Unbroken - Prologue. Prologue

In the castle of Alerna Kingdom, a small medieval kingdom, 17 years ago...

*
The door to the throne room suddenly flung open, making a terrible sound and getting the great king Wyatt out of his important thoughts. He wondered who had the nerves to disturb him when he specifically told everyone including his wife and kids not to disturb him. He quickly opened his eyes to see his royal adviser coming in close to him, panting and racing.

"What?" Wyatt yelled, furiously looking at the blond guy coming straight at him. "Didn't I say..."

"So...sorry, your majesty," The man quickly came and bowed before the great king. "But what I have is far more important than..."

"Speak!" The king's voice filled the whole throne room, sounding as if a loud roar had been uttered. Those who heard his voice trembled. They wondered what could have angered the great king to the point where he would shout out like that. "This better be as important as you say it is or I shall your head for it."

The great adviser gulped, trying to stay calm. "It is pretty important. It concerns you, my lord. I only..."

"Speak!" The king grew impatient with each passing second. He could feel himself boiling up, ready to kill the man who had dared to disturb his precious moment.

The man stood and went near the great king. He bowed again and breathed in audibly. "What I have is for the king's ears only. If someone else heard of it then...it might lead to unwanted results."

"Fine." The king said softly, trying to make himself calm. "You may whisper it then."

The royal adviser went straight to the king and began whispering to him. "Your highness, a child was born today."

"What business do I have with..."

"You don't understand your highness." The royal adviser's voice trembled. "This child was born exactly as it was prophesied."

"What?" The king furiously rose from his throne, trembling like a leaf.

"Yes...your highness," The royal adviser said softly. He was just hoping the king wouldn't be too furious as to vent his anger on him.

The king's breath became harsh, his eyes widened and his body trembled as if he was vibrating. His pale face suddenly turned pink, showing just how angry he was. Adrenaline was now rushing to every part of his body, making him fume. The royal adviser could swear that he saw fire in the king's eyes. He was now more scared than ever.

"Tell me you are kidding?" The king quickly turned, now looking at the scared looking man before him. "If this is a joke I shall have your head for it." The king warned, giving his nose flare of total anger.

"I kid you not, my lord." The man said quietly.

"That child cannot be born now." The king nodded in anger. "A child like that can ruin everything...everything that I have worked for. Everything can be ruined by that child and I will not allow it."

He walked about the room, cursing and shouting. His voice echoed throughout the room, putting fear into the soul of anyone who heard him from outside. He was angry than he had ever been and every passing moment was just bringing more anger into him.

The king quickly moved and went straight to the man who had brought the news of the birth of this new threat, probably the greatest threat that he had ever experienced.

"Where was this child born?" The king's voice was filled with so much evil.

"In the village," The adviser said softly, trying to hide his shaky hands.

"Village uh," The king's face lit up with the brightest smile that he had ever had. "Do you know the exact house?"

"Yes, my lord." He bowed again, trying not to come into contact with the angry king. "As soon as I found out about the birth, I had some guards watch over the house. If you want, I can send a word and..."

"No!" The king moved away, hitting on his chest furiously. He was angry...he was scared...he was...but wait. "Anyone who fits those features mentioned in the legend will be a great threat to my plans." He said. "But lucky for me," he laughed teasingly, rubbing his temple softly. "He is nothing but a baby, a harmless little baby. I will have the pleasure of dealing with that threat myself."

He moved and made eye contact with his advisor. Then he repositioned his crown and gave an evil grin. No one was going to ruin his plans or make him scared. He was King Wyatt and no magician of any good cause was going to ruin anything for him. He was going to fulfill the prophecy, the prophecy for which he was born for. No one was going to prevent him from acquiring the powers of Lord Ming, no one.

With an evil grin, he turned and held his hands together. "Guards!" The king's voice filled the whole castle. In just a few seconds, armed guards started filling the whole throne room. He knew it was time to act smart. It was gonna be now or never. He was gonna make history.

Seeing the guards all lined up, ready to anything at his instructions, he felt like some power had just entered his body. He smiled brightly as his guards as he started going near to give instructions.

