Prologue for my book, per Boba Rhett's Request

[Guest Lord Tirion]

Prologue

 

Deep below the unseen rise, from the West approach the blackened skies,

From the East the Tempted will be, venture he will from across the sea.

 

Four magic Keys and Talisman sought, battles will rage, many fought,

Evil tempt the Good once more; Dark will bid that three make four.

 

***

 

 

“Yes, I could hear the screeches of certain doom as the wind of death swept in from the West in a blanket of fire. The sky scorched red as the fiery wings of rebirth coursed the once calm sky. Smoke and screams rose to the darkened atmosphere, as bodies lay asunder in ashes that were soon whisked away in a breeze of fury. Buildings that were once pure with life were now nothing more than crumbling blocks of pride set ablaze. People ran for shelter in hopes for salvation. But there was no salvation. There was no hope. This was the day of our Reckoning; the day hell decided to come to us.”

 

“I sit here alone in my dying room, in my dying home, in my dying land, within my dying empire. As I look out my broken portal embedded into my cracking walls to the carnage that lay before my eyes, I can only wait for my own death. No, I will not run in foolish hopes that I will be spared. I shall stand steadfast with the conviction of my own wrong doings that have brought this cleansing upon us. We have little time left before this fury shall submerge with the knowledge of vanquishing that which it was summoned to vanquish. So I sit here writing down that in which I see before me in hopes that somehow, someway, this should survive the devastation wrought down upon us. Who I am is not important. With the little time granted me before all Light becomes Dark, I write to you, he who shall find this, about our legacy, before all is forgotten.”

 

“Long ago here on the continent of Andania, mere man had flourished after the Great War of the Realms when the Ancient Ones, the protectors of man, the Maxima'Veen, had fought and defeated Dark at its essence, banishing evil and its kind. Believing that the Dark had been defeated forever, the Maxima'Veen, having taught man the knowledge of wisdom and prosperity, slowly vanished into the fissures of man's memory, leaving man behind to rule their world in peace.”

[Guest Lord Tirion]

“But evil never dies.”

 

“Man, having rather quickly forgotten the ways of the Maxima'Veen, became corrupt and tainted. They struck each other down for their petty differences. It was believed that the negative energy which was now harnessing itself into a pure sphere of darkness known as the Phayon, rose to the high heavens above as it began to grow stronger with each passing day as man’s audacity and acts of terror occurred, growing brighter and brighter. Civilizations began to crumble as each block of humanity fell one by one, allowing man to be more and more susceptible to the ever-growing evil mounting in the heavens.” The Phayon would prove to be the key to let the Dark fall upon the lands once more.

 

“In its inevitability, another Great War had erupted. This time, only consisting of man against fellow man, The Great War of the Mortals. The war raged on for centuries. Evil was now ever so abundant in the cruel blackened hearts of mankind. That was when the entities of pure evil arrived. The ultimate of all evils emerged, revealing it’s true presence, much stronger than the past evils that the Maxima'Veen had so long ago defeated in this ancient world. Ripe for the encroaching reigns of this new darkness, the black hands reached through the lands of Andania to take hold with its festering malignancy. From the blackness poured demonic lords, the undead, and countless malevolent minions of the Dark. But what was to lead the armies of the Dark were the most evil and ancient of all things, the masters of the black hands, The Four Vespers.”

 

“With the Phayon now pulsating with vibes of negative energy that it harnessed from man below, these dark Vespers now had an endless source of energy to tap into, fueling their hunger for domination. Man, now realizing what they had done cried out to their gods for forgiveness and help. But none came for their prayers were not pure.”

 

“Now having to fend for themselves, men united from the far reaches of the distant lands to try and drive back the demonic forces that they had inadvertently freed. But it was too late as man had let too much hatred into their hearts, thus, letting much evil into their realm for them alone to drive out. Civilization upon civilization fell to the Vespers and their Dark Armies of unspeakable horrors.”

 

“Man was all but doomed.”

[Guest Lord Tirion]

“Having seen that Light was still present in the hearts of some men, the Maxima'Veen suddenly appeared as mysteriously as they had vanished so long ago. With the entrance of the Ancient Ones, The Great War became known as the Great War of the Righteous. But this time, the Dark was far more powerful than it had previously been in The Great War of the Realms. The two sides clashed as Maxima'Veen and man struck swords with the forces of evil over a great many years. Slowly, the Dark became even stronger as more men became weaker, giving in to the temptations of evil and joining the Dark Armies as a soulless soldier of the Vespers. The Maxima'Veen, having fought as bravely and valiantly as they could, could no longer maintain the balance, as the scales of the Dark now tipped to outweigh the forces of Light.”

