The swirling sky overshadowed the kingdom of Seanate. Reflecting in the freezing rain, The dark Lord‘s eyes grew misty is he charged back to the mountain station he and his army had claimed. Towards theircamp high in the blizzarding mountains they rushed, all wanting nothing but to rest yet their emperor could not say the same. His cheeks had become frosted over with the water that dripped from eyes seemingly made of ice. He feared himself and the destruction caused by his hands. In fact, his skin sizzled with self loathing. This wasn’t something he wanted. To raid land after land to avenge the lost, knowing they could never be found, Cier knew it was an act of unequal justice. To have fragments of his world ripped away from his grasp only to take that of others, his stomach tied itself into a knot. Just imaging what loved ones may say if they only could speak now, tore his dying heart and split his cracking mind into loose tangled threads, and desperately, Cier felt as though he was fighting tooth and nail to tie himself back into the man he once was. Yet such a thing was a pure impossibly. Never could he return to the peace he once prospered.

Having made it to the stronghold he took shelter, Cier hid himself away within the four walls of a small bed chamber, sobbing and staring endlessly into the cracks of a shattered vanity, wondering how he could ever live with myself. Truthfully, he didn’t want to. Everyone he ever loved Cier had failed to protect. And now so many more lives were beyond ruined. Though the guilt of it ate away at his soul little by little, there was no way that he could surrender. Not without knowing why this was happening. Or who he would be meeting in Hell.

Wrapping his wrists around an ivory bristled brush. The emperor repeatedly smashed it into the glass, shards falling and flying from their frame. The image of himself was simply unbearable.

Reality did not feel entirely true. Only twelve nights ago he would have never even would have considered the idea that his whole existence would change. As if once he were someone else. Cier had been a fair and careful leader, now reduced to the lows of a vicious dictator. And there was no way he could ever be the same man neither Seddow or Seanate would remember. The storms outside only continued to rage, slowly slipping out of Cier’s control like sand dripping down the passage of an hourglass.

---

She could not endure seeing her father suffer so, and without further words, the princess painfully took her leave and left the king where he sat in sorrow upon his throne. Her departure was swift, purpose in her stride as she marched towards the next destination wherein she could proceed with doing what she must. Saoirse was a willful daughter, and she would protect both her home and her beloved father.

She stepped into the stables and tasked the head groom with preparing her horse. She had been accompanied by a few knights, ready to travel and awaiting her commands, but the foul weather had harmed morale and she saw hints of despair in their eyes. "Would you prefer to remain here while I go on alone?" She teased them to help spirits. "We fight to defend the innocent and banish evil. We are the virtuous and brave, the sacred realms advocate for us! Let us attain victory!" She shouted as she mounted her horse and rode with her retinue into the storm.

The villages spread throughout the once peaceful land had been suffering greatly, unprepared for the sudden wake of calamity with the coming of the invading demon and his horde. Anger filled Saoirse's heart, as she traveled from each settlement and gathered more volunteers to aid her in her quest. Her forces were small, but she had the advantage of knowing the terrain better than the enemy - should war be the only choice, her people would be prepared. She had gathered priests, magicians, rangers, and warriors, all willing to stand against the darkness that had come to plague their land... though the princess knew that some were brought by promises of treasure and glory. Not all soldiers were so noble as to lay down their lives for the sake of peace and prosperity.

When they approached the mountains, she donned her weapons and armor, and partook in the rites and rituals that would grant her strength and protect her from harm. Unlike her father, she had no distinguishing harness, instead wearing layers of padded armor emblazoned with the royal insignia combined with patchwork pieces. Her knights insisted she promise to surrender should they find themselves defeated and at the mercy of their foes but she rebuked them. "I will cut my own throat before I am at the mercy of that vile beast." She replied, and it was the fierce rage in her gaze that quelled any further arguments.

Night had come, and they would strike under the veil of darkness. Saoirse then prayed that the battles to come would be in her favor.

@marxxie@Chris488
King Hanequin sat on his throne for a time longer. He, soon, heard those footsteps once more and he no longer felt his daughters' hand or heard her voice. The king blinked and raised his head, just in time to see her leaving his side, leaving the room. He let out a sigh, one that could not be helped. After a few more moments had passed, this man did his best to shake off at least some of what he was currently feeling.

