As the group entered the outer walls, they saw people roaming the streets,
which were more or less decorated and tidied. Not too much but it was way more
pleasant than the corpses at the alley their first time around. The people even looked
happy, as much as one can be in their situation. After a good few minutes inside of
the alley, a small group of soldiers walked over to them. There Kane recognized
Walfrid who stood at attention after approaching him.
‘’Sir Kane, it is good to see you. I shall keep the pleasantries for later, please
follow us towards the palace’’ he said and turned around, to escort them towards the
palace. The alley looked far better than it had. There was colour on the houses,
works in progress, carpenters on the roofs, masons, architects, normal labour force.
The works were proceeding nicely. Soon they passed next to one of the doctors
clinics, and it was painted in a clean white, a big cross nailed at the outside saying
‘’free for all’’. Next to it was a big public kitchen. Last time it was closed, and now it
was painted a nice green colour, benches outside, people eating and chatting. ‘’She
did a wonderful job’’ Kane thought to himself.
‘’Not just yourself, but for us both, darling’’ Janine said, bending over outside
of the carriage.
‘’Right, darling. For us both, i forgot you can read my thoughts now’’ Kane
answered. She tapped him on his shoulder and sat next to him. The people all
around them were starting to notice their approach and the noise dropped to low
murmurs and bewildered glances and shouts.
‘’Long live sir Kane!’’ one lone man shouted, standing in front of the public
kitchen, holding two babies in two of his arms. It brought a smile on his face, knowing
he was responsible for this man’s happiness, even though it was just recent. More
and more people started shouting compliments and soon a crowd appeared around
their small carriage, a score of residents of the alley. Walfrid was just about to try and
disperse the crowd, but luckily for him he looked at Kane first before doing anything.
He just motioned for him to be silent and wait, then stood up and addressed the
growing crowd.
‘’Citizens of Kravnja, citizens of the Alley, i greet you. My name is Kane, and i
am the one who you think i am. I am the one who killed the snake and took over this
district, called ‘the alley’.’’
‘’No you are not, i am the one who killed him’’ Alpha barked and got up beside
him, growing almost to his full size, but went on two feet and towered over Kane,
menacingly. The crowd got nervous, but didn’t move.
‘’Right, my companion here is the one who ate him, to be specific, but lets not
dwell over details. The thing is, from that day onwards, your lives were destined to
become better than they were. The alley will become a place where all of you will
enjoy to live, work and die when you get old. Me, my wife and my companions will
make sure of that.. Also, i came bearing gifts. Every person who has less than a gold
piece to his name, come to the manor within a five days of time. Miss kayla will be
giving you something to get you started. Also, within the same five days of time, an
office will be set up where you can register any profession you may have, and we will
try and get you a job. For now, this is it. I have a meeting with the king, so me and my
companions have to leave you for now. Until we meet again’’ Kane said and waved,
then sat down and started the carriage again.
‘’Oh my, you could pass for a snake, or a lesser politician, my love’’ Janine
teased. ‘’But beside the point, you really did sound… convincing. I would almost
believe you myself if i was one of them’’ she said and chuckled. The sound of her
chuckle was mesmerizing. Kane turned around and hit her butt with his palm for her
comment, then kissed her.
‘’Don’t make me get back inside again, woman, or i will eat you’’ he dared her.
‘’What if i want to be eaten?’’ she replied, lustfully.
‘’O stop it already, you make me sick, the both of you!’’ Rasiela barked from
behind them. Can you think of anything else than making out, doing something nasty
or whatever for a damn second?’’
‘’Not really. You should try it more yourself, you might change opinions very
easily’’ Kane threw back.
Her face went beet red and she looked away, Gabriel did the same. Were they
a nice couple, Kane thought to himself. Half an hour later they arrived at the king’s
palace. There were colourful decorations displayed everywhere and there was loud
music playing from the courtyard. They stopped and got out of the carriage and were
taken away by a group of attendants to get freshened up and changed into clothing
arranged by the king. Everyone bathed in separate baths, male and female. Alpha
was bathing with Kane and Gabriel, in a big pool. He was in his puppy form and was
enjoying the bathing more than anyone.
‘’What kind of person is the king?’’ Gabe asked.
‘’Hmm, i wouldn’t really know. I’ve talked to him only for a few moments. All i
could think about back then was how to get Rasiela out of the situation alive. Lucky
for me i am pretty strong, so i can intimidate people easily, beside my other half here
soaking his fur in the pool’’ kane said and pointed towards Alpha who just shrugged.
‘’Do you think we will be given a private audience?’’
