The humans have been at war with Elves for thousands of years. The hatred they had for each other runs deep into the depths of their souls, buried right into their bone marrows, to the extent that no human could stand the sight of an Elf and if one is caught, the worst kinds of torture were implemented.
Their favourite was cutting off the long pointy ears and nailing them to the walls of their borders. Some even competed on how many ears they’ve nailed.On the other hand, no Elf wanted to hear the word 'human'. In fact, if an Elf should mistakenly pronounce the word 'human', he is immediately executed and if a human is caught, he is turned into a slave and treated like a dog till he dies from exhaustion. The Elves weren't normally this brutal. In fact, they are naturally peaceful creatures and had proposed peace to the humans which was accepted but the human King breached the treaty. He lured the Elf King into his castle under the guise of a feast to celebrate six months of peace then he poisoned the Elf King and his guards and beheaded his only heir.This treachery blackened the hearts of the Elves and another war broke out.Thus, the war went on and on and on. Huge amounts of blood was shed, many many precious lives were lost and soon enough, the Elves got tired. Fighting wasn't their forte. They were better inclined with nurturing nature and healing so they lost a lot of battles. When they noticed their numbers were dwindling drastically, they stopped fighting and fled to a part of the world, where the humans couldn't find them. As time went on and the world continued to evolve, the humans soon forgot about war. Within a few years, they believed the Elves were extinct. People began to fabricate stories about them for entertainment. They acted plays and wrote novels that even described their coexistence as harmonious. Only a handful of people knew the truth. These handful of people still hated the Elves with passion and believed they still existed. Thus, they created an organization and operated in the shadows, executing missions to find out where the Elves were hiding.Prince Ron was currently reading a book called Fighting Destiny. He especially liked the character Theo who was a handsome elf with the air of nobility and a pro with a bow. Yes, poor Prince Ron had a huge crush on this character. He had already read the book hundreds of times but he always loved to re-read Theo's parts. In fact, he knew some dialogues by heart.Ron was about to read his favourite part of all when the large doors to his room swung open and his sister rushed in with her train of servants who had their heads bowed and quickly stood at corners to avoid the wrath of the youngest Prince. Everyone knew Ron didn't like to be disturbed especially when he was reading. Whoever disturbs him will be sent to pack horse shit from the stables or perform so other worse punishment so they closed their eyes and silently prayed to any diety to save them from the Prince's wrath. As expected, Ron was deeply displeased. He slammed his book shut then turned to face his elder sister with a frown that was enough to give a person wrinkles for life."What are you doing here?!" he spat. "You know I don't like to be disturbed when I'm reading. You did this on purpose!". He then turned to the guards standing outside. "And why did you let her in? You're all useless! You should have stopped her!"The guards began to sweat. How could they stop the crown princess from going into her own brother's room? That's the same thing as courting death!Princess Rose rolled her eyes at her brother's complains. "If you're done with your childish tantrum, mum and dad want to see you"Ron's face wrinkled even more. How could she call him a child? In front of the servants and guards?!Said servants and guards acted as if they were deaf, dumb and blind. "I'm not going. Leave me alone" he said just to anger his sister. He knew he would have to go. His dad, the king, doesn't entertain tardiness nor disrespect. He won't hesitate to seize Ron's books and ban him from the library then subject him to harsh training for weeks.Rose knew that she had actually hurt her brother so she decided to coax him. Besides, she was in a good mood. She was getting married soon! What Princess wouldn't be happy?"Dear brother" she said in a sweet voice. "Don't be mad okay. I know you don't like to be disturbed when reading but what father and mother want to discuss with us is very important. Don't take this matter to heart. Let's go. Afterwards, I'll persuade dad to let you go out"Ron's mood immediately did a 360 degree turn. A bright smile replaced the darkness on his face and the guards breathed sighs of relief. Princess Rose is truly a lifesaver!Ever since Ron turned 18, his father put him on house arrest and hired different teachers to educate him in matters of the state and about ruling a kingdom for when Rose gets married and becomes the queen of another Kingdom, he'd be the crown prince. Next in line for the throne. Ron wasn't really interested in becoming the future King. He'd rather go on a world tour and experience different things but he had no choice. This was his life whether he liked it or not. Sometimes he wished he really wasn't a prince. Since his sister had already apologized, he decided to let it go. "Okay. Let's go see them but you must uphold your promise""Of course brother" Princess Rose said, wearing a large smile. Both of them proceeded to the throne room, where their parents awaited. Prince Ron and Princess Rose look exactly alike. In fact, everyone who didn't know them thinks they're twins. The only difference was the length of hair, gender and their personalities. Where Rose was calm, sweet, smart and elegant, Ron was wild, brash, mischievous and easily angered. Not a drop of elegance was in his blood.In fact, some people question -in their own hearts of course- if he's really royalty. Maybe he was found in a ditch somewhere but the resemblance to the rest of the members of the royal family keeps them puzzled. The siblings had curly auburn hair softer than cotton, skin as creamy as milk and smooth as silk, cat like eyes with pupils the colour of emeralds and long lashes the colour of their hair. Their noses were straight and pointed and beneath that were small plump lips as red as blood. The siblings of the Kingdom of Ashenmore were just exquisite.Princess Rose has the figure of a supermodel and she loved to flaunt it. There wasn't a single type of cloth in the world she couldn't rock and there was no colour that didn't suit her. Coupled with her easygoing temperament, she was loved both within and outside the Kingdom. There was no man in the world that didn't want to marry her. Prince Ron on the other hand was quite short for his age. Even at 18, he looked 16 and this fact annoys him because people look down on him thinking he was still a child. He was glad his sister wasn't too tall so they were almost the same height. She was just an inch or two taller and she's four years older than him.Though he's quite lazy, his father still made him go through some exercises so he had a full six pack and nice muscles. It made any clothes he wears look like it was tailored just for him. Though his temperament was quite wild, he still had a lot of females dying to be with him. No matter what, they couldn't deny that he was a handsome young man.