Archive of Our Own ^beta

Edmund followed his son out of the throne room to investigate the sudden trembling of the earth. Little did they notice but Varian followed them too, grabbing an alchemy ball with his gloved hand. The gloves he never took off.

No sooner had they rushed down the hall did they hear shouting from the room they just left.

Varian groaned. "I swear if Lance touched anything..." He let the thought fade. Eugene, having just noticed his presence, smiled at the kid. He always was either yelling in irritation or laughing in joy. He was glad for the kid-no. He was proud of how far the kid had come.

When they reached the doorway back to where they just were they gasped. Somehow the portal had turned on, and now Shorty was desperately clinging onto the lever. 

It wasn't enough. 

The lever turned back to the off side, but not before Shorty disappeared into the machine, like everyone else.

"Okay." Eugene said in a small voice.

Edmund, standing behind them let out a sigh. "Well ain't that a humdinger."

"What do we do?!" Varian cried. 

"We gotta turn it back on and bring our friends back!" Eugene answered.

"Although," Edmund thought aloud. "They are really more their friends."

A yowling caused the three men to freeze. Hector's bearcats scurried into the room, throwing off an unconscious Quirin's helmet.

The helmet was then crushed underneath the foot of the man himself. Hector's glowing blue eyes a contrast to his lime yellow daggers before.

"Hello your majesty."

Quirin rose, his eyes opening and returning to the same shade as Hector's. The bearcats jumped to stand in front of the two men, hissing. Hector unsheathed his wrist sword.

"I'm sorry," Eugene asked his father. "What were you saying? About my friends?"

The bearcats yowled, rushing forward to attack, their humans following suit.

Eugene rushed to reach the lever but was stopped by Hector lunging for him. Eugene just managed to lift his sword before metal hit metal.

The bearcats leaped up to try and catch Hamuel in their mouths, but were unsuccessful. Quirin struggled with Edmund. Varian quickly tried to find a way to help, but was too slow, continuously attempting to throw the goo bombs at Hector, but he was too fast.

"Man these guys are tough!" Eugene slashed his sword against Hector's.

"I mean," Edmund boasted, wrestling Quirin to the ground and landing a fist to his jaw with a crack. "They were trained by the best. Probably shouldn't be proud of that at this moment." Then Quirin used his full force to ram Edmund, throwing him into the wall. A bearcat ripped at Eugene's leg, and Varian was hopelessly running from Hector. He skidded to a halt beside a fallen Eugene and his father. "Ok," Eugene called out. "The only way I see us getting to that machine is getting the Brotherhood on our side."

Varian lifted Eugene to his feet. "But we don't know where the mindtrap is!"

Eugene groaned. "I think I know where."

They managed to reach the fortress after losing Hector in a ravine. "And you said my old place was creepy." Edmund joked. "I said the bear hood you used to wear was creepy."

Varian gulped. "A bear what?!"

Unanswered, they climbed the steps to the main throne room. Varian recognized it all too well. Levitating atop a black rock shrine was the Brotherhood mindtrap.

Just as Eugene reached for it, Adira appeared from thin air and grabbed it. "I'll take that." She kicked him in the chest, sending him sprawling. "Adira!" He groaned. A sudden growl came from a tunnel.

Hector and his bearcats crept forward. Eugene backed away, drawing his sword. "Uh dad? Wanna tell your friends to back off?" He bumped into his father's chest. Turning, he saw his eyes turn blue. "I don't think that's going to happen."

"Dad." Eugene started to shy away, but tripped over his fallen sword. "Wait, you were a member of the Brotherhood all along?"  The king ripped his glove off with his teeth, showing the glowing branded symbol. "We all took oaths to the moonstone son."

Adira threw the trap into Edmund's hand, where he tucked it into his cloak. "Now that I've kept this outta your hands, that allegiance will remain with Cassandra."

"Uhh, Eugene?" Varian's quiet voice rang out, but Eugene kept his attention on his dad. "Dad, I don't want to fight you, and I know you don't want to fight me either. "

Adira laughed. "You don't stand a chance."

"Oh yeah?!" The captain shouted. "Well I'm not one to walk away from a fight when my friends are in danger! No matter what the odds! Varian, get behind me."

Silence.

"Kid?"

"I'm sorry Eugene."

The boy pulled his glove off his right hand.

The Brotherhood symbol lay clear and true on his hand.

"Varian?" Eugene managed to gasp out.

"I will do anything to make my father proud. If that meant joining the Brotherhood," He opened his eyes. The whites had vanished, leaving the baby blue to sink into bright cyan. "Then so be it."

Adira lifted her leg to slam into Eugene. It landed its target, slamming his jaw into the ground with a crack. Eugene quickly lifted his sword to stop Hector's dagger from piercing his skin. He managed to push the two off him, and he rushed to his dad who held the Mindtrap. Get the Mindtrap, save Varian and his father.

