Lucius

Prologue

The sound of metal filled the air in the Dissolution Valley. It was between Elegiac mountain, known for the horrible beasts that inhabited it, and the Solitary Mountain that was famous for not having any lifeforms. There were no plants nor animals that ever survived any of the mountains, not anything humanity knew of.

The valley was a mixture of fine sand, coarse dirt, and the smell of death. The valley only received 3 hours of sunlight, and sometimes even nothing. The plants and trees in the valley were darkly colored, and barely had leaves growing on them. Cold winds rush through the valley. Cold enough to make men shiver.

The valley earned its rightful name from the hundreds, nearing thousands, of men that died in there. Men, women, and children. The valley was a famous ambush site because it was the only easy way to cross to the kingdom of Dunary.

The sound of metal echoed hastily through the valley. Hundreds of men in armor emerged from the shadows. Armed, and ready to die for their kingdom. A flag flapped in the wind wildly with its sword and shield symbol. The shield had a checked pattern. The pattern was colored red and black, indicating that it meant war.

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A thin man of blond hair ran through the long corridors of the Kvell Castle. The walls and the floor was solely made out of gray stone bricks. Several torches lit the long corridors of the castle. When he reached an intersection, he immediately took a left turn, bumping onto a flunky. He did not bother saying apologies and just rushed to the King's room.

As soon as he reached a redwood double-door that was lined with gold around the edges, he took a deep breath and knocked.
"This is McLachlan, my King." He announced, catching his breath. He could feel his heart beating rapidly, but he gave no attention to it. He simply wiped the sweat rolling on his forehead and held on tight to a rolled paper in his hands.

"Come." The King said. He waited for the two guards to open the door. Their steps were heavy and noisy because of their armor. They gripped the silver knobs of the doors, and pulled them open.
He calmly entered the room. The room had a huge bed with glittering stanchions, and red silk cloths running along the poles. Beside the bed was a humble wooden table with a bronze wine cup on the top. The King's room had several doors on the walls, but nobody knew what they were used for. The only people who knew about those rooms were the ones who built them. Not that it mattered.

"What it is you wish to tell me?" The King asked, lying on his bed. He looked at McLachlan and squinted his eyes, looking at the paper.

McLachlan cleared his throat, and unrolled the paper. He held the paper tightly and read the texts written in a messy handwriting.

"To our beloved King. The knights of the Kingdom of Kanatré are on their way to our kingdom. They have successfully crossed the Dissolution Valley, even through our efforts of stopping them. There are hundreds of them. By the time that you'll be reading this, they must be crossing the Feral River, and might arrive there in nightfall."

"The message ends there, my King. What orders shall we give to our army?" McLachlan asked in a frightened tone. His golden eyebrows rising high, forming wrinkles on his forehead.

The King stood up and fixed his red robe, took a sip of wine out of his bronze cup, and wiped his beard.
"Let Lucius know about this. He'll know what to do."

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Okay, this is my first time writing a serious book... like ever. If you saw any mistakes, errors or anything, please do tell me so I can correct them. I'm still young so I don't really know a lot of stuff, though that's not really an excuse.

Any kinds of comments would be really helpful. And if you like this chapter, please leave a vote. Thank you! I will work harder on the next chapter.

I'm widely open to suggestions about the characters, writing style, or anything. Please leave suggestions if you can!