Eternal Dominion book 6: Resolve, page 1
Eternal Dominion Book 6
Resolve
Bern Dean
Bern's Books LLC
Copyright © 2022 Bern's Books LLC
All rights reserved
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Morning October 31, 2266.
ED year 1, day 320.
Evening October 31, 2266.
ED year 1, day 321-322.
Morning November 1 to Evening November 3, 2266 & ED year 1, day 323-329.
ED year 1, days 330-331.
Morning November 4, 2266.
ED year 1, day 332
Evening November 4 to Morning November 5, 2266 & ED year 1, days 333-335.
Afternoon November 5, 2266
ED year 1, days 336-337.
Morning November 6 to Morning November 9, 2266 & ED year 1, days 338-346.
ED year 1, day 347.
Evening November 9, 2266.
ED year 1, days 348-349.
Morning November 10 to Evening November 11, 2266 & ED year 1, days 350-355.
Morning November 12, 2266.
ED year 1, day-356.
Evening November 12, 2266.
ED year 1, days 357-358.
Morning November 13, 2266.
ED year 1, day 359.
Evening November 13 to Morning November 14, 2266 & ED year 1, days 360-362.
Evening November 14, 2266.
ED year 1, days 363-364.
Morning November 15 to Evening November 17, 2266 & ED year 1, day 365 to year 2 day 8.
Morning November 18, 2266.
ED year 2 days 9-10.
Evening November 18, 2266.
Morning November 19 to Morning November 22, 2266 & ED year 2 days 10-22.
Evening November 22, 2266.
Thanks!
Preview
Afterword
Morning October 31, 2266.
Alex looked up from the pair of plus signs to see both Sam and Nicole looking at him with a mix of emotions clearly displayed on their faces. With no further hesitation, Alex stepped forward and pulled both girls into a group hug, raining kisses on them as he did so. Before they knew it, they were a mess and it was time to hurry up and get ready to head out to the kendo dojo for their morning lesson. It was Nicole who pulled herself together first.
“Okay, we need to pull ourselves together and get ready.”
“Nicole, I think we can skip a day. Besides, should we really be putting that strain on our bodies now?”
“Sam, Nicole is right. Until we are ready for everyone to know, we need to act as normal as we can. That said, we need to get you both appointments soon. We might want to move up our move date with this as well.”
“Wait, why would we move early?” questioned Sam with confusion.
Nicole replied, “It can be hard to secure a good OB-GYN (Obstetrician-Gynecologist) after ten weeks.”
“I see, and that is the doctor who will deliver our babies, right?”
“Sam, honestly, I would have thought you would look this stuff up like I did once you thought you were pregnant.”
“Nicole, give Sam a break. I think it would have been too real for her if she had, so she avoided it. Now, let’s get ready for the morning’s exercise and I’ll look into what it will take to make sure everything is smooth.”
“Okay. Oh, are we still planning on letting everyone know on Thanksgiving? My mom will probably force it out of me if we wait any longer than that.”
“We’ll see. Now, let’s get going or we will be late.”
The three of them went about getting ready as they let it sink in that they really were going to be parents. For Alex, it was something that he had long since accepted he would never be in his last life and the emotions he was feeling were distorted as he still was at a loss on exactly how to process this. He could handle every curveball that Eternal Dominion and other players could throw at him inside of the game. He could handle the day to day operation of a few million people’s needs, but how to be a father was nowhere in his list of skills. He couldn’t help but smile as he thought about what it meant for his life, while at the same time feeling anxious about everything that needed to happen. Sam and Nicole were simply pure balls of raw emotion as they kept processing that it really was real, but when they saw the goofy smile stuck on Alex’s face, it caused them to smile back and feel a bit better about the whole situation.
That morning’s kendo lesson passed by in a fog to Alex as he was still focused elsewhere and it had caused him to be sloppy. This made Sensei Sano question where Alex’s mind was as he was usually the most composed of the group. The smile that Alex couldn’t keep off his face had drawn a few questions as well, but he passed it off as him feeling good about how everything had played out in the latest operation. Princess Enye would finally be free of Hugo Mercer’s unwanted advances and the kingdom of Nium shouldn’t have to worry about manpower from adventurers in the future, thanks to the contracts Tyelk and Drezar signed. It was looking like his path to tier 5 was wide open and he just needed to get there now as fast as he could. His parents and friends accepted his statement with a bit of reluctance, but they didn’t press any further beyond a questioning look here or there. When Alex, Sam and Nicole got back to the apartment, they couldn’t help but laugh at how bad Alex had been at hiding his feelings as they debated if everyone already suspected the truth. Still, Alex had drawn all the attention so they figured it was still safe to assume that no one knew just yet. They also knew they all needed to get ready to hide their feelings for the next few weeks a lot better than they did that morning if they hoped to get through Abysses End’s visit in 12 days. With these thoughts on their minds, the three of them returned to ED.
