In the beginning slept Krall.

Then the Lord of Hosts separated the light from darkness, the land from the seas.

And Krall was afraid.

So the Lord of Hosts said, “It is not good for Krall to be afraid; I will make a comforter for him.”

And the Lord of Hosts caused a deep sleep to fall upon Krall, and took his tongue.

From the tongue, made he a Woman and to her commanded, “Sing!”

- Andanian Chronicles

“Tack the sails, hard to port. Avoid that Krall!” The captain yelled desperately as the ship narrowly avoided the incoming tentacle. They were about twenty kilometers offshore and had broken away from the main fleet trapped on the other side of the island. However, just as they were about to breathe a sigh of relief, a gigantic Krall had emerged in hot pursuit.

“Mages! More wind now!” Aryan commanded. The trio of imperial casters strained with effort and the masts creaked dangerously as they were strained to their breaking point, but the schooner was propelled forward and avoided yet another incoming tentacle.

“Fire! Volley the cannons!” The ship trembled as the thunderous roar of simultaneously igniting gunpowder propelled two dozen enchanted depth charges into the sea where the tentacles had originated from. The Krall roared furiously in response and twice as many tentacles emerged to flail at the harried vessel.

“Having fun?” Laura's voice dripped with sarcasm as she slid up next to Prince Aryan.

“Why did you escape!? Get back to the brig, it’s safer there!” Aryan shouted as the ship was flung about like a toy by the churning waves.

“If you truly meant to restrain an Andanian witch, you should have bound me naked from head to toe in dimeritium chains or at least relieved me of my pendant.” Laura giggled impishly.

“This is no laughing matter! The Krall…” Aryan’s face whitened as a tentacle darted out and tugged a screaming mage into the sea. “Damnit! That was my magical history instructor!” Aryan swore.

“Woo-hoo! One less Vaishyan!” Laura cheered before turning to survey the scrambling sailors around her, “Only fifty or so left to go?”

“Damnit Laura! These are my friends and servants…” Aryan raged powerlessly as the Krall’s tentacles curled around the ship’s stern. “Fire! Fire damnit!” He yelled desperately.

“You weren’t particularly upset when my family and people died, so why should I care about your Vaishyans?” Laura shrugged dully.

“This is not the time for this! Don’t you care for your own life?” Aryan yelled as a tentacle snapped the ship’s mast in two and dragged a dozen screaming sailors into the bloody frothing waves.

“Andania’s in ruins and my family’s assassinated. I don’t care about anything anymore!” Laura laughed hopelessly as she danced gracefully across the tilting deck.

“Don’t you even want revenge!?” Aryan yelled desperately.

“Revenge?” Laura questioned as a tiny flame sparked to life within her pale blue eyes.

“Revenge against the Saadians who murdered your family!” Aryan cried out as he slashed at the tentacles reaching towards him.

“And how are we supposed to do that when we’re all about to be eaten?” Laura giggled hysterically.

“Isn’t the Andanian royal family supposed to be related to the Krall somehow? Try talking to it!”

“Oh… smart.” Laura muttered contemplatively in reply, then she strode hesitatingly towards the mass of Krall crawling onto the listing ship. The beast eyed the approaching princess balefully and let out a threatening wail. “Shoo… shoo… little baby Krall. I can’t leave with you tonight.” Laura waved dismissively at the monstrous beast. The Krall let out a loud distressed roar before redoubling its efforts to lift itself onto the sinking vessel.

“Urp. That didn’t work, any better ideas?” Laura groaned as she backed hurriedly away from the approaching beast.

“Maybe, introduce yourself?” Aryan yelled as he grasped desperately at the slimmest possibility.

Laura lifted her glowing ruby pendant high above her head, “I am Princess Laura Alexandra Muriel. And I command you, leave us be!” Laura shouted as she poured her magic into the gem and used it to amplify her voice. The Krall shuddered as it glared at the lone princess standing before it, then it let out an almost plaintive cry before slipping soundlessly into the murky waters.

“I did it… Aryan?” Laura turned to stare disbelievingly at the prince behind her.

“Haha… Hahaha…” Aryan laughed weakly, “Little… Little baby Krall? That hideous beast was little?”

“Shh… it’s super bad luck to insult the Krall, especially when they can hear you. They can be very sensitive!” Laura snapped.

“Haha… Baby, little baby…” Aryan muttered as he dabbed tears of relief from his eyes.

“See you in the next world, Your Highness.” Laura curtsied gracefully in front of the guffawing prince.

“What? They are gone, aren’t they?” Aryan muttered just as the moon was blotted out by a monstrous tentacle ten times the width of his schooner. “Shit, help! By the Vaishyan holy gods!” He yelled.

“Wrong gods.” Laura sighed as a swarm of wriggling tentacles shot out from the main branch and dragged the prince and his remaining retainers into the churning waves.

Krall eyed Laura for a long silent moment before he turned away and began slipping away into the darkness.

“Hey! If you eat them all and leave me here to rot in this stupid broken bucket in the middle of nowhere, I’ll drown! I’ll definitely drown!” Laura shouted desperately at the departing Krall.

Almost like a reluctant afterthought, a tentacle shot out and tugged Laura into the waters.

...

Some distance away, in the mighty golden flagship of the Saadian Navy, an assassin cowered before a young imposing man of barely twenty-one years, “Immortal Emperor Xerxes, Ruler of Saadian and of the Southern Realms, Master of the Burning Legions, Slayer of the Thousand Dragons...”

“Get to the point, I am busy.” Xerxes gestured dismissively while gazing intently at the strategic naval map spread out before him.

“We have brought the girl,” the assassin mumbled hesitantly.

“Specifics. I have many girls.” Xerxes snapped impatiently.

