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By Kain Vinosec There is a large arena in Crayus where kings force men to do battle with beasts from the bowels of the planet. The fighters that are forced to fight and die for entertainment have named the arena Death's Door. The Door is known for putting on shows of inhuman torture and making it appealing to the people of Crayus and the rest of the planet. Sometimes they even go far enough to invite an orchestra to play during the death matches. When they began doing this, their ticket sales skyrocketed. For the past three years they have never failed to sell out. They murder at least five people per day. Their fighters come from all walks of life. If someone breaks the law they're forced to fight whether it is as simple a crime as stealing an apple to feed a child, or as severe as murdering a high priest. The only difference is whether they get to leave when they win. If they win, of course. There were few in the beginning that opposed this mistreatment of our brothers and sisters, but within the past year all of those that opposed had been forced to fight and die. Everyone now follows in the rules set by the kings that rule over Crayus. Everyone now flocks to Death's Door. Crayus is a special place. It lies directly on the border of five countries. The city is split up into five different territories with the arena being in the direct center. Because of its location the city is owned by the Five Kings. Each owning a piece of the arena and therefore each of the Five Kings supporting the torture that goes on within the Door. In order for someone to end the torment you would have to conquer all five countries simultaneously and defeat the Five Kings. No force exists on the entire planet that could command such a feat requiring such overwhelming power. There is one man however that fights at Death's Door that will change the fates of the people and the Five Kings. His name is Jace. He is one of the highest ranking gladiators in the arena and his next fight will set in motion a series of events that will determine the future of the five countries. A man of approximately twenty-seven years is thrown into a large oval desert filled with eyes beating down upon his courage. He pulls himself to stand and glares around at those that would hope for his end to come. The crowd begins chanting his name in hatred more so than in support. "Jace! Jace! Jace!" That is his name after all and he responds to their cries for his demise. The wind picks up a tad and blows through his ill-kept dark hair. His face shines through underneath with scars and wounds that represent the pain he has felt his entire life. His garment is a simple black tunic adorned with a white belt and draped over a masculine build of power and will. He wears simple brown leather boots that are a prize reserved only for the gladiators that survive the longest in the arena. The tops of the boots show underneath the torn ends of a pair of sand-covered red pants. His bright eyes gleam out into the crowd as the bright star of the planet shines down upon his strong face that makes it seem as if his personality is overflowing with justice. It is now that he sees the opponent he must is forced to slaughter this day. The man was a small shell of fear. Clearly having been mistreated and malnourished for weeks as the bruises all over his body and the torn shape of his garb would attest to. The garb however was the most interesting item to be found within this man's immediate personality as Jace could instantly tell that it was one of a servant for a king's court. Given the shape the garb was in it would seem improbable to decide which king he had previously served, however he clearly had a sense of honor and loyalty about him that most men would embrace. The small man approached Jace calmly though his hands were shaking (whether from nervousness or from a severe hunger). He spoke softly in a way that made him hard to hear over the crowd's roar. Jace had to lean in to hear what he was saying. "Sir it seems as if I will lose the day... I beg of you make it quick so I may join my family. I only beg to hope that some day the vile kings of this sport and these countries will receive the justice they have so wrongly forced upon myself and those I love." The man began to weep on the battlefield. His honor had been spent serving a king and now he had none left to give for his own demise. Jace felt sorrow for this man as he felt sorrow for all of those he was forced to destroy unfairly. He knew though, that there was nothing within his power to cease this from happening. He walked over to a nearby unlit torch (generally these were lit up at night if the battles extended into the evening) and pulled it up out of the deep sand. The torch was rested on a staff of wood that ended in a severe point. Jace had used these before to end his matches and it always proved to be a quick death for his victims. He walked back over to the man and looked down upon him. "They will receive their justice from my hands sir. I will make it happen. Until then I lose to hope that you may suffer through this horrible end with whatever dignity and honor is