By: Stephen Cleveland
27th March 2018
There it stood
in a glorious stance, the two ornate emblemed doors between me and the throne room. beside them were the bloodied corpses of the guards that once guarded them. And as soon as I touched the doors, it seemed to know what I was going to do and it opened without a sound. A rush of adrenaline flooded me when I looked upon the room for the first time. I couldn't believe my eyes, the doors only showed a small portion of what lay beyond them. The carpet that was laid out before me was a beautiful crimson red. The floor itself was a black granite with a breathtaking finish. Pure gold braziers filled with oil which burned with blue flames giving a menacing look to the walls, while still complementing the rest of the room. The room filled with an aroma of lavender and citrus, even though it seemed that they couldn't mix, it was surprisingly good to the nose. Trying to figure where the smell came from, I looked up and saw swaying lanterns that had a mist flowing from them. I then realized that they contained the smell which filled the room.
I then looked toward the throne and saw the king, as soon as we made eye contact, I felt a darkened presence throw me off balance.
I knew what I needed to do and I knew it had to be done. I regained my balance and composure and walked toward him. We both knew that this was only the beginning of the end. Knowing that we needed to make the final decision. I drew my sword and faced him waiting for a reaction from the king. he looked at me and grinned with a wolfish smile and stood up. And with a grand stance, he stretched his arms and legs as if he was already worked up. I took a step back and readied my sword. "SilverTongue, I was hoping we could've talked things over but I see that talking is not an option so instead I'll finish you off without laying a finger on you." the king said with little haste in his words. then SilverTongue then returned with a comment saying: "I have nothing to say to you but the fact that you murdered my father. And I will return retribution back and reclaim what is mine." The king nodded his head then yelled: "GUARDS SEIZE HIM!". out from the shadows came his own personal guards and I realized that I'm not getting out of here alive if I try to run, but I'd have to fight my way to the king. The guards surrounded him and walked toward him all at one slowly brandishing their swords in front of them. Silvertongue looked for a weak spot to attack, but they all were moving in unison. "well shit." he thought to himself understanding he has to get through them all at a time. so he unsheathed his sword and readied himself for a long fight. These guards are no ordinary men in armor, instead, these men were much more experienced. Their armor was an ebony colored metal with silver trim with a crest of a bird in the center if the chest. Vern their swords were an ebony black with a silver finish for the blade. Their armor made barely any sound, but when it did it was only faint near the hands and feet.
Their breathing was heard more than their armor and it was steady breathing as if they are reading a normal book or sleeping, there was no hesitation within them. Then I heard to my left a much younger man or woman, which was a little uneasy. I listened a bit closer to that guard and realized it was a young boy at least 16 from the size and breathing. I knew where to strike but couldn't kill this boy for he still had a life to live but if he does pursue an attack I'll be forced to put him down. I was hoping that it would not come to that. I rushed the boy and struck him with the pommel of my sword. The boy staggered and fell. If I was to do that to any other guard they would have regained control and took me out instead. The boy got back on his feet and rushed me, our swords clashed and sparks flew. Each consecutive swing got easier, for the boy was wearing out, then finally I disarmed him with a technique which only a few could master and even fewer could do in a real fight. The sword flipped in the air, I ran to a wall and jumped off and caught the sword in mid-air. The boy was completely stunned so I ran to the rest of the guards and commenced the push to the king. My sword began to glow green where the runes were. I said quietly "not yet, these people don't need to know my secret." Then the glow began to subside.
Swords clashed and blood was spilled. Swing after swing the guards fell until the last guard remained. He was the last guard that kept me from the king but he wasn't going down without a fight. I glanced at the weapon he held and realized it was a cursed blade, and knowing that I have to be extra careful not to get cut by it. I readied my sword for a fight. And the guard laughed then said,
"I'm not going to fight the king's son, instead I'll help you." He replied but the voice seemed muffled within the helmet that he wore.
"Could you take your helmet off so I could hear you better ?" I asked. As soon as he took the helmet off I realized he was actually a she. My jaw dropped and my mind had many questions but all I could do was say "uhhh duhh huhh." she looked at me with a smile and turned toward the king then drew her sword and raised it to the king who was sitting on his throne petrified.
"What the hell, why are you pointing that sword at me, do you know who I am, I am your KING!? " the king cried. "Oh shut the hell up king, your reign is over so live with it." replied the guard. The king stood up and turned readying himself to run. "I wouldn't run if I were you," I said to the king. Honestly, I was actually hoping him to make a run for it. Sure enough, he ran, and before he ran, I threw him back to his throne. He began to panic not sure what to do. Which I then looked at the"I'll give you 24 hours before I kill you starting now..." as I said that the man dropped the crown and ran as fast as he could tripping over himself as he got to the doorway. I then pick up my rightful crown and put it on the throne "finally.... my home is back to normal..."
