The Vordalyn 1 Read online

  THE VORDALYN

  By

  Michael T. Payne

  Chapter One

  The kingdom of Ganlin was an oasis, surrounded by a barren wasteland, known among the people of Ganlin, as the outer region. King Treska ruled Ganlin and defended his lands from a ruthless warlord known as Terrax. It was a war of decades. The children of King Treska were all born during the times of war, knowing nothing of peace. Five sons and a daughter, were the heirs of King Treska and Queen Ayana. All the male children of Ganlin learned the ways of war from early on in their upbringing, it was taught to them the same as how to read and write, its importance was just as great. The Princes of Ganlin all joined King Treska in defending the lands surrounding the heart and seat of power, it’s capital, Urixis. When they reached the age of manhood, each son was made a general in the armies of their father, to fight by his side. The five sons ruled the regions surrounding Urixis, separated like a pentagram. Each defending their homes with mighty armies of their own, holding back the demonic waves of Terrax at the borders to the outer region. The strongest of the Princes was Dracon, first born son. He ruled the lands to the north of Urixis, named Dwerma, affectionately called Dracon’s lair, by the people of Ganlin. Dracon was the mightiest warrior of all Ganlin, and would often aid his brothers in defense of the regions they ruled, when he arrived, victory was almost assured. To the south, the lands of Weldon, ruled by Renic, who was more an intellect than warrior, studying constantly the ways of strategy and tactics, training scouts and spies to seek out weaknesses in their foe. To the east, lay the lands of Eastmount ruled by Charnio, the youngest of King Treska’s children. He looked up to his brother Dracon, striving to emulate him in every way possible, excelling in hand to hand combat. To the northwest, the lands of Stones Hallow, ruled by Torak, a skilled horseman. In his region the cavalries of the realm were trained. Darrin, an eagle-eyed archer, ruled the region to the southwest called Kilhold. There, training all the archers of the kingdom. The Princess of Ganlin, Princess Menina, was the first-born of all King Treska’s children, raised learning the ways of magic, taught to her by the finest elven teachers and the most powerful wielder of the arts in all the lands, her mother, Queen Ayana. Princess Menina resembled her mother in all things, especially her appearance. She carried herself like her mother, attempting to emulate her in everything she did. She wore her long blonde hair like her mother, even chose the colors of her gowns to match her mother’s tastes. Queen Ayana was a vibrant woman, when she and her daughter sat side by side, they were as sisters. The capital of Ganlin, Urixis, remained untouched by the war and was a protected paradise. A sanctuary, watched over by Queen Ayana and Princess Menina. They tended to the rule over the capital while its king and princes waged war to protect them. In Urixis, lived the families of the soldiers and those who were unable to fight. Creatures of all types were welcomed, elves, dwarves, and all manner of fairy creatures, living side by side with humans, contributing to the beauty and sophistication of a city untouched by the horrors of war beyond its borders. Happiness abound in Urixis, and ignorance filled all who lived within it, for no war had ever reached the heart of King Treska’s Kingdom. Princess Menina was groomed by her mother to rule Urixis in her place one day, until the war was over, and the king could return home with his princes, one of whom would succeed King Treska. As time passed and war endlessly waged on, King Treska and Queen Ayana sought to relinquish their rule to one among their children who could continue to protect the realm successfully. King Treska, aged and battle weary, had yearned for a permanent return to Urixis, to live out the rest of his days by his queen’s side. It was no secret who the next king would be, Dracon. With no end to the war in sight, Princess Menina would be expected to continue as her mother had, ruling Ganlin, while Dracon would continue to battle the forces that plagued their lands. If ever peace would find the lands of Ganlin, Princess Menina would then turn over sole rulership to her brother Dracon.

