C.A.R.P.S.

[Jenna]

1
Comets, comets one by one, seven to fall.
One to mark the return of the Hunter, heir to the Age of Heroes.
One to herald the birth of the true feathered King.
One to warn that the mages of both life and death remain,
One for the forces of Discord that were thought destroyed,
One for the Eye that has yet to see,
One for the broken feather of Life made whole,
One for the men who totem beasts, to cast off fears of old.

2
On longest day starts darkest night.
In Chaos peaks, son fights for life, his fate turns to dust.
In Halls of Bough, Queen sighs, for end comes nigh.
No new babes to come, for here the secret lies.
Hope's light is lost by glare of Dark Eye.
Part of one, yet in arrogance part of none,
Sun sets on the oldest land; wood, water, and sand.
Only truth be known will lend them might.

3
Scattered through the trees, without home or liege,
Legacy lost re-found, tales forgotten remembered.
Their Great Trees have been seen, their call sent out.
Heart they shall need, and grace, and tact,
Lest their battle for wood Home leaves them alone.
Between forest and dreams sleep the Walking Trees,
Between forest and sky wait the Winged Ally,
For the War they all fought must be fought again.

4
Before the Second Breaking, their race was one,
Hidden by oceans and seas of deep blue.
Speech without sound, words by thought,
They watch, they wait, but the reason forgotten.
They too wane in their arrogance, down below,
The sacrifices of others unknown and unmet.
Yet calm seas will be needed in the darkest hours,
Seek their consul, know their heart, that is their part.

5
Before the Second Breaking, their race was one,
Divided by ocean, now turned to dust.
They fought the Great War before Dark Eye scorched.
They wander by ship and skiff, under high sun,
They rest under shadow of the sleeping one.
Children of Dust, they wait for the Child of Bough.
Hoping to become One once more, lest live ever alone.
Blind the Dark Eye so they may hear the call.

6
They wane, they fall, their end comes nigh, without renewal.
Yet...
A man, nay, an elf will wield once more the Great Staff.
By power of Light to unite fire and ice, air and earth.
But not all dream of what was or should be.
So once more the shadow of Darkness shall fall upon the land.
The Great War that was shall come again,
To save or destroy them all, only time shall tell.

7
In the Kingdom of Mountains and Hills, darkness reigns.
Plants die, crops wither, the very stone grows cold.
The Dark Brother returns to claim the throne so bold.
Secrets of Kings may aid their Battle, yet the price is much,
For brother may fight brother while sisters quarrel such.
When all seems lost, the Bell will sound,
Then are the forgotten brethren found.
From beyond the waves, up from the dust, come their trains.

8
Noble blood forgotten, honor lost, past betrayed.
Now a tyrant rules in the land of sun and songbirds.
Like their forgotten cousins, brother will fight brother,
Sister will fight sister, for the future King now lives.
In the War that was, they fought before,
Then their hero saved the treasure to keep all hope alive.
Treasure forgotten now remembered, treasure lost retaken,
Blood Battle must be won before the War.

9
Before the First Breaking, before the lands were torn,
When the races overwhelmed nature, and famine descended,
The Great Tunnels were dreamt and then made real.
In the city of stone and parks, their descendants remain.
In battles and Wars they have hid, yet they too will soon wane,
Unless they guard secret Rings both old and new.
Darkness will visit their cousins and too few shall learn,
For the coming War will need more Lights.

10
Prophets, seers, visionaries, viziers, they see the pain to come.
Shadows in the night, ghosts in the fog, their numbers shall become,
Less than now as they travel the path of their ancient kin.
Their sight a blessing and a curse, much to their chagrin.
Those that remain will be sought out for the power of their gifts,
Their skills in stealth and great portents, many a battle shifts.
Their numbers shrink, their helpless flee, from the coming war,
Though for great need their heroes return to settle an old score.

11
Food, drink, beer, and ale; in stories they excel,
The jolly ones, so small and sure, they may soon bid farewell.
Though none may see they have a use, they know our history,
By word of mouth they hold our tales; this is no mystery.
Now come the end, it is not skills in speaking or in tales,
But cunning quick and slight of hand if they are to prevail.
To act as scout, and engineer, to chase away the fear,
With tale or skill or pie or bread, or tankard full of beer.

12
For those who do not change a sign in the sky
Shall herald the arrival of one to mend what was broken
A secret shall be revealed by the death
Of one who is as old as their kind
A half-healed wound shall be given the chance to mend or be
Torn open on the ground of the mountain tall
And a home long forgotten shall be revealed through a door
In the city of steel and stone.

13
The conflict as old as the blood of the elves shall flare up anew.
The one who is imprisoned, the one who leads the many, and
She who leads but one shall all cry out for the death of their foes
At any cost.
Either thrice beaten and sent away or triumphant, all will be decided
Before the snow is come and gone.
But hope remains that some shall stay to help ensure
The greater fight is won.

14
In the darkness of winter, the Elf Lord has fallen away.
Those of frozen heart despaired, and fell to the light of day
While those trapped against will have found release and way.

15
In the coming spring, the Queen of Night steals her way back by wind.
At her side, the thief of thunder and hearts, for both have sinned.
Together planning to rob fate a doomed Destiny to rescind.