left within you. I beg you sir, fight me so that I may not take your life but instead give you death." The man stepped away from Jace and took up a defense position. Jace stared his opponent down and waited like a wall about to be attacked by rain. The small man charged forward with a loud battle cry and tears in his eyes. His fist swung hard with every last ounce of energy that he had left and aimed directly at Jace's stomach. Jace saw the attack coming before the man even moved and had stepped back in time for the man to miss. The man stumbled as Jace lifted the torch to be parallel with his own head. He spun the torch around so that the sharp end was aimed at the man's head. With all of his strength Jace slammed the makeshift spear through the man's face, piercing his eyes, skull, brains and eventually ripping his head open for all of the audience to view. The spear stayed buried in the man's face as he fell to the ground lifeless and utterly destroyed. The crowd hesitated their applause in exchange for a brief moment of shock before everyone began filling the Door with clapping, cheers and cries of Jace's name. Jace shed a single tear for the man, and was sent back into the cells where the rest of the fighters were imprisoned and fearfully waiting for their turn to fight. When Jace returned to his pile of hay on the floor, he simply slept. He slept for twelve hours without any interruption. The cells were considered home and hell by innumerable fighters and sacrifices. One such fighter was a former brother of one of the Five Kings. His name was Resheph. He appeared normal enough but his royal training had made him the deadliest fighter to ever stand before Death's Door. All of his opponents met with the ruthless fury that enveloped his entire being. He had been cast out of his brother's court for having an affair with the queen which resulted in the birth of a bastard son. The king had been outraged and sentenced his own brother to die in the arena 'lest he prove himself by surviving for an entire year with no help from anyone. Resheph so far had lasted an estimated seven months. He was beginning to grow tired and the king never failed to serve him with the worst and most vile opponents. He happened to've been watching Jace's last fight. The man Jace destroyed had come from his own court. He always knew him to be a friend and loyal servant of the king. In the past years though it would seem to Resheph that the king had become a monster filled with a passion for causing hatred and a blood thirst amongst his own people. Seeing his ally in life and hope ruined before his own eyes unleashed a demon with Resheph that had been growing for many years now in the king's shadow. Pulling from the darkness of the entire country, Resheph had now lost whatever humanity remained within him. His heart and soul finally shattered under the weight of pain like a fallen mirror. His only mission in life now was to unmake his own brother and set their country back to righteousness. Resheph; simple in appearance, yet complex and unmatched in the ways of intelligence. He walked into the arena like the prince he truly was and held high his two-handed farmer's sickle that had been granted him when he began fighting in the arena. His long royal coat of black nearly reached the floor and even though the purple trim had become worn and dust-covered he still appeared like the prince he had once been. The coat covered a dark purple shirt, which in turn covered a small coat of armor. The belt he used to position his flat black pants was clasped with the symbol of royalty from his kingdom: a sword piercing a sparrow. He pulled the sickle up to his waist and held it straight and steady while waiting for his opponent. Luckily this day he would not have to kill another human but instead he was pitted against an Oni. The Oni are a large shadow-like creature with the ability to hover, control their speed at will, disappear into the dark and shape shift to some extent. They are generally feared but the prince knew that they were pathetic in battle. Before the crowd had even stopped applauding Resheph dug his dark brown shoes into the sand and took off running at the Oni. The Oni phased through his sickle as it sliced the air and managed to disappear into Resheph's shadow. Resheph stood with no fear and dug the sickle deep into his own shadow. When he pulled it out of the sand his shadow faded a little and the sickle had a dark oil-like substance dripping from it. The Oni never resurfaced. The guards came from the doors of the arena in their dark blue outfits with their swords drawn to escort Resheph back into the cells. One of the guards approached him and commented; "Another day has now passed and you are still yet growing closer to returning to your throne my prince." Resheph began laughing softly to himself as if he was recalling something comical. When he turned to greet the guards his eyes were filled with hatred and determination that no one had ever bore witness to. He laughed loudly and outright at the soldiers and claimed "No! Today is the day I ascend to my throne and the king... The king will bow to me!" The guards stopped instantly and stared