The Onyx Of Yore

Coronation Ceremony Of Belvari

The kingdom of Belvari was the biggest country of gem-humans. They lived on a continent with only one kingdom, two federations, and the rest of the continent occupied by associations of various kinds. Nothing was known about the other continents as it had been a long time since the gem-humans had relocated to the continent and history about the outside world was lost. 

Nobody had gone beyond the great ocean that surrounded the continent, successfully. Many had gone and none had returned before. According to the official news anyway. And the continent was much more technologically advanced than I thought.  

The continent I heard, was called Yore and was created by the patron deity Satros when they moved here with the first generation of gem-humans to occupy the land. They are known to be very powerful and it is unknown what gem or gems they had. It is unconfirmed whether Satros is one person or a group of people, what gender they are. 

But there is proof that they exist. The extent of religious belief in Satros is unreal. The head of the church is the priestess chosen by a holy light on the 15th birthday of a girl that has a specific gem, The Pink Sapphire. So, every girl that has this gem is taken to the church when they are five and if they are not chosen, could stay as clergy or go make a life for themselves. Women born with Pink Sapphires are rare and men are almost non-existent. 

I'm just saying this to distract myself from the fact that I was becoming king of a nation in just a few hours. I have been up since the early hours of the morning, preened and prepped for my coronation. They cleaned every part of me without touching my gem. I wondered what that was about. 

"Don't tell me I have to wear a corset?!"

"Yes, your highness. The corset is necessary" My attendant, Mila smiled. She was much taller, wearing a blue maid outfit that reached her knees, and a headband over her short pink hair. She was the only one with a pink sapphire in the palace, on her forehead no less. She was also much older than me and no, I won't talk about her nonexistent rack. 

"Mila, I can't wear that. I'll die! I'll really die!"

"Your highness, after watching you grow up, I have come to realize that you're almost impossible to kill. So, you won't die. Come on, let's get you in this corset"

My screams went unheard as they stuffed me in a corset. I could hear the maids snickering at me while I whined about the corset. I'll do something about them when I'm King. 

The coronation gown was cool. It was a blue coronation attire with a green cape. Blue and green were the colors of the nation, displayed proudly everywhere during the coronation. The coronation occurred in the palace's throne room instead of the church. I was surprised really. It made me doubt whether the church and the palace were on good terms. 

Putting that aside, I had to give a speech. How am I supposed to give a freaking speech?! I'm just 19 years old! Despite the fact that Mila stayed up with me to write the speech, I still knew I would mess it up. And as you could imagine, I really messed it up. 

Thankfully, the end of the coronation came soon. The whole coronation didn't take too much time. The party after it was the real deal. Many foreign dignitaries came over to congratulate me and I had to greet them and get along with them. 

Magic dwelled in the gems and those gems produced an aura according to how strong the host of the gem was. With every handshake and smile I received, I felt like my soul was being compressed and burnt by the strong aura from the kingdom's 'allies'. 

To say the whole affair was exhausting would be underestimating it. Everything happened in a trance-like state. But what had to be the worst affair of the day was when it was known that the Generals refused to show up. I could see derision and belittlement in the eyes of the dignitaries. 

When the moon was high in the sky, the guests started to withdraw and the coronation slowly came to a close. It wasn't an awfully grand affair because it was organized in a hurry. The kingdom really wanted to avoid military rule. It only showed there were many things I didn't know. 

But the first order of business was finally meeting the High priestess. Every event leading up to that point was exhausting but something told me meeting the High priestess would be more exhausting. 

And so, I, the new king, entered the huge church headquarters alone, in search of the High Priestess.