A Cimmerian Hymn, Chapter 1
A world much unlike our own, locked in a tidal orbit circling its star leaving one side in complete darkness, and the opposite side in ever brightness.
Imagine a world with a day length of ten thousand years.
Written by Jens F. Isaksson
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Nightfall.
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Darkness stretched as far as the eye could tell. The night sky was filled with brilliant stars. Each of them had been named long ago by the creatures of the past. One could lie on one’s back and marvel at the scene for hours, even days on end, and forget about sleep, hunger and thirst ‘till eventually the body would cease to function, and the eyelids would freeze still in time.
They were known as stargazers, and there were many of them. Thousands of them were lying around on the plains, lifeless and in the process of returning to dust.
The old myths spoke of their transcendence. It was said that if you gazed at the marvels of the night sky until your last breath, you would - at the bitter end - eject from your bodily form, and take on anew form among the stars.
If you looked closely at the night sky, you could see the stars flicker from time to time. This was said to be the proof of a gazers transcendence to the stars...
However, on this particular night, a light was visible on the otherwise completely darkened surface. A large bonfire, flaring in a blue fashion. Its light distinguished five different silhouettes sitting in a circle around the blaze of fire.
Each of the five of them varied in size. Two of them with tails rattling behind their backs. One of them had a pair of large wings neatly folded. None of them seemed to belong to the same kin.
The world of Nightfall could best be described as dark, unchanging and mysterious. There were no actual borders, no kingdoms, just the creatures of the night... They kept to themselves in small groups, like the group of five now sitting side by side in front of the sparkling flames.
The blue flamed crackling sounds finally got interrupted.
"You've outdone yourself, Mero," one of them muttered.
"Haha, Mero the trickster! Tell me... Why is it blue? The old one spoke of flames in bright yellow," another one of them quickly pointed out.
Mero, who - unlike his comrades - did not satisfy himself to stay put in their territory, had returned from a long journey. Perhaps his desire to explore was because he was the only one among them with developed wings, letting him travel with much greater ease than the rest of his comrades? It had been months since he had last seen his brethren.
"It is I who am impressed." Mero outed while tilting his head back in a dominating manner.
"I'd never expect that old stone to able to explain the differences in color... He must have used the brightness of the stars as an example. Correct, Ceol?"
Or did he just fall asleep next to that stone figure and dreamt it up altogether?
Ceol's monstrous face, filled with fangs sprouting out of his insect-like mouth, gave out a joyous hiss.
"While you've been busy trying to become something more through your travels, you've missed out on the one you call the old stone. He did not have to direct my sight to the stars, nor did he have to play with words. The old one spoke to me. Not in words, but in visions in my mind. Colors are just one of many things he has shown me."
The one known as the old one was a stone figure located in an underground cave not far from their territory, its chambers were somehow lit by small magnifying holes in the ceiling that let the starlight in. Its walls were neatly decorated with unknown symbols, their meaning long forgotten in time.
The stone figure was two meters in height, resembling a man seated on a throne also made of fine stone. The face was covered in a mask filled with runes. Only the eyes were visible from behind the mask, they were made of a black stone and gave the impression that they were gazing at one, when in their presence. Its stone body was shaped to look like it was clothed in a robe with its arms resting on the throne handles.
It was said that the old ones would tell the stories of the past and the ritual of transcendence. Some revered them as avatars of the Gods, some saw them as nothing more than stone figures. Mero was one of the latter ones...
However, when faced with the stone figure, even Mero felt something odd was trying to pierce his mind.
He had encountered numerous stone figures in his travels. By eavesdropping on other packs, he had heard tales similar as the ones from back at home.
To his disappointment though... Every time he had tried to communicate with these stone figures, his response had been nothing more than silence. And because it was said that the Old ones would not preach before more than one at a time, he could never verify the truth by witnessing someone else communicate with them.
Mero sighed and looked away from Ceol back into the blue sparkling flames.
"Merooo, don't look so miserable, even though the truth is sad... You're obviously not worthy the old ones audience."
The rest of the group heckled Mero in small mocking laughter.
With a raged expression on his face, Mero looked upon each and every one of them. Fearing Mero's unstable temper, they all quieted down.
"I give little thought to those stone figures! I would not be surprised if these visions came in accordance with Ceols habit of sometimes eating the corpses of the rotten stargazers and then falling asleep in the cavern of the old stone... However what I will tell you next will surely come to you as a surprise."
