The King of Shimmerhold was traveling through mountain passes to the city of Devonshold, the capital of the Kingdom of Devon. His kingdom and the kingdom of Devon had an alliance that had been going on for centuries. His great grandfather had first started the alliance and his father had simply continued this beneficial relationship. However, in recent times, Shimmerhold and Devon's relationship had grown tense, and he, Trevor Luster, King of Shimmerhold, would like to amend their relationship before it could worsen.

It was a pretty caravan of thirty wagons pulled by sixty oxen. Each of them was decorated with colorful silks and displayed resplendent flags. His soldiers marched alongside the caravan to guard it against unpleasant elements, and his servants rode within the many wagons to serve their functions and conserve their energies.

Their caravan eventually passed through the most treacherous points of the mountain pass. In the distance, the city of Devonshold was now visible to the caravaneers. Dark grey towers of basalt rose from the foundations of the city, overlooking the functions of the capital. Buildings made of the same dark rock were built much lower than the rising towers but were still just as impressive. Some stood at five storeys tall, overshadowing some stalls that sometimes stand upon the streets below. Ropes crisscrossed the air, holding aloft buntings of flags. On the far side of the city stood the most impressive structure of them all, a great palace with spires that towered even the previously mentioned towers. It's a great granite building decorated with iron and silver embellishments.

The city had no walls, it had no need of them. Being surrounded by mountains on all sides, the natural geography served as its own defenses. Lofty peaks with snowy caps and glaciers surrounded them. Some towers and passes were built upon these peaks to hold control upon these mountains. A keep was built halfway up the highest mountain. The visiting king and his servants could identify it immediately; it was the Crown of Devon, renown across Devon as its national symbol. It was printed upon its flags and minted unto its coins.

Upon entering the city proper, the king's caravan was welcomed by the officials of Devonshold. Fanfare and confetti accompanied their welcome as gaudily dressed nobles approached with warm colors.

"Welcome to Devonshold, your highness," one of them spoke. "Devon welcomes you upon his most precious city."

"Thank you," King Trevor answered. "I am honored to be invited to your prosperous city."

"Ohoho," the welcomer replied. "It is not my place to claim ownership of the city, your highness."

The welcoming continued. The caravan was paraded through the streets. Citizens both excited and apathetic rallied to the streets to watch royalty pass through their streets. The king could see the prosperity of the kingdom from its streets alone. It could see many shops selling luxury goods such as jewelry, mechanicals, and hats. The streets were lined with cast iron poles atop of which were placed oil lamps that would be lit up at night.

They were led by the officials into the grand palace of the city, aptly named, Devon's Table. It was here that Devon dealt with the political matters of the kingdom. Annually, nobles would come here to discuss ruling matters and rooting out corruption amongst its ruling ranks. Today, though not the annual noble convention, many nobles from around the kingdom came to take part in the current matter at hand. Many of them simply wanted to have a say in the very important matter that will be decided upon.

The palace was gorgeous. Though made of dark stone that most of the known world doesn't favor, the color simply deepened the awe it exuded. It sported flying buttresses that created deep shadows. High arches and wide open halls created a great sense of smallness and feebleness in the face of the palace. Brightly colored carpets and banners created contrast in the dreary decor, attracting the eyes and keeping it from being lost in fascination. The walls were decorated with many grotesques. Gargoyles, statues, and monstrous figures guarded these grand halls. The jagged outline of the mountains was carved into the walls. It was carved on every wall, signifying its seemingly innumerable mounts and how it surrounds the very heart of the kingdom with its bulk.

King Trevor and his servants were led into a large round chamber. It was as grand as the rest of the palace. The chamber was one of the highest rooms in the entire monument of a building. It had no walls, opening all angles to a view of the mountains that surrounded them. The domed roof was held up by a generous amount of square pillars. In the middle of the room lay a large round table made of white marble that stood in contrast to the dark moody aesthetic of the rest of the structure. On the side that overlooked the Crown of Devon was a large throne made of the darkest rock Trevor had ever seen. The obsidian throne stood three meters and was adorned with jewels such as topaz, amethyst, and lapis lazuli. Its back was carved in such a way to resemble the keep in the background, the Crown of Devon.

One of the things that were immediately apparent was the absence of any other chairs around the table. However, the nobles had ordered their servants to get their chairs from a side room. They retrieved many differing chairs, many of them were wooden while others were made from wrought metal. Each of them seemed to match the tastes of the noble that would soon seat upon them.

The welcomer retrieved a rather heavy marble chair from the side room. The chair seemed to match the table's style. "Here, your highness. This shall be your seat for your stay here," the welcomer said.

Stolen novel; please report.

Soon all the nobles had been seated, including King Trevor and the welcomer. However, King Trevor had found the empty obsidian throne to be mighty strange. Could the king of Devon be late or perhaps he had considered this meeting and renewal of their kingdom's old agreements to be a farce? King Trevor feared the latter and simply hoped that the former was the right.

The welcomer, who was seated directly to the right of the obsidian throne, stood and began an announcement. "Welcome esteemed individuals to the King's Chamber. I, Prince Aftkey of the Principality of Florin, announce the matter of the kingdom's old agreements with the Kingdom of Shimmerhold up for discussion."

