Kingdoms End

At the town of Mareda, inside the Lord of the town’s castle, Lord Chuck Berron and his council had just completed making plans for how to sneak the ruling family out of the town. The town’s 20ft wall, the soldiers on it and the soldiers outside it, were all that kept the invading Borduuf troops at bay. Lord Berron knew though that all Borduuf needed do was send reinforcements and they’d take the town. Lord Berron was a fighting man and was physically involved in repelling each new attempt by the enemies.

The Lord was coming out from the conference room now, his three advisers following behind him. They moved to the Lord’s hall, where he saw his visitors and people. When they entered the hall, they found the Lord’s four children and his stepdaughter waiting in there. The three young ones; Amita, 6, Henrik, 8 and Helios, 9, ran to their father and hugged him, while his eldest, Eliza, 13, approached slowly. His stepdaughter, Lizandra, 15, walked beside Eliza.

“What are the plans for our escape, father?” Lizandra asked. Lord Berron smiled at the girl. He loved Lizandra like his own children and always referred to her as “My firstborn.” The girl was dark-skinned, like her true father, light brown in complexion. Her mother had been of light complexion and that made Lizandra’s skin to be a little bit lighter than that of Lord Haavik. The girl was beautiful and Lord Berron was very proud to have had the honour of bringing her up himself. Her mother was the mother of his children and that was all he saw of it. The girl had come into his house when she was six. Her mother had hid her existence from the man for some years, but someone had eventually told him and he was not angered by his wife’s immoral past. He loved her, no matter what; all that mattered was what she is and not what she was. Now that his wife had passed away, Lord Berron made sure to take care of Lizandra like his own children. The child called him father and the name never sounded better to him coming from any other lips. It hurt the Lord a little that his wife never let Lizandra take his name. She insisted that the girl keep her own last name (That is her mother, Claire’s last name.)

“Will you not first hug your father?” the lord asked back. Lizandra and Eliza ran into their father’s hands laughing. The lord wrapped his arms around them and smiled broadly. “Your father and the council have made plans for your safe transportation to the capital,” said one of the advisers, a female of the Vinish race. The Vinish were a race of bright red skinned people with black patterns all over their bodies. The advisers name was Lady Kella Stargic and she was a good friend to Lizandra. “What’s the plan, aunty?” Amita asked the Vinish. “You need not know the details,” said Lord Berron, picking little Amita off her feet. “All you children need to know is that I will see to your safe transportation to the capital,” he added. “And you, father?” Lizandra asked and all the kids looked at their father expectantly. Lord Berron smiled down at the children. “Why don’t we sit down to the first happy meal since Borduuf’s soldiers came to our lands,” he suggested. Eliza and Lizandra didn’t fall for the trick, but the other kids did.

“Can we have caramel apples?” Henrik asked. “Most certainly,” the lord replied. “And crushed nuts soup?” Amita asked next. “Whatever you want,” her father replied. Lizandra and Eliza glanced at each other, knowing between them that their father was keeping secrets.

“Come with me, firstborn,” said Lady Stargic, placing a hand on Lizandra’s shoulder. “Let us go and coordinate this grand meal your father spoke of.” Lizandra followed the royal adviser toward one of the exits. “A meal like this one, will be ready quite late into the night,” the adviser said as they went. As they went, Lizandra looked back and found Eliza looking at her. The stepsisters smiled at each other, then Lizandra exited the hall.

It was late into the night, 01:32 hours to be precise, when the setting of the table was finally done. Lizandra was the one who came into the living room and announced that the meal was ready. Besides her family members, there were some dignitaries present in the room. Lord Berron had invited them to the meal. They were celebrating the news from the capital that soldiers had been dispatched to come and assist the town. This nightmare would be over by sunrise tomorrow and the nobles of Mareda were glad to hear of it.

Everybody rose and moved into the door opposite that of the living room. That door led into the grand dinning hall, with a thirty-seater, marble table as the centrepiece of attraction. The table was covered in dishes of all sorts, a rather artistic display of foods. Lord Berron sat at one end of the table and his first son, Helios, sat at the other end. Everyone else took their seats, then the lord of the town rose to his feet.

