EPISODE ONE

Grinnwold Castle, led by Sir Thomas and Lady Lucia, was an 182.588 acres
property and by its measure one of the smaller ones that made the Isle of
Qwuin-Keirron , it had the main harbor and was situated many miles from the
mainland of West-Keirron where the mighty King Arnathon ruled. The
King`s wife, Milady Tess, was believed to be a witch of the Mordigans from
the South, known for their ruthless behavior against enemies and led by
GuanBulan.
“It is always much better to be polite , when you are to have an entrance with
a lady, so would you be so kind ?” Softly he spoke and his beguiling smile set
her on fire and willingly she spread her wings.. to enable him to have his
entrance with his lady. Their love was unlimited, they had no time set and it
lasted from evening till evening until their passion had set to rest. With no
shortage of wine and food they had fully spent their time making love and
now it was time for him ..to show her.. his castle. As they stepped into to
hallway of Grinnwold Castle, Lady Lucia takes his hand and is led by Sir
Thomas to see the Castle. At the end of the hallway there is this mighty
staircase, build out of oak from the surrounding woods. It leads down all four
floors to the main entrance and even further …into the kitchen and cellars
down below. Sir Thomas shows all of his family portraits to Lady Lucia and it
takes them a while and a lot of laughter to finally enter the main hall. She
admires the sculpted end of the stairs, two dragons at the end of each rail ,
sculpted with great detail. “When you look up, you will see the armored
balustrade of the stairway…armored with a dozen , out of oak sculpted
knights, every single one of them telling a story of their own”. Sir Thomas
said. One place was left open for the future knight and legend. Would Sir
Thomas become one of them?
“Will you tell me all you know about them?” Lady Lucia asks, whilst looking at
the vacant place.. “Off course my love, off course “ Sir Thomas replies. “But
first I would like you to come with me to the little river, we can have a bath
there without being disturbed”. He looks her in the eye and whispers “Would
you like that?” Even before she can answer him, he takes her by the hand
and out the grand door they go, straight to the stables. Grooms bow and
silently they saddle two of the most favorite horses and away they go! The

path is narrow, but the horses are used to it and it seems like they fly through
the woods and shortly before the sun sets they arrive at the river. A small one
, but he calls it the stream of cascades. Little pools of fresh running water ,
chained up by cascades,.. big and small, this is where they will wash their
bodies and glans their souls. As there is not much time, they hurry a little.
“Need to be back before dark!” he out-shouts the cascading water. She looks
at him and with a smile, “Not afraid of me! I may hope!” “No my dear, no fear
at all, but it`s always better to keep up the guards !” he replies. So she
understands and by the incoming night they set off for the castle. Two mighty
towers rise against the ending sunset as they arrive at the castle. The woods
shiver and a cold wind blows as the gate opens to let them in. “Messenger
from the mainland has arrived, Sir Thomas!” excitement is in the eyes of the
guard and he points towards the main hall. Inside a fire has been started by
the servants and the house maids are running around to help prepare the
bedrooms and menu for Sir Thomas, Lady Lucia and their guest. Lady Lucia
apologizes, as she understands the rules of states matter with the arrival of
the messenger and heads for her quarters. The messenger introduces
himself “Sir Thomas, I am Sir Walther the third from West-Keirron and I have
a message for you by the King!” and handed over a scroll , sealed with the
King`s seal. Sir Thomas opened the seal and rolled out the scroll. Inside it
was hiding the Golden King`s seal and some of the rare Malva blue wax, only
to be used by the King. There was only one seal known to exist, so this was
rather peculiar . For a moment they stared at one and other. And holding the
precious King`s seal in his hand, Sir Thomas started reading.
“Dear Thomas, as you read this I will not be alive anymore. I have sealed this
scroll myself and handed it over to Walther the 3rd in order to be safe, he is
the only one I still do trust. Only a few months ago it all started,.. the
Mordigans from the South have asked me to help them with their useless war
against the Giants of the North, but I refused. Milady Tess was furious and
promised them help, in spite of my refusal! Unheard of!! So I had to separate
her in the castle and banned her to her quarters and had them guarded. One
way or the other she escaped and was taken in by the Mordigans as an
heroes , their new Queen! Now she tries to overtake West-Keirron and I am
to die because of her poisoning me!! This slow poison is taking me down like
a meaningless worm , slowly but definitely!! She herself has assured me that
the small amount of poison she gave me at our last meeting would be
sufficient enough to kill me, and I do believe her! I would like you to be my

successor and rule my Kingdom as I would have done. Beware of the now
new Mordigans Queen, she will be relentless in order to gain the Kingdom. As
I know her cold hardness, she will not give up!! One advise I can give you, as
soon as you have the chance : BURN HER!!! And her ashes are to be thrown
of the highest cliff there is, Westwards into the Formidable Sea by
Eastwinds! I do trust you to be the future King, as do my people ! I wish for
you all the good luck you can get…, you will need it!! If you do succeed I hope
for a burial, worthy a King! I have enclosed myself in my quarters, you should
find me there. Use the seal to endorse your way into my, or rather, your
Kingdom and people to be!
All the best and good luck my friend,
King Arnathon of West-Kierron.

