They say that in your final moments of breath, your life stretches out before
you, a hole in infinity, where you experience every moment, every breath, every
though of your life before death comes to claim you. I wonder, mayhaps, if it
was some cruel joke of the gods on those who suffered through life or a
blessing on those who have enjoyed it. I have experienced both and all I have
left now is the hope that before I die, I may live those joyous moments again.
So I will make the leap into oblivion. Death, perhaps may take a minute, short
in the span of a life, but a long enough time for me to relive those happy
moments. I surrender to death.

-Final journal entry from the Bringer of Light and Dark

"… keep him steady," said a distant voice. He did not know who he was or
where he was as he blacked out again. There appeared to be four different
people around him. There was an angry voice and then the world exploded in
pain. A sea of molten lava tore through the very fabric of his being; frigid
ice shattered him out of existence. Pain beyond imagining threatened to
consume him, and then it suddenly it vanished. Some part of him told him he
had just, very narrowly escaped death.

A distant tugging in his head told him he was still alive. "… not remember
anything," the voice said again. "Is it enough?" came the reply. "Let us
hope." Everything went black. From the void he could hear snatches of
conversation. "… ,but the dictates of the Supernals…" "Enough … he can atone…"
"He is extraordinarily powerful, he must never know his secret." The voice was
filled with fear. "…telepathic link… maintained?" "Yes and pray to the Gods it
holds." Just before blacking out again, he opened his eyes and glanced to the
side. There in a pool of blood lay a dagger of the finest crafting studded in
gold and inlaid with jewels. The hilts bore the sigil of a royal house of
Celest. The blade, wrought of the finest, most refined platinum in the realm,
was covered in blood that was somehow wrong. On sight of the blade he was
filled with an inexplicable hatred of the weapon. As he reached for the
weapon, he saw something that terrified him, near the first dagger laid another
exactly the same in appearance and coated in blood.

This human man who know one knew woke up with no knowledge of himself before
the incident. His name, Rhaegar was given to him by those who healed him. In
Merian it meant salvation. He was given a place to stay in Celest, where he
attempted to discover who he was through meditation, and inadvertently coming
into contact with his extraordinary gift for cosmic and elemental magic. When
the guilds heard of this, arguments broke out. There was some serious
contention between the Aquamancers and Celestines, when it became clear that he
intended to join one or the other. Even the paladins put in their claim, but
were quickly dismissed due to his affinity to magic. Then with permission from
both guild masters, he did something unprecedented; he tested in for both
guilds and made it. He climbed through the ranks fast, faster then any before
him and before the year was out he had the blessings of all five Supernals and
the greatest elemental power of the Aquamancers under his command, maelstrom.
He quickly rose through the ranks in his guild, due to his uncompromising
belief in the light and dictates of the Supernals. By the age of 20, barely
two years after the incident he was promoted to champion of both guilds and
summoned before the Star Council.

