Melsara's gift

Prologue

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! Get your mead in hand and your pheasant skewers ready because the special guests you've all been waiting for have just arrived!" The once bustling pub suddenly grew silent in anticipation as soon as they heard the bar owner's announcement. The show was about to begin.

A man wearing a porcelain mask slid onto the stage. He raised his left arm forward before he began riling up the crowd, "If any of you have seen our shows before, then you are well aware that to get my gift working, I need to ask you all a very important question... Are you guys ready for a grand show?!"

"Yes!" the crowd responded with excitement and glee.

"I need it a bit louder! More energy!" yelled the light master.

The crowd responded with even more vigor, "YES!"

"Gonna have to be louder!"

The third time quickly devolved from people screaming yes to hollering and cheering. This was exactly the sort of energy the light master of the play was looking for. In the midst of their roars, he quickly and loudly clapped his hand instantly extinguishing every light in the room.

The room quickly settled down again. After a few moments of silence, the sound of lute strings strumming suddenly echoed through the room. Two quick drum strikes broke through the serenity of the lute and a spotlight cracked open in tandem with the drum's beat. Underneath its bright beam of white light was a woman dressed in black silk clothes. The woman wore a black fox mask that covered the top half of her face which left her glossy supple crimson lips out on display.

"Many ages ago, the lands of Verham used to be littered with kingdoms that were corrupt and lost. These kingdoms battled one another to no end..." as she began narrating, she raised her hands up in front of her and swiftly moved her hands in smooth motions akin to a mystical dance.

In turn, blobs of red, white, gold, green, and black colored ink floated out of their respective buckets near the stage wall behind her. The blobs of ink quickly sprawled all over the white canvas wall behind the narrator to form a painting of arrays of men in armor and cavalry horses. The art style was akin to gothic paintings often seen on church ceilings.

"They cared not for the ways of the divine. They chose to feed the greed that settled within their hearts. These sinners claimed godhood and divinity, all the while tainting their hearts and souls..." As her dance shifted, the painting quickly began to slither and swirl till all of its ink reshaped itself to form a new image. This time the image was of various men wearing crowns, dressed lavishly, and carrying black hearts within their chests.

"And so came divine punishment, in the form of the blessed and divine Melsara..." The image changed again to match her dance and tale. The image now was that of a golden light descending down on the kingdoms below.

"Despite receiving the divine punishment, their ways did not change. They simply chose to spread their evil ways to the searing plains of the east and the frozen tundras of the north. Alas, the misguided chose to continue their futile resistance against the divine. Remaining ever so defiant and tainted..." The ink transformed into the map of the world and showed black tendrils growing towards the north and the east.

"But..." Suddenly a golden light burst onto the western side of the continent on the map, "the Melsara foresaw their misguided ways and knew that He would need the help of sages, saints, and heroes from across many realms to correct their dastardly ways..."

The drummer struck his drum in an escalating rhythm before the image yet again morphed. This time it resembled a portrait of various armored men and women with a green light emanating from their chests. "And thus He made us, the Gifted. Chosen men and women were brought here from across the many realms to bring peace and purity to this world. A mission that we solemnly upheld to this very day despite the many brethren we've lost. And despite all the magical things we could do..."