My fingernails turn bloody as I claw at the barrier keeping me locked in the back of my mind. I ignore the cries of my muscles and the sweat making my hair stick to the back of my neck. Come on. I've got to escape the snake.

My desperation turns to anger. My whole life had been dedicated to Bryant. As a child, I stared at Bryant's castle in awe, watched Guard and Soldiers walk by, dreaming of the day when I could become 1. And when I finally got enlisted as a Soldier, I hung onto each and every word Bryant uttered. I trained tirelessly and took any task I could so I could serve my King. The 1st betrayal was when I twisted my ankle and watched in terror, the kind that makes your heart sink through your toes, as the doctors said my pain was all in my head. It never was. I remained stoic until I reached my room. Only when I knew the door was locked did I let the silent tears fall, but only for a few moments. Everyone took my refusal to see a doctor again as me proving that I truly was the model Soldier. I never was. It should've been any of the other top Guard and Soldiers; they never questioned their King and had the bloodthirsty restlessness that made them the perfect candidates to become the Dust Devil, the righthand man of the King of Ragdon. Why did you turn me into something I'm not? Why me? Why turn me into the Dust Devil when the Dust Devil isn't who I am? The 2nd betrayal was when Bryant let the Amethyst Throne invade my mind. The pain that had me curled on the ground as strangled cries slipped from my mouth and talons raked through my mind and an unwanted, foreign being took up residence there. The snake. The blood on my hands, blood I never wanted, burns. It will never go away. Guilt gnaws at my insides. The snake took over control of my body, and I was locked away as it used me like a puppet. Why?

Anger blazes deep in the pit of my stomach. How could you do this to me? Tears sting as they well up in my eyes. My lips curl as I take a deep, shuddering breath. I'll win, snake. You won't control me forever.

Monstrous cracks riddle the marble of Bryant's throne room. Guard and Soldiers pound away at the double doors, but they can't break through. The Amethyst Throne is the only thing that doesn't bear any marks from the fight. Phoenix circles my body, searching for a moment of weakness, and the snake moves my body to remain facing the black cat. "Had enough?" Phoenix murmurs.

"Never," the snake hisses. Clouds of dust spread out from around my body's feet, obscuring the ground. Phoenix snarls when tendrils of dust wind around his legs. The black cat tries to jerk a foreleg free, and when he's unable to, he bites down on a tendril and rips 1 in 1/2. Dust sprays as the tendril breaks and crumbles.

I rake my fingernails down the barrier, and blood cakes my fingers in a scarlet film. Bile rises in my throat. Let me go, snake.

The 1st crack forms in the snake's barrier when a commotion sounds out in the hallway, slightly muffled by the doors. Only a moment later, the double doors are knocked to the ground in a spray of debris and dust. The snake moves my body to face the intruder. It hisses, eyes flashing.

Guard and Soldiers stream into the throne room, but they soon find themselves falling to the ground and staying down, completely motionless. Through the 1/2-light of the hallway and the clouds of dust still hanging in the air, a figure climbs over the rubble, soon followed by another 2. Who are they?

"What the hell are you guys doing here? I already called dibs on killing him!"

"You will not lay a hand on my King," the snake snarls.

"Shut it," Phoenix snarls. "You couldn't stop me if you tried."

"Hush," Icarus says. "The Amethyst Throne must be destroyed 1st if you wish to kill the King." Bryant waves a hand, and the snake immediately reacts to the louder thrum of the Amethyst Throne.

Dust sprays, hovering like wings behind my body for a few moments before crashing to the ground. Rubble explodes, and dust and debris becomes all that can be seen.

I pause for a moment in my attempts to break free. Bryant's throne room comes alive with magic. Tendrils of dust whistle through the air. Fire roars in furious clouds of flames. Constellations shimmer as rainbow lights shimmer and blaze.

You're not winning, snake. I might've said that many times before, but it's true. You're not going to win.

The snake doesn't look back, instead focusing its attention on the odd-looking battle. No 1 moves. My body remains rooted to the ground and Wolf wields the constellations as she deflects the attacks from the snake and the Amethyst Throne. Bryant lounges on the Throne, chin resting on knuckles. Red creeps into his purple eyes. Well, almost no 1 moves. Phoenix sends wave after wave of fire slamming into the intricate work of Dust the snake had created, but he seems to be paying little to no mind to the snake. Instead, the black cat is stalking toward the Amethyst Throne, staring down Bryant.

