thunderstruck | book #2 | discontinued

X X I X

Tykon loosened his collar as he reached his bedroom, unbuttoning the top where it was beginning to dig uncomfortably into his neck. It was only when he pushed his door open with his spare hand that he froze, gulping as he realised that someone was sitting on his bed. Ackmard. The sight urged on an unexpected wave of nostalgia and Tykon allowed himself to drown in it for just a moment, his need for something familiar, something homely, stronger than his need to ask questions.

Ackmard was hunched over on the very edge of Tykon's mattress, his hands clasped together and his face hidden by his dull, unwashed hair. When he heard the door shut behind him, he lifted his head with a blank expression. Tykon had not seen him in months, not since he had left to pursue the darkness, and yet it did not feel as strange as it should have to meet his eyes now. Perhaps he was too exhausted to understand what was happening, or perhaps it was something else entirely. Either way, his hands fell to his sides and he gazed at the man in front of him, the man he had once lived in the shadows with.

"What on Refilyn are you doing here?" Tykon asked finally, noticing with a start that all of his curtains had been drawn. The only light came from a candle at the side of his bed, and it burned dark orange rather than warlock silver.

Ackmard shrugged in the familiar way that told Tykon he intended to deflect the question. He stood up, pretending to examine the art hanging on the walls as though he had not seen it a hundred times before. "I was just passing through, I suppose. Thought I would pop by and say hello."

"A normal thing to do when you have become an evil warlock with a questionable taste in leather jackets since the last time we spoke." Tykon shrugged off his jacket and hung it on the coat stand by the door cautiously. "Now you have done as intended, you can leave."

"Well, let's not pretend that I have not always had a questionable taste in leather jackets." Ackmard paused, smirking as he looked at Tykon. His eyes were glistening with something Tykon did not like. "Is that really all you have to say to me?"

Tykon frowned, passing Ackmard to sit on the bed and untie his shoes. He did not look at the warlock as he replied, unable to without feeling something heavy and unwanted in his chest, something that did nothing good to the grief he was already feeling. "Were you expecting something more? 'Well done with your attempt at tearing apart the city with war', perhaps? Or does 'welcome home from your murderous and psychotic holiday' sound better?"

"I see you did not plan for my return." He crossed his arms behind his back, smiling in amusement. An anger began to burn within Tykon at the sight of his satisfaction. He was the reason for his mother's death, and yet he was treating it like a joke. The man he had known would never have done such a thing. "Your greetings are subpar. I was hoping for something less .... disapproving."

Tykon hopped up before Ackmard had even finished his sentence, his hands balled into fists. It took him only two strides to reach Ackmard before he was on top of him, knocking him violently onto the carpet with one hand around his neck and the other pinning his shoulder to the ground. His forehead was inches away from Ackmard's, his torso brushing against his. He wished he did not remember how it felt to be close to him like this with love in his heart instead of anger. He wished that he did not look at Ackmard and see the way he used to smile, laugh, cry.

"You killed my mother," Tykon snarled through gritted teeth, tears prickling his eyes as the weight of his words, of the truth, collapsed on top of him. "You are the reason she is gone. How dare you joke and mock? How dare you even come here?"

For the first time in months, Tykon looked into Ackmard's eyes. His hair half-covered them now, the candlelight so dim that it stole most of the colour away. Still, he could see a ring of blue around the pupils, interrupting the empty black holes consuming the rest of them.