Chapter 4

King Louis III and Gaston Steelheart

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the board of Reaver Industries, I am your Chief Executive Officer, Reaver. Applause is not necessary, but strongly recommended and appreciated." The members of the Reaver's new board cheered as the immortal laid his cane on the table.

"Now, not a single one of you knows anything about business, so let me explain to you how this is going to work. I will do whatever the hell I want, and you will make obscene amounts of money as I do it. Any objections?"

"Sounds good to me!" Boyle yelled out. However, Reaver released a sigh as the Brightwall citizen raised his hand.

"Mr. Reaver, how is it that we are gonna make money here, when Aurorans are migrating to Albion and taking good Alban jobs?" He hawked loudly and spat into the spittoon which he held in his lap, sending most the people sitting next to him scooting away. "I seriously regret not mentioning banning spittoons," Reaver thought.

"Frankly, that has absolutely nothing to do with whether you or I make money or not."

"Maybe not…but we are losing our jobs to those foreigners." The man raised his fist angrily. Reaver rolled his eyes.

"Fine, I'll make sure that our slave labor is majority Alban. Now let me explain, we are going to shift production from things such as horseshoes and fantastical contraptions to guns and cannons. We are shifting from commonplace to war ready. Understand?"

"But why Mr. Reaver?" One woman asked. Reaver drew a pistol and pointed it at her.

"Please hold all questions until the end of the presentation," Reaver shot the table right in front of the woman, making her and everyone around her draw back.

"Now, we'll produce these weapons, and then we make more money than before. Is everyone in agreement…yes…excellent, let's get to it then. See you in a month." Reaver waved halfheartedly as the group as he left the room. He hilted his pistol and started down the stairs, exiting the building to find a cool Bowerstone morning. He walked through the street, watching the city slowly come to life. Shops started to open, and sellers began yelling about good prices and a good economy. People began moving through the streets as the first shift bell rang out over the metropolis. Smoke belched from the towers of his factories and the first merchant ships began to scream out of their whistles and churn the waters of Bower Lake as they started toward Aurora or Westcliff. A thin overcast covered the sky, giving the day a sad appearance. Reaver scoffed at the thought and started toward the castle. "Today will not be a sad, nor gentle day. Not if I have anything to say about it!"

The Queen watched as the Godwin estate came into view. It was a distant and unattractive rock, little more than a large mansion towering over the waters. Its long path had been cleaned and its few roads rebuilt after the last of the Godwins had been removed. The estate was now used only as a formal meeting point between the Auroran provincial leader and other Albion province rulers. As the Queen started up the long path, Hobson and Jasper quickly moved behind the Queen, nervously watching for the horrific monsters Mary Godwin released onto the island. The Queen was far from worried about those monsters. A large entourage of guards followed them, and the Queen was a hero. None of Godwin's monstrous creations had been any threat when she first retook the island, and they would not threaten her today. The King of Francia was a much different question though. Known as the "Cruel Hero," he was greatly loved, and cared deeply for his nation, but was also suspected of taking random assassination contracts and brutally murdering a number of his own people, who would later be found to be plotting to against the Francian government. He also was rather promiscuous, frequenting brothels as often as he frequented his own bed, and had at least five children. Only one, a daughter was recognized as the heir of his country, but his oldest was also a member of the royal guard. Considered a rumor in most of Albion, there was also the story of a Francian who wielded a great hammer and was a Hero of Strength equal to the great Sister Hannah. This tiny amount of information about the Francian monarchy probably wouldn't help much, but information on the kingdom was meager at best. Albion and Francia had only had sparse contact since war between the two nations during the Purge of the Heroes.

"Your majesty, what are these creatures?" Hobson asked, starting to cower behind the Queen. She regained focus on her surroundings and stared at the strange zoo of the Godwin estate.

"This is a set of cages which keep creatures that are either incredibly rare or horribly twisted," The Queen explained. Hobson tried to straight up, but almost screamed as fell to the ground, tripping over an invisible chicken.

"I will not die here! Not without a pension!" Hobson yelled, drawing an ornately decorated pistol and firing wildly around him, sending most guards to cover and the Queen in shock.

"You can fight?"

"Your majesty…I must remind you the reason Heroes were defeated in so great a number was because the introduction of guns allowed even the most lackwit peasant to kill the strongest members of society," Jasper whispered. The Queen sighed and snatched the pistol from Hobson's hand.

"Leave the invisible chicken alone. It must have gotten out of the pen." The Queen felt around on the ground carefully for a few moments then found the chicken. It clucked calmly as the Queen carried it back to its pen. Hobson remained on edge through the rest of the zoo, and even up the final path to the main doors of the mansion. The debris from former battles on the grounds had been cleared out, and as the Queen's retainers journeyed up to the mansion, they saw lights shining from its windows.

"Everything looks ready…" The Queen said as she entered the room and saw the long negotiation table laid out. The last time the Queen had been in this part of the Goodwin estate, the table had been a lot smaller and had evidence of a hobbes party strewn around the room. The furniture was now more proper, though the Queen could see a steamer on the far end of the room someone had no doubt missed.

