The Segmented Empire

Chapter 1

Tw: (parents fighting)

  The boy was small, for his age at least. This concerned even his parents, he was thirteen now, you'd expect him to be taller, but he would grow, and he did. Once hitting fourteen, he grew, a full two inches at that.

  "Father, Father!" The boy ran excitedly into his father's study, not caring to check if he was busy, "Father, I grew two inches!"

  "Yes, yes, that's great Anguish.." the older man grumbled.

  Ah, yes, Anguish, that was the young boy's name.

  "Does this mean I can finally train with Sc-"

  "I'm busy boy. We can talk of this later.." the young boy was cut off by the sharp stern tone of his father's voice, "now leave me, I do not need you being a burden right now."

  He sighed quietly, obeying his father's wishes and silently slumping out of the room, as if all the energy he once felt had left his body only leaving him with disappointment. He wanted nothing more than to finally spend time with his brother, but he knew not to argue with his father on the matter. He quickened his pace slightly, making his way to the large window at the end of the hall. He watched as his older brother trained, moving his sword swiftly to block the incoming attacks of his trainer. Scar was the male's name, he was tall and strong, like his father was, long black hair resembling that of his mother's wavy locks. His green eyes, shining with great determination to win.

  Anguish envied him. He was the perfect warrior in his father's eyes, he could attack swiftly, landing hits effortlessly against his enemies, but he always had a strategy, knowing exactly when to attack and where. The young boy could only wish to have such skill, he could barely hold an iron sword without feeling pain in his small segmented body, although he wouldn't exactly know, it's not as if he's really tried to hold a sword, he's not allowed to after all. The pink headed boy sighed, removing his presence from the window in favor of wandering the halls. He knew the castle well, but he wanted to explore where he'd never been, finding himself closer and closer to the dungeon the more he walked.

  The stairway was dark, even with the blue lit torches along the walls, he could barely make out anything beyond the fifth step. He had been ordered by both his father and the guards to never go down there, telling him many times how dangerous it was, how the most wanted criminals in the northern Nether resided there, though the boy would be lying if he said that didn't cause his curiosity to grow more. Taking a quiet breath, he stepped down to the first step, then the second, then the third, keeping himself quiet to not warn the guards down the hall. Each step he took farther into the dungeon, he couldn't help but feel this overwhelming sense of fear within him, as if he was watching a horror film, knowing something was going tho be there but not sure exactly where or what that something was.

  He only reached the eighth step before hearing, "What are you doing." The sharp tone of the head guard cut through the silence in the stairwell.

  He wasn't asking a question, he knew full well what the young boy was doing.

  "I-I was just-" Anguish stuttered out trying to explain himself.

  "Get back up here boy, you know you're not allowed down there." The piglin grunted out, his face changing to that of a scowl.

  The boy quickly obeyed, almost sprinting his way back up the steps. He stared down at his hoved feet, knowing full well he was in trouble, but instead of a threatening comment from the man, he felt a small pat atop his head.

  "I know you're curious son, but it's dangerous down there." The man's voice changed to that of a softer tone.

  Anguish was confused, looking at the now kneeling warrior in front of him. He had expected to be yelled at or even pulled into his room, but instead he was being patted by the head guard of the castle, staring at the older man's soft expression. The young pink headed male nodded, swiftly walking his way past the male to his room, not daring to look back at him.

  Dinner was quiet, no chatter from the queen asking her husband about his work, no sarcastic comments about the food from the eldest son, just silence. It was probably the loudest silence the boy had ever heard, he hated it. It wasn't the comfortable silence the boy was used to when they were all eating, it was deafening. Building up enough courage to break it, he finally squeaked out a question.

  "Um, father..." the older male turned his gaze towards the boy talking, "I was um, w-wondering if maybe, I could start t-training with Scar?"

  The king sighed, turning his head to his youngest, staring intensely into the boy's heterochromic eyes.

  "I have told you this many times before Anguish-"

  "But I'm finally tall enough, if I just learn to properly hold a sword and the correct stance to use it, I'll be able to finally train with him," the boy cut off his father's words "I've watched him train so many times, I'll be able to catch on quickly!"

  "Anguish-"

  "If I learn now, I'll be able to protect myself better later down the line,"

  "Anguish."

  "And you let Scar learn around my age, I'm sure if I just-"

  "Anguish!" The king shouted, slamming his fists onto the table in anger.

  The boy quickly shut his mouth, hiding himself slightly from his father's gaze.

  "Séverin! You are not to speak to our son in such a way." The queen yelled.

  "The boy is out of line again!" He yelled at her, anger building up within him "We've spoken of this before Lavinia, he is not to train until his first maturity!"

  "How are we to even know when that is, segmented ender maturities don't happen with age!" She shouted back at him, her white pupil-less eyes staring deep into the man before her.

  The boy couldn't take the yelling, he stood up running out of the dining hall and up the grand staircase to his room. He hated seeing his parents fight, and knowing he was the cause of this one only made him feel worse. He closed the door, careful not to slam it, he has completely lost his appetite, and instead decided it'd be best to just try and sleep. The boy quickly changed into his night wear, which consisted of a thin striped jumper that was far too big; ending just below his knees, and black shorts that ended mid thigh. He climbed into his bed and fell into a restless slumber, not bothering to say goodnight.

  1155 words, if you have any criticism or complaints, please do share them politely, I would love to hear your thoughts on the story and what changes I could make to change my writing in the future.

          - The Author