Opeli hadn't felt this relaxed in ages. For what seemed like eternity, her days were filled with anxiety and uncertainty. Before Ezran's return, the nobles had been maneuvering for power, General Amaya needed support and Opeli had no authority to grant it, the council could not agree on anything and the people were on the verge of hysteria. Ezran didn't need to be competent like his father, but his presence would make life a lot easier. She just had to stop the nobles and the council from dominating and placing a regent to turn Ezran into a puppet king. With Viren's previous machinations, the idea of a regent was corrupted. Few were willing to come forward to nominate themselves as regent knowing their ambition would be exposed. She despised the man, but his schemes had turned out well for her.
They had a very quick coronation and Ezran was deemed king. The crown didn't fit his head unfortunately and as she tried to place the crown it fell thorugh his head and became a necklace. The boy laughed which eased some of the tension. They all kneeled before the new king. She made arrangements for a new crown to be fashioned. The king thought for a moment and decided to speak to the gathered crowd.
"I know its scary right now. If my father was here he would have given you hope. I'm not as capable as my father. I'm young, inexperienced. War seems to be coming. We angered the elves and the dwarfs by killing the Dragon King and destroying his egg. But there is hope. We weren't cruel enough to destroy an unborn egg. We took it."
The crowd gasped at the revelation. Opeli, the council and the nobles were shocked. Some of them suspected he was lying. Ezran didn't mention that the egg had hatched and the dragon prince was born. He didn't want to complicate matters. It was hard enough speaking to so many people.
"My brother is on a journey right now to return that egg to the Dragon Queen. They have taken my father's life because we took the Dragon King's life. The return of the egg should calm the elves and dragons and bring back peace"
They couldn't believe what they were hearing. Opeli was shocked to hear the king's words. She would have to talk to the king at length to figure out what was going on. The council too seemed to feel the king shouldn't say anymore.
"Please do not be afraid of the future. Peace is coming."
The crowd murmured. They had heard some unbelievable things. They weren't sure if they could believe it all. They knew the boy was the king, but he was still a boy. Opeli stepped forward before things got out of hand. She proceeded with the ceremony to distract from the words the king had said. Once the celebrations were over, she escorted the king to the throne room.
Ezran saw the throne his father used to sit on. He suppressed the emotions rising up in him. He sat on the throne as the people around him kneeled.
The ceremony was now over. One of the council members stepped forward, to ask about what the king had said earlier. Ezran recounted the events for those present. He didn't mention the moon nexus or the attempted kidnapping by Soren and Claudia. Claudia, Soren and Corvus had been in the audience all along. Claudia was surprised at Ezran's omission. Corvus thought if the king wasn't willing to reveal it, he wasn't in a position to either. He was going to report to General Amaya however. Ezran also didn't mention Callum's magic, one unbelievable thing was already too much for the people here.
Opeli and many of those present were shocked by the devotion of the princes for their kingdom. Even as their father was being cut down they only thought of the future of the kingdom. She suddenly felt teary eyed. The kingdom of Katolis couldn't have asked for a better king.
"This Viren's treachery runs deeper than we could have ever imagined. The scoundrel must be executed," one of the lords exclaimed.
"I thought his crimes thus far were bad enough, defying the laws of the land, impersonating a regent, stealing the royal seal, murdering his own people. I say have this traitor executed today," another lord shouted.
Claudia felt her father was being falsely accused.
"No, everything my father did was for the sake of Katolis. Ezran don't do this," Claudia pleaded.
"You dare the address the king by name, the house of Viren has no respect for the laws of the land, seize her," A council member commanded the guards.
As the guards approached her and Claudia prepared to cast magic, Ezran shouted "No, stop. Please, let her go." The guards stopped at the kings words, surprised at his plea. Claudia stopped too. Opeli thought the king would have to learn to address his directions as commands and not requests.
"There won't be a execution. I don't know what Viren did, but I don't want anyone killed." He felt so exhausted from the whole ordeal. Opeli could see the tiredness in the young king's eyes. She proceeded to end the session. She saw Claudia bow to the king and mouth 'thank you' as she left with the king.
She led him to the royal chambers, the room his father had lived in.
