I


Three men
Assembled
Three wills
Debating
One then broke
Anger on his face
A man-god he was
He left the chamber
He left the tower

From the citadel he rode
Westwards he rode
To seek redemption
Far away from temptation
For his sins were many
His desire, his enemy

To a village he came
It seemed just the same
As he made his way
He heard people say
Some in hope
Some in fear
“Be this a man-god
Sent here by the gods
To us set free
In response to our plea?”
To one he said, without fright
“What evil stalks this place at night?”
“A being of power great with malice on its mind
For it’s defeat we shall surely need one of man-god kind”
“So it shall fall, this being dire”
The man-god said in ire

Therefore he rode
From the village out
Therefore he strode
Into lair of the beast
The darkness
His eyes saw through
To him it held no terror
As inwards he walked
Minions of darkness came to him
To taunt and fight him
To keep him from the great snake in there
So many tried
In the attempt to keep him out
So many died
But ‘gainst his sword and spell
Not could live for the tale to tell
Thus their numbers could not prevail
He reached the door to inner lair
He breached the door to inner lair
Thus ‘gainst the power divine
The might of evil did decline
In there a giant snake he found
A being of power and evil mind
Much stronger than all of it’s kind
To him it spoke
“Who are you, to slaughter my minions
And from my sleep awake and disturb me?”
“I am one of man-god kind
And to smite your presence
And free those above
I have come”
And so spells were unleashed
Many of destruction
Some of protection
But ‘gainst the strong
The weak seldom prevail
And so the power of gods
Backwards drove the power of demons
And forward the man-god pushed
So backwards the snake coiled
Until it could coil no more
And a cloak of flames it wore
Then it spoke
With the breath of the dying
“I was but a test
By which to judge
The worth of yourself
And worthy you are
Go now to where my master await”
And the darkness closed around the one of man-god kind


II


Awoke he did
In another world
One a plain of red stone
The sky was thundering
It was a world of power
Of knowledge
He knew it
He sensed it
He smelled it
It was here
His destiny was to be found

For days he travelled
East, west, north, south
He did not know
Until a succubus him beheld
To him she spoke
“Who are you to wander here?
Where only titans and gods freely roam”
“I a man-god am power I seek and therefore”
The master of this realm I wish to meet”
“Then you are who I am here to greet
To my master’s tower
I shall bring you
In your quest for power”

Together they travelled
For days and weeks
Through lands older than time
Lands of red stone
Through plains and canyons
To a fortress great
With towers five
One red, one blue
One black, one white
And the greatest spire
Grey

To its iron gates did they walk
Enter they did
Into this fortress of knowledge and power
Many stairs they climbed
Many halls they crossed
Until they reached the very top
Of the spire grey
In they went
To the inner most sanctum
Of knowledge and magic
In there a man they found
A man-god for sure he was
For his eyes were like stars
And from him power did flow
“I am glad you came
Caileb
Oh aspiring one”
He spoke in a voice so soft
“Glad am I as well
But you must me tell
How did your succubus me find?”
“Oh, but she is not of such lowly kind
Demon though she is
A dark lady she was in ages past
But from evil she turned
From her land and kin she fled
To here she came
For sanctuary to obtain
And to study
Indeed now she is now
One of Blue
Their mistress in fact
Now you see
That a mere succubus
She cannot be
For she is master of magic
Most profound
For the lore of heaven
And the stars
Are for but the few and wise”
“I see now
How wrong I was
And tactless am
To assume the mistress of Blue
Was be but a demon minor
Forgive me, oh lady of Blue”
To him she smiled
“Forgiven you are
For with power of clouds
My soul did I mask
But matters urgent
Call me to leave
So I bid you, farewell”
From the chamber she then
Swiftly sped
“Caileb in times to come
A student of fire
You are to become
In the Red tower
You shall dwell
Until you master its awesome power”
“Very well
The way of Fire
My way shall be
And never shall I yield
‘Till this power dire
I can wield in ire”


