Bal-sagoth The Splendour Of A Thousand Swords Gleaming Beneath The Blazon Of The Lyrics

The Splendour Of A Thousand Swords Gleaming Beneath The Blazon Of The Lyrics

[ALTARUS:]</i> Gaze deep into the mists with your spirit-eyes, Xerxes...
look far,



and tell me what you see.



[XERXES:]</i> I see a land far to the north... a vast empire of dark
endless moors



and snow-crowned mountains... a land of brooding citadels and warrior-kings



who hail to grim gods.



[ALTARUS:]</i> Look well, Xerxes, for enlightenment hides within the
fog-swathed



vales of Hyperborea...







[The King's Dream:]



Bythe onyx sceptre of my forefathers, the air is churning with auguries



ofdethronement...Impendingdreadthus prophesized! In a dream I was bade



ridetheargent-eyedunicorntotheRing of Stones... There a torrent of



viscidslimeassailedme,aspipesandhornssangtheclarionof my



dissolution...And the usurpation of my ancient azure throne. Assassins stalk



thenightedhallsof my palace... poisoned blades and chalices surround me.



Ithirstedfora balm, but my thirst was slaked by an envenomed draught. My



swordarmshackledby tendrils of sloth... enthralled by the chasmed gloom...



Borneuponwings of labyrinthine dread... I awaken! I shall seek the counsel



ofthe sorcerer, keeper of the ancient scrolls of wisdom, and the Crystals of



Power...







[The Words of the Sorcerer:]



My liege, great and regal king... the mists disclose their secrets... you



aredestinedtowielda great dark power. Drink deep of the potions of the



apothecary,forupontheenowIbestowa shard of the mystic Crystal of



Mera... sacred artefact of the At lantean mages, won in battle by our
legions.



Myliege,theCrystalof Mera shall unveil the truth lurking hidden in thy



most fever-haunted dreams...







[The Voice of the Harbinger:]



Thelandawashwithspilledblood,andviscera torn forth from the



sundered dead... Gorge the earth with flesh darkened with the claw and fang
of



war... rent open the ravenous maws of worms...







[The King:]



TheCrystalilluminesdarksecrets,the truth is known... a dire and



ancientthreatis ranged against me. Hearken, the clarion is upon the winds,



nowthecalltoarms is upon us all, Grim warriors, take up thy spears and



honethy gleaming swords. Archers, string thy bows, brave knights, saddle the



steedsof war, The glory of battle is nigh at last, our banner shall fly this



day in victory!







My warriors, a legacy shall this day be wrought by our blades, decreed by



the gods, Blessed by the blood of vanquished foes. Our destiny beckons...







[Lord Angsaar, Dark Liege of Chaos:]



Come,greatkingofHyperboria,marchagainst me with your splendid



legions and shimmering swords. I, the Bane of the Atlantean Kings, the
Scourge



of Lemuria, Archfoe of the Immortals of Ultima Thule, shall Crush you! I
shall



visitathousand plagues upo n your realm, and wreak untold havoc and bloody



carnage until I have your throne... and your soul!







[ALTARUS:]</i> And thus, flanked by the splendour of azure banners, a
vast army



marchedforth from the great walls of the Imperial City of Hyperborea, and at



theforefrontofthe mighty legions, astride an ebon war-stallion, rode the



king,sunlight glinting up on his splendid armour... compelled by dreams, and



guided by the Crystal of Mera...



[XERXES:]</i> Where? Where did the king's path take him?



[ALTARUS:]</i>The king was compelled to lead his forces to the
shadow-haunted



Mountainsofthe Dead, a grim and brooding place steeped in dark and ancient



legendry.Alone he rode into the gaping maw of a huge cave hewn into the side



ofthe tallest mountain co untless ages past by unknown hands. For three full



daysandnightshedid not emerge from the cave... until, at last, he rode



forthfromthe eldritch mountain once more, a terrible knowledge shadowed in



hisicyeyes,andbearinginhisgauntletedfist a huge black sword, a



magnificentebonbladewhichnohumanblacksmitheverforged. Fearsome



sorcerouspowercrackledwithintheyard of black steel, dancing upon its



searinglyhoned, glyph-scored blade... and its bejewelled, dragon-carved hilt



did whisper arcane secrets to the king in a strange, elder tongue.



[XERXES:]</i>But master, what powers did this blade possess? What secrets
did



it hold?



[ALTARUS:]</i>Manycenturiesago,beforeevenwerewaged the Great Wars



between the ancient kingdoms of Atlantis and Hyperborea, Lord Angsaar did
rise



fromhischarnel-tomband do battle with a powerful immortal warrior-shaman



over the possession of the elder Crystals of Mera, mystic gems of
unparalleled



magicalpotency.Angsaar,hispowerswelled by forces from the vast Outer



Darkness,didsmitehisfoetothe brink of destruction... but, with his



fadingsorceries,the immortal mystically transferred his li fe-essence into



hisgreatblacksword,and scattered the magic crystals across the galaxy,



leavingAngsaarwith a hollow victory and forcing him to return once more to



hisdarkChamberofSlumber. The sword was lost for centuries, as were the



crystals,untiltheonegemto remain on this world was discovered deep



beneaththenorthernseasby an ancient Atlantean wizard. And the sword...



legendsspokeofhowitsfinalrestingplace would be made known by the



sorceries of the last crystal only when the bl ade's power would once again
ne



needed to battle the Chaos-liege. This was the immortal's final, most
powerful



spell...uponthe reawakening of Angsaar, the sorcerous energies and undying



lifeforceencasedwithintheblade would be transferred to its wie lder...



aye, the one who discovered the Shadow-Sword would be imbued with the power
of



theimmortal, and by the art of elder spellcraft, he would do battle with his



ancient nemesis once more...



[XERXES:]</i> Then there looms such a cataclysmic battle!



[ALTARUS:]</i>Andso, from his Black Citadel, the Chaos-liege did send
forth



his Horde of Wraiths to engage the army of the king...







[THE KING:]



Behold,alegionof undead fiends meets us upon the field of war. Face



me,ScourgeofLemuria, I wield thy bane, the Shadow-Sword... (and darksome



sorceriesnow empower me with thunderous might!) Hearken, the clarion is upon



the winds, now the call to arms is upon us all, The glory of battle is nigh
at



last, into the fray we ride!







[XERXES:]</i>Theoutcome,master...who left the field victorious? Did
the



king prevail?



[ALTARUS:]</i>Themistsbegin to disperse... for now, the images fade.
That



tale shall have to wait 'til another day...







[Lyrics: Byron]



[Music: Jonny Maudling]