King’s Gate

Last stronghold by the sea

On the southern coast of the Queendom of Nyll, where cliffs dive into the sea and the wind still carries the echo of battles, stands The King’s Gate — now a fortified citadel, a bastion of stone and remembrance.

Once, this place was the stage of the final resistance against the forces of the Dominion of Aerthas. Enemy armies, advancing by land through the plains south of Tanglewood — a forest no one dares to enter — drove Nyll’s troops to the coast. It was there that allied ships of the invaders arrived, closing the trap. King Kaelar Varenth, with his soldiers, fought to the end, surrounded by land and sea.

On the final night, the King handed a young archer his bracelet, saying: “If you survive, bring it to the queen. Tell her the time is hers.” The boy, wounded but alive, made it back to the capital. That bracelet is now kept in the Hall of Memory.

In the moment of the final charge, Kaelar raised his sword and shouted to his men: “We’re not here to win. We’re here to stop them!”
Some say his sword still lies buried beneath the great gate that now bears his name.

After the war, Queen Aurelen Miraille ordered the construction of a fortified citadel on the site of the battle. Its walls, tall and carved with marine motifs and royal symbols, house ever-ready garrisons, watchtowers, and a naval arsenal. At its heart, the great gate — The King’s Gate — is a white stone arch engraved with the words: “Here the King fell, and here time bowed to his courage.”

Today, the citadel is both stronghold and place of pilgrimage. Soldiers swear loyalty within its walls, sailors lower their sails upon entering the harbor, and each year, on the Day of Resistance, the people gather beneath the gate to honor the sovereign who chose to die standing, so the realm could live.