text: [Themes: grimdark fantasy, villain protagonist, historical]
  
  Returning to the village center, you're stuck wondering just what to do now. The Slavic gods sure as hell aren't helping you. If you follow the " wise leader Rom's " battle tactics, you are sure to lose. You cannot convince them to change their minds, you tried too many times. It all seems hopeless.
  
  > listen to the voice, and check out the Morava river.
  You think about the voice you heard. "East of the big Oak, in the river Morava, between two rocks." Well, it can't hurt to check it out, not like you have anything better to do anyway.
  
  You set off through the forest, carefully avoiding the traps you know are being set up here and there by your village neighbors. You follow the instructions, and reach the Morava river. And what a great river it is. Very wide and very deep, crystal blue and filled with fish. You loved swimming in it as a young child, because the current of the part next to your village is not that strong. You know that further up, it is much stronger. Now however, you are here with a different purpose.
  
  You spot the twin rocks, and hurry over to them. So far, nothing. But it couldn't have been that easy now could it? You search around and around but come to the obvious solution: You're going to have to dive in, and find whatever it is the gods want you to find.
  
  Jumping into the cold water, you spend quite a while looking for something out of the ordinary, getting up only to gather air. Time goes on and on and you think you're wasting your time. Certainly there is nothing here, you looked all over. And then you spot it. You instantly recognize it from the stories.
  
  It's a Vinchan artifact. They're an ancient civilization rumored to have lived here a long time ago. Nobody knows how, why, or when they disappeared. But the stories about their artifacts granting you incredibly powers are well known through Byzantine AND the Slavic tribes.
  
  It's been lodged between some stones and you would have given up long before finding it, if you didn't get a tip about its' location.
  
  You reach out to grasp it and then...
  
  > A vision.
  You have no idea where you are, but you know what you see...and that is...
  
  You see an ancient civilization, which you guess must be Vincha. They appear so advanced, holy, saintly, you cannot think of a way to describe them better than that. They appear to have no shortage of crops, no disease, no famine. Everybody looks healthy and happy. You see an abundance of food and drinks, many children running around.
  
  Then a shadow appears, and from the shadow comes an outpouring of berserking men with oddly dark skin. You see creatures you've only heard about, that you've never seen. You see Todors (If Centaurs are half men half horse, Todors are an entire horse, with half a man's torso growing out of its spine), you see Werewolves, you see flamboyant men with sharp fangs turning into bats, all rushing towards the golden Vincha civilization.
  
  You then see a weird creature, with giant antlers, yet a body that looks like it's a tree. You see it crushing many people. Its strength is immense and you cannot stop being in awe of it. You see its many victories, over and over and over, over both men and creatures, giants, dragons. It seems unstoppable. It moves almost faster than you can see, crushes rock with its arms, and seems to be casting spells more powerful than any you've seen your best Shamans cast.
  
  It saves Vincha from the shadow, and the shadow pulls back. You see the Vinchan people approach the creature and bow down to it. It appears to be an ancient spirit protecting the Vinchan civilization. You see on its body a couple of artifacts similar to the one you just touched, and they appear to be glowing. Perhaps they are the source of the creature's power?
  
  Then you see a landmark you know well: The Deliblato sands, a small desert a day or two away by foot, to the northeast. You hear what must be the creature's roars, and you spot something shining in the sand. It looks to you like another Vinchan artifact. You feel drawn to it. You feel that if you connect the two artifacts, you will be able to summon the magnificent creature you saw, and use it as protection against the Byzantines. You feel a lot of things and start dozing out...
  
  > Back in the present.
  You're back where you were, the artifact in your hand...except you are still underwater. It takes you some time to accustom to being back in the present, and in that time you start drowning. Thankfully you are a skilled swimmer and get out of the water fast enough.
  
  Actually...not only are you a fast swimmer, you feel like an excellent one now. You feel like you could jump over the tallest tree, climb the tallest mountain, outrun the fastest beast. You know it is all from the artifact you are holding, and so you put it inside your shirt, so that it is close to you and you do not lose it.
  
  You've never felt this good in your life, and you grab the largest branch you could find. It is incredibly light to wield, and you snap it in half like a mere twig after swinging it around for a bit. This is amazing. The stories about the Vinchan culture are all true and more.
  
