Fall of a Friend

Amias charged Icas and locked swords with him as Lauren just stared in shock at what remained of the shattered Starstone. Lauren bent down and ran her hands through the shattered pieces of the Starstone. It felt like very sharp snow.

"You!" Amias shouted. "You killed my father! You took him away from me and left me an orphan!" Icas disengaged their swords but said nothing. "Say something!" Amias said. Lauren looked over to observe the battle. With the reinforcements that Amias brought, they were easily winning.

Lauren looked back and saw that Icas and Amias were gone. She quickly sheathed her sword. William ran over to her. "Where are you going? He asked.

"To find Amias. He and Icas disappeared."

"Can I come too?" The tone in William's voice had a tone that Lauren could not decipher. She nodded and together, they ran to find them.

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Lauren and William ran through corridor after corridor, following the sound of swords clashing against each other. They opened two double doors to see Amias and Icas dueling in some kind of meeting hall. Elegant tapestries lined the walls with a large chandelier in the center of the room.

Icas slashed Amias's sword away and kicked Amias in the stomach who fell to the ground on his back. Icas smirked triumphantly and pointed his sword at his throat. "Like father, like son," he whispered to Amias. He lowered the sword closer to Amias's neck.

"Father, don't!" William shouted. Lauren swung around to look at him. "Icas Thornton is your father!?" William nodded slowly, but his eyes didn't leave his father.

As soon as Icas turned his head to look at his son, Amias drew his dagger and cut the flower off of Icas's sword and threw it to Lauren. Icas saw what Amias had done and drove his sword into Amias's chest. Lauren screamed and ran over to Amias. William stabbed Icas with his sword. "You are a disgusting monster," William told him before releasing his hold on his sword and walking over to Lauren.

"Amias! Wake up! Please!" Lauren sobbed, but Amias's eyes remained closed. Lauren put her ear to his bleeding chest. "H-he doesn't have a heartbeat," she whispered. William put his hand on her shoulder. "He's dead. He could have killed Icas with his dagger and saved his life, but instead, he cut the flower off of the sword for me."

"It's okay," William said. "He's with his father now. He's with Mlinzi." Lauren looked up at him, tears streaming down her face. "I'll go find Odi," he said quietly as he left the room.

Lauren could not believe it. Amias, the first person that she ever met in Eddeathra and the man who had been with her every step of the way. Dead.