Reddit user Kromgarposted this:and I wanted to make a story about it, so here we go:--Urist sprinted down the hall, his longsword hanging loosely in his hand as he sprinted towards the throne room. His arm had been practically destroyed in the assassins attack, without his sword arm he was armed with little more than the knowledge nestled in his brain.The King was in danger.The King's Guard shouted demands to halt and came sprinting after him as he went straight to the throne room, knowing exactly where to go. Urist wanted to stop and tell them, explain himself, but he simply had no time. He had been hired by the King in secret to track down the murderer of Duke Avost less than a week ago.What he had discovered was disturbing. Nothing but riddle filled nonsense about conspiracies in the King's own court but enough to spell out a dark picture, a warning, a warning of an attack a day from when he unraveled the mystery. He had been traveling to the palace as fast as could, bribing his way through the gates to the Mountainhome in order to expedite his way in.When he passed one of the darker alleys however, he had been accosted by some 'guards' who wanted to escort him to a safe meeting place with the King, claiming they knew of his mission. He had seen through their ruse at the last moment and only barely managed to slay them before he took to a sprint into the palace, leading him to his present situation.The door came up ahead, huge and iron with symbols of dead Elves and foodstuffs such as cheese and leaves across the sides. The two guards in front attempted to cross their spears to stop him but he was too fast, and he used his shoulder to smash through the front gate. He heard a sickening crunch as he shoved through the metal but he could do nothing but grit his teeth. This was for his King.Inside, the King Consort sat on her throne, the King sitting next to her. Something in the King's eyes seemed off... stunned... sedated even. The Consort simply sat with a smile, as if amused by what she saw. Behind Urist, nearly twenty King's Guardsmen stormed through the doors in full regalia. One of the men shoved the butt of his spear into the back of Urist's knee, forcing him to kneel. Another prepared to take his head."Wait... I want to talk to this one..." the Consort told them. The hands that had roughly gripped his arms released him suddenly released, dropping him back to his knees."I have finished my mission... Consort. I need to talk to the King," he said, coughing as blood trickled down his large beard."Oh, you have? Well tell me what you learned, for I have heard rumors." Urist's eyes narrowed as he glanced back at the King. The man breathed heavily, his face pale, a goblet fallen at his feet. When he looked the guardsmen around him, they seemed just as confused about their King's state. Further observation showed the Guards by the walls standing in their armor as if the metal plates were the only thing keeping them up."What.. what rumors have you heard," Urist asked, puzzle pieces slowly coming together in his head. The Consort's smile widened further and she barked a laugh,"I have heard of plans to assassinate the King.""Tell me more!" Urist cried out. He was sick of the cloaks and daggers, he was a soldier, not a spy! He needed to know the conspiracy, needed to save his King, and wanted this woman to confirm his fears.Then his eyes widened, the guardsmen around the room gasped. One of the guardsmen to the side of the room collapsed, dropping his weapons and falling with the sound of someone dropping a sack of tin cans. Most of the men around him were little more than ceremonial he knew, and as the Consort let out a purple glow, her body slowly growing larger and her features more harsh, they all began stepping back towards the exit."I am Ezumkra, the Ashen-Tooth Demon of Lies!" she screamed with a cackle. Under red skin, he could see the ebony black teeth that gave her her name, each filed into a point. Horns twirled down her sharp and near horse shaped head, and her body was more muscular than any he had ever seen. With an almost casual grab, she gently gripped the King's head with one of her hands.And then she squeezed.The King didn't have time to scream, assuming he even had the ability to in his vegetative state, his head simply exploding as she crushed his head. Every man in the room, sans the already dead ones, winced and looked back as they were sprayed with blood, an eyeball coming to a fall at Urist's feet."They say a demon plots for the King's death!" she cried out as the blood poured through her fingers. The guardsmen were rushing for the door, falling to their knees in desperate pleas for mercy or a brave five or so, raising their weapons in self defense. Urist could feel his knees nearly fall out, his gut's fly to his throat and his world crash down around him.He had a family, he had to protect them. Without his King, without Duke Avost and the other nobles to protect the realm, it was going to be anarchy. He had to protect them."I must leave..." he said, and Ezumkra cackled the entire way as he backed out of the room.