The treatment lasted for only a few seconds before Orbak collapsed to the ground. He panted as he grabbed his leg. He then noticed something\u2026or rather, a lack of something. Marshii finished treating Malnar, then they both ran up to him. Marshii waved a scanner near his legs, then her face fell. \u201cAll nerve endings below the knee are severed,\u201d she reported. \u201cHe\u2019s paralyzed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDaddy, what in the Depths!\u201d demanded Malnar. \u201cThere was no reason to do that!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo reason?!\u201d growled Orbak. \u201cBarath harmed you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEr, technically speaking, I<\/em> harmed her,\u201d gulped the Troll.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou were controlled,\u201d dismissed Orbak. \u201cHe still harmed Malnar through you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd thanks to your recklessness, Daddy,\u201d snarled Malnar, \u201cyou\u2019ve lost the ability to walk!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThus always to those who harm my family! That\u2019s why I signed that Blood Contract in the first place!\u201d Orbak showed off the back of his hand to reveal his signature still scarred onto it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI signed that same thing!\u201d Malnar showed her own hand. \u201cAnd I didn\u2019t sign it just so you could do this! This will hamper your ability to beat Oyed!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, Malnar, this won\u2019t. Not if I choose the right help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMeaning?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCome now, the contract didn\u2019t say I couldn\u2019t get help. As such, it\u2019s not weaseling out of it. My life is not yet forfeit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCould someone explain this \u2018blood contract\u2019 to me?\u201d asked Hanjar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe swore that we would stop the Realm Trinity Empire and put our lives on the line to prevent us from reneging on it,\u201d explained Malnar. \u201cIf we fail, we die of a heart attack.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026You\u2019re willing to sacrifice yourselves?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Realms MUST be freed from Oyed, in our eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026While two of my men bring your doctor and father back to your ship, my son will take over as you show him what the Realmfleet symbol looks like so he can fly it as well as our banner over this fort.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWait, then this means\u2026?\u201d asked Orbak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt means that Oyed has failed us for the final time and this nasty affair is settled in my eyes. The Gryphons are joining you, so you WON\u2019T lose your life to the Blood Contract. You have identified a mess and cleaned it up beautifully. You have an ally in me, King Orbak Emboramii, the wisest, most fatherly, and most powerful of all the Under-realm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou flatter me, King Hanjar.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPlease, no need to use my title. We are now friends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn that case, I must ask the same of you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Very well, Orbak!\u201d He then turned to two Gryphons. \u201cYou two, get him and Dr. Marshii back to their ship!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, My Lord!\u201d replied one of the Gryphons as he and his partner picked them up and put them on their backs. Before they left, they heard something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Is\u2026is that\u2026weeping?\u201d asked the other Gryphon. Malnar then pointed to Barath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t want the fort!\u201d he blubbered. \u201cI don\u2019t want the fort! I never wanted the fort! I never wanted the fort! I want nothing to do with the fort! You can have it, it\u2019s YOUR fort, all right?! YOUR fort! I don\u2019t want the fort! I\u2019m not trying to take the fort! I would never try to take the fort! Would you just keep the bloody fort?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs\u2026is that Barath?!\u201d asked Marshii.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, just a shadow of him!\u201d shuddered Malnar. \u201cDaddy, you did more than shame him! You BROKE him!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026I\u2019d rather die than live like that!\u201d gulped the Gryphon carrying Orbak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThus always to those who harm people that are precious to me,\u201d remarked Orbak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026You two better go,\u201d Malnar said to the Gryphons. \u201cAnd\u2026speak of this to no one.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCome on, we better go,\u201d remarked Marshii\u2019s Gryphon. \u201cThis place is giving me the creeps now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026You\u2019re a cruel one when push comes to shove, Your Majesty,\u201d Orbak\u2019s Gryphon remarked to the Under-king. The two Gryphons then took off and flew out of the balcony as Hanjar came out to address the crowd below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis fortress,\u201d he announced, \u201cas per the arrangement with Orbak and Realmfleet, is now under Gryphon control! A group, originating under the Realmfleet flag, has declared itself faithless to both it and Oyed\u2019s faction! Oyed offered no explanations, Realmfleet offered them in abundance! They declared their intentions to fix this mistake, taking up most of the work while we dealt with matters that are trivial in the long run! That is not to say that we did nothing! We have fought and suffered, but still, we stand! Thanks to Realmfleet, the conspirators have been put to the sword and their leader is a broken mess, as he should be! We now hold this fortress for us AND Realmfleet! Here, the Realm Trinity Empire will find no weakness, no mercy, only the unassailable strength of our fighters! There is no doubt in my mind that Oyed will hear of this and attempt to punish us! He will find himself unable to withstand our fighting skill! In the days ahead, there will be other battles and we will suffer losses, as my ally, Orbak Emboramii, the all-powerful ruler of the Under-realm, has suffered, but we shall use that pain to fuel us in our crusade! Starting today, the Gryphons fight alongside the rulers of all the Realms! THE GRYPHONS FLY THE BANNER OF REALMFLEET!\u201d He then took out a large flag from his backpack, waved it to unfurl it, then slammed it into the floor of the balcony as a wind flew by, waving the flag of Realmfleet. The crowd below cheered as Hanjar spread his wings and grinned. Malnar and the rest of the team saw the whole thing. When they left the fort, Malnar spoke to a Gryphon woman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGuy sure knows how to work a crowd,\u201d she muttered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s why he rules us,\u201d replied the Gryphon. \u201cI heard about what happened to your father. I\u2019m sorry for what he suffered.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKnowing him, he\u2019s going to find a way to stay in the fight. He\u2019s not one to let ailments stop him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe\u2019s a man of honor and he\u2019s clearly instilled that same honor into you. You\u2019ll make a fine Queen one day; I hope you know that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, I\u2019ll have others to keep me honest if I ever stray.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSpoken like a true monarch,\u201d called Hanjar\u2019s voice as he approached the two women. \u201cI believe we are to meet with your friends in Realmfleet to report on what\u2019s happened. Would you like a ride?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYour Majesty, I would be honored,\u201d accepted Malnar. Hanjar let her climb onto his back, then they took off.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The treatment lasted for only a few seconds before Orbak collapsed to the ground. He panted as he grabbed his leg. He then noticed something\u2026or rather, a lack of something. Marshii finished treating Malnar, then they both ran up to him. Marshii waved a scanner near his legs, then her face fell. \u201cAll nerve endings […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1873,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,237],"tags":[482],"class_list":["post-4121","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-three-realms","category-the-three-realms-book-4-trials-of-light-and-dark","tag-fantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4121","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4121"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4121\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4122,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4121\/revisions\/4122"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}