Chapter 3: Prologue: The End Before the Beginning

The war was thought to never end. Many of the citizenry and nobility of every Kingdom believed that the war would last until one was completely eradicated.

 

Yet, it ended after 26 years of brutal and intense warfare.

 

The final stronghold of the invaders fell under the leadership of a young yet brilliant minor noble that led the [Alliance] for the past 7 years.

 

In those 7 years, he led hundreds of thousands of soldiers to battle and won stunning and brilliant victories against the unearthly invaders.

 

Finally the end of the war would see to its conclusion with the final siege of the unearthly bastion.

 

To the surprise and astonishment of the [Alliance], the siege ended in just a month. News of the bastion burning to ruins had overjoyed the populace.

 

The swift conquest of the bastion had once more made the young noble much more prominent and his influence grew as a result.

 

However, despite his achievements he never ascended in power as his King feared his influence over the people and other nobility. As such, he remained just a notable Baron of a small province.

 

Despite the treatment he didn't resent, but when the King rewarded nobles that didn't deserve it, he began to feel resentment.

 

Especially when the King favored the upper class rather than the common people that have actual achievement that deserve more prestige and rewards.

 

Regardless of his feelings he could only bow down, as he didn't want to instigate a war that would cause further suffering.

 

With the war over and recovery becoming the priority of the members of the [Alliance], many amongst the nobility and ruling class wondered what would happen after.

 

The threat was gone, so many pondered if there was a need to uphold the [Alliance]. With this question unanswered, members began to plot against each other.

 

Once friends now turned to rivals, members of the [Alliance] plotted in order to give them more power and control against lesser member-states. Their ploy became known, and while others joined their chosen member's plot, others began to plot against them.

 

Those against them were specifically from the various Republic city-states that hated the authority of monarchs. However, they were weak, all they had was wealth and without an army to project their power, they could do nothing to stop the plots of the monarch Kingdoms.

 

Regardless, they plotted. Weeks pass, then one day, an event would change the power dynamic drastically.

 

It was a regular meeting with a fellow old general from the war, as they recollected the events of the war and their daily life, the old general informed the young noble of the on-going court politics of the [Alliance].

 

"What?! Is your information true? I know that you are aware of my resentment towards the King, but... you're not lying, right?"

 

"No... I have informants within the court that have given me pieces of information. It took me a few days to process them, but I am sure this is what's been going on lately. This is also one of the reasons I came to visit your castle"

 

The fellow general then handed him a bag, within it were various scrolls and parchments.

 

"I shall be leaving now. I know how much you hate the King, but please don't do anything rash old friend"

 

The noble takes the bag and swiftly begins to read through them as the fellow general leaves his castle while escorted by his personal guards.

 

It didn't take long for him to become aware of the situation and learn of the various plots going on within the court.

 

Informed of the plots, the young noble became disgruntled.

 

"I fought for the [Alliance], for humanity... and yet... These fools choose to gain more power than they already have! Bastards!"

 

The noble was angry, he didn't like that the upper class were busy increasing their own power and doing nothing to help rebuild for the betterment of the people.

 

"Here, I am busy rebuilding my own land, and yet these fat pigs only want to fatten themselves even more!"

 

The noble hasn't felt a headache as painful as he is feeling now. Even in the most dire battles he had led and fought in, he had not experienced anything as severe as this.

 

He gave his first forgiveness to the King when he wasn't honored as much as the other nobles and favored those that were deemed his enemies.

 

He gave his second forgiveness to the King when he didn't reward the common soldiers and army officers with actual achievements in favor of the nobles that failed to show any achievements.

 

But he would never give his King a third chance of forgiveness. Especially when the people are suffering from famines and disease while the nobles do nothing but plot for their own gain of power.

 

Disgruntled, he raised his banner.

 

By raising his banner, he announced to his King, to the world, that he had rebelled against his master.

 

Hearing of this, a [Patriarch] from a city-state made contact with the hero. He offered the noble to join his side, to join the Republics.

 

The noble knew if he accepted the offer, the [Alliance] would split into civil war immediately, however it would happen regardless due to the ever growing internal conflicts.

 

Joining the city-states, the noble waged war against the faction he fought so hard for.

 

To begin the campaign, he led the combined army of the city-states to completely destroy the Kingdom he served.

 

After several decisive battles, he had utterly decimated the army of both his King and the armies of the [Alliance]. He then laid siege to the kingdom's capital and won after they had signed terms of surrender.

 

Upon the victory he disciplined his army to not loot the city to ease the citizens, and despite the discontent and disappointment, his army followed his orders to the best of their ability. Although there were some undisciplined soldiers that ignored the order but they were promptly dealt with in both horror and warning. 

 

With this first major victory, many believed that the war would conclude in the victory of the city-states, but oh the misery as they had misjudged.

