This is book 2 in my trilogy The Tales of Time to read book 1 go to this thread http://empireminecraft.com/threads/the-thief-of-time.61704/#post-1136777 Years ago a thief named Cadorley stopped the evil mage named Chronos from using the artifact called the hourglass of eternity for devastating effects. Cadorley stopped him but disappeared in the night leaving Chronos as nothing but dust. Though not many knew of the thief's heroism and it was never known and he was hunted for killing a innocent man on that faithful day he knew that he did what was needed for the betterment of the people of Avabruck. But as they say as one story ends another one begins anew and so starts our tale in a tavern in a lonely town where much laughter is heard and many stories are told. "The End." Said the bard in a soft tone. "Another, please mister." Begged a small smiling girl. "It is time I must go now. I'm sorry I must leave for it is time I go home." The girl frowned and went to her mother and they exited through the soft oak door smiling and talking as they moved. "Good job Thient the people really liked your stories today." Said the innkeeper. "Yes they may like them but I long to go on a adventure myself." Mumbled Thient sadly. He looked around the room staring at the paintings of the hero's he only told tales of. "Well one day Thient, one day. Sleep well." Thient grabbed his lute and slowly walked up the oak stairs then into his cozy room he had at the tavern. "Well time to get some sleep." Then Thient closed his eyes and fell into a deep slumber.
Thient suddenly awoke when he heard the screams of people and the loud ring of the warning bells outside his window. Then the innkeeper ran into his room yelling. "Thient we must go a dragon is attacking the town!" Thient looked at him sleepily then shot up and grabbed his lute and they ran outside. "What will we do nobody can defeat a dragon?" And as suddenly as Thient uttered those words he heard the dragon roar something in the distance. "Where is she?! Where is she?!" The dragon said as she blew a flame towards an unsuspecting home. Thient looked at the innkeeper oddly as he too returned the glare their eyes locking in place. "Who is "she"?" Questioned the innkeeper. "Well we have no time to waste let's make with haste to the woods! We will worry who "she" is later!" Yelled Thient. They than began to run towards the woods where they would be safe for now from the dragon but on their way they ran into a woman in a spectacular robe. "Wait are you him?" Questioned the lady. "I don't know who you think I am but we must go now!" yelled Thient. "Wait come with me." said the lady and before Thient could say no he was teleported away with the woman as she grabbed his hand.
Thient was suddenly greeted from the smell of fresh pine and the sight of large trees. "Where... Where are we?" Asked Thient. The lady stared at him with blankness then pulled out a long wooden staff and tapped Thient's head with it and suddenly he felt drowsy and fell to the ground knocked out. Thient opened his eyes and suddenly he was inside a large ivory tower and he saw four people one of them appeared to look like the lady. Then one of the figures, a older man with a long white beard and a brown robe began to speak. "You, my children come here today to inherit the items of our family." Thient thought to himself about what these items were then as soon as he said that the older man pulled out an object and began to speak again. "To you, my cunning son Chronos I bestow the domain over time and give you the hourglass of eternity." Thient was amazed he had told stories of the man called Chronos, the elder mage of time. But he had never heard of this story. "I thank you father." Said Chronos. "To you, my adventurous son Janus I bestow domain over magic and give you the orb of magi." Thient also knew about Janus he was Chronos' brother. Less was known about him but tales were still told. "I thank you father." Said Janus. "And finally to you my daughter Valoa I bestow to you domain over the æther and I give you the rod of the æther itself." Thient never had heard of Valoa. "Thank you father." Said Valoa. Then he heard a gasp, everybody looked at the old man. "Father!" Valoa yelled as she ran to her father. It appeared the man had a heart attack and was dying. "I must go now... My children... Remember to protect the people of Avabruck... And do... Not abuse your powers..." Then the man died in Valoa's arms. "We will remember you father." Valoa cried. Her brothers then came to comfort her and Thient was suddenly phased back into his own world. Æther (EE-THER)
When he phased back he was blasted through the air hitting a sturdy tree. "What just happened?" Asked Thient dazed while rubbing leaves off his clothes. "That was me mentally sending you through the æther back in time." "Wait then... your Valoa!" Yelled Thient. Valoa stared at him menacingly as she walked over to help Thient up. "Yes, I'm Valoa. Elder mage of the æther." She said. Thient was amazed and started asking her many questions, which she simply ignored. "Stop with the questions! We have no time for this that dragon is looking for me." "Wait the dragon is looking for you? Why? And why did you take me?" "Well since you asked and it may help you stop annoying me here is the story. You see the dragon who goes my the name Smolderscar is looking to steal the artifact given to me and my siblings to have ultimate control over Avabruck. She must have followed me when I traced the essence of the hourglass of entirety here." "Where is the hourglass now?" Questioned Thinner. "Apparently my spell is saying it's your lute? May I touch it with my staff?" "Certainly!" Then Valoa took out her staff and touched the lute with and went into a dreamlike stance for a couple of minutes. Then she came returned from her trance she explained to Thient that a thief named Cadorley when destroying the hourglass had some dust left that fell on the lute and when Chronos died the dust infused into the lute. "Where did you get this Thient?" "My father gave it to me according to my mother, but I've never met my father." "Your father must have been this thief who killed Chronos. But Thient no matter what you do protect the lute I have no idea what powers it holds." "I will guard it with my life Valoa." Thient said with respect. "Do you hear that?" Asked Valoa. In the distance came a loud and intimidating roar. "It's Smolderscar we must go now!" "But where?!" Asked Thient fearfully. "We must find Janus and tell him what is happening." Valoa demanded then she grabbed Thient's hand once more and they disappeared into the thick of the night...
