The Tiger's song

prologue: the sacrifice

"On the day that Lady Amelia got shipped off to Braunstone everyone on The Nevervind Island wept. Even the clouds seemed to know about the great loss and sadness for it cried along with the remaining people of a once peaceful and almighty island. The Islanders of Nevervind lived under the rule of the all mighty Whiteheart family. Magestic beasts the Whitehearts were. Villagers of the main land used too tell their children bedtime stories of the giants that raigned on the small spec of rock a few miles of coast.
In all of the world's history people of Whiteheart blood has never lost a war before, mainly because of the cowardice manner in which men believed there wet nurse's tell tales. Nobles of the mainland, Braunstone kept their distance and succeeded astonishingly well in living in harmony with the Whitehearts. That was all until the bloodthirsty Castlers' attacked the royal Islanders in the middle of a particular starless night. They burned the great Island to the ground. No good fighting man was prepared for this awful thing and they burned in their beds along with their wives and children. The lord Edward Whitheart and his beautiful young wife were stabbed in the halls of their castle and left to die. The stories of the terrible things that happened that night soon spread around the main land like a wildfire. The common folk called it the slaughter of the starless night and hid away in the safety of their little homes. People called the war that followed the last true war. They said that no one would ever pick a fight with the Castlers again, not after they slaughtered all but one of the once powerful and unbeatable Whitehearts.
The young Prince Mordecai Castler, who appeared to be so different from his father, whomsingle handedly held the responsibly for the Whiteheart massacre, had a soft spot for beautiful things. He pleaded for his father not to kill the fierce Lady Amelia, daughter of Lord Edward Whiteheart, for he had other plans with her. Prince Mordecai demanded to be wed with her instead. Lady Amelia Whitheart was promised eternal peace between the Island and te mainland if she accepted Mordecai's hand in marriage. In return for this truce and her life she had to give up her rightful throne in the Nevervind Island. A young Lord of Braunstone and cousin of the king was to be named warden of the Island, and were to rule over it until the son of Lady Amelia and Prince Mordecai has come of age to once again rule his mother's home. The king, Olaf Castler promised Amelia the safety and security of her people and she could not refuse the offer to marry his little prince.
Luckily for Amelia the wedding had to wait a few years because both of the young royals were only fourteen and the lady wasn't even a woman yet. Tree years passed before they got married. Things did get better in these three years but Amelia never grew to love the young prince Mordecai. She did grow to love someone indeed, someone well below her rankings. Even after she became the wife of Mordecai and Princess of the Iron Realm she could not deny her feelings for this honorable and faithful kings Guard.

With each passing day her love for this young man grew stronger and stronger. She knew what the consequences would be if her husband should ever find out of her unfaithfulness, but she had to take her chances with the hand she had been dealt with. Once a week she pardoned her handmaidens and ladies. All alone she made her way to the heart of the Red Forrest-near the East wing of castle Braunstone were Antonio's open embrace waited for her week after week. In the heart of the Red under the tallest tree west of the great blue ocean Amelia declared her love f her lover. On a particularly hot summers day it was there were they made love for the first time.

