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An exploration of the title

After reading the poetry by Welphgryn, I decided to to attach it to a minor side story, just because.

i sense a presence, one of mortal life and sculpted from the iron vessel. 
i wonder how long it has been since the last time i awoke from my slumber? This one smells of aether, so she has tried to unlock the arts of old... how meddlesome. i would greet her, but am very tired, so maybe a messenger is in order.....

The adventurer, thick with ash and Red Iron, crept into the empty expanse before her. Though not bright, the natural light of the Ma'Naar sculpted into the walls guided her way, to an inner chamber with a door half in place. Wary, as always, and sensing something on the other side of the doorway, she silently chanted the incantation of protection, and raised the Blade of the Spellbinder so as to defend against the darkness.

It seems that this Child of Iron is curious, but only death awaits inside. Perhaps the Vessel of Mithril will be helpful here...
 
It was there, on the tablet erected in the center of the passage before the shattered doors, that she noticed it. An inscription of the Dunzenkell. It was faded and partially chipped, but there were parts still legible:

I arrive in a land filled with 
Every turn, every wake, fullness of life
Yet,                                      emptiness

Where are the people?
                       I see no one
Where is the life?
                      I am no one 
I cast 
           from the ashes

Unable to understand the meaning with such a small amount of the original carving readable, she forges ahead, and through the doors stands a throne atop a carved hill, bathed in the light of Ma'Naar seemingly gathered from the depths. A stone box sits handily next to the throne and very carefully, the adventurer opens it with the spell of feather. glancing inside after a time, she finds a manuscript. Deciding that she has gone far enough into this place, she makes her way back towards the entrance.

Under the rising tide of the morning light, she reads that which she has obtained. Most of the passages talk of the area, once a city of the Dunir, through countless struggles, they became great, flourishing with many species and neighboring kingdoms. After many years of this, something was found in a faraway place, something terrifying. The Ma'Naar gathered the races and urged them to leave, but not all would make it out in time. Steeling themselves to buy time for the Ma'Naar to complete their exodus of the world, This Dunzenkell King returned with a coalition force to protect the mountain path for as long as possible. Then she approached the last entry.
"In my return, I find our empires, the creations of which we toiled for so many moons, abandoned and empty. Its halls vacant, and fields full of life now harbor a new life untamed by us or any other. From the ashes of these, a new empire has risen, a terrible one that hates those who would cherish the freedom of life. However, I believe. I hold hope that through our sacrifice and the wisdom of the Ma'Naar, that one day we will see a new beginning, through the ashes and fire of those who usurped us. May the Phoenix follow us on our travels, as we prepare stare down The Enemy."

Releasing the book, the adventurer gazes at the sunrise over the horizon, and silently speaks to the wilderness around her:
"I never expected these ruins to harbor records from The Long Ago. But this I promise you, King of Old, with the steel in our blades and the iron in our armor, we cast a new path. Forged, from the ashes."

Comments

  • After reading the poetry by Welphgryn, I decided to to attach it to a minor side story, just because.

    i sense a presence, one of mortal life and sculpted from the iron vessel. 
    i wonder how long it has been since the last time i awoke from my slumber? This one smells of aether, so she has tried to unlock the arts of old... how meddlesome. i would greet her, but am very tired, so maybe a messenger is in order.....

    The adventurer, thick with ash and Red Iron, crept into the empty expanse before her. Though not bright, the natural light of the Ma'Naar sculpted into the walls guided her way, to an inner chamber with a door half in place. Wary, as always, and sensing something on the other side of the doorway, she silently chanted the incantation of protection, and raised the Blade of the Spellbinder so as to defend against the darkness.

    It seems that this Child of Iron is curious, but only death awaits inside. Perhaps the Vessel of Mithril will be helpful here...
     
    It was there, on the tablet erected in the center of the passage before the shattered doors, that she noticed it. An inscription of the Dunzenkell. It was faded and partially chipped, but there were parts still legible:

    I arrive in a land filled with 
    Every turn, every wake, fullness of life
    Yet,                                      emptiness

    Where are the people?
                           I see no one
    Where is the life?
                          I am no one 
    I cast 
               from the ashes

    Unable to understand the meaning with such a small amount of the original carving readable, she forges ahead, and through the doors stands a throne atop a carved hill, bathed in the light of Ma'Naar seemingly gathered from the depths. A stone box sits handily next to the throne and very carefully, the adventurer opens it with the spell of feather. glancing inside after a time, she finds a manuscript. Deciding that she has gone far enough into this place, she makes her way back towards the entrance.

    Under the rising tide of the morning light, she reads that which she has obtained. Most of the passages talk of the area, once a city of the Dunir, through countless struggles, they became great, flourishing with many species and neighboring kingdoms. After many years of this, something was found in a faraway place, something terrifying. The Ma'Naar gathered the races and urged them to leave, but not all would make it out in time. Steeling themselves to buy time for the Ma'Naar to complete their exodus of the world, This Dunzenkell King returned with a coalition force to protect the mountain path for as long as possible. Then she approached the last entry.
    "In my return, I find our empires, the creations of which we toiled for so many moons, abandoned and empty. Its halls vacant, and fields full of life now harbor a new life untamed by us or any other. From the ashes of these, a new empire has risen, a terrible one that hates those who would cherish the freedom of life. However, I believe. I hold hope that through our sacrifice and the wisdom of the Ma'Naar, that one day we will see a new beginning, through the ashes and fire of those who usurped us. May the Phoenix follow us on our travels, as we prepare stare down The Enemy."

    Releasing the book, the adventurer gazes at the sunrise over the horizon, and silently speaks to the wilderness around her:
    "I never expected these ruins to harbor records from The Long Ago. But this I promise you, King of Old, with the steel in our blades and the iron in our armor, we cast a new path. Forged, from the ashes."
    Thank you for bringing my poem to life. I love it!!!!
  • You are a very talented writer, and story teller.
  • Very good short story!  Thank you!
  • Thanks, I may make more of these if I see something else that inspires a story.
  • Very very nice!  
  • ArchivedUserArchivedUser Guest
    edited June 2017
    I'm slightly envious of your writing ability. I consider myself a good storyteller but an average writer. You seem to have the best of both worlds. Top job mate, keep it up, I'm a fan.
  • Nicely written! I need to keep an eye out for more of your work @crystalmonkeys
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