I woke up to Durian crying. My new wife, Kiara, was still asleep. I got out of bed and went over to the cradle that he was in. His small face was bright red. I gently picked him up. A stench arose. I sighed, he needed a change. I took him over to the changing station and took care of him. I set him back in his cradle after calming him down. I got back in bed. I rolled over and put my arms around Kiara, putting my hands on her pregnant stomach. She was 7 months along. I went back to sleep.

The next morning, Durian woke up crying and wouldn't stop. No matter what I did, he wouldn't stop. I brought him to the dining room. Kiara was making breakfast. I grabbed Durian`s bottle and filled it with milk. I tried to give it to him, but he wouldn't take it. He screamed louder when I tried to give it to him. I looked over at Kiara. She looked just as concerned as I felt. I almost suggested getting the doctor, but I didn't want to. People were still wary of me. They were worried that I might revert back to my ways of killing. Kiara said what I couldn't say. 

“We need to get the doctor.” She said. I sighed. I knew this was true. 

“Ok, I just won`t be in the room. You know how people are around me still.” I said. I figured it would be best if I stayed away from people. After what I had done, the people weren't happy with me, or the king for clearing my name. What I had done was unforgivable in the eyes of the people. Kiara nodded. I knew I had to get the doctor. I gave Durian to Kiara and got dressed before heading out. As I walked through the town, people looked at me. They didn't look at me in fear anymore, but in anger. A couple looked like they wished they could kill me. I arrived at the infirmary. The doctor was out stuffing a mattress. 

“I need your help.” I said. He looked at me with the same look of anger everyone else gave me. 

“I'm busy.” He said. I sighed. This was why I hated talking to people. 

“Durian won't stop crying and won't take food.” I said anyway. The doctor sighed. 

“I'll be right there.” He said. He grabbed his bag and went on his way. I didn't follow. I slipped into an alley. The alley held a guild home. Though I didn't work for the guild anymore, I was still welcome. Royal had moved his base of operations to where I was living now. It made it easier for me to visit. I knocked on the door and said the password. I walked inside. People looked at me, but not in anger. They looked at me with respect. In this base, I knew I was welcome. No one was mad at me for getting my name cleared. I found Royal in his quarters. When I walked in, he turned around. He smiled when he saw me. He came over and hugged me. 

“It's good to see you, Kheal.” He said. He looked me over. 

“You look tired.” He said.

“Durian kept waking up last night.” I said. Royal nodded understandingly. 

“What brings you here?” Royal asked.

“Durian wasn't taking food, so I got the doctor, and I didn't feel like sticking around. You know how people are about me.” I replied. Royal nodded. 

“You've got to earn their trust.”

“I know, but how? They think I should be dead. They don't like that I was cleared.” Royal hugged me again.

“Give them time.” He said. He let me go.

“I should probably go home now.” I said. I left the base and headed back home. People stared at me and grumbled things like how I should`ve been executed when they had the chance. Didn't they see that I hadn`t killed anyone in two months? Sure I still wore my mask, mostly because I wasn't ready for people to see my face. They still thought I was older. I wasn't sure how they would react if they found out I was young. I kept my head down. I would find a way to gain their trust. I was tired of the stares. I arrived at my manor. I found Kiara in the parlor. She was holding Durian. The doctor wasn't there. 

“Did he find out what was wrong?” I asked. 

“He's teething.” Kiara answered. “He wouldn't take the bottle because it hurts.” I nodded. 

“What did the doctor recommend to help him?”

“He gave him some poppy to help with the pain.” I nodded. 

“Okay.” I said. Someone knocked on the door. We had no staff to open it for us, no one wanted to work for me. I opened the door and found Anastasia standing in the doorway. I ushered her inside and closed the door.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“We need your help.” She said. 

“If you want me to kill someone, I don't do that anymore.” I said. Anastasia smiled.

“We don't want you to kill anyone.” She said. I folded my arms.

“Then what do you need?” I asked.

