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Chapter III
Union of the Seas: Eclipse
Volume I- Origins
Chapter III 19 years, 7 months, and 20 days before the Cataclysm (19 PC) "You dare to take my home from me, then I will take your life!"
Tudkhalias rose as the dawn came. The sky was ominously clear. The townspeople slowly began to wake up. The sunlight shimmered on the water, and reflections began to appear. These were of a most unexpected presence however: there were ships. These were not great ships, but people were seen to be on them. The people were grunting and shouting in some tongue Tudkhalias could not understand. (1) Suddenly, the boasts reached the edge of the town. They were beached, yet still seemed intact.
(The boats the invaders used)
An angry man came from the boat in front, and surely was cursing, in his own dialect. None of the townspeople knew what he was saying, but they knew his intentions. The invaders all carried weapons. They were 2 foot-long rounded bronze shafts, perhaps swords, which shone off the sun's light. (2) After some more garbled talk, they rushed at the townspeople. However, the townspeople were a strong folk, and would not cave in. They had weapons with them as well- not the fine swords of great kingdoms, but their everyday weapons. In the hands of a skilled warrior, a pitchfork or hoe can be the strongest weapon of all.
(the swords of the invaders)
However, the battle was not fairing well. Most of the townspeople were not skilled warriors- and Tudkhalias watched as all his friends were dying around him. He made a choice. He ran back inside his hut and grabbed his sword. It was time to teach the invaders a lesson.
"You dare to take my home from me, then I will take your life!" Tudkhalias roared at them. They could not seem to understand it, and just went on pillaging the village. Tudkhalias remembered that he HAD to protect Kiya. These invaders had to die by his hand. With that, Tudkhalias charged straight into an invader who stood a head above him. Tudkhalias roared and sliced the man in half before he could even react. He came unto another one, and smote him as well. After some time had passed, the town flowed with the blood of the invaders, as well as most of the inhabitants. The isha died valiantly, saving a woman and child from a gang of the invaders. All the town that survived would remember his noble sacrifice, and his deeds in life. However, some of the invaders got away. They were aided by a favorable wind- and no one could catch them. (3)
At last, they were gone. But at what cost? The town was ransacked. The feeling of death and destruction there was like nothing ever seen in this part of the world. The invaders had started fires- these soon spread despite the best efforts of the townsfolk. Most of the town burned to the ground. Tudkhalias sat weeping, for the cruel fate of the unjustly dead, and for the miserable fate of the destitute survivors. How could Tudkhalias take his revenge on these foul brutes? The answer was clear. There was one boat left. However, there was nothing left here. The destroyed town, burnt of most of its substance and population, held nothing for Tudkhalias anymore. He had defended Kiya valiantly, and it was by this miracle that she survived. He could not provide for her here anymore. No- his new life would come from the plunder of the invaders! He would take to the sea as they did, with only Kiya- as he could not leave her here, to not see ever again! He would protect her, and build her the empire the gods promised him.
But still he wept for the past. What was the power of one man compared to the evils of the world? He had never sailed in his life- how could he possibly succeed? Tudkhalias then heard a soft breeze going out to sea.
"I GET IT! He roared. "I HAVE TO GO OUT TO SEA... WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE I AM DOING?" Cried Tudkhalias.
He packed what little there was to salvage, all the food he could find, and his sword, and stowed a shield onto the boat. He helped Kiya into the boat, and took another look at the town. The charred remains of people, animals, and buildings were all that was left. The area held only ill omens if he were to stay. It had occured to him that the King should have protected him. Tudkhalias swore revenge on the King, whose inability to protect his people would have cost Kiya her life, but for Tudkhalias. For all the people, he mourned and regretted what had come to pass. Someday, he would visit the same wrath upon the descendants of the King, of the invaders, and of any who dared oppose him. He was divinely appointed to rule, and all the bronze arrayed against him would stand for nothing against. He was the gods' avatar on Earth, and the people were wicked. He would exact their wrath against the impious sinners of the world, so they would burn in damnation for eternity! (4)
FINIS
(1) Mycenaean boats. Used during the Bronze Age.
(2) Mycenaean short swords more common in the Late Bronze Age- the swords got smaller and smaller.
(3) This omen looks familiar...
(4) tl:dr. Insane person goes nuts and rages against the machine.