Exertion burned through Shintaro's body like a dull flame spreading through a forest, the thick smoke of exhaustion tinting the corners of Shintaro's vision black. Though he knew that he was putting way to much strain and pressure on his magic and body, there was no way that he was going to let up. 

If The Dark Lord wanted the task done right at the moment, he wasn't going to get his wish. There was no way that Shintaro was going anywhere - if he had to be dragged away, then so be it. But he was not leaving his family, not until they were all right.

 Not until Chase was all right.

Below him, curled on his side and gritting his teeth in silent agony, Chase squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his hands into fists. He was trying to hold himself still, but tremors of pain were sailing through his limbs despite this. 

As much as Shintaro wanted to tell his son that it was okay, that he didn't have to force himself to stay still, the quaking did make it hard for Shintaro's magic to find the wound. Not only that, Shintaro himself was utterly exhausted and magically drained. There was no way he would be able to heal this all the way, but he wasn't going to give up until Chase was in less pain.

Or until a Dark dragged him away. 

Cami was kneeling quietly on Shintaro's left side, his worried green eyes stuck on Chase's face. He was biting his lip nervously, his hands fidgeting in front of him as if he wanted to help but didn't know how. 

The three Darks - aside from The Dark Lord - were hovering a few paces away, but Shintaro didn't care to look up at their expressions. He guessed that at least one of them was smiling just as widely as Brethren was. 

No one had to look at The Dark Lord to know that he was grinning madly at Shintaro's panic and Chase's pain. He was standing at Shintaro's right, his head tilted and his arms crossed over his torso. His long, black hair spilled down his back like a waterfall of black blood. 

Shintaro felt a shudder of physical and magical exhaustion work its way into his shoulders, crawling down his back and to his hands. His magic was going to slow, and when his hands trembled, the healing spell sputtered away and left his fingers empty - excluding Chase's blood. 

"No," Shintaro whispered, his voice quiet and low at first, but rising with each angry cry. "No, no. No!" He grunted angrily and forced more of his Light Magic to the surface, no matter how much exhaustion it brought him. His hands lit up again, but the pain and tiredness in his chest caused Chase's form to swim in front of him.

"Shin..." Cami's voice said sympathetically, but the tone held a hint of warning underneath it. Though Cami had never been magical, he knew the risks of overworking one's magic. "Shintaro," he said again, sharper this time; but his voice sounded far off and wispy, like a trail of smoke disappearing into the clouds. "Shintaro, that's enough." 

"Hush," Shintaro snapped at his brother, heaving deeps breaths and narrowing his eyes to pinpoint his focus back on Chase. 

"Dad." This time it was Chase, his voice thick and strained - but firm. "It's fine. You've..." He sucked in a long, shaky breath with a wince, but he kept going. "You've done enough." 

When Shintaro's gaze found his son, he saw that Chase was looking up at him with stern golden eyes. Though he still looked pale and the crease between his brows showed his remaining pain, he lifted his hand and grabbed Shintaro's wrist, his touch gentle.

"No," Shintaro said flatly, pressing his palm against Chase's stomach again - but a bit too hard. Chase hissed through his teeth, his eyes slamming shut and his body going rigid. Immediately, Shintaro drew his hand back again, but not for long. 

"Dad, stop it," said Chase as soon as he'd recovered. His hand closed tighter around Shintaro's wrist, pushing it forcefully away from the wound. "You're going to collapse if you..." Another long breath, shaky and strained. "If you keep going." 

Shintaro opened his mouth to again protest, and Chase's eyebrows raised in a challenging expression; but before either of them could argue, Brethren's voice cut them off.

"As sweet as this is," chirped The Dark Lord as he smiled coolly down at the family, "I'm going to have to interrupt and say that I'm afraid your son is right, Shintaro. If you keep going at this pace, you will either permanently damage your magic - or kill yourself - in a few hours time. Now I understand that right now, given your circumstances, death might seem inviting..."

He leaned forward with his hands behind his back, grinning chillingly down at Shintaro. "I don't think you want to leave your friends alone in my hands, do you...?" 

Anger sparked in Shintaro's chest, but he knew that Brethren was right. As much as he hated the fact that his loyalty and love for his family and friends was being used against him, Shintaro admitted to himself - regretfully - that Brethren was not wrong. He didn't want to selfishly allow himself to pass into peace, especially when The Dark Lord was his responsibility. 

Even though peace was what his heart truly wished for. Even though peace was the only thing that he ever wanted, ever since he was but a child. 

Peace was everything he fought for.

But he could never seem to achieve it.

And that hurt.

