Theo two followed Lorcán to a smaller courtyard not too far from the great hall. A large tree sat in the center with several benches placed around it. A butler was already waiting with a fresh platter of tea and a table set up. All three sat but only Lorcán bothered with the tea.

"I am sorry for your loss if they indeed were there."

Noah looked up from his lap. "They had been talking about doing something like this for months before we left."

"You never told me that." Theo was surprised by the news.

"I had to get us out of there and you would've wanted to stay for it."

Lorcán took a sip of the tea watching the two brothers. "I wish I had that same courage the first time Erebus did this."

"What do you mean," Theo asked.

"Like many of the Gods, I did not fight." Guilt laced each word as he spoke. "It is one of the biggest regrets I have to live with and the consequences that followed."

Theo's eyes went wide as the realization set in. "You were there. You're... you're a God."

A warm smile spread across Lorcán's face. "Indeed I am and yes I was there during the first war."

"Wow." He frowned slightly. "But why wouldn't you fight?"

"I was too scared to leave the protection of my palace to do what was right." Lorcán was straightforward and to the point. He had spent too many years running from his choices and was now learning that the only way to peace was to face the consequences.

Noah jumped in as Lorcán finished. "Do you agree with Melosa then? Will you do the same this time as you did all those years ago?"

"Ah, so you've heard her rather extreme positioning on this." Lorcán sat back in his chair. "I don't agree with her stance that no one should fight. No one fights then we leave ourselves vulnerable to significant attacks. Which are already occurring it seems."

"You only answered half of my question."

He paused carefully thinking of what to say. Rather how to say it. "My place isn't on the battlefield. I was created to collect and record all that occurs in this world. Though I will not fight physically, I will offer the knowledge I have obtained over the years." Noah didn't seem impressed by this statement as he sat stoned-faced. Lorcán leaned forward giving all his attention to Noah. "I can promise you that your friends will not have died in vain. I will not make the same mistakes I did before and stand by."

"Swear your life on it?" Theo jumped in. Lorcán casually turned to him. Care in his eyes.

"I swear my eternity on it."

~~~*~~~

Gabriel sat watching his brother finish off his third drink of the day. It was clearly too early to begin drinking, but who was going to stop him? Ciro threw his hand up to the waitress for another drink.

"You need to slow down."

Ciro stared through Gabriel as he spoke. His eyes were glazed over mostly from the alcohol but also from something Gabriel couldn't quite place.

"So is this your plan today?" Gabriel folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. "You get drunk and I end up lugging your ass back up the hill."

He slammed the mug on the table causing a few judging looks from the waitresses that were there. "Just throw me out on the street, I'll be fine."

Gabriel rolled his eyes leaning forward and pulling the drink away from Ciro. "I didn't come all this way to babysit your sorry ass while you mope around because some girl managed to get under your skin."

"Asshole."

"Not the worst thing I've been called," Gabriel smirked.

Ciro just stared at his brother with no emotion then shook his head. He rubbed his face as he let out a muffled sigh. "I thought she would be gone by the time I got back. She has been nothing but a pain since Lorcán agreed to take her in."

"Why'd he take her in," Gabriel asked. Finally, we were getting somewhere.

"A favor for her father who's down towards the border doing who knows what. He was talking big about going in and killing Erebus himself but that's all talk coming from that idiot." Ciro leaned back pinching the bridge of his nose. "I've been helping Lorcán oversee the war efforts and ever since that bitch showed up it's been a nightmare."

He was right on that front. For the years leading up to the present, Ciro and Lorcán began to work on plans for when the times of peace were to end. They did everything they could think of for preparations. When Melosa arrived, however, things seemed to halt on all fronts. Every meeting was somehow found and interrupted by her. Plans would end up missing when they were needed. After almost a year of this, Ciro was fed up and left for Asra to begin moving travelers to Ifera. There was no way she would single handedly stop them from going to war.

"It looks like she's going home though." Gabriel tried finding a positive in all this. A first for him.

Ciro shook his head. "She's not going home. Not even her father wants to deal with the little monster he single handedly created."

"So..."

"I told Lorcán we should lock her in the dungeon." Ciro smiled. "But he disagreed. Now though with the way she acted this morning, he'll rethink the idea."

Gabriel let out a small laugh at the idea of this high-strung princess dealing with the dirtiness of the dungeons. Truth be told they probably hadn't been in operation for some years either. "As long as she doesn't get in my way, I think I can handle watching the temper tantrums at dinner."

"That reminds me. How did it go with Lorcán?"

"He agreed to help me. Not sure how but I guess we'll figure that out as we go." Gabriel scratched at the table watching a small dent form.

Ciro smiled and his eyes lit up with a newfound hope. "Anything that will bring back a piece of my brother."

"Yeah..." Gabriel smiled to himself. "I just hope it works."

~~~*~~~

The boys quietly exchanged glances as they partook in the tea. Lorcán didn't push for them to talk but rather enjoyed the company. A breeze picked up rustling the leaves softly around the table. The tree branches reached out far beyond the trunk and danced with the breeze creating a unique shadow show on the cobbled ground.

