Hello, I am one of the five creators of the internet game by the name of
Chaos Uprising, this story is one that I've written (only up to 1/4 way
through the second chapter though, but it's around 18 A5 pages - 10pt) and
I was told to put it up because it is supposedly pretty good, so, here it
is, I hope you enjoy it and if you want to know, the game is under the
process of moving sites
Prologue
Soft moonlight gently cascaded over the jagged mountains - far in the distance.
He knew which one he was heading towards; he had been there what seemed like a thousand times, so much so that he wouldn't have been surprised if he was told that this was so.
The crisp night air turned to smoke as he breathed, enveloping him in a shallow mist for a few seconds, before being overwhelmed by the darkness surrounding him. It was very cold, and gradually getting colder as he approached the towering mountains.
Gripping the massive sword which was latched to his waist, he pressed forward - dawn was only a few hours away. He had been careless - the rune blade had left a clear path in the soft earth. It could glide, easily, through stone, let alone the sparse gravel that surrounded these mountains.
They will be wondering where I've gotten to. Ah well, she will know where to find me - don't worry yourself.
He felt the slow upwards slope of the ground beneath him as it gradually rose to the enormous peaks, called by some the 'Grey Ranges'. Keep going, he urged himself, his lack of sleep taking effect.
Sick of being careful he reached to the pommel of the rune blade - 'give me some light' - the wondrous sword erupted in bright blue flame, easily lighting the ground tens of metres around him.
Looking up, the mountains were close now, he had been travelling much faster then he had thought. However, he needed to keep this pace if he were to get to the particular mountain before sunrise.
Letting the sword drop again, he picked up the pace a little, tapping into his hidden strength, boosting his speed by far.
---
The librarian was just closing shop - my wife is going to kill me - he thought to himself, locking the large iron doors behind him. This was the fifth night in a row that he had been so late.
Looking at the horizon, he saw that day-break was maybe only an hour away.
'Well, I'll be damned'
He had seen this spectacle before. The same incandescent blue dot - this was the second time in as many days.
Before the last time, he had never seen anything move so fast - faster then any horse and even faster then the wind itself.
It moved strangely - in a perfectly straight line towards the Grey Ranges. The speck would appear to go a few metres before disappearing, then reappearing hundreds of metres ahead of where it had been only a second before.
The librarian was sure that if he were closer, he wouldn't even be able to see it.
Rubbing his bald scalp, the librarian decided that this had nothing to do with him and he would be wiser to not dabble in the affairs of glowing specs in the far valley - insanity was all he needed right now.
---
He looked forward again, after watching the ground speed from beneath his feat. Not much further now, only a few more minutes - just in time to make it.
Though he knew that getting there before sunrise would lead him to sadness, in remembering the times that were - he still urged himself on. The world around him was filled with memories - had it really been so long?
Arriving at the feet of the mountains renewed his forsaken hope of reaching his target before sunrise - delving deeper into his seemingly limitless stash of energy, he bolted faster and faster, careering through small passages and rifts and finally reaching that particular mountain.
Scaling it was a matter of ease - rising up at an astounding rate to get to his ever distant goal.
When he finally reached the top, releasing his strength and taking a deep breath, he stood there - watching, waiting. He did not have to wait long, soon the morning sun rose, and as ever from this vantage point, it took his breath away.
All the memories of those years, the shards of joy and sorrow in an otherwise uneventful life returned to him. The sheer force of those emotions which he had bottled up for so long ago left him staggering internally - anger welling up in his heart.
And there he stood, facing the morning sun, remembering the past which had been troubling him for so long, nagging on his conscious thought for centuries. There he stood - two halves of the same man, one half the loving husband of old - the other half the all powerful god of now.
Fists clenched in rage, he stared as if challenging the very sun, the very universe itself. He was still standing - no matter what he had gone through in the past, no matter how much pain and anguish - he was still standing.
And so he stood, the ageless god, Angelus, Guardian of the North.
The morning sun, oblivious to the young god's challenge rose as normal, bringing light to the world as it had for countless centuries before.
---
The time passed, ticking life away - morning fleeted bye and noon was passing.
Angelus stood, thinking to himself, staring at the sun - it had been three thousand years.
Three thousand years since it all had happened, three thousand years since the universe had last been in such peril. Three thousand years, and Angelus was scared. For deep inside, he knew that it was happening again.
He had been roused that night, and every night before that for almost a week now, by a vision - the same vision, never changing. Visions would be perfectly normal of a god such as Angelus; however, this was different and much more sinister.
These visions were just as the ones that he had had before, 3 millennia ago. It projected naught but a single colour, unmistakable in its essence, that colour was red, blood red. However, in the colour, just as last time, he could see figures, faces, shadows of men, women, children in the millions, in the billions - innumerable beings of different species, all crying out - this crying, he could hear. Pain, intolerable pain. Just as last time.
'It cannot be happening again. I will not let it.' Angelus thought to himself, staring directly into the sunlight, clenching his fists, as if readying himself for a blow to the gut.
