It wasn't too long afterward when the Warlord and his soldiers returned to the Midlands. By head count alone, they had not lost a single soldier. 3,000 went to battle, and 3,000 returned.
There was nothing credible to report, as it was difficult to believe that 3,000 men went to war against a great and powerful city and none of them died. Worse yet, what credited them with such a flawless victory was the fact that they were assisted by two dragons that did most of the heavy lifting for them. Sure, there was an occult following of fable enthusiasts who believed in dragons like they were their bread and water, but reporting it in a battle account felt off. He was conflicted on whether or not he should account for that part of the battle. Still, it would be impossible to explain how no one died in such a war. Soon, he gave up on making up a story and decided to report on what truly happened, though he was afraid that the impulsive young Emperor would thinWhen Wayne returned with Natalie, Aurora, and Serena, the palace seemed elated. Richard was happy that Serena had come to be with him, and Cyrus's family had been reunited. Now that everyone of interest was present, it was time for the formal coronation to mark the young Cyrus as sovereign King, and his wife as ruling Queen. They divided the kingdom into new provinces, a few of which Natalie would rule over, leaving the majority for her husband. After signing several scrolls and getting married for the second time in line with Griffindale's royal tradition, the day of coronation finally came. It was a day like no other, but since Cyrus didn't want to lavish the Kingdom's wealth at a time when the city was still being rebuilt, he made it modest, only prioritizing hygiene, food, and wine. Decorations and other accessories were ruled out of the budget, still, it was a day to remember. That day, King Cyrus was formally coronated as King and was no longer acting as one. He reinstated
Three years later... Back at Frostfall, Faora sensed a disturbance coming from the cave at the other side of the village. She came out of her house, looking around with a worried frown on her face, expecting to see obvious threats like she and her husband did the night that Dorcas and the other two dragon Slayers attacked. But there was nothing noteworthy going on outdoors. The weather was wonderful, and the mood was serene. That's why, just past midnight, everyone was still sound sleeping despite the strange feeling in her gut. The only strange thing was that she wasn't alone. At the far end if the village, right where the entrance was, beyond the barricade, she could see Nebula's blue eyes staring back at her. Though they couldn't communicate telepathically at that moment, Faora instinctively knew that they were sensing the same thing. There was trouble, and were sure of it. But Nebula wasn't getting the same sense of fear that Asherah was giving off. It was like Faora was
Queen Regina of Griffindale sat in her room, staring out of the large window several floors above the ground. It was a luxurious and spacious room filled with all the extravagant things a woman in her early forties would want. As a Queen, she did not believe in modesty, considering it dishonest to live like that, so she got everything she wanted until she got tired of chasing after endless desires. She stared out of the window, admiring the star-filled night sky and the brilliant full moon.The cool night breeze was refreshing, except for the fact that it nearly blew out the candles that illuminated her room. Besides the breeze, she enjoyed the sounds of the crickets in the nearby bushes and the howling of wolves in the wild forests just beyond the city's gates. The night was still young, and it was beautiful. However, it was not blissful enough to loosen the knot in her stomach permanently. She would never unwind, no matter how many pleasures she experienced. Although she was having a
“But you would have to come up with a plan for what to do with the bastard son,” Tarquin said to Queen Regina. “I don't think that boy is going to just stand by and watch you use the throne however you like.”“You are right,” the Queen said as she thought about it. “The young boy will be 21 years old in less than two years, and when he reaches that age, according to customs, he will be old enough to ascend to the throne if he wishes to. And I don't see any reason why he would decline the offer.”“Yes, your Majesty,” Tarquin replied, “he would have the right to demand the throne from you if he wishes to, and you would be bound by law to oblige. He would have no reason to refuse to rule as king, as it seems that is what he aspires to be. It might have been a different case if you had a male child of your own, but so far, you haven't had any.”The Queen smiled after he said this, looking down at her somewhat flat tummy before proceeding to ask him a question.“Tarquin,” she called him, an
The next day was one of mourning and silence in Griffindale, as it was announced that the King had died the previous night, giving in to his fever. As the customs demanded, everyone in the kingdom mourned for him from that morning until the next daybreak. It was a sudden edict, and a warning bell was rung to make sure everyone's attention was drawn to it, as violators of the rules stated in the edict would be highly prosecuted. On that day, all the restaurants and shops were closed, and everyone observed the mourn for the late King. All the bustling streets were now quiet, and barely any sounds could he heard from any of the businesses as they were all shut down. Back in the Palace, the body specialists in charge of taking care of the King's dead body had embalmed it so that it wouldn't rot and stink before the day of cremation. As the custom demanded, every member of the royal family was expected to come pay their respects by dropping flowers on his deathbed and taking a bow. Q
