The Lore Pages: Val'yler

This story follows the life of Val'yler from Omegaheim, through from childhood, up to her grandest moments, and everything between. A guide for any translations will be written at the end of the story, so if you wish to find out what something means while reading the story, instead of it staying a mystery, then feel free to jump ahead and read the translation. Enjoy!
One thing to note; I used Val'yler as the name in this story even though she only gained that name after the events that took place here. I wrote it in such a way so that you know whom I was talking about. In actuallity, the character is name Sera.
==Humble Beginnings==
Val'ylers story begins long ago, in a time before modern recorded history. Val'yler was a respectful young girl, always listening to her parents and other peers. She could become brash and head-strong when engaged in both physical and mental challenges, but despite how her attitude changed, she never dared hurt a soul. When it came to group or team activities, Val'yler was usually captain for she had an excellent ability to come up with strategies that would lead to victory. She would join into these physically too, but when things started going off plan, she would begin to fall into fits of anger. Val'yler grew up in a loving home; her mother was a housekeeper and doctor for the village, and her father was capatin of the militia. Val'yler always had an active interest in her fathers work, but being a girl the chances of getting into the militia as anything more than a healer were very low. Despite this fact, Val'yler would go into the local woods and pretend to fight monsters and beasts with sticks in hopes of honing her skills enough to impress her father. As the years past, and Val'ylers skill with sticks was at an all time high, she began to sneak out into the woods with her fathers blade, and practice in secret.
==Might of Steel==
For three years did Val'yler manage to sneak out with her fathers blade, and as the time passed her skills increased greatly, she even began venturing deeper into the woods and fighting against wild animals. On her way home from one night of practice, she noticed the lights of her main room were on, and surely her parents had noticed that she was not in her room. Val'yler knew no matter what she did she had finally been found out, and stifiling her fear she entered the house. She was greeted by a less than happy father, and as punishment she was diciplined right there and ordered to tell why she was doing this. Val'yler knew lying was pointless, so she told her father why, and for how long. She braced for another strike, but one never came. She looked up to see her father staring at her, smiling. Clearly her explanation had made a difference. Her father explained that all she had to do was ask and he would have let her practice at the militias grounds. Her father asked her to come out to the grounds the next day and demonstrate her abilities. She was in awe at what she had heard, surely he was joking, but that was not the case, and sure enough the next day she walked into the militia grounds to see her father standing there, and asked her to show what she could do. Her skills were impressive, but fighting dummies is easy, so her father allowed her to spar with new militia recruits. He watched with pride as she defeated all of them in battles, sure her form was a bit off, and her technique needed improvment, but she was far better than the new recruits. Three years later, when Val'yler was age 19, she was welcomed into the militia, and rewarded with high praise.
==Initial Conflict==
Val'yler lived in a quiet, small town, and as such the local militia were called mainly to deal with petty theft and to deal with packs of wild animals. That all changed very quickly when Val'yler entered her 20th year of life. Strange things began to happen around the town; warnings found on message boards and front doors, strange symbols carved into buildings and cut into local fields and many animals went missing. These were only counted as pranks at first, but then the truth dawned. One day while on patrol, a militia who was new to the force stumbled upon a horrifying sight; he came across a dead body, but the being was of nothing seen on this world before. The creature was easily nine feet in height, strange welts and boils covered his skin, but most disturbing were his limbs, for where one would expect arms and legs to be, were nothing but masses of tentacles, covered in spines and suckers. Around the creature was a pool of a thick green liquid, emminating a horrific smell. The guard looked around the creature for any sign of what it is, but all he found was a note a few feet away that gave what appeared to be a warning:
"REPENT! FOR SOON THEY COME!"
When the militia alerted Val'ylers father to this find, he significantly heightened the amount of militia on patrol, and kept the whole thing a secret. But as with many secrets, the word got out. The locals cried in fear, not knowing what was happening, many beagn preaching about the end of times. Over the next few months, the militia recieved many more reports of this nature, but it would soon come to a climax. One day while on patrol with her father, Val'yler noticed a disturbance in a back street. When they approached it however, they were jumped by two figures in cloaks, wielding strangely runed daggers. Val'yler and her father dealt with these figures swiftly, only to find that they were the same as the creature found a few months back. Many more attacks occured in the following days, until Val'ylers father decided to issue a formal warning to all citizens. It was during this address when a large group of the creatures, larger than any encountered before, stormed into the town. They were not alone however, for this time they were followed by a beast, easily 3 times the size of an adult stag, composed largely of tentacles and of features never seen before. During the fighting, Val'ylers father got cornered by the stag beast, and tried at his best to defend himself. Despite his effort, one of the beasts tentacles made it past his defences, and struck him straight through the shoulder, lifting him up into the air. Val'yler saw this at a pacing glance, and seeing the agony on her fathers face, went into a rage. She charged the beast, blade in hand, and dealt a blow that dismembered the tentacle. The beast howled and turned to face Val'yler, but didn't get the chance to strike, for Val'yler swung her blade in an arc, and cut the beasts head straight off. The beast let loose one final howl before collapsing. Val'yler quickly grabbed her father, and brought him to her mother, who began the healing process immediately. The battle continued for two hours, and the outcome was devastating; although all the creatures were slain a total of 37 militia and 24 civilians lost their lives. The clean up took well over a week, but when all was clear and all traces of the creatures gone, Val'ylers father set work to fortifying the city, he did not want another encounter with these beasts.