"Your majesty, it is good you made it unharmed." A guard came through the doors and saluted, then stepped aside, "Presenting, King Louis III and Gaston Steelheart, the King of Francia and the Hero Champion of the Foix Arena, respectively." King Louis entered prominently. He had long curly hair and a prominent crown. His long pointed nose and recessed eyes were a common trait of Francians, however, his crown was not. It was worked in the image of hammers linked head to haft, the hammerheads adorned with several jewels, but the most noticeable ones were the line of decorative opals which wound its way around his head. He had a long cloak marked with opals as well, and symbols of his country, Fleur de Les, were sewn all across the cloak. He had a sword at his side and a staff of royal prestige in his hand. To his side, the champion of Foix, and thusly champion of the Francian crown, had a large hammer on his back marked with dazzling gold lines and a Fleur de Les engraved on the head. The hero moved quickly behind him ruler and made no attempt to make himself known. He had recessed, bright blue eyes and pointed nose as well, but his hair was darker and he had a thick beard and mustache. The Queen went before King Francia and bowed, feeling her own deeply recessed brow and pasty white skin, a trait of her absolute goodness, as a tad bit unattractive compared to these two royal men. She was wearing a long purple dress and royal coat herself, but was not even close to as regal as these two.

"King of Francia, and champion of the same nation, it is an honor to meet you in person."

"And Queen of Albion! A woman of absolute purity. Meeting you is true pleasure; I only wish the circumstances were better," The King said, taking the woman's hand and kissing it. She began to blush, but brought Elliot to the front of her mind and remained faithful.

"I agree your Majesty. This is Jasper, my closest servant. He will be attending to our basic needs, such as water and food. And this is Hobson, my prime minister. He will be assisting in negotiations."

"Indeed, though I don't know how much there is to negotiate," Jasper quickly pulled the chairs on the ends of the table out, allowing the King of Francia and Queen of Albion to take their seats.

"Now, my King, I would ask you to explain yourself. Your fleets have attacked ours and you have raided Ravenscar keep, killing my guards and prisoners alike," Hobson asked, jumping right into negotiations before Jasper or anyone else could so much as straighten their clothing in the chairs.

"We are only fighting in self-defense," The King snapped back, suddenly a great deal less friendly. He turned to the Queen and stared at her, "Your monstrosities have attacked our nation. This dark creature we only know as the Dueler has begun to plague our southern and eastern borders, and now we are forced to fight back. It is our only hope of survival!" The King demanded, slamming his fist on the table. Hobson, sitting next to the Queen on her left side leaned back and sighed.

"You claim we have released a monster on your cities. Tell, what is this monster like?"

"It is a demon of great proportions. It leaves a slimy trail of darkness, eliminates armies with a single move, and it takes the form of a man with the legs of a spider, who conquers the minds of our allies. My generals have each succumbed to this evil one by one, and only Gaston remains, and the two of us cannot win this battle by ourselves!"

"Your armies cannot resist?"

"Our armies are not like yours, Mr. Hobson! We are a peaceful people, more focused on the advancement of art, science and exploration. There is little left for soldiers and horses. Our power lies with our great fleets. We are superior in naval strength to even Aurora, but we cannot use brute naval force to bring victory to armies bent on destroying us in our own land."

"And this half spider, half human, is somehow our work?" Hobson said, as if King Louis was a blathering child. This began to enrage the already flustered monarch.

"I promise you this, Minister Hobson," the King said the man's name with great loathing, "I have witnessed this creature with my own eyes, and it is very real, and very much a threat to our nation. And yes, it is the work of Alban or Auroran magic! Two years ago, your desert colony on Aurora, allowed dark slime and monsters of a similar shape to enter our country. These creatures only attacked Francians! Alban and Auroran citizens within our borders were left unscathed. We were barely able to resist them, but not before they killed our King, my father, Henry, and left me as a young king of a threatened nation. I mustered all the forces we could, but the second attack of this darkness never came. As the shipments began again between our countries, my merchants heard stories of those same monsters walking freely in your streets. You wish to take my land, so you have released them onto Francia and are letting them turn our once beautiful nation into a wasteland!" Hobson, Jasper, and the Queen all were in shock. Jasper shook his head, almost shaking with fear.

"The Crawler is back you majesty. This time it's coming out of Francia!" Jasper yelled, barely setting a cup of tea on the table before he grabbed something to steady himself.

"It cannot be…not again!" Hobson said, nervously rubbing his hands together. The Queen waved her hand to them then looked at the King.

"Your Majesty, this darkness you have seen and fought is not of our doing, or our creation. This darkness attacked us, just as it attacked you, and is no doubt planning to invade again," She explained. The King cocked an eyebrow as he watched her.

"You are telling me that these monsters are your enemy, as they are mine?"

"Yes. Your defeat is a defeat for Albion as much as it is for Francia. The Crawler is our enemy, just as it is yours."

"I am not sure I believe you."