Shortly after that a baby grew in Amelia's belly. After Grande maestro Amos, the Royal heath keeper declared that the princess was carrying a baby boy the young prince Mordecai was ecstatic. The young prince was smart, but not smart enough for during the first few months of his unfaithful wife's pregnancy, he thought that the baby belonged to him. He kept telling everybody about the last true Whiteheart boy growing in his princess's belly. After he discovered the truth of Amilia's adultery a boy with curly dark hair, so opposite to his milk colored head, was long since born and the mother of this imposter baby already stone cold and buried in the gardens amongst the daisies."  Tears blurred Antonio's vision as his story drew too an end, and it was nearly impossible for him to see the faces of his beautiful children now. Two boys he had, and a breathtaking little girl, whom he knew the young lads would someday duel over.
"But father, please tell me again, why did she die," his little girl asked in a sleepy voice.
"Don't ask silly questions Ginny, everyone knows that all the Whiteheart mommies died when they gave birth to boys," one of his sons awnsered,  sounding witty as he always did. Antonio smiled down apon his children,  who's energy levels lessened by the minute. 
"Yes, I understand that brother,  I have sence, you know," the little one continued. "But why did they HAVE to die?" She asked, this time looking directly into her father's chestnut eyes.
"Because, sweet girl, when time began, a thousand years ago the first ever nobles who called them self's Whitehearts prayed apon the gods,  whom they loved very much each night. Night after night they asked the gods to shower them with stength. The gods made them nearly unbeatable,  but alas, that was not enough. The Whitehearts, who was now stronger than any family saw them self's as near equals to the gods and prayed that they shall have a legacy and that their name shall be known until the end of time. As the years past by the original Whiteheart Lady gave birth to an outstanding number of daughters, which was a great blessing, and also a curse, beacase the one thing they needed to ensure their legacy was a son. With the birth of each daughter the Lord and the Lady grew angrier and angrier with the gods. After the birth of their 8th daughter they became so mad ad the gods that they cursed them. They resented the gods and swore to never offer them anything again. The goddess Freya, who loved her children deeply decided to send the Whitehearts a son at last,  in order to rebuild a relationship with the family who used to love her and the gods she lived with so much.  But her godly deed was short lived, for the god Odin, who were as angry at the Whitehearts as they were at him, soon found out what Freya had done. One week before the first Lady Whiteheart went into labour Odin appeared as a guest in their home. Together the god and the royals feast as equals once more. After the three of them drank and ate through a series of tropical delacisies Odin revealed too the couple why he had came. He was angry at once and the laughter of old friends they shared minutes before we're forgotten. Odin screamed at the Whitehearts for resnting him and he made it clear to them that he did not yet forgive their unfaithfulness.
"I promise you this Whitehearts, " he said to them. "You will have your son this time, but he will come at a grave price. In a forth night's time a son will be born from you dear lady, you will pay with your life for this son. You will go into the most painful labor and before you die you will truly know what it feels like to endure the wrath of Odin!!!"  he bellowed. The lady burst into tears and begged the god to forgive her, but he was not done with her yet. "And there is one more thing, " he continued.  "You will have your legacy,  and I promise you that your name would be famous until the day that the sun swallowes the earth, but no woman would ever survive the birth of a Whitheart boy again!"  And with those words the god disapeared from te face of the earth forever.
Antonio's children looked bewildered, but he knew that it was not of the new information he just shared with him. Instinctively he turned around to see the aging figure of his wife merly feet behind him. "Honey,  your home early," he said trying to sound quite casual, but he knew by the look on her face that she was not in the mood for small Talk.
"You know I HATE it when you tell them stories about those people!" She piped in a high pitched voice. "But mother," the little girl began. "Hush children," the angry mother said staring at her family with a frosty nosed stare. She turned around and walked out of her sons' bedroom. "Take Ginny to her room now," she said in a dead pan voice over her shoulder. "All right children, good night then, Antonio said kissing each of his boys on their for heads. "Come on now little lady, you heard your mother," Antonio voiced fatherly trying not to mimic his wife's cold tone as he picked up the smallest of his children. He carried the small little bundle down the length of a reasonable sized corridor and into the brightest chamber of the mansion sized home Antonio and his family lived in. This, Antonio thought to himself was one of the small perks of having the favour of a boy king. Not to long ago Antonio, himself was merly a knight in which the inexperienced king saw raw potential. Now he struts around the castle all day long doing nothing but ensure that nobody spots the king whoring around. Unlike his wife he quite enjoyed working at court. His thoughts drew to an end as he tucked his little princess into her small little bed. "I love you father, " the little voice squeaked as Antonio kissed her too on the forehead. Antonio tucked her into her bed and left her room heading straight for the downstairs porch,  where he knew his wife stood ready to scream at him out of their children's earshot.