Heroes of Bronze

“Heroes of Bronze” is a multimedia project set in ancient Greece. During the Ionian Revolt and the first Greco-Persian War (5th century BC), the complicated relationship between Greeks and Persians reaches a breaking point. People from both sides are dragged into a conflict which will put in danger what they care about the most: honour, family, and their way of life.

The tragic events of the Greco-Persian Wars are the settings for a short movie, a series of novels and, eventually, a TV series.

 Books and Short stories

The road to my dream goal - a full-blown animated TV series - will be long and arduous. However, that doesn’t mean I need to stop everything and just wait for someone to give me money. In the following months (and probably years), I’ll be writing a story set in the Heroes of Bronze world. This story serves as a basis for all the images and videos I release. “The Memory” short film itself serves as a little glimpse into this story.

I will be releasing it in form of short stories and possibly a book, with accompanying illustrations. First digitally, later, physically.

You can also read a lot of story snippets at my Instagram page (@mklekner).

The Bridge to Scythia

There was tension ever since the Persians conquered Lydia in 547 BC and set foot on the Ionian coast, looking to attach the Greek colonies to their growing empire. The Ionian Greeks were unwilling subjects to say the least. Nevertheless, most city-states submitted, and by 513 BC, they were firmly under the rule of the King of Kings.

There was, however, another nation that caused a major headache for the Persian hegemony: the Scythians, their distant cousins. They inhabited the vast plains of the Balkans, Ukraine and southern Russia and, unlike their Persian relatives, still led a nomadic life. Yet still, they thrived upon attacking their neighbours, including the Persian provinces.

Around 513 BC, Darius had had enough and decided to conduct a massive campaign to put an end to the Scythian problem. He brought together a large army of more than 80,000 soldiers collected from his various satrapies. He marched north, first subduing eastern Thrace and then continuing to the fields of Scythia. He aimed to pacify the lands north of the Black Sea and show the Scythian chieftains who is really in charge.

Many answered the call - Persian nobility from Gobryas and Megabazus of Persia to Artasari the Mede and Madyes of the Sakai. Many tyrants of Ionia, including Ariston of Byzantium, Miltiades the Athenian, and Histiaeus, tyrant of Miletus. All the most powerful men, all united under one banner. Some more willing than others…

Among them were two young men whose paths were about to cross - and with their meeting, the fates of whole nations were about to change…

A Few Steadfast Friends

The year is 508 BC, long before the violent eruption of the Greco-Persian wars. Two years ago, the democratic revolution of Athens shook the Greek world with its wholly novel concept. Its effects can still be felt - and not just on the mainland...

On behalf of his sick father, an up-and-coming Athenian trierarch sails the Aegean Sea to gain much-needed experience and to represent his family in their many trade dealings. His name is Nikephoros, and at 28 years of age, he is eager to make a name for himself in Ionia. Soon, however, he finds the world of the Aegean islands to be more complicated than he ever imagined...