| Chronicles of Eden will continue to be updated as stories are written |
| Insert taken from the Eden Chronicles
Written Leander the traveling Scholar Translated from the ancient texts by Rose Blush I have done much research into the life of the one known as Damarius and the events that shaped the island of Eden. Some call him evil and some call him a villain. I feel that there was more to him than most would consider. After all, what makes a villain? How does one constitute evil? Even those who grow to gain such titles came somewhere and one is not simply born evil. As I did my research I came to realize that Damarius was once a man of honor who fought for the safety of the people he felt he was protecting. So, what happened to him to cause him to fall from grace? The earliest records I have ever found referred to him as a warrior and a champion to his people. In fact, he wasn�t even the greatest of warriors and often got by with luck. As most stories, there is also a girl. In this case, her name was Acelia. There were many records upon her, but all agreed to that one fact. That, and she was a seeress. She came from a village within Eden called Tristan. She was somewhere between the age of sixteen and eighteen. It wasn�t a large village, but they were known for their diviners. It was a vision of prophecy that brought Acelia and Damarius together. She had a vision of an invading army and knew that the only one who could raise a force large enough to fight them back was Damarius, thus she sought him out. Upon finding him, she told him of the vision and offered herself to his service in order to help him succeed. With her sight, he managed to raise the army and knew exactly where the invaders would come from and where they would go. With her sight, Damarius drove them back and then rose to power over the island. For ten years, he ruled over Eden with Acelia�s help. She had offered his services for life, but he did not know that would not be for long. She had an illness and one that slowly ate away at her. It eventually began to show and she grew weaker and sicker. Damarius feared for her health. Not because of love, but because he did not think he could rule without her. Her visions were too valuable to him. So, he prayed to Gaia for assistance in this, but she refused to help. She had told him that he would need to find a way without her, and spoke of his potential to do so. All he had to do was search within himself. She went on to explain how death was a natural part of things and it came for all. Damarius grew angry and would not accept such an answer, so he sought it elsewhere. His quest took him deep into the Murkwood Forest, battling all sorts of undead and evil within until he came to a temple nestled within. Within the temple, he battled other forces and made his way deep within until he came to what he sought. If he could not gain Gaia�s help, then perhaps he could gain the help of her sister, Nyx. Nyx came to him and he stared upon her pale flesh and perfectly formed body. She was the loveliest thing he had seen, despite the darkness that surrounded her. The shadows themselves moved to make way for her passing and the undead within the chamber all kneeled in reverence for the Queen of the Night. Damarius spoke his wishes to her and she said that she could help him, but in return, he had to swear allegiance to her. Without thought, he swore and so she had asked for his right hand. When he offered it to her, she shook her head and told him what it was she wanted. She explained that it was a test of his willingness to do what was required and his loyalty to her. Without much more though, he drew his sword and severed his right hand from the wrist. He cradled the stump to him and rocked back and forth, hoping that his sacrifice was not in vain. Nyx reached down and took the stump in her hand. The skeletal structure of the hand regenerated itself, but not the flesh. And with it came the power of death�to kill as if struck by the plague. �With your loyalty, I shall grant you your wish,� were the words that she spoke to him. �Acelia will live so long as you live and those who are loyal to you shall serve you, even in death.� Damarius shortly left the temple and returned home to find Acelia completely recovered. She had not known what had happened, but the moment she saw his hand, she grew frightened. She began to see the changes in him as a darkness she could not explain slowly consumed him. She begged for him to cast the hand from him, but he would not for it was what saved Acelia. His rule became darker and the people began to suffer for it. Temples to Gaia were destroyed, and those dedicated to Nyx were risen. Acelia had a brother who began to see the changes and thought to free his sister. The records were not sure of his name, but many simply referred to him as Draken. He raised up a rebellion and started to make attacks at the temples of Nyx, tearing them down where he would find them. Soon, he began to gain a large support and Acelia gained a vision of Damarius�s destruction. Growing afraid of this, he grabbed her and a few of those who were loyal to him, and retreated into the