Chapter 1: The Fall of the Kingdom

I've been planning this out for a while, but I never planned the beginning, so this was the best I could do, lol. Brought to you by me watching Starkid's Twisted repeatedly. Hope y'all enjoy!!

Tw: Remus, swears, major character death

Remus and Roman breathed heavily as they ran side-by-side through the long halls, the heavy footfall of their pursuers behind them.

The day was bright and sunny, Roman and Remus stood at their parents sides; the older with perfect posture, and Remus could care less about his. They were waiting for King Verone and Prince Cade to arrive so the two kings could discuss trading matters, Roman would also be there, since he's first in line at 23 years old while Remus is 22, along with Prince Cade, who's an only child. That leaves Remus to be left to his own devices.

The carriage arrives, and out steps King Verone and Prince Cade. King Verone is a young, charming fellow with dark hair and silver tongue, his son, Cade, is a slimy weasel in Remus' opinion - which is saying something since Remus is rarely deterred by people.

"King Verone," Remus' father spoke, respectfully bowing, "welcome back to Medías," Verone bowed back.

"Thank you, King Francis, it's lovely to be here, as always," Remus didn't pay attention to the niceties, but soon they were moving inside. He was let go to wander the grounds, while his father, mother, and brother went into the tea room to chat with Verone and Cade.

"Heya, Janus!" Remus greeted the gardener's son, who sighed.

"Remus, what is it? I'm working right now," the prince grinned at his friend's annoyance.

"Come ooonn, I'm bored! And I'm sure you can hang out with me for as long as they take. Don't you wanna steal the chef's cigars and cookies?" Remus waggled his brows, a mischievous glint in his eye. He knew he won when Janus sighed with an amused smile on his face.

"Alright, let's go."

After a successful mission, Remus and Janus were wandering down the hall to take their stolen goods outside when they heard muffled yelling. Remus wasn't one to freeze at loud noises, but he did this time, so Janus stopped beside him; when Remus does freeze, it's for a good reason. The door to the tea room was thrown open and Verone stormed out, Cade right behind him.

"You have made yourself an enemy of Verone! I hope for the sake of both our kingdoms you change your mind in the following days!" he yelled before turning the corner.

Roman accidentally stumbled and Remus tugged on his arm.

"Come on, we gotta go!" they were almost there, almost out the door, when Roman fell with a pained cry. Remus looked back to see an arrow lodged in his chest, in between his lower ribs.

"No no no no! You gotta get up Ro, come on!" Remus tried to get Roman up, but another agonizing yell made Remus stop.

"L - listen Remus, I lo - I love y - you," his breath was becoming shallow, sending Remus into a panic. He lost his parents, he can't lose his brother.

"No, you - you're gonna be just fine, Ro. N - nothing can get - get the best of you," Remus' voice cracked as he choked on a sob, tears finally falling, "y - you're Roman, remember? You're strong, you - you can d - get up."

"Heh, I am strong Re. But I - I don't think this is j - just a - a scratch from your m - morningstar," his eyes started to droop, "y - you gotta get out. Go an - and live." They both were crying at this point, Remus rapidly shaking his head. Roman pushed Remus back with what strength he has left when the footsteps got closer.

"Go." Roman breathed out, looking at him pleadingly before his heavy eyelids closed. Remus was shaking, frozen and staring at Roman.

Remus' father walked out, looking weary, followed by a worried Roman and their equally worried mother.

"What are we going to do, father?" Roman asked, Francis sighed and shook his head in response, for he doesn't know.

"Do you think King Verone will make due on his threat?" their mother asked in a soft voice.

"If he knows what's good for him, no. Our armies are the best in the land, we'll easily win whatever war he wages on us," Francis replied, sure of what he said.

Remus coughed as he ran across the castle grounds to the wall, choking on his sobs, noticing Janus waiting for him. They were smart enough when they were kids to invent an escape route in case assassins invaded the castle, Roman included; planning to meet at the castle wall, push out a large, loose stone, and slip through. If one doesn't come by dawn, then the others will leave without him.

"Roman?" Janus asked as Remus curled up against the wall - still standing - shaking and sobbing, no Roman in sight. Remus shook his head, crying harder, and Janus frowns.

"We need to leave, now," Janus wasn't insensitive, he was upset that Roman didn't make it, but they couldn't afford to stick around. King Verone's soldiers will find them any minute, Janus leaves Remus be for now as he pushes out the stone. He lets Remus go before him, then crawls through the hole and pushed the stone back in behind him.

They both flee the the kingdom, walking for days on end, eventually reaching a small fishing village on the outskirts of the land. The buildings were older than the ones the two are used to seeing from the village near the castle, and it was fairly small.

"Where to from here?" Remus shrugs in response, looking around and staying quiet. Ever since that night Remus hasn't really been talking much, only to list the many ways he could kill King Verone and Prince Cade, and he's been angry. Janus doesn't take it personally when Remus blows up on him, he knows Remus is upset, hurt, and very guilty over what happened to Roman.

