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Tarsengaard Crypt & Cave

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The Fall Of Kassius Luxin

 

In the dark depths of the Tarsengaard Cave lies a tomb, which contains a horrific story of a poor soul. The one contained in the tomb is said to be an ancestor of the great Lord Luxin and a member of the royal family. Some have said he was an eccentric man who made very little sense in his actions and beliefs; others perceived him as being a great and noble member of the royal family. The truth of him was never told—until now. This is the story of the fall of Kassius Luxin.

 

On a damp, sultry night, when it seemed as though nothing were alive, young Kassius ventured home from the Island of Roanof. Kassius sometimes though of himself as somewhat of a philospher; he usually spent his time there writing poetry and pondering over many things in life. He walked back to the shore and got onto the small row boat he always took out to the island, and made his way back to Tarsengaard. Once he was on shore, he tied his small boat to the usual rock and continued his journey to White Stone City. As he ventured home in the thick air, he felt a strange presence. It was as though someone or something was watching him. The young man felt the intent gaze of another being, an penetrating stare of discontent. He began to walk at a more of a brisk pace.

 

Kassius felt his heart beating louder as he began to hear footsteps and a broke into a run. Running faster and faster, until he could not run any longer. He collapsed from the lack of breath, only to look back and see a pair of glowing red eyes and the intense breathing of a goblin. The creature drew closer until he could smell the foul stench of rotting flesh upon its sword. Kassius began to think his life was over, and no one would come to his aid. As the beast raised it's dull sword high above its head to make a deadly blow on Kassius, a large gargoyle appears out of the darkness and began to attack the monster. The beast-like creature looked valiant in Kassius' eyes, saving him from his fate. The gargoyle and the goblin disappeared into the darkness.

 

Ever since this encounter, Kassius had believed gargoyles would be his protectors. He thought they would not allow anything to happen to him, and he believed this with his entire soul. Most frowned upon his new found belief; they had said he was turning his back on Aluwen, and for this he would be greatly punished. Kassius payed no attention to those who criticized his actions. The young man felt a need to pay respect to the gargoyles who were his protectors, though he was unsure of how to do this. After much thought on the idea, he began a search for the place to form a temple devoted to the gargoyles. He found the ideal location for his temple—the abandoned mine in Tarsengaard. The mine had been nearly stripped of all it's resources by this point which, to him, made it seem like the perfect place to begin construction on his temple. There would not have been any reason for outsiders to bother him since the mine was abandoned. Kassius began to order statues of significant proportion and expensive jewels with his family's large sum of money. To move these massive statues, he hired the strongest men in his town, and soon everything was coming together and all was coming into its place. It all seemed too good to be true for him.

 

After his magnificent temple was fully constructed, he became a recluse and refused to leave unless it was absolutely necessary. He felt he owed them his life for saving him. His physical appearance had changed from that of a handsome man to a pale sickly looking creature. Nothing about him seemed to be the same as his former self; from his appearance to his personality everything was different. Kassius's eyes were sunken into his head with large, dark circles around them; his once tan, gonlden complexion was pale and dull. Even the elegant clothes and robes he wore had degraded to rags a peasant wouldn't wear. On his rare trips into the wonderful, hustle and bustle of White Stone City, he attracted the stares of all who noticed him. They would all stop from their activity and abandon any conversation to stare at the man who was more pale than the stones which lined the roads. All the people of the town felt sorrow for what has happened to the sad excuse of a man.

 

One pleasant morning, Kassius had been in his prayer room, where he had spent most of his time. It was a small hidden section of the cave with smaller statues, books he had written and collected on gargoyles, and his living supplies. He had been sitting and writing about the elegant gargoyles of his dreams as he usually did when he heard the voice of someone. Kassius was startled since he hadn't heard the voice of another person in his temple for so long. Without thinking, he hurried to his feet and scurried out of his small, obscured room only to find a man with a look of sheer terror on his face. Kassius had recognized him from somewhere, but he was unsure where. After a moment of thought he recovered the memory of the man's identity; it was his parents' servant, Borris Thalinburg.

