Prologue Part 2

The children stood silent at the mouth of The Mine. The hot dust blew across the dirt road, whipping up in small clouds that stung the eyes and cheek. The arid smell of dry cracked leather came from the various tools in the cart. Hastily placed there by the Dwarves a few days ago it seemed. They would be back, but only after the miners held their council and deemed it “safe”. Dwarves were not known for living such long lives by making hasty decisions, was the common thought.
Benedict was nervously fidgeting with his hands while his eyes darted behind them looking for followers only to find nothing but the winding trail back to the village of OallEnAkhan . He saw his friends.

Tall Sophie with her long blonde hair blowing in the wind away from her beautiful and strong face.

His cousin Cordelia who was more like a sister really, her white dress was a bit dirt-stained at the bottom from the two miles of dirt trail they had traversed from town. It didn’t seem to bother her though. He did note her normal joyful banter had ceased, her dark hair tossing in the wind as she looked at the gaping maw of the mine in awe

This Mine had been open for at least the last 300 years, with rich veins of iron ore and hematite. Rumors were that the dwarves opened the mine on what was once the site of an ancient temple. One forgotten and swallowed by the drifting dust and sand of the desert it bordered to the north. The path snaked from the mine to where it met the northbound merchants’ trail through the desert to the city of Sierra. This trail connected with the southern city of Kur, Port L'For, with the northern trade route during the winter months. The months when the northern seas were much too dangerous to cross for trade, leaving the giant lands even more isolated from the rest of the world.
Benedict sighed. Sailing on the vast ocean was something that seemed like a fun exercise or vacation, but he didn’t have the same desire to be a sailor, let alone a thieving pirate like his brother and Zorin wanted to. He smirked to himself. That was yet another bad decision those boys came up with. At this rate, one of them was going to end up in a dungeon somewhere. Or worse yet, killed.
He looked to Zorin who was taking inventory of his various picks and a small knife he had on his side. He paused for a moment before looking at Benedict.

Zorin could sense Benedict's judgment, but what he was more aware of was his apprehension and fear. He shook his head and smiled with his dark eyes reassuringly. The boys loved each other even if they had very different goals. Benedict instinctively looked to his older brother Zane Shieldheart secretly hoping he would find something and call the whole thing off.

