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rocking chair. He swayed back and forth creaking every time, “My only question before we begin is why you wish to have our men and women breed?” He spoke to me with no emotion. I replied in kind, “Our children will not know what the light is and its taint. We will raise them to be loyal and trained as Alcheema from birth. The loyalty to the Alcheema will be stronger than anything else they will ever know.” I paused letting it sink in, “Your children however will be nothing more than slaves and their services will be to rip down what your kind has built.”

  He frowned in disgust and stood to his feet, before he could reply I bellowed so loud it shook him back to his chair, “All of your kind will be gone by morning or they will be slaughtered including yourself.” I stood and began to walk away, I felt an aura surround me as his magic tried to control me. I paused for a moment and invoked my strongest will shattering his magical presence around me. I spoke to him over my shoulder, “You have no power here you are not as strong as you once were that is why you did not attack us, now you will be gone or I will destroy you. He replied weakly, “What of your mother and father? “ I smiled and laughed out loud, “I do need it anymore I know who I am.”

  I woke from a blissful sleep the sound of wailing women and children from outside, men shouting angrily at each other. I went to my balcony to several hundred humans arguing between themselves, fighting over money, clothes anything they could carry. I leaned over the balcony edge and yelled at them, “This is why you are inferior and always will be. The Alcheema have surpassed the single mindedness of wretched filth such as you!”

  A few moments I watched them bicker and thought this was familiar. I remembered the market where I found the group of human traders the sounded exactly the same. Disgusting creatures... these humans. They reminded me of my father, this nauseated me.

  I yelled for my second he replied from a tower he was guarding with a regiment of troops. “First Knight,” he snapped to attention, “Kill them all.” The slaughter began; I could hear no difference between their screams of fear and their petty squabbles over possessions.

  I spotted Dallente in the distance trying to summon what magic he had to try and stop us. I smiled at his pitiful strength; I raised my hand to the sky and summoned my power to connect with our dark lord. A vortex of fire and lightning formed in the sky spreading fear and panic among all the humans left. My army encircled what was left of the human population keeping their distance but letting no one escape. A giant shadowed wraith came from the center of the vortex and glided down behind the mage who was trying to muster that last of his strength.

  A skeletal hand reached through the body of the last mage as he screamed in agony, his body was lifted into the air by the wraith and brought to the vortex. An eternal tunnel of torment awaited him for his defiance against the dark lord. I could see his bright Khore tearing from his body looking for a way out. There was no escape from my master’s power, his wrath was ultimate. Dallente’s body and Khore were whisked into the vortex that closed around them and nothing but the morning sky remained.

  I walked back to my chamber and sent for First Knight. He came to my room and I began to give him my instructions. “I want all Alcheema to return to the pits and begin construction of the wall I will not have any scavengers of light within our borders. All who are not one of us will either be killed or exiled north.

  I returned to my home in the pits Dun and took my place on the throne. I reigned for many years. The wall was eventually built by the leftover villages and towns of humans. In a final celebration all of the humans left were gathered up and slaughtered for our lord. And the presence of the light was gone.

  The sun never rose high again our land has been returned to the darkness with only perpetual twilight to show the succession of days. No humans ever breeched the wall and we were left to live our lives for our lord. Several years into my reign I found there were too many menial tasks to handle so I devised the Tri-Consul. Every two years three Alcheema would be chosen at random to make decisions that were not about war or humans.

  I married soon after the formation of the Tri-consul and began my own family. The years passed quietly having several sons and a daughter kept me occupied. There was no more war; my people used their magic to prosper and build for each other we never fought over possessions as everything is shared. I even allowed a new mother to stay in my chambers while her new home was being built our entire race was now a family…..yet I could feel a taint somewhere I could not see it for many, many years.

  My first grandson was born at the beginning of winter as I was. My family was together in my chambers during the birth. The baby was passed around my sons as they smiled and cried at the joy. My wife cradled the baby as if it was one of her own cooing and falling in love with the creature. Her long black hair covered my view until she handed me the child.

  THE TAINT……the taint was here it was in the blood….it is in me. How could I not see this the thing I have spent my life trying to remove was here the entire time. The taint must be removed the dark lord commands it……..

  My family lies on floor burnt and bloody the grey hared child lies motionless on the table in front of me. I have removed my pieces of power and placed them around the child to show everyone that the power that we wield is for the true Alcheema only.

  I have opened the door for the house courier to find me; to find the purification demanded from our lord.

  My death comes soon I can hear the footsteps of the guards coming from down the hall. Everything I have done has been for the greatest good for our people our lord will accept no taint in our darkness, no light. I embrace my death with open arms knowing that his will has been carried out and the Alcheema will be pure once again………

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  Andreas Haaken