The King's Guard

Chapter 105

Kael moved through the underbrush, cloak brushing wet leaves, every sense alert, eyes scanning the shadows. He was alone. He had barely managed to assure Reyna and Elara that he'd be just fine.

A sudden rustle made Kael drop to one knee.

Kael’s hand went to his own dagger. “Identify yourself.”

The figure bowed slightly, almost in jest. “Lord Theren or dare I say Kael Estaran? I wondered how long it would take you to notice me.”

Kael froze. The voice sounded familiar, yet tempered by years of absence.

“Liam,” Kael breathed.

He was so much taller than he remembered, broad-shouldered. The years had changed Liam in ways Kael hadn’t expected: lines at the corners of his eyes. But when their eyes met, the past seemed to collapse: the laughter of childhood, the scraped knees, the midnight dares, the shared secrets, all rushed back.

“I’ve missed you so much,” Kael said, the words unguarded.

“I’ve missed you too,” Liam replied, voice low but steady. “Trust me… I searched everywhere for you.”

Kael’s heart clenched. The Rift visions, the endless battles, the betrayals, they all felt small in that moment, compared to the fact that Liam had never stopped looking for him.

“I… I got to your father,” Liam continued after a pause, a hint of mischief in his expression. “He was the one who gave me a hint on where to find you sometime ago.”

Kael laughed despite himself. “He didn’t know you were an enemy sent to kill me?”

They both laughed then, the sound echoing warmly through the chapel. It felt like the old days, like nothing had changed, yet everything had.

“Don’t think for a second,” Liam said, stepping closer, “that I’m going to pamper or babysit you. You’re not my wife.”

Kael raised an eyebrow, lips curling. “Oh… I could be.”

Liam’s eyes went wide for a moment, then narrowed, sarcasm dripping from every word. “Why are you gay?” he asked, and the chapel filled with their laughter again.

When the laughter faded, peace settled between them. Kael felt it like a balm, the comfort of familiarity after so much chaos.

“You don’t understand,” Kael said, quieter now, “I thought… I thought I’d never see you again.”

Liam shook his head slowly. “You’re not alone, Kael. Not anymore. Stormhaven… the Queen… all of it, none of it matters as much as finding you again.”

Kael swallowed, feeling the weight of unspoken words. “You really did come for me.”

“Of course I did,” Liam said, voice catching slightly. “You were always the stubborn one. I couldn’t just… let you disappear into whatever chaos the world was throwing at you.”

Kael stepped closer, and the space between them seemed to shrink naturally, as though the universe itself had drawn them together. He noticed the small scar above Liam’s brow, the faint tremor in his hands: battle wounds, yes, but also proof that Liam had endured the world just to return.

“Do you remember,” Kael asked softly, “the first time we snuck into the gardens at Park 1850? You tried to climb the fountain and fell in?”

Liam chuckled, a low rumble that warmed Kael’s chest. “I remember you laughing so hard that you fell face-first into the dirt. I thought you’d never forgive me.”

“I didn’t,” Kael admitted, smiling. “Not fully. But I let it slide because… because you were my brother.”

“And I… I always looked up to you,” Liam said, eyes glinting. “Even when you were being insufferable.”

Kael’s voice dropped, almost hesitant. “Liam… I…”

“Shh,” Liam said, placing a hand over Kael’s. The contact was electric, sending a pulse through both of them. “Not now. Let’s just… be here, for a moment. You don’t know how long I’ve waited for this.”

Kael’s chest tightened. The Rift, the Queen, Archon, Veridale, Stormhaven, it all seemed to fade around the edges, leaving just them, two souls tethered by years of shared history, surviving chaos and betrayal, yet finding each other again in the quiet aftermath.

They moved instinctively closer, foreheads touching lightly. Kael could feel Liam’s steady heartbeat, and for a second, the world narrowed to that rhythm.

“You know,” Liam said after a pause, voice teasing, “I could’ve let you rot in whatever hideout you were in, but I couldn’t. You were… always too much trouble to leave alone.”

Kael smiled, brushing his thumb across Liam’s knuckles. “And you’re still the same stubborn, impossible Liam I knew.”

“Maybe,” Liam replied, eyes darkening, “but I’m also someone who would die to keep you safe. Don’t forget that.”

Kael felt the weight of the words, and the first real tremor of vulnerability he’d allowed himself in years crept into his chest. “I… I trust you,” he whispered.

“I know,” Liam said simply. “And you don’t need to. Not yet. But I’m here. And I always will be.”

Kael leaned back slightly, letting a smile break across his face. “So… what now, Liam? Back to fighting monsters, dodging King Elric, Archon, the Queen, rattling King Thorian… all the usual chaos?”

Liam smirked, sliding his hands into his pockets. “We fight together. Like old times… only now, maybe, we don’t have to pretend everything’s normal.”

Kael laughed. “And the wife thing?”

Liam rolled his eyes, mock exasperated. “You’re impossible.”

“But you love it,” Kael countered, grinning.

“I’ll never admit that,” Liam said, shaking his head, though the corner of his mouth betrayed him with a faint, reluctant smile.

Eventually, Liam’s expression darkened slightly, serious once more. “Kael… there are things you need to know. Stormhaven… the Queen… it’s all worse than we thought. Thorian is playing a long game. And the Rift… you’re closer to her than you realize.”

Kael’s chest tightened. “I know. I can feel it. But I can handle it.”

“You’re reckless,” Liam said, but there was a note of pride beneath the scolding. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”