It continues to begin

[phedley]

[Map of the lands]

It came to pass that Eänaglo, son of Eälinas, of the house of Aronlëa, was driving his truck northward, to the lands of Uranbar. Rarely were such journeys undertaken in these forsaken days, but Eänaglo was very much in the image of his forefathers of old, who were more akin to such dangerous roads. Besides, he had a load of chickens to deliver.

The house of Aronlëa was great among the Truck Drivers of Këaloni, Eänaglo's homeland, whence he was driving. As such, Eänaglo had been chosen for this passage to the northern lands. Most had forsaken the northern lands, because of the evil, nameless things that dwelt there, after the rise of the dark lord Vandor (who made his summer home in those northern lands). Fortunately, it was winter.

Vandor's great tower, Dragon-Helm, dominated the landscape of Uranbar. It was all but identical to its sister-tower, Serpent-Helm, which was located in Vandor's homeland, Gnaveldor, in the Far South. Dragon-Helm was visible for many miles, and was a constant reminder of the dark lord's evil presence, and defilement of the lands. It was a source of power for the evil things that dwelt in Uranbar.

But there were some who resisted the darkness, and continued to live in this evil land as they had for many generations, since the days of legend of old. Dangerous was their lifestyle, and deadly, and much of their livestock was slaughtered by the evil creatures of Uranbar. Thus, Eänaglo's chickens would be of great use to those valiant, if slightly foolhardy, people.

His gleaming truck seemed dulled by these dark lands as he approached the main settlement of the people of Uranbar. Visible to the left was the dark tower of Dragon-Helm. The chickens clucked noisily as Eänaglo sped along the dusty road. It was approaching dusk, but that only meant that these dark lands turned slightly darker. No stars would be visible in the night sky. They had brighter, less evil places to shine upon.

Knowing the dangers of these lands, Eänaglo came prepared for conflict. He was wearing shining mail and armour, and carried his sword, Glorling, and his round shield of Eälinas, both of which had been forged by his father, of metal that was not of the Earth, and had fallen from the heavens on a burning star. They were stronger than any Earth-metals, and could cleave iron. When wielded by a master swordsman like Eänaglo, they were fearsome, and sent enemies running in fear of his wrath. Of course, driving a truck while fully armed was awkward, to say the least, so currently his arms were sitting on the seat beside him, ready to be collected and put forward to smite his enemies.

A single light ahead indicated the settlement of the people of Uranbar, which was Reälüdo. The small lantern waved, signalling to Eänaglo that everything was clear, and the evil of the lands was at bay, for the moment. Geroli, of the house of Gelioti, was most likely holding the lantern. It was he who was in charge of the people of Uranbar, and was their most valiant warrior and defender of their small lands from the evil that surrounded them.

Eänaglo drove his truck right up to where Geroli stood with his lantern. He climbed out of his rig, and Geroli greeted him warmly.

"Greetings, Eänaglo son of Eälinas, of the Truck Drivers of the South. You could not have arrived in a more dire time."

"I greet you too, Geroli son of Gelundo, friend of old, and I hope that my visit can be profitable to your people."

"I'm sure it will be, old friend," Geroli said. "But come, you must be weary from your travels. We have prepared a welcome for you, however meagre it may be, for we are short on goods, especially with this fell winter which is upon us."

"Geroli, you know there is no need for such things. I wish not to take from those who have little."

"Too generous you are, Eänaglo, he who comes to give but not take," Geroli said. "But as I have told, it is meagre at best, so do not fear to take this small offering. We would not give more than we can do without in any case."

And so Eänaglo consented, not wishing to appear impolite to the thanks of these troubled people. Geroli led him into his homestead, and they sat at a table with Geroli's wife, Felüli, and their two fair daughters, Falluna and Falsola. Also present were numerous other members of the Uranbar community, of which I cannot be bothered inventing names for. All greeted Eänaglo with warmth and thanks for his valuable poultry delivery.

