2412, Xavem 27, Jyda

They let June rest for a whole day which he spent sleeping and eating just to regain his energy and strength. Every once in a while, he would check on Xanthy who was laid on a moth-eaten couch by the living room. She looked the same with her eyes closed. She was at peace even if the world around her was already falling apart.

Now, as June dressed, his thoughts flew to the fact that he discovered two days ago. The Ice Sprites. Contrary to legend, they still existed. They were hiding underneath everything all this time—alive and thriving now that they had been able to build their own underground Capital. The downside of all that was he was bringing a war to their door by seeking asylum there.

June heaved all the weight he had been silently carrying in a huge breath. He tugged on a ragged tunic that Airene had pilfered from the house's multiple closets. It fit him exactly, although a bit loose on the sides. His warsei bumped against his skin like a heavy reminder of what else he carried.

The Falkirtan throne.

Now that he thought about it, this was probably why April had been so adamant on killing him. Not only did he end up being the heir to the Floating City's right to rule, he was also on her way to take what was rightfully hers. Why were people so driven to rule, anyway?

People think that ruling a territory, a city, or even a small town would be all fun and games. They think that being a monarch was just sitting on thrones and ordering people's heads on a platter. People think that having power would make everything better.

Power makes people worse. The desire to attain it was what would destroy a soul in the long run.

June's hands shook as he slipped the warsei off his neck. It's one of the curses he's been brought up with. Before, he had the High Queen's bane as his assassination weapon. Now, he had no choice but to lug the Breathkeeper around because it apparently was an important piece in this war.

He stared at the musical instrument as big as his palm. He lost count of how many times he contemplated throwing it against the wall and how many times his guilt showed him a scenario where the whole Air Sprite population vanished in a spray of white feathers. Perhaps, he could get rid of April this way.

Oh, dear gods. He shook his head and sighed once more. Just like what he's been doing every day, he slung the warsei back to his neck. It appeared like it would stay that way for a day longer. Perhaps, he would gain the guts to let go of this burden one day. Perhaps.

He pursed his lips as he slipped on his boots. He retrieved his satchel that contained nothing but the chalice and an almost depleted bag of versallis. He shoved his fingers into his hair and gave it a light shake—just the right amount of tousling.

June gripped the door handle with his non-dominant arm now that he wasn't forgetting the wound by his shoulder. Marin. That girl really knew how to strike. In retrospect, he was glad that it was Marin who inflicted him with this injury and that he was protecting Xanthy and the chalice when the attack happened. If she got to him when he's alone, he would've slit her throat already. He had been doing that since he was ten.

Nausea crept back to his temples as images of carnage and throat-slitting flashed into his mind. Oh, gods. He needed a new life. With quivering fingers, he gripped the knob and threw the door to his room open. The brownies stood by the door, quiet and somehow adopting a stance. What was going on?

June caught Cyrdel's eye and the heir knitted his eyebrows and urged him to look around with a jerk of his chin. Examine. Figure out what's wrong. Ravalee had her arms around her half. Xanthy's head lolled to the side. Airene was nowhere to be found.

June opened his mouth to speak when the window exploded.

"Get down!" June yelled to the brownies as he spied at least ten glinting feathers heading for them. He threw a cover spell in front of them as he lunged forward. Metal feathers collided with his spell, cracking it like it was made of sacryne glass. Gods of Calaris, if he slipped a little, one would have found its way to his gut.

June glanced at Ravalee and Cyrdel huddled behind him with wide eyes. They were both panting like they're close to hyperventilating. They're looking somewhere to his left. He whirled to see a greenish spirit dash past the broken window. Oh gods. Not Kymalin again. He turned to the brownies. "Get ready to run," he said through gritted teeth. "I'll hold them off here. Get out of the house. Take this with you."

He slung his satchel off his shoulder and tossed it to Cyrdel who caught it with his hand. June poured his magic into his shield just as Marin edged into his view from the right. They were herding them somewhere. A distraction. He needed a distraction.

June turned to the brownies again. Their lips were pale but their eyes shone with the determination to get out of this mess alive. Good. He'd make sure that they do, even if it's the last thing we would. He eyed the floorboards and the walls. Wood. He took a deep breath, a spell already forming at the back of his head. Before the women could react, he extended his magic towards all the wood inside the house and chanted, "Rakurota."

