The Keepers: Song of Sorrow

Prolouge/Chapter One

In the darkest depths of the Void lies a dream. It's been there for thousands of years, undisturbed and thriving. Well maybe not the people in the dream, but the monsters that were conjured into being the moment the dream started seem to do well for themselves. Beasts made out of mangled body parts And congealed flesh, some with dozens of eyes, others with dozens of mouths. All seeming impossible to the eyes of any who aren't one of them and maddening to look at. They rule the dream with tooth and claw, terror and torment. And they relish it. The worst of them are Pathos and Addac, two such creatures of speed and strength who banded together to rule over the rest. They are brothers in bloodshed and destroyers of whole kingdoms. However, the dream isn't permanent. Like most dreams once the dreamer awakens the dream will end along with everything inside or tied to it. Then a new terror will arrive to take its place; the Sleeping God who was sealed away years ago by the All Fathers themselves.

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Maria carefully set the last crate of her homegrown vegetables into the cart. She was almost ready to go to market now all she needed was to get in and go. It would be her first time going alone to sell her produce as the years before she'd gone with her parents. But now they were gone and she was on her own in her home. She pushed her curly, brown hair out of her face and climbed up onto the seat of the cart. She was a halfling, small and stout, her face was speckled with freckles. She was dressed in a simple burgundy dress, a mildly stained and well worn apron, and a pair of comfortable shoes. Taking up the reigns she clicked her tongue to get her horse moving, his name was Bastian. They started down the road through town. She waved and greeted everyone as she passed by. Her hometown was a cluster of cottages of all shapes and sizes, some built into hills, with large gardens of flowers and pretty stone paths, the name of the town was Cottontail. It was orderly, calm, quiet. Just how they liked it. She sighed in contentment as she watched the world pass by at either side of her. She caught sight of something ahead and squinted to get a better look at it. A log? It seemed large but she couldn't tell from this distance. She slowed her cart down just in case. As the cart pulled closer she realized what it was, it was a body. There was a body in the middle of the road. So much for calm and quiet.
She got out of her cart and walked over to the body carefully, It was a boy. He was tall; nearly eight feet in height with locks of long blonde hair that was currently streaked with blood and matted to his head and face. He was clothed in nothing but the remnants of his pants and covered in wounds. His ears were pointed, very elven. From his head sprouted long curved horns that seemed to frame his face as they curved down the side of his skull and behind his ears. His legs were animal-like, maybe some kind of big cat he also had a long tail. Maria reached out and touched one of his hands, being careful not to touch his claws. He was warm. "Was he still alive?" She brought her hand to his face, his features were strong, sharp, and handsome. He was breathing, it was soft but he was breathing. His eyes opened and focused on her. She jumped back. His eyes were bright red with slit pupils.
"You're awake, I thought you were dead! You were just lying in the road." She exclaimed. She brought herself under control. Now there was no time to get flustered, this man was badly injured and needed help. How was she going to get him back to her town? She thought. Could she fit him in the cart? Maybe if she moved around her crates. But she wouldn't be able to get to the market to sell anything. Maybe the market had better medicine than she did at home. It clicked in her mind then.
"Alright, give me a moment and I'll make room in my cart for you." She rushed to the back of her cart and began to move things about as carefully as possible. There was movement behind her and she froze thinking she had fallen for a trap by this half-demon creature. His shadow loomed over her from behind. She turned her head to look and saw that he had dragged himself to the side of her cart, his arms were crossed protectively over his torso and she could see the blood beginning to seep. That wasn't good. Why was he moving? judging by his face he was barely containing the pain. Maria finished pushing the crates out of the way.
"Get in." She said, nervously. Was this a good idea? She didn't know him. And he wasn't exactly acting trustworthy. He climbed into the cart. He only just fit, she realized then that she was going to have to put up the netting on the back or risk him falling out. She did so and then went back to the front and took her place on the seat. Her surprise passenger let out a shaking breathe of pain. She looked back at him. He was staring up at the sky. He turned to her.
"Thank you." He said, his voice barely a whisper.
"Of course, anyone would do the same." She replied. She clicked her tongue at Bastion who started trotting forward. She turned back to the road.
"What happened to your clothes?" She asked.
"Hmm?" He replied.
"Your clothes? Did someone take them?"
"Probably."
She turned her head.
"What do you mean probably, you don't remember?"
"I don't remember much from the last three days."
"Three days?"
"It might be longer. I'm not good with time, it's not what I'm known for." He was looking at the sky again. "Eyes on the road." She turned back around now even more confused and concerned than before. She'd have to find him something to wear. She couldn't exactly go around the market with a half-naked demon man, it would look like she was selling him. Or worse, bought him.
"It's going to rain." He said behind her. She looked up at the sky, it was full of big fluffy clouds all white and looking soft as velvet, she chuckled.
"No, it's not." She said.
"Trust me, it's going to rain."
"And how do you know?"
"You can see Addac's marks in the clouds." He said, she turned again. Addac was an Eldritch being thought to control the weather and natural disasters, the perfect match to Pathos who was considered a bringer of death and suffering. Very few knew how to tell the marks of the Eldritch.
"You can see his mark?"
"You can't?"
"Most people can't." She said. He huffed.
"How quaint. Eyes on the road please." And so they sat in silence until they reached the market. It was a section of crossroads that had turned into a small town due to just how many merchants came here to sell their wares. Her family shop was near the end facing the rising sun in the west. She stopped her cart behind the small shack that made temporary living quarters while she was there. It was a two-room home, one was the living room area and the other was a kitchen with a smaller room in one corner that made a bathroom. She unhitched Bastion from the cart and led him to the small stable, she turned a faucet over the water trough and watched as it began to fill. Maria made a note to go buy fresh hay as well as clothes for her guest. Going back to the cart she was surprised to find that her guest had removed the netting and left the cart. She looked out quickly for him and then rushed inside the shack. She stopped inside the door, he was laying across the floor on his back.
"Are you okay?" She asked.
"It's cold." He said not looking at her. She huffed.
"Yes I'll need to start the stove. It'll warm up the room."
"I'll deal with that. See if you can find me something to wear." He ordered turning onto his side to stand. Maria was taken aback at his sudden rudeness. She would've scolded him if it wasn't for his injuries. She simply threw up her hands and turned to leave.