Hear ye, Hear ye

(r. undefined – undefined)

Hear Ye, Hear Ye

“We’ve received several reports that the bandit faction seems to be regrouping mi’lord. In all fairness, it was already evident by the recent attacks on the internment camps.”

“Agreed. That horde of filth is definitely on the move to Maedwin. We have to fortify the city in the next few months if we are to ever survive such an onslaught!”

“Yes, an onslaught that would purge my nation before they even reach yours.”

The constant arguing between men in the royal hall muffled the young woman’s voice as she sat there irritated by their troublesome noises. It should have been expected, after all, she was the only woman there on the table of ambassadors, let alone being the only elf.

Coughing as if to grab their attention, the young women attempted to raise her voice but was startled at the sudden slamming of the table by another ambassador who was sitting not too far from her. Her teeth clenched and her eyebrows narrowed, she had given up with this assemblage of unfair pigs who thought that they were making a difference in the world by complaining to the king of Aedania. Oh, how she pitied him, watching him slump back on his throne whilst he fiddled with his fingers, ignoring all the commotion going on before him. It must’ve been hard to run a country during a time like this whilst having to hear the bleating of high-class sheep, all clothed in rich garments and fabrics in an assortment of different colours.

Looking back at the rowdy group of ambassadors around her the young woman grunted, deciding to slam her hand on the table in front of her with great force. A loud slam echoed through the halls yet it wasn’t like the one from before.

Finally, complete silence among the men.

“My good king. I humbly ask that you spare me a few minutes of your attention here but it seems that all who are in this court are completely wrong about the problem that is currently relevant to the times we are in. The bandits are not our primary concern here.” she insisted.

Whispers arose from the group of men around her, some of them looking irritated with the young woman’s proposition.

“Oh yeah? And why is that?” A voice snickered.

The young woman looked over to see who it was before returning her attention to the king, taking the man’s words with a grain of salt. She was not going to be interrupted in her desperate cry for help from the royal government.

“Because… This infestation that has taken over the northlands could have dire ramifications! Reports say that the infestation has started to make it’s way from the icy caps of Helheim down to Zeroth where it would reach us before those bandits do-”

“Infestation? Bah! You wizards are only being paranoid. A simple infestation is not enough to take down the almighty kingdom of Aedania!”

“Hush now ambassador, let’s keep all this in perspective. Even if this infestation does pose a threat to us, then what do you propose that we should do?” A firm voice boomed from the throne.

Everyone in the room was surprised to see the king interfering, something he has refused to do for quite some time after the business of clans of bandits uniting together to destroy an entire kingdom arose. The young woman smiled, pleased to hear the king’s voice defend her proposition.

“Ahem. Well, it is simple good king. As you know with the Kingdom of Gleanna, we have already begun preparations for a complete quarantine from the said virus. I’ve collaborated with my superiors at the Qilin Horn and they are more than happy to help the Kingdom of Aedania with placing the many villages and towns under strict quarantine.” She offered hesitantly.

The king did nothing but look at her with an intimidating piercing gaze, forcing the young elf woman back into her seat. Sighing loudly, the king pulled himself from his seat, grunting from the struggle of old age that had weakened his body over the years of ruling such a land. He was disappointed with the thought of putting his people under more pressure, with the recent taxes and the impending invasion of murderous bandits ravaging the land.

“I will NOT institute quarantine without proof of your claims young ambassador. I know in this stance you are speaking for the wizards of the Qilin Horn and not the people of Gleanna. But I’ll have to remind you that I must take the people of Aedania first as your kingdom has its own problems to deal with. The people of this kingdom have already suffered enough without becoming a prisoner in their own home.” The king declared, his booming voice echoed through the royal halls for many to hear.

Only silence would follow after, prompting the king to contemplate in that quiet moment to look over the ambassadors who represented the lands that aided the Kingdom of Aedania.

A single laugh however from the shadows quickly broke the silence just as fast as it began.

“And yet prisoners they are, kind king.” Several voices called out in unison.

“What is the meaning of thi-”

“Humanity is in peril. All sentient life is in peril. A war between creation and destruction is about to commence, and soon the whole world is about to be thrown into it as the centre field of this massive battle. Listen to me, the only hope that you have left for your people good king is that you must travel west, past the seas of mystery and to a land known as Ishgar.” The voices called out again, this time with a sense of urgency in its message.

The king and his guests were astonished by their sudden intrusion, they couldn’t think of how to react to such a message but to disprove it, taking it as nothing but blasphemy. All of the men in the room kept their voices down, looking at each other with cautious expressions. But from the silence, the young woman stood up from her seat and opened her mouth.

“Travel West? Isn’t that the place where the bandits’ headquarters are? If we were to move our kingdoms to the next continent we would sure be repeating the same mistakes of the first and second war of invasion and conquer. We are people of the new age and we have learned from our mistakes.” She angrily shouted back at the mysterious voice.

A hmph noise came from the king, prompting the woman to sit back down to allow the king the spotlight.

“I don’t know who or what you are, but I doubt this is the appropriate time for confounded whispers from cowards who hide in the dark. Our lands are beset by turmoil, but its protection falls rightfully to us, and us alone who are to make the decisions for the safety and well-being of our people. You have no part in this, begone!”

The voice laughed once again at the king’s remark. This time, however, the laugh was flavoured with disappointment and regret. One by one, the voices of a woman, a man and a child spoke after one another, words pronounced in different pitches and tones. Their voices distorted and jumbled, screaming and whispering, happy and angry. No same expression was used for the same word.

“Foolish. If YOU will not heed MY warnings then I shall FIND another WHO will.”

“I have ALREADY FAILED my kind before. I shall not fail them AGAIN.”

“Idiots! Why WON’T you listen?”

“Humans ARE so incompetent…”

“THE warning HAS been given!”

“Their FATE is now their OWN.”

While the King wasn’t any more interested in this as the other ambassadors, the elven woman wanted to know more about this situation. But as she attempted to call out to the voices, a strong force of white light struck the room and blinded those within it. As it dispersed along with the voices, it left many in the room feel uneasy.

“By the spirits… What was that?” An ambassador called out.

No answer, no reply, mostly because no one in the room knew what it actually was. But one thing was clear, this was definitely done within the works of magic. All eyes in the room turned to the young elf but she was just as bewildered as the rest of them, she slumped back into her chair, she didn’t know how to exactly process this.

''”Strange. Why would it ask of us to make a home in the land of our enemies?”'' She whispered to herself. As the king turned his attention to the young elf.

“Christine, I need yo-”

“Don’t worry your highness, the Qilin Horn will definitely look into this case.” The young elf interrupted before the king could finish his request.

Pulling herself from her seat and removing her presence from the table of ambassadors, the young woman hurriedly made her way to the door leaving the king and ambassadors to discuss the recent situation at hand.

“Grand Magus Aeron will have to hear of this…”

 To be continued...