Era of Bondage
51 The unmaking of the Garden Vallis…
Resumes with cracking heat and rainless skies.
A blight shall render Sol a blackened orb.
Yet Sol rises, validating omens.
51-1 The prophet’s body lies a season’s turn,
As garden’s tendrils infiltrate the corpse.
Wounds are knitted, organs are replenished.
Azarius awakens as He was.
52 The King of Men is born by blackened Sol,
But Aeon will not pass from mother’s womb.
King of Men is formed with Mazda’s essence,
Raised by servant Raptors in their caverns.
52-1 Azarius is found by Nephilim,
Living by the bounty of the jungle.
‘You have come to bring me to your caverns,’
‘For King of Men has been reborn on Vê.’
53 Nephilim give Aeon to the prophet
Shielding him from treachery of menfolk.
He builds his mind with logic and the arts,
And molds his body by the trial’s pains.
53-1 The boy sees nothing of the world of men,
Thus, he grows unfettered with their curses.
No fear, nor greed, nor hate consumes his soul.
Man’s eternal banes, the prophet’s lessons.
53-2 On their hunts they speak as son and father,
While both strengthen by the jungle’s trial.
They sleep within the hollows of great trees,
And gaze upon the garden from their limbs.
53-3 The splendid garden harbors many truths.
Their denial brings one certain ruin.
The splendid garden harbors many lies.
Scented blossoms lure one to snaring.
53-4 As they gaze upon the feral wood boar,
Rooting on the scent of savory truffle,
Aeon asks the man who’s been a father,
‘Prophet, will you tell me of my future?’
53-4 ‘Watch the boar as he unearths the scent-trail.’
‘He moves in many paths to test the ground.’
‘By this, he bides his time to sense the traps,’
‘Leaping just in time from clenching pedals.’
53-5 ‘The wood boar is not native to this realm,’
‘Brought by Me?n to these jungle terrors.’
‘It has learned to thrive among new perils.’
‘By vigilance it dodges killing snares.’
53-6 ‘Many times I’ve raised you as my child,’
‘And many times you’ve chosen different paths.’
‘Many are the names by which they call you,’
‘And varied are the lifespans you have lived.’
53-7 ‘One thing is for certain, my dear Aeon,’
‘And that is that you are your mother’s son,’
‘Blessed by her devotion to her people,’
‘And cursed by her devotion to her tribe.’
53-8 ‘Every man and woman has their virtue.’
‘Your gift is you will find it in their souls.’
‘But every tribe behaves as if insane,’
‘Earning nothing but the flames of torment.’
53-9 The annum turn, and Aeon comes of age.
Azarius shall lead him to his throne.
Nephilim will be their royal escort,
As they enter through the fortress gates.
53-10 Me?’s Children gather to bear witness,
With half unto the left and half the right.
Hails from one side, curses from the other,
The menfolk cleave into their faction mobs.
54 Many raise their blade opposed to Aeon,
But they are stayed by Raptor’s warning glares.
Not one soul may hide a violent treason.
Azarius has known them all before.
54-1 King Aeon stands before the royal house,
Doors unguarded by the gilded sentries.
Aeon, King of Men shouts to the gathered,
‘Where have gone the Regian defenders?’
54-2 ‘They have fled to curse the king’s arrival,’
‘The other men were slain on Gudoc’s wall.’
‘Left are but the elders, young, and widowed,’
‘Forsaken is this kingdom you now claim!’
54-3 King of Men shall seize upon their anguish,
And Aeon shall not be denied his crown.
‘Fear not, for I fulfill the prophecy!’
‘I will bring the lamp that lights the darkness!’
54-4 Half the mob will spit and spew loud curses,
For they do not believe this man is king.
‘He who brings the Raptors to our fortress’
‘Has brought the darkness to our fading light.’
54-5 A man in robes steps forward through the crowd.
His eyes are bright like crystals in the sun.
Though his beard is sparse and brow un-furrowed,
Elders use their staffs to clear his pathway.
54-6 Kethu is the same age as King Aeon,
A boy when men all died on Gudoc’s wall.
Many elders raised him to be steward.
His voice was made to give commands to all.
54-7 Kethu stands before the raging masses.
Their curses calm as he prepares to speak.
‘Tell us, Kethu, shall we be the subject…’
‘Of kings that come to rule with reptile guards?’
54-8 ‘Many’ve lost their fathers, sons, and husbands,’
‘By Raptor blade and claw, they met their end.’
‘You will never trust the killing serpents,’
‘And you will never trust Azarius.’
54-9 ‘But ponder what has come to you this day—’
‘A man commanding Raptors as his guard.’
‘Many raised their blades to them in vengeance,’
‘Yet, no man was slain by lizard rapier.’
54-10 ‘Now ponder, where have gone the Regians?’
‘Are they not the ones we trust to guard us?’
‘Paid for just one purpose: our protection.’
‘Yet, they fled their posts when duty called them.’
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54-11 ‘Some await another king like Mosul,’
‘Yet, what did he deliver to our tribe?’
‘War with Raptors was King Mosul’s folly,’
‘And now your sons and brothers are no more.’
54-12 ‘This would-be king has come to us in peace,’
‘Ascending to the dais without blood.’
‘Let us hear the man who claims the kingship.’
‘Let us hear the man who brings no dying.’
54-13 Kethu’s words will soothe the raging fury,
And men of violence put away their blades.
Aeon takes his place upon the dais,
The King of Men assumes the Vallis throne.
55 Me?’s Children prosper under Aeon,
And are rewarded for unending toil.
