Chapter 10: The King of Tierrero

Rodrigo:

Everything went black, and Rodrigo lost all sense of where he was or what went on around him. Yet, as he lay in the darkness, a light caught his eye. A light at the end of the tunnel? Was this it, would he meet the Father? Rodrigo would have trembled if he thought he was still in the material world but soon realized the light approached him. Closer and closer, an unnatural warmth enveloped the prince. Then, he saw him, the figure who stood over Don Rafael and Wilfried before. However, he stood clear now, tall, broad, and shining almost like a lumen but far, far greater.

"Who, who are you? Where am I?" Rodrigo tried to reach out but stumbled. Yet the figure caught him in his arms before he hit the ground.

"You called to him, Rodrigo of Tierrero and Riquezarra."

"I-I"

He shuttered and tried to find his words but failed. The realization struck him now, and Rodrigo longed to cry, but here, he could not. "I hope my life made a difference. Mother, Abuelo, Arnaut, everyone." He surrendered himself but soon saw the figure shake his head.

"He is not done with you, Rodrigo. You shall be his shepherd of Envidia and bring about his will."

How would he, a disowned prince of nothing, do that? He could have stopped Selim's advance, but how could he ever hope to restore Envidia even if they won? Rodrigo had suppressed such thoughts amid the battle, but they came back like a horrible flood and threatened to consume him.

Yet, he clearly heard these thoughts as if he spoke them aloud and pulled him closer. His eyes were brighter than the sun but did not burn him. As he stared, Rodrigo saw it. The white, ethereal flames danced around a great tree without burning it. A gust of wind blew past him, and in his own voice, he heard.

"Do you trust me?"

"Yes."

"Then be not afraid. I go before you always. I am with you, Rodrigo, forever, and you with me."

Everything started to return, his eyes blurry, ears ringing, and nerves on fire. However, the prince somehow managed to pull his helmet off and stumble about. Even without his senses, Rodrigo's soul guided him to Blizzard. He heard his dragon's whining before anything else and saw the shredded wing membrane. Rodrigo touched his hand to it and applied magical ice, but the dragon wailed louder. He cried out for a lumen or chaplain but could not overpower the battle around them. Despite the crippling pain in his body, Rodrigo forced himself up and tried to get Blizzard up.

"Blizzard, we need to get out of here. Por favor, on your feet."

The dragon whined louder and licked his wing, tears in his eyes. Harder and harder, Rodrigo pushed and pulled, but to no avail. Then came the drums, and he looked over and realized they had landed behind the Invadores' cavalry. Less than a hundred meters away came the Köleasker formation. 

Polearms lowered, and armor jingled with each step. However, Blizzard hid his tail between his legs and whined louder after seeing something else above them. The hissing came like never before, and when Rodrigo looked up, he saw not one but three abras slithering over him. All three wore armor that Rodrigo could only describe as pompous and impractical, laden with ornamentation, tassels, and medals. All three wore gold masks with matching green eyes all fixed upon him, green eyes he had seen before, so many years ago, but had never forgotten.

"No-no, I can't be." Rodrigo looked closer at the center rider and saw atop his turban helmet with a bejeweled laurel wreath around it. Liquid steel retracted to his left hand and the abra's mouth, both dripping with Blizzard's blood.

"Are you certain, Kıvanç?" The center man's cold voice struck like steel, but Rodrigo fixed himself on the rider beside him. 

"Indeed, father. I will never forget the animal's face. The Celestial King smiles upon us today."

Kıvanç's voice burned deep into Rodrigo. Somehow, it remained unchanged in a way from all those years ago, though the Invadores now sat lean in his armor. Staring back at Blizzard, Rodrigo gripped felt around on the ground until he found it. With a deep breath, he held up his Christogram to the three men above him.

"Caliph, Selim. You need not die here today, nor your sons or soldiers. I will show you the way if you are willing. But I, Prince Rodrigo, son of King Alfonso and Grandson of King Sancho, will free Envidia from the yoke of your heathen gods. I will break the chains of your slaves and see the christogram raised from north, south, east, and west! I will achieve Rodrigo's Dream!" By the time Rodrigo finished, Blizzard rose to his feet and shook the battlefield with his roar.

