Flames. Dhule Sanyal was surrounded by flames, not just a wall but more like a dome of fire not allowing him any relief by means of air flow from above. A searing pain flowed through Dhule’s body, not just from the flames but also inside his body. He wasn’t sure how he got in this situation, all he knew was- What did he know, what happened to him, he was banished from his kingdom, he had met a figure on a dune as he was walking around the desert, After he ran from the figure he found himself in a merchant town and was thrown out for a reason he didn’t understand and then he fell asleep crying. But what was he crying about? That he was thrown out of that town? No, he didn’t really care about what those townspeople thought of him. That he was banished from his kingdom? No, that was almost a Dechit ago now. What was he crying about, he replayed the events of the last Dechit in his head countless times but he couldn’t remember what he was crying about.
Dhule’s father was looking down at him, his brother, Yoro, sitting next to him. But that can’t be right, Yoro was sitting in Dhule’s seat, why would he be sitting there, and now that he thinks about it why is he not sitting with his brother and father, what’s going on here.
“I’m sorry Dhule, but the council has come to this decision on their own.”
What was he talking about? What decision did the council make where his father would be apologetic, where he would be below him, where his brother would be sitting in- sitting in his chair. “Father no. Surely not, you don’t mean to tell me that-”
“It seems that you’ve figured it out, I’m sorry it came to this Dhule, I didn’t wish to, but-”
“Don’t give me that. You’re telling me that some old people are telling you to banish your first-born child, the crown prince, and you’re just- you’re just going to do it? Why, why father, do you not love me, was I not good enough for you?”
“It’s not that Dhule, but as a king-”
“Don’t you ‘as a king’ me, I know what kings are supposed to do but I also know what fathers are supposed to do but clearly you don’t. So I’ll leave if that is what you think is best father, no sorry, King Peress.” Dhule then stormed out of the castle and into his room to pack, not allowing his father to speak another word or object to his statements or acts.
“I'm sorry, find your own path, Dhule. Prove yourself worthy." Dhule's father said as he looked down in resentment.
“You are not worthy. Dhule Sanyal.” The voice that spoke to Dhule when he was thrown out of Omhen’s Rest said in his head.
“What? Tell me who you are, asshole, why can’t you just do that!?” Dhule screamed into the void he was standing in.
A face appeared in front of him, it was a color Dhule had never seen before, it had completely smooth skin and the bare minimum amount of features, almost like a mask. “You must figure out who I am on your own Dhule Sanyal, I cannot help you and no one else will if you keep up this foolish act you have. You constantly lie to everyone you have met, you cannot remember your friend and guiding light even given all the time in the world, you do not allow anyone to finish their thoughts even if they would help you in the long run, and you refuse to acknowledge anyone who would not be of immediate help to you. YOU. ARE. NOT. WORTHY. OF BECOMING. A KING. DHULE SANYAL.” The voice boomed forcing Dhule to acknowledge his shortcomings and knocking him back.
Dhule tried to rebut but found that he could not speak. His lips were not bound, he could still breathe, however he could not speak.
“This does not mean you are incapable of becoming worthy but just that it will take much more effort than any other to-be-king.”
Once again Dhule tried to speak but still couldn’t.
“Soon, the town of Omhen’s Rest will be raided by Eastern Forces. You will have to protect them. I wish you luck Dhule Sanyal.” As soon as the voice stopped speaking the mask disappeared leaving Dhule in a void by himself.
“What did the mask mean ‘Eastern Forces’? There was so much to the east. Did they mean the Haya-Mawt, no they were more North-East than just Eastern. The Kriegerous, no they’re much too focussed on naval supremacy to come after a landlocked city, much less one in the desert. The Tekuani, maybe but they’re a very cooperative race that wouldn’t do too well in the desert based on their natural environment in the jungle. The Viri are the only one left, and I suppose they would be the most likely to do so, they’re the closest, and they might want to expand their land but why would they want this town that’s at the bottom of a cliff.” Dhule thought hard about what “Eastern Forces” the mask was talking about but he wasn’t completely sure as all of the cultures east of the town didn’t really have a reason to raid it.
