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The war between the Cyberse Lands and the human kingdoms is brief and bloody and ends with a shaky offer of peace. A treaty that is to be arranged with one of the Cyberse's six leaders taking up residence under the watchful eyes of the Hanoi, and Prince Ryoken specifically.
A diplomat, some say. An honored guest. But behind closed doors there are other whispers.
A prisoner. A hostage. Insurance that Cyberse will try nothing. The six leaders of Cyberse are close to equals, but within that tight grouping Lightning is well respected. A powerful mage, even among Cyberse's leaders. If he is kept in check, Cyberse is helpless to act.
He is brought at the dawn of a new year, the war having ended a few short weeks before. His smile tight and cold as Ryoken meets him at the castle gates and there is a certain amount of venom in his greeting. "May the upcoming year bring peace between our kingdoms, Prince Ryoken."
Ryoken gives no response beyond a nod, although there is a moment where his impassive gaze is drawn to Lightning's throat and Lightning almost reaches up to touch the collar that had been fastened there by one of Ryoken's men.
"It's a precaution, you understand." That is what he had been told as he was directed to tip his head back for the collar to be fastened in place. The other kingdoms fear those from Cyberse, for their magic. It's why the war began in the first place, a war that the Hanoi was instrumental in bringing an end to.
There are certain materials that limit magic. That blunt or outright block the power and the Hanoi have managed to twist such things to their advantage, creating weapons and armor....
And this... thing that is now around his throat. Buttery leather studded with stones and Lightning could feel the faint hum that he has been aware of all his life, the power that normally thrums just at his fingertips, fade into nothing the moment it settled against his skin. The metal lock that holds it closed cleverly disguised as an ornament.
After all, he is not overtly a prisoner. There is some illusion of freedom. He's allowed to roam through some of the more public areas of the castle at whim. The library, the gardens come spring. Even if there is always a faint shadow of a guard just at the edge of his vision he can almost imagine that this is a simple diplomatic mission.
That he is not effectively a hostage. Someone that is constantly under watch.
As omnipresent as the guards may be, Lightning prefers them to the prince himself. There is something uniquely unnerving about Ryoken. The way he watches, a faint frown creasing his brow. As if he is in a constant state of expecting the worst, of expecting Lightning to somehow slip the bonds that have been placed upon him and launch an attack.
If only... Lightning thinks some days before chasing those thoughts away. The last thing he wants is a return to war that such lashing out would cause. And it's not as if Ryoken has been even remotely cruel. Simply cautious, just as most are when they see him.
But caution and fear are bound together. So he's not surprised when that fear leads to darker things. Whispers that follow him. The Cyberse folk aren't human, how else could they use spells. And this one, the one playing diplomat, he's a seer. Knowing futures men aren't meant to see.
Ryoken corners him in the library one afternoon. It's only been a few months, but that amounts to months of tedium that Lightning's mind tends to rebel against. Although when Ryoken asks "I'm well aware you're capable of spellcraft. But are the other tales true?" Lightning finds himself craving that tedium.
"Which ones?" he asks in return, his smile false and well-practiced. "The ones that question my humanity? Or the ones about the depravity that goes on in the Cyberse lands?"
"About you being a seer."
"Interested in your future, prince? I'm afraid I can't help you. Not with this in place." He idly taps a finger against the collar circling his throat. "Now if you were to remove it...."
"Only a fool tries to see the future," Ryoken replies, waving aside Lightning's words. "And you're even more of a fool if you think I'm about to allow you unchecked access to your power."
"Do you honestly think I'd lash out and risk the peace we have?"
Ryoken's eyes narrow in thought as he studies Lightning's face. Eyes cold and piercing to the point where Lightning can imagine the prince studying his soul and finding something there lacking. "Not intentionally. But I don't think it would take much for you to feel threatened to the point of self defense either."
"Then the fault would lie on your people, would it not?"
"It would. But that's why you don't leave unattended candles next to powderkegs."
"And I assume I'm the candle in this analogy?"
Ryoken nods, a faint smile touching his lips. "And you need to be watched."
There is something about those words -- about the intensity of Ryoken's stare when he speaks them -- that drives a pulse of awareness through Lightning's veins. A low thud that causes him to suck in a quick breath and it takes him a moment to unstick his tongue from the roof of his mouth before speaking again. "It seems to be something you take quite seriously."
"More than you know."
And then the prince is walking way, his footsteps solid against the marble floor.
The assassination attempt comes three months after that. In the height of summer, during a festival that Lightning would have much rather avoided, and he doesn't notice the strike at first. He feels a bump. A shove that drives him into Ryoken's side and he is tempted to complain about the state of the crowd when the first wave of pain strikes, stealing the air from his lungs.
"I think something--" he starts to say, but nothing more comes out. Any remaining words trapped in the back of his throat as his vision begins to darken around the edges, a faint burning ache spreading out from the spot where he was seemingly elbowed.
