Nazareth, Imperial Capital City, Craigavon
Craigavon was the largest human city, measuring over five miles in diameter. A fifty foot wall surrounded the entire city, forming a large irregular shape around it. On the western side of the city stood a magnificent Palace, built with refined cobblestone, quartz and marble. The Palace was seated at the center of a large courtyard that was intricately designed with gravel pathways, green lawns and beautiful landscaping.
There was a wide moat on the outside of the Palace keeping it separate from the rest of the city. A drawbridge would have to be used to gain access to the main gate.
Currently, General Lius had led Asclepius and his men to the back gate of the Palace which was heavily guarded. There was also a moat and a drawbridge at this rear entrance.
As soon as the Guards saw General Lius approaching, they all stiffened and straightened their postures to perfection. It was evident how terrified they were of the man. It was also evident how much they respected him from the looks in their eyes.
A higher ranking guard stepped forward and greeted. "Welcome back General Lius."
Lius nodded and looked up at the chamber on the wall above the gate. "Did they not see me arrive?" He asked.
A bit flustered, the guard quickly rushed back to the moat's edge and yelled. "Open the gate!"
A guard's head momentarily appeared above the edge of the the wall before quickly vanishing. He rushed into the chamber and soon the drawbridge started to descend.
Inside the chamber, the terrified looking guard was operating a pulley whilst looking at two other guards who were sitting at a table. "The moment we decide to play some dominoes something happens. We've been standing watch and nothing-- all of a sudden General Thornius shows up."
"You better hope he didn't hear you call him that." One of the other guards said to him.
The guard quickly tightened his lips and put all of his focus into operating the pulley. He truly hoped General Lius had not heard him.
Soon the drawbridge fully descended and the gate was opened.
The six horses entered through the gate and trotted toward a training ground where soldiers were practicing archery and swordsmanship. In a corner of the training ground, there was a stable with a few horses inside. Lius and the others dismounted at this location and handed the horses over to a stable boy.
"You can return to your posts." Lius said to the guards who had accompanied him.
The guards quickly left and returned to their usual duties.
"Follow me." Lius said to Asclepius as he walked towards a corridor in the distance.
Asclepius picked up his medical bag and followed after him without saying anything. He simply glanced around as they moved through different regions of the Palace. Based on his memory, a lot of changes were made to the place since he'd last been here. Some were improvements, whilst others were detriments. None of that was his concern however. He only wanted to quickly meet the king and then leave, returning to his peaceful life.
After ascending several flights of stairs, they ended up walking down a wide hallway that led to a large wooden door. Outside the door there were two guards who greeted Lius as soon as he got close.
"General Lius, sir!"
Lius nodded. "You know the drill."
One of the guards seemed hesitant as he said, "Um, sir, the king... well he already has visitors."
Lius raised an eyebrow. "And?"
"Right, uh..." The guard said in a fluster before motioning to the other guard to help him unlock the door. In a flash they unlocked and pushed open the door.
As soon as the door opened, Lius's expression immediately drooped.
"Ah, General Lius." A voice came from a person inside the chamber. "I was wondering who was so audacious to enter when I'm visiting his majesty."
Lius entered the chamber, followed by Asclepius.
Asclepius's gaze locked onto the man who had just spoken.
The man was buff as an ox and nearly seven feet tall. He donned an exquisite black fur cape above the black armour that he wore. He was bald headed but had a thick beard and mustache covering his lower face. His eyes were bright and sharp, as if they could see through anything with just a glance.
"Draggunov Titan." Asclepius muttered as if it was a must that he mentioned this man's name.
Who was this man you ask? He was the Head of the most powerful noble family in Nazareth. The Titan family. Their family was so powerful that they were responsible for protecting five entire provinces on their own.
Majority of other humans only depended on enchanted weapons to fight against threats of beasts and other races. The Titan family however, practiced a special meditation technique along with body tempering methods that allowed them to surpass the so called limit of human capacity. They were beasts of men.
Draggunov looked at Asclepius as he heard his name being mentioned. His sharp eyes studied him for a moment. "And you are?"
Asclepius was a tiny bit surprised that Draggunov did not recognise him. After all, he was labeled a traitor for the attempted murder of the King. He locked gazes with the man, "Doctor Asclepius Stormfrost."
Draggunov frowned slightly. His pupil shifted back and forth between the two men. "Are you the traitor who put his majesty in his current condition?" A frosty aura seemed to encompass the room as he spoke.
Asclepius felt as if a wild savage beast from the Zabal Mountains was staring at him, ready to snuff out his tiny light. He did not cower however, and replied, "I am the saviour who can possibly remove him from his current condition."
Draggunov's frown deepened. "You did not answer my question. Are you--"
"Stop!" The King's weak voice interrupted from behind.
Draggunov turned to look at the King.
"Now isn't the time to argue amongst ourselves. Back then, I made a rash decision and I am now looking to find out the truth." King Mitris looked at Asclepius. "My old friend, please, come closer."
Asclepius walked over to the King's bedside and knelt beside the bed, placing his medical bag beside him. He wasn't kneeling to the king, instead he had just lowered himself to check on the King's condition.
Asclepius did not greet the King either and just immediately began assessing his condition.
Both Lius and Draggunov frowned, yet the King himself didn't seem to mind. He was intending to speak some words but remained silent as Asclepius studied his symptoms and condition.
