Descent into madness

He was breathing hard now, not out of expended effort but out of fear, this went against ever instinct telling him to shut up and take it, every instinct that was reminded him of that night when he was 9 and the real evil this man was capable of. But he also knew they were in a somewhat public setting, and even if many people held the same ideals as this man did, not all of them did, if he got physical with them there was more of a chance of someone seeing it. He supposed that was what emboldened him to say these things he was saying.

His eyes widened and fists clenched when he saw the way he grabbed his sister, putting her between them, he could see the pained grimace in her eyes and his own burned with a furious hate, it was one thing to hurt him, but it was a whole other thing to hurt Zan. There had been incidents where he'd wrecked people who even spoke ill to her, so despite the panic clawing at his insides, he stepped closer, pulling Zan to his side with gentle nudges and tugs, worlds different from the rough aggression of the man across from him, "you hurt her again and I'll make you wish you beat me to death all those years ago." The threat in his voice was low and steady, despite the trembling in his hands.

He looked surprised when Zan piped up finally, and felt a slight relief seeing that he wasn't alone, her words emboldened him and he finally drew himself up to his full height, "you lost me 12 years ago. I was never your son." He looked to the side at his sister, "and she's never been your daughter." He took her hand again now that she was beside him, for his own sake more than anything, because even if her words gave him a burst of courage, he was still scared.

It was horrifying how easily that threat left his mouth, or maybe it wasn't a threat, but the words still held an ominous promise that chilled Zaurack to his core. He was starting to lose his fire the more he spoke, the more hateful words he uttered, the more the man pushed and threatened and glared. It had taken everything in him to fight him for as long as he'd done so far, he was starting to break and the cracks would surely be visible.

When the man got in his face he tried his damnedest to stand his ground, to stare him directly in the eyes and take his words like lacerations from the sharpest blade. The flame in his own was dwindling, and he felt himself beginning to crumple at his words, not that they surprised him, there had always been a part of him that knew that his father had never wanted him, and it didn't matter anyway, because his mother did, his grandmother did, what did it matter what some sad, pathetic old man said to him.

His next words however, staggered the brother, and his eyes were wide with an expression that was somewhere between agony and shock. So that was it, that was out there, the fear that he felt was less for his safety and more for his life, and he was glad more than anything that Zan was here, because he was sure now that his father would hurt him far worse if she wasn't.

Altair was a large man, with large, strong arms and hands, so when he landed the slap on his son's face, it felt more like a sock in the mouth. He was already not paying attention, so the backhand was enough to stagger him to the ground, enough to leave him speechless, to take him back 12 years where he looked up at the man who was not his father with the same terrified expression. He lifted a hand to touch his cheek gingerly, flinching visibly when he raised his again and turning his head down in a submissive way, breathing hard in his panic now.

He felt useless, he felt useless and angry and scared just watching his sister stand up to this monster the way she was, while he stayed rooted to the spot where he'd fallen on the ground, helpless to stop what was happening. He was strong, but he knew he didn't stand a chance against Altair, the man was much larger than either of them. It didn't stop Zaniah though, and he couldn't help but feel a swelling of pride at her unshakable courage against this man. Even more so that it was on his behalf.

He flinched when the man moved to strike her, glad that the first one had been successfully blocked, he felt a burning in his chest that he would even dare try to hurt her. He was willing his body to move for all the strength he had in him, but he couldn't, he could only watch with tears brimming in his eyes as the man held her down and finally landed a strike to her face, she was so brave, his sister was so brave.

His threat to her made him seethe, and he felt his body tense, ready to spring if he tried anything worse. But he didn't, he didn't relax, even as the man climbed in his car and drove away, leaving the siblings alone in the parking garage. Z hated this overwhelming sick that washed over him, and when he felt his sister's arms around him, he pulled her into a tight hug, his breath shaky as he released in, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry Zan..." He closed his eyes tightly, no longer trying to conceal his shaking as he held onto her tightly, "are you okay?" This was his fault, because he'd opened his big mouth now she'd gotten hurt too.

He pulled away after a moment, running a gentle hand over where she'd been slapped, "lets go find a hotel. We...We can call mom." He nodded, finally getting to his feet and holding out a hand to help her up.