Sir Thomas looked up to Sir Walther the 3rd, “You know nothing about its
contents?.... Or has the King spoken to you about it?” “No “ Sir Walther
applied, “not a word”.. ”But by the look on your face, I should guess it’s no
good!” No good at all!” Sir Thomas knotted and handed over the scroll,
“Read for yourself, I will have the meal served and afterwards we will discuss
the matter, but for now.. please not a word to Lady Lucia!” Sir Walther took
the scroll and said he would not say anything to Lady Lucia. He sat down in a
chair and started reading. Sir Thomas pulled the chamber cord and one of the
servants entered the room. “I would like diner to be served, please call Lady
Lucia to the dining room”. The servant bowed and went to the kitchen to give
the order for diner and called another chamber maid to fetch Lady Lucia .
Little was spoken during dinner, although Sir Walther the 3 rd appraised the
food for its taste and quantity. As the wine bottle emptied and the men came
to talk about other matters, Lady Lucia again apologized and left for her
quarters. While the servants started cleaning up the table, both men retrieved
into the library. In here they had access to all knowledge and privacy they
need to discuss the King`s request. They knew it would be a late night and Sir
Thomas ordered one of the servants to start the fire and bring them some
wine. The evenings of early fall could be cold and windy, while during the day
it could be warm still. Now, sitting in front of the fire, warming up, the wind
chilled the castle . This was going to be one of the first cold nights of early
fall. Getting warmed by the fire and the wine, Sir Thomas and Sir Walther

were discussing the possibilities of saving the Kingdom ,as asked by King
Arnathon of West-Kierron. Sir Thomas, at one point, opted to get help from
Hyruidius. A man known for his knowledge of the plants moons and planets ,
keeper of time and other mysterious matters. Uncertainty of his loyalty to King
Arnathon led them to wait and see if they would be able to sort things out
themselves in the first place. At a later point they might have to send for him
anyway. Little was known about Hyruidius ways and whereabouts, as he lived
deep in the forest and had very little contact with people in general. Some
people believed him to be a sorcerer, others just regarded him as a lunatic.
And if he could be of any help, was to be seen. Having discussed many
options but not being able to come up with a solution as just yet, they decided
to get some sleep and went to bed. Next morning they should be able to start
were they left-of with a fresh mind and maybe some ideas would come into
their minds during the night. A dream had made his sleep restless and no
answer had come to mind, so the next day Sir Thomas was not in the very
best of moods, you can imagine. The friendly smile and tender words of Lady
Lucia did well and he was prepared to sort the matter out with the help of Sir
Walther the 3 rd . But one thing stuck in his mind that had occurred in his
dream, a face he had never seen before , unknown to him and he did not
really know what to do with it. A bearded , but still vivant looking man with
sharp blue eyes, you never forget once seen! They seem to have looked right
through him, a shivering experience! Kind of reminded him of the eyes of
Milady Tess, she also has that look! But her eyes would turn black! As the
blackest of nights you could imagine and you would have the experience to
turn into solid!. That, he had experienced once, while visiting King Arnathon
and her, but she finally turned her head and walked away, it felt like a warning
at that time. Now he knew, he was a warned man and would be very careful
in his approach to her. All day long the men discussed all possibilities and
ended with the words, “Let the war begin!”
First they send a messenger to the Giants of the North , asking them if they
could join them in their battle against the Mordigans of the South.
Strengthening both armies should bring the Mordigans of the South to their
knees very soon! The King of the Giants of the North, King Johann the Great,
refused and had laughed loud given the message! How dared they! Nobody
ever would join the Giants of the North! Unthinkable, he would rather die first!
And that was not going to happen, he had replied! The messenger had
returned with this unfortunate message written on fish skin, still smelly and

the message was clear, no support to be expected from them! There they
were, back at square one but Sir Thomas had more options, one of them was
to get the man from the woods. He send another messenger into the woods
to get Hyruidius and ordered the messenger to be quick about it. As evening
comes the messenger is on his way into the woods for Hyruidius and is riding
one of Sir Thomas`s best horses, a dark breed of horse from the lower Island,
where the woods they grow up are almost impenetrable . These horses are
used to run very fast through thick woods with their feet they sense the
surrounding woods and can instantly react on upcoming obstacles. Still it
took the messenger three days to find Hyruidius, and two days back to bring
him to the castle. Every day it is getting colder now fall is starting and the fire
places burn all day long, giving warmth to all living in the castle. Women are
knitting new winter cloths and dying them with the colors of the available dye
made of plants. Plants harvested in the springtime and summer, have been
cooked and reduced to dye, now used to make colorful clothing. Hyruidius
makes his first acquaintance to Grinnwold Castle and Sir Thomas, Lady Lucia
and Sir Walther the 3 rd . Sir Thomas recognizes him immediately as the man
from his dream. At first Hyruidius wants no part of a war against West-
Keirron, as he has no knowledge of that part of the world they live in, he says,
until he finds out the plans of Milady Tess, now Queen of the Mordigans of
the South. “I know what poison she has used on King Arnathon , and I know
also the anti- dote. If we arrive within 28 days after submission of the poison, I
can still retrieve him, save him, bring him back to live!” Hyruidius sudden
come around to being a helpful force, is gladly accepted by all and they need
to make new plans immediately! If only they are in time to safe the King, they
know they stand a better chance against all enemies thinkable. The Kings
connections abroad will become very helpful in this matter, but only when
requested by the King himself! His allies are from the East, where the men
walk in skirts and laugh about the stories of the Mordigans of the South! They
call themselves the Decapitados and behead every enemy without
questioning. Their leader NosCull was the worst of them all, believed to be
ten foot high and weigh about five-hundred-pounds!! Even the Mordigans of
the South have a deep respect for the Decapitados, but fear?, no, no fear! Sir
Thomas sets himself to write a couple of scrolls in name of King Arnathon,
ready to be send away as soon as Hyruidius is convinced of the revival of
King Arnathon. In these scrolls he explains the reason why and asks the
important question for help. Outnumbered by the Mordigans of the South,

