At the king's palace, Prince Alvic Wolff cast a distraught gaze upon the vast lands, through his chamber's window, that stretched far and wide for him to see in just one sighting.
The kingdom was beautiful in its own ways but his eyes burnt with an insatiable rage. He wished to see it all burn, every bit of it. The pain he felt was to much for him to bear, the self loathing had him on the edge of a mighty cliff. Why does he have to hold it in of all people? Wasn't he a prince of this great kingdom? Then why does he feel less than a lowly commoner? He pondered deeply, gazing onto the setting yellow sun.
But he couldn't, could he? His dearest departed mother was always kind enough to remind him that when the time came, when he was to bestowed the crown of becoming the king of Aldia, he would come to protect the kingdom and his subjects. With her words still fresh in his mind,the mere thought of going against her wishes were becoming heavier on him to bear, but his pent up rage consumed him way more fiercely than he would have imagined.
The kingdom and it's people, they all needed to feel his pain , the insatiable anger of a prince, of an orphaned son. As the sun got swallowed by the far as the eyes could see mountains, darkness began to creep into the kingdom,and into the people's hearts. His darkness was far darker than theirs as he slowly brought the curtain of his bed chambers window down.
Now it was dark outside the palace, but inside the vastness of it,lanterns burnt brightly, flickering about. Away from the prince Alvic Wolff's sleeping chambers, to the royal palace eating chambers,the King, king Hernius Wolff,was seated at very end of the dinner table, with burning lanterns hanging on the palaces wall, flooding the chamber alight.
The palace stewards hurriedly set the royal table for the king's evening meal.On the table, long as a serpent,laid before him a bottle of wine,a roasted seasoned duck with herbs stuffed in it and some freshly baked bread, cooling inside a woven basket. Vladd stood behind his king, like a kingsguard should,as he ate his evening meal. The seats were void of any breathing soul, apart from his, and the mere footsteps of the servants walking out echoed within the large hollow palace. Here,he ate in silence, chewed in silence and drank his wine in silence. For neither his daughter nor son were present to flush the hollowness out of the eating chambers,as he stared at the empty seat, while gorging down a chunk of duck's breast, at the other end of the table where his wife, the Queen, once sat.
It had only been two days since she had been laid to rest but her laughter was already greatly been missed. He felt less of a king. His joy was sound asleep, the only joy he had left. She would make a good queen of the land, he thought. After all,she had her mother's eye's and radiant smile but the rules of the land, the long unbreakable law was to be followed. No daughters were to be coronated as the rulers of this great kingdom. His heart was now only for his daughter and no other.
"Vladd!" King Hernius Wolff called. "Yes, your highness!"
"Is that son of mine still in his bed chamber?"asked the king.
" He is, your highness,"answered Vladd. The king signed, staring blankly at the flickering lantern, deep in thoughts. "Vladd!" King Hernius Wolff called again.
"Your Highness?"Vladd responded back.
" From tomorrow morning,i want you to take charge of the prince training,"king Hernius Wolff explained," teach that runt of a son on how to hold sword, how to strike."
"Yes, your highness,"replied Vladd. The king had thoughtfully decided on his lousy of a son resolution. He needed to toughen him up to merit the throne and the crown. Even he,his father,feared for him if they were to see or hear the vulnerability in their king.
"One more thing Vladd!" King Hernius Wolff said. "What's it, your highness?"Vladd asked.
" Don't go easy on him. Break an arm if you can,man him up,"the king commanded." If he weeps, hit him harder, until he comes to relish his pain,is that understood Vladd?!"
" Understood sere!"answered Vladd. And the king went on with his gobbling as the lanterns burned, flickering about. The bigger moths fought against small and weaker moths for the lanterns warmth. Even they too feared the darkness outside the palace safety, for in the darkness the once feared witches who dwelt under the cover of darkness, had now risen from the shadows, after centuries of hiding, fearful of the dread mother and Queen.
For both of them,the once greatest hinderances aganist them,were no more. In rapturous jubilation, they yelled calling out to their sisters that their reign over the mortal men was now within their grasp..
In the kingdom's darkened sky, the hollowness of the moon and the dimming light of the wreathed stars brought with it the eerie laughter of the witches. For in that moment, they came flying, riding on the back of their familiars. They were no more than three of them, in they went to wreck havoc on the capital. As they rode, seated solemnly on their demonic creatures and the king's subjects,on hearing the loud harsh cawing and screeching, were instantly thrown into a fray of confusion and disarray. In fear,they ran shouting as the frightful witches approached, along with the barking of hounds filling the near suffocating atmosphere.
