Decius closed his eyes with rue, his self-hatred bubbling back up to the surface. 

If only I had told him. Then she wouldn't be dead. It's all my fault once again, and all I can do now is blame myself.

More than anything right now, he would do nothing that would risk his sister's safety. And he could not be certain that Laurenz wouldn't hurt her too if he got the chance.

Decius's attitude towards Laurenz had instantly turned bitter, and he knew that if the older man wasn't ejected from his life, vengeance would be first priority.

His breathing was shallow, a lump in his throat forming. He never let himself cry in front of anyone, so he bit his tongue in the hope that tears wouldn't leak from his eyes.

"I think it's time for you to go home. I'll take you, but after that, I never want to see you again." Decius said hoarsely, barely containing his wrath.

"Fine, and if I see you again, I will kill you as mercilessly as I did with your mother. Are we clear?"

Decius nodded, struggling to even look at Laurenz without wanting to wrap his hands around his neck. He hesitantly reached forward, his trembling hand slowly lifting up to rest on Laurenz's shoulder.

Decius was repulsed to even be near him, let alone making contact. He summoned his power, pushing away the abhorrence he had for the man who just murdered his mother.

She had done nothing wrong.

Laurenz was selfish, bringing Seraphina into his dangerous life, but he had crossed the line when he dragged Renata into the picture, only to fuel his own self-centred misery.

Decius had the same two thoughts rebounding amongst his brain as he closed his eyes and pictured Laurenz's apartment, making a jump to the other side of the continent, back to Vaneaux.

Decius stumbled slightly as the pair appeared in the room where it happened, her body still slouched against the far wall, unmoving and framed in blood.

Decius could hear Laurenz's fragmented breathing, and he knew it was wise to let him mourn on his own.

He summoned his magic once again, ignoring any impulse telling him that too many jumps would drain him again. He felt the instinct that his burgeoning emotions would fuel him, take him as far as he needed and allow him to do anything he pleased.

A cloud of enchanted blue mist swallowed him, and in an instant, he was whisked away without a trace left in the apartment.

The two men were now a world away from one another, but their individual suffering connected them in a shattered, chaotic bond of loss and betrayal.

*

Laurenz crumbled to the floor gathering Seraphina in his arms. A long mournful wail escaped his lips starting low and quickly reaching fever-pitch as he rocked back and forward overcome with despair.

He brushed a loose whisper of hair from her forehead, his hands shaking uncontrollably as he gently caressed her face. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.." he cried out over and over.

Everything that was good in his world had been wrenched from him, and had had nothing left to live for. He wanted to die right then locked in this eternal embrace. He wanted more than anything to be with her, even if only in death. He fought the will to continue breathing, and prayed, begging for silent release from his pain. Why? Why had this happened?

*

As Decius materialized back at his home, he found Sascha huddled before him in the grass, sobbing atop of Renata.

He quickly dropped to his knees beside her, feeling his bottom lip quivering. "It'll be okay." he managed.

Sascha shot him a look and shook her head frantically, before dropping her head back onto Renata's chest.

Decius wrapped an arm around her shaking shoulders, trying his best to console her.

"Sascha, you have so much ahead of you. It's always alright to cry, but you need to save your tears for the future. Don't let yourself become lost in sadness now, just because the world has been cruel. Sascha, our mother was so brave. Now, she needs you to be. To tell the truth, you have to try to be brave for all of us. I know you can."

Sascha's sobs subsided, fading into silent weeping. "I wish she was here."

"I know, and I'm sorry. For everything. Now, I know what I need to do, but I'm too afraid to do it." Decius said, finally letting a tear slip free down his cheek.

Sascha grabbed his hand, and her broken gaze met his. "You have to look after us now, I know you can. You can't leave ever again. You're the best big brother ever, you can do anything."

Decius smiled weakly. "Thanks kid."

With that, he lifted two fingertips to her temple, and let his magic run through his veins. She dropped to the grass, unconscious. He hoisted her up, holding her fragile body close to his chest.

He let his power enter her mind, retrieving any memory of him, Renata, or her childhood, and removed them. He stole every memory she ever had of her life in the country farmhouse, and left her empty. The memories would soon be replaced with fictional ones, and he would leave her with a family that she would be safer in, somewhere where she could never be truly hurt again.

A tear splashed onto her blank face, and Decius realised it was his own. "I guess I can tell you the truth now, huh? I used to tell you some of my secrets, but now that you won't remember it, I suppose I could tell you the real secrets."

