The Soldier's Rebirth

"47, 48, huh huh, 49,... and 50!"

"Wooow, your so strong brother!"

Ananta was wrapping up his daily workout schedule that he planned for himself. He only started about 2 months ago, and tried to keep it a secret. Afterall if any of the maids, or worse, his mom found out, they would be reasonably concerned as to why a five year old is already building his physique.

However, Ananta couldn't prevent his brother from finding out, which led to some awkwardness when Krish walked into Ananta doing some sit ups.

Ananta asked him not to tell anyone, which he agreed to. However, like always he started copying Ananta, and failing miserably.

After Ananta taught him the proper techniques, Krish improved and could do half as much exercise as him. Of course, Ananta still had previous knowledge, and other than that, Ananta felt like he somehow had more stamina and strength than Krish.

Krish was currently next to him, leaning on his bed, sweating profusely. Ananta had to admit, Krish had the drive and will that was unusual for a five year old.

Just as both of them were about to get up to take a shower, their bedroom door opened, revealing a middle aged lady in a maid outfit. But it wasn't Zilla, it was the head maid Kana.

"What are you two doing? You're all sweaty, go take a shower right now. Her highness is requesting for you to sleep with her today."

Kana was more strict than all the other maids. While the others acted all kind and chummy because they were royals, Kana would treat them like normal children. She would praise them for good habits and scold them for doing something naughty.

"Yess, Kana. But, why does mother want us to sleep with her? We're not little kids!" Krish asked.

"She says it is an important matter that you two should know of. She wants to tell you a story."

This filled both Krish and Ananta with curiosity. Their mother was usually carefree and spoiled towards them, it was rare for her to be serious around them. And this sounded serious.

They quickly got in the shower and got dressed into their night clothes. They walked with Kana across the extravagant hallways of the palace. Their mother's room wasn't far from theirs, as she wanted them as near to her as possible.

When they arrived at their mother's room, Kana left them. Upon entering, Ananta's eyes explored the room. He remembered it because he spent his baby years in a crib placed near the bed.

The bed frame was a beautiful gold and the bedsheets were a pristine white. It was beautiful, but not as beautiful as the woman laying on the bed in her simple white nightgown. Her beauty seemed to shine even more in the simple clothing.

"Come here sweeties. Mama had a story to tell you."

She scooted over to the middle of the bed, so Krish and Ananta could sit on either side of her. She gently looked at both of them with caring eyes.

"Krish, Anan. Mommy missed this. You're not too old to sleep with me."

Kri and Anan were nicknames that she gave to us when we were a bit younger. Krish made fun of Ananta's name because it sounded like a girl's name, so she started calling him Anan.

"Mother, hurry up and just tell us the story!"

"Ok, ok, slow down. I believe you two are mature enough, so I think you are ready for what I am about to tell you."

Once she got comfortable by snuggling both of us in her arms she cleared her throat.

"What I'm about to tell you is not just any children's story. It is very important. It's the story of our Sultanate, and how we rose to be the most powerful empire in the land."

Once again, she looked at both us staring at her with eager gazes and began the story.

"Once upon a time, a long time ago, about 3000 years ago, there were 6 kingdoms in this beautiful land. For years, they prospered, until one day, there was an argument for land between two kingdoms. One kingdom claimed it was theirs and the other opposed.. One thing led to another, and the two kingdoms were at war."

Regina looked down at Krish who was pulling on her sleeve, as if to ask a question. But she shook her head, telling him not to ask any questions until the story was over. Then she continues the story.

"Eventually the war between the two kingdoms got bigger and bigger until all six kingdoms were involved in the conflict. This great war went on for years and years until things finally changed. The kingdoms managed to form a peace treaty that finally ended the long, disastrous war. But alas, the consequences of war still lingered."

"The kingdoms had all these frustrations and pent up anger that they couldn't release on each other. So instead, they released it in a village. Now this village was no normal village, it was cursed, or at least that's what the kingdoms believed."

"This village was located at the center of the land, between all six kingdoms, it was on land that all of them desired. During the war, soldiers of all six kingdoms had to pass through this stretch of land and even battle here. This was terrible for the villagers, having their home become a battle ground constantly brought upon many problems."

"Apart from their home being destroyed, the villagers went through numerous struggles like starvation, disease, killed because of the war, and even the land was growing unhealthy with drought. As for the reason why the kingdoms thought this land was a curse, it is because of the countless unfortunate things that would occur to the soldiers that were sent there."

"Landslides, extreme weather conditions, savage animals, and other disastrous things befell the troops that were sent here. Eventually it grew so bad, that kingdoms stopped any more soldiers from entering this land. They started calling this land the Devil's Land."

Regina paused for a while when she got to this part of this story as if she wanted to give Anan and Krish a few seconds to process what they just heard. Then she continued.

"When all hope seemed lost for the villagers, something miraculous happened, no more accurately, someone miraculous happened."

"No one knew who he was, no one knew where he came from, and no one could even begin to imagine what he was about to do. But one day, it was as if he just appeared in the land where the destroyed village was, where it layed in shambles. The villages were scattered and they were in horrible conditions."

"At first, they were frightened of the man, thinking he was another invader, but what he did next flipped their views completely. He had power beyond their imaginations, he healed them of all their wounds, diseases, and sorrows. Then with a flick of his hand, he rebuilt the village, nourished the dry land, and halted the severe weather."

"He treated the villagers compassionately and with respect. Eventually, he became more than a savior to the villagers, he became a god in the villagers' eyes."

"When the Kingdoms discovered the change in the land, they began to investigate. However every troop they sent was wiped out. Not only did the man heal the villagers, he also delivered the villager's wrath. He became the villagers' hope"

"No matter who or how many people the kingdoms sent, they were all bested by this man. After All, what could these mortals do against this man who had mystical powers."

