She briefly glanced at Rhys and curtsied towards him before escorting Renatus away from the ball room. Rhys’ eyebrows furrowed beneath his mask. Without a doubt, she was the same two-faced angel that he’d seen in Renatus’ nightmares that had been terrorising him for the longest time. Had it not been for the mission and the incredibly high stakes, he would’ve killed her, right then and there, his displeasure gradually worsening as he observed Renatus’ clear discomfort as she dragged him away. He exhaled in exhaustion and cupped his ear. 

“Dear sister, I’ve spotted the rat.”

He made his way out of the ballroom and noticed that Renatus was outside by the garden hedge, sitting on a bench listening to Vaina ramble on and on, and slipped into the shadows, cautiously merging into his shadow to listen to their conversation without suspicion. 

“Sabotage and intervene any attempts that the Higher Authority may use to try to force Renatus into becoming their new Death Dealer, or their scapegoat for any of their plans,” Hiram had told him in the hidden room of The Forge, its existence unknown even to Alyse. “And do find any links with them working with Godric, and possibly with his daughter. She may prematurely act against her father for whatever reason by using Renatus to achieve her goals.”

“I’ve confirmed the location of The Watcher after sweet talking some drunkards,” Vaina said, walking around in a circle to gather her thoughts. “They’re currently in a tower overlooking the castle. It lacks vision of our current location, so we can make our plans here safely.”

She glared towards him, a silent rage filling her eyes, her voice sharply cool. “So, who were you dancing with?”
Renatus shrugged and met with her strong gaze with a bored look. “No clue. He just invited me to, so I obliged. It helped though, since I can tell you that the Watcher is anticipating an incident tonight. They already know about the faerie court incident. Word sure does travel oddly fast here.”

Vaina stood before him, looking down on him as she grabbed his chin and leaned closer to him. “Remember, my Renba. I’m the only one you need in your life. I will free you from your long-time suffering.”

He leaned away from her, the chills that trailed from her fingertips making him feel queasy, noticing she carried a rather odd smoky scent, similar to that of the village home.  

“Kill The Watcher after you get some information from them. We need to know why they work with my father and find out anything about the Death Dealer. Honestly, kill them, if need be,” she hissed, releasing him from her grasp. 

His head began to pulse violently as he stood up from the bench, the air becoming thick and heavier to breathe in, his world slowly turning dark.  

***

Rhys escaped from Renatus’ shadow and hid behind the pillar on the opposite side of the garden hedge. He noticed someone approaching him in the corner of his eye, noticeably, someone familiar. Renatus was treading towards him in a rather hasty fashion with a rather vacant expression on his face, despite the urgency in his pacing. 

“Ren? What’s the rush...?” he asked, shortly cut off when he noticed a familiar angelic gleam of the blades in his hands. 

He summoned his scythe, the impact of the blades hitting against it a lot stronger than he anticipated, almost losing his balance from the strike. Renatus’ immensely quick, strong strikes continued to hack towards him, each clang of his scythe pushing him backwards. Rhys broke into a sweat, never having faced him in such a serious manner, even in their training sessions. He raised his scythe to fend himself as Renatus was mid-air pointing the blades towards him, hoping to push him away to allow himself room to act more freely. To his surprise, Renatus dropped the blades and ferally gnawed onto the bar of the scythe close to where its large blade began to curve, his palms grasping in the air in an attempt to grab him as he failed to lunge towards him, his weight pushing them both into the ground, knocking Rhys’ mask off in the process. 

“Goodness, you come to Ylipeste and become a feral dog for that monster of an angel,” Rhys growled. He stared at him hoping for a response, noticing his eyes were strangely cloudy and hazy, devoid of their usual radiance beneath the moonlight. Whatever Vaina had done to him, the Renatus he knew was gone as of now. He exhaled deeply, and dismissed the scythe, leaving Renatus to land directly on top of him as it disintegrated into thin air. 

Maybe it was better if things went this way after all, he thought to himself, feeling his chest pang, sinking into the abyss. After all, I can’t provide you with the freedom you sought for so long. 

Rhys pulled him into an embrace, memorising the warmth of his body for the last time as he shut his eyes. “It’s alright, Ren. If you want to kill me, then go for it. After all, I deserve to die by your hand after everything I’ve done to you. I could’ve done so much more, yet you still suffer. I’m sorry I couldn’t do more for you, truly. Be better for me, won’t you Ren?”

Warm droplets fell onto his cheeks, opening his eyes to the rare sight of Renatus crying before him. In the rare occurrence that he’d cry, he’d do so alone where no one could see him then seek comfort from him afterwards, a sacred intimate secret they shared. His eyes were noticeably clear and vibrant beneath the dim light of the distant stone lanterns, the subtle gleam of his eyes amplified with the tears that streamed from them. 

“...Rhys?” Renatus called gently, his voice wobbling. “I’m sorry, I really don’t know what came over me.”

“It’s alright, Ren. I genuinely thought I was going to die for a second. Maybe I should've,” Rhys commented, wiping away his tears.

“Don’t joke like that, you idiot. It hurts me to think I almost…” Renatus trailed, his breathing turning dry causing him to cough for a moment. 

“Sorry about that, Ren. I promise I won’t hurt you like that anymore,” he reassured him, smirking at him once he noticed their compromising positions. “Well isn't this a rather pleasing view…”

“I-I have to go…” Renatus exclaimed panickily, his face heating up from the embarrassing words and his balance becoming shaky. 

Rhys laughed heartily and dusted off the specks of dirt off his coat. “I also need to get going. Be safe now, Ren.” 

As soon as Renatus disappeared from his view, a sharp migraine struck his head once more, persisting more than usual. 

Ah, right… Don’t forget why I’m here, he thought to himself. The words ‘Death Disciple’ echoed into the back of his mind as the pain continued to ring. The string of words were so unfamiliar to him, and for it to be enough to cause Godric's subordinates some form of concern was well worth looking into. A chill ran through his spine, a constant sharp prick of cool wind piercing his skin. He sharply turned his head, feeling someone's strong gaze on him, to see no one there. He shrugged it off, and returned to the shadows when no one was looking, once again becoming one with the night.