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This story starts with the moon. One night, a drop of moonlight fell from the heavens, and from that drop formed the Moonstone Opal. A beautiful crystal blue gem but with destructive abilities, activated by a specific incantation. The Decay Incantation.Centuries passed, and from that gem grew the Kingdom of Selene. For years, the kingdom thrived in the Moonstone’s protective barriers, shielding them from the dangers that lies on the other side.Although they were isolated from the world, its citizens adored their beloved kingdom. As for the gem, the royal family hid it from the rest of the kingdoms, a responsibility that was passed down through generations.It wasn’t to protect the gem, no, it was to protect the people from it. Yes, the moonstone built their castle, but its power was simply too much for a mere mortal to handle. And its power only grew.Sharp, indestructible, pitch black spikes that stabbed through the ground infested the kingdom at every turn. Houses were destroyed, crops were ruined, and nothing seemed to get rid of it, no matter how hard the knights tried. The people couldn’t take it any longer, and turned to the Royal Family for help.They pleaded for the King to do something. King Edmund, looking at his subjects’ suffering, decided he has had enough and tried to put an end to the gem’s destruction.The moonstone chamber was tall, to describe it. No sign of where the ceiling or floor ended. Black spikes already littered the room, the blue markings on them glowing ominously. The moonstone itself stood in the middle, elevated by a pedestal that seemed to be made of the same material as the spikes.King Edmund walked towards the stone, his heavy footsteps being the only sound besides the faint humming in the center of the chamber. Quirin and Adira, two of the three members of the Brotherhood, stayed and watched from behind while the Queen, Irene, stood next to the moonstone.The King gave a firm nod to Irene, who seemed anxious. She wasn’t sure this was the best course of action, but if it’s for the best, then she can do nothing but trust her husband. Edmund unsheathed a sword from his hip.It was no ordinary sword, it was the sharpest the best blacksmith in the kingdom had to offer. Irene took a step back.This is justice. For all the suffering and heartache his subjects had to endure. Fight fire with fire.And yet, when the King brought it down onto the cursed stone, the only sign it had an effect was a burning, blinding blast, followed by the terrified screams of the royal couple.The sword broke in half as it fell to the floor with a loud clang. The King held the lump on his right wrist where his hand should be. But the King barely registered the pain.No, the only thing he could focus on was the bloodied body of his beloved, a red river pouring out her chest where the moonstone must’ve hit her. Quirin and Adira immediately rushed to the two with simultaneous cries of “Your Majesties!”But those fell on deaf ears. At that moment, Edmund could only hear her shallow breaths as she tried her best to let oxygen into her lungs. Edmund doesn’t even realize when he collapsed onto his knees, now gently cradling his wife’s head.He can’t see properly for some odd reason, his vision was so misty and a wetness fell down his face.Her eyes. That beautiful hazel he fell in love with, the ones that always seemed to shine even during the darkest of days. His light in this dark kingdom. But now, that shine was gone, replaced with a dullness he couldn’t bear to look at.The purple dress she wore had a crimson stain that only grew and grew. It got on his hands, her neck, and on the floor. It never seemed to stop. “Irene…”He could only muster up a single word as his wife’s eyes slowly closed. Her body stopped moving, and yet the blood still kept growing. And growing. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It was Hector’s turn to watch Prince Horace. The boy was playing in the nursery with a small toy sword when the blast happened.Hector stood up with alarm and was just about to leave to check on the king when he heard a thud behind him. He turned to see the toy sword left abandoned on the floor and its former holder standing eerily still.Hector was loyal to the King. Everyone knows that. So of course when the young prince’s hair started glowing, for the moon's sake, that only gave him more reason to find His damn Majesty.Right as he put his hand on the doorknob, he paused. Wait. Is this really the best course of action? His Majesty is surely busy with whatever hell the moonstone rained down upon them this time.Hector was a member of the brotherhood, if he can’t handle one kid’s glowing hair then he might as well quit. He turned back to the boy again and kneeled down to face him, and the sight made him freeze.Prince Horace’s usually brown hair was replaced with a neon bright blue, but Hector already knew that. His eyes though, were too low for him to notice before.They were a striking pure white, just looking into them made Hector’s own eyes squint. And the boy’s skin seemed paler, too. Whatever the moonstone did to the prince, it cannot be good.“Boy, what-“Hector stopped talking when the bright white was replaced with a disturbing pitch black, covering the prince’s eyes completely.The darkness that has fallen over his eyes seemed to spread to his hair, as that had turned to the same pitch black.Maybe that was a sign to get help.As if Hector would call for help, though.His short moment of thought was interrupted by a series of coughing, from him, he realised. Through his coughing fit, he could hear the boy mumble something under his breath.“Witherandecayendthisdestiny…”The older was too busy trying not to choke to hear the rest, thank you. One hand on the floor and one in a fist covering his mouth, Hector felt as if his life was being drained out of him.The air seemed to get colder than the usual Selene breeze. The colours of the different toys in the room looked somewhat duller. And was it always this hard to breathe?The humiliation if anyone saw the Great Hector of the Brotherhood, kneeling on the floor at the mercy of an eight-year-old.And then it ended just as quick as it started. The prince’s hair and eyes went back to the chocolate brown he was used to, and the boy immediately passed out. Lucky.Hector stayed on the ground for a moment, slowing down his breath to the best of his ability, processing what just happened. I suppose he was a bit too stunned to tell anyone what happened in that room. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nobody else found out what happened that day. Hector, hearing what happened to the King and Queen from the other members of the Brotherhood, had a choice to make.One, he could report to His Majesty what happened with Prince Horace. He had no idea how the King would react finding out the moonstone took his son too. Hector is loyal to the King. But he doesn’t want to do anything that may hurt him. Although, option two is no better, in fact, it may be even worse.Two, he could run away with the prince. Take him somewhere far away where he can’t hurt anyone, at least until he can control his power. Hector doesn’t know which would break the King’s heart more: his son accidentally bringing the downfall of their beloved Kingdom of Selene, or his son being taken away by one of his best warriors and closest friends.Although option 1 definitely seems the more probable, he can’t help but think of the many possibilities. What if the prince goes too far? What if the moonstone takes more than just the prince and queen? What if it takes the king next? At least in option 2, Hector has full control and supervision over the young boy.There is nobody to hurt but him, and he’ll take that over his family any day. With a grimace and a sigh, may the Moon one day forgive him for the choice he is about to make.