"Where is your king?" King Trevor immediately asked. He was afraid that his voice will be superseded by noblemen's bickering.

"He is with us always in spirit," Prince Aftkey answered.

"Bwahahaha," A rather unportly noble, Lord Kim of the Province of Cent, burst into laughter. It was loud and raucous that the very floor reverberated to the volume. The other nobles frowned and looked at him in disdain. "There is no king. The Empty Throne had been empty always."

"I hate to agree with Lord Kim, but for all my years sitting in this chamber, I had never seen the king seated upon the throne," confirmed Lady Almia of the Province of Geldin.

"No no no. King Devon's presence is as sure as the mountains stand," another noble replied. This was Duke Hoffgar of the Dawnrite Region.

"Pfft. Who told you that? The cult? Whatever the teachings of the imperial cult say, there is no evidence that the King of Devon existed," scoffed Lord Kim. "He has no birth, he has no home, and he has no grave."

King Trevor seemed troubled. He hadn't heard of Devon ever crowning a new king. As far as he knew, the king of Devon was still the same king as the king that had signed the agreements with Shimmerhold many centuries ago. The stories and dialogues of the late King Vorvo of Shimmerhold with King Devon were plenty evidence that at least at some point, there was a king of Devon and his great grandfather had engaged in dialogue with him.

As the nobles argued upon the truth of King Devon's existence, Prince Aftkey tried to steer back the discussion to the agreements, but to no avail, the discussion had too much momentum to stop. Then suddenly, the earth rumbled. It wasn't unknown for the mountain to quake, but it was alarming every time it happens.

"You have made the mountain angry," Duke Hoffgar snarled.

"Relax. It's just the ice breaking off or something. It's not unprecedented for the earth to shake," Lord Kim nonchalantly replied.

Prince Aftkey stood from his seat and asked a servant for a pair of binoculars. He approached the railing that guarded the northward wall of the chamber and watched the keep in the distance. Once his servant passed his requested item, he immediately looked through it to examine the distant structure. There was danger of avalanche, but the bickering continued unabated.

Prince Aftkey turned and announced something that silenced everyone around the table. "The king had decided that his physical presence was sorely needed in this meeting."

To which Lord Kim simply laughed at. "Hahaha. The king?! You've got to be joking."

Prince Aftkey sighed and answered, "Lord Kim, I'm completely serious." He then turned to the rest of the room and invited everyone, "Come, all of you, and witness the arrival of our king for he has decided to grace you with his appearance."

Everyone stood at his invitation and looked out the northern vista. As they looked for any sign of the king descending from his keep. The ground shook in the anticipation of the king.

Wait. The ground shaking?

The ground rumbled! A great earthquake wracked the very world. The earth rose and sank as though waves of the sea. The mountains trembled in the terrible quake. Snow and glaciers were displaced in the peaks and valleys, and avalanches flowed down the slopes like rivers. The distant towers had crumbled, but not one building upon Devonshold's foundations suffered destruction. Only the scant buildings that had extended yond the city's ancient limits had suffered.

The nobles upon the palace's highest chamber struggled to keep themselves upright against the mighty quake. Only Prince Aftkey seemed to be unfazed by the quake's might. As though the great quake wasn't enough, the mountains began rising from the ground like segments of a millipede. Slowly, all the mountains around rose by mysterious means, but the mountain upon which the Crown of Devon was constructed rose the highest of them all.

The nobles watched mountains rise in fear and awe. Their bones rattled, and they felt themselves grow cold as though their blood was close to freezing. The magnificent beast that was composed of the mountain range now stood proudly before them with its chest puffed up. The Crown of Devon lay upon what was evidently its head like a glorious headpiece indicating its authority. It stood so tall that it could be sworn that the top of its head reached past the clouds. Its size was simply mind-boggling; it had already taken up most of their view and it was just sitting miles away. They couldn't even be sure if they were seeing the entirety of the beast. The chains of mountains that crisscross their country were considerable and how much of them were part of this beast. How could have they not known this beast lay at rest beneath their feet. What had they done to attract its attention?

The nobles fell to the ground in fear at the mountainous majesty of the creature that now lay its gaze upon the palace. Some of them were frozen at the sight, and some of them lost control of themselves, wetting their pants. The Duke of Dawnrite downright began rolling on the floor stammering in madness. Lord Kim scooted away from the northern side, leaving a wet trail on the floor. Lady Almia fainted, and her servants were attempting to revive her. King Trevor hugged a pillar just to keep himself upright against his weakened shaking legs.

Prince Aftkey turned to the guests. He seemed to be the only one unaffected by his appearance, but deep within, he was deeply disturbed. He had never seen his liege display himself in such a manner before. He was told that the king was also the mountain the crown was built, but he had never expected the entire range to be but limbs of the magnificent beast that was the kingdom's head of state. He was sweating bullets.

He splayed his arms out and announced with fervor and zeal, "Behold, people. Your king! Your country! King Devon of Devon! Bow before his highness!"

The regal mountain giant nodded as though acknowledging the prince's announcement.