Chapter
II
King David
Grai stands silently on the docks of Hallow
Harbour
“Three ships? That’s a bit… excessive.” He mumbled. The largest of the three, which he assumes to be the flagship, continues its course, speeding ahead of the flanking ships and soon reaching the docks. King David examines the ship, impressed that a vessel of such size could float, let alone sail. The words Zhao’s Fury, were savagely carved into the side, and the King found himself smiling at such a simple and plain name. ‘A vessel as grandeur as this deserves a much more adequate name,’ he thinks to himself.
“Three ships? That’s a bit… excessive.” He mumbled. The largest of the three, which he assumes to be the flagship, continues its course, speeding ahead of the flanking ships and soon reaching the docks. King David examines the ship, impressed that a vessel of such size could float, let alone sail. The words Zhao’s Fury, were savagely carved into the side, and the King found himself smiling at such a simple and plain name. ‘A vessel as grandeur as this deserves a much more adequate name,’ he thinks to himself.
“Ahoy there! Where be the deckhands
to tie down our ship?” A voice calls out.
“Keep her straight, I will take
care of it.” The King replies, slightly annoyed that the voice had not addressed
him properly. He closes his eyes, and stretches his arms out from beneath his
cloak. He felt a familiar power begin to grow in his chest, and mentally
scanned the bottom of the sea floor for what was required. Slowly, several
heavy vines wrapped in the King’s magical grasp began to erupt from the water
and snake their way towards Zhao’s Fury.
He hears panicked voices on the ship and shouts,
“Do not fear, the vines mean you
no harm.” He felt the vines, now an extension of his own body, grip the ship in
several places and pulled it closer to the docks. Weaving his arms in delicate
circles, the vines curled around the fastenings of the dock and tied themselves
tight, securing the ship.
A large
board swings down from the ship and several figures, clad in silver and red
armour, saunter down the steps. The figure at the head of the group, whom
David assumed was the guest he had been awaiting, wore an extraordinary
elaborate suit of armour with a horned helmet and a flowing red cape. He
removes his helmet slowly and hands it off to one of his followers, revealing
a scarred face and long silver hair.
“Such magical talent has long
been lost to the race of man, there are very few in all the realms with mastery
of it such as you.” He speaks in a gritty voice, “I would assume then that we
are standing in the presence of King David II of Diruo?”
“You would assume correctly,
Admiral Zhao of the Silver Tide.” King David responds.
“HAHA!” He laughs heartily. “My
reputation precedes me, I see! I will admit my King; I did not expect a tour of
Diruo from the King himself. You do my men and I a great honour.”
“The honour is mine, Admiral. I
wish to show you much before your departure, and the daylight burns so quickly
in Diruo, shall we begin our tour?” King David questions.
“Please, my liege, my men and I
stand on Diruonian soil, lead the way.” He says, bowing low before King David.
“Excellent.” The King smirks,
turning on his heel. He leads Zhao and his four retainers to the small stable
that neighbours the fisheries, where several horses awaited them.
“I trust those vines of yours will
prevent my ship from drifting away, my King?” Zhao asks, his voice laced with
concern.
“Of course, Admiral, you have
nothing to fear. Your ship will be just as you left it when you return. As I
mentioned, night comes very quickly here, so I have secured the fleetest steeds
in the realm to transport us.” He said, throwing open the stable doors.
“Such magnificent beasts!” the
admiral gasped, “I have never seen horses of such magnificence or size! With
all due respect my King, what treasures must I offer you to obtain them?” He muses, rubbing the muzzle of the nearest horse.
David’s temper flares, “These horses were a gift from the
Beast King of Turpis and are some of my most prized possessions. Any treasure
that I consider worthy of my reliquary already belongs to me, Admiral. There is
little to no treasure you possess that I desire.”
“Of course my King, I meant no
offence.” Zhao bows deeply, betraying the annoyance that radiated from him.
The six men mounted their horses, and set off for Castle
Magi. It was an impressive sight, and it took King David’s breath away every
time he saw it. “The last time I visited Diruo, Castle Magi was only half the
size of what it is now! Your skill in magic is rivalled only by your vision as
a ruler! Your wisdom belies your years my King.” Zhao stated.
“Yes. My father was content with
its previous size, but I believe the home of a King should look like it. My
father was a beloved and benevolent King, but he lacked the vision of a greater
Diruo. Our people starved and suffered under the tyrannical laws and sanctions
of the Iron and Mountain Kings, and I could not stand idly by and watch my
Kingdom burn.” He told Zhao.
“The death of your father came at
an opportune time then,” Zhao mentioned suspiciously, “I still have trouble
believing that it was a Vindican assassin who set the castle ablaze.”
