How did he end up here?

He was the Emperor of the largest empire the galaxy had ever seen, toppled fledgling regimes as if they were nothing more than dominoes, spread fear of the Hyperion name to all corners of galaxy. And to be locked away like the common rabble?

How dare they?

Didn’t they know who he was?

Seth Drake paced the small cell deep within the Starkiller incessantly, counting the width of the cage by his footsteps for the hundredth time. A bed hung from metal wires at one side of the room, and a small chamber for relieving himself was built into the corner. Otherwise, it was cold and empty, like a sensory-deprivation tank—or, at least, as close to one as he could get in a prison cell.

After that fool Xaleyp captured him, he was tossed in rather unceremoniously, and the door sealed again before he even stood, blending into the wall and leaving him alone.

Completely and utterly alone.

Or, he would have been, if Gareten hadn’t managed to sneak in with him.

Gareten said as he sat on the bed, leaning against the wall. It creaked and slightly sunk towards the floor with the force of the man sitting on it, who gestured for Seth to join him before crossing his arms at his chest.

‟It’s over, Gareten.” Seth sighed and stopped his pacing, clasping his hands behind his head and looking up at the ceiling. Two dull lights flickered and buzzed next to each other, shining their bright white glow over the room. ‟Siatia won, and I’m just subject to whatever whim Ardus decides on.”

Gareten’s voice was low and dangerous, forcing Seth to look the man in the eyes. He stared back with the fury of a thousand suns ready to burn a hole in Seth’s head. In one swift movement, he stood and gripped Seth by the collar, forcing him backwards and against the wall, where he closed his eyes and cowered under the assault.

Seth sensed himself shrink at the words, and he felt a gust of cold wind blow past him, sending a chill up his spine. He opened his eyes to find he was atop a snowy mountaintop, and large flakes were gently floating around him, biting at his exposed skin. The craggy peaks soared above him on one side, and on the other sat a lush, green forest. He looked down and found himself as a child wearing a warm jacket and mittens with a scarf wrapped tightly under his chin and thick hat resting just over the tops of his ears.

Silence filled the air, until Gareten mercilessly broke it.

The man appeared in the snow next to Seth, standing with his hands folded behind his back and staring out over the forest. He wore a simple jumpsuit, as if the cold wasn’t able to penetrate his skin.

Seth nodded.

Gareten waved his hand mystically in front of himself, and the landscape changed with a grinding roar. The forest vanished beneath a blanket of fire, and the snow under Seth’s feet turned to dirt and mud. The city of Vesta rose from the ashes, taller and grander than he remembered, the smokestacks of its factories and towering skyscrapers piercing the sky. It seemed to stretch forever, vanishing over the horizon to either direction. Hyperlanes for the flying cars ran around the outskirts, disappearing both into the distance and the bowels of the city. One passed directly overhead, and the noise of engines permeated the air around him.

Gareten walked in front of Seth, putting his back to the city and staring at him, a malicious glint in his eye.

Seth sank to his knees with tears in his eyes and looked at the man standing there to ask two unspoken questions: What is going on, and why are you doing this?

Gareten turned around to face the city and ignored both.

Before Seth had a chance to answer, the scene vanished, and he found himself on his knees in the cell again. He sunk down and sat on the floor, bringing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them to pull himself into a tight ball. He stared blankly ahead, his eyes open wide and trying to comprehend what he had just been shown and told.

Gareten stood in front of the door, his hands crossed behind his back exactly as they were in the mountains. He walked forward, kneeling next to Seth and placing his hands on the younger man’s shoulders. Gently, he squeezed, sending a calming sensation through Seth’s body at the touch.

Seth slowly raised his head to look Gareten in the eyes, where wrinkles spread out from the man’s face. There was a sense of joy from them as he smiled, each bit of skin tightly compressed at the edges. Without knowing exactly what he was agreeing to, or whether he actually meant it, Seth nodded his head, shaking even with the slight movement.

‟No, I want to get revenge against the people who threw me in here,” Seth said, standing and clenching his fists at his sides. ‟Xaleyp Vah’Aris deserves to be punished for his actions, as does Ardus and even Delargivic.”

