"Your blood is the key, Colton." A woman wearing decorated steel armor stood in front of the head warden, explaining to him further on the contents of the letter he held.
She was the royal guardswoman and royal mage of the king, appointed as his bodyguard after proving herself in many battles. Her helmet rested beneath the left arm revealing silver hair with a red streak on the side, a mark of excellence in battle by those above her, an award given to only a few warriors.
Cells surrounded them on both sides, filled with prisoners convicted of different crimes, all arrested under Colton's leadership.
"After observation, it seemed the portal specifically wanted you as one of the people to enter through it." She explained.
Colton nearly blended in with the dark hallway, because of his long dark cloak that consumed his body with a set of keys resting on his waist, jingling as he moved ever so slightly. A warhammer rested on his back, swaying and barely hanging on his back by loose leather straps.
Colton looked down at the letter, reading it further, it explained that his presence was needed as one of the few to enter inside the portal and discover what could lie inside it. He was shocked. As the head of the kingdom's dungeon that housed hundreds of petty to hardened criminals and defense minister to a person chosen by the king himself to be brought to him.
"We found a manuscript from the deep depths of the archives, apparently the portal only allowed people who descended from whoever lived on this land before us, that's all we could understand."
The Warden looked up, now with a face of confusion after hearing what she said.
"Calliope. This must be a mistake-"
Calliope interrupted him. "There is no mistake, the king, royal scholars, and I have concluded. An odd event with the portal made it clear that you, me, and a few others must report to the king at once. Do not worry, another will take your stead."
A sense of fear ran in the warden upon hearing that statement, having lived his life to protect the kingdom, its families, and create a safe world unlike the one he once lived in.
Reluctantly, he replied. "Very well, for the king and the kingdom." His voice slightly quivered as he attempted to sound as confident as possible to the royal guardswoman. Just being in her presence gave off a sense of unease due to their harsh reputation, and the letter only added to the fear.
Not being able to gaze at the letter any further, he put it in a pouch strapped to his waist. Calliope glanced at his pouch for a second before turning around and walking away, expecting Colton to follow behind her.
They continued down the hall for a few minutes until a beam of light came into view from above, piercing down from an opening of a wooden hatch to the cold stone stairs. After walking near to the slightly opened wooden hatch, a team of guards hastily ran in front of them, pushing it open for the clear blue sky's heat to slam down on them.
Immediately heat rushed through their metal armor making movement slightly more irritating. The two put their hands above their heads to block the sun while exiting the underground dungeon.
After taking the last step out, Colton was shocked at what was in front of him. A row of royal guardsmen stood to the sides, their iron spears pointed upwards with shields planted in front of them on the dirt ground. A stone wall surrounded the entrance, manned by archers and normal guards who observed it. The kingdom's dungeon, housing hundreds of prisoners.
"A carriage awaits us outside." The large metal gate that separated the order filled city from the scum of the underground prison slowly opened, screeching as it continued.
After it was fully raised, they left the dungeon. A small sand path leading to the carriage guided them. Buildings high and low stood beyond the carriage, obscuring most of the sky unlike the open dungeon.
The royal guards marched behind them, heading to a small herd of horses tended to by a few of their own who were left behind to make sure none of them go loose.
Colton and Calliope finally entered inside the carriage, and in a few seconds, it began to move.
The two sat opposite of each other inside the furnished and beautifully designed carriage interior, with enough space for their bodies to sit comfortably without problem. Behind them, the soldiers escorted the carriage, keeping pace with it while they made their way down the stone road.
"From what I have gathered in the manuscript, it supposedly contains knowledge that none can comprehend no matter how much they try. That only its own people can read and understand it. The only odd thing I have seen is that none of the other scholars could read that part of the manuscript, Only I and two others could." Calliope explained further on the portal and manuscript, continuing to provide information and starting a conversation to pass the time.
Colton stayed quiet, thinking to himself of the possibilities that may come, although afraid that he had to leave his position and have it replaced by someone else, he tried to keep a confident look to not alert Calliope, as Colton knew what kind of person she was. A soldier who despised unwillingness to commit to orders and deviations.
He and Calliope were good friends due to their past of fighting together in the army before becoming higher ranked servants of the kingdom, although they rarely saw each other, their friendship still lingered,
"How are you so sure it picked me?" He suddenly spoke, feeling a sense of regret after the last word left his mouth.
