A Song of Crowsilver

Every krufn has its silfr lining.

Moderators: Adam, Martinulus, (Shireroth) Steward, (Shireroth) Kaiser, (Shireroth) Duke of Goldshire

Post Reply
User avatar
Verion
Ayn Rand's toyboy
Posts: 6199
Joined: Mon Oct 22, 2012 5:07 pm

A Song of Crowsilver

Post by Verion »

A Song of Crowsilver
Part I


Let me tell you about the age of Ice, the age of Trolls and Giants, of Heroes and Kings. Days long gone and forgotten. It was during the rule of Oluf Godswind that these things took place. In days of winter, cold as it has never been since, at the end of the Long Night. It was then, that even the trolls and the cave headed to the south to shelter from the blistering cold and the snowstorms. It was clear that the gods had forsaken our country, and given it over to the elements. At least, so it seemed.

In a small village on the Frozen Sea, a crow came flying one day, carrying a message for the village Elderman. It wasn’t a common occurrence, even back then, and the people of the village all gathered around the Town Hall, where the Elderman read the letter. It was a short letter, only a few words, but they were enough to fill the hearts of the village folk with fear. It read:

The Wall of Aegir has fallen, darkness has descended upon the Realm.

Only a few alive today know what this Wall of Aegir was. To understand why the villagers were so frightened of these words, you should know about it first. See, in the ancient days, the forces of magic had a much stronger and more visible presence on Micras than nowadays. Magic was used to heal sick and to protect soldiers when they went off to war. However, magic also had a very dark side. There was nothing that represented this dark side more, than the Sinidur, a band of mysterious and shadowy creatures. They were not human, but neither were they beast, and they were skilled practioners of dark magic. It is hard to think of something that was more terrifying to the people than the Sinidur.

To face this thread, and to prevent the Sinidur from ever entering the realms of men, Aegir, the God-King, had built a wall at the eastern border. The wall was massive, grey and strong and has stood for thousands of years. But now, the wall had fallen…
The villagers rallied together and shouted in fear. They were one of the settlements closest to the Wall of Aegir, and they were certainly in great peril at the moment. The strongest men of the village quickly rose up with wild plans as to how to keep the village safe.

“We need to strengthen the palisade!” Gromwind of Futhark shouted.
“No, coward! We need to arm and meet the Sinidur in open battle!” was the advise of Gloin Venrir
“Kill them with fire!” said Ragnak Oakheart.

Then, the Elderman, who had not said anything until this moment, spoke. “No, people, there is nothing in this world that could ever safe us from the darkness of the Sinidur. There is no force in the world that is powerful enough to withstand the armies of evil. Only the Gods can help us now.

Night fell. The people of the village couln't sleep but sat together in the town hall, praying and fearing. From the east, a cold wind blew....

To be continued.
1.Titus Morvayne, Prefect of Shirekeep, Count of the Skyla Islands
2.Eki Aholibamah Verion, Queen in the North
3. Ludovic Verion, Lord of Blackstone and Governor-General of the Iron Company
4. Jeremy Harwinsson Archer, super sleuth

User avatar
Verion
Ayn Rand's toyboy
Posts: 6199
Joined: Mon Oct 22, 2012 5:07 pm

Re: A Song of Crowsilver

Post by Verion »

A Song of Crowsilver
Part II


They had been riding for three days now, without rest. The cold was almost unbearable and the freezing wind seemed to find a way even through all the layers of fur the men were wearing. Truly, they had left the civilized world to enter the part of the realm that the Gods had forgotten about. Desolate rock formations, endless frozen plains and thick, dark woods had been their home this entire time.
Still, Gideon Valsknut didn’t complain. He was a Scout of the Realm, and it was his duty to carry out orders. Even if they lead him to the borderlands.

Terrifying messages had arrived at the capital some days ago. Talks about the fall of the Wall of Aegir and the return of the Sinidur. At first, Gideon had been skeptical. For him, magic was something from stories and old wives tales. But now, he wasn’t so sure anymore. Looking up to the sky, Gideon knew that there was something strange and unnatural about it. He had never seen a sky as dark as this. It was almost black. And then then the carcasses of the animals along the road… torn apart as by some mythical force. He didn’t want to admit it to himself, and surely he would never say it out loud, but Gideon was as frightened as he had ever been in his life.

Still, the small band of scouts carried on. Besides Gideon, there were three riders. Valter and Krum Olufson, the brothers, and captain Erik Smälbrod, a fierce and respectable man. They were chosen to investigate the rumours, and visit the settlements near the Wall of Aegir. Small towns mostly, with quaint folk living in there. Gideon had calculated that the first village should be less than an hour away now. Quietly, the scouts moved on through the desolate landscape.

“Captain, look over there!” Krum Olufson pointed at something in the distance. It was hard to see against the black sky, but a column of dark smoke rose up from behind a forrest. In a hurry, the scouts rode towards them.
Even with the fast pace their horses rode, it took the men almost half an hour to reach the spot from where the smoke came. And when they did, they could only gaze in astonishment and horror.

Before their eyes were the remnants of what once had been a village. The palisade and the houses were destroyed, no, obliterated is a better word. Smoke rose from the smothering ashes. In the centre of the village, on the town square, laid the bodies of the village folk. They were put in a large circle, side by side. Their eyes were gushed out.
Gideon turned his head away. He was used to seeing death, but this was nothing even remotely close to what he had witnessed before. This was pure evil.

Finally, the voice of Captain Smälbrod broke the silence. “We should burn the bodies, give them a proper send-off. Then we shall return to the Capital immediately. The Count should know what has happened here.”

The scouts unmounted their horses and walked towards the bodies when they heard a horrific sound. It was like the scream of a bird in pain, but then much louder and more chilling. A thick black smoke filled the entire village. The scouts couldn’t see anything.
Gideon was scared out of his mind. He ran away as fast as he could. Behind him, he heard a man screaming. Probably Valter. He ran through the woods and hid behind a large rock whilst trying not to listen to the screams and cries. He prayed to the Gods and closed his eyes.

He must have been lying there for hours. When Gideon finally dared open his eyes again, he saw that the smoke had cleared. He sent a short prayer of thanks to the Gods. He was safe for now. He walked to the village, hoping that his comrades were alive as well. Still careful, looking around him for signs of warning, he moved towards the village.

From through the trees, Gideon saw a figure coming towards him. He gripped his sword as tight as he could and waited. He breathed out with relief when he saw that it was Captain Smälbrod, he had survived as well!

“Captain” Gideon shouted “are you all right? Let’s get out of here!”

He ran towards the captain, who walked slowly. Perhaps he was wounded. Gideon ran faster, together, they could leave this hell immediately. But suddenly, something held him back. Gideon’s pace slowed down when he looked at the Captain. And when he looked at his face, he froze in terror. There stood Captain Smälbrod, and there were two bloody holes where his eyes used to be…

To be continued.
1.Titus Morvayne, Prefect of Shirekeep, Count of the Skyla Islands
2.Eki Aholibamah Verion, Queen in the North
3. Ludovic Verion, Lord of Blackstone and Governor-General of the Iron Company
4. Jeremy Harwinsson Archer, super sleuth

Post Reply

Return to “Crowsilver”