Brothers of Brimstone: Rider

Chapter 1: The Battle for March

The snowy banks were muddled with the red and brown hues spilled from the long three-day battle. Emerald rested against a snow bank, inhaling the cool air, attempting to catch his breath. He gazed over at his worthy adversary with admiration.

The god of winter lay face down in the snow only a few feet from him, battered and weary. Emerald could hear his ragged breathing from where he stood, but he wasn’t foolish enough to believe that the god of winter was defeated; he was resting. Though he had not ravaged the god, he couldn't help but feel satisfied with his achievement; even in earthly forms, gods were powerful. He had not expected the battle to last this long, but he suspected the winter was enjoying the battle, which was why it was allowed to proceed.

Until now, he had been playing with Emerald like a cat who had cornered a baby mouse, but Emerald knew it would only be a matter of time before the winter god became bored and decided to end the game. Emerald gazed at the crooked cane in the winter god's hand, an instrument that had once been snow white but was now streaked reddish brown due to the beatings the god rendered upon those who annoyed him. Emerald had been on the receiving end of the cane's wrath and understood the strength of the crude weapon.

Emerald had not come here to fight. When he approached the winter god, he bent his knee, begging the god to end the icy season so the humans could begin their harvest. However, the winter god laughed at him, seemingly untouched by Emerald's pleas to end the unjust frost that had already taken the lives of so many. Enraged, Emerald had struck the first blow, an impulsive act that he was beginning to regret.

As a warlock, Emerald's sworn duty was to protect the balance from all those above and below, but the winter god was neither. He was a fact of life, and in Emerald’s experience, facts were difficult to argue with, and the discussion quickly turned violent.

The winter god shattered the ice beneath his feet, hoping his display of strength would be enough to rid himself of the pesky wizard that had dared challenge him, but Emerald was not just a master of elements but agile and was able to escape death. In retaliation, Emerald had caused an avalanche that buried the winter god’s cold kingdom, hoping that his demonstration of skill would be enough to cause the god to heed. Still, this act only enraged the winter god, and soon, Emerald found himself engaged in physical combat.

The winter god was fit and fat from his long reign, and though Emerald had done his best to fend off the god’s blows, he soon found himself being pummeled into a snow bank. Though the fight had moved on from magic, Emerald decided this was not the time to adhere to rules and conjured the ice sickles from nearby trees to pierce his massive opponent.

That was when things turned serious. For three days, a battle of wit, magic, and stamina commenced. Though Emerald had been able to cause the god to relent in weariness, he knew the god would recover, and he would soon perish.

He had not quite recovered when the winter god began to stir. Emerald braced himself and prayed to the goddess Luna for a quick death, but to his surprise, the winter god didn’t charge him. Instead, he crawled across the broken ice and retrieved a massive branch.

He was certain the god meant to use the branch as a club, so he covered his face with his arms, hoping the god would finish him off in one swift blow.

Emerald squeezed his eyes shut, and though only a few moments had passed, it felt like an eternity. Frustrated by the delay, he threw open his arms and was about to demand that the god get on with it, but when he looked up, he noticed that the god had turned the branch into a torch, which he carried to Emerald in a non-threatening manner.

Impressed by Emerald’s boldness, the winter god entered a truce with the warlock on that fateful night. The god agreed that he would end winter by lighting a torch that Emerald must carry into March to herald the end of winter and bring in the spring.

Each winter, Emerald returned to the kingdom in the Poles to retrieve the torch, and once his life ended, his spirit took over the task. During Emerald’s time, this story was another fact, but over the centuries, it became a fairytale and was eventually forgotten by most. That is, until one snowy season, the winter god didn’t light the torch, and Emerald was unable to bear it.