Firis
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Book
So this is my book as of 3 weeks ago, missing about 5 pages, and I don't care I gave up on it, it is now a short story that will never be finished.
Tales of Entionth: Lektar
Act 1
Chapter 1: Prologue
The grasshoppers were chirping at a smooth even pace; it seemed they were in sync with the breeze and the waving of the trees. The pond was glistening silver in the moonlight, Jantorth waited patiently for his master; finally he saw something in the distance; a creature, seven maybe eight feet tall, pitch black, with eyes glowing as red as rubies, it was his master. Jantorth bowed to his knees and stared at the ground that lay in front of him, for he knew any eye contact could anger his master. “Jantorth, my loyal servant” he said in a bottomless hoarse voice “Yes my master?” the servant replied with a hint of dread in his voice. “I want you to spread my influence over all of this forsaken land, take my plague of un-death and spread it in the water, the food, whatever you can to infect these mongrels. Prepare them for my legion, make them cower in fear. Tell the races of this world that I have come to bring despair and doom to their pathetic lives “It will be done my Lord.” Jantorth said, and after his master; the evil Darkness left, he made his way to Demkarth his primary target!
Jantorth arrived to his resting spot eight kilometer’s from Demkarth, at this location there was a pub, an inn, as well as some shops. But what caught his eye was not the shine of a weapon, nor the glint of fresh ale, but a graveyard; there he could start his legion. He decided to visit it after dark, so he went to the pub and played cards with the locals and had a few beers. “No need to make this unpleasant.” he told himself. When night fell he poured the liquid form of his master’s dark plague into the well, by tomorrow night they would all be his undead slaves, then he would raise his graveyard minions. And he planned his assault on Demkarth, it would only be the first to fall several would follow then the whole world would be dead then renewed in ageless damnation in the grip of his master.
Chapter 2: Simpler days
The farmers were tending the fields, the politicians were arguing, the guards were training for battle.
All seemed calm and docile, the wheat moved humbly in the breeze, rabbits were stealing crops. Ektar was making Gart berry pie, she was a young elf, about eighty human years old, in Elven time she was only twenty. Her husband Eng’left was feeding the cattle, she rubbed her stomach and smiled, she was bearing a child, she could already tell it would do great things. Ektar was pregnant nearly nine months, the child would come soon. Her family had done many things for Demkarth, in fact the Human mayor: Edward would be visiting her after childbirth to congratulate her. Eng’left entered the house, dipped his hands in the washing well and dried them. Bringing eggs to the table he started a fire in the pit, and set a skillet upon the metal grate above it. Then Eng’left cracked the eggs over the skillet and made breakfast for them, “Good morning.” He spoke, “Yes it is, sleep well?” Ektar replied happily, he had been silent most of yesterday, it was good to hear him striking up a conversation. He smiled “Yes, very well. I had a vision of our child.” He looked happy yet sad at the same time. “Yes, go on?” “You shall bear a son, his name will be Lektar, and he shall do great things, and save the city, but...” “But what? What happens?” “I don’t feel I should share the rest, I love you.” He flipped the eggs and placed them on a plate. He brought them to the table, laying them gently on the oak wood, “The pie smells delicious.” He remarked, and smiled wearily. “Thank you, but I don’t like you keeping secrets, what’s wrong?” He sighed “If you must know, we shall discuss it later.” She didn’t like this, she became worried, but it could wait until later, Ektar swallowed her worries and fears into the pit of her stomach, along with the pie and eggs.
A local band was playing in town square, they were playing the popular song “Nymph of harmony” a song with no lyrics, but the rhythm hinted at a sad Nymph who had her heart broken, but found an adhesive in the form of a young Treant. The song finished and the audience clapped in a joyous “Thank you for the entertainment” style. In the corner of Demkarth a Young Human called Derek, doing simple magic tricks for coins, he was about seventeen, well groomed, all most to well groomed to be homeless. Derek had collected eight Dets worth of Coins, making eighty coins in total, he was one of the best young magicians in Demkarth, if he only knew how good he was he could do great things in the Guilds.
Chapter 4: Trouble in Entionth
It was a beautiful summer day in the land of Entionth. The birds were singing songs of joy, the sun was shining; but it wasn’t too hot, and the leaves of the spider trees, with their long veins that form webs; hence their name, were flowing in the wind.
But in the city of Demkarth, it wasn’t so beautiful; a foul stench that smelt of carrion lay in the wind, and strange acts were being committed right under the noses of the Head-wizards and the Mayor. An unusual plague that was unknown to most Arcane magicians, was sweeping across Entionth, and making its way towards the beloved jewel of Demkarth; the countries magical capital... This plague turned all who consumed it into the undead.
Demkarth was a mighty and majestic city; filled with enormous spires of stone and metal, and vibrantly colored houses, and was ruled by one of the most magically gifted creatures in all of Entionth, a tall brown, elbow length haired, muddy brown eyed, pale faced Elven Wizard named Lektar Shandri, he knew much about politics as well as Arcane energy.
