John's Story =]
Once upon a time, in a land now lost to fairytales, there was a princess who lived in a castle on the sea. Of course, you are probably thinking that I mean that her castle was by the sea, but there you would be mistaken. Her castle was on the sea, that is to say it floated upon the waves. This was no ordinary castle for she was no ordinary princess. This was the Castle Aqua Marina and she was the Lady Rebekah, Princess of the Water. The towers and parapets of Aqua Marina shown of coral and peal and glistened in the sunlight reflecting off the water, her banners fluttered in the sea breezes and her battlements were manned by guards in shining mail that resembled the scales of fish. Aqua Marina was famous, not only for it's beauty and strength, but also for the grand balls that the Lady of Water often hosted. Many fair lords and ladies traveled from far and wide to attend these extravagant parties, including a certain knight who came from a far away country. this knight had long been a friend of the Lady and was always welcome in her court. Few enough knew his right name, but all knew him as the Wolf Knight of the Wind. A mighty warrior was he who had fought in many battles and had gained many victories by virtue of his valor, cunning and prowess. While the Wolf Knight was terrible in battle, he was always known as a kind and generous man in times of peace and was a marvel to see at parties.
While Aqua Marina was by no means a stranger to guests, on this day her halls were empty but for it's normal inhabitants. The Lady Rebekah was in her chamber looking out upon the water that she loved so much and her heart was troubled. Strange tidings had she heard of late, tales of darkness and of dread. A shadow had crept into her realm like some creature rising from the blackest depths to rear it's ugly head against the peace of her realm. a knock at her door brought her our of her thoughts. "Come" she said. A servant entered and bowed, "The Wolf Knight of the Wind to see you m'lady." The Wolf Knight entered and bowed to the Lady. she nodded at her servant, "Thank you Perseus, that will be all." "Yes m'lady." he said as he bowed out of the room. The princess and the knight looked at each other for a moment, then she smiled. The knight bowed and said, "Lady Rebekah, I am at your service, as always." She laughed, "Come now, John, surely we can dipense with the formalities by now." He smiled back, "One must give respect where respect is due, m'lady." She brushed aside his explanation and gestured to the seat facing the one she had just taken. "May I offer you something to eat or drink?" she said, offering a platter of sandwiches and pointing to a pitcher of crystal filled with the purest rain water. "Yes, please." he said. After they had snacked and chatted for a while about this and that they turned to more serious matters; the reason, in fact, that John had come with such haste to her summons. "John, I will speak plainly. I have need of your sword. Long ago you swore that it would be t my service whenever I called. Well, I am calling for it now. A shadow has crept into my realm, a blackness that darkens my fair waters and threatens the welfare of my subjects." "Whence came this darkness and what is it's purpose?" John asked. "I do not know, but I've had envoys from the Dolphins, the Sea Turtles, the Reef folk, even the Sharks knocking at my gates requesting an audience." "The Sharks are coming to you for aid in battle?" he asked in surprise, "This must indeed be serious." She nodded and then said, "That is why I have called you here. I sent a squad of my best men to investigate these claims last week and they haven't been heard from. I fear the worst for them, but more than that I have a feeling in my heart that this darkness is more than I can handle on my own." "Have you sent to your other allies? What of Pyrasa? Forestia? Skylos?" "I have sent messengers to them as well as to Desertium and Montanera." "Well? Have you had any responses?" "Erica and Devon have not responded yet, Stephanie and Nancy have expressed sympathy and a willingness to help, but I don't know what help they can render and their soldiers are ill equipped for marine combat, Ashley has promised to send her forces to patrol the skies and send word of trouble, but if the enemy comes from the deeps they may not be of much help. Which is why I need your help." "I will do what I can, m'lady." "Thank you, John." John rose and bade Bekah farewell. He had not brought any of his troops with him and there was no time now to send for them. The Oceanic Army would have to do. The soldiers of the sea were hardy and fell. It would take a powerful enemy indeed to overpower even a small force of Marines. He sought out one Major Nemo and gave him the official seal of the Lady of the Water, thereby authorizing him to mobilize whatever force he deemed necessary to meet this threat. He had chosen Nemo because of their past experiences in combat and because the reputation his battalion had made for themselves had earned them the name the Sea Wolves; needless to say John liked the Major's style. The entire battalion embarked from the castle to the sweet calls of silver trumpets. They rode upon the Great Sea Horses that the Lady bred for her Army's private use. The Wolf Knight's mount was a silvery gray beast called Stormcrest. They raced along the sea floor, scattering shoals of fish in their haste. For they had received a distress call from a village called Sandolara. They sliced throught the water like knives, bubbles streaming out behind them in the wake of their speed, but when they arrived at Sandolara, it was to find the village in ruins. The once thriving