Empire wagron

The Agordon Lizard

A Wagronian bow scout



Lecvillea valleys, eastern Wagronia

Empire Wagron: Wagron Kings

Empire Wagron 1: The new king

"Svylas my son you must fight to continue our people´s future on this new world, since I left Earth Rasvlan and I had a vision of a new world where we would become better than the people of Earth, where we'd be greater and greater."Svaylar looked into his sons eyes knowing full well that it was not just his own death, but his son's oath. "Father what must I do to continue the empire you and Rasvlan created? What must I do?"
Svaylar forced the words out as his chest struggled to rise and fall "Son you must keep the order, order in life and order in society."
In the wake of Svaylar's death and five years earlier the death of Rasvlan, the three colonies were over run with people, many men had not been able to join the hunting class which although had expanded to become more effective and better equipped seemed to be extremely busy every day of the year. They would kill three or four beasts a month using all their strengths and tactics but it wasn´t enough the Agordon lizard population seemed just as abundant and they were getting smarter.
There was a growing number of men who had not been skilled enough at becoming builders and weren't even capable enough to forge and design weapons. They weren't allowed to work in the orchards because it was traditionally the women's work. And only hunting men were allowed to go north to harvest the pomar-herb. This created them unemployed.
During the first few years it was only a few hundred men out of a population nearing 8000. But the problem was, the amount of unskilled and untrained men increased while the three settlements needed more working men.
 Novo Torun the central town which boasted a huge lush green orchard filled with fruit trees from the nearby jungles and forests over twenty acres with big fishing ponds where fish from the south had been transported to breed and create another food source. Vlanstead village in the south which was a nursery for wagronian children, training barracks as well as salt and iron ore mines with a black smith and salt refinery. Ronoth in the north which harvested and refined pomar-herb which besides being one of the most delicious foods, had awesome healing properties. When it was applied to deep wounds it could prevent infections that would otherwise debilitate or kill a hunter in action. Novo Torun, Vlanstead and Ronoth all required more man power, security, farmers, builders and more than anything fearless hunters.
Svaylar's son Svylas was a tall young man with dark stringy hair. He was chosen to be king by lineage and groomed his whole life to know the role. Counseled by the very old Arklin and Midglerk who helped to lead during the first 30 years on the planet. Svylas was forced to prove himself by making hard decisions earlier on in his life, training for years and years with Rasvlan's team of hunter trainers learning of everything the surrounding lands contained, including some of the areas where Wagronians could never go.
Svylas wasn't incompetent, to the contrary he was bright, cunning and always prepared. The problem was a large burden had been handed down to him as he received coronation as the new king.

Empire Wagron 2: Environment out of control

In the years that Svaylar, Rasvlan Arklin and Midglerk had worked perilously toward controlling the local population of lizards many shocking things had happened to the local flora and fauna. For a start The wheat and potatoes that wagronians had taken from earth and planted to survive on had done very well. So well that beyond feeding the Wagronians and continuing to do so, they spread. They spread to the same areas where most of the local predators lived in the hundreds of extremely fertile square kilometers to the west and north of Novo Torun. The potatoes and wheat started growing wild. And as the Agordon lizard populations decreased the dozens of smaller common mammal species started to breed out of control, which in turn helped the Agordon lizard re-populate, it even affected the spotted tiger which stopped attacking hunters as much as it used to, but grew in numbers until sightings of it in the north were a common occurrence.
During Svylas first year as king he had to find a way of protecting the town of Novo Torun which was under the most threat from the Agordon lizards. So after the death of Svaylar, Svylas dug a deep trench around Novo Torun and a thick wall was built five meters high. The entrance had a draw bridge and two small towers for archers to stay during the nights when potential attacks might happen. The wall had a walk space along it's top and could be patrolled and used to defend from.
Svylas biggest mistake was underestimating the intelligence of the Agordon lizard that had already adapted to the routines and attacks of men.
And although many attacks on the lizards by the Wagron hunting class were successful, the men assumed they were decimating the population when infact the hunting class were killing off the slower and less intelligent of the species those of which hadn't learnt to hide during the day, or smell the humans coming. So what arose from the depths of the western forests and northern jungles was a creature ever cunning and communicative with it's peers.
Five weeks after the great town wall of Novo Torun was constructed a pack of Agordon lizards ravaged the orchards destroying many fruit trees and one of the fish ponds. They were huge 8 meter long monsters weighing up to 5 tonnes and roaring that grisly roar that woke the whole settlement in the late hours of the night. Sadly the archers were too far to fire on the creatures and going after them at night was suicide as the Agordon lizard species had perfect night vision and scent.
The next day Svylas used his one advantage, stealth scouts, who would wear short breeches with no other clothes and small amounts of Agordon excrement to mask their human smell. He gathered a dozen of them to send out personally "Scouts please go out and spy on these creatures find out more about these great monsters who plague our lands." Obrilk responded "Certainly King Svylas we will leave immediately and track the scourge to where it lives." They had learned to navigate the forests undetected by the lizards.  They went into the jungles confidently,though this time they had risked their lives and seen strange things that sparked an uneasy conversation with Svylas. The scouts arrived back at the great hall of Novo Torun which was now twenty meters wide and fifty meters long and three meters from floor to roof decorated with animal and lizard skulls. It had tables where the town's scrolls were written and small windows that were put strategically under the awnings to prevent rainwater from entering. Scout Obrilk spoke to Svylas of the occurrence "Svylas we have seen the lizard creatures, we think they are communicating. We spied on them from the tree tops in the deep jungle 40 kilometers from here, the Agordon lizards were in groups and a funny colored lizard was ushering lizards here and there, we think the lizard was choosing which lizards to send toward our settlements!"  Svylas refused to fully believe what he heard, he tried simply to underrate the event "Obrilk maybe the creatures communicate, but you need to remember they are just overgrown lizards." Obrilk insisted " You can ask any of my scouts, the lizards were following gestures by these lizards of different colours that we've never even seen before. They have some kind of hierarchy, and they seem to be sending the underlings to attack us." Another scout spoke up "Svylas some of the lizards are really colorful too, the colored Agordons are smaller and more intelligent than the ones who live in our local forests." Svylas told them "Scouts from now you will stay away from that part of the forest until we know more, I cannot risk losing any of you."

Empire Wagron 3: The division of labor, or the division of a civilization.
40 AA(40 years after arrival)

Svylas saw the way the people of Novo Torun looked at him so a day after the attack he prepared a speech, as he made his way through the central street of Novo Torun with his trusted men at his sides. he looked at all the people. Svaylar his father had Always connected with the people, and now it seemed for sometime that Svylas was losing popularity as the wars against the lizards weren´t being won. Svylas did what his father did and tested the people with a speech. The people were worried and they were ready to blame Svylas and Svylas could feel it. Svylas told the people not to panic and assured them he would be taking action in the next week. He stopped before the gates of the drawbridge to give his speech. "People of Novo Torun please remember our city was not attacked just our crops, this will affect our food supply a little, but none of you have been harmed because the walls I have built and the trench my men have dug here saved you. I promise to secure our fertile orchards that run toward the west where the lizards are, but I will need your help."
Some of the town's people spoke up, "This will not do, how will you protect us? Killing the lizards has done nothing they just come back again and again."
Svylas replied gently to the men and women who had almost spoken in unison. "We have a plan that will make it impossible for the lizards to attack but we will need all of the support from you otherwise we will not be able to do it." Someone in the crowd shouted "What do you mean you need our support?" On Svylas signal Arklin produced a great empty paper scroll he set it on a small table in front of the people. "All people of Wagronia must work, this has been our creed for survival from the very first day and it will guarantee our attainment as a people in these strange lands" Svylas spoke up again as murmuring started to rise in the crowd. "To know I have the support of all whom reside in Novo Torun I require all of you to make your mark on this scroll. And for those who refuse please make your voice heard."
After most people in Novo Torun had signed the scroll Svylas went South to Vlanstead and sent Arklin north to Ronoth to get the people´s mark of support.
What had troubled Svylas the most was that there were already families rich in resources from trade whose sons mainly but even daughters had refused to work. Because of their parents utility in the
Novo Torun township and the fact there had Always been so much food and even security in the recent past, there had been no necessity to have controls for the growing number of idle young people in the settlements. Schools had only formed for the children four years to ten years old after that children had to start their training as a scout, hunter, soldier, builder, engineer, farm manager, tool maker, craftsman or to work in town administration with Savli.
Svylas would enact a law conscripting all non essential workers to work on an incredible wall, on the western side of Novo Torun´s extensive orchards, plots and fish ponds.
And after all of those families had made their mark their refusals to comply would be futile.
So it began.
After all the inhabitants had gone to bed, Svylas and his hundreds of soldiers met with Savli and his trusted town informants for which there were many. The soldiers then painted the houses where people and youth who had no essential job lived. The houses were painted with one White square on their door or near their entry. The next morning all residents whose doors had been painted were ordered to send their young people to the village gates of Torun, that included young people from Vlanstead and Ronoth aswell. The non essential young people of Vlanstead and Ronoth made their way to Novo Torun under the guard of Svylas, there were no objections by people living inVlanstead and Ronoth because they had few young people and seemed to be more worried about the expansion of their lands.
In Novo Torun only half of the homes offered up their young to Svylas the rest refused.
the young were taken to a soldiers barracks on the edge of the forest, west of Novo Torun's great orchards. A heavy fence with large sharpened wooden posts protruding it surrounded the barracks protecting it completely. The Young were briefed and sent straight out to start the grueling work of constructing a massive stone wall that would reach more than twenty kilometers in length.
Svylas had foreseen the fact the more important members of Novo Torun wouldn't comply. He had already planned to replace all who had refused to capitulate. So in the White strip of paint on their houses a warning was written stating that further actions would be taken if capitulation wasn't realized.
That night Svylas soldiers rammed down the doors of the houses, but instead of taking the young they took the whole Family and sent them West of the orchard where a great Works were under way. Their houses were given to younger families who could prove their contribution.

Empire Wagron 4. The great wall and moat

Overall there were 400 people who were rounded up in the last weeks, these people either refused to offer up their idle Young, or were themselves idle. They were now non citizens, just a labour force and their fates would be truly decided after the wall and moat were finished. These non citizens were now part of the greater goal now to cut the western forests off from the orchard with a moat and a wall. The moat would reach up to 15 meters across and the wall 6 meters high. The soil rocks and stones dug from the moat would be separated and used in construction of the wall. The workers would work 1 hour after Sunrise to one hour before sunset, at night they would return to the barracks where Hunter class men and soldiers were busy with defense plans. None of the workers tried to escape they knew that the world as they knew it was full of predators, the chance of surviving outside the barracks at night was zero. The lizards could smell them.
 Over the years it took to build, dozens of the workers were attacked and killed by the lizards despite having armed guard constantly protecting them. The Agordon lizards were not hungry, they didn´t feel threatened, infact Agordons would usually rest during the day. The lizards were actively and randomly attacking during the day to interrupt the progress of the wall, the most intelligent of the lizards had ways of communicating with each other that some stealth scouts had already observed. More importantly the lizards began running in packs after spending months observing the humans, they had mimicked human hunting habits. Before the Wagronians had arrived on the planet Agordons only came together when they mated, twice and sometimes three times a year depending on the seasons. And the first sightings of the lizards were always of lone lizards, now scouts never found a lizard alone. And many lizards were congregating in the deep jungle. The hundreds of lizards the hunters had killed only affected their population in the beginning. Because Agordon habits had become more communal and intelligent their numbers rose slowly aswell.

Svylas created a process by which every resident of every settlement had their work purpose clearly defined and one of Svylas´ men Savli wrote lists of all real citizens. This time there was no protests. Savli had been given the responsibility of administrating the city of Novo Torun he had become the first lord of Novo Torun but he was more like a Mayor, Savli worked on the city of Novo Torun, which was slowly evolving and growing. Svylas worked on getting tools and supplies to the workers on the western wall.
Stealth scouts built elaborate traps and mapped areas where the lizards were moving, this slowed the lizards down alot, but the Agordon lizards were relentless.
After the first five years, progress was good but attacks continued and each time a few more wall workers, scouts or hunters would lose their lives. It was as though the Agordon lizards had learned a new trick.
Svylas regretted the deaths of the workers. In his heart he wanted to re-welcome them all as citizens after the completion of the wall but the reality was he would need them for his next projects. He met with Mitglerk in the southern village of Vlanstead, Mitglerk was almost too old to stand by now. Mitglerk and some of Svylas' soldiers had been studying the mammals, they had taken the young from the larger herbivore mammals,(These animals moved and looked like horses except they had shorter snouts.) they were called "Surpons" These mammals had been increasing in number more and more since wheat and potatoes spread giving them super abundant food sources. And in incidentes where Surpon mothers were killed during a hunt, instead of abandoning the young, hunters captured them and sent them to Vlanstead in the south.  Mitglerk had been taming and training them for two years. While showing Svylas the surpon horses, the two men talked at length about using the surpon horses for work on the wall, transport between towns and patrols. The tame surpon horses were easy to ride, they didn't ride as fast as horses on earth, but they were more resistant and could carry more weight.

