Prologue
A Night to Remember
Quoren moved silently through the shadows
in his underworld lair. Burning incense
mingled with torchlight to create flickering, smoke shrouded spectres on the
stone walls, as he passed room after quiet room. He paused suddenly, bending double, his lips
pursed tightly against the soul-wrenching moan threatening to escape his lungs,
both hands clutching his chest. The pain in his heart slowly subsided, but it
felt so cold and heavy now. Breathing
deeply of the intoxicating musky air, he regained his composure and moved on.
Walking with long, quick strides, the fallen god cloaked himself, sucking his
essence in to contain any hint of his presence, wanting to reach his private
rooms unseen and unheard, as he wished not to be disturbed. He didn’t want to forget any details from
this past night.
Dawn always was so quiet at the Marble Palace
– servants, slaves, guests and important dignitaries should be sound asleep by
now after a night of…. Well, Quoren knows
what, as the saying goes in Qorentia.
The tired Castrati Guards continued their rounds, two passing by and
taking no notice of their master, their senses not quite as alert as the fresh
bodies that would replace them in an hour’s time. As he passed through the guest quarters,
another wave of pain gripped Quoren’s heart, causing him to stop and reach out
to the cool marble wall to steady himself.
Muffled moans and giggles came from behind a closed door as he stooped,
riding out the agonizing spasms of evil reclaiming him for the Darkness.
“Kreshtia is still entertaining the young
Morelust prince from Takmore, I hear,” Quoren muttered to himself as the last
twinge of pain left him. “Naughty succubus,”
he said through a half grin, shaking his head and catching his breath before
continuing down the passageway.
Not a waking soul saw the Fallan pass
through the arched halls, gleaming in the many torch lights dotted along the
smooth walls, as he made it to his own rooms undisturbed. At last,
he thought, sighing in relief. He would
have hated to flog anyone now after the night he’d had. Besides, he didn’t have the time. He had more pressing needs on his mind.
The large, ornate door swung softly on its
soundless hinges, closing and barring itself behind the Dark Fallan trapped in
his daimonic form, the body he had been condemned to after the his fall to evil
in the underworld, and then disappeared, fading into the wall. Moving swiftly about his chambers, he grabbed
a large handful of fresh parchments from a wooden chest and set them down at
his writing table, along with a shimmering stone he pulled out of a small pouch
kept close to his body. Thinking twice,
he paused and picked it back up again, gently passing his cold thumb over its
glossy surface. It glowed under his light touch. As he let it dangle from its dainty gold
chain, the gem’s luminosity intensified, growing bright blue as though to say, I remember you; I am here for you. Quoren pinched his lips into a tight,
melancholy smile and let his shoulders drop. Fighting the emotions welling up
through his hardening soul, he thought about the one who gave it to him. He pressed it to his lips, and then put the
stone back to rest beside his parchments.
Stepping down from the stairs in his study
to the platform into his bedroom, he cursed under his breath as his legs,
weakened and shrunken to their smaller size through atrophy, were unable to
make the wide gap in one stride. Quoren
took full notice of his hideous evil form and stopped in mid-pace. Tears burned in his red eyes, threatening to
spill over, but he fought them back. No time for self pity, he admonished
himself, gathering up the remaining necessities and returning to his study.
With a silver cup and two unopened bottles of Frigg’s finest Dark Amber Rum in
his hands, he settled down at his desk, and then pulled ink and quills out of
the drawer.
Daylight began to fill his otherworldly
gardens outside, spilling down from the reflective shields strategically placed
high in the mountain walls of his paradise in hell, its brilliant rays reaching
in across his polished chamber floor.
With one fluid motion of his hand, long heavy drapes slid across the
tall windows plunging the space into darkness and every wick in the room
ignited with small dancing flames. He
couldn’t face the sun today. He wasn’t
sure if he wanted to ever see it again, as it had so callously just torn him
out of the arms of his beloved. His
heart ached again at the thought of her. Hold on
to this night, and I hold on to her, he smiled tenderly, remembering her,
her scent, her touch, her lips, and let the comforting embrace of darkness
envelope him, prolonging the blissful night he had just spent with her.
Glancing into the gilded looking glass
perched atop his desk, he held his own gaze for a moment. Although a twisted, repulsive face stared
back at him, radiating intense evil power, those eyes were his. There’s
a coldness to them now, but those are my eyes, he thought, taking comfort
in something familiar. With a slow, deep
breath, Quoren rubbed his forehead, and then tried to pour himself a full cup
of rum with an uncharacteristic shaking hand.
The torrent of confusing emotions churning inside of him disrupted his
normal grace and poise, as a little of the dark liquor slopped over the
rim.
