The Crimson Fang
Chapter 2 -

“I am Joseph, sire. We met once before, at my father’s ceremony.” The king looked at him. “And, who might your father be?” “My father is Reinhardt, your majesty.” The crowd went silent. Even Geoff stared at Joseph, as if he had said something wrong. The king shouted to the crowd, “Is there anyone present, who can confirm this young man’s claim?” A man stepped forth from the knights assembled. “I can your majesty.” “Leon! You are certain that this young warrior is the son of Sir Reinhardt?” The king seemed skeptical, even though it was Leon speaking. “I am. I have been training him for the past two centuries, since his father fell in the Battle of the Altros.” The king looked back at Joseph. “If this is true, if you are truly Reinhardt’s son, and if Leon truly trained you personally, then I am glad to welcome you to the ranks of the warriors. However, this tournament was not to merely replace warriors. It was to replace the best. As many of you know,” he was now speaking to the crowd, “a fair amount of members of the Crimson noble army also participated in this event. In fact, Samuel, whom Joseph defeated in the last round, is one of our army’s top warriors.”

“I am proud to call these five warriors the Elite. Henceforth, they shall be known as the ‘Crimson Fang’ and shall answer only to the royal family!” At their mentions, the king’s sons and daughter stood to acknowledge the crowd. “The five of you will come to the throne room. Once the ceremony is complete, that is. After all, it is to celebrate your victories! It wouldn’t be the same if you weren’t there.” He winked, and he and his entourage returned to the castle. Immediately after he left, a grand celebration commenced. There were people singing and dancing everywhere. Leon approached Joseph, pulling him away from a group that was asking him all sorts of questions. He made sure he was still close enough for them to hear. “Congratulations, kid. Reinhardt would’ve been proud.” The others around them nodded in agreement. He gave Joseph a pat on his back that sent him forward, losing his balance, and they both laughed. They continued to laugh and talk for a while. Joseph noticed that another of the champions, he believed the king had called her Ami, was looking at him. When she saw that he had noticed, she looked away quickly. As the celebration came to an end, the champions made their way to the castle, as ordered.

When the champions approached the throne room, they were stopped by the guards. “His majesty is awaiting some guests. I’ll have to ask you to come back later.” The guard on the left was obviously letting his position go to his head. The guard on the right smiled as his colleague spoke. “Sorry,” Draken replied, “but we answer only to the royal family.” He grinned as the guards exchanged looks. “Are you the champions of today’s tourney?” The five champions nodded. “You have my apologies. However, we were ordered not to allow anybody into the throne room, until His Majesty’s guests have arrived. This includes you. If you wouldn’t mind, please wait over there.” He pointed to a comfortable seating area. The champions walked over and sat down.

They were waiting for over an hour. Draken had started practicing his moves. His primary weapon, oddly enough, seemed to be his fists. He had some sort of metal gauntlets on his hands, to cause more damage. Ami had fallen asleep on her best friend, Sakura’s, shoulder. Geoff and Joseph were talking to each other. “How come you didn’t tell me you were the son of Reinhardt?” “I never really had the chance. I was interrupted as I was about to introduce myself.” They both laughed. As they were laughing, a group of hooded figures walked by. They were all different shapes and sizes. One of them even appeared to have a tail, judging by the way the cloak was sticking out in the back. There was a short girl with cat-like ears that poked out when she turned to look toward the group of warriors. She threw her hood forward quickly, hiding her face and ears, once she noticed the warriors looking back at her. Joseph watched as she hurried to keep up with the group. They headed passed the guards, and into the throne room.

After yet another hour of waiting, the doors to the throne room opened again. The hooded group came back out, accompanied by the king. He saw them out of the castle, and came back to the champions waiting for him. “Sorry to have kept you waiting. Please, come in now.” He walked back into the throne room. Sakura woke Ami up, and the champions followed him in. “I am glad you could all make it,” he laughed. “It is now time to make this official.”

He picked up a sword that was adorned with jewels. “As I stated after the tournament, you are hereby known as the Crimson Fang. What I didn’t mention is that, for the most part, you are to be my personal warriors, carrying out special missions and tasks for me. I will also be bestowing you with special names.” He placed the sword on each of their shoulders, bestowing names upon them. “Drakenarius, you are hereby known as the ‘Crimson Wolf’, for your skill with your fists. Ami, for your aim and skill with the bow, you are hereby known as the ‘Crimson Hawk’. Sakura, for the cunning you show as well as your ability to wield your short blades, you are the ‘Crimson Fox’. Geoffrey, because of your size and strength, as well as the fact that somebody would be foolish to provoke you, the name ‘Crimson Bear’ shall be yours. Lastly, Joseph, for you speed and resourcefulness against Samuel, you are the ‘Crimson Dragon’. Arise, Crimson Fang, and bear your names, proudly.” The Crimson Fang stood and bowed.

“Now that that is out of the way, I have your first mission ready for you. The group that just left are emissaries for the respective races. There is to be a gathering of the species. This is an extremely rare event. The last Gathering was held over 200 years ago, when the Altros escaped. I’m not certain as to the reason of this Gathering, but it must be important. The only races not to be attending are the humans and the demons. The humans will not be attending, due to a decision made millennia ago, that the humans were to be left to their lives of ignorance. If they were to replace out about all the races living in this world, they would likely attack. The demons were not invited, due to their evil and, well, they are demons. Your mission is to accompany me as my personal guards, and ensure nothing happens to me, or the others attending.”

“What do you think would happen to you?” Geoff had asked the question, before the others got the chance. “I don’t think anything will happen to me, to be honest. However, with all the species gathered, it is a good idea to be prepared for anything, if anything happens. Honestly, a lot of the species do not get along very well.” With that, one of King Artemus’s retainers stepped forward, bowing his head. “Pardon the interruption, Your Majesty, but it is time for dinner with your family.” “Ah! Very well.” King Artemus turned to his new warriors. “We will leave tomorrow morning, when sun’s first light enters the castle. Jenkins, here,” the retainer bowed again, having been acknowledged, “will show you to the rooms we have prepared for you. Until tomorrow morning, Crimson Fang.” King Artemus left the throne room, and headed toward a side door. “If you wouldn’t mind, please follow me, and I shall show you to your rooms.” Jenkins left the throne room at a brisk walk. The Fang followed him, trying to keep his pace. The Fang was led to 5 separate rooms, their number dwindling with every stop, until only Jenkins remained. After the day’s excitement, the members of the Crimson Fang each fell asleep the moment their heads hit their pillows.