they can use every hand they can get. Sir Thomas and Sir Walther the 3 rd
plan their troops and divide all men in groups to set off to war. Heavily armed
they are on their way to the coast, where ships will embark them and sail to
West-Keirron. The Grinnwold Castle is defended by a small group of the elder
and youngest men, supported by women with “hair on their teeth”. As no
attack on Grinnwold Castle is to be expected, arms are low but some of the
people should be capable of producing their own. There`s a 73 year old
blacksmith who, with the help of the younger ones, could make some. Lady
Lucia also stays behind to run Grinnwold Castle and keep up moral. Their last
night together has been like in the movies, with romantic music, violins
playing and angels singing to them while they were making love. There were
no tears and no goodbye`s , just “Later”.
THE STORM AND THE GREAT WAR
Heading for West-Keirron the tall ships were accompanied by the smaller vessels
that carried supplies and arms. The journey would last at least four days, with the
wind and the tides in their favor. If not it could be “a hell of a lot longer”, so the
captain said. But all went very well until the third day, dark clouds on the horizon
were the bad message. The captain was worried, in these parts of the sea you
would not want any kind of storm. Treacherous cliffs just below sea level could rip
any ship apart, no matter what they were built of. A calm sea would provide you
with the knowledge of the crow’s-nest information, so you could evade them. But
in this storm, anything could happen! As the captain speaks there`s a raise of the
seas and the wind is starting to strengthen . He orders to lower sail and steer the
ship`s bow into the wind. Everyone on board is ready for this storm and some of
them even tie themselves to a mast or wooden rail on deck. But no one expected
this giant wave coming in sideways , turning the ship upside down in a second,
leaving all in the water, except for those that had tied themselves down, they
drowned. Sir Thomas, Sir Walther and Hyruidius were among the survivors and
were floating in the sea. A strong current drew them, between two cliffs, towards
the main land. Helpless they had to let themselves carry by the water and the
storm until they landed on a beach. By then it was dreadful to see only a handful
of men had survived and with them few supplies had also landed on the beach.
Sir Thomas and Hyruidius took care of Sir Walther the 3 rd who was badly injured
on his head by a trunk from one of the vessels. He died after a couple of hours
and was buried in the dunes. This left Sir Thomas and Hyruidius with a couple of
men. From these men there were 3 out of 4 wounded and Sir Thomas and

Hyruidius left them on the beach with little supplies . It would be a miracle if they
were in time to rescue the king, as it was a miracle that they had survived!
Onwards they went and they decided to follow the coastal line, in hope to find a
village near it. During their journey they saw multiple Islands, some close and
some further away, but no sign of main land. Could it be possible that the storm
had wipe them so far away from the main land? Were they even on the main
land? All these questions run though their minds as suddenly Hyruidius spots a
small boat, pulled ashore, almost hidden in the bushes. Such a relieve! a sign of
live! They hurry to the boat, only to discover that it is just the carcass of it! This
could have come from anyplace, anywhere! No sign of a name on it, nothing at all!
As the storm fades, they have to find a place for the night. Hyruidius suggests that
they stay as high as they can, for at night they should be able to see a light in the
distance. So they climb the steep dunes and on top of them they can see as far as
the next one, even bigger and higher! Down they go and almost out of breath
they finally reach the top of the next one. As darkness sets in, it is just in time and
all they can do now is wait. Tired they fight hunger and sleep, only to learn there`s
no light to be seen from the dune they are on. Suddenly a sound wakes them up
and they stare in the direction it came from, straight ahead! It sounds like a horn,
but much louder, like it is blowing your ears off! Out of nothing the ground below
them starts to move and they take a run for it! “ A Hopper!” Hyruidius shouts,
“Follow me.., Run!” and he starts to run upwards the closest dune he can find,
“Going down must be faster and easier!” Sir Thomas replies. “That`s what he
thinks too! Just follow me!” Hyruidius doesn`t take no for an answer and points the
direction they should go “That way!” and he tumbles in a whole in the top of the
dune followed by Sir Thomas, they keep on tumbling through the system of
tunnels before they fall down on the ground and all suddenly is very quiet.
Hyruidius looks at Sir Thomas and he says “I do not like the sound of this, but
look.. there is a light, let`s find out what it is! The men set foot to what they believe
will be the way out of this system and already feel a cold wind blowing . “That
must be from outside “ Sir Thomas and Hyruidius follow the path to the light and
as they close in they see where the light is coming from. A group of very small
people are sitting around a bulb of what appears to be light, but there`s no flame!
Hyruidius whispers, “ Algae , bio luminescent algae!” I have heard of it but never
seen before!” Wonderful!” “Strangers, be quiet! DO NOT MOVE!” And they froze.
The little people looked their way and they looked back, they all froze. A small
earthquake seamed to happen after which the small people were to sigh and
filled with relieve Sir Thomas and Hyruidius stepped forwards. “I am Sir Thomas

