The Fireheart Knights Saga

"There weren't always dragons in the Valley"...

The words from Knight Commander Servius Bruscius rang through the candle lit gold and white marble walls of the Initiation Chamber. The Initiation Chamber was the first room the new recruits were permitted entry to for the time being. Access to many of the other rooms (of which there was a vast number) was restricted at entry level. A few of the order's founding knights did attest to on occasion they had become lost within the building and it's maze of corridors before a cartographer was brought in to document the layout. As the building was built upon, the maps too would be updated to include the new sleeping quarters with higher ranked members claiming more comfortable ones and lower levels often sharing together, prayer chambers for Knights seeking solace, guidance, knowledge refreshment or answers within their pages, a fencing ring for swordsmanship practice and treasure vaults that were packed to bursting with spoils of wars and successful quests were among the additions.

However there were always rumors that after The War of The Burning Sky, secret rooms had been added by then Knight Commander Evelyn Ketterer to safeguard artifacts and documents from the war that had been deemed too dangerous to remain in the minds of the population. The builders and architects who had reportedly been involved in the creation of these hidden rooms had disappeared soon after completion occured having either been sworn to silence for the rest of their natural lives or silenced permanently on the orders of Commander Ketterer depending of course on which version of the rumor you believed in.

The original map had been sealed into a glass display unit and kept in The Antiquity Archive where it could be viewed alongside relics and historical document from the 1st Order. This room was open to initiates as part of their training and studying was to be able to recite the events that led up to the founding of the order with pinpoint accuracy.

Initiates could be granted entrance by permission from a Knight who would accompany them in the restricted room to ensure they were not trying to sneak a look at items outside of their level of study or attempting to steal them for profit as there had been a few attempts of thievery but none were ever successful. Most initiates nowadays didn't dare as they had heard of the punishment if they got caught and it was not pleasant. After a thief very closely escaped with the armor of the Fifth Order's Knight Commander Juliana Barrett, they had installed a dungeon and created the role of Punisher who would deal with any acts of criminality that occurred within the walls.

The Sixth Order's Punisher Carnifex was by far the cruelest one that the Order had ever appointed to the role. He was known for his exceptional skill at new ways to doll out punishments. His method of preventing thievery was to break all the bones in the hands and then coat them in molten lead so the bones would not heal properly resulting in agonising pain that either drove the would be thief mad or saw both hands being amputated. Thankfully after about a year Punisher Carnifex was relinquished of his job as the Order started to grow uncomfortable with the ever increasing cruelty for even the smallest misdemeanor. Knight Commander Caelus McLean was granted permission by The Council of Axsyn (Goddess of Penance)to go into a self imposed exile into The Pit of the Damned for Carnifex's tenure (debates still occur in taverns whether his punishments were atrocities or not) and was granted a blessing by The Titans of Thymmis (God of Battle) to emerge victorious or die gloriously (in The Pit of the Damned...most died horrifically however). This marked the only time that a Knight Commander oversaw two incarnations of the Order with Knight Commander Titus Tetullianus taking command of the Sixth and Seventh Orders.

Knight Commander Bruscius was the current Eighteenth Order's Leader. He was still young, only a few years into his 40's but the knowledge and combat experience rivaled and some say excelled that of many a Knight far older than him. While many of his predecessor's operated on a distance type of leadership, Bruscius preferred to use a more open door policy with his Knights and Initiates to promote a bond of kinship between all who lived and studied under his care regardless of their rank, although, the chain of command and respect to both elders and superiors was still adhered to.

"In the age before The Great Awakening, Phovixus was Primal and without name. Humans had divided the land between warring kingdoms who fought to rule under their banners and gods".

