[u]Sansar, Yarosmere[/u]

The King looked at Darius, smiling slightly. "It came about very simply, Darius. The people were tired of being pinned beneath a caste system that afforded luxuries to those on the top and gave nothing to those on the bottom. The people were tired of monsters being allowed to live in our lands. The people were tired of uncaring gods ignoring their pleas and letting the injustices continue. The tinder was all there. I just provided the spark that burned the rotted corpse of the old Yarosmere to ash. The Sand God protects all of his children, unlike the so-called Gods that are worshipped across Tiien. There are a few elements that cling to the old ways, but on the whole Yarosmere is better off." He merely tilted his head at E'nasha. "Personal indeed. Before I became the Prophet, and eventually The King, I was A'dul. Born in a small, starving, village farther towards the cost."

The King's eyes suddenly took a far away look, and his lips began moving silently as if he was talking to himself. Aramir began to feel uneasy, shifting her seat backwards. The King began to be more animated, energetic in his quiet muttering. He appeared to be arguing silently with someone, before his shoulders slumped. He looked at them with steely resignation in his eyes, the air of someone about to do something they had too. "Grab your stone." Aramir muttered to whoever could hear her. She [i]really[/i] didn't like this.

"As much as I would enjoy continuing this conversation, the God has spoken to me." Aramir shifted her seat back even farther. "Grab your stone." She repeated, louder. The King stood, making a proclamation. "The College is no longer welcome in Yarosmere. You will be killed on sight, and I see and control everything in this country." "Grab the stone!" Aramir shot to her feet as the King lifted his hand. Rather than ordering the guards to kill them, however, he merely lightly gestured. Everyone in the room, excluding the College students and Yolin, froze in place. "You will be killed if you try to challenge me." Everyone drew a knife or similarly bladed object, putting them to their necks. "Someone activate their stone!" Aramir cried out, drawing her bow, as Mar hissed at the King, fangs bared. 

The King's face twisted with hatred, quickly mastered. "You brought a monster in my presence, cleverly hidden. I see now, why the God warned me of you. If you return, you will die. And you will die by your own hands." He dropped his arm down in a chopping motion, and everyone obeyed, slicing their throats in perfect unison. Yolin idly stepped back, avoiding a spray, even as he began to move towards Mar. He stopped as Aramir's bow was trained on him. "For the love of the gods, someone use their stone!"

The King's eyes were cold and merciless. "Flee. I will not give you this chance again."