Chapter One

"Ismarus" is a historical fiction named after the protagonist, and the context of the novel is the ancient Thrace, around 300 BC. From the very beginning, the clash between the protagonist and the antagonist has been portrayed with a clear understanding of the mechanics behind this clash of interest. Tegrios is a despotic king who has a son named Ismarus and a nephew named Eumoplus. Tegrios loves both of them, however, because of his poor judgment, he ends up favoring his beloved nephew against his own son. Though Tegrios was short sighted, the same cannot be attributed to his queen Calysto. In this novel, Calysto has been portrayed as the voice of reason and benevolence. In the protagonist's life, his father's despotic and uncaring attitude was balanced by his mother's deep wisdom and motherly tenderness.
The despotic nature of Tegrios made him view his son's humanity as insolence, eventually disowning him, and depriving him of his birthright. Eumoplus saw this as an opportunity to fulfill his secret ambition. He conspired, and successfully had Tegrios assassinated. The evidence contrived by Eumoplus suggested that Ismarus was the perpetrator of the heinous crime. Hence, Ismarus had not only been deprived of the throne, after the assassination of his father, he found himself running from the law of the land as well.
When Ismarus was banished, Calysto abandoned her husband and chose self exile with his unfortunate son. They found shelter in Dacia, the neighboring kingdom. This small kingdom was ruled by a benevolent ruler named Resus. Eventually, Scorilo, the king of Bastarnae, was also added to the list of Ismarus' allies.

The events culminated in a classic military showdown between Ismarus, aided by his allies, and Eumoplus who was being aided by his huge army. During the battles that followed, Ismarus was given the news of his son's birth. This led to the climax of the story