Zane stood at the front, chewing the end of a small piece of grass while squinting at the cave in thought. Listening intently, focusing his sight into the darkness for any unseen lurker, he smelled past the earthy sweetgrass in his mouth, past the dust, making sure his senses didn’t betray him.
He turned to Zorin and nodded in approval. Benedict’s heart sank.
The children had made their way into the dark stone archway of the mine, and now found themselves on the edge of absolute darkness. Cordelia reached up and took down a beaten and dented tin lantern and checked it for Oil. The vapor burned her freckled nose slightly and made her eyes water. She struck the flint starter as the wick burned to life. Her mouth pulled back in a slight grin. The blue flame sputtered to a bright yellow as she adjusted the length. Illuminating and framing her face as she held it out to Benedict who smiled.
Benedict was afraid of breaking his word or command, she chuckled. Not of the dark.
She had memories of them listening to Erebus tell stories of great Knights and cruel Orc war parties in the lands across the ocean in the new world. About those savage Barbarians of Wolfling and Ogres and Koboldsin the lands of Trull. As was always her favorite subject though, there were Dragons. She loved the tales of Dragons. Especially she loved to dream about what they must have looked like in ancient times.Gleaming like precious metals in the sun, or in rainbow hues against a moonlit sky. She smiled at the thought, lost in her own mind for a moment.
She looked up from the flame to see her friends motioning her to the front with Zane and Zorin, to scout the freshly lit cavernous hallway.
Dwarves rarely did anything small. Whether it was in the craftsmanship or in the size itself. This huge chamber was an indicator of this. Huge rock beams ten feet around, climbed thirty feet into the air, bracing the ceiling at the top. The skillfully hewn reliefs of Dwarven Runes and a bearded face were carved into several of them. Surrounded by an ancient, angular design.
No one knew how long the dwarves were working this mine, but it was obvious they didn’t plan to stop anytime soon.
Walking into the chamber, Cordelia saw a pocket in the wall with the rune for “light”. Placing the lantern in the pocket set off a chain reaction with the rock network of crystal naturally in the walls. The chamber magnified that light and cast it evenly throughout the room.
"Ah!:Sophie shielded her eyes as the dark wall she was investigating blinded her slightly with its radiance. Squinting she felt the wall and soon found where it had collapsed slightly revealing another hallway behind it.
“Hey I think I found something! Over here!” her voice bouncing on the cool stones in perfect time as it faded into darkness. Her friends made their way over to her. Peering inside Zorin then looked back at Zane.
“This has got to be it.” They nodded. Cordelia found another lantern nearby, as did Sophie. After repeating the earlier ritual of lighting them, the children made their way into the relatively narrow hallway. This was more ancient. They could see etchings on the wall of a huge tower in the middle of an ancient city.
“This must have been before the gods left.”
His voice was slightly mournful. He dreamed of a golden age where the knights guarded the lands with a righteous justice. Military might had fallen out of favor many centuries ago though, and replaced with the trade barons of Darkovnia. There was no need for the power of the Knights then, and their numbers dwindled away. They still existed in the great Celestine Tower and in pockets throughout the world, but they were not the same force they once were, according to Erebus. Still, Benedict dreamed of joining their ranks one day.
Zorin and Zane began their work on the ancient lock. The rough iron squeaked until a loud clack set the tumbler in place. Zorin smiled at his friend who nodded approvingly. Slowly the door groaned open. Ancient, stale air rolled out of the dark opening. Cordelia covered her mouth trying not to gag at the slightly musty and rotten sweet smell in that initial rush of air.
Zane looked back with a grin. “What was that smell?” He fanned his hand behind his behind as he darted into the darkness with a snicker. Sophie covered her face as she began to laugh. Cordelia laughed as well quietly. Everything was a joke to him. Why was he the oldest? She turned to Benedict who looked slightly disgusted and maybe a little bit embarrassed.
“Okay, I mean… Go ahead, okay?”
Zorin shook his head and motioned everyone to follow him. The Hall was much the same as before, just without the murals. Tattered threads of what could have been banners clung to the walls though. The once brilliant hues now faded to an off white and tan mottled design in places. Possibly the horn and eye of a dragon’s face was seen as well. The rest were lost to time.
The lighting in the hall began to dim slightly as they progressed. Reaching up, Zorin pulled down a torch from its sconce and lit it from the lantern Benedict was carrying, the ancient fibers springing to life in a yellow-orange light. As he placed the torch back in its ironwork on the wall, it flared violet for a moment. The sound of stone grinding behind them startled the children. A room was opening across the hall from the torch, to which the curious faces of Zane and Cordelia peeked in cautiously.
In the center of the room was a bench with three ancient scrolls. The crumbling paper seemed to be held together by something other than its construction however, and a deep blue glow slightly emanated from them. Cordelia approached the bench. The blue light casting a shine on her face. She knew this was magic. Maybe something more powerful than the small tricks her mother had shown her. Something better than simply breaking bread or wiping up some spilled broth with no hands.
The thee scrolls had three different symbols: a tree, a shield, and a torch. That torch called to her overpowering any interest in the other two for the moment. She reached for it. Her hand touched the paper and to her surprise, it held its form perfectly, not a single crack in the parchment. The other two scrolls fell into dust with an ancient sigh. Almost from relief of its long-awaited duty. The dust passing off the table and into the cracks of the floor to rest.
Faintly, down the hall a stone gate began to open, but the children were so engrossed by the remaining scroll it seemed to go largely unnoticed.
Opening the Scroll she saw lettering she was unfamiliar with. Angular letters highlighted with squared dotted marks in a language foreign to her. Sighing, she knew it would take time to study and decipher the script. She tucked it into her belt for now. The children smiled at the treasure they found though. Zane clasped her shoulder nodding happily with a wide grin. “That will be great to find out what it says. I can’t wait, I know you can figure it out, Cordelia.”
She smiled, a little embarrassed at the praise. They continued down the hall and found a room where scratches lined the floor from the recent stone door sliding out of the way. The room had a table flanked on either side by two sets of ancient armor.
Benedict and Sophie approached it. Sophie saw the dusty armor’s fine steel and construction though, and the leather bindings were corroded and brittle. She thought the suits would be still fine to use. Benedict noted the crown and sword carved into the breastplates. It’s Knight’s armor! He looked at the table and saw a small silver amulet and an ancient crown.

