Hello everyone, it took three days for me to finish this story(using time during which I should be doing my homework and doing my homework when I should be listening to class). I'm sorry that I got over excited, and the short story turned into a long story. But at least I didn't write it into a novel
. Also, I wonder if it's okay that I used a false god's name in the story, if it's not I'll change it. Any ways, I hope you will find it worthwhile and interesting to read. Enjoy.
Antique Fable of the Great Brothers
Once upon a time, there was a Graviton settlement in the Rocky Valleys on the eastern Polariza continent. At the centre of the settlement was a gigantic gravity factory where the citizens of the settlement were originally made.
The settlement was an outpost of the Gravity faction, created for the purpose of fending off invasions from the Death faction. The factory was installed a long time ago, to make soldiers like the graviton mercenaries, armaigoes and graviton fire eaters. Along with these war machines of enormous destruction, also came war beasts like the sapphire chargers, the colossal dragons and the monstrous otyughs. The tedious war against the Death faction has lasted 20 years. Eventually, the death minions were wiped out of existence. However, the settlement did not disband after its have service ended. The soldiers became civilians, and the outpost became more akin to a village. At the rim of the settlements lived the descendants of the war beasts who survived the war, they now lived freely but are not permitted to live in the town center.
In a greatly weathered hut, or more precisely a nest, lived an otyugh mother and her twin sons. The older one named Demantrius, the younger one named Lyantor. They were the descendants of an otyugh commander who died honorably in the war. The two brothers had been living peacefully in the village for many years, but they were not happy, for their natural instincts urged them to seek and devour other beings smaller than they were, but they were not allowed to devour any citizens in the settlement, and their mother forbid (forbade) them to go out of the valley which was as empty of life as Hell. Long suffering aggravated their longing to go out, to escape this valley. Their desire to escape mounted by the days. Finally, one day, Demantrius suggested that they disobey their mother and get out of the village and the valley in the cover of night, and Lyantor immediately agreed. So, that very night, they escaped the dreadful valley and headed off to the east and unknown, led only by their instincts.
After a few weeks of journey in the lifeless wilderness, they came to the edge of a seemingly endless forest, vibrating with the vigor of life.
“Is this the Paradise?” asked Lyantor.
“It can be no other place.”
They entered the forest, and they were immediately dazzled by the immense beauty of the forest. The air seemed to be fresher than they ever tasted, the streams are chanting a song of joy. Birds sang their most beautiful chorale to complement the beauty can only be paralleled by heaven. Everywhere they looked, there was vibrant green, and there was life. Yes, life. Within minutes they are (were) wild on their feet, chasing a horrified horned frog.
∞
Joyous times tend to pass away faster than light. The two young otyugh brothers had, by now, grown into enormous monstrosities. Their fearsome reputations have spread like fire. Now, most of the creatures in the forest learned to run away as fast as they can at the first sight of them. One day, when the young brothers were again hunting in the forest, the cockatrice they were chasing lead them deeper and deeper into the forest, into regions that they had never yet explored. With the energy and endurance that is the nature of being young, they did not lose their target despite the wondrous agility of the cockatrice. They stalked and pursued, but they just can’t get close enough for killing blow. It was until they were so deep into the forest that they could barely see that they finally trapped the cockatrice in front of a thick clump of bush. They advanced, slowly closing up any route of escape, preparing to pounce on their prey. The cockatrice slowly backed away, showing no sign of fear. Just when the brothers thought that the cockatrice was doomed to become their lunch, the cockatrice suddenly flipped backward, bursting the bush aside and disappeared behind it. The two brothers zoomed through the bush without hesitation, thinking only of capturing their prey at all cost. Instead of landing on the ground as they expected, they found that they had just leaped over the edge of a pond that was immediately behind the bush. They slammed into the pond with two gigantic splashes. Cursing the cockatrice, they surfaced and made to return to the land. This was when they were confronted by a strange being that seems to have appeared out of no where. Startled, they almost fell back into the pond.
The being was shining faintly with a pale green luminosity. Her form is perfect beyond description. Her movements carry a grace that is unmatched by any ordinary being. Her Majesty and sacred appearance cannot be mistaken. She was no doubt a divinity.
“Who are you?” demanded Demantrius boldly.
