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Description
Once upon a time, there existed the Zephyr Kingdom, a place where the Zephyrites lived in peace and prosperity. The Zephyr King ruled with righteous judgement, ensuring the happiness of all his subjects. However, he could not ensure the peace of his people alone and so he gathered twelve of the greatest and bravest warriors of the Zephyr Royal Army. These proud soldiers soon became the legendary Twelve Royal Zephyr Knights, analogous to the Knights of the Roundtable of Arthurian legend. One such knight we are already familiar with, that being Goliath who was closest to the king and was seen as his majesty’s most loyal and trusted knight. However, there was one other that was close to the king and was a good friend to Goliath. A mighty Zephyrite warrior named R’Shal.

Goliath and R’Shal knew each other since the days of the military academy and were almost always in the same team in mock-missions. However, their personalities couldn't be any different from each other. While Goliath was stedfast and driven, R’Shal was laidback and at times a bit off-the-wall. However, whenever Goliath needed him, he knew how to support him like the ally he needed to be. However, it was only when the two hung around off the clock that they started becoming good friends. Goliath spent his entire life preparing to be a soldier in the Zephyr Kingdom, so he never really knew how to act in an everyday environment. R’Shal was his savior in social situations. So much so that the two were almost inseparable. In fact, it could be said that R’Shal was Goliath's first real friend.

Goliath could still remember the last conversation he had with him. The afternoon before that fateful day. He had found his friend sit on one of the many cliffsides below the Zephyr Crystal Castle drinking some sweet wine he bought from the local market. Perhaps he was waiting for him, since he had an urgent meeting with the king.

“Hope I didn't keep you waiting for too long,” Goliath spoke, getting the slimmer yet just as beefy Zephyrite's attention. R’Shal turned to Goliath with his usual laidback smile.

“Not very long, old friend,” R’Shal answered, passing him a small saucer. Goliath denied the request. He had some serious night training that night and he needed to have a clear head. “So what did the old man want?”

“‘Old man’?” Goliath asked, unsure of who R’Shal was referring to.

“The king, ya oaf!” R’Shal clarified, shrugging to himself as he took a sip of wine. “Honestly, you really need to get out more often.”

“Well, I don't think a king should be referred to as an ‘old man’,” Goliath reasoned.

“Have you seen the guy? His hair’s as white as snow and he's as big as a blimp! How's he not old?”

“You're lucky his majesty isn't within earshot,” Goliath chuckled. “He’d have your head on a plate for that.”

“It's his fault for not knowing when to cut back on the feasts,” R’Shal defended before getting back on topic. “Anyways, what did the king want?” Goliath paused for a moment, not sure of how to word himself.

“You're aware of his son's birth, correct?” Goliath asked.

“No shit. The whole kingdom knows! The old man made a big deal of it a few days ago.”

“Well… he asked me to be his son's godfather” R’Shal nearly choked upon hearing that! Then a big smile grew across his face.

“Goliath, you lucky bastard!” R’Shal cheered, patting his larger friend on the back. “You’ve hit the motherload with this one!”

“What the hell are you going on about?” Goliath asked, rubbing his back where he was hit. R’Shal never truly knew his strength, so even a pat packed a punch.

“Goliath, the king just asked you to take care of the Zephyr Prince! You know what that means, right?”

“What exactly, dare I ask?” Goliath asked flatly, not looking forward to the response.

“If something should happen to the king and if his kid is too young to rule, you'll take on the role of acting king until he's ready!” R’Shal explained, earning an incredulous look from Goliath.

“A-are you serious?” Goliath asked again.

“Why else would he make you the godfather of his kid? Just for his peace of mind?” Goliath thought about it long and hard. It made sense to choose someone to be an acting king if the current king was unable to rule for some reason, but there was something else bothering him about the whole ordeal.

“I'm a soldier,” Goliath finally spoke after a brief pause. “Protecting my king is all I know. I know nothing of ruling a kingdom.”

“They’d teach you, wouldn't they?” R’Shal questioned before chugging down the last of his sweet wine and getting up on his feet. “Besides, you get to live the cozy life from now on! What's not to love about that?”

“You are far too optimistic about this,” Goliath sighed, shaking his head at his friend’s enthusiasm. “He should’ve chosen someone more qualified if that was indeed the case.”

“Well, it's not like you're gonna be a soldier forever, right?” R’Shal asked, turning to his friend then back at the setting sun. “It's times like this that we've gotta start thinking about our future.”

