Chapter 68 – The King Who Knew
The walk to the royal district was quieter than Brook expected.
Henry walked beside him.
Neither spoke much.
Brook kept looking at the palace ahead.
It grew larger with every step.
He had seen it before.
From a distance.
But he'd never had a reason to enter.
Not like this.
Henry noticed him staring.
"You're nervous."
Brook looked at him.
"Is it that obvious?"
"Yes."
"Great."
Henry smiled.
"Don't worry."
Brook frowned.
"That's exactly what people say before something terrible happens."
Henry laughed.
"Fair."
They reached the palace gates.
The guards recognized Henry immediately.
They stepped aside.
Brook followed.
As soon as he entered the palace grounds, he felt it.
Something old.
Something familiar.
The Archangel Source stirred beneath his skin.
Brook stopped.
Henry turned.
"What?"
Brook looked around.
"I don't know."
"Michael?"
Brook shook his head.
"No."
He placed his hand against the stone wall.
Nothing happened.
Then, for half a second, he felt another presence.
Cold.
Distant.
Watching.
Death.
Brook pulled his hand away.
Henry stared at him.
"You felt something."
"Yeah."
"What?"
Brook looked toward the palace.
"Something here knows me."
Henry's expression changed.
"Let's keep moving."
The throne room doors opened.
Brook stepped inside.
King Aldric stood near the throne.
He wasn't wearing his crown.
He wasn't wearing ceremonial armor.
Just a dark coat.
For some reason, that made him seem more intimidating.
Brook stopped several feet away.
Henry walked forward.
"Father."
Aldric looked at his son.
Then at Brook.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Brook could feel his eyes studying him.
Not his face.
Something deeper.
Aldric finally spoke.
"Brook."
Brook nodded.
"Your Majesty."
Aldric shook his head.
"Not here."
Brook frowned.
"What?"
"You don't need to call me that."
Henry looked between them.
Aldric gestured toward the chairs.
"Sit."
They did.
Aldric remained standing.
"You've been gone a long time."
Henry nodded.
"We had things to deal with."
"I know."
Aldric looked at Brook.
"Three Sources."
Brook remained quiet.
Aldric continued.
"Michael."
Brook's expression changed.
"Lucifer."
Henry glanced at Brook.
"And Death."
Aldric looked toward the windows.
"Those are not Sources anyone should carry."
Brook frowned.
"Yet I do."
Aldric nodded.
"Yes."
Brook leaned forward.
"How do you know?"
Aldric looked at him.
"Because I have seen it before."
Silence.
Brook's heart stopped.
"Seen what?"
Aldric looked directly into his eyes.
"A human carrying more than one Source."
Brook stared.
"Who?"
Aldric didn't answer.
Henry frowned.
"Father."
Aldric looked at him.
"Not everything is yours to know."
Henry's expression hardened.
"He's my friend."
"I know."
"Then tell him."
Aldric sighed.
"That's exactly why I'm afraid."
Brook stood.
"What happened?"
Aldric looked at him.
"Sit down."
Brook remained standing.
"What happened to the other person?"
Aldric's face became colder.
"They died."
Brook's stomach tightened.
"How?"
Aldric answered:
"The Sources killed them."
Brook looked down at his hands.
His memories.
His mother's voice.
Pieces disappearing.
Henry noticed.
"Brook."
Brook didn't respond.
Aldric saw the reaction.
"You're already experiencing it."
Brook slowly looked up.
"What?"
"The loss."
Brook's expression changed.
Aldric continued:
"Memories."
Brook swallowed.
"How do you know?"
Aldric walked toward him.
"Because I watched it happen once."
Brook's voice became quiet.
"Who?"
Aldric stopped.
"A man named Elias."
Brook frowned.
"Who was he?"
Aldric's eyes darkened.
"He was the first successful attempt."
Brook's heart began pounding.
"Attempt at what?"
Aldric didn't answer.
Brook stepped closer.
"What was he?"
Aldric stared at him.
"A vessel."
The word echoed through the room.
Brook's breathing slowed.
"Like me."
Aldric nodded.
"Like you."
Henry looked between them.
"What does that mean?"
Aldric turned toward his son.
"It means Brook wasn't the first."
Brook's hands trembled.
"How many?"
Aldric looked away.
"Enough."
Brook's frustration exploded.
"Stop saying that!"
The room went silent.
Brook's eyes flashed white.
Michael reacted.
Henry stood.
"Brook."
Brook breathed heavily.
The light around his hand intensified.
Aldric didn't move.
He simply watched.
Brook clenched his fist.
The light disappeared.
He closed his eyes.
Control.
Michael's voice whispered:
Good.
Brook opened his eyes.
He had stopped himself.
Aldric noticed.
"You've begun the first test."
Brook looked at him.
"How do you know?"
Aldric smiled sadly.
"Because Michael is predictable."
Brook frowned.
"Predictable?"
"His tests have always been the same."
Brook stared.
"What are the other two?"
Aldric shook his head.
"No."
"Why?"
