“Oh no… He has returned…”
Rethais peered over the battlements as his fellow Rethans lined up, armed and ready to retaliate. They had been given almost no warning about the army that loomed over the horizon, marching towards them, but thankfully the small Rethan town had managed to scrape together enough weapons to at least make sure everyone was armed.
But while they had been given almost no warning about the army, no one had given them any idea what the army consisted of. So when they spotted the first legion of soldiers, many of the town members began to panic. It was an army of Rethavok.
To their surprise though, the army halted at the top of the nearest hill. A small group clearly peeled off from the rest of the army and made its way down to the town gates. And then they just stood there, waiting.
“I think they are waiting for us to attack.”
“I think it is a trap.”
“For them or for us?”
Rethais’s soldiers whispered around him, none of them sure how to respond. But to Rethais, it was obvious what was going on. This was not an attack. This was a prompt for communication.
“Stay here. Be on standby, but be ready to attack if they make any dangerous movements. I am going down there.”
The soldiers all hesitated, then did as they were told, readying themselves up and sending orders down the line. Rethais grabbed his weapon then made his way down the town walls, toward the gate where the army was waiting, dismissing the remarks and worries of his fellow Rethans.
Standing in front of this small group was a much larger, much more regal Rethan. This one was wearing black and gold armour. At first, Rethais didn’t recognise them, but as he approached, he realised exactly who he was about to talk to.
“General Rethais, we have much to discuss.”
“High General Kenon, you promised you would leave us free-minded Rethavok alone in your last visit. Why have you returned?”
“Because I made a mistake, Rethais. I made a grave mistake and I wish to rectify it.”
Rethais eyed the High General. Normally Kenon, better known as the Void Lord, would be flanked not just by his best soldiers, but by an eerie, shadowy aura that most beings could barely comprehend. A halo of power, proving his strength. That was not present today.
“I was wrong to believe that, just because you were not part of my control, you were not loyal, you were separate, you were unworthy. The Rethavok need to stand together in unity.”
“You only just realised this?” Rethais asked.
“Yes. Something… happened to me. Something that highlighted just how weak we all are, when on our own. I realised that I was, at the end of the day, on my own. If I fell, the Rethavok would fall as well, as I not only had a stranglehold on them, but I had exiled those most knowledgeable in times of crisis.”
“So what do you want from us?”
“I want you to come back. All of you. I will do what I can to give you back your old positions, or I will find you new ones… As for you, Rethais, you will serve by my side as Vice General. So we can combine our knowledge and our strength. For a better future.”
Rethais sighed, not really believing what he was hearing. “I feel like there is something you are not telling us.”
“You are correct. I have some untold secrets, which will be spilled in time. But I will make one thing clear. At midnight, the Thantophor was sealed away. Because of this, the universe is now in flux, and potentially unstable. Times are changing, Rethais, and I do not want the Rethavok to suffer.”
Rethais closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. “Very well. But if you so much as harm a single scale on any of my fellow vok, I will take back my agreement.”
“Understood.” Kenon nodded. “Tell your vok of the good news. I will arrange safe transport to have you all brought back home. As for you and I… well, we have a lot of work to do…”