Moving past the army of the dead, we soon reached a giant palace in the middle of the city. A single look and one could tell this place had seen better days. A large part of the palace had been carved through, destroyed; the once-unrelenting stone towers, which must have once stood tall and proud, now lay broken.
As we approached, several figures in armor came running out in our direction and helped us dismount. One of them took the horse from us, and the rest escorted us inside the opulent palace. Just like outside, the inside of the palace also lay destroyed—rubble, corpses, blood. These new figures guided us past all of it, through several halls and hallways, until we finally reached an underground passageway leading us toward what seemed like a dungeon.
Inside this dark, damp room, illuminated by only a couple of torches, stood several armored figures, all of whom straightened their backs the moment we walked in.
"You are here, Your Majesty; how is her Majesty? Is the Prince doing okay?"
The one at the front, a man with short black hair and a light beard dressed in silver armor, spoke before his gaze fell upon me. At once, his expression lifted as he hurriedly dropped to one knee.
"Hail, young prince of our realm!"
Hearing his shout, the others at the back seemed momentarily confused before their gazes also fell on my tiny figure, and they, too, got on one knee.
"Hail, young prince of our realm!"
"Hail, young prince of our realm!"
Everyone spoke in a jovial manner, and looking at how in sync they were, I didn't know how to feel. Normally, I would have been overjoyed if a group of people had simultaneously bowed in my direction. But at the same time, all the happenings outside had somewhat dampened my mood.
"You may raise your head. Now, where is he?
My father spoke, and all of them raised their heads. Somehow, the atmosphere felt a bit livelier than before. Was it because of me?Must be.
"We have captured Lord Xandor. He was hiding in one of the castle's hidden rooms. We found him attempting to burn his wife's and children's dead body. They had been poisoned from the looks of it."
The knight from before spoke while leading us further inside, through a dark and damp hallway, until we soon reached the entrance of a large steel door covered in strange symbols coalescing at the center, near the keyhole.
In front of the door lay the corpses of a woman and several boys and girls, none older than fifteen, dressed in silk clothes and covered in jewels. Beside the corpses sat a middle-aged man with long blonde hair, wearing a crown over his head. He was dressed in armor no less grand than my father's, yet he knelt on the floor, his entire body chained to the bone. Despite his restrained state, his eyes burned with fury, glaring at my father as though they could bore a hole through him.
Even I could tell this man would have attacked us already if not for the chains binding him.
My father walked toward him, stepping past several armed soldiers until he was no more than a foot away. "You should have surrendered when I gave you the chance Xandor."
He spoke in a low voice, but the man didn't respond. Instead, he let out a sneer.
"If only you had handed it to me when asked, you wouldn't have had to kill your own bloo-."
My father spoke again but was interrupted.
"DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK OF MY BLOOD WITH THAT MOUTH OF YOURS, YOU MONSTER!."
The man spat through gritted teeth before spitting at my father's feet.
"THIS WASN'T OUR WAR, IF ONLY YOU AND THOSE SNAKES HADN'T DRAGGED US INTO THIS."
"How dare you speak to His Majesty that way."
Someone behind us shouted, and the sound of blades being unsheathed filled the room.
"Stand down."
My father raised his hand, and the clashing noises stopped, followed by the sound of the blades sheathing themselves again. My father knelt down until he was face to face with the man.
"I remember when you used to say how one's family is one's most important possession. I used to laugh at you back then, but now that I have my own I understand."
He tenderly gazed at me and brought me closer to his face.
"Open this door, and you will reunite with yours on the other side. Otherwise, I'll make you regret not burning them down in time."
"YOU, DON'T YOU DARE!!!"
The man shouted through gritted teeth. I could see the fear creeping into his eyes.
"Listen." He took a deep breath. "I swear to you I do not know how to open this door, only my father knew he didn't tell me the way."
My father didn't respond and instead kept his steady gaze fixed on the man. Suddenly, a familiar chill spread through my back, and the man's eyes widened in both rage and terror.
"YOU BASTARD, DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH MY FAMILY, THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH ALL OF THIS ."
He began screaming, but my father's expression didn't waver. Beside us, those same shadowy hands and faces began emerging from the bodies of the woman and children.
"I WILL KILL YOU, DRAVEN VALTHOR; I SWEAR ON THE OLD GODS, I WILL HAVE YOUR LIFE. EVEN IF I HAVE TO DIG YOU OUT FROM THE DARKEST PIT FROM THE SEVENTH HELL, I WILL. I WILL.
The man's screams grew louder, and the chains rattled as he struggled to break free, but his efforts were in vain. Soon, four shadowy figures—a woman and three children, one girl, and two boys—stood atop their corpses. Their eyes were hollow and devoid of any life.
The man's shouting ceased when he saw them, and it was as if all the life had drained from his body. He collapsed onto the stone floor, only the slow stream of tears down his cheeks and his labored breathing indicating he was still alive.
"Put him in one of the cages, he will be coming to Silvercrest with us."
My father finally spoke, his voice cold and calm, then slowly stood up. He turned toward his men and addressed them.
"Bring in Lord Nox and the rest of the court mages; I want this door opened before we leave." He pointed at the gaunt man before walking towards the exit. Glancing down at me, he spoke again.
"I will protect you, always and forever." This time, his smile felt hollow, unlike the one he wore earlier when we were riding through the corpse-littered city.
"No matter what."
He placed his second hand under me and began gently cradling me as we exited the dungeon together.