Captain Decius Castilla was always impressed by this speech despite having heard it about twenty times now. Whether it was Bruscius captivating voice as it thundered around the room or his love for the order that had started when he was a child and had seen the Knights in their full military armor during a parade in the nearby town, he was unsure but he had vowed there as a young boy of only eight years old that one day he would be counted among them as a fellow Knight. It had been twenty long years but now sitting side by side with his comrades in The Initiation Chamber made all those years of blood, sweat and sacrifice worth it. Castilla was one of the seven Knight Lieutenants who were second only to the Knight Commander. Unlike the commander, Lieutenants were allowed to resign their commission should they wish to retire from active service or if injury forced them to. It had become an unofficial practice for each Order's Lieutenants to choose their replacements from the new recruits and then to stand down from active service. There were a handful over the years that chose their replacement and set off on a final quest into The Pit of the Damned to die in a blaze of glory.

The Knight Lieutenants were also known as the Fire-Heart Knights due to their unique armor. The Lieutenants wore white metal plates over a dark red padded cloak. The helmet features two eye slots with a red outline and finally being finished with a dark red crest of feathers. Around their waists was a dark black leather belt with studded red gemstones used to keep their swords in place. Lieutenants swords were passed down from the previous generations as the material required to craft the swords took over two hundred years to replenish and the Order quickly worked out that replacing them each time would not be financially viable. They were only required to wear their weapons on ceremonies and during quests as carrying weapons were not permitted within the walls, not even Bruscius was exempt from this law and when the Fencing arena was used, Weapons Master Queng ensured the doors were locked whilst weapons were being practiced with.

It was the Blood Red Gemstone on the Chest Plate that had really been the basis for the name Fire-Heart Knights. It acted as a distracting beacon during combat that caused enemies to strike at the heavy chest plate rather than more vulnerable areas. Some have said the gemstones seem to pulse like a heartbeat as if connected to the Knight's heart. Unlike the sword, the gemstones required for the chest pieces had been stockpiled shortly after the Order's founding and would last for a many years to come.

As Castilla looked out over the initiates, he could see a few faces with open mouths as they took in the Knight Lieutenants magnificent armor and Bruscius too. The Commander's was similar with the only difference begin his was a black metal plating and a bright red padding. He made eye contact with an initiate who was looking his way and not paying attention to the Commander's speech. Castilla narrowed his eyes, prompting the initiate to sharply close their mouth and revert their gaze back to the Commander. Castilla, smiled to himself internally as he remembered once again the feeling of admiration upon seeing the Knights as a young boy.

High levels of attention was needed by the initiates during their studies so his silent reprimand to the initiate just now, was also a lesson even if they didn't realise it yet. Castilla brought his attention back to Bruscius as he was now getting to one of his favorite parts in the story.

"The Sky, Earth and Sea on the dawn of The Great Awakening were split three ways to a thunderous cracking sound. The Sky was the first to give way. As the heavens parted, down came the Gods and Goddesses that we give prayer to...

Omnis, the Goddess of Life who gave us form and a beating heart within our bodies and to whom we give our thanks.

Tivva, The Goddess of Death and twin sister to Omnis who taught us that one day, we shall cross to The Court of Souls where we will be judged and escorted to our eternal reward.

Ados and Chianke, the Husband and Wife God and Goddess of The Afterlife who will watch over us during out eternal reward of peace and punishment for all eternity".

As Bruscius named each of the Deities, Castilla and his fellow Knight Lieutenants each closed their eyes and said the sacred prayer that was taught to them.

“To Omnis, we offer our thanks for each heartbeat you gift to us.

To Tivva, we ask our last heartbeat be gentle and without pain.

To Ados and Chainke, we ask for swift deliverance to our eternal reward”.

More Gods and Goddesses came after The Great Awakening but these 4 were The Holy Four that all of Phovixus offered prayers and thanks to. The second arrival deities were involved in more day to day occurrences and race specific matters rather than the eternal cycle of Life and Death.

As The Holy Four looked down upon Phovixus, Omnis stepped forward and spoke in a voice so beautiful, all who heard were filled with a pure sense of love for the Goddesses.

"For too long have you warred with each other and worshipped false deities, from now throughout Eternity, you shall all become one race on this world of Phovixus as I provide you all with life and love as my gift to you all. You shall not be alone however, as I will open the path for two more races to share this world with you.

From the hot core, I release the Dragons who will share the Earth, Sea and Sky with you and claim the Valley as their dominion".

