Two years after Prince Heiko witnessed the death of his father during the 91st Battle of Tyton, and subsequently, the defeat of his kingdom, he was sent to the gates of the victor, armed with nothing but empty words and a command from his elder brother to form a treaty of peace. 

Two years after General Celestino Adesso released the arrow that felled the great king of Simo, he is presented with the youngest of his sons. Though barely a man at seventeen summers, the prince was far from wet behind the ears. In fact, his tactful yet brazen form of statecraft vaulted him far beyond his years. Coupled with his draconian mannerisms, and a knack for callous pleasure, it was only a matter of time before Celestino caught a whiff of something sinister. 

But Prince Heiko was no fool. He was betting heavily on that sharp nose. He wanted a sense of dubiety to gnaw at the general. He needed to create mistrust in his elder brother in order to build credence in himself. Because he knew of Celestino Adesso, and of the illustrious king he served. He knew they wouldn't trust him over his elder brother any more than they would trust a raincloud to bring sun. He knew that to those men, he wasn't honorable, and because of that, he was forced to play the games he was known for. The ones that conspired in the dead of night, the ones that spoke no words but shifted kingdoms. The ones that could obtain the allegiance of General Celestino. Little did the young prince know, however, allegiance was not all he would obtain. But no matter how much Heiko wanted to offer the man what he desired, he could not - not while bound to the gods. 

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By escape, the prince meant opening the balcony up and shimmying their way down to the grass, some ten meters beneath them, on a paltry sheet that was tied haphazardly to the balcony balustrade. Heiko leapt onto the railing and repelled down the side of the manor as if he had done it many-a-time. Cele, a bit less graceful, followed suit, easily rendering an image of the prince as a cheeky child, escaping into the night and dallying with the dark forest. Quite similar to the cheeky child that was now safely on the ground below, neck craned as he watched Cele. 


“Come on, we haven’t got all night.” A smirk occupied his lips. 


Ignoring it was easy, when one was distracted by burning palms and images of shattered legs. 


He huffed the words out like he had been running for miles. Whatever muscles were being activated by this... activity... Cele never knew he had them. And as far as it seemed, Cele didn't think the muscles knew they existed either. 


Temperate Penumbras - Part 14