Rune of the Sprites
You are Prince Solon
Cerulean, a child of the waters. You play in the depths with your siblings. Your
older brother is the strong, proud one and he molds himself into the image of
your father the king. Your younger brother is the introvert, fascinated by the
nature of your world, by the water itself. Your sister is the tie that binds you
all together for she loves you all with a full heart. Together you swim and
frolic not knowing the horror to come…
Years later, as the Bearer of the Shell Shield, protector of your people, you
are getting ready to rally your troops. The Abyssians are coming through. The
Naga have summoned a huge army of undead. You hoist you Shield of Shell and
nervously call the hussars to attention but, as you speak, the fear leaves you
and words of confidence and pride roll forth. You realize that a lifetime of
sitting at the knee of your father has given you the orations of a king. The
hussars react as if it is your fathers words as cheers and war cries go up. You
inspired them. They will follow you into death! You take a moment to revel in
this feeling and wonder if this is what it will feel like if your father chooses
you to become KING.
Years later, you stare into the Chalice of Visions in disbelief. Your father,
King Sargoth Cerulean, is dead but your brothers are not waiting for a council
to decide which of you four children will be monarch. They are plotting to kill
you and take the throne together. What is wrong with them? It is clear that they
have always wanted the throne far more tan your sister and you, but to kill for
it… madness! You most find a way to face them alone without their armies before
they move to kill your dear sister: neutral ground. You will lure them from the
water and fight them on dry land, in Eidenhomme itself. You know their plans to
not only betray you but themselves as well and you will use this chalice to find
a way to stop them!
With it you draw them into Eidenhomme. You watch as the wall of water that your
brother summoned crashes into the pines and maples, uprooting and drowning them
all. Flights of tiny fay try to escape the deluge but are swallowed up by the
torrents. They would destroy all of Eidenhomme just to kill you. What has
happened to you brothers?
Your brother, your enemy, Thrang Prince of the Mirror Shield erupts from the
deluge and the duel begins. You struggle to get past his guard. You want to
incapacitate him as quickly as possible. He is your big brother. You love him
but you see no love in his eyes just anger and power lust. He bashes you in the
face with his mirror shield and you nearly pass out.
You lie prone on the ground of the flooded forest. Thrang can dispatch you and
the crown will be hiss. Thrang will have to betray his youngest brother, Narzynn,
to become monarch, but compared to you, Solon, Narzynn, Prince of the Water
Shield, is not much of a threat. Thrang raises his sword to finish him when he
goes weak and his legs crumble. In his shield, Thrang sees that he ages years in
a matter of minutes. His strength, thoughts, everything is draining out of him.
He falls to the ground and looks at his brother before it goes dark. Your eyes
are filled with horror and fear for Thrang. You love Thrang and he was going to
kill you. As the world goes black Thrang wonders what has happened to him and he
think to himself “Why did I do this?”
Stepping over the wizened form of Thrang is your younger brother, Narzynn
attacks. As you reel from his blows, it is clear to you that Narzynn, flooded
with Thrang’s essence, has become stronger than you. Your little brother…
stronger than you and terrifying in his power and battle lust. You feel cold.
It’s fear. You fear your brother and with good reason. Drunk on power, your
brother is trying to kill you. He will kill you!
Narzynn strikes. You feel your life, your heart, your mind, your… everything
being siphoned off. How is he doing it? Then you see it in his hands… the Grail.
He stole the Blood-Wine Goblet! He knows how to activate the power but not how
to control it and the ancient power has driven Narzynn mad. He will kill you as
he did your brother and it won’t stop there. He will drain the world dry! You
were taught once how to use it so you lunge and grab it. It sparks and the air
crackles with power, too much power. The energy is building but you can’t let
go! The power won’t stop! It is going to kill you both and this whole flooded
forest when it erupts. You smell burning flesh and see your fingers are
charring! You can’t let go and neither can he. As he begins to crack and die, he
looks at you with a look of pain, fear and betrayal. You betrayed your brother.
Narzynn’s form shifts and fragments. He is torn into its component parts: soul,
spirit, body and animus. The soul essence is absorbed into the Bloodwine Goblet
and from there into Thrang. Meanwhile, Narzynn’s spirit, animus and body are
lost into a whirlpool dimensional rift caused by the battling brothers. As you
tremble with the power and essence stolen from your brothers, the whirlpool
collapses and you and Thrang’s corpse are swept away.
The war is over. You did not want to fight this war, destroy this forest, kill
your kin but it was forced on you. You throw yourself onto the mercy of the
royal court. You confess to your part in the destruction and death and tell them
you are ready to be punished for your unforgivable crimes. Your sister swims to
you. She takes you in her arms and holds you. She speaks in your ear, “It’s not
your fault. You had no choice. You are forgiven.”
They are words more valuable than any other that have been spoken. They ease
your heart and let the tears come. You cry for many weeks, mourning your loss
until the people gather on your coronation day. The crown is a bitter reminder
but you will wear it for the people’s sake. You will wear it and do your best to
live up to your father’s legacy and repent for the harm you and your brothers
caused. You will become a good king, no matter what you make sure that you are a
good king.
Years pass and you find yourself in the unfamiliar realm diplomacy. You have
been meeting with this little human for days now. Over and over about taxes,
fare-trade, tariffs, on and on. You want to know a simple fact: is Fallenstar
the ally of the Sprites or not. That is all, but this greedy little
penny-pincher wants it all in writing. You are ready to lose your legendary
temper when you take a deep breath. You are a king you remind yourself not an
impatient child. You take a breath and in rapid fire prose espouse to the trader
/ founder the need for this alliance the benefits to each race and the man is so
taken aback by the force and clarity of your thought that he has no where to
back up to. You box him into a corner with your words: Is Fallenstar an ally to
the sprites? Do you wish our help against the dark forces? Will you aid us if we
are in need? The trader tries to squirm back to a lucrative trade agreement but
you stay firm yet calm. He answers: Yes. Yes. And Yes. The treaty is signed.
Years pass, you enter Fallenstar with your trusted counselor and older brother,
Thrang. You find yourself noticing how weak he is these days compared to the
strong, imposing prince he was before you and your brothers went to war. You
toast to the Sprites Realm / Fallenstar Treaty only to feel you soul-essence
being drained into the wine bottle you hold. Your world grows dark. You awaken
and see Thrang and men from Fallenstar. They have traveled the lands and
recovered your stolen essence. As you recover, you see the one that they call
the Vintner but you and Thrang recognize as your little brother, Narzynn. He is
some type of ghost though and it is clear to you that he is incomplete. A large
portion of his being is missing. You wonder where it is and if there is any way
to restore him, to heal Narzynn.