Omnis lowered her left hand towards the earth and with a deafening rumble, the ground split open as the Dragons erupted from the core of Phovixes and up into the sky with their cries echoing across the land for all to hear as they made their way towards the valley they would now call home.

"From the crushing depths of the sea, I release the Magi, who will share the Earth, Sea and Sky with you and will claim the Shoreline as their dominion".

Omnis lowered her right hand towards the sea and deafening crash, the sea rose into an archway of glistening water as the Magi came walking out of the sea, glyphs of magical energy radiating with energy in front of them before they release the energy into the sky as fireworks before moving to the shoreline they would now call home.

"We will leave you know to get to know one another, while you may not see us, know that we will hear your prayers and witness your lives and deaths and once you have entered the Court of Souls, we will be there to cast sentence on your actions to send you on your way to your eternal realm of pleasure or torment".

Omnis, Tivva, Ados and Chianke faded away as they returned to the afterlife and their seats in The Court of Souls where they still reside to this day watching over Phovixus.

Castilla always loved this part of the Knight Commander's speech. Since his initiation where he first heard the story of The Great Awakening, he had developed an avid interest in history and religion and excelled in these subjects. His best friend Naevia Galiano often enjoyed teasing him about his interest in the subjects and on occasions mentioned he should retire from the Order and join a monastery instead. He could feel her mind thinking up new ways to tease him as he caught her smirking out of the corner of his eye. Galiano was on the smaller side for a woman but her lack of height was compensated for her combat agility and remarkable strength. Galiano was considered the best fighter at the Order in both armed and unarmed combat. Castilla often joked that they were one person in two bodies, Castilla was the brains while Galiano was the brawn. Castilla didn't often gamble but would always put money on Galiano whenever someone challenged her skill, that is until word spread enough that challenging her was not the smartest idea. There had been countless times on previous quests that Castilla and Galiano were thankful to be watching each others backs.

While the historical and religious side of this speech always grabbed his attention, the next part was Galiano's.

"Peace between the three races was enjoyed in Phovixus for over 300 years. Each race contributing to the development in their own ways. Humans developed new agricultural and architectural methods, the Magi developed new medicines, the dragons crafted new materials forged in their furnaces".

There would inevitably be conflict occurring. Most of the disagreements were small and would be sorted out before any real fighting would occur. Many believed that the Gods would intervene if it reached war despite their final departing words that they would not be seen again. The first war on Phovixus was The Siege of the Frozen Sea. The rogue Magi Evae and her cult The Frozen Oracles had sought to hold the kingdom's hostage by unleashing a forbidden magic to freeze the seas and cut off the supply routes that used the ports to bring in cargo and food.

The Siege was short-lived, it only lasted nine days but many suffered from the effects of the spell. The temperature plummeted, frostbite ran throughout the population with humans suffering the most. About two thirds perished due to hypothermia or extreme frostbite until the Magi were able to arrive and provide aid. With both the Human and Magi kingdoms focusing on staying alive, it was left to the dragons to combat Evae as their naturally high body temperatures made them highly resistant to the spell.

Siavirth was one of the Dragon's elite. He was a celebrated hero due to his actions during the Siege and for being responsible for both leading the final assault and taking her on by himself. As Siavirth lead the dragons through the blistering cold up into the mountains where Evae was staging her final stand, The Frozen Oracles began their counter-attack. The battle could be seen throughout all the three kingdoms. The sky was lit up with Fire and Ice as the two sides clashed. Siavirth was uninterested with fighting Evae's minions and soared straight in the cavern opening where she was hiding.

Siavirth and Evae then engaged in a battle of titanic proportions, one that would be etched into the history books and told in taverns for eons, passed down from generation to generation. Siavirth emerged victorious and out an end to Evae and the siege as he emerged from the cavern with her lifeless body between her teeth. As he put down Evae's body, a thundering roar escaped his throat to signal the end of the hostilities. The Frozen Children who were still alive, were taken away by the Magi and locked away for their crime.