Enough was lost on that one night.
==Sad Farewells==
It wasn't long after the battle with the creatures that the villagers again began to grow paranoid and restless, the strange thing was, that it was mainly only around Val'ylers father. Val'yler didn't notice anything wrong with her father, he seemed perfectly fine. Despite her doubts however, she kept an eye on her father for the sake of the villagers, and hopefully to show that her father was fine. One night after her father came home, he seemed strangely vacant, as if his mind was somewhere else. Val'yler was concerned, and when her father returned after changing out of his militia armour, she noticed a large, purple bruise on his shoulder, the same shoulder that was stabbed during the battle. When she pursued the subject, she got a loathsome look she had never seen from her father. Val'yler pursued the subject, the rage clearly building in her father, until it all boiled over. Her father swung around, and struck Val'yler square in the jaw. The impact sent Val'yler stumbling into the wall, blood dripping from her mouth. It took a minute for Val'yler to recover from the shock, and she looked up to see that it was not her father standing before her, at least not any more. The right side of his body was the same as she had always known, but the left had transformed into a horrific mass. It was as if he was one of the creatures he so detested. Val'yler drew her blade reluctantly, this was still her father. Her father took this lapse in her trail of thought to strike, Val'yler noticed just as the blade was coming, and managed to raise her blade. A strike that otherwise would have killed her was deflected, the blade skidding along her leg instead. The blade toar through her muscles, and she screamed in pain, but continued the fight. Even with her injured leg, the battle lasted into the dawn. Both fighters were tired, but Val'yler gained a small window of opportunity. Her father parried one of her blows and jumped backwards, but fate had it that he landed on a broken chair leg, and stumbled backwards for a second. Seeing this, Val'yler swung her blade, and struck her father right in the chest. He fell to the ground, his blade skidding across the floor. Val'yler walked over to her father, and looked down on his face. The right side of his face was clearly in pain, but had a pleading look in his eyes, while the left side was a hissing mass, and clearly had the intent to slaughter her. Val'yers hands were shaking, and with her blade in her hand, and tears in her eyes, she plunged the blade into her fathers skull. She stood there sobbing, tears landing on her fathers lifeless form. She collapsed on the ground, tears flowing. She stayed like this well into the day, when her mother came home to find her on the floor. Her mother was in shock, but seeing what had become of her husband, was also proud of her daughter. Val'yler reported what happened to the militia, after a week to calm her self down, and was later awarded in a village gathering for her bravery. Val'yler was given her fathers sword as a reminder of who he once was, and with tears rolling down her cheeks, she bowed and walked of stage, her fathers sword tightly gripped in her hands.
==Cheers! To Great Things to Come!==
Four years after the death of her father, Val'yler was promoted to the highest position; Captain of the militia. At age 24, she was the youngest, as well as the first female to ever reach that rank in the militia. Val'yler proudly held that rank, but only for a few short months, for one day Val'yler recieved a letter. It was from a war college in the provinces capital city. As it happens, a recuriter had passed through the village the day of the battle against the creatures and witnessed Val'ylers slaying of the stag beast. The letter also apologized for the length of the delay, and went into great detail on how he ventured through many villages and cities, and many of his encounters along the way. Val'yler was ecstatic at the news, and when she announced this news to the village people, they cried in sorrow. But that sorrow quickly became elation. The town celebrated all through the night, well into the small hours of the morning. Val'yler was delayed because of this celebration, she was supoosed to leave at dawn. This gave her more time to prepare. She examined a province map, and found that the city was on the complete other side of the province, but that did not matter to her, she had fianlly achieved her goal. The next day Val'yler set off on her journey, her future bright, so with her fathers sword sheathed on her back, she set off into the dawn.
