Chapter
1 – A World at Perpetual War
In the toxic lands of Eastern
Europe, the armies of Bernhard and Canis have fought a battle against Draco and
Phasianus for a city that sits in an area of strategic importance. The battle
is at a stalemate with remnants of both armies crawling across the broken
buildings and bodies of their comrades and enemies to find their way out and
return home. An orc from Bernhard and a knight from Draco come across each
other while wandering the streets and despite their wounded condition, they
draw their weapons, ready to fight each other to the death.
“You and your devious kind will
know justice for your manipulation! Let this defeat humble you before you die!”
the orc says.
“Defeat? I don’t think this is a
defeat. It is only a minor setback in our war against you barbarians. Your
violent ways won’t scare the Church and other kingdoms much longer,” the Draco
knight says.
The two knights compose themselves
before charging as best they can with a limp at each other and clashing their
weapons. They fight until they soon tire each other out and fall down. Still,
they try to get up and resume their fight. The Draco knight tries to change
into his animal form as a dog but finds that he lacks enough strength. Again,
the two try to clash, however, a dark crimson mist is overtaking the
battlefield they are on.
Both blame each other for the mist
as some kind of trick by the other side until they see a lone and disturbing
man walk out of it. This disturbing man is clothed in bloodstained black rags
with red tear marks on his hood that covers his face. The skin on his lips is
missing and his body is bloodied and torn open at places such as his body and
his arms, both of which barely have any flesh on them. His entire body is
perpetually bleeding, especially the palms on his hands, his bare feet, and his
face, which seems to be crying tears of blood.
“State which side you are on,” the
Draco knight says.
The man tilts his head, grinds his
teeth, and then says, “I am on the side of God and His Church.”
Both the orc and Draco knight claim
the man to be on their side and then argue against one another.
“Snakes like you are the furthest
thing from a servant of God,” the orc says.
“I can say the same thing about
violent animals like your kind,” the Draco knight retorts.
“Neither of you serves God
correctly as I do,” the man interjects.
“Who are you to say such things?
What is your name?”
“Erasmus and I am nothing more than
a tool of God sent here to stop the wars and conflicts that have been going on
for too long.”
As Erasmus holds out his hands, the
blood in the two knights before him trembles, making them drop to the floor
along with their weapons as the strength within them is sapped and they begin
to bleed inexplicably.
“Cease your fighting and you’ll
come to truly serve God rather than the god that approves of your false
devotion. Help will be here soon,” Erasmus says.
He then moves on and takes in the
destruction that the battle has wrought while grinding his teeth. The sight of
the blood and bodies makes his blood writhe within him as if feeling all the
pain inflicted on each soldier. The blood from his body is now spilling even
faster and begins to intermingle with the dead and seeps itself into the ground
and even breaks the concrete to do so.
“Sights like this is why I dread
stepping outside of my home,” Erasmus says while crossing himself and praying
for strength.
The crimson mist that brought
Erasmus to the destroyed city teleports him again, this time to the front of an
approaching army of Draco headed by Emperor Jianyu that was headed towards the
city. Most in the army are caught off guard by Erasmus and his appearance, all
except for the emperor who approaches him and gets off his horse.
After bowing his head, Emperor
Jianyu says, “It’s an honor to meet a man from the mysterious land of
Onocrotalus. Do what do I owe this honor?”
Erasmus grinds his teeth and then
says, “Your flattery with do you no good to win my favor, emperor. I know of
your attempts to enter my home kingdom to forge an alliance and strengthen your
power over the world.”
“Is it so wrong to gain allies? We
both fight for the same God, after all.”
“You may have done so years ago,
but your tendency to employ questionable methods has sparked a war in this
world that has swallowed it whole.”
“And what are you here to do? Stop
me? Your people may be unkillable and the crimson mist may teleport whoever it
wishes, but you do not have the numbers and resources that Draco has. I will
see God’s will done in the way He has revealed it to me.”
“You can try, but you won’t be able
to stop the inevitable.”
Emperor Jianyu transforms into a
gold and red serpentine dragon with his armor still on his body. He breathes
fire on Erasmus and cuts at him with his many claws tearing the corpse of a man
apart over and over again even as Erasmus puts himself back together again and
again. After a few minutes of what could scarcely be called a fight, Erasmus
grinds his teeth and raises his hand to bend the blood in Emperor Jianyu,
forcing him to transform back into a human and bring him to his knees. A lone
knight, who has transformed into an ox-sized man, runs out from the ranks of
his fellow soldiers and strikes at the head of Erasmus, splitting his head
open, and yet, Erasmus continues to stand and cast his spell as if unbothered.