Empire Wagron 5 Progress at all costs
45AA population: 11,052 people

Surpon horses helped in transporting food and tools across the distances between each town. They were not as successful at making the Surpon horses work on the walls, but over time it got easier to get the beasts to work. Food, weapons and goods were transported in almost half the time now.
The wall and moat were almost finished, the horses enabled the workers to double their productivity. Some of the master builders who were now more like engineers came to make special additions to the wall. The wall and moat ran more than twenty kilometers around the orchard, the wall stood 10 meters above the forest and every 100 meters stood a small rock shelter with a thatched roof that could be manned to survey the jungle beneath. One part of the wall near the middle as it curved into the forest was a flat area more than a square kilometer where a new town would be built, 10 kilometers from Novo Turon.
For now the Orchard, the ponds and the wheat and potato fields were all protected. Instead of welcoming the 300 surviving workers back into Novo Torun they were commanded to help build the new village that would be located in the center on top of the wall. More people were taken from Novo Torun and Vlanstead to work there. Some of them protested but gave no real resistance for they would be made to be seen as traitors of empire. Initially it would become the home of the men of the hunting class for a never-ending war against the lizards. But eventually the city would grow eastward toward Novo Torun. The new village would be called Tukron.

On the day that the wall was finished hunters and scouts set up guard around the base of the wall across the other side of the moat which was 15 meters across and 4 meters deep. The wall had reached 10 meters and on the ledge of the wall facing the forest was another type of vine which had long thorns that could potentially pierce the skin of any ambitious agordon that attempted some kind of amazing jump, there were also sharpened stakes making the wall appear impenetrable from the forested outside.
Svylas inquired, "Savli what do you think of our great wall, do you think the lizards will be able to jump the moat and climb over?" "No sire we have done it and Wagron will be safer now."
The most important people of the three settlements, joined looking out across the moat with King Svylas, Savli lord of Novo Torun and second to the king Mitglerk. The families who had the most children were automatically chosen to be there out of respect for their contribution to the population. All hunter and scout commanders. The top building engineers. Also some of Novo Torun's younger women, so that Svylas could choose his first wife. These 300 people were considered the first citizens.
 Behind the great gathering of people a great trail was cut into the forest heading directly west into the jungle from where they were. Svylas spoke to the people telling them "It is the trail that hunters will use to go out into the wilderness to fight and kill the lizards."
He went on to say "None of these forests are safe by day and they are all extremely dangerous at night, but our new moat and wall will cut them off from entering our territory. If the agordon lizards enter from the north they will have to cross the spotted tiger territory. We know for a fact these animals will fight each other to the death before they cohabitate."
Savli spoke to the first citizens about the wonderful plans for a new village a top the wall, a secure location which was absolutely perfect for surveillance of the forest's edge. "First citizens our next project is to build a new village above the wall for hunters and their families, from there they can launch attacks on the great Agordon lizards and quickly seek shelter above the wall  by crossing this narrow bridge and climbing that ladder. The moat also gives us an extra supply of fish."
Svylas spoke again "During our five years of building the wall we have lost more than 200 of our people, workers and hunters. Now we will build our empire and grow more than ever before. We shall flourish in these lands as Svaylar and Raslan intended all of us to, and your faith in me will guarantee it."
One of the scouts arrived out of breath "We need to get everyone above the wall, a pack of agordon lizards is approaching." Svylas guided his guests toward the narrow bridge and Savli helped them up the ladder. The last of the guests were making their way across the narrow bridge as the agordon lizard beasts bore down on the scouts, hunters and Svylas. Three seven meter long agordon's broke through the under brush two had already been tagged by arrows fired by the scouts and hunters. The two wounded Agordons ran over the scouts and hunters tearing them to shreds but also recieving deep cuts from their sharp swords and daggers. The third lizard yet to be harmed charge Svylas as if he knew he was the king. Svylas pushed the scout nearby onto the narrow bridge and told them to take cover he drew one of the scouts daggers as the beast ran straight for him, just in time to bludgeon the beast's nose before Svylas was knocked five meters into the moat.
Splashing in the moat Svylas screamed out "Use your arrows on the vermin!"
It was over as fast as it had started as scouts on the other side of the moat had started exacting some really deep wounds in the beasts with their bows and arrows. The lizards disappeared in seconds.
Svylas, Mitglerk and Savli and the surviving scouts counted the dead. 10 dead hunters and 2 dead scouts.
Svylas spoke to the first citizens before they left, "Don't be alarmed at what you have seen today, we are survivors and we fight for our space here like any other. Go back knowing that I will never back down to the threat of the Agordons and my hunters and I will stop them from over running our kingdom." The 500 people gathered atop the wall looking down they felt safe despite what had just occurred. The thing that made them feel sure was the fact King Svylas had risked his own life to protect some of the scouts and wounded an animal in the process. So the first citizens went back confident that their kingdom, this growing empire was safe in King Svylas' hands.
The shock must have gotten to Mitglerk because he died the next day.
Over the next weeks Svylas chose a young woman to be his wife, prepared the funeral of Mitglerk and went to his father's old city of Vlanstead. His wife´s name was Pienka born and raised in Novo Torun she had never known Earth, but her parents would Always tell long stories about it. She longed to marry Svylas not to become a princess or a queen but to have more freedom and influence, for women had less power in wagron society at this time.

Empire Wagron 6: The South Eastern Frontier

Novo Torun started building extensions outside the walls of the main town to house the growing population. Ronoth in the north expanded it's village in the tree tops, bridging a network of large comfortable tree forts where harvesters of the pomar herb lived. Ronoth had become safer than Vlanstead as the spotted tiger despite being an apex predator showed no interest in humans anymore, the Wagronians had indirectly boosted all herbivore populations with their wheat and potato crops. And it was obvious when northern Wagronians saw the beasts, they were fatter slower more relaxed and not in the slightest bothered by their presence. And that meant Ronoth would now begin to grow. Kwiatos was the name of the man responsible for defending Ronoth. He had light brown skin and brown short hair, his big observant eyes were the first thing people noticed about him. he was often argumentative and hard on other workers. He reported to Arklin who now worked between Ronoth and Novo Torun but mostly in Novo Torun with Savli. Every month Kwiatos reported predator movements and progress in farming the Pomar-herb. Arklin found it hard to trust Kwiatos, but the fact was Kwiatos was so good at his job he had probably saved dozens of northern workers from the notorious cats.

In Vlanstead the salt refineries had expanded, but the iron ore was slowly becoming more and more scarce and soon Wagronians wouldn't have enough weapons and tools to supply their growing empire.
Svylas was there in Vlanstead with a man he had appointed to act as leader, his name was Bellion. Svylas had disappointed his brothers and all the sons of Rasvlan who were all skilled hunters and builders but were not good leaders. Bellion was a huge man who had wavy short yellowy blond hair and incredibly big hands, he was physically Strong as he was wise. He was one of the first young men to work the furnaces for forging the iron, he was also the man who discovered salt in the drier lands to the South east which was probably a dried up salt lake or part of a dried up ocean .He would spend his last days of the week hunting in the fields and forests in the east.
 Bellion had traveled further east into the arid lands than anyone. Past the place where he discovered halite and into greener áreas on the other side. He spent weeks traveling sometimes to discover and draw maps that he would send to Savli at Novo Torun. He had sent messages back then to Svylas that there were sparse forests and hills beyond the arid lands 200 kilometers from Vlanstead. It was easier to travel now that Surpon horses could be ridden, Bellion could ride 50 kilometers in one day with his men if he followed the flat lands. However Bellion also mentioned that there was a new danger there aswell a beast larger than the lizards that patrolled the edge of the forests. It took the form of a giant carnivorous possum, it stood six meters high and nine meters long when it was walking. Bellion and his men called it the "Strak". Since the sighting Bellion had stopped going so far east. And the Strak never wandered west to Bellion´s relief.
 He had seven children, during the time his sons and daughters were being born he built a clean area inside the nursery halls with running water passing over an open gutter on several long stone benches. This was so babies could be washed and changed more hygienically.
His talents earned him respect from the citizens and mothers alike and Svylas needed leaders. Both Svylas and Bellion were in their early twenties.
Svylas had his brother Svylag travel with him from Novo Torun. Svylag was not exactly a great leader but he was trustworthy and faithful and strong both mentally and physically. Svylas' plan was to get Bellion to help him lead as a new village was being built in the west and leave Svylag to govern over Vlanstead. Svylas, Svylag, Bellion and Bellion's deputy Robur sat in Bellion's spacious village house to discuss the future. Svylas began "Bellion for the last year messengers have been telling me that our iron ore supply is running low and soon we will not have the iron we need for making weapons. In three months the western town of Tukron is to be built during this time the workers will need saws hammers and bolts."
 Bellion spoke to svylas, responding "The ground rock formations west of here have little ore now. But I am sure that there is much ore in the rocky southern hills. We have never gone there until now because of rumours of another creature and strange stories that your father Svaylar would tell the people. I am willing to go with armed men and set up a mine wherever we find more of this ore, afterall nothing can be stranger than the beasts that live in our lake here."
Svylas replied "My brother Svylag will go there with your deputy Robur, soldiers that work for me personally will accompany them they have the best weapons and armor in this world and whatever it is that my father thought was living there will have to contend with them."
"We will call this new colony Kopalnia".
Svylag voiced his support, "Yes we will go there and find the iron ore we need. If it is of your will brother I will go, to Kopalnia." Robur nodded his head in agreement.
Robur was a thin man with browny grey hair and dark beady eyes, he didn't speak much but listened very well, he was an excellent warrior and hunter and had super sensitive instincts that other men didn´t, including sight smell and hearing. It was his silent desire to be able to go to new lands and discover new things with the risk of encountering something more dangerous and sinister than they had already.

Empire wagron 7: Strange new creatures

Svylag and Robur started their journey into the southern rocky hills, accompanied by well armed soldiers, good food supplies and ample water. Svylag and Robur mounted surpon horses, another twelve horses were employed to carry the pick axes and shovels. Ten very strong men were taken off their normal jobs at the first ore location and furnaces to help dig and locate new ore. They were to stay there for weeks searching for signs of ore. The terrain was hard, the men had to follow narrow tracks made from the local four legged mammals that would cut across ranges and mountains. There was still a lot of vegetation even as they climbed a thousand meters higher than where the town of Vlanstead was located. They also went down great mountains into huge valleys whose microclimates were often so hot the soldiers shed their armor and some of their clothes. Four days and 30 kilometers south the men led by Svylag and Robur came to an ideal valley with many strange rock formations and caves. The men set up camp and found traces of Iron ore on the first hour of the first day.
If the journey hadn't been so tiresome it would have been perfect. After the second day Svylag went into some of the caves and started digging with the men using local wood and candles to illuminate the caves. The ore was easier to access and more present in the rock than it had been in the north flat area slightly west of Vlanstead. Robur was sent back along the tracks and trails that led them there to make the path safer and easier to follow.
On the base of the highest mountain while Robur and his men widened the track a cold breeze came down from the mountain, Robur's head jerked up and he said "Men stop what you are doing there is something nearby that could want to kill us." The men's heads all jerked up in the same fashion but in all directions. Further up the mountain by 100 meters or so Robur could see a hairy ape like creature observing them, he would have been more alarmed except for the fact the beast seemed to be the same size as they were and had a lot of dark long hair. Robur ushered his men to make their way up the hill
towards the right of the beast as he and the other men went on the left side so to ambush the beast. When they got to within 30 meters the beast sprinted up the hill and into a hidden passage sending rocks slipping and sliding down into Robur and his men, causing a few light injuries and just enough doubt to stay clear of the creature. They arrived back at the new valley, Svylag had named Kopalnia, Robur and his men were exhausted they hadn't stopped hiking through the night for fear of being ambushed by the ape creature on the mountain. Huffing and puffing Robur informed Svylag "There is a creature on the mountain between here and Vlanstead, it is our size but runs faster than any of us can and it could be dangerous." Svylag got all the soldiers together and the few bows they had. Then Svylag declared with alittle fear in his voice "Tonight we will go hunting for the thing and if it can outrun our bows we will leave but if not we will create a new town here."
Over the next few days Robur and Svylag and the soldiers scouted the mountain where they had seen the beast and found nothing except what seemed to be a bracelet made of bones and some fruit shells from some of the nearby valley's fruit trees. After one week of searching day and night they found nothing and went back to Kopalnia to set up a cabin.
As Robur, Svylag and all the men helped build the large log cabin which would form the first house of the steel valley settlement, they discussed the new creature. Robur made Svylag know his uncertainty, "If this beast is a danger and we send miners down here and blacksmiths we will be sentencing them all to death." Svylag responded "The beast is of no concern, we've seen evidence of it's diet and that was fruit, and when we tried to find it, it was nowhere to be found. It is a cowardly animal that is of no consequence to our endeavor, and if it does show itself again we will try to see exactly what it is."
Robur nodded. The fact was they knew they were being watched by the creature or more than one of the creatures but were absolutely hopeless to do anything about it. And apart from a few sightings they would not have any encounters with the creatures for years. Svylag knew of the old rumours, the creature had been talked about over feasts by Svaylar the father of both Svylag and Svylas, Svaylar had ventured out into the hills and caught sight of the creature, which had since created stories and rumours that kept wagronians from venturing there.