“When you came we never found your parents, now that the old king is dead, our leader has decided to call all of the Lost back home to see if we can find their parents, dead or alive.”

“So, you`re saying that there's a chance that my parents might be dead?” Anastasia nodded. I frowned.

“Then why would I want to come?” I said. I had a family here. Anastasia looked me in the eyes. I got the feeling she knew something I didn't. She had this look. 

“Let me discuss it with my wife.” I said. I left her at the door and went to Kiara. She was seven months pregnant, and the journey to the country Anastasia was from took a week. I didn't know how long it would take to find my real parents. 

“Who was it?” Kiara asked as I came into the room. 

“Anastasia, the girl I met a couple months ago.” I said. “She wants me to go back to her country with her, to find my real parents.” I had told Kiara all that I had learned from Anastasia, even the possibility that I had been left by that river to be kept safe. 

“You should go.” Kiara said. I looked at her. 

“Are you sure you`ll be okay? People might attack you when I'm gone.” I said. Kiara took my hand.

“I`ll be fine. I`ll go to the guild home to stay with Royal, I`ll be safe there. I`ll take Durian with me.” I sighed, I was still concerned, but I felt better about leaving Kiara here. I nodded.

“I'm not leaving until you're settled.” I said. I went back to Anastasia. 

“I`ll go with you, but I'm not leaving until my wife and son are settled.” I said. Anastasia nodded.

“Very well.” She said. I took Kiara and Durian to the guild home. I left Anastasia at my manor. She wasn't allowed to know the location of the guild home, even if she wasn't from here. I came back once they were settled. I gathered supplies and went to the port with Anastasia. 

I stood and watched my home disappear for the second time in as many months. I thought about the empty manor that I had left with no one to protect it. What if people decided to burn it down in my absence? I shook my head. Royal would stop them. Even though he wouldn't be able to go out often, Royal had said he'd keep an eye on my manor. It wasn't much, he wouldn't be able to protect it if someone decided to attack it. He would be able to get revenge though.

I watched Anastasia`s country come into view. The last time I had been here, it was for a job. I had to kill the country's king so my king could invade. Only, he never did. I killed the king and his wife and had taken the prince. The prince that my king seemed to have forgotten to tell me about. The prince who was now my son. I walked off the boat. The wobbliness that I had experienced last time was there, but I knew to expect it. Like last time, it didn't last long. I followed Anastasia to the village where she had taken me the last time I was here. People turned and stared at me. There was a gathered group of people in front of the largest hut. Last time I was here, I had flipped their leader over my back. Anastasia led me to the crowd.

“Wait here.” She said. She walked away. I looked around. There were at least 50 people standing in this area. I made sure my mask wasn't going to fall off, even though I knew it wouldn`t. I was used to concealing my identity, I wasn't ready for people to see my face, even ones from another country. The people looked at me. They seemed to be tearing me apart with their eyes, trying to peel back my layers to see what's underneath them. They were trying to figure me out. I seemed like an authoritative figure. I was taller and more muscular than most of them. They were probably wondering why I wasn't doing anything. The door to the hut opened. The chieftain I had flipped the last time I was here came out. He looked at us, turning his gaze to each of us in turn. 

“Welcome home.” He said. “Long ago, when the former king of this country took the throne, we were hunted. He wanted us extinct. So we hid our children to prevent extinction. Some parents never came back as some of you will find out today.” He looked around again. He gestured to someone standing behind him. They held a large, leather bound book. They handed it to him. 

“We kept track of who went and survived and who went and died.” He said, opening the book. I folded my arms. We all had different names than what was in that book. Royal had named me Kheal. When the first name was called, someone responded. They were reunited with their parents. They had collected the names we were given by our adopted families. They had kept an eye on us. One by one, we were reunited with our parents or told that they were dead. I waited with my arms folded. I still wasn't convinced that I had been abandoned out of love. If my name wasn't called, I would know the truth. 