from the Isle of Qwuin-Keirron and this is Hyruidius, my advisor”, we are on our
way to West-Keirron and could use some help”. One of the little people stood up
and said, “Was your “advisor” not aware of the Hopper?” It seemed to me you did
not know what to do!”.. “I am Elog, leader of the Figgen , we live in the Dunes and
sell the building sands to the builders of Kirian. Kirian is the closest to West-
Keirron of King Arnathon, which King we honor! But too far for us to trade with.
The builders of Kirian do. They are big and strong!!!”. The little people cheered
and were obviously happy with the builders of Kirian! They sat together and after
Sir Thomas showed the King`s seal and red the scroll, all Figgen became his
friends and allies and they would see to it that they travelled to West-Keirron as
soon and fast as possible! Sir Thomas and Hyruidius were fed and put into
improvised beds to sleep. Meanwhile the Figgen notified the builders of Kirian and
arranged transport to West-Keirron. Word travels fast and before they were
asleep, a great deal of the Kings friends knew they were on their way! And so was
help!, this was good for moral and many people cheered and drunk themselves to
sleep!. But he next day would be such a different one! Some of the builders of
Kirian had been bribed , and tried to sabotage the journey. “All kinds of delay must
be avoided in order to save the King!’ Elog has spoken with a loud voice and let
there be no doubt of his intentions to bring this to an good end. Undoubtedly he
had been heard by his people, known for their “not giving up” mentality, stubborn
even. Within all their power they broke the resistant builders and banned them to
the war-zone against the Mordigans of the South. With only a few days left of
their time to save the King, Sir Thomas and Hyruidius finally reached the Capitol
of West-Keirron and headed straight for the King`s palace. Aided by the King`s
followers they were brought to the closed section where the King was believed to
stay. The only problem was the guard at the King`s quarters, who firmly believed
in not letting anyone in, so he promised the King. But the scroll and the King`s
seal persuaded the man and he unlocked the doors to the King`s quarters . He
opened the doors and Sir Thomas and Hyruidius entered the King`s quarters. First
thing where they looked was his bedroom, nothing there. Next was the King`s
Library, empty! On to his meeting room, with the octagonal table one of the
largest, but still no one there! Where could he be! Hyruidius asked for the scroll
and studied it carefully, looking for any clue whatsoever! “It must be in here
somewhere!” he said and sat down on the King`s throne. “Hyruidius!’Not there,
please!” Sir Thomas reacted shocked and guided Hyruidius to another chair.
That`s when Hyruidius suddenly stood up and said, “But of course ! Look at his
seat, it is the only chair not used by a Sir, just like he not mentioned the word Sir

on the scroll! We need to examine the throne for a special device. Wait a minute, I
know! He also said to use the King`s seal to obtain entrance in HIS Kingdom!
Let`s look carefully at the throne, somewhere the seal should fit in!” His
enthusiasm tickled Sir Thomas and they examined the throne from all sides, but
again , no result! “Well, I don`t know about this all, we have almost turned the
throne inside out!” Sir Thomas said, almost ready to give up. “Inside out!”.. Upside
down.. that’s it!” Hyruidius said and grabbed the throne at the top where there
were two towers sculpted on each side of the chair`s hand rests. He tried to turn
each of them anyway around when suddenly one of the towers seemed to bend
backwards, leaving an opening where there could be seen a print of the King`s
seal! Hyruidius pressed the King`s seal into the opening and it turned halfway by
itself when suddenly, at the back wall of the room something moved. It looked like
the Chester drawers had turned half a circle , and now showed the entrance of a
secret room. Inside they went and there in another bed laid the King, pale white
skin and longtime dead, for sure! Hyruidius examined the King and draw some
blood from his fingertip with a small knife and held it against the sunlight. He
waited a while, until the color of the blood changed from black to light-red. “Send
out the scrolls, I am sure I can save the King!’ and immediately put some droplets
of the anti-dote under the King`s tongue. Opened a window and waved some
fresh air towards the King, who was already getting a bit more color. Sir Thomas
hasted to the main hall of the palace and send away the messengers with the
scrolls , in order to get help from the allies! As soon as the messengers were on
their way he hasted back to the King`s quarters, where Hyruidius was taking care
of the King. “You are the keeper of time, do we still have time?” he asked
Hyruidius, who knotted his head, “Yes , we do have time on our side, the King will
live!” He spoke calmly and assured Sir Thomas that there was nothing to worry
about. It probably would take about a day or so for the King to rise from the dead.
The best thing Sir Thomas could do was to get some sleep and be well rested the
following day, Hyruidius would take care for the King and watch over him thru the
night. Sir Thomas took his advice and head for his bedroom, but first he asked the
King`s servant to bring him and Hyruidius something to eat. Tired as he is from
the last few days and with his belly full, he finds his way into his dreams. Hyruidius
had taken care of the King, who by morning was breathing normal and had
opened his eyes a couple of times. Sir Thomas send Hyruidius away to get some
rest and together with the King`s Lord of Chamber he took care of the King.
Slowly the King recovered and by the end of the next day he sat in a chair beside
his bed, listening to the stories of Sir Thomas and Hyruidius. Still week, he