Svylas and Bellion went to the construction site of  the new village of Tukron at the western wall.
wood and stones were being hauled on platforms attached to rope pulleys from the jungle below to up on top of the wall. Workers were everywhere, building foundations for new houses, erecting a frame for a meeting house. Hundreds of workers were working below felling trees and digging out small boulders and rocks as armored scouts and hunters patrolled the perimeter.
Svylas grinned at Bellion, "Can you see that we wagronians are finally starting to own our lands now!" Soon these beasts will no longer bother us and we will create our huge empire here without any competition like our ancestors on Earth. We will be the true másters of these lands."
Bellion smiled "Svylas we have a long way to go yet, but I believe you are right."
A small but stocky engineer ran up to the men, "King Svylas I have found a way to get running water into the village." The engineer had created a pulley system with buckets that would dip into the moat fill up with water and be hoisted up using a wheel that could be turned.
Svylas and Bellion looked at each other in amazement the contraption looked complex but it worked perfectly . Svylas asked the man "What is your name?" The man said "My name is Meril"
"Meryl will you join us on our journey back to the South? We may need your skills there" Svylas hardly needed to ask. "Of course I will go to Vlanstead with you."Meril replied.
Bellion and Svylas grinned inside joke grins, Bellion spoke this time "We are going further South than Vlanstead." Meril´s face went red, he was feeling as much fear as excitement, he knew the rumours about the Southern land.
Svylas and Bellion looked over the wall down into the water of the moat as they heard a great splash.
Yes it was an Agordon lizard dead lying into the margin of the moat, it was more than six meters long, but it had a huge hunk of flesh missing from it´s throat and chest which could be seen from the angle the lizard was lying. Through the forest they saw bushes and trees swaying as something larger than they had ever seen barged back into the undergrowth.
A few scouts and hunters came running and surrounded the dead beast, some of the moat´s fish had already started to nibble at the loose skin around the neck that floated on the surface of the water. Because it´s head was almost entirely submerged.
Svylas and Bellion found the rope ladder hurried down to the scene to investigate it with the scouts.
Svylas shouted down as he approached the scouts "What has done this, is there another animal?"
The scouts that didn´t have their heads almost inside the Agordon´s wound were nodding.
Svylas and Bellion stood flabergasted as they saw the size of the meter wide bite mark into the Agordon Lizard. "Scouts show us how big the track is and give us an idea about how big this thing is." Ordered Svylas. "Yes immediately sir." Another scout spoke "This is not an animal that comes from these jungles, we have never seen foot prints this large. It is probably a random attack by a larger predator that comes from warmer northern jungles."  Svylas, Bellion, meril and the scouts measured the foot prints the tail tracks and saw this was a creature more than 15 meters long, It´s prints were different from the Agordon not just by size but by imprints of foot talons that the Agordons didn´t have. Svylas Bellion and Meril all went back to the novo Torun to work on their new monster "threat".

Robur and Svylag left their men to lay the foundations for the mining settlement of Kopalnia.
On their way north they stopped at Vlanstead, Svylag saw his two children and wife. While Robur and his men went to the far side of the lake and spent much of the day there. The lake stirred, Svylag and his Family could almost see Robur and his men on the other side as they looked out. small waves lapped at the shores, waves that had never gotten that big before. then Svylag and his Family witnessed a very angry giant serpent like reptile break the surface of the water, make an incredible roaring sound half between an elephant and a whale. It dived back under even faster than it had submerged as if it was searching for something.
The next day Robur and Svylag made their way to Novo Torun, on approaching scouts reported back to Svylas. So they arrived in the late afternoon to the greeting of King Svylas, Bellion and Meril who was now head engineer. Queen Pienka (Svylas´ queen) meril´s wife and some other women were there also to greet them.
All of them went to Novo Torun´s biggest tavern(there were only two at this time) and celebrated the new mining settlement of Kopalnia in the South. They talked of the quick footed mysterious creatures of the mountains in the South, and the large new fiend of creature that came out of the north West. Just before they all got up to go to bed a guard raced into the tavern holding A huge woven basket with na equally big fruit shell bucket inside it. Robur pointed his finger at it and shouted out "Hey that is mine what are you doing with my possessions?" The guard carried it over to all of them at their table and said, "It was moving by itself, I didn´t know what to do so I brought it here."
Robur spoke, "This was supposed to be a surprise but I have found a way we can keep almost any animal away form our western wall." Svylas face instantly became puzzled. "That´s impossible Robur!" "What could you possibly have that would stop the lizards advancing from the West?"
Robur lifted the woven lid on the basket and then another lid made of interlaced leaves.
Svylas and Pienka looked into the shallow water, to their shock saw  what looked to be a serpent with four small paddle like feet and extremely sharp teeth and beady cold eyes looking up at them. It was about a foot long but still looked dangerous and very lively.
Robur explained "My men and I have been watching the lake alot recently and some of the lake monsters take their Young across the margins to teach them to hunt." "I picked up this stray baby in the reeds, it probably got left behind by it´s mother."
Svylas got excited indeed, "We can put this baby in our moat and it will drive off the lizards when it comes to size." Robur nodded his head.
The next day Robur and his men released the small creature into the moat that runs parallel to the western wall. It disappeared into the dark water shaded by the forests ever growing canopy.
In ten years it would be big enough to devour an agordon entirely. In twenty it would be big enough to take on some of the largest, most fierce northern predators that dared to take a drink by the moat. The only downside would be humans themselves would have to stay away from the water aswell.

Problems in the north 8 Empire wagron

50AA population 14,000

Obrilk one of Svylas´ most trusted scouts had returned from Ronoth the tree fort settlement in the north. He returned with all of the women and children. For the past week there had been skirmishes between Agordons and the spotted tiger, and the other larger predator they called the Jazsurka which was more than twice the size of Agordons, perhaps not an apex predator in the north but it certainly was in the south. It didn´t belong to their species and would destroy everything it could during and after fighting the agordons or the tigers. The species of Jazsurka had been attracted by the rise in numbers of forest animals and consequently Agordons.
Svylas and Bellion had taken Meril and other experts to help them create an ore mine in the South at Kopalnia. Robur and Svylag spoke to Obrilk about the latest events.

Robur and Svylag decided that it would be safer to abandon the whole colony of Ronoth. Bringing some of the Pomar plants to different regions that had similar climates soil and shade.
The man who had the most experience with Pomar-herb was Kwiatos. Kwiatos had long brown hair and a short wispy moustache, he was promoted from scout to hunter, he knew the north well, bevond his skills in propagating more of the herb, he had written pages and pages about his observations of the predators. Kwiatos didn't want to go back to Novo Torun it felt to him like failure, when Robur turned up in Ronoth with soldiers they demanded "Men of Ronoth you must all come back to Novo Torun now we cannot afford to lose you, we will plant the Pomar in other places and you will harvest it somewhere safe." Kwiatos did not respond he just ushered the men to call everybody together and leave. As he did so, they could hear screaming and deep crashing sounds of trees being split in half in the distance. It was early morning but the Jazsurca lizard had already started to attack the spotted tigers nearby.

Obrilk and Kwiatos new world: Empire Wagron 9

When everyone had arrived at Novo Torun Kwiatos held a secret meeting with Obrilk. Over the next few weeks the two men tracked far into the humid tropical hills of the northeast. They observed fewer signs of predators, however there were still predators there. Obrilk and Kwiatos were hunting one day a week into their explorations of the north eastern hills about 35 kilometers from Novo Torun. They had ambushed an animal probably related to the surpon horse, Kwiatos had let his first arrow go hitting the animal in it's ribs. It bucked and ran bleeting and whining, the men followed it for about a mile through the shadey jungle till they came to a rocky outcrop that rose more than ten meters and it was like a wall as they followed the animal around it. All of a sudden a grey green 6 meter long colored Agordon lizard bore down on them. collecting the animal in it's mouth and persuing Obrilk and Kwiatos. The men ran through the trees to make it harder for the lizard to run them down. Obrilk had more than three arrows left in his quiver and as Kwiatos was being persued Obrilk jogged slightly toward them and aimed his arrow at the lizards neck. Obrilk pulled back and released it was a perfect shot, except for the fact the lizard ducked and turned to Obrilk. Now the two men were sprinting with the lizard at their feet following the extension of the rocky outcrop. The rocky outcrop seemed to continue forever as they followed it around. The lizard caught up and leapt over them pushing them both to the stony ground and injuring their chests and hips slightly. Kwiatos sprang and rolled in panic from under the lizards body and stabbed it quickly in the shoulder with his sword. The lizard didn't respond at first, despite the wound, it didn't even budge Kwiatos looked confused but not for long as the lizards great tail came down and across striking Kwiatos in the face cutting his upper arm with a barb and taking all the air from his chest winding him deeply.
Obrilk had slipped out aswell by now and bludgeoned the lizard behind it's armpit. The lizard raised it's arm and brought it's heavy paw down on Obrilk. Then it turned it's body around to face both men, the men looked at the lizard it was no normal Agordon it was one of the higher beasts the ones that could communicate and order the unthinking packs of grey Agordons. The Lizard produced a sound in it's throat that was so terrifying to the men, despite their injuries they got up and started sprinting again. The lizard gave chase and was within meters of them in seconds, Obrilk spotted a hole in the rocks of the outcrop and dove into it, Kwiatos followed him right in there aswell. The hole was about one meter in diameter just enough for them to wiggle through. The men were five meters into the hole when they looked back to see the lizard was waiting for them with it's nose sucking in the aroma of their fear and sweat. The men kept crawling for another five meters and as the hole curved they were no longer in the lizards sight, twenty meters ahead they could see some sign of light. They crawled and crawled and until they fell out of the hole and into a kind of valley. They landed on their feet and observed the most beautiful sight their eyes had ever beheld.
The valley curved down into a basin filled with flowering shrubs, the shrubs grew to about three meters. But some of the flowers were two feet in Diameter and the color of the flowers incremented with the brightness of the sun.
The two men fell down bleeding exhausted, breathless Obrilk awkwardly pulled the trunk of the nearest tree to adjust his position on the ground, he was very uncomfortable. Suddenly a stream of water hit his face and some of it splashed onto Kwiato´s face aswell. it came from a large flower above them attached to the tree Obrilk had pulled. Both men laughed and shook the tree harder it had been hours since either of them had drunken. There seemed to be alot of water in the flower and it wasn´t normal water. It was sweet and aromatic. They hadn´t even stopped to consider it might have been poisonous. It wasn´t though, infact it was the opposite. Not only did it taste so wonderful the men couldn´t get enough, but an hour later when the men stood up to get their bearings and continue exploring they noticed their wounds were healing faster which was impossible.
Excitement surged in their veins, they decided to hide the secret valley from Svylas and the others and start their own colony right there "Obrilk let us form our own new colony here, we have found the most valuable treasure here, and we will sell the flower water to Svylas and the others for resources." It almost seemed things couldn´t get better as they observed the huge hibiscus camelia like flowers that held the "Magic" water. When at the bottom of the valley under the shade of the trees they came across thick tall clumps of the pomar herb, it was growing all over the place, the leaves were different and the aroma more pungent. When Kwiatos tasted it he said to Obrilk "This Pomar herb is better than the northern plant."
Lecvillea was the name they gave the valley.
Obrilk and Kwiatos took some of the new goods. They had decided on the name as they made their way silently through the hole they came and cautiously back into the forest. Then a three day hike through the forests and over the small hills toward Novo Torun.
When they arrived, Svylag, Arklin and Savli greeted them Robur was working in Tukron. Kwiatos was the more confident of the two working his charm "Hello good men of Novo Torun, Obrilk and myself have founded a new colony called Lecvillea and would like to find candidates to help us settle there in the name of Wagron." Svylag and Savli became very enthusiastic indeed, Savli responded "This is exciting News we wish you the very best, maybe you´d like to wait for King Svylas´ return before you go there to settle?" Obrilk replied "Of course my lord, we had no intention of starting without the blessing of our king. By the way where is our great King?" Svylag responded this time "My brother is at our new mining colony Kopalnia in the South. Not expected back for another month." While the men continued to talk, Arklin slipped out and spoke to some of the soldiers loyal to him convincing them to follow him to Kopalnia. He didn´t trust Kwiatos, he knew Kwiatos well the two men worked together for years at Ronoth, and he could tell there was something suspicious going on.

