[NSFW - mild] EL BK5 | Chapter 31 - Checkmate on a Rainy Day. (Patreon)

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Also trigger warning: violence? trauma? >:]

~~ sometime in the past Achaicus Klein

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My knees knocked together by mistake as my leg jiggled, bumping the underside of the table with a muted thud. Had I been at home, my father, Lazarus Klein, would have slammed his fist down and demanded to know if there was something wrong with me—since the toothpicks I called legs were clattering. I would have stammered an excuse, wishing to disappear, while my twin brother clasped my hand to reassure me. But here, cradled by red velvet seat cushions at an intimate round table, no one noticed.

A small wooden stage held acrobats. They hosted a range of activities; one at the edge of the stage juggled heavy round balls in a three pronged hat that jingled with bells. Another threw knives at a spinning target while two more jumped and ducked through flaming hoops over a bed of coals.

I keep my attention low. Fixated on the flicker of candle light dancing in the reflection of a porcelain plate so thin I feared breathing might shatter it as I tried to take in slow, calming breaths. A feast of fresh humayne, fat round fruits, and odorous cheeses lay before me. The serving trays were placed around small vases of flowers, and the white table cloth was stained with fat.

Loud voices talked, and laughed. Cutlery clattered and scraped against plates, while I remained small and quiet. Hoping not to be noticed.

“You can take what you like, my Lord,” a soft human voice spoke up.

Daring a glance upward, I met the kind brown eyes of the young girl beside me, Polly. The same age as I by human years, she was a pet in training. No emotion crossed her face as she delicately tucked a lock of dark hair back over her shoulder and gestured to the food. I watched the hair fall into place, transfixed. I’d never been so close to a human before, I could feel the warmth radiating off her skin and my ears heated.

I looked away swiftly.

A round glass with a slender stem, half filled with pungent red liquid, reflected back the visage of my brother; long white hair, emerald green eyes… only it was me, and I was lesser not in appearance, but in the forward hunch of my shoulders and the tears brimming in my eyes. I dared not take food, I couldn’t even work up the courage to be polite and thank the girl for her offer.

The table jolted with another round of upheaval from the other end. I caught my wine glass before it could fall, clutching it in both hands, but others across the table fell and shattered against the hardwood flooring. The shrill, joyous laughter of my aunt didn’t stop. Elora Klein giggled like a child trapped in the body of a woman, her eyes filled with greedy wonder and manic.

Her hair, once shaved to the scalp, had regrown to reach as far as her shoulderblades. Braided and combed to cover the scars on either side of her temples she might have looked the part of a Fae aristocrat and some days she was. Her moods changed like a leaf carried on water trickling down a stream, calm at times but unexpectedly turbulent at others.

Today, she was in a good mood. Her delight was sparked when the juggling performer dropped his balls. They rolled across the stage and he bumbled after them, narrowly missing getting hit by knives and knocking one of the girls jumping through the hoops of fire. The flames ignited her dress, but she didn’t stop performing even as tears streamed down her face.

These were humans ordered to entertain the Fae by commands. Nothing would free them of it, and the show wouldn’t end until their lives were over… or my aunt grew bored.

The acrobat who had caught fire began to scream, and I cringed in my seat—wishing for the meal to end. Humans, although lesser than us, held enough intelligence to know suffering, and I couldn’t bear to see it. My appetite was ruined. I had been taught not to play with my food, but Lady Klein, red in the face and breathless, howled and clapped for the stage performers.

It is recorded in our history that Elora Klein, first born to Alfric Klein, and her younger brother, Lazarus Klein, heir to Leuchtend, were taken as child hostages by the Fae of the South during the war. Our family were not the first Fae to flee Europe. Before us, the Fae of the Dark travelled across the ice bridge in search of new land. We are winter creatures living as close to the snowfields as we can where prey are plentiful. 

When our family arrived we faced the Vanir, creatures of the true north plentiful across the ice shelves. They outnumbered us three to one and forced us to inhabit lower lands. In these lands, we found the Fae of the Dark, a weaker subspecies unaccustomed to diplomacy. Or so our history books would suggest. Alferic forced them further south. Into lands that see snow for only four months of the year and they became known as the ‘Southern Fae’. 

In retaliation they took his children and demanded their lands back. Alferic didn’t give in to their threats, and the Southern Fae tortured his children. He got them back of course, in time. Elora was the last  to be returned, and it is well known that she came back ‘different’ from how she had left.

Now the Southern Fae  inhabit the ancient mountain range stretching across the eastern North Americas, luring humans in with their illusions, and I live with Elora the broken. No one truly knows what happened to her, but as I sat across from her watching her round face and sharp green eyes squeal in delight, I can’t help but wonder if it might have been better that she not return at all.

Every evening meal was like this. Elora liked a show with her food.

When the last of the human performers had maimed themselves, she remembered my presence. “Will you not eat, child?” she asked, cocking her head to the side with wide eyes making her look like a demented kind of owl.

