Young Writers Society

Arakan had always been the stoic one, constantly protecting Kaen from some of the worst things he went through. It was hard to rectify the weeping, desperate man pressed into Kaen's chest with the steadfast brother he'd known.

So Kaen supposed it was his time to be the big brother, for a moment at least.

"Arakan," he said gently. "The sniper was yakuza. They must've decided to kill you after all. It'll only be a matter of time before they realize he failed his mission, and that I betrayed them. We need to go."

For a moment there was no reply, and Kaen wondered whether his brother had passed out from intoxication. Then Arakan drew in a deep, shuddering breath, and sat up.

"Very well."

His face was set firmly, with only the redness of his eyes to betray the fact he'd been crying.

"Where should we go?" Kaen asked, rising to his feet.

Arakan chuckled, "I was going to ask you that. I haven't been able to leave the city. The yakuza are everywhere, I'd have been recognized instantly."

Kaen considered, then gave a devious smile. "Well, technically, they don't know I've turned traitor yet."

Arakan seemed to catch on, and nodded in return.

Kaen reached down to help his brother to his feet, but froze when his brother hesitated, staring at his silvery hands.

After a moment, Arakan gingerly took his hand and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. Together, they walked out of the misty graveyard and towards the train station, an awkward silence between them.

"What... happened to you?" Arakan finally asked hoarsely.

Kaen pursed his lips. "Well, after the... explosion, I was in bad shape. My arms weren't the only thing affected. I had burns, along with the bullet in my side. It was only a week before they replaced my arms, and the rehab from the surgery was tedious. They wanted me back in the field as soon as possible, but the accelerated pace nearly killed me. This was actually... my first assignment in a year."

"Well you definitely failed, but I'm thankful for that," Arakan said, then stumbled.

"Woah," Kaen held out a hand to steady him. Arakan flinched away from his metal touch, and Kaen quickly retracted, a hurt feeling in his chest. A look of shame flashed over Arakan's face, but he didn't say anything.

"You still have a lot of alcohol in your body," Kaen warned coldly. Why tonight of all nights? He's going to jeopardize our safety.

"It won't be a problem," Arakan replied, just as coolly. "I haven't forgotten all my training."

Kaen didn't respond, he just continued walking. Arakan followed, but the atmosphere between them was harsh now.

At first, Kaen was content to just let Arakan handle himself as the walked, but as they got closer to the train station, his brother started to become more unsteady on his feet. With an exasperated, though quiet, sigh, Kaen dropped back to support his brother somewhat, just enough to keep him upright. Arakan didn't flinch from his touch this time, though he looked apprehensive as Kaen grabbed his arm. Kaen tried not to let that bother him too much. He'd spent a year dealing with those looks both from other yakuza and people on the street. But he'd hoped his brother...

When they arrived at the station, Kaen sat a disoriented Arakan on a bench, retrieved his brother's wallet, and went to buy two tickets, spending enough to get them as far into the country as possible. Then he went back to his brother, and all but dragged him to the platform.

Arakan passed out as soon as the train pulled away, leaving Kaen to keep watch. He watched his brother sleep, feeling frustrated. What he had told Arakan wasn't completely true; he did blame his brother, but not for the loss of his arms. Kaen had spent a year recuperating from his wounds, and coming to terms with the fact that he was, essentially, a cyborg. And for all that time, he'd been alone. He hadn't even known why, until Master Kurayami had told him that Arakan thought he was dead. And then, when he'd finally been deemed fit for duty, they sent him to spy on the only person he'd ever trusted. All he'd wanted was too feel those comforting arms around him, letting him know that he was protected. And now that he had that chance, Kaen had to be the one to get them to safety, to make sure the yakuza didn't find them.

With a sigh, Kaen sat back, studying his brother. The train was well lit, and he could get a good look at him for the first time.

Arakan looked the same as Kaen remembered him, but... different. There were shadows under his eyes, and he was thinner, though still well-muscled.

Arakan shifted in his sleep, and Kaen caught a glimpse of something on his brother's wrist. With a rising sense of dread, Kaen gently pushed back Arakan's sleeve to reveal...

Scars. Dozens of them, all crisscrossing each other.

Guilt washed over Kaen. However horrible Kaen's situation had been, his brother's had been just as bad. It was obvious that Arakan had blamed himself for Kaen's supposed death, and had clearly coped with it in the worst ways.

The next few days were not going to be easy, Kaen realized bitterly.

-×-

When Arakan awoke, it was to a splitting headache and blinding lights. He groaned, sitting up. He tensed a moment, feeling his seat moving beneath him.

"Sleep well, aniki?"

Arakan jumped. He twisted to see Kaen seated next to him, a tense smile on his face.

Arakan nodded stiffly, massaging his temples. That's right, they were on a train headed away from the yakuza. His brother was alive, but nothing like he remembered. Arakan shoved that thought aside.

"How long was I asleep?"

"About two hours."