proposed a toast to all good life and for the first time he ate some food and drank
a little wine. “Now you must have a good night rest and tomorrow you will feel
much better and stronger!” Hyruidius looked at the King and continued, “Take this
medicine , it will help you through the night” and gave the King a few droplets .
“Thank you, Hyruidius, thank you for giving back my life, after this is over I will
reward you a King`s worthy!” And you too, Sir Thomas, thanks to your
persistence’s, and well taken advice of all people , you have made all this
possible!” The King`s gratitude was obvious and both men bowed and returned
their thanks to the King. As they walked thru the hallway Sir Thomas asked
Hyruidius about the King`s eyes, “They seem to stare in the distance”. he said,
Hyruidius answered, “I have noticed it also, tomorrow I will know more, I don`t
think it is of any concern” They all went to sleep and would be well rested the
following morning to take on their next task.. the war against the Mordigans of the
South. At night Sir Thomas felt like he had been drugged , all seems so far away
and did he really hear Milady Tess`s voice? “He won`t be of any trouble anymore”
he heard her say and for a moment thought he saw her shadow. Then he lost
consciousness , to be never awake again? One should think that the same
occurred to Hyruidius but he was the wise one and already had seen that
something didn`t fit. He had only taken a very small sip from the last drink with
the King, because he had seen something with the King that didn`t add up. By his
own measures the King should have taken much longer to recover than he did
and that led him to one explanation whatsoever! The King had been drugged
much later than they were led to believe! Once Hyruidius had reached his
chambers he took a little anti-dote and started searching for a way out. He had
one advantage over the King.. the King`s seal was still in his possession!, so he
tried to find a similar device like the throne had and searched the whole place.
Hour after hour he searched and looked everywhere he could, when finally he saw
the solution.. one of the wall-panels were cut out with the two towers like the
throne was. He tried to move them one by one, nothing…then he tried to move
them simultaneously.. nothing again.. at last he moved them simultaneously but in
opposite direction and there you go, finally he had found the insert for the King`s
seal and pushed the seal in it. Again it turned by itself and the wall –panel started
moving. Hyruidius took out the King`s seal and swiftly he moved through the
hidden door and it silently closed behind him! Now he had a chance to get out,
although he had no explanation for all of this yet, he knew there was something
horribly wrong! First he wanted to find Sir Thomas, but his room was at the other
end of the palace, giving him not much time until day would brake! By that time he

had to be far away from the palace, they would look for him and once they found
out he had escaped, he would not be safe anywhere! Before that time he hoped to
have reached the builders of Kirian, to finally get to the Figgen . They were the
only ones he really trusted and hoped to be there in time, as he had guessed by
now that Sir Thomas would have been drugged also! On his way he went thru the
secret tunnels of the castle where he, at one time, could hear the voice of Milady
Tess . The conversation she had , led him to believe it was with the King, as she
forced him to take some kind of drug! Things were getting clearer now, but he
needed to make hast!, if he was to get away alive! After a while he understood
the tunnel system and found a way out. Disguised as a monk he traveled to the
builders of Kirian and without letting them know who he was, they gave him
passage to the Dunes of the Figgen. This all has taken him six days, six days of
hide and seek, pretending and running from the West-Keirron guards and people
who were against the freedom of the King! But now he finally had reached the
Dunes of the Figgen and asked for a meeting with Elog, their leader. “This is a
serious allegation my friend, or should I say traitor!” Hyruidius for a moment didn`t
know what to say, this was not what he had expected!, he a traitor?” Unthinkable!,
so he protested firmly against this allegation . “Traitor, me?” “Are you out of your
mind?” “If that would be true, what would I be doing here then , hey?” Hyruidius
replied and the anger was seen on his face by Elog. “Alright, no need to be upset!”
Elog said, “I only wanted to see what I was up against!” So the men shook hands
and they sat for hours and hours talking about the things they had to do next, what
moves they should make. It was a real advantage that Hyruidius had the King`s
seal and he knew Milady Tess and what she was capable off. Elog was curious
about that, how come he knew her and her ways? he had asked and did Hyruidius
have an answer to all these tricks? Hyruidius said he had, but didn`t want to
comment on that for the moment. “You`ll just wait and see!” he answered. Elog
trusted Hyruidius and had a messenger send to the Giants of the North and the
Decapitators, in order to get them to join the Figgen in their battle against West-
Keirron and the Mordigans of the South. He also send a messenger to the Isle of
Qwuin-Keirron, to bring the latest news to Lady Lucia. The Figgen were
formidable blacksmiths and had all kinds of tools. They also were great arms men
and had very good bows men. Handling a sword was no problem and they had
the capability of surprising the enemy because of their height. And then there was
the fact that there were many of them, thousands and thousands of Figgen al the
way along the coast. Where there were Dunes, there were Figgen! Some of them
even had succeeded in catching and training the Hopper, used as a fearless