==Welcome to the College==
Val'yler arrived at the capital city 4 months later, stopping at small towns and country inns along the way. The sight of the immense city awed Val'yler, she had never seen such large buildings and fortified walls. As she slowed her horse to a trot and crossed the threshold into the city she caught a glimpse of the guards, and was dumbstruck at the sight; Their armour gleamed in the sun, their posture was perfect, their weapons in perfect condition. Val'yler shivered slightly at the sight, soon she would be wearing that armour, soon she would be in the ranks of those in the army. Val'yler checked in at the local tavern and decided to explore the city until heading to the war college the next day. As she wandered around the city she was mystified by what she say; buildings reaching high into the sky, fountains of immaculate stone, parks as lush and green as any wilderness. She returned to the tavern that night, excited for the days to come. The next day, as Val'yler crossed the courtyard to the war college's main building, she witnessed recruits training in a variety of different arenas and performing a vast array of exercises. Val'yler approached the front desk and announced who she was, none but a few minutes later she exited the building in the garb of a new recruit. Val'yler was placed under orders of the colleges roughest and rudest commanders. Despite her relatively feminine and small form, she stood up quite well against his beratings and gibes, even going as far as to poke fun at him herself. Her commander didn't take these remarks kindly, and began to increase the amounts of exercises. Val'yler withstood her commanders beratings, as he indured hers.
They never did get along.
==The Greatest Promotion==
Val'yler, now at age 25, had advanced swiftly through the ranks of the war college, she climbed up from Cadet Broze League, to Private Silver League, faster than anyone in the history of the college. The High Council, leaders of the cities military powers, developed an interest in her, for her progress was remarkable. They acted on that interest. Val'yler was practicing on the Advanced Movement Course, when she was approached by two figures, both clad in royal suits. These men claimed to come from the High Council, and told her that she had been accepted into the Royal Army, as a low ranking Strategist. Val'yler was cautious of this news, she had not been here all that long, surely the High Council had paid her no mind. Val'yler brought this news to the dean of the war college, asking if this was true. All the dean did was smile, stand up, shake her hand, and wish her luck. She had been accepted into the Royal Army.
She spent that night lying awake in her room in the inn, thoughts of her future flooding her mind. Val'yler woke the next day, tired, but excited. She ventured out into the city, and with the gracious help of the locals, found her way to the High Councils Military Keep. As Val'yler approached the large doors at the end of the street, the guards on either side stood up at attention, and saluted her as she walked past them. Val'yler choked at the sight, and hung her head, trying not to show her tears.
Those tears of pure joy.
==The Newest in the Armour==
Val'yler entered the keep, wiping her tears from her eyes. She approached the High Council, lifting her head as high as she possibly could; the High council greeted her with high praise. They led her to the military barracks, in which she was given the honorary acceptance into the army by the High Council, with her new comrades standing around, and giving her cheers. Val'yler was later led to a armory, where she was outfitted with the traditional armour of the army; glowing white steel battle plates, and a full face rivited battle helmet. Despite the general look and required adornment of the army, Val'yler was allowed to carry the flag of her village on her person, crossed at the waist, and to use her fathers blade and shield instead of the usual stock swords. As Val'yler was about to leave the keep, one of the Council members stopped her, it turned out that one of the Council members was a friend of her fathers. She never knew that her father had friends in the capital city, but there were many things she did not know about her father. This Council member had acquired a house, part of a new construction in the city, for her to live in. Val'yler feel to her knees, but quickly regained her posture, her cheeks flushed with emarassment. The Council member just left, and escorted her to her new house. She found the inside fully furnished and pre stocked with food and other household items. Val'yler stripped from her armour, and fell on her bed, a sigh escaping from her lips. She had come so far, and lost so much, that she would not let the High Council down. No matter what.
==The Venture at Lost Point Cave==
Since Val'yler was recruited into the army as a strategist, she was called on mainly to help with missions that required a more subtle, and startegic touch. One such mission came eight months after her acceptance into the army; a small battalion of soldiers, led by a high ranking commander named Nyunian, left the city and headed North. Val'yler was ordered to accompany them for one reason; a group of creatures had taken over a cave, and were terrorizing the local country side, these creatures were the same as the ones who attacked her village long ago, and being the only one to have fought these creatures, was a valuable asset to the team.The battalion reached the cave three days later, and set up a small outpost at the mouth of the cave. Val'yler explained to the soldiers that the easiest way to kill these creatures, as she had discovered during the raid on her village, was to stab at a small growth above their tailbone, or rather, where one should be, for even without heads, these creatures were incredibly dangerous. The next morning the group entered the cave. Val'yler postioned all the archers and spell casters up on a nearby ledge, this would give them an advantage should a fight break loose. Val'yler drew her shield and sword from her back, and with Nyunian, led the foot soldiers deeper into the cave. Deeper into the cave the group came upon a strange sight; an altar had been carved out of the wall, made from jet black stone. Even stranger was what was written on it. Val'yler could not read it, but possibly the scholars back in the city could. She copied the inscription onto a piece of parchment:
"Xael Xleff Pli Axp Axal Elp Axfex Axal Zala Ilp Ex I Zpixa Thotazlxax Zxilp Xalapn
Ilp Zix Wixli Xi Zlan Xinph.
Xlan Zoax Xlan Zilo Xlan Zala!"
