The Twin Who Out-darkened Heaven
Copyright© 2026 by A. K. Veyron
Chapter 23: The Boy Left Behind
Lys did not forget the question the official in gray had asked, and neither did Kael. But Lys did not worry about the same part of it.
On the morning after the conversation in Kael’s room, Lys found him at the edge of the training yard, watching the other students run through their spirit-gathering drill. Master Garrick was walking the line. Torin, the boy with the tiny spark, was straining at his hands. Mira had a faint gray glow. Kael sat on the bench with a book and a face that said he did not care.
“You are not joining them,” Lys said, dropping down beside him.
“I am not invited.”
“You are on the roster.”
“I am on the roster as a person who shows up and does nothing.” Kael turned a page. “Master Garrick has not corrected my posture in a month. I think he has given up.”
Lys frowned at the yard. At the far end, Lord Voryn stood under the shade tree with two guests, nodding as Garrick called out the drill. He had not looked at the bench once.
“That is not right,” Lys said.
“It is how things are.”
“It does not have to be.” Lys rubbed his neck, the way he did when he was working up to something. “I leave in ten days. When I am gone, nobody will train you. Garrick will not, Father will not, and you will sit on this bench until you are old. I do not like it.”
He is worried about you, Kael thought. He is going to do something about it.
This is a mistake waiting to happen, said Maltherion. Whatever he offers, refuse.
I will decide that when I hear it, Kael thought.
“I have an idea,” Lys said, lowering his voice. “At the cathedral, I learned a method that every new church disciple is taught first. It is called the Dawn Breath Method. It is for people at the start of Ember Vein, and it is not taught outside the church. I want to teach it to you.”
Kael looked up from his book. “In secret?”
“In secret. I will take the blame if anyone asks.”
Do not accept, said Maltherion at once. A church method draws energy in from outside the body. I told you that your meridians reject outside energy. Every drop will bounce off.
I know, Kael thought.
Then why are you hesitating?
Because if I refuse, Lys will think I have given up. He will worry for ten days and tell everyone who listens. If I accept, he is calm, and I learn how the church trains its disciples.
You are using him again, said Maltherion.
I am using what he offers. He is still my brother.
You say that as if it makes it better.
It does not, Kael thought. But it is true.
“All right,” Kael said aloud. “Where?”
Lys’s whole face lit up. “The old archery range, behind the stable. Nobody goes there. Tomorrow, at dawn.”
The old archery range had not been used since their grandfather died. Weeds grew in the shooting lane, and the wooden targets leaned against the fence, half rotted. Lys was already there when Kael arrived, sweeping the dirt with a branch and spreading a mat in the clearest corner.
“I brought tea,” he said, holding up a flask. “And rice cakes. I did not know how long it would take.”
“It is a breathing method. It cannot take long.”
“It took me nine days to feel anything.” Lys grinned. “So I brought a lot of rice cakes.”
They sat across from each other on the mat. Lys explained it in plain words.
“Sit with your back straight and your hands on your knees. Breathe in through your nose for four counts. Hold for four. Breathe out through your mouth for six. While you breathe in, picture light coming into your chest. When you breathe out, picture it spreading to your hands and feet. The light is what draws spiritual energy in from the air.”
“That looks like what Master Garrick taught the others,” Kael said.
“It is the same idea, but Garrick only teaches the outer part. The church teaches the full pattern.” Lys closed his eyes. “Try it.”
Kael closed his own. He breathed in for four, held for four, and breathed out for six. His body did not take in any energy. The air stayed air, and the warmth in his dantian stayed quiet.
As expected, Kael thought.
As expected, said Maltherion. The mark is within ten paces. Keep the ember asleep.
I am keeping it asleep, Kael thought.
When he opened his eyes, Lys was watching him with hopeful, anxious eyes.
“Anything?”
“A little warmth,” Kael said. It was a small lie. “I am not sure.”
“That is how it starts. For me, it was nothing for nine days. Then my hands got warm, and after that it grew.” Lys beamed. “You have ten days.”
“Nine. You leave on the tenth.”
“Then we start every morning.” Lys picked up a rice cake and gave half to Kael. “Every single one.”
They trained for four days.
On the first day, Lys corrected Kael’s posture and the count of his breaths. On the second, he told a long story about the cathedral cook who put honey in everything, even the fish. On the third, he described a priest who fell asleep during evening prayers and snored in four different rhythms, one for each verse.
Kael laughed out loud before he could stop himself.
Lys stared at him. “What?”
“Nothing. Four different rhythms. How would you know?”