The night sky crackled with the charge of lightning. Dark storm clouds seemed to encompass the tiny island that was called Ke'el. The fires burned bright along the outer rim of the great stone castle. The men who lined the wall felt the impending glory that was soon to be theirs or could it have been doom that they felt? What ever the feeling was they could only wonder what was happening in the main chambers below.
The watchers had all gathered round to witness the ascension. The man in the middle was clad in the armor he once held in great respect. The times has taken the shine of the once glorious metal, now only stains of rust dim its appearance. The man inside the armor looks even worse than that which surrounds him. His hair has grown to extreme lengths only to be tangled and knotty in appearance. The once proud clean face now covered with hair, dirt and dried blood. Even his eyes seemed to be gone from the presence of this world, lost to all he held sacred the life he once held so dear. Now only the stone grey stare of those eyes glared into the distance. He stand before a cold slab of black marble. His hands clutched around his sword, now his only life. The sword made from a beautiful handle of gold imbedded with stones of amethyst, topaz, and diamonds, but the blade was made of the finest crystal that one has seen in great ages. The crystal seemed to glow with its own light, not with a bright sparkling light, but with one that seemed to be more dark than it was light. Its beauty was mystifying, and that was one of the reasons he has come to this place and about to do this deed.
Below lies a woman, scared,not knowing how things could have come to this. This is not the man she has known for the last 10 years. The blank stare in hi s eyes tells her that he is lost to her, now she can only think of the one she clutches in her arms. She clutches a small child in her arms, his child, his life and likeness. They both shiver from fear, but are to scared to make a sound. Their eyes plead with the deadness of the eyes of the one once known to them as husband and father for a final cry for help. Their plea seems to go unnoticed or ignored.
His hands tremble around the beauty of the sword. The power that flows from the hilt overrides all of his thoughts and settles for one thought and one thought only. He sees the plea for help from their eyes and in his mind he screams "Forgive Me" and "I Love You". But those thoughts are drowned out by the power of the object he possess. He wonders if it is his will or is it the will of this cursed thing he now holds. His mind blanks out again, all thought has left him, he must now do what has to be done. As he raises the great sword above the sacrifices, a myst starts to form around the room. The denseness of the myst brings a chill to all those who stand around unaware of its presence. All minds focus on the deed to be done, lusting after the power and the promises told to await them. The sword glows with much more fire than before, majestic in its appearance. The sounds of the room become deaden as the great sword starts its descent to its target. The only sound filling the room is the horrid gasp from the women and the faint cry of the child she clutches so close. The sword cuts through the air as a whisper striking its prey with the precision of a doctor. It penetrates the flesh of the child straight through the heart on imbeds its self in the heart of the woman beneath the child. At that moment in time the man becomes well aware of what has transpired for the last few months. He leans down to the woman he has just slain and whispers into her ear "I'm Sorry". His words falls on deaf ears, he stands and recomposes himself and turns to the those who had followed him in this dastly deed.
As he looks around, the myst has become thick and heavy now more like a dense fog filling the room. A pale light is starting to emerge from the area where he left the sword. Its light is becoming brighter and larger, like someone opening a door to let in light. All eyes fixate on the light and a sense of au overcomes them as three figures appear to be coming through the light. "They have come", someone says " the Crystal Gods, just as they promised".
The figures in the myst are shrouded by the dense fog that surrounds them. Their presence however can be felt throughout the room. "You have done well, and we have been released to walk this world again", the figure in the middle says. "Breath deep the myst that surrounds you for in doing so you shall receive the gifts promised to you". "Let the power from the myst fill your lungs and your body". The voice was shallow and hollowed sounding, but rang with much authority. Those gathered around breathed deep the myst surrounding them. Somehow they felt powerful and full of life until the sickness set in. The room was full of coughing, gaging and gasping for air. The sound was becoming quite deafening except for the sound of laughter coming from the three figures in the center of the room.
