Withering Ambition

Smoldering Tensions

It had been weeks since the Wither King had attacked. The bodies of the fallen had only just begun to be cleaned up, and the population was cut at least in half. More than three quarters of the children of the kingdom had been left orphans, their parents giving their lives willingly to defend against Kaeman's onslaught.

As for Kaeman himself, he had been locked in a cage, protected by hundreds of magical barriers. He was thought to be dead after being pierced with a spear, but even so, his magic seemed to keep him alive after death. He had withered away into an abomination, his ribcage was the lowermost part of his body that had survived. His arms twisted upwards and grew two extra heads, and his body glowed with a steel blue aura. But he had been defeated. 

A new battle had emerged, however. Some civilians had agreed with Kaeman, that magic was not for humans to wield. They had seen the destruction that Kaeman had caused and feared that one day, another of his kind could be created from the Academy. They advocated for the dismantling of the libraries of spells, and for them to be thrown into the void. The only purpose that magic served, in their eyes, was for destruction.

Nonetheless, the loss of tens of thousands of soldiers was something that the kingdom's graveyards were not equipped to handle. Construction began on the Catacombs, a massive underground network containing 8 floors of tombs and mazes to honor the fallen. Most of the infrastructure was already there, from cave systems that were expanded upon to existing underground tunnels beneath the castle. 

It was truly a marvel of engineering, and it took 2 years to complete, even with the help of powerful mages to aid in digging. The bodies were buried, and healing began. 

Sarah, Kaeman's wife, was praised as a hero. She had distracted Kaeman long enough for him to be rendered unconscious by a stray soldier. She outwardly accepted this praise, but on the inside, she resented herself. She was the reason that her husband was mutilated in a cage on the edge of the island. She vowed to free him one day.

She had kept one secret. Before Kaeman had gone unconscious, he had pointed to one of the pages in his dark spellbook. She assumed this meant to take the page, as it was most likely important. She kept it in her nightstand, and every night before she went to bed, she would study it. 

What did it mean? Why did he want her to have it? Sarah had briefly studied magic at the Academy, but nothing of this level. She could barely even understand each rune individually, much less what they all did together. 

Truly, this was a time of tension. Though Kaeman had been defeated, his legacy would scar the land for centuries to come, his ideals living on through those who believed in him.

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