The Chronicles of Zion Morviael: The Morviael Games

For years I had managed to roam the galaxy with my sisters and my best friend, able to escape and over come any obstacle or danger that threatened us. However, our luck, it seems, would soon run out on us. In an attempt to save my sisters and my friend, I let myself be captured to allow them to escape from our enemies. I spent 10 years as a prisoner, chained up like some criminal and put on show like a circus side show, never staying in the one place. But I got a lucky break one day, when I was freed from my captivity by Hikari, Akari and Dario. Upon returning home to Talus, I soon learned of how much time had passed during my capture. Without further thought, I left Jarrah's estate one night and made my way to Corellia via transport, leaving the YT-1300 back home. When I look back upon my decision, I wonder why I was so rash and foolish in making it, for I should have learned not to tempt my luck so soon

Zion walked between several stalls of a local market in the town where he had first met Iella 20 years earlier. Back then she was still young and innocent, ignorant of who he was and the events that would transpire over the following days. He leaned against a pole as he spied Iella two stalls down, buying some fruit, as the same questions that had barraged him for so many years returned again, hoping for some better footing. Zion then pushed off the pole and made his way through the crowd, walking up besides Iella and grabbing an apple to examine it, his hood over his head, not looking at her face
=Zion Morviael=
It's the only fruit that still reminds me of you, even after all these years...
As Iella heard that voice, the voice of the man who had romanced her several years earlier, before almost entirely breaking her heart, she spun around ready to slap him across the face. Zion managed to react quickly and grab her wrist, stopping the slap mid air. Age having had a slight affect on her voice as she spoke
=Iella Bastra=
Don't you dare! You were gone for 20 years Zion! You left me alone and undefended!
Zion then turned his head towards Iella, his hood moving out of the way to allow him a good look at Iella. As he saw her battered and bruised face, he could tell time was not all that had made it's mark on the women he had fallen in love with. He could see a mixture of emotions in those now haunting eyes, among them was no doubt jealousy at Zion's lack of any signs of aging
=Zion Morviael=
What happened to you?
Iella glared at Zion, even though she could never truly hate him, she could still be angry at him right now. He had promised she would be safe by him leaving, instead she had ended up with the pig that called himself her husband, while trying to raise her and Zion's daughter. She looked away towards the market crowd before looking back at Zion, her eyes full of judgement as tears slowly began to form
=Iella Bastra=
My husband! While you were off gallivanting around the universe, some of us were forced to move on, for the sake of a child!
Zion was confused as she made that remark. Was not the child born after she had met her current husband, but she had said for the sake of a child, was it possible the child was his? they had after all spent that night together on the train. Zion's confusion was visible on his face quite quickly and Iella half smiled, hanging her head in shame at taking pride in what she had done
=Iella Bastra=
She is yours....I had no choice but to find someone to help me raise her....
Zion felt like he had been hit by a hover car as Iella confirmed his suspicions. He and Iella really had, had a child. All those years, that little girl he had observed from afar was really his. He released Iella's hand as he fell to his knee's, his head hung in shame as everything came crashing in on him. Iella turned her head away from Zion, knowing that she would regret everything she had said if she looked at him again. She wiped the tears from her eyes as she did her best to straighten him a little
=Iella Bastra=
I have to go....Your daughter has left this hell hole, so do not come looking for her....
Iella then picked up her groceries, disappearing back into the crowd, leaving Zion kneeling on the ground. How could he have let this happen, how could he have not even known that the child was his. Zion was completely cut off from everything that was going on around him, taking no notice of anything but his own thoughts

As the man in front of him raved on, he could make no sense of what it all meant. Who was Zion Morviael? was that his name? and what of this family and friends of Zion? were they in danger? was he meant to know them? all these questions raced through his mind before he was taken away, suddenly everything turned to darkness.

Rune suddenly sat upright in his bed, sweat covering his scarred torso. The man slowly calmed his breathing as he looked around in the darkness of his cell, realising he must have had another one of his nightmares again. They seemed to come and go as they pleased, causing Rune to be startled from his sleep as images of some event haunted his dreams.
