Chapter 8 Golden Thief Bug card

The dust settled. Dark clouds streamed past the body of Heraus, now lying still on the floor. Baphomet raised his Schyte, and stood up, keeping his balance. Atop his head, only one horn remained, the other broken and snapped on the ground next to Heraus. A hug scar was left on its chest, and one of his eyes was competely blinded. It stared at the huge city before him, in all its might and glory. He heard a low breath, and looked to the ground. Baphomet cringed at the sight of Heraus, still twitching and reaching for his wand. 'How many times... do I have to kill you?' It raised its Schyte for the last time, and crashed it down hard on the ground.'

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Xenon cxould not believe his ears. 'No.. impossible. I thought Radium was in exile?' Argon nodded in Merlin's direction. The old scholar took out a small parchment from within his robes. 'This, is the decree of the 1st King of Rune Midgrad, King Flavious the First. In his words, he ordered all the mighty Beast of Fire, Water, Hell and Heaven to be at peace with the humans. The monsters agreed, and that no harm shall be done to the humans. A pact of blood was sealed.' Xenon looked at Merlin. 'A pact, of blood?' Merlin nodded. 'Yes. It was believed, or so said my masters before me, that in those ancient times, every MVP in the country left a drop of thier blood into a vile, and these veils were sealed within the dark caves of Glast Heim, guarded by the Guardian known as the Red King. The King of the Beasts, the Baphomet.'

Xenon could not believe his ears. 'But if Baphomnet is at the gates of Prontera as we speak, that means...' Merlin shighed, and unscrolled the parchment. 'The wand has been taken, and the viles that contained the essences of the MVPs are in the hands of Radium. That was how he was able to resurrect perfect copies of these MVPs.' Xenon asked again, 'But that would mean that the Baphomet was a copy as well?' Merlin shook his head. 'Its hard to tell. Legend has it that Baphomet was able to trick the Council and the MVPs using its bloodline talent, the Illusion into making them think that he placed a drop of his blood into that vile. But whether or not it is real, we have to head to Prontera right away if we intend to stop it.'

There was a low moaning noise, and Xenon immediately turned to the ground below him. Crepe awoke with a start. 'My head...' Xenon went to her aid, holding her up gently. 'Hey... hey there. Yu feeling alright?' Crepe took a long hard look at Xenon, and smiled. 'Never better. You saved me, again.' Xenon smiled back. 'I'll do anything for you. Anything.' Kalla placed her hand on Xenon's shoulder. 'I'll love nothing more than to see you two snuggle up, but we are at war. We best get going. Argon and I will take the lead and head to Protnera by sunrise. Merlin will stay here with Crepe and the boy.' She turned to Merlin, who nodded in agreement. She turned to walk away. Xenon immediately stood up and knelt. 'Yes, my Princess.' He turned towards Crepe again. 'Stay safe, my love. I'll be back for you.' Crepe smiled. 'You too. Come back to me in one piece.'

Xenon then got up, grabbed his bow and thimble, his quivers, put on his armor, and took one last look at Crepe, Merlin and the boy before they rode off into the sunset.

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Pure was impressed. 'Not bad for the Prince who ran away, Lucifier. Or should I say, Prince... Lucifier.'

Lucifier dropped the last acolyte onto the ground, and turned to stare at Pure. 'You're no ordinary Preist.... What are you?' Pure ignored him. 'Gambatein!' The ground below Lucifier broke up, Lucifier dashing to safety in the nice of time. He didn't have time to gather his directinal senses yet before Pure lauched another attack. 'Quagmire!' The ground where Lucifier was standing began to wobble and melt. Lucifier tried to dash away, but one of his feet was caught in the muddy goo. 'Damn!' Pure aimed the wand at Lucifier. 'Magic Crusher!' Lucifier yelled in agony. His mana felt like it was exploding within him, and the sphere that were circulating around him began to fade and flicker. Pure strode slowly towards him. 'You're a tough man, Lucifier. Normal monks would have instantly died with one blow. Which is why you are the key to us winning this war.' Lucifier coughed and gasped for air. 'What war are you talking about?' Pure replied, 'Oh.. its not a surprise you know nothing about it. We kept it as a covert operation for centuries now, young monk. This is the war that will end everything you have believed in. It will be the end of everything you love. Because when all this is over, Lord Radium will be King, and this land will be ruled by the demons once more!' Lucifier spit a gush of blood from his mouth. 'You're a madman.' Pure chuckled. 'Am I now? Well, I'm also a generous man. Let me tell you something. I can end your misery right here and now, before the demons take over Rune Midgrad. All you have to do, is beg for your life. And I'll end you right here, painlessly.' Lucifier looked at Pure. 'Then I have just one thing to say.' Pure asked, pointing his wand at him. 'And what would your last words be?'

'Body Relocation!' Lucifier immediately disspaeared. Pure turned around him, but Lucifier was nowhere to be seen. Pure cursed out loud. 'Impossible! I've seeped all your mana from you! How could you still use that skill?' In an instant, Pure felt the presence behind him. 'Too slow! Safety wall!' The red walls circulated around Pure, blocking the huge sphere thrown at him. Lucifier dashed from side to side, as Pure muttered 'Lightning Storm!', sending bolts of electricity rainigng down at Lucifier. Just as Lucifier was inches before him, Pure pulled out a handful of red, blue and yellow gems. 'I'll end you right now! Gravitational Field!!' A high pitched noise erupted from the ground below, just as Lucifier stepped into the patch of terrain. A huge surge of energy shot upwards, desimating everything in the way. Lucifier screamed in pain. 'Arghhhh!!!!" Pure laughed. 'How about that, monk!! The son of Argon falling in my hands!! Gahahahah!!!' The light stopped, and Luncifier stood still, huge clouds of dust and debris. Then, as the dust settled, Pure could not help but curse again and again. 'No... No! NO!!!! You cant have that!!!' Before him, Lucifier was holding out an armguard around his right hand. It was glowing a golden colour, and on top of it, was a crest with the symbol of a golden bug. The Golden Thief Bug card. Lucifier looked straight at Pure. 'My turn. Occult... Impact!!!!'

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Oxygen was bleeding. Rangris was sure to stab her only at the non-vital organs, that way it'll make it more painful. Oxygen choked and coughed out more blod. Rangris raised her blade and aimed it at her chest again. 'Last chance, Priestess.... tell me where it is.' Oxygen opened her eyes with all her might. 'I... don;t have it....' Rangris had a stern look on her face. 'Very well then. Say goodbye.' A dark cloud emerged beside the Valkaryian, just as she was about to stab Oxygen in the chest. Oxygen's eyes grew wide with horror. 'You.....' Radium held out his hand, and in one swift move held the blade in midair with his telekinesis. Rangris turned to look at the High Wizard. 'Who are you. You have no business here!' Radium looked at Rangris. 'Ah... but I do. I believe you were looking for this?' He drew out a small wooden box and placed it on the table. Slowly, he opened it. Inside, a glowing red flower was visible. Rangirs could not believe her eyes. 'Valhalla! Give it back before I...' There was a quick spark of light, and the Angel guardian was sent flying backwards, crashing into a pile of timber. Radium placed his hands down, smiling. 'I had to lure you out, Rangris. Hiding in the mountains for so long.. It would have been too long for me to figure out where and how to find you.' Rangris stood up, her eyes in rage. 'You think you can beat me, human?! Your magic has never worked on me before!' Radium smiled, taking more steps forward. More and more valkaries decended to the ground, aiming thier blades at the High Wizard. 'You've always been so proud of your supremacy, Rangris. You.. and your, angelic friends here. But you know..' He raised his arm as if he was choking something. Rangris suddenly felt a tight grasphold on her neck. She could breath, and she was gasping for air. 'Acck... how.. ack....' In an instant, four other valkaries dashed at Radium. In one wave of his other hand, the Valkaryies were sent flying backwards, crashing into the ground. He turned his attention to Rangris. 'I am more powerful than anything you could ever imagine, Angel.' He drew out the small staff from within his robe, the skull of a human being visible for all to see. The Valkaryians flying around the area immediately fled. Others screamed in horror, and tried to flee the area. It was utter chaos. Rangris screamed.. 'No!!! NOOOO!!!!' Radium pointed the wand at Rangris. 'Death!!!'

