"Mom, hurry! Let's go!"

A child, fairly new to the world jumped out from the back of the moving carriage. His hair speckled with dirt, ruining the sheen of his blonde hair.

"Lu, don't go too far, we're trying to get some of the clothes I've made into the market by sundown."

She sat in the cart, overlooking the small child dashing haphazardly through the thickets beside the dirt road.

"Let the kid do what he wants, he's at the age where he can do many things."

"Age? Just look at him! Do you think he can survive out there, I just wish they'd remain the same."

"Nothing stays the same darling," looking to his side to see his wife down, moving his broad hands over her head to pull her closer.

"Everything will be alright, this is just the passage of time, for it is the God's doing we must watch."

She stared silently at the coachman, presumably her husband.

Lu, returned shortly after, branches and patches of mud spewed all about as he climbed back on the back.

The trail brazen in the open area, where trees were sawed and lumbered for.

Numerous carts in front and behind, a caravan of natural sorts for the transportation of goods across the lands. Best to scare off bandits wherever due to numbers.

All the carriage horses pulled up the large hill with the labor of pulled cargo.

Lu watched on, staring amidst their destination, his eyes widened no further can be with the new sights behold.

The caravan had been traveling almost two days, they were evidently going to be extremely close to the journey's end.

Hamlets spaned throughout the misty valleys, a mountain with unimaginable heights, speckled with white and grey was seen far out the distance. Far off the road were large fields of crops with unimaginable yields. Fully ripe and ready to harvest.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

But what caught his eyes wasn't the flora and fauna, but the high castle that stood at the vast center. Stood behind the great castle of vast heights were small packed foundations for buildings.

The castle was seen to have time standing still, the high walls of stone, the high spires that point directly towards the heavens. Even the outer walls paled in comparison in terms of heights.

"Enjoying the view kid?"

Lu turned around to see another man riding just behind them by tens of feet.

He bobbed his head with great enthusiasm as if his head was going to rip off his body.

"Isn't she a beauty? Called Orithyne, the city of old. But would you like to know a secret?"

A pace full of curiosity ready to face the world and all of its glory was nearly radiating from his face.

"Do you know of the tale of the Dark King?"

"Of course I do, I'm not dumb!"

All kids knew of the story, a group of heroes who stopped an evil king's rule.

"Well did you know all of it is real? And that castle over there is proof! This was the city that the Dark King started his crimson reign."

Lu looked stupefied at the city, the city he believed once was beautiful. To find out that all the catastrophes happened to the city. Did the story not recite that the heroes laid siege of the castle, why aren't the walls tattered?

"Don't listen to him, those are just nursery tales made by the parents for the young who don't sleep by the curfew."

Lu's father eavesdropped the conversation between a stranger and his son, deciding to join in before the man talks more strange ideas unto his son.

The stranger didn't seem to care as he shrugged it off.

"Suit yourself."

The man slightly flinched as a shadow from inside the man's cart fumbled around to his side, undetected by others.

Right ahead of the caravan was a pronged road, one leading towards the main city of Orithyne and the other leading to nowhere.

"This is where we part ways! See you child, hope you go far in life."

A slight whisper was snipped at the end.

"If you survive."

Lu caught on, not understanding what that just meant.

He sat down into his seat and tried remembering the tale of the Dark King in depth.

Milleniums ago, where no gods were alive at the time lied a kingdom of heretics ruled by their Heretic King. Benefitting from the absence, he ruled with an iron fist, killing those he believed was a threat to his lineage.

He was an embodiment of true sin, envisioned by all around.

But the birth of a new era came with a raging storm, the birth of the Seven Avatars. Made to represent their gods who've they had chosen to wield their power.

With the combined efforts by all, they were doomed for failure due to his powerful nature. But with swift action, the Queen of the kingdom took initiative and stabbed him in the back, ending the battle once and for all. Thought to be an unfaithful wife, she was the avatar of the father god of the seven, becoming the head of their church and the ruler of the new Kingdom, set to revive the belief of their gods.

Lu looked at the city once more, the high walls that stood alone in the empty valley where solitude could bring one to mention. How could such a large battle of valor and vicious nature partake here of all places?

The year was 321 of the New Brion Calendar, the start of change and the beginning of the ascension.