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Orbquest:
The Adventures...End.
The time for rest has passed. The world is at war. And only two people, working
together, can hope to end the war. These two people are Celec and Silrak
Shadowstar. Celec once destroyed all the magic in the world. Silrak recieved
the magic when it was returned to the world;for one reason, and that reason
only-that the world be given a chance to overcome its warys, and end the
war before it engulfs the entire planet. Celec is from the past. Two generations
later, Silrak, in the present. It is up to the two remaining members of the
family Shadowstar to allow there to be a future generation. If they fail,
and if the god of evil engulfs the land, the world is lost, and everything
they've worked for will lie in ashes. That is not the fate they wish for
the world. The adventures began with Celec. The adventures continued with
Silrak. But now, after all the untold years, The Adventures...END.
Chapter One
Celec stares around in astonishment at his surroundings. The last thing he
remembered before arriving here was the begining of the end. The destruction
of all magic on the world of Kiele. His final spell, or so he thought, would
be to teleport himself home-to Nire. Instead, he finds himself in the future-his
future, with a young man who would be his grandson. As fantastic as it may
be, he begins to accept that whatever happens, they must end the war that
even now sweeps the land.
Portals open randomly, releasing hordes of goblins, orcs, and various other
war-like races who feel it is their right to conquer the world. In Majine,
the emperor of the Majinn looks up from his sudies. It has begun. He thinks.
Earlier than expected. We must now leave, before the armies arrive. He gets
up from his seat, and, with a sharp intake of breath, lets out a piercing
shriek, resembling the Dragoncall. It is the signal of assembly for the Majinn.
Within minutes, all of the majinn have gathered at the circle of sleiret,
or life.
"We face a dark time, my people. War is coming. We have not the weapons nor
provisions to do battle. We must vacate our homes, and seek refuge to the
south."
Several angered majinn speak out against this, but their cries of outrage
are soon quelled. Within the day, the majinn have left. For the first time
in a thousand years, the land lies empty. To the north, a faint orange glow
can be seen. It grows brighter. Fire sweeps the land of the Majinn. The trees.
The animals. The homes, the plants, the culture of the majinn is virtually
wiped out in a day. The few majinn who survive the fires realize now, too
late, that they should have heeded the warnings of the clerics. The price
of their folly: The majinn, as a whole, are no more. As war crosses the land,
the Majinn are the first casualty.
Bel-Akim'sre. The city that was saved from slavery by the heroic sacrafice
of Celec Shadowstar. Dragon call sounds through the air above the city. The
high-pitched, concentrated call topples buildings. Peaople milling about
in the streets are struck by fall ing debris, or cruxhed under large columns
of falling buildings. Within the hour, the carefully organized seige on
Bel-Akim'Sre ends with success, not for the forces of good, but for the dark
armies. The city is gone. The few people who survived the initial attack
are rounded up, and either sent to work as slaves or killed outright in front
of any nearby. The once proud city has fallen. The extent of the damage is
such that there is no chance to rebuild. Instead, the city serves as an example
to those who do not surrender their cities peacefully to the darkness.
Bel-Akim'Sre, the only remaining legacy of the Shecenican society, becomes
the second casualty of the war.
Laredia. The knights have assembled to confront this danger. Goblins and
orcs are killed by the score, yet as one dies on a blade, two more emerge
from the portals. The knights, at first fighting for the life of the world
they're sworn to protect find themselves fighting for their own lives. The
clah of metal is loud, interrupted only by the screams of agony from dying
men. Four every three goblins and orcs killed, a Laredian Knight falls. They
are sooned overwhelmed. With the dawn, the Laredian knights are a memory.
Controled by their sense of duty to protect their fellow men, all of the
true knights have perished. Goblins and orcs control the land of Laredia.
Small pockets of survivors remain, but even they cannot hold out forever
against the seemingly infinite hordes of goblins and orcs. Laredia is the
next casualty of the war.
As goblins and orcs overrun the north, dybbukks move in on the south. They
infiltrate the races living there. Controlling the leaders of the humans
and elves living there, the dybbukks wipe out half the population. The remaining
half remains slave to the dybbukk forces. There is no chance for them to
fight back. The southlands fall. More than half of the world is under the
control of darkness, in under a week.
