Kiki's Rating: 3.5 to 4 stars
In the realm of Terra there lies a river town, Sunnfal. This town can seem to some as a sanctuary, a fortress to protect the inhabitants form the unknown creatures that torture the lands of Terra. To others it feels like a prison, keeping their poor souls entrapped in overcrowded walls. To those willing to travel outside, along the water, danger most certainly awaits. It takes someone special, a hero, to overcome this danger. It takes a man on a mission, one of remorse and vengeance, one set to stop at nothing til all the demons and creatures outside the wall of Sunnafal are punished...starting with the demon who killed his wife and 9 year-old son. This is the story of Arin.
Arin is a poor man that takes the most dangerous of positions daily scavenging the shores of the river. He then takes his finding to the market and trades in order to provide for his family. It is on one day, a special day, his son's birthday, that Arin comes upon the perfect gift. The katana, a sword. He gives this special gift to his boy, but the gift is short lived because that night his family is attacked and killed. Arin, stricken with grief and an overwhelming feeling of worthlessness, he vows vengeance and takes the sword, now tainted with demon blood, and ventures outside the safety of Sunnfal to seek his revenge.
The first session is just the beginning. We learn of determined vengeance and what it takes to be a hero in Terra. We learn very little of the katana and all the powers it yields. We do know it should have been discarded, as told by the Wanderer, because the taintness is slowly taking over Arin. We hear of the Chosen and the Ancients, but know nothing of them or what they are all about. We do get to meet the demon, Shenmaru, and don't call him demon to his face, he gets a little upset. So by the end of the first session we are left on the edge of our seat with bunches of questions begging for answers. Who are the Detrelli?
The second session continues right where the first stopped with Arin fighting Shenmaru. So in this session we start to see the story behind the Detrelli and how Arin is now cursed to become one. He meets a creature that is following a similar path as him and shares the curse. He tells the tale and explains a lot of the pieces we were missing. The creature sees in Arin a gift and sacrifices himself to give Arin the power he needs to go on his new task. The task of relieving Terra of the Detrelli and making all the lands safe for all who live there. Just when I thought I was catching on, another twist is brought back in with the Wander, who we now know as Vail. He now has some weapon call the Tear of Heaven that he took from a demon who took it from Arin who won it in a battle from Onix. (lost yet?) It looks as if Vail may have sent Arin on this mission of vengeance for his own purposes. I will have to read on to see.
The Carbon Series is unique in its telling. It reads like manga and flows much like the tales told in my sons' video games. Actually as I was reading this and describing it to them they declared with much excitement, "when does the game come out." The sessions are very quick reads and only give you small incites into this intriguing world. They definitely leave you wanting more. Make sure you travel all the way to the end and enjoy the wonderful artwork that accompanies the stories. The drawings give such insight into the characters and really drives the stories home for me.
Happy Reading
~Kiki
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