The room thundered when he walked inside. Every wall screamed his pain and he threw himself into the nearest one, his hand resting against it as a sigh lifted from his body. "I can't do this. I can't go in there and do this."

Her voice was as strong as ever, but he couldn't hear her. "John...you're doing what's best for the kingdom. We couldn't keep letting our men be slaughtered out there. Three of our cities have been overthrown—we can't lose more in this fight."

"I'm not just losing my position, Adeline." Another sigh and he turned, red eyes facing her.

"You won't lose me, I promise. I'll always be your guard, my King." With a sad smile, she took his hand and gripped it firmly. "You're doing what's right. I believe in you."

♔

"It's clear to me now that the Elusians will never stop." Gavin looked at his empty throne and the long cold seat that sat beside it—needing a queen but finding itself hollow.

Garner stepped up beside him, unwilling to place his hand against his king's shoulder. "They're no good to us destroyed, my liege," he responded gently. "We need their knowledge. Their trade." He was hesitant to continue, seeing the stern hardness that lingered in the king's eyes. "Perhaps your daughter—"

"I will meet with him." King Gavin's tone was final, silencing his trusted advisor. At last, he pulled his eyes away from the throne. "There's no use in destroying a perfect trade point when we could easily build off it. At this point, he would do anything to keep his kingdom from being slaughtered."

♔THE TASK♔

Welcome, knights! Before we get into anything else, let's meet our semi-finalists! Hope you enjoyed our little joke earlier. ;)

Meric Ophelen [HannahFare]

Shahin Hashemi [TheCatKing]

Vere Lebriole [ShayTree]

Tedric North [aceh3x]

Andrea Novak [aceh3x]

Cassius Dandylock [CrocodileRocker]

Constance Softeyes [dragon_mind]

In this task, you'll be receiving a well-deserved break from all the murder and trauma you've experienced so far in exchange for a little democracy. Prince Johnathan and King Gavin have agreed to parley and find a way to end this war once and for all. Your knight will be joining them, as both guard and advisor while they try to reach a compromise. What agreement will they come to? Elusia will be absorbed into the Adrigolian empire instead of facing annihilation, and to ensure loyalty from both sides: Prince Johnathan will be marrying the daughter of King Gavin. By the end of the task, this and any other information must become apparent to your character. How will your character respond to Elusia's surrender or Adrigole's bargain? Will they remain loyal in the face of it or will their moral compass lead them astray?

♔WORD LIMIT♔

Unlimited!

♔DEADLINE♔

Saturday, April 7th, at 10PM CST

♔A TRAITOR'S CHALLENGE♔

Cassius, looks like you're in a world of trouble. The traitor doesn't like you. This means that this round, you have a word limit of 2,500 words. Hope you didn't have anything long and special planned. :)

♔A TRAITOROUS GAME♔

It's your lucky day! One of the traitors has died. It looks like Elusia is now safe from anyone willing to kill them off, but that doesn't mean the Adrigolian side is any safer. Be wary, for things are about to get messy. You have one last chance to guess the traitor.

History blurs worse than the lines between borders

What is a knight that cannot follow orders?

This is your last chance to come out ahead—

Guess wrong again and a king will be dead.

♔BYES AND VOTING♔

Two competitors will be receiving byes this task. The rest of you will go up for votes, with two making it into the finals. Good luck to all of you.