The young blonde-haired protector had been a lot more skittish and agitated since the second attack on the castle. He had seemed to practically barricade himself in his green house, rarely leaving unless called upon for medical reasons. That first afternoon he had worked himself to the bone, using his own abilities to reset the castle. But after that, he disappeared among his trees and was not seen again.

The atmosphere of his gardens helped clear his mind and help him focus better, but the deaths of so many people weighed heavily on his soul. He knew he wasn’t the only one. Any time that Minnow crossed Amon’s path, it was obvious that the King was hit harder than anyone else. At first, Minnow had tried to offer some herbal tea to help the man sleep, but after being refused so many times, he had simply given up the attempt.

Most nights when he remembered, Minnow would make the journey from his greenhouse to the castle and to his own room, but wherever he went, he did not get much sleep. There were dark bags under his eyes, and worry lines seemed to plague his facial features all the time.

To be honest, Minnow was horrified with himself. He knew barely anyone in the castle got any sleep over what had happened, and the few moments that he could not control when he slipped into a fitful slumber often made him feel terrible. That was probably the cause of most of his nightmares. They were small and simple at first, continuously waking him up, but never waking long enough to push them from his mind before he fell back into darkness. But with each passing state of sleep, they worsened, so much so to the point that, with the guilt of sleeping already present, he was getting a little paranoid about falling asleep.

None of his teas seemed to help either, so he was forced to suffer through every single one of them. Surprisingly enough, he did not seem to be able to find Kanan, not even once after the incident with the earth swallowing him. This fact only added to the boy’s self-doubt and conflictions, and Minnow had the feeling that Kanan was distinctly avoiding him.

The only glimpses he ever caught of his fellow protector were from a castle window or from behind a hedge as he was passing by. It was always in the same place- the hill of graves. Minnow avoided that place like the plague, despite the foolish desire to seek comfort or companionship. He had mainly been the one to put to rest the bodies there, and it sickened him every time he saw the fresh graves. Perhaps the main reason he avoided the hill was because he didn’t trust himself to put respect over personal feelings. He wanted to bury the bodies deep beneath the earth, to hide the grave marks seamlessly with plants or rocks, he didn’t want to be struck with depression or guilt every time he wandered by, to be forced to remember what had happened. That plagued his dreams too.

Minnow barely saw anything of anyone anymore, and today was not an exception. He felt like a burden to the people he needed most not to be, and definitely saw his own presence as an irritation or a downer- a distraction. So he avoided people altogether. Except for the scant servants he would pass on his way up to his own room, he felt utterly alone in the sorrow that plagued the castle’s walls and rooms. Figuring he had done all the good he would do, he decided for once to resign himself to his own room.

The young lad sat cross-legged on his bed, the drapes closed harshly together to prevent even the slightest sliver of sunlight from entering the room. It didn’t matter much regardless, as the sun was quickly setting.

Despite the subtle dread that settled on his mind, he simply accepted the fact that he would fall asleep once more to experience his nightmares. The only thing he could do was hope they would not worsen tonight.

But that was naïve, he knew what would face him the moment he closed his eyes. He leaned his head back against the headboard of his bed, staring down at his fingers blankly. It did not take long for his nightmares to claim him once more.



In his dream, he was mere seconds away from hitting the ground, or whatever was left beneath him, when Minnow shot up from his bed. He was breathing hard, a cold sweat plagued his forehead, and, as he lifted his fingers to touch his face, he could feel tear stains. With his other hand, he enclosed his fingers around his throat softly, and the patchy skin that remained from where the assassin had burned him met his touch.

Gritting his teeth, the young protector clenched his eyes shut in shame and irritation. He hated how his body tended to react without his realizing or allowance, and he knew he would not be falling back asleep any time soon.

With a loud groan weighed down by the remnants of sorrow and previous sleep, he crossed his arms and dug his fingernails into his skin. Stop being such a child. You're Nineteen, and that scared kid you were all those years ago was buried the same day your village was, you saw to that. It was only a nightmare, get over it. He thought to himself angrily, soon releasing the grip he held on his arms and leaving deep, crescent-shaped impressions behind.

Slipping from the mattress, he ran his hand through his bangs- he hated when his hair was stuck to him and he could feel it. He leaned against the bedpost, one hand covering his eyes as the other rested shakily on the wood as he tried to recompose himself.

He just couldn’t stand this- he knew the nightmares were getting to him, and that he was falling far behind on his normal schedules. He was shirking his duties, and for what? More time to fall prey to these terrors? He hated himself in that moment, but that hate quickly turned to despair. Despite his words to himself, he couldn’t help but be rattled a bit and scared.

He needed to get away from the castle for a while if he wanted anything to get better. The atmosphere that clung heavily to the air was not doing his mind any good, and he needed to find something productive to do. His only desire was to submerse himself in the nearest town and work until he could no longer do so. His dreams would be empty then. And what sweet relief that would be.

With these thoughts, Minnow found himself slowly walking down the halls barefoot. He tried weakly to stop himself, to put reason and logic back into his thoughts, but he was too exhausted to really bother. It would be good for him to get away and recollect his thoughts and sanity.

But instead he discovered his footsteps to be leading him down the halls in a different direction. It was only slightly familiar to his tired mind- the last time he had crossed this way he had been carried. Minnow did not realize at all what he was doing until it was too late.

He watched his own hand as it lifted from his side, watched the fingers curl into a gentle fist and approach the wood of the door. But the knock was what woke him from his dazed consciousness. A look of horror split across his face as he realized this was the door to Kanan’s room. He took a shaky step backwards, face palming as he quickly tried to salvage his actions.

Maybe he didn’t hear that, I can still run, act like nothing happened… come on feet, move…. He bit his lower lip nervously as his attention and gaze shifted down to his feet. But he seemed to be rooted to the spot.

The knock drew his attention. He hadn't been sleeping anyway. Rested on the bed with one arm up over his forehead he had tried to sleep, but it never came. Kanan had removed his shirt long ago and was enjoying the cool air across his skin, hoping it would help to make it easier to sleep, but that seemed to fail. Instead he listened to the soft sounds of the world outside his window and the soft passing of guards around the halls outside. He heard the quiet shuffle, felt the presence of the other as he stood outside his door.

Sitting up, he took a moment and then moved to the door. Slowly opening it, Kanan lifted an eyebrow as his gaze settled upon Minnow who stood there. The blonde looked shocked to find himself standing in the hall. His heart skipped a beat as he watched the younger protector. He hadn't seen him since the attack and he felt awful just then for not going to see him. Worry coursed through his frame as he took in Minnow's appearance. Something was wrong.

"Minnow," he called as he stretched out a hand to brush aside the long locks of blonde hair, "What happened?"

Crap…. He thought to himself as the door opened. He looked like a deer trapped in the headlights as Kanan looked down at him. And he was shirtless. Again. A harsh blush raced across his cheeks and the bridge of his nose, and for once he was grateful for the darkness. He probably looked like a train wreck anyway.

Minnow looked up at him, his mouth opening and closing dumbly a few times. Not a single syllable would pass his lips, though, and the young boy’s gaze fell quickly to stare at the floor. Once more he was shocked when he felt the touch of Kanan at his face, even though it was just his fingertips ghosting against his skin. It was warm, and without thinking, Minnow’s own hand quickly shot up and grabbed his wrist. The strength behind the touch was weak at best, and his fingers trembled as he held the man’s hand there. His lips parted as if he were trying to explain himself, but he was at a loss for words.

He must have seemed like such a little kid in that moment. He couldn’t even handle his own nightmares, he had to come running to someone else for comfort. But… in that moment he didn’t hate himself for it, in fact he could care less. He took a step forward, for once letting his body do what it wanted to. And that was to get closer to whatever was warmest.

”Night terrors….” It was hardly a whisper, and it was followed by a bitter laugh that was hardly audible. Minnow didn’t dare meet his fellow protector’s gaze and instead stared at the floor. A ghost of a smile in mockery of himself donned his lips; he wished he was fatigued again, wished he had a reason to blame for this run-in.

Well, it was now or never. He had already embarrassed himself this far, he didn't really have much to lose. "Can I sleep with you?" His facial expression was bitter, he was fairly ashamed of himself for sounding like such a child in front of Kanan, for allowing such a weakness within himself. He fully expected the protector to deny him, but Minnow had decided that this was probably the best way to leave. It certainly couldn't be more awkward than the alternate parting words he was thinking of. He probably could have just run, but he already had enough of being a scared kid for one night.

In his expectations, his fingers slipped from Kanan's wrist, and he took a tiny step back, ready to turn and leave.

Kanan felt Minnow's fingers wrap around his wrist though the grip was light and without strength behind it. He watched the other for a long while, trying to figure out what was wrong. He couldn't tell very well in the darkness and shifted his frame just a bit to allow some of the moonlight to try to hit the boy. When that failed, he settled for waiting patiently. Minnow took a step forward and Kanan stood still, allowing him to get close. The words 'night terrors' made the taller Protector raise an eyebrow as he watched Minnow carefully. For a moment, he mentally berated himself. He should have known.

When the question came to sleep with him, Kanan took in a short breath. Everything went still for a moment, his body tensing as he watched the little blonde healer. His mind went blank briefly before it started working again. Several things came to mind, none of which he voiced for fear of scaring the poor boy. But as he didn't answer, Minnow's hand released his wrist and he took a step back as if he was ready to just up and leave. Kanan, once again without thinking, snatched Minnow's hand in his grip and dragged him into the room without a word. One arm wrapped around the boys waist to hold him in place just in case Minnow thought about running away.

The door closed gently.

Holding up the arm that he had grabbed, he leaned down to whisper to Minnow, "You cannot just ask that, and then leave," he said his voice a soft growl almost as if he were irritated, or better yet, struggling with something himself.

"I think..." he started and then paused. His arm tightened around Minnow. Releasing the hand that he'd held up over his own shoulder, he reached down and tilted the boy's head up to face him, "You're breaking me," he muttered and proceeded to kiss the other Protector without warning.

It shouldn’t have been that surprising, but Minnow was still a little shocked that Kanan did not let him leave. He stumbled as he was dragged into the man’s room, kept only from tripping by the grip around his waist. The sound of the door closing hardly registered to him as he was pulled closer to Kanan’s body.

Then the warmth of his breath tickled at his ear and with the soft growl that rumbled from Kanan’s form- one that sent unnatural chills up and down the boy’s spine, his blush only heated further. It had only been a simple request, one that he did not intend to have these results, but Kanan was so close and he couldn’t help his heart from thumping painfully against his chest, couldn’t prevent his mind from reeling and expecting the impossible.

His focus was only held by the words that kept passing Kanan’s lips, and his breath caught in his throat as the other protector’s fingers brushed his chin, angling his head up to meet his gaze. His own lips parted to say something, probably something inaudible and made to voice his confusion, when the space between them shortened drastically.

For the umpteenth time that night, Minnow was stunned. He froze as their lips met, his mind suddenly going blank and abandoning him to fend for himself. This was certainly not what he envisioned when walking down the halls- heck, he hadn’t even meant to still be in the castle. Now here he was, in Kanan’s bedroom of all places with the man himself.

Kissing him.

How long had he waited for this?

Of course he had denied any feelings that tried to surface, any thoughts that even hinted towards this intent before. Did he ever even realize that he was falling until now? It hit him like a ton of bricks, and in his surprise, he forgot to respond to the older protector, instead just standing there dazed.

Kanan pulled away slightly. His eye gazed at Minnow as he held him. Finally within the moonlight, he could see that the other's face was worn, tired and haggard. He also noted that the blonde looked dazed, unfocused. Kanan wasn't sure if it was because of the kiss or his words. Maybe a mixture of both. Or was it that Minnow was too far in shock to register? Did he not... want that? He frowned a bit as he stood there holding the other.

"Minnow?" he asked gently. It was so hard not to continue, to not put the shorter one against the wall and kiss him again with all the passion and feelings that he had been bottling up for so long because he had been unsure, and unwilling, to open again to another. He wanted very much to show the little blonde healer exactly just how much he affected Kanan. His fingers played with the boys hair briefly before running gently along his jaw line and then to his chin where he held Minnow's face upwards to look at him.

"What's wrong?" he finally asked.

Minnow blinked rapidly as Kanan’s voice broke through to his addled mind. He let out a shaky breath that he had been holding way too long. At this rate, his cheeks would never return to their normal color. The blonde-haired protector looked up at him silently, not trusting himself to speak just yet. It was horrible of him, he knew, to leave Kanan wondering, but this moment….

