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screpdoodle · 3 years

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Duality - Chapter Seven (The Aftermath of an Almost Victory)

Tick tick tick…

The dulled colors of the world swirled together as Kaos forced his eyes open, squinting to try to make out the blurred shapes against the blinding sky. He lifted his head off of the ground, rubbing his temples as the blood roared in his ears. A deafening, rhythmic beat pounding through his skull. Kaos pushed a fallen beam off of his chest, coughing as dry, dusty air flooded his lungs, scratching at his throat like thousands of tiny claws. His vision lagged as he looked around, slowly processing what he saw. Walls toppled revealing their inner workings. Bits of steel plating and banisters were laying haphazardly around, the ceiling now open to the cloudy sky above. He… he had done it?? Frantically, Kaos felt himself over, making sure he was still in one piece, before he let out a sigh of relief. By the Ancients’ mercy, he was alive.

“Kaos? Kaos!!”

In a flash, Kaos was scooped up off of the ground, his feet dangling as a battered Dyskord squeezed him tightly. Kaos coughed, almost immediately trying to push away from his brother’s grasp.

“Hey, hey! You’re gonna crack my ribs again, idiot!” Kaos cried, trying to sound as angry as he could despite the grin curling across his face.

Dyskord set his brother down, a strained laugh escaping him. He looked even more disheveled than usual, open cuts littered his olive skin, bruises already starting to bud; but then again, Kaos probably didn’t look much better himself. Taking a moment to catch his breath, Kaos surveyed the damage he had caused, his eyes seeming to glow like the embers that floated through the air. The silence in the air, the still of the grounds, it was all so… beautiful.

“We did it.” He spoke softly at first, waving his hands in small, back and forth motions. “I… I did it! YES! YES!!” Kaos didn’t care who in the Skylands heard him. This was his moment. This was his time.

The euphoria felt like bubbles in his stomach fizzing up into his brain, bursting into sparkles of pride. This must've been what Mother felt like at Mey’s sheepball practices or when Dyskord graduated: pure, unadulterated glee. He couldn't help but cackle, throwing his hands into the sky in triumph. Dyskord, on the other hand, didn’t seem to be as enthralled, his wry smile starting to fall. Kaos followed his gaze to the edge of the island, where the students had gathered (as they did during every emergency evacuation), huddled together. Kaos could almost see the looks of terror on their faces, students and staff members alike quaking in fear at his absolute, ingenious might. He was practically bouncing up and down at the thought, but instead he paused, squinting to try to make out a shape along the horizon. A shape that looked like it was barreling towards them. Kaos’ heart sank as he watched the figure lumbering over the wreckage, rage practically radiating off of them. Mr. Webster.

“I- I think I hear Mother calling.” Kaos tugged on Dyskord’s sleeve, not daring to take his eyes off the behemoth. “We-We’d better go…”

“Y-Yeah. Heh.” Dyskord turned his head to the side and called out, “B-Be right there, Mother!”

“Oh, don’t worry. Your mother will be hearing about this.”

A large hand grabbed a hold of Kaos’ arm, a squeak escaping his open mouth. His limb looked like a toothpick compared to Mr. Webster’s tight grasp. Kaos gulped, his eyes trailing up from the hand, Kaos immediately began batting at Mr. Webster’s hand, kicking and squealing like a frightened pig as the principal lifted him up off of the ground. Kaos tried to worm his way to freedom, albeit to no avail. He had come too far. Too far to lose now. It wasn’t fair.

“So, Kaos...” Mr. Webster snarled, “Anything to say for yourself?”

“SCREW YOU!” Kaos squealed.

With his free hand, he threw a wild punch at his teacher. Kaos’ fist rebounded off the side of his gaunt face, causing nothing more than irritation and a throbbing pain through his frail hand. Kaos recoiled, whimpering as he tried to shake out the pain, Mr. Webster’s only reaction was a mere eye twitch. Without another word, he began walking back through the wreckage, carrying the flailing Kaos at arm’s length away from him. Dyskord held back, wondering how easy it would be to leave Kaos behind and feign innocence over the whole situation, before finally grunting to himself and running after his brother. If living with his brother was Hell already, he really didn’t want to know what it would be like if he got on Kaos’ bad side.

“Care to explain yourself?”