temple within Murkwood. By now, it was the last temple to Nyx that was left standing and it was there Damarius made his stand. The armies stormed the temple and Draken confronted Damarius himself. In the battle, Draken and mortally wounded Damarius, then turned to his sister. It was then that he realized the extent of the curse placed over her for she would live as long as Damarius, but with Damarius dying, so was she. Lifting her into his arms, Draken attempted to carry his sister out of the room, but some force blocked him. Knowing that there was nothing more he could do for her, Draken had placed her in the tomb with Damarius and the rest of his people. The story does not end there as many may think, for I have found other records that spoke of his return. There are prophecies that often speak of it as well. And with a stroke of luck, I actually found a recount of what happened written in his own words. I will put them on here for you to read as well. The last thing I had remembered was my fight with Draken. He called me a villain, but none of them knew that I did it all for them. They were all fools and I could not understand the betrayal. I remember the pain as his sword cleaved my flesh and I remembered seeing Acelia suffer the same fate. No wounds appeared on her, but she felt the pain� through the bond that we shared, I could feel her death. The others, those loyal to me who fought with me down here, they suffered the same. It seemed that with my death came theirs as well. This was the price I had paid to the Queen of the Night, but was it worth it? If given a chance, I would gladly do it again. When I awoke, the first thought was that perhaps I was not dead�but what was I doing in this forest? It was hot, hotter than an oven, and I could feel sweat coming down my brow. Sitting up, I looked around and realized that I was not in Murkwood. And I was also being watched. Rising to my feet, I looked around, ready to fight if need be. A group of women approached me; each had large leathery wings upon their back and carried scythes. One of them approached and introduced herself as Moonglow Katana and spoke of a sisterhood. She also explained that I was dead and this was the Underworld. I spoke of going back and she laughed�laughed at me. Turning, I walked away intent to find my own way back. It wasn�t long before I found myself facing a structure of such magnificence that it took my breath away. It was a large fortress made of obsidian and had specks of green floating through it. Entering the fortress, I stalked through the hallways until I found myself face to face with a man wearing black robes that had the same green specks floating through it. He told me that there was a way to return to the land of the living, but there was a price to be paid. He wanted more to come down to join him and as such, if I was to return, then others shall die. I cared not and he gave me the power to return and return I did. This is where things can get a bit sketchy. It had been centuries since his death and his return, but in the Underworld, time moves differently. Most do not even remember the village of Tristan, but the records I have found out spoke of a plague that erupted within the village. For some reason, it did not spread out of it, but none survived the plague. When I cross-referenced many of my records, I found out that the plague that destroyed the village of Tristan occurred at the same time that Damarius�s apparent return happened. Was that the price that was paid for his return from the Underworld? And if so, did he know that it was Tristan that would suffer? Or did he choose it to be Tristan over a sense of revenge? Apparently when he returned, so did those who followed and died with him at the last battle. Even Acelia was reborn the same as when she died, for age did not touch her. With his return, Damarius once again plotted to take over Eden. Much had changed since his death and he raised himself an army. With Acelia at his side, he seemed unbeateable. Acelia, learning about the death of her village, came to resent Damarius, for she had paid her dues and wanted to leave his service. There was just nothing she could do about it, though. One of the people who worked for him was named Jorox,. Jorox later fell in love with a druid and Damarius did not approve of such a union. He sought to destroy the druids, but Jorox turned upon his master. Damarius also found one, a woman named Bellasyne, who was an angel. She fell in love with him and he used that to his advantage and began to corrupt her to his way of thinking. Acelia spoke against such an act, but he refused to listen. Jorox eventually returned to Damarius, speaking of returning to his old master and that he wished forgiveness. Damarius gave it to him. The thing Damarius did not know was that Jorox sought to betray him in hopes of ending the war. The records I found were unsure about what happened, but in the end Damarius fled, his power weakened. Those who were loyal to him fled as well, all but Bellasyne who found herself alone to wander the world. There have been no further records of Damarius. Is he gone for good? Or will he return? |