The Story of Evil: Volume I - Heroes of the Siege

All characters and locations in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without written permission by its owner.

Printed in the United States of America.

First Edition – January 2013

Copyright © 2013 Anthony Johnson

All rights reserved.

Maps drawn by Tony Johnson

Map of Element

Map of Celestial
 

Dedication

Dedicated to my family: Dad, Mom, Ted, Ben, Dawn, and my dog and best friend, Rudy. To my grandparents and extended family. To all the friends I have met in my life. And to any family and friends, who I have yet to meet, awaiting me in the future. There, that covers everyone. I treasure the memories I have of each and every one of you and look forward to the future ones we will make together. I love you all.

Author’s Note

Since I started developing
The Story of Evil
series around the age of 12, it has been my dream to see it published. The fact that you are holding this book in your hands and reading these words means my dream has come true.

Heroes of the Siege
marks the beginning of a long journey I hope you will join me on. I believe I have an amazing story to tell. Action, adventure, suspense, betrayal, mystery, horror, drama, and romance await you in this epic tale of good versus evil.

Thank you for taking the time to read this book, it means more to me than you will ever know.

Welcome to
The Story of Evil
…

Tony Johnson

“As long as there is darkness, there will be light to fight it.”

Prologue

Once upon a time there lived two gods. One was good; the other was evil. Nothing else existed except for them. The two gods were polar opposites, but they both agreed on one thing: they each wanted to create a world and fill it with their creations. Both gods used an equal amount of their own power to create a colorful planet crafted out of five elements: fire, wind, water, electricity, and earth. They named the world Element.

The good god inhabited Element with people who became known as the four races: Humans, Elves, Giants, and Dwarves. The four races exhibited the qualities of the good god. They were caring, compassionate, and loving. Everyone was created equally and each race respected the others. The good god gave his people intelligence, the capacity to retain knowledge, and the ability for all members of the races to communicate through a universal language.

The people found it easy to survive off the land. Building fires, using plants for food and medicine, and hunting animals were all instincts that were quickly learned. Creative inventions and ideas were spread throughout the world. Some of these included the six simple machines: lever, wheel and axle, pulley, incline plane, wedge, and screw. These tools helped the people to build more than just crude shelters to live in. They began to build houses. Houses turned into villages. Villages turned into towns. And towns turned into huge cities with castles. The four races were a civil people who lived in order and thrived together in the communities they built.

The evil god chose to populate Element with monsters. There were two types of monsters: Anthropomorphic Monsters (monsters vaguely resembling the four-limbed shape of the people of the four races) and Animal Monsters (monsters shaped like large and twisted versions of common animals). Monsters were the exact opposite of the good god’s four races. They were chaotic, wild, violent, and cared only about their own survival.

Whereas the people were all created equally, the monsters were made unequally in a pyramid caste system. Many were weak, while only a few were truly powerful. Some could speak and understand the universal language used by the four races, but all the majority of monsters could only communicate through guttural noises. Since the monsters lived in a world of survival of the fittest, many of the weaker monsters pledged their allegiance to serve a stronger monster in exchange for safety and protection. This resulted in the formation of monster clans. Opposing clans of monsters often battled for territory, food, pride, or simply for the thrill of battle. Occasionally, clans would join alliances to form an army.

While the good god’s creations were given the ability to communicate with each other and build cities, monsters were given the ability to harness the elemental powers of the planet. Anthropomorphic Monsters could turn whatever metal their body was touching into the element they possessed. Whatever weapon(s) and armor they were equipped with could be turned elemental, giving them advanced abilities in battle.

Animal Monsters and other monsters that could not wield weapons or wear armor were able to use their bodies as a conductor of their element. Some could blast their element from their mouth. Others could turn their skin, fur, or feathers into their element without causing harm to their bodies.

Most monsters could only control one of the five elements. Some of the stronger monsters had the ability to attack and defend with multiple elements. There were even a small handful of monsters that were so powerful they could command elements in their general vicinity and control them according to their will without even needing to physically touch them.

The four races and the monsters could not get along. The two sides were constantly at war. The people wanted to live safely and peacefully in their establishments, separated from the unforgiving and barbaric way of life that the monsters embraced.

The monsters believed that the good god’s creations were inferior to them and that the members of the four races should be enslaved. It would be the job of the people to build the weapons, armor, and architecture that only members of the four races could create. The idea of a monster’s perfect world was having the people harvest the crops, hunt the animals, and prepare enough food to feed everyone, while they lived safely fortified from enemy clans and armies.

With no peaceful solution, monsters constantly attacked the villages, towns, and cities while the people tried to defend themselves and their establishments. Although monsters were often successful at capturing villages and towns, the cities provided a tougher challenge. The monsters knew that controlling cities offered better protection against opposing clans rather than living in the open wild. Any city with a castle was a highly contested and targeted territory. But monsters could never get a force large enough to successfully siege a city unless two or more clans decided to join together and form an army. Even if they had the numbers, their weak strategies of attack often handicapped the success they envisioned.

No matter where a person lived, whether in a small village or a major city, at any moment they knew an attack was imminent. Even though the people outnumbered monsters 3:1 worldwide, the monsters knew they were more powerful because of their ability to harness the powers of the elements.

After countless years of struggle between the people and the monsters, one monster rose to absolute power. No army had ever come close to reaching the number of monsters under his command. He was the evil god’s largest and strongest creation – Draviakhan. Draviakhan was a five-headed dragon of immense power. Each of his five menacing dragon’s heads could shoot out blasts of one of the elements. His jet black scales mirrored the evil that was inside him. The Imperial Dragon, as he was called, had twelve wings jutting out of his back to give his four thousand pound body the ability to not only fly, but to agilely glide underwater.

Draviakhan led his massive army throughout Element and killed any monster that would not join his cause (if the monster was lucky enough to be offered the choice). But his real target was the good god’s creations. Draviakhan ordered his army to kill women and children and keep men alive as slaves. The strategy ensured a limited population for the future generations of the good god’s people. They would never be able to revolt.

Tens of thousands of the members of the four races were mercilessly slaughtered as Draviakhan’s army rampaged through every establishment they encountered. A trail of mass destruction was left behind them as they pressed forward through Element.

Warriors from every race united, coming together from throughout the world to battle Draviakhan and his army. On the Pastoral Plains, “The First Great Battle” commenced. Wives and children anxiously waited for a return that never came.

Draviakhan and his forces littered the valley with the bodies of their enemies. The First Great Battle was considered the single most horrific day in history for the four races.

Soon after the crippling defeat, the once stable respect between the Humans, Elves, Giants, and Dwarves was severed from the pressure of the defeat and culmination of years of destruction.