  King Treska would spend his time at the fortification in the north, called Dragons Claw, the home of his son Dracon. He would spend more time there than at the homes of any of his other sons. There, together, they would plan and devise ways to defeat their enemy. Dracon was a warrior of warriors, and did most of the fighting, as his brothers would take refuge behind his strength and leadership. He was fearless, garnering envy from even his father, who revered his strength and will to win at any cost. Since an early age, Dracon could not meet defeat, he was formidable. In his first training fight, rather than yield to a bigger, stronger, opponent, he chose a broken arm, then went on to win the fight despite the broken limb. His will to win was unmatched. He had grown into a man of strength and size, more muscular than his younger brothers, brought on by years of carrying the weight of armor, from an age that it did not fit him, until when it finally did. Dracon was the largest and strongest of King Treska’s sons. His hair was long a black and his body was made from iron. He favored his father in his hair color. His brothers however, were all fair haired, like their mother and sister. Dracon, more than any of the heirs of Ganlin, was a child raised for one purpose, to kill Terrax.

  on the first day of spring, an emissary of Terrax delivered a letter with a request for one final battle. Both armies, to meet on the battlefield, and decide the fate of Ganlin once and for all. King Treska knew enough of Terrax not to believe his message, there would be no peace with Terrax, and his request was all too eager to call out the forces of Ganlin, under this guise of a final battle. Never the less, they would ride out to meet him. King Treska was emboldened by his son’s strength and skill. Although King Treska’s armies had thousands of warriors, it was because of Dracon alone that Terrax was forced to call for such a meeting. In every battle that Dracon led, Terrax was met with one defeat after another. King Treska eventually turned over all his armies to his mighty son. In him, he could see an end to the war at last, and the peace he so desperately desired. Dracon’s abilities earned him the respect and loyalty of every warrior under King Treska’s banner, even those who served the other Princes. It was said by the soldiers of Ganlin, to ride with Dracon, was to ride with the god of war himself.

  King Treska gathered his sons after receiving Terrax’s request, all but Dracon, were to return to defend Urixis from a possible sneak attack by the warlord’s forces. King Treska would take no chances regarding the protection of his queen and the families of his warriors. He split their forces, in the event Terrax was drawing them out to stab at the heart of his kingdom. King Treska and his mighty son Dracon, rode out together to meet Terrax with the most powerful of all King Treska’s warriors, the most experienced and seasoned soldiers alone, were chosen to accompany them. True to his word, Terrax met them on the field of battle in full force, it was no trick. The armies of Terrax were like sand in number, stretching across a beach of war. Their numbers meant nothing to Dracon, but King Treska had never seen so many demonic creatures gathered in one place, doubt and fear weakened his resolve. Even by his son’s side, King Treska feared what was to come and questioned his choice to meet Terrax’s hordes head to head. Dracon could see the concern in his father’s eyes, as Terrax himself began to ride out, across the empty expanse between the two armies, to meet with King Treska before the battle began. Dracon, without hesitation, rode in his father’s stead. His heart burned to finally face Terrax on the field of battle in person, the armies behind Terrax did little to weaken Dracon’s resolve to kill Terrax. King Treska called out to Dracon to stop him from riding out in his place, but in his heart, he truly did not wish to. Dracon rode fast across the field, shield and sword in hand, where he met Terrax, closer to the enemy’s armies, than to his own. Terrax removed his helmet as Dracon approached, it took Dracon great effort to stop himself from attacking Terrax.
He wanted nothing more than to kill him, finally meeting the man face to face, for himself. He reigned in his horse, stopping it to a skidding halt, mere feet from Terrax, whose horse reacted uneasily to the aggressive manner of Dracon’s arrival.

  “You give up much to ride out here, boy. If I wanted to trap you, you would never get back to your men before my forces overtook you!” Terrax spit his words out through clenched teeth.

  “I would kill you before they reached us!” Dracon growled back, Terrax laughed at him.

  “Your father lost the stomach to face me, did he? Sends you in his place?” Terrax was an older man than Dracon, by some thirty years, graying in both hair and beard. His armor was dark red, as blood. Dracon removed his helmet, his black hair spilled out to his shoulders, he took a good look at the armies of Terrax, so close to them both. Dracon placed his helmet on the horn of his saddle. There were more creatures than men among Terrax’s armies.