"We have some actual food and beds for the night, then figure it out in the morning," Remus finally spoke, eyes on the tavern down the street. Janus nodded and the two went over and walked inside.

The tavern, like the rest of the town, smelled like the sea and sold mainly fish encompassing meals. It wasn't that crowded, since it was the middle of the afternoon, only a few people drinking at the bar. It would probably be well lit at night, judging by all the lanterns around the place. Remus walked up to the counter, Janus behind him.

"One room, two beds," he harshly got out, placing some silver coins on the counter.

"Please," Janus added to lessen Remus' rudeness. The barkeep didn't seem to notice and took the coins, handing Remus the key.

"You two will be room four. Just for the night, is it?" she asked, but Remus walked away and headed up the stairs to where the rooms are. Janus sighs, sometime soon Remus will get in trouble with his rudeness.

"Yes, just for tonight, thank you," he nods to her.

"Not much of a talker, is he?" she asked, leaning on the counter.

Janus shook his head, "I'm afraid not."

"You two don't look like travelers. Where ya headed?" she seemed just curious, so Janus didn't mind the invasive question.

"We don't know yet," he answered honestly, 'hopefully somewhere safe' he left unsaid. Janus went up to find Remus waiting at the door for him, and when Remus spotted Janus he unlocked the door and went in, the former gardener right behind him.

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They ended up staying a few days, getting new clothes and figuring out where to go next. Their final day was decided when one of Verone's knights show up, announcing the death of the royal family and how they will be under King Verone's rule now, and that this is now his kingdom. Remus has his hood up, he won't risk being recognized.

"We should leave," Janus said, a hand on Remus' shoulder, recognizing the tightness in his friend's jaw.

"Not until I make that bastard pay for Roman," Remus growls and stands up, but Janus quickly pulls him back down.

"Don't be a fool! If he gets away you will give away our location, and if you kill him you will reveal your identity to this town and word will spread," Janus mumbles to Remus through grit teeth, like a short-tempered mother reprimanding her child in public.

"The only thing spreading will be the blood on his pavement," Remus' voice was dangerously low, meaning he is very serious and will carry out the threat.

"Was he the one that killed Roman?" Remus seemed to droop at that, tearing up. The former prince shook his head solemnly and Janus sighed, "Then he isn't worth it. Right now, we need to get away," Janus' voice was soft and pleading, getting Remus to agree.

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"Captain, a Verone trade ship, dead ahead!" Janus called down to Remus. Good, he was in the mood for a murder and raid. It had been a little over five years since he lost everything, and just under four since he got The Siren and his crew. Janus, of course, was his first mate, and their sharp eye in the crows nest. Then there's his crew.

There's Reese, they're not much of a fighter, but they are one hell of a cook. A few years back, Remus' new ship sailed away from port, found them in the kitchen, and instead of killing them, Remus made them the cook of the ship. They are a bit scrawny, but they work hard. Sometimes they're a he, or a she, Remus doesn't judge.

Then there's Dot. She's a little spitfire when it comes to fighting, with skill to boot; don't let her short stature fool you, she can take down just about anyone with a sword and a few rounds in her revolver. Remus found her at the bar, it was after a brawl and she was the only one from the fight standing. When Remus asked her to join, she took a shot, said yes, and walked out of the bar.

Tarrant and Telly came to Remus as runaways. They originally tried to rob him, but he took pity on the two kids and had them join. They reminded Remus of himself when he first lost his kingdom. Telly became the one he relied on to keep track of their geographical location and maps, and Tarrant is the one that patches up their clothes, he is also Remus' intimidation tactic. They're both pretty tall, but Tarrant is the muscle, only the crew knows he's just a gentle giant most of the time.

And then Salty Sam and Reek from a different crew. They were running from the captain, and since Remus has beef with that captain, he let them join his crew to get back at the other captain. Of course that led to them being hunted for a whole year, but that's a story for another time.

"Alright, mateys! We take this ship by storm and help those poor souls on their ship find their way to the afterlife!" Remus, at the bow spirit, looked back at his crew. They all cheered, Telly steering them ahead and Tarrant ready at the anchor, he's the only one able to properly drop it and pull it back up. The rest are ready for battle while Reese stays low, they're the one that rigs the ship to blow. Once they reached the Verone trade ship, they charged on deck and laid waste to the entire crew, then raided the ship for food, weapons, and supplies.

1924 words

Time done: 8:55 P.M., Oct. 26, 2021

So, yes, I started another story. I'm just really addicted to this ship right now and don't think there's enough good stories with Intruality, and enough stories in general, so here it is! Hope y'all enjoyed it!

And I know I haven't updated my other story and oneshot in a while, I'm sorry, I've just been getting writers burnout bc stupid hyper fixation and never being able to finish a project. But I'll get out a second chapter of this story as soon as I can.

Love you all~
Xxx

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