A Tale of Shields and Roses

A deafening silence resounded throughout the castle as vines slowly spread across the marble pillars. The humans that roamed these halls had disappeared ages ago. The throne goes empty, thorned roses entangling the seat of humanity's King.

The town below lay hollow, the decrepit architecture of the castle looming above, casting a shadow on the once lively town. The shops, a former shell of what they once were, are empty, except for tattered clothes and dust. All is quiet. Nothing happens, or will ever happen.

The Knight opens his eyes.

He is confused by the state of things. The floor is littered with rusted swords and armor. He appears to be in the Armory, although he does not remember why he is here.

"...Where is everyone?" His thoughts echo, bounding around his steel helmet.

As he lay there, adjusting to his surroundings, he hears a voice. Faint, but somehow very familiar.

"It is not your fate to die here" says the voice.

"You are the only one left."

"You must bring balance to this dying land."

"The last sliver of hope lies with you, my Knight."

The Knight is, of course, confused.

"Why must it be me, of all people? Me, a lowly knight, must revive this kingdom?" he asks.

"You were brought here for this very purpose" the voice says, with a nostalgic ring to it.

"...Who even am I?" the Knight asks

...

The voice does not answer.

The weary Knight gets to his feet with a loud scrape of his armor's joints, and exits the filthy room. As he wanders the forlorn halls, with their faded paintings and dusty mirrors, he eventually comes across a large, ornate oak door.

After putting all his strength into the door, it opens with a loud creak of it's rusty hinges.

In front of him lay a large, ornate throne room. On the throne itself rests a skeleton, with tattered robes and a rusted crown on it's head. The crown's gems are gone, with roses growing in the gem sockets.

What's more noteworthy though, is the state of the room.

On all sides surrounding the throne lay vast amounts of skeletons, with jaded, flaking armor. Most likely the soldiers who defended the throne until their dying breaths. What could have done this? Plague? War?

Something happened to this kingdom. Something bad.

An ominous feeling grips his heart.

With chills down his spine, the Knight looks out through one the several windows facing the town. It's empty, not a single creature is in sight. The dust swirls through the lonely streets.

Is he truly the only living human here? That can't be true, right?

A feeling tells him that he's in danger.

Soon.

The knight continues to explore the castle, trying to find anything that he could use to defend himself.

...The castle is deathly quiet.

There's nothing here but old skeletons.

His footsteps echo with a loud "CLANK!" as he trots (*albeit cautiously*) down the main hallway. He opens another door with a loud creak.

In the corner of the room lay the skeletons of a knight and a woman. The knight's armor is completely torn through, with large claw marks. No animal he could think of could do such a thing. At his side lay a rusted Long sword and a Kite Shield.