The world of Phovixus began to heal and move forward. The Gods graced the world with new species as the world was explored beyond the three known kingdoms. There were The Scralyn to the south, a humanoid Chameleon Species. To the frozen lands across the North Sea were The Achthe, an isolated giant Snake Species. In the scorching desert to the east lived The Desert Elves. The Ocean Dwarves arrived from an island across the South Ocean who brought with them terrifying tales of a giant monster that roamed across all the seas and oceans of Phovixus, not much information was available on this creature as it was rarely seen and most encounters were passed off as tall tales. Finally there was The Arachne who emerged from the mountains that Evae had once claimed as her based during the Siege.

As the history books go, new challenges arose with the emergence of these new species, alliances were formed and broken, arguments and negotiations over land and resources occurred and battles were fought before peace once more returned to the world. It was during this era called The Expansion that the Order was formed in order to provide security to the human Kingdom's lands with The Fireheart Knights as the elite unit in their army.

This was the story that Initiates and the people across all the Kingdoms were told anyway mused Castilla. The ten years that had followed The Siege of the Frozen Sea before The Expansion had been deliberately modified by The Order of The Blackfire Heart, a group made up of the leaders of the original three Kingdoms to prevent the real history from emerging as what really happened in the cave is known only to Siavirth and Evae and lead to a dark time on Phovixus.

Castilla recalled the moment at his initiation where alongside his other six Knight brothers and sisters, Commander Bruscius had revealed the real events.

Siarvirth became known as The Hero of The Siege of The Frozen Sea. He rose through the ranks to become the Commander of the Dragon Army, second in command to King Xurdyr and personal bodyguard of the Princess Rayndre. Siarvirth's status in life was only going upwards. Under the surface however, a darkness was spreading through him.

He had started to become more and more withdrawn. His once cheerful disposition had begun to turn into narcissism. Siarvirth could be heard mumbling about the rightful place of every race in the world with the strong ruling them all. Many put it down to trauma from the siege, until whispers began to circulate that he had been meeting with Magi that were specialists in Death Magic and Immortality methods. He wasn't the only one that was thinking this way...discontent was growing in dark corners of taverns and alleyways. For some, a life of one for all was quickly losing its charm. Word began to spread that the Siavirth was gaining followers who shared his vision of the strong shall rule over all.

The first stage of Siarvirth's conquest began with the deposal of King Xurdyr and Queen Endra. Siarvirth had opened the gates to the royal palace in the early morning where they had then systematically executed all of the royal guards and servants before capturing the royal family.

At dawn, King Xurdyr and Queen Endra were sacrificed by Siarvirth's Magi. As infernal flames melted away their flesh, the young princess Rayndre could only watch through tear filled eyes as her parents lives were ended, her mouth open as her haunting scream was entwined with her parents screams of pain until they were silenced.

As the last of the flames died away leaving only the King and Queen's skeletons, the Magi continued their spell. The spell pulled out the essence of the deceased rulers and was twisted into a pure black orb. Siarvirth stood up to his full height to expose his chest. The black orb shot into his body, his veins pulsing under his skin. His dark red and gold skin, turning pure black and white. His wing tips sprouted claws as the skin in between turned a deathly gray. His amber eyes now a dull milky white hue. As the orb made its way into his heart, an outline of a pure black gem carved into his scales completing his transformation.

The second stage began a few hours later as Siarvirth began to raise his undead army. The Dragons had a choice, submit and be transformed into his soldiers whilst retaining their minds or resist and be transformed into his soldiers as mindless drones. His zealous followers accepted the offer without question, there were those who attempted to fight back while some converted out of fear. If it wasn't for the escape of Princess Rayndre, the Human and Magi kingdoms and the remaining dragons who got away would have fallen.

The war that followed was known as The Plague of Phovixus.

As Siarvirth's army began their march out of the valley towards the Human and Magi kingdoms, Princess Rayndre relayed the events to the leaders of the kingdoms. The Humans and Magi began their war preparations, armies were summoned, spells were practiced, arsenals were emptied and civilians who could not fight were moved to safe havens.

The Human and Magi armies mobilised on the fourth day of Siarvirth's war. The remaining dragons who had escaped had formed a new battalion of Sky Riders that carried with them, the elite human knights and master spellcasters to combat the undead army from the skies. Despite her protests to join in with the fight, Princess Rayndre was moved to an undisclosed location so she could be placed back on the throne after Siarvirth had been defeated.

