The Book of Glass

Cassius (14)

Cassius dipped a torn off chunk of bread and dipped it into his tomato soup. Servants had hustled about to bring him his meal, making sure he had enough water and food to please. It's not that Cassius demanded it, but that they had learned he had a large appetite.

He was sitting in his own quarters, looking out the castle window in front of him. It was as if the sky's colors had been broken apart piece by piece to create the mural, one of the Goddess Rosalind herself as she looked down towards the forest. Cassius had always liked it, and grown fond of eating in front of it whenever he had the chance.

"Commander," his guard addressed him as he opened the door to his room. "One of your mercenaries has arrived. They are still waiting at the stables. Should I accompany you?"

Cassius thought for a minute and shook his head. If they were back and in the castle, they clearly hadn't done their job. "Stay here and watch my room." He rose to his feet and walked outside into the stone hallway. He still wasn't used to actually being inside the castle, as all of the stone seemed to blend together into one wall or floor. As he walked through the castle, he passed by many more stained glass windows, each one for a previous Prophet. Shay herself was missing from the window, and it lay in wait for her own image while Prophets Lyra, Chelse, Willow, Siria, and beyond lined the castle walls that looked out on the upper bailey.

He reached a small nook at the end of one of the hallways, which he only remembered by a painting of the last royal family. He lifted it just slightly from the bottom edge, and beside him a wall eased open just enough for him to open more so he could slip through. Once in the hall, he made his way along the tunnel by staying to his left, until he saw a small light in the distance. Once he got closer, he pulled a few bars aside in the gate that opened into the back, locked shed of the stables.

When Cassius stepped out of the stable, he saw the mercenary standing nearby, a look of dissatisfaction on their face. Cassius himself looked disgusted by the person, his nose scrunched up and his eyes locked on the Unholy marker of their chestplate.

"What's the issue?"

The mercenary spoke slowly. "We caught sight of the girls, but they were being held captive by a few raiders. We came just as they were escaping, and couldn't do much. We tried to slow them down, but--"

Cassius pressed his finger to his temple. "What do you mean try to slow them down?"

"Wiley shot an arrow at one of them--"

The High Commander froze, looking up to the mercenary. "Injured how?"

"The arrow hit her right in the shoulder. She won't die from it, but she definitely won't be able to move for a little longer," the mercenary tried to explain, but Cassius could feel a headache growing. "We have healers who can help."

The High Commander crossed his arms, and opened his mouth to say something. Just then, a horse neighed loudly and shuffling was heard as it sounded like someone was moving around nearby. Cassius ran towards the sound, but as he reached it around the corner of the stables, he only caught the sight of someone running off towards the castle. "Shit."

Cassius looked to the mercenary. "You should leave."

When Cassius got back into the castle, he wanted to go back to his own room and convince himself everything was alright. When he reached his room, everything was just as he had left it. He began packing up his things, just in case things took a turn for the worse. As he was placing a few books in his bag, there was a knock on his door.

"High Commander, the King has requested your presence for a council in the throne room. I was told it was urgent."

The throne room wasn't a far walk, and when Cassius arrived he hoped for King Evander to be sitting with his eyes looking hard at a map of Eden while his advisors spoke with him. Cassius could feel his chest tightening as he neared the archway that led to the throne room. It felt like people were waiting for him. Not for advice, but to stare at. To look down upon.

When he entered the throne room, he realized everything he had been thinking was true. All eyes turned to him, and King Evander rose to his feet. As Cassius neared the throne, he bent down in a bow and said, "Your Majesty," as he was straightening up, he saw Evander's sword glint as it was pulled from its sheath. His eyes widened, and he stepped back. "Have I done something?" Play dumb. Nothing happened. Deny everything, he thought.

King Evander glared at him, brandishing his sword between them. "We agreed that if I let you use that group of good for nothing mercenaries, the Prophet and her two followers would not be harmed. So, Commander, tell me... who did the arrow strike?"

Cassius' stomach dropped. Just beyond Evander's shoulder stood Linus, a nasty grin on his face that spread from pointed ear to pointed ear. Of course. Looking back to Evander, he held both of his hands up. "It was not made clear who was harmed, Sire, but I can promise you that they won't die from the injury. It was just a shoulder wound," Cassius spoke calmly, but he could feel his heartbeat steadily rising as Evander's face didn't change at his words.

"Just a shoulder wound?" Evander let out a laugh and let his sword fall, a smile spreading on his face. "You hear that everyone? A shoulder wound. No harm done." The King approached Cassius, slapping his hand down on his shoulder. When he looked down, Cassius saw a strange darkness in Evander's big brown eyes. Cassius just nodded along, but he knew nothing had changed but his face. The throne room hung in silence until Evander said something. "Please, Cassius, return to your quarters."

Cassius didn't want to push it, and turned around, muscles tense and breath stopped. Before he even got a yard away, a sword cut through the side of his left arm. Cassius held back the scream, but grunted and grabbed his arm, turning around and dodging another blow from Evander. Evander held the bloody sword up and looked him straight in the eye saying, "If I see you again, you are dead, Cassius."

Cassius gave a curt bow and rushed from the room. Linus had gotten what he wanted.