An hour later, the chieftain was just getting to the back of the book. My name hadn`t been called yet. I began to get the feeling that I was right. I had been abandoned out of hate. I hadn`t been wanted. He turned to the last page. I was the only one still standing in front of the hut. Everyone else had left. There were no possible parents left. He looked at me. 

“I don't think there`s any point in calling this last name, since both you and I know who it is.” He said. He smiled. I frowned behind my mask. Was he ever going to tell me my parents were dead? Instead of giving me the news, he set the book aside and hugged me. I stiffened. I didn't like being hugged by strangers. He let go of me. I readjusted my mask. It had shifted during the hug.

“Welcome home, son.” the chieftain said. I looked at him. I wasn't sure how I felt. Royal was the only father I had ever known. I wasn't sure how I felt about finding my real one. He tried to take me by the arm, but I pulled it out of his reach. I didn't like to be touched like that unless it was Royal or Kiara doing it. He didn't seem bothered.

“Let's go inside so you can meet your mother.” My real father, I guess, said. He turned and started to go inside the hut. I hesitated, then followed. The hut seemed bigger on the inside. It had five rooms and two floors. A woman was working in the kitchen while two boys played in the living room. My real father led me into the kitchen. The woman turned around. She had a baby strapped to her chest, fast asleep. When she saw me, she rushed forward and hugged me. I stiffened again. She let go of me and didn't seem bothered that I had stiffened. She began to set the table.

“You're so thin.” She said. “We must make sure you eat while you`re here. We`ll get meat on your bones yet. What do they feed you over there?” She continued to chatter as she put food on the table. My father interrupted her.

“He's not thin, Amara, he's lean.” He said.

“I've been thin.” I muttered, low enough they couldn't hear me. Once the table was set, my mother called the boys to dinner. They came running in, ignoring me. Everyone sat at the table but me. I normally ate when no one was around who I didn't want to see my face.

“Come and sit down, son.” My father said. I didn't move.

“I eat by myself.” I said. “If I don't eat by myself, it's with my wife and son.”

“You didn't say you were married.” My mother said. “What is she like? Come sit and tell us.”

“I can tell you from here.” I didn't trust my father and mother. I wouldn't sit at their table. 

“You can't eat by yourself.” My mother said. “It's not right. Do you not like us?”

“It's not that, I don't trust you.” I said. My parents looked at me.

“We`re family.” My mother said.

“You`re new to me. I learned not to trust anyone easily. I used to be an assassin. When you're an assassin, you learn not to trust new people until they've proved themselves trustworthy. For all I know, the food you`ll give me could be poisoned.” I said. I could tell the entire family was confused.

“How did you become an assassin?” My father asked.

“I was raised by one.” I said. “Royal Nightfall. He's the leader of the assassins.” My parents looked at each other. They seemed to regret leaving me by that river.

“Why aren't you an assassin now?” my mother asked.

“After spending 5 months in jail, I got my name cleared by doing something for the king of the country I live in.” I said, smiling behind my mask. My parents seemed horrified that I had been in jail.

After dinner, my mother showed me where I could sleep. On the way there she continued her idle pratter. She told me he had named me Wynter when I was a baby. She then asked me if she could call me that. I told her no. Kheal was my name, not Wynter. We arrived at my room. It was a large room with two windows and a large bed. I ushered my mother out of the room, telling her it was perfect. After closing the door behind her, I closed the curtains to the windows. I took off my mask and took a deep breath. I sat on the bed. My mother was way too chatty, no one could get a word in edgewise. I felt drained. I pulled up my mask and laid back against the pillows. I didn't realize it, but I fell asleep. 

I woke up to someone bouncing on me. I sat up and went to reach for my dagger, but it wasn't there. I looked at who had bounced on me. It was one of the boys. I checked my mask, it was still on. I had learned to sleep with it on without it coming off.

