Anarion was standing on a ship next to his brother. He was five years old. “Aenos, why do I have to go to the academy?” Aenos sighed. “You’ve been chosen by the council to become a Swordsman, Anarion.” Anarion looked up at Aenos, he was small for a five-year-old. “I don’t want to go, I want to stay with you,” said Anarion pleading in a small voice.

Aenos dropped down to Anarion’s height. “I’m sorry Anarion, I have no choice. No one ever has a choice in the matter.” Anarion began to cry. “Please Aenos, don’t leave me. I’ll be good.” Aenos hugged Anarion. “You have to be brave. I’m sure you’ll make plenty of friends at the academy.” Anarion yelled in his small voice. “I don’t want to be friends with anyone! I just want to stay with you!”

The ship pulled up to the island. Anarion carried Aenos up to the Academy. He stepped inside. Calmantos was waiting. “Aenos, I trust he has not been hindering your training.” Aenos smiled. “No, he’s a good boy. Take care of him.” Aenos handed Anarion off to Calmantos, he began to walk away. “Aenos, please, I want to stay with you.” He walked away without saying anything, despite Anarion’s pleading.

One year later Aenos returned to the academy. It was lunchtime. Anarion did not know he was coming to visit. In that year Anarion grew quite a bit. Seeing him enter the room Anarion yelled “Aenos!” He ran over to him, Aenos kneed down to hug his little brother. Anarion was crying, he missed his brother more than anything.

“Are we going home?” asked Anarion. Aenos sighed. “No, I’m sorry Anarion but you have to stay here.” Being so young Anarion did not understand why his brother left him here. He did not understand why he had to be here. “I want to go home,” said Anarion in a shaky voice. Aenos sighed. “This is your home now, Anarion.”

Anarion continued to sob. “I hate it here Aenos. Everyone is mean. No one wants to be my friend.” Aenos smiled. “Keep trying Anarion. You are a good boy, I’m sure you’ll find friends if you work hard.” Aenos had to leave the next day. His visit was cut short because the Swordsman Order was working him to a point of extreme exhaustion.

One year later Aenos had not come to visit. All year round news of Aenos began spreading around the academy. Everyone says that if it were not for Aenos, the Xalnog would have invaded. His power of the light was the Kingdom’s greatest weapon. This only made Anarion feel incredibly lonely, he did not understand why his brother had to fight. He still did not understand why they could not live together.

Another year passed, Anarion was eight. For the last two years, he tried making friends, but all people did was compare Anarion to his brother. Everyone knew Aenos’s history at the academy. How strong he was at Anarion’s age, how cool he was. Some of Anarion’s upperclassmen who were there to witness Aenos told stories about how cool and popular he was.

By the time Anarion was nine, his brother had still not come to visit. A massive shadow had been cast on Anarion. That shadow was Aenos. Everyone talked about his brother the prodigy who was the protector of Terath. Anarion began to hate Aenos. Not only did his brother leave him here but everything he did was measured up as a comparison to him. This made him feel incredibly lonely.

He had no friends. All-day every day people spoke about Aenos. Every day the seething anger, resent and loneliness built up inside him. So much so that Anarion began assaulting people for simply mentioning Aenos.

By the time Anarion was ten, he had completely changed as a person. He hated his brother for leaving him. He hated his brother for not coming to visit. He hated his brother for being better than him. He was alone in the world without a single person that cared about him, in his mind at least.

One particular day he was angrier than usual after hearing about his brother's feats. He saw a classmate being bullied by three boys who were two years older than her. He found the perfect targets to take his anger out on. The boys took her lunch. Anarion shoved his lunch in front of the little blonde girl and stood up.

“Hey assholes!” he yelled. They turned around. He jumped on the table and began running at them. He landed a flying sidekick on one of the boys. But the other two managed to pin him down and started mercilessly punching him in the face. Calmantos came to break it up, but by that time Anarion was broken and bleeding.

He stood up by himself. His nose was broken. “Anarion! What the hell was that all about!” yelled Calmantos. “They stole her lunch. I was just giving them what they deserved,” said Anarion coldly. The little girl was blushing, but Anarion did not notice or care, she was a pawn in the plan to take his anger out on someone else.

“Let’s go to the infirmary.” Calmantos grabbed Anarion’s arm but he shook it off. “I’ll go by myself, I don’t need your help.” He walked down the hallway, to the infirmary. Amma watched on, as he left a trail of blood, as his nose was bleeding quite a bit.

