Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

"Do you submit?"

Commander Arturo's words hung in the air in an oppressive manner and was answered with silence. Lucius carefully looked at the men with him. He could tell every one of them was strong. However, one among them attracted his attention the most.

The man next to the Commander whom wore clergy robes over his plate armor, exuded an aura that surpassed even Lucius's father. He made no attempt to hide his strength.

It took Lucius a few moments but he was eventually able to remember who this man was. In all of his documentation about Arcadios. In his conversations with his father, he had been informed of a man in armor who always hid his face. The helmet had the symbol of a lightning bolt on it and he always carried a massive two-handed hammer on his back.

This person was known as the Thunder King and an Empyrean Ranker who served the Church of Celestia faithfully. There was no way that Lucius could fight against such a being, let alone get away from him. On top of that, even if he could get away, Kalliope was still in the room and Rena was still at the academy.

"Well, Lucius Kane?" Arturo called out. "Do you submit, or must we handle this matter with force?"

All of the men accompanying the commander placed their hands on their weapons, save for the Thunder King. Lucius remained silent for a few moments before sighing and nodding his head. There were no other options available to him at the moment. Trying to resist posed too much of a risk.

Kalliope looked at him worriedly as he gingerly took off his storage ring and weapon then placed them in her hands. "Lucius… what are you doing?"

"I cannot in good conscience put you and Rena at risk. I have no choice but to obey."

Kalliope tried to protest, but she seemed to have found her voice stuck in her throat. Instead she nodded in understanding while Lucius walked over to his captors. He quietly placed his hands out in front of him, waiting for them to take him into custody.

Arturo quickly placed a set of iron cuffs on Lucius's wrists, which earned him a raised eyebrow from the prisoner. The cuffs were made of plain iron and were not enchanted in any way. A simple sneeze from Lucius could snap them.

However, he quickly realized they were not on him to keep him from escaping. Rather they were a statement. He was to be paraded out of the academy in front of as many students as possible and humiliated by being dragged about in chains.

Not that Lucius really cared what everyone thought of him. Though they might have enjoyed a look of shame or guilt upon his face, Lucius would give them no such satisfaction. In his mind, he was innocent of any crimes.

"Come with us, Lord Kane."

He was swiftly led away and emerged from the building that housed Wally's residence at the academy. Outside of the building, a large group of students had already gathered. It seemed that the news of a large group of guards appearing on campus had already spread through the grounds.

As such, they gathered to their location in order to satisfy their own curiosity. Among them were a few familiar faces, including Thomas and Briene. They smirked at him when their eyes met, seemingly satisfied to see Lucius in such a state.

Unfortunately, they were not the only ones who were present. Rena was lightly running up to the crowd, worried about what was going on. Flanking her were Natali and Lyrah who both looked concerned that Rena was trying to run in her condition.

Though she was still early on and this light jaunt would do nothing to harm the child, they were almost as protective as Lucius was.

"Lucius! Unhand my husband! What do you think you are doing to him?" Rena demanded.

"Stay back, Lady Kane. Lord Kane is under arrest for crimes against the Kingdom of Arcadios, her people, and the Church of Celestia. He is to be brought before a council of his betters and tried for his crimes." Arturo answered mechanically.

Her interruption and their answer did not slow their pace as they continued to exit the academy grounds. Lucius's friends and family followed them through the city and all the way to the castle. No one attempted to stop them as it was Rena's right to accompany her husband to the castle.

Those who were with her would be considered her guests as well, so they were also not stopped. While they were escorted to the castle, many citizens would stop and stare at the procession. It wasn't every day that this many powerful looking people escorted a single person.

Unfortunately for Lucius, his face was easily recognizable in the capital after the exhibition tournament. Several even recognized him from the academy incident and were able to remember that he did nothing to help out within the city.

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They shouted at him and called him names. No one dared to throw anything because they might strike his escort. This would result in their own arrests, so they settled for shouts and cries of anger and frustration.

Lucius could hear Rena slightly sobbing behind him at the way he was being treated and he silently wished that his hearing wasn't as good as it was. If he couldn't hear her, then he wouldn't have to worry about how this might be affecting her.

Shortly after, they finally arrived at the castle and entered the dungeon. Lucius was placed in a locked cell and informed that he would be there until a council was formed to go over his charges and crimes. Rena and the others were allowed to stay outside of the cell and speak with him for a short amount of time.

"What is it that they accused you of?" She whispered softly.

"I don't know. I was not told of my crimes, only arrested. One of the men they had with them was the Thunder King and he is a force I could not hope to overcome. I had no choice but to acquiesce to their request…" Lucius whispered back. "I am so sorry to put you through this."

"No, it isn't your fault. It's theirs." Rena said angrily. "I have no doubt that they drummed up some charges simply because you are marked. This is nothing more than a farce to…"

"It doesn't matter if it is a farce or not. The fact of the matter is that I am stuck here until the trial. So do me a favor. Continue your life as though nothing is wrong and try your best not to think of me.

"I don't imagine that you will be allowed to return to see me until the trial begins. You don't need to add additional stress right now. So, stay with Rubellia, go on trips to the market with Natali, Lyrah, and Jade. Kalliope will protect you as well." Lucius asked.

He did his best to put on a comforting smile and reached through the bars to grab her hand. She took it in hers and he rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. "All will be fine, my love. Now, go. I really don't want you to keep seeing me like this if I can avoid it."

"I will. I love you."

"I love you too." Lucius continued to smile at her warmly. He then turned to Kalliope, "Do what we discussed and protect them."

"With my life." Kalliope responded before saluting him.

"Try not to let it come to that." Lucius ordered. His words brought a faint blush to Kalliope's face, but she nodded in understanding before they left him to his thoughts in the dungeon of the castle.

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