“What do you mean we are under attack?” the king howled.

“T- The barriers have been knocked down by the rebels, your majesty! And now they’re attacking the villages!” answered one of the soldiers, blood dripping down the sides of his face.

The king sat back down with a grunt. He had expected this to happen but he hadn’t expected it to be this soon. He was so close to finding out the mastermind behind this supposed rebellion against his reign. He’s actually waiting for his man to get back from his mission and tell him everything. But it seemed that that would never happen.

There were only two possibilities at the moment. One, the man was dead, murdered by the rebels. Or two, he’s one of them – a traitor in disguise. All of a sudden, a different kind of rage surged through his body at the thought. No, the man wouldn’t betray him. He’s known him since he was a child. He practically raised him as if he were his own.

“Honey, what should we do now?” the queen’s voice snapped him away from his thoughts; her soothing voice calmed him down a little, “The people need us. They need our help.”

Almost immediately, he instructed more soldiers to head over to the village and do whatever they could to control the situation. He also asked some of them to help evacuate the children, women and elders to somewhere else safe. He just hoped that they would reach the villages before it’s too late.

At the palace, things seemed to be under control. Although they’re worried about the people’s safety, the king was confident that his soldiers could win the battle. They’re perfectly well trained after all. So it was an utter shock to everyone when they heard a big explosion nearby, shaking the building slightly.

Everyone started to get more anxious then. And not before long, loud screams could be heard from the garden behind the palace. A few soldiers immediately rushed to the scene to check what was going on. However, they only managed to take a few steps before a flaming arrow hit them right on the chest where their hearts were, taking their lives.

On instinct, the royal guards pushed both the king and queen away from the windows and out of the study chamber, guiding them towards the bunker not far from the palace for safety. The king, of course, resisted at first, saying that he would fight alongside his men, but the guard wouldn’t let him. He was the king, and they needed him to stay alive in order to help beat the evil, to guide them.

The journey to the bunker wasn’t easy. They were confronted by several rebels along the way but their strength was nothing compared to the guards. The latter easily defeated the enemies. They were trained exactly for this – to fight and to kill whoever threatened the safety of their king and his family.

“Your Majesty!” they were about to reach the bunker when they heard someone yell from behind.

It was Lee Dongmin, the royal adviser. The man reached them in a few seconds, panting heavily. “What is it, my dear friend?” asked the king.

“Y- You have to run, your Majesty! Run far, far away from the palace!” the man replied, his face showed nothing but fear.

“We’re going to the bunker, it’s safe there,” said one of the guards, dragging the king and queen away again.

“No! It’s not safe there anymore! You have to leave Grai!” Lee Dongmin was persistent and he wouldn’t take no for an answer, “Please, just listen t-”

Lee wasn’t able to finish his sentence as he dropped to the ground, dead. The king’s eyes widened upon seeing not one but three arrows at the back of Lee’s head. He started shaking then and tears began pooling in his eyes, blurring his vision. And in a split second, the ever-so-calm king turned into a monster that nobody has ever seen before.

Lee wasn’t just the royal adviser. He was his best friend. They grew up together, having gone through the brightest and darkest of times by side by side. Being the crown prince had never been easy. The amount of responsibilities thrown at his shoulders was overwhelming for the young Choi Byungjin. Thankfully, he’s got Lee Dongmin by his side every step of the way.

Every time he’s about to give up, Lee would always be there to lift him back up, and every time he did something right, Lee would always be there to say ‘good job’ and tell him that he’s proud of him. That man was his backbone and he loved him very much. He was more than a best friend, he was his brother. Besides, if it weren’t for Lee, the king wouldn’t have met the love of his life, his beautiful wife and the mother of his wonderful son.

The king owed more than just his life to Lee Dongmin, so the moment he saw him murdered right before his eyes, he was lost control. He was determined to avenge his death. An eye for an eye, they said. Every bit of rationale left him, as revenge became the sole focus of his mind. His eyes were burning with fury, killing anyone that’s on his way. It wasn’t until he heard the queen scream that the king finally snapped back to reality.

“Your Majesty!” shouted one of the guards in panic.