He made to follow after his daughter. This was a father who wondered what she was up to. He did not want her to be involved in this fight. His desire to keep her safe as much as his people was a strong one. He could not let her get hurt. That was one of the main thoughts inside his mind as he had stood up and left the room himself. He glanced around as he tried to find her.

"Where could she be?"

That was when he saw her with the men on the castle grounds. He narrowed his eyes. However, before he could stop her, she had already ridden off, along with those others. He gasped. The king fetched his own horse, being in quite the hurry, and made after his daughter. She was risking more than he was allowing her to. King Hanequin was going to bring his daughter back home. He could not allow harm to come to her. He had already lost his wife. He was not about to lose her as well. By the time he managed to catch up to her, the mountains that the evil man had spoken of were coming into view. His eyes went wide once more.

"She cannot be....."

Those words trailed off as he made his horse go faster, with the intention of desperately trying to reach her, to keep her from going inside.

"Please....stop her....."

He prayed to the great spirits that something would prevent her 'mission'.

Cier’s frosted face, although fridgid, burned red from the turmoil in his heart. Droplets of ice shattered to the stone bricking beneath him.

It was just when he found himself having destroyed the rest of his bedroom that a familiar knocking came from the entrance to interrupt any progression. A tired huff escaped the troubled man’s quivering lips as his breath became visible in the frozen air. Unfortunately this wasn’t someone to ignore. He already knew who stood behind the door. The sound of her knuckles tapping the mahogany was something Cier had become accustomed to for a few years now, and upon undoing the latch, his adviser was revealed. Tall and elegant she was, with hair nearing white as snow. Just as striking in appearance as the man she aided. Yet she was not old as one might think from a distant glance. Not at all as there was not a wrinkle to her bronze skin.

“My lord, I’m afraid Sir Jerelk has spotted visitors lurking about the perimeter.” She informed with nothing but a calm decorum, her scarlet eyes hiding behind an emerald fan embroidered in pure threads of gold. Though fearless of this fact, believing that the sheer power the dark emperor possessed couldn’t possibly become overshadowed, there was not a smidge of worry within her. Of course, not would any amount of men stand against him and the icy, whirling, thunderstorm that drowned Seanate and every land he staked claim.

“Bless you, Neviessa.” These words he uttered, not even bothering to look the women in the eyes as he once would have. His face was shielded in too much darkness for her to even attempt to meet the royal’s gaze just yet. Cier could not bring himself to admit that deeply, he was ashamed by the emotions he couldn’t stop from bleeding through his weakening front. Reminding himself he had no time to dwell in the suffering of loss and near meaningless existence - because he would not allow himself to surrender.

To her, although her presence practically cast aside, she knew this this man like the back of her hand. It was an understatement to say that Cier was distressed, she could see it merely by the hunch of his silhouette, however, within a split second of announcing enemy arrival, the pain embedded in his appearance dissolved into solely frustration. Gritting teeth, he already started his stride towards the outer gate, soon his frown grew into a wide grin. Meanwhile, Neviessa looked on at the demigod from the mess he left, staring blankly from where she stood in the hall behind him.

Cier soon burst out from the mighty structure. Following him was a posse of hundreds of knights. As if he even needed them, there was much more where they came from. As they moved out to search for their guests, the wind picked up dramatically with the rage that rolled in the emperor’s exhausted eyes.

“Show yourselves!” His voice boomed, echoing throughout the mountain range.

“We are aware you are here.”

---

From the clefts and crevices of the mountain, and from the thickets of dense foliage, voices cried out as arrows flew forth from their cover and soared towards the emperor and his entourage. Wind tossed aside the projectiles, what few reached their targets simply deflected off of their armor. "For freedom!" The voices called out once more, followed by another volley of useless arrows in a vain effort to harm their foes.

Saoirse was among her small company of soldiers and simple folk that had volunteered to defend their home from the invaders in hope of abating the vicious storm that had killed so many now. However, now faced with the terror that was the demonic fiend whom possessed the voice that shook the mountain... Courage was sundered, and many fled. The princess and a couple of knights close by shouted orders to stay steady and firm, while organizing a retreat into a the woods, descending the mountain's escarpment along safe paths.

