The Darkness of Myth - Chapter 1
A large bird with the wings of an eagle and the head of a chicken sits on a perch in a cave. The bird is a raptorchick; it watches and listens carefully, memorising everything the wizard says as he mixes a bubbling potion in his cauldron.
“Ah,” grumbled the wizard as he was about to add a large chilli pepper from the forest of fire. “I see you are watching carefully.” He raised the pepper so the bird could see it. “Do you know what this is for? It will add fiery heat to my potion… hot enough to turn rock into molten lava.”
He dropped it into the luminous, green, mixture. Flames roared up to the cave roof, singeing his long, hairy eyebrows. He picked up something red and slimy. “And this… this is the growling voice box of an ogre to make the ground shake and, finally, the slime of a thousand snails to make the hot lava crawl across the land.”
He stirred it all in and looked up at his pet. “I’m going to take this potion to that idiot brother of mine; it will make his toy soldiers and tanks come to life and give the useless imbecile a little job to do. He’ll like that.” He became animated and raised his voice. “Soon, Earth and Myth will be mine to command; everyone will cower under my power and you, my precious, big feathered friend, can gather all your kind and become the guardians of my new empire!”
The bird spread its wings and squawked loudly. The wizard clicked his fingers to summon his staff and broomstick; they responded quickly, flying across the cave from a dark corner. The staff found his outstretched hand and the broomstick came to rest on the floor at his feet like an eager puppy.
He dipped the staff into the fiery potion. It sucked out the contents like a straw, finishing with a mighty gurgle. The staff did not grow in size at all; it just magically stored the evil mixture with all his other magical creations, making it one of the most powerful staffs in the land of Myth.
With an evil chuckle, the wizard stepped onto the broomstick and it lifted from the dusty floor. He pointed his staff towards the waterfall that kept his cave entrance hidden from view. The water parted like a pair of curtains and the broom propelled him out into the forest of darkness, a forest so dense that the sky could not be seen.
After many changes of direction, a square of light appeared ahead and, holding a perfect balance and at one with his transportation, he and broomstick soared high into a blue, cloudless sky until the lands of Myth lay far below. He flew over the city of Arros towards the mountains where his brother’s castle lay perched on the edge of a cliff. The broomstick skimmed past the turrets towards a field beyond.
A man dressed as a general stood in front of a ‘V’ formation of mustard coloured tanks. Next to him was a green jeep with a rocket launcher attached to the back. An army of full-size, toy soldiers wearing green uniforms and black boots stood to attention awaiting his command, every one of them brought to life by his childish magic. Krackos landed his broomstick right in front of them.
“Hey! You’re messing up my game!” squealed the general. “Invaders are about to attack my castle and you are in the way!”
Krackos waved his wand and a sprinkling of silver mist came out of its tip. “Calm down, my dear brother,” he said gently. The mist surrounded and silenced the general, leaving him staring into the distance like a statue.
Again, the broomstick lifted, and Krackos flew around him like the moon circling the earth. “I have a little job for you and your army, Odolf; a real job for a real army with real tanks and troops, would you like that?”
Very slowly, Odolf nodded his head.
“I need a home for my evil spell on Earth. I want to teach a lesson to all the goodie-two-shoes creatures of Myth like the tooth fairy, the Easter bunny and Father Christmas. They have all gone soft over the past centuries and it’s time to revert to evil. I am going to eradicate all the kindness and sickening pampering of huuu-mans, and you, my dear brother, are going to command that army.”
Odolf grinned like a child on Christmas morning as Krackos’s words filtered through his trance-like mind. Again he said nothing, but another frantic nod of approval showed glee and excitement.
“I have created a link to Earth using a train set belonging to two nasty children who I am using to my advantage. You will find a smoking volcano there, but it will take too long to naturally blow its top so I would like you and your rockets to help it on its way. Do you understand?”
Still smiling, Odolf silently nodded.
“Good!” bellowed Krackos. He raised his staff. “Now go there and wait until you are summoned!”
Odolf, his castle, his tanks and his army, all vanished in a cloud of smoke.
At three o’clock in the morning, in a farmhouse attic on Earth, a train set lay in darkness while everyone slept.