"Gahh!" Yelled Thient as they got to their destination. He looked around startled to find that they were on the edge of a tall mountain surrounded by a thick mist. "Where are we Valoa?" "We are at the mountain in which my brother, Janus lives." Valoa then motioned for Thient to follow up the steep dirt path that led up. "I hope you like long hikes, because this one is going to take a while." Snickered Valoa. After a couple of hours they started to approach a rough cottage on the peak of the mountain. "Is that where he lives?" Valoa nodded in response. They walked for a little bit more until they reached a nicely painted red door with gold trimming and artful engravings. "Are you home brother?" Valoa knocked hard on the wood door. "Is that you Valoa!?" A voice yelled from inside. Valoa yelled a yes then the door flew open and a older man came to greet them. "Welcome, welcome to my humble home in the mountains! My name is Janus." Thient shook Janus's hand and then Janus shook Valoa's. Then they walked into his home. "This is beautiful!" Yelled Thient as he looked around the room. There was many engravings on the walls depicting ancient battles and shelves of books. "Brother we've come to warn..." Valoa was cut off by her brother. "Warn me about Smolderscar. Yes I know already." "How?" "You Valoa I'm a master of magic if you forgot and one of those types of magic is mind reading. Now if we are to defeat the dragon we must learn his weakness, let me get a book." Said Janus. He then proceeded to look through his shelves until he stopped at on book. "Ah here we." Janus pulled out the book Thient saw it was a book about legendary dragons. "May I read?" Asked Thient. "No reason you can't." Said Janus as he handed the book to Thinner. Thient the flipped through the old pages then found a section entitled The Brood of the Mage Hunters. "The brood of the mage hunters?" Said Thient confusingly. "Yes they are the brood of Smolderscar, they hunt magic users and kill them. Along with that every dragon in the brood has the ability to drain the magic and use the spells of every mage they have killed." Thient flipped some more pages and found one about Smolderscar. Thient then began to read the important parts of the page a loud. "Smolderscar is the queen and leader of the mage hunter brood. She is the most powerful of all the mage hunter dragons and should be avoided at all costs. She knows almost every spell native to Avabruck and some not native. If you encounter..." Thient was suddenly cut off by a loud wingbeat from outside. "Wait here you two, let me check outside" Said Janus. He went and opened the door slowly. "Helloooo!" he yelled outside then two sleek black dragons with spiked tails and a pointed isosceles busted in. "It's the mage hunter brood!" yelled Janus then they prepared for battle.
