Kid stared abound the room in a dark haze, his eyes drifting over a scene of madness. Pleasure as black as sin ran through his veins, giving new life to his flesh. Crazed laughter rang about the room. In the far corner a man and a woman were tearing the clothes from one another, heedless of observers. The youngest in the room, like him, stared with wide blackened eyes around the room.

Marc walked through it all with a wide grin on his face. Men and women parted before him like a sharp knife through flesh. He patted shoulders and clasped arms as he went around the room, whispering in ears. At each parting, the Son would nod and move from the room with purpose Then Marc’s eyes locked on him. A rush of joy filled Kid and he couldn’t help but smile, a giggle escaping his lips.

Marc knelt before him to meet his eyes, putting a hand on Kid’s shoulder. Marc’s eyes flashed a darker black at the contact. Kid felt the veins in his shoulder writhe. He gasped.

Marc leaned closer, putting his lips almost to Kid’s ear. “Every transgression warrants a punishment boy. Do you understand?”

Kid nodded, a vacant smile splayed across his face.

“Hand me your purse.”

A twinge of something ran through Kid but he brushed it away, digging gold coins from his pockets and pressing them into Marc’s hands. Marc smiled at him and Kid grinned back, basking in the man’s approval.

“Now, I want you to walk into the bay, until the water rises above your head. Swim if you are able and ignore the cold, it will not bother you. Go to where the ships disappear over the horizon and wait till morning. Then you shall return to me.”

Marc’s grip tightened on Kid’s shoulder until it hurt. “Goodbye Kid.”

The man rose and moved to the next Son, whispering in his ear. Every muscle in Kid’s body tensed. He felt doubt. It hung in the back of his head, lurking like carrion birds before the slaughter. Shivers ran through his body, only to be overwhelmed by the feeling of warmth and life coursing through his body. The doubt was quashed, the circling birds struck with arrows and falling to the ground with the snap of bone.

Kid blinked and found himself in motion, his legs already moving before his mind registered the command. He knew what he had to do. Of Marc’s intent, there was no doubt. Kid would follow his instructions. Kid dodged around the swinging legs of larger men and made his way to the door on the far side of the room. He caught sight of Hilda disappearing around the corner far down the hall. He followed in her wake.

The halls passed in a haze as he walked them. He could catch hints of whispers drifting from the shadows but no words. Muffled voices sounded from behind a door ahead of him and then it opened. James stepped out. There were tears in the corners of his eyes, but the man blinked rapidly, and they disappeared. His eyes drifted to Kid.

The man opened his mouth to speak but the words seemed to catch in his throat. He let out a deep breath and tried again. “Hey, Kid.”

Kid nodded in greeting and continued down the hall. James fell into step beside him. They walked together, each lost in their own thoughts. Kid wondered how cold the water was at night.

“Where does Marc have you headed?”

“Home for the night.” The lie slipped so easily from his lips he almost believed it.

James nodded to himself. “After all the shit he’s put you through, you deserve a break. If you don’t want to see your mother, you can stay at the inn.”

Kid nodded more in acknowledgment of James’s words than any desire to stay. “How do you know what he’s put me through?”

“My daughter tells me some, then the older men here will fill in the blanks. Did he give you a job for what comes tomorrow?”

Kid shook his head. “Not tomorrow.” This time he didn’t even have to lie.

“That’s good. This ritual is one for war. Whatever comes tomorrow, it’ll be no place for a boy.” James glanced at Kid and the boy met his eyes. “I haven’t seen eyes like those in twenty years.” James dug his nails into his palms, a hungry look entering his eyes. “Took all my willpower not to walk in there and join you all. A man gets addicted to such a feeling, craves it more than his soul.”

Kid grinned as another rush of pleasure ran through his body. “What does it do?” he asked, though he felt he already knew.

James paused as they reached the door leaving the main complex and pushed it open. They walked into the long tunnel. “It feels good. It feels damn good. Lowers your inhibitions and makes fear a distant memory. The man who completes it can compel you to do most anything with but a word.” James looked over his shoulder, frowning but kept walking.

“During the war the penalties for abusing it were severe. Once saw an officer tell a man to go fuck himself and didn’t stop the poor bastard when he started trying to.” James shook his head and ran a hand over the scars on his face. “The next day I saw that officer impaled on a stake from ass to mouth.” He glanced at Kid. “Accountability is important, and it terrifies me to think what precedent my brother will set for your generation.”

Kid gripped the rungs of the ladder ahead of them and started to climb. His hands felt no pain. James followed behind him as they pulled themselves through the dark tunnel. The rock and dirt around Kid fell away and he pulled himself into a small building of reinforced wood. A man in a bear mask leaned against the wall, regarding him.

“Lucky little shit,” the man muttered as he walked to the door and unlocked it for them. Kid laughed, a crazed grin lighting his face. The Son at the door, backed away from him as Kid left the building. Kid breathed the night air, reveling in the cool feeling of the air filling his lungs. Every pleasure seemed magnified ten-fold.

The street about them was devoid of life. When the nights grew cold, few ventured from their fires. James clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Come on. I know you don’t feel it, but you need to rest. I’ve heard a few horror stories about men coming down from the high and dropping dead from exhaustion. Best not join their ranks.”

Kid nodded, only half hearing James. He was busy looking at the stars. He wanted to die watching something beautiful. The distant crash of waves called to him. Their draw was inexorable. His feet were moving before his mind registered. James still walked beside him. Kid wondered if that would pose a problem. He still had his dagger and considered stabbing the man and running.

