Chapter 1: Vigilance
In the countryside . . .
Terror arrives borne on sinewy wings, belching fire. They are ravenous, beings of appetite and the means to sate it. They swoop arrogantly into the fray, interrupting battles, devouring man and beast alike, heedless of nation, of creed. What visage of horror is worn upon those struggling unlucky souls who are chosen, who are plucked from the surging, fleeing crowds and torn asunder by vicious teeth and gaping maws.
They are not large, these devouring things. Small dragons, yes, but ferocious nonetheless. And there are ever so many of them, appearing seemingly at random . . .
In the capitals:
Meetings are held. Committees are formed. Fists are slammed on hardwood tables, bold proclamations are made. "It is the doing of those El Morad dogs, come to finish us once and for all!" or "It is our twisted cousins the Karus. Their evil knows no bounds!" Each side imagines a different reason, lays the blame squarely upon their opponents, but the trails lead invariably to the same end: War.
War it must be.
But first the menace must be dealt with. First the dragons must be corralled, destroyed. No fear must be shown! Every loyal citizen must stand in defense of the Nation.
The cost was high.
Warriors lay charred and broken, the ruined corpses of hundreds of Karus and El Morad alike strewn about the lands like discarded dolls. Felankor's massive talons pawed at the earth, churned soiled as he bent and spewed roiling flame over the confused throng that had appeared to confront him.
Sheep, he thought hungrily, and snatched an archer up between his jaws, flicking him shrieking through the air and letting him drop back into his open mouth and consumed him, armor and all. Their arrows barely stung, their swords and axes glancing off of his ancient scales. All around his children harried them, nipped at their flanks. Long have these humans, green and pink alike, dwindled my family's numbers regularly, driven us to the brink of extinction for our precious treasures. But now things were reversed. Now he required what they carried, simple, ignorant humans. And he would massacre them in record numbers to get what he needed!
Felankor was going to die, this he knew. The humans outnumbered him and his family far too greatly for him to consider victory just yet. But he would return. There were those among the humans who were loyal to him, who shared his vision of the future, and would work to resurrect Felankor time and again until the task was complete.
There was outrage in El Morad Castle as the nation stormed toward war.
"The Karus are just as affected as we! Saw you not their warriors fall alongside our own? It is not their doing, but a third sinister party!" came the voice of reason. Reason, however, was unwelcome during dark times.
"It is a ruse, and a simple one," was the common retort. "The Karus brute intends only to lull us into a false sense of security. We must retaliate swiftly before their plan comes to fruition."
Similar discussions raged throughout Luferson. The world, it seemed, was teetering on the brink of chaos.
Where did all the dragons come from? What is Felankor up to? Will Karus and El Morad once again declare formal war on each other? These questions and more conclude Chapter 1: Vigilance. Keep checking back to find out more as the events in the Knight Online Forever saga grow ever more intense!
Sun Jun 15, 2014 9:04 pm by ulphrlanet