At first, there was just the sensation of burning in his chest. Then the heavy pressure on his back. Hot liquid surged and threatened to burn his throat as it streamed out in spurts from his mouth. Etraon could feel the pain that seemed to be coming from everywhere and yet nowhere at once and he felt needles in his legs. Someone was crying, murmuring something that he couldn’t quite hear. A brighter, though subdued voice said something and the crying grew quieter.

“Aurelius?” he asked, wondering why it was so hard for him to open his eyes. The pain in his legs was an improvement from the cold, he supposed, but why couldn’t he feel his hands? He felt movement on his right side, but whatever or whoever it was didn’t speak again.

Hours later, bright white lights swam through his vision and he briefly saw shaded faces that he couldn’t recognize. Concerned voices asked all sorts of questions.

“Can you hear me, your Highness?”

“Squeeze, sweetheart. Squeeze my fingers if you can hear me.”

After a brief pause, the woman’s voice came again. With a start, Etraon realized that the smooth hand that was gently massaging his palm was Mother’s. After all, no one else would have called him ‘sweetheart’, he reminded himself.

“Utarion…” she sobbed, her crying slightly muffled by something, “look at him. Our poor boy…”

A deeper voice replied and he felt a large, callused hand stroke his head. There was love in that gesture and Etraon felt a sudden wave of shame for his actions.

Father, I’m sorry, he cried.

But no one heard.

¸.•*¨*•.¸ ¸.•*¨*•.¸ ¸.•*¨*•.¸

Etraon woke once, squinted once at the ceiling and groaned inwardly at the brightness of the lights. Mother was snoring lightly next to him, her head rested on her hands on the side of the cot in which he’d been sleeping. Even in his dazed state, Etraon could see the dark circles under her eyes and the faintest of lines that marred her otherwise beautiful face. He felt that wave of shame again. He sat up quickly, determined to say sorry this time. The world suddenly spun around him and he fainted.

¸.•*¨*•.¸ ¸.•*¨*•.¸ ¸.•*¨*•.¸

Two days later, Etraon awoke to the grumbling protests of his empty stomach. He was in his own bed and his head was wrapped in bandages. He began to sit up and discovered, with some delight, that the throbbing was gone, though he still had a bit of a headache. He stopped at the sound of raised voices next door. Even at this distance, he could pick out familiar voices.

“What were you thinking, Aurelius?” Derek was saying.

“Lord Derek, I-,” Aurelius began but was cut off by Lance who cut in almost immediately.

“Father, please don’t put the blame on Aurelius. Aunt Morgan made it clear that it was my duty to keep Etraon safe.”

“I’m well aware of what Morgan said to you, Lance,” Derek replied coldly. “She spoke on my behalf as well.”

“Don’t be too hard on the boys, Derek,” Lilith said placatingly. “They’ve had a long couple of days, and Lance especially, has been under a considerate amount of stress.”

“They put your son in great jeopardy, Lilith. Don’t let your motherhood cloud your judgment in this. Your brother-in-law, were he here, would certainly agree with me.”

“Our son does his fair share to both of them in turn, Derek,” Utarion replied, “and Auberon loves the boys. He would more than likely propose mercy were he here with us.”

At the mention of his uncle’s name, he briefly wondered how he was getting on. Etraon loved his uncle. He was often away from the castle, traveling to check the condition of their various posts, and to boost the morale of their troops. Peacetime was bad in that soldiers didn’t get to do any sort of exciting activities, and it was Uncle Auberon who went around reminding them that peacetime was a reward of their efforts. It was due to their hard work that they were now able to sit about and roll dice on the tops of barrels outside the barracks. Etraon smiled briefly, deciding that he would send him a letter later that week, but Derek had continued to speak and so Uncle would have to wait a little.

“Utarion, what if their stupidity and inconsiderate behavior had killed your son? Would we still be standing here then?”

“They’re just boys.”

“As were we,” Derek agreed. “But if anyone else had done what these two just did, they’d be charged with treason. I’m not saying that we deal with them in kind, but they do need to be punished to properly understand the gravity of the situation.”

“We don’t have to make the situation worse by making a public display of them,” Lilith replied. “It would only serve to ostracize Etraon from the children altogether.”

Derek nodded. “Which is why I’m proposing that we punish them indirectly. The training sessions to enter knighthood will soon begin. Most children have to train for three years before they can even think of taking the exam.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

“Lance and Aurelius, as the sons of key officials within Zourik, are typically selected to be knights due to status alone, though what rank they hold within the knights is a different matter entirely. We take that away. Boys as irresponsible as these two don’t deserve such a privilege.”