Val'yler was barely able to copy down this inscription before one of the soldiers at the back howled in pain. The creatures ambushed them, pouring out of hidden passages all around them, managing to slay six soldiers in the initial shock. Val'yler yelled over the din to tell the soldiers to go for the growth, and to push back to the archers and spell casters at the mouth of the cave. Val'yler and the rest of the group managed to attack move their way back to the mouth of the cave, thus giving the archers and spell casters the ability to fight as well. This gave the soldiers a vast power increase, and they swiftly dealt with the creatures. Val'yler took a count, and found that only 17 soldiers had lost their lives in the fight. Val'yler and Nyunian verntured back into the cave to gather the bodies of their dead, but noticed something rather strange; the altar was no longer there. There was no sign to show it was even there. Thankfully for Val'yler, she managed to ship of a piece just before the ambush. The group spent another two days searching the country side for these creatures before venturing back to the city for some well deserved rest.
==A Disturbing Turn of Events==
The news Val'yler brought back from the cave did not go over well with the High Council. They tasked their highest tier scholars and other academics to decipher waht exactly was written on the altar, as well as to study the stone chip from thge altar. More disturbing, as Val'yler soon found out, was the the High Council had seen and dealt with these creatures before, and they had for many years. Val'yler was later promoted to Corporal Silver League, and granted command of a new special group of soldiers, the Anomaly Defense Force. This force was to be called in whenever strange occurances, and otherwise unexplainable and mysterious appeared. It is unfortunate that The A.D.F. was to be called into action so soon after it's conception, but reports had been coming in from all over the city, reports identical to those from Val'ylers old village; Strange sightings, missing people, some gruesom murders were also reported. Val'yler was certain that his had to do with the creatures that she had encountered at Lost Point Cave. She stationed guard patrols and posts in the areas where most of the reports had come from, in hope that she could stop whatever was going on. Val'ylers hopes were soon dashed, as the reports began to increase in frequency, not only in the targeted areas, but all over the city. It was clear that these creatures had infiltrated the city, and were seeking to destroy it from the inside.
==Insight Into Things Old==
During Val'ylers search to find the source of the creatures, the schoars had made impressive headway in deciphering the text from the altar. One thing was made clear; each vowel represented a vowel and each consonant represented a consonant, but there was so far no way to fully confirm what each one stood for, as each one could mean any of them. One other breakthrough was that the word "Thotazlxax" was not just a word, but a name. Val'yler was intrigued greatly by this discovery, and it also opened up an excellent chance to name these creatures; she dubbed them The Spawn of Thotazlxax, or The Spawn for short. The scholars also made headway in terms of the stone its self, but not in what it was, but in its age; this stone was centuries, if not millenia of years old, the true age might be far beyond even those.Over the next few months, the scholars made leaps and bounds in their task, and although the text was not fully translated, they did translate somethings that might interest Val'yler. The text spoke of Old Ones and Elder Ones, and it appeared to mention something about Thotazlxax decending onto the earth with fire. This news disturbed Val'yler greatly, the thought of some great being decending onto the earth, bringing fire and doom was cause for great alarm, even in the High Council. But since they had no idea who or what Thotazlxax, or the Old Ones and Elder Ones were, all they could do was fortify their city.
==The Beast Unknown==
Reports of The Spawn had decreased in large numbers, with days, even weeks going by without incident, but this only made the people more paranoid. Over the course of many months, into Val'ylers late 27th year of life, she slowly built up the size of the ADF, just to be ready in case this Thotazlxax was to arrive on the earth.
One day, just like any other, Val'yler was on patrol in the main square, when a large of of people, garbed in large and heavy robes, rushed into the centre of the square and sat around in a circle. Val'yler approached these people, oredering them to disperse, but they did not follow her orders. These figures began to sway back and forth and chant in some strange language:
" Xael xpizz tziox Thotazlxax zala axp xol zilisil Tor'revar xlozz xilzlix xzas xazzl. XLAN ZOAX, XLAN ZILO, XLAN AXO XISI!"
Val'yler stepped back in shock, she had heard this language before, from the creatures back at LostFar Point Cave. Val'yler grew tired of these peoples disturbances, and drew her blade from her blade, threatening them to move. This time, the figures stood up and repeated their chant, before dispersing back into the crowd. Just as Val'yler turned to leave, another cloaked figure ran up and handed her a note, he said he had written down what they had said, and ran off into the city. Val'yler quickly made her way back to the keep, and handed this paper to the scholars. They were shocked at what was written, but told her they did not need this, for they had translated the text on the altar, and culd have done so with this. They told her the altar said thus:
"Soon shall the Old Ones and Outer Ones come and in a blaze Thotazlxax shall decend and lay waste to this world. They wait, they bide, they come!"