As Kanan finally voiced his concerns, a small frown tugged down the corners of his lips, and his gaze settled upon Kanan’s, eyes intently watching his own, but there was no real readable expression to his face. Minnow’s sight seemed to trail down to the one-eyed protector’s lips, and a soft breath of laughter tumbled out of his mouth.

He was no longer at a loss, he knew exactly what was going on just then and he knew exactly what he wanted. His hands, which were previously at his side and resting on Kanan’s shoulder, finally found motion. He slid his own palm around Kanan’s waist, his fingers finding themselves tangled in the belt loops pulling Kanan closer to him as his other hand shifted to the nape of the one-eyed protector’s neck. Minnow stepped up a bit to close the distance once more, pressing his lips against Kanan’s, closing his eyes and breathing in the man’s scent.

Startled was an understatement. He wasn't expecting Minnow to return the kiss. He had been expecting the boy to say that he hadn't wanted the kiss, that he had wanted to leave. Kanan felt the tug around his waist, the gentle kiss from the smaller blonde. All control went out the window then. Moving, probably a bit rougher than he wanted originally, he put Minnow against the wall, pinning him there. Tilting his head, he added a bit of pressure to their lips to give Minnow a deeper kiss. His hand cupped Minnow's head as he kissed him, the other still around his waist.

Pulling back to get a breath from the kiss, he took a moment to gaze at Minnow before leaning down and lifting him up. Using the wall still to keep the boy from falling over he had the little healer just barely above his face, but not so far that he couldn't easily kiss him, which he did again, "You... are not going to sleep just yet," he told the blonde, his voice speaking underlying tones of what he was planning to do and the promise to go through with it. To further his intention, he dragged the healer from the wall and to the bed where he put him down and leaned over him. Once again, a small, but rare smile, came upon his face and he tangled his fingers in the boys soft hair.

"Minnow..." he called softly then kissed his neck and throat.

Minnow stumbled a bit as he was pushed backwards, his head soon thumping against the wall as he was caught between a solid object and Kanan. He didn’t mind though- it wasn’t as if it hurt. He was surprised that Kanan actually felt this way though, but he wasn’t objecting, pressing the kiss just as hard as he got it.

As Kanan released his grip a bit, Minnow took the air gratefully, panting ever so slightly. He let out a startled, short-lived laugh as Kanan picked him up and pushed him further against the wall. Wrapping his legs around the one-eyed protector’s hips, he leaned forward, settling his arms over Kanan’s shoulders and losing his fingers to his white hair. At the next kiss that he received, Minnow nipped the other’s bottom lip gently, pulling back just slightly before releasing his hold and resting his forehead against Kanan’s.

At his partner’s next words, the healer blushed once again, lips parted as short, heavy breaths slipped past. He soon found himself carried to the bed, and he was grateful for the softer material against his back. Minnow gazed up at Kanan as the man leaned over him. With the gentle caress of his hair and the intense look that filled the other protector’s eye, he shuddered.

When Kanan’s lips were planted against his throat and he heard his name uttered from the other’s lips, Minnow groaned softly, his eyes flickering shut for a moment as his fingers found the man’s white hair once more. They tangled between the locks, and his grip tightened just slightly as he pulled the other back to his own lips. After another meet between them, he breathed shakily against the other protector.

”K-kanan….” Minnow mumbled softly against him, even after the time that had passed, his breathing was still shaky at best, not to mention the perpetual blush that refused to leave his cheeks, though by now it was caused more from the heat between them rather than any residual embarrassment.

"Relax," Kanan breathed at him, though his own heart was racing and he was only just barely keeping his trembling to himself. He gave a soft laugh and decided to tease the other a little bit, "I haven't even done anything," taking a breath he was right next to Minnow's ear as he breathed in deeply. Releasing the air through his nose, it brushed past the boys hair and he moved to kiss him again.

It wasn't how he had expected to spend the rest of the night, but it was certainly better than what he'd been doing before hand. At least now his thoughts were settled and no longer in turmoil. Everything washed away as he held the little blonde healer. Minnow wouldn't know how much he was affecting Kanan either, just how much healing he actually gave the one eyed warrior. It was more than just physically.

Kanan had put himself in the training room where Amon was. He hadn't said anything, only to bow and announce his presence as usual. It had been a few days since he had slept with Minnow. For him, it seemed to make things easier and he often went to see the other Protector instead of avoiding him as he had been doing unconsciously. Though his thoughts were on the blonde, he watched his King warily. He was still not himself and he tried to think of someway to help him.

Blue light surrounded his frame and sunk into his skin as he sacrficed some of the metal unconsciously. With the increased power his air magic rippled and he was feeling everything around him again easier than a few moments before. Stretching this outwards, he touched on Minnow's presence, the servants, the knights and then out past the grounds a little ways where he felt Lord Siya's presence and his Protectors. For a moment Kanan didn't move, only thinking it natural to feel the Fire King.

However, his body went rigid a second after and he turned, "Sire," his voice was slightly clipped, "Lord Siya approaches." Without notice.... there was no message, was there? Did I miss something? Kanan thought frantically as he tried to remember if he had recieved any such letter marking the arrival of the Fire Lord. He couldn't recall any such thing. Did something happen? Did Lord Siya lose his orb as well!? he kept such frustrations and fears to himself, his face betraying none of his thoughts as he waited for Amon.

The king had simply grunted in response when Kanan had entered the room earlier, Amon keeping his attention on his practice stand in front of him. He was tired though, physically and mentally as he had been having trouble sleeping. Honestly the only sleep the king had managed was when he was too tired to do anything else.

His lack of focus meant that he was hardly achieving any combinations other than a block and a few punches. Along with that lack of focus, his technique was failing him as well. Each block and punch was done with far more force than was necessary, and sometimes he’d feel a slight shock of pain in his forearm or knuckles with the heavy blows. Each blow was met with the loud sound of wood clapping against wood when the pegs shifted in their place, or a heavy thunk as bone met wood. Regardless, he ignored the pain of it and kept with his routine, trying to find some way of settling his mind.

In his state of mind, he had actually forgotten Kanan was even within the room, so when he spoke up, especially mentioning that Siya had arrived, Amon's attention slipped for a moment as he threw a punch forwards. It failed to land corrently, as Amon had not kept his hand in line with his arm, so when the blow landed it caused his hand to catch as his arm continued forwards. It caused his wrist to akwardly bend and then hyper-extend a little bit, causing the king to shout in pain as he quickly pulled his arm to him, grimacing as he rubbed the injured wrist. Hissing in pain, he then turned to look at Kanan.

"You said Siya is approaching the castle? Did you send out a message?" He asked while heading over to the bench to grab his towel and staff. He had kept his shirt on this time around, as he ususally did when practicing his strikes. Wincing some when he grabbed the staff with his injured hand, he stopped trying to pick it up with the wrist he had hurt. It was probably only a minor sprain, as it wasn't the first time he had done something like that before. He grabbed the towel with the bum hand instead, gripping the staff in his un-injured left while wiping off his forehead. "Come on." He said while heading out of the room and down the hallway.

"Sire," Kanan frowned as he watched his King, "I will have someone summon Minnow to see to that," he said with a bit of a sigh accompanying the words. With a flick of his hand, he did just as he said he would by calling one of the attendants in the hall. Once that was finished and the servant was off to find the blonde healer, Kanan fell into step next to his King as they went down the hall to meet with the other King. All the while the air Protector was feeling a thick knot turn in his stomach.

"No, I did not send word," he answered after a moment, realizing that the man had asked a moment before but he'd been too preoccupied with Amon's having injured himself, "And we did not receive one," Kanan finished. He didn't express his worries though, figuring Amon had enough to worry about as it was. He could only hope that Siya brought some semblance of good news and nothing to further depress his King.

As the double doors to the front of the palace opened, the horses that bore the group had slowly come to a halt and Siya was dismounting rather quickly. His haste had Kanan worried and he immediately sacrificed his metals for more energy. The Fire Lord rushed up the steps to greet Amon.

"Lord Amon! I'm so sorry that I did not send word, but it couldn't wait. Are you alright? I hope I am in time," he muttered and then quickly shot off into a long speech, "I found a book containing information about the orbs! There is more than one and I couldn't find the others, but this one has enough I think to satisfy. I hope... Anyway! There is another place, another world I guess you could call it. There is a doorway to get there and it keeps our two places linked. There are people there as well! There's one group in particular though. I don't know who they are, but I think they are important. Royalty or something along those lines. They used to meet with the Kings of this land a long time ago, before the orbs were even introduced here. This land looked completely different too, it wasn't as it is now. I don't know what that means exactly, but I'm sure we could find out. And there's also-"

Kanan moved, putting himself right next to them to announce his presence. Siya halted and then blushed lightly, "Ah... s-sorry. I tend to get really excited... We should go inside. I will show you the book."

Kanan breathed a silent sigh of relief that the young Fire Lord had stopped from his ranting and glanced over to Amon, hoping that his intervention wouldn't anger him in any way. As he saw it though, this information was better expressed inside the palace walls. Glancing around he noted that no one had been around, and he hadn't felt anyone, but he would still feel settled if they were in the council room before anything else was said.

Amon sighed when Kanan mentioned grabbing Minnow about the wrist, not getting a chance to retort before Kanan sent someone off to summon the younger protector. "It's fine, Kanan. I rolled my wrist, nothing serious nor anything i haven't done before. Now what the hell is it that has Siya coming here without notice?" he said as they walked outside, seeing the younger king dismounting from his horse and rushing up to Amon.

Amon opened his mouth to answer Siya's question, but got no chance to actually say anything when Siya began ranting off. Sighing, he kept his mouth shut as he watched the the fire king go off on his rant, listening as best he could with how fast the young man was talking. Another world with a door between it and this one, and people from that side meeting this side's royalties? He cocked his head to the side, somewhat confused, about to stop the Fire King. Kanan, however, beat the Air King to it as he stepped up next to him. Thank you, Kanan.

It wasn't difficult to see the embarassment on the king's face from his little outburst, something Amon usually would have smiled at and possibly even poked fun at. Instead though, Amon just nodded his head before he turned and started inside. "Follow me then to the council room, and don't worry about not sending a message ahead of time. You found something important so no harm done." he said while walking.

Damiano was amused a bit at the Fire King's energy, but when his eyes settled on the Air King and his protector he noticed something was off about both. Strangely enough, it was almost like the two had...swapped personalities or something. It was subtle, or at least it was subtle on the protector, but he oculd see a change in their body language. One seemed a bit less tense, where as with the king, if he hadn't been carrying that staff, then Damiano would have guessed it somehow got shoved up his ass with how tense he seemed. He said nothing though as he dismounted and followed his king, remaining close behind while remaining wary. He had no idea if that individual that had attacked them before would show up again, so he refused to be caught off guard.

Siya nodded vigerously, "Yes, sorry about that," he continued and followed after them into the halls of the palace. He fell into step beside Amon, his eyes glancing up to the taller man every now and then. Kanan took the other side as he strode just a bit ahead of them, leading them down to the council room. Kanan kept his eye out for Minnow as well as on the two Kings behind him. Siya seemed as if he couldnt' wait to start speaking again and Amon... well Amon was as he had been for the past several days. His gaze softened a bit, the familiar frown that was starting to grace his lips often came back again.

The one eyed Protector opened the doors for them and stepped aside to allow them entrance. Once they were all there, he glanced around as well as felt the area for anyone that wasn't supposed to be there. Once satisfied, he closed the doors and stood next to them, placing himself there with both hands behind his back, legs spread slightly for balance and comfort. He settled there as the Kings seated themselves.

Siya took a rather large book from the long haired protector, Reynard, and set it in front of Amon. Opening it, he showed the air King what he had been talking about, "Look, here is the map of Dhamear. This is what it looked like before. This is the door that I was talking of. This section talks about who used to come through that door and meet with us," he turned the page, "This is the symbol that I think belongs to some group, but I can't read this section because it's... as you can see," he sighed slightly, "eaten through or the language has changed, I can't tell which. This section is about the orbs themselves, most of this we already know, except the fact that they aren't originally from here."

Siya tapped the book with his finger gently and shook his head, "I just... how the hell did we lose all of this?"

Amon leaned his staff against his chair as he sat down while Damiano choose to move to the otherside of the doorway that Kanan had taken. The foreigner's stance was far mroe relaxed though as he unslung his bow and set it next to him before crossing his arms and leaning back against the wall while watching around.