Only one thing was on his mind. That new born baby was gonna die before he even realized what was going on.

***

Two hours later...a small village in the same Kingdom...

*

As Tony, his wife, and his mother sat on the dining, enjoying a wonderful dinner to celebrate the coming of their little bundle of joy, a loud bang was heard on the door. Everyone moved their gaze to the door, wondering who could have been knocking like that at that time.

"I'll get it." Tony chuckled, moving away from the table. Whoever was at the door sure sounded impatient? But he didn't get worried. It was probably some people who couldn't wait to see the cute little baby, he thought.

Tony quickly moved towards the door and opened it, revealing a wonderful beautiful older who was slightly trembling.

"Mama Jo, what..." mama Jo was a childhood friend of his mother. They were really great friends.

"I am sorry for disturbing you." She quickly apologized. Then all of a sudden, she moved inside and shut the door.

"Are you alright?" Tony asked, wondering what was with the older woman that day.

"Yes," She said softly. "I mean, no."

"What is it, Mama Jo?" Tony asked. "What seems to..."

"I heard the king and some of his guards are coming here." Mama Jo said, shaking softly.

"What?"

"Yes," She said, drawing the attention of the others at the table. "I think you need to leave this place as soon as possible." She was sounding worried and her voice was trembling, making Tony and his family wonder what was going on.

"But why..." Too late. Before he could finish the sentence, a loud bang was heard on the door again. The bang was different from when Mama Jo had come in earlier. He didn't mind though because he was a person who loved receiving guests.

Tony nodded and then turned to leave for the door before Mama Jo held his arm tightly. He quickly moved and saw just how tense she was looking. She was also sweating. Whatever was wrong with the woman was bigger than he had actually thought.

"Mama..."

"Take your son away and..."

"What...why?" Tony couldn't understand the woman anymore.

"Listen to me." She literally yelled, dragging Tony to the dining table. "You need to take your son out now."

"Why?" Clara, Tony's wife asked, getting from the chair. She looked at her sleeping baby and wondered what Mama Jo was talking about. Who would want to harm her cute little baby? He was no threat to anyone, right?

What followed next was scary for everyone in the house. Right there as they stood in the house, they heard someone trying to break the door from outside the house. Then they heard the voice which made them tremble.

"Open in the name of the king." Whoever was at the door shouted?

"You need to leave." Mama Jo's voice whispered, bringing fear into Tony and his wife.

Tony was somehow getting scared by what was happening. He looked at his wife, hating to see her looking so vulnerable. She was supposed to be happy after giving birth to such a beautiful child especially after trying for so long. That child was a miracle in their lives. Moving his eyes away, Tony looked at the beautiful sleeping baby and he sighed. Nothing was going to happen to his child. He was sure that nothing was wrong. But he needed to be careful, especially if what the old woman said was the truth.

"Go and hide with the baby until I call to you." Tony ordered his wife, hoping what Mama Jo had just told them was just a joke. But how could it be a joke when he heard someone from outside ordering to open the door in the name of the king. He wondered why Mama Jo had asked them to run away with the baby. What could be wrong with him?

Without even saying a word, Clara rushed out of the living room and went to the bedroom which was slightly closer to the living room.

When Clara left with Tony's mother, Tony looked at Mama Jo with worry on his face. Before he could even utter a word, he rushed to the door and opened it. What he found there had him worried and scared. There were about ten guards and they all entered the house as soon as he had opened the door.

He quickly moved in the house and just stared at the guards who had come to his house. Whatever had brought them was pretty important. To top it all, they were really armed and they gave him chills. And the way they were looking all around the house made him shiver and more scared than he had ever been in his life. He quickly looked at the older woman who had been standing there the whole time.

"Where is it?" The voice that Tony heard scared him most of all. He moved his eyes to the door and saw the king slowly entering the house with his hands back. He was not wearing a crown or his robe. He was just in casual attire.

Immediately Tony and Mama Jo saw him, they both bowed down and gave him the praises he liked so much. They knew better than to anger the great king, who for some reason had come to his house. Man he was scared.

