Forest & Kingdom Balance (39 page)

IV

Time
Line:

(YK = Year of The Knight)

YK 562

FAR LANDS: King Jarod of the Western Province
becomes the first to successfully trap the Red Knight in a drug
induced stupor. Tied to a rack in the king’s dungeon, the Knight is
kept alive but senseless as Jarod begins his conquest of the known
world.

YK 588

FAR LANDS: An agent of the Eastern Alliance
infiltrates Jarod’s capital and kills the Red Knight. Upon
reappearing the Red Knight is told of Jarod’s treachery. The Knight
and the agent battle their way free from the palace. The agent
becomes the first captain of the Knight’s Crimson Guard.

YK 613

FAR LANDS: The final battle of the rebellion sacks
the capital of Western Province led by the Red Knight and his
Crimson Guard. King Jerome (Jarod’s Son) is stoned to death as he
is dragged through streets.

FOREST: Fifty years of observing constant battle has
left the Caretaker disgusted with humanity. He looks into flames
swollen with revenge, hatred, greed, and blood lust. He experiences
empathy and sadness for the vast throng of humanity who’s lives
were torn apart. Children starved as families found themselves
trampled under the twin boots of both tyranny and the supposed
rebellion that would bring freedom to their lords, and nothing but
more hardship for them.

He leaves the Far Lands to humanity and travels over
the sea to rediscover his balance. Deep in the mountains of a far
continent, he sits in mediation before a serene waterfall.

YK 1100~

FAR LANDS: Kingdoms come and go. For hundreds of
years betrayal, treachery, and at least three attempts to hold him
captive have left the Red Knight no choice but to rule from a
position of strength.

FOREST: As the Red Knight accepts his role as
Supreme Sovereign the Caretaker chooses another path. He envisions
the perfect balance. Within his quiet glade, years flow like water
in a stream. His thoughts reflect on his journeys and the lessons
they have taught him. In human form, he eats when he is hungry,
sleeps when he is tired. When the elements threaten his vulnerable
form, he becomes a tree to weather the storms.

One beautiful summer’s day found the Caretaker deep
in meditation on the perfection of balance. Slowly he felt himself
drawn to the falls and through to the ledge that ran behind. In a
waking dream state he could see the perfect balance he had always
envisioned laid out before him. He turned and entered. The pure joy
of the land flowed through him, and he felt the profound peace he
had always sought.

Over time his vision did not fade as he thought it
would. He realized that this was not a vision but a reality. He
extended his consciousness to encompass the glade at the falls. It
was there, and beyond that, humanity.

Whether the land of perfect balance had always been
there, or his thoughts had created it, was a question he was quite
happy to ponder for centuries or more, without resolution.

YK 1845

FAR LANDS: Western Kingdom astronomers use shadow
readings and experiments to determine the world is round and
calculate its circumference. Maps are drawn that show all known
land in reference to the globe. The continent is vast but the maps
show two thirds of the surface as unknown.

The Red Knight sends a decree to all shoreline
kingdoms to build ships and explore.

YK 2034

FAR LANDS: Paladin is born. He becomes a shipwright
like his father in the southeastern coastal kingdom of the Mindow.
He learns every aspect of seamanship from shipbuilding, navigation
and mapmaking, to instrument design and manufacture. He achieves
the rank of captain at age 28 and is the voice of the Shipwright’s
Guild at the royal court

YK 2064

FAR LANDS: At age 30 Paladin is chosen to design and
build eleven ships of exploration that he will lead.

YK 2068

FAR LANDS: Paladin’s fleet sets out

YK 2069

KINGSPORT: After 14 months at sea land is sighted.
Paladin has lost four ships during the voyage. Malnutrition and its
associated disabilities are rampant. After stopping for rest and
provisions, he determines that this not part of the known continent
and sails the coast in search of a settlement site. Not far north
of his original landing, Paladin sails into the natural harbor that
will become Kingsport.

FOREST: The Caretaker takes note of their arrival
but is unconcerned. He chooses to let them be as long as they don’t
expand toward him.

