Chapter 3: Laying Seige on the Eastern Kingdom, Thornewood
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______6 moons ago________
The wind blew furiously on my face as we raced towards the Dark Forest. Even from afar, the forest emitted a dark omen of dread. Impenetrable darkness oozing from forest like a river of death. Tall obsidian trees protruding far into the distant sky, their crowns barely visible.
Luckily, we were not headed towards the Dark Forest, not today at least.
We rode across the outskirts of the forest, not daring to come any closer.
I looked around me and saw my brothers riding alongside me. I felt warm, fearless.. fierce.
There were five of us, the legendary knights, riding at dawn to lay seige on the Kingdom east of the Dark Forest.
The Kingdom dreaded by many.
Kingdom Thornewood.
Everyone except us. Simply because we were the best amongst all the 12 Kingdoms. We were feared by all, and in turn we feared nothing at all.
Each of us was a force not to be trifled with.
Leading the Knights was none other than Sir Lucarion Flameward, the Starborn.
His reputation was stellar, with multiple Kingdoms fallen by his blade. He was a manice in the battlefield. His strength and will washed over the knights like a wave, rejuvenating then and giving them hope.
Riding on my right was none other than Sir Vaelen Ashenbrand, the Frostguard.
Although not as decorated and exaggerated as that of Knight Starborn, his reputation was still nothing short of astounding. His feats as the main Guard of Kingdom Aethermoor were just as astonishing and flawless.
He was a little younger than Knight Starborn, but he was still older than me by a few years. He was a cold and reclusive knight, so his Name of Honor suited him perfectly.
Riding beside him, on my far right, was the young knight Sir Kaemir Thunderborn, the Swiftblade.
Although not as famous as the previous two, he was still a maniac in the battlefield. Probably even more dangerous. With great speed and vitality, he descended upon the enemies like a dark omen.
He was considered a young prodigy, after conquering his first Kingdom at 28 years old, and earning a Name of Honor shortly afterwards. Becoming the youngest knight in history to achieve both these feats.
The King bestowed the name Swiftblade to him because of his speed and precision with the blade in the battlefield. It was wonderful and frightening sight to witness. All at the same time.
The young man had a really promising future.
Riding on my left was the legendary stalwart warrior Sir Ardyn Silverhelm, the Dawnshield.
His reputation was not as exceptional as the other three, but it was impressive nonetheless. He was a strong, guant and unmoving man. Quite literally...
He specialized in defense, and according to the rumors, nothing had been able to bypass his shield in more than a decade. He was the oldest of the Knights, the wisest, and also the most experienced.
So we looked up to him for guidance from time to time.
And then there was me.
The second youngest and also the most underrated...
The sounds of battle cries grew louder and louder the more we rode closer to the Kingdom. Hundreds of thousands of knights howled behind us, supporting us as prepared to lay siege on the most eerie of the 12 Kingdoms.
As we rode further and further scaling across the Dark Forest, the air suddenly got heavier and more oppressive. It was so cold that even the tight embrace of my armor was rendered useless. I felt icy claws grasp my heart and that's when I felt it.
Fear like no other.
My body shuddered uncontrollably, I almost fell off my horse.
Some did.
I looked behind me and saw hundreds of horses neighing loudly in fear and toppling down like an avalanche, bringing down countless knights with them. The knights themselves were doing not so well either.
They were deathly pale and bloodless, as if something had drained the life out of them.
That is when I realized that we had arrived.
That were now in the Domain of King Magnus, the Ravenking of Kingdom Thornewood.
***
"Halt!"
Knight Starborn raised his fist in the air and shouted back without turning his head. His voice echoed across the hundreds of thousands knights reeling behind us.
Everything was silent once more, as we all watched the magnificent sight infront of us.
There in the distance, a tall magnificent castle stood, its walls as dark as the River of Darkness oozing from the forest. It had dozens of eerily beautiful, tall obsidian towers with pointy tops that supported the skies.
Deep shadows nestled deep in the castle walls, making it impossible to see beyond. As if that was not enough, an obnoxiously tall obsidian wall stood in front of the castle, hiding more than half of it from view.
The wall was more than 5 kilometers tall, and the castle was even taller. Laying seige to a Great Kingdom was always a chore, and this one would be the worst so far.
Every Kingdom dreaded Kingdom Thornewood not only because of where it is situated, but also because its King was a tyrant. A cold and calculated tyrant that wielded dark magic and sorcery so powerful, no King dared to subjugate it. No King except King Alaric of Aethermoor of course.
That damned lunatic.
We watched the dark castle somberly from a distance, trying to weigh our options. Should we really proceed and attempt to conquer a Kingdom that was built upon the bones of a dozen Kings.
And the ruins of a dozen more Kingdoms.
Knight Starborn turned to look at us, unsure what to do as well. We all looked at each other somberly for a few silent moments, and then he nodded in agreement.
He drew his blade and pointed it to the sky, before pointing it straight to the dark castle. His voice echoed across the darkness of the eternal night.
"For the King! For Aethermoor!"
"FOR THE KING! FOR AETHERMOOR!"
The knights shouted back with collective murderous resolve. They drew their swords pointed them in the same direction.
Before they could move towards the castle though, something else moved in the night sky. Something huge. No, it was as if the sky itself was collapsing under them.
Onto them.
I looked closer, trying to figure out the exact shape of the inky black colossus collapsing over us. What i saw made me shrudder and shiver uncontrollably. It was not infact a giant object falling, instead...
There were hundreds of ravens as black as the night flying towards us in perfect unison.
I grabbed Starborn, who was also looking at the myriads of ravens, by the shoulder and looked at him in the eye. I did not say anything, I just shook my head dejectedly. I was hoping he would get the message and call off the expedition.
And he did.
He suddenly jerked his horse towards the knights and shouted in top of his lungs:
"It is the King! It is King Magnus! Retreat West of the Dark Forest!"
The knights obeyed without question, we did as well.