Chapter 5
The boarding plank landed upon the shore with a loud thud, making a significant divet into the ashen colored sand. Rijin found it ironic that he had never known anything other than the ashen soot that laid upon the ground, and in his first time experiencing the world outside Midoku he still only found ashen soot. Rijin is tall by normal standards but a little on the shorter side in comparison to the other Pavest. He stands at around 7 feet tall, ashen white skin like all the rest, his face adorned with tattoos and piercings marking him as a true member of the Pavest race. His kin however stood at 8 feet and over, something they made sure to point out when trying to tease the young man.
The soldiers of Midoku began to descend the plank, falling into formation on either side of it. The soldiers stood at attention with their black armor blending in with the surrounding sand. Rijin waited and watched as his brothers in arms filed in, he admired how their ashen white skin contrasted the blackness of the armor. But the true marvel was the ruins that laid before Rijin's eyes. 'The Ruins of the Old World' is what people called them; a grand broken and desolate cathedral with ornate etchings of some lost race or time. Few knew of the existence of these rulers, even fewer had seen them with their own eyes. They had perplexed the nobles of the world since the white void dissipated, mainly because none of the known countries claimed them. The cathedral is massive and has architecture that is unique, unlike anything the other countries have seen or have created in their long histories. The other reason was the immense amount of magic that surrounded the ruins; the amount of runes and enchantments placed upon the building were of a higher level than many archmages could comprehend. Many mages who were given special access came to the center isle over the years to try and understand the nature of the enchantments for replication or to disenchant them but nothing ever came of them. The archmage of alteration described them to Rijin once, he said the runes were 'completely other'. Seeing them before his eyes, Rijin finally understood what he meant. The runes of the cathedral were numerous and ornate, they ran up every arch and crevice of the building sometimes forming images of battle or depictions of gods. The entire building was covered with a presence of magic. The only distinction was a large glass dome that existed at the center of the structure, the glass was all but destroyed, fallen in the unstoppable crawl of time, Rijin knew that this must be the council chamber that his father had told him about; where the round table was held. While in thought and admiration a large hand rested on Rijin's shoulder. Rijin turned to see the hand of his protector Fajin.
"Let us take our place, Randorin," Fajin said. Randorin, it was a title given to Rijin meaning 'prince of stars' in the Midoken language. It was not a term of endearment as much as it was an official title, one Rijin's father made sure was used even amongst Rijin's friends. Rijin and Fajin descended down the gangplank. As Rijin got closer to the land he hesitated for a moment; this was the first time he would ever have laid a foot on land that was not of Midoku. While the ground was of the same make, it was not a territory his father controlled. Rijin reveled at the thought before making his first step; where his feet stood was the assurance that his father did not own the world despite the claims his father might make.
Fajin and Rijin stood on either side of the gangplank, looking up towards the ship. A moment later two soldiers with blue hoods and black leather armor appeared on the deck, as if they had appeared out of thin air.
"Thestrals," Rijin said under his breath. The elite guard of the sentinel and his heir. Even to Rijin, the crowned prince, they were a rarity to actually see. They did not say anything but their entrance meant that he was coming, and sure enough a moment later the boots of the Sentinel could be heard coming across the deck.
