Chapter 2 -Caylix-
-Caylix-
Thirteen years ago, continued…
The moment we step inside the watchtower, I know something has changed.
Not around me but inside of me. The pull toward the girl refuses to loosen. The fire crackles in the hearth while soldiers move through the room. A soldier drapes a blanket around the princess’s shoulders as someone else offers her food.
She ignores both.
Her hand remains wrapped tightly around my sleeve as though she thinks I might disappear if she lets go.
I don’t understand why that thought unsettles me. Honestly, I don’t understand any of this. An hour ago I woke up in a wagon with no memories. Now I am covered in blood and standing in a royal watchtower beside a king and his daughter.
Nothing about it feels real.
Across the room, King Alexander and Elder Agameus move toward the far wall. Their voices lower but not enough. I hear every word.
“There is magic in him.”
The king folds his arms.
“You said that already.”
“I have never felt anything like it.”
That gets my attention. Agameus grips his staff tightly.
“There is something buried inside him.”
The king's gaze flicks toward me.
“What kind of magic?”
The elder doesn't answer but instead, he simply looks at the king. A long look. The king's expression changes immediately into recognition.
I don't understand the meaning of the exchange, but whatever Agameus just told him, he did it without speaking a word. The king's eyes return to me.
His magic brushes against me again, looking for something. The sensation crawls beneath my skin. After several moments, he exhales.
“I find no darkness.”
Agameus nods once.
“Because it isn't his.”
Silence settles over the room.
“If that magic touched this boy,” the elder says quietly, “it was done to him, not born from him.”
A chill works its way down my spine. Done to him, meaning done to me.
The king's jaw tightens.
“Can you see who he is?”
“No.”
“Where he came from?”
“No.”
The admission appears to frustrate him. Agameus looks equally irritated.
“Whatever was done to him was powerful.”
The king's gaze sharpens.
“Powerful enough to hide him from you?”
“Yes.”
That answer silences the room. The elder's attention shifts toward Avianna, then back to me.
“What is it?” the king asks.
Agameus remains silent for a moment then answers. “I can feel the boy's destiny.”
The king's expression hardens.
“And that is?”
The elder looks at me.
“He will protect her.”
My eyes flick toward the princess. I don't understand any of this.
I don't understand the strange warmth still humming beneath my skin, or why the panic that nearly swallowed me moments ago eases every time I look at her. I don't understand why the thought of walking away suddenly feels wrong in a way I can't explain.
She is a princess. I am nobody. A boy with no family, no home, and no future beyond tomorrow. And yet something inside me refuses to leave.
My gaze settles on her fingers curled into the fabric of my shirt.
She has not let go once.
Confusion twists through me but beneath all of it sits one certainty so solid it steals the breath from my lungs. Whatever is happening here, I cannot leave her.
The elder continues.
“His magic has already found hers.”
The king goes still as Agameus gestures toward Avianna.
“And hers has already found him.”
Silence. The king looks between us.
“You believe they're binding already?”
“I know they are.”
The answer comes without hesitation.
“The tether has already begun.”
A strange tension settles in the room. The king's gaze narrows.
“Without your involvement?”
“Yes.”
Agameus looks troubled by the admission. The king studies us both and neither of us move.
“Avianna carries your truth magic,” Agameus says quietly.
“And the boy carries protection magic.”
His grip tightens around his staff.
“And both have already chosen.”
The king is silent for a long moment.
“What happens if you do nothing?”
Agameus's expression darkens.
“The bond will continue growing on its own.”
“And if you strengthen it?”
The elder exhales slowly.
“Then I can shape it.”
The king's gaze shifts toward his daughter, and how her hand is still wrapped around my sleeve.
When he speaks again, his voice is quieter.
“You would bind my daughter to a boy whose name we don't even know.”
“No.”
Agameus looks between us. “Their magic already did that. I would merely make it stronger.”
“I can not support this.”
“Forgive me my king, but then she will die.”
The room falls silent. Avianna looks up from the fire. The king goes completely still.
The elder’s voice softens. “I am sorry, Alexander.”
The words somehow make it worse.
“But I have never been more certain of anything.”
His gaze finds mine again.
“This boy was born to stand between her and what is coming.”
The certainty in his voice sends a chill through me. The king turns away. For a long moment nobody speaks.
Then finally, “If we do this…” His voice is rough. “It remains protection.”
“Nothing more,” Agameus agrees.
The king looks at me.
“Your duty would be her safety.”
I nod immediately. “I understand.”
“Not her possession.”
“I understand.”
“Not her claim.”
“I understand.”
The answer comes easier each time, because I do understand. Whatever this feeling is pulling me toward her… it doesn’t feel like ownership. It feels like purpose.
The king studies me for a long moment before finally nodding.
“Very well.”
The word seems to pull something loose inside the room. Agameus exhales slowly and lowers his gaze to the runes carved into his staff. Their faint glow brightens beneath his fingers, gold light threading through the ancient markings.
Agameus plants the base of his staff against the stone floor and the impact echoes through the tower.
The air immediately changes as the runes along the staff flare brighter.
Warmth spreads through my chest. At first I think it belongs to the elder's magic. Then agony rips across my back. A strangled sound escapes me. I stumble away from the princess, my hand flying behind me as fire tears beneath my skin.
"What is happening?" Alexander demands.
"I don't know." I say, the words come out through gritted teeth.
The burning grows worse. Without thinking, I grab the collar of my shirt and yank it over my head. The room goes silent. The pain vanishes so suddenly my knees nearly give out. Slowly, I turn and the elder's eyes widen, his gaze remains fixed on my back.
"Boy..." he says slowly. "You have runes on your back."
I blink. "What?"
"Four of them."
The room goes completely still. The elder takes a step closer, his expression darkening. He reaches toward my back but stops short of touching me.
"I don't understand." I whisper.
"Neither do I."
The elder looks toward the king.
"The first three look old."
His eyes narrow.
"But the fourth..."
The room falls silent.
"It looks newly formed."
The elder goes very still.
"What aren't you telling me?"
His gaze lifts slowly to mine.
"It’s impossible."
