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—The Highborn—

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Areno3

Areno3

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“What?” Drathan mumbled, letting go of Wingtoro and taking a step back. “Why do you get to go? Why do you get to live? Just because you’re heir to the throne of Calabin? Well, reality check Wingtoro! There isn’t going to be much of a Calabin left when you attempt to return! I HOPE YOU REGRET LEAVING YOUR BRETHREN BEHIND TO DIE!” Drathan swung a punch at Wingtoro, but the young heir scrambled to the right, leaving Drathan’s fist swollen and broken as he sent his full strength into the stone wall of the hovel behind Wingtoro.

The seventeen year old prince kept running, the howls of his past companion rebounding off his eardrums as he escaped into the night. The wails of his loved ones would forever linger in his mind, accompanied by the growls and roars of the demons that had destroyed them. But the one sound he would remember for eternity was the low bass of the war drums that had ignited a string of events that would change his life forever.

_,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,_

“I cannot believe you made me go with you,” Lomar said, lazily trudging about behind Ryu with a heavy traveling bag on his back. The dwarf dug his walking stick into the dirt as he ambled along, creating petite holes in the ground as he advanced. He glanced up for a second, observing the golden hair of Ryu flowing about behind him in the steady wind.

It was early morning, and the sun hung low in the sky, nowhere near being at its zenith. Rays of violet light surged over the Synerian River that led to the Calabin Moat. The diamond-clear water sparkled in the dominant sunlight. Depressing grey willow trees hung over the river like a bad omen, but in the purplish light, the willow trees seemed ravishing. Ever highlighted by the low-hanging sun, the Darghei Hills could be seen on the eastern bank of the river.

29-Apr-2012 05:23:33 - Last edited on 29-Jul-2012 12:32:34 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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Ryu peered backward, and caught a glimpse of Lomar looking toward the hills in the east. The experienced archer slowed down until he matched the pace of the small dwarf. “You know… the Darghei Hills are said to host hundreds of deep caverns, all of which that are connected by spiraling tunnels. The elders say the largest and deepest caves lead to the Underworld itself,” Ryu explained, smiling slightly as the dwarf looked toward him, his eyes agleam with curiosity. “They even say the dwarves came from the Darghei Hills.”

“Now that’s rude,” Lomar accused, stopping sharply.

“How so?”

“Dwarves don’t come from the Underworld. We aren’t that evil… sure, we steal your gold and keep all the riches to ourselves, but that doesn’t mean we’re demonkin,” Lomar replied, grinning.

Ryu laughed, patting the dwarf on his trivial shoulders. “Ah, you’re beginning to grow on me Lomar.”

“I’ve always hoped for your approval, Ryu.”

Hours passed and the afternoon dawned upon the duo as Calabin came into view. They halted their movements. Their eyes lay fixed upon the crumbled city that was once a heavy trade partner of Synera. A smokestack of grey and black rose from the ruined city and the smell of death lingered in the nose like a skunk*s aroma.

“This can’t be…” Ryu muttered, his stride becoming longer as he took more steps until his feet developed into a full-fledged dash. He headed for the scorched gates of Calabin.

“Wait for me!” Lomar bellowed behind him, attempting to move his stout legs to catch up to the nimble anatomy of Ryu.

The unusual pair raced for the gates of the shattered city, and it wasn’t long before they came upon the ashes of the gate that had once been. They both relaxed to a moderate step, walking through the gate as bits of burned flesh and wood floated about in the air. Dust was all about them, forcing Lomar to let out a cumbersome cough.

29-Apr-2012 05:23:42 - Last edited on 29-Jul-2012 12:21:41 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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Ryu’s eyes worked to their own accord, for rational thought no longer had any foothold in his mind. He saw the charred bodies of people, the blood splattered across the cobblestone… and the demon scouting party that had just rounded the corner. “Lomar!” Ryu grumbled, grabbing the dwarf and diving behind granite debris that collapsed from the wall above them.

The creatures snickered and groaned as they pounced about, checking the demolished houses for survivors. Every once in a while Ryu and Lomar would hear the short scream of a mother or child that had been held up in their homes.

“Ryu, we have to get out of here,” Lomar whispered.

“Not without Wingtoro,” Ryu said.

