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Celeon was vulnerable in the darkness of the stairwell against
Barallus. He took numerous hits before getting back on his feet and walking backwards
toward the prison cells, trying to find light. When he found light, he was relieved
and gently placed Amelia and the Negg Faerie against the wall. The Negg Faerie
offered to help, but Celeon could see that she was in no condition to fight. He
rejected her offer to help and defeated Barallus on his own.
Barallus was defeated, but still alive.
He gave a long deafening screech before he collapsed in defeat. Celeon realized
a second later what Barallus had just done and hurriedly gripped onto the Negg
Faerie and Amelia. He ran toward the stairwell with them leaning against his
back, now biting onto the torch with his teeth to guide the way up the stairwell.
He could hear rumbles of rapid footsteps approaching him, but he couldn't give
up, he had to keep going.
Sweat drenched his cloak and his fur,
making him even more uncomfortable in the pitch darkness of the stairwell. He
looked for the exit door, but he couldn't find it. Alas, there was another low
rumble and the loud projected voice of Master Vex. He could hear them approach
the stairwell, his time was running out.
With some hesitation, Celeon blew out
his torch and set it aside. He knew that it would be too obvious to spot him
with a torch guiding Master Vex and his prisoners toward him. It was obvious
that Master Vex was spiteful toward Celeon not only because of Darigan's orders,
but also because Celeon had defeated him at his own game. The door of the stairwell
opened from below, Celeon could hear Master Vex's voice echoing inside the stairwell.
"I don't see a light," Master Vex declared.
"Nobody would enter a stairwell without light," he said jokingly. "Why, that
would be like locking yourself in prison."
Celeon heard the slam of the stairwell
door below as Master Vex and his prisoners descended and scattered, thinking
that it was probably just a fluke. Now, with less stress piled upon him, Celeon
was able to reach the second floor and find a nearby room. He was used to climbing;
in fact it was instinctive for him. He could climb anything anywhere, just so
long as he had some type of rope. Now, inside another cold cave-like room in
Darigan's citadel, Celeon leaned over toward the window in the back of the room.
Outside there was a mass of dark violet
clouds clogging his view. He couldn't see past them, and was unsure if there
was land or water underneath that mass of clouds. Although jumping one story
seemed almost too easy, Celeon knew that he could not leave the two women leaning
on him behind. He leaned the Negg Faerie on a nearby wall and carried Amelia
on his back. He wrapped untied his cloak and wrapped it around her, then tied
it to his own body, making sure that Amelia will not fall.
There were chains scattered around the
room they were in. Celeon lifted one of the chains, noticing its weight and
having to drop it. Each link to the chain was enormous in both size and weight.
Celeon tried once again, still sweating from his own body heat. He lifted the
first link of the longest chain the room and threw it out the window. There
was a loud thud that indicated that there was land wherever the chain had landed.
Now relieved, Celeon tied the last few
links of the chain to a stone table built into the ground next to him. He began
to climb down the chain, delighted to see how stable it was. Then again, each
link of the chain was nearly one-third his size, so what had he expected? He
reached land and laid Amelia on the ground gently, along with his cloak. He
continued to climb back up the chain and retrieve the Negg Faerie, which he
had an easier time with, since she was still conscious.
Celeon lifted Amelia once he reached the
bottom with the Negg Faerie beside him. He continued to have the two women leaning
on his shoulders, walking in a slow and steady pace toward Meridell, far away
the Citadel of Darigan. He slightly hoped to never enter that place ever again,
for fear that he may not survive the next time.
---
Meridell, usually a cheerful and rowdy place, was turning anxious with anticipation.
It had been a full week since anyone in Meridell had heard from Prince Celeon,
and the neopians living there were becoming worried that something might've
happened. Neither the King nor the Queen of Meridell commented on the disappearance
of Prince Celeon and the neopians were furious with the castle for keeping such
important secrets from them.
When Celeon approached the city of Meridell,
many of the farmers ran up to him and asked him where he had been. They flooded
him with questions that he neither wanted to answer or hear. He growled in irritation
at the farmers and ignored them as he entered the city, walking straight toward
the castle. Many neopians stopped what they were doing and watched him march
up to the castle, gasping in shock when they realized that it was in fact Prince
Celeon who returned, with one girl to each of his shoulders and a weary look
on all of their faces.
The castle guard stared at Celeon for
a moment and became open-jawed when he realized who it was. Celeon demanded
to enter the castle and the guard obeyed without hesitation, "Yes, your majesty,
of course," the skeith guard said nervously.
Two guards walked up to Celeon as he entered
the castle, each offering to help him. "Don't worry about me, guards. Just take
care of Amelia and the Negg Faerie," he told them.
The guards nodded and took Amelia and
the Negg Faerie off Celeon. Each of the guards carried one woman up the stairs
leading to the grand room, where the King and Queen rested at their thrones,
discussing daily matters. Celeon heard a distant conversation outside of the
grand room door. He heard several neopians question his family about where he
was again and again.
With no time left for guilt, Celeon followed
the two guards as they entered the grand room all at the same time. The King
and Queen stood up from their thrones, eyes filled with tears. At last, their
son was back. The Queen rushed over to Celeon and embraced him, "We tried not
to worry for you, but it was impossible. You could've been in grave danger--"
"He was," the Negg Faerie interrupted,
"he was in grave danger, but he saved us both. He fought Darigan first-hand
and saw his worst fears come to life, but he still managed to get through it.
