“And so as I child was a very brave young boy, even among my peers. I knew what I wanted and I went for it. Headstrong, purposefully, determined to clear everything on my path that stopped me from getting it” Maids and servants scurried around noiselessly, their heads bowed as they set the dinning table. “You are king father, you can and have always had what you wanted”, princess Aileen replied in an amused voice. “You are so ignorant Aileen, you are never interested in history”, he took an olive from his glass and popped it in his mouth, he savored the taste on his tongue before he continued, “Father was not born a royal, all he has today he had worked for it” “Take it easy on her Cedric, Aileen is only a child”, King Javaid chided, he was a strongly built man, sturdy with a wide frame and although he was in his late fifties. He was very much fit, with a handsome face, the only indication of his aging was the white beards on his chin. Then he turned to Aileen, “Aileen every pleasure you see today and enjoy is as a result of my hard work”, king Javaid said placing his hand on her shoulders. “So your throne was not hereditary?” Aileen asked in bewilderment, “I always assumed it was” “Well you would have known that earlier if you were interested in family history and not just fancy ball gowns, diamond studded tiaras, handsome princes and latest balls”, prince Cedric butt in. “Oh come on Cedric, do not tease your sister so much”, Javaid said, he was laughing aloud. Aileen folded her hands and pouted. “You both are the best thing that has ever happened to me…” Queen Charis cleared her throat loudly, “I am so sorry to interrupt this charming family moment”, she smiled politely, however it was obvious the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes with no sense of remorse whatsoever, “Aileen would you please pass me the salt?” Aileen waved her hand towards it, the salt bottle levitated and floated in the air towards her mother and when she kept her hand down, it landed on the table in front of her mother. Queen Charis sighed, “You do not have to do every single thing with magic, you could have simply just stretched your hand and picked it up for me, it was just beside you”, Queen Charis said with apparent disgust. “Well I could have quite alright, but I do not want to, magic makes things easier, magic is the new world mother. The whole world is run by it, every thing is possible with magic. It makes even the strongest of men cower…” “Oh spare me Aileen!”, Queen Charis shook her head, “I am not willing to listen to one of your boring sermons about magic”, she interrupted and pushed her plate forward, “I think I just lost my appetite for food” She got to her feet and with a single clap of her hand, her maid rushed to her side, “Your majesty”, the maid greeted with a bow of her head. “Olivia I think I will retire much early tonight”, she turned to Javaid and without as much as an expression on her face said with a small voice, “Good night your majesty, sleep well my beautiful angels” She walked away without waiting for a response, Olivia hot on her tail. “Why does she have to always be so bitter?”, Cedric asked as soon as the doors shut. “Well she is the only one in the family who can not cast spells or perform magic”, Aileen shrugged, “That is sure to make any one bitter” “It is a privilege my dear, not something any one can possess”, Javaid said, “To be the last of the blood race alive and the only people who can perform magic”. He got up from his chair and paced about the length and breadth of the thoroughly furnished dinning hall. Mahogany wood and chairs of standardly and beautiful carved draped with gold colored coverings, the candelabra that hung from the ceiling was wide and made out of pure gold, the walls were in golden marble. It was like a pirates treasures chest. His purple with gold patterned robe trailed behind him, “It is more than a privilege, it is your right one you have earned by merely being my descendants”, with one of his hand raised above his head, fisted, he said, “You wield the greatest powers in all of the universe, think of what you can do with it. You can take on any enemy, the world is at your mercy” Cedric and Aileen stared at their father, a dazed expression on their faces, they loved when he talked like this. “People fear the kind of power you possess and so their reaction will turn to one of anger, it is only normal that they do that”, he continued, “You have what no one else has, they are at your feet, their lives in your hands to do as you wish and so they hate you for it…”. He walked back to his chair and sat on it. He drummed with his fingers, then all of