Following the attack on the BLAU, four of the five feudal lords returned to the Land of Mammals for an emergency meeting. Hielee was excused from the meeting as he rushed to the aid of his homeland. Linnaeus was the last one to enter the ballroom. As soon as he stepped in, Galryas went on a rant.
“I told you all that this would happen. Those freaks were bound to attack us. Wickedness is in their blood. They declared war the moment they set foot on Keanos. They will regret their decision to attack and I will personally see to it that every last arthropod is either dead or begging for mercy.”
“Let’s not be hasty about this,” said Rachias. “We’re all just as upset about this as you are, but we need to go over all of the details before we make the final call on war.”
Sunari joined the discussion with a couple of questions. “So who exactly attacked the Land of Birds? Was Teraphon responsible?”
Linnaeus, who was now seated, began to share what he knew. “According to reports from the BLAU, there were five insect manek users who hid their identities under black hooded cloaks. A Colonel named Teon removed the hood of one of them to reveal the face of Felix, the executioner wasp. He is one of the five members of Teraphon’s elite posse known as the Sting Force.”
“The Sting Force?” Rachias questioned. “That’s Teraphon’s most powerful and ruthless faction. Are you sure it was them who he sent to the land of birds?”
“Their identity was further confirmed when a wounded troop reported that he heard Felix state his name followed by the words, ‘Long live Zitonia.’ Based on the description of the maneks that the others possessed, we can conclude that each sting force member was present and Teraphon orchestrated the attack. They killed eleven BLAU warriors and left six critically wounded.”
Galryas shot up from his chair. “There you have it. That’s all of the detail that we need. Let’s not waste any more time so we can rid the world of these monsters.”
“Something is troubling me,” said Rachias. “How did they slip past the BLAU coastal defense without being detected? Did they manage to get away or are they still in Keanos?”
Linnaeus sighed and rubbed his golden hair. “I’m afraid we do not have those answers, Rachias. The birds are searching, but there are currently no signs of them anywhere.”
The room fell silent for a brief moment. Galryas sat back down. Carolus set his quill pen in an ink bottle and broke the silence.
“Given the circumstances, I hope you won’t mind if we get straight to the point with this vote. Please raise your hand if you choose to declare war on Zitonia.”
Galryas immediately raised his hand followed by Linnaeus and Sunari. After a moment of hesitation, Rachias raised his hand as well.
“As I thought,” said Carolus. “Now, let’s teach those low-life savages a lesson about what happens when you anger the lands of Keanos.”
# # #
Mory was devastated as he sat by his father’s bedside, watching him slowly approach death. He was rushed to urgent care shortly after his battle with Felix. Tears ran down Mory’s face as he watched him, covered in blankets and struggling with every breath. He laid there motionless and his skin seemed to turn paler by the minute. He held his father’s hand, but it felt cold and there wasn’t an ounce of grip strength from it. His eyes were closed and he was completely unresponsive to Mory’s presence.
As he sat there in the small room filled with various tools and bottles of medicine and elixirs, he sank into a deep state of denial. Just two hours earlier, they were ready to celebrate his graduation. To see his father in such a state made him speak out in mindless desperation.
“Come on, Dad. Stay with me. I need you. Mom and Ariel, we all need you. Please wake up so we can go home.”
Mory looked towards the two healers, a man and a woman who were a couple of meters away from the other side of the bed.
“He’ll make it through this, won’t he?”
The man looked down at the floor and remained silent. The woman scraped up the courage to tell him the truth.
“One of his lungs was punctured. The damage is beyond repair and he will not be able to recover. He does not have much more time to live.”
“No . . . There has to be something that you can do.”
“I am sorry. We have done all that we can.”
Those words were like a knife through the heart. Mory leaned his head on the bed beside his father as more tears began to flow. The curtain that led into the tiny and cluttered room slid to the side Mory’s mother walked in. She immediately went to Mory and kneeled to hug him. She had just been tending to Ariel outside and her eyes were filled with tears as well. Neither of them said a word. Suddenly they heard a whisper.
“M-Mory.”
“Dad!”
“Teon!”
His eyes remained closed but he did indeed produce a low raspy whisper.