in awe at Resheph who had never acted in such a way before. They all feared what he might do next. Unfortunately for them their fear was warranted. Resheph flipped his sickle around the frame of his body once and stepped towards them. He started spinning it again instantly and releasing it with one hand he managed to use the other to extend the blade out far enough to slice through each of the guards in the half-circle around him. Their torsos or heads each fell from the rest of their bodies and landed in the sand with a thud. Their shells toppled over their already fallen pieces and stained the brown sands red. The crowd looked on in awe for less than a moment before they started cheering Resheph's name. He had now had enough of this sport however and opted to put an end to it by eliminating as much of the original problem as he could. Resheph held his sickle even with his waist as he took off running with as much force as he could manage. His direction was aimed towards one of the walls which held a number of onlookers gaping at his acts of violence. He pulled his sickle back as he ran and threw it with his full strength directly at the towering wall. It landed directly in the middle between the ground and the staring witnesses. Resheph leaped towards the sickle and used it to bounce over the wall into the crowd. He had escaped the arena and was now in a position to destroy the most important aspect of the arena's flourishing: the crowd. He landed and started at those standing next to him that quaked with nerves. He grabbed a teenage boy's head with both of his hands and spun it a full three hundred and sixty degrees killing the boy instantly. A little girl stood next to him with innocent eyes and a huge heart of compassion for the boy that'd just been killed. Resheph however knew that she'd come her of her own will and deserved to be punished on the same level as everyone else. When she bent down to cry over the boy Resheph merely stepped on and crushed her skull against the floor of the stands. Everyone that had been watching took that as a sign to flee and began screaming in fear and charging through to the exits. Resheph was only getting started now and he began making his way through the crowd to reach the exits himself. On his way he managed to tear the left ear off of a middle-aged musician. He also ripped a young woman's shirt off so he could bury his fist inside her chest and pull out one of her lungs. An older man that had seen a number of years stood up to Resheph and ordered him to stop his slaughter. Resheph castrated him with his bare hands and shoved his testicles through his neck. The old man lay there in unheard of agony until he bled to death the next day. Before Resheph could make it to the exit a large number of blue-clad guards flooded into the stands and blocked his path from front and rear. The leader of the guards stepped forward and fearlessly stated their claim: "Resheph, my Prince. You are hereby ordered to stop your manslaughter in the name of the king, your brother. Return with us to the cells peacefully where you will be executed at once." Resheph laughed and staggered a bit before responding. "You want me to give up so you can kill me? Whilst my other option... Fight with you until you kill me. Or until I win. I think I'll go for the win." He corrected his stagger and elbowed one of the guards that had been sneaking up behind him. He pulled the broadsword (which resembled that of roman make) from the man's sheath and stabbed him in the neck with it. "I will not allow injustice to rule this land or any other from this moment!" Resheph exclaimed loudly as he began slicing the guards when they approached. Each one fell before his blade and their blood flooded the arena floor. The leader of the guards stepped forward as the sole survivor. His formerly confident demeanor was now shaken with a trembling fear for death. In his mind he pleaded with hope to save his life, but to Resheph he merely stated "I will not let you pass my Prince." Resheph said nothing and instead stepped towards him and with one smooth stroke he removed his right arm which had been the arm with which he held his sword. Resheph's blade cut deep into the man's torso as well which caused the man to fall to his knees and clutch his bleeding stub with his only other hand. He broke and cried in shame to Resheph. Unfortunately for the guard Resheph would not be allowing mercy into his heart on this day. Instead Resheph allowed his blade into the man's heart whilst it sliced its way vertically through the rest of his upper body. The man split in half and his blood stained Resheph's stolen sword. Resheph had completely emptied the arena by starting a one-man war against the Five Kings. After having done so, he went to the cells and freed those trapped within. He then disappeared and found his way into town. Every guard, knight and priest in the city attempted to stop Resheph's hatred and malice. He was as if possessed however and made his way to the dam that supplied the town with water that came in from a river which normally flowed into the ocean. He stood atop this dam and overlooked the entire city of Crayus. He felt no