“I’m not hungry…” I murmured the lie.

“Nonsense! This is a wonderful feast!” She pushed a bowl of fruit and meat toward me. 

I stared at it, wide-eyed and terrified, not daring to breathe.

Elora watched me, and her expression softened. “I see, you have no appetite because you were sent here, isn't that right?” 

I didn’t answer, but she continued nonetheless.

“Do not fear, we will return you to the castle and claim your inheritance," she assured with a broad smile.

“It’s not mine,” I murmured, finding my voice in defence of my brother.

Her demeanor changed on a dime and I flinched as the woman spat on the floor with a sneer of disgust. “That sniveling snake!” I wasn’t sure who she was talking about. “He asked your father to send you away.”

I stared at her speechless, knowing my brother would never have done such a thing. 

“What? You don’t believe me? He wants all the castles and all the lands for himself. The selfish boy doesn’t know how to share!” Elora slammed her hands on the table, rattling the dinnerware and jolting the table as she stood abruptly. 

Scrambling to catch a falling cake from the top tier of the display to keep it from making the table cloth even more dirty, I spared another terrified glance to my aunt. She hadn’t noticed. Immune to the conventions of normal people, she turned toward the hallway and began to leave the room.

“You deserve that castle. I deserve that castle! They steal. They always steal!” Her incoherent rambling echoed off the walls as she went, shaking her right hand all the way until it hit a pillar with a potted plant. “Ow! My words, who put this here!?” 

The shatter of ceramic followed a moment later, and her voice continued to fade away.

In the space of her absence, I found myself more at ease and slumped down into my chair, grateful to be free of her. 

***

In the decades that followed my days stretched into a routine of sorts. The meals were familiar. Morning, and evening, although I only ate the morning meal. I was never able to find my appetite for the evening shows. The library was always open to me, no matter the hour, and I spent some time learning the history of the Ethereal Court. I trained with a private ensemble of skilled masters, one each for hand to hand combat, swordsmanship, archery and magic wielding. This was the kind of direct tutelage my brother had received, and my skills began to grow. 

They didn’t hold me back the way Markos did, nor was I compared to the ‘better twin’. Under Elora’s watchful eye, I grew stronger, more capable and wondered if this was how !Achaicus had always felt. Powerful? Secure in his abilities? I outgrew my teachers abilities so quickly that soon I was having to face two opponents twice my size at one time. Confidence is a dangerous substance in the hands of the young, and I had far too much. 

Bolstered by my own sense of self-importance I began to believe my aunt when she told me of how my brother had been the one to ask for me to be sent away. I missed him and I despised him at the same time. Never is there anyone more lonely than a separated twin.

The Banished Castle of Verbannen is smaller than either Leúchtend or Dunkel. Standing on the parapets you can see the entire castle in detail. There is no grand stretch of township sprawling out along the land, nor any additional walls surrounding it. One layer of wall surrounds the entire castle and its small township. Less than a thousand Fae live here. Those who are banished or in charge of looking after Lady Klein. When Alferic didn’t know what to do with his broken daughter, sending her away seemed the logical choice.

Polly kept me company on most days. We played board games in the library on days where the rain hit the windows. Rows of earthy wooden shelves held a collection of books, not as grand as that of Leuchtend, but sufficient. The couches were comfortable, plush with red velvet coating under the warm orange glow of standing lamps. 

Cloud cover dimmed the day, and rain hissed against the windows. The perfect summer storm. A low wooden table stood between us with a game of Chess in process, only a few pieces were left on the board and it was her turn. The grandfather clock in the corner ticked rhythmically as she decided, and I watched her elegant hands move over the board and set down her queen. 

She tucked a lock of hair back over her shoulder as she always did, and her pink lips opened to speak. “Checkmate,” she announced in a calm cadence. 

I blinked, looking down at the checkered board again as if I had forgotten it existed. She was correct. “You win again,” I sighed, leaning back in my seat.

“You are distracted,” she made the excuse for me. This was the third time in a row that she had won.

“No, I fear you are simply a better strategist,” I conceded. I was hard pressed to play a game with my brother, and had never won against Markos. Perhaps losing at Chess was the only way I knew how to play it. “You may claim your prize.” I gestured to the lemon cake sitting between us.

It was the last of many we had played for, and Polly took it shyly. “Perhaps we might share it?” she suggested, reaching for the cheese knife set beside the left over crackers from our prior snack. 

I didn’t protest. Part of me of course wished to have the small cake, but fair is fair and she had won it honestly. The woman cut the pastry in half and stepped around the table to sit beside me on the couch. 

“For you,” she offered me either of the halves.

I took the smaller one, since it was her victory. “Thank you.”

No flicker of emotion crossed her well trained exterior, but I imagined I felt her happiness radiate outward and promised myself that when I got a pet, I would allow them to smile.