"Get down!" Janus yelled as the dragons flew in. They seemed smaller to Thient than a typical dragon but it mattered not as he jumped behind chair. "Where are the artfactsss old man?" Questioned one of the dragons with a hiss. "You'll never know and I will never tell." Said Janus. The dragons snickered as a flame came out of their noses. "Shall we teach them the hard way brother?" Said the other dragon. "I think we shall brother." The dragon responded as he and his brother began to chant some words. "You think you'll defeat me with spells? You're fools I control all magic!" Yelled Janus as he began to twirl his hand around. Thient looked at Valoa who was sitting behind the table and asked if they should help quietly in which Valoa shook her head too and mouthed not yet. Suddenly a whirlwind picked up inside the home and a gale started to push on the dragons, yet the dragons were unhindered as they made an astral barrier to block the wind. "Now well they're weak!" Valoa yelled as she ran towards one of the dragons with her staff. She rammed the staff at the dragon's body and he disappeared. The dragon's brother looked in awe at his brothers disappearance. "You shall pay for banishing my brother to the æther!" The dragon screamed as he blew a mighty flame across the room then he too disappeared, but through his own means. Janus looked as his house was in flames around him he quickly started to cast a spell to put out the fire. "You two, get out I'm going to kill the fire." Valoa grabbed Thient's hand and they ran out through the doorway quickly. A few minutes later Janus came out and told them everything was fine and that nothing got damaged too badly. "I'm sorry Janus for the mess I caused at your home." Valoa said apologetically. "It's fine just more reasons to see Smolderscar dead. Thient did that book say where her nest is?" Thient grabbed the book off of the floor it was slightly burned but otherwise fine. Thient flipped to the page about Smolderscar's brood once again. "It says here Smolderscar lives in the mountain known as Thunder Peak, but it also says that the mountain is magically guarded against intruders who attempt to enter magically." "No problem Thunder Peak is only a few days walk from here. Grab your things and let us get going!" Said Janus. And once everybody recovered their stuff (and Janus packed a few books) they were off to kill the mage hunter.
Thunder rumbled and clouds rolled as the three came off of the mountain that was Janus's home. When they came to a dense and large forest. "This forest is dangerous. Stay close you two." Said Janus as they enters it. The forest was made up of mainly birches and oaks that blocked out the sun with their foliage. Thient had seen a few animals as they walked through and it seemed almost never-ending to him. "How large is this forest Janus?" Asked Cadorley. "It's quite large my friend it will take us a couple of days to get out." Thient sighed at the answer Janus provided him but carried on with the task. "So Janus do you know about anything about somebody named Cadorley?" Janus was shocked at his question stopping in his tracks as if the word "Cadorley" put him in a stasis. "What is wrong brother?" "Everything is fine Valoa but I would like to know how Thient knows of Cadorley." "Did you know him? because apparently according to Valoa here he was my father." "Wait you're the son of Cadorley?!" Exclaimed Janus loudly with excitement. "Cadorley your father was my friend, He told me he had a son with a lady he met at a tavern and told me he gave her the lute to give to their son!" "What was my father like?" "He was a wonderful man Thient. He saved the world from my brother, sadly he died four years ago in a fight with a group of thugs and without the power of the hourglass he could not be saved. But now that we have it's power back we could save your father for that lute has unimaginable power!" Then suddenly they heard a rustling in the woods. It sounded like something was... wailing. "Brother, you didn't tell us there was a banshee is these foul woods." "I was hoping I wouldn't have to..." Then there was another wail. But now it was ever closer. "How do we stop it?" Asked Thient fearfully. "Nothing can. We must cover our ears lest we wish to bleed to death from them." Janus said. "Oh that's really helpful." Thient said sarcastically to Janus. "Will you two stop bickering. Now Janus cast a temporary deafness spell on all of us." "Wonderful idea Valoa, Father always said you were the smart one." Janus then began to chant silently as they heard the wail even closer now. "Done, Now hide or we will be torn to bits by it." Janus mouthed. Everyone went for cover behind the trees as Thient saw the banshee come down. It looked like a beautiful lady except it had a ghastly visage, Thient was almost tempted to say hello but resisted the urge. The banshee looked around letting out what looked like a sorrowful wail every now and then until it left. Janus walked out along with the rest of them. Nobody could hear so all Thient could see was the two mouthing things to each other it appeared they were arguing, then suddenly he could hear again and he was greeted with an argument indeed. "You almost got us killed!" Valoa yelled. "You said that already and yes I know there is risks to be taken for rewards Valoa." "You could have at least told us!" Thient butted in. "Let's just stop fighting and get going I don't want to see that again." "Thient is right let's get moving." Valoa said. They then continued on until night where they set up camp and went to sleep.
The next morning they were greeted with light as it shone threw the heavy thicket of the trees. Thient stretched out his arms as he awoke from the ground as he saw that Janus and Valoa were already up and about their campsite. "Good morning Thient." Janus said. Valoa just waved her hand to Thient as she was cooking some meat on a fire. "When shall we leave?" Thient asked. "After breakfast, we will need the energy. I'm cooking some bacon Janus conjured" Valoa said. A few minutes later everyone sat down and ate quietly, nothing but the sounds of chewing and insects could be heard. Then Thient broke the silence. "So that was quite the scare last night." Thient stated to the group. They both looked at him menacingly. "Let us not talk about that and just eat out bacon silently." Janus said quietly, Thient nodded in response and continued to munch on his bacon. The group had finished eating and were ready to continue journeying to the mountain. Half way there Valoa said she could teleport them out to the other side to save them time, so they did. They came out into open sunlight and were greeted with a long dirt path once again. "Here we come Smolderscar!" Thient yelled. Janus smiled but Valoa looked at Thient oddly for a moment as they continued onward. The trio faced many more terrors on there journey coming out alive every time and getting closer to the mountain every day. That was until they were only a few more days away.
