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~ V. The Epic of Ikov ~

Prologue

(1) Friendship - of friendship between a man and god I tell: the bond between Armadyl, lord of the Aviantese, and Ikov, sorcerer and warrior-prince of Al-Kharid. Their friendship drove back the Empty Lord and showed that there was strength in Gielinor. Their friendship freed the nations and established peace for a time. Their friendship bound their races under law and founded an empire of thousands of years. Their friendship held a promise that lives in our hearts forever.

(2) How was it when the holy pair first spoke to the sullen folk on the edge of the sea? The feast of welcome had come to a close late in the night and all that small, easternmost town waited for the god to speak. A dancing fire threw shadows across their perplexed faces, and a salty breeze cooled their sweat on that blessed summer night.

(3) "I come from foreign world," said Armadyl, "seeking a new land for my people - raptors like myself, the Aviantese. Ten days ago, I came to the falcon-god Tumeken, lord of the sun, who rules from the delta of the Lum to the cedar coasts on the eastern sea. He gave to me wise counsel. 'Take with you my servant Ikov,' he said, 'so that you may learn the ways of men and their customs in this world. Journey north and west and free the lands oppressed by foreign, wicked spirits. Then pass over the mountains where you will find in the far west a mighty people and mountain peaks fitting for the Aviantese. There you and they may settle in justice and in peace.' This is our quest, and we thank you for receiving us at the start of our journey."

(4) Silence followed, and Armadyl nodded to Ikov at his side. The man stood tall, royal in his bearing and stern and tan, dressed in armor of hard leather, with bow and quiver across his back and sword and sling and satchel at his side. He spoke, "I am Ikov, a younger son of the Kharidian royal house. I chose a life of priestly study until my lord Tumeken bound me to Armadyl. Now his quest is mine; I seek the land where men and Aviantese might live together in justice and in peace."

(5) The god in blazoned armor, standing with the height of two men, leaned on his crooked, ancient staff and nodded to Ikov again. Ikov continued, "We set out from Al-Karid at once, ten days ago, straight for the ford just north of the delta of the Lum. Tumeken instructed us to come to you this way and not to wander near the lands of the hydra in the east. My lord Armadyl walked with me by foot, and after two days we came to the ford. There we found already that our quest is opposed."

(6) "The Lum ran black, its southward stream shining and thick. 'There is evil and illusion here,' my lord warned, 'I dare not cross the river, but we must wait with patience to see how we shall proceed.' For three days we watched the tarry rapids from the west bank. On the fourth day there appeared in the morning mists a large, round stone, sitting high in the middle of the river. It stood higher than a man and was carved with hexagons all around. Here I met my first test."

(7) "I was suddenly overwhelmed with a desire to reach out and touch the stone. It rested only an arm's length from the bank on which I stood. My lord warned me then not to touch it, and I found myself helpless, unfree to resist the spirits in my heart. But I did not touch the stone, for something greater than that temptation works in me. In these last days, my lord has treated me as an equal. We have spoken of our lives and of the knowledge we have to share, of our love of justice and of our hope for peaceful life under the law. He lent me strength to resist the evil that I could not resist alone. I hope that we may share this strength with all who aid us in our quest."

(8) Ikov finished: "On the next day, the river's water was clear. We crossed the Lum and followed the coast west between forest and sea for two days, until we came to you here."

(9) Armadyl spoke again. "Take care, honorable hosts. This is strange magic that we have seen. The stone was for neither of us to touch. It was an illusion and a trap, meant for any who would bring peace to these lands. I fear we will encounter this again and among you yourselves - this magic is meant to test the human heart."

Part 1: Sea-Folk

(1) Armadyl and Ikov walked west, leaving behind the first in a string of towns and villages of fishermen and sea-faring merchants along the shore. Having been honored there with a warm welcome, a feast and festival and many gifts, and having stayed among the startled townsfolk for some days, Armadyl and Ikov departed for the next town. Already every town and village on the coast had heard of their arrival. At the next settlement, they encountered the same warm welcome, and likewise wherever they went on their westward journey.

