Legend of how the Hero/Demi-God Dark Star (Eldar Alflynn) began.
If you don't believe in magic, then you will no doubt think this story is false. Yet I tell you, if magic never existed, this story could never have been written, for I would not have been able to speak these words. But I am talking and my master's magical pen is writing without the help of any others. Enough of that, this story is here whether you believe it or not. My name is Shrack, and I am a staff, like a walking stick, but much more interesting. I was formed from the heart of the great oak in the center of a magical wood and enchanted by young Briaret and infused with a bit of his grandfathers spirit to aid him in his quest and his many journeys afterwards. I am telling the story of my master born with the name of Briaret, at the end of his youth to become young DarkStar, still later to be known as the Wandering Mage, Finally to be known as God of Magic.He had so many other titles, names and nick names that if I were to write them here it would take up several tomes. The story of my master starts with an elf maiden fleeing from slavery.
The branches were scratching her young skin as she ran through the forest, but she knew that she had to find her grandfather before they caught her. Already she could hear the dogs chasing her, and the angry shouts of the slavers as they ran after her.
After she had her baby, she had begged to be able to keep it but the slave master was adamant that he would sell it for a profit. Her family had been slaves for a hundred years and the only freeman among them was her grandfather who lived as a hermit in the center of the wood. She would soon join him in the safety of his cave. If she could reach it in time. She only had one problem, she had no idea where her grandfather's cave was or even if he really lived there. Her only hope was to keep running and pray that either she stumbled onto his cave or he heard the chase and came to save her.
Old Oldive had lived a long life, almost 10 centuries, which even for an elf is old. He awoke one morning from a dream and it took him awhile to realize that the woman he heard screaming wasn't after shocks of his dreaming but real. "Impossible," he mumbled, "what would a woman be doing in the middle of the forest?". But the cry persisted. He had no choice but to go and investigate. "That voice sounds familiar. But that's impossible, what would one of my family be doing in the middle of the forest,". He mumbled. He had taken to mumbling to himself so he wouldn't forget how to speak. As he was getting out of bed, he heard the woman scream "Grandpa Oldive, h-e-e-l-l-l-p m-e-e-e-e!". Oldive had never movd faster in his life. Within seconds he had collected his staff and pouch and was running toward the sound of the chase.
He knew they she would be entering the clearing, so he called the animals of the wood to meet him there. By the time he got there, almost the entire clearing had been entirely filled with animals big and small, dangerous and harmless. He ran to the center and mounted his favorite grizzly bear. Just as he turned toward the chase, Charis broke through the edge of the wood and stopped cold at the sight of all the animals. Yet, as soon as she saw her grandfather sitting on top of the giant grizzly be ar, his smile beaming in welcome, she bolted toward him. The animals making a path for her as she ran through them. When the dogs reached the clearing, they stopped, ran back to the edge of the wood and stood there cowering in fear. The slavers ran straight into the clearing. They would have run into all the animals if the bears hadn't stood on their hind legs and let out one great horrible roar and the wolves barred their teeth in menacing snarls. The sight of this gathering of animals, was obviously what arrested their attention and they stumbled over each other trying to stop. Oldive bellowed in his menacing voice, "Listen to me you men, whoever you may be, this is my granddaughter and you will chase her no longer! From now on, she will live with me. As you can see, I am well protected." At this, the bears and wolves, roared and snarled again. "Don't think of coming back later when the animals will be gone," Oldive warned them, "because they have smelled you and know you by your foul stench.
If you ever try to enter this wood again for any reason, they will not let you leave alive. Also, don't think of sending back others, for I am the ancient druid Oldive. If you doubt my powers, just ask your master about the slave named Oldive who escaped many years ago. Oh, sorry I forgot, you humans live less than a century. Some of you much less." At this he fell to roaring laughter, as he rode out of the wood with the animals following, and left the slavers to wonder about this man named Oldive.
As the men ran off to report what they had seen, Oldive thanked the animals and walked with Charis back to his cave. Listening to Charis recount what had happened to her and why she chose to escape.