"Yawn". Angelus turned around to see Gaia behind him, smiling to herself, seeming to just have woken up. "Up here again, huh? I remember that you used to love this place and used to come here all the time"
"What is wrong?" she asked, as soon as she saw his face as he turned to greet her.
"How do you always know?"
"I'm your mother, I'm supposed to know"
"You're the mother of all; does that mean that you know everything?"
"I try", Gaia countered, smiling to herself.
Angelus, however, didn't smile, "It's been three thousand years - where did the time go?"
"It went where it always goes - into the past" replied Gaia, with a mock look of great wisdom on her face.
"It was all my fault"
"Stop saying that - you say the same thing no matter how much I tell you that it isn't"
"But no matter how many times you say it, it doesn't change the truth, it was all my fault - all those years and I didn't know who my true enemy was, all those years and I miscalculated at every turn'
"There is no point in you saying that now, the past is the past, let's leave it that way - the years have been just as hard on your brother Kael"
Angelus Smiled, "yes, they have, but he gets buy on gin - I don't drink"
"No, you don't, and don't regret that promise to Andrael"
"Sometimes it's hard, you know" Angelus replied as he returned to his staring at the morning sun.
"Don't stare at the sun; you'll hurt your eyes"
Angelus turned, "Mother, we are gods, our eyes don't get hurt"
"Aah yes, I had forgotten, the guardian of the north is invincible - you weren't always a god you know, I'm too used to saying that to you when you were young"
To this, Angelus smiled, "Don't call me that" he said it now out of habit, rather then as an actual command.
"Yes, 3024 years and 4 hours ago - that was the moment you two were born, I remember it like it was yesterday"
"I had forgotten that it was my birthday. I'm not surprised that you remember though, you're my mother, you could say that it's your job"
"Of course" Gaia countered, smiling - a smile that could melt ice. With a wry look she added "It was the same week that you were taken from me"
"You always say that, but you were the one who asked Kael to take us for training".
"Your training didn't start until you were 12"
"Magmus started when he was 11"
"Yes, he always had that on you - when he was 11 he was bigger then you when at 15"
"I sometimes wonder how we ended up as twins"
"It was meant to be - so quit your complaining. I also remember Kael coming 2 days late. I never asked what it was like; can you tell me the story?"
"Mother, this is not the time, nor the place"
"What better a place then the top of a mountain" she said, cocking her brow.
"You say it like you actually believe it"
"And why not believe it? It's beautiful up here, and I don't see why it can't be the time - remembering the past may be just what you need, get your mind of things."
At this, Angelus thought . "I guess. Ok, fine, it's a long story though"
Sitting down on a large rock, she looked intently at him, "well then, may as well get comfortable." Angelus cocked his brow - turning back to the sun, he replied, "fine - I know what you're doing, but, you're probably right. I'll start from the start, from what Elbarad told me".
Prologue
Soft moonlight gently cascaded over the jagged mountains - far in the distance.
He knew which one he was heading towards; he had been there what seemed like a thousand times, so much so that he wouldn't have been surprised if he was told that this was so.
The crisp night air turned to smoke as he breathed, enveloping him in a shallow mist for a few seconds, before being overwhelmed by the darkness surrounding him. It was very cold, and gradually getting colder as he approached the towering mountains.
Gripping the massive sword which was latched to his waist, he pressed forward - dawn was only a few hours away. He had been careless - the rune blade had left a clear path in the soft earth. It could glide, easily, through stone, let alone the sparse gravel that surrounded these mountains.
They will be wondering where I've gotten to. Ah well, she will know where to find me - don't worry yourself.
He felt the slow upwards slope of the ground beneath him as it gradually rose to the enormous peaks, called by some the 'Grey Ranges'. Keep going, he urged himself, his lack of sleep taking effect.
Sick of being careful he reached to the pommel of the rune blade - 'give me some light' - the wondrous sword erupted in bright blue flame, easily lighting the ground tens of metres around him.
Looking up, the mountains were close now, he had been travelling much faster then he had thought. However, he needed to keep this pace if he were to get to the particular mountain before sunrise.
Letting the sword drop again, he picked up the pace a little, tapping into his hidden strength, boosting his speed by far.
---
The librarian was just closing shop - my wife is going to kill me - he thought to himself, locking the large iron doors behind him. This was the fifth night in a row that he had been so late.
Looking at the horizon, he saw that day-break was maybe only an hour away.
'Well, I'll be damned'
He had seen this spectacle before. The same incandescent blue dot - this was the second time in as many days.
Before the last time, he had never seen anything move so fast - faster then any horse and even faster then the wind itself.
It moved strangely - in a perfectly straight line towards the Grey Ranges. The speck would appear to go a few metres before disappearing, then reappearing hundreds of metres ahead of where it had been only a second before.
The librarian was sure that if he were closer, he wouldn't even be able to see it.
Rubbing his bald scalp, the librarian decided that this had nothing to do with him and he would be wiser to not dabble in the affairs of glowing specs in the far valley - insanity was all he needed right now.
---
He looked forward again, after watching the ground speed from beneath his feat. Not much further now, only a few more minutes - just in time to make it.
Though he knew that getting there before sunrise would lead him to sadness, in remembering the times that were - he still urged himself on. The world around him was filled with memories - had it really been so long?
