Chapter 28: The Game of Strings

  Cassian exhaled, rubbing his temple as he eyed the boy in front of him. Sky, all small limbs and wide eyes, grinned like he hadn’t just pulled apart everything Cassian thought he had under control.

  “There is something wrong with your head,” Cassian muttered.

  Sky tilted his head, his expression unbothered. “My head? It’s fine. I don’t see anything wrong.” His fingers toyed with the hem of his sleeve, then he perked up, his eyes gleaming with something far too amused. “Hmmm… brother… how about we play a game?”

  Cassian stilled, his mind sharpening. “A game?”

  “Yep.” Sky beamed. “Anything is fine. Can we?”

  Cassian narrowed his eyes.

  It wasn’t the request itself that was strange. Children liked games—it was normal. Innocent.

  But Sky wasn’t normal.

  And innocence had long left the conversation.

  Cassian leaned back slightly, tilting his head. “And what kind of game do you want to play?”

  Sky hummed, rocking on his heels in thought. “Hmmm… how about a truth game?”

  Cassian raised a brow. “A truth game?”

  Sky nodded, all too pleased with himself. “We ask each other questions. If you don’t answer honestly, you lose.”

  Cassian let out a quiet chuckle. “And what happens if I lose?”

  Sky’s grin widened. “I get to ask for a prize.”

  Cassian scoffed, crossing his arms. “And what happens if you lose?”

  Sky blinked up at him, then giggled. “I never lose.”

  Cassian smirked. “That’s not an answer.”

  Sky only shrugged, unbothered. “Doesn’t have to be.”

  Cassian sighed, shaking his head. “Fine. Go ahead.”

  Sky clapped his hands together in delight. “Yay! Okay, okay… first question.” He tapped a finger against his chin, then his eyes flickered back up to Cassian’s, sharp beneath the playfulness.

  “Who was the first person you ever killed?”

  The air in the room shifted.

  Cassian’s smirk faded.

  Of course that’s what he would ask.

  For a moment, he considered lying. But he had agreed to this, and Sky… Sky would know.

  Cassian exhaled, eyes turning distant. “A merchant.”

  Sky blinked. “A merchant?”

  Cassian nodded, his voice flat. “A man traveling through the slums. He had food, money. My group needed it more than he did.” His fingers curled slightly. “I was eight.”

  Sky watched him carefully. “And how did you do it?”

  Cassian met his gaze, unflinching. “A knife to the throat.”

  Silence stretched between them.

  Then Sky smiled. “Your turn.”

  Cassian studied him for a moment before speaking. “Why did Cassian Starfall scare you?”

  Sky’s expression didn’t change, but his fingers curled slightly against the fabric of his sleeve.

  “…Because he liked hurting things.”

  Cassian frowned. “And?”

  Sky tilted his head. “And… because he liked making me watch.”

  Cassian inhaled slowly.

  His mind flashed back to the files in Cassian Starfall’s desk, to the meticulous notes, the reports, the names.

  Sky had always been strange—too sharp, too observant—but Cassian had never once considered why.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Perhaps because the truth was something he wasn’t prepared to acknowledge.

  Cassian’s voice was quieter this time. “And you never told anyone?”

  Sky shook his head. “No one would have believed me.”

  Cassian clenched his jaw.

  This child.

  He had lived under the shadow of a monster, unseen, unheard.

  But he had survived.

  And now… he had traded one monster for another.

  Cassian exhaled, dragging a hand through his hair. “Alright, kid. You win.”

  Sky beamed. “I always win.”

  Cassian sighed. “What’s your prize?”

  Sky giggled, stepping closer, his small hands tugging at Cassian’s sleeve.

  “Just one thing.” His eyes gleamed with something unsettling.

  Cassian braced himself. “And that is?”

  Sky smiled.

  “Don’t leave.”

  Cassian blinked.

  For a moment, he almost laughed at the absurdity of it. He had expected something else. A request, a demand, something sharp and dangerous.

  Not something so simple.

  But as he looked down at the child before him, he realized—

  It wasn’t simple at all.

  Because Sky was not asking for a promise.

  He was asking for a chain.

  A tie. A bond.

  Something that bound Cassian here, to him, to this place.

  Something that trapped him.

  Cassian exhaled through his nose, then let out a quiet chuckle. “You’re a dangerous kid, you know that?”

  Sky only grinned. “I know.”

  Cassian shook his head, stepping away. “Go to sleep, brat. We’ll see if I keep my promise tomorrow.”

  Sky giggled, unbothered. “You will.”

  Cassian didn’t respond.

  He turned back toward the window, gazing out once more into the night.

  Sky had won the game.

  But Cassian wasn’t sure if that meant he had lost.

  –

  Cassian exhaled slowly, his gaze locked on the city beyond the window. The night stretched wide, silent and watchful, much like the weight pressing against his thoughts.

  Sky, still lounging on the bed, hummed softly, his fingers idly toying with the edge of a pillow.

  “You did pretty good today, brother,” Sky mused, his tone casual but his eyes sharp. “Even I had some difficulty figuring out that you’re not Cassian Starfall—my brother.”

  Cassian’s jaw tensed slightly.

  It wasn’t a compliment.

  It was a reminder.

  He turned slightly, glancing over his shoulder. “It’s… something I’m good at. Pretending to be someone.”

  Sky tilted his head. “Is that all you’re doing? Pretending?”

  Cassian didn’t answer.

  Because even he wasn’t sure anymore.

  Sky, as if sensing the thought, let out a soft giggle before shifting topics. “Wait, brother—who was that guest who came today?”

  Cassian sighed, stepping away from the window. “It was Professor Ashen. Homeroom professor of your brother’s class.”

  Sky blinked, his curiosity piqued. “What did he say?”

  Cassian ran a hand through his hair. “He said I’ve been missing a lot of classes. And that he was ‘concerned.’” He let out a dry chuckle. “Apparently, your brother was a star pupil—top of the class.”

  Sky smirked. “That must be annoying.”

  Cassian shot him a look. “You have no idea.”

  Sky swung his legs off the bed, thoughtful. “Anything else?”

  Cassian’s expression darkened slightly. “Yeah.” His voice dropped an octave. “Before he left, he said something else. ‘I’ll be watching.’” His fingers tapped lightly against the windowsill. “And then he said, ‘We all are.’”

  Sky’s playful demeanor didn’t shift, but something flickered behind his eyes.

  “Oh,” he murmured.

  Cassian raised a brow. “That’s all you have to say?”

  Sky hopped off the bed, stretching his arms above his head. “No, it just means one thing…”

  Cassian narrowed his eyes. “And that is?”

  Sky turned, flashing a grin.

  “From tomorrow, we have to go to the academy.”

  Cassian stilled.

  A cold weight settled in his gut.

  It wasn’t that he hadn’t expected this—sooner or later, he knew he’d have to step into Cassian Starfall’s life completely.

  But stepping into an academy full of students, teachers, and watchful eyes?

  It was like walking into a cage.

  One wrong step.

  One slip.

  And the game would be over.

  Cassian sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “I hate this already.”

  Sky giggled. “I think it’ll be fun.”

  Cassian shot him a dry look. “Of course you do.”

  Sky beamed. “Don’t worry, brother. I’ll be watching you too.”

  Cassian wasn’t sure if that was a promise or a threat.

  But either way—

  The game was far from over.