 

The war lasted for 9 years. It wasn't the swift victory that many expected, but rather a grueling war of attrition; a war that killed more people than the war against the unearthly invaders.

 

The lands of the [Alliance] were burnt to sunders in order to slow his march. Cities and towns were plundered as ill morale broken the discipline of his army. Plagues and famines ravaged the lands as his army march as hungry wolves.

 

The war was taking its toll, on the citizenry, on the nobility, on the patriarchs, on the soldiers, and on the once dashing young general. 

 

Dozens more battles passed, but then with one final battle, the war would end; in the victory of the [Alliance].

 

Many expected that the prominent general would eventually decisively defeat the [Alliance], but the winds were not in his favor and his defeat would be caused by the lack of logistics from the city-states.

 

Yes the general won many battles and even in his defeats he had devastated the armies of the [Alliance], but his army would dwindle as the [Alliance] adapted a strategic policy of avoiding battle with him and prioritized besieging the city-states. Furthermore, as years progressed his soldiers would desert his march and end up marauding and harassing both the people of the lands and the general's army.

 

This strategy worked as his army became smaller as the war progressed. City after city fell to the grip of the [Alliance].

 

Then as the final city fell, the [Alliance] will once more march their armies against the famous war hero.

Finally! They cheered, hoping to enact vengeance for their fallen friends, family, and loved ones, but what they expected wasn't the dismantlement of the general's army, rather, a final bloodbath that would create nightmares and stories of death for generations to come.

 

The final battle eventually ended with the general's defeat, however the devastating casualties would cause the [Alliance] to eventually fracture into various federations, kingdoms, principalities, and empires.

 

Captured and beaten, the general was paraded in the capital before being sent to a trial by the [Alliance].

 

In the days prior to the trial, the general had seen how much the people turned against him.

 

Responsible for the death of nearly a dozen million soldiers and the burning of dozens of settlements, the people grew to hate him.

 

They hated him so much they named him [The Lord from Hell], [The Demon of the Fifth Gate], and even [The Butcher].

 

But amongst the religious he was named [The Son of Astaroth], the child of the God of Hell and the Damned.

 

In his trial he was found guilty of many massacres and deliberate attacks against the civilians. Guilty of treason and other crimes during the war, he was sent to be executed.

 

The process of execution would be followed; his back would be flayed and salted, then forced to march to the execution stage, once there he would be castrated, then finally he would be executed in a Haden's Tomb in where he would be cooked alive until there would be nothing but ash.

 

Laying on the cold flooring of his cell, the general, now in his mid-30's, thought of his life leading to this moment.

 

Did he make the right choices? Could he have done better? Was his dream of a equal world too naïve? A dream where the nobles would no longer rule the people, but rather the people would rule themselves?

 

He thought of many things, but he knew the answers. All he wanted was to distract himself from his eventual grueling death.

 

"So... this... this is how it feels to fear death..."

 

The noble could only chuckle at his grim situation.

 

"I thought I had already conquered this fear before... I guess I'm still wrong... hehe..."

 

He takes a deep breath as he slips to a deep slumber.

 

Days passed until the day of his execution. By this point the once young general had seemed to have aged drastically. His once dashing face became tired and wrinkled, and his noticeable red hair has turned gray and dirtied with grime and lice.

 

On the day of his death he was chained and dragged by soldiers. He was brought to a yard surrounded by prominent people of the [Alliance], there to witness his torture.

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The soldiers ripped his clothes until he was fully nude and his hands were tied to a post.

 

A soldier then arrived with a barred whip and, with a single order from his superior, he began to flay his back.

 

The sound of the sharp whip, stripping the skin of his back, and his painful yells filled the silent yard. Among the spectators, some grimaced at his pain, others snickered and mock, while among the sympathizers tears drop but do no more than watch.

 

"Look! How the mighty have fallen. Where was once your charm o solar general? Where was once your mocking tone?" Yelled a man that the general recognize as one of the honored "heroes" that "fought" by his side.

 

"Well? Are you going to blame anyone? Are you not going to mock no more!" The man laughs mockingly.

 

"This! This is the price of your hubris. The price that you will pay in blood for your crimes! I wish you well in Astaroth's hell, enjoy bleeding with the damned as that is where your kind belong"

 

The general could not hold himself no longer. He laughed. He laughed harder than any moment in his life.

 

"This. This is comedy at its finest!" The general lets out a painful groan, "O... How much of a comedian you are, hero! I did not believe you had it in you!" He laughed and laughed and laughed while his back bleeds profusely.

 

"Well? Are you entertained? Are you!" He groaned once more as another snap strips the flesh of his back, "You... o you made this happen... didn't you? So I ask... Are. You. Entertained? Hero..."

