The Arisen

Chapter 7

It was the beginning of another summer, three months before it would be replaced by another fall. King Proximos lounged lazily at the large, golden table. The table was completely covered with a large and diverse assortment of food. His life as the king of Metrissa was surprisingly one of little care and worry, for the most part. He had his own personal adviser and his generals were loyal to the death, so Proximos did not fear for his own life. 

Ever since slaying his brother, the former king of Metrissa, in a duel, the new king had the powerful armies at his disposal. If this power wasn't enough, he also exercised the authority to impose any law or tax he so desired upon the people. Those under his rule, especially the poor, suffered under these unrelenting tributes. If any common citizen was unable to pay the weekly tribute, which far exceeded any reasonable expectations, that citizen had the option of suspending the tribute until the following week, but this new tribute would be double the amount previously owed. If this wasn't paid, the consequence would be life as a slave. This life would not just belong to the debtor, but to the whole immediate family as well. This is the reason why a fair number of homes in Phoebus' area of the city was abandoned. Under this oppressive tribute system, it was the survival of the fittest, and even the fittest struggled.

As much as the people of Metrissa hated the king and the oppressive burdens he placed onto them, they were too afraid to stand up. It was typical under this new reign for anyone even suspected of rebellion to be exiled at best. The other fate was to be executed in public view, which caused fear to grip onto the people like roots into soil. All of the skilled military leaders had pledged their service to the king, leaving no one to lead a fight for freedom. Every suffering citizen placed his or her hope in the legend, even though none of them dared to speak of it for fear of their lives. Times now were not like the past, where the legend could be the subject of a marketplace chat. Nowadays, citizens applying the legend to various aspects of Metrissan culture, either out of courage or lack of knowledge, were often never seen again.

With his overly powerful and relatively carefree life, one of the only things left for the king to worry about was the legend. This worry had reached a troubling level far beyond his ability to control. Despite the ironic fact that the legend puts six anonymous kids up against armies of thousands, King Proximos still had nightmares. On the night where he first learned of the legend, soon after he had seized the throne, he envisioned a teen defeating him in combat and proceeding to press the cold blade into his throat as buildings burned to the ground around him. The dreams changed every night, each one presenting a new horrific possibility. The following night, he dreamed that a lone girl stood facing him. At first she looked harmless, but then she was suddenly arrayed in golden armor, its brightness shooting out blinding rays of golden light. She raised her fist into the air and swarms of angry people suddenly rushed into the city, killing guards left and right.

"We're coming," the girl said to the king before he awoke with a loud gasp.

Of course, the king did not use these nightmares as a reason to satisfy the people. The best way to work around this horror, he thought, was to use it as an excuse to exert more power. He believed that fear was the best way to extinguish a wildfire, so that's when the reign of oppression began.

King Proximos plopped a large, juicy grape into his mouth as he eyed his adviser hastily approaching him. The adviser was hastily walking along the scarlet carpet leading to the throne room, one hand holding his long robe and the other holding a sizeable scroll. The windows along the vast wall of the throne room left a fascinating pattern of light and shadows on the carpet. Aside from the carpeting, the rest of the room was built from a very fine white marble. Upon reaching where the king was seated at the table, the advisor gave a quick bow and spoke.