“Son . . . my sword . . . take it. Fight . . . for . . . freedom.”
“Stay with me, Dad!”
His father put every bit of strength that he had into his final words for his son.
“Mory . . . fight . . . for freedom.”
Teon turned his eyes to Zerella and formed a barely visible smile. He looked at her with his soft blue eyes for one last time. His last message for her was hidden somewhere in that final serene glance. He soon closed his eyes and that was the end for him.
Mory’s world had gone dark, and quiet, and cold. The healers rushed to his father’s bedside to confirm the grim reality. The realization that his father was dead left him trapped in a prison of despair. He would’ve remained there, frozen forever, but his father’s final words still echoed throughout his mind.
Freedom. Freedom. Freedom.
Mory sprung out of his seat and darted across the room to grab his father’s sword. He came back over and took one last look at his father, who still had that dawning smile on his face. His mother was stunned.
“Momo, what are you-“
“I swear on this sword you’ve given me that I will find whoever is responsible for your death and make them pay.”
Mory turned and stormed out of the room.
“Wait, Mory!” his mother shouted.
He blew right past Ariel who was sitting on the floor just outside of the room.
# # #
Once he reached the recruitment tower, he flung the wooden doors open and approached the only troop in the lobby who sat at a table covered in a scattered mess of papers.
“I need to enlist in the BLAU now!”
The man, who was a little on the chubby side and appeared to be middle-aged, looked up from his work.
“Wait a minute. Aren’t you Colonel Teon’s boy? Is he doing all right?”
“He’s dead. Those insects killed my father. I need to avenge him!”
The man stood up and slowly slid his hand over his buzzed cut head. He was taller than Mory expected. There was a moment of silence before he spoke.
“It pains me to hear that we lost such an amazing man. I can only imagine how tough this must be for you. But kid, revenge isn’t the answer. I think you need time for grieving.”
“My dad was the main reason why I kept pushing forward in this hateful place. I can’t just sit here and cry for him!”
“I hate to add to your pain, but we both know you can’t join the armed forces because you’re a spora. It’s the law.”
Mory snapped. He drew his father’s sword and aimed its tip at the big guy’s chest.
“Those damn laws have made my life a living hell. Enough nonsense. I want to speak to whoever’s in charge.”
“You don’t wanna do this, kid.”
They remained in an intense standoff for what seemed like an eternity to Mory. He began to wonder if he really wanted to do what he was doing. A man, who Mory was too fired up to notice, placed his hand on Mory’s raised forearm. He was balancing himself on wooden crutches and covered in wraps and bandages.
“Please lower your sword. I have something to tell you related to your father.” The peaceful intervention from the busted up man brought Mory back to his senses. He sheathed the sword, then looked at the big man, who had a look of concern for Mory despite being threatened at sword point. Mory quickly felt the need to apologize.
“I-I’m sorry.”
“No worries. I’ll give you two some space,” said the recruiter.
He walked past them and went outside. Mory looked down at the floor, ashamed of his actions.
“It’s okay,” said the patched up man. “Let’s go have a seat on that bench over there.”
Mory nodded and they went over to a long bench that ran along the sidewall. The man was slow to sit as he had to position his body and crutches just right so he could lower himself.
“I’ll just cut to the chase. Before your dad was stabbed, he saved my life.”
Mory looked at him with widened eyes as the man continued.
“I had a stung wing, a broken femur, and cracked ribs. I was done for, but your dad rushed in and saved me. I wish I could repay him for that, but I can’t. What I can do is leave something for his son. The name of his killer.”
“Who was it?”
“Felix, the executioner wasp. He was sent by Teraphon, the ruler of Zitonia.”
Mory clenched his fists at the sound of their names.
“This is classified information that I shouldn’t be telling you, but I thought you deserved to know. Don’t even think about trying to take those guys on now because you don’t stand a chance. But if you and I should ever happen to meet again during the war, I would be more than willing to help you defeat them.”
He extended his hand for a shake. “I’m Rocko, by the way.”
Mory shook his hand and told him his name.
“Get back to your family, Mory. They need you now.”
Fantasy
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