The Kingdom of Liticea: The Sorcerer Prince

Chapter One: A Call to Arms

Austin Heflite felt the skin and muscles of his throat move painfully as if they had been left out to dry as he awoke from the incessant knocking at the door of the royal bedchamber. He reached over and picked up a glass of wine on his bedside table. After drinking it in a few gulps his throat already began to feel better though he still found it a little irritating to breath.

Austin was a man who was not permitted to have long nights of sleep, for he was a King. The King of Liticea, one of the great power players in the world, the masters of the Northern Rathas Mountains, The Lords of the Forthren Plains, the captains of the Aquaric Ocean. He was the third of the Heflite Dynasty, the latest family to control the Litici throne. Sharing the bed with him, was Queen Theodora Heflite. She was the daughter of the King of Theyola to the north, Toryn Sarsgaard. Together, they produced a son, Prince Tauron, named after Theodora's grandfather.

The King brushed his long grey-blonde hair out of his eyes and looked to his left to see his queen;  Theodora still asleep, despite the noise. Her slumber always had a high tolerance for noise. 

"I'm on my way!" he sat as he threw his dark blue robes over his night gown and approached the door. He opened it up to find little, pink-faced Quincy, his steward.

"I told you, Quincy no business until after I've had my breakfast," he said, his throat still absorbing the wine, "Or at least wait until I have found my voice."

"I'm terribly sorry, your majesty, but an urgent message has arrived from the Westland, written by Duke Horith Ryden of Rainguard himself," Quincy held the letter to the Austin and the king took it.

"Well, what does that old skeleton want?" he said as he stretched out his arms, letting loose several cracks in his joints. He only saw Horith in person once and even then, the Duke of the Westland looked half-dead. But somehow that man is still around, ruling over the western-most part of Austin's kingdom

"The messenger insisted it remain secret," he took his eyes off the king and made sure the two of them were alone, "he said it was dire news. 'For the King's eyes only' he told me."

Austin nodded, and beckoned Quincy inside. Together they entered the King's study in the east wing of the chamber. The Queen was stirring but not yet awake.

"'Dire', you say? Well, let us look at this 'dire' news," the king said as he unfolded the letter.  He half expected it to be just some rubbish about Horith requesting more support to maintain his stranglehold on the Westland. The true contents of the letter however, were far more than the king expected to receive on this summer morning.

"Call my war council. I don't give a damn what they're doing I want them in the throne room in ten minutes. Summon my son too," he commanded frantically.

"What of Froyar and the Senate?" a question the king always dreaded from Quincy. That council has been a pain in his family's ass for nearly a century.

"Not a word of this gets to him until I say so. I will not have him botch this situation."

"But my King, it is the law for the council to approve war declarations."

"Yes, Quincy, but this is not a war declaration. This is me defending my kingdom from incursion."

"It is unlikely Froyar will see it that way."

"Quincy, when have I ever cared how Froyar sees things?"

"Not often, my King."

"Very good. I will discuss this in private with my lords and then Froyar can come bitching to me all he wants. Now go and assemble my war council. I don't care if you have to haul them out of bed; I want them assembled in ten minutes."