The Kakos Realm Collection Read online

  The Kakos Realm

  Collection:

  Books 1-3

  by

  Christopher D. Schmitz

  © 2018 by Christopher D. Schmitz

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publishers, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a newspaper, magazine or journal.

  The final approval for this literary material is granted by the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  PUBLISHED BY CHRISTOPHER D. SCHMITZ

  please visit:

  http://www.authorchristopherdschmitz.com

  An eldritch, silver cord ties known lands to each other, stretching across the void between the Earth realm and her warped sister. Spanning the vast firmament above, and nestled within the lunic umbrae, a thin stream of water, mere molecules wide, would appear insignificant if discovered. That connector remains the last link between the agathos and the kakos: a portal between realms and flooded by the judgment of ages past.

  kakoj (kakos):

  bad, wicked, depraved, injurious, worthless, harmful

  Table of Contents:

  Special Offer

  Book 1: Grinden Proselyte

  Book 2: Rise of the Dragon Impervious

  Book 3: Death Upon the Fields of Splendor

  Maps, Dramatis Personae, Appendices

  Back Matter

  The Kakos Realm

  Book 1:

  Grinden Proselyte

  by

  Christopher D. Schmitz

  Prologue

  The campfire lapped at the crisp, night air like a thousand hungry tongues. Insects buzzed as glowing embers rose upon hot air currents; the hot ash twinkled above the two nearby men.

  “My brother, let me pass on all that I know of the outside world.”

  “What do you mean, Nhoj?” Beyond the jungle vines and verdant greenery, torches lit the distant community. Voices stirred the night, eliciting chirps and trills from creatures in the trees.

  Bathed in light, Nhoj continued the discussion. “It is true what they say about me in the village. I am leaving.”

  “But no one has ever returned from the journey!”

  “I know that, Pheros. And I have studied this subject far more than any other in our land. But, the Mighty One who Karoz told us of has spoken to me.”

  “The angel succumbed to the demonic Gathering thousands of years ago. How can you be so sure that…”

  “Do not doubt Him. I am called, as were those who went before me, and my calling is unique. Unlike the others, I know that I will die; I have seen my death. Yet I will fulfill a greater purpose.” Nhoj nodded to the fire, as if he knew his life would somehow spark up a new blaze. “While the Elders urge our brethren to sit, I urge you to find malcontentment—the very same kind that landed me out here: exiled from the village.

  “Time dwindles and the end is near. Watch for men from the east; they bear salvation and truth.”

  “But what of your family, brother?”

  “You know the law. Please do as expected. I ask this of you because you are the only brother that I trust, untainted by the Elders’ complacency. I know I can trust you to live a life in my stead. Raise my children properly. Tell them their father pursued a higher calling. Promise me this.”

  “I promise!”

  Nhoj thrust a tattered, bound book into Pheros’ hands. “This is my collection of notes. I have compiled all that I know about the fallen ones in the lands beyond. The ones we fled so long ago and the ones I go to even now. Sources vary, but much of this came from Karoz himself, or the writings of Elders from his era.

  “Much of the information must be outdated. Some history may have changed, since historical records are inclined to shift with each new age. But there is far more in this tome than the fathers are willing to teach us. Keep it secret.”

  Pheros cracked the manuscript open. His brother’s familiar scrawls covered the pages. Many of the sentences contained incomplete thoughts, or random, relevant passages pulled from common sayings or the archives of the Elders. His eyes scrolled greedily over the script.

  The sciences abound. Intricate physics behind mysticism have been well studied; alchemists and apothecaries are widespread beyond the great barriers. Most men have not delved the theological darkness of our lost brethren… so many hang in balance, enslaved by the wicked sciences.

  Our brothers do believe in the ancient myths regarding the realms of Earth. Legend tells of our sister land, and their all-powerful God, Yahweh, whose faithful battle the Baals. Few truly believe those stories as fact, however; “men believe in what they can experience,” (according to the moglob herder I spoke to, for which I am exiled). “Those stories were invented to amuse children or to entertain around campfires.” Few men observe ancient religion which pays homage to any deity other than self (except those who know of the moglobs, that is).

  According to those myths, the God Yahweh created Earth with its ground and sky and all therein; he also created mankind: humans. Those myths say that they were created in Yahweh’s likeness. That detail of the story perhaps hurts its credibility. After all, humans are generally regarded as weak when compared with the races of orcs, ogres, trolls, and others of the ekthroic races—the non-humans. How humanity ever survived after the Great War is a mystery. Nothing is sacred; life is a cheap commodity purchased by the wealthy.

  There was not always war. War did not come until the breaking of the truce in ancient times, after the flood and before the formation of the Gathering.

  Our mythos explains the origins of this place. Yahweh, ruler of everything, created Earth and dwelled in a place called Eden, alongside of His creation, man. Sometime before the Earth’s creation, however, He had personally created the supernatural beings, one by one; of note especially were the angels.