“Well, what are you going to do then?” Goliath shot back, expecting dead silence. However, what R’Shal said next surprised the large Zephyrite.

“Me? Well, I could become an archivist, since I enjoy looking through history. Or perhaps a lorekeeper, which kinda branches off of that. But I think there's a third option to be considered.”

“And what's that?” Before Goliath was given an answer, R’Shal turned to him with a smile.

“I'm thinking about settling down with a good woman and starting a family! Of course, that's assuming I meet the right person!” Goliath’s thoughts stopped dead as he tried to process what his friend just said. He knew R’Shal was something of a ladies man, but never thought he was that serious about finding a mate.

“You?! A father?!” Goliath couldn't help but burst out laughing at the thought of someone as irresponsible as R’Shal being a father. “I'm sorry, but I just can't see it!”

“What? You think you could do better?!” R'Shal paused and soon gave a sly grin, finding a way to get back at Goliath for the perceived slight on his person. “Well, I suppose you would. You’ve already got the body for it.”

“S-shut up! I-it's for my training, that's all!” Goliath's face turned beet red as he tried to defend himself. Indeed, his insane training required an increased caloric intake, however he couldn't lie to himself and say that the increased food consumption meant to augment his training had given him a noticeable belly. R’Shal had joked a few times that if he wasn't careful, he’d end up looking just like his king.

“But jokes aside,” R’Shal said after a fit of laughter, returning to a somewhat serious tone. “I'm rooting for you, big guy.”

“Huh?” Goliath pondered what he meant by that.

“When you make it to the top, just be sure to remember me. Okay?” Goliath wanted to press for a meaning behind his words, but it was getting late and he was afraid of falling into another trap. Instead, he simply smiled and gave his friend a good fist bump.

“Of course,” Goliath answered. “I promise to live out both our lives.”

In the present day, Goliath had recently stumbled across an old photo of himself and R’Shal from the academy days. As he took a good look at the picture, memories of that last meeting came flooding back followed by a surge of tears. He tried to hold them back, but a few managed to slip out. As far as he was concerned, he would never see his good friend ever again. He was indeed the only friend he ever truly had, and nothing could replace that.

“I said I'd live out both our lives,” Goliath choked, as tears continued to stream down his face. “Easier said than done…”

Little did he know, however, that he would be meeting him again very soon...

Description
Once upon a time, there existed the Zephyr Kingdom, a place where the Zephyrites lived in peace and prosperity. The Zephyr King ruled with righteous judgement, ensuring the happiness of all his subjects. However, he could not ensure the peace of his people alone and so he gathered twelve of the greatest and bravest warriors of the Zephyr Royal Army. These proud soldiers soon became the legendary Twelve Royal Zephyr Knights, analogous to the Knights of the Roundtable of Arthurian legend. One such knight we are already familiar with, that being Goliath who was closest to the king and was seen as his majesty’s most loyal and trusted knight. However, there was one other that was close to the king and was a good friend to Goliath. A mighty Zephyrite warrior named R’Shal.

Goliath and R’Shal knew each other since the days of the military academy and were almost always in the same team in mock-missions. However, their personalities couldn't be any different from each other. While Goliath was stedfast and driven, R’Shal was laidback and at times a bit off-the-wall. However, whenever Goliath needed him, he knew how to support him like the ally he needed to be. However, it was only when the two hung around off the clock that they started becoming good friends. Goliath spent his entire life preparing to be a soldier in the Zephyr Kingdom, so he never really knew how to act in an everyday environment. R’Shal was his savior in social situations. So much so that the two were almost inseparable. In fact, it could be said that R’Shal was Goliath's first real friend.

Goliath could still remember the last conversation he had with him. The afternoon before that fateful day. He had found his friend sit on one of the many cliffsides below the Zephyr Crystal Castle drinking some sweet wine he bought from the local market. Perhaps he was waiting for him, since he had an urgent meeting with the king.

“Hope I didn't keep you waiting for too long,” Goliath spoke, getting the slimmer yet just as beefy Zephyrite's attention. R’Shal turned to Goliath with his usual laidback smile.

“Not very long, old friend,” R’Shal answered, passing him a small saucer. Goliath denied the request. He had some serious night training that night and he needed to have a clear head. “So what did the old man want?”

“‘Old man’?” Goliath asked, unsure of who R’Shal was referring to.

“The king, ya oaf!” R’Shal clarified, shrugging to himself as he took a sip of wine. “Honestly, you really need to get out more often.”

“Well, I don't think a king should be referred to as an ‘old man’,” Goliath reasoned.