Kaos sat on what used to be a chair; the back had crumbled into scrapwood and the legs were nowhere to be found. The principal sat across from him on the other side of what used to be his desk, which was now simply a lump of blackened char. Dyskord stood in the only remaining corner of the principal’s office. Kaos had to admit, he preferred the more ‘open’ look the room had now. Not that he had much time to admire it. His gaze was locked in a staring contest with the Principal’s one, bloodshot, eye. Yes, eye. The principal was a Cyclops. Ever since his first day of school, Kaos had found it a bit odd. Cyclopes were known for terrorizing villages with axes, giant snowballs and Slobbering Mutticuses; not running a school. Though, to be fair, both were bent on conquest. The principal folded his massive, blubbery hands in his lap, mucus green skin prickled with beads of sweat. His general demeanor was held in contrast with the suit he always wore, the buttons of his top threatening to pop as they kept his rotund body compressed. Mr. Webster stood at attention next to the door, which was somehow still standing, despite most of the wall having crumbled down around it. He didn’t dare take his beady, black eyes off of the brothers.

“Well, I thought the school needed a bit of redecorating.” Kaos snickered, trying to maintain his nonexistent cool. “More open architecture is all the rage these days.”

“Enough jokes. This is a serious matter, Kaos. You put people’s lives at risk.”

“...would you believe me if I said it was an accident?”

“Of course it wasn’t an accident! I told you, Odius, this child is nothing but a troublemaker. He should have been expelled when he set that one kid on fire!”

“That wasn’t my fault! Besides, genasi are fire proof. It’s not like the ‘damage’ was permanent.”

“You little bugger, only fire genasi are immune to fire!” Mr. Webster hissed, “They were a life genasi!”

“...oops?”

Behind him, Kaos heard Dyskord slam his face into his hands, groaning. Kaos shot him a quick glare, then looked back to the principal with a forced smile. The principal clearly wasn’t impressed with the scene, a frown on his slack jawed face. Mr. Webster, in contrast, looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel, the right side of his face twitching.

“Boys, do we need to consult an… outside force on this matter?” The principal said coolly.

“No! No no, there’s no need.” Kaos waved his hands, jumping to his feet. “I’m sure we can sort this out!”

“Y-Yeah!” Dyskord chimed in, his tone dripping with panic. “We really don’t need to concern her. She’s a very busy woman-”

“DON’T YOU DARE BRING HER INTO THIS!!”

“ENOUGH!” Webster snapped, slamming his fist against the door. Only for it to fall off its hinges and hit the ground with a thud, sending up a plume of dust. Mr. Webster pointed to what remained of the secretary’s office. “Boys, out, NOW.”

Kaos muttered something under his breath as he turned on his heels, storming out of the room. As he passed Dyskord, he grabbed him by the sleeve of his jacket, dragging him along. As Kaos plopped himself down on the cluttered floor, he stared out at the wreckage, now littered with students trying to find some semblance of their material goods. Kaos clutched his own backpack to his chest as he began chewing on his nails. His mind wandered until he felt the sting of his teeth against his fingertip, the dry taste of his nail mingling with the dirt that was tucked beneath it. Before he could move onto the next finger, Dyskord swatted at his hand lightly to grab his brother’s attention, then shook his head. Kaos huffed, curling up around his backpack. He could hear the principal talking, not to Webster, but someone else; saying things like, “Yes, yes,” “Sorry for the inconvenience,” and “Thank you ma’am.”

Kaos buried his head into his knees, trying to think of some way, any way, he could possibly get out of this in one piece. His brain felt like a jumbled mess of wires all tangled around him, the cold embrace of dread forcing its way down his throat. Typical. Even when he finally succeeded at something,something always had to mess it up; and Ancients knew the calamity that he just lived through would be nothing compared to the calamity that he was about to live through. Kaos didn’t know how much time had passed as he got lost in his thoughts, but he looked up at the sound of heels tapping against the floor, quickly approaching. He felt his heart drop to the pit of his stomach. Shooting a quick glance at Dyskord, the two brothers heard the principal speak up once again.

“Ah, Mrs. Horvitz. Pleasure to have you here.”

“You’re in deep trouble now, mister!”

The castle doors were thrown open as Mother stormed inside, dragging Kaos by the ear. Her angular face was contorted in a familiar scowl, lips pursed and gaze steely enough to make even the strongest of dreadwalkers cower in fear. Kaos yelped as she swung him forward, falling to his knees with a thud. Dyskord peered around the corner, making sure to keep his distance, letting Kaos take the brunt of their mother’s fury for the time being.

“What were you thinking!?” Mother cried, coming to an abrupt stop in the middle of the foyer, pulling Kaos to his fee, her slender fingers clasped around his arm. “Blowing up your school!? Honestly, Kaos! I would have thought you would have learned your lesson after last time you pulled a stunt like this!”