The next day Amma sat down across from him. “Hi,” she said nervously. Anarion glared at her. “What the hell do you want?” Ithilious who was next to her slammed his hand down on the table. “See, I told you this guy wasn’t nice. Let’s just leave him alone.” Amma looked at her brother, then looked at Anarion. Her face turned bright red. “Thank you, for yesterday.” her voice was soft. She was nervous.

Anarion glared at her. “I don’t need your thanks. If that’s all then get the hell out of my sight.” Amma started crying “I’m sorry, we’ll leave.” Amma and Ithilious left the table. However day after day they returned, despite Anarion’s hostility. For a while, he would yell. Amma would cry, they would leave. Eventually, Amma got used to Anarion yelling her.

As the years passed Anarion grew even more miserable. Amma and Ithilious never gave up, trying to become Anarion’s friends. However, he was too far gone into his world of self-loathing and hatred. Eventually, Amma and Ithilious became annoying background noise in his life.

Finally, one day when Anarion was fourteen years old, Aenos came to the academy. He looked profoundly exhausted. Anarion ran over towards him and punched Aenos in the face. “Eight long years I’ve waited.” Aenos looked Anarion in the eyes, he looked said. “I’m sorry Anarion.”

Anarion punched him again. “Sorry doesn’t cut it, not even close. Why would you even bother coming here after all of this time!” Anarion yelled, “Tell me Aenos, why the fuck are you even here!” Aenos looked Anarion in the eyes. “Because you are my brother.” Anarion punched him again. Blood was dripping from his forehead.

“You? My brother! I fucking hate you!” yelled Anarion. “I would have been better off as an orphan, don’t ever show your face in front of me again. You are not my brother!” yelled Anarion. He had a flood of tears racing down his face. Aenos did not move. “Go on, get the fuck out of here! I don’t need you, I’ve never needed you! I hate you so fucking much!”

Aenos turned around. Tears began flooding out of his eyes. “I’m sorry.” He remembers when Anarion was four years old. They were sitting outside of Aenos’s house. “Why does dad hate me?” he asked. His father had not come to see him once since the time he tried to have him drowned. Aenos sighed. “Dad could never get over the loss of mom. He loved her more than anything.”

Anarion looked at Aenos. He still had an innocent look in his eyes. “So he hates me because mom died giving birth to me?” Aenos looked remarkably sad. “I don’t think he hates you Anarion, I just don’t think he can face you after what happened to mom.” Anarion still looking Aenos in the eyes. “Does mom hate me too? Is that why she died and left us?”

Aenos laughed for a moment. “No Anarion, mom loved both of us more than anything.” Anarion asked “Did she? Then why did she leave us?” Aenos was trying to fight back his tears. “The birth was complicated, she had grown weak. It was too much for her body to handle.” Anarion, still holding his brother's gaze asked. “Do you hate me?”

Aenos laughed again. “No Anarion. You are my little brother. I will always love you.” That was a memory he always cherished. Looking back he watched as instructors were restraining him. The hate Anarion had in his eyes, broke Aenos’s heart. Walking away, he said to himself “I’m sorry mom, I’ve failed.”

After that day Anarion stopped putting effort into his training. He hated life, he hated his brother. He hated everything and everyone around him. For all he cared the world could burn around him. He lived in an uncaring world with no attachments to anyone. He lived blind to the only two people who were trying to enter his world, but it could not be helped. Everything in his life was shrouded in darkness and hatred.

One day, a small candle was lit in his darkness. It was Tycondris, desperately trying to reach him during those months in the pit. He could accept him because he was the same. Everyone and everything he loved in this world was gone. He was a kindred spirit. However deep in his mind, even to this day, he is sure that Tycondris will abandon him just like his brother did.

He fought the grand champion out of selfishness. To keep that small candle in his life lit for just a little while longer. The chaos in his heart grew even greater the day he saw the great blast of fire coming from Amma. It left him confused, feeling awkward. He’s always wanted to reach out to others, but the fear of loss weighed too greatly in his mind.

To Anarion it was far easier to be alone and miserable than to risk a chance at letting someone in only for them to leave him as his brother did. Anarion only sees attachments and bonds as painful things that will only cause him more misery. He is his greatest enemy. His mask is his protection from those who try to pierce through the darkness that surrounds his life.