Chapter 5 Dying

• Kayne’s world tilted.
• He gasped, hands clutching the wound in his stomach, expecting blood, expecting his organs to pour out, expecting—
• Nothing.
• No gush. Just pain. Blinding, screaming pain that made his vision swim and his knees give out.
• He crumpled to the ground as the traitorous stranger fled into the night.
• Virgil was at his side in an instant, pale with panic. “Kayne—Kayne! Stay with me! You’re—why aren’t you bleeding out?!”
• “I don’t know,” Kayne choked. “I just got stabbed in the gut, and I’m not dying. Either I’m immortal now or someone up there is playing a long, cruel joke.”
• Runa hovered over them, wide-eyed. “We need to move. That stabber might bring more. I—I’ll watch the back.”
• Kayne hissed as Virgil checked the wound. The blade had gone in deep, but somehow… the bleeding was slow. Contained. Already clotting.
• “Your body’s healing unnaturally fast,” Virgil murmured.
• “Oh, great,” Kayne said hoarsely, “love that for me. Magic pregnancy perks. What’s next, glowing nipples?”
• Virgil stared.
• “I’m coping through sarcasm; leave me alone.” Kayne’s voice broke, and he buried his face into his robe. “Gods, I just wanted to be left alone. Test a potion. Make a mess. Have my hair fried crisp again. Not become the world’s most wanted incubator.”
• Virgil stifled a laugh. If only he could tell Kayne now that testing out potions was the reason why he was in this mess.
• Kayne's shoulders trembled. “This isn’t my life anymore. It’s the baby’s. Everyone wants it. They don’t even see me anymore. Just the belly. Just the prize.”
• Virgil’s arms wrapped around him gently, grounding him.
• “You’re still you,” he said quietly. “Even if you’re carrying something powerful… you’re still Kayne Heartburn. The walking disaster I signed up to protect.”
• Kayne gave a watery snort. “You’re really shit at pep talks.”
• “I’m not trying to give one,” Virgil said. “I’m just telling the truth.”
• “Why did you save me?” Kayne asked; his curiosity had been eating him up since the day they escaped. Surely he and Virgil had talked before, but they weren't that close.
• Heck! Not even friends.
• “You just reminded me of my little brother, that's all. I'd regret it forever if I did not save you back then.”
• Kayne dares not question back. He feels like he couldn't probe deeper.
• They sat like that for a moment. Just breathing. Kayne’s pain dulled to a throb. Runa paced nearby, muttering curses at the shadows.
• Then she looked up at the night sky, brows furrowing. “Did either of you notice…? The stars. They're dimmer.”
• Virgil followed her gaze. “There’s less magic in the air.”
• Okay,” Kayne muttered, pulling open the small pouch on his belt. “Maybe if we throw out some magic stones, that usually brightens them up. I’ve still got some magic stones—”
• He froze.
• The pouch was filled with dust.
• “No,” he whispered. “No, no, no. These were charged last week. Top-quality elven quartz. You couldn’t even sneeze near them without triggering a light spell.”
• He dumped the contents into his palm. Ash. Powder. Dead magic.
• “It's no use, Kayne. It's like the magic's dying. Look up.”
• The stars indeed were fading. It was usually as bright as a crescent moon, and something aboutout it seemed…magical.
• It was believed that the brighter the stars, the stronger the magic.
• Runa crossed to him, lips tight. “I tried to cast a tracking ward earlier. Nothing happened. Not even a flicker.”
• “You know casting spells?”
• “Hmm? A little bit of them.”
• Virgil’s voice came through. “I noticed something, too. All the people chasing us? Not a single mage. No hexblades. No summoned beasts. Just bounty hunters with knives and ropes. Whatever’s happening… it’s not just political.”
• Kayne stared at the dust in his hand.
• “That’s why Elsinora wants the baby,” he said hollowly. “It’s not just about power. They think the child can bring magic back….”
• Kayne’s blood went cold.
• Runa turned to them, grave. “The Light Kingdom… They had magic, but barely. It’s fading from the others even faster.”
• Virgil nodded slowly. “Which means…”
• Kayne finished it for him, voice hollow.
• “Our kingdom… might be the last one with real magic left.”
• “Why didn't the Queen tell us any of these?”
• “And if Elsinora wants the baby to herself? Why did she send bounty hunters after us?” Virgil asked, The Queen's plan was too... risky. She couldn't have been the culprit. They all knew it.
• “You guys are traitors to the crown. They will come after you. Don't tell me you don't know that.” ...... almost.
• Virgil snapped at Kayne. “Of course I know that, dumb-brain. I meant, why would she hire those people on YOU if she knew about this and wanted to go to extreme lengths to keep you for herself?”
• “I don't really understand….but, uhh, why?”
• The silence continued, the brainstorming endless.
• “I'm craving duck breast and olives.” Kayne blurted out.
• “Kayne, I'm trying to think here!”
• “Oh, you can think?” He responded, feigning innocence. Virgil rolled his eyes at Kayne's childishness.
• “Urgh!”
• “Stop it, you two! It's clear! The bounty was not from the Queen.”
• “Then from whom?”
• Runa facepalmed. Idiots, she claimed.
• “There's a traitor in the light kingdom that leaked that information to other kingdoms. The one that'll benefit from this mayhem… it's—”
• “The healer that said I was pregnant? Oh, that fucker…”
• “No! It's—Kayne, it's obvious. It's not the healer.”
• “Oh!”
• “The Court Council?” Virgil suddenly blurted out.
• “Your two brain braincells actually work!” Runa said in fake delight but sooner cleared her throat, her cheeks burning from the words she uttered. It didn't matter to Virgil.
• “Yes, the Council,” she continued. “They're all against the Queen. And it is not just some of them; it's all of them.”
• Runa fixated her gaze on Kayne; she took a deep breath as she let out the words hanging from her throat.
• “Kayne—I'm pretty sure everyone on the continent knows you're carrying a miracle.”
• “Wow, you're so smart…..wait,” Kayne paused, registering the dire situation he's in.
• “What?!”