III


The border was thin
The will of Chaos flowed in
Though the weakest point
Where the worlds were adjoined
To change sow
To Order show
That this world
They would never own

To the Southlands
It flowed
And there
The people rose
‘gainst Order and lords
To their aid demons came
To Chaos sow
The lords of the south
Swiftly fell
Their armies
Weak and full of fear

Thus Order’s loss
Was Chaos’ gain
And under a carpet of change
The Southlands came
Sand became glass
Lush forests turned to swaps of rot
Beasts to monsters changed
Even the souls of men
Bighted were

For war they made
Themselves ready
For that time had come
So their new god told them

Northwards they poured
To conquer new land
For the glory of their god

Cities fell and armies scattered
Until the men and demons of Chaos
To a fortress of black stone came
The fortress of the Death’s Head order it was
The humans that order greatly feared
But the demons ever onwards pushed
And so to the citadel
Siege they laid

The gates then opened
And from them riders came
Into battle they went
The knights of Death’s Head
In black armour clad
To slay their foe
With swords and spells
A web of Death
For their foe
They wove

The humans
Before them fell
But those of demon kind
Were stronger of mind
And magic they knew as well
So the Death’s Head
Their match did meet
So valour and power did not decide
Rather did numbers prevail
Soon the outcome was clear
For the Death’s Head the end was near
Yet the retreat they did not sound
For Death to them held no terror
But for once that was to be their error
Long they fought
But to no avail
Yet they did not fail
For one of them
Was northwards sent
With word of the battle
To the citadel in the north
He strode

For days and nights he rode
Ever onward he strode
To the citadel reach
And bring news of the breach
Between the worlds
Of the might of Chaos
Of the fall of the Death’s Head
Those news so dire
Had to reach the tallest spire
The council of three
That which now were two
For they had to know
Of what drew near
Of the coming gloom
And impending doom

In the early light
Before the sun had much might
A guard on the wall
Was the first to fathom the fall
A Death’s Head knight
From the south
In obvious flight
Was not a good sight
In the morning light
“Open the gates”
The guard cried in alarm
“A herald from the south
To here have come
No doubt with words
Of what shall become”
The gates was opened
And inside the rider rode
Up the citadel’s spire he strode
To the two of man-god kind he spoke
“Chaos is in the world once more
Best would it be if you prepared for war”
“If there be no other way
To war I shall not say nay”
Said the eldest of the three
Who now were two
General and warrior he was
Elanash his name
Crusader of no minor fame
“Now you must me swiftly tell
How is the force sent here from Hell?”
“Larger than any man can tell”
The Death’s Head him told
“They are here to Order shake
And Chaos make”
“So for a siege long and hard
We must ourselves make ready
We must make sure supplies be brought here by cart”
Lamilus then rose
Youngest of the three
Who were now two
Champion and poet he was
“While we here of supplies speak
The forces of Chaos havoc wreak
Rather I say let our army
To the field take
And Chaos fight
With our might
We shall instil such fright
In the Chaos creatures hearts
Thus they will soon take flight
And that will put an end to their blight”
“Your plan is bold indeed”
Elanash the general said
Pretending anger
“But bolder that that I can do
So with but half our force
I shall this tide of Chaos stern
And to ebb it quickly turn”
Elanash knew that Death he would meet
Were he to the host of Chaos greet
But that same fate would be his brother’s as well
Yet better would it be if only half
The tower’s men this early fell
So the tower he how left
To the citadel attempt to save
In such a desperate way


On the field
Soon to be of fight
Forces of the tower stood arrayed
Ready to the blight of Chaos smite
Ten thousand men
Side by side
They were to fight
Armed with steel and rage
Shielded by armour and valour
Elanash to them spoke:

“Hear me now
Soon we shall fight
And Chaos smite
We are skilled in war
And shall not fail
We shall into battle stride
Battle-brothers side by side
For our Fatherland
We are here
With arms in hand
And our Fatherland’s tower
Chaos shall not take
No matter their power
Unless we all lie struck dead
Ten thousand
Side by side”

