|
| Thread: The Saga Concluded | |
|
Shadowcaster
Honorable
Supreme Hero
Shaded Scribe
|
posted September 13, 2004 06:10 AM |
|
|
The Saga Concluded
The Saga series has long since passed its prime, but by no means do I think it is dead. This thread will serve as sort of a parallel to "The End," a thread made to cap off the LHW storyline, except for this series will cap the Saga series. I will write this story on my own, but suggestions are always welcome.
To all great tales, there is a beginning, a single event which defines an ultimate goal that demands accomplishment, no matter how great or small the task. A beginning is ever present, it precedes all things, but an end is much scarcer in this wide world of heroism and villainy. The End, that is what we all ultimately strive to reach; no tale is complete without one. But sometimes, no end is attainable for those moments where such supreme closure is desirable above all else. Sometimes, the only thing to hope for is a moment of rest within the turmoil of continuation. This was one of those times.
Loxlia had never seen a brighter day, nor had it anticipated a bleaker future. A vast army had gathered in the southern wastelands and was now fast approaching the hard-pressed tower that threatened to buckle under the weight of another invasion, especially of this magnitude. The warlock had not ceased in his hostilities since the fall of the barbarians, and anytime he had seemed defeated in the past, the armies beneath him simply arose again, stronger than ever, to reclaim all that they had lost. Offense was wasted upon Jerome's legions, and hope grew more frail with each passing conquest tallied under the warlock's name. None had ever dared to seek out the great warlock's secret, none besides the shadow mage who had rebuilt the tower, that is. It was in that search he found his ending, lain to rest amongst the other fallen legends of the world.
Baarta, the famous sharpshooter who had fought at Shadowcaster's side, though out of place in this army of wizards, commanded the ranks of Loxlia well. The kingdom had risen to its glorified status of old after fending off many attacks from hostile neighbors who wished to overturn the eternal wizard that resided in the Tower of the Magi to the north, a haven that remained undisturbed all these years because of the very town that was now in danger of falling. The old man had lost his will to fight his persistent nemesis after all these years. He lacked not the capacity, but desire had deserted the old man long ago. The wizard simply remained locked up in his tower, looking out on the bleak tundra of a world through his tapestry, wondering how things could have gone so wrong for the heroes of the forsaken world. Countless books had been opened and closed, each holding fantastic tales of conflicts and clashes that had once breathed life into the land. If Loxlia fell, the last chapter would be completed and Jerome would reach an end that would define the ruin of all else.
The old man backed away and peered into his chronicles of old. Names like Hexa, Lith, Conn, and many others decorated the pages of his tales, all passed over at a glance, but none without significance. Those who still had not found their endings would soon fade from the tale, just as those who had preceded them. Even his tale would end somewhere, but the old man had not yet expired from the annals of history. There was still so much more to be done. Out the window, on a distant horizon, stood the last barrier between tranquility and chaos. The old man strove not to reach the end, but a new beginning.
He hoped this record would not be his last.
Alone he waited, alone he sat and read that which reminded him of the past, where glories were revered, where heroism and villainy had not so clear a line as now. Those times had many separate stories, woven in and out of each other's paths like the tapestry the wizard had used for so long to see each tale as it unfolded. But now, only one tale remained, a supreme clash upon which the world's fate hung, a tale that had seen its share of artificial enactment. The world had ended many times within the bounds of fiction, but never had the old man needed to record such a tale. Now it seemed that he was doomed to before the end.
He turned back to his weathered books, peering over each as tales of old leapt into his head. Suddenly, the finality began to slip away, and with the time the old man now possessed in waiting for this one final chapter to unfold, he picked up an earmarked book and began to read.
Chapter One: First Revisitations coming soon.
____________
>_>
|
|
RedSoxFan3
Admirable
Legendary Hero
Fan of Red Sox
|
|
posted December 16, 2004 01:47 AM |
|
|
Random post so that Shadowcaster can post again.
____________
Go Red Sox!
|
|
Shadowcaster
Honorable
Supreme Hero
Shaded Scribe
|
|
posted December 17, 2004 09:17 PM |
|
|
Chapter One: First Revisitations
Sometimes, I think the torrent of time seeks out those who can make the most of it, and draws them together. I recall those quests of old, back in Kuma’s Tavern, which has long since been closed, and wonder what will come for the future. New alliances are being born, new roles are being adopted, and new characters are being introduced into this tale of eternity. Starting as one group on a single quest, these men and women have changed the world and have themselves been changed along the way. Why do I record these things when history seems to record itself? I say some history is worth keeping, and that is what I write here. It is also why I write here.
I have great expectations for these tales as time rushes along.
These new alliances have thus been recorded: the wicked sprite in exile for murder with the elven assassin on a quest to end the life of the queen, and the ranger, Isildur, has joined with the Keeper, as have the shadow mage and sharpshooter. Both powerful alliances, one good and one evil, both will certainly shape the future of this world. This is a chronicle of their tales.
The female elf stepped forward and looked up at the sharpshooter.
“I would put that weapon away if I was you.” Baarta obeyed, and stepped down from his perch within the tree. He joined the shadow mage at the base.
“Join you? I don’t even know where you are going,” replied Shadowcaster, who had completely ignored the sharpshooter’s spotting in favor of his conversation with the Keeper. It wasn’t that he did not want to go with them, he just wanted to know where they were going.
“We have business here in the dwarven lands, for it is here that we believe that two dangerous killers roam. Both are dark elves, and we are therefore under oath from the queen to bring them…justice.” He smiled at the last word, as if he had been waiting for such a chance for a while. “We will first head back to town and meet an old friend of our new friend here, and then see where to go from there.” Shadowcaster then noticed the human among the elves, an odd sight, but he did not inquire into. Instead, he simply nodded and said.
“So when do we leave?”
---
Through the woods the two killers stalked, the sprite turning to look wistfully at each living creature they passed. Each time, he asked more impatiently, “Can we do that one?” Each time he was met with the claim that these animals were not worth it.
“Everything is worthy of dying, even nature says so,” said the sprite exasperatedly, after one of many rejections to his plea. “That animal just gave me the eye, just one little choke? I promise it won’t take long.”
“Relax, my wicked little friend,” Gorman assured his companion, “You’ll get your fill soon enough.” His face darkened, “I promise.”
---
“We will follow you until Faerion and Thorhen return,” said a representative of the Moon Watch. “They gave us orders to aid you in your quest, and said that they would return when the time is right.”
“I still don’t understand why they would leave you here.”
“Nor do I, but we will have to trust them for the time being.”
”I suppose you are right,” Dunco stood, and turned to the rest of the camp. “We have been left behind, but that is no cause to put our goal on hold. Pack up quickly, for we head to the cave of the Black Dragon very soon. I’ve got a score to settle.”
(OOC Note: These updates will normally be longer, but the beginning of the first chapter is only to frame the story. Just to let you guys know.)
____________
>_>
|
|
RedSoxFan3
Admirable
Legendary Hero
Fan of Red Sox
|
|
posted December 18, 2004 03:14 AM |
|
|
SCREW YOU SHADOWCASTER!!!! 
____________
Go Red Sox!
|
| |
|
|