16
From the world of nightmare, sealed from light, so that nights are safe,
A traveler will be lost, his way home found by another,
And as the days grow long with light, Darkness of Summer will join the fight.

17
Beware the Season of Fall, for the Gnome King plans his return.
For the Ring that gates the Great Tunnel has been found once more,
They shall battle for the key to a World beyond the Door.

18
He sees no better man than himself to rule a crippled world,
Years he has spent in preparation, armies and beasts now at his call,
And when the staff arises, He will plot its fall.

19
In the high age of man, one fell to that which he fought, to now bring terror to the world.
His only sanctuary the bath of blood and the call of battle,
From the land of heroes many fought, fell and were lost, but not in vain.
The scourge lay trapped in the maw of the dragon till one came again unaware.
They have crossed blades but shall no more till the Birds of Life fly again,
And the hero long lost will raise his blade again and either light or dark will wane.

20
Once a man, now a Master, yet prevented by action by a light's shadow.
His time is past, his Destiny done, a fate avoided chases him now.
From the War before, he has no part in the War to come.

21
From Darkness they'll come, fearing the Light that could smother,
Hating each other, yet fearing the Light, they will seek one another.
For now, none will follow or bow, no clear General to make decree.
In this lies the Hope that good people can cope
Together in cause, seeing the next Age in scope,
Thus could the Age that should be now become the Age about to be.

22
The Queen of Night has left her land to walk the land of men.
In her wake, a war erupts within that viper's den.
For three come forth who wish to hold the seat that she once held.
The first a man so dark of heart, the dark power he upheld
He wants the land of air and sea for their great naval power.
He hopes to help the shadows dark, this world of ours devour.
Another one stands brave and tall against this wicked man.
He seeks to end this viper's spat the dark one hath began
And use the rogues of the sea and air for the betterment of all.
The last of three is not a man, his stature not as tall,
He seeks both fame and greater wealth to fill his coffers deep,
But when War comes to all of us to himself he will keep.

23
The days made dark will have support of men made almost dwarves,
And when they see the light of day and new foes come to be,
The differences of kingdoms will find in them a mend.
As kingdoms close their gaps, the men themselves can change,
And when grandfathers tell tales of chivalry of a war that they had seen,
These men will find that they have found something they have not long been.

24
After the last Great War, dark powers arose to enslave.
Generations passed before a pirate would fight the masters.
Rulers handsome but dark of heart, banished from Bough, then from stone,
Cast away to the high flat lands of the north: forgotten,
Yet the stone remains, its name given from Bough, now means Noble,
Those old Rulers had sons, and daughters too,
Told tales of glory, wealth, power, magic, and legacy.
Now come forth to lay claim once more.

25
A smile, a cheer, a fond farewell, the princess mage sets sail.
She seeks the hand of the King of Men to mend an alliance frail.
The First of Four, the arrives at dawn on ships the brightest white.
A slip of a girl, she doth have hope of ending the mages'; blight.
As she arrives to court a King, her father calls forth his sight,
To see the path that lays ahead, a warlord to unveil.
The King of Mages may strike a deal to aid the returned dark brother.
The mages unite with those below, the dark ones for to smother.
The Great War returns, and Day fights Night, the warriors of the pale.
With Sword and Shield and Spell they come, forth from the mountain trail.
In Armor white and silver bright, the Mage King sets sail,
To lead Crusaders of mystic might against their shadow brother.

26
In time, the Stag shall raise his head and call the tribes to war.
Treaties set anew will face strain and their bonds will grow weak.
But as all things rise and fall the Stag will lay low his rack,
Making way for the vigor and youth of the new beast who forms his pack,
With their new greatness found and the old ways unbound,
With an honor beyond their ancient ways, they become the new guards of the staff.

27
A kingdom born of man and giant under the crest of the high winds,
They rose in flames and fought for right, a goodly land they made.
But when fire died, new life slipped from their hands.
Now the age grows old and the ashes un-banked to prepare for the birth of a new fire.
She who knows nothing but beauty shall set sail with the Knight of the Serpent.
When her child is born and its significance seen the kingdom will swell with joy.
For nothing could be a greater gift than the birth of her baby boy.
With this knowledge that they shall live again they set forth from their land,
An army reborn, like a wave held back by sands.
Against the armies of darkness they set off for foreign lands,
Their essence once again brought home on fire wings,
This kingdom remains a bastion of hope, born anew but still the same.

28
Largest of the lands, yet never quite large enough,
One seeks northern wastes, placing the discovered son at risk.
One seeks southern prairies, home to dangers and savages.
Yet a King's heart hangs heavy from Battle, tired and worn,
Rebuilding slow, for a castle without wife or child is not a home.
From north, from south, from east, not west they sail,
On white ships, maidens fair, to seek his care,
One choice right, the others wrong, all lands hold breath.

29
Wastes to the north, the last Battle won,
Islands to the south, struggles in shadows,
Darkened hills to the east, where honor fights treachery,
Far west under sun, tyranny faces rebellion,
All seems past or so far away, yet; look closer west.
Banners will fly to meet Discord's rise, still only a battle.
Battles become petty, for the Great War that was comes once more,
To save or destroy them all, only time shall tell.