"Keep that to yourselves," the king dismissed rudely before they even finished with their praises.. "Where is it?"

"Where is what?" Tony asked, trying to look confident. The fact that the king himself was in his house was what got him worried. Immediately the king had come into the house he knew that there was trouble. He also knew that the king was looking for his son.

"Where is your child?"

"Child..."

"Don't play coy with me." The king warned, nearing the subject who was kneeling down. "Where is that baby that was born today?"

"Well..."

"I am getting impatient so..." He yelled out, his voice filling the whole house. "...where is it?" Tony swore the house shook.

"My lord, please." He said softly, not even raising his face for a second. "My son is not..."

Before he could even finish his sentence, the king gave out a loud growl, grabbing a sharp sword from one of his guards. "I ask again, where is that baby?"

Tony's body shook in fear when he heard the king's voice. It was of total and pure evil. He knew the king was cunning and ruthless but his son was just a baby. What business did he have with the king?

"Please, your majesty." Tony said softly, bringing his hands together. "Temper justice with mercy. My son is just a baby and..."

"I will only ask once," the king sounded impatient. "Where is that baby?" Then after asking that question which hit Tony like a thousand arrows, he held the sword tighter and pointed it at Tony's neck, ready to cut his head off. "Where is it?" the king yelled, making Tony tremble.

When the king heard that Tony was not responding, he got so mad that not even wild horses would stop him from unleashing his fury on the stupid man, a subject refused to answer his question. That was an insult to him and his royal family. He was gonna find that baby no matter what. He couldn't allow that baby to grow up, never.

Seeing the impertinence coming from a subject, the king furiously raised the sword in the air and started charging it towards Tony's neck. He was breathing harshly and his hand trembled. He didn't care whether he killed the foolish man or not. What he cared about was preventing a threat from growing up. He was charging with such force but stopped mid-way and just held the sword tightly.

"Guards," He called angrily. The guards bowed to him. "Search the house and find that baby. And when you do..." He chuckled, enjoying the way the man trembled. "...kill him."

"No!" The cries of Tony filled the whole house. He was now scared more than ever. "Please, don't do that. I beg of you and..." He felt a huge lump in his throat. He couldn't find the right words to use to make the king to withdraw everything he had said. But what could an ambitious and evil king like him do to stop, nothing?

"That child must die." The king said as if he didn't care about the life of the baby he was going to ruin. "Now tell me where..."

"Kill me." Tony said confidently, rising from the floor. "Kill me and leave my child out of this. Why would you want to harm a baby? You are really evil. I will not let you harm my son." He said, blocking the king's path. He's just a child you..." Before Tony could finish his sentence, he felt a sharp pain in his stomach. That sharp pain quickly travelled to the rest of his body, leaving him breathless and in pain. Veins shot up in his eyes and he could feel his trouser getting wet...with his own blood. The king had pierced him with a sword and it hurt like hell.

"Fool!" The king growled, pushing the sword deeper. He didn't like to be insulted, not even by his own family. Killing the subject was a good thing. He had already gotten on his nerves. "Foolish man,"

"You..." Tony couldn't say anything more as the pain was just too much. He felt like his insides had been sliced into tiny pieces. Never in his life had he experienced such pain in his life. It was like his brain had stopped functioning but he was only hoping for his child and his wife to run away. He didn't know how but he wanted them to run away.

"When I ask a question," the king said softly, driving the sword further in, causing the man to grunt and wince in pain. "I expect answers." Then with one final evil chuckle, he gripped the sword harder and pulled it out, letting the man fall on the floor while blood gushed from him, flooding the floor. The king could feel his breaths becoming short and harsh. Tony held his belly, feeling hot blood gushing out. His heart beat was getting fainter and everything else was starting to blur. He tried to move his mouth to speak but he couldn't find his own voice. In just a few second he was lying in a pool of his own blood. He could hear someone screaming faintly, from a distance but he was getting weaker. He prayed in his heart for his son's safety and died a painful death.

The king quickly gave the sword back to the guard and used his handkerchief to wipe blood from his hands. Then he moved and looked at the trembling screaming old woman near him and he just got madder. "Pathetic!" He rolled his eyes in fury.

