Faults

Chapter 21: Archie

"Taylor, we need to go. Now," I say. Aydin and I are standing in Taylor's room as he lazes about in bed. The severe pain from the headache has worn off, but there's definitely going to be more coming our way.

"From what you told me, it doesn't seem like a battle we're cut out to be fighting in. Much less winning," he replies grouchily. "Why should I waste my time on something that I'm not even going to be able to come out on top on?"

Aydin rolls his eyes. "Get up."

"No," Taylor responds.

"Don't make me force you to get up," Aydin says, pressing his lips into a thin line. I've never seen him be so authoritative with his brother. I'm glad he's finally taking the reins and not letting Taylor push him around so much.

Taylor sits up, leaning against the headboard of his bed. "I'm not going anywhere."

Aydin must've sent his twin a thought because he's moving from his lazy position now. "Yes, you are," Aydin says, stifling a laugh. He watches, pleased at himself, as Taylor almost robotically gets out of bed.

"Fuck you," Taylor mumbles as he walks out of his room. Aydin and I follow him out, surprised as he actually comes with us as we head for the front door. I guess my previous ultimatums finally made their way to the front of Taylor's thick skull.

We make our way back to Christian's cottage, wasting a lot of time along the way due to Taylor's constant complaining. It seems as if my convincing ultimatums did less than I thought. "Shut up, would you?" Aydin growls at his brother after he grumbles yet another complaint.

We've made it beyond the tree-line and Christian's home is in sight. Taylor grunts in response to Aydin and then stops walking, his eyes growing wide. "Who's that?" he asks in a whisper, pointing in the direction of the house.

Christian is leaning against a tree a few feet away from his house, watching us. "That's Christian," I answer.

He's staring at us like he did when he gave me a headache earlier. His eyes are piercing, a gaze that embodies the phrase, if looks could kill. Christian is starting to walk towards us, keeping his stare unwavering.

"Back up," I tell Aydin and Taylor.

I'll throw the first punch if it's necessary.

The twins walk backwards, leaving me standing there. Christian's stare is fixed on me now as he begins to run towards us. Once he's closer, I thrust my hand out, throwing him back only three feet.

Wait, what?

I can usually throw people much farther than that. I look at my hand and then back at Christian who has easily regained his footing. He's rushing toward me, his expression angry and almost feral. Thrusting my hand out once he's about ten feet away, he flies back much further than last time.

Magic is controlled by distance? I think, confused. I don't know how it never dawned on me. Maybe it's due to the fact that I've never gotten into a true fight. Thank the gods for that. In this moment, though, I think I'm more lucky to have found this fact out than I am to have never gotten in a real battle before this.

Jogging over to Aydin and Taylor, I keep my voice low and say, "Aydin, stop him. You have to get close because your magic only has so much range. The closer you are, the more effective the magic is. Taylor, when he's stopped, burn him."

"I think he knows our plan," Taylor says quietly, pointing behind me.

I spin around to face Christian, throwing him backward again. Just as I do that, a sharp pain grows in my head. "Not this again," I groan. "Aydin, hurry up."

I bring my hand to my forehead and try to focus on what's happening around me. Aydin runs closer to Christian and stops him, causing him to tip over once again. Meanwhile Taylor is staggering around, holding the sides of his head. Shit, he must've gotten a headache, too. He lights his hand with a flame and just as he brings it close to Christian's body, he falls to the ground.

Christian's hand is wrapped around Taylor's ankle. Christian pulled him down. This is not good. Aydin is our only hope at the moment. Only problem is, he's clutching his head now, too. His ability is mental-based. How is he going to be able to do anything with magic if he can barely think straight?

Pushing through the pain of my own headache, I walk over to the three of them. Christian is up now, heading straight for me. His eyes are burning holes into me, puncturing my soul. If anyone's eyes could drain life with a simple look, they would be his.

I wave my arm in his direction but nothing happens. Trying again, the result stays the same.

Nothing.

Christian laughs as he nears me. "How do you like that newer aspect of my ability? Those marks plant a seed in you. Slowly, they eat away at your ability until it's gone. Of course, it's only temporary, but a month is much longer than I'll need in any circumstance."

He pushes me up against a tree, his arm pressed across my chest, keeping me pinned. He pulls something from his pocket and I struggle against his grip. From behind him, I see that Aydin is saying something to Taylor. Christian grabs my neck, forcing my attention back on him. His grip is strong enough to keep me there but not enough to strangle me. He presses the tip of a knife to the top of my throat, right above his hand. "You're defenseless now, Archie. Aydin can't save you. Taylor is too dim-witted. There's no one to help you." He laughs a little. "There's something I want you to know," he pauses, leaning in closer. He then lowers his voice to a whisper. "Your father didn't die the natural death you thought he did. I killed him."

My breath gets caught in my throat. If he killed my father, he wouldn't hesitate to kill me. I shrink back from the knife as much as I can, only causing Christian to press it further into my skin, about to cut me. "Something about killing kings is just so... Invigorating," he says, his voice gravelly and sinister. Right when he begins to slice my throat, he's yanked back by Taylor. "Son of a bitch," Christian hisses as Taylor burns his arm.

Christian pulls his arm away and Taylor presses his hand, lit with fire, to Christian's back. His shirt lights on fire, making Christian yelp. He attempts to pat it down but it persists, burning his back.

While Christian is distracted, Aydin lands a few punches on him. I step away from the tree and kick Christian in the side, causing him to fall to the ground. The fire gets smothered and he writhes in pain due to the large, exposed wound on his back.

He sits up and touches his back, immediately pulling his hand away. "You," he seethes, glaring at Taylor.

Taylor rolls his eyes. "Just give up already."

"Absolutely not," Christian growls, staring at Taylor. His eyes are full of darkness and intensity as his glare pierces through Taylor. With that, Taylor grips the back of his neck, screaming in pain. He falls to his knees, letting out cries of agony. God damnit, he has a mark now, too. This puts us at a serious disadvantage. If he uses his ability too much, we're doomed. Aydin already has a mark. We could all have lost our magic soon if we're not careful. The more the twins use their abilities, the closer they get to losing them, just like me.

Christian stands up and I go to punch him but he strengthens the intensity of my headache. I stumble over to a tree, leaning on it. Aydin stares at Christian and Christian returns the favor. Taylor has stopped screaming now and is just holding his neck, his eyes squeezed shut.

"This should be rather fun," Christian snickers, not breaking his gaze on Aydin.

It's a battle of the minds.

They're just staring at each other. Neither of them moves until Christian brings his knife up to his own neck and begins to cut his throat. Aydin presses his fingers to his temples and shuts his eyes for a moment. Christian is able to pry his arm out of the force controlling it and he throws the knife at Aydin.

"Aydin!" I scream.

He opens his eyes and I try to keep my focus on him but the pain in my head is starting to become too much. I feel myself running towards him but I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere, I'm just running in place. My vision begins to blur and then it all fades to black.