  “My father does not stoop to scrape dung from his shoe, we’ve servants for that,” Dracon glanced at Terrax as he sized up his forces, “Run out of real follower’s, have you? Recruiting Demons now?” Dracon asked trying to identify some of the creatures behind Terrax.

  “Take a good look boy, look at the hordes at my back!” Terrax waved his arm out to the army behind him that spanned as far as they both could see, “Do you not know you look upon your very death?”

  “It makes no matter to me, man, or demon,” Dracon said pointing his sword at him, “Today, I will kill you, I will end this war, your head in my hand for all to see! I will drive your devils from my lands once and for all time!”

  “You are bold, young Dracon, I give you that. I have no doubt many will die by your hand today, but I will not be among them, dung scraper!” Terrax chuckled, “You have fought well, General Dracon, it is because of you we meet here today, so it is fitting that we finally meet face to face. I had hoped that Treska would bring you, so that I can look upon the boy who has fought well against me. I have seen enough of you, go back and tell King Treska to ride out and face me here, if he is a man? We have unfinished business.”

  “Your business here will be finished with me, Demon! On this field, you will witness firsthand what I was trained to do all my life! Today, I will watch the light leave your eyes!” Dracon snarled, “You have anything left to say, then say it now! To me!” he donned his helmet and waited a moment for a response from Terrax.

  “Such fire that burn’s in your belly, Dracon, those skills, that indominable attitude, I gave birth to that! If not for me, you’d be but a farm boy,” Terrax admired the young warrior before him, “I give you one chance, child, serve as my general, join me, and I will spare your family. I will even marry your sister, Princess Menina, make us family.” Dracon laughed at him, as his horse danced in a slow circle in front of Terrax.

  “Menina?” Dracon asked, then laughed again, “I will deliver her your balls by dawn, as your marriage proposal!” Dracon jerked the reigns of his horse and sped off, back to the lines of his army, rejoining his father’s side.

  “Prepare yourselves!” Dracon yelled out, raising his sword above his head as he returned. The warriors roared in return, ready to follow Dracon across the field into battle. King Treska came up alongside Dracon as he prepared to speed off again.

  “It was not for you to ride out to meet him, it was for the king to do, Dracon.” King Treska grabbed the reigns of Dracon’s horse, stopping him from starting the attack.

  “My lord,” Dracon settled down, lowering his sword, “I meant no disrespect, father. It could have been a trap!”

  “My son, I wavered in the face of battle, fear held my horse in place. You saw that fear in my eyes, don’t deny it.” King Treska pulled Dracon’s horse closer to him, so he could look in his son’s eyes, “Dracon, you fear nothing! You never have! This victory will be yours and yours alone! Many people will die here today, but in my heart, I know you will not be one of them. It will be you who ends the reign of Terrax. Now, take your birthright, forge a new future for all our people. Do what I could not, end this war, today! You, my son, are now the king, ride out as such, end this war for your generation!” King Treska released the reigns of Dracon’s horse, “Follow your king!” King Treska yelled to the men around them, “King Dracon!” Dracon could wait no longer, and rode out to face the armies of Terrax, with a battle cry fueled by his father’s declaration. All the warriors of Treska roared into battle behind the mighty King Dracon.

  Chapter Two

  Sadness traveled from the gates of Urixis to the palace, in the time it took for a single flap of a butterfly’s wing. Queen Ayana felt it in her soul, her beloved husband had arrived in the capital city, dead. The depth of her sorrow shook the earth, almost bringing down the palace and crushing all with-in its walls. She had been sitting on her throne, unaware of what had happened, dealing with the petty squabbles of her people. An elven merchant and a dwarven armorer. Beside her, Princess Menina sat, assisting, and learning from her mother, how to deal with such things. Princess Menina could feel her mother’s sorrow like it stabbed her heart, and she too cried out, falling from her seat to her knees, on the floor before the thrones. She became painfully aware of her father’s death shortly after her mother had, also sensing his dead bodies arrival.

