Act III

The War of Trinity

The sun rose above the ruined city of Menja. Guards patrolled the streets, and tribe villagers assisted the builders in building a new wall. In the middle of this city, walked Areiya and Kiera, having a chat.

"So Saenna set out to take back Jiron. I don't even know what Marlock and Valmir are up to." Areiya said, looking around while strolling through the street with her friend.

"Marlock is Saenna's Lord Commander. Why isn't he with her?" Kiera asked.

"Valmir needed him with something that had more priority, apparently" Areiya answered.

"I wonder what could have more priority than taking the most important city in Volaria." Kiera scoffed.

"Don't ask me. My people and I still have to adapt the way yours wages war." Areiya said, her gaze switching over Marlock in the distance, waving the two over.

"Kiera! Areiya! I want to talk to you two!"

"Speaking off, there he is. Let's see what our Lord Commander needs from us this time." Areiya said.

They followed Marlock into the war room, where Valmir stood behind the table with his arms crossed. A sharp and concentrated look on his face as his attention was towards the map.

"We might be in trouble." The pirate captain said, pointing at the mountain pass that separates Erye from Volaria, "Seguja Pass is known to have an impregnable fort, which is in Areyn's control."

Marlock leaned over the table, and the two girls stood behind him. "Then how do you suggest we do this? If Saenna's siege is successful, we'll have Jiron back. The most strategic placed city in Volaria." he said.

"Hold on." Areiya interrupted the two, "Remind me why we're here?"

Marlock looked at Valmir. "He wanted you two to be here, but he wouldn't tell me why."

Valmir nodded and unfolded his arms, letting them hang loose beside him. "You know what they say about pirates, Marlock."

Marlock didn't quite know what he meant by that, taking a glimpse at the two girls before carefully pushing himself off the table. "What?"

Suddenly, a large group of pirates entered the room with raised crossbows and swords, all aiming at Marlock and the two girls. Marlock turned around his axis, looking at every single pirate, and growled. Areiya wanted to reach for her dagger, but she realized she was too late. There were way too many to take on by herself.

"A pirate's loyalty is bought, not earned. I may not be a true pirate, but I still prioritize gold over honour. My uncle simply offered me a greater deal. Bring you and your two errand girls to him, and he would give me tripled what you would've given me."

"Valmir...you don't have to do this-" Marlock mumbled, clenching his fists.

"And that's where you're wrong, Marlock. You see, I'm not running my whole fleet to their inevitable death." Valmir said with his hands behind his back, "Tie 'em up. Some of my boys made a window for us to get to my ship unnoticed by the girl's savages."

"Aye, captain!" a few of his henchmen said, tying him and the two girls with their hands behind their back. But Marlock was still desperate for answers. "What about your sister?! You worked so hard to convince her to bring her here. Why did you even try?"

Valmir stepped closer to the tied commander, glaring in his eyes. "Why do you think, Marlock? For years I had to reave and pillage for my own survival. My own family abandoned me while she was up there on her island living the perfect life. She never bet an eye to anyone. She's walking straight into a trap. Areyn knew she was going to siege that place long ago, and it surprises me you didn't even consider that."

The pirate tied Kiera's hands too tight, making her groan and whimper. "Don't do this, Marlock! I beg of you. You know we have a chance!"

Completely different from Kiera, Areiya was pulled up from her knees while death-staring Valmir. They even put rags in their mouth and wrapped them around their heads.

"Bring them to my ship." Valmir tilted his head, turning his back to them. One by one, they were marched out of the tent.

In the meantime, in the middle of the day, Saenna approached Jiron leading her massive army on her white horse. A confident look on her face as she squinted her eyes in the sun. She wore an armoured gown with elegant platings and jewels, and her hair was braided in several locks that lifted in the wind. The distant blazing horns in the city reached Saenna, telling her they were ready to defend their homes. She saw hundreds of archers on the battlements of the walls, but what she didn't see, was that they all already fired away, sending a volley of hundreds of arrows towards the sky. Her army halted.

"Shields up!" the commanders screamed as Saenna's royal guards used theirs to form a shield roof above her head.

The arrows arched into the air and rained down straight in front of Saenna's army. It was a warning, but it didn't do anything to her. One of her commanders needed her attention.

"My queen, we're about to begin the siege. It is best for your safety to stay in the back," he said.

Saenna paused for a second. "Very well. You know your orders. Areyn doesn't turn slaves into soldiers. They all decided to follow him. Leave no one alive."

