Introduction: Imber

A Chapter by hydrowarrior

Harold finds his destiny

It was a frigid winter's night as Harold Dover returned to his family's small cottage in the village of Snavs. The hamlet was on the western side of the Kingdom of Angst, a place of dread and unease. The town was home to only about one hundred citizens, but the most honored of them was the Farrier for he was the voice of the great Forge Master. Harold was lucky to be the farrier's apprentice, and he was an excellent smithy.

The young man entered his family's old wooden cottage to see his parents seeming very lost in their thoughts. Harold became perplexed by the dark tone of the room as he reached for a chair by the fire. His father, a man with wrinkled features, gray eyes, and time worn beard, stood staring into the flames. His mother sat across from him with her dove white face drowning in the tears that collected on her cheeks. Harold could not take the sadness any longer, and with an outburst of sure love and caring for his parents shouted "Mother! Father! What is going on? Why are you in such a sad state?" Harold's father let out a loud sigh and looked at his son with a single tear rolling down his age-old face.

He swallowed his sadness and started to speak "My only son, you are truly special. Your mother and I have know this since you were a small virtuous child. Son, I know that you have most likely felt the mark while bathing or something to that degree, have you not". Harold stood silent knowing exactly of the mark that his father was speaking of. He took off his tunic to reveal on the back of his neck the a dark bluish mark. His mother grimaced, and began to cry even more at the sight of it the horrendous imprint. His father put his hand on his son's shoulder and spoke softly "My boy, that mark means you are a Star-crossed. The Star-crossed curse is not apparent in every generation you see; that is why I do not have that mark of yours, but I know that past generations in our family have had the mark, and the curse. There are also other Star-crossed or at least that is what I can assume from this statement by King Winston".

Harold looked down at the piece of parchment that his father held in his hand, which read

"This is a warning to all Star-crossed! You are to turn yourself in to the King's Fola Knights for high treason against the crown of Angst!"

Harold began to speak "What will I do? I can not turn myself in, they will kill me, of that I am certain! What shall I do father?" His father ran his fingers through his beard staring into the flames once again. Harold's mother stopped her crying and said to her husband "Darling, We must show him the contents the chest. He must go to the Eastern Mountains to find the Forge Master". He nodded his head, indicating that he agreed, and walked toward the long locked bronze chest.

He pulled a key out of his beard, and placed it into the strangely shaped lock that was in the front of the chest. He turned the key, and with a bizarre cacophony; the chest burst with a cloud of dust. His father grinned, and peered inside. not knowing what it held. Harold's father was only the keeper of the chest, he was only to open it if his son or daughter showed signs of the curse. He called Harold over, and the two searched the chest for the treasures it held. They pulled out several things covered in cloth. The word Imber was inscribed on each. They then pulled out a brilliant shining sword that was at least two feet long, double edged, and its hilt was covered in leather. The hilt also held an azurite stone that gleamed from the light of the fire. The other items in the chest were a journal, a shield, and a necklace. The shield was made of a strange combination of metals, that Harold, being a farrier apprentice had never before beheld in his life. The shield also was embellished with an upside-down triangle with a sword through the center. The necklace was this same image.

Harold deduced that his curse was called Imber due to the fact that all of the cloths in the chest had the word on it. He looked at his newly acquired items, and did not know what to do with them. He was not trained in combat. He made weapons; he did not use them. He looked at his father, "What do I do if I get into an incident where I have to use these?" His father looked puzzled by the question, and then he saw the true worry in his son's face. He took the sword in his hand "Harold, one must fight to survive. I do not know what your curse does to you. I just know that you are a Star-crossed, and I know that if you do not head to the Eastern Mountains you could either die by the king or by the curse. I know you do not know how to use these weapons, but you will learn by experience my son". Harold looked at his father with a sense of serene hope that he would survive.

They all gathered close to the fire to stay warm. Harold began to speak "I will leave in the morning. I think it is best that I get my rest tonight, and head out early". His parents nodded in agreement, and they went to their beds.

Harold lay awake in the darkness of the night. His mind filled with thoughts of what could be happening to his body. He thought of how the curse could destroy him before he even made it to the Eastern Mountains. He thought about what kind of pain this curse will could bring him, and the fear of Fola knights. His fear began to consume him, but then he sat up with a sigh, realizing that he must push back his fears to move forward. He then felt the back of his neck, and felt the difference in the, smooth skin, to the protruding line that was his mark. He followed the smooth line as it curled and zigzagged down to the midsection of his neck. He took his hand off his neck, and stared out the window at the moon and the stars. Harold thought of the world, and about the other Star-crossed. "How many are there?" He thought to himself as he continued to stare. His eyes gleamed, and he smiled knowing what he had to do. He stood up off of his bed, and began to write a note on a piece of old parchment.

He then put on his garments, and with much disbelief strapped the sword and shield onto his back. He then picked up his bag and pinned the note he had written to the door with his father's knife. The note read

"My dearest parents, I am truly sorry for leaving in the night, but I could not bare to see your tears. I hope to have the strength of father, and the kind heart of mother. I will find the Forge Master, but upon looking into the moon's eye I now have something else I know that I must do. I must and will save every Star-crossed in the Kingdom of Angst! I love you both so very much, and I will be safe, and I will return to you".

He closed the door quietly behind him and stared into the dark night. Harold looked upon the small old broken wooden cottage that he called home, and uncontrollable tears rolled down the poor boy's face. He wiped them away, and thought to himself "You must be strong for this mission. You have to push forward no matter what".

Harold then turned and walked through Snavs remembering all of the best things about the charming village. He thought of how he was chosen to be the apprentice to the town farrier, and how he loved working in the warm metal shop. He looked at the forge now realizing that he could never come back. He came to the edge of the town where the tree line of the Saol Dorcha forest was. The forest was rumored to the home to bandits, and an assortment of vicious monsters, but in reality it was a necropolis. A necropolis with very maleficent residents in its graves between the trees. This sprung these rumors, and stopped the people of Snavs from entering the Forest.

Harold looked into tree line seeing nothing, but suspicious darkness. He shook off the tales of dread about the forest that he knew as a child, and calmed his thoughts. He walked forward into the darkness of the forest with a new sense of hope. He also had a new sense of fear lying deep within him. The fear stemmed not only from his surroundings, but the journey in which he was about to embark.