‘’Sure, why not. I saved his life and his kingdom. More or less anything i say
would probably be accepted, or anything i asked for. We will see later, when the
banquet and formalities are over with’’
Afterwards Kane and Gabe got dressed in fine clothes. There was something
prepared for Alpha as well. Gabriel and Kane were dressed in black linen pants and
a loose black shirt adorned with white embroidery of a phoenix and black leather
shoes and a red hat. They were given decorative weapons to accent the look they
were adorned with. Alpha had some kind of battle armour made out of a strange
alloy of metal, which was too light to have any practical use. It was purely decorative,
and he looked like a knight on four legs. He kept nagging how he was uncomfortable
with it on his back.
Over at the women’s bathroom, Janine and Rasiela were fooling around and
talking for a while longer than the men. Finally, when they had finished, they got their
dresses. Janine had a red silken gown on, almost glued to her body, which fell down
to the ground, flowing behind her and a white laced scarf. Rasiela had the same
combination but the dress was blue and the scarf black. They were absolutely
stunning. Their bodies seemed to be born to fit into the dresses and it showed just
enough to entice anyone, but not to reveal too much. After getting clothed they were
escorted towards the courtyard where the music stopped upon their arrival. Everyone
present stood up, and that was quite the number of people. The courtyard was
square and large. Everywhere around the walls were tables, shaped in a letter U
adorned with food, drinks and decorations. Men and women clothed in expensive
clothing were standing from both sides, awaiting the king’s speech upon the guest’s
arrival. In the middle of the large area was a group of musicians, now resting and a
second group of women scantily clad, probably dancers. At the end where the U had
no wall, there was a big table where the king and queen were seated, along with
Kayla on the opposite far side of the table. Four seats were empty just across the
king and queen, where their group was escorted to and left standing. King Crimson
raised a glass filled with a dark red liquid, probably wine and addressed the crowd.
‘’Ten days ago, this man singlehandedly rescued me from a group of
assassins brought here to end my life, and that of many people here present today.
What all of you do not know, is that there was a group working behind the curtains to
control this kingdom.
After hearing his words, there was a large number of gasps and murmurs. The
crowd present must have been deaf and blind not to notice it sooner.
‘’I, being old and foolish, let them to close, i let them control me to easily and
too late was it that i found out what was going on. Once i did, it was already far too
late to do anything about it. The only reason why we are holding this dinner of
celebration today is to celebrate this kingdom anew and this young man and his
companions’’. His gaze was intent and he stared at Rasiela for some time before
moving on.
‘’Therefore, i have decided to make this man a Duke, here, today, in front of
everyone present. From this day onward, sir Kane will be known as Duke Kane of
house Crimson’’
The crowd burst out as an angry mob and started yelling all kinds of things
ranging from how can a kid be named your successor to treachery. Alpha sensed
what Kane wanted and walked towards the middle of the area summoning his soul
forge and an instant later, there was a five meter tall wolf looming above everyone
present. The crowd got silent instantly, as if someone had muted them all.
‘’Please, my dear friends, let me finish. I do not wish for anyone to get hurt
here today. Let me finish to the end and you will understand why i am doing this’’
The old king took a sip of of his dark red liquid, his throat dry of the shouting
and went on.
‘’This young man is our only hope. The only hope to save this kingdom. Two
days ago, we got a message from our scouts that castle Krafne had fallen. An army
of combined Kefir and Verba soldiers has taken the castle after a week of siege.
They are reinforcing it as we speak. Our army of roughly thirty thousand soldiers can
not withstand theirs. The first scout reports say that the combined troop amount that
had besieged them was near to fifty thousand each. That number doesn’t include the
reinforcements that is coming in every day, and has every day since then. One of the
scouts even swears he has seen a row of monsters walking next to the soldiers. We
would be swept away within a day by this army’’
The king stopped for effect, letting the news sink in. The crowd started talking
amongst themselves, but not too loudly as to not to miss a single word the king had
to say.
‘’Now, one of the requirements i am putting upon the new Duke of house
Crimson is this. Save the kingdom. Defeat the enemy army or route them and retake
castle Krafne. If you succeed, the naming will be put in paper and no one will be able
to argue that the kingdom owes its existence to you, my dear boy’’ he said and
finished, finally drinking the wine from the cup in one gulp. The crowd roared in
approval and cheers were reverberating all around the courtyard. Long live the king,
long live the duke. A sly smile appeared on Kane’s face and he raised his glass and
drank it as well. The music started up again and the pretty ladies started dancing.
King Crimson sat down and motioned for the rest to join him, so they did.
‘’Quite the task you have put on me, King Crimson’’ Kane said laughing. The
king just nodded and raised his glass again. Kane just smiled and shook his head.