Kaos stared up at his mother, practically petrified. She let go of his arm, resting her gloved hands on her hips. Even when she wasn’t positively irate, she had an air of anger about her that couldn't be shaken. Perhaps it was her angular features, or the constant frown she wore no matter the occasion.

“What was it last time?” Dyskord asked, bracing himself.

“I tried to flood the gymnasium,” Kaos said nonchalantly before turning his head to face his mother once more, “But, Mother! This time was different! I-”

“Actually succeeded.”

Kaos nodded enthusiastically, grinning.

“That’s not a good thing, Kaos!”

Kaos smile quickly fell. Mother sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She bore a look that mirrored one you’d give a partially dead roach. She finally let go of her son’s arm with a sigh, turning away.

“You know what. You’re filthy. Head upstairs and get yourself cleaned up. I’ll deal with this later when the entire family can talk it over…””

“Wait, the entire family? Is Father coming back?” Dyskord had already been halfway up the stairs, attempting to make his escape, but this news made him stop and look back.

“Yes, Dyskord. Your father will be joining us for dinner...” her voice dropped to a mutter, “...if he’s not late again... So I expect you both to be cleaned and presentable!”

Dyskord gave a thumbs up, then dashed the rest of the way up the stairs, leaving Kaos to fend for himself. Kaos turned, taking a step towards the stairs, only to be stopped by his mother’s hand on his shoulder.

“I expect you’ll behave yourself tonight.” His mother said, a bitter edge to her voice.

Kaos brushed her hand away, sighing. “Yes, Mother…”

Not waiting for her to say another word, Kaos dashed up the stairs, nearly on all fours, and into the washroom at the end of the hall, slamming the door behind him.

Kaos let the hot water run over his body, his head tilted to the sky as the water plastered his hair to his head. His mother had been right, he was completely filthy. Dust and dirt covered virtually every inch of his body. The cuts and bruises he had received from the explosion needed to be cleaned too; dirt, grime and dried blood nestled within them. Kaos picked shards of shrapnel from his skin, taking extra care around his birthmarks, before taking the pieces he had collected and coaxing them into a small, glass bottle he had grabbed; a trophy of sorts, to remind him of his near victory.

Kaos ran his fingers through his hair, catching them on the countless tangles as he attempted to clean the coating of grime and oil it had gathered. The soap Kaos was using ran down his scalp and into his eyes, immediately beginning to burn. Kaos scrunched his eyes closed and frantically began shaking the soap off of his hands, the suds pooling at his feet. This soon became frantically trying to wipe the soap from his eyes, tears trickling down his cheeks as the burning reduced to a dull stinging. He cursed under his breath, kicking the wall of the shower in frustration. Kaos just seemed to have the worst luck today.

Kaos couldn’t help but wonder what he did to deserve this, what sin he had committed that cursed him with such horrid luck. At least that Ancients-forsaken place was finally gone, but that was only one problem solved out of the many more he had to face. Kaos sighed quietly as he turned off the water, letting the cold soak back into the bathroom from beneath the closed door. With the absence of the rushing water, Kaos could now hear Dyskord getting his lecture from all the way downstairs. Mother’s shouts were unmistakable; the usual ‘how dare you enable him’ and ‘you’re better than this’ sort of verbal chastisements that seemed to be commonplace. Dyskord was getting let off easy, as always. A quick slap to the side of his head, then sent to bed without dessert. Not another word on the matter. It was nothing compared to what Kaos normally went through. Even the slightest step out of line and Mother would have his head. At least it was nicer than Father’s usual punishments…

Kaos shook his head, beads of water flying everywhere. He knew he should dry his hair off in the towel, but he didn’t feel like it. This was much more fun. Once his hair was only slightly damp, Kaos grabbed his bathrobe off of its hook and slipped it on. It was a few sizes too big for him, but he liked it nonetheless. He tied his scarf around his waist to hold the robe in place, then slowly opened the door to the hallway, just as Mother was finishing up her lecture. He paused, grabbing onto the railing and standing on his tip toes as he tried to hear even a sliver of the discussion, but he was too late. Sighing, he pulled the bathrobe tighter around himself, then headed for his room, trailing dripping wet footsteps on the carpet. He could hear his mother’s heels on the hardwood downstairs, heading to the kitchen, the sunset filtering through the clouded windows signalling it was time to start cooking dinner. And for him to get dressed in something ‘presentable’, as Mother put it. With a huff, Kaos pushed the door to his room open, then froze.

“What are you doing?!”

Meyhem looked up from where she was sprawled on his bed, an old leather-bound notebook held open in her outstretched hands. At the sight of Kaos, she dropped in her face, then sat up with a grin, her hair falling in front of her wild, blue eyes.