As he got out of bed and went over to the small sink to splash water on his face, there was a stir of movement in the bed set on the opposite wall of the cell, before a head popped out from the covers
=Tamir=
Did you have another nightmare again?
Rune splashed the cold water against his face, before leaning on the sink and looking back over his shoulder at Tamir. It was Tamir who he had been put into a cell with, Tamir who had looked after him till he was back to health, Tamir who had been friends with him all the past several months, and it was Tamir who had called him Rune, for he had no other name he could remember. Rune nodded to his friend as he calmed down
=Rune=
It's the same thing over and over again. Sounds bombard me from every direction, feelings of pain and suffering, then it's a small room with blinding light, shadows moving before my eyes...
Rune turned back towards the small mirror above the sink as he hung his head, in frustration and disappointment. Tamir sat up in his bed, facing Rune. This was not the first time he had heard this dream explained to him, nor would it be the last time. He could tell that his friend suffered greatly at the hands of these nightmares
=Tamir=
Do you know why I called you Rune, when first we met and you had no other name? It is because you contain a knowledge that is a secret to you. You are troubled by nightmares, but of what, you do not know. I know this troubles you friend, but what can you do? Where and who would you turn to for answers?
Rune sighed, he knew Tamir was right. Who could he turn to for answers? what exactly did he expect to learn if he even found someone who knew the answers?
Rune looked up at the mirror, staring at his reflection. There was a man, who claimed to know how to interpret dreams, but he was far out of Rune's reach. He had tried once to see the man, but the guards blocked his attempt to do so.
Suddenly the metal door to the cell creaked open on it's tracks, indicating that it was morning. Tamir got off his bed and walked over to Rune, placing his right hand on Rune's left shoulder, knowing that his friend might be thinking about the dream interpreter again
=Tamir=
Leave it my friend. He has no answers for you, even if you could get to him...
=Rune=
I know...
=Tamir=
I fear that you do not know...
=Rune=
We should head out, otherwise the guards will come and drag us out.
Rune moved Tamir's hand off his shoulder, as he turned towards the door and walked out of the cell, into the dark corridor. He could sense the hundreds of other men shuffling along the corridor around him, even though he could not see them. As soon as he sensed Tamir behind him, Rune joined the column of moving bodies as they moved along the corridor towards the opening.
Sunshine blinded Rune's vision for a few moments as he stepped outside into the massive yard, that was littered with seating banks and various sporting areas. It took Rune's eyes a couple seconds to adjust to the light, before he moved off from the others and went over to some seats and sat down. Tamir soon followed, sitting down next to him, before they both looked out across the yard. Rune slowly turned his head towards Tamir
=Rune=
6 months, Tamir. That's how long we have been doing this for. Waking up each day, being hoarded out into this yard, watching as men struggle to survive inside these walls. There must be more out there, something better...There must be a reason we are all in here...
=Tamir=
Each man you see here, has forsaken the outside world, committing terrible crimes for which has landed him here...
=Rune=
And what of us? why are we here? What crimes did we commit?
=Tamir=
The crime of merely being unlucky perhaps. I have been here so long I have forgotten why I was imprisoned. As for you, well you don't seem to remember anything before you arrived here.
Rune looked back out across the yard again, the sun slowly rising towards it's height. Rune could not help but wonder what today held for them. But no matter what he thought at that moment, there was no way he would have ever imagined what that day and those following it would hold for him and his fellow prisoners.
Before he could even begin thinking however, a bell noise was played over the loudspeakers, causing the prisoners to all suddenly leave what they were doing and head over to a large stage set in front of an even larger building. Tamir turned towards Rune
=Tamir=
It seems we have been called to a presentation. I wonder if there is some new prisoners arriving.
=Rune=
We will find out soon enough I guess...