Her strategy was not yet ruined, so she prayed that the gods graced her with fortune, with victory, for she would need divine aid to defeat this enemy. What remaining number of the soldiers and village militia that yet to retreat continued their ranged assault for another brief period of time, before they began their descent down the mountain as well, and Saoirse watched from afar to see how the forces of the dark emperor would react.

"Come and find us, you monsters." She muttered to herself as she moved.

@Chris488@marxxie
King Hanequin prayed to the great spirits more and more as he rode his horse to his destination. He had to stop his daughter. He just had to. She was needlessly putting herself, and others, in grave danger. This king, this worried and caring father as well as a ruler, could not allow this. His daughter did not see what she was doing, or so he thought. Anyway, he tried to get there as quickly as possible, to prevent actions that could cause grave peril.

However, this would not be the case. The king would soon discover that he had arrived too late. His horse stopped just as his daughter had started the charge. He gasped, eyes wide.

"Oh my stars.....!"

He got his horse moving again and he tried to quickly ride up to where his daughter was. The king was desperate to stop her. He had to end this before things got out of hand. He was not going to have needless bloodshed! Not while he drew breath! The king charged towards her and was quite upset with her.

"Stop!!"

He shouted as loud as he could. But, before he could say anything else, a certain male voice could be heard calling out. It was too late. His daughter had angered the lion, so to speak.

"Oh my....stars....!"

He looked towards his daughter as some of HIS men backed away. He was showing how upset he was right in front of his daughter.

"What have you done?!"

They were certain to be destroyed now. They did not have enough power to take down a demigod for skys' sake! That was what the king always thought anyway. Anyway, as this king was now fearing anyway, they were very much doomed now. Their only hope might be to give in to the kings' demand now, if only to buy them more time.

"Please calm his anger....."
Those words, spoke quietly, were yet another prayer, his hopes, and something he needed to happen.

He raised his hand and a sea of black clouds shielded the gentle light of a waning quarter moon, but the night would not remain pitch black for much longer. A monsterous roar of thunder rattled the ground before the first snap of lightning pelted the earth, instantly melting patches of snow with each continuous strike, lighting up the sky. One way or another those hiding within the woods would be found or lured from their positions. He’d make sure of it.

Meanwhile Sir Jerelk, a knight of nearly equal stature led a black mare alongside his emperor and his horse. And soon as enough towards them came the call of Jerelk’s falcon. Soon it had landed, wrapping it’s large and terrifying talons around the armored soldier’s forearm. The beastly bird chimed in response to the mission he had been sent. Three distinct sounds he had made, alerting Jerelk of which direction to lead his portion of men.

“West!” He signaled, only to glance back at Cier, giving his leader the go-ahead to press on with a waving gesture.

The emperor then commanded the rest of the soliders to spread out to other sections of the mountain, incase of something like a surprised attack from an any unexpected angle. Though seeing his own force as indefeatable, no chances would be taken this bitter night. The emperor could not afford to sacrifice any of the lives on his side. Already guilt over the lives lost on both lines gnawed away at his soul. Nevertheless, he was counting on them to aid in finding his mastermind just as much as they relied on him for the future of their families and livelihoods. Cier could not let them fall at the hands of those who dare stand in the path of uncovering the truth, no matter how close he unknowingly was.

The sky was brightened with each string of light that struck the quivering soil and stone below the snow. If it was a game of cat and mouse they wanted, a feral and bloodthirsty feline the dark emperor would be. However there were two lives he would not harm, though he didn’t quite expect to find them here so soon. Not a hair on King Hanequin or his daughter’s head would be harmed. Desperately he was needed someone to take the pain and burden of his powers. And only he could give it to one who has power within them. It wasn’t some thing ever explain to him by the mysterious woman he once met so long ago, but it was an instinctual feeling. Saorise’s eyes may have appeared as normal of orbs as anyone’s but he had seen something lurking behind those windows. An aura of sorts and voice in his mind was calling him towards her. Something he had never experienced yet with every bit of his being he knew very well that she was the one to inherit the gift. And as it seemed so, she was the only person he had met with such potential, besides the son he grieved. He prayed for his entire family and could only hope there was peace on whatever awaited him on the other side. Cier could have felt terrified, and he was, but the memories and certainty of his fate made his heart rattle. This made him nearly combust into flames for he was simply so enraged. For loathing himself more so than the aftermath of his quest.

