The Good King

'No Going Back'

The silent was heavy for a couple of moment inside that small house.

The second prince standing by the door eying Rose who was still sitting down facing Elione.

"Fine"

Rose said before she got up and started walking towards Louis.

'Did it work?'

The prince thought.

Only to feel her hand on his throat, She did not press enough for a kill but it was hard to breath.

"I said I can not kill you, not I can not hurt you"

Rose said, then let him go.

The prince was in the middle of coughing and trying to get a hold of his breath.

Without giving him a chance to, Rose hit the back of hit neck which made him fall down into a deep unconsciousness.

"You're coming with me"

She then looked back at Elione who stood in fear and did not know if she could fight back for her life or if it was the end for her.

The fields in sight came to an end, the two realised how close they have gotten just by being able to see the royal palace.

It looked so small, looking at it from such a distance, as if so much evil could never come from such a small good looking place.

They could see three riders slowly walking towards them.

They were all masked up which made Victor doubt if he should keep going or not but he saw a soft smile on the prince's face which made his feel at ease and follow his lead.

 One of the riders suddenly sped up while heading towards them.

Elmer gently pulled his horse into a stop, then jumped down while patting him.

The red haired rider, jumped off their horse running towards the prince who walked towards them, closing up that distance with a strong hug.

"You're alive!"

Aylin said through her black mask.

Victor's confused expression turned into a smile even though he was still a little confused.

"Aylin, you came"

Elmer said while his face lit up in joy.

"Of course I did!"

She said while hitting his shoulder.

The Petrian took her mask off right after realising it was still on.

"It's nice seeing you again"

The prince smiled saying.

"Let's make it the last time, you disappear for so long"

Aylin replied.

The rest of the rider got off their horses and joined those two.

Elmer greeted Arthur and Amed then introduced Victor.

All that was left was for them to wait for Hawk and Venator.

Having a quiet moment of peace while waiting up the green fields felt like it was everything that Elmer longed for.

The royal palace has never been louder.

Everyone was running somewhere, especially the guards and knights.

Ivor was no different since he was called into the throne room and without a second of catching his breath, he ran there.

The door was closed behind him, and for the first time he saw so many guards surrounding the throne.

He walked towards the king, down on one knee before he spoke.

"Your majesty, you called for me"

Ivor said.

"I need you to make sure the palace is well guarded, close the gate now"

Leo said.

"Shall we call in for the trainees and-"

The king interrupted him immediately,

"No, do not wait for anyone, I ordered the guards to set something up in front of the palace gate, check out how it is going"

Leo's eyes were full of hatred but it felt like he was satisfied with how things were going.

"Yes, your majesty"

Ivor said before standing up and walking away from the throne room.

While walking downstairs, Ivor ran into Betty and the little prince.

"Good morning mister advisor"

The little shy voice greeted.

"Good morning prince Edmund"

Ivor smiled replying, 

Edmund was then pulled by the twin as they ran together towards his room.

"Please, stay with the little prince in his room, lock the doors and do not come out at all, it is getting messy in here"

Without having enough time to fake his energy, she sensed all of his worries and immediately replied,

"Yes sir"

Before Betty got to walked away, he stopped her by asking.

"Have you seen prince Louis?"

But her negative answer was not what he hoped for, it only made him worry more.

"If things gets ugly, there is a secret path inside the little prince's room, it's behind his closet"

Ivor said, describing to her how she could get into it and all.

"Thank you very much, sir"

Betty said, before she ran towards the three children to get them somewhere safer.

While Ivor stepped outside, to an open gate while the guards where setting up something right outside the gate.

At first he could not tell what it was but the closer he got, the clearer it was.

Something he haven't seen in years.

Thick wooden beams, old and rough, were lifted and hammered into place. 

A rope hung from the tall frame, swinging slightly in the cold breeze. Below it, they locked a trapdoor that creaked every time someone stepped on it.

Kardia's people were called by the guards to come and witness what was going to happen.

Those who lived right under the forest near the palace were curious and ended up coming to see what was going on.

Once the guards were done, all of them came inside except for four, who were guarding the carriage who was left in an empty corner.

Something told him that the person who was about to face death was kept inside of that carriage.

Knowing that there was nothing he could do about it all, he watched the gate get closed, locked and well guarded, while everything he knew and loved was left outside those walls.

Ivor felt a certain pain rush through his blood. An unbearable feeling that he tried to ignore for years. As if he could break into tears at ay sudden moment.

But he had so many responsibilities to keep up with and no time to deal with his emotions.

He has always been a prisoner in there, he just never realised it.

The people from Kardia started arriving, Leo walked out and stood up the wall, having a good view on what was going to happen.

Rose was out in the woods, looking for her husband who did not come back but all she could find was some blood drops and cut ropes next to the trees.

Elmer's laughing face who was a rare sight, made Hawk who just arrived smile happily. Even the stone hearted Venator was glad the prince was back to his old self.

They all started heading towards the heart of Kardia.

There was no going back.