*ONE*
Fight for one, die for one, kill for one, destroy for one…
Love for one, care for one, cry for one, live for one…
One princess, one destiny.
Chapter one- HISTORY
There was nothing but pitch darkness and the sound of rough wind. The air was cold, the ground was soggy and a damp smell lingered distinctively up- five nostrils. It was the time of the year again, where the princes of the 5 dominating tribes was due for an annual meeting to discuss their immortal lives. Five shadowy figures sat in a circle in a small cave, squashed up and breathing heavily. The sound of their breathing indicated their suffocation, yet despite the smell in the crammed space, a mutter of complaint could be heard. The flame grew bigger, the air felt warmer as five good-looking nostrils came into view.
The complainer looked very young. His face was the color of the golden sun with rays of short and curly blond hair, tinted slightly with a bronze color. His eyes were the not purest of all blue, but a night color as if it was filled with stars. Unfortunately as he smiled, he looked almost… like a girl.
"…looks like somebody haven't grown in the last a hundred year, Skyrieous", a rich voice lazily drawled.
True, Skyrieous looked as wimpy as a shrimp sitting beside his mocker.
However, being the 2nd smartest of the group, he had won many wars against the other four tribes. He was the prince of the sky and all those above; this caused his arrogant personality to flare as he found himself discriminated in front of the others. He felt his mind whizzing as it conjured up a plan for war…he'd make him suffer. Nobody messes around with him! Skyrieous opened his mouth to declare war, but was stopped by his only allegiance and friend…the prince next door.
The mocker gave Skyrieous a disdained look. His eyes hardened with displeasure and boredom while his deep voice purred with rude remarks…provoking Skyrieous. He wanted a war, because he loved to kill and watch those people of other clans die under his influence. He loved his immortal life, his power and others vulnerability against him. His looks matched his ghastly thoughts, for he looked like the ghost of Satan himself, with dark jet-black hair and eyes as dark as coal, his nose was long and structured balancing his face in perfect halves. There was something sinister and mysterious about him. His tough aura constantly sends terror signals to all those around him. He has a tall muscular figure and skin as pale as the dead. He looked sick, but he was after all a half vampire, so the skin color was considered normal. He had a smirk on his face, and looked as if he was ready to throw fire at anyone who dared to speak up to him; his eyes were throwing daggers at Skyrieous, provoking him for a challenge. After all, he was the prince of darkness and he wants to hear the screams of pain and horror from people to satisfy his repulsive cravings.
In contrary, beside the tension Skyrieous and his mocker, two other princes were sitting in the corners of the cave, both ignoring the cold atmosphere around them and the beckoning warmth of the flame. They both seemed engrossed in a deep conversation…so deep that they were oblivious to the tense atmosphere. But clearly, you could see that these two boys are very close friends. Foresterio had bluish green hair that was tied back in a long pony tail and Seario had greenish blue hair tied back in a small pony tail. They both had color coordinated eyes. One was moss green with specks of blue and the other boy was unfortunately hidden in the shadow, but one would assume that the color of his eyes is sea blue with specks of green. These two ruled the sea and forest, and both were dressed very aristocratically in their finest and most expensive garments. Not only their outfit showed their social status, but their ignorant attitude also showed how arrogant they were as they overlooked everyone else in the cave.
"Skyrieous… Darkemous, do you have to fight?" the last prince asked quietly.
This was the prince next door, who stopped Skyrieous from challenging the prince of darkness- Darkemous. He was…radiant, his messy hair was blood red with shimmering silver streaks, spiked up in several areas on its own accord. He was taller than Seario and Darkemous and slightly more builder than the other two. The muscles on his arms and scars on his neck showed that he had fought many tough one-on-one combats, alongside his army. His slightly exotic accent was deep and warm, while his eyes glowed with the color of violet that seems to hypnotize and entrance all those who look into it. His looks did not correspond to his fiery temper or serious nature. In fact, he is one of those who listen to what others say, and the only one who tries to keep peace and stop war of others who 'fight just for the fun of it'. After all…that is why he is here today as the prince of light… to bring peace for all of Quest.