He paused, the words catching in his throat "I've done bad things, kid" he finally blurted. Even though the allure of the power was intoxicating, somehow he still felt torn between an uncomplicated life he wished they had, and this new exciting path. Admitting it to his beloved sister was another thing altogether though, but somehow he knew the process was going to be cathartic.

The floodgates opened and words poured out in a torrent. "I let myself become scared of my potential, and it's been my downfall. I can't see you anymore because of what I've done. Everything is my fault, and my life is going to ruin. I don't know how long it will be before I snap and go insane because of this power, but it's going to be soon. Mother could control it, but I have so much more power than her, and it's taking over. I can only hope that you don't develop these powers too, because I wouldn't be able to bear it if you became like me. I'm only a shell of who I used to be with a monster lurking inside. My soul is tainted with this burden and it will be my undoing. I have blood on my hands, and the death toll will only rise, because you and Mother were the only thing holding me back from turning genocidal."

His eyes burned blue and he felt awash with potency. Emotion was definitely the key to unlocking more energy and potential. He was feeling positively treacherous, as energy and enlightenment charged through his body.

"I'm so sorry I have to do this, but you're in danger every second you're around me. All I wanted was for us to be a happy family forever, but then I woke up. I found out that life isn't easy, and that every choice you make could betray you, and that's exactly what happened. Even if I wanted to stay with you, it's too late. Every bad thing I do with this power damages my ability to be good, and honestly, I'm not sure how much good is left in me. I'm a threat to you, and that's why I'm doing this. It's for the best, and I'm a coward for thinking that I could ever be near you and your safety was guaranteed. I love you so much it hurts, and there's no other way I can solve this problem. I've got to go away, and I can't come back."

Decius took a deep breath when he finished speaking, and he stayed still for a long while, grasping onto her in his arms, savouring the last few moments with her.

*

Laurenz drifted in and out of presence, falling apart all over and again each time he realised it was not all a bad dream. How does anyone survive this? Why would anyone want to? It was growing cooler and he ached all over from sitting awkwardly on the floor, but it was secondary to the pain ripping through his mind. He stared transfixed on his love, afraid to look away. Will I forget what she looks like? What she sounds like? Her laugh? Her smile? I can't bear to think.

Through the fog, awareness emerged of the trials of blood that sullied her beautiful skin, and he became fixated on wanting to cleanse it off of her. "Get it off, get it off" he cried out to no-one. He tried in vain to brush it off with the fabric of his shirt, and his hands, as he could not bear to move an inch from her to fetch a cloth. But his hands too were covered in her drying blood, and every tender wipe left more mess which wrenched further at his mind.

His torment and anguish was unstoppable carrying him on a journey to hell and back. Why had he gotten involved with her? Why did she have to die? Why wasn't I here when she needed me? So many questions, but no answers came.

*

Decius stood, lifting his sister effortlessly in his arms as he straightened his posture, knowing that it was well and truly time to move on.

His eyes were set ablaze with a surge of magic, and he let it carry them back to the village he had stayed in the night before. He carried her to a doorstep and lay her down. He knocked on the door and quickly ran for cover, hiding behind a row of bins.

A young woman opened the door, and she let out a yelp of surprise when she noticed the small girl curled up at her feet, and a look of worry was on her face. Decius quickly sent an idea into her brain to take the child inside, and that's exactly what the woman did. Decius shot another thought at her, prompting her to raise Sascha as her own and make her think that she was part of that family.

He got to his feet when the door shut, and he dusted off his hands. He had to return back home briefly and set things right by properly laying his mother to rest. After that he planned to get far away before the anger set in again, but this time, he was going to welcome the feelings and follow through.

It is time to become what I was truly meant to be.

*

Hours passed and the moon cast a faint glow on the floor. Was it still the same day? Laurenz's tears had run dry and his voice had long given up. He was thoroughly spent and weak with desperation. How long had he been there? He didn't care. Time meant nothing. Nothing meant anything. Just the pain in his soul anchored him as he drifted.

Thirst finally roused him from his daze, and Laurenz staggered to his feet a broken man. He had no idea if or how he would survive, but he did know that he could not separate his hatred for Ashte and Decius or himself swirling in his mind in equal measure. He reached down and scooped up his beloved in his arms, and set his mind to carrying her to their favourite spot on the hillside under the boughs of a sprawling tree. He would lay her to rest here surrounded with flowers and natural beauty forever more.

One day I'll be with you. But for now, I have work to do.