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Dhule woke up covered in sand and in the fetal position. Strangely he remembered all of his dream in extreme detail. The town that kicked him out was going to get raided, and he wasn’t sure if he cared, he knew he spent time thinking about it in his dream, but now that he woke up he didn’t care about the people of the town or the town itself. “I could just leave, I could hop on Veyr and get out of dodge.” He thought, however, looking for Veyr yielded nothing, they were nowhere to be found. “VEYR! VEYR! WHERE ARE YOU VEYR!” Dhule found himself yelling for his companion but nothing came of it.
He sat down thinking about where Veyr could have gone. He reflected on the previous day for a few minutes before remembering why Veyr was nowhere to be found. “I’M SORRY VEYR, I DIDN’T MEAN IT, THIS VOICE IN MY HEAD, IT WAS DRIVING ME CRAZY AND FORCING ME TO SAY THINGS I DIDN’T REALLY MEAN!” Dhule yelled trying to reach his companion’s ears however once again nothing came from it. “Whelp, guess I'll have to get out on my own.”
Walking off into the sunrise Dhule was set in his ways. “These people threw me out. Over a law they didn't tell me. Why should I help them in the slightest? They didn't care for me so why should I care for them?” Dhule thought to himself.
“Because that’s what kings do.” Another unnamed voice said in Dhule's head. But this one didn't have to name itself, Dhule knew who this voice was.
“Yes Father, kings help people even if they don't have a reason. But you seem to forget, I'm not a king, you banished me and stripped me of all titles.” Dhule shouted aloud at his father who wasn't really there.
“Yes, you are not a king but you do wish to become one. Isn't that what you told your horse friend? ‘You WILL rule’?”
“Don't spit my own words back at me father. I know what I said and I know what I meant. But I don't wish to rule over these people, they don't deserve me, they don't even deserve to serve under me.”
“As a king it is your duty to help those in need even if you don't believe that they do and even if you don't want to.”
“Oh is that why you threw me out of the kingdom, because this is supposed to help me, being thrown out of my kingdom, being abandoned by my own father because he liked my brother more than me, this was supposed to be good for me.”
Dhule stood in the middle of the desert awaiting a response that would never come. Only after waiting for a couple minutes did Dhule recognize the situation he was in. His friend had left him. He had awoken in the middle of the desert after falling asleep without anything. And to top it all off he was yelling at an image of his father that he created just arguing with himself with no one else around. “I'm going fucking crazy.” He told himself, “You know what, I will go save that town, I’ll go save that nowhere town and I’ll become the savior of these people. And after that I'll start and rule my own kingdom that's better than the Khalux Kingdom. It'll be so good that Yoro would be begging at his feet, begging to rule under the continent spanning, Dhule Empire.”
There was no easy way up the cliffs that surrounded Omhen's Rest, at least not one that wouldn't take about a Dechit to reach to top. “I suppose I'll just have to climb.” Dhule thought “But how? It's a sheer cliff face, there's no human that could possibly mount this obstacle, why did the Viri have to come soon, why not in a month or so. It would be way more plausible for him to stop them, not that it would be very plausible either way, but if he had more time he could at least think up some sort of plan.
- ?? -
Dhule had been climbing the cliff for almost an hour now, however looking at him you wouldn’t guess it. He was about 20 feet off the ground, not unnoticeable but nowhere near the top of the cliff. There were no holds for him to use, making the ascent that much harder. A second hour passed as he continued to climb, then a third, a fourth, fifth, sixth. It took Dhule almost 15 hours to climb the cliff that separated him from the invading force. As he reached the summit he saw it, a legion of Viri soldiers, clad in gleaming pieces of metal that created a threatening facade of strong muscles that reflected those underneath. Out of all the soldiers marching forward one stood out more than the others, they were on horseback, holding a flag that introduced the Viri Epistolarum et pugni Empire to any who didn’t know their power, their helmet looked fancier than the others, not only shinier but also had a crest of red feathers sitting atop it, they were also the only soldier to carry a sword, the sign of a true warrior.
“That’s their leader.” Dhule thought to himself. He started walking forward, he didn’t make it very far before his legs gave out. “No, I can’t stop here, I have to get there, I have to save them, I need to become their savior.” Dhule pushed himself further than he ever had, he started running towards the Viri on the horse, “If their leader dies the rest will run, surely. All I have to do is kill one guy, that’s easy.” Dhule thought this to himself as he was running. He had no time to think about the repercussions of his actions or whether or not he could actually do it, all he knew was that killing this person would earn him the respect of the townspeople down below.