“f**k!” he cursed loudly, slamming the
bottle down. Gripping the edge of the
desk with both boney hands, Quoren was tempted to send cup and all smashing to
the floor. Calm yourself Fallan, his mind commanded, though the voice sounded
eerily like that of his beloved. Taking
in a long quiet breath, he nodded.
“Yes,” he whispered, “control. Be
the master, not the slave.”
Sopping up the mess with blotting paper
that he then crumpled and threw over his shoulder, he tried again, this time
filling the cup neatly. Downing half its
contents in one quick, satisfying gulp, he let its heavy, velvety warmth splash
over his tongue and slip down his throat, as the night’s events flashed through
his mind. He savoured the memories, as
much as the drink calming his nerves.
Setting the cup back down with a now steady hand, he sat quietly for a
moment, gathering his thoughts.
Now
I’m ready.
Choosing a beautiful peacock quill, he
delicately dipped its tip into the inkwell.
Pausing to adjust the parchment, he then began to write on its pristine
pages in the most beautiful calligraphic script,
filling them with his distinctive flowing prose….
Leiren 22nd, in 11 000 of the
Era of Our Lord
Why is it that we tend to remember the bad
times in our lives, but often forget the good ones? Is it because the bad times affect us so
profoundly, changing us in some way, either great or small? And what of the good times, do they not also
affect us on some level? Surely, they
must.
Well, I had such an experience. One of those wondrous times in life worth
remembering. One I wish never to forget.
Ironically it was the deep suffering of someone I care for so deeply, someone
in the realm of the heavens, to whom I owe this extraordinary pleasure.
What I will record here, then, are my
private memories of my visit back to Haedan, once home to all of the gods, and
now home only to two and their servants.
Yes, for those who are unaware or thought it only myth, my home used to
be on Haedan. In fact, my own private
chambers here in my underworld palace are constructed exactly like my private
rooms were there, right down to the terrace out to my beautiful gardens. Of course, I miss it. I miss being able to walk in such luscious
bounty and sunshine, drink from the divine healing cup, hear the sweet music of
the spheres and so much more. But last night was about my dearest friend. And yes, I did visit Haedan. It’s true.
I set foot in the gods’ heavens for the first time since I was taken out
from there so long ago for choosing to serve the darkness in order to save
humanity.
So how did I achieve this blessed
honour? I damn well earned it. Of course, a little deception helped as well…
I am a Dark Fallan after all.
When Maldek declared himself the One True
God of all Taqqara, instituting what we, in our dimensions, call the False Age,
a band of daimon mercenaries managed to capture FalPashan. My sworn enemy, Fallan Troykus, had employed
these lesser servants, giving them special means to seize and imprison a dark
goddess. Sayanna, lost to her madness,
and Tiela, too weak for such a battle, had both been bound to the heavens at
the order of Maldek, unable to come to her aide, and the other Fallans,
especially my brothers Wodan and Kathor, either turned a blind eye or simply
didn’t give a damn what happened to her.
That left only me. Part of my icy
heart will forever love Pashan, so I had to do something to help her, and I
certainly couldn’t bear to let her fall into Troykus’ ravenous hands. So I made my decision to serve another and
saved her from whatever sinister fate Troykus had planned for her. Certainly, this brought much contempt upon me
from my evil brothers, but it also gave me an inner sense of satisfaction for
denying Troykus his conquest – a victory I will forever savour.
Although ostracized by the other Fallans,
my valorous efforts did not go unnoticed.
As a reward, Ahm granted me this special privilege: every year when the
constellation Krajalan disappears completely from the night sky in the month of
Leiren, and the powers of the Fallans are thought, by some mortals, to be at
their weakest, I am permitted to visit Haedan from sunset until sunrise. Last night was the first of those nights.
Dreams of returning to the heavens haunted
me for thousands of years, yet never did I believe they would ever come
true. This past night fulfilled all of
that tortured longing, and everything was even more splendid than I remembered
it, though it came with a price. Now
that I’ve tasted freedom, I long to reclaim it.
I want nothing more than to return to Haedan and take my beloved into my
arms again. But I’m trapped by my past
choices, forever imprisoned by evil… forever, except for this one glorious
night each year.
This bittersweet honour becomes even more
spectacular, however, as I am also granted a most cherished gift while back in
my ancient home, a gift I soon discovered after I first arrived there….
**Anyone caught stealing this and using it for their own gain will be hounded by the forces of darkness. Don't mess with me, for I will release the daimons upon you! 
... Now have a nice day... 
**
Edited by Quoren - 16 May 2008 at 2:07pm
Topic Options
WOW Quoren tha was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait to read more...................