Wood made loud exploding sounds as they splintered. The walls and the floorboards beyond June peeled off in a huge boom. He poured his magic into the sharp pieces suspended by his spell. If there was anything June was good at, it's with sharp things. He barked a stern Go! to the brownie. Let him hope they really did.

He extended his hand towards the center of the room and sent all his magical splinters there. Bring April down first and he would have a small chance at winning. Something flashed by his left eye and he dodged just in time as Marin's fist sailed past his jaw. June sent the last of his splinters at April's general direction as he swept his leg underneath Marin. The girl stumbled, her hair spilling out of the hood she used to cover her face. She gave him a low growl just as June caught a flicker of green on the girl's eye.

He ducked and rammed his head on the spirit's stomach during their brief window of contact. He sent another burst of the ribbon spell he discovered not too long ago. Someone female shrieked at the loss of the summoned spirit. June picked up where the sound was coming from. Beyond the house. The banshee hasn't made a move yet.

What were they planning? He couldn't just keep deflecting and dodging their attacks. They must have some sort of a plan. What do they want to achieve? His eyes widened. Why wasn't April attacking the house anymore? Where was Kymalin's other spirit? Why was Marin just standing there and not doing anything?

Oh gods. The brownies.

Bile rose to this throat. Rudik's breeches. He shouldn't have told the brownies to run and go out of the house. How stupid could he be? It's just like—

He gasped as the memory tore through his brain. The nights he had spent beaten half to death inside a cold cell with his cheek pressed against the icy stone floor as his wounds bled and bled, as his bones tried to heal but never really mended. It's just like...

He was yanked back into reality when Marin yelled as she charged at him. One tip about attacking one's enemies? Don't announce it by screaming like a deranged vulkraine. June sensed where Marin was going to feint, where she was going to strike just by the steps she took. One, two. She's going to attack his wounded arm. Predictable.

His arm shot out. His fingers closed around Marin's wrist. He twisted his grip. The girl gave a disgruntled cry, the dagger dropping to the floor with a dull thud. June pulled Marin to him before striking the back of her neck in a precise move he learned how to do during his tenth birthday.

The girl crumpled like a busted sack of fresda at his feet. Good. That's one threat gone. Next up—where did the brownies go? He bent and snatched Marin's new dagger as he strode towards the front door.

He was almost out of the house and into some kind of a porch when April dropped from the sky in her regal white dress and feathered wings. What was she doing here? She's supposed to be incapacitated already. His sister grinned at him, sending his blood chilling with fear.

Yes, seeing his sister with lust for blood in her eyes scared the living lights out of him. Run. He should run. There's no way he could take her on head on, not when she could snap her fingers and his ability to breathe would leave him. That wouldn't kill him, no. But it would be so painful he would wish she did so.

June called his magic to the surface and sent out a weak spell. Like what the High Queen did, April swept her wing sideways and his spell changed course before hitting a tree. Okay, if she fought like the High Queen, he'd have better chances.

June eyed April who was eyeing him back. Both of them gauged each other as June took a careful step down the porch's two step stairs. Once his feet were on solid dirt, he clenched his jaw, a spell already thick in his lips.

April's eyes flashed. June charged. He fired his spell and as expected, April swept her wing to change its course. That's all he needed.

In the brief time April's wings shielded her face, he burst forward. He ducked to avoid being hit by his own spell going in a different direction. Before his sister could figure out where he went, he lunged and wrapped his arm around her neck. He slashed down with Marin's dagger.

Blood splashed to his face as April sagged in his arms. His heart hitched. His fingers slackened around the dagger's hilt. The dagger covered with his sister's blood clattered against the compact dirt. His breath shook as he threw his sister away from him. The world slowed down as he watched her body crumple, limp. He looked down at his hands to find them dripping with something that burned. His throat closed up; his vision tunneled. His gut twisted with a darkness he couldn't fight.

He couldn't have...

Not again. He killed someone again. He wasn't...

Tears sprung to his eyes as nausea slammed into him in thick waves. He wanted to hurl there with his heart seemingly pushing all the contents of his stomach up his throat.

Then, April picked herself up. She smiled at him even while blood spewed out of the wound down her neck. "Tch. It wasn't even that deep," her voice was still sweet even as it turned hoarse. "You've lost your touch."

