The Prince

Night quickly fell once the harvesters fled, and darkness flooded around Lysandra. The prince tripped over high roots and large branches. A pathetic attempt at feigning clumsiness. His eyes should’ve adjusted by now.

His foot tripped over a rock this time, causing him to fall face-first into the dirt. The ground pushed the blade out of his chest. He groaned, a weak excuse for a groan.

Lysandra pushed her hilt deeper into the prince’s back. “Get up,” Lysandra said.

He replied with a mumbled apology.

She pulled him up by his collar and refitted the blade. “Stop saying that. You’re not sorry.”

The prince stumbled forward until he tripped again, falling near a dirt opening. “It’s here.”

Lysandra pulled out her blade and kicked him to the cave entrance. She pulled out lightrocks and cracked them together.

The prince flinched.

“Scared of the light?” she said and threw the rocks in the cave. Lights flickered around inside. “Get in.”

A rotting stench overwhelmed her as she pulled herself through. Flies buzzed around and danced with the light. Two contorted corpses shoved in the corner of he cave. None of them recognizable.

“Where is he?” she asked.

“I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I blacked out, I—I don’t rememb—”

She punched him with the hilt of her sword, stooping over him as he fell to the dirt. “You better remember! I don’t care if you have to find every piece of him! You better remember!”

“I—I remember stabbing him. After he killed Lei—”

“What’s that?” She pointed at the dirt piles next to the prince.

His voice cracked. “It’s—”

“Dig it up.”

“No.”

She glared at him and leveled the end of her sword to his eyes. “Dig. It. Up.”

The skin around his collar shifted into a purple hue and his body tensed. Lysandra kicked him down. Her sword pierced through his chest until it dug into the dirt.

He squirmed and his face pinched for a second, but then it relaxed.

“I remember,” he said with eyes unfocused. “He stabbed her. And I killed him. It’s just as you say. If you let me live, I’ll kill more. Just end it. Just end it. Just end it….” he muttered, continuing until the end of his breath.

Lysandra paced around the cave as he muttered until she stopped on a dirt pile. The muttering stopped. “That’s right. I knew it. He’s here.”

“No, please. You don’t underst—”

She dug her sword deeper until her hilt rested in his chest. His arms curled up to the sword. Lysandra twisted the blade to stop his attempt. This time, he screamed. A flash of pride flooded through Lysandra as she started to dig.

“Please,” he begged again. “The Steelbrite he— he crawled away, he’s not here.”

“His name is Rex,” she replied, digging deeper into the dirt.

“Yes, Rex. He’s probably out there, th—there’s a stream nearby. He—”

“You’ll really say anything.”

“I’m not—please, that’s enough!” His attempts grew more desperate the deeper she dug. “Please…” he whined.

A soft face emerged from the dirt. Worms wiggled back into the dirt as she brushed it away. “Who—”

“Varith.” The prince faced away from the hole, as if it were too bright for him to bear. “I—I killed him too. Please—cover him.”

“No, I recognize him. A drawing, I think.”

“Just cover him. Please,” he begged once more.

“No, I—I, oh—” Lysandra pulled out her sword from the prince’s chest and backed away. He rushed to cover up the man, shoveling handfuls of dirt into the corpse with care.

“I didn’t know. I—I should’ve known. I didn’t—” Lysandra said.

Once the prince was done, he slumped to the dirt. Dirt covered his nostrils as he stayed limp, breathing some of the dirt in.

“I’m sorry.” Lysandra reached out to comfort him, but reeled her hand back. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.”

He didn’t respond.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Just as I killed Rex,” he said. “I killed them.”

“No, that doesn’t make sense— the contract. It says it on the contract. Where’s the contract?”

The prince patted his pocket, and pulled a paper out. Lysandra snatched it and pointed out the man that rested in the grave. “I knew it. Him.” She pointed at Varith. “You didn’t kill him. You couldn’t have. Rex would’ve—” She bit her lip with the realization. “ I’m so sorry.”

“If you’re not going to kill me, then leave me.”

“Prince Cylar,” she said, reading the contract. “He lied to us. He killed him, he killed them.”

“I know,” he sighed.

“Then…”

“Then, what?”

“Then, we need to go to Shone, we need to—”

“Make him pay for what he’s done?” He turned to lay on his back.

“Yes!”

“I want to kill him. I do, but—” The prince folded his arm over his eyes. “I’m tired, Lei.”

“Lei?”

The prince lifted his arm, and blinked a few times at Lysandra, as if he forced his eyes to adjust. “Nothing. Just go.”

Lysandra paced around the cave, the smell growing unbearable. Heat prickled behind her eyes as she swiped at her forming tears. She circled the cave until she reached the entrance, turning back and whispering, “I’m so sorr—”

The prince lay asleep, sprawled on the graves of his friends.

Lysandra sheathed her sword, and hoisted him on her shoulder, his body weighing less than most children in Neoreus.