Stepping out of his room for the first time felt like being a caged bird finally set free. Naito couldn't believe Cosena used to always tell him that there was nothing to see outside their room. The halls were expansive compared to their small, cramped room. The sparkling gold walls were decorated with paintings of the twelve signs of the zodiac and every phase of the moon, including it's rarest eclipses.
Naito stared up in awe at the highly realistic planet models, hovering just inches beneath the ceiling. They didn't seem to be moving, but by staring at them closely, he saw that they were rotating around the sun very slowly. Watching the planets rotate so slowly was mesmerizing, and Naito didn't snap out of his daze until Cosena grabbed him by the arm and dragged him along.
Naito and Alsen had no idea where they were supposed to go, but Cosena told them that their father showed her the way earlier. Even still, it took them nearly half an hour to find the throne room. When Alsen teased Cosena about taking so long to find it, Cosena insisted that she would have found it sooner if Alsen and Naito hadn't kept wandering off on their own.
The three of them stood outside the throne room, waiting for their father to call Naito in. Dressed for the occasion, Cosena wore an elegant, royal, purple dress that went down to her ankles. Alsen's was dark blue and went down to her ankles as well.
Dressed like a king, Naito wore oversized, scarlet royal robes, decorated with a pattern of golden stars and the moon. His robes were so long that they trailed several feet behind him across the floor. Alsen and Cosena had to hold it up so that he didn't trip. Naito figured it was so long because it was meant for him to wear two years from now, not today.
While they waited, the three siblings pressed their ears against the door in attempt to hear what was being said, and were able to faintly make out their father's voice. "We gather here today..." he cleared his throat, then continued to speak. "For the most important day in recent history. As we all know, our king was not intended to be crowned until two years from now. However..."
Naito tried to listen to the rest, but all he could make out was something about moltrogks and something else that sounded like 'tour...dip...soul?''. Out of all the history, potions, spells, and magical creatures books he had read, Naito never heard of anything like a 'tourdipsoul'. He must not have heard his father properly.
"This is boring.." Alsen said, flapping Naito's robes. "He'll probably be talking for a good few hours. Let's bring some more company while we wait." Alsen reached for her wand, but Cosena swatted her hand and shook her head. Alsen pouted but didn't argue, continuing to flap Naito's cloak in silent boredom.
Naito waited for what felt like another half an hour, his heart pounding against his chest in trepidation. This was the day he waited his whole life for, yet he couldn't stop himself from feeling a little nervous. Before he knew it, he was frantically pacing from side to side, constantly telling himself 'Okay Naito, this is it. You're about to start your legacy. You're going to make your mother's dream come true. You've got this'.
He felt a comforting hand on each of his shoulders and saw Alsen and Cosena both smiling encouragingly at him. They didn't say a word, but he could tell they knew what was going on in his head and were telling him it'll be alright. Knowing he would always have them by his side no matter what calmed his nerves down and he felt more confident than ever. He was ready when his father's voice boomed, "And now, let us begin the coronation! Come, Naito Raizu! To the throne!"
The large doors slowly creaked open as if by the command of Sartur's voice. Naito strode across the rolled out red carpet that led to the throne, his head held high. Banners emblazoned with a capital Z and E behind a red moon hung from the ceiling, and above the throne was a painting of a blizargwin on top of a snowy mountain.
The massive windows showing nothing but cloud and sky outside threatened to make him queasy at the thought of how high up they must be, but he kept his eyes straight ahead, where his father stood in front of the throne, with a golden crown raised high above his head. Three bearded men sat before the throne with their heads bowed. They each wore different colored robes – red, blue, and brown, and their pointy hoods masked their faces. Sartur wore his usual green robes.
Naito's heart nearly skipped a beat at the sight of the throne. Stretched ten feet up from the top of the seat, the majestic stone head of a serpentine beast leered down at Naito, it's eyes aglow with a radiant cyan aura. Two benevolent wings sprouted from the back and surrounded the mantle like a guardian angel ready to take flight. Naito glanced back at his sisters when he reached the steps. Rather than following him up, they stepped off to the side and gave him an affirming nod, so he sat. He gripped the rough serpentine heads of armrests, staring down at everyone.
