Sapphiras Rest (Feat: Joshua Alvarez)

A story I have been working on for my brothers Lore in an RPG Game. Art by Eli Castor

Chapter 1: Lord and Lady

The city streets filled around with multi-colored carriages as a blossomed community stormed the streets in unison to celebrate their city’s most important festival, Sapphira's rest. The grasping festival is held every decade to commemorate the Princess that began it all. Laughter and joy rain from the bursting clouds above soaking every person that walked through the festive ambient plaza. The welcoming wind circled the plaza pushing every person who showed curiosity. But through the alluring guitar and harmonic voices was one voice that everyone seemed to grow interested in, it was that of an old man who was going to unravel a tale not many heard of, the origins of House Stoddart…

A boy of the woods who’s infant toys were axes and chisels began to portray the title of his ancestors, the legacy of the woodsmen. His days were spent deep in the dangerous woods, exploring paths no man dared to go through, the boy was no scholar but his terrain reading was much more precise than the graphics of maps. Curious about the outside world he befriended a young girl named Sapphira.Their interests of exploring new places bound them in a strong friendship, one night in the still of the night and the silence of the woods the woodsman and royal girl found a hidden waterfall that gave itself the shape of a horse as it slid down the rock into the water bed, and as they got closer to the water they could hear the galloping of the horses in the distance, the girl blushed in the awe of the moment but found it very weird when the galloping suddenly grew closer and louder, and there the whining of the horse made her turn back to see knights crossing the waters in search of the royal girl. The boy tried to fight them but they pushed him to the ground and the little girl was ripped away from the new found oasis into the world she has been trying to hide from. The colors of the beautiful woods were tied up behind the horse as the knights rode off into the waterfall and there stood the lost boy black and white painted all around him and the words of his house circling his head, “Seek what is owed!”

From that day on, the boy grew with the old woods to find the day where he could meet once more with his royal friend. Shortly came a day of breached walls in the land by invaders, the scorching voices scratched the surface of the sky as pain echoed across the land. The now ready man decided to intervene in the situation to stand for his house and village. Hearing news of a royal committee being held in the Capital’s war room the young man decided to take the opportunity to join the military force. Stoddart arrives at the capital and as he is going to enter the room he stops to listen to the conversation between the men inside, the debating of plans seemed as a war itself but it was one plan he heard that troubled him the most and stepping in to obscure the erroneous plan he found the Count, 7 Baron, and all military Generals. Young Stoddart's words made Baron Fox very angry standing up and yelling in the disgust of a low life woodsman within the ranks. Yet, the words of the clever woodsman planted curiosity into the Count’s ears leashing the fox back to his seat. The bright woodsman displayed his plan through the knowledge of terrain reading silencing any other objection of the Baron, his objection towards Fox’s plan through the narrow path of Lions Tail put the men in a sour situation when Stoddart presented the wide path of Horsemen, though it created a successful victory, the lives of the men were risked to go through such path. As the young woodsman looked around the silent room a volunteer broke the tension, the General of the Count’s Special Force agreed with the woodsman’s plan granting him 200 men to lead to victory, all others chose the safe narrow road of Lion’s Tail under the leading of Baron Förrädare.

The Sun laid rest waiting for the strike to occur at dawn break. There the two men lead their parties and the first to encounter enemy territory was Baron Förrädare. Clashing head on through Lion's Tail with the bloodthirsty barbarians carried the vengeful men to backtrack and stay stuck inside Lion’s Tail merciless wrath. Young Stoddart and his men risked their lives crossing the Horsemen’s pathfinding there a very familiar waterfall, as the flashbacks haunted him he crossed the waters into the cavern exit and there heard drums in place of galloping, the drums of war. The brave men drove forward to encounter the rally point of the barbaric generals. They stormed the area and slaughtered all of the barbarians creating a pile of heads and assorted limbs pointing directly towards the Head Barbarian, as the strike team finished off the other barbarians around the rally point young Stoddart aimed for the head of the barbarians, the Giant took his great spear to defend himself but he swift woodsman took down the barbaric tree chopping it from its trunk down and cutting from its roots all the way to the top of its branches. Stoddart took the spear and bloodied helmet rushed down the field of war and in the search of Förrädare’s advancing party he found himself 3 waves behind the enemies. The allies were retreating and the Fox whimpering back to his hole. A screaming spear pierced the savage air to land on the body of the barbaric banner bearer. The enemy turned to look for a traitor and instead found the head of their general high above as a lantern lightening the turn of event moment for the country. Stoddart screamed with his lungs full of sparks to force the enemy into the tight Lion’s Tail path, there the forces attacked from both sides and victory fell before the eyes of the Count through the young woodsman. The Clouds breathed in fresh air from the war as young Stoddart broke the choking grip of defeat.

The Sun, later on, fell on the ground when Count held a day of ceremonial for the woodman’s successful victory, the Baron were all present for the ceremony and as the Count ordered all to step up, young Stoddart was kneeling for a surprise induction of the House of Stoddart. The young man looked up into the squinting eyes of the Count and received his title of Baron, that same night a ball was thrown in his honor for saving the land from the invaders. All Baron welcomed the new house into their circle of trust and through the laughter and music came a moment of silence. The Rose Princess appeared at the top of the steps and slowly maneuvered down the steps towards the ballroom. Her frozen blue eyes looked straight at Baron Stoddart and tilted her head pointing out to the dance floor. All new Baron had to dance with the Count’s daughter as a sign of acceptance. The valiant Stoddart grasped the lady as they met on the dance floor and swept around the ballroom in a bonding dance to the sleeping moon. Thereafter the Baron stepped out to the courtyard looking up towards the stars to find a rose star right next to him. She giggled and blushed with the presence of the valiant knight and heard asked to hear the story of the victory, Knight Stoddart told the tale of his plan and saw the eyes of the princess widen as he slowed down his words detailing a waterfall that made her remember far off memories but it was the name he mentioned from his childhood memories that blossomed her heart… Sapphira.