‘’Anyway, my king, please let me introduce my companions. To my right is my unwed
wife to be Janine. She is a sorcerer and is almost on par with me. To my left are my
Sister Rasiela, which you already know and Gabriel, my most trusted friend. As for
behind me, you already had the pleasure of meeting my other half’’
‘’Quite the rowdy bunch it seems. I trust there will be no more attempts on my
life, from anyone present at least, Kane?’’ the king asked seriously.
‘’Of course not, my king. What has happened can not be changed, but what
will happen can. She will lay down her life if need be for this kingdom, and so will any
of us present here’’ Kane added. ‘’But let’s be honest. We are not doing it for you or
for the leeches you have invited today to this banquet’’ Kane said. The king didn’t
seem taken aback by the words, as if expecting them.
‘’I know, and i do not care honestly. My life was over the moment the
assassins tried to kill me. Everything since then is a gift, and will be until i die. I can
never repay you for what you have done, but for what you will do, you will be
rewarded a kingdom you are defending. If you succeed, everything is yours, and i
think that is motivation enough’’ the king replied.
‘’Neither am i doing it for the reward. All i care about is doing good, i think. I
need to keep my humanity, good king. If i lose, not only will this kingdom fall, but the
whole world. I am trying to keep the power i possess in check, but if i were to die or
to lose the little of goodness i have in me, my second wouldn’t mind unleashing it
onto this world’’ Kane replied.
‘’I know all about it, Kane. Remember when i called you my grandson?’’
‘’Yes i do’’ Kane replied. ‘’What of it?’’
‘’You really are my grandson. Your mother was my daughter, but she ran away
when she was a teen. She was obsessed with the occult and death. I tried to force
her to stop practicing, but when she met your father, everything took a turn for the
worse. I tried to have him thrown out of Kravnje, but he waited for her outside, in
hiding. They took off and were lost until a few years back, when your sister arrived at
the castle, playing me like the old fool i was. Within a month of her arrival she bent
everyone to her will. I tried to do something about it, but she showed me what she
would do to me and everyone else if i tried something again by killing the previous
guard captain. I lost faith until i heard of a rumour. A young man had taken over an
inn just outside of Kravnje and was renovating it. I sent Walfrid to check it out and it
really turned out to be you. You have your mother’s face, and i knew the moment you
had stepped in that it was you. It was a gamble but i was willing to go for it. I thank
the Gods every night that they sent you back to your roots’’ the old king said and
burst out into tears, taking Kane’s hands and kissing them. Kane was taken aback
and didn’t move, not wanting to ruin the moment.
‘’Let us retreat to the strategy room, my King’’ Kane said softly. ‘’We can talk
more there’’
‘’We will, my grandson, but first, you need to meet some people’’ he said and
stood up, motioning Kane to stand as well. They walked over to a table where a
group of men were seating. Three places were emptied as the king, Kane and
Gabriel walked over.
‘’From left to right are Kralbi, Kreiger, Lefnar, Heklin and Ralfon. Kralbi is the
magistrate to Districts one through five, Kreiger six through eight, Lefnar nine and
ten, Heklin eleven and Ralfon for twelve. You are the magistrate of thirteen, but, if
you manage to do what you have been tasked with, you will be their lord’’ the king
said as he introduced the men to him. Kane nodded at all the men and greeted them.
‘’Nice to meet you all. This here is Gabriel, my trusted friend and ally. He will
be going with me to subdue the attackers and is my brother in law as well’’ Kane
said, introducing Gabriel to the group. They sat and drank some wine that was
already put in front of them.
‘’I have one thing to say to all of you, before you speak up. As i have heard,
the alley is a byproduct of nobody caring about the people there. That will change, in
fact, it already has. I have personally invested a fortune to bring the alley up to a
decent standard. I expect every single one of you, from tomorrow morning dawn, to
send food, medicine, building supplies, clothing and so on to the alley. Miss Kayla
will be the person you will address it to, she will be staying at the district manor’’
Kane said in one fluent motion. The group of men looked at each other and started
laughing.
‘’We will what?’’ Kreiger asked. ‘’Surely, you must be joking. We are the
wealthiest and most influential men in the kingdom. You think we will bow to you just
because you are a Crimson now?’’ the man said. Kane just laughed hard, drawing
attention.
‘’Eclipse’’ he yelled, putting one hand up, palm extended towards the sky. A
countless number of small assassin's blades appeared above him, infinitely
multiplying themselves above his hand. Within mere moments, the sky grew dark and
they were dining in shade. The whole courtyard grew silent, people frightened and
panicking.
‘’I… Am… God!’’ Kane yelled, his voice amplified multifold. The five men
shivered and stuttered. Kreiger was trying to speak, but it was as if he had lost the
ability to. Kane withdrew his fingers into a fist, only one finger out which he pointed at
Kreiger. Momentarily thousands of blades stabbed into the poor man, shredding him
into thousands of little pieces. Luckily for him, his agony was short lived.