"Haha almost there!" Thient exclaimed boldly. The three of them could see the mountain in the distance and they were just about there. "Don't get too excited Thient, we still need to kill Smolderscar." Janus said. "Well whatever she throws at us I'm ready!" So the trio went on for many more hours the mountain reaching closer and closer until night came. So they decided to set up camp under a tree in a small plains. Slowly they fell asleep one of them keeping guard by the hour whilst the others slept until it was Valoa's turn. Thient and Janus heard a scream for help and it suddenly felt... Hotter. The two burst out of their tents to see the dragon they were hunting had found them. "So you thought you would kill me?" Questioned Smolderscar. Valoa and Janus remained quiet but Thient yelled at the dragon. "We were going to defeat you Smolderscar and make sure the artifact stayed in the right hands!" The other two shook there heads as telling the dragon that was a bad idea. "Oh in the right hands? Well why don't you tell that to the thieves that stole my artifact long ago!" Smolderscar roared with anger. "What do you mean thieves?" "Do you believe everything these two mages tell you? Or are you just another stupid man like your father?" Smolderscar grinned. She knew this would provoke the bard and reveal the truth to him. "What do you mean you never knew my father!" Janus butted into the conversation. "We should stop now Thient." "Silence!" Smolderscar spat at him an ember almost catching his robe on fire. "You see I know everything bard, why? It's simple I'm the creator of the artifact and bestowed of magic upon humans. Of course I watch the owners of the artifacts vigorously and you would be surprised how long I waited for the right time to take back what was mine." "Tell me what you know of my father." Demanded Thient. "As you wish bard." Janus looked horrified, Valoa looked at him and mouthed what's wrong he responded with a terrible thing I did. "You see here when your father was living with Janus he met a beautiful lady at a tavern while heading into town. Months later you were born and your father gave the lute to his lady friend and told her to give it to there son when he was ready. But when Janus returned he was furious and murdered your father out of spite for causing him a loss of a mighty weapon." Thient looked at Janus with rage and hatred and asked why he did it. "I-I-I was foolish Thient I felt terrible for what I did to Cadorley who was truly my only friend." Janus was sobering something the elder mage rarely did. "You killed a man, my father. For what power? Greed? Distrust?" But before he could finish Valoa yelled watch out to Janus as Smolderscar's claw came swiping at him, magical blue trails of pure mana pouring from the tips of her claws. "Did you forget I control all magic even temporal magic?" Said Smolderscar subtly. Thient looked at the mage and for some reason he jumped in front of Janus as if he felt though even though he did what he did he was truly a good friend to his father and needed help. "Get down!" Thient yelled as he leapt in front of Janus taking the hit. But no blood was shred for he was not killed but something else happened to him instead. "NOOOOO!" Smolderscar roared loudly alerting her brood to her aid. "Wh-What did you do?" Valoa asked quietly. Smolderscar looked at her ever so slightly bringing her face to hers. "Why should I tell you? You betrayed the magic I gave your family so now I betray your curiosity." Smolderscar said. Then everything was silent as the two Elder mages were detained and locked away with no sign of Thient.
It was night when Thient woke up he was confused as he was in the same spot as when he was attacked by Smolderscar but it was different. Then he saw somebody with a torch on the road to the mountain so he started to walk over there. "Hey you there!" Thient yelled as he waved to the man, yet once the man saw him he ran quickly. Thient ran after him eventually tackling him down. "Get off me you hooligan." The man said quietly. Then Thient thought he recognized the man vaguely as he saw his pale face in the dark. "I said get off!" The man yelled this time as a burst of arcane power exploded from his body throwing Thient far away. He rubbed his head as he got up from the grassy dirt, as he got up the man walked over to him. "Who are you?" Thient asked dazed from his small concussion. "I am Grand Magnus Wynn, keeper of magic and soon to be the inheritor of the artifact owned by the dragon Scaria bestower of magic to the lesser races." Wynn said proudly. "Wait do you have a daughter named Valoa along with two sons?" "I have daughter named Valoa but not two sons. Who are you?!" Answered Wynn. "I'm Thient, a bard from apparently... The future." Wynn looked at him like he was crazy but then asked him one more question. "If you're from the future then will you help me take the three artifacts from Scaria? As you seem to know what will happen if we succeed." Thient then realized what Smolderscar meant by thieves. He and this man who was the man who gave the artifacts to the elder mages were the thieves and he was the cause for all the death that would ever came from them from this day onward.
