Fallen Sun

“No!” said Croatius, snarling. So close, so close… “It’s I who am sorry for the rest of you! We saw through that pretty outer layer of life, through the gaudy makeup on your faces and down into your dead, burnt-out eyes. The world is only a machine, Evelos; our sympathies only the hallucinations of mortal minds that cannot comprehend it. Yes, I am weak and foolish; you are right. A bit of flesh clothed around what was once perfect, but at least I see the corruption…!”

Whenever I get around to turning these characters’ stories into a book, I might break these two scenes apart. For now, the first scene ties off the fraught relationship alluded to in “Son of Silvermoon” and “Crestfallen”, while the second helps explain why Croatius made the choice he did, abandoning his lover and son to the Illidari.

It’s a good feeling when I finally come to understand a difficult villain’s true motivations. It’s always those damn idealists, man: when they fall, they fall the hardest.

Author’s Note

“Come to kill me, Evelos?”

A shadow detached itself from the wall, slowly, like water sliding down an oil-treated window. It paused up front of Croatius, reforming itself into an elf, but unlike most elves, its eyes didn’t glow in the dim light. He was like one of the Wretched instead – or like one possessed by the Shadow – dark holes where the eyes should have been.

“Ah, no,” said Croatius slowly. “My mistake. You are that other one, aren’t you?” Continue reading “Fallen Sun”

Crestfallen

Krest is named after and loosely based on Crestaen, an old roleplayer and PvPer in World of Warcraft. He was my guildmaster for a brief time while Evelos was a blood elf on Horde-side, sometime during the Burning Crusade expansion. His character taking Evelos fishing in the old Forsaken zones is one of my favorite memories, and this helped serve as inspiration for how Evelos behaves in this series.

Author’s Note

Drip.

It was a bead forming on the ceiling. It followed the ridge of stone until it reached the lowest point, then hung there for a moment, glittering.

Drip.

It swelled and rounded, colors swirling within it. He saw a face, then two faces as another bead formed just behind it, running along like it was trying to catch it.

Drip. Drip.

Being behind the other bead meant something. It summoned up feelings of confusion, darkness… an ambush. Continue reading “Crestfallen”

Son of Silvermoon

When the magic finally stopped, Croatius once again opened his eyes, smiling lazily at Lanlyth. His master was frowning. Perhaps because he could not find a spell to truly best Croatius…?

Croatius was meant to be a foil for Evelos from the get-go, the villain to his heroism, and I knew I wanted something special for him as his story slowly unfolded. Continue reading “Son of Silvermoon”

The Rise of Keelath

I remember nothing. This was my first thought.

This short was written from the point of view of my death knight character in World of Warcraft. It’s a little bloody because, well, death knight! (I’d roughly rate it as PG-13.) Continue reading “The Rise of Keelath”