Rhaegar walked reverently into the Star Council, elated that he, himself was
being summoned by the Prince. He walked with a touch of pride and confidence
that showed on his sharp handsome features. Inside the Star Chamber, he took a
look around. The room was somewhat fishbowl shaped, and notably divided into
three parts. Curving along one wall, were the rows for the main body of the
assembly. Luxurious chairs were lined up in a single, straight row, none
higher than the other, but the middle chair was by far the biggest, looking
much like a throne. In the center of the room was an open floor where
petitions were made. On one side of the room was a translucent glass wall that
looked down into the main halls of the palace, and on the others side, windows
open out into beautiful aromatic gardens, where flowers of vibrantly different
colors mingles to create a tapestry of pristine tranquility. He was alone for
a moment, when he felt a tug in his chest, which he recognized as a
teleportation spell. Readying his aqua defenses he summoned his aquastaff and
formed a spirit shield around himself. With cosmic magic he summoned an
archangel to him and prepared to unleash the full fury of both magic's in case
it was a tainted assassination attempt. The light motes solidified and in a
blinding flash, the Prince of Celest, leader of the Star Council arrived.
Rhaegar stared dumbfounded, the Prince of Celest was a slender Merian, near
middle age, with many scars from his long service in the military. He emanated
a power, almost approaching that of Rhaegar, but there was something not quite
right about him. The Prince laughed, at once easing Rhaegar and soothing his
foolish fears. He dropped his protections immediately. "Easy Rhaegar," the
prince said. At once his mirthful expression changed to one of solemnity. The
grief on his face made him look years older, and Rhaegar detected a hint of pity
and sympathy. "Rhaegar do you know why you have been called upon." "No, my
Prince." "You are the embodiment of the teachings of Celest and you alone will
be given the onerous task of commanding the armies of Celest." "My Prince, you
can't be serious." Rhaegar was incredulous. "I am sorry to put this burden on
one so young, but the war against Magnagora has stretched our resources to the
extreme, people are dying of hunger." "Why do I not know of this?" "Rhaegar,
you have been in intense study for the entirety of two years and have barely
even slept, you do not know how dire the situation is." "Then tell me so I may
serve the light better." "As you wish. The war started around 3 years ago when
Kaes Lightsbane, Supreme Commander of Magnagora, The Fist of Luciphage , and the
Archmage of the Geomancers declared outright war on Celest and in a series of
brutal victories, tainted the land stretching from Magnagora to the Razine
Mountains. Our troops were no match for the power of this titan of strength.
They took Estelbar, slaughtered, raped, and tortured its citizens for pure
sadistic pleasure. Make no mistake this man is the pinnacle of all evil, and
it is said half in jest that not even the Demon Lords of Nil are equal to his
lust for power and love of violence." The Prince almost looked admiring. "We
have engaged him in pitched encounters all along the Ackleberry road, where he
has annihilated our armies. The land is his to command, it is said he opens
the earth to devour his enemies. With his cosmic magic he throws torrents of
energy dissolving whole wings of troops, destroys souls, and uses his archdemon
to inspire terror. After battles he consumes the flesh of his victims and grows
stronger. This is no mere man we are dealing with, and like you, he controls
elemental and cosmic magic to devastating effect. By some, he is said to be a
God incarnate, foolish as that is it exemplifies his strength. After breaking
our armies he has drawn back into the defensive. Why? I do not know, but I
fear the worst. You Rhaegar are our only hope of salvation, as the name we
gave you implies." With this the Prince gave a long sigh. "Rhaegar I charge
you, by the power invested in me by the citizens of Celest, with the protection
of all that is good and holy and I bequeath the command of our armies solely to
you. I name you Rhaegar Darksbane and empower you to one end alone, to destroy
Kaes." Rhaegar was speechless; through it all, the Prince had not let him get a
word out. "My Prince, surely there is one more fitted to the job then I, older,
and wiser." "I am sorry, but there is not, and in my health I can't go
gallivanting off to war. And you, you are the pride of Celest, your mere
presence will inspire the men to great feats of valor. The pesky Star Council
would even be appeased with your appointment." "How can you trust me so much
and know me so little." "Even though I have never met you, I trust you, I have
heard of your deeds. You will go to the ends of the earth to save someone you
barely know. I trust you with the lives of all Celestians." "My Prince, but we
have met, I recognize your voice from, what I thought would be my death bed.
You presided over my healing." For the first time the Prince truly looked
uneasy. "Well yes, but I of course didn't meet you." "Of course." He
couldn't contain the question any longer as he blurted out, "My Prince do you
know anything about me, even a scrap of knowledge of my past. I would be
eternally in your debt." "No boy I don't know a thing, we found you half dead
on the streets of Celest." He smiled a crooked smile. Rhaegar thought of
something for a moment, "What about those daggers near the bed covered in and
ill looking blood?" The Prince paled, "Oh those, those were nothing. We have
more important matters to discuss."

The armed forces were camped very near Serenwilde on the Albalaster Road,
consisting of Paladins, Aquamancers, and Celestines. Even novices and pages
were being brought to the front, for this would either be the last battle they
ever fought, meaning the destruction and tainting of Celest, or the first in a
string of battles, and manpower was necessary. Celest was there in force in
one of the most daunting struggles ever.