Mero smiled as the rest of the group started to drag themselves closer to hear what he had to say.
Even Ceol, who had been in a bragging mood just seconds ago, had a new light sparking in his eyes, and put all of his focus on Mero.
Everytime Mero had been off traveling they would gather up in his return and listen to what he had uncovered. Sometimes he had brought home items which Mero claimed to be treasures of the past. Sometimes knowledge of power in the form of magical spells that he shared.
His returns had become a tradition of suspense, and were the highlight of their otherwise boring lives.
This time he had been able to conjure a great blue bonfire for them to gather around, but now it seemed this was just one of the discoveries he had brought back.
With everyone around focusing on Mero, he opened his mouth.
"I've seen the edge of our world, the edge where the dark ends and shimmers of light can be seen on the horizon. As I got closer the light got so bright it almost rendered me blind. That brightness… If there ever was a realm of the Gods, I think I’ve found it..."
Demeus, a female fiend with an incredibly luscious appearance, glanced at Mero with a disdained look on her face.
"Everyone knows that the realm of the Gods is above us. Feast your eyes on the sky and tell me otherwise. Its beauty can not be refuted!"
Before, Demeus had been one of the stargazers, lying on the ground gazing upon the stars. She had been waiting till the moment of her death, waiting for her transcendence. The only problem was, she had chosen to lie down on a field - not just any field, but one that belonged to Meros. It wasn’t long before she was interrupted by Ceol and Oralec, thus ruining the transcendence ritual. Once interrupted it was said you could never re-attempt transcendence.
She had instead joined the group, although - in the beginning - she was often frustrated and blameful of Ceol and Oralec, claiming they had denied her the passage to the stars.
Nowadays her hatred and frustration had faded away. She considered herself one of them, one of the pack.
Oralec, who sat beside Demeus, poked the top of her head.
"We're not here to listen to the same old sayings of the Gods! Keep your preaching to yourself and do not interrupt Mero again!"
Oralec shifted his eyes to Mero, and nodded for him to continue.
Mero leaned towards them and opened his mouth once more.
"I was not alone when I came down from my flight near the edge. Once I landed I was surrounded by beings. Beings I had never encountered before. They were puny in size, their fangs we're not a part of them. Instead, they held their fangs, each one of them carrying one in one of their small hands. Their fangs were shiny, some of them had the same shine on their bodies and some on their heads."
Mero turned around and dragged out his large sack he had behind him.
He opened it up before them, inside they could see the items reflecting light from the blue flame in shining glamour.
"Behind them I could see a large structure made of stone. It wasn't a cave. It was like a mountain, yet, not a mountain. I can’t describe it any better. The puny beings were running around inside this mountain-like place."
Oralec and Ceol took out some of the swords and helmets from the sack, and handed them on to the others while listening to Mero.
"While I was looking around at my surroundings the small beings started making desperate sounds and screams. Some yelled directly at me while pointing in my direction. I couldn't understand a word of what they were saying, but the stench of fear was incredible. Their voices carried the stench. Their bodies were trembling. Some had run off back into the big mountain. Others had fallen to the ground, shaking without me even touching them."
Darkol, who had been silent the whole time, straightened his back. He was known to rarely voice his opinion, but when he did, he usually did so after making a psychical gesture.
"Even I can sometimes shudder when your in a bad mood Mero. Now, if I try to imagine myself as a small being, without fangs of my own, and only these shiny sticks to compensate it with, I would probably react similar to seeing you descend from the sky upon my land.
I assume they didn't hand over these sticks to you out of gratitude. You slew them, did you not?"
Meros and Darkols’ eyes interlocked. Staring at each other intensely, Mero continued.
"I was defending myself... Darkol. Do not take me for some savage brute. Just as they were screaming at me, the ones further back threw sharp flying fangs at me in an incredible speed."
Mero pointed to parts of his body where scars could clearly be seen.
"They pierced me. The pain was staggering. Luckily it was only temporary. Once I pulled the fangs out, the leaking stopped. Now these scars are what remain. At the same time, the ones with the shiny sticks ran towards me. They charged me and tried to slash me! My mind went blank and with my tail and fangs and teeth I pierced and slashed and strode from the next to the other and the soil went wet of their leaking, decapitated bodies."
