Farran leaned lazily against the wall as he watched the young man squatting in the dark, feeding the sausage of his hotdog to a couple of stray dogs. That was the third night, he noted with a smile. The third night he spent out there, alone, uselessly watching over an empty apartment, from sunset to dawn.

Hale.

The name wasn’t strange to him, as in fact happened with all of Aaran’s companions. Companions that now smeared their hands with the blood of their own Brethren. And all for the sake of a Race that, not only was destroying their homes, but would never be able to redeem their destructive ways.

Hale, however, was a special case. The youngest of Aaran’s group, his memories from home were filled with pain and destruction. Contrary to himself, or even Alexis, Hale had never known peace, had never had a childhood, and his family had disappeared before he could even walk. Since then Aaran had been the one taking care of him, and so he had brought him with him when he’d come to the material world. And it had been here he’d grown up, far away from home, surrounded by violence and blood. His loyalty to Aaran went well beyond a mere relationship between a subject and his leader. The love and admiration he had for the one that had practically raised him was closer to adoration. And the only reason behind his every action was his constant and tiresome search for a gesture of approval from a being that could hardly see him, and that was unable to feel the feeblest of emotions.

With a renewed smile Farran straightened the lapel of his red coat and approached him.

As to be expected Hale was aware of his presence way before he could reach him and, dropping his hotdog, he stood up with a jump backwards, immediately taking on a defensive posture.

“Easy … I didn’t come here to fight you,” Farran declared, raising both hands in the air, and smiled. “Still, I have to say. You do have great reflexes,” he complimented him and Hale lowered his head, staring threateningly at him.

He’d recognized him immediately, although this was the first time they’d actually met. His bluish hair, the elongated eyes … And although Farran still hadn’t shown any intention to attack him, the aura surrounding him was brimming with power and danger. To his annoyance he found himself remembering Alexis’ words, when he’d guaranteed that he’d never survive a direct encounter with the leader of the rebels, and a blind anger lit inside him. He’d show them what he was capable of and, with some luck, capture or even destroy Farran once and for all.

“What are you doing here?” he growled as he carefully measured the situation, looking for a chance to attack, and Farran lowered his arms, straightening his coat.

“The same as you, I suppose. That’s Sarah Wilson’s house,” he stated, pointing the window from one of the apartments above their heads but, even then, Hale didn’t avert his gaze from his target. “What’s truly sad is that two Araphel have to waste night after night standing in the middle of nowhere all because of some Human girl,” he added with a sigh and Hale growled threatening again.

“Get out of here!”

Farran ran a hand through his hair, pulling it up, and started walking down the street as if he’d simply decided to take a late night stroll.

“Now, I know why I’m here. But what about you, Hale? Why are you here? Protecting Human Beings was never our mission. That’s for useless existences, like Merifri and Deiwos.”

“That has nothing to do with me. I simply follow orders.”

“Oh really?” Farran questioned with a surprised expression. “Orders, I see. Orders from whom? Aaran? Or Alexius?” he asked with feigned innocence and an internal satisfaction filled him inside as Hale’s eyes gleamed dangerously.

“I only receive orders from one being! And that’s Aaran!” he declared, raising his voice, and Farran interrupted his apparently uninterested walk, raising his head to look up at the dark sky stretching over them.

“Aaran …” he sighed. “Me too. There was once a time when I would have said those same exact words, with that same exact conviction. But then … Aaran has an image of a perfect world in his mind, a world that never existed and never will exist. And yet, just like you, I also believed it was possible …” he confessed and turned to face the young man who was still watching him with suspicion. “Tell me Hale, can you see my stars?” he asked, tilting his head to one side, so he could better see his left ear. “Three small stars …” he declared feeling his piercings with the tips of his fingers as if to make sure they were still there. “Do you know what they represent?” he asked again, and as Hale remained silent he went on, a bitter smile taking over his lips. “The golden like the sun is for Tiana, my Hridaya… The green like Tzel's most precious gem is for Derius, my oldest son. And the lilac like our sky is for Cirana, my daughter, that was still a baby in her mother’s arms,” he told him and his arm fell limp beside his body. “In my innocence, in my idealism filled with amazing dreams, I left them on Tzel to come to Assiah. Side by side with Aaran and others like Alexius, we were going to build a better world. Because Aaran assured us that if we were able to stop the rebels that had escaped to the material world intending to erase the Human Race, the Lex Regis would show mercy on us and would change, granting us the means to save our dimension. We fought hard year after year … We lost many companions. Everything so that, one night, I could receive the news that my Territory had simply crumbled and disappeared into nothingness, and, with it, my entire family. And I … I couldn’t protect them. I couldn’t even disappear with them. All I received in return for having believed in those idealistic dreams was the destruction of those most dear to me. In the end no one did anything to help Tzel. The Lex Regis kept protecting the Humans. And our dimension kept decaying in such a way that now there’s nothing anyone can do to save it. And all for what?” he faced Hale again, who seemed to have lost part of his antagonizing posture. “And I know I wasn’t the only one to lose someone dear to me. We all did. At least I had the chance to know a world where the lives of our Brethren still had worth and meaning. I had a family who loved me and cherished me as I grew up. The younger ones, like you, don’t even have that …”

“Even so! None of that justifies what you’re doing!” Hale replied angrily and Farran sighed.

