Lake Liurnia

By J. Johnson

Jr. 2023

Oh, Lake Liurnia! Anything but a Lake! A place where you could come across all kinds of

Monsters, ghouls, and goblins along with all kinds of dark secrets that have been lost to time.

From a distance, the lake would seem calm and collected like a place that's been ripped straight

from a fairy tale with a white, gold, and blue castle sitting atop of a great mountain right in the

middle of this great lake. But If you were dumb-witted enough to travel into the shallow lake

surrounding the castle into the Albinauric forest then you surely don’t value your life.

“The War is over!” yells King Radagon. Everyone rejoices swinging their arms in the air

yelling with enjoyment.

“Ivan!” yells Abraham. “Why are you standing in the corner looking all sad? Come friend - have

a drink.”

“Now, Abraham, you know I can't return home drunk. My wife is gonna kill me.”

“Nonsense,” he yelled, “have a drink, the war has finally ended in our victory.”

As everyone indulges in all kinds of alcohol - a gift from King Radagon - and having a

good time, Ivan was tapped on the shoulder by a mysterious man. “The King would like to speak

with you.” His breath was as cold as the mountains of the giants. Ivan was guided to the

backstage of the party to speak with the king.

“Yes, King Radagon.” Ivan replies as he gets down on one knee.

“I hope you're having a great time at the party, but some events have just arisen, and we will

need you and your soldiers' assistance. Because Queen Renala would like to send a war gift

with us for our victory, please gather a group of your finest men to make the transfer.”

“Yes, King Radago, but wouldn't you like us to go in the morning? The sun has almost settled.”

“As long as you make it quick and stick to the main path then you shouldn't have any worries,
Sir Ivan.” Ivan, with a worried look in his eyes, has no choice but to carry out the king's request.

“Yes sir, consider it done,” he said as he marches out of the backstage chamber.

“What did he want?” questioned Abraham.

“King wants us to retrieve a gift from The Liurnia Manor, so gather Griffith, Alexander, and D.”

8:44 p.m. 2 Hours until Complete Sundown

The Group of five made their way to the Grand Highway that led to Liurnia Manor. In

their carriage being pulled by two Black Stallions, they would arrive at the manor in

approximately 15-20 Minutes.

“So what exactly are we retrieving?”

“Abraham, I don’t know. It's supposed to be a war gift in recognition of our victory.”

“That could have waited until morning; it can't be that important,” Griffith grumbled. He stretches

his head to the front of the carriage. “It's nearly ten o’clock, and we are very close to Lake

Liurnia.”

“Don't tell me you actually believe that story,” Abraham replied with a laugh in his voice. “I

remember when I was just a boy and my dad told me about it.”

“Then you should know the consequences of us being out here.”

Alexander overheard the conversation and asked D why they shouldn't be near Lake

Liurnia after sundown. Alexander was a country kid who had just recently joined the Golden

Order Army. There was an old legend that said once the sun went down, this cult that dated

back hundreds of years, took their own lives in the name of the devil who then would rise from a

nearby well that people claimed led to hell.

“Well, their skin is said to be dark as Charcoal because they were burned inside of an old cabin.

This helps them blend in with the darkness, and The Albinauric Forest covers the moonlight,

which means you're basically blind.”

“People actually believe that?”

“Well, if you don't believe it then take a trip down there and see for yourself. People who go

there never return.”

As the group got closer to the manor, the Giant Castle glistened in the almost night sky.

As the Great giant gates opened, the queen could be seen waiting to greet the brave soldiers.

“Welcome Soldiers of the Golden Order. I believe you are here to receive your victory gift.”

“Yes, Your highness.”

“It will be a few minutes until we are able to bring it out, but it shouldn't take very long.”

“Ma’am, I would not dare to disrespect you, but we are on a very tight schedule.”

“Why do I get the feeling you are worrying about those stupid tales of our forest? I can assure

you that these are nothing but old legends meant for kids; however, to make you all feel safer I

will send some of our finest Men to escort you.”

The men's look of worry slighted faded as they entered the castle.

9:34

Queen Renala walked out of one of the rooms carrying an ornate, jeweled box.

“Before you leave, I must warn you - Do not open this box! The king is the only person

who is able to open it. Our finest soldiers are waiting to escort you back home. Be careful, and

safe travels.”
 The group of men left the castle to begin the trip home.