It was time to cremate the body of the late king, as the customs demanded. His body was set on a platform covered in straw and light splinters of wood. And by contact from a fiery torch, the whole structure was set ablaze with the King's body in the middle of it. Cyrus and his mother watched, along with everyone else present, with pain in their hearts as the King's body began eviscerating. The event was held at the main town square within the walls of the capital city. It was the largest open area available, able to host several standing attendees who wanted to witness the king's cremation. All of them held lanterns and candles, singing a sad dirge in unison as they watched their king's body burn away. Cyrus watched everything, and though it sickened him to see it, he forced himself to do so, with his mother standing right behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Somehow, from watching his father's body get reduced to ashes, an unlikely memory came to his mind. But unlike all
Earlier on that same day, Somewhere not too far from the capital city... Felix, a young boy living on the outskirts of the Highlands of Griffindale, in a region that was not considered part of the Kingdom, sat outside his house with both hands joined together as he stared at the skies. His eyes were red, and huge bags could be spotted beneath each of them even under the dim light of the moon. He was in a small village about a day's distance on horseback from the capital city of Griffindale, with a large forest acting as a natural demarcation between the jurisdiction of the Kingdom [of which it was not a part] and the other territories. That was where Felix lived as a young boy, surviving with his mother, who was now terribly sick, giving the impression that it would not be long before she kicks the bucket. She was barely in her early forties, so she was not dying of old age. He wondered what sort of sickness had taken hold of his mother, drastically reducing her from an actively
The young boy took a deep breath, knowing that there was no way he could say “no” to his mother's dying wish. “Yes, mother” he said to her. “I promise.” “Thank you, my son,” she said to him with a smile. “If not for the blood on my lips, I would have kissed you.” “You never stop saying weird things, do you, Mother?” asked Felix, and she laughed briefly, but it triggered a slight cough, one that almost made him regret saying that to her. Then she rested her back completely on the mat, with her eyes on the ceiling. “Though I may have instructed you to endeavor to meet them, I have a very strong feeling that they would meet you instead,” she said to him. “There hasn't been any attempt to visit us in over 15 years, Mother,” Felix said. “It's highly unlikely now.” “Stop being so pessimistic,” she said to him. “Says the old lady who wanted to kick the bucket not long ago,” he teased her with a slight chuckle. “Who are you calling old? I'm still in my forties, you know?” she said to h
Three years later... Back at Frostfall, Faora sensed a disturbance coming from the cave at the other side of the village. She came out of her house, looking around with a worried frown on her face, expecting to see obvious threats like she and her husband did the night that Dorcas and the other two dragon Slayers attacked. But there was nothing noteworthy going on outdoors. The weather was wonderful, and the mood was serene. That's why, just past midnight, everyone was still sound sleeping despite the strange feeling in her gut. The only strange thing was that she wasn't alone. At the far end if the village, right where the entrance was, beyond the barricade, she could see Nebula's blue eyes staring back at her. Though they couldn't communicate telepathically at that moment, Faora instinctively knew that they were sensing the same thing. There was trouble, and were sure of it. But Nebula wasn't getting the same sense of fear that Asherah was giving off. It was like Faora was
When Wayne returned with Natalie, Aurora, and Serena, the palace seemed elated. Richard was happy that Serena had come to be with him, and Cyrus's family had been reunited. Now that everyone of interest was present, it was time for the formal coronation to mark the young Cyrus as sovereign King, and his wife as ruling Queen. They divided the kingdom into new provinces, a few of which Natalie would rule over, leaving the majority for her husband. After signing several scrolls and getting married for the second time in line with Griffindale's royal tradition, the day of coronation finally came. It was a day like no other, but since Cyrus didn't want to lavish the Kingdom's wealth at a time when the city was still being rebuilt, he made it modest, only prioritizing hygiene, food, and wine. Decorations and other accessories were ruled out of the budget, still, it was a day to remember. That day, King Cyrus was formally coronated as King and was no longer acting as one. He reinstated
It wasn't too long afterward when the Warlord and his soldiers returned to the Midlands. By head count alone, they had not lost a single soldier. 3,000 went to battle, and 3,000 returned. There was nothing credible to report, as it was difficult to believe that 3,000 men went to war against a great and powerful city and none of them died. Worse yet, what credited them with such a flawless victory was the fact that they were assisted by two dragons that did most of the heavy lifting for them. Sure, there was an occult following of fable enthusiasts who believed in dragons like they were their bread and water, but reporting it in a battle account felt off. He was conflicted on whether or not he should account for that part of the battle. Still, it would be impossible to explain how no one died in such a war. Soon, he gave up on making up a story and decided to report on what truly happened, though he was afraid that the impulsive young Emperor would thin
