Chapter 1 - Defeat Is Just the Beginning
The sun shined brightly in the light blue sky. Clouds floated above, drifting peacefully to the east. Wind blew gently from the southern forest and caressed the grassy hills to the north. A worn pathway came out of the lush green forest and into the hills. Beyond the hills spanned a large plain-valley surrounded by majestic snow capped mountains. The land flowed with water and the lushness of life flourished throughout the valley. “It’s such a beautiful day. The sun is shining, it’s partly cloudy, and my home, sweet, home is just beyond the horizon!” “A wonderful thing indeed, but you’re wrong, it’s not partly cloudy it’s mostly sunny, Vane.” “That means the exact same thing Tairynn!” “It does, but it portrays completely different attitudes.” “Whatever. Last hill to climb!”
Twelve armored Cygron climbed making their way to the top of the grassy hill. The beasts climbed with a steady vigor. Cygron were a creature of great speed and power. Overgrown lions, many called them. Their coat shined a dark grey color, the hair consisted of a short silky texture. Each armor plate connected upon the other and clasped perfectly onto the beasts. They do not grow weary as other beasts of the land did. Upon their backs were Lidrion Knights; they looked as though they had traveled an endless journey; worn, yet there was joy expressed on their faces. They had been on a mission for two months and now long to be with their loved ones once again. Armor clinked as they climbed, and reflected a dull shine even through the dirt and weather that had smudged their surfaces. It was a steady climb but they tirelessly pushed upward. They reached the top. Wind rushed past the twelve Knights as they paused side by side atop of the hill. The Cygrons, upon which they rode, growled in a low and quiet, yet audibly powerful tone. They stared fiercely ahead. In their view, four miles away, were several massive formations of men. It appeared to be approximately four hundred thousand foreign soldiers. The flags that flew were those of the nation Zindor. The vast sea of armor marched toward their direction, seemingly to exit the valley. Behind the Zindorion formations, was…the city Lidrion. Fire and smoke rose from the once powerful city; all that appears to be left now is destruction and ash. Thousands of fallen Lidrion soldiers lay scattered throughout the front plain of the city. Time seemed to stand still as the twelve Knights grasped the reality of what they saw.
Their city had been destroyed while they were gone. For what reason, they did not know. None of the Knights spoke, for the shock of what they saw hit them hard. It seemed…unreal.
Amongst the Knights stood Inno, commander of the Elite Knights of Lidrion. The Knight to the right of Inno, Leinad, spoke, “What should we do, Commander?” Benjin, the youngest Knight, dismounted his Cygron as if to answer that question. Anger was in his eyes as he gripped his sword and clenched his free hand. The commander, Inno, turned toward Benjin and without speaking, nodded his head. Not one second later Benjin vanished into thin air. The sound of wind rushed to fill the space where he had stood, sparks of static electricity filled the air. Inno turned to face the mass of soldiers once again. As he looked, he saw the enemy as if they were no more than two hundred yards away. With his focused vision, he saw a man with a blue cape and gray armor flash into existence in the space directly in front of the main Zindorion flag bearer. It was Benjin. The young Knight stood in front of the Zindorion flag bearer for a few brief moments. They appeared to be speaking. Suddenly, Benjin unsheathed his sword and with a horizontal slash, the flag bearer’s head flew off and spun to the ground. The Zindorion flag, too, fell forward and flat onto the earth. The enemy soldiers around Benjin, though surprised at first, drew their weapons and turned to attack him, but before the first soldier could land his strike, Benjin vanished. As Inno and his Knights watched, they could see numerous other Zindorion flags falling to the ground just seconds after the one before. Moments later, the space in front of Inno flashed as Benjin reappeared in front of the Knights. His sword was covered in blood and his cape flared wildly as the space around him rushed away from the sudden existence of matter. He emerged five feet above the ground and his knees were bent as if he was prepared to land from a drop. Then, he landed in a crouch then stood looking at Inno. His eyes were filled with hatred, “I killed forty-six of them. They destroyed Lidrion.”
