Prologue

"Master Quill! Wake up!" The voice said as Quill could feel himself getting thrown around in bed. As he awoke, Quill heard thunder crack, and rain that trickled on the window. His vision was beginning to become more clear and he could recognize that it was one of his servants. "Yes, what is it? Did something happen? Ms. Matilda?" Quill said, rubbing his eyes. A big boom and a shake in the bed startled Quill, that's when he then realized something was going on. "We're under attack," She said, speaking with a cold sweat leaving her forehead as she began leaving his bedside. "Hurry! We don't have much time! Grab what you need!"

Quill quickly got up from his bed and grabbed his mother's necklace, he then peered outside the window. As he looked outside, all he could see was a war waging on the castle grounds. Fire and rain mixed with the sounds of metal clanging made Quill back away from the window and made a sudden dash towards the door.

"Come along! Sir Wilson is waiting for us!" Matilda said, waving him over to her direction.

"What's happening Ms. Matilda?" Quill asked, running alongside her. The walls shook and rumbled as the attacks outside became more aggressive, with dust gradually dropping from the ceiling.

"Your Father sent me to get you, Sir Wilson is waiting for us in the main hall. They've breached our defenses and soon they'll enter our keep."

"Do you know if my father is okay?"

"Once he gave me that order I don't know where he went, I'm sorry."

Quill became worrisome as he followed right alongside her, knowing that his father could be anywhere. They soon reached the entrance doors, and Quill saw most of the citizens of Larion hiding in here. Quill heard crying and murmuring within the group of people followed by another loud crack of thunder due to the harsh storm outside. Matilda went inside the group and Quill quickly followed right behind. Quill studied the large group of citizens and heard multiple cries from both men, women, and children.

Quill felt a bit shaky as he walked, this whole new experience frightened him. He kept following behind as he continued to glance at each lucky soul in here. "Quill!" Recognizing the voice, he looked behind him to see Asher, his big brother, he had a few dirt and scratches on his face but at least he was unharmed. However, his royal clothes were also covered in dirt and a sword was missing from his sheath. "Asher! You're okay," Quill said, hugging him, his arms wrapping around him tight but eventually letting go of him to ask, "Have you seen Father?"

"No I didn't, last I saw him, he was out helping everyone retreat to the castle." He sighs, his head hanging low as he felt ashamed of his answer.

"Do you think he's still out there?"

"If he is, I'm sure he's taking down the lot of them." Asher smiled, a small glimmer of hope in his dark hazel eyes.

"Master Quill, Master Asher! Come along!" Matilda said, standing out in the crowd by waving her hands over her head to gesture the two siblings over to her. Quill complied and started jogging towards Matilda, with Asher following behind.

"If Father is out there, I'm sure he's alright, brother," Asher said.

They walked past a few Elves, their pointy ears noticeable, Orcs, their sharp teeth poking out of their lower lips, and Nekojins, their cat-like ears, and tail with a human form. Quill then noticed that they all had the same jumpy, jittery, and frightened expressions, all terrified by a force beyond their control. As Quill kept behind Matilda, he saw a clear view of Sir Wilson and three knights of "The Legion of Larion." Those knights, the most trusted and elite, were standing there without the other seven of them. Quill saw that their armor was banged up or either scratched, and various plates of armor were missing or either dented. It would seem not even they would have managed to hold back the beasts on their way here.

"Sir Wilson! Master Quill and Master Asher are here," She said, alerting Sir Wilson. "I'll go help everyone else." With that, she runs off to the group of citizens to help them calm down and collect themselves. The time for panic was not now, not when danger was so close.

"Good, be ready to leave Ms. Matilda, we don't have much time," Sir Wilson told Matilda, nodding to her in agreement right before she walked past Quill and Asher.

"Quill, Asher! Are you lads okay?" Sir Wilson asked, looking towards them, his face despite holding its stoic look, conveyed worry for them.

"Sir Wilson, have you seen Father?" Quill asked, ignoring his question, hoping he would have a different answer than the last.

"I'm sorry lad, I have no idea where he is, but I'm sure he's doing okay." Sir Wilson said, in a reassuring voice, but it wasn't fooling anyone. Thoughts rushed into Quill's head as he stood there quietly, he was hoping that he was alright and was safe wherever he was.

"Sir Wilson, what's the plan?" Asher asked, trying to change the subject for Quill's sake.

"We try and hold out while we can, get everyone to safety, once everyone is safe we can escape--"

"We're abandoning Larion???" Asher exclaims, he never heard of such a thing from Sir Wilson, and who could blame him, they were planning to abandon the place they called home.

"We can't hold it, lad, they're forces outrank ours. We may lose the kingdom, but we still have its people." Sir Wilson said, putting his hand over Asher's shoulder.

"Alright, I think we should use the hidden tunnel to escape..." It was obvious that Asher was reluctant with Sir Wilson's plans but he agreed with him.

