Azura

Separation

Long long ago before the age of dinasours there were two majestic lands in the the heart of asia. Capernicum, the more modern of the two lands had grand buildings that were the marvel of all of asia. They had scientists who developed ideas for farming such as greenhouses and terracing that led to their crops being twenty times its normal yield. Many nations would journey there whenever famine struck the lands to purchase food. This made them a very wealthy land but no matter how much wealth they amassed they were always very unhappy. The king and his people began to feel as if something was missing from their lives. The people grew selfish because of greed and their was infighting amost families and friends all over the land. They had always been friendly with their neighbouring city Sybul though. Sybul was a peaceful land. They had no such majestic buildings or advanced technology but their buildings were carefully crafted and were always able to withstand any hurricane or earthquakes that were prevalent back then. They worked in a united manner to till their lands. Whenever one farmer had only a small amount of water, their neighbor would happily share with them, If one farmer planted peas and wanted to start growing pumpkins then a pumpkin farmer would happily show him the best ways to maximize their yields. They were content with whatever they had but over the years they began to want more. They wanted to be able to be the toast of lands and greed started to consume them. "Look at them!" The king of Capernicum, King Darius said to his counsel men whilst in the highest tower of the castle peering over at Sybul in the distance. "They dont have half as much as we do and yet they always seem to live merrily." "They don't seem to have a care in the world" the king said. "Your majesty it would be an insult to compare our majestic land to such a delipidated dump" his most senior counsel man Mathias said. "Dont speak about there land that way, their king and i have been friends for many years." "Besides our land maybe more majestic but emptiness fills it." "Our people are not happy, i am not happy" the great king said. "Sire, i suggest we hold a magnificent feast and invite the king of Sybul and his noble men" Mathias responded. "We could ask them what their secret of happiness is and probe them in that manner." he continued. "Marvellous idea, make haste with the preparations" the king said. Before he could utter another word the door to his chamber cracks open and small fingers appear. His daughter Ariel appears and walks up to him and wraps her arms around him in an embrace. She had long golden hair that stretched way below her waist which was always well kept with beads and fancy ornaments. Her skin had no blemishes and was so smooth it had the appearance of silk. She was almost as tall as the king and her was face had a small delicate nose with lips so pink that people would often think she was wearing lipstick. She was certainly the fairest maiden in all of Asia. Many princes from many lands would often try to woo her but none would ever be successfully for Ariel was more concerned with serving her people. She loved her father deeply and only wanted his happiness as well as that of the people of the land.

"My darling, you're here so early?" "Is everything alright?" the king asked his daughter. "Its never too early for me to see you father, i haven't seen you since last night and i missed you dearly" she responded. The king smiled and said "out of all of my three children you bring me the most joy."

"What would make my land the best in Asia?" the king of Sybul King Stewart asked his counsel. "For years my people have been happy with the smaller things in life but now they want more." "They are not happy and neither am i" king Stewart said. "Sire, our neighbors from the land of Capernicum have made marvellous advancements in technology, the have wealth and riches and are the toast of all of Asia, we should study them and learn from them" the kings wisest counsel man, Bryan said. "That is a brilliant idea" the king said.

The conversation was cut short by a commotion outside of the small palace as messengers from the land of Capernicum had arrived, adorned in fine apparels and baring extravagant gifts such as fine linen and Jewellery. The people of Sybul marvelled at the sight and so did the king. They presented their gifts to the king and pulled out a scroll and began to read; "hear ye, hear ye, we bring greetings from the land of Capernicum." "Our king, king darius invites you king Stewart and your noblemen to a grand feast at our palace in two days time." "Our lands have always been united in friendship and king Darius invites you as a celebration of this frienship" the messengers announced. King Stewart thought to himself that it would be the perfect time to probe king darius about how he acquired his wealth and quickly responded by saying that he would no doubt attend and thanked the messengers. Upon hearing the news the people of both lands celebrated in joy. Each land longing for what the other possessed. King darius ordered the royal chef to prepare by way of roasting the fattest Pig he could get. The menu would include exotic fruit bowls, salads made of the vegetables of the royal garden. Sheperd's pie, roasted ducks, stuffed turkey various freshly baked breads and of course the finest wines that Capernicum had to offer.

King Stewart not wanting to be outdone by King darius ordered the royal dressmaker to make an outfit so grand that he would be the talk of all of Asia for days to come. Quickly two days turned into one and one day turned into hours until it was time for the party. King Stewart arrived at the castle in Capernicum and a sense of jealousy filled his heart. The palace was not strange to him for he had been there many times before but it was so spectacular that each time he could not help but stare in awe at the sight of it. On this occasion it was adorned with drapes of lavender and gold colour and looked more regal than ever.

"My friend, how lovely to see you" king Darius greeted king Stewart. "Tell me how have you been?" "Marvellous my friend marvellous" king Stewart responded in a high pitched tone. "And the kids?" Darius further probed. "Harry is growing into quite the swordsman, the lad is even giving me a run for my money." "Maggie is as beautiful as ever and the twins are an energetic bunch, between me and you i can hardly keep up with them" king stewart says while chuckling. "My boys are the same, excellent swordsman and handsome to boot, i have no doubt they will make excellent kings one day but Ariel has always had my heart" "I swore when she was born she took a piece of it" king Darius says. The two men walk and talk for a while before coming to a table with a mouth watering display of foods. "You really have outdone yourself Darius" Stewart says. "This is nothing, you have been my oldest ally, you deserve all this and more" he responds. The two men accompanied by counsel men from both sides enjoy the feast and laugh all night. The night goes smoothly until Darius asks Stewart. "So tell me my friend, your land has so little resources," before he could finish his statement his counsel men start laughing and Stewart feels insulted but pretends as if everything is ok. "How is it that your people are always so happy and content?" king Darius completes his question and asks. "Because our people understand the true meaning of unity" Stewart replies. "We may not have as much as you in riches but what we dont have in riches we make up for in love" King Darius marvels at the statement and feels insulted but hides it under a smile and remains composed.

"And tell me Darius, how were you able to amass such wealth and advancements, certainly the people of my land are more hardworking than yours?" King Stewart asks while giving a sly smile. "Your people may be more hardworking but hardwork without intelligence is foolish." "We have spent centuries studying the ways of the world and have published many books on how to construct the grandest of buildings and methods of farming to increase our yields by twenty fold" King Darius responds boastfully.

"Tell me Darius did you invite me here to insult me?" King Stewart asks. The atmosphere in the room quickly turns sour. "It is you who have insulted me Stewart" Darius responds. "Get out of my castle, you think you're insignificant impoverished people are better than mine!" Darius yells at the top of his lungs to Stewart. "Im leaving, i cant stay another minute longer in such a place where the people have all the riches in the world but there land stinks of depression and unhappiness" Stewart says as he and his men get up from the table and storm off.

Three months pass and the rift between both lands have gotten considerably worst since that fateful day. The sacred library that held secret books and layouts about new ideas the scientists were planning on implementing and creating had been broken into and those said books and maps stolen. This thwarted new plans for development that king Darius had for Capernicum and he fiercely blamed Sybul for this. When king Stewart heard this he was equally as infuriated accused king Darius of starting such a rumour so that other lands in Asia would not offer him assistance in times of famine and with new ideas for developing his land. The once strong alliance between the lands was now broken with no hope of returning forever.