Rolin, the Bat King is an epic Low Fantasy Web Original Fiction by Varcobaleno, inspired by both The Animals of Farthing Wood and Watership Down.
The time period of the story is unclear, but it apparently takes places long after humanity has gone extinct, and, as the narrative states, "animals have retaken the world". Each and every type of animal dwell within areas called "kingdoms", with each kingdom having either a "king" or a "queen" lording over it. The titular character of the story is, as his title implies, a bat who lords over all his brethren as king. Well... he did, before the Vulture Kingdom waged war on the Bat Kingdom and wiped the latter out.
Once a mighty and well-respected ruler, Rolin is now living in a hollowed out tree stump in the middle of a swamp, with nobody but his handmaid to keep him company. And, to make matters worse, his kingdom isn't the only kingdom the Vulture Army has wiped out. Led by the horrible King Volcker, the Vulture Army has laid waste to countless lesser kingdoms, assimilating them into his own and expanding his rule all across the globe. At the beginning of the story, a Gathering is held, where the kings and queens of every kingdom come together, to discuss the condition of the world.
Everybody there has no idea what to do about the Volcker and his army, until Rolin steps up to the plate and says that they should build an army of their own. Unfortunately for him, everyone is scared out of their wits by the terrible birds, leaving him to build an army all on his own. That, and not that many people fond of him, mainly due to him being a bat. Aided by the only two monarchs who respect him—a crow king called Corvus and a rabbit queen called Luna—Rolin intends to build an army powerful enough to put an end to the vultures.
For reasons unknown, Varcobaleno deleted all but the very beginning of the story's first chapter.
