The Butterfly and the Flower

     “A butterfly drinks from a flower for sustenance. It depends on the flower for life. But if the flower wilts and dies, will the butterfly mourn the flower’s death, or find another flower to drink from?”

     The Kingdom of Xia was flawed. Extremely lacking in common sense, where the government operated on what would make the people happy rather than what was really good for the kingdom. Sometimes that kind of thinking would make the citizens more content to live in Xia and others more willing to immigrate to the kingdom, but most of the time, it meant the government made some really dumb decisions. Especially when the people of Xia were careless, arrogant, and needy. 

     The three other kingdoms on the continent of Tala, the Kingdom of Fuyu, the Kingdom of Laia, and the Kingdom of Tau, were irritated and disgusted by the Kingdom of Xia. Some kindhearted and compassionate people wanted to help the kingdom get better, while others pretended they had the same motive, but in reality wanted to divide the Kingdom of Xia to make it more vulnerable to the monsters that roamed Tala, or for their own kingdom to conquer.

     The other kingdoms had tried the latter tactic many times in the past, so the few educated and rational citizens of Xia knew how to spot one and get rid of the mole. 

     But nobody had ever witnessed an infiltrator try to turn the Kingdom of Xia against the other kingdoms. 

     So that was why every single citizen of Xia, from the dumbest to the smartest, were gathered underneath the capital building, listening and absorbing every single word Vixen said to divide the world.

     The people of Xia believed that she was a citizen from the Kingdom of Tau on the Kingdom of Xia’s side.

      But Lyria was the only person who saw that Vixen was on nobody’s side.

     Her words to the people were like sweet poison. Soft, comforting, understanding. Xia was so entranced by the sweetness that they failed to take notice of the words themselves being spoken. 

     Lyria wasn’t any other foolish civilian. She was supernatural. She could see through any lie, any false demeanor, to help judge everyone in their lives. 

     Lyria was the Grim Reaper.

     And Vixen was a plant wedging herself into the already chipped and cracked stone that was Tala. Taking advantage of the weakened parts in the glue that bound Tala together, and widening the cracks even further. Lyria could see it all picture perfect. If nobody stepped up to stop Vixen, the world would fall apart.

     “…if the other Kingdoms get their way, the world will fall apart!”

     …yes. What perfect timing. 

     “Nobody has ever liked the Kingdom of Xia. That is simply the honest truth. The other Kingdoms cut off trade with us, bullied and belittled us with insults on how ‘Xia had no common sense,’ and sent so-called ‘representatives’ to help us sort our ‘issues,’ only for them to turn on us and reveal that their ulterior motive was to conquer the Kingdom of Xia for themselves! People look down on us. But we are strong.”

     Lyria rolled her eyes at Vixen’s stupid monologue. Those were so outdated…

     “With recent disputes over territory and resources, the other Kingdoms are at the brink of war. Yet the people of Xia are left in the dark! The ministers of the other kingdoms are foolish and reckless, not caring about the wants and needs of the people and instead focusing on ‘territory expansion’ and ‘maintaining a powerful image.’”

     Well, Vixen did have a small point there. The leaders of the other kingdoms were a little bit idiotic and power-hungry. But they were still leagues above most everyone in Xia’s government.

     “A war is pending. There’s no denying that. But when the first shots are fired, think to yourself, who can you trust? Not the other kingdoms, of course. The others see the Kingdom of Xia as weak. Defenseless. Naturally, at some point in the war, somebody will attempt to conquer Xia. And despite being as powerful as we are, we do not possess the military to fight off a larger kingdom with more resources that they fought tooth and claw to steal. So I have a proposal from the monsters—”

     Wait, what?!

     “—to form an alliance between the Kingdom of Xia and the Creatures of the Undead!”

     Lyria spat out the nonexistent water from her mouth. She gaped at Vixen, outrage fuming inside her. What was that…that vermin thinking, forming an alliance between humans and monsters?! Monsters had one instinct, and it was to destroy humanity. What made her believe that the monsters wouldn’t turn on the Kingdom of Xia once they had outlived their usefulness?

     And to further fuel Lyria’s outrage and furiousness, the crowd gathered beneath cheered.

     “With the aid of the goblins, the zombies, the golems, and the trolls, we will have a triumphant rise to victory! When the war begins, we shall deploy our forces, and stun the other kingdoms with our capabilities of working alongside monsters, our sworn enemies! They’ll see that not all beasts are as heartless as they seem, and that the Kingdom of Xia isn’t as dumb as they think! We shall share our technologies, tactics, and abilities with the monsters, and they will do the same. We can bring upon a new era of peace, prosperity, and cooperation through this impending war!”

     More cheering. The people of Xia really were stupid.

     “I assure you, this will be the best decision that the Kingdom of Xia will ever make. And there’s no need for the government that shows us as stupid and ignorant; I, Vixen Ember, will be your new Queen!”

     “Vixen! Vixen! Vixen!” The crowd shouted excitedly and eagerly.

     “We used to be weak. Relying on the aid of the other kingdoms that secretly despise us! But if they show their true nature and wilt away, we will, naturally, find another source of sustenance then cry about their demise. The monsters will never betray us! The Kingdom of Xia will be invincible!”

     In the midst of the chaos, Lyria made a portal back home to her cottage. She was already getting a migraine headache from all of this stupidity…