The Quest

The Eastern Temples

The Eastern Temples are a collection of large stone buildings built hundreds of years before the appearance of the Golden Warrior. The monks who lived there did not worship any gods. They trained and spread across the land of Sahala to protect the people from demons. After the Golden Warrior appeared he gave one segment of the sword to the monks. Durendal, as it was called, was the Sword of Air. It was kept in the largest temple complex under heavy guard. The monks now stayed close to the temple to protect the sword.

Durendal contains the power of Air inside of it. Originally it was placed in the open at the top of the tallest temple. It's power was hard to contain so the temples were plagued by strong winds giving them the name The Temples of the Air. To try and dampen the effect of the sword, four towers were built at the four cardinal directions with prisms of lavender stone placed at the top of each. This was meant to weaken the magic in the sword but it acted like a radar dish and magnified the magic. The winds reached farther and we're stronger. After a windstorm almost destroyed a village close by the sword was removed and placed in a secret chamber to stop the power of the winds. The monks placed cryptic clues around the temples that would lead to the sword.

The order of monks eventually dissapeared and the temples fell into ruin. People would try to explore but when entering the forest at the base of the mountain they would be turned around and walk out where they had entered, even after walking an exact straight line. Some claimed they could see strange lights in the forest and in the temples but again no one was able to make it through the forest.

- - -

"Why do we have to walk?" Sonia complained.

It had been a week since they had left the naval base.

"Because last time we rode in something we were captured by Rusteel." Pendleton snapped.

Timothy shook his head and sighed. They had been like this the entire journey and showed no signs of letting up. He was at the center of the party with Pendleton in the front and Sonia at the back. Timothy was still recovering from his battle on the South Sea. His friends wanted him to rest but after his vision he couldn't sit around. If He was after them, whoever He was, they needed to get moving. They were hiking through a fairly flat field with small trees growing around the path. Sonia and Pendleton continued thier bickering.

"Pendleton, can you tell me about the Eastern Temples." Timothy asked.

"Well, they have been ruins for years, but back when the demons roamed the land it was like a safe haven for people. The monks there were magnificent fighters who defended the land. When the Golden Warrior left he gave Durendal to them to protect. They dissapeared years ago."

"What do you mean dissapeared?" Sonia asked.

"As in poof no more monks. Very few people outside the order knew of the swords exsistence so it will still be inside the ruins. We just need to locate it, you need to conquer the Dark Realm and then we get out of there."

"From the sound of it this will be a cake walk." Timothy said.

"From what I've read the monks hid the sword in a chamber in the largest temple and the only way to find it is to solve their puzzle."

"Puzzles? Great I'm awesome at jigsaw puzzles." Sonia said.

"Not exactly the puzzle I'm talking about. It is there mostly to test Tim and make sure he is worthy to receive the sword. Speaking of which we should stop for a rest soon, we can get some sword play practice in.

They stopped just before sundown and built a small campfire. Sonia built the fire while Timothy and Pendleton sparred. She then climbed into a small tree nearby for lookout duty.

"Tim your sword is special in that it isn't a sword." Pendleton started.

"Then what is it?" Timothy asked.

"Isn't it obvious a sword that isn't a sword!" Sonia shouted followed by a laugh.

Pendleton pulled a throwing knife out of his belt and threw it at the tree. Timothy heard a snap and saw Sonia plummet out of the tree and into the overgrown weeds.

"To continue my lesson. The ring is a magic item that when activated creates a physical manifestation of what you want it to be. The enchantments on it limit to being a sword. There are very few other rings like it but they can be anything."

"Then why don't we use those if they can be anything?"

"Because yours is more powerful than all of the others. Now you need to learn to manifest the sword. Without being able to do that you won't stand a chance. Just concentrate on the sword you want. Imagine it in your hand, the more detailed the better."

Timothy closed his eyes and concentrated as hard as he could. He saw the sword that Rusteel almost killed him with. He opened his eyes and looked at his hand. There was a red light shining from the brand he had gained from the Dark Realm. In his hand he could feel the hilt of a sword. It glowed brighter and brighter. His eyes widened in surprise and it exploded with a flash of light, throwing him off his feat. Pendleton ran over to help him up.

"Close but you lost your focus."

"I tried. I hope I won't need to do this everytime I go into a fight."

"The more practice you get the faster you will be able to do it. Now get up and do it again, we only have a few more days till we arrive at the temples."