The Origin of Trolls and Barbarians

Swords of Fire: Traitor makes mention of Trolls and Barbarians. They become important again in Book IV, which currently has no working title. I thought I would give a short background where Trolls and Barbarians came from.

After The Great War, which nearly destroyed The Great Sea, the Children of Fire were bound to repair as much damage as they could. Part of this restoration process involved close interaction with the Free Peoples, of which there were five: Figgits, Dwarfs, Men, Pennans, and Nomads. The Pennan and Nomad numbers were few, but the other races still existed in huge numbers. This was especially so with the race of Men.

In order to facilitate interaction between the Free People and the Children of Fire, certain members of the Children of Fire took on mortal form, meaning they would share the fate of whichever race they chose to emulate. They were granted long lifespans, but ultimately they would die. Lacking anything creative, the Free People called these Mortals.

Unfortunately, Zenophone encouraged a good number of his followers to also take on mortal form. These did not act in accordance with the rules set forth by the High King. Instead, they used their superior strength to overcome those they were to help and set up kingdoms. Hence they were called Overlords.

The Overlords went further than just seek dominion. They forced members of the races to become to become concubines and sexual slaves. The children born to these unions were deformed in varying degrees. They were known as The Accursed Races.

Accursed Races:

• Goblins: from Figgits
• Gnomes: from Dwarfs
• Barbarians: from Men
• Gargoyles: from Pennans
• Renegades: from Nomads

The Free People shunned these offspring, creating a population of outcasts who learned to hate those who blamed them without cause. Many were hunted and killed. All were tormented to one degree or another. And when the Overlords began dying (or being killed), the surviving mothers took their children to the mountains to hide. And there, in the mountains, in order to fulfill the maturing desires of their sons, mothers committed unthinkable acts. The children from these unions became even more deformed than their fathers, and were shunned even by the outcasts. In time they became known as Trolls.

Trolls from Renegades were the largest. Next in size were Trolls from Barbarians. These are the Trolls of Swords of Fire: Traitor.

Sick? Yeah. It is. That's the point. People - any people - are capable of incredible acts when put in certain circumstances. The harder we deny this, the more likely we would be victims.

Remembering the Original Plan

From the beginning there were Humans, Elves, Dwarfs, and Ceres. The Figgits, Pennans, and Nomads came later.

At the start, the entire saga was about Khirsha, and Khirsha alone. Only later, when I began to develop the world did I come to realize the more far-reaching concepts of all that was taking place. By then I realized what I was creating was a place in which literally thousands of stories could be told, each distinctive from the others. The worlds, while having similar characteristics, were all different places, which different people. Most of the worlds would be completely ignorant of Elves in particular, but probably even a good number of the other races, too.

A variety of race/creature combinations could be imagined. Think of it.

Nomads - extinct race (presumed)

Pennans - extinct race (presumed)

Humans - hundreds of cultures

Dwarfs - many cultures

Figgits - several cultures

Gargoyls - several kinds

Gnomes - several kinds

Barbarians - many kinds

Trolls - several kinds

Dragons - twelve breeds, two kinds within each breed

Unicorns - eight breeds

As you can see, a lot of potential stories. And this doesn't even include the Children of Fire, Wizards, Teachers, Mortals, Warlords, Assassins, Overlords, gryphons, manticores, etc., etc., etc.

The Great Sea is a place for artists. Painters, Sculptors, writers, and whoever can come to The Great Sea and find a place to express their craft. There are certain things which must be kept true across creations in order for the work to truly be from The Great Sea. I suppose I should compile a compendium, or guide, of some sort to aide in the work.

The Golden Sheep

The Golden Sheep were a creation of Draem's. She made them alone.

My historical writing on the Golden Sheep is lost somewhere in the archives. I should have organized everything, but it never occurred to me I would wind up with so much. A lot of the old texts were handwritten, and with my handwriting that is like trying to read Egyptian Hieroglyphics. Anyway, I never did have much on the Golden Sheep, so I should be able to put most of it here from memory.

