“You are not like your relatives. For so long, the Sainos dynasty has been hated by their own people. Also, I hope you don’t mind if I ask, how are they accepting the new ideas?” Auron spoke but did not take his eyes away from the crowd.
“Not very well, unfortunately. They will try to stop it so that the Sainos can have full control over the country, but I will not allow them. I am tired of how my family treats the people,” Darmang said, solemnly. He was wise and only thirty-three years old, the same age as Auron. They were both determined to change the country. They were both fathers, husbands, and visionaries.
A knight in gold and silver armor came and bowed to the king. “Your majesty, it is time,” he said.
“Thank you,” Darmang replied.
The knight went back to his position and Auron stepped forward to face the crowd. Speaking in front of a large audience was a talent of his. Auron once had his own village, but it was burned down five years ago by a Sainos king. Now, he is the right hand of the new king, and although he is a foreigner, people respected him. He was once a notorious mercenary, killing for gold with his band. He was known as the flaming mercenary for his crimson hair, but now, he is part of the revolution that was changing Burnahdujf.
He gazed at the crowd that stood between the rows of trees on the edge of the cobbled road. He took a moment to romanticize the view of Barinos, the capital city, and old memories flashed before his eyes. Five years ago, I ended my days of spilling blood for money, and now, I am standing here, leading the people of this country into a better world.
Before he spoke, he felt something warm on his chest. He placed his hand on the collar of his armor to clutch his necklace. “People of Burnahdujf, we have gathered here today to celebrate the changes of this country. We have gathered here today because one man decided to end an old tradition.” Auron looked over his shoulder at Darmang.
The king nodded.
“We have been given an opportunity unlike that of any country that I have traveled to. The people will now have the power to choose their king.”
The crowd thundered. They raised their fist, shouting “North Empire! North Empire!” Auron felt their pride for their country for the first time in more than a decade. They once cowered before their king, but now, with the new freedom, they raised their fists and shouted. The saw their new king as family, rather than a ruler to whom they had to surrender.
“The four brothers, who founded this country, wanted it to be the richest and most powerful. How can we become that country if we are always at war with our king? If the people are never given opportunities and freedom, then they are no different than slaves. It is time for a change. From now on, the people will be part of the growth of this country. Although the Sainos have been the rulers for so long, Darmang has agreed that this must change. People of Burnahdujf, it is time that we crown the new king who will lead us to prosperity, abundance, freedom, and a rich country with the best-known economy. In the pages of our history, his majesty, Darmang Sainos, will forever be remembered as the first king chosen by the people.”
The crowd pumped their fists, yelling the king’s name. “Darmang Sainos! Darmang Sainos!”
Auron felt his necklace becoming warmer inside his armor. It was now vibrating. Auron wanted to pull the necklace from inside his armor and examine it, but he had to wait until the crowning was over. Ignoring his necklace, he walked back to the right side of the throne.
An elder in blue robes paced towards the king. The crowd waited silently. The elder placed the crown on the king’s head, and Darmang fixed his black hair behind his ears. The crowd thundered, and claps echoed throughout the fields of the castle. Once again, the drums beat and the trumpeters sounded their instruments. People threw flowers to the stage. Women blew kisses at their handsome king. Dancers ruffled their dresses and spun, releasing petals of all colors.
As Darmang danced on the throne, Auron left the stage. Down a pair of stairs he went, and as he scampered, a friend clutched his arm and asked, “Where are you going? Aren’t you going to stay and enjoy the party?”
“Oseth,” Auron said, surprised. Oseth was a member of Auron’s old band of mercenaries, but now, the boy worked in the castle training men in swordplay. “Come with me,” Auron beckoned and Oseth followed. They went to the back of the stage and entered a tent. As they entered through the curtains, they saw three of their friends gambling with dice and silver coins. To the left, a big burly man with a blocky head and thick eyebrows shook the dice inside a wooden cup. To the right, a slender woman with short hair like a man, drank ale from a silver cup. In the middle, a man as short as a Dwarf played with his daggers, spinning and swirling them around.
