Prolouge -Rise of Azrul

The crescent moon hung high in the frigid night sky, illuminating the steep bluffs below. The wind howled through the trees blocking her powerful chant from carrying to the town beyond the woods. She stood at the edge of the cliff where his body laid encased in stone deep in a hidden cave carved into the rock surface. The energy of his power swelled beneath the Earth as the sweet taste of freedom passed through his gravel prison.

She placed her hand carved pillars around a circle and five point star dug into the dirt. The bases of each column were engraved with runes of darkness and death; of sacrifice and renewing. She carried a scepter in her right hand as she lit black candles between each of the pillars;  connecting them with light as a complete ring.

She pulled five onyx stones from the pockets of her cloak and placed them at the points of the earth drawn star. The stones each had a single letter carved into them to ensure she resurrected the right soul.

She picked up a pitcher of water from outside of her circle and poured the liquid into the trenches of the pentagram. The water flowed and the flames flickered as the elements waited to be given purpose.

She knelt next to the candles and put her palm out, "Come, darling, join mommy."

A little boy inched forward out of the trees, uncertain and afraid. His face was framed with brown hair that fell down past his ears. His gold eyes shone in the dark with tears lining the brims. She smiled warmly at him and beckoned for him to come.

The small child placed his hand into hers and allowed himself to be lead to the center of the star. She placed a gleaming dagger with green jewels lining the wooden hilt into his hand and kissed both of his cheeks.

"Remember what mommy told you," she held his round face in the curve of her hand, "Do not stop your chant for anything."

The boy nodded, shivering with fear. The woman smiled at him in approval and planted a kiss into his hair. She removed her cloak, revealing a long purple dress with black runes littering the sleeves. She laid the scepter at her bare feet then conjured two flaming spheres; cradling them in her hands. She inclined her head to her offspring, indicating he could begin.

"Ego protector tuus sum et sacrificium," the tiny voice quivered, gradually growing stronger each time the words were repeated.

As he spoke, a powerful wind spun around him and the flames shot up from the wicks of their candles. The water splashed about its trench; longing to please the child who called out into the night. Vines crawled across the grass and wrapped themselves around the pillars. And voices whispered in excitement from beyond the veil.

His mother walked to the first point of the star where the letter 'A' was etched into the dark stone. Her voice rang out loud and clear, tangling with the fierce wind in a battle of who could call upon their gods with greater force.

"Come forth the Lord of darkness. Arise from your slumber and live among us. Rule us and remind us who we are. Master, arise and may your wrath rain down in force upon your enemies."

She stepped to the second letter 'Z' repeating her incantation; the third 'R'. She glanced over at her child and could see the pain that had begun to fill his face as his soul broke apart, returning life to the man whose body lain below. She moved again to the fourth, 'U', torn between mourning and rejoicing.

"Davetta!" A voice screamed from outside of her sacrificial circle. "Stop this at once, that is our child."

"This is the only way, Carmine. The only way our Lord can be released," She began to step toward the final letter, "Our boy is so strong. This is why he was born. His power is meant to be a gift to our master. It is meant to raise him so he can lead us again. "

She stood directly in front of the final letter, 'L', and watched as her baby dropped to his knees but continued to chant as he promised his mother he would. Throwing her head skyward, her long brown hair tumbled down her back. She lifted her flame filled hands and began her final cry.

"Come forth the Lord of darkness. Arise from your slumber and li.." She stopped short as her husband broke through her enchanted ring and stepped in front of their child. She sneered at him as he began to chant.

"Ego protector tuus sum et sacrificium," Carmine cried over and over; louder still as tears poured down his face. He shielded the boy with his body and silenced him with a hard glare.

"Live among us. Rule us and remind us who we are." An eerie smile played at her lips as she realized the sacrifice would still happen and her boy would live. "Master, arise and may your wrath rain down upon your enemies."

Carmine took the dagger from the child and ran it across his own throat, his blood forming a crimson pool at his feet. Davetta threw the fireballs she held and the pentagram went up in a blaze. The ground began to quake, cracking the pillars and sending them into crumbling piles on the ground. The candles flickered then extinguished.

A man crawled out from a split in the earth, his naked body bulging with muscles. He brought himself to his feet and turned to where Davetta now knelt, holding the scepter out to him. He lifted it and sniffed the air turning to the burning pentagram. He tilted his head to the side, his long, black hair blowing across his face, and inspected the bright green light coming from among the flames.

Waving the scepter with his hand, he snuffed out the blazing wall. There, beyond the jumble of charred bones, a child cowered behind a shining emerald shield. A shield that radiated a power no one of that age should ever possess. A power that he found himself thirsting for.

He moved forward, circling the child's shield. Picking up the dagger from among the ashes, he knelt in front of the protective green light. With a wave of his hand, the man tore down the shield and pulled the little boy to him. He laid the dagger on the boy's round cheek, smiling as terror filled those innocent eyes. Slowly, he pushed the blade down and ran it from cheek to the corner of his eye in a check mark motion.

The man's body was blown backwards in a burst of light as the child restored his shield. Scrambling to his feet, he prowled back and forth with a sneer pulling at his lips. He glared at the boy sitting safely behind the glowing, green wall. The boy glared back with one hand over his bleeding cheek and the other balled in a tiny fist by his side. 

"I could smell the power on you before I ever saw you, boy," the man said as he moved closer, "A power like that is meant to rule nations; it's meant to spill blood."

"Azrul," Davetta's voice quivered as she suddenly feared for her son. "Master, your will is mine. The offering has been made and the boy is no longer of any importance."

He turned his unclad body back to the woman who had given him freedom. She was beautiful in her ritual dress and her waist long, chestnut hair. The feeling of dread that oozed out of her made him want her in a manner he hadn't longed for in centuries. Her loyalty and fear aroused him in the most noticeable of ways.

Passing his hand across his body, a white cloak appeared sheltering himself from her wondering eyes. Azrul approached her in long strides. He took a piece of her hair between fingers and breathed in her scent.

"The boy is of utmost importance," his voice came out in a raspy growl as he wrapped his hand in her flowing mane, "His power will grow as he ages. His strength will rival all who have come before and all who will come after and once he's fully ascended, I will take it to command as my own."

"My Lord..."

"Take the boy then return to me,"  he pulled her hair until her head tilted back forcing her to look up at him, "When the time is right, I will seek him out with you by my side."

"How will I know where to find you, my lord?," she gasped the words as he ran a long, thin finger down the side of her neck.

He lifted the dagger and ran it across his palm. Without hesitation, Davetta offered her arm to him and he ran the blade over her pale skin. The blood danced across the sharp silver and mixed with Azrul's.

"Your blood will find me and mine will long for its servant until you return." He crushed his mouth against hers breathing in the fear and infatuation that radiated like a toxic perfume off her skin, "Make sure the child is safe. I vow that I will have what is his. I will drink in his magic and use it to destroy all those who defy me. Now go; hurry."

"Yes, my lord."

She approached her son and coaxed him into dropping the barrier he’d conjured around himself. He ran into her arms and buried his bleeding face into her chest. She held him, stroking his soft hair and crying as he clung on tight. Lifting him, she walked toward town to bring her son to the one place she knew he’d always be safe and protected. To the one person who she knew would keep the magnitude of his power a secret. And she left him there, in Shadow’s Keep, without another thought.

Author's Note

Ego protector tuus sum et sacrificium =I am your shield and sacrifice...so says Google but we know how that goes.

It still needs some work and I'm sure I'll edited a million times.