Emperor Ch. 01

"Ryland, you're early. Months early." King Naimak turned toward his son. Rising from his victim, Naimak began to pace.

Cwen slowly returned to reality as a familiar voice swept through her consciousness. She peered up from her position on the floor, her eyes keenly fastened to the dark-haired prince she had known from his time as an ambassador to her late father's court. She regretted her rejections of his past advances and now wished she hadn't judged Prince Ryland for the gashing scar across his face. 'Would he try to save me now had I been kinder?'

The Prince frowned. "I rode for two weeks straight. I thought my father would need my expertise of the city since I once was his ambassador, too."

"You negotiated a peace with Adjani's middle provinces, didn't you? I warned you when you negotiated Sentia's surrender. I shouldn't have expected better from a bastard born. I should have killed you when you were in that whore's womb.

"After penetrating and conquering Zale, Adjani's most fortified city, yes, I was able to negotiate peaceful terms with the others. Taking nine provinces with only forty thousand men would have been a failure."

"My one failure was sparing your throat. I thought a scar across your face would be enough to teach you the consequences of disobeying me. It was not! You were not to negotiate anything. You were to exterminate everything, except the gold."

"Zale's gold is secure. I also found Adjani's hidden treasury reserves that no one else could," Ryland pleaded.

"I'm taking command of all eight of your legions... Leave before I end you."

"Wait..." Ryland paused, then bowed. "I'm sorry I displease you, Father, I'll do better."

"Tell Udolf to take your legions and ride to Zale. He needs to do what you were supposed to do. I'll deal with you later. Now leave me to finish her."

"Yes, Father. I'll tell Udolf, but you should know I'm not weak."

"A Bourjonian never spares a life and never compromises or negotiates a peace. We kill and steal. That Seal of Peace you championed outlived its usefulness after I got enough gold from the deal and built one hundred legions. If you weren't my only son..."

"Would it please Your Majesty if I killed the princess I once loved? Would that prove me worthy?"

"You don't have it in you. Now, go tell Udolf to destroy Zale and leave me to do what you can't. Go now, boy, now!" Naimak roared.

"I'm going to kill her first," Ryland said, pulling out a bow and arrows and targeting Cwen.

As blood trickled down her face, Cwen took a deep breath, resolved to meet her fate.

A yellow-toothed grin sprang up on Naimak's face as Ryland jerked the bowstring back, closed his eyes, and mouthed a silent prayer.

'God protect Alexander and deliver him from evil,' Cwen thought inwardly, praying in preparation for the end. Her eyelids sealed tight, her heart racing, and her lips quivering, Cwen heard the reflexes and swooshes of arrows fly by her. Seconds later, she heard a yelp: "Bastard! You shot me... Guards!" More bellowing followed as six more rapid rounds reverberated. Cwen panicked and ran her slender fingers over her nakedness. She was unharmed!

Cwen parted her eyes slowly. She gasped upon seeing Naimak on the ground with seven arrows sticking out of his chest; the downed King began crawling toward his armor and sword on the other side of the room, a crimson trail behind him. Prince Ryland gripped his holstered sword as he walked toward his father's downed body.

Hope filled Cwen, only to be dashed when King Naimak's knights filled the throne room and stationed themselves along the walls like ancient statues.

"Ki... ll... him... idiots," King Naimak murmured. Then he gasped for air and begged for help. "Udolf... kill him," the King ordered. Not a soul stirred to attention. Cwen's hope rose again as Udolf's earlier words explained the knights' inaction.

Still crawling toward his sword, Naimak fumed defiantly, "Udolf!" he bellowed. Naimak grinned bloodily. "Udolf... I'm glad... glad I killed your brother... and his entire family!" Blood shot from his mouth with every word.

Ryland removed his armor and watched Naimak crawl toward his own displaced sword. Now evenly void of armor, Ryland grasped his sword.

"My prince—I beg you, the legions beg you, the people beg you—finish him now. Don't take off your armor and fight him like equals," pleaded Udolf. "Only you can do this. End him, don't underestimate him." A chant of "End Naimak," echoed from the legion ranks.

