THE KINGDOM OF CHAMENOS

MY BRAIN STARTS to process to think like a machine. I start to remember what I’ve done from all the days of my life.

Some I’ve forgotten though, well, it doesn’t matter. My brain starts to remember what day it is today, what time it is, what to do today. My eyes starts to open up, and everything seems clear to me—I’m awake from a deep sleep.

I took a shower, ate some breakfast, and did some cleaning in my awesome home, but actually it is only a chamber provided for legionnaires that seems like a prison cell. Whoever designed this room sucks at all as there’s no design at all! Only but a plain metal room with a dim light shining, as we are accustomed to this glow.

I love the sleigh though, its waterbed that makes me feel like I am floating in my sleep. Well, I should be thankful to our King who is doing all he can to provide almost everything to all the legionnaires—food provisions and a place to sleep, though not all the people.

I put on my murk suit armor, strap my sword on my back, and comb my spiky hair and wink at myself as I face the mirror. Alright, I’m ready to go.

As soon as I opened the dark metal door I begin breathing this not so fresh air. It goes straight down into my lungs. It’s not poisonous but not healthy either. Well, this is our Kingdom, and I’m used to it. I started my few steps outside my room climbing down the stairs. On my way down I would always see the metals like crowning debris in every black building. Yes, everything is black.

A little bit tilt of my head and I could see it, the steep dark metal wall. It’s also surrounded by steel spikes all above like a hedge. As if some giant titans will attack us like in the ancient comics that I’ve read.

The king has his own taste and likes. He is king, after all, he can do what he wants and designs the structure of the kingdom to all his liking. But the kingdom is old. Who knows this has been the edifice since this kingdom was born? Well, who knew? All I know is that our king’s grace is protecting us, and his power is at work on our circling rusty dark walls.

I’ve reached a wide way intersection. Four dark blocks from the building where I live, I must welcome myself to our city, but more like a junk city. Where people are busy with their trades and customs to make a living.

We are a powerful kingdom, though people are a little bit lost in everything they do. They experiment on things. On building stuff, and all things seem to have been experimented in this kingdom. Our progress is not that great. I guess we are still like those in the old books. The thing they called ‘nation’ or ‘country.’ As I remember one of the old books that have been translated to our ‘Omnibus’. In the ‘Bibliotheca’ back in the ‘Archaic age’. So, our kingdom is still stuck. Still having a percentage of crime rates though in a small amount. And only having enough food to keep the kingdom alive.

As I was on my way to my brigade’s Alcove where I belong to, my eyes catch a glimpse with one of my close friends surprise fist. I was able to dodge it on time, well I should say I always dodge this punch all the time. As it welcomes me almost every day I passed by this road.

“Wow! Your senses are like of spider-man in the ancient comic omnibus,” the man said without a surprise.

His expression is something fishy.

“Here we go again,” I uttered as I turn to him. And now he is in a stance, ready to launch another nonsense attack that won’t surprise me. I showed him that I’m annoyed. He delayed with my glare at him, he stood where he was standing for a while. His rooster hair waved as the wind blew it. And his black suit girded with three layers of blue colored diamond lines. In his left and right chest sparkled as the sun shone on them.

“Oh, really? Let’s see,” he snapped himself with his feminist grin. This guy is crazy.

He draws his swords from its sheath with crossing hands. A two short blade glittering with blue diamonds. Well, that’s his grace. And those diamonds are not for show. He can turn the ground into any form of diamonds, into any weapon he can think of. And it’s massive and almost indestructible. But it’s not a diamond that worth more than gold. It’s only a power created by his cherub swords, and it will disappear when he leash his grace. But his power is formidable and sturdy. That’s why he belongs to those powerful legionnaires of defense the ‘Passe brigade’. But I doubt he intends to use his power in this area I know he’ll get in trouble with the regime of our kingdom.

“Let’s get over it,” I said to him while frowning.

He swings his right sword to hit my left belly. And I stop his movement as I caught the body of the blade of his sword with my bare hand. His eyes widened up in dismay as if his pride is shattered. And that’s what I intend to do so that he will stop his folly and know his place and see the gap of our strength.

“My diamond blade is not working at all. I don’t know what happened to the sharpness of my blade,” he mutters with a long face. “But how about this?”

He toughens up his grip, and it keeps my attention to it. Not knowing that it is just a diversion.

His other sword on his left hand is already pierced to the ground. And he summons some diamonds from the ground with a form of a spear intending to pierce my left feet.

I evaded its sharpness by stepping away from where the impaling diamonds bursting from the earth.

And as soon as I begin to see more of diamonds surrounding us, this guy is crazy indeed. He wants to bury me with diamonds.

That will be awesome to be my grave, but not today! And he summons more of the sharp spears, and it surrounds me to groove me to death in every side where I can’t see. There, they thrust towards me!

I weave my head and lean my body to the left. And move my right leg to the side—evading those sharp thrusts. But I feel some itch-scratch in my right shoulder so I let go of his blade from my grip, and I jump away from him in few meters.

“Here I come!” he cries with a malice face as he jumps towards me.

What in the world is wrong with this guy?

He swings on both sides as if I’m a junk of meat to slice! I duck with my body bending to the left.

As I am a left-handed guy, I try to make an uppercut if it will work and reach his chin. But it is too late. He is able to jink to the left side.

In a glimpse, I see his grip of his ugly sword tightens. He’s going to stab me with his left sword in my right side of my arm. I am able to lean back and escape his dangerous pointed sparkling rusty sword!

“Good grief! I’ll have an infection from the rust of your sword,” I complain to him with a sly smile.

“Grrrraaahh!” he yells like a mad man going forward to me to assault me again.

And I think that this is getting ridiculous. So I finally draw my sword. As soon as it is unsheathed, my blade creates a flame as it indicates that my grace is activated.

And I parried his swing with mine. As soon as our sword clashes, a shock-wave explodes. And he is blown backward and falls down. His butt smashes to the ground like a toddler, and he loses the grip of both of his swords.

I hear a loud slam on the ground like a lump of meat, but I know it was his tush that hit the dirt so hard. The shock-wave makes him daydream of being blown by wind and float in defeat and fall with a shame. I could see in his eyes he dwells for a second on a wonder. His eyes are pale like a dead man. But I know that my sword didn’t touch him, so he is alive, but his spirit is dead. There, his eyes blink in despair.

And as soon as he gets back to his senses and he looks up to me, my sword is already pointing at his face. His very ugly face is covered with dust, he looks pathetic. His rooster hair disbands like a wild grass over his head.

“You are the best, Zinvul, my boy,” he said accepting his defeat.

His mouth curves up from a grin. Is he proud or something?

“Help me up, my friend.” He stretches his arm up to me. And I grab him and pull him up.