Rebellion: Prince of Dawn

Chapter 2.4: Declaration of Lies

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DECAN LANCASTER

The day after my father visited me in the dungeons, the commander of the City Watch along with ten guards escorted me out of the cells with irons still clasped to my limbs. I was taken to a room with the only contents inside being a chair and a table with a plate of food. Roast mutton with gravy, boiled potatoes, a lemon tart for dessert, and brown ale to wash it down.

The commander patted me on the shoulder. "Eat. You'll want energy before the hearing."

With that said, the commander left, leaving the guards outside and locking the door.

There were no windows in the room and the only source of light was a lumarine block about the size of my hand embedded in the ceiling.

With not much of a choice, I sat down and began eating. I wasn't hungry at first, but the more I ate, the more I found myself wolfing down.

Just as the bells in the city tolled, the commander returned. "Get up. It's almost time."

He took me out of the Iron Keep, which was the first time since the eclipse. The castle walls were decorated with heads on spikes. I recognized one. It was Garland, the soldier that had just become a father.

"Those heads belonged to the deserters," the commander said. "This is what happens when they run from the Sword Devil."

He threw me inside the back of a carriage which took me to the amphitheatre where my public hearing would be announced.

The bells drew a large crowd. The seats were packed, the stairs had become chairs, and people were standing right below the platform. Kids had climbed trees, watching from thick branches and shaking down loose leaves, littering them on the ground. The opened windows of nearby houses were filled with their household watching.

A mix of City Watch and Lancaster guards bordered the platform. On it was my father, King Diablo, sitting proudly on a chair and drinking wine accompanied by his squire and cupbearer. Standing behind him was Salazar, nodding happily after we made eye contact. The kingsguard were lined up around the king and below them was the council. The High Priest, herald, and Lord Nelbrandt stood proudly in the back.

The Commander led me through the crowd where the people shouted insults in my name.

"Traitor! How could you take up arms against your father?"

"Is it true what you said about a ritual? I felt my soul leave my body on the day of black sun."

"The realm hates you, m'lord, but you have loyal friends and followers. You only need to say the words."

"Making a deal with the devil and now this? Go to Hell."

The commander led me up the stairs, before stepping to the side and letting his guards bring me to the front of the platform.

When the bells ceased to toll, a great silence fell to the amphitheatre as everyone's focus found their way to me.

I raised my voice and began talking. "I am Decan Lancaster, Lord of Harkhall, son of King Diablo Lancaster and heir to the throne. I come before you to confess my treason."

All of a sudden, a rock collided with my face, opening a wound on my temple as blood seeped down my cheek. "Traitor!"

I raised my voice higher and each word that escaped burned my throat. "I betrayed a trust the king, and more importantly, my father gave me by plotting to usurp him. I plotted a rebellion under the context that King Diablo was performing a ritual. And I used the eclipse to make it look like it was true. It was all a lie—a made-up story to fool the gullible."

"What you claimed before is true! They are just making you say that it's a lie," someone said. "We all passed out and it felt like we were being trapped in endless suffering."

"I had my jynxists use an illusion to fuel my lie." I ground my teeth. "Only a child would believe my tale. Your mass unconsciousness was my doing. King Diablo ended the two-thousand-year reign of King LaFleur, a tyrant that ruled without a care for the people. My father ushered in an era of peace. A peace I threatened just because I couldn't wait for him to die."

More rocks flew out, striking me. My father put up an astral shield to protect his court and when the throwing was over, he took the barrier down while I stood bloody and bruised.

The herald stepped forward. "As we sin, so is the need to be punished. This man has confessed his crimes and motives to all. To the high lords, to the non-nobles, and to the people. The gods taught us to be just, yet we must also be merciful. What shall we do with this traitor, Your Grace?"

King Diablo handed his wine to the cupbearer and stood up. "The council, my advisors, and the spy on Decan's side, Lord Salazar, who grew up as a brother to him, bid that I hand my son mercy. That I shall send him to become the Lord Warden of the island prison and take the child growing in his wife as my heir." My father stared at me before turning back to the crowd. "But uneasy lies the head that wears the crown and I shan't rest until I've made sure that I've ripped treason out root and stem. Decan is my blood, but he is a traitor and I will pass him the king's justice all the same. Lord Nelbrandt, bring me his head!"

The crowd roared and I felt the weight of everything tumble on me as I fell to my knees.

The council rushed to my father, waving their arms and arguing with him. The herald, commander, and guards stood frozen. Lord Nelbrandt was the only one who was unaffected by my father's orders.

Salazar began screaming, trying to make his way to me. He was held back by two knights, but he broke free, holding out his hand outwards toward Lord Nelbrandt. "From the earth, rise—"

King Diablo only waved a finger before a hand made of earth rose from the ground, clasping around Salazar and covering his mouth.

"You see my son as a brother, Lord Salazar," King Diablo said. "That is why I'll forgive you for stepping out of line this once. But do it again and your fates will be one and the same."

Muffled, Salazar screamed, his tears falling out as Lord Nelbrandt arrived behind me. He drew a sword from his back, raising its familiar blade.

It's Thorn!

Before turning to the crowd, I glanced at Salazar and smiled at him one last time, letting him know it'll be okay.

The people are saved.

Ser Castell and Patch have escaped the fate of death.

Valentine has returned to her father.

Salazar is alive.

And most importantly, Joy and our unborn child will be safe.

I fought.

I lost.

Now I rest.

I closed my eyes peacefully as Lord Nelbrandt brought up Thorn. I felt the sharp cold steel slice the back of my neck.

And then I was dead.

What's next on Rebellion?

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Thanks for reading this far and don't forget to comment and vote as it would help push this story out a lot.

Was there too much going on? Would more context have been better or was everything fine?

How was the structure? I had a lot of trouble figuring out a structure that worked for this chapter.

How do you feel about Salazar and his POV?

And finally, what did you think of the final scene?