“She’s WHAT?” Alyse screeched, just moments after Renatus vaguely explained his recount of his conference with the Higher Authority, her voice tightening almost loud enough to crack some of the nearby crockery. Although she anticipated him to return with some intolerable news, somehow this was equally as bad, if not even worse. “Do you really think it’ll be worth the trouble just to find her? How will you cope with your nightmares, given how they’ve been more frequent as of late…”
“If she is truly alive, then the nightmares should cease,” Renatus said in between bites of a brownie he picked up from her plate, wiping his fingers clean as he made his way to his room. 

“And if they don’t? We won’t be there to ease them for you, Ren,” she firmly raised, following him with her concern written all over her face as her lip quivered slightly. 

Renatus' night terrors weren't exactly the most 'normal' thing out there, with the sound of his tortured screams terrorising those close by and haunting anyone nearby who heard a fraction of it. On top of that, he always reacted violently in his sleep, flailing his limbs with enough strength to hurl people into the nearby walls. She wasn't sure how Rhys was strong enough to withstand his constant thrashing that occurred almost every night, considering how her first attempts to soothe him had her crashing through the bedroom wall with miraculously minor injuries. If anything, she was thankful that her brother didn't mind doing it, and he seemed to enjoy it.

“It should be fine, Alyse. My nightmares are present even when I’m awake. You know how it is,” he replied idly, though a hint of sorrow remained in his voice. 

Her chest dropped, and a wave of shame struck her. She wished that she could forcibly remove the nightmares from his mind, or at least override them with happier, false memories, but it was no easy task. She knew, because she tried endlessly every night for the first few years, to no avail. The images were so deeply ingrained in his mind that she couldn't even lift a single one for him, leaving her to feel helpless for his hopeless cause. His harrowing nightmares made her extremely nauseous upon initially deep diving into his mind, and as she resurfaced to take a breather into reality, she violently puked. How someone could experience and continue to constantly relive such miserable, tortuous memories over and over was unfathomable, which in turn made her and Rhys' own suffering seem much more luxurious and comfortable in comparison.  She sighed in exhaustion, noticing how Rhys silently watched him from afar in the comfort of the living room’s shadows.

Renatus fumbled through his belongings, starting from beside his bedside table and slowly making his way into the corners of the room, then eventually beneath any viable furniture he could flip over, noticing the absence of his beloved weapons at first sight.  

“They should be here, I left them right here this morning…”

As soon as he blinked, two large great swords spun towards him appearing as two streaky blurs in the air, barely giving him a split second to register the ambush. He quickly stepped aside; his wings barely grazed from the assault. As they glided in the air, they bounced off the wall behind him leaving him no option but to duck rapidly, with the swords crashing into the door and splitting it into two clean halves. 

Hiram’s booming laughter revealed his culpability, clapping equally as loudly once he entered the room. “Oops, almost burned my hand off from handling those. Your senses truly haven’t dulled at all, my boy.” 

Renatus smirked, then chuckled. “The day they do is when I’ll be dead, and you’ll be the first to know with the glorious sight of my bloodied head on your doorstep. Or, maybe it'll be the luxury of your fancy gate.”

Hiram would always test him before he left to go on any sort of adventure, ensuring that his skills were maintained and continuously honed to reassure him that he’d return home in one piece. He didn’t mind it though, since he thoroughly enjoyed the challenge. Sometimes, it even made waking up in the morning a bit more eventful. 

“Have you fully prepared yourself, boy? With the blight mess going on, it won’t be an easy task to fulfil. Although I used to work closely with my brother, I can’t figure out his plans for once,” Hiram asked, watching Renatus revert the Heavenly Blades back into their usual dagger form that he preferred, leaving behind a comically large crack in the bedroom wall. He wondered if Hiram enjoyed obliterating his own home for the joy of it, or if it just gave him a reason to renovate certain parts of it as he pleased.

“I still don’t have my head wrapped around the whole impurity and blight issue thing, to be honest,” he replied, inspecting the blades for any sign of damage. Although there were no indications of any wear or tear on the winged detail behind the grips, he did notice that the tip of the blades were now finely sharp. “I see you honed them somehow. I appreciate it.” 

He never left without the Heavenly Blades by his side, not ever since he stole them from Godrick himself. Their hefty weight on his body eased him, reminding him that he was now safe in Kaufernis, and no longer in the cruel hands of Ylipeste. 

“The blight is apparently a product of ‘sin’, otherwise referred to as ‘impurity’ by the Ylipestens as a means to pre-judge souls in their purity factor. The blight supposedly drives on the impurity factor of one’s soul and drives them insane beyond saving,” Alyse explained, leaning on the frame of the bedroom door whilst Renatus sheathed the blades back into their holsters that rested on his thigh and back. “Whether it was created as an underground experiment to control the masses, we’re still unsure.”  

