Shattered Kingdoms | Book 2 ✔ (REWRITTEN AS 'THE EXILED KING')

Chapter 10 - Explanations

She sprinted across the land. She drew in yet another breath of frozen air that burned her throat. Her breath rasped, as she ran on. Her feet left the ice cracking under her feet. She left a trail of steaming footsteps as she ran through the frozen landscape. Her hair twisted a crackled as the snow and wind battered at her, trying to break her. But Verulyn did not break. Her survival at the great massacre of the Elven plains proved that. The thought of all those lives destroyed... Verulyn clenched her fists, a fierce snarl transforming her features. Although a descendent of demonkind, Verulyn had many features that could have passed her off as human. Her facial structure and body build could have passed her off for an average human woman, if not for her ears and head of flaming hair. Literally flaming hair. Her ears resembled those of Druids, and her skin was the colour of melted honey. Amongst many of her demon brethren, she had been considered very pretty, but untouchable because of Tarbork. Now that he had perished, she dreaded the thought of returning to her homeland. As she fought against the bitter winds that nearly brought her to her knees, Verulyn shed a tear. It ran down her face and fell, sparkling like diamonds.

Like a promise to be kept, the teardrop, perfectly frozen, lay in her wake...

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Ryhon had closed his eyes only to take a small nap on the back of the dragons, but had spiraled deep into slumber. The events of the previous weeks had drained him far more than he was ever likely to admit. Resentment burned deep in his wicked heart. Jason would mock him - even in his previous life, he had been mocked by Jason. Jason was the perfect, golden idol. Jason had never taken Ryhon seriously, but that would soon change. He would prove his worth in the only way that mattered - a life sacrifice. Aelron would hate him for it, but so be it. Jason would realize his errors. It would give him a malicious joy in seeing Jason mourn the boy he had mocked. Heresh would have no hold on him - the gods would have to choose another to lead the undead, for Ryhon was done with servitude. True power lay with those who were free. King of Heresh he may have been, but shackled he was still.

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Aelron slept too. Her head rested comfortably against Jason's back and the chilling wind had caused her to snuggle closer to him. His voice, speaking to Lirya, had lulled her to sleep. Had he not been sleeping, Jason would probably have been concerned that the boy he knew as Rynhiel, was snuggling up to him.

She was immersed in a sweet dream of the future. The world was lush, green and bursting with life. Everywhere she looked, birds flew overhead, deer roamed the forest fringes, rabbits scrabbled for food and birdsong spilled from the forests and trees. She could see. Tellius stood with his arm around Aelron - Then he whispered something that sent her back to reality.

"I love you, Aelron."

She jerked awake to hear Jason speak to her. It was clear from his voice that he was amused.

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Jason had awoken from his brief nap to feel someone leaning on him. He had turned to see Rynhiel drooling over his jacket, a blissful expression over the sleeping boy's face. Then Rynhiel had begun to stir, his face twisting. He had woken up with a start and gripped the saddle so hard his knuckles shone white. Sometimes Jason wondered if the boy could even see with that mask on. He was constantly tripping over things or bumping into the companions.

"You drooled all over my jacket!" Jason exclaimed.

The boy's pale cheeks stained pink.

"Sorry," He whispered.

"You were twitching - A bad dream?" Jason asked.

To his surprise, the boy blushed even harder.

"Not quite," He blushed.

"Whatever it is, know this. You are with us now, for better or worse. We'll protect you," Jason said, and Rynhiel's mouth curved into a small smile.

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Lirya had not been able to sleep. She had closed her eyes, but restlessness had kept her from falling into the depths of sleep. She laid her head on the warm scales of Iktarious, and closed her eyes, hoping to get some rest. Instead, she ended up eavesdropping on Jason and Rynhiel. Even she had not failed to notice how Rynhiel seemed exceedingly clumsy, or how he had to be lifted bodily up on the dragon. The boy also spoke few words and had an odd voice.

She had trained with Jason in Silvardor, and her archery had vastly improved due to training with the elven sharpshooters. However, Jason and Taryn bother surpassed her in skills, and Jaons was her equal. Ryhon and Aidan did not count because they had supernatural powers. However, one of her greatest wishes was to prove herself to them. To show them that was was not to be coddled just because she was the Lord's daughter.

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Meanwhile, Jaons dozed fitfully on the back of Thronox. Sleep had eluded him for a long time, until he had at last slipped into an uneasy slumber. His analytical mind cycled through all the knowledge he had on guardians, and his dreams were filled with memories of his studies of Dargon and of the Guardians. He had also been an avid reader of any book on the subject of dragons. It was so that he had come to know of the dragons of Balance. Two dragons, meant to keep the balance between good and evil. The first had been known as Darkness and Light. Theirs was a tragic story. Light had fallen for Darkness, but they were destined to be apart. Her heart had shattered the day she learned that friendship was all they could ever achieve. Darkness had harboured the same feelings towards Light, but even their names hinted at their destiny. Light chased away darkness, and darkness snuffed out light. Such was the way of the world. They had lived their long lifetimes, had unhappy unions and eventually passed to the Ether. Their children had continued to uphold the Balance. He came to sudden horrifying conclusion - Evil was dominating Dargon, was it because one of the dragons of Balance had died?

A sudden jolt shook him out of his sleep and his eyes flew open. Blinking in bewilderment, he saw rushing air and felt hat stomach tickling sensation as he fell through the air.

He screamed, his voice carried high into the air...

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This was a sort of filler chapter, meant to smooth things out a bit about the characters. Ryhon had for example vanished for part of Five Kingdoms to recruit the others, and I intentionally never explained anything about where they went. Things will reveal themselves little by little later in Shattered Kingdoms.

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First Published: 6/10/19

Song: The Edge of Dawn: Fire Emblem Three Houses (Which I have not played, since I don't have Switch)