A long, long, long time ago in the now peaceful realm of Falgar wasn’t so peaceful. The realm is known for its two towers. One is used for evil while the other is for good. Life on Falgar is dictated by a magic gem. The magic gem sits atop one of the two towers, and whichever one it’s in relates to the aura of the Realm. The inhabitants of Falgar try to make sure the gem always resides atop the good tower. It doesn’t happen often, only once in fact, that the gem has ever resided atop the evil tower. That time though, almost destroyed the realm.
Tranquil is a small village on the northeastern corner of Falgar. The closest village is a good month’s journey. The village was very quiet and peaceful. No one ever came, but whenever an outsider came (as rare as that was) they were always treated like a king. Tranquil was known for its dairy products. They were the best of the realm. Every young boy dreamed of becoming a famer and owning their own farm. The girls took pride in their work, and made sure their legacy of creating the best dairy products stuck.
Never, had there been a resident of Tranquil who didn’t want to continue the legacy. That was until Gluck was born. He didn’t fit in from the beginning. He just didn’t like farming. When most kids were out on the farm harvesting crop, he was inside reading old manuscripts and elder scrolls. His physique was also different than the other boys. While the farm boys were all strongly built, Gluck was very scrawny and could barely lift a bale of hay. This had a tremendous affect on his social life. Kids his age ignored him and labeled him as an outcast. The girls didn’t dare go near him for fear or getting punished for talking to the outcast. He wanted to leave Tranquil, he tried many times, but he always came back. He knew he couldn’t do anything once he left the village, he was useless, and had no special attributes. All he could do was long for the day when he could prove himself normal and not a defect.
One day while Gluck was in his hammock, reading about the elder days, he heard commotion coming from the village center. He decided to see what it was all about. The crowd reached all the way back to the churning houses when Gluck arrived. Everyone was staring at an outsider who looked like an angel. His name was Vivos and he came from the land of Vivata the home of the good tower. No one knew why such a person would travel to their land. Then he spoke, “I have come from the home of the good tower, to bring bad news.” The townsfolk began to cry out in utter fear. “The magic gem that brings good to this realm has been stolen by an evil serpent warlord who is bringing the gem back to the evil tower”. Even more fear swept through the crowd. “With the gem gone, life will be suspended. Nothing new can grow and everything that lives will slowly die. Not until the gem is returned will life be returned.”
At that point a farmer came running into the center of the crowd by Vivos and held up a handful of wheat. “It’s dead, it’s dead. I don’t know how but the wheat is dead, all of it dead.” Now the townspeople almost fainted.
“My god, it has already started. This is bad, real bad. Listen up everyone. I have traveled far and wide. I have visited every corner of the realm in search of someone who will travel to Desolan, home of the dark tower, slay the warlord, and return the gem back to the good tower. Is anyone brave enough to accept this task?” muttered Vivos. No one volunteered. “Please, Tranquil is the last place on my list to visit. If no one accepts then all hope of life will be gone.” Still no one volunteered. Then just as Vivos was leaving someone spoke up
“I accept the task.” Gluck stepped into the circle and repeated, “I accept this task.” The townsfolk were stunned and worried. Gluck is weak how could he save the realm. Vivos turned around and looked Gluck straight in the eyes, “Are you sure you want to accept this quest?”
“I’m positive,” replied Gluck.
“Then you should leave at once, time is ticking,” and with that Vivos disappeared.
Gluck ran back to his house and grabbed everything he thought he would need. His knapsack contained food, a dagger, and a drawing notebook. When he went back outside a man he had never spoken to stood outside with a horse by his side. “This horse is the fastest in all the realm, he shall guide you well in the unknown lands.” Gluck had to accept, and he did. Gluck saddled up and left for Desolan. This would be the first time that Gluck had ever ventured outside the village border.
The first blunder of many for Gluck came when he left his village. He had forgotten to ask where Desolan was located. He had no idea where he was going. That’s when something magical happened. The horse spoke to him. “Don’t fear young child. My name is Equin the Old and I have been around for many years, and know the land better than any elder. I sense that you want to go to Desolan. Tis a far journey, but I know shortcuts. We can make it by three months.” Gluck had never come across a speaking horse before, let alone an elder creature. He didn’t question his intelligence though, and knew he could trust him.
Gluck spoke, “Off to Desolan, I guess, and fast.”
The next few weeks were full of nothing but opalescent mountains and lakes, and more mountains and lakes. The scenery was fantastic. Gluck had never seen such beauty in his life. He noted all of his sightings in his drawing notebook. Soon it would be filled with something more then just pictures.
One day, after two months worth of travel, while resting, Equin suddenly became alert. “There is trouble coming this way. We must hurry and find a better spot to rest.” The two quickly packed their belongings and headed off to the nearby woods. Five minutes later, Gluck saw what Equin was talking about. Coming down from the mountains was a caravan of strange, shadowy looking creatures. Gluck almost fainted when he saw the horror that followed. After every step the caravan took, death followed. All those opalescent mountains and lakes turned into a distinct macabre color. Equin spoke softly to Gluck, “Those are minions of the warlord. They were the first to be cursed by the gem after in was brought to the evil tower. The only way they can be turned back is if the gem is returned to the good tower. Until that happens we must stay far away from them. They possess powers far greater than any man.”
Gluck couldn’t have agreed anymore with Equin. Out of fear, the two waited a full day, to be sure that they were out of reach. Back on the road, it seemed that they weren’t the only ones hiding from the minions. Hoards of all sorts of creatures were bounding along the road. They varied from tiny Elven frogs to the most treacherous marauders known to mankind. The strange thing about the creatures though, was that they all seemed to be following the path left by the evil caravan. Equin explained to Gluck that those who touch the death ridden path become cursed. Only the ones who don’t show fear are immuned. “I am very old, and even though those men may seem scary, I’ve seen worse.” Gluck was thankful that Equin did not fear, because he sure did.