“We’re still looking into the source of the blight, and potentially a cure. It’s highly likely that my brother is behind it all, given his powers of creation,” Hiram continued. “The Higher Authority is genuinely concerned about the state of the Realms for once. We theorise that he may be looking to invade us in the distant future, and usurp my position as the Lord of Kaufernis.”

“I’ll put an end to it, or at least put an end to him,” he snarled. 

The thought of losing everything once more, especially now that he had things to protect now more than ever - if it meant killing Godric, he was more than happy to do so. The Realms were better off without the tyranny anyway. 

He brushed his shoulder against Rhys on his way out, who was leaning by the kitchen bench silently gazing at him. He was surprised that he didn’t join in the conversation, let alone say a single word the moment he returned home, since he’d normally hype him up before his adventures. He was gloomier than usual, his dark toned clothing and overall complexion not helping with his darkened expression. 

“Ren, you’re going places I can’t follow. Just promise me that you’ll at least come home safe,” he gently pleaded to him, leaning over him as he lightly squeezed his shoulder. 

Renatus paused, squeezing his hand as he looked upwards towards his concerned gaze, feeling his warm breath against his neck. He forgot just how tall the man was, craning his neck so far back that his head rested against Rhys’ chest. 

“I will. I always do,” he told him with a cracked smile. 

Despite the short words of reassurance, Rhys felt his heart sink lower, his chest tightening as he watched Renatus make his way to the front door. For once, he wouldn’t be able to quietly follow him with ease within the slivers of shadows casted amongst the streets as he’d normally done to ensure he’d returned home safely. After all, the slums of Kaufernis were notorious for street brawls and thrived in crime; merely blinking could result in an instant burglary for unsuspecting victims. On the other hand, Renatus could finally seek revenge on his abuser, and possibly put his night tremors to rest, both being things he longed to do his entire life. But in doing so, Rhys acknowledged that he would soon become obsolete in his life, no longer needed by his side every night if things went smoothly. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing him, especially with the unknown risks of the blight issue, not to mention Godric’s immense strength. All he could do was hope that he’d return home safely, even if he wasn’t successful in taking down the tyrant. He observed the carefree grin that spread on his lips as he made his way past him, a cool breeze kissing his cheeks and his mismatched ruby and storm grey irises radiating beneath the sliver of moonlight that shone on his skin. It was always the fine crease of his alluring smile that made him melt, the drumming against his chest drowning out any thoughts in his mind. If it meant seeing this expression for another eternity instead, then the only thing he could do was put his anxious thoughts aside and support him.

“Couldn’t you think about this some more, Ren? At least prepare yourself a bit more before you head out. Ahh, even your holsters aren’t fitted properly,” Alyse said in the distance as soon as his foot stepped out from the front door, adjusting his harnesses as his protests went unheard.

“I’ll be fine, and back soon before you know it,” Renatus grumbled, finally escaping from Alyse’s motherly smothering, and darted across the stone fences.

The doors slammed shut as Alyse stormed back inside the home, crossing her arms at the sight of her brother being oddly laidback, who was still leaning against the kitchen counter.

“Well, aren’t you being awfully quiet for once,” she said, pointing at him. “You know that we might not see him ever again once he leaves? Good grief, I really hope this isn’t a whole ruse to force him into the Death Dealer role. The Higher Authority have been getting better at hiding their tracks lately. Just when we needed to dig more out of them…”

After many long years of trying to steer Renatus away from the Higher Authority’s prying eyes through endless forged documents by abusing her position of power, the fruitless efforts finally came to an end, with melancholy filling a void that she hadn’t realised was there.  

“Of course I do. It was always my intention to follow him since I don’t trust Vaina, dead or alive,” Rhys replied, slowly lifting himself from the counter. “We already know from what we’ve seen in his dreams that she isn’t exactly the sweet angel she appears to be.” 

He was surprised that no one caught onto her pretence yet in Ylipeste, although from what they’d seen in Renatus’ nightmares, she wouldn’t have let a word of her malicious acts slip. 

“What business would his daughter have with The Middle Ground? Considering how desperate he’s been in seeking the Death Dealer, and now that pocket realm decides to show up, along with the blight. Things aren’t really adding up here, and if she’s a part of it…” Alyse said to herself, noticing him take his coat from the rack near the front door. “Rhys, take care if you’re going to chase after Ren. We don’t know what Godric has planned, especially if he caught you.”

“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing,” he insisted, fixing the buttons of his coat. He shifted his sunglasses higher onto his nose ridge as his irises gleamed murky grey and shifted into a deep stormy blue, and disappeared amongst the shadows like a wispy flame.