Original Story
Illuminati: The Forth Order
Chapter 1
Ulysses: a planet that has long cradled the lives of some of the most exotic creatures. The Heaven Lords and Ladies blessed this place with a variety of creatures never seen before on other planets. Creatures such as dragon, phoenixes, elves, humans and many more lived together in harmony. Since the beginning of time, they have not let their differences set them apart. Rather, they chose to work as a community, to work together without letting skin color, race or looks hinder their daily activities.
Humans were the first to walk the land after the Heaven Lord, Halrond, created them according to the images of the Heaven Lords and Ladies. They were great seafarers, musicians and merchants as well as colonizers. Their resourcefulness led them to be effective administrators, kings and wielders of power. Humans were also master craftsmen and the cities they built reflected their passion for design and their architecture were highly praised by other races. Cathedrals, castles and monasteries became places of worship and art and Halrond was their patron Heaven Lord.
Dragons appeared two hundred years after humans. Their patron Heaven Lord, Draconis, was the Lord of Dragons who blessed the dragon race with great wisdom and magical affinities. They were the masters of magic and divination. Like human craftsmen, they were magic crafters, creating magic that benefited all races who wish to use them for peace. Being three times stronger and larger than a human, dragons were skilled heavy duty laborers. Many were paid by lords and kings to be workers in building their castles.
Emerging at the same time with the dragons were the phoenixes. They too have great wisdom and magical powers but unlike dragons, phoenixes were skilled battle wizards. They were skilled with magic and steel and many were recruited to become soldiers, guards and wizards. Phoenixes were also well-known for being able to talk directly to their patron Heaven Lady, Istaril, the bride of Draconis. They also have the ability to regenerate themselves from their ashes, effectively making themselves immortals. However, most choose to return to their Heaven Lady once they turn into ashes.
The last race to emerge was the elves, which they appeared five hundred years after humans. They were the most beautiful of all races and their patron Heaven Lady, Illuminata, blessed them with angelic powers and supernatural wisdom. They live as one with nature and have limited abilities to control nature at their will. Like humans, elves were also master craftsmen but prefer to build their cities on treetops, secured forested areas as well as underwater. They were also trainers of hydras, cousins of the dragons that live underwater. Elves were also skilled in crafting powerful armors, imbuing them with strong magic.
These four pure races, created by the Heaven Lords and Ladies, were meant to breed with their own race so as to prevent unwanted races from appearing. However, as time went by, these four species began to mingle and as a result, demi-races such as the Demigons and Fellblades emerged. Many of these hybrid races and their parents were crucified and put to the sword. However, their persecution did not last long as the Heaven Lords and Ladies assigned each demi-race a patron celestial to worship. Still, a grudge formed between the pure races and the demi-races. Two thousand years later, these races were slowly accepted into normal society. They were given jobs and held rights to being a worshipper of a patron Heaven Lord or Lady they like.
All races may live in harmony and peace but evil has sown the seeds of discord ever since the first feeling of grudge appeared in the hearts of the masses. They multiplied into multiple evils such as hatred, anger, injustice, discrimination, lust, pride and so on. The vision of a perfect, harmonious world was broken long ago and two thousand years of grudge and hate manifested into demons that signify different kinds of evil. Now, not only were the races attacking each other, they were attacking themselves. Kings and Barons fought for land and hegemony and soldiers defecting to enemy armies. Ideologies ruled the minds of Men but the other three pure races stayed out of it. However, they could not deny that evil was also creeping into their very souls.
The Heaven Lords and Ladies could not do anything about it for they were not allowed to interfere in the lives of mortals. However, they did orchestrated little events that will eventually turn into huge changes for the better. By calling the weak and meek, they eventually became heroes with guidance from those who remained true to good.
***
Arvinth Stormhand made his way through Kronburg Castle, intending to see the High King regarding their hostile neighbors encroaching upon Falcon Heights. His red officer’s cloak billowed softly as he made quick paces towards the throne room with a hard look on his face.
“Where is the High King?” Arvinth asked a Demigon guard when he saw that the king was absent from his throne.
“He’s on a diplomatic trip to Stormhold, sir. He won’t be back until the fourth day,” the guards replied.
“Where’s Advisor Caro?”
“She’s at the Chamber of Halrond. I wouldn’t recommend disturbing her at an hour this inappropriate. Caro may be busy,” the guard remarked.
Arvinth gave the guard a stern look which made the guard quiver a bit. It wasn’t a surprise since the military commander always gave his subordinates stern looks when they tried to stop him from carrying out something important at inappropriate times. Those who still tried to stop him usually ended up in the infirmary with gashes and broken bones.
“I do not intend on letting King Lemarr’s forces take Falcon Heights when the High King is away. Take me to Caro now and I do not care if she’s busy or not,” Arvinth said gruffly.
“Y-Yes sir.”
The Chamber of Halrond, located at the East Wing of the Castle, was a place for the ministers to spend their time in worship. Caro Einhaust, the High King’s advisor and steward, was the only one in the chamber that day. She stood in front of the towering statue of Halrond, his right hand outstretched forward with his palm facing the door to the chamber. In his left hand was a long sword pointing upwards. Caro placed some flowers before the feet of the statue and made a profound bow.