compassion for a people that would allow the injustices of Death's Door to take place daily. The dam was made of a hard brown clay and was extremely large compared to the other dams in the rest of the country. Resheph stood in the direct center at the very top and looked down at was seemed an impossible drop. Guards flooded on top of the damn preparing to fight and kill Resheph should he attempt to walk away. They did not expect what came from his anger. Resheph brandished his ill-gotten sword and turned to face the lake which had built up behind the dam. He stood on the edge and in an instant of chaos he flipped backwards and cleaved his sword as deep as it could go into the clay that held the water back. The sword sliced all the way down the direct center of the dam in a moment, though it seemed as if time stood still to the guards that feared what would come next. Each of them took off running as the dam started to come undone and the water began flowing from the single line that Resheph had created. He slid all the way down to the very bottom of the dam as the water poured out above like a torrent of retribution. As the water filled the streets and took the lives of the countless victims of Resheph's hatred, he only laughed as he made his way back up to land that would stay dry. Resheph had committed an act of torment upon an entire city. The kings stayed in their royal palace and overlooked the destruction he had caused. One king in particular felt nothing but remorse. Resheph glared at the palace which was high enough to keep the kings safe from the encompassing flood. The city of Crayus had now become a lake. The water would soon find its way into the ocean, but before that could happen Resheph set out to redesign the five countries and erased the Five Kings from history. After Jace finally awoke from his lengthy slumber he stumbled through his cell with weariness. He urinated in his usual corner and forced his mind to begin working at its normal capacity. When he was fully ready he stepped out of his cell to find that the cells themselves were completely empty. He walked through the vastly abandoned halls only to find that he was significantly alone. One older woman remained however, as she had been near death at the time Resheph released the others. Jace walked over to her and knelt by her side. He saw that her breathing was unnaturally paced and that her face was devoid of color. The two held a very silent conversation amongst themselves as the last two prisoners to leave the cell. "My name is Jace. Can you still speak?" He slid his hand underneath her head to give her some support to speak. He feared she may be too far gone until she managed to cough a bit and reply to his inquiry. "I can my son... We are all freed by the..." She coughed a little and inhaled sharply before continuing. "...by the prince." Jace laid her head back down and wished her a comforting demise. He left her to die in the cell and continued his way out into the arena where no one remained. He noticed the bodies of those slain laying in the stands and that some of the sand had turned into mud from water leaking through the doors. He made his way over to the sickle that had been planted in the wall earlier and used it to make his way up into the stands. He walked to the highest point and looked out over the city which had since succumbed to the water's wrath. Drowned bodies of children, women, men, animals and beasts were littered and floating across the top of the water. Hundreds were instantly visible before him and thousands more remained out of sight or trapped in their homes. Jace stared in awe and disgust at the harsh and uncompromising reality of what had happened. "Who did this? How... How could anyone..." He fell back in shock and sat there for an hour at the very least in silence. He began to weep and contemplated what he should do now. One of the guards that had been laying on the floor moved a bit and turned his head to look at the large man crying at the top of the seats. Jace saw him move and rushed over to him in an instant whilst wiping the tears from his eyes and regaining his composure. "Are you alright? What happened here?" The man simply stared at Jace with near-lifeless eyes before examining his exclamatory questioning. "Re... Resheph. He's... insane." Jace leaned back and felt as if he could not believe the reality that had unfolded before him. He divulged himself in thought as the young guard lost what was left of his life before his very eyes. He came to a conclusion quickly enough after having seen what Resheph was capable of. He stood and made a declaration to the audience of the dead which had been at full attendance today. "The Five Kings have ruled this city and their countries with death and fear. Resheph seeks to dethrone them and rule with insanity... I'll tear out his eyes before I let him become king. If for nothing else, so that I can show him the result of his own intent." Jace returned to the top of the stands and leaped off into the water of the dead. The taste of decaying corpses filled his mouth and he drank it heartily as he began swimming towards the palace. Reason now had lost its hold on the