transport and quaking device against all enemies! Elog had ordered them to catch
and train more of these Hoppers, to strengthen the army and bring fear to the
enemy! Soon one of the messengers returned from the North with the same
message Sir Thomas had before, No help there! But the other brought good news
from the Decapitators, they still had some business to take care of with the
Mordigans of the South and were pleased to be invited. Elog set the tables for
battle and Hyruidius and he gave instructions for the first part of the journey. From
now on all men were armed and ready for battle as they set of for the boundaries
of the West-Kerrion border. As little as they were, the Figgen made fast progress
and by the end of the second day, the Mountains of the builders of Kirian were in
sight. This was the first big hurdle to take on their way to West-Keirron , but it
hardly slowed them down. This persistence was what they were known for, Figgen
didn`t back off, they fearlessly attacked! As they knew they were outnumbering
the enemy, they just kept on coming, more and more!. Over the mountains they
got and everywhere they came, people cheered and joined them, with the Figgen
at your side, you just couldn`t lose! The army grew bigger and bigger and by the
time they reached the border of West-Keirron they were with many of thousands!
But the real battle still had to begin and every single of those men were aware of
the possibility not coming back home again. But they did it for the future of the
Kingdom and the freedom of their children! Up to this point, no sign of enemy
movement had occurred and it seemed all quiet as they crossed the border of
West-Keirron. To quiet.. in fact there was no one to be seen or heard on the first
day of their quest against Milady Tess and the Mordigans of the South! Hyruidius
asked Elog if he could leave the army and head first to the Capitol to see what
was going on. Elog gave him permission and with armed guards he left. Two days
they had to ride Eastwards before they got behold of the Capitol. Multiple towers
raised against the planes of West-Keirron and the men set up camp within sight of
the Capitol. As soon as darkness fell Hyruidius took two men and set of in the
direction of the Capitol. Unsure of what was to be, he was very careful and told
the men to be silent. Thru the darkness they went and after a while they reached
the city walls, without having seen anybody at all! Hyruidius was a warned man
and taking all precaution he could to avoid being taken prison. The Capitol was
unlit, totally unlit and that seemed strange to Hyruidius, A big city like the Capitol
should have lights at all times! Then suddenly he saw a figure sit too.

This was the work of Milady Tess he told them and they silently entered the
Capitol. Hyruidius mumbled some spells and he and the men were protected
against the spell of Milady Tess, however they were told not to touch any of the
wooden figures! One instantly became a wooden figure themselves! Curious
about Sir Thomas Hyruidius decided to go to the Palace to go and find him there.
He gave the men a small bottle of anti-dote and instructions how to admit it, so
they started to revive the people of the Capitol. Hyruidius himself went on his way
to the palace and took the same way in he came out. Through the secret tunnels
and small hallways he went, only to find out he had to go through the King`s
quarters to get to Sir Thomas`s quarters. So he did and without seeing anyone at
all he arrived , opened the bedroom doors and there would be! But no, he was
not! On the bed laid a note saying, “My dear Hyruidius, shame he is not here
don`t you think? Well, you are a clever boy, you will find him where he has his
hart! But so am I, will see you there…Tess. He red it a couple of times , not
knowing what to make of it just yet. Even thou he looked for Sir Thomas on
several places , not to find him anywhere! At last he decided to return to the
Capitol, to try to find the men. They had already revived a couple of people that
could tell what had happened, Hyruidius therefrom thought the spell was mild and
easily broken! It looked like there had been a spoken spell that had been red by
messengers throughout the country to all people that were the King`s friends. The
enemies of the King were given earplugs and had left outside the Capitol, where
they formed large troops. Troops that had been heavily armed and ready for
battle! Hyruidius left the men in the Capitol and went on his way to meet the
Figgen and Elog. It didn`t take him long to find them as they had been marching
on since he left them. Some Figgen had turned into wood and Hyruidius passed
through the spell to undo so. Gratefully Elog invited him for a meal and both men
had to plan an new strategy, as they had no idea where the enemy was. Hyruidius
showed Elog the paper he had found on Sir Thomas`s bed and then told Elog the
truth about him and Milady Tess. “You see Elog , she`s my sister!, but we have
been raised separately because from the start on she had been a very difficult
child to handle. Therefor she had been brought up with the witches of the South,
that`s where it all went wrong! These witches were all good women except for
Syrenah that had her in her spell! She never had a chance to a normal life! I feel
for her, yes, I do ! But I also can see the necessity to break her, for all she has
done! It is time for me to take the challenge ! I will not take any of this anymore!”
Hyruidius spoke baldly and Elog understood why .“Have you got any ideas where
to find them?” he asked. “Not at this very moment, no I don`t, but I will. I believe

the answer is in this letter” and showed the letter he found on Sir Thomas`s bed.
Together with Elog he worked all night reading the letter, trying to find a solution
and after a while Hyruidius said. “I know where they are!, they are on the Isle Of
Qwuin-Keirron! That`s where his hart is, at least that is what he would have told
Lady Lucia when he left: something like, I may leave you, but my hart will always
be with you!” “Brilliant!” Elog said, “Brilliant!!”, let`s send a messenger to the
coast!” The men raised their cups of wine and toasted to good health and
prosperity!. All would be good now, wouldn`t it?. Maybe the other messenger,
earlier send to the Isle of Qwuin Keirron, that had not returned yet would have
new information to build a new strategy on. “He should have been back by now”
Hyruidius said, but Elog stated that the journey by boat could have taken him
much longer than expected because of the tides and the wetter conditions.
Hyruidius agreed and all men were properly fed and used the time to wash their
clothes and themselves in the nearby river. All refreshed and ready for the journey
back to the coast all men went to sleep. At the break of day the camp was taken
down by the men and they set foot to the coast. The fall had begun and the wetter
by times was windy and cold, they were lucky to carry the fire with them. The fires
were first started at new campsites so the tired men could warm themselves and
cook their food. At night, with the almost wintery temperatures the man crawled
together to keep warm during the night. Southbound they went and everyday it
stayed a little longer light and warmer. The winds from the south brought them
also food, birds they had never seen before but lovely to eat. “Why have we
changed direction?” Hyruidius asked Elog. “The winds in these times always
comes from the South and as we are to head North-West to reach the Isle of
Qwuin-Keirron, it is the most logical thing to do!” Elog replied. Hyruidius said
“That`s exactly what they`re thinking and they know we will have to go that way as
there`s no other!, is there”. “Maybe there is, but no one has ever tried it before
because of the danger from the Giants of the North, it is going thru their territory!
And they take no prisoners!” Elog said and put his hand alongside his throat,
slicing. Hyruidius understood, but still found they had to look into this possibility as
there were no other options. The messenger from the coast returned and had
some good and some bad news! The bad news was that the messenger earlier
send to the Isle of Qwuin-Keirron had been forced to take side of Milady Tess`s
troops and was taken by ship. The good news was that they had a good estimate
of the number of ships and troops that had left for the Island. And there were
many, many tall ships and the smaller vessels had left the harbors from the south
of West-Keirron and set sail for the Island of Qwuin-Keirron. With all this a new