It was a tradition, for the five princes to gather every 100 years in order to have a "catch-up" meeting. This year particular is very important, because it is the 1000th year and 4 tribes had decided to come on an agreement to have peace amongst people in quest, although this was highly frowned upon and disagreed by the Darkemous- but he wasn't stupid enough to let the other four tribes allying against him. So here they all were, squashed up in an oddly small cave, waiting to sign a treaty for peace…for now.
"But…Lightis! Darkemous is…" Skyrieous started.
"We're here to make an oath to not have war anymore. To not be selfish and fight because we are bored, and let those innocent people suffer because of our actions." Lightis stated sternly to all the princes (ignoring Skyrieous).
The conversations ceased suddenly and all the princes nodded in silent agreement. Foresterio and Seario looked like they didn't care what happened and Skyrieous beamed as if everything said by Lightis was perfectly right. Darkemous however, paled slightly at the word peace. His eyes were masked behind the wall of mischievous planning. He did not want this! The world would be boring and dull if fights were extinguished and screams ceased to be heard. But the silent made him nod unwillingly. He swears that he shall never forget the humiliation he felt when he gave in to the other princes. After all, he promised bitterly…he shall destroy them all and have all the power…one day…
"Tsk, say what you want now Lightis. We're only five hundred years old…wait till when I'm five thousand." Darkemous muttered hatefully under his breath.
"Then let us call upon the life creator, to let him witness and complete the oath of the 5 tribal kings of Quest, for he- the creator of life is the father and mother of all beings in our world."
The flame flickered slightly as Lightis held out his hands and recited.
Admious son parios, de retrio ma becilus cous meoius.
Cantio dou lafrais nemous le hensdande
"Let us wait upon the arrival of the great creator, and hope that he shall give us his blessings, may we also thank him for his wonderful gift of immortality and youth to us."
As soon as the sentence and chant ended the flames went out. The faintly smell of smoke drifted through the small cave, slightly making the air around the princes hard to breath. Cold air blew in and all the princes shuddered because of the sudden chill air. Outside, a distinctive howl of a wolf, the neigh of a unicorn, the shriek of a mermaid, the roar of a dragon and the moan of some unknown "thing" sent further chills up the spines of the princes. It was the sound that was made by the 5 most sacred animals of the land, and it doesn't happen often. So this was a sign… of the arrival of… the creator of fear for the five princes.
All of them held their breaths. They had not seen this creator of life since the holy creator gave them the position of being the princes, and the gift of immortality and youth. But, they all can vividly remember that this creator was…the most outgoing man they've ever met. The creator of life had chatted non-stop to the princes about the other planets and centuries he had traveled to, never once stopping for a rest for his voice and a break for their ears. Truthfully, the princes were dreading the comings of this chatter-box creator, but they had no choice, since this was the first agreement they're going to make in a thousand years. They all frowned as they thought of their previous encounter with this creator, except for the prince of Light, whom had a small amused smile on his face, and a look that said I'm curious about seeing what he's like now. His alliance and best friend Skyrieous nudged him gently in the ribs and looked pointedly at Darkemous and smirked. The prince of darkness looked like he was going to encounter with the worst nightmare of his life, he was concentrating so hard on forgetting the previous talks with the creator of life that he was getting paler and paler every second as beads of sweat formed on his forehead. And as for the other two princes, they were only frightened for a fraction of a second before whispering something to each other once again and sniggering silently at the same time.
"Ahem, what are you two laughing about?" a small squeaky voice echoed through the silent cave.