Underneath the black Sol ringed in fire,
They shall prepare for final exodus.
55-1 Azarius is counsel to the King,
Warning him of ever-present danger.
In this era, Aeon reaches manhood,
And men will feast beneath the blackened Sol.
55-2 But Regians remain of Mosul’s host,
And gather those opposed to Aeon’s rule.
In the long-abandoned caves and tunnels.
Son of Antoc seeks revenge in twilight.
55-3 Son of Antoc curses Aeon’s naming.
His mind, corrupted by his grief and guilt.
No father nor a mother should survive
The lifespan of the children whom they love.
55-4 As he plots the murder of King Aeon,
The forest wilts and withers in the vale.
His revenge becomes his desperation,
As the day of exodus draws nearer.
55-5 Regians survive by jungle forage,
Drinking manna from the dying branches.
But while they gorge beneath the blackened Sol,
Silent forest comes alive with Raptors.
55-6 The Regians are taken to the crypts,
Where awaits their certain execution.
Son of Antoc weeps for his lost purpose—
Death will come before avenging Mosul.
55-7 In the pits, awaiting their destruction,
A visitor emerges from the dark.
Hooded face obscured, it moves by gliding,
This specter fills the minds of men with dread.
55-8 ‘Show yourself and spare us of your haunting!’
‘Or cut our throats and end our misery!’
‘Yes, we plot the murder of your sovereign,’
‘And I would rather die than see him king.’
55-9 Calmly, it pulls back the hood that covers,
To show the face that they have known before.
‘Do you know the visage of your sovereign?’
‘Father, do you see your son before you?
55-10 The Regians fall on their face in praise,
Before them standing Mosul, who was slain.
‘I’ve returned to bring our final vengeance.’
‘Come, embrace your King who has arisen.’
55-11 ‘Father, hear my words and do my bidding.
‘Make your peace with Raptors, whom you’ve hated,’
‘They share survival as a common cause.
‘By them, our vengeance shall befall our foes.’
55-12 ‘Take this vial into your possession,’
‘And guard it with your life against all threats.’
‘Raptors will provide for unseen passage’
‘Into the city of the catacombs.’
55-13 In the night, the Regians pay visit
To the Me?n woman known as Meeda.
Against her will, they place the seed of man—
The essence of their sovereign lord, King Vyn.
56 Not one more child shall be born on Vê,
As the black Sol renders mothers barren.
The last-born child shall be Bafomet—
Born as neither male nor female figured.
57 The Regians will steal the last-born child
And deliver it to their high druids,
To be raised as highest of the holy,
The priest of man who shall preserve the beast.
58 While Bafomet is yet a nursing babe,
A legion of disciples comes to be.
They decry Azarius as heathen,
Calling for His trial as a devil.
58-1 Priests shall gather dressed in robes of crimson,
Guarded by lost Regians of Mosul.
They make their accusations from the heights,
Beneath the ring of fire in the sky.
58-2 ‘Hear my words, ye children of the Bolide!’
‘Who is this man who rises from the dead?’
‘Who is this man who led your king to death,’
‘Guarded by the Raptors who’ve enslaved you?’
58-3 ‘Hear my words, ye Children of the Bolide!’
‘Who is this man who says this world will end?’
‘Who is this man who knows what future brings?’
‘Yet, He led your brothers to their slaughter!’
58-4 Me?’s Children gather to bear witness,
With half unto the left and half the right.
Hails from one side, curses from the other,
Again, the menfolk cleave to faction clans.
58-5 The mob demands Azarius be tried,
Sending ultimatums to their king.
Kethu stands between the mob and Aeon,
Attempting to diffuse their violent rage.
58-6 Aeon will not heed their cries for justice,
And Kethu must disperse the restless mob.
Driven into madness by fanatics,
One half of men refuse to hunt or reap.
59 By the law, a king must solely judge Him.
Yet King Aeon lobbies for recusal.
Azarius assures the troubled king
That He will not abandon Aeon’s reign.
59-1 Aeon calls the steward to give counsel,
The king holds Kethu in his highest trust.
Kethu is to Aeon as a brother,
And he will do the bidding of his king.
59-2 King Aeon warns a trial cannot be.
‘Either verdict would foment our ruin.’
‘One would leave us blinded to the future,’
‘And one would have me murdered by the mob.’
59-3 ‘Meet the prophet under darkness cover,’
‘And be His escort to the Nephilim.’
‘Return in haste so you are not suspected.’
‘They will guard Him from the raging zealots.’
60 The end of Nezulim’s long age draws nigh.
Passage through the ancient gateway loometh.
Azarius the prophet knows the way
To the sacred bridge that fords the chasm.
60-1 Raptors see in Aeon their salvation,
For he alone can call Azarius.
But dragons see their future in the stone,
Nezulim will be saved by another.
The instruction of Aeon, the boy king: Aeon was raised and tutored in the gardens by Azarius.
Blackened Sol or black sun: Sol turns black with a blinding, radiant corona. Rays of this ring of fire gradually destabilizes Vé’s ecology, eventually killing the life of Vallis. Early on, it renders women barren. This era was, otherwise, an era of plenty for humans for, as the garden receded, the forest bounty consolidated around them.
City of the catacombs: In the waning days of Vallis, the Me?ns move their dwellings underground, into abandoned Raptor caverns, to escape the rays of the black sun.
Meeda: The mother of Bafomet, the third heir of King Vyn. She was involuntarily inseminated with Vyn’s essence by the Mosul’s Regians.
