literature

Chapter Two: A Call for War

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It had been five years since the attack at the Festival of the Nine Kings and during this time Bryce had married his beloved Jessel, and took the throne as king with Jessel as queen, his rule had begun and he had brought prosperity to both his country and his allies. But with each day that the rest of the world benefits from peace, Etrar and the dark forces that stew within it enslave more people. The leading powers across Seira have met to discuss the current issues that plague their lands. To most it was a means of keeping peace, to Bryce, it was a meeting of greedy birds squawking at everything they disagreed on.

“The Northern Empire must allow trade between themselves and the Twilit Isles.” Spoke the Baron of the Twilit Isles, his visage was both unpleasant and regal, dressed head to toe in fine velvet robes with a plethora of gemstones and glistening gold covered his filthy swine like features, when he wasn’t speaking he was stuffing his gullet with food, chewing loudly and being a general nuisance.

“For the last time, Baron DuPont, we will not trade with you as you have nothing to give us! We are economy of needs not wants!” The slender Empress spoke, her thin build was offset by her sharp emerald eyes, her dress was a simple red with a dragon emblazoned on the left side down to the hip. Her claws sharpened to a point as they rapped on the table with both boredom and impatience at the shoat’s boorish behaviour. Her feline features sat well in the darkness of the room.

“Empress Xiao Feng, please calm down.” A wizened voice spoke, “we all know of how poorly your country is doing with recent damages to your farmlands, and you have the support of Mnzl el Maa.” The pharaoh of Taraksh spoke, his jet black fur and slender face were similar that of a Nubian jackal, his form of dress was better suited for the scalding heat of the Desert of Taraksh rather the cold room of this council chamber. His visage dressed up in gold paint and fine silks, his body cut and well hardened by both the elements and battle.

A titan of a woman stood up, slamming her fist on the table, shaking it violently. “We ignore the biggest issue of all! The young King has joined the council and wishes to speak! The newest seat of the Auracia throne has shown pure decorum and you all bicker like children.” Her gargantuan frame offset by her beauty, her ursine features covered by simple handmade cloth from some beast she had killed with her bare hands most likely.

The entirety of the council chamber went quiet as Bryce stood, clearing his throat before he began, “Fellow lords and ladies, I have but one question for you. Why is the Etrar still at war?”

The piggard from the Twilit Isles spoke up, “Because they’re heathens!”

“No,” Bryce retorted, “Because they are being ruled by a monster who would enslave us all. And yet we sit here debating on who gets what?! I stand for it no longer. My people, OUR people have been fighting down there for centuries and for what? More death and a stagnated war!” Bryce paced from his seat to the front of the room, “I offer this, we end this war, and we bring them the peace they have been so denied for the past five hundred years.”

The Empress spoke, “I commend your determination King Auracia, but the North cannot just go to war, my people are starving, and my lands are in chaos.” Her face changed from sadness to anger, “And this Hog wants to bleed my country dry!”

Baron DuPont attempted to defend himself, “Such slander! I only wanted to bolster our countries relations! And to use a term of such offense like I … I am some kind of filthy animal!”  He said as he sucked back some meat clean off the bone.

“Empress Feng,” Bryce said as he changed from a stern and harsh tone to a calm and refreshing one. “I understand your plight and I will help you as best my country can.  We have plenty of farmland that is not being used this season, I can give you this land as a sign of good faith, you and your people are welcome in my lands.”

“And what of my people?” DuPont spoke, as if he were being offended and ignored, “They suffer as well!”

“You’re people suffer, Father, because you and your ilk keep the wealth to yourself!” a young voice resounded as a young woman entered the chamber, her features were close to that a doe, her eyes fierce yet gentle as she was dressed in respectable attire. “And it is high time that your barony came to a close.”

“Margaret! What are you doing here, I told you to wait in the cloister!” DuPont bellowed out, some of the food spitting out of his gaping maw, “Get out of here this instant, or so help me you will pay!”

“Baron DuPont,” The Pharaoh spoke, “I would like to bring up a new topic actually. You’re countries distribution of wealth. We, the council, have noticed a fairly large shift in both your personal and federal wealth. We have noticed that your people are going hungry and you demand more and more from your allied nations.”

Bryce turned his gaze back to the fat boar, the obese pig’s chest heaving up and down as his laboured breath quickened, “What’s the matter DuPont? Are you hiding something from the Council?”

His adopted daughter spoke up again, “There’s more than just that! He’s been double dealing the council, He’s been working with the monsters in the south!”

Bryce’s expression went from annoyance to a deep seething rage in almost an instant, like something had been turned off in his mind. An aura of pure malice radiated from him as if he was about to kill at a moment’s notice. “Is this true DuPont? You do know that the punishment for fraternizing with the enemy is death, yes?”

DuPont’s brow began to bead with sweat in almost an instant as he obviously lied through his teeth, “I’ve never done such a thing! I shudder to even THINK of speaking with anyone form the south let alone allying myself with them!”

