Rai used to have a separate wing that he slept in, being the King's biological son, but since he lost favor with Vetro he'd been put in the room with the rest of his and spent several nights in my room talking. If I got bored he'd use his fire to cast shadows on the wall and put on a movie to entertain us and after seeing how it was done I joined in. The days blurred together because we are stuck inside for days on end, with no windows or real concept of time outside of when we're called away for training. I'm not sure how long it had been when Rai said,
"I need your help Zai." I was taken aback because we had just finished having a very casual conversation and his request shifted the mood entirely.
"How can I help you?" His eyebrows furrowed together and he said,
"I need to break the barrier again, you can come with me this time... or just tell them I did it on my own." I punched the wall causing the room to echo and glared at him,
"Is this why you wanted to be my friend?!" He stared at me with wide open eyes then made a face as if he was holding back tears.
"No... I want to be your friend because I feel like you are someone I can respect. No matter what my father puts you through you never submit to him. Everyone else has gone pretty passive, they hate him but they'd never say that to his face." He admitted, my anger had already died down after seeing him looking sad so I hung my head and pouted before replying,
"I don't hate your father... He deserves my hatred, but focusing too much on that feeling of hate was driving me insane. Also... fine I'll help you." Rai can't lie... so I can trust his words... plus, even if he could I'd know right away. The next night after the servants left us alone I began toying with the barrier, trying larger and larger quantities of electricity but none worked.
"Do you think they changed the formula?" Rai asked and I stared closer at the door,
"No... the rune pattern is the same... I need something... I think the reaction between Cera's sphere and the electrical force I applied broke the barrier last time." He sighed and said,
"I guess that means we need to ask for him..." Then Rai reluctantly began strolling towards Cera's room. I know he wanted to limit the people who knew what we were doing so asking Cera for help was the last thing either of us wanted. Rai somehow managed to convince him so he came out of the room, looking at me, acting fidgety... I'm not sure if I can trust him to keep a secret but if he's an accomplice, there should be nothing to worry about. Without much hesitation he created 2 orbs about the same size as the ones I shot last time, then he said,
"Where will you be going?" He looked at me, instead of Rai so I frowned at him and said,
"Nowhere." Then he smiled and replied,
"You can tell me."
"Sure I can, but I'm not going anywhere, Rai is." Cera raised his eyebrows, turning to Rai who waved at him and stopped smiling,
"Rai?... you 2 have gotten close." He remarked with a hint of distaste in his tone,
"Yeah, Rai is my best friend," I announced, shocking them both. Then I focused my energy on the orb on the floor and shot it towards the barrier door, causing it to crumble and dispel. Rai hugged me,
"If they ask, I broke the barrier alone... Please." I sighed and nodded, then Rai rushed out. I don't know if I'll actually have the guts to sell Rai out like that, but since he was the one to request my help he can probably get away with taking the blame without his vow interfering.
"I think ... Valin can rebuild this barrier.. that would give him more time outside. I'll get rid of the evidence we were involved too." Cera suggested so I pat his shoulder and said,
"Smart thinking." Several high-level Earth users made the barrier, but Valin is a genius... an annoying genius. He'd probably be able to repair it with no help. I left Cera alone to clean up and head to Valin's room, his was the only one with a door, and it was made from a mixture of crystals and created by Valin, himself. I wanted to talk to him anyway so... this is a good excuse to start a conversation. I knocked on the door... and when there was no response I kept knocking until he jerked the door open annoyed and a half-dressed maid rushed out of the room.
"Oh, it's you... what do you want?" He sounded annoyed and he only had pants on. Valin's hair was long and wavy and he had soft features but he worked out more than any of us so... his face did not match his body at all.
"I just need a favor."
"What?" He sounded impatient but I laughed it off and said,
"What's wrong? Too busy to help me?" My laughter seemed to trigger his own and he said,
"Not anymore obviously... Plus... helping my brother is more important." I told him what I needed and as expected he had no trouble repairing the barrier which kept our other brothers from noticing what was going on and informing anyone or escaping as well. It was 2 days before Rai returned this time and Vetro decided to make an example of him by issuing the punishment himself, this time allowing Rai to fight back, just to be reminded of how powerless he was. The ceiling was too low to fly, and Rai had to be careful with how hot his fire got since we were all in the room. His feet were sealed to the floor with glass and even though his fire was hot enough to melt most of the King's attacks, the melted glass was still usable and was flung around Rai's neck, and hands. He looked at us, as the king approached him. At this point Rai was tired and he couldn't do much else without us all getting caught in the crossfire. Vetro created a sword and held the point against Rai's cheek, slowly creating a cut that led to his chin,
"How did you break that barrier all on your own... and tell me where you went." Rai refused to answer and glared in defiance so the King raised the Sword, and aimed at Rai's shoulder. "That wasn't a question, it was a demand."
"Stop!" I yelled. Cera was beside me and started crying for some reason when the King looked at us.
"I'm getting sick and tired of you," Vetro shouted then moved in front of me in an instant this time raising his sword to slash me instead, to my surprise Valin rose to his feet and caught the blade in his hand shattering it instantly. The glass turned to dust and there was not even a scratch on Valin.
"You've won! Rai is back! Stop hurting my family!" I was too stunned to say anything and so was everyone else in the door. The king then launched a series of attacks at Valin who deflected them all and even managed to push the King back, then Valin stepped forward and with a stone face said. "I said stop." For the first time, I saw the King rush out of the room, in fear. My heart swelled with excitement so I ran to Valin and hugged him saying,
"Thank you!" He pat my back in a way that indicated he wanted me to let go but I ignored him,
"Well... yeah he was taking things too far." Valin noted,
"You can beat him! We'll finally be able to leave this place! You're incredible, your understanding of your element even surpasses the King's I can't belive-" He pushed me away and shushed me,
"No." I squinted at him puzzled.
"No what?" I inquired,
"No... I hate fighting... I'm not fighting anyone." Then he walked away from me and went back to his room, creating a fortified door behind him.
I numbed Rai's pain and Cera accelerated the healing. Even Insinz helped by creating smoke that calmed everyone's nerves as soon as we inhaled it. For days I was annoyed with Valin but once that subsided, somewhat, I knocked on his door again. This time he opened it from a distance. He and the same maid from before were locked in an embrace, but when she saw me she jerked from him and ran outside while rebuttoning her blouse.
"Is she your girlfriend?" I inquired, feeling slightly curious,
"No... I have been winning her over for weeks now, but she's just a fun distraction. She's not even cute enough to be my girlfriend. Choices are so limited here." Alright, I'm no longer curious, so I changed the subject
"I understand... that you hate fighting even though your potential is immense." I began,
"Good," Valin interjected so I took a deep breath to calm down before continuing,
"Teach me how to use the Earth element." He stared at me blankly, "I was chosen by Lightning so, I still can choose an element of my own as well."
"I know... but teaching sounds sooo annoying." I sneered at him and said,
"Please..." Valin rolled his eyes and folded his arms, he sat silently for 5 minutes then finally said,
"Sure... But you better pay attention. Don't make me waste my time... and in exchange I need you to hit me if I'm being too insensitive. I gave up my empathy but I don't want to become too strange of a person in the future."
"Deal!"
I studied under Valin with some of my free time, but I wouldn't say I liked it. There's a reason why they say geniuses shouldn't teach. He skipped the fundamentals and got annoyed whenever I didn't grasp a concept right away, even though his element was directly opposite mine. I almost regret asking for his help but... I need this, I need to be able to beat our Father.