LOM Stories


Chapter 1 -- The Beginning of Life

After years of darkness, the people of Urak wished for the light of the Sun to return and warm the lands. It was rumored that the Arch-Demon Balkoth, servant to the Dreaded Golgoth, Ruler of the Dark, had returned to destroy all who opposed his master. Many brave warriors, thieves, and mages had ventured out of the sanctuary provided by the cities, but few had returned. Now, a follower of Life, Gilgamesh the Strong, had chosen to fight this great evil...

...The whole of Urak spread out before him. Gilgamesh stood upon the highest peak in the mountains, near the Capitol city of Life, Primavera. Behind him was his highly-selective group of units. One last time, he looked over their ranks. Six Elven archers, the best in the lands. Three Elven staffmen, enveloped by a group of Elven riders, all ready for battle. Pressing his heels into his lizard-mount, he urged it onward down the hill, signaling his troops to follow. A few leagues ahead, Gilgamesh could see the Temple of Life, the largest tree in all the land, rising out of the mist below. This was to be his first conquest. It had to be. The owner of each temple became the Lord of their faith, and everyone knew that. He planned to be it.

"Sire, we are almost upon the Temple."

Gilgamesh snapped out of his brief reverie. He glanced over at the staffman who had just spoken. He gazed back at him, a bit anxious. "Thank you, Vragen." Vragen smiled at the nearly unspoken gratitude.

He had to stay alert. There were too many renegades about to daydream. He looked ahead. Sure enough, the Great Temple of Life was near. He pulled up, and signaled a halt. Luckily his troops had the most stamina of all Life worshippers. He had chosen well, it seemed.

It was time to fight. This was where hope came in. Though his troops were well-trained, they had little experience between them. Gilgamesh stared into the eyes of each elf behind him. Twelve lives under his command. Without another moments rest, he rode into the Temple.

He sighed with cautious relief. Death followers, but only a group of halberdians, a couple of riders, and Dark warrior. "Theli, Jendra, Dicha!" Calling out to the Elven riders, he sent them to the right, in an attempt to get behind the enemy. Vragen and his fellow staffmen jogged left, interpreting his plan. The six archers spread out behind him, ready to riddle the mounted dark-elves with arrows. "To battle!!" The scream from Gilgamesh startled the warrior of Death, who immediately issued attack orders to his troops. The battle was in progress.

He stayed back, making sure all was going as planned. The Death troops did not seem to notice the Elves circling around behind them. They just rode toward the yellow lizard. "Let them fly!" Six arrows sprang from the Elven longbows, racing toward the front rider. He was flung from his mount with the force of the arrows. The riders and staffmen closed in from the sides, and suddenly Death was in trouble. With volley after volley of arrows taking them down one at a time, they were too disorganized to fight back. The Death warrior was screaming commands to his troops until he fell from his lizard mount with an arrow protruding from his chest. In mere minutes, the battle was over.

Gilgamesh stood proudly overlooking the battlefield. Not a death among his ranks. Looked like nothing more than cuts and bruises. A fine day. No wonder all others had failed: the direct route is the most profitable. It seemed time to go home.


Chapter 2 -- Order's Story Begins

Reisz looked over the bushes, watching as a pack of Chaos followers passed by. "An that be their plot!" he exclaimed to himself. "Well methinks that they should be watched..." Reisz walked back to his stronghold and called upon his best troops. "Be it of most importance that they not know they be being followed. An they discover this fact, break camp and retreat." Reisz ordered them, to which he got a wave of ayes and nods. The Order units followed the Chaos troops to the sacred temple of their past, where they ambushed the unsuspecting troops. "What be thy plans?" the captain of the Order riders demanded. "Knowest not that if thee desecrate our temple it will lead to war?" His only answer was muffled grunts and groans. "Remove this filth!" the captain said to his troops. He went to retire in his tent. Just as he was about to write a scroll to inform his Lord Reisz of the events, he was interupted by a royal thief ranger trained by Reisz himself. "What be the problem good man?" Cap asked curiously. "Sir...." the thief gasped for breath. "Balkoth...he hath returned! I spotted him and his foul bat demon at the hill but a mere minute ago!" The captain turned back and thought for a second. "Well my good man...I do believe this could be the end." Just then, the screeching of a inhuman sized bat was heard throughout the camp.