“With more than half of my magic depleted, I needed nourishment from the earth to keep my seed from dying, and so, I left the tree. I walked the world in human form, searching for a land I could plant it where it would be safe and be nourished by the earth but there was almost none. The humans were at war with each other, trying to claim lands and riches, soiling the earth with their blood and hatred. It created negative energy, making the soil uninhabitable for my seed. I wandered among the humans for years, my seed getting dry and brittle. Just when I thought I would never find land, I found Ashenmore, the land of the humans who forced us into hiding.”A faraway smile touched her lips.“Ashenmore was huge. The lands vast and blessed, brimming with vitality. Despite that, I didn't want to plant my seed there, considering that they had killed many of my children. My seed would bring the land great fortune and prosperity and at that time, all I wanted was for the humans to suffer but t
Prince Ron blinked. He looked left, then right, eyes scanning the clearing to see who she was addressing but clearly, there was no one else except him so he turned back to her, pointing hesitantly to himself. “A-Are you… talking to me?”The woman giggled and nodded gently. “Of course I’m talking to you. You’re my son.” She looked at him kindly with a little bit of eagerness, as if she wanted to keep the heart she was holding and hug him but she couldn't. Prince Ron laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. “I’m sorry, but I think you’ve got the wrong person. I’m not Zedekiel. I’m his husband, Prince Ron of Ashenmore. I can’t be your child.” “Oh, but you are,” the woman said, eyes glowing brighter. “You ate my seed.”Prince Ron blinked, confused. “Your seed? I don’t recall—”Suddenly, his eyes went wide, his green irises swallowed by blinding white light and a memory slammed into him like a wave.FLASHBACKThe sound of thunder cracked through the air, and heavy rain lashed
The Queen Mother stared at them. Two trees stood where her sons had once been, their branches arched gently toward each other, as if still reaching for comfort in their final moments.She sank to her knees with a strangled sob, clutching at their trunks. “My babies…” she cried, voice cracking with sorrow.No one said a word. Grief hung thick in the air. And the town square, once so full of life, with people dancing and laughing, now stood eerily quiet, like a graveyard. Every single Elf around had turned into trees, save for Mariel, Ludiciel, the Queen Mother and a few elite Elf soldiers. Princess Mariel fell to her knees beside their mother, trying to console her but ended up crying too. After all, this was their fate. It was just a matter of time before she also ran out of magic and turned into a tree like the rest of them. No one could escape it. Prince Ludiciel couldn’t take it anymore. He turned to Elliot, gripping his hands, his voice hoarse. “You have to go. Now.”Elliot blin
The once-beautiful town of Netheridge had become a landscape of chaos and despair. Screams echoed through the streets as Elves fell to their knees, their breaths shallow, their limbs stiffening and sticking to the ground. No matter how hard they pulled or tried to move, their feet would not budge. And then slowly, their bodies changed, transforming into hideous trees. Their skin lost its colour, taking on the texture of bark. Veins darkened into root-lines. Their arms and heads turning into branches full of leaves. Their faces remained frozen in terror. One by one, starting from the weakest ones, their bodies hardened, twisting upward, stretching into trunks and branches. Most of the Elves panicked, running aimlessly through the streets, shouting, screaming in fear. Others ran around searching for loved ones. Some tried to wake the transformed, screaming their names through sobs until they too turned into trees on the spot while others locked themselves inside their homes, as if b
Another tentacle rushed in full force, whipping at Zedekiel’s side. He dodged, only to be forced back by two more. It was like they were deliberately forcing him further and further away from the Shadow Master which made him think the Shadow Master must be avoiding a one on one fight. He just didn't know why.He gritted his teeth, slicing three more tentacles only for them to be replaced and slammed into him, hard. He groaned, his boots digging trenches into the ground as he skidded to a halt.Suddenly, a thunderous burst of wind and heat blasted through the grove. “Zedekiel!” Talon shouted, eyes wide with alarm as he, Alaric and Seraphiel arrived. He saw Zedekiel fighting against shadow tentacles and the Shadow Master standing a few feet away. Instantly, flames exploded across his skin. His body transforming in a blinding flash, taking on the majestic and fearsome form of his phoenix heritage. Wings of molten fire burst from his back, his hair igniting in strands of reddish-orange
Gasping for breath, Zedekiel pushed himself to his feet, transforming into his Elf form, ready to charge again when a slow, deliberate sound broke the silence.“Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.” and then an amused chuckle. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”Zedekiel turned toward the sound, unsurprised to see a figure cloaked in robes so dark they seemed to blend into the night. The figure’s face was hidden beneath a deep hood and around him, shadows slithered like smoke, curling and twisting unnaturally in the air. Zedekiel raised his hand and his ice-like sword materialized with a sharp hum, the blade glowing faintly blue. Frost exuded from its edges, like silver smoke woven with snowflakes.“You finally show yourself,” he sneered. “Shadow Master.”The Shadow Master tilted his head, then clicked his tongue again disapprovingly, slow and scornful.“I’ve heard so much about the great Elf King. The fearless warrior who butchered his treacherous uncle and saved his people from those terrible humans at