a sudden he banged the table, “It is power!, This is exactly what power looks like” “Absolute power…”, Cedric smirked. “I like the sound of that”, Aileen said with a perky smile plastered on her face. *** Javaid was king of all of Salvador and other conquered kingdoms stretching far through out the lands. He was a tyrannical king, the last of the extinct blood race alive. He wielded mystical powers and was undeniable the mot strongest man to walk the earth or so he thought. He ruled Salvador with an iron fist bending everyone and anyone to his will either with coercion or magic, however he deemed fit. He was the most revered and feared king and was on the lips of everyone, kingdoms crumbled before him, allies were crushed in shambles. Kings from afar and wide for fear of his terror, came to pay allegiance to him. His wife, Queen Charis did not possess these powers but his children did and he was willing to shape them into the kind of people he desired them to be, they were his descendants, he wanted to leave his mark on the sands of time so that generations to come would tremble when they spoke of him and his lineage. He had fought his way through thick and thin even as a child to rise to prominence, there were scars on his body to prove. He had killed the ruler of Salvador and chosen it as a home base. He stared a into vanity mirror, he removed his crown from his head and twirled the ring on his finger, “It would be a long process but they will learn eventually”, he smiled shrewdly, “I have worked so hard for this to throw it away. If Cedric will become king he has to be a fitting king. I can not afford a weakling as my successor. He would be over thrown and all I have worked for would be taken away from me” He paced about in his chambers, his hands behind him, “I must keep the blood race, protect it with my life. I have to ensure it becomes the most dominant race just like it has always been. I have been given this responsibility as the last of my generation and I must…” The door opened up and a servant walked in, “Your imperial Majesty, your evening tea”, he handed him a small mug on a saucer. “How dare you?”, Javaid growled out livid with anger for being interrupted. The servant shuddered in fear, “I promise...pro...with...I knocked, I thought I heard you tell me to come in”, he backed up until his back was up against the door. Javaid stealthily walked towards him like a lion would if he had his prey in a corner, his eyes were a different hue from the usual brown they were, he had a wry smile on his face. It looked like he was possessed…the look on his face was terrifying. Javaid suddenly stopped short of the servant then he raised his hand in the air and squeezed it, the man who was on the floor at this point began to choke and writhe violently, he gasped for breath and struggled against invisible forces choking him but there was nothing to hold on to. “This is power!”, Javaid said maniacally, “Surely you can’t see it but I know you can feel it!”, he laughed aloud then he stopped squeezing. Immediately he did, the man let out the last gust of air and dropped dead white as clear snow. His eyes telling the story of the horror he had just felt in his last minutes.
“Lily my dear, you have to be careful next time, so you do not hurt yourself just like you have now”, Edgar admonished lovingly.The little girl nodded, her dark locks bouncing up and down, little hands rose up to wipe at her tear stricken face.Lily’s mother pulled her close into a hug, “It is going to be okay my child I promise. Uncle Edgar will make you feel better very soon”, she crouched before her, holding her hands and peering with was unmistakably love in her eyes, “And of course your mother will always be here and would never leave your side” Lily smiled sweetly and although it was obvious she was in pain, she limped towards her mother covering up the space between them and hugged her.Cleopatra sat on a stone watching from afar. Her blue eyes was clouded in emotions as she watched the pair. Her long raven black hair cascaded dow
Months passed like antelopes running through an open field and Edgar had kept true to his word. He had gradually taught her all she needed to know about magic. She was beginning to fall in love with that side of her much to her own surprise. Although they had to keep it concealed she could not help but sneak in one or two magic tricks when no one was looking. “Cleo”, he handed over to her a basket of leaves, “Help me lay this out to dry, I’ll crush the powder and I will add to the new potion I am working on. There has been an outbreak recorded in Molvania and although we are yet to trace the origin of this strange disease, we must be able to curb the spread and treat the symptoms before it spreads into our lands” She took it from his hand and nodded in understanding. “Hopefully the scorching heat of the sun will dry them by evening”
