[Samir]

Hey i can be a fan of my own fiction.. cant i? Anyways im on a stomp with this sotry.. so maybe posting it here well re-new my wanting to wright more about him.
Desert King
(Prologue)
Warm wind stirred sand in lazy slow swirls making a faint 'whoosh' sound through the limbs of blacken trees. On this day, like any other day, the heat is almost unbearable in the desert called Acirema by those who live here.  Acirema is the name given by a ruler long gone from the world when the land was more hospitable.
Acirema wasn't always like this. Long ago major earth quakes and angry storms changed the land and altered the weather. The Priests have ranted for generations that it was our punishment! God's revenge against the selfish acts of man.
Now mounds of golden sand stretch from east to west with dry and hardened riverbeds where water once coursed through the land. High mountain ranges surround the dustbowl with jagged foothills leading to cliffs ending abruptly at a raging sea. The waters below are filled with creatures that destroy any craft and take the souls of any foolish enough to tempt it. All of these factors keep the country of Acirema isolated.
All was not lost. Humans and animals alike found their own ways of adapting to the harsh and demanding lands. Humans began to de-evolve away from technology, away from computers and away from hand held electronic gadgets. They found the need to go back to simple tools made of wood and steel.
It was the wrath of god that took away all the luxuries that man took centuries to build and begin to take for granted. All those "things" were lost. Gone were the electrical power plants that powered their devices that ran their lives. No more sources of petroleum reduced automobiles to no more than burnt out, rusting hulks. And the final punishment was the vast fires from the earthquakes that ravished through the city destroying everything so that not even a single book survived in the resulting infernos. 

During the time of confusion in what the elders call "the age of Darkness", the earth settled down and the lost people lived in small holes dug by hand along the side of the mountains surviving off of anything they could find. Morale and hope was dead. Many walked around like zombies both horrified by what they survived and filled with complete despair at the sudden hardship of life. Supplies where running low and the entire race was near starvation. Then Ivar, a great man who was well educated united the lost peoples. He renewed their hope and determination for life and together the lost people began building the town Spero. Ivar was then dubbed King of Acirema.   
The lost people began to thrive once more and from Spero they branched out building smaller villages to farm and mine where they found life returning to the land. The future seemed brighter. It was possible to go back to how things where, or so was the mind set of the people until the great scaled monsters begain to attack.

  That's when the new villages of Acirema started to build high walls to keep thieves, wolves and the Tancerta out.   A Tancerta is a creature that resembled a lizard on steroids. The smallest reported  roaming the land is said to be as large as a full grown tiger. With teeth like sharpen daggers, scales covering the entire body that are harder then steel and long claws on the end of powerful legs that move their bodies easily through the light sand, the Tancerta was the top predator of the land.  Their favorite foods include cow, pig and human. Because of their defense system, bullets would only bruise and further anger the Tancerta. Making what few firearms the humans had ineffective, and in fact, obsolete. 
Simply living as a human was a struggle. But over time and with a strong instinct to survive, some humans found the will to battle the Tancerta and even found a few weak spots that helped them defeat it. But it required the skill of a highly trained warrior, a master of the old forms of swordsmanship and archery to hit the Tancerta and end its life. 
These warriors had come to be known as Desert Masters. They specialized in killing the Tancerta that threaten villages or acting as guides and protectors for people traveling from town to town.
It is hero's work that comes at a high price.


(if u like it write a comment on my profile.. i'll post up ch. 1 if anyone wants to read on)