"There must be some explanation!" Sharel the Security captain cried-out in the tower of meeting, as she moved her jet-black shoulder length hair out of her red elongated face it was so flushed she looked like her head was about to explode, her emerald eyes focused on Lektar; waiting for a response. "There is," the Mayor replied "Somehow our people are being transformed into the undead." It was obvious no one liked the thought of such a thing happening, as there were many hung faces and sorrowful sighs. "Is there any way to stop it?" asked Derek the Head wizard of the 'Young Magicians Guild' his usually rock hard face now filled with concern with brown eyes weeping. "None that we know of that would not lead to the total destruction of our city" Lektar replied coldly, "But we will keep searching for answers, our mages Human and Elf alike are working with the Goblin's of Bombrock; mixing our spells and there science to try and make a cure" Sharel, Derek, and the other three council members focused on their mayor; waiting to hear more, and they did, the mayor's voice roaring with command "Sharel, take your Sentinels and hunt down the ones who are infected and try to capture them, don’t kill them unless it is necessary to save your soldier’s lives, and put a curfew on the town; everyone will be in their housing by nightfall. And Derek; help the mages create a cure and teach your guild members attack spells." Lektar gazed upon the crystal ceiling of the crimson and emerald decorated tower and caught a whiff of lavender, it was nearly nightfall already. "This meeting is over" he said; and all together with an escort of ten heavily armored guards wielding swords and shields with a engraving of two runeblades crossed behind a mithril shield with the arcane spell for flame upon its front, this was the symbol of the Entionth Emissaries, the most elite fighters in the whole country.
That night Lektar could not sleep he was consumed with thoughts of his kingdom in ruins, and crawling with undead...
Meanwhile in the farmlands just outside of the city. “I don’t know I swear!” the farmer said; with a pinch of fear in his trembling voice “If you do not tell me” a dark raspy voice said “where the main well is, then you will die!” now the farmer was even more frightened, for he saw a pale man; with a staff with a skull on the top appeared, he could tell; this man, his interrogator was a Necromancer of large power “I don’t know” he repeated “its somewhere in the middle of the city” speechlessly the Necromancer drew out a blade that was unlike any the farmer had seen before, it was dark as night and lo- before he could finish that thought he felt the blade inside of him it was cold, unnaturally cold; like someone had put ice on his chest. The blade withdrew and he fell to the ground, dead. The Necromancer looked around to make sure no one was watching then looked at the dead man, he knew he did not have the time nor the strength to raise him as one of his minions, so he left towards the city of Demkarth as he walked he planned his mission out, thinking out loud “I will take the master’s plague of undeath into the town, and put it into the grain supply, and into the main well, from there the plague will spread into all the wells in the town and also through the grain into all of the town’s food, and then they will become my master’s soldiers, minions to conquer all of Entionth, then we can summon the master. And he will look down upon me, his loyal servant and raise me up to him and make me commander of his armies!” he laughed a sick twisted laugh that sounded nearly inhuman and then said “and no one will ever suspect what is happening until the very end”
The next morning Sharel received a message from a farmer’s wife. She went down to the farm land with two other sentinels when they got there they found a man, already dead and bled dry, they tried to determine who or what killed this poor lonely farmer for the puncture wound they found in the chest, was very, very odd. They covered him up and brought him to the Demkarth morgue to be examined then prepared for the funeral “It’s strange” Sharel said to the doctors at the morgue “It seems, almost as if the blade immediately rotted his flesh, upon touching it, what weapon could do that” before she could finish that sentence she ran off toward the library there Sharel looked over several dictionaries, encyclopedias and weapon guides before she found it. The book was titled ‘The guide to the dark arts vol.1’
She began reading it, scanning for what she wanted, the index said ‘Chapter 1 introduction, Chapter 2 simple magic, Chapter 3 advanced magic, Chapter 4 obsidian, Chapter 5 curses’ she skipped to chapter four hoping that it was not true, for if that man died by obsidian weapons that could only mean; that the killer was a Necromancer! She read on concentrating on the book, learning about the horror that could be upon the city ‘Obsidian
Weapon-forging, is a dark and vile thing, most smiths have to be forced to do it, but it is still favored by Cultists and Necromancers alike. It is a steel weapon re-forged until its metal is warped and it is charred black, all the while speaking a curse unto it, then it is cooled in a bucket full of blood and oil. The end result is a pitch black weapon that is cold to the touch, corrodes armor and flesh alike and is disturbingly tainted wi-’ There was more, but she could not bear to read it, she knew what she had to do.