“Have you seen the guy? His hair’s as white as snow and he's as big as a blimp! How's he not old?”

“You're lucky his majesty isn't within earshot,” Goliath chuckled. “He’d have your head on a plate for that.”

“It's his fault for not knowing when to cut back on the feasts,” R’Shal defended before getting back on topic. “Anyways, what did the king want?” Goliath paused for a moment, not sure of how to word himself.

“You're aware of his son's birth, correct?” Goliath asked.

“No shit. The whole kingdom knows! The old man made a big deal of it a few days ago.”

“Well… he asked me to be his son's godfather” R’Shal nearly choked upon hearing that! Then a big smile grew across his face.

“Goliath, you lucky bastard!” R’Shal cheered, patting his larger friend on the back. “You’ve hit the motherload with this one!”

“What the hell are you going on about?” Goliath asked, rubbing his back where he was hit. R’Shal never truly knew his strength, so even a pat packed a punch.

“Goliath, the king just asked you to take care of the Zephyr Prince! You know what that means, right?”

“What exactly, dare I ask?” Goliath asked flatly, not looking forward to the response.

“If something should happen to the king and if his kid is too young to rule, you'll take on the role of acting king until he's ready!” R’Shal explained, earning an incredulous look from Goliath.

“A-are you serious?” Goliath asked again.

“Why else would he make you the godfather of his kid? Just for his peace of mind?” Goliath thought about it long and hard. It made sense to choose someone to be an acting king if the current king was unable to rule for some reason, but there was something else bothering him about the whole ordeal.

“I'm a soldier,” Goliath finally spoke after a brief pause. “Protecting my king is all I know. I know nothing of ruling a kingdom.”

“They’d teach you, wouldn't they?” R’Shal questioned before chugging down the last of his sweet wine and getting up on his feet. “Besides, you get to live the cozy life from now on! What's not to love about that?”

“You are far too optimistic about this,” Goliath sighed, shaking his head at his friend’s enthusiasm. “He should’ve chosen someone more qualified if that was indeed the case.”

“Well, it's not like you're gonna be a soldier forever, right?” R’Shal asked, turning to his friend then back at the setting sun. “It's times like this that we've gotta start thinking about our future.”

“Well, what are you going to do then?” Goliath shot back, expecting dead silence. However, what R’Shal said next surprised the large Zephyrite.

“Me? Well, I could become an archivist, since I enjoy looking through history. Or perhaps a lorekeeper, which kinda branches off of that. But I think there's a third option to be considered.”

“And what's that?” Before Goliath was given an answer, R’Shal turned to him with a smile.

“I'm thinking about settling down with a good woman and starting a family! Of course, that's assuming I meet the right person!” Goliath’s thoughts stopped dead as he tried to process what his friend just said. He knew R’Shal was something of a ladies man, but never thought he was that serious about finding a mate.

“You?! A father?!” Goliath couldn't help but burst out laughing at the thought of someone as irresponsible as R’Shal being a father. “I'm sorry, but I just can't see it!”

“What? You think you could do better?!” R'Shal paused and soon gave a sly grin, finding a way to get back at Goliath for the perceived slight on his person. “Well, I suppose you would. You’ve already got the body for it.”

“S-shut up! I-it's for my training, that's all!” Goliath's face turned beet red as he tried to defend himself. Indeed, his insane training required an increased caloric intake, however he couldn't lie to himself and say that the increased food consumption meant to augment his training had given him a noticeable belly. R’Shal had joked a few times that if he wasn't careful, he’d end up looking just like his king.

“But jokes aside,” R’Shal said after a fit of laughter, returning to a somewhat serious tone. “I'm rooting for you, big guy.”

“Huh?” Goliath pondered what he meant by that.

“When you make it to the top, just be sure to remember me. Okay?” Goliath wanted to press for a meaning behind his words, but it was getting late and he was afraid of falling into another trap. Instead, he simply smiled and gave his friend a good fist bump.

“Of course,” Goliath answered. “I promise to live out both our lives.”

In the present day, Goliath had recently stumbled across an old photo of himself and R’Shal from the academy days. As he took a good look at the picture, memories of that last meeting came flooding back followed by a surge of tears. He tried to hold them back, but a few managed to slip out. As far as he was concerned, he would never see his good friend ever again. He was indeed the only friend he ever truly had, and nothing could replace that.

“I said I'd live out both our lives,” Goliath choked, as tears continued to stream down his face. “Easier said than done…”

Little did he know, however, that he would be meeting him again very soon...