Chronicles of Myth Volume One: Twisted Daydreams

Scene One

Once upon a time, there was a nation that rose from the ashes of old and dying world known as Earth, the world before us it did many great and noble things like our kingdom of today; the golden kingdom of Celestris, my forefathers told me this world was like our nation when it first began: a lamb meek and innocent, we lived in a time prosperity the world knew no such thing as conflict but as time went on it began to transform into a dragon whose hatred was fueled by ignorance, thus the first acts of strife started to divide us. When I was a child there were two factions that vied for control of the land. The old kingdom which was formed by humans, elves, beasts and just about anything else that walked under our life giving sun: we were protected by divine beings in return we gave them a place to call home, then there were outlanders which came from the Fissure of Existence; to be honest I found them to be the scariest things alive; legions of demons, sentient machines, golems and the undead led by other worldly and twisted forces that would drive any person insane. From the tumultuous warring other cliques composed of all races formed to keep the ever withering peace in any way they could; despite us being the first guilds, the first mercenaries, needless to say there was ambivalence between us so we kept a wary eye and stayed at a distance from each other, these cliques when first formed they vowed to themselves never to side with one faction or the other to remain independent of monarchy, but as soldiers hire that vow constantly conflicted our morality, our humanity against a paycheck, but as time passed the relations between us grew strong and we saw that we were fighting for the same thing, these cliques banded together and formed the Collective: the third kingdom; for a time we kept the people at ease and kept tensions between the races from boiling over, hell we gave the world what it wanted: a peaceful time where no more blood would be shed, where children wouldn’t die for a needless crusade. In this peace we took the time to pick up a trade or two, but we stood ready as united human and demon to defend the innocent once the time comes, the kingdoms saw this peace and were disgusted, at this point grew desperate with only the first mortals and demons having allegiance to them, so they started recruiting us, in an attempt to wipe each other out, it almost worked to… the sad truth was when a government wants something badly enough morals get tossed out the window and everything becomes a matter of relativity. At first it wasn’t as bad we thought it’d be, since our line of work didn’t put our friends and loved ones in risk, we guilds went along with it more out necessity to eke out a living; in the first years the old kingdoms tried to their best to entice us and join their side, moreover to force our hand against each other; they knew as mercenaries we’d always take the greater amount no matter the implications behind the money. Tensions flared to all time high as we contested over the contracts, when it reached a breaking point, the fire forged trust between the races snapped causing collective to be disbanded forming two powers which would ally with the respective kingdom; backing the old Celestris was the Remnant, we stood for virtue and order. Once with outlanders again were the Syndicate which stood for vice and chaos, what happened next almost destroyed us; a great and final war began. Having the full support from the guilds associated to Celestris and the Fissure, we mounted for battle; once the fighting began it continued for what seemed like an eternity; but the day came after a hundred years when the blood of all our people ran dry and a group of likeminded individuals formed the New Republic, we were sick of the corruption that led us to this nightmare and dying to rid the world of its evil. Is it wrong that we destroy the old world, to place down the foundation for a new one…I made it my life’s purpose to make sure that something like this never happens to anyone again. The war between the old kingdoms ended in deadlock with us in the middle, over the years after we gathered our numbers, one hundred representatives in total all masters of a form of elemental magic; we dedicated to training in our art of magic to bring our bodies to peak physical condition, our minds to learn from history and to brace ourselves a generation of leaders for the new world. Our day reckoning of came and we destroyed the old kingdoms in a crusade of our own, I hated the blood that I spilled; but I hated the people I killed more… when the dust settled the Republic was split into ten special operations units: Alpha, Delta, Theta, Lambda, Xi, Omicron, Sigma, Upsilon, Phi and Omega. While others cherished this time, we stood ready to protect it no matter the cost; the Republic had closed one chapter in the existence of Celestris, as for the Remnant and Syndicate they fell into obscurity, and we hoped they would die out, as the for world: one age has closed and a new age will begin, a time where no more guilds, or factions, or corrupt leaders, or kings and queens looking out only for themselves; only men and women united in the cause of survival against a harsh world, while remaining loyal to one another. Each group was assigned to a portion of the world, to safeguard it from all forces that would seek to conspire against it; it worked for a while and for a time we would be able to keep all things that go bump in the night at bay. It felt good keeping the people safe from the rogue forces of chaos and from harming one another, but the more we tried, the more the people hated us for it. We knew that humanity was capable of many great things, but it was the evil that lurked in the darkest corners that scared me the most; the Republic saw the world as a child unable to defend itself, it was our duty to guide and prepare the world for a time when we are not able to come to their rescue. One night the Remnant and Syndicate took the world by the surprise, a mass terror attack that crippled the great nations of its day, the people needed us more than ever; called to arms once again we took action and quelled the threat, finally people accepted us as we proved ourselves to them time and time again, calamity after calamity, in time we were considered heroes and leaders; we succeeded in preparing the worlds next generation of protectors by training new blood under guidance of the units. In my time living with the Mortals I found they are a dense bunch, doomed to repeat history and fall victim to injustice; but if there is anyone among them with shred of morality and common sense they’ll make it out of any scrape just fine, experience has taught me to trust and love these capable idiots because they have stepped up to the occasion and overcome again and again; I no longer see the world and its people as children too callow and foolish to commandeer their destiny, they have become a worthy and mighty force, they’re truly a magnificent bunch and as long the Republic is around we’ll keep them safe and help them back on their feet and help them through the path. More times than not I’ve been impressed by the determination, and spirit; fueled by piss and vinegar these people certainly worth saving, human spirit truly is a wonderful thing.

I’m proud of my comrades in arms, it has been an honor serving with you all these long and hard years; this day marks the first year of our new era, may we guide the people with wisdom and virtue down the line… we are the Republic, and may we never forget our oath. “Though Despair encroaches upon us, we are the beacons of hope that shine through the dark. We are the light that never fades, to be ever vigilant and conscience of our mission; this day we are no longer defined by who we were, we are the ones who stand ready against the forces of evil; we vow never to fault, never to bend or bow. We will guide and protect all life for it is sacred, to never spill the blood of the innocent… to maintain the highest code of honor and morality, to show compassion and mercy; we are the small army with greatest strength of all: freedom. We are the Republic, we are the ones who give fate and destiny into the hands of the people, as long we exist we dedicate ourselves to preserving freedom and peace of all sentient life”.  Now in this modern age we must do the same as we always have.

Saint Nicholas Claus

August 23, 2014