two greatest fighters that had once served Death's Door... The two greatest fighters in all of Crayus... In all of the five countries. Jace swam with whatever might was left to him. He made it at the least a third of the way to the palace before losing his stamina. Knowing he'd drown if he didn't find a means to continue on, he inhaled deeply and dove down into the lake of the damned in search of his own hope to survive. He found a small building in the midst of the floating desert. His eyes burned from the sand but he forced them open to see his way to the door of the rotting shack. He reached down and grabbed the handle with a severe impatience and his breath running out. He pulled open the door a couple of inches and then ripped it off of the shack in one fluid act of strength. As he pulled it off an infant wrapped in a blanket floated out of the shack. As it passed inches away from Jace's face he could see into the child's eyes and saw only fear. He swam back to the top of the water and pulled the door up to float on top of. He managed to climb on board and rested for a few moments before continuing his journey to the palace. He only made it a few strokes before the image of the child found its way into his eyes again and he vomited off into the water. As he exhaled and regained his composure he could see the baby hit the top of the water and float off. He felt sick and suffered through puking twice more before he managed to continue on his way towards the rectification of the injustices suffered to the deceased. After the water had wrought hell upon Crayus, Resheph was determined to end the lives of his brother, and the rest of the kings. Avoiding the lake he began making his way across the sand to reach the palace. The palace itself was located on the far northern edge of Crayus and faced south to overlook all of the city. It was far enough away so that the first floor had been the only one to flood. The kings had spent their time after the water hit its crest trying to find a means with which to return to their own lands. Unfortunately the water had eliminated any chance of their escape. Upon this realization they summoned every guard and able-bodied man they could muster that wasn't drowning or drowned to guard the second floor of their palace. Their defense advisors claimed that if someone were to attempt their assassinations then the second floor would have to be passed through as there was no other way to reach the highest floor (which would be the fifth). Every guard and man they had was stationed on the second floor with only a small elite force of their finest warriors stationed with them on the fifth. The third and fourth floors were completely abandoned. Resheph, having been one of the main advisors for their defensive line in the palace and in his brother's own court knew how they would attempt to defend themselves and he set out to defy their logic by simply avoiding the mass of guards and the second floor altogether. Instead, after many hours of walking through the sand and severe heat of the night he managed to reach the palace by midday. He entered the water of the dead and swam around to the north side of the palace which held no lookouts or sentries and he began climbing the tower. He had been exhausted from the travel which made it significantly harder to climb the length from the first floor to the fourth, but he had to make sure that he would not encounter any stray guards on the third floor before penetrating the walls. He made his way through a window and rested a moment in a large empty hall that was generally reserved for hosting feasts and executions. When he'd caught his breath he unleashed his sword from his belt and held it down to his side in his right hand. He slowly walked towards the stairs and made his way up to the fifth floor. When he reached the fifth floor he found only five guards protecting the Five Kings. Without a word the guards rushed to attack Resheph but he was significantly more than they could've anticipated. His time in the arena and his royal training had far more prepared him for this battle than any of the standard training the guards had been through. Their swords clashed and Resheph dodged every thrust. He swung his sword around into a thrust and pierced the length of the blade through one of the man's cheeks. The man fell bleeding and crying onto the floor. One of the other guards ended up killing him with a missed swing at Resheph. The guard's blade buried into his companions skull. The guard felt no remorse and ripped the blade out only to find Resheph taking advantage of his unguarded moment. Resheph reached forward and dove his index and middle fingers into the guard's neck. He pulled them out and continued fighting off the other three whilst the penetrated guard lost his breath and choked to death on the floor after swallowing his tongue. Two of the remaining fighters lunged at Resheph simultaneously but he merely deflected their swords with his own and a vast show of strength. After they stumbled back Resheph flipped his sword around and buried it into the kidneys of the third guard that had been trying to sneak up behind him. The guard fell to the floor