They are finally ready. For as they've spent a week preparing to do battle
against the forces of darkness, over half of the world has fallen. They must
not only retake it, but save the rest of the world. Silrak releases the spell
that has kept Nire shielded this last week. They will need all of the power
available to them if they are to successfully teleport. Celec signals to
Silrak that it is time. Each carrying a replica of the elemental staff, they
cast the teleport spell simultaneously. They disappear into the dawn's
brightening light. The village of peace is exposed and without its guardians.
The sudden reappearance is noticed by the armies.
Chapter Two
The magic shield faded. The village of Nire is once again exposed to the
outside world. A world that is quickly falling victim to war, a war that
is not unlike the magewar. During the magewar, the world was split
apart-figurativly. A mage would fell a city, and claim it as his or her own.
They would then use it as a base of operations, and try to conquer the
surrounding countryside. A few mages would attempt to put an end to the rule
of these "dark mages". Eventually, non-mages entered the war. Some fighting
the mages, others fighting for the sake of fighting. Needless to say, many
lives were lost. One mage stood above all others. He would not fight others,
but would stick to himself, and occationally act as peacemaker among some
mages. He created a staff containing the power of the elements. Using it,
he began the end of the war. After his daughter was killed by an angry mage,
Sraxx would not sit back and do nothing. His 'nothing' was using the staff
to defeat the renegade mages. The god Kiel'Tioma took notice. Seeing the
havok caused by the magic, the god took magic from the world. Unfortunately,
the god of mischief secretly returned magic to the world. Eventually, Kiel'Tioma
had no choice but to return magic to those who would not ursurp the power.
It was in this way that a mage known as Majicc came to be the most powerful
mage in the world. Years later, evil mages took over Bel-Akim'Sre. Majicc
passed his power on to his apprentice, Celec Shadowstar. Celec had been watched
over by Sraxx. Sraxx had been in another dimention, one in which time did
not pass as it does on a normal plane of existence. Sraxx saw that Celec
was the one needed to once again teach a lesson to those arrogant enough
to believe the magic was there for their personal enjoyment. Sraxx gave Celec
the elemental staff. Using it, Celec destroyed all magic in the world. Two
generations later, the god of evil was amassing armies of goblins and orcs
to take over the world, plunging it into eternal darkness. Kiel'Tioma knew
that for the people of the world, the only hope was the magic. Taking more
care this time, he created a new form of the magic, one that required specific
spell components to cast spells. Using the new magic, mages brought Celec
from the past to the present, to help them. Celec, from the time when the
magic needed no spell components, became instantly more powerful. He needed
no spell components, and therefore could cast spells faster and easier than
any other mage on Kiele. The young man who is his grandson is almost as powerful.
Silrak, even though he is new at casting spells, is very efficient. The two
are the only ones capable of bringing an end to the war. However, they have
both had to make a tremendous sacrafice: that of their village. Nire. Without
them, the village is like any other-ripe to be taken by the armies of
darkness.
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The dark general signalled his elite warriors. These were highly skilled
at the arts of the blade, the bow, hand to hand, and camoflage. The group
silently slips into the village. This is where they will find the mages Celec
and Silrak. They enter. No one sees them. Once a hiding place is found, the
assassins wait. As night creeps in, they emerge. Their first victim is the
village healer. They pounce, and in a single, swift motion have him pinned
to the ground, a sword at his throat.
"Where are the mages?" one askes in a hoarse whisper.
"I-I don't know-I've just come from--"
"He's of no use to us. Kill him."
The leader turns and walks away. The healer is dead in seconds. The group
moves on. Most people are holed up in their homes, awaiting word on the war.
They do not notice as the group silently makes its through the village. Those
who provide any information pertaining to the mage are spared. Those who
know nothing, or say nothing are mercilessly slaughtered. Men, women, children.
The assassins reach the final hut. Now notice has been brought on them. The
smell of blood thick in the air, the assassins move into the hut.
"Magic. I can feel it." one says.
