I must warn you… this is not a nice story.
I know.
Hmm. This is a story of Chaos, of Blood and of Bone. Most stories are, at the end. The Old stories, in any case. This is a story of ancient magic, long forgotten, and of self-sacrifice. But mostly, this is a story about those who think of the future. Those who think of the future, and are not afraid to face it.
Then, let the story begin.
Yes, let the story begin.
Very well…
The grayness coalesced into a scene, outside of a hut. In front of the hut, there was someone fiddling with a bag. It was an echidna, a red echidna. It had a white symbol on its chest, and vivid green eyes. On its hands, its knuckles protruded from the bone, although they were covered with white gloves. The echidna stood up, and took a staff that had been leaning against the wall of the hut. The staff was made of some indistinguishable type of wood, with some sort of large crystal set in the top. This was the wizard of the Island of the Gods' Messengers, Kun'nuk'kles. Kun'nuk'kles sighed. "Minsha!" he called to the hut.
Out of the hut came an orange echidna, carrying a baby. She was wearing a colorfully patterned dress and a circlet with a small sapphire set in it, complementing her blue eyes. "Yes, my husband?" she replied.
"There is a great disturbance on Mobius. I have had a vision. I must go, to confront the Chaos Spirits, lest they destroy this world," he said, his face set grimly.
"Oh, no… Kun'nuk'kles, can you not let another…"
He shook his head. "This requires the Old Bindings, the ones concerning gemstones and spirits. None of the other wizards has my affinity for the stones. I am sorry. Take care of little Shik'kai for me… it is unlikely that I will return to you alive…"
And with that, the echidna turned his back on his wife, slung the bag over his shoulder, and started walking. It was hard, leaving everything behind, especially his infant son. But, it was as he had said. This would require an affinity for gemstones, for Order, for patterns, for structures. He was the only choice in this matter.
Why do we hear his thoughts, feel his emotions?
Because the story dictates that we know exactly what he is feeling at all times, and why.
I… see…
It's really not as bad as it seems. After all, he has been dead for millennia.
Kun'nuk'kles looked directly at the watchers. "I know you're there, and I know you know how this is going to turn out," he said firmly, still walking. "But I would rather appreciate it if you wouldn't comment on my life like that."
Wait… he can hear us?
Of course he can. He is the most powerful wizard in the whole of Mobius. There is very little that he cannot perceive.
"Even as he said. I know you are there, and I can hear you, but I cannot seem to get a fix on your identity. I think it would be better if it remained that way. As little interference as possible from the future is integral to my mission…"
And with that, he set his eyes back on the path in front of him. Suddenly, there was a large-sounding growl to his left. Kun'nuk'kles sighed, and put the sack down. It flopped, as if empty. In fact, it WAS empty. It was to carry the things he was going to collect…
He brandished his staff in front of him, while whatever it was came closer. From out of the brush and trees, there came a huge, green reptile. From its skin, a green mist was rising. It focused on Kun'nuk'kles, and roared again. Kun'nuk'kles steeled himself, and yelled, "Ak'kun leoht! Sekk'tu ne-par! Reveal thy name! Reveal thy nature!"
The crystal on his staff began to glow, and a ray of light from it lanced out and struck the creature. The reptilian thing roared in pain, and beat its tail against the ground. And then, it spoke, haltingly, as if every word were being forcefully ripped from its mouth. "I… am… Chaos Green… I am… Strength!" it cried, and charged Kun'nuk'kles.
Kun'nuk'kles stood his ground, but at the last possible instant, leapt aside, into a tree. He clung there, and scrambled into the foliage. The reptile thing looked around, confused. It flicked its tongue out, tasting the air, and sniffed. Kun'nuk'kles crawled through the canopy, directly over the thing. It didn't look up. It seemed the Chaos Spirit was somewhat governed by its host. The reptile turned its back, and Kun'nuk'kles took the opportunity. He dropped down onto the thing's back, just below the neck. It roared in indignation and started shaking and bucking, trying to shake him off. But he had a firm grip on the scales, and with only one hand. He lifted his other hand, clutching his staff, and pointed to crystal end at the creature's neck. "Ak'kun leoht! Pyrosis pi'chin! Fireball!" he cried.
From the tip of his staff emerged 3 fireballs, each the size of a cantaloupe. They struck the creature in the back of the neck, blasting through scales, skin, and muscle, severing the spinal column. The creature suddenly jerked stiff, and fell over with an earthshaking thump. It twitched once, and was still. Kun'nuk'kles pulled his leg clear from under the corpse of the beast, and stood up. He looked at it, smiled, and walked about ten paces away from it. Then, he whirled to face the thing, his staff raised. "Ak'kun leoht! Ned-le ky'lyu! Chaos Spirit, Order be Imposed upon ye! Imprison!" he shouted.
The green mist that had been rising from the skin of the creature shuddered, and began rising more rapidly. As it came clear of the beast, it re-formed into some sort of hominid shape. It reached out for Kun'nuk'kles… "Imprison!" he roared again.
The spirit shuddered, and began twisting and curling in on itself as if it were caught in a vortex. It started to flow closer to the ground, condensing into some sort of shape there. "You now Imprison Chaos Green, but be warned!" it screamed as it continued to flow. "You are accursed from this day forward! None will remember the sacrifices you made, and your creations will be used for destruction! When the Lore is forgotten, and Greed prevails, the Waters themselves will throw themselves against your tribe and people! So it is said, so shall it be!"
And then, the motion stopped. A small cloud of dust still obscured what had been made. But when it cleared, it was clear what had been done. There, on the ground, was a large green gem, about 3 inches tall and wide, and vibrant as the rainforest. Kun'nuk'kles smiled. The spell had worked perfectly, imposing the crystalline structure of beryl on the Chaos Spirit… so it had become a very large emerald. Kun'nuk'kles picked it up. "What do you know," he muttered to himself, still smiling. "An emerald made from Chaos… a Chaos Emerald…"
Kun'nuk'kles picked up his sack, and dropped the Emerald in. It was glowing ever so slightly in the rainforest shadows. But it contained a power both potent and deadly, if it were to be used that way. The Ultimate power of Chaos, as he had taught his classes, was Life. The power to give Life, and to take it away. He slung the sack over his shoulder, and started walking again. This had been a fortuitous encounter. Doubtless the other Chaos Spirits would be much harder to find. For one thing, he knew for a FACT that Chaos Red possessed some sort of magma-dwelling creature in the heart of a volcano. But regardless, his Vision had been very clear. Unless all 7 Chaos Spirits were Imprisoned, Mobius would fly apart from the stress of unfettered Chaos.
It would be folly to attempt the same trick he had used another time. Doubtless the other Chaos Spirits were already aware of what he was trying to do, and had succeeded in doing with Chaos Green.
So, were you?
Pretty much, yeah.
Kun'nuk'kles ignored the further ramblings of the watchers. It would imperil his timeline if he knew too much about things he had no business knowing, or couldn't possibly know. He looked up at the sky. The sun was sinking beyond the trees. He needed to find a place to spend the night. So, he began to climb a tree. There, in the branches, he made a makeshift nest from branches, leaves, and bits of sticks. And then, he curled up, and went to sleep.
So, how much did the Chaos Spirits suspect at that point?
Well, as I remember it, we weren't too worried, but exceedingly suspicious of this spell caster who could trap a Chaos Spirit in a gemstone.
That was probably a mistake, not being worried.
Oh, I got really worried later. After I was the last Chaos Spirit left unbound, in fact.
Wait… you don't think he can hear us in his sleep, do you?
Extremely unlikely. Even a wizard has to rest his mind when he sleeps, you know.
If you say so…