After following the crowd for three weeks the two decided to veer off the path. Equin became weary that if they had stayed on that course that they might’ve been found out by one of the warlords assistants or spies. They decided that they should shadow the others on the side by the forest, out of site. That way they could easily find the tower without being seen by the spies.
A strange event occurred four days later. While walking in the forest the two stumbled upon a brood of crows. The two groups started to chatter amongst each other. Gluck came to realize that these were only the offspring, and that they were waiting for their mother to return. Suddenly the mother appeared. She was much larger than normal crows. She said her name was Be-Treyu, and that she was the chieftain of a village of crows who reside in a land where the trees are so high that they literally block the sun out.
“Where are you off to young adventurer?” Be-Treyu asked.
Gluck answered in a confident tone, “I am going to the evil tower to slay the evil warlord and return the magic gem to the good tower.”
“What a coincidence, we too are going there. I know secret ways. Come, follow me,” said Be-Treyu.
The young adventurer didn’t know how to respond. Should he trust her or no. He discussed his options with Equin.
“Should we trust her? She knows secret ways. We might be able to hasten our arrival to the tower,” whispered Gluck.
Equin answered in an elderly voice, “I don’t know Gluck. She wears the color of evil. I don’t think she should be trusted. But this is your quest, not mine, you write your own history.”
Gluck turned back towards Be-Treyu and defiantly said, “Be-Treyu, we give you our trust. Lead on.”
The group hastily made their way through the woods. After two days of traveling they came to a jagged cliff. The tower was across the gorge.
“How shall we cross,” asked Gluck.
“Watch, and you shall see,” Answered Be-Treyu.
The crow chieftain then flew high up into the air and started to recite some ancient language. Neither Gluck nor Equin had ever heard this language. When she returned a large staircase magically appeared. It stretched from the edge of the cliff to the top of the tower. The adventurers bounded up the stairs like young gazelles. Once on the top of the tower they could not understand what they saw.
Standing in the center of the top tier was the warlord and a small army. That’s when Be-Treyu and her brood of crows flew over and perched themselves on the mighty shoulders of the warlord.
“Thank you my dearest. You and your children have done well,” the warlord said with a growing grin.
“It was quite easy my lord. He disobeyed the elder horse and naively gave his trust to me,” laughed the crow.
Gluck suddenly became very pale and almost fainted. He felt like his whole world had been tipped upside down. He tried running back to the stairs, but right before he got to them he bounced back.
The warlord laughed so hard he knocked five of his minions over. “Silly human. Do you really think after brining you to my tower I would just let you go? I’ve heard of your quest young Gluck. My spies here have been following you ever since your quest began.”
The information was starting to overwhelm Gluck.
“You can’t do this. I will not let you succeed!” screamed Gluck.
Gluck took his little dagger out of his knapsack and charged the warlord. He took a swipe, but the warlord dodged the attack. The warlord then stepped on Gluck’s chest and pointed the end of his sword towards Gluck’s neck.
“A lot of courage you have young human. Pardon me. Have I introduced myself yet? I would hate for you not to know the name of the one that kills you. So, here it is, my name is Lucio, I have come from a far off realm to seek the power of the gem. Now your adventure shall end.”
Lucio raised his sword and was about to strike when all of a sudden he was knocked to the ground. Lucio had totally forgotten about Equin. The horse galloped and knocked over the minion. This gave enough time for Gluck to recover. He grabbed his sword and charged Lucio.
“Now it is your time to die,” yelled gluck.
Gluck took his sword and swiped down upon Lucio. His sword disemboweled Lucio. Then he dragged his lifeless body across the top of the tower. Now that the warlord was dead, all of his magical doings would be repeled, so the magical force field was gone. Gluck lifted the dead body of Lucio above his head, and then threw it over the ledge. Lucio’s body fell and fell and fell until it hit solid ground, where the entrails splattered all over the place.
With their leader now dead, and no one to obey, the minions scattered away from the tower. With the minions gone Gluck turned his attention to the other part of his task, taking the gem. The gem stood off to the side lodged inside of a crevice. There seemed to be dark vines attached to the bottom of the gem. When he went to touch the gem the vines instantly withered away and its dark color returned to its normal clear state. He was able to pick up the gem and place it in his knapsack. Gluck then walked over to Equin.
Gluck talked in a thankful tone, “Oh Equin, I owe my life to you. You saved my life. You saved the gem.”
“I was only doing what I felt was right. Also this quest isn’t over just yet. We must now make the trip to Vivata and return the gem to its natural state,” said Equin
The two traveled with great speed, only stopping when rest was absolutely needed. The gem, now in the hands of good, seemed to give them extra speed and strength. The trip that usually takes a two months journey was made in a week. Gluck stood before the tall white tower that gleamed in the sunlight. He stared in its awe. It took him a while to make it up the long stairs, for he found himself distracted by the beautiful artwork painted on the tower’s walls. Once at the top, Gluck placed the gem in its holding, and watched in amazement as green vines arose from the floor and engaged around the gem. With the gem restored Gluck could see the path of death slowly receding and turning into new life.
The townsfolk went crazy when Gluck arrived home from the trip. Never did they expect such a weakling to complete such a task. Those who bullied him now praised him. The girls who ignored him now adored him. Everyone was bowing to his feet. He was now popular and accepted.
In the months that followed the quest, the village of Tranquil became very popular. Travelers from all over the realm came to see Gluck. His notebook, where he pictured his adventure was published all over the lands. And that is how Gluck became the hero of Falgar.
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