He was glad for her lightened demeanor, as he was still deeply shaken by the entire scene, and if she'd been so as well he didn't know if he'd be able to hold it together. He was barely managing now. His face betrayed his disbelief when she said he had nothing to apologize for, and he shook his head, "I antagonized him...I should have kept my mouth shut." He looked up at her, "you were hurt on my behalf..." He released a sigh like a steam machine trying to release pressure, "but thank you, Zan, you were brave." He said this with a proud glow in his voice, though it was still tinged with fear, still unable to shake what had just happened, being taken back to a night he tried his hardest to forget, he tried to shake the thought away.

He gave a ghost of a smile when she squeezed his hand, squeezing her's in turn and nodding, "if you are sure." She was right, he was sure a bruise would remain from where the man had slapped him, it had felt more like a closed fisted punch, "mom's going to be angry at me..." He was older, he was supposed to be mature enough for this, he was supposed to know better.

He shrugged as he tapped his chin thoughtfully, "we might as well just stay the rest of the five days." He looked to the side at her and smiled, "we were sent with enough to take care of ourselves..." He shrugged, "it's more logical than booking a whole other flight back, cost effective." He nodded, "but we oughta start with finding a hotel and calling mom." He was dreading this part, but he had Zan there, they would be fine.

He waved a hand and tried to smile for her, "c'mon, there oughta be a hotel here somewhere...Maybe we can find a place to rent a vehicle." He was glad now that he'd recently gotten his licence, otherwise they would have to depend on cabs.

He couldn't help but smile a little at her words, glad that she wasn't angry at him for causing such a ruckus between them, "I couldn't pretend..." He was usually good at keeping his fiery anger under control, when their mother was there to help temper it, but being alone and watching him heckle and shit talk both her and his sister had been too much. At her words he shook his head, his off expression returning, "no. He hit me. He would have done worse." He looked over at her, "mom wont be upset with you either, because you were protecting me." He offered her the best smile he could manage to try and assuage her worries.

His expression however became haunted again as he reflected on the man's words, swallowing hard, "did you hear what he said?" He rubbed his hands over his shoulders, looking withdrawn and uncharacteristically chilled, "that sparing me was a mistake..." He knew getting hung up on it did no good, but it had scared him, to think that maybe he might of gone farther, that maybe he wouldn't be here today, "he wishes me dead..." He tried to physically shake his head to chase away those thoughts, glancing to the side at her, glad for her bright attitude in contrast to his own dark thoughts.

He took the phone when she offered it, looking through the options, "this one's close by, rooms look pretty nice too." He held to out to show her, "look up the nearest rental place? If we're staying here we gotta have some kind of transport." He caught that question and rolled his eyes with a softer smile, glancing at the side, "okay, okay fine. But you tell mom and I'll get you." There was a hint of the usual playful tone he took with her in those words, feeling a little better now that they had a plan.

He needed to relax, to put this past him and move on the same way he did with just about every other stressor that happened to cross him. He'd gotten good over the years at compartmentalizing and filing away everything in a way that made it less imposing and big, but this was something he still hadn't managed to put away, and he didn't think he ever really would be able to fully leave behind that night, "right..." He mumbled with a vague nod, looking to the side at her, "all talk..." It didn't make his words any less frightening, he wished he had the kind of courage that Zan had, she was shaken but not broken, "how are you so brave..." He asked with a sad chuckle to his voice.

She was right, of course she was, but her words made him pause and look thoughtful, "is it? He could make it happen." Was he worrying for nothing? He sighed and shook the thought away, nodding and offering a half-smile at her words, "right, well lets hope he stays gone." The last thing they needed was for him to show back up expecting them to put this behind them, that wouldn't happen, and he wasn't confident in his bravery holding up if it did. For now though, she was right, they were free to enjoy their time here.

He couldn't help a smirk at her assurance for secrecy, raising a brow, "liar. You'll slip it to her." He said this with a calm, but playful matter of fact tone, nodding along with her words, "sounds good, let's head up." He waved and started walking, heading up from the parking garage to the front of the mall, leaving it in her hands to book the rental to be brought to them.