(2) They did not stay long in each town, only some days. Upon each departure they requested to be allowed to travel to the next town alone, without an escort. On the road they spoke together and discussed their impressions of the sea-folk. Their presence had excited the sea-folk, but Armadyl and Ikov saw pain and fear in their eyes.

(3) They were the first of the troubled peoples of whom Tumeken spoke, and the two came to recognize something evil at work among them, a spirit in their fears. Slowly they pieced together the story behind it. In the recent years trolls had migrated from mountains far away and had taken up residence in the forests at their northern border. At first, and at random, a troll would charge into a town, killing and destroying as it went, until the people could strike it down. They built defenses, for their towns were not walled. But walls meant little to suicidal trolls. The trolls would hurdle them, make their way around, or charge right through. Meanwhile men and women in the villages suffered and died in the sporadic attacks.

(4) Before long some people in the villages came to see a pattern in the events. Whenever someone committed a particularly selfish act or brought upon himself some secret shame or guilt, a troll would charge. The causes were not publicly known, so it took a long time to recognize the connection. The guilty ones were the first to understand: they beheld the suffering and death they caused, the unintended consequences of their acts, and thus bore an awful burden.

(5) Soon thereafter all came to suspect the causes behind the attacks. Bitterness and suspicion spread among the people; hatred appeared in the hearts of those who had lost their dearest friends and relatives. Although some were identified as responsible for some attacks, the causes of many attacks remained unknown. Each questioned if perhaps he was the one responsible; each felt alone. Guilt gripped them, and despair hung over the villages like the salty air.

(6) In addition to their recent sufferings, Armadyl and Ikov also learned of the government and foreign relations of the sea-folk. They divided themselves into three districts - each a confederation of villages and towns - two in the east and one on the far coast of a penninsula to the west. The last district could not be reached by land, for the neighbors of the sea-folk upon the Asgarnian plain were a violent and inhospitable tribe. The Asgarnians controlled most of the penninsula and prohibited the sea-folk from traveling across their land. To the north lay a huge forest, a small part of which was inhabited by the trolls. Most of the forest belonged to a powerful nation of woodsmen, a nation which had become unfriendly to them of late; rumor told that they had accepted new rulers from another world.

(7) Soon Armadyl and Ikov had come through all of the villages of the easternmost district and were just beginning to make their way through the next string of settlements. As they walked together, Ikov said, "Armadyl, let's turn around; let's go back to the first town we entered in the east. We should begin the journey again, but now with a clearer purpose. A spirit haunts these people, and they think it is a spirit of justice which haunts them, which punishes them for their selfishness. We should set forth the truth for them: this is not justice; this is no rule of law, but an enemy to them. We should preach a message of forgiveness and of healing from this evil guilt. We should encourage them in love for the law which unites them, the real laws they have promulgated and by which they have bound themselves together as a people. We should recruit from among them an army of those willing to fight with us, for if we should break the hold this spirit has over them - I don't know how or when or where - we will have to face a fight."

(8) Armadyl agreed with his plan, and the two turned back to the east, bypassing the towns they had visited already, staying as much as they could out of sight. Confusion spread among the sea-folk: their visitors had disappeared on the road; reports told of them seen fleeing to the east; despair deepened in the towns unvisited in the west. But in only a few days, the mood was overturned. Armadyl and Ikov reappeared in the easternmost settlement, no longer as mysterious strangers. They spoke boldly: a message of hope and a call to war. The people were stirred as the news raced across the coast; hope appeared in their hearts.

(9) In the coming weeks, Armadyl and Ikov moved quickly through the towns. They spoke in two settlements each day, and every day more of the sea-folk left their towns and villages to accompany Armadyl and Ikov. Each town gratefully supplied their growing army and added to their number. Soon Armadyl divided them into companies of one hundred and instructed them in drills and discipline. Armadyl and Ikov camped with their soldiers outside a village each night, ate with them, and encouraged them often. The two also met alone to speak frequently. One night, Armadyl said to Ikov, "It's important for us to keep this in mind: our presence here has brought a lot of excitement to this people, but there will remain much more work for them to undertake after we have left if they are to recover as a nation. They have many hurts to heal, and we are only passing through these lands, to aid them in that process." Ikov agreed and thanked Armadyl for his constant counsel.

