Many years before the Lord of Darkness Eternal, Xeranad Lekard, ever set foot upon the stage of history, his fate was already sealed to be mankind's ultimate tormentor, ruling from the shadows and plunging all of Europe into the Dark Ages. Let us begin before Xeranad took the name he bears, before he was even born, or rather, before he was conceived. These are the Gestalt Chronicles.

Our tale begins in the land of Britain, shortly after the Roman Empire declared it a pagan nation and left. The time shortly before King Arthur set foot on history's grand stage.

During this time there lived a nobleman, named Cornelius Augustus Kahner. He was agreat man, loved by all who had the pleasure of knowing him. Yet he possessed a restless spirit, constantly searching the world for new things. He ignored women attempting to gain courtship with him, instead falling in love with Nature's grand beauty. Many of his friends considered this obsession to be unhealthy, but they could not figure out a way to cure him of this. So instead they encouraged him, going with him on his hunts and wanderings.

One day, he came upon a lovely spring, and to his amazement he saw a woman bathing. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes upon, and his heart was immediately siezed by longing for her. His friends, however, attempted to dissuade him from approaching her. "The woman is a fey, milord," they told him, "it is unwise for mortals to join in wedlock with their kind." He could not resist her beauty, however, and ignoring their protests, he stepped forward to introduce himself just as the fey woman finished her bath.

The woman was greatly startled (and if I may add, embarrassed) by the sudden appearance of a mortal man in her presence. Cornelius, who was very crafty, shortly after introducing himself to the fey woman, immediately siezed her discarded clothing, and began to ask her questions. The fey woman was forced to comply, since the fey became subservient to the one who holds the fey's rainment. She said her name was Diana Habundia, a sister to the fey queen Titania, and that she was a duchess among the fey herself. She begged him to return to her her clothes, and Cornelius answered:

"I will do so, on my honor as a nobleman of Britain, on the following condition: that we shall meet here once every full moon. If you agree to this condition, then I shall return the garment to you."

Diana, seeing no other way out, agreed to this condition, and Cornelius returned her clothes to her. Cornelius smiled, happy with the outcome.

The first full moon came, and she arrived at the spring, where Cornelius was waiting. The two of them began to converse, and, slowly but surely, Diana began to fall in love with the nobleman, not only for his honesty and faithfulness in others, but also because of his love of nature, of his love of art and beauty, and for his wonderful sense of humor. Many moons passed, and the love became intoxicating to them both, and they eventually made love with each other. This union between mortal and fey conceived a child within Diana's womb... the child who will become the Dark Lord. Yet, how could the two of them had known this would come to pass? Before the child was even born, the child's fate was sealed... as was the fate of Cornelius and Diana, the fate of Britain, the fate of Europe and the entire world... in that single moment, the harbinger of darkness was conceived, and his path was set...

And that path was laid with tragedy.

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This is a tale of a young knight on a quest for immortality, but what he seeks will cost him dearly. He comes across the strange and magical along his journey, some benevolent, others malicious. And he will find more than he planned when he meets a lovely maiden. But his destiny is a dark and tragic one... does he have the strength to overcome it?

updated Feb 3 '11 by Xeranad