Sartur stepped in front of him, crown still raised high. "The one who wears this crown shall be the king of the Zodiac Empire..." He spoke in his cold, dry voice, "That is to say, king of us all. Naito Emerald Raizu, as the third coming of the blizargwin king, Nircogard, you are the only one worthy of this honor. By accepting this crown, you do not just take leadership of the Zodiac Empire. You also take responsibility of going on your journey to Kricade, where only one man has ever gone before. You will become Nircogard once more. With the blizargwin king as the world's new ruler, we shall thrive once more and turn this world into our perfect utopia. Do you accept?"
"I accept." Naito said, firmly.
"Good...then give me your arm."
Sartur held out his hand. Naito gulped. He knew this was coming but that didn't make it any less unnerving. Taking a deep breath, Naito extended his arm to his father and rolled his sleeve up. Sartur retrieved a knife and goblet from his sleeve. Naito held his breath and shut his eyes for a brief moment. He felt the ice-cold metal touch his skin before the ear-splitting shriek of a thousand shattered mirrors echoed throughout the Throne Room.
Naito opened his eyes to find a red flurry on top of his father, wrestling the knife out of Sartur's grasp and flinging it halfway across the room. Sartur kneed the other High Mage in the nose with a gruesome crunch, forcing him off. With his attacker dazed, Sartur dashed towards the knife and retrieved it.
The red-robed High Mage wiped blood from his face and pulled a wand from his sleeve. Naito sat on the edge of his seat, gripping the armrests as tight as he could to stop himself from rising. The two men circled each other, weapons pointed at their chests.
"M-Master Sartur!" exclaimed the blue-robed High Mage. He threw his hood back, revealing his grizzled turquoise hair and pointy chin.
"Stay in position, fellow High Mages. I'll take down the traitor myself." Sartur smiled and licked his lips like a ravenous predator. "So, Zephan, you finally show your true colors. Are you truly this envious that your son is a mere soldier, while mine is going to be king?"
"Cut the crap, Sartur, I know what's really going on here." Zephan replied.
"Oh, I wonder what truth that could be? You mean that you only have approximately five minutes left to live?" Sartur asked in a mocking tone, his head cocked to the side.
"Why don't you drop that petty little knife? We both know you have your wand on you, despite telling us to leave ours behind." Zephan pointed his wand at Sartur's sleeve.
Sartur guffawed and reached into his sleeve, but Zephan took advantage of the split second and shouted, "Sefinterper!". A burst of green flames shot out of his wand, burning so bright that Naito felt like his eyeballs would melt if he stared too long. The flames formed themselves into the shape of a serpent, coiling itself gently around Zephan's shoulders.
The serpent hissed at Sartur, spewing sparks of flames out of it's mouth like saliva. Sartur stood still, staring at the serpent without moving a muscle. Then, without warning, it struck. It's mouth opened wide enough to swallow Sartur whole and bit down with it's large, flaming fangs.
Sartur reacted so fast that Naito hadn't even seen him move. Just like that, he was behind Zephan with his own wand out. Without even needing to chant a spell, he twirled his wand in a complicated figure eight motion. A powerful gust of tumultuous winds burst from his wand. The serpent's flames tried to resist the wind, but the flames began to blow out, causing it to lose it's form bit by bit.
While Sartur was focused on destroying the serpent, Zephan snapped his fingers, causing a pillar of flames to erupt where Sartur stood. Sartur jumped to the side just in time, but Zephan kept causing the pillars to erupt beneath Sartur's feet, leaving him with no choice but to dodge every second.
With Sartur no longer focused on destroying it, the serpent quickly regained it's form, forcing Sartur to dodge it's relentless strikes along with Zephan's flame pillars. If not for his Aeromancer agility, Sartur would likely have been scorched to death by now. But being an Aeromancer also meant that he had low stamina. He couldn't dodge forever.
Naito wondered if he should come to his father's aid. High Mage Zart seemed to be wondering the same thing. "Master Sartur!" he shouted, attempting to run forward, but was held back by the brown-robed High Mage.
Naito glanced towards his sisters. They both stood planted against the wall, their chests heaving with every breath as they watched the two High Mages duel in awe. They both looked just as bewildered by the sudden turn of events as Naito.
Sartur surrounded his body with powerful force field of wind, forcing the serpent back each time it attempted to strike. He flicked his wrist and Zephan was planted against the wall with a loud THUD!. He pointed his wand at Zephan and chanted "Wiblenad!". Razor sharp blades of wind shot out from his wand. Zephan just barely had enough time to put up a wall of flames that took the damage for him.
