The Claiomh Solais [#Wattys2016]

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Prince Aloysius of Gorias expected a lot of things. He expected the sun to rise and set everyday. He expected his Hunters to follow under his command. He expected to do dangerous and tricky missions under the crown of his father. He even expected to maybe, possibly, even die sometimes.

What he didn't expect was to wake up in his base camp with a Raven clawing at his throat. He was a man enough to admit that he jumped out of his wits and grabbed the bird in his hands. His blue eyes flashing with fear. If there was one thing he didn't like, it was birds and his father had a bunch of them.

He threw the Raven onto the floor only to find his father standing exactly where it had been. He had forgotten his father could also change into a bird. He cringed inwardly. Not a good start to the day then.

His father, Diomedes 'The King' Gorias, stood up and brushed himself off. His father was dressed in a royal blue dress suit and had a golden cloak wrapped around him. He wore the Crown of the Tuath which, hopefully, Aloysius would one day inherit. Strapped to his side was a golden spear. It glowed with unearthly light.

Aloyisous wondered if he was seeing things or if it was Majik. He remembered the day he'd been riding in the forests around the barracks and had found the spear. It was rightfully his but his father had taken it.

"Aloysius, I have a task for you." Diomedes boomed. His father walked outer of his chambers and into the crowded hallways of the Hunters' base camp. Aloysius trailed after him uncertain of where they were going.

His father seemed agitated and very unsettled for some reason. It had been weeks since he had last seen his father as well. Sometimes Aloysius could go for months without seeing his father, ever since his mother died.

His mother, Adelle Murias, had died when Aloysius had been almost 12. It happened a week before his twelfth birthday but he didn't like to think about the first death of many he witnessed. Ever since then his father had become a bitter, sad old man, although Diomedes himself was barely 39 years old.

Soon after Aloysius' mother's death Diomedes had gone on a rampage, invading, and destroying, Finnias and overthrowing Murias. Aloysius, barely being 12 had been locked up in the castle oblivious to it all. All he had known was his best friend Mae had been taken from him.

Mae, Maere, Maereígan, it was all the same. All he knew was someone had killed his best friend. The night his father had told him she was gone was the night Aloysius promised that he would train with his father's Hunters and find Mae's killer and seek revenge.

Ever since then Aloysius had trained, with the help of his best friend and cousin Damianus, and he now stood as the captain and leader of the highly esteemed Hunters of Gorias. He still hadn't found Mae's killer.

They had been walking for a good five minutes and they seemed to be slowing down. The Hunter's barracks was a large building with many different rooms and wings and twisting corridors. The dorms were in the east wing and in the west wing was the massive cafeteria. There were over 300 proper Hunters and at least 2000 normal soldiers. The Hunters all had special abilities, the soldiers did not.

In the south wing lay the many training rooms and classrooms. There was also a massive library where the Hunters studied ancient battle plans. The north wing consisted of the stables where they had over 400 horses. Some were Majik.