Chapter 3: Things to Come

The mighty creature stood before Julius and answered him, saying, "The day will come when all is revealed on the day of reckoning. All the lords of Hell shall sound their trumpets and bring forth a new era. An age where the darkness shall eclipse light. An age of shorter days and longer nights. A time when the king of darkness shall rise and set forth a kingdom far greater than any kingdom humanity has ever known. The new king of Hell's army will never be defeated until his offspring rises against him."

"That will never happen. Who can command the forest and make the trees pull their roots out of the earth? That damnable era shall never come. Tell me, if your dark powers can see this far: will his sons or daughters ever reign in that new kingdom?" Julius asked.

Then the demon answered and said to him, "Don't you see? The games have already begun, the day of the advent shall come, and all the humans shall witness the coming of their savior. Nobody will have the power to change that day. Nobody will so much as change the events that will come to pass. The old days are over... the world needs a protector to rule over all humanity. Not even you can undo anything that you humans will endure."

Then, the demon's wings grew, and he flew away from Julius and went elsewhere. He did not go back to the enormous tower because the red light was no longer glowing in the night. Julius saw that the tower was collapsing, and all of its foundations were crumbling into many large pieces as it fell. The great evil was no longer controlling the cursed place, and there were no longer any black clouds in sight. Julius headed back home to give his report to his brother as he tried to keep his distance and tried to forget about all of this.

Unfortunately, he could not forget this fateful event that just occurred as he lived out his days as a mortal. As he walked, he could see so much blood and gore being stained on the trees, and he could see some dismembered body parts from his fallen knights. It would cause quite a stir amongst the people if they heard about demons slaughtering the humans in so many violent ways. He knew he had to keep his head out of the clouds and not forget about the dark future. A future which he will never forget and an era that would cause calamity upon those who will not bow their heads before the king of the world.

A few hours later, the morning sun vanquished the horrible night, and there were not any more creatures around. It relieved Julius that he could see the sun again; it was something that he longed to see after spending the entire night hunting down demons. Meanwhile, a few men in cloth and robes were walking on the trail that led to a faraway home that was about ten miles away from Loftain. These men were no ordinary people to be taken lightly, and they were not men who would back down in a fight. They were strolling down the road as a day was beginning for the people of the region.

They were walking to Julius's house because they had relevant information to deliver to his family in secret. Julius had no idea about any of this because he was going back to the city to address the devastating news to Harald. The men had no business or quarrel to be dealt with by anyone at the moment; they had no time to waste and nothing left to lose. One man is named Brynjar, who is the leader of the mysterious men delivering the news. They had to let his wife and daughter know of the knight leader's fate and what would likely happen to them.

And so, they made it towards the front doors of the house and gazed upon it as the sun was slowly rising above the clouds. The house wasn't huge, and it only had three bedrooms and a small living room; it wasn't enough to fit so many people all at once. Brynjar walks towards the front door as everyone else stays behind him and begins knocking on the door. There was no answer for a few seconds, and nobody came to answer the door for a moment. Before anyone could do anything else, Julius's wife, Lucy, pulls the door open and sees all the men who stood before her.

Lucy was very young and knew many things about suspicious men who carried important business along with them. She knew Julius for as long as she could remember, and she has always lived a happy life with him. She also knew that Julius is commonly never coming home on such occasions as the one from last night. Unlike her husband, she was never skilled with the sword and never taught herself how to use weapons. She stood before the men and waited for them to give their reason for being with her; they didn't want Julius to know that strangers were coming inside their home.

Then Brynjar said to her, "Greetings. I am Brynjar, and we are the brotherhood of Anduin. We have come here to remind you of the many things that shall soon occur. My sincere apologies for disrupting your morning. We cannot pick another time of the day to discuss some news with you. These mostly have to do with Julius and his heritage."

"How do you know about us?" Lucy asked.

"I must know of the people whose fate has been sealed. It is my curse to learn and know the fates of those who have been purged by it," he said.

"How can you be so sure of this?"

"Don't be afraid. Even the severe consequences that your husband has endured always come with a hidden meaning. I am ready to share it with you."

"Would you like to have a drink?"

"No, thank you. We are not as thirsty as most people are."

"Is there anything that I can do for you? You must seem tired after walking for so long."

"Don't worry about us. We know how to take care of ourselves."

"Alright, then. You may enter."

Then, Lucy allows them to come inside her house with Brynjar leading the way; there were only five men with him. The wise man saw the house and noticed that it was organized entirely and deeply cleaned. Lucy always made sure that her house was clean, and she taught Lagertha how to clean up on her own. The men of Anduin were ancient and were men of peace, even though the news they bring can cause quite an uproar. And before any of them could say anything to welcome each other, Lagertha walked out of her room and saw the older men with Lucy.

"Mother, who are these people?" Lagertha asked.

"Go back to your room, Lagertha. I'll call you in a few minutes," Lucy said. While turning away, the young teenager took a sharp look at the men of Anduin and saw eyes that carried fate and destiny with them.

It was something that she would be forced to carry with her for the rest of her life, and she might carry it along with her offspring. As she went back to her room, she kept the door slightly opened to hear everything that the older man had to say for himself. Lucy allows them to sit down on the sofa as she brings up a chair to sit herself on. She was always respectful towards strangers and those who seemed to carry news about her family. Lagertha hides behind her door and listens to every word that Brynjar will say to her mother; she did not know if they were good news or bad news.

"I welcome you to my home. It's not much, but it's all I can afford," Lucy said.

"We appreciate the kind offer that you give us all. And we are honored to be invited by all who are pure of heart," Brynjar said.

"But that's not why you're here, right?" She asked.

"Now that we are all situated and not outside where he can likely have a good glimpse at us, it's time that we deliver what is fated to happen."

"What on earth are you on about?"

"Julius of Romania, brother of Harald of Midland. The man whose brother was the rightful heir to the throne has been seeing visions. Visions that would most definitely endanger every single person he knows and loves. The day will come when his fate will take full effect, and there will be nothing he can do to change this."