“The Erimosi Sagas: Prologue” by Zach Childs

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Welcome to the wilding world of Erimosi, where evil reigns supreme and good must fight to make a name for itself.

Take a look at the lives of Johan; a young adventurer, Red Cloak; a deadly assassin, Qarrin; the dying writer, and Bray; the huntress.

Empathize as these four are placed into dire situations, face evil itself, and learn the true meaning of true camaraderie as these brave heroes all take up their own adventures. Experience the vast and treacherous world of Erimosi as it unfolds around them and changes with the many decisions these four must make. Unknothese characters are more connected than they all may know...

Map of Erimosi, Illustrated by Zach Childs

Prologue

500 years ago there was a war. It was a war of cataclysmic proportions. The earth itself was shaken so hard that all the continents were rearranged into one much larger mother-continent with a couple of surrounding islands, the continent coined the name of Erimosi and the changes that occurred to create it were known as the Erimosi collisions. A Greek man came up with the name of Erimosi because the Greek word translated to “desolation” in English and it became a fitting name for the continent because that was the feeling of its inhabitants. Somehow a majority of humankind managed to survive the war only to be hit again by the Erimosi collisions. Then there was the final blow to the integrity of humanity, the uprising of the horsemen. Somehow during the Erimosi collisions there came to be a small breach in an ancient tomb, many humans referred to it as Hell or the Underworld, but that small breach was just enough to release the four horsemen. That’s right those horsemen. Death, War, Famine, and Conquest were all released from the depths of Hell and went on to reluctantly split the whole of Erimosi into four, each laying claim to a piece. Tensions have always been hot between the horsemen and many small battles occur between their armies over certain pieces of land.

Now humans have been sent back into the medieval age, the last bullet shot when the war ended and all remnants of technology lost deep within the morphed landscape but people make due with what they have and so people live under the rule of their horsemen. The four sectors of Erimosi are known as the borderlands. There are many small settlements and villages scattered within each borderland and they are often overlooked by the horsemen. On the other hand there are four major cities in which the horsemen reside with the exclusion of Conquest who inhabits his own island, but within the cities the horsemen retain the most anchorage. The most trade is done within the cities as well so the horsemen keep a close eye to their source of income. Out of the four horsemen Death happens to be the most resented by the others simply because he owns a larger plot of land than them which brings more resources and profit leaving everyone else to envy that. In the 500 years that people have lived under the rule of the horsemen there have been a few attempted revolts that have proven...unsuccessful.

There’s an assortment of animals and creatures who call Erimosi home living alongside the humans and horsemen. Many exotic animals were brought together during the collisions so it is not uncommon to see many big cats, reptiles, birds, game animals, and companion pets all around Erimosi and if you’re lucky enough or unlucky enough you may cross paths with a hybrid. Hybrids are the result of crossbreeding between two different species of animals in the same family. Some hybrid animals come out with genetic mutations that may help them or hurt them in the long run, some of these animals include: cabbits, ligers, mountain leopards and many more.

There are far more dangerous things to worry about in Erimosi than its animals, many things that humans had little knowledge of prior to the war. Many supernatural beings can be found throughout the continent such as vampires, werewolves, demons, witches, rapscallions, shape shifters and many more creatures who keep their own classes or are undiscovered.

Now onto the armies, each horseman has a vast legion at his command and they all have different skill classes for humans and creatures. For example if you are a heavy handed brute living in the Death borderland you fall under the class of a Black Knight, one of the most feared and brutal warriors in Erimosi. The armies often spar across the region but nothing massive has happened…yet.

For the most part people live in their standard homes around Erimosi but those who cannot afford it end up in the slums or go out adventuring. Very similar to the pre-war world situation, there is an upper class, middle class, and lower class. The currency used in Erimosi is known as the Pent, the pent is a silver piece or coin about the size of a fifty cent piece and two times as thick. The pent is used universally and is the only currency for trade transactions other than the common barter.

Apart from common skirmishes of the legions, outside of city limits Erimosi can be a very dangerous land to roam. Roads become very dangerous before and after dark with the many rogue beings and groups that prey on the unwary traveler.

As for the war, not much is known about it, only that a majority of the continents ended up turning on one another, bombs were dispatched, and everyone ended up paying the price in the end.

Everyone in Erimosi knows that each of the horsemen possess their own set of godly powers and people know that they are forces not to be reckoned with. But it is rumored by some that the horsemen can somehow be defeated and imprisoned back in the underworld from whence they arose but those are only rumors…

Schooling throughout Erimosi varies but for the most part, the same pre-war schooling methods are used and children are taught basic math, science, reading, and writing skills along with how to survive in the untamed world around them. Lighting in Erimosi is something different in itself. The most common of the house lightings in Erimosi is the ever-candle; the name is self explanatory the candles often outlive the homeowners. Other lighting options include the quite hazardous and some people even have their own makeshift oil lamps.

One big final part of the equation is magic. Magic is very prominent in some parts of Erimosi. There are three types of magic: white magic, grey magic, and black magic. White magic is usually for good, one of the main uses for it is healing , grey magic is essentially the in between of white and black magic it can be used both to help and to harm, finally there is black magic which is seen in mostly evil practices such as the highly popular but mostly secretive practice of Necromancy.

This concludes the prologue to the Erimosi sagas; now that you have some background knowledge of Erimosi, you can now start the real adventure.

— Zach Childs

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Zach Childs, Author (2.9.21)