The Legend of 4612

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After silence filled the cavern the Wizard spoke aloud to the other three. The Tablet in the centre quivered and broke.

FROM ONE BECOMES FOUR, FOUR STONES OF POWER:

ONE FOR THE NECROMANCER, POSSESSOR OF SOUL;

ONE FOR THE AETHERMANCER, QUEEN OF KINGDOM;

ONE FOR THE DRAGON, VICE OF TERROR;

ONE FOR THE WIZARD, LONELY GOD OF TIME.

BUT FROM FOUR SHALL BE ONE AGAIN, WHEN THAT TIME COMES.

FROM FOUR BECOMES ONE, ONE BANE OF THE WORLDS.

He whispered so softly that no others could hear. Not even the nightingales up there in the skies.

But his words were deafening. They filled the cavern to its brim and spilled into the rock and stone. They resonated through the trees and grasses so that they hummed to the tune forevermore.

It was a rhyme that rhymed not. It was a prophecy that meant little if anything at all. But to the Four in that cave, and One who was not, it meant everything. It meant power, unlimited power, for a time – their time.

And when that time comes, four will be one, one Bane of the Worlds.

~ The Legend of 4612

This is the first written record of The Legend of 4612, before which it had only been passed through oral tradition over many generations. The author of this record – speaking on the legend years later – said that he got it off his grandparents, saying:

“It’s too old to talk about.”

He may have been more right than he knew.

4612 Season 0: FIN

This a revised version of a piece from 18 Oct 2022.