Chapter 5: Plots unfold
Lektar rose from his bed, stared out the window, the sun had just cracked over the hills, he could see his city and the vast farmland that lay beyond, and over the hill just out of sight was the Goblin city of Bombrock. He stepped towards his window and the violet veil of silk that covered the inside and opened it sending a gust of fresh air in to his sleeping-chamber, he then grabbed his robe, which was made of the finest quality silk with three colors a red background, the golden emblem of Entionth: an eagle holding a red rose in its beak, and the third was a black symbol that was the arcane healing spell. And thrust it upon him then followed suit with a mithril sword in its sheath; and his silver crown laden with jets and rubies, and Made his way down from his tower in the royal castle towards the eatery.
“I must see him!” Sharel barked “I am so sorry mam” replied the emissary closest to her, there were eight constantly on duty defending the royal castles main entrance; each one heavily armed. “But he is in the cafeteria, you’ll have to come back later” “Its a matter of national security!” she screamed back “Ask him to see me or you will be stripped of your rank” with that sentence the emissary saluted crisply and marched into the castle, she stood there waiting to tell the mayor of her disturbing news.
The emissary opened the gate, as he walked into the main hallway he noticed that it seemed a little dirty: there was dust on the floor and a cobweb on the second chandelier of five, ‘The maid must have not gotten here yet.’ he thought as he strode past two leisure quarters and up towards the second level. He had not been inside the castle itself for nearly an entire season it was infrequent that he would be able to enter, and he always liked the mayor’s accommodations. It was a three level fortress, the first level consisted of three leisure quarters and two guest rooms but it was decorated with fine art and had shelves filled with the finest stories and poems in the land, while the second level had a dining room and a vast library, the emissary had never been to the third of the levels but he could imagine the treasures that were contained there in.
He made his way up towards the second floor of the castle, when he arrived at the top of the stairwell he made his way down a narrow hallway towards the cafeteria. The emissary stood at the entrance of the cafeteria viewing the mayor, for he was not aloud to enter the same room as him unless invited, Lektar sat at the fifth chair of nine that went down the left side of the elongated dining table, with a plate of runny eggs, nice crisp bacon, and a small leaf on the side, he knew it was an herb but he couldn’t tell what kind, next to it was a smaller plate with a slice of fresh made cherry pie. “Come in Leonard.” The mayor said, as the emissary Leonard entered the room Lektar sipped on hot Nuzal tea, “State your business.” Said the mayor “Sharel seeks to speak with you,” Leonard replied “it seems important.” Lektar chuckled “It always is.” He said then he took a bite out of the pie and took another sip of his tea then continued “If she seeks my counsel then I shall be happy to meet her after my meal,” he took another drink of his tea “When I signal you: bring her up to here.” He noticed that Leonard would occasionally glance at his pie, it was disrespectful to take his eyes off of him but he could understand, the emissary probably had not eaten at all yet. “Would you like a slice?” Lektar asked sincerely, (after all Leonard was a friend of his) the emissary accepted.
Sharel waited nearly thirty minutes before the emissary came down to bring her to the mayor, now she was on her way up the stairway to meet him, when she arrived in the dining room she explained everything that she had found to the mayor “May the Gods help us,” Lektar said softly with a slight creak in his voice “so shall we tell them?” Sharel asked “Tell who?” he asked momentarily stunned from yet another threat to his kingdom “The citizens, shall we warn them?” Lektar pondered the question for several moments before he answered, he uttered something barely audible for his mouth had dried, he cleared his throat and drank some tea to wet his mouth then spoke “No, we must not allow them to know or there would be widespread panic. Chief I want you to concentrate all your effort on catching this Necromancer.” He said. Then she got up and left, Lektar watched her slim figure go out the room, he was not a perverted sort, but yet he could not help but admire her physique. “What am I going to do?” he asked himself “First the plaque and now this fiend comes to murder my people.”
Derek was in his guild practice room, he was teaching his young students basic combat and defense spells, so far he had taught them fury (A fire attack.) and divine shield (which created a emerald bubble around the caster that protected from basic magical attacks) and they seemed to have mastered them. Now he was making them duel, “This is not a good idea...” he thought “Teaching fifteen year olds how to play with fire!” he snapped back into focus as he saw a small orb of flame move rapidly towards one of the duelers so fast he hardly saw it when he noticed the other dueler was paralyzed with fear and could not protect himself, Derek called a spell over the duelist just moments before the orb hit him. The Head-wizard just stared at the student whom he had just saved and saw that he was sweating “Feeling a little warm are we Marcus?” he mocked “Yes sir,” Marcus replied “thank...” he stopped to clear his throat of the crackly teenage voice he had started with “Thank you sir, for saving me.” He said, voice no longer as crackly “Remember there is no need for fear so long as you cast that spell.” Derek said “Don’t worry Marcus, you too shall catch on.” Marcus stepped off the duel podium and walked towards the wash rooms to wash his hands hoping also to wash away the embarrassment he felt. Marcus’ whole life all he wanted to be was a good wizard so he enrolled here hoping to be just that, but after he failed his first spell he felt horrible, even though he practiced for two days and did it better than anyone else from that point on he was known as the boy who failed the easiest spell known to the guild. He had joined when he was twelve, which was the earliest age anyone could join a guild of any type, in the past two years Marcus had made several friends and met interesting people who joined for many different reasons: from noble wizards’ to corrupt warlocks’ for the only thing the guild did not teach was necromancy (The ability to raise the dead and create items from bone). He had often thought of leaving and pursuing necromancy just out of curiosity but then he thought of his friends and that he didn’t need those powers for summoning fire and lightning was more fun anyway.
