PHOENIX: WAR AND LOVE

THE BANQUET

CHAPTER 5

Silence made its way in the black castle after a very long time. The natural enemies of the world of gods all sat around the grand table. The banquet was all ready, but no one dared to have the delicacies before their leaders. But the leaders were too busy in a staring contest. Both gave each other death glares.

“I am starving. Will you ask your father to stop staring and start eating, for the love of almighty?” Asteria, her cousin and her best friend, pleaded.

“No, I want to see who wins this game.” Phoenix replied.

“I feel by the end of the game, all of us would starve to death.” Asteria took her eyes from her cousin and ran it through the others present in the table. She and her cousin were seated at the right end of the grand table with the dark lord and other lords of the darkness and their wives. The left end of the table was occupied by the warriors with their leader facing the dark lord. There were other warriors seated next to him. When she was about to complain again to her cousin, she saw an angelic face seated right next to the king of the warriors.

“May I know who is that delicious snack sitting right next to the king of light?” she asked phoenix who was busy looking at her father and the king warrior.

“That is the prince of light and the greatest warrior of the light of the era, the sun god, Solis. “said phoenix without taking her eyes from her father

“So the rumors are true.”

“What rumors?” asked phoenix, finally taking her eyes from her father.

“The rumor that the prince is a treat to everyone’s eyes. So I have finally seen one. I am blessed.” And asteria sank into her chair.

“Seen one? Is there another?”

“You are the only person in this whole world who doesn’t know this.” asteria asked with hands covering her face out of defeat.

“What? I am not interested in such pathetic rumors” phoenix said looking at the plate below her.

“Let me enlighten you. The last messenger from the world of death reported that the devil has chosen his successor after all this time. Rumors say that he is yet another bastard of the devil. And the rumor also says that he is devilishly handsome. According the messenger, he has a messy black hair complementing his dark black smoking death gorgeous eyes. I want to also see how good he would be on …..”Before asteria could finish her sentence they heard someone clearing their throat. It was the prince from the other end.

There was pin drop silence. Finally the prince stood up raising his chalice high.

“Let’s toast for new beginnings. Let’s toast for peace and harmony. Lets toast for the never ending love of mother nature and the dark lord.” said the prince.

“Love? He didn’t love her, he b****y seduced my sister into marrying him?” spited the king warrior.

“How dare you say that? How dare you discard our love?”growled the dark lord.

“You knew that she was my weakness and you then trapped her and had her wrapped around your finger.” said the king with high voice.

“I love her. I want her to be with me but you took her away from me.” the dark lord said with a sad tone.

“She escaped from your dark clutches. Moreover she had a duty to fulfill other than suffer beside you.”

“No, you forced her. You made my child motherless.”

“Don’t blame your mistakes on someone else, you wretched” said the king roaring back.

Before the king could finish, the dark lord wielded his dark flaming sword making the other lords to stand from their chair prepared to attack their enemy. The king warrior followed by other warriors did the same thing. Phoenix stared down while the prince looked at both the sides in disbelief.

“Remember you are in the black castle offering a peace treaty. It would be such a shame if you return to your land, being death.” said the dark lord with an evil smirk.

“It also would be such a shame to be dead on your own castle. “said the king returning the smirk.

“Don’t make me to do this.”warned the dark lord.

Before anyone can say anything, the prince stood up and banged the table roaring “Enough is enough! I am here to offer a peace treaty, not a death pact. So don’t dare anyone here make a death call, other than the devil. Anyone who raises their sword again, I pledge that they will face my wrath.”

Everyone looked at him in complete horror.

“I command the warriors to lower the swords and be seated. Anyone who dares to disobey me shall not see another sunrise.” commanded the prince.

The warriors silently lowered their swords and got seated without taking a glance at their king. They knew that the prince can be more dangerous than a devil with his anger.

“Father” called out the young prince. The king lowered his sword and got seated never taking his eyes off the dark lord.

Then the prince looked at the dark princess who was looking at him with disbelief in her eyes.

Phoenix turned and faced the lords and eyed each of them with power roaring in her eyes and said “Sit”

All the lords, including the dark lord sat down quickly.

The prince thanked the princess silently and continued “I am quite disappointed by all of you. We don’t have much time left. Humans are destroying Mother Nature and evil is spreading like venom and here we are fighting. I am not blaming but if you love Mother Nature, its time you show that you love her.”

The prince then closed his eyes to calm the storm he created within himself and spoke again, “let me toast again and I believe that you will all follow me”

The prince raised his chalice once again and roared “In the name of Almighty, for Mother Nature, we fight.”

“FOR MOTHER NATURE, WE FIGHT” roared everyone.