“Halrond, the Heaven Lord of Might and Ambition, what is it that the world wants that its inhabitants constantly bicker and tear each other apart?” she muttered to herself.
Her thoughts were interrupted when the heavy double doors to the chamber parted with loud creaks. Caro turned around just in time to see Arvinth entering the chamber.
“Do you not know that this chamber is forbidden to commoners?” Caro asked when Arvinth approached her.
“This is not the time to talk about rules and regulations, Caro. I’m a military commander with the permission to go anywhere in the castle whenever I feel like. I’d like to speak to you about King Lemarr’s attack and I want to know what we must do,” Arvinth answered.
Caro looked at Arvinth’s battle-hardened face and gave him a weak smile. She nodded her head and walked pass him and headed towards the door.
“Come with me, I’ll discuss this matter with you at the throne room,” she said.
Arvinth caught a whiff of lavender when she passed him. He didn’t dare admit it but it smelled rather sensual to him. He followed her out of the throne room and closed the door. While at the throne room, Caro had the servants serve them some food and drinks. This made Arvinth uncomfortable since he wasn’t used to eating at the same table with women. Most of his life was spent in the barracks where he felt more at home when he dined with his men. The only times when he dined with females were the times he dined with his wife and daughter during his official leave.
“Caro, I’m not here to have lunch. We have serious matters to look into and-”
“Loosen up, Arvinth Stormhand, you can’t think clearly if you continue to be so stiff,” Caro remarked casually and took a sip of tea.
“I’m not stiff; I’m just anxious to get back to work. My men are waiting for an answer and King Lemarr’s forces are approaching Falcon Heights even as we speak. Do you intend to let them take over the entire Mistlands?” Arvinth growled.
Caro sighed and put down her cup of tea. “I see that you’re aware of our diplomatic relationship with King Lemarr. High King Grendor may have established a non-aggressive pact with King Lemarr so he could focus his attention to his enemies at the South. Of course, technically, we should be at war with King Lemarr but the only thing keeping us from attacking him is the non-aggression pact. Should we attack them first, they will use this as an excuse to attack us but if we do not act, we’ll lose to his forces.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Arvinth said as he subconsciously took a piece of bread to eat for he was hungry.
“It doesn’t matter if we wait or attack for any choice we make only leads to our demise. High King Grendor made a mistake by creating this pact because King Lemarr is a snake. He can never be trusted to keep a promise. Should we break the pact, we’ll only displease the High King,” Caro continued.
“I know about the situation, Caro, but I want to know what we must do. Should we attack first or should we stand our ground?” Arvinth asked while standing up.
“Attacking first will not only mean that we’re breaking a pact signed by our High King, it will also mean that we’re giving them an excuse to attack us back. To defend means we’re fighting against the odds. They outnumber us ten to one and even if we have the advantage of high ground, King Lemarr has in his disposal a battalion of dragons. Humans cannot hope to beat dragons in combat. It is suicide,” Caro answered.
“What other options do you have in mind?”
“I have two options that we can use. We can either negotiate with King Lemarr’s forces to call off the attack or we can call for reinforcements. If I were you, I’ll choose the former while secretly initiating the latter. There is a dragon cove ten minutes from Kronburg Castle and the dragons that live there are far more powerful than Lemarr’s dragons. Of course, that depends if you can convince them to help us.”
“What do you mean if I can convince them?”
“You’re the commander, aren’t you? Requesting for reinforcements is your duty.”
“I have a job to do, Caro. I can’t just leave whenever I feel like.”
“You can’t but you can’t disobey orders from me either.”
Arvinth wanted to say something but he only opened his mouth. Caro gave him a smile and stood up. She walked towards him and placed a hand on his left cheek. It felt cold to Arvinth.
“Don’t worry, you leave the defenses to me. You just concentrate on getting the dragons to help us,” Caro said softly.
“Don’t tempt me, woman. I’m a married man,” Arvinth growled.
He left the room quickly with his sword drawn. Caro gave a small chuckle and took another sip of tea before putting the cup down on the table. She looked out the window and saw a large formation moving from the Eastern Mist Planes. The usual morning mist has cleared enough for her to estimate their numbers.
“By the looks of this, I can estimate that King Lemarr has about one hundred thousand strong along with a few catapults and siege towers. I see that sibling rivalry has gone extreme,” she said to herself with a weak smile and crossed her arms.
Then, she turned to the Demigon guard standing at the entrance.
“Leevan,” she called out to Demigon.
“Yes ma’am?” the Demigon replied while running towards her.
“Get all guards, cavalries, footmen and archers ready for combat. King Lemarr’s forces will reach us within an hour so I want ammunitions ready and healers at the ready in case we suffer from casualties,” Caro ordered.
The black Demigon looked at her with an inquisitive look on his face.
“I don’t get it. Why is he attacking us when High King Grendor signed a non-aggression pact with him?” he asked while swishing his tail slightly.