The angelic creature shrieked a high pitch scream, and then, lay there, silent. Dead. The other Valkaryies have already taken to the skies. Radium looked up into the air. 'Valkaryians... always thinking they can hide from war and pain, and then reapear when the timing is right to claim glory and fortune. I've always hated them' He pointed the wand skywards. 'Wide... DEATH!!!' A dark beam of energy shot out of the wand and into the sky. It dissipated and formed a huge dark cloud. Then, a rapid fire of dark beams shot out of it and knocked Valkaryians off the sky. It was a massacre. One of the Valkaryians placed her shield in front of her. The beam just cut through it like knife over butter. The Valkaryian gasped in horro, and like the others, fell from the sky. Radium closed his eyes and laughed. 'Ah.... the joy... isn;t it lovely?' He tiurned his attention to the Priestess on the ground. She was muttering, 'You.. monster....' Radium sighed. 'Indeed I am, my love. But that was all I ever was to you, aren't I? You never loved me, and you never will.' He pointed the wand and Oxygen. She closed her eyes. 'Yet....' a surge of bluish light erupted from the end of the wand, healing Oxygen's wounds. 'I still do. Come with me, Priestess. Together, we can rule this damned world.' Oxygen gasped a sudden breath of air as it filled her lungs. She looked at her body. The wounds were all healed, like she was never hurt in the first place. She turned to look at Radium. 'How...' Radium smiled. 'I am more powerful than ever now.... Come with me, and I can show you more power than you can ever imagine.' Oxygen approached Radium, until she was face to face with him. 'Radium.... ' Radium still kept his gaze of her. 'FUCK YOU!' and slapped him across the face. Radium chuckled. 'Hehahahaha..... I see..... then I have to do this, the hard way. You have something I want, my dear. The key to the Church of Prontera. You're going to give it to me.' Oxygen was about to reach for her bible, when Radium screamed 'Stone Curse!' Oxygen froze in her tracks. Radium then lifited her up into the air, and just as he did, a distant scream yelled out. 'Let her go!!' Neon charged at Radium, and shouted 'Shield Boomerang!' His huge shield dislodged from the edge of his right arm and charged at Radium. A swift blade blocked the attack. Radium turned backwards, and muttered to the figure that just entered the arena. 'Keep him at bay. Until I find the missing key to unlock the Dark Lord, I want no interuptions.; With that, Radium and Oxygen dissapeared into a cloud of black mist. Tritium licked the edge of his katar, as Neon held the shield and fixed it back on his right hand. 'With pleasure.'

Chapter 7 Betrayal

Oxygen and her party dashed forward to the battlegrounds, but as soon as they entered the vast forest separating the castle gates and where the Baphomet landed, a huge shadow swept past them by. One at first, then two, three, four... the numbers were increasing. Oxygen looked up. 'OMG... Everyone duck!!' A huge beam of white light barely grazed one of the acolytes, searing the shoulder part of her robe, leaving a seared bruise on her skin. Oxygen turned to the sky and drew out her bible. 'Holy Light!' the white beam bounced off the Valkaryan shield. The creature was fast, and it zoomed down at her at an amazing speed. Oxygen dashed from side to side, avoiding the edge of the bloody blade. 'Rangris! Stop this right now! What are you doing!' The angelic figure flapped her wings, her holy aura circulating around her. The Valkarian looked at the High Priestess, more and more valkaryians circulating around her, until Oxygen could see the entire sky filled with winged angels. The Leader of the Valkaryies gazed at Oxygen with cold, blue eyes. 'Return it to me... now!' Oxygen stood up. Her acolytes have already been surrounded by the massive army of the Valkaryans. 'Return what, exactly? What did we take from you?' Rangris paced forward, her wings gently sparred from left to right as she made her way in front of Oxygen, and then stopped. She pointed the huge blade in front of the High Priestess. 'Don;t play games with me, Priestess, I know you have it! The Flower of Valhalla. What did you do with it?' Oxygen looked at the Valkarie. 'I have no idea what your talking about!' Rangris aimed the blade at Oxygen's chest 'Do you know why they call us Valkaryian's, High Priestness?' A huge surge of holy energy amped itself on the edge of the blade. 'Because we are the guardians of heaven, and the rightful daughters of GOD! Sanctus lux lucis!!'

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Xenon dashed towards Crepe, and landed beside her. Crepe spoke, 'any news yet on Lucifier?' Xenon shook his head. 'No. We ought to keep walking, its getting late.' Crepe and Xenon walked slowly across the forest. The sun was slowly setting behind the mountains of Mjolnir, and the red and golden rays seeped in through the cracks of the plant and jungle life towering around them. The trees were oddly tall yet bent. Xenon muttered, 'Bamboo forests. We're close to the exit.' Crepe took a long look at the boy she was carrying behind her, and didn't stop until she felt a tap on her shoulder. Crepe looked at Xenon, surprised. Xenon said, 'You fancy the boy, don't you?' Crepe smiled. 'It's just... he reminds me of someone, that's all.' Xenon paused for a moment, and then looked away. Crepe knew her sensei was never in a mood to talk about feelings and emotions. The man was a soldier, a top class Sniper for the Payon Castle... he was never going to...

'I had a little brother too.' Crepe stopped for a moment. 'His name was Felioux. I watched him die in the hands of a Sasquatch when we were hunting for the MVP Garm back in the days.' Crepe looked at Xenon as though she would just stop short and cry. She replied 'I.. I'm sorry..' Xenon slowly took off his binoculars, and sat down on the grass. He looked at Crepe with his warm blue eyes, and sighed. 'Crepe, take a sit.' Crepe looked at the small patch of grass next to Xenon, and his hands repeatedly tapping on the ground. The warm evening wind blew past them, and carrassed her cheeks, as she carefully tucked her hair behind her ear. She carefully sat down next to him, folding her battle skirt neatly beneath her, while carefully handling the boy and placing him on the ground, his head resting against her lap. Xenon looked up into the sky, and there was a long moment of silence between them. Then, Xenon spoke. 'There was something I always wanted to tell you.' Crepe looked at her sensei. Her heart was beating faster than ever. 'It's just... Its not easy for you, I know. Training as an archer, we have our Code of Conduct, and... it's never easy for a master to say this sort of things to his student, if you understand.' Crepe was flustered, her heart ready to stop. 'Crepe, I know we never talk much, and I was always so strict. I have my reasons. But, I want you to know that I... watch out!' Crepe ducked, but it was too late. The sharp edge of the spear caught Crepe on her right chest, sending blood gushing out of her. 'Crepe, no!' Xenon pulled Crepe upright, and it the process the boy fell off her lap and onto the ground. Just as he was about to hit the ground, a pair of cold steel hands grabbed the still out-cold boy. Xenon clenched his teeth and stared at the fully body armored monster before him. It was large in size, and cover from head to toe in full metalic armor. In its right hand it held a great big silver tipped lanced, now fresh with blood. Xenon stared at it with anger. 'You... what the hell do you want?' The Lord of the Dead stared at the Sniper with its empty eye sockets. 'Blood.... I want your.. soul.' Xenon skillfully extracted two arrows from his quiver and aimed his bow at the MVP, bending over the fallen Crepe who was choking for breath and in a convulsion. 'Let the boy go.' The MVP gazed absent minded-ly at the Sniper, then at the boy, then back at the sniper. It began to chuckle. Xenon took a step back. 'You.. fear me... no? You fear... the power.. of DEATH!!!' Hundreds of dark shadows began to emerge behind the MVP, circulating around the Sniper. Xenon's head began to spin out of control. 'Shit...' His hands and legs feel weak, and he lowered his bow, trying to lock out the sudden explosion of emotions gushing through his sytem. His surroundings began to turn and swirl and colours began to eurpt in his senses. He was feeling it, the power of pure fear. His hands, still trembling, managed to reach toward the groaning Crepe on the floor, and whispered almost in an almost inaudible tone. 'Crepe.. I'm sorry.... I fell.. for you...'

