Chaosbound: Elarith Chronicles

In the vast territories of the Luminaries, a storm was brewing. The whispers of a new legend, a name whispered in awe and fear, spread like wildfire: Thyranthe the Sword King Slayer.

The news of the Sword King's defeat had sent shockwaves across the continent. The Sword King was the revered leader of the Warrior Faction, a powerful group that, while separate from the Luminaries, had served as the continent's most formidable military force. Without their charismatic figurehead, the Warrior Faction began to crumble, their ranks splintering under the pressure of the new reality. The Luminaries, in a calculated move to consolidate power, had installed a new leader—a puppet carefully chosen to be easily influenced. This move brought the once-proud Warrior Faction under the direct control of the Luminaries, but it was a clumsy, transparent move that only fueled the dissent of the common folk.

For the oppressed and the downtrodden, the name "Thyranthe" became a beacon of hope. Displaced humans, outcasts, and all those who suffered under the tyrannical rule of the Luminaries began to cheer for him. Small, defiant factions rose in every corner of the Eastern, Western, and Southern territories, all united by a single, powerful belief: a liberator had arrived to destroy the old order and free them all.

The beings responsible for this groundswell of hope were the Abyssals, Lysara and Nephra. It was all a meticulously crafted plan. By painting Aurel as a powerful, demonic figure akin to a demonlord, they were shaping the narrative. He was not just a symbol of rebellion; he was the promised savior of their kind, Thyranthe, who would fulfill his role by bringing about the collapse of the Luminaries' Church.

Lysara and Nephra stood together, a worn map of the region spread out on a rough-hewn table. "Everything is going just as we planned," Lysara said, a flicker of satisfaction in her eyes. "Though I admit, I still feel a pang of guilt, using Thyranthe's name as a tool for our revenge."

The faint chime of a com device interrupted her. Nephra opened the message and read it aloud, her voice a low murmur. "It's from Luci… 'He plans to create his own territory. I serve under him now. We're doing this. Wish us luck.'"

Nephra's eyes widened with shock, then filled with a triumphant joy. "This is better than we could have ever hoped for!" she declared, slamming her fist on the table, making the small wooden goblets jump. "He's not just a pawn in our game; he's creating his own domain! Lysara, we need to rethink everything. Tell Vyran we're scrapping the first plan. We need to act now and give him the tools he needs to succeed. We need to meet now!"

Laying the Foundation

Meanwhile, Aurel, Eryn, Luci, and Hans sat in a tense silence. They were gathered around a makeshift table—a flat stone with smaller stones for chairs—in a quiet, secluded glade. Aurel's fingers tapped a steady, nervous rhythm on the stone table. Eryn nervously fidgeted with his fingers in his lap, waiting for direction. Luci and Hans were equally still, all of them focused on Aurel, who stared intently at the tabletop, lost in thought. The only sounds were the quiet hum of insects and the gentle rustle of the wind.

The silence stretched on for what felt like an eternity, each second amplifying the stress etched onto Aurel's face. His hands, scarred from countless battles, were unaccustomed to such stillness. He had tried to draw a map of his own, to sketch out a plan, but the charcoal felt foreign in his hand. What did he know about building a kingdom? He was a warrior, a slayer of false gods, not a king. The weight of responsibility settled heavily upon him, a stark contrast to the freedom of the battlefield. He crumpled the parchment, tossing it aside in frustration, a small but telling sign of his internal struggle.

Finally, with a heavy sigh, Aurel broke the silence. "Okay, I give up. I don't know how we're going to do this. I didn't think this through." He looked apologetically at Eryn, who returned an awkward, apologetic smile to Luci and Hans.

Luci spoke calmly, her voice cutting through the tension. "Don't worry, Master Aurel. I have a way. Will you entrust this to me?"

Embarrassed but composed, Aurel nodded with authority. "I will. It seems you have a better understanding of this than I do."