  You think about the vision you saw. The creature within it. If you are now the most powerful man in the world, you are still nothing compared to the might of that thing. You're confident that you could summon it, and use it for defense against the Byzantine onslaught. But...do you even need to? You feel that if you unlock even more of the artifacts' power, you will be way more powerful than any man. You also have Shamans and traps on your side. You do not need some ancient protector to steal all the glory, you can have all the glory for yourself, defending your village on your own. You'd be crowned the Village Elder immediately, and knock down that arrogant Rom a peg.
  
  > Yes, the power you have is enough, and the glory should be yours.
  You don't need some ancient protector. You can handle all of this yourself. Yes, you saw the power of the creature in your vision, but you also saw that it had a couple of artifacts like the one you're holding. While you're certain the creature is stong enough on its own, the artifacts sure seem to be helping. You feel power in your body, just from holding the artifact close...but what if you could get even stronger?
  
  You pull the artifact out of your shirt and look at it. Its not too big. What if you could...get it even closer to you? What if you tried to swallow it? Surely that can't be right...yet...
  
  You can't believe you're doing it, but you put the artifact in your mouth. Or at least the parts that can fit anyway. Expecting to choke any minute now, you are surprised when you keep putting more and more of it inside you, and eventually you swallow it whole. The effect is immediate, and how you feel now is nothing compared to how you did moments ago. If before you felt like the strongest man in the world, now that strongest man in the world is a cripple compared to you.
  
  Confident and happy, you return to the village and await the inevitable attack.
  
  One day, a few days after the first snowfall your hear the horns sound, and know what it means. You grab the largest greathammer, difficult to hold even with two arms, and firmly grasp it in your right hand. Then you grab an equally big greatsword, and grip it with your left. Ignoring the confused looks you get from the other villagers, you charge into the Byzantine scum, not even waiting for traps to do their work.
  
  They are equally confused and attempt to shoot you with arrows, but you are too fast for them. You are on them immediately, before they can even draw the arrows, and slice them with your left, while crushing the ones with heavy shields with your right weapon.
  
  Your tribesmen, encouraged by your sudden burst of energy, let loose a sea of arrows over their back ranks, from the safety of your village. Some charge after you, to help you. You cannot be everywhere at once, so the other side of the village is going to take some losses, but it can't be helped.
  
  The feeling of power is unreal, you can take on two, three, maybe even four men at once. And that's if they were fighting at full capacity. Most seem to be afraid of you and just run away, turning their backs to you.
  
  You start rushing after the pitiful survivors, killing a man about every 2 seconds. Some of them just drop down and start praying to whatever gods they believe in, but it doesn't help, they're as dead as the previous guy. By the time you've finished with the approximately 1000 warriors on your side, the ground is no longer white from the snow, but crimson red.
  
  Within seconds you are back to the other side of the village, the ones that went after you in melee left far far behind. They'll catch up eventually. Now the enemies over there will experience your anger. Though they seem to be winning the fight, despite all of your Shamans being on this side, and all of the traps, they won't for long. You rush in and repeat much of the same that you already did, except this time it's even easier. You are blessed and supported by Shamans, and the enemies are tired from the prolonged engagement. Meanwhile you are fresh as ever, and are mowing them all down at once. Not to say you are invincible, you have quite a few wounds on your body, and if the entire 20000 force all came to your village you would definitely be in trouble, but the measly 2000 group that came, you can easily handle.
  
  The battle is soon finished, and you hear the victory cries. You return to the center of the village, all eyes on you. The Village Leader, Rom, is looking at you too.
  
  "Can you explain to us what just happened? What have you done to become such a juggernaut of destruction?"
  
  "Oh I'll explain...I'll explain everything...NOT". You say as you approach him, your weapons in hand.
  
  "What is this, what are you doing Velimir?"
  
  "Succeeding you, you waste of breath. We all would have died if not for me. Lot of good your strategy did. We were 1000 men and some shamans against 2000 much better equipped ones. Get out of this village before I kill you. I am now the Village Leader."
  