“Alright Alexander, if you could estimate the time, what time would it be about right

now?”

“I would say it's about 9:44 so we should get going.”

The group traveled the highway.

“Hey D, you think that cavalry is moving a little too fast? We should tell them to slow

down.”

“We’re almost there; just relax. We have nothing to worry about.”

The queen’s escort carriage slowly faded into the darkness ahead, and before Ivan and

his men realized it the queen’s men had disappeared and all of them were completely alone.

The wind started to pick up speed and suddenly got colder. The group heard a humming noise

that came from the distant forest.

“You guys hear that, right?” Ivan asked. “

“Yeah, it sounds like some sort of song. Can anybody see the other carriage ahead?”

As Ivan glanced into the dark murky darkness, he could almost make out something.

When the group approached the mysterious object, it became apparent that it was the

destroyed remains of the Liurnia escort carriage and all those accompanying it.
 “Sweet Jesus,” Griffith exclaimed. What in God's name happened here?”

As the group tried to comprehend what they were looking at, a bloody cough came from

behind the destroyed carriage. It was one of the soldiers.

“Hey man, what happened here?”

The man could hardly open his eyes, but with a horrified shaking trembling voice he

replied, “It's real.”

Just then out of nowhere a loud crash was heard from the group's carriage. Griffith drew

his sword and ran to the back of the carriage to find both back wheels had been completely

ripped off. Alexander started to panic and drew his sword preparing himself for what was to

come. Then like a flash of light, one of the horses was snatched from its reins and dragged into

complete darkness. Everything was quiet and all that could be heard was the horse’s scream-

like call for help as something or someone ended its life. Then it became quiet, and all that

could be heard were heavy footsteps getting closer. The rest of the group drew their weapons

and huddled together, also preparing themselves for a fight; however, the anxiety that ran

through their blood was heart-stopping. They waited, for what felt like hours, for the unknown

killer to attack, and the wait was nearly unbearable.

“I don't know about this, man. That thing just destroyed a very large horse,” stated

Alexander.

The pressure of the wait was too much and before anyone realized, Alexander took off

running into the darkness. The rest of the group followed all splitting up in different directions.

Ivan made a quick decision to leap off the highway along with Abraham. Once they hit the
ground, they ran - not looking back or where they were going, eventually splitting up as well.

As Ivan ran, he heard a blood-curdling yell. It was clearly human, but what he hoped was that it

was not who it sounded like - D. Ivan ran even faster but not in the direction of the yell; he ran

until a sharp pain attacked his stomach and brought him to a stop.

“Oh, sweet Jesus, what just happened? Was that real? Am I dead???”

Ivan questioned every second of what happened. He was lost and didn't know where to

go, but one thing he knew - the exact place where he was lost - so he knew the danger he could

possibly be in. All the thoughts and stories he heard of this exact forest started rushing in like an

uncontrollable flood. He walked for what seemed like hours hoping and praying to find his way

out of the forest, but all the while he felt like he was walking in a circle.

“Haven’t I seen this tree before?”

He heard all types of noises; noises that were not a normal part of a forest’s ambience.

“What was that?”

He wanted to call out for his friends, but he did not want to risk having whatever attacked them

hear him. Then he heard a chilling whisper in his ear.

“You are in hell.”

Ivan immediately turned around but saw no one. An out-of-the-norm tear left its trail

down his face. Inexplicable. He wasn’t sad. This tear just randomly fell - like he couldn’t stop it if
he wanted to.. It was hot and felt like lava running down his face. Ivan was distracted, then

suddenly he heard what sounded like someone running, at full speed, up behind him. He turned

and saw nothing. His heart started pumping faster and faster as he heard a variety of voices

cursing him and damning him to hell. He broke into a sprint once again running aimlessly and

blindly through the eerie, dark forest. After some time had passed, he stopped dead in his tracks

and couldn't believe what he was staring at. Abraham. He was standing directly in front of him -

covered in blood, missing his right arm, and had a hole the size of a large rock in his neck. Ivan

was shocked and couldn’t speak. Within minutes, he started to cry. He wasn't controlling his

emotions; these tears would not be controlled. Without even noticing, a tall, thin, boney, and

pale humanoid creature came to stand behind Abraham. Just then, everything went black.

