Family Spat

The weight of the silence pressed down on me, broken only by the faint crackle of flames. My sobs had stopped, now replaced by the hollow, numbing void of despair. A sudden sound, faint footsteps, pulled me from my dread. My body tensed, the hairs on my neck rising. He was here.

I turned slowly, my tear-streaked face meeting the piercing golden gaze of my brother.

He stood at the edge of the village, his white hair gleaming like a beacon in the darkness. His expression was unreadable, but his eyes... they burned with something I couldn't discern. 

"Luca," His voice was low, but it carried an edge sharp enough to cut through the suffocating air. "...What did you do?" 

Slowly, I picked myself up off the ground, my body aching with exhaustion. "Sacer, I.. I didn't.."

"What did you do?!" he roared, his voice echoing throughout the village.

Before I could respond, my brother tackled me back to the ground, his hands keeping a death grip on my wrists. "Sacer- I-"

"You killed all of these people!" 

No. I-

It was Damon. I couldn't stop him! 

…No.

I met my brothers gaze, his eyes full of rage and contempt. "Yes, I did." I managed to choke out.

His eyes softened, and he released my wrists. "How could you?" He rose off of me, surveying the land where Draemoor once stood before landing on the lifeless child next to us. "Why?"

I couldn't meet his eyes. Not again. I perched myself up on the scorched ground, staring down at my hands. Why? The question had become a mantra in my head, constantly playing on loop. "I tried to stop him."

"Did you?" His words were like a blade, striking me at my very core. "Or did you just let him take over because it was easier than fighting?"

"No!" I rose to my feet, stumbling as my legs shook. "Do you think I really wanted to do this? You know me! I'm your brother!"

His right hand found its way to the hilt of his sword, preparing to draw. "That doesn't matter. You did this."

Heat began to build up inside as my anger boiled to the surface, mixing with the guilt that pulled at my heart. "You don't understand! He's constantly there in my head! Taunting me! Fighting me for control!"

"Don't you dare!" Sacer spat, hand still gripping his sword tight. "Don't you DARE act like you're the only one suffering! Look around you, Luca! This-" With his free hand, he gestured to the wasteland around us, the charred corpses littering the land "-this is what your 'suffering' has done. You've killed people!"

"You think I don't know that?" I screamed out, my voice cracking. "You think what happened isn't replaying in my head?"

"Then stop making excuses, and face what you are!"

"What I am..." I muttered, the words felt like poison. I stepped back slowly, shaking my head. "I didn't choose this," I said, tightening my fists. "I didn't choose to be-"

"Yeah, well neither did I." He drew his sword, golden light shimmering off it like the sun.

I froze. It felt like I could hear my heart beating through my chest. He was serious. Sacer, my twin brother, actually meant to kill me. Before I could even think of a response, he charged, his sword a streak of gold as it sliced through the air.

I barely had time to react, a pillar of black flames shooting up between us as a last-ditch effort to protect myself. "Sacer, I don't want to fight you!"

"Too late for that." he shot back, his blade carving through the flames as he pressed on.

The battle was brutal. Sacer was precise with his movements and attacks, whereas I was moving on pure instinct and the desperation to survive. Our magic clashed repeatedly, sending shockwaves throughout the wasteland. 

"Why're you doing this?!" I cried out, dodging a strike that would probably have split me in two.

"Because I can't let this happen again!" He roared, his voice breaking with emotion.

"You think I don't hate myself for this? These people took me in!" I screamed, unleashing a wave of black fire that consumed him.

Sacer charged through the flames, his body enveloped in a golden glow, his sword raised high. As if by instinct, or Damon's influence, I coated my forearms in the demonic flames and raised both of them overhead to stop the blade in its tracks.

The clash sent us both reeling, knocking us apart. Despite the warning signs my body was giving me, I managed to stay standing. 

Sacer's eyes locked onto mine, his chest heaving. "This has to end, Luca," he said, his voice heavy with sorrow. "One way or another."

I stared at him. He was my brother, the boy I grew up with and shared all my memories with, and that made the weight of his words all the more heavier. Could I actually make myself fight him, even though I knew he was right?

"Please." I whispered, my voice breaking.

But Sacer's eyes hardened, and I knew he wouldn't stop. And so, the fight raged on.

Each clash of our magic tore apart what little remained of what I once called home. Sacer moved with purpose, each strike with his broadsword meant to disarm me, or kill me. But my black flames acted on their own accord, fueled by my fear and my anger.

I hated it.

Every second of it. 

Sacer lunged, his sword gleaming as it slashed through the air. I barely managed to dodge, the blade grazing my side. Searing pain spread across my ribs, and I staggered, squeezing the wound tight as blood seeped through my fingers. 

His blade swung toward my shoulder, and I raised my arm to protect myself, cloaking it in black fire. The magic-infused edge struck it, shattering my defense and throwing me off balance. I slammed my foot down to stabilize myself, and Sacer took advantage of that.

He swung again, this time catching my thigh. I cried out as pain flared, my knee buckling. I moved on instinct, thrusting my hand forward. A torrent of black flames surged and my brother had barely any time to react, the fire licking at his arm and shoulder.

His chest heaved, his golden light flickering, fading, as blood dripped down his arm. "Luca," he said, using his good hand to wipe a bead of sweat from his eyes. "You haven't changed. You fight just like a kid. No training or thought behind your moves to speak of."

And then he charged again.

This time, I wasn't fast enough to protect myself. His blade pierced my shoulder. The force of the blow sent me crashing to the ground, blood pooling beneath me as I struggled to gasp for air.

Sacer stood over me, his broadsword aimed directly at my heart, trembling. Our eyes met and we stayed there for what felt like an eternity before he pulled back and turned away from me, his sword clattering to the ground.

"Sa...cer..?" I gasped out, forcing myself off my back and onto my butt. He was silent, his fists hanging at his sides, trembling.

"Go." He finally managed to choke out.

"...Wha..?" I croaked, managing to bring myself to my feet, my right hand gripping the wound on my side tightly.

Sacer turned to look at me, his eyes which were hard and resolute not five minutes ago, were now wet with tears, his heroic persona breaking. "Go!" he yelled.

"Sacer, why? I don't-" I took a heavy step towards him, arm outstretched.

"GO!"

Whatever was going through his head, I just had to accept. He was letting me live. I turned away from the scene, hobbling away. Ignoring every single sign my body was giving me to stop, to rest, I made my way out of the ruins of Draemoor.