It proved to not be easy. Varian drew a bow that he got from who knows where and fired. The arrow skimmed Eugene's ear, but he managed to drop so he couldn't get skewered. Varian reloaded, but this time he stuck a fire bomb to the point. Edmund slammed into Eugene, causing the captain to stumble. 

It was enough.

The bomb blasted right next to Eugene, causing him to slam into the wall from impact. Slowly he climbed back up to a fighting stance. Adira tried to sweep his legs out from under him, but he jumped out of the way only for Hector to land a punch. 

Eugene backed away. His hair was ruffled and one of his eyes was half closed. Somehow he still smiled. "Any possibility of calling this a draw?" The four members merely stared at him. 

"No? Okay well don't say I didn't give you a chance-" He was cut off by Adira slapping him in the face, landing him into Edmund's way where he shoved him to the ground. Adira grabbed his sword and threw it off the ledge.

"You owe me a new sword!"

Varian picked him up by the collar-somehow despite the fact he was built like a twig- and threw him to the floor. "Well, Horace. Looks like the line of Dark Kings ends here."

"Dad, I beg you. If there's an ounce of passion left in your heart: Please stop calling me Horace." 

Just as Edmund was about to deliver the final blow, a whinny from the entrance caught everyone's attention.

"Max?"

The horse galloped forward, slamming Adira into the wall, and stepping on Hector's foot causing him to lose his balance. He had a brief sword fight with Edmund as he kicked the bearcats with his hindlegs. 

"You guys ticked off the wrong horse!" Eugene cried. His joy turned to fear as Varian rushed forward, surprising Maximus, allowing the alchemist to land a blow with Adira's sword. The horse fell to the ground with a slit in his leg, seeping in blood as he whinnied in pain.

Hector Adira and the bearcats took it as an opportunity to catch the stallion in a net, holding him down.

"Nice try." Edmund called out, not noticing Eugene sneaking the Mindtrap from his satchel. "But even with your horse you'll never be able to defeat all of us."

"Your highness!" Varian called out as Eugene started to raise the Mindtrap to smash it to the ground. The alchemist rammed himself into Eugene, causing them to tumble onto the ledge. 

Varian leapt to his feet and looked down upon the captain with cold unreadable eyes. He nocked an arrow, aiming for Eugene's head. 

"Varian." He choked out. "When I first met you I thought you were a crazy little kid. A smart kid sure, but still out of his mind. Then, when you stole the Sundrop flower and kidnapped the queen, I thought I was proven right. But I was wrong." He waited for a heartbeat, but the kid continued to leave the bow drawn. "You weren't crazy, you were just a kid. A scared kid who wanted nothing more than making his dad proud. I never knew what that felt like, so I mistook it for stupidity. Now, I would do nothing short of what you did if I was your age. Sure I wouldn't have been able to genetically mutate a racoon or create automatons, but you get what I mean! Now I ask you this: Would this make your dad proud? I'm sorry for judging you. I'm proud of you."

He waited for the whistle of the arrow and the pain that would follow.

It never came.

Varian screamed, shooting the arrow into the Mindtrap. An electrical explosion blasted from the break, pushing Varian back. The Brotherhood members eyes returned to their normal eye colors. Yellow, Brown, and baby blue.

Blue eyes that widened as he tumbled over the edge.

"Varian!" Eugene tried to grab the boy, but he was weak, and he wasn't close enough.

There was no Lance to catch him this time.

Eugene ran past the Brotherhood, even ignoring his injured horse.

He limped as fast as he could down the steps. 

He reached the grass.

He called for Varian.

No one answered.

Eugene found the body on the other side of the tower.

Head caked in blood, eyes gazing into the sky, unfocused.

"Nonono Varian? Varian you're gonna be okay."

He knew it was a lie the moment the words tumbled from his mouth. But Eugene couldn't help it.

A small smile had been formed on the boy's pale face.

He died smiling.

Eugene didn't move

The Brotherhood and Edmund went to face Zhan Tiri and bring Rapunzel and Quirin, but Eugene didn't move.

He held the boy close in his arms.

The boy's cheeks started to grow wet from the tears sliding down Eugene's face onto his.

Eugene didn't move.

The sky exploded in the colors of blue and yellow as a stone was blasted into the sky.

Eugene didn't move.

The moonstone tower disintegrated.

Eugene didn't move.

The sound of horses thumped the earth.

Eugene didn't move.

Twin cries of horror broke the silence.

Eugene didn't move.

Quirin was beside him now.

Eugene let go. 

Quirin hugged his son, tears streamed down his own face.

Rapunzel cried into Eugene's shoulder.

Cassandra, now with her black hair again, crumpled to her knees in shock.

Eugene moved.

He dropped his head to the ground as the sun shined sickeningly bright.

Eugene screamed.

Eugene screamed for Varian, age sixteen, who gave his life to save the Brotherhood.

Gave his life to save Eugene.

His baby blue eyes never shining again.