The mountain we now call Madjee has remained, lonely and silent, through the countless ages. This mountain is now deserted, uninhabited save the unsavory beings that roam it’s shadow. The very air crackles with the memory of the incredible battle that took place in this desolate place.

A great King, known as Negal, ruled from this great Mountain more then a thousand years ago. His monumental palace perched upon the shoulder, surveying just a part of his great kingdom. He was known far and wide as a good and kind King, despite his young age. Since his time, the great kingdom has been destroyed, being divided up and fought over by many an outside force. None, however, dared try to enter the sanctity of the Mountain.

It came to be that this king decided to take a magical advisor, as was the custom of the time. Many magicians journeyed to the mountain to submit themselves for the post. After a short time, the king chose, seemingly at random. The chosen advisor was a wizard name Madjee, a sinister and unknown man from far beyond the borders of the kingdom. Whispers abounded throughout the palace that the magician was of the dark realm, a purveyor of evil. It was said that he had bespelled the good king Negal from afar, shadowing the mind of the young king.

In less then a moons time, the good King began to change in his ways. The magician was often at the ear of the young king, whispering, pointing, persuading. The King’s eyes grew shadowed as he looked at those around him. None could be trusted, all were now enemies. Even the closest counselors to the king were held in suspect. It was not long before the king announced that he would revive ancient practices. He alone would determine who was an enemy and who was friend. More frighteningly, not even the most noble would be exempt from the executioners axe.

In short order, executions became a daily affair. The charges of treason and conspiring against the king were the most often pronounced crimes. Anyone could be accused, and anyone could be the accuser. The entire palace quivered in fear as any who voiced opposition about the dread magician were sought out and executed within days.

And even stranger, the king became suddenly obsessed with the very mountain that his palace stood upon.Expert miners from all corners of the kingdom were called to the King’s council. The object of the King’s obsession was the center of the Mountain itself. The king believed a wondrous treasure resided there in the heart of the mountain. His eyes shone as he described the treasure.It was a dragon’s horde of gold, jewels and coin, all for the taking to any who could uncover it, he described. As one, the miners shook their heads emphatically. They explained accessing the interior was impossible as there were no entries to the interior of the Mountain as there were in mountains to the East.

The king became enraged as the miners disagreed with him. His eyes wide with fury, he attacked the experts with his fists. They cowered and shouted in fear. They dared not raise a hand to defend themselves for fear of certain death. The council members watched in horror as one of the expert miners was slain by the King before their very eyes in the council chamber. The council members knew then, as they watched the body slid from the sword of the infuriated king, that the King was now not in control of himself. A perceptible shiver ran through the room as the King turned and smiled at the magician Madjee, whom had witnessed the action from a dark corner. The cowled wizard nodded his head in approval, a slow smirk spreading across his thin face.

It was after this now infamous meeting that the King decided on a truly impossible action. He enticed miners from every kingdom, from every corner of the then known world. He stated he was now going to create his own entry into the dark heart of the mountain.

The terrified council members spent the ensuing days begging and pleading with the King to rethink this obviously disastrous plan. These pleadings stopped abruptly as the more vocal council members began disappearing from their chambers. Quietly, those remaining held their objections fearing for their very lives and the lives of their families. For not only did the council members disappear, but any who lived with them were found dead in the moat days later. The missing council members were never seen again, dead or alive.

The atmosphere in the castle darkened day by day.No more were there the happy calls of children from the kitchen. No more did the guards and servants joke and gossip with each other. The residents of the palace kept their heads down and their voices to themselves. Children lived in fear in the rooms of their parents. Some families left the palace secretly by night, fearing for what may come. By night, frightful screams echoed up from the depths of the dungeon. Long, beleaguered screams of terrible torture and pain. The screams echoed across the empty courtyard, filling the darkness with dread. Often, someone believed they knew the voices of those that screamed. These people held their dear ones close to themselves and prayed to the Stars that they would not come to be one of the victims.

The work on the ill-conceived mine began in earnest. The miners were to be paid richly for their labor. The faster they worked, the more they would be paid. The rock and soil of the mountain was torn and cracked day by day as the tunnel slowly made it’s way down toward the center of the mountain. The stone slowly gave way, but not without a price. The miners had forgon safety measures in their enthusiasm to dig faster and farther. The casualties were great, but there were always more men willing to take their place. The carving went on day and night, never stopping for a moment.

The king followed the progress restlessly, ordering reports by the hour. As the months and years past, his mind focused intently on the miners work, ignoring all else, even the need for food.Eventually his body began to waste away as his doctors begged him to eat. They retreated from the hollow, burning look in his sunken eyes. Whispers began that the King was no longer human. He was now seen to be akin to a revenant, the living dead. Mindless and terrifying the King was now. No longer the promising young man, he was now a wasted shell of a human. He aged quickly as the work continued into years. His hair became white and wispy, his head no more then a skull covered in thin skin. His once strong limbs were now thin and stringy. The garments that clothed him now hung from his thin frame as they would from a small tree limb.

As the king declined, Madjee’s control strengthened. He no longer hid in the shadows of the council chamber. He now stood tall beside the shrunken King. The King had decreed long ago that Madjee’s word was to be followed as law. As the years passed, Madjee brought the palace under his complete control. And his fearful power did not stop at the walls of the palace. His influence crept like a dark shadow down the mountain to the towns and villages surrounding the great peak. The closer the miners got to the heart of the mountain, the more terrible Madjee’s evil became. For under Madjee’s hand, there was no justice.

