.
The once vibrant Kingdom of Zandia was now a bloodbath. Fire raged, arrows rained down, and the clash of swords filled the air as people fell, lifeless, to the ground. The massacre was brutal, chaos reigning as mothers screamed for their children and children cried out for their parents.
The enemy kingdom had successfully invaded the palace. "Elisha, it's so good to see you, my brother," a voice sneered, dripping with malice. Judrith, his sword still slick with blood, laughed maniacally.
"Judrith, I beg you. Let everyone go, please stop this madness," King Elisha pleaded, his heart breaking at the sight of his people being butchered like animals. His kingdom was falling, and he felt the crushing weight of his failure. Falling to his knees, he clasped his hands together. "Please," he begged, "They are innocent. You can kill me instead, but please let my people go. Please spare my family."
Judrith's laughter echoed through the besieged palace. "Your family, you say? If you mean your queen and all of the royal family, then I'm sorry, Elisha, they should have turned into ashes by now."
King Elisha's eyes widened in shock. The royal family... dead?
"I wanted to kill you myself. Otherwise, you would have been like that by now. And fair enough, I'm going to send you to them so they won't be missing you in hell," Judrith snarled. Without warning, he closed the distance, driving his bloody sword into the king's heart.
"Ahhh!" King Elisha shrieked in pain, blood gushing from the wound. "Wh…y a..are y..you d.do..doing this?" he coughed, blood staining his lips.
Judrith smirked wickedly. "I told you I would kill you one day. I guess today is the day." He pulled out the sword and plunged it into the king's heart again, repeating the action thrice. Then he kicked Elisha's body, eliciting another groan of pain.
"Yo..you w..will r..regret t…this," Elisha managed to gasp, his royal garment soaked in blood.
"No, I won't, because today henceforth, Zandia will have a new ruler, and none of your lineage will remain!" Judrith spat with pure hatred. "Rot in hell, brother, and oh, send my regards to King Anish." He smiled wickedly before pulling the sword out harshly. King Elisha yelped in immense pain, blood gushing from his mouth.
"Oh, armies of Badrith!" Judrith yelled authoritatively.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" they answered in sync.
"Tonight, Badrith has won! Today we are victorious!" he roared, raising his bloody sword to the sky. "Catch the able-bodied men and women, and kill all infants. Understood!"
"Yes, Your Highness!" With that, the slaughter continued. Judrith shot the dying king a venomous glance before walking away, slaughtering people as he went.
From his hidden place, ten-year-old Prince Damon had witnessed everything. He ran to his father, tears streaming down his face. "Father! Father!" he cried, holding onto his dying parent.
Weakly, King Elisha took his son's small hand in his own bloodied ones. "D...Damon," he stuttered.
"Father, please stand up! We have to go and save Mama and the Princess! We have to save Mama and my sister from the fire! Stand up, Father!" he wailed, pulling on his father's arm. But the man was too weak to move.
"Y...you must su...survive. Y...you h...have t...to survive...e n.no mm...attee.rr what," he said with all his remaining might.
"Father, please, don't die!" the little boy cried helplessly.
"G...go...go...no...now. G...goo faraway f...from h...ere a...and su...survive. Go!" he ordered, forcefully pulling his hand from Damon's grasp, using his last burst of energy. His eyes were slowly closing. "Go, Damon. And don't forget you are Prince Damon," he whispered before his eyes finally slipped shut.
"Ahhh! Father! Father, please!" Damon cried out in agony. But as a group of soldiers approached, he swiftly stood and hid. When he saw no one in sight, he ran with all his might.
He would never forget that night—the night he lost everything: his father, his mother, his sister, all the royal family, and his title. The night that drastically changed his life. His dark past.
But he would come back, to claim everything he has lost --- and more.