As Volos finished up his speech, he stepped aside away from the podium, and Jadzia who had been standing nearby invisible, appeared for all of the crowd to see.
Seeing Jadzia appear, there was a stunned silence for a few moments before the crowd of citizens erupted in cheer.
Immediately they recognized Jadzia who while not having made a public appearance in many years, was still easily recognizable.
This was due to her golden hair and three shining tails, that made her the spitting image of her mother.
Some of the people even cried seeing her, as Jadzia’s parents had been beloved by most of those who lived within the city, due to their just rule that was in great contrast to some of the areas of the kingdom..
Of course, there were plenty of people that were not happy to see her, and those that were in the king’s faction as well as the nearby soldiers who began to take action.
However, not long after her appearance, both Marek and Daniela appeared on stage as well, and Marek exuded and oppressive aura as if daring anyone to try to interfere.
Naturally seeing his imposing figure, none of the soldiers that were patrolling the area even dared challenge him.
They new logically that they could never win, but also that their instincts screamed at them not to challenge what would be certain death.
In fact in the entire kingdom the number of people that could possibly hope to defeat Marek could be counted on both hands, and the only one currently nearby was Argus who was in league with him.
After giving the people just a minute to take in her presence, Lyra began her speech.
“I can not tell you all how happy I am to have finally returned home. Unfortunately, now that I am back, I can see that things are far different than when my parents were in charge. And this is of no fault of my cousin, but the king who may have once been a decent man, but has now become a tyrant.”
Lyra then took a moment to quell her anger as she thought about the king and what he did to her parents, squeezing her hands together tightly enough to cause her blood vessels to burst.
“However, his way is not he only way. I am sure that many if not all of you have heard of the rebel army that fights against the king and does what it can to better the people. For nearly a year now, we have fought in the shadows doing what we can to help. But today is the day that we strike back and make ourselves truly known. And for that cause I am taking up my rightful place as Duchess Augustyn and declaring our freedom from the oppression of a king that killed my parents in cold blood. No, from this day forward we will be following the person that should be the true ruler of this kingdom. Queen Daniela Tralenstein.”
Once she had finished up her initial speech, Lyra stepped aside and motioned for Daniela to step forward. and the woman of royal blood who had just been pronounced queen took center stage.
Though unlike when Lyra had appeared, Daniela was met with far more confusion at first as she had not been seen in the kingdom for over twenty years now. Except some of the older citizens quickly recognized her, and like a wildfire Daniela’s notoriety spread.
“Good people of Valenhart, it brings me great joy that I can once again speak out in the kingdom of my birth. I assume that many of you have heard about the bloody path my brother took to claim the throne, and during that time I was one of just a few of our siblings to escape. However, I originally left so as to not start a civil war, but it appears that my brother is intent on running the kingdom our forefathers worked so hard to build into the ground. I can no longer sit idly by and allow my brother to destroy this kingdom. Luckily when I returned, I found I was not alone, and that thousand of brave men and women like Jadzia Augustyn had formed a rebellion.”
However, before Daniela could say another word, a loud explosion shook the square as what looked like a blur to most, smashed into a nearby building and turned it into ruble.
Seeing this the people began to panic, but Lyra quickly took the podium again and said, “Please remain calm. Our forces are in the middle of subduing the king’s occupying army, and I can guarantee that everyone here is safe. Please look towards the building that was just damaged, and you will see that one of our leaders has apprehend the tenth ranked great knight, Sir Edek.”
Listening to Lyra, the masses that had gathered in the square and the surrounding area, watched as out of the rubble Argus dragged an unconscious Edek out for everyone to see.
This only further increased their support for Lyra and those that stood with her. And as they looked around, they noticed that the soldiers that had been around were all tied up. Having been overpowered and apprehend by the rebel forces.
For many this was an unbelievable scene as the troops working under the king were rounded up and detained.
During this time the rebels quickly took control of every military outpost, disabling their capabilities and capturing the soldiers within.
Of course, the execution of their plan did not go off completely seamlessly, as some of the kingdoms’ soldiers put up better fights than others, and the streets ran red with the blood of men and women on both sides.
Still, overall, it could only be considered a near total success, and it would not be long until the entire city was under their control.
The strength and number of the rebels was just too great, and the kingdom’s forces were woefully unprepared for a full-blown invasion which was far from anything the rebels had attempted up to this point.
“As I am sure you notice our operation is already underway and soon this city will be freed from the tyranny of the king, and the city will soon be allowed to experience the freedom it once knew.” Lyra said, keeping the people’s attention on her rather than the battles that were raging in the streets.
“There is no need to fear. Our rebellion. No, our Liberation Army, is here to protect all of you and take back this kingdom. We will no longer be ruled by the uncompassionated few who line their pockets and fatten themselves on the hard work of the common people. We will have leaders that work hard and make sure that those that they rule are taken care of, just as my parents did. This is only the start. Soon the entire kingdom will be under the control of our rightful ruler Queen Daniela.”
After Lyra finished up her second speech, the people once again gave her resounding cheers and clapped their hands together loud enough to create echoes that went through the entire city.