They lived on mountain slopes, high enough to dissuade the common curious, but not so high as to be completely exposed. They were large creatures. Most of the things made by the Children of Fire tended that way. On average, they were probably the size of a hefty pony. They foraged, but it is not clear whether that was just something they did, or whether they actually had to eat to survive.

They were extremely shy creatures, making the Phoenix appear gregarious in comparisson. It is not known if that was Draem's intent.

The amazing feature Draem gave them was that they changed color. In the winter they were white, blending in with the snow perfectly. Through Amaris (spring) and into Nelshius (summer) their wool would darken until it was black. Then, in Luvellish (fall), their wool would turn to gold strands. It wasn't just that their color was gold, although it was, but their wool actually became gold. The season for gold was short, though. Around Mid-Harvest (halfway through fall) a new coat of white wool would begin to grow, pushing out the gold strands, which would break off and lay along the mountainsides. The white wool grew quickly, so by the time Fargius (winter) arrived, they were well protected from the cold. This property of camoflage suggests to some that Draem did intend them to be shy.

As to the gold strands, certain bird species, such as eagles, would collect them for nests. The gold was soft and pliable. It also contained Fire, provided by the sheep themselves. The Dwarfs learned of the Golden Sheep and sent expeditions out to harvest the bounty.

Being sheep, the Golden Sheep were virtually defenseless when The Great War erupted. During the breakup of the Original World, the Golden Sheep were mostly destroyed. What few that remained moved higher into the mountains, and became more reclusive than ever. At the time of Book I, no one had seen a Golden Sheep since The Great War.

Point of Interest: In Book I, there is a reference to the golden wool in Sovereign Odelmaar's description. Odelmaar was a proud man and it showed in his manner and dress. His robe was black with gold accents on the sleeves, collar and fringe. He wore a golden belt made of some material that looked like hair but was in fact gold. It had been found on Fire Mountain.

The Great Sea's Technologies

I thought I would write a bit about how the Free People do various tasks. All of the civilizations (and there are thousands of them) were primitive by our standards. No one had harnessed electricity. There were no combustion engines. But some were more advanced than others.

Khirsha's family had what I consider to be an odd assortment of technology. On the one hand, they could make swords which burned with fire, and were able to drain power from another sword. Seems like advanced stuff to me. On the other hand, their 'clocks' were almost comical.

The clocks were hourglasses of varying size. The smallest lasted about a minute. The largest went as long as two hours. They were filled with water and manually operated, meaning someone had to be there to turn them when their time ran out. Clearly, this was not an efficient means of keeping time, which suggests something else that is obvious: the family wasn't overly concerned about time of day.

The family did not measure time by minutes and hours. Instead, they measured it in turns and short-turns. (When a glass's top portion emptied, it had to be 'turned'.)

A short-turn lasted roughly one minute. These glasses were used to time events of short duration. During the Presider Flamesword Test in Book I, ten small bottles were used to time each test.

A full-turn, or turn, was about an hour, or sixty short-turns. These glasses were used for meetings, classes and as part of the Village Timekeepers. The Timekeepers were made of twelve full-turns. The first four jars would contain blue tinted water. The next four would be clear. The last four would have red tinted water. Most of the villages had a Timekeeper. One of the Unaligned (a servant class people who are not especially keen on their status) would be responsible for turning the glasses.

The family had 440 houses (I counted them - and I know who lives in every one - do I live an exciting life, or what) in 29 settlements, or villages, but not all had a Timekeeper. Only the eighteen largest villages kept one, and very few houses had one. Some of the family Sovereigns, or other weathy members with live-in servants had them.

The large-turn glasses were only used at the temple during classroom instruction.

Regarding timekeeping, the family was far behind other cultures. Even the nearby Kingdom of Azua had better. But, as I said, time of day was not a significant concern to the family. They were warriors, hunters, farmers and herdsman of cattle. Most gauged their time by the position of the sun. At night, it was the moon - when there was one. Even when things were rushed, their lives were slower than ours.

Shatahar

Shatahar is Zenophone's main agent for finding and destroying Madatar, and ultimately Ardora.