All the soldiers along with Rijin and Fajin held their breath as the Sentinel came into view. His mere presence left a sense of pressure in the air, he gave off the feeling of trying not to draw the attention of a beast. The silence was deafening, only broken by the sound of the Sentinel's boots. When he arrived at the gangplank, everyone straightened themselves up just a little more, even Rijin despite this being his own father. The Sentinel was in many ways not what people would expect. Although the ruling house in Midoku is traditionally filled with Goliaths, descendants of the Pavest, but the Sentinel himself is human. He stands at 6 foot 5, has a well trimmed blackbeard and short black hair; despite his position his armor is not ornate or meant to show off, he wears simple black platemail made with lighter padding to support his movement. He has an incredibly muscular build for a human, but next to the Goliaths he looked like a child. Many of the soldiers who had the pleasure of seeing him for the first time would often refer to him as "dutca" the word for "child" in the Pavest language; but that never never stuck after seeing the Sentinel on the field of battle. None of these features intimidated the soldiers, but his sword did. On the Sentinels back is a large seven foot long, one foot wide broad sword, the hilt of the sword is so long that it is able to be seen above the Sentinel's head even while it is being carried on his back. The sword is close to five hundred pounds and yet the Sentinels walk down from the ship like it is a rucksack. Not many have gotten to see the blade of the sword, or have seen the Sentinel wield it, but there are many rumors that run rampant through the barracks. The Sentinel swings the sword like a giant with a club, some rumors say; He once cut down ten men with a single blow, other rumors say. One of the rumors that is the most prevalent says that the Sentinel raised it above his head with a single hand after defeating a wyvern. Rijin always found that rumor funny, the people who truly knew the Sentinel knew that he never used more than one hand to wield that sword.
Rijin watched as his father stepped foot onto the ashen soil. The Sentinel reached down and took a bit of the sand into his hand, rubbing it around before letting it fall through his fingers and letting out a sigh. This puzzled Rijin, his father was many things but sentimental was never one of them. The Sentinel stepped up to a stone circle embedded in the sand. Rijin could see the etchings of magic circles inlaid in the stone with a large divot that looks like it was made for something large to be placed inside. The Sentinel looked down at the divot in the stone and then reached his hand behind him grabbing the hilt of the blade. As he did so, runes showed across the scabbard as the blade began to be pushed upward, being pulled by the Sentinel and the enchantments on the sheath. Instead of being the typical steel of a broadsword, brilliant blue light came from the blade as it came out of the sheath. It caused Rijin to squint a little bit before his eyes adjusted. The blade looked as if it was made from stars, it has a blue crystalline structure, being constructed from some of the first crystals ever harvested from the star lands. This blade has been handed down through generations of Sentinels since the founding of Midoku, but the current Sentinel left his own mark on the blade. As the Sentinel raised the blade into the air with his hand, Rijin could read the one part of the blade that was not glowing; a small group of dead light etched into the blade itself creating an imperfection in an otherwise perfect blade. Rijin read the inscription as he had many times before, he did not know what it meant but he knew it was a symbol of his fathers defiance against the Sentinels who came before. It read:
Gor Dire'irte gor,dranic
Or in the common tongue:
No Oath to be broken
The Sentinel turned the blade towards the ground and slowly began to press it into the divot. As the blade plunged deeper and deeper, the ground began to shake beneath Rijin's feet. For a moment Rijin thought it was the sheer force of his father shoving the blade into the earth, but then Rijin noticed that the crystals that speckled the ground began to glow. The magic circle embedded in the stone began to glow gold. It glowed brighter and brighter until it burst forward traveling along the crystals and then up towards the runes that adorned the walls of the cathedral. The front side of the cathedral glowed in brilliant gold light before the stars and nebulas in the sky above started to shift, rearranging themselves before the group's eyes. They twisted and turned until very clearly in the sky above it said:
MIDOKU
Then the glowing stopped, but the word "Midoku" stayed in its place. The Sentinel took out the sword and turned to the soldiers.
"The Ruins of the Old World have been unlocked. All of you have been briefed on where you are supposed to be and the positions you hold," the Sentinel spoke in his normal tone but even his normal tone had an edge of intensity to it. "Remember," he said, "this is not Midoku, but this also is not Fearsh, Limgren, Niepe, Xerxes, or Penzamen. This land belongs to no one so be on your guard."
Rijin chuckled a bit to himself, always paranoid, he thought. Rijin, as well as everyone else, knew that one of the enchantments of the center isle did not allow combat. This entire company coming with them was merely for the threat of attack at sea, once they reached the center isle there was no longer a need for caution. The Sentinel looked at Rijin.