silent. The last two guards continued holding him off for a few moments whilst the kings found themselves hiding in the study that was connected onto the room in which the fighting had been occurring. Resheph finally grew tired of this battle and feared the kings may make an attempt to escape. In a last effort to end the battle he drew one of the men's attention and evaded the other's attack so that one guard killed the other. While the guard stood there in shock of his own actions Resheph stepped behind him and cleaved his sword upward through his anus slicing him in half as his blade exploded out of the man's skull. Resheph had now destroyed their last line of defense and made his way into the study following the kings. He walked in and found the Five Kings standing ready to accept their own fates. His brother was the farthest away and the others stood on either side of a line of carpeting that led straight to the farthest king. Resheph wasted no time. He readied his sword as the first four kings closed their eyes. Resheph lunged forward in between each of them and had dispersed their bodies into halves with four consecutive one-shots. The chunks of who they used to be fell onto the floor and bled out over the room. Resheph started at his brother and smiled in a way that envisioned his joy. His brother, the king, laughed heartily at the death and made a play to embrace what Resheph had done. "My brother! It is good to see you again. I see life at Death's Door has made you quite strong." Resheph steadied himself and forced patience upon his person to respond. "You will bow before me until I unmake your existence." The king stumbled back and grew infuriated. "Is this because of that hormonal slut of a queen? I had her killed you know. She was no good for either of us I think." Resheph stepped forward and forced his blade halfway into the outer thigh of the king's left leg. The king cried out and fell to his knees in pain and regret. "Please don't kill me... You've killed the other kings already." The king paused to scream out his hurt. "We could rule the five countries together now and to hell with anyone that stands in our way." Resheph would hear nothing more he had to say. He pulled his sword up with both of his hands on the hilt and the blade aimed downward. The king lowered his head and wept tears of remorse and fear as Resheph's sword dived through his skull, throat and chest. The blade lay resting inside of his body as the king's mouth lay open and his eyes rolled back into his head whilst crying tears of blood. The blade could be seen going down the king's throat and managed to keep the dead king's balance so that his body remained kneeling in the study of the palace. Resheph walked from his brother and the hall of the fallen kings into the throne room and over to the window. He looked out at the chaos that he'd created in this one city and contemplated all of the death that he had to unleash simply to see his brother in that moment of his most deepest, lifelong regret. Resheph moved back to the highest of the five thrones in the throne room and waited for his own death to find him. Jace's journey had been hastened with his newfound mode of transportation. The door was thin enough that it allowed him to swim whilst laying on its top which made it easy for him to stop and rest when needed. Along his way to the palace he met no living thing but was forced to bear witness to many of the fallen. He quickly did make it to the palace and found the entire first floor flooded. He pushed himself off of the door and swam through the entrance of the five story building. The first floor had flooded to the ceiling but the waters had gone down enough so that he could catch his breath in a small air pocket at the top of the room as he made his way across the hall to the stairs that would lead to the second floor. He made his way up a few of the stairs and stopped to catch his breath. His clothes were soaked with the water of the deceased and his body was exhausted from swimming so far without hesitation. He rested on the stairs for nearly ten minutes in silence before finally standing and entering the great library on the second floor. As he walked in he saw that there were no less than thirty guards in tunics of various cream colors (which represented the highest order of the guards) waiting for him with their weapons drawn. The man adorned with the most medals and jewelry stepped forward and aimed his sword directly at Jace. "This man is an intruder in our palace and his being here is a threat to the Five Kings. He will be executed under the law of the five countries!" Jace sighed heavily and stood his ground. He walked forward and braced himself for their onslaught of attacks. "I will not be executed today." He ran into the lot of them as they all stumbled to attack him. Most of the guards ended up killing their own comrades in the initial attacks on Jace who managed to avoid all of their attacks. Their numbers were now reduced to twenty or less and were more of a force that Jace felt he could attempt. He grabbed one of the fallen men's sword and began fighting back with a ferocity these men had never seen before. His