Riding up onto a hilltop, Cier locked his jaw against the wind, standing high and looking down upon the fleets sent below before diving into the wood and weaving through the trees. Arrows had already flown through the night, yet it was a pitiful attempt in his eyes. No such attack would be dragging him down to his grave. At least not so easily.

@Chris488@marxxie
King Hanequin had to stop his daughter. He still tried to quickly ride up to where his daughter was. He managed to do so quickly enough. His eyes went wide as he saw the scene that started to follow play out before him. The king tried to stop his daughter from going down the mountain, from getting any closer.

"STOP!!!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs. The king had tried to shout to his daughter, the princess, tried to call out to her. He had to prevent things from getting worse. He could not allow this! What was she thinking?!

"DAUGHTER! STOP THIS AT ONCE! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU ARE DOING!"

He made his horse move as fast as it could move. He was desperate to stop this. But, the arrows were flying. Damage was being done. He saw it all with wide eyes, with fear and anger, among other emotions. He had thought he raised his daughter better than this! She was supposed to be smarter than this! Wiser even! The king was about to shout again when he thought he heard another, male, shout in the distance. His eyes went wide. It could not be! He tried to give an order of his own, towards his troops that seemed to be following his daughter. The weather in the sky now seemed to be getting worse and worse as he did so.

"Belay those orders! Turn back before it is too late!"

But it would seemingly be too late quickly enough......

Would he have no choice now?!

---

She ran through the woods, careful not to fall to her demise for one slip would certainly result in a terrible injury if not a gruesome death. So far, she had succeeded in luring the devil and his forces towards her location, as her own soldiers relied upon the cover of the numerous trees and uneven slopes of the mountain to assist their retreat. It seemed as thought their tactics were working (aside from losing more than she had hoped for when many among her ranks had fled at the thunderous voice of the dark emperor) but Saoirse knew the more difficult task lay ahead - this was only the first step of the first battle in this cruel war that would be most likely lead to a sorrowful end for the kingdom of Seanate.

The princess thought she heard her father calling out, shouting over the storm, warning her and commanding her to cease this foolish endeavor. She even thought she saw him among the foliage once, riding his horse like a lunatic desperate to save her from her own folly. The mind played many strange tricks in the heat of battle, and she ignored her imagination, for what else could it be? Her father remained safe back at the castle after all. She prayed for his safety, and for his forgiveness, but she could not allow the embodiment of evil to reign over the land like a looming cloud of darkness. She had to fight!

The arrows they shot were not terribly effective, but hopefully they continued to draw the ire of their enemy, hopefully enraging them by constantly assailing them with an endless barrage and the few small sacrifices of men that stayed behind to ambush their pursuers, whenever the opportunity had arisen. Her forces just had endure their trek across the mountain while goading the enemy to chase after them until they reached their destination.

She heard her soldiers call back and taunt their foes, cursing and mocking them, before bravely fighting and being defeated by overwhelming numbers. Though Saoirse was not inclined to employ such crude and bawdy vernacular, she listened to the insults that came from dying men, and kept them in her memories for later use - both to honor the fallen, and to harass the enemy. They called out:

"Mangled, craven, mongrels! Come at me!"

"Ill-breeding, unmuzzled, whoresons! You'll never claim Seanate!

"It reeks of vile, weather-bitten surly sods, begone villainous fiends! Back to the infernal realm from whence you came!"

Saoirse had heard their insults, and shook her head with forlorn mirth while she rushed onwards to the next destination. Perhaps such profanity should never grace the ears of a princess, but it would bring a modicum joy to invoke as much anger in the invaders as possible, for the kingdom of Seanate would not succumb to tyranny without showing their mettle and fighting to their very last breath.

@Vampiretwilight@marxxie

@Chris488@marxxie
King Hanequin tried to stop his daughter from going down the mountain, from getting any closer, to the best of his ability. His soldiers had apparently not heard him. Things seemed to be getting much much worse. The king grew more and more desperate as he raced towards his daughter, doing his best to avoid arrows and other such things. He had to stop this charge. He had to stop his daughter! She was going to be......