The Air King looked over the book, leaning forwards some to get a better look as he listened once again to Siya speak about its contents. "The orbs are not from here? Then how did they end up here?" He wasn't really asking the Fire King specifically, more so was just asking in general. This was a lot of information to swallow though. If the orbs are not from here, and are from the otherside, then why are they here? And Siya was right, how did this all just up and vanish? Maybe the library here had information on this, as Amon had never actually searched it all that much. "Well Siya, you could always search my library for more on this," He said while looking at him, "Maybe you'll find more in there. As to why it might have vanished, I really don't have an answer for you."

Damiano spoke up now at the mention of this, "Well, relationships could have deteriorated. Something happened, maybe it could have been the theft of the orbs by the kings here. So things go south, people say some nasty things about each other, and then all evidence of that other place is removed to prevent future generations from contacting them? Just a hunch really."

Siya tapped his lip as he looked up to listen to his protector. Everything Damiano said made sense and were very plausible. He turned his gaze back down to the book and crossed his arms as he stood next to Amon, "That's true. I could see something like that happening very easily. If the orbs didn't belong here to begin with... than maybe that person... maybe he was right in saying that it isn't ours," Siya said softly.

"Doesn't give him the right to try to kill us," Kanan said suddenly, his gaze growing dark as he watched Siya. He must have realized how he had spoken because he immediately dropped to his formal kneeling position and quickly apologized.

Siya looked shocked at first but then shook his head, "U...Uh... no, it's okay. You're right, after all. But I don't think the one who attacked me while we were visiting wanted to kill me. Now, the other one... he definitely wanted to, and he almost succeeded," Siya absently brushed at his side at the memory and frowned a bit, "I think there are two different people we are dealing with. Of course, they're both going about this the wrong way. I just don't know which one to trust. If any of them at all."

Amon listened to Siya's protector, nodding his own head in agreement. However Siya's mention of any of their attackers being right to try and take the orb sent a surge of rare anger through the air king. His hands tightened into fists reflexively, relaxing a few moments later as he listened to Kanan pipe up. Siya was right about Kanan having no need to apologize, as Kanan was certaintly right about them having no cause to kill the kings regardless.

"Guess you're the lucky one then, huh Siya? Because both times I've been attacked they wanted to kill me, and one of them killed plenty of my servants during his last visit. I'm surprised he didn't just kill me when he took my orb." He then turned to look at Siya better, "Didn't really get a chance to tell you as you just, kinda showed up suddenly then threw this information at us. So based on my experiences, none of them are able to be trusted and none of them have given me a reason to trust them cause one stabbed me with a spear while the other...well I think I already made it clear what the other one did." He said keeping his eyes on the Fire King.

Damiano, was caught off guard a little before he slowly looked down at the ground. They were attacked? And Amon's orb was stolen? He cast a glance at the air protector on the otherside of the doorway, raising an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to say something before looking back ahead, closing his mouth and shutting himself up before he said anything stupid.

"Lucky?" Siya returned, though he felt taken aback at the sudden outburst from Amon. His eyes grew wide at the information. He frowned as he watched the other, his heart skipping a beat as he tried to keep up. Stolen.... the orb is gone, his eyes fell to the floor where he stared for some time. Silence fell in the council room.

"Lord Amon," his voice was soft, barely a whisper as he clenched his fists, "My sincerest apologies. I... was naive in my decision. Please forgive me for being insincere. If you would allow it, I wish to offer my help, assistance and..." he faultered for a bit as he was about to offer protection but he didn't want to insult the man, "anything else you wish from myself and my Protectors. I... know this may be a lot to ask, but if we could impede upon your hospitality but for a little longer?"

Amon looked back at the book in front of him as he listened to Siya begin apologizing to him, Amon scowling. Again, he was mad at himself for talking in such a manner rather than at the Fire King himself. Once Siya was finished, Amon took a deep breath to try and settle himself enough to talk in a decent tone as he looked back at him. "It's fine, Lord Siya. There was no way of you knowing, so I can't really call you inscincere. As for helping me, I honestly look at it as all of us helping each-other, seeing as how these people want to get at all of us." he then moved some so he was looking at the book again, resting an elbow on the table and his chin in his palm as he looked over it.

"We can all help each-other, so there will be no issues with you remaining here if you wish too. Frankly it's preferred, as you seem to have a much better lead than I ever have regarding this whole mess. I'll have your rooms prepared as soon as I can, and you may use the library as much as you wish. We should inform Lord Taki as well, I can have a message written and dispatched tonight for him." He said while keeping an eye on the book in front of him.

"Anything else to tell me right now? Or should we get to work?" he asked, still looknig at the book.

Siya shook his head, "Nothing at the moment. As I said, this is the only book in my possession. I would like to get started as soon as possible if that's alright with you? I would like to find that book and do more research. I would also like to see if you have anything that would translate this section here," his finger landed on the portion where it talked about the door. At least he figured it talked about the door as some of it was in their language a page before. Shaking his head a bit he put on hand on his hip.

"Could you point me to where the library-"

Kanan moved suddenly, cutting off Siya as he wasn't quite used to the silent protector doing such sudden things, "Sire," he said, his voice slightly concerned, "Someone is here."

"Someone?" Siya asked, heart jumping to his throat.

Kanan looked over to the young Fire Lord and nodded. With a sigh and roll of his eyes Siya thought, Okay, that didn't exactly answer my question, but sure. "Is it... bad?" Siya pressed.

Kanan paused for a moment, seemingly trying to address that question. He shifted slightly as he looked between Amon and Siya, "No."

He released a sigh and leaned on the table, "Alright. I hope you don't mind, but I'm sure we can find the library. I guess you have someone to attend to."

Amon closed his eyes, honestly annoyed with Kanan's interruption of Lord Siya as he had been talking. He opened his eyes, looking at Siya. "Ask one of the servants, they'll be able to show you Lord Siya." He then turned and looked at Kanan, "Who is it, Kanan?" he asked, not really trying to hide his frustration this time.

Siya nodded slightly and looked to Reynard and Damiano, "Thank you, Lord Amon," he said simply and with a nod of his head to both men, he headed for the door, leaving the book with the air King.

Once they were out of the room, Kanan looked over to his King and noted with a slight inward wince, that the man was irritated. He took a moment to try to figure out who it was that had come, but he didn't know. He couldn't pinpoint their aura to anyone that frequented the castle or any nobles that Amon had dealt with in the past. He frowned and shook his head, "I'm sorry. I'm not sure. But they are harrassing a few of our servants... Minnow is there." That he could feel from the three that were trying to tell the man that Amon was busy. This person wasn't having any of it though. Just the thought that Minnow was being hassled made Kanan a slight bit angry.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed, Minnow raised his hands in attempts to calm the four men that doggedly insisted on seeing the king right away. ”The King really mustn’t be bothered when in a meeting unless the issue of grave importance….” After he had been summoned to see to Amon’s sprain, he wasn’t able to make it very far before the group of four practically assaulted him out of nowhere.

He was holding a small pack of ice in his hand, which he was ever so aware of its inevitable melting.

Amon just slammed the book shut in fornt of him, scooping up his staff in his good hand before he turned and left for the doorway. "Lead the way, Kanan." he simply said.

Kanan cursed to himself silently and opened the door so that they could leave. He did as he was told without question. Leading them down the halls to where the presence had occured and pressed further into the castle halls, they rounded a corner near the front of the palace and there he spotted Minnow trying to keep these four strangers from going any further. At his approach as well as Amon's, the other servants bowed and stepped away to continue their own duties. Kanan's eye narrowed as he gazed at the four of them.

The taller one looked up from Minnow who he had been glowering at with a sneer on his face that put Kanan in a very bad mood. His steps softened even more as his heart slowed just a bit and an icy cold air drew about him. The tall, dark skinned male crossed his arms over his chest as he gazed at the two of them. He grinned then as they got close enough.

"Well. Seem's like he ain't that busy, now is he, little squirt. Not so nice to be lyin' now is it?"

"Your business?" Kanan snapped.

The man shifted his gaze from Minnow to Amon and then down to him. A light sparked in his dark eyes as he shifted his weight around and eyed the pale Protector, his grin seemingly growing wider, "Been a while. How's the eye, Kanan?"

Kanan sucked in a deep breath of shock, his gaze growing wide for half a second before he narrowed it and stepped in front of Amon. His sword rang as he withdrew it, one hand up against Amon's chest to keep him back as the other held up his sword.

"Ah, now now, that's not a way to greet an old friend now is it? Took me forever to find you. And, boy, let me tell you. What a price you have on your head. So, how'd you end up with a fancy job such as this, eh? Protectin' a King?" his gaze went to Amon briefly, "A shitty job, don'tcha think?"

Amon looked over each and every one of them as he approached, stopping not far from them while keeping his gaze set on the largest of them who spoke first. The king kept his eyes on him, ignoring his jabs at Minnow. He cast a glance to Kanan as he spoke, before back at the man. However, the moment he looked back he felt Kanan's hand on him as the protector stepped forwards with his sword drawn. Narrowing his eyes some, he watched his protector before looking up at the man who continued to speak.

Once a pause had been reached, Amon grabbed hold of Kanan's hand and removed it from his chest, stepping back up next to Kanan. "So, how about, instead of leaving me out of the loop, I get a little introduction to these folks, Kanan?" Amon never removed his eyes from the tall man though. "And hopefully we can get this buisness solved quickly because I have things I need to do."

Minnow returned the harsh words with a meek shrug, simply ignoring them. He was shocked, however, to learn that these men knew Kanan, and that… Kanan had a bounty? Minnow was pretty easy-going when it came to himself, but when the man presumed to have the higher authority, an unimpressed look filled his features.

The little sack of ice he held in his hand was opened, and the contents were dumped down the back of the man’s shirt. ”Didn’t your mother ever teach you to bow when in the presence of a king?” His tone was dry and otherwise blank, and he simply walked to stand at Amon’s empty side.

The little healer was also unimpressed by the lack of tact Amon held towards the situation. Not only did he dislike that he was overlooking Kanan so much, but it was also foolish to correct a proper reaction, especially in front of strangers.

Kanan's chest seemed to sieze up as Amon removed himself from behind Kanan and then asked to be introduced to these men. His sword trembled slightly as he held it there. His heart further lurched into his throat as Minnow promptly dropped his icebag down the back of the man's shirt. The man winced and made to lash out at Minnow, but the smaller Protector had already moved to Amon's side. Just the slight movement along made Kanan twitch briefly as he was so very close to just thrusting the damned blade through the man's throat.

With a bit of a grin to compensate for his slight spike of rage, the tall, dark skinned man straightened. Reaching out he put the tip of his fingers against Kanan's sword and pushed it down, "Yes. I think it is proper to introduce me, Kanan. Surely you remember don't you? I mean. I did give you life didn't I? Saved you from the darkness of death so many years ago. You owe me something don't you?"

"I don't owe you anything," he snapped, his mind reeling. A past he'd thought he'd forgotten came swirling back at him and for all of his avoidance to speak a word of it to his King, it was suddenly slapped in front of Amon's face.

"You owe me somethin', boy. I took time to find ya, and so here I am. Oh and I brought someone with me, a couple of someone's," he stepped aside to allow Kanan to see the other three that were with him. One he hardly recognized but couldn't have forgotten if he even wanted to. After all, it wasn't all that long ago, a handful of years perhaps? Maybe more... he wasn't sure. The other one he didn't recognize at all, he had cuffs over his wrists though, something that Kanan had failed to notice.

"Ah, this be your old lover, don'tcha remember? Oh and this one," the man put his hand on the other's shoulder, the one that was cuffed up, "He gave you that strange eye you cover up. I caught him for ya. Just so he could... fix ya up, Kanan. So. How bout that introduction? You know, you never was free from the group. I hadn't consented. I think ya know what that means."

Kanan couldn't breathe, he couldn't move and he couldn't find his voice. The sword trembled and finally slipped out of his grip. It clattered to the floor as he stood there staring at the man who had used some magic to curse his eye, and the other that had shoved a blade in his back to try to kill him while they were on a mission together.

Minnow was actually pretty proud of himself- he kept an uninterested, straight face throughout the entire introduction, even though his heart was wrenched violently. A soft- though bitter- laugh did pass his lips though after the tall man had finished. His lover? Minnow couldn’t help but feel the betrayal that clawed at his insides. The poor boy couldn’t seem to find a break whenever it came to love. In fact, he had half a mind that Kanan had somehow timed this, how else could such disaster strike so soon after another? Fate was a cruel mistress.

