Charon: Scion of Shadow

[Charon(retired)]

Before the dawn of time, a battle was waged between eight Great Beings. Each one of these beings represented an element and sought dominance and a greater control of the yet to be created world of Lore.

This battle raged on until it was clear that no one side was ever going to be victorious. A truce was made and Lore was created to be the realm of the elements so that they would remain in perfect balance for the rest of eternity.

Or so they thought.

Legend has it that one day eight children will be born as the scions of the Great Beings. These children will each possess the potent elemental powers of their corresponding Being. Their coming will either signal the beginning of Lore’s golden age or foretell its’ complete destruction.

[Charon(retired)]

A dark, foggy night. Slinking silently through the dense foliage, I keep my eyes trained on Iden. Since he is on his way to gather herbs by the moonlight, he suspects nothing, fears nothing. His lethargic gait makes it childs' play to match his pace. Only a few more minutes until his downfall and my freedom.

I find myself running over the plan in my mind over and over again. I know I'm ready. I just can't fathom how I progressed so quickly. A few years back, I wouldn't have even imagined that I could do what I was about to do; I wouldn't have even considered it as an option. After all, this man had saved me from certain death when my family was assassinated. How could I even think of killing him?

No. I must go through with this. He doesn't understand my nature; he could never come to terms with my involvement with the element of darkness. Therefore, he must die, so I may finally be free. It is the only way.

[Charon(retired)]

A chill wind blows through my hair as the path ahead begins to widen. A bead of sweat falls down the length of my cheek. As I stalk soundlessly across the increasingly rugged terrain, I begin to prepare my mind for the task at hand; breaking down my conscious while setting up emotional barriers. Nothing can be left to chance tonight.

Before he reaches the clearing where our herbs grow, Iden stops. Suddenly the air around me begins to pulse gently. I curse softly under my breath and become completely still. The pulsing continues for a few more moments and then recedes. I move forward slowly to see if I can spot Iden. He has begun to move again.

The entrance to the clearing provides very little shelter, so I must advance with more caution then before. I focus my gaze on the old sorcerer as he nears the center of the clearing. He slowly turns in my direction. His lips begin to move. Even though he is whispering, I hear his words as clearly as I would had he been right next to me.

"Come to me, Charon."

[Charon(retired)]

My eyes widen in disbelief, but I quickly compose myself and step out from my cover.

“So you’ve finally decided to make your move. A bit earlier than I anticipated, I will admit. But that is the nature of these things, is it not?”

How could he have anticipated this? I had done nothing to give away my plan, nothing at all! Has he been spying on me; watching my every move since he took me in?

“Well done, Iden. I hadn’t expected a fossil like you to discover my true intentions. No matter. I… I can’t turn back now!”

I quickly draw my blade from its scabbard and rush at the ancient sorcerer. As I am about to impale him on the end of my sword, he seems to disintegrate into the air. Baffled, I trip over a rock and tumble forward. Before I can fully rise to my feet, I am rammed from behind by one of Iden’s spells.

“Are you truly that cowardly, Iden?” I roar over the ringing in my ears.

I hear him chuckle to my left. I point my sword at him and cast a small darkness spell from its tip. It makes contact with its’ desired target and he flies backwards onto the ground under an immense tree. He projects another spell at me, but this time I am prepared. I swipe at the oncoming orb of pulsing white light with my sword, which is still saturated with dark magic. The conflicting elements of light and darkness clash, sending Iden’s spell directly back in his direction. It misses him, but it bores straight through the tree under which he crouches. As he turns to look, he is pulverized under the crushing weight of the aged tree. With a sickening crunch, Iden is no more.

Gasping for air, I slide my sword back into its’ sheath and turn away from the newly created grave. I limp over to a cliff overlooking the valley below and watch as the full moon slowly rises to my eye level. Bathed in moonlight, I realize that I have finally obtained freedom, yet I have no idea what I should do with it. Before I have a chance to think it over, I collapse from exhaustion backwards into the wet grass.

[Charon(retired)]

Hatred. A shapeless enemy that dwells within every living being. It blurs our vision and twists our will, causing us to temporarily become something that we aren't. However, hatred can infiltrate a soul so deeply that it becomes a permanent part of ones' being. When this rare phenomenon occurs, a Koturi is born. The Koturi are not defined by any one race or species, since each one takes a different form. In short, their ranks encompass every supernatural form in the world of Lore, making them very dangerous and unpredictable opponents. Very few have encountered one and lived to tell the tale...

[Charon(retired)]

I slowly open my eyes to a brilliant sunrise. As I rise to my feet, I recall the events that took place the night before. I still don't know what my future holds now that Iden is gone. I gather the few things I had taken with me and start back towards the house. I could take a few of his weapons along with me for the journey ahead, and a few potions wouldn't hurt.

As I trudge down the narrow path, a plan begins to form in my mind. Iden had told me about a university of magic in Galadrid, a large city not too far from the house. He always imagined that I would attend classes there someday in hopes that I would walk the path of the paladin. However, he did mention that there were classes in Dark Magic. If I could just find a way to enroll myself, I could continue my studies there.

As the thought crosses my mind, the house comes into view. I take my key from my pocket, but I realize that the door is already cracked open. Did I forget to close it when I went to follow Iden? No, I couldn't have been that careless. Then why?