Turning to look at him with her shinning green eyes, she replied: “I’m the Elemental Goddess Ferox, the devoted leader of the Forest of Isdris. I am the queen of this forest, which is on the outskirt of the Life Kingdom. ”
“What do you want from us?” asked Lyantor aggressively.
“What do I want from you? I thought it’s a question more fitting to be asked by me. You two are not from this place. You came uninvited, and caused much fear in my forest.”
“So you are going to try to kick us out?” said Demantrius, taking a hostile stance.
“I mean no hostility toward you.”
“So, you will leave us alone for what we do in your forest?” said Lyantor with skepticism.
“Why not? What you do is practiced all the time by the members of our community.”
“Really?”
“Yes, the cockatrices consume rats to survive. The rats consume the plants to survive. The plants consume photons to do their photosynthesis. Even the jade dragons, who are the guardians of our land, consume leaves of plants to survive. It is how the cycle worked for thousands of years. You are not doing much more than adding another trophic level to our food chains.”
“Okay. So you are not trying to stop us from doing what we want?” asked Demantrius.
“There is nothing wrong in what you do, only that everything needs to have its limit. Your consumption of our citizens can create healthy tension that will improve the physical standard of our community. But over consumption can lead to our destruction, which we will not tolerate.”
“So, what do you suggest we do?”
“Take only what you need and no more.” said the Goddess with immense authority.
“That is all?”
“Yes, then you will be accepted members of our community.”
“Okay, it is a deal.” said Demantrius.
“The Goddess nodded, a faint suggestion of a smile appearing on her face, and she dissolved into nothingness.”
∞
For the first time in their lives, the brothers felt happiness and belonging. They restricted their diet, and things were just fine the way it is, they hardly ever thought of regretting their escape from the Graviton Valley; in fact, they hardly remember much of the Valley at all now. They befriended some of creatures in the forest who will never worry about becoming their prey, like some of the jade dragons. As the guardians of the forest, many jade dragons still felt wary about them. The hostility was decreasing though, as they have done little more than putting the sick and the dying out of their miseries. Ferox has taught them all about how to fit in this forest society. They have learned that the Life faction operates on the principle of symbiosis. Their very existence depended on their friendship with the generous Light faction, who provided them with the basis of their existence. The brothers were happy to be part of this symbiosis, no one was excluded, and everyone looked after each other.
∞
Their jade dragon friend Greeph was the first to bring them the news of war. The Graviton faction had invaded them. They were entirely taken by surprise, the rim part of the forest was now evacuated of creatures, and the Graviton forces had encamped at the border of the forest. They were being threatened. The brothers went back to their cave with a heavy burden on their mind.
“What should we do, brother?” asked Lyantor. Demantrius did not reply immediately, Lyantor pressed him: “I think it’s them, our old neighbors, on which side are we going to stand?”
After another long period of thoughtfulness, Demantrius said: “I don’t know, I really don’t know.”
An awkward silence ensued.
The forest’s atmosphere had changed completely during war time, the food chain relation had vanished almost entirely, the creatures worked for their collective defence as one. Ferox had materialized and had been directing the war preparation. Her coolness under pressure was almost supernatural.
Meantime, the giant armaigoes had invaded the forest, inducing massive destruction to the beauty of the forest. Lead by the elemental commander Kurohami, the elite Graviton shock troops marched in the wake of the armaigoes, with the Graviton Firemasters setting aflame all that was left undestroyed. Their works were done with mechanical efficiency and cruelty, for machines are what they are, they have no feelings. Behind the lines of troopers were the gigantic war beasts, following the lines of troops with impatience for war.
The army of Isdris gathered at the rally point. Ferox floated high on the throne, with no trace of anxiety, only controlled confidence.
“Comrades, honorable members of the forest of Isdris, we are being threatened!” said the Goddess with dignity.
“We will not let these ruthless enemies destroy us, we will retaliate! War is not our choice, but a necessity to protect us, and protect the wider Life Kingdom from being destroyed. So, fight with all the strength we have, we are in this together!”
The crowd roared in support as the army marched west, to face their enemies.
Unseen in the bushes, the otyugh brothers followed the army, their decision still unmade, but they wanted to bear witness to the conflict that will soon unfold.