”I’m going to get more ice.” His tone was carefully monitored, and with a light shrug, Minnow managed a rather graceful exit, turning right at the far hall and moving through a few others before his emotions finally managed to crack through.

But the healer was quick to scold himself, something serious was obviously going on, and he had other things to tend to asides from the tears that threatened to spill over, reminding him once again how frail he was. In any case, he figured Kanan would prefer to deal with his past without him present to disturb everything.

While he had said that he would go and retrieve more ice, he had no real intention of doing so any time soon.

Amon narrowed his eyes, listening intently to every word that this man said and who these people were. A scowl began to form on his face, and he turned his head some as he heard Minnow mention going to grab some more ice before turning his head back to the group before him. Then he heard the sound of a sword clatter to the ground, drawing his attention immediattly to Kanan who looked utterly lost and unsure of how to react. Amon slowly looked back ahead, tapping his staff on the ground hard to draw their attention to the king.

"If you are here to collect the bounty on my protector's head, then you harden yourselves for disappointment and leave. If you have no business with me, then you can leave. If you brought this man here to," Amon paused as he looked at Kanan then back to the person in front of him. "to fix Kanan's eyes, then you can leave him here and you can leave my castle. I'm in no mood for pointless interruptions or having my protector taken away. So what is it?"

Kanan managed to swallow and then breathe afterwards. Amon's words were like an anchor. He was sure his King would ask plenty of questions later, ones that he didn't want to talk about but would have to. Then there was Minnow. He had heard the other Protectors call to leave for more ice. He had to speak to him as well. The mention of Kanan's 'lover' probably wasn't the best thing for the poor little healer to hear.

The man tilted his head a bit, his cocky grin never fading, "Ah well... my deepest apologies, your Highness. But you see, I can't just do that. He," the man's fingers pointed at Kanan, "Is mine. He has always been mine since day one. He lived as a mercenary and he will die as one. It's the creed he swore to and to break it... well," he made a noise and released his pent up breath as he leaned heavily against the man who had ruined Kanan's eye, "That means death. So. My business is very simple. You see, this man here, he is... special. He's from a different place and he's what I like to call a Mage. Here, let me show you what I mean," tapping the man's shoulder he said something in a different language and the Mage smiled. It was a smile that made Kanan feel like he was going to be sick.

The cuffs shifted slightly and his finger started to twirl in a small circle. At first, nothing happened but then Kanan's eye under the patch burned.. He winced, one hand reaching up to cover the eye. Following that, he dropped to one knee with a yell. Blood slowly trickled down from underneath the patch.

"So. His head, his eye. Life or death, mister King? What's it gonna be?"

Amon's scowl deepened, his gaze hardening as he locked eyes with the man. He only turned his head when he heard Kanan yell, turning to see his protector drop to a knee as blood trickled from beneath his eyepatch. The king's eyes widened as he watched Kanan suffer from the pain, almost like he was back at the village watching a friend suffer from an injury by some bandit's attack. Amon simply mouthed the word "no", watching Kanan before the king's face suddenly went completely neutral, without a bit of emotion showing on it as he slowly turned his head back to the person standing in front of him.

He would not let them have Kanan, not without killing Amon first. As he spoke, his voice was as neutral as his expression, no inflection to show anger, nor for happiness, just simple and close to monotone. "For over two decades, I have listened to people tell me that 'this is their's', or 'that belongs to me' and each time I've heard that said, it was always by someone who simply believed they had such a right because they had strength. I grew up watching bandits raid my small village, a place in the middle of nowhere with almost nothing worth while in it, be raided and pillaged because the bandits believed everything there 'belonged' to them." The king's only movement was the slight motion of his right foot shifting backwards, Amon moving his weight onto it for "comfort".

"People I knew and loved, killed by those bandits. The only woman I have loved killed by them as well, and then it was because we were there to help that village. It's why I train, because I got tired of it all. And those bandits learned something important, a lesson I taught them." His next movement was him suddenly pushing off of his right foot, launching himself forwards into the tall man that stood next to the mage. Amon ignored the pain of his wrist as he grabbed the man, with one hand at the man's shoulder and the other grabbing just below his ribcage on the opposite side, using his left foot that was forward to simply block the tall man's back foot to prevent him from stepping back to catch himself. With that grip, he then pulled on the man's shoulder while pushing on his side to drive the man backwards over Amon's foot and towards the mage.

With that quick movement, Amon hadn't even set his staff down, just letting it slowly tip over till it clattered on the ground next to Kanan's sword. Once he finished the trip/throw, Amon adopted his fighting stance, eyes on all of the men as he spoke. This time though, his voice had a tone and it was one filled with anger, "They learned what happens when you push someone who can hit harder than they can. And it's a lesson they get to appreciate for the short time before I put them down."

Kanan ground his teeth as he knelt there trying to get past the pain in his skull. The blood had dripped down to the floor between his fingers and his other eye wasn't doing all that great in the vision department. He could hardly focus. But he heard Amon's voice. Something had made him angry. It was a tone that he hadn't heard before, but didn't really wish to hear again. Someone was moved and a body hit the floor just as the King's staff bounced against the stone floor next to Kanan's sword.

Slowly looking up he witnessed his King having thrown down the mercenary and the mage stumbling away rapidly. With his broken concentration, Kanan's eyes stopped feeling as if it were being stabbed, though the pain lingered behind. He pushed himself up to his feet and with a swipe of his hand through the air, he unleashed a torrent of magic at the group, careful not to hit his King. A kind of war cry fell from his lips as he did so, the air roaring as his wind blades cut through the small group.

The man whom he had once thought to be in love with narrowly avoided the attack and lunged at Kanan while the Mage turned his attention to Amon. The cuffs broke, much to the young Protectors startlement and he openly weaved his hands. Caught between dealing with the charging mercenary with a blade leveled for him and protecting his King from a strike of powerful magic, he paused for a second. Grinding his teeth, he turned and allowed the boy to barrel into him, his hands wrapping around the knife that he carried as he slammed his knee into the others' stomach, making him double over and cough hard.

"Sire!" He shouted as he wrenched the blade from the boy's grip. Amon was in the way and the Mage wasn't waiting. He moved as he prepared to throw the blade in his hand, his wind magic swirling around his hand and the knife. Anger made his magic pull harder, he sacrficed more than he probably should have but he didn't care at the moment. Hurling the blade he continued after Amon to make sure the man was out of the way, his hand shifting the air around the King as added incentive.

Despite his earlier decision to put off on the ice, Minnow had backtracked and actually picked it up, already deciding to put to rest his emotions and tend to his King. Besides, it was probably foolish for him to leave Kanan and Amon alone with four strangers. With a light sigh, he retraced his steps back to the halls.

He opened his mouth as he turned the corner, intending to announce himself, when he was immediately silenced by what he saw. Battle… of course. Minnow always made a large sacrifice every morning, but with what he saw, a few of the door handles and a few pots rattled as he sacrificed their metal.

With a very condensed breath of air, his fingers clenched into his palm, and when he lifted his hand, the floor moved with it as well. It shook and creaked angrily around the feet of the offenders, and the floor shot up in one place to stop the oncoming attack of a third man. The poor body slammed straight into it at a pretty fast speed, and the healer lifted his index finger backwards, which caused the rock to shudder before collapsing into large chunks on top of the intruder.

As soon as Amon was moved, precarious rock formations jutted out of the floor, discouraging any other attempts to run at any of them, lest they trip and break something.

Amon did not look at Kanan, even as he was told to move. Of course he was going to move, specifically move towards the mage to attack him before he oculd cast whatever he was planning to, but then he felt a gust of wind push him over to the side and out of the path of the mage, causing Amon to scowl some. It was followed by the floor becoming jagged as rocks burst forth from it. Amon was curious, so with a quick glance back to see Minnow who had also joined the fight. He then turned his head forwards again, looking for the leader of this small group of mercenaries. Amon was not going to relent now, this man had finally pushed the Air King far enough and he wanted him to know just what he had messed with.

Spotting the man, who looked like he was recovering from not only being knocked down but also being battered around by the rocks jutting up from the floor, Amon quickly sprinted right towards him. His movement forward was slowed a little as he had to be careful to not hurt himself on the jagged floor, but he reached the individual quickly, jumping off a piece of rock and towards the man, hoping to tackle the man to the ground and pummel him senseless.

The Mage turned as Kanan threw the blade. He moved, unable to create a new spell as he was in the midst of one already and the weapon cut open the top of his shoulder. Instead of aiming for Amon like he'd planned, he unleashed the wave of power at Kanan. The one eyed protector shot his arm upwards, raising up a heavy torrent of air between himself and the power that rushed at him. It may have dulled the attack, but it didn't stop it. Kanan stumbled and the youth that he'd knocked down came up behind him.

Locking his arms around Kanan's to hold him in place, the gave a sharp growl of anger as he pulled against the boys hold. Dropping to one knee, Kanan bent forward, throwing his ex-lover off balance and tossing him forward over his shoulder. The boy hit the floor and Kanan grabbed him roughly by the shirt. Dragging him up to his feet, the Protector threw him backwards with another wave of his wind blades. They tore through the air and cut up the mercenary boy.

Reaching down for his sword, he quickly glanced between the mage and the other two mercenaries who were facing him, the one having slowly recovered from being tripped and rained on by rocks. Rocks... Kanan took a quick glance around as the only other person he knew of that could use earth magic right then was Minnow. He spotted the blonde soon after and wasn't sure if he was happy to see him or not.

On the other side, the mercenary leader was taken by surprise as Amon leapt seemingly out of nowhere at him. He was hit, hard, as the King barreled into him and they both tumbled to the ground. The dark skinned mercenary grinned up at Amon, "Nice speech there, mister King. You and that blood stained boy fit nicely together," he spat out and shoved his fist up at Amon's stomach as he took hit after hit from the enraged Air King, "He's a killer you know!" he hollered very loudly.

Amon paid no attention to the man's words, and he only grunted as he felt a fist connect with his stomach. Fortunately, being in the position he was in meant that the mercenary's blow did not have too much force; that and with Amon as he was he hardly registered the blow. Honestly, he had forgotten his hurting wrist with the amount of adrenaline that was pumping through his system. Landing one more blow, he then brought his head up to quickly assess what was happening. Kanan was up with his sword in hand and the one labelled as his ex-lover was down at the end of the hallway, the man who had been buried in rocks by Minnow was recovering from his attack, and the mage was probably preparing for another attack.

Amon made the decision that it was the mage who needed to be finished first, as he posed the greatest threat in Amon's eyes. giving one more parting punch to the mercenary, Amon quickly sprinted right towards the mage being careful of the floor once more. Once there, he immediately ran into the mage and shoved him up against a wall, then stepping back to give him room to unleash a volley of punches aimed to overwhelm the man. He threw in stomp kicks aimed at the man's knees and thighs to also disrupt his stance while continuing with the punches to his mid-section and head.

Rolling on the ground slightly, the dark skinned mercenary was dazed to say the least. He laughed to himself though as he lay there. He picked himself up slowly, stumbling as he made his way to the opposite wall to watch Amon take on the Mage. He grinned through his fingers that were covering his bloodied face.

The Mage startled as he was taken by surprise. Amon slammed him against the wall and the spell he'd been working on faded out. He had been close to launching it at Kanan, but with the interruption, he couldn't just make another one so quickly, at least one that wasn't as strong. His knees buckled and he dropped to the floor. The Mage was overwhelmed rather quickly. Perhaps too quickly as he knelt there under the assault. After a moment, he twisted around sharply, his fingers reaching up to touch Amon's abdomen with an intense amount of pressure to throw the man away from him.

Kanan, armed now, flipped his sword around a bit before turning into a relaxed, but ready stance. He waited for the other boy to come at him, his gaze shifting slowly between his ex-lover and the other mercenary. His head slowly tilted downwards, his pale blue gaze narrowing at the boy across from him. The ex rushed him and Kanan moved, lifting his sword rapidly and knocking the boy's out of his hand in one smooth motion. Coming back down, he pulled the blade back and ran it straight through the other.

The mage quickly withered under the assault from Amon, just as he had hoped. Even when he fell to the ground, Amon still did not stop as he needed to make sure that he wasn't just hurt, but out of this fight. He continued to beat on him, now having an easier time as the man was down; however Amon was far to wrapped up in his anger that he was too slow, or just didn't care, to block the man's hand as he reached up to Amon's stomach. It was then that he felt something hit into his stomach, launching the king backwards and causing him to smack against the opposite wall. He then fell to the floor almost just as hard, coughing and hacking as the wind had been knocked from his lungs.