"Oh."

So Arakan had been so inebriated that he'd left it to his brother to keep them safe and moving. Sounded right on par for the disaster he was.

They sat in silence for a moment, and Arakan caught himself staring at Kaen's metallic hands, which were fidgeting in his lap. They were so... inhuman. Arakan shivered at the memory of them on his shoulder.

I did that to him.

"Brother..." Kaen said warningly. "There's two men entering the car. We haven't stopped at any stations in the last hour."

Arakan's head snapped up, studying to the mem Kaen was talking about. They were walking down the aisle slowly, glancing from side to side, like they were looking for something. Or someone.

"What do we do?"Kaen hissed. "They'll see us."

Desperately, Arakan cast about for a plan. There were civilians in the car, and the yakuza was not above collateral damage. Kaen and himself were relatively unarmed, since Arakan had lost his gun.

Another failure to add to the list, he thought bitterly.

"I... don't know," he admitted. "I don't think we can do anything."

Kaen turned to him, his face terrified. "I don't want to go back. We were so close to being free."

Arakan's heart twisted. Even though this brother was so different from the one Arakan had known, he wouldn't let him die again.

Determination filled him. He would make up for his mistake. Arakan reached out and grabbed his brother's arm, looking him in the eye. "We will be free. But we can't fight here. Our freedom isn't worth these people's lives."

Kaen nodded. The men were closer now, only a few rows away. "So what do we do?"

An idea came into Arakan's head. "You lure them down the aisle. I'll get them from behind. You have a knife?"

Kaen nodded.

"Give it to me."

-×-

After handing Arakan his knife, Kaen took a deep breath, then stood up. The yakuza saw him instantly, and moved towards him, hands going towards hidden weapons.

Kaen gave them a quick smile, then turned and ran. The other passengers exclaimed in surprise, and then in fear as the two following him passed by.

Kaen could see the door into the next car ahead, and he ran as hard as he could, praying that he could make it before one of them had the sense to pull a gun.

-×-

A moment after Kaen took off running down the aisle, Arakan stood as well, following as quietly as he could, weighing the knife in his hands. It had been a long time since he'd used a weapon of this caliber, but his hands remembered the weight well.

Ahead of him, Kaen had reached the end of the car. His brother whipped the door open stepping through, then turning to face his opponents. The man in front lunged at him, brandishing a knife similar to the one in Arakan's hand. Kaen caught it on his arm, a harsh clang ringing out.

That was all Arakan saw before he leaped at the second man, bringing the knife down into the man's shoulder. The nearby passengers screamed as blood spurted, but they weren't in harm’s way, so Arakan gave them no heed.

His enemy yelped, clutching his shoulder, and tried to turn to face his attacker, but Arakan already had the knife at his throat, other arm holding him in place around his midsection.

"I'd rather not slit your throat here," Arakan growled into his ear. "It'd stain the floor."

The yakuza slowly raised his hands in surrender. In front of him, Kaen was watching them, his opponent groaning on the floor at his feet.

"Now," Arakan began, "You're going to sit down next to your friend and stay there.

The man nodded, sitting down as soon as Arakan released him, knife held at the ready.

"Who sent you?" He demanded. "Talk."

The yakuza seemed reluctant, until Arakan prodded his injured shoulder with the knife. The man yelped softly. "It was Master Kurayami. Hani came back to the House and reported that the sniper had failed to kill you two."

Kaen cursed quietly. Arakan frowned. "What?"

"Hani is Kurayami's niece. She's the woman that..."

"That I saw at the bar last night." Arakan sighed. "She must have followed me." A thought struck him. "Wait," he said, turning back to the yakuza. "You said the two of us?"

The man clamped his mouth shut, but continued once Arakan raised the knife pointedly.

"Master Kurayami decided that both of you were too much of a threat. He used Hani to incapacitate Arakan, then planned to kill you both."

Arakan felt his cheeks burn with shame. His drunkenness hadn't only endangered his own life, but Kaen's as well. Kaen wouldn't have been expecting an assassination attempt, so it would have been easy for the yakuza to take him out.

"The two of you are going to stay here," he told the man. "Don't follow us, and you can tell Kurayami that if he comes after us again, I will personally raze his hideout to the ground." The yakuza nodded frantically.

With a sigh, Arakan turned to his brother. "Let's go."

A sudden beeping noise made him turn back again. The yakuza that Kaen had supposedly disabled had activated a small commlink.

"Objective failed. Requesting immediate backup."

Too late, Arakan kicked the commlink out of his hand.

"Nice try, traitor." The yakuza hissed. "But you're surrounded."

Arakan turned back to Kaen. "On top. Now."

Kaen nodded, then turned and ran, giving a small salute to the terrified passengers.. Arakan followed, shaking his head.

-×-

Kaen pulled himself onto the roof of the train, bracing himself against the wind that threatened to push him off. He turned to help Arakan up, purposely ignoring the hesitation from his brother.

