The Prince of Ash (BxB)

The Fall

*A/N* Hey guys, I hope you enjoy the story! Thank you so much to _carmelite for making this amazing cover for me, I absolutely love it!

High above the solid stone walls lies the populous kingdom of Andrich. The second most populated kingdom in the Cosnik district, it's army and economical status remained supreme even among it's strongest competitor, the Grismore kingdom. While it was known for its strength and size, the kingdom remained to be the worst one to reside in. Slavery, torture, and a high crime rate all weighed down the good points of the kingdom. No matter the issues though, the king refused to change how he ran his kingdom. To the outside world, this was the reason why the kingdom had been annihilated so easily and quickly, but to those that survived, it was more than just those issues.

The prince of the kingdom, Wyder, followed in his fathers footsteps, but not by choice. No one could go against the king, even his own son, as there were terrible consequences. No matter what pain he was caused though, Wyder withstood it all because he looked up to his father above all else. The king had put his beliefs so far above all else that his queen had even been locked away to rot because she went against him. The king even refused to see his own son other than to observe his lessons on both swordsmanship and archery. He wasn't trusted to run the kingdom once the king passed away or stepped down, so an heir was placed in his stead that the king accepted fully. The prince didn't even want to be king in the first place, but his father suspected him of wanting to take over his kingdom right from under him instead. The day the king was preparing to step down was when it all happened. The day of Andrich's fall to ash...

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It was a bright sunny morning as the civilians of Andrich began to wake up. The sun shone down, lighting up every inch of the kingdom as the people of the city spoke loudly of the event that was to happen that day. It was to be the coronation of the new king, a young man who had been serving under the king for the past five years as his heir. Meanwhile, the true heir was locked away in his own room as the coronation was upon the city. The prince refused to accept that his father would do such a thing to him, but even his own bodyguard refused to let him leave under the instruction of his father. Only the prince's personal bodyguard and his servant were allowed to be in contact with him during this time, otherwise they would all be severely punished for disobeying the king.

The servant remained in the room with the prince to keep him company and, try, to lighten the mood, however the prince couldn't bear the solitude any longer as he didn't understand why he was being locked away in his room.

"Lin, I demand to know why I'm being detained in my own room. Father must be expecting me soon, yes? It is time for my weekly sword lessons with him." Wyder stated, attempting to brush pant the servant to the exit of his own room. The servant blocked his path and prevented the prince from leaving.

"I'm sorry sir, but the king has me ordered to keep you in your room until dawn. I cannot allow you to leave." The young boy said, folding his arms in a stern manner. Wyder leaned down more to try and intimidate the servant, grabbing his dirty dress shirt to pull him into the air.

"I said to let me out. I'm not sitting here all day, I must get to my lessons, servant." Wyder commanded him, dropping the boy to the ground in a fit of anger. Wyder stood there, irritated by the whole situation and began to twist his curly black hair around his finger, expecting the servant to appease him and let him leave. Instead though, the servant brushed his messy clothes off and patted the darkly colored hat on his head to clean them before opening up the door and requesting the bodyguard to come in to help with the prince. Wyder glared at the bodyguard with pure hatred at the first sight of him and the weapons he had been carrying on his back.

"Price Wyder, you must remain here at all costs. I am not allowing you to put a single foot out this door at all, so please refrain from putting your hands on Lin or I will have no choice but to detain you." The bodyguard said angrily, flaring his bright sapphire eyes at Wyder. The prince backed off, but only for a moment before staring right at the bodyguard.

"Isen, move out of the way. I'm done playing games." Wyder said calmly, his fiery red eyes seemingly beginning to pulsate brighter at each moment. The bodyguard took a step back, placing an arm in from of the servant in preparation of an attack. However, the prince soon let out a sigh and sat down into the floor, closing his eyes without a single word. The bodyguard and servant both sat down alongside him, confused as to what came over him.

"My lord, what has come over you?" The servant asked, brushing his dirty blonde hair out of his face to properly see the prince. Wyder opened his eyes slowly, remaining quiet as he did so before frowning.

"I know what's happening right now. My father is crowning another man in my place to be king. I'm unfit to be one and he is getting too elderly to run our kingdom. No matter how hard he tries though, Andrich is a lost cause. The people here are scared of their ruler, they're scared of what this place has become. It's an unfit kingdom, but I trust my father to run it." Wyder muttered, letting out a long breath to signify his internal conflict. The bodyguard scooted closer to the prince, placing a hand onto his shoulder with a cold and empty stare.

"Your father is doing what he thinks is best, but his beliefs could be the end of this kingdom and it's people." He said, pulling his long auburn hair back into a bun suddenly as he glanced around. The servant began to eye different parts of the room as well, getting up to his feet after the bodyguard.

"Lin, Isen, what's going on?" Wyder asked, standing up as well. Neither of them answered, putting fingers up to their lips to hush the prince. Without any warning, stomping began to occur right outside the door as screams echoed from throughout the kingdom. The footsteps stopped right in front of the door, but, before the person could enter, the bodyguard pulled out his spear that he had on his back and charged at the door, plunging it through and into the mysterious person's body. Coughs of pain were heard after as well as, what could be assumed to be, blood falling to the wooden floors below.

"We're under attack, there are intruders within the kingdom." The bodyguard said, pulling his spear right back out. The servant hurried to the bodyguard's side, taking a bow and arrows that he had on his back as well. The two stood around the prince, guarding him as he went to grab his own weapons, a shield and a sword, from beside his bed.

Right after, all three stepped outside the room to get a look at the chaos that had begun to unfold, the destruction of their kingdom as they knew it. Everything was up in flames as cried of agony could be heard from all directions. The prince readies himself to go after his father, but the bodyguard gripped him and pulled him away from going to rescue the king.

"My prince, we must escape ourselves. Your father has his own aids in situations like these, so we must leave in the hopes that he will too." The servant said, pulling him away as well. Wyder walked along with them, looking back as buildings began to be set on fire and as the kingdom he had live in his whole life began to turn to ash...