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Saving Royalty

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Blurb

When the world is threatened by an evil that nobody was prepared for and a missing king three unlikely heroes must rise up and save everything that they hold dear.

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Chapter I
Large stone walls had been fortified into the structured castle that stood on the hilltop overlooking the bustling town of Kjellberg. Banners of red and gold littered the castle holding the royal family crest. Equally red rugs paved way upon the stone flooring. The rugs decorated on the edges with golden thread spun from only the finest wool money could buy. Pillars of stone lined in rows that lead down the aisles leading toward the two thrones. A red throne for the king and a purple for the queen. They sat on a raised stone level, small steps leading up to them. Two men stood awaiting for the king and queen to appear. Standing before the thrones they spoke to each other. One man short in stature but dressed in a red velvet suit with a darker red cape. His cape held a tan type of fur that was probably taken from a lion if one were to guess. His hair dark brown which matched nicely to his chocolate colored eyes and slightly tanned skin. The other man whom was taller by at least a foot was dressed in green. He wore no cape or anything that could have shown that he was a man of royalty or a higher stature like the man that stood before him. His green outfit was more of what you’d see someone like a rouge wear. His pants were shorter and much baggier than the precise fitting suit of the other man. His boots fit snugly to his feet. And his top had slits in the shoulder allowing him to move with ease. His hair a bright green which made his lighting blue eyes seemingly pop on his ashen complexion. “I wonder how much longer it will be before she arrives?” The green haired man spoke. It had been a question that had been boggling about in his mind for the last few minutes that the two of them had been standing there speaking to one another. The man across from him smiled. “Excited to see her again Jack?” Jack looked at the man with a raised brow while he shook his head. He wouldn’t say that it was excitement per say, more like curiosity that bubbled inside him. It had been a long while since he had last seen the odd woman that was currently upon his mind. “Not really. When did she say she’d be here Mark?” Jack questioned the brown haired man. Mark shrugged, he hadn’t really known himself. Last he heard the woman in question was coming from a few towns over. “I’m not sure. She’s been traveling from what I understand. She’s been trying to prefect her skills as a herbalist. So who knows what town she’s coming from this time.” He explained to his friend. Jack sighed there was so much he wanted to ask but he knew that Mark was just as clueless as him. Regardless the two of them continued to wait on both the king and queen and the woman. But it seemed as if they didn’t have to wait much longer when they heard the door to the castle open and the sound of approaching footsteps was heard. Both men turned to see a tall woman dressed in a type of clothing style that would put her in a middle class living situation. Her outfit was blue but styled much like Jack’s for quick movement and flexibility since she was a herbalist and needed to climb and crawl for much of her work. She had a bit more meat on her bones compared to the two skinnier and muscular men that stood before her. Her hair was short, like a man’s which set her apart from many of the woman you’d see on a daily basis. And probably one of the best features about her was the fact that her bright blues popped like lighting against her peachy colored skin. “Hey guys!” She greeted cheerfully as she walked up beside them both. The three of them all smiling together as she hugged Mark and then Jack before taking a step back and looked at the two of them, hands on her hips. “We were beginning to believe you got lost there for a second.” Jack joked causing her to laugh and shake her head. “No, I had to take the long way around since the bridge from Edendale is out from the storm a few weeks back.” She explained her lateness. “So you came from the West? Did you come from across the sea from Ludenburg?” Jack questioned. Mark looked to his friend with a small frown. “Jack, Nikki just arrived, there’s no need to bombard her with questions. I’m sure she’s had her fill of traveling and is exhausted.” He told the man, whom he believed to be pestering her at this point. Even though she had walked in here seeming high in spirits, Mark knew what all the traveling could do to a person. Jack looked from Mark to Nikki while rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry, my bad.” He apologized. Nikki just chuckled slightly as she looked at her friend whom seemed much like a kicked puppy right now. “It’s alright Jack.” She told him. She didn’t really mind her friend’s interest in her travels since it had been a few months since they’d last seen each other. Turning to Mark, Nikki looked at the man. “I’ve noticed that the king and queen have yet to make an appearance? Do you know what’s keeping them?” She asked. Mark frowned and rubbed his stubbly beard on his chin. To be completely honest he wasn’t sure where the two of them were or what was taking so long for them to show up in the throne room. “I’ve not heard from either of them and I’ve been here all day.” Mark informed her before he turned and looked at Jack. “Have you seen them?” Jack looked at Mark with a questionable gaze as he begun to think back to when the last