Chapter I
1:1And Tuoo delved into the past, learning many things about the secret place and the deeds of the flawed creatures that the Three had created and meddled with in the ages they were hiding from the Blessed Ones.
1:2And one day a man stumbled upon the Blessed One in his contemplation.
1:3He prostrated himself and cried out, “Oh Lord! Let me serve you, for you are surely the greatest power in the world!”
1:4And Tuoo bid the man rise and named him High Priest Alexsandr, and said to this man, “The woman of fire has cloaked herself in death and called herself Arawn, and she has hidden a thing precious to me. A great tree, oldest in all the world, that once grew on the greenest hill of Paradise, and its blossoms were sweetest honey and its fruit fed many. She has taken this tree and hid it from the sun in dark places under a fortress she calls a temple, and surrounded it with many men.”
1:5And Alexsandr exalted the Blessed One Tuoo, and proclaimed, “Then I shall raise an army and we shall smash the fortress and slay the men so this tree can taste the sun, for the Blessed Ones say it must be so!”
1:6And Tuoo blessed Alexsandr and made him whole that he shall never die.
1:7And a great army of the blessed came to the temple of Arawn, and smote upon the door.
1:8And they rose in great cry, “Repent your evil deeds! Turn from false lady and embrace the light!
1:9And the evil priests did not answer,
1:10The army of Alexsandr cried again, “You hold a beautiful tree from the sun! You keep its fruit shriveled, and make the roots drink ash!”
1:11And the evil priest Celso denied their words, and caused black magics to rise and drive them back.
1:12Alexsandr and the army were resolute, and laid siege and the priests of the temple were sorely afraid.
1:13The evil priest Celso, fearing that their hidden treasure would be freed, called upon the dark powers and summoned a great demon, Yaltan Lunchwicz, to their aid.
1:14And this demon had the blackest of hearts and could strike down a man with a word and a blow from his mighty axe that burned with the flames of hell.
1:15And Yaltan did battle with the army of Alexsandr alone, while the evil priests cowered.
1:16And despite the righteousness of the holy cause, the men made whole could not put wound on the demon.
1:17And Alexsandr sent his general, Beragon, to do battle with Yaltan.
1:18And the general was slain with a single mighty blow and a cruel sneer.
1:19At last, Alexsandr did battle with the demon Yaltan, but was laid low by the demon’s blade.
1:20The evil laughter of the dark fiery woman was echoed by that of the demon, and the Blessed One wept at the loss of the men who were whole and the failure of the holy cause.
1:21But the priest Celso was foolish in summoning such a powerful demon, for once free, it would not return.
1:22In its evil wrath, it slew hundreds of men and was let loose upon the world, where it was soon whispering dark secrets into the ear of Saint Ulrich, who held the Crown of Maal, turning him further from the Blessed Ones.