They took the babe inside his cave and within half an hour he had cut a room for them out of living rock. He accomplished this with a magical shovel he had created to make his cave. He gave Charis some of his leathers to lay the babe in. Yet that started it crying piteously because the leather reeked of rotten things and was covered with lice. "Well," he said, "first things first, I guess you're probably hungry. After some searching, he found a fairly clean cup in his mass amounts of things he had acquired in his years and splashed some water in it to rinse it out. What he did next would have turned a man white with fright, but the babe was merely amused and watched intently, Charis was stunned.
As Oldive held his hand over the cup, a liquid white as cream filled it to the brim. When it was full, he pulled his hand away and tasted a little "M-M-M-M-M, always did love the taste of milk". Then he tried to feed some milk to the babe. After several tries and just as many failures, he gave the cup to Charis and said "He's your babe--you feed him". His gruff mumbly voice not quite masking his love for her and his great grand son. After the babe was fed, Charis and Oldive sat back, and Oldive mumb led "Geez, I have fought evil warlocks, defeated powerful warriors, and slain fire breathing dragons, but Ithink that the next couple of decades, training this babe in the art of life is going to be my most challenging fight yet."
One hot summer's day hundreds of years before he Created the Dragon Star , a young elf-boy of 35 years was sitting in the woods. His name was Briaret. Besides the rare wandering traveler, he knew only his mother and one man, Oldive his great grandfather. Oldive always seemed alive and full of life, even though at the same time he seemed older than the gnarled oaks in the woods around their cave. His mother was warm and kind-hearted and taught him the enjoyment of living. When Briaret showed he had a quick mind, Oldive decided to teach him the ways of magic. His mother cautioned him to always be careful of magic for it was like a sword--sharp on both edges. His great grandfather was careful, but wanted Briaret to learn all that he could teach him for he knew his time on this world was short. Briaret was training under Oldive to become a wizard. He wanted to be a wizard, but he didn't want to be like Oldive and live as a hermit in a cave away from all people. He wanted to be an adventuring wizard traveling the strange word that Oldive said was all around yet Briaret had never seen. He only knew those things of the outside world that Oldive or his mother told him, or by the stories told by the few wandering travelers, or what he read in books. Oldive had thousands of books that he kept in a special cave that had no moisture. It was always warm and there weren't any tunnel snakes or insects in there to make their nests in the books. There was also one large plush cushion chair. This is where Briaret loved to sit reading one of the many books. Sometimes Oldive would sit in the chair with Briaret on the floor and read one to him in his mumbling sort of voice. He had been reading Oldive's books since he was 10 years old and had so far only read 432 shelves of books. He had counted the shelves once and there were 6678. He aske d Oldive how long it took him to read all the books and Oldive replied "Boy, I've only read half of them". Oldive would often take Briaret deep into the woods and teach him the ways of the woods or maybe how to make a spell work. Briaret loved these times the best, just him, Oldive and the woodland animals that to be attracted to Oldive. Sometimes they would just sit for hours and listen to the sounds of the forest and pet the animals. Other times Oldive would have him working to the bone cutting wood or lifting rocks into a pile. At other times Oldive would blindfold him, take him deeper into the woods, take off the blindfold and mumble, "Well good bye Briaret. Good luck. See you back at the cave". Then Oldive would disappear. It would be up to Briaret to find his way home. Briaret always managed to find his way home and he thought once he saw Oldive following him, but Oldive swore it wasn't him.
Briaret was lying in the woods one day trying to concentrate on a spell to make a tree bend when his peaceful surroundings were shattered by his mother calling for him. It was not her usual call. It was different, a plea--desperate and filled with pain. When he got to the cave, he found his mother lying on the ground dead and Oldive with a knife sticking in his chest. He ran over and pulled the knife out and cast it aside. He sat there cradling his old master when he heard a voice behind him, "Sorry son, had to do that".
