The Way Things Used to Be

Disclaimer: Legacy of Kain belongs to Edios and Crystal dynamics, they are not me. I am making ?0.00 out of this fic; it is written purely because I have a burning need to create.

Rating: PG

Part: One of Three

Set: Time shenanigans!

Authoress Note: Kain is feeling nostalgic so he goes back in time and realises that an event did not happen the way he thought it had.

Also I usually update once a week, but on this occasion I will be taking a two week hiatus, I'm off on holiday an need a break. So I beg your patience.

Chapter One

I've never considered myself to be decedent.

But that being said, I've never denied myself anything I've wanted. So, I didn't debate the morality of my current actions, I only considered the potential damage I could do to my goals for something that was, without a doubt, an indulgence. After some thought, I decided that the risk of damage was minimal, and so had charged ahead.

I was going back, back in time to a point where my fledglings were young, foolish and obedient.

I was exhausted, and oddly enough the exhaustion brought with it a sense of nostalgia. I was nostalgic for a time when I could have a civilised conversation with someone who didn't snark at every word I said or outright threatened my life when I entered a room.

So, I have given in to the desire for company and gone back.

My chosen time isn't one of any significance, an early night before the empire had gotten its feet under it. My small band of fledglings still living in rather cramped and haphazard conditions with myself while we attempted to sack small villages.

I had purposefully chosen a time when I knew I, or rather, the version of myself that belonged in this era, would be away. The early days of the empire had been dangerous and often I had had to abandon my brood in places of relative safety while I sought out and removed the worst of the potential dangers. At this time, we had recently attempted to sack a village that was of some strategic potential. The village had not gone down and had, somehow, managed to take the youngest of my brood into custody. I had gone off, probably in a foul mood, to attempt a rescue.

The remainder of my brood was alone, in the smallholding we had taken to shelter in.

It was that smallholding that I stood outside of now, watching as a younger version of myself stormed off back towards the village, still healing injuries visible on his bare back and swearing under his breath. It's an odd thing to observe yourself from a distance, you notice all sorts of little things. I had been barely more than a fledgling myself at this point, hot-headed and foul-tempered, it's a wonder any of my brood survived these early days.

But I had not come back here to spy on myself, I had come to …

Wait.

I looked again at the Kain leaving the smallholding, young, angry and unevolved. He was unevolved. I had come back to a time far too early. I cursed to myself and my foolishness, if I approached my fledglings now looking as I did then it would only cause confusion and upset.

I needed to leave and choose a time far later in the empire, when my appearance wouldn't cause outrage or confusion. With a sigh I turned to go, still silently cursing my bloody imbecilic actions.

But I was stopped, by a chair hurtling out of a boarded-up window followed by accusatory shouts. My curiosity peeked I vaulted to the roof of the house with little effort, casting the beguile spell over myself almost as an afterthought. If I happened to be accidentally spotted, then better for someone to spot a human than an evolved vampire. With the spell firmly settled in place I moved closer to the edge of the roof where I could easily hear the disagreement inside.

"…May lose Melchiah," I recognised Turel's voice raised in anger.

"You can't hold me responsible," Zephon hissed. "I'm not his bloody keeper."

"No but you were with him," Rahab was quieter than either of his siblings and I couldn't help the small smile. Rahab was always level-headed, always calm, I don't think I ever saw him reveal any true emotion to his siblings much to their eternal frustration. Hearing his typical monotone voice was oddly comforting and I realised that evolved or not I had decided to remain in this time, at least for a moment.

"And, they came out from nowhere, neither of us heard them. One moment we were alone then we were ambushed." Zephon snapped, still making excuses.

"Did you even realise he wasn't with you when you ran?" Dumah said. His tone dripped with venom, not for the loss of his youngest sibling I suspected, but rather at the concept that any of his brothers would run from a fight. Dumah was brave and strong but foolish in that he would never run from a fight, even one he had no hope of winning.

"Not until I reached Raziel," Zephon admitted. I heard movement and Zephon quickly continued. "Hey, hey I went back!" there was a moment of quiet.

"Yes," Dumah said softly after the moment had stretched. "Yes, you did."

"And now Raziel is …" Rahab trailed off. "Hurt." He eventually said, but from his tone I knew that he wasn't happy with his word choice. I frowned; I do not remember anything happening to Raziel? I deliberately chose this point in time to return to because I knew my younger self would be away on a rescue mission for Melchiah, leaving me an opportunity to speak with my other children, especially Raziel.

