The king felt no remorse as he looked upon the aircaller cowering before him. The young man was pleading for mercy, blood dripping from his nose where the commander had hit him. He had been caught sneaking around the supply tent, his pockets stuffed with food. When the guards posted on top of the Wall had caught sight of him, he had tried to use his air to get away, but the slave was too weak to even summon a mild breeze. The alarm had sounded and there was no way out. Stealing was a crime punished by death at the Wall and so, since the king was present, the man was brought before him.526Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTBc2WxldEK
'He arrived with the new load last week,' Lord Aaryan said as he bowed his head. The king looked at his commander, who was now standing behind the traitor. The loathing in his eyes clearly visible. It was a young man, but his years at the Wall had cost him dearly. They said one has to be tough when living among the slaves and the king had to take only one look at Lord Aaryan to realize how true this was. He was barely twenty-five years old, but he already had fine lines marking his face.
'When the guards searched his tent they found more food, hidden in a hole in the ground.' The king nodded and noted how the Lord's hand was already resting on the hilt of his sword. A vengeful man, ever since the untimely death of his father. Killed by a waterworker while being in charge of the Wall before his son took over. He was one of many deaths during a riot. The waterworker and his accomplices have long been punished, but the young Lord has never been the same.
'What shall we do with him, Your Majesty?' the commander asked. A Show. There was a known punishment for traitors and Lord Aaryan knew it all too well, him being the one to perform the execution willingly everytime a slave stept out of line.
The king looked the aircaller over once again. 'Every slave knows there is no place for traitors at the building site,' he said, and he fixed his eyes on Lord Aaryan again, 'but maybe we have to remind them of what happens to those who undermine my power.'
It had already taken generations to build the Wall as far as it stood today and both King Terrell and his commander had no interest in any more delay. That is the first thing every truckload hears when arriving here
The king allowed his gaze to wander towards the forest beyond the Wall on which they now stood. Green as far as the eye could see and the one thing causing his kingdom to be in such great turmoil. It was his great great-grandfather who had first realized that the state of his kingdom was due to the forest. And the thing living in it. Now that the build was almost completed, there would finally be peace.
A thought suddenly crossed his mind and the mouth of the king curled into a pleased grin. 'Send him into the forest,' he said softly, keeping his eyes fixed on the eastern horizon. The man at his feet startled, his face white as ash. With wide eyes he looked up at the king, his mouth moving in silent prayer
Suddenly he made a move as to grab onto the robes of the king, but Lord Aaryan was faster. Before the man could even get close to touching the king, the commander had already caught him by his hair. A scream of agony left the traitor which was quickly muffled by a knife to the throat.
'Make one more move and I will gladly watch you choke on your own blood,' he hissed close to the captive's ear. Tears sprang from the slave's eyes, but he kept silent as the commander dragged him down the steps at the side of the Wall.
The camp at the bottom was quiet. The workday was over, but the slaves kept to themselves as they silently watched what was happening. Guards where already posted at the base of the Wall, ready to jump in would there be any unwanted disruption.
The king followed his commander down the steps, closely keeping his eyes on the slaves. They were all watching him from inside the tents lining the open place next to the unfinished part of the Wall. None of them bowed or even nodded in his presence. The king grinned. He hadn't expected them to show him any form of submission, but simply keeping quiet was something he had worked hard on to achieve. Especially when it came to his kingdoms most notorious criminals. Those who used their bond with nature to kill.
He followed Lord Aaryan to the remaining gap in the Wall, the forest calling for them on the other side. Many weak men have given in to the soft tugging at their spirit, but King Terrell would make sure this was the last man to ever disappear into the forest. He would make sure that this was the last weakling in his kingdom.
He halted at a safe distance to watch the commander push the slave to the edge of the forest, carefully keeping him at knifepoint. Once you set foot on the soil of the forest there is no turning back. And so it would happen with the slave.
The king watched as Lord Aaryan gave him one last shove into the forest and then turned around quickly to rejoin the king. Immediately, the ground underneath the slave began to coil as long vines slithered towards him like snakes towards a prey. A scream burst from the slave's lips as the vines wrapped themselves around his legs and dragged him to the ground and towards the darkness of the forest. As soon as he was out of sight, the screaming stopped and silence filled the open space once again.
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