Luci unrolled a detailed parchment map. Unlike Aurel's clumsy sketch, this map was a work of art, a perfect replica of the region. Every mountain range, river, and settlement was meticulously drawn and labeled with a precision that was almost supernatural. "First, we must find an area with a strategic location and resources," she proposed. She pointed to a section in the far southeast, a mountainous region between the Eastern and Southern territories.

"The location offers a natural defense," she explained, highlighting the narrow passes that would create a formidable barrier. "It's also a 'no-man's-land' between two major powers. This means neither side is likely to invest heavily in its conquest, giving us the time we need to build in secret." She continued, describing how the mountains were rich in minerals and the valleys fertile for farming, ensuring they would be self-sufficient.

After presenting her initial proposal, Luci excused herself. "Give me an hour, and I'll have a complete blueprint."

Meanwhile, Rindel, a blur of motion and steel, abruptly stopped his training. He tilted his head, his eyes narrowed as he focused on the group. Then, without a word, he turned and began to climb a nearby ridge, his movements fluid and precise. He was scouting, his instinct guiding him to find the best vantage point.

An hour later, Luci returned with the new parchment. "This is it," she announced with confidence. "This is a blueprint, but we'll need to make many adjustments." She then laid out her plan:

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Phase 1: Clearing. "We must get rid of any occupying beasts or humans. They must either submit or evacuate. This is where you will first show your power," she said, looking at Aurel. He nodded in approval.

Phase 2: The Citadel. "Our first project is to build a central citadel within a naturally fortified mountain valley. We will use the abundant stone and minerals to build a fortress that is both a home and a symbol of our power. We'll also create mining operations and self-sustaining farms to ensure we have food and materials without needing outside trade."

Phase 3: Growth and Expansion. "Once the foundation is solid, we will fortify the mountain passes with watchtowers and defensive walls. We'll then begin to welcome a small, vetted number of refugees—displaced humans and other outcasts seeking sanctuary. This will provide us with a loyal workforce and population."

Phase 4: The Dark Domain. "In the final phase, we'll build small settlements, creating a fully functioning society with its own economy and military. With a growing population, the legend of the Thyranthe will spread, solidifying your reputation without you ever having to leave the citadel."

Aurel stared at the detailed plans, utterly amazed. He realized Luci was a god-given gift, a strategic genius he couldn't have imagined.

"There's only one problem," Luci said, breaking his thoughts. "We don't have the manpower for this."

Eryn's eyes lit up. "Manpower? Master, we have it covered! You can summon an army of chaos beings to do the clearing, construction, and guarding."

Aurel's face brightened. "You're right! But I'm not sure we have enough." Then an idea struck him. He remembered the corrupted energy and chaos seeds the Menis were spreading. "We hunt!" he declared. "We'll farm for chaos energy to expand our army. That's how we'll get our manpower."

Luci smiled, satisfied with the addition to her plan.

Aurel began to divide the tasks. "Luci and Hans, I want you to start the plans. You will work with Rindel to summon as many chaos beings as you need from the pocket dimension. Eryn, you will travel with me. We'll harvest enough chaos energy to create our army. And you," Aurel emphasized, "will dominate chaos beings, too."

Eryn's confidence wavered. "Me, Master? I can't do that. I don't know how to dominate a chaos being."

Aurel reassured him, placing a firm, reassuring hand on Eryn's shoulder. "You have the core of Erynos in you. You're an Abyssal. I'm certain you have the same ability as me, or perhaps even better. We'll let you try. You've already proven you can do a lot of things that I can, maybe even better in some ways."

Eryn paused, considering his master's words. "Yes, Master," he said, his doubtful tone replaced with determination. "For you, I will try."

Luci gave a final word of advice. "Please try to be stealthy. If you're too aggressive, Lumiel will take notice and target you."

Aurel grinned. "Don't worry," he said. "The goal is to build a territory, not to wage war."