The soldiers that once kept the Kings peace were now destroying that very peace.The good men were replaced with mercenaries who wanted nothing other then gold and riches for themselves. Rape and plunder was now the normal course. The good people of the towns now hid themselves deep in their homes praying to the Stars that they would be spared the terror that raged around them. As the years passed, the homes and cottages were destroyed by plundering soldiers and thieves. A silent wind became the only movement amongst these deserted places, and the stench of death and decay the only smell.

The Kingdom had degenerated as the King had, and was now overrun with thieves and murderers. Food became scarce as there was no one to capture game or tend a farm. The residents of the kingdom began pillaging villages of surrounding kingdoms to satisfy their hunger. Surrounding kingdoms began taking notice of the disaster on their borders.

It was through this desperate hunt for food that the word of Madjee’s disastrous rein reached the ears of a good wizard named Othinor. This good wizard conferred with the Stars for three days and nights, deep in a meditative slumber. When he awoke, his path was clear to him. The wizard knew he did not have much time, as Madjee’s miners were by this time getting close to the center of the mountain.

Othinor was just as powerful as Madjee.He communed with the great Eagles and Dragons to transport him through the air to the Mountain.As the chill air rushed past him, Othinor conferred yet again with the Stars, preparing himself for the battle that was certain to come.

Despite the stealth of Othinor’s journey, Madjee was aware of his fast approaching adversary.The miners were now bespelled to work as fast as they could, or even faster. The wizard was a constant figure in the mine, screaming at the mindless men as they rushed through the work. As he was not concerned with the well being of the miners, perished in of pure exhaustion.

And then there was a sudden silence. The miner’s pick-axes had broken through the end of the tunnel to a space beyond. Madjee dropped his hands and all the miners fell in exhaustion, save the two who had discovered the cavern. Magic continued to force their movements as they made the opening larger and larger. Madjee slowly made his way to the break, a sneer of greed on his emaciated face. As soon as he was sure he could make his way through the hole, Madjee flung his hands at the two miners, killing them instantly. The wizard’s last use for the bodies was to use them to step upon so he could slide his way into the dark cavern.

The blackness that lay beyond the break was total. Stagnant air in the cavern reluctantly gave way as the comparatively fresh air flowed in from the tunnel. His movement echoed flatly in what seemed to be an immense space. The floor beneath was smooth and polished marble, a curious find in the center of a mountain.

The wizard’s face broke into a wide grin as he looked at the impossible marble floor. This confirmed everything that he had been working for all of these long years. He raised his hand, causing a ball of green light to appear in his claw-like grasp. The light didn’t illuminate far into the dark cavern, and uncovered only emptiness. The wizard began walking forward. His eyes gleamed in the green light, for he knew what lay at the center of this great expanse.

At last, the light fell upon a pedestal of stone. Madjee began cackling laughter when he saw what the pedestal held. His laughter filled the empty chamber, echoing loudly. The men who had been left in the mine shaft heard the laughter and shook with fear. Those that could, raised themselves and fled the tunnel as fast as their spent bodies allowed them. They did not wish to witness Madjee’s celebration.

Another heard the laughter also. Othinor was aback a giant Eagle, circling above the castle when the pedestal was found. Quickly he asked the eagle to land before the mine shaft, scattering the fleeing miners. The wizard paid little mind to the frightened workers, their plight was only a part of the reason he was there. The eagle flew off at the wizard’s urging, creating the last natural wind to be felt on that site.

Soon enough, Madjee emerged from the dark tunnel. All sound ceased as the wizards beheld each other. No wind blew on the mountainside, no animal dared make a sound. The world seemed to hold it’s breath in anticipation. Both men raised their hands at the same time, surrounding themselves in their own magical glow. Othinor’s was a bright blue while Madjee’s was a sinister green.

What followed was a battle unlike any other. There were no words exchanged as the wizards fought each other. Massive trees were uprooted and flung, boulders were smashed as bolts missed their targets. Tornadoes were created and destroyed, raging fires were created only to be frozen and shattered. Intense, blinding white light filled the clearing only to be swallowed by creeping darkness. Monstrous creatures roared in their demonic voices as they were created, and silenced as they were immediately destroyed. The mountain shook beneath both men as the confrontation reached its crescendo.

In desperation, Madjee brought out the object that had been on the pedestal deep in the mountain. Othinor’s eyes widened as he beheld it, knowing that all was lost unless he could destroy Madjee before the evil wizard used the talisman. Othinor knew what he needed to do, as he raised his hands over his head. Madjee lifted his talisman, but too late, the good wizards’ hands were already on the downswing, the magic already in place.

The concussion that occurred when the good magician’s hands fell was felt throughout the world. The earth shook as a dog trying to rid itself of a pest. The Mountain swayed and seemed to try to topple over. A cloud of black and blue blossomed from the scene of this great battle, mushrooming as it hit the very sky itself. The sound was so intense, it was not heard for nary a full minute, blasting the Mountain a second time as it hit. Again the Mountain shook, sending boulders the size of cottages down its sides.

The air stilled once more. Dust hung in the silence, slowly falling down to cover the remains of the destruction.Of the wizards, not a trace remained.Othinor had destroyed himself, knowing that the blast would also destroy his enemy. He was of course successful, keeping the talisman safe.

The Mountain survives, empty and still. The only movement is the dust blown as the wind sighs over the desolate ruins. The magic of the final battle lingers still, corrupting the very air. Many a warrior has tried to climb the mountain and retrieve the talisman, but each has either disappeared or come back a rambling imbecile. It is said creatures roam the foot hills of the great mountain, the descendants of the people who bore witness all those long years ago. They were mutated, twisted as a result of the battle, their minds blown far into insanity. The talisman has remained safe in it ruined home. Othinor’s ultimate sacrifice has served to protect the world from the terror that may have been.