Guardian of The Rose

The Beginning of The End

(POV: King Bundar Gaines of Velyra)

"Your Majesty, I understand that my stature in politics is no where near what it use to be, but you must understand! Going to war with the Wayan Empire is a direct interference with the peace our ancestors fought for centuries ago! Your grandfather took great pride in the kingdom he led. He and the Rose Temple worked hand in hand with the Rose Maiden and our Bahiri creators! You must rethink this...!"

In the marble halls of Velyra Castle, two men walked. One was dressed in long red garments like a toga, tied together with a few knots and a belt, while the other wore expensive fabrics beneath a set of jewel crested armor. The one in the toga was Shough Freid Guld, Rose Abbot for the Rose Maiden temple. Abbot Guld was following the other, using words and religious reasoning to change the armored man's mind. The one wearing armor was Bundar Issac Leigh Gaines, King of Velyra.

"Abbot Guld, while your Bahiri gods have deserted its children, I am trying to protect my people. I took an oath seven years ago. Unlike your Rose Maiden, I will not abandon my people." With a sharp tongue, Bundar expressed his atheism and displayed a loyalty to his kingdom. While his words weren't entirely true, they also weren't entirely false. Even Abbot Guld found King Bundar's stubbornness to be a sharp sword.

"And what if something happens while you're gone?! It's one thing to send Marshal Renalds or even Marshal Shay! They may be from an older generation but their expertise in combat far exceeds any sort of requirements. Why must you also go Your Majesty?!" Abbot Guld quickened the pace of his feet to walk side by side with Bundar. He even tried to stay one step ahead of Bundar so he could make eye contact with his King.

It was Bundar who stopped in the hall first. While his body was facing the direction they were going, his head twisted to look at Abbot Guld directly. His sharp gaze cut through Abbot Guld. Such a stare could cause any warrior to collapse on the spot. But, Abbot Guld was more captivated by the color of his eyes. They held a radiant hue of the sky and of water,  like ice yet hot like fire. Abbot Guld found a lump in the back of his throat as he quickly bowed.

"I will hear not another word of this. You think me naive and yet I was the one who followed King Issac II's will the closest. The Rose Temple is a facade for those who can't face reality. Maybe if the heads of those Velyrian warriors had landed on your door step, you'd find it within yourself to toss away your foolish values."

King Bundar had ascended the throne at the ripe arrival of adulthood. It was a week before his 18th birthday and suddenly he had been gifted a Kingdom. While Bundar did not get the title of King until his father's passing, he had taken hold of the reigns before his crowning. Bundar couldn't let his bed ridden father stress himself with the matters of state. What else was there to do than to take on the burden himself?

Bundar left Abbot Guld in that hall with those final words. He did not enjoy belittling those with good intentions; however, it was time for the kingdom to grow up. To Bundar, the Rose Maiden was a children's tale used to hold down crime with the promise of fortune. How ridiculous. It took bribery and silent threats to keep a kingdom happy.
———
After the declaration of war, King Bundar and the Velyra Kingdom worked day and night to prepare themselves for the hardships ahead. Bundar had called a meeting with the Velyra War Council and a plan of action had been settled through discussion. The plan was as follows:

To the north of the Wayan Empire was a forest known as the Shona Forest. The Wayan Empire's biggest source of gold came from the Coil River that ran through Shona. This information was the easiest to obtain but it wasn't enough information to take down an Empire. With this in mind, the Velyrian Army would march up the Shandra Mountains. At the peak of the Shandra Mountains, a small group of scouts would be deployed to report enemy movements. Specifically, the scouts would detail a safe location to set up camp in enemy territory before moving onto the next phase.