“Mother’s ma~ad,” She giggled, pulling at the drawstrings of her oil-stained hoodie.

“That doesn’t answer my question, idiot!”

Kaos ran forward, making sure to keep his robe closed with one arm as he attempted to climb the ladder to his bed. Meyhem just laughed, grabbing the book before jumping over her brother and landing on the ground. Kaos screamed, losing his balance and toppling down on top of her, more to his detriment than hers. Meyhem simply scurried out from underneath him and made a beeline for the door. Kaos pushed himself up on his forearms, blowing his bangs out of his eyes just in time for Meyhem to chuck the book back at him, the edge of the spine colliding right between his eyes.

“Oops!” Meyhem giggled, poking her head back into the room, “Sorry, little brother!”

“I’m not little!” Kaos cried, rubbing the point of impact to try and nurse the oncoming headache. “I’m older than you!!”

Kaos forced himself to his feet as Meyhem ran back to her room, her giggles lingering in the air. Kaos grumbled under his breath, then slammed his door shut, resting his head against its surface. He just couldn’t catch a break, could he. Once he was sure she wouldn't be returning for a surprise attack, Kaos plopped himself down under his loft, looking over the book to make sure no damage had become it. More than it already had, of course. Kaos ran his fingers over the leather cover, feeling the marks he had etched into his surface to mark it as his own before flipping it open. A few pages had been torn out, and some of the loose ones were missing, but that would be an easy enough fix. Meyhem was conniving, but she wasn’t the best at hiding things. Throwing a quick glance to his window to check the time, Kaos pulled out a quill he had stashed off to the side and flipped to a blank page. It had been a while, but without another outlet, it was the best he could do.

Kaos’ hand jerked to the side as his door slammed open, the ink from his quill creating a long, splotchy line across his page. Kaos growled, then slammed his book closed. He craned his neck to see who had the audacity to disturb him before dinner was even ready. Sure enough, Meyhem stood in his doorway; now dressed in the closest thing she had to something ‘fancy’, a pair of silken pajamas.

“What is it now, Mey.” Kaos huffed, hoping with all his might that Meyhem wouldn’t answer and he could go back to venting his emotions.

“It’s time for dinner!” Meyhem giggled, then tossed a wad of crumpled-up paper at his head. It rebounded off of his skull, rolling across the ground. He looked down at it, recognizing the parchment his journal was made of, then looked back up at Mey.

“It’s not. Go away.”

“Yeah it is!” Meyhem climbed under the loft, plopping down beside him on the pile of laundry. “Mother said so.”

“Then why don’t I smell it?”

“‘Cause your nose is dumb.”

“Is not!”

“Is too!”

Kaos couldn’t help but crack a smile, reaching up and ruffling Meyhem’s choppy, black hair. She scrunched down, beaming wide enough to show the gap where her front teeth should have been. She was a pain, that was for certain, but she was a pain Kaos was willing to put up with.

“How was school~?” Meyhem asked, a cheeky grin on her face.

“Har har. Shut up.” Kaos rolled his eyes as he climbed out from under his bed, making his way to the ladder.

“Mother told me you got in an accident! Is that true? Did you die??”

“Mey, don’t you have chores you need to do?” Kaos looked back with a wry grin as he put his journal back in its place, beneath his pillow. Luckily, Meyhem hadn’t messed up too much of his bed layout, so he didn’t need to spend hours getting everything back into place.

Meyhem paused, tapping her chin. “I can’t do my chores right now, it’s dinner!”

“Then maybe you should go help Mother by setting the table, hm? After all, we want everything to look good for Father when he-”

“Father’s coming back tonight?? Why didn’t you tell me!”

“I didn’t know until-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Meyhem had already ran out of the room, leaving Kaos alone once again. He sighed, hopping off of his ladder from the final step. It was at that point Kaos finally smelled it. The ‘succulent’ aroma of charred meat and blanched vegetables - the Horvitz family specialty. Kaos’ nose twitched, his stomach doing a summersault at the thought of tolerating such slop. What he wouldn't give for some decent food.

Throwing one last glance to the hall, Kaos began to get dressed in the ‘fanciest’ clothes he could find; black slacks and a wrinkled, collared shirt that was two sizes too big. That was the most effort he was willing to put in for his dad. As he stepped out into the hall, Kaos wrapped his scarf around his shoulders like a shawl, then paused as the sound of heavy-handed knocking cut through the quiet of the castle. His heart sank.

“Dyskord, be a dear and fetch the door. I do believe he’s here.”

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