After the training exercise Derek congratulated each student and gave encouraging words of wisdom to those who had not done as well as the others, especially Marcus. Then he returned to his quarters: two small rooms with a hallway and a window, the main room was so small it could barely house the two chairs and table that were in it and the other room only had his bouzouki and bed in it. He was allowed to have a better room with much more space, yet he opted to live in the same conditions as the apprentices did. Derek thought about Marcus “What am I supposed to do with him?” he half asked himself and half asked the God of wisdom “He needs help yet if anyone helps him he feels worthless and depressed and we can’t reinforce his confidence for he is too stubborn!” He looked out his window and after he had seen that the sun was almost directly above, judged that in about seven minutes he would have to be at the enchanting class, to yet again oversee his apprentices.
“Marcus! Marcus!” His friend yelled “What is it Floyd? He replied slightly irritated, he was hoping to go to class without incident, he was almost certain Floyd would make fun of him. But he calmed himself for Floyd usually had some interesting news of the outside world at hand, “Did you hear about the killing at the Vance’s last night?” Floyd asked excitedly “By the Gods” Marcus replied “what happened? Have the guards found the culprit?” “No, and they have not released anything about it, it sounds as strange as a Gustiv to me. The only thing I know is that it happened and that the murderer didn’t take anything, odd huh?” There was a momentary pause before Marcus replied “Yeah, why would someone kill them? I mean they were a nice couple, I did not know them personally but my cousin did, and he said they were nice.” Why would someone want to kill them? “Your cousin is right they were. We better get to the next class, we only have a few minutes left.” And with that they went to the enchanting class. But the question of why someone would kill Mr. Vance kept racing through his mind.
Chapter 6: Possibilities
Marcus was bored, he had just left Mathematics class and was on his way to fire-magic. He hoped that this might brighten the day up, literally. Marcus entered the classroom a few minutes early, he was one of the first there as usual, he made a habit out of being early. Other than him the others in the room were: Victoria, Edward and Celone, all were in a corner gabbing. In the room there were three rows of eight chairs as well as a practice stand.
He sat down in the center third chair to the left of the back row; he always sat in the back. In just a few seconds other classmates arrived, and so did the teacher: Mr. Flentgort. Class went on normally, and so did the three classes that followed it, he made his way to his room after school talking a little more about the murder with Floyd, hoping to understand it better. Once his room was within sight he said goodbye to Floyd and made his way through his door, he sat down in the table in front of him and closed his eyes and dreamed. Marcus dreamed that he was a great Wizard and that he caught the murderer, if only it were true,
he opened his eyes once again and began studying.
Sharel made her way out of the guard-house, they just had a man report that there was another murder nearby, this one was obviously different: it was in the city and when she got to the crime scene she saw the victim had been shot with an arrow. She had three men investigate the body, while her and the other four guards followed what they hoped was the suspect’s path. Her mind was concentrated on the job, her job and how she loathed it, no matter it still had to be done. After several minutes of running they heard a scream in the alley ahead, they double timed it through the stone streets and popped into the alley and found the murderer there stabbing about to stab a women. The murderer spotted them, “Stop!” Sharel yelled “In the name of the King!” the criminal began to turn and hop the wall behind him when Sharel began producing a crossbow, he was about half up it when she fired: hitting him in the upper leg. He fell down and they began dragging him back to the jail as the guards left Sharel checked to see if the girl was okay “are you okay?” she asked “did he hurt you? The girl hesitated “No,” she finally replied “thank you, thank you so very much!” “No problem.” Sharel replied “How can I ever repay you?” “Just go home and rest, you’ve had a long day.” With that the girl ran off “And so have I.” Sharel muttered to herself. She couldn’t wait until her apprentice was ready to take over as chief, then she could settle down and be happy with her life once again, she was tired of all the stuff she had to see everyday. Sharel walked through the streets observing every stone, the roads were made with a smooth stone from the mountains of Gethosen in the south, while the nine foot walls were made with various stones through out the land of Entionth. She paused to let a carriage pass and then made her final few steps into the guard-house, no sooner than she had sat down in her office did another person rush in, this time reporting a theft, she sighed and mumbled “A long day indeed.” And with that she jogged out to find the thief.
Jantorth met his assistant in the fields outside of Demkarth for a meeting, “Eskon, have the preparations been made?” he asked, “Yes Master Jantorth.” replied Eskon. They discussed what they would do next, this was the most difficult part of the plan: How to invade Demkarth.
