Kingdoms End

It was 19:36 hours by the time Prince Kylex arrived Castle Veer and it took ten more minutes before he stepped into the main living room where his mother awaited him. The baroness had ordered the lights in the room dimmed and in that semi-darkness, she sat. She was at the right corner of a sofa which had its back to the main door.

Kylex walked up to the sofa where his mother sat. She must have heard him enter and approach her, but she gave no sign of it. He walked up to her and stopped beside her. She looked up at him now, then looked away once more. She was sad and though her regal face did not show it, her son knew it.

“Mother?” Kylex called gently, placing a hand on her shoulder, but she neither gave a reply nor looked up at him again. “I know the Mantis men come, but it does not spell the end of the world,” he stated. Baroness Meina still said nothing. “Eluna is pregnant,” he spoke next and she looked up at him now, horror in her eyes. “I knew that would get your attention,” Kylex said with a smile. “Do you joke, or are your words true?” his mother asked.” Kylex noticed that the shocked expression on her face dis not waved, thus he knew that she hadn’t taken the joke too well.

Kylex sat down next to hos mother and her eyes followed his every move. “It was joke,” he told her, taking her hands in his. “Just an attempt to to get your attention. A very poor one as I now realise.” The Baroness’ face relaxed now and she let a little smile take its place on that glorious face.“My mind is not what it used to be, my son,” she spoke sweetly. “I have just been thinking and the more I think, the worse I feel.” “Then you should talk to me,” said her son. ” Let it all out and let me console you.” “I fear that my thoughts will only serve to drag you into this great depression with me,” the Baroness stated. “I’d rather share your depression with you than be happy without you,” her son stated and the Baroness smiled broadly now.

“If you must know my thoughts, then I shall tell them,” the baroness stated. “I wish I had never birth you,” she said next and Kylex’s eyes widened. “The mantis men have waited four thousand years since their first visit,” she went on. “Why come now? Why come when I have already brought my innocent boy into the world? They could have waited a thousand years more, or came twenty-two years ago before I even met your father, or even conceived you in my womb but no, they come now to suffer my son with the sight of his world coming to an end.” The baroness showed no emotions as she spoke, she was calm and composed. “The gods forbid that I should wish this upon any generation but my own,” the prince rebuked, “or that I should not be with my mother at these darkest hours of her life.” “My brave, little boy,” the baroness said, patting her son’s head. “You might try, but I doubt there is anything that appease me at this point.”

“All of Manroh have been ready for this for years, mother,” the prince spoke. “The people of our world shall flee to Guurjey, the largest world of all five and farthest from the point at which the Mantis men will enter our solar system. Once there, we shall make our stand and with the power of two worlds, crush these invaders.” Baroness Meina shook her head from side to side. “My late father, your grandfather, was no noble, or a very wealthy man, but he was a great storyteller,” she spoke. “He was summoned before kings, Queens, Barons, Elf lords and all other sorts of dignitaries, just to tell his stories. Imagine my privileges as the only daughter of such a man and his favourite child. He told me stories upon stories and his stories were etched into the brains of those who heard them. That effect was not lost on me, in fact, it was tripled in my case. I loved his stories and the ones he enjoyed telling me the most, were those of when the mantis men came to Manroh. He had gathered his stories of the mantis men from elves and fairies who had been alive to see the mantis men during their time on Manroh. He told me of their incredible strength and their high intelligence. They cannot be killed.”

Kylex put his head in his mother’s laps. “Even if we did die, at least you would be reunited with your father once more,” he spoke. “There is a good side to everything. What if the mantis men sought to make slaves of us all? I’d rather be dead than love as anyone’s slave.” “You seek the little good in all this, even though it is foolishness,” his mother said, starting to twist his hair into little plaits as his head lay in her laps. “I will not leave your side in these times, mother,” Kylex promised and his mother just smiled, tears coming to her eyes.

The tears fell from the baroness’ eyes, but she didn’t make one sound to alert her son to her state. He lay a side on his head in her laps, his face turned away from her, so he did not notice that his mother wept. The baroness continued plaiting her child’s hair as her years fell silently. Both didn’t say another word, they just remained as they were. In the dim lit living room, the prince of Remuth and his mother would remain for an awful long time.