He swung around to see a good looking tall man, with an eye patch, and six dagger sheaths on his belt. One of them was empty. The man went over and picked up the dagger Briaret had cast aside. Briaret just stared at him too stunned to speak. The man had a look of cold evil in his eye that scared him. The man wiped the dagger of on his pants and started flipping it in his hand and seemed to be thinking. Then he said, "If he lives, tell him that Toric sends his greetings", then he turned and disappeared into the forest as silent as the wind.
Oldive's cough brought him back to reality and he looked down at his disgraced master and started to cry. With his dying breaths, Oldive said with surprising clarity, "Don't cry Briaret, you must do something first. You must cut open the back of my soft plush chair. Inside you will find a book. Read it once, memorize it, then burn it in the fire along with your mother's and my body". At this Briaret again burst into tears. With his final breaths Oldive instructed him how to take the ashes and uset hem to create a magical staff with which to find Toric.
Briaret holding back his sobbing said, "But, Oldive, who is he?" Oldive used the last of strength to calm the elf-boy and said, "The Book will explain. I charge you with this Briaret, find Toric and make pay for his evil ways, avenge our deaths." With this statement, he grabbed Briaret's hand and then the fire in his eyes died forever.
Briaret did what his Grandfather bade him to do and then fell into a deep sleep. When Briaret awoke at dawn he recalled all that had happened the day before. Scenes flooded back into his memory and he cried as the sun came.
When he had stopped, he went into the cave, got a jug of lamp oil, poured it on his mother's and master's bodies and burned them where they lay because he hadn't the strength to move them. When they finished burning, he collected the ashes and started the task of creating the magical staff named Shrack.
Five years later, at the mouth of the cave stood a young elf-man 40 years old, well built, good looking with a look of cold determination in his eyes. He had shaped the stone to close all but a small doorway in the cave entrance. Now as he faced the cave for the last time he sealed up the entrance to make it look natural, and so as not attract attention while on his quest. Then he placed his mark, an eight pointed star, and turned to face a frightening world he didn't know. Raised the dagger that had killed his mother and grandfather five years ago and yelled to the world, "Toric, you have made me go out into this world seeking vengeance. When I find you so help me vengeance will be mine! My race is as bright as a star, yet, my heart is filled with dark vengeance and hatred. So you shall know me when we meet. I shall call myself Darkstar." So saying, Darkstar, apprentice wizard, young mage with no teacher, set out in the world seeking revenge against the man who murdered his mother and Oldive, his mentor and best friend. Searching for a man he had no idea how to find , yet determined to do so.
He had been walking for what seemed like months, the anger that had so enraged him when he had sealed up his grandpa's cave had given way to loneliness, so that he almost regretted leaving the only home he ever knew. Yet he knew that even though he wanted to go back there was nothing there for him now. One especially Hot and sunny day as he was trudging along he broke out of a patch of brambles to find he had reached a road. It was the first road he had ever seen and even though it was in reality, nothing but a dirt track, to him it was a road paved in gold.
As he stood there deciding which direction to go, he realized that he had no idea where he was going, as he sat there pondering his predicament the full effects of the combined emotions that were inside him began to flow out in the form of water and hec ried for all he was worth. Whilst he was crying a man walking down the road stooped and looked at him for a while and waited. When Darkstar finally got control of himself he saw a pair of finely crafted boots standing in the road, and realizing that in order for the boots to get here there must be a person wearing them he hastily stood up to meet this person. The rest of the man in front of him was just as finely dressed as his feet. When the man spoke his voice was clear and crisp, and if that didn't identify him as a bard the bulging harp case he was carrying did. He had Black hair that was shoulder length and secured behind his head with a silver turks head knot. "What brings you crying here on this track boy?", he said with a curious expression on his finely shaped face. "I'm on my way to the nearest town." Darkstar said ,then added "If you would be so kind as to point me in the right direction, I'll be on my way now sir."
"The nearest town is along the northern track" said the stranger, "but I don't think you want to go there. They are not known to be very kind to those of your race." The man studied Darkstar for a while, looking deep into his eyes. "No... I think you better come with me, it seems you have much to learn."