"I think it's time I took it up a notch..." Sartur breathed heavily and ducked just as Zephan hurled a fireball at him. He slowly stepped back until he was against the wall. Zephan smirked cockily, seeming to foolishly believe that he had forced Sartur into a corner, but Sartur guffawed, then shouted "OH PUMPKIN!!!", and pressed his hand against a specific tile on the wall.
The whole room shook as if there was an earthquake and the center of the floor swung downwards. Naito felt every hair on his body stand up. Something down there bellowed a ferocious, bestial roar. Then something utterly terrifying leaped out. Alsen screamed and the High Mages stepped back at the sight of it. It had to be around thirty feet feet tall and sixty feet long, with a body covered in thick, amber fur. Neither of the pairs of eyes on it's three canine heads seemed to have any pupils. It's scaly, serpentine tail wagged from side to side and Naito could've swore he heard it hiss.
Naito recognized the beast from Intermediate Guide to Magical Creatures, but he never would have guessed that his father had his own Cerberus. According to the book, Cerberus were very rare creatures that resided far out to the southwest in the jungles of Nohegimat. They were highly aggressive and known to devour anyone they sensed an ounce of fear from. In order to tame a Cerberus, you had to be even more aggressive than the beast itself. Aggressive enough for it to fear you.
Zephan's knees bucked as he stared up at the beast, his hands shaking with so much fear that he dropped his wand. "A-A C-Cerberus...?!" He stuttered, slowly backing up.
The Cerberus, Pumpkin, as Sartur had called her, looked around the room with her three tongues hanging out, panting excitedly. When she looked Naito's way, he willed himself to look her in the eye and not show the slightest sign of fear. Alsen didn't do such a good job when Pumpkin looked her way. She let out another scream and dropped to her knees, refusing to look directly at the beast.
Naito's heart skipped a beat, but Pumpkin was clearly tamed very well, as she showed no interest in Alsen's fear. She panted excitedly when her eyes met Sartur's and tried to run over to him, but was held back by the chain attached to her collar. Naito's heartbeat slowed down in relief. The beast was on a leash, she couldn't attack even if she wanted to.
Sartur walked up to her with a big, warm, fatherly smile spread across his face. Pumpkin leaned down so he could pet her, each head licking him as he did so. Sartur reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a key. Naito's heartbeat picked up again as he watched his father remove the beast's leash. Tame or not, the thought of such a terrific creature being unrestrained was far from pleasant.
"Everyone, I would like you to meet Pumpkin. Pumpkin, meet everyone." Sartur waved his hand across the room and Pumpkin looked at everyone one by one again. Still the beast showed no signs of interest at any of them.
"Daddy's got lunch for the pups." Sartur pointed at Zephan.
Pumpkin licked her lips greedily, leering down at her prey. Zephan hurled three fireballs from his palm at each of her heads. She howled and staggered back, shaking her heads wildly. Zephan strode towards the door, but Sartur intercepted him. Before Zephan could cast another spell, Sartur twisted his arm behind his back and pinned him against the wall. He covered Zephan's mouth with his left hand, shut his eyes, then chanted 'Aethnorbe!". Zephan squirmed, gasping and prying at Sartur's hand, but he seemed to gradually lose strength. Sartur did not release him until his eyes shut and his body no longer moved an inch.
Recovered from Zephan's attack, Pumpkin leaped across the room to where the High Mage's unconscious, possibly lifeless body lay. Her center head picked him up by the back of his robes, then flung him down the trapdoor. There was a brief moment of silence before his body hit the floor below with a loud crunch. Multiple barks could be heard from below, followed by what could only be the sound of Zephan's body being devoured by Pumpkin's puppies.
"Good...good girl!" Sartur exclaimed between heavy breaths, clutching onto his chest with one hand and scratching Pumpkin behind her ears with his other hand. She panted in delight, large globs of saliva dripping to the floor. Her stomach rumbled loudly, and she covered her eyes with her ears in what looked like embarrassment, whining like a puppy.
"Don't worry, daddy will bring you lunch later." Sartur said. Pumpkin stood up tall, panting in delight.
"Now, where were we? Ah, yes." Sartur waved his wand at the shattered glass and it put itself back together. Picking the repaired goblet up, he turned to face the two High Mages and his daughters. "I must apologize for the inconvenience. I do hope that little display was entertaining enough to make up for the delay."
Sartur held his hand out to Naito again, waiting. Naito gave him his arm, but he was still so shocked by the sudden turn of events, he barely felt the pain as the knife sliced through his skin, his blood dripping into the goblet.