Breaking away: Empire Wagron 10

Arklin was right, by the time he had left the city of Novo Torun to head South, Obrilk and Kwiatos had recruted all their friends and a few others they thought would be useful in establishing their own colony. They used their supply of Lecvillea magic water to convince most of the people they wanted to recruit. They stole weapons armor and alot of food. They were planning to go out just before the rain but Savli found out what they were doing and informed Svylag who gathered the soldiers to stop him. Kwiatos and Obrilk rubbed some of the magic water on their arms and body grabbed their Shields and swords and attacked the guards who were blocking the draw bridge gate.
None of the twelve guards were very injured apart from some cuts to their arms and bruises, the fact is they were tired out in the first five to ten minutes of the fighting as Obrilk and Kwiatos had so much energy. The guards all sat down exhausted from the intense fighting.
Svylag arrived in full armour from behind them with more guards. Kwiatos challenged him directly to duel, "Fight me man to man, if I beat you, you will let me pass." Svylag hardly had time to agree as Kwiatos swung down with his sword again and again. Svylag´s sword chipped as he defended himself and he took two blows to the chest and one to the head destroying his armour.
Kwiatos opened the gate and the guards just looked on as Obrilk, Kwiatos and the three hundred people they invited walked out of Novo Torun with their supplies on surpon horses. It started raining which was the biggest benefit for Kwiatos and Obrilk´s little exodus, they could go straight through the forests undetected by the Lizards or anything else that lurked in there. And the rain continued for days.
Kwiatos and Obrilk guided the men, women and children through the forests as it rained nonstop. The men noticed something strange as they arrived at the rockwall and began ushering the people into the secret hole in the natural rockwall surrounding the valley. Kwiatos and Obrilk knew the lizard was there maybe 100 meters from their position. But it didn´t attack, it wasn´t interested in attacking it just lay there, Kwiato and Obrilk could see it´s eyes but told noone. Both men knew somehow the lizard had another agenda and that it was far more powerful and intelligent than the plain grey agordons that would tear things to shreds without thinking. Kwiatos started to realize that perhaps this Kind of colored Agordon made up part of a subspecies of smart Agordon´s who led the main grey species. Kwiatos had studied the behaviour of both the spotted tiger and the Agordon lizards in Ronoth, he had seen them attack and ambush other creatures from the safety of the trees. However when there was a sighting of a colored Agordon the attacks were more unpredictable and precise. This was a creature potentially as intelligent as humans, this scared him more than seperating from the Wagron empire.
 On the inside of the rock walls there were caves where the people could set up small shelters, this was the beginning of the new settlement of Lecvillea the most beautiful place these people had ever seen.



Arklin arrived in Kopalnia which was now a thriving village with 700 hundred people. Many of them merchants who sold fish, meats and fruits. Some were builders and some just idle people who were sent there to become miners. They dug tunnels and seperated ore from plain rock. Most of them of them including merchants worked with Meril on the huge furnaces that would forge the metals. Arklin approached Svylas, "Kwiatos and Obrilk are breaking away to make their own colony in the northeast, they are doing it because they have found something precious." Svylas shook his head "How are you so sure?" Arklin raised his tone, "I have worked with Kwiatos for years and the only times he was ever this excited was when he was planning something either against the predators of the north or one of the men who weren´t pulling their weight. I Always suspected he wanted to break away, but I had loyal men at Ronoth so he wouldn´t have been able to do anything there. Plus he is with that ambitious scout Obrilk, the two of them have found something big they don´t want us to know about."
Bellion arrived on the seen and greeted Arklin "Arklin how long has it been good to see you friend what brings you so far South?" Before Arklin could reply, "Bellion, we have to deal with some traitors in the north we leave for Vlanstead now to assemble our army" Svylas declared. Meril was put in charge of the village.
As this was happening news arrived in Tukron and Robur took hunters and men of the sword and bow and arrived in Novo Torun. Robur met with Savli first for he already knew that Svylag had let Kwiatos escape, "Savli, is it true what the people are saying, Kwiatos and Obrilk attacked guards and stole supplies then disappeared?" Savli replied "I´m afraid so, but in Svylag´s defense the men had taken some kind of elixir that gave them strength or courage, I believe this is the reason they want to have their own colony." Robur was still angry he went with his soldiers overpowered the city guards and arrested Svylag and imprisoned him for letting Kwiatos escape.
 He took most men of the city and started training. A week later Svylas Bellion and Arklin arrived and sat down with Robur and Savli to discuss matters further.
Svylas didn´t release his brother to show the men he put the empire first. "Men we must find this new colony of Kwiatos, our people tell about a rumour of some great rock wall, Robur talk to all scouts who have ventured to the north east get one that can help us. Savli check what food and supplies you have for our 800 men. Arklin get as many horses as you can and Bellion choose another 100 volunteers from the city." The next morning they left.

Svylas left the city with almost a Thousand men most of them on horseback. They traveled extremely fast through sparse forest and thick jungle over hills and down through valleys. They reached the rockwall on the same day. The sun was going down, Svylas gathered Arklin, Robur and Bellion "Tell the men to find protection by climbing up the trees, tell them to stay near each other and take bows and spears into the trees there will be a night watch." As the men started to climb a dreadful sound exploded from the distance. A sound so sinister it might as well have been crying certain death. It was to the dread of every man as the Jazsurka Lizard 16 meters in length presented itself.
It approached confidently easing itself toward the men on the ground as the men above in the trees tried to stay quiet. One man however didn't realize his mistake when he loaded his bow and took a shot at the lizards eye, the arrow flew from his bow and sunk into the lizards forehead just above the eyebrow. It enraged the beast, the beast swung it's long heavy tail left to right bashing it against the trees and shaking the trees so hard men stared falling out, The lizard picked each one up and with one crunch of it's jaw and a quick gulp left no sign.
Svylas ran out to stop the creature as it had downed 12 men in less than a minute. it was repulsive to see how fast the beast devoured. The creature turned and faced Svylas all of a sudden Pienka his bride and queen ran out of the bushes, Svylas' eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped he would have knocked her to the ground in an attempt to protect her, but he was too shocked.
Pienka raised her arms and screamed as the lizard advanced. She suddenly shined a red crazy color, the Jazsurka turned up it's nose and waddled off.
What Svylas didn't know was Pienka had secretly snuck away from Novo Torun with one of the scouts. Then after hearing a story of how a woman in Ronoth carrying Pomar herb had repelled several agordon lizards with the scent of the herb. Pienka had rubbed pomar herb and magic water that Kwiatos had left at the city, over her body. Her body shone red because the last rays of sunlight from the sunset which made their way through the canopy to where she stood between Svylas and the terrible Jazsurka. The aroma of the pomar herb through the magic water was subtle to human scent however for reptiles it was repulsively obvious creating the illusion that she had some kind of magic power.
Svylas was just about to scream at her to go back with an armed guard to Novo Torun, when all the men bowed their heads, some even dropped to one knee. Svylas now realized they had taken this for a divine miracle of some kind.
As he was thinking over the ramifications of Pienka's messiah like act, Pienka had already found the entrance way into the secret valley of Lecvillea, scouts went in and immediately dragged Kwiatos out, who was spying the entire time under the branches he had covered the entrance with.
Pienka turned to Svylas  "Show this man mercy before the people for the good of the empire" The men in the trees and on the ground were mesmerized they were coming to believe she was a real goddess.
Svylas entered Lecvillea with Kwiatos, escorted by guards. Once not more than a crawl space, Obrilk and Kwiatos had dug it out more so there was enough space to walk through. Obrilk was summoned and the three men sat down. Svylas spoke to them both in an aggresive tone "You will both be responsible for sending one hundred liters of this special flower water to Novo Torun per week. We also know you have your Pomar bush here. You boast that it is better than the herb at Ronoth! You will send twenty five kilos a week to our merchants in Novo Torun. Kwiatos replant as you did at Ronoth, Robur you will oversee it. Obrilk you will come back with us to re-establish Ronoth. If we have reason any to believe you will betray us, you will be tied to a tree in the western jungles overnight. And Kwiatos you will administrate this colony honestly with the help of our loyal Robur. You will follow his orders he will have fifty armed soldiers to guarantee things move smoothly." Kwiatos would have preferred exile at this point and it was obvious by his facial expression. This was by far the only thing that kept Svylas from not imposing more on him.
Svylas joined with his wife, Arklin ,Bellion and Obrilk and they all made their way back to Novo Torun. On the way Svylas told Bellion to stop into Lecvillea every month to check up on everything and investigate Kwiatos. Bellion agreed and would use the opportunity as a relaxing vacation from his responsibilities in the south.
 The building where Svylas and Pienka lived, was fast becoming the palace of Novo Torun.
It contained 12 rooms and a main hall 20 meters by 20 meters. There were rooms for Bellion and Arklin there aswell. They all arrived and held a meeting Svylas spoke to Pienka, Bellion and Arklin listened "Well like I told you on our way back, that was the most daring thing you´ve ever done I have a clue how you did it but now you will be celebrated as a goddess." Pienka responded "It saved your life and half the men there you should be thanking me!" "And I do thankyou and that is why you will fix morale around our settlements. You will tour the three other towns, Bellion, you will escort my wife. Arklin you will take our friend Obrilk to Ronoth" Pienka interrupted "Arklin I have the secret repellent that will stop reptiles from attacking you." The News relieved Obrilk, for he had seen the terrifying confrontations between the great lizards near Ronoth and they were some of the most violent and most bloodthirsty lizard attacks of his life.

Wagron thrives:Empire Wagron 11

55AA population 17,038

A week after Arklin and Obrilk set off to Ronoth they started to re-establish Ronoth with the help of a hundred scouts and builders, creating a boundary wall around the tree fort village that not even the Jazsurka could break. When they got there some of the forts had been destroyed, birds and other animals had now taken up residence in the tree houses. Every night just as the men were getting to sleep after all the cleaning up, a huge animal would run through knocking it´s tail across the forts damaging some of them, destroying others and ruining the foundation to the new barrier.
Mydas, Arklin´s second in command had an idea as they were sure the beast was either a large Agordon or a Jaszurka, he took the dried dead pomar leaves and burnt them in clay pots around the settlement at dusk. After that there were no more incidents.
Over the next year they had erected a kind of trellis and by weaving poisonous and thorny plants through the trellis had created a natural barrier against all outside predators.
The spotted tiger was no longer to be seen in the área though, and large groups of Agordon lizards would pass nearby the settlement which probably meant the lizards had taken over. Not even the northern Jaszurka was sighted. Obrilk knew what it was, he knew it was the smart colored lizards that were doing this, that the colored Agordons had some way of learning from humans, that made them smarter, even their formations seemed more human.

Over the year Pienka made frequent visits to Tukron, Vlanstead, Kopalnia and Lecvillea. People would bring flowers and worship her. It troubled Svylas, but he could see the utility in having her as an Icon of Wagron. Often people would visit Novo Torun just to pay homage to her, bringing flowers to the palace doors. She gave the people hope and great paintings pictures and sketches were made of her, inspiring a generation of artists.
People believed she was truly blessed by god and Pienka became a name of reverance.
A female priesthood began. Woman who could prove they had supernatural(in most cases just a talent in herb lore or natural talents at healing) were recruited to stay in the new wing of the palace to study and learn fom Pienka. In actual fact Pienka was the one that learned and the female priesthood raised her prestige even more. The first book in testament to Pienka was written by Savli, it was copied and sent to each settlement. Certain pages were copied and sold to the 80% or so of Wagrons who could read. And even some who couldn't as a saintly decoration.

