Short Stories

Rebuilding the lost Empire

Kanavel, in a previous life, was a close confidant of the leader of an archaic elven cult. The juxtaposition of their lives would be a factor into this leader forming this cult and his closest ally, Kanavel, opposing him.

Unfortunately, in his previous life, Kanavel lost the conflict as he had no comrades; he subsequently went into exile and lived out the rest of his days as a depressed hermit in the blue mountains, in the Far West.

Kanavel was born years before the war between the five wizards and the titans. In his first century, he lived a prestigious life with the noble rank of Prince in an Elven kingdom. As a warrior renowned for both his skill with the blade and his mental aptitude, he was dubbed "barnwr rheithgor dieynddiwr" which translates to Judge, Jury and Executioner of the kingdom; he often resolved disputes among elves.

One day, even the workaholic Kanavel would fall in love. The particular woman, whom shared a mutual attraction to him had stunning golden locks, eyes as green as a meadow and a face that would encapsulate the heart of any man. She was famous for her singing; her melodious voice could soothe many a crying babe and touch even the toughest warrior. She, Alicia, had not only feats of note in terms of performint but above all else her reputation was mostly based off her status as captain of the Elven army. Farrah was the only person in Kanavel's entire life to ever best him in single combat; after a grueling yet genial battle. He knew there was no one else for him, if she'd have him; and have him she did.

They would be wed but their union would not last for the hundreds or even thousands of years expected of an Elven lifespan. It lasted long enough for the couple to have two children however; two boys. During this time, there was a great deal of turmoil as there was a war and an unexpected enemy wreaked havoc on their land. The same cult that, at this point, had been around for millennia. The cult of Krakens.

The leader of the order found a way to make himself unaffacted by aging; indeed he was timeless and could only die from being killed, perhaps by potent magic. As Kanavel did not know him in his current incarnation, he could not understand the leader, Kelos' intentions. Since being rejected and betrayed in eons past, Kelos vowed to take everything away from his old friend, no matter how many times he would reincarnate; in addition to his pursuit of power.

Kanavel fought in the bloody battle and slew many acolytes of the cult. However, in an attempt to save him from a sneak attack, Kanavel's wife was killed in battle, as her throat was slit with a serrated dagger. One of his sons disappeared during the battle and the other son, aged 90 at the time which was approaching adulthood for Elves, could just about defend himself.

Depressed yet irate, Kanavel was forced to flee with the help of an Elven comrade, Daeron and two of his servants, Valen and Fafina. Kanavel mourned Alicia; he was inconsolable for quite some time. In fleeing with his son and allies, Kanavel rescued five elven orphans and managed to nab as much treasure as possible; these treasures would be books and other such scripts that contain ancient eleven magics and secrets. Elves hardly have a need for bullion, Kanavel thought at the time. Burying his wife under sacred Elven rights, the grief-stricken Kanavel swore vengeance. He would bring his family back together.

Kanavel's elder brothers' fate, especially the one meant to rule the kingdom, Alfred, was unknown; presumed dead. Believing in the deaths of his entire family, Kanavel somberly concluded that he was the new king; despite never having aspirations of ruling. He was now the King of a near-extinct people

He managed to accumulate enough resources to live in relative comfort with his new family. Kanavel proactively worked with Valen and Fafina to ensure there was a steady income and to ensure the proper raising of the children for their culture to continue existing to some capacity.
As decades passed, he managed to construct a villa, taking in refugees affected by war whether it was humans, elves or dwarves. There was no xenophobia here; they were all victims of circumstance. Generations passed, making it grow and prosper into a small town. All the while Kanavel sent agents to search for his missing son, to no avail. While content with his haven for the victims of war, he never truly felt at peace for what happened to Alicia and Solkash; what happened to his wife and son.

Kanavel would spend the next few centuries training his son, Calaith until he was of age and decided to venture out on his own along with his four adopted brothers and sisters; Theren who had a passion for literature since he was a lad, Keysys, a devout woman who operated as the voice of reason, Arsene, who before being rescued by Kanavel was an orphan for quite some time and stole to survive though training by Kanavel established him as much more of a gentleman and finally, Mede who was a sorceress and is proficient with the magical arts; a prodigy child who seemed to be even more capable than Kanavel. These four set out to improve their understanding of the world and follow leads on their missing brother, Solkash.

The fifth child, Leo, was different. His parents were a elven woman whose grandfather was a human nobleman and an elven man, with the elven male being Kanavel's elder brother, Scyld making Leo his nephew. Ideally Leo would be king by law of succesion but his ancestry would be called into question; he would be king of nothing in any case hence he deferred that title to his uncle, despite neither acknowledging the need for a king as there was no longer a kingdom. It was a rare occurrence that elves would accept humans integrating into their society but his mother was accepted, albeit begrudgingly by some due to being mostly elf. Both were murdered in the war right in front of the young lad; needless to say both were fortunate that Kanavel found his nephew; had he been a human Kanavel would have left his nephew to perish to claim the throne for himself but to the elves and especially a honorable man like Kanavel, such acts were repulsive. The prince skillfully used his saber as the brute approached the young Leo and with gusto, he pierced through the assailant's heart. Leo would feel indebted to his uncle, though Kanavel would not view it in that way. Indeed, Leo inherited Scyld's sense of pride and honor.

So when the others opted to begin their quest, Leo made the decision to remain at the villa to train with Kanavel further; among everyone else Leo became a combat genius.

Kanavel spent years during all of these events soul searching. After overlooking from his verandah on what he had accomplished, he steeled his resolve. It was past time for him to get back out into the world; he would utilize all the wisdom and resources he amassed to personally find Solkash. Early in his endeavors, thoughts of vengeance on the cult rushed through his mind but as time passed the cult faded into obscurity and his pursuits became more pragmatic; he just wanted his son back. Entrusting control of the villa to Leo and his trusted comrades Valen and Fafina, now married, the middle-aged Kanavel set off on his adventure.

A secret he kept from everyone was that he had another goal for his adventure; seeking out a seer to connect him to his dead wife. To have one last conversation. He'd give anything to see her again; he longed to hear her voice.

Leo opted to accompany his uncle on the journey; with both men being at the pinnacle of both the martial and magical arts, they would be an effective duo; not to mention their own father/son bond, as Kanavel became a father to all that he took in.

With arrangements made and horses loaded with supplies, a few months after the other four elves began their own venture, Kanavel and Leo set out into a world they remained closed-off from for centuries, ready to do what should have been done years ago.