Author Topic: Post #0 - The Khazari Chronicles Introduction  (Read 3220 times)

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Offline Corvus (OP)

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Post #0 - The Khazari Chronicles Introduction
« on: February 13, 2016, 01:47:18 AM »
Hi all and welcome to my first attempt at an Aurora story - and an Aurora game that goes more than a few years.   For this I am going for something a little different than most games – rather than start on Earth I'm going with an alien race.   And one that doesn't use missiles.   Yes, this is a no missile game.   Will I survive?  Well, lets just wait and see.

Mistakes will be made.   Trust me on this.

And the plan is to go a little more narrative oriented rather than a blow by blow recount of events.

********************

Rain teemed down around, thick enough to appear as a curtain of water.   It beat down upon the broad fronds of jungle trees, and upon the solid Khazari who pushed his way along an old jungle path.   The rain ran down scales of mahogany and bronze, and along a crested spine that protruded from head and neck.   Steam rose up from the ground, curling around trees.   Only the rain gave any relief from the suffocating heat that blanketed the land.


First Speaker of the Conclave Hazraqa Bronzeclaw made his slow way up a winding path, the black earth of the ground turning to mud beneath his feet.   The ground rose steeply away ahead of him towards where, if the rain had not shrouded it, he would have been able to see a ridge.   Above the roar of the rain he heard the whine of a skimmer as it headed for its destination, no doubt to the same location he headed.   He could have taken a skimmer himself, but this was the old pilgrim route, seldom used any more.   His ancestors had trod this path on the way to the ancient temple of Markaza Vhas though and he was determined to follow in their footsteps.

It took some doing to reach the ridge, and as he did, the rain that beat down upon him cleared up and the clouds broke up.   Below him, in the bowl of a long extinct volcano, was the sprawling city of Markaza Vhas, with its temples and libraries and laboratories, the heart of the scientific religious endeavours upon Akhazar.

Above, the sky was busy.   Dominant was the striated brown body of Vaskhut, a super massive gas giant around which Akhazar orbited.   Around it glittered the smaller orbs of its other 13 moons.   Beyond it glowed the four suns of Khazarqa, one close at hand and three, for now, distant, yet still bright.

Beyond the island of Markaza Vhas spread the wide seas, dotted in those parts by many small, jungle clad islands that rose steep up out of the waters, the remains of a chain of volcanoes.

He started his descent down into the city, making his way for the ancient temple that was the heart of the city.   For centuries it had been where rulers and leaders came to consult the scientist-priests who sought to unlock the ancient writings upon the stone stellae that the temple had been built up around.   That stellae has shaped the beliefs of the Khazari, of its talk of them having been planted upon Akhazar to be 'tested', and of the thirteen sacred elements that would return the Khazari to their origins.

That day had arrived, it seemed.   The message sent by the High Scientist Akharasa Ironscale had been vague, but reading between the lines had indicated those at Markaza Vhas had made a monumental discovery, one that would forever change the way of life for the Khazari.

Hazraqa's arrival in the city had not gone unnoticed.   He expected to be greeted as he arrived at the temple but had not expected it to be by the ivory and iron shaded slender form of Akharasa herself.   Her mouth quirked at his approach as he climbed the much worn stone stairs up to the temple.   “Few there are that still walk the old pilgrim route, First Speaker.   There are those that say it smacks of pride, while other speak of reverence and humility. ”

“What is your view, High Scientist. ”

“That it is a potent symbol, that the old ways still hold relevance in these changing days. ”

“The days always change, High Scientist. ”

"These days more than most for now we go to the stars. ”

**

After the bustle of the labs and a whirlwind of displays and activity, the silence of the High Scientist's study allowed Hazraqa a moment to take it all in.

"Now that you have discovered the sacred thirteen, what now?”

“We have done more than discover it, we have began to extract it from Akhazar, though in minor amounts.   We are still studying the elements to unlock their potential.   We do know that there is one thing we can do with one of them already – we can produce a fuel more powerful than any before.   Give us a few weeks and we can design an engine sturdy enough to use it. ”

“Ships that can take a drive like that will take time to build, but it will give us and our people an example of what is to come.   There is much work ahead of us, High Scientist. ”

“That there is First Speaker.   This is but the first step in a long walk, one that may someday unlock the secrets of our past. ”