"Care to tell me...oh forget it." He grunted, facing his guards.

"I want you to search this house and kill anyone who is found here starting with this old woman. Bring that baby to me. I will finish him myself. But...don't let anyone survive okay?'

The king stood, still wiping his hands while enjoying the screams from the old woman as his guard sliced her throat. She fell on the floor choking on her own blood. Now, he only had one more thing to deal with. He knew the baby was still in the house.

***

Tony's mother who had been watching everything from the door watched as the king killed her son. She felt like something had just killed her heart. The pain was too much and the tears started pouring on their own. Her son was killed but she couldn't just sit and watch while her grandson was killed as well. She quickly moved towards Clara.

"You need to leave now." She said abruptly, helping the mother to get up. She tried to be as calm as she could, not try to alarm her daughter in law. "You need to run away with my grandson."

"But..."

"Please," She whispered, getting her grandson from Clara. "You need to leave."

"What about Tony?" Clara asked. "Besides, I don't think I have the strength to run mother. I just gave birth and I have not fully recovered."

"Alright," The woman said, holding her grandson tightly. "We will leave together. Just..." She paused and then began looking all around her. She quickly moved towards a window and opened it. Then checking all around to make sure no one was around, she opened the window and gave the child to his mother. She quickly got out of the window since it was not that far from the ground. Then she took the child from its mother and tried to smile even though the pain was too much.

"Let's go," She sniveled. "Get out and..."

"No!" Clara said softly, tears now flooding her face. "I know that Tony is dead." She cried softly. "Take care of my son." She extended her hand and touched her son. "I don't know why the evil king wants him dead but he must not die. I cannot live without my husband and..."

"Listen to me," The woman said softly. "Your son needs..." She paused and trembled when she heard the loud cry from inside the house. It was Mama Jo's voice and she knew that something bad had happened.

"Go," Clara cried softly. "I'll hold them off. Take care of my son."

With one final smile of pain, Clara closed the window shut and went back to the room. She sat on the bed and wept of her loss and how her life had turned out to be. Things didn't go quite as planned but she just hoped her son would be far away from the kingdom and the clutches of the evil king. Everyone knew the king was evil but he didn't do anything as evil as killing people. Not to talk about killing an innocent child for no reason at all. The most painful thing was thinking about the king killing her husband. Her son had to survive. They had prayed a lot just for her to get pregnant.

Sitting on the bed, crying and weeping, Clara heard the door busting open. Then two guards came inside and without uttering a word, grabbed both her arms and got her out to the living room, before the king. Clara's wails intensified when she saw her husband, dead and lying in the pool of his own blood. She felt like she was dead already. There was nothing more to live for.

"Where is the baby?" The king was angry.

"We didn't find any baby, my lord."

"What?" Wyatt sneered, quickly moving to the crying woman on the floor. Then he held and twisted her arm, enjoying the expression of pain on her wet face. "Where is it?"

Clara was furious and she didn't mind dying. "You won't find him, you evil king." She yelled in his face. Then she courageously spat on his ugly face and continued crying.

The king let go of her and moved his hand to his face, wiping the spit. He was angry...he was fuming...he was thirsty for blood. That was the height of humiliation and from a commoner as well. He was not gonna allow such disrespect for his royalty.

Clara on the other hand watched as the king's face turned red with anger. She knew her days on earth had ended and she was ready to be killed just like her husband. But what followed next had Clara's heart miss a beat with fear. She had gone back to leaning on her husband, expecting a sword to slice her neck but that isn't what happened. Right in front of her, the king clenched on his fists as his anger went to maximum and he groaned like an evil warrior. Then suddenly, he said some funny words and Clara's wails stopped. She watched as smoke began moving from the king's fists and just like a dream, the king's fists caught fire but he didn't seem like he was burning at all. It was like that that fire was a part of him.
Clara was scared. She couldn't cry anymore. She was trembling and her heart was pounding deep in her chest, making her body weak. Then she started crawling backwards, trying to get away from the evil king. What she had seen was bad enough to make her second think about death.

