Destinies Met

Chapter 1: Arranged Proposal

There was a time when Kingdoms were at war for land, loot, treasure, women, children and material property. A time where honour was held in high esteem by both royalty and the common people.

There was a Kingdom, whose King, King Luka of the land of White, threatened to go to war with the King of Nomadia.

Nomadia’s King on the other hand, King Margon, did not wish to go to war, if anything, he wanted to spare the life of his army men and people. Margon’s wife, the queen, had just given birth to a daughter, Cora, she had just been born when King Luka’s troops where outside his kingdom, ready for war with their King and Commander in front.

King Margon, looked at his wife and baby daughter as she was born, held her in his arms, when he received the news that King Luka was waiting outside his kingdom to war, as Luka wanted the Kingdom of Nomadia for gain and land.

King Margon grasped as he held his newly born baby daughter. Margon took a deep breath, “Please…. Send me a message to the King of White and ask him to come peaceably to me in my thrown room….” He commanded in a serious tone of voice, to which his servant ran as swiftly as he could to the King of the land of White, and requested that he join King Margon in his throne room in the palace, to which, the King of the land of white accepted and went with several soldiers and commanded his army generals and captains to wait for him at the barracks until he returned from his meeting with the King of Nomadia.

King Luka is brought in before King Margon in his throne room. King Luka stands before King Margon, “Your Majesty….” Luka bows his head in honour to King Margon, despite him being at war with him. “Your excellency, King Luka….” Margon said in a serious husky tone of voice, as he sat on his throne. “I suppose you are ready to propose surrender to me, your Majesty, to avoid bloodshed in your kingdom?” King Luka proposed to King Margon. Suddenly, the midwife brought in the newly born princess, princess Cora, to King Margon. Margon grasped, as he didn’t want the enemy to see his daughter. When Luka saw this, he put his head down for a moment. “Congratulations, your highness, on the birth of your daughter….” He bowed softly. Margon glanced at Luka, “Thank you…” he bowed softly. There is silence for a moment between the two powerful kings.

“Your highness… let us have a drink…” King Luka suggested. The soldiers and servants in the room grasped at such a proposal during a time of war. “As you wish…” King Margon agreed, as a table is set before them with chairs, the servants quickly brought out the King’s best wine to serve with food so the Kings could settle matters once and for all, since their Kingdoms had always been at war for many centuries over land and dominance.

The kings look intensely at each other as almost they could speak with each other without saying a word. “Servants, leave us!” Margon commanded his servants, “Soldiers, wait me outside…” Luka also commanded his soldiers. They all left, except the kings as they were left in the room together to eat and drink and play a game of chess together.

“You… have a beautiful baby daughter, your Majesty, you and your wife must be proud…” King Luka said in a stern yet kind tone of voice. “Thank you, your excellency… do you have any children of your own?” Kind Margon asked in a man to man conversation. “Yes, I do…. I have a son, about 6 years of age… only child… just like you….” King Luka replied as he drank and played their game of chess together. “I wanted to propose to you, your Majesty…. If you do not wish to surrender to me, knowing your pride will not allow such a defeat and I also know you do not wish to sacrifice the lives of your men…let us make an agreement to become allies… If you allow your daughter…. To marry my son… when they are both at a legal age…what say you?” King Luka suggested to King Margon. Margon grasped at such an option. However he knew it was the only way to secure peace among the two powerful nations and to avoid such a massive bloodshed, especially now that he was a father himself. Margon was put on the spot with such a difficult decision. Tears began to swell up in Margon’s eyes, “My daughter has just been born, and you wish to take her away from me!” Margon grunted in anger as he slammed the table in the presence of Luka, losing his temper at such a thought. “ … I will not take her, she will simply come and marry my son… when they are both at legal age…. At the legal age of 20 years old…. My son will be 23 years old… they will both be old enough to begin a family of their own… our two nations will be at peace, allies once at last… we will be able to trade, and share peoples, your Majesty….” King Luka proposed to King Margon, at the expense of their children.

Arranged marriages were a custom in those days.

There is silence for a few moments between the two kings. King Luka takes a deep breath and looks outside to the window as they are both sitting at the table, staring out at the heavy rain outside, “If you do not comply with my proposal, my army of 30,000 men are waiting outside the Kingdom, Your Majesty…. From what I hear, you only have 10,000 men. I am sure you don’t need me to tell you, you are outnumbered here… the only solution would be to come to terms with this arrangement …” King Luka further proposed to King Margon, to further intimidate him into this contract, as he turned and looked Margon in his eyes sternly.

Margon looked down as tears fall down his face, “Promise me… that my daughter will be treated well, and that she will not be abused nor heartbroken… “ Margon said with tears. Luka looks at him, “I give you my word, your Majesty… she will be well taken care of by us….” Luka bowed softly.

