Chapter Text
PROLOGUE: THE COWARD'S GAMBIT
The Estate was bustling with activity.
Servants swiftly moved through the halls of the manor as they prepared for an early finish– an unusual luxury in the household. A rare treat, one not to be taken for granted, after the festive atmosphere that surrounded the twins’ tenth birthday. The manor had been filled with laughter and music earlier in the day, the air thick with the rich aroma of a grand feast meant to honour the occasion.
Silke Reiss sat before her mirror, her small fingers fumbling with the long, brown strands of her hair. She tugged at them in frustration, trying – and failing – to weave the sections together into a proper braid. With a huff, she slammed the small ribbon against the vanity, crossing her arms tightly across her chest as she glared at the red fabric as if it had personally offended her.
Her sisters seemed to do it with ease, even the maids had no trouble with it. Yet, for Silke, braiding, sewing, and anything else that required a delicate touch never came naturally.
A soft laugh broke through her thoughts, the sound familiar and warm. Silke’s eyes lit up in childlike delight as she spun around in her seat; leaning against the doorway, her eldest sister, Frieda, watched her with a mischievous grin. Her dark hair, cropped just above her shoulders, framed her face, and her lilac eyes sparkled with amusement. “Do you need help?” She asked, stifling another laugh behind her hand as Silke shot her an exaggerated glare.
"No!" Silke’s voice was sharp with stubbornness. She shook her head, turning her back to her sister. "I don’t even want it." Her blue eyes flicked over her older sibling, a frown tugging at her lips. "Why can’t I just cut my hair short like you did?"
Frieda rolled her eyes, the playful expression never leaving her face. She pushed herself off the doorframe and moved toward the vanity. "But you look so cute with long hair, Silke." She grinned as she reached for the comb resting on the dresser. Her lilac eyes flickered briefly to the bed across the room, noting that the eldest twin, Florian, was missing. "Where’s little Florian?"
“With Mother.” Silke’s answer was almost automatic. It was no secret that Florian spent most of her time glued to their mother’s side– an attachment that, for reasons Silke couldn’t quite understand, seemed to come so easily to her twin. Where Florian was docile and compliant, could handle their mother’s overbearing nature, Silke was more rebellious and avoided their mother’s lessons whenever she could.
Frieda raised a brow, clearly curious, but didn’t say a thing as she gently ran the comb through Silke’s hair.
Through the mirror, Silke glanced up at her sister. “Where have you been all day?”
Silke’s question caught Frieda off guard. Her gaze softened as she thought of a response, but the truth wasn’t something she could easily explain. How could she tell a child about the harsh realities of their family, about the weight of their father’s misdeeds, or the terrible things she had been witnessing in secret? How could she possibly burden her younger sister with the full picture?
Shaking her head, Frieda smiled gently, reaching out to carefully finish Silke’s braid. "I’ll tell you one day," she said, her voice warm with affection but heavy with the knowledge of what was to come. "When you’re older."
Silke tilted her head to the side, clearly still curious, but she didn’t press the matter. Instead, she asked, "You were in the village again, weren’t you? Urklyn says that since we’re nobles and they’re not, we shouldn’t bother with them."
Frieda’s expression hardened. Urklyn was the perfect embodiment of their father’s cowardice and disdain for the common folk. The title of Queen had been thrust upon her shoulders for this exact reason– Urklyn was as much a coward as their father. She was the one who refused to turn her back on the people, even if her family had long since written them off.
With a sigh, Frieda wrapped the red ribbon at the end of Silke’s braid. "This world is full of pain and hardship, Silke," she said, her voice quiet but resolute. She pressed her chin gently onto Silke’s head as she continued, staring into their reflections in the mirror. "We must be kind and help others whenever we can. It’s the only way we can survive together."
⋆ ʚ ♡ ɞ ⋆
The sound of screams and sobs echoed through the cavern. Silke’s small hand clutched her father’s as he pulled her forward, dragging her through the crystallised cave. Her hair, once neatly braided, had nearly come undone.
Two Titans had been locked in battle, fighting for everlasting ideals as the Reiss family watched on in terror. Tonight had never meant to go like this; the Reiss Family’s gathering beneath their church was never supposed to be like this. But when The Coordinate’s head had been ripped apart, everything had gone so horribly wrong. The attacker did not stop at Frieda alone.
Abel and Dirk were the first to fall, their desperate attempts to protect Frieda met with swift and brutal force. They were nothing more than playthings to the Titan, knocked aside without so much as a second thought.
Next had been their mother, crushed underfoot by the Titan, while little Florian perished with her. Even in death, she had refused to leave their mother’s side. Now they were nothing but corpses cradling one another in the blood stained cavern.
And then, there had been Urklyn. He had been screaming, so loudly it still echoed in Silke’s head, as he reached for their father. He had cried, begged, for their father to help him. Silke’s heart ached as she remembered his final, desperate cry for help as he was crushed beneath the Titan’s hand. His fate had been sealed, and her father had never once turned back to save him.
He hadn’t once turned back to save any of them.
He just held onto Silke’s hand, pulling her forward and refusing to let go, even as she stumbled and wept for their family.
With each step, the pain in her hand grew– her father’s grip tightened with each step, as though he feared losing her, the last surviving member of their family. He tugged her roughly, and she stumbled again; the ribbon fell from her hair, crumpling at her feet as they continued to flee.
“Frieda… Florian…” Silke sobbed, her voice cracking as she looked back at the ruined frames of her family’s corpses. Her eyes met the gaze of the Titan, whose iridescent eyes seemed to hold some semblance of regret. But how could a titan regret what it had done? It had destroyed everything she had ever known.
What right did it have to feel anything?
Her breath hitched in her chest as she stumbled, her father’s hand slipping from hers as she collapsed onto the cold, crystallised ground. Silke’s body hit the ground with a sickening crack as her head slammed into the cold, hard surface of the cavern. Her vision blurred, and the world around her seemed to spin in slow motion.
Rod Reiss paused, turning back with panic flashing across his face. But then his gaze flickered to the Titan – it was moving now, away from the corpse of his eldest daughter and closer to them, its enormous figure looming over them. The urgency in his expression shifted, and for a moment, he hesitated, stepping back.
Silke reached out with trembling fingers, her hand outstretched toward him, blood dripping down her face. Her father’s eyes flickered back to her, as he took a step backward, then another, leaving her laying on the cold ground.
The Titan’s footsteps echoed in the cavern, its massive form drawing nearer, the ground trembling with each stride. But all Silke could see, blurred by her tears and the pounding ache that shot through her skull, was her father’s fleeing form growing more and more distant as she sobbed.
She blinked rapidly, trying to focus, but her eyes only blurred further. The cavern around her spun out of focus. Silke’s trembling hand reached out, desperately trying to close the gap between them, but her fingers met nothing but the empty air. Her eyes fluttered, her lids heavy as stones, unwilling to stay open. Her chest tightened with each attempt to breathe, and the cold darkness crept in at the edges of her mind.
Her hand fell limply to the ground. Her fingers twitched once, then stilled.
The last thing she saw was the Titan’s shadow loom over her, the darkness swallowing her whole.
And then there was nothing.