The kingdoms of Carfington and Aliena had been at war as long as anyone in either place could remember. However, when the King of Carfington’s conclave of mages discovered a magical weapon known as The Occidis, the scope of the fighting had changed forever.

The Occidis, to most, had been mere myth. It was rumored to have the power to detonate a sweeping blast of pure magical energy that would rip the souls from all who were unfortunate enough to be within range. The range was unknown but in the stories it ranged from a few leagues to weeks in any direction.

When the Carfington mages found the terrible weapon, they could scarcely believe it. The king notified the Aliena leadership and demanded surrender. In response, the Aliena only fought harder. They correctly guessed that the mages of Carfington would not risk using the weapon as they did not know the extent to which devestation would be wrought.

Called on his bluff and frustrated, the King of Carfington sent all reserve troops to the front.

“If we lose the front we need only use the weapon.” Reasoned the King.

Something quite interesting about the Occidis was that it was found in an ornate chest along with instructions. The instructions were in an ancient language and had to be translated to common. This was an arduous process as the ancient script was largely forgotten but the mages were clever. Eventually they discovered that the Occidis, which physically was a bright blue, glowing globe the size of a rock melon, could only be used when its power was transferred to a persons body. Upon hearing this news, the king ordered the energy be transferred from the globe to the conclave’s lead mage to ensure the weapon could not simply be stolen and to promote the ability to use the weapon quickly.

Obedient as a hound, the lead mage took the power within himself. He held the power for a half a day before his body started to feel weak. The lead mage, with his king’s permission, began a rotation amongst the conclave. Each mage in the conclave would keep the power for only a couple of hours before transferring it to the next in line.

The first rotation had not finished before a most grevious error was made. The mage who had the power was attempting to transfer it to the next in line whose name was Dario Twenlock. However, he had transferred the magic to Tario Dwenlock, an Aliena boy of 7. The mage and poor Dario were executed as soon as the mistake was discovered and the King’s rage was fully formed.

Tario lived on a small farm on the outskirts of Aliena’s capitol city. When the power entered his body he felt it like a freezing blast of water. Tario felt this, and knew the truth of what it meant. Bearing the power came with an acute understanding. The 7 year old boy knew that he had the power to destroy his countries rivals.

He knew also that if he refused, Carfington may well overrun Aliena’s army and come pillaging. Certainly, Aliena’s leaders wouldn’t hesitate to use the weapon if they had Tario’s knowledge at their disposal. But Tario was as yet unblemished by the spite and mistrust that age brings and as such could not bear the thought of harming so many. So, as he directed his gaze at the moon-bright sky and with a flicker of thought, he saw a small blue flash amongst the stars.