sword was shoved through the nearest man's stomach as the others rushed into the fight. He ripped the sword out of the dead man's bowels and slung it around through two more. It went through each of their arms and chests before they fell without life onto the floor. Jace quickly grabbed another sword from one of the dead and charged into the lot dual-wielding his way through their force. His sword sliced diagonally through one man's head revealing half of his brain while his other sword plunged into the groin of another man rendering him unconscious. He dodged one's ruthless onslaught of slashes before plunging a blade through the man's eyes. When he fell his sword pierced the unconscious man and they both lay dead. Two more charged at Jace with one swinging for his head and the other swinging for his feet. Jace managed to crouch down and jump high enough so that the blades went over and under him respectively before he spun his own swords around and thrust each of them into the two attacker's hearts. Jace took a moment to fight off one man that had been skilled enough to hold his own against a powerful fighter such as Jace. He fought with Jace harshly but eventually Jace overpowered him and slid his sword through each of the man's ears. As he tore the sword from the man's skull another guard jumped up behind him but was met with the end of Jace's free sword cutting into his abdomen. Jace turned to face the remaining eight guards before him and breathed deeply. The guards were now standing in puddles of fear and shame. Jace would not back down and charged head on into the group. The battle was massive and the clang of swords deafening. Two came at Jace in a line and both were defeated as he stabbed one of his swords through the center of both of their faces. Five of the remaining six gathered around and were all fighting him at once. He managed to hold them all of and slowly began taking them out one at a time. The first was stabbed through his liver. The second was decapitated. The third was found heartless. The fourth found his spine to have been spliced. Finally the fifth landed a hit on Jace before being forced to swallow one of his swords. Jace had suffered a deep cut to his left arm that made him incapable of holding a sword with that hand. Jace had killed seventeen people in less than a half hour. The guards had killed nine of their own. Jace stood across the room from the last of the remaining force of the Five Kings. The final guard was a younger man and staring at the death that Jace had brought upon the palace he merely threw his sword on the ground, knelt down and pleaded for mercy. Jace walked over to the man and looked down upon him. "I will give you mercy for you do not have the will to fight. You should leave this place. The reign of the Five Kings is now over. There is one last person that must answer for his crimes and you do not need to bear witness." The young man looked up at Jace's towering projection of power and hope and spoke kindly. "The Five Kings were distraught rulers. Death's Door was their only legacy and it is time that they come to an end. Though a new evil plagues us. The Prince that set death upon this city... You will be his demise?" Jace turned to walk over the pile of dead bodies that covered the floor and make his way to the stairs. "He must be stopped. What he has done is far worse than anything the kings were capable of. I intend to cease his reign before it ever begins." The young man watched as Jace made his way to the stairs and ascended. He could not believe the actions and chaos of the people of the city that had passed merely since the day before. His fiancee and his family were all drowned in the flood that the outcast prince had caused. His companions in the force of the kings had all been unmade before his eyes by a simple fighter from the arena and his city's rule was about to fall into the hands of uncertainty. Rage and powerlessness grew within his mind. The loss of so many, the innocent and the deserving... It would end with him. He stood defiantly and walked over to his fallen leader. He spat in his face and removed his sword from the ground. He clutched the hilt with every possible strength he could bring about until his hand bled and strained. He turned and walked towards the stairs with the blade drawn and his anger conquering all he was. Jace ascended the stairs to the fifth floor. He found Resheph sitting in his own brother's throne and staring impatiently at the stairs. Jace walked into the middle of the room and aimed his sword at Resheph. The pain in his left arm was severe and it continued drawing his attention. He ignored it as best he could and exclaimed his intent. "Resheph, my Prince. You have killed countless citizens of the city of Crayus with your actions. You have unleashed a power far more vengeful than that of the Five Kings combined... What you've done is worse than anything Death's Door ever would have amounted to." Resheph stood and withdrew a royal longsword that had belonged to one of the kings. "A gladiator seeks to trap me in death's ice-clad hands? Ha! Never would I have seen that in my future. For it to be Jace The Insurmountable