9/18/2019

As we head into the opening act of Forsaken Foes we invite you to sit back and enjoy, As the Ages Roll Away

by EM Malachi

The Spiritwood

The swirl of glowing mana surprised the young ranger, and his axe slipped. Instead of the sapling he meant to cut, Shamino hit his own leg.

The mana coalesced into a strange Moongate, and a young man stepped through. The stranger gave the bleeding ranger a look of shock and dropped what he was holding: a glowing serpent amulet.

*****

The Bloody Plains

Each had brought an army. The king of Britain had marched from his capital, and Shamino had marched his forces west from a small fishing village called Vesper. Now they stood together for the final battle of the war. They would defeat Mondain’s forces, or they would perish along with the hopes of all Sosaria.

Shamino remarked that his friend was not wearing the amulet that had brought him to Sosaria.

The king nodded. “I am not going anywhere.”

 *****

The Throne Room

 Shamino heard the whispers from the castle staff and royal officials as he headed into the throne room. The day he worried about had come, so he went to confront his friend. “Is it true that you’re leaving?”

Rule may have aged the king of Britannia, but his face still held the same solemn conviction as when they first met. “Shamino, I do this to protect all of you. I must keep the fragments of the Gem far from those who could misuse them.”

“But who will take your place?”

“If I offered you the crown, would you accept it?”

Shamino shook his head. “No. I have already failed one kingdom.”

The king gave his friend a sad smile. “You are better than you know.  Someday, our people will need you to keep them safe.”

“How can I do that?”

“I am leaving something to help. The amulet that brought me to Sosaria is hidden for you to find. In a dream, a man in chains told me that there will come a day when you will need it.”

*****

The Well of Souls

“Wake up!”

Startled awake, Shamino drew his sword and prepared for an attack. The old ranger sat across the dying fire from him, ghostly hands gripping the memory of a longbow. The shade watched as Shamino got to his feet. “This is no time to rest. There’s a storm coming.”

Shamino looked up at the night sky, but he saw no clouds in the world of the living. Still, he felt the disturbance. After Lithos had destroyed the capstone of the Well of Souls, more and more spirits got lost on their way to whatever came next. However, this was the first time a spirit had come back. The Ranger Barren had died seven seasons earlier, peacefully in his sleep.

“Why are you here?” Shamino asked.

The spirit gave him a strange look. “Can you not hear the Voice calling, brother?”

“No, I don’t. What’s it saying?”

The dead man seemed to fight off the influence long enough to give a hand gesture of warning. His face went blank again, and the shade started to walk out over the water. From the Well of Souls, other ghosts began appearing, streaming in eight directions.

With the upcoming release of Forsaken Foes we invite you to enjoy, Serpent’s Spine,

By EM Malachi

The fire had been smothered, but there still were a few embers. A poorly butchered deer carcass was bleeding nearby. The gargoyle had been at the abandoned camp recently. Iolo’s quarry was close. The bard searched for a fresh trail away from the campsite.

Iolo hadn’t known Feridwyn well, but what he had seen had earned his respect. In spite of his misgivings about the Fellowship, Iolo planned to take up Feridwyn’s duties at the poorhouse after Justice had been served. Right at this moment though, he was hunting Feridwyn’s killer through the mountains.

After Katrina had reported the murder, the town guard pursued the killer, Forskis, through the streets of Britain and into the neighboring farmlands. Forskis had set a farmhouse on fire to cover his escape. When the smoke finally cleared and the farm family inside were safe, the gargoyle was long gone. The local guards didn’t have the means or experience to track Forskis into the mountains. Iolo did.

The Serpent’s Spine Mountains were a maze of jagged rocks. One misstep almost sent the old bard on a very fast fall back to Britain. Why the gargoyle didn’t take flight, Iolo did not know, but it meant there was a clear trail to follow into the mountains. Still, Forskis had a day’s head start, and this was the closest Iolo had gotten.

Iolo readied his crossbow as he followed the tracks away from the fire. They led through the gorge as it narrowed, eventually coming to a dead end. A falling pebble made him look up. Forskis was holding onto the ravine wall high above, waiting for him. Iolo managed to get a bolt into the air, but the shot went wide. The gargoyle snarled and used his incredible strength to pull free part of the rock face, starting an avalanche.

Iolo covered his head as the rocks fell on him.

8/7/2019

We invite you to sit back and enjoy, An Honest Man

By EM Malachi

An Honest Man

Katrina poured water on the wound and winced in pain. A large thorn had caught her arm when she was helping a sheep escape a briar tangle. There was one in every flock: independent and curious. As she wrapped her wound, the errant sheep nuzzled her leg, looking none the worse for wear.

She had joined the drive from Skara Brae to Britain so she would have an excuse to see her friend. Feridwyn’s early letters about the Fellowship had been excited and full of stories. Then they had gotten shorter and hinted at his doubts. His most recent letter was the most surprising of all: he was going to marry another member of the group. Katrina needed to know what was going on.

*****

When she arrived in Britain and found the Fellowship Hall, she saw a large crowd gathered listening to a man giving a speech. When she didn’t see Feridwyn at the group, she asked someone about the Fellowship poorhouse. She was directed to the outskirts of Britain.

The poorhouse was crammed full of extra beds and supplies, but the occupants were at Batlin’s speech. As Katrina made her way through the narrow halls, she bumped into a large gargoyle. When she tried to apologize, he gave the shepherdess a nasty look and hurried to the exit. As she turned back, she saw the gargoyle had left a trail of blood. Katrina rushed down the hall.

Feridwyn’s small room had been turned over, and he was lying on the floor in a pool of blood. Katrina shouted for help as she pulled cloth from her bag. She desperately tried to put pressure on the largest wound.

Feridwyn recognized her, grabbing her arm. “I doubted. I couldn’t let it be.”

“There will be time later. I need to help you.”

He was crying now. “It wasn’t what I wanted.”

Katrina again shouted for help, but she felt the hand on her arm let go. The dying man looked past her before muttering his last words, “Will I see them again?”