In the Ruins of Hope (Centauri Asaris: Book 1)

Prologue

As tales have told, magic runs through the air like blood runs through veins. However, modern human civilization grew accustomed to an environment where magic did not exist, or in other words, they could not sense its presence. Unlike modern culture, ancient civilizations used magic constantly, and they hid their secrets deep within their cities. In the year 3000, a group of archaeologists accidentally stumbled into the hidden chambers of the Egyptians. Here, they found traces of an unknown presence.

The group collected the samples and shipped them all over the world for an analysis. No scientific reason could explain the phenomenon, so the scientific community could not name it. When the information was leaked to the public, the citizens called it magic.

Now on the search for magic, the human race researched everything they could, and they discovered that magic was everywhere. Magic was in the most basic, natural elements: it was in the air, water, and ground, but more importantly, the strongest samples were sealed inside of human beings. The magic inside of the human race has been dormant for so long, so it naturally sealed itself inside of its host. However, many people explored methods to break the seal, and the first success was awarded to a group of people later called the first generation of mages.

The first generation of mages found the secret to unlocking their magic, but they had no control over it. The group lived in seclusion because magic was powerful and dangerous. They lived the rest of their lives trying to find a way to control it. In the end, they never succeeded, and when they died, they shared their methods worldwide.

As generations passed, the human sense evolved, and magic appeared, once again, naturally in humans. However, human magic does not appear until the host is sixteen. Until then, people could only detect the magic around them.

With this information, people began research to further their technology. After years of research and development, researchers created new materials and discovered ways to bind magic with objects. Because of these new discoveries, the world evolved.

Technology advanced and what seemed impossible only years before became possible. Humans went to new, undiscovered worlds, found treasures of lost civilizations, and rediscovered legends only spoke upon in fairy tales. Humans also sent specialized mages on potentially dangerous expeditions. Their group was simply called The Explorers. They were Earth's best fighters and controlled their magic perfectly. However, during one expedition to a galaxy light years away, they made a discovery that would lead to the end of the human race if it was not stopped.

Records from the expedition show that the discovery could "only be described as demons." They were long, scrawny characters that had an evil aura around them. They spoke in a language that no human could ever hope to pronounce. The most unsettling characteristic of the demons was that they also had magic. However, unlike human magic, their magic was so strong that the air around them seemed to quake in fear. Human magic had the power of an insect compared to the demons. No human could ever destroy such beings. The team went to go back to Earth, so they could report what they found before others made the mistake of traveling to the godforsaken planet.

The team was on edge through most of the flight. Almost to its destination, the Explorer's' ship was ambushed. The group led the demons to their home, Earth. However, there were only two demons, and against a whole crew of Earth's best fighters, the battle would surely be quick. The battle was indeed quick, but the humans were no match for the demons. The merciless monsters slaughtered all but one. In English, they ordered the survivor, "Go back to your weak race on Earth. Tell your superiors that we will come two years from now to take your planet. Try to put up a good fight. We haven't gotten much excitement lately." With that, they left the wrecked ship with menacing grins.