“I should have requested that I be allowed sweets whenever I choose as part of my contract,” she commented softly.

“You didn’t?” I asked surprised as I turned to face her.

Polly shook her head. “No, I asked only that my Mistress should listen to me when I make a request of her.”

A practical request, I thought. “What did you get in return?” It was impolite of me to ask, but I was curious. Looking at her, she seemed no different than before.

She finished chewing the lemon cake and delicately wiped the crumbs from the corner of her mouth. “Would you like me to show you?”

“If you are permitted…” I murmured trying not to let my curiosity show. 

“Of course,” she wiggled closer. “Pay very close attention.”

Spellbound by her deep brown eyes, I did, and slowly her visage began to slip from my notice. The weight of her still indented the couch and the heat of her body remained beside mine. But I could no longer see her. In a trick of the light, she disappeared. 

“You are unable to be perceived visually?” I questioned in wonder.

“Yes.” The answer came from the air.

Cautiously, I reached out to touch her, moving slowly to bring my hand in against her arm. I felt the ruffles of her dress, but the touch did not distort the illusion, powerful magic indeed.

“What are the limitations?” I asked before I could help myself. It was taboo to know much of anything about another Pet’s granted contract terms. 

She shifted and I pulled my hand back, feeling foolish for asking. “My apologies, I shouldn’t have–”  I stopped short when a cloth bra fell into my lap. A shiver travelled up my body as I stared at it in numb disbelief. I should not have been seeing such a thing, let alone having it in my lap. 

“Only things that touch my skin are invisible. Once removed, the effect is lost,” she explained.

I swallowed, unable to answer.

“Have I displeased you…?” Polly asked with softer uncertainty.

“N-no I just…” I tore my eyes away from the garment to look up at the empty space as I floundered.

The fabric of her dress was reappearing until, skirt by skirt, I was surrounded in a pile of fabric. Her hands came to rest on my shoulders and the magic flickered. She sat onto my lap and the illusion faded altogether. Her hair fell around her bare chest, curling around the sides of her soft breasts at the ends and I sat perfectly still, unsure if this was allowed for she was not my pet.

Polly wore only a pair of drawers, the long fabric covered her legs and bunched at the waist and ankles, but split up the crotch for her comfort when wearing so many layers. She wore nothing else beneath that. 

Petrified, I dared not breathe. Should I have expected this?

“The magic can transfer to others… But I’m not practiced yet,” she continued as if she hadn’t noticed my pants growing tight. 

“I- … I…” intelligent thought abandoned me to my babbling. 

She leaned in close to whisper in my ear. “Don’t you want to touch me?”

I did. But that would have been improper to say aloud. I turned flush with the proximity of her breasts to my face as I tried to comprehend what was happening. 

“Lady Klein feels you should get to use what you have at least once…” she explained as her hand reached downward.

I hadn’t known what she meant at the time, nor was I wise enough to reject the offering. We made love on the couch as the storm rained down outside and I shall never forget the scent of her skin. 

*** 

The consequences of my poor decision making came the following day. 

Elora summoned me to the medical wing. In the small sterile room she waited with Polly and a handful of grimfaced medical staff. I had never seen these men before, and none of them spoke to me.

Confused and panicked that I had impregnated Polly, I failed to consider any other possibility for this gathering. “Is everything alright?” I asked rapidly. 

“Everything is fine, did you enjoy your time with my Pet?” Elora asked in a matter-of-fact way.

My eyes darted to the woman, silently questioning if I had hurt her. She showed no sign if I had.

“I… don’t understand,” I admitted, feeling embarrassment creep into my cheeks. I should have known our moment was not private.

Elora sighed, rolling her eyes. “Never mind, it does not matter. Come, sit for the examination. We will return to Leuchtend shortly, you must be prepared.” 

She gestured to the bed and I moved as instructed. Polly handed me a glass of foggy water, “You should drink this, it makes it easier,” she offered.

“Makes what easier?” I murmured, taking it from her none the less. Blinded by trust if not the memory of her body. 

Polly turned to Elora, asking for the permission to explain and was denied. A flash of pity crossed her face, the first and only emotion I would ever see from her, and as I drank the cloudy liquid I began to feel odd. A tingling numbness spread up my body and my eyes grew heavy. I fell back onto the bed, groggy with confusion and barely aware of those moving around me.

What kind of examination was this?

My energy surged involuntarily, fighting back the effects of the liquid, although not enough to save me. Too weak too fight, dizzy and nauseous. I lie in a half numbed state somewhere between consciousness and not, wondering what was to happen. Had I done something wrong?

I felt a fresh jolt of panic as the silent, unspeaking men stepped forward and I realised they were eunuchs, men sterilized for crimes. They did not speak for their lack of tongues, and as one approached with a hot blade I remember very little but the fear of what came after. The smell of burned flesh and the wetness of blood between my legs was the last I knew before the dull throb of pain took me from consciousness…

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