YK 2070

KINGSPORT: The following year three ships are
retrofitted to retrace their route home. Paladin sends his best
navigator with maps of currents, trade winds, and the location of
an island mid way that will be needed for the crossing. He also
includes his designs for ship improvements based on their
experience of the deep seas.

YK 2076

KINGSPORT: The first ships arrive from the Mindow
Kingdom in the Far Lands. Many artist and craftsman make the
journey.

YK 2088

KINGSPORT: Ships from other kingdoms arrive and use
Kingsport as a base to explore the shoreline north and south.
Messages from the Red Knight command reports on the land and their
progress in settlement.

YK 2109

KINGSPORT: The Mindow Palace and Garden Tiers are
completed in the spring of the year. At midsummer Paladin is
honored with a celebration of his 40 years of rule. He passes away
in the fall at age 75.

YK 2991

KINGSPORT: Palinar (Age 28) is crowned king upon the
death of his father in a border skirmish with the Northern Kingdom.
His father’s untimely passing forces Palinar to take up the mantel
of many unfinished tasks, among them is a recent decree from the
Red Knight ordering the Mindow to conquer and consolidate all the
coastal peoples to facilitate greater expansion. The order
explicitly requires mapping and exploration of the mountain range
and beyond.

YK 2997

KINGSPORT: Palinar comes to be known as the poet
king. He concentrates his reign on many arts, including the art of
war. Mindow troops sweep both north and south utilizing new and
innovative tactics. His neighbors have no choice but to sue for
peace. All border disputes are resolved and the borders are clearly
set by treaty. Both Northern and Southern Kingdoms must pay war
reparations.

YK 2999

KINGSPORT: Palinar sends a report to the Red Knight.
He documents the Northern and Southern kingdoms attempts to annex
Mindow land and his successful campaign to stabilize his borders.
He informs the Knight of his opinion that stable borders will lead
to greater growth than war and subjugation.

In reference to the Knight’s request for information
on expansion into and beyond the mountain range to the east,
Palinar sites the casualties and lack of success in preceding
attempts and suggests that exploration be made from other parts of
the continent.

YK 3003

KINGSPORT: The Red Knight’s armada crosses the sea
and is joined by ships and troops from the Northern and Southern
kingdoms. The combined force overwhelms the Mindow defense. Sergei,
captain of the Crimson Guard is appointed first king of the joined
new lands kingdom. The Northern and Southern Kingdoms are dissolved
by decree and their kings are given the title of Viceroy.

The Mindow are stripped of their protections under
King’s Law. Palinar’s wife and children are put to death.

FOREST: Palinar is wounded and escapes into the
mountains where he is found and healed by the Caretaker.

FAR LANDS: The Red Knight returns to the Far Lands
confident in his captain’s abilities and loyalty. He assumes the
expansion will begin at a proper pace and returns his thoughts to
the many difficult issues facing him on the main continent.

YK 3004

FOREST: The Caretaker agrees to Palinar’s request
for a kingdom safe from the Red Knight. Mindow refugees begin to
arrive at Angel Falls.

YK 3009

KINGDOM: The new kingdom takes shape, approximately
2,200 Mindow have joined the new kingdom. The Caretaker returns to
his sanctuary.

YK 3011 through 3016

FOREST & KINGDOM: The Caretaker begins to return
to the Kingdom regularly to visit the people that he worked most
closely with during the settlement. Over a period of years he
invites many to live with him in his sanctuary. Eventually several
hundred join him.

YK 3019

KINGDOM: Palinar, now in his mid-fifties, marries
his long time friend and High Councilor Margaret. Their wedding
takes place among the raw marble block and scaffolding of the royal
castle under construction.

YK 3021

KINGDOM: A royal heir is born, she is named Ariana
in honor of Queen Ariana, Palinar’s first wife who pleaded with him
to forgo the battle and flee. In the Kingdom, the name Ariana
becomes synonymous with the concept of wisdom.

YK 3295

FAR LANDS: A king under the tutelage of the Red
Knight is killed beside him in battle. His queen gives birth to
their only child a few months later. The Red Knight takes a
personal interest in the child and assigns a regent. The infant
Kale is given the title of king.

YK 3309

FOREST: Diana is born with the gift after a
generation without a Sentinel.