While Mero described the events by swinging in the air, his fury and bloodlust could be felt by the others. Making them feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Mero noticed the expression on his comrades’ faces, and abrubtly stopped slicing through the air.
"Sorry... I was getting carried away. The battle however was, nothing I’d experienced before. It felt good, almost too good. Scary good."
Mero looked around as if someone uninvited might be watching them. Not seeing anyone else present, he turned his focus back to his comrades.
"The best part is too good to be described with just words. Just hold on for a moment."
Mero started fumbling with his arms in the sack like a madman.
"Here..."
Mero handed out chunks of something covered with cloth that was dripping, not with water but something thicker and with a different smell to it.
"Take off the cloth around it and take a bite."
‘It did smell delicious to say the least,’ Demeus and the rest of them thought while unravelling the cloth.
Ceol was the first to taste. He first took a shy little bite out of the chunk of meat that looked like it once belonged to a human leg.
Everyone looked at him, trying to analyze his reaction. Mero had fooled them before. If this was one of his evil jokes Ceols reaction would certainly reveal it.
Ceol chewed on the small piece he had in his mouth. He let out small moaning sounds as if he was having a demonic orgasm.
"IT IS SO GOOD!" he frantically burst out and took a huge bite off the leg.
The rest of them looked at each other for a second, and then instantly started to devour the chunks of meat.
Mero leaned back and watched as all of them were furiously eating, while at the same time trying to tell one and other how delicious it was.
"MmMMm SoO Gorrd"
- "Yer..sh ajjrr noohh!!"
"WHY DID YOU GIVE CEOL THE BIGGEST CHUNK?!" Demeus roared when she had swallowed her last piece of meat.
"Hush you imbecile! I was expecting your thanks, not your complains, Demeus!" Mero furiously replied.
She brought her arms together and leaned forward towards Mero.
"Forgive me... I was just. Well.. Do you have some more to give? I'd really like some more.. Please?" Demeus said with the most innocent and lovable tone she could muster.
"If you have, she is the last one you should give it to... Do not be fooled by her, she's obviously just an ungrateful brat with good looks." Oralec stated, finishing up his meal.
Mero didn't respond. Instead, he waited for Darkol to finish up his chunk of meat.
"That was truly a nice surprise! Thank you for the treat, Mero," Darkol said, licking his lips clean.
"Thanks."
"It was sooo good! Thanks youu!"
"Forget the blue flame, this was better than everything you've ever shared combined!" Ceol added.
Numerous thankful and cheering remarks came flying simultaneously like storm towards Mero.
Mero waved with his spiked arms for everyone to settle down.
"I'm glad it wasn't just me who had a taste for their flesh." Mero said in a delightful tone.
"You should have told us Mero! You know this isn't our way!" Demeus burst out in anger.
In Nightfall the creatures who had decided to live and not take the path to transcendence lived off of the big worms crawling underneath the soil, they were clumsy and slow, ranging from 30cm to the fully grown ones that could get up to 2m in length and 40cm in width. They don't taste much different from the mud they crawl in, however.
Devouring a single full sized worm would leave you satisfied for more than a week. They, in turn, would eat the remains of the rotten stargazers laying around everywhere. As a result the worms were quite numerous.
Because of this the inhabitants of Nightfall never had to fight for their food. Fights occurred due to territorial disputes instead. These fights could hardly be called more than sparring matches, death was a seldom occurrence.
Most of the time one of the combatants would admit defeat, thus deciding the victor before any serious injuries were inflicted.
Hence killing and eating other inhabitants with the exception of mud worms was unheard of.
Mero saw that it wasn't just Demeus who had been taken back by this.
"Think for once, all of you. Ceol you've.. Ehm, accidently eaten one or two corpses of dead stargazers have you not?"
- "Yes? So what?"
"And how did it taste?"
- "Not much different from a mud worm to be honest. Afterwards I would feel sickly, moments later what I ate would come back up from my stomach, flushing out of my mouth. I believe the Gods have made it so, to teach me this lesson. We shan't eat our own."
"Exactly," Mero replied instantly.
Everyone looked at him with confused expressions.
"What do you mean by that?" Oralec asked as if he had missed the whole point.
"If I'm right, what we've just eaten shall remain in our bellies. However, if it comes pouring out of our mouths as Ceol has experienced, then it would be clear that the Gods do not approve of this," he paused momentarily before continuing, "But I've already eaten their flesh before and what I ate remained in my stomach as it will now. Is this not proof enough for you to know that this is meant to be?"