My fist is just about to make contact with the barrier, right over the splintering cracks, when another presence makes itself known in my mind. Get the hell out of my head, I snarl. My fingers curl tight into my palms.

That won't be necessary. Calm down, Luke. I merely wanted to talk with you. The voice is calm.

Yeah, well, I don't want to talk. I'm freeing myself from the snake, and then I'm leaving.

To where? Ragdon is an island, after all.

Somewhere where I do what I want when I want.

I believe I can help.

I don't want your help.

I can remove the snake.

Get out of my head. I exhale through my teeth. There's no way whoever -or whatever- this thing is could get rid of the snake.

You want the snake gone. Right, Luke?

Get out of my head.

You want the snake gone, right? I hesitate, but then chastise myself; the snake resulted from trusting someone. Nothing good came from that.

Yes, b-.

I knew you could answer. I'll make you a deal. I am helping you, after all. Going out of my way to help someone else.

Who are you?

It doesn't matter. I'm making the snake disappear.

Who are you? And how are you supposedly going to make the snake disappear? Hope sparks in my gut, but I force it down; there's no way.

It doesn't matter who I am. Just say yes and I'll make the snake disappear. Just say yes. Don't you want the snake gone? Say yes to the deal.

I-I. No, I can't. And who are you? Are you some friend the snake sent?

Where'd you get that crazy idea? Are you feeling alright, Luke? You haven't seen a doctor in... what has it been? 10 years? Am I doing ok? I mean, yeah, I haven't gone to a doctor since the ankle injury 10 years ago. But I've never needed to- I've been able to treat any injury I've gotten.

Aww, come on. You don't really think you've actually been able to do that, right? That would be crazy. Haha. I fight back a shudder, but the words stick.

What are you doing?

I'm offering to make the snake disappear. Do we have a deal?

You haven't told me anything.

I've told you everything you need to know. Yes or no, Luke?

S-ser-. N-no, not until you tell me more.

Very well.

What are you doing? Just go now, please. I do not want your help.

But you said you'd agree to our deal if I told you more. Why don't you give me a chance? Aren't you nice?

I-I. S-s-sure. Please go away.

Thank you. I knew you were nice, Luke. You finally came to reason and agreed to the deal. I will remove the snake from your mind.

I never said yes. And who are you? You never answered my question.

Why does it matter if I'm making the snake disappear? I already said that I will. Do my words hold no meaning to you?

I don't know you. Get out of my head. My hands search through the back of my mind, but whoever's speaking cannot be seen.

What are you doing? I stay silent for a moment as I steel my nerves.

Trying to get you out of my head. I don't want your help, and I do not need your help. I'll get rid of the snake on my own.

I said I'd help you, and you agreed to our deal. There's now an edge to the voice's words.

Get out of my head. If you really wanted to help you wouldn't be making up lies. I never agreed to the deal. I do not want your help, so get out of my head.

Wouldn't you want to know who I am? What I can do for you? The voice slithers in my mind, reminding me of the snake. Words weave through my mind, twisting and turning.

No. I do not want to interact with someone who's... manipulative like how you are. Leave, get out of my head. I'm not going to agree to a deal with you, not now and not ever.

And I thought you were smart, Luke. I-.

Get out. I'm not going to waste my breath on you any more. I don't care what you think of me. I'm not going to waste my time thinking about what you've said. Leave. Leave now. My heart pounds in my chest. I will my racing pulse to slow.

Very well, but it's sure to be your fault. The voice is now a snarl.

xxxx

It's as if a veil is lifted from my eyes, and I can suddenly see my surroundings. But they're not what I'd seen before... whatever happened happened. Instead of the Bryant's demolished throne room, I'm in 1 of the tents in the White Tent Sea. My heart sinks. Why am I here? Why am I not in Bryant's castle? And why am I still alive? Doesn't Bryant know of my utmost betrayal?