Then, nothing but a blur. Thudding pain and a haze of occasional voices that slip in and out of the darkness alongside his consciousness.
It's hard to say how many days pass before he wakes again. No one will answer that particular question, although eventually Ryoken comes. His expression mostly unreadable as he stands by Lightning's bed and says, "The would-be assassin has been captured and dealt with, although I can't guarantee there won't be another. There are those who would welcome a return to war." There is viciousness to his tone, however. The words nearly spat and Lightning doesn't hide his surprise at just how emphatic Ryoken is.
"I would have thought that you'd be one of them. I know you hold no affection for the Cyberse lands."
"I'd think you'd understand why."
"Why would I?" Lightning snaps back, the lingering ache in his side leaving his tempter short. "We in Cyberse have only wanted nothing more than to live our lives. And you.... Your kingdom struck first and then damned us for defending ourselves."
"Your power is--"
"An abomination?" Lightning cuts in, the cold bluntness of his words rendering Ryoken speechless for a moment. "I'm well aware. Or do you honestly think I can't hear the way the guards whisper about me? They say I'm an affront to the Gods that should lose my eyes as penance at the very least."
"I'll speak with--"
"Why? It will only rile them more." A bitter laugh catches in the back of his throat. "And it's not as if I'm unused to it. Even in Cyberse my being a seer was not looked upon kindly. Why else do you think I was chosen to play 'diplomat'?"
Ryoken frowns at that, confusion leaking through his normally impassive mask. "I was under the impression you were respected."
"Anything powerful enough is respected for what it's capable of. I have forbidden knowledge and that is worthy of respect, but at the same time I'm certain the council is happy with my absence." Lightning sighs, his eyelids heavy with exhaustion. He's admitted to more than he intended, not thinking things through before he speaks. It's unlike him, and he blames his wound for distracting him. Better that than considering the possibility that Ryoken's questions have cut too close to the bone. "It doesn't matter. So long as there's peace."
"On that we agree." Ryoken murmurs. "I don't want any further senseless loss of life, and that is what a continuation of war will bring. If I have to suffer your presence in these halls to keep peace, then I will."
Lightning doesn't respond. And when he opens his eyes again Ryoken is gone.
Recovery is slow. The healers here are skilled but without magic, leaving Lightning dependent on his body's ability to mend on its own. Even his own magic, although not inclined to the healing arts, would be useful when set next to nothing at all.
He spends more time in his quarters now than anywhere else. Exhausted yet still bored and occasionally wandering to the library for something to read.
What surprises him more is that Ryoken has begun to search him out. Lightning unable to keep the venom from seeping into his tone when he asks, "Checking up on me?"
"I suppose I am."
"To make sure I'm not causing trouble?"
A faint smile twitches at the edge of Ryoken's lips. "More to make sure you aren't in trouble."
Lightning can feel his pulse jump in his throat at that. At the way Ryoken's eyes fix on him. "You needn't be concerned."
"I'm not so sure about that. You're helpless without your magic, aren't you?"
"To call me helpless is a bit much."
"You're wounded," Ryoken begins, ticking the points off on his fingers, "without even your most basic of spells and unable to foresee the future as you're used to. I'd say you're quite close to helpless."
"And is that why you searched me out? To lord it over me?"
"No." Almost reflexively Ryoken glances away. "I'm concerned. Concerned there will be another attempt on your life and what might happen if it succeeds."
"Then remove the collar," Lightning retorts, annoyed by the seeming concern. "Replace it with a false one if you want to maintain the illusion that I'm still 'helpless'. But at the very least give me a chance to defend myself."
Those words are enough for Ryoken's gaze to snap back towards him, and Lightning can see the tension that settles across his shoulders as he spits, "You expect me to simply trust you?"
A laugh catches in the back of Lightning's throat at that. "I'm well aware that you can't. But like you, the last thing I want is a return to war. Do you honestly think Cyberse could survive? Because as much as I care for and believe in my people, you outnumber us. Could easily crush us without trying. Why do you think I even agreed to this arrangement?"
Ryoken's jaw goes tight; his eyes narrowed in thought as he studies Lighting's face before biting out, "Fine." A response that leaves Lightning speechless. "But not now."
"Then--"
"Tomorrow night. Or perhaps one of the nights following. I'll need to work up an appropriate fake first. Once that is complete I'll come to your quarters to replace it."
Lightning's pulse jumps again. Ryoken's words sparking a strange sort of awareness in the pit of Lightning's stomach.
His quarters. The only place he has a remote aamount of privacy, away from the constant shadow of the guards that follow him. And at night.
It's beyond unlikely that anything will happen. And yet his throat is still dry, his pulse racing, as he says, "I-- suppose I should thank you."
"Don't thank me until it's done."