It was the third day since the messages had been sent from the mantis towers. It had taken this long for the leaders of the United council member nations to gather at the UNION CENTRAL, as the place was called. This was where the leaders would lodge, socialise with each other and hold their meetings.

The union keep was a very little town, with the main United council official building, the UNION PALACE, as the centerpiece. The region was fenced in by 400ft tall walls if a very tough, shiny metal, with the most powerful turret weapons mounted along the top. There was one giant gate in the south facing side of the wall and two smaller one side by side in the western side. The security here was the best in all of Manroh and one of the very best in all the Versall worlds. The town’s guards were a joint task force of soldiers from the many nations which made up the council.

The town comprised of many office buildings and housing facilities for the workers. There were grand lodges for the leaders and their families whenever they were here. A small portion of the city 5% of it specifically, was open to the public, but 85% of it was restricted area for only those with clearance and royals. The other 10% of the town was out to bounds to even the royals. There were some elite recreational facilities and farms where all the town’s food were grown. This place was built with combined wealth and workers from all member nations and no expense had been spared.

The union palace, the official building of the union which sat in the centre of the town, was only glorious in its size from on the outside. It was not beautified, nor did it have towers or any other buildings at all attached to it. It was just five stories high, but it was circular and very wide. The top was flat, but for a small glass dome in the centre, but the building’s width made it impossible for one too close to the building to see it. The diameter of the building would be no less than 2000ft. The exterior of the building was covered by a thin metal film which didn’t corrode, or rust, giving the union palace its silver colour. The inside was the building was like a world of its own, with sections of it allotted to representatives of many different nations. Each section was decorated and designed to reflect the customs of the nation and race to which it was allotted, thus making the union palace arguably the most beautiful building interior in all the Versall worlds. There were many halls inside the building, but the main hall was named THE HALL OF SOVEREIGNS.

The hall of sovereigns was a large, circular room, with chairs arranged in circular tiers in a slanting fashion. At intervals, the chairs gave way for an aisle leading to the top tier and only one such aisle led up to a set of ornate doors, the only entrance and exit to the room. Each chair had a little table fixed before it and the horizontal aisles leading to chairs were in between the tables and the back of the chairs in front. The stage was in the centre of the room, with the tiers of chairs around it and five steps which led up to it, going around it. At one side the stage were nine chairs with a long table before them, the one in the middle, more beautiful than the others. The top of the hall was covered by the glass dome on top the building, which looked out at the skies above.

It was high noon now and the hall of sovereigns was filled to capacity with the leaders of th united council’s member nations. Eight of the nine chairs on the stage were occupies, but one was empty, the specially beautified one in the middle. The owner of that empty stage chair, stood at the centre of the stage now, Baron Bristow Barbosa, the Consul of the United Council of nations. There were two extra chairs on the stage today, but they were at another end of the circular stage. Thee were people in these two extra stage chairs, an elderly Vinish woman and a male of the Telsu race who’s age could not be guessed by his appearance.

“As the consul of the united council, I now call this meeting to commencement,” said the Baron. “Firstly, I must apologise to those of you who have your nations nearby and had to arrive the council keep and wait for those others who live far away,” he spoke. “Our wait has consumed three days already since the date the messages were sent from the Mantis tower. I shall thus waste no more time with due procedures, but go straight to the point.”

“Our world has been prepared for the second coming of the mantis men for many years now. I have personally travelled to all member nations to inspect your vessels which will bear your citizens off the planet and take them to Guurjey. Once on Guurjey, we shall have enough space and the numbers of at least two worlds with which to face the coming enemies.” The Consul turned towards the people in the two chairs on stage which had been set apart from the other nine.

“We have present, the Grand Secretary of the mantis tower and she is here to give us further information on the coming mantis men.” The Baron stepped aside and the Vinish woman rose from her seat, then stepped forward to the centre of the stage. The Telsu man next to her, got up too, but remained standing before his chair. Baron Bristow handed the Vinish woman a small earpiece with a microphone extension which stretched from the ear to the lips.