“What?” I asked. The kid just stared at me. Then he turned and ran out of the room. I looked around for my weapons. I found them on the dresser top. I went over to them and put them back on my belt. I carried in addition to several daggers, a long knife that was useful for disemboweling people who attacked me. I only used it if necessary. Then I walked out of the room to wait for my family to finish breakfast. When I walked in, my mother looked at my weapons. She seemed confused, which gave me the feeling that she had taken my weapons off last night. I stood in the dining room doorway, then folded my arms and leaned against it. I still didn't trust these people, especially the kid who had jumped on me. My parents never told me who the kids were. I assumed they might be my brothers. My father was the first to speak to me.

“Good morning Kheal.” He said. I nodded once to acknowledge what he'd said. I watched the two boys as they ate. I didn't make it obvious, so they wouldn't feel uncomfortable. They were identical twins, which made it hard to tell which one had jumped on me. After my family was done eating, I chased them out of the dining room so I could eat.

After I was done eating, I was prepared to go back home, but my father had other plans. He pulled me aside before I could grab my pack.

“Now that you`re home, it's time for you to learn about who you are.” He said. I tried to step around him. He grabbed my arm. I tried to pull it out but couldn't. I glared at him.

“I've got to get home.” I said. I tried again to get my arm out of his grip, but I still failed.

“Stay a while.” My father didn't let me go. 

“Let. go. Of. Me.” I said in a threatening tone. My father let me go. I went to the room I was staying in. Kiara was 7 months pregnant. I wanted to get home to her as soon as I could. I grabbed my pack and went out of the hut. My mother followed me out.

“You just got here. We're your family, don't leave!” She said. I ignored her. I walked out of the village, passing Anastasia on the way out. She began to follow me too.

“Where are you going?” She asked.

“Home.” I answered. Why won't they leave me alone? “I've got people waiting for me.” My mother grabbed my arm.

“Please don't go.” She begged. I pulled my arm out of her hand. When I got to the forest path, my mother stopped following me. Anastastia didn't. 

“Why are you so bent on leaving your family?” She asked.

“I`ve got family I left behind at home, I need to get back to them.” I said.

“What about this family?” I turned to face Anastasia. 

“Why do you care?” I asked. “Why is everyone so desperate for me to stay?” I turned back around and kept going.

“You want to know why everyone is so desperate for you to stay? Fine. We`ve been waiting for the Lost to return home for a long time. We`ve been waiting for 19 years. Then you come and end the wait. We want to celebrate the return of the ones we lost. There is a celebration tonight, in honor of all the Lost. Everyone is coming.” I turned around again.

“I don't do parties.” I said.

“You've just never been to one.” Anastasia said.

“There have been plenty of parties I could have gone to, I just never did. Parties are the perfect set up for betrayal.”

“Give up your assassin ways, you`re not one anymore.” I folded my arms.

“It's not easy when you were raised that way.” I said. “I was raised in the guild. Since I was a child.”

“Is that why you won't take off your mask? Because you were raised that way?” 

“It's an old habit, I`m not ready to take it off. People think I'm older than I really am, I`m not ready for them to know how old I really am.”

“You're insecure about your age?”

“No, people at home hate how I was cleared of my crimes instead of being executed for them. They think I should be dead. I don't know how they will act if I reveal my real age. They might kill me knowing they had been afraid of a 20 year old. I have to be careful if I want to be around for my wife, my kid and my unborn child.”

“Seems like you`re loyal to family. Why aren't you being loyal to this family?”

“I trust the one I have at home. I don't trust this one. This morning I was jumped on by one of the kids. My mother took off my weapons when she found me asleep. I wear those all the time in case I need to defend myself.”

“She didn't know that.”

“She could`ve been planning an attack against me. You're wasting my time.” I turned and left. When I got to the coastal town, I found my father waiting for me by the town entrance. I groaned and began to go around to avoid him. He saw me and grabbed me. He dragged me into the forest. I struggled. I couldn't reach any of my weapons. I kicked at his legs as hard as I could. He was stronger than I was.

“Let me go! I knew I couldn't trust you!” I screamed. I twisted my head and tried to bite him. I couldn't reach. He let me go. I pulled out my long knife and got into a fighting stance. I stared at him. He was blocking my exit. This was why I didn't trust new people. He didn't get into a stance to fight me. Fool!