He was aboutto clsoe his eyes, when a blinding yellow flash of light crashed in front of Xenon. 'Dispell!' The shadows suddenly dissapeared, leaving an exhausted Xenon on the ground, panting for breath. Xenon, partially heaving and panting, managed to stand up, catching shallow gasps of air. 'You don't give up yet, boy. Not now.' The Lord of Death gazed atop of a tree branch, and there, stood an old man with a glowing stick. It smirked. 'You.. will die too.' It howled, and another swarm of shadows raced towards the shadow. 'Dispell!' Another yellow flash of light erupted out and the shadows dissapeared again. The smirk on the MVP's face dissapeared. 'Gruargghhhh!!!!' Merlin stepped out into the open, and jumped off the tree branch onto the ground below. He looked at the creature before him. 'We had an agreement, Death. What happened to you?' The Lord of Death didn't seem to listen. A sudden red spark began to erupt and spread all through its body. 'Boy, take the girl, and find somewhere safe. We'll take care of this.' Xenon looked at the old man, still panting. 'We..?' The Lord of Death didn't even sense it coming. 'Occult impact!!' A huge green sphere of energy appeared behind the MVP and erupted, destroying the back portion of the MVP's armour. It howled in pain, and dropped the boy in its hands. Argon appeared in front of Merlin and caught the boy in his arms in time, four spheres rotating around him. 'Merlin, now!' Merlin pointed the wand at the MVP. 'Second Forbidden Spell! Stone curse!' The MVP suddenly stopped moving, and its entire body began to become stone, until finally, it transformed into a statue of stone. A third figure then jumped out behind Argon, and in her hand, she wielded a small shield with a red cross on it. Xenon looked surprised. 'My god... it's..' The paladin struck the ground with her shield hard, directly in front of the MVP. The stone curse lifted just in time, but it was too late. The ground began to tremble and shake, and a huge white cross-shaped energy shield appeared on the round, with the MVP standing in the middle of it. The MVP growled hard as its final words. 'Grand... CROSS!!!' The MVP began to erupt into ash, and then vanished. Merlin came forward, and grabbed a handful of the ashes just as it flew past. He carrased some of it between his fingers. 'No.. this is bad.. really bad. Just as I thought.' Kalla lifted her shield, and the white light disspaered. Argon came forth, closed his eyes, and the four spheres dissapeared. Kalla spoke first 'What is bad, Merlin.' Merlin looked at the Princess. 'I was right all along. That thing.. we just fought, was not the real Lord of Death.' Argon came forward. 'What does that mean?' Merlin looked at the two of them. 'Its a perfect copy. Someone has somehow managed to create perfect copies of these monsters.' Kalla looked alarmed. 'Impossible. No magic is that powerful...' Then it struck her. 'Unless...' Argon came to the same realisation. 'Tritium has gotten hold of the Skull Wand.' Merlin shook his head. 'No... Assasin Crosses do not have the mana capacity to use that. For a person to use this weapon, it requires... a certain... requirement.' He looked at Kalla. 'And I know only one person who can use this wand. Your brother, Kalla. Radium is doing all this.' Kalla was about to speak, but let it drop as the shdaow of Xenon came forth.

Xenon broke the silence. 'I know this is ackward, and I would love to personally be on my knees in your presences, my Lords. But please... save my apprentice. Shes been badly hurt.' Merlin and Argon saw the hurt Hunter and immediately came to Crepe's side, while Xenon knelt in the presence of the last Lord. He kept his head bowed down as she approached. 'Princess Kalla, thank you for saving our lives.' Kalla lifted her hands, a gesture to ask Xenon to stand. ' Don't thank me, Sniper. Thank Merlin over there. He's been able to track down these massive mana cycles around the forests, and it led us to you.' Merlin and Argon were done inspecting Crepe's wounds. Argon looked at Xenon, 'You're very lucky. The pierce barely avoided her vital organs. I'll do what I can.' Xenon bowed his head. 'Thank you, Lord Argon. Please, save her.' Crepe groaned, and Xenon immediately came to her side. Crepe held out her trembling hand, and Xenon grabbed it tightly. She opened her eyes a little. 'Don't leave me...' Xenon nodded, and said for the first time in his life, 'It'll be okay. I'm not going anywhere.'

Argon immediately got to healing the wounded Crepe. Just then, Merlin walked over to the boy on the ground. 'My god....' Xenon looked up. 'What is it?' Merlin quickly carried the boy up in his arms, and laid him on an elevated patch of grass. He took out his wand and placed it near the boy. Merlin turned to Xenon. 'How long has this boy been sleeping?' Xenon shook his head. 'I am unaware of it, my Lord. It must have been two or three days.' Merlin's voice got louder, as the end of his wand began to tremble. A huge surge of energy began to erupt from the boy, and he began to float into the air. Xenon shouted, 'What's going on?' Merlin shielded his eyes with his right sleeve. 'And you don't find that strange?!' The trembling was getting more and more powerful now. Argon and Kalla shielded themselves too. 'All of you get back!' Xenon shouted, 'Lord Merlin, what is it?!' Merlin's wand suddenly cracked, and the edge of his wand exploded. The eruption sent all of them flying in all directions. The boy suddenly stopped floating, and fell right down to the patch of grass. As Merlin got up, he looked first at his destroyed wand, and then at Xenon. 'The boy.. has been cursed.'

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Lucifier and Pure stopped short at the heavy gates of Glast Heim. 'Pure, you said that you were looking for my father. So why on earth are we in Glast Heim?' Pure looked reassuringly at Lucifier. 'Trust me, he's in there. I casted a watcher spell every two miles of forest within the area, and the last known location of Lord Argon was within these walls.' Lucifier looked long and hard at the huge gates. There were eerie symbols all over it. Some were sketches of ancient words, others drawings that depicted devilish and demonic symbols. Lucifier sighed, and slowly placed his hand on the door. 'I don't know about this, Pure. Something just seems....' The doors suddenly began to creak open. Lucifier jumped. 'Wait, I didn't...' Pure took put a small wand from his robe, and pointed it at Lucifier. 'Yes, you did. Thank you. Now that you disabled the caster's magical Basilica around the gates, we have access to an old friend of mine.' Lucifer looked at the tatoo on his arm, and then realised it. He quickly turned around and faced Pure, but it was too late. 'What is the meaning of...' 'MAGIC CRASHER!'

Chapter 6 Beast vs Magic

Crepe ran out onto the roadside, her bandaged arm and leg visible under the sunlight. ‘I don’t see him anywhere.’ Xenon came up behind her, the small boy clinging closely to his back. He stood up in a semi standing position, and then began to turn a knob on his binoculars. Around them, a cold gust of wind began to blow. Crepe looked into the sky. ‘Its… getting cloudy.’ Xenon didn’t seem to listen. ‘I don’t see a sign of him. Even the Orc encampment you two headed to has been deserted. I find this all too strange.’ He stood up, and readjusted his binoculars. He held down a small switch at the left end of the binoculars, and the contraption began to sigh a low noise. It began to dismantle itself, and finally became a shape of a small circular crest above Xenon forehead, right in the middle of his temple, where it stayed hidden. Crepe saw Xenon's real face for the first time, and her heart skipped a beat. Xenon looked at the boy. ‘I’ll scout the area again. Hold the boy until I get back.’ Crepe carefully took the boy from Xenon. How lucky, she thought, that the boy was still sound asleep. He didn’t have to witness any of the pain. She fears how she would have to deal with him once he woke up, however. Xenon crouched, and just before he dashed forward, muttered in a barely audible tone ‘Stay alive.’ Crepe looked at her sensei, and nodded.

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‘Its beaking through!’ Another huge swing of the Schyte was repelled by an obviously weakened white barricade. Heraus’s forehead was sweating like mad, but his focus was sternly held on controlling the mana channels of the white and red walls before him. ‘In no way must that Beast break through the last Safety wall! Stay sharp! On my mark, I want the three of you to let him have it! You hear me?’ Holding a huge energy sphere in front of her, Nana nodded in Heraus’s direction. Norm came forward and knelt beside Nana, a huge sphere in his palm too. He too, nodded in Heraus’s direction. YipMan had his back turned at Heraus, but he raised his hands, extending just the index and middle finger to form a V-sign. Heraus grinned. ‘Then let’s do this….’ He closed his eyes.

The white walls began to fade, and so did the red ones. The Baphomet raised his Scythe. Everything went silent for a few moments. Then, as Heraus opened his eyes, the white and red walls completely disappeared. He drew his wand and pointed it at the Baphomet. ‘NOW!!! DIspell!!!’ A huge ray of glimmering light shot out of his wand, and caught the Baphomet off guard. Its Schtye dislodged itself into the air, and the surprised beast wasn’t prepared for the three figures already dashed around him. Nana was gliding over its left shoulder, Norm at the back, and YipMan in the front of the beast. Together, a huge eruption of white light blinded the entire area.