"Kıvanç, Çelik. Kill him. I shall send his head to his bitch mother."

"As you command, father!"

Kıvanç and his abra's bodies lit up in a bright light like the sun. Çelik conjured thick liquid steel around both hands. Both came down upon Rodrigo, but neither he nor Blizzard moved. There was nowhere to run anyway. Instead, he held his sword high, and Blizzard bore his fangs, ice growing around them both. "I trust you."

Eyes narrowed, Rodrigo thrust his sword up, but instead of ice, blue fire exploded around both abras and their riders. Selim shrieked with his abra as both his sons scrambled backward, only for another dragon to slam them into the ground.

"And here I thought you were the responsible one, my prince."

Don Rafael laughed as he and his dragon landed beside them. The ground shook in an artificial earthquake, and within moments, Rodrigo's heart leaped as he saw the Onyx Knights descend upon the Köleaskers from their flank. Their war cries echoed for miles, and the elite slave warriors scrambled to reform, but to no avail. Tierreron's elite knights swept over them in a tsunami of hooves and steel. Their black armor shined bright with fresh blood.

"Hubris. You will not steal our victory, barbarian." Kıvanç and his abra struck from one direction, while Çelik came from another. Don Alvaro remained on his dragon and blasted away the conjured blades of liquid steel shot by Çelik, who soon retreated before him.

"Be careful, Don Alvaro!"

"You be careful! Your abuelo will never forgive me if you die on my watch!"

"Si, try to take them prisoner if you can. Selim will surrender."

"I'll try, my prince. But only because you asked."

Don Alvaro raced after Çelik. However, the white-hot intensity of fiery heat tore Rodrigo away from the Onyx Captain and back to Kıvanç. However, Blizzard charged like a bull and slammed the abra over, sending his rider tumbling to the ground. "Why not come down and fight me like a man? If that's what you really are, Kıvanç." Rodrigo rushed over and tried to pin him down but blinked when Kıvanç leaped up in a backflip despite his armor. Their swords clashed, sending sparks of melted ice and embers in every direction.

"Strange you'd ask me such a question, animal. As I understand, you aren't a prince anymore. Perhaps your father discovered your mother was a whore, and you were nothing more than the bastard of a-"

Kıvanç stopped when Rodrigo threw his entire weight into the next blow and sent the smaller man into a stumble. A fire lit inside his stomach, but he directed it like a weapon and landed an ice-cold punch across the Invadore's prince's face. The blow made him stagger backward several feet and spit out some half-frozen blood. Yet, Rodrigo's punch forced the golden mask off enough to reveal a smirk. "Ahh, a touchy subject, I see. Fear not. We shall take excellent care of her and your sisters. All the women in our harems are well tended to. I shall also be taking back that which you stole from me all those years ago."

Kıvanç's face twitched behind his mask, and now Rodrigo smiled. He slashed back and coated his left fist in ice before punching Kıvanç's mask off, revealing his goatee.

"She has become a lumen, you know. My guess is hundreds of slaves are now free thanks to her."

"Is that so!"

Kıvanç charged back and flipped himself in the air before a jet of solar power exploded in front of Rodrigo. The prince jumped backward, conjuring a wall of ice that shattered. The impact knocked all the air from Rodrigo's stomach, but he still managed to block Kıvanç's next blow.

"It matters not. I shall take them all back along with her!" Kıvanç's face contorted back into a warped smile. All sense of composure and dignity vanished in the young man as he laughed like a madman. "The days of the weak Caliph's are over. My father shall destroy your filthy barbarian kingdoms and restore civilization to this land. Then, when I become Caliph, I will do what no others have done! I shall break free of the stone fortress and take my armies to the other lands around us. I shall tear down your weak shepherd god's temples and civilize those lands too!"

"Shall you?" Rodrigo smiled back and savored Kıvanç's bewildered expression. "I suppose we will find out. But first, you have to kill me, little man."

Rodrigo's next blow unleashed a barrage of ice that froze the ground for a hundred meters. Kıvanç tried to melt it, but his magic wavered after Blizzard bodyslammed his abra into the ground, knocking him unconscious for a few moments. Rodrigo's ice enveloped Kıvanç, leaving him half-frozen and trapped.