She turned around and made her way through the lines of her army to the back when she noticed the wind picked up. And then she heard something, which made her entire army stiffen. Distant roars from a war horn. Firstly to the east, then to the west and lastly at the south. Saenna didn't her commanders to tell her what was happening. They walked into a trap and were now surrounded. Her commanders immediately sprung into action, riding around their men, shouting orders.

"Squared formation! Spears and shields! Spears and shields!

All men with shields and spears marched into a large square formation, protecting every side and the rest of the army by shield walls, with spears sticking through the cracks.

"Archers! Nock!"

The bowmen in the middle nocked an arrow into their bow. It was at that moment, that fear struck everyone, but not the queen.

"Swordsmen, protect your queen!"

To top off the defensive formation, footsoldiers surrounded Saenna. With hearts pumping, and adrenaline rushing through everyone's veins, they anticipated the approaching enemy. The commander of the cavalry division led his men of spear-wielding horseriders out the formation, readying them to harass any incoming armies.

For a moment, it was silent, until the first banners showed up on the top of the surrounding hills and dunes around Saenna. She was filled with hate and anger the moment she recognized them. The black banners with the menacing eagle of House Valquen. Areyn's eagle. Not only Areyn's, but other houses in Vraleth like the falcon of House Rethia and the tiger of House The commander of the foot soldiers approached the queen, grimacing.

"Your grace, we're in trouble. They outnumber us three to one. It will be a slaughter. Please...you always said you cared about us. Show it to us, and surrender."

Saenna returned a cold look to him. "I do care for every single one of you. But I swore to myself and my ancestors I will make Areyn burn. I will not break that oath."

She looked towards the clouds, which confused the commander slightly. When he followed her gaze, he noticed an eagle flying in the air, releasing a screech. Without saying anything or changing her expression, she looked back at the commander before leaving her protected circle.

"My queen, what are you-"

"Do not follow me. Only defend your men." she interrupted him, walking her horse out of the circle, straight towards Areyn's armies.

Her armoured gown glistered in the sun while her horse anxiously approached the surrounding line of cavalry and banners. They didn't attack. Maybe they thought she wanted to negotiate or offer her surrender. But Saenna herself knew, it was far from that. The eagle descended from the skies and landed on her shoulder, darting its head around and releasing another screech. Without showing any fear, Saenna shouted towards the menacing armies in front of her.

"My name is Saenna Qoheris Valquen, Protector of the Last Guardian, Sentinel of Lunarion and Queen of Lunaria City. You all doomed the lands of Lunarion, called it cursed! It was not cursed! It was blessed!" Saenna looked around, the entire army paying attention to her. Even her own men.

"I want you to remember my name before you die. Even if one of you survives what I'm about to unleash, remind my uncle what happened here! Tell what happened when he sent his men to kill his own niece!"

And then, she spoke the three eerie words.

"Val Qoh Huen!"

Her eagle jumped off her shoulder and surrounded itself with a bright light before starting to change form. Its wings grew colossal, and its body formed itself in one of a dragon, growing a large, spiked tail and eventually growing in full size. A menacing, enormous dragon the size of a castle with its wings shaped like a curved moon. It immediately roared in the air and breathed a deadly blast of green fire on the surrounding army. They screamed in agony, flailing around as they tried to disperse. Some tried to fire arrows onto the dragon, but they deflected and broke as soon as they hit the rock hard scales of the Guardian. The green fire scorched hundreds of soldiers when one of Saenna's commanders saw this as a unique opportunity. The firm bearded commander raised his sword and whipped his horse, releasing his war cry.

"Charge these fuckers!"

He and his men charged the enemy forces while Saenna's guardian significantly reduced their numbers. Two thousand of Saenna's cavalry knights cut through the enemy lines like butter, ramming everyone who stood in their way. Out of all the things, Saenna's guardian was something nobody ever expected. The enemy forces began retreating, or instead, running for their lives whereas Saenna's men cheered loudly, raising their weapons and chanting her name.

"Saenna! Saenna! Saenna! Saenna! ..."

Her guardian flew overhead, flapping its massive wings before shapeshifting back to its eagle form, landing on Saenna's shoulder. She turned her gaze to the city with a determined look on her face. In the meantime, they were well prepared to defend it.

"Let us take this city!" she yelled. But then, the inevitable happened. The city gates opened, and two horseriders rode out bearing two white flags. They were surrendering, which put a smile on Saenna's face. "I win."