‘Asura STRIKE!!!!’ all three blasts erupted in unison. The Baphomet gave a loud cry ‘ROOARRRRRR!!!!’ The surrounding landscape was obliterated. Every tree, soil and rock in the area was thrown high into the air. The land below began to crack and break in the impact of the blast, until the white light stopped. The three figures were on the ground, panting, and before them, an immense cloud of smoke circulated a huge crater of dust and ash. The beast was dead before them, and on the ground, a broken Schtye lay there, as the wind blew the dust away.

Nana smiled at Norm.’ We did it.. WE DID IT!!!’ Norm looked at YipMan, and they too, smiled, and stood up, ready to share the good news with Heraus.

Behind them, Heraus shouted ‘What the HELL ARE YOU THREE DOING!!!! Its behind you!!!!’ It was too late. The huge schyte crashed down onto the three unexpecting bodies, who turned their back against the huge Beast. A clean swipe, and a horrific gush of blood and screams filled the air. Heraus could barely breathe at the sight of the three dead bodies that now lay before him. ‘NOOO!!!! Nana! YipMan! Norm!!!’

The Baphomet looked up at Heraus. ‘You… were unaffected?’ Heraus looked up at the Beast. In an instant, the Baphomet understood. The scholar was wearing what seemed like a blindfold before his eyes. It stood up. ‘I see… then I just have to…’

‘WATER BALL!!’ A huge string of water gushed from the grounds below. The Baphomet raised its Scyhte to blow the water, the impact sending him backwards one step. Heraus turned to his left. ‘Lexy, what’s going on?’ Lexy dashed to Heraus’s side, held his arm, and dashed backwards, enlarging the distance between them and the Beast. ‘Its an illusion. All three of them fell for it. They must have thought the Baphomet was dead when they attacked it.’ Heraus shook his head. ‘Dammit!’ Lexy reached for Heraus’s blindfold. A hand grabbed hers quickly, just as her fingers were in touching distance. Lexy frowned ‘But Heraus.. this is not the time. You have to unblind yourself!’ Heraus shook his head. ‘Its too dangerous. I can still sense the magic around me, and I have you to be my eyes. Its too dangerous for me to unblind, not yet.’

Before them, the water began to subside, and the Baphomet roared. ‘Foolish magic… ‘ It raised its Schyte, and aimed it at Lexy. ‘Thunder bolt!’ A lightning bolt jacked out of the edge of the weapon, and flew towards Lexy. Lexy dashed upwards, unfazzled. ‘Spell Breaker!’ The Baphomet attacked again. ‘Thunderbolt’ ‘Magic Rod!’ ‘Thunderbolt!’ ‘Spell Breaker!’ The Bahomet gazed at the young Scholar. ‘Impressive… your timing is remarkable. But can you take on this?’ The huge beast began to tremble, pointing its Shtye upwards. Lexy looked up to the sky. Heraus immediately felt it. He pushed Lexy to one side, just as the huge Beast roared out loud. ‘METEOR STORM!!!’ A huge red comet appeared above them, and crashed down onto the ground with a tremendously huge impact. Lexy was sent flying up into the air ‘Kyaaa!!!’ She landed, and just as she recovered, looked at the cloud of dust before her, and shouted. ‘Herausss!!!’

As the dust subsided, a shadow of a man held onto the comet with both hands. Beside him, on the ground, was the blindfold that was attached to his eyes. Lexy grinned, ‘you’re in for it now... Baphomet.’ The Baphomet took at step back. Before him, the scholar that he once thought was merely a blind young man, had eyes that now glowed white with energy. Heraus pushed the comet aside with one move, and in an instant, disappeared. The Bahomet turned around him, but he was too late. ‘Abracadabra!!!’ A huge comet dislodged from the end of Heraus’s wand, hitting the Baphomet square in the chest. The Beast cringed, as it took a step back from the full impact. ‘Impossible… how did you…’ But then, it realized something, and smiled. It steadied itself from the impact, and looked at the scholar. ‘Abracadabra… the copying technique… crafty…’ Heraus looked up at the beast in full height. His physique was different now, much more masculine, and he was taller too. The blindfold must have held back a lot of his magical energy, the Baphomet thought. Heraus raised his wand again ‘Meteor… STORM!!’ 3 more meteors dislodged from the end of his wand. The Baphomet jumped into the air, and with one quick move, jabbed the end of his scythe onto the ground where Heraus stood. But he missed. Up above him, the scholar dashed at him. ‘Third Forbbiden Spell! Deluge!’ A wave of water enveloped the huge beast. The Baphomet was not quick enough to regain its balance, and crashed itself straight into the pool of water. As Heraus landed, he raised his wand up once again, and this time, focused a lot of magical energy to the edge of his wand. He yelled, ‘Lexy, now!’ Lexy whipped out her wand, and pointed it at Heraus. She shouted ‘Nineth Forbidden Spell ! Mind Breaker!’ Heraus suddenly yelled, as a dark cloud of mist entered his body. He began to emit a cold, yet powerful magical aura. The Baphomet tried to get up, but it was too late. ‘Abracadabra! Lightning Bolt!!’ The entire pool of water surrounding the fallen beast conducted the Lightning, amplifying the magic.

‘Guarghh!!!!’ The Baphomet collapsed to the ground, and the pools of water vanished. Lexy smiled at Heraus, and let her wand down. Heraus suddenly turned at Lexy, and pointed his wand at her. ‘Sensei.. what.. what are you doing? We won, we already won!’ Heruas didn’t seem to listen. ‘You’re not Lexy.’ Lexy suddenly grinned. ‘Very good…. Young scholar…’ The world around Heraus suddenly began to shift. Lexy suddenly began to contort, and grow in size. The Baphomet finally grew full image in front of him. ‘Where’s Lexy?’ The Baphomet raised his Schyte. He looked to to the ground beside him, and there she was, lying on the ground, her body badly bruised. ‘You don’t see to be affected by my Illusions… you’re powerful... indeed.’ Heraus keep his wand aimed at Baphomet. ‘Step away from her.’ The huge Beast grinned, revealing a row of dark, unrefined teeth. ‘What if I don’t?’ Heraus began to glow again, and a huge source of magical energy erupted around him. The huge beast bent down, his Schyte in hand, ready to dash forward. ‘The one they call the perfect defence… Trully formidable. Why don’t we end this then, young scholar? I’ll let you see why they call me the King of the Beasts!’ Both of them stayed still for a moment, and then in a split second, dashed at each other.

‘Deluge!!!!’

‘EARTHQUAKE!!!!!’

Piles of sand and dust erupted from the ground, and a huge explosion erupted, and then, everything fell silent.

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Beyond the trees and in the shadows of the moon, Radium looked up into the sky. ‘Its starting. The dark clouds are gathering all across the continent by now.’ A dark mist began to emerge behind him. Radium’s eyes lit up, as he turned around. ‘My My my… that was bloody fast…’ Before him, Tritium came into view, in his left hand dragging the limped body of the King. ‘Now is that the way to treat your King, Tritium?’ Tritium smirked, and with one quick movement let go of the King. He fell to the ground with a loud thud, and let out a barely audible scream of pain. ‘U..rg..hh’ Radium paced towards the body on the ground. And slowly lifted his head. ‘Ah.. Father. It’s been a while.’

Chapter 5 Allies

The Orc encampment was larger than what HQ had shown him, Xenon was pretty sure about this. It expanded across the entire Forest of Death, starting from the riverbank and fanning out to an open field to the centre of the forest, large enough to fit an entire city, and ends across a mountainous creek of land known as the Geffen Ruins. Within those ruins lie the most feared demons, sealed within it duringthe Great War by the Scholar Merlin. Xenon checked his surroundings, careful not the step on the dry twigs scattered across the pavements leading to an abandoned house. His arm held his bow tightly, its silver husk glistening in the rays of the sun, and at the centre of the bow, was a silver crest, with the shape of a lion.

Behind him, Lucifier and Crepe edge forward carefully, Lucifier holding on to her as she limped. ‘We need to get you some medication, fast. I can only heal your wounds as much.’ Lucifier’ tried his best to hold back his laughter, but at last a small pfft escaped his lips. Crepe stared at Lucifier. ‘Yea.. yea… I get it. U can stop laughing now.’ Lucifier swallowed. “Ahem hem.. okay okay… Heh.. Btw what the hell were you thinking sending her out like that Xenon? She’s not ready for an Orc Hero yet, and what happened back there proves it.’

