Chapter 59: King’s Wrath
The Royal War Chamber had not seen this level of tension since the Border Conflicts twenty years prior. Ancient oak tables bore maps marked with red indicators—seven confirmed rift manifestations across the kingdom, all within the span of hours. The lighting crystals hummed with unstable energy, their usual steady glow flickering in response to the collective stress of the assembled leadership.
King Kendrick sat at the head of the war table, his knuckles white as he gripped the arms of his chair. At fifty-three, the king had weathered political storms, economic crises, and border skirmishes with the composure expected of a monarch. But the fury radiating from him now was unlike anything his advisors had witnessed.
"Two hundred students," the king’s voice carried the quiet rage of a father whose children had been threatened. "Two hundred of our kingdom’s most promising young awakened. Vanished. Through a rift that manifested inside our most secure facility."
Head Captain Aldric stood at attention, his King’s Guard uniform immaculate despite having traveled through the night to reach the capital. Colonel Hestian flanked him, his military bearing rigid with the weight of delivering catastrophic news. Between them, Lucian Valorian maintained his characteristic composure, though his pale eyes held depths of knowledge that made even the king uncomfortable.
"Your Majesty," Captain Aldric began carefully, "the Academy incident represents a complete breakdown of our understanding of dimensional security. The protective wards that have kept us safe for over a century failed without warning."
King Kendrick’s fist slammed against the oak table with enough force to make the crystal lighting flicker. "Failed? FAILED? Those wards were designed by the greatest artificers in our history! They’ve repelled everything from spatial manipulators to siege engines!"
"Which suggests we’re dealing with capabilities far beyond anything in our current threat assessments," Lucian interjected quietly. His voice cut through the king’s rage like ice water, forcing everyone to focus on implications rather than emotions.
The king’s burning gaze fixed on Lucian with the intensity of someone seeking answers in a crisis that defied explanation. "Lord Valorian, you’ve been suspiciously well-informed about theoretical dimensional phenomena. Speak plainly—what are we facing?"
Lucian stepped forward, "Your Majesty, the Academy manifestation was a white rift. Based on the eyewitness accounts and energy signatures Colonel Hestian’s people detected, we’re dealing with controlled dimensional manipulation that operates outside every law of physics we understand."
"White rifts are mathematical theories," Captain Alderic said, though his tone carried more uncertainty than conviction. "They were exist only in research papers."
"So did stable rift, before we built anchor points," Lucian replied grimly. "The impossibility of white rifts was based on our limited understanding of dimensional barriers. Someone has clearly transcended those limitations."
King Kendrick rose from his chair, pacing to the massive window that overlooked the capital. From this vantage point, he could see citizens going about their daily lives, unaware that their world had fundamentally changed overnight.
"The timing disturbs me," the king said, his voice carrying deadly calculation. "First, we have professional kidnappers with spatial manipulation capabilities targeting our two most promising SS-rank awakenings. Now this. Either we’re facing the most catastrophic coincidence in recorded history, or..."
"Or someone has been systematically testing our defenses before launching a coordinated attack," Captain Aldric finished grimly.
The silence that followed was profound and terrifying. Every person in the room understood the implications of coordinated assault by entities with capabilities that dwarfed their own.
"The kidnapping," King Kendrick continued, turning back to face the assembled leadership. "You’re telling me that was connected to this dimensional attack? But that’s impossible. The kidnappers were human—our investigation confirmed their identities, their equipment, their methods."
"Were they acting alone?" Lucian asked quietly.
Colonel Hestian consulted his reports. "The investigation revealed professional execution, but the spatial manipulator’s identity remains unknown. Someone with A-rank capabilities minimum, but no matching profiles in our records."
"An unknown A-rank spatial manipulator appears to target our most valuable students, and months later a theoretically impossible rift consumes our Academy." The king’s voice carried the weight of terrible realization. "That’s not coincidence. That’s reconnaissance."
Captain Aldric’s expression darkened as he processed the implications. "You’re suggesting the kidnapping was intelligence gathering? Learning about our students’ capabilities before the main assault?"
"I’m suggesting we’re dealing with an enemy that operates by completely different rules than anything we’ve faced before," King Kendrick replied, his royal composure cracking to reveal the fury beneath. "They can create rifts inside our most secure facilities, they have access to spatial manipulation capabilities that don’t match any known awakened, and they specifically targeted our two strongest students before attacking our primary training facility."
