(Ateez) Captain Scar: The 7 Rings of the 7 Seas

Chapter 0: The Beginning of the End

Unknown Pov

Click. Click. Click.

"Stop, in the name of the Queen!" The guard called out as the trumpets sounded.

Two lines of guards on the left and the right whom had crossed their swords, held them straight up to reveal Queen Anika, the ruler of the Atlantic. Out of the 7 kingdoms that exist, she has the largest number of people and island.

"Finally, you are here. You are entirely a day late for the meeting. You didn't... bring anyone with you right?" She stands up gracefully as strands of her long silky blonde hair falls to the front of her face.

"No. I didn't" I replied with a hint of annoyance.

"Good. Come with me then"

I watch her as she begins to turn away from her golden throne, engraved with the internationally rare but very well-known flower—the Rose of Youth.

The Rose of Youth is known for giving the benefit of a prolonged life. It is taken by beating the plant into powder and mixing it with water. Once taken into the body, the evidence of aging rewinds itself as if the person was a young adult.

The 7 Queens including myself, have taken the Rose of Youth for only ourselves. For thousands of years, we have taken it and lived without sickness and death, but now ages a new problem.

There is but one rose left.

Thus, the Great War of Sorrows began a century ago and many have lost their lives. During the war, each Kingdom created a ring in hopes of defeating the other. Each Queen gave up something or someone that they loved the most to create the power within the ring that was given to them.

Because of the bloodshed, loss of gold, and constant chaos, Queen Anika decided to appoint a meeting with all the Kingdoms to propose a peace treaty yesterday.

Of course, I was hesitant to attend as I've sacrificed everything I had in order to win this war. The Kingdom of mine although is decent in size, it is the smallest in number of people and because of it, the only value I have in wealth is my home. My royal advisor advised that I could at least hear Anika out and see if there is a plan I could devise by gaining information from this meeting.

As I stepped forward, the guards crossed their swords once more.

"Guards! It is fine, she's with me. Now release your weapons" Anika commanded and immediately the guards straightened the swords, giving a clear pathway for me to walk through on the golden carpet.

Her kingdom consisted of colors of gold and white, representing royalty on account of her island being the largest. She had more of a gentle nature than any other kingdom and fought for peace rather than war. Except of course, when it came to defending her kingdom, she will always put the kingdom first.

Her heels clicked along the floor as I followed her up many stairways until we reached the highest tower.
The castle looked as young as she appeared to be, clean, vibrant, and elegant. As if there was never a war at all.

What a fake, I thought.

How could she pretend that everything was okay after all that had happened?

When we reached the last step of the stairway, Anika steps towards the engraved golden door and knocks.

The guard from behind the door opens as it creaks eerily. How ironic that when the door opened, the remaining five queens have a mask on each of their faces. Each color representing their kingdom. Purple stands for Arabian, black for the Black Sea, forest green for the Red Sea, royal blue for the North, and silver for the Baltic Sea. Beauty is a mask, but greed is beyond the veil.