I slowly push the door until there is just enough space for me to squeeze through. Creeping through the main room, I get the feeling that I'm not alone here. I silently make my way to the armory. I quickly scan the selection for a weapon to defend myself with. I notice a sword standing alone at the far side of the room at the same time that I hear footsteps headed in my direction. I sprint without a sound to the blade, grab it, and hide in a nearby storage clost.

Through the crack in the closet door, I see a man in an immaculate dark suit stride up to the empty stand that belonged to the sword whose handle now rested in my grip. I heard him talk in a voice that was both disturbing and alluring.

"Mm, they seemed to have removed the Twilight Edge. Pity."

My eyes widened at his words. I looked more closely at the instrument that I held in my right hand. Those runes, this hilt...could it be...?

I heard him begin to walk away from the closet in which I was hidden. I open the door and charge at him, impaling him on the end of my sword. I hear him gasp. His body goes limp. I shrug him off of the blade. Deep red blood covers it, the floor, his lifeless body.

Suddenly I'm grabbed from behind. I feel cold steel press against my throat. I watch in terror as the corpse on the ground slowly begins to rise to it's feet.

"Quite a nasty wound you've got there, Alek," the person holding me says in the same attractive tone that the other man had used.

"Yes, I don't think I will ever get used to coming back to life, Mash."

[Charon(retired)]

"How old are you, boy?"

They had taken me to the study. Alek is standing over me while Mash is going through Iden's vast collection of odds and ends. Some kind of binding magic holds my hands behind my back in a vice-like grip. The tomes stacked around the room sag with immense amounts of knowledge, most of which was probably known by Iden alone. The sun streaked through the windows in jagged lines, partially illuminating the musty room.

"I'll ask again. How old are you?" Alek queried.

"Fifteen," I reluctantly responded.

"Fifteen, eh? A little young to be a Koturi, don't you think, Alek?" Mash added.

"Mmm, they do come in all shapes and sizes, don't they."

Me, a Koturi? Why would they think that? And what do they hope to achieve by holding me as their hostage?

"I'm not a Koturi," I told them.

"Tsk tsk tsk. You think that you can fool us so easily?" Alek grinned, showing off a pair of gleaming white fangs.

"No, it's true! I am... was, Iden's pupil."

The vampires shot uneasy glances at one another.

"You mean to tell us that you were the apprentice of one of the greatest dark warlocks in the history of Lore?"

"Iden? A dark warlock? You must be raiding the wrong person's house, he was a merely a scholar. Plus, he would never have anything to do with the element of darkness."

"Yes, Iden did give up his life of evil to pursue his research, but at one point in time he was one of the most feared men in all of Halidar. No matter where he was, his dark hand reached far and wide; his followers pillaged towns, raided tombs, overthrew kingdoms. Had it not been for the Battle of Raskas, his leg would have not been injured, forcing him to retreat to his studies." Alek spat on the floor, barely missing a book that had been left lying open. "Slowly his name became a myth, a story told to younglings at bedtime. Most people think he died long ago, but some of his loyal followers still cause havoc under his wicked banner.

"I must assume," he continued, "that Iden had kept his past a secret from you. Not that you’ll remember any of this anyway…"

"What do you m-"

I was stopped short by Alek as he placed his hands firmly on my shoulders. He looked directly at my face, his once golden eyes now a deep red. “You will forget everything about our crossing paths. All traces of the events that occurred today shall be wiped from your memory!” My body went limp as I blacked out and fell to the floor with my eyes wide open.

"That should take care of him," Alek said evenly. "Shall we take the sword be rid of this dreadful place?"

"I thought you’d never ask," Mash replied.

[Charon(retired)]

The bustling city of Galadrid was always crammed full with tourists who are attracted by the University, but it was even worse on that day. The annual Harvest Festival was under way, and it showed no signs of stopping. A myriad of vendors had set up shop on each side of the narrow roads, causing the already hindered flow of traffic to come to a standstill.

A slight breeze made its’ way through the crowded streets, sending chills up every spine it encountered. My thin cloak flapped in the wind as I attempted to traverse the throngs of tourists. Overhead, the sky begun to darken with the threat of snow. Clouds gathered around the tall bell tower of the University, obscuring it from view.

I clutched the ancient device that I wore as a pendant around my neck. A relic of some lost age, I had found it while going through Iden’s study soon after he died a year before. It probably had some purpose long ago, but at that point it was no more than a useless curiosity. It was small, circular in shape, and much heavier than it looked. A perfectly smooth sphere of blue topaz was set into its’ center. Three small dials penetrated the northern section of its' outer ring; they all pointed to different indecipherable runes that may have measured something at one time.

I had also found a large book of spells that I had been using to secretly improve my skills while attending classes at the University. It was far more advanced than the books they supplied us with for class, which led me to believe that it contained some very powerful magic that they didn't want their students to get a hold of. Typical. The high authority ensured that they held their title by enforcing inadequate teaching upon the rest of society.

To avoid the crowds, I took a series of backstreets until I reached the more industrial section of town. While most of the shop owners had taken their wares to the main road for the festival, the aroma of tanned leathers and freshly cut meat still permeated the air. I stopped by the tavern to grab a glass of warm cider, which was gone within moments.

As I was leaving, I was drawn to a small crowd by the sound of music. I recognized the towns’ renowned bard, William, plucking at his lyre while singing a lovely melody. While his voice was heavenly and his musical talents unmatchable, I couldn't help but to grimace at his song choice. He sang of the exploits of Atheros and Dianera Delimar, the reigning king and queen of Halidar.

Just as I was about to make my opinion of that wretched song known, I heard the sound of hooves on cobblestone.

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