Hearing this sent shivers down Val'ylers spine. She reported this to Nyunian, who upped the guard count immediately. That night, as Val'yler lay in her bed, unable to sleep, she heard screams from outside. As she got up and ran to her window to stare out, was she greated by the shockwave of an explosion, and the rumble of falling buildings. Val'yler, dressed in nothing but her bed robe, rushed out onto her balcony, and the sight she looked down on was anything but good. A being, larger than that of the great keep, stay hovering over the city, the being itself was a mass of limbs and tentacles, oozing a sticky green substance that seemed to melt anything it touched. All Val'yler could do was stare as this being destroyed the city, her body was paralyzed with fear, she knew she had to do something, but could not bring herself to look away from the great being. As if by some miracle, Nyunian rushed in to her room, followed by the high ranking officials of the ADF, abd shook her from her daze. Val'yler and Nyunian, now fully dressed in their battle armour, rushed to the keep, preparing the siege machines to fire on the great being. Just as Val'yler was about the give the order to fire, the being roared in a voice both sickening and pleasent, a voice not of this world:
"A OZ TOR'REVAR! A ZALA EZ LAZEZZ AX MY ZOLXAX XI ZIX XIEZL XI IZX! LI LIXXEZLQ THOTAZLXAX!"
Hearing those words filled Val'yler with a sense of hopelessness, but she pushed on, she oredered all ballistas to fire on target; all of which landed a direct hit. What insued would be burned into the minds of any who witnessed that day and lives. A shriek of unnatural origin, emminated from the being, the she sound cauing those around Val'yler to faint, and it's exremities shot out in all directions, destroying anyhting that they touched. Again the being spoke, but the voice was full of rage and pain so thick that it pained Val'yler to listen to what he said:
"XEA XZAXN XEI'LA ZUP!? NEA XUZI LEX ZRTICKZAZ XU! XZULINA XI NEZU XY NELPX! LI LIXXEZLQ THOTAZLXAX!"
Soon after the being finished his speech, a glow began to radiate from his body, his limbs and other extremities coiling together to form a basic humanoid form, and that form rampaged through the city, buildings fell with every swing, and building untouched by his limbs crumbled from his sheer power. The guards fought valliantly, and throughout the night the roar of battle and the booming of ballista could be heard. Val'yler was about to order a retreat when she remembered what she trained the troops on about The Spawn; aim for the base of the spine. She ordered all ballista to fire at that point. All landed directly. Upon impact the beings back erupted in gore, a thick green liquid erupted from his body, chunks of flesh and masses of limbs shot over the city. The being let out a shriek unlike that heard before as he began to ascend to the sky, yelling down as he rose:
"PLI XALAIZ ILP PLI XEAZU XLEFF LOZI XEA OZZ!"
Val'yler fell back against the wall, a small sigh of relief escaped from her lips, but as she stood up to observe the damage of the city, that relief turned into sorrow. Below her the city was in ruins, barely any building left standing, the horizon black with smoke. Dead bodies covered the streets, what survivors were left wandered the streets, yelling in a daze for family or friends. Val'ylers new home was in ruins.
==When Hope Losses Hope==
Val'yler was brought to tears by the sight. Those tears did not stop. She had made a name for herself here, she had made friends, and as far as she knew all but Nyunian remained. Nyunian tried desperatly to console Val'yler; things may look bleak now, but the beast is gone, we've won the battle! Val'yler looked up at Nyunian through tear soaked eyes, and yelled with what strength she could muster:
"YOU CALL THIS VICTORY!?"
It took well into the evening until Val'yler calmed down and stopped the flow of her tears, she only mustered this will for she knew she had a duty to search for survivors: she did so alone. This task took a few days to complete, for traveling through the ruins was difficult, but the results were devastating, only 1256 people had survived. Tears again brimmed in her eyes, but she could not cry, she had done enough crying. All the survivors, and what remained of the army and ADF gathered in the old main square. They were told they were to travel to the nearest city, and hopefully settle down within those walls. If they could not live within the walls of that city, at least they could warn them of these beasts. All they could do was hope for survival, and all hope seemed lost.