∞
The cockatrice scout division captain came hurriedly, and gave their report to the Queen.
“The enemies have encamped not far ahead. They have an army the size I have never seen.”
“Worry not; we have the empathy of the world with us. Do they have watchers out? Can we take them by surprise?” inquired the Goddess.
“They have watchers alright, but the forest will conceal us. As long as we move stealthily, we can take them by surprise.”
“Very well.”
The army marched in silence; the leaves on the forest floor concealed the sound of their footfalls. Soon, they reached the edge of the untouched forest. Beyond was a flaming ruin that was the work of the armaigoes and fire masters.
“That is their camp.” said the scout division captain while pointing somewhere farther off, where the menacing Graviton army can be seen.
“Time is of the essence, the longer we linger, the more likely we will be discovered. Let’s rush them, make them pay for the destruction they have done, attack!” The queen commanded.
The Giant Frogs and cockatrices charged incredible speed forming a spear head formation, piercing into the Graviton camps with the jade dragons following behind.
Despite the element of surprise, the Graviton forces reacted very quickly, the two forces clashed furiously. The Isdris army took complete control of the battle, beating the Graviton armies into a defence stance. That did not last very long, their attack was held by a line of tenacious armaigoes, who were hardly damaged at all by the claws and horns of the giant frogs and cockatrices. The jade dragons advanced and proceeded to beat down the armaigoes with their unmatched strength. But the massive dragons’ appearance turned the tide. The might and ferocity of the jade dragons were fairly matched by the unbreakable endurance of these largest dragons known. With the jade dragons locked in battle with the massive dragons, the Giant frogs and cockatrices are left to the mercy of the Elite Graviton Troopers and the ever more powerful Graviton Firemasters. The Graviton forces turned to offence, soon pushing the battle field into the forest. They were immediately confronted by the ancient forest specters who were not proficient in offence but immensely powerful in defence. Seeing their progress being halted, elemental commander Kurohami took out his mighty hammer: Titan. With this unstoppable weapon of destruction he hammered his way onward, laying waste to whatever tried to stop him.
Seeing the heavy casualties they suffered, Ferox conjured a massive empathic bond that heals their defence by the empathy of everyone of their community.
The battle seemed to last for ever.
Outside the forest, the jade dragons were being out numbered by the Graviton war beasts; their strength seemed to be failing. The otyugh brothers saw this from beginning to end. For some reason they felt empathic towards the cause of the Isdris community, and it saddened them a great deal to see the jade dragons coming near to their end. As they watched, Greeph was knocked down by two massive dragons and two sapphire chargers. His doom seemed inevitable.
“Come, Lyantor, we’ve got to do something. The decision is made for us, we can’t let them kill Greeph.” said Demantrius, leaping out of the bush, followed, seconds later by his brother.
They charged the massive dragons, and sank their teeth deeply in their necks, adrenaline surging through their bodies.
Monstrosities they have truly became, for their strength was proven enough to beat back the Graviton war beasts. The war beasts glared at them with an expression of disbelief. Apparently, they had not expected to fight members of their own faction, and soon they could hardly fight at all, for the two brothers have turned the tide yet again.
The proceeding in the forest was turning into a nightmare for the Graviton forces; for it seemed that everything that could see was fighting against them. Soon they were in for an even bigger surprise, they were attacked from behind by the jade dragons and the two otyughs who seemed to appear out of nowhere. They were doomed, their chance of victory had reduce even more as Light has came to their enemy’s aid, replenishing their energy through the process of photosynthesis.
It was not long after that the Graviton forces surrendered, against their commander Kurohami. The forces of Isdris were victorious. The Graviton forces were disarmed then allowed to return to their own side as was the custom of the Life Kingdom. However, none of the war beasts were seen again, for they had learned with the price of their life what the stomach of an otyugh looked like.
∞
It was not until another half a year of embattlement that the Graviton forces had finally accepted their defeat, but with the Great Brothers on the side of the Isdris community, they had no other choice. The Great Brothers had since became war heroes of the Isdris, they were respected and appraised but still inevitably feared.
In the center of the Isdris Forest, there was a statue of the Goddess Ferox, flanked by the statue of two mighty jade dragons. But now, beside these statues, two new ones were made, they were the Great Brothers.
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