The king's condition didn't seem too optimistic. He was pale and his body was extremely weak. He would tremble from time to time as if he was extremely cold, but he wasn't. In fact, just by kneeling beside the bed, Asclepius could feel the heat coming from his body. He had a severe fever that would be impossible for an ordinary person to withstand. If the king didn't have a strong constitution and exceptional willpower he would have already died.
After some time, Asclepius stood up and said. "Trasitara Perifis." He looked into the eyes of the king and continued, "A traceless, odourless, colorless poison made from Demonbane Root, Death Weaver Venom, Heartcrushing powder among other things. Some of the ingredients are practically impossible to find, making this poison extremely rare."
"And you would know this how?" Draggunov questioned. "Only if you were the one who made it would you know its ingredients so well and even be capable of telling it was used by simply touching someone a few times and glancing at them." His expression darkened.
Lius remained silent as he was in agreement with Draggunov's analysis.
King Mitris was about to speak up for Asclepius but he was cut short by Asclepius himself.
"You're right." Asclepius exclaimed as he cast a sharp gaze at Draggunov. "I know how to make this poison. I know how to make it so well I can even do it with my eyes closed."
Draggunov and Lius were a bit surprised by Asclepius's statement. They were both wondering in what direction he was heading. Was this a confession?
However, his following words weren't what they were expecting.
Asclepius sighed. "I Became an alchemist because my sister was poisoned with this exact poison. My entire career was built with this poison as the foundation. I couldn't find an antidote to cure her so I searched until I found out how to make the poison and then, I tried creating an antidote for it myself."
Draggunov's dark expression softened as he listened to Asclepius's words.
Lius and the King also looked at him attentively.
Asclepius shook his head. "A poison like this isn't meant to instantly kill, it's purpose is to torture someone to death. Although the poison is slow acting it would eventually be fatal. After a few cycles, my sister; Medusa, was running out of time. I still hadn't gotten the antidote right even after so much time had passed. Till this very day I still haven't perfected it. When Medusa's condition was too serious to ignore, I started administering doses of my experimental antidotes. Nothing worked at first, but one day, she suddenly got better." At this point he suddenly paused.
Lius stepped forward almost impatiently. "Then, are you saying you have a working antidote?" He was slightly elated but also a bit doubtful.
"My sister had been recovering from the poison... But, something had gone wrong. A few days into her recovery, her hair started to drop. Then her nails also began splitting and dropping as well. In no time she was bald and nail-less. I tried my best to figure out what was going on, but I couldn't. She was alive, but she was changing." Asclepius looked at the king. "The end result... Is that now her fingers and toes are snakes, and so is the hair on her head. I saved her life... but I ended up turning her into a monster."
The expressionless Asclepius presently had an expression full of guilt. He would never forgive himself for what happened to his sister even if it wasn't his fault. It was a burden he would carry to his grave.
"Touching story," Draggunov commented. "That doesn't prove that it wasn't you who poisoned his majesty."
Asclepius looked at Draggunov. "I'm not here to prove my innocence. I already know that I'm innocent in my heart. I'm here because the king needs my help and I am going to try my best to help him. Your opinion is worth nothing before the King's decision to trust me."
Draggunov stared at Asclepius for a long while. Eventually he said, "Very well. His majesty has put his trust in you but I do not. Whatever antidotes you create has to go through me before you administer them to the king. If I'm poisoned whether intentionally or accidentally, I'll take you with me to the other side." He looked at the King. "Is that acceptable your majesty?"
King Mitris remained silent briefly, then sighed lightly. "That's fine." He looked at Asclepius afterward. "Old friend I'm sorry to put you in such an awkward position."
Asclepius wasn't bothered at all by Draggunov's request, neither was he bothered by the King agreeing to it. He was confident enough in his present ability to know if an experimental antidote was dangerous or not. Moreover, his entire career was built on creating an antidote for this poison. He was certain that the recipes he had formulated over the years did not have any adverse side effects.
"I'm going to need a few things brought in here." He raised an eyebrow at the king. "I hope I can make a fire in here? Most of the ingredients have to be heated or brewed."
The king nodded. "General Lius will provide you with anything you need."
Asclepius nodded and ruffled through his medicine bag. He then handed Lius a list on a parchment of paper. "I need everything on that list in order to work efficiently."
Lius quickly browsed through the list. "We should have all these things in the alchemy chamber. I'll have some guards bring them up."
"I'm also going to need some Potara Snakes. Specifically, living pregnant ones." Asclepius added.
Lius's forehead creased, remembering the story of what happened to Asclepius's sister. He looked at the king with uncertainty.
"Need I repeat myself?" The king asked.
Lius grimaced and shook his head. "No your majesty. I'll return with all these things in a moment." After saying this, Lius left the King's chamber.
As soon as Lius stepped out, a voice was heard addressing him.
"General, how is my father doing today?"
A moment later, Lius replied. "His condition is worsening by the day. If nothing is done soon... I'm afraid..."
There was silence.
Then a deep sigh was heard.
"I heard Lord Titan is here?" The voice asked again.
"Yes, he is in with your father right now, along with a... special guest." Lius replied.
"A special guest?"
"Just go in, you'll have all the answers before your eyes." Lius replied. Then the sound of departing footsteps was heard.
Shortly afterward, a handsome young man walked through door and entered the room. His expression darkened immediately when his gaze fell onto Asclepius. "You!"
****
Meanwhile...
In the Bamboo Forest, Andre finally woke up from a long and deep sleep. He slowly sat up and yawned as he stretched his arms. "I wonder if Craig already succeeded." He muttered as he got up and left his room, swaying from the effects of the lengthy sleep.