He shook his head. The king was not going to allow that to happen. He hurried his horse onward, through the chaos. King Hanequin tried to shout to his daughter again.

"STOP THIS AT ONCE! YOU ARE GOING TO BE....."

Before he could get more out, an attack nearly struck his horse. The horse reacted with much fright and he was bucked off of the steed. The horse, the steed, would soon run off, would soon flee. The king was on the ground, in the middle of all that was happening. He was in a bit of pain, but did not care in the end. He tried to stand up. He tried to get to his daughter on foot.

"STOP, MY DAUGHTER! STOP THIS AT ONCE! PLEASE!"

He tried to call out, to shout, to his soldiers.

"BELAY THOSE ORDERS AT ONCE! YOUR KING COMMANDS IT! YOU ARE TO STOP AT ONCE! BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!!"

But alas, his words were unheeded. The chaos continued. The king looked around at everything around him. He seemed helpless to stop it. He feared the worst. Then......

He did not see it. He did not see the attack that was coming towards him......

A particular voice caught the attention of the emperor as it called out among the chaotic scene. The spine curling smirk on Cier’s stone-cold face couldn’t be stopped from creeping up to plaster nearly permanently. He led his men towards it as their horses kicked the soft blankets of white into the dark sky. There was only one person the calls could be coming from, and with that, an idea hatched inside his skull like a vulture looming above a helpless carcass lying in the open for the taking.

“Oh my.. if it isn’t Hanequin..” Cier hummed somewhat sarcastic yet in seeming delight. He couldn’t say that he wasn’t a little surprised to see the man. Although it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility to suggest an attack such as this may come about, he hadn’t quite expected to find the poor king here and knocked off his now absent horse. With The emperor’s knights and their steeds circling the man, it wasn’t difficult or took more than a few seconds for them to take him as hostage.

Now Cier wasn’t entirely sure what to make of this bloody situation. This battlefield presented itself a bit unorthodox and strange to say the least. It didn’t seem like something Hannequin would plan, or that this had any planning to it for that matter, though he did not know him close enough to be certain. This just seemed to be too much of an impulsive and idiotic move for a king of his length of reign. To this, the ruler looked to him, his soon to be groom now shackled and unable to escape.

“Tell me now, what is the meaning of this?” He questioned as he swiftly led the group back towards their fortress, considerably confused as he had to be insane to believe Seanate could dare take on Seddowian forces. Especially after defeating them once. How could they even dream of defeating them now? It was honestly so silly he had to hold in the fluttering feeling of laughter bottling up inside him. With this, Cier couldn’t resist it for too long, chuckling softly to himself before the other male could respond.

“You know, if you wanted to make an early arrival, all you had to do was send in a messenger in advance. No need for such a pitiful army..” His tone was light yet his words were cold nonetheless. And needless to say he was quite unhappy with all this ruckus. Already mentally and physically exhausted, pointless attacks were the last thing Cier had wanted to deal with, however, he knew anything that resulted of his brutality were nothing short of own damn fault. He couldn’t very well be too upset. After all, it seemed the choice between war and marriage was already made and the emperor couldn’t be happier.

@marxxie@Chris488
King Hanequin had ducked as best as he could, trying to get out of the way of the attack. But...he would end up in a worse situation. Soon... a familiar voice had spoken to him, could be heard by his ears. He prayed, at that moment, that he heard wrong. He truly hoped that it was not who it sounded like it was. Upon looking, that would not be the case. The worst fear had come to pass. His daughter's recklessness had drawn out the one person he had hoped would not arrive upon that scene, that area, that spot.

"...........!!"

His eyes were wide. He tried to get up on his own. However, before any attempts to even back away could be made, he was surrounded. He was soon in shackles and the like, unable to get away from those who had managed to surround him like that. He struggled, but he would end up doing so in vain. There seemed to be no way to get away from them.

"Let me out of these bindings at once!"

His words would be unheard, unheeded. Soon enough, he was being led away, led elsewhere. He narrowed his eyes.

"This was unplanned! Leave my daughter be!"