 

“M'lord,” he said, while gasping for air, as he seemed exhausted, “y—your parents have sent me to deliver an urgent message.” Borris put one hand on the have wall and leaned forward huffing and puffing.

 

“Yes, yes, w-what it is, Borris?” Kassius said growing nervous by the look of the man's face. “Out with it.”

 

“Monsters—Monsters are invading White Stone, sir!” he shouted. “Your parents have sent for you and it is only a matter of time before they reach the castle, you must come with--”

 

“Nothing more needs to be said, I am on my way.”

 

Kassius and Borris made their way out of the cave and into the morning fog of Tarsengaard. Kassius had not packed anything to help because he was in such a hurry. They ran as fast as they could possibly go, showing no haste. All Kassius could think about were his parents and they danger they were facing, and he would not let anything stop him from reaching them. His mind was racing and he could not concentrate on anything except the thud of his feet on the ground and the crunching of autumn leaves below his feet. The two men neared the path in the mountains and without stopping they continued right through, unaware of the possible danger which laid ahead. Kassius was running from adrenaline alone and continued as fast as he started, while Borris struggled to keep up with him. The difference was Kassius was determined to help his family, and this was what Borris lacked. Once they reached the end of the mountains and the fallen leaves, they were happy to see green grass again—it meant they were almost there. After a short period of time, Kassius reached the city wall and took a couple deep breaths before entering.

 

Once had entered the city, he wished he hadn't. He was too late and the massacre had already taken place. The pearl white stones of the road were stained with blood of the people, and he could hear the cries of the frightened and the injured. Kassius made his way through the town, leaving Borris where he had collapsed after seeing the devastation left behind by the monsters. The look of all the survivors upon him made him feel as though it was his fault this had happened. Their stares pierced his soul and made him feel nothing but devastation for everything that had occurred there today. He approached the castle where his family resided and walked in the large, opened door. The sight of the blood in the castle took every ounce of will he had away, and he fell to the floor and let out a piecing scream you would have thought could have been heard for miles. Kassius had lost all control of his emotions when he seen what had happened to his family. After seeing all the blood, he knew no one could have survived. He thought or perhaps he knew it was somehow his fault they had died. They were innocent victims of a savage killing by the hands of some sort of monster. Deep down he felt he should have been there to defend them, or that he should have never turned his back to Aluwen and she would have protected them. What saddened him the most was the gargoyles betrayed him, and didn't protect him and his family as he believed they would. Kassius knew what he had to do.

 

Borris discovered Kassius laying on the floor. He turned him over and shook him, thinking he had fainted, but his body was cold and lifeless. Some people say he poisoned himself after seeing what happened to his family, while others think he gave up his will to live. No one truly knows what happened to him. After his death, they searched the temple and found his prayer room, where they discovered a last will and testament that he had made out. His only request was for he and his family to be buried in the temple he sacrificed so much of his life to make. Everyone gathered at his temple to pay their respects to the royal family at their burial. A few kind words were said about everyone who was buried by the remaining friends and family. Once all was said and done, all the people filed out of the temple and continued with their dailylives. After a few days, perhaps even weeks, people began to notice gargoyles entering the temple and remaining there. It appeared that they wanted to protect the family in death, since they were not able to in life.

Edited by Beorn

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You cannot work on a rough draft until your summary is approved. Please be sure to read and follow ALL instructions as posted in the Story line procedures thread! :D

 

At any rate, this sounds pretty interesting, and I do approve it. Some questions that arise when I read it:

Why did he believe gargoyles are his protectors? How did he become involved with gargoyles in the first place? When did he first "meet" one?

Why would the "lost spirits of the family" need protection?

 

These questions are ones that you may want to answer in the story. And if you have any idea blocks or need help, feel free to post here to have others help you work it out. I really want to take the story process step by step with you guys so to come up with good quality works :happy:

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Been doing some work. I'll be able to do more because I'm not taking G.E.D. classes after work and I don't work this weekend. I should have a rough draft by Monday.

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This is what I have so far. They called me in to work the weekend so I wrote a few paragraphs on a napkin and a coaster during my breaks.. :cry: More to come soon.

