Kingdom of Fantasy: The Legend of Peril

Chapter One - The Unexpected Encounter

The morning sun rose above the horizon, her cheery rays turning from golden-pink to yellow-white as they seeped through the grim blackness of night. The glow of the rising sun illuminated the cyan sky and woke the forest from its gloomy slumber. The woods turned from black to green, indicating the beginning of a new day. The fresh heat of the morning freed the woodland birds and beasts from their hours of sleep. One of the morning sun's rays touched the grey manor. It shone on the roof and gave the intrepid cat Monty the signal to rise to his paws. He slowly rose from his sleep and stretched his furry black paws. Then, he crept down from the roof of the manor, gradually reaching an open window on a lower level of the fort. The curious feline then trotted its way into a window that was left open overnight. Monty crept through the window, only to find the young Peril on his bed, reading a book. The cat jumped from the window, safely landing on the floor inside the room, then climbed its way to the top of the bed. It then walked in a circle a few times, curled up, looked directly at the boy, and meowed.

“Hey there, Monty.” Peril whispered. “I guess we both woke up early. You want me to go outside with you?” The cat did not respond; it just twitched its ears and stared at Peril, showing him his wide green eyes. It meowed again. “I’ll go with you, but not too far, alright?” Peril asked. The cat meowed and flexed its claws. Then, it stood up and leapt out of the bed. “But first, allow me to get myself ready.” Peril quickly jumped off the bed and folded the blankets, so that the room would not look too messy. Then, the boy found his favorite violet scarf; he also found a black coat thet Moray purchased for the boy, but it seemed a bit too loose. He switched his sleeping outfit for the clothes he found in the closet. After changing his clothes, he combed his jet black hair with his hands; it did not look perfect in the end though. Monty trotted downstairs to the main room, waiting for Peril to follow him. As soon as the young boy walked down the stairs, it seemed like his mother was also waiting for him. She stood in the main room along with Monty.

“Good morning Peril,” Umbra smiled. “You and Monty woke up kinda early. I woke up just when your father left for work.”

“Ma, what does Pa do?” Peril asked.

“Remember, he is a Royal Guard of the Regal Lagoon.” Umbra gently replied. “Are you hungry? I can make you a quick breakfast before you decide to go outside.”

“That’s ok. I don’t feel hungry yet.” Peril answered, then had a change of mind. “Well, maybe some bread and water will do.” He then switched the topic of the conversation when Moray, his father, was being mentioned. “Pa must have travelled very far away for that. When will he come home?” Peril asked with curiosity.

“He comes every month, for only two days. I know that we both miss him when he’s doing his guard duty. That job is very dangerous, son. As a Royal Guard of any Kingdom, you must be prepared for the worst, especially when it comes to battles. Like what an infamous Wizard said a long time ago, ‘If a war is to be won, a few sacrifices must be made’.”

This made the boy slightly worried, then he calmed himself down after a moment, thinking of something more positive. Umbra smiled, then she grabbed a loaf of leftover bread from the kitchen. She sliced some pieces off the bread with a knife, then served it on a metal plate. Peril got himself a glass of water. Peril gave a quick look of appreciation when Umbra put the plate of bread on the table. As soon as the boy ate his meal, he picked up the empty plate and cup, and placed them on the kitchen counter to wash them a moment later. When he was finished cleaning the kitchenware, he told Umbra that he wanted to read and play with Monty outside; he even brought a few books to keep himself entertained in the woods beyond the manor. Peril then walked his way to the main door.

“Be careful out there, my child.” Umbra stated. “Also, try not to spend too much time out there; you promised me that we would make some cinnamon-butterscotch pie together later.”