“There are no survivors here. If Wingtoro is alive he is elsewhere. If we stay here any longer, we’ll be dead.”

Ryu simply stared at Lomar for a short while until he quickly nodded his head and apathetically peeked over the granite debris. The demons had just gone down another cobblestone street. “All right, let’s go,” Ryu ushered, leaving the shade of the debris in a crouched stance. The advisor made his way through the gate of Calabin, only to hear the fiendish shriek of a demon behind him.

Out of instinct, the archer immediately swung around, unhooking the bow’s flax string from around his shoulder and notching an arrow into place from his leather quiver. The demon turned to its side and began to run for the scouting party when Ryu let loose his arrow. In the eyes of the archery master, the string of the bow seemed to snap back into place in slow motion. The arrow whistled forward, spinning like that of an accelerated clock arm until it sheathed itself within the bowels of the demon nearly thirty yards ahead.

The demon let out a scream before it collapsed to the ground, the arrow digging farther into its stomach and groin. “Nice shot…” Lomar said.

29-Apr-2012 05:23:50 - Last edited on 29-Jul-2012 00:26:08 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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“Yeah, well now we have to go!” Ryu yelled, right about the same time as the scouting party of six demons came crawling around the corner at high speeds. Their quadrapedal movements were terrifying to the eyes of the advisor. “RUN!”

Lomar and Ryu turned around, sprinting as fast as they could out of the gates of Calabin. The growls of the demons behind them only sent more adrenaline coursing through their configurations, willing them to move quicker than before.

As they kept up their elongated strides, Ryu’s eyes scanned the environment around them. Open plain dotted with trees was all he saw. There was no where to hide. The archer hastily turned about on his heels, his bow still in hand from before. He stopped altogether and let off another arrow, observing as it shot through the air and into the cranium of one of the crawling monstrosities. Blood blasted forth from its ears and even more so when the arrow fully skewered the head of the creature.

Catching onto the cue, Lomar turned around and unsheathed his blueblood steel sword. He threw his walking stick to the side and gritted his teeth, waiting for the demons that approached them.

Just as the demons came into contact with the duo, an individual leapt from the light bushes to the left where a great maple tree provided some cover. By the short light brown hair and athletic build of the young soul, Ryu could obviously tell that Wingtoro had jumped from the brush, sword in hand and diving head first into battle with creatures he had never before challenged.

A demon hopped into a bipedal stance before Lomar, easily towering over the dwarf. In a quick second, the demon plunged forward with its jagged claws and hellish fangs. The dwarf brought his left hand upward, pinning his palm against the chest of the creature as his short blade buried itself between the ribs of the demon.

29-Apr-2012 05:24:00 - Last edited on 29-Jul-2012 00:26:39 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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Oh how it wailed. The demon escaped from Lomar’s hand, walking about until it settled against the dew-covered grass, the blueblood blade still caught amidst its ribcage.

Ryu made quick work of three demons that foolishly made their way into battle with the experienced archer. The advisor fired an arrow into the throat of an incoming demon, sending it head-first into the plane of death. Another raged forward, and Ryu was forced to abandon his bow by tossing it to the side. The archer unsheathed two rapiers, the thin blade of one quickly slicing off the fingers of the demon that reached out its claws to scathe him. The other rapier was thrust into the sternum, shattering the demon’s main artery and spewing black blood over Ryu’s countenance. The archer gritted his teeth, twisting the blade and letting the demon fall into its own demise. The third demon was dealt with by a few short rapid strikes with the dual rapiers.

The final two demons advanced upon Wingtoro, and the inexperienced warrior fell backward under the weight of both demons as they lunged themselves upon him. He pinned them away with the flat face of his stout broadsword. He groaned against them, trying to force them off of his heels, but they were too physically powerful. That was, until Ryu’s arrows made them fall to the ground inanimate.

With all six demons dead, Lomar retrieved his blade from the demon’s ribs as Wingtoro looked to Ryu and Lomar, bowing briefly toward them. “Where did you get that blade?” Ryu asked, his eyes fixed upon Wingtoro.

“Oh, this thing? I found it in the hands of a knight who… no longer needed its service. It’s quite heavy,” Wingtoro stated, swinging it about rather slowly.