Everyone glanced at Mero with awe in their eyes. Demeus was the first to admit the logic to this point, and the superior reason that led to it.
"Yes.. Surely the Gods would have taken this out of us by now if they did not approve of it.. And the taste, it must have been made as a gift from the Gods for us to enjoy. A reward of some sort. Could it be a sign for us? Did they plan this all to happen? Are we being watched by the Gods? We are. We must be! Hesalio!" Demeus chanted like she was in some sort of trance-like state.
Hesalio was a phrase to praise the Gods.
"Yes.. Ehm. The Gods approve as you can tell." Mero muttered in a dull voice.
Mero didn't really care much of the so called Gods, he had never seen one, never spoken to one. Therefore, he barely believed there to be any.
But at times like these he gladly used the concept of a God to prove his point.
Darkol looked to be in deep thought whilst staring into the flames.
"There is, however, something I'd like to ask of you Mero..." he said while shifting his sight to Mero.
- "Yes Darkol?"
"These puny and weak beings you've fed us with, tell me exactly, what did they look like?"
Mero leaned back a bit using his wings to form some support to his neck while trying to figure out why Darkol would be so curious of their appearance.
‘Darkol doesn't just ask questions without an ulterior motive, whatever that would be... We'll just have to wait and see’, he thought to himself.
"Well, like I said. They were puny.. weak. Their strength might be equal to that of a newborn mud worm I'd say."
- "Yes yes, you've told us this much already. Give me their appearance in details please."
Mero frowned a little and continued.
"They are around 1,5 to 2m in height. They carry themselves with two legs and they use their two arms with five fingers on each end to grab onto things. Their heads are simple, a small mouth and their teeth are dull, not sharp at all. They have eyes that for some reason leak water, although with an unusual taste to it. Uhm... Short hair on the top of their heads. Their skin is soft and tender as you can tell, they use these shiny things and cloth to cover it. They have similar looks to Demeus to be honest, but without the tail, horns and fangs... and irresistible attraction that is," Mero finished while taking a glance at Demeus whom suddenly blushed at his last remarks.
"Interesting, most interesting. Thank you, my curiosity has been satisfied."
Mero's gazed at Darkol with contempt.
"What's so interesting?! If it is, then I bet everyone here would like to hear it!"
"Right now it would be too early for me to share with all of you why I find this so interesting... Once I know more I'll lend you all my thoughts on this."
"You and your thoughts. I've changed my mind. Darkol, you may keep your insights to yourself! I liked you better when you refrained from opening your mouth in vain."
"Fine," Darkol responded, not showing any form of emotion.
The atmosphere had changed for the worse. Demeus hated it when the air was boiling with ill will.
"Please, my beloved comrades... Let us not turn this celebration to a needless argument between you two. We cannot act like this while the Gods have taken notice of us," Demeus said while stroking them both gently with her hands and tail.
Demeus was a succubus, one of her many talents was the power to dominate and charm others. However, in situations such as this she would only calm her comrades senses, ridding them of their anger.
"You're right... Darkol, forgive my rudeness. I will look forward to hearing your insights on this when the time comes."
"Thank you, Mero... Ahem. I have a suggestion on what we shall do next if you care to hear of it."
"Please share with us."
Darkol was visibly filled with excitement.
"I propose you return to the land of these beings, and you bring me with you. As you know I can mold myself to my environment, making me practically invisible. I will lay there hidden and observe these beings. I will try to learn as much as I can. And when the time comes to go back I wish for you to take one of the beings with you, one of my choosing, alive. Then return to me and bring me back as well."
‘What is really going on in that mind of his?’ Mero wondered.
"Darkol, I never expected you to take such an interest in this... Of course, we can go ahead with this plan of yours. May I inquire as to why you want one of them brought back, alive?"
"You said they yelled and screamed at you? That tells me they speak a different tongue, one I wish to learn. If they can construct monuments as large as mountains, that means they must compensate for their weak bodies with creativity and intellect. If I could learn their language I.. no, we, could learn to build mountains ourselves."
Mero looked at Darkol and sucked in some of the enthusiasm that was radiating from him.
There was a special feeling looming around in the air at this very moment, the feeling of something big, something exciting.
Something great was about to unfold.
They all sat and looked at each other in silence, the blue flames’ crackling ruled the night once again.
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