The Goblin King of Avarentia

I once believed I understood the war that took my kingdom.

I was wrong.

What I mistook for conquest was something far deeper. Something far more elemental. Now, as I sit in the silence left behind, I can see it clearly.

It had begun with handshakes and smiles.

I am Adair Delphicai, the Last King of the Kaels.

In the elder days, long before my kin and I drew breath, there were Gods that lived in Avarentia. They were known as the Empyrean Lords, and were beings of immense power. They were the creators of life. From their fiery forges came the first Avarentians, humans born of mud and fire. Lord Tristian himself blew the breath of life into his creations, setting them loose upon the land. The Empyrean Lords power grew as the people of Avarentia began to flourish.

Then came about the New Age, and a new way of thinking. The archaic cruelty of the Empyrean Lords was overtaken by new Gods, the Supreme Beings of the Exhaled Palisades. The old practices of dark magic and rituals began to fall by the wayside, and the Empyrean Lords power began to wane. The knowledge they left behind became both relic and temptation to the devout. Some sought to preserve the old ways, believing that the Empyreans divine power was their inheritance.

One such group would come to be known as the Varanthians. They were not a race of men, but a creed. A gathering of sorcerers, soldiers and warlords who believed in the Empyrean way, that power was not given, but taken. They studied the old arts in secret, delving into forbidden knowledge, residing in the hidden places of the world.

The leader of this empire, Seth Varanth, came to power not by conquest, but by promise. He spoke of safety, prosperity, peace. He was an ambitious man, and saw himself as a champion of the downtrodden. He performed magical favors for the peoples of Avarentia, using his mastery of sorcery and arcane knowledge to make crops thrive, cattle to grow strong, and children to prosper. He traveled the length and breadth of the world, gaining in notoriety and word of mouth.

The king of Kael at the time, King Killian, had heard of Seth's exploits and requested an audience with him. The Magician told Killian of his travels, and all he had learned of the arcane arts along the way. He claimed he could teach the king about the greater world, and advise him on the ways of kingdoms beyond Kaelian borders.

Seth hailed from Roth, a northern city in the Forbidden Lands. It is a place so far removed from Kael that it might as well have been another world. Ages before I was born, a great blight fell from the sky, scouring the land. Where other cities fell and the great desert swallowed the earth, Roth weathered the storm. No Kaelian had set foot in Roth since before the blight. What we knew of them came only from fragmented, equivocal stories.

Seth arrived one day, a stranger in strange clothing, his cloaks rimmed with furs. No one in Kael had ever seen someone quite like him before. His silky black hair fell below his shoulders, and his eyes were silver and luminous, like the moon. His pale features were angular and almost delicate, each finger adorned with rings set with stones and crystals of unfamiliar craft.

The Magician had heard rumors of a looming war between the three kingdoms, Kaelian, Elven and Dwarven. Indeed, it was during the later part of Killian's reign that trouble came to the lands. The three kingdoms were at odds with each other over resources and land, and war seemed all but inevitable.

Seth urged Killian to invite the other kings to Kael, to sit and break bread with each other, so that they might come to a better understanding of each other's concerns. It took many meetings, Seth ever present at the king’s side, offering suggestions and advice, but a plan of peace that benefited each of the three kingdoms was conceived. A treaty would be drawn up, and the land divided in the most equitable way possible. A bartering system would be implemented as well, and goods and other wares would travel unhindered throughout the lands. The other kings were pleased with the proposition, and peace reigned once more.

The people prospered under Killian's rule, and the land thrived through the use of Seth's magic. He served Killian faithfully for many decades. The Kaelian king grew older and more frail with each passing year, depending more and more upon Seth, who tended to the old king with patience and care. The Magician, curiously, had not shared the same fate as Killian. Indeed, it was quite the opposite. Seth retained a sharp mind and had the appearance of a man much younger than his living years, becoming seemingly more virile with each new decade.

When Killian passed into the Exalted Palisades, Seth pledged his allegiance to his son, Gwaen. When Gwaen died several generations later, he became advisor to Gwaen's son, Keegan.