He is the most powerful of the Warlords, the strongest of Zenophone's servants. He is so powerful, in fact, that he has designs on usurping his master's position and becoming the Ruling Power over The Great Sea himself. Yet powerful as he is, he is terrified at the prospect of Madatar finding him first. This is his greatest weakness, and the reason he delays his own victory. Fear may be a powerful weapon, but it can also be a two-edged sword.

According to some archival writings, it was Shatahar who first discovered Elva's Children (Elves) and brought a host of Barbarians against them. But the Elves escaped, with the help of the Figgits and their sailing craft. For this reason Shatahar bears an especial hatred for Figgits.

In Pawns (a.k.a. Flames of Hatred), Shatahar makes a cryptic comment regarding Lord Kensington: Time moved forward. Time was his enemy. He was trapped in time, but to be anywhere else was to risk assault. In Time he would crush his enemy. He would crush all who opposed him. Meanwhile, what was he to do? He lacked advantage. It had been taken from him. Curse Kensington! This passage is very likely to disappear from the final version, but it seems to indicate that Kensington is the reason for Shatahar losing whatever advantage he had. It also hints at something Swords of Fire does not make clear until Book III: Time is a place. And, as a place, one can either be in time, or out of it. There were advantages and limitations to both. Regarding what Kensington did, this is what happened:

When the Children of Fire first walked upon the waters they generated a great cloud of condensation. This Cloud remained for the duration of The Great Sea's lifespan. It was held back from all but a few lifeless worlds at the command of Lord Kensington. When the Figgits took the Elves onto the ocean, Kensington released the Cloud and it blanketed all of The Great Sea. Even the Children of Fire had trouble seeing through the Cloud, and Kensington used this to scatter the Elves and hide them from Zenophone, Shatahar and the other Warlords.

Shatahar - and the others who sought Madatar's destruction - now had to begin from scratch, searching the worlds one by one to find their enemy. Since they were all terrified of their foe, this process was slow. Moving from world to world took time. It also took energy, and Shatahar soon learned it was seldom possible for him to enter a world unannounced. The power and anger he projected just could not be contained. The Warlords were hindered by something else: mistrust of their allies. They just did not share information with each other. Neither did Zenophone share with his Warlords. Although allied against a common enemy, the Warlords tended to act independently. This was another of their weaknesses.

Eventually, Shatahar would employ lesser beings than himself, called Titans, to make the world-to-world search. The Titans would travel at Shatahar's bidding, and since Shatahar was gifted more so than the other Warlords in understanding the minds of Kensington and Grenville, the leaders in the effort to help Madatar, Shatahar was able to stumble upon key places in Madatar's rise to power. Fortunately for Madatar, Shatahar didn't understand just how key his information was.

Kelso

This is the first of my posts on the people who are important to Khirhsa, who is the Main Character in my Swords of Fire saga. It is only fitting I begin with Kelso, although Kelso is not, ultimately, the most important person to Khirsha.

I can write a awful lot about Kelso (or is that a lot, awfully?), but I will keep this post short. My first novel hasn't been published and I don't want to reveal too much right now.

Kelso is near cousin to Khirhsa, which means there is a sibling relationship between their parents. In the case of Kelso and Khirhsa it is their fathers. Khaiu (Kelso's father) and Shello (Khirsha's father) are brothers. Much is made in Pawns (a.k.a. Flames of Hatred) how Kelso and Khirsha are like brothers. "Different in appearance, they were very much alike in spirit and had bonded closer than many who were married." (from Pawns)

Kelso was born on *Nelshius in the year 329 to Tura and Khaiu. This was the day which separated the Planting Season from the Growing Season. We would call it the beginning of summer. His birth took place at the Great Hall. Hawnka (another important character in Khirsha's life) acted as mid-wife assistant. Khirsha would be born four years later, at Mid-Summer's Day. Kelso's first sibling, Thaia, would not arrive until 337. Khirsha's first sibling, Kaschira, was not born until 338. Both Thaia and Kaschira would die in the Year of Sickness in 340. That was a notable year for many. It was also the year when Khirsha had his first notable contact with Tavaar, who was to become quite important to him. Shirae and Tursa, Khirsha and Kelso's youngest sisters, would not be born until 342. This lack of siblings brought the boys together as though they were brothers, and it remained that way until death finally separated them.