Rune and Tamir got off their seats and made their way over to the gathering crowd. The pair pushed their way through the other prisoners, trying to make their way towards the front to get a better view of what was about to happen on the stage

Suddenly Rune and Tamir stopped pushing through the crowd as Claudius exited the main building and approached the microphone, with but a small party of officials behind him. This was most certainly not a usual presentation, a fact which was confirmed as Claudius called for tributes, before discussing some event at a place called the arena. As the words freedom passed Claudius' lips, Rune felt some small hope light within him. But then the armour set come up from the ground, Rune suddenly inhaled deeply as some blurred and distorted image suddenly flashed across his eyes, causing him to grab Tamir's shoulder, whom turned to Rune and grabbed his friend, looking at him concerned, his voice sounding distant to Rune
=Tamir=
Are you alright?
Rune bowed his head to nod that he was fine. The world around him seemed to slow down as he raised his head again. Claudius' voice even more distant as he then introduced another prize. The platform rose, revealing the young girl standing upon it bound by rope. Suddenly another blurred and distorted image flashed before his eyes, causing him to fall to one knee on the ground. Tamir knelt besides him, trying to help his friend, as Rune bent over forward as he tried to breath. What was happening to him, why couldn't he breath, and what were these images that were flashing before his eyes. Rune suddenly felt a hand on his back, who it belonged to he did not know, but he could finally feel his breath come back to him as his chest loosened. Rune then pushed himself to his feet before turning towards the man, it was him, the dream interpreter. But was he not locked away behind the guards watch, so that Rune could not see him
=Zachriel=
Volunteer for the Games, Rune. You must win for the girl. Then your night mares will be put to rest, no longer will you be tormented by a past you cannot remember...
=Rune=
What do you mean? How do you know of my dreams?
=Zachriel=
I am not known as a dream interpreter for no reason. Now volunteer, hurry!
Rune was confused as he considered the man's words, but he turned around and none-the-less put his hand up and volunteered. A pair of guards then pushed through the crowd towards him, before they arrived Rune turned around, but found that Zachriel was gone. He then felt two pairs of hands grab him and help him make his way through the crowd and up on to the stage at the front, where he stood next to the other men that had also volunteered. As he stared out across the large crowd, he started to wonder whether this was such a good idea after all. But who was he to really question the advice given by a man so revered for his skill in dream interpreting. This would help him, he was sure of it, he just had to live long enough to win it, and how hard could that really be

As Rune moved to follow Claudius, he glanced over at the girl as she had a look of pleading in her eyes, but he soon broke eye contact as he kept walking across the stage into the building. As he followed his fellow tributes, he could not shake the feeling that he knew, or well had known, that girl from before he came here, but who she was still eluded him.
But he was not given much time to ponder the thought as Claudius lead them down a flight of stairs and then along a corridor to a large room designed for training tributes before sending them to the arena. Claudius then gave a short speech about how short of a time they had to train before leaving the room. As the others moved off to weapons they felt comfortable with, Rune could not help but feel hopelessly outmatched already.
He had no memory of his life before Black Rock, and so he had no clue how he had landed there and what he had done before, meaning he was unsure of what sort of weapon he would be better of to choose to practice with. Everything would be new to him, meaning he would have absolutely no gain from this short time like the others. He was already beaten and they had only just begun training.
He suddenly gripped his forehead as a female voice loudly echoed one word, "COWARD!". Rune shook his head as he looked around the room, certain none of the others had said the word, especially since it was a voice unlike the other tributes. Somewhere deep down he knew it was someone he had known for sure, but it was a girl unlike the one being held as a prize. Regardless of who it was though, they were right, it was cowardly of him to give up so easily and so soon. Suddenly several distorted pieces of memory flashed before his eyes, bringing back fractured thoughts and feelings.
No, he was no coward, not before and not now. Zachriel had said his nightmares would stop if he won this event, and so he had to win. Sure the others would have an advantage because they knew what weapons they were using better, but Rune would just have to practice with what ever he could find and felt would help him most. He walked over to several stands that held rather large weapons, examining them despite the fact they looked to cumbersome to be used, at least by anyone who would be chosen as tributes.
