Insert disclaimer here.
Welcome back, good people... this is it. The start of what a lot of you have been waiting for. The Hades Chronicles has been dusted off, and the sequel trilogy is being ground out. Soon you'll get your first taste of The Rising Darkness I: The Fading Light.
But to whet your appetite, here is the monster that has kept me away from the Hades universe: the rewrite to the Chronicles. Don't get over-excited, it's incomplete, and I doubt it will ever be finished. But the important stuff has been done. This is how the original Hades should have been. From here on in, the Chronicles were, if not perfect, at least acceptable.
You're under no obligations to read it, but I hope you do anyway. If you haven't read the original Hades, well, here's a chance to get new fans =P
As another note, there are one or two minor plot changes between the rewrite and the original. But I'm not going to highlight them, because that might give some of the Darkness plot away... kudos to any who spot them, but please don't spoil it for everyone else ^^
So. Without further ado...
Imagine space.
Imagine the endless void. There are millions of stars in each galaxy, millions of galaxies within the universe… and yet the distances are infinite. The majority of our realm is nothingness. The stars and planets that we, and indeed all life, depends upon, are as specks of dust. Miniscule sparks of light and heat and energy.
Take a journey through the void towards one particular spark. A yellow star, surrounded by eight planets.
The third planet is green and blue. The home of a small ape-like creature that has learned to play tricks with the universe. The home of mankind. Earth. A sanctuary.
No. Not a sanctuary. Not any more.
The year is 2194. What was inevitable ever since the first discovery of the biomechanical life form known as the xenomorph has occurred. The greed and arrogance of humanity has allowed the Aliens to overrun our 'sanctuary'.
Earth is dying. The death count is in the billions. And still the black tide of nightmares advances.
The cause of the infestation is not chronicled here. It is not important. All that is important is that they are here.
Spaceports swarm with desperate refugees, only a few of which have managed to do escape from the planet. Many more have died still waiting for salvation.
Now one last city remains in human hands, and the black tide will soon overrun it. Rumours that the military intend to detonate nuclear warheads in an attempt to wipe out the Alien horde as a last resort spur the last remnants on.
The clock is ticking…