In an age of war, an age of change, an age of devils.
In an age of great tumult, change is afoot. From across the sea, a tremendous horde has laid waste to all in their path. In the north, darkness broods and seizes more of the land. The south is desolate save for one lone soul on a quest that will surely end in blood. And in the east, strife prospers internally as nations battle amongst themselves. Yet, in these bleak seasons of violence and despair, change comes to clear the slate. Devils may creep, mortals turn corrupt, but the Lords of Verillia rise to quash this disorder.
Under the Shadow of Forsaken Banners: One: The Lifeless Grounds
The haggard driftwood canoe sloshed through poisoned waters and the plant life that fed on such fare. For days and nights, Kovarlin could recount his life upon the sea until, unlike such days, his floating tomb ran aground. Overhead, fixed in his views, the stars shimmered and cried their last smarting radiance of the night.…
Under the Shadow of Forsaken Banners(USFB): Two: The Green Knight
“The wolf, only he can access the hidden depths of the artifact. If you are to have any hope of turning back the Legion of Iron Mane, you will need him,” echoed the ancient voice through the boughs of the Aln Tree. Tightening his paws on the ovoid sphere, shimmering with the dawning light of a…
(USFB): Three: The Knight Shade
His body hung in the air, motionless to appear near dead. Eternal night bathed the sinewy form however was reflected like a starlight outline against every wall. A moment’s disturbance now would break the trance, shatter the fugue of his mind and send his avatar crawling back into the primordial shadows of day. In an…
(USFB): Four: Reunions
It had only taken Orathone a mere few days to reunite with the rest of the refugees from the East. Sleepless nights had kept him on the move all but when Sha-Sha had to bed down, and even then, she was kept clawing the earth thanks to the buck. There were berries, native to the…
(USFB): Five: The Sanctuary of a Grave
In one of the cramped apartments of the newly built cabins, Orathone hung over the satchel containing the silver egg. He watched dully as Litheiuss came and went, assembling a meal for his young colleague as well as a herbal mix. The younger buck hadn’t seemed to calm after taking a seat and had been…
(USFB): Six: A Place of Death, and Life
Night brought silence and rest for all but the tortured mind of Orathone. He tossed and turned, thinking of the myriad ways he could have circumvented the tragedy of Terlynn’s demise. Regardless of his father’s blustering, Orathone had the truth of it in his heart and wasn’t confident it was a light he could shine on…
(USFB): Seven: Shadowplay
There was little left to exchange between the two despite the sincerity both had willfully employed after the elk had been laid to rest. Between them still stood a gulf that was nearly unconquerable, yet neither could quite say why. Where the others, both the camps of West and East, would dissolve their equal parts…
(USFB): Eight: No Good Deed
The morning brought the unburdening of Orathone’s mind. Shadows were vanquished by the sweet rays of amber sunlight. Songbird’s tender choruses swept through the wind on a breeze infused with the calming aromas of nature itself. Yet, what kept Orathone from finding true peace in rising was the frantic tone Litheiuss took as he shook…
(USFB): Nine: A Living Grave
Orathone held his breath counting down seconds in the void. It seemed utterly unreal that any sane person would bury another alive, punishment or not. The buck thought it had to be some type of bluff, an attempt to break him and keep him in line. However, it was clear enough that Razien had seen…
(USFB): Ten: Chasing Ghosts
Razien sat beside Greshalin’s wagon that night, the day’s experience hardly breaking his composure. Gresh tried to press her paws to the rope burns that snaked through his fur, a steam of ice against the warm air building and fading as he denied the aid each time. He was sullen and irritated, but only in…
(USFB): Eleven: Soweyn
The puma paced the circle opposite Razien, both weighing each other out, deciding which limb to take and how best to strike. Every movement was calculated, as had been well trained into each man. Before they engaged, the result was any number of holds, grapples, and impacts. It had gone the way of the wolf…
(USFB): Twelve: Among the Pines
Chief Defender Biyorn was easily located after their visit to Soweyn. On the first tier, he sat at his post, a shack that partly cut into the cliff face as the temple had. However, through this alcove, it was apparent one could slip lower into the city. A shaft of light erupted from a hole in…
(USFB): Thirteen: An Empty Camp
It hadn’t been intended they were to leave still that day; however, with what news they had, as well as the captive lion, no one could argue the imperative of ensuring news was spread as quickly as possible. With two of the foxes in tow, just to keep extra eyes on their prisoner, they returned…
(USFB): Fourteen: Ascending a Fallen Monolith
As he yanked and came up, unable to make another step, Razien wondered if he hadn’t been caught in an ill-placed snare. The Cubs had been working on a means of defense should the line break when the invaders pushed through. It was laughable to think that anyone would place a trap of any kind…