June swallowed the bile climbing its way to the back of his tongue. His arms shook as he took a step back. Run. He should run. He would be killed if he's like this. He had to survive. For Xanthy. His boots skidded against the short grass when April lunged for him, her sword poised to skewer him straight through the stomach. Perhaps he should let her. Perhaps he should just—

"Get back!" Cyrdel's voice speared through June's mind. Before his eyes, big plumes of black smoke erupted from a device lodged by April's feet. When he caught a whiff of the smoke, his eyes watered and his throat dried up immediately.

"June, over here!" Cyrdel was saying. Northeast. Past the haze of trees bleeding to the deeper part of the forests of Flaron. No breath to waste now. June tore through the smoke spreading due to the cool morning wind and followed Cyrdel's voice. He hacked and wheezed his way through, keeping his ears sharp for the Alkaran heir's calls. He wove between trees as the smoke chased him through the shadow of the canopies. Would this smoke, whatever this was, envelop the whole forest? Weren't they going to be sniffed by anyone looking for them at this point?

"June, get in here!" Cyrdel's voice tore him from his current direction. He swerved past a tree and stopped when he saw a flicker of the brownie's mop of blonde hair. They stepped out of their vanishing and revealed Ravalee, Airene, and Xanthy. The satchel was still slung by Ravalee's shoulder. Relief washed over June. Good.

June regarded the black smoke still billowing behind them. "What was that?" he said through his scratchy throat. It took all of him to avoid coughing.

"Plague shroom mixed with black grass on a maximizer," Cyrdel flicked a brief gaze at his work now raging through Flaron like a doom cloud. "Looks amazing, right?"

"Sure smells amazing too," June sniffed, rolling his eyes despite the tears in them. "Where to? They're going to recover from this. Let's hurry."

"Says the champ who took so long to get here!" Cyrdel turned away. For a while, his voice carried a bit of his former cheer.

June coughed into his fist, willing his mouth to produce more saliva to water down the hoarseness in his throat. "Why did you even wait for me?" he asked. "You got Xanthy and the throne. Why would you bother saving me?"

Cyrdel's face darkened, matching the shadows dappling the forest floor. "I couldn't leave a friend hanging, you know?" he said quietly. "I don't want to add you to the things I regret not being able to save."

June pursed his lips as he followed Airene deeper into the still dense forests of Flaron. He kept glancing back to ensure that they're really alone in this vast forest. Everything was still. They walked in silence. At one point, June took Xanthy from Ravalee and carried the limp form himself instead. Cyrdel gave him an acknowledging nod before sidling closer to Ravalee and taking her hand.

June felt his face burn at that and noticed Airene looking at him. When their eyes locked, the older brownie gave him a playful wink before turning back to the road ahead. He sighed. At least everything was good now. They managed to get away from their pursuers. They were safe, for now.

Suddenly, Airene froze. June followed suit just as Ravalee and Cyrdel did. They listened.

The leaves rustled in quick, slithering movements as if it was coming for them. June sucked in a breath just as Kymalin tore through the foliage, two wicked swords in hand. She leaped for June's throat, her swords crossed and ready for the kill. June turned to his companions. "Go! I'll follow!"

He raised his hand just in time to block Kymalin's strike with a shield. He grunted as he stumbled back, Kymalin's swords shattering the hasty shield he conjured. The banshee's yellow, lamp-like eyes flashed red as she moved in for the kill. June reached out and gripped the very blade of her sword. He barked a shatter spell and the metal made a shrill cry as it exploded into a thousand shards. He leaped out of the way as her other sword slashed the area where his arm would've been. Blood pooled from a deep cut by his palm. Rudik's ass. He kept finding new ways to injure himself, didn't he?

The banshee threw the hilt of her busted sword away and lunged for him again. June sent a paralyzing spell forward. It hit Kymalin square in the chest and the banshee toppled like a sack of rocks. June would've smiled at his work but he turned and forced his legs to proceed running. Where were the brownies?

"Leaving so soon?" April's taunting voice tore through the crowns of trees and rained metal feathers upon him again. June threw a shield up as he ran. Then, the tree beside him snapped in half as a strong gust of wind hit it from the side. Gods, no. Was she serious?