That amulet was also a simple etching of a sword and crown symbol in the center of a six pointed star. A symbol for the knighthood.
A groaning came from the darkness behind him. Two man-sized shapes shambled into the lantern’s red glow. The decayed faces of two Ghouls lurched into the light. Their blue-tinged flesh fell like tattered rags from their bones randomly. Their yellow eyes were clouded and pupil-less and they clawed at the air slowly with rotten and taloned hands. They came directly at Benedict. The other children, horrified, stepped away from the side of the shambling creatures.
Benedict reached for that symbol and clutching the cold and ancient silver to his chest he began to chant a prayer… Just as he had heard in those stories of old. Eyes closed he concentrated, stars appeared from his eyes being pulled so tight. He felt woozy and all went black.
As his eyes awakened, he found himself alone in the ancient ruin. Noises delayed and reverberated as leather and twill ground with gravel on the stone floor. Dragging. He could smell the musty room, it was dusty and clean, he noted. He saw the shadowy silhouette of a tall man step into the room, dragging a form behind him. A body.
He let go of the man-sized leg and let it hit the floor. Chuckling under his breath, the large man stood up. Benedict could only make out the black outline of powerful muscles as the man set the crown and amulet on the table.
Benedict felt a hand on his shoulder and realized Zane had him draped across his leg. “He’s ok!” Zane exclaimed and a sigh of relief was felt by all in the room.
Benedict rose up. “How long have I been out?”
“Not long. You went to the table, and the next thing we saw you passed out.”
“You guys didn’t see the ghouls?”
“No…”

Everyone looked at each other uneasily, and looked at the two statuesque knights.
Noticing their response, Benedict looked at them puzzled.
“These aren’t just suits of armor, Benedict.” Sophie looked at him. “There are actually still knights inside them.”
“What?!” Benedict was appalled. Dead? Inside? They were at perfect attention guarding the table. And then he remembered the crown.
Zane was approaching the table and reached out to claim it. “We could go anywhere with just one of the gems alone I think.” He smiled greedily, reaching for it.

The twisted pattern on the crown revealed many serpentine and dragon heads twisted together. Five gemstones worked their way around the crown itself. Ruby, emerald, sapphire, diamond, and jet. Zane picked it up and the dragons seemed to come to life. Twisting and turning. He placed it on his head.
“What are you doing?”
Zane saw his little brother’s greedy face lunge for the crown. He dodged to the side ,pushing him to the ground. He looked at his friends. Those friends that now wanted his crown. He saw their greedy, beady little eyes, soulless. Their black mouths pulled back in cynical grins, dark lips curled back from inky blue-black fangs.
“NO!” Zane pulled the crown off and it clanged to the ground, lifeless again. His friends looked at him in awe. Benedict was steadying Zane with his hands, looking into his eyes.
“Are you ok, Zane? You became very angry all of a sudden before throwing this down on the floor.”
Zane nodded. “No one… should put that on. We should go.” As the children left, Zane reached down and picked up the crown. Shrugging, he looped it into his belt, taking the treasure with him. Dangerous or not, it may be worth something to somebody. If they were going to strike out on their own this was a great step towards financial independence. He chuckled to himself.
As they returned to the great hall, a sense of dread rolled over their hearts. There was sound of a crowd, faintly, screaming in the distance. Zane picked up the pace. Sophie could smell something and she joined him as all the children found themselves bolting to the entrance. Then their fears were realized.
In the dusky distance, OallEnAkhan was on fire.

|CAST|

| YOUNG SOPHIE - Sabrina Patten


| YOUNG CORDELIA - Arianna Atchley

| YOUNG BENEDICT - Jesse Davis

| YOUNG ZORIN - Gryffn Foote

| YOUNG ZANE - Storm S Cone

| LORAHANA SHIELDHEART - Laura Jerdak

| EREBUS SHIELDHEART - Jesse Phillips

| LORD PALLUS - Ian Wilkinson

| ELLOVEVE HAWKLIGHT - Jessica Atchley

| NARRATOR - Mike Atchley


All Music/Production by Mike Atchley