"I will not help you. I'm sorry but it seems dangerous." Thient told Wynn boldly. Wynn simply laughed and gave him a punch in the soldier as if they have known each other for ages. "I' sorry Thient, but if you don't help I will need to kill you!" Wynn said laughing like a maniac. "Kill me?!" Thient was stunned by such a remark and jumped at the thought of dying. "You know too much Thient. So will you help me or not Bard?" Wynn said with straight face this time stopping his laughter. Thient thought about it and eventually gave into the threat and agreed to the proposition. "Well let us be off shall we. Remember to stay silent once we get close lest we have a death wish." The two walked silently until they reached the mountain base. "How do you expect us to get in?" Asked Thient hesitantly. "Luckily for me Scaria told me the secret entrances to the interior if I ever had trouble getting past her brood to see her." Wynn whispered. Wynn then got out a key and put it into a seemingly almost invisible keyhole and then a stone slid away revealing a secret entrance. They walked in after Wynn casted a spell to make them walk more silently. There was some dragons walking around once they got out of the "secret corridor" but they easily avoided them. Soon they came into a sparkling, golden room with valuable gems in the walls and at the end of the room there was three ivory pillars with what Thient was amazed to see. The three artifacts. "It's the artifact." Thient whispered to Wynn. "That's quite obvious, now what I need you to do is keep watch well I counter the magic that is protecting them." Wynn whispered back. He nodded in response and went to the door that led to the rest of the mountain and kept watch. Thient looked back and saw that Wynn was finishing the final counter spell. Yet when he looked back he screamed with fright as he was greeted with the face of a blue dragon with amber eyes. "Who are you two?" The dragon questioned. Thient could stutter incomplete phrases when the dragon looked over Thient's shoulder and saw what was going on. "Thieves!" The dragon yelled alerting any other dragons in the area. "Thient! Get back!" Wynn said after he heard the dragon's voice. So Thient ran backwards as Wynn shoot a fireball at the dragon. It screamed out in agony as it burned, yet this attack made it worst. Then Magnus grabbed the artifacts storing them in a quick astral pocket spell and the two ran over the dragon's burned body in hopes of escape.
They didn't look back as they ran through the mountain death encompassing the area around then as they were being chased by vicious dragons. Yet that was nothing when they where stopped my the giver of magic Scaria. "Wynn! I gave you all you pitiful humans all the magic you would ever need many years ago!" Scaria roared angrily as she flew into their path. "I am sorry Scaria but the magic you gave me and everyone else won't save my daughter!" Wynn yelled back. Thient then thought as he did so that there must be something wrong with Valoa. "Your daughter will die from your foolish actions! She will die from the her disease you brought about with your failed spell." "But with the timepiece of eternity I can save her by turning back the clock." Wynn hastily argued. "Time magic, æther magic and the ability to make magic is too dangerous for the humans to use. Now for your trespassing you will pay with your life along with your bardic friend!" Scaria then motioned for two dragon guards to kill us but Wynn had other plans. He shoot a fireball into Scaria's face giving her quite the scar and him and Thient ran out quickly as Wynn casted an invisibility spell to hide them. As they ran out Thient was quite confused at why they didn't use the spell to hide them well creeping in and Wynn cleared it up. Thient looked at Grand Magnus Wynn and shacked his hand and wished him good luck, Wynn did the same. "Hope you save your daughter." "Thank you bard may you have good luck!" And Wynn went on his merry way. Thient went under a scarlet leaved tree and took out his lute. He was sad he might never get home so he played a song of sorrow but something odd happens then. The lute started to emit a strange glow and then he heard a whisper in his ear. "Think of home and play..." The voice said. So Thient did exactly that as he closed his eyes. And when they opened it was no longer an autumn day but a summer night. He laughed with joy as he realized the lute had the magic of the timepiece but was dismayed when there was no sign of his friends. Then Thient saw something strange on a greenest to the one he sat under. There was a dead man... Thient ran over. "Wake up!" Thient yelled while shaking the man. He opened his eyes slightly and from his mouth came five words. Beware the dragon lord Smolderscar he said as he died with his last breath. The End Read Eternity here
So that is the end of The Melody of Time and I left it on a cliff-hanger for you guys! The final story in the trilogy will come soon and then you may find out what has happened to Avabruck. You can also try to figure it yourselves! Anyways I hope you enjoyed book 2 of 3 and may you have a good day!
