Fractures of Eternity

After emerging victorious against Alexandria, Loki gazed at me, simpering, almost as if he was asking me how I was going to reward him afterward. Relief washed over me, seeing him safe and free of that vixen, who was being carried off by medics. It wasn’t long until he had to go out of the stadium too, leaving me to realize that Rem was studying me while they prepared the arena for the next fight. It didn’t help that Lola and Thea were both teasing me, which made everything unbearable. Sadly, I walked into that one when I slipped earlier.

Slumping onto the chair, ashamed of my actions, Oswald nudged me to see what my vampire had been texting him. My eyes twitched, noticing he wanted a picture of me pouting.

Argh… Of course, you know!

A soft sigh left my lips, shaking my head, as Eli was a cheat, too. Luckily, the last match was announced soon after, leaving little time for either prince to rest. At that point, everyone had their eyes on the stage, where the two stars of the show were, as they both walked back onto the stage, while Loki appeared a bit tired after that brawl. The fool probably refused to drink any blood to help him rejuvenate—something that wasn’t out of character for him. He wasn’t the only one, as Alistair appeared even worse than his baby brother.

The gaze of his eyes seemed absent-minded, as if he were already dead before even hitting the floor. Once again, silence filled the arena while all onlookers witnessed the fight they had been waiting for.

Once Loki saw his opponent’s condition, he winced. “Big bro, you seem sickly. Are you okay?”

The dark-haired vampire’s sight sluggishly locked on my prince, who bit his lip.

Why are you… Something…

The arena had a magical barrier that prevented anyone from crossing into the match to stop it, as well as any magical influence, which meant the two were isolated from mortal means.

If… No… Believe everything will be fine.

“Shut up… I… I don’t need anyone’s concern.” The elder brother huffed, gripping the sword’s handle tighter.

My vampire relaxed his stance before shaking his head lightly at his sibling.

Hey… If you never knew about the prophecy, would you two have been closer than you are now?

“Crap… Why does he look worse? There… wasn’t anything… Was it?” Oz muttered, getting up from his chair.

Alistair had always been a tough cookie to crack—sometimes his ego would make him do mean things, but most of the time he was a sweetheart, which was completely absent since this morning.

This… doesn’t make any sense. If he isn’t bound by mortal means… then… But no…the living gods aren’t allowed to interfere in this world. This… is something Fenrir broke, though.

My gaze traveled to Rem, who was watching her son’s match instead of me for once.

Hey… did your actions unleash this, too? Argh… With the rift’s status unknown, I can’t meddle.

Shivers ran down my spine as Edna’s warning rushed through my mind, causing me to grip onto my dress.

The world will turn on Alistair.

“Brother, please, let me—” Loki attempted to reach him, yet the crown prince was having none of it.

“Shut up! Do you even know how annoying it is to be in your shadow?! I’ve always been alone, while you have everything you ever want! Not this time. This is mine.” Ali huffed, reaching with his free hand to cover his left eye.

My vampire shifted his gaze away from his elder brother before clicking his tongue. “I don’t want this, but look at what it’s doing to you? I can’t let you have it, if it’ll destroy your heart like it did our grandfather.”

Alistair narrowed his eyes. “Hah… You always act like you know everything.”

Snapping back to his brother, my prince pointed his blade at him. “I won’t let it kill you, too. If anything, I’ll pass the damn thing to someone else.”

A soft laugh came from Alistair’s lips, “You really don’t know how this world runs, little brother. Then again, you have people protecting you always, but don’t worry, I’ll make sure you remain ignorant and in bliss.”

Before I knew it, their swords clashed, unleashing an array of sparks with each of their blows. Once again, the only thing my eyes caught was when they stopped, at times to attempt to disarm one another. Eli was coiled around my hand, while Oswald watched his siblings thanks to his familiar’s eyes. That was when the same throbbing sensation caused me to fly onto my feet and grab onto his shirt, dragging his eyes towards me.

“We—” I tried to speak, wishing to end this, yet before those words entirely left me, Alistair fell onto the floor with his sword still in his hand.

Loki had his blade to his brother’s neck, essentially ensuring his victory—one he never wished to have.

“Give up. I don’t want to hurt you, and I know you don’t want to hurt me.” He declared, as his brother’s color was fading, turning what was left of him even paler than before.

“Shut up! You know nothing!” Ali hissed, gaze dazed as he wasn’t entirely focused on my prince, who had bested him again.

“Enough…” Loki dropped his blade, instead reaching towards his big brother for the first time. “Aren’t you tired? Fuck this crown and everything else that has to do with it. Let’s just be happy together.” He smiled, offering his hand to his downed opponent.

His action left Alistair’s eyes wide open, gazing at his younger brother like the sun had finally risen from the storm he found himself in.

“I…” He breathed, struggling to accept his gesture as Loki didn’t back down.

“Hey, I’m serious. We both deserve to be happy and free. They can’t control us if we stand together. I’m sorry I didn’t do this sooner.” My prince assured him, as it seemed my words on Alistair’s fate had opened his eyes, too.

Hey… Elias… What will this mean for us? Won’t this mean you’ll…

It was apparent this man wouldn’t give me up, no matter the cost.

Yet…. What chaos will ensue because of it?

This stupid vampire of mine was kinder than most people I would have ever met, even if he was terribly full of himself. A soft smile rose on Alistair’s lips as he grabbed onto Loki’s hand. In that instant, all the tension that had been holding me in place disappeared, prompting me to almost fall back onto the chair if Oz hadn’t caught me.

I… I guess I was wrong. This… isn’t… Thank goodness.

“It’s… over,” I mumbled, shifting my gaze towards the twin beside me, only to see his eyes wide open as they began to shimmer brightly.

That was soon followed by sharp gasps from everyone in the stadium, as a chill began to swallow my core.

Eh? Why… is everyone…

Instantly, my trembling body shot up as my eyes caught something within the arena, which caused me to lose all sensation of my entire self. Before what I saw even registered in me, Eli fell limp in my arms, as Rem screeched, bolting towards the scene before clashing into the magical barrier, which broke into a million pieces thanks to her connection to her Lycan lover. That was where I finally saw Loki, who had a hole in his chest, and Alistair had his heart in his hands.