Deep down, he admired the way that Xaleyp was able to get all of them out of the exploding frigate, whether it was just pure dumb luck or actual skill, even if it did result in his imprisonment. There had to be some way to get him back on his side, back to how it was when they left Vertyn for Arcadia the first time, and if Gareten could help with that, he was willing to do whatever his ancestor said.

Gareten seemed to smile slightly when the thoughts passed through Seth’s head, as if he could easily interpret them like the words in a book. As soon as it appeared, however, it disappeared and replaced itself with a serious expression on the man’s face.

Gareten smirked as he stood and resumed his place on the bed, leaning against the wall and putting his hands behind his head, his elbows flared out.

‟Do we still need Xaleyp Vah’Aris, sir?” Seth asked, his voice meek and stuttering as he stood and scratched the back of his head.

Gareten’s voice boomed in the small room, causing Seth to cower under the force. He closed his eyes and put his hands together in front of his mouth, breathing deeply.

‟How can we do that, sir?” Seth stared at the floor as he spoke, unable to look Gareten in the eye. ‟Ardus and the other Siatians have already brainwashed him into believing that we are the enemy. It might be too late to convince him otherwise.”

Gareten said, pacing the floor. Each of his footsteps echoed impossibly loud in the small chamber, forcing Seth to flinch with each noise.

Seth nodded, his head shaking with the movement and still avoiding looking Gareten in the eye. He idly picked at his cuticles, ripping open the skin and causing blood to ooze out. His eyes darted around the room, looking for anything to stare at besides his ancestor standing there.

After several seconds of silence, a gentle beeping came from the doorway, and the wall slid away, revealing one of the Siatian guards were their domed helmet. In their hands were a spoon and a tray with a piece of burnt bread, some gray goop that looked none too appetizing, and an apple riddled with tiny holes. They dropped the plate and let it clatter on the floor, the gruel splattering around it and the apple rolling towards Gareten’s feet. He took half a step backward, allowing it to come to a rest just between his feet.

Seth hesitantly picked up the apple and took an experimental bite before devouring the entirety in just a few seconds. Until the first bit of food passed between his lips, he hadn't realized how hungry he was. Gareten looked on in mild disgust as Seth threw the core aside and began spooning the glop into his mouth with reckless abandon.

‟Oh, how the mighty have fallen,” the guard said, stifling a laugh. ‟You used to frighten children just as the sound of the Hyperion name. Now look at you and what you’ve become.”

Seth ignored the words of the guard, grabbing the bread and ripping into it. Gareten shook his head in silent detestation of Seth’s boorish behavior, yet the Siatian merely scoffed and turned on his heel. The wall slid back into place, leaving the two of them alone once more. In the silence, Gareten stood over Seth with a piercing stare at the way the man shoveled the gruel.

Gareten sat on the bed, and it creaked with the weight. He leaned against the wall again, eying the food both suspiciously and longingly. Suddenly, he sat upright, staring straight ahead at the wall across from him.

‟I told you that it’s over, that they won,” Seth muttered, licking the spoon after finishing the rest of the gray goop. He brandished it in Gareten’s direction, wagging it slightly with a newfound confidence. ‟They plotted out every move of this game, and we’ve just been walking into their traps. We need to make a plan for getting out of here and forgetting the whole Ciovyr nonsense, so as my AI, maybe you could get a subroutine on that.”

Gareten stood and slammed his fists against the wall, causing the bed to shake on its wires. He froze for a moment, staring at the ground in deep thought.

‟Sir, are you sure that’s the best idea?” Seth regretted asking the question as soon as the words left his lips. Gareten turned and stared at him with a fury he’d never seen. ‟I spoke out of turn. I’m sorry, it won’t happen again.”

Gareten carefully walked over to Seth, standing as close to him as possible and staring down at him.

‟No, please, anything but that!”

Seth’s pleas went unanswered as the room descended into darkness, leaving him feeling as if he were floating through space. His feet seemed to leave the ground, and Gareten, along with the rest of the room, disappeared. He tried to scream out, to try to find anyone to help, but his cries were ignored. He was alone.

Completely and utterly alone.