Gritting his teeth and glaring hatefully up at The Dark Lord, Shintaro jerked his hand away from Chase's fingers. Though he didn't want to be the one to back down, he allowed his gaze to slip away from Brethren's - but only because he was checking on his son. 

Now that he wasn't using his magic, Shintaro's vision was a bit sharper than before. Even though he was still more exhausted than he had been in a long time, he could function well enough. 

The slash cutting through Chase's stomach, although it didn't look nearly as bad as it had before, was still too deep for Shintaro's liking. It was almost an inch deep, and though it had been deeper before, it was more nerve-wracking - because Shintaro couldn't heal it anymore. There was still blood staining Chase's ripped shirt, Shintaro's shaking hands, and the slick floor, but it wasn't spilling from the wound as profoundly as before. 

And the pain in Chase's expression was still immanent, no matter how much he tried to hide it to satisfy his father. His brows were still furrowed and his body still taut, and he hadn't moved expect when he'd reached for Shintaro's hand. He had laid his head back against the floor below him, his eyes closed and his breaths slow and deep. 

"Now that you're finished," Brethren said calmly with a grin, "we have places to be. Come now, get up. Don't worry, Thalia and Drake will escort these two back to their proper places without doing them any harm." 

Shintaro narrowed his eyes, not trusting the words coming out of The Dark Lord's mouth. He'd learned long ago never to trust any Darks, which made it difficult to find assurance and friendship in Kai - even though he was Falte's son - but Shintaro never planned on telling the librarian that.

When none of the men on the floor moved, The Dark Lord's grin vanished and his eyes narrowed. Slowly, his head tilted backward until he was peering down his nose at them, his lip curled up in distaste. 

Shintaro knew that look. He'd seen it far too many times.

Enough to know what was coming next.

Adrenaline coursing suddenly through his veins, Shintaro spun on his knees toward a distracted Cami, grabbing his shoulders and pulling the smaller man close against his chest. A second later, Shintaro threw himself over Chase, slamming one hand into the floor to hold himself up. The chains on his wrists snaked around them, but they all ignored them.

As Shintaro suspected, the blow came not even a second later. 

Pain exploded in Shintaro's shoulders, darting immediately up and down his spine and into his head. The strike was too sharp and thin to be Brethren's hand, and Shintaro - blinking hazily against the pain - realized that The Dark Lord must have used some sort of whip. 

That was new.

Shintaro didn't exactly squeeze his eyes shut against the impact or pain, and that was enough to see the expressions of the two people below him. Chase was staring up at him with wide eyes, concern and confusion and anger swirling through the golden irises. Cami had twisted back and was holding himself up with one arm, hovering over Chase, and his mouth was open with pitying surprise and pain. 

Heaving in a deep breath, Shintaro slowly released the tension in his back and leaned away from his family. Cami immediately straightened and grabbed his brother's shoulders, steadying him even though it wasn't much needed - the blow hadn't been as bad as Shintaro had figured it would be. Chase, despite the obvious pain it brought him, pushed himself up with a grimace and gaped up behind Shintaro, probably at Brethren.

"Are you okay?" Cami whispered, staring worriedly into Shintaro's eyes, his hands quivering on Shintaro's shoulders. 

Despite the stinging pain searing in Shintaro's back and shoulders, he nodded slowly and blew out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Judging by the cold air that stung his back, the whip had slashed through his shirt slightly. 

"Are you ready to get up now?" Brethren asked, his voice mockingly playful as if he was scolding a child. When he spoke again, the low rumble in the back of his throat had returned. "Whether you like it or not, Shintaro, you are coming with me." 

Wincing and gulping in deep breaths, Shintaro leaned away from Cami's hands, gently prying his brother's fingers away. "Don't let them hurt you," he said quietly to both of them, keeping the pain out of his voice. His whole body was in so much pain and exhaustion, but he couldn't let them see that.

He raised his eyebrows quizzically, and the two of then nodded. 

Reluctantly, Shintaro raised himself to his feet. "Don't give up," he told them in a hushed tone, so that Brethren didn't hear. "We're going to be all right. Don't let go of your hope, okay?"

Tears filled Cami's eyes, but Chase nodded firmly, his jaw set.

Shintaro turned around and lifted his hands, exposing the chains on his wrists. As the Dark he assumed was Thalia stepped forward to unlock them, he didn't look back at his family.

He didn't want them to see the pain in his heart. He didn't want to let them see the expression on his face, the one that screamed...

Hypocrite. 

~

I HATH UPDATED AGAIN!!

AND IT'S ANOTHER ANGSTY CHAPTER

THANK YOU FOR READING

I AM GOING TO LEAVE IT AT THAT

BYE

P3ac3!!!~~~~