Chapter 3 -- Sparks in the Darkness

Daeme Azzhirr looked up from her map to gaze at me. It was her way of telling me that she didn't want anymore music. Obediently, I set my harp down and walked over to her table to sit. I leaned back, crossed my arms and observed. She is my lord and I am her bard, but are relationship to each other was never so formal. Rather, we understood each other...used each other. It was I, Wildezword; taking my name from the accursed sword I wear, who recovered the great Flameshaft, the ruling sceptor of elemental fire. Not that it availed Azzhir much. Once Caer Kallizsha and the surrounding territory stood as a fierce, blazing land of glory. Now, it was a land of petty lords, renegades bands, plots, and political manuevering. They laughed at her when she presented her claim. She was the daughter of Efreeti genies belonging to a minor noble house. For her to claim lordship was laughable. I told her so. And for my honest assessment, she flew into a rage. She does that alot. Now her latest tantrum may cost us our lives. When a minor lord of the northern Taz Ka'Zahn brewery laughed at her over a suggested tithe, she handled the matter...shall we say...quite expediently. Now, every cave, building, fortress outside of Caer Kallizsha is armed against us. And she must confront all of them with her ragtag band of ruffians or face imminent, eventual assassination. And so Azzhirr planned, brooded rather over her plight. For troubles were not only brewing in the realm of eternal flame, but in all of Urak. The news of Balkoth's return struck the entire world like a bolt of lightening. Stories of souls lost to undead armies, dark elves walking in the lands of sunlight, pestilence, hordes of locusts, starvation, and holocaust are being told by refugees streaming across the southern border. But that is not all. On our north, the vile Bur-Jin elves, realizing that Balkoth's victory means their extinction, have desperately united under a lord named Gilgamesh. I looked at the map and smiled ironically. Caught between Life and Death; and the land of Fire was the battlefield. And if rumors are to be believed, the humans off to the west have found some worthless commoner to call a lord. A bolt of lightning, yes. Yet, the land of neverending sun slept on; surrounded by encroaching darkness. Even, if Azzhirr was victorious here, she would have nowhere to go, nowhere to turn. A voice interrupted my thoughts. "The game of noble houses must end." said Azzhirr still studying the map. I replied,"It is only a matter of time before someone comes and sweeps away all the pieces from the board." "Do you think Balkoth will come here...and the elves?" she asked soberly. "No, the elves don't have the resources to fight a campaign in our lands. Balkoth probably believes the land of fire is ripe for the taking. He will take his time to get here." Daeme Azzhirr's eyes burned at this, as I knew they would. Quietly, she returned to her map. Picking up a feather pen she traced a route through the realm of Fire. I leaned over to look. A spiralic pattern through all the lands, estates, mines of the fire realm; ending, at last, at the Great Temple of Penultimate Flame.


Chapter 4 -- Salvation for Order

"Captain! Captain!" a man burst into the tent exclaiming. The captain examined him quietly and nodded. "So Sean, thee bless us with thine presence once more...but now be not the time for talk! Someone must make it back to our stronghold and inform Lord Reisz that Balkoth is coming!" "Aye, and I be the one to do it...give me a good horse and I shall be his aid." Sean replied, straight down to the business. "Sean, I know that it would help but I be not sure that we hath a horse to---" Capt started. "lend me? Of course not, but it shall be returned to you at the first possible time" said Sean. "Alright....take thine pick...mine own horse be fastest of our pack." he said. "Then I shall take him and return him 'fore the fortnight be up." Sean replied. "FORTNIGH---?" the Captain started, finding Sean already gone. Sean pulled the hood down the back of his head. He had ridden enough to almost kill the excellent horse he had been lent, but knew the animal sensed something was wrong. He rode to the gates whose sentrys immediately opened for him. They already had heard of him long ago. "Reisz! I need to see Reisz!" Sean exclaimed to the nobles. "What is the meanin--AH Sean, it is an honor to see you again." Reisz said, walking out of the castle, sword in hand. "Reisz...Balkoth has been spotted a horse's day's distance away, and I volunteered to inform you of this foul luck...and offer my services as a wizard." said Sean. "And what of Krystin, thy wife?" Reisz asked. "She will join me as always...send someone for her." Reisz nodded and turned to a messanger. "You heard him boy, go bring back his wife." "Yes milord..." the boy turned and ran off towards the stables. "And now, we must prepare for the coming battle Reisz...this enemy is much more powerful than any other that I had ever battled...I haven't even been able to get clues of the future." warned Sean. "Aye old friend...but we must take a stand for all Urak!" acknowledged Reisz. "Then let us prepare." Sean said, turning to the other nobles. Reisz stared off into the distance, and if asked, he could have sworn he heard the flapping of wings.


Chapter 5 -- New Friends...New Enemies

Lord Gilgamesh paced the length of his bedroom, frustrated. What was he to do? From what his scouts had told him, it seemed that troubled times were ahead. Balkoth looked ready for an assault on the Order faith, while Fire was poised at the edge of the battlefield, looking for a winner. An alliance with Order was the only thing that seemed feasible now. Lord Reisz was one of the few humans known to the elves...a very notable thing. He called for a brownie. "Go the the lands of Order. I wish to treat with Lord Reisz. Let him choose time and place." The brownie nodded, and hopped off. By the Gods, Gilgamesh hoped this would work. What of the other faiths? He had heard nothing from the remaining five. There was a knock at his door. "Enter!" As the door opened, a shadow moved across the wall opposite the only window. "My Lord Gilgamesh, I come to serve," a hidden voice spoke. Suddenly, the shadow on the wall materialized into an attractive Elven thief. "Who are you?" Gilgamesh asked. "I am Shea, treasure-hunter of the Ohmsford Clan. I wish to join your forces, my Lord." Gilgamesh couldn't believe his luck! Just when things were beginning to fall down around his head... Another knock was heard. Without a word spoken, the door flew open. Shea leapt in front of the door. "Who goes th..." Through the door stepped the most beautiful Elven woman ever seen through the eyes of Gilgamesh. "I am Balathustri the Wise, disciple in the ways of Elvish lore. I am here to do your bidding." Amazement flashed across Gilgamesh's face. Where were they all coming from? No matter what the reason, things were definitely looking up. Now if only Reisz would come through...but that would have to wait. The Kingdom came first. All else followed. "My Lord, urgent news!" A young elf burst into the room. "What is it, Raggert?" The staffman leaned against the doorframe, panting. "Sire, a Death party has been sighted less than a day's ride from the temple!" Looked like the end of the good news had arrived. Time to confront the followers of Balkoth. "Gather the troops." Gilgamesh called for his servants to prepare himself for battle...

On to Part 2