“I have invited you here to celebrate our little victory over the big Queendom of Borduuf,” he spoke and the people applauded him. “Three days ago they came to our town, believing us an easy target, but some easy we turned out to be, huh?” Again the people applauded their lord. “Mareda will go down in history as one of the greatest towns under the Queendom of House Halel. Long live the queen!!” “Long live the queen!!” the guests replied, raising their glasses of wine to the ceiling. “Long live House Halel!!” the lord yelled next and again, the people repeated it. “Now, let us eat and make merry.” He sat down now, Eliza to his left and Amita to his right. Lizandra was next to Amita and both girls were discussing excitedly. The place was filled with murmurings and chattering, the typical sounds of a happy celebration.

It was about three minutes into the feast, when the doors to the hall swung open and the Commander of Lord Berron’s army rushed in, followed by six soldiers. The commander came to the Baron and turned to the soldiers who’d come in with him. “Clark. Mark, stay here. The rest of you, go and join the others. Defend the castle gates!!” Two of the six soldiers stayed back, while the other four rushed out of the hall.

“The castle gates?!!” Lord Berron asked, shooting to his feet. “The Borduufites had a small group within the city walls and they just struck at the gates from within and without simultaneously. We held them for awhile, but the force from without was too great and the gates fell,” the commander explained. “Bring me my blade!” the lord yelled and a soldier came forward with a massive, sheathed sword in both hands. “Father, what’s wrong?” Helios asked, coming over to where his father stood. “Kella?” the lord called the Vinish adviser. The lady immediately came to her lord’s side. “You must help me bring these children to the underground car park,” he ordered and the Vinish lady nodded in reply.

The lord turned to his guests. “I must send my children from the town. I hope you all have been able to do the same and wish your children safe journey to their various destinations,” he explained. One man amongst the guests rose to his feet. “The people of Mareda forever stand behind House Berron. Lead your children to safety and we shall die if that is what shall see to their safe delivery to their destination.” The man pulled his sword from his sheath. “I give my sword to protect House Berron. If anyone needs me, they will find me at the castle gates with our soldiers.” Without waiting for any reply or thanks, the man exited the hall. Another man got to his feet, drew a gun in each hand and left the hall also. So it was, the guests at the the marble table all rose and left the hall to go and defend their Lord.

“Do you see what being a good leader gets you, my children?” Lord Berron asked with pride. “We should go now, my lord,” the commander spoke. “Come along,” said Lady Stargic, taking Eliza and Lizandra’s hands. Lord Berron lifted Amita and Henrik in his arms, then the party moved toward the exit, joined by the two soldiers whom the commander had earlier asked to stay behind and the other fifteen soldiers who’d been safeguarding the hall during the feast, including the one who carried the lord’s sword.

Lord Berron and his party came to the main doors to the castle and as they cane out unto the top of the front steps, they beheld the soldiers and nobles standing behind the gates, ready for the enemy. The gates were being rammed from outside and though marksman and archers atop the wall, rained down projectiles on the enemies without, the ramming never wavered in strength. Good men and women were being shoot down from the wall by the invaders and it hurt Lord Berron to see this.

The Lord of Mareda handed Amita over to one of the ordinary two soldiers and Henrik to the other one. “Take them to safety, Kella,” he told Lady Stargic, then drew his broadsword from its sheath in the hands of the soldier who bore it. “Father, no!” Lizandra yelled. The man looked at his stepdaughter’s face and smiled. “You must take care of your siblings, my firstborn,” he told her. “No, father” Eliza said next, breaking free from Lady Stargic’s grasp and going to hold her father. Lizandra broke free also and wanted to hold her father, but a soldier grabbed her from behind and lifted her unto his shoulder. Two more soldiers did the same to Eliza and Helios. All the children began crying and struggling, while their father just had one tear run down the right side of his face. “I’m just glad that I had the chance to see your father’s people come for you, my firstborn,” he said, stroking her left cheek once, then turning to head down the steps. The children wept and struggled as they were being borne down the steps.

Lord Berron was just twenty feet away from the steps when the gates gave way with a loud boom, followed by another loud boom from a section of the wall to the left of where the Lord of Mareda stood. The people at the gates could deal with the soldiers at the gate, Lord Berron had to deal with those coming through the wall. He turned to the blown in wall and the recognised the red armor they wore, with the big “H” on the front. They were Bruttites, House Haavik’s elite troops. As the soldiers spread out, two men dressed in noble casuals were revealed. Lord Berron recognised the two men, one was the man who’d come asking about Lizandra the previous day and the other was Lord Greg Haavik, the other last surviving Haavik. They were friends and Lord Berron was so glad to have them; especially with their elite soldiers.

