Treason Repaid

The Cleansing Blade is inaugurated in the blood of a treacherous House.
***
Tuka did not want to open the door. He knew what lay in the room beyond. The door loomed before him like a terrible curtain, waiting with patient cruelty for him to tear it aside. He stood rooted in place; one trembling hand pressed to the cold door. Pula tugged at his robe. “We have to go in,” the handmaiden whispered. “Something terrible might have happened.”
Something terrible had happened. That was why Tuka did not want to venture any further. He was suddenly struck by the memory of that terrible night when Vadam’s warriors descended upon the Refum compound. His home was dark then just as the halls of the Zandan keep were dark now. He suddenly realized that he was trapped in a nightmare that repeated its bloody business over and over before his eyes.
But this time was different. There were no Vadam servants waiting behind the door but instead something much worse. Tuka could not bear to stand still another moment. Pula stood behind him, blocking his retreat. He could only move forward. Tuka stifled a faint cry and pushed the door open.
He saw the blade before anything else. A deep-crimson energy sword floated like a burning torch in the darkness. Tuka blinked frantically. His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he saw the terrible figure in black armor holding the blade. Tuka recognized his brother immediately. Shinsu stood very still in the center of the room. He stared down at what appeared to be a pile of robes lying at his feet. No, not robes at all, but a broken body. Tuka did not need to look at the face to know who it was.
Pula let out a terrible wail. “Mistress!” The handmaiden pushed past Tuka and fell to her knees before Cena ‘Zandan. The Scion of House Zandan was dead, killed by a terrible blow that rent her shoulder like the shell of a fruit. There was no question of who dealt the killing blow. Horror encased Tuka’s hearts in ice.
Shinsu turned slowly to face the newcomers. He looked first to Pula, then Tuka. His expression was shielded behind his narrow helmet. “Tuka,” Shinsu said slowly. “You are safe. Good. That is good.” He spoke falteringly, unsure of his own words.
“Brother.” The words tore themselves from Tuka’s throat. “What have you done?”
“Justice.” Shinsu’s voice was little more than a whisper.
“You killed her!” Pula cried. She cradled her mistress’s broken body. “You killed her!”
Shinsu ignored the grieving handmaiden. He fixed his gaze on Tuka. “I… did not want you to see this, brother. It was no easy thing. But it had to be done. I had no choice.” He seemed almost plaintive.
“You killed her.” Tuka echoed Pula’s words. His mind reeled. This couldn’t be happening. Cena couldn’t be dead. She was Scion of House Zandan, the woman who had been as much a sister to him as Shinsu was a brother. Shinsu couldn’t have done this. He was the Knight of Sanghelios, the hero who challenged all that was evil and wrong in the world. None of this could be real. And yet here it was. Tuka couldn’t wake up from this nightmare. “Cena loved you. But you killed her. She loved you!”
“She betrayed us. She lied, perhaps from the very beginning. House Zandan was in league with Vadam. Cena told the Arbiter our movements. She told him where to expect our attack. Many warriors are dead because of what she did. I was too blind to see her treachery until it was too late. I was too weak. Never again.” Shinsu drew himself up. His voice became firmer, as if drawing strength from each word. “I am kaidon of House Refum, Tuka. My duty is to defend our clan from all its enemies.”
He looked down at Cena. “No matter how dear they may be.”
Something stirred in the corridor behind Tuka. He whirled and saw several more warriors wearing dark armor just like Shinsu’s. They marched into the room smelling of blood and plasma fire. These were not Cena’s household guards. Horrified tears blurred Tuka’s vision. The warriors raised their weapons to salute Shinsu.
“Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.” Shinsu spoke to the warriors now. He no longer sounded like the brother Tuka remembered. He was utterly changed. “House Zandan’s treachery has been repaid. “From this moment forward, we are the Cleansing Blade. We are the blades that dwell in the darkness. Shadows hidden by the light, monsters lurking in the corners of our enemies' minds. We set aside ambition, bloodline, and honor; we offer ourselves, body and soul, in the service of the Sangheili people. Even if they reject us, revile us, cast us out, take up arms against us, we will not stand by and let the shadows of this galaxy consume the light of Sanghelios.”
The assembled warriors knelt in homage to their bloody-minded commander. Pula rose from Cena’s body. She stared wordlessly at Shinsu. Tuka fought for breath. He needed to leave. He needed to get away from this ghastly specter. Anywhere was better than this.
Shinsu looked back to Tuka. He held out his free hand. He still clutched the glowing red blade. “Come, brother. There is much work to be done.”
“You…” Tuka didn’t know who this creature was. He couldn’t be Shinsu ‘Refum. His brother would never butcher Cena. He would never order the destruction of an entire House. “You aren’t my brother!”
He spat the words out and fled, breathless and weeping, into the darkened corridor.