Chapter 1:

The Unfaithful King

A Bloom of Thorns


When the sunlight pierces through the crannies in the Great White Wall, and hits the walls of The Whining Well, it illuminates them as bright as the sun and lights up everything around it, and as the darkness starts to vanish, a loud noise is heard, like that of a whine, and wakes up everyone in Aurouth, that's when you know that the legends are all true.

Legends, they transcend time, they transcend mortality and they transcend human comprehension. Legends, they are eternal.

These legends that were written an eternity ago are the embodiment of the gods' knowledge. They were written for the welfare of humans, so they could learn and teach. Some used them the way they were meant to be, while some perished as a result of misunderstanding. Legends can heal, but they can also destroy. Legends, true or not, hold a power. Power to move, change and reform, power to rule, cheat and manipulate, legends have it all.

The ones who worshiped these legends were called the Ligious.

The ones who worshiped gods alongside the legends were called the Faithfuls or the "Religious".

And the ones who didn't worship any of the two were called the Unfaithfuls or the "Unreligious".

The Ligious followed the teachings of the legends. They preached those teachings and promoted a way of living.

The Faithfuls believed in idol and image worship. They chanted their gods' names and held ceremonies. They too believed in the legends, but unlike the Ligious, they cared more about "pleasing" gods and less about their teachings.

The Unfaithfuls neither believed in gods nor in their teachings. They lived by their own set of rules.

The Faithfuls and the Ligious often lived in the same society with harmony, very rarely clashing. While the Unfaithfuls didn't associate with them both. They lived in separate Kingdoms following different lifestyles.

People could choose any of the three classes by their own will, it wasn't decided by birth. Yet, some always discriminated.

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Aurouth was a kingdom in the south of Rodwin, and the only kingdom in the world which consisted of a population of all three classes. Known for the abundance of gold and The Whining Well, Aurouth prospered because of the traders and travelers. The King of Aurouth, despite the presence of an inexplicable well in his kingdom, did not believe in anything. He was Unfaithful, and was mockingly called "The Unfaithful King" among the people of other kingdoms. The people of Aurouth were mostly unfaithfuls, with some small villages and towns of Ligious and Faithfuls. The Whining Well, located in the capital of Aurouth, Windore, attracted thousands of Faithfuls across the world and so the constitution of Aurouth was bent accordingly. It did not refuse devotees, nor did it prohibit a person from practicing worship in the kingdom. Religious ceremonies were banned in some towns, but that was about it.

"Your majesty, the priest has arrived." The guard addressed King Kolth.

"Send him in at once." He replied.

"Yes, your majesty."

The guard sent the priest in. The priest bowed in front of the King and greeted him.

"Skip the formalities, Alzter. This matter is urgent." King Kolth said to the priest.

"On my way, I was wondering what the great Unfaithful King could want from a priest. Perhaps you were missing me, Kolth?" He replied in an informal tone.

"Now's not the time for these jokes Alzter, I need your help."

"And I'm here for that. What is it that I can help you with?"

"It's my daughter, she's sick, she's very sick."

"Reina is sick? That's truly saddening. But, you should've called a doctor for that. How can I, a priest, help with sickness?"

"You don't think I've tried calling doctors? I called every doctor from every kingdom and spent a fortune on them, yet they were unable to cure Reina. They say she's beyond saving Alzter. You are my last hope, as much as I'd want to deny it. The locals say that only a faithful priest can cure her. Hence, I called you. Help me brother!"

"I'll take a look, though I highly doubt that I'd be of any use."

Reina was lying on her bed, breathing heavily. Her cheeks had turned red and her hands pale. She could barely speak. She said that her body ached unbearably, but she had no strength to cry. She looked as if she was on the verge of death.

Alzter sat on the bed and gently placed his hand on her head. He checked her pulse and her breathing. He didn't have much medical knowledge, but still he was able to tell that she was in a very dire condition.

Alzter had a terrible feeling. Though he had never witnessed something like this, he had read about it in the legends. Reina's condition was too similar to that of the "cursed child" from the Devomorian Legends.

His heart started to beat faster than usual and his breathing became heavy. He looked at King Kolth then back at Reina.

He lifted Reina up from the back and looked at her neck. He couldn't believe his eyes.

"Great heavens, have mercy on this child" he mumbled.

"What is it?" King Kolth asked, he could notice Alzter's reaction.

"Nothing." Alzter said as he got up and started rushing out of the room.

"Alzter, tell me what's wrong!" King Kolth followed him in a hurry.

Alzter stopped for a second and said, "There's no use in telling you, you won't believe me Kolth. Just leave Reina's treatment to me now." He started to rush outside again.

"Stop, stop right there Alzter. I shall not allow you to leave before I understand what's going on."

"As I said, you won't believe what I have to say."

"At least tell me once. Whether it's believable or not is a further discussion. But I ought to know, don't I?"

Alzter took a pause, looked down, and then looked the King directly into his eyes. "Your daughter, she's been cursed by the devil. She has the Devil Mark on her neck." He said in a frightening tone.

END OF CHAPTER 1