1 Misfortune

The people of Macbeth were in great distress. King Lexis couldn't just sit down and watch his people suffer. He needed to do something to ease the suffering of his people.

"Your Majesty, some people were found dead by the River of Valox." A man in his mid-thirties rushed into the throne room to pass the unpleasant information to the King.

King Lexis couldn't help but bow his head in shame. It wasn't the first time he had received this kind of news but what was there to be happy about when he can't even rule his people peacefully.

"Your Majesty, indeed we're familiar with this kind of news but why were they found dead by the River of Valox." The eldest of the council member asked causing the others to whisper some unknown words to themselves.

King Lexis didn't give a thought about that. He was deeply ashamed of himself for not being able to rule his people well.

"The River of Valox... The River of Valox." He repeated to himself several times.

"They were trying to flee." The eldest of the council members muttered. He was the spokesman of the rest of the council members so he was really the one to do all the talking.

Who would blame the people for trying to flee? The River of Valox was one of the most dangerous rivers, outside Macbeth. The River was connected to another realm entirely making it dangerous for the people of Macbeth to go in.

The people believed the river was controlled by a supernatural being. Since it was their belief they all adhered to it. Only those seeking untimely death will pass through the river.

In this case, it seems the people that were found dead by the River of Valox were seeking their untimely death in other to end their suffering.

Days passed by and the King kept on receiving more news about people being found dead by the River of Valox.

This time their dead bodies took a different form. The body of the people that were found by the River of Valox was hard as a rock. Their body was ashen and their hair turned white.

The news about the misfortune of the Kingdom of Macbeth spread across other Kingdoms like wildfire and they all stopped working with Macbeth. The food supplies that were imported to their Kingdom were cut off.

The people of Macbeth were decreasing drastically in numbers. Food was scarce. Others who suffered from this scarcity were as good as dead. They looked more like a walking corpses.

Nobody knew why the Kingdom of Macbeth was suffering from this great misfortune. The King was clueless. He didn't know what to do anymore, the council members had all abandoned the problems to him.

Since the reign of the other Kings, the people of Macbeth all lived in peace and they were looked after by supernatural beings. The first two years of King Lexis' reign were peaceful but all of a sudden the people started suffering from great chaos.

For this, they blamed everything on King Lexis. He was no great ruler. The more they try to flee the more the death rate increases. Was this a curse?

King Lexis almost ran mad because of the situation at hand. No one agreed to help him, the other Kingdom's cut all ties with him. His people neglected him and his family...

"My Lord, please calm down. You can't die in this situation. Think about our daughter." His wife warmly pulled him into her embrace taking the dagger away from him.

Her husband, the King of this cursed Kingdom of Macbeth tried to commit suicide.

"There's no hope. We're all doomed." King Lexis sobbed in his wife's embrace.

"Oh no... My Lord, there's always hope. We just need to get to the bottom of this strange misfortune." His wife said removing the strand of hair from his face.

The King was clearly in dilemma over how to tackle the crisis. He thought of his wife's words. What if there was a solution to it? He won't hesitate to do anything to help his people overcome their suffering.

"You think we can get to the bottom of this? It's already getting out of hand and I'm rendered hopeless." King Lexis pulled out of his wife's embrace about to tear up. His wife patted his back and assured him that everything would be fine.

An idea flashed in the Queen's mind. She sat upright without tearing her gaze from her husband. "How about we go seek the prophetess?"

How silly of him not to have thought about going to seek the prophetess. She might have answers to his questions. She might be able to bring out a solution but it always came with a price.

"I've never thought of seeking the prophetess." He confessed bowing his head in guilt and shame.

"The only thing you could do was to sit here thinking about how you could accomplish your suicide mission." The Queen retorted but with a calm voice pointing to the dagger, she took from him.

King Lexis let out a deep sigh. He was no wise King. He was drowned in foolishness.

The prophetess resided in a place that was out of their reach. No one knew the exact place she lived. She was among the supernatural beings that protected the Kingdom of Macbeth.

People who tried to go in search of her ended up dead. Only those looking for their ultimate death would go in search of her.

This only had one meaning. The River of Valox was a no-go area, the same as the Prophetess's residence.

King Lexis thought that maybe she resided at the bank of the River of Valox or she might be staying underwater. One of his questions was answered by his millions of thoughts. The Prophetess was responsible for the death of the people, maybe they were also trying to seek her.

King Lexis didn't know for sure if the prophetess was the murderer. The people of Macbeth were now suffering from shame.