“Kheal calm down, I have no intention of hurting you.” I didn't believe him.

“If that's true, why did you drag me here?” I demanded.

“I just want to talk to you.”

“Not you too.” I got out of my stance and put my knife away. “I'm leaving.” I tried to step around my father but he moved to block my path. 

“Out of my way.” I growled. My father didn't move. I put my hand on my dagger. I was still prepared to fight if I had to.

“I can't do that, Kheal.” I began to settle into a fighting stance again. I sensed a little bit of fear in my father.

“Why not?” I said. “Anastasia told me about your little party. I don't do parties, but there must be a deeper reason than that. There`s a reason why you're so desperate to keep me here.” My father sighed.

“We need your help.” He said. I sighed and straightened.

“I don't kill people for others anymore. If you need me to kill someone, I won't do it.” I said. “You may as well not ask.” I folded my arms.

“We need you to help us take the throne to ensure no one attacks our people again.” I thought. If I agreed to help them, I would be away longer. I didn't know how long this would take. Royal`s advice came to me from when I was battling with deciding if I wanted to do the task that would clear me. ‘Set conditions, you can get what you want that way.’

“I`ll stay for a week longer, no more.” I said.

“A month.”

“A week or you can forget about it. I`ll cut you down where you stand if I have to.”

“I suppose we'll have to take what we can.” My father turned around and began to head back to the village. I sighed. I really wanted to go home, but I knew my father would never let me leave. I began to follow my father. I had only agreed to stay because I knew my father would never leave me alone. I would be a prisoner. We arrived at the village again. I really didn't want to be here, but I had no choice. We arrived at my family's hut. My mother came out and tried to hug me. I sidestepped to avoid it. I didn't want to be touched. My mother seemed unbothered. She began to chatter about how happy she was that I had decided to stay. I couldn't handle how much she talked. I went up to my room and closed the door and curtains. I locked the door and took off my mask. I sat on my bed. I took a deep breath and sighed, laying back on the bed. I heard someone try the door knob. Couldn't I get a moment's peace? I put my mask back on and opened the door. It was my mother. She went to hug me, but I sidestepped and she missed.

“Don't touch me.” I said. My mother collected herself.

“Of course.” She said, “Dinner is downstairs.”

“Bring it up here. I'll eat it here.” My mother nodded. She left. I closed the door behind her. I sighed. All I could think about was Kiara. She was at home, or rather in an assassin base. She was 7 months pregnant, and I wasn't there. She was going to give birth in two months. I was grateful to Royal for taking care of her. The more I thought about what I had agreed to, I realized, by agreeing and following through with this, I was betraying my king. I would become an outlaw again. I quickly formulated a plan. I would train them until they were proficient, then I would leave. I wasn't going to risk my family. If I did this, I would be put to death for sure. Then I realized, no one got proficient in fighting in a week. They were doomed to fail either way.

The next morning all able bodied men and women were gathered outside my fathers house. I looked out over the crowd of people. They were a sorry lot, most of them looked like they were ready to quit here and now. I smiled. Those would be the most fun to break down, then build up. I stepped forward. As I did, everyone turned to give me their attention. They already knew they had to respect their superiors. I cast my gaze over the group of gathered people. Some looked away as I looked at them, others tried to hold my gaze for as long as they could. I now knew which ones were going to be easier to train, and which ones may not have what it takes.

“You are all gathered here because you think you have what it takes.” I said. “That will be for me to decide. I have been commissioned to teach you. I will promote the strong and weed out the weak. You will be put through the same training I was.” They all looked at each other.

“I will teach you to kill without remorse.” I looked a few of the weak ones in the eye as I said this. They looked away again. “I will teach you for a week, then you are on your own.” I saw a few swallow nervously. I walked over to a bin full of quarterstaffs I had requested. I grabbed one and demonstrated my skill by swinging it around my body, trading hands. I ended in a fighting stance. The gathered crowd looked like they didn't know if they should clap or not. I got out of my stance and threw the staff at someone at random. They fumbled and dropped it.