"Glad we're on the same page, alright Asher, Quill, get the people ready to escape. Once everyone is here we--"

A big explosion erupted from the entrance and war cries filled the hallways. Quill's ears rang but even then he heard bones rattling, mixed with ghoulish screams were induced with fear and violent intent. As they were barging in, people started to run around screeching and crying as they tried to find a way to escape.

"With me Knights! Defend the people!" Sir Wilson said, charging into battle. Squires and knights followed behind Sir Wilson in defense for the kingdom and the people. Quill's knees felt weak, his eyes widened with terror, and he couldn't help but stand there as all this was happening right in front of him. Soon, the world just lost its volume and time seemingly slowed down in front of him as his mind tried to contemplate everything that was happening.

"Everyone! Follow me! This way to safety," Quill heard Asher, his voice so calm and collected. Quill saw Asher approach him; his footsteps gave no sound. "Stay with me brother! We're getting out of here ok?" Quill failed to reply as he stood there in fear, seeing Sir Wilson and the heroic knights and squires hold the entrance door shut as long as they could. All Quill could do was nod in reply and directed his attention to Asher. "Good! Just follow me." Asher said, beginning to lead everyone, his legs beginning to speed up into a run and everyone followed. Quill ran right beside him, trying his best to stay calm as he kept running.

As Quill ran down the hallways, all he could hear was the continuous cracks of thunder, explosions in the distance, and the war cries that followed. The screams filled his head, making it harder to forget with each passing second. Quill glanced over his shoulder to see citizens, servants, and some squires following behind.

"Just ignore everything, okay brother?" Asher said. Quill tried to, but no matter what he did, the screams got inside his head and stayed there. Another explosion echoed and shook the halls, making Quill stumble and trip on the extravagant carpet beneath him. Quill tried to get up, but everyone just ran over him, being selfish and ignorant of their surroundings. Feet trampled over him, the sounds of panic overlaying his cries of pain.

Once everyone ran over him and left him behind, he tried to get up but was in pain. "Get up Master Quill!" A familiar voice said, picking him up from the ground. As Quill got up, he saw that it was Matilda who brought him back to his feet. But where was her soft touch? The feeling of her hands even holding on to him felt numb as his mind was still in such a haze. "Thank you, Ms. Matilda," he said, his voice soft and quiet barely noticeable by Matilda. His feet began to move as he was now following alongside her, his speed slowly picking up. Quill once again kept pace with Matilda, he ignored all the explosions and kept running with ringing ears and weakened legs. The rate he was running it felt like his legs were going to give out on him, but he didn't stop. "We're almost there Master Quill," Matilda said, her voice a bit shaky and riddled with her heavy panting along with his own. "Just keep running!" Quill kept pushing and as they both turned a corner, they saw people cramped around a two-door entrance leading into a cave.

The cave being baron and dimly-lit by the torches inside with the roof filled with spikes that dripped of water, and with a single word that can cause a quiet echo. Quill felt relieved that they were able to catch a break, mostly catch his breath and to rest his legs. The adrenaline left his body leading him to weakly stumble to the closest wall and let his back slide down into the ground. As he rested against the wall he could hear Asher calling out for him. "Master Asher! We're over here!" Matilda said. "Brother! What happened?" Asher called out, heading towards our direction. "I just fell is all." Asher then grabbed his face and examined it. Quill could tell that Asher saw some scratches on him and that he wasn't fooling anyone. "As long as you're okay… Please stick close no matter what," Asher asked, letting go of Quill's face. He looked past him to see the people exit down towards the secret exit, squeezing through left and right, Squires ordering people to exit calmly and orderly. "We need help!" The group's attention directed towards the hallway, as they heard metal clanking.

Quill and the others then saw a knight with his helmet missing, armor plates dented, his hair was wet and he was breathing profusely. "The king needs our help! He needs us!" The knight said, leaning on the doorpost, catching his breath preparing himself for another round. Before Quill knew it, he saw Asher standing up from his side, grabbing a spare sword from one of the squires, and Quill could see that look in his eye that was filled with determination he would always wear during training.

"Ms. Matilda, please watch over Quill for me," Asher said, sheathing away his acquired longsword.

"I will Master Asher," Matilda said, gently putting a hand over Quill. "Please be careful…"

"I will try…" he said, smiling.

Quill's heartbeat slowly sped up, increasing each time Asher took a step towards that door, leading out to the hallway to uncertain probabilities. As Asher exited that door, Quill couldn't help but stay silent as horrible things entered his mind. His vision began to blur as he curled up against the wall, becoming short of breath. Visions started violently playing in his head, horrifying scenarios that kept becoming terrifying with each second passing. The sounds of distant screams echoed in his mind that ended with one fatal stab. "Quill? Is everything alright?" Matilda asked, placing her hands on his shoulders, analyzing his face. Quill escaped her grasps and tried to get a grip on himself, but the more he fought it, the more it kept replaying and replaying in his mind. His breathing accelerated, his chest puffing in and out. "Quill, wake up!" He spun around, only to see everyone gone, including Matilda. As he clutched onto his chest he felt his heart speed up a little more to the point it felt like it was gonna burst. "Quill! Wake up!"