problem occurred, how were they to get all their men to the Island? All of the ships
had been used by Milady Tess and the Mordigans of the South! Hyruidius and
Elog both knew…. there was only one way: the Decapitators! They were their
allies and they had ships! Elog send for a messenger, but they run out of time
Hyruidius said, so he decided for the messenger-bird to fly with a message,
written on a piece of paper and bonded to the birds leg. Now all they could do
was to wait for the bird to return. While waiting they filled up their supplies and
practiced battle among themselves and sung for moral. It was two days later that
a messenger from the coast brought news about the arrival of the Decapitators,
first sails were seen at the most southern point of Kirian. The builders had given
free passage and even joint them on their way to the Dunes. The Dunes had a
natural port and that was not easily found, so Elog had arranged for someone to
guide the ships into the port. Four long days ships entered the port and it got
rather busy and tight, but at the end of the day all ships were there and Elog set
up a meeting with a delegation of the Decapitators, the Figgen and the other
allies, like those from West-Keirron and the Builders from Kirian that had joined
them. All listened carefully as Elog and Hyruidius explained their plans. Hyruidius
was to make a lot of anti-dote to eliminate the spell and each and every man
involved was to be given some. “Better be safe than sorry” Hyruidius had said.
NosCull, leader of the Decapitators had some remarks, but agreed to the plans.
He was to be leading one of the sections that was to sail around the northern
territory of The Giants of the North, “My kind of opponent”, he had said and asked
whether Elog or Hyruidius wanted some of their heads. They kindly refused, no
offense taken! NosCull only had one last question; how big where the enemies
tall ships, could they be entered? Had they guns?. Most of these questions Elog
answered, the only one thing he didn`t know was whether they had guns or not.
Guns were very rare those days and only the Decapitators had ever seen one of
such a miracle gun! “But you never knew, the Mordigans of the South may have
such a device,” Elog said and the others agreed, caution was wanted in
approaching these ships! “Please make no mistake in thinking that they are to be
an easy catch!” Elog added and the men again agreed. In the plan, the men
divided the ships in three convoys , one was to take the way that the Mordigans of
the South expected and sail on the wings of the southern winds. The second
convoy was to sail with the first on the southern winds but as they approached the
Isle of Qwuin-Keirron they were to bound more to the south and try to reach the
most westbound point of the Isle. The third convoy was to set sail first and
Northbound they would try to avoid the Giants of the North to be able to reach the

Isle of Qwuin-Keirron at the most northern point. When they succeeded they
would have three points of battle stations to try to defeat the enemy. As they
agreed the men were embarked and the convoy Northbound left the port. The two
remaining convoys were to wait two days before setting sail to the Isle of Qwuin-
Keirron. These two days were used to make the necessary repairs on the ships
and to bring aboard the supplies needed. Finally it was time and Elog and
Hyruidius decided to embark on different ships, so one of the two men had a
better chance to survive. At the break of dawn the last convoys left the port and
set sail for the Isle of Qwuin-Keirron. Winds were in favor for all of the journey and
the men caught some fish and had them for a meal. Moral was good and the men
told one and other stories of battles from the past, often strong worded and some
had the laughter on their hands! Making up strong stories was one of the skills
needed to be a good warrior! And they were! Training each other had improved
them a lot and even on the ships the men had practiced almost every day!.
Motivation and moral were very high and they would crush the enemy by sight!
But that was yet to be seen…… “Land in sight!”.. “Land In sight!”.. the crow’s nest
sailor warned, from up high in the main-mast he had a good view in the distance
and even though it was surrounded by a dark cloud of mistiness, he had
discovered the Isle Of Qwuin-Keirron. Elog send the message to Hyruidius to
separate the convoys and each of them should go their own way now. Hyruidius
was to sail directly to the port of the isle, as Elog had to make a longer trip and
sail for a day around the south of the island. He would try to land many miles
further upwards the coast. Together with Hyruidius and NosCull their attack would
form a trident and force the Mordigans of the South to defeat and surrender! That
was the Plan! With all the information gained by Hyruidius, Elog was not only
armed with weapons but also knowledge of the territory he had to travel. Hyruidius
knew from his life in the woods all the hiding and foraging places and he had
drawn a marked map so Elog would have an idea of his whereabouts. Together
they had planned the fastest way for Elog to travel so it would not take him any
longer than necessary to rejoin Hyruidius. The mistiness that surrounded the
island felt freezing cold and while sailing thru it some of the sailors believed to
have heard mourning voices.But they sailed on and by the end of the day they
had reached the Island of Qwuin-Keirron. They stayed in a fair distance of the
harbor, because at first they would man a dolly to see what was going on at shore.
The dolly sailed late that evening, guided by the new Moon and a clear sky.
Hyruidius noticed also no lights at all on shore, but this might well be a trap!
Reluctantly he stayed behind and waited for the first dolly to return. After a few