"He continued to destroy anything or anyone trying to invade the land, and even began to expand. The man started to take over the kingdoms' land at a rapid rate, but it was not just him alone."

"He started teaching the people of the villages his strange power and helped them control it. With a small army of these super soldiers, the small village that was almost wiped from the land grew and grew, until finally it was as big as the kingdoms themselves."

Regina stopped talking and took a break from all the talking. Anan and Krish were heavily engrossed in the story, they also had many questions. What was the identity of this man? What would happen to the kingdoms? And How would the story end?

"Finally, the rulers of all the kingdoms started to panic, they tried battling the man and the villagers and failed miserably, so they tried negotiating. However, all the villagers wanted was to kill them for the pain and suffering they had to go through. In the end, it was the man who intervened and gave the rulers a different option."

"Kneel down to the villagers, and hand over their kingdoms. Of course, all the rulers denied the condition and the war continued. Finally, all six kingdoms were conquered by the man and the villagers."

"All six rulers were executed and each kingdom was leaderless. The kingdom turned into six regions of a much bigger empire. All of them were in chaos and disarray, at the foreign rule taking over. So, in order to quell this chaos, the man sent six villagers who he most trusted and powerful to each of the six regions."

"The process for gaining the trust of each of the regions took even more time than the war itself. But eventually, the empire grew stable, and the economy once again flourished, this time under a new leader."

"This man single handedly, rejuvenated a whole village and its people, taught them how to fight and use power beyond what anyone knew of, conquered the strongest nations in the land, and became a god in the people's eyes."

"When all was settled, the man finally shared his name with the people. His name was… Mahan. And he was crowned the sole leader of this immense empire, he was crowned the first Sultan. And this empire was his Sultanate, the Mahan Sultanate."

"However, just when everything seemed pleasant and peace was starting to blossom, the First Sultan shared some grave news."

"He first came to this land, to unite everyone, but that was only the first step. There were much bigger problems ahead. He had come because the world was shattering."

"He came to help the people of this land to survive the crumbling of this world. But more importantly, what would come out of the broken world. Monsters."

"Monsters started appearing from the small fragments of shattered land, and bringing the world back into chaos. Some of these monsters took over the minds and souls of humans, while some had grotesque figures and powers. They slaughtered everyone in their path."

"However, not all hope was lost. The First Sultan and the many people who were taught his power fought hordes of monsters and defended the Sultanate. Many brave souls died in the process, but humanity persevered."

"The sound of war once again echoed in this land, but this time against much more evil beings. Conditions were grim, even with all of the First Sultan's powers. Especially when the sound of a baby crying resounded in the Royal Palace of the Sultanate."

"The first heir to this mighty Sultanate was born, but in the middle of a despairing time. However, this was the turning point for the war. More encouraged than ever, the First Sultan massacred countless monsters and abominations."

"His power grew at an exponential rate until finally,... he reached enlightenment."

"Like how he first healed the villagers and their land, the First Sultan healed his whole Sultanate. The people felt they found power coursing through their bodies, the land started to heal up, causing the shattered fragments to close and stopped the monsters from entering."

"The Sultanate were saved! The people were saved! It was supposed to be a joyous event, however it was cut short. The man who saved them numerous times, their Sultan, had disappeared. Or what the people thought, he reached enlightenment and ascended to the higher realm."

"The First Sultan's heir took over, and the Sultanate prospered for years to come, and it was possible because of one person. Mahan, the First Sultan. And this is the story of our glorious Mahan Sultanate."

They stayed in silence for a long time after the story was over. Anan and Krish were both in thought and Regina was staring at her cute little babies thinking so hard. Finally the questions started pouring out.

"Wait, so are we the relatives of the First Sultan?" Krish asked.

"What was the magical power the First Sultan and the people had? Oh, and do we still have it today? Anan questioned.

"Yes we are the relatives of the First Sultan, distant relatives. And about the power, yes people still have it today and you will learn about it when you're a bit older."

They both asked a few more questions until they were finally satisfied. Anan still had a hard time wrapping his head around the story, afterall magic powers and monsters? It sounded like a kids story, but he knew what he felt the first day of his rebirth, that was magic.

"Wait, why would we still need powers though, we have no enemies, and there are no monsters left, right? Anan realized.

This brought a grim look on his mother's face, a moment later she answered.

"That's because there is one lie in the story. I said all the shattered fragments of the world were closed, but they aren't. I mean they were for some years but they eventually started appearing again. However, this time they appeared in very minimal amounts, not as much as the time of the First Sultan."

"However, recently they are growing more and more frequently. That brings me to the main reason I was telling you this story."

Their mother looked down at them with loving eyes as she said.

"You have a big responsibility on your shoulders, you are the hairs to this kingdom, and you have to be strong, strong enough to care for the people and fight the horrible monsters."

Ananta felt as she was saying this, his mother was looking mainly at Krish, and with concerned eyes at that. Krish probably noticed too because he stood up on the bed and declared.

"Don't worry mother, I am going to protect everyone in the nation, the people, you, and of course my little brother."

"Hey, who you calling a little brother, just because you were born a few minutes before me, does not make you the older brother!" Anan retorted.

"Yes it does." Krish replied.

"No! It doesn't."

"Yes! It does."

Regina looked at her children's antics with amusement, but there was still the feeling of concern for Krish on the back of her mind. She broke out of her thoughts when Krish once again declared.

"Brother, I will be there for you no matter what. Whatever obstacles we face, I will protect you. I'm going to be your savior. I am going to be… your hero."