"In order to prove our loyalty to the king, we must all drink from his blood! Anyone who refuses, you'll be fed to Pumpkin." Sartur exclaimed. Naito flinched at the mental image of someone being fed to that monstrosity.Once the goblet was half full, he put it to his lips and took a sip from it. After swallowing, he wiped his lips with his sleeve and sighed with satisfaction, as if he had just drank a cold, refreshing drink.
Naito shivered. He knew from The History of Magic and our World Vol II that whenever a new king was crowned, the highest ranking members of the empire were required to drink from the king's blood. He just never imagined that anyone could enjoy that taste.
After both High Mages drank their sip, Sartur turned to Alsen and Cosena. Showing no signs of fear or hesitation, Cosena took the goblet from her father's hand and drank her sip. Did Naito imagine it, or had she took a bigger sip than the High Mages?
Alsen was now the only one left. Sartur handed her the goblet. It shook in her trembling hands and her face contorted with disgust. "D-Do I have too...?" she asked.
Pumpkin licked her lips greedily, probably thinking she had fresh meat coming her way. Naito was just about to rise to his feet and take action against this when Sartur said, "You must, and you will."
"Alright, alright, I'm doing it..." Alsen whispered, raising the goblet to her lips. She squelched and clutched onto her gut after swallowing it.
As horrible as the thought of drinking someone else's blood was, Naito felt like Alsen was overreacting. But at least she drank it. He shuddered at the thought of what could have happened if she refused.
"And that completes stage one of the coronation. Now, for stage two..." Sartur said, wiping the blood off the knife. Naito knew what stage two was before his father even said it.
"Now that we have all proven our loyalty, the king must prove his as well! Let us allow him to drink of our blood!" Sartur sliced into his own skin with the knife.
Naito worried that Alsen might actually resist this time. What would happen if she did? Would their father be merciless enough to feed his own daughter to Pumpkin? There was no way Naito could let that beast harm his sister...
The two High Mage's let their blood drip into the goblet, and then it was Alsen and Cosena's turn once again. Naito did not want to watch what was about to happen, so he shut his eyes and looked to the side. He opened his eyes once he assumed it was over.
Alsen must not have resisted this time, as Sartur now stood before the throne. Sartur handed Naito the goblet, which he took and peered into. It was half full, it's metallic smell drifting into his nose. Just how unhealthy was this? Everyone else only had to drink a sip, but he was going to have to drink the whole thing, mixed with everyone's blood. Would he get a disease?
It wasn't as if Naito didn't know what blood tastes like. He had a habit of licking his wounds whenever he bled. But he never actually drank blood. He was a wizard, not a vampire. Still, what must be done must be done. After taking a deep breath, he gulped it down in one go. It tasted the same as it smelt, if not a little worse. His stomach threatened to throw it up, but he would not allow it. At least for now.
"Well done, son." Sartur whispered, patting Naito on the shoulder. Even though his touch was gentle, Naito still shuddered. Sartur did not see this, as he had already turned around to face the High Mages and his daughters.
"With the completion of stage two, we can now proceed to stage three!" Sartur exclaimed, his arms spread out high and wide. Naito was a little worried about what stage three could be, but he was relieved when his father continued, "The crowning of the king!" Sartur picked up the crown and slowly placed it on Naito's head.
"Naito, it's official. You're the king of the Zodiac Empire. Let us achieve greatness together, everyone!" Sartur shouted and clapped.
The two High Mages clapped along, cheering boisterously. Cosena clapped along but did not cheer, while Alsen did not clap at all. She was doubled over, clutching onto her gut, and Naito could tell she was resisting the urge to vomit.
Pumpkin licked Naito's face with each of her three heads, as if to congratulate him on being crowned king, leaving a large amount of canine drool dripping from his face. Naito wiped at it frantically with his robe sleeves.
"Alright girl, back to your playhouse you go." Sartur said. Pumpkin's ears drooped low and she whined like a little puppy. Her stomach growled again. "Don't worry, daddy didn't forget about your lunch."
Pumpkin's ears perked up and she stuck her tongues out, panting in delight before obediently leaping back down the trapdoor where she had emerged from. Sartur pressed his hand against the same tile on the wall as before, closing the floor back up.
"Now that that's done, it's time for the feast! All of you are required to be there, unless you want to be Pumpkin's lunch." Sartur said grimly before walking out, followed by the High Mages.
Naito watched them as they walked away. Did his father seriously expect anyone to have an appetite after that?
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