Chapter 3. Zaphod
The air was still thick with smoke and ash when they found it. While House Whiskers and House Zappa were always warring with each other, Zaphod, the King of Kalahari and Lord of House Whiskers, couldn't believe what he was seeing. The Aztecs, led by his own wayward daughter, a girl he raised as his own, had burnt the Zappa territory into nothing. As much as he despised the Zappa, Zaphod would never have imagined doing something like this.
Zaphod was an older gentleman, a few years younger than Douglas of House Young Ones. His ruffled, windswept hair was a dusty brown with tints of silvery-gray. He had a somewhat angular face that always seemed to be thoughtful. Zaphod also had the signature blue eyes of House Lazuli, his birth family. He was the younger of Lord Belgarion's bastard sons.
Mitch, Zaphod's young son, rode up on his Arabian stallion, a grim look on his face. Zaphod wordlessly looked at his son and second in command.
"It doesn't look good" Mitch told him, "We haven't found any survivors".
"None?!"
Mitch shook his head and Zaphod cursed. He turned to one of House Whiskers' knights, Sir Columbus.
"Send word to the Queen. The situations getting worse. At this rate, Maybelline will be at the Capitol's gate in a month at the most, if the gods are on our side…"
Not that Zaphod had any faith in the gods. He was a man based more in logic. Yossarian, his older brother, was the more faithful, political son. Zaphod had been trained primarily in politics but his skills arose on the battlefield or in the strategy room. A battlefield was far more tame than a throne room.
"Who do you think she'll take next?" Mitch asked.
"At this point, she has two options: House Commandos or House Young Ones. Of I know Maybelline at all, she'll go for the Commandos first. Not only are they the greater threat, she'd also prove that she can lead her armies. If she can beat them…she can beat just about anyone".
"Hannibal would kill her first"
Zaphod scanned over the decimated territory. "Even so, they need to be warned. Fetch me a raven, a pen, and paper".
Mitch nodded and rode back to the camp. Zaphod watched his son go then turned back to the land before him. It'd be years before it would recover from such damage. His black Friesian pawed at the ground anxiously and Zaphod petted the horse's neck.
"It's alright, Bellerophon. We'll figure this out, I promise".
It seemed that no matter who or where one was, the Commandos inspired fear. With good reason though, as Zaphod knew from experience. In one of the bloodiest battles Kalahari had ever seen, the Commandos attempted to overthrow the Whiskers as the Ruling House. Zaphod himself had taken on Hannibal, known back then as James Robert, and barely won. Zaphod had taken James' right eye as a token of victory. Needless to say, there was plenty of bad blood between them. When Mitch returned with what he needed, Zaphod began his message.
To: James Hannibal Robert, son of Keros and Morgause of the House Young Ones, the One Eyed General, Lord of House Commandos, and Tamer of Eagles.
From: Zaphod, second bastard son of Belgarion of the ancient House Lazuli, King of the Kalahari Desert, Lord of House Whiskers, and Father of the Rebellion
Honorable lord and fellow general,
In the East, all looks bleak. I hate to tell you that the House Zappa has fallen. From what we've seen there are no survivors, with the possible exception of a young lady who was sent to live with your siblings. I only hope that this is true and that Doug and Elysa are well. Point being, we need to set aside these petty differences trust each other. I can't change the past, but if we work together now we can secure a future.
I remain a servant to the Crown and to my People
-Zaphod of House Whiskers.
Zaphod sighed. "All these damn titles…" he thought.
He tied the message to the raven's leg and sent it off. Mitch and Zaphod watched it fly away and the younger man smirked.
"Let's just hope their raptors don't eat it".
"What do we do now?" Sir Miles, another knight, wondered aloud.
"We're going to the Young Ones territory. They're a small family and they could need our help. And besides, the heir to house Zappa might be there and we need to protect her as much as we can".
Zaphod turned Bellerophon in another direction, hoping it wasn't too late to save House Young Ones.
Author's Note: Sorry this one was short guys. I actually wrote this one out while I was at work today. I don't know when the next update will be as I'm gonna be busy with family tomorrow night so my next chapter might be up by this weekend. I'm thinking of doing one from either Yossarian, Doug, or even Maybelline's point of view. Let me know what you guys think. Reviews are very important and keep me inspired thanks a lot
