King Antillo and the Black Amulet

By King 'Ryan' Huffman

Disclaimer: This stuff is actually mine! Aldania, the talking animals, and all of the characters are mine as is the fictional metal; Star Steel. But most of this story has been inspired by many famous works of literature.

Prologue; Garzan's Conquest

Many years ago in the once beautiful and magnificent Kingdom of Aldania; my Kingdom actually. The land was ravished by a monster King who had a dream in which to conquer all the four Kingdoms of Aldania and to rule the land with an iron fist. His name was Garzan, a creature who was half-man and half-Dragon. As he gathered his massvie armies and planned to conquer the Four Kingdoms, he was creating an item of Dark Magic that would bring the people of Aldania to his knees.

The Four Kingdoms were Sadania, Kythor, Nemidiana, and the lands of the Taratara tribe. These Kingdoms were all peaceful lands with laws that ensured safety and freedom to all who came for sancutary. Sadania was a Human Kingdom that prized trade, chilvary and honor above all else. Her warriors were some of the finest soldiers and cavalry men in all Aldania. As much as they were valorous, they were also known for their piety and for their most infamous fighters; the Paladins. They were great Knights who defended Sadania from all threats like Goblins, Ogres, Trolls, Orcs, Minotaurs, Dark Elves and so on and so forth. These holy fighters were almost unbeatable on horseback, and armed with their swords, bows, morning stars and lances the Paladins were the most valiant of warriors.

Kythor was the homeland and the mountain realm of the Dwarves! Not only was Kythor a mountain Kingdom, it was also the place where silver and gold could be mined and collected. For that was the Dwarves' most precious past time, mining and craftsmanship. But they were also some of the hardiest of fighters in the land, they were reknowned for their skills with many simple weapons like axes, hammers, and many other weapons made with wood, bone, steel, or stone. Their mightiest warriors were their pikemen and berserkers. Armed with long sturdy pikes, these spearmen were more than a match for any charging monster. The berserkers wore little or no armor, and they carried any kind of weapon that suited them, sword hammer or ax, it didn't truly matter to them. They took pride in their warrior skills and they wielded that pride with an unruly ferocity!

Nemidiana was the heartland and forest Kingdom of the Elves, Centaurs and Fauns. There the Elves were known for being brave and vigilant spell casters who believed in the ancient and sacred code of Bushido. Their weapons were some of the finest and craftiest in all of Aldania, styled after the weapons of the Japanese warrior class, the Samurai. Weapons like the katana, naginata, yumi and kanabo were extremely common with the Elven warrior; and the Elf Samurai treasured the sword and the bow as the only honorary weapons of a true warrior. The Centaurs were faithful and loyal companions to the Elves because of their scouting abilities, ways of learning, gifts of prophecy, and great warrior skills. The Fauns were also amazing companions for the Elves for their kills with a blade were only matched by their Centaur cousins and by Humans and Dwarves and Elves.

The Taratara tribe were a HUGE tribe of noble Indians whose horses rode faster than the rapid winds. Their weapons were simple yet deadly in the hands of a Taratara warrior. Their weapons were tomahawks, knives, bows and arrows and war clubs. They believed that honor and duty were the greatest attributes that a Taratara warrior could ever possess on the field of battle. When riding into battle they believed that their ancestors were riding beside them as an inspiration for their courage and dedication. They were skilled archers on foot and on horseback, they wielded their tomahawks with pride and skill, their war clubs could crush a skull within two to three seconds, and their knives were the most finely crafted knives in all of Aldania. But what made them a little frightening was their war cries and rumors of scalping their enemies. So a word of advice is don't upset or insult a Taratara warrior or you'll never feel your scalp again.

Back to Garzan and his warriors. Garzan, like I said before, was a monster who loved only power and destruction. His scales were blood red, his eyes were fiery yellow, his teeth were filed down to sharp points, and his very voice was chilling and horrific. In fact his face and his entire body was like that of a Dragon except that he could stand upright, cast dark spells and he had a powerful voice. The object he created to enslave all of Aldania was a great Black Amulet. Into that Amulet Garzan poured all of his powers and his desire to rule Aldania forever.

Battle after battle Garzan was victorious, until one day the Amulet was lost forever, stolen. Garzan agreed to allow the three Kingdoms and the Taratara to keep their lands as long as they proclaimed him King of all Aldania and for information on the whereabouts of the Black Amulet. Unfortunately no one knew exactly where the Amulet was, and so Garzan vowed to search for the Amulet even if it took him forever.

The day that Garzan vowed to find the Black Amulet was also the day I was born and raised on the border lands of Sadania and the lands of the Taratara. I was a product of two worlds, I was told, and that my name meant 'hope and faith' in the Taratara tongue. My name is Antillo, and this is my story of how I saved Aldania from the cruelty of Garzan and how I came across the ultimae weapon of evil; The Black Amulet.

Author's notes: Cool beginning huh? Well in the next chapter, Antillo's past is explained and unlikely friends will be introduced too. Hope you like it!