The Age of Gods

Age of Gods
The Age of Gods, the first age as recorded by the writers of Hallandren (The Age of Fallen Gods or the Age of Gaspard would be more apt) was an age where the world had fallen into chaos, much of the names of that which once lived there is lost to us today, the names of the kings who ruled, the realms, and many of the multitudes of gods themselves are gone after the destruction of the great library of Gesme.

The Elder Gods, those who once ruled numbered in the hundreds, perhaps even in the thousands, it is said that they were the ones who shaped the world, who guarded it from evil as they grew. Yet they grew complacent, they grew lazy, as they themselves grew and their numbers grew they became so embroiled in conflicts between themselves that they began to lose their purpose. The gods bickered, argued and played games of politics more fit for those of the mortal realm then themselves.

As the millenia and the eons passed, the Elder Gods decayed, they grew corrupt, some of their greatest grew evil, many of the oldest gods slept as their sons and grandsons tore havoc throughout the realms. The few who were not blind to this and still saw their original purpose were took weak and frail to stop the younger gods.

The result of this upon the world was terrible. Kingdoms fractured, people’s scattered, and terrible beasts entered the world. Evil reigned throughout much of the world. In some lands, it was said that the world itself was being destroyed, or devoured by some of the great evils that had entered. It seemed as if there was no hope. The people that would one day lead into the great city of Engerdal, and later those of Hallandren were largely irrelevant for a large time, while a warlike people, they were beaten and broken by the chaos, with some entering the service of the very evil’s which oppressed them.

In a young kingdom, a boy prince sat, a storm rang out in the distance. The prince’s name was Gaspard. His grandfather had founded the castle he sat in, where the kingdom he was never going to inherit sat. He was the youngest of his fathers five sons and hated by all other four for the death of their mother. Gaspard, while skilled at arms, was nothing of legends, nor was he a great erudite or leader of people. The storm outside however was no storm, for a god led that storm. His grandfather had paid the price to found his kingdom, he had sworn himself to this god for aid in taking his kingdom, yet one day when a dispute with a more powerful god arose, he never came to his aid. After many years of imprisonment after a defeat at that gods hand, he arrived to wreak vengeance upon his grandfathers kingdom. He was a young god, and one who preferred to spend his time causing chaos upon the lands of the mortal realm over sitting with intrigues around the ancient decaying gods who ruled.

Gaspard’s father had went forth with many of his men to treat, or if things came violent slay the god. Yet he never returned, all that returned was a few dozen of his knights and men, his father had been slain and the god now demanded a great tribute or face his wrath.

His elder brother, now king over him, apparently intended to give three of his younger brothers (including Gaspard), along with all of his sisters over to the angry god as tribute, along with anything he may desire from his pitiful kingdom so that he may show mercy upon him and his people.

Gaspard however had heard of his brother's plans.He took nothing but his grandfather’s sword and horse, he intended to challenge the god to a duel. The god that he faced was more likely a demigod of some sort, yet it remained powerful, generally it is agreed that the god was a giant of some sort, and towered heavily over the boy. He found it awake, and upon his demand of a duel laughed in his face, yet offered to make him king over his brothers if he were to swear himself to the god and slay three of the elder brothers. Gaspard refused.

There are a hundred different ideas on how the fight itself went, some say Gaspard slew him in mere minutes, others alleged that the fight went for days and that a thousand people watched the two of them duel. It is known however that Gaspard slew the god that day, many saying that one of the few gods who still remembered their ancient roles granted Gaspard great valour and bravery that day, and the skill to defeat him for they saw he could do great thing’s. Gaspard henceforth was known as Gaspard Godslayer, and news of his victory spread far and wide across the world.

Yet Gaspard’s victory would be in vain, his father’s kingdom was struck down by a god vengeful for the death of the last. All of his brothers burned.

He technically now ruled as king, but he scorned the title, declaring that he would not be king of bones and scorched fields. Few of his fathers men remained, yet he took those that did and wandered throughout the world, to many it seemed he wandered without purpose. His tales, his exploits are too numerous to recount in this far more general history of the Age of Gods, yet it should be rightly named the Age of Gaspard, for he dominated much of it. This young hero wandered from dragons lairs to haunted lands in the pursuit of aiding those who were oppressed by the evil that had consumed the world, only a few brief summaries of the most impactful events of Gaspard’s travels.

One of his most impactful events was what occurred with the Engerdalic people, not called such a thing at the time.A somewhat aged Gaspard found the Engerdalic people divided and terrorised. Dragons stalked their towns and villages, gods played a game of war between them and liches deep within woods invaded their lands. He went alone into the wood, and most feared after weeks that he had been killed, yet he returned with the liches head.

The Engerdalic’s were shocked, and the people found something they had not known in some time, hope. Yet their lords still waged war upon each other in the name of their gods. Gaspard went in pursuit of the great dragon that terrorised the Engerdalic people, for thirty days hunting its terrible lair. Witnesses said that Gaspard was consumed by the flames of the dragon and his remains closed inside his mouth, yet as his followers were in shock and laughed at by the dragon as it intended to eat him, Gaspard’s sword was spotted going through the top of his head. He was unharmed and a dragonslayer.

The people of Engerdal at this, overthrew the lords who led them into wars to die for gods, they declared Gaspard Godslayer as king over them, while he appreciated the offer, he refused and suggested they choose their own to rule over them. The people ended up going to a young house, lords of a small river town, the Ekdahls.

Yet those gods who had once waged war upon each other now in their fury turned upon Gaspard instead. Those gods took their resources to meet in battle with Gaspard’s own force, the Engerdalic’s joined their strength to his. The name and much of the events of the battle are lost to us, yet we do know that twenty people, men, women and even a boy alone followed Gaspard as they charged head on to engage much of the army. Only the boy’s name alone comes down to us, Enger. The battle was won, the enemy army crushed, we know that in the battle itself the boy saved Gaspard’s life, and would become a squire of his as a result.

The Engerdalic’s were one of the first people to rally to the cause of Gaspard, yet other peoples, races, kingdoms rallied to him. Tales such as that of the Engerdalic peoples salvation by Gaspard occurred for near every people. The evil young gods that once roamed the world mercilessly all saw themselves as the one to kill Gaspard and destroy his followers, not one did. Beasts of old were slain or disappeared, sensing that this one was not one they could overcome or outlast. Yet one of these beasts raged and fumed at this mortal crushing of the gods and beasts who rightly should lord over him, Vaharis. It is not known exactly what she was, dozens of different accounts exist, ranging from a terrible beast of the sea, a deformed dragon, to a worm, yet in all accounts, she whispered into the ears of the elder gods, urging them to take action against this Gaspard who upset the ‘balance’ and sought to depose them.

The Elder gods were not in a great state, many mourned to see their sons, daughters and grandsons and granddaughters slain by this Gaspard, no matter how wicked they had been. Others had simply preferred to sleep, some of those would not wake up. It was clear to many, the Elder Gods were dying, decaying, rotting and declining away. Some died of grief, others of their age, yet the real reason was the loss of their purpose, the very thing which had raised them so high would be the end of them.