theworldofdreams.com

This tale was started in the Quest forum.

Part 1:http://www.theworldofdreams.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=4114&highlight=madness
Part 2:http://www.theworldofdreams.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=4147&highlight=madness




A fitful wind wailed mournfully outside the wooden door and the flames danced merrily in the fieldstone fireplace. Jochann and his wife Nina looked at each other and smiled. It had a been a long year and a profitable one. The barn was full of hay and snoozing stock, the root cellar full of pumpkins, corn, beans, apples and other produce and today they had canned ten dozen jars of tomatoes, peppers, sauces, and relish of many kinds. Alongside the barn, the smokehouse emanated a slow warmth as the small, smokey fire of hickory continued to smoulder, sending tendrils of preserving smoke spiralling around the hams, sides of beef and haunches of venison that hung from the rafters. Life was hard at times but if a person worked the best they could, they would be rewarded with the fruits of their labors. The couple had sent several wagonloads of produce and stock to nearby Trinsic and there was a tidy sum in their bank account.

The knock on the door was unexpected and both of them jumped! Who would be visiting at this time of night? Jachann lifted his heavy woods axe and cautiously opened the door a crack. A bar of light that escaped the narrow opening illumined a tall, dark haired woman holding a young child. "Please, may we have shelter for the night. The evening came upon us unaware and I do not want to camp in the open. There are wild animals about?" she entreated. "If we could have a space in your barn for just a few hours."

"Nay, you will come in here and get warm by our fireplace!" Jochann expostulated, shocked that the woman expected to be relegated to a barn for the night. "Come in and be welcome." he said, opening the door wide. The woman stepped in and smiled gratefully at him and Nina. Nina bustled about brewing tea and set out a plate of cheese and biscuits for the woman and her child, a young boy. He sat at the rough plank table somberly and look at Jochann and Nina, in turns, an inquisitive expression on his pale face.

"Is your boy hungry? He looks pale. Is he ill" said Jochann, who was used to country children who bronzed deeply in the summer months. This lad was about eight years old and nearly as pale as one of Nina's linen sheets.

"No, he is fine." the woman replied. "I think he is making a choice, what is most delicious." she continued.

"Well, the cheese is fresh and tasty. Nina puts a hint of rosemary in it for flavoring and it is rich and nourishing." Jochann replied. But the boy only sat up straight, ignoring the food on the table and fixed his dark eyes upon the farmer. He tilted his head and his eyes seemed to almost glow in a strange way. He looked at his mother and said, "The man is capable of the most agony, my mother."

Jochann was taken aback as he stared at the curious little boy. "What is he talking about? Is he addled?" he exclaimed with a sense of violent unease. He reached back behind him for the axe and then something wash over him...a sense of exhaustion, weariness, extreme weakness. He slumped to the floor and saw Nina sitting opposite him, her eyes wide. "What..." she murmured as the woman stood up. She looked about and found an iron hammer and thick spikes suitable for knocking together barn lumber in a corner. With a small smile on her face she strode over to Nina and lifted her upright against the wooden wall with one hand. With shocked, unbelieving eyes, Jochann watched helplessly as his wife was nailed to the inner wall of the house.

He felt the pain of the spikes and when the strange woman began to slowly flay his wife with a small, razor sharp knife, his own horror at what was happening as well as Nina's own agony filled him and he screamed until his vocal cords ruptured and his mind broke. Through it all, the one thing he couldn't block his mind from hearing was the shrill, delighted laughter of the pale boy who's eyes glowed blackly.


Eliathan jerked upright on his throne and stared upwards as if his gaze could pierce the layers of wood, stone and dirt that lay above him and the outer world. "The Taint..." he breathed out. "It is happening now again." He slumped back in his chair and stared moodily at the crackling fire. All Hallow's Eve was approaching and the spheres were revolving. Great powers shifted and tangental forces aligned. This was the time when great good, or great evil could be performed. The evil that had infested the World of late was active again. After the Prophet had been killed, Eliathan had hoped it was over but it was not. The Prophet was just a symptom. Near Trinsic tonight, the source of all the evil was awake and amusing itself. Eliathan seemed to hear a far off laughter in his mind. A high pitched sound as if that of a child? He shook his head with confusion. That didn't make sense at all.

Eliathan was the Lord of the Vampires and he cared little for the pain and troubles of humankind. But, he did not want humans eradicated from the World. He needed them to live. He needed their life energy and their blood. Humans exuded such powerful emotions as well. The past few months had seen his mystical powers tested to nearly the breaking point. This unknown evil knew of him and pushed against the mental shields that protected his mind. The best Eliathan could describe it was that of a limitless hunger for pain.

Eliathan cared nothing for pain. He had suffered the worst pain of all when he lost his human life, his one and only human love. But this was different. Eliathan enjoyed dealing death to humans and even enjoyed their suffering but this was beyond his own evil. This source would laugh if worlds burned.

Death Ghouls and Grim Reaper's had appeared in cities in overwhelming force. Gigantic slugs and death bunnies ravaged areas that had never seen violence on that scale. Outlaws had spread to the wilds and were claiming territory, daring the law abiding humans to stop them. Praetorian's appeared to be on another rampage. The Land was in turmoil.

But the forces of nature were aligning at this time of the year. Eliathan thought deeply. There was that other consciousness he had sensed. The one that watched, that dreamed. Perhaps if he could contact this other person and speak to him. Perhaps with enough knowledge, the source of this evil could be found and destroyed. His eyes glinting with rage and urgency, Eliathan strode through the dark hallways of his sprawling crypt. Tonight he would fly o'er the world and discover something of use...