The snake huffs, snickering about how Freedom's magic is failing.

Her magic is slow to seep from the bodies of the Guard and Soldiers. They flinch and step back as the yellow drips down to the ground, disappearing as soon as it touches the ground. When the last of her magic has left the bodies of the Guard and Soldiers, the shift in their expressions is immediate. The once genuine confusion melts away into murderous rage. "What did you do to us, Freedom? What did you do, huh? Think you could get away with that? Think changing our emotions would keep you safe, huh?" They snort in disbelief.

Kill them, the snake whispers. They're not being controlled any more. Won't your lame conscience let you kill them not that they can think for themselves? Come on, kill them. They wronged us. It's self-defense. Self-preservation. You're in the right. Kill them.

Brook tenses, gaze never breaking from the Guard and Soldiers. They outnumber her at 7 to 1. If you kill them, it'll be 0 to 1, the snake says. Freedom rolls onto her stomach as she begins to recover. "Stay back," Brook spits. They lunge, weapons drawn. 1 of the Guard gets impaled on Brook's horn, and he hunches over the wound, blood spilling from between his fingers. When he falls, he doesn't get up.

I snap out of my trance when a Soldier slices a gash on Brook's shoulder. I will the dust to rise from the ground and obey my command. It shivers around me, thrumming with energy.

Brook lashes out with her hooves and catches a Soldier on the side of the head, leaving him crumpling to the ground as red coats his face. So you are going to kill them, huh? I knew you would. You just can't resist the temptation of watching the life bleed away from their bodies. I knew it. You and I, we're not all that different.

We couldn't be more different, snake.

Freedom blinks slowly, seeming a little disoriented. She looks around, and her gaze settles on me. As I pour energy into the dust that howls around me, it trembles, shaking with the power it holds. I curl my fingers before throwing the dust forward in a wave that shimmers with black and purple. Time seems to slow down as the dust hurtles toward the Guard and Soldiers. Brook steps to the side, looking up. A Guard nocks an arrow in his bow. A Soldier avoids a fellow Soldier's sword. Freedom scrambles to her feet and starts running. A Guard tugs on the arm of a Soldier and they begin to move.

The Guard angles his bow and releases the arrow just as the wave of dust crashes down. Purple lines zap between the clumps of dust like little bolts of lightning. The dust smothers the Guard and Soldiers in clouds of black. It would seem you're killing them. See, we're not all that different.

I'm not killing them, snake.

Ah, but you are.

No, I'm not going to kill them.

Yeah, but you are.

No, I-

You're going to kill them right now. See? The snake surges forward, taking just enough control to overload the dust with energy. It retreats back to the depths of my mind. Amethyst flares in response. 1 of the Guard, the 1 who had tugged a Soldier into motion, cries out in surprise when the Soldier begins to dissolve, crumbling away. What are you doing?

Told you you're not so different from me.

You killed them!

That's not what everyone else is going to think. The snake's amethyst eyes twinkle. The other Guard and Soldiers follow suit, bodies blowing away as they turn to dust.

Brook exhales sharply through her nose. As the dust settles, I can see her better. She stumbles, keeping her legs wide to remain upright. An arrow is lodged in her chest. Her ears are drawn back, and her nostrils are flared. Every muscle in her body is taut. "Brook!" I race forward. The snake snickers in the back of my mind, but I shut it down.

"What happened?" Freedom looks over Brook, panic clear across her face.

"Missed the Guard. Didn't see him." Blood has stained her blue fur russet. Her breaths are becoming ragged.

Did I do this?

Sure, the snake relies. If the snake had shoulders, I'm sure it would be shrugging right now. Why not? We can go with you did this.

"Clap's in the trees over to my right. Keep her safe." Brook's legs give out, and she drops to the ground. She exhales through her teeth as the arrow get shifted in her chest. Blood flows from the wound faster, soaking through her fur and dripping onto the rock below.

"I-I'm sorry," I stammer.

"It... was the-. Guard," Brook says, voice strained.

"I'm sorry... I-I broke my promise, Freedom."

"You didn't break it, Brook. You kept it. Clap is safe. They didn't get to her. You didn't break your promise, Brook."

"She's in the trees. There's a little... path. J-just keep... her-. Safe."

"We will. I promise," I say.

"Keep her safe." Brook takes 1 more shuddering breath before her body stills. Her gaze turns hollow, distant, and she seems to be staring straight through me at something I cannot see.

"Brook?" Freedom nudges Brook's shoulder with a foreleg.

"Brook," she whispers. Her wings droop to the ground, still twitching on occasion.

"Luke! Luke! Luke!" Clap sprints over, form blurring until she comes to an abrupt halt in front of me. "Freedom!"

"Clap," Freedom murmurs.

"Luke! What h-happened with Brook?" She paws at my legs, almost wailing.

"I-I..." I kneel down.

"What h-happened? Why is-isn't s-s-she moving? Brook!" I wrap my arms around Clap's trembling body, though my grip remains loose.

"What happened, Luke?" My heart clenches and I freeze, glancing up at Freedom. Pain is written all across her, and agony swirls in her eyes.

"What happened with Brook, Luke?" I take a minute or 2 before replying.

"She's gone."

"N-no. She's right here! See? Come back, Brook!"

"Brook won't be coming back," Freedom said, running her trunk over Clap's cheek. Clap squints at the contact, freezing.

"Wh-what do you mean sh-she's not coming back?" Freedom takes a deep breath before replying.

"Brook has died," she says, voice soft and strained. Clap stares at Brook's body. She wriggles out of my grip and I let her go. She stops at Brook's side and examines her, resting a paw on 1 of her forelegs. A few minutes go by, and Clap is still standing silently by Brook's side. She touches the arrow still lodged in Brook's chest.

Anger courses through me, and pain becomes all that I can feel, all that I can see. The pain from knowing that everything I had been told when I was a kid was all a lie. Knowing that what I'd dedicated my life to was a sham. It was just some glorified scam to get you to lay down your life for someone who'd had his mind destroyed. Destroyed by the very thing residing in my mind as well. I remember every time someone started to doubt Bryant's word and they were silenced, whether it be shutting them down or killing them. Almost always the latter. After the 1st time witnessing that, I never let anyone see what I was truly feeling. That was the beginning of the Soldier everyone knew me as. I went above and beyond to make sure no 1 had any inkling that I didn't agree with Bryant. The fear kept eating away at me. The fear that someone would question me and it would all come falling down. Then I injured my ankle and the doctors told me it was all in my head. Once that happened, I decided it was better if I dealt with things, not someone else, and the fear took a stronger hold over my life. And now Brook. The Guard and Soldiers killed her, and I couldn't stop it.

The pain gnaws at my insides, and it feels like my throat is closing up and my heart might burst. My breath is shaky as tears blur my vision.

But then something snaps. I exhale through my teeth as my lip curls. Dust thrums and trembles, responding to the seething anger that's swirling within me. I rake my fingers against the rock, and my fingers curl into fists. The sting that comes when the rock scrapes at my fingertips takes the edge off the howling pain that's tearing through me. I welcome it with open arms.

Thanks for reading! I really appreciate it! If you enjoyed this chapter of The King's Remorse, please consider a vote. And comment your thoughts; I'd love to hear what you think!

Quite the chapter. Brook's dead, and Luke's snapped. Any ideas what he's going to do?

What's going to come from Luke snapping?

What's going to happen in the rest of the story?

I hope you're all having a great day!

-Werewolf14-