Prologue
The city of Irridessa was devastated. The surrounding mountains were dismal and gloomy as the storm rolled in to wash away the smoldering flames of the few remaining cottages. Bodies littered the streets, but Cinder did not stop to see who he could recognize. He knew everyone in this small city and did not want to dwell on how many lives had been lost after his mother had charged the city. The walls built around the city meant to keep the floods at bay in the spring had been crushed into powder. Only a few large stones showed evidence they had ever been there at all. Vain had done all he could to help the child save this glorious city, and now the future of the ‘City of the Forsaken’ was in his hands.
Cinder was young, surely no older than 16, but he had wisdom beyond his years. His mother, known to the people of Irridessa as the ‘White Witch’, had done all she could to compel him to join her. She attempted to use magick to force him to do her bidding, but he was too powerful. And so began the destruction of the wondrous city. She wanted to be sure everything he was ever close to was destroyed. In the end, she died and Cinder knew it was best for the sake of everyone if she was forever gone from the world. He sits on a cliff above the city, under the waterfall where he often goes to meditate. The sound of the water soothes his anger and hides his sorrow as he sheds tears for the people that he loved but couldn’t save. He watches the smoke dissipate and lets his memories take him back to the beginning.
When he was still a small child, Cinder didn’t know he had a father. He was aware that someone had to help create him, but as far as he knew, his father didn’t care enough to stay. When he was 7, he was outside finishing his chores. A strange man appeared in front of him, here but at the same time not here. He seemed to be a shadow of some kind and the sight of him put Cinder on edge, although his presence was both familiar and comforting.
“You need to know the truth,” Vain had said. “Your mother is leading you down a terrible path. One that may end up destroying the world. You have more magick running through your veins than anyone ever has in the past, and your mother plans to use it to destroy everything.”
“But why?” asked the child, always curious to the world around him, especially the motivations that drive people to do the things they do.
“I will tell you. But not today. Today you must understand that if you do as she tells you, your magick will flourish, and she will use you to hurt people. If you listen to me, I can teach you anything you want to know and you will be able to do anything you decide with your power. I will not allow any harm to ever come to you, and it will be up to you what you do with your power when you are old enough to decide things for yourself.”
“Why should I trust you? I don’t even know who you are.” “I’m your father,” replied Vain. “and I have been here since the day you were born. I have kept you safe from the evil in the world, and I have kept you company when you were alone. I will always be here, in the shadows, whenever you need me.”
“Okay,” said the child.
So the days went by, the child learning all he could from his father. Any chance he had he was practicing the magick he had learned and his father taught him about everything. Not just magick, but about life, morals, motivations. When he turned 13, he ran from his mother’s home and never looked back. He travelled and practiced and his father kept his promise. The child was never without food or shelter or company. He learned that his father had saved his mother’s life when she was about to be burned for practicing magick.
Vain had nursed her back to health and taught her his own magick. He had asked her what had happened that day and why they wanted to burn her and she had declared vengeance on the people that had tried to hurt her. When he tried to stop her, she had called him a traitor and chained him to the wall. Using what he had taught her of necromancy, she had kept him alive the entire time she tortured him. She had sewn his lips shut, ripped open his rib cage, and crushed his heart before his eyes.
Then she had told him she would have his child and snapped her fingers. In the blink of an eye, her stomach grew. As her stomach grew, Vain used what little power he had left to cast a spell that the child would have more power than ever seen in history. He then used the last of his energy to keep himself alive, as a shadow, so that he could be there for his child in times of need. Then she let him die.
Although she had killed him, Vain lived on as a shadow, always around to help his son when needed. A year after he had left home, the white witch appeared in the small town where the child was currently living. She asked her son She wanted his assistance in her plans to take over control of this world that had shunned her so many years ago. His answer remained no, as he was taught by his father what life was truly meant to be about and he wanted no part in her quest for domination.
She did return, however, and destroyed the beautiful city that her son loved so much. Irridessa, the ‘City of the Forsaken’, had become his home since the death of the White Witch and he had grown to love it for its unmatched beauty and tranquility. Before her death, as Vain had, the witch had cast a spell that she may live on. As long as the memory of his mother lived on in his mind, whether he acknowledged it or not, the witch may return whenever she pleased. Vain took care of the mess this time. He vanquished the witch, careful to be sure she could not return while the child lived. Not nearly as powerful as she was in her human form, she had simply destroyed the city and killed everyone the child had loved.
The child shakes his head, coming out of his memories, and stands on the edge of the cliff overlooking the once beautiful city. The few survivors gather around him waiting on his command, as he was well loved and greatly respected by the people.
“Build a statue,” he tells them. “Build a statue of the witch so that it might warn people in the future of the terror that comes with her. Then we will begin rebuilding the city.”
“What about you?” they ask him.
“I will go on a journey to find people who may be willing to help. Then I will return to help you.”
As they begin the task at hand, the child packs his belongings and begins the journey. When he is a safe distance from the city, he casts a circle and begins his task. He splits his soul into 7 individual pieces. one for each of the 7 magickal elements. Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Spirit, Light, and Dark. Light is the power over life itself just as Dark is the power over death. He then splits his personalities so that if ever needed the souls and the personalities may come together to vanquish the witch again. He separated the King, the Priest, the Scholar, the Artisan, the Warrior, the Servant, and the Sage. He then sent one piece of soul and one piece of personality to 7 different people, as far away from each other as he could, so that they may only come together if they absolutely had to. Then he dismissed his circle, gathered his belongings, and continued on his way to find help for the city that he loved.