When Ivan regained the ability to see, he proceeded to run - even though he wasn’t sure where

he was running to - as long as it was in the opposite direction of what he’d just seen. Running

and not looking back - that was his plan.

Within an hour or so, Ivan came across a cabin glowing in the darkness. He’d just escaped

potential death, and all the pressure inside of him faded away. He beat on the front door, and an

elderly man opened it. Behind him stood his wife and two young children. Ivan still had tears

flowing down his face, his eyes were bloodshot, and he had cuts all over him from the thorny

vines that flourished in the forest no one in their right mind would enter. The family rushed

towards him as if they knew exactly what he had been through and told him to come in. Ivan

stumbled into their home, but the light that seemed to radiate from the cabin when he first saw it

was mysteriously gone.

Ivan stood in the middle of the living room and noticed that the elderly man’s wife and

the two children were nowhere to be found. Thinking they might have gone into another room,

Ivan sat down awaiting the elderly man's next comment, but when Ivan turned around the man

was gone too. Ivan began looking about - uncertain of what was happening. Once again, his

heart raced to an out-of-control pace. An unbearable stench attacked his nostrils - the smell was
of death. He took a closer look at his surroundings and realized the cabin had the appearance

of one in which no one had lived for a long time. Ivan entered a room in the back of the cabin - a

bedroom that was filled with pitch black darkness. Ivan opened the dresser and found a box of

matches.

He tried to strike two of them, but no spark of fire was produced. He tried a third, and

with the small flame from it he walked from room to room looking for the family. He heard what

he believed were footsteps coming from one of the rooms he’d not yet been in. As he got closer

to the room, the small flame from the match went out. Quickly lighting another, he cautiously

opened the door. At first glance into the dark room, it appeared as though the room was empty.

Ivan peered deeper into the room and slowly panned his eyes towards one corner of the room.

He could almost make out what looked like a person standing there, but this person had horns.

Again, the light from his match died down. Quickly lighting what turned out to be the last match

in the box, Ivan saw that the horned figure was gone. Suddenly feeling a cold breeze on his

neck, Ivan slowly turned around, and what he saw was more terrifying than anyone could ever

imagine - more terrifying than death itself.

The lore of this place has, for centuries, said that Ivan was never seen or heard from

again. Rumors had been circulating and guesses made as to what really happened.

“One night while I was visiting a nearby town, I overheard some of the townsfolk talking

about the events I just told you. Their speculations were a mixture of the possible to the insane.

After some time, I got up to leave, but on my way out, I saw an ancient-looking man sitting all

alone. He was mumbling to himself, but occasionally I'd hear the word "horns" mixed in with

what I thought was nonsense. I approached him and asked if there was some way I could help.

Instead of talking directly to me, his mumbling continued and soon turned into coherent words.”

He eventually eeked out the following tale, "It was late, dark, and cold, and I was the

only person awake in this town, or so I thought. In a matter of minutes, I noticed an unusually
large, cloaked, and hooded figure digging in the cemetery, so I decided to sneak a little closer

for a better look. It looked like a grave, but it was much wider than normal. I decided to watch

him for a while, and soon saw him dragging several large burlap sacks from the edge of the

forest to the grave-like hole he'd dug. One by one, he dragged the sacks to the edge of the hole

and pushed them in. As each sack fell into the hole and onto another already tossed in, there

was a chilling crunching sound that shook me to my core.

The next morning, I went to investigate the scene further - I had to make sure I saw what

I thought I saw the night before. What I found is still somewhat of a mystery. The very large

grave was, in fact, there - the freshly dug dirt piled high. No flowers had been planted. No cross

erected. Instead, placed carefully on top of the dirt was an ornate, jeweled box. I picked it up

and opened it. An imprint of something I initially couldn’t make out was in the bottom of the box.

I squinted my weary eyes and noticed there was an engraving that read. ‘From Queen Renala

to King Radagon of the Golden Order.’ Also in the box was a black, blood-splattered pouch tied

with an odd metallic cord. I cautiously untied the pouch and peered inside of it. What I saw left

me confused and overwhelmed, but the contents also provided the answers to so many of the

mysteries surrounding this place and the legends told about it.