Movement was detected on the Ackleberry ,the Orclach Ur'guard were marching
with Viscanti Nihlists and their gruesome demons on the front lines.
Geomancers were expected to be in the back weaving illusions and throwing
powerful magics. The taint were massing for an all out strike, and Kaes was
spotted, for the first time in years, by the dreamweaver scouts. He was suited
up in his distinctive red armor, forged in the fires of Nil, and followed
around by his horrific archdemon. The plans were all laid out, the bulk of the
army would engage, their army and a company of the Dawn Brigade would strike
from their back side covered in invisibility. A simple plan, but often the
simplest pans could be executed to astonishing success. The men were all lean
and gaunt from lack of food, but now, where there was silence in the camp,
laughter rang out. They had a chance now, Rhaegar Lightsbane was with them,
the pride of Celest.

Rheagars voice boomed out clear as crystal, "Celestians, I will not give you an
eloquent speech and tell you everything will be fine. It will not. I will tell
you the truth. Today we are overwhelmed five to one, daunting odds for even the
bravest, even more so when many of our number are inexperienced novices. Our
enemies are battle-hardened veterans of war with the experience and training to
make short work of us. Never think for a second we will meekly subside! We
will give them a fight that Celestians will be proud of for generations. Today
is the day for honor and bravery, today is the day for courage. Today is the day
we stand up and fight for our homeland, for our children, for our beliefs.
There will be no compromise, no treaty, no quarter given. And when you find
yourself surrounded by enemies and you are bleeding your lifeblood out, I urge
you to stand up and use that last breath to swing that sword one more time to
cast that spell one last time. When the day is done the butcher's bill will be
a high price, but we will not give ground, every Celestian life they take will
lose them ten of their own troops. They fight for greed, for plunder, for
power. We fight for everything that has ever mattered to us. Dead children,
raped maidens, and starvation are all the work of these fucking bastards, lets
send them back to Nil where they belong!" At that a chorus of cheers rose up
from the army, shaking the earth to its foundations. "FOR THE LIGHT!" The cry
was taken up and the army began to move as one.

The Magnagoran army was momentarily stunned by the eagerness they saw in the
faces of their enemies and the sudden charge. Only momentarily. Kaes looked
out over the forces and laughed a sadistic laugh. "How I do love the taste of
human flesh." "MEN SOUND THE CHARGE! Lets kill them quick, no hacking off
limbs and betting on how long it takes for them to die. There is fucking to be
done and I don't want to be late." With that the men laughed and an Orchlach
battle song was taken up.