The Abyssals' Gambit

A short time later, a flickering projection of Luci appeared before Nephra, Lysara, and Vyran, the Abyssal king who looked no older than a 14-year-old boy, his small frame perched on a large stone chair. The image was grainy, but her voice was clear as she shared the details of Aurel's plan and her new blueprint.

Nephra listened intently, a growing excitement in her eyes. "He's doing it," she whispered. "He's doing it exactly as we'd hoped."

Vyran pointed to the map. "Luci has already provided the blueprint. Aurel and his group will travel to find and dominate more of our kind, and in the process, they will refine the corrupted energy that the Menis are spreading."

He then gestured to a small, captured artifact on a table, a glowing orb of corrupted chaos. The light from it pulsed ominously, casting long, distorted shadows on the ancient stone walls of the chamber. A faint, sickly sweet odor emanated from it. "I've figured it out," he said, his youthful voice carrying an uncharacteristic weight. "Lumiel is using this chaos energy as a source of power. He's luring our kinds to it so they can be consumed by the Menis. I have decrypted it. This 'chaos seed'… it's not normal. It's an abnormal chaos energy created from the Chaos God himself."

He then pointed to the body of a dead Menis lying on a slab. "Even the body of this Menis, their corrupted divinity… it's a combination of different types of divine essence, but it's all anchored by this catalyst." He pointed to a worm-like energy surrounding the Menis's core. "I don't know how Lumiel got his hands on this, but this kind of matter has a unique trait. It's like a part of a god's flesh. I hope I'm wrong, but… is it a flesh of the Chaos God?"

Lysara interrupted, her voice sharp with a mix of fear and indignation. "But for what purpose? If he is spreading corrupted chaos energy to lure the chaos beings around it, the Menis consumes the core of the Malus or Malifuge, but for what?"

Vyran shook his head, his brow furrowed in thought. "I believe this is a chaos energy flow, like feeding a new power source. It's like they use the Malus's chaos core to power up the Menis, but this worm-like chaos corruption is like a receiver and transceiver. It's refining the energy and sending it somewhere. There's a stream of chaos weaving pathways… it leads to… what kind of power would require such a gruesome and unnatural process?"

"To Lumiel," Nephra finished, her eyes wide with dawning horror. "He is reprocessing chaos energy to feed himself? Or is he creating a new type of monster? A creature born from the flesh of a god, fueled by the suffering of our kind… the implications are terrifying."

The Hunt Begins

Back in the glade, Aurel and Eryn stood ready. The sun had begun to dip below the horizon, casting the forest in a deep, shadowy twilight. Aurel felt the weight of his new role, the fear and doubt from earlier now replaced with a grim resolve. A warrior fights for survival; a king fights for his people, he thought, his gaze hardening as he looked at Eryn, his apprentice, and a fierce protectiveness flared in his chest. "We're not the hunted anymore," Aurel declared, a fierce grin on his face. "This time, we are the predator."

Aurel explained their new plan to Eryn. "I will process the corrupted chaos and refine it. Your job is to dominate the chaos beings drawn to the area."

As if on cue, the air grew thick with a familiar, oppressive energy. The tell-tale signs of the chaos beings began to appear—a distortion in the light, a faint, metallic scent. But they weren't the only ones drawn by the chaos seed. A new, more chilling scent arrived—the stench of fresh decay and ozone. From the dense undergrowth, a creature emerged. It was vaguely canine in shape, but its limbs were elongated and skeletal, its fur matted and black as pitch. Razor-sharp claws scraped against the forest floor, and a low, guttural growl, laced with an unnatural static, echoed from its throat. Its eyes glowed with a malevolent, hungry red light, fixated on Aurel and Eryn. But it wasn't alone. More rustling sounds came from the undergrowth, and soon a dozen more of the deformed creatures appeared, some with twisted, human-like limbs, others with grotesque, bony wings. These were the Menis, and they had arrived to hunt the very chaos beings Aurel and Eryn were after. Their shared prey was in their sights, and the Menis's bloodlust was palpable.

Aurel smiled, a predatory glint in his own eyes. "They came."