*Etsuo*

[Three days ago]

I stared at the few rays of moonlight breaking through from a small barred window overhead. Ever since we were captured yesterday, time had gone slowly.

I turned and glanced at Roa who slept on a bed on the opposite side of the large cell. The rays of the moon failed to hit his bed, causing total darkness to wrap around him. He hadn't spoken much since we were captured. Not to mention, he always had his back to us.

Perhaps, he was mad at me... It was my fault that we were in this situation. If only I hadn't let my guard down against Naoru...

"Is he alright?" my brother asked, pushing himself off the floor.

"Hey, Roa, are you okay?" I called out. There was no response. "Maybe he fell asleep."

Even though I said that, a sinking feeling built within me.

"Roa? Cuz?" Man-kin said, walking over to him. He stretched a hand out and grabbed a hold of Roa's shoulder. "Come on, say something. It isn't like you to not say a thing."

Roa let out a grunt, but it wasn't a sleepy one, rather it was a pain-filled grunt.

Man-kin pulled Roa, flipping him until he was facing upward. Our cousin had his hand covered in his blanket, but a strange blue light was being emitted from underneath.

"What are you doing? Wait, do you still have your powers?" Man-kin asked.

I stood up and walked over to get a better look. Roa's bed was drenched in sweat.

I pulled back the blanket and gasped. All over his right arm were multiple black blisters crackling with blue electricity.

I stepped back. "Roa..." I turned away and ran over to the front of the cell. "Someone! Is anyone there! Roa needs help! Hello? Is anyone there? Hello! Please..." My hands slid down the bars. "Save Roa!"

***

['Present']

I grunted as I pushed myself up the ground. I rose to my feet and wiped the sweat off my brow with my shirt.

"You really are out of shape," Man-kin said as he spotted me.

"That's why I'm working out," I responded, proceeding to punch the empty air.

He pushed himself up from the bed, balancing all of his weight on his arms.

"Do you think Roa is doing well?"

I stopped. Roa had been placed in a separate room after Hideaki had heard about his condition. He was still exhibiting those weird growths across his body, most notably in the areas Naoru had wounded him.

"What are you two talking about?" a voice called out.

I looked up and saw Naoru smiling at us. He donned a black and gold uniform. When had he returned? Last I heard, he had headed with the others to the capital. Had Osamu decided to station him here after all?

"About Roa. How is he?" I snapped.

"Watch your tone there, abysmal. Don't forget what happened while we were in the palace. Or do you wish for me to give you a repeat?"

I jumped back.

He scoffed. "What a cowardly thing you are. That guy wasted his time trying to protect and avenge you."

I clenched my hands into fists.

"A coward such as yourself is useless in war. You were better off staying home where you wouldn't be a detriment to your forces. Though, we are lucky that you did join them. Else, we wouldn't have been able to capture more of your allies."

"You really are getting on my nerves!" Man-kin said as he jumped to his feet.

Naoru brandished his knife and began to wipe it with a white cloth. "If that's how you feel then I'll give you a chance to vent out your anger. Though, don't blame me once you're in the world of the dead. Hmm, do you beings even have souls to begin with?"

"Of course, we do!"

I patted my brother's shoulder. "Calm down, Man-kin. This guy is just trying to provoke you. He wants to draw you into a fight."

"And what's wrong with a fight? Why is it that you run away?" he asked as he pointed his knife at us. "A true warrior doesn't run from danger, instead he or she fights until the very end, regardless if it's bitter or sweet."

"And you think yourself a true warrior?" Man-kin asked.

"Much more than you who gave up to save your lives. Now, tell me, what is your motive in this war? Why have you come to Zionia?"

My brother continued to glare at him. "I thought that you would already know. We're here to absorb the light of Zionia for the sustenance of Abyssia. It's as simple as that."

"That's what I've heard, but I got to wonder if that is all. Especially, considering you also attacked Xeleria. Is this realm not enough for you ravenous beings?"

"All shall fall before Abyssia," Man-kin responded. "All in due time."

Naoru scoffed and pulled back his dagger. "That's what you think. If you manage to live long enough, you'll see the destruction of your homeland. Soon, you will wish that you had spent your remaining days at home instead of embarking in this misadventure," he said as he walked away.

"Ugh, I wish I could give that guy a good punch in the face!" Man-kin yelled, falling back into his bed. "He's so annoying!"

"Same, but we can't escape. These chains prevent us from using our powers," I said, staring at the black cuffs. They were made of a special metal that had once been used to seal our dad's powers. Though, it had merely restrained him instead of sealing them outright like it did with ours.

Man-kin jumped and punched the wall next to his bed, but only tiny cracks formed across it. He gasped as black blood dripped down from his hand. His wound healed slowly.