"You know, Kıvanç, you have not behaved like a civilized man today." Rodrigo laughed as he picked up Kıvanç's sword. "Now, if you don't mind accompanying me to-"

"Gaah!"

Rodrigo froze in place, and his face turned pale. The scream could not be possible. Don Alvaro never cried like that. However, Kıvanç's wicked grin returned, and he laughed once more. When Rodrigo and Blizzard looked back, they saw Don Alvaro and his dragon over Çelik and his beast. 

Both held them down but convulsed as liquid steel came from above, stabbing them from behind. The magical metal slid through the gaps in Alvaro's armor before jabbing his unprotected body. The world slowed around Rodrigo as he saw the blood ooze from Don Alvaro's body and mouth. Blizzard likewise whined and barked out at the black dragon, who struggled to stay upright.

"Get away from my boy, animal."

Selim hissed before pulling his magical steel free. Don Alvaro ripped his helmet off and staggered about. The knight's eyes met Rodrigo's, but Alvaro smiled. "Make a better Envidia, my Prince." Gripping his Christogram, Don Alvaro collapsed beside his dragon and stared at the sky, smiling, at peace. Rodrigo struggled to stay upright on his wobbling knees. His eyes had to have deceived him. It could not be true. Tears swelled in the prince's eyes as his life flashed before him. The man who defeated his abuser, the man who trained him, cared for him, and kept their Kingdom safe, Kıvanç laughed and melted the ice around him.

"Dead, just like all you creatures shall be soon enough!"

"Dead?"

Rodrigo kept smiling despite the tears in his eyes and trembling body. "No. He is with the Father. He will always be with me." He held his christogram tight even as Kıvanç laughed. Selim and his sons came at Rodrigo from left, right, and above. The Caliph's eyes pierced him even from behind his mask, and his abra hissed louder. A long blade of liquid steel grew over Selim's left arm.

"Ashamed, you could not be more like your father. You could have been an obedient dog and lived. Now you will die, like your foolish uncle-" a torrent of wind struck the Caliph from behind, knocking him off balance. Rodrigo's eyes widened, and he almost dropped his sword while Blizzard panted.

"Father!"

Kıvanç and Çelik shrieked together, and Rodrigo saw Selim's eyes quiver. Looming over him from behind stood King Sancho and Tremor. Both stared down at the Caliph. Though Rodrigo could not see his grandfather's eyes, he imagined the veins and fire there for the man who killed his son. Selim flung himself around, and his abra tried to slither away, but Sancho's left fist glowed an unnatural blue. Selim covered his entire body in liquid steel, but the metal flew in every direction when Sancho's earth-shaking punch made contact.

Selim tumbled through the air alongside his abra, whose head spun. Çelik and Kıvanç froze in place with pale faces, but Rodrigo could not move either. He remained fixed on Sancho, who descended upon Selim like a meteor. The abra recovered just in time to avoid Tremor's blow and slithered away. Selim, however, panted and lashed out with his hands. Several streams of liquid metal flew at Sancho, who blew them away with his seismic strikes. However, one got through and knocked his helmet clean off, leaving a trail of blood across the king's withered face.

"Abuelo!" Rodrigo reached out, but Sancho did not slow down. Instead, he and Tremor propelled themselves into Selim, who coated himself in metal again and tried to exchange sword blows with the King. However, after three strikes, Sancho hurled Selim off his abra and into the ground. Rodrigo's heart raced again when Tremor pinned the abra down, and Sancho slowly approached Selim, who struggled to get up.

 "Stop him!"

Kıvanç screamed to his Köleaskers, but the Onyx Knights remained upon them like lions. With a fire in his belly, Rodrigo shot up a wall of ice between Selim and his sons, who backed up again after a golden beam exploded around them and magma covered the ground.

"Kıvanç, is that you? What happened to the fat kid we knew and hated."