Eänaglo, who always carried his sword and shield in these lands, left them leaning against the wall near his seat, which was a cause for great wonder by the townsfolk, who had little experience with weapons of such elegance and skilled craftsmanship. They struggled with old blades against the evil of the lands, and rarely did they come across bow or shield. Although Eänaglo was skilled with a bow, he rarely carried one, preferring the close combat fighting of his sword and shield. He did, however, keep a bow in his truck - Orvan, it was named, and was as finely crafted as his sword and shield, but not by his father. No one knew whence it had come to them, as that secret had been lost in the passage of time.

They sat down to a decidedly meagre dinner, consisting mainly of some scrawny vegetation that had somehow clung to life in the harsh winter, and some small animals that had been hunted by the people of Uranbar. Good taste was of little in this feast, but Eänaglo said nothing of this, knowing that these people had to endure such food all year round. Dinner conversation consisted mostly of some tales of daring against the evil of the land told proudly by the people of Uranbar, which had the desired effect of impressing Eänaglo. And then Eänaglo told tales of his prosperous lands and people, and the trucks that they drove, which in turn impressed the people of Uranbar. However, Eänaglo did not go so far as to suggest that they should forsake these lands, as had his own people, because he knew that they would not be swayed. The people of Uranbar were proud of their survival, despite the evil which surrounded them, and they kept their traditions alive.

After the meal, Eänaglo and Geroli went outside, and Eänaglo took to viewing the dark tower of Dragon-Helm. Even in the dim light of the evening, it was a terrible sight. Eänaglo fingered the hilt of Glorling with nervousness.

"Of late," Geroli said with some reverence, "we have seen many fires and strange lights at that tower. This is odd, because the dark lord is not supposed to abode there during the colder months. We don't know what devilry is at work, but it is not something that we have seen in many lifetimes."

"Perhaps I could identify the trouble," Eänaglo said, "if the sorcery would show itself to me."

And then, as if Eänaglo himself had commanded it, the tower lit up with licks of flame and strange lights glowing through its windows. It was a stark contrast to the darkness which surrounded the tower.

"Strange is this new devilry," Eänaglo said, "and yet familiar, as I have seen this before. But we of the Truck Drivers of the South had considered those foul creatures to be destroyed. Obviously Vandor has been long in his labours."

"What is it, Eänaglo?" Geroli said with some alarm.

"A fire serpent of the sky," Eänaglo said grimly. "A dragon."

"A dragon?" Geroli repeated disbelievingly. "We have not the defences or armoury to combat such a foe."

"I know," said Eänaglo. "I would counsel ye to swallow thy pride and leave these lands, until the dragon is slew or some other fate has suffered it to leave."

"Nay," Geroli said, "not for anything would I or my people forsake the lands of our fathers. We would meet the dragon itself in battle before we leave."

"It will be your people's downfall," Eänaglo said, "and the lands you hold so dear will fall to ruin."

"Then so be it," Geroli said, "for we will not leave."

Eänaglo knew that there would be no further counsel to his friend in this matter, but he still realised the dangers, and was torn between leaving to save himself, and not wanting to leave his friend behind to suffer the wrath of the dragon.

"Come," Geroli said, "let us unload the chickens, and forget the troubles of the dragon for a while."

Eänaglo agreed to come, but could not forget the dragon, even while doing the chore. He kept his sword in its sheath, attached to his back with his shield, despite its awkwardness in navigating the chicken runs, fearing that the dragon could descend upon them at any time. He still remembered that the flames had started at his command, which may or may not have been a coincidence; but he did not like this turn of events.

When most of the chickens had been put into their armoured pens, safe from most of the evil creatures of Uranbar, a fell noise was heard on the cold wind. At first, Geroli was puzzled, but Eänaglo recognised it immediately. It was the sound of approaching troops, most likely to be the Porps in this land. Porps were the twisted, horrible servants of the dark lord Vandor. They were armoured, for all the good that it would do against the wrath of Glorling, and fell easily in combat, but travelled in great numbers, and thus were hard to overcome.

"Porps!" Eänaglo exclaimed. "Get the maidens and children back into the homestead, and gather your arms!"