Xenon turned back, revealing himself in full height. He was slanky, yet an aura of reassurance surrounded him. On both his shoulders was silver plates connecting to a suit of red and brown. Only few snipers in the village of Payon donned such armor, the majestic Sniping Suit. Forged by the dwarves of Mjolnir themselves, it allowed its user to focus tremendous power on the arrows it shoots, without taking any of the painful backward force that snipers receive when they use too much strength in war. Xenon glared at both of them for a while, then continued to walk. ‘She has to learn… I was… disappointed by the way, Crepe. You could have done better.’

Crepe kept her head down. ‘Yes.. yes sir.’ Lucifier shouted ‘Now wait just a second. She almost got killed back there!’ Xenon stopped in his tracks, and turned to face Lucifier. ‘Lucifier, this has nothing to do with you. We archers have an Honour Code we must uphold, and its not something a monk like you can comprehend! She failed her wuest, and that is that!’ Lucifier came forward, ‘Bullshit! She’s still a kid goddamit! For a sensei you’re pretty much of an ass…’ Crepe, ‘Guys, enough! Sensei, I’m sorry. I’ll do better next time.’ Xenon looked at her. ‘You better.’ He then turned and continued walking. Lucifier was furious, ‘Tsk! Arrogant son-of-a….’

Xenon stopped in his tracks. ‘Did you hear that?’ Lucifier shot upright. ‘What? You cant hear me calling u a son-of-a…’ Xenon uttered ‘Shh… not that…’ Crepe and Lucifier looked around. Crepe said ‘I don’t hear any..’

Just then, the floor below them erupted, sending dust into the air. Lucifier and Crepe shielded themselves, while Xenon was already battle ready, aiming the bow at source of the commotion. The dust began to settle and the rumbling stoped, and a large hole appeared in front of them. ‘Lucifier said ‘What in the world….’ Suddenly, a boy and a woman walked out of the hole. The woman was obviously bleeding in the chest, as though she was stabbed. The boy yelled out, ‘Help.. help me!!!’ Lucifier looked behind the pair. The ground began to tremble again. The boy continued ‘They.. they’re.. coming…’ and he passed out. Crepe held him as he was just about to touch the ground. Behind the pair, true enough was more rattling of the ground. Something was coming through.

Xenon stood up, aiming at the tunnel. ‘Take the boy and find a safe position. Lucifier, guard them.’ Lucifier looked up, ‘what about you?’ Xenon looked back ‘What about me?’ Lucifier smiled. ‘One of these days…’ then he nodded. He turned back, grabbed hold of Crepe and the boy, and said, ‘Alright, lets go.’

The rattling grew louder and louder, and Xenon could finally make out what was trying to come through the tunnel. It was a huge insect-like creature, and on its head was what looked like an oblonged headgear that curved upward. In front of it were two large scythe-like claws. It wasn’t the size of tbe thing, however, that Xenon was worried about. It’s the number of the same creatures coming out of the tunnel towards him. ‘Maya Purples…’ He dodged quickly, as the first creature dashed at him and stabbed where he was at, missing. Xenon recovered to firing position in a split second, and pulled out 2 arrows from his quiver. ‘Double Strafing!’ The two arrows glowed, and as they left the thimble, they split into four, charging towards the maya purple. The arrows hit the creature in the head, and it fell backwards. It screamed a high pitch noise, and suddenly began to combust into dust, and vanished.

The other Maya Purples looked at their fallen comrade, and began to screech, their sights never leaving Xenon. Xenon drew 2 more arrows. ‘Come and get it…’ He pulled the string all the way back, and the arrow shot out again….

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… and it missed. Lucifier dodged another one of the arrows shot at him. Crepe was still limping, but she carried the boy tightly in her arms. ‘Luci!! Watch out!’ Lucifier turned to his left, and narrowly dodged another arrow shot at them. The arrow swerved past Lucifier, missing his left shoulder by inches, and jammed deep into a nearby tree. Crepe shouted ‘So when you said “lets go’, I assumed you knew where the hell you were going!!’ Lucifier looked at her, and blushed.’ Look.. now its not the time to..’ He was caught in mid sentence, dodging another arrow as it whizzed past ‘…talk about this.. okay?’ Crepe ignored him ‘You said follow me, So I though, ‘Hey, let’s follow this big, strong hell of a man whose suppose to protect a frail little angel like me.’ ‘Oh, and we have a wounded child, so it’s the safest to just follow… YOU WALKED RIGHT INTO THE ORC VILLAGE YOU DUMBASS!!!!’ Lucifier replied, dodging two more arrows. ‘Hey, the sign said Way out, didn’t it? SO I just did what it told me to do!’ Crepe screamed at him ‘Its STAY OUT!! STAYY!! Learn to read!!!!’ Lucifier stopped in his tracks, turned around, and with one swift movement, catches an arrow shot at him with blinding speed, breaking it in two. His face was stern and serious. Crepe looked scared. ‘Er… Luci.. Heh… You know I was just .. err.. joking.. right? Hehe?’ Lucifier turned towards her. Crepe jumped up. ‘Okay okay!!! I’m sorry! It was a mistake!!!’ Lucifier’s body began to emit a very strong energy, and began to glow red. ‘Crepe.. go.. now!’ Crepe looked at Lucifier, and realized he wasn’t angry at what she said. She could see it. It was huge, and approaching them, from beyond the shadows of the Orc Archers pursuing them. Its large body and headrest was unmistakable. ‘Crepe, take the boy, and go! Now!’ The thing was getting closer, and closer. Crepe nodded. ‘Stay safe’, and limped ahead.

Just as Lucifier saw Crepe limp out of sight, he shouted ‘Steel Body!’ A huge fist bashed him just in time, but Lucifier managed to hold the impact with both his hands, but not all of it. ‘Gurhh!’ A trickle of blood trickled down the sides of his lips. Lucifier stared at the huge Creature. The Orc Lord stared at the monk, amazed that he managed to take his punch full blow and not die. ‘Human… ‘ Lucifier let go of the huge fist, and dashed backwards. The Orc Lord was monstrously huge. It was almost twice the size of the Orc Hero they just fought. He heard about the King of the Orcs, who preferred to attack with no weapon or wield no shield. True enough, a normal blow already pierced the Steel Body technique he took 10 years to perfect. Lucifier wiped the blood off his lips. ‘We mean no harm, let us past.’

The Orc Lord stared at the monk. In an instant, he vanished. Lucifier quickly turned behind him ‘What the.. Its fast!’ It appeared just behind him, and another blow came from it already. Lucifier managed to dodge only half of the impact this time. ‘Uwahhh!!’ The blow was too strong, and Lucifier was sent flying backwards, collapsing into a pile of rocks, breaking them as he landed, hard. He slowly got up, his body covered in bruises. The Orc Lord came closer. ‘Human… Come at wrong time… You must die.’ Lucifier looked up at the huge beast. Behind the Orc Lord, dozens of Orc archers surrounded Lucifier, their bows already aimed at his chest. ‘Tsk… this is bad.’ The orc archers fired the arrows. As they did, Lucifier raised his right hand. A holy symbol of a cross began to glow on his skin. It grew brighter and turned green. ‘Pneuma!’

The arrows were instantly repelled. But as they did, the Orc Lord was already in mid stride dashing towards Lucifier. He didn’t have enough time to counter the blow, as the Orc Lord’s punch sent him flying backwards summore, crashing once more on a pile of rocks. ‘Arghhhh!’ The Orc Lord vanished once again, and appeared just above Lucifier. It came crashing down on the monk with full force. Just before it came into contact with Lucifier, a blinding white light appeared around Lucifier. ‘Kyrie Erisson!’ The blow was repelled, and the Orc Lord backed off. It lifted its huge head and glared at the newcomer, whose cloaked fluttered in the wind, the Holy symbol of the Prontera Church in the middle of the robe. Behind the holy figure were seven others dressed just like him. ‘Orc Lord, we come not to fight. Leave the monk alone.’ The Orc Lord stood upright, towering above them, casting a huge shadow that almost blocked out the sun. ‘You humans.. promised to never enter here again… You break the promise!’