‘’Is there anyone else present today, here, at this banquet, that puts
themselves above the needs of the kingdom, above the people who are suffering,
above the people who are hungry, sick, homeless!’’ Kane yelled, angrily.
The faces of everyone present were a grimase of disgust and displeasure.
They had forgotten already what happened a moment before the proclamation. When
their wealth and wellbeing was on the line, rich people can get over anything.
‘’If anyone here doesn’t agree with me, you have until i return to pack your
belongings and leave. After i return, if anyone here present has a wealth larger than
fifty gold pieces, they will lose their heads. I am of house Crimson, and i lay down the
law. If you don’t like it, get the hell out of my kingdom’’ Kane yelled as he stood up,
knocking his chair over. The thud of the chair hitting the floor brought everyone back
to the present, it seemed. ‘’Gentlemen, we will be expecting those supplies by
tomorrow noon. You can share mister Kreiger’s districts amongst yourselves. I do not
care how you split them up, just do so and follow my advice. Can i count on you?’’
Kane asked, with a hint of sarcasm. The four men nodded their heads over and over
again.
‘’Very well, i would hate to kill more people tonight’’ Kane said as he sat down
again. ‘’King, i think we are done here. Should we retreat to the strategy room to
discuss the issues at hand?’’
Walfrid helped the king get up and escorted him into the palace. Kane and his
group followed them inside and a while later everyone was seated in the strategy
room. A number of attendants followed in hurriedly, bringing drinks and food, even a
roast pig for Alpha. Upon seeing it, he licked his face in a strange motion, getting a
chuckle from the whole group in return.
‘’What? I’m allowed to enjoy a meal, am i not?’’ he said and dug right in with
his fangs and went to the corner of the room, sitting behind Kane. The room was
square but large. A big round table was in the middle of the room with twelve chairs
all around it. Two sides of the table had indents and Kane and the King were sitting
on the opposite sides, facing each other. Walfrid sat to the king’s left and queen
Crimson sat to his right, more a moral support than anything else. To Kane’s right sat
Janine and to his left Rasiela and Gabriel.
‘’My Duke, how are we going to save our kingdom?’’ Walfrid asked Kane.
‘’It’s quite easy. Us five will march to castle Krafne and retake it, one way or
the other. I would prefer to just ask someone to duel me for the castle, but i doubt
they have anyone that dumb. But we will see’’ Kane replied and went silent, as if
waiting for someone to ask another question.
‘’Do you need our soldiers to march with you, my duke?’’ Walfrid asked again.
‘’Not really. I myself am more than enough. With Janine, Gabriel and Rasiela
with me, i can’t imagine of someone being able to stand up to us. What i do want
from you, get your soldiers drilling. I want a disciplined force, not a ragtag group of
ruffians. Get them to practice strategy and teamwork. When i am back, a lot of things
are going to change, my friend’’
‘’Can i at least come with you, my lord’’ walfrid asked again, almost pleadingly
this time.
‘’If you insist. Hmm, i got an idea just now. You will handpick a score of your
most trusted and best trained soldiers. They will accompany us and see what we are
capable of. After we retake the castle, twenty five thousand soldiers will march to
castle Krafne and set up camp. They will start building a miniature city just for
soldiers on our side of castle Krafne. They will be trained by someone i will
designate. Only adept soldiers will be kept in the army, the rest will be sent home or
wherever they want to go. I hope the army will be brought down to five thousand or
so, the rest can go be farmers or whatever. I guess too much money goes to army
expenses anyway’’
Everyone in the room nodded and the king had a satisfying smile on his face.
The meeting lasted for a little while longer and then the group separated into three
little groups, chatting. Janine was talking to queen Crimson, Kane with king Crimson,
while Rasiela and Gabriel were talking with Walfrid.
‘’Madam queen, please tell me more about Kane’s parents’’ Janine asked the
queen.
‘’My dear, what a fine little lady his mother used to be. She was loving, caring
and gentle, until one day when one of her pets died, a wolf, very similar to the one
traveling with you. She started practicing the occult without our knowledge until she
met a young man, Kane’s father who taught her how to resurrect the dead or at least,
their souls. Afterwards everything started going downhill. She became bitter, angry,
spiteful. Then one day, she ran away while we were visiting family. Ever since i have
known one day she would come to take our lives. She tried through our
granddaughter, and i have no idea how Kane managed to change her so rapidly.
That young woman is the spitting image of her mother. Manipulative, egocentric and
what not. I only hope she doesn’t do anything to harm Kane or yourself. You two
seem like a wonderful couple and wonderful rulers, one day of course’’ the old queen
said and smiled warmly.