The Bells rang out all along the city. Dark, moody and sombre. Most appropiate for the death of a King. And a fine King he was. In another time, another age he would have been perfect. A warrior, an expanionist, a fierce and stubborn ruler. But this wasn’t such a time. Revenge, conquest, war, all of these had to be avoided. For now at least. There were too many possible paths to destruction along those routes. Level heads and conservation was needed to keep the peace and harmony of the State alive. Avern had foregone his duties to his own kin for those living outside it’s inner ring. The people were important of course, to a degree. But the inner Houses came first. The Houses always came first. Without them there was no Kingdom, no State.

Farda joined in with the other Lords as they headed for the Council chambers. Lord Grendel was to his left and Lord Dren to this right. Together they would ensure Gorias’s future. The three of them, along with seven more Lords chosen to speak made their way to the central dais. The Seat of the King and his family lay empty.

He waited until all had settled in their respective seats. Nodding to his fellow speakers he took central stage.

“The King is Dead. And will be mourned. In his lact act as King he ensured Chairn was kept within our power and wiped out a Vampiri army which may have even threatened Gorias itself. A fitting final act for our Great King. It will not be forgotten. Nor will the manner of his death. They could not best him in battle so clearly the Vampiri decided they could only do so through treachery and deceit. Killing him as he lay wounded and alone. A terrible thing but one in keeping with their nature.”

Farda stopped and bowed his head, he waited, allowing a minute to pass.

“Our march was a victorious one. But it did not come without cost. 26 Chimeras fell in battle, each family will feel their loss. 292 Household guards and 2,870 men of our army all fell in our triumph. We will remember them all. But we must honor them by ensuring their loss was not in vain. To do so we must make Gorias’s future a bright one. We, all of us gathered here and now must be the ones to make that so. Our King had no son. But he did have family. His cousin Andol might have easily taken up his legacy. However fate would not have it so.”

Farda ushered Lord Grendel forward. It was important that the speaking was shared.

Lord Grendel took two steps forward, he bowed to the crowd, a gracious act.

“Andol Aristian, cousin to King Avern and next in line to the throne was badly hurt in the liberation of Chairn. It is with sorrow that he has been deemed unfit to rule. Andol was hurt badly whilst in his Chimera. My own men dragged his broken body out from amongst the dead. It was discovered that his head had been severely compromised during a charge of horse.” Grendel grimaced. “He will survive, but his mind is….not what is was. And certainly not capable of ruling a Kingdom. It would not be fair on us, or indeed on him. So we must look elsewhere. There is admittedly his younger brother Savar. He must be considered, though I must confess I have my reservations. I firmly believe that in our present state we must look to ourselves for governance. We have oft discussed the possibility of ruling equally within the Forty. A balanced and fair alternative to a solitary King. The Royal family has done much for this City and it’s tributaries. Now perhaps it is time for them to take a step back from the demands of public life. Chairn is already home to a second cousin of the Family. Let the others join him, they will be happy and treated with every respect and privilege within its walls. I am sure of it. We have also been in close talks with General Dagdan. It has been decided that he will become the new Head of the House and will hereby be know as Lord Dagdan. He will be put in place as the new ruler of Chairn.”

Lord Grendel stepped back beside Farda and Lord Ressan shuffled forward, his wounds had been quite severe after the Battle but as the oldest of them they needed his words to help convince the others of their new path.

“Lord Grendel spoke of the need to recognise a new order for Gorias to prosper. But in respect to that we must start as we mean to continue. We must act in accordance with the majority, to do so we must have a vote. And we must hear Savar’s side.” Ressan gave a signal and Farda waved up to the Royal box. The door was opened and four of the recently renamed Ascension Guard, led Savar inside. Savar strode in hurriedly. His usually clean shaven face and well trimmed hair given over to a rough and unkempt look.

“I see you have started without me. I was made to wait outside like some errand boy. Whoever is responsible for such an insult will pay for it. ”

The boy had a pluckiness about him Farda could not help but admire, had he not been such a stubborn fool he might have been allowed continue in some way within the city. He’d done well to survive the Battle.

“My Lords. I believe I am here under the pretense that I will be involved in some vote or other. That is what I have been told at least. Little else I might add. May I remind you that the Royal family…my family, built this city.”

Savar’s voice went from high to low and everything in between. He laughed down at them.

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“Each one of your precious Houses is nothing but an offshoot of my direct bloodline’s creation. I am your King, by every law and tradition we hold dear. To dismiss that is to dismiss our entire History. To dismiss Gorias itself. If you do so I will have you killed and your entire House wiped out along with you. Only those loyal, true Chimereans will be rewarded.”

