Dagaron Chronicles: The Dark Age - Prelude
This is the very beginning to a whole new fantasy adventure I'm writing called the Dagaron Chronicles. Prepare yourselves to be immersed in a world rich with magic, love, lore, and tragedy. The journey begins now...
A new age has come upon Europe as the Western Roman Empire crumbles all around me. My mountain kingdom lies in ruin as the invaders come to pass judgement upon my family name, Dagaron. It is a very ancient lineage that can be traced through the Italian ages, way back to when Rome was a great Republic, the center of the civilized world. At least it used to be before these last few centuries have seen the depletion of competency within the line of emperors.The Eastern Roman Empire, alas also known as the Byzantine Empire, remains strong against Persia and the barbarians. No one could truly foresee that our true enemy laid within our own borders. I was foolish to sit back, watching the years go by me as little by little, with each new year more of my sovereign's territory was chipped away. Persia may have taken parts from the East, the Germanic hordes of barbaric scoundrels have even come from the North to pillage our great cities, but the Church changed so much from within. Our Lord, our savior Christ, with them we have no quarrel. However, who is man to decipher the will of God?Our Pope, the peoples' spiritual guide, has been deceived by a great unknown. He and his followers are so quick to persecute those who are considered heretics, anything they do not understand or deem unholy, things that are different from the norm of man. It was they, and their armies of the Knight's Templar, that allowed the Germanic tribes to come in and sack the former great capital of Rome. But no, it wasn't the barbarians that killed the Emperor, it was the Church itself that sought and achieved the overthrow of the entire government and those who served it. Their faithful armada laid waste to the capital, purifying it with their so called righteous flames in the name of God. They treat everything they deem Pagan with great prejudice, saying they are servants doing the Devil's work. This only happened because they found out the hidden truth, the closely held secret of not only our former Empire, but the very nature of our world itself that many a man cannot grasp.I hear my wife Annissa screaming in the other hallway, right by the guards' quarters. My footsteps pounded on the white tiled floor of the castle hall, racing to at least save my queen and unborn heirs. Draconaan, my once proud city-state nestled in the high mountains from which I ruled was now in turmoil. The Catholic Church has condemned us to death, the reason being for having supposed paganistic views, a threat to their new world order. They have overthrown the great Akhaabri that once ruled over the once glorious empires of Rome, Greece, and Egypt. My name is Gregoris Dagaron, and I may be the last scion of the throne to Draconaan, the City of Dragons...