"At least, our regeneration still works," he said, rubbing his hand.

"You're lucky that Naoru didn't cut you. His sword appears to be able to prevent one from healing," I said, touching my chest. His weapon had narrowly managed to avoid touching my core on the day he had captured us.

That weapon was likely the cause of Roa's condition, but why hadn't it affected me as well?

"What's on your mind?" Man-kin asked as he tore up part of his shirt to use as a make-shift bandage.

"I'm worried about Roa. I want to know why suddenly his body has started to act up like that."

"Maybe he strained himself too much during his battle. He was at his last legs when Mai, Mei, and I came to his rescue. I'm sure he'll be fine. You know, that when our bodies get too strained that we revert back to blobs."

"That's true for pure-bloods like Dad and three-fourth-bloods like us, but Roa is half. Serrano didn't revert into a blob when you nearly killed him, did he?"

"Hmm, no, he didn't. But Serrano is a fourth, not half."

"True... maybe what Roa is experiencing is the middle ground, but why would it start to show some time after the battle was over?"

"Do you think that it could be an illness?" Man-kin asked. "Mom did say that this world has illnesses."

"If it is then we'll need to find a way to fix it." I pressed my forehead against the black cell bars. But first, we would need to figure out how to escape from here...

Hopefully, whatever Roa had wasn't dangerous to his life.

"Let me pass, you jerk!" a voice called out.

"Why should I? Last time you were allowed to watch over him, he escaped," Naoru said.

Is that Kiara?

"Kiara!" I yelled.

"Etsuo!" she yelled back, though I couldn't see her still.

"I said to let me pass!"

"I already said that I won't, even if this is your father's domain, I've been charged to defend the prisoners by His Majesty."

"My cousin did," a familiar voice asked. It seemed to belong to Kiara's mom.

"Cousin?" I murmured. Kiara's mother is related to Osamu?

"You're related to the royal family?" Naoru asked.

"Yeah. My mother is the little sister of King Orlin."

"Why would a princess marry the son of a Kasai no Ki and a treasonous grand duchess?"

"I have no reason to explain myself to you, now... move!" Rene's voice echoed across the stone hall.

"Fine, but I'll keep an eye. I can't trust a princess who would marry the enemy."

"The Kasai no Ki aren't our enemy."

"Etsuo!" Kiara yelled, ignoring her mother's conversation with Naoru. "Are you alright?" Her eyes widened as she saw Roa wasn't with us. "Where's Roa?"

"Dine?"

"Yeah, it's me. Now, answer, where's Roa?"

I lowered my head. "He was moved to another cell. I'm not completely sure where as no one has told me anything. Kiara's father is the one who had him moved."

"My dad did?" Kiara asked, once again retaking control over her body.

"We got to ask him where he is. Let's go, Kiara," Dine said, taking possession of Kiara.

"If you do find out something, please tell me," I said, looking upward.

"Of course!"

"Your concern for the enemy truly is suspect. Considering that you have one of those beings within you, you should also be imprisoned here," Naoru said, walking back over to us. "Had you listened to me about distancing yourself from him, then you wouldn't be sharing your body with anyone else and most importantly, your brother would still be alive."

Kiara narrowed her eyes at him. "It isn't her fault nor is it Etsuo's."

"Dine?" I whispered.

"Now, how about you leave before I kick you out myself?"

The guard scoffed. "I already said, it was the king who put me in this position. The only one who can override his authority is the Celestial Queen. Or do you plan to rebel against His Majesty's wishes just like the paternal grandparents of the girl you inhabit did to her mother's uncle? I'm sure the lady here can tell you how that turned out."

Rene averted her gaze.

"Stop being so mean!" Dossie yelled, running over to deliver a kick to the back of his leg.

Naoru turned around, unaffected by the little girl's kick.

Dossie stepped back as the guard glared at her.

"W-will you stop picking on my sister and her friends?" the little girl asked.

"This is no place for a child. Now leave, before I report you all."

"I pray that this is the limit of the power you're given! I shudder to think what you would do if you had more power!" Kiara or Dine said, stepping closer to him.

"Then you better continue to pray. If I were ever to have my way, your family would be stripped of all power and deported to the nation your grandparents betrayed us for," he said before he vanished into a wisp of smoke.

"What is that guy's issue?" Rene asked, tilting her head at where he had stood.

Dossie held her mom's hand tightly. "Mommy, that man is scary."

The noble lady picked up the little girl up and cradled her in her arms. "Don't worry, Dossie. I won't let that guy hurt any of you." She glanced over at me. "That includes you too."

Her amber eyes lingered on me for a while.

"Say, are you the son of Skah?"

