The Centurion - 1. Chapter 1

Prelude

A child of love and hate be born

A child above a city of white

A maze through which the darkness fights

To claim its love and with love unite

Together the two will force the fight

The force of hatred and death unite

Two worlds of man a war will make

Till Angel, Demon, Man must fly

From Ares red to blue star nigh

The song of Armageddon...

Part I – Qul Tos

Chapter One:

The Boy in the Tower

This foul seeds

The rot that grew within me

Nine months of shame

Its only gift the pain of birth

Giving life to one of no worth

A curse I spit on man that walks the earth

All I see in he

Is something that should not be

A he...

A he...

A he...

The words of the Queen Mother on the birth of her son, Jason the IX.

Out on the balcony of the tower that had been his only home, a small pale-skinned boy watched the busy movements of the people far below in the white walled and blue tiled capital city of the kingdom of Qul Tos. It was the very city from which the kingdom gained its name famed for its silver and gems. Here, the Labyrinth Tower, the greatest achievement of the Tosian people, a fortress that had never fallen, was nothing more than a gilded prison for the unhappy prince.

The five-year-old boy had already learned his name, his letters,

and his numbers, the small library inside the towers walls his only

escape from his prison’s confines. Besides being very precocious, he

was also remarkable in his appearance, with long brown hair, emerald green eyes, and skin perfect and smooth, the color of milk, a rare sight among the olive-skinned Tosians.

Unfortunately, he was also an incredibly sad child, for under the rich white and blue robes he wore was a broken heart and a bruised body, living in a near loveless existence.

Still, by the age of five, he had found something to help him escape his own suffering... his books. From them he learned of the words... mother, father, brother, friend and most importantly... love.

Love... it was as if the boy lived in a desert with no oasis to offer him relief. His mother hated him... despising his very existence. His father... he had never seen any man, let alone his own father, but he knew he had to have one. For even while the books he read told him about the nature of man, the very sight of his fellow “men” was kept away from him by Eleanor, Queen Mother, and Regent of the Kingdom of Qul Tos.

While being born the crown prince, he was without a crown, a

secret kept from the people. In his place his mother used a small pretty

girl whom the people readily accepted as their future Queen. Still his mother dared not to kill him. She would torture him both emotionally and physically but could not bring herself to killing him yet, just in case his father and his “evil” Centurions ever came for him.

At least that was what his mother told him... “Watch out or the ‘Centurion’ beasts will come to kill you.” It was repeated to him so many times that the prince, knowing no better, believed it.

Little did the true heir know that today, was to be the turning point in his mother’s plans. After five years without his father coming to claim him, Eleanor felt safe that now was the time to make the girl she had stolen from her peasant parents the official heir to the throne and rid herself of her defective spawn once and for all. That joyous event Eleanor had planned for this very day.

So, for the first time he could remember one of his mother’s

female bodyguards came for him and took him out of the Labyrinth

Tower and through the maze that protected it. For the young child this

was his first adventure. Little did he know what was waiting for him.

A young maid, her black dress covered with a light blue apron, saw one of the Regent’s bodyguards holding the hand of a small boy. The maid found the frail child with an excited expression on his face, his hand shaking so much that it caused the armored left arm of the guard to clatter against her breastplate.

“What is wrong, child?” the maid asked, trying to comfort the boy.

“I’ve never been here before. Am I really supposed to be here?” Jason asked, his face red with joy.

“Why do you say that? The regent asked for you herself,” the guard replied with false cheer; she knew quite well what her mistress intended to do with her son.

Seeing that she could not comfort the boy, the maid’s attention shifted to the guard, wanting to learn if the rumor was true. “Is it possible?” she asked in an excited voice. “Is the Regent finally going to show the people the royal heir?

The guard did not say a word, but she didn’t push her way past the curious maid either.

