Kings Game

Chapter 22 - History

(1)

"You really were here," said Roran.

"Did you think I was lying to you?" asked Sarah.

"I didn't think you would sit here waiting for me."

"I told you, I knew when you would be here so I showed up just before you did."

"And you're not hiding from me this time."

Sarah cocked her head, confused. "What do you mean?"

Roran raised his hand, revealing a bare wrist. "I left Karyn's charm at home. The fact that I can see you means you're not trying to hide from me anymore."

Sarah pursed her lips but didn't argue, instead she wandered to the edge of the graveyard where she could look out on King's City. It was early afternoon and the city was abuzz with activity. High overhead, the occasional ship could be seen descending from the clouds to dock along the mountainside.

"So, what inspired you to climb all the way back up here?"

"I had a few questions I thought you might be able to answer. Also, I wanted to see you again."

"Why?"

"Kell and Nul are trying to figure out how to defeat the Kings, and I thought you might have information that could help us."

"No, I mean, why did you want to see me again?"

"Because I like talking to you."

A bright flush started creeping up Sarah's face. She turned away and attempted to ignore it. "I don't see why you would come all the way up here just to talk to me."

"I like talking to you. You're interesting, you're fun to talk with, you seem to know everything. Even if I didn't have any questions, I'd still come up here to see you."

The flush worked its way past Sarah's neck and up to her ears. Roran grinned, enjoying the little game. Feeling ornery, he pushed further.

"Honestly, I've had a stressful week. Knowing I could come up here and see you helped me get through it."

Sarah pulled her hood over her head and folded her arms, refusing to so much as look at Roran. Satisfied, Roran relented from teasing her.

"Is it alright if I ask you some questions?"

"What kind of questions?" Sarah asked, still pouting.

"Historical questions mostly. You mentioned that you studied history and there are a lot of gaps in my knowledge of this city and how it was founded."

Relaxing a little, Sarah turned towards Roran. "Sure, I'd be happy to fill in the gaps. What would you like to know?"

"How did the King's become immortal?"

"Going straight for the hard questions I see. Well, they started by bonding to the mountains surrounding the city. They harnessed the soul of each mountain, sealing them inside their own bodies to use as a power source. It's not actually a soul, the life of a mountain is complex and multifaceted, but let's call it a soul for the sake of simplicity. Once they had the soul, or the crown as the people call it, they used it to remove themselves from the ebb and flow, effectively becoming immortal."

"The ebb and flow?" asked Roran.

"What you refer to as birth and death. It's the all encompassing cycle that governs life. The Kings—the original three—got their hands on focus markings that could remove them from the cycle. The markings require massive amounts of energy, so they harnessed the crowns to power them. Now they're immortal."