If you ask me, I'd say he was a courageous young fellow with the heart of his
father and a mind of his own," she smiled after speaking, quite pleased with
her praises for Celeon.
Celeon felt a bit embarrassed but also
quite content inside. He was too busy pondering over the last week to realize
that Amelia was gone. When he looked up, Amelia was nowhere to be seen. "Where's
Amelia?" he screamed, running over to the place Amelia had been.
"Oh, do you mean the young lady lupe that
had just been here?" his father asked, "She was taken to the infirmary, the
guards had taken her there because of her weak state."
Celeon left for the infirmary, ignoring
the flood of questions everyone in the room asked him. When he arrived in the
infirmary, he saw that Amelia was napping gracefully on one of the spare beds
in the room. He pulled a chair next to her bed and took her paw into his own.
"Amelia, Amelia, how could I live without
you? I think my most precious prize in this quest was having you there to the
end, but Darigan punished you for it," he frowned at the though of Darigan.
"I will see to it that you will acknowledge my love for you, even if it means
marriage," he whispered in her ear, pondering his words. Amelia stirred in her
bed and began to open her eyes, smiling…
Darigan growled to himself, enraged by
Celeon and his escape with the Negg Faerie and Amelia. He was not going to stand
and watch Celeon become the next Meridell King, leaving him in the dust. He
was going to fight, whether Maximus approves or not. He rose from the floor
and recovered from his injuries, determined to complete his vengeance.
Master Vex and his prisoners walked into
Darigan's room with sympathetic looks. They had disappointed their master and
let Celeon escape. However, everyone in the room shared a common goal of vengeance.
Darigan gave Master Vex a cruel stare of disgust, "Why did you let him escape?
Now we have only one choice," he snarled, giving a malicious smile, "War."
---
Amelia smiled as she began to sit up, watching Celeon's delightful smile.
He gave a gentle kiss to her paw, resting it upon his own. It was obvious that
they were in love. Celeon leaned forward toward Amelia and embraced her; thrilled
that she felt the same way about him as he does to her. They stayed like that
for a moment, until Maximus and Serena entered.
Surprised by the unexpected visit, Celeon
pulled away and sat down next to Amelia's bed, watching his parents' curious
expressions. Amelia smiled at them, "Hello, King Maximus and Queen Serena. My
name is Amelia," she introduced, trying to be as polite as possible. The gentleness
in her tone made her sound elegant.
"Hello, Amelia," Celeon's parents greeted
in unison.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. Are you
feeling all right? What happened?" Serena asked, leaning on Amelia's bedside,
examining her injuries. "My, it seems a miracle that you survived through all
this. What a brave girl lupe you are," she praised, smiling gently.
"I feel fine, Queen Serena," Amelia assured,
smiling. "How about yourself?" she asked politely.
Celeon's parents smiled back. "What a
sweet girl," Maximus complimented. "She has survived through hardship, yet cares
more for others than herself. My son is lucky to have found such an elegant
young lupe."
Amelia blushed at the king's compliments.
"Thank you, King Maximus."
Celeon kissed Amelia's paw once more,
enjoying their moment together. It was then that Nevo entered the room. For
a young kiko, his face seemed sullen with worry. The king and queen rose to
greet Nevo, but Nevo had already bowed down to King Maximus's feet.
"Your majesty, I have urgent news from
the guards of the palace," Nevo announced. "Darigan has declared war against
Meridell. It is an inevitable war. Scouts have reported that Darigan's troops
are headed this way as we speak."
King Maximus stood in daze, unsure of
his words. As the realization of war consumed him, he breathed deeply and gazed
at Serena for comfort. Serena reached out her paw to him and soothed his worries.
"Then war it will be," King Maximus exclaimed. "Darigan will regret his decision
to challenge my kingdom of Meridell." The King left the room and headed toward
the armory, where his soldiers stood waiting for him.
When the king arrived, all of the soldiers
bowed down in honor. Maximus gave the sign for everyone to rise. When they did,
he began to explain the next steps in the war against Darigan. "Darigan's troops
will be arriving soon. We have limited time. Archers, I want you to spread out
on the top of the castle. Guards, you will defend the bridge and surround each
corner of the castle. Cavaliers and infantry, I want you behind the guards.
There must be extra security within the castles. I will handle that. For now,
go to your place," the king commanded.
Celeon stood at the entrance of the room,
listening carefully. "What would you like for me to do, father?" he asked.
Maximus turned to face his son, faltering.
As he glared into the ambitious eyes of his son, he realized that he must allow
his son to fight. "You will lead my troops in the first attack against Darigan,"
he announced. Swiftly, he walked toward Celeon and patted him on the shoulder.
"I care for you, my son. Be careful." At that, the king left the room in search
of Serena.
Celeon stood in amazement. His father
gave him a chance to claim glory in battle, something worthy of a knight. Smiling
in utter happiness, he took weapons and shields from the armory. When finally
he was ready, Celeon strode out of the castle armored and ready to fight. Outside,
Darigan's troops crept toward the Meridell castle like shadows blocking sunlight.
"It is your turn to end, Darigan," Celeon threatened.
To be continued…
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