“Good afternoon, majesties,” the Vinish woman began. “I am......” Her introduction was cut off by the sudden murmurings that filled the hall. She looked around and found that the rulers had their eyes on something begin her, so she turned around.

Behind her, the lady found a green tree growing out of the stage, right next to her chair. The trunk of the tree was green like the leaves, only a bit darker. The roots of the plant spread out around it and it stood perfectly still. Whispers of “Manroh” and “The planet,” filled the room.

“Please, everyone!” Baron Bristow spoke. “Let us return to our preparations. This is a world of magical beings, surely magic cannot fascinate you so.” The murmurs continued. “Remember the mantis men are coming,” the Baron said next and the entire hall went silence once more. “Now, I leave the floor open to the mantis tower Grand Secretary,” he spoke.

The Vinish lady was still staring at the green tree and didn’t seem to have heard the Baron leave the floor to her. “Lady Gerda?” Baron Bristow called gently and the woman looked at him now, wide-eyed. “You may speak now,” he told her. The lady looked at the rulers around her and she seemed to relax a little.

“I am Lady Gerda Hun, Grand Secretary of the mantis tower. I have come to give our report on the coming mantis men.” There was complete silence ad the Vinish lady spoke. “With me is our Master of a the mantis wave studies, Master Yupi Olko.” As she spoke, she looked at the Telsu male who sat next to her. Master Olko stepped forward now, to the center of the stage. He smiled up at the rulers on the side of the hall which he was facing, then Baron Bristow handed him an earpiece microphone too.

The Telsu were a race of amphibians who always had their settlements at the sides of rivers, streams or makes. They were hairless They can stay outside water entirely for seven days, but after that, they must spend one whole day in the water, or they die. They are kin to Mermaids and Indreai. One would often find these fish-women hanging around Telsu settlements, on banks, or beaches or just swimming with the Telsu who always swam at least once a day. The Telsu were human like in appearance, but for their yellow or dull green skin colours, webbed hands and feet, gills on their chest and sides of their upper arms and the large dorsal fin which ran from the top of their heads, to the end of their spines. They could drop their dorsal fin, flattening it against their body for comfort when lying down or resting their backs against something like a wall. They have no eyebrows, but are very beautiful facially and otherwise. They embrace whatever waterproof technology they can get, as they normally move their settlements along and they travel through the waters. They live in tribes, but jointly answer to Awaivas, the water mother, a very powerful being capable of controlling water and bending it to her will, transforming into a mighty fish and going no further than 20ft away from a proper body of water.

Awaivas was a member of the United council, there was a pool of water underneath the circular stage of the Hall of sovereigns. The pool was connected to an intricate waterway which had been tunnelled beneath the entire Union keep, for water dependent beings to be capable of visiting the beautiful town. These water tunnels were gates at the point where they entered beneath the town. Awaivas was not present at todays meeting and her seat which was amongst the nine on stage, was occupied by a Telsu representative.

“I expected an applause or something,” Master Oklo said with a smile, but he got only silence from the seats. Baron Bristow applauded the Telsu man and maybe one or two others in the crowd joined in. “I appreciate those of you who applauded and I hold no grudge against those who didn’t,” the Telsu spoke. “We are faced with the possible end if our world and there is nothing funny about it. I shall go straight to my reports now.”

“Our mantis waves were created from the sensations our mages four thousand years ago got from the mantis men and the materials with which their vessels were crafted, materials which still haven’t been discovered on any of the Versall worlds. These rays will go through any material without hindrance, except the materials that constitute a mantis man or his strange vessels. For four thousand years, the mantis tower has been active, growing with each new age we enter, but never have our mantis rays bounced off anything, not until four days ago.” Master Olko paused here, letting the information sink in.

“We have calculated what the mantis waves are bouncing off and there are exactly two hundred giant vessels in all so far. Some more might come into proximity of the waves later on, though we highly doubt that. There are no less than thirty million other smaller vessels across the giant ones and ten million mantis men also. They are moving at great speed and should be here no early than three months from today. I believe we shall triumph and wish you all the best.” The Telsu man completed his speech and returned to his seat.