Geroli led his wife and daughters, and others who had been helping with the chicken unloading back to the same house in which they had sat to eat dinner earlier that night. Then, he and some others rejoined Eänaglo, carrying what small swords they could find. Although most blades were rusted and old, they still had enough edge to take care of the foes they would be facing now. The main danger was not the Porps themselves, but their sheer numbers. Eänaglo judged by the sound that there was at least a hundred, and likely more. He wondered why they should approach now - was it at the dragon's command? Perhaps they sought to take down one of the great Truck Drivers of the South. Well, if they wanted to incur the wrath of the South, then let them come, thought Eänaglo, because it would be their downfall, dragon or no. Even if he fell in this battle, others would come to avenge him.

Thus, Këaloni and Uranbar stood united against the enemy, waiting tensely in the shadows for the Porps to arrive. Eänaglo, son of Eälinas, Këalonian of the house of Aronlëa was the greatest warrior of the group, but those surrounding him were valiant also, and had defended their homes from Porps many times in the past. But this time was different, for the shadow of the dragon now was laid upon the land.

At last, the enemy was upon them, and the battle was joined. Fierce was the fighting, and many Porps fell, but also fell several of the defenders of Uranbar, overwhelmed by the numbers of the enemy. Eänaglo was a light in the battle, and all enemies who came near were slew, and his wrath was great for the deaths of Geroli's people.

When most of the enemy had been defeated, the rest fled, seeing that no victory would come to them this night. When they had gone, the people of Uranbar started to collect their dead, and take them back to join the ever-growing assembly of the slain in the Tomb of Uranbar. With every person added to that tomb, the anger and resolve of the people of Uranbar was hardened.

But then, a fell shriek was heard; one which Eänaglo had been dreading. For it signalled that the dragon was now come, and was wrathful at the defeat of its troops. Eänaglo turned and looked at the dark tower, and saw a flame in the air, and knew that the dragon would be upon them soon.

"The dragon!" he yelled. "The dragon is come! Prepare for the final fight of Uranbar!"

All who heard his cry were fearful, for indeed they believed that the dragon would be Uranbar's downfall. But Eänaglo would not give in just yet, and he ran to his truck to retrieve Orvan, his bow.

Within minutes the dragon had arrived. A long tongue of flame preceded it, setting the nearby bushland ablaze, and lighting the homestead at one end. Soon, the women and children were abandoning the building, but had no where else to go. The dragon, seeing this, decided to come upon them next.

But then, Eänaglo loosed an arrow, which ricocheted off the dragon's armoured skin. The dragon turned in anger to face its assailant. Eänaglo drew back another arrow, knowing that he had to aim for some softer skin, possibly on the dragon's underbelly, or the dragon's eyes. That would be a difficult, but effective way to slay the beast.

The dragon swooped down towards Eänaglo, breathing fire, but Eänaglo stood his ground, and carefully aimed his arrow. Finally, he loosed it, and it flew straight and true, and hit the dragon's eye, which Eänaglo had aimed for. Roaring in pain, it tumbled from the sky, and for a moment it seemed as if it was going to crush Eänaglo in its death throes.

But that was not to be, for deliverance came to Eänaglo in the form of the very chickens which he had delivered to the people of Uranbar. Those who had not yet been cooped up in their armoured runs swooped in and carried him up, out of the way of the dying behemoth. Thus Eänaglo was saved, and the dragon was slew.

Or so they thought. For even in its death, it was still spurting fire and writhing upon the ground, threatening to wreak yet more death and destruction ere it died. So Eänaglo ordered the chickens to carry him down to the dragon, and he leapt down with no thought given to his own safety and swung Glorling at the dragon's neck. Though the dragon's armour was tough, it was no match for Glorling's otherworldly strength, and Eänaglo smote the dragon's head from its neck with one blow. Venomous blood spurted out at Eänaglo, but once again the chickens plucked him from danger, and delivered him to Geroli's side near the burning homestead.

"Many losses we have suffered this night," Geroli said, "but also a great victory has been achieved. Truly, we are thankful, Eänaglo son of Eälinas."

"Verily," Eänaglo said. "But I must now return to Këaloni, for there my truck driving skills are valued as much as my skill in battle."

"Then let us not keep you, and you not keep us," Geroli said, "for we have much work to do now. Fare thee well, old friend."

"Yay, and fare thee well also," Eänaglo said, walking over to his truck. "I will see ye again, with more chickens."

Thus ends this tale of old.