To Defy Fate

He was just a boy from Oar’s Rest.

No, no. They had told him time and time again. He was the hero of the kingdom, the one that saved Naedidor from complete demolition. They had even held a festival in his honor, dancing around the bonfire, chanting his name as the ashes floated into the night sky.

 

He was only eighteen, he had only just reached adulthood.

They regarded him as the boy who was a man, the man who was the manliest of them all, the man who embodied the spirit of great warriors. The embodiment of courage itself.

 

He missed her.

The king of Naedidor had a daughter his age that was still yet unmarried. The king given him jewelry, land, power, anything that a sane person would desire—the king also assumed that a fine young man like him would want a beautiful wife, and so he offered the hero the hand of his daughter.

 

He wanted to turn down the princess, he really did.

The princess had confronted him the day before he had officially finished his quest. He had just slain the monster a few days back, and he was staying at a farmer’s cottage for the night, just a few hours’ ride from the city limits. He remembered drinking a cup of milk his host had graciously offered, a luxury that most people wouldn’t deal out to people easily; but the farmer was kind, and he couldn’t just say no to an old man, now, could he?

“I’m sorry, I was ordered to do this.” Those were the only words before the hero faded into unconsciousness.

He woke up what he assumed to be couple hours later, an hour or so before the rosy fingers of dawn would paint the sky pink. There was a girl in the most delicate dress he had ever seen before him. Her hair was the color of ripened wheat, and her eyes were the shade of golden amber. He felt light and dizzy, and all he knew was the love that had now blossomed through his chest like the flowers in spring.

 

Something was wrong, he could feel it. He was a coward.

He waited on the end of the purple carpet, where his bride would soon tread over to him, where she would kiss him under the guidance of a thousand stars and a serene moon. The torches flickered orange, and once again his thoughts were pulled in the direction of her amber eyes and then her full lips.

And then the newlyweds lived in their palace, governing a now-peaceful nation for the rest of their lives.

~

She was the girl who lived in the fishing village of Oar’s Rest.

They were both eighteen, him being only a couple months older than her. They had grown up together since they were children, and fallen in love with each other since they were teenagers.

 

She was only eighteen when they tore them apart.

He had finally worked out the courage to tell her his true feelings on her eighteenth birthday. She was ecstatic, relieved that she wouldn’t have to keep up the façade any longer; she was scared that he would hate her once he found out. Now, all she had to do was to agree for him to court her. And agree she did.

They had come the next day, picking up young men and sending them off to the monster. It had been years since the kingdom started sending them to the monster, all of whom served as nutritious meals for the monster to grow in size.

 

She missed him.

And so once she had heard that her love had returned alive, she had rushed to the stables, rented a horse and rode as fast as she could to the capital, where she knew their king would welcome him.

 

All she could think of was their first kiss.

It was both of their first kisses. He leaned in shyly, they both had, and they had bumped heads. It was hilarious. They tried a second time, and when they parted, they had promised themselves to each other.

“Forever and always?” she asked.

“Forever and always.”

Her heart was broken when she saw him again.

“Underneath the stars of heaven and the serene moon, I hereby vow…”

She thought that he had loved her, and that they had promised themselves to each other. Yet now her love was now someone else’s groom, someone else’s husband, someone else’s love. Of course, he would have chosen the princess with golden hair and golden eyes—he was always the romantic, and what would be more romantic than that?

 

She tried to convince herself that she was okay, and that she had moved on. She built her own boat and slipped away into the night a few weeks later. She didn’t marry.

She landed on the shores of a faraway beach that she didn’t recognize, and found herself staring face to face with an older woman. Turned out, the older woman was the queen of Kalpryus, and was looking for a successor to her throne. Her husband had been long gone after a battle that happened decades ago, and she never had a child with anyone else, and she had always kept faithful to her husband.

She had prayed to Kalpryus’ patron goddess for an heir, and the girl had washed up ashore. The queen believed her to be a gift from the gods.

She accepted.

~

It seemed like they would never cross paths again, and for a while, they didn’t. He lived in his palace with a beautiful wife, and she lived in her palace with a wise guidance.

Little did they know that fate would bring them together once more, when she was officially coronated at age twenty-three. It was when she was ready, the queen had told her, and ready she was.

~ 

Coronation day.

The new queen of Kalpryus was sat atop her throne, smiling benevolently at her people and her guests. Her guests came from all over the place: Jadon, Genera, Luderya, and many more. And also, Naedidor. Her homeland.

She shook her head, mostly at herself. It was not the time to get nostalgic. People milled around the courtroom, downing wine and laughing heartily.

~

There was a coronation for a new queen of Kalpryus.

And as the king of Naedidor, he was obligated to attend. He had heard rumors, that the new queen was a blessing from the gods to Kalpryus, and that the sea god had picked her up from the sea and gave her to the old queen.

They said that she was beautiful and that her hair was a luscious black, smoother than the finest silk; her eyes a shining obsidian that would make you fall into a dark hole that was her heart. They called her the most beautiful of Kalpryus.

He was curious, yes, but he was also married. He had a duty to uphold to his beautiful wife and two adorable little girls. He would travel to Kalpryus to congratulate the new queen, and that would be it.

 

He felt his heart ache.

He didn’t know why his heart hurt so much, but the new queen of Kalpryus looked so familiar even though they never met, but he couldn’t place where or when. The new queen was on a dais, waiting for the crown to be placed atop her brow. Her eyes had scanned around the room while the room was silent, baited breaths waiting to be released. They locked eyes for a moment, and for a while, he felt something tug at his mind, like some buried treasure deep in his mind asking to be found.

 

He confronted the queen afterward.

They walked in the gardens under a million stars that were dotted against the dark sky.

“Why are you here, after so long? How did you find me?” she stopped in her footsteps, glaring at him. He could see that her eyes were rimmed red, and that she was about to cry. He didn’t comment on it, though.

“I-I don’t know you. I came here out of duty, but when I saw you today, something felt wrong.” He was confused. What did she mean by after so long?

“Of course something’s wrong! You had kissed me for the first time in my life after years of us pining after each other, but then guess what? Eight days later I found you kissing the princess and marrying her.”

Eight days later… He had married the princess eight days after he left Oar’s Rest.

Oar’s Rest. He had a simple life before then. He was a fisher’s son, like most of the boys in the village, and he had a girl that he had loved with all his heart.

He had a girl that he loved with all his heart. But then why did he marry the princess?

Pieces were falling into place.

“Oar’s Rest?” He croaked out. He was terrified. How could he have forgotten?

The queen of Kalpryus nodded. “Oar’s Rest. You forgot, didn’t you?”

This time, he nodded. His mind was swirling. What happened now? He had two kids and a wife, and he didn’t know if the queen of Kalpryus even loved him anymore. “Do you still love me? After all these years and what,” he winced at his words, “what I had done?”

“I still love you, and I will always love you. But it seems like fate didn’t want us together, and it’s pulling us apart.”

“Maybe we can defy fate for love?”

The queen chuckled lightly. “No, you have a family, don’t you? Stay true to them, and never, ever try to defy fate. It was what your father always said, wasn’t it?” She waved him goodbye and strolled back into the courtroom of guests, leaving him to ponder his everything.

 

#

 

A/N:

 

This story took me a bit longer than expected (1651 words), but now, here it is! I hoped you enjoyed it, and if you did, there’s a lot more to explore in my Masterlist, so be sure to check that out. Peace out!