"The Broken Bond": The Writers' Spotlight

The Broken Bond

By: Aishwarya Pattanayak

A torch bolted to the stone walls casted long shadows along the floor, reflecting the agitated queen. The moonlight spilled past the velvet curtains and lit her unsettled face. Still, she kept her composure as her advisor read her the news.

"...therefore, King Dominic is demanding war.” The time stood still as Queen Primrose took the words. War. War meant blood. War meant death. War meant risking her kingdom for such a small disagreement that could be solved with a few words. There was no need for war!

“War? Over such a trivial matter? Outrageous! I demand to speak to this man!” Primrose said with harsh sternness.

“Of course, your majesty, he will be coming soon.” As the advisor left, Primrose began pacing again. It had been a long time since she had seen him, her brother.

She did not know how long she waited there, pacing. But when the doors finally opened, Primrose felt her feet aching. The carpet scrunched as her brother walked in, scowling deeply.

“Sister,” he spat like an insult.

“I am not your sister. I will never be your sister!” For a moment, she saw hurt in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced with anger.

“Do not speak to me that way!” he barked.

“I will speak to you the way I see fit. I am the queen of this kingdom, I'll remind you.” Her voice was cold with spite.

“Threats are no way to address a king!”

“A murderer is never a king, he is a criminal, filled with so much spite, his heart is empty.”

“Murderer, you say. What have I done to receive such an offending title?”

“War, Dominic, war. You will kill your soldiers as much as you will kill mine.”

“War is sometimes necessary, Primrose.”

“War is never necessary. It is only necessary for the close-minded. Death and blood are not ways to end a disagreement.”

“It is sometimes the only way.”

Primrose hated this man. She hated his dishonesty, she hated his stubbornness, but some part of her, the part she buried long ago, loved him.

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The ocean slapped across the crystalline shimmering sand. The ocean was where Primrose always came when she was upset. The ocean calmed her in a way, reminded her of her mother who was now long gone.
Primrose hummed a slow tune and held her sand dusted hand up to the sky, feeling the sea breeze whip past her, tickling her with cold senses. She closed her emerald eyes and felt her auburn hair tickle her face. She felt it all before she calmed down. It was something she learned in magic school. She willed her feelings to go numb. It took a while but in the end, the only thing she heard was her voice humming and the splash of the water against the sand. She opened her eyes and gasped happily as a ball of water, clear and pure rested just above her palm. It was small, but it was enough.
When an heir to the throne had manifested at the age of 5, they were instantly sent to magic school, where they learned how to control their elemental powers. Fire, Water, Earth, Air, and Shadow. Primrose was a water, or a Hydroni.
“What’s up Rosie, how are you doing?” Dominic said from behind her.
“Domi!” Primrose grinned happily. Dominic and she were best friends. Dominic had the Shadow element, the darkest and the most powerful out of the other ones. It was the most corrupting too, which disqualified him for the throne. Primrose didn’t know how he felt about it. He never told her anything.

They were so close…what happened?
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Primrose sighed. Her stomach grumbled with hunger. Her eyes drooped with sleep. But she glared at Dominic with such fury and hatred that it was Dominic's turn to be sentimental. He knew how much she hated him. He wished he could replace their friendship and change the past, but alas, he couldn’t, what he had done had cut too deep. And no matter how much Dominic tried to restore it, it never worked.
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A 16-year-old Dominic frantically searched for his younger sister. He hoped she would forgive him, he hoped with all his heart, but when he found her staring at a statue of their mother, with her back turned toward him, he knew it was in vain.
“Primrose… ” he looked at his teenage sister, helpless.
“What?” she said sharply, not moving.
“I’m sorry…” he mumbled, knowing that it would do nothing, nothing at all.
“Oh?” she turned, her expression showing anger, and anger only. “You think that will fix everything? You think everything will go back to normal? You think I’ll forgive you after what you've done? You destroyed this kingdom's honor, this kingdom's value, and you’ve lost my trust.”
“Primrose, that wasn’t me!”
“So you didn’t use your power to destroy the kingdom?”
“Yes but-”
“So you didn’t say that you hated everything in this whole place and wanted it to rot in a dungeon?”
“Yes-”
“Then I’ve heard all I’ve needed to hear. Leave, and never come back.”

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In an attempt to match his sister’s level of hate, he replied,“Primrose, no matter what you do, it will not stop me from doing what I believe is right.” His voice was calm, which was more than you could say about Primrose.

“Very well,” said Primrose, her tone hard. “Let the war commence,” and with that, the two siblings, once best friends, now foes, left the throne room, enemies forever.
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“We’ll be best friends forever, right, Dominic?” 5-year-old Primrose asked her older brother.
“Of course Rosie!”

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