For years there were only isolated fights against the Agordon lizards. The Agordons ignored the wagronians for the meantime. They seemed more worried about protecting themselves from the Jaszurkas who had strayed South in search of more prey. Scouts from Tukron reported back to Svylas at Novo Torun, they described evidence of Agordon lizards outsmarting the larger Jaszurkas and on occasion killing them. The scouts had observed from the high border walls that surround the town. The thing was the Jaszurka was a gigantic beast of the distant, undiscovered, hot, thick tropical jungles of the north almost 2000 kilometers north of Novo Torun. Over the last 20 -30 years they had been making their way South because of the surge in southern wildlife. Or in other words free food without the competition from other potentially larger predators. The Jaszurca was the forest's weapon of mass destruction that only the higher colored breed of lizard knew how to control. It cut short and slowed down all Wagronian attempts to build in the north and the west.
Kopalnia grew into a big village, producing iron for weapons tools and materials. The mysterious hairy creatures of the mountains were seen every few months, the problem was they disappeared so quickly witnesses always felt a little bit of doubt as to whether they had actually caught a glimpse of one. The people of Kopalnia knew they were being observed so sentries were posted on raised shelters at points around the town just incase an uninvited guest decided to pay a visit.
Kopalnia had over a Thousand in population by 55 AA(fifty five years after arrival).
Vlanstead which beyond having the main training barracks and children´s nursery now made clothes for most of the empire. It had 3,300 people.
Tukron also had 3000 people. Wagronians who managed the orchards and studied the jungle would live there. There were sightings of the creature that had been put into the moat there six years earlier by Robur. It was supposedly several meters long and the bad News was, there were slightly less fish than normal. it had been feeding nonstop. Meaning the village sold less fish to the rest of the empire.

Lecvillea had a population of 500 people who worked hard planting and harvesting the pomar herb and collecting the magic water from the large flowers. Robur was bored though and wanted more adventure. He´d often go out with hunting men during the long days to explore hunt and trap.
Novo torun had 10,000 people, some of them worked on the great orchards with the people of Tukron and others had started working on roads between Tukron, Lecvillea and Vlanstead. They now had a big wagon deposit where maintenance was done and new wagons were built. New tools and weapons were developed there and strategists worked to come up with new ideas on how to cull the local Lizard populations. A new group of men were assembled who had the sole task of making sure everyone had their job. Anyone who didn´t find a specific job there would be sent to Kopalnia to become a miner. Each month someone would die either from a cave in or they would simply get lost after hours in the labyrinth that the mine had now become. Some say it was the hairy creatures that got them, although there was no physical evidence for such a claim. And the sightings of the creature were never near the caves, though the darkness made the perfect lair, and the miners, the perfect food source.


The Strak: Empire Wagron 12
60AA 23,000
Robur had been up to no good, his hunting ventures further and further into the eastern forests outside Lecvillea had attracted something very unsavory.
Bellion already knew the thing that had attacked Lecvillea´s hunting party. The thing that had disembowled Kwiatos and left his personal friends within the hunting party twitching limbless on the ground. Yes Bellion knew of this creature he just didn´t know how diabolical it really was. And as Robur described it Bellion knew that they would need to work together to save Lecvillea from the beast. The eastern "Strak". No matter how much Kwiatos death pleased the king, Bellion cursed at the top of his lungs. He was the only man capable of taking on the threats of Wagron's new colony.

Kwiatos and Robur and thirty men were heading east from Lecvillea where the forests were more spacious, grassy Knowles and small fields between the trees it was no longer that humid jungle with leaf litter under foot and constant pushing through branches and thickets. Robur had found another strange plant, a greyish White plant that looked like a long flower bud with a material like light grey cobweb wrapped around it. It grew two feet high and had three to four main stems. Robur took a few of the flower tops with him. As the men were looking at this strange new flower something in the distance moved it was a dark brown shape. It moved extremely quickly disappearing into areas where there were more trees and popping out suddenly closer and closer. The men readied themselves and held their spears tight.
The beast sprinted so quickly but not towards them, it would change direction and run diagonally as if to survey it's prey. The men had never seen anything as big or frightening as this, even the Jaszurcas weren´t as big as this beast, although Jaszurkas were much longer. It must have been five meters tall. The men ran as fast they could and Robur and Kwiatos hid themselves behind trees. As the men ran, the beast scooped the men up one by one biting them making a strange slurping sound and throwing them away. Kwiatos couldn´t help himself, he grabbed his lance and ran after it, the beast had knocked four men to the ground and it was getting ready to eat another of the men, Kwiatos hurled his spear with all the strength his arm could give him.
The spear sunk into the hyde of the beast but had barely punctured the skin as the lance flopped down barely holding. But the animal was furious all the same and ran at Kwiatos, Kwiatos tried to fight it alas it was too quick and cut Kwiatos apart with it´s claws then sucked the blood out of him before disappearing. The spear wasn´t more than a light flesh wound on the beast but it irritated it, the beast kept looking back each time it moved because the spear moved each time it did.
Robur and five of the men survived to tell the story.
Robur only stopped at Lecvillea to warn the people not to go outside of the valley. Then he and some of his men went directly to Novo Torun to get reinforcements and new ideas. Bellion was there to meet them. "Bellion I bring bad News, more than twenty men and Kwiatos have been killed. A beast we´ve never seen before attacked us through the eastern woods it was huge and dark brown it had fur and claws." Robur kept his voice as firm as possible as Bellion looked at him questioningly. "Did it have a snout and did it stand five meters high or so?" Bellion asked "Yes, have you seen this beast before?" "I am afraid so, this is one of the animals that lives further east." Robur cut in "It moves faster than the lizards, it attacks faster and it´s fur seems to protect it."
"Well Robur it seems we have met our match we will take the new project I´ve been working on in the South it´s a machine that can throw long thick spears with more force. I constructed it to Kill Agordons." "But Bellion the beast moves very quickly." Robur protested. "And that´s why we will distract it, so that it doesn´t see our machine." Bellion responded and Robur nodded.
Personally Robur never wanted to go back there, he knew the beast now and it was not like the lizards it was a super killer with a blood sucking quality that haunted his dreams every night since the attack.

Bellion wanted to get his materials men and leave as soon as possible, he knew Svylas would be back from Ronoth soon and he would want to lead the expedition. Bellion almost had everything organized, but before Robur and Bellion could leave, Svylas had already arrived back and he was curious about where they were going. He forced it out of them. And insisted on joining them.
Seventy men joined Svylas, Bellion and Robur, armed and protected by armour they rode out to find the Strak. Bellion felt as if they were going into it unprepared. He hadn´t told Svylas about his spear thrower, Robur was terrified he could only imagine the worst. And svylas seemed as confident as ever.
They left early that morning and arrived at the rock walls of Lecvillea.
 It looked like there were already people there to greet them, except they looked desperate, as the men approached they realized that they weren´t welcoming Svylas, they were wailing and crying.
Svylas jumped off his horse and asked the first man and woman who were embracing each other in tears. "What is the matter?" The people turned their clothes were blood stained they were shaking. The woman said "The beast Robur warned us about attacked Lecvillea it climbed the rock wall and killed half of our Family and friends here, we have lost our Brothers and sisters."
Svylas declared "Sorry for your loss, we will persue the beast and kill it. We will restore safety to this área again. Is the beast still in Lecvillea valley?" "No" said the man "The beast carried off a few of us as the soldiers started to throw rocks at it."
Svylas distracted by his new plight headed off directly east, Bellion told Robur to follow him as he gathered all the fighting men he could to help them destroy the beast once and for all.
Robur caught up with Svylas and they both rode with the rest of the men to the east through the sparse forests where sunlight hit the grassy forest floor. Bellion was still 10 kilometers behind when the dark furred fiend appeared in the distance, the thing about the Strak was it was always on the move, and it moved fast. It never ran straight toward an enemy atleast it never did when it attacked the Wagronians, it would run to and fro through the trees, zipping in and out diagonally using it's speed to intimidate it's enemies. And get them running so it could chase them down and slaughter them with it's long sharp claws.
Svylas screamed at the men and Robur "Men, climb the trees over the ground you think the beast will attack us from, take your spears and bows and be at the ready." As the Strak approached half jumping half sprinting, making rapid gurgling sounds and drooling slightly from the mouth.
The men in the trees positioned themselves to drop down onto the beast using the iron point of their spear to land on the beast and kill it. Though as it came into their vision sweeping along through the trees as if performing for the men, it dawned on the men that the size of the beast would make it incredibly difficult to kill it was five meters tall and it looked very hungry.
The beast came within range and men dropped down onto the beast spear first, one in three actually managed to penetrate the thick fur on it´s back. The others fell down and were quickly consumed. Svylas was getting ready to drop down when out of the corner of his eye he spotted the grey green agordon lizard that had been lurking in the área since Kwiatos discovered it. The agordon was watching the whole show and the Strak didn´t seem to notice it at all.
Despite the distraction Svylas dropped down piercing the beasts shoulder and breaking his spear on the straks back, before he was thrown onto the ground he was able to use the broken half of the spear again to Pierce the beast in it´s side. Neither injuries were of much consequence to the monstrocity as it took Svylas in it´s claws and basically finished him in one bite.
Some of the men had formed small groups in the trees and when the beast passed they concentrated their arrows on the beasts head. it was affective in confusing the beast. and a lucky shot hit the eye of the beast which sent it running back into the forest. Bellion arrived minutes later to a scene of carnage and a dead King. After the men had confirmed the beast had been injured Bellion ordered the scouts among the men to follow the tracks.
Bellion and the men followed the scouts who had tracked the beast who was now half blind and licking a tree to get shards of bone and spear out of it. The rasping sound of the sandpapery tongue on the tree was so loud the beast didn't hear Bellion's men pulling the spear launcher in range of it.
The scouts hid behind the trees the hunting men armed themselves with spears, Bellion gave the word and the men launched the spear from the machine. It went straight through the beasts spine paralyzing it, the beast fell on it's side and burst out screeching. The hunters ran in and cut into the exposed part of it's throat. The beast was finally dead. But so was Svylas.

New Era: Empire Wagron

Bellion rolled the beast back on a cart they built from the spear thrower. All the way back to Novo Torun with all the help of the hunters and scouts. As they came in the gate their was an instant parade. That later turned into a rather somber gathering as the news of the king's death spread. The funeral ceremony attracted every important from Novo Torun and the other four settlements. Pienka gave along speech in homage to her husband the king "Svylas led us through it all, these last decades of war with the predatory lizards and tigers, and this unholy beast the strak. Our King Svylas never left us and his legacy, spirit and children live on through us. He is Wagronia, just as much a part of creating this empire as his father King Svaylar and Rasvlan." The crowds applauded and Bellion, Savli, Robur and Meril threw flowers on his coffin box. Pienka spoke again, "My miracle was only made possible to save our king, my power is his power, so Wagronians as long as you worship me remember the King."
The next day Bellion and his bride Nednolita were declared the new King and queen of wagronia.
In the first week of Kingship Bellion made Vlanstead a town of construction of many contraptions and inventions. Some of which would become the terror of the Agordon lizards. He sent more men toward the mines to forge iron for his new machines. He built dozens of coaches which the surpon horses pulled between towns.