Pushing himself up onto his elbows, he could see black at the edge of his vision, but he refused to black out now. Spitting some blood onto the floor, the king slowly pushed himself onto his feet and straight back towards the mage, stumbling slightly as his balance was still off a tad bit from the force of hitting the wall. "The only way I'm stopping is if I'm dead...!" he shouted while rushing the mage again.

Kanan gripped the boy's shoulder tightly for a moment before he withdrew his heavy blade and let him fall to the floor. Taking a moment, he shut off all emotion. Turning to the other mercenary who eyed him carefully after watching Kanan quite easily dispatch his ex-lover, he stepped back as Kanan stepped towards him. With a burst of air, Kanan rushed the other mercenary who let out a cry as the protector got in close and slammed his weapon into his ribcage.

He caught sight of his King hitting the wall then and falling to the floor. The sight only served to curdle the cold feeling that pulsed through his chest. Amon got to his feet, stumbled slightly and hollered something that Kanan paid no heed to.Wrenching his weapon free, he turned and in another burst of air, streaked past his King with his sword raised and rushed the mage. He only got so close as the man glowered at him and raised both hands. The air between them rippled as his blade tip sang against the magic that kept him from running through the other.

The Mage disappeared and Kanan's forward momentum slammed him into the wall before he could stop. Turning around, he lifted the weapon again only to drop it immediately as his eye stung painfully. The Mage waved his finger around as he was now standing next to the other mercenary, the one who used to be in charge of Kanan's every move. With a grin the man looked between Amon and the white haired protector.

"Well... seems you've chosen death," the dark skinned mercenary cooed and the pair faded from sight almost like dust being scattered by a light wind. Kanan winced as he leaned against the wall, one hand covering the eye that bled again from under the patch. He turned to look over to Amon and quickly worked his way to his King.

"Sire," he called out gently.

Amon was almost to the mage, only barely noticing Kanan who had been stopped mid-lunge towards the mage, when he saw the mage, with a wave of his hands, vanish. It caused Kanan to smack into the wall, Amon following not far behind as he stumbled into it. Swearing out loud, he then quickly turned around to look for where he went, stumbling a bit as his equilibrium was still out of whack. Catching himself on the wall, he then turned enough to look at the mercenary leader who was standing next to the mage.

Amon sneered as the man spoke, the king pushing himself off the wall to continue his attack on them, but a moment later he watched as they faded away like dust in the wind. Amon stumbled to a stop, looking around frantically for them, "Run then! You coward, I welcome you to try and kill me!!" He screamed, not caring if they were still even here. They did not reappear, and after a few moment Amon finally let out a heavy exhale and just slumped to his knees, finally feeling the fatigue and pain of the fight. He let his head and arms hang, feeling the severe pain that was now in his previously sprained wrist. It was now a terrible black and blue, and Amon's knuckles were skinned and cut from the stress they had been put under.

His head also was throbbing, Amon grimacing as he sat there. Then he heard Kanan's voice, causing him to lift his head and look at the protector. He stared at him, watching for a moment before a faint smile formed on the king's lips. "Thank goodness. he said between heavy breaths. He then let his head droop again, just falling backwards until he was sitting down. He kept looking at Kanan, "Wasn't going to just let them take you, Kanan. Not without going through me first." he said, whiping the blood from his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt.

Kanan felt surprise clearly written on his face. He stared at his King, unsure of what to say or even what to do. He dropped to the floor, kneeling with his fist hitting the ground, bloodied and slightly trembling. Bowing his head, he grit his teeth and gave a slight nod before he found his voice strong enough to not betray emotion, "Sire." Taking a deep breath he turned his head just a bit to where Minnow was, with a slight nod directed towards Amon he silently portrayed his order to tend to the King who was panting on the floor.

He remained kneeling though and did not move, "Forgive me," he said the fingers of his free hand over his knee curling into a tight fist. He hadn't been expecting that. Why they were even there was a mystery to him, it nagged at him. His mercenary 'leader' had wanted him dead, so to come calling for him for some random reason... Kanan couldn't figure it out. He didn't really want to think about it, or piece it together anyway.

Amon watched Kanan kneel down in front of him, right into his usual bowing position. Amon shook his head, reaching up to grab hold of the top of Kanan's head. He then moved Kanan's head so that they were looking at each-other. "Kanan, I don't care what you did, or what you've done. Fuck man, i'm just glad you're ok, you and Minnow. I'm tired of losing people, so I'm not gonna let that happen so long as I have the ability to do so. We kicked their ass now, we'll kick their ass again when they show themselves. That I can promise you." he said with a grin, teeth stained slightly from a lightly bleeding mouth. He then pulled Kanan into him, into a sloppy hug with his non-injured arm.

It felt good to smile and laugh, as it felt like a lot of the weight that he had been feeling was lifted. Sure, there was now a new group of people after them, but knowing that he had been able to protect those who were not only his subjects, but were also close to him made Amon feel good. He hadn't been lying, as he was tired of seeing people die. He had twenty years of his life been him fighting for his life, watching the people around him slowly pass away as they each were killed off during one fight or another. He no longer had any of his biological family left, and worst yet he had lost the love of his life Alia in all this fighting. Each fight he had been in, someone died, but not this time. This time he had managed to prevent anyone from dying.

Amon couldn't help but sniffle a little as he shed a tear, keeping hold of Kanan as he did so. He was sure that the protector was feeling quite akward now, considering the Air King had never really acted like this before. That didn't matter to Amon though, he was just too lost in his own joy to really care how akward the one-eyed protector was feeling. Hell, Amon wanted to drag Minnow into this hug as well but the blonde was out of reach and Amon really didn't want to move at this point.

At least one of them wasn't out of breath. With a light sigh of relief, Minnow ran a hand through his bangs before gazing at the two of them. Not only was that entire experience strange, but now there was yet another group after them. But they were weak. Next time they came, they would be ready for them.

The blonde healer really needed to remember to carry some metal around with him, as well as sacrifice more during the mornings. As he neared his King and fellow protector, a light grimace filled his features along with irritation. As he looked upon Amon's wrist to see it angrily bruised with purple and blue patches, the younger protector rolled his eyes lightly.

He threw the pack of ice at the King's head. "How many times are you going to insist on fighting injured!? It makes my job a pain." Minnow's tone wasn't really mad, more exasperated then anything else as he came to a stop in front of them. Kneeling, he picked the little pouch of ice up once more, and grabbed Amon's injured wrist, pulling it closer towards him and pressing the ice against it firmly.

At his laugh, however, Minnow couldn't help his facial features from relaxing and straightening out into a happy look as well. It was good to hear his King laughing again.

Amon blinked and lifted his head up when he felt something hard hit it, saying a quiet "Ow..." while rubbing his head. He had yet to let go of Kanan, and then he could see Minnow grabbing his injured wirst to put ice to it. Amon couldn't help but grin more, because the moment the boy was in reach he immediately reached out, grabbing hold of Minnow's own wrist and pulled the boy towards him. He immediately wrapped his arm around Minnow, pulling him into the hug with a grin. "I like to keep you on your toes my little fishie, what can I say?!" He said, trying to stop himself from just crying like a baby. It'd been a long time since the king felt this emotional, but at least it was because he was happy rather than sad.

Kanan felt fingers in his hair that pulled his head up slightly. It didn't hurt, but he was unable to look down now as he had been. He was shocked to see Amon grin at him and then the next thing he knew he was pulled forward out of his kneeling position and fell against his King as the man embraced him. He froze. Shocked, embarrassed and unsure of what to do he sort of just knelt there, most of his weight having been shifted forward onto Amon. As he continued to be held, he tried to say something but couldn't find the words and then something hit the floor next to them followed by Minnow's voice. Shifting a bit, he was able to look up at the blonde who had flung the ice at Amon. Kanan almost almost laughed.

As Minnow got close, he too was suddenly pulled into the embrace. For the little healer, being hugged probably wasn't a big deal, especially by their King, but for Kanan it was a different experience as he didn't really allow others to touch him so freely, especially.... hugging. Minnow was a different story of course, but Kanan put that out of his mind quickly as it was sure to further embarass him.

He was happy that Amon wasn't in his slump anymore, and had finally laughed and smiled, something that Kanan was used to, however... the hug was getting a bit awkward for him. He moved slightly, "S-sire..." he muttered softly, trying to free himself to regain some of his lost diginity.

Amon wasn't really sure how long that hug lasted for, but when he heard Kanan mutter something he finally pulled back, chuckling again as he did. "Sorry bud," He began while letting go of the two. As he did so he took the ice pack from Minnow and placed it against his hurt wrist, looking at Kanan as he continued, "Couldn't help myself. We should probably go see how the Fire King is doing, make sure he hasn't found himself caught up in any bad situations himself." He then stood up, stretching out his back some while keeping the ice against his wrist.

Kanan gave a slight nod as he stood up and awkwardly tried not to look as if he'd just been embarrassed beyond belief. He wondered briefly if they really should go right then. Both he and the King were rather roughed up, Kanan still had blood covering his hands and streaked his face from under the patch. Maybe they should let Minnow clean them both up first before seeing the Fire Lord. He could already see the scene playing out as they walked into the library looking as they did.

"Sire...allow Minnow to work first," he said simply. They could sit in the council room if need be. After that, then they would see about Lord Siya.

Amon looked at Kanan, then at himself noticing the extent that the two were injured. He then looked up at Kanan, giving a sheepish grin. "Ok, so maybe just this once I'll relax and let Minnow do his work..."

As Minnow was pulled into the hug, he nearly toppled on top of the two. He let out a light laugh, though he flashed Amon a half-hearted glare. It wasn’t the most comfortable hug that was for sure, and his Achilles tendon strained as his weight was shifted onto the King while still crouching, as well as his arm being stretched in an awkward position.

Letting out a huff of breath, Minnow flicked Amon’s forehead with a playfully sour expression, but allowed himself to remain in the grip until his King finally released him. As the Air King suggested checking up on the Fire King and his protectors, Minnow practically slapped him upside the head. Luckily, he didn’t have to explain as Kanan beat him to it, and with an exaggerated sigh and a subtle smile, he called for one of the servants to grab a few washcloths and his small pouch of supplies.

Once they returned, he made quick work of cleaning the other two up and bandaging the cuts and gashes. When it came to Kanan, Minnow only shifted his eye patch enough to wipe away the blood that had dried there.

After he was done, he stood and wiped his fingers. ”There. Let’s go check up on the others.”

Siya, Reynard, Damiano

Siya moved down the hall with a heavy sigh, "I can't believe I was stupid enough to just ignore that... You both probably noticed, didn't you?" he asked his two protectors as he walked quickly following after the first servant he had pulled aside to direct them to the Library. He shook his head in frustration, "So dense sometimes. It was obvious something was wrong wasn't it?" he continued to berate himself as they walked, a frown on his lips and frustration clawing at his chest. How was he going to apologize to the King properly? He heaved a heavy sigh.

The servant bowed as she motioned to a door that she had stopped at, "Here you are, m'lord," she said and then went back down the hall to resume her own duties. Siya nodded to her quickly and opened it. What he walked into had his breath stolen. He gazed at the shelves of books with wide eyes. It was just slightly larger than his own library and it seemed to hold more books than his. He took a deep breath and looked from one end to the other. After a moment, he nodded as if to get himself ready for such an endeavor.

"Alright... wow.... Okay, uh," he paused briefly. Glancing to both his Protectors he shrugged slightly, "I honestly don't know what to tell you to look for. Something old?" he scoffed at that and blushed a bit. Something old... wow, amazing description... he sighed, "Sorry... but yeah. That's all I've got."

"I wouldn't dwell on it, Lord Siya." Of course the realization that Lord Amon's orb had been stolen was disconcerting and, indeed, disturbing for multiple reasons, but none of them had any way of knowing that tidbit of news at a glance or even after a conversation. The King seemed upset and hurt on a level that dwelled somewhere between physical and emotional pain, but even given what they knew now, there wasn't a physical difference apart from how the King presented himself that could have told them anything. Siya had insisted on making their visit unannounced and had been far too excitable upon their arrival, tripping over his own words in his haste to throw as much information out at the other King as he could in the course of a minute. Still, it was no one's fault. Well, that wasn't right- regardless of motivation, he could firmly point an accusatory figure at the men who had been attempting to steal the orbs.