"This island protects us from combat but it does not protect us from scouts," The Sentinel said staring daggers at Rijin, "We need to be on alert. These other countries while they may never be able to meet our magical prowess are still cunning and conniving…even if many of them are mere savages," the company chuckled and beat their chest.
"While the Randorin and I are inside, all of you will watch over the area. Consider this area like Midoku, no one other than us is allowed in," The Sentinel says. The soldiers nodded. A loud thud resounds off to the left, Rijin and the other look over to see a ship landing about 300 feet away. The ship is covered in paint and flowers. From the ship a group people with flowing dresses and flower crowns come off the ship looking jovial.
"Penzamen," one of the soldiers says, "I am surprised those daisy pushers know how to sail a boat," the soldier says. The company laughs.
"They don't," another burly goliath soldier says, "their god does it for them", he says mockingly. The company roars in laughter, Rijin included. The laughter is loud enough that some of the peope from Penzamen look to see the Midokens. Upon seeing them the Penzamites smile fades and they continue about their business quietly.
"Enough," The Sentinel says, "no need to mock them. They are not worth our time," The Sentinel looks towards them with disqust. Rijin sees a young man come from off the Penzamen ship and look over at them. Despite being farther away, the young man stands and looks at the Sentinel for a moment. Rijin turns to his father and his father does not adjust his gaze. The two are locked in eye contact from hundreds of feet away. After a moment the young man turns his head and walks towards the cathedral.
"Rijin join me inside," The Sentinel says and then begins to ascend the stairs.
"I will be out here if you need me Randorin," Fajin says. Rijin nods and then follows after his father.
Rijin followed his father through the ruins, observing the cathedral as he went. The entire build was massive, even by Goliath standards. Most of Midoku had larger buildings and doorways to accommodate the Goliath population, but this cathedral seemed to Rijin like it was made for something even bigger than a Goliath. Although it was ruined and collapsing, the artistry was clear in every inch of the place. Rijin had seen many buildings put together in Midoku, the entire process was streamlined and the use of magic allowed for the process to be done within a few days, however it meant that the buildings were often cut and dry with little differentiation to them. This building was entirely different. Rijin continued to observe as he followed until he came to a large set of double doors. The doors are wooden with ornate metal etchings across it, but over time the metal began to rust and the door began to rot. His father opened the double doors and the light of the celestial sky filled the entire room through the glass dome in the ceiling.
"This is the central chamber," Rijin says, stepping through the door. All the other parts of the cathedral were impressive in their own right, but this room was a work of art. The entire chamber is a large circle, with large columns that separate an inner and outer column. The outer columns walls are filled with scenes of battle and glory separated into sections based on the different nations represented. Rijin walked over to Midoku's section to see what sort of image was chosen to depict his country. To no surprise to him, the scene depicted was the Midoken's fighting off the reavers on one side, and fighting off the other countries on the other, while the sentinel reigned over everyone from his throne adorned with a giant sword that came out of the top.
"Seeming fitting that even the depiction of our country by a four thousand year old wall is of oppression…" Rijin says to the open room. His father walks up beside him.
"When you see this image you see oppression?" The Sentinel says, "I see strength, and overcoming opposition."
"Really," Rijin looks down at his father, "enemies on both sides, and the Sentinel ruling from a throne in the middle is a good depiction of strength?"
"There is no need to corner the weak because they are already powerless, overwhelming force requires overwhelming opposition to overcome. What I see in this image is a nation that needs massive amounts of force to overcome…and yet we still remain atop our throne," the Sentinel pats Rijin's back as he says this. The Sentinel's hand is small compared to Rijin's massive back, but even still the impact has the same force as any goliath.
"You consider the Penzamites a worthy foe for our oppression? They are farmers, pious folk, they have never given us a worthwhile battle and yet we continue to oppress them. We seek conflict with a group of people that would rather have 'the gods' do it for them, than actually doing anything themselves." Rijin says this with a tone of regret. He has no love for the people of Penzamen nor for any country outside of Midoku, but the oppression of others was something Rijin never fully understood. Maybe that is why Rijin was never meant to be the heir.