Inside a model building, a tiny pyramid erupted with a bright, red flash that lit up the entire room. It only lasted a second; then it went to sleep – waiting for its spell to be triggered.
“Ah,” grumbled the wizard as he was about to add a large chilli pepper from the forest of fire. “I see you are watching carefully.” He raised the pepper so the bird could see it. “Do you know what this is for? It will add fiery heat to my potion… hot enough to turn rock into molten lava.”
He dropped it into the luminous, green, mixture. Flames roared up to the cave roof, singeing his long, hairy eyebrows. He picked up something red and slimy. “And this… this is the growling voice box of an ogre to make the ground shake and, finally, the slime of a thousand snails to make the hot lava crawl across the land.”
He stirred it all in and looked up at his pet. “I’m going to take this potion to that idiot brother of mine; it will make his toy soldiers and tanks come to life and give the useless imbecile a little job to do. He’ll like that.” He became animated and raised his voice. “Soon, Earth and Myth will be mine to command; everyone will cower under my power and you, my precious, big feathered friend, can gather all your kind and become the guardians of my new empire!”
The bird spread its wings and squawked loudly. The wizard clicked his fingers to summon his staff and broomstick; they responded quickly, flying across the cave from a dark corner. The staff found his outstretched hand and the broomstick came to rest on the floor at his feet like an eager puppy.
He dipped the staff into the fiery potion. It sucked out the contents like a straw, finishing with a mighty gurgle. The staff did not grow in size at all; it just magically stored the evil mixture with all his other magical creations, making it one of the most powerful staffs in the land of Myth.
With an evil chuckle, the wizard stepped onto the broomstick and it lifted from the dusty floor. He pointed his staff towards the waterfall that kept his cave entrance hidden from view. The water parted like a pair of curtains and the broom propelled him out into the forest of darkness, a forest so dense that the sky could not be seen.
After many changes of direction, a square of light appeared ahead and, holding a perfect balance and at one with his transportation, he and broomstick soared high into a blue, cloudless sky until the lands of Myth lay far below. He flew over the city of Arros towards the mountains where his brother’s castle lay perched on the edge of a cliff. The broomstick skimmed past the turrets towards a field beyond.
A man dressed as a general stood in front of a ‘V’ formation of mustard coloured tanks. Next to him was a green jeep with a rocket launcher attached to the back. An army of full-size, toy soldiers wearing green uniforms and black boots stood to attention awaiting his command, every one of them brought to life by his childish magic. Krackos landed his broomstick right in front of them.
“Hey! You’re messing up my game!” squealed the general. “Invaders are about to attack my castle and you are in the way!”
Krackos waved his wand and a sprinkling of silver mist came out of its tip. “Calm down, my dear brother,” he said gently. The mist surrounded and silenced the general, leaving him staring into the distance like a statue.
Again, the broomstick lifted, and Krackos flew around him like the moon circling the earth. “I have a little job for you and your army, Odolf; a real job for a real army with real tanks and troops, would you like that?”
Very slowly, Odolf nodded his head.
“I need a home for my evil spell on Earth. I want to teach a lesson to all the goodie-two-shoes creatures of Myth like the tooth fairy, the Easter bunny and Father Christmas. They have all gone soft over the past centuries and it’s time to revert to evil. I am going to eradicate all the kindness and sickening pampering of huuu-mans, and you, my dear brother, are going to command that army.”
Odolf grinned like a child on Christmas morning as Krackos’s words filtered through his trance-like mind. Again he said nothing, but another frantic nod of approval showed glee and excitement.
“I have created a link to Earth using a train set belonging to two nasty children who I am using to my advantage. You will find a smoking volcano there, but it will take too long to naturally blow its top so I would like you and your rockets to help it on its way. Do you understand?”
Still smiling, Odolf silently nodded.
“Good!” bellowed Krackos. He raised his staff. “Now go there and wait until you are summoned!”
Odolf, his castle, his tanks and his army, all vanished in a cloud of smoke.
At three o’clock in the morning, in a farmhouse attic on Earth, a train set lay in darkness while everyone slept.
Inside a model building, a tiny pyramid erupted with a bright, red flash that lit up the entire room. It only lasted a second; then it went to sleep – waiting for its spell to be triggered.