Evenen’s Fall On a chill misty day, Matthew Gazareth gazes down the avenue in the ancient city of Evenen, with questions that heed answers. Here he is now, a young man pushing twenty, with a pocket full of dreams, but only a couple cents in hand, he clenches his fists tightly and walks down the road towards an elegant building in the distance. It is quite unlike any building that he has ever seen before, featuring a large dome-like structure with an oculus at the top and spiraling, snake-like stone columnns streching for fifty feet below to the ground. Two Romanesque towers stretch for more than twice that length to the sky, adding that with each their own grand spires that push another fifty feet, it is quite a breahtaking sight just from the point Matthew is at. He stares at the grand acropolis while he swims through the recesses of his mind. “Where do I go? What do I do? How do I survive in a world that’s out to get me?” He ponders as he approaches the man in the mirror. Contemplating, reflecting, standing with fixed expression belied with a nervous pang of anxiety that murmurs through the internal depths of his soul, Matthew has reached his destination where before he knows it, will score a date with destiny. Through the corridors of rose and blood-stained glass, he comes up to meet with a humble man of yesteryear. The man stretches out his hand with a firm, warm embrace and introduces himself. “Good afternoon young traveler, you have come far it appears. Please, take a seat while I ready you some tea”. With a curteous nod and grin on his face, he walks out of the room for Matthew to explore with his own eyes. At the top, he sees the oculus from the inside perspective and sees light rain gathering down into the misty pool before him, which despite the cloudy skies above him, shines like crystals in the sun, with light steam flowing up through the roof. The water illuminates five magnificent scenes in stain-glass with the most beautiful and exotic colors he has ever seen, they light the room like a revelation of ultimate truth. The first one shows a king on his throne, with an unusual albeit tasteful flavor in Medieval and Oriental Garb. He wears the crown jewels upon his brow and holds out his hands in embrace towards those who accept him as their leader. The other four scenes show groups of people involved in certain roles, one is fighting a battle it appears, another shows robed priests standing before a sacred altar, similar to the one Matthew is next to currently, a regal procession walks through another scene, and finally there is a group working on constructing a temple that looks to be the one that Matthew is in at the moment. After some time, the robed man from before returns with Matthew’s tea, which is mixed with fine jasmine and lotus and has a strong, yet sweet scent that overcomes Matthew’s senses. As Matthew continues to drink his tea, the man turns towards him. “Oh my, I do believe I have forgotten to formally introduce myself. I am Joseph, from the house of Tyristias, I am the keeper of the sacred truths of our great lord Kairo. If I may be so frank, what brings you to our illustrious home?” “Well, I have just had many questions that have been plaguing my thoughts for some time now, and was searching for someone who is willing to bring me guidance?” Joseph takes a look into Matthew’s eyes and speaks to him with great certainty. “Yes, the great Kairo knows all, and he has provided me with a third eye to see into the uncertainties of all those who enter these halls. You wish to find your place in this lowly and finite gap of space the mortals call ‘life’, and for that you have arrived at the right place at the right time. The autumnal moon approaches in the coming days and there will not be a second spared for you to join our loyal brotherhood and become one with the might of Kairo.” “What must I do to become one with the brotherhood? What tasks shall I do to seek realization with Kairo?” Matthew asks out of curiosity. “All will be revealed in good time Matthew, for now you are able to stay in the outer sanctions and await further news. You would much prefer to stay here rather than the rotten ghetto that surrounds these halls. Have a good evening.” Joseph then leaves the room as Mathew prepares his bags to move in to his quarters. Upon walking to the outer sanctions, he steps through the portico into a large atrium, filled with peacocks, lotus flowers, and many species of plants and animals long since thought extinct, including the Saint Helena Heliotrope and the Dodo bird. The walls are adorned with oriental-styled markings and ever-growing vines that gently caress the surface. Birds chirp as a lavish fountain sprinkles in the center. It appears to be regular water as opposed to the crystaline water he saw in the main altar, it does not shine the same way as the other fountain does, but is still beautiful to witness in person. He stands still for a moment with his eyes widened and his jaw slightly lowered, he hasn’t seen anything quite like this before, which says something considering what he has witnessed thus far in the palace of Kairo; everything seems not of this Earth, and this lush atrium is another example of that. Finally after Matthew snaps out of his awe-induced daze, he collects his bags and continues to his room. Upon entering the room he is greeted by a young man with a turban (slightly older than Matthew) who reaches out to introduce himself. “Good evening to you sir, I am Kalool from the house of Alexandrias, I have expected your arrival for quite some time.” “ It’s a pleasure to meet you Kalool, I am Matthew. How do you know who I am? I only just got here.” “I have heard news of a traveler who has come to seek consolance for the questions he has about his role on Earth, is that not you?” “Yes, that is me, what is this place? It is the most beautiful experience I have ever witnessed stepping into this wonderful palace.” “This palace is the sacred house of Kairo, who peers over Earth with his ever-watchful eye and we, the Kairean Brotherhood, are the guardians of his holy domain; we do what we must to preserve everything that bears witness to the craft of his majesty. ” “What will it take