Prologue (i) Lighthearted

Prologue

The Land was barren to untrained eyes, sands of deserts reached as far as the eye could see, the sands were littered with both small plant life and the remains of creatures who proved unable to survive in this harsh climate. To this experienced hunter however, it was his home. Living a modest life, he lived in a small hut made of materials he had managed to scavenge from the lands, and proved good shelter from the heat when the red sun burned from the sky above, by the only source of water he had ever come across, he lived here with his family, his love, and his son.  He was tall for his size with large hands that helped him grip tools he used to collect his food. His long brown hair covered most of his face, but he didn’t only use his eyes to see. His years of hunting to survive meant he could smell, or hear much more then he could see.

He had risen and left his home before dawn kissing his love on the head and checking on his son he ventured out into the darkness.  He spent hours in the wasteland and collected a few small morsels, the air was thick and sun had rose as a red orb into the sky, the heat beat down on the hunters brow as he crossed the sands to his home, he carried his spoils on his back when he finally reached the stretch before his hut.

And knew instantly something was wrong.

He dropped everything he held except his spear as he ran towards his home and his sprint became a patter of steps before he stopped all together, 10 feet in front of him stood a man enthralled in a cloak as black as night, it covered him from head to foot but his eyes glared from beneath it. They were as red as the sun in the sky and lying at his feet. Was the hunters family. They lay motionless with a look of pain frozen upon their face.

The hunter raised his spear above his head before he charged, blinded by rage and sadness, he plunged the spear deep into the man’s chest.

Any other human would have fallen to this attack, but this man, this beast, Merely laughed. He rose a single hand and wrapped his long blackened fingers around the wooden spear embedded in his chest. Purple vines wriggled out of his hands and entwined themselves around the spear. With a flash of light the spear was no longer the measly wooden tool it was before and as this beast pulled it from inside itself; the sharpened end had become a long blade that shimmered in the light and the length of the wood and been replaced with the purple vines that had wrapped around it.

The beast raised its weapon above its head and struck downward onto the hunter.

It was met with a long sleek blade. The hunter’s naked form glowed with light as his hair shortened his body became cleansed, the glow radiating from him began to take form before the beast could understand what he saw, the hunter was stood with shining white armour, and in his hand he held a long blade that reflected the entire landscape around them.

Locked in a stalemate the hunter and the beast met eyes.

 

This was how the war of the hearts began.