TWO

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pain.

the boy shot up, sweat tricking down every dip and curve of his body from the intense heat consuming him. his blue tunic clung desperately to his skin, his chocolate brown hair plastered to his face and any weight of the crown was gone. he could barely see, wild eyes racing at blurry surroundings that never seemed to stop spinning. the intense feeling was something the prince rarely felt, he was the best fighter and could sword fight his knights blindfolded, all with his footwork and the comfort of his favorite blade.

"good morning, lance."

the words cut the air with poison, a voice that lance could only associate with bad things that came upon his kingdom. red spiraled into view, a royal outfit proudly displaying gold along the seams. the spinning world shifted into focus upon a teenager not any younger than lance himself. his crown was of higher stature than lance's, wherever it was taken off to, exotic gems laced in along the gold that caught every ray of sunlight. black hair spilled out into soft curls that stretched down to bottom of his neck, the style was strictly a mullet that drove the opposing prince into rage.

"will you shut up already?"
the altean prince found himself speaking without the filter in his mind processing his words, feeling almost a little regret at his statement. this emotion was short lived as the prince felt white hot pain crawl across his face.

"what did you just say to me?" the cloudy purple eyes of keith glared down at lance, and for once in his life he felt driven enough by anger to do anything, but he knew that to get out of here he could not provoke the enemy.

"i said nothing."

prince keith inhaled sharply, pointing at royal guards clad in the same red that the boy wore. anger seemed to be always present in him, every confrontation the pair had ended in keith not being able to contain his emotions. it was something lance could never understand.

"get him out of my sight." he hissed, turning on his heel and exiting the chamber, a flash of red being the only thing seen from his departure.

rough hands wove their way under lance, hoisting him up and dragging him down multiple hallways and bumpy stairwells that made his head hurt. the dungeon was the farthest level under ground, dirt peeking out of cracks and water running aimlessly along holes in every area thinkable. another guard stood at the entrance, nodding at the men holding the prince as they pulled him into the damp room.

the atmosphere was unwelcoming and made him shiver slightly. a door screeched open and lance was chucked into a pile of dirty hay that bore a very foul smell. he lifted his head up to listen to the door be slammed shut and locked, the only vision out was between bars that were spaced tightly together, which eliminated any hopes of a romantic saving of the prince that featured hand holding through bars.

the prince groaned and stared at the moldy bucket in the corner. it looked as if one touch would make it fall apart. there was nothing else in the cell, discarding the bucket and rotten hay piled up with the purpose of serving as a bed. at least the boy might be fed dinner. there was nothing to do but stare at things, or maybe dream up a fantasy. his head was still hurting, leaving the prince no choice but to plop his head down on the hay. lance couldn't fathom how unsanitary the situation was, and could already see himself demanding several baths once he was freed until he felt cleaner than ever.

the hay was uncomfortable. the pieces poked at his neck and stuck into his once groomed hair, making any hopes of sleep disappear. he could try to rip fabric off to put over the material, but it was his favorite outfit. gold sparkled in the little light provided by a rust filled window. he found himself frowning, heavily debating the situation in his mind.

'but i am the prince! they can make another one!'

'what if they don't know how to make it? i certainly don't.'

the boy finally decided on taking a layer off to serve as a cushion, furious he never thought of that before. he stripped himself of the top layer, the more expensive piece of the set and his favorite. lance frowned as he placed it over the pile he made, praying to anyone mentally that it could be washed out.

he laid down, staring at the top of the prison with his surroundings starting to spin. pain etched back into his head and he turned over to face a wall instead, hoping the uncomfortable sensation of staring at the ceiling would go away. as soon as the boy closed his eyes, an angry shout filled the room.

"dinner!"

the door opened slightly and a plate crashed down onto the floor, housing a piece of bread that lance could not tell if it was rotten or not. a form of soup sat in a bowl, and a pile of lettuce or something was covering half of the plate. lance choked at the horrific smell, trying to realize that he had went from a magnificent feast to something scraped out of a bin. a bang signaled him that there was nothing else coming his way, and the prince picked up the break hesitantly.

"are you kidding me?" he mumbled, noticing green at the end of the bread. sighing, he ripped the bad part off and chucked it into the dirtiest corner of the cell. lance dunked the safe end into the soup, bringing it to his mouth and biting a small piece off. the prince choked on the horrific taste, tears forming at the corners of his eyes.

'are they trying to kill me?'

anger surged through the boy. he was sure that they wouldn't want to kill him! lance mcclain, the mighty and feared prince of altea. even though he was here from a small mistake and a charming woman, he didn't enjoy being degraded, even if he was a prisoner. at least his father would somehow help him escape.

---

"well keith? what do you have planned for the prisoner." the raven haired boy's father demanded, lacing his hands together on his lap.

"my lord, i have carefully weighed our options with the kingdom of altea being a powerful opponent."

the king nodded, closing his eyes.

"continue."

"altea will wage war on us no matter what we do," keith inhaled sharply. "so i have decided the only real way to prevent them from putting our kingdom in danger is to release him."

the kings eyes flew open, orbs of age that still glittered when he heard something amusing. he laughed, a great powerful boom that filled the throne room. keith felt his face grow red at the embarrassment filling him.

"father, i don't understand. what is the matter?"

"oh keith," the king wiped his eyes. "my only son."

"yes, sire?"

"i have taught you a lot since your miraculous birth, why haven't you put it to use?"

the prince sighed. he knew that what he did would benefit their kingdom, and maybe could create a peace between them.

"keith."

he nodded, embracing himself for his father's words.

"execute the boy."

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