AUTHOR NOTE:
Hey, it's Shadowland here… and I just wanted to tell all my reviewers that I'm not quitting the trilogy for TLK, I just need a little break… I'm running out of ideas for TLK, so I decided to go onto my next project, Ashburn. I outlined it and everything, to me it looks pretty cool, but I'm not sure, it all depends on you. Now, you might be pissed off about Schism, but I promise you… I may either fluctuate between the two stories (Trust me, I can do it) or I'll wait for this one to be done. I just can't get into a Simba's Pride story, I guess, but I'm trying to do it… it's just difficult and I think I need to outline it… Surprisingly enough, I didn't need to outline for Fight or Flight… or Uprising. I wrote exactly what came to mind, but for Schism it's just not working out… SO… here's my next project… I hope you enjoy, and please please please keep an open mind about this, if you do, I'm sure you will like it so much more.
So… Ashburn is the name of the kingdom and also the last name of the royal family. (Only men could succeed the throne, so it's like having children until you get a boy) The king and Queen are warlocks and witches, and they have a son named Drake Ashburn. (He's the Simba of the story) I sort of think of this story almost like a TV show type thing… XD to me, it's gonna be good, but I'm not so sure if you're ready for it! ;)
Now for the BRIEF summary:
Centuries ago, when Thaddeus Ashburn was king, the vampires went on a killing spree, murdering half the kingdom. Being a warlock, he banished the vampires and sealed this banishment with a magical gate. This gate prevents them from getting into the kingdom and harming anyone in the process. The curse of King Thaddeus states that you can only let a vampire into the kingdom, if someone from the royal family invites them in or uplifts the curse himself or herself. This kind of magic is extremely life threatening and may kill anyone who isn't a powerful witch or warlock.
This is going to be a SOMEWHAT AU version of TLK, using human characters of course. I will stick to a basic storyline, but the 'Simba' of my story may act a little more snarky and amoral after his father's death. It may be a little more realistic, I suppose. Also, more realistic falling in love... They aren't going to look at one another and be like OH I LOVE YOU, it's going to have much deeper meaning and they'll fall for one another eventually. Give it time ;)
CHARACTERS AND HOW THEY MATCH WITH TLK (The Lion King)
OC means ORIGINAL CHARACTER [For the n00bs xD]
Drake = Simba
Victoria = Nala
Nick = Mheetu
James = Mufasa
Elizabeth = Sarabi
Isabelle = Sarafina
Victor = Victoria and Nicks father (Nala and Mheetu's father) - isn't present but is mentioned-
Jack (Scar) = Scar
Cole = Chumvi
Danny = Malka
Ayden = Tojo
Shayna = Tama
Alison = Kula
Aurora = OC.
Opal = Ayden's mother (Tojo's mother) OC;
Phil = Zazu
Riley = Timon
Evan = Pumbaa
Asaka = Rafiki
Ashton = Shenzi
Jason = Banzai
Ed = Ed xD
Thomas Archer = Cole's father; OC; (Chumvi's dad)
William Ashburn = OC; Drake is descended from him.
(I'm not even sure if a I should have a Preface and a Prologue, but I felt like I needed both ;D )
Preface
Fair is foul and foul is fair. Everyone must live with what they develop into… Everyone must recognize the changes that are spewing out of each individual. Not every person benefits from it, unless the alteration is superior. Though, the key to transform is to let go of the fear, and understand that life, itself, opens and closes doors each day. Existence can either be accepted or altered, if it is not accepted then it must be changed, if it cannot be changed… then it must be accepted.
Prologue
(Back in the 1700's)
Charlotte Ashburn, the king's beautiful wife, paced the castle floor with worry. Her pale blonde hair tightly knotted in the back, her light green dress trailing around the floor, swaying with her swift movements. Behind every tick of the old grandfather clock, King Thaddeus became more and more restless, shifting in his seat every which way.
"I know they told me to stay put." He began and her light blue eyes scanned her husbands face, as if hoping that by a glance that she could reason with him. "But I cannot stay here while men from my side go out to battle the immortal. I am the king, I shall not be stuck in my own fortress!"
"You are here for reason." Charlotte's velvety voice soothed him for a moment, but nothing about her gestures reminded the king of comfort. "You are the king, Thaddeus. You cannot go out there while this hurlyburly is going on. Your men are protecting you... protecting us." Charlotte's eyes cascaded towards the marble staircase; they both know exactly what she meant by 'us'. Their son Garrett, he's only eight and doesn't understand what exactly had been happening around him. The royal court poke fun at the Prince saying that there isn't a lot happening in his mind and that he is, indeed, slower than usual. The royal family grows infuriated when they hear such things, but as of right now, they had larger tribulations. "Those vampires. I knew that something terrible would happen with them around. I knew they couldn't possibly control their thirst for so long!"