I snickered. "No. That's Roa. I'm Rocio's kid."

She gasped. "Rocio? Well, you certainly are different from her. Your mom was always rather domineering while you're..."

"A pushover?"

"No. That's not the word I had in mind." She smiled. "You're meek."

"Isn't that the same as a pushover?" Man-kin asked, putting his hands behind his head.

I lowered my eyes. I should've known...

"It can mean that, but it also means someone who is gentle and courteous. Looking into your eyes, I can tell that you care deeply for your friends."

"Sounds about right," Kiara or Dine said, grinning. "Etsuo's a great guy."

My face reddened.

"I'll go see how Roa's doing and see if anything can be done for him," Rene said.

"Say, why are you being nice to us?" I asked. "Aren't you mad at us for dragging Dan into the abyss?"

"Based on what I heard from Reno, you didn't drag him. He chose to accompany you to keep watch over Kiara." She bit her lip. "My little Dan can be considered meek too." She laughed dryly. "Maybe that's why I wish to help."

"Huh?" Man-kin said.

She rubbed her forehead and gave us a small smile. "I mean, seeing your big brother here seems to be triggering my maternal side." She sighed. "I couldn't help Dan out. Despite having a lot of kids, I have not been a great mother; I've been unable to see to their needs."

"Mom, that's not true," Kiara said.

"Yeah. Mommy is a great mommy! You play with me even when no one else wants to!" Dossie said, hugging her mother.

"Thanks, Dossie, Kiara, but I'm not as good as you think," Rene said, running her long slender fingers across her youngest daughter's wavy blond hair. "I didn't do enough to help your brother build up his confidence nor his strength. If I had, he might've been able to fend for himself." Tears coursed down her face. "I thought that having him stay home was enough to protect him, but in truth, I only put up walls around him. I was foolish. A good parent is supposed to give their child the tools to make it in the outside world, even if it means having them face discomfort from time to time."

I thought back to my own mother. Mom would always tell me that she was training me for the future. I only went along with it half-heartedly. If I had put my heart completely into it, would things be different now?

"There's no use thinking about what ifs," my brother said, walking back over to his bed. "If we continue to think about how we could've changed the past, we will fail to see the present for what it is, and as a result only create more hardships ahead. The past is the past for a reason."

"Man-kin is right," Kiara said, hugging her mom. "We can only look forward. Hopefully, to a day in which we can once again see my little brother."

Rene patted her oldest daughter's head and smiled. "You're right. We can still change the future." She turned to look at my brother and bowed her head slightly. "Thanks, young one."

Man-kin smiled. "Don't mention it. Now, go and find out how Roa is doing for us."

"Of course. Let's go, Kiara, Dossie," Rene said, escorting her daughters out of the hall.

The future...I walked over to the bed that Roa had once occupied and sighed.

"What's on your mind?" Man-kin asked.

I glanced up at him. "Do you really think that we'll be able to make a future in which we can live in peace? One in which neither side would have to die?"

He pulled his right leg closer to his body. "Hmm, I think it's possible. Right now, the prospective is weak, but if we work toward it, it can be accomplished. That's what Kaguya set out to do, to see if such a possibility can come to fruition. We got to keep our hopes up. Even if we must continue to endure humiliation, we should hold firm in our hopes and dreams as we do in our beliefs."

I smiled. "You know, I'm glad I got detained alongside you."

He laughed. "I can only imagine if it were Mai."

"She would probably be screaming her head off at me even now," I chuckled weakly as I locked my hands together. "Hey, Brother... if-if anything happens to me, please continue our dream."

"I will, but I doubt anything bad will befall you," he said, gazing up at the setting sun. "Especially not when I'm around."

I snickered. "Sometimes it's hard to tell which of us is the big brother."

He chuckled. "Really?"

I scratched the side of my face. "Yeah, you can be childish at times, but also very mature at other times. Honestly, I envy you. You're confident, courageous, and strong."

Man-kin leaned back further and returned his attention to the silver moonlight coming in. "You can be too. We all can. We only need to push aside the negativity that hinders us."

I lowered my head. "How does one do that?"

"We got only three choices in life; to run from our fears, to allow oneself to be consumed by them, or to face them head on. I prefer to face them head on whenever I can. By facing them head on, one has a direct role in shaping one's future rather than reacting to whatever life brings you." His mouth widened into a toothy grin. "Frankly, I find life to be a lot more fun when I can direct it even when it throws things, I didn't expect my way. When life gives you bananas, you make a banana split!"

I covered my mouth. "That's not how it goes!"

He laughed. "That may be so, but the meaning is still the same, isn't it?"

I nodded. "Yeah, it is!"

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed this chapter ^_^! Thoughts? Predictions?**