by Kran Sanon
“All those years ago, I told you that I believed in freedom. The freedom of my people, the freedom of your people and the freedom of all people in this world. I was the most powerful man in these realms, but I still chose to give away all that power so that the children of the next generation, your children do not have to bow to a man that they have never met. So that your people only follow whom they choose and not someone who they forced to follow. I also said the same thing at the meeting of kings. Exactly the same thing, yet you chose to follow King Morrigan. You chose to follow a man who stands for everything opposite of freedom. A man who only believes in tyranny! A man who would do anything to fulfil his selfish ambitions! He did not care about you. He would have sacrificed all of you if he saw fit. King Morrigan tried to manipulate you by making it look as if this was a battle of the North and South when in reality this was a battle of tyranny against freedom. That was the kind of world that King Morrigan and his wife Fihon tried to build and all of you were foolish enough to believe in him. Your kingdoms will be safe. I promise you that, but I cannot decide what I should do with you. I can no longer trust you. I cannot trust you to follow what my kingdom believes which is peace, and piece only. So what should I do with you?” asked Solas after delivering an authoritative message to all of the northern kings.
The King of Creagon Arthur Smith says that King Solas is right to call them foolish for believing in King Morrigan and asks for his forgiveness.
“Your highness, you are right about everything that you have said. You have always been right. We were all fooled by King Morrigan believing that we were fighting for our northern rights when in truth, it is people like you because of whom our northern kingdoms are free from tyranny. We ask for your forgiveness. Not for ourselves but for our armies. We ask for the forgiveness of our men as they were only following the orders of their blind kings. You can decide what you want to do with us and also choose whoever now rules all our kingdoms but at least spare the lives of every man and woman who fought on our sides” replied King Arthur Smith of Creagon.
Solas tells him that he respects his request and assures him that his people are safe.
“It is good to see that you are finally embracing the truth. I give my word that none of your people will be harmed but they just like you also need to believe in freedom rather than tyranny. If they agree then they will be free to return to their respective kingdoms” said Solas.
“As for who is going to rule all of your respective………………”
As King Solas was continuing to speak, he is interrupted by his wife Isabela who suspected that he was going to take away the crowns from the northern kings.
“My King has said that any one man should not rule the entire realms of men but every kingdom should have the right to choose their own king. He said that from the beginning and he said it now. Some people did not believe in it and tried to break down everything that we have built from the beginning. We have gone through a lot but are still standing here for we know that what we believe in is true. Therefore, we do not need to decide who rules your kingdoms. The only thing that mattered to us is that all of you should see the truth. Now you have embraced the truth so that decision is still yours to take. If you had not, then there would have been a problem, but that is not the case. So just like your men and women, all of you are free to go as well. For who now rules your respective kingdoms, that decision is also yours to decide. If we interfere unnecessarily then it will be against everything that we stand for” said Isabela.
She then looks at her husband and asks for his approval.
“Isn’t that the right thing to do, husband?” asked Isabela.
Solas remains silent for a moment, but everyone has their eyes fixed on him. He is neither used to nor likes people interrupting him or making decisions for him. He is the Arkhen King after all, the most powerful being in the world. This time though, he understands that Isabela’s decision is somewhat wiser than his as it could lead to a better alliance with all the northern kingdoms. So he eventually agrees with her decision being just more impressed by her again instead of being angry.
“The Queen is completely correct. All of you have agreed to believe in freedom rather than tyranny. So it should not be our decision to decide who rules your kingdoms as it would be against everything that we stand for. Those are your kingdom, so the decisions are also yours to take. Therefore, just like your men all of you are also free to go” said Solas in a perfect mood.
Before he lets them depart though, he warns them of the consequences if actions like that is repeated.
“There is something important which I should let all of you know as well before you depart. I will warn you rather that if any other tyrant leader emerges from the north, then this time I will be coming for him but not for a meeting. You know what I mean. Also, take heed that if the next time any of you support someone like Morrigan then I will not forgive you again. I might not even spare your life” said a very commanding King Solas.
“We would expect nothing less” replied the King of Creagon.
They then with the permission of King Solas, depart with their men and women to their respective northern kingdoms.
Now that the judgement is made for the rest of the northern kings, everyone’s focus turns towards what to do with Queen Fihon and the Vrailan Kingdom. She has committed a crime that has been strictly prohibited from the realms of men for a very long time, which is using magic. Many argue that it might not be safe to keep her in an ordinary prison.
“She is way too dangerous to be kept in prison. I am not suggesting that we kill her but we need something more powerful to stop her from using magic again” said Amos.
Solas tells him and everyone else that it will not be necessary to contain her since he is going to hand her over to the Elf Kingdom. Not everyone agrees though since Feyris, the wife of the Elf King Samven would never allow her daughter to go to prison. Even though Fihon was banished from the Elf Kingdom by her father, her mother strongly opposed it blindly believing in her daughter.