Kid licked his lips. No. It was too risky. He’d have to play it by ear. They walked in silence and Kid was glad for it. Kid always liked people who didn’t feel the need to fill silence. The sounds of horns echoed through the air. Kid looked up to the castle perched on the cliff far away and high above. A ball of fire streaked from its parapets, racing across the sky like a falling star.

“Divines, how many has that been this week? Four? Five?” James asked

Kid shrugged. “Should we be worried?”

“Don’t think I have room in me for more worry. Come on. Let’s get inside and get a fire going.” James turned off the road.

Kid kept walking, following the fire. It was a few moments before James noticed Kid had left him. The man called after him. “Kid. Where are you going?”

Kid ignored him and kept walking. He heard the thump of James’s boots following him. Kid broke out into a run, charging toward the sounds of crashing waves. Behind him, the man hesitated but soon decided something wasn’t right. James charged after him.

The darkness of the night writhed like something alive as Kid raced past black alleys and murky windows. His feet pounded against the hard dirt and his breath clouded the air in his wake. His heart raced from the exhilaration and the pounding of blood through his veins filled him with energy. He thought he could run for days.

The crashing waves were loud now and in the distance, he could see the white foam along their crests. The dirt road turned abruptly from the coast. There were no docks in the Outwalls. Nobody wanted to leave their valuables here. Kid jumped from the road, racing down a steep incline. His foot caught on a rock, sending him bouncing down to the sand below. The clattering of rocks behind him announced James’s arrival. As if Kid could miss the man’s wheezing.

“Kid. Stop.” The man called between breaths.

Kid scrambled to his feet and ran, kicking up sand behind him. His feet sloshed into the water, cold enveloping them. As the water rose to his waist he began to slow, and a hand wrapped around the collar of his shirt, dragging him backwards. Kid fell from his feet into the icy water. A wave crashed over his head and he choked on the salt and brine. The hand pulled him backwards, away from the ocean. Kid fought violently and heard the tearing of fabric.

He drew his dagger and sawed at his shirt. The fabric split easily, and he was free. He barely made it to his feet before an arm wrapped around his throat and hauled him entirely out of the water. Kid screamed and fought the grip. He tried to slash with the dagger, but his movement was sluggish. James grabbed him by the wrist and pressed hard on the veins in his wrist. Kid felt no pain, but the dagger fell from his grip. He cursed and tried to thrash but his body was overtaken by an uncontrollable shaking. His breath came in shaky gasps.

James shook too but less violently. Horror shined in the man’s eyes like the white of a skull. James lifted Kid into his arms with a grunt Kid tried to fight but his body refused to respond to his commands. He could only weakly push against James’s chest. The man didn’t seem to notice as he hauled Kid back up the slope to the road. Darkness crawled into the edges of Kid’s vision and he lost track of how much time passed.

The darkness was replaced with light and after a long moment of staring he realized it was a fire. He heard voices behind him. “What the hell was he doing? Going for a swim?”

“Marc must have told him to.”

A girl’s voice, close to him. “Will he be okay?”

Kid heard no vocal answer but a moment later he felt a small hand rest on his shoulder.

“Can you undo the ritual?”

Silence.

“Yes.”

The hand moved from his shoulder and a larger hand rolled him over. Kid raised his arm weakly. He was beginning to be able to move again. James, Melna and Lissa stood over him. A long tongue licked his face. Kid winced, and his eyes flicked to Kryll.

James held Melna by the arm and helped her lower herself to the ground where Kid lay. She pressed his arm to the ground. Kid couldn’t fight it. She caressed his face with a withered hand. “I’m sorry boy.”

Pink light danced across his eyes, springing forth from her hand. No, it was going into his eyes. Kid closed them, but he knew it was no use. He could feel the veins in his eyes burning as the darkness was sluiced from them. As his eyes cleared, the sensation of pain began to return. His hands were aflame, the salt from the sea burning like the embers of a fire. The rest of him was a deeper cold than he had ever known. His flesh was ice and the warmth of the fire sent needles of pain through his skin.

Kid gritted his teeth and the veins in his neck bulged as exhaustion from the night seeped back into him alongside the piercing pain. His limbs began to convulse once more as if spurred to life by his agony. Melna fell away from his sight, gasping.

Lissa appeared above him and he felt her rubbing him, trying to put warmth back into his body. Worry filled her eyes and he felt droplets of water splash against his face. Her hair smeared the wetness across his face. She clung to him, but he could barely feel her.

James put a hand on her shoulder. “Lissa.”

She shook the hand from her.

Kryll waddled up to Kid and lay next to him, trilling softly. The beast crossed its clawed arms and lay its head across Kid’s bare chest. Its throat was strangely soft next to the armored plates along its backside. The beady black eyes stared into his own. Lissa turned her head to Kryll and laid her palm across its head. The beast trilled in pleasure and the plates along its back rose into the air. Warmth radiated from Kryll like a second fire.

Where the Keeper’s throat touched his skin, warmth seeped into Kid. Needles raced across his flesh as the room rapidly heated. Kid gasped as life returned to his body. The shaking slowly subsided and he found the strength to move of his own will. He raised a hand and rested atop the hand Lissa placed on Kryll. She smiled at him, sweat beginning to bead on her forehead. Kid forced a smile to his lips.

James pulled her hand from Kryll’s head. “Divines, that’s enough. You’re damn near to cooking us alive in here.” He knelt next to Kid. “You feeling okay boy?”

Kid shook his head then let it loll to the side. He saw Melna sitting against the leg of her table, clutching her hand. It looked-wrong. Where it had been withered with age, now it was skeletal, as if the muscle had been stripped from it and all that was left was skin and bone. They locked eyes and Melna hid the hand within the folds of her cloak. Then Kid closed his eyes. He didn’t plan on opening them for a long time.