His daughter was the one who had initiated the attack. She had been the one who was leading this charge, and she had done so without his approval. He had ridden out there in order to stop her, only to be too late in the end. Now, he would have no choice as only one decision, one thing, could save them all now, or so he thought.

"I had no such intention! I came to stop my daughter and return her home!"

It would not take long to realize, to figure out, the one thing that the dark emperor before him would NOT be convinced of. He doubted if this man would believe otherwise. Anyway, it was not long before he was escorted deep into some cave, and made to sit down somewhere, unable to get away, even if he truly desired to flee.

---

There was the realization that something had gone awry, as the princess gathered her remaining soldiers to her side during the last moments of their flight through the mountains before the coming of dawn. The sight of how few warriors she had left among her company, combined with the fatigue she felt after moving through this difficult terrain for hours on end while the storm continued to rage above, both left her disheartened, but she refused to surrender to despair. She needed to devise another course of action now because the enemy had relented in their chase, somehow aware of the awaiting ambush ahead perhaps... Saoirse shook her head in ire as she heavily breathed with exhaustion. In her mind, she analyzed the situation and attempted to see it from the view of her enemies: It was evident that her attack was helplessly desperate, and they did not truly have to chase after her forces in order to defeat her...

Yet they left themselves vulnerable to further attacks by letting their assailants survive for now, not that Saoirse's future plans had much chance of a success either. She had failed to lure the beast out of its cave and into her trap, as it seemed this beast possessed more cunning than she had thought it had, which had proven to a grave mistake considering her current predicament. In truth, she had few other ways of dealing significant damage to the enemy aside from the danger of the mountains themselves, but the illusions her magicians had summoned would disperse with the arrival of daylight, rendering the trap useless. Lastly, though the storm helped hid them from their pursuers, it continued to batter at morale. Saoirse did not know how long her soldiers would continue to fight, when all hope seemed lost and the weather killed them before the enemy does. There was no shelter they could find that offered protection from the howling winds and endless rain.

She spoke with her knights as they sought further commands to relay to their own soldiers, hearing what they have to say as well. "We must harass our foes, compel them into chasing us. Our arrows are not enough, so we must sabotage anything and everything we can: False attacks and illusions. Disruptions to their supply lines. Infiltrate their camp and spread chaos. We will force them to suffer our wrath until their own fires of rage are blazing and they come hounding after us like the infernal dogs they are. Then we will deliver our retribution, a crushing blow to remind them of our strength." Saoirse proclaimed.

Saoirse hated how hollow her voice sounded, almost suppressed by the presence of the violent storm, but at least her words were heard. One of her knights held up a hand as he spoke: "I'm afraid we're lacking the numbers, your grace. The common folk all fled, and we lost too many in our retreat." He hesitated before he continued. "The odds would be against us even in normal circumstances, but our enemy is led by the devil himself. Mere men are not enough, and its seems the gods have forsaken us... Besides, what happens when they choose to march upon our homes? We can't stop them. I have to protect my family..."

The princess wanted to curse her fate aloud, but instead remained silent as she pondered his words. More of her knights joined in their brother's disposition, while others advocated on her behalf and insisted she would find a way to win in the end. "Enough." She said, bringing their fruitless bickering to an end, waiting until they all turned their attention back to her and were listening. "The gods are watching us, weighing our worthiness - Let them have mercy when judging our loved ones, should our hated enemies seek to strike our home and families as opposed to facing us in battle, may the gods be gentle to the innocent and eternally curse the cruel and cowardly! For now, we must steel our hearts, and endure the hardships ahead of us. We must remain strong and faithful! We will find a weakness in our foes, and we can attain victory if we do not give in to fear! I am your princess, and I ask you to fight with me!"

"Have you come up with a new strategy then?" There was a mixture of oxymoronic admiration and scorn in the voice of the one who questioned her, but Saoirse embraced the insinuated challenge with newfound vigor and resolve. Before she answered, another voice interrupted as one of the scouts returned and came to her. The scout was frightened and frantic, looking behind him as if terrified he was being followed, but there was nothing. Swiftly he told them what he had seen, and Saoirse felt her sudden strength wane upon hearing his words: "My princess, they have the king! They've captured him and spirited him away!"