Arnaut descended with Pedro while Zehra raced in on the ground with Seraphina behind her. Kıvanç's eyes met Seraphina's, but the prince smiled when her expression remained unchained. Çelik pulled Kıvanç away, and soon both fled on their Abras but looked back at Selim. By now, Sancho loomed over the trembling Caliph, sweat trickling down his pale face. Yet, in that moment, the entire world stopped. Rodrigo fell to his knees and went numb to everything going on around him. He could not hear the others gasp and scream, nor Blizzard and Tremor howl.

Selim had sprung up with liquid metal around his left arm and struck Sancho's stomach. The steel slid through the gaps in his armor and came out through the back, blood trickling down with it. Sancho shook and wobbled, his eyes now wide. Despite this, the King remained on his feet, eyes fixed on the ground. Selim, however, finally laughed, a sadistic smile torn across his face. "Ha! Ha ha ha! How fitting, like father, like son-"

The Caliph grunted as Sancho's left arm seized him by the neck. Selim thrashed about but found himself eye-to-eye with the giant of a man holding him. Without a word, Sancho shot Selim high into the air and brought his right fist back, the blue glow around it.

"Wait! Wait!" Selim screamed. Liquid metal formed over him, and he blasted Sancho, but the metal propelled off his armor, unable to slip inside with the seismic tremors around it. "You can't do this, you filthy animal! Brainless barbarian! I am the Caliph! I am the ruler of the civilized world! Do you hear me!"

Sancho remained silent, his eyes fixed on Selim, who came closer and closer until, at last, the Caliph came within reach. All of Envidia trembled when Sancho threw his final punch and tore into Selim's steel cacoon. Blood and metal flew in every direction while tears streamed down Sancho's face. After what felt like hours, Selim landed in front of the King. He convulsed and coughed up blood, unable to breathe or control himself. His armor lay in pieces around him. Despite this, King Sancho did not move. He remained over the Caliph, fist raised. However, the tears did not stop, nor did the blood leaking from his stomach.

Rather than his sword, Sancho reached in and took out his christogram. Selim had held his hands up but then blinked when he saw it. Sancho released the magic around his fist. "I, I forgive you, Selim." These words silenced all those who heard them, but none more than Selim. After a moment, the Caliph cackled again and struggled to his feet.

"After all that? You are weak and brainless." Selim conjured more liquid metal over his arm, and Rodrigo shot to his feet. "Just like your son, just like your god-" Selim convulsed and spat out more blood. Sancho and Rodrigo blinked, and Selim looked down at a blade sticking out of his stomach. The Caliph trembled while his abra shrieked moments before Tremor killed him. Rodrigo saw Selim's quivering eyes but heard Zehra gasp when they saw who stood behind the Caliph. A thin veil of sand surrounded Selim as the blade was ripped free. Ozil leaned in just enough for Selim to see his face.

Ozil stood over Selim's body and then clenched his eyes shut. "For my father and the Caliph Suleiman." Rodrigo, however, sprinted over beside Sancho, who collapsed.

"Chaplain! ¡Abuelo! ¡Abuelo!" He held the old man in his arms while Seraphina, Master Panos, and three other chaplains flooded him with a river of glowing water. While it washed away the blood, the looks in the healers' eyes said it all. Rodrigo hyperventilated and struggled to see through his tears. Tremor's whines reached Rodrigo's soul, and he watched the dragon sob while nuding Sancho.

"Forgive me, partner." Sancho choked on his words but stroked the dragon's snout. "The battle, the battle."

In his grief, Rodrigo forgot about everything else. Seraphina and the others tried to calm him, but Sancho had to be restrained. "The battle, por favor." Sancho groaned, and blood came out of his mouth.

"Si, abuelo."

Rodrigo choked on his tears but forced himself and Blizzard to take another look. It provided him little comfort now, but Rodrigo's plan had worked. With the Köleaskers wiped out, the Onyx Knights attacked the other Invadores cavalry from behind, and within minutes, they broke. Across the battlefield, King Ferdinand and the Crusader cavalry with him likewise routed their adversaries and soon wheeled around until they met up in the Invadore's camp with the Crusader left wing. Once there, King Ferdinand led them all in one final charge. 