market town was now a somber cemetery where the dead were left unburied, but scattered here and there in the streets and in doorways. No fish came near this place of death and desolation. Anger burned in the hearts of the Marines as they searched for survivors and found none. There was a foul taste in the water that mingled itself with the blood and the sorrow to the point that it was nearly unbearable for even the stoutest of the Marines. They went about burying the dead and when they had finished they searched for some sign that would tell them whither their prey had gone. On the edge of the ruined town there was a small cave and there the knight found a young sea lad cowering in the shadowed recess of his hiding place. "Come out from there boy, no one will hurt you now." The boy did as he was told and floated facing the fell warrior before him. The lad had never seen so many soldiers before and he was frightened. He was pale and his lip quivered slightly as he looked from one grim face to the next, but his attention was soon called back to the Knight. "What happened here,boy? Who did this? Which way did they come from and whither did they go?" The boy whimpered pitifully and a tears began to fill his eyes. The Knight put his hand on the lad's shoulder and knelt down to bring them face to face with each other. "Help me find them, boy. Help me find them and we will avenge the deaths of your friends and neighbors." The boy swalloed the lump that was rising in his throat and described what he had seen; the dark scales, the yellow eyes, the black armor of the creatures that had ravaged his kinfolk. When he had told all he could he pointed the way that the horde had took when they had had their fill of carnage. They quickly followed the trail and took the boy with them as far as a nearby ridge where they left him in the care of a pod of dolphins that the Knight had instructed to see him safely back to Aqua Marina where he was to be cared for by the Lady. On and on they went, here and there seeing signs that their quarry had passed this way. Finally they came to the top of an underwater hill and down in the seavalley below they saw the horde. They were indeed as fearsome as the lad had described. Ugly, brutish, with hearts as black as their armor. There were, perhaps, eleven thousand creatures noisily making camp in the sea valley and the Knight had a single battalion of six hundred and sixty Marines. He turned to them all and said "Our enemy is before us, our homes are behind us. We have no time to call for reinforcements. A choice is now before us. do we go and return with greater numbers and risk the lives of the next village that this horde happens upon? Or do we take them now, outnumbered as we are, and avenge the lives already lost? What say you? Major Nemo looked at his men, a cold fury burning in every eye, then he turned to the Knight and said, "We're with you, sir. To victory or death." The wolf Knight donned his helm and drew his sword. "Forward men, let's show these beasts what it means to fight with Wolves." And with a mighty howl they uirged their steeds forward and in a torrent of foam and fury they smashed into the unsuspecting flank of the horde. They drove deep in to their midst before the enemy could gather their wits and rally a defense against this sudden onslaught. They were outnumbered by many times, but still they fought on. Their swords slashed through the water like barracudas and everywhere the water was darkened by the dark blood of those foul creatures and by the valiant red of the Sea Wolves. When all was said and done and the Wolves took account of their losses, one fourth of their number had been slain. One hundred and sixty-five souls sought the halls of their forebears to drink the wine of the victorious dead. Not a single Horde-Beast had survived the battle. The Horde-chief lay hewn before the Knight's feet. They gathered their dead and buried them on the edge of the battlefield, they raised a mound over them and set up a marker to serve as a reminder to all who passed by of what had happened here. The bodies of the beasts they piled in a heap far from the mound and left them for the sharks and eels and assorted scavengers that were even now making their way onto the field to claim their share of the spoils of war. They would never dare disturb the mound lest they stir up the wrath of the Sea Wolves and all Marines. The Knight and Major Nemo led the remaining men back to Aqua Marina where they were welcomed by fanfare and flowers. Meade and wine flowed from every cup and the celebrations lasted long into the night. A moment of silence was observed during the festivities out of respect for those who had lost their lives and many a glass was raised in toast to the memory of the dearly departed. The Lady stood by the Knight and watched her courtiers as they reveled. "I owe you a great debt. Thank you for saving my kingdom." "Your thanks should go to Major Nemo and his batallion, they saved your kingdom, I just helped to lead them in the right direction." "All the same, I'm glad that you came." "So am I, m'lady, so am I." The moon rose high over Aqua Marina and the stars reflected their light off of the dark ocean so that it seeemd the castle floated in the night sky. And so it was that the Wind and the Water bade each other goodnight as the ever lapping waves sang a sweet lullaby until at last all the castle slept in peace.
This is generally the part where one would expect to read the words The End, but as this is not the end of the story nor is there ever an end to any story really, I shall instead say to you, until the next time...
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