King Hexion had pure excitement oozing out of him as they approached the lily-covered meadow. All of his plans were about to unfold in this little backwater village. History would be made here, and he would finally win against the arrogant elf queen. They had been opponents in a battle over policy and Lunaris affairs during the Alliance of Kingdoms meetings in the past year. The queen wanted Lunaris to progress forward where all the races were equal, and for all of the Lunaris to open trade with the other nations of the world. These ideas would cost his kingdom its wealth as well as end his family’s long tradition of shifter hunting. Beast shifter hunting wasn’t legal or illegal in Lunaris because of everyone’s general fear of shifters. Besides his political reasons for wanting to rid himself of the queen, he had a personal vendetta against her. The elf queen’s parents slaughtered his grandparents' entire clan during the last great war. Then, the little queen elf became the damn conquer of the entire elf territory.
King Hexion was born as a refugee in Regalias. His parents died from infection after a terrible disease ravaged everything east of the Imber Mountains. He struggled on the streets, scraping by as a chicken-rat catcher. Hexion joined the army as a teenager and became a general after fifteen years of skirmishes with the ogre clans of the Merrow Hills. The king died with no heir, so the generals competed for the title of King of Regalias, and Hexion won against them all. Hexion quelled all resistance to his reign and secured his line with the birth of his daughter. His heart broke when his first wife died, but his second wife was good at caring for his daughter, which was all he had hoped for from his marriage. He had built a prospering kingdom over the years, and he refused to let a radical elf ruin it.
Everything unfolded so quickly. The golden-eyed girl started shifting and tried attacking the queen during their picnic in the meadow. King Hexion was appalled at the sight. Since when were shifters able to appear human? Was the golden-eyed girl the werewolf of legend? A human cursed by a shifter? Surely, it was just a human mask made of magic. Two men held the golden-eyed shifter back until an elf woman came barreling in tackling the shifter. They tussled a bit until the shifter finished her transformation and stole a blade from the elf woman. The golden-eyed shift stabbed herself like a loon and caused a slight panic until shifters charged into the meadow. King Hexion was becoming tense by the chaotic situation developing in front of him. This was not what he asked for. This was becoming a battle of shifters versus royals. “Captain Shalltear!” He called to the Captain of the Knights of the Land who had been tending to the golden-eyed shifter's wounds. The captain reluctantly left the shifter to the king’s side. “Captain, call the guards!”
Captain Shalltear sent a red flare into the sky, causing the villagers to hurry indoors and slam shutters. Footsteps of the knights charging to the meadow filled in the gaps of sound between the animal growling and battle grunts. Beasts were tearing into the royal guards and knights. The queen anxious shifted, putting her hand on the handle of the blade. King Hexion could tell the queen wanted to join the fight, but he could let her charge onto the battlefield. The queen was a mighty warrior that would die so easily on the battlefield if she was fighting. His plan to rid Lunaris of the elf queen would only work if she was caught by surprise, not when her battle instincts were active. “Queen Galadriel, there is no need for you to join this little scuffle.” King Hexion urged. “This is not one of your villages, and the Knights of the Land are here to defend the village. Please let them do their job.”
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The Knights of the Land reinforcements came thundering into the meadow tipping the balance of the skirmish to be even on both sides. King Hexion would just have to bet on the Grim Guild scum’s power and plan to win. He had spent enough money hiring the Grim Guild and the Knights of the Land just to have this battle.
“King Hexion, surely you are not asking me to sit on the sidelines in this fight?” Queen Galadriel questioned.
‘Yes, that’s exactly what I want you to do. The best prey is a sitting duck.’ King Hexion thought to himself. “My dear queen,” King Hexion laid it on thick. “Here, you need not be a warrior, but a queen. These men want to serve us and protect us. I hired the best to care for this village. Please, have faith that these men can defend this village. There is no need for you to get your hands dirty.”
“King Hexion, I admire your faith in these men, but surely we should join the fray. You are a warrior king, are you not?” The queen was persistent in her desire to join the battle.
“Warrior King? Yes, I suppose I am. But, even I know that warriors need a chance to prove themselves, Queen Galadriel. The knights and royal guards will win this battle with ease, I assure you.” King Hexion said confidently.
A wolf shifter suddenly broke through the royal guards’ defenses. It was only a moment before the elf woman from before came crashing on to defend the royals. The elf woman snapped the wolf’s neck like a twig with her bare hands. If King Hexion wasn’t trying to kill the elf queen next to him with these shifters, he would have been beaming in pride over this elf warrior. The elf woman assured the royals that she would protect them from any threats. King Hexion was internally annoyed at the elf woman. The number of obstacles to stop him from completing his plan was growing. Where was Guild Master Shadow?
More shifters broke through the royal guards' defensive lines. The guards scattered trying to attack and defend the royals. The king watched as the elf woman killed two shifters then raced to protect the queen from another shifter. King Hexion was distracted by the shifters trying to reach him and took his eyes off the queen for only a moment. When King Hexion looked back at where the elf queen had been, she was gone along with the elf woman and a royal guard. Raged filled king Hexion.
“Where is the Queen!” King Hexion yelled. The royal guards around him started to scramble, searching for the missing queen. “Find Queen Galadriel, this is your king’s order!”
A few knights and royal guards began searching for the missing queen at Captain Shalltear’s request. King Hexion watched the search party head toward the village. It only took a moment for him to lose sight of his target. He cursed under his breath. The queen can’t die if she wasn’t here to be killed. King Hexion felt his plan falling apart. Where was the damn guild master? He ensured the queen would die in this battle. “Move faster! We have to find the queen! This is the king’s order!”
