Red Dark as Night: War Cries

-Prelude-

“This land is a land of peace, nothing could ever break that peace for if evil ever broke out into this world, I fear it would never cease and last forever. Praise be to the Mother who has given us everything including this beautiful peace that we bask in everyday. The evil one has been defeated forever because she has loved us.” – King Namar Ling’kin III 12as

Twelve years after the salvation of the two kingdoms was promised by the mother though the angles declaration over the land…peace has finally come apon the world known as Kiateth. There was a great sense of victory all over as the two kingdoms of man rejoiced and celebrated. For the enemy had been stopped in his evil tracks…but it would seem, that he still learked in the shadows somewhere…for after the 12th year darkness fell over the two kingdoms once again. This is the tale of the two kingdoms…and the fall into an almost eternal darkness. This, is the story of Kiateth.

***

The Castle to the kingdom of Ling’kin was vast, its two tall white pillars leading into the main gates where as high as any man could see. Nobody remembers the days when the castle was built, no man has records from back in the day before time when the castles came down from the heavens, but all know that indeed this building was the work of the Mother herself, its tall pillars marked the entrance to the even taller gate that led inside. Inside there was a grand staircase leading to a large doorway high above.
“She has arrived,” The solder hit his partner before forming up and standing prone as a woman passed though the large doors under heavy escort.
“Isn’t that the second time this week?” The other whispered to the first as he scrambled to his position.
The first solder smiled as the escorting party and the woman left thought the gate, “Rumor has it that his majesty has taken a liking to her…”

King Namar Ling’kin III sat on his throne in deep thought, his muscular build slouched over in his seat. He has still not gotten used to the throne…even after twelve years he couldn’t sit still, he was a warrior, the sword has been his life up until his father had been taken by the Mother and he was to take over the kingdom at the age of 25.
“How can she be so beautiful…so lovely, so perfect?” The Kings aide offered no response to the questions offered to him by his highness, “alas, you will see one day she will sit here as my queen. One day all will see her perfection sitting in her perfect throne.”
Indeed Namar was taken by this woman, her long blonde hair flowed in his dreams and her smile sweetened his thoughts.

“Some say his majesty isn’t the only one.” The larger of the two guards said as they watched the woman and her escort move on down the road past the gate where they stood. “Rumor has it she has stolen the heart of J’hndor as well.”
“You’re a fool, aye she’s a beautiful woman but to have the heart of both Kings of Kiateth is absurd.”

Nobody knew the heart of the woman, but soon everyone knew the heart of the king. King Lamand J’hndor who sat in the twin castle to that of the kingdom of Ling’kin thousands of miles away watched as the woman left his sight followed by her escort. This young king watched with passion as his love left the castle.
“She is the perfect woman, in every way she is perfect. The perfect woman to make my queen.” The kings aide nodded and smiled…finaly Lamand had found love.
Indeed he had for her words where like a sweet violin to his ears and her eyes where liked pearls to his.

Word soon spread throughout the two kingdoms of man, throughout J’hndor and Ling’kin that the kings had found there love. But there was deception in the air and soon both kings knew of the others love for the same woman.
“It would seem we have a problem my good friend.” Namar set his fork on his plate unwilling to finish the meal in front of him as he looked into the eyes of Lamand, “but this one woman cannot tare our unity apart so I say she can go with you.”
“Namar are you sure, I could never unless it had your true blessing.”
“Indeed it does, our friendship and our kingdoms are far more important then the emotions of this heart.” Namar looked to his friend across the long table, holding back the pain from his voice.
Lamand was filled with joy, “she must have told Namar she wanted to be with me…” he thought to himself as the words of thanks never slipped out of his mouth, instead he lowered his eyes in respect, “May the mother bless the sacrifice you have made today for your kingdom as well as mine, I will never forget this my friend.”

There was rain the night the woman traveled to the castle at the center of the kingdom of J’hndor, some call the rains of Kiateth the “Tears of the Mother”. The woman’s beauty never left her that night, even as she lay in the muddy path, her escort laying with her, her favorite color now the color that marked there fate as blood trickled from there still bodys.

Lamand watched from his window of his room for his lovely to come, the rain poured harder then it ever had and he feared she would catch cold being out there during the Mothers weeping. Lamand called for his best men to meet up with her and make sure she was warm and safe as she made her way into his waiting arms.

