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Chapter Text

The council was in no doubt merciless.

Prince Rhal had barely been able to convince them to spare his past General and his Brother, both of which he was close too.

Lady Grandma had demanded and asked to spare her student in which was successful.

It was undecided what to do with the human girl brought from E-arth.

If lady bish and the spirit assassin were to face punishment for bringing her here or if they were to be awarded for bringing Prince Asch and those guards back.

It was a shock when the Prince Asch, so famously known for being a royal brat with a short fuse, had dropped his dignity to ask of the court to spare his guards, a simple peasents bot and an ex- assassin.

"Our decision is final. The council has decided." The voice that belonged to the council head leader rang out into the room. Echoing off walls that seemed to taunt the 5 traitors. "Of the 5. 2 shall be punished. Apon the fact we have spared 3, one of the 3 shall carry out the executions as punishment."

Rhys, Asch, and Pierce all glanced at eachother. "General Pierce. You have carried out multiple executions and murders in the past. From the King's input, You will kill the peasents and ex- assassin tonight at the rise of the moon at it's highest peak."

The room fell into an eerie silence. The king stood close by. He remembered how wrath was, how guilt was. He knew Pierce would be unstable if he carried this out. He knew Prince Asch would have his head if he made him take the life of his guards. He knew Rhys would be terrifying as he had seen how powerful the student of his mother could be. But Pierce? By far, the safest choice yet by far the most unpredictable.

It could end terribly for the kingdom, it could be fine.

Time shall show the date of the two deaths and time shall show what will happen next.

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The day of 2 deaths was approaching. Rhys had been studying him. The strongest of the 5. The Great General Pierce.

He's been staring out the window for hours. When he's not, He's staring at a calendar of some kind. Likely counting down the days or the hour until he has to be head the assassin and lower rank knight they've all come to tolerate...or as Ava said, Befriend.

It was odd. Pierce had always seemed composed and calm. Now? He looked distressed and slightly panicked. Though not afraid. It felt almost impossible to see Pierce being afraid. He could be anything but that. Just not afraid.

It hadn't gone unnoticed by anyone. Noi and Leif had become important to the 3. 2 that seemed almost family. Leif seemed less stressed and scared than Noi. Noi had been trying so hard to hold back tears, Prevent a crying session. He fails Everytime. He fails to hold his tears back and he cries.

Rhys had been visiting them in their cells. 2 had been scared, but he talked with Leif and it was obvious he was more closer to being on terms with his unavoidable death than Noi. Maybe it was because his family was gone. Noi has family, Leif does not. Maybe it's better to know your death and not have family than to know you're going to die and have family.

Asch and Rhys had been talking. "I doubt there's going to be anyway out." Asch said, not daring to even glance at Rhys in fear of him noticing the stress and slight fear in his mind. "I can't deny, Your Highness...I'm...going to...miss them." Rhys softly admitted, he knew Pierce and Asch would too. The only difference is he's not sure if Pierce is too proud to say it and if Asch would lower his pride and wall for just a second to admit it too.

For now. They could only wait.

Rhys doesn't know how Asch will take this, how Pierce will feel, or how he himself would fully react. He does know.

Time shall show the aftermath of the 2 execution and time shall reveal all that lies under an exterior.

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It was weird.

Pierce had never hesitated before.

Now with the orders he's heard countless times for other people's lives...he can hardly even look at his blade.

He could hardly breathe with how Leif and Noi look. Pitiful and
...

The 2 were tied up, on the ground, Noi was trying desperately not to sob and beg to live. He wouldnt want to put that burden of a memory on Pierce's shoulders no matter what. Leif was trying not to shed a tear, he had convinced himself he wasn't going to be this upset over some stupid execution.

"Is life and death so simple to you?"

All of a sudden Pierce's words from earth hit him a bit too hard.

Asch and Rhys watched from above, Rhal was holding his baby brother's hand. Squeezing it tight as Asch stared down, wide eyes, his hands burning hot...they were sparking at this point.
Rhys stood next to Asch and Lady Grandma who was looking away, maybe out of pity, respect, or something else entirely. Perhaps even mercy. Yet, mercy wasn't common on Daemos like it is on earth... Rhys would be a fool to believe it was so.

Yet somehow. Pierce killing his own "friends" seemed more odd than anything. Rhal knew Pierce as loyal ... Hell, the man even took an arrow for Asch once. He only fought wars to protect Rhal and stay nearby...How would he possibly kill those 2?

Pierce finally grabbed the handle of his sword. The one he protected and acted like it was the most treasured thing he had. He lifted it up.

He looked at his reflection in the blade. It was the first time he's seen himself so...distressed since...

He looked back to Noi and Leif who had decided it didn't matter anymore. They were going to die. Leif was quietly holding back tears, and looking to the ground while Noi sobbed, rambling about something Pierce couldn't make out.

That sight twisted something in him. He glanced back up to the royalty standing above the scene in high chairs. He looked to the blade, to his reflection, then to Leif and Noi.

He knew what he had to do. What he needed to.

Orders were orders.

"Kill the traitors."