Kelso was pretty much everything a mother and father could want. He was strong, gifted, handsome, intelligent. The list went on. He is described in Pawns as being "built for strength and endurance. He had dark eyes that looked out mischievously through thick black hair hanging loose to his shoulders". Many girls near his age desired him, but he only allowed a few to get close. Partly, this was out of fear. It was the one area in which Kelso's confidence abandoned him. But mostly it was because, like his father, Kelso was intensely interested in developing his skills with the flamesword, and relationships tended to be distracting. The result was he was seen as the greatest warrior of his generation. Possibly even greater than Shello, who many believed to be the greatest ever.

He was Khirsha's mentor in virtually everything, including girls. In Pawns, it is Kelso who opens Khirsha's eyes to the political subterfuge going on around them. It is Kelso who first concludes the family is at risk of war, and with who. It is Kelso who points out to Khirsha that spying on the flying Cere Princess is hardly an act worthy of love. It is Kelso who encourages Khirsha to speak with Sayla before their friendship is ruined. And it is Kelso who prophetically tells Khirsha he is going to have to make a difficult decision of life and death. This position of importance creates a problem.

The problem with Kelso being so important to Khirhsa, both as a pseudo-brother and a mentor, is that Kelso also becomes Khirsha's crutch. As long as Kelso is around, Khirsha will never achieve his potential. This is proven by the fact that Khirsha always loses to Kelso in everything. (An extremely important point.) When they were very young this was only natural. Kelso was four years Khirsha's senior. But by the time Khirsha was nineteen (his age during Pawns) he should have been been able to win at least some time. That he never did was evidence of Kelso's emotional superiority. The two had to separate in order for Khirsha to grow, and that is, in fact, what happens.

Should Pawns ever become a published work, and should you come to read it, pay close attention to Khirsha's interactions with Kelso. They portend a lot.

* The Great Sea's calendar year was 396 days divided into eight months of 48 days each and 12 days which were not part of any month. Each month had six 8-day weeks. Every week day had its own name, and each day of the year was also uniquely named. The year was structured so that every day had the same name every year. Thus, for someone born on Magday Calesen 3 in the year 340, their birthday in 341, 342, 343 and so forth would remain Magday Calesen 3.

The Elves

The Elves were not listed in my posting "The Free People" because at the beginning there were no Elves. The Elves were the result of the union between Massimo, last of the Nomads, and Elva, last of the Pennans.

There is an unfinished story of how Massimo was captured by Barbarians. His tribe was wiped out. He was taken as a gladiator, to fight for the amusement of others in a circus environment. While at his prison he met Elva, who had also been taken prisoner. Her task was to provide musical entertainment. With them was Hondu, last of the Mortals, who's task it was to perform 'magic' tricks. (Mortals were Children of Fire who had taken mortal form in order to help the various Races recover from the Great War. Hondu had chosen to be a Figgit.) Hondu had the power to free himself whenever he wanted, but he was waiting. When Massimo arrived, he knew what he was waiting for and arranged for Elva and Massimo to escape with him. Pursued by Barbarians, Hondu led Elva and Massimo into the mountains where, at long last, Hondu's mortality came to an end. Before he died he gave the power he had accumulated evenly to Elva and Massimo, thereby binding them as wife and husband. He also was able to arrange their escape from the world.

When Elva and Massimo reached their new world they remained in hiding. Hondu had warned them they were not only at risk from Barbarians. Should the Warlords learn the significance of their union, they would seek their deaths. (Warlords were Children of Fire. They were powerful beings who sought to take control of the Sea.) So they lived on the slopes of a mountain range, and there they had their children, and their children had their children. The children called themselves, Elva's Children. Over time this became shortened to Elva's, and eventually Elves.

What made Elva and Massimo's union so special was Hondu's giving them his Power. The Mortals were granted the knowledge of when they would die. Shortly before death they would 'pass on' their Power to another Mortal. This resulted in a consolidation of Power until, finally, Hondu had all of the Power of all of the Mortals. Hondu gave this to Elva and Massimo, knowing that by doing so, he had made the decision on where Madatar would come from.

