The Ranking

Prolouge

"What a strange mark. I've seen nothing like this,"
the doctor exclaimed to the nurses. "The marks aren't this visible till they're 2 moons old, but this mark is quite extraordinary."As the first rays of the morning sun creep through the stained glass window of the castle, a sense of tranquility settles over the room.  The queen had expressed her wish for a home birth, and the kingdom had gone to great lengths to accommodate her request. The room is adorned with fresh flowers, and the sound of bird callings and dragon roars fills the air. The castle is abuzz with excitement, and everyone is eagerly waiting for the arrival of the new prince or princess.  He wraps the newborn elf princess in a velvet cloth and hands her to the queen of Smotia; Alary Blac. "Is everything alright doctor?" Alary asks with a "new mom," worried look on her face. She could sense something wasn't okay. Since she is a Rank V, she has excelled at being able to feel when someone or something doesn't feel right. The doctor begins, "Now your majesty I can assure you-" Without listening to the rest of the doctor's remark, she unwraps her baby from the velvet-like cloth and gasps. "What is this mark? Nervously, she exclaims. She feels her baby is healthy, but has an underlying power she can't quite place. She calls for her husband; Morgan Blac, the king of Smotia. As he rushes down the hall to his wife's room, the king's heart is pounding with anticipation and excitement. He bursts through the doors, and his eyes light up as he lays them on his newborn daughter. He rushes over to his wife's side and leans down to touch his newborn daughter. Suddenly, something strange happens. The king is overcome by a vision, a strange and powerful mix of battle, blood, and magic. His mind is flooded with images of a great battle, of swords clashing and magic sparking through the air. He stumbles back, fighting to keep his balance as the visions continue. The nurses rush over, concern etched on their faces, and quickly help the king to his feet. They find him a seat and hurry off to grab him a drink, hoping to calm him down. But the king is lost in thought, his mind racing with the visions he's just seen. He knows what it means - a prophecy, one that has the power to change everything.  The nurses exchange concerned glances, but they do their best to comfort the king. The doctor takes the princess from the queen's embrace and explains that he'll need to run some tests to determine her rank. The king nods, lost in thought as he processes the vision he's just had.

   

The doctor takes the elf princess and hurries down the hall to the castle infirmary. He carefully lays her down as he begins to do all of the tests. These tests are quite similar to what every doctor would test their patients' young child for; hearing loss, blindness, heart issues, muscular dystrophy, but he goes to test her blood, and in the process, she squirms and accidentally pricks the doctor. Dripping blue shimmery blood, he backs away with the syringe. Luckily, he was able to get the child's blood. As the doctor carefully cleaned off the blood from the child's arm after taking a blood sample, he noticed that the blood in the syringe was no longer the usual red shimmery color. Instead, it had turned into a beautiful, shimmery gold. Intrigued, he took a small drop of the golden blood and placed it on his pricked finger. Immediately, he felt a buzzing sensation and watched in amazement as the small wound on his finger healed within seconds. The doctor couldn't believe what he had just witnessed and called out to one of his nurses to grab the medical book. They had never seen anything like this before. The golden blood had the power to heal any wound or injury in just a matter of seconds, a feat that was previously unheard of. Quickly, the doctor jotted down his findings in his notes and grabbed the child from the testing crib. He knew that he had to show this incredible discovery to the king and queen. Rushing towards the royal palace, the doctor's mind was racing with the possibilities of what this discovery could mean for the Kingdom of Smotia.  Upon entering, he finds a stranger cloaked in a mysterious cloak that bears a shapeshifter mark on its back. The Queen, who had just given birth, immediately summoned her strength and prepared to defend herself and her newborn child. However, to her horror, the shapeshifter has already massacred all of her guards, leaving only the doctor, nurses, and the royal family in the room. The shapeshifter turns its attention to the doctor, who is holding the newborn baby, and begins to chant, "It's her, it is her who I will kill." The doctor fears for the baby's safety and slowly backs away, trying to make a run for the door. However, the shapeshifter quickly sprints after them. The doctor, who is a Rank IV quickly transforms into an animal and runs out of the palace, with the baby in its mouth. The King and Queen are left to defend themselves against the shapeshifter. After a while, everything settles down, and the doctor with the baby in its mouth returns to the palace. The doctor is exhausted from the harrowing experience but relieved that they were able to keep the baby safe from the shapeshifter's clutches.

After the whole fiasco, the king decides to express what he saw in the vision to his wife. "My love please sit down. I need to tell you something." They both take a seat on the bed their daughter is lying in. and he just sighs. "It was just chaos." he shuddered at the memory. "Our daughter was in the middle of it, covered in blood, and her eyes…I can't describe it any other than just full of power, power I've never seen before." The queen lays her hands on his, the look on her face was just full of sadness and worry for her husband. "It will be alright dear," Alary says, stroking her daughter's hair. "There are several things we can do to keep our daughter safe. We just have to pick the right one." The silence is loud, they both exchange a saddened look towards their young daughter. "I know what we need to do" says Morgan as he gets up and walks towards the door. "Which is what?" Alary questions. "We can't keep her here locked up forever, that prophecy will come true whether you like it or not." Morgan stops before reaching the doorknob. "We will cover the mark and tell her she is a Rank V, like you." he turns the knob to leave. "Tell no one, we cannot let this information spread. For her sake. My sweet little Elanor Blac."