Baron Bristow returned to the centre of the stage. “Now, we have heard from the mantis tower and know that the enemy will be hear in at least three months. Now, all nations must be ready to leave Manroh by the second week of the third month and must be gone by the beginning of the final week of that month. If any space be available on your vessels after all your people have been accounted for, then go out of your nations and find people who have no transport and add them to your vessels’ passenger lists. We must leave no one begin. This is no time for racism or tribalism, the end is nigh and if we do nothing about it, then we shall all die.” “I object to that notion, Consul!!” yelled a female voice from behind the Baron.

Baron Bristow turned around and the eyes of all in the hall, flew in the direction from which the voice had come. The voice seemed all too familiar to Godparents Eruk and Fain Riksen of Popplop. The Popplop leaders had guessed to whom the voice might belong and they guessed right. “Heta?!!” Godmother Fain shot, rising to her feet. Princess Heta Riksen of Popplop was at the top off one of the aisles leading up to a door.

The Popplop princess walked down that aisle, toward the stage in the centre. Her parents were on their feet and all eyes were on her, but she paid no attention to any of these. She continued down the aisle, until getting to the stage where guards stepped forward to stop her. “I am Heta Riksen of the royal family of Popplop and I demand to be heard!” she spoke aloud. Murmurs fill the room instantly and several voices asked that the child be sent out of the room.

“Get that fairy child out of here!!” a male voice yelled. “Don’t you dare speak to my daughter in that tone!!” Heta’s father yelled, stepping into the aisle nearest where he and his wife sat. The Popplop Godparents came down to where their daughter was. “We don’t need a child to tell us what to do!” one human king yelled, shooting to his feet. “What you mean to say is that a non-human child will not tell you what to do!!” a golem king yelled back, getting up from his large chair, 8ft tall and with a body of pure silver. “Let the fairy child speak!!” an elf lord speak next.

Baron Bristow knew this would soon turn into a very physical racial battle if he did nothing about it. He quickly rushed back to the table on the stage with the nine chairs behind it. “We had best hear this child, or the hall of sovereigns will become the hall of sovereigns’ end,” he told those still behind the table. “We shall hear her,” one of the people said and none of the others countered. How could they? There were only two human rulers on the high council. Baron Bristow immediately rushed back to the centre of the stage and raised his hands above his head. “We shall hear the fairy princess!!” he shouted, but the noise in the room only seemed to grow louder. Several more times, the Baron called for silence, but his words fell on deaf ears. Nothing got these rulers more agitated than racism.

Elf Lord Tien Hemir, who was among those at the high table, rose to his feet and lifted his fist into the air, then he opened that fist and a white, blinding light filled the room for about three seconds. The elf lord balled that hand into a fist once more and the light was gone. Everyone in the hall was silent now, the sudden light had gotten their attentions and now that it was gone, all sought its source. Elf lord Tien lowered his hand, bowed with a smile and sat down. “We shall hear Princess Heta,” Baron Bristow said now and the guards who’d been holding back the princess let her through.

Princess Heta climbed to the top of the stage, her parents opting to stand at the base of the stage, instead of returning to their seats among the other leaders. The fairy princess had on a cloak with white fur lining at the top. Underneath the cloak, she had on a one-piece swimsuit of black leather, with slits along the sides. Her boots were of white fur and her hair was done into a double bun atop her head with a golden twine crisscrossing it for beautification. On her left wrist were three fat bangles and several jewel topped rings adorned her fingers on that same arm.

The princess looked around the room, she wasn’t intimidated in anyway. Her people here were more the those who would be against her and also more powerful. Nothing united non human races more than racism against them by humans and what had just occurred here made Heta know that nearly the entire room had her back. Baron Bristow came forward and handed her an earpiece microphone. “I greet you all, leaders of my world,” the princess said, bowing to one side of the room, then turn to her left, right and back and repeating the bow. Once she was done bowing, she stood upright and let out a sigh.