time he had seen either one of them. He scratched the side of his face while he tried to recall when he’d last seen them. “I played cards with them last night, but I’ve yet to see either one of them today at all.” “That’s… very unusual? Normally someone would at least have seen the king?” Nikki said looking between the two men. The fact that Jack, who was a very close friend to the king, hadn’t seen either of them started to put a slight bit of worry in the bottom of her stomach. It also didn’t help that she could tell that the other two men were worried as well, Jack seemingly more so than Mark. “Do you think this means that they’re missing!” Jack actually shouted fearing the worst suddenly. Mark was quick to slap his hand over Jack’s mouth, covering the loud mouth man from yelling anymore. “i***t! Don’t announce it to the whole castle if it’s the case!” Mark seethed through his teeth wanting the man to keep quite and not start a mass panic if one of the sneaky maids were to over hear knowing that the gossip would spread like a wild fire through the castle. Jack gave an apologetic look which caused Mark to remove his hand. “If they are missing then we need to find them before anyone else knows that they’re gone.” Nikki suggested causing the other two to agree with her. That would be the smartest thing to do before a riot were to break out. “We should look in common places where the king or queen would usually be which would be either the king’s study for him or the office for the queen.” Jack explained having a good idea about where they could possibly find the two of them. Mark and Nikki both nodded going with Jack’s plan on places where they should go looking for the two of them. “We should start with the king’s study since it’s in the basement. If we don’t find them there then we’ll head up to the second floor to the office to look for the queen.” Mark said mapping out the game plan for the three of them. With the plan in place they’d be able to do their search much faster than if they were to just check every room of the castle – which in all honesty could take hours if they were to do so. “Alright, let’s head to the basement.” Nikki informed the two men as she turned around and started heading back toward the front of the castle having the two men follow behind her. The basement stairwell was located by the entrance and off to the left side across from the large doors. Descending one by one with Mark now in the lead they headed down to the basement, which held a long hallway that was adorned with the same banners and red and golden carpet that could be found in every room of the castle. Lines of doors which lead to the medical bay, a few guest bedrooms, and the king’s study were all long the left side of the wall. As the three of them walked down past the medical bay, which was the first door, past three guest bedrooms and finally at the fourth door was the king’s study. Mark reached out to turn the golden L-shaped handle only to giggle it finding it locked. He frowned deeply as he went to try for a second time. “The door’s locked.” He informed the other two behind him. Jack frowned thinking that maybe they weren’t in there, until his sharp ears picked up a loud thump from inside the room that the other two couldn’t hear. “Hold on, I hear something inside.” Mark moved to the side to allow Jack by him. Leaning over Jack placed his right ear against the door and listened closely. Closing his eyes to help enhance his trained hearing he heard another thump as if something heavy had fallen to the ground. Pulling away from the door he looked back over his shoulder. “There’s something in there moving around but I’m not sure what or who it is.” His two friends looked at each other puzzled as to what was happening behind the closed door. “Is there a key or something we could use to get inside?” “If there is it would be in the office.” Jack told Nikki who had asked about the key. Stepping back from the door, Jack pointed to the stairwell to his right. “We can get to the second floor from here. It’s much faster this way anyway.” He explained looking at her. She nodded her head when she glanced Mark’s way and seen that he agreed to the plan. Moving past the other two Mark continued to lead the way as he lead them up the two flights of circular stairs that brought them up to the second story. Of course the second level of the castle was huge. Rooms upon rooms that were mainly used for storage littered the floor. Walking down to the end of the hallway the three of them turned to the right and walked down the long square hallway where they could see into the open storage rooms as they pasted them. Occasionally passing some maids and other workers that helped to keep the castle running. Reaching the end of the hallway, they turned to the right again and walked down that one. As they walked Nikki took the time to look at all the different types of artwork that was hanging on the walls. Every piece she noticed was held in a golden frame no matter if it was a family painting or landscape it seemed to be well taken care of in it’s frame. “Here it’s this one on the right.” Jack told the two of them as Mark nearly walked past the door. Jack opened the door and peeked his head inside only to see that it was barren of anyone. He sighed, so the queen wasn’t here. Mark opened the door more so that the three of them could go inside. “Is the key in the desk?” Mark questioned noticing the large dark wooden desk that sat in front of an unlit fireplace and two bookshelves on either side of the desk against the wall. Jack shrugged, he only knew that the key was in the room but he didn’t know where it would be. “Let’s check