“Saddle the horses and get them ready for a ride, the king and I would have need of them”, Cedric barked orders to a servant standing besides him, his head bowed.“Yes sire!”, he scurried off immediately. Not long after the door to his large chambers opened up and Aileen strolled in.“Cedric?”, she called out to him.“Yes my dear sister”, he answered dryly, not sparing a glance at her, he looked into the vanity mirror and arranged his hair with his fingers.Aileen's large brown eyes took in his appearance, “Are you going somewhere Cedric?”“Yes as a matter of fact, father has asked me to go on a short trip with him”Her eyes lit up, “Really? And what would you two be doing there?”&n
Javaid smirked.He moved to the center of the field, he looked around the forest intently. He took a deep breath and began to twirl his hands in a rhythmic motion, his eyes were shut. It was as if a folk song was playing but only he could hear it. He stretched his hands towards a part of the forest and drew his hands towards himself. Out of that part of the forest came a man and son, holding their throats struggling for breath. They crawled on the ground towards them.Javaid looked on in admiration at his son.The man and his son were pushed forward by a force they could not control. Cedric brought his rhythmic dance to a halt as he brought them before the feet of his father.“Look here father”, Cedric smiled with pride, “It was nothing to worry
“How was your hunting trip with father?”, Aileen rushed towards him the moment he arrived at the stables.“Good”, he said in a cryptic manner.“Just good?”, she inquired, “Surely there’s more?”He didn’t say a word to her, he continued to tend to his horse Buckley. He unsaddled it and meticulously brushed his body.Aileen was having none of it, “Come on Cedric, spill the beans already do not ignore me. You and father rarely go out leisurely, if it is not a war or…”“Why is that?”, he cut her off harshly.She stared at him surprisingly, she knew he merely tolerated her but never had he raised his voice at her, “Cedric…”, she called out in a whisp
***“You know what it is like don’t you?”, she rambled on, “It is like he is a different person. Like I don’t even know my own brother…”Kalliste merely nodded. The walk had her listening to Aileen’s pathetic monologue and her nodding in understanding or rather pretending to nod in understanding. If Cedric had treated her badly for any reason it was most likely that she deserved it. She was not one to wish ill on anyone but Aileen deserved all the ills that came her way. She was a wicked…“I am such a sweet person, I do not deserve to be treated like this, not by anyone let alone my own brother”, Aileen’s high pitched melodramatic voice cut through her thoughts.
“…she has not had anything to eat the whole day your highness. She has been tucked in bed all day, refuses to speak to anyone and we are worried. This is not her usual behavior and so I…”Ceric waved a hand at the maid to stop her from talking, “Let me see her”The guard at the door, knocked briefly, announced Cedric’s presence and opened the door to him.Cedric strolled into the chambers, his hand behind his back. His eyes strayed for a while before they settle on Kalliste who was curled up in a ball under the sheets, “Leave us alone"The maids scurried out leaving the room.Cedric walked towards the dresser and studied the candelabra, he ran his fingers tip over the smooth golden surface. He had picked it out with his mother many years ago. He managed a small smile, “What is the matter Kalliste?”She did not reply.“Wh
“Edgar! Edgar! Please you have to help me. My child has gone missing please!”Cleopatra thought she was hearing voices in her head again or it was one of her visions that appeared real. It was not until she heard a loud bang on the door did she realize the cries where coming from the real world. She swiftly shot up from bed, this was not an unusual occurrence in Averna. She was used to waking up earlier than usual because Edgar was Averna's physician. Most emergencies happened at night but this was different, she thought. She has heard something about a missing child. She stared out of the window and it was so dark outside, she groaned, it was not dawn yet.Cleopatra walked to the mirror and stared at her reflection, her hair was ruffled courtesy of a cold bad night sleep. She quickly put on a woolen sweater over her long night dress so she wouldn’t freeze to d