The centre surged forward
Men at arms and armour
In dense formation
Soon to fight for their towering nation
In flanking way
Knightly ones
And armoured plainsmen’s sons
Forward rode
To protect the flanks they strode

Thus
In such order
Battle they did
With beasts, demons, and men
Many they felled
But their foe
Did ever onwards pressed
So as the dying sun set in the west
The last of the tower men fell
Elanash his name
Crusader of no minor fame
A death so worthy was his
With much valour and bravery he went
From this world to the next
Honoured in song and text
By his death his brother was saved
And there was yet hope
For the tallest spire
Even in those days
So dire


IV


In the highest chamber
Five beings were
Debating the impending danger
Five they were
Masters of the towers
And the powers
Of
Heaven and Fire
Death and Life
And the Orderly lore
“Under attack is a world now
By fiends, into Chaos
They will it throw”
The man-god
Spoke
Lord of Order he was
”To its aid we must now come
Lest much will be no more
And the world will drown in gore”
The Death master then spoke
Man and pale mage
“It would only be fair
If Caileb’s rage
Shall fly though the air
And Chaos purge”
“But you do forget
To do this I feel no urge”
As my friends in that tower
So tall
From it me drove
So I say let this be their fall”
Thus did the one of Fire say
To such a task, nay
“If so it must be
Then I will do
What others will not”
The greatest of Blue
Did quietly speak
“Though to the future I cannot peak
This will not go well
For the Heavens are not for strife and fighting
But for wisdom and deep thinking
The Orderlings lord did now say
“Yet better it is
If stars rain
On the beasts
So many of them may fall
In vain
Than the citadel
No aid receive”
“If you mind is thus made up
Then cannot you stop”
Thus did this lady
Of magic
The council leave
For a bloody path
Through Chaos pave

After a day
Or so
Word found way
To the magic halls
Causing screaming of “nay”
For the beloved one
The mistress of Blue
Were now amongst
Those in Death’s pale hall
And such was her power
That word was brought to the tower
By a wraith
Called hate
Slayer of many
To Caileb he went
To tell him
How her days did end
And by that wraith
His spirit was filled
A fireball he summoned
And on it he jumped
And from his chambers
He burst
Upward to the thunder
And the heavens
Upwards, ever upwards
Then through them

A star was falling
So it seemed
In a world so far away
From a world of power
With the lord of a tower
On it
Did the fireball
Downwards fall
Into the raging hordes below
Smiting them with a mighty blow
Thousands died
In pain they cried
A crater did it leave
And from it Caileb rose
And then it was as if time froze
From his hands flames did rain
All around him demons fell in vain
Too slow they were
To do him harm
But ever onwards they rushed
Yet only ‘gainst a wall of flames they gushed

From the walls of the tower
A mighty display
The defenders could see
For now they knew
Saved they were
For amidst that fire
A man-god so dire
Wielding flames in ire
And his name they knew
And the enemy he slew

Ever onwards he went
Raging, avenging
She who should not have fallen
As his foe fell before him
A greater one to him came
He knew him for what he was
The lord of Chaos
The slayer of things profound
For him Caileb felt but hate
All consuming
Burning
A thousand spells now were now unleashed
And two swords left their sheaths
As blades crossed
As did magic
Fire and Chaos
Flame and Change
Smoke and Confusion
Both were strong
As determined
Yet Caileb let fire through him flow
Freely and fiercely
His body burned
He gained the upper hand
Yet more he needed for his foe to die
His soul caught fire
His foe all but beaten
His reason burned
As did his foe
Only hate
Did this fire fuel
When the dust did settle
The land was burned
Scorched and charred
But to all it was clear
The Chaos lord was no more
Thus did Caileb burn away
His essence, soul and body
But by his death
A foe came to his end, so bloody
And Order was saved by a raging flame
And life went on, onwards
Ever onwards…