Chapter One: The Shadow Secrecy
Once upon a time, there was a far away land. It was really far away. Seriously, it would take a few days to get there. There was a land of fields. The fields were fairly interesting. The land became known as FairFields. People lived in peace there. Overhead, stood a large castle. It was crafted by the finest masons in the world. In it, lived a family, known as the Techers. They lived as a family in the castle. However, they all had their own different jobs. The castle was made up of three sections. the first section was the Illumination, which was run by King David, a tall man, who could be uncooperative at times. Alongside him were Countess Quentin, who owned a prized collection of socks, and Princess Berardo, the fairest maiden in all the land, who feasted on mini-danishes as his special snack. They were to provide their people with illumination at night. The next section was the Auditory. It was run by Sir John, who always wore a hat, and had a beard that was adored by the entire kingdom. He was often aided by Colin, the bikini clad knight (That's self-explanatory), and Knight Ed, a jack of all trades. They had to make sure things were heard throughout their land. Lastly, there was the Manual Labour Party, led by Queen Alexa, one of the smallest, yet powerful people in the castle. She then had her assistant queens, Queen Sam, the one with a salty attitude, and Queen Nina, who was infatuated with Sir Weiss. They led the rest of the party, being made up of the "Treblemakers," a rowdy group of labourers who resisted the higher power, Sir Robert, a noble, yet sometimes strangely comical, knight, and Blacksmith Bogues, who was there at a moment's notice. Together, the three sections came to create the Triforce of Stuff, an all-powerful force that protected their kingdom. They were overseen by King King, the god of FairFields. As they worked together to maintain their land, a sense of peace was always found. But, everything changed when… she came along. Our story starts here…
Queen Alexa had been off on her daily stroll through the gardens. She turned to the groundskeepers, and watched them work, carefully observing the flicks of their wrists, as they throw seeds into the ground. She smiles, and moves on. In the distance, she sees a fellow with glasses working on a metal contraption. Intrigued, she walks over to him.
"Hey there," she softly says, as she makes her way over to the man.
Startled, he got up, accidentally banging his head on his contraption. He immediately recognizes the woman.
"Hello, your majesty. It's been a long time."
The Queen looked at him confused for a moment. Suddenly, her eyes widen with surprise.
"Yes it has, Engineer. How have you been?'
Engineer shakes his head. "I've seen better days. But, do tell me, what happened to me? Like, when it ALL happened?"
As it was painful to recollect the memories, the Queen knew it was only right that she told him the truth. She motioned for him to sit. He obliged.
"Okay," she started, taking a seat next to him. "Here's what happened…"
1 Year Ago
Princess Berardo looked at down at the platform below. After another hard day, they had succeeded in creating a live story, something that had been difficult for people to do in the past. It had been about a madman, who created a monster after his grandfather's death. They soon went on a series of misadventures. The princess had helped provide light for people to see the story. The auditory made sure that the people watching could hear from their far distance. The Manual Labour Party worked where no one could see them, making sure that the scenery matched what was happening. On the platform stood a group of people. A lot of them were often rude, and sometimes mean. Others were better to be around. This group was known as the "Actors," a slang term for an impersonator, However, they did not seem to mind the slang nickname. The bowed in front of their audience, and walked off the platform. People started to flood out of the area, congratulating the Actors and having general conversation.
Meanwhile, the Triforce of Stuff were talking of their successful night of the story showing.
Queen Alexa stood up. "Friends, I would like to say, bravo for the work you did tonight. Without all of us, we wouldn't have had such a story."
Everyone applauded. Princess Berardo walked in, carrying a box of some sort.
Queen Sam gave him a funny look. "Princess, what do you bear in that small box?"
The princess grinned. "It's a little something I got for us to celebrate."
He opened the box, and revealed it to the group.
A pastry.
No, a danish.
A mini-danish.
A SINGLE mini-danish.
"Umm… Who are you going to feed with this, Princess?" Sir Robert soon spoke. It did indeed seem strange that the he intended on feeding a group of 10 people with one pastry.