“As do I. As if their sanctions
and military middling was not enough, they had the audacity to take my father
from me. That was the final straw, Zhao. With the help of Turpis, I was able to
run the Vindican’s from my land and have claimed almost all the land that was
wrongfully stolen from my father’s hands.” He pauses. “Should you join my
alliance Zhao, we could take so much more. Not even the port cities of Niadus
would be safe.” King David continued.
“We shall see King David. The
Silver Tide mercenaries are not a charity organization.” Zhao murmurs, rubbing
his silver hair.
“Of course Zhao, and that is why
the first stop on our tour is the Reliquary of Diruo.” The men dismounted their
horses, and King David led them through the halls of Castle Magi until they
reached a set of massive doors, carefully sculpted out of pure gold.
“Gentlemen, behold the bounty of
a true king.” David said gleefully, swinging the doors open slowly. He heard
the jaws of the Silver Tide mercenaries drop at the sight of the treasures that
the room held. Mountains of gold coins stretched from the floor to the ceiling,
rich mahogany tables were set decorated with the finest golden cutlery and dishware,
even the weapons and armour were plated in solid gold. Zhao had sailed the seas
for years and had seen countless treasures, but nothing compared to the sea of
gold before his eyes.
“I…I-I’ve not seen so much gold
before in my life!” Zhao finally breathed, eyes darting around the room.
“There is more where this came
from Zhao, the royal coffers of Niadus and Vindico are bursting with countless
amounts of gold and precious jewels, all ripe for our taking.” King David’s
lips tugged into a smirk, wrapping his arm around the admiral.
“My King! You have the support of
the Silver Tide Mercenaries! Say the word, and we will burn your enemies to the
ground!” Zhao exclaimed, drawing his sword and kneeling before King David, his
men following suit.
“I am more than grateful to have
your support, Admiral. There is still much I have to show you, follow me.” King
David led the men from the treasury, sealing the door tightly behind him as
they left. It was when he heard the lock click, that he dispelled the illusion
that we had just shown to Zhao. In truth, the room had been empty with the
exception of a few vermin and cobwebs, but David had weaved a powerful illusion
spell to trick the Admiral into swearing allegiance to him, and it had worked flawlessly.
David led the Silver Tide mercenaries beyond the walls of
Castle Magi, and to the foot of a massive pit in the middle of the ground.
“What the hell is this?” Zhao questioned.
“This, Admiral, is the Pit.”
David wore a look of pride upon his darkened features. Of all the changes David
had made to Diruo, the Pit had been his personal favourite, and the primary
source for much of Diruo’s riches. The Pit dug hundreds of feet deep into the
earth, with shelves every five feet or so that were filled to the brim with
slaves swinging pickaxes into the ground, in search of gold and other precious
ores. A solid golden path snaked from where David and Zhao stood to every shelf
of the Pit and ended at a door on the lowest shelf. Slaves shuffled from shelf
to shelf, some hauling carts filled with ores, others carried dead or sleeping
slaves, the admiral could not tell which from where he stood. Taskmasters stood
watch over the slaves like birds of prey, dishing out punishment to any who
stopped working for even a moment. Zhao could see a group of fresh slaves being
led into the door at the bottom of the pit, but it was their pleas for mercy
and release that truly unnerved him.
“This is madness.” Zhao
whispered.
“Come; let us tour the pit shall
we?” The King beamed, stepping onto the golden path, unperturbed by the horrors
of the pit.
“Very well.” Zhao swallowed,
almost against his will.
“I learned when I was young, that
Diruo’s land is rich with gold. I would even say the amount of gold here rivals
that of Vindico or Niadus, both kingdoms famed for their ore’s. But Diruo
lacked the proper numbers to maintain a strong army and a strong work force. So
I thought to myself, ‘If I maintain a strong enough army, the work force will
basically appear out of thin air.’ So, with every town I captured, every piece
of land I conquered, if they could swing a pickaxe, they were put to work. Oh
look down there! A fresh batch of slaves being brought in for obedience
training!” The King exclaimed with excitement surging through him, pointing to
the group of people that Zhao had observed earlier.
“So many...” Zhao whispered,
feeling sick to his stomach. They continued their descent into the Pit, and
Zhao could see the slaves even clearer now. They were sickeningly skinny;
looking more like skeletons rather than humans. Each one wore a brass collar
around their neck. Several slaves moved past the King and Zhao, each with their
gaze to the ground, refusing to look at either of the men standing on the
golden path.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it? The
amount of work they get done is truly astonishing. Sometimes I worry I don’t
have enough taskmasters to keep them all in check but I have a sec-” The King
continued, before a clod of dirt that had hit his shoulder interrupted him.