He recognised that scream. He could clearly hear the pain in her voice. The queen was hurt and she was hurt badly. A part of him refused to believe it, especially when it was his entire fault. Hesitantly, the king turned around, looking anywhere but the source of the whimpers. He was scared. He was very scared. He just lost his one and only brother, and now he’s probably losing his one true love as well.

The king slowly brought his eyes upwards, praying that everything was just a nightmare. But it wasn’t, because there, lying in a pool of blood was the queen. Her face stained with tears as she reached her weak hand out for him. What killed him the most was how calm her eyes were. Despite the tears and blood, her eyes were smiling, as if telling him that everything was going to be okay.

At that moment, it seemed like the world had stopped spinning for the second time today.

The sound of someone crying suddenly echoed throughout the vast field. Choi Junhong, the crown prince, rushed towards his wounded mother in tears. “Mother! Please don’t die! Please don’t leave me!” the teenage boy sobbed, hugging the woman to his chest.

“My son,” the queen muttered, choking out blood as she did so, “Oh, my dear son, please don’t cry. Everything’s going to be alright. Your father will beat them all as he always does.”

At the mention of his father, Junhong snapped his head towards the king’s direction. He was going to yell at him and blame him, but then he could see the pain and regret in his father’s eyes. The old man didn’t need to say anything, he knew just by the look in his eyes that his father was already beating himself inside for everything that happened. That alone was enough for the boy to forgive him.

“Father,” the crown prince called out to his father softly, gaining his attention, “Everything’s going to be okay, right?”

Instead of answering his son, however, the king instructed the guards to carry the queen into the bunker. The guards immediately complied and did what they were told. The crown prince was a bit disappointed at the response he got, or lack thereof, but he too followed the guards into the bunker, still holding on to his mother’s hand tight.

“Call every soldier back to the palace and secure the area! Don’t let any rebels step their feet on this ground! Anyone who disobeys my orders, or tries to betray my trust will be slaughtered and fed to the pigs, do you understand me?” the king commanded, his tone venomous; he was completely a different person now, “And someone get the royal doctors, now!”

The room became dead silent as the guards left to perform their duties. The queen was still alive but barely hanging in there. The crown prince tried pressing a cloth onto the wound on her stomach to help lessen the bleeding as best as he could. His men, too, were roaming around the area to find something, anything that could be of any help. The king, on the other hand, was frozen on his feet as he stared at his struggling wife.

He wanted to do something but it seemed like his body wasn’t cooperating with his mind. He was still in a state of shock. But when the queen called his name with that sweet voice of hers, he finally lost it. The walls around him crumbled as he fell onto his knees, bursting into tears.

“Why are my boys crying so much today?” the queen managed to let out a chuckle, a weak attempt to lighten up the mood, “Everything’s going to be alright, I promise.”

With that the king ran towards his wife and hugged her tightly, crying even louder into her shoulders. Their son was no different as he sobbed into his mother’s hand. The older man kept saying the word sorry over and over again, although he knew that it wasn’t enough to change everything that happened.

This was his entire fault. His queen was hurt all because of him. His wife was dying all because of him. If he weren’t so distracted, if he weren’t so into taking revenge, he could’ve been there to protect her. H could’ve saved her. If he could, he would turn back time and take her place instead.

“Son, can you please help me get up?”

“But mother, you’re hurt.”

“Please?”

Unable to refuse his mother’s request, the boy did as he was told and helped her to sit up. The queen whimpered slightly as the pain shot through her body once again but immediately regained her composure. Although she was in so much pain at the moment, she needed to endure it. She needed to be strong, for them. She was their source of strength and if she didn’t stay strong, they wouldn’t either and that would only jeapordise the safety of Grai.

“My darling, love, look at me,” the queen muttered softly, lifting the king’s face with her bloodied thumb.

There was a soft smile on her face when she asked, “Do you remember the white wolf?”

Author's Note

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! The other B.A.P members will eventually appear throughout the story, so stay tuned! ;)

Poster and Background by: ＣＨＩＮＧ Ａ ＬＩＮＧ