Bunesh
Filled with DETERMINATION
A man was faced with a choice, the kind of choice that no man should ever have to face, and yet it was forced upon him; the heir to the throne of Albion by a creature of power and darkness. Albion had been a small but proud nation ruled by a kind king, and its prince was raised to be a good man, a good man who understood the weight and duty of his crown and in that sweet childhood, he had a friend, a young girl named Sera.
The two were as thick as thieves, sharing jokes and playing together on the castle grounds, the king smiling down fondly at them, and so spoke with Sera's father, an old family friend who had made his fortune in trade; and the two young ones were betrothed. But as time wore on, misfortune's shadow fell upon Albion, first a series of poor harvests, then a famine, but the nobles and royals together spent an exorbitant amount of money ensuring the populace could still eat, hoping to weather the storm, as these were good people who did not deserve the misery that was threatening the nation.
But coffers aren't bottomless, even those of the royalty and nobility.
Now a young man, The Prince stood over his father's deathbed and looked into the sad eyes of a man who had seen his people suffer dearly and was utterly helpless to do anything to stop it. It was crushing inside and had prematurely aged the king by decades, made only worse by the death of his old friend: The merchant lord who was slain by desperate bandits, and his once-great estate became destitute as nobody was willing to trade. And as if the gods hadn't laughed enough at the struggling nation, now neighbors were starting to look to the small kingdom, nations that allowed terrible things such as slavery, as they saw a weak land ripe for the plucking.
That was how the Prince ascended to King; upon a mountain of misfortune and difficulty and facing the darkest years of the kingdom's history. The people cried out for help but the coffers were all but spent, nobody was willing to offer them aid, and the vultures were circling, was he to preside over the last days of his kingdom? To see his people conquered and thrown into chains? Was this crown upon his head so worthless as to afford him no other options?
In that darkest time, a man appeared before the newly-crowned king, a man with an offer. He was clearly something unnatural and admitted as such, as his skin was grey, the sclera of his eyes were black and his pupils were red, and he had a long spade-tipped tail. The man used the name 'Atraxis' and offered a deal to the king, a one-time offer to give the young king the power to save his people, to restore Albion to its glory, fill its granaries and give the king the power to ensure his kingdom would not fall to the claws of its greedy neighbors, all he had to do was give Atraxis one thing: Sera.
No, not just give him Sera, but betray her; cast her into the darkness to suffer and know that the more she suffered, the greatest the prosperity of his people; no more famine, no more plague and disease, no more slavers inching ever closer... what was one woman from a broken family against all the people of Albion? The young King could not fault that logic and so, with a heavy heart but a stern face, he ordered Sera brought to him.
He dragged her by the hand to Atraxis who offered in exchange a white feather, which imbued the King with the power of a demi-god and then pulled the screaming young Sera away. That was ten years ago, and in that time Albion had flourished. Its fields were full and its harvests legendary, the King himself lead an army to defeat the invading neighbors, doing so with a swiftness that was thought impossible. The King had been granted the power of sorcery and utilized it to great effect, bearing down upon their foes on wings of light and smiting their ruin with fire.
He was beloved, the heavenly king who had brought hope and light back to his people and even had expanded his borders, freeing thousands upon thousands of slaves from the hopeless tyranny of their masters. He had made the hard choice, and in his heart, he knew it was the right one.
But on the 10th anniversary of that night, Atraxis appeared once more before the great King to warn that his once-beloved had escaped the dark pits, that she had become changed by her stay as Atraxis' guest and the demon cautioned that he should prepare accordingly, for she hungered for vengeance and did not care who suffered for it. If she managed to slay him, then his death would usher in a new age of misfortune for his people; so he knew what he must do. After all, was the lives of tens of thousands worthy of trading for that of a single woman? Even one who had once been his love?
---
You would be the King in this, and I will roleplay his advisors and any allies, I will be roleplaying Sera and I'll ask you to be her allies and whatnot. I have no end for this story planned, only this hook/setup, please DM me if you are interested.
The two were as thick as thieves, sharing jokes and playing together on the castle grounds, the king smiling down fondly at them, and so spoke with Sera's father, an old family friend who had made his fortune in trade; and the two young ones were betrothed. But as time wore on, misfortune's shadow fell upon Albion, first a series of poor harvests, then a famine, but the nobles and royals together spent an exorbitant amount of money ensuring the populace could still eat, hoping to weather the storm, as these were good people who did not deserve the misery that was threatening the nation.
But coffers aren't bottomless, even those of the royalty and nobility.
Now a young man, The Prince stood over his father's deathbed and looked into the sad eyes of a man who had seen his people suffer dearly and was utterly helpless to do anything to stop it. It was crushing inside and had prematurely aged the king by decades, made only worse by the death of his old friend: The merchant lord who was slain by desperate bandits, and his once-great estate became destitute as nobody was willing to trade. And as if the gods hadn't laughed enough at the struggling nation, now neighbors were starting to look to the small kingdom, nations that allowed terrible things such as slavery, as they saw a weak land ripe for the plucking.
That was how the Prince ascended to King; upon a mountain of misfortune and difficulty and facing the darkest years of the kingdom's history. The people cried out for help but the coffers were all but spent, nobody was willing to offer them aid, and the vultures were circling, was he to preside over the last days of his kingdom? To see his people conquered and thrown into chains? Was this crown upon his head so worthless as to afford him no other options?
In that darkest time, a man appeared before the newly-crowned king, a man with an offer. He was clearly something unnatural and admitted as such, as his skin was grey, the sclera of his eyes were black and his pupils were red, and he had a long spade-tipped tail. The man used the name 'Atraxis' and offered a deal to the king, a one-time offer to give the young king the power to save his people, to restore Albion to its glory, fill its granaries and give the king the power to ensure his kingdom would not fall to the claws of its greedy neighbors, all he had to do was give Atraxis one thing: Sera.
No, not just give him Sera, but betray her; cast her into the darkness to suffer and know that the more she suffered, the greatest the prosperity of his people; no more famine, no more plague and disease, no more slavers inching ever closer... what was one woman from a broken family against all the people of Albion? The young King could not fault that logic and so, with a heavy heart but a stern face, he ordered Sera brought to him.
He dragged her by the hand to Atraxis who offered in exchange a white feather, which imbued the King with the power of a demi-god and then pulled the screaming young Sera away. That was ten years ago, and in that time Albion had flourished. Its fields were full and its harvests legendary, the King himself lead an army to defeat the invading neighbors, doing so with a swiftness that was thought impossible. The King had been granted the power of sorcery and utilized it to great effect, bearing down upon their foes on wings of light and smiting their ruin with fire.
He was beloved, the heavenly king who had brought hope and light back to his people and even had expanded his borders, freeing thousands upon thousands of slaves from the hopeless tyranny of their masters. He had made the hard choice, and in his heart, he knew it was the right one.
But on the 10th anniversary of that night, Atraxis appeared once more before the great King to warn that his once-beloved had escaped the dark pits, that she had become changed by her stay as Atraxis' guest and the demon cautioned that he should prepare accordingly, for she hungered for vengeance and did not care who suffered for it. If she managed to slay him, then his death would usher in a new age of misfortune for his people; so he knew what he must do. After all, was the lives of tens of thousands worthy of trading for that of a single woman? Even one who had once been his love?
---
You would be the King in this, and I will roleplay his advisors and any allies, I will be roleplaying Sera and I'll ask you to be her allies and whatnot. I have no end for this story planned, only this hook/setup, please DM me if you are interested.