“That’s because broadswords are not meant to be carried by infantry, lad. But I think Alderionth will teach you more about battle. Come on,” Ryu beckoned, his tone relaxed. Wingtoro approached Lomar and Ryu, and they all began their return to Synera.

End of Chapter Two

29-Apr-2012 05:24:10 - Last edited on 18-Jun-2013 16:56:29 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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Chapter Three

“Send me,” Odama said. “We have no information indicating where these demons are, and we have no idea when they are going to attack.”

“We cannot send just one person, Odama,” Alderionth retorted, seated upon the grand throne that his father had once been upon only a week ago.

“Why can’t we?”

“It’s too dangerous, even for you.”

“Too dangerous? I think it’s too dangerous to just remain sitting ducks for these damn things! How much time do you think we have before they storm our walls?” Odama said, his eyes narrowing. He crossed his arms over his armored chest. Alderionth simply stared at his battlemage. His right hand began to grasp the arm of the bejeweled throne. “We don’t have much time, my king,” Odama said. “If you send me, I’ll have a better chance at getting past their defenses, if they have any. If you send an army, they will slaughter them with their numbers. Please… you must underst-”

“Fine,” Alderionth interrupted, “you may go. I want to know their numbers, what weapons they have, and what the hell their queen looks like.”

Odama nodded, bowing to his lord. “It will be done,” he said, grinning. The battlemage turned around, his black cloak flinging about behind him.

At that moment, the great gilded doors to the throne room of Synera were thrown open. A trio of silhouettes entered, their forms appearing black due to the mass rays of sunlight cascading down behind them. When Alderionth’s eyes adjusted to the light that had entered the room without warning, the forms could now be seen. Ryu, Lomar, and the young Wingtoro were before him.

“Milord…” Ryu addressed, looking over at the young prince of Calabin before altering his gaze back to Alderionth, “we found Wingtoro safe, but the rest of Calabin has fallen. The demons arrived there before we did. I don’t think there were any survivors besides Wingtoro.”

29-Apr-2012 05:24:19 - Last edited on 18-Jun-2013 16:56:06 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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The weight of that statement truly took a toll on the mind of Wingtoro. No survivors . That meant his entire family was dead. That meant his father, and the king of Calabin, was dead. That meant everything he had once known was gone, burned to the ashes by a raiding party of creatures that did not belong to this realm. The youth did not cry though, no* he was long past that. Shock had overwhelmed his soul too much for sadness to take hold of his heart.

Alderionth looked down upon the trio, but not for long. He stood up from his grand throne, strolling down the few magnificent steps placed before the seat of royalty before he was face-to-face with the three individuals. “If Calabin has fallen, then our lives are more at risk than they ever were before. We must, in the minds of the demons, be their next target before they move their malevolent gaze northward. If we do not stand, fight, and claim victory when they do march upon our walls, then we must send a message to the capital. But that will only happen if we are within our last dying breaths. We are nowhere near that point yet,” Alderionth said, his voice commanding as he walked back and forth in front of the three.

“What about Dodempa?” Lomar inquired, his eyes whimsical. “Are you to leave them to die without fair warning?”

“Dodempa is a dwarven city protected by hundreds of mountains, Lomar. I doubt that demons could even cross the mountains without having so many casualties that their army wouldn’t even stand a chance against the dwarven legion,” Alderionth said, smirking.

29-Apr-2012 05:24:30 - Last edited on 18-Jun-2013 16:55:04 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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The king’s optimistic countenance drew a thin smile across Lomar’s face, but it was soon swept away as he looked to his left, and watched the young Wingtoro bow before Alderionth, who had approached him at that time. Wingtoro dug the sharpened edge of his broadsword into the marble flooring, his eyes staring down at the hilt of the blade. Alderionth smiled down at him, but the king of Synera would not stand for it. He took hold of Wingtoro’s shoulder and raised him gently, patting him on the shoulder once he was up on his feet again. “Just because your family is lost, doesn’t mean you have to swear your loyalty to me, Wingtoro,” Alderionth said.