"We suffered greatly at the hands of the Crawler. I had to make many difficult choices to keep as many alive as possible, but I lost many good soldiers at the hands of this monster! I saved my citizens, and I can save yours, if you would allow us to help you."

"Why should I trust you?" The Queen sighed at this challenge, and stood, tired of the King's lack of cooperation.

"…you have two options. You said it yourself, your navy can't invade Albion alone. By yourself, you'll surely be defeated, and fighting us will only serve to weaken your forces, and mine, allowing this..."Dueler"... to claim both of our lands even quicker, or you can take my offer of assistance, and together, we might just stand a chance. It is, of course, your choice, but know that we will fight to the last man for our nation, against this new threat...and you," the Queen stared down King Louis as she said this, causing him to lean back in his chair, stroking his hairless chin.

"You cannot expect me to surrender our beliefs so easily."

"I see little option for you, your Majesty. Surely you see the difficulty of your sad, weak nation's position," Hobson answered.

"Gaston, strike him!" The King yelled. The Queen stood up and threw her hand over Hobson's mouth, but also drew her sword holding it toward the King.

"Your majesty, please, my associate is not always proper in speech, but he is making a fair point. We are both in difficult positions to be making a great deal of demands. I promise you this; we stand a much better chance as a combined force against whatever darkness strikes at your nation than as warring ones," King Louis leaned back and remained silent for a long time, watching the Queen closely. Finally, he came forward again and ran his hand over his face.

"…You're right. I knew, in my heart, that so honorable and good a lady would not strike us in such an underhanded way. I see now that your honor and graciousness are far more than I could have ever imagined. I propose an alliance between our nations. I will cease attacks on your ships, and begin ferrying supplies and naval equipment to your shores. In turn, Albion's armies must come to Francia to support us against this darkness," The King said, an extreme reversal of his opinion none in the room were ready for. The Queen smiled then hilted her sword and pushed Hobson back into his chair.

"I will promise this to you. Come, let us go to my capital, and there we might achieve victory over this monster," The Queen said, holding out a hand. The King of Francia reached forward and took it, then turned to his champion, a thin smile forming on his face "Are you ready to visit Bowerstone Gaston?"

"As you command my liege."

"Here you are, the Reliquary. Now, if you can find a Guild Seal, I can help you open the door. However, without a Guild Seal, this door is shut," said Samuel, holding several bags, a stack of books and wearing a hat. He looked worriedly at the sun's height outside, then back at Ben Finn and Page, no doubt hoping to make it out of Brightwall before nighttime.

"Ben, do you think one of the statues…" Page said as they began investigating the room.

"Wait here." Ben went to his pack and took out the book.

"This should have what we're looking for." Ben flipped through a couple pages and found a picture of the seal. He pointed at it, to which Page nodded.

"I see, so that's a guild seal."

"Yes, and here is where I shall place it, if you can find one," Samuel said, pointing to the spot where the Guild Seal fit on the door.

"We need something that goes there."

"But…why would you believe that old King Sparrow would leave such a thing in the library? I thought he carried it around with him at all times."

"I think he may have prepared a way for his children to find a way through," Ben started to look over the many books, searching for some clue. Page checked the corners of the room, then turned to the armor.

"Are you sure it doesn't have something to do with these?" Page said, leaning close to the metal figure.

"Yes, that would be far too obvious! Besides, if I'm not incorrect, this is Garth's armor, not King Sparrow's..."

"But look at this. This piece looks strange. Almost like…the gauntlet has been tampered with."

"What are you talking about…?" Ben turned around and went to Page, who touched the weapon, "There's nothing wrong with this sword, and it looks like all the other swords here!"

"But…it doesn't fit the armor…" Page grabbed the glove of the armor and wrenched it free, held it up. A mixed color object rolled out of the glove and into her hand. It was a tiny sphere with the marks of a guild seal. Samuel almost jumped back in amazement.

"What is it?" Ben asked, staring intently at the ball.

"Its…it's a Guild Seal marker!" Samuel yelled in excitement, pushing Ben aside, "It was a tool granted to heroes when they came of age to mark their weapons! Combining one with a weapon or tool will make it heroic. By the gods, this is rarer than all the books our library." Samuel signaled, with a great deal of worry, to have the small sphere. Page dropped it into his hand. The old librarian carefully walked to the door and touched the small ball to the door. Slowly, the contraptions and workings of the door moved and turned, and ultimately opened to reveal the halls of the reliquary.

"I can't believe it. Such a magnificent piece of ancient history inside our old rusty armor the whole time. Quickly! Check the other gloves!" Samuel commanded, sounding like a young man again. Page and Ben Finn looked quickly through the other armor, but found nothing. However, Ben stopped after looking at one and noticed the evidence of tampering again.

"This one looks like it was searched already," Ben said, lifting a finger on one of the gauntlets and seeing marks of recent movement.

"Then perhaps someone took one and made a heroic weapon out of it?"

"But who would be smart enough to find and know how to work such a device, yet dastardly enough to take it?" The three of them looked at each other, each with a personal hatred for a single man developing. They screamed his name in unison.

"Reaver!"