"Oh, hold on." The princess reached into the box, and broke the pastry apart. "It was supposed to be in pieces, but it came in a whole. Oops."
Bearing a mischievous grin, Queen Sam looked fondly at the baked goods that lied before her. Without thinking, she snatched the box, and darted inside the castle.
"Hey!" The princess shouted, as he swiftly ran after her.
Knowing this would end terribly, the rest of the Techers followed to make sure no one would be seriously injured. Just as the princess reached the stairs, Blacksmith Bogues stepped beside him.
"Your highness," he started. "Is it really worth it for a few baked goods? You getting so worked up?"
Ignoring the comment, Berardo shook his head. "Yes, it is."
Just as he was about to dash up the staircase, the blacksmith grabbed him, wrapping his arms around the princess' body. The two struggled, but it seemed that the princess would not easily escape the blacksmith's grip. He set Berardo down on a chair, after a few minutes of struggling. The princess caught his breath, as well as the blacksmith.
Queen Nina slowly reached over to Berardo. "So, how does it feel to be taken down by a blacksmith?"
Disregarding the comment, Berardo ran up the stairs. He pounded on Queen Alexa's door, demanding Queen Sam to show her face. After minutes of continuous banging, Alexa tried to settle the situation. She forced Sam from her royal chamber, and the pastries were returned. Luckily, Sam didn't take a liking to the treats.
Remembering the events earlier, Blacksmith Bogues approached the princess. "Sorry about the misunderstanding earlier. I didn't want you doing anything stupid."
The princess accepted his apology. "No worries. I understand."
As the Techers were going to return to retire for the night, something caught Colin's eye. "Hey guys, come look at this."
Sitting in the corner of the story area, was a mysterious black shadow. there was no light in that section, so it was almost impossible for a shadow to appear in that spot.
Knight Ed spoke up. "SHould we go get the King? This might be something that he would want to know about."
Countess Quentin turned to him. "It's just a shadow Ed," he tried stating, reassuringly. "I don't think it will-"
At that moment, the face of death had appeared in the shadow. A laugh that pierced your soul echoed throughout the fields, before slowly dying down. The space was then empty.
"On second thought," Quentin said, rethinking his original response. "Maybe getting the King wouldn't be such a bad idea."
With that said, the group ran for the KIng's chamber to inform him of the potential danger they had just encountered.
The Techers had gathered in the royal meeting room, waiting for the arrival of the King. The Auditory were talking of the upcoming games of miniature creatures that are small enough to fit in your pocket. The Illumination were complimenting each other based on their apparel. The Manual Labour Party were discussing the handsome men of the kingdom, disregarding their own engagements. Sir Robert had strafed away from the Queens' talk, and had joined the Auditory. The blacksmith was preparing for the meeting, making sure to scrub down the large table in the room. But mostly, to leave a bowl of salt for Queen Sam, and a SINGLE mini-danish for Princess Berardo.
The blacksmith looked outside the door. "Alright guys, here he comes."
Everyone found a spot to sit. Suddenly, a townsperson who was at the meeting went up to the door. She opened it, and greeted the King.
"All hail King King!" she said with enthusiasm. Realizing she was the only one to do this, she shot a stare at the Techers. "That's a hint, guys."
The Techers quickly arose. "All hail King King!" they yelled.
With a smile on his face, King King walked in, and sat in between Queen Alexa and the princess.
He cleared his voice. "All right campers. What seems to be the trouble lately?"
Alexa looked at Knight Ed. Seeing as though it was his idea to ask the King, he should be the one to speak.
"Well," Ed started. "We noticed a weird shadow after the story showing last night."
The King nodded. "A shadow?"
"Yes, a shadow."
"Was it dark out?"
"Yes, your highness."
"Were there torches lit?"
"Yes, your highness."
"You mean to tell me that you called me in here, to tell me about, a shadow?"
Ed started to shake a bit. "Y-yes, your highness."
King King was about to stand up, but Countess Quentin stopped him.
"It wasn't any ordinary shadow," he quickly stated.
King sat back down. "Tell me, what EXACTLY happened."
