A Tale That Dawned [Book 4 of Selvina's Tale series]

Chapter 1: Herald of Doom

As dark and forbidding as death itself, the cloudy sky blanketed everything below it in shadow. Rainclouds shaded the world in grey but these sinister clouds shaded it in black.

Prince Florian Charming gazed up at them worriedly. He had never witnessed such an event in his young life and it left him feeling cold and uneasy. His warhorse tossed its head about and fidgeted anxiously, distressed and upset. The great steed did not shy from charging into tightly packed ranks of Swordenish axemen or even against the great ogres of Ogram, monstrous and terrible creatures as they were, yet today it wanted to bolt and gallop away.

Florian couldn't deny that he was experiencing similar feelings for they both faced something was far more terrifying than any ogre or axeman.

"Easy, Argentine," the prince whispered to his steed, giving it a pat on the neck. "Be strong, my friend."

Mounted alongside him was Captain Phoebus, the man in charge of the defense of the grand city they stood in. The captain eyed the distressed horse and said, "He is right to be afraid, your highness. In all my years I have never seen such a foe. The very air and sky seems to warn us of its coming."

The prince could hear his father, tough and stern King Henri Charming, berating him for allowing fear to enter his mind. Florian had been told that fear was a weakness and yet from other sources such as soldiers, fighters, and sailors, he had been told otherwise. Courage could not exist without fear, they had said, and if that was true, then Florian was quite ready for that courage to appear now.

He glanced around him, taking strength from the great force amassed around him. Our Lady was one of the kingdom's most holy and wealthy cities and Florian had always enjoyed visiting it. Its greatest attraction was the massive cathedral piercing the sky at his back, with its multitude of bells within its twin bell towers, stained glass windows flanking its sides and front, impressive architecture, countless gargoyles and reliefs, and ornate and massive double doors. Florian swore he could feel the gods' presence whenever he walked within, watching him and greeting him in their soundless voices.

Before the cathedral was a wide and expansive city square, the same square where a certain woman had been sentenced to death by immolation. That woman, beautiful and enchanting to behold, had then suddenly transformed into a frightening beast that had, supposedly, rampaged through the streets, killing with abandon. Florian had met that woman and beast in Sauradia and had never truly believed the rumors about them. After that apparently demonic beast had saved his life, and that of his father's and Sauradia's royal family, he knew he had been right to deny the common impression of them. They were lost souls searching for a home and he hoped that perhaps they had found one.

For it seemed as if the end of the world had arrived.

With his father fighting the Swordenish armies in the west, so dangerously close to the capital, and the eastern borders showing signs of ogre presence, the kingdom of Frenis was already at the brink of chaos. Now there was an even greater threat emerging from the sea and into Our Lady. It wasn't an army but a single being so powerful and seemingly unbeatable that, as if by divine assistance, he had been in the city for its arrival, able to aid in its defense. He had been seeking reinforcements and fresh supplies but he doubted that he'd be leaving the city any time soon now.

The terrible force had entered Our Lady after battling all its way through forests and down roads against skirmishing forces intent on slowing it down. They had done their duty and allowed the prince and Captain Phoebus to gather a mighty force but now that this unbeatable monster was only a few streets away, Florian wondered if perhaps he should have stayed with his father and sent someone else to Our Lady.

Standing before him were three units of The Wolf's Maw, large men armoured in plate from head to toe and bearing powerful warhammers and battle axes. They were normally used to disrupt formations and demolish an enemy's armoured forces. Behind and in front of them were several dozen crossbowmen and musketeers, their weapons loaded and ready to fire. At the flanks of the defensive force were two units of the King's Chosen, heavy lancer cavalry with enchanted lances capable of piercing through stone walls and plated armour capable of resisting many blows. They were Frenis' most powerful and expensive knights and each one of them held vast acres of lands with many peasants to tend them. Florian had watched them in combat many times and had never seen them flee from a fight or ever lose one either.