Ezran didn't know how to think as he stepped into his father's room. He stood there staring at the desk his father was often at, making notes, writing letters. Pip wasn't there either. The room felt empty. He felt empty. Tears started streaming down his face before he even realised it. He asked Opeli to leave. She seemed to hesitate.
"Please excuse my rudeness, Your Majesty," she said as she stepped forward and hugged the boy. He tried to push her away, but she didn't let go.
"I'm not supposed to be crying, I'm the king," he protested.
"You don't have to be king in here," she consoled. Ezran couldn't hold himself back anymore and started sobbing. He didn't know how long he cried for. He fell asleep in Opeli's embrace. It had been a long, arduous day for him and exhaustion finally took him. She picked him up and placed him on the bed and tucked him in.
She returned to her office and slammed the door shut. She suddenly hated this world and everyone in it.
Ezran dreamed he was on a boat in an ocean. There was fog everywhere and he couldn't see a thing. A storm suddenly formed and gigantic waves crashed against his small boat. The boat capsized and he fell into the ocean. He fell through the water for an eternity until he landed at the very bottom. As he wandered the ocean floor he found a maze. He walked through the maze trying to find his way. He somehow always found his way back to the entrance of the maze and couldn't find a way out. He heard a voice calling him, he followed the voice and it led him out of the maze. He followed the voice and it led him to a cliff edge. The voice was more insistent now, it had been calling his name all this time. It knew him. The voice sounded familiar to him as well. It was a voice he'd been longing to hear. He jumped off the cliff and as he fell, he woke up.
"Ezran" said a voice.
"Ezran" the voice repeated.
Ezran was still groggy from sleep. He looked around to find Pip, his father's bird, perched at the foot of the bed. He was looking for the source of the voice, when the voice spoke his name again, "Ezran," it was the voice from his dream. It had come from the bird.
Ezran wasn't sure if he was dreaming. He slowly approached the bird. It stayed where it was and looked at him fondly.
"How are you, Ezran?" the voice asked. Ezran stared. Tears started forming and soon he couldn't stop the tears that came flooding. He embraced the bird and cried for a long time.
He eventually calmed down. The voice talked to him awhile, asked him questions, marvelled at his answers. Ezran held nothing back and spoke of all he knew. He asked the voice many things too. They talked the entire night, Ezran soon started writing things down. As dawn broke, the bird left. Ezran didn't want the voice to go, but did nothing to stop it. He fell asleep shortly afterwards.
He awoke around evening. Opeli came soon after he awoke. She assumed he had slept so late because the previous day was so overwhelming. She assured him and told him to rest properly and he could start his kingly duties when he felt ready. Ezran looked at his father's desk where he had been writing things down all night. He looked through the papers as Opeli waited.
"I want to get started now. Gather the council and the evidence on Viren. And the materials on any other matters I need to deal with." Opeli was surprised to hear the commanding tone in the young king's voice. She worried there might be something wrong, but assented to the command. She bowed and left to make the arrangements. Ezran looked at the notes again, the path forward was more clear now.
The council soon gathered, as well as the ministers and some of the lords and ladies who could come in time. The new king was about to open his first court session and they wanted to get their impression of the king as early as possible. Most of them had not been present for his coronation, and didn't want the new king to be offended.
"Your Majesty," began a council member, "it is most unusual to hold court so late in the day..." Ezran interrupted before the council member could continue.
"I understand, but we don't have the luxury of time. There are too many pressing matters to handle. In my absence the kingdom has stagnated, much work has piled up and we have a lot of catching up to do," Ezran had spent a lot of time watching his father talk to his court. He and Callum had spent a lot of time perfecting their impersonations. It was one of their favourite things to do.
The council member was a bit taken by how easily the young king spoke. He looked at his colleagues and nodded at the king.
"There are many matters..." Ezran interrupted again.
"Let's start with Viren," he said, "Tell me of the things he has done and show me the proofs of his actions". Claudia and Soren were in the audience. Ezran had not looked at them once the entire time.
The council member gestured to a guard who stepped forward. She explained the events as well as they understood them. The unauthorised use of the royal seal, impersonating a regent of the kingdom, calling a summit of the pentarchy without the approval of the council or the kingdom, resisting arrest were all listed. Ezran heard from the Crow Master, Opeli and others as witnesses. The royal scribe wrote down everything that had been said.
