1 Middlemist Red (Ch.1)

A man's conscience and his judgment is the same thing; and as the judgment, so also the conscience, may be erroneous.

~ Thomas Hobbes

"Aviana...do you know why this king loves this flower so?" He asked,

His fingers slowly caressing the petals of the flower carefully held in his hands and although he caressed the flower adoringly,

His gaze was as cold and emotionless as it always was.

Two figures stood in a vast flower field that stretched as far as the eye could see, an astonishingly beautiful sight it was but what was more astonishing was the fact that this field was completely covered in just a single type of flower.

Of the two figures, one was a broad and tall male, with an otherwordly visage, a face that seemed to have been sculpted with much care by the Creator himself,

The stance of this male was regal and noble and the male donned black robes made of the finest silk with golden trimmings all about it.

His silky black hair fell down to rest just below his neck and upon his head was a golden crown with a single blood red gem embedded within it's center piece.

His eyes were a deep shade of green, however his gaze carried a cold and unfeeling attribute and the aura he exuded was tyrannical and oppressive... this figure was clearly a powerful and formidable existence.

Standing some steps behind this male was another figure, however this time the figure was a young breathtakingly beautiful female,

With long tresses of a vibrant red color and eyes a deep shade of amber, the female did not look to be more than eighteen summers of age however her beauty was already overwhelming,

It was the kind of beauty that was said to sink fishes and entice birds to fall, a beauty that eclipsed the moon and put flowers to shame.

However this beauty's gaze was just as cold and emotionless as that of the male figure, no...it was far worse,

The gaze of this beauty seemed soulless, it was as though one was staring right into the eyes of a living dead, there was no emotion, no warmth...there was nothing at all.

However the soulless gaze of this beauty was also fixed on the flower in the male's grasp, the flower was a deep blood red color, it was breathtakingly beautiful, the rarest specie of the camellia flower in existence, it was known as the middlemist red.

"This King loves this flower because you Aviana...you loved it more than anything, back when you were young and naive and knew nothing of the world..." The male chuckled quietly,

He shook his head slightly as he pulled the flower close to his face and took a deep breath of it's refreshing fragrance.

"You would say you loved it because it was more beautiful than you were...do you know this King wondered how to tell you that there was not a single thing that could be compared to your beauty..."

"More than that, this King wondered how to make you understand that there was nothing in existence that was truly beautiful...not the Middlemist Red... and not you Aviana." The male continued,

His tone was cold and dark however the soulless beauty did not seem bothered by it, it was clear she was accustomed to the male's way of speaking.

"However this King loves this flower mostly for one reason, it embodies your past, the times where you were full of warmth and love and kindness and light, all the attributes a protector of the realm should never have possessed in the first place...a past you never shall return to." The male murmured to himself.

"However, how can one escape his own fate? You were destined to be this King's Blood General right from birth Aviana,"

"A bloodthirsty and savage warrior who thrived in war, in death, in bloodshed, a monster who's name incites fear in the hearts of your enemies,"

"You tried to avoid your fate and the House of Selven paid the price for it. Do you forget so soon?"

"This is who you are Aviana, this is what you are...there is no running from it, this King will not permit you to repeat your previous mistakes." The male figure spoke in a cold and imposing tone.

The soulless beauty remained quiet, however there was the slightest flicker of emotion in those Amber coloured orbs with each word the male said.

"This King gave an order.... complete annihilation of the enemy forces, you actually dare to fail me?" The male asked, slowly crushing the beautiful flower with his tight grip.

"Speak!" The male ordered when the soulless beauty still failed to respond to his words.

"The enemy surrendered and have sworn loyalty to you, My King, I did not see the need to execute them,"

"The war is over... their king is willing to surrender to us, there is no need to shed anymore blood, My King..." The soulless beauty replied in an emotionless tone,

However deep within her gaze, one could see the soulless beauty was tired of the wars, tired of the bloodshed, tired of everything...

"You are still but a naive child Aviana, do you believe the enemy will appreciate your mercy? Never!"

"The Eastern border forts have been taken over, reports have it that the attack was launched by the very same army you have spared."

"Hundreds of my citizens and warriors have fallen, tell me Aviana, is this the recompense for your mercy?" The male asked darkly.

The fist of the soulless beauty tightened at the male's words and her brows narrowed in rage.

"All those deaths are caused by your own hands, do you understand it now Aviana? "

" Mercy is not an emotion you are allowed to know, you are the Blood General of this King's empire, you are my angel of death, once you are summoned, all life must be vanquished."

" How can you protect my people... your people, with such a weak resolution?! The people believe in you, they trusted you and you have failed them...you have failed me, Aviana...do you know what you must do now?" The male asked, finally turning around to face the soulless beauty.

" I will kill them all, I will destroy their families and everything they hold dear, I will crush their kingdom and offer the head of their king to atone for my crimes." The soulless beauty vowed solemnly.

~'I shall do all this for you my king and more...do you not see it? For you, I am willing to do anything.'~ The soulless beauty thought, bowing low even as the male took his leave in rage,

A single tear slipped out the emotionless eyes of the soulless beauty, rolling down her cheeks and disappearing into the field of Middlemist Red.