The Warlock (BxB)

Chapter 1

Prince Casimir was bored. There was never anything exciting happening in the castle, but it also didn't help that he was currently locked in his room. He was an adult, yet his parents still banned him from leaving his chambers until further notice. This was all an attempt to prevent him, the crown prince, from embarrassing the royal family while they had guests over. The king and queen would concoct a story that Casimir was focusing on his training. In reality, they just didn't want him around the son of their guests.

The prince couldn't help himself. Whenever a handsome man was involved, Casimir couldn't resist the urge to flirt with him.

He sighed. He could no longer sit in his room and wait for who knew how long for his parents to finish entertaining their guests. Prince Casimir stood up from his bed and approached his closet. He grabbed his black cloak and a pouch of money, which also had a bobby pin hidden inside. It could be hours before he was allowed free, so Casimir decided that it was time to make his escape. He knew how to traverse the castle without getting caught.

Most of the servants and his siblings would be preoccupied right now, so he didn't have to worry about being spotted by them. He was more worried about one of the palace guards noticing him. Not only would they have been informed about him being locked up, but he was also not allowed to leave the palace grounds without one of them accompanying him. He knew that was for his own safety, but it was a nuisance.

Quickly, Casimir was able to pick the lock. He listened for any sound outside, before slowly opening the door. He peeked out, looking for any signs of life, but no one was there. His parents should have known better than to keep him unsupervised. The prince was known to be a little mischievous. With the coast clear, Casimir put up the hood of his cloak and then exited his room. It was time to make his escape.

The prince was an expert by now at escaping the castle. He knew every secret passageway that would lead him outside and into the city of Ambria. The castle had many hidden exits in case there ever came a time when they would need to flee. However, Casimir doubted that Ambria would ever meet its downfall. This kingdom was known to be the most peaceful out of all of the nations. They had no enemies. There was trouble with the Zuvelia Kingdom at one point, but that kingdom no longer existed. Zuvelia met its end a little over a year ago. Casimir didn't know the details that led up to the kingdom's demise. He only heard the rumors, but there was nothing concrete. He only knew that the young king lost his mind, and then met a tragic fate.

This was no longer something that Ambria needed to concern themselves with. With Zuvelia gone, they no longer faced any threats. For now, Casimir could use the secret exits without anyone knowing.

The passageway that he chose to use would lead him directly to the center of the capital. This passage was quite the walk, but before long, the prince had reached the end. The key to this door was kept on his father, King Lucas, at all times. The king was the only person who had a copy of each key. Casimir wouldn't have access to it until he ascended the throne, but that's where his lockpicking skills came in handy. As quickly as he unlocked the door to his room, he had this door open in no time.

Prince Casimir stepped out into the fresh air. He was glad to finally be free of that stuffy castle. He knew that he would have to return before long, though. He most likely had until this evening, whenever one of the maids would come to his room to announce dinner. His parents would have a fit if he was found missing, especially his mother. There was only a few hours to spare.

The prince didn't know exactly what he was looking for. He only knew that he needed something, or someone, to quell his boredom. There were a few places that he could go. He knew of a few noblemen who would be happy to entertain him. He chose one at random, then set out for his destination.

While he traversed Ambria, Casimir would avoid the church and any clergymen nearby. They would sense his energy if he got too close and he didn't need the church to catch wind of him being out in the streets on his own. There was one priest in particular that he wanted to avoid at all costs. He didn't want to listen to that man nagging, and he knew that he would get an earful for being out without a soldier accompanying him. Having divine powers was a headache that Casimir wasn't in the mood for right now. But he was stuck with them as the first child of the king and queen.

As Casimir made his way through the capital, he stopped when he turned the next corner. It wasn't a member of the church or a soldier that made the prince come to a halt. Instead, in front of him, one young man was being ganged up on by two other men. One of them had the redhead pinned up against the side of the building, while the other stood behind his comrade, holding onto a white and blue staff that didn't seem to belong to him. The redhead looked distressed as his captor leaned in close and whispered something to him. Casimir may not have been able to hear what they were saying, but he knew that these men were up to no good.

The prince couldn't stand by as he felt that something terrible would happen to the red-haired man. He needed to step in and save him. He didn't know how dangerous those men were, but he didn't give that much thought as he rushed to the man's rescue.

Casimir drew his sword, pointing it at the man who had the redhead pinned to the wall. "Let him go. Now."

His voice was authoritative. The prince was used to people obeying him, so he wasn't expecting it when the two thugs laughed at him. This made Casimir grit his teeth. He could get them to listen if he revealed that he was the crown prince, but he didn't want to expose himself this soon. Once word got around that he was wandering the streets on his own, then he would be in big trouble. He wasn't ready to be escorted back to the castle.

This was the distraction that their captive needed. While the thugs had their attention elsewhere, the redhead took this opportunity to bash his head against the thugs that handled him. This stunned the man, making him let go of the redhead. He didn't give the man the chance to recover when he kicked him in the groin. This was enough to bring the man to his knees in pain.

The next part left Casimir confused, as well as excited. He watched in amazement as the redhead was able to get his staff back without even approaching the man. With the flick of his wrists, the staff was pulled out of the thug's hands and back into its masters. Without giving the man the opportunity to react, the redhead quickly swung the staff at the man's head, making him join his friend on the ground.

The man took a deep breath after the thugs were down. He glanced in Casimir's direction and was about to thank him for his help, but before he got the chance to, a guard called out to them. The soldier was witness to what had happened, and the redhead wasn't about to get locked up. He cursed, then ran up to Casimir.

He grabbed the prince's hand and forced him to start running with him. "Come on! We need to get out of here. I'm not about to go to prison again."

"Again?!" Casimir asked, but he didn't get a response to his question.

Before he knew it, the prince was being pulled into a portal that the redhead created.