Our Kingdom Come | KingdomCraft

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪᴠ - ᴡʜᴏ ʟɪᴠᴇs

THE SWAMP KINGDOM

"Attack!" The General of the Swamp shouted. The army charged towards the West Marsh. In the murky waters rose creatures no nightmare could conjure. They emerged from the muck in broken silhouettes of fallen men. They carried swords made of the clay from the bottom of the very bog they arose from.

Meghan jumped off her ride and dropped between two Jorhs. She swung her sword throught one Jorh's shape, it exploded into vapor as her blade passed. Her face was riddled with bog water and pieces of rotten flesh. She spun and struck the second Jorh, striking its blue core. It exploded in a similar fashion as the one before. Meghan raised her shield up and deflected the remains of the second Jorh.

The Swamp Queen sprinted farther into the battlefield. As she made her way to the thick of the battle, she witnessed multiple soldiers fall to the enemies. Young boys who had just started training in the military academy this year, old men who had been serving for decades, women who knew they were meant for a higher sacrifice, people who had lives, taken so abruptly.

Meghan raised her shield, defending herself from the hardened blade of an attacking Jorh. There was a sharp pain in her abdomen. She fell back and hit the wet land. The Jorh had kicked her stomach. It grabbed her neck and pulled her up into the air, suspending her a few inches from the ground.

Meghan's neck constricted as the hand that was wrapped around her tightened. Her face turned red as her breath left her lungs. She stared into the Jorh's eyes, or at least, where its eyes should be.

One moment she was fighting for her life, gasping for air. The next she was soaring through the skies. The Jorh tossed her far from itself. It threw her to the green waters of the marsh. Her body contacted the water with a harsh burn, then the chill of the liquid surrounded her.

Her eyes opened, the gray opaque waters contrasted her bright blue eyes. Meghan moved her arms frantically, swimming to the surface. She inhaled deeply when her face met the warm air. She moved to the shore, two soldiers held their arms out to help her up. They gave her a sword and charged valiantly into the battle once again.

Meghan's fingers wrapped around the hilt of the weapon. She felt the rough leather under her skin. She took a deep breath, the muggy atmosphere mixed with the scent of swamp water and blood filled her lungs with a pain she didn't anticipate.

It hurt. Seeing her people go through this. Having to fight against these monsters on their own. She raised her sword over her head and threw an overhead cut. Bringing the blade down unto another monster.

Horns blared in the distance. The thundering sounds of galloping neared her position. Meghan turned to the horizon, the silhouettes of nearly a thousand soldiers on horseback became clear.

They got off their steeds and charged into battle. Slashing their swords and ramming into the Jorhs with their shields. They waved their purple flags. Meghan's eyes lit up. Her face forming a small smile. It was the Corrupted Kingdom. They had come to their aid.

"Queen Meghan," a voice said behind her.

Meghan spun around and was surprised to see Queen Lauren of the Corrupted Kingdom, on a horse, in the middle of a battlefield in her home kingdom.

"The mud is no place for a Queen." Lauren offered her hand to Meghan, who gratefully accepted. The Swamp Queen was pulled up and sat behind Lauren on the horse. She glanced out unto the field. Soldiers celebrated their victory, covered in a mix of the soil beneath their feet and the waters of the Swamp nation.

Meghan sighed with relief as the army journeyed back to the capital city, Marshland.

"How did you know to send us aid?" Meghan asked Lauren, who simply grinned at hearing the question.