  Yahweh had created them because He desired beings who He could commune with. He desired relationship above all else.

  Luciferian Legend claims that He used the extent of His infinite power and created His better. Yahweh created hay-lale’, whose ambition exceeded even the glory of his own creator.

  hay-lale’ chose to shine bright, displaying his power to all his kin—brighter at times than even Yahweh. Meanwhile, Yahweh remained on his throne and reveled in the praise given by the created angelic host under hay-lale’s direction.

  Yahweh held palaver with hay-lale’ to ask him why he shone more brightly than He who had made him.

  “It is only to give all the more glory to you, my King, and show all how you have blessed me beyond measure.”

  These words are attributed to the angel Karoz during his appearance at the beginning of our tribe:

  “But Yahweh knew hay-lale’s heart. The angel was haughty. This displeased Yahweh, for He was the Master and hay-lale’s displays affronted Him.”

  From the Luciferian Origins:

  Resentment overtook hay-lale’, who believed himself superior; he proclaimed that he would strike out on his own. Making a spectacle of his power and of his glory, he persuaded one third of the angelic host to accompany him as he formed a coup against the Master.

  Earth, at that time, was still in perfect harmony, as Yahweh had created it. The condition of the Earth realm, however, disturbed hay-lale’.

  Men in those days were mindless
automatons designed to watch over the creatures of Earth and tend Yahweh’s garden: Eden. This broke hay-lale’s heart, for the poor humans were nothing more than flesh machines designed to manage Yahweh’s Earthly affairs…

  Taking action, hay-lale’ disguised himself as a reptile and snuck into Eden, undetected by Yahweh’s forces. hay-lale’ approached the humans and offered them freedom, showing them how violating the one true law which Yahweh bestowed upon them would unshackle them from the fetters of ignorance and impotence. Eating the fruit of the forbidden tree would make them gods themselves; man could unlock their true potential as demi-gods.

  Enraged, Yahweh condemned the serpent. He cursed the ground and the race of men, who now possessed their own minds. Humans, created in Yahweh’s own image, could now achieve immeasurable potential, fulfill that image in its fullness, and chase godhood.

  But then, before the days of Mahalaleel, great grandson of Seth, hay-lale’ created this place, this realm and all her lands. Contesting with Yahweh, hay-lale’ bartered for limited permissions to create from the ex nihilo. In the likeness of Earth, he crafted a similar, superior realm, but with his own special improvements. He created many animals and creatures, as Yahweh had, but he set his heart towards crafting a grander array. Mixing the images of man with beast, he created more splendid versions indeed.

  But very little was original—only shades of what the Creator had made.

  Yahweh’s prized creation was humankind, made in Yahweh’s likeness. In contrast to this, hay-lale’ thought to improve on the design that Yahweh had made. hay-lale’ created orcs, goblins, ogres, trolls, elves, gnomes, brownies, centaurs, halflings, faeries, and so many others. Most deviously he spawned Lilth, whose life force came not from the spirit of life, but fed on the life of others.

  Then, hay-lale’ set in place over the lands a web of spiritual leylines and altered physics. He instilled types of magic that could be tapped into through rites, ritual, and secret knowledges.

  hay-lale’ gloated to Yahweh that his creation was better. His citizens had authority to weave; they crafted supernatural magics, despite mortal flesh, and drew upon sources of mystic empowerment condemned on Earth.

  Then, hay-lale’ opened a supernatural pathway between the two realms so mankind might escape from Yahweh’s curses. In response to this, Yahweh posted his warriors, mighty cherubim, at the entrance to this path, preventing humanity from entering the new lands.

  Enraged, hay-lale’ held council with Yahweh, entreating him to reopen the path between realms. Appealing to His ego, hay-lale’ struck a bet with Yahweh, arguing that the humans could now, after the giving of knowledge through the sin at Eden, make a choice for themselves which was better. Yahweh agreed that to give mankind complete freedom of choice, they must be allowed to pick their own realm.

  “Let it be their own decision and let the consequences be theirs alone,” said Yahweh.

  And thus, hay-lale’ reopened the gateway between realms and allowed the men of Earth to enter and settle these lands. Word on Earth quickly spread; this was a land without thistle or thorn. With so many new beings, this place possessed treasures and sciences impossible on Earth. The Luciferian texts drip with poison honey.

  From our histories:

  These words are copied from the Book of Karoz. (I admit to some of the foolishness for which the elders accused me. I did steal, and then copied passages from the sacred book, but it was returned.)

  Discord soon grew among man; humans had foolishly brought with them the seeds of thorns from the curse and they spread through both worlds. Those humans were a malcontent bunch, and some of them returned to Earth with new knowledge of magics, demonologies, and idol worship. They’d gained a sense of freedom from Yahweh and grown more perilously wicked than the line of Seth ever thought possible.

  What these humans truly took with them was a new standard of conduct learned in hay-lale’s realm. They had learned from the haughty demonstrations of the elves and other ekthro. Humanity found an attitude of self-elevation and a view of personal superiority which helped the transients rise above their Sethaic peers.

