The War of Four

Prologue part 2

Darrik moved swiftly down the palace halls. He had just finished speaking with the king and his hands were lightly drenched with sweat. He had to find a new Chief General quick and that was no easy feat. Garrin was at extreme unrest from their recent battle against a hoard of Welniks. They had made their way through the East Gate, and slaughtered several villagers. Garrin armies began cutting down their numbers and after a hard battle they were nearly victorious. But just before they were pushed back into their lands, Garrin's Chief General was slain. He died at the blade of the Head Charge of the attacking Welniks.
A Head Charge was the Welniks only force of stability during battle. Head Charges were the largest and fiercest of all Welniks. There were five total Head Charges at one time in Tarana and they ruled as tyrant kings and queens. Each one oversaw one section of their barbaric army hoard. A Chief General of Garrin had a similar position. Only one Chief General was appointed at a time and they served for life, which typically wasn't long. They oversaw the entire army force of Garrin and nearly had as much power as the king and queen themselves.
The Welniks had been on the verge of giving in when suddenly the Head Charge lunged at the Chief General in one final attack. He stuck his blade through the Chiefs heart. Before he could whisper his dying breath the Chief General had thrusted his blade into the Head Welnik, piercing his armor and ending his life. The Welniks had others to replace their superior but Garrin did not. The city was teetering on the edge of turmoil without a Chief General. Army was everything, they had to always be strong, always be ready. They lacked these traits now and this threw them into terror. They could not simply appoint another Chief General from the best soldier in their armies. Each Chief had to go through severe training that started when they were seven. They trained under a Combat Master's instructions until eighteen, when they fully took on their position. Another requirement was that they had to be of Noble blood.
This was Darriks main issue. As a Combat Master he had to pick and train a worthy child to rule over their armies in the future. But there were none. No one in the royal Assembly had any children young enough to offer and the king had made himself very clear that neither one of his young twin daughters would be trained. It was far too dangerous and he needed to have choices when it came time for a new queen and king. Most children died in the first few weeks of the training and very few ever survived to the end. But Darrik had to find someone or it would be he who would perish.
'Think Darrik, Think! Who had a child of Noble blood...' Darrik wondered, nails digging into his palm. Darrik's thoughts were interrupted when his keen ears suddenly picked up on the sound of armor clanging together as soldiers ran. He dashed outside toward the commotion. A large crowd had gathered. He pushed his way through, hearing a familiar cry.
"Please! You must let us go!"
Darrik made his way to the center of the crowd and gazed down at the answer to his problems. Little more than seven and a half years ago, two members of the royal Assembly fled Garrin against the kings and queens wishes. A married couple who were soon expecting a child. Due to the increase in tension between nations, Garrin was taking children for warrior training at younger and younger ages. It had already been decided that their child would be taken for training by its eighth birthday. The couple had pleaded that their child be educated instead so it could take a seat at the royal Assembly but the king and queen had refused. So the couple fled North and were marked as traitors to Garrin. They had not been seen since... Until now. A grin replaced Darriks worried expression.
"Greetings Talin and Lucii. It's been quite a while."
"Please Darrik! You must persuade them to free us! Zora was taken by Dreg traders, it's been over a year! We have to find her!" Talin yelled.
"Was she now?" Darrik said with interest. "And you believe they have taken her here to be sold?" He gazed down at their helpless expressions with great amusement. The soldiers had bound their hands behind their backs and forced them to their knees. Talin bit his lip nervously and nodded.
"We have checked all over, we even looked through Tarana! Please Darrik, we will do anything you ask. We will willingly pay for our crimes of treason. There will be no resistance just help us to save Zora. She has done nothing wrong. She should not pay for our disobedience." Lucii begged.
"Hmm... Yes, yes... Little innocent Zora. How old is she now?"
"S-seven. Only seven." Talin answered. "But she will be turning eight in a couple months..."
"That's perfect. Truly perfect!" Darrik exclaimed. "You needn't worry so much, I will personally buy her from the Dreg traders..."
Lucii and Talins faces' lit up.
"To be trained as our new Chief General! I'm sure she will become a great warrior, you two must be so proud!" Darrik said, beaming them a grim and twisted smile. Their faces fell.
"No! No! Anything but that! You cannot!" Lucii yelled.
"Darrik have mercy! She does not deserve this! She has done nothing wrong!" Talin screamed.
"Actually... Being the daughter of traitors is very dishonorable. You should be glad she will be given a chance to make up for your faults... Speaking of which, prepare these two for execution and alert the king and queen of their capture."
"Yes Sir." The soldiers replied. Darrik heard the two continue to scream and beg as they were dragged off.
"Pitiful creatures." He spat. He climbed into a nearby chariot and commanded the driver to take him to the nearest Slave Market. The driver complied and whipped his horses into a quick gallop toward the outskirts of Garrin.