Linus ran up to the top of the steps, where the kids were being held and he immediately had the soldiers let go of them. “Follow me,” he told the children, grabbing Lizandra’s left wrist. He dragged Lizandra and Lady Stargic had the other children follow him. Lizandra was dragged past Greg, who was meant to be her father, but she noticed that he didn’t even spare her a glance.

As the kids were led past him, Greg went up to Lord Berron. “Let us help you and your family to the capital,” he offered and Lord Berron smiled. “Perfect timing, Lord Haavik,” he said, but Greg just grunted in reply. Greg turned to go and Lord Berron followed him, while Bruttites went to aid in defending the gates which the enemy had already knocked down.

Once through the hole in the wall, Lord Berron could see some Borduufite soldiers dead in the street near Lord Haavik’s convoy, while the Bruttites had a perimeter set up around the cars. There were soldiers at the guns mounted on the military type SUVs. The kids were gathered next to one normal SUV and upon seeing their father, they ran to him. Lord Berron let his kids hug him. “Get into the car,” he ordered them and they moved to obey, but he held Lizandra back. “You should ride with your father,” he told the girl, “Your true father. I have to stay back and fight by my people. You saw how willing they were to give their lives for us. You understand my actions better than your siblings, my firstborn.” Lizandra looked at Lord Haavik and saw him get into one the SUVs in front of the one into which her half siblings were climbing. She looked back at Lord Berron and he smiled at her. She hugged him once more, then turned and went toward the car containing her birth-father.

Lizandra got in the backseat of the SUV with Lord Haavik and he just stared ahead, not even giving her a glance. His skin was of the same light brown color as hers and that was the only sign he gave that they could be related. She turned and looked out the window, just as Linus got into the passenger seat, in front. She saw Lord Berron watching the cars and knew that he couldn’t see her through the tinted glass. He was the only man she’d known as father all her life and didn’t wish to see him dead, so she turned to her supposed true father.

“Sir?” she called, placing a hand on Lord Haavik’s upper, right arm. Greg turned to the girl and so did Linus, from his seat in the front. “I would like it if you could go and help my fa..... I meant stepfather,” she said. Lord Haavik said nothing about the request, just nodded and turned to Linus. “Bring her safely to the the manor and take care of her if I do not return..” “As you wish, my Lord,” Linus replied. “Linus?” Greg called. “Yes, sir?” Linus answered. “Ensure the continuity of my family in my absence,” he said. “I promise it, my friend,” Linus replied. Without saying a word to Lizandra, Lord Haavik exit the vehicle.

The two cars containing the children drove off, sandwiched between two military-type SUVs. Lord Haavik was left standing next to Lord Berron. One Bruttite brought a sword case to Lord Haavik and held it open before him. Greg collected the beautiful, blue sword inside the case with his right hand, then raised up his left hand to look at a transparent ring on it. “Pu emtri,” he chanted in a low tone and the ring lit up with a dull, yellow glow. “Now, let us see off our Queendom’s enemies,” he said, then turned and went back into the castle compound. Lord Berron turned and followed the man from the capital.

Lord Haavik walked briskly toward the fight at the gates, two Bruttites flanking him on each side. Once he got to the fight, he was rushed at by a Borduufite soldier, sword in hand. The man swung and Greg parried, he thrust, but again, Greg parried. The soldier came at Greg a third time, swinging at his legs. Greg brought his own sword down, from above and the soldier had to leap backwards, abandoning his attempted strike. The Borduufite drew a gun now and fired at Greg, but Greg just brought up his left hand and his yellow ring generated a shield of yellow energy, which absorbed and destroyed the bullet, with no harm to Greg. The Borduufite man knew now that he was fighting someone he couldn’t easily win, so he put one hand to his earpiece. “I have a magic-wielding opponent before me,” he said. “Be advised, there is at least one mage amongst the enemies.” The soldier let go of his earpiece and took a battle stance once more. Greg opened his still raised left hand and yellow lightning generated from the ring, shot out at the soldier. The soldier used his sword to block the oncoming blast and by the time the flash made by the lightning meeting metal was gone, Lord Haavik was right before the man, the tip of his blue sword sticking out from the man’s back.