Seth took a liking to the young Keegan right away, often taking him upon his knee, and enchanting him with tales of distant lands and strange magic. Keegan was enraptured with these stories, and Seth would laugh with delight at the boy's wonder. He would ruffle Keegan's red hair, and tell him how much he resembled his own son, Trent, when he had been the young prince's age.

The Magician took Keegan under his wing, and over the years the two had formed a bond that was seemingly unbreakable, a brotherhood. Keegan grew up to be a well rounded, well traveled man, becoming versed in the customs and habits of those outside of Kaelian borders. Seth had instilled a fierce curiosity within Keegan, and he collected a great many volumes and tomes from all over Avarentia. He became one of the most revered rulers in all of Kael's history, and was able to rule with wisdom, dignity and compassion, all due to Seth’s influence.

But as close as Keegan was to his friend and advisor, there were secrets that not even he could shed light upon. It wasn't unusual for Seth to travel, but he began disappearing for months at a time, often with no word of parting. There was peace in the land, and only Keegan was concerned about his friend's comings and goings. The Magician would leave without warning, being in his chambers one evening and simply gone the next. He stayed within the Forbidden Lands for many moons, some saying he had forsaken Kael. Others had heard rumors that Seth had had a family back in Roth, and they had fallen upon hard times. But what was true and what was conjecture was impossible to say.

Keegan had begun worrying about Seth. The man, while reticent, had always taken pleasure in Keegan’s company. But something had been bothering Seth, a thing that he kept secret behind those ageless eyes. He left in a hurry one evening, flying from the castle without even a word, and this time Keegan wasn't sure if he would ever see his friend again.

But return Seth did. When the Magician came back from his most recent jaunt across the lands, he seemed a different man, aloof and distant. There was a callousness about him now, and patience was no longer a virtue he possessed. Seth had always been quick to smile, his silvery eyes guarded but not cold. The man that now stood before Keegan, however, was grim and careworn. Something fundamental had changed in Seth, and it had taken a toll on his wellbeing. Indeed, his once jet black hair was now peppered with silvery strands, and there were lines of concern on his pale face.

Seth came before the king bearing troubling news of an uprising in Channelbrey, a Kaelian territory that lay to the east of Tremain, far beyond the castle. He said there was an army gathering strength, dissidents displeased with the treaty that was set upon the land. They felt, Seth explained, they deserved more than their forebears had settled for, and intended to take their fare share by force. He urged Keegan to deal with them swiftly, before the dissidents had a chance to gain more followers and resources.

There was little time for council, and even less time for doubt.

We set out that very night, Keegan, my younger brother, Anlon, and myself. I was head of the prestigious Order of the Kaels back then, which were the king's own personal knights.

Seth said we should lie in wait just outside the city of Channelbrey, on the outskirts of the bogs for which the city was famous for. There, we would wait for our enemy to come to us.

No one had any reason to doubt the sorcerer. He had met with my knights and I in the local tavern many a time. He was always gregarious, and praised our hard work in keeping harmony in the land, buying us drinks or telling tales of the wider world. Seth, over time, had become a treasured member of Kaelian society, and a trusted one.

A bloody sun rose that next day, and an impenetrable fog that seemed supernatural in its making covered the land like a shroud. Seth had promised the weather would be on our side, he had foretold it. He was never wrong in these matters.

By the time we realized we had been surrounded, it was far too late. A battle ensued, but the unnatural fog made it hard for our knights to find the enemy. Keegan was calling out to the Magician, asking for his aid.

Seth suddenly strode through the fog, sword drawn, and a full regiment of men at his back. His smile was full of malice. Keegan called to us to retreat, but we backed right into more of Seth's supporters.

It was there, on the battlefield of Channelbrey, that Seth loudly proclaimed himself to be of the Empyrean Lord's lineage, and ordered Keegan and the rest of us to throw down our weapons. Keegan refused, dumbfounded by this new turn of events, and Seth came rushing at him, sword drawn high.

My brother moved to intercept the descending blade, but he mistimed his steps and was instead struck down by the blow meant for Keegan.

