I’ve been told by a voice in my head, who claims to be the author of my destiny, that you should probably read Chapter 1 before you read this, but I believe you should do what you feel is right. If you do that, you’ll have no regrets. Sadly, I haven’t always done the right thing, and my regrets are myriad.
I am Terrence the King of Twyl, and my life has been defined by four events that have shaped my destiny.
The first, and I remember this with great pride, was the day of my transition. I had chosen to devote my life to Sheba, who is goddess of honor, combat and the hunt. I serve her still, though not as well as I might have hoped on that day. Back then I was full of hope for the future. Now I know that the pressures of the world will eventually bend even the strongest of us.
My marriage to Treya is the next milestone in my life. Like me, she has devoted herself to Sheba. Unlike me, she is strong. She is my rock. I don’t know what I’d do without her. I am aware that I am a force to be reckoned with, but raw power is not the way. Treya is my other half, my conscience, and she’ll stop me before I go too far. I rule the Kingdom of Twyl. She guides the choices I make. I am told I am a good King, but I don’t think I’d be half the ruler I am without her steady influence in my life.
The birth of our son Eric was among the proudest days of my life, even though Treya seems to have done the bulk of the work. Are you seeing a pattern here? He was so small. So perfect. And here he was in an uncertain world, with his own challenges to face. I had not faced the biggest of mine yet, though I was about to. But standing there, looking at him, I was filled with naive hope that would soon be taken from me a bit over a year later when the Undead War began.
I won’t talk about that war. I don’t want to remember (though apparently you’ll learn something about it if you read the book). I will say that nothing in my life had a stronger influence on me than the year I was away, fighting an endless enemy in a battle we eventually won, at a cost none of us could afford. I returned to Twyl profoundly changed, both by what I had seen and what I had done. Suffice to say mistakes were made, and people paid the price. Some of those mistakes were mine. I’m still paying for them to this day.
Yet I feel that tale is not yet over, and the final price of my transgressions has not yet been paid. I can only hope that when it comes for me, it takes only me, for those around me do not deserve to suffer any more than they already have. Sheba make it so.