"Yes. They have been here. Now, to reveal out location to the armies. They
will finish what's left of this village. We were not in time to catch the
mages here. We will find them, though, and we will kill them. Darkness will
rule!"
The assassins leave. The armies of goblins and orcs move in on the dead village.
Within an hour, Nire is gone. The inhabitants are dead. The village burns.
Once known as the village of peace, Nire will soon be known throughout the
world as the village of the dead. No place on Kiele is safe from the ravages
of war.
The world appears white. Then it shifts throught several shades of red. Finally,
it forms the shapes of hundreds of goblins. Celec and Silrak have materialized
in the middle of a goblin stronghold. As they look around unnoticed, they
see that the goblins are heavily armed--with spears, lances, bows, crossbows,
swords, and daggers. Silence descends on the room.
"Um..." begins Silrak. "I think we've just been noticed..."
Six goblins charge the mages. They raise their staffs to defend. Celec erects
an invisible wall. The goblins in the lead bounce off it, stunned. Suddenly,
from behind, a goblin dagger slashes through Celec's robes, tearing a gash
into his shoulder. Celec spins around to meet his attacker. As the goblin
prpares to bury the dagger into Celec, the goblin crumples in a blast of
energy. Before Celec can thank Silrak, more goblins attack. Due to his loss
of concentration, Celec's wall has fallen. Celec and Silrak decide to split
up, hoping to distract the goblins long enough that at least one of them
can find the way out, and teleport the other out. Celec heads off to the
western section of the fortress. Silrak heads to the north. The goblins,
seeing Celec's wound, decide that he will be the easier target. Several follow
Silrak, but most head toward Celec. Celec begins casting spells into the
midst of the goblins swarming around him. A miniature fireball explodes here,
a dagger turns on its owner there. Many goblins fall, dead or dying, but
they are numbered in the hundreds. Celec is only one. Eventually, Celec's
strength fails him. He collapses on the stone floor. The goblins swarm around
him, for an easy kill.
Silrak rounds a corner, and slides to a stop. Several goblins block his path
ahead, while several more are closing in on him from behind. He quickly yanks
out some spell components neccessary for his spell. He chants the words,
and the hall is lit up in redish orange light. A sphere forms in the middle
of the light, and grows. Soon it is seen for what it is--a fireball! The
goblins pause. It is a second too long. Nothing remains of the bodies of
the goblins in front. The ones coming from behind, seeing the fate of the
others scramble over each other in haste too get as far away from this mage
as possible. Silrak breathes a sigh of relief. He carefully steps past the
burnt walls of the hall and moves into another room. As he enters, he is
shocked. In the center of the room, surrounded by a magical wall, is a portal.
Silrak muses over it a moment, then chants a spell. He sees the wall weaken.
Silrak casts another spell. And another. Finally, the wall collapses. The
portal stands vulnerable. Silrak walks up to it. He thinks of home-of Nire.
Suddenly, the portal shifts. In the center, Silrak sees the charred remains
of a village. Nire.
"No." he breathes. After a moment, he realizes that it is Nire, or what's
left of it. Sil falls to his knees in shock. His home, his family, his friends,
all gone! In his grief, Silrak thinks about Celec. The portal shifts again.
Silrak sees Celec battling the goblins. Then he sees Celec collapse, and
the goblins swarm over him.
"NOOOO!" Screams Silrak. "Not Celec, too!"
Behind Silrak, a figure emerges. It moves towards him slowly. Silrak, caught
up in his grief fails to notice as a shadow falls over him. The figure reaches
a hand out to touch Silrak's shoulder. At the touch, Silrak jerks around
to face the intruder. To his surprise, he is face-to-face with an old man.
Sraxx, once again playing his part in the life of a Shadowstar.
"It is not for you to grieve for one village, for one person. It is up to
you to continue try to find the leaders of the dark armies. Only when you
face the darkest night, the darkest of darkness, will you find the light
and end this war. The loss of the village, of Celec play but a small part
in this war as of this time. It begins your journey into the darkest
night."