Claudia felt a knot forming in the pit of her stomache. Soren felt powerless, this wasn't a problem swords could solve. If they did anything wrong, the whole of the kingdom would turn against them. Their father would be in a much worse situation.
Ezran then summoned Viren. He came bound in chains. He looked at them all in contempt. He was equally unimpressed with the boy king. He didn't kneel or bow.
"Viren, you dare to offend His Majesty, does your treachery have no bounds?" a lord shouted.
"His Majesty?" Viren mocked, "My friend, King Harrow is dead, what I see before me is a puppet you all have engineered. You have turned my friend's son against me. You are all plotting my murder," he hissed.
"You go too far, Viren" shouted an enraged council member. Others joined him too in cursing Viren. Viren scoffed and paid them no mind.
"I am not a puppet, Viren," Ezran said as he looked at the dark mage in the eye.
"Oh, and how would you know?" Viren challenged.
"Because, I'm not going to have you executed," Ezran said.
"Your Majesty..." began many of those present.
"Silence," Ezran commanded. Those who were about to speak, lost their voice. For a moment it felt like King Harrow was standing there in front of them instead of a boy. Viren too seemed surprised.
"Tell me your version of events, Viren," he asked. Viren looked at Ezran for a long time, before he spoke.
"I did all of those things you accuse me of. I did them for Katolis. We are on the brink of war and none of you have the slightest idea of what's coming. You bicker amongst yourself for personal gains. You run away from reality, you distort it to escape your fears. None of you have the guts to do the right thing, so it falls to me and you condemn me for it." Viren spoke passionately, "And you boy, what do you know of the world, of the elves and dragons? You know nothing. We are helpless against them, our powers are nothing compared to them. That egg could have helped us, it could have become our greatest weapon against them and you simply handed it over to them. Your father would have never approved, you are no king to me," Viren spat out his words like a venomous snake. Ezran's hands tightened into fists. He fought hard to control his anger. He thought back to his conversation last night. He told himself he had time, he didn't have to react right away, he had to be patient and wait until he was ready.
Viren scoffed, "What's the matter boy? Regretting your stupidity? Its not too late, we can still join with the other four kingdoms..." Ezran raised his hand. He slowly stood up.
"Do not presume to tell me what my father would approve of. I know how my father chose to live in his last moments. He rejected you and your dark magic. He chose death over your magic. He would never have chosen to use an unborn baby as a weapon. He would have wanted me to return that egg to its mother." Everyone in the audience was shocked to hear Ezran's speech. They couldn't believe this was a mere boy. They felt King Harrow lived on in his son. Viren was shaking. He tried to say something but could think of nothing to counter with. Ezran didn't wait for him.
"But I do believe you. I believe you were acting with the best of intentions. You wanted to do the right thing for Katolis," Ezran paused. Everyone in the audience did not expect this turn of events. Claudia and Soren felt hope all of a sudden. Viren suddenly felt alarmed, things were taking a turn he had altogether not expected.
"Which is why I am perplexed by one of your actions. Why did you kill the guards who tried to arrest you?" Ezran asked. Viren had not expected this line of enquiry. In terms of all the things he had done, the death of a few guards seemed inconsequential to him.
"You claim you were acting in service of Katolis. How did those guards prevent you from performing your duties for the kingdom of Katolis, such that you had to kill them?" Ezran probed. Viren wanted to answer but could find nothing to say. When he thought about it all he wanted at that point was to not be arrested. He felt rage from the frustration that had been building up inside him be released and before he knew it he had killed those guards in the heat of the moment. He wondered if Aaravos had some hand in it, but concluded that was impossible. He had just performed a spell to unleash havoc on the four kingdoms, which may have affected his mind temporarily.
"You are a mage of great renown, you must have countless ways of disabling your enemies without taking their lives. You could have made them faint, blinded them, turned the floor to quicksand or glue or stopped them in any other way you wanted. They were no danger to you. Why did you choose to kill them?" Ezran asked, this time his voice had more power. Viren had no answer. His head hung low. He tried to think, but he couldn't find any justification for his action. A flimsy reason would just make him look like a liar and coward who wanted to protect his own skin.
