Ira Tenax | Teen Ink

Ira Tenax

January 3, 2008
By Anonymous

The villagers crowded around the coffin of their previous king. He had a steak through his heart, a ring of garlic around his neck, and wolvesbane stuffed in his mouth. The village priest laid a cross on the king’s chest as he spoke the final rights. The villagers stood tense with pitchforks, torches, and scythes in hand, just in case something was to happen.

One villager was not tense. In fact, she was quite at ease with a chuckle escaping from her lips. She was the village doctor. Many avoided her for they thought her to be a witch. She stared up at the full moon that hung overhead, thinking back some thirty years or so; back when the king was still a prince.
The young prince had stormed into her tent demanding she told his fortune. She denied she was capable of anything close to the topic, yet he pressed on. She soon decided that if it was a fortune he wanted, it would be a fortune he’d get. She slammed a crystal ball down on the table in front of him and gazed deep into it.
“You will have a miserable life, King of Darkness. This life begins in the ides of this month and ends some thirty years from now, under a cross. You will fight many battles that will be labeled as cruel and unleash a fury that is worthy of many stories. These will all be against demons and other unholy beings. You will seek the favor of the church, unleashing a rage that will live long past yourself. This rage will be directed against all who have wronged or destroyed. An eternal furious rage that will—”
The prince stormed out of the tent and went back to the castle. He had not believed the fortune; he was the third son of the king. He even had a good twenty years left in him. The woman followed him out chuckling as she looked up at the moon.
But it happened the fifteenth of that month, a vampire gained entry to the castle. It brutally murdered the king, queen, and the two oldest sons. Just before he escaped into the night, he turned the youngest son into a vampire. The prince woke the next morning to find that he was the only heir to the throne. It was this moment that he decided to try and fulfill his fortune.
He instantly invaded the many surrounding estates that were ruled by corrupt kings. Next, he attacked all knights who had killed any living thing before becoming a knight. Soon his kingdom had doubled, tripled, and even quadrupled its land.
He fought all who did not follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. The Church soon took a liking to him, calling upon him to quell armies of Jews, Muslims, and other pagans. He soon had the favor of the church, yet they would not name him Holy Roman Emperor. He tried bribery, blackmail, and threats, yet he could not get that desired title.
He unleashed his rage upon the church, ordering all of his troops to attack any member of the clergy they found. Neigh all his soldiers refused until he began killing their wives and children. The Church was beginning to grow nervous. Should they name this cruel man Holy Roman Emperor? If only they could get rid of him…
One day a man named Liu Hiro presented himself to the pope. He claimed to have knowledge of how to rid them of the cruel king. But before telling the pope, the man said he would not be able to be indicted with any crime. The pope eagerly agreed, seeking a way to kill this cruel king.
The man spoke of a night some thirty years ago. He had snuck into a castle and brutally murdered the king, queen, and their two sons. Before he left, he learned of a third son. Seeing this as a way to ruin the family name, he snuck into the youngest son’s room and bit him upon the neck.
Upon hearing this news, the pope called upon the cruel king’s former chef. As a prince, the king loved garlic and had it with neigh all his food. Once he became king he banned garlic from being grown anywhere within his kingdom. The pope now new how to get rid of the cruel king, once and for all. He called upon the man named Hiro to do the job.
Now, a month later, the villagers were burying the cruel king. The old woman looked once again upon the king’s corpse. She decided she had better get back to her tent as Hiro would be hungry. Turning around and walking off she spoke quietly. “May there be misery for you, King of Darkness, Cruel King.”
She walks into her tent, listening to the choir singing at the funeral:
“Male sit tibi tenebrarum rex
ab initio ad finem sacra ultio
cruenta pugna et epicus furor
contra mali discpulos

Ad perpatuam gloriam lucis
furir ira tenax
contra iniuriam et ruinam
rabies ira tenax

Male sit tibi tenebrarum rex
cruentus rex.”


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