“I will not lie, or claim that I know even half as much as you all do about the mantis men,” she spoke. “You definitely know more than those short living humans!!” a male voice yelled from the crowd and almost all non human leaders laughed a little. “Silence, please,” Baron Bristow spoke and the hall obeyed. “I have heard of your plans to flee to Guurjey and face the mantis men there with the numbers of two worlds at our disposal, but if I remember correctly and I do, it is said that the mantis men cannot be killed by anything we had at the time, or anything we could even have now. If this is so, why then should we flee to another world only to die anyway?” There were murmurings all around at the princess’ question.

Baron Bristow called for silence and the fairy princess continued. “A wise lady once told me that she’d rather die here on Manroh, the land on which she lived, toiled and loved.” The princess looked down at her parents as she said the word “Loved.” “Well, I stand with that lady. If we can defeat the mantis men on Guurjey, then we can as well defeat them here on Manroh. I will not abandon a world so loving and proud. Behold, even now as we speak of deserting her, she stands before us and her heart must weep.” Heta pointed at the green tree which had suddenly sprouted on the stage and all eyes went to it. Suddenly, the tree transformed into the shape of a woman, green skinned, but with vines for hair with flowers in them. Her eyes were brown and white tears fell from them. She had no mouth at all, but didn’t need it to show her emotions. This was a physical manifestation of the planet and everyone knew this, though for years, many had not believed the planet could do such a thing. There were murmurings all over the hall and Baron Bristow was too lost in the plant woman to bother about quieting the place.

“She may not be able to speak to is, but many a wanderer will tell you that once in his time of need, a being like this sprouted from the ground to grant assistance. Even in cases of fights, she came to our people’s aid. My heart and pride will not let me leave such a planet to her fate now that she needs me as I have needed and depended on her all my life;” princess Heta roared, going to stand next to the plant woman and taking its hand in her own. “Princess Heta Riksen of Popplop shall live and die on Manroh, for Manroh!!” she yelled, raising the plant lady’s hand in the air with her own “So shall I!!” her father yelled next, lifting his right fist. “On Manroh, for Manroh!!” her mother screamed next, raising her fist also.

“If the Fairuna of Popplop will fight for our world, then so must mine also,” said the Godfather of another Fairuna, rising to his feet. The Godfather’s wife else to her feet next and declared for the planet with a raised sword. “On Manroh, for Manroh!!” he added, raising his sword this instead of his fist. “On Manroh, for Manroh!!” said Elf lord Tien Hemir who was at the high table, rising to his feet and raising his sword. “On Manroh, for Manroh!!” said a golem king who’s skin was of granite, raising his fist. “On Manroh, for Manroh!!” said the hole king of silver skin, who’d risen to defend Heta’s request to speak earlier. The leaders were rising fast and declaring for their world, but a reasonable number still remained seated, most of them humans.

Baron Bristow wasn’t happy with what was happening in the hall, their several hundred year plan was crumbling before his eyes. “We already have the perfect plan!” the Baron yelled onto his microphone. We will not stand a chance I we try to face the mantis men with just the strength of one world!” “Our chances are the same no matter where we go!” Master Olko stated from where he sat next to the Vinish Grand secretary of the mantis tower. “You humans may not so readily die for the planet because only here fo we non humans outnumber you in all the Versall worlds,” said the granite skinned golem king from his spot in the hall.

“This is madness!!” Baron Bristow roared in anger.” “Then call us mad fellows, friend!!” yelled back Goro Worrg, a dwarf king. Baron Bristow looked around his rooms nd saw that there was no pulling back this lot from the edge of the abyss. ‘Perhaps he shouldn’t have let the fairy child speak after all,’ he found himself thinking. The plant lady looked back at the Baron and he held her sad gaze for awhile, but eventually looked away and walked off the stage.

All watched as the Baron got off the stage, went up the aisle to the main doors and here he stopped. “You will regret this and you all know it,” he said, then exit the room. The other rulers who hadn’t declared thy would remain on Manroh, got to their feet now and began moving toward the nearest exits to them. “See how the cowardly humans go, leaving behind a world they have called home for too long,” said the Godfather who’d declared after Heta’s parents.