Etraon blinked and started violently, pulling on his shoes and bolted for the door. He told himself that he must have heard wrong. That knock on the head that he had received was muddying his hearing. There was no way that Derek was honestly about to take away Aurelius’s and Lance’s chance at knighthood. But Etraon had never heard him speak so coldly to Lance before and decided that he needed to do something before his friends were punished for something that had been entirely his fault. Utarion had begun to say something, but Etraon was already out the door and with a quick tug, pulled open the door that led to their suite.

“-thus taking away their main advantage as children of the nobility. That’s a punishment that I believe even Auberon would agree with,” Utarion was saying and started visibly when Etraon entered the room, panting from the effort.

“Etraon!” Lilith cried, coming forward to embrace him, but Etraon was here on a mission. He obliged her for a moment, feeling sorry once more at the thought of the dark circles that had only grown more prominent since the last time he’d seen her. After a moment, he squirmed out of her arms and turned to face his father.

“If they can’t be knights, I won’t join either!” he declared, though his voice shook slightly at the last bit. He was stabbing himself in the foot, he knew. Should Derek or Utarion take him up on that offer, he had just resigned himself to a life of permanent confinement. He turned towards Aurelius who was staring at him in awe and as his glance moved up to meet Lance’s eyes, a silent message passed between them and everything was all right again.

There was a long silence in the room as both Utarion and Derek considered Etraon’s statement. Lilith said nothing, but resumed her seat and watched them, her eyes brimming with pride for her son’s words.

“We can’t keep the Crown Prince from being a knight,” Derek said quietly, his wisdom taking precedence over his initial sense of justice. “The empire would be in an uproar if we did that.”

“Auberon would be outraged if we made a decision like this without even hearing his opinion,” Lilith pointed out. Utarion and Derek nodded in agreement.

“And yet, there’s something to what Etraon says,” Utarion mused and Etraon shuddered. If anyone, he had expected Derek to take him seriously, but the fact that his father was considering his words seriously was a matter of great concern. But running away wasn’t an option here. No matter how much he had dreamed of being a knight, he had no intention of letting Aurelius who wasn’t aware of Etraon’s actions, nor Lance who had been left out entirely, take the fall for him.

“I’m the one who decided to sneak out without telling Lance about it,” he said then. “I left the castle grounds with Aurelius and climbed a tree to catch the snake and fell into the lake all on my own. They had nothing to do with this. If anyone needs to be punished, it’s me.” He closed his eyes and bowed his head, waiting for the scolding, the lecture, the words that would bring the shame crashing back on him again.

They didn’t come. He opened his eyes and looked up. Utarion had come to stand in front of him. His face bore no anger, but was furrowed slightly in thought.

“Are you not going to punish me, Father?” he dared to ask.

“Oh, but you will be punished, Etraon,” Utarion replied slowly, “all three of you will receive your due punishments for your actions.”

“On your knees before your Emperor,” Derek instructed and the three boys sank to the ground, their heads hung low in shame.

“Crown Prince Etraon.”

The words were firm and Etraon’s head drooped even lower as he was reminded that because of his status, better behavior was expected of him in all circumstances. He had all but destroyed the trust that they had in him by this point. His father’s mind was made up, and nothing he, or anyone else, could say would change his mind at this point. Heavy thoughts for a ten year old they might have been, but Etraon made a life-changing decision at that point. So focused was he on wording it exactly right in his mind that he didn’t hear, nor did he see, Aurelius’s and Lance’s reactions to their names and current status within the castle being recited by his father.

“Etraon!” Utarion barked, startling him out of his reverie and his attention reverted once more to the situation at hand.

“Sorry,” he muttered.

Utarion sighed in resignation. “Let those who are present hear my words that I might be held accountable to them. I pronounce this sentence with my authority as the seventh reigning Emperor of Zourik. I hereby strip you all of your privileges to knighthood within these lands.”

Lilith breathed in sharply at the words. Derek, stone-faced, said nothing. It briefly occurred to Etraon that his own son was being punished as well, and no parent, particularly one as kind as Derek, could honestly wish ill upon their own child. That made him feel better and the last bit of bitterness within him disappeared with just that.

“You are forbidden, under pain of incurring the crime of treason, to take part in the knighthood exam…” Utarion paused briefly, seeing the sadness that clouded their eyes. Then, pleased that they were genuinely reflecting on their actions and that they would never again, act in such a matter, completed his statement. “…until a period of three years has passed, during which time you will undergo training with the other candidates for the exam.”

-----

Author's Note:

The next chapter is going to seem a little odd given how things have been progressing so far, but Etraon's father figures (Utarion and Derek) are going to be fleshed out a litte more as people, both for you and for him. A "gray area" story is going to be presented to our boy for the first time and I'd like to think we all encounter those moments.

Chapter 3, incoming! Hope you enjoy!

xoxo,

Elfarine