A creaking ship rocked over the waves of the Sea of Rubies. The lanterns inside the cargo hold dangled around. The air loomed with an eerie silence, a silence Kiera remembered, back when she was captured as a slave, in the same kind of cargo hold like this. She realized that all she had been through so far seemed to haven't changed at all. She looked to the ground, a grim expression that revealed her lack of life lust. She was bound on a wooden pillar, as well as Marlock and Areiya on the same one. The rag in Kiera's mouth started to hurt her jaws, and it even started tasting strange. And then, the hatch to the deck opened, revealing the silhouette of the Angel of Death himself.

His boots squeaked as he stepped down the creaking stairs. Two cutlasses fixed on his belt.

"I see my guests are still alive and well." he said, approaching them with a calm but intimidating posture, "I suppose you lads are thirsty. I got you a jug of water, and you can share it."

A pirate walked down from deck with a full jug of water, placing it in front of Marlock.

"Tomorrow we'll arrive at Graywatch. Areyn himself will be receiving you there. Then I can finally get my bloody payment." Valmir squinted "Nothing personal, Marlock."

Marlock looked up at Valmir intensely, his nostrils flaring with his heavy breath of anger. He groaned through the rag in his mouth, which only made Valmir smile.

"You forgot one thing, Marlock. I'm a Valquen. My uncle's blood runs through my veins. How long do you think Saenna will keep up her alliance with you? Embrace the fact you lost. You will never end slavery with your puny rebellion. Not even with all the men in the world. My uncle will always outsmart you, and that is something you still refuse to see. Now drink up that water, I prefer to hand you over alive."

Valmir turned around, giving Kiera and Areiya a final look before heading back upstairs with his pirate. When he left, Areiya began rubbing her bindings against a splinter in the pillar. Marlock and Kiera didn't even notice yet.

A pair of guards walked through the dungeon halls with flickering torches. Their clanking armour echoed along with the coughs and whines of prisoners. They took a halt at Graham's cell, and put their torch through the bars to light up his room. And there he sat, a lot skinnier, dirty, and weak.

"Graham, by the order of the emperor you have regained your freedom, only if you swear your oath that you will protect and command the Fifth Archery Division."

Graham weakly turned his head to the guards with furrowed eyebrows. "Archery division?"

"You didn't think Areyn would allow you back into his royal guard, didn't you?" the guard answered. Graham sighed deeply and cluttered up. His back hunched a little, and his legs were weak as he slogged towards the guards.

"Tell him he can stick his archery shit division up his arse. Now leave me be and allow me to die in peace." Graham growled.

"Think about this, Graham. You can work your way back up again. You'll be among the royal guard in no time." the guard said.

"I'd rather die in this cell in my own shit right here than being degraded from an anointed knight to a commander of a petty army of fucking bowmen," Graham answered with an intense gaze.

"So be it Graham, but you will rot in this cell like all the rest of these savages here!" the guard angrily responded, when suddenly two men in brown cloaks and hoods appeared from both sides of the hall, catching the two men off-guard and swiftly cutting their throats. The guards crashed down onto the floor, with puddles of blood expanding between the cobblestones. The two hooded men immediately unlocked Graham's cell with the guard keys.

"There's a boat waiting for you down at the sewers. You'll get out of the city undetected from there."

"Sewers?" Graham asked.

"Unless you want to stay here, feel free to. We advise you to get to Volaria and join up with the rebellion of Flames of Dawn. Shit's stirring up over there. It might as well become an all-out war. Now get out of here, we owe you nothing anymore." the mysterious man said while Graham's cell door squeaked open.

"Aye, we're even. What took you so long, anyway?" Graham asked, stretching his arms and legs.

"When we heard of your captivity we were all the way in Murdheim. It wasn't easy to get here. Now go, before they start missing these guards." the mysterious man said as he disappeared with his companion. Graham watched them leave, then turned his head to the other direction of the tunnel, and took a deep breath. Before he continued, he took a sword from one of the corpses and held the grip tightly before going on his way. Other prisoners began shouting and screaming, but he just ignored them, walking down the stairs to the sewer entrance.

And there was the boat. A small rowing boat. He crawled in and rowed through the water until he reached the exit. A bright light shone in his eyes, a light he hadn't seen for so long. He squinted his eyes, and when he exited sewers, he was greeted by an endless sea. A chilly breeze blew through his greasy hair as his small rowboat danced over the calm waves. He looked behind him and only saw the menacing towers of the citadel high above him on top of the cliffs.

"Areyn, be cursed. You damn cunt."

And on he went, rowing far away from the citadel to get on land and to travel to Volaria. Though, will he be on time? Now that Kiera and Areiya are captured, the civil war only rested on the lunaric queen's shoulder.