“Sloppy.” I said. “You need to have quick reaction times when something unexpected happens.” I grabbed another one and threw it at random. A hand rose up and caught it. My first target. I grabbed a third staff and pointed it in the direction the person was.

“Come forward.” I said. The crowd parted as they came forward. It was a man of about 25.

“Take your stance.” I said. His stance was all wrong.

“Horrid. A leaf would knock you over.” I demonstrated by ever so gently poking his chest. He fell over immediately. I passed out the rest of the staffs and worked on their stances. A few seemed to sort of know what they were doing, but none were warriors. I went around correcting stances. Then I began to show them how to use the staffs. I ran them through drills until noon. Then I sent them home. I rubbed my eyes. I felt tired. Tired of people. I went into the woods surrounding the village. I had the prince of this country at home with my wife. I wasn't going to raise him with that knowledge. I came across a stream. I sat down and pulled down my mask. I breathed in the fresh air.

“So that's what you look like without that.” Someone said. I pulled up my mask and looked around. I spotted Anastasia.

“Why are you sneaking around?” I said, suspicious.

“I was already here. I was up in a tree. You came here and sat down.” She answered.

“Don't tell anyone about what you saw.” I looked her dead in the eye. “I'm serious.”

“Why do you hide what you look like from others?”

“I was an assassin. It helped me survive.”

“But you're not one anymore.”

“I'm still adjusting.” Anastasia sat down near me.

“You look good.” She said.

“I`m married, back off.” I snapped.

“I wasn't implying that.”

“Then what were you implying?”

“I think you're just insecure.”

“I`m not. My name has only been cleared for two months, it takes time to adjust when you`ve hidden your face your whole life.”

“It shouldn't be that hard.”

“It is when people think you're older.” I didn't know why I was telling her this. I stood up and went back to my family`s house. I was tired. I blew off my mother and went up to my room. I closed and locked the door. I wanted to be alone. I sat on the bed and pulled the dagger I kept in my boot out. I pulled out my sharpening stone and began to sharpen it. I heard someone knock on the door, but I ignored it. I put the dagger and stone back and laid down on the bed. Based off of today's training session, this week wasn't gonna be easy. I pulled my hood over my eyes to block out the afternoon sun. The curtains were closed, but the sun shone right through them at this time of day. I drifted to sleep.

A pounding woke me up. I sat up, alert, my hand pulling out my dagger from my waist.

“Kheal! Open the door!” It was my father. I put my dagger away and stood up, stretching. I took my sweet time getting to the door. I opened it and leaned casually against the doorframe.

“What?” I asked.

“Dinner.” He said, handing me a plate. I took it and closed the door in his face, locking it. I sat on my bed and took off my mask to eat. When I was done, I took the plate back downstairs then went back up to my room. I locked the door again and went to sleep.

The next morning, I ran another training session as harsh as the first. I had been trained this way, it taught me to never make a mistake. A mistake could cost me my life. I made sure these people knew that. I drummed sequences into their brains until I saw improvement. Then I let them go. As I walked out of the small village, I thought about my childhood with Royal and wondered how different would it be if I had grown up here, in this country. I wouldn't have the memories I have now that's for sure. I sat under a tree, making sure there was no one in it. I closed my eyes and let myself drift away….

14 years ago

Royal bandaged a wound on my arm. I had gotten in the way of an assassin training. I had wanted to watch Royal train the new recruits and had gotten a little too close. Royal took my face in his hands and smiled at me.

“There, all better.” He said. I looked at him.

“I'm sorry I got in the way.” I said. I could feel my eyes welling up with tears.

“It's alright little one.” Royal picked me up and tossed me in the air, catching me and sweeping me into his arms. I hugged him, giggling. My small arms didn't reach far around his large chest. 

