Fantasizing a war - A Sanders Sides Trilogy

A Tale Of Two Kings. And A Duke... And An Advisor

WARNINGGGGGGGGGGGGG!! Mention of blood. And dead bodies. You have been warned.

King Philip peered up disdainfully at the Dark Castle and frowned. "It's rather unnerving how we got here so fast..."

"Aw, what's that, Philly? Don't you usually ride by thestral?" Remus teased, sniggering.

Deceit said nothing but was also frowning. He was focusing on something in a window. Suddenly, his mouth dropped open and he began to stutter over a sentence he never even started.

Remus stared, biting his lip in a nervous yet comical fashion. "Dee? You good, sweetie?"

"I smell blood." He replied.

"B-Blood?!" Whimpered Philip, paling as his bottom lip began to quiver.

Deceit didn't react. He just pointed up at the window vaguely. "In there. A lot of blood. Near Virgil's' room."

Remus licked his lip, wetting them as he prepared to speak. He was not very good with 'creepy' Dee. 'Creepy' Dee scared him. "So?"

"Are we going in to find the blood?" Deceit asked blankly, tearing himself away from the window with a terrifying look in his eyes.

The other two men nodded slowly. "We are."

.:*:.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The dripping taunted them, ticking down like a clock. Time was running out. Deceit had snapped out of his haze, leading the way to the blood source as they sprinted up a long flight of stairs.

Suddenly, he froze. Remus and Philip tumbled into him, not expecting the sudden stillness.

"Uh, Deceit?" Asked Philip before he saw it.

There was blood. Trickling down from the step just above it and landing in a gloopy puddle. Remus stooped down softly and dipped a finger nervously into the scarlet liquid. He placed it cautiously in his mouth. "Warm, fresh and from a human." He mumbled, sitting up. "It's running at a fast pace."

Deceit nodded nervously and stepped over the small blood-stream. He continued running. They all continued running.

.:*:.

King Philip rounded the corner, slowing down his pace when he saw the two Dark Realm citizens standing frozen. He could smell the blood now; it was thick and clouding his senses. It was so heavy you could practically taste it. Slowly and cautiously, he stepped into line and instantly fell to his knees, hand to his mouth. "Oh no, not him, that's not how this is supposed to go..."

"Do you know who he is?" Remus croaked carefully.

"His name is... Logan Berry. H-He was my son's' advisor..."

It was true. Logan lay ahead of them, spread-eagled on the ground and propped against the wall. A bloody sword lay just out of his reach and his clothes were drenched a dark, dark red. His lifeless eyes stared blindly at the ceiling. It made Philip want to throw up, seeing the formal boy lie in a pool of his own blood. In fact, he actually did throw up, into a large pot-plant that he found next to him.

Deceit stepped forward gently. "The poor boy. This isn't right..." He knelt down and placed a hand on Logan's' cold cheek. "He must've fought bravely for the blood to have started so far back."

"There's a severed arm back there," Remus commented, staring down the corridor. It was highly obvious he wanted to look anywhere but Logan.

"King Philip." Deceit said, getting the old man's' attention.

"Y-Yes?"

"Should I be nice?"

"Should you be... What?"

A yellow glow summoned under Deceit's' hand and shone across Logan's' face. The tiny scratch on his cheek slowly patched up and thin streams of blood pulled it's' way inside the cut. The yellow magic stretched down to the advisor's' arm and the blood on the ground latched off the ground and swept into the wound. Now it was his abdomen and waist that slowly sucked itself back together. Blood across the corridor trekked it's way back to the body, filling in all of the gashes.

The boy, Logan, gasped loudly, eyes sparking back to life. He lay there, unmoving except for his rapid breathing.

King Philip squeaked softly, eyes widening at this miracle. "Logan..." He whimpered.

At the mention of his name, the advisor looked down and stared at the men around him. "Y-You- I- Wh-Where is it?"

"It?" Remus asked.

"Th-That knight. Where is it?" Logan tried to stand, falling back to the ground in exhaustion.

Deceit frowned. "There isn't any knight here, uh, Logan, was it?"

"Where's Patton? And Roman? A-And Virgil? I need to find them!" Logan asked, not listening as he struggled to stand again.

Deceit pushed him back down. "Careful now, you've lost a lot of blood."

"N-Nonsense, I have to get to the others-" Logan attempted to walk away but fell forwards, unconscious.

Remus blinked down at the young man fainted on the ground. "He mentioned Virgil..."

"Patton, I know that name..." Mused Philip, frowning as he tried to concentrate. "Ah, yes. Patton Hart, one of Roman's' queer friends."

"Queer?" Deceit raised an eyebrow.

"N-Not that that's a bad thing! It's just-!"

Deceit smirked. "It's fine, old donkey. But you're carrying your citizen."

Philip scowled but scooped the boy up in his arms. Logan didn't stir.

"Let's go find Virgil!" Remus crowed, eyes wide as he spun down the corridor around like an idiot. He stopped at the severed arm and picked it up and began to skip along.

Deceit sighed. "Why am I marrying that doofus?" He asked to no one but himself, smiling softly as he stared after his fiance adoringly. Philip felt something twist inside him and turned away shamefully.

.:*:.

"Okay, kiddos, I think there was just a misunderstanding." Patton tried for the hundredth time.

"Look, Pat, don't worry about it." Snapped Roman, finally looking up. "It's clear how we both feel now..." The Light Prince froze.

Virgil glanced up briefly then stared.

Patton frowned, touching his hair in case there was something stuck in it. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around.

A human held out his grey, blood-splattered cardigan. It was missing an arm half-way through the bicep and it still dripped blood.

Taking the cardigan, Patton stood for a moment and collapsed, caught by Roman.

 Virgil jumped to his feet, rounding on the knight. "Where did you get this?!"

From a boy in the castle.  The voice was chilling and seemed to be thought more than words.

"Where is the boy now?"

Dead.

"What." It wasn't a question. Just a dull statement.

I gave him my sword and we fought each other. I killed him, but he cut off my arm.

"Return to the barracks now and heal your arm, you idiot. I don't want to see you for the next month."

The knight bowed. Yes, young Dark Prince. And he left.

Virgil kneeled down next to Roman and pushed his head into the Light Prince's' chest, burying his face. Both boys cried for the loss of their friend and Patton stared at the ceiling with an empty feeling.