Story of Kings

Prologue

"These demigods cannot be left to do as they please!" King Dravonious roared, spittle spraying from his mouth, an accumulation forming on his beard. "Hiding in a hole like weak cowards will see us doomed! Rho has entrusted his gift to me, I shall not waste it!"

King Dravoniuos stabbed his sword, Divine Intervention into his fallen foe only to pull it out with a sickening shlick and stab again and again, a twisted laughter escaping the human lord while his still throne room looked on in silence. The increasingly mutilated corpse on the ground belonged to one of his now former barons, his crime, publicly disagreeing with his king.

"I am one of the chosen of the gods!" King Dravonious cried as he continued to stab the corpse, the wrathful fire of the divine blade filling the room with the smell of burning human meat. "I was given this holy blade by Rho himself to carry on his war and I will not stop now because you are weak!"

Over and over again the King stabbed the corpse, the onlookers of his court wisely staying silent. No normal man could match one who wielded a divine artifact and Dravonoius was unhinged. The eyes of his courtroom glancing between themselves, all asking the same silent question. No one moved, though. No one did anything. No one had an answer to that unasked question.

The throne room endured minutes of the insane king stabbing the corpse, the smell of burning flesh until a choked sob rang out over the sound of metal in flesh.

The mad king whipped his attention up. "Who was that?" He barked to his assembled court, drawing the blade out of the burnt corpse and swinging it wildly around. "Who dares cries at justice carried out?!? Was it you?!" He yelled, pointing Divine Intervention at a nearby member of his court.

Eyes cast down, the man shook his head and took a small step back. "No, my liege," he said in a calm voice.

"You?!" He barked at the woman next to the man.

In similar fashion, she took a step back with a shake of her head. "Not I, my lord," she said, devoid of emotion.

The king then stood to his full height, towering over all others in the room. He carefully scanned the face of each member in his court, taking his time and he slowly walked a tight circle around the body. "You," he said, pointing his searing blade at a small girl, tearing still fresh on her face.

"N-no, my lord," the child stammered out through strangled fear, gripping tight the dress of her mother beside her.

"You dare lie to your king?" Dravonious hissed. "You break at the sight of justice and now you attempt to deceive your king? Can you even conceive your sins?"

"No, my lord, she cannot," the girl's mother said. "Plea-" The woman was suddenly cut short when Divine Intervention cleaved her in two, from shoulder to hip.

"Your king did not address you!" Dravonious shouted over the now screaming child before raising his burning blade into the air. "Now be cleansed of your sins by the wrath of Rho!"

The fiery blade swung down in a murderous arc but was suddenly halted inches from the small girl's head, a blackened hand fading to chalky pale skin sparing her from the inferno. The king gaped at the boy behind the girl, not much taller with sopping wet hair that was plastered down his forehead, water dripping off the sleeves of his front lace, white linen shirt. His lips and ears were blue, and his sunken, brown eyes were locked onto the king.

"You- you're dead," King Dravonious said, his voice in a hoarse whisper.

"You have something to learn about murdering a child in a freshwater spring, brother," the child said with a tone just as cold as his appearance. The child then swapped his attention to the blade and immediately the fires raging down the weapon began to quell.