  These people brought fantastic stories to tell about the folks in their sister land. Through the men that decided to return, stories of the arrayed creatures in this foreign realm came into common knowledge. Some ekthro were even smuggled through the western gate (and possibly the fabled path through Tartarus—but such a thing sounds too far-fetched to be true) and began to taint Earth.

  The ekthro, our realm’s original inhabitants, formed peace and prosperous trade with mankind, though others of them discovered a preference for the taste of human flesh and often bartered for the lives of men. In those times a truce existed between the humans and most of the ekthro; a law of equality had been instilled in all through the relative newness of the day. In the early history, pre-existing prejudices had yet to present themselves.

  Peace prevailed through laws of tolerance. Several ruling demons, hay-lale’s chosen, were appointed to make decisions as needed; these demon overlords were given the greatest access to the leylines so they could manipulate the powers of the realm, punishing or blessing those they saw fit, and all in accordance with hay-lale’s grand plans. (These original Baals fell to the mighty dragon prior to the formation of a new council—Nhoj.)

  hay-lale’ took up a new mantle: the pursuer of light and champion of the oppressed race of man. He vowed to battle against Yahweh and fight against the Creator’s curse. He called himself the Bright One, revealing his highest name to these men: Lucifer.

  From the Luciferian catechisms:

  Yahweh, though, was forced to form a new plan. Having apparently lost their contest, a deep yearning manifested within the souls of men on Earth. hay-lale’ took pride in knowing that he’d created the more desirable place. This realm’s very existence transformed the hearts of man far beyond what Yahweh expected.

  The new cultures, traditions, and knowledge brought transmitted back to Earth spurned Yahweh; He grew so incensed that he flooded the entire Earth, killing the entire race of man save a select, fearful few. This flood spilled through the pathway between the two realms, creating the seas that now surround the lands of this realm; islands formed and water divided the three continents. Yahweh’s flood killed many in this realm as well, wiping out entire species from hay-lale’s menagerie.

  Another passage from the Book of Karoz:

  Unbeknownst to Lucifer’s loyal followers, this place, with its interwoven, magical leylines threading like supernatural spider webs, was in fact a trap. Even as Lucifer created it, his eyes were set only on the future of Earth. He knew that seducing the mortals of Earth with this place would hamper the plans of Yahweh—speed up the potential End of Days and force Yahweh’s hand before He could launch a redemptive mission for the wayward. Lucifer’s goals were always for Earth. He left behind traditions that would continually glorify him and corrupt those humans trapped in his land: the lies of the Luciferian Order became the only religious option for those whose hearts yearned for the things a sacred calling provides.

  According to Luciferian tradition, Yahweh’s new plans for Earth threatened this realm’s very existence, and so Lucifer went away to defend it—and is even now struggling against Yahweh’s more numerous forces to keep this land free and safe. They believe that the forces of Yahweh seek only to come on the wings of wrath and destroy them utterly.

  The demon overlords who were installed as overseers were also barred from Earth by the waters. They too were left behind, trapped in the realm of their master. With the severing of the realms, they soon turned on each other; the chaos erupted in the Great War. Ancient truces were violated by conflict; treaties ceased; every man and ekthro was left to his own devices as the overseers formed warring factions amongst themselves in the firmaments above.

  Formal agreements and laws passed away. Luciferians wrote a new moral law, “If it harms none other, do whatever ye may.” The law shifted to, “whatev
er seems good to you, do it.” It was but a subtle shift, and yet enough to justify any conceivable action as long as you had the steel and fortitude to back it.

  These myths are told to children, human and ekthro alike. It is well-known legend, but it is sacrosanct to religious fanatics and monks of the apocryphal cause. Religious fervor faded towards seldom-practiced faith, though its supporters gain political power and influence abroad, waxing and waning like the wind as generations rise and fall.

  In truth, this world has been abandoned by its creator, shaped by its own inhabitants, and manipulated by the powerful and the selfish. The ruling demons have long since forsaken their origins and often war amongst themselves. Each strives to become a ruler—even a god, in his own right.

  Hearts of men are easily swayed and undeniably fickle, but every man needs something to put his trust in. What we adhere to in this lost and kakos realm is the only true light in the darkness.

  “But the Book of Karoz bears the strongest reasons for why we have separated ourselves,” Pheros pleaded. “There is too much evil beyond our borders. Surely it is madness to stand against the corrupt and the ekthro!”

  “An error, brother. We were never meant to be idle—to cloister and hide. We were meant to burn like logs on a fire, thus shining through the night.”

  “There is no dissuading you, not even certain death?”

  “I have foreseen my own death. It does not trouble me because I know what comes after it. I am content to endure the difficult mission for the sake of my calling... even if my role should be less glorious than I could ever imagine.”

  Nhoj stood and embraced his brother for the last time. “Keep my book and honor your word.”