The Graveyard.

The Graveyard

Late one night, a man dressed in a black cape was standing in the middle of a graveyard. The wind was howling, but it was unnaturally quiet. A screech from an owl broke through the silence as it caught its prey. The grey marble statue of a fully armoured tyrant was pointing towards the exit, a warning to anyone who dared to move off the path. The graveyard itself was surrounded by an iron railing fence which had long past its’ day. Vines and ivy covered the fence so that no one could see from the outside. In the far right corner, there was a large pond, surrounded by weeping willow trees. The water was shown to be poisonous by the decayed branches of the trees. The water was dirty. Darkness engulfed the pond, but still it reflected the moonlight. The full moon shone through the misty air giving a light mystical setting.

The headstones were next to the path. They were arranged like a legion in formation, as if there was an army of skeletons ready to be raised by some mystical force. On either side of the graveyard were two tombs. The position they were in was exactly where a commander of a platoon would be. The tombs themselves looked battled scarred; chunks of stone were missing and bullet holes covered the walls. Long grass surrounded the tombstones almost engulfing them. With the ground not being visible, it gave the feeling of a creature moving through the long blades and striking its’ prey unknowingly. The smell of blood filled the air.

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The man pulled back the Black cape, revealing a horrible distorted face, and muttered with fear the words ‘Flavit Jehovah at dissipah sunt.’ The ring on his left index rose up instantaneously towards the statue. He knew this was the place where his master lay ready to be awoken. The now-old man remembered clearly the last day he saw his master. His master had turned to him during the heat of the last battle and told him all was lost. The young man shuddered at the thought of his master saying such words, but he had listened and followed his orders exactly. The young soldier fled from the battlefield. The ring entrusted with him. He had waited seven long years for things to calm down among the rejoicing people. Now the battle had been forgotten. The victory had been great for the phoenix faction but the general population had forgotten it as economical problems like unemployment arose.

* * *

The servant sat down beneath his master. The night was young. He had waited seven years and now adrenalin filled his body. However tired from the long journey and not as young as he was, the entrusted servant thought about pastimes.

Ten years ago, the ancient ring of the Ak-Baba was found by the young Baron Incubi, his master. The ring was gold and shaped like an Ak-Baba. A dark green emerald represented the Ak-Baba’s eye. The Ak-baba was an ancient mythical bird that ate human flesh and lived for a thousand years. The ring had many powers, like the ability to control the dark or immortalize the wearer, but it also brought a terrible curse. The wearer would be immortalized but would still look his age. The young baron was so infused with the dark side that he wished to over throw King Endon, and rule himself. The ring made this possible for him. He paused.

The baron rallied supporters and soon he had a legion, with which to overthrow the monarch. At this point, the entrusted servant joined him and together they went into battle. The master had known that his first victory would have to be against the capital. If the King were to die then only small pockets of resistance would remain. The legion had numbered millions when it attacked the City and yet magically the legion was unscathed. The Capital fell to dust when the King was beheaded by one stroke of his master’s sword. Cities were ransacked and whole populations slaughtered like little lambs. With the ring of Ak-Baba, the master had overturned an entire country and established the faction of the Ak-Baba. However, there had been another ring.

The ring of the phoenix was the brother to the ring of Ak-baba. The phoenix ring was more powerful than its brother, but would not work without a bearer of strong heart, as it was the Ring of Goodness. At this point, the old man paused. This part of the story was unknown to him; he was only told this part at the celebration of the fall of his master. A young woman had found the ring within the tip of a flower. Flowers were the only happiness the people were allowed when the master had ruled with his tyranny. The land was decayed. Plants would not grow, rivers tried up and animals died. The people were poor and dying. This was the kingdom the Dark Ring had created. The young women had rallied a legion together with the help of the Phoenix Ring. The Phoenix Ring was also made of gold but encrusted within it was a diamond. The diamond was a sign of strength and its power was immense just like the mythical bird.

With the ring, the woman named Misty led the rebellion and a great battle was held. Many people died, in shock as the sky itself turned red. The power of the dark side was blotting out the light. The servant remembered as he had rode next to his master into battle. The ancient army of the Ak-Baba had been spread out over the country and the Master could only muster a million men. However, they were heavily trained and ready to take on an army of ten million untrained peasants. The battle had begun and neither side was winning. Blood flowed along the ground, as the dead fell. A huge phoenix was released from the women’s ring. To combat this the master had summoned a huge Ak-Baba. As the battle on the floor raged on, the two great creatures fought in the air. The two great birds used their magic. The Ak-Baba struck first by releasing a jet of fire from its mouth, the phoenix countered by spraying crystal-clear water out of its mouth. However there was only going to be one conclusion and that was the Ak-Baba lost the fight. After the Ak-Baba was destroyed, the Master knew the battle was lost, but told his followers we had not lost the war. As the great wings of the Phoenix propelled it towards the master, he had turned to the soldier and told him what to do. After fleeing the battlefield, the man hid from the wraith of the Phoenix faction as all supporters of the Ak-Baba faction were killed. Nevertheless, the servant waited, as he knew revenge would be coming soon.

The ring glowed and the man knew it was time. The man chanted the words:

‘Nici mort nici al Hisctei

Te invoc spirit al trecerii

Reda trupului ce separa omul de animal

Cu ajutorul acestui magic ring.’

A blue mist emitted from the ring and spread out around the graveyard. Then gave a blinding yellow light, which filled the air. Slowly but surely skeletons were rising. A hand broke through the ground. The dead were rising.

BANG. A silver bullet flew through the air and when it exploded into the servant’s skull, the vortex of mystical energy imploded with the man, leaving only the ring. The woman walked over, put the ring on her left hand. The rings, now together at last, could lead the woman named Misty into a new era. The era of prosperity had begun.

By Steven Barker