He lifted his blade high, almost making a show of it, before plunging it deep.

Purple blood flowed freely, gasps rang out from seemingly everywhere. Noi screamed something, Leif yelled. Rhal shouted so loud you could hear it from anywhere...

Pierce felt the purple blood pour down his chest around his sword. The world felt fuzzy and blurry, the feeling you get from before you pass out from a heat stroke.

He wouldn't have hurt those 2.

So he exchanged his life for theirs.

Chapter Text

The silence was louder than any scream you'd hear from a war.

Noi and Leif who's eyes had dried up simply because they were too shocked to cry were wide. Leif looked over to noi who was trembling.

Pierce had probably been the kindest to Noi besides Ava.
Pierce was probably the only daemos Noi knew that didn't bully him.

Leif watched as Noi blinked twice before sucking in a sharp breath and resting his muscles.

Noi's shoulders dropped as his eyes slowly filled with tears. His eyes traced the wound Pierce had plunged deep into his own body, the body that now lay limp on the ground, the body that had belonged to someone everyone had believed was incapable of dying. It felt surreal, as if it was meant to never happen. Pierce didn't deserve to die. He was strong, way stronger than Noi. Noi always imagined he'd die early, maybe in battle. He always thought everyone else, especially Pierce and Asch, would survive Daemos' nature longer. So why was his body right there? Infront of him? Bleeding?

Leif looked back to the corpse, still warm, Infront of them. Leif had seen many bodies without life before, hell, he was the one usually stabbing them. Some of those bodies might have even known Pierce. This felt different though, the man dead Infront of him wasn't someone to be killed this easily. Leif used to try, when they first met, he used to try using sparring as an excuse to kill Pierce, he used to watch everyone sleep so he could try killing them, he used to plan stabbing him. He hadn't wanted to acknowledge that he'd grown fond of the others. Hadn't wanted to admit he began seeing Pierce as a friend...

Noi sobbed, he sat down and just sobbed, muttering pathetic prayers and pleas for this to be fake. He whispered to himself "Pierce is too strong to die." "He wouldn't kill himself to protect a weakling like you." "He's okay, He's just pretending."

Leif struggled against his restraints, maybe if he got to Pierce, he could heal him. Maybe if he got to Pierce he could atleast but him more time for other healers. He didn't speak, thoughts of maybe he can save him, maybe he can heal instead of stab.

There was nothing either could do, they both knew that.

Chapter Text

Rhal and Asch watched from above, seated at seats for royalty.

Asch went silent as it happened, Rhal yelled.

Asch's hand subconsciously grabbed Rhys' wrist, almost as if asking him to change what just happened. Take back control of the situation. Undo what just happened. Fix it somehow. Just fix it.

Rhal gripped the railing, fire burning from his palms. He watched his best friend, maybe his only friend, collapse to the ground. He watched his General take his last breath outside of the battle field.

Rhys hardly felt the hot grip around his wrist as he witnessed the fall of the best general daemos had. He resisted yelling or gripping the railing. He doubt he would've anyways, he felt frozen. Almost as frozen as the ice he controlled.

It didn't feel real.

Rhal felt nauseous as the purple blood flowed like water, like the same water he used to beg Pierce to fight with during sparring sessions. He watched as his closest companion collapsed to the ground, blade lodged deep in his chest. That was the same man Rhal used to lean on. Used to talk to whenever things got rough. Used to fight next to. He barely felt the heat intensify underneath his palms, the heat licking between his fingers. All he could think was that he was gone. The daemos with blue horns that could calm forest fires was dead. The soldier he met years ago and allowed in to higher ranks was now on the ground, bleeding silently. He wasn't even crying. Rhal couldn't even tell if he was dead or atleast the slightest bit conscious. He knew he could do nothing. He knew Pierce died believing he was a monster.

Rhys barely glanced anywhere else but the Daemos that used to stand tall. Purple blood, bleeding was not uncommon for daemos in death, but Pierce? That didn't sound right. Pierce being gone? It sounded like a lie. It wasn't how anything should be. Rhys watched closer than anyone, he was always the more observant. He squinted as he watched how Pierce's fingers didn't grip the handle so tightly. Rhys had never remembered a time where Pierce had looked relaxed until now. Perhaps it was for the better...He knew the man had been troubled for so long by something, he just never knew what. Maybe he'll never know. Atleast he's relaxed now. Atleast that burden he carried was freed.

Asch gripped Rhys' wrist, maybe hoping for comfort. For Rhys to fix this, like Rhys always did. There hadn't been a time Rhys couldn't fix a mess. This won't be the first mess he can't fix. "...Rhys...please...fix this...?" Asch looked over to Rhys as he softly asked, for one of the first times using manners. He knew taking these men with him was a bad idea, something that would endanger them. Yet, somehow he let himself get attached and now he felt like he was being stabbed as well. He never had full control over his anger, he always lashed out. The feelings he had right now we're confusing. He felt angry, upset, maybe grief? If Leif and Noi had died instead would he still feel this? Even rhal, who loved violence so much, looked distressed. He could never blame him though, not for now. Not for this.