Theo watched the branches in the breeze as he sat with his hands in his lap as a small child lost in a world all their own. "Have you really been king here for centuries?"

"I have."

"Must have been lonely." Theo thought out loud. Noah listened intently to the small conversation that Theo started.

Lorcán smiled thoughtfully as he closed his eyes thinking back all those centuries ago. "It definitely was much different than how things are now. However, I don't think lonely is how I would describe my days." He glanced over to Noah who had gone a little too quiet for his liking. "Would you two like to go into the city? I think we've sat here rather long enough."

Theo turned to his brother with pleading eyes. A smile played on Noah's lips as he rolled his eyes but eventually gave in.

"Then we shall," Lorcán called over the servant who already had a cloak ready for him. He quickly replaced his kingly robes with a plain brown cloak. "Do you two have what you need?"

They nodded.

"Let's go then."

They left the courtyard behind. Lorcán led them through the castle quickly giving brief greetings to any who passed by. He led them down the staff halls that were used to quickly move around the castle without being seen if need be. Through the kitchen, they went out a small door into the bright mid-morning.

It was decided they would walk down enjoying the weather rather than saddle up the horses. Noah and Theo began talking about nothing of importance. Some of it was sibling bickering which made Lorcán chuckle softly to himself. They reminded him so much of Ciro and Ahmes when they were children.

"What's it like in Liadain?" Lorcán asked, turning his head to look over his shoulder at the boys. "I've only ever heard from my informants of the going ons of the king. What was it like for you two?"

Theo turned his head. "It was okay. We weren't the richest or anything but the people around were what made it bearable."

"I heard that it was a pretty dangerous city to live in," Lorcán stated. He knew how badly the citizens were being treated, but information from those who lived their entire lives there could give him precious information.

Noah jumped in as Theo looked over. He spent more time running through the city than Theo did. "It's gotten worse over the years. We were mostly shut off from the outside world. So people were getting restless and started a rebellion of sorts, but you've probably already been told that."

Lorcán nodded. "That is true but it has only been attacks. Nothing more than that."

"Oh." Noah ran a hand through his hair thinking what to say next. "Well, I couldn't tell you everyone that was or is involved, but a few friends joined." A pain pulsed with each heartbeat. Theo grew concerned as Noah continued, but he swallowed the lump that was growing in his throat to continue. "They wanted me to join them, but I couldn't leave Theo." He glanced over at his brother who had a look of that little kid who found their parents dead. "The presence of the rebellion hadn't become prominent until maybe two years ago when they began bigger and bolder attacks."

"Well, I hope we can give this rebellion some assistance soon." He saw Noah's shoulder straighten up and a faint smile.

"There seems to be a lot more magic here," Theo interjected. He remembered that of Asra and just blurted what was on his mind.

"You don't even know." Lorcán chuckled at the excitement of the boy. "I'm sure you'll find some that you can get into."

"I always hoped that magic still existed," Theo stated. This caught Lorcán off guard a bit.

He looked over watching Theo kick a rock down the path. "There isn't magic in Liadain?"

"Oh no. There isn't really any magic in the entire kingdom but especially in the royal city. Most had forgotten about magic and the Gods, but my mother would always tell me these stories of the Gods and those who could use magic. Noah..." Noah rolled his eyes at the all too familiar story Theo told had any chance he got. "would always pick on me about believing the stories. He was never much for children's stories but I always had a little faith that the stories were based in some reality." Theo explained. His face lit up as if he was the kid back listening to his mother read the stories.

"Just another tactic to isolate the people of the royal city from the rest of the world," Lorcán spoke. Theo looked over at him as he said this. He was looking towards the growing city in front of them.

The conversation died down after that. The three walked silently toward the growing city. It was a lovely afternoon with a nice warm breeze and a clear blue sky. As they made their way closer, the sounds of the lively city became more noticeable. Theo's heart started beating faster and faster at the excitement. Lorcán caught Theo smiling from the corner of his eyes and smiled. Theo seemed to change in front of Lorcán's eyes into the curious young boy he described to him as he once was. They finally made it to the city grounds. Theo wished he had a hundred eyes to look at the bustling place.

The city was a lot like the northern capital with its tall buildings and busy streets of shops and vendors. The difference? There seemed to be happiness in the air. People were chatting and laughing, something Theo was not used to seeing in Liadain. They passed shop after shop. Even Noah's curiosity was growing by the second. Each has something different to view from the window. Bright colors blurred together as they raced down the street. Finally, they stopped in front of a small shop.

Mr. Igor's Emporium of Wonder and Curiosity...

A large wooden sign swung right above the entrance. The window was blocked by large orange curtains so no one could see in. The store was dark and difficult to see in. All the windows were blocked off and the only light was from the hundreds of candles that had been lit. A strong scent of fire and vanilla blocked all other senses. Theo wasn't sure where Melosa was bringing him and he didn't quite like this place.