“You…” Lamand couldn’t get the words out, there was so much he wanted to say to him, so much he wanted to do to him but the only thing he could get out was the one word, “you…”
“Lamand, it was thieves. You know it was, look at the evidence! Why are you so blinded?” Namar looked into the eyes of his friend and saw the hurt, the anger, the rage inside as he stood there behind royal guard.
“You…you think I don’t know what you did?! You think you can sit back and blame thieves for your crimes?!? You murderous bastard you killed her! You couldn’t have her so you KILLED HER!! Well we’ll see who has the final say in this…WE’LL SEE who is the next to die, might the Mother so help me I will take your kingdom from you…everything you are from you just before I take your life with my own hands…” Lamand burned his words deep into Namar before he exited the Ling’kin castle. Nemar stood unable to move as war was just declared against him by his best friend. After he had given up his love to him for the sake of peace…now she was dead and so was the peace. There where no words to express the emotion, no poet could write the words in his heart at that moment. The native tongue of his soul was left speechless.
The silence was broken by Namar’s aide “Truly we’re not going to…”
“Defend our home? Indeed we are, prepare the men…”

Chapter 1


Broadswords clashed together as the two men breathed hard for they had been fighting for a good hour now. The men continued to clash swords over and over, never getting a clear shot. The clangs of the swords where only matched by the sounds of annoyance and anger rising in both men. Around them the same scene could been seen all over the battlefield of the Fethos plains. The sight of thousands of men in heavy armor and swinging there broadswords high against another. Neither side ever taking hold of victory…
“End this! We don’t have to fight this war anymore…do we even know why we fight?” The son of King Namar Ling’kin VII peered into his fathers eyes. “Why must you continue this useless fight father?”
“We fight because the invasion never stops…we fight because our homes are ravaged everyday by those savages, our crops burnt down everyday. The gates of this kingdom are held up by the weight of our blade. If we lay that down then the efforts of my father and his father and his fathers father have all been in vane. We are the…”

“Victims, the enemy will never give up there fight to rule over us. We can only hold our ground and fight on. The only path to peace is in the destruction of the Ling’kin forces.” Xaios J’hndor smiled as he looked over his troops gathered just within the city gates of Kieck, the largest city in the kingdom of J’hndor. “Men we will not rest! We will defend our very right to live and we will see victory over the enemy!” The crowds cheered as Xaios raised his golden sword to the heavens. “The Mother lied to us and left us to die! But we rise up and realize that the powers of a god could not even put us under!”

“The Mother lied when she promised peace and even as she tried to destroy us we push on more powerful then ever…not allowing her to control our fates as we move beyond her jurisdiction. This war will end my son, once Xaios and his kingdom are burned to the ground and we show the Mother she was wrong to test us so harshly.” Nemar was not unlike his father, infact he still held the same passion as his forefathers, the Nemars before him. His passion was the J’hndor’s destruction, as well as his revenge on the Mother herself.

The world had not seen a peaceful day since war was declared back in the old kingdom. Many years have passed and many generations have died at the hands of the great war. No man had been saved, no person had an excuse not to fight unless they where a child or woman. All men fought, and all men died for the sake of the advancement of the kingdom for which they fought. Everyone grew up with the hatred, the passion against the other kingdom. Grew up hearing the stories of how the other kingdom waged this war, and how the one kingdom would one day rule over all of Kiateth.
But nobody ever remembered why…why the war started.

“You blame the mother for the war we fight, the books all say the mother is to blame for this, that after she promised the great peace she came down and pitted man against man…if this is true wouldn’t ending the war be going against the mother? Wouldn’t ending the hate and the death mean rising up past the mother?”
Namar looked slightly annoyed but kept his tone in check with his son, “The mother pitted the enemy against us to destroy us child…as we wage against the J’hndor and win victory over the evil that is in that kingdom. The mother will be stopped in her tracks and this kingdom will rise above the gods and we will create our one peace, as the mother creates pain.”

The clangs of swords and the screams of pain where always heard in the distance. Always did the cries of war shake the very earth. Kiateth was death as the stains of blood covered her soil. The whole world battled, all wanted war and all fought with pride except for one child.

“Father you are blinded by your fathers blindness. You only see the hate, this whole world is blinded by hatred. You are as adolescent as you are full of yourself!”
“Xan I will not be talked to by…”
“By who? The first son of J’hndor to not carry on his fathers name in 7 GENERATIONS?! My name was given to me by your enemy you fool! I will have nothing to do with your war any longer. You have your war, you take your pride and fill it to the brim but I will not help you when you fall.” The 22 year old Xan D’han J’hndor took the back of his hand and slapped his father across the face before walking away.
The royal guard looked to the king for orders but he just shook his head, “let the boy go, he follows his own path and indeed he will live his life as he sees fit.”
Xan exited the castle gates, tears gathering in his eyes as he looked to the many paths that led away from his home. He heard the battles waging in every direction and he grew even more angry. He picked up a stone and tossed it into the air in rage screaming out to the nothingness that was now his life. Then suddenly, as the stone dropped to the ground he looked to one of the paths. This path was hardly marked and was grown over. Nobody had gone into this path for many years. The sign read “Forest of Sembos” Xan looked over the sign he had seen a hundred times in his life with a new fascination. He remembered his father telling him the old stories of Sembos, and the meaning of the word in the old tongue being “Mother’s Death”. The path called his name, the sweet whisper of the wind pushed him down the forbidden path that led to certain death. Xan headed deep into the Forest of Sembos.

- posted by Kai @ 12/09/2003 10:58:00 a.m.