He then moved over to another set of racks with weapons more suited to the average sized person. Spears, Claymores, Large Maces, Two handed Axes weapons that required two hands to wield. He kept moving on to the next rack which was full of regular Swords, Maces, Axes and Whips. Next to it was a rack with a collection of Bows, Crossbows and Throwing Knives. Rune had more then enough choices for weapons, but the more time he spent gazing at them, the less time he had to practice. So on impulse he pulled out one of the bows and a quiver of arrows, before moving over to the small practice range that another of the tributes was at, using throwing knives.
Rune pulled out an arrow and placed it in the bow, pulling the string back. Although he had never used a bow and arrow before, he grasped the basic principle of how it worked, enough so that when he fired the first arrow, although it missed every target, it was not by too much of a distance. He gave a lop sided grin at his attempt and pulled out another arrow, letting off another arrow, which also missed the targets as well. He could tell he would need a lot more then a few hours practice with this thing, time which he could not afford to waste. But it was still a useful weapon to have since he could potentially get off a pot shot at an opponent and perhaps hit them.
Rune went back over to the racks and placed the bow away, before grabbing out a sword which looked a little easier to manage as he spun it around, striking at the air. He went over to the practice dummies and started striking at them from several different angles of attack. But even as he did, he was sure his opponents would be far larger than these targets. He stabbed one of the targets all the way through when a thought occurred to him.
You did not call champions The Titans for no reason, and given the size of the weapons on the other racks, he had a feeling they would be what they would be up against. Creatures able to easily wield weapons half the size of a man. Rune hung the sword back on it's rack as he went over to the lunch area and grabbed some food, before taking a seat at the long central table and eating his lunch.
With his meal done, he spent the rest of the afternoon practising with the sword, doing his best to perfect a few dodges and parries, and giving the bow a couple more shots. When he went and sat down for his dinner, he could tell the other tribute's were all far too confident in their ability to fight from their conversation they were having. While he was barely confident he would last a couple hours, they were all sure they would beat these so called Titans. Rune chuckled at their confidence and proclamations of victory
=Rune=
I'm not sure if you realise though, that even if all of you manage to last long enough to beat the Titans, only one can win, meaning you then have to take out the others...
With that thought put out there for them to mull over, Rune then finished his meal and got up from the table and headed over to the door on the edge of the central room that had his name displayed on the door. Inside was a bed and small bathroom which had a shower he used to give himself a quick wash in. He then lay down on the bed in his rags, looking up at the ceiling. Tomorrow was going to be a long day and he would need all the strength he could muster, so he just hoped that he would get a full nights sleep as he closed his eyes and drifted off

Rune was standing in an open field, wheat stalks as tall as his waist as far as the eye could see. The field spun around a little before a man in a broad brimmed hat, cape and strange armour appeared in the field a few feet in front of him. Rune shook his head, slightly confused about what was happening
=Rune=
Who are you?
=Zachriel=
It is not important who I am, but it is important as to who you are! or rather who you remember yourself to be...
Zachriel raised his arms to the side, his palms facing the sky, as several large, transparent squares appeared and began to float in a circle around them, broken and distorted images flashing across the surfaces. Zachriel lowered his arms again
=Zachriel=
What is a man but the sum of his memories? We are the stories we live! The tales we tell ourselves! And you, Zion Morviael, have one of the greatest stories ever told!
Rune placed his hand to the side of his head as the name seemed to ring a bell, causing something of a small head ache. He was confused though, his name was Rune, not Zion Morviael
=Rune=
I think you have me confused, I am not this, Zion Morviael. My name is Rune...
=Zachriel=
Oh really? and who told you that name? One of them?!
Zachriel pointed to a square's surface as the memory of Rune waking up to Tamir played on it. Rune turned towards it as he watched the moment he had first met his one friend in Black Rock Prison. Zachriel walked up behind Rune and placed a hand on Rune's shoulder
=Zachriel=
I do pity you my friend. Your friend was right for calling you Rune, you do contain a knowledge that is a secret to even you. But that is why I am here! To guide you back!
=Rune=
How can I be sure I am who you say I am?
