Nobody wins. (Hermitcraft x life series members au)

State of Affairs

The sun sets as the bright, yellow winged man barges into the blood-stained throne room, the room in which his king sits with one of his dead men at his feet and an enraged look plastered on his face, sending a slight shock straight down Jimmy's spine, as he's not used to seeing his king so serious.

"I-uh, we found Martyn, he's alive." He stutters out as Joel looks up to him with his face changing to one of relief.

"That's good. Bring him to me then." Joel stands up, placing his glass down and walking towards where Jimmy is standing.

"Already done." Jimmy says, smiling as the doors open again with a beaten and bruised Martyn walking in with another man behind him.

"He took a fair beating, i dont think I've ever seen this one lose a fight." The blonde haired man says laughing, catching a glare from Martyn.

"What happened, Martyn, who beat you? Why were they in the prisons?" Joel asks with a tint of concern in his voice, not concern for Martyn, though, concern for the news he's about to hear.

"It was Hypno, a-and Etho, the hitman, they escaped with the prisoner." Martyn coughs out, still pretty beaten up from the fight, honestly shocked. They kept him alive, although he would make them regret that decision.

"By the prisoner, you mean the prisoner." Joel over emphasises as a look of shock or maybe even fear creeps onto his face.

"Yes, the prisoner, not just them, they had some outsider i dont know with them, and most importantly, the dwarves, they had the dwarves!" Martyn shouts to Joel, who has to step back from him.

"The dwarves helped them?" Joel asks again, making sure what he's being told is true.

"There have been many sightings of the dwarves leaving the kingdom." The blonde says again, confirming what Martyn said.

Joel walks back to his throne, brushing over it with his hand, feeling it coated in gold and other gems.

A throne he won. Instead of inheriting it back during the war fourteen years ago, the former king was stupid and brutal. The truth is Joel was only a knight in the kingdom of Stratos, sworn to protect the king no matter the cost. He broke that oath.

When the king decided he wanted to flee and leave everyone to die, Joel made sure he couldn't. He killed the king right then and there and took the throne in an instant.

There were no heirs, and the king never seemed to have luck with a wife or any woman at all, so there was no one who had a claim to the throne, only someone who would take it for the people.

He gets called a traitor to this day, but what he did he did for Stratos, and he doesn't regret it at all.

"If the dwarves have taken their little axes up against us, we'll take our swords against their heads, this war is going to be bigger than we imagined, but we will win it." Joel says, smirking, smirking to hide the slight fear he has inside him. The dwarven mountain is known to be impenetrable, only a couple exits, which are highly guarded.

"You think i can lead our men into that mountain? you may aswell kill us all." Martyn argues knowing how insane the idea is.

"Many will die, but you can overpower them. after all, that prisoner showed us a few tricks." Joel laughs a little, handing Martyn a dagger.

"What's this for?" he asks, looking down at the white coated handle with a gold streak.

"When you see the dwarven king, put that right in him, and make sure to give it back." He pats Martyn's shoulder before walking out the room, leaving the three men inside.