Prologue: The Top of the Void
"Almost all believe that once death takes us, there is no way to return. They believe that once the Gates of the Void are shut, they are never to be opened for them again."
A landscape with slowly receding mist was overlooked by a cliff as high as the clouds themselves, its green grass flattened in the strong winds as sunlight glistened off the silver clouds swiftly moving past. The cliff lay just below the peak of an immense, extremely tall mountain, which despite its height did not bear any snow. The greenery of the cliff was a stark contrast to the grey stone that formed the mountain.
"But I stand here to tell you, there is a way. A way to return to the land of the living."
As the clouds rolled by a path was revealed, heading up to the cliff from what could only be the base of the mountain. An extremely perilous journey that not many had undertaken it as the pain of the climb was far too great a cost. The danger of death did not seem to bother anyone though.
"This discovery came at a great cost, but it does exist, which is why I have brought you here."
As the fog gave way, four men were revealed, standing near the edge and facing each other. They all wore dark robes of different shades, and they all stood tall. The man who spoke stood the closest to the edge, he was dark skinned, extremely well built, tall and powerful. But he was also dead, and now he stood in the Void, where all others like him dwelled, repenting their crimes, or reaping the joys of their lives as they watched their loved ones live their own.
The other three were fairer and their gaze followed the man's as he watched the clouds pass and smiled. "The Top of the Void, indeed." He muttered to himself. He was named Karzul, once a feared marauder and bandit, even an adventurer but now he was just another inhabitant of the void.
Karzul his hands in his pockets as he reached the edge of the cliff and looked down, giving out a low whistle, while two of the others shared uneasy looks. It was a long way down, and if he weren't already dead, he would have been a bit unnerved. But he stood fearless, for a dead person could not die twice . . . or so he believed.
But he turned then and smiled, holding out his hands, when one of the three began to speak. "Karzul, we are here as you asked. Now what is it that you wish to discuss? And here-?"
"Welcome, all of you, to what I believe to be the Top of the Void." The man, Karzul, spoke and nodded at them as they stood in front of him. The one in the center stood taller than them all, and was extremely broad shouldered. A hulk of man, and he stared at Karzul with dark eyes, who said. "I am glad that you all made it." He walked closer to them, as they did the same.
"Tell us why you wanted to meet us here." Another one of them asked.
"In time, Faulder, in time. For you to understand, I must explain from the very beginning, but let me ask you first . . . are all three of you just as itchy to get out of the Void as I am?" Karzul asked them.
They all agreed, although unwillingly, but Karzul just stared at each of them, then said. "Well then, I have a way out . . ."
"Please continue." The third man said.
"No . . . I do not think it is time for any of us to leave . . . there are no wars, there is peace in that land." The tallest among them, the one in the center, a man only known as the mad king, spoke the words.
Karzul raised his eyebrows, "Haven't you softened up in here . . . but I suppose so many years can do that, can it not?"
"Your opinion matters not, Karzul, I shall leave when I feel I am ready . . . and I suggest that you wait as well." The mad king said, then turned and strode away. "This is not natural, it is against the laws of the living and the dead."
"Enough with the speech, we all know you have your own way out, do you not?" Karzul shouted as the king began down the path. "All you need is one touch."
The mad king stopped then, and turned, his face sinister. "If you do return, and if you try to ruin Alagaesia, my home, I shall follow and make sure that you are killed."
"You have definitely softened up, why else would you put me back from where I could easily escape, again?" Karzul asked, smirking. "Now be gone with you . . ."
He turned to the other two as the king walked back down the path. "We do not need him, the three of us are enough . . ."
"So, how do you know all this?" Faulder asked. "How did you find the gate?"
"Well . . . it all begins nearly fifty years ago." Karzul said. "Fifty years ago, I found a gate, or rather a bridge which connected the Void to the land of the living." He waited for the new information to sink in. Their response was immediate.
"I have never heard of any such gate." The second man, Woldan, said. Faulder crossed his arms and stared at Karzul with sharp eyes.
"I am not surprised; it is in a very remote corner of Alagaesia . . . accessible only by tunnel or air." He nodded at them. "I found this gate, but I was . . . stopped. And I ended up here by the other, common route."
"You were killed." Faulder said with a smirk.
"Yes," Karzul walked closer to them. "The Void has its advantages, of course. You both know, it is said you must keep your friends close," He stopped and raised his hand. When he did, a large bubble blazed into existence on his palm. In it, there stood a man, a very old one, in a red cloak. It was the way the dwellers of the Void watched their loved ones, or in this case, the ones they wanted to see. "And you must keep your enemies closer." He raised his palm again, and another bubble appeared. In it, a hooded man was disembarking a small boat and trotting on the shores of what seemed like an island.
Karzul pointed at the first bubble. "He is my ally, who was there when I was killed." He then pointed at the second bubble. "This is the man who killed me. Now, this is how I know what is going to happen. I have watched this man for a long time."
"Do share, we have nothing but time." Woldan told him.
"Just before I was killed I managed to open the gate by a small slit, a crack. But something that I had not anticipated took place, there was a blast of some form of energy, and it affected everyone in the room . . . It wiped out my killer's memory completely, or so I believe." Karzul said.
"After fifty years of searching, he has finally begun a quest of sorts to regain his life. It seems he also gained immortality in that blast along with some unusual powers. But now, he searches for all the answers , and his journey will lead him to . . ." Karzul brought the image of his ally closer as well. "To my ally, who is not powerful enough to withstand him so he will do what I did so long ago, he will open the gate for us in the hopes that we will save him."
"How do you know this?" Faulder asked him.
"We were all friends once . . . when he does open the gate, we will be there, and we will return to the land of the living." Karzul told them, and smiled, clapping his hands together in conclusion.
"Wait, so we will return as ourselves, flesh and bone?" Woldan said, coming closer.
"And where is this gate? In the Void I mean." Faulder added.
"Well, Woldan, we will not return as flesh and bone, we will return as spirits. We will have to take over some living person's body. In my opinion, my killer is best suited because he is extremely powerful, and together we can make him all more dangerous." Karzul answered.
"So we will be turning him into a Shade." Woldan surmised.
"Yes . . . And Faulder, the gate is there." Karzul pointed at the mountainside right behind them.
Faulder and Woldan both turned and stared at the flat stone, then turned back to him. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, for I looked through the crack before I . . . died, and this cliff is exactly what I saw." Karzul told them. "Worry not, I am certain that this will work and when it does, I have a much bigger, in which we all have our own roles to play."
"And what is that?" Woldan said.
"In time, my friend, but it is something that both of you will enjoy . . . a lot." Karzul smiled. "Now, let us watch as the events unfold."