though... This is truly an honor." Jace paid no heed to his words and instead wrote off his narrative as insanity brought to life. "I will see that you are reconciled with your lost hope after I remove your black beating heart Resheph!" The prince would not falter. He stepped down from the platform that raised the thrones and aimed his sword at Jace in the same way that Jace had been. "You will have to work for it I fear. While I might be aware that death has come for me I will not succumb to the fall without my honor and dignity." Resheph smiled and stared into Jace's eyes with a level of insanity that no man should ever be forced imagine. Jace stood strong in the face of everything and pronounced his intentions clearly. "Then let it begin!" The two rushed each other from across the entirety of the great hall of the Five Kings. Each of them screamed out in rage as their swords clashed and they began a fight that would last until the sun had set. The two dueled in the beginning. Taking their time and building up to the end. Their swords clashed back and forth as control switched hands between them depending on which was more involved in the fight. Not a word was said between the two for the duration of the battle. Resheph swung his sword down to hit Jace's skull but it was blocked by Jace's blade. He spun Resheph's sword around in an effort to disarm him but his own sword went sailing across the room. Jace managed to stumble back and recover his sword before Resheph could finish him off. Jace was still extremely weary from swimming the distance to the palace and feared that if the duel went on for much longer it would leave him with a severe penalty of energy when the actual fight began. Instead he opted to begin the fight sooner than Resheph had expected. Jace deflected an attempt from Resheph with ease and then sought to catch him off guard. His sword swung around and heavily came down to tear Resheph into pieces, but Resheph managed to deflect the blade and instead suffered a severe wound to his right arm. Both now only had one good arm; Jace's right and Resheph's left. Resheph cursed his injury under his breath and continued his attack with as much ferocity as Jace was now showing. The two were evenly matched. Resheph and Jace locked swords and looked into each other's eyes. Both trying desperately to find any weakness that might be present but to no avail. Resheph pushed Jace back and swung low, but Jace managed to jump back and charged forward with his blade. Resheph saw the attack coming but was unable to defend against it in time. Jace's sword was thrust into the center of Resheph's chest. Resheph breathed sharply and looked at Jace with a warm glance. Jace had let go of his sword and stepped back to stare at what he'd finally accomplished. Resheph grabbed the sword in his chest and pulled it out slowly. He tossed it on the ground and fell to his knees. Jace walked over to him and knelt by his side. "Your time has come my Prince. Find your hope in the next life and embrace it." Jace stood as the prince fell forward and rolled over onto his back. His life passed from his body as he stared blankly at the ceiling. Resheph had killed the entire city of Clayus and the Five Kings that ruled there, and now Jace had brought Resheph's vengeful rampage to a close. Jace could think of nothing but the peace that would surely follow for the five countries after the events that had taken place. The young man had been standing at the stairs witnessing their world-changing battle. Now that Resheph had been defeated he stepped into the shadows of the room which had grown dark with the sun's setting. Jace stood staring at the body of the fallen prince on the floor. The young man rushed towards Jace with his former commander's sword drawn and pulled back. He screamed out as he ran at the avenger of Crayus. "Injustice dies with you and the prince!" The sword pierced through the center of Jace's back. Jace spun to see his killer and smiled as if accepting his own demise as an unpreventable occurrence. Jace fell backwards onto the floor and lay next to the deceased prince. He used every ounce of his life force that'd been left to roll onto his side, reach around to his back, and pull out the sword that slew him. After it had been removed and dropped onto the floor he rolled onto his back and perished. The young man would vanish into history without any claims to his name. The five countries would fall under a single ruler and the city of Crayus would end up being demolished and turned into a holy burial site that would serve as a historical reminder to those of future generations. The fall of Crayus at the hands of The Prince Of Death's Door would be known throughout the entire planet and would be remembered for all of time as the most horrific act ever to have been committed by a single person. The story of Jace would hardly be remembered despite the important role he played in bringing Resheph's madness to its climax. The young man that ended Jace's life would be erased from time without a second thought only to have been briefly counted as the unimportant man that brought an end to an unimportant savior. The planet lives on in peace. |