"How can you just say that?" inquires Silrak. "You had friends in Nire. You
cared for us--for me! If you knew this would happen, why didn't you tell
us? Why--"
"--Because it has to happen this way. Because it is said that only when one
overcomes the darkness can war be diverted; or ended altogether."
The portal glows brighter than before, and becomes a circle of swirling colors.
Finally, it solidifies once again at a pale shade of blue.
"You must go now, my son. The portal is ready. You will travel to the site
of the majinn's refuge to seek their aid. Now hurry, before the portal is
once again sealed off with magic!"
Silrak obediantly steps into the light given off by the portal.
"If what you say is true, old one, then this may very well be the darkest
night."
Silrak steps through the portal. Suddenly, his head is filled with images,
sounds, words that he can't even begin to comprehend. It takes all of his
will to keep from going insane. Finally, after what seems like years, he
materializes in the middle of a stand of trees. He hears voices, and moves
towards them. As he steps out of the stand of trees, he is spotted by several
warrior majinn. They rush over to him, and draw their bows, and aim them
at Silrak. Silrak, knowing nothing else to do, puts his hands at his sides,
fingers straight, in the known sign of surrender. The majinn march him to
a crude shack, and present him to someone who appears to be the leader of
the majinn. He gestures to the others, and Silrak is roughly shoved to the
ground. As he looks up, he sees not the angry, hardened face he envisioned,
but a saddened, worried face of an elderly majinn.
"What news do you bring my people, outsider?" he asks.
"I-I need your help. I know how to end the war. We have to find the leaders
of this dark army, and we must sever their ties to their god, stripping them
of their control!"
"Incredible!" exclaims the old majinn. "So, all we have to do is find the
leaders, and we end the war? It is unfathomable!"
Seeing that they do not believe him, Silrak lapses into silence. He is marched
away, and put into another crude shack. As the guards leave, he realizes
that this is the darkest night. For even as he is detained here, the war
rages on, in other lands, doing more damage, bringing the forces of darkness
closer to control of the world. He must find some way to make the majinn
see that he has the solution to the war, but needs the means to carry it
out. As he lies on the "bed" in the shack, he realizes what he hadn't let
himself think about until now. He is truly alone. For without Celec, his
friends, his home, he is just another ordinary person.
An ordinary person with the fate of the world resting on my success in convincing
the majinn that my word is true. He thinks. Soon, Silrak manages to fall
asleep.
The abyss. The chasm. Demonworld. The Netherrealms. This place is known by
many names across the world of Kiele. There are many different beliefs as
to what it looks like, what it is exactly. Some believe that it is all darkness.
Others that it is light and dark. Still others believe that what it is depends
on the person; how they lived their lives.
He looks up from where he lies on the ground. How did he get here? Where
is here? What is here? As he looks around, he notices that nothing moves.
There are some dead trees, some live trees. There appears to be a village.
The village seems familiar to him. Has he seen it before? He stands up, and
looks at himself. He is battered and bruised. His clothes hang in tatters.
Am I wearing robes? He wonders. He moves towards the village. As he walks,
he begins to hear a faint hissing noise. The noise begins to form a word.
One that inspires great fear in the heart of the man.
"Lwarxiate..."
"You are not yourself. You belong to meeee now..."
"No! He shouts. His voice seems to come from everywhere at once now. He looks
around for a place to take shelter. The voice follows him.
"You cannot hide. IIIII rule here. No one can resist meeeee!"
As he runs, the person noticed that when he thought of something, he saw
it--changed, distorted. He thought of home. He thought of his friends, his
family. He thought of what has happened to him. He thinks about many things.
And as he thinks of them, he sees them, distorted, warped.
"What's happening to me!?!?!" he screams.
"You are mine!... You will be my tool to finally return..."
"Return? To where?" he asks.
"That is not of your concern, puny mortal!"
His memory returns. He knows where he is. He is Celec Shadowstar. The last
thing he remembers, he was holding off a contingient of goblins while Silrak
searched for those that lead the armies. He is in the worst of the netherrealms.