=Zachriel=
I have lived for many years my friend, I knew you before your memories were locked away! your memories are never lost, they are merely locked away, waiting to be released and remembered! From in here we can do nothing to fix this, well at least not presently, but from out there...well you can visit places and meet people, allowing you to remember events once thought to be lost. But! you must win this challenge! Do that and you will regain years of memory! A good stepping stone if ever there was one...
Zachriel let go of Rune's shoulder and walked past him towards a square. Rune shook his head reaching out towards Zachriel as he began to process the man's words
=Rune=
Wait! How will I find you, if I need you?
=Zachriel=
I will always be near by Zion... should you ever need my guidance...
Zachriel smiled before stepping through the square and disappearing. The field suddenly grew dark, before Rune felt the ground disappear beneath his feet and he began to fall down through the darkness.
Suddenly he opened his eyes as he slammed his hand out to the side, landing on the alarm next to his bed as it went off, alerting him that it was time to get up.
Rune sat up and slid out of the bed, before he slowly made his way over to the door of his room as he slowly woke up, By the time he exited the room and made his way over to the breakfast area, he was fully awake and found his fellow tributes much in the same state. He grabbed some food and sat down away from the others, who were once again sitting together enjoying their meal.
Rune turned towards Claudius as he came into the training room, joyous and flamboyant as always. Rune got up after the others and grabbed the sword, along with the bow and a quiver of arrows, before passing by the armour rack and joining the others. He followed the others as Claudius lead them out of the room and up to the roof, where they were hustled into a LAAT gunship. Rune sat down on the floor in a corner as the gunship took off.
It was not a long trip and as they closed in on their destination and began to descend, Rune stood up as he heard the faint sounds of the crowd. The gunship then landed and the doors opened suddenly, causing him to quickly shield his eyes a little from the light. Rune followed the other Tributes who were following Claudius, as they left the hangar bay and followed several corridors, the cheering of the crowd growing louder as they moved towards the arena floor.
Rune walked into the dark room and took a seat on the ground in the darkness as the other tributes stood around him, their anxiety was fresh on the air as they tried to figure out where the hell they were. Rune was not sure what would await them on the other side of the doors, but what ever it was, none of them was prepared to face it alone
=Rune=
What ever we face out there, we can't beat alone... We have to fight together to beat them, then we can tear each other apart after wards to claim the reward...
Suddenly the crowd started growing louder, before they could all feel the ground shake as they could only assume their opposition was entering the arena. Rune stood up and unsheathed his sword and held it aloft
=Rune=
It's your choice, make it quickly!
Rune heard agreement from them all moments before the gates into their room creaked open, the light flooding in and blinding him once again as he jogged out into the large Arena floor with the other tributes. Rune did a slow 360 turn as he slowly began to take in the large scope of what they had gotten into. The biggest surprise of all was the look of their opponents, they really were Titans, plain and simple.
Rune held his sword at the ready as he moved into a battle stance that would let him easily run away or move on the offensive, although he was fairly certain taking them head on would be suicidal, so it was more likely he would be running away

Rune landed hard on the ground as the titan's wing armour deflected his strike as she flew backwards. Rune moved in front of Tammy as she sat propped against the wall, placing him in between her and Selene. He moved his sword into a guard position across his body as Selene raised her pristine clean metal sword.
Suddenly a small figure appeared on the top of the wall near Selene before tackling the titan to the ground out of the air.
Rune paused for a few seconds before spinning around and kneeling down in front of Tammy who was sitting down. He could tell she was bleeding out and there was no way he could save her, even she knew she was going to die as tears started to form in the corner of her eyes. Suddenly it seemed to Rune like the crowd was miles away as they chanted and cheered on from the stands. He placed his left hand on Tammy's right cheek and wiped away a tear with his thumb as she began to sob quietly, placing both her hands on either side of Rune's hand resting on her cheek
=Rune=
Shhhh.... It'll be alright....
=Tammy=
Iiii'm scared.... Iiii dddon't wantttt toooo die.....
