บท 1: Alastair Drayce

The sky was slowly turning dark and the sun was almost about to set. Everything seemed beautiful as the rays kissed the village Soren and the sky painted red and dark orange as the dusk approached was a sight to behold. Once in a while, the people walking on the streets would stop in their places to admire the beautiful sunset before they went back to their work. The sunset had never been this amazing before. However, only one person knew the truth. It was the wise augur, Osiris.

He knew that nothing good would come of the beautiful sunset. The red and orange rays intertwined together were nothing but what the future held for everyone, especially the king. There was going to be blood everywhere. People were going to die and nothing could stop them, nothing at all. It was already written in their fates. He sighed, shaking his head in remorse. He knew everything, but he could do nothing about it. He neither had the power nor was he the one destined to bring the change.

From this day on, the peace of this kingdom Oryn lay in the hands of the king, Alastair Drayce. A major disaster was going to strike the kingdom and only he had the power to stop it and as to who were the ones to die, only fate would decide.

Osiris picked up his old shillelagh and went inside his house. He felt safe inside his cold and dark house compared to the warm environment outside and he wanted to protect himself from the upcoming catastrophe.

Nobody gave a second thought to seeing him go in early. He was an outcast in society and people fled seeing him come near. He was a madman in their eyes and they believed nothing good would ever happen in his presence. Osiris was a jinx they wanted to avoid at all costs. He was a master when it came to predicting the upcoming crisis and never did he sugarcoat his words. His predictions were always right and people feared him for his skills and some even assumed him to be a witch who was cursing them bad luck. Though they wanted to eradicate him completely many times, the king of the land had warned them against it. So, they were helpless in this matter.

The king of Oryn, Alastair Drayce was a dangerous man when provoked. Though the village people never had the opportunity to meet him, they had heard stories of his wickedness and it was nothing but a nightmare to even hear. He never hesitated to rip people's heads off their bodies if necessary. So, nobody wanted to go against him or his orders. They ignored Osiris as though he was dead in their eyes.

As soon as Osiris had closed the doors, the street became extremely chaotic. A horde of horses galloped across the street followed by the royal carriage in the middle. The people could guess who was inside when they saw the royal emblem on the carriage. They immediately got to their knees out of respect and nobody dared to lift their heads lest they should get their heads ripped off. They had never been this scared before and the king had never come to this part of the village. Soren was a very small village that belonged to the kingdom of Oryn, but this was the first time they were seeing their king here.

Though Alastair was in contact with Osiris, it was always the latter who went to the castle and not the other way round. So, they were surprised to see the knights in their black leather armor and huge spears and swords in their hands. Some even had a bow and a quiver of arrows behind their back. The procession stopped before Osiris's house and the coachman opened the carriage door for his king to step out.

A man in a black tunic and trousers got off the carriage and his eyes fell on the people who were bowing before him. His short red cape fluttered with the wind as it flew behind him. Though the people wanted to take a glance at the king to see how he looked and if he was as handsome as the rumors said, nobody dared to lift their heads.

"Rise." The king's loud and clear order boomed across the street and everybody got up immediately, yet their heads remained lowered. A little girl, who was standing right in front of Alastair, tried to lift her head to take a quick peek at him. But the woman beside her pushed her head down not wanting to get her child punished for showing disrespect to the king.

Alastair saw this little action and his lips curved up. He was not the one to rejoice in people's fear, but it was necessary for them to know their place. So, he had not given them any option either. They had to know who the king was and what he did when he was angered. His ruthlessness had spread far and wide and his actions of killing people who went against him had instilled fear in the people. Alastair too had not taken measures to burst their bubble. It was better this way and nobody would dare to go against him.

Alastair padded towards the old and detached house while his knights stood before him, guarding the people. Their eyes were on the lookout for men and women who would attempt to create any sort of chaos while their king was here.

Alastair's right man Kenneth knocked at the door a few times while Alastair tapped his boots impatiently. If he did not have any work from the old augur, he would never have stepped into this village. He had not come here on inspection. That was something he usually did in secret. Today, he was here with a different thought in mind.

The door opened finally and Osiris peeked out to see who was one to disturb this outcast. Not many people were willing to speak to him in this village. So, it had come as a surprise when he realized that somebody had come to his doorstep. When he saw that it was the king himself, he allowed him to come inside without any hesitation. He knew why Alastair was here and what he wanted to know.

Alastair went inside as if he owned the place with Kenneth following him behind. Osiris closed the door after them and waited for the king to speak first. He did not bow in front of him nor did he greet him and the king too did not mind it. He was accustomed to the old man's behavior; he had been the same since the time he had met him.

"What a lovely little house we have here!" Alastair spoke as his eyes wandered around every nook and corner of the house. "When do you think the house will tumble down on this old man, Kenneth?" He asked in amusement when his eyes finally fixed on the old man.

"Very soon, my lord," Kenneth answered immediately as he too took a quick look.

"Hmm. I thought so too. Remind me again Osiris, why did you reject the small manor we gifted you?"

"My king, the manor was anything but small. It could house a hundred people easily and I don't think I am in need of a manor of a right now." Osiris answered politely.

"Is it? What if the ceiling falls on your head? How are you going to survive?" Alastair stared at the ceiling which had cracks on it in amusement. He knew why the man had rejected the offer, but it gave him pleasure to see the old man get agitated, although it was quite rare. He had never seen Osiris lose his temper, not even when people treated him as a pariah and insulted him. The man maintained his calm all the time.

"Why are you here, my King?" Osiris changed the topic while Alastair sat on the only chair in the house. He crossed his legs and looked around him once more before he took a deep breath.

"Did you find the angel?"