The Head Priest came forward and stared at the Orc Lord face to face. Lucifier tried to stand up, but his limbs were broken. He looked up, and say the Head Priset speaking to the Orc Lord. ‘We humans are foolish creatures, Orc. Yet we are all God’s creation. There is no need to kill him over his mistake, his folly. I apologize on the behalf of the Church of Prontera.’ The Orc Lord seemed unsatisfied. ‘He… killed my … Hero!’ The priest looked at the Orc Lord, unfazzled. ‘Your Orc Hero, dear Orc, was seen terrorizing a small village near Payon. Lord Argon sent them to hold the beast back. It was in rage, and it didn’t seem to listen to any of our.. persuasions.’ The Orc Lord growled. ‘Nanjima would never attack human! Nanjima is my youngest son! He brave! He courageous!’

The priest still gazed at the Orc Lord. ‘Nanjima was not acting himself. We realized that his eyes.. Orc, were not the usual yellow of your tribe. It was black. I fear, dear Orc, that someone is controlling him.’ The Orc Lord looked at the Priest. ‘You lie! Nanjima is good kid! You make up stories! You want war!’ The Priest signaled to one of his men, who came forward. He was smaller than the Head Priest, and wore a different attire. Two long scarf-like ends clung to his robes. He drew out a wooden wand, and tapped the ground. ‘Memorize!’ The Orc Lord flinched at what he saw. A fuzzy image of a memory began to unravel before them, a first person view of what seemed to be unusually tall a view. It was surrounded by screams and howls of terror. The huge beast was destroying everything in its path. A battalion of knights were before him, shouting’ Fall back, Nanjima! Your destroying the village! Get back before we… Arghh!!’ The huge beast lifted the human up in the air, and with his bare hands, crushed his skull, and the image ended there. The Head Priest looked up at the petrified Orc Lord, and spoke, slowly.

‘I fear there is a more sinister plot at play, dear Orc. My Lords have chosen not to investigate the destruction of the human village, not yet, until a more crucial matter is solved. Orc, we need your help.’ The Orc Lord finally sat down on the ground with a huge thud. The ground trembled as it did. ‘What you need me do? I sorry… for Nanjima’s action. I don’t understand why.’ The Head Priest came forward, and help out his hand to touch the Orc Lord’s. ‘Neither do we, but we might have a clue. But we need your help. Your friend, Merlin, is missing, Orc. The king has been kidnapped, and a Baphomet is at our city gates. We need to locate your missing friend, but we cant stop the Baphomet alone. We need your help to stop him.’ The Orc Lord stared at him. ‘Merlin… gone missing? Why? Where is he now?’ The Head Priest shook his head. ‘We don’t know either. But he is alive, that I can tell. His magical defence around Prontera is still active, but its weakening. He must be not far away from here.’ The Orc Lord stood up. ‘I help you find him. I send Orcs to find him.’ The Head Priest bowed. ‘Thank you. About the Baphomet?’ The Orc Lord suddenly shook his head. ‘Tell humans in Prontera to go… Baphomet.. too strong. I not match for him.’ He turned to walk away. The Head Priest was about to utter something, before the Orc Lord continued. ‘But I owe Merlin. He saved me. I want you find him. I can do not much against Baphomet. But I can buy your humans time. I take my armor, and we go. You lead me.’ It took a long, good look at Lucifier, then walked away.

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Over at the end of the dirt road, Crepe held the boy close as they hide behind a mulberry bush, just off the road. She looked around, and realizing that the Orcs were no longer after her, let out a sigh of relief. The small boy suddenly held her close, and tightly. She began to blush. ‘Mama… ‘ Crepe looked at the poor creature. ‘He must have lost so much, she thought.’ Slowly, She pulled his hair backwards and smiled, as a little warm ray of sunlight beamed through the trees. She patted him slowly, and she could see that the boy was no longer trembling, but fast asleep.

There was a sudden rustle of leaves behind her. She quickly pulled out her dagger, and held the boy closer to her chest. ‘Who’s there?’ Xenon jumped down from a nearby branch. ‘It’s me. Lower your weapon.’ Crepe sighed in relief. “Sensei…’ Xenon looked at the boy in her arms. ‘He must be tired.’ Crepe smiled at those words. She always thought of Xenon as a cold hearted, ambitious archer. Yet uttering such words suddenly made him warm, although he didn’t show it. Xenon looked at Crepe with his binoculars. ‘Keep him alive. He knows whats going on.’ Crepe asked, ‘What happened?’ Xenon replied ‘I drove them back. I killed only six of those things. But something was different about them. They don’t attack in the open, and definitely not in groups.’ Crepe looked concerned. Xenon replied. ‘Nevermind that. Wait, wheres Lucifier?’

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Lucifier tried to get up, but his legs hurt like hell. As the shadow of the Orc Lord disappeared behind the trees and into the village, the Head Priest immediately came to his side. ‘Are you alright, young man?’ Lucifier coughed a few times, before replying him. ‘I think so, I must have broken a limb or two.’ He coughed again. The Head Priest smiled. ‘Not to worry, you’re lucky we ran into you. I am High Counsellor Pure, the Head Priest of the Church of Prontera.’ Lucifier smiled at the man. ‘I know who you are… Heh. If you don’t mind, can you help me up?’ The Head Priset slowly let Lucifier up in a sitting position. ‘Much better… argh… ‘ Pure looked at his knee. ‘Its badly wounded. I’ll heal you right up.’ He lifted his hands and placed it on top of the wounded knee. ‘Heal!’ A warm green light glowed, and Lucifier slowly felt life force beginning to seep in thorugh the wounds.

The pain was slowly fading. He turned to look at the Priest. ‘The one they call the Hand of God. Is it true you need no wand or catalyst to perform a spell?’ The Head Priest smiled. ‘Its God’s gift to me, my child. You are no ordinary feat yourself, young monk. No one can withstand the Orc Lord's blows full force, and survivie. You withstood three, and here you are. Here, let me see your arm. ‘ Lucifier held it out. Pure stopped short at the holy cross carved into his skin. ‘This symbol… where did you get it?’ Lucifier realized it too late. He pulled his hand away from Pure, and stood up, slowly. ‘I thank you, Head Priest, but I must be going.’ Lucifier walked quickly away from the group. Pure quickly recognized the holy symbol of Zen Master. ‘Prince Lucifier! Wait!’ Lucifier was already sprinting away. ‘Your father.. has gone missing too!’ Lucifier stopped in his tracks, and turned to look at Pure. Pure nodded in reassurance. ‘We’re looking for him too.’

Chapter 4 At War

The room was dark but for the candle light emitting from a lone stand in the middle. A bearded old man, dressed in ragged robes paced back and forth across the room, his hands shaking, mumbling all along the way. The king was frustrated. ‘Merlin… haven’t you walked enough already? I see that you’re worried. But now is not the time for fear…. I want to know what is going on out there.’ King Verulious IV sat atop the throne in the middle circle. Before him was a table with five edges, the Pentagon, Knights of the Five. Four others clad in armor sat on each of the chairs positioned to that table, a weapon before each one. The first sat on the Table of Fire – the Lord of the North, Gnjir the Mighty, ruler of Rachel and keeper of the gates of Thor. A mighty hammer was placed in front of him, the legendary Mjolnier. The man was huge, had a beard that looked more like a goatie on his chin. His masculine body flexed once in a while from the tension in the room. ‘Ye’ has to tell us the concern, Merlin of Ligthhazen… We need to know.’ Merlin seemed to ignore him, and continued to pace.

On the right of Gnjir, the table of Wind, sat a figure of the total opposite physique. She was much much smaller, almost too dwarflike. She wore a brass plate across her chest, but the fittings were all too perfect a fit, judging from the eyes of the Lords in the room. She was the most beautiful of maidens in Rune Midgrad – Princess Kalla, Keeper of the Light, the leader of the Paladins of the East Castle of Yuno, and the daughter to the King. ‘I understand your concerns, gentlemen, and Father, but Merlin has his reasons.’