“Once we sign this contract, I will give the command to my men to pull out and we will begin celebrations in both kingdoms, making us both allies, with no more war or hate between us.” King Luka said with serious tone of voice.

Margon looked at the contract and they both signed the peace treaty, which detailed that their children would marry to join the nations together by marriage of their children at the legal age required. Upon marriage of the prince and princess, the two kingdoms would be one and both would be allowed to trade and share the common good.

Margon, with tears in his eyes, signed it next to Luka’s who signed with him, making this contract legal between kingdoms legal, as both Kings were standing together at the table after they signed the agreement.

Once King Margon signed the contract, he fell face down at the feet of King Luka, “Please…. Take your men… from my Kingdom…. ….” King Margon bowed to King Luka. “As promised… I will command my men at once…. And… I will send my servants for you in due time… “ King Luka said sternly and left King Margon’s presence. When Luka left the palace, he returned to his men and did as he promised, commanded his men to leave and head home, declaring the war was over and declared a time of peace, as he returned home, he declared the news to his nation shortly after returning.

“Sire, you think that was a good idea?” King Luka’s general asked him. “yes, because, it was either that or a bloodshed war and he would have lost….” Luka smirked as he led his army home to the land of White.

Meanwhile, Margon told the news to his wife, the queen, walking back into the bed chamber of he palace with the news. She broke down in tears and beat the breast of the king in anger and despair. “Why Margon! I just gave birth to her and already you’ve given her away!!” she teared and cried bitterly on his chest. Margon grabbed her hands and held her until she calmed down. Suddenly, picking up princess Cora in their arms together as she laid in the cradle crying, as they lamented the short time they had with her, until they would tell her when she got older, that she was bestowed for the good of the kingdom, to someone she had not even met yet.

King Luka sent for King Margon and his family shortly after to formally introduce the families and to get to know each other, to keep the bond of peace between them. When children, Cora and Logan, the son of King Luka, would play together as children would normally do. Playing together seemed natural to them, seeing they had no one else their age to play with at the time, being completely obvious to the fact that they were engaged.

They would meet once a year and when princess Cora had reached the tender age of about 13 years old, her parents, King Margon and the Queen, told her that she was engaged from birth to the prince of the land of white, prince Logan. Cora was shocked to hear the news and did not quite understand how to take it nor how to feel about it clearly. “I am engaged…. To the prince of the land of white…” she thought to herself as she walked through the palace gardens.

“One day…. We will be married… I…. don’t know what to do…” she thought to herself walking through the palace gardens on her own, just thinking deep in thought.

Prince Logan, on the other hand, found out at around the tender age of 16 years old (as he was three years older than Cora), from his mother and father, King Luka. Prince Logan was not too happy about the idea, as he had his eye on another princess from another country, however, his father would not break the contract he had made with his now friend, King Margon.

“You will marry the princess of Nomadia, Logan, if it is the last thing you do!” Luka commanded his son, as Logan threw off a tantrum, “I will not marry her, father! I mean, she is but a child!” Logan grunted in anger and frustration, “She will be your wife at the legal age of 20, you will be 23, Logan…” Luka demanded to his son. “I’m not marrying her, father…” Logan said sadly as he looked to the side crossing his arms. King Luka sighed, “Logan…. You will understand one day, when you become King….” Luka said in a stern tone of voice. Tears almost began to well up in anger and shame within Logan and he ran out of his room leaving their presence, running to the stables he took his black horse as he rode on his horse and went for a ride to get out of the palace for a while, for some “fresh air”.

Both King Luka and his queen sigh in sadness, as they look at each other and embrace. “I wonder if this was such a good idea, Luka…” the queen whispered to her husband. “Natalee, there were no daughters born in the land at the time, and now there is peace between us, our peoples are able to bear children and live in peace once again, because of this marriage between our son and Margon’s daughter….” Luka said tenderly looking into his wife’s eyes. “I hope this doesn’t have anything to do with Margon’s wife?” Natalee said in a serious tone of voice. “No…” Luka said shaking his head in a husky tone of voice, as he was in love with Margon’s wife before she married Luka.

Cora was 13 years old and Logan was 16 years old, both young teenagers, trying to grasp the concept, that they were both thrown into an unknown world or future, made out by their father’s war before them. Things were sure to get interesting over the coming years for the both of them, and their families.

Cora’s family, however, held a deep dark secret that no one else knew about. Legend has it, that Cora’s family of the Kings of Nomadia, were of an ancient powerful race of warriors with exceptional powers and abilities, however, over the years, these legends died down due to no one in the bloodline inhering this power, until….