So this is my book as of 3 weeks ago, missing about 5 pages, and I don't care I gave up on it, it is now a short story that will never be finished.
Tales of Entionth: Lektar
Act 1
Chapter 1: Prologue
The grasshoppers were chirping at a smooth even pace; it seemed they were in sync with the breeze and the waving of the trees. The pond was glistening silver in the moonlight, Jantorth waited patiently for his master; finally he saw something in the distance; a creature, seven maybe eight feet tall, pitch black, with eyes glowing as red as rubies, it was his master. Jantorth bowed to his knees and stared at the ground that lay in front of him, for he knew any eye contact could anger his master. “Jantorth, my loyal servant” he said in a bottomless hoarse voice “Yes my master?” the servant replied with a hint of dread in his voice. “I want you to spread my influence over all of this forsaken land, take my plague of un-death and spread it in the water, the food, whatever you can to infect these mongrels. Prepare them for my legion, make them cower in fear. Tell the races of this world that I have come to bring despair and doom to their pathetic lives “It will be done my Lord.” Jantorth said, and after his master; the evil Darkness left, he made his way to Demkarth his primary target!
Jantorth arrived to his resting spot eight kilometer’s from Demkarth, at this location there was a pub, an inn, as well as some shops. But what caught his eye was not the shine of a weapon, nor the glint of fresh ale, but a graveyard; there he could start his legion. He decided to visit it after dark, so he went to the pub and played cards with the locals and had a few beers. “No need to make this unpleasant.” he told himself. When night fell he poured the liquid form of his master’s dark plague into the well, by tomorrow night they would all be his undead slaves, then he would raise his graveyard minions. And he planned his assault on Demkarth, it would only be the first to fall several would follow then the whole world would be dead then renewed in ageless damnation in the grip of his master.
Chapter 2: Simpler days
The farmers were tending the fields, the politicians were arguing, the guards were training for battle.
All seemed calm and docile, the wheat moved humbly in the breeze, rabbits were stealing crops. Ektar was making Gart berry pie, she was a young elf, about eighty human years old, in Elven time she was only twenty. Her husband Eng’left was feeding the cattle, she rubbed her stomach and smiled, she was bearing a child, she could already tell it would do great things. Ektar was pregnant nearly nine months, the child would come soon. Her family had done many things for Demkarth, in fact the Human mayor: Edward would be visiting her after childbirth to congratulate her. Eng’left entered the house, dipped his hands in the washing well and dried them. Bringing eggs to the table he started a fire in the pit, and set a skillet upon the metal grate above it. Then Eng’left cracked the eggs over the skillet and made breakfast for them, “Good morning.” He spoke, “Yes it is, sleep well?” Ektar replied happily, he had been silent most of yesterday, it was good to hear him striking up a conversation. He smiled “Yes, very well. I had a vision of our child.” He looked happy yet sad at the same time. “Yes, go on?” “You shall bear a son, his name will be Lektar, and he shall do great things, and save the city, but...” “But what? What happens?” “I don’t feel I should share the rest, I love you.” He flipped the eggs and placed them on a plate. He brought them to the table, laying them gently on the oak wood, “The pie smells delicious.” He remarked, and smiled wearily. “Thank you, but I don’t like you keeping secrets, what’s wrong?” He sighed “If you must know, we shall discuss it later.” She didn’t like this, she became worried, but it could wait until later, Ektar swallowed her worries and fears into the pit of her stomach, along with the pie and eggs.
A local band was playing in town square, they were playing the popular song “Nymph of harmony” a song with no lyrics, but the rhythm hinted at a sad Nymph who had her heart broken, but found an adhesive in the form of a young Treant. The song finished and the audience clapped in a joyous “Thank you for the entertainment” style. In the corner of Demkarth a Young Human called Derek, doing simple magic tricks for coins, he was about seventeen, well groomed, all most to well groomed to be homeless. Derek had collected eight Dets worth of Coins, making eighty coins in total, he was one of the best young magicians in Demkarth, if he only knew how good he was he could do great things in the Guilds.
Chapter 4: Trouble in Entionth
It was a beautiful summer day in the land of Entionth. The birds were singing songs of joy, the sun was shining; but it wasn’t too hot, and the leaves of the spider trees, with their long veins that form webs; hence their name, were flowing in the wind.
But in the city of Demkarth, it wasn’t so beautiful; a foul stench that smelt of carrion lay in the wind, and strange acts were being committed right under the noses of the Head-wizards and the Mayor. An unusual plague that was unknown to most Arcane magicians, was sweeping across Entionth, and making its way towards the beloved jewel of Demkarth; the countries magical capital... This plague turned all who consumed it into the undead.
Demkarth was a mighty and majestic city; filled with enormous spires of stone and metal, and vibrantly colored houses, and was ruled by one of the most magically gifted creatures in all of Entionth, a tall brown, elbow length haired, muddy brown eyed, pale faced Elven Wizard named Lektar Shandri, he knew much about politics as well as Arcane energy.