The snake is curled up in the back of my mind, head resting on the chains of its body. Its eyes flash with anger, but they're duller than before.

"Hm, you're up." Phoenix stalks into the tent as I rise to a sitting position. A gash carves a line down the black cat's muzzle, splitting open his lip and curling it into a permanent grimace. Several more wounds litter the rest of his body.

"Yeah, I am. How did I get here?"

"1 of Wolf's constellations or somethin'. Anyways, onto more important matters. What the hell happened to you? You were, like, fighting the snake. And then you gave up. The snake got so smug. So naturally I showed it what happens to those who support the disgusting waste of space they call their King. But what the hell happened to you?" Phoenix spits the words, nose wrinkling into a sneer. Blood begins to ooze from the gash on his muzzle, and it sizzles as it makes contact with the blazing flames coating the black cat's pelt.

"I-I... I don't know," I murmur, looking down at the ground.

"BS. What actually happened?"

"Where's everyone else?" It's quiet outside. Too quiet.

"Nice try. Tell me what happened?"

"I don't know! There was just this voice in my head or something." I brace myself for Phoenix's sharp comeback.

"Voice, you say?"

"Y-yeah."

"What did it sound like? Tell me everything. Now."

"It was speaking in my head, but I couldn't see who was talking. It was manipulative and was trying to get me to agree to a deal it said little about. The voice just sounded so... so arrogant. Like it knew exactly what it was doing."

"Who were they?"

"I don't know."

"You didn't demand to know who they were?"

"No."

"Should've. Then I know exactly who to track down and tear limb from limb." Phoenix's eyes widen and glow with sick excitement."

"Ah, Wolf, hello there. Fancy seeing you here. Finally gonna tell me why you wouldn't let me destroy the Amethyst Throne and then kill the King?"

"It wasn't his time to die yet."

"And how'd you know that?"

"That was what the constellations were telling me."

"You stopped me from getting the revenge Ky and I had been planning for years over what a few told you? Tell them no!" Phoenix lunges at Wolf, and his flames create a few burns across the Midnight Wolf's skin. Wolf sends the flames off to the sides where they dissipate and the wounds are gone a few moments later. Leo and Aquarius glow and shimmer.

"They said it wasn't his time yet. You'll get your chance."

"Should've been then. I can't believe I listened to you."

"My apologies, Luke. How are you feeling?"

"You were just talking about killing Bryant, and the snake didn't do anything." The snake hasn't moved from where it's curled up in the back of my mind. It barely reacted at all.

"That... that would've been me. I summoned Scorpius, though it's not at its full power. I only wanted to weaken the snake, not to paralyze you." Another constellation taking control... at least it put me back in control, I guess. My heart still sinks. I flip my left arm over, and light glows softly on my forearm between the plates of my armor. I curl my fingers into a fist and chew on my lip as the light shimmers. Scorpius. I want the snake gone, but not like this.

"Hey, Wolf. You hear Luke had a voice speak to him? I'm gonna find out who it was, and then I'm gonna rip them to pieces."

"You don't even know who the voice is, Phoenix." Seneca strolls into the tent, arms crossed over her chest. "Miles said he saw Wolf come into here, so I figured you were up, Luke. Wanted to say hi."

"Doesn't matter. They were speaking to Luke, so they've got some connection to the despicable little King. Therefore, they're dead and I'm gonna enjoy every second of tearing them apart. Limb. From. Limb." Phoenix's head lowers and a sick grin tugs at the corners of his mouth. His eyes burn as blood drips from his chin as it oozes from the wound on his muzzle. I hold back a shudder as I look away.

"Aww, Phoenix. You haven't figured it out?"

"Figured out what?" Phoenix turns on Seneca.

"The voice. Isn't it obvious? Think about who Luke is. Once you know that, it's pretty obvious."

Thanks for reading! I can't believe The King's Remorse has come this far! There is still a lot that's going to happen before the ending, but the story is drawing to a close. 

Seneca says she knows who the voice is that was speaking to Luke. Who, or what, is it?

It would seem Phoenix's attempt to kill Bryant and destroy the Amethyst Throne failed. What's next?

The snake is still residing in Luke's mind. Will it ever be removed?

I hope you are doing well!

-Werewolf14-