Monday, September 02, 2019

░ The Royal Castle, Thournebourne, The Kingdom Of Knightford, Edios

░ Monday, September 02, 2019

░ At 2:30 pm

RILA KESTLE

We had the opportunity to meet the King's wife during our dinner at the restaurant The Delicacy, located in the center of the city. Her name was Marietta, she was in her forties and she was currently working as the President of the International Trade Organization. This organization managed the exchanges between all the countries of the Eight Kingdoms, and made sure that they were in conformity and that each country and company received what they were supposed to receive. 

Currently, I was with my brother in a large living room in the western part of the castle of the Knightford family. The room was spacious and thanks to the large number of windows it was luminous. We could see the gardens of the castle and the employees working to maintain this floral jungle. We were waiting for those who had invited us to a Cake Party. For several minutes my brother had been looking at his phone continuously. I asked him what he was waiting for to look at his cell phone, and that his MA supervisor hadn't sent him the courses from the previous week, and it was starting to piss him off. Brad was a very studious person, and falling behind in his lessons was one of his worst fears. He organized everything ahead of time, and when something came along that would upset his plans, he got angry. I told him not to worry, and that he would probably get them soon. Maybe it came from the network, since the connection between Edios and the Empire was still slow. 

While we were talking, there was a knock on the door and someone opened it. Two boys and three girls dressed in elegant and trendy clothes walked in. We stood up and greeted them politely, and they did the same. We sat down with my brother, and they sat down beside us. A girl with blond hair sat on my left, another with brown skin next to my brother, and the other three in front of us.

- "Sorry we're late, we were finalizing the preparations for this Cake Party " said a girl with brown hair. I told her that it was okay and that we had been here recently, and she smiled at me. Well, she seemed like a nice, friendly person, at least that's what she sounded like. 

- "Let's start with introductions, that way it will be easier for us to communicate with each other. I'm Agatha of Knightford, the younger of the King of Edios and this is my older brother Byron".

- "My name is Isaac Di Angelli, the youngest of the Di Angelli family, and the one on your right is one of my older Enola sisters. The eldest, Savannah, couldn't come because she is currently studying International Business at Duaples. It's a country in the south of Edios".

- "As for me, I am Victoria Vassethier, the youngest of the Vassethier family. I have a older sister Marjory who, like Savannah, is studying in another country. She is in Dracoris for an internship abroad. However, I don't remember the name of the town where she is. If we understood correctly, you are the children of the Empress of the Empire of Thetia?"

- "Indeed, I am Brad Kestle the elder and this is my little sister Rila. We have a little brother Alex who stayed on the Empire, because now he's in a band and he's very busy. Nice to meet you!"

- "I hope we'll all get along well! "Enola said cheerfully. 

We continued to chat in a warm atmosphere. I learned that Victoria and Agatha were the same age as me, and that later on the weekend she would take me on a tour of their kingdoms and meet friends of theirs. My brother had befriended Enola, Isaac and Byron because they had similar personalities. Enola was 24 years old, Byron 22 years old and Isaac 20 years old. Afterwards, several domestics brought cups of tea and small canapés on several trays, probably made of gold. Byron explained to us that it was a tea served for the first encounters. It was grown in the land of Qibea, because in this country the temperatures are ideal for its production. After the canapés, it was the turn of a layer cake to be served to us. I made my greedy and took it twice, almost forgetting that we were just finishing eating.

- "I have been passionate about urban legends and folklore for several years now. What is the best known legend of your Empire?" Isaac asked with stars in his eyes.