I was powerless to stop it, being held at bay by blade point. I witnessed my brother being struck down, and a red cloud of rage overcame my senses. I began lashing out viciously at the enemy around me. The Order followed suit, and for a brief moment we had gained the upper hand. Because of the fog, though, we became mired within the bogs, and found ourselves easy targets for the Varanthians, as Seth's army called themselves, taking his surname as their own.

King Keegan had retreated, but was stymied by the bogs. Seth Varanth strode through the fog towards him, the mists parting to make way for him as he walked. The mire had little effect on him, his steps unhindered by the sucking mud. He and Keegan soon stood face to face, and a battle between the two developed.

Both men fell into the muck and mire, the fighting brutal. Keegan had Seth pinned, but the sorcerer lashed out and managed to free himself. Seth rose to his feet and kicked Keegan's sword into the bog. The king drew a small blade he had kept on him, and stuck it into Seth's calf. The Magician howled in pain, and lashed out at the king, who had managed to get back on his feet. Keegan blocked the blows with his gauntleted arms, being forced deeper and deeper into the mire. We were unable to come to his aid, as the Varanthians had decimated our ranks. Keegan grabbed hold of Seth's blade and pushed it to the side, headbutting the sorcerer. Seth took but a step back before beginning his assault anew.

Keegan gasped, falling to his knees, too beaten down to defend himself. He knelt there in the muck, looking up at his blood-brother, hatred burning in his eyes. He had opened his mouth to speak, but before the words had a chance to fall from Keegan’s lips, Seth raised his sword up and brought it down with a mighty thrust. It struck Keegan's breastplate, splitting the iron armor and burying itself deep into his chest. The Varanthian leader stepped back, tossing his cloak behind his shoulder and away from Keegan's reaching hand. The king fell to his side into the bog, eyes wide and glassy, and stirred no more.

After much confusion and hardship, I rallied together the rest of the knights who were left standing, and we fought our way out of the bogs. We retreated back to Tremain, the Kaelian capital city, passing on word of the king's murder and betrayal by none other than Seth Varanth himself.

We fortified our cities as best as we could, but soon the Varanthians marched upon them. The Empire used arcane knowledge and magical warfare to poison the very land itself. Fresh water swiftly became foul, squalid cesspools, and any plants whose roots drank from those tainted waters quickly browned then blackened. Livestock began to perish. People fell ill with strange maladies, the likes of which I had never seen before. Some were granted a quick death, while others would linger for weeks, even months, in terrible pain.

Supplies began to run low, the old lines of travel having been cut off by the Empire. By this time, the Empire's reach had extended into all three of the Kingdoms, Kaelian, Dwarven and Elven. Each kingdom powerless against the Empire's magical warfare. The Varanthians did not spare the Elven or Dwarven folk, unleashing an all out assault on their lands. Seth Varanth wanted all peoples of Avarentia to acknowledge him as a god, and rightful heir of the land. He was to bring the Empyrean Lords back to their proper place as the true rulers of the world. Each kingdom stood alone against the onslaught of Varanthian hordes.

King Keegan had no heir to take over the throne, he died without a son or daughter to carry on his blood line. There was much squabbling and infighting amongst the Kaelian Elders as to leadership, but eventually they decided that I was to rule in King Keegan's stead, being the lead knight within the King's Order. I knew how to manage troops, and handle conflict amongst my men, but a whole kingdom was a different matter altogether. It was with great reluctance that I accepted the crown when it was presented to me.

It has been ten long years since Keegan and Anlon's deaths, and since I had been crowned king. And still the assault continues. The Dwarves had been amongst the first of the three kingdoms to fall. They put up a great fight, but were no match for the magical warfare brought to them by the Varanthians. The Elves had held their own for several more years before finally becoming overrun by the Empire. The Goblins, who were not a part of the three kingdoms, and were always a self-sufficient people, were amongst the last to fall, leaving only my people to stand alone.

I felt the whole weight of the world upon my shoulders, all of Avarentia looked to me to end this war. My own people trusted me to do right by them. And I had betrayed that trust. I had not been able to keep Kael safe from the Varanthians. We are a lone candle burning in the darkness, resolute, but fragile. One breath of wind is all it would take to extinguish that light forever. And Seth was about to unleash a gale.