My body goes rigid and the taste of Cai on my lips turns sour.
Whatever comfort or freedom I felt from our kiss turns into a spoiled feeling in my stomach. and I regret it. I regret letting him kiss me. I regret kissing him back. But most of all, I hate that Altan saw it.
"Step away from her!" Altan's voice is calm and low, but there is a deep rumbling in his tone that makes me think he could likely summon an entire volcano up from the ground with his anger.
Cai does as he's told. He steps away from me, but not before slipping something small into my hand. I don't look down at it, I don't even acknowledge what he's done. My whole body is too on-edge, and I can only look at Altan.
Altan doesn't meet my gaze, he's too busy staring daggers at Cai. He stands among the trees, the sword in his hand is on fire and his eyes are ablaze with more than just his power, they're ablaze with anger. Three soldiers stand behind him, and they look probably as scared as I do. They know what they just witnessed, and they probably know what they're about to witness.... Their Duke is about to murder the fourth Prince of Pani Rastra.
My mouth feels dry, and my brain searches frantically for some kind of response, some kind of explanation for what I was just doing. But there is nothing I can say, nothing I can do... I can only watch as the consequences of all my actions unfold before my eyes.
Cai grins at Altan. He actually smiles at him mischievously, as if kissing me and Altan seeing it was all a part if his plan.... and maybe it was. "Well, if it isn't Duke Altan Sultanav, of Kiziljer." Cai says, entirely unafraid of Altan and his flaming sword. "What a pleasant surprise to meet you here." he lazily drags the back of his fingers across his bottom lip as if to wipe away our kiss, Altan's eyes track the movement with deadly precision.
~Altan's going to kill him. Altan is sooooo going to kill him... ~
I watch as an angry breath rattles through Altan's chest. I almost expect fire to spew from him mouth when he breathes out. Then he speaks and I'm amazed at the composure he has, "If you know what's good for you, you'll leave now, and never return."
Cai smiles again, "I suppose I don't know what is good for me, then." he holds his hand out as he speaks and the knife that he dropped to the forest floor is guided to his open palm via a stream of water that came from someplace unknown.
That answer is apparently enough to send Altan over the edge. His anger peaks and I hear him scream as he charges Cai.
My breath leaves my body as I watch them collide. A wall of water comes up to meet Altan's flaming sword. And when they meet, a sizzling sound fills the forest and steam erupts. So much steam that soon I can't see anything. I deftly back away, trying to escape the hot water as it floats through the air.
I can't see anything... it's just a giant orb of steaming water with the occasional lick of flame that erupts out the side. I hear a scream and a yell. I see a flash of long black hair from Cai and the flicker of Altan's silhouette from his flames.
They're fighting.
They're actually fighting and trying to kill each other.
I did this.
This is my fault.
with the realization, words fall from my mouth... "Stop." It's quiet at first and they can't hear me over the clanking of metal or sizzling of water meeting fire, "STOP!" I yell again, but their isn't anything I can do to stop the chaos I created.
My feet stumble forward, toward the mess of clanking metal and fire and water.
I have to stop them.
If one of them dies.... Then their death is on my hands.
This is my fault.
"Stop!" I yell again, and Altan's soldiers come forward to hold me back.
My legs crumple beneath me because I don't know what to do. Even if I make it over to them, what can I do?
"Don't kill him!" I yell. And I'm not sure to who I'm speaking, or whose life I'm pleading for.
But strangely enough, silence follows my plea.
For a brief second I think that I've done it. I think that I've stopped the fight. But as the steam dissipates I realize that the fighting may have stopped because somebody won...
I stagger to my feet again, straining my eyes to see through the hot wet steam.
Which one is it?
Which one of them survived?
Who will I be left with?
And whose death will be on my hands?
A breeze blows through the trees and the steam blows with it. Leaving me wet and cold. And then I see them. Altan and Cai. They're both standing and staring at me.
And they're both alive.
~Thank God.~
Cai holds a long sword in his hand, one that is thin and curves at the end. I'm not sure when He pulled it out. in fact, I'm not even sure if I knew he owned such a thing. Altan's sword is no longer ablaze and there is a strange sense of armistice. The two of them are breathing quick, their chests pumping up and down with each breath, and they're both looking right at me.
I gulp.
It worked. They stopped fighting because I asked them to... But now what?
"The only reason I'm letting him live." Cai speaks and raises his sword to point at Altan. "Is because you asked me to spare him."
My mouth is open, but I have no words.
My eyes dart to Altan and I wonder if he'll say the same thing. But he only stares at me, and I can't read his expression.
Then, without warning, Cai turns toward the cliff.... and jumps.