Arriving at the feet of the mountains renewed his forsaken hope of reaching his target before sunrise - delving deeper into his seemingly limitless stash of energy, he bolted faster and faster, careering through small passages and rifts and finally reaching that particular mountain.
Scaling it was a matter of ease - rising up at an astounding rate to get to his ever distant goal.
When he finally reached the top, releasing his strength and taking a deep breath, he stood there - watching, waiting. He did not have to wait long, soon the morning sun rose, and as ever from this vantage point, it took his breath away.
All the memories of those years, the shards of joy and sorrow in an otherwise uneventful life returned to him. The sheer force of those emotions which he had bottled up for so long ago left him staggering internally - anger welling up in his heart.
And there he stood, facing the morning sun, remembering the past which had been troubling him for so long, nagging on his conscious thought for centuries. There he stood - two halves of the same man, one half the loving husband of old - the other half the all powerful god of now.
Fists clenched in rage, he stared as if challenging the very sun, the very universe itself. He was still standing - no matter what he had gone through in the past, no matter how much pain and anguish - he was still standing.
And so he stood, the ageless god, Angelus, Guardian of the North.
The morning sun, oblivious to the young god's challenge rose as normal, bringing light to the world as it had for countless centuries before.
---
The time passed, ticking life away - morning fleeted bye and noon was passing.
Angelus stood, thinking to himself, staring at the sun - it had been three thousand years.
Three thousand years since it all had happened, three thousand years since the universe had last been in such peril. Three thousand years, and Angelus was scared. For deep inside, he knew that it was happening again.
He had been roused that night, and every night before that for almost a week now, by a vision - the same vision, never changing. Visions would be perfectly normal of a god such as Angelus; however, this was different and much more sinister.
These visions were just as the ones that he had had before, 3 millennia ago. It projected naught but a single colour, unmistakable in its essence, that colour was red, blood red. However, in the colour, just as last time, he could see figures, faces, shadows of men, women, children in the millions, in the billions - innumerable beings of different species, all crying out - this crying, he could hear. Pain, intolerable pain. Just as last time.
'It cannot be happening again. I will not let it.' Angelus thought to himself, staring directly into the sunlight, clenching his fists, as if readying himself for a blow to the gut.
"Yawn". Angelus turned around to see Gaia behind him, smiling to herself, seeming to just have woken up. "Up here again, huh? I remember that you used to love this place and used to come here all the time"
"What is wrong?" she asked, as soon as she saw his face as he turned to greet her.
"How do you always know?"
"I'm your mother, I'm supposed to know"
"You're the mother of all; does that mean that you know everything?"
"I try", Gaia countered, smiling to herself.
Angelus, however, didn't smile, "It's been three thousand years - where did the time go?"
"It went where it always goes - into the past" replied Gaia, with a mock look of great wisdom on her face.
"It was all my fault"
"Stop saying that - you say the same thing no matter how much I tell you that it isn't"
"But no matter how many times you say it, it doesn't change the truth, it was all my fault - all those years and I didn't know who my true enemy was, all those years and I miscalculated at every turn'
"There is no point in you saying that now, the past is the past, let's leave it that way - the years have been just as hard on your brother Kael"
Angelus Smiled, "yes, they have, but he gets buy on gin - I don't drink"
"No, you don't, and don't regret that promise to Andrael"
"Sometimes it's hard, you know" Angelus replied as he returned to his staring at the morning sun.
"Don't stare at the sun; you'll hurt your eyes"
Angelus turned, "Mother, we are gods, our eyes don't get hurt"
"Aah yes, I had forgotten, the guardian of the north is invincible - you weren't always a god you know, I'm too used to saying that to you when you were young"
To this, Angelus smiled, "Don't call me that" he said it now out of habit, rather then as an actual command.
"Yes, 3024 years and 4 hours ago - that was the moment you two were born, I remember it like it was yesterday"
"I had forgotten that it was my birthday. I'm not surprised that you remember though, you're my mother, you could say that it's your job"
"Of course" Gaia countered, smiling - a smile that could melt ice. With a wry look she added "It was the same week that you were taken from me"
"You always say that, but you were the one who asked Kael to take us for training".
"Your training didn't start until you were 12"
"Magmus started when he was 11"
"Yes, he always had that on you - when he was 11 he was bigger then you when at 15"
"I sometimes wonder how we ended up as twins"
"It was meant to be - so quit your complaining. I also remember Kael coming 2 days late. I never asked what it was like; can you tell me the story?"
"Mother, this is not the time, nor the place"
"What better a place then the top of a mountain" she said, cocking her brow.
"You say it like you actually believe it"
"And why not believe it? It's beautiful up here, and I don't see why it can't be the time - remembering the past may be just what you need, get your mind of things."
At this, Angelus thought . "I guess. Ok, fine, it's a long story though"
Sitting down on a large rock, she looked intently at him, "well then, may as well get comfortable." Angelus cocked his brow - turning back to the sun, he replied, "fine - I know what you're doing, but, you're probably right. I'll start from the start, from what Elbarad told me".