"Witches! Witches! Witches! Run for your lives!Witches have returned!"
One after the other, they scrambled for a safe place to hid, horrified by the incoming demons. Inside the cloth closets or under their beds, anyplace was for takes, for they'll feared their wrath and despicable ghoulish tendencies.
From the young to old, they'll took to their heels,as the capital bell rung continuously, warning them of the impending danger;the witches. None was spared, neither in the nobles echelon nor in the royals echelon. Vladd on hearing the clanging sound of the bell, and after having excused himself before the king, dashed out from the eating chamber,only to get wind of what was happening from one of his men,the lieutenant of the king's sword, Ezenn,of the situation happening outside the palace walls. Alarmed, Vladd rushed back to the eating chambers, to break the news to his highness, the king.
"Your Highness,it seems the capital is under attack!"said Vladd.
" What!"exclaimed the king, hastily putting down his silvered spoon." By whom?"
"It's the witches, your highness, they've returned and are attacking the capital as we speak,"reported Vladd.King Hernius Wolff on hearing these,his appetite seized immediately.He became terrified more than he wished to show.
"Get my daughter!"commanded the king. Frightened,he hopped up to his feet. His chest heaved up and down as a cold sweat rolled down his cheek with his heart beating louder and louder.
"Yes, your highness!"replied Vladd. Vladd swiftly rushed to the childs royal chamber, where it slept,in it's crib, under the care and watchful eye of a wet nurse, Nanny Maggy. On reaching the child's chambers, Vladd hurriedly picked it up but not without informing the Nanny as not to alarm her.
After having picked it up, and laying her close to his heart,Vladd hurriedly went back for the king and together with his daughter they went into hiding. Deep down the royal palace, there was an underground dungeon, used almost over many centuries ago for the safety of the royal family,with a tunnel dug across the kingdom, if there was a reasonable threat on the king's life; a safe passage leading to the outskirts of the kingdoms capital.
The prince,having been awakened by the cawing , screeching and wailing, haggardly gazed into the sky through his opened window. And there he saw the three figures in the sky, riding on giant birds of sort. It was dark, and the prince couldn't make out much in the heated tensions,as his subjects ran for their dear lives in fear of the impending danger. In that moment his heart raced and a thin sweat rolled down him, trembling in shivers. As they flew in to pounce on their prey,the royal palace guards were swift on their toes,securing every inch of the king's castle and more than ready to take on the enemy once they attacked. Armed to teeth, they held their guard, to the very last man.
Upon landing in the kingdoms capital, the witches with the aid of their familiars, brought down the tower housing the humoungous bell, tearing it down into a well-known merchants cottage, crumbling it down as well. One of them rode on the back of a giant crow,with its menacing eyes, keeping watch for any promising prey to hunt.
"Where are you hiding, so called mighty men of Aldia?!" the crow riding witch called out, yelling. She wore a dark hooded cloak, three of them did,with a long wooden staff on her right arm.
" Ha-ha-ha... They're just bunch of scared cowards,sister olga!" another mocked. She was a red headed witch. Her familiar was a vulture. A gigantic vulture. Last of the three sister's and the youngest of the three.She was, the master of giant raven,an enchantress. Sitting solemnly on her raven, curiously wondering of their whereabouts with no living soul seemingly on site. She desperately sought to bath in their blood ,to smoothen her parched shriveling skin...
"These men do know how to hide!" Aleg admitted. She was the quietest of her two sisters but deep down they knew her all to well. Her savagely ways were more vicious to theirs. Aleg only sought to be entertained by the so called men,by fighting and ripping them to shreds. Olga and her younger sister hated to admit it but they too had a fear of her. Aleg was not normal even for them.
"We better let our familiars search for us,what do you think sisters?" Olga asked.
" Fine by me. I'm too impatient to wait any second more," Aleg agreed. Upon agreeing to follow their older sister advice,the three of them dismounted from their familiars, jumping down onto the closest cottage's rooftops. In unison, they all gave their orders each to her familiar,to dismember into multiple of themselves.
"Dismember,my heavenly familiar,into murders!"olga screamed, sharply. Next to give her order was younger of the three,elga.
"My murderous familiar, dismember into wakes!" Elga barked too. The last to give her order was the youngest,Aleg. She slowly stepped forward,with a murderous grin that scared the wits out of her sisters.
"Fly into the throbbing blackened skies,my monsterous raven and dismember into thousands of unkindness!"Aleg roared.
And there,as they flew up to the sky, the scary monstrosities,flapping their gigantic wings, in a blink of an eye,dismembered into thousands of familiars,cloakng the sky with darkness. Soon after dismembering,they instantly shifted back to their usual normal size; Small enough to land on their Masters shoulders.
