Luyện nghe bài hát Splendour of a Thousand Swords Gleaming Beneath the B; Azon of the Hype

[ALTARUS:] Gaze deep the mists with your spirit-eyes, Xerxes... look far,
and tell me you see.
[XERXES:] I see a far to the north... a vast empire of dark endless moors
and snow-crowned mountains... a of brooding citadels and warrior-kings
who to grim gods.
[ALTARUS:] Look well, Xerxes, for enlightenment hides the fog-swathed
of Hyperborea...

[The King's
By the onyx of my forefathers, the air is churning with auguries
of dethronement... dread thus prophesized! In a dream I was bade
ride the argent-eyed unicorn to the of Stones... There a torrent of
viscid slime assailed me, as pipes and horns sang the of my
dissolution... And the of my ancient azure throne. Assassins stalk
the nighted halls of my palace... blades and chalices surround me.
I thirsted for a balm, but my thirst was slaked by an draught. My
swordarm shackled by of sloth... enthralled by the chasmed gloom...
Borne upon wings of labyrinthine dread... I awaken! I shall the counsel
of the sorcerer, keeper of the scrolls of wisdom, and the Crystals of
Power...

[The of the Sorcerer:]
My liege, great and regal king... the disclose their secrets... you
are destined to wield a dark power. Drink deep of the potions of the
apothecary, for upon thee now I bestow a shard of the Crystal of
Mera... sacred artefact of the At mages, won in battle by our legions.
My liege, the Crystal of Mera shall unveil the truth hidden in thy
fever-haunted dreams...

[The of the Harbinger:]
The land awash spilled blood, and viscera torn forth from the
sundered dead... Gorge the earth with flesh darkened with the and fang of
war... rent open the maws of worms...

[The
The Crystal illumines dark secrets, the truth is known... a and
ancient is ranged against me. Hearken, the clarion is upon the winds,
now the call to is upon us all, Grim warriors, take up thy spears and
hone thy gleaming swords. Archers, string thy bows, knights, saddle the
steeds of war, The glory of battle is nigh at last, our banner shall fly
day in victory!

My warriors, a legacy shall this day be wrought by our blades, by
the gods, Blessed by the of vanquished foes. Our destiny beckons...

[Lord Angsaar, Dark Liege of
Come, great king of Hyperboria, march me with your splendid
legions and shimmering swords. I, the Bane of the Atlantean Kings, the
of Lemuria, Archfoe of the Immortals of Ultima Thule, Crush you! I shall
visit a thousand plagues upo n your realm, and wreak untold and bloody
carnage until I your throne... and your soul!

[ALTARUS:] And thus, by the splendour of azure banners, a vast army
marched forth from the walls of the Imperial City of Hyperborea, and at
the forefront of the legions, astride an ebon war-stallion, rode the
king, sunlight up on his splendid armour... compelled by dreams, and
guided by the of Mera...
[XERXES:] Where? Where did the king's path take
[ALTARUS:] The king was compelled to lead his to the shadow-haunted
Mountains of the Dead, a grim and brooding place in dark and ancient
legendry. Alone he rode into the gaping maw of a huge cave hewn the side
of the tallest co untless ages past by unknown hands. For three full
days and nights he did not from the cave... until, at last, he rode
forth from the eldritch mountain more, a terrible knowledge shadowed in
his icy eyes, and bearing in his fist a huge black sword, a
magnificent ebon blade which no human blacksmith ever forged.
sorcerous power crackled within the yard of black steel, dancing its
honed, glyph-scored blade... and its bejewelled, dragon-carved hilt
did whisper arcane secrets to the in a strange, elder tongue.
[XERXES:] But master, what powers did this blade What secrets did
it
[ALTARUS:] centuries ago, before even were waged the Great Wars
between the ancient of Atlantis and Hyperborea, Lord Angsaar did rise
from his charnel-tomb and do battle with a powerful warrior-shaman
over the of the elder Crystals of Mera, mystic gems of unparalleled
magical potency. Angsaar, his power swelled by forces the vast Outer
Darkness, did his foe to the brink of destruction... but, with his
fading sorceries, the immortal mystically transferred his li fe-essence
his great black sword, and scattered the magic crystals the galaxy,
leaving Angsaar with a hollow and forcing him to return once more to
his dark Chamber of Slumber. The sword was for centuries, as were the
crystals, u the one gem to remain on this world was discovered deep
beneath the northern by an ancient Atlantean wizard. And the sword...
spoke of how its final resting place would be made known by the
sorceries of the last crystal only when the bl ade's power would again ne
to battle the Chaos-liege. This was the immortal's final, most powerful
spell... the reawakening of Angsaar, the sorcerous energies and undying
encased within the blade would be transferred to its wie lder...
aye, the one who discovered the Shadow-Sword would be imbued the power of
the immortal, and by the art of elder spellcraft, he do battle with his
nemesis once more...
[XERXES:] Then there looms such a battle!
And so, from his Black Citadel, the Chaos-liege did send forth
his of Wraiths to engage the army of the king...

KING:]
Behold, a of undead fiends meets us upon the field of war. Face
me, Scourge of Lemuria, I thy bane, the Shadow-Sword... (and darksome
sorceries now me with thunderous might!) Hearken, the clarion is upon
the winds, now the call to is upon us all, The glory of battle is nigh at
last, into the we ride!

[XERXES:] The outcome, master... who left the victorious? Did the
king
[ALTARUS:] The mists begin to disperse... for now, the images fade.
tale shall have to wait 'til day...

Byron]
[Music: Maudling]