The Crimson Prince： Awakening

"Look, Papa! It"s the Crimson Prince!" Will saw a child shout at his father while tugging on his shirt. He heard a poorly suppressed giggle and knew Maya heard the boy too.

They followed the winding streets which Will still felt were more like mazes, but knew all led to the Crown Emba.s.sy. Leo had ensured that the construction of the city went around the emba.s.sy, making it the center building.

Will was excited to finally see the home which was made for him and Maya. After all of the wars he fought, all of the killing, he wanted nothing more than to establish a foot hold of peace within this world of madness.

Leo led them further through the large city. They waited at crosswalks for the Ryder Cycles to pa.s.s. Will looked in disbelief as he saw Affinity Crystals fixed to posts like stop lights, turning red, yellow and green to direct the traffic. He looked at Leo, who only smiled and nodded at the now green light, telling them to continue.

Will kept his eyes up as they walked. he could see the emba.s.sy towering above them. It was easily the largest building in Ember. As long as someone looked up, there would be no way to get lost.

"And, we"re here." Leo announced lazily as he brought his hand forward. "Welcome to the Crown Emba.s.sy."

Will brought his eyes down slowly and took in the hundreds of floors which seemed to break through the clouds at the top. He saw a pair of solid oak double doors at the very bottom, with a statue in front that made him slap his head.

There he was, in all his glory. the long hair which had been given to him after the Crimson Pact with Cainus. The long trench coat, and his lineage sword pointed forward at some unknown enemy. His face was calm and determined.

"Really?" Will admonished Leo, an eyebrow reaching his hairline.

"They like it." Leo shrugged as he went past the large statue and went in the double doors.

Will heard some of the men and women whispering about the statue and knew his best friend was telling the truth, but who wanted a large statue of themselves outside their own home?

"It"s better not to think about it, hun." Maya put her arm around Will. "This is a battle I don"t believe you can win, especially when you find out who made it in the first place."

"Who?"

"Welcome everyone!"

Will groaned as he recognized the voice of his dad, Jonathan. "Hey, dad." he raised lazily towards the only cowboy gunslinger in Crystallia. "You did that?"

"You like it?" Jonathan beamed. "I thought it captured you perfectly as you faced Aremesis alone before your sleep."

"You could"ve just made a picture or something." Will muttered under his breath.

"Let me show everyone around." Jonathan said as he turned and led everyone through the lobby.

Will looked around with interest, it was the first time he had been able to visit his new home, and he wasn"t disappointed. They walked on the reflective surface of tile flooring as Jonathan ushered them towards a front desk.

As they stopped so Jonathan could address the receptionist, Will"s eye"s went wide as they landed on who his dad was talking to. It was a strong looking man with bronze skin from countless hours out in the sun. His large sculpted muscles bulged out of the sleeveless red shirt he was wearing. Will noticed the crown emblem which was adorned on the breast pocket of the man"s shirt. Long dark brown hair dangled dangerously close to the emblem, but was tied neatly in a tail, so as to avoid messing up his uniform.

"Roland?" Will returned to his senses. It had been a long time since he had seen the former slave trader, turned business man.

The man"s gaze went from Jonathan to Will, which obviously took him a moment to register who he was. Will didn"t mind, he knew he was wearing his tattered blue jeans and white shirt. Though his hair was close to the same length it was when he had first overcome the Thousand Strong Challenge, he knew that his own hair wasn"t tied, which gave him a messy appearance. That, and he still didn"t have any shoes.

Will gave the man credit, it only took him ten seconds of staring before he heard the stuttering voice of the larger man. "M-my Lord!" He shot out from behind the desk and appeared before Will in a deep bow. "You"ve woken up!"

"Yeah," Will scratched his head sheepishly. "My mentor was finally done with his instructions for me." He winked at his friend. "Are you going to show us around, then?"

"He"s going to have to." Jonathan sighed as he looked at his son. "I"ve only come here to get Leo to look at a few trade routes opening with the other kingdoms." He nodded to Leo and began to walk back to the entrance. "We just have to fine tune a few of the details before we begin the paving operation you requested of your father."

"Really?" Will"s eyebrows shot up in surprise. "That was fast."

"Obviously you noticed the paved streets in the city, right?" Leo"s eyes went to his best friend who nodded. "That took twenty minutes tops with Jonathan, Michael, myself and a flame wielder to make."

"You were right with the washed out paths leading to Ebonhart, as well as other kingdoms." Jonathan said to finish Leo"s thoughts. "It"s about time not only Ember, but all of Crystallia has paved roads with the possibility of trade all year round."

"We"ve set up teams which will set out through Crystallia, paving the paths and helping to every door of every citizen in Crystallia."

Will nodded his head in agreement. "I want to add one more order to the list you have given me." He said. "I want you to make an emba.s.sy in every kingdom who wishes for new homes and new work opportunities."

A collective murmur spread through the new group of recruits while Will opened his hand to them. "All of you who wish for a better future, one with plenty of food on your table, and happy children playing outside with no reason to fear. "Please become a part of that future, and help us create a world we can be proud to live in."

"With that," Jonathan said as he and Leo went to the door. "I leave Roland to your tour. Everyone," he bowed his head slightly. "Welcome home."