“Father,
what is this business of you casting my brother out?” Casden
demanded as he entered his father's office.
Victor
stood from behind his desk surprised to see his first son. “Casden,
you're back.” A smile crossed his face. His sour demeanor was
instantly lifted at the sight of this man. “What news do you have
from the north?”
“Never
mind that now. Kate told me you sent Weston away?”
Katherine
followed sheepishly behind her eldest brother as he entered further
into the office space.
“Your
brother Weston has chosen his fate. We shouldn't dwell on his failure
to me but rather celebrate your return, son.” Victor gave his son a
loving expression.
Casden
let the subject drop. “A feast would be in order after the time
I've been away.”
The
two men shared a hug. Katherine looked on with concern for her
missing brother.
* * *
Night
fell over New Reno. The moon was shining bright, selfishly stealing
attention from the stars that surrounded it.
The
formal dining hall on the suite floor was filled with all kinds of
delicious foods. Succulent meats dripped juices. Freshly baked bread
steamed warmth. Tasty sweets tantalized the palette. Wine flowed
freely to all the guests of attendance.
At
the head of the table was Victor Greene. To his right was Casden and
to his left was Katherine. They were wearing their finest formals.
Other
guests to grace the table were several men from Casden's army;
Sebastian Collins, the casino boss to the Royal Dunes; Buster
Jenkins, the casino boss of the Victorian; Harriet Gates, the casino
boss of the Coral Cove; and a few other prominent business owners and
personal friends of Victor's.
The
atmosphere of the evening was one of joy and merriment, sensations
Victor hadn't felt in a long time.
“There
we were,” Casden entertained. “This vicious bear had us cornered
to the south and the woods people who released the bear on us were
advancing from the north. These woods people are complete savages.
The myth in the area is that the woods people will scalp their enemy
and even eat their flesh.
“So
this bear that must have been twenty foot tall started to charge us.
It ripped and thrashed through thirty of my men. If it kept this up,
we wouldn't have the force needed to break through the woods people's
defenses. I ran at the mighty beast with an axe and swung my blade
deep into its belly. This only enraged the creature.
“It
swiped at me, knocking me to the ground. It snarled a roar that
echoed across the mountain range. Just as it was about to cut my head
off with its mighty paw, I rolled over and chopped its paw clean off.
The beast bled a great river of blood and whimpered off. Our battle
was only half over though. We still needed to defeat the woods
people.
“At
this point we only had about twenty able bodied men and myself. The
woods people were everywhere. They were in the trees and hiding in
the brush. There was a loud battle cry and arrows flew at us from all
directions.
“I
gave the word to open fire. Our bullets cut those savages down. Every
last one. We stormed their capital and slaughtered ever last unclean
piece of filth. I planted the flag of my father's and claimed their
land as mine.”
Casden
snapped his fingers at a man standing by the doors to the dining
hall. The large doors swung open and men carrying thirty chests
entered the room. Casden indicated to them to open the containers.
All kinds of treasures filled the chests.
“I
also claimed these spoils of war for you, Father.” Casden stood and
went past the chests filled with technology and bullets and other
shiny things. He went to the last one and reached into it. “This
however is the most treasured prize.” He pulled out a brown furry
object that was covered in dried blood. It was enormous. “I give
you the paw of the great California brown bear.”
All
the guest looked at Casden with amazement. They cheered him with
uproarious enthusiasm. Victor simply beamed with pride. This was his
son. He looked to his daughter but she wasn't in her chair at his
side. He stood and looked about the room but couldn't see her.
“Where
is Katherine?” Victor called out. The dining hall fell silent.
Guests looked at one another unsure of her whereabouts.
“She's
probably gone to bed, Father,” Casden finally answered.
The
room rumbled back to life.
Victor
returned to his seat. He listened to the answer his son gave but he
didn't hear it. Concern filled this man once more.
* * *
The
merriment of the evening waged on throughout the night. Victor
finally decided he'd had enough and retired to his apartment suite.
He laid down on his bed. His head spun from all the wine he'd
consumed at dinner. He couldn't fall asleep. Something was eating at
him.
Victor
found the bathroom and splashed some murky water against his face. He
faked a smile at the man in the mirror then went to the living room
of the suite and sat in the dark. He looked out the window to the
dimly lit city below. He stared at the colony for over an hour. He
realized that the party was still going on from the noise making its
way across the hall.
“How
can anyone sleep with all that racket?” Victor stood and headed for
the main door to the apartment. He found himself at Katherine's door
however. He opened the door to see his daughter. It was dark but he
knew something was very wrong.
Katherine
was not in her bed.
Victor
stormed down the corridor to the dining hall. He yelled across the
noise to Casden. “Your sister is gone!”
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