==Great Gates of Faith==
The group traveled for many months, for their destination was hundreds, if not thousands of kilometres away, for a group as large as theirs needed time to set up and take down camps. Over the course of the trip, many people broke away from the group, staying in towns that they passed by, or leaving with family and friends to start their own small colony. Val'yler celebrated a less than happy 28th birthday, for that day, much of their rations we're stolen by thieves, or destroyed by wild animals. Despite all the hardships they faced in their journey, they traveled on. One of the scholars from the old keep survived, and managed to became an expert at translating what they dubbed "Old Script" the language on the altar, and that spoken by the great being. During the battle, he had managed to write down everything that he heard the great being say. Contrary to what everyone thought, that being was not the great Thotazlxax, but one of his generals, the being named Tor'revar. Val'yler found little comfort in this, for she knew that the being escaped, and Thotazlxax will come for sure. She found comfort in the fact, that the next as she scouted ahead of the group to look for any towns or paths to their destination, she instead found what they set out for in the first place; in front of her stood a great city, easily five times larger than the previous, with gates that shone with holy light. She rode back to the group as fast as she could and told Nyunian of the sight. The two of them raced onwards towards the gates, and telling of their plight to the guards out front. After much conversing with the gurads, they were allowed into the city, but the rest of the group was to rest on the outside of the city. After a short trip through the city, Val'yler and Nyunian were in conference with the lord of the city, and explainging to him what had happened at the old city. The lord was sympathetic with their situation, and allowed the two of them to stay inside the city, but the rest of the group must wait outside until space arrangements were made. Val'yler and Nyunian were given rooms inside of the castle, for the next day they would meet again with the lord to discuss these great beings. The group was overjoyed at the news of this, for although they may be camping outside for the foreseeable future, they were safe.
The next day Val'yler, Nyunian, and the scholar that traveled with them met with the lords of the city to discuss their situation. Val'yler was determined that if a being such as Tor'revar were to decend on the world again, they would be ready for it, and would win the fight, without letting it escape. She vowed to herself to protect this city with her life.
She had left her home, her second home was smoldering in ruins, this one would last.
==Darkness Deep Down==
The new city was a marvelous piece of work; towering spires of white stone, clean streets wide enough for entire battalions to march shoulder to shoulder, and monolithic monuments to their past history. Val'yler was proud to call this palce home. Already in the city she had made many friends, both in the army and from casual ventures, but greater than that, Nyunian and her were getting closer.
The lord of the city had allowed Val'yler to keep her armour and weapons from her stay in the army of the old city, and much like her small home town, she wore the flag of her old city, reinforced as a cross sash, she placed it right next to the flag from her village in memory of all those she had lost. For the first time in a while, she could relax, and live a good life.
That didn't last long.
On many occasions she encountered Nyunian sitting by himself, mumbling under his breathe, but when ever Val'yler or another friend approached him, he would yell and run off. His performance in the army decreased so much that he got benched from duty. Val'yler became very concerned for Nyunians saftey, and after many times of trying, she finally got him to talk. Nyunian broke down and began to tell everything he was holding inside of him. Everything the Val'yler had heard was shocking, and changed the way she viewed the Old Ones, nut more importantly, the way she viewed him. During the battle with Tor'revar, someone had penetrated into his mind, the voice calm and persuasive. Nyunian was told the truth about the Old Ones, and why they were bent on destroying this world. The information he was told was inconceivalbe to the masses. More distrubing, was that he admitted in finding beauty in the beings, something had happened during the battle that changed him. When the being Tor'revar fled the battle, Nyunians mind was empty, the voice gone, and he was left with an overwhelming sadness. He vowed to follow the ways of the Old Ones, starting with killing those who would fedy their will, killing Val'yler. Val'yler jumped back in shock as Nyunian pulled out an ornately runed dagger from his cloak, she had varely enough time to draw her blade before Nyunian was upon her. Val'yler managed to kick Nyunian off of her, and she lunged forward, her blade arching through the air. Nyunian managed to avoid this strike, and he lunged at Val'yler. His dagger caught her in the shoulder, she yelled in pain, but pushed forward and knocked Nyunian to the ground. Val'yler stomped on his chest, the cracking of bone resonated, and she placed her blade point on Nyunians neck. Nyunian began to laugh maniacially, and with his dying breaths, began to speak, his word would stick with Val'yler for aslong as she would live:
"Do what you will Val'yler, they know this world, they will be back! For when they come again, the world will erupt in FLAMES all life shall be EXTINGUISHED! HAHAH! One more thing Val'yler, they know of you aswell, they are watching you as we speak, and when they come again, it will be you who shall fall first to their might, they will bring forth the destruction of this world, by killing you!
OZZ XOEP PLI AXP AXAL!"
Val'yler showed no remorse in killing the beasts and servants of the Old Ones, and despite the fact this was still her friend Nyunian, swiftly beheaded him on the spot.
He laughed the entire time.
When the lords of the city were told the news of Nyunian betrayal and of his death, the solemnly nodded and thanked her for her service. It was on this day that she vowed to herself, she would not show emotions, she would not speak, until all the Old Ines were gone, until she saved everything from the same fate as Nyunian.
==Warnings From Beyond==
Val'yler celebrated her 29th birthday, and despite her vow to not show emotion, deep down she was happy to be wioth her friends. She sat back in her new home, a small but fair house close to the castle, she was thankful for this. Since she had killed Nyunian, there had been no signs of The Spawn, Tor'revar, or any ther Old One. The day after her birthday, Val'yler was resting in her mian room of her house, reading a book when a knock came at the door. She sluggishly got up and opened the door, but instead of a person, a note was nailed on the other side of the door, it was short and read thus:
"Tomorrow, high noon, white gold founatin."