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Ok, sounds good so far :cry:

 

A few things to note:

Since he's coming home from Roanof..wouldn't he be in a boat and going to Tarsengaard city? I pictured him doing that, then you wrote that "He began to walk at more of a brisk pace". So add something in there that says he used a boat first then got out and started walking or something. Basically, you need to add more imagery to see the story properly.

 

Another thing to watch out for is to keep it in 3rd person Past tense. You changed from past to present in this sentence: "a large gargoyle appears out of the darkness and begins to attack the monster"

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I'm pretty sure it's finished I'll probably need to add a few things and make a few grammatical corrections, but yeah..it's finished to me.

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It's a nice read.

 

I'll have phildaburn read over it for spelling and grammatical errors.

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Beorn, see if this reads a bit easier. Phil...

 

 

 

The Fall of Kassius Luxin

 

In the dark depths of Tarsengaard Cave lies an oft forgotten tomb that holds a horrific story of a poor soul. The one contained in the tomb is said to be an ancestor of the great Lord Luxin. Some say he was an eccentric man whose actions and beliefs made very little sense. Others perceived him as being a great and noble member of the royal family. The truth about him has remained buried until now. This is the story of the fall of Kassius Luxin.

 

On a damp and sultry night, when it seemed as though nothing were alive, young Kassius, who sometimes imagined he was a philosopher, was tired from writing poetry and pondering the mysteries of life. He'd had a full day and needed to venture home from the Island of Roanof. He walked back to the shore, got into the small row boat he always took out to the island and made his way back to Tarsengaard. Once he was ashore, he tied his small boat to the usual rock and began making his way back toward White Stone City.

 

As he walked through the thick air, he suddenly felt a strange presence. It was as though someone, or something, was watching him. The young man felt the intent gaze of another being, a penetrating stare of discontent and malice that made the small hairs on the back of his neck rise. He began walking at a more hurried pace. Kassius felt his heart beating louder. When he began to hear footsteps, he broke into a run. He was running faster and faster, until the intense pain in his side made him unable to run any longer.

 

He collapsed, gasping for air, only to look back and see a pair of glowing red eyes and the intense breath of a goblin. The creature drew closer until he could smell the foul stench of rotting flesh upon its sword. Kassius began to think his life was over and no one would come to his aid. As the red-eyed monster raised its dull sword high above its head to make a killing blow, Kassius saw a large gargoyle appear out of the darkness and begin attacking it. The beast-like, stony-looking creature looked valiant in his eyes, saving him from his fate. Still fighting each other, the gargoyle and the goblin disappeared into the darkness.

 

Ever since that encounter, Kassius believed gargoyles would be his protectors. He thought they would not allow anything bad to happen to him and he believed this with his entire soul. Most frowned upon his new-found belief. They said he was turning his back on Aluwen and for this he would be greatly punished. Kassius paid no attention to those who criticized his actions.

 

The young man felt a need to pay respect to the gargoyles who were his protectors, though he was unsure of how to do this. After much thought on the idea, he began to search for a place to build a temple devoted to the gargoyles. He found the ideal location for his temple in the abandoned mine in Tarsengaard. The mine had been nearly stripped of all its resources at this point which, to him, made it seem like the perfect place to begin construction on the temple. Kassius began to order statues of significant proportion and expensive jewels. To move these massive statues, he hired the strongest men in his town. Soon everything was coming together and all of the pieces were falling into place. It all seemed too good to be true for him.

 

After his magnificent temple was fully constructed, he became a recluse refusing to leave unless it was absolutely necessary. His physical appearance had changed from that of a handsome man to a pale, sickly-looking creature. Nothing about him seemed to be the same as his former self. From his appearance to his personality, everything was different. Kassius's eyes were sunken into his head with large dark circles around them; his once tan, bright complexion became pasty and dull; even the elegant clothes and robes he wore were degraded to rags even a peasant would refuse to wear. On his rare trips into the wonderful hustle and bustle of White Stone City, he attracted stares of all who noticed him. They would all stop their activity or abandon their conversations to stare at the man who was paler than the stones which lined the roads. All the people of the town felt sorrow for what had happened to this sad excuse for a man.