  “Father!” Princess Menina cried out grabbing her head, then wailing. Queen Ayana stood as the palace shook, trying to steady herself and stop the destruction of her palace. She too, screamed out in uncontrolled anguish. Queen Ayana froze time in a moment of lucidity, lest the palace collapse around her. Everything stopped, from the small flies in the air, to the dust that fell from the shaking walls of the palace. All stopped, save for Queen Ayana. Her power was immense, and as with all the women of her family, her mastery over magic was absolute. She knelt before her throne, crying for the loss of her king, her beloved. It took hours for Queen Ayana to collect herself. Then, she walked between the people and carriages on the streets, all frozen in time, to the gates of Urixis where her beloved husband was just returning home. The carriage was on the very edge of the city, just entering the gates. Queen Ayana climbed into the carriage to see her husband, King Treska. She wept over his body, kissing his face, and bathing him in her tears. She examined his body, such as it was, and her sorrow turned to anger when she saw he was partially eaten. Again, Queen Ayana screamed out in fury, mixed with her sorrow, her pain was so great she wanted to destroy the whole world around her, thoughts of her still living daughter were all that stopped her from crumbling the city. She left the carriage on unstable legs, falling to the street. As time was still frozen, there was no one to help her to her feet. Queen Ayana found a cart and moved her husband’s body from the carriage to the cart. She carried him home, as the world stood still. Hours of dragging the cart, then even longer to carry his broken body to where she would clean what was left of him, and prepared him, alone, for burial. She could have easily used her powers to bring him home and prepare his body, but she chose her last labor of love, to be this cleansing ritual and walk him personally to his resting place, where soon they would both spend eternity together, hand in hand. Her love. Her husband. While she prepared his body, with her immeasurable sorrow, she spoke to him.

  “My love, my dear husband,” She cried as she spoke, washing him, readying him for her children to see and say goodbye to, “You now have the peace you spent your life fighting for,” She looked away from him, sensing someone else, unseen in the room beside her, “Do you see? Do you see what it is to be king? The sacrifice you must make for your people?” she said to the unseen observer, “In all your might, you could not save my love from death, and because of it, I too am doomed to the same fate,” She cried and put her face in King Treska’s chest, then looked over at the unseen observer, “You killed my king! I curse the day you were born!”

  Queen Ayana spent a week mourning her king, alone, in the space between time. When she was ready, she returned to her throne room. There, she released Princess Menin
a, to join her in the abyss outside times passage. Princess Menina cried out, resuming her shocked sorrow for her father’s death. Queen Ayana held her daughter, comforting her. She rocked her for a long time, until her cries turned to whimpers. It was then that Princess Menina realized the world stood still. She leaned back and looked up at her mother, then again at the frozen people around them both.

  “What… what is happening?” Princess Menina asked.

  “Shh, my daughter,” Queen Ayana held her close, “We suffer here, away from those who look to us for strength. We must not let our subjects see us weep, we must remain strong. We must show strength. Even in this, our hour of pain and sorrow.”

  “But father is dead?” Princess Menina cried, Queen Ayana held her again. They stayed in the space between time until they were both ready to face whatever was to come next. Queen Ayana repaired the damage she did when she shook the earth. She explained to Princess Menina how she froze time. She told her it was not something she could do more than twice, maybe three times in her lifetime. When Queen Ayana was ready to start time again, she and Princess Menina met the soldiers who were returning with King Treska’s body, just as they entered the gates. The queen was no longer overwhelmed with sadness, replaced by anger, and it burned in her. She wanted answers. Dracon was not with the men who returned. Upon seeing her, the Dwarven Captain approached quickly, kneeling before her and Princess Menina.

  “My queen,” he said.

  “King Treska is dead. Where is my son, where is Dracon?” Queen Ayana asked the captain. She could hear horses riding up fast on either side of the column that escorted King Treska’s body home. Her sons, Charnio and Renic, arrived to either side of the Captain, leaping from their horses, rushing to the queen. They fell to their knees before her.