65AA 32,000 wagronians

Pienka was constantly worshipped by most Wagronians, they believed she was truly blessed by god. Every settlement had a shrine and Svylar would be forgotten before Pienka was.
 Bellion warned all Wagronians to stay away from the jungles. He banned hunting and made low rock walls outside the perimeters of their whole territory. He banned Wagronians from wandering east in case they provoked another Strak. Robur was the exception, Bellion knew he ventured east each week to collect the grey cobweb flower they called Pazeceg which was used to produce a fabric better than cashmere. Robur now had Lecvillea with it's Pomar herb, Flower water and now Pazeceg. Commodities that Bellion could trust Robur to distribute through all the towns.
Bellion founded his Lizard defence army which doubled as the military guard as families whose young people couldn't live up to the demands of Bellion's new empire. Soldiers would be sent to their houses and they would be taken to the mines by force.
The only mercy shown was from the followers of Pienka, Pienka's religion was based on kindness and eventhough women across the empire worshipped her still and kept shrines of her, the men worshipped Bellion and his new efficiency. Bellion's new machines had revolutionized everything in transport, intimidating the Agordon lizards and improving life.
Bellion's ten sons would compete to take his place and each were judged for five years, one of his sons were sent to the mines as he simply didn't have any of the obvious talents that the other sons did.
Kopalnia grew despite not having many women, the miners were not slaves at first and could own their own land and even sell precious stones they found in the mines to build and to pay for the priviledge of marriage. Though as Bellion's hair turned grey it was time for a new king years passed and Wagronians built higher and higher walls around their territories and the lizards ever watching left them alone. The colored lizards never stopped watching they watched from trees and high hills they smelled the Wagronians. The death toll from lizard death was zero now. When only years ago dozens of people would die each year. The creature in the moat below Tukron was gigantic and devoured many lizards that dared to drink from the moat. It was a large reptilian beast with paddle like feet that patrolled the waters on the western  frontier of the wagronian empire. Bellion's reign and that of his son's and their son's created an austere society where it's citizens had to show their worth or be sent to the southern mines.
Savli, Robur, Arklin Meril and Obrilk helped not only judging the sons of Bellion but also the most talented Of Wagron's youth and everything did seem like a competition, though foul play was always punished and certain tests of virtue were also done and the young that would have any leadership role. Svylas' sons were also tested and some were really talented at everything from crafts and engineering to sword and archery. But Bellion's sons were better He had trained them every spare moment he got and when he wasn't there he had his brother kesper train them for him and they were always given the most creative and challenging competitions.
Bellion's son who had proven himself most worthy was the first King to actually be crowned, the crown was fashioned by a blacksmith in the south with a material similar to silver.
His name was  Odwaga of Bellion, and during his reign he created a new law, that men and women over 16 who had not found their purpose, and were judged as nonessential by Novo Torun's judges of labour would be sent to work on roads, build the territory limit's walls and work in the mines under supervised guard.
Odwaga made soldiers go out and trap a full grown lizard so that he himself could slay it in an arena he had created outside of  Tukron where the young would be trained in archery and other weapons.
Odwaga was so swift and confident he had killed the 6 meter long lizard in the first minute.
Bellion and all the men who had helped Odwaga become king had died, Robur was the last to die and warned Odwaga not to venture to far from the Wagronian territories. But Odwaga became more and more brazen making soldiers run in the jungle outside the territory at night. He was so extreme, fear grew at how far he would actually go.
He expanded the mines at Kopalnia and built robust carts with ropes that could be pulled into the mines and be easily filled and handled with more care.
Odwaga sent his best soldiers on constant missions to find the hairy beasts in the mountains again and again, they never did catch one, however the beasts would never be seen again for years and years.
Odwaga even contemplated expeditions outside Wagron territory to hunt down predators.
he believed there would be other paradises like the one at Lecvillea. But one thing kept him from venturing out and it wasn´t Roburs last words, it was Odwaga´s dreams. He had dreamed of a colored Agordon menacing and human like that threatened him.
Odwaga was the first of the eight kings to descend from Bellion. All Kings quoted from Pienka's book of blessing and from the stories of Bellion. He was referred to by the nobles Bellion that great. His name was more famous than Rasvlan, Svaylar or even svylas.
For it was from Bellion's sons, grandsons and great grandsons that the future kings were all born and all of them led by a certain creed to create and evolve. Secure Wagron land and grow the empire.
Each decade the population of slaves grew. Criminals, incompetent workers, failed students after Odwaga anyone even protecting someone from being condemned to slavery could be made a slave.
Thousands and thousands of men condemned to slavery worked tirelessly on the roads the mines, maintaining the hundreds of kilometers of wall that shut the intimidating and ever encroaching jungles of the north and the west out. Also shutting out the open east which was home to the horror that had killed close to a hundred wagronians, the horror that was the Strak.
Things wouldn't change for two hundred years.

Empire Wagron -The dawn of a new existance

Empire Wagron. 1 Great Wagronian exodus


Two balding priests dressed in brown robes forcing smiles among the town's population accompanied a taller skinnier cardinal with a sneer breaking through the early wrinkles on his face. Rasvlan the Town's earl had sharp eyes and full cheeks also forced a smile as he greeted the representatives from the holy roman empire. Rasvlan was ambitious and knew how to lead, however it wasn't easy for Europe was a dangerous place with empires and kingdoms being created and destroyed in months. "Welcome good men of god, we have been working toward making our town more holy." The priests nodded as if sympathizing, the cardinal sneer formed into words with a tone that made Rasvlan want to go for his dagger. "You and your town's people must finish the church by next month, you don't want the Teutonic knights riding through your town do you?" Rasvlan didn't reply, the two men held a kind of eye contact that left them both bloodshot. Rasvlan wanted to plan an ambush that would see them gone forever. If it wasn't for the Vikings, the other Slavic tribes and the pompous Pomeranian empire he would have already done it.



The year 1025

Though Rasvlan would never have to deal with any of them. Despite being surrounded by hostile kingdoms, things would change for Rasvlan in his small Village called Torun on the outskirts of the Pomeranian kingdom(modern day Poland).
At a time when The Holy Roman empire was expanding across central Europe extinguishing what remained of Pagan Kingdoms and Influencing other empires and states to follow suit.
Torun had conformed to outside pressure to convert, however few of the 500 or so residents had truly converted. In a way their conversion was just a show and dance to avoid giving other territories and empires the easy excuse they needed to invade their territory on the basis of Religion.

The small local church building was often used as extra winter storage for grains and preserves. Which was cleaned out each time the cardinal stuck his nose in. This was because the population of the city would often go to worship their gods in the forest. It was not the only town that paid lip service to the pope, though it had something other towns didn't have.
The site in the forest where people from Torun would worship, contained a 4 meter high metallic arch that was curiously shaped with rune like symbols inscribed into the metal, none of which were associated with the local Slavic religion. Though that didn't stop the people of Torun claiming that it was the sacred hub to their faith. And every few years a faint glow would shine from the arch which provoked awe and reverence from the worshippers who would call the whole village to witness it.

As conflict was growing, wars becoming bloodier and bloodier in central Europe, the people of Torun would often gather at the arch and talk of preparation and defense for their town together. One week a debate Split the town in half. It was about whether they should join the Pomeranians in a fight to stop Viking tax collectors from settling in the north. After some planning, "Rasvlan" the chieftain and most of the village's men decided it would be best. It took Rasvlan days to convince them that it was the only way."People of Torun if we do not fight now we will become slaves to the north men, constantly paying taxes and tributes, even more expensive that what the holy roman empire already demands." A townsman spoke up despite his friends and Family trying to shut him up "Good Rasvlan the vikings are even more fierce than the teutons we will be destroyed for sure and they will still tax us!" Some of the other town´s people nodded and murmured. Rasvlan spoke "We will meet by the great arch before we leave for the north, some of you may stay behind but those of you who go will be fighting to save the future of our town and our country."  On the eve of their departure, as the town' s men prepared to leave with their limited weapons and food supplies, a strong light began to shine from the arch. The town's entire population congregated near the arch, the men dressed and armed for war speculated over what the light could mean.

The town's Chieftain Rasvlan a middle aged man still strong enough to lead, walked toward the light and said "I can feel it's power it is time my people, come." Rasvlan's people stirred. And stared at the arch, it seemed the light itself was not shining out of both sides of the arch but the side that faced the sacred circle where people would sit and worship. Rasvlan walked directly into the arch and just before he disappeared he turned and grinned and said to the people "I've seen paradise people follow me"! Dumbfounded the men followed Some of the town's women became alarmed but the light that was emanating from the Arch calmed them.
So the women and children followed into the arch as well instinctively picking up some of the bags of food weapons tools and camping equipment the men had dropped. The Arch disappeared shortly after the last of them passed through. There was no evidence of their departure.
The population of the town of Torun had now disappeared, Torun became a ghost town around which many legends grew, it would only be inhabited years later, when deserters and refugees from local wars sought refuge there.

 Empire Wagron. 2. Dawn of a new existence(first two months)
The people led by their chieftain Rasvlan found themselves on another planet.
There was oxygen, lush forests and fields it seemed they really had arrived in Paradise.
But nothing had changed with their physical form so this was a physical paradise on which they knew, they would still grow old in and die.
Some of the people from Torun tried to find the portal that they had arrived from, alas there was no portal no gate no evidence of their arrival, and Rasvlan spoke to them, "Do not try to find a way back friends this place is ours now, I'm going to lead us". His second in command who was 10 years younger than him was a man called Svaylar, it was he who often regulated when people went astray. He called out to the people who were slowly walking away from the group "It is time that we come together under Rasvlan and start our new lives here in this wonderful new land!"
Everything was new to them, the shapes of the leaves were different, even the blades of grass, they were green but seem to hold a deeper color than on earth that mesmerized
The air temperature was warmer than their Baltic summers and there seemed to be a lot of wildlife including small mammals that would run extremely fast and scatter as soon as any human got close to them. Some trees were abundant with berries and fruits. Although the reality of the planet had already awoken Rasvlan to the fact some would probably be poisonous. "People do not eat the fruits of these lands until we know which ones are poisonous" Knocking some berries from a boys hand with his sword scabbard.
 Rasvlan proclaimed in the first hour of their arrival, that the planet would be called Wagron which came from the tribal name for the people who lived around Torun, they were known as the Wagri the most ferocious of the northern Slavic tribes. Rasvlan stood at the highest point of the field they had landed in and declared infront of his 500 people. "We will be known as the Wagronians, and we will create an enormous empire in this new place. It is more abundant here than on earth, so we will flourish and make this land our home, we will build a village right here in this field and it will be called Novo Torun."
The five hundred people murmured then group by group the people sounded their support.
The people Of Torun who I will now refer to as Wagronians followed him obediently during those first surreal days as they cautiously built their shelters coming across strange insects, fungus and tree dwelling mammals.
They had set up their camp on the edge of a clearing 7 kilometers walk from a small creek. Some of the men were appointed as scouts and within hours of their first perimeter searches, reported large footprints perhaps belonging to large reptiles and also some belonging to some species of large feline animal both were identified as predators. Certainly because of areas nearby where carcasses and bones were found. The scouts would only wear breeches as the temperature was too hot for them to wear their earth clothes. The leading scout named Drimli came back on the afternoon of the third day trembling and stuttering with the other scouts. He spoke to Rasvlan about what he had seen "Rasvlan we have found something terrible you need know what is out in the forests!" Rasvlan didn't want to hear any bad news he was so happy at having found this new land to start a new home, he laughed and responded, "You all brought all this meat for the village, there must be enough for three days here what could be the matter?" Drimli tried to keep it together as he reported the story. "Rasvlan we didn't kill the animal! Something much bigger and more vicious did, one of my men saw a gigantic lizard wander off from the place we found this dead animal, it was a fresh kill so we took it. But by the tracks we picked up from the kill the lizard is seven meters long."
This news scared Rasvlan and he made the men swear to secrecy. However it wasn't long until the reality of how vast the food chain on the planet was, would become obvious. Days and nights were longer than on earth. And what bothered most of the newly appointed hunting men and scouts was the long nights and what might lurk out there in the nearby forests. And each night the noises the people heard in their makeshift huts terrified them.
The role of the new settlement's women was to carry water, firewood begin the planting of wheat and potatoes close to the settlement, the small amount of wheat seed and potatoes were part of their food supplies but as the men of the tribe began hunting, Rasvlan their leader decided they should plant just incase they couldn´t eat the fruit or vegetables on the planet. The women had to cook and prepare all the settlement's food which meant skinning some of the strange chicken sized furry animals that the settlement's hunting men would bring in. The women would spend long hours thatching the rooves and making home improvements to the structures the men would build. No one ever stood still in the village it was busy from dawn into the night by firelight. The wagronians felt free they had no hostile human neighbors, no teutons, no Vikings, no holy army. Though the planet they had arrived on was more than twice the size of earth and of the millions of animals that roamed it's forests, a good few were predators.

Empire Wagron 3. Something in the dark.