They were shown to the library soon enough and Reynard had to admit that it was impressive not only in its size but also in the extensive collection, packed wall to wall with books ranging from the fairly modern to ancient tomes, pages yellowed with age. It was something to be admired if they really had the time to peruse at their leisure, but that was for another day.

"At least it's a place to start, Si- Lord Siya," Reynard said, shaking his head at his King's bout of insecurity while simultaneously tripping over the title that he'd been so obsessed with using up until recent events. Somehow the additional "Lord" onto Siya's name seemed out of place coming from his own mouth now. With that, he turned and wandered off quite aimlessly into the room, eyes scanning the shelves for old covers or pages warped with age.

Damiano nodded his head as they walked down the hallways, thumbs hooked onto his belt as usual. To Reynard's response to Siya's concern. "Su novio es correcto, mi rey. There really was no way you could have possibly known something had happened." or rather you haven't been trained to notice, so no reason to fret about it was the part Damiano choose not to say as it would have helped in no way, shape, or form. Though honestly Damiano believed that Siya was more shaken up about the news of Air King's orb being taken. Which also meant that only two orbs were out there now, and the thief had already come knocking before they came here. In fact, such an impression had been made on the fella that Damiano was on his most wanted heads list.

Guess they'd have to be extra careful and extra ready now, but at least they had more help nearby in case they were attacked again. As they entered the library, Damiano whistled in an impressed manner as he looked around at the large room. "Now this place is impressive, that is for sure. And honestly my lord,' he started as he bgean looking at some of the books. "old really is the best way to describe what we are looking for. Also, Reynard we are in private, so no need to be so professional with su novio." Damiano said as he began his search.

"Yes, yes, no need to be so polite, how many times do I have to say you don't need to call me 'Lord' when we're in private Reynard?" Siya agreed promptly as he moved into the room. He was oblivious to Damiano's last couple of words. If it was one thing Siya didn't know, it was the other language, though he was starting to figure out that 'mi rey' was some sort of title for him in Damiano's own language. Other than that, the Fire Lord didn't pay any attention to it.

With a sigh he lifted up a book and blew on it, "Still. I feel terrible for not even noticing that he was upset about something," he muttered to himself, "I guess I really am just a 'child king'," he finished, whispering the last part to himself. Setting the book down he looked around as the other two had started looking already. Dusting his hands off, he grinned a bit. He always did like libraries.

"Alright, yell if you find something," he said, and started off into one of the isles, looking for the oldest books he could find.

Damiano nodded his head, acknowledging his king with a simple [color=007a08]"Mhm."[/color] as he began looking through all the various books. He would occastionally grab and pull out a book that looked old, scanning through it pages some to see if anything in particular stood out.

If Reynard understood what Damiano had said, he made no indication of it as he continued towards the far end of the library. Well, no, that wasn't entirely true- rather, he was doing a fantastic job of pretending that he didn't understand as a dark blush battled for dominance over his pale features. He wasn't quite sure when being in someone else's castle with the other Protector became "in private", but it would take a lot of getting used to for him to let down his guard like that. Then again, to be fair, letting his guard down had never been one of Reynard's strong points.

Reynard perused the shelves of books, eyes scanning rows upon rows in search of something that looked old enough to have information on the orbs. He plucked a few likely suspects from their shelves, flipping through the pages and looking for similar illustrations to the book Siya had found before ultimately coming up with nothing of importance and putting them back exactly where he'd found them.

Siya worked his way down the isles. He wasn't sure how long they were in that library. Probably for a while, but the young Fire Lord tended to lose track of time during such escapades into a wealth of knowledge. He could immerse himself in these books for days and not even realize how long he had been there. Hence the reasons for Reynard constantly checking on him and dragging him around to eat, sleep and do his own Kingly duties. As he searched, he was slowly covered in dust, a couple of dirt streaks across his cheek and one on the tip of his nose. He didn't care, nor did he notice.

It was during one such search that he spotted a rather old looking book that was thick and looked to be of about the same design as the one he had found. The only problem was that it was on a shelf that was just beyond his reach. Siya was rather short after all. Frowning as he stretched up on his tip-toes to try to grab it, he was leaning against the book shelf with one hand trying to gain some more reach.

"Ah..." he sighed heavily, "Why must I be short.... Reynard is so much taller. Why is he taller... that's so not fair," he muttered to himself as his fingers barely scratched the books bindings. He moved his fingers, huffing to himself as he got his fingers just on the edge of the binding and pulled outwards. It shifted. The reason why it was so heavy also came out with it. A wash of books tumbled and rained on him, along with the large one. Scrolls bounced off his head and he stumbled backwards with a sharp yell before falling down under the heavy weight of the book and allowing the other bound novels to tumble around him, wincing slightly.

When it finally all stopped, he glanced around for a moment, "Found it..." he said softly though he was sure the other two heard his mishap. Another book slipped and fell, bouncing off his shoulder as if to make a statement. "Ow..." He gave a slight cough from the dust that had welled up around him, and then sneezed.

Damiano had been absent mindly searching the book as well, no real thought or anything as he did. He wasn't finding anything of interest, except for what sounded like books crashing onto the ground and some poor unfortunate soul. Raising an eyebrow, he slowly poked his head around the bookshelf he had been looking at, only to see his king buried amongst a pile of books. He just stared at the young king, doing his best not to burst out laughing, maintaing a straight face to the best of his abilities. Instead though, he just slowly lifted up his hands as he watched Siya get whacked by one more book, clapping a few times as he just stood there, still maintaining his neutral expression.

The time that they'd spent in the library seemed achingly long to Reynard as he put the umpteenth old tome back in place. He could now with some certainty tell you how their ancestors treated stomach pain, some fable about rabbits and monkeys that he'd only looked at long enough to satisfy his intense curiosity over the bizarre illustrations, and had even found a diagram of how to build a mudhouse, but nothing about orbs unless you counted the bizarrely placed romance novel he'd found that had used only the vaguest euphemisms for anything below the neck. On a good day or, in this case, a good month he might delight in simply looking around the library, but now was not the time or place to enjoy himself.

The tedium was broken up by a sudden crashing sound paired with an all too familiar yell. Well, Reynard mentally sighed as he hurried over in the general direction that he'd heard the sudden noise, Siya getting attacked by books was something he preferred over people attacking him. After all, generally the worst injury books gave you was the occasional bruise of the ever dreaded paper cut.

He found Siya soon enough, partially buried by an avalanche of books, with Damiano standing before their charge, slowly clapping. Oh, Lord. Still, it wasn't the worst thing he could have found. He stepped over the fallen books and helped Siya to his feet.

"Found something, I take it?" He asked dryly, quirking an eyebrow in a small show of amusement.

Siya looked up at Damiano and narrowed his eyes, "I can tell you want to laugh," he said and then sneezed again. Reaching up he wiped at his nose, trying to get the itch to go away only to smear more dust along his face as well as inhale it. He sneezed yet again. Pinching his nose, he closed his eyes in an attempt to rid himself of the terrible attack of dust.

Then he heard his other Protector, Reynard come into the isle. Hands gripped him and he was up on his feet. Looking up at Reynard, he once again cursed his small size as in fact both men were taller than he was. He rolled his eyes as he looked at Reynard and nodded, "Yes." A sneeze. "Ugh... can we move please?" he said, pinching his nose and looking up at Reynard with a pleading look in his fiery gaze.

He handed the book over to Reynard as he sneezed several times in a row and quickly dispersed himself from the dust infested isle to breathe properly. Patting his clothes out, the black silk puffed dust all over the place and he immediately regretted that action. Turning away he went to a small desk away from his dusty attack and seated himself. He could just barely feel the tickle at the edge of his nose and quickly rubbed at it to stop another sneeze.

"Lord Amon needs to clean his books..." he muttered. His hands reached out to Reynard, fingers wiggling a bit, "The book, please. Lets see what this one has," he continued, his voice rising in excitement.

Damiano made no change in his expression when Siya mentioned him wanting to laugh, mostly because if the protector stopped concentrating he was going to burst out laughing. The king just looked so adorable and goofy buried in a pile of books, and his constant sneezing and dust covered form did not help any either. Damiano took a moment, when they were away from all the dust of course, to take a deep breath to calm himself and stop a fit of giggles from pouring forth. He followed his king over to a desk, the protector moving so he was sitting on the edge of the desk to the side, making sure there was enough room for the book to be set down.

"I don't think Lord Amon really touches this place all that much, mi rey. Might explain the rather dusty nature of it all. Course, i'm sure if he just let you visit often enough, you could help him get rid of all the dust and cobwebs covering these poor things." He said, watching the young king reach for the book Reynard was holding like a little child would for a sweet of some kind. It made the protector smile, watching the young king's antics. In a way, the garden snake had been right, Siya really was still young in behavior at times and sometimes Damiano figured there was still a child inside the heart of his king. Yet, despite that, Damiano could also see the intelligence and wisdom that Siya had. Even if the king was a little naive and innocent, he was anything but a weak and stupid king; honestly Damiano thought that given enough time, Siya could grow up to be one of the best kings that Dhaemar had seen in a long time.

He may regret having been born into the family he had been, but Damiano was beginning to appreciate the skills his parents had taught him as now it meant he could use those skills to help this king become something great.

It took all of Reynard's finely honed self control to not reach out and attempt to wipe off at least a small portion of the dust smeared across Siya's face. He looked, well, if Reynard was completely honest with himself, impossibly cute, covered by gray dust, nose wrinkled in an apparently semi-permanent state of almost sneezing. But, since Reynard was still learning how to be honest with himself when it came to his still rather undefined relationship with Siya, he stuck with the thought that his charge simply didn't look dignified unless one considered looking like you'd just been used as a human feather duster dignified.

Still, any thoughts of adorable Kings were put aside for another time- or never, never was a good time- as Reynard handed over the book, Siya's excitability clearly catching as the taller Protector leaned over his shoulder at the desk, peering down at the pages displayed.

Siya opened the book as it was handed to him. His fingers worked through the pages rapidly but gingerly. His excitement grew even more as his eyes alighted onto a page that listed out a tree of names. He paused, "Look!" though he didn't really have to say it as the other two were right there, obviously looking with him. Tracing his fingers down the line, he read the names to himself. Many of them he couldn't even pronounce. But next to each one was a symbol. A symbol of a red dragons maw. His fingers tapped that picture and then he quickly shifted through the pages. Mumbling to himself as he was now completely lost to it.

"Royalty... these... these people are royalty. A long line of them. They used to come here," he took a deep breath again, "This!" he nearly jumped out of the seat as he turned the page to a picture of the door that the other book had talked about, "The door...It... 'feeds power to Dhamear from Reimrand to keep both places stable through the use of four powerful orbs. The Kings often meet to discuss events between both places and to share knowledge of inventions, medicines, society, and other important things. The orbs are housed by the Royal family in Reimrand where the power is regulated so as not to cause chaos in either place and to keep things under balance.'" Siya stopped reading and fell back against the chair.

"Wait... if the orbs are here, then what happened to this other place?" he looked up to Damiano and Reynard. He stared at them for quite a while before his mind made the decision, "Lets go there."

There was a reason Damiano had chosen the word "naive" describing Siya, as the protector pinched the bridge of his nose when Siya mentioned going to Reimrand. [color=007a08]"Dios mío."[/color] Damiano muttered to himself before lowering his hand and looking at the Fire King. [color007a08]"Mi rey, those questions are things that would be nice to answer, yes. However, we are not exactly in a position to just go waltzing to this place, not to mention, we have no idea where this door is, or if it is even open. I know the prospect of going somewhere like that is exciting but focusing on the people trying to kill us may be for the better, even if they are related to that place."[/color]

Once the injuries were taken care of, Kanan took to leading them down the halls to the library where Lord Siya had said he would be. He was definitely conscious about his eye though, and continually checked to make sure it wasn't bleeding again and that the patch was still there. In honesty, his eye was just fine, there wasn't anything wrong with it seeing wise. There was no scar, the eye wasn't missing. The only reason he wore the patch was because he was afraid of what might happen if he took it off. The eye had been cursed by some strange magic that he did not wish to invoke... if it was invoked at all.

Kanan did his best to keep his hand from constantly reaching up to touch the patch, but it was a work in progress. It had been so long since he had last felt pain in the eye. The young protector reached the doors of the library after a bit of a walk through the halls. He was only partially surprised that the other King hadn't come rushing from the room when the fight broke out a moment ago. After all, the library was far enough away from the entrance to the castle, so they most likely didn't hear a thing. Kanan was also grateful for Minnow's assistance. Walking into the library bloodied was sure to send the younger King in a fit of worry and questions, most of which he didn't want to answer.