“Edd, Genie, and Saron. I think we have trouble,” Auron said. He closed the curtains of the tent behind him and sat on the floor with his friends.
“Why are you three in here gambling when there is an event outside?” Oseth asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I don’t like big crowds,” Edd said. “I am just enjoying the ale and the food. All this noise for one man is unnecessary.”
“I agree,” Genie added. “I understand the meaning behind the celebration, but I am just not comfortable being around this many people. It makes me anxious. I swear, if someone pushes me in public again without apologizing, I am going to shank them with my spear. I want to go home to our new village. I want to go back to El Nido. What are we doing here, Auron?”
“I promised Darmang that I would support him,” Auron answered, “I need all of you to be here in case anything happens on the crowning day. On days like this, a king needs as much protection as possible.”
“What for? I thought everyone loved him?” Saron said, picking his nose and flicking a booger.
“When changes happen, there will always be someone to try to prevent those changes,” Auron explained. He pulled his necklace out from his armor. The red stone flickered and vibrated in Auron’s hands.
“By the dragon gods. Don’t tell me that’s…” Oseth swallowed his last words.
“Yes, it is a piece of the Crimson Cosmo Jewel,” Auron whispered. They all stared at it with such awe.
“You never told us about it. What is it?” Edd asked, scratching his beard.
“Remember five years ago when King Richard sent me back to the island of my origin?” Auron brought back memories.
“Yes, I remember,” Genie snarled. “He sent us to war, hoping we would die, and he thought you murdered his son. He burned down our village and slaughtered many of our people. How could I forget?”
“Listen to me,” Auron said. “That white-masked mage was looking for the red jewel. Although she managed to get away with the jewel, I found a fragment of it and kept it. It is a tiny piece, but it holds a tremendous amount of fire maju. It was reacting like this just yesterday in El Nido, and now, it is doing it again.”
“So what do you think it means?” Saron asked.
“I believe it means the Crimson Cosmo Jewel is nearby.” Auron said, “It means someone has the jewel, and they are very close.”
“You mean…That masked mage in black,” Genie whispered.
“Perhaps,” Auron said, unsure.
The four of them remained quiet for a moment. As the silence brought back memories, abruptly, they heard people shrieking and screaming outside. They stared at each other and nodded. They had known each other for a decade. Since they had spilled blood together and had gone on so many missions and adventures, they knew each other’s cues. They ran out of the tent, to the front of the stage, and moved through the crowd.
People ran and screamed like a herd of animals running from danger, as if they had seen a monster. For Auron, it was nostalgia. He felt that moment again. That moment when he first saw that fiend, that evil woman in black. As he ran through the crowd drawing his falchion sword, he could feel her presence again.
As the crowd fled in fear, the area cleared.
There she stood in the center of the crowd as the people ran away
in panic. A fiend of a woman. A white mask covered her face, just like last time, but now, it had horns on its forehead and still had that cracked opening for the left eye. She was clad in scaly black leather skintights. Her cloak hid most of her body. Next to her stood a creature as black as ink. A creature of sharp fangs, no eyes, spikes on its back like daggers. It was like a dog from the Necrovania. Five feet tall and burly, it tore the cobbled ground with its claws. Auron had never seen such a creature, but he was not afraid. He remained calm and leered his enemy. He fought many creatures, warriors, and mages. He knew that this was just another mindless beast.
“Ember!” he yelled.
“We meet again, Amaranth,” she said and laughed. “My favorite red-head. It’s been five years since we last clashed. Oh, dragon gods, how I miss those battles we had.”
“You fiend. What do you want?” Auron rasped. He clutched the hilt of his falchion with anger. He was furious and feared that Ember would hurt anyone in the crowd. People stared at him and Ember from a distance, unsure of what to do.
“Sir Auron!” he heard Genie behind him. He glanced back and saw his friends with weapons at hand. Saron with a bow and arrow. Genie with her spear. Edd with a battle axe, and Oseth with his twin swords.