“Mistakes are how we learn. If we don't make mistakes then we never learn.” Royal set me down and I ran off to go play.

8 Years ago

Alec hit me with his quarterstaff. I fell over.

“Again!” He barked at me. I stood up and took my stance, making sure to not make the same mistake again.

“Still sloppy!” He hit me again. I fell over a second time. “Do it again!” I took my stance a third time.

“Good! Now trust!” I trusted too hard and the momentum knocked me over. Alec grabbed me by my hair and pulled me to my feet.

“Do it again!” He growled. I tried again, lessening my force. I stumbled but didn't fall over. Alec hit me again, and I fell.

“Again!”

4 Years ago

My quarterstaff cracked against Alec`s. I pushed against him and dragged mine down the length of his, making him believe I was going to knock it out of his hands, when he moved to stop me, I made my move. I thrust my staff between his arms and used the staff to toss him across the room. He sprawled on the floor, his staff rolling to me. I picked it up. Alec had once told me that if I managed to ever beat him, he would let me hit him with my staff. I went to do so, but stopped before it made contact. The few missions I had gone on had taught me that making it look like I was going to hit someone hard was more effective than actually hitting them. It scared them more.

“Good job, Kheal.”

Present

I woke up. I hadn`t noticed I had fallen asleep. I looked at the sky. It was just beginning to get dark. I stood up and brushed myself off. Some leaves had fallen on me. I walked back to the village and walked into my family's house. My father was in the living room.

“Where have you been?” My father asked.

“What I do in my spare time is no business of yours.” I snapped at him.

“I am your father!”

“I don't consider you as my father, the one I consider my father is back at home. Royal Nightfall.” I went up the stairs. My father followed. I ignored everything he said until,

“Wynter!” I spun around.

“Don`t you ever call me that.” I growled at him. “That's not my name.” I turned back around and went into my room, closing the door and locking it before my father could catch up. I sat on my bed and humphed. Though Wynter was my given name, I couldn't see myself being called anything other than what Royal had named me. I didn't even know my real surname. I laid down and rubbed my face. I pulled down my mask. I felt like if I let this family call me what they named me I was dishonoring Royal who had taken me in as his own. I sighed. Living the life of an assassin had hardened me. I remembered being innocent when I was a child, but now I wasn't. I had killed innocent people and felt no remorse. But I loved Royal. He had raised me despite the dangers it had posed. He`d been arrested a few times, but he had always escaped to come back to me. I never spent more than two days without him in the guild home. I heard a soft knock on the door.

“Wy- Kheal, please open the door.” It was my father. I sat and considered his request for a moment. I heaved a sigh, pulled my mask up and opened the door. My father was standing in the hall.

“Kheal I`m sorry. I keep forgetting that you are fully grown because I didn't get the chance to watch you grow.” He said. I considered him for a moment. He seemed sincere. But I still wasn't sure. I nodded, not sure what to say. We stood for a second, the silence seeming loud. Then my father then turned and left. I closed the door and sat on my bed. I hadn`t been apologized to in a long time. Nor had I apologized in a long time. I found myself leaning towards trusting this family. I thought for a second before I reached up and took my mask off. I trusted them enough to let them see my face. I would wear it around the village because I didn't trust the people. Then I laid down and fell asleep. 

The next morning I woke up and went downstairs. My mother was in the kitchen. I had decided I would let her see me first. She turned as I walked in, and for once she didn't have a lot to say.

“Oh. You look like your father.” Was all she said. She came over and hugged me, and I let her. She let me go and turned back to the stove. I stood and watched her. The two boys ran in. She turned and greeted them.

“Robyn, Croe, set the table for breakfast. Set it for five, your older brother will be joining us.” My younger brothers nodded and set to the task they had been told to do.

After eating, I ran another harsh training session. To my surprise, the trainees were learning fast. In just two days, their stances were correct. I decided it was time to teach them how to actually fight. I grabbed a quarterstaff and selected a random person.

“Come forward.” I said. The person I had randomly selected was Anastasia. She had been training just as long as everyone else. I treated her the same as everyone else. No one got special treatment.