“It’s a history lesson at best if I was to tell you everything but it all points down to land ownership and sibling rivalry. Mistlands and Tempest were once a single country known as Kelethean. It used to be a powerful and peaceful nation until Emperor Tratos died. He did not name an heir to the Kelethean throne so two brothers, Grendor and Lemarr, fought for the throne. It was a feud that lasted for three years until they decided to split the country into two. The peace was an uneasy one with two sides trying to conquer the other secretly. As you can see, Falcon Heights used to be part of the Veleria Province which in turn is part of Tempest but Grendor took it from Lemarr after an incident where Grendor’s top advisor was killed during a diplomatic mission to Tempest. Of course, not many know that this so-called top-advisor was nothing more than a common prisoner posing as a minister. Grendor made him act suspiciously so that Lemarr’s guards will kill him, thus giving him a reason to attack Lemarr,” Caro said.
Leevan felt a cold chill run down from his neck to the tip of his tail. “What happened next?” he asked.
“It was obvious that Grendor won. The reason he wanted Falcon Heights is because it was a strategic position compared to the Plane of Water where the land is like a bowl and the enemy has the advantage of high ground. Another reason is because Falcon Heights is close to Tempest. What better way to stage an attack than to use high ground for defense that is near the enemy border and can allow you to strike anytime. As you would expect, Lemarr was displeased and scared. His brother has an advantage of ground but he knows that Grendor’s main forces are in Centuria two thousand miles away and he cannot get reinforcements easily should Lemarr attack his castle. That leads us to our present situation and I assume that Lemarr is attacking because he wanted what was his and he is striking now because Grendor is away,” Caro explained while looking out the window again.
“Grendor is so…despicable. I thought he was a kind king…how dare he?” Leevan said angrily as the grip on his spear tightened.
“Both sides wanted land so both sides are in the wrong. Grendor is being greedy while Lemarr is equally greedy as well. That non-aggression pact is nothing more than a show of non-existent peace so that the public can rest easy. The two brothers wanted Kelethean for themselves and not even a peace treaty can stop them from trying to invade each other,” Caro said.
“If that is the case, why did High King Grendor let his guard down if he knows that the non-aggression pact is nothing more than a farce he signed with his brother?” Leevan continued asking.
“He knows that Lemarr will attack and I’m sure that secretly, he’s not going to Stormhold.”
“What?! But then-”
“He has plans but I doubt that he’ll reach Lemarr’s army in time. That is why I sent Arvinth to seek an alliance with the Black Cove dragons. For now, we’ll be holding out on our own.”
***
Arvinth got onto his white mare and patted its head. The mare made a soft grunt and exited the stable. When he reached the castle gates, one of the guards stopped him.
“Sir, why are you leaving us at the eve of battle? We need you here,” the guard said.
Arvinth turned to the guard and said, “I do not wish to do this but Lemarr has us outnumbered. I’m looking for reinforcements.”
“But the closest military base is miles away. You can’t reach there in time.”
“I have other allies in mind. Advisor Caro will be leading the defense so obey her as you would obey my orders.”
“War is the realm of men. I do not trust a woman’s judgment on the battlefield.”
“I have my doubts, soldier, but if I had a co-commander, I would’ve picked him to lead the defense. Unfortunately, I’m the only military commander here so what other choice do I have?”
“What about Sergeant Mersk? He’s a capable man and you said so yourself.”
“He is but I in his rank, he’s not allowed to command an army yet. For now, trust in Advisor Caro.”
He pointed at the gates and the guards quickly opened them. With a salute, Arvinth rode out from the castle and down the slopes of Falcon Heights. The cold wind blew past his face and it felt like daggers piercing his skin. He wrapped a scarf around his face so he would not breathe in the sharp cold air.
“Make haste, Vertigo, ride on,” Arvinth said to his horse.
As if the horse could understand him, it picked up speed. Arvinth held on tight to the reins and squinted his eyes for it hurts to open eyes with the wind blowing into them. From the slopes of Falcon Heights to the Dark Fang Forests, Arvinth heard nothing but the sound of wind and the sound of hoofs hitting the ground. Suddenly, he saw someone walking out from a dense undergrowth. Arvinth stopped his horse so suddenly that it skidded and it fell to the ground along with its master. The young girl was taken by surprise and she just stood there, watching the horse and its rider get up from the ground.
“Who are you…and what are you doing in the middle of the forest?” Arvinth asked the young girl.
“I have come to lead you to the Black Cove dragons. I know why you’re here,” she replied.
Arvinth could tell that this young girl was no ordinary human. Somehow, he trusted her even though he could not explain why. She looked so pitiful and humble.
Getting onto his horse, Arvinth said, “Go, and lead the way.”
To his amazement, the girl spread out a pair of dragon wings and took to the skies. Arvinth just stared at her.
“Demigons…I swear to Halrond that they’re everywhere, even if they don’t look like the usual Demigon,” he muttered and followed the young girl.
*It may seem a bit cheesy but I'm no professional writer...yet. Of course, feel free to comment on it and hopefully help me improve.
posted by Cipher at
2:29 AM
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