Cale cautiously approached his brother. Liek's eyes were wild with rage. For the first time in his life, Cale actually feared his little brother. Liek was covered in blood; some of it was his own, most of it wasn't. Cale put pressure down on his injured foot and winced. He probably wouldn't be able to defend himself against a madman like Liek.

"Liek, please, I-"

Liek slammed the blunt side of the hatchet into Cale's stomach. He immediately doubled over and vomited.

"What's the matter, Cale? You've sent out 3 assassins so far to kill me, yet you can't even hit me? There's no better time than this, brother! Don't hold back against me!"

Cale continued to kneel on the ground, coughing violently. What had he done? Liek stood over his brother. Tears were streaming down his face.

"You took everything away from me."

Liek kicked him in the head.

"You had them killed."

Cale could only lay there as Liek brought the hatchet close to his throat.

"You ruined my future."

Ajin came from behind and grabbed Liek's arms, but not before Liek whipped his head back and smashed Ajin's face in. Ajin staggered back in a daze.

"So my brother's dog comes to stop me?"
"No, Liek, please listen-"

Liek didn't want to listen. He wanted to kill every person that stood in the village. He gripped his hatchet and hurled it at Ajin's head. The blunt side of the hatchet struck him in the forehead, his eyes rolled back, and he slumped to the ground. Ajin was knocked unconscious. Cale slowly rose to his feet. Hundreds of werewolves, including the elders, were watching.

"You've come to kill me to avenge the ones you loved, Liek. I cannot deny you that. If you truly wish to fight me, then go ahead. Come and fight."

Nearly every werewolf cringed as Cale grabbed his own thumbnails and ripped them off. He let the nails drop into the grass. He couldn't bring himself to use weapons against his brother.

Liek gave his brother a sadistic grin and charged forward.

---------

For three hours, the werewolf village watched in silence as the two brothers fought. Cale was in no shape to defend himself, but he still fought on. The two once-attractive brothers had beaten each other into unrecognizable and hideous shapes. Both of them were crying.

The elders stood back, smiling to themselves.

They wrestled like never before. One brother got on top of the other and wrapped his arm around his throat and choked him. The other reached back and gouged his eyes. The only sounds in the air were sobs, screams, and bones breaking.

Why!?
I'm sorry.
You should have left me alone!
You're all I have.

Several werewolves turned away in disgust. This wasn't right. How could it have turned into THIS? What sort of honor was there in THIS?

Liek knelt in front of his brother, breathing heavily. His lungs were on fire. Neither one of them wanted to fight any longer, but they had to. Liek had to kill Cale to avenge Isaac and Hannah. Cale had to kill Liek so he could live. Liek's body shook uncontrollably as he sobbed.

"Please, Cale. Just die."
"I wish I could, Liek. But I'm not ready to die yet."

Cale smiled, despite his tears. To his horror, Liek pulled something from his belt. It was a severed thumb of a werewolf. The nail was still attached. Cale immediately knew it belonged to one of the assassins.

"Do not make this harder than it has to be, Cale. Grant me this one favor."

Cale couldn't respond. His little brother had truly gone insane. Cale gave a slow nod and removed his shirt.

---------

"Wounds heal with time,
Yet scars will always serve as a reminder of past mistakes.
A lesson is learned with each jagged badge.
Cherish them and wear them proudly."

Those words seemed so familiar to him. Images from his childhood flooded his mind. Tears stung his eyes, but he wasn't sad. He could finally let go. He could finally be at peace. He shut his eyes, and let the darkness take him in.

"I love you." He heard.
"I love you too." He whispered back.

He could feel himself growing lighter. After taking in one last breath, Liek died.

---------

Cale removed his shirt from Liek's face and wiped his eyes.

He ended his brother's life with a few quick motions. He replayed it over and over in his mind.

Liek brought the nail forward and Cale stretched his shirt out. At the last moment, Cale turned his body to the side and Liek's momentum brought his face into the shirt, blinding him. All Cale had to do was bring his hands together, and grip the two ends with one.

That was when he grabbed Liek's arm and jammed the nail into his neck.

It had ended only too quickly.

Cale continued to kneel in front of his dead brother as a low murmur broke through the crowd. Laying next to him were his nails that he had ripped off earlier. Cale picked one up and rose to his feet. The crowd went silent again.

"My brother and myself have been deemed traitors by the werewolf council. The punishment for treachery is death by the nails of a werewolf. Am I correct?"

The crowd remained silent. After all that they had seen, nobody wanted to answer.

"I am a traitor for wanting to save my brother, even though I was appointed the task of having him killed."

The elders frowned as the crowd turned to look at them. They shifted nervously. This was something they did not expect.

"You disobeyed our laws and traditions! You should have expected such consequences!" One of the elders stammered.

Cale smiled and brought the nail to his throat.

"I understand and accept the consequences of my actions, elders. I would much rather choose death over living a life filled with such fragile bonds and worthless traditions!"

Cale felt the nail slice through his jugular. He could feel his blood leaving his body. He swayed for a moment, tried to hold his ground, and fell next to Liek's body.

Images fluttered in front of his eyes before he died. But one image stood out in his mind:

It was Liek standing next to Isaac and Hannah. They were waiting for him.


"Here I come, Liek."

---------

EPILOGUE: They say that hundreds of werewolves wept that day. Siras' body was burned along with the other assassin that Liek had killed.

Nobody knows what became of the council elders. Some say that they left the village in shame. Others say that they were exiled by the members of the village. Though most believe that after Cale's death, the elders were surrounded and killed.

Thousands of werewolves came to watch the two brothers buried alongside their mother and father. It was said that Ajin single-handedly dug the holes in the ground himself.

The smell of one-million flowers swept through the entire village as the two werewolf heroes, Liek and Cale, were lowered into the ground side by side.


~ The End