for me to join in your ranks? I wish to join and will do whatever it takes to do good for Kairo.” “You will go through three trials that will test your loyalty to Kairo’s name. That is all I say for now, more will be revealed to you soon, starting tomorrow.” “Thank you, good evening Kalool.” With that said Matthew settles in and stays for the night, awaiting the trials he must face in the morning. Waking up, Matthew finds himself not in his bed but in the middle of a courtyard that takes up the central portion of the palace, the first trial is about to commence. Joseph stands over Matthew and tilts his head down to his as he greets him on the ground. “Good morning Matthew. Do not move, stay right where you are. We have transported you here to begin the first trial where you will simply lie down where you are at the moment through while the sun is at its highest and bask in the light of our great Kairo for this afternoon. We will be watching over you to ensure you are able to complete this task. For now, you are to embrace the light of Kairo starting now.” The Kairean Brotherhood walks back into the main palace halls as Matthew is to lie down and embrace the sun’s rays, regardless of how painful the ground is, and how it burns into his skin. Matthew winces and shakes his head back and forth initially, trying to overcome the pain he feels lying on the surface being absorbed by the sun’s light. He looks around at the sky, wondering if this was all worth it to join this group, but carries on, with faith on his side. Small tears appear in his eyes after an hour of enduring the hot ground and the ultraviolet rays careening across his skin, but soon “gets used” to the pain and does not bother him as much as it did in the beginning stages. By the time the sun settles under the rooftop at dusk, the brotherhood returns to carry him, red and burnt, on a leather-bound bench with a pillow where Matthew is personally carried back into his room to prepare for another trial in the morning, where the challenges will only become more daunting. The next day he is brought into the atrium where he is to stick his hand in a bowl full of deadly snakes and scorpions for ten minutes, to test how brave he is and to show that Kairo is on the side of those who are not biten, or are otherwise incapacitated. Matthew hesitates to himself, but pushes himself to the bowl regardless, knowing he must succeed in order to win the faith of the brotherhood. He slowly reaches towards it, his hand quivering, his nerves pulsating, his heart pounding, sweat pouring down his brow, he eases his hand slowly down into the deadly bowl and is unsure of what his fate will be. He knows of what might happen if he were to make any quick or rapid movements, so must stay perfectly still for the amount of time perscribed. He is frightened, but soon relaxes into the process, and it does not feel quite as bad over time, despite the deadly consequences at hand. Just as his anxiety begins to peak once again, the scorpions and snakes all miracoulously die at once as the time runs out, he is able to take his hand out of the bowl and prepare himself for the final trial before he is admitted into the brotherhood. He grabs a flask of water from the fountain and takes a quick sip to calm his nerves and catches up to meet with the brotherhood. The final task takes place in the main altar that Matthew stood in before. They all stand round the sacred pool with Joseph announcing to the entire group with Matthew included. “Now, with the autumnal moon approaching as we speak, it is the time to do the work that Kairo asks us of as his servants, for you Michael this will be the final task to prove your worth to our generous father. Kairo commands of us to lay waste to this city of heathens. The people of Evenen has squandered away their lives wth debauchery and sin for long enough, and Kairo demands that we purify this once-sacred city of all that linger in this land. Drink from the sacred water and together we shall bring about the redemption of Evenen in the name of Kairo.” Though you do not see this on his face, Matthew is completely shocked, he trembles a little bit, his eyes widen slightly, and has never felt such distress in his life. Never before has he ever considered the thought of genocide in the name of purification, he could already feel the blood on his hands just by the mere thought of it. Then as if he almost forgot, he still has the flask that he gathered water from earlier, and responds: “Yes Joseph, I will do as you say.” “Very well, I shall now begin the coronation.” Joseph and the rest of the brotherhood turn towards the stained glass scene of Kairo on his throne and recant a phrase in an unknown language (sounds somewhat like a fusion of Greek and Latin, with a tinge of Arabic). As they do this, Matthew swaps the shining water he placed in his bowl, and pours in the remaining fountain water that he gathered from the atrium. The brotherhood turns toward Matthew and they each grab a bowl from the sacred spring, Matthew pretending to do the same thing with them. They each drink from their respective waters, and before Matthew realizes it, the members of the Brotherhood scream out in terror, as their mouths burn and their tongues melt right out. Their hair shrivels away as flames begin to seep through their pores. Their eyes melt from their sockets and are replaced with gaping black holes. “Kairo, why have you forsaken us?!” They scream their final words before they are nothing but bones and ash desecrating the altar before them. Matthew looks astonished from having witnessed the series of events occur before his eyes. He walks away from the altar and looks toward the stained glass window of Kairo, gazing at it for a brief moment. With a light grin appearing on his face, Matthew look around for a broom to sweep up the bare remains of the brotherhood and take care of daily duties around the palace. With the brotherhood gone, Matthew does what he must to preserve the palace and preach in the name of the king of darkness and light, the sun and the moon, everything and nothing, almighty Kairo.
Posted on: Wed, 13 Nov 2013 10:52:01 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015