 

One pleasant morning, Kassius was in his prayer room where he spent most of his time in private meditation. It was a small hidden section of the cave with smaller statues, books he had written and collected on gargoyles and his living supplies. He had been sitting and writing more about the elegant gargoyles of his dreams, as he usually did, when he heard someone’s voice calling. Kassius was startled, since he hadn't heard the voice of another person in his temple for so long. Without thinking, he hurried to his feet and scurried out of his small obscured room only to find a man with a look of sheer terror on his face. Kassius recognized him from somewhere, but he was unsure where. After a moment of thought, however, he recovered the memory of the man's identity; it was his parents' servant, Borris Thalinburg.

 

"M'lord," he said as he gasped for air, he seemed exhausted. "Y- your parents have sent me to deliver an urgent message." Borris put one hand on the cave wall and leaned forward huffing and puffing.

 

"Yes, yes, w-what it is, Borris?" Kassius said growing nervous by the look of the man's face. "Out with it."

 

"Monsters! Monsters are invading White Stone, sir!" he shouted. "Your parents have sent for you and it is only a matter of time before they reach the castle, you must come with.."

 

"Nothing more needs to be said, I am on my way."

 

Kassius and Borris made their way out of the cave and into the morning fog of Tarsengaard. They ran as fast as they could possibly go. All Kassius could think about was his parents and the danger they were facing. With a renewed sense of determination, he would not let anything stop him from reaching them. His mind was racing and he could not concentrate on anything except the thudding of his feet on the ground and the crunching of autumn leaves as he ran. The two men approached the pass in the mountains and without stopping they continued right through, unaware of the possible dangers which lay ahead.

 

Kassius continued as strong and as fast as he could while Borris struggled to keep up with him. The difference was Kassius's determination to help his family which is what Borris lacked. Once they reached the end of the mountains and fallen leaves they were happy to see green grass again which meant they were almost there. A short while later Kassius reached the city wall and took a couple of deep breaths before continuing.

 

Upon entering the city, Kassius immediately wished he had not. He was too late and the massacre had already taken place. The pearly white stones of the road were slippery and stained with the blood of its people and he could hear the cries of the frightened and injured survivors. Kassius made his way through the town leaving Borris where he had collapsed after seeing the devastation left behind by the monsters. The looks all the survivors cast upon him made him feel as though it were his fault this had happened. Their stares pierced his soul and made him feel nothing but sorrow for everything that had occurred there.

 

He approached the castle where his family resided and walked through the large door that was hanging open. The sight of all that blood in the castle took away every last ounce of will he had and he fell to the floor letting out a piercing scream you would have thought could be heard for miles. Kassius had lost all control of his emotions when he saw what had happened to his family. He thought, or perhaps he knew, it was somehow his fault they had died. Deep down he felt he should have been there to defend them or he should have never turned his back on Aluwen so she would have protected them. What saddened him the most was that the gargoyles he had honored by building them a temple had betrayed him by failing to protect him and his family.

 

Some time later, Borris discovered Kassius lying on the floor. When he turned him over and shook him thinking he had fainted, Kassius's body was cold and lifeless. Some say he poisoned himself after seeing what had happened to his family while others think he gave up the will to live. No one truly knows what happened.

 

After his death, they searched the temple. When they found his prayer room, they also discovered his last will and testament. His only request was for he and his family to be buried in the temple he had sacrificed so much of his life to make.

 

Everyone gathered at his temple to pay their respects to the royal family at their funeral. A few kind words were said about everyone who was buried by the remaining friends and family. Once all was said and done, all the people filed out of the temple and continued on with their usual lives. A short while later, people noticed gargoyles entering the temple and remaining. It seemed they wanted to protect the family in death since they were unable to do so in life.

Edited by Acelon

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It sounds better now.

 

Thing is, it doesn't fully explain what's in the cave..I mean there are a lot of gravestones and more than just 3 coffins for the family.

Also, I find it odd that the people would bury the family in that temple because they all thought Kassius was odd. I can see them buring him there. Wouldn't his parents have had something in their wills for where they want to be buried? so why did Kassius' take precedence? And what are those other tombstones/coffins for in the cave?

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