Eden

Intro: The Stranger

The young elf prince stood before his father, King Stolish. He could practically feel his hearts anxiously pushing again his rib cage with a rhythm that could be used as battle drums. It began to hurt, but he couldn't move, not at that moment, not in front of all these people. The noise in the Converse Hall was loud and rang of talk of the prince and how far he'd come. How he'd finally come of age for battle and honor.

Elves in the Morldivian realm were always the peace keepers, except for the Vorlidian Kingdom, which was ruled by Stolish. The Vorld were elves that were stronger and braver than the other races of elves. It was a great honor to be born of the Vorld.

"Silence," spoke the King, and the room hushed instantly. Stolish had this intimidation about him, or maybe it was respect for his duties to the kingdom before he was crowned. He was tall and seemed skinny and lanky if you didn't know he was of warrior's strength. Underneath the silky blue robe and dress trousers was a muscular beast with scars and marks of war. He had a clean-shaven, untouched face other than the scar that horizontally resided on his left brow. His eyes were a piercing blue, which his son had shared with him. It may have been the only thing they shared.

"Prince Eden," the king began, "you've finally come of age. After fifty years, you are ready to bear the warrior's mark. Kneel before your King and receive the blessing." The blessing was a sacred scripture passed down by generations of Kings. Even Eden had no clue of the blessing.

Eden took a shaky breath as he lowered his body to the ground, bowing his head in acknowledgment and allegiance. The racket in his chest worsened, but it was filled with excitement. This moment was what he'd been waiting for centuries and it had to be perfect. He kept his head bowed, squeezing his hands to calm the racy pulse in his veins. Stolish took his sword and pointed it into his son's left shoulder, licking his lips in preparation to speak.

The king mumbled under his breath the blessing, eyes shut and body steady and calm. His pride for his son was almost overwhelming, never knowing if they'd reach this day. A couple of tears lingered down his cheeks, but he made no attempt to wipe them away.

No one was allowed to listen to the blessing, except for the ending. The blessing really was a one way conversation to the Gods, asking them to bless the energy in his own body and pass it through the sword and into the body of the warrior. Eden and his father heard soft gasps as a white light trickled down the sword from the handle. The prince knew it was working.

Unfortunately, the King never made it to the end of his blessing.

As it was coming towards an end and Stolish was about to speak about the ending of the blessing, the doors boomed behind them which caused Eden to jump to his feet. "What is the meaning of this?" He spoke with a violent hiss, frustrated when he turned his body to the commotion at the end of the hall.

Two guards held a limp, wary being between them. He looked rugged and dirty, his hair getting away from him and had become a Huggards nest on the circumference of his head. His clothes were grey and damaged, almost completely shredded.

"This human was found lurking outside the walls," one of the guards said. Gasps echoed throughout the hall, which turned into whispers.

"Enough," the king ordered, his loud velvet voice echoing in the room. There was a quick silence. "Somebody grab the interpreter."

"No need, my lord," the stranger said, Elvish perfectly rolling off the tongue, and another gasp filtered the room.

Eden couldn't believe what he'd heard, but it made him angrier. He beat his father to the punch. "How do you know the sacred language?!" Eden yelled.

The human didn't say anything after that, which only infuriated him further. The tips of his long ears grew hot and hard. "I asked you a question, mortal!" Without thinking, Eden snatched his father's sword and jumped from the stage to point the tip into the stranger's throat. He'd never held a sword in his life, but his arms were fueled by rage.

The Strangers' eyes widened, suddenly feeling a wave of fear and a will to live. It was unlike his motive that had walked him into the kingdom in the first place.

"Eden!" His father growled and threw himself to the sword, knocking his son to the floor in the process. "How dare you! And you!" He looked at the guards. "Let the human go," the guards did as they were told and bowed as they took a step back. "Eden, I am very disappointed in you. Never, ever raise your sword against someone who cannot defend themselves... there is no honor in that. You may be of age, but you are NOT ready." his father was angry, but a sadness was fogged over his eyes. Eden shared this look, almost to the point of tears as his rage calmed. "The ceremony is over... everyone back to what you were doing and I will update you once I know more." He sheathed his sword as the room began to dissipate and he looked at the man again. "You may come with me..."

Eden stood there, confused and desperate to speak to his father about what just happened. But he knew it wasn't time. Stolish didn't so much as look at him again as he hooked arms with the human and led him away past the doors. Eden was frozen in that spot, almost petrified. He didn't get what he wanted... what he had been trying to accomplish since he was born. And that in itself was a disappointment. He sat on the stage and asked himself over and over again what he had done... or what the human had done.