Mercy & Fire

1. A Humble Warning

In the Kingdom of Bermillia, it was understood that banning magic was for the greater good of society. Other kingdoms generally agreed, and so Dhernon became the only kingdom to sell items imbued with magic.

I placed the article down and glanced at the newspapers she had brought in, left over from handing them out. She held her hand behind her arm. I raised an eyebrow, "What are you hiding there, friend?"

She adjusted the bandana holding her golden curls out of her face and smiled, "Happy birthday to you!"

She pulled out a strawberry tart and held it up in front of me as she kept singing the horrid song. Flashbacks of birthdays with crowds of people singing and staring at me flitted through my mind. I smiled as best I could among the memories of not knowing what to do with so much attention.

"I hope your 22nd year is as blessed as ever." Adelia placed the tart in my hand gingerly.

I accepted the tart and bit into it, "Thank you."

She nodded as she glanced at the stack of articles I had yet to print for next week. I had to copy the whole newspaper numerous times until I had enough to be shared among the town. And that was on top of special orders, which my brother usually handled.

"Any more royal decrees from the Royal Serpent?" She asked bitterly.

I widened my eyes, "Keep your voice down."

We had yet to be born when a royal coup sent the Land of Thelodia into a frenzy. The capital Kingdom was named Dhernon after its invasion, and it left other Kingdoms fearing for their livelihood. My father barely managed to escape to a smaller town after Dhernon attacked another smaller Kingdom at the edge of the Bermillia.

The queen had been ballsy enough to invade yet another, weaker kingdom after this, but Bermillia was known for its might and victory in war, so they had yet to attempt anything here.

Still didn't change the fact that trading with these kingdoms was incredibly regulated, and since father decided to rebuild his printing business, we were one of the main sources of information. We were the ones informing the people of new rules and regulations of entering and leaving the Dhernon Kingdom. I was surprised they even allowed it considering their tyranny.

Each one was ridiculous. No person outside of the Dark Empire was allowed to cross into these invaded kingdoms without expressed permission of both monarchs. Any trading was done at neutral zones a way off of city limits; thus, trading posts were created.

Even so, it was a given that we should not speak her nickname so loudly. We risked having her minions listen in. She operated in magic, which gave her very insidious methods of monitoring the lands without detection. The only people able to notice this were the Templemen, but the Queen has snuffed them out for years. It was a miracle the temple in Bermillia still had Priests dedicated to it.

These days, though, a man stood outside the temple yelling up a storm.

I thought back to the last time I passed by the temple. The man stood with frazzled hair as if he hadn't bathed for weeks, "Prepare, for the light has come! The Most High will prevail! Do not faint. Believe in Him, the everlasting!"

Jonas called him a madman, and some Templemen even ran him off at times, but others... others offered him food and water. These Templemen were the ones Mama always spoke highly of when she taught me to pray like them. Jonas once did it with us, but ever since our mother died, he never prayed again.

"Relax, there hasn't been a Dark Soldier here in months, and everyone around here would agree." She smiled.

It still worried me anyway.