YK 3313

KINGDOM: Stefan is born to King Tabor and Queen
Philipa. The young Queen dies in childbirth. King Tabor waited
until later in life to marry, he is in his late 40’s when his only
child Stefan is born.

FAR LANDS: King Kale turns 18, the age of command,
and assumes his duties. The Red Knight takes the strong young king
under his wing as student and protégé.

YK 3318

FOREST: Catherine is born with the gift. Diana, age
9, helps to sooth her mind and takes care of her.

YK 3324

KINGDOM: Tressan is born. He is the sixth child to
farm family in the Second Valley.

YK 3329

FAR LANDS: Fortune’s Child / Yamikura is found by
Brother Domen on the roadside.

YK 3333

FAR LANDS: The Red Knight’s protégé, now Emperor
Kale, has consolidated most of the Far Lands. The Realm of the
Warrior Queen is the only one that openly defies the combined might
of Kale’s forces and those who owe him allegiance.

The Realm of the Warrior Queen is a matriarchy
located in a desolation area of the central continent. Its fertile
lands are protected by both natural defenses and a fierce military.
The highest trained and most deadly of their warriors are Harriers,
a corps of women warriors raised from birth to defend the land.

Kale assails the Warrior Queen’s defenses with an
army four times the size of the defenders. Kale is nearly defeated
but springs a surprise attack that was held in reserve until
Alantra had committed all her troops. Thousands of mounted warriors
attack and Alantra is captured. The Emperor uses her to produce an
heir to his empire.

YK 3334

FOREST & KINGDOM: Stefan age 21 meets Diana age
25. Catherine age 16 begins her Sentinel training.

FAR LANDS: A female child is born to Alantra, she is
named Kalibra and is given to the three last surviving Harriers to
raise and train as a Warrior Queen under the watchful eye of the
Emperor Kale.

YK 3337

KINGDOM: Stefan and Diana are married.

FOREST: Catherine takes on greater Sentinel
duties.

YK 3338

KINGDOM: King Tabor dies at age 74. Stefan and Diana
are crowned King and Queen.

FOREST: While the Caretaker deals with Diana’s
absence and the emotions that her leaving has brought up in him,
the loss of his longtime friend Tabor further unbalances him. He
finds solace in his friendship with Catherine.

YK 3340

KINGDOM: 16 year old Tressan sets out from the
family farm to seek his fortune, he is intercepted by Catherine and
is offered service as a Trader. He is brought into the Forest for
training.

YK 3341

KINGDOM: Princess Dionara is born. The Caretaker is
so taken with Dionara that he and Catherine visit the castle
often.

FOREST: John is born a few months after Dionara. The
Caretaker perceives that he has the gift. Catherine and the
Caretaker become lovers. He invites her to live with him.

YK 3343

FOREST: 19 year old Tressan leaves the Forest on his
first trading run as apprentice to trader Dorian.

YK 3347

FAR LANDS: Yamikura leaves the Healers
Sanctuary.

YK 3349

KINGSPORT: The latest request for information on
expansion is received from the Red Knight. Councilor Deminar
includes several of his best men on the expedition with the order,
“Succeed or die.”

YK 3352

FAR LANDS: Kale assigns his 18 year old daughter
Kalibra as military commander of his army to defeat an uprising and
earn the title Warrior Queen. In several campaigns over a three
year period her reputation for ruthlessness spreads quickly.

The Red Knight reads a report on the failure of the
latest Kingsport expedition. He decides to assign his own men to
the task. He chooses his two most accomplished assassin spies. Both
are trackers as well as mapmakers and have been trained to mute
their flames to go unnoticed.

YK 3355

KINGDOM: Stefan & Diana are murdered at Angel
Falls by the Red Knight’s agents. Both Dionara and John witness the
carnage. The Caretaker veils Dionara’s memory and a few months
later befriends her as a talking frog. He begins to subtly instruct
and mentor her.

FOREST: The Caretaker tries to heal John’s guilt
unsuccessfully. He then takes John into his confidence and makes
him his second in the war against the Red Knight. At age 14, it
takes John three months to learn how to change. After his first
change his injuries are gone and he begins physical training in
addition to the Sentinel training he already begun.