“Genie and Edd. Get the king to a safe place,” he commanded. “Saron and Oseth, stay here with me.”
“What is that thing?” Oseth asked, grimacing at the large black creature that growled at them.
“I see you still have your band of mercenaries,” Ember said.
“I am no longer a mercenary,” he responded. “What are you doing here and what do you want? If it’s the king you are after, I won’t let you. I won’t allow you to rid this country of a great leader.”
Ember burst into a laugh that echoed inside her mask. “As if I care about this pathetic country and their history filled with shite. I am here because this precious creature from Necrovania has led me here. It is telling me that there is an item that contains cosmo. I am sure you are familiar with it, as we once fought for it.” Ember spread her cloak. Lifting her right hand with a cloud of black smoke, the jewel appeared on the palm of her hands. It was like frozen fire, crimson, spiky, and shined a red light. One of its spikes was broken.
Looking at the jewel, Auron knew what Ember wanted. It was hanging from his neck. Of course, I knew this day would come, but I didn’t know when. It had to happen on the day of the new king.
“You have a fragment of the Crimson Cosmo Jewel, don’t you, Auron?” Ember chuckled and petted her creature.
“It took you five years to find out?” Auron mocked.
“I’ve been busy,” Ember answered.
“Doing what? Burning down villages and towns? Slaying kings of another country?”
“Aren’t you a bitter one?” Ember laughed. “Don’t worry. There will be no harm done today as long as you hand over that red stone that hangs from your neck.”
They stared at each other. Oseth and Saron stayed behind Auron, waiting for a command. “Just say the words, Auron, and we will hammer her,” Oseth said, eager to get his revenge on the person responsible for burning down their home five years ago. “I now have the opportunity to avenge my fallen friends.”
Auron looked back to make sure that Genie and Edd had taken the king to safety. He saw Genie pulling on the robes of the king, but Darmang stood on the stage, staring at Ember.
“Auron, who is this masked fiend?” Darmang shouted.
“Darmang, run!” Auron yelled at the king.
“Give me the fragment of the jewel, Auron, and I will leave,” Ember bargained. “That is all I came here for, red-head. Unless you prefer I burn these people to ashes.”
Auron pondered for a moment. He refused to give her the fragment, yet he would be putting everyone in danger. Why don’t they flee? What are they still doing here?
“You there!” Darmang approached Ember fearlessly.
“Darmang! Get out of here; you don’t know what you are up against,” Auron warned, but the king stood fearless.
Darmang carried no weapon, only his pride. In his red and golden robes, he stood at a distance from Ember.
“How dare you interrupt my celebration? Who are you?” Darmang asked.
Auron was proud to be working alongside such a brave king, but he knew that Ember could kill him in an instant.
“Ah, you are a valiant one,” Ember complemented. “Unlike the previous king, you are the first to face me without fear. Let me show you what happens to those who oppose me.” Ember launched a jet of flames like a dragon breathing fire.
“No!” Auron yelled. He thought Darmang would burn, but when he looked again, there was a crystal shield protecting the king from head to toe. The sunlight revealed its shape. It was like a wall made of glass. Immediately, he knew that Genie had cast a protection spell. She had studied illumancy, divine magic.
Thank you, Genie, Auron thought sighed heavily.
“To Necrovania with all of you!” Ember yelled. From her cloak, she pulled a cylindrical item with a silver top and base. A claw floated inside dark liquid. “Relic of Odiamus. Summon your fiends,” the masked woman chanted.
The relic released black clouds as if it were giving birth to darkness. The dark clouds flew around the stage of the king like ghosts. Those clouds then took on a physical form and morphed into beasts of fangs and claws with thick, hard skin and spikes on their backs like daggers. They were five feet tall and burly. They were as black as ink and eyeless. Dogs of Necrovania under Ember’s command. “Kill them all,” she rasped.
The fiends barked like wolves and attacked the people. One of them pounced at Auron, but he quickly clapped his hands together and pointed two fingers at the beast. “Trondass suz!” he yelled. A beam of lightning shot from his fingers and shocked the black beast. The fiend fell and perished to ashes.