“I do not think that is the right thing to do” said Isabela.
“You know how blind her mother is. She will not let her daughter to be locked up in a prison of her own kingdom” she continues to say.
Solas tells her that nothing like that would happen because she was banished from the Elf Kingdom by her father, the Elf King himself.
“I trust Samven to honour his words. So what Feyris thinks will not matter because she does not take the decisions of the Elf Kingdom, Samven does. Besides, we know how dangerous she can be with magic. It is not right to keep her in our prisons” says Solas.
“Burn the witch!” Isabela jokingly replies with a smile.
Solas though, assures her and everyone that this is the right decision to take.
“I know you and everyone else here trusts me and I trust Samven. I know he will imprison her for he also knows her unforgivable crimes” Solas said.
“I should have killed her when I got the chance” Isabela again humorously said.
“Isabela!” said Solas with a half-smile.
“Trust me. Samven will not let her escape” continues Solas.
Now that everyone agrees with the King, they must decide who is going to rule Vrailan. Amos suggests that it should be Tenal Pentaghost, the son of Morrigan and Fihon.
“Since we all agreed that the other northern kingdoms should still have the right to decide who rules them, I think Vrailan should also keep that right. The son of Morrigan and Fihon, Tenal Pentaghost should become their next king. I know he is still very young, but it is his right to do so” Amos said.
“I completely agree and so should all of you. It is the boy’s right to become King” Solas told everyone.
Everyone else agrees as well, but Vrailan is not the only kingdom which has a new king. The Cerid Kingdom also has a new king now after the death of King Herman and his eldest son Stephen. His youngest son Markus Melton will now take up his father’s throne.
Now it is the time of night, and the place is filled with happy atmosphere. There is singing and dancing all around the place. The people of Selux and its allies are enjoying their hard-fought victory. Amos goes over to his brother and asks what he is going to do next.
“Enjoying the wine, brother?” Amos asked him first.
“Of course” replied Solas.
“Now that King Morrigan is dead, what will you do next? I know you still have to find out the truth about the events of Wovia. So where do we go from here?” asked Amos.
Solas informs him that King Morrigan had nothing to do about it and that the fear of the Necros returning might be true after all.
“King Morrigan was telling the truth all along. He really had nothing to do for what happened at Wovia. I am afraid that only increases the fear that the Necros have really returned. Personally, I still think that somebody was responsible for that, someone from our world but that belief is becoming faint” said Solas.
“So what will you do next?” Amos asks again.
“Now I think I have to do what said I would do a few days ago. I have to go to the ruins of the Necros Empire to find the truth” Solas replies him.
Amos disagrees with him, suggesting a different plan.
“I do not think that you should do that now. King Morrigan is dead, so I think we should inspect the northern kingdoms first” said Amos.
“This time I agree with Amos” said Bernard Carver.
“Last time King Morrigan was still alive that is why I opposed the decision to go north as it would have been very dangerous, but that is not the case now. You have seem to have gained the trust of the rest of the northern kings. That makes it a bit safe this time around. Also, you even said a few moments ago that you still believe that someone from our realms is responsible for the attack at Wovi, so it is better that we first try to find the truth from here before entering territories unknown” He continues to say.
“Fine, if both of you think that we should go north first then we will go north. I also want to know the full truth. We will depart for the north as soon as possible” said Solas.
“Where is Robin? Tell him to start the preparations” Solas continues to say.
“He is at his home. Well remember he lost his wife today so I think it is better that we give him some time off. Do not worry for I will take care of all his work before he returns. I will start the preparations right away” responded Bernard.
“Oh, no. Start the preparations from tomorrow. I totally forgot what happened to Robin’s wife. I know him. I know he will be here for work tomorrow but inform him that it is okay to take some time off” Solas tells Bernard.
Amos tells his brother that maybe he should go and visit him.
“Robin has been an excellent friend of yours as well as a really loyal servant to the throne. I think you should also visit him” Amos told him.
“I will visit him but tomorrow. Isabela and Leliana together with Emilia have gone to visit him and his son Phillip. So I will go in the morning” Solas replies.
While everyone else in the kingdom is enjoying the night at the palace front, Isabela, Leliana and Emilia have gone to meet Robin and his son Phillip. Phillip is a fourteen-year-old boy who has always envied the Alistair family because he is a very ambitious boy who does not like the idea of his parents working for someone else. He also did not like King Solas’ idea of giving every other kingdom the right to rule themselves. He wants his family to be the leader of the Selux Kingdom. Now that his mother is dead because she was protecting an Alistair, his hate for them has only increased.
Isabela and Emilia head over to him and offers their sympathies.
“Your mother was a fearless woman, son. She was also a very good friend who was always there when I needed her to be. So please accept our condolences as we also grieve for your loss” said Isabela.
