675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIa9Yyaz45o
675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtobAYtx3JY
He remembers.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDHKSapMffY
How his day started with his mother's kisses. The feast, the songs, the celebrations, the laughter of their people, and the gifts from his friends; he remembers.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOOhORXUlMi
And there's the signet ring hanging on his neck.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOZyN4Z0U10
It was the most beautiful thing he had received on that eventful day. The white gold ring, too large at that time on his small seven years old finger, feels cold and makes this tingly feeling on where his ring and skin touches. It's blue in the middle with the kingdom's gold "stag and guns" emblem, and dangling daintly on a silver Figaro chain. He remembered his mother's proud smile as she tucks the ring on his chest, and whisper words of knowledge behind his ears.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlS8XRPUAwi
"It is fine to rule with passion," She cupped with her hand the ring on his chest then placed a loving kiss on the crown of his head, "But remember that mind is above heart."675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNyTacsfeAq
He took her words in his heart, not completely understanding the weight the words hold at the time, and though he convinced himself that he do now, he knows that her words we're still a puzzle for him.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfYAw9NGGw
Then things went down to hell, the image of his mother's downfall that's as fresh as yesterday in his mind haunting him everytime he closed his eyes.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhnEXXg6d8Z
She fought like the warrior she is, protected him like any mother would do for their child, and fell on the cold floor that no queen as great as her deserves. He can still sometimes see how her red blood blooms in her feast clothes, on how she grew pale, lungs heaving with lack of air, and the light in her eyes dying along with her heartbeat.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSYzHM5bSOD
"Run" Was the last word that left her lips.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaFHmXCbPvF
It was her last order as the kingdom's queen and he disobeyed her. Instead the young naïve him took the dagger he received that day and attacked the heavy clothed men in his room. He stood no chance at all with those men, and he lost consciousness with a hit on the head as they took him away from home.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMMXbI4XvQ
Away from his people, away from his friends, and above all, they took his mother's life; He then swears on his mother's memories, promised to pay them back ten folds of what they have done to him.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ90DPW77LGV
Then there was the man amongst monsters. A bit broken and frayed on the edges, but he owns a soul that shines brightly contrast to his dark defences.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZXVeZ708zV
He didn't free him, no. But when things went down in hell and disaster came, he cut the rope, gave him the same dagger he tried to save his mother with, and ordered him the same thing his mother told him.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfFPM9CAUu
"Run."675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB160tu73OG
So run he did, but for the second time at that night, he dismissed the plea as he stopped from his tracks and looked back. He saw the man - no, beast - fight for his life, not aware how his comrades and enemies alike fell one by one. That or he just does not care.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4rNge6Bm2P
He remembers the picture of that beast, covered in blood, his shadowed face, and black eyes glinting in the dark, as the puddle of blood grows every second as they found their way out of fatal wounds. It made him shiver to the core.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2kDwHNn5wM
And he don't know how long he stood there, a few minute or hours - maybe even the whole night - he don't know, but he felt his knees go weak when that blood soaked beast turned to him, eyes locked unto him, and strode towards him.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvo7rlmZzB4
He took two steps backwards on the man's every step and "too late" he thought, "I should have ran"-675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7NOYsQ8Tsu
And with those thoughts, he took off.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy0KtHPWMUC
As fast as his small limbs can, even though his lungs burns with lack of air, his tears blurs his vision, and his mind numb, he ran and ran and ran. He hears nothing but static, the breeze colder than he remembers, and he just feels too lost.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKA23cWyzsZ
A rough, sticky, warm, slippery, bloody large hands caught his arms and he flailed uncoordinated, with fear choking him. He's aware that he screamed, but he didn't know what nor how loud it was, but he screamed.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMiQZrnOM9J
And in between of everything that's happening, the clasps on his arms loosened and everything just stopped.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrxXUXNmapV
He took a breath and looked around and saw the beast lying on the ground vulnerably. Same red grows on his stomach that he clutches for dear life - and maybe he really is clutching it dearly so - and red blood flows on the ground from his head, hair matted with his blood.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJEGwV5FuL4
He doesn't know why, but he spared the man.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnS864qAcz
He remembers taking his dagger and unsheathing it, holding above the man's heart with trembling hands. He remembered seeing the beast as the same broken man earlier. He remembered seeing the tired soul behind those brown eyes.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdtvl1UgoH
On how the breeze caressed him gently with cold hands, how the sun's rays peeks behind dark clouds as if promising tomorrow, remembers how the owls hoots above them, and how battered and resigned those eyes were.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwUA1BGoTw
But he saw a spark. It was something alive and stubborn, as they search through each other's soul. And that probably is the reason why he spared him, his body giving away and slumping above him; resigned and hopeful.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdEmAKy3tiR
But he forgets it all whenever he wakes up.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmi9MZ3XSfy
Or rather, he makes himself to, and he's completely fine with that. He used to wake up gasping like a fish out of the water, tears streaming down his cheeks, air lacking and too much at the same time as his thoughts run wild.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEqyQv7PqiU
He was pathetic.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1bMMoHcgIq
He stopped minding it nowadays. It's easier that way.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ66QYGkbYrI
As easy as how he turns a blind eye with how a friend run as hard as he can as if hell's hounds are on him like dogs with their bones. Which would be a rightful reaction with how his own people - those very same people he pledged to protect and serve - are running after him like the mindless monsters they are. Like the selfish persons they are.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJtnrwZw9sF
And it hurts to see that the man stood no chance.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrTmvlQ1Izr
With a sigh, he tangled his fingers together and stretched them, getting the familiar satisfying pop and crack, and he started working.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD2m488kWua
He typed codes and decryption, unlocking traps here and there, thanking heavens above that this man knows how to dodge. This friend of his may think that he's forsaking him, or the elders may think lower of him than they already have with his incompetence, but he have to help this man out of here.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡScNPlPVR6m
Satisfied with chasing his friend out towards safety and out of the kingdoms' borders, even succeeding with entrapping some of those poor excuse of knights on some traps, he sagged contently back in his chair.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5l1F31ztUz
He'll be berated about this later, even to be hold off with his duties, but he realized that he doesn't care. He's fine with that. After all, he can blame them back for neglecting his founding and suggestions for improvement. Their hate for science would always bite them back hard, with revenge.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgoNuvXCfbf
He reviewed some of the recordings and deleted anything that would prove that he "helped" with the traps, as well as the videos that would tell where the man would be heading. Maybe leaving some few that would make a greatly handy false assumption on where would the man go.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDRUOa99Tlj
A knock rang from his door, followed by a steady voice.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmV2Rs9Titf
"Col. Hauger, the commanders ask for your presence in the meeting in an hour, sir."675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHo3sGoDX2g
"Thanks Joe." He replied, not even bothering to dismiss the man properly.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq3uRDkcXb2
Anyways, he does have a meeting to prepare. Either a boringly long reprimand regarding his lack of mental capability if he's lucky, or finally getting sacked if not. 675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ExMSQgzrQ
Even if they sack him though, he still is the most qualified person when it comes to electronics here in this kingdom and he could easily just crack through the network. Though knowing himself, he'd probably celebrated instead of sulk if he really got sacked.675Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡImnOidb3MK
Oh well.
ns 15.158.61.42da2
