King's Reign: The First Year

King’s Reign

The First Year

(2017 Edition)

Copyright 1999-2017 Paul Foxton

First published in 2005 by Foxtonia Publishing;

This edition published by Foxtonia Publishing at Smashwords, 2017

Smashwords Edition License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your enjoyment only, then please return to Smashwords.com or your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

The Quest for the Golden Dragon

The Secret of the Sword

Mysterious Castle

The Alchemists Daughter

The Man of Fire

The Gun

About The Author

Other books by Adam Blade

Connect with Adam Blade

Acknowledgements

For everyone who believed in me;

My family and my friends;

And those who dare to follow their dreams;

This one’s for you…

Introduction

Hello reader!

Thank you so much for purchasing my first novel, King’s Reign. This has been such a fun project to write and I am so pleased that I can get to share it with you.

When I created King’s Reign back in 1999, it was a dream of mine to be able to write and publish a book. The original version was published in 2005 and was limited to a run of 100 or so books. After that, lots of things happened in my life and I never had chance to follow it up or promote it.

As luck would have it, now, in 2017, I have decided to give King’s Reign a new lease of life. Not only has this original story been reedited, proofread, added to and generally polished up for 2017, I am also writing more material including King’s Reign One Shots starting with Two Princes. I’ve dug out all of my old notes, cleaned them up and revisited them with a more experienced eye and over the coming years I hope there will be more King’s Reign for you if you want it.

The universe will expand and more stories will be in the works.

I would love to know what you think about King’s Reign and would love the community to get involved. If you would like to get in touch, I have included ways to interact at the end of this novel. As part of this interaction I have two offers running for as long as I can maintain them. The first is most probably the one that you have availed of – that is by buying the One Shot and getting this novel for half price. If you have done that, I thank you for buying both.

However, those others who haven’t had chance to do that and have paid full price for this novel – I commend you and thank you for that, so if you use code LU44U at Smashwords to buy King’s Reign One Shot: Two Princes, I will give you the download FREE. Just to say thanks. This won’t be the last of extra stories, this is just the start! So thanks for being with me at the beginning – however don’t forget to keep in touch to find out more!

So once again, I (and my characters) thank you for allowing them to introduce themselves to you. And I hope you enjoy the first year of my first novel, King’s Reign.

Keep in touch,

Your storyteller

Adam Blade (2017)

King’s Reign: The Quest For The Golden Dragon

In the kingdom of WhiteLaw there lived a King. He ruled his subjects well and the world smiled when he walked along it. But like all old Kings, his time had come to step down – his excellent swordsmanship was let down by bumbling reflexes and his mind wasn’t as sharp as it was in the early days. He won every war, dispute and upheaval with violence only if necessary, and more often than not, solved it by another route. Now is the time of King Goldrun’s abdication and a new King has come. A new type of king that WhiteLaw has never seen before and his reign as a king will be like an adventure he’d never forget…

All rise for Prince Goldrun, a voice echoed in the throne room of WhiteLaw Castle. A flurry of voices quietened and a blur of people rose up from their seats.

The throne room was crowded with people from the aristocracy and the King, stroking his silvery-grey beard, stood awaiting the arrival of his son which was imminent. The throne room was a very large circular area and there were many examples of stained glass windows based on battles of legend. Battles like The Battle of Inter, and the Quest of the Golden Chalice (which was the stuff of myths). The whole room was constructed from a mixture of gold and stone, and the steps up to the grand throne were paved with platinum. One of the two guards by the side of the throne cleared his throat as the trumpets sounded – the Prince was here.

Prince Jordan Goldrun entered the room and everyone hushed. His countenance was a happy one, and his atmosphere demanded respect. The man was really larger than life; he had a perfectly sculpted body, like that of a Greek god, and a sword that was both of the highest quality and price. He walked strong and tall, and some in the room were relieved that he was going to be the King. Others were unsure of whether he would be up to the task.

King Goldrun, dressed in his red robes and wearing the crown, sceptre, and the exotic expensive clothes, contrasted vividly with his son who donned tight fitting leather armour with a gold crest on his chest. Dressed head to toe in black, Prince Goldrun did not look ready for the task ahead. King Goldrun started to speak to his son:

"Thou art mine eldest son.

I grow old,

Weary am I.

Thou hast proved thyself in battle,

And in democracy.

All that I govern,

All that I possess under my sovereignty,

Is now thine.

My kingdom, my aides, and my

reputation.

Govern these people well, or thou shalt suffer:

Death is always watching, waiting.

Protection is yours should the people love you."

On his knees, the young Prince replied, I swear, my father, I shall do all in my power to protect my subjects, and my kingdom I have been given. Thank you father! Responsibility is now mine, and I shall honour it!

"That you should, mine eldest child.

Thou understands your

Responsibility. Thou should

Remember that a King is nothing without

His subjects.

Respect them and they shall respect thee!"

Father, I understand, replied Jordan.

"Go then, my son,

Rule these people and make me proud of thee.

Govern with purity in thy heart and soul.

