By Order of the Prince - Part 7

Instructions

"Still sensitive about touch, huh? I remember you started withdrawing from everyone after Asteria died. And then your mother died, and you just shut yourself up in your room--wait." Misko looked at Soren, not as the kid he knew, but something... darker. "It was you. It was all you." Misko's voice cracked, tears brimming in his eyes. "You didn't hide because of grief. You hid because of guilt. Guilt that you..." Misko drew his blade. "YOU KILLED HER!" He swung his blade at Soren, who jerked back, drawing his own rapier in one swift, fluid motion. Their swords clashed. Tears streamed from Misko's face. "TELL ME I'M WRONG!" he screamed. "SAY IT!" Soren looked at the ground briefly. "I... I can't do that." He dropped his rapier. "I can't keep lying." "I treated you like a little brother. How could you do this to me? To Asteria?" Misko whimpered. "I can't justify it. I won't even try. It was an accident. I never meant to kill her." "I wish I could go back and undo it. I wish I could live a life where she's still here." Soren wiped a tear from his eye. "If you want to kill me now... I wouldn't blame you. It should've happened a long time ago." "Please," Soren collapsed on the ground. "Finish this." Soren heard leaves crunching. The blow never came. He looked up. Misko was gone. He left behind his satchel. Soren caught a glimpse of something glowing inside. ###### Zelda slammed her fist into the table. “It’s not enough that Link was in the dungeon. I have to uncover secrets that everyone is hiding!” Purah placed her hand on Zelda’s shoulder. “Hey, relax. We’ll figure this out.” “I know, I’m sorry, it’s just this is so frustrating. I feel like every time I get closer to the truth, something else pops up that pushes me back more.” Zelda sighed. Purah nodded. “I don’t know exactly how you feel right now, but I know if you need someone to talk to, I’m right here.” ###### Link pushed back a branch, which promptly whacked him in the face. “Stupid—” Something caught his eye. Tracks. Two of them. There was a fight. He knelt down, examining them closely. There was an indent in the dirt, like someone had fallen. There weren’t any marks hinting at a body being dragged through the dirt, so they must have survived. He looked up. There was something up the path. A satchel. He picked it up. “Interesting.” He trudged on, towards Hateno.