(USFB): Fifteen: Atlai the Wyse
Jaium was a nightmare to behold; had his dark fur not been flecked with flakes of salt, he might have convinced every last one that he was taken by the tainted blood. As he set eyes on those nearest to the door, he growled low with irritation until his eyes set on Razien and Greshalin.…
(USFB): Sixteen: Old Home, Old Faces
Duty was not something Razien feared. Whether it be to exhume a blood-tainted body from a burial ground or stand toe to toe with a Wretched call upon by the Spiritcatcher. However, his new task was something beyond his confidence. Riding to Roya through the night after an already exhausting day was a paltry request, but his purpose…
(USFB): Seventeen: Dormant Sensations
The Jade Tower was the last in the line, nearest to the eastern section of the mountain that enclosed the town. Several stories up, Razien knew he would be looking face-to-face with an aged mirror of himself, one that was infinitely more critical of him than he could be himself. And once more, as he neared that…
(USFB): Eighteen: Incursions
They had come with the night as unexpected as that lurking dark that called the flesh of the last sane caribou home. It was not without warning the Legion poured over hills and forded the Camora, but with the cries of those who thought they might escape the nightmare made flesh. West of the Spire,…
(USFB): Nineteen: The Enemy Within
She owed Dulsenor an apology for cursing his name, even if she hadn’t given the comment voice. Hardly could Greshalin justify any animosity towards the puma when he hadn’t much say in the matter. The man’s lack of control among so many others whom the Yerra had bent to his will was not forgivable as…
(USFB): Twenty: Deeper Cellars of Yesterday
A dank and mold-fettered draft wisped into the depths of the cavernous temple until it reached the desolate form of the puma. His mind danced in the void between one world and the next, trying furtively to again find purpose and strength. He clutched his digits tight to his paw pads, feeling the crusted, dried…
(USFB): Twenty-One: The Empire and The Remains
Even from the heights of the split monolith, ancient to a point in which even the most learned of scholars could not tabulate its age, the view of the ceremony was clear enough. The winds rounded about the leopard on the high ledge, his pale gray eyes unblinking against the torrent. Nothing had forced Pulzaricati to flinch…
(USFB): Twenty-Two: Shades of Truth
The shutters murmured against an intense out-of-season wind storm that arose from nearly nowhere. However, if it had bothered Amirot, he did not let it occupy much of his mind. In his stasis, suspended in the air like so many leaves winding around the steeple, his thoughts were anywhere but in the immediate. He had…
(USFB): Twenty-Three: Lingering in Time
Night had come by the time Pulzar returned to his typical perch. So far above the city, nearly as tall as the bell tower, it was the easiest place for him to transition between air to fur once more. Yet, despite how high either structure stood, they paled in comparison to the great tree. His…
(USFB): Twenty-Four: The State of War
Returning without Ceren and Rin would have bristled Razien to the end of his wit, knowing full well what Jaium might say, but with Shah Tirasha’s allotment of warriors, he felt a touch more comfortable. If they returned to Roya when it was all over or were pushed as far east as the coastal town of…
(USFB): Twenty-Five: Winds of Winters Past
Luck had graced the foxes more than they could ever know. That much was clear as their Northern neighbors made their way to the half-concealed entry that served as the main furrowfare to Seras. Night had swept in, and the lack of fire inspired confidence that the village was still free and clear of violence.…
(USFB): Twenty-Six: Blood and Bargain
The tunnel was a winding snake that at times stood tall and wide enough for Razien to walk upright, albeit at a lumbering pace, while at other points, forced him to crawl on his belly like a worm. The foxes ahead of him had an easier time and, when at such points, could go on…
(USFB): Twenty-Seven: Unreasonable
“In the lands of my fathers, the lands of the Great Syres, we tell a story of your kind and ours,” the lion spoke in heavy timbre that hushed all but the elk’s heart, “Euriphides and Domcreius, the ill-fated brethren born of the sand and born of the salt of the sea. You might guess, by…
(USFB): Twenty-Eight: The Spy
An order to follow, to track and not engage, was not in keeping with what the jackal had come to know from his master. The lives he had reaped, the dynasties ended, and other acts of skullduggery had come and gone with ease. Yet, to follow without bloodshed was a challenging task for him. At…
(USFB): Twenty-Nine: Lurkers in the Dark
The deck lurched as the waves rolled the ship, the choppy surf matching the tumult aboard. Every board felt flimsy and poorly set beneath Kovarlin’s claw. It was all he could do to drag himself across the damp planks, trying to find his feet, to quash the fear and doubt of death, and to rally…
Trazor 