“Who dares…” he whispered dangerously.
“DOWN WITH THE KING! DOWN WITH
THE KING!” A young man screamed from a shelf above them, “BROTHERS! SISTERS!
TAKE UP YOUR TOOLS OF SLAVERLY AND FIGHT BACK AGAISNT THIS TYRANT. NOW IS THE
HOUR OF FREEDOM!” The lone slave looked around, shocked that the slaves hadn’t
even stopped working to look at him. “WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? COME ON!” The
slave tried again, failing to rouse the spirits of his fellow slaves.
“Dog…” King David said, extending
his hand towards the slave and feeling the same power from the docks rise in
him. Vines erupted from the earth and pushed the slave off the shelf into the
air. The young man landed with a thud in front of David on the golden path.
“Insolent wretch! You dare stand
on the same ground as I!” David screamed.
The slave began to stand up, but more vines lashed out from the earth
and wrapped around the lone man, pushing him onto the dirt next to the golden
path and bringing him to his knees. “Pathetic insect! Your kind is not even
worthy of bowing before me!” He spat, snapping his fingers so that the slave
was pulled onto his stomach by the vines. The young man looked up at David,
eyes filled with rage, before more vines wrapped around his neck and pulled his
head down to the ground.
“Who gave you permission to gaze
upon me, worm?” He yelled. He turned to Zhao, “Would you like to see a
demonstration as to why my slaves are so obedient?”
Zhao shook his head, not wanting
to see anything else.
“The secret is in the collar.”
David began, ignoring the struggling slave and the disgusted Zhao, “It is by no
means a way of marking the slaves as my property, they are disgusting
creatures. If they were marked as belonging to me they would corrupt the beauty
of my other treasures, of Diruo. No no, inside the collars are four vials
filled with extremely virulent toxin, yet another gift from the Beast King. It
is venom from a species of snake native only to Turpis that has some
interesting effects on slaves. For example, I crack open the four vials with
the faintest extension of my magic, and the poison works its magic.”
Zhao heard four sharp cracks, and
the slaves struggling stopped. Just as soon as he stopped, the slave began to
screech louder than any animal Zhao had encountered. He covered his ears and
watched as the slave desperately tried to tear out his own throat, anything to
stop the burning from the snake venom. Zhao heard the hiss of steel on leather
and was shoved aside by one of his man, who quickly jabbed his sword into the
slave’s heart, ending his suffering.
King David frowned, “Shame. That
is a nice sword you have there, what will you use now that it has been
tainted?”
Zhao had had enough. No amount of
gold would satisfy him if this is what prisoners were subjected too. “King
David, I withdraw what I said previously. I will not tarnish the name of the
Silver Tide mercenaries by working for a madman such as you.”
“Now now, Zhao do not be too
hasty. This is the first time in months I’ve had to use a collar. It is a very
rare occurrence.” David smiled reassuringly.
“I do not care. The fact that you
subject people to such torture is inhumane!” Zhao retorted.
“But the gold Zhao. Think of the
plunder.” David replied, unmoved by Zhao’s outburst.
“Your blood gold is not worth the
price!” he said, fishing into his pocket to give the King back the gold he had
taken from the vault, but it did not lie where he had put it. That’s when
everything came together. “You tricked me! That was fool’s gold you showed us!
A mere illusion to buy my loyalty! I doubt your kingdom possess any riches of
any kind!”
“And I must say it worked
splendidly, up until now. And there is a royal reliquary.” David growled,
rubbing his temple, “but a mongrel such as yourself has no business laying your
filthy eyes upon it!”
“The other kingdoms will hear of
your madness, I will make sure of it!” Zhao yelled, turning away from the King
to storm off.
“Admiral, there is one more thing
I wish to show you. It is the crown jewel of Diruo, and I would be extremely
disappointed if you left without seeing it. You have traveled all this way,
after all.” The King called, weaving magic underneath his cloak to cloud Zhao’s
judgement.
“Very well, Mad King! But this
changes nothing! I only wish to see this ‘Crown Jewel’, so that when I return
to Diruo as a conqueror I know what to look for!”
King David led them away from the
Pit, and back into the walls of Castle Magi. He led them behind the keep into
an empty field filled with pumpkins. A heavy mist had fallen since their
departure from the pit, and masked just how massive the pumpkin patch was. A
murder of crows were flying overhead, cawing loudly and occasionally swooping
down to look for food.
“Dreadful birds, always trying to peck at the squashes.”
David grumbled, shaking his fist at the black birds.
“Is this what you have to show
me? A vegetable garden?” Zhao demanded angrily.
