The Code of Chivalry


    The birds exploded into noise.  They flapped their wings and suddenly
took flight from their peaceful perch.  The man looked up quickly, slowing
his horse, alarmed by the noise.  After several moments, he sensed nothing,
and spurred his mount onward.  The man rode in silence down the forest path,
the only sound was the snorting of the horse and the jangling of the
harnesses. He rode alone.  Lord Malrick, the cyber-knight, always traveled
alone.
    Malrick had been but a boy when he had been visited by a traveling
cyber-knight.  He was amazed at the powers of this Lord Lyboc.  Malrick was
fasinated with the man's cyber-armor, which was grafted to his skin.  He
was enthralled by the man's skills at martial arts and weapons.  He was
captivated by the Lord's psychic powers.  But he deeply respected the Lord
for his strict Code of Chivalry.
    "The Code, young Malrick, is what gives we cyber-knights our purpose.
We roam the land, seeking to right wrongs, to destroy evil, and to help
people in need.  The Code is the most important thing in our lives."
    Malrick had spent hours with Lord Lyboc, and had learned the ways of
the cyber-knight, including the Code.  He had shown so much potential to be
a great knight.  He even had untapped psychic reservoirs inside of him,
larger than most people in the world.  Lord Lyboc considered these things,
and decided to take Malrick under his wing as an apprentice.  Malrick
traveled the world with Lyboc, hardening his mind and body.  His muscles
grew and developed, but so did his mind.  With psychic training, Malrick
surpassed all others before him.  His powers grew, and he seemed to discover
new powers almost weekly.  He could even produce a small psi-sword, the
dreaded weapon of the cyber-knight, after only a year of training.  Most
knights spent years fashioning the powers to create one.  All had been
going well with Malrick and Lyboc, until Malrick returned to camp one day
from exercise to find his Lord dead, killed in battle by some unknown
person.  Malrick swore from that day on to find Lyboc's killer and avenge
him, and to use his powers to help the world.
    Malrick rode out of the forest, looking upon the plains of Kentucky.
He realized he was headed towards the Magic Zone, and area heavy with
supernatural power and rifts.  He would have to be very careful in
traveling the Zone.  Most people entered the Zone, and never returned.
    He looked upon the plains, and wondered how so much had changed during
the past centuries.  The world had once been modern, technology had ruled
life. It had been mostly peaceful, and life had been good.  People had
steady jobs, good money, and enjoyed themselves.  That had been during the
20th century. But then, something had gone wrong, and nuclear war had struck
the world, destroying life and opening vast magical rifts, and demons and
magic creatures had entered.  Life became a constant struggle for survival.
There was no government, only small communities.  Now, the Coalition ruled
much of North America.  Malrick did not trust the Coalition, but had no
grounds for this feeling.  But then again, Malrick did not trust anyone.
He was a lone warrior, helping people in need, and not expecting anything
more than a "Thank you" in return.  But Malrick did not complain.
    Snapping out of his thoughts, he spurred his horse across the plains,
towards the next forest, and towards the Magic Zone.


(This text is the first in a tale of fantasy about Lord Malrick, the cyber-
knight.  More shall soon follow.)

Creeping Death [CHAOS CT] '93