 

He glares at the "hero", locking his cold obsidian eyes with his amber sight.

 

"Madness... you... you have truly gone mad..." he shudders.

 

Madness? So I am madness?

 

He laughs internally.

 

He truly is blind. What hero you are.

 

The painful torture lasted for an hour until his back was absent of any skin and his spine was visible despite all of the blood.

 

Miraculously or perhaps unfortunately he was still alive and standing despite the punishment.

 

As ordered, a soldier picked up a bucket full of salt then splattered it across his back.

 

He screams in anguish, but his voice was hoarse at this point, so his scream resembled more of a whimper.

 

His hands were then untied and replaced with shackles. They forced him to walk to his formal stage of execution.

 

However, his injuries were too much for him to handle so he wobbled with every step, struggling to walk straight.

 

To encourage him to remain conscious and walk, the soldiers splattered his back with more salt for every time he stopped walking.

 

Paraded through the streets, he struggled to see as his vision became blurry, but he could see blurred faces of sympathy from the masses. A complete contrast to the faces he saw when he was captured and paraded before the trial.

 

Finally, once he had reached the stage, his hands were chained to poles and his legs were forced open with ropes tied to the poles.

 

He couldn't see very well at this point as his vision became cloudy from both sweat and the lack of blood.

 

It was so difficult to keep his eyes open that his conscience began to drift away. However, he would once more return to reality as he feels a great amount of pain from his groin.

 

Both his testicles and penis were cut off from him. The pain was unbearable, more painful than the torture he experienced earlier.

 

His scream was loud and hoarse until he could no longer scream nor speak ever again.

 

Coughing blood and losing vision, he could do nothing but struggle to stand.

 

Then, as his hands and legs were unchained and untied, he was dragged and laid into Haden's Tomb.

 

The tomb was closed and the soldiers began to burn the coal underneath.

 

This is it... huh?

 

He thought to himself as he began to feel the heat, but he couldn't feel the pain anymore as he had lost all his senses.

 

Honestly... it's not that bad. Feels more like a hot bath... that is if the water was my blood... and the heat was meant to cook me alive.

 

He chuckled internally.

 

I... I just wish... she was not found... I wish you well. Take care of them... I know that you will be great at it as you have cared for me... nourish them... love them... and they will be the future... I just hope... and pray to any god in heaven, will grant them and all of the people...

 

He closed his eyes, and his conscience began to fade away.

 

A bright and prosperous future.

 

---

 

He sees nothing but darkness, and the world around him feels empty, as if drifting into the void or swimming in an endless ocean.

 

He could not speak nor think, yet simultaneously aware of the world around him.

 

He can tell he exists yet not exists at the same time, drifting to both at random. As if he was meant to come back to existence but removed from it at every step.

 

This is his world for an unknown amount of time.

 

If he could think he would ponder if this is what hell feels like as he could do nothing but exist and not exist that switches at random.

Questioning if he was ever real at all as he drifts in this endless darkness.

 

Then, he could see something. It was white, as if resembling light, but it illuminates nothing.

 

Then he feels something, a touch on his face. It was warm unlike the darkness before him which felt nothing and empty.

 

He still can't open his eyes, but his hearing is coming back.

 

He hears something, it resembles a voice. It was not a familiar voice, but somehow he feels he knows this person.

 

He can't hear them clearly, just mumbled noises, but as it gets clearer it also began to become louder.

 

The sudden increase in volume startled him and he feels scared from the loudness. It reminded him of the war, the war against the unearthly beings that invaded.

 

They were called various names, but he always called them Screachers as they were very loud which made his soldiers afraid and startled the horses which prevented effective cavalry attacks.

 

Thank the heaven for those new weapons...

 

Then, he surprised himself. He can think!

 

I can think?! HAHAHAHA. FINALLY!

 

Then he felt another touch, it was warmer than the previous. He can also hear a voice, a much calmer and softer voice.

 

The almost melodic voice was calming and soothing to him. It was as if an angel was speaking to him.

 

Who is talking to me? It's calming... soothing... unlike the other voice that sounded more scary than this

 

He then felt something enter his mouth, it was warm but also had a certain taste.

 

What is this?

 

He didn't know what's in his mouth, but as he tried to suck on it he could taste something sweet and fulfilling.

 

WHAT?! This taste is heavenly! Am I drinking the ambrosia of the heavens!

 

Even though he hasn't eaten anything for a very long time, the taste was nothing he had ever experienced. It also was fulfilling, enough to satiate his hunger.

 

Eventually, he began to feel tired. Even though he could not see, he could still feel his eyes being heavy.

 

Tired again? Come on, I just came out of that hell! Maybe... maybe... I... can stay awake... a bit more...

 

He failed to keep himself conscious and he drifted to sleep.

 

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