Heroes of Darkness

XXVIII

LEO

His father winced as Dusknoir levitated the chest-plate into place. He was still in pain, Leo noted. He had been asleep from the medicine for four days after the attempted assassination. The dagger in Lord Specter's shoulder had done a lot of damage to his muscle, and it took another day to cleanse it of infection.

"I won't be needing that," his father declared as Leo's Dusclops entered the room with a wheeled wooden chair. Leo nodded to his Spirit Pokemon, who pushed the chair back out of the chambers. "I will be needing one of these, however." Specter took the cane Leo was holding for him. "Now, to attend to court matters. Its high time the people of Mt. Pyre are shown that I'm not broken." Leo followed his father out of his chambers and they began to descend the tunnels to the Great Hall where his father sat. The going was slow, and thought Leo was strong for his age, still had trouble helping his large father balance himself.

Mother stopped them before they entered the room. It was the first time anyone besides the doctors had seen his father since the incident. "My sweet husband look what he's done to you."

"It wasn't enough to break me," his father growled low. "I owe our son my life- he did what any honorable son would do. For that I'm proud of him." He locked eyes with Leo and the boy nodded, Dusknoir and Dusclops standing by their respective Spirit Partners.

His mother placed her hands on his cheeks and kissed Leo. "I knew you would see what I saw all these years." She gave his father an angry look. "I told you he was treacherous- a jealous boy, lustful for power, born of a traitors' family. We should have been rid of him sooner. Thank the gods my son was there to stop him. If only I could have seen that boys' body to spit on it. How dare, he. How dare, he-"

"Thank you, Mother, but we have court to attend," Leo hushed his mother and escorted his father into the throne room. It still pained Leo. He could still see Banette's broken and twisted skull in his nightmares, and how it withered away into not but mist. He could feel Dusclops' emotion about it. He had grown up best of friends with Alex, his half-brother. The betrayal weighed heavy on his mind...

And Alex wasn't the only one. Franco, the captain of the household guard had tried as well to help that thing escape with Alex's body. Despite what his mother said about him, Leo knew his half-brother was of noble birth, and deserved a proper burial despite his crimes. Before his father's medical procedure, Specter told him not to mention the phantom that had absconded with his half-brother.

At long last, Lord Specter ascended his seat. Dusknoir stood behind him in the shadow of the chair to his left, while Leo and Dusclops stood on his right. There was silence as Leo gazed over the crowd- his father's servants, ambassadors from the other cities in the empire, Imperial soldiers... Then one person started to clap, and then another. Soon the whole room was full of applause and cheering. It joyed those in the court to see their Lord return to strength. Finally, Specter put up a large hand and the applause died down.

"I'm sure you've all heard I will make a full recovery, and so will Mt. Pyre. The fire that was set was swiftly contained and extinguished, and no lives were lost save that of Alexander and the traitor.

"Speaking of which, my household guard is relieved of their positions, and as of this moment shall be taken into custody by her majesty's men. This is a temporary measure until we can make sure that treachery has been cleansed from the ranks of my house."

Leo watched in sadness as the grey-clad Specter family guards were caught unawares. Finding themselves surrounded by the blue-armored Imperial soldiers, they laid down their weapons and were escorted out of the Great Hall. A murmuring in the crowd took hold once again.