The double doors opened to him and he allowed his King entrance first before following in right behind Minnow. His gaze fell on the smaller blonde and he felt a frown tug on his face. They were going to have to talk later. As he was going to have to speak to his King later too... that was if Amon pressed the issue. Still, it made Kanan a bit guilty.

Upon entering, he set his gaze upon Siya who was leaning over a book with a large frown on his lips. He seemed to be in deep thought. Whatever the book was that was opened before him, had the King's utmost attention because the three of them came into the room without the young Fire Lord even looking up, though his protectors were a different story.

Amon kept the ice pack on his wrist as they walked, trying to ignore the throbbing, sharp pain from the injured limb. He just had to sprain it on the day that he'd find himself in a rather nasty brawl. There was no telling how long it'd take for the wrist to heal itself up, though for him it wasn't so much he wanted it fixed to use it. Rather he wanted it fixed so then he could use it without having to keep an eye out for Minnow threatening him with various medical items. When they reached the library, he nodded his head to Kanan as the protector opened and held the door open for him, looking inside to see Siya and his protectors gathered around one of the desks.

Amon cast a glance at Kanan as he walked by, having noticed at how the man was constantly inspecting his eye. Of course, Amon couldn't really blame him after the little episode in the lobby. He looked back ahead, noting that at some point or another he needed to ask Kanan why that whole fight needed to occur. He was hiding something, again, not that Amon could blame him; now that it was affecting all of them however, and the safety of the kingdom and the people here, it was no longer just Kanan's buisness.

Amon finally stopped not far behind the Fire King, quietly looking over his shoulder to see what he had his face buried in. He couldn't help but grin slightly, deciding to lean forward some and rest his arm on the young king's shoulder, particularly the one that had the ice pack on it and letting it lightly touch the man's neck. "Find something, Siya?"

The young Fire Lord, who hadn't heard a thing as he leaned his elbows on the desk, muttering to himself, didn't notice the other King come up behind him. If his protectors noticed, well, he had all but tuned them out also. He was trying to figure out his next step. Siya wanted desperately to go and see this place, but he also knew that Damiano was right in saying they had no way of finding it. He also knew that taking care of the ones that had been trying to kill them was also something that needed to be done. He heaved a sigh.

Then something icy cold touched the back of his neck lightly.

Following that was Lord Amon's words, of which were momentarily forgotten as Siya gave a sort of squeal in terror and arched his back as the cold ice dripped down the collar of his black shirt. Falling forward with both hands flailing and clawing at the desk to get away from the cold, he whirled around finally with wide eyes. It took him a moment, "L-lord Amon! W-what was that?!" he rubbed at his neck as his face heated to a terrible blush.

Minnow tilted his down slightly as Kanan opened the door for them to pass through. The young healer honestly did his best to keep from staring at the eye patch as well, though he was only worried that it had been damaged and was still causing Kanan pain. It was easier once he fell in step behind him, and soon Minnow’s focus was taken by the other three surrounding a rather large tome. Lord Siya definitely seemed engrossed in what he was doing, and in a slight bout of nervous energy, he folded his hands together in front of him as he followed after Amon.

He was startled when Siya suddenly let out a shriek, not entirely understanding why until the pieces clicked together in his mind. He had of course seen Lord Amon lean over him, but in all honesty, the blonde-haired protector had forgotten about the ice pack he had given to his King.

At the other king’s blush, Minnow brought his fingers up to his lips to hide the light chuckle that threatened to break through. He grinned in greeting to the others in the group, soon finding a place near the desk to look over what they had been reading.

It wasn't that Reynard didn't take pride in his position as one of Siya's Protector's. In fact, it was quite the opposite- he was intensely dedicated to the job, perhaps far more than he had any right to be. That is not to say, however, that he couldn't take a joke or, rather, see a joke go through at Siya's expense because, honestly, even he needed to have a laugh in the midst of the most stressful job in the world. Or, well, Reynard's version of a laugh, which was a slight upturn of the lips and a lessening in the severity of his far too intimidating gaze. So, really, when he saw Lord Amon and his two Protectors wander over, he did what was best for his own sanity and kept his mouth shut.

He wasn't disappointed, Siya's far too funny squeal of terror instantly making its way into his top ten favorite Siya-embarassing memories(not that he'd ever admit to embarassing Siya on purpose, but his blush and rather excitable reactions were too fun and interesting to really pass up). He bowed slightly to the other group in greeting.

Damiano had seen the Air King and his two protectors enter the room, simply nodding his head to them. He figured he wouldn't interrupt Siya, honestly he wasn't sure he could interrupt the king's book dive. Considering the amount of things the young man almost runs into on a daily basis, dragging his attention away from a book he's enjoying was pretty much not possible. However, it seemed the Air King had found a sure-fire way of getting the young man's attention, and even Damiano couldn't keep a straight face when Siya let out his little squeal as an ice pack was set on his neck. The foreigner just chuckled and stood up from his place on the desk and leaned back against the wall.

Amon on the other hand, was laughing a bit more loudly and joyfully; as he hadn't expected the Fire King to react in such a manner. It took a moment before he calmed himself down, smiling at him as Amon spoke. "I-I'm sorry Siya!! I-I...uh...!" Now Amon was lost in his words, still trying to get himself to calm down a little. He actually felt a little bad now, with the young man basically the center of attention here after doing the antics he did. Taking one more deep breath, Amon finally spoke again, "I'm terribly sorry, Siya! I was, just checking up on you and you were so lost in the book, I couldn't help but see how you'd react to this ice pack here."

At that statement, he held up the ice pack on his wrist to show Siya what he was talking about. "So, have you found something worthwhile amongst these dusty ol' tomes?" He noticed a bit of dust on Siya's shoulder, standing out on the black shirt the young king wore, and reached down to brush it off. "Maybe I should have the servants clean up this room more."

Siya sputtered, trying to control his blushing and calm down his racing heart. His gaze flicked between all of them and he suddenly seemed to realize that all were present for his girlish scream. This, of course, made him turn even further red, the blush stretching all across his nose and cheeks and up to his ears even. His gaze flicked up to Reyard very briefly before he found he couldn't even look the man in the eye. Nope... not... gonna happen. Going to pretend that didn't even happen and he didn't hear that. He did not hear that. Taking a deep breath he tried to settle in the chair.

Amon reached out and brushed at his robes, the black silk blaringly wielding the dust that had assaulted him earlier. He flinched slightly, not sure if the man was going to drop more ice on him or not. Then he glanced down at his appearance. Fingers dusted at his clothes rapidly and reached up to his face. Unfortunately for him, smearing more of the invading gray particals over his nose and cheek.

"Um..." he started, trying to gather his thoughts after the sudden attack of ice, "Yes.... yes they should, and stop stacking books on top of one another. That's dangerous. Knock someone out if they're not careful," he muttered in return, grasping on the first thing that came to mind after Amon's words. Clearing his throat, he tried to straighten and get his mind to work properly, "This book..." his fingers tapped the pages, "Talks more about that gate that I told you about in the other book. Well, more like a door I guess you could say. Says that royalty used to come and visit us from the other place. Also says that the orbs were protected over there in the royal family. Energy floods from that gate to our world and that's how both sides are sustained, so long as the door is opened I presume."

Siya sighed, shaking his head a bit as he gazed at the book, "Unfortunately, a lot of this is done in a language I don't understand. It must have been something we lost along the years seeing as there's been no mention of something like this for as long as I can remember, and especially since there's no word from any of the last few King's that I have tombs from. I... Um... sort of mentioned that we should go there..." he glanced up at Amon briefly, "But I suppose it would be a lost cause if I can't even figure out where this door is at. Not to mention those two people who are currently chasing after us."

Amon was now looking at the book, listening to Siya speak at the same time. He then looked back at Siya when he finished. "Wow, that's alot of new information. Other kings, other world, and a door in which the energy that controlled the elements could flow through...that's, honestly Siya, a lot to swallow." He then moved to the side of the desk so that he could look at the book and not hang over Siya's shoulder. "I mean, how could this kind of information just,' he paused, tapping the desk slightly before speaking again. "just vanish like that? Yes, your protector mentioned it could have been pushed aside or hidden, but something like that doesn't just up and vanish that easily. Not unless this whole relationship between Dhaemar and...that other place was kept a secret between the kings."

Amon scrunched up his face as he stepped away, pacing a bit while thinking. He then turned back to Siya, crossing his arms a bit akwardly so he could keep the ice on his wrist. [color=002355]'How does this vanish like that though? I just can't understand how this kinda info would disappear like that!"[/color]

Siya shook his head slowly, "I don't know either. I'm just as astonished as you are, Lord Amon. I can't imagine how this kind of information gets lost so easily. Tucked away at the back of history almost to never be seen again. The biggest question I have is how the orbs ended up in our possession when they're not supposed to be here. I also have to wonder what the other place is like right now. Look at our maps, too," he added and got up from the seat. Once he found what he was looking for, he spread it out showing the continent of Iveir, but it was really all he needed, he didn't need the whole world to prove this point.

His fingers tapped certain areas where water was, land was and other various things, "These... aren't on these maps," he said and pointed over to one of the dusty pages where the lines were faded out, yellowing and the map looked to be a thousand years old. They were both very different, "This clearly states that it's Iveir, but it looks nothing like what we know it to be."

Amon walked over to the desk once more when Siya grabbed a map and unrolled it. He stood next to him as they both looked at the two maps. Cocking his head to the side, confused, he could see what Siya was talking about. Both claimed to be maps of Iveir, and the one Siya had unrolled he definitely recognized as the Iveir that Amon knew. The one in the book though was not the same, with the differeing landmasses and bodies of water. "No kidding, nothing like Iveir nowadays. But if we carry the orbs, then they must have been brought here either by the previous Kings before us."

Again he scrunched his nose in thought before leaning back from the maps and scratching the back of his head. "Or, maybe someone from the other side sent them here...?" he asked while turning to look at Siya.

Siya, who had been staring at the pages with the scratched markings of the fading map, looked up sharply to Amon, "... you think? That could definitely be possible. Why else would they let the orbs go? The book clearly states that they were heavily guarded. Maybe it was nothing to do between the two places but something on their own end," Siya lifted a finger and put it between his teeth, biting down gently as he stared at the book for a long while. With a heavy sigh he put both hands on his hips, "I don't know. I need to figure out this language. Maybe that will be my first step. There has to be books here that has this old language. In the meantime... we should send word to Taki. He needs to be here. I think it's safer if we are all together instead of separated right now. Things are far too dangerous."

Amon nodded his head at the suggestion to bring Taki here. It was better that they were all together, even though it meant they would all be in the same place if attacked, it did mean they would also be together to combine their strength against their opponents. He looked up at Siya, "I'll have a message sent right away, you continue to search through here for anything that may help ok? I'll be back later to he-" he paused for a moment, then continued with a bit of shame in his tone, "-try to help. You probably know this library better than I do in the hour or two that you've been here." He then turned and left right for the door. "I'll be back soon, let's go, Kanan, Minnow." he said while heading through the doorway.

The letter had arrived early in the morning to the Earth Kingdom. The morning air was thick and carried the calls of the bids. Having been found on an early morning run on the far side of his favorite pond, Taki didn't even seem to read over the letter too deeply as a smile grew over his face. He was nothing but excited to return back to the Air Kingdom. Even though it hadn't been all that long since he had been there he wanted to go back and explore a little outside the palace.

It did not take Taki long to pack himself back at his room as he swept through his room like a hungry wolf. Within the timeframe of what seemed like twenty minutes, Taki nearly tripped down some stairs as he had yelled to Lutchka to hurry. Within his mind he did not quite understand he litterally four minutes to prepare herself.

To Taki's annoyance there was no sign of the snake. With a small sigh he would at least be able to talk to the new guy. He really didn't get much of a chance to talk to him though. After their last encounter Taki had a new scar on his cheek and the man had his own troubles to deal with. It wasn't avoidence either as Taki had just failed to give the guy time to chat. After the last meeting, Taki had begun increasing security around the borders.

"Besides." Taki said to himself. "Now is the perfect chance!"

As she heard Taki’s yells echo through the castle halls, Lutchka rolled her eyes with a soft grumble. He was so impatient. The female protector barked a couple of orders to some of the servants, informing them of what they should do while the King was absent. Others scurried around moving the little amount of luggage and to prepare their transportation.

