The Beginning of the End
One shot to start a war.
The arrow flew through the air as though guided by an invisible string. It came on so quickly there was no way to possibly even see it until it had penetrated the heart of its target. The poison on the tip worked quickly, spreading into the bloodstream to ensure a quick and certain demise. King Harak was dead before his body hit the ground.
The soldiers that he was addressing fell into disarray as everyone either ran toward their fallen King or feverishly attempted to find the assassin. The King’s detail tried their best to stem the tide of onlookers but to no avail, and a number were crushed as people surrounded the monarch. Those looking for the assassin spread out and searched the nearby buildings, though there was no cohesion or order to their efforts and as such no one noticed the hooded figure leave a nearby building and walk calmly from the scene.
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“What do you mean NOTHING?!” Terrence Harak roared. Rakir, the Captain of the Guard cringed and bit his lower lip. With the death of the King his son was next in line, and Terrence’s rage was legendary. All three of his wives had been sent to the gallows for very minor slights against him. While many had thought King Harak was mad, his son was undoubtedly worse.
“My liege, we have been unable to find the assassin, where he fired the arrow, or indeed any evidence of any kind.” Rakir steeled himself for the inevitable retribution.
“Then I suggest you go and search again.” Terrence snarled, every word promising a painful death should Rakir fail. “Now.”
“Yes my liege.”
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“All right, we need to broaden the search.” Rakir stated. He was standing in the plaza where the King had met his end and the two dozen men under his command awaited his direction. As he sent them all off he sighed and pondered the future of the Kingdom. The last 24 hours had been a whirlwind of emotion for the people of Aladene. While the public outpouring of grief had been suitably overbearing, the common folk hated the King; he was a brutal tyrant who oppressed his population to prevent anyone from attempting to usurp his power. Even his own son suffered as a result, cast off to an outlying township to act as mayor. This prevented him from ever gaining enough support to oust the elder Harak, and this treatment was no doubt responsible for his son’s current demeanour. And now with Terrence in charge, Rakir believed things were going to go from bad to worse. The faces of the few civilians in the plaza signified they were thinking the same thing.
Looking around at the buildings surrounding the plaza, Rakir stepped up to where the King had died. He had been hit in the chest, a single shot that penetrated his heart. The nearest buildings were almost seventy metres away, so the assassin had to be using a highly strung bow, and for concealment purposes would probably have been a reflex bow as a longbow was far too big. Remembering the angle of the arrow, Rakir surmised that the assassin had to have been on one of the top levels of the building he fired from. Also considering the distance he would have to be an uncanny marksman, and amazingly strong. The building directly opposite had a suitable rooftop, and would be a likely place for a clear shot.
He waited until the first of his search parties returned before ordering them to follow him. The building in question was a hostel, a low grade affair with multiple tenants to a room and shared facilities. The manager of the rat-infested establishment looked as though he enjoyed the company of said rodents, his clothing dirty and his hair filthy. He had a strong body odour and his teeth were yellow and rotten. Rakir had to resist holding his nose as he talked to the man, who despite appearances was rather jolly. He was quite happy to give them free run of the hostel to conduct their investigation, and Rakir gave him some money as a thank you. He didn’t have to, but most businesses were struggling as a result of the King’s policies and every little bit helped.
Rakir’s men went from room to room, checking for any sign that their assassin had taken up lodgings. While they were searching, Rakir headed up the stairs to the rooftop and as he opened the door the calm breeze of the day passed over him, invigorating him somewhat.
From the rooftop he had a clear view of the plaza where the King had been giving his speech to the soldiers. He walked over to the edge and assumed an archery stance, positioning his arms as though he was holding an imaginary bow. Sighting along his arms it was too difficult to determine anything about the shot without a target, so he called down the stairs to one of his men to stand where the King had been. As the soldier positioned himself in the plaza Rakir picked up his imaginary bow once again.
With the Guardsman acting as a target, it was easier to get a feel for the type of shot required. Rakir was no marksman, but he could tell the distance to the target meant that the arrow would sink significantly in flight, even with a highly strung bow. To hit the King directly in the heart would be nigh impossible, and Rakir had to conclude that if this was the vantage point, whoever did this was almost inhumanly skilled.
Sighing, he brought his hands back down and began searching around for evidence of the assassin. The rooftop was clean, almost too clean when compared to the rest of the hostel, but Rakir had to assume that not many people came up here. Due to the cleanliness of the rooftop it wasn’t hard to find the coin.
Rakir bent down and collected the small coin. It was golden and obviously not one minted in the Kingdom of Harak. The coin was slightly sticky to the touch, as though something had been spilt on it. On the outside of it was a ring of text indicating its value, and while one side was smooth, the other side had the symbol of a hydra stamped on it. Rakir frowned as he put the coin in his pocket. He did not look forward to what Terrence was going to say about this.
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“Those bastards.” Terrence muttered. Rakir was expecting a roaring tirade; however the fact that Terrence had kept his cool was somehow even more intimidating. The coin he had found was from the nearby kingdom of Karamok and as Rakir had suspected the sticky substance was poison, specifically the venom of the Rakhash snake. He was glad he’d washed his hands thoroughly after handling it.
“What shall we do now, my liege?” Rakir asked.
“Kill them of course.” Terrence replied flatly. “Karamok has declared war.”
Rakir took a deep breath, “My liege, by itself this is not enough to prove it was a Karamok sanctioned assassination. Our culprit may be someone who simply passed through on their way to our lands. Declaring war on Karamok would be a costly endeavour for this kingdom.”
Rakir instantly regretted his statement. “You DARE to contradict me?!” Terrence shouted, unsheathing his sword. “I shall kill you where you stand.”
Rakir prepared himself for death, but was surprised to see one of the King’s advisors, an elderly and wizened man whisper into Terrence’s ear. After a few moments Terrence nodded and lowered his blade. “You are lucky that Khal here agrees with you. He has been my counsel since I was a boy and is one of the few in my father’s court that I can truly rely on.” Rakir breathed a sigh of relief as Terrence continued. “But this must be investigated further. I will send an envoy to Karamok at once, to seek answers from their king. Good work Rakir, my father may yet see vengeance.”
Rakir nodded and left the throne room as quickly as he could manage, unable to shake the feeling that the worst was yet to come.
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Fire Snakes are high in Vitamin D. 
Originally Posted by Reshiram99
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