“What I’m doing? And what’s that exactly? Contrary to those first rebels we came here to hunt down, I’m not going around randomly killing Humans in hopes that Tzel might be saved by cutting down their numbers.”

“You want to conquer Assiah and make it your new home!” Hale accused and Farran arched an inquisitive eyebrow.

“So what? In the end we’re all searching for the same answer. How to save our Race. And if Tzel is no longer capable of sustaining life, then there’s no other way but to move out and look for anew home. And why not Assiah? This is a dimension that will flourish for many years to come, and if ruled in a more intelligent way can probably even last forever. Besides, if we can minimize the damage inflicted upon Assiah we’ll also be helping maintain the other dimensions intact, so that what happened to our home doesn’t happen to anyone else’s. However Humans are creatures of habits, and it’s hard to make them change their ways and points of view. And so, why all the drama if one or two have to die in order to safeguard a bigger plan? Humans have short unproductive lives by nature. It’s natural for them to die, and not even the Law seems to mind the few lives we’ve taken.”

“Because Aaran interceded. And asked that we’d be the ones to correct your mistakes,” he countered and Farran faced him.

“You’re wrong, young Hale. I assure you that if we started killing Humans by the hundreds, like in the past, the Law would punish us merciless, no matter how much Aaran pleaded for leniency. As far as the Lex Regis is concerned, there’s nothing more precious than a Human life. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they are guarded individually. It’s all a matter of balance and numbers. As long as the scale of death isn’t heavier than the scale of rebirth, the Law doesn’t concern itself with one or two individual lives,” he declared and Hale couldn’t go against his logic. “And so you can see how ridiculous all these efforts to protect a single Human really are. It’s in moments like these that I wonder what kind of world does Aaran see … A world where one miserable Human life holds such importance?”

“She’s important to Alexis,” Hale practically spat in a clear foul mood and Farran smiled, pleased with how things were turning out.

“Oh, yes … the Mark,” he confirmed and Hale seemed surprised. “I met him here, the other day. We talked for quite a while, just like we’re doing now. After all, Alexius and I practically grew up together, and since neither of us had siblings we frequently shared our minds. Unfortunately the Alexius I used to know, and with whom I played and fought side by side, doesn’t exist anymore,” he declared with a sorrowful expression. “There’s little left of the light that feeds his shadow and the madness that inhabits him is a danger, not only to himself, but to those around him. That’s the reason why I captured him in the first place,” he declared and Hale looked even more confused.

“What do you mean?”

“Across the years I’ve been carefully gathering a team of specialists that, knowing about our Race, have the sole purpose of studying our inevitable fall into darkness, searching for ways to stop it and even revert it,” he declared with obvious pride. “Lately we’ve had a few positive results, although the numbers of successes still haven’t reached one hundred per cent. Sometimes treatment can be rather long, and, unfortunately, painful …”

“You mean you captured him to try and heal him?!”

Farran sighed again and nodded lightly.

“Of course we have our differences and I wouldn’t dare minimize them. However I never wished for his destruction, and the same can be said of him, or I’m sure one of us would have already disappeared. In our last meeting, before I captured him, I suggested that he’d have a talk with Aaran, about how close he was to reaching his breaking point, but as I’m sure you can imagine, he refused to follow my advise. I asked him to submit himself to the treatment but he still refused. And after that his state only got worse, to the point I had no other choice but capture him by force. And it would have worked out perfectly, if not for that meddling Human. Delirious as he was I can only imagine the dark pictures his mind created …”

Hale hesitated for a moment. Sure even a blind man could see how Alexis dangerously lingered on the verge of madness. If not for that he would have never dared threaten Aaran the way he had, in defense of an insignificant Human. To top it off, everyone knew that he and Farran shared a close common past and that, for that reason, no matter how many battles they fought against each other, they always left them reasonably unscathed. More than once Aaran had tried to send another Araphel to deal with Farran, but Alexis had always refused, making a point of declaring that Farran was his problem … a problem that, no matter how much time had passed, remained unsolved. And yet … Farran was the enemy!, he made sure he remembered, even if his words sounded somehow reasonable. And as such he shouldn’t be even listening to him.

“What about the Mark?” he asked suspiciously.

Farran took a deep breath and shrugged.

“Probably a secondary reaction to one of the treatments. It’s not the first time it happens,” he pointed out. “In any way, who in his perfect mind would ever believe that a Human could be the Hridaya of one of us? It’s simply ridiculous!” he declared and Hale couldn’t help but agree with that. “If that were possible I’m sure we’d met other cases,” he added and sighed again. “I can easily understand how, more than anyone else, Aaran is undeniably important to you. After all he is the closest thing to a family you’ve ever known. However Aaran is too connected to Alexius. In such a way that he no longer can see the sad truth; that Alexius is a broken being, quickly approaching his end. I understand his reluctance to accept it. It’s hard for me as well. But the obsession he now developed for that Human is more than proof enough that what I’m telling you is true. All I want is to get him back. And who knows, maybe if we resume treatment, he might still be saved,” he said hopefully but Hale shook his head vehemently.