The titanic woman held down DuPont, “You are dodging the question hog-ling, or do you WANT to be tried as a conspirator?”

Bryce walks over to the guards, silently ordering them to restrain DuPont as he made his way in front of the putrid baron, his look of pure determination and purpose as he slammed his hands down in front of DuPont, “Speak the truth, if you value your fat skin.”

DuPont, sweating bullets as he stalled, refusing to answer the question. “I am no traitor! I have only wanted what is best for my people!”

Bryce brandished his blade to the hog’s neck, “I will ask again, are you a traitor against the Council?”

Dupont’s once terrified expression changed to that of a menacing grin, “You just don’t know when to give up do you, boy? You are far too persistent, you know that?” the sounds of bones snapping and breaking began to fill the room as DuPont’s body began to contort and shift in a violent and hideous matter, his fat sluggish form now replaced with one that towered over even the Amazoness in height, his cleft hooves now sharpened to a point. His eyes beaming with an evil light as his very aether felt as if it had darkened the air.

“You traitor! You would side with a slaver for… for what money? Power?” Bryce barked in anger. His fangs bared in rage.

“I would side with Lahabre-ha for supremacy! He gave me more power than I could ever want, what I wanted is total rule! When I kill all of you and I turn this world over to my Master, He will make me Lord of Seira!”

DuPont laughed manically as he basked in what he believed was his victory until the sound of bone breaking and skin tearing. Bryce’s Slab of a sword had cleaved the treacherous swine in two, DuPont’s now gushing corpse spilling onto the ground, his innards spilling onto the floor of the council chamber. A puddle of blood of pooling at the cut as Bryce stood over DuPont’s cleaved body. A pool of blood began to form at Bryce’s feet as he returned his sword back to his sheathe.

“Let it be known here and now, any of us who choose not to go to war against Lahabre-ha will be considered traitors to their own kind.” A look of incandescent rage over came Bryce, “And I will not hesitate to strike any single one of you down.”

As Bryce and the other council members vacated the room, the Empress of the North and the Pharaoh stood next to Bryce and proclaimed their loyalty to Bryce’s cause. As they drafted their agreement to assist each others military in the coming war, the Representative of the Amazons and the new Duchess of the Twilight Isles stood ready to go to war.

Bryce looked at his allies with pure determination, “Very well, now that we have come to a consensus we must prepare. A war will tax all of our countries greatly for both our people and our lands for what is to come. I can have a force ready within four months with myself acting as High Commander.”

The other leaders looked to him at with a look of impress, the Amazon let out a hearty laugh and patted the young king on his back, “Very well Little King! I too will have my Spear Sisters ready in four months! We shall see you on the field of war!”

The clouds flashed past the Deck of the airship ferrying Bryce and the Pharaoh back to the Auracian Sky-port, Bryce stood on the deck of the ship overlooking the vast sea between the neutral Island nation of Nogoorsa and the Eastern Continent where their respective Kingdoms reside. A look of worry was awash over his face, as the Pharaoh joined him, “You seem troubled young king, for your first time at the Grand Council you did well. Rallying not one but all the Neutral parties into going to war with the South is impressive!”

“That's the thing Ammon, I mainly got them to agree with out of sheer bravado. I've been king all of three years and I've declared WAR.” Bryce's mood coming off as both panicked and terrified as he spoke to Ammon el Maa, “Whats my wife going to say?” he said his eyes bulging out of fear.

Ammon let out hearty laugh, “If your Jessel is still the Spitfire I remember her being when you two got married then I'm sure you are in for a hell of an ear full when you break the news.”

Bryce's mood began to lighten as his fellow leader made light of his panic, even as fresh on the throne as he is Bryce had shown great promise at inspiring his people, and knowing how many of them wanted this war to end made this only easier. But Jessel, Jessel had always been stubborn, especially when it came to the war. Her father had joined the peacekeeping movement as a Field-smith shortly before her wedding, but when communication between the Southern front and the Auracian Kingdom went dark she began to fear for the worst. She believes that going to war and sending more and more young men and women would only end up killing them.

The airship flight took little more than a few hours before coming in at the Auracian docks. A small squadron of knights awaited Bryce, a small regiment of decorated soldiers, armoured lightly and equipped in small arms. As Bryce left the airship a chill went up his spine, as a second squad of soldiers came toward him, in escort formation. Upon reaching Bryce the front of the group separated to reveal Jessel, clad in a pale white dress embroidered with golden thread, her arms adorned with bracelets and bangles encrusted with precious gems, atop her head her crown laden with rubies and diamonds, the official stones of the Auracian throne. Her hair flowing in the wind as she rushed towards his side, taking hold of her beloved husband and king. Her grasp on him was vice-like and passionate as if she had not seen him in years.

In a sincere and happy voice she said, “Welcome home.”
HOLY CRAP, its done! To ring in the new year, a new chapter! this would've come out in December but I got hit with exams, Christmas plans and New years parties. There was just a metric Tonne of distractions for this chapter but its finally done! 

I do hope you guys enjoy it!
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