"There must be some explanation!" Sharel the Security captain cried-out in the tower of meeting, as she moved her jet-black shoulder length hair out of her red elongated face it was so flushed she looked like her head was about to explode, her emerald eyes focused on Lektar; waiting for a response. "There is," the Mayor replied "Somehow our people are being transformed into the undead." It was obvious no one liked the thought of such a thing happening, as there were many hung faces and sorrowful sighs. "Is there any way to stop it?" asked Derek the Head wizard of the 'Young Magicians Guild' his usually rock hard face now filled with concern with brown eyes weeping. "None that we know of that would not lead to the total destruction of our city" Lektar replied coldly, "But we will keep searching for answers, our mages Human and Elf alike are working with the Goblin's of Bombrock; mixing our spells and there science to try and make a cure" Sharel, Derek, and the other three council members focused on their mayor; waiting to hear more, and they did, the mayor's voice roaring with command "Sharel, take your Sentinels and hunt down the ones who are infected and try to capture them, don’t kill them unless it is necessary to save your soldier’s lives, and put a curfew on the town; everyone will be in their housing by nightfall. And Derek; help the mages create a cure and teach your guild members attack spells." Lektar gazed upon the crystal ceiling of the crimson and emerald decorated tower and caught a whiff of lavender, it was nearly nightfall already. "This meeting is over" he said; and all together with an escort of ten heavily armored guards wielding swords and shields with a engraving of two runeblades crossed behind a mithril shield with the arcane spell for flame upon its front, this was the symbol of the Entionth Emissaries, the most elite fighters in the whole country.
That night Lektar could not sleep he was consumed with thoughts of his kingdom in ruins, and crawling with undead...
Meanwhile in the farmlands just outside of the city. “I don’t know I swear!” the farmer said; with a pinch of fear in his trembling voice “If you do not tell me” a dark raspy voice said “where the main well is, then you will die!” now the farmer was even more frightened, for he saw a pale man; with a staff with a skull on the top appeared, he could tell; this man, his interrogator was a Necromancer of large power “I don’t know” he repeated “its somewhere in the middle of the city” speechlessly the Necromancer drew out a blade that was unlike any the farmer had seen before, it was dark as night and lo- before he could finish that thought he felt the blade inside of him it was cold, unnaturally cold; like someone had put ice on his chest. The blade withdrew and he fell to the ground, dead. The Necromancer looked around to make sure no one was watching then looked at the dead man, he knew he did not have the time nor the strength to raise him as one of his minions, so he left towards the city of Demkarth as he walked he planned his mission out, thinking out loud “I will take the master’s plague of undeath into the town, and put it into the grain supply, and into the main well, from there the plague will spread into all the wells in the town and also through the grain into all of the town’s food, and then they will become my master’s soldiers, minions to conquer all of Entionth, then we can summon the master. And he will look down upon me, his loyal servant and raise me up to him and make me commander of his armies!” he laughed a sick twisted laugh that sounded nearly inhuman and then said “and no one will ever suspect what is happening until the very end”
The next morning Sharel received a message from a farmer’s wife. She went down to the farm land with two other sentinels when they got there they found a man, already dead and bled dry, they tried to determine who or what killed this poor lonely farmer for the puncture wound they found in the chest, was very, very odd. They covered him up and brought him to the Demkarth morgue to be examined then prepared for the funeral “It’s strange” Sharel said to the doctors at the morgue “It seems, almost as if the blade immediately rotted his flesh, upon touching it, what weapon could do that” before she could finish that sentence she ran off toward the library there Sharel looked over several dictionaries, encyclopedias and weapon guides before she found it. The book was titled ‘The guide to the dark arts vol.1’
She began reading it, scanning for what she wanted, the index said ‘Chapter 1 introduction, Chapter 2 simple magic, Chapter 3 advanced magic, Chapter 4 obsidian, Chapter 5 curses’ she skipped to chapter four hoping that it was not true, for if that man died by obsidian weapons that could only mean; that the killer was a Necromancer! She read on concentrating on the book, learning about the horror that could be upon the city ‘Obsidian
Weapon-forging, is a dark and vile thing, most smiths have to be forced to do it, but it is still favored by Cultists and Necromancers alike. It is a steel weapon re-forged until its metal is warped and it is charred black, all the while speaking a curse unto it, then it is cooled in a bucket full of blood and oil. The end result is a pitch black weapon that is cold to the touch, corrodes armor and flesh alike and is disturbingly tainted wi-’ There was more, but she could not bear to read it, she knew what she had to do.
