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RAIS Pov
To You I Promise
"
My love for you is unconditional and enduring.
To you I promise to always be reassuring.
My love for you protects you and is honorable.
To you I promise to always be faithful.
My love for you is understanding and passionate.
To you I promise to always be compassionate.
My love for you is thoughtful and cherishing.
To you I promise to always be devoted and caring.
My love for you is patient and kind.
To you I promise this always until the end of time.
My love for you is selfless and forgiving.
To you I promise this always, for as long as I am living.
My love for you is devoted and encouraging.
To you I promise to always listen and never be detouring.
I promise to show you, my wife, that I love you in all that I do.
I can promise these things because with all of my heart I love you.
"
By Danny Blackburn, October 2008
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The war.
Many believed that after the wars of the previous years, some people's thirst for power would finally be curbed. But who would have thought that just when the country was finally back on its feet, everything would collapse again?
After receiving the news of a new war, no one knew how to react. They were lost.
Many had lost their families, their homes, and their possessions... And now they were told this.
What were they to do?
Didn't they feel they had suffered enough? So why? Why was this happening again?
~~~~~~~~~~
"Your Majesty, an urgent letter from the Prince!"
"What is it, Gustave? I hope for your sake it's important." Gustave knelt before the throne and held out the letter,
"Read it for me," he asked, signalling a waitress with a jug of wine to bring him wine.
In the throne room, some nobles had come to consult the king about some of the problems they were having with the approaching war before Gustavus arrived and interrupted them.
"May the King live long-" Gustavus began, before being interrupted by the King,
"Get to the point," the King said, taking a sip of his wine. Knowing what the King wanted, Gustave quickly read the message and his face paled.
"My King," Gustave began, bowing to the King, "the Prince, in his letter, confirms the start of the war. The Kingdom of Rias has decided to attack from every possible direction, we are completely surrounded..." A glass shattered beside Gustave and he flinched. "They've had to retreat, several soldiers have been wounded and killed, so he's asking for reinforcements," Gustave continued, shaking,
"HOW CAN IT BE THAT WE ARE SURROUNDED ON ALL SIDES?!? Didn't he have enough soldiers with him, that disgraceful son!??!" shouted the king and stood up abruptly, "now he dares to ask for support?"
"Your Majesty, the other two kingdoms have decided to ally themselves with the Kingdom of Rias."
"Those weaklings, they don't even dare to attack us without an alliance..." the king said with a mocking smile on his face, "they will soon understand why we are an empire and not just a simple kingdom like them."
The King went to sit on his throne, "Go and fetch me, General Lucius, tell him that the King - no, the Emperor demands him," the King said to the soldier standing to his left,
"Gustave!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"Prepare for my coronation as emperor." Everyone in the room was shocked, Gustave quickly snapped out of his stupor and replied,
"Yes, Your Majesty!" The King signaled with his hand that he could leave and Gustave went to organize the preparations for the coronation,
" Slave! Bring me some paper and ink to my office. I have a letter to send to my dearest son," the King said with a smile, rising and leaving the hall with his ten soldiers at his side,
Who would have thought that my plans would come to fruition so quickly," he thought with a smile on his face.
2 days later
The King has been officially crowned Emperor, which wasn't difficult for him, as no sane person would dare disobey his orders under the effects of fear.
King Thomas Rose Clément OLZACK became Emperor Thomas Rose Clément OLZACK.
He ordered the other nobles capable of fighting to go and take part in the war.
From age 15, boys were 'invited' to participate in the war, and those who dared to disobey the King's orders were executed in front of their families. No one affected by the decree was spared the king's cruelty - well, the new emperor's.
The Emperor, for his part, took advantage of his new position,
"Gustave!!!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!" exclaimed the latter from behind the door of the Emperor's chamber,
" Come in," ordered the Emperor, Gustave stood before the door, put his hand on the handle, and said,
" Excuse me," as he entered the room, he was immediately struck by the stench that hung in the air, he resisted as best he could the urge to vomit his dinner and kept a neutral expression on his face...
"Raise your head!" the Emperor ordered,
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The Emperor's room was softly lit by a few candles, and Gustave's eyes fell quickly on the Emperor and then on what lay behind him. Suddenly he stopped moving.
The king noticed his strange behaviour and followed his gaze,
"Oh, she... she's the very reason I called you. That little pest dared to defy me, so I gave her the lesson she deserved". The girl was covered in blood and visibly naked, if you looked closely you could see her body trembling and if you listened carefully you could hear the faint gasping from her mouth as if she was about to draw her last breath.
The king turned to Gustave and said
"Find me someone else, get the servants to clean my room," Gustave's gaze fell on the mess on the floor, you'd have thought a hurricane had passed through the room, "and throw me, this pest, into the dungeon," the Emperor finished, walking past Gustave to his bathroom.
A sudden urge to vomit came over him again, but he managed to restrain himself.
