Kate V

"So it will be war then." It was not so much a question, as a statement. King Arlyn looked surprisingly calm, considering the news. But Kate had learned not to underestimate that placid demeanour, for Arlyn always had another plan. His stunning intelligence was the reason he had been so successful in conquering a quarter of the Island.

"Multiple spies confirmed it, your grace. There's no doubt about it." The pteranodon rider said, still kneeling on the council room floor.

"I never doubted the authenticity of your report. This news was inevitable. If you poke a cornered beast with a stick, it's bound to bite back." Arlyn stood and paced around behind his chair. "Thank you, good sir. You're free to leave."

The messenger bowed and scurried out of the war room, leaving just King Arlyn, his top military commanders, guards, and servants. The King smiled wearily. "Well Keith, you got your wish. Are you happy now?"

"My mistake," the bearded brute grumbled. "It won't happen again."

"Make sure of it." Arlyn said crisply. He turned to the other Great General. "Lord Vincent, how many reinforcements have arrived from your army reserves?"

"Stripping my castles down to skeleton garrisons, I managed to produce another two hundred soldiers. Four paraceratherium and their platform crews, twenty raptors and kaprosuchus, and more herbivores than I can count. They'll arrive in about a month. Once they do, it brings my gathered army to six hundred strong."

"And Keith, how many soldiers have you gathered at Cerulean Falls?" Arlyn asked.

"Eight hundred. I pulled every expendable soldier possible, leaving just enough to hold my other castles."

"It'll have to do," Arlyn said, already peering down at the warmap. "I'll hold Cerulean Falls with my royal guard. The combined invasion force will be from your two armies. Fourteen hundred soldiers and their mounts. I'm leaving the command to you, Keith."

Even the Great General seemed surprised that he was being granted command of such a large force, especially after his most recent blunder. Arlyn was quick to take notice of his expression. "Politics was never your specialty, but war certainly is. You've never disappointed me on the battlefield, so don't let it become a habit now."

"Aye. Thank you, your grace."

"Lord Vincent will also accompany you. I expect you two to work together, if that's even possible. Listen to his counsel, Keith. You're a ruthless fighter but often too short-tempered for your own good. Vincent will be able to cover your weaknesses."

Keith glowered at his fellow Great General, who was leaning back with an aloof grin on his face. Vincent winked, trying to irk Keith as much as possible. It worked. Kate saw his fist twitch, but Keith said and did nothing else.

Arlyn pointed at the map. "Review the geography and the lay of the land. Our cartographers were able to construct a reasonably accurate map. Study it well. The northerners have the advantage here, so I want you to be as prepared as possible."

"It will be done," Keith promised. "I'll start plotting a march route tonight."

"See to it," Arlyn nodded. "I want your combined armies on the advance as soon as Vincent's reinforcements arrive."

"That's a whole month of doing nothing," Keith noted with unease. "We should strike while the north is unprepared."

"I've already considered that," Arlyn returned. "Lord Vincent organized the first strike team. They left Cerulean Falls weeks ago, so they're bound to reach the north soon. Am I correct, Vincent?"

"As always, your grace." The Great General leaned forward with a mischievous grin. "The northerners are in for a surprise. As you're well aware, Ivy and Nightshade are both with them."

Kate immediately knew he was talking about two of the tyrannosaurus rexes she had seen King Arlyn bring. The black one and the green one, whom she noticed had mysteriously disappeared a while ago, leaving only Avalanche and Inferno in the paddock.

Arlyn nodded. "They're some of my most well-trained rexes. They'll get the job done." The King turned to address his gathered officers. "That will be enough for now. You're all dismissed."

The Great Generals and the lesser generals all streamed out of the room, leaving just the King and his personal attendants. She shot a glance at the other servants, who were dutifully staring straight ahead of them, as still as statues. Kate tried to mimic the same unassuming stance as Arlyn strode back and forth around the war table, humming quietly to himself.