Savar motioned to the guards alongside him. “Take Lord Farda and his fellow speakers away to the cells. I will deal with them and their families later. We need to discuss how we can gain revenge on the Vampiri for how they slaughtered my cousin. Our King. That is something which must be answered in kind.”

Farda smiled, calling for an all out war against the Vampiri was just the kind of decision which set people off of Savar.

No one moved.

Savar began to nod his head vigorously. He laughed but it was high pitched, forced.

“You traiterous scum. This is how you repay my family for its sacrifice.”

He drew his sword though his left arm lay useless in a sling. Despite the look on his face Savar made a pitiful sight.

“Royal Guards. No one leaves this room until have knelt before their new King. NO ONE.” He swung his sword as if identifying Farda and the others to the Ascension Palace guards littered around the Council room.

He knows, he must know.

Avern had taken 100 formidable warriors of the Ascension Guard with him. He’d also rather conveniently taken most of those most sympathetic to the cause of Kingship. Savar had been under guard by Ascension Guards wise to the future leadership ever since he’d forced his way out of the infirmary. He must know.

Farda coughed lightly, “We will vote. All who wish to see Savar as King and the previous regime reinstated please offer your vote forward now.”

No one raised a hand or voice.

Savar began to screech out protests, Farda ignored them but motioned for the guards to seize him.

He had to raise his voice loud to be heard over Savar’s outcry.

“ALL WHO WISH TO SEE THE LORDS OF GORIAS RULE AS ONE. AS A UNITED COUNCIL. ”

Hands went up everywhere around him. Though not quite all. Farda make a careful note of those Lords and Ladies. Lord Tregar chief amongst them. He would need to be watched.

“Then it is decided. The days of the Kings are over, the days of the Forty have begun. Together we shall take our City to new heights. This day will be remembered as-”

Farda’s words were cut short by screams from the Royal box. Savar had lost his sword but gained a knife. One of the guards was lying face down beside him and the others had backed away from him. Savar swung his knife around manically, “I AM YOUR KING. YOU LISTEN TO ME. NOT HIM.”

Savar twisted his knife around to point at Farda. His eyes went wide as they ran from one Lord to the next.

Lord Grendel came up to put a hand on Farda’s shoulder.

“Finish it.”

A rank of Ascension guards streamed into the room. Each one carried an Adronian crossbow.

Savar’s eyes looked from them to the guards behind him. Farda shook his head at him.

“Don’t Savar. Not in the palace. Even a Lord cannot break that law.”

Savar did pause momentarily, Farda saw the worry in his eyes, but only for a moment. Then the young man smiled.

“Even a Lord? But I am no Lord. I. I am King.”

He jumped pressing his hands to his forehead.

The guards were quick. They had been warned about such an event but even still Farda marvelled at their speed. Before Savar had hit the ground a litany of bolts had slammed into his body.

Even as he began to transform his body was weakened and the change rejected, he hadn’t the strength in him. He landed hard, the drop was about 10 ft but with only one arm available and every part of him punctured by bolts he slammed into the floor. A pool of blood spread slowly from his crippled form.

Farda sighed. It was not a pretty sight. But an unavoidable one, had Savar transformed it would have been chaos. And who was to say others won’t have joined him in the carnage. The old ways would not be forgotten easily, no matter how well they planned. There was a great deal of work left to do. But a new day truly was upon Gorias.

Removing Savar’s broken body left a bitter taste, the silence which fell as he was removed was as heavy as it was uncomfortable. Lord Grendel was about to speak but Farda held him back, “Words will not suffice, not looking at that. Wait.”

When the body had finally been removed Farda clasped his hands together.

“Savar was brave of heart but his mind was too full of war and hate for him to rule. Which is why we must rule together, each one bringing the best out of the other. Our first line of business. Dealing with the Vampiri. We shall need ambassadors to reach out for negotiation and discussion with them. The continent must be divided equally. With peace comes progress and a chance for us to grow. To look to other lands and peoples for our resources. Lands which would prove far easier to rule and govern. Lands beyond the sea. However that can all wait. We have had sadness and joy aplenty these past weeks. Tonight we will feast and drink and remember those who have fallen. And look forward to our future together, together as the Forty.”

A round of applause greeted Farda’s words, he turned back and embraced his fellow Speakers. His own father had died because of a careless King’s ambition, his father’s faith in him so strong that he’d sacrificed his own life to save that same King’s son. A waste of a great man’s life for an ungrateful Royal dynasty. Too many had died because of one family’s designs. No more. Farda would ensure Chimerean life was not lost in vain. A new slate and a new regime. The days of the Kings were finished. The days of the Forty just beginning.