Chapter Seven: A Deal With The King

The Murus kingdom was truly unique. Their fields were sparse, and there were no abundant resources to mine. They were at the edge of the realm of men, and lacked any major trade hubs. Monster attacks were quite normal in this kingdom, and destruction was rampant. In spite of all this it was one of the wealthiest kingdoms. The murus kingdom was a wall for the realm of men, Protecting everyone from the monsters who crawled out of the underworld. The surrounding kingdoms were keen to keep this wall in good repair, and so they readily financed this defense.

On a certain hill, under a certain tree sat a lonely old man. He was a mountain of a man, but today he seemed quite small and frail like a withered tree. Thunder beard had lived for over two hundred winters. He had held fame, respect, and riches, but dying men care little for these. He had grown sentimental in his old age. When his wife died he had little left to live for, but then he remember a debt. Little did he know that paying this debt would lead him to enjoy life again.

Thunder beard had run for an entire day. Thanks to his ridiculous speed this had brought him more than halfway to the capital. Unfortunately this speed came with a price, and The old man had to recuperate. After meditating for some time, sparks began to leap from his body. The old man got up. “There isn’t much time.”

John got up just before dawn, and prepared a meal like always. He checked the rope between the horses before he hopped up and started his journey. The capital was about two weeks journey from the forest. This distance was very deliberate; not too far and not too close. It would give the kingdom time to mount a proper defense in case of a goblin flood. John’s mind was befuddled, but he still heard the words of his uncle. Although the nations of men would bicker, they would never go to war with each other. There were too many enemies eyeing them from the side, so mankind needed to be ready to show a united front at any moment. The dwarves to the east were known for their tempers, but war was rarely profitable. The mermaids to the west were too cautious for war. They would pillage some ships, but nothing too large scale. The dragons from the north were too proud. Unless provoked they would not move. The elves stayed in their forest on the other side of the dark trench. Only the dark forces would bring war. Those who worshipped death and destruction, or those who despised life.

John knew he didn’t have much time. If he pushed the horses he might be able to make the journey in a week, and that is what John planned to do. John was a skilled rider, so he took out the book. He had been trying to understand his families breathing technique for most of the morning. It was very complex. By what John could gather there were four steps to this method. The first set of symbols were aimed at changing the nature of the magic within the body. John was able to make it about halfway through this first set, and the rest still seemed like gibberish. John started to wonder who he would spar with from now on. He shook his head as he renewed his determination.

The sun was almost setting as a weary figure entered the gates of the capital of the murus kingdom. Old Thunder beard had made the journey in just a few days. He had drained almost every ounce of energy within him. His eyelids tried to shut as he forced his body forward.

Jackson was a young guard, and he had worked hard to earn a post at the king’s gate. His armor shined a brilliant orange in the setting sun, like an angel garbed for battle. Jackson looked off down the street as he imagined the glory he would someday gain in battle. “Stop your’ daydreaming boy.” Jackson’s jubilant expression instantly turned to a frown when he heard this voice.

“No need to worry you bag of bones. I’m payin attention.” The old man Phillip shook his head. He wasn’t old quite yet, but he’d been on two expeditions to the dark trench. He had seen many cocky, young recruits die, and he hoped his new coworker would not be one of them.

“Halt! Who goes there.” Jackson brandished his spear as someone approached the gate. This is the gate to castle! Filth like you should keep your distance!” At a glance this intruder appeared quite haggard, but Philip’s face began to turn pale.

He quickly jumped forward, grabbing Jackson’s shoulder. “You idiot! Put that thing away!” Philip bowed in respect. “Honorable warrior, what business can we help you with.” Jackson face turned red almost matching the brilliance of his armor. He couldn’t believe the words Philip had spoken. Although this fellow was big, but his appearance was that of a peasant. Jackson had always thought that Philip was a coward, and he was about to reprimand him just as the stranger threw something on the ground.

“I have news from the dark trench. Tell the king that an old friend brings bad tidings.”

Jackson looked down, but he couldn’t see what was on the ground. He almost started laughing, thinking that this crazy man had asked for an audience with the king. Jackson heart was quickly sunk with a gasp from his fellow guard.

“A dark elf’s ear! Jackson go tell the captain immediately!” despite his attitude Jackson was a soldier, so with shame and humiliation in his heart he ran to get the captain.

“I wish to speak to him alone.” The throne room quickly emptied with the command of the king. King Richard was a large man though not as big s Thunder beard. His hair was black as night, and his eyes matched the blue of the sky. The king stood up from his throne and walked before thunder beard. The king wrapped his arms around this old man as he laughed. “My old friend does it truly take such bad news for us to meet.”

Thunder beard looked the king in the eye. “Little iron I must thank you for hiding me all these years.”

“I don’t know why those fellows were after you, but I certainly owed at least this much. Now enough of old times, give me the bad news.”

“I found a group of five dark elves, shadows, by the dark trench. This was almost a week ago, and they had these on them.”

Thunder beard handed over five small, black skulls. The king carefully examined the skulls as his hands slightly shook and fear appeared in his eyes. “It can’t be!”

“It is. Do not speak their name. I have seen them before.”

“Is there any chance that they came for you?” The king seemed desperate for a strand of hope.

“No. It was the boy who found one of them scouting around. I watched the fight, and the shadow tried to kill him as quickly as possible. If they were searching for me, they would also be looking for a boy his age. That is not all. I searched the crevice. There was a massive cavern filled with various creatures a couple hundred feet below the third level. There had to be close to a million goblins. You need to prepare for a goblin flood.” The king had begun to pace while thunder beard was talking, shortly after he finished the king sat back down on his throne.

The king looked at his old friend. “What do you plan to do?”

“I would like to make a deal with you.”