Embracing The General: Chained Of Hearts

04: Shadows Of The Past

The moon hung low, casting silver streaks across the wooded path as I walked beside Amon. The silence stretched between us, but it wasn’t peaceful.. far from it. Amon’s usual carefree demeanor had vanished, replaced with sharp vigilance.

I glanced up at him, sensing the shift. "You’re awfully quiet. Got something on your mind?"

He didn’t look at me, but I saw the faintest smile on his lips.. though there was no humor in it. "Just thinking. It seems like you have one of your own mystery."

I furrowed my brow. "What do you mean?"

Amon turned to me with a raised eyebrow. "I mean, you can’t remember anything about your past, but you’re curious, right?" He paused and looked around at the dark forest. "What do you think could have happened? I mean, i wonder what could have been your personality before your memories faded."

I paused, trying to make sense of his words. A knot tightened in my stomach. "Is that the reason why you are so quiet? You're thinking of that?" I said while raising my eyebrows.

"Well, I don’t know. It’s frustrating not knowing who I really am... but I try not to dwell on it."

Amon shrugged, his playful grin returning. "Well, at least you’re not brooding about it. But I guess we’ll never know unless you remember, huh?"

My curiosity got the best of me, and I tilted my head. "Do you think I was a completely different person before all this happened?"

Amon’s eyes glinted with mischief. "Maybe you.. were a ruthless noble, hunting down your enemies. Or a scholar, spending all your time reading. Perhaps you were a queen-"

"Queen?!" I couldn’t help but laugh, cutting him off. "I’d never be a queen! I can barely even make decisions on my own."

Amon sighed dramatically, shaking his head. "That’s disappointing. I was imagining you ruling an empire with iron fists and sharp wit."

I chuckled, the tension between us easing for a moment. "If I were a queen, I think I’d be more like a queen of lost socks. You know, the one who’s always wondering where they go after laundry day."

Amon laughed aloud, and for a moment, I could see the tension in him ease. "A queen of socks, huh? Well, maybe that’s why you’ve forgotten that your kingdom of socks was too powerful to be remembered."

I grinned, but then, as my thoughts returned to my forgotten past, my smile faded. "But seriously... Do you think I was someone... dangerous?"

Amon’s expression shifted, becoming more serious. He stepped closer to me, his voice lowering. "Honestly? I don’t think so. But I do think there’s something about you.. something more than you realize. And I’ll help you figure it out. No matter how dangerous it might get."

Before I could respond, Amon’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out quickly, glanced at the screen, and stepped away, muttering under his breath.

"Stay here," Amon said, answering the call without a second glance.

"Your highness, we’ve got a problem," Cael’s voice crackled through the line. "An incident in the capital. Possible infiltration. The King’s security -"

"What did i tell you about this?" Amon interrupted, his tone cold. He glanced at me over his shoulder, his expression unreadable.

"I’m handling something here. I will handle that myself when i get back"

"But Your highness-"

"I said, I'll handle it myself." He hung up abruptly, stuffing the phone back into his pocket and he looked at me and just smiled.

I didn't hear anything and didn't bother to eavesdrop.

I raised an eyebrow, but he just flashed me a brief, tight-lipped smile. "Nothing you need to worry about."

I just shrugged, but before I could ask, movement in the way caught my attention. Figures emerged from the shadows.. mercenaries, weapons drawn and faces masked.

Amon’s hand moved instinctively to his pocket, his fingers brushing the hilt of his small knife. His playful demeanor disappeared, replaced by something far darker. "Stay behind me," he ordered in a low, dangerous tone.

I opened my mouth to protest, but before I could speak, one of the mercenaries lunged at Amon. Without hesitation, he sidestepped the attack and drew his knife. The clash of metal echoed in the night as he barely blocked the next blow, the mercenary’s sword cutting through Amon’s sleeve and leaving a deep gash in his arm. Amon gritted his teeth, his face darkening with anger.

"Stay still rhodes," he muttered under his breath, eyes narrowing as another mercenary attacked from his left. Amon spun, narrowly avoiding the strike, but it left a gash on his forearm. His fury was palpable.

"Stay back, Rhodes!" he shouted, his voice heavy with warning. But despite the danger, I couldn’t stay still. I took a step closer, unable to tear my eyes away from the fight.

Amon fought with precision, taking down mercenary after mercenary with swift, controlled moves, but there were too many. One lunged toward me, and in an instant, Amon tackled him to the ground, preventing him from reaching me.

Breathing heavily, Amon rolled the man off of him, pushing himself back to his feet. He glanced at me, making sure I was safe, but before I could react, the remaining mercenaries began retreating into the trees.

Amon chuckled, running after them, his knife still in hand. He grabbed one of the mercenaries by the collar, removed the masked and slammed him into a nearby wall with a force.

Amon’s eyes were cold, his voice as sharp as ice. "Who sent you?" he demanded, tightening his grip.

The mercenary’s breath quickened as he struggled to speak. "We... we were hired. To kill that woman..." His voice faltered as Amon pressed the knife harder against his throat.

"What..? Who ordered it?" Amon’s voice was dangerously low.

The mercenary glanced at me, i can see the fear in the mercenary eyes.

"I... don’t know! I swear, they didn’t tell us who.. only that she must die before she regained her memories..!"

Amon’s grip tightened further, his anger almost boiling over. "You’ve got one more chance. Who sent you?"

"I-I really don’t know! really!" The mercenary’s voice cracked. "We were just hired to kill her! We were told to make sure she never gets to the capital!"

Amon’s hand trembled with rage, but before he could push further, I run forward, placing a gentle hand on his arm.

"Stop, he already said he don't know who sent them." I said, looking at his eyes intensely.

I grabbed his arm, "Look, you're hurt. Let go of him you have no time to worry about others." I said while looking at his wound.

Amon hesitated, his breath ragged. He looked at me. With one last sharp glare at the mercenary, he shoved him away, letting him flee into the shadows.

The man scrambled to his feet and disappeared, leaving the street eerily silent.

I stood there, my mind reeling, trying to make sense of everything. "I don’t understand," I whispered. "Why would they want to kill me?"

Amon sheathed his knife, his voice grim. "I don’t know. But I’ll make sure no one gets close to you again."

There was no trace of humor in his voice now.. only the deadly seriousness of his words. And in that moment, I realized how far he was willing to go to protect me.