The Dawn King

Chapter I

Earliest Years

Peaceful memories of his youngest years blended together, but the sight of all the lanterns illuminated in the Long Dau capital was one that remained clear in his mind. As a clan of many traditions, it was customary for them to celebrate when a child was born to the royal family. They were particularly elated when a prince was born to the tribe's patriarch, and decided to celebrate so elaborately that they invited the patriarchs of nearby clans to come to their city.

Patriarch Lars Long Dau and his wife were childless for some years, which led to some concern over the matter of the tribe's succession. Though Lars had three brothers who would be more than eager to step in should their eldest brother have any issue, but it was a custom set in stone for the title of patriarch to pass from father to son.

Many clans replied to the Long Dau invitation, though it came as no surprise. Even the smaller tribes who most likely had no desire to trek to the capital made the trip to give a prince who would need no luxury beyond what his family could provide. It was a tradition and traditions had to be upheld when the rulers with power insisted it.

The only good fortune of the trip was that the celebration was being held in Undis, when much of the snow was melted and the roads were clear. There were still some obstacles, like fallen trees obstructing the roads that connected smaller territories to the capital city, but the procession still made it to the event on time.

Even though the weather was improving, Arst was aware how the trip wore on his father. The Outway Patriarch was respected for his kindness and fair policies, but he was an older leader with his health declining rapidly. Just the trip to the capital was wearing on him, as much as he tried not to show it, Arst knew his father well enough to notice when he coughed longer than usual or took longer to dismount from a carriage.

The streets of the capital were full of carriages and wagons with supplies being brought for the celebration from all over Auj Oule. It seemed pointless for the poorer clans to be required to bring gifts to a prince who would have everything he could possibly want and more, but traditions were seldom questioned. As they progressed up the long staircase leading into the Long Dau palace, Arst couldn't help but frequently glance at his father, who was growing winded from the long walk. The Outway Patriarch did his best not to show it, as even weakness from illness was looked down upon in Auj Oule.

While the Long Dau palace was elegant and far more extravagant than anything in the Outway territory, Arst didn't find himself envying any of the luxuries, though the same couldn't be said for their guards. The only thing really worth noting was that their soldiers had notably better armor, but all of the other superiorities seemed like a waste of their citizens' money.

When they progressed deeper into the palace, they could see that the prince was surrounded by his three uncles, all of whom were speaking to each other in Long Dau. Yan, Ingo, and Bruno were brothers to Lars and enjoyed high military ranks. The exclusivity of who was taught the language allowed them to communicate privately even when they were surrounded by other people, but their tones alone shed light on the unflattering comments they were making about the lesser tribes.

Though it may not have been the capital of Auj Oule, as low tribes were never invited there, the country's hierarchy of power was clear wherever he looked.

~oOo~

The trip into Auj Oule's capital was a long one, even coming from Long Dau. Lin's mother objected initially, unhappy that her young son would be traveling so far in the cold months. Regardless, it was customary for princes of the powerful tribes to have a brief audience with the king. Of course, the honor was only extended to future patriarchs who were highborn.

When Lin was brought to the castle to meet King Merad Sarakhs, setting foot inside of the place filled him with an odd sense that it would not be for the last time. There were soldiers plentifully posted at all of the exits as well as along the walls; the king had no reservations in displaying the numbers his military possessed.

The palace itself was much larger and more extravagant than the castle of Long Dau, though it was terribly colder. The entrance hall felt cavernous, like a void that could have easily swallowed the small prince. The intricate carvings that decorated the ceiling seemed as high as the sky outside.

As they walked deeper into the entrance hall, Nils was stopped after a certain point, as someone lowborn was not welcomed before the king. The doors into the throne room were pushed open by two soldiers on each side, who all bowed respectfully once they were inside. They followed the protocol of showing proper reverence toward their ruler, though something about it seemed excessive as the shows of respect continued. The group of Long Dau royalty did not bow until they were directly in front of the throne.

Lin's first impression of the king was not an overwhelmingly positive one. Merad was an older man with a build that was not exactly ready to slip into a standard suit of armor, but more disappointing than that was his overly relaxed demeanor and the attendant walking away with a cup and an empty bottle of some sort of alcohol. It was still only the middle of the day.

Merad had no advisers at his side, only guards at the entrance and positioned in specific places along the walls. They, unlike the king, looked ready to spring at a moment's notice. Lin couldn't help but wonder about the king's lack of a present prime minster or adviser. Even Lin's father, with all of his overconfidence, at least kept advisers nearby.

Granted, Lars' brothers were hardly unbiased advisers, but something was better than nothing. Standing alone gave an impression of absolute power, but it also left him wondering just how many supporters the king really had.

Patriarch Lars was on good terms with the king and the two greeted each other formally before exchanging smiles and becoming slightly more casual in their choice of words. Lin was allowed to shake the man's hand, but while it was supposed to be a privilege, the king gripped his hand tightly and shook it roughly.

"So this is little Prince Lin," Merad said, amusedly. "I hope your grip gets stronger than that by the time you're big enough to hold a sword!"

The statement was said only half-jokingly, though it prompted laughs from his father and uncles. Lin simply nodded and bowed as he stepped back to return to his father's side.

"He's still young, there's nothing to worry about," Lars said lightly.

"Training's still just right around the corner," Merad commented. "Can't wait too long to start."

Lars and his brothers continued their conversation with the king, though Lin was never once brought into it. He wasn't particularly surprised, as they seldom bothered to listen to him even when they were home in Long Dau. It would be disrespectful to seem as though he wasn't paying attention to the conversation, but he still chanced subtly glancing around the throne room in greater detail.

The palace where he lived was of a formidable size, but Auj Oule's capitol was even larger. The ceiling seemed unreachable and the golden decorations around the throne glimmered in the light from the torches. The throne itself was situated quite a bit higher than the main floor, a constant reminder of the king's exalted position.

There was something about the castle that told him that he would return before long.

The first chapter of what will be a very, very long fic.

Some quick notes!

In the localization of Xillia, Karla uses Erston when referring to Gaius' birth name, while Wingul uses Arst. The most notable time we hear it is in his "Hidig'nun tun, Arst" (Forgive me, Arst) quote.

Since we're still technically before the release of English Xillia 2, I'm using Lin Long Dau as Wingul's birth name, as it was Romanized by the wonderful Taleslations blog on Tumblr.

Thank you for reading! This was just an introductory chapter of sorts, the upcoming chapters will be more interesting.