The third person beside her stood up. ‘Are you saying you already know the reason for this meeting, Princess?’ his voice was more of a hiss, a mellow, dark, stony voice, yet loud and demanding. The man wore a cloth mask over his head. He had a scarf as well, brown, yet it smelled of dust and dirt. On his left shoulder, which was bore and sleeveless, was the symbol of a serpent and a scarab fighting over a golden Tiara. He was Nazgul of the Sand, the Lord of the West, Champion of the Dessert and Keeper of the Piramids. The legendary Katar were placed in front of him. They were made of a rare stone called the Soul Stone, one of the seven Sacred Stones that existed in the Kingdom of Rune Midgrad. His weapon was distinguishable from others, given its blood red handle. The Bloody Roar, as they call it, strong enough to cut through any armor, yet delicate enough to wound just the surface of the skin, allowing the poison on the tip of the katar to seep in. He makes his own concoctions of potions, as they say, potent enough to kill a vicious Leib Omal upon contact. The man the King himself fears, as they put it. He was a tremendously feared foe, a true champion at the times of the Great War of the Six Nations, which makes the Kingdom of Rune Midgrad ever more fearsome to be able to convince him to become their ally. Kalla glared at Nazgul. ‘No, but I put my trust in people who serve this great dynasty. Maybe you should learn to trust others as well.’

Nazgul and Kalla looked at each other for a few seconds. Suddenly, the fourth person on the table grabbed hold of Nazgul’s shoulder, as if Nazgul was about to eat the Princess whole. ‘Don’t.’ Under the hood covering his face, no one else saw Nazgul’s icy blue eyes return back to normal. The man that held Nazgul’s shoulder let go, and stood up. ‘My Lord, I believe there must be a reason to all of this. Yet we can’t just sit here and wait for answers, my Lord. We need to know what’s going on.’ He was shorther than Gnjir, but still well built. Argon of the South. The Protector, the Commander of the King’s army. Argon was given the lands of Payon, Geffen and Glast Heim to rule, for his servie and trust in the King and his Country. The lands were more Forest than civilization, yet rumours have it that they possess drastic spiritual and magical energy. He was a champion, the leader of the Payon temples. He was the man who invented the Spirit Spheres technique. The Master of Zen. The King’s right hand man. Merlin finally stopped pacing, and glanced at Argon. ‘You don’t understand the complexity of the problem... do you my friend?’ He started to walk back towards the table, and sat down. The Lighthazen Scholar, and leader of the Pillars of Knowledge, Dictation and Discipline. The Wise Old Man, Merlin the Sorcerer. He pull out his infamous wand, the Wand of Light, said to be made from the branches of Yggdrasil itself, and laid it on the table. Immediately, the entire Pentagon Table lit up. The King stood up and walked towards the table. He nodded to Merlin, and Merlin continued. The image before you was captured by my agent in the North lands. A small village outside the High Citadel, called Brasilis.’

He waved the wand, and a blurry image of what seemed like a first person view of a village on fire, came into light. There were screams and people running away from something. The voice in the image kept yelling ‘Keep running! Don’t look back. Oh God! What the hell is that thing!’ The King looked at Gnjir. ‘Why was I not told about this?’ Gjnir held his head up. “Sire, I prefer to handle the issues of my country myself. There was no need to report such a minor…’ Merlin interrupted him ‘Keep watching’. The King and Gjnir returned their focus on the image on the table. The person in the image was now running towards a riverbank. He was shouting out something like a spell. ‘Tunnel Drive!’ The sand by the river bank gave way, and a hole large enough to fit a person through came into place. He turned around, and two other were with him, a woman and a boy. ‘Jerr, take you mother. The tunnel will lead you to somewhere safe. Now go! GO!’ The image began to get blurry. The person turned back towards the village, and the image paused. What he saw last left everyone in the room in awe. Tears began to form in Kalla’s eyes. Gjnir had his head down the whole time, like he knew what had happened. Nazgul and Argon remained silent. The King spoke first. “My God… is that….?’ He looked at Merlin, who nodded. The image stopped right there, as the person’s final moments came into clear view. The village was burnt to bits, rain of fire pouring from the sky. The ground was broken and shaken, almost like an earthquake. And there, right before the eyes of the man, was a red, firey demon-like creature. It was hovering across the ground, but it was huge. Mountainous. It was engulfed in bright red flames. Merlin said at last. ‘The Ifirt, my lord. It has been awaken.’

The King walked back to his throne, and slumped right down on it. ‘But how… ‘ Nazgul spoke first. “There must be some misunderstanding, Merlin of the Light. I personally sealed that Firey-bitch of a demon up myself. My country gave half of our best men to lure it down to its demise, but now you say all that was for nothing??’ Merlin gazed at Nazgul, his hands still shaking. ‘I just say it as it is, my boy. Believe me, the magic of Memorize does not fail me.’ Nazgul looked at the King, at the rest of the people at the table, and finally at Gnjir. ‘You knew about this, didn’t you?’ Gnjir remained silent. In a flash, Nazgul already grabbed the Katars off the table and dashed at Gnjir, pointing it to his throat in godlike speed. ‘ANSWER ME!’ As he was about to attack, his blow was met my Argon’s bare hands, who held the edge of the katar. They stopped in mid stride. ‘That’s enough, Nazgul. Control yourself. This is the King’s court!’ Nazgul looked up at Argon ‘Out of my way, old friend, or I will kill you too!’ Princess Kalla stood up, unable tom take this any longer, ‘Enough! Sit down! All of you!’ Nazgul took his weapon down, but not his gaze at Gjnir, who continued to remain silent. Merlin stood up once more as they sat down. ‘My Lord, I fear there is more to report.’ The King looked at Merlin. ‘Yes, we need to find a way to stop this thing, right now.’ Merlin continues ‘I’m afraid that is not all, my Lord.’ The King sat at the edge of his throne. ‘Sire, a Baphomet is set lose at the gates of Prontera as we speak, my Lord.’ The King and everyone in the room looked at Merlin as though he just uttered the most ridiculous thing in the world. ‘What.. did you say?’ Merlin’s hands were trembling even more now.

‘The King of the Beasts, my Lord… is at the gates of Prontera. And that is not all, my dear Lords of Ragnarok.’; He turned his attention to everyone in the room. ‘If my magic is right, and by all that is good and pure, I hope I am wrong! There are more senses of major amounts of mana eruptions all across Rune Midgrad. All cross the land. I have only once sensed such powerful energy in my entire life, my Lords, and that was during the times of the Great War!’ His voice was crackling now, as though he was about to burst to tears. ‘Hear me out… I fear... That by all that is good I am wrong! But the only logical explanation for all this energy... Such strong energy…’ Princess Kalla sat down… and slumped to her chair. ‘… the Titans… they rise again.’ Merlin nodded in sorrow. Nazgul stood up. “Preposterous! The titans were sealed! Stop giving me this nonsense you... .’

The doors of the counsel room burst open, and a lone guard barged in. Nazgul turned to look at the man. ‘What in heaven’s name do you think you’re doing! This is a sacred meeting.. .’ The guard ignored him. “My king… the mountains… the mountains of Valeria… They are moving!’ The King stood up. ‘What??!’ The guard continued. ‘The Valkeryies, my King, they are coming here as we speak! Rangris… Rangris is moving the Army of Angels and is coming here right now!’ Everyone was shocked and looked at each other. Argon spat out ‘The King of the Titans? What is this, a revolt?!’ The guard continued ‘Not only that, my Lord, I have reports from every other continent in the Kingdom, my Lord. The MVPs have moved towards the major cities. Lady Bascojin of the Moon, Moonlight the Golden Fox, The Lord of the Death, the Dark Lord, the Evil Snake Lord… They... They are attacking us!’ Kalla looked at the guard. ‘But we made a treaty with them centuries ago! What are they thinking?’ The guard continued, ‘My princess... I fear... that it’s because…’ his voice began to crackle, and then, suddenly, he began to transform. The Lords reached for their weapons. The guard shifted in shape, his face and body began to contort, until finally, a final form cam into view. Nazgul looked at the man in shock. ‘You….’

Tritum drew his katar and fixed them on his hands, and grinned at the Princess. ‘…it’s because we’re behind it.’ ‘Guards!! Protect the King!’ Every soldier in the room ran towards the King, covering him and drawing their weapons. The five Lords drew their weapons at Tritium too. ‘Your guards are not coming, Nazgul… They met with a… accident.’ Kalla spoke, ‘You’re a fool, Tritium. You think you can enter and leave this place? You are no match for the five of us!’ Tritium smiled again. ‘Indeed… but with this.’ He pulled out the blood red liquid. Nazgul looked at him. “Impossible…’ Tritium smiled back, ‘Oh yes, brother… I’ve finished that technique.’ Nazgul drew his weapon. ‘Protect the KING!!!!’

Tritium and Nazgul roared at the same time ‘Enchant Deadly Poison!’ and the whole room went silent.