The drums of war beat to a steady tune as the two opposing armies headed towards each other. On day eight of the march, the two sides came face to face. Siarvirth had been given the nickname of The Decayed One by Queen Gwendoline and Supreme Caster Olazin's forces did not do his appearance justice. Siarvirth had lost parts of his skin to show his rotting flesh underneath and skeleton in places. Whatever Death Magic spell had been cast was clearly holding him together.

Staring at the undead army in front of them, Queen Gwendoline and Supreme Caster Olazin both knew the other was suppressing the rising feeling of dread. The odds of wining against this enemy had dropped once their undead status was seen in person. They refused to show this fear as to do so would spread panic among their forces and the war they were about to fight would be lost before it began. Siarvirth did not wait for traditional battle etiquette to be applied and ordered his troops to attack. The enemy would join them in surrender after most of their comrades died or would join after they died anyway...either way they would serve him.

The battle that followed would have been etched into the history books as the bloodiest war that the planet had ever endured if it hadn't been scrubbed from them.

The battle was long and vicious. Infernal fire rained down from the Undead Dragons. Spell bombs and arrows flew across both sides of the battlefield from the Knights and Spell casters. Scorching fire from the dragons light up the sky as they carved paths through the undead to the sound of clashing steel as the living and undead fought.

The casualties on both sides began to mount up. Death screams from the dying began to outmatch the roars from the living. Gwendoline and Olazin knew that they were fighting a losing battle, they had kept back a battalion of Magi that were tasked to prevent Siarvirth's Death Magi from resurrecting the fallen soldiers to fight for them. They needed to turn the tide with a miracle or the realm would fall under Siarvirth's infernal reign forever.

As they stood under the command tent, they came up with a plan that could end the advance of the undead horde and leave only Siarvirth to be dealt with. It would come with a terrible price...Gwendoline, Olazin and Tezzor, (Princess Rayndre chosen Dragon Commander) signed in blood a pact that they would all immortalize their soldiers who died this day.

The plan was to open up a giant pit underneath the battlefield to trap all the undead soldiers and dragons into an inescapable prison. It would also kill all of their ground forces leaving only the Sky Riders and the small battalion of Magi to take down Siarvirth. As the Magi wove their spell, the ground began to rumble with a deafening roar, both the living and undead soldiers paused as the battlefield moved under their feet. From the skies above, the Sky Riders, Siarvirth and the Undead Dragons looked down at the unfolding scene. Siarvirth in particular was attempting to decipher what was occurring. Many a prayer was offered to the gods that he would not work it out. The Gods it seemed were on their side this day.

It was too late that Siarvirth did work out the plan as the ground ripped open into a great pit to swallow all above it. The soldiers on the battlefield did not have time to realise what was happening as the floor gave way below them, the look of betrayal and horror on their faces would haunt their commanders for the rest of their lives. As both sides fell, their cries of anger and fear faded quickly as they fell into the deep abyss that would be their tomb forever.

As the Magi wove their endgame spell, they moved their focus to the Undead Dragons above them. White tendrils shot out from the abyss towards them. As the dragons were ensnared, the tendrils retracted pulling them down into the darkness, as their screams echoed against the chasm's walls until they too were silenced. Once the final dragon had been pulled into the abyss, the Magi sealed the void trapping them forever underneath a one way seal in the dark pit.

Siarvirth was left alone. Despite his milky eyes, the anger coursing through his body burned brightly behind them. It is still unknown to this day if it was anger at himself for not spotting his enemies plans quicker or that they managed to destroy his entire army in one quick maneuver even if it cost them their entire ground force too. He let loose a scream that rang in the remaining soldiers and their commanders ears while his infernal flames scorched the sky.

Queen Gwendoline, Supreme Caster Olazin and Tezzor wasted not time as they pushed through the ringing in their ears, the Sky Riders were ordered to launch the final assault onto The Decayed One. Time was now of the element, if they were to end The Decayed One's threat, it was now or never. He was too powerful to leave alive but due to his undead nature, he was unable to be killed. The only course of action was to rend his body apart and to hide his evil soul for all time.