The Sentinel looks to Rijin not with disdain or disappointment for his son, but instead he has a slight grin. "Rijin come here," the Sentinel gestures to the round table in the middle of the room. Rijin observes the table as he joins his father by his side.
"What do you see?" the Sentinel asks. Rijin wanted to be snarky commenting on it being a table but he knew that was a fast track to his fathers anger rather than his understanding; so Rijin took the question seriously.
"It has six sides," Rijin answered, "one to represent each of the nations, just like the walls of this room." He noticed that each section matched up with the wall that represented its corresponding country. However, The sections and the walls were very different from one another. "The sections of the table depict a history," Rijin said continuing his thought, "they show each countries insighting events to become a nation up till now but the walls seem different." The Sentinel walked around the table nodding as Rijin talked.
"This is true," he said, "what do you see in Midoku's history?"
Rijin Scoffed, "I know our history. You and Thalassa take every chance you can to shove it down my throat," he said in annoyance.
"I did not ask for what I or your patron has told you, what do you observe?" The Sentinel snapped back. A flare of anger arose in Rijin but he was used to that feeling, he let the feeling subside and looked at the table. At the very top of the section was the insighting event of Midoku, its birth, a star colliding with the earth forming the starlands. From the starlands the gods and wizards of old formed the Sentinels blade and gave it to the first Sentinel of Midoku, Sol, who held the honor of being the paladin of the high seas a role that Rijin now held as "Randorin". What followed was conquest, war, more war, and oppression, all things Rijin expected to see, but what caught his interest was a single circle that went through his section and around the entire table. In this circle was the only image that was not completed by the singular section but could only be clearly viewed by looking at the whole table. The image depicted Rijin's father and uncle, along with the rulers of the other nations: Rashom the Enguvil of Fearsh, SamusSara the Skutsamling of Limgren, Kronos the Dauntless of Xerxes, Diana of the court of Sunflowers, and lastly Thormir the High sorcerer of Niepe. In the image all of them were side by side, fighting against a common evil, but very soon after the image breaks back into the individual sections.
"The Council of Zerlif is the only point where there was unity among the nations," Rijin says, "all the other sections depict there being a separation but that is the only point where everyone is unified."
The Sentinel nods. "You are correct, I was a young boy when I served on the council alongside the others," the Sentinel says this while looking at the image with a saddened gaze. "I will admit that I enjoyed fighting side by side with Rashom, SamuSara, and the others…including your uncle before his passing. But the key thing to notice is what came directly after; separation, war, and destruction."
Rijin see what the Sentinel is talking about. As soon as the Council of Zerlif was disbanded every nation erupted in war that has led till today. The nations have been having disputes and trying to one up each other since that insighting event, though Rijin never knew why.
"If you enjoyed working with the other leaders then why start a war? Why from a common ground did war and oppression follow?" Rijin asked sincerely. The Sentinel thought for a second before speaking. He opened his mouth a few times but hesitated to let words actually follow.
"Back when we formed the council, we had a meeting like this. We met at the center isle and talked about a threat to our world that could only be taken down by us working together rather than breaking apart. It was the first time a heir of each nation came together as a group and fought together for the greater good of the world. We thought it would bring about an era of peace. I remember sharing meals with Diana, I had a little bit of a crush on her…" the Sentinel said this lost in thought. Rijin was taken aback at this knowledge. He knew of the Council of Zerlif, how they saved the world from an evil sorcerer back in the day, but when it came to actually hearing of their exploits his father was always coy about them.
"Or at least I did, until she killed my brother," the Sentinel said this with an intense anger in his eyes. The room was quiet, Rijin did not know what to say. He had never had the chance to know his uncle but from what his father had said he always was someone he respected greatly.
"Diana killed your brother?" Rijin asked. The Sentinel balled his fist and nodded.
