On the final day of the war, the tranquil night sky above the capitol of Robloxia belied the rebellion happening below. In truth, the war had basically already concluded. In only a year the reigning queen Phyllis lost scores of soldiers to the advancing rebel army, led by the twin lords Dev and Edgar Richards. Eventually she decided it was futile to try to retain her fleeting power any longer. She sent what was left of her family to the Frost Isle, withdrew all of her troops from the warfront, and sent a raven to the enemy leaders announcing her surrender. She decided not another drop of blood would be spilled in her name...none but her own.
Nothing but the soft clopping of rebels on horseback could be heard in the unusually quiet city. Most of the citizens had evacuated by order of the queen, just in case those bloodthirsty rebels sought to burn the city down with her. Alas, there would be no need to do so since she was willingly relinquishing the crown. Many of the citizens she spared in her decree secretly reviled her and prayed to the god Randomize for a return to the rule of old. Yet still in her brief reign she came to love her subjects as if they were her children.
Lords Dev and Edgar and their militia approached the castle doors cautiously. Despite Lord Dev's lingering suspicion of trickery by the queen, their unresisted trek into the capitol corroborated her admission of defeat. All that was left to do was to enter the castle, slay the false queen, and take back the kingdom that was rightfully theirs. Following close behind was Lady Lisa the Second, a woman who was formerly heir to the throne herself. She was not actually part of the army, but as the head of House Rinna she funded and supplied the rebel cause. In doing so she hoped she would finally be able to enact her revenge.
"My siblings and I will take it from here," Dev said. "Lady Lisa, you will stay here with the rest of my men."
"That was not what I paid for," Lisa snapped. "I told you how much this means to me. In exchange for my patronage I expected to bear witness to that murderous witch spilling her guts to the floor."
"She's gone utterly mad..." Lady Erin, sister to Lord Dev and Edgar, remarked under her breath.
Dev fought the urge to give a tongue lashing to the bratty noble. Growing up as a commoner, he had no qualms telling off people he deemed stupid or hypocritical. But now he was a noble, and as such he was expected to treat even idiots with as high esteem as possible. He looked to Edgar for help in convincing her.
"Lady Lisa, while we respect your wishes, we cannot guarantee your safety if you accompany us any further," Edgar said softly. "We trust the word of the queen, but her younger brother is much craftier. We cannot ignore the possibility of this all being a trap. If it is, your life will be forfeit."
"But I waited so long for this day to finally come..." she choked. "There was a time I thought I would never get justice, but then you two gave me hope. And now..."
"Trust us," Dev chimed in again. "We will serve her justice in your name. I swear it."
Tears dribbled in Lisa's eyes as she thought for a moment--a moment that, given the circumstances, felt like a century. "Fine," she decided. "But...I will not settle for anything less than her death. Be it slow and agonizing or quick and painless... I want her dead. Promise me that, will you?"
"I promise," Dev replied.
Lisa nodded solemnly, and with that Dev unsaddled from his horse and beckoned his siblings Edgar, Silver, Eddie, and Erin through the gates and into the castle.
...
Lying in wait atop the throne was Queen Phyllis. Any moment they would be before her, ready to sever her head from her neck. She often looked toward the east balcony and considered flinging herself from it to avoid the torture she might endure. She knew how much the old nobility of Robloxia hated her, but she had not considered what they might do to her given the opportunity. At least, not until she lost all control.
The impending fear of pain and death was entirely unfamiliar to her. She was once a warrior, after all. No matter how many wounds her enemies inflicted onto her, she rose again and again with reckless abandon. But her wild spirit dampened when she ascended the throne and had a family with her husband John. And yet, while her family weakened her resolve, it somehow also strengthened it, as the mere hope of seeing them again kept her heart beating.
A shadow arced across the opposite wall. Footsteps clambered closer.
They were here.
...
Lady Lisa remained at the base of the castle, eager for the return of the siblings of House Richards with news of the queen's death...or even better, her head mounted upon a pike. Suddenly she felt a cold iron grip on her shoulder.
"Unhand me!" Lisa squealed.
"Lady Lisa!" The soldier who got her attention pointed up to the top of the castle, where a silhouette stood atop the eastern balcony, gilded with the orange glow of the throne room.
"Is that...her?" Lisa said.
Not a moment later, that silhouette launched from the balcony and fell, contorting in black lace, plummeting into the Bloxy River below. The soldiers chattered amongst themselves. Lisa's eyes narrowed in confusion. Was that really her? Is it really all over? Then another, much rounder silhouette emerged onto the balcony. It was unmistakeably Lord Eddie.
"Hear ye, hear ye, good people of Robloxia!" he bellowed. "...the bitch is DEAD!"
The men around her roared with cheer. However, Lady Lisa, the one most excited of any Robloxian in the country for the queen's death, fell quiet. Was that it? All she sacrificed for the sake of revenge... She singlehandedly obliterated the woman who killed her mother, and in the same vein restored the rightful heir to throne, only to feel indifference and dissatisfaction.
Nonetheless, the war was finally over. Peace was restored in the kingdom once more.
Until...
.
.
.
(You've reached the end of this episode. Thanks for reading! Let me know if you want to be tagged in future episodes!)
