Fi-Six turned away from the carnage, his cold smile still etched on his face. He began to walk towards the castle, his eyes fixed on the throne that would soon be his.
The next day, Lyra lounged on her throne, sipping a glass of wine as two attendants gently fanned her with large palm fronds. The atmosphere was languid, until the throne room doors burst open. An attendant rushed in, knelt before her, and blurted out,
"My Queen! The nobles of the demon realm... they were massacred last night!"
Lyra's eyes sparkled . "Excellent. He is coming along good. He will soon be ready for the throne... and I know he will make an excellent Demon King."she said as she chuckled to herself
Lyra leaned back in her throne, a sly grin spreading across her face. "Summon the Squires of the Demon Realm. I have an announcement."
The attendants hastened to comply. Soon, the Squires stood before her. Lyra's voice boomed out: "Spread the word to every corner of the Demon Realm: In FIFTEEN DAYS, Fi-Six will face me, Lyra, in the Crimson Arena for the Demon Throne!"
The Squires vanished like shadows.
In the streets, taverns, and corners of the demon realm, the Squires burst forth, shouting: "HEY YAY! HEY YAY! ALL DEMONS OF THE DEMON REALM! LISTEN! ALL DEMONS OF THE DEMON REALM... IN FIFTEEN DAYS, FI-SIX, THE PRINCE, SHALL CHALLENGE QUEEN LYRA FOR THE THRONE! THIS IS A PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT! HEY YAY! HEY YAY!" đź’€
In his chambers within the Demon Castle, Fi-Six lay on his bed, eyes fixed on the stone ceiling. Morning light streamed through the narrow windows. As the Squires echoed the announcement across the demon realm, he smiled to himself.
Meanwhile, back in the human world...
In the grand banquet hall of the Kingdom of Elmon, nobles and guests laughed and feasted under twinkling chandeliers. Music and clench of silverware filled the air. Suddenly, King Jude strode in, his face stern, flanked by guards.
"Seize them!" he commanded, pointing at Franklin, Amber, and their children.
The guards rushed forward, grabbing Franklin's family. The room fell silent. Nobles whispered among themselves, eyes wide with shock.
King Jude's voice boomed, "Franklin, Amber, and their children are accused of treason – colluding with demons, conspiring against the crown, and practicing dark arts!"
A noble stood up, his voice loud.
"Hey wait a moment, wasn't it because of the demons, that the dwarves and the elves were both wiped out! We can't let Elmon fall to the same fate!"
The crowd erupted into murmurs and gasps, whispers of "demons brought the destruction" and "they must be purged" spreading like wildfire.
Franklin try to resist the guards on one of them punched him in the face. He spat a glob of blood at King Jude's feet.
"Don't act so high and mighty, Jude," he snarled. "You already know Amber was a demon, and all my children are half-breeds. And my family had NOTHING to do with the destruction of the dwarves and elves!"
King Jude's expression turned icy. "Huh? You're lying! You spew lies!" he shouted, his face reddening. "I had no idea you were colluding with demons!"
The hall erupted into murmurs and gasps. King Jude waved his hand, silencing them. "I will not be swayed by your false accusations. Guards, take them away!"
As the guards dragged Franklin and his family away, King Jude's voice rose above the din. "This is a dark day for Elmon. We will cleanse our kingdom of demon filth and traitors!"
The crowd began to chant, "Jude! Jude! Jude!" as the king's eyes gleamed with self-righteous fervor.
In the dungeons, Franklin's family clheld each other, their faces set in determination.
Amber's eyes locked onto Franklin's. "You shouldn't have done that," she whispered.
Franklin's grin was bloody. "Worth it."
Frederick stood up, his face twisted in rage. He strode to the wall and punched it, the stone cracking under his fist.
"Dammit!" he growled. "We should have ripped his head off when we had the chance. That bastard! He has been using Finn's name to boost the status of this kingdom, and now he's trying to kill us!"
Sophia's eyes blazed. "We should kill everyone in this kingdom."
Emily nodded in agreement, her face set in a cold mask.
Amber's voice was calm. "Children, if we kill the people in this kingdom, we'd just be proving them right. We need to hold on and find a way out of this."
Sophia scoffed. "Hold on? They're going to execute us at dawn!"
Frederick's face was hard. "Sophia's right. We need to fight back."
Franklin's voice was low. "The children are right. We can't just sit here and wait for the executioner."
Amber's eyes were worried. "Franklin..."
Franklin's face was set. "I agree with the children. We fight."
The group fell into a tense silence, plotting their escape and their revenge .
Amber sighed, looking around at her family. "So is there no way that I can stop any of you? Is there no way I can talk sense into you?"
Alexander stood up, his face firm. "Mom, I appreciate that you don't want us to do this, but we have given so much for this kingdom. Even you – if it wasn't for you, the demons would have ransacked this kingdom a long time ago."
Sophia cut in, her voice cold. "King Jude is an asshole, He wants to play around with fate. He doesn't want people to know that he has family as demons, so he's planned to kill us all..."
Emily nodded in agreement. "He's Using Finn's name to boost his own power. think about it if people know he has the silent backing of the demons, no one would ever tried to attack."
Amber's eyes were worried, but she knew she was outnumbered. "You all seem set on this path..."
Franklin stood up, his face set. "We do what we must. We'll fight."
The group nodded in agreement, their minds made up.
Amber sighed, a hint of resignation in her voice. "Alright... if that's what you all want."
Sophia's eyes narrowed. "But we're not just going in blind. We give Jude one more chance to back down."
Frederick snorted. "Like he'll take it."
Amber's face was calculating. "If he doesn't take it... then we could slaughter everybody."
Franklin's smile spread, cold and sharp. "I like that idea."
The others nodded in agreement, a dark consensus settling over the group.