With some minor difficulty I left my perch on the rooftop and worked my way down the side of the building, checking in at each boarded-up window until I found the one, I was confident that my eldest was behind. With a minor mental effort, I let my body dissolve into mist and seeped in the cracks. I remained in mist form for a moment once inside, ensuring that my reforming into solid matter would not cause an outcry, but Raziel was asleep on a cot.

I walked over to him, allowing myself to become solid again as I did. My eldest was out like a light, his breathing deep and even. But the injury to his head suggested that this might be more than just sleep. The injury looked severe and instantly my memory of it returned. I remembered finding Zephon and Raziel in an alley way surrounded by armed men, Melchiah was already gone when I arrived. Zephon was still on his feet but Raziel was already down, his head cracked open, not necessarily a fatal wound for a vampire but a debilitating one. One that would have left him unbelievably vulnerable had I not arrived when I did.

I remembered brining him home and feeding him from my own veins which had healed much of the damage but not all of it. But I hadn't been able to hunt, I hadn't had time to fix him properly, I had had to go recover Melchiah.

"I really was rather shite at this," I muttered moving the fringe out of my eldest's eyes. "It's a wonder any of you survived the first year." Tipping his head back I dug my claws into my wrist and allowed my almost black blood to move sluggishly out onto my skin, and down my palm to drip off my fingers. I couldn't give him much, the blood of old vampires is potent, and its potency can do marvellous things, but it can also overwhelm fledglings, to much would be even worse than if I gave him nothing.

The small wound healed almost instantly and the few drops I'd given him seemed to help. The wound visibly finished closing, leaving only bruising and dried blood behind.

"Hopefully you didn't lose to many braincells," I muttered. I jerked hearing footsteps approaching the room. I moved back into the shadows and allowed myself to become mist again, slowly seeping back towards the window. The door flew open, slamming against the wall. Raziel did not stir.

"That's why you can't go," Turel snapped, his arm gesturing to Raziel.

"You think I fear injury?" Dumah hissed. "I fear failure and we failed."

"It wasn't…" Turel started but Dumah interrupted.

"Father bid us to take the village and we failed, the village remains free, one of us in taken and another is dying in that bed. I won't let that be for nothing."

"Father bid us stay and keep guard," Turel said firmly. "You would ail if you disobeyed."

"Disobedience is not the same as failure," Dumah said.

"Bloody well is," I muttered under my breath. "Stay put you fool."

"What if the village come here?" Turel said. "What if they come while father is away, we will need you here to fight with us. To protect Raziel."

"Raziel is dead," Dumah snapped. "And you are capable in a fight, protect the weak ones if it please you, I am going to take our goal."

"You'll get yourself killed," Rahab said coming in behind his brother.

"Not if he's got someone to watch his back," Zephon said from behind Rahab.

"I don't need help, let alone help from one who runs at the first sign of peril," Dumah sneered.

"You can't take a village by yourself," Zephon snapped. "Besides if I really was a coward would I be offering to come with you?"

"Why do you want to go?" Rahab asked. "You're normally smarter than that."

"I left Melchiah behind," Zephon said, I raised an eyebrow. In all the years I had known my second youngest I had not suspected he had a sliver of empathy. "If he dies, I'll forever be tarred by this mistake." Ahh, that's more like it. Reputation means more than brotherhood.

"That makes sense for you," Dumah snorted "Very well, redeem yourself along side me my brother." Dumah reached out, his giant hand clasping Zephon's shoulder, dwarfing it. "Together we shall take the village and when father returns, we will be heroes."

"You will be dead," Rahab muttered.

"And we will be blamed," Turel snapped. "I won't let you go."

"You can't stop us," Zephon said. "I'm to fast and Dumah is too strong, you'll never catch me, especially not after Dumah breaks your legs." Turel stepped forward, anger visible in his trembling limbs, but Rahab's hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"If you fight you will be injured," he said. "Then if as you say, the village seeks retribution I will have to defend you and Raziel alone."

"But…" the ever dutiful Turel said.

"If they fall, which they will," Rahab looked pointedly at Dumah and Zephon. "I will vouch for you and if there is punishment, I will bare it with you."

"Then we go!" Dumah cheered. "To take the village and earn back our pride."

End Chapter Two

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