The two prince's faces drooped as faster than a clown being stepped on the toe. They kneeled. So did the other 3 princes, and one of them shuddered and basically collapsed as he kneeled to the ground (that would be Darkemous). There, standing in front of them, was a small figure of a man, face shadowed in a cloak he was wearing. You can't see his face or body, but you sure can hear his voice. A loud, distinct and squeaky voice. Even as the princes were kneeling, the small figure seemed unable to reach their height. So to overcome this height embarrassment, the small figure crossed his arms and said in a loud annoyed voice-
"What have you called me here for?"
*********************
The 5 princes peeked up slowly and looked at the man standing in front of them, he was undoubtedly short and stumpy. The cloak was however, vividly bright as it was colored pink and girlish. Skyrieous and Seario choked at the style of clothing the man wore. It was, hideous. They had never seen anyone who had such bad taste in clothing, forgetting their fear of him, they shook their heads in disbelieve.
"O.k., boys, I know my taste in clothing style isn't the best…but, what have you done to this world? I come past here and saw all the dead bodies lying around and the smell of blood is rotten and smeared across the whole planet! I want you to rule this planet together, not to destroy it! Is this why you called me back from my wonderful holiday I was having? Huh? With all the beautiful girls and delicious meals...?" the man stopped speaking and took a deep breath. His small body shook as he "asked" with venom. The cape of his bright pink cloak wobbled.
The five princes closed their eyes and prayed for the end of this little man's speech. Their nightmares were coming true…they were definitely going to sit here for 3 months listening to his endless journeys, just like when they had to hear his "lover's tale" for 4 months straight as he bragged about going out with Aphrodite.
The small cave re-lightened and the flames were now blazing. The temperature rose as the small man clicked his fingers and brightened the flame. The princes all sat cross-legged in front of this small man, waiting for him to finish his endless blabber about what he did in the last 1000 years. Truthfully, it was the most boring adventure they had ever heard of, even the Lightis had an awkward expression on his face. All of them stayed in silence, each waiting for another to shut the man up. They were here for a reason, and that was not to hear a certain someone's holiday experience. So Seario plucked up the courage and slowly raised his hand while Foresterio coughed slightly.
"Ahem, your honorable. We wish to discuss a matter with you that will affect the future of our world for the next millenniums to come, um…gulp, there's this agreement has been verified by all of us…an… and we hope to gain your blessing and consent." Seario's voice drifted off
The small man named creator of life stopped talking at once and the cave was silent… a tough aura emerged from him, and although the princes didn't see anything, they felt the tension exerting pressure on them as they felt the annoyance of the creator of life. They had broken the first rule. Never interrupt the story telling of the creator of life, for his words are the words of the sacred holy advices and his stories are the teachings he give.
"Very well." The creator of life snapped, it was very clear to the princes that they had just crossed the line and made the creator of life frown upon them. So whatever they say next, will affect the results to come. The princes of sea and forest gulped and avoided looking at him as they bent their heads, no one noticed that they were both shaking from the fear they felt for this small man.
The cave was filled with silence as the atmosphere chilled. The princes was afraid, it has been a while since they had seen the creator of life, and for the first time, some of them actually interrupted the creator of life while he was talking. And it was also the first time they've never heard a sound coming out of the creator of life for more than 10 seconds. The cave had an eerie sound echoing through it, as if someone was holding in to not to break the silence.
"O.K! I GIVE UP! I HAVE TO TALK!" the creator of life exploded. The chilling atmosphere was immediately warm once again and the air in the cave seemed less suffocating. The princes breathed in relief. And the prince of the forest and sea looked up to the small man in front of them again.
"So what have you all got to tell me? You seem all so keen about this that you actually interrupted me!" the creator of life commented lightly. He seemed amused by the five princes because it was the first time they had ever defied him. "Anyone cares to tell me?" he asked impatiently.
All the princes didn't know what to say, they were all afraid that if they say the wrong thing, they will anger the creator of life. The creator of life sighed in defeat and spoke tiredly: "Lightis! Tell me what you have all agreed upon". The prince of light looked at the creator of life in earnest and said: "your honorable, as you have already clearly stated, the bodies of the dead and the smell of blood was indeed the results of our poor ruling of this planet. This is why, the five dominating tribes of which we are the leaders of, had decided to come upon an agreement and stop this war, to prevent further blood-spilling in our world. We want the tribes to live in peace and harmony with each other and so we wish to gain your blessings for our decision."
