The King's Remorse

Dinner Time

I stumble clumsily, moving backwards a few paces before regaining my footing. Dove's right in front of me with his arm drawn back for a punch. My arm moves before I can react, and I hit his wrist away before he can land his attack. It's as if I'm watching myself fight. My body is always several steps ahead of my mind. I dodge out of the way of Dove's next attack, and move to make one of my own. But we're so evenly matched that neither of us can really land any hits.

After just a few short minutes, I'm panting. I drop to my knees, holding up a hand. "Stop, stop, stop. This is exhausting. Let me sleep for a week." I look up, and Dove is smiling.

"See, I told you that you know how to fight."

"Yeah. It felt like my mind was always a few steps behind, though. Like my body knew what to do, but I didn't."

"You'll get it with a bit more practice." Dove sits down beside me. I lean back against a tree, closing my eyes and taking deep breaths to slow my racing heart. My stomach growls, and I drink from my water bottle.

"Where are Ky and Phoenix? I'm starving."

"I don't know, but if they're not back in about ten minutes, we can go hunting. Also if they're not back soon, I'm going to start thinking about leaving them."

Phoenix is the first to return, and he holds a rabbit in his mouth by it's head. The fur around its neck is blackened. Ky is dragging a baby deer by a hind leg. I follow Dove in jumping off the tree and making our way over to the brothers. "Sorry. It took us a while to find something to eat. There were lots and lots of berries." Ky drops the fawn to the ground.

"I told you we should've gotten some! We wouldn't have eaten them, but they would've!"

"Phoenix, those were nightshade! They would've killed Wolf and Dove! That's the opposite of what we need to bring down KG14!" Ky looks to his brother with disbelief.

"We can do it on our own. I don't know why we're working with Wolf and Dove." Phoenix glares at Ky.

"Phoenix, as much as I want to say we can, we can't do it without Wolf and Dove. They're the ones who will defeat KG14. We're going to help them."

"No, I'm going to kill KG14. I'm going to-."

"I'm going to stop you right there," Dove says, holding up a hand. "I don't want to hear about how you're going to kill King Garonda XIV. But could we eat? I'm starving."

"Fine. But I call dibs on killing KG14."

"Sure."

"Phoenix, ya wanna cook these?" Ky pushes the rabbit and fawn towards the black cat with a smile.

"Fine." Phoenix rolls his eyes, and the rabbit and fawn's flesh darken, fur singeing as it chars.

We sit at the base of the tree in a loose circle. Dove and Phoenix inhale their meals. Ky methodically eats the chunk of meat he tore off the side of the fawn. But I pick at the rabbit leg I'm eating. "Are you not hungry?" Dove asks, taking notice.

"No, I am. It's just... I don't know. So much has happened."

"I get that. It's alright, though. I'm here, Wolf. I'm here." Dove pulls me into a side hug.

"It's so crazy to think that just a few short days ago, no more than two I think, we were just two of the people living in the White Tent Sea. Now we're, like, prophesied to defeat King Garonda XIV."

"Yeah, it's so crazy," Phoenix mutters before getting to his paws and padding off into the forest.

"Aren't you going to go after him?" Dove asks Ky, but the tan cat shakes his head.