“Take your stance.” I said, settling into my own. Her stance wasn't perfect, but it was better than it had been. When she was settled the session began.

“Fight!” I yelled. She lunged, leading with the staff. A mistake. I sidestepped her and used my staff to force the point of hers down. It stuck to the ground and her momentum caused her to vault. She landed on her back. I walked over to her.

“Never lead with the staff.” I told her. I left her to get up on her own and turned to the group.

“Who's next?” I asked.

After several hours of training, I decided to give them a reprieve. I called a break for lunch. I stretched and walked inside my family's house. After closing the door I pulled down my mask. Robyn and Croe were in the living room and my mother was in the kitchen. My father was nowhere to be found. My mother had told me that he had some business to take care of and had left early in the morning. 

I went over to my mother and greeted her first then I went to try to get to know Robyn and Croe. They were twins. They ignored me when I walked in. I wasn't used to being ignored. At home, everytime I entered a room, everyone watched me like hawks. I reminded myself that I wasn't at home. I sat on the couch, unsure of how to begin. I was an adult, they were children. The only child I had any experience with was Durian. He was a baby, these two weren't. They looked to be about 8. I sighed and went into the kitchen to see if my mother needed any help. I wasn't ready for this. After lunch, the training session resumed. I worked those who attended hard. I noticed that some had not come back. That didn't matter to me. I was doing this so I could go home. I wasn't about to lead a revolution.

“There is no more room for error.” I said. “From now on, things will get harder.” I looked over the group. They had come far in three days. “The last three days were the easy part, now comes the hard part.” I grabbed a staff and tossed it. Someone caught it. A young man of about 19. I grabbed one of my own and launched an attack without warning. Within seconds, I had broken through his defenses. I struck him on the back, hard. Just as Alec had done to me. He doubled over in pain. I used this opportunity to launch a secondary attack, giving him very little time to react. I hit him in the stomach as hard as I could. The young man went to his knees, in pain and gasping for air. I looked up.

“Who's next?” I asked.

I slipped through the shadows. The week was over, but somehow my father had managed to convince me to stay to lead an attack. He and I had planned things out, but I had my own plan. I would get them in, but I had said nothing about getting them out. I planned to get them in, then leave in the heat of battle. I may have been born here, but this wasn't my fight. I no longer lived here. I had been tempted to let them sneak in on their own, but there were 100 of them. Instead, I would climb over a wall and let them in from the inside. None of them were ready for stealth. I found a good spot to climb and stopped.

“Stay here.” I told the group. I grabbed onto the wall and began to climb up. I had to be careful about which bricks I grabbed. Some were loose. They were loose to deter climbing. They wouldn`t deter me. I knew their system. I climbed walls like this a lot back home before my name was cleared. I hadn`t lost my touch I was pleased to find.

I carefully hoisted myself over the edge of the wall when I had reached the top. I signaled to the group for them all to get into their positions. Which was a side door I would let them in through. Things had to go off smoothly for this to work. There had to be enough chaos for me to be able to slip away unnoticed.

I dropped silently into the courtyard. Then I slipped over to the door unseen. I unlocked it and opened it, letting in the others. Then I threw a rock to get the attention of the guards so a fight would start. It didn't take long for things to get out of hand.

When the peak of the battle began, I slipped out through the very door I had let everyone in through. Then I ran for the port. I had arranged transport already.

I watched as the country disappeared with satisfaction. My plan to get away had worked and it had worked well. I didn't care what happened to the people I had left behind now. They were on their own.

I smiled behind my mask as I watched my home appear on the horizon. I couldn't wait to get back to Kiara, Royal and Durian. I had worried about them while I was away.

I hugged Kiara. I had missed her so much! It felt good to have her back in my arms again. I let go of Kiara to hold Durian. It seemed he had grown a bit since I had seen him last. I tucked Durian on one hip and put my arm around Kiara. Then, together, we walked home to our manor.