EX Chapter 3 - Like Soon

The world was once so innocent.
He witnessed that fact with his own eyes.

"I'll be like the sun!"

A young boy named Bright Flame declared, the love of his life before him. They had been friends in a world of peace for as long as they could remember, and the happy moments they shared would surely continue on into the future. Both of them believed as such.

Even as the years passed by, 304 days at a time, that belief would only grow stronger. Their trust in one another, and in the people supporting them, was nigh unshakable...
Alas, theory isn't fact. 99% is a step short of 100. A man of perfect health is no safer from death than the terminally ill.
"Nigh unshakable" means nothing, in the end.
The peace that had been granted to the world in His death was, indeed, taken for granted by all. The young prince couldn't live such a fairytale existence forever.

"I have something to discuss with my father."
"Prince Vio! I believe the king is still in a meeting."
"That's fine. I shall wait outside the door."
"Oh, but-"

A flame does not ask permission to burn, and a prince does not seek permission from a guard. He would wait where he wished.
Yet through the walls, a muffled conversation told of treachery. What the prince heard that day should've remained hidden from the outside world.

"You will take the princess before she meets with her betrothed. Understood?"
"Yes sir. What of the King and Queen?"
"That's not for you to know, but let's just say... That house you wanted in Aurba may be available again soon."
"Now the question is, will I be paying with money or blood?"
"Why care? Yve will give us plenty of both."

Vio knew those voices well. One belonged to his father, the king of Lann. The other, a wealthy man who supported the kingdom well.
Vio also understood the topic well. In a few days, he was to be married to the princess of Yve as part of a commitment to peace between the two countries. From the sounds of it, that arrangement is little more than a scheme.

Peace between Yve and Lann would not exist. Not without drastic measures.
Prince Vio knew what to do.

◇ ◇ ◇

Before a crowd, the newly-crowned King spoke to his people proudly, raising the sword that, unknown to all, had been a tool of regicide.

"As I'm sure you have all heard, my father was announced dead mere days ago. As I'm sure you have all wondered, was someone truly responsible for his death?"

He fast gained popularity, using promises of transparency and honest communication as his weapons.

"Someone? Nay. My father's killer was not one, but many!"

King Vio called out a name many in the audience knew well—an unscrupulous landowner who spent more days abroad than at home.
Immediately after, another name was spoken. This time, the owner of many warehouses is responsible for holding letters and parcels. The price of retrieving anything from his "protection" was far too costly for most.
Another name, then yet another. King Vio revealed that the city's most wealthy were behind the plot to slay the previous King, and to all in the audience, it made perfect sense; everybody knew those sleazeballs were scum, so of course they'd stoop this low.

In truth, their plot to kill a King was one targeted at their neighbouring kingdom of Yve. It had been orchestrated by Vio's dad himself.

"They will tell you they are innocent, and I tell you this: a simple agreement and a degree of trust are no longer enough to keep this continent at peace."

To all, it made sense.
To all, it seemed, except the rich.

With help from an external force, the folk of the higher class formed an army and, in an act of rebellion, stormed the city of Lann by land.
The exhausted King was not yet willing to surrender. Maybe he never would be. For as long as a certain someone filled his thoughts, he would never be allowed to give up.

Money may be capable of bringing troops to battle, but it isn't the only power that can sway people's hearts.
He was always good with words, young Vio. On the battlefield, he would wield a sword, but in the city, he would wield promises.

"We will unite these lands, together!"

◇ ◇ ◇

"40 years ago, it was a certainty that peace would exist. There were no schemes, no backstabbing."

The King spoke to his army of devotees and passionate volunteers. He spoke of the past, and of a future soon to come.

"I ask you all: who was it who tried to conquer our lands through trickery and deceit?"

The crowd replied with one united shout: "The rich!"

"Wealth was distributed fairly. We treated all with respect. I ask you all: when this equality suddenly changed, who benefited most?"

The crowd replied with one united shout: "The rich!"

"Today, our country stands proud, welcoming all, empowering all. I ask you all: who stands beyond our walls, threatening to burn our flags and kill our children?"

The crowd replied with one united shout: "The rich!"

"Well, our hearts are not yet dead! They will learn of that fact at the cost of their own lives!"

Prince Vio was born to a life of love and pleasure.
King Vio was crowned to a world of blood and hate.
He knew not where this rule would take him, nor how long he would last against foreign might, but for the sake of an innocent promise, he lied to the world.

"We fight, today, to protect that which we love! We fight to erase evil from our world!"

An impassioned crowd did cheer along.

"To go as far as one can go to save one woman, one girl, one child!"

That makeshift army would fight with more heart than skill. It wasn't enough to force back their enemies, but it was sufficient to defend their land.
To some, that was enough, but to all, it was not.

◇ ◇ ◇

A knock on the door had interrupted Vio's contemplations. An assistant he knew well stepped into the room with a polite greeting.

"Your majesty, the envoy from Eraidus is here."
"Thank you. Welcome him in."
"Right away."

This meeting had been in the works for almost a week, and finally, it was time. The army of Lann would finally, after months of resistance, erase the attacking rebels from the face of Larila.
In these frantic days, Vio had learned much, not just as a King, but as a commander. What he learned was the harshness of reality. A pretty speech and an eager force were but the starting point of salvation.

People and passion were not enough to win a war, but a flame wouldn't quit until all it touched had burned to ash. A fire has no shame. A fire shows no restraint.
For victory, he would even beg an ancient enemy for help. Using the power bestowed upon him by the children of Eraideaus, King Vio slew the wealth-backed rebellion and set his rule in stone. It would, as promised, be a rule of honesty, of openness, and of communication.
Vio was a king who would listen to his people. It was the only way he could set aside the guilt he felt upon murdering his own father.

But in the flame of resistance, the troops of Lann would yell:

"Death to all betrayers!"

Somehow, the news had reached the Lann's streets. The army that backed the rich and assailed the coastal city was none other than an army of Yve.

"Death to Yve!"

A boy named Vio once promised he would shine for a single girl. No matter what, he would illuminate her world.
But innocence had left this world.
He witnessed that fact with his own eyes.

"I'll be like the sun!" were his words, one happy day.

He held on to what little remained.