Jesse Teller

Dragonsbane. Of all the hundreds of cities in my world, nothing scares me more than the City of Curses, the City of Crime, the city known around Timea for being the darkest, most terrible place to live in all existence.

The citizens that people this town, found nestled in the hills of Lorinth, hold onto the pride that they live there. They hold on to the fact that only the strong, only those willing to weather the worst the world has, can survive the city with the largest body count in the Perilisc continent. A hundred thousand years ago, the alarm towers rang out in horror. In the dying light of day, on the horizon framed by a blood-red sunset, a winged monster approached belching flame.

The dragon was raging and half-crazed from the loss of its favorite family member, and it had decided humanity would pay for the death. It swooped down upon them in search of a weapon like none other, for it had heard tales of the lens, and it would not suffer its survival.

Pax, the king of Lorinth, had crafted the lens. It harvested the power of the sun to bring death to all dragons its fires touched. The battle for the city was on, and though thousands lost their lives, and the city was reduced to rubble and char, the dragon was destroyed.

They dragged the body from the town proper and covered it with soil to form a hill nothing would grow upon. The city rejoiced. But before it could be rebuilt, another dragon appeared on the horizon. The weapon was employed again, and victory was laid upon the city. But as the second dragon died, it cursed Dragonsbane to ruin and chaos. The citizens could not care, and paid no attention to the curse. They took this body to the other side of the city, and buried it in the same fashion. For a year, while they rebuilt, the city knew no strife.

But the curse held strong. Within ten years, the lord of Dragonsbane went mad. Blood and fire ruled the city. Death stomped the streets, harvesting souls and bringing destruction. The lord was destroyed, and another took his throne. But within ten years, the new lord went crazy, and darkness and horror ruled once again. On and on this went, until the king realized the curse of the city was powerful and would not be denied. He took the city out of the hands of the lord, and created a new position. A mayor would rule Dragonsbane. Every ten years, a new one would replace him. They built for this position a massive ziggurat, and it dominated the skyline—until the church of Duessa was built.

The goddess was hunted and preyed upon by the parasitic god Hac-Jahoo, and the message corrupted from a goddess of beauty to one of vanity. She became a plague upon the citizens of Dragonsbane. The curse was still strong, and this time it would wring them for abundance.

The church demanded wealth and power. It quickly became the true might in the city, and fleeced the citizens for all they could afford and more. The church was to be the greatest structure ever constructed. It rose over the walls, and the ziggurat, to dizzying heights. Massive 80-foot statues of Duessa were constructed and the sacrifices began. The priest went among the people, at first in secret, to gather up the ugly and malformed. They carved off their terrible features, or killed them outright. They killed hundreds before they made their design public and held their rites in the light of day. The citizens rebelled. They tried to tear the building down, but the statues came to life to maim and destroy. Blood and fire ruled once again. The church was abandoned. It stands now as home to the Cult of Vanity. Their motives are vague. They are feared and mistrusted, but none will move against them, for fear of the statues.

The wizard Vrice came to Dragonsbane not so long ago and built the Candle Tower. He worshiped a vicious demon god, and his plan was simple. He strove to build a gate to Hell to usher darkness and mayhem into the world. The half demon son of the god wreaked havoc, raising an army to vanquish all hope from the city’s defenses. Once again, blood flowed like a river and the fires of the defeated dragons ruled.

Even in pursuit of justice, evil overcame. The prison known as the Crown has become the home of diabolical experiments on the insane, and has imprisoned many a righteous man. Towers were built over the years, each of a different design, each with a new hope of cleansing the corruption and bringing light and justice once more. But the Cursed City likes its vile nature. It craves darkness and blight. Though many mayors have pledged to curb the power of the den of the damned, the Crown cannot be saved. For in Dragonsbane, evil and wickedness swoop down on the streets, serving the dead dragons and bringing doom to those too proud to flee.

The City of Curses has many stories. Many vile deeds have been recorded throughout its history. A handful of these tales can be found in Liefdom, in Legends of Perilisc, and in a dark book on the horizon, Crown, book three of The Manhunters series.

Search these tomes for tales of hope and debauchery. Search for the heroes that strive to save the darkest city known on Timea.