Lucian moved closer to the war table, studying the red markers that indicated rift manifestations. "Your Majesty, the pattern of today’s manifestations suggests this was carefully coordinated. Seven standard rifts appearing simultaneously while the Academy’s white rift maintained its connection. That level of dimensional manipulation requires either massive resources or capabilities we can’t comprehend."
"Resources or capabilities," the king repeated, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. "Colonel, in your professional assessment, could any known faction in our kingdom orchestrate something of this scale?"
Hestian was quiet for a long moment, running through possibilities with military precision. "No, Your Majesty. The power requirements alone would exceed anything we could generate, even if we mobilized every awakened in the realm."
"Then we’re dealing with external forces." King Kendrick returned to his chair, but his posture remained rigid with barely contained rage. "The question becomes: are these invaders from another dimension, or do we have enemies in our own world with access to dimensional manipulation we don’t understand?"
"The kidnapping suggests the latter," Captain Aldric said carefully. "Professional human operatives using advanced spatial manipulation, but still operating within our dimension according to recognizable patterns."
"But the Academy attack transcends anything human," Lucian added. "White rift creation requires capabilities that no awakened has ever demonstrated, regardless of rank or training."
King Kendrick stared at the map for a long moment, his mind working through scenarios that ranged from catastrophic to apocalyptic. "So we could be facing a coordinated assault involving both human collaborators with advanced abilities and extradimensional entities with power beyond our comprehension."
The statement hung in the air like a death sentence. No one wanted to confirm it, but no one could dispute the logic.
"Your Majesty," Colonel Hestian said finally, "we need to consider the possibility that this is just the beginning. If someone has the power to create white rifts at will, targeting our Academy could have been a test of capabilities. Next time, they might target the capital itself."
"Or the royal palace," Captain Aldric added grimly. "If they can breach Academy wards, our defensive barriers might not be adequate either."
King Kendrick’s expression grew cold with royal determination. "Then we adapt. Immediately. Colonel, I want every awakened in the kingdom on emergency status. Full mobilization, all leave cancelled, defensive positions around critical infrastructure."
"Your Majesty," Hestian replied, "full mobilization will cause panic among the civilian population. Word will spread that we’re preparing for war."
"We ARE preparing for war," the king said with finality. "Because whether our enemies are human, extradimensional, or some combination of both, they just declared war on us by attacking our children."
His royal authority filled the room like a physical presence, and every person present felt the weight of a monarch who would not accept the loss of two hundred students without consequences.
"Captain Aldric, double the royal guard. Triple the defensive wards around the palace. If they want to test our capabilities, let them try penetrating our strongest defenses instead of targeting children."
"Lord Valorian," the king continued, his gaze fixing on the enigmatic noble, "you seem to have insights into dimensional manipulation that exceed our current knowledge. I’m authorizing you to work directly with our artificers and dimensional theorists. If white rifts can be created, they can be countered."
Lucian inclined his head formally. "Your Majesty, I’ll share everything I know about dimensional manipulation. But I must warn you—if we’re dealing with entities that can create controlled white rifts, conventional defensive strategies may be inadequate."
"Then we’ll develop unconventional strategies," King Kendrick replied with deadly certainty.
The king stood again, his presence commanding absolute attention. "Gentlemen, as of this moment, we are at war with an enemy whose capabilities exceed our understanding. Our students are trapped in dimensional space, our Academy lies in ruins, and we face the possibility of further attacks that could devastate our kingdom."
His voice carried the weight of absolute royal authority as he delivered his final orders:
"We will adapt. We will prepare. And we will make whatever entity orchestrated this attack regret the day they chose to threaten our realm. The crown’s response will be swift, decisive, and overwhelming."
"Two hundred children trusted us to keep them safe. We failed them. But by the Architects’ grace, we will not fail them again. we will find a way to bring them home. And those responsible for this catastrophe will face the full wrath of the crown."
The war council dispersed with grim efficiency, each leader carrying orders that would reshape the kingdom’s defensive posture within hours. But as they departed, the weight of terrible uncertainty remained****.
Somewhere beyond dimensional barriers, two hundred students fought for survival against unknown horrors. And somewhere in their own world, enemies with impossible capabilities were preparing their next move in a war that had only just begun.