“Yes it does, because my father was so admiring of you. He called you the best warrior that the lands had ever seen. He wanted me to train with you to become just as great as you. I will respect my father’s wishes, and I see no better place to be now than in Synera. My home is lost, you are correct… but if it is, than I want to find a new home. I think I can build that here,” Wingtoro said, his hands still firmly placed upon the pommel of his broadsword as it aimed toward the ground.

Alderionth smiled again. “I will teach you all I know about fighting in melee combat, but I cannot promise you that it will be easy. I honed my skills over a decade and a half, training with some of the greatest warriors to visit Synera from the capital. I was a quick learner, but I’ll have to see how fast you catch on. Ryu and Lomar, you may return to your chambers to relax if you’d like.”

Ryu and Lomar laughed, patting each other’s backs as they headed toward the staircase that rose to the level of the castle where their quarters were housed. Now, in the throne room, Alderionth and Wingtoro stared at one another while royal guards stood at position at either side of the magnificent room. “Come. We go to the training grounds,” Alderionth said, beginning to walk out of the main gates of the castle.

29-Apr-2012 05:24:39 - Last edited on 20-Jun-2013 05:35:00 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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_,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,__,.•'`¯`'•.,_

A day had passed since Odama’s departure, and night had descended upon the lands. The leaves of the Shaden trees rustled high above Odama as he traveled through the Shaden Forest. These trees were over one hundred feet tall, their roots expanding for hundreds of meters. Birds chirped and flew about in the night, along with some other rather unpleasant noises belonging to more feral animals.

Odama had decided not to bring a steed, for if the thing went wild and began to let off immeasurable amounts of sound, he would be dead before he made the beast go silent. He trotted through the vast darkness of the Shaden Forest, the black hood of his cloak pulled over his snow white hair.

The battlemage’s mind seemed to play tricks on him. He swore he could have seen shadows dancing about in the corners of his vision. He heard sticks crack, and the leaves seemed to rustle a little bit more than usual. Odama’s hand fell to the gilded hilt of his scimitar as he continued through the foliage of the forest.

He walked in the black for what seemed like hours until he reached the edges of the Shaden Forest. As the monstrous trees no longer clouded his sight, Odama now saw the raging fires of the demonic encampment a few miles away. They had no wish to conceal their location, for their flames lit up the night, revealing the twenty-five foot high towers that surrounded the place. Zendonia once had been a ruin for the kings of old, but that had changed dramatically now. It seemed like a good a place as any though, considering the demons were defiling the crypts of the beloved monarchs that had once ruled in Deriam, Synera, and Calabin.

29-Apr-2012 05:24:53 - Last edited on 20-Jun-2013 05:36:37 by Areno3

Areno3

Areno3

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Odama marched on, the winds of the evening beginning to surge forward, lowering the hood of the battlemage even lower upon his brow, hiding his purple eyes from anyone who desired to look upon him. The battlemage advanced through the open plains, the long grass blowing about due to the aggressive nature of the winds. He approached Zendonia within the hour.

Standing about one hundred yards away, hiding behind a large boulder positioned randomly in the plains outside of the demon stronghold, Odama waited. His eyes observed the several demons that manned their towers. Shock overwhelmed him in seconds though, for at a second glance, he realized something. The demons were carrying bows .

They had been unarmed and unarmored when their scouting party had attacked Synera. Whether it was because the demons did*’t waste time arming scouts or they wanted to put a false intelligence in the minds of those they were planning to attack, Odama did not know, but he hoped it wasn’t the latter. If they had planned that, then it meant they had a much stronger intellect than Odama first presumed.
The demon archers on the wall did not appear to be wearing armor though. They still had their cloth sashes coiled about their lower torso. The battlemage was fearful to press on and attempt to enter the encampment though. If he was unlucky enough to be seen by one of the demon guards atop the towers in the dead of night, his execution would be brutal and certain. But he had orders from Alderionth. I want to know their numbers, what weapons they have, and what the hell their queen looks like .

Seeming to get lost in his own mind for a bit, Odama noticed something. He had been in this area before… and it had been dotted with hundreds of trees. They were all gone, including the stumps. Even the grass, as it got nearer and nearer to the demon camp, turned into blackened sand.

29-Apr-2012 05:25:02 - Last edited on 19-Jun-2013 13:22:52 by Areno3

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