 

“With the Maxima'Veen and the last residing men who still remained pure of heart now engaged in a losing war, the forces of Light from other vast lands realized what danger this could mean for them if the Dark indeed conquered Andania. Thus emerged Larigulathon, King of all Dragons of Sydoria. Larigulathon and his flying armada of dragons quickly joined forces in fear that if the Four Vespers did indeed conquer Andania, then there would be nothing to stop them as land after land would fall to the Dark.”

 

“Even with the help of the dragons, it was still not enough as the battle was fought almost to a standstill, neither side now gaining ground. But doubts soon turned to hope during this huge epic war when one of the Four Vespers was struck down by the hands of the Maxima’Veen. But three still remained and this was still a victory for evil, for it still maintained a steady presence in these lands. The forces of Light now knew in order to defeat the Three Vespers for all time, they would need to cleanse all of Sydoria from the wickedness of man’s deeds with one swift blow. For the Three Vespers to be defeated, a pure source of Light needed to be unleashed that had been long lost. There was only one thing for them to do, find the Talisman of the Phoenix.”

 

“The Talisman of the Phoenix was a magical charm that housed the Four Sydorian Keys of the Elements: Ignis, Ventus, Terra, and Glacies. The Talisman was forged in the shape of the ancient living god, a colossal bird of fire. Opening the Talisman revealed four locks inside, each with their own symbol for their own key. Each key had been entrusted to Larigulathon who in turn entrusted the Four Sydorian Keys of the Elements to the four Dragon Lords.

[Guest Lord Tirion]

“Now listen closely, for here in lies the secrets of the Talisman. Even long before the times of the Maxima’Veen, a race known as the Raziel ruled over Sydoria for thousands of ages. There, they worshiped their living god, the Phoenix, which once during every age, would be set free, its huge wings of fire blanketing the sky, scorching the lands of the corrupt, to judge man and cleanse Sydoria, giving a rebirth into a new age. But having control of this absolute power slowly brought about the corruption of the Raziel sending them into a civil war over control of the Phoenix. Fearing that whoever would win this civil war would use this absolute power to annihilate the other, The Four High Adjudicators of the Raziel, who took neither side of this war forged the Talisman of the Phoenix and the four Keys to contain and harness the spirit of the Phoenix. There, The Four High Adjudicators of the Raziel gave the Four Keys and Talisman to Larigulathon to be hidden and protected against the prying reaches of either side. Much information after that has long disappeared with the mysterious disappearance of the Raziel.”

 

“When the Talisman of the Phoenix is indeed found along with the Four Sydorian Keys of the Elements, the Keys are to be placed within the Talisman in their precise locks thereby freeing the spirit of the Phoenix that was contained inside to bring about a new age.”

 

“It is rumored that there are written scriptures hidden in ancient ruins in far away lands that tell of the hidden chambers in which the Talisman and Keys were hid. Maybe somebody has already found it. Maybe these wings of fire that are now traveling the skies above my land are indeed the wings of the Phoenix herself. But did the forces of Light ever obtain the Talisman of the Phoenix in the Great War of the Righteous? No says I, for if the Talisman had been obtained, I would not now be surrounded by the reek of death. But what of these Ancient Ones and the remaining Three Vespers? For I do not know. Perhaps they are still rampant in some place not meant for the prying eyes of mortals with their immortal weapons still clashing. Perhaps man has grown weary of these Great Wars and has relaxed their swords, leaving Light or Dark to choose their destiny for them.”

[Guest Lord Tirion]

Get a chance to read all of it yet Rhett?

[Guest crazy_dog]

Have you meet Mr Tolkien?

 

That fantasy story is

[Guest Lord Tirion]

Funny you should say that. The few people that I have actually let read what I have written have said I have a lot of simularities in the way I write with J.R.R. Tolkien. They told me I should read the books. So, halfway through writing my first book, I went out and bought the LOTR trilogy, The Hobbit, and The Silmarillion. Now I am a huge Tolkien admirer and can only hope that my book will be as entertaining as his.

[Guest crazy_dog]

You're a writer?

[Guest Lord Tirion]

The prologue you just read is what I wrote =) That is my roughdraft of it. I am currently on chapter 37. What did you think of the prologue?

[darthfergie]

Yes it is pretty good:)

 

This really reminds me of Tolkien:

 

Deep below the unseen rise, from the West approach the blackened skies,

From the East the Tempted will be, venture he will from across the sea.

 

Four magic Keys and Talisman sought, battles will rage, many fought,

Evil tempt the Good once more; Dark will bid that three make four.

[Guest Lord Tirion]

Thank you

[Guest Boba Rhett]

I haven't read it all yet but so far, I'm loving it! It is very much like Tolkiens' style, very discriptive. Me likes.

 

Are you going to try and have it published when your done?

[Guest Lord Tirion]

Definately. My goal is to become an established fantasy writer. This is going to be Book I of a 3 to 4 book series. I can not stand office jobs or companies now-a-days so I said screw them, I am gonna be a writer and make my money that way =P I am really glad you like it.