Solace and Nox: A New Light

Chapter 6

The king was finally coming out to make an announcement. It was something that the whole city was waiting for. Unlike Cytra, the citizens of Shodon didn't know what happened that night. They just heard there was an attack on the castle and some Salamander terrorized the streets, setting fire to some merchant posts. They were anxious to know the truth.

King Lotharius sent out messengers to the major areas of Shodon to inform them of the announcement that would take place that very afternoon. Cytra overheard one of the exhausted messengers chattering about it.

It would be a few days before Cytra received a reply from Moldark, so she figured it wouldn't hurt to learn more about the man she was planning to work for.

The entire city was gathering around the castle wall. Cytra knew she wasn't going to get in earshot if she stayed in the crowd.

But of course, she wasn't going to do that.

Before anyone could reach the castle gate, Cytra snuck over it, and into the shadows. Keeping an eye out for guards, she jumped from balcony to balcony until she reached the roof of the first tower. As a child, Cytra was afraid of heights. She always feared that she would fall, or she would not be safe up high. Balconies frightened her and she couldn't stand seeing someone on the roof of a building. She would fear for them, seeing them fall in her imagination. It truly terrified her.

But once she discovered her powers, she realized that she would be able to land softly on the ground without being harmed, like a cat. It took her many years to adapt to this ability, but once she mastered it, heights never bothered her again. In fact, she loved the view.

Shodon was a beautiful city. Even from the castle gate, you could see the entire city, due to the hill that the castle was built on, but from higher up, you could see that it literally shined under the sun's rays. The city expanse stretched for a mile in every direction. The hexagon shaped wall was perfectly clear, and small villages beyond the city walls were even visible. Small hills lined the horizon, except where the Whispering Ocean's shore lied.

King Lotharius was ready to make his announcement.

"People of Shodon!" he began. "The events of the Kresallis attack were kept from you because my clerks were investigating and recording every moment of what happened. We, my guards and me, didn't know how to comprehend what happened that night, so my clerks helped piece together everything that happened.

"A dangerous man by the name of Moldark Rathmore attacked me that night. My Elite Guard, with the help of the King's Guard, fought him off, and he disappeared. We lost many great soldiers that day, but thanks to Captain Raiden Solace, Moldark abandoned his mission. Raiden."

That's when Sunshine joined the king on the wall. King Lotharius's Elite Guard was already there when Sunshine joined them. He took a bow, and all of Shodon cheered. Cytra was too high up--not to mention behind them--to see Sunshine's expression. Being a witness of that night, and his emotional breakdown, Cytra had a pretty good guess.

The armored Elite Guard lifted Raiden Solace up. He didn't fight it back; he just let it happen. His dark green uniform stood out compared to the knights' armor.

"Raiden was able to overcome Moldark's dark power and fought him off. He had the courage and willpower to fight off an evil man, and saved my life in the process.

"Moldark has done some truly evil deeds. His dark power is unlike anything the clerks here at the castle have ever seen. He wielded a sharp obsidian blade that filled its victims with a black essence, tearing apart their physical being. Only one was able to survive the attack. Markis Pazeth, will you come up here please?"

With two guards helping him, Markis Pazeth approached the king. He, too, was carefully lifted into the air by the Elite Guard. Cytra could see what the king had meant when he said the blade tore apart their physical being. Markis's legs were very thin and bony, a cane was in his right hand... and his left arm was completely gone. He looked over at Sunshine--Raiden--with a bright smile on his face. Markis lifted his one arm into the air, cane pointing up. Raiden joined in and the two of them soaked in the praise.

Something finally dawned on Cytra. Everything she had seen concerning Sunshine finally made sense.

The night of the attack, Cytra expected to see some kind of flare in Sunshine's eyes, but instead, she saw concern. She saw concern for his comrade, Markis. Sunshine must have seen that Markis was still alive, and then snapped into gear.

It also meant that Markis must have meant something to Sunshine. If he was able to break free from dark magic, like Moldark's, then Markis was important to Sunshine. It was the only thing that made sense.

When Cytra saw Sunshine break down behind the barracks, he said, "I failed you." Cytra just assumed that he referred to his whole squad, but he must have been referring to Markis. If Markis's condition was as serious as the king made it sound, then he wasn't allowed to have a place in the military any longer, which meant Sunshine wouldn't have him around anymore.

If Sunshine was bothered that much by it, that meant Markis had an even bigger role in his life than Cytra originally thought. Markis had to be Sunshine's missing partner.

King Lotharius continued once the crowd was finished praising the two men. The Elite Guard placed them down on their feet carefully, and King Lotharius said, "These two strong men survived, yes, but we lost the rest of Raiden's squad, and a few of the Elite Guard as well. The families of these men have already been informed, and we will have a proper burial for them tomorrow evening.

"Which leads me to the point of this announcement. The need for soldiers is higher now than it has ever been. The Kresallis army has grown stronger, more impatient, and are becoming more threatening each day. If their hasty decision to attack Shodon was part of their plan, they won't be afraid to do it again, and we need to be prepared. Citizens, you will have more frequent drills, in preparation for new and training soldiers. Any worthy, and physically capable man who can fight needs to meet with any of the active Captains in the army at once. We lost many men, and if we are perfectly prepared, a massacre like this will never happen again."

There was a worried chatter among the crowd. They weren't sure how to respond.

"I know what I am asking is dangerous," King Lotharius continued. "I wouldn't be asking this of you unless I were desperate. Well, the time has come to be desperate, especially if Moldark Rathmore has aligned with the Kresallis. With him on their side, they will grow stronger by the day, which is why I need your help."

Cytra snorted. Lotharius was just afraid of the threat given by Moldark. She didn't blame him for being frightened by it, but he wasn't being completely truthful with his people. It was a common issue with mankind. They often lied to themselves, thinking they are protecting others, when they are only trying to protect themselves.

"Join me, and let's show the Kresallis that Shodon is still in power and we can still fight!"

This got a cheer out of the crowd. Everyone in the crowd was pumped, and King Lotharius, clearly pleased with himself, returned to the castle with his Elite Guard. The announcement was over, so it was time to get off the castle.

Before Cytra left her perch, she took one last look at the beautiful city. The sky was blue and clear, the rolling hills were one shade of green, and the city shone white in the glistening sun.

Something appeared in the horizon. A dark shape flew through the blue sky, and as Cytra sat and watched it for a few minutes, she realized it was a bird.

A raven.

Moldark's reply came early.