Chapter 5: Plots unfold
Lektar rose from his bed, stared out the window, the sun had just cracked over the hills, he could see his city and the vast farmland that lay beyond, and over the hill just out of sight was the Goblin city of Bombrock. He stepped towards his window and the violet veil of silk that covered the inside and opened it sending a gust of fresh air in to his sleeping-chamber, he then grabbed his robe, which was made of the finest quality silk with three colors a red background, the golden emblem of Entionth: an eagle holding a red rose in its beak, and the third was a black symbol that was the arcane healing spell. And thrust it upon him then followed suit with a mithril sword in its sheath; and his silver crown laden with jets and rubies, and Made his way down from his tower in the royal castle towards the eatery.
“I must see him!” Sharel barked “I am so sorry mam” replied the emissary closest to her, there were eight constantly on duty defending the royal castles main entrance; each one heavily armed. “But he is in the cafeteria, you’ll have to come back later” “Its a matter of national security!” she screamed back “Ask him to see me or you will be stripped of your rank” with that sentence the emissary saluted crisply and marched into the castle, she stood there waiting to tell the mayor of her disturbing news.
The emissary opened the gate, as he walked into the main hallway he noticed that it seemed a little dirty: there was dust on the floor and a cobweb on the second chandelier of five, ‘The maid must have not gotten here yet.’ he thought as he strode past two leisure quarters and up towards the second level. He had not been inside the castle itself for nearly an entire season it was infrequent that he would be able to enter, and he always liked the mayor’s accommodations. It was a three level fortress, the first level consisted of three leisure quarters and two guest rooms but it was decorated with fine art and had shelves filled with the finest stories and poems in the land, while the second level had a dining room and a vast library, the emissary had never been to the third of the levels but he could imagine the treasures that were contained there in.
He made his way up towards the second floor of the castle, when he arrived at the top of the stairwell he made his way down a narrow hallway towards the cafeteria. The emissary stood at the entrance of the cafeteria viewing the mayor, for he was not aloud to enter the same room as him unless invited, Lektar sat at the fifth chair of nine that went down the left side of the elongated dining table, with a plate of runny eggs, nice crisp bacon, and a small leaf on the side, he knew it was an herb but he couldn’t tell what kind, next to it was a smaller plate with a slice of fresh made cherry pie. “Come in Leonard.” The mayor said, as the emissary Leonard entered the room Lektar sipped on hot Nuzal tea, “State your business.” Said the mayor “Sharel seeks to speak with you,” Leonard replied “it seems important.” Lektar chuckled “It always is.” He said then he took a bite out of the pie and took another sip of his tea then continued “If she seeks my counsel then I shall be happy to meet her after my meal,” he took another drink of his tea “When I signal you: bring her up to here.” He noticed that Leonard would occasionally glance at his pie, it was disrespectful to take his eyes off of him but he could understand, the emissary probably had not eaten at all yet. “Would you like a slice?” Lektar asked sincerely, (after all Leonard was a friend of his) the emissary accepted.
Sharel waited nearly thirty minutes before the emissary came down to bring her to the mayor, now she was on her way up the stairway to meet him, when she arrived in the dining room she explained everything that she had found to the mayor “May the Gods help us,” Lektar said softly with a slight creak in his voice “so shall we tell them?” Sharel asked “Tell who?” he asked momentarily stunned from yet another threat to his kingdom “The citizens, shall we warn them?” Lektar pondered the question for several moments before he answered, he uttered something barely audible for his mouth had dried, he cleared his throat and drank some tea to wet his mouth then spoke “No, we must not allow them to know or there would be widespread panic. Chief I want you to concentrate all your effort on catching this Necromancer.” He said. Then she got up and left, Lektar watched her slim figure go out the room, he was not a perverted sort, but yet he could not help but admire her physique. “What am I going to do?” he asked himself “First the plaque and now this fiend comes to murder my people.”
Derek was in his guild practice room, he was teaching his young students basic combat and defense spells, so far he had taught them fury (A fire attack.) and divine shield (which created a emerald bubble around the caster that protected from basic magical attacks) and they seemed to have mastered them. Now he was making them duel, “This is not a good idea...” he thought “Teaching fifteen year olds how to play with fire!” he snapped back into focus as he saw a small orb of flame move rapidly towards one of the duelers so fast he hardly saw it when he noticed the other dueler was paralyzed with fear and could not protect himself, Derek called a spell over the duelist just moments before the orb hit him. The Head-wizard just stared at the student whom he had just saved and saw that he was sweating “Feeling a little warm are we Marcus?” he mocked “Yes sir,” Marcus replied “thank...” he stopped to clear his throat of the crackly teenage voice he had started with “Thank you sir, for saving me.” He said, voice no longer as crackly “Remember there is no need for fear so long as you cast that spell.” Derek said “Don’t worry Marcus, you too shall catch on.” Marcus stepped off the duel podium and walked towards the wash rooms to wash his hands hoping also to wash away the embarrassment he felt. Marcus’ whole life all he wanted to be was a good wizard so he enrolled here hoping to be just that, but after he failed his first spell he felt horrible, even though he practiced for two days and did it better than anyone else from that point on he was known as the boy who failed the easiest spell known to the guild. He had joined when he was twelve, which was the earliest age anyone could join a guild of any type, in the past two years Marcus had made several friends and met interesting people who joined for many different reasons: from noble wizards’ to corrupt warlocks’ for the only thing the guild did not teach was necromancy (The ability to raise the dead and create items from bone). He had often thought of leaving and pursuing necromancy just out of curiosity but then he thought of his friends and that he didn’t need those powers for summoning fire and lightning was more fun anyway.