Within the second week, something happened one night, after Rasvlan had put the Wagronians to work on digging a trench around their settlement. (telling the people it was just a precaution)
As most of the 500 inhabitants were sleeping an 8 meter long reptilian like beast made it's way through the makeshift huts and cabins breaking down walls and stomping on newly planted potato and wheat crops. It snorted and roared a roar that vibrated through the spine of every inhabitant in the village. It wasn't until an hour after the lizard left that the Wagronians came out of their huts to see the damage and check what had happened.
No one was hurt but everyone was in a state of shock. In fact the damages to the huts were easily repaired and the crops seemed to have survived. What created the bigger problem was the scout Drimli had told some of the women about the evidence of large predators after the event and now it made Rasvlan look like he was hiding things from his people.
He summoned all men between 15 and 40, there numbered 190. Rasvlan set them into three groups. The weaker group stayed in the new village to sharpen stakes and design more weapons from the swords and spears they had with them. The second group was the scouts, men that were fast on their feet that already had experience spying on neighboring armies back in Torun, their job was to find and report the whereabouts of the local creatures. The third group the strongest men were ordered to follow behind the scouts to capture and kill one of these creatures, these men were the hunters and trappers of the settlement spearing and trapping all forms of small mammal in the vicinity and keeping the settlement fed as half of the wheat and potatoes were planted for crops. In the early morning they were also the master builders and were in the process of erecting sound structures for the construction of Strong houses and the settlements defences.
The scout Drimli who had told the people about supposed gigantic lizards was put on a secret trial and sentenced by his peers to try the local fruits so the Wagronians would know what was poisonous and not.
In one month the condemned scout Drimli had tried four of the most appetizing and safe looking fruits confirming they were all good to eat, this gave the settlement new food sources and time for their earth crops to develop. The largest of the fruits was savory like an avocado with a big thick skin surrounding it like a shell and was bigger than a basketball. The shells were cut around their top half to make buckets. These buckets were used to store water and irrigate the first month´s crops.  And the earth crops did flourish, they grew more steadily and quickly than on earth.
 Drimli was summoned by Svaylar who brought him to the village hall which was really just a very spacious cabin built with logs and clay and thatched with thick umbrella like leaves that interlaced easily to create a perfect roof. It had enough room for the thirty people of the village who mattered the most to discuss town construction and hunting/gathering detail. Even though Drimli had experimented four of the local fruits, Rasvlan forced him to keep doing it for one more month. Svaylar had set a meeting to see if Rasvlan would show mercy. But that would prove difficult. "Drimli you were told specifically not to tell a soul, and what exactly do you think you achieved by doing so? If people panic at a time like that it will destroy us! So you must sacrifice yourself for the good of Wagron." "Rasvlan when the lizards passed our encampment it was impossible to keep it a secret any longer." Rasvlan raised his voice "Telling the people was not your choice to make." Svaylar tried to defend Drimli "Rasvlan you could show him mercy after one month he has shown us four new fruits we can eat." Rasvlan beat his fist on the table "I need loyalty from you all." And with that Drimli and Svaylar left the village hall. Drimli died a mysteriously quick death three weeks later after eating a berry from a local shrub. Months later the berry was brought into the village so all could learn of it's appearance. Drimli's death was made to look like his own doing for the trial had taken place secretly.
Drimli had been a friend of his second in command, Svaylar. Slowly Svaylar accumulated doubts about Rasvlan's leadership.
In two months of scouting and hunting, none of the Wagronians had been able to find one nest or habitat of the two suspected predators. But there were many sightings of the Huge lizards by scouts. Also the discovery of some large herbivore mammals like the dead one scouts had taken in the first week, there was one resembling a horse with a shorter snout. And one like an otter that lived on land but twice the size, a third mammal was identified but the animal was too quick for the scouts to get a description. Always found in areas where the undergrowth and thick neverending tangle of giant hollow jungle vines that would hinder large predators. Both larger mammals were now hunted providing more food for the village and their bones were used for cultivating tools and hunting weapons.
After two months crops were ready, there was wheat seed almost fully formed in the sprigs of the grassy crop. And potatoes as well. when they up rooted the potatoes and beat the wheat they swore that the yield was twice as much as their yields on earth. All was good in the three weeks of the first harvest. New foods were created with fruits and meats the planet had to offer, more women were getting pregnant and the village itself looked impenetrable to the local predators.

Empire Wagron 4. The Agordon Lizard(3rd month)
One thing was for sure this planet had large and dangerous animals on it, the consolation was both known local predators were nocturnal hunters. And had huge spaces to hunt. The catlike predator was extremely illusive and there were no real sightings of it. The lizards were common in the deep forest only coming into open areas after dark.
One month later three scouts got close to where there was a suspected nest of these large lizards, referred to by the settlement's plant and animal expert as the Agordon lizard. The three scouts were 17 kilometers west from the village when looking down from a low ridge they spotted a lizard with two young. When they approached they must have attracted the father's attention because they were ambushed, one of the scouts was bitten in half and died there on the ridge soon to be food for the rest of the Agordon lizard's family. The scouts that survived had both received deep cuts to their hips and waist area which took months to heal properly.
Rasvlan ordered most of the scouts to return and help establish another settlement closer to an area where there were fewer predators 20 kilometers south from their settlement near a big lake almost two square kilometers.
Everyone in Rasvlan´s new Wagronian society traveled between the area where they would build a new settlement and their old one. Curious to see more of the countryside that was apparently safer to travel.
A day after the fourth month, the new settlement was still not finished. And suddenly the second nocturnal attack on the first settlement occurred, this time there was more than one Agordon lizard, it had seemed human habitation had attracted them to the settlement. The deep trench forming a wall outward from the settlement with sharpened stakes sticking out protected the village well.
The Agordon lizards didn't even attempt to breach the narrow but vulnerable entrance and ran right into the trench, two of the larger lizards impaled themselves badly on the stakes the third must have sensed the futility of attacking without their help and fled into the night. One of the two larger impaled lizards managed to amble away from the settlement before dawn leaving an ugly blood trail that imposed the traumatic seriousness of the attack.
The other impaled lizard was too wounded and exhausted to escape, it had spent all it's energy on climbing through the sharpened posts harming itself badly. Now it simply lay there to bleed out while the braver of the wagron hunters raced down to make it look like they had single handedly slaughtered the beast.
Apart from the 2 tons of meat and the useful bones, the settlers in the first settlement had a new sense of safety that they hadn't had since they had arrived. Their small fortified village was protected for now.

Empire Wagron 5:Novo Torun and the new settlement of Vlanstead(5th month)

From this moment on the 1st settlement is referred to as Novo Torun, the new settlement by the lake 20 kilometers South was named after Rasvlan "Vlanstead". Both settlements were flourishing. Vlanstead the new settlement had become a fishing settlement as the lake was replete with fish most of which resembled earth fish the lake itself was rather like an earth lake. Except for one difference there were also underwater predators. The new fisher men who would fish in the safer tall grassy areas of the lake would hear great splashes and on the odd occasion see some gigantic reptilian body surface and slide along the surface of the lake. The wagronians at Vlanstead settlement dared not build boats for the things in the lake were too big and would most certainly attack.
Rasvlan took 100 of the settlers the other 400 stayed at Novo torun. The settlers of Vlanstead now answered to another man Svaylar, Rasvlan's second in command. Svaylar oversaw the fishing and farming interests in the area and the transportation of dried fish to Novo Torun. Although farming was not going to be as successful as at Novo Torun because the soils were rocky. The twenty kilometer stretch between the settlements was daunting for the settlers. The first traders used small wheel barrows of goods that proved difficult to transport, though there never seemed to be any evidence of many predators like there was in the north and the west.
The second harvest came about on the fifth month and food stocks were ample in both settlements. Scouts had found a new delicious herb growing 27 kilometers directly north of their Novo Torun, in the forest of tall trees that stood thirty meters high yet left great spaces on the forest floor where the herb would propagate itself under the dappled light and from the many birds species excrement falling and settling as fertilizer. At the time the scouts were running low on food supplies and on smelling the irresistible aroma of the plant they tried eating it, and used it to sustain themselves as they surveyed the land by day and slept up the trees by night. They then brought it back to Novo Torun, it became popular immediately and was integrated into most dishes. Rasvlan called it Pomer-herb(after a herb that grew in Pomerania their greater territory back on earth, although this herb was more delicious than anything they had ever tried during their earth years). The problem with the new discovery arose when a week into the fifth month another scout was killed in the area. This was exactly where the plant grew abundantly and naturally. But this time it wasn't by an Agordon lizard it was by a large spotted tiger at least three meters long standing five foot high, twice as fast as the lizards and twice as smart it appeared. The two scouts who were with their fallen comrade chased the beast off with their razorsharp bone handled, metal weapons. They took their comrade back to Novo Torun and discussed the possibility of staying out of that area. The scouts pleaded again and again "Rasvlan the monster that killed Snychel was much faster than the lizards, and it doesn't make any noise, it just appears out of nowhere and attacks" Rasvlan replied sternly "We must fight the predators of these lands off, they are but animals we will set traps and hunt them but never retreat." Rasvlan also told them that it was not possible for them to abandon the north areas because they had tried to cultivate the herb plant immediately in both settlements and it wasn't so successful. Afterall the herb was now the most valuable food item of both colonies. Rasvlan started planning a new settlement close to the área, where experienced well armed hunters would help harvest the newly discovered herb.
Settlement Vlanstead became a new concern as line fishermen there were being more frequently watched by the lake´s monsters. The monsters slowly but surely started to patrol the margins heaving great currents of water behind them with their long tails, their bodies not visible enough to be defined beneath the surface, just indistinguishable dark grey shapes. Rasvlan spoke to Svaylar and told him and his village to start looking for other sources of food or material to trade, and to not provoke the beasts by depleting fish stocks further. Rasvlan sent some of his fast scouts with fruit shell buckets to collect fish eggs from the grassy margins of the lake near his second settlement. As his scouts made their way from Novo Torun to Vlanstead settlement, Rasvlan mobilized his whole community to dig three ponds. The three ponds were situated on the highest point above the open fields, where wagron settlers had begun planting some of the local fruit trees to create an orchard. The ponds were fed by a hose that the settlers had fashioned out of a hollow thick vine that grew many dozens meters long in the thickest parts of the local jungles. They connected their hose extension to the creek and were able to fill the great ponds.
By the sixth month there were three fish ponds established at Novo Torun and below that a fast becoming orchard which also contained an area for wheat and potatoes. The newly found herb Pomer-herb was planted in many areas but grew slowly and did not produce very much compared to the wild plants.

Empire Wagron 6. First year, third settlement.

Svaylar scoured the flat low lying lands north of the lake with his men. He didn´t want to venture into the hills and highlands further South out of fear of what he might find, he felt safer going over the flatter lands between their settlement and Novo Torun. This started as fishing was only permitted in the early morning when most of the lake´s predators were not active. Which also meant fewer fish.
Svaylar grew wary that his settlement was being used as a refuge as Rasvlan was sending alot of the pregnant mothers there because of the absence of land predators. He also felt it was unfair to govern a village that had been given the name Vlanstead from Rasvlan and not his own name. He was set on finding something big that would rival Novo Torun and mean glory. And that is exactly what he did. He found traces of iron ore in the nearby rock formations of the flat lands. These rock formations stood little more than a meter high but spanned for 300 meters in an open dry area where a few wind swept shrubs were the only green patches for many kilometers.
As Rasvlan sent hunters to build a settlement near the Pomer-herb in the north, Svylar extracted Iron ore and began the process of melting it down to produce arrow and axe heads in coal furnaces that took him five months to build.
The third settlement was called Ronoth, it housed men who had the single task of harvesting the Pomer-herb from the forest floors of the north without getting attacked by one of the local overgrown predatory cats.
The Hunter builders used long high fences of vines and wooden posts to make enclosures where they could harvest and replant the Pomer-herb without attracting too much attention from wildlife. The enclosures joined up to six tree forts that stood four meters above the ground overlooking the enclosures.
Vlanstead settlement now had 80 babies and more were being born each week. It was now the first earth year that these people had become Wagronians, they hadn´t yet noted how long a year would be on this new planet. The seasons had changed from being very warm, 16-24c for 7 months, then hot 19c-27c for 4 months, now the temperature was cooling back down again to between 16c and 24c. Both settlements were flourishing Except Rasvlan had no knowledge that Svylar had obtained and forged iron ore to make his own weapons.

Empire Wagron 7. The rise of Svylar.