“We have captured the Princess of Andania,” the assassin trembled while muttering nervously.

Xerxes sighed as he finally looked up from his maps, “And where is this supposed princess?”

“Ahh... Here your Majesty!” The assassin snapped his fingers and his subordinates quickly dragged Lily into the chamber. The struggling princess glared furiously at her captors, but she was stark naked and trussed so tightly in dimeritium chains that she could not even twitch a single finger.

“You were tasked to escort both princesses to safety, so where is the other? And why in the nine hells is this one restrained like this?” Xerxes yelled.

“The other princess vanished into thin air! And this one is extremely dangerous, she managed to blow up three ships while we were transporting her to you.” The assassin pleaded desperately.

“Can you count?” Xerxes’ eyes narrowed dangerously.

“Yess… your Majesty,” the assassin stammered.

“How many hands do you have?” Xerxes demanded.

“Two your Majesty. Please have mercy!” The assassin begged as he prostrated himself before the mighty emperor.

Xerxes flicked his little finger and summoned a glowing magical blade which cleaved off the hapless killer’s left hand, “Is that true? It appears that one of your hands is missing.” Xerxes mused.

“Yes, it is as you say your Majesty!” the assassin cried out as his face scrunched with agony.

“Remove yourself. You are bleeding all over the carpets.” Xerxes waved away his terrified minions before eying Lily with an apologetical expression. “The hopeless subordinates of my late father,” he sighed ruefully as he undid the chains restraining her. The emperor turned and rummaged through his closet, “I must have a dress in here, somewhere…” he mused absently to himself.

“Here, cover yourself…” Xerxes began turning back towards the princess.

“Die invader!” Lily screamed as she darted forward and stabbed Xerxes through the gut with a summoned icicle. As he staggered back in surprise, she gestured swiftly at the dimeritium chains and bound the emperor with the magic suppressing bands. Lily panted from the exertion and fell tiredly to the ground as sweat trickled down her soft supple skin.

“Such a feisty one, aren’t you? I definitely should have sneaked in with the ambassadors!” Xerxes chuckled as his eyes twinkled with amusement. “Hey can you please release me now? Bondage therapy isn’t exactly my style, and I have a fleet to command.”

“Krall take you!” Lily spat angrily as she looked around desperately for a weapon.

“Calm down little princess. What have I ever done to wrong you?” Xerxes protested.

“Pretender! How dare you invade our domain and have the gall to feign innocence before me.” Lily retorted furiously as she strode up to Xerxes slapped him across the cheek.

“What lunacy is this!? Who informed you that I intended to invade Andania? This was supposed to be a peaceful trade mission. Don’t you see that over half of our fleet comprises of merchant vessels? Why would I pack my ships with gifts if I intended to go to war?” Xerxes groaned in disbelief.

“The Vaishyans said that…”

“And you think that those backstabbing bastards would bother to tell the truth? They were the ones that ambushed us, just as we neared Andania.” Xerxes retorted.

“I felt my father’s death. Your dishonorable assassins must have blown up the palace and slit his throat.” Lily wept.

“What!? King Muriel is dead? How is that even possible, the Andanian magical defenses were supposed to be impregnable!” Xerxes yelled in shock. “Guards! Why hasn’t anyone informed me of such an important matter? This changes everything!”

“Your Majesty!” an advisor entered the room but wisely refrained from commenting on Xerxes’ unusual appearance. “The scouts reported a sudden explosion occurring within the Andanian inner palace, but none of the men we sent in to confirm the situation have returned. Our ambassadors were killed by the dishonorable Vaishyans, and they were the only outsiders at the Andanian court when the explosion occurred.”

“And what were our orders to the scouts?” Xerxes replied.

“To ensure the safety of King Muriel and his daughters… oh please have mercy on me your Majesty!” the advisor begged.

“You didn’t kill Father?” Lily stammered in disbelief.

“Of course not!” Xerxes yelled. “I was coming to offer a marriage proposal. Why in the nine bloody hells would I kill off my prospective father-in-law? I understand that my men might have been a little rough with you, but they were ordered to protect King Muriel at all costs. Besides, how would a bunch of those incompetent mundane idiots manage to dispel the legendarily impermeable barrier around your estate?”

“The Vaishyans betrayed us?” Lily groaned. As the princess slid to the ground in horrified disbelief, Xerxes snapped the chains binding his body before striding up to the shell-shocked girl and draping his cloak around her trembling body. “You escaped? How are you unhurt after all that?” Lily gasped in surprise.

Xerxes shrugged absently, “Oh, don’t mind me. That was just a little scratch, I’m not exactly known as The Immortal for nothing.” The emperor then turned to his genuflecting advisor, “Get up. Inform the fleet that we are falling back into Saadian waters. There’s no point breaking through the Vaishyan blockade if King Muriel has passed on and the Vaishyan traitors have already overrun the nation.”

As the advisor scurried to pass on Xerxes’ commands, the boy emperor turned and looked kindly at Lily, “What do you wish for my princess? I could return you to your lands, but the Vaishyans will just use you as another political bargaining chip. If your sister is still alive, she must have fallen into their hands.”

“I want revenge! Take me with you till all of Vaishya lies in ruins!” Lily demanded furiously.

What a waste, such a beautiful and innocent girl but consumed utterly by revenge. Xerxes shook his head as he sighed bitterly at the cards fate had dealt him.

“Please. Please save sister Laura from the Vaishyans. I’ll do anything for you if you will ensure the safety of my sister.” Lily added softly.

The mighty Emperor of Saadian nodded slowly, “It’s a promise. I am Xerxes, the mightiest man alive. I swear on my honor that I will save your sister, even if this means bloody war with the Vaishyans.”