"My only regret in everything I have done is that I did not get to kill Diana myself," the Sentinel spoke outright. "I know I have not been vocal about this in the past but it needs to be said now. The other countries only think about themselves and what is best for their reign, they think little of their people and Penzamen is the chief example of this. They rely more on their gods and look at how their people suffer because of it; they barely know how to do menial task they have no idea how to fight. We could never get along."
"Father…I had no idea," Rijin says, "Why bring this up now? I understand we are meeting with the other nations but…"
"At the meeting the Enguvil, Rashom, is going to suggest we reform the council of Zerlif," the Sentinel says.
"The Council? We are at war there is no way he would suggest something like that," Rijin retorted.
"Some time ago the Enguvil lost his heir in battle," the Sentinel says, "they have been trying to keep it quiet but my spies have learned this recently. Adonis, the new ruler of the blessing of life in Penzamen, announced the other night that he was sick. There have been assassination attempts on Garus Hayward, the Skutsamlings son, and your sister was kidnapped a few months ago." The Sentinel slammed his fist against the table. It shook greatly before the Sentinels might, any other table would have shattered, but this one simple moved without a scratch on it even with the hit reverberating throughout the room.
"A threat that effects all the nations, that is the condition for the Council of Zerlif to be formed. That is what the ancient text say. The heirs of all the nations have been threatened or killed meaning that someone or something is going after all of us. The Enguvil is going to suggest that the Council be formed, and it will pass." The Sentinel said this while pulling his sword off his back and laying it against the table.
"Father, there is no way that the Council will be formed again. All of the leaders are in open conflict, there is no way that the council will be formed after the last 50 years of conflict," Rijin stated in a forthright manner.
"It won't be our decision, the Council of Zerlif is made up of the future rulers of the nations, not the current monarchs. You and the other heirs decide whether or not to undertake this mission," The Sentinel explained.
Rijin was at a loss for words. He would decide whether or not to form the Zerlif council? The current heirs were a group of unknowns, Rijin had met some of the former heirs from interacting with them through his sister, but if what his father said is true then all of the current heirs were chosen because of the supplantation of the other heirs. Even if they weren't outright enemies they were at least not for Midoku, six individuals of unknown ideals coming together to stop this threat seemed absurd to Rijin.
"I know this is a lot to take in, it was for me as well when I served on the Council," The Sentinel sat in his chair, "I would like to know your thoughts."
"My thoughts?" Rijin answered.
"Yes, I am against this council, you are the Randorin of Midoku, you have a right to a voice and good council; do you agree?" The Sentinel asked, raising an eyebrow.
Rijin thought for a moment. "I am not a fan of unknowns. In battle the things you don't account for get you killed. You are saying I must walk into a group of unknowns and risk my life with them." The Sentinel nodded his head. Rijin was unable to read his thoughts, his father was often a very cryptic man, but there were times where he could read his fathers emotions. While most of the time he could read his fathers anger, instead he more so felt in tune with his fathers inquisition. Rijin has learned that his father often talked to eventually get to the point he wanted to make, he had little regard for others inquiries, but this was a rare occasion where his father truly wanted to know his thoughts, he was willing to listen to Rijin's answer.
"I know very little about the world and who is in it aside from what you, Fajin, and Thalassa have told me. For someone bound to the patron of seas I have known little of the channels that make up Hize. I think it is best for me to learn by being out there. Maybe this council isn't the best opportunity but it is an opportunity to see things from…a different perspective," Rijin answered. The Sentinel chuckled but Rijin could not tell if it was a happy or sarcastic one.
"And what if you find that the outside world provides more of what you are looking for than Midoku?" The Sentinel asked. Rijin didn't know how to answer. He was not expecting a question of loyalty given he was named heir in his sisters stead instead of his younger brother.
"I am Midoken, I am the Randorin of our nation." Rijin said with pride. The Sentinel stared daggers at him, trying to sense his intentions.
"Then prove your loyalty," the Sentinel slid a small stone across the table.