Rasvlan had ordered Svylar to send a certain amount of meat and fish from Vlanstead settlement To Novo Torun. Svaylar saw this as a kind of taxation. Yet if Rasvlan was to know that Svylar had designed and built effective furnaces and had began forging iron, Rasvlan would at the very least cast Svaylar out of both settlements. But Rasvlan didn´t know, even the women who were sent to the settlement for safety during their child birth and first years didn´t know. Only Svylar and his eighty men knew, and as he spent all his time with his men, the bond of trust would be difficult to break.
The women of the Southern settlement would attempt to make clothes out of a flax that Rasvlan himself sent down with them. Svylar headed east with thirty of his strongest men on a big hunting expedition. they would test the metal in the arrow heads in hunting and axe heads in tree felling to see it was even stronger than their Earth iron.
The east was Svylar´s new frontier, he and his men had found no evidence of land predators to the east, but had found alot of tracks and strange looking marks in the forests of the West and near the hills in the South which made Svaylar uneasy. The east had sparse forests and open fields and further east even arid spaces, most of the eastern áreas were ideal for hunting some of the grass feeding mammals that looked like fat rodents which grew up to 30 kilograms. One of the species´ meat was as delicious as beef and Rasvlan would trade Pomar-herb directly for that specific kind of meat .
 This day more than a year from their arrival on the planet, Svylar´s expedition ventured far across the fields and forests and into the more arid spaces. One such space looked like a huge dried up lake.
One of Svaylar´s youngest men took some of the rocky looking material from nearby by instinct. he was the same age as Svaylar's son 12.
It wasn´t till he presented it to the other men at the feast in the late evening, that they figured out that it was halite, or rock salt which could now be used to preserve the meat they would produce. Svaylar knew he had discovered something incredible. As soon as the people at the feast and the rest of the folks who lived in Vlanstead had tried the salt on the meats they never ate any meal without it again. The name of the young man who had curiously discovered the salt was congratulated and honored among all at Vlanstead , his name was Bellion.

That month Svaylar sent a message to Rasvlan saying he would be willing trade this new commodity for extra fruit and pomar-herb. Rasvlan responded days after saying that he would want a certain supply sent to him as tribute every month. Svaylar sent a message back inviting him to see the salt for himself, in one month both men would meet. Rasvlan knew something was different and planned to replace him with one of his other men. Rasvlan dressed himself and his men in their rustic bone armor covering their chests and shoulders and helmets made of animal skulls.
He summoned sixty of his 110 men to accompany him and went straight to the settelement that was named after him. "Men it is now obvious to me that the man we have trusted to guard and lead our southern lands has become greedy and will not accept our taxes, we must replace him with somebody we can trust, follow me to the south, Svaylar shall not dictate terms to me or wagronia!" Some of the men applauded and hoorayed, others kept quiet as they knew Svaylar was a fair man and knew that Rasvlan preferred a vassal over a partner.
As Rasvlan and his soldiers arrived at Vlanstead the southern village, they noticed tables with food had been put in front of the thatched houses that made up the settlement, infront of the table stood Svaylar. Svaylar was dressed in armour that covered his shoulders chest and abdomen, the armor looked like it had been fashioned by some futuristic blacksmith by the way it glinted as if twinkling insects crawled over it, each little shine threatening to Rasvlan's eyes.

Rasvlan was shocked and intimidated by what he saw. None the less Rasvlan Drew his sword and made his declaration that Svylar was to come back to Novo torun with him and be replaced. Svaylar marched confidently toward Rasvlan and swung his sword down on him. Rasvlan was ready and defended himself, the only problem was Svaylar´s newly forged sword broke Rasvlan´s sword and even cut through some of Rasvlan`s bone armor. Rasvlan fell to the ground, his men ran to his aid but from behind the shrubs came arrows catching the men´s legs and hips and felling them like trees.
The rest of Rasvlan´s men dropped their swords knowing they were completely surrounded.
Svaylar announced that he would be now leading the people and settlements of Wagron and that Rasvlan would be sent out, exiled from the colonies to live out his days away from the settlements, with only the right to trade. "From this day forward follow me, I am a leader who will listen and reconcile, I am a leader who rewards the brave and steps down when a greater man challenges. So if any of you think you can lead better than I, then present yourself now before us all." A man named Mitglerk stepped forward from Svaylar's own group of archers and said "Great Svaylar I will not take your place, but will rule while you are not in Vlanstead, but mine is not to rule by my own right but to rule by your side great Svaylar you have my allegiance." With that soldiers on both sides cheered and greeted each other and talked of the time they had spent apart. A feast began and Rasvlan was shamed.

Empire wagron 8: Coronation of Wagron's first king

Then after feeding Rasvlan´s men and his own men Svaylar headed north to Novo Torun to declare himself leader there. Rasvlan was held by Svaylar´s men to await banishment.
In the end Rasvlan wasn´t banished completely, but ordered to train the younger men on becoming scouts, hunters and even builders. Living slightly out of the village of Vlanstead Rasvlan accepted their judgement.
When Svaylar arrived at Novo Turon the whole village came out to see, the workers and women in the field, some of the men who had been building and working in the village, as well as a band of hunters and scouts that had just returned with tales of an Agordon lizard they had managed to kill. With the exception of the northern settelement 20 hunters, and one other group of hunters and scouts all of the inhabitants were there.
Of course they were expecting to see Rasvlan. Svaylar had his men stood back as he addressed the village announcing that Rasvlan was no longer the leader and that Svaylar would be the new leader and the first king of all the settlements. Svaylar announced "You will all report to me as  your new King, Rasvlan was defeated trying to replace me, and now I will reign over the three settlements and rid your local forests of the monstrous lizard creatures that have plagued these lands since we arrived." This came as a deep shock to the heart of all the wagronians at Novo Torun, their faces showing awe and most of them gasping in disbelief. Rasvlan was the leader who had given eveything to lead his people and build the settlement.
A brave soul named Arklin one of Rasvlan's most skilled hunters cried out, "How do you intend on killing the great Agordons when it takes twenty of our best men to slay one beast and that's when we are lucky enough to find one during the day, because after dark the land is theirs."
Svaylar replied "We have been forging iron in the south as you have been planting and harvesting, our iron is stronger and sharper than the iron we had access to on earth. And my fine hunting party not only knows how to use it but they can kill anything that moves with their arrows and axes. We move like the wind and if any of your best warriors would like to query that please let us prove our skills".
Arklin grabbed his sword and screamed "I've been fighting these beasts for months now and killed many, where you come from there aren't any predators, Let me see you fight me now to prove you can lead over us all."
The men were still arguing outside the village, where there was no trench protection and dusk was almost on them, though no one was paying any attention to the obvious detail, dusk, the night is dangerous!
Svaylar grabbed his sword and said "I will fight you myself to show the people I am worthy." As soon as Svaylar finished his sentence a huge agordon lizard 7 meters long standing 5 foot high ran through the assembly biting people in half and using his tail to knock all bystanders to the ground in it's wake. Svaylar and Arklin were both knocked to the ground, initially stunned they both got up and ran after the creature which seemed to be moving toward where the women were standing. Five of Svaylars men had already loaded their bows and as Svaylar and Arklin ran after the creature the arrows hit the lizard where it's tail met it's lower back. This must have hurt because the creature turned around and roared, something Wagronians had only heard at night in the distance. And here this beast was in the late afternoon confronting the whole village and roaring a roar that was so loud and grisly it sent most of the assembly men women and children running for cover. Svaylar's men stood fast and refused to seek safety from the lizard now fully provoked. Svaylar and Arklin simulataneously lunged at the beast, Arklin's sword cut a piece of grey green skin but little blood fell, Svaylar's sword penetrated the skin and stuck right into the bone of the lizard's skull jarring and concussing the lizard and drawing liters and liters of blood, both men were flung quickly and severly to the ground, awkwardly landing breaking fingers and cracking ribs, The lizard was gigantic. However Svaylar's sword was now embedded in the agordon's skull which gave the Svaylar's men and the northern hunters time to attack, Svaylar's men threw their axes and fired their newly forged arrowheads at the creature all weapons penetrated the creatures thick skin and wounded it horribly.
Svaylar lay on the ground unable to stabilize himself on his own limbs to rise up, Arklin however rose as he had met the Agordon's many times in great ambushes, then fights to the death.
Arklin took the sword from the lizards skull as it violently spun and swerved sideways, He ducked as the lizard went for Arklin's head heaving the sword upwards and catching a neck artery, the lizard fell on top of Arklin with a "thump". Then despite the blood hosing out of it's neck and other injuries it hobbled back toward the forest, though it was too late for the lizard now Svaylar had twenty men all armed with bows cutting the beast off from making a getaway, although at this point the beast would perhaps not even survive the getaway with the deep wounds Svaylar's men's weapons had inflicted.
Svaylar's men pulled back and released firing from the perfect angle right into the Lizard's forehead and temple killing him instantly. Svaylar now got to his feet despite the pain and ran to Arklin who had showed so much courage. Arklin was badly wounded but as the women children and other men returned to see the beast had been slain, he managed to draw enough breath to give his blessing to Svaylar saying, "Svaylar will be our king now for better or for worse, his weaponry killed this beast and his men and his courage protected us we will serve him until death."
Arklin was carried off and the whole village family by family paid homage directly to Svaylar as his men held him up, he was bleeding lightly from several body wounds and had broken two of his fingers but otherwise he was intact.

Empire Wagron 9: Legacy for two generations

Svaylar governed the three settlements fairly putting most of his efforts into raising and insuring the safety and education of the young who were born in the first years of their arrival.
He had also started a campaign to hunt the large Agordon lizards out of existence. Initially his campaign was very effective, infact dozens of the large lizards were killed and Svaylar aligned his men and the northern hunters to focus all their manpower on the killing of the lizards.
2 hunters and 1 scout were killed, two other scouts disappeared during the campaign, but not by lizards, see the lizards were slower and dossile during the day and if the ambush was planned right the lizard would not have any chance of retaliation he would be killed on the spot. However every time Svaylar's new hunter class ventured toward the north where the Pomar-herb grew they would be ambushed themselves by the spotted tiger that was faster and more cunning than the lizards and also huge enough to hold a fight between itself and five disciplined hunters. Though it would never remain to fight, even if it could, it would simply hit and run, sometimes dragging off a scout.
With the campaign in full swing most of the meat people at Novo Torun were eating was lizard.
Killing one beast a week provided Novo turon with enough meat to feed everyone for five days.
 Svaylar had built himself a high ceiling bungalow it's frame made almost exclusively from the Agordon lizard's bones. Svaylar held great triumphant town assemblies to honour the hunters as the hunters would bring a beast in tied to long wooden poles that took ten hunting men to carry. On the first week he had spoken of a new era where the lizards would run from the wagron's in fear. "People of Wagronia fear not for we are no longer the prey, the Agordon lizard runs further into the forests as our hunters wound and kill them now with the sharp steel we have forged in the south, no longer do our noble hunters suffer the same injuries we have become the predators Wagronians, now it is our time!" Cheers raised up all over the village, laughing and clapping. And as Svaylar looked around he no longer saw those scared people of medieval Poland, their eyes were sharper their skin wasn't as pale. And a strange confidence had manifested. Svaylar continued the ritual each week that the hunters returned with another dead beast. He cut the tail with a long broad sword, then the tail was barbecued for the whole village as it was the most delicious and tender part of the beast.

On one hand Svaylar felt like he was slowly clearing the western forests of predators, on the other he had a sickly feeling the alpha Agordon lizards never even roamed near enough for the scouts to see.
Svaylar had brought Rasvlan back into a leadership position because Rasvlan's hours of weapon's and survival training had made him incredible, he had become too important. Over the long years of Rasvlan's time away from the settlements as a trainer he had proven to be so effective and so skilled Svaylar couldn't afford to be without his counsel and skill in the leadership aswell. Arklin had also come into the leadership running as his deputy with Svaylar's right hand man Mitglerk. Mitglerk and Arklin oversaw mapmaking, distribution of weapons and proxied for Svaylar when he left Novo Torun to administrate Vlanstead or when he went north to help with maintenance of the forest forts of Ronoth around the pomar-herb areas.
After five years the first of the wagronia born children were ready for their first light lessons at training and for Svaylar, Rasvlan and also Arklin to decide what their role would be within their civilization. Mitglerk was sent to the northern settlement they now called Ronoth which had it's own water supply and closed overland tunnels made from vines that were purposely planted and trained along distances of 500 meters to protect the inhabitance from illusive and highly deadly spotted tiger.
Svaylar's reign was successful and by the time he died 35 years after their arrival when he was sixty years old the population of Wagronians had  jumped to 7000 from 500. The people lived slightly longer lives on the new planet and fertility was high.
Wagron society after Svaylar was stable and organized for a good decade, but that would all change.