After the training exercise Derek congratulated each student and gave encouraging words of wisdom to those who had not done as well as the others, especially Marcus. Then he returned to his quarters: two small rooms with a hallway and a window, the main room was so small it could barely house the two chairs and table that were in it and the other room only had his bouzouki and bed in it. He was allowed to have a better room with much more space, yet he opted to live in the same conditions as the apprentices did. Derek thought about Marcus “What am I supposed to do with him?” he half asked himself and half asked the God of wisdom “He needs help yet if anyone helps him he feels worthless and depressed and we can’t reinforce his confidence for he is too stubborn!” He looked out his window and after he had seen that the sun was almost directly above, judged that in about seven minutes he would have to be at the enchanting class, to yet again oversee his apprentices.
“Marcus! Marcus!” His friend yelled “What is it Floyd? He replied slightly irritated, he was hoping to go to class without incident, he was almost certain Floyd would make fun of him. But he calmed himself for Floyd usually had some interesting news of the outside world at hand, “Did you hear about the killing at the Vance’s last night?” Floyd asked excitedly “By the Gods” Marcus replied “what happened? Have the guards found the culprit?” “No, and they have not released anything about it, it sounds as strange as a Gustiv to me. The only thing I know is that it happened and that the murderer didn’t take anything, odd huh?” There was a momentary pause before Marcus replied “Yeah, why would someone kill them? I mean they were a nice couple, I did not know them personally but my cousin did, and he said they were nice.” Why would someone want to kill them? “Your cousin is right they were. We better get to the next class, we only have a few minutes left.” And with that they went to the enchanting class. But the question of why someone would kill Mr. Vance kept racing through his mind.
Chapter 6: Possibilities
Marcus was bored, he had just left Mathematics class and was on his way to fire-magic. He hoped that this might brighten the day up, literally. Marcus entered the classroom a few minutes early, he was one of the first there as usual, he made a habit out of being early. Other than him the others in the room were: Victoria, Edward and Celone, all were in a corner gabbing. In the room there were three rows of eight chairs as well as a practice stand.
He sat down in the center third chair to the left of the back row; he always sat in the back. In just a few seconds other classmates arrived, and so did the teacher: Mr. Flentgort. Class went on normally, and so did the three classes that followed it, he made his way to his room after school talking a little more about the murder with Floyd, hoping to understand it better. Once his room was within sight he said goodbye to Floyd and made his way through his door, he sat down in the table in front of him and closed his eyes and dreamed. Marcus dreamed that he was a great Wizard and that he caught the murderer, if only it were true,
he opened his eyes once again and began studying.
Sharel made her way out of the guard-house, they just had a man report that there was another murder nearby, this one was obviously different: it was in the city and when she got to the crime scene she saw the victim had been shot with an arrow. She had three men investigate the body, while her and the other four guards followed what they hoped was the suspect’s path. Her mind was concentrated on the job, her job and how she loathed it, no matter it still had to be done. After several minutes of running they heard a scream in the alley ahead, they double timed it through the stone streets and popped into the alley and found the murderer there stabbing about to stab a women. The murderer spotted them, “Stop!” Sharel yelled “In the name of the King!” the criminal began to turn and hop the wall behind him when Sharel began producing a crossbow, he was about half up it when she fired: hitting him in the upper leg. He fell down and they began dragging him back to the jail as the guards left Sharel checked to see if the girl was okay “are you okay?” she asked “did he hurt you? The girl hesitated “No,” she finally replied “thank you, thank you so very much!” “No problem.” Sharel replied “How can I ever repay you?” “Just go home and rest, you’ve had a long day.” With that the girl ran off “And so have I.” Sharel muttered to herself. She couldn’t wait until her apprentice was ready to take over as chief, then she could settle down and be happy with her life once again, she was tired of all the stuff she had to see everyday. Sharel walked through the streets observing every stone, the roads were made with a smooth stone from the mountains of Gethosen in the south, while the nine foot walls were made with various stones through out the land of Entionth. She paused to let a carriage pass and then made her final few steps into the guard-house, no sooner than she had sat down in her office did another person rush in, this time reporting a theft, she sighed and mumbled “A long day indeed.” And with that she jogged out to find the thief.
Jantorth met his assistant in the fields outside of Demkarth for a meeting, “Eskon, have the preparations been made?” he asked, “Yes Master Jantorth.” replied Eskon. They discussed what they would do next, this was the most difficult part of the plan: How to invade Demkarth.
