It had been easier than expected for Zorren to slip into the College in secret. All he had to do was wear a spoofer to make him take on the outward appearance of his Protector. Unlike an identity modifier that only made small changes to a person’s appearance, a spoofer could allow a person to look like anyone else as long as the body mass was at least a little similar to the one being recreated. And while Roterick was a head shorter and more broad through the chest than Zorren, the spoofer managed to project an illusion that was a close match to the Protector. Good enough to fool Vector Star Transports security checks and allow him to board the Saranova. It also helped that Zorren wore Roterick’s unity ring as well and had cloned the Protector’s identity chip.

  Once he stepped onto Sora X, Zorren’s presence didn’t raise any suspicion whatsoever, because to everyone else he wasn’t Prince Zorren Zahn, but Protector Roterick come to back to the College for recertifications that the Protector had actually been putting off for awhile. Meanwhile, the real Roterick was back on Vega Prime angry to be left behind, but even more upset that he’d been forced to spill to Zorren every last secret he’d known about the College.

  And what a bounty Zorren had gotten. He knew that the College had things it did not want the general public to know, all organizations did, but the depth of some of their secrets was truly mind-boggling. And what Roterick hadn’t known, the Protector possessed good enough security codes that gave Zorren the opening he needed to hack into the highest classified files at the College. All the Protectorate’s secrets had been laid bare before Zorren.

  With all that information at his fingers tips and the help of Captain Hame and his collaborator, Zorren had managed to put together a plan that had finally brought him face to face with his brother. And now Zorren stood in the dark waiting for Adar with a giddiness he hadn’t felt in a long, long time.

  This was the moment he’d been waiting for since he’d heard his brother was returning to the White Palace months ago. But it was also a cumulation of all the dark feelings he’d been harboring toward his brother since it had become known that Adar carried the same Dome-ni ability as their father.

  Ever since then, father had not seen Zorren as a true Heir even though Zorren had labored for years to show himself as more worthy to be the Ascendant than his other brothers. Adar’s arrival had thrown everything into chaos.

  A great wrong had been born into the universe, but now Zorren was going to see it righted. Maybe the rift between him and his father would not be repairable even with Adar gone––permanently this time, but his brother’s death would go a long way to soothing the upset his presence had caused Zorren. There was that at least. And with Adar finally gone forever, and the rest of his family to follow shortly after, Zorren could finally step into the life that should have been his all along.

  Zorren could almost taste the victory, and it was the sweetest most delicious thing. Though he had to admit that the anticipation of actually killing Adar might be the best of all. He was eager to find out. He gripped the knife in his right hand and waited.

  He didn’t have to wait long. As he expected, Adar was coming down the narrow tunnel and deeper into the cavern system. There had been the stairs, which Adar could have taken. But Zorren had left a little surprise there if he decided to try. The trap he set wouldn’t have killed Adar, but it would have certainly been an unpleasant experience to say the least. And enough of a make him reconsider the stairs and be funneled into the tunnel going deeper into the caves and toward Zorren.

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  The dark and damp environment in which he had chosen to confront his brother was perfect for the showdown he had been imagining. He wanted it to be a challenge, which is why he gave Adar time to prepare and why Zorren chose to use knives instead of any blasters. This cavern beyond the bonding chambers allowed for Adar to run and hide, making it feel like a hunt. Zorren couldn't decide if he wanted Adar to face him or flee like an animal. Regardless, this would be an electrifying encounter, and both possibilities sent exhilarating shivers through his body

  There.

  He heard the sounds of steps echoing in the cavern. They were coming at a steady pace. His heart pounded with excitement as he braced himself for what came next. The beats of his heart were like the drums announcing the great victory to come. Yes, Adar had proven himself capable in a fight and in knowing quat-lo, but that only made the possible challenge all that more exciting. It was rare for Zorren to run across a person who could match him in skill, but also in strength, and while Adar might have the skill, he did not have the strength of one with the Dome-ni of Endurance, and so that alone made Zorren sure of the end results.

  After what felt like years, but was most likely just a handful of minutes, Zorren caught the sight of his brother at the other end of the underground grotto. He was a silhouette against the dim lightening of the corridor behind him. Adar stood there for a long moment half hiding and half out, most likely letting his eyes adjust to the lesser light of the changed environment.

  There was light in the large expanse between Zorren and Adar, but it wasn’t man made. An otherworldly iridescence glowed faintly from patches of green scattered on the walls, ceilings, and even floor of the cavern. It was joined with the brighter spots of light from several small swarms of insects, flittering about from one seemly random point to another. Though most hovered over the duel ponds of water against the far left of the grotto that also was the home to a variety of plants with each holding a slight glow of their own as well. But the water area was definitely the brightest part of the room, and Zorren had made sure to stay away from it.

  Adar seemed pulled toward the waterscape and looked to be headed in that direction, but then appeared to think better of it, and made his way further into the cavern. He stopped in the dead center as his eyes settled on Zorren. He was briefly impressed with how fast his brother had found him. Zorren had attempted to blend into the shadows near the right back of the cave. This was the darkest part where none of the cave moss or any of the other glowing plants or insects had infested. It was a perfect place to wait and see what his prey would do. And it seemed Adar wasn’t going to run away and try to hide in the dozens of outcropping and crevices the room held.

  Good.

  Zorren stood up to his full height and stepped out to meet his brother. His stride strong and confident. While he walked, he watched his brother carefully. Adar stood a little to the side and the knife Zorren had left him tightly grasped in his right hand. He stood ready for what came next, but Zorren saw the clenching of his brother’s jaw, and even in the darkness, the uncertainty in his brother’s eyes was clear. His brother was afraid.

  Good. Very good, indeed.

  “Time’s up, little brother,” Zorren said as he stopped a few feet from the other man.

  “Zorren, we don’t have to do this,” Adar pleaded once more.

  The words and the sound of his voice grated on his very last nerve. Seriously? This was the best he could do? How pathetic.

  “Yes. We. Do.” Zorren said with each word firm and clipped. Oh yes they did, and wasn’t it past time this was settled once and for all? Zorren gave his brother a sinister grin of the unspoken promises to come, and then he struck.