Everything about a vampire is sinister and very much unwelcome in the Kingdom of Ashburn. The way they have to pierce their teeth into a humans flesh and drain them dry just so they can survive is just repulsive and barbaric. They made a promise to consume off of animal blood, and in return, the king promised to keep them in the kingdom, as long as they kept their word.
"Oh surly all vampires aren't THAT bad." A male stepped out from the shadows with dark auburn hair, electric blue eyes, and a crooked, sinister smile that no one could forget. The male's skin is as colorless as snow, his pure white teeth bared with a dark crimson dripping from his sharp fangs.
"William?" The king asked with wide, dark eyes, as he looked his younger brother up and down, "You- You're a vampire?"
"Clearly." He grinned and his red tongue escaped from his mouth, licking the places where the blood trickled down to his chin. Taking a few steps in, the dark haired man had his eyes fixated on the queen, humming a familiar tune in which their mother used to sing to them before going to bed, or in times of trouble and worry.
"P-Please." Charlotte started and shook her head again, the female's feet began to move backwards; her perfect hair had strands falling from the sides. "I have a child to take care of. H-He needs a mother! You couldn't do that to your own nephew could you?"
"Oh… Charlotte, Charlotte, Charlotte…" William smirked as he continued to walk over to her slowly, well, slow for the undead. "Why do you possibly think that I'm going to kill you? Hmm?" His voice sounded sweet, but the King and Queen were both waiting for the blow, "You are being quite judgmental."
"Y-You never liked me." She stated firmly and Thaddeus took a step forward to protect his wife, but William's head shot towards his older brother, which caused the king to freeze in mid step.
"Don't move, brother." He demanded in a sweet tone, "You wouldn't want me to rip your beloveds head off now would you?"
"Please…" He began, holding his hands in front of him, letting him know that peace is welcomed here. "What do you want?"
The foul grin only grew and he leaned on a piece of furniture that stood around his height. "What I want… You wont give to me." He paused and tilted his head, "That I'm sure of."
He wants Charlotte? Thaddeus thought, and his dark eyes glanced over to his wife, observing how frightened she looked, giving her a sympathetic look, the king turned back to his brother, watching as the vampire walked towards her with such desire in his eyes. "You want my wife?" He asked and the vampire stood still, a small smile tugging at his lips as he turned to face the black haired king.
"Well... yes." William's voice was filled with lighthearted tones, "But not in the way you are thinking, brother." A gentle laugh surpassed his reddened lips and be started towards the King, "I believe you are in charge of something I want." Thaddeus' dark eyes widened and he grinned, "Something I crave."
"You can't have my kingdom!" The king exclaimed, gaining enough bravery to take a step forward, but the vampire took one as well and Thaddeus went back to his original place, cowering away, trapped in fear.
"I can't?" He asked dryly, "I believe your life is in my hands, your majesty."
"Brother, why would you do this?" Exasperation took over the king's voice as he tried to reason with his younger sibling. Thaddeus hadn't observed such vile acts of his brother before, he never even saw his little brother as a murderer, but that he was. "I cannot allow you to become king! You're a monster!"
"There isn't any choice, Thaddeus." The vampire spat, "Its either I FORCEFULLY take it from you, or you hand it over adequately. Do we understand each other?"
"I can't just hand my kingdom off to a murderous raging lunatic!" The black haired man grew infuriated and his brother simply rolled his eyes, another sly smirk taking place of any irritation. "You'd destroy everything!"
"Or enhance it." The male grinned, grabbing hold of his brothers throat, "Immortality will be mine. I don't need children to carry on a royal bloodline. I'll just ALWAYS be here, enslaving all your little witches and warlocks." Thaddeus struggled against his brother's impossibly strong grip, "And I'll start with your bloody wife and kid, how does that one sound?"
From behind, Charlotte, still frozen in her spot, looked over to a glass vase with beautiful roses in it, freshly picked from the garden. As the vampire continued talking to his younger brother, the Queen moved without hesitation and swiftly walked over to the table. Her petite hands grasped the antique vase and as the vampire held her husband higher into the air, she whipped it right at his head, hoping that the impact would shatter the vase and knock him out.
William froze for a moment and threw Thaddeus to the side roughly. Turning around he walked towards her at a normal pace, keeping a crooked smile on his repulsive lips, "You really are as stupid as you look." His blue eyes were fixated on the Queen's blonde hair, and within seconds, the vampire snapped her neck and began to drink her blood, as the beauty lay limp in his arms.