Protect them and me. And thy lovéd one,

Princess Esther, Queen of Imagflexia."

I shall, Father, thank you.

Should thou need assistance I am here always, my son. Go now... and govern!

I shall, my beloved father.

As Jordan was crowned, Agan stood in a corner in the shadows, his expression blank. He turned away and headed back to his dominion without being noticed.

KING’S REIGN

The Quest for the Golden Dragon

So then, my Prince… you are now a King! I’m so pleased for you, my Darling! said Esther excitedly.

Princess Esther was the Queen of Imagflexia, the neighbouring country to WhiteLaw, and she was Jordan Goldrun's partner. She was pleased beyond measure that he had finally completed his education and training, and had now been bestowed the honour of being the King. Esther was young, beautiful and extremely agile. She was a renowned soldier as well as a diplomat. She was slender and sensual, and many men were captivated by her. However, as she was the Queen and devoted to Jordan, she was untouchable, much to the dismay of her would-be suitors. Her blonde hair reflected the sunlight like gleaming gold, and her pale feminine features and electric blue eyes contrasted vividly with the rugged, tall, dark and handsome features of Jordan Goldrun. His brown eyes looked at her as he spoke.

We have a country each to run now, eh? he laughed.

I’ll bet Agan isn’t pleased… commented Esther.

Agan was the brother of Jordan. He was twisted and bitter because he didn’t get the Kingdom of WhiteLaw and didn’t become any part of the royal sovereignty. As a result, he’d locked himself away, learning magic and becoming a Master Sorcerer. He learned most of his trade from mercenaries, renegade magicians, and corrupt soldiers. His accomplishments rivalled Jordan’s significantly, but in a very different way.

However, with all his power and training, and with the amount of people he had defeated or manipulated to get where he was, he was still unable to acquire Kingship. The only way he would get power was to be the eldest son. Should the eldest son die, then the only person to take over was either his son or his brother. But if he didn’t have a son…

I can guarantee you, Agan will not be happy, said Jordan confidently, …but it is the way, and I must honour that.

Agan entered his dominion in DarkLore. Agan was a tall, well-built man of about twenty three years of age. He had black hair, which was tightly put in a ponytail, and a goatee, which he was quite fond of. His weapon of choice included two swords, which he kept slung over his shoulder. This contrasted vividly with his dress, which was a long black robe. The robe hung freely which allowed Agan to move quickly and fight with magic as well as his weapons. Being a couple of years younger than his 25-year-old brother, he got away with a lot more being the youngers. However, Agan was consumed by jealousy as the talented Jordan took more pride in his manners and kingly skills. No matter how hard Agan tried he could not get out of the shadow of his brother. It wasn’t that Jordan was a bad person or that his father was unfair. It was politics, rules and red tape. It was the way and that’s what Agan hated the most – the way.

DarkLore was a former part of WhiteLaw and was situated in the southernmost part of WhiteLaw. Agan had conquered it with his powers many years ago. Due to his dictatorial nature and zeal for power, the place was gloomy with misery and people begged for food. Now in disrepair and laden with swamps and dark forests, Darklore (as Agan had named it) was a place of misery. His castle was situated in a valley aptly named Sinister Valley. The castle, with its black walls and dark skies surrounding it, gave the whole place an eerie feel. He wandered around his throne room thinking with his minions moaning and snivelling around him. Agan hit upon an idea to annoy his brother. He would curse a village, using all his power, and see how he could handle that.

He’s a young King; he won’t even know what to do!

Agan laughed to himself. He moved over to the other side of the throne room and surveyed the area.

Now... where did I put that spell book?

He looked around the area, which looked more like a hollowed-out cave rather than a throne room with its dull light and near-permanent dusk state. However, despite the gloom, it was clear enough to see the glowing yellow spell book in the opposite corner. It was on a stand, which Agan liked to stand by and flick through the book. He headed straight for it and opened it up.

Get me a map of WhiteLaw, somebody! he boomed. A snivelling minion, dressed in black robes and his face completely hidden by shadow, zipped off and moments later appeared with a map of the Kingdom. Agan flicked through the pages of the spell book while he waited. His minion returned promptly with the requested map.

Ah, Pessomi, I grew up there… that will be perfect! I’m going to curse Pessomi! Let’s see how Jordan handles that!

The little village of Fallow was bustling with activity. It was mid-Spring, and the Annual Convention of Magic was in full swing. The carnival was in the streets with street acting and theatre, and there were sideshows and music as everyone celebrated. In the Magicians Guild, the best magicians from around the world were showing off their abilities and to be graded by the Elite. They would get a scroll for their trouble, which was the magician equivalent of a knighthood.

Esther and Jordan walked through the village and watched as the citizens were celebrating to their hearts’ content. A drunk staggered past them and fell over onto the side of the street, saluting them both, then pulled himself up and headed towards the nearest pub. Jordan smiled as he continued on through the village. They stopped at a few stalls and bought some trinkets and the sellers were honoured to have the King and Queen purchase something from them. Jordan bought a handmade bracelet for Esther, who placed it on