By then, the crusader infantry were at the breaking point. Their lines wavered as they found themselves bent back into a u shape. However, Rodrigo knew it was over for the Invadores already. The ground shook again, and a chorus of screams erupted across the Invadores infantry. When the cavalry hit them from behind, they completed an encirclement. When they realized this, the crusader infantry took heart and pressed them in. Don Andres, Don Pablo, and so many more descended upon the Invadores below with their dragons like lions pouncing on their prey.

"It's done. Abuelo, we, we won," Rodrigo choked up again, unable to keep his eyes open through the sting of tears.

"Ahhh, buneo."

Sancho still managed to smile even as he lay dying. Rodrigo felt his warm hand touch him and forced his eyes open. The old man's smile soon spread to his grandson even as he sobbed with Blizzard and Tremor. He heard Arnaut, Pedro, Zehra, and Seraphina all break down with him.

"Merci, your majesty. Merci for making me a warrior and letting me remain with Rodrigo." Arnaut clenched his eyes shut and buried himself in Inferno's snout. Pedro's face contorted, for sorrow looked beyond unnatural on him. 

"Your majesty. It-it has been a privilege serving you. My King."

"You, you took me in. Your enemy. You were more of a father to me than my actual one. Thank you!" Zehra buried her head in Rodrigo's shoulder, flooding it with tears. Seraphina could not find words, but soon, Sancho's hand gripped hers.

"It's alright, my dear. I'll be with Ferdinand and Delilah soon. I'm sure they're so proud of you."

At this, Seraphina broke down and grabbed Arnaut, soaking his cape with her tears. At last, Archbishop Arias knelt beside the King. With tears in his eyes, he began administering last rites and took his confession. When he finished, Sancho touched Rodrigo's cheek again.

"My boy, Rodrigo. I'm glad I could see you become a man. I'm glad I could keep you safe."

"Gracias, abuelo." He collapsed before Arnaut held him upright to keep eye contact with Sancho. Then, at last, the king rested his head and shut his eyes. The christogram clutched in his other hand.

"Be at peace with our Father, King Sancho III."

Rodrigo lost track of time and somehow found himself back in their camp alongside the rest of the Crusader army. He stood over Sancho's body, which lay before them, his sword in hand and Tierrero's banner draped over him. Arias, Panos, and several others sang a gym while men and women, regardless of their Kingdom, sobbed. None more so than Tremor, who wailed and howled, his tears drenching the grass around Sancho's body. Blizzard tried to comfort his grandfather but to no avail. Rodrigo understood how the dragon felt. He knew Sancho was with the Father in eternal peace and that he did remain with him in union with the Father. This alone provided him some comfort.

"I trust you," Rodrigo told himself, even as his friends came around to embrace him.

"Farewell, King Sancho. Tell my parents I miss him."

King Ferdinand set a flower beside him and then stepped back beside Gabra, Wilfried, and Rafael, who did the same. Once the hymn finished, Arias took a deep breath and removed the crown from Sancho's head. "Rodrigo, kneel."

The words shook him to his core. Rodrigo trembled, unable to comprehend what was happening, but with Arnaut and Seraphina's help, he went to his knees, Blizzard beside him. Slowly, the entire army went silent as Arias stood over the prince.

"Do you swear to live your life in the Father's name!?"

"I, I do."

"Do you swear to defend the people of Tierrero, their homes, and their families!?"

"I do!"

"Do you swear to defend the Father's church and its sanctity!?"

"I do!"

Arias nodded, and another chaplain raced over with a bottle of oil. The archbishop removed its cap and then, with his fingers, anointed Rodrigo's forehead with a Christogram.

"I crown thee, Rodrigo the Fourth! King of Tierrero!" The crown touched his head, and Rodrigo went still. He rose, not a prince, but a king. As he did, Arnaut, Zehra, Seraphina, Pedro, and every other man and woman of Tierrero present knelt before him.

"Long may he reign! King Rodrigo de Tierrero!"

Blizzard and every other dragon let out a chorus of roars that shook Envidia. Rodrigo stared back at the horizon to his south. The Invadores army lay in ruin, and here they stood. Here he stood. Somehow, he found himself smiling again, King Rodrigo de Tierrero.

"Rodrigo's Dream. My dream."