"Because if I tell you…"
Aldric looked directly at him.
"…you'll prepare for them."
Brook frowned.
"Isn't that the point?"
"No."
Aldric's voice became firm.
"Michael doesn't test preparation."
He paused.
"He tests who you are when preparation fails."
Brook remained silent.
That made sense.
More than he wanted it to.
Henry finally spoke.
"Father."
Aldric looked at him.
"What happened to Elias?"
Aldric's expression softened.
"That's a story for another time."
Henry shook his head.
"You always say that."
Aldric smiled.
"You've learned from me."
Henry sighed.
Brook almost laughed.
Then Aldric walked toward the window.
"There is something else you need to know."
Brook waited.
Aldric looked at the city.
"The reason the Watchmen have become so aggressive."
Brook's expression hardened.
"They're searching for me."
"Yes."
"Why?"
Aldric turned.
"Because they believe you're going to open all six Sources."
Brook stared.
Aldric continued.
"And they're terrified of what happens when you do."
Brook's heart raced.
"Do you know what happens?"
Aldric shook his head.
"No."
"Then why are they afraid?"
Aldric's voice became quiet.
"Because history remembers what happened the last time someone came close."
Brook looked down.
"Who?"
Aldric didn't answer.
Instead, he said:
"Six Sources don't create a god."
Brook looked up.
"They create a choice."
"A choice?"
Aldric nodded.
"The power doesn't decide what you become."
He looked directly at Brook.
"You do."
Brook stood completely still.
Aldric continued:
"And that's why everyone is afraid of you."
Brook frowned.
"Because I might become powerful?"
"No."
Aldric's expression was serious.
"Because you might become free."
The room went silent.
Brook didn't understand.
But something inside him did.
The Sources weren't simply powers.
They were influences.
Personalities.
Will.
And if all six ever awakened…
Brook might have to decide which voice belonged to him.
And which ones didn't.
Aldric walked toward Henry.
"You should stay."
Henry looked confused.
"Why?"
"I want to speak with Brook alone."
Henry looked at Brook.
Brook nodded.
"It's okay."
Henry hesitated.
Then left.
The doors closed.
Brook and Aldric stood alone.
Aldric waited several seconds.
Then asked:
"Do you know why I wanted you here?"
Brook shook his head.
"No."
Aldric walked toward a large bookshelf.
He pulled out an old book.
The cover was damaged.
The title had been scratched away.
He placed it on the table.
Brook looked at it.
"What is that?"
"Something I was told never to open."
Brook stared.
"And you opened it."
Aldric nodded.
"Years ago."
He opened the book.
Most pages were blank.
Then he reached the middle.
A diagram appeared.
A human body.
Six circles around it.
Brook's stomach dropped.
The six Sources.
Michael.
Lucifer.
Death.
Gaia.
Merlin.
Humanity.
Brook stared.
"That's me."
Aldric nodded.
"This drawing existed before you were born."
Brook looked at him.
"How long before?"
Aldric didn't answer.
Brook's voice became quieter.
"How long?"
Aldric finally said:
"Almost a century."
Brook stared at the page.
His entire body went cold.
"A century?"
Aldric nodded.
"Someone planned for you long before you existed."
Brook couldn't speak.
Then he noticed something written beneath the diagram.
A single sentence.
THE VESSEL WILL CHOOSE THE END.
Brook looked at Aldric.
"What does that mean?"
Aldric closed the book.
"I don't know."
Brook stared at him.
For once…
Aldric sounded genuinely afraid.
"Then why show me?"
Aldric looked toward the door Henry had walked through.
"Because you're becoming part of my family."
Brook froze.
Aldric continued.
"You're Henry's brother in everything that matters."
Brook's eyes softened.
"And if the world comes for you…"
Aldric placed the book back on the shelf.
"…it will have to come through me first."
Brook said nothing.
For the first time since learning about the Sources…
someone powerful wasn't asking what he could become.
They were telling him he was worth protecting.
Brook looked down.
"Thank you."
Aldric nodded.
"Now go."
Brook turned toward the doors.
Then Aldric spoke again.
"Brook."
He stopped.
"Yes?"
Aldric's expression became serious.
"Do not open another Source."
Brook frowned.
"Why?"
Aldric looked directly at him.
"Because something has started looking back."
Brook's blood ran cold.
He opened the door.
Henry waited outside.
Brook walked past him.
Henry looked confused.
"What happened?"
Brook looked back at the throne room.
"Your father knows more than he told us."
Henry sighed.
"Of course he does."
Brook looked at him.
"Henry."
"Yeah?"
Brook hesitated.
"Thank you."
Henry smiled.
"For what?"
Brook shook his head.
"Nothing."
They walked away together.
Behind them, King Aldric remained alone.
He opened the ancient book again.
His eyes fell on the final page.
A page Brook hadn't seen.
A name was written there.
B-01 — BROOK
And beneath it…
another name.
B-00 — ELIAS
Aldric closed the book.
He whispered:
"God help us."
End of Chapter 68