"I'm not him, Udolf. There has to be some basic fairness in all things. Expeditious wickedness in the name of good doesn't defeat evil, it simply masks it. I wounded him. The rest will be just and equitable."

Udolf said nothing more, holding his tongue at bay. He tightly gripped the handle of his sheathed sword, standing on the ready preparing for the worst result.

All watched Naimak crawl on his side toward his sword. He eventually reached it with his right hand. He then struggled for minutes to find his footing. Summoning the strength, the wounded King rose to his feet.

With the arrows still protruding from his unarmored chest, Naimak began to balance himself. "Bastard!" he yelled." I've never been defeated in battle. I'm going to keep you alive long enough to skin you to death."

Ryland charged his father, holding his sword high before slicing Naimak's right shoulder. Naimak stumbled, moaned in pain, and swayed back and forth before attacking with his sword in his left hand.

"Weak, idiot. You should have killed me when you could," Naimak taunted as he struck deep into Ryland's rib. Ryland responded with quick stabs to Naimak's belly and groin, forcing Naimak down. Falling, Naimak struck Ryland's gripping fingers, causing the Prince's sword to drop.

Udolf jumped to attention.

Ryland waved him off. Downed, Naimak smiled, swinging his sword at Ryland's feet. Ryland jumped and pinned Naimak's sword to the ground, his foot crushing Naimak's fingers. Ryland then grasped the arrows he had shot into Naimak's chest and pushed them in deeper.

Taking hold of Naimak's neck, Ryland simultaneously choked him while pushing the arrows in deeper, with each inward push the bodkin points ripped through Naimak's vital organs. Naimak's limp body fell further to the ground and laid flat as his frame twitched. Naimak's eyes shuddered and then closed. The King was dead.

Finally, Ryland removed his father's sword from his dead hand and slammed it into his heart so hard it exited through his back, breaking into the floor below.

Hundreds of knights immediately kneeled to Ryland.

"Long live ..." started Udolf before being cut off by the unanimous proclamation of "Emperor Ryland." Udolf looked on hopefully at his knights as they all yelled those same reaffirming words, over and over again.

Ryland's frame swayed over the body of his slain father, Ryland's eyes and ears stung with elated shock. "Good," he muttered to himself, his mind now a bubble as everything around him was momentarily inaudible; deaf to the chants of imperial fealty.

Crippling, spiraling pain ripped through his rib cage, shocking him back to reality and duty. "Udolf, Adjanians are to not to be enslaved or harmed. They are to be respected. This country will not be purged. A new Seal of Peace is to be enforced. Food is to be brought in from Bourjon and Sentia."

As Udolf started to leave, Ryland felt the striking pain in his side, forcing additional orders. "The Adjani gold," Ryland said, gritting his teeth, "the Adjanian Gold I unearthed, distribute one quarter to my new citizens and another to my men, my legions."

Looking at Naimak's lifeless body, Ryland made his final pronouncement. "Hang my... Naimak's body in the city square, so Adjani anger can be directed where it appropriately belongs."

"Right away, Your Imperial Majesty, immediately," Udolf said.

The pain in Ryland's side grew worse, causing him to stumble as he walked. Knights quickly rushed to his side. Looking at Cwen, he ordered her to be covered.

In a minute Cwen stood draped in silk, now walking toward Ryland, a knight pulled out a sword stopping her. Ryland waved the sword away and the knights as well as he found his footing again before backing away.

"What will happen to my sisters?" Cwen said, avoiding the mention of her brother.

"This scar really does misrepresent me," he said. He touched his scarred face. "You and your sisters are free to stay as you were, or go where you please with all necessary coin and protection."

"Thank you my—"

"Shh," Ryland whispered. "You don't need to appease me. I spent years watching nothing else but you. You don't need to pretend you care for me, either. I like you as you are: strong willed and honest."

Ryland clutched his pained bleeding side, while his legs collapsed, causing him to fall onto Cwen's weakened frame, knocking her to the ground, dislodging the necklace she had hidden in the strands of her plentiful blonde hair. The now imperial knights rushed over to aid their new Emperor. The quick move of Cwen to hide the jewel went unnoticed in the moment's panic.