"Now what?" He shouted above the wind. "They'll find us."

Arakan glanced around, crouching slightly as the train swayed beneath him.

"How much strain can those arms of your take?" He asked.

Kaen narrowed his eyes. "What are you thinking?"

"Well, there's a bridge up ahead."

Kaen glanced towards the front of the train, and saw the bridge Arakan was talking about. It was low enough that Kaen could probably touched it when they went under it...

Oh.

"I don't know," he said. "I haven't done anything like this before. "

"Well, first time for everything."

Kaen almost laughed at how natural their exchange was.

"Decide quickly," Arakan warned. "It's almost here."

"Grab onto my shoulders," Kaen commanded. "Hold tight."

Arakan nodded and moved into position.

Kaen took a deep breath, steadying himself. He'd had to train his body to keep up with his artificial arms, which weren't hindered by things like muscle strength. All he had to hope is that they could take the additional strain of Arakan on his back.

The bridge rushed towards them, and he reached up, waiting.

The impact nearly tore his arms off. Suddenly, he and Arakan were hanging over thin air as the train rushed away.

With a groan, Kaen pulled as hard as he could, getting high enough that Arakan could grab on to the bridge himself. They pulled themselves up, collapsing on the wood boards.

"Are you alright?" Arakan asked.

Kaen inspected his arms. The joints looked strained, and some of the bolts were loose, but they were still functional.

"Yeah," he said. "It's my back muscles I'd be worried about. I think I pulled something."

Arakan didn't respond. Kaen look over at him to see his brother clenching his fists, not looking at him.

"What's wrong?" Kaen asked.

Arakan shook his head, still looking away.

Kaen sighed. "Aniki..."

"I'm sorry," Arakan suddenly blurted out. "I never should have left you alone to keep us safe. I never should have gotten as drunk as I did." He rambled, but Kaen had heard enough.

"Arakan. Stop."

Arakan finally turned to look at him, his eyes desperate.

"It's alright," Kaen soothed, his mind flashing to the scars on Arakan's wrists. "You don't have to blame yourself."

"But it's my fault. It's all my fault." Arakan's voice shook, threatening to break. "The explosion, your arms..."

"No," Kaen said firmly, mind convicted. He didn't blame his brother, not anymore. "My arms aren't your..." he trailed off as a thought occurred to him. "Wait. Your hesitation when I helped you up before. That's why you're so apprehensive. You're beating yourself up each time you look at my arms."

Arakan's face flushed, and he looked away again. "Yes," he whispered.

Sighing, Kaen moved himself so that he was right next to his brother, and wrapped his arms around him. Arakan flinched, but then leaned into Kaen.

"They're not your fault." Kaen said quietly. "You didn't make it out of that building unscathed either. We both were injured."

"Yes, but-"

"No. I don't blame you. I love you, and I'm so glad that we're together again."

"I don't deserve your love," Arakan choked out. "I should only receive hatred from you."

Kaen didn't respond for a moment, then: "What was the story that Mom told us when we were little? The one about the two dragons?"

"I remember," Arakan whispered. "There were once two dragons brothers, one red, and one blue. They were the greatest creatures in all the land, and spent their days guarding the people from harm. But one day the gods ordered that one of the dragons be taken to their castle for entertainment, and sent down their best warriors to catch him."

"The warriors came while the dragons were basking in the sun together," Kaen continued the story. "And quickly caught the red dragon in a great net. The blue dragon, afraid of being caught himself, fled, leaving his fellow to the mercy of the gods

"The red dragon spent many years in the god's castle, alone. Finally, the gods released him, having grown bored of their entertainment. The dragon flew back down to earth, and found his brother hidden away in a dark cave under the ground.

'Brother!' It called. 'Why do you hide yourself away?'

His brother did not come out to meet his long-lost friend, but simply said:

'I abandoned you in your time of need, and now I only deserve darkness and solitude.'

But the red dragon reached in and pulled the blue dragon out of the cave. 'I do not blame you,' it said. 'You should not blame yourself.'

The red dragon guided his brother to a cliff overlooking the land.

'We have a duty to protect the people of this land. I cannot do it alone. I need you.'

The blue dragon nodded, tears leaking from his eyes. 'I have spent so long in the darkness,' he said. 'That I have forgotten the light. Thank you, brother.'

And so, the two dragons were reconciled, and they spent the rest of their days together, using their great power to bring peace to the land. "

Kaen stopped speaking, feeling his brother shaking against him, silent sobs wracking his body.

"Mom always knew what stories we needed to hear," Kaen said, smiling.

Arakan gave a half-sob, half-laugh. He sat up wiping the tears from his face. "I'll try," he said. "I'll try to move on, forgive myself. But-"

"It's not going to be easy." Kaen finished. "But I'm here for you, even when you're a drunk, depressed, dumpster fire of a brother."

Arakan actually laughed at that, giving the first smile Kaen had seen him give in a long time.