[Author Note - Do not forget to vote for me at the end of this chapter]
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The army of the kingdom of Nubia was considered one of the best in the world. It was an extremely well-trained army, with remarkable discipline and camaraderie. But their skill set had not been put to any use since long as most of the kingdoms never dared to touch Nubia.
But today a small section of the Nubian army was going to probably taste a bit of blood. They shined their swords which had gathered rust inside their leather scabbards and tightened its hilt for their master Nubeous was going to address them soon.
The armoury had gotten back its life.
'Clank'
Went the swordsmen, as they practiced their moves.
'Shoosh'
Went the archers, as they honed their skills to hit the bull's eye.
The air around them started smelling of metal as new swords were being fashioned out of the hearth that was spouting flames of fire.
But suddenly as they heard the royal trumpet being blown, they assembled in attention. Their bodies glistened with sweat even though it was just hours after the sunrise as they had been toiling hard. But as the sound of approaching footsteps started intensifying, the air all around started freezing and in came their master. The great master Nubeous..
"Master !!!"
The pack of soldiers hailed him and bowed in front of him.
Nubeous slightly lifted his hand and silence prevailed.
"Today, I call upon you, the mighty men of Nubia, for today, is the day when we would rule over the realm of the soul. This day on, you will be remembered as the makers of the new history."
"Hail master Nubeous !!!"
Master Nubeous raised his arm up to silence them again and said,
"The metal has been located near the cropland of Ambracia Village. Dig up the entire cropland and bring in any metal that you find underneath. We have already burned the village down, but there might be some survivors who will fight against you. There might be some un-natural forces from the forest of the forbidden too. But remember, you are the Nubian Army. You shall trample anyone who stands in the way. Make me proud !!!"
Then without waiting for even an extra second master Nubeous marched out of the armoury. As he reached near the corner of the artillery wing, he saw Balthazaar coming from the other side. He looked frail like a withered autumn leaf, but his eyes still looked sharp as ever.
"Master !!!" said Balthazaar and bowed slightly.
"What brings you here Balthazaar?" asked Nubeous out of curiosity.
"I am here to tell them about some traits of the metal so that they do not waste much time. As I said earlier master, we don't have any time."
Hearing his reply Nubeous got a bit curious because last night also he had asked him to rush everything before mid-day. He was very well aware of how Balthazaar felt about him so he couldn't understand why he was so eager to help him out to obtain the metal.
"It seems more than me, you want to procure the metal as early as possible. What are your real intentions Balthazaar?" Asked Nubeous glowering at him.
Balthazaar looked up deep into the eyes of his master and said,
"Becasue I seek the safety of the throne keeper."
And then he walked ahead after giving another bow to Nubeous.
'One more day... I need to bear with you for just one more day...' muttered Nubeous to himself and walked out of the armoury and went back to his tower to find out the status of the mold that was to be used to make the body of his new ring which would encase the soul stone.
A few minutes later when Nubeous was inside his royal chamber he was informed that the troopers had started marching towards Ambracia. A smile etched on his face and he went towards the window to have a glimpse of the new future that was awaiting him.
The sun had perched up high in the sky that day like it was raining gold. He looked up at the sky and chucked, for he was soon going to cloud it with a flick of his finger.
With complete power in the soul realm, he could be the God whom people would fear and revere. With just the power of soul stone, he was invincible but with the new soul ring, he would redefine what God meant. His chuckle soon turned into a grating laugh that echoed through every grain of the building.
But soon his smile was wiped out from his face when he saw Balthazar coming out from the armoury. He was looking in the direction of the troops helplessly, praying to his forefathers and God, to not to agitate Morpheous, for he had seen what wrath he had brought upon. The safety of master Nubeous was the only way with which he could have a chance to bring back the power of God.
He knelt down on the ground and with whatever remnant power he had left in his arms, he carved on the palace ground with his index finger.
"Ad astra per aspera."
[Through adversity to the stars]
Nubeous felt that there was something odd with the behavior of the old man that day. And in the quest of power, he became so blind that he couldn't see that in the entire kingdom Balthazaar was the only person who was really rooting for Nubeous, but he thought otherwise.
So he did something that changed the course of events.
He called the keepers outside his room and said,
"Imprison Balthazaar for a day. Put him in the north-west dungeon and make sure that nobody knows." Then taking his royal seal he placed a mark on the opposite side of the right palm of one of the keeper and said,
"No one will stop you if you show this sign."
As the keepers left his chamber to act upon his orders, he looked outside the window and saw Balthazaar still kneeling on the ground. He let out a gasp of air from his mouth and said,
"I will not let even a twig come in my way today."
But little did he know that Balthazaar was the angel who was supposed to guard him 'today'.