just not in public."

"Makes sense."

"Who are you Kai?"

"You're going to freeze to death if you
don't leave soon."

Soobin knew he was right but he was also very stubborn. "And how can you stand it?"

"It doesn't bother me." Kai slipped his
socks and shoes back on. "I did not save
your life just to lose it to a little cold."

"Why won't you tell me who you are?"

"Because who I am doesn't matter. I
gave up who I was the day I signed that
contract."

"You were only six. You had no idea what you were signing.

"I know."

Soobin felt bad though he still didn't
understand why his assistant seemed to
hate him. It's not like he treated him
poorly. Or at least he didn't think so. He
decided to stop seeing him as his assistant and start seeing him as an equal. At minimum, Kai saved his life. He couldn't hate him that much. "I'm relieving you of your servitude."

"Thanks."

The Prince scoffed. "That's it? Thanks?!"

"What do you want to happen your
highness? Do you want me to leave you
alone?"

"You know what? Yes actually!"

"Good luck without me then." Kai waved
as he fell backwards into the water.

Soobin quickly realized that he made a
mistake. He ran to the water's edge then
peered into it's depth. All he saw was
blackness. "KAI?!" The Prince began to
strip. He had no idea how to swim but he
had to try.

Kai found this all mildly amusing as he
watched the Prince from behind. He
decided to put him out of his misery when he was completely naked. "As much as I'm enjoying the view, you didn't need to rescue me. That's not your job."

"I'm going to fucking kill you."

"Your highness!" Kai laughed as he walked away.

"You're a mage aren't you?"

Kai smirked as he turned around. "Took
you long enough to figure out."

"Are you apart of the original bloodline?
Is that why I couldn't find your family
history?"

"Those in the original bloodline were the
most powerful to walk this planet. I'm
honored you'd think that way about me."

"You are! Mages your age aren't as
flawless! You didn't leave a trace or a
mess! Nothing!"

"Are you going to kill me now?"

Soobin finished dressing then stood in
front of Kai. "No. Is that why you hate me? You thought I was going to kill you if I found out?"

"...your family history proves it."

Without a second thought, the Prince tossed his family robes into the water. Maybe that was why Kai was holding back after so many years together. "I'm not like them." He extended his hand. "My name is Soobin Choi. People are after me and I need your help. My family is dead. I can't do this on my own."

Kai watched that gold threaded robe
sink beneath an ice cap. That thousand
dollar piece of cloth was reduced to a
wet rag. He looked back towards Soobin.
The Prince was shivering so badly, Kai
was worried he'd collapse from energy
exhaustion.

When he took his hand, he whispered a
spell. That spell warmed Soobin's body
back to it's ideal temperature. The Prince
whispered "whoa!'" as he felt heat rush
through his veins. Kai bit his lip to keep
from laughing at him. He opened his eyes when it was over. "Do you feel better now your highness?"

"I do. Thank you Kai."

"You're welcome." Kai let go of their hold. "Go back inside. I'm going to get us some food. I'll be back before sunset."

Soobin hated the thought of being alone
for hours. "Can I go with you?"

"It's too risky sir."

"Please?"

Kai bit his lip again. He realized the Prince didn't get out much but there was a time and place to explore the world. During a war? When you're enemy number one? Wasn't one of them. Still, some arguments weren't worth having. He had long learned to pick his battles from his parents. Plus, they would be perfectly fine if the Prince obeyed his rules.

Soobin watched his equal unclip a
necklace. He stood still so Kai could place it on him. The pendant was of a penguin holding a large diamond in his flippers "It's beautiful. Why are you giving it to me?"

"Shh."

Soobin rolled his eyes. His attitude
dropped when he heard the shorter
giggling to himself. Just as he was about
to speak, the diamond began to glow. Kai
was whispering another spell. He didn't
dare interrupt it. The diamond stopped glowing when the spell was over. Kai explained "only I can see who you are now. To the rest of the world, you look like an average villager. Just don't lose the necklace."

"So you're saying I can come with?"

"Sure. Why not? Stay with me and let me
do the talking though. Do not leave my
side. Got it?"

"You have my word."

Soobin was so excited he picked Kai
up and twirled him around. His first
adventure was just beginning. Objective
number one? Find food.