Auron ran towards Ember. From her cloak, she pulled two thin swords of black steel, and they clashed weapons. Although Auron only wielded one sword, he was faster, while she danced with her twin blades. She set them on fire and spun them like windmills. Auron enchanted his sword with lightning. Sparks flew every time their blades collided, and a tree nearby caught fire.
“I should have killed you when I had the chance five years ago, Ember,” Auron said and parried her swords.
“All I want is the fragment of the jewel. Give it to me, Auron.”
“Never!” Auron yelled, “I promised, Akielas. He told me that one day, you will return for the fragment. Only the dragon gods know what you will do with the power of the jewel. I will do everything in my power to make sure you never cause havoc in this country or anywhere else.”
Ember’s blade pierced Auron’s armor. He showed no sign of pain. Ember pulled her blade and saw no blood.
“Rock skin. A little trick of terramancy.” Auron smirked.
They stepped back from each other for a moment. His friends, Saron and Oseth, had killed two fiends. Genie was protecting King Darmang, yet the king knew pyromancy and was able to defend himself. Some of the people from the parade were killed by the beasts. Much blood spilled, and there were limbs on the cobbled path. He caught sight of a beast biting off the arm of a drummer from the parade. Oseth quickly ran towards the fiend and cleaved its head.
Only three beasts remained. Edd and Saron were fighting the fiends with earth and air magic.
“All this could have been prevented if you would have just given me the fragment,” Ember said, spinning her black blades like windmills.
A fiend growled from behind Auron. He spun and drove his falchion into the lower jaw and through its cranium. He pulled his sword and then cleaved the beast’s head. The fiend’s body perished to ashes. Auron felt Ember’s presence behind him. He spun around, only to find her disappearing with black smoke, like she once did five years ago. She reappeared behind him, once more.
“Umbra phantos,” she hissed behind him. She swung her hand, and like a ghost, it ran through him. He felt her pulling
his necklace off his neck. He knew she was using shadomancy. Auron was familiar with most of her spells. He knew she would disappear and escape with his necklace. He refused to give her the smallest chance and so he sheathed his sword and used electromancy.
“Trondass chain,” he shouted, and before Ember could disappear with a cloud of smoke, Auron caught her with his lightning chain. An electric string from his fingers attached to her body. Ember was paralyzed and could not move. She was at the mercy of Auron’s lightning spell.
“Don’t you ever learn? It brings back memories, doesn’t it?” he sneered then pushed her. Ember fell to the ground, and Auron stomped on her mask.
Abruptly, another black fiend pounced at him. His hands were busy and could not reach for his sword, so he quickly released Ember from his spell. Auron did not draw his falchion in time when the fiend jumped on him and dug its claws into his armor. It fell on top of him and held him down with its claws, but his armor saved him. As he tried to keep its mouth away with his left hand, Auron drew his falchion with his right hand and drove the blade into the head of the fiend. It yowled and flailed its head.
Edd ran towards the large fiend. The burly man bashed into the black creature and knocked it off Auron. Edd helped him get to his feet. When they turned to face the beast, Genie plunged her spear into the fiend’s cranium. The fiend collapsed and perished into ashes.
Auron paced towards Ember, who was still paralyzed from his electromancy. He took the necklace from her hand and then tried to search her for the Crimson Cosmo Jewel. As she lay on the ground, barely able to move, she managed to thrust her palm at Auron. He was tossed back by an unknown force. He crashed on the stage and landed on the golden throne. He fell through the stage with the throne, shattering wood.
Auron stood up, covered in dust and sweat. His chest plate had three holes from the claws of the fiend. For a moment, he almost lost his necklace. He feared what Ember would do with the jewel. He saw her standing up and raising her relic over her head. She uses that thing to summon those fiends, Auron thought, and he was right. The two fiends that remained shifted into black clouds and returned to the relic.
Sin of Mages: An Epic Fantasy Series (Rift of Chaos Book 1) Page 3