- "There are a lot of them, but the most famous is the Banshee Lake, also known as the Lamentation Lake. To help you get your bearings, I will show you a map of the Empire. Here in the center is the Kingdom of Midona with the capital of the Empire, Thetia, at its heart. You must notice the kingdom is surrounded by a mountain range: the Chain of 300, a disturbing name isn't it. Between 1500 and 1600, the Empire was invaded without anyone expecting it. The invaders destroyed everything in their path and forced their way into towns and villages, but they never managed to reach the center of the kingdom because of this mountain range.Thinking they were dealing with some form of witchcraft or other nonsense, they decided to challenge this so-called magic.Thinking they were dealing with some form of witchcraft or other nonsense, they chose to defy this so-called magic. Obviously, we have to be realistic, there was none unless we call it Mother Nature. In the end, it was mainly to test the Empress' government. Among their prisoners awaiting to be executed, they took 300 people, but not at random: 75 elderly people, 75 adults, 75 teenagers aged 12 and 18, and 75 children and babies. On March 04, 1551, the invaders threw them over the cliff. Evidently, none of them survived because a precipice of more than 2500m was waiting for them. Among the 75 children selected, there was a newborn baby who was only a few weeks old. He was the last one to be thrown and landed in the lake downstream. However, his mother, who thought that her child had not survived the birth, was standing near the lake collecting water. Suddenly, she heard several screams and a loud crash.She went towards these mysterious crashes and was disgusted by what she saw: hundreds of bodies, bursting on the ground forming a huge crater. She went towards these mysterious crashes and was disgusted by what she saw: hundreds of bodies, bursting on the ground forming a huge crater. Then, she heard baby cries, followed by a sound of water, as if someone had jumped into the lake. Without waiting, she ran the other way thinking she would make it in time to save the baby. She didn't think twice and jumped into the water. However, what she saw made her scream so loudly that she could be heard all the way to the center of the Kingdom. It was her baby, she could recognize it by the mark on one of her hands. And it is since this famous day, that at night, we can hear baby crying followed by a terrible scream that gives you a chill"

- " It's terrifying, I'm sure I'm going to have nightmares about it" said Victoria.

- " You must know that the events of the Chain of 300 are true, afterwards, we don't really know if there was a woman at the lake, hence the legend" my brother said. 

- " And this lake, it is forbidden to access or we can go there as we wish?"

- " Anyone can go to this lake, Agatha. In the summer, many people go there to swim, and in winter, if the temperatures allow it, you can ice-skate there. The landscape is sublime, and the atmosphere is pleasant. Obviously, it is not recommended to go there at night and it is obliged to follow the indicated path. A lot of people got lost, because to get to the Lamentation Lake, you have to go through a forest. If one day you have the opportunity to come to the Empire, we will take you there!" I explained. Then I asked them if they had a legend similar to ours, and if they could tell us about it.

- "This legend took place on the island of Uclana, a former colony of Duaples. Today, the island is independent as a result of an agreement between the two leaders of these countries. People call it the Cursed Island. You should know that only the western part of the island is inhabited. The east of the island is a very dense and humid forest called the Forest of Evil, where dangerous and rare species live. Only scientists accompanied by regulars and forest rangers are allowed to go there. According to police and ranger reports, more than a thousand people have disappeared in this forest. For example, the most famous case dates from Tuesday, August 20, 2018: the youtuber Olin Vargas from Dracoris, known to make numerous explorations in abandoned places to tell their story, and having at the time of the events 21 million subscribers on YouTube, mysteriously disappeared while exploring the forest. He was on live on the same platform when suddenly he heard something behind him, then his camera went off but the sound was still on. The spectators could hear him screaming in terror, running as if he was being chased, then nothing. On the same day, hundreds of policemen, forest rangers, firemen and soldiers searched for him. Nevertheless, even after a year, Olin was still nowhere to be found. Only his equipment consisting of camera, battery, microphone and survival gear was found. As a result, many people tried and are trying to unravel the mystery of his disappearance and the disappearance of the others. Documentaries, books and films have come out dealing with this subject but the truth has never been found. However, this is not the only reason for this morbid nickname. There is also a prison and a psychiatric hospital in the east of the island managed by Levy Rule and Alois Baldry. Levy is the director of the high security prison "Oblivion" and Alois Baldry of the psychiatric hospital "The Garden of Eden". Behind this hospital is a turquoise lake several kilometers away. The access is allowed only in the morning and in the afternoon when the weather is nice and warm. Each access is done with a guide and it is forbidden to go there and return alone. Access is by car and can take up to an hour or even an hour and a half. These two establishments were part of the independence agreement of Uclana. The island is obliged to take in dangerous criminals and "educate" them according to rumors. No prisoner has yet managed to escape and those who have tried have seen their sentences lengthen, their tiny possibility of getting out become impossible and some have never again given news to their families and friends" Byron told us. I was so immersed in his story that I couldn't see the time go by.

To wrap up this afternoon, Byron invited my brother and I to join him and his sister for a dinner in the city. Victoria, Isaac and Enola could not join us as they had to return home and it was several hours away. We gave each other our numbers to keep in touch, and each went off on their own. I left with Agatha and my brother with Byron. Agatha and I had really gotten close with Agatha and I knew I could count on her. She took me to her room and told me more anecdotes about Edios and the Eight Kingdoms.