New Creation (ii)
Beneath the hot, scorching heavens by the frothing bluish-green sea, I began my account :
"Divanthine was an ancient fortress on the outskirts of the empire. It was built on the tallest hill of the frontier, just overlooking the slim, lithan sea. It's now browned-out, decrepit towers had once been the first line of defence against invaders from the north, centuries ago. It had been populated with the best and bravest of the king’s army whose valiant sacrifices had supposedly turned the characteristically white sea shore sand, brownish-red.
Legend has it that at the height of the last campaign, when hundreds of thousands of enemy warriors disembarked on our coast and threatened to overwhelm the region, the heroic acts of our soldiers reversed the tide, repelled the massive incursion and in the process, emblazoned on our shores, it's eerie banner.
The emperor then acquiesced to his counselors' plea and negotiated an expensive peace treaty with the Nards that culminated in our crown prince's marriage to their princess. At the death of King Cacry, our kingdoms merged and our ambitious ruler finally gained the empire he craved. One lucky thing led to another and by the time Emperor Derfen died, the empire was the most powerful in the south" I finished, for the tourists and "poor, old Divanthine was forgotten", I muttered under my breath.
Enough history, I hated the legend but I'd retell it, a thousand times more for 20 gold pieces, each.
I’m not greedy, it’s impossible for any Divanthan to truly be but centuries’ worth of neglect had transformed the glorious city into a cesspit of vicious vice. Our ancestors had been brave soldiers, we were outstanding people whose regular day activities made impenitent criminals contact epilepsy. They just couldn’t…understand.
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I'd very much like to hear your thoughts on this