“Not just any vegetable Zhao,
they are quite special. You want to know my favourite thing about pumpkins?” He
crouched down and picked a pumpkin from the vine and began to carve a face into
it with the knife from his belt, “You can eat them raw, and bake them into
muffins, pie, or even a beverage if you are truly daring. But the best thing
about them, is that you can have fun with them.” He turned the pumpkin around,
showing Zhao the face he carved into it and tossing it to him “Looks remarkably
like you, don’t you think?”
“You truly are insane.” Zhao
murmured, catching the pumpkin, evidently unimpressed. King David only smiled,
and snapped his fingers. The pumpkin sprung to life in Zhao’s hands. Vines
erupted from the ground and wrapped themselves around Zhao, while several other
pumpkins sprung to life to deal with Zhao’s guards. One by one, the squashes
began to slowly devour the prey that they had caught in their vines.
“The other realms… will hear of
this…” Zhao moaned, before being fully consumed by the pumpkin.
“I wouldn’t count on that.” David
whispered, now standing alone in the pumpkin patch.
“Well, that was messy.” A voice
called from nowhere.
David jumped, drawing his sword
and turning to face the source of the voice. A figure seemed to materialize
from the air, a figure that David recognized. “Must you stalk in the shadows,
Kurtis?” He asked, sheathing his sword.
“Must you kill every person who
might join our alliance?” the King of Turpis smirked, now fully materialized.
“I must say, ever since you gifted me with this invisibility ring, sneaking
around has never been easier.”
“You always did prefer a more
‘behind the scenes’ approach to politics.” David responded, observing the five
engorged pumpkins that lay before him.
“A knife in the back speaks
volumes louder than any speech. But honestly David, did you really have to kill
the leader of the Silver Tide mercenaries? Honestly, he was just what we needed
to turn the tide of this war.” Kurtis snarled, clearly annoyed.
David snapped his fingers, and
the pumpkins began shake steadily. “Have your spies in the courts of the Iron
King or Mountain King reported back to you yet?” he questioned, ignoring Kurtis’
question. The Pumpkins continued to shake, and now began to contort violently
into all manner of shapes.
“They share the same court now,
of this I know. Safety in numbers I suppose, or they’re plotting.” He paused
before continuing. “However, I did witness an old knight and a young woman
arrived at Vindico castle earlier this week. I don’t know what her story is,
perhaps just some diplomat from a foreign land that one of the kings is trying
to shag to secure them reinforcements. What the hell are those things doing?”
Kurtis furrowed his brows, gesturing towards the pumpkins.
The pumpkins had all contorted
into shapes similar to that of a human, and were now standing up to face the
two Kings. The surface of the pumpkins continued to swim and change until five
Silver Tide mercenaries stood before them, one of whom was Admiral Zhao.
“Like I said, you can make a pumpkin look like
anything you want. These are golems, Kurtis, and by absorbing the minds of Zhao
and his men, I now essentially control the Silver Tide mercenaries. They will
walk, talk, and act just like the ones they are mimicking, but a controlled
entirely by my magic.” David grinned proudly, before gesturing in the direction
of Hallow Harbour
“I suppose the Vindican assassin
wasn’t actually Vindican, then?” Kurtis winked with a devilish smirk, already
well aware of the answer..
“You know as well as I do that
our fathers were weak, driving our Kingdoms into the ground. We just took what
was ours, at the most opportune time. It had to be done; my people could suffer
no longer.” He reassured not only his comrade, but himself.
“But… this woman you speak of… my
sources tell me that she is not just some whore sent by a foreign ruler to be
wedded. After all, you wouldn’t lock a woman you were attempting to court in
jail.” David noted, rubbing his head.
“And what exactly would you know
about courting women? Last I checked your bed was empty except for you.” Kurtis
jested.
David smiled, Kurtis had always
joked around with David, “And where then, is your Queen, oh King of Beasts?”
Kurtis shrugged, “she’s still at
the store waiting to be bought or plundered.”
The two Kings shared a laugh; it felt just as it had when
they were children.
“I suppose
we shall find out when I attend the banquet the Iron King is holding. But until
we know exactly who she is, she is no matter to us. Correct?” David said,
wrapping his cloak tightly around him as a cool breeze went through the pumpkin
patch.
“If you say so. However, if she
turns out to be a nobody, I call dibs.” Kurtis responded curtly, following his
friend back to Castle Magi.
“We shall see. If my sources are
true, I hear she is quite the treasure. And as you know, Kurtis, any treasure
that is worthwhile belongs to me.” David sent him a smirk.
“Greedy, greedy, greedy.” Kurtis murmured, shaking his head.
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