hours the dolly returned and the man were astonished by what they had seen! All
people and animals had turn in stone! Now even this came to Hyruidius as a
surprise!, this he would see for himself!, so he entered the dolly and ordered the
men to sail back to the island. Good thing I have given everyone an anti-dote, this
could have easily gone horribly wrong!, were his thoughts as he stepped ashore.
Everywhere he looked, there were figures of people walking, sitting, working,
doing all sorts of things and looked like they had frozen stone-cold! Milady Tess`s
work!, he was certain of it, only she was capable of doing these things and he
would make her pay for it! He send the men back to the ship in order for it to
harbor an disembark . All men were given the task to anti-dote everyone they
came upon , even the animals. Hyruidius was to be found at Grinnwold Castle, in
search of Sir Thomas and Lady Lucia. Some of the men were expected to follow
him there. On his way Hyruidius came upon some strange looking stonifications, a
deer had fallen in a thousand pieces! Probably fallen while turned into stone the
moment it jumped! Hyruidius thought about the possibility of removing rodents and
other pest- animals while they were still stone. That would mean a good harvest
and no more trouble in the ware-houses! In the meantime he had reached
Grinnwold Castle and entered the main hall. Upstairs he went to find Sir Thomas
and lady Lucia in their quarters, he found them alright ! Not only them, but also
some unexpected visitors! Beside his bed there was Milady Tess, King Arnathon
and GuanBulan, the leader of the Mordigans of the South. Lady Lucia had been
laid beside him and it all looked like a horrible story! Hyruidius was flabbergasted
as he had no idea at all what he was up against! Then, suddenly a soft women`s
voice spoke and said, “ Welcome Hyruidius!... I am delighted to see you here…..
after all these years!... Then closer, “ Finally we meet again, I have been waiting
for this moment such a long time….. Hyruidius turned around to the voice and
there she was, Milady`s Tess teacher from the past…. “Syrenah”……………,
Hyruidius felt his power fade, but she could not kill him yet, no not before he knew!
Syrenah led him to the hallway and there she stood in front of the Balustrade of
Knights and touched each and every one of them. “You must see Hyruidius this is
not easy for me, not easy at all!, how much I would like to forget and forgive…., I
just can`t.” Hyruidius didn`t understand any of this and wanted to speak, but he
couldn`t. “I do apologize but I had to silence you!, now it is my turn to speak!!” Her
eyes turned pitch black and he didn`t want to look into them, but he did. Inside his
head he kept on repeating a counter-spell to stay alive, but even that she knew!
“No, Hyruidius, No! it will not work, simply because I do not want it to!! First you
hear me out! As if he had another choice!, she started to tell him about her youth

and what had happened. He understood she had been abused by someone close
to the King and the King had known and did nothing about it! It had made her
swore revenge on the King!, as he was the only one that could have punished the
abuser! It had taken her a lot of time to train Tess to do so for her, but Tess finally
refused to end the King`s life. Syrenah than took matters in her own hands and
started to put a spell on all people , unloved by them as she felt! Her eyes turned
from black to blue and black again as she spoke, telling Hyruidius there still was
some hope left. As she told her story there was some rumor outside the castle
and it became louder and louder. Syrenah didn`t seem to hear it , as she was
fulminating over the things that had being done to her! Shame!, she would take
everyone`s life! Then suddenly she heard the rumor outside too! No, no, no, no,
she screamed and collapsed on the floor, unconsciousness and shaking her body
wildly, like going mad! Hyruidius had managed to fiddle the little bottle of anti-dote
out of his pocket as the door was broken open and Elog and some of his men
entered the room. “Hyruidius!” he said, “are you alright!” then he saw the bottle in
his hand and put some droplets under his tongue.

THE END OF EPISODE ONE

 

Episode II

Hyruidius could feel a teardrop run along his cheek and suddenly remembered
Elog giving him the anti-dote . He wondered why he had not been revived totally
yet and then where had all the people gone? Vaguely he remembered being in
Grinnwold Castle in Sir Thomas`s bedroom with Lady Lucia, Milady Tess, King
Arnathon and GuanBulan the leader of the Mordigans of the South. They all
were tuned into stone, except for Syrenah the one that had brought up Milady
Tess and made her evil. Than he remembered Syrenah fell to the floor and
behave like mad, screaming and shouting! Elog had entered the room and she
had been taken away, but where were all these people? Very slowly he
regained feeling and movement and, still by himself, finally to be able to stand.
He became aware he was not in the place he was before, but then, where was
he? The rounded walls suggested him to be in a tower of some kind and the
only light came from a small window high up above. Hyruidius was not easy to
defeat, but this didn`t look good! Not good at all! First he concentrated on sound
and the movement of the light in the tower, to establish his point to the sun and
with that : time! Because if he knew he might be able to sort out which tower of
which Castle he was. But it gave him no clues, except that he had to be
somewhere unknown. How many Castles had he not visited, but knew of their
existence? He could only come up with one: the Castle of the Witches of the
South, Mordigan territory! And that could only mean one thing, either Tess or
Syrenah still would be free!