The one ruled by Lwarxiate, Lord of Darkness. He must be behind the armies'
attacks. Celec sees no way out. Through him, the dark god has the means to
return to Kiele, to rule. That must not happen! As he sinks into the darkest
point of despair, the words of an old man return to him.
"Only when you face the darkest of darkness will you bring forth the
light."
Celec, remembering those words, realizes that he must not give up. To give
up would mean the end of the world as he knew it. Suddenly, Celec is engulfed
in a white light. It spreads, and Celec is absorbed into it. He hears a booming
voice.
"Celec Shadowstar. You have faced the ultimate darkness. Despair of the human
soul. You did not succumb to it. You must return, to save that which you
hold dear. You can face this. You and Silrak both. Prepare. The dark god
returns. You two must remember. You will discover the ultimate sacrafice.
The world must live!"
Celec's vision returns. He is in a stand of trees. Off to the side, he sees
several huts. Inside one, he sees Silrak. He sees some majinn guarding the
hut.
I must get to him, that we may find a way to stop Lwarxiate! He thinks.
Celec begins to move towards the hut that Silrak lies in.
Silrak awakes. As he sits up, he notices a figure in the corner of his hut.
"Who's there?" He asks.
"They're going to help us. I was able to convince the majinn to assist us
in our quest. We must go. Lwarxiate is preparing to fully return to the world.
We must stop him, or the world is lost."
"Celec? What's going on here? I saw you killed back at the fortress! How
can you be here, alive, now?" inquired Silrak.
"Kiel'Tioma. It was the intercession of Kiel'Tioma that allowed me to return.
It was he that informed me of our inpending doom. The majinn will split up,
and search for the leaders of the armies. We must await the arrival of the
dark god, and hope that we can somehow stop him."
With that, Celec turns and walks out of the hut. The majinn that stand guard
sense an aura of power, of determination around the mage that they hadn't
sensed before. Clearly, this was not a mage to be reckoned with.
Celec and Silrak walk over to a clearing.
"This is where the dark god will arrive. We will be here to greet him. We
must be fully prepared. Concentrate, Silrak. Draw on reserves of power you've
never used before. This venture will be the only thing standing between the
world and its destruction. It could cost us our lives. It quite possibly
will. If we must die for the world to live, so be it."
Silrak, too, feels that air of determination, of resignation about Celec.
He doesn't plan to survive this encounter, does he? Wonders Silrak.
The sky darkens from blue to crimson. It gradually fades to gray, and finally
to a dark black. Lightning crackles across the sky. It appears that the whole
world is covered in darkness. The ground begins to shake. Within moments,
a crack forms. It soon forms a deep chasm, which begins to widen. Fire shoots
out of it. The two see lava seeping over the edge. The chasm widens. More
fire and bits of rock shoot out. Ashes fly into the air, and form a dark
cloud that covers the area. The air heats up, and threatens to stifle any
living being in the vicinity. Celec and Silrak have to cover their noses
and mouths with their sleeves to try to filter out semi-breathable air. As
more fire, lava, and ashes spurt out of the chasm, a loud, high-pitched whine
can be heard. Celec glances around, and seeing the extent of the damage,
is infinitly relieved that he made the majinn leave immediately. Thunder
rumbles across the land. The whine increases in pitch, threatening to deafen
the two mages. Finally, after the build-up of energy and destruction, there
is a loud, thunderous cracking, then silence and a dark cloud of smoke and
ashes. Then a hissing voice sounds across the land:
"Fffffinally! It is as it should be! I am once again in power on this world!
Nothing will stop me from reigning supreme here!"
"Nothing, except us!" Shouts Celec.
"Puny human! What do you think you can do against a god?
"Plenty! We have the power, the courage, the motive, the means, and most
importantly of all, the will to oppose you!"
Celec raises his staff into battle position, as Silrak raises his in a salute
to an enemy. The two mages realize that they will only have one chance to
defeat the dark god. They know that they will most likely die, but if that
is what it takes to at least bring hope back to this devastated world, they
are more than will ing to sacrafice their own lives that others might live.
Chapter Six
If any other living beings were present, they would most likely say that
thunder had taken solid form and walked the land. As the mages do battle
with the dark god, the noise and light that result from the spells and power
unleashed can be seen and heard miles away.
