Many generations ago, Xandus had been something of a phenomenal legend told to children as a bedtime story. For generations, the story of Xandus, Emperor of the Sea, was one the most commonly known legends. The legitimacy of which was not so willingly tested, as the idea of discovering that a colossal sea serpent capable of destroying anyone and anything that crossed his path could exist was less than favorable.
As with most things, however, there eventually did come a time where mankind had to know for certain whether or not such a creature existed. Xandus was eventually sought out and discovered to be very real indeed. Beyond being real, it was also discovered that the dragon was riva`led by none and always eager to disillusion those who thought that perhaps they could beat the odds.
For decades, the more men that perished challenging Xandus, the stronger the serpent believed himself to be—he grew to believe himself to be invincible.
Like this, the serpent’s pride had swelled and he had come to decide that humans needed to be put in their place. He intended to give them every reason to never challenge him again. Inspired, Xandus ventured from city to city, destroying everything in his path by tsunamis and fire. Dozens of cities were destroyed before the serpent appeared vaguely appeased, after which he had chosen to relent, figuring that the intended lesson had been taught.
Almost an entire generation passed, during which, Xandus was certain that he had both gotten his wish and had also gained the respect he deserved from mankind.
Until one day, an entire fleet appeared with the intention to abolish him. Of course, hidden amongst the deepest and darkest parts of the ocean, the serpent could have simply remained hidden and safe, but the sight of so many men gathering to assault him was infuriating and insulting—Xandus could not allow the humans to believe that he, the mighty Emperor of the Sea, could be made to fear such weakness.
So, Xandus wrathfully rose from the ocean and fought. Many men were killed before the serpent inevitably became aware that he was outnumbered and could not successfully kill an entire army. It seemed as though, for every cluster of ships he destroyed, there were hundreds more. The water had turned thick and dark with a mixture of the blood of man and serpent.
Xandus could feel that he was growing far too weak and had known that he should have retreated however the serpent’s pride had kept him from running—he could not run away from those weaker than him.
Mankind proved that they were not quite as weak as the serpent had believed, especially not in numbers. Eventually, Xandus found himself being stricken and wounded far more than he was fighting back and once the men had realized that they were winning, they immediately took advantage of their opportunity and fired everything that they had come prepared with.
Xandus fell amongst the sea, destroying and sinking many ships along with him.
As his seemingly endlessly long body spiraled down into the murky depths, the light in his haunting eyes had begun to fade. Stubborn, Xandus opened his jaws, an acute blue light manifesting in the back of his throat with the intention to take those who had slain and defeated him to the bottom of the ocean along with him. Weakly, Xandus breathed in, a rumbling growl could be heard even from above water, and then he attempted to breathe fire.
All were prepared to lose their lives despite succeeding in ending Xandus’ reign but what had taken place was something entirely different. Rather than the destructive blue flames that Xandus had intended, a small breath of fire had escaped his throat along side a glowing orb that immediately crystallized and spiraled amongst the bubbles that escaped the dying serpent’s lungs. Defeated and spited, Xandus’ body sank as the final glimmers of light left his eyes.
Centuries later, a young boy diving for clams felt a soft rumble amongst the ocean floor before he noticed something amongst the clams that was noticeably not a rock or a shell. Upon further inspection, the boy discovered the object to be a stone. The second his fingers had touched it, Xandus’ spirit purred and the ocean had went silent. A moment passed before Xandus’ voice reached the boy’s ears, curious of the first human that had crossed him since the day he had been defeated.
Sensing the power within the stone, the boy did not hesitate to take it—he expected that it would surely sell far better than the clams. What he did not expect was the choice of power that would be offered to him, nor the fortune or the wisdom. The boy, much like many others that would come after him, chose fortune. Since then, those who have possessed this relic have been allowed to choose as well; power, fortune, or wisdom. What will you choose?