Practically falling into a chair, Lutchka let out a loud sigh. It seemed that they were heading out too soon since their last visit, but these were times of importance. Nonetheless, it was always a bit of a headache to get the castle in order and figure everything out.

She fanned herself with her hand, looking around the room she was stationed in. Closing her eyes for just a few moments to give herself a little break, Lutchka soon arose once more and made her way down the halls to her room.

As per her guidelines, she kept a close watch on Chromi at all times, and when she wasn’t nearby, someone else was keeping an eye on him. He had been given the spare room across from her own, and she had heard no complaints about it- only because if he made any gripes about it she’d threaten him with occupying the same room. He was always so uncomfortable whenever she made such inferences. It was entertaining, to say the least.

Coming to a halt before the door, her knuckles rapped lightly on the wood. She then put one hand on her hip while the other ran through her hair as she once more went through her mental checklist.

"Yes, yes," Valrien called already dressed and just finishing putting his sword around his waist as he adjusted the leather across his frame. He had heard the call to leave and was probably the quickest one to get ready despite everything else. He opened the door and looked out at Lutchka, a bit of a frown on his lips, "Ready? The sooner we go the better."

Although his words were those, his thoughts were very different. He was nervous. On edge. Impatient. And probably worst of all, apprehensive. He didn't know what to expect when they reached the other palace of which he'd only... attacked... last time. From there he was unsure as to how to act around the other two Kings, especially the small one. He had been holding the Fire orb and though he'd failed in retrieving it, there was one protector with the young King that he was sure to not stand up against very well.

Valrien swallowed dryly, trying to keep his unease to himself as he moved out into the hall. His fingers fidgeted across his clothes before he finally rested them. One hand on the hilt of his blade, the other slightly twitching at his side.

Lutchka laughed gently as she watched him fidget about. But it was understandable, and she was glad he was smart enough to be nervous about this meeting. In all odds, it would not go down very well on many levels.

With a very soft smile, she came up behind him and placed her hand on top of his shoulder to steady him. She was also hoping he might jump a bit. With a soft exhale of laughter, she leaned in. [/b]“I’m guarding you too, remember?”[/b] Lutchka patted his arm as she moved in front of him, leading the two of them down the halls.

“Don’t run your mouth though, this job is going to be hard enough as it is.” Her heels clicked along the stone halls as they walked to meet Lord Taki at the large center staircase.

Valrien flinched, his body going stiff as her fingers suddenly gripped his shoulders. He wasn't one to be touched so freely... he hated it actually. However, it seemed that she was insistant on doing so. Probably because she knew it drove him nuts. Valrien let out a soft growl at her but didn't say anything. As her hands were removed, he reached up and rubbed at his shoulders as if to get rid of the lingering tingle that her touch created. It made him uncomfortable to say the least.

At her instance to not 'run his mouth' he rolled his eyes, "I'll say what needs to be said," he returned, though in all honesty, she was probably right. He had a tendancy to say things that would get him into trouble, if their first encounter wasn't proof enough of that. He heaved a heavy sigh and reluctantly followed after her to meet with the King, Taki. He couldn't wait for this trip to be done and over with.

"I can't wait for this trip to start and with every step I wish that it was further away! I love traveling!" Taki boasted to Lutchka. With an overexaggarted raise of his hand to the sky, Taki semed to perform quite the sillliest of dances as he jumped up and down several times.

"Hey Lutch! This time there's no Hebi to ruin the fun either!"

Siya, once again buried in a book, had taken to his usual traversing of the halls whilst reading. Granted it was much more difficult in Amon's halls as he didn't know where everything was placed. More than a few times did he stub his foot, or hit a wall suddenly or slam his knee into a display that for strange reason had decided to place itself there. At least, that was Siya's current excuse for running into just about everything as he paced the halls while reading. At the present moment, he was making his way from the library with both protectors in tow, to the front of the castle because it was the expected arrival date of the King of Earth. With Taki there, he could go over everything that he'd managed to learn a lot easier without having to repeat himself. Something that he was quite thankful for since he was going to have to repeat most of everything he had already told Amon several days prior.

Turning the corner, Siya finally closed the book and looked up.

He came to an abrupt halt. Staring at the tall shelving that held quite a few items inside of it, he released a breath, "I really have to stop doing that," he muttered to himself and walked around the casing to continue on down the hall with the book in hand. He tried not to look over his shoulder to the other two who probably were keeping a scoring board by now about how many times their young King had run into something. Thankfully, though, he was no longer reading the book, although he was pretty sure Reynard would snatch it from him the moment he lifted it back up to his face again. He quickened his pace as he caught sight of Amon's protectors Kanan and Minnow, the King himself not far behind. Siya was sure that Kanan had felt the presence of Taki arriving, thus the reason for them to be already heading for the doors.

Siya fell into step beside Amon, with a glance up at the man he gave a small smile, "Lord Amon," he greeted.

The past few days had been good for the Air King, for the most part that is. His wrist was still a little sore, as he had done quite a number on it after already spraining it. Strangely enough though, he did find himself actually heading Minnow's advice and wasn't using it like he might have before. The boy could never stop Amon from his daily exercises, but Amon was careful not to put any heavy strain on the wrist. It meant though that his left arm was more sore than usual as he had been using it more while practicing his strikes.

Despite doing his daily exercises, they were definitely less frequent than usual as a lot of his time was spent assisting Siya to try and find any information that they could about their recent findings. Of course the Air King was the most helpful, as he really had no idea what it was he was looking for. It basically came down to two criteria: It is written in a language he didn't know, and that it was old. Turned out there was a fair amount of books that fell under those criteria yet turned out to not have the information they wanted. Several times he got an exasperated look from Siya when Amon dumped several books in front of the younger man, but Amon just shrugged it off with a grin before hunting down anything else.

Most of his time not in the library though was actually spent out on the hillside where the graves had been made for those who had been killed in the attack. Often times, Amon would just find himself wandering out there and just quietly observing them, re-reading the names, most of which he recognized as well. Staring at them usually hurt the king inside, as it was again a reminder of what he hated to see the most. It brought back the old memories that had been plaguing his mind these past few days, as it reminded him of the gravesite not far from the village and all the people he knew of that were buried there; including his family. Standing at the graves here brought him back to the cemetary near the village, brought him back to his original home. Sometimes when he read the names on these graves, he'd see the names that were on the ones back in the village. Sometimes he'd see the names of his old friends, and even his own siblings.

This place, these graves, always stole the smile from his face because of the memories it brought back to him. Yet, he really figured he needed to come here every now and then, to be brought back to reality. The people here may have died because of his carelessness, his indifference to actually securing himself or providing proper security. After the original attack, he had done nothing but continue life as normal, confident that the next attack that came would be as simple as the first. The dead here were the result of that mistake, and now Amon was doing whatever he could to prevent that again.

It would probably become a part of his daily rituals, to come out to the graves and remind himself of these things. To remember the pledge he had made to himself, to stop as many deaths as he could. He knew he couldn't stop all of them, that he needed to steel his mind for that inevitability; but he would do all he could to make sure that as few as possible would die if he could help it.

He had been lost in his thoughts as he tavelled down the hallway, having been making their way to the main doorway to greet the Earth King. He had been informed of his arrival by Kanan, so now that was where they were going. It was quiet as they walked, save for the rythmic thunk of his staff hitting the ground as he went. The silence was broken though when he heard a familiar voice behind him speak.

It was a simple greeting from the young fire king as he stepped up next to Amon, smiling at him which Amon happily returned. "Cripes, just call me Amon already sheesh! We are of equal titles so it's not like you have to show proper respect all the time." Amon said while lightly poking the side of Siya's head.

Siya closed one eye in protest, "But... you're older than me," the young King fought back his fingers lightly touching the place that Amon had been poking. Each poke evoked a slight twitch of his eyes closing and his lips pulling into a frown. Of course at that moment, Siya was beginning to wonder which of the two of them was older... certainly Amon seemed to be youngest in actions. Well, at least when he was doing something like poking him, or putting ice down his shirt. He blushed at that thought.

Clearing his voice, he waved his hand at Amon's, "I refuse! You're Lord Amon, it is your proper title," the Fire Lord said stubbornly. He wasn't about to change that, at least not so easily.

Kanan waited for them at the doors, holding them open for them to exit and soon they were walking out across the landing and then down the steps to the gravel roadway that led up to the palace, "Lord Taki!" Siya called as he decended the steps with Amon. He gave a smile, "I hope your trip was pleasant... Are you alright though? Nothing happened since last we met?" he asked quickly, trying to be mindful of his words though, unlike how he had been with Amon.

"Hey there Siya!" Taki said loudly with an excited tone. "Hey, don't call me Lord when we're equals!" Taki grinned. Humming to himself lightly he glanced at the two of which were following him as he brought a hand to the back of his head and chuckled awkwardly.

"Well....I am alright, but I would be lying through my teeth if I were to say nothing happened. Oh! Check out my new scar!" Taki pointed to his left cheek where he had been slashed in his previous encounter. "Eh...pretty cool right? Makes me look a little more hardend right?"

Grinning to Siya, Taki added in. "Something must have happened for all of us to be called here again right?"

"Even Taki agrees on dropping the 'Lord' thing! Lighten up Siya." Amon said while poking Siya's head one more time before looking at Taki, nodding his head to him. "Welcome back, Taki. that is certaintly an...interesting scar, hopefully it was nothing too serious." He then leaned to the side, using his staff as support. "And yes, quite a bit has happened as of late. We can discuss it within the council room."

"Oh come on." Taki whined. "We should walk around the courtyard and talk it over. Nature always brings less stress. Besides, shouldn't we celebrate upon all of us reaching here safely?"

Dropping the childish tone, Taki looked between the two of them as he said kindly. "The troubles of this world will always have you by the foot, but to grab the joy....Shit I can't remember how it goes...Let's bring out the wine!"

Throwing out a shrug and a Taki grin, the man seemed to put on his best show. Flashing his grey-blue eyes to the others he tried to win them over.

"Besides, it's all business when we meet. Allies and friends drink together."

Siya sighed as Amon reached out and began poking him again, "Will you..." he muttered, putting on a pout as he waved his hand at Amon vigorously again. Worse than me... he thought to himself. Of course the other brilliant part was that neither of his protectors said a word about it, nor did Amon's. Perhaps they were enjoying it. Siya was pretty sure at least Damiano was enjoying it, even if the man had a poker face that none could really crack.

"Sire," Kanan's voice was sudden, and in all honesty, the young Fire Lord had forgotten about the near silent protector, the man could speak more... seriously, "Who is that?" the one eyed warrior directed his gaze to a young man who had dismounted and moved somewhat timidly towards the group of Kings.

Siya, his gaze now turned to the youth, lifted an eyebrow. Those eyes... he thought and his breath sucked in sharply as he narrowed his gaze briefly. Who was that? Siya trembled slightly. To make matters worse, Kanan had shifted putting himself before Amon and Siya both, his gloved fingers straying for his blade. The youth looked a bit irritated at the display, but didn't move though both of his mismatched eyes narrowed slightly. It seemed the young man wanted to say something but was seriously holding back.

Siya looked to Taki, "You... brought... is that?" he couldn't finish, not quite sure his own mind was working properly as he looked back to the other man.

"I'll be honest with ya!~" Taki said. "I kinda just whooped him in a fight and let Lutchka take it from there. I'm trusting her on her judgement with this guy."

Taki begun to hum a little as he looked to Siya. "To be completely honest with you...I really should have paid more attention..." He began to laugh lightly as he could almost feel the awkward energy flowing about.

As they neared the castle, the reactions were obvious to their unexpected guest. Subconsciously Lutchka drew closer to the boy, a neutral smile to her face as she regarded the group that stood on the stairs. Taki made no attempts to go about the issue delicately, and straight out expressed what had been going on. Yet he still left out the fact that he was indeed one of the would-be-assassins.

With a light sigh, Lutchka rolled her eyes weakly. “Nah, we finally booted Hebi, he’s the new bodyguard~” She grinned brightly at the others, keeping only two inches of space between she and Chromi.

She leaned an arm on Chromi's shoulder, regarding the others playfully. She then brought up a hand to her lips and whispered loudly to the others, “I think this guy might have knocked a few bolts loose in Taki, if you know what I mean~” She teased brightly, returning her arms to herself and brushing off her shirt a bit. “However, it’s been a long trip over, and some rest would be highly appreciated, unless of course matters require it to be otherwise.”