"The portal came to life, and showed the faces of a select few people, then some ancient text glowed above it, deeming them the only ones that may enter. One of them was you, and me." She answered quickly with little delay.
The ride went on for a few more minutes as they moved across the kingdom streets to their destination that lay in the middle of the kingdom. Along the way, the sound of bustling streets and loud markets could be heard, it was just the first few hours of the morning and already the liveliness could be felt.
Poor to middle class and even some nobility could be seen from the windows, going about their daily lives. Without any fear of crime nor pickpocket.
The sight of the people made Colton smirk for a split second before turning back to Calliope.
"In other news, I went outside the walls to your hometown the other day. I made sure to say hello to your mother and father before leaving. Was just there for patrols anyway." Upon hearing mother and father, Colton felt more relaxed.
"Thank you." Colton had felt fear for his family in the mining town after hearing past reports of bandits outside the kingdom along with other smaller nations preparing to fight the kingdom. Being away from the safety of the walls, he only hoped that the outer guards could protect them from outside threats.
The carriage came to a halt, away from the loud ambience of the public and now in front of the king's castle, the sound of metallic boots slamming on concrete ground and a gate closing shut was all they could hear now.
A pair of royal guards from the horse escort opened the carriage door, Calliope exited quickly with Colton hastily joining from behind. Upon exiting the carriage, he stood in awe of the castle, seemingly reaching to the clouds of the sky with towers on all four sides to oversee the entire kingdom, soldiers armed with bows and pikes moved around to patrol all perimeters from the ground to the rooftop.
The castle walls were smoother but thicker than the ones Colton always saw in the dungeon and outer walls, decorated with statues of prominent figures and leaders of the king's military, on the edge of the rooftop, banners hung down bearing the symbols of the armies below the king.
All with a purple canvas background to signify their riches and power. Colton recognized many of them. Some were veteran armies that even he once led during a few skirmishes, while many he only knew the existence of.
A group of guards rushed in front of them, preparing to open the fortified wooden door that led to the inside of the palace itself.
"Much has changed since the last time you were here."
"I can see that." The two continued moving, Colton continued to look in awe, back then the castle was merely a basic protected abode for royalty with nothing spectacular, but now it was decorated and heavily changed.
Scents of complex aromas of plants and herbs immediately flew out of the opened doors as the soldiers pushed it open, inside. A row of guardsmen, more decorated than the ones outside, stood at attention. At the very end of the line, the king sat upon his purple cushioned golden throne with a stone wall behind him adorned with statues of soldiers or the king himself.
Large windows shone bright light down, almost blinding Colton as it reflected on the armor of the guards. While small cups of burning plants hung by string on different parts of the castle. Supposedly to help with the king's declining health.
Upon looking forward further, Colton saw three people kneeling before the king, none wearing the armor of royal guards.
"Those are the other three I mentioned on the way here." Calliope motioned her hand for Colton to follow behind.
As they reached closer to the king's throne, they joined in kneeling before him.
The king ruled the land since the days of chaos and unrest, a few years before Colton was even born. Colton only managed to speak with the king on a few occasions, mostly being given letters by him on how to conduct affairs of security.
He took off his crown, leaving it to rest on the arm of his throne. Looking down to the group, he nodded his head after realizing all of them were present.
"Stand." The king ordered, his voice was weak but he still held a tone of authority.
"As you may have been told by my Right hand," He looked at Calliope before turning back to the group. "You have all been selected for a task that shall aid the kingdom greatly. And explained further by my Right hand, you will be given what you desire. Money, fame, all that you wish for. I am grateful all of you have agreed for this special task."
The king stood from his chair, his long silk robe dragged across the floor while moving towards the five.
"The portal lies underneath this castle, follow me." Turning to one of the royal guards that protected him, he motioned for him to move. Quickly the guard rushed to the right side of the wall, inserting a key in a small hole that Colton did not notice at first glance.
After a short moment of wait, the right section of the wall began splitting in two, opening outwards, revealing a dark stairway down, lit up partially by a few torches on the walls, leading down below. The smell of moist stone and moss hit their noses.
The stairs descended into darkness below, absent of light and life.