"You committed murder, unjustly. You killed the guards of the kingdom of Katolis. That is your crime," Ezran concluded, "I said earlier that I wouldn't have you executed. That is still true. But I'm not treating you specially. I don't think a murder can be resolved by another. My father abhored executions but thought them necessary. I don't agree. I don't want people to die. There will be no more executions in the kingdom of Katolis," Ezran decreed, "this is my first command as king, see to its execution." The council nodded, mostly out of habit. They were too shocked to respond. Opeli's head was spinning. The whole situation was too surreal. The difference between the king yesterday and the king today was just too different.
"The kingdom of Katolis does not forget those who serve it. The families of those who were killed at the hand of Lord Viren will be suppoorted until the day they die," he made another decree, "The same applies to you Lord Viren. You have served Katolis greatly while my father reigned and we have not forgotten your contributions. You will not be imprisoned but will be freed. You are stripped of your rank and all privileges associated. You are now a common citizen and no longer have the right to attend my court without seeking authorisation. You are also forbidden from using magic of any form within the kingdom of Katolis. You must also turn over all magical materials you have in your possession to the kingdom of Katolis" Viren wanted to protest, but couldn't think of anything substantial.
As Ezran gestured, a guard proceeded to unshackle the mage. Viren tried to think of something. He was suddenly enlightened and he kneeled. "Your Majesty, I would like to thank you for your magnanimity. I made a grave error and caused the lives of innocents to be lost. I accept your wise judgement and your terms. However, I believe the kingdom of Katolis needs a mage to advice on the magical, and I recommend my daughter Claudia. You might think I have some ulterior motive, but I truly think there is no other mage in Katolis more devoted to the kingdom."
"I accept Claudia as the official mage of the kingdom of Katolis," Ezran assented readily.
"I am sorry for the words I said earlier, Your Majesty, I was wrong. I will accept any punishment for my impudence," he drolled.
"There will be none. Get out," Ezran was getting tired of his snake tongue.
Viren was unperturbed. He felt like he had made it out of this situation quite well. He didn't die and while he lost his position, his daughter was there to pick it up so the situation was still salvagable. He rose and bowed to the king before leaving. Claudia and Soren left with their father. The council and the ministers weren't entirely happy with the outcome, but couldn't complain either. The king had found a good compromise. Had the king gone too far, they feared dark mage would retaliate. The lords and ladies found themselves at awe at the boy king. Opeli wanted to know exactly when Harrow had trained his son to be so adept as a ruler.
"So what's next?" Ezran asked.
Viren decided not to dwell on the past. His children had failed to kill the princes, but that was alright. The boy king wasn't entirely an idiot as he had feared. Ezran reminded him very much of Harrow. Just as shrewd as his old man. He didn't kill him because he might have use for him later. Viren laughed inside, finally someone capable.
He had lost the egg. But maybe that was good too. He could have used the egg as a deterrant, but it being returned may delay any war and it bought him time. He could later find ways of killing the brat when it hatched. What he needed most was power, enough power such that the elves and the dragons wouldn't be able to attack them without consequences. Maybe enough power to return humans back to Xadia. He had to learn from his mistakes though. The king seemed opposed to him killing the people of Katolis, which he agreed with entirely. He planned to help the victims of his mistake in anyway he could. The king didn't seem opposed to his methods however, which he was quite impressed with. He needed to have a long conversation with the elf in the mirror about that day and pry more information out of him about ways to gain more power.
When Ezran saw the small box of broken bones and rotten body parts, his eyes twitched. He had asked Viren to turn over all his magical ingredients, this was what Viren had provided. He realised he had made a mistake in accepting Claudia as the royal mage, as Viren would claim that all magical artifacts belonged to her and she would need them to perform her duties. He thought of Viren's magic as particularly dangerous, especially given how Viren thought. He didn't believe for a second that Viren would actually stop using magic, he asked for the ingredients to make it harder for him. He felt a headache coming as he considered how to deal with this. It was going to be another long night.
Edit: I can't seem to get the dividers to work. There is a division one paragraph up, starting at "When Ezran..." and another division three paragraphs up, starting at "Viren decided...".