[Samir]

~~~~Ch 1
             Amor, a small quiet village filled with charm and happiness. Here children played easily while the elders watched from their carved furniture and small brown birds sang a lovely song in the background.

             Amor was located in an ideal spot. On all sides were high mountains making up a natural wall against the elements. It kept the village 10 degrees cooler in the summer and blocked the harsh winds that stirred up powerful blinding dust storms. Nearby a powerful river flowed providing the people with water and a means to grow large farm crops. The villagers of Amor were able to grow more crops then they needed to survive and this meant the excess could be sold other market places to bring back money.

              As for the local government, the oldest of the elders was considered the wisest person living in the town. It was their responsibility to make sure crime was punished and rules were kept.
 
              At this time his name was Ross. This year marked his forty fifth birthday. Living that long in the new age was almost unheard of.
Elder Ross was indeed a smart man a little too smart. Once he became the village elder and gained the peoples trust, things began to change. A tax was place on every home, a first in Acirema history. Angry villagers that gathered around Elder Ross hut shooting their displeasures once the guards had announced the new tax. Ross hobbled out with his hands raised above his head to calm the villagers. Elder Ross was a short plum man. He stood a mere 5'2, leathery skin, and wore a simple white tunic with a large red ruby that was passed from elder to elder. His head bold but his grey beard long curling down to his belly button. With a smile he explained The importance of the tax, he gave three reasons:

      First, the money would be going right back into the community repairing homes and the outer walls that where falling in.

    Second, some of the money was going to be put far away to be saved to pay for a Desert Master if the need ever came.

     And finally, part of it was for a "rainy day fund", just in case the crops ever failed. They would have enough to buy food and seed to help them survive until the next growing season came.

      The villagers being uneducated were easily pleased with such an explanation. It made them happy and that accepted it thinking that their Elder was a wise man.  Thinking so fair ahead. Ross turned from them feeling very pleased with himself. After the creaked close the elder chuckled shaking his head. "The fools." He muttered to himself

       Once all eyes turned away from him, he quickly diverted the money towards his own personal gain. Better clothing, fine foods and wines, and entertainment of all kinds were his compensation for being the Elder.
Not one cent was paid back into the village. The walls had huge gapping holes and family homes began to crumble and their roofs caved in. When they questioned Elder Ross he easily explained it away saying either the money was being spent for seeds for storing away or that not everyone had been paying in their fair share and the funding was lower than expected. Again the uneducated villagers were unwilling to think for themselves and accepted his words for the truth and went on. Doing what they could to repair their homes on their own.

           Too keep the villagers distracted and happy Elder Ross proclaimed that the village had been forgotten by the Tancerta. No longer should they fear being attacked because god was happy with them and was honoring all their sacrifices by putting up a holy shield that wards the demons away. At this the villagers cheered and even held a celebration that night.
It was true that not a single Tancerta had been spotted for more than a year.  Everyone seemed pleased and even more relaxed about life beyond the wall. Everyone except for one forgotten family.

           Siman's home was on the furthest edge of the village. He was not a farmer but a wizard, famous for being a healer. He use to work in the Desert Master Guild as a traveling healer that went along on the more dangerous missions. Now retired and married he hope to spend his days being a woodworker. He was still young at 28 years old, with long black hair wrapped up in a loose messy braid. He was slim but strong. Even though he was retired, he still wore his old wizard jackets that covered him from head to toe.

       For him this time of peace reeked of disaster. Those Tancerta may be animals, but they where smart. Hunting in packs, it was very well known within the Guild, they tended to stalk and wait for their prey to become lazy. With Amor's defense now relaxed and the people dropping their guard it would be only a matter of time.
Siman wanted to talk to Ross and after many attempts he finally got an audience alone with the elder. Walking into the elders hut the retired wizard couldn't help but notice the expensive rugs on the floor, the small golden table and the bowls filled with fruits that he hadn't seen since his traveling days. In his gut he had a sinking feeling.

          "Elder..." he began showing the proper respect by touching the left side of his breast with two fingers of his right hand and bowing his head just slightly to the elderly man lounging on some throw pillows and smoking a long wooden pipe.
"Aww wizard! Sit down would you and join me in a good smoke. Its blackberry blend from the west. A present from the Elder of Opulenza." Siman could tell that half of the sentence was a lie.

"This won't take long Elder, I have..."
"It does bother me when people stand over me. Sit down."  Elder Ross spoke much more forcibly his overly wrinkled face scrunching up showing his displeasure. Stiffling a sigh Samin sat, crossing his legs and resting his many ringed finger on his knees.

             "There much better!" Elder Ross said, his lips twisting up into a smile showing off his one yellow tooth to the wizard. "Now, what where you saying?"
Siman cleared his throat. "I've noticed that the walls are changing."
"I've already explained..."
"And the watch tower guards have also become laxed."
"That is because..."
"And the people are wandering to carelessly outside of the protection of the walls."
"SIMAN! Siman my good lad. What is your point? Haven't I already told everyone that our god is pleased with us?"
"That is my point Elder. God has nothing to do with the lack of Tancerta. They are out there waiting for us to do something stupid. And that is exactly what we are doing right now!"
"Those lizards are not that intelligent! Siman I think all those years travelling with those Guild warriors has messed with your mind. Making you crave for a fight."
"That is untrue." Siman began only to be silenced by the raise of a hand. The Elder had heard enough.
"I say it's safe so it is safe. Either live with it or leave..."
Siman sighed aloud this time as he stood. Again he touched his chest in a salute and turned to leave.
"Then that is what I'm going to do."
He left with the laughter of the old man following behind him.
"What a fool, he well die out there.."

[Samir]

[Samir]