CHAPTER 29 – "THE BRAND"
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Kael walked fast. Head down. Hands still bloody.
Footsteps behind him.
He stopped. Turned.
The girl. His cloak wrapped around her. Following.
"Why are you following me?" Kael asked.
She looked at the ground. "I... I don't have anywhere to go."
"Go home."
"I can't." Her voice shook. "You killed my master. I'm useless now. Slaves can't do anything on our own. I'll be killed. Or taken by someone worse."
Kael stared at her. "So you're following me?"
She nodded. Tears streaming.
Kael sighed. Looked around. Grabbed her arm. Pulled her into an alley.
"Hold still."
He drew his sword. She flinched.
He cut a strip of fabric from her torn shirt. Wrapped it around her neck. Covering the brand.
"There," he said. "Now no one can see it. You're not a slave."
She stared at him. "But I—"
"You're not a slave."
He sheathed his sword. Walked away.
She followed.
Kael stopped. "Stop following me."
"I don't know where to go."
"Anywhere but here."
"Please—"
Kael groaned. Kept walking.
She followed.
---
*Shit.*
Kael rubbed his face. Kept walking.
*I did it again.*
He'd killed a citizen. And two guards. In public.
*Liora's gonna kill me this time.*
He could already hear her voice. Angry. Frustrated.
*"We were supposed to be careful, Kael."*
He sighed. Kept walking.
The girl stayed a few steps behind. Silent now.
---
Kael reached Silver Lake.
The water stretched wide. Calm. Reflecting the sky. Lanterns floated on the surface. Glowing softly.
He sat on a stone bench. Stared at the water.
The girl sat nearby. Quiet.
Kael's mind drifted.
The brand.
Circular. Insect-like. Burned into skin.
He kept seeing it. Every time he closed his eyes.
The boy at the docks. The girl he just saved. The old woman in the market.
All of them.
Marked.
Owned.
He clenched his fists.
Then something clicked.
A memory.
Faint. But clear.
---
**Flashback.**
Aldengard. A year ago.
Training yard. Early morning.
Kael swinging his sword. Practicing forms.
Liora walked over. "Your stance is off."
"It's fine."
"It's not." She stepped behind him. Adjusted his shoulders. His arms. "Like this."
The wind picked up. Strong.
Her sleeve blew back.
Kael glanced. Just for a second.
Something on her inner shoulder. Below her armpit.
Dark. Circular.
He thought it was a scar.
"Liora, what's—"
She pulled her sleeve down. Fast. "It's nothing."
"But—"
"Focus on your form, Kael."
She walked away.
He didn't ask again.
---
Kael's eyes snapped open.
His breath caught.
*That wasn't a scar.*
He stood. Stared at the water.
The same shape.
The same size.
*The same brand.*
"No," he whispered.
His heart pounded.
*It can't be.*
But the image burned in his mind. Clear now. Undeniable.
Liora. The mark. The way she'd covered it so fast.
"She would have told us," he muttered.
But even as he said it, he knew.
She wouldn't.
He thought back. Her face when they landed. Pale. Shaking.
Her reluctance to come to Kazan. "I don't think this is a good idea."
The way she avoided looking at slaves. Every time. Eyes down. Fists clenched.
And the mark.
Kael's stomach turned.
"No. No, no, no."
The girl looked at him. "What's wrong?"
Kael didn't answer.
His mind raced.
*She's from here.*
*She was one of them.*
*A slave.*
He grabbed his head. "She would have told us."
"Who?" the girl asked.
Kael ignored her.
*Why wouldn't she tell us?*
But he knew.
Shame. Fear. Pain.
*She didn't want us to know.*
Kael turned. Looked at the girl.
She stared back. Confused. "Are you okay?"
"I have to go."
"Where?"
"I have to find my friends."
He started walking. Fast.
The girl stood. Followed.
"Wait—"
Kael didn't wait.
He needed answers.
---
The sun was setting. Red sky over the pagodas. Shadows stretching long.
Kael ran through the streets. Heart pounding.
People stared. Moved aside.
He didn't care.
*I have to know.*
Behind him, the girl struggled to keep up. Still wrapped in his cloak.
"Wait!" she called.
Kael didn't stop.
The city blurred around him. Red gates. Stone paths. Cherry blossoms.
All of it meaningless.
He had to find them.
He had to know the truth.
---
**END OF CHAPTER 29**