Val'yler stared at the letter, she thought nothing much of it, probably just some admirer, but none the less she would meet this person, if only to tell them not to disturb her. The next day as Val'yler approached the fountain, she remembered she didn't know who to look for, it would be hard to fins someone for the white gold square was a busy centre of civilian commerce. she managed her way to the fountain and her gaze was immediatle drawn to a strange man; he was tall, and wearing a dark brown cloak over his head, the pommel of a blade could be seen under his cloak. She appraoched the figure, and wrote out on her note pad:
"Was it you who called for me yesterday?"
The man nodded and told her to follow him. She kept a firm grip on her blade hilt, but followed the man. They arrived a ramshackle building, furnished with rough and trashy furniture. The man motioned for Val'yler to take a seat before sitting himself before he began to speak. He said that although only a year had passed here, in the realm of Old, a millenia of war was raging. It turned out that the Elder Ones did not approve of what the Old Ones were doing. The war was nearing its end, and the Elder Ones would be cast out of time, and the Old Ones will reign; They were coming. He revealed to Val'yler the secret to defeating the Old Ones; it would be much easier to combat them when one could not see them, if they were to fight with closed eyes, even more effective would be to completly block your mind. Regular siege machines would not work no longer be effective, they were lucky that Tor'revar came unprepared to do battle. The stranger gave Val'yler the blueprints and materials list to create new siege machines. Val'yler sat there in disbelief, she shook her head and wrote out on her note pad:
"Why should I trust you? How do I know this information is real?"
The stranger smiled and said:
"I am an enemy of the Old Ones just as you are, you could say I'm an elder to them."
Val'yler stared in disbelief, but then accepted what he said as true. For many days did Val'yler meet with this stranger, and did she relay information to the lords of the city. Accordin to the stranger, they had 8 months, a year if they were lucky, to prepare. He also said what Nyunian told her was true; the Old Ones are greatly interested in her, she is the worlds first and last line of defence. Val'yler was concerned, but did not let that information get to her.
One meeting she wrote out to the stranger:
"I can't thank you enough for your help, but maybe you can answer to questions for me?"
The stranger nodded. Val'yler bowed in response and continued to write:
"First of all, if we only have 8 months to prepare, how can we prepare these siege engines in time? Surely we will need a lot of materials and time to make them?"
Val'yler stopped writing, before shaking her head and continued:
"A secondly, what is you name?"
The stranger laughed, and placed a hand on her shoulder. He told her thus:
"Allow me to answer the second question first: I go by many names, but you may call me Xan, it's not my full name, but it's all you need to know. As for the siege machines, allow me to say that just as the Old Ones are watching, so are the Elder Ones, we will help you, even if it is physically. You will get those machines created in time, I am sure of it."
Val'yler bowed an left the strangers house, and just as he did, she left a note on his door.
"Thank you."
==Technological Breakthroughs==
Preparation for the siege machines began immediately. The lords sent out mining expeditions to find these materials, some of which were never even heard of, but the stranger made sure they ha ddirections to where some were located. Work went amazingly fast on these siege machines, which turned out to be much more faster, moblie, powerful, and quicker to firt and reload than previous style. Work continued for many weeks, production was incredibly, as the instructions for assembly were very detailed, but it seemed as though all the workers had made these before. Over the course of the next months, the lords sent out emmisaries to any neighbouring city to request aid, and surprisingly, gained full support from all of them. Nearing the 8 month mark, The Spawn began to act up again, but traded violence for instilling fear and placing warnings about the comiung doom. Val'yler knew the Old Ones were coming, and from what she gathered from the warnings, they had an army of their own.
Finally, the order to move out was given, and all the armies formed togather in wait for the Old Ones; the final confrontation was at hand.
==The Lost War/ Dark Days==
The allied forces met at an area that Val'yler detemined perfect for battle; a flat plain for close combat, and a high ridge for archers, spell casters, and the newly dubbed "God Killer Siege Engines." The combined army measured in the high hundred-thousands, possibly even breaking a million, surely an army of this size could take on anything. Val'yler, with the help of a soldier dubbed "The Voice of Val'yler" ordered all G.K.S.E. into strategic areas of the ridges, prime for attacking across the field. And they waited.
They didn't wait long.
A week of unrest settled over the army, the were at the ready for anything, until one day the sky darkened to a pitch black, and a voice cracked through the air:
"XA UXA XISI! XALIZ LIXFAZS! NIX ZEAN LOZ AX NUZLILOZF XIL XIMA!"
