Ascendance // a DreamNotFound fanfiction WITH AN UNSATISFYING ENDING

Chapter 3: First Sight

**Please keep in mind, this story will contain graphic depictions of mature themes, most notably depictions of prejudice and death. Reader discretion is advised.**

[3413 words]

~Dream, farm worker of Orlan~

Thousands of kingdom residents crowded into the central marketplace between the communities of Hassee and Mingham to hear the royal family's impromptu speech. Shopkeepers, artisans, merchants, traders, and businesspeople appeared unruffled compared to the daunted Orlanian farm workers and food producers shuffling among them.

After our duo consumed the two handfuls of dried fruit my friend brought in his bag for breakfast, Sapnap strode alongside me. The nobleman's proud stance reflected a silent challenge. Despite my height, he acted as my unofficial protector as middle- and upper-class citizens snuck suspicious glances at me, an outsider in their financially stable midst. My childhood friend met their gazes with cold warning, but his expression brightened whenever I nudged him playfully.

The royal castle, once distant upon the morning horizon, loomed before us as the midday sun hovered in the sky. Barely remembering to watch where I stepped along the busy cobblestone streets of the central Hassean marketplace, I gawked at the structure's imposing black stone walls, which towered above heads and rooftops. The castle's back half lay out of view, nestled into the mountainous spruce forests blanketing the Yukay Mountains. Curling spires and towers peaked above the castle's outer walls.

Sapnap and I slowed as we reached a crowd of hundreds mingling in the open plaza beneath where the Royal Balcony emerged from halfway up the castle walls. Along the crowd's fringes, upper levels of neighboring buildings sheltered noble families gathered in anticipation. Lifting a hand to shield my eyes from the sun, I observed the Tejan nobles' chins upturned in a display of superiority, indifferent to the anxious crowds below.

Overlooking the plaza, the Royal Balcony was currently bare. Despite the class diversity of the civilians present, originating from every kingdom community from Teja to Orlan, the air reeked of tension. Until the royal family announced their plans for mitigating the inevitable food shortage after the locust swarm, divisions between the Florean Kingdom's bitter residents would remain staunchly in place.

"They better decide how food distribution is going to work," Sapnap muttered. "The markets have practically been ransacked." His ominous observation noticed the prominent lack of food in the cafes, bakeries, fruit stands, farmer's markets, and livestock pens after panicked crowds bought - or unfortunately, stole - all available products in the hours since the locust swarm decimated the crop lands. Food which was plentiful yesterday would be scarce from today onwards.

A blaring horn trumpeted, splitting the crowd's terse murmuring and interrupting my dark thoughts. The horn's owner, a curly-haired royal messenger named Jacob, lowered the instrument to announce,

"Residents of the Kingdom of Flor! Your righteous Royal Family arrives with a proclamation!"

As the announcer's voice carried through the air, expectant silence hushed the crowd. Momentarily, the only sounds reaching my ears were the gentle rustlings of leaves on nearby trees and of the ivy climbing the castle's black stone walls.

Receding from the balcony's edge, the royal messenger Jacob nodded subtly to the castle's Gate Guards below, who protected the closed gates from any rebellious citizens who might attempt to enter the castle's outer walls. Then, the messenger stepped to the side, horn in hand as three new figures emerged upon the terrace.

"Your Royal Highness, King Richard!"

A tall, broad man stood in the middle, his hard eyes narrowed and facial hair meticulously styled. The king's red robe flowed in the gentle breeze while a golden crowd glinted upon his head. Bejeweled and arrogant, the king stood as a blatant figurehead of masculine authority and prestigious wealth.