"What is this place?" Noah looked around at the unique items that seemed to be collecting dust. It looked like the place had been abandoned.

"There's someone I want you to meet," Lorcán said. Noah and Theo looked at each other and shrugged before following.

They passed shelves of collections of odd things. None of which could properly be made out. Theo thought he had seen something strange when he went to the bookshop, but this was something else. He finally saw what looked like the main desk. Melosa let go of his hand and peered over the countertop.

"Igor! I know you're in here." Lorcán called out. Nothing was said back so he tried again. Still nothing. "Hmmm... Well, that's odd. He usually answers the first time I call him."

Theo and Noah peered towards the black hall and heard footsteps. A tall slender man came into the light of the candle. His eyes were sunken a bit with dark circles. He had dark kind eyes and a slender face. He towered over the both of them and peered down to meet their eyes. His arms and legs seemed disproportional to the rest of him with how long they were. His hair was tied back into a neat bun without a hair out of place. He stood in front of the two without a word.

"Igor!" Lorcán greeted with a smile. Igor returned the smile warmly.

He then turned to Theo and Noah who were a bit shaken by the looks of this man. "And who are these young men you have accompanying you today?"

"This is Theo and Noah. They came in last night with my dear friend Ciro. I've taken the liberty to bring them into the city and show them around." Lorcán explained as he turned to the boys.

"It's nice to meet you two." Igor placed his hand for Them to shake. Theo hesitated for a second but took his hand while Noah took a step back. This was more down Theo's alley of interest. "Now what can I do for you two today?"

Lorcán raised an eyebrow waiting for either boy to speak, but Noah sunk into himself as Theo shrugged.

Igor chuckled. "All new customers have the same reaction." He winked at Theo who stood and watched as Igor pulled something down from the shelf. "How about an enchanted ring? Says to give the wearer powers of invisibility."

"Oh no thank you." Theo shook his head at the ring. Igor placed it on the counter and looked at Theo. Igor studied Theo carefully as he leaned on the counter to get a better look.

"Where are you from my boy? I've seen many faces come and go but I haven't seen yours before."

"Oh, I'm from Liadain," Theo answered. He watched Igor intently. Igor nodded lightly and turned.

"Magic was banned from the northern kingdom, am I correct?" He turned to look over his shoulder.

"Oh um... well"

"Yes," Noah interrupted. He nodded to Theo to continue. "It's no longer practiced in the northern kingdom."

Igor went back to looking over the shelves. "I can very much promise that not everyone in the northern kingdom has forgotten about magic and there are plenty who are still practicing the ancient art. Ah, here we are." He turned and now had a small leather book in his hands. He walked over and placed it in front of Theo. "This is a small spell book I picked up a while ago. Now it's not much and you'll probably get your hands on some pretty significant books up in the palace, but if you would like you can have this one."

Theo picked the book up. It wasn't anything special. A light brown color with some symbols stamped in the center of it. He flipped through the pages and saw intricate details of how to cast these spells and illustrations. He looked up at Igor. "Are you sure?"

"Of course." He gave a warm smile. "When one thing finds a home, then another finds a place with me."

"Thank you," Theo said softly, keeping his eyes on the book.

Igor bowed his head and turned to Noah. "And what about you? Anything you are interested in?"

"Oh no this is more my brother's area of interest." Noah protested.

A pause as Igor stroked his chin. He disappeared into the back again and Noah gave Lorcán a nervous glance. "Here." He laid a small dagger on the counter in front of Noah. "This was given to me a while ago by a stranger. He told me that it belonged to a God who was lost a millennium ago."

The blade was made of obsidian with strange symbols carved into the blade. The hilt was clearly forged of precious metal but none Noah could tell of. It was quite a beautiful weapon. He held it in his hand and to his surprise it was quite light. Noah looked up but didn't say anything.

"Sometimes we need a little magic in our lives. There's nothing wrong with that." Igor said and gave a wink to Noah.

They said their goodbyes and entered back into the busy street. As if on cue, Theo's stomach growled. Lorcán said he knew of a small place to get a quick bite. It was a cafe not far from where they had left from. They grabbed some sandwiches and sat outside to enjoy the weather. Lorcán mostly watched the crowd around them while Theo read more into the book he had been given. Noah leaned in to join Theo in reading the book as well. Neither one could understand most of what was written in the book.

About an hour later they were full and ready to venture around. They visited several smaller shops that weren't greatly visited by the large crowds. They met some nice people and grew to love the city. Around early afternoon Lorcán excused himself back up to the castle but left the boys with enough money to get them through the rest of the day.

They decided to stay until night and grab dinner at one of the many taverns scattered throughout the city.

"I wish Mom and Dad could see this place," Theo said as they sat under a tree once the heat of the day had blanketed the city. They were taking a small break watching the crowd.

Noah looked over as he ate a bit of chocolate, which they had bought from a candy shop. "Me too."