Gustave heard faint moans coming from the Emperor's bed, he clenched his fists before finally making his way over to the girl, opening the last drawer of the sideboard beside the bed and pulling out a clean white blanket, covering the girl, and lifting her up. The girl moaned in pain as she slept, and Gustave looked at her face and felt his heart clench even tighter.
The girl was probably between 13 and 14 years old, about the same age as his two daughters.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3 days ago
"Mayeul?" called Marine from the kitchen,
"Coming!" she said, and we heard tiny footsteps coming down the stairs,
"Yes, Grandma?" Marine didn't know why Mayeul called her that since he had learned to speak, but it never bothered him, because technically she was.
"Go get your mother..." Marine said as she tried to get up from the chair by leaning on the table, but unfortunately, when she took a step she collapsed to the floor.
"NANA!!!" cried Mayeul as he came to Marine's side with tears in his eyes. Mayeul took Marine's hand,
"Mayeul, go and get her, please!" said Marine with difficulty, Mayeul understood the seriousness of the situation and nodded,
"All right, hold on Nana!" He left the house and started sprinting toward his mother's training ground,
Marine looked up at the ceiling, 'I need more time. Elisa, please help me. This will be the last time I ask you. Help me, my love.'
Marine then felt a warm sensation on her left cheek and whispered with a smile, "Elisa".
Suddenly the feeling spread throughout her body, "Thank you," she whispered again,
"Marine!!!" Lia said as Marine lay on the floor, she lifted her in her arms and took her to her bedroom. She laid her on her bed,
"Mayeul, go and get me my first aid kit."
"Yes, Mummy!" he said as he left the room,
Marine grabbed Lia's arm, "It's too late Lia and you know it."
Lia shook her head, "Don't be silly Marine, I'll have you back on your feet in no time," tears began to fall from her eyes.
"Carillia, please, you must listen to me, the power you possess can be a blessing or a curse in disguise, so know how to use it well. Never use it beyond your abilities, know when to stop, and never, oh never, use it for evil. You're better than that, Lia. Also, something is going to happen soon, and it's going to come as a shock to everyone, so you need to be ready for whatever happens and above all, never reveal your powers to anyone, except the person you trust the most, of course," Marine said, looking directly into Lia's eyes, who nodded and Marine smiled slightly,
"You know, these six years have been the best years of my life, along with the years I spent with my queen. Seeing you and Mayeul," Marine turned her eyes to the little boy standing in front of the door, a bag in his hand and crying, "growing up has filled me with so much joy. Thank you for everything, and I'm sorry..." Lia interrupted her,
"No, it wasn't your fault, Marine, everything that happened six years ago was never your fault. You're just another victim." Tears welled up in Marine's eyes and a small smile formed on her face.
"Thank you." Mayeul walked over to Marine's bedside, put the bag on the floor, and took Marine's hand,
"I love you, Nana. Say hello to everyone for me, Nana," Mayeul said, still crying, and Marine nodded,
Lia knelt and held Marine's free hand as well as Marine's,
"Tell them I greet them and love them for me too. And... I thank you and love you, Mother," Lia said as a tear dripped from her right eye, trickling down to land on one of the fingers of Marine's hand that she was holding,
"It has been a pleasure to be a mother figure to you, to have you as my daughter and you, Mayeul, as my grandson. I love you too," Marine said, whispering the last part of her sentence, "I'm ready, my love.
Her eyes closed.
A sudden peacefulness surrounded and covered her, and she opened her eyes to see her beloved reaching out to her from afar. With a smile on her face, she began to run and finally found herself in the arms of the one she had always wanted.
"Elisa!" she laughed, smiling tenderly at her beloved,
"You have been incredibly strong, my love, and thank you for holding on for so long. I know it hasn't been easy for you," Marine looked into her wife's face, her eyes slightly moist,
"And thank you for looking after my niece. I love you." Seeing her lover's loving gaze, a tear fell from Marine's eye.
"I love you too." Elisa wiped the tear away and gave her a loving kiss before resting her forehead on Marine's forehead,
"Let's go, sweetheart." Marine nodded and took Elisa's hand,
They began to walk, their figures shrinking more and more, stopping and facing each other, smiling at their youngest version before coming closer, their figures reverting to their adult versions before kissing each other again. Suddenly a white light surrounded them, but that didn't stop them from deepening their kiss.
~~~
After Marine closed her eyes, Lia's heart sank, and Mayeul began to cry for her grandmother, resting her forehead on Marine's chest,
"Nana!!!" he cried through several tears, but suddenly he felt light taps on his back and raised his head to look at his still tearful mother, who nodded at him to look at Marine.
Turning his head, Mayeul calmed down when he saw Marine's face, and a sad smile began to form on his face, the same smile that Lia had on her face.
Marine was peaceful, and there was a slight smile on her face,
"She can -hic- finally be -hic- happy, right Mummy?" she asked, looking up at her mother. Lia put her free hand on the boy's head and nodded,
Mayeul kissed Marine's forehead,
"Thank you, Nana."