Rune breathed deeply as he fought to keep his tears back and remain strong for Tammy. He couldn't let her fall apart now, not while this crowd of brutes was watching on, nor could he just let her bleed out and suffer for a couple more minutes. Rune leaned in closer as he positioned his sword under her chin
=Rune=
Hey, listen to me! You can't fall apart like this! Don't play their game! This is exactly what they want to see, the fear in your eyes. But you're not going to let them! Stay strong! Stare them in the eyes as you die! Don't let them take who you are away from you!
Tammy sniffled as he reassured her and helped her find the strength she needed. She raised her head up a little, doing her best to try keep herself composed as Rune positioned the tip of his sword against the underside of her chin. She stared up into the camera floating nearby, as if in defiance of her destiny
=Tammy=
My name is Tammy, please don't forget it....
=Rune=
I won't!
Rune then thrust the sword upwards, killing Tammy. He sighed as he hung his head a little in shame, before pulling the sword free. He leaned Tammy's head forward as he closed her eyes, before standing up and facing Jezebel as she pulled the knife free of Selene's body and stood up
=Jezebel=
We make a good team, you and I....
=Rune=
I doubt that...
Rune suddenly brought his sword up into a guard position as Oceanus came around the corner. He could tell this was not going to end well, especially when Oceanus started doing a series of movements. He ran towards the titan as the blast of water shot forth from Oceanus' fist, Rune moved his sword, running it along the blast of water like a guard of some sort. As he closed in on Oceanus, Rune jumped into the air and brought his sword down in an attempt to take the titan by surprise and fell him before they suffered his wrath

Rune suddenly felt the air rush out of his lungs as the pulse of water knocked him mid air and sent him flying backwards, causing him to tighten his grip so as to not lose the sword as he was tossed through the air. He saw a brief few glimpses of the crowd in the stands and what looked like a small cloud of dust from some where in the maze.
It was all suddenly gone again as the maze walls surrounded him and the ground came up from beneath him as he hit it hard, sending him rolling along the short stretch before coming to a rest on his back, his sword laying on the ground next to him after it had been retched free of his grip during the tumble. He reached out with his right hand and gripped the hilt of it, to make sure it was there in case the worst should happen.
Although he felt battered and bruised from the fall, he was sure nothing was broken since the crowd was not cheering quite as much as if he was mortally wounded. But his sense of safety melted away as he heard foot steps coming closer to him, whom they belonged to was a mystery for although he doubted it could be Jezebel, he could not rule her out entirely since she might have landed a little better than he had. A shadow then appeared leaning over him and a pair of eyes looked down at him, before he heard her voice from before
=Jezebel=
You really are quite hopeless...
She suddenly made a retching noise as Rune thrust his sword up into her abdomen. As he withdrew his sword, she fell down to her knees as she looked surprised about what he had done. Rune pushed himself up into a seated position and turned his face towards her
=Jezebel=
But...why?
=Rune=
Because you betrayed her! you killed Tammy and left her as bait for the titan!
=Jezebel=
What proof do you have....not that it matters now....
=Rune=
Selene's blade was as shiny and pristine as the day it was forged, no blood marked it's point or cutting edge....Why would you betray your fellow like that? You had no chance of taking Selene or any of the others alone....
=Jezebel=
She was nothing more than a piece in their game! Besides we would have had to kill each other in the end, why prolong that fact? But who are you to ask such things? did you not just kill me and forsake yourself? We are no different, you and I. The difference is I played by their rules... Who's rules do you play by?
=Rune=
By the rules of something you robbed yourself of long ago...a conscience!
=Jezebel=
Don't try that crap with me....
Jezebel then fell down on her side as the last of her life ebbed out of her. Rune got up on to his feet and sheathed his sword, the crowd giving mixed levels of cheering, not that he really cared. They were all savages and low life scum for watching this senseless slaughter and one day they would get what was coming to them, for now he just had to concentrate on the living titans and getting rid of them. Rune then set off deeper into the maze, away from Jezebel's body, since he was not low life enough to pull her underhanded trick. Hopefully he might be able to find the male tributes and have better luck working together with them, provided they still remembered their agreement to work together to beat the titans