“She was also a good friend of mine” Emilia adds.
“Just know that we will always be there for you” she continues to tell Phillip.
“She is right” said Isabela.
“You are never alone. No matter how isolated you feel, there is always someone that cares about you. So, if you ever need anything, just know that you can always come to us” she adds.
Leliana then comes over to him and offers him some flowers, but after taking it, he just stands up and goes to his room.
“Mommy, did I do something wrong?” Leliana asks her mother.
“No dear. He has just been through a lot. He just needs to spend some time alone” replied Isabela.
Robin then apologises to them for the behaviour of his son, but they say that there is no need for it.
“You do not need to apologise. He is going through a lot. Just make sure that you are there with him in these moments” Isabela told him.
Emilia then adds that he should also take heed of what they told to his son.
“Make sure that you come through this as well. If you also need anything, then we will be there for you. We are your friends. No matter what happens, friends will be there for you through thick and thin. So tell us if you need any help” said Emilia.
Isabela then tells him that there is also no need to come to work the next day or anytime soon. Robin refuses but she insists him to listen to her.
“You need some time off. You need this time for yourself and for your son. He needs you at such times. Also, since I know that you do not want to listen to me so I am not making a request but commanding you as the Queen to take some time off” Isabela said adamantly.
Robin eventually agrees so Isabela, Emilia and little Leliana tell him to take care of himself before departing for the palace.
Over at the palace, King Solas again climbs the stairs to the top of the palace entrance and then raises his right hand. Just like every other time, the place goes to absolute silence in an instance as the king begins his speech.
“I am sorry. I was wrong. I thought that I brought you peace after the meeting of the kings, but I did not. King Morrigan betrayed his own words and ambushed our kingdoms as I was blind for not expecting him to do something like that. It cost us many lives. Many good lives. I can only hope that they are at peace. But what I have learned from all these is that we should always anticipate for such things to happen. We should never let our guards down. No matter how much good there is in this world, there will always be room for evil. Evil will always rise. That is just the balance of this world. We will always need to prove ourselves, to prove that what we believe in is true. So enjoy this night. You have deserved it but always keep yourselves prepared for something like this to happen again. Always remember to be together because if we will fight together like we did today, then we will win again, and again. For today’s victory is not for me. It is not for you or anyone else. Today’s victory was for freedom, and freedom only” said Solas.
He then raises his glass of wine high and shouts “For freedom.”
Everyone present now begins the chant.
“For freedom.”
“For freedom.”
“For freedom.”
After the feast, Solas now makes his way towards his room, but Isabela is already there after returning from Robin’s house.
“Is he alright?” Solas asks her.
“He will be” she replies.
“You know how strong he is. I am sure that he will come through this, and so will his son. You should also go and see him. He needs your friendship as well during such a time” Isabela adds.
“I will do it first thing in the morning” replied Solas.
Isabela then tells him that she owes him an apology for what she did at the throne room earlier in the day.
“I owe you an apology. I interrupted you at the throne room and also decided without consulting you. I am sorry because I thought you were going to strip the kings of their titles but that would have been against everything that we stood for” she said.
Solas tells her that there is no need to apologise to
him.
“You do not need to say that. You are the Queen. You have the same rights as I do. Even though your decision was different than what my decision was going to be, it turned out to be better. People might see me as the balance between all realms of men, but you are the person where I get all my inspiration from. Whenever I am in a dilemma or confusion, it is your words which always helps me make the right decision” Solas tells her.
Isabela comes close and holds his hands.
“You have never said something like that to me before. Never. You really are a changed man. You told me that the Arkhenians healed you with magic. You sure they only used magic to heal you or wake you from the dead? I am not saying it is bad. It is good rather. You have changed to be better than what you were. You engage with everyone more. You use jokes more. You give Leliana more time. You show affection more, not to me for reasons unknown, but most importantly you respect women more. The only change I do not like is you do not try to get close to me. The secret you told me about, is that you are seeing another woman, isn’t it?” Isabela jokingly asks.
“Why would you say something like that? That is not true. I love you, and only you. The secret is something else but do not worry for I will tell you very soon” replied Solas.
Isabela tells him that she was only joking and that she also loves him as well as trusts him with her life. She then starts to kiss him as Solas takes a step backwards. She remembers what he told her the last time she got close to him so she backs off herself. She then turns around, but before she is about to go, Solas holds her hand. He then gets close to her and starts kissing her himself. After that, there is silence as both of them are staring at each other’s eyes. Then they both start kissing each other again but this time with all their desire. Solas then slowly removed her sheer gown as she felt the cool air against her skin, which was previously covered. He then stepped back and took off his own clothes and then tossed it aside. He leaned in to kiss her again before pushing her on the bed. A shiver went from Isabela’s heart to the warm spot between her legs. She did not understand why. She had done this with him before, but this time it felt different.
