*Posted within the Rockbottom and Crone*

A tale of sorrow, From yester-morrow, Echoes through the tunnels here Of dying love, And hope from above, A memory lost not to time but fear. This tale belongs, To a lady strong In magic and beauty named Suzanne. And a noble lad, Christened Brad, Who served his kind as a watch man. Each alone was lost, But together star-crossed They helped each other find their way. And in Sanctuary They did marry, And their love made the darkness seem as day. By sword and by spell They fought what befell This town and protected it from the wild, And as their love grew Suzanne soon knew That she was soon to bear their child. But down here in the dark Death is our trademark, And he soon came knocking upon their door. At their son’s first cry, His life was denied As death claimed Suzanne and Brad’s first-born. Their sorrow was deep, And long did they weep. Their rivers of tears ran long and broad. And though they would pray, No priest would raise Their child, saying it was the will of the gods. And thus did Suzanne, In her grief plan To attempt a magic rather chancy. Could the evil art Heal her heart? She turned her studies to necromancy. And one day she was found In this practice unsound. A spellguard agent came in and arrested Brad’s wife. Though Brad pleaded for pity, The agent didn’t give any, And in panic Brad’s sword took the spell-agent’s life. Not knowing what to do, In distress then they flew From Sanctuary, in search of direction or purpose. At the end of their rope They snatched onto a hope, And set their eyes upon a way to the surface. Long was their journey, Tunnels twisting and turning, As side by side they fought darkness and beast. And at last they exclaimed, When finally they came, To see the light which rises in the east. But before they could reach The tunnel’s open breach, From the shadows stepped men at the mouth of the cave. The spellguard were there, And each one did share A desire for avenging their friend in the grave. A battle ensued, And during the feud All lives were lost and the way out destroyed. And so in the end, They would finally ascend To walk hand in hand with their lost little boy. But the question we ask, As we ponder our task, Within damp rotting caves full of darkness which smothers, Is there any way out Of this foul pit of doubt That can be achieved without killing each other?

Life begets Life begets Death destroys Hope.

~Adale Adarion