and see.” Nikki spoke up as she walked over to the desk and looked at the five drawers that were there. She opened them up one by one while the other two took a look around the room. Each drawer she pulled open held papers or books but lacked a key. “It’s not here.” She informed the two as she shut the last drawer that she had checked. This was frustrating to her. If the wasn’t here then where in the world could it have been? Mark and Jack had each checked the bookshelf and even the fireplace for the key but had come up empty handed. “Maybe the king has the key?” She questioned not sure where else it would be if it wasn’t in this room like Jack mentioned. Jack shook his head. “The study wouldn’t be locked if the king had the key, you can’t lock the door from the inside. And from what I heard inside, someone is in there no doubt about it.” “Then where the hell would the key be Jack?” Mark snapped as he was wearing thin of this hunt for a key that Jack obviously had no clue where it was. Nikki shook her head as Jack snapped back with a reply but she ignored the two. This was a usual event that took place when the two of them tried to work together. Mark would get upset because Jack didn’t have all the answers and Jack would become defensive for being accused of not knowing. Making her way toward the door Nikki stood in the hallway in front of the door and tired to think but wasn’t coming up with any idea. Maybe they could figure out a way to jimmy the lock? It was worth a shot if they didn’t have the key to get inside. The king should understand if they explained it to him that the three of them were worried about not being able to find him. A loud barking noise pulled her from her thoughts. Glancing over to her left she blinked slowly seeing a black pug sitting in the middle of the hallway. That was one of two of the king and queen’s dogs. “Hey Edgar. What’s going on boy?” She questioned the small dog that came to her at the call of his name. She bent down to pet him and the petting caused him to roll over onto his belly. She smiled at the cute little guy up until something shinny caught her eye. Around his neck was a small golden chain that held a key around his neck. Thinking for a moment why Edgar might have a key around his neck she came to the conclusion that this might have been the key to the king’s study. “Why do you have this?” She questioned the dog whom just rolled around again wanting more belly rubs from her hand. Laughing a little she reached down and removed the key from him before standing back up and turning around. “Hey! Is this it!” She called out having to yell a bit above the yelling that Mark and Jack had been doing. The two of them turned from their match and looked her way seeming baffled that she was standing there holding a key. “Where did you find that!” Jack asked rushing out of the room toward her causing Edgar to leap up from the ground startled and take off running. She pointed off in the direction that Edgar ran. “It was around his neck. This it’s the key?” She asked again as Mark came out of the office and shut the door behind him. Both men looked at the key and if they had to guess then they’d say that was indeed the key that they needed. “Leave it to Felix to put his key on the damn dog.” Mark spat now annoyed that he had gotten into an argument with Jack over nothing. Jack just smiled as he looked at Mark knowing that there wasn’t a reason for the man to have been upset with him now after all. “Can we just go see if this is the key?” She questioned not wanting another fight to break out between the two. Both seemed to agree as Mark took the lead to head back down to the basement. Once again the three of them found themselves in front of the king’s study door. Nikki handed over the key to Mark who then inserted it inside the lock and turned it. It was the key to unlock the door. “Good job Nikki!” Jack gave a mini cheer toward his friend which caused her to smile. Mark cleared his throat as he opened the door and waited for the other two to come inside with him. Once he seen the two were done being in their own little world together they all walked inside. The study was huge. It was probably the only room in the castle that had a forest green type of floor to match the atmosphere of the calming room. The whole place smelt like books since there was rows and rows of books for as far as the eye could see. But that wasn’t what had their current attention right now. Instead they seen a body laying over by the tables that were placed in the middle of the room to be used for reading. The three of them rushed forward toward the body of the young woman once they realized that it was the queen. “My queen! My queen are you alright?” Jack questioned frantically when he reached her side with the other two right behind him. He reached down to shake the woman who seemed out cold. Once Nikki reached the brown haired woman she noticed that her hair was curtained around her face much like she had fallen down. Her light pink dress was spread out across the floor to help match the fact that she had taken a tumble. “We need to get her to the medical bay.” Mark told Jack, who was still busy attempting to awaken his queen. Finally Jack seemed to have noticed what Mark said and agreed. Taking a look around the room Nikki turned back to look at the both of them. “I’ll search the library for the king. You both make sure the queen gets taken there.” “Alright, but I want you to be careful. Something about this isn’t sitting right with me.” Mark told her. She nodded of course she’d be careful. Taking the first step forward Nikki glanced over her shoulder for a split second to see her two friends