“Release my father from your
spell,” Quon says.
“Foolish boy. Have you learned
nothing from what your father has done to me or the stories that he’s told you
about the people that come from Onocrotalus? Stand down or you will suffer a
worse fate,” Erasmus says.
Quon looks over to his father who
nods at him, making him do as he is told.
“Now, the real fun begins,” Erasmus
continues.
Again, the crimson mist comes and
descends upon him, however, this time, it teleports over an army of orcs and
men from their fiery brother kingdom of Canis to where he is. Both opposing
armies are surprised to see one another and are about to fight until Erasmus
uses his magic to make them all stop talking and moving.
“Fight with words, not swords. The
Lord above is beyond tired of your petty wars and grudges against one another.
Approach one another like men or I will continue to treat you like children,”
Erasmus says.
“I approach my enemy with the
intent to kill him. That is the manly way-”
Erasmus makes the king of the orcs
bleed all his blood out of his body through his skin, eyes, ears, and mouth in
seconds, killing and leaving the king a dried husk. He then tightens his grip
on the rest of the orcs.
“Whoever is next in line for the crown
can speak for the rest of the orcs. If no one does, I won’t hesitate to give
you the same fate as your leader.”
Immediately, one of the closest
orcs volunteers, and space is made for the new orc king, Heinz, and Emperor
Jianyu to talk.
“Since it seems that it is truly
God’s will that we make peace, I am willing to stop this war and negotiate which
parts of the land I’ll give back, however, I require certain securities to
ensure that this peace lasts,” Emperor Jianyu says.
“We’re not here to negotiate
anything, you silver-tongued snake. Just agree to peace or you will die by this
monster or me,” King Heinz says.
“You are both allowed to make a
trade to ensure peace. Do not shun engaging in politics and an exchange of
ideas as your predecessors did. Your people are just as guilty as his,” Erasmus
says.
“Guilty of what? Of pious zealotry?
Of serving God with blood, sweat, tears, and the sacrifice of our lives? Of
using the only weapon we can wield against an encroaching threat that uses the
political power and support they have against us?”
“You are guilty of it all,” Emperor
Jianyu says.
“And you are guilty as well, as the
orc says. Parts of the world may be better under your rule, but others are
worse off.”
“How can I come to an agreement
with this man then?” King Heinz asks. “King Helmut and Emperor Kenzo of Phasianus
were men that he worked with and died in battles he told them to be a part of.”
“They heroically died instilling
peace in the land.”
“Would you call the land we live in
peaceful?”
“It’s only at war because of men
like you that refuse to cooperate with me.”
“Emperor Ryujin of Phasianus tried
to cooperate with you and then started a civil war because of the men you had
that watched over him and the lords of the Asiatic states. After he died
defending his people and family, you promised that you’d change things for the
Asiatic part of the world and you did, for a time, before things got worse.”
“Let’s not forget the promises we
had between one another that you’ve trampled over in the pursuit of getting
your way that you consider to be above reproach. How are you any different than
the bandit clans that pillage the lands, claim the ruins of old cities as their
own, and act outside of the union of kingdoms under the Church?”
“Because we are the ones who are
actually doing what’s right. Kill me if you want, monster. I die knowing that I’m
right.”
“I may have my faults, but these
orcs need to be put down and the rebellions they lead need to be humbled,”
Emperor Jianyu says to Erasmus. “Let us have a temporary alliance and get rid
of the greater of two evils.”
“I think not.”
Erasmus raises his hand to use his
magic, not to kill anyone, but to summon a tide of blood that comes from the
destroyed city that washes both armies in blood and corpses. He then uses the
blood to inject each soldier with the blood making them freeze permanently in
place without his constant use of his blood magic.
“You are all to spend days like
this with one another. Do try to become friends with one another, so that the
magic will be lifted from you quicker,” Erasmus says before he sees that the
two knights he previously saw in the city are still alive. “Ah. I am glad to
see you two haven’t killed one another. This is a good sign.”
“Does that mean you’ll let us go?”
one of the two knights says.
“No. It just means you may or may
not leave sooner than your compatriots. Keep it up and you may save your soul.”
The crimson mist manifests itself
and takes Erasmus to his next location while leaving the opposing armies frozen
in place with blood and viscera around them as a reminder of the fruits of
their works.
No comments:
Post a Comment