About a week had passed when Wayne rode off on his dragon to bring Natalie to Griffindale. He too had decided to settle in the new land, and since he was going back briefly to get Cyrus's wife, he would use this opportunity to tell his family about his plans to relocate. Despite the ruins half of the city was in, he liked it at Griffindale. He felt at home there, as it was refreshing living somewhere where it wasn't snowing all the time. His dragon, Kyron, also seemed to love the climate at Griffindale, perhaps due to his natural affinities as a reptile. Wayne got in his dragon that morning and took off to Frostfall, it took several hours to get there despite how fast the Dragon flew, and he arrived by evening. Everyone was glad to see him, all asking questions that excited them. Children asked what it was like to live in a place where there was no ice and snow, others asked what other fruits in the area tasted like, and how easy it was to access them. Wayne tried to
It was almost noon when everyone had gotten out of their slumber, ready to take on the rest of the day. The Emperor's soldiers who at first tried to remain sober and disciplined at the start of the feast the previous night ended up being the most wasted. The generals and commanders assembled all their men, and they were all ready to leave. However, the 25 veteran soldiers were to stay behind to help Cyrus maintain order until the city could reestablish its military, as most of its fighting force had been eliminated during the war. The time for war and victory celebrations was over. Now was the time to rebuild. Cyrus and the Warlord, Jin Tsung bid each other farewell as they each went their separate ways, with the great Legionnaire taking his soldiers with him, along with all his captains and commanders. Frederick and the young men from the village were about to bid the acting King farewell also, but Cyrus was not going to allow it. He insisted that they stay behind with him to take
While Cyrus was still speaking, Kamala sent a message back to him. “I am with your mother”, she said. “Should I bring her to you?” “She's dying” Cyrus sent back. “Get her something to eat. Take her to Wayne. He must be outside the city. Let him see to it that she has everything she needs. I don't want to see her looking like that again.” “Understood” Kamala sent back. While he was still sending, he looked at his stepmother. And after communicating with Kamala, he picked up his sword and walked toward Regina. The Queen braced herself, lifting her son towards Cyrus, who raised a brow, wondering what this was all about. “I know this is too selfish of me to ask, but before you kill me, promise to take care of my son”, Regina said. “He has done nothing wrong. You can raise him without telling him anything about me, you can even tell him made-up things to make him grow up to hate me. Just give him a chance to live. I beg you.” Cyrus sighed, taking the son in his hand, but not for th
“My mother” Cyrus cried out towards her. “Where is she?” Then all of a sudden, the Queen's look of desperation turned to quick sadism. “What is so funny about what I asked?”, asked Cyrus. “I am not the same naive young man you sent on exile. I have killed a lot more people than you think to get to get here. So don't think I can't just run my sword through this child if I want to.” Then to make things worse, the Queen began to laugh. The laughter was so hysterical that she almost choked on her saliva, coughing profusely after a few cracks. She held on to her chest as she gave the last cough, struggling to regain her composure while looking back up at him. “WHERE IS MY MOTHER?!” Cyrus yelled out as loud as he could. “When my nightmares of you doing exactly this became worse, I knew you would soon come back for me. So I thought of the best collateral through which I could make you do as I want, which would be by putting your mother in misery, putting her close enough to the point o
She looked around, but it seemed all the Knights around her were dead. She was ready to meet her fate, but she didn't want any harm to come to her child. At a time when she was expected to cover up her shame with pride and charisma, she was not ashamed to show that she wanted to protect her child. The look on Cyrus's face didn't suggest he wanted to spare any of them. After all, if he truly came back to get the throne and her head, there would be no point in leaving any of them alive. Why would he let the son of the woman he killed remain alive only to enact revenge decades later? There was nothing to gain in keeping any of them alive, so she prepared her mind for the worst. Clutching onto the child in her arms, she prayed hard that their killer would make things quick and painless, especially for her child. But as she heard the footsteps approaching, her heart sank with fear. This was it. All her nightmares were coming true this very minute. Cyrus would take her head, just as h
While the fierce battle took place behind him, Cletus kept his sight on the higher provinces, particularly the Queen's residence, where his comrades were guarding Regina, the sovereign ruler. The next move the dragon made confirmed his suspicions that an attack on the Queen was imminent, as the beast landed on the pinnacle of the highest point of the castle, where the rider jumped off and went in through one of the large windows. “Cyrus”, Cletus said as he gestured for the horse to run even faster as it sprinted towards the palace. “I have to protect the Queen, no matter what.” ********* Cyrus got down from his dragon, swinging himself by the ropes connected to the dragon's saddle to break through the tainted glass of the nearest large window. As he got inside, he was assaulted by multiple guards who were alerted by the noise. He brought forth his self-defense skills and managed to take down the guards, hacking and