pick up the queen and helped each other to carry her off to the med bay down the hall. Turning back she walked slowly forward through the rows and rows of bookshelves. Coming to the end of the books Nikki noticed that there was a second level. Seeing a sign hanging from the ceiling with the words in red reading RESTRICTED she knew that those were the books that were suppose to be for the king’s eyes only. Wondering if maybe he could have been up there – if in this library at all – she decided to check there. Walking to the left she headed for the stairs that she seen in that direction. Moving around the red velvet rope that hung around the stairs she started walking up the stone steps and turned to the right once she reached the landing. It was then when she came to a stop did she notice someone looking through the books. She could tell that it wasn’t the king, but she couldn’t make out who it was from where she was standing. Taking a few steps closer as she made sure to move silently across the floor she edged to the left a bit to try and get a look at the unknown person’s face. “Who are you and what are you doing up here?” She called out seeing that the person – who seemed to be male – reading a book in his hands. A loud echo of the book slamming shut sounded throughout the place which caused her to jump slightly from the unexpected noise. She felt a rush come over her as a bad feeling seeped it’s way into her skin causing goosebumps to run up and down her arms. The man had yet to say anything or even move for that matter after they had closed the book. “Alright, if you don’t tell me who you are right now you’re going to be in much bigger trouble than you already are!” She called out. The queen had already been found laying on the floor and now this man standing up here in the restricted area with a book in his hands. She didn’t like this at all not one bit. “You really think you’re in any position to be threatening me? You’re puny and weak.” His voice called out as he slowly turned his head. Her eyes widened and she could feel the blood drain from her face when she seen the face of the man. His hair was a dark green and his eyes were bright and glowing the same color as his hair. His skin was pale like snow and his voice was deep and disturbing. And his eyes, his eyes felt like they were piercing the deepest part of her soul. His eyes seemed crazy and unstable like he was mad in the head. “You really think that a mortal child like yourself has any idea what you’re up against?” He questioned again placing the book under his blacken robe that he wore. Slowly he took one step at a time approaching her. He could see the visible shaking that came from her body showing that she was too scared to even move. He could tell that she was freaking out as she wasn’t able to take even an inch of a step back away from him as he drew nearer to her. “You have no idea what I’m capable of doing to you. You don’t know the type of powers I have that I could use to rip you limb from limb within seconds.” He threatened slowly stopping a few feet from her. A large toothy white grin came to his lips as his eyes widened making him seem that much more insane. “So… perhaps I’ll show you.” He whispered raising his hand. Blackish purple shiny goop came from the palm of his hand and slowly dripped to the floor. It made a loud wet noise as the thick goop slowly grew in size. She watched in horror as the goop started to spread out like branches of a tree across the floor forming into a large pile of it. It rippled from the middle as a large red tentacle like object came from the liquid and stretched up long and tall toward the ceiling reaching the top of the bookshelves before it touched the ground and pulling forth a large eyeball. Coming out fully from the goop the red eye from the eyeball looked down at her. The eyeball had to be the size of her whole body, but she was too afraid to be able to put a correct measure to it. Soon the goop seemed to melt into the floor leaving behind only the red eyeball that had the optic nerve still attached to it – that seemed to be what the tentacle looking thing was before. “Now this is the part where you die.” The man said causing her to snap out of her startled daze. She had to put up a fight or she’d die here and now. Knowing this she raised her hands right as the optic nerve came lunging toward her like the tip of a spear. She felt a pain shoot through her arm as she was thrown back, a deep cut to her arm as she had been hit. Crying out as she hit the floor and rolled back several feet she laid on her stomach against the wooden flooring. Hissing in pain she took one look to her left and seen that the eyeball was suddenly above her preparing to strike again. She closed her eyes and awaited the blow to come knowing that this was it for her. “Say Goodbye.” The man told her just as the optic nerve of the eyeball came down in a swinging motion. But instead of hitting her the eyeball exploded causing the guts of the monster to go flying about hitting the shelving and her body. Opening her eyes she looked around covered in blood and trying to figure out what had just happened. “Nikki are you alright!” She heard the call of her name from the stairs beside her. Glancing over she just caught Jack and Mark both running up them toward her and blocking her from the strange man. Both Mark and Jack stood there preparing to fight the man just like they had done with the eyeball. Jack had used his throwing knifes that he carried in the hidden pockets of his jacket against the monster, hitting it and causing it to explode in the manner which it did.

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