Legacy's Prince

Chapter Forty-Seven: Mother

Cold.

Every inch of my body is ice.

Numb.

I feel nothing.

Not even the hands latching around my arms.

     "No!" Axellia screams. "Father they didn't do anything!"

Her voice breaks me from my frozen state. I jerk at both of my arms, but the guards grip is too powerful for me to pull away from.

"You can't do this!" I shout as the guards drag us away. I finally manage to break one arm free. Two more guards appear and restrain me.

     "You'll understand soon, darlings," Father calls to us as we are shuffled towards one door. More guards corral the others and herd them towards another door. Ardan tries, in vain, to block the incoming troops, only to be seized. Seana, first hidden behind Ardan, screams out my name once before two guards grab her.

I pull, fight, wrench my body free from the guards grip.

"Seana!" I manage to take three steps towards her before three more guards stop me.

     "No, Father, please! Just listen!" Axellia begs, knees buckling, forcing her two guards to hold her up.

    "Let go of me!" I scream as I fight at the seven guards now dragging me away from Seana. "Get off!"

"Don't worry, dear ones. You're not the first," Father croons, as if he's comforting a crying babe and steps towards us. The contrast between his voice and the situation at hand is enough to give me pause.

Father reaches out and brushes Axellia's tears away.

"How else were those vermine able to get through the herd of peasants working in the orchards that day? The elders were able to cure them and they'll cure you two as well."

Cure us?

But we're not sick.

He really thinks we are, though. He truly believes we've been brainwashed.

The seven guards I'd been fighting begin dragging me away once more.

Seven.

Seven of them have pounced on me, and as I glance around I see that there are many, many more who could jump in on the off chance I break free once more.

"Cai," Axellia turns to me, eyes wide and filled with tears. "Cai, do something!"

     I don't. I know I can stop this, disintegrate all these guards and Father to dust, but I'd burn everyone else with them. I clench my fists, sucking deep breaths through my teeth. There has to be another way...

I turn and look back to where the rest of our group is being dragged towards the dungeons.

Dezden is nowhere to be found. Ardan, all the teachers, and Seana are being dragged away, but Dezden is not in their midst.

He got away.

I sigh in relief.

While I have no semblance of an idea how I'm going to get us out of this, I know I can now. So long as Dezden is on the loose we have a chance. 

I direct my attention to Seana. Her stone mask is cracked. She is shaking, frantic. Smoke emits from her palm, but no flames. She looks at me, asking me for some kind of answer as the smoke grows thicker.

     I shake my head, and mouth "wait," to her.

     Still terrified she nods. The smoke clears just as she disappears down the hall to the dungeon.