Throne of Blood

Part I Chapter 5

Valrun breathed in and let the fresh sea air fill his lungs. He had once been a mighty king. Feared by every man and the greatest warrior in all of Valtoria. The king moved away from his window and walked over to the mirror leaning against the cold grey stone wall of his room. He gazed at his shirtless, scared shoulder and chest. Permanent reminders of the wars he had waged and the people he had slain. Valrun longed for the glorious days of old. While he did not miss the fighting he missed the grandeur that came with it. Parades of people filling the street praising his name. Songs sung by gorgeous woman cheering his victories. And yet he was satisfied with the life he had now because of Esmer.

Her beautiful olive skin a trademark of the desert kingdom of Kilaron brought warmth to every touch she blessed him with. The queen was a childhood friend of Valrun's as her father, King Emorn had sent her to learn at the capital Meloas and to strengthen his alliance with the high king. Her father desired for her to be a refined woman who was not confined to the merits of birthing children but could also provide wit and class to the man she would be betrothed to. Esmer and Valrun quickly became the best of friends and began a secret romance as they entered into adulthood. Each evening they would sneak around the castle grounds discovering newfound experiences bringing alive a fire and passion inside the two lovers. The couple was an adventurous pair leaping aboard ships, playing pranks on the castle cooks, and they even managed to sneak Valrun's fathers favorite knife and replace it with a stick. However, the romance would be short lived.

As the high king took in Esmer he began to love her as a father loves a daughter. He treated her as one of his own children and ensured that she was well taken care of. As the beautiful Esmer began to grown into womanhood, the romantic adventures of Valrun and Esmer sparked. Talern was furious to learn from castle servants that his son, the future high king, would engage in such scandalous activities in his castle. Talern's love for Esmer began to fuse into a burning hatred until one night a grounds servant caught the young lovers in the act once again and with swift haste reported it to the king. The high king would not tolerate this and the next morning Esmer was notified that her studies had been complete and she would be returning to Kilaron.

Eventually, it was arranged that Esmer would marry Prince Giliad of Petroas. The marriage was a strategic one; designed to further ally two neighboring sub kingdoms and provide a prosperous trade in and out the Gulf of Petroas. Petroas was situated along the eastern side of Valtoria just northwest of the gulf which then poured out and into the Eastern Sea. Kilaron was situated on the southern end of the bank of the gulf and brushed against the Kalun Desert. King Emorn longed to no longer be the forgotten desert people and desired to become an empire of his own. A marriage alliance with Petroas would give him the assistance he needed in taking on the western kingdoms. Esmer, however, would have none of it and exclaimed her love for Valrun to her father. King Emorn loved Esmer dearly but had been greatly burdened by her sudden and unexpected departure from the capital after so many peaceful years of her studying there. He eventually learned from his informants that his daughter and the rogue prince Valrun were fooling around leading to her expulsion. Emorn would not allow this troublemaking offspring of his cause anymore issues for him. In retaliation to her defiance he stripped his daughter and had her flogged publicly. This was a sign to the entire nation of Kilorn that not even the princess was above her duties to the king. The princess was thrown into her chambers and locked away not to be seen until the day she was to be given away to her bride.

Valrun winced at the pain of old and all that it took to return his love to him. He remembered the reports of the flogging and how it had turned his innards hot like melted iron. He faced to look at his sleeping wife. Her chest fell up and down in the rhythmic breathing of one in a deep slumber. Her chest rose and dipped like the rolling waves of the sea. The sun was beginning to bleed into the morning darkness as a new day sprung on Valtoria. Valrun waked over to his beloved queen and lovingly brushed his hand against her face. Esmer stirred at the touch of her husband and a faint smile began to stretch across her full lips.

"Is it really morning already?" mumbled Esmer.

Valrun chuckled, "Wake up my slothful beauty our kingdom needs some attending to."

"Oh please let the pregnant lady sleep," Esmer groaned, "after all I could be carrying your heir."

Grinning, Valrun climbed on top of the queen, feeling her slight bump press up against him. He moved his face inches away from hers, breathing in her scent. "Get up my queen the day awaits." Valrun whispered as he kissed her neck, causing a slight sigh to expel from Esmers lips as she felt the warmth of his lips and the scratch of his beard bring her body to life. 

Talern rolled off the queen with a quick movement and began getting ready for the day.

"Ugh you mess too much Valrun, it's not nice to play with me like that." Esmer bemoaned.

"Well, maybe you should get up when your told to," Valrun winked at the queen as he finished pulling on his boots.

The high king left the queen lying there unsatisfied with her husband's teasing and begrudgingly pulled herself out of bed. She put on her dress for the day, a beautiful hand woven light blue one with an exposed back. She had her maidservant brush her hair and put a single braid down her back with flowers of white and blue variations placed in the knotted strand.

Esmer left the room and walked towards the throne room where she knew her husband would be hearing matters of the court for the day. She hated the throne room and the death that encompassed it. She had to admit the blue marble of the room covered in all the murals was truly a sight to behold but she couldn't shake the uneasiness brought on by the damned throne. The countless lives and blood that had been poured out on that seat was almost too much to bear. She could not stand her husband keeping the tradition of executions being performed at the seat of power.

As Esmer entered the throne room she was greeted by lords and ladies of Valtoria. Many of whom had come to seek favors from the king. Esmer hated the spoiled men and woman who could care less for their people and instead poured their resources into establishing their legacy. "What good is a legacy if your people are poor and destitute," wondered the queen as she was taken back to the days of her time in Kilaron. Her fathers kingdom had been a rather poor one with no safe established trade route connecting to the west, Kilaron was forced to fend for itself and manage their own way to the Gold Road to transport their luxurious spices. Esmer remembered her father's tireless work at trying to secure a brighter future for his people only to be rejected by rich self absorbed people whose only intent was to secure their own fortune. The queen could remember when she was just a child, barely a woman and had been flogged for not performing her duty to her king and her people. She could envision the troops marching off from Kilaron to join with the troops of Petroas to fight against the western kings of Amfell and Seavern along with the high king of Meloas. Her fathers army had not been enough, however, and he had been taken captive by the Meloasian army. While her father had been cruel to her in his final days and had proved to be an adversary to every move she made as an adult, she still loved him dearly and fondly remembered her times in the desert with him. She could still see the day of his execution as though it had just happened moments ago. She had stood there stone faced devoid of all emotion while her father had his crimes read out to him. The man who had raised her was then walked over to the Blood Throne, head placed on the seat, and then she remembered nothing. Esmer in that moment passed out as her father became one amongst the number who had their lives ended on the kings seat. Esmer could still see Valrun, her husband, holding the sword, preparing to end her father, the traitors, life.