Then crawling backwards, she hit a wall and watched as the king extended his fits and pointed them at her. It was all over for her but just when she had thought she was going to die, the fire on the king's fists suddenly turned bright blue and went off, leaving the king cursing and angrier than ever.

"Tell me where that child is." The king ordered, breathing like an evil warrior. "Tell me where that evil child is and I will spare your life."

"Never," Clara said, knowing the consequences of her actions would be deadly.

"I said..." The king trailed off when he heard the cry of a baby. It was not sounding near but he could hear it quite clearly. "Ha ha," The king gave out an evil laugh. Then he quickly turned to the guards and ordered them to find where the child was and kill him.

As the guards left, the king gave an evil smile to Clara and killed her instantly with a sword. Then he left, knowing that no one would be able to know what had happened. Even if they knew, nothing was gonna happen to him. After all, he was the king and his words were enough.

***

Beatrice was running as quickly as she could, holding her grandson who was crying out loudly. She was headed for the forest where she was hoping she would find a way out of the kingdom or a way to hide away from the evil king. She didn't want her grandson to die like his father and probably his mother. She had no idea why the king wanted to kill her grandson. Every child that had been born in the kingdom was alive so what was with the king and her grandson?

"There," One of the guards shouted, pointing to the running woman and her child. "Follow her and kill the both of them."

Hearing what the guards had said, Beatrice held the baby tighter and added speed to her legs. She was getting really tired but she knew there was no way she was gonna stop for even a second. She had to save the child no matter what.

"Hey," The guards shouted, running as fast as their legs could carry them. "Stop in the name of the king."

Beatrice took a quick glance behind and saw that the guards were getting nearer. She couldn't allow them near her grandson no matter what. She continued running in the forest till she reached her end, a cliff and it was a long way down. She looked everywhere and there was no other place to run. The worst was that the guards were coming in close.

"What am I going to do?" She cried, trying to soothe the baby who had been crying for a long time. She looked at him and cried. He was such a cute baby and she had no idea what such a harmless cute thing had done to make the king mad.

"It's gonna be okay." She whispered, trying to find a way out. But before she could turn and began finding a way out, she felt a sharp pain in her back and then something hot travelling down her back. From the excruciating pain that she felt, she knew that she had been shot. She then began trembling in fear, trying to hold the baby tighter but she fell to her knees and tried to move away but the pain was just too much.

"Give me the baby." She heard a deep manly voice from behind.

Beatrice slowly managed to get up and turn around. She saw about five armed guards all looking down at her. She was now scared of what was going to happen.

"Why?" She cried, wincing in pain. "What...what has this innocent..."

"We don't know." The guards said rudely. "And we absolutely don't care. We are just following orders so give it to us." The guard then started moving towards her and she started moving behind, reaching the final step on that cliff. She looked down and it was such a long way. She was going to die but she couldn't allow her grandson to die. The only thing she didn't know about was how she was gonna save him from evil people.

"Give us the..." The guard trailed off when she saw the old woman trembling to the point where her hands couldn't hold the baby anymore. She was bleeding from her back, where the arrow had hit her and she fell to the ground, the baby slipping from her hands. The baby fell down the long cliff, into what was known as a crock infested river under there. There was no way that baby was gonna survive.

The guards watched motionless as the baby's cries filled their ears while it fell down the cliff until they could no longer hear it. They all knew that it was dead already. Their job was done. It was not a good death but at least it was dead and not by their hands too. They nodded sadly and moved their eyes towards the woman at the edge of the cliff, she was dead. They finished her off by throwing her off the cliff to give the crocodiles another tasty meal. But this one was bigger. They moved from the forest.

Moving away from the forest, the guards went back to the palace to report what had happened. Hearing the word the guards had brought, the king smiled brightly. He could now live happily without fear. And now he was gonna master the power of the great Ming. After that, he was gonna conquer the greatest kingdom of all time and get it back. He was gonna take back what belonged to his ancestors without any threat. And he knew how to do that, especially with the threat out of the way.

"Good riddance." The evil king's laughs filled the whole castle.