The armies clashed in an absolute frenzy of violence. Rhaegar, gathered his
powers to him and unleashed the full fury of elemental water, raging typhoon,
needlerain that pierced armor, hail storms, and poisonous jellyfish. And for
his own troops, he put up a healspring to heal the dying and keep the fatigue
of the living. He waded into the midst of the battle and let loose all
restraints, a bloodlust came over him. Magnagorans died by the score to the
combined power of his telekinetic ability, cosmic magic, and elemental power.
Thousands upon thousands died as he waded deep into the blood for Kaes. The
man who was the cause of all this suffering. When he thought of Kaes, he was
momentarily shocked that he was not even present in the battle as of yet.
Overconfidence, Rhaegar thought. He stopped yet another man's heart and
suddenly, on a hill overlooking the slaughter below, there was only him, Kaes
and the Iron Council. He felt an odd sensation come over him, the earth was
calling to him. He dismissed it. Kael spoke in an oddly familiar voice,
"Listen to the screams of the dying, the clash of steel on steel, the smell of
scorching flesh. It is beautiful, you once thought so too…" "Enough; finally
retribution will be done. You Kael will die agonizingly slow." "Do not
dismiss us so easily Rhaegar, we know you better then you know you, and I think
it will be you who dies." At this Rhaegar used the ultimate elemental power to
obliterate the Iron Council. The three counts on the Iron Council stared,
refusing to believe, when at last one of them gaped, "NO. Not this level of
mastery, it can't be, he is of the earth. DEFENSES up, Kaes help." The
futile attempts of the Iron Council and even Kaes were not enough. The three
Viscanti Counts were dead, and just Kaes was left. "What are you waiting for
Kaes, I know you are stronger then this." Kaes looked actually worried. His
archedemon came bounding out and leaped at Rhaegar, one quick burst of energy
was all it took, the archdemon collapsed and died. "You will pay for your
sins, Kaes." Rhaegar twisted thought waves and broke nearly every bone in his
body, slowly. Kaes screamed out agonizingly and then began laughing, but
stopped when he coughed up blood. "What is so funny you are a dead and dying
man." Kaes beckoned him closer. "Come closer and I will tell you." Rhaegar
checked his defenses they were up and he approached cautiously, casually
breaking a few more bones for the pleasure of it. He knelt down to listen.
Kaes began to speak, "There is something you should know before you die, you
Rhaegar, as you call yourself now, were great once, you were the man I looked
up to, you inspired me to grow stronger. You turned me too the taint Rhaegar,
and I will always hate you and love you for that." Rhaegar felt weak in the
knees, "You lie, I was never tainted, I loathe the very thought of it." Kaes
laughed again. "Raise my visor." "What?" "Raise my visor" Hands trembling
Rhaegar pushed the visor back, and looked at Kaes' face. Utter shock and
horror showed in his features. "You… you can't be Kaes." The Prince of Celest
laughed, "No, you brought me down this road, tainted me from within and I came
to love power, I still do." "I don't understand, why any of this, why the
battle, why?" "You are a far greater man then you think, ask the Star Council
about the daggers you saw on what I tried to make your death bed. They healed
you to destroy us the tainted, knowing that inside you were tainted too. I
attempted to kill you, but it wasn't allowed. You are a pawn Rhaegar, ask and
understand your potential and you will be a king, a God even. You do not
understand you will, though." "I shall live on in the taint and you will bring
the taint to greater glory then it has ever known." With that his last breath
left him and his soul departed.

In a fury he stormed to the Star Council's tent, obliterating friend and foe
alike, the battle was a heroic victory and the Magnagoran army, still greater
then that of Celest, was in full retreat. The Dawn Brigade's attack had
completely surprised them, spreading mass fear and panic through the tainted
ranks. It seemed that Kaes took no actual strategic precautions. Rhaegar
walked in, the three dukes of Celest were there. "The Prince was a traitor, he
was Kaes." A brief flash of confusion showed on their faces before they
reassumed their usual calm countenance. "Rhaegar that is just not true, it can
not and will not be true and we will not abide this…" "STOP!" Rhaegar shouted.
"You will tell me about those daggers I saw when you were healing me, they are
part of my past." "Rhaegar that is a bad idea, some things are meant to be
forgotten." "NO you will tell me now or I will force it out of you." A
dangerous glint shined in Rhaegar's eyes and he wove an illusion of the Star
Council being tormented in the fires of Nil for eternity. "That will be your
fate if you refuse, again to tell me." "Alrite, alrite. Rhaegar those daggers
were the Prince's he took you by surprise during a battle. The blood on the
daggers didn't feel right, that is because it was tainted blood. And it was
yours." "No, it is not true." "Rhaegar I'm sorry, but…" "There is something
else isn't there. Tell me now." He felt the slightest brush of a telepath
against his mind against a wall he did not know was there. He exerted his
will, full force against the wall and it began to crack. One of the dukes
gaped, "He is destroying the block, link quickly. We will destroy those
memories utterly this time." Rhaegar forced his mental power against all
three. They were powerful, but not enough. With a soundless thunder the
Council was knocked out completely. He renewed his assault on the wall. One
of the dukes was stirring, "Rhaegar, don't do this." "Why, tell me why?" The
block shattered and the duke wheezed, "Rhaegar, the Supreme Commander of the
Armies of Darkness, Fist of Luciphage, Archmage of the Geomancers, is you. You
are Kaes Lightsbane. An agonized scream echoed throughout the world.