The creator of life clapped and spoke with joy, "of course! That is something I want to hear! Princes that is reliable and responsible to their own world! Indeed I shall bless you all for this wonderful decision!" the creator of life started jumping around and… dancing?
The princes glanced at each other and nodded in confirmation. This was indeed the man that they were afraid of. The old man that spent many years boring them with the adventures he had. The lunatic that they all think he was. So this is why they had never summoned him in the past a thousand years. They all sweared under their breath that they will never summon him again; his craziness is affecting all of them. They all knew that if the creator of life agreed to something that wasn't his plan in the first place, there was bound to be conditions they have to meet. But they have to have the blessing of the creator of life in order for their law to apply faithfully in the world they live in.
"But, on one condition…"the creator of life started.
The princes all looked at each other with a knowing look. They knew what was coming.
"I want to make a rule that will make this more interesting, so your world can have a bit more excitement in your history book!" He said gleefully.
We have a history book? The princes thought as they waited for the bombshell to drop.
The creator of life excitedly announced:
" I, creator of the life of all worlds and times will bless this wonderful law made by the five ruling princes of quest, under one condition to which they must agree to, this is- since I have not been summoned to this world for at least one thousand year, I take it that is law is indeed extremely important. So if any prince /king breaks or does not obey the law they all agreed upon, they shall all lose their immortality and youth the moment one of them starts any kind of war that will harm innocent members of any tribes. If this happened the rulers of these tribes will live like a normal citizen and die from oldness and sickness. And their sons will continue to rule their tribes being a mortal."
The princes looked at each other and paled. They had never experienced illness and oldness, they were always healthy. But in order for the citizens of quest to live happily in peace and harmony, they have to sacrifice and gamble on their life. Or do they? Darkemous disagreed on this greatly. He did not want to sacrifice or put his immortality life on the line. Seario and Foresterio shook their heads, they don't mind the peace, but they do mind being a mortal. But Lightis was still determined as he looked at Skyrieous for support.
"Um…excuse me…creator?" Skyrieous shakily asked.
"Yes??" the voice smiled.
"If we don't break the law, we won't be a mortal right?"
"Of course! I want all of you to live happily and peacefully!"
Skyrieous smiled weakly at Lightis, well…if Lightis say so…
"NO…wait your honor-!" started Darkemous
"Hang on your honor-!!" Seario and Foresterio panicked
"-TOO LATE!!"
The creator of life lifted his hands and chanted quickly:
"permas, confrus youids lasfers, dan, kepres hedore les goroue merke."
His hands fell to his side as he breathed deeply and laughed "the blessing has been said and granted. The rule I set has been marked into each one of you. And the new law shall apply to Quest from today. No innocent will be harmed by ones outrageous war, and princes and kings shall pay, if this law has been broken…"
A wisp of smoke appeared out of nowhere as the creator of life vanished from sight, leaving nothing but the echo of his laughter with the dumbstruck Darkemous, Seario and Foresterio.
"You old, evil git!!"
*****************
True to his words, the blessing from creator of life had made their world a much happier place since no princes dared to disobey the blessing set by the creator of life. In turn no citizens dared to break the laws set by the five princes. However now that peace existed well over five hundred years, the people started doubting. Could the princes really live forever? If so, why did they hardly ever see them? Only those who are chosen to serve the royal families could see their features. But those normal citizens who lived in the sea, forest, sky, heaven and hell never once saw the almighty prince of their tribes.
Were there really princes who ruled their land? And did the creator of life really exist?
Little did they know that this agreement, this law, this rule, changed not only the lives of the people in Quest and the lives of the princes… but also, the fate of the generations to come.