Army of Shadows

Prologue

Today, at the age of sixty-eight, I feel that there is a tale I must tell. It will teach any of the generations that read it some very… valuable lessons. Before I tell this tale, let us venture back nine years before it begins.

“Ascot my boy, come here and I will tell you about the Arcanes.” The adventurous eight-year-old boy dashed over to his grandfather to listen to another one of his exciting tales.  “Now then, this story goes way back into the Ancient times, so allow me to teach you some important history.”

“Many, many, millennia ago, magic was untamed and dangerous. The use of magic often resulted in backfires and any who could use magic could only use it for simple, unpractical tricks. Until of course, came the five Masters. These great men each tamed one of the five known magic crafts of the time; Tully the Hermit tamed nature magic, Harthon the Sorcerer tamed elemental magic, Frotha the Mage tamed blood magic, Mordren the Necromancer tamed resurrection magic and Jaimie the Conjurer tamed creation magic.”

“Each of them took on many apprentices and travelled the world teaching their skills to many. Frotha taught his blood magic only to those who he thought worthy and told them only to use it as a last resort defence. Harthon, with his elemental magic taught many lucky apprentices all over the world how to use it as both for battle and for survival. Tully took fifty apprentices into the forest of Forlon to teach them all one could imagine about the life of nature. Mordren settled down in a mighty stronghold known as Grimhold and taught his apprentices the arts of raising the dead to do their will. Jaime took on only a few apprentices and together they created the many magical creatures of today. Together they brought power and order into the southern world.”

“With the help of his apprentices, Frotha betrayed his fellow Masters of magic. Connecting his body with Jaime’s, Harthon’s, Mordren’s and Tully’s using their blood he killed himself bringing all four of them down with him. No one knows why Frotha did this, however we can guess that he wasn’t sane at the time. The apprentices of each Master sealed their bodies along with their knowledge and research into hidden tombs.”

“Not long after the betrayal, a new empire began to form. This new empire was known as the Arcanes, located in their mighty Citadel of Erendor. The Arcanes grew to become the most magnificent empire of man to ever exist. Living up to their names, these men forged armour and weapons enchanted with magic. Today, the most powerful of these enchanted weapons and armour are called the Ancient Relics.”

“Now begins my tale, of two great men born in the Citadel of Erendor, their names were Kileen and Haelix. They were twins, equal in combat too. Just at the age of 23, Kileen and Haelix had grown up to be the champions of Erendor: unmatchable by any foe.  Haelix wielded the glamorous twin blades: Argoth and Argor forged with extremely powerful magic and designed specifically for him. Kileen wielded Tyraen the foe-breaking long sword and Excain the unstoppable shield.”

“After many more years fighting alongside with Kileen in a prosperous empire, Haelix decided to adventure beyond the eyes of the Citadel and set out to hone his skills with magic craft. However, he was unsure which of the five crafts to master so he studied the five Masters who had died centuries ago. In just three years of research Haelix was convinced that he had in fact located the tomb of Mordren the Necromancer.”

“If you ever visit the tomb my boy, you will be astonished. Haelix certainly was. The tomb was magnificent! Ten whole days he sat down with little eat or sleep, reading through all the notes and research Mordren had written. Haelix was certain that he had the skills to locate the other four tombs of the Masters and so set out once again.”

“Even more years went by and one by one Haelix found the tombs of the other Masters and learnt their craft of magic. He was already the most powerful many in all the southern lands. However, despite his strong efforts, Haelix could not locate Frotha’s tomb. The apprentices had hidden his tomb even more carefully and for could reasons as Haelix would soon find out. He was thirty seven by the time Haelix had arrived at the doorstep of the Mage’s tomb.

[Unfinished Prologue]