Seventeen years ago...
The sky was dark, the air cold, bearing an unforgiving chill as it blew through the Kana of Naltaniera.
Unknown creatures howled in the distant woods, and the kingdom lay fast asleep. However, to some parts of this great crest, sleep was barely the least of their worries.
Two children roamed the kingdom, their eyes wide with fear, as they had somehow strayed too far from their hovel in search of food.
They dragged their bare feet along the smooth interlocks, the rumbling of their stomachs filling the silence in the air. The boy attempted to adjust the tattered clothes on his sister's body against the cold.
"Arcan, where are we?" The girl looked up at him, tugging lightly at his muddied clothes.
He looked around, taking in the few flickering fires, the quaint houses, the jingles of the shop bells, and the tall and grand building in the distance. "We might be near the Eryndian castle, Odette. We should turn back, maybe we can find our way home from there."
"But it hurts, my legs and my stomach." Her dark eyes watered as she whined, tugging against her brother's raggedy clothes.
With a sigh, he picked her up. Arcan trudged weakly along the quiet streets, searching for a place his sister could rest.
"Here." He lay her down in a dark corner and huffed out tired breaths. "Get some rest. I'll find food in the morning and then we'll head home." He smiled as brightly as he could at his oblivious child sister as she began to doze off.
The boy sat close to Odette, hugging his knees to his chin, as he desperately tried to stay awake for fear of what could happen if he didn't.
~~~
People chattered, casting disgusted glances at the children. Many stopped in their tracks, awarding them curious glances, for what could've brought such beggars into the citadel?
With a jolt, Arcan woke to the subtle jabbing of a stick to his visible ribs. His eyes went wide with panic, as he immediately positioned himself in front of his sister who still slept peacefully amid the brewing trouble.
The crowd erupted in gasps, as they shrunk into themselves as if the boy had a commutable disease.
"Demon!" A woman cried out.
"It is a bad omen!" Another Elaran shouted, the crowd cowering further away.
A buff-looking man emerged from the crowd. "What are you, and why have you come here?" His baritone voice startled Arcan, making him whimper in fear.
"P…please we m…mean no harm. M…my sister, she simply needs f…food." The boy stammered.
As the crowd whispered on, the man shook his head vigorously at them. "No! You are a curse!" He turned back to the crowd. "They must die before it spreads!"
A thunderous roar erupted, as their eyes began to glow in different colors, their arms raising and readying attacks.
"STOP!"
The mob halted, watching as a richly dressed girl began paving through the crowd. Soon, they realized who she was and swiftly cleared the rest of the way for her.
"What is happening? What have they done?" The girl's vibrant eyes went from the mob to the cowering beggars.
"It is a curse, princess. They must be killed!" The buff man said.
"What makes you think they're a curse?" She asked.
"They do not belong here, it is written in the books of old." He argued.
"No, it is not. You will not harm them-"
"Princess, what are you doing here?!" A gilded soldier pushed angrily through the crowd and grabbed her by the arm. "Your father will be furious if he finds out about your whereabouts."
She struggled aimlessly against his vice-like hold, her gown and hair thrashing around with her. "Nolan, let me go!"
Ignoring her, the soldier's eyes landed on the children, his face twisting in repugnance. "Seize them!"
~~~
"What is the meaning of this?" The king's voice boomed throughout the throne room, anger painting his features.
The hands of the children were each bound together in chains, as the gruff-looking soldiers dragged them roughly into the room.
"Your Highness we found them in the citadel." The soldier pulling Arcan said.
Nolan followed right behind, his grip still firm on the wriggling princess.
The king rolled his eyes in annoyance at the sight of his daughter. "Just take her to her room, no need to lock it if she'll just find a way around it again." He placed two fingers on his forehead, massaging it tiredly.
"No, let me go!" The princess struggled on as Nolan dragged her away from the room, her cries of protest echoing throughout the castle walls.
Atop his throne, the king faced the cowering children with much scrutiny in his eyes. "Fetch the conduit." At his command, a helmet-wearing guard stationed beside him made a short bow, then rushed out of the room.
The children whimpered, their tears and snot painting the floors of the throne room.
A few moments later, a woman entered the room, her diamond-encrusted gown glittering against the shine of the morning sun. Her presence earned bows and greetings from the guards and soldiers that littered the room. The brown in her eyes settled sadly upon the children sprawled on the floor.
"My king." Her voice was sweet, as she headed for the king. "Is what I'm hearing true?" Standing next to him, she lowered her voice so only he could hear the disagreement in it.
"And what exactly are you hearing, Eloise?" He spoke without looking at her, his tone nonchalant to her urgency.
"That you wish to strip these helpless children when they have truly done nothing wrong." She raised an ornamented hand, gesturing to the children.
"Yes, what you have heard is correct." He stated, as he slowly stroked his mustache.
After a moment's pause, Eloise spoke. "Irion, please. Surely there's something else that can be done."
"There is nothing. They were found in the citadel, look at them. Should they not know where they belong?"
"They're children." She whispered loudly to her husband, drawing a few unwanted stares to themselves. Lowering her head further, she spoke more discretely. "They are children, 11 and 8 at most. Beggarly or not they are still Elarans, our people…your people. Can you not see that?"
Irion looked at her from the side of his eyes, with no emotion in particular. "Get out of my sight, Eloise. Now."
With a subtle shake of her head, the queen turned on her heel, leaving the room in anger.
~~~
Minutes later, the guard whom the king had sent rushed in, a black cloth, harboring something in it, held carefully in his hand. On the other hand, he wheeled in a thin metal pole that had a carrier atop it.
The guard unsheathed the black cloth, revealing a diamond-shaped crystal. With much effort, he gently placed it on the carrier, careful not to touch it with his skin.
"Finally. Bring them." The king sat up as the soldiers dragged the screaming children forward toward the conduit.
"Arcan!" The little girl cried out, tears rolling down her malnourished face. "Arcan what's happening!?"
"Stop, please!" The boy cried out, as his sister was being pulled closer and closer to the crystal.
The soldier dragging her pulled the carrier down, so it was short enough for her to reach it.
"No! Take me instead!" Arcan struggled harder, a strange color bleeding into his desperate dark eyes.
"FATHER!" The princess burst into the throne room, earning another eye roll from Irion. "Father stop!" She headed for Odette, a dull amber seeping into her eyes.
"Insolent child." With a mild grabbing gesture, the princess froze in her tracks. White tendrils of power surrounded her rigid body, lifting her from the ground as she floated helplessly to the king's side.
"Father please." She struggled on aimlessly.
Ignoring his daughter's pleas, Irion signaled for the soldiers to carry on.
"ARCAN!" Odette screamed in pain as the soldier forcefully brought her hands together until they made contact with the crystal.
It hummed and glowed at her touch, as she began convulsing, a yellow essence beginning to pour out of her and into the conduit.
"ODETTE! Stop please!" Arcan struggled much harder against his restraints, more colors pouring into his eyes as he watched his sister quake dangerously.
The princess's eyes narrowed at the colors in the boy's eyes, realization hitting her as she scrambled for her words. "Father stop, he's gifted!"
Instantaneously, Irion raised his hand, and the soldier pulled the conduit away from the girl. She dropped limply to the ground, her body void of color.
The king's eyes remained fixated on the colors that swirled in Arcan's eyes. "At last, it is ours." He waved dismissively at the crystal, the soldiers carrying it out of the room with care.
Tears of blood streamed down the boy's face, his breath raged as he stared at his sister's limp body. "ODETTE!"