TRIGGER WARNING: Child Abuse
“You have failed the Earth Nation, Seokjun.”
In a last ditch effort, even if they were restrained and silenced, a shrill and guttural cry was emitted from the teenager, as loudly as they could muster. Even their grandfather could not believe that a sound could resonate and echo through the cemented bricks of the chamber. He was spooked, and even more when something unexpected followed the sound. A tremor. Seokjun’s eyes widened as the chamber shook violently, vibrating in short and erratic waves. That did not stop the shrill cries that they were letting out. The abrupt tremor made the elder lose his balance. He fell onto the shaking floor. The metal stamped clanged onto the cemented floor. He watched in horror as the realization washed over him like a wave hitting the shore. He made the greatest mistake of his life: he personally awakened Seokjun.
The tremor was put to a halt after a few seconds, not naturally. It was put to a stop by none other than the Queen herself. The Queen and King awoke from their own slumber and entered the hall where they sensed the epicenter of the tremor. Upon learning where the epicenter of the tremor was, fear washed over the royal couple. Their worst fears had come to life. The fact that Howoo and Seokjun were in the underground hall was enough indication, which was only further affirmed by the metal marking stamp and Seokjun restrained at the other side of the chamber. King Yohan quickly went to his son’s aid and checked whether Seokjun had any injuries, specifically burn injuries or worse, a brand on his skin. A sigh of relief escaped Yohan when he saw nothing, and looked back at Saerin to confirm his search.
Yohan disintegrated the ceramic restraints from Seokjun. The young prince immediately clutched the sleepwear of his father, almost until their knuckles became white, and sobbed in his arms. They wailed as the tears fell and stained their father’s clothing. The tremors continued in time with Seokjun’s wails. Yohan kept his son close to his frame and let them cry in the warmth of his embrace. He whispered sweet words to the teenager, letting them know that everything was going to be okay and they were safe. Seokjun cried harder.
Right then and there, the Queen decreed Howoo to be banished from the Capital. He can never enter nor exit the city, most especially the palace, and all other residences of the Royal Family. Furious, the elder threw a fit of rage and attempted to attack the Queen. He was quickly subdued by Saerin herself, altering the cemented floor into a form of quicksand and sinking the legs of the old man onto the fluid rock. She solidified the cement as soon as the man sank into it. Howoo attempted to bend his way out but Saerin had acted more quickly, sinking the elder further until his chest was surrounded with cement and soil. Howoo choked from the sudden pressure wrapped around his body.
“As your daughter-in-law, I am regretful of this decision because I do my best to serve my people and the family that accepted me. As the queen, I trusted you that you have improved from your ruthless ways, and you have stained that trust. That is already enough reason for you to get banished. As a mother? You are lucky that your punishment is only banishment from the Capital because if I weren’t the queen, you would have suffered a fate far worse than death itself.”
The silence from Howoo was deafening.
Saerin, Yohan, and Seokjun left the man alone in the chamber as they escaped from where they had come from. Upon returning to the main hall, Saerin ordered the guards to take Howoo away from the palace and never let him return. Once everything was settled, Saerin immediately went to Yohan and Seokjun. She wrapped her arms around her husband and her son, saying sorry for failing to protect Seokjun from the atrocities of the elder earthbender.
At the request of Seokjun themself, they wanted to get out of the palace. Even though the palace was grandiose and spacious, the young boy felt constricted. Seokjun felt like at any moment, an old man or someone else far worse would grab him by the leg and drag him towards the halls. He felt like the walls had ears wherein the walls conspired with someone and whispered where the boy was and how to get to him. He felt like at any moment, the palace will not work for their favor and bring harm to Seokjun. After the incident, the palace became a reminder to the boy that they were still not safe despite being in the four corners of their own home. Saerin and Yohan had a long discussion about this, and they concluded that the comfort and utmost best for their children were the most important to them.
Despite having a bit of reluctance, Saerin and Yohan decided to grant Seokjun’s request to live outside the palace. After all, Seokjun was more than welcomed to return to the palace whenever Seokjun pleased or whenever they did not associate the palace with the traumatizing incident anymore; whenever they find that the palace was a place of refuge and security, of home.
At that very moment, the palace to Seokjun was nothing but an old stone structure.
Yohan accompanied his son to the ancestral home of the Yoon’s in the outskirts of the Earth Nation. It was located inside a community of farmers with farmlands stretching hectares upon hectares of tilled soil and abundance. It was a sight to behold, if Seokjun were to be honest. It was the first time that he had seen such marvel. A sense of pride washed over Seokjun because he knew that all the land and the greenery that he was seeing was owned by none other than their family. It had only dawned on him that moment the scale of the nation their mother was governing. He just hoped that no Earth citizen was left forgotten.
The ancestral home was a simple and modest bungalow-like house made of stone. There were renovations and refurbishments that had happened within the house, but it was obvious that there was intent to preserve many of the structures of the ancestral home. Nonetheless, it was far smaller than the palace, but it did the trick for the young boy. They were welcomed by Seo Jina, one of the loyal staff of the Royal Family, a skilled earthbender of her own right, and caretaker of the ancestral home. Upon the arrival of the young prince, she also became their guardian during their stay in Eunheul. Jina was briefed of the situation by the King and after a quick conversation, she more than happily accepted the job of being Seokjun’s guardian during his stay in Eunheul.
At present, Seokjun had been living in Eunheul for about nine years already. They had become accustomed to the life in the farmlands. A simple life but it was not to say that it was easy. They had always fought for proper compensation of the workers in front of the Royal Court. They championed innovative farming techniques and had great results from their studies. Their siblings would visit often in the ancestral home, and Seokjun would return for about a month to the Capital every year for the New Year and for his birthday a couple of weeks after. That had become Seokjun’s life and they did not want to change the life that they had built for themselves.