(10) By the time Armadyl and Ikov had gone through the central district and had reached the border of Asgarnian lands, they had with them a force of several hundred. And it was reported that some hundred more had gathered in the western district and awaited their arrival there. Assembling the army before him, Armadyl announced: "We have the force we need to cross the Asgarnian land without trouble and to join your fellow sea-folk in the west. The hold of the enemy spirit weakens; Ikov and I can feel it every day. But we do not yet know where and how the spirit will attack. So now I ask you for your patience: we must wait, in camp and prepared for war, until the way forward becomes clear. Your brethren in the west must remain in place also; we will send them orders by sea, and we will call upon them at the proper time. For now, we must wait with patience."

(11) Many were perplexed at the words of Armadyl - for few understand warfare against the spirits of the world: it involves much waiting and watching. But Armadyl and Ikov encouraged them, and the army of the sea-folk waited with patience. The companies to the west likewise sustained their hope and waited for Armadyl's command. For four weeks, they practiced their drills at camp.

(12) One day a report spread among the troops: the Asgarnians feared the armies of the sea-folk stationed near their borders; expecting an invasion, many had begun to move away from the penninsula dividing the central and western districts of the sea-folk and into the fields to the north. Excitement spread. Armadyl and Ikov heard the cheers among the camp and immediately sought its cause. Upon hearing the report, insight struck them both. "This is a distraction," said Ikov, "the spirit will attack soon. I have had a vision of a place I have never seen: a small lake lies north of a town in the western district; it will reveal itself there." "I have had the same vision," said Armadyl, "Let's move now."

(13) The two ordered the troops to prepare to march, and immediately they set out across the tribal land to the western district. Messengers were sent ahead to order the second army to meet at the same location. Armadyl and Ikov led the march through the night, and early the next day they arrived before the small lake both of them had seen. The second army joined their ranks. Then the two leaders commanded the troops to wait and to watch.

(14) After a short while, a cold wind began to blow, which steadily increased in strength. Soon the wind howled, and the trees began to bend. It became wilder, rushing from every direction. At last the wind itself appeared to gather together above the center of the lake. There a ghostly figure took shape, shifting in its form: at times a woman and at others a many-headed serpent. She stared at the army arrayed before her and the man and the god at its front, and then she shrieked - the sound of a thousand howling winds. She disappeared, and a man among the troops screamed and spasmed, falling to the ground. And then another soldier did the same. And then another. In seconds, each was dead. The spirit passed from victim to victim, possessing and killing at random, invisible, unpredictable, and unstoppable.

(15) Recognizing what was happening, Ikov spoke aloud to his troops: "Soldiers of the sea-folk, hold fast! This spirit seeks entrance into your heart. Do not fear; do not surrender your hope. She seeks entrance just as she did before: through fears, through guilt, through despair. Though your countrymen die before your eyes, do not waver in your hope - the hope which brought you here and which promises you freedom in the days to come! She has revealed herself because her reign has come to its end. Hold fast! Hope!"

(16) Armadyl, Ikov, and many of the leaders among the troops spoke likewise to encourage each other. All the while, the bloodless slaughter continued. For fleeting moments Ikov could feel the spirit's scrutiny pressing upon his mind, searching for a weakness. Every few minutes she would appear above them or behind them and shriek again to shake their courage. But many held firm. Soon it became apparent that she struggled to find hearts she could possess. For three quarters of an hour, the army of the sea-folk endured. Hundreds succumbed and died, but most did not. At last she appeared above the lake again, shrieked one final time, and dissipated before them like a mist. The battle was won, and the sea-folk were freed.

(17) In the coming days, great care was taken to send to their homes the bodies of the dead. No festivals were held, but each town would arrange to honor their dead and their survivors. Most of the remaining troops returned to their homes, exhausted but ready to live again with hope. And Armadyl and Ikov prepared to depart. Before their departure, about fifty soliders of the sea-folk approached them and asked to accompany them on their journey; they agreed. Armadyl and Ikov were among the sea-folk for about four months.