Val'yler shuddered, that was the voice of Tor'revar, but he sounded far more powerful. Val'yler issued forth the order for all troops to fall into formation, surely the spawn and other nether beasts were coming, and the possiblity of Tor'revar and other Old Ones to fight with them was almost certain. The foot troops were reminded to pay not mind to the Tor'revar or other Old Ones if they were to appear, deal with the foot soldiers, and let the G.K.S.E. deal with the Old Ones. A rumble was heard from over the hill, and the first wave was spotted; tons of The Spawn and the stag like beasts rampaged over the hills. The order to charge was given, and both armies met in mid field; and thus the din of war thundered over the plains.
Both sides clashed for days, but there was no sign of Tor'revar, or any other Old Ones any where, Val'yler was worried. On the 10th day of battle, both sides retreated for rest, leaving the mid field soaked in blood. Only then did Tor'revar show himself, and sure enough he was not alone. A towering being, majestic yet terrifying resembling a heavily armoured knight, glowing with pale light, decended with the writhing mass that was Tor'revar. The second being spoke this time, only he spoke in the common tongue:
"I will not trouble you by speaking to you in our tongue. I am Epsilar, second to great Thotazlxax, and brother of Tor'revar. I come bearing a message; lay down your weapons and submit to us, and you shall be spared, defy us, and you shall all burn!"
Val'yler stared up at the great being, her fists clenched as she said one word:
"Never."
With that, she issued forth the order for all G.K.S.E. to fire. Flames streaked the sky. The impact on the Old Ones was immense, one could barely make out both forms all to the earth. A rumble issued from the crater of the Old Ones, rage spewed forth as Epsilar yelled:
"YOU HAVE SEALED YOUR FATE! NOW THIS WORLD, AND ALL THOSE ON IT SHALL BURN!"
Epsilars voice echoed over the plaiun; all fell quiet. Suddenly explosions shook the earth, Epsilar was calling down massive stellar objects to crash into the battle field. Again both armies clashed on the fields of battle, but this time the spawn were aided by two Old Ones. The battle kept going for days, both sides strategically retreating to refresh new troops, and the G.K.S.E. keeping the Old Ones busy. Val'yler knew they couldn't win like this, and ordered all G.K.S.E. to focus fire on Tor'revar, and to keep firing until he fell; she gave command of the siege division to her companion, The Voice ov Val'yler.
She was joining the fight.
Sure enough, as Val'yler rushed across the field, her sword held high, the form of Tor'revar plummeted to the earth, a howl echoed over the plains. And did the sky and the earth quake. Epsilars rage was building, but the G.K.S.E. kept firing relentlessly. On the plains, the arrival of Val'yler boosted the troops moral. Val'yler cut down Spawn and stag beast left, right, and centre, her banners fluttering in the wind. Val'yler was in the middle of a large brawl when an earsplitting explosion took everyones attention to the sky. Despite the destruction Epsilar had done to the G.K.S.E. line, the sheer power took it's toll on him, and the few remaining siege engiens landed lucky strikes in his weak points, his body plummeted to the earth. This time the Sky quaked and tore open, a blackness unlike any other poured into the field, a voice cried out from within:
"YOU BEINGS ARE NOT WORTHY TO HEAR MY VOICE! I AM THOTAZLXAX! THE VOICE OF CREATION! YOU HAVE DEFEATED MY GENERALS, KILLED MY SONS, AND FOR THAT, YOU ALL MUST BURN!"
Val'yler didn't even have time to turn around; a flash eminated from the tear in the sky. All went black.
Val'yler woke in immense pain. Disoriented and confused; how did she survive? looking around she noticed something very familiar, a few feet away was the brown cloak of Xan. Val'yler smiled, he must have saved her from Thotalxax's fire. She limped her way over to his cloak, only to find a charred skeleton inside. She stared lifelessly at the charred remains, but did not cry, she was going to keep her vow to the end. She had no idea how long she had been unconsious, but she slowly stumbled her way back to her tent, but all was futile, she fell to the ground as she opened up the tent flap. She looked out over the plains and noticed something odd. Both the bodies of the Old Ones were gone, and the field was empty of all bodies. She rolled over and saw three strange beings looking over her. Her last thought was of the Old Ones, and of Nyunian.
Val'yler awoke, she did not know where, she did not know when, but what she awoke to was horrifying; strange machines filled a large chamber, tubes and wired were hooked up to her naked body. She looked down at the strange beings, and recoiled as she noticed them to be the spawn. One of them noticed her gaze and turned to the others, speaking in their strange tongue. He turned towards Val'yler, producing a neelde from his pocket, as he slowly worked his way towards her.
And she screamed...
THE END.
==Translations==
*Xael xpizz tziox Thotazlxax zala axp xol zilisil Tor'revar xlozz xilzlix xzas xazzl. XLAN ZOAX, XLAN ZILO, XLAN AXO XISI! -----> Soon shall great Thotazlxax come and his general Tor'revar shall destroy this world. They wait, they come, they are here!
*Later