“Impossible. Aaran will never allow it.”

“Maybe … And what will there be left of Aaran when he finally realizes that it is too late and that he’ll have to destroy Alexius with his own hands?” Hale clenched his fists hard. No matter how hard it was for him to admit, he knew all too well how special Alexis was to him. Alexis was the only one he trusted completely. “And that’s why I come here every single night,” Farran went on, looking up towards the small window. “In hopes that that Human might show up. That by capturing her Alexius might agree to resume his treatment. I even tried to use the younger sister to attract him. And it would have worked too, if not for your quick thinking.”

“Me?” Hale asked, although his eyes had come alight at the compliment, especially since it’d come from someone as terrifying as Farran.

“Of course. You were the one who called him, weren’t you? If you would have only hesitated for a few more minutes we would have been able to grab the girl. But oh well, maybe next time,” he said, shrugging again, and his expression became one of deep concern. “Although things have become much more difficult now, with both Humans stuck inside Alexius’ Territory the entire day. I worry that, as time goes by, there’s less and less we can do to help him. I just hope that, when I finally succeed, it won’t be too late.”

Hale seemed to ponder for a moment.

“What will you do with the Humans once you’ve captured him?”

“I have no interest in them whatsoever, or in anyone from their Race for that matter. As far as I’m concerned they can just go about their insignificant lives,” Farran replied with audible despise and Hale was silent again. “I wonder, do I come through like the cruel, insensitive villain they all seem to think I am?” he asked, sounding curious, and Hale faced his dark gaze.

“To tell you the truth, no. In fact, what scares me the most is that I actually find myself agreeing with some of the things you’ve said.”

Farran smiled, clearly pleased with his answer, and nodded an approval.

“Good,” he muttered with relief and then faced him again, this time with some enthusiasm, as if he’d just had a wonderful idea. “Why not help me, Hale?”

Hale frowned, taking a step back, his body alert and tense again, as if he expected to be surreptitiously attacked at any moment.

“I would never betray Aaran!”

“I would never dare ask something like that from you!” Farran assured him. “It’s like I’ve said, although I no longer share your blind loyalty, I can easily understand your feelings and the reasons behind them. All I need is that you help me get my hands on one of the Humans. In itself nothing all that hard or complicated. Who knows? Maybe sharing some fake leads that might pull Aaran and Alexius away from home for a few minutes? My men and I would take care of the rest.”

“Even with Alexis away none of you would ever be able to set foot inside his Territory,” he declared and Farran smiled happily, since no matter how antagonist he might sound the truth was that, in the end, Hale was actually contemplating his proposal.

“Sure. But there are many ways to encourage a young girl to leave her home.”

“With the sole purpose of capturing Alexis,” Hale made sure he clarified and Farran nodded. “With the sole purpose of helping him.”

“Alexius is the only Brother I’ve ever known and the only family I have left. His life is more precious to me than my own.”

Hale hesitated again. And even if there was no way to save Alexis … and even if he did disappear … At least Aaran wouldn’t have to go through the horror of having to destroy him with his own hands. At least Aaran would be forever free of the constant weight that was his concern for Alexis. And maybe he’d finally have enough time to actually look at him. He was sure that if he did, Aaran would finally notice that he was as competent and as worthy of his trust as Alexis. After all he was no longer the defenseless, scared child Aaran had saved from the landslide that had swallowed his entire village.

“I don’t know …” he muttered, averting his gaze, and Farran sighed full of understanding.

“It’s okay. It only goes to show how wise and sensible you really are. We must always carefully weigh our options before making a decision,” he declared and looked up at the night sky. “But just think about this … The way I see things, Aaran keeps you at his side as a mere shield, when we all know he doesn’t need anyone to protect him. His sword is Alexius, and I won’t tell you that it wasn’t a good choice. But Alexius is nearing his end and Aaran is still too attached to him. Sometimes one just needs someone else to come along and help them see things more clearly, in order to overcome certain obstacles. And, no matter how hard I try, whenever I look at you I can’t help seeing a bright sword, instead of a mere shield, which is kind of … regrettable. So much wasted potential … But what can we do?” he sighed ironically and, when he turned to face the boy again, he had to try hard to hide his own smile of satisfaction. Just as he’d expected, his words had had their effect. Hale looked hurt and, at the same time, angry. “Well, regrettably I must get going. Maybe will meet here again, tomorrow, since it would seem we share the same mission, although with different purposes. I wish you a pleasant night, Halius.” Farran bent his head in a light bow and disappeared amongst the shadows.

Hale found himself reaching for his own face just to make sure that, as expected, his cheeks were burning from embarrassment. No one had ever called him that. His real name. The name his mother had given him and that, as tradition demanded, had been reduced to Hale, indicating he was the last descendant … Indicating he no longer had a family, that he was completely and utterly alone in the world …