  Rom looks as if he's going to complain. He looks around, but seeing nobody has his back he just gives an exasperated sigh, and takes the village crown off his head. He appears to be putting it on your own, but then his other hand rushes to your neck, a dagger in it. You teach him a lesson about not messing with a stronger and faster opponent, by grabbing his arm, breaking it in half easily, just like you would a twig, then breaking both of his legs, and finally snapping his neck.
  
  You dust yourself off, and put the crown on your head.
  
  The people watching aren't sure what to make of this, but your sister Mirna starts clapping first, then your parents, then some of your friends and acquaintances, and you are now certain you are accepted as the Village Leader.
  
  > A toast in your honor.
  A couple of days are spent mourning the dead on your side, getting rid of all the corpses that will attract the disease (under the watchful eye of the shamans, who cast a lot of spells to keep your people healthy), and getting the village back in shape.
  
  Then it is time for what you were waiting for, a feast in the honor of you becoming the Village Leader.
  
  It is as grand as you deserve, and you eat more meat than any human should, drink more booze than 5 other men, and celebrate like 10 others.
  
  Anyone that ever doubted you is now quiet, and as the night is coming to an end, you invite a dozen of willing girls, including Senka, to your brand new Village Leader tent. Their fathers looked like they would complain, but wisely decide not to. You spend a couple of hours ravaging them as hard as you can, and you could still do more, but they're all basically spent, and decide that they've had enough. You don't let Senka leave though, she's yours for the entire night, and the rest of your life. You feel a bit odd, like you would rather have somebody else at your side, but are afraid to delve deeper in your mind and figure out who you're thinking of. Eventually you fall asleep, odd and inappropriate thoughts running through your head.
  
  Your supernatural senses alert you to a sound within your tent, and you immediately wake up. Despite your super speed however, you are not able to stop what is coming.
  
  Your entire body is in excruciating pain, and you let out an incredibly loud roar...or you would if you could move an inch. Your entire body seems paralyzed. You do however see the cause of it: Zlatko, the leader of the village Shamans.
  
  Senka starts to wake up, but is hit with the same spell you were, leaving her just as helpless.
  
  Zlatko approaches you, holding something very familiar looking in his hand.
  
  "Do you know what this is? Of course you don't, because you're a fucking moron. You probably didn't even notice your valued treasure has a dent in it. Let's see how it fits. Where is it now?"
  
  It is obvious he knows about, and is searching for, your artifact. Good luck finding it you think, but good luck is not something he needs. After looking around for a little while, he seems to stare at you for a moment, then holds his piece and cast a spell of some kind. Your chest starts glowing.
  
  "Wait, did you actually fucking eat that thing? How stupid can you be? Prabog have mercy on you. I guess I'll be happy you were my test subject for what happens if you do that. I guess it just enhances your powers beyond belief. That's a useful thing to know. Well let's see about getting it out of you."
  
  He reaches over and touches your chest, mumbling something for a long while. He seems to be trying several different spells and eventually you see the artifact begin to leave your body, and your supernatural powers begin to leave you. Once it is fully out of your body, he takes his piece, and combines the two. They fit perfectly,
  
  "When I was but a little boy, I found my piece of the puzzle. Lot of good it did for me, it enhanced my Shamanic powers a little bit. Nothing remotely close to what yours did. Then again, it is merely a chipped off part so what did I expect."
  
  "What it DID do is let me know it was part of a larger whole. I've been searching for your piece my entire life since then. Communing with the spirits? Please. I was using the dumbasses, trying to get a reaction to our magic going. Anything so I could find the piece...and then I saw you at the battle, and knew instantly what had happened. How you found it, I'll never know, but it doesn't matter now anyway, because you're not long for this world. I won't be as flashy with it as you were, and your death will, after I "investigate with my powers" be determined to be because you sold your soul to Chernobog. It's the only thing that could explain your sudden strength. Certainly nobody will think it is because of some ancient civilization that mysteriously disappeared 5000 years ago?"
  
  "In your rage, you also happened to kill the young lady here. Such a shame. A shame I have to kill her, but she did witness everything just now. But for tonight, and tonight only, I shall have her all to me, and will do everything I've always dreamed of doing to her.
  
  "Now go to sleep, forever."
  
  He takes a small dagger out and slits your throat. At least it was over quickly and mostly painlessly.