The god unleashes a wave of lightning at the mages. They counter with shield
spells. Even as they cast the shield spell, they're already casting other
offensive spells to drive back the dark god. The god counters these with
a mere thought, as he unleashes winds unlike any others to lash at the mages.
Celec staggers under the sudden force, as Silrak is sent sprawling. The god,
thinking to end this quickly, moves in. The two rise quickly, and combining
their power, magage to encase the god in a shield that keeps his power in
check.
"What happens when he is fully back?" Asks Silrak.
"The world dies. We must defeat him while his semi-mortal form is still at
its weakest. That is the only way that we even have a chance to defeat a
god." Explains Celec.
"It's time you look your age, mortal!"
The god casts a spell at the unprepared Celec. Now the time-displaced mage
begins to age. As the transformation occurs, Celec feels himself both weakening
and growing stronger. As his body weakens, his magical power increases. Celec
manages to cast a spell to prevent further aging from the god's spell. The
two mages, once looking to be the same age, now look to be the years apart
that they should be: Celec, two generations older than Silrak, his grandson.
The transformation, somehow altered Celec's mind and body, leaving him with
a lifetime's worth of memories from a few moments. Celec now knows what it
is to be an old mage-weak in body, strong in spirit, truly powerful with
magic. To be a powerful mage on this once beautiful world.
Silrak, after he gets over the shock of what just happened, notices the god
preparing a spell. The spell is cast, and the force-field is shattered. The
two mages reel from the shock. The god raises his hand, and five bolts of
lightning streak to their target. Celec is picked up and hurled back, into
a tree. The old mage falls to the ground, unconscious. Silrak turns to face
the god, but as he turns, he, too is struck by lightning. The mages lie on
the ground, helpless, as the dark god advances to finish off the two who
have annoyed him more than any others in a millenium.
Suddenly, a crack of thunder, and a bright flash of white light. A figure
now stands over the fallen mages. He is wearing a red robe, decorated with
a symbol often associated with the shecenican race. The robes swirl about
the man. A staff is raised, pointed at the dark god, and a silver flash of
light cuts the air to strike the god, sending him reeling.
"Now, my 'friend', we end this! Here, and Now!"
"Don't count on it! Even You, Kiel'Tioma, even you can't stop me from taking
control of this world. Not now. I have the power, and the hold on this world
that you lack. You see, while you 'guided' people along, I have been finding
those that would do my bidding! I have a firm footing on this world, with
the life-forces of those that serve me to back me up, while you have only
your own power!"
"You're wrong, there, Lwarxiate! I have all that I need to defeat you. These
men serve me willingly. Your 'subjects' serve you out of fear. You will learn
that you will never gain control on this world, not while I'm here!"
The gods are at war. Kiel'Tioma, realizing his mistake, has arrived to personally
do battle with his eternal enemy, Lwarxiate. The two now fight, one for control
of a world, the other for the life of the world. They cast spell after spell,
and as one casts a spell, the other counters it, while casting another spell
of their own, each hoping to gain the upper hand. Kiel'Tioma casts several
fireballs quickly, but they are countered by the dark god. Lwarxiate shoots
several bolts at Kiel'Tioma, but they do nothing against the ultimate shield
spell that is in place. As the battle rages on, Celec and Silrak awaken.
They are awed at the sight before them. It is Celec that recognizes the god
Kiel'Tioma. As he looks on, he sees the god as he has seen him in the past-in
his human form. Sraxx! Suddenly, the mages are rocked to their knees as a
bolt strikes the ground, digging furrows beneath the god. Kiel'Tioma is
staggered, but quickly regains his footing. He lashes out at Lwarxiate. Celec
notices that his god is weakening. He knows now what he must do. In order
for the evil to be banished, he must die. But his death must not be meaningless.
Celec maneauvers himself off to the side of the gods' battle. Then, using
all the spells in his command, he teleports into the midst of the battle.