ED year 1, day 320.
Xeal awoke, to find Maxwell awaiting him with a letter in hand, once he left his room. Inside the letter was a summons from Prince Victor for Xeal to be present at the palace at 6:00 in the morning. Xeal knew this had to deal with the aftermath of the failed assault on FAE’s headquarters. As he had been expecting a summons, Xeal had already told his party to take the current login off. Instead, Xeal made his way to the capital’s training center to spend the morning facing off with the doppelgangers that the mirror shards he had held onto created, until it was time to meet with the prince. When 6:00 rolled around, Xeal found himself seated across from Prince Victor, who looked tired but happy.
“Xeal, you really know how to make things move.”
“Is that a good thing, or a bad thing, your majesty?”
“Drop the formality. Now that you have put the Mercer house in a difficult position, they can’t put nearly the pressure they used to on the royal family. Soon, yours and Enye’s courtship will be announced, and once you become an earl, the wedding will be held. So, as my future brother, please treat me as you would your family when it is just us.”
“Alright, Victor. It seems you are in a good mood, so I apologize, but now, more than ever, you need to be cautious. An enemy that is cornered is dangerous as they can act erratically and cause deadly injuries in a last attempt at life.”
Victor let out a sigh that morphed into a yawn halfway through, before continuing.
“Yes, I know. I just want to enjoy the moment as it is, even if it will be fleeting.”
“So, what happens now?”
“Now, in all likelihood, Hugo will be disinherited and his younger brother will step up to be the next head of the family while Hugo lives out his life in a remote territory. The Mercer house will need to prove their loyalty and will have to spend at least a decade carefully, after which they will likely return to their current status and resume their plans to rise in power.”
“So it will be business as usual once everything is said and done. Hugo takes all the blame while the Mercer house has to step carefully and nothing changes.”
“Hopefully. There is always a chance that they make an unexpected move to try and avoid the loss of influence from this event.”
“I take it this will all play out shortly.”
“In a few hours, which is why you are here now. I wanted to ensure you wouldn’t add in any surprises this morning when Hugo is put on trial.”
Xeal smiled as he replied to Victor.
“Surprises, what ever could you mean?”
Victor just chuckled as a servant brought in his breakfast, with a portion for Xeal as well. The next few hours were spent talking and going over what to expect and how to act in the following proceedings when the inevitable counter accusations came from Hugo. Then it was finally time to move to the throne room where the trial would take place. As Xeal entered this room for the first time, he took note of the opulence of the room, with red drapes and marble floors. Marble columns lined each side of the room except the back where two thrones sat on a raised floor in front of a half dome wall and ceiling with beautiful artwork that told the first king’s story of founding the kingdom of Nium. The throne that the king would sit upon was covered in gold and jewels and sat much higher than the small one covered
As Hugo Mercer was walked in with his arms chained behind his back, his gaze was scanning the room until it landed upon Xeal. Hugo focused on Xeal with pure hatred for a few seconds before he was brought into the center of the room and forced to his knees. Once he was on his knees, he looked upon the king with a look that said he was just ready to get this farce over with. Sighing, Prince Victor stepped out and began speaking to those present.
“My fellow countrymen and ladies, we are here this day to deal with an unfortunate matter of rebellion in our midst. Sir Hugo of House Mercer stands accused of going against the direct decrees of the kingdom by involving himself in a grievance dispute purposely and forcefully. He has also admitted to a plot to replace the royal family’s line with his own one day.”
Victor paused for effect while several gasps could be heard from the crowd as the second accusation was announced. It had not been made public beforehand as the Mercer house may have caused an issue before the trial otherwise.
“Now, it is my hope that this is simply a delusion born in the mind of an overly ambitious youth and not the intent of one of our kingdom’s greatest houses.”
Marquess Mercer stepped forward, bowing to the prince.
“It is not, my prince. While we did hope to pair our son with Princess Enye, we did so only to increase cooperation between our lines in the future.”
“Very good. Though as unfortunate as it is, prudence dictates that we must keep a closer eye on your house in the near future to ensure it is as you say. I am sure you and your house will be found to be the loyal subjects of the crown and kingdom you have always been and I look forward to putting this trouble behind us.”
“Thank you, my prince.”