It takes four days, and Ryoken barely pauses to knock before letting himself into Lightning's quarters. His eyes hard and cold and his words bunt. "Tilt your head back. I'd like to take care of this as quickly as possible."
Without a word Lightning does as he's asked. Sitting perfectly still as the lock holding the collar closed is opened and it falls away. The sudden rush that comes with being aware of the magic at his fingertips once more enough to leave him dizzy and breathless to the point where it's a struggle to remain upright.
Then the vision comes.
It's been years since he's dealt with an unbidden vision. Not since the first few, in his childhood, before he gained some semblance of focus and control. The discipline to see what he wishes and when.
At the very least even an uncontrolled and unwelcome vision is not near as terrifying is it was when he was small. He recognizes it for what it is now. A glimpse of what might happen. Sometimes a warning, sometimes something to aim for, but always strange and fuzzy around the edges. A waking dream that is easily recognizable as unreal.
And this time it is a flickering glimpse of the prince's mouth slanted against his own. An image so intense he's vaguely aware of slumping forward. Strong arms (Ryoken's) the only thing holding him steady enough that he doesn't crumple to the floor.
There are other things alongside that first brief flicker. Other fragments of futures that may or may not come. Peace, contentment. Ryoken leading his people and he is there (An advisor? Still a hostage? The king's consort? He cannot tell) at his side. But in between those, more war. Death. A blade slipped between his ribs in the dark. Sometimes it's Ryoken's. Cyberse in ruins as a result.
Countless futures. And everything so rapid that he can't quite focus. Can't see the path towards....
Towards what? He's not quite sure. Not sure what path would be the optimal one.
"Are you all right?"
Ryoken's voice slices through the haze. As calm and steady as ever and his expression, once Lightning manages to focus enough to make sense of it, is surprisingly concerned.
"I saw you kissing me." The words escape before Lightning can stop them and he's all too aware of the way Ryoken stares at him. Not the same cold frown that he's become used to. Instead the expression there is bewildered (with a faint edge of awareness) before giving way to something sharp and sardonic.
"This is the sort of future the infamous seer from Cyberse foresees?"
"Not-- it's normally not like that," Lightning mutters, his head still throbbing from the rush of power and the visions that came alongside it. "I've just been cut off for so long. There were other things, if you're curious."
"As I said before: only a fool attempts to see the future."
"Even though there are dire possibilities there? Ones you could possibly avoid if--"
"No." The response is blunt, but there is no real hostility there. Simply a firm denial as he motions for Lightning to tip his head back so he can set the replacement collar in place. "I've told you before, I have no desire to know what the future might hold."
"But why? Even when my power was viewed with some suspicion, those in Cyberse recognized its usefulness."
For a moment Ryoken is silent, his hands gone still in the midst of setting the collar in place. "My late father hated your kind. Feared what you could do."
"I'm well aware. But is the reason really something as simple as that?"
"That fear led him to attempt to divine the future in his own way," Ryoken continues, as if Lightning hadn't spoken at all. "To see if there was any hope for peace or if the world as a whole would be better without Cyberse and its people in it. He went to great lengths, sometimes using magical tools taken from your lands, sometimes researching other methods. Going to any length to discover what the future might hold." He sighs, snapping the lock holding the false collar in place shut. "It should be obvious what he saw."
"Nothing but war," Lightning murmurs. "I've had similar visions in the past."
"But we've made peace since. Fragile, and dangerous, but it exists. I believe what my father saw was the truth, but a self-fulfilling truth that existed mainly because he saw it at all. And I will not make that mistake."
"But I did tell you one thing I saw."
Lightning isn't quite sure why he says it. He's never been prone to impulsive behaviour, and yet in this one moment something pushes him. A vague sort of neediness that is still clinging from the vision and clouding his mind. An awareness of just how close Ryoken is to him, how intimate this entire situation is.
And given the way Ryoken sucks in a sharp breath between his teeth, he is aware of just how intimate the situation is as well.
Lightning is about to dismiss the whole thing with a wave of his hand when Ryoken's lips press against his. Just as he saw, but now he can feel it as well. More than the hazy, dreamlike, glimpse, this is real.
Then it ends. An absent smile touching Ryoken's lips as he leans back. "And now we don't have to concern ourselves with it." Absently he rubs a thumb against Lightning's lower lip. "The future can be faced as it comes."
Lightning's lips part, to protest or agree he's not quite certain. Not that it matters. Ryoken steps back, his expression as impassive as ever and says, "I'll leave you to rest. It seems as if those visions have exhausted you."
All Lightning can do is nod. Ryoken isn't wrong, after all. Between the late hour and the sudden return of his power he wants nothing more than to sleep for days. And yet....
"You can't simply pretend you didn't do that."
"The future can be faced as it comes," Ryoken says again. As if that is an answer to everything.
And maybe it is.