Eventually, as the Elves' population increased, the Warlords did come to notice them, and they did understand the significance of their origins. And so began the Warlords' persecution of the Elves. Their fear of Madatar hindered their efforts, and because of that the Elves survived. Eventually, they would become scattered across the Sea, awaiting the coming of Madatar. For some, the years had been few when Madatar finally came. For others, it had been so long they had forgotten about him.

The Free People

The Free People were races of intelligent beings created by the High King. By the time of Flames of Hatred (FOH) only three of the original races remained, plus one which came later. When the Children of Fire (COF) fought and nearly destroyed the Sea the High King declared the Sea would be taken from the COF and given to the Free People. Originally, there were five.

Nomads:
Nomads were the tallest, ranging in height from six to eight feet. They were also the only race to not build permanent villages. They lived on the grasslands, near forested regions, but out under the sun where they watched over Kensington's marvelous herds of winged horses. They lived in small family groups of fifty or more, but usually never more than one hundred. Should a group grow too large in size it would split. Mostly, they were hunters. However, they did trade at whiles with humans who lived near the forrests' edges. This race was virtually wiped out during the Great War which nearly destroyed the Sea. It is purported to have died out entirely when Massimo, last of the Nomads, died. Nomads typically lived around six score years.

Pennans:
Pennans were also tall, but not so much as the Nomads. They were also the only race which had been granted the skies: Pennans had wings. They were a shy people, living in the mountain high places. The Byth and Wyth dragons, which shared the mountains with the Pennans, taught them much. They were amazing not only because they flew, but by reason of their imperviousness to the cold. Even in freezing weather Pennans only wore light garments. But they did trade at whiles with humans and dwarfs, using knowledge taken from the great dragons to produce crafts and jewelry coveted by other races. During the Great War the dragons foughtfor the Pennans' protection. But the effort only seemed to draw focus and ultimately the Pennans went the way of the Nomads. Elva is said to have been the last. Like Nomads, Pennans lived roughly six score years.

Humans:
Humans were the most populous race, multiplying much faster than the other four. Thus, human settlements could recover much quicker than those of dwarfs or figgits. It also helped them survive the Great War, which devastated the other races. Humans took immediate advantage of the Windows created by the COF to help the Free People disburse after the breaking up of the First World. So it is that humans can be found on nearly every world. They engaged in all manner of means to survive, from hunting to fishing to farming. They were incredibly adaptable - and wayward. Humans proved to be the easiest race for Zenephone to pervert to his will. Perhaps this was due to the human need to always know more. Coveteousness was probably their greatest weakness. Human lifespans were greatly determined by the world in which they lived and so there was a great span of projected years, ranging from as low as three score to as high as seven or even eight. They also had a wide variation in height - even within a world - from five to seven feet.

Dwarfs:
Dwarfs were a rugged and stocky people, averaging around five feet tall. Although not shy, they were secretive and protective of themselves and what they considered to be theirs. They were a hairy people, all growing long, thick beards which they trimmed to personal fashion. They were loyal to their friends and unforgiving to their enemies, but even amongst friends they would anger quickly. They were noted for four things: fishing, farming, mining and war. Dwarfs had no problem involving themselves in wars which had nothing to do with them. Sometimes, if the prize was great enough, they would fight all sides. Although short in stature, even Nomads and Pennans tended to hesitate before attacking a Dwarf army. Like dragons, Dwarfs tended to be lured to worlds containing large quantities of precious gemstones.

Figgits:
Figgits were the smallest people, never passing five feet in height. They were mostly a farming people, but what they are most renown for is their navigation of the Great Sea. Of all the races only the Figgits truly heeded the council of the COF and learned the ways of the Sea, making maps to help them navigate. The Figgits were also the only race not to intermingle with the mortal followers of Zenephone (called Overlords). In the Years of Disbursion the Figgits did not use Windows to move from world to world. They sailed the dangerous waters into the Cloud, learning to trust the natural currents the ocean provided. In later years, after the Windows had been shut down, Figgits became the conveyers of people from one world to another.