Forums → Art, Music, and Writing → DEMON MANSION (Paragon Chapter V, Page 4)

Yes, I'm finally working on it. Yes, I'm going to continue it. And yes, the previous thread is scrap.
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~-*Chapter I: Children of the Future*-~

A cool spring breeze flourished over Fort Argon and the surrounding lands it oversaw, smelling of faint cocoa. The small, rocky fort was situated on a mountainside, thus the rear was facing meteres upon meters of solid rock and minerals. A few small bunkers dotted the tops from which Fort Argon ended, usually enclosing archers and corner guards to keep watch. The only bare section was ultimately the front, where, if there was ever to be a battle taking place, the main resistance would settle in unison. Meeting the front of Fort Argon would be vast amounts of fields, small outcroppings with streams leading to the forests to the east. AZ single road trailed from the fort's entrance to the horizon, pointing to the distant town of Whisperwind. The calm, quiet atmosphere suggested safety, as little commotion stirred within or around these walls. This would be the perfect place for children to explore and play.

The Fort's gate unlocked and slowly lowered with grinding resistance, welcoming the new light to travel inside. Emerging from the gate was a rather short, but stocky soldier, whose head turned in the direction of an elevated path that, at the end, came upon a magnificent waterfall which roared with the sound of heavy beats of water to collect in the stream. The soldier's, rigid, steel pauldrons were set upon his muscular stature, with soft-leather cloth hoisted over his shoulders, exposing his chest and abdominals. A white fur pelt was wrapped in wide string around his waist, making it a belt of sorts. Various teeth and tusks were tied on either side, revealing the amount of trolls he has defeated in combat, with an entire troll skull latched on the center. Iron chains were gagged onto the teeth inside the mouth and were used to hold up his loincloth. This was made from a tanned and browned pelt to mostly cover the backside and not so much the front. This tassel came downwards like a V, the point at the bottom reaching the calves and the base covering anything higher than the thighs. The boots were quite complex; steel and iron were used to make the soles, giving it the hard crunch whenever he stepped. The iron and steel material then came up in columns in stripes, reaching the knees, with a flexible, steel cap to cover the patellas (aka kneecaps). The junction of the ankle and phalanges had a small trollbone skull fixed in the center. What wasn't covered by iron and steel was stuffed with warm furs of varying animals, usually troll hair as it was more durable and insulated than the rest. Poofs of fur emerged out of the boots. The helmet was made of pure steel, shaped like a bowl and covering the mandible and nose. The part in the back was shaped more like a shovel, while there were three two-inch spikes that were on the three sides of the soldier's head--temporal, parietal, then temporal. The eyes were big and brown, with a wide smile that was both firm and sincere.

The soldier, known as Kael'Thas, turned his head again, thistime towards Fort Argon. Amidst the chirping of birds and the rustling of trees and grass from the occasional blowing of the wind was the near distant sound of children's playful laughter.

"Safe as usual", declared Kael'Thas with a smirk. "Time t' pay th' old man a visit." With a clank of his plated leg joints, he heaved up the beaten pathway. Although most of the path was cleared and smoothed out (for the old man's sake), some large stones as big as feet jutted out, encouraging any and all foolish enough to trip over their dominance. The short stature deemed it necessary for Kael'Thas to heave his stocky legs over the stones, nearly climbing at the top where the path was coming to an end. The rushing of water was now close.

He was now at the end of the path where dirt conceded and the way across the waterfall was provided by smooth, flat stones--muddy brown and not akin to the rough, sharp characteristics to which the 'feet' of the mountain pass matched. A small pool of shiny, crystal-clear water collected around the short stone path before falling quite a ways down to greet the stream. Kael'Thas knew exactly where his target lie; above the waterfall, about the height of a normal human being, 'sat' a wizened man surrounded by the cascading waters. His solid brown, wool robe covered the entirety of his stature, slightly taller than Kael'Thas, but with less girth. His wrinkled, gaunt face was deep in concentration. The remains of his hair were bound in a short knot that rested partly over the back of his skull, while his thin, wispy beard was uncontained, soaked and collected from the waterfall. The cascading water flowed downwards to meet the robed old man, but at the very point of embracing him, the path the water took just seemed to skip him; the water would avoid the area occupied by the old man then converge when out of his presence.

Kael'Thas called amongst the roar of the waterfall. "Hey! Master Tristan!" He retracted his arms to wait for an answer. The old man's expression remained unchanged. He put his hands in front of his mouth again. "Th' children wanna hear sommore o' yer stories!" A short time passed before he called again, a tad louder. "Master Tristaaaain!" Still no response; Kael'Thas became flustered. "Meybe I'll just leave yeh in th' cold this time!" With a turn of his heel, Kael'Thas started for Fort Argon in return. A couple steps to his destination, he stopped to ponder. "Hmm, meybe he's dead?"

There was a disturbance in the waterfall; the area around the occupied space began pulsating, expelling drops of water everywhere. Kael'Thas motioned back to his original spot with a light jog. There he saw Master Tristan fully aware, his pale, green eyes fixing to him in an expression of disgust. "Well that was a tad rude, don't you think?" cackled the light, raspy voice of the old man. "Am I dead...pfft, that's just rockspittle, I'm fit as a flutter!"

Kael'Thas crossed his arms in rebuttal. "Hah, no thanks to yer ears that's fer sure!" Master Tristan's right eyebrow twitched at the mention of his hearing. It was perfectly find and he wouldn't stand for it. The tension around the waterfall grew. That didn't stop Kael'Thas from the attack. "If I dint know any better, I'd say yer as deaf as--" The flinging of water droplets grew, but unfortunately, it didn't didn't work in the old man's favor. Getting even more annoyed caused Mater Tristan's hold over the waterfall to weaken from lack of concentration. A rebellious water drop pivoted into his territory and, despite all odds, landed smack into his left iris, causing him to wince and wipe his eye in haste. This negated the concentration entirely; Master Tristan's body was instantly drenched and his body plopped into the shallow pool of water below.

Despite the water's little control, Master Tristan flailed about in anger and frustration. "Now look what you made me do! Things were just peachy before you come back, now I'm soaked! Don't just look at me in mockery, you hateful bugbear, help me up!" Kael'Thas, after witnessing the spectacle that was Master Tristan's downfall, fell down on his knees in pink-faced laughter.

He was going to respect his elder's wishes and pull him out, that is until he heard the sound of a clustered trotting from below. Just after the realization, four children, two boys and two girls, clambered up the rough path in collective giggling. At once, they found the dwarf in a haunched position reaching for Master Tristan's hand. They all shouted in unison. "FRANK!" Kael'Thas' eyes widened as the force came ever closer. Master Tristan saw what was about to happen and splashed away from the crowd as fast as his brittle body could take him. The two girls leapt atop Kael'Thas' shoulders while the boys charged forward to push the mass of bodies forward. The collective force was more than enough for the dwarf's stature, complete with his muffled cries of protest, ad soon enough, he and the children joined Master Tristan in the pool of water with a splash.

. . .

*Freakenstein takes a breather*