"Be careful of Prince Angelus, my king. There is a fire burning behind his eyes, a fire that can make kingdoms fall," General Zard cautioned King Edmund. "He's a dragon who's not afraid to burn your kingdom to the ground."
"Himself with it if it means your ruin," The royal adviser added in shivers.
Angelus proved one thing to the king and his council; he was his mother's son and wasn't to be trifled with. In one night, he managed to cripple the city and back them into a corner.
"How do you suggest we proceed?" King Edmund asked the opinion of his councilmen.
"Release the prince and the queen, restore his title, and..."
"Angelus is a criminal. We shouldn't negotiate with him," King Edmund argued.
"Then you go and fight his assassin. I won't send any more of my men to be slaughtered because you can't get off your high horse and handle your son," General Zard icily expressed.
"You'll watch your tongue!"
"I'll do so when the blood of my men isn't being spilled for your family squabbles."
"I am more than Prince Angelus's father; I am your king!" King Edmund barked.
"Then start acting like it," General Zard fired back, unfazed by the king's temper. "You hate the queen so much and justify your hatred for her. But the two of you are more alike than you think," he spoke his mind openly to the king and his men. "Angelus has inherited the worst parts of his mother and his father. So before you command respect from me..."
"I'm your king; I don't have to justify myself to you; your job is to serve me!"
"I suppose you run your family the same way you run your kingdom. No wonder your flesh and blood seeks your doom," Zard let out, leaving the king speechless. "I'll take my leave," he stormed out of the throne room.
King Edmund felt General Zard's words prick at his heart. The man made no effort to spare his feelings on his failures with Angelus's upbringing.
He was a feather disguised as steel, and Prince Angelus reminded him of how easily he could be pushed around. King Edmund rested his head on his arm and stared at a point on the ground, his gaze fixed as Zard's words resonated in his head.
"How do we proceed, your majesty?" The royal advisor inquired.
"Give Angelus his demands and have him release the city within the hour," the king ordered.
"Yes, my king."
King Edmund dismissed everyone and sat alone in silence. He regretted neglecting Angelus and his siblings, that mistake made him feel deficient as a king.
He commands Sevigoria and expects order when his own house is a mess. Edmund sighed. He lost the respect of General Zard because of his ignorance, and he feared the others would soon follow.
Prince Angelus has proven a worthy foe and scared the councilmen. He possessed a fleet of twenty thousand men and wasn't afraid to take life and steal from everyone to make his statement heard.
"You underestimated Angelus," he heard and snapped his head to find Queen Rosalyn seated at her throne beside him. "I did, too; I thought him a child who needed me to navigate the harsh battlefield that's the palace for him," she added.
"How did he become so..." King Edmund had no words to describe what Angelus had become.
"He's lost his mind in love and I fear he'll never be the same again."
"What do you mean?"
"Angelus prefers the company of men," Queen Rosalyn reported.
"He's a man, so that's expected," King Edmund commented, not seeing anything wrong with it.
"He romantically fancies men, Edmund," Queen Rosalyn broke the news to him. "He fell in love with Lord Gael Vondrak. Because of me, Elveryn, Gael, and you, he lost him...and now I fear he'll never recover from the heartache."
King Edmund's jaw fell wide open. The truth was out, and suddenly, every piece of the puzzle fell into place, and he understood Angelus's behavior in the days that passed.
He remained still for ten minutes, processing the news of Angelus's sexuality and his feelings for Gael. It suddenly made sense to him why the boy was determined to have Mordred's head. Elveryn brought Gael to everyone's attention, and it ended with the man getting married to Princess Rose. Angelus attempted to even the score by costing Elveryn the man she loved.
King Edmund ran his hand in his hair in his frustration. Everyone was using him as a pawn in their fights, Elveryn used his affections for her to snatch Gael away from Angelus's reach, and Angelus tried to use him to punish Elveryn for her conspiracies towards him.
His head hurt from going through the events of the previous days. Elveryn achieved her objective but it resulted in provoking the demons laying asleep in Angelus's head and straining the little bond he had with his son.
King Edmund had to hand it to Elveryn; he never saw through her schemes and ended up playing her game.
"He has nothing left to lose and everything to gain. I'm scared of how far he'll go to fill the void in his heart," Queen Rosalyn admitted.
"You understand that his preference will cost him the throne, don't you?" Edmund asked softly.
"He's being cost the throne and no one is aware of his preference. So what difference does it make?" Rosalyn fired back.
"I only meant the people won't have him as king when they learn the truth. They might even demand his head," King Edmund explained.
"I doubt anyone who opposes him will live long enough to tell the tales of it or have a voice to ask for his head."
King Edmund recalled the lifeless look he witnessed in Angelus's eyes. In truth, his son terrified him, and more so now that Angelus had nothing to lose. The lack of fear in his veins made him a scary antagonist.
"Why are you trusting me with this information?" he asked, wondering why Queen Rosalyn would share Angelus's secret with him.
"I'm not trusting you with my son's secret. I am warning you of the wild tiger on the loose in your castle who is hungry for power and would do anything to obtain it," Rosalyn let out. She understood that she failed Angelus as a mother by taking his fate into her hands and costing him the man he loved. "Be careful not to get eaten. You and him are irreconcilable now, he won't spare you in his thirst for power."