"Go, our familiars, and bring us prey to devour on!" the three sisters,in unison, ordered.Each of their familiars, in thousands,flew out in search of prey to present before their Masters.
At a distant, heavy rumbling of horses studs galloping could faintly be heard. Coming from the king's palace,a party of ten,they were an elite class of calvary, who had been forged for these kind of monsters. Among the riders,on the back of a black stallion, was the captain, infamous to the witches but revered as a hero by all Aldians, racing against time. His blood rushed, and his lips dry, for not only were the witches anxious for a kill but he was the maniacal of his kind.
He rode as fast as he could, leaving a cloud of dust in his wake, hopeful that the witches wouldn't departed before having tasted the coldness of his blade.He came to be known as a villain in witches stories, told to their slothful children to scare them into honing their magic prowess. He was, Captain Jakk Huntsman,the witch slayer,of Squad One.
In a nearby tavern, the owner and his wench hid under the counter as wakes of vultures dove first into the tavern. They shook , huddled in each others arms, mumbling to one another. Their loud screeching noises drove them mad as they begun to rummage through the place, searching for a prey to take back to their Master.
"Boss," the wench whispered,"what are those monsters?" Her boss,a man of around forty-five years, with a rough beard, embraced her tightly.
"Shh...keep your voice down," her boss warned.He was particularly petrified;i dare not say it, soiling himself in fear,further shaming his manliness.
"But boss!" She inquired, whispering.
"You will have us eaten, Alyce!" he barked,in the heat of the moment. And as sharp as their nose,the vultures got wind of their preys hiding place. And the boss, on noticing that he had raised his voice in rage,now feared the worst was going to happen to them. The wench too knew her end was nigh. Flying and some walking,they begun to advance towards the direction of the noises. As she held herself tightly onto him,not willing to let go, the vultures flooded the roof and some on the taverns counter. The owner of the tavern, unable to hold it back,popped out under the counter holding a bottle of grog,as he swinged it about threateningly. In rage he swung it towards the vultures, hitting on impact, as the glass bottled grog shattered into bits, spraying all over the place and some onto the vultures. But the hordes of vultures were undeterred by such meaningless rant, while the owner threateningly lit a torch holding it firmly and resolutely.
"Get out of here and leave us be!" He shouted,"or i will burn you monsters to bones!." But they were hearing nothing of it, his wench still hiding under the safety of the counter.
"Depart from my tavern!You monsters!" the owner yelled. Heavens knows they cared less of his antics as they slowly closed in on them, screaming murderously. With their eyes on him,they flew in numbers. In panic, he swung the lit torch, onto the highly flammable grog, lighting it up on the very second it hit down. The fire instantly spread all over,burning everything it touched along with the grog drenched vultures,as they screamed and screeched in pain while the others moved forward unwilling to let their prey out of there sight.
On seeing less remorse they had for their incinerating brethrens,the owner was at the end of his wits as his treasured tavern slowly begun to burn down before his very eyes. In numbers,they flew at him as they pecked and clawed their sharp claws on his skin. He desperately to flail his arms aimlessly in attempt to scare the vultures away from him, but to no avail.
Cursing and groaning,they continued to peck and scratch his ageing skin off, with blood dripping from his pecked head while his tavern wench watched , shivering,as her boss strugglingly fought off the hordes of vultures.She held her hand firmly onto her gob, letting not groan slip out.
On seeing her employer's gored blood and a piece of his ear on the floor,she whimpered .Her world was coming undone.
That moment, she thought of her departed mother and father, and her younger siblings back home, in the village. She had left her home for a job, in search of money to help fend for her younger brother and sister. Her dreams of a better future now seemed like ungraspable dream, whimpering, in horrifying view of her boss being flown away by the hordes of vultures, clinging onto him with their strong clawed feet, back to their Master. Screaming,the owner called out to his wench for help but she hid silently,unable to gather any courage to confront the hordes of monsters.
"Help me,Alyce!"He implored. But she was weak to stand up against the might of those monstrosities,she told herself.There and then,in hordes they flew out, screeching, through the roof of the tavern, caving in on their wake, carrying with them their prey. The tavern continued to burn down,with the barmaid still inside, hiding, as the capital drowned with the screams of its people crys for help .
Alyce watched the horror through the torn down roof , with hordes of familiars flying off with their prey away into the smoked filled skies. From the safety of the counter,she had watched her employer,her last stroke of hope, get flown away;in desolation she sobbed as a slimy mucus soon began to trickle down her itching nose...