“Now, Hugo, how do you plead to these charges.”
“I’m innocent. I was simply setting up to enjoy a good show when Viscount Bluefire ambushed me and tricked me into misspeaking. This is all a misunderstanding that has been crafted to remove me from the picture so he can steal Princess Enye’s hand from me.”
“Viscount Bluefire, is there any truth to Hugo’s accusations that you set him up?”
Xeal stepped forward and knelt before speaking.
“Prince Victor, you know each action I took as I shared them with you beforehand. Yes, I did manipulate events to expose Hugo. My information networks alerted me to his involvement behind two other guilds’ actions that were having what we agreed was a negative effect on the kingdom as a whole.”
“True, you ensured that the kingdom was fine with each move you took. Now, did you trick him into announcing his desire to replace the royal family with his own line?”
“The conversation was leading and he did realize his mistake immediately. It is questionable if he would have acted on those thoughts, or if they were simply said in the heat of the moment.”
“Very good. It appears that you may only be guilty of having a thought, not a plan, when it comes to the throne. Now, as for the other charge, I believe the three witnesses who have been prepared will clear any doubt that is left.”
With a wave of the prince’s hand a pair of guards led Templar Fall’s guild leader Drezar into the throne room.
“Guild Leader Drezar, would you in your own words explain exactly what involvement Hugo here had in undermining FAE.”
As Drezar started to speak, Hugo’s face turned red as he opened his mouth and began to speak loudly, but was quickly gagged before an intelligible word could be formed. The guards behind him then held him down on his knees. Prince Victor simply shook his head as he turned to Drezar and motioned for him to speak. After the brief scene, Drezar composed himself and gave testimony that Hugo had been involved from the very start and had even insisted that his guild and Red Crushers both funnel players into Rising Oblivion to cause FAE difficulties. He went on to speak of how he had demanded them to find a way to create a grievance with FAE that would allow them to attack FAE’s headquarters with Rising Oblivion once FAE had secured Rising Oblivion’s guild authority token. He went on to explain how they had come to an agreement with FAE to avoid the complete destruction they felt following Hugo’s plan would have led to for their guilds. Once Drezar had finished testifying, Tyelk the guild leader of Red Crushers followed, repeating a similar recounting of events. Friva, the ex-guild leader of Rising Oblivion was last as she explained how she had been the initial bait as she knew her guild was done for and her best option was to merge into FAE, regardless of the outcome of events. Once all three were done speaking, the room was quiet as Hugo shook on his knees in rage, giving Xeal a death glare while Prince Victor spoke.
“I believe we have heard enough and witnessed enough to understand what happened. While it is true that events were orchestrated to expose Sir Hugo’s actions, they were still his decision to rebel against a royal decree without going through the appropriate channels. I turn this matter over to you, Father, for your verdict.”
King Vincent Vidfamne stood as he looked down upon Hugo who had finally stopped glaring at Xeal and was doing his best to hold his rage in check. King Vincent looked at Hugo’s father who was kneeling before the king like his life depended on it, and then over to Xeal, who was still standing on the side calm as could be.
“It seems that this generation’s game of chess will be far more active than my generation’s was. Hugo, understand that you have lost the game in a rather complete fashion and that your actions have long been known to be opposed to those of my son’s. I had hoped you would be a good grinding stone for him, but it seems he has already surpassed the challenge you can offer him. Now, before I pass my verdict, I will allow you one last chance to speak. Understand that I have already decided that you are guilty. It is simply how I should punish you that is left. Were I to simply kill you, it may lead to issues with your house down the line. That said, you can’t be allowed to stay as you are, so please tell me what should I do with you?”
After a moment King Vincent motioned for the guards to remove Hugo’s gag, allowing him to speak once more. With the gag out, Hugo took a moment before replying to the king’s words.
“Your majesty, I accept your judgment and maintain that my actions were directed at hindering Viscount Bluefire, not the country as a whole. I ask for your mercy and to be released to my family. There I will step down from being the heir to the house and govern one of our smaller holdings.”
“Hmm, Marquess Mercer, what are your thoughts on your son’s request, knowing your house would be held responsible should he ever act out again?”
“My king, we will not accept him, as we do not believe he will remain obedient in the future under our care. We ask that the crown find another house to act as his warden who would be willing to match him with a wife from their house. My hope is that being separated from those that followed him and starting a family might help mellow him.”
Hugo couldn’t believe his father’s words. They ruined any ambitions that he could have for the future and forever put Princess Enye beyond his reach. Upset, he couldn’t help but have an outburst.
