"Upon the stone table He awaits.
Waiting for the end of his wide-awake nightmare.
He stands before his enemy,
Watching his burning flesh drip away.
Leaving a husk of his former self
Forever branded in pain."
Ko'shrai looked back one last time before boarding the monolithic airship. He had no regrets for what he had done. Showing the ticket to the garbed man at the door, he was ushered into the vessel, and shown to his private quarters. This was a first experience to Ko'shrai, travelling by air. This day was also a first for everyone else, as today was the day the first ironclad airship was in service. Rumors were going around that the royal family themselves were embarking on this maiden voyage as well, but Ko'shrai didn't bother to make anything of it.
"As long as this giant hulk doesn't kill me I'm all right with it." He told a room serviceman as he walked down the hallway. Heading towards the bar, he ordered a dry whisky. Looking up at the telegraph screen, Ko'shrai noticed out of the corner of his eye a lot of fancifully-dressed men surrounding an older character. Believing the rumor to be true, he quickly shuffled himself out of the way of the oncoming troupe, allowing the monarch to choose his spot.
"Hmm, I believe I'll have some red wine, sir." The Great King Granold told the bartender contently.
"Yes, my lord." The bartender replied humbly, seeking his rack for the finest red wine. Ko'shrai knew enough politics of this region to know not to stare at a member of the royal family, but he couldn't help but glance every now and then. King Granold noticed this, and cheerfully turned around to face this inquisitive figure.
"Ah yes, I do believe you were sitting here before I entered, is that correct?" The King asked Ko'shrai in a very unkingly fashion.
"Um, uh yes, my lord, but I won't be needing to sit any time soon." Ko'shrai said cautiously, as to not offend the King, especially since he was near a window.
"Oh nonsense! You come over here and sit. Besides, it's been a while since I've had a conversation with someone who wasn't a bloodsucking bureaucrat." King Granold confided to him, "Please, tell me, what do you truly think of my methodology of running this kingdom?"
Ko'shrai walked up slowly to the King, surrounded by his royal guard. They initially closed together, but a tap on the shoulder from the King's hand rectified this, and the young man joined his ruler in a very unlikely scenario.
"Well sir, if you don't mind me being frank," Ko'shrai started, "You're source of revenue, albeit lucrative, is very ineffective in the long run. You're going to need to search for other sources to keep the economy as robust as it is right now. If I might suggest something, there is an island kingdom not far from here, about 2,000 knots. You probably know it as the Galat Archipelago. Now they have a lot of abundant resources that they find no use for, as their economy isn't focused entirely on advancement as it is on culture. If you can provide them with assurances of partnership, as in help in local defence and stability, I'm sure they would be more than happy to allow you to 'relieve' them of these excess resources."
"You, my boy, are the reason that I still live." The old King said heartily, "It's people like you, who understand just what it takes to run a kingdom, that give me hope that our borders will not fall when I do. Come walk with me, I feel the need to discuss something with you, in private."
The two walked down the hall into a private corner of the airship. The giant metal beast had already entered the sky, and a sudden burst of turbulence reminded everyone of its presence. Upon reaching the King's private quarters, Granold ordered all of his guards outside of his room, leaving him, Ko'shrai, the King's daughter Verja, and the King's royal champion, Sir Frederick of Goethinbuerg. Ko'shrai bowed to what he felt was an appropriate extent without seeming outlandish, and proceeded to assume a military stance in front of a now grave-looking old man. It seemed that an air of death and despair had fallen upon the room, and Ko'shrai knew that he had gotten himself into something a lot bigger than he had planned.
'I only wanted to see my cousin in Gyliad...' he thought to himself as the King began to speak.
"Frederick, Verja, I'm glad you two are here to hear this." King Granold said solemnly, "This young man here is named Ko'shrai. He is the only outsider on this airship that I can trust fully, as should you two."
'How did he know all that?!' Ko'shrai thought to himself, but not revealing his alarmed state physically.
"I am getting old, Verja. I do not see myself living to see the turn of the next decade." the King continued, "As you know you will take my place as the rightful heir, whether you are married or not. The reason I asked for you, Frederick, and you, Ko'shrai, is because in these times, a King needs 3 separate witnesses to a testament. I have reason to believe that my life is threatened on this flight, and I do not expect to live either. Now do not cry, Verja, or seek to change fate, Frederick. All I ask is that do what you feel is necessary to lead the Kingdom in my absence. As for you, Ko'shrai, I have something to give you."
The King pulled out a stone with a clear jewel embedded within it, it was very light and appeared to glow slightly. Ko'shrai put the strange rock into his satchel, revealing one of his blades and his sidearm.
"That stone is the future of our Kingdom. I know it sounds a tad cliche'd considering it came from an age-old myth, but it is tradition nonetheless, and you alone have arguably the hardest task amongst the three of you. Now my only hope is that..."
A deafening crack erupted from beyond the doors of the King's private section, and a few slumping bodies could be heard just outside the doors themselves.
"What was that?!" Verja said, her voice quavering with fear.
"My lady, I do believe your father's assassins have come." Ko'shrai said, pulling back the matchlock on his gun.