The cracking sound it made was enough to make a person go deaf. A curse bled out of June's lips, his eyes tracing where the tree was going to fall. The light shimmered as if there was a sliver of magic in it. That didn't look normal. Unless...

The brownies appeared out of thin air, their faces frozen in horror as they watched an ancient tree come for them. Vulgar curses flew out of June's mouth without leash, this time. There must be something he could do! Something...

His hands crept to the warsei bouncing against his chest. His breath hitched. Could he do this? He had never used the throne besides for playing his silly compositions. It was never meant to be used in situations such as this. No throne should be.

But he had no choice. When had he been given one, anyway?

He put the warsei to his lips and blew a sharp note. The wind around him shifted direction and piled up below the falling tree, holding it up to the sky. Spots began dancing in his vision. Oh, gods. Using this throne drains magic faster than any spell. Hurry. He must hurry.

He reached the brownies. His presence brought them back to reality. As one, they turned and ran with him. To somewhere. It's up to Airene to lead them to the Ice Capital. Where was it anyway?

The tree crashed against the ground in a loud clash of leaves and branches. Its sound was a permanent reminder in June's memory that he just escaped the fate of being killed by a falling tree.

"We're almost there!" Airene yelled from the front of the hazy line they formed as they tackled the bumpy forest floor. April burst from the foliage and began whipping her wings here and there, sending calculated gusts of strong wind at the trees around them. Rudik's breeches. This was not good.

"We need to do something to these three," Cyrdel said, like it wasn't that obvious yet. "I don't have any more gadgets left in me."

June blew another strong note in the warsei just as they were about to be flattened by the second tree. Airene's head whipped here and there, no doubt looking for the entrance. Cyrdel dug into his pockets for something or anything to help them. He came up with nothing.

The third tree's trunk snapped and surged for them as it fell to the earth. June pushed another note out of the warsei. He didn't know how much longer he could hold up, not when his chest felt like it's already going to explode.

Still, they kept running. Airene kept searching.

This time, April sent two bursts of wind at two different trees. June paled as the shadow of two gigantic trees loomed closer and closer to them. "There, I see it!" Airene screamed, pointing somewhere northwest. June put his warsei to his mouth and this time blew a different but sharper note. The trees stopped in their fall, held together by the winds the warsei commanded.

June kept his breath on the throne as he let Airene, Ravalee, and Cyrdel pass by him and straight into a lonely looking tree that bore blue fruit. He was about to run to them when his chest exploded with pain. He was forced to stop blowing on the warsei when blood gurgled up his throat. He doubled over and coughed. His mind lagged at the sight of the slick liquid coating his fingers. For once, it came from him.

"June, watch out!" Ravalee's voice tore through his headspace. He snapped back to reality and proceeded to run. Turns out, he couldn't. His legs shook like flimsy poles. Apparently, he used too much magic.

"Let Xanthy go!" Cyrdel was saying.

What? Why was he saying that? June couldn't just...

"Leave her!" Airene's voice followed. "Run over here! I can open it in time!"

June cursed as he put the warsei to his mouth again and blew. He succeeded in making the tree rise higher for a few meters before his magic gave out. He managed to pull himself to his feet. He began dragging Xanthy towards the brownies who waved and wagged their arms for him.

Just a little more.

The tree's shadow loomed above him and he sent the last of his magic into throwing a shield above him and Xanthy. He would make it. Just...

Kymalin burst past the tree's leaves at the same time as Marin. Both women appeared from the bushes, lunging for him.

"Leave Xanthy!" Cyrdel's call floated above the roar of the wind and the ringing in his own ears. He couldn't—

Kymalin's sword was almost at his neck—

June gritted his teeth as he swung Xanthy off his back and sent her form flying towards Kymalin. The lifeless form slammed into the banshee's stomach, sending the both of them tumbling along the dirt. June caught Marin's arm again and slammed her on the ground. He heard a distinct crack. It's either the wrist or the shoulder.

June ran forward, dodging April's feathers and gusts of wind. The brownies were getting closer. Closer. He slid past the falling tree as it crashed against the soil. "April, we've got Xanthiene!" Kymalin's shout was a spear through June's spine and conscience. He just...did it. Why?

Before June's tears could slide off his eyes, a hand clamped against his mouth. He didn't struggle as he was pulled backwards and watched the darkness swallow him whole.

Then, he was falling.