The Avalumis is unlike any other entity the world knew of, a terrible beast of untold power that could never be vanquished. But as a new king ascends the throne an ingenious young woman's soul catches its eye.
Gratia only ever wanted a peaceful l...
The crowd awaited the arrival of the prince. Today was the day he would announce the beast he had chosen to slay. It was tradition to slay a beast before the king ascends the throne. Only when a man had felled a plague on the land could he rise to lead his people. The people gathered in the town square to await his announcement.
The air buzzed with excitement as they tried to guess what the prince might choose. Would it be the Erymanthian boar that had been terrorizing the mountainous region? Or perhaps it would be the nekomata that had been running amuck the countryside.
Then prince Aeneas took the stage in his usual assured way. A hush fell upon the crowd as they waited for him to speak. He looked down on the anticipatory crowd with a lazy grin.
"I will be going off to slay Avalumis", he spoke with a disinterested draw as if he'd merely commented on the weather. The crowd now stood gripped with incredulity. Surely he hadn't said what they thought. That would be an impossible feat. No man begger or king had crossed paths with the Avalumis and had lived to speak of it. Even if there were a means to kill it at some point the knowledge had been lost to time. The beast could not be burned, cut, or battered. The beast heeded no mortal weapon. No one even knew what the beast looked like or what it did but, it sure was effective. They had decided long ago to allow it it's forestry and not encroach on its land. Surely the prince couldn't be so arrogant to think that he could do what generations of wise men and warriors had failed to.
The prince only rolled his eyes and stepped away out of the crowd's sight. A murmur ensued in his absence. People had already begun to mourn the death of a leader who'd never had a chance and the poor souls who would make up his hunting party.
The townspeople dispersed leaving only a cloud of dust churned under their feet. Under other circumstances, they'd stay and enjoy the company of one another a tad longer but, it seemed that had some rather important funerals to plan for.
While the people planned for the grieving period the king sat in his throne. Where had he gone so wrong? His heir's unchecked pride had turned to folly and would now bring about his demise. Along with the death of his son may come the death of his people. Prince Aeneas had been his only proper heir and the king was now much too old to rear and raise a new one.
His arrogant son traipsed around the castle halls unbothered by the fate everyone else knew would be coming for him. His greed and ego whispered poison into his ears. He would be the king to kill the Avalumis and it would bring untold glory to his name. He would be branded a God slayer as that is what the people believed it to be. The world would bow before him in worship. He smiled his arrogant smile at the thought of the world under his thumb. After all, all he had to do was kill some old critter scampering through the woods. Surely by now, the thing would be at the end of its life anyway. It probably laid old and decrepit just waiting for its pathetic existence to end. He could even bring its head back to hang on his mantel as a trophy.
His men prepared themselves for the hunt with sorrow in their hearts and courage on their faces. They were practically still boys and had never experienced life or love. They all knew they were going to their deaths but, it was their duty so they would march toward it with dignity.
They kissed their mother's cheeks and shook their father's hands. They made amends where due and said their final goodbyes.
Not the least of the goodbyes were the two the general's son owed the princess. If the prince had chosen a sensible target then he would have gone on to be the new king's second hand and he was also the princess's most treasured friend.
Gratia and Fortis were entirely opposite. The large man with onyx eyes and the lithe pallid girl were opposite in every way but, their care for each other. He was night and her day so it only made sense that in tribute to him she'd carved her face into the fullest crescent moon at the tapered top of an atramentous sky and wept. She wept for the loss of a friend and brother.
He rubbed soothing circles into her back and cherished her closeness. Had he been able to come back he'd have asked her father for permission to court her and then one day for her hand in marriage. He had always loved her and now she would never know. He had waited until he'd be dubbed a man and now the day would never come. So instead he cherished the touch of a woman mourning his impending demise. He memorized how her touch felt so that when the time came he could think back on this moment and find comfort in it before the inevitable.
And so the men held their chins high as they marched into the Jade woods of the Avalumis.
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