The Vacant Throne

Introduction

It has been over two cycles of the seasons since the young Mage, Andy Holcombe, set out from the Tower of the Watchful Eye with Cathy, the demon he shares his soul with. His task was simple, gather four items from the corners of Kalenden and return them to his Master, the Keeper of the Archives.

However, because Andy helped the Evenawks rebel against the Mages, a civil war started within the Tower. Master Pryce, head of the School of the Elemental, was revealed to be possessed by a powerful demon and started a war against the other Masters with his army of possessed Mages. Andy returned home and fought his way to the Keeper.

Upon Andy's arrival, the Keeper revealed his master plan of destroying magic to free the oppressed provinces from the Tower's influence. Having seen the negatives of magic his whole life, the Keeper tried to persuade Andy to see his way. Andy, seeing the Tower, not magic, as the source of the problems, banished the Tower to the Spirit Plane by deliberately mis-performing the spell.

With nowhere to go, and little money, Andy travelled the countryside. He lived with Aaron and Natalie, friends from his journey, in Balendar before moving on to Donkor in Nesqa. He was forced to keep moving as the citizens of Kalenden became more hostile to magic users.

The Mages who weren't in the Tower at the time of its banishment were forced to hide their identities for fear of being attacked by the angry mobs. Some tried to band together to fill the void left by the Tower but were quickly struck down. The king of Balendar and the Emperor of Nesqa quickly tried to regain control of the chaotic provinces.

Out west, in the Ghanlar Plateau, the Evenawk Bird People were reclaiming their ancestral land from the remaining Tower Mages. The war would be a quick one, but Andy didn't want any part of it. He moved to the one place he knew he would be safe. He headed north and joined the Nao, the Tree People of the Szwen Forest.

They welcomed Andy back and made him an offer he couldn't refuse. They would grow him a house close to the lands of Balendar if he took on the role of Kairu, Guardian of the Forest. Andy accepted and has been living in the forest for over a cycle now.

It was driving Cathy crazy...