"NO!" The king screamed, tears streaking down his face and the vampire dropped her wilted body to the ground, brushing blood away from his mouth. "HOW COULD YOU?"
"How could I?" He asked with a small laugh walking towards the dark haired warlock, "Oh don't tell me you didn't see this coming, brother. I didn't expect YOU do be so dimwitted as well."
"YOU HAD NO REASON TO KILL HER!" William kept his cool, although his older brother went into hysteria, "YOU HAVE NO REASON TO BE HERE."
"Who's going to stop me?" He asked with a small grin, "You? Quite frankly… you have no way out and I'm much, MUCH stronger." The vampire sighed sarcastically, "Choose intelligently. The kingdom…" He held up a pale hand, "Or your life." He glanced at the old grandfather clock and smiled another crooked grin, "Tick tock."
King Thaddeus found himself under great stress, but being a great warlock, he found another way out, which hopefully didn't involve death for anybody. Sticking out his olive tone hand out, the king kept his focus and beliefs strong. The vampire stood back, as if frozen and put into a trance, "I place my life to the fates, as I seal a curse upon the gates. Time may seem endless to the immortal, only allow them to see the darkness as their portal. The sun will burn you, like fire at the stake. Choose wisely, it is either wake or break." With that, the dark-reddish haired vampire began to fade and every time he tried to grab at the King, his hand went through the body.
"THADDEUS." He screamed and the king's entire body felt as if it had been shutting down. Such magic can harm a warlock if they weren't strong enough, and gaining strength meant you needed to be alive for several years, or practicing magic day and night. Only the lucky ones are able to create spells and live to see another day. Soon enough, the vampire disappeared and the dark haired man sluggishly walked into the writing room, grabbing a piece of paper and a feather with ink. Quickly, he began to write the curse down, and sealed it with a kiss.
"F-Father?" Prince Garrett stood at the door with his dark eyes wide, and he ran to his father's side immediately, as the king plummeted to the floor. A jolt of pain rippled throughout his body and he winced slightly. "What's wrong?" He asked with worry still struck in his face, but the boy's dark eyes moved to the king's hand and he tilted his head to the side. "What is that?" The light haired boy pointed towards the paper in Thaddeus's fingers and he slowly handed it to his son, closing his hands to make a fist. The paper made a crumpling sound and Garrett's eyes widened even more.
"The only one to uplift the curse must be an Ashburn… The only one to invite a vampire into this kingdom can be an Ashburn. Y-You're uncle cannot come back unless invited, even though he's an Ashburn, he's still a vicious creature and the gates under- understand that." The king said slowly. His son looked into his hand and examined the words, "This is your kingdom now, my son… hide that, make sure no one can find it."
"I will father…" Garrett frowned and soon, the king's body shut down, breathing his last dying breath. The light haired prince stood to his full height, examining the words over and over again until he had them memorized. I must hide this… He thought and looked around the room he had been in. Surly the note couldn't have been out in the open, it would have to be hidden somewhere safe.
Quickly, the boy flew up the stairs; the note still clutched in hand, and ran into the attic, pulling out an antique wooden box that his grandmother had given his mother. She never used it, but it seemed like it was the perfect place to hide something so small. Gently, the prince, and now the new king, placed the note into the box, inserting it in a drawer and shoving it shut.
Not able to just leave it out in the open, he decided to find an enchantment to seal the drawer shut, so that no one down the line was able to open it. Vampires, even to the young boy, were cruel and sinister and no one should be allowed to invite them in. His father didn't want anyone to find it either, but being a warlock, you have to write a curse or spell down that you created, because no one can make up another just like it.
Finding an old spell book up on the top shelf, he swept a pale hand over it, removing any dust. This should do the trick, he thought, and the young king flipped through the pages, reading a sealing spell, at first in his head, then he stuck his hand out, repeating the words with much meaning. The wind blew slightly and a tear rolled from his eye and down his cheek, dripping onto the dusty dresser with a slight splash.
AN: So, how was that for a Prologue? It explained the story a little more clearly as to why things are the way they will be when you read the rest of the story. In the next chapter, you will be introduced to our 'Simba' of the story.
Question for you: I got the line "Fair is foul and foul is fair" From Macbeth, I'm reading the story in school and I find it very interesting. Do you know how that ties in? Can you predict what will happen to our 'Simba' of the story... A.K.A Drake Ashburn? Read the preface again, it gives a lot to the story.
Again, please don't be mad at me for taking a break on schism right now, I just need some time off of lions, I need to focus on humans... well... somewhat humans ;)
-Shadowlandx0