He creates a blast that uses so much energy that it literally disintegrates
his physical body. The blast rips through Lwarxiate, and actually manages
to hurt him. Celec has magaged to give Kiel'Tioma the break he needed to
take the upper hand. Silrak watches in stunned horror and silence.
"Forgive me, my children..." Whispers the god, as he stands over the god
of evil. Kiel'Tioma then begins to draw on all the power of the world of
Kiele. He begins to glow, in immense white light. As Silrak watches, the
god's mortal form begins to increase in size. In moments, the god has attained
his full power on this plane of existence. Then he unleashes the full power
of the gods. A shockwave hundreds of times greater than the one from the
elemental staff sweeps the globe. Moments later, Kiele ceases to exist. To
destroy evil, a world has been destroyed.
Suddenly, almost within the moment that it was wiped out, Kiele returns.
The previously war-torn areas are intact. The majinn homeland, destroyed
days earlier, is now whole again. The knights of Laredia are back. The dybbuks
are gone. Evil has been banished from the world. Unfortunately, someone in
any society will attempt to do evil. For now, the dark god, Lwarxiate, has
been banished from the world. With his departure, his control has been lost.
In a sense, the world has returned to the time just before the world was
engulfed in war. Silrak, the only living being to truly witness what just
happened, is in a sort of shock. To have a world destroyed from under you,
and returned in the same blink of an eye...
People all over the globe know that something big has happened, and that
they could have all been killed. They give thanks to their gods. After his
shock wears off, Silrak realizes what has happened. Using his magic, he finds
out that the world has been restored. What he is unable to determine, however,
is the fate of his own home. Nire. Silrak knows that this time, Celec is
dead. He will not be back. So he sets out, alone, to reach home, to find
out if it, too, was restored.
Once he reaches home, the sight that greets him stops him dead in his tracks.
Nire is not only back, intact, but it is better than ever. The village has
grown. Silrak walks through the village he calls home. After several hours,
Silrak feels comfortable in his village. As a rememberence of the sacrafice
made by Celec, the god Kiel'Tioma has made Nire a prosporous village. if
it continues to grow, the village could become a city. The next morning,
a man in robes walks into the village. Silrak, walking by, recognizes the
man. Sraxx! Silrak walks up to Sraxx.
"So. What happens now? The war is over."
"That's where you're wrong, my boy. The war is never over. We won this battle,
but the war rages on, on other planes. With Celec's sacrafice, I was able
to sever Lwarxiate's hold on this world, and undo his work, but it is up
to the inhabitants of the world to see to it that war does not claim lives.
I have come here today to inform you of the departure. The gods will leave.
Too often, our disagreements have spilled over to your world. It is not fair
to you, or the other people. Larctuen will remain, a sort of guardian for
Kiele. We leave the world now fully in the hands of mortals. I charge you
with the task of spreading word of our departure to the others."
Without another word, Sraxx walks off into the dawn. As the sun rises, the
gods depart. Silrak feels an emptiness settle over him. He sets out to do
the final wish of the gods of Kiele.
Years have passed. Nire prospers still. Since the departure of the gods,
the world has changed. The races are mixing. There is more trade. In the
cities, instead of outright evil, there are thieve guilds. They are not seen
as evil, but as a nessecity. The thieves remind those that get to confident
that the weak can be just as cunning, just as powerful as others. Nire, famous
years before, is now the most famous city in the world.
The world, the city, have been preserved for another generation. Now begins
the next generation of the Shadowstars. Today, Silrak's son has been born.
"It is good that we are here to provide a world for the next generation of
Kiele. In memory of Kiel'Tioma, of Celec, we will name our son...Sraxx."
So it begins, again. A new generation, beginning in the shadow of the previous
one, to end in its own light. The main thing of the new generation is its
hope. For the future. For the world itself. Larctuen watches over the world.
She does not interfere. Her duty is to protect the world.
Some, who have found out her existence have formed churches in her honor.
Still, since the gods' departure, the people have learned to rely on themselves
more than ever before.
Sraxx Shadowstar, the new generation of the Shadowstars, is also the hope
for the world. For with him, the family that essentially saved the world
three times continues. The world is Kiele. It means life.
Next: the
Orbquest
Begins!
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