Despite living in constant fear, Kate's life had gotten markedly better. Arlyn was kind to her and the other servants, giving her no reason to fear unjust punishment. However, experience had taught her to always remain wary, so that's what she did. Whenever possible, she tried to be as meek and inconspicuous as possible, since avoiding attention had always proved to be a reliable survival tactic. Regardless, so far Kate's month serving Arlyn had been surprisingly pleasant. She was actually granted a degree of freedom to explore the castle and the compound whenever she wanted, so long as she stayed on top of her duties and appeared when requested. She was given all the food and water she needed, clean blue and white garments, and even a few commodities like a simple copper bracelet. Arlyn was a generous ruler and true to his word, had set about righting all Keith's wrongs. From her understanding, even the slaves and prisoners' situations had improved drastically. She was glad for all the positive changes but some things still troubled her greatly.

A part of her still yearned to be free. Not just free of her shackles in the prison, but free to make her own choices in the world. Whenever she was not struggling through another bout of nightmares, she dreamt about the north and all the beautiful scenery she had missed out on. She dreamed to be in the mountains and find her true home, away from all this brutality and suffering. Kate still occasionally entertained fantasies of escaping Cerulean Falls, travelling all the way to the north, and joining the Wolf Lord's tribe. But dreaming had not gotten her anywhere before, and she doubted it would help now. Kate was down to her last chance. She had already been caught by the Protectors twice. Arlyn or not, she suspected that if she tried fleeing a third time it would be the absolute end for her.

So Kate stayed put. Serving under the man who had vowed to conquer the north. The one who threatened to permanently crush her hope of tasting true freedom up in those cold mountains. Kate was extremely conflicted about the war looming on the horizon. Her loyalties lay with the northerners, whom she had only known for a day. Yet as she spent more time serving Arlyn, she wondered whether she was really siding with the right people. Yes, her experiences with the Protectors had almost exclusively been horrible, but now under Arlyn's rule, she could faintly see the type of future the King was trying to build. Arlyn always preached about bringing peace, unity, and justice to the Island. At first Kate had dismissed it as the ravings of a narcissistic egomaniac, but as the days flew by, she increasingly found herself believing those promises. If there was one person who could truly tame the Island and create a thriving future for humanity, it just might be Arlyn.

But remember the cost of such a future. He would need to wipe out countless tribes and nations. He would need to bring bloodshed and destruction, destroy more innocent lives, enslave more men and women. Kate flinched as she remembered her first few months as a prisoner. All those horrible atrocities stand in the way between Arlyn and his great future. Is anything worth that cruel price? However benevolent Arlyn's plans, do they really justify the wars and violence?

"Is something the matter, Kate?" Arlyn frowned at her. He had stopped pacing the room.

Kate realized her anger must have shown on her face. She quickly shook her head and cast her eyes down at the floor.

"Come now, I expressly granted you the freedom to speak your mind. Share whatever thoughts crossed your mind."

Kate glanced at the other people in the room, the guards and servants who were blankly staring ahead. Then she glanced back at Arlyn and gave in. "It's just. . . what's the point in all this war?"

Arlyn considered that question for a moment, as if thinking about it for the very first time. He turned and waved his hand over the map. "When all this belongs to the Protectorate, there will be no more wars. We fight so that our sons and daughters won't have to. That's all there is to it."

"But if you just didn't wage wars, we wouldn't need to fight either."

"Do you really believe that?" Arlyn asked. Kate wasn't sure how to respond. He sighed and went on. "Humans will always find a reason to fight. Whether it be over territory or ideas, we always have and we always will. The only way to end it is uniting the people of this Island into one nation."

"But that would cause so much more blood and carnage than leaving everyone alone. Why not just leave all the different people on the Island to their own devices?"

Arlyn moved to the head of the table, glancing down at his map pensively. "Humanity's current state of affairs is shameful. Most people live in tiny tribes, barely scraping by off the land. Not to mention fighting over resources with their fellow man. They act little better than animals, waging pointless wars and squabbling over scraps."