The Sky Riders snaked through the air as Siarvirth was momentarily distracted at the loss of his army. They crashed into him with such force, nearby trees bent in the shockwave as branches leaves were ripped from them. The tangled mess of dragons, knights and magi smashed into the ground. Siarvirth was determined not to lose without a fight as he struggled against his captors. His teeth latched around the neck of a dragon who got too close to his mouth and bit through with a sickening crunch as his teeth went through the bone. Hot blood sprayed outwards, the knight on his back bearing the brunt, he was dead before he the floor, his armor now fused to his skin due to the blood's temperature.

A few of the Magi lassoed Siavirth's mouth closed with the white tendril spell. Using all their strength the dragons pulled his arms, legs and wings with all their might so he was fully exposed. The rulers of the three Kingdoms stood in a line in front of The Decayed One and spoke in unity.

The three kingdoms sentence you this day! From here until eternity, your head shall be shaped into a Serpentine Crown, your arms and legs shall be rendered into Bone Amulets, your tail shall be molded into a Flayed Spear, your wings bounded into an Obsidian Book and your evil heart carved into a Blackfire Urn! These 5 objects shall forever more contain your undead soul, never to be released!

As the three commanders finished the sentencing of Siarvirth, The Decayed One, the remaining Magi cast the spell. Siarvirth's body began to glow with white lines across his joints. His legs and arms were pulled out of their sockets. His wings disintegrated, his tail fell to the ground with a crash, his head ripped off with a sickening sound as it dropped to the floor alongside his body. As the spell ended, a pure white light enveloped the battlefield. As the victors eyes adjusted back to normal, all that was left of The Decayed One...was a small assortment of items, a Crown, Bone Amulets, a Spear, a Book and an Urn.

The Decayed One had been defeated but the cost had been high. The human army had been almost entirely eradicated save for the seven Knights who had been chosen as Sky Riders. of the 20 dragons that had escaped, only 8 remained and the Magi now numbered 10. The commanders agreed that no one kingdom should know the location of all the cursed items and so they split them up. Queen Gwendoline took The Serpentine Crown and The Bone Amulets. Supreme Caster Olazin took The Flayed Spear and The Obsidian Book and Tezzor would take The Blackfire Heart back to Princess Rayndre.

Before going their separate ways, the three Kingdoms all swore an eternal pact that was sealed with an unbreakable bond that all records of Siarvirth after the Siege of the Frozen Sea would be changed to prevent knowledge of his change ever getting out and if the threat of The Decayed One ever arises, they would return to fight together once more.

As far as the locations of the items the Dragon and Magi Kingdoms hid, this was their last known locations. After returning home with her remaining seven knights, Queen Gwendoline held a secret meeting with her most trusted advisors to create a society that on the surface would consist of the knights in her kingdom's army and custodians of their history but 7 of the order's most elite knights would be tasked with safe-guarding the locations and knowledge of The Decayed One throughout the generations.

This was where the Order was created, Queen Gwendoline's advisor became the first Knight Commander (the only time a non soldier would become one) and the 7 surviving knights swore the oath to be the first of The Fireheart Knights. The rest of the historical records of Phovixus that were known to the public did occur as recorded after this point.

Castilla always felt a chill race down his spine as he recalled the secret history he had sworn to protect. Bringing himself back to the Initiation Chamber, he became aware that Knight Commander Bruscius was wrapping up his speech. Soon these young initiates would be shown to their quarters and would embark upon their studies blissfully unaware of the real purpose of the Order.

And so initiates, I will leave you now to be shown to your quarters, rest for today, for tomorrow you will begin your studies and your journey to join the order's ranks.

Upon the ending of Bruscius' speech, as per tradition, the 7 Fireheart Knights stood up as the initiates followed their guides out of the room. Watching them go, Castilla wondered if any of them would take his place one day to carry on the sacred oath. While there had been peace for many years...the threat of The Decayed One returning was as immortal as he was...