Chapter 2: Blood of Sapphire

The reattachment of the two young friends grew into a deep flourished romance, and slowly did a wedding be planned. All the houses in the land were invited to this beautiful day, as it was not just Stoddart who would marry, but the daughter of the Count, Princess Saphira. And there came the day, the townspeople dressed only in their best outfits, the Barons appeared one by one to sit in their reserved seats, all but one house. Stoddart was impatiently waiting for the bride to arrive as he has never been as happy as this moment, but time stretched out far too long of a wait and the Young  Baron was worried as to where his bride was. The Princess was late to her wedding, sitting in a carriage with a flower girl and maiden. Dressed with her sky white sheets she looked over to the flower girl and smiled to how the newborn wrinkles on her face, then she looked over to the maiden and wanted to say something of great news, the maiden crept closer as Sapphira held her belly and slipped out the great surprise from her curled lips. But there,  a silent arrow spat out of the mouth of the maiden as it pierced from the back of her head.

The flower girl screamed her lungs out and the carriage flips over the dirt road, the horses ran away, the Lady runs out of the flipped carriage to witness the death of her guardian knights, she runs to try and save anyone she could find but there a man tugged on her hair holding her back from her attempt. He held a blade to her throat the lady stomps on his foot which causes a dagger to stab right into her womb, she turns and grabs the arm of the man to look into the eyes of her killer. Shocked with the encounter of a man dearly trusted by her father she is slapped in the face coughing up blood on the man’s face, he grabs the dagger and rips a the belly open from the bottom of the belly button to the top under the xiphoid process. Sapphira could not breathe, screaming in agony and pain, she clenched her hands on her collar trying to hang on to him but was kicked down by the man. And there laid the bride dreaming of her wedding, she placed her right hand on her fully open stomach, and looked over to the left hand, she smiled and closed it in a tight fist.

An old farmer witnessed the cold murder and ran over in search of survivors to only find a flower inside of a booth in the carriage, until an unexpected sound came from behind, the only sign of hope. They rushed over to the wedding and there down the aisle ran a bloodied flower girl with something much more than flowers in her basket, the screams of an infant echoed the shocking moment, a baby boy. Stoddart could not believe his eyes, blurred with the vision of his beautiful Sapphira walking the red carpet, he quickly ran over to the scene and could hear the screamings of the women shouting about a baby girl who was dead in her womb, the surprise revealed twins. He ran over to his sliced open wife to find the most disturbing site, the hand of the baby trying to grasp life by its neck dying in the process. Stoddart’s tears showered on her until the moment of truth arrived. Brushing his hands through the weaved golden hair he reached for her hand uncurling the clenched hand of his bride to slip the encircled pact onto her exposed heart of finger. As the last finger uncurled a quiet noise misdirected his attention to finding a very shiny object that instantly marked the x on his mental map towards his enemy, slipping the ring on her finger the enraged Baron picked up the shiny compass like object directing him towards the target.

Stoddart ran off with his men at a fort they all knew very well, the men held back and in stormed the whirling hurricane, 3 carriages were ready to set off in the attempt to escape the betrayal. The new enemy came out to the courtyard with a huge hypocrite smirk, before he could step one more foot a flying crest pendant slapped the face of the traitor, and there stood the vengeful hound as the face of the Fox laid up with no concealment, Förrädare looked down to his collar and remembered the last grip to tug his shirt. The house of Förrädare was invaded and set to pay their dues of the horrible crime bestowing the words engraved on his body, “Take what is Owed”. Burning and seizing to exist, their names were blown in the wind as the traitor’s body hung in the doorway of the first unburied graveyard.

Chapter 3: Sapphira's Rest:

The passing days set rough and rose painfully for the house of Stoddart, the grieving of the lost wife tore the hearts of the land as their Lady was stripped away from her life. But there, the seed of hope arrived, a strong heir for the house of Stoddart and with that same seed, a tree was planted with the burial of the Princess at the sight of her death baptize there as Sapphira's Rest. The Baron held his only child looking down from the hill as the vision of his wife’s city began to build the great house of Stoddart. Little by little the city grew with the boy and tree by its side until the day came where the father could no longer hold his son in his comforting arms. Arcadio Stoddart requested one thing before his death, to hold a festival in the memory of his beloved Lady. The great Arcadio laid to rest right beside his wife and his sword was plunged into the ground of the tree’s roots. The legacy of house Stoddart prevailed generation after generation and the sword and tree grew closer as vines wrapped them together. Every Stoddart in their due time was crowned during the festival, war heroes, warriors, knights, peacekeepers, Baron’s and for the first time today, 5 generations later a young Stoddart is being pronounced Duke of the land. The old man who was telling the story pointed over towards the new head of House Stoddart, kneeling in front of the sacred white tree of Sapphira, the sword’s light shined on his face covered with the shade of the tree as a nobleman walked up behind the Prince with the helmet of Arcadio. The helmet was presented to the new house head waiting for its acceptance, the young duke reached for the old golden helmet and fitted it on his head with no trouble, a sudden flash of familiar faces lit on the sword and doves flew out of the majestic tree with a bright blue glow of acceptance towards the new heir. Sapphira and Arcadio smiled from the heavens and a new era rested safely upon the House of Stoddart… all waited for the open door.

Author's Note

Please let me know what you think, and how I should edit it, it is for a game my brother is making currently, the Lore of his House.