CHAPTER 21
Jake looks back at the viewscreen to see what happens next. Flame King rides into the next battle with Flame Princess and Finn. The Sea Kingdom's forces have finally arrived to help the Water Kingdom, and the Fire Kingdom's forces are severely outnumbered.
Finn fights with courage and determination. He sees one of the commanders of the Water Kingdom's army, and leaps towards him to fight. They draw their swords and begin to duel. The fight goes on for two hours until the Water Kingdom commander begins to weaken. He falls to his knees, and Finn slashes his sword and decapitates the commander.
As Finn stands over his fallen foe, he is shot in the arm. Finn drops his sword and grabs his arm in pain. He turns to see his attacker. A solider from the Sea Kingdom raises his gun and comes toward Finn.
"So, you're Finn. I can't believe you're the one that so many holds in high regard, even Her Majesty, the Water Princess. Now, look at you. You're nothing like the man they or I thought of you. I can't believe you would align yourself with a psychopath like Flame Princess. The world would have been better off if you had stayed in the Candy Kingdom." The solider says.
"Sorry you feel that way." Finn says, as he picks up his sword and taking a defensive pose, readying himself for the next attack.
"You're very stupid, bringing a knife to a gun-" the solider says as he is impaled by a flame sword from behind. The solider falls dead. Finn is surprised to see his rescuer is Flame King.
"You need to be more careful, boy. I won't let you make a reckless mistake that will leave my daughter a widow and my future grandchild fatherless." Flame King says.
"Right. Thanks." Finn says. They both rush back into the battle. Soon, the Water and Sea Kingdoms retreat and the Fire Kingdom scores another victory.
That night, there is a celebration of the day's victory. Jake notices the councilman and general who are the co-conspirators in Flame King's plot. Flame Princess and Finn walk up towards them.
"Your Majesties, it is nice to see you two." The councilman says.
"Thank you, Councilman Theron. It's nice to see you, too." Flame Princess says.
"How may I be of service to you?"
"My father wishes to see you and General Kilt in his quarters to talk about some security concerns he has."
"Of course, your Majesty. We'll go there now." Councilman Theron turns to Finn and asks "How is your arm, Sir?"
"A little sore, but it's beginning to feel better now, thanks for asking." Finn replies.
"That's good to hear, your Majesty. Now, if you two will please excuse us, we'll go talk to him now."
Councilman Theron and General Kilt bow and leave towards Flame King's quarters. They reach it and knock on the door.
"Enter." Flame King says.
Councilman Theron and General Kilt enter. General Kilt decides to voice his displeasure.
"How much longer are we going to do this? All three of our kingdoms are evenly matched, and none of the other kingdoms are getting involved. Not only that, you saved Finn instead of letting him die in battle. His death would have made him a martyr, and would have rallied a lot of others to our side, including several of the neighboring kingdoms that Finn has helped."
"You will keep doing this until I say differently. The reason I saved Finn was to earn his trust, and to further cement my daughter's trust in me. That way, it will be easier to take them down later. As for getting the other kingdoms involved, that will take time. First I must decide which kingdoms to frame first, and cause them to fight amongst themselves to the point they want to form an alliance with us or with the Water and Sea Kingdoms."
Councilman Theron is nervous, but says nothing. He decides to play along, after all, he has grand plans in this as well. After Flame King is successful in this matter, he plans on killing him at his coronation and taking the throne for himself.
"As you wish, sir." Councilman Theron says. "Is there anything else?"
"No. You may leave."
Councilman Theron and General Kilt bow and leave.
The viewscreen goes black. Jake waits for the next image to appear. It does, and he continues to watch.