The maid, reaching into her leather pouch, took out a small silver coin. She held up the shiny piece up to the bodyguard’s face and watched as a large smirk grew on what had been the guard’s cold, hard glare. Letting go of the boy’s hand, the guard took the coin with her gloved fingers. The guard then moved in closer so she could whisper into the maid’s ear, “The Regent is introducing the heir to the nobles as we speak.”

The maid jumped up and down with joy, hands joined together in prayer. “I wish I could see the princess... her beauty is said to even rival that of the Regent.”

The bodyguard burst into light laughter. “Never let her ladyship know you think that.”

Suddenly the two women were interrupted by the sound of a child’s laughter. “Mommy!” was heard being shouted down the hall. It was a young boy’s voice.

The guard, her eyes now wide with shock and fear, searched the halls for her young charge but found no one but the maid next to her. “Who was that boy next to you? A very pretty child is he not?” the maid asked innocently.

The guard gave the maid a hard look and, before she could make any response, cut her throat.

“Your taste for gossip has finally cost you more then you could afford,” the guard spat, dropping the silver coin on the ground. Hearing the sound of more laughter, the guard did not even bother to sheath her knife but ran with it still in her hand, sticky with blood, as she followed the boy’s joyful laughter.

The Regent’s eyes gleamed like blue lighting across the throne room at the nobles bowed before her, her back straight up against the cold metal silver throne. Along her spine she felt a near sexual rush, brought on by the feel of the hard grip she had over her subjects. “Bow lower!” Eleanor commanded. Laughing, the Regent watched as the conical hats of the ladies and the iron circlets of the lords came falling off their heads as she kept them genuflected before her. Turning her gaze to look down at the small girl sitting next to her, the Regent let her face take on a kinder expression. “See my daughter... see how funny they all look.”

“Yes mother,” the girl giggled.

“Now, which one do you want to be your maid?” The Regent snickered as she turned her eyes on the well-dressed ladies. “Do you want a baroness, a countess, or maybe even a duchess?”

“I want the prettiest one!” The little girl laughed.

“Now now dear, you do not want to pick a servant whose beauty

will receive more attention than your own.”

“But I don’t want an ugly one!” the girl pouted, near to tears. Seeing a single drop of water fall down the girl’s face the Regent

was suddenly filled with anger. Raising her hand, she slapped the tear flat on to the girl’s face, leaving a red handprint. “Never cry! You will

one day be queen and a queen never shows weakness in front of those who could threaten their rule!”

“I’m sorry, Regent!” the little girl sobbed, more tears streaming

down her face.

Furious that the girl once again forgot to call her “mother”, Eleanor, pointed to one of her bodyguards. “Take her away!”

“Yes Regent.” The guard bowed, taking a firm hold of the little girl’s hand.

The guard was just opening a side door when a young boy darted in, running straight for the Eleanor. “Mommy!” The boy laughed.

For a brief second the Regent was stunned into silence as Jason tried to jump into her lap. Her eyes then moved toward the nobles looks of confusion on their faces. Eleanor knew they would soon realize the truth... “Clear the room!” she screeched at her guards.

While the members of the royal court were forcefully ushered out, Eleanor paced the room, the rare look of fear growing on her face. Today had been planned for over four years. It was to be the day she would have fooled her nobles and peasants alike into believing a country whelp of a girl was the Regent’s true child and heir to the Silver Throne. Not her pathetic son. Regardless of his attempts to gain her attention and love, to her his very touch was like that of a leech, sucking away not her blood but something she valued more... her power as Regent. If only she dared to kill him sooner, as she had planned since his birth. Taking her son’s thin left arm with both hands, she tried to snap it apart with all the strength her rage and fears could muster.

“Mommy no!” Jason screamed as his arm wracked with pain. “Mommy... mommy...” he yelled, his heart tearing apart as much as his arm.

As she pulled on her son’s arm, Eleanor remembered the events that had led to this day, the worst day in history, not just for her and Qul Tos, but all the Eastern Kingdoms as well.