Sir Robert tried to explain. "Well, you see, after the show, we gathered to celebrate. The princess brought mini-danishes, in which Queen Sam ran into Queen Alexa's chambers, locked the door, and began to eat them."
"They weren't that good…" Sam interjected with a gloomy expression.
"Well, the princess was mad," he began again. "He tried to run after her. But, Blacksmith Bogues…" He motioned over to him. "He tried to convince him it wasn't worth it. The princess thought otherwise. The blacksmith held him back, despite his efforts. As funny as it was…"
"What does this have to do with the shadow?" King asked.
"The shadow? Oh yeah! Well, we were walking around the story area when we saw it. It was darker than a regular shadow. We saw a face, and heard a loud, vile laugh."
The king stood up. "So THAT'S what kept me from my canasta game last night!"
"W-what?" Robert asked, confused.
"Well, anyway," King said. "It sounds like something that could be something, but could turn out to be nothing. But if that nothing were to become a something, then that nothing could prove to be a real something. And not a very good something at that."
The rest blinked, and stared at the King.
"Where's my chalice?" he asked. "I always use my chalice. I drink all my liquids when I work from my chalice. I wonder where its gone. Maybe I left it in the story area after the show last night."
Queen Nina spoke up. "Good job with playing music on your metal wind instrument by the way."
"Thank you," King replied, happy that someone took notice of his work. "But my chalice is still missing."
Queen Sam, getting antsy after finishing her bowl of salt, stood up. "I'll search for your chalice, your highness."
The king nodded. "You should have someone to accompany you. Those rowdy Treblemakers may be lurking about."
"Oh, I don't think that would be necessary," she said, obviously opposing the idea.
King shook his head. "We can't risk the possibility of putting you in danger. Princess Berardo, you and the blacksmith are to accompany Queen Sam to search for my chalice."
Berardo nodded. "Sure thing King." He looked at the blacksmith. "You all set?"
He nodded. "Ready when you both are."
"Good," King King said eagerly. "Now, find my chalice!"
With that, the three set off, in pursuit of the King's prized possession.
They neared toward the story area. Luckily, there was no one else around. The trio set off to find the chalice. Blacksmith Bogues walked behind the performing platform, and took a look around where all the scenery was. Not seeing the chalice, he rejoined his companions.
"Any sign of it yet?" Sam asked.
The princess and blacksmith shook their heads. The queen sighed deeply.
Suddenly, a loud smash erupted from behind the performing platform. Startled, and curious, the three ran behind the stage to see what was going on. They saw a figure, wearing a black cloak. It turned to look at them. It was a woman. She had been tall, with long hair. Her nose was as long as a floorboard on the platform. Berardo giggled a bit. The woman shot a glance at him. She raised her hand slowly. On instinct, the blacksmith stood in front of the princess, and moved the queen behind him.
"Hello." he said calmly. "I am Blacksmith Bogues. Pleased to meet you."
The figure lowered her hand. "I know. It was a pleasure to meet me, wasn't it?"
Sam rolled her eyes. "Well, who are you then?"
"Silence you impudent peasant!" the woman snapped.
The queen was fuming. "Don't make me get salty on your ass!" She was about to step forward, but Bogues kept her back.
"What gives you the right to say that about one of our queens?" The princess asked angrily.
"Pft. This kingdom is nothing but an illusion," the woman retorted. "Soon, my armies will rise up, and take over this world. And not even someone as incompetent as a crossdressing male, irrational queen, or a useless blacksmith could stop it.
The blacksmith walked over to the woman. The met eye-to-eye. "I'd like to see you try," he stated in a dark tone.
The woman turned. "Tell give Queen Alexa my regards. She's an… old friend." With that, a fume of black shadows surrounded her. She was gone in a second, not a single trace left.
The blacksmith turned to Sam and Berardo, still coping with what just happened.
"Well, it seems Satan is real."
To be continued...
Legends of FairFields: The Satan Shadow, Chapter One: The Shadow Secrecy was inspired by the Tech Crew. Each and every one of them have been an amazing inspiration with the production of this peace. Thank you to them.