"And what does that make you?" Kate retorted. Too late, she realized she had said it aloud. She immediately clamped her hands over her mouth and backed away, her eyes filled with fear. No, no, no! What was I thinking? I'll end up back in the stockades for this outburst. Or worse.

Instead of striking her down on the spot for her insolence, Arlyn only laughed gently. "Me? Oh I'm the worst offender of them all. But for so long as humanity remains divided into petty squabbling tribes, war and carnage will never cease to exist. Someone needs to break the cycle and unfortunately that burden falls on my shoulders."

"If it tarnishes my name to bring justice and order to this godforsaken hell, then so be it." The king sighed and stared down at the map. "I'm detested by many of my conquered subjects, and with good reason. If I were in their position, defending my land and family against ruthless hordes of invaders, I know I would despise living under such a ruler. But perhaps in a thousand years, when the Island is a thriving paradise for mankind, the people will appreciate what I had to do."

"It's human nature to fight. To survive. You know the feeling well, Kate. It's why you risked everything by trying to escape, is it not?"

Kate nodded solemnly.

"This is just the same. If I were to leave the others alone, they would just descend back into anarchy. Exactly like the Island I washed onto."

"What was it like when you arrived?" Kate asked hesitantly.

Arlyn smiled sadly. "The southern shores were vibrant and lively. Twenty or thirty tribes called the coast and its forests home, each of them with their own unique people and culture. I was taken in by one such tribe and for a time, I was happy. We laughed and loved, played and hunted, feasted and drank. But as has always been the case, humans have a tendency to stir up trouble."

"I was hardly a man, perhaps just shy of sixteen or seventeen. I didn't know any better when some older hunters in my tribe brought me along on another trip. Only this time instead of heading to the forest or the beaches, we crept up a ridge overlooking another tribe's village. They brought me along because I was fast and nimble. They told me to steal an egg from the hatchery."

"Perhaps we were taking revenge for the past string of insults against our tribe. Our hunting grounds were diminishing and our power with it. I could never say for sure. The small tribes were always pushing and pulling at one another, and I found myself in the center of all that chaos," The King laughed bitterly. "All that trouble for an egg."

"The next week our village was attacked in force. The tribe we stole from were outraged. They gathered their allies and sent every last carnivore under their command to ravage my home. Men, women and children were killed. Our houses all went up in flames. Our livestock were slaughtered. Men and beasts died together. I ran into the jungle and came back days later, when all the ash had cleared." Arlyn glanced out the window longingly. "As far as I know, I was the sole survivor from my village."

"Well, that last part isn't entirely true." Arlyn gestured for Kate to join him by the window. The King pointed at the carnivore paddock, directly at his white tyrannosaurus's pen. "Once that egg hatched, I finally realized why it had been worth so much blood. I stayed in the shadows raising Avalanche over the next few years until he was large enough to ride into war. Then, with the power of a fully grown tyrannosaurus on my side, I made myself known to the world."

"That's remarkable," Kate muttered. I thought I had seen just about everything there was to see on the Island, but Arlyn had proven me wrong. "You went from nothing to being one of the most powerful people alive today."

"It was never about power, Kate." Arlyn sighed. "It's about the future of humanity. And that's why I need to end these petty squabbles once and for all. When the Island is mine, there will be peace at last."

Author's Note:

Bladerunner24k, They'll appear don't worry.

Caleb R. Watson, Sorry but nothing happens after the war. That's it. The end of the story. There's still a good third left though, so by no means is it short.

Girlbook, He does and you'll see it soon!

DinoNerd89, Haha let's hope indeed.

Thunder, They would definitely get along if it were under different circumstances. As for your prediction, you'll just have to wait and see.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my work, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Feel free to comment, ask questions, or criticize my story, review is always welcome! If you liked what you saw, make sure to check out the other ARK stories on this site! Have a great day!