"He who seeks the crown must be willing to bleed for the kingdom." Saying from the Scrolls of Dakira
The winds over the Field of Crows howled like spirits mourning the dead. The once-sacred battleground where blood from the first great war had soaked into the soil was now a sea of tents, spears, and waiting eyes.
Zuberi stood at the edge of the field, flanked by warlords who had pledged loyalty to his cause. His armor shimmered in the muted sun, obsidian plates etched with the firebird of rebellion. His face was calm, unreadable.
"We march by dawn," he said. "And we do not stop until Dakira burns."
One of his commanders, a lean woman named General Tambari, stepped forward. "And if they come with surrender?"
Zuberi's lips curved into a cold smile. "Then we bury them in silk instead of ash."
In Dakira, Adiro sat alone in the war chamber, the Crown of Unity resting on the stone table before him. The torches flickered against the maps of both kingdoms sprawled across the walls arrows pointed to rivers, valleys, and now to the ominous symbol scrawled over the Field of Crows.
Niko entered, his steps slow and heavy.
"You called for me?"
Adiro nodded. "Zuberi marches at dawn. He gave no reply to our peace offering."
Niko exhaled sharply. "I told you."
"I know," Adiro replied. "But what now, brother? We go to war against blood. Against our own."
Niko approached the crown and stared at it. "When you wear this, you carry every soul in this land. You must be willing to protect them... even from family."
"I fear what it will cost."
"We both do."
Adiro stood, his face hardening. "Then let us prepare our army. Let the crown bear its weight in full."
Before sunrise, a crowd gathered at the Circle of Truth; a sacred site in the heart of Dakira, where oaths were made in the old days, and where traitors had once been judged.
Adiro and Niko stood together before the people.
"My people," Adiro began, "sons and daughters of Dakira and Oremi, today, we face a war not of ambition, but of legacy. We were born of both lines. And we are not here to destroy, but to defend."
Niko stepped forward. "Zuberi was our brother by blood. But he has chosen fire. If we do not rise to stop him, the ashes will swallow everything."
Adiro drew his sword, the steel shining silver in the morning light.
"From this day," he declared, "we fight as one kingdom, one people, under one banner."
The people raised their weapons, and a roar of unity echoed through the valley.
By midday, the two armies faced each other across the Field of Crows.
Zuberi rode a black horse, leading his battalion warriors from the borderlands, disillusioned youth, and former Oremi elites who had defected.
On the opposite end, Adiro and Niko stood beneath the newly raised flag, a golden lion intertwined with a silver dove.
The drums began.
Zuberi's forces moved swiftly, a wedge formation aimed at Dakira's left flank.
"Shield wall!" Niko shouted. "Hold the line!"
The clash was thunderous.
Steel bit into steel. Spears pierced the sky. Dust and blood rose together as screams filled the air.
Adiro fought beside his guards, his sword cutting down attackers with precision. Despite the chaos, he searched for Zuberi, hoping foolishly for one last chance at reason.
But Zuberi never appeared.
Only waves of fury, and an endless tide of soldiers.
Behind Dakira's forces, a small detachment broke ranks.
Led by a former nobleman, Lord Enitan secretly bribed by Zuberi, these men circled toward the rear, aiming to breach the command tent where royal advisors and maps were kept.
Inside the tent, Lady Jilani sensed movement.
"Something's wrong," she said.
A moment later, the tent flap flew open. Soldiers surged in.
Lady Jilani drew a hidden dagger and fought fiercely, but she was outnumbered.
Just as the attackers reached the central chamber, a horn sounded Niko, alerted by a scout, had doubled back with a squadron of riders.
A brutal skirmish broke out behind the lines.
Enitan tried to flee, but Niko chased him down and struck him from his horse.
"You would betray your kingdom?" Niko roared.
"I betrayed only the lie!" Enitan spat. "Zuberi offers truth. A crown without guilt!"
Niko's blade silenced him.
He looked back toward the battlefield, his hands trembling with rage. "No more lies," he muttered. "This ends today."
By evening, the battle was still raging.
Adiro's armor was dented. His hands blistered. But his spirit remained unbroken.
He spotted Zuberi across the field, now advancing with his elite guard.
Without waiting, Adiro charged.
Their swords met with a terrible sound.
"Still clinging to peace, brother?" Zuberi sneered.
"Still clinging to rage?" Adiro replied.
They fought like men possessed not just for power, but for the ghosts that haunted them. Their mother. Their kingdoms. The dreams of unity shattered by history.
Zuberi struck low, slicing into Adiro's side.
Adiro grunted, staggering.
Niko arrived just in time, throwing his sword between them.
Zuberi hissed, "So the twins finally stand together."
"We stand for the people," Niko said. "You stand for yourself."
"Then let them choose who should bleed."
He lunged.
But this time, Niko and Adiro fought in harmony steel on steel, defending each other, covering blind spots as if guided by instinct alone.
Together, they disarmed Zuberi.
He fell to his knees, breathing heavily.
"Do it," he said, lifting his chin. "Finish it."
Adiro stood over him. His sword trembled in his hand.
But he lowered it.
"No," he said. "You wanted a martyr. You won't get one."
Niko called for guards.
Zuberi was taken, not to the gallows but to the Chamber of Reflection, where traitors were made to witness what they nearly destroyed.
The Field of Crows was soaked with red.
Fires were extinguished. Bodies were counted. Wounds were tended.
Adiro and Niko stood side by side as the sun rose the first light after the longest day.
The people knelt, not to two kings, but to one kingdom.
Adiro turned to Niko. "You saved me more than once."
Niko nodded. "We saved each other."
"I don't want the crown to separate us."
"Then let it unite us in purpose, if not in title."
Adiro removed the Crown of Unity and held it out.
"To be worn only in times of crisis. Let the kingdom be ruled by council, not crown."
The crowd gasped.
"From this day forward," he proclaimed, "Dakira and Oremi shall not be two halves of a broken past, but one land with shared blood and future."
One week later, the field was cleared.
A Tree of Unity was planted in the center, its roots watered by the rivers of both kingdoms.
The tree would grow where the blood had fallen.
Children from both lands danced around it.
A stone was placed beside it, engraved with the words:
"Here, brothers fought. Here, brothers chose peace. Let no future forget."