The Wonders Of Zardain

Origins: When It All Began

After many years of the Cold War, the world was finally free from being under the pressure of an imminent third World War. However, this never took place and finally humanity saw a light of hope sparkling toward the future... We are in 1992 and in many places around the world, we celebrate the victory of peace against war. The sky has never been so bright for humanity in years and everyone is going back to their occupations. In the street, we can hear the homeless singing "Make love and don't fight, we want peace not war". We can also hear birds sing for nature, which has also suffered from the catastrophes of war...

All that was until a Monday of the same year, a massive flash of bright light is seen in the sky and an explosion is heard as if a meteorite landed on earth followed by crackling noises going through the sky in every direction as if a thousand claps of thunder were released at once and then, nothing... That was what will mark the beginning of a new era where humanity will have to face war once again however against a different enemy, against a different threat.

In the middle of a wheat field, a massive hole appeared with such a bright light that it was very hard to look at. In fact, the light was so bright that it was impossible to miss from a mile away and of course, people from a nearby town noticed and called the security services which arrived a couple of minutes after the call. On their arrival, they were baffled to witness such an event happening before their eyes and just when they were about to call for more help, the hole started to expand itself becoming even bigger.

The hole expanded and eventually, became the size of a football pitch if not greater. However, the light coming from the hole started to fade away as if a sun was setting and in a matter of minutes, the light was replaced by a blurry scene as if the hole was a piece of glace and we could vaguely see through it. It was around noon that the icy-like hole started to open itself as if there was a second hole in the first and from that same hole, beastly creatures with elf-looking creatures started to come out. There were all kinds of creatures as if they were coming straight from a fantasy book. There were fire-breathing dragons, flying wyverns, magical elves, disgusting and smelly trolls, giant cyclops and ferocious orcs wielding blades of all sorts.

They were coming out of the hole by thousands and covered the whole landscape, a true nightmare for sure. At the place, we could hear the dragons growling and the orcs screaming in an unknown language. Of course, the security services called for help and tried to run for their lives but in vain as they were pulverized by the giant Cyclopes and burned to death.
Soon enough, people from the nearby town noticed that something was not right and before they had the time to think of an action, they were surrounded by a group of creatures. The whole town was taken by these creatures coming from an unknown place and will not stop until they conquered every single mile of humanity's homeland.

The sky darkened and a hazy fog settled in the entire region in less than a minute. The people trapped in the storm of confusion screamed each time they faced a creature while others, foolishly thinking it was a master-sized joke placed themselves in the hands of the intruders and paid with their lives before they realised that death had gripped their souls with no intention of letting go.
And then, a few hours after, flames, everywhere, on the streets, on houses and cars... flames on people. This town had turned from a place filled with the relief of avoiding a 3rd world war, looking into a bright future and the hope of realising a place with peace, to this infernal and blazing scenery as if hell's doors opened nearby and brought about death and heart-crushing despair.

Those who somehow managed to escape this apocalyptic event were quickly apprehended by the government forces and asked what they witnessed, only a few of them were capable of speaking and even fewer had enough courage in their heart to come up with understandable words. They each talked about what happened from varying perspectives but all had a merging and conclusive set of events that took place. They all remembered the bright light on the horizon, the creatures appearing from seemingly nowhere and the absolute chaos that followed.