A few moments past, that seemed like an eternity. The King’s breathing was slow and painful, and his vision was a blurred. His hearing was partially impaired, but he could still make out the voices around him. He looked at his arm. A deep cut was sliced across it, blood oozing out the sides. He could make out the dead bodies of Gjnir and Nazgul on the ground before him, alongside several other guards. A strong arm pulled him up, limping him to one side as the face of Tritium came face to face with his. Tritium stared at him with an eerie smile on his face. ‘Come now, My King. Your son wants to talk to you.’

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In an open plain, under the moonlight, three lone figures appeared out of the sky and fell onto the ground. A cloud of dust rose from where they landed. As they did, the cries and curses of Pricness Kalla echoed all around the forest. Merlin stood up first. ‘My bones... cough.. cough…’ Kalla screamed ‘Let me go! I want to go back and save my father!’ Argon held her tightly. ‘Princess! Listen to me! The King is alive. Tritium will do nothing to harm him. Not just yet.’ Kalla broke down in tears, and knelt on the ground. Argon looked at Merlin. ‘The warp portal worked, but I was only able to pull Kalla and you into it. I don’t know about the others.’ Merlin nodded. ‘It had to be done. Tritium is far too strong to take on like this. We had to take Kalla to safety. It’s what the King would have wanted.’ Kalla screamed at Merlin ‘But Why!! Why would Tritium do this?’ Merlin looked at her. ‘I don’t know, dear child. But I know one thing. We are at war.’

Chapter 3 Nemesis (Radium, Tritium)

Note: I've decided to not use PureSOhai, cuz the name really tak boleh guna in my story... haha. Using Radium again. Enjoy.. ^^

'Take cover!!!' Another massive bolt of lightning crashed down onto the city gates, destroying it and leaving more craters on the ground. The guards falled back into the city, taking along their wounded, and the dead. Lieutenant Neon of the thirty seventh guardian division was critically wounded as well, on the ground, blood gushing out this left leg. Around him was utter chaos. Explosions erupting from all directions, sending debris and dirt up into the air. Chills and screams of his comrades filled the air. They were being massacred. 'Fall the hell back!! Take everyone inside!' His leg hurt like hell, but he stood up anyway. Hell was not one place he was afraid of where he came from. Neon looked around him again. Dead bodies of his fellow men lied around him. Some on the ground, some still charred from the fire, tossing, turning, but barely alive. He looked up into the sky and there it was... Two lone figures floating slowly towards him. In a split second, there was another thunderous noise above the clouds. Neon shouted 'Brace yourself!!! Find some cover!' The sky cracked open, and out of the dark clouds came another bolt of silver lightning, this one much larger than the rest. It came straight at Neon.

'Reflect Shield!' The bolt of lightning slammed against an enlarged energy shield that appeared directly in front of Neon. But the impact was much too great. Neon's shield discharged, and he was thrown backwards, slamming into a pile of rubble. 'Urghhh!' His comrades looked in horror. 'Lieutenant!' Another silver ray crashed down again from the sky. Neon closed his eyes and braced for the end...

'Spell Breaker!' The silver lightning bolt vanished in an instant. A group of soldiers emerged from the city gates, and began rounding up the wounded. The first man who came forward looked more authoritative than the rest, and knelt beside Neon.

'Neon.... Neon... stay with me.... Oxygen, get to healing him, NOW! I'll take them down. Rendezvous with the rest of us at HQ when this is over...' 2nd Officer Oxygen nodded. WIth that, the first man dashed forward, behind him five others followed suit, dashing at remarkable speeds. She reached into her robes and pulled out a rosary and a Bible. Then, as she pulled the bible open, a sparkling blue gemstone fell out of it and into her hand. 'Thy servant beckons thee, O father in heaven, give me strength! Sanctuary!' The blue gemstone glowed brightly then vanished. The land started to tremble, and then, white, warm lights shot out from beneath the surface. The white lights swerved and turned, and enveloped the wounded and the beaten. A strong ray circled around Neon, until it wrapped itself tightly around him. Neon jerked his eyes open and gasped for a sudden breath of air, as the white light dissapeared. Oxygen smiled in relief. 'You rest now, Neon. Heraus will take care of this.' Neon muttered 'You know I'll smile back, if my lips didn't hurt so much, my dear.' Neon reached out his hands, and Oxygen held them tight with both of hers. She leaned forward and kissed them, and muttered 'O father in Heaven.. Hallowed be thy name...' Then let go of his hand slowly. 'Can you walk? You better get back behind the city walls now. Let us take care of this. But to think even you can fall to that... that thing. What exactly is it?'

Neon looked at her blue eyes, the same eyes that he fell for two years ago. 'I don't know....' He coughed. 'Tell Heraus to be careful. Its a magical element caster, but its magic is far stronger than I can anticipate it... My Shield Reflect didn't work on it.' Oxygen looked stunned. 'Your reflect Shield... didn't work? Neon nodded. Oxygen immediately stood up, and called to two nearest soldiers. 'You, take him back into the city, and round em the rest of the wounded. You, come with me, Heraus and his team will need all the help they can get.' The soldiers knelt in down in unison 'Yet, High Priestess!'

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Across the battlefield, the two figures in midair were ever closer now. The moonlight bathed them in a silver, yet eerie glow that radiated around the land below. The larger creature was huge, and had two horns atop his head. Its eyes were blood red, and its huffed a heavy gush of air every now and then. Its mere presence caused the land below to crack and shatter as it levitated past. As it levitated, its gigantic physique cast a shadow so large it covered almost the entire portion of sand and dirt beneath the two. He held his clutches tighter around what looked like a Scythe, and as they approached the silver rays of the moonlight, on his feet, were what appeared to be hooves. On its shoulder, was a smaller figure. It was a dark shadow of what appeared to be human.

'You.... won't get away with this...' said the large creature. They hovered past another portion of forest, the last one before they finally get to the gates. 'Patience... my dear Baphomet. Lest the Lord of the Beasts have thus spoken. For the King of the Beasts... I must say I am somewhat dissapointed.' The red eyes of the massive creature turned to look at the shadowy figure. 'You monster... what are you? How did you.. even find me?' The shadowy figure stood up straight, and under the moonlight, he appeared to be rather tall. A black round top hat was atop his head. He wore a black-red cloak that fluttered in the midnight wind, and on his left hand held a disturbing looking rod, the crest on top of it was the shape of a human skull. The very sight of that rod caused the Baphomet to suddenly cringe. "That wand... The Skull Wand. How did you...'

The shadowy figure grinned an evil grin. 'Let's just say.. your Evil Druid friends were more than happy to trade thier pathetic lives for this thing...' The Baphomet roared. 'You foolish human.. you don't know what that thing can do! Wielding it alone requires...' The shadowy figure came eye to eye with the huge beast. 'Your soul?' The Baphomet looked directly at his nemesis. And as the moonlight finally enveloped the both of them, the shadowy figure cam into Baphomet's clear view. He was taken aback. 'You...' The figure raised his wand. 'Now Baphomet, my pet. Do your worst.' Many jet black shadows began to emerge from the wand and circled around the large Beast. It swerved and swevered until finally they entered the body of the large creature. He waved his wand again, and the huge beast no longer leviataed, but fell, in full body height to the grounds below. As the Baphomet raised its head, its eyes were no longer red, but black with hatred and destruction. 'Ju've.. Lo'strev! B'cumanti Lewvi!' The Baphomet roared loudly. It stomped its hooves and raised its Scythe. 'Go.'

The large Beast charged at the city gates, all with its might. The shadowy figure looked and smiled at the catastrophe that was about to follow. Out of the night sky, there was a sudden black mist that began to shape and form. It approached the shaowy figure, silently, until it finally took a human shape. It wore a ragged cape and held two katars in his hand. 'Remarkable really... even I didn't detect you following me all the way here.' The shadowy figure turned around, just as his eyes met with the edge of the katars pointed directly at him. 'You're late.' The Assasin lowered his weapons, and took his place beside the shadowy figure. 'Did you get what I want?' The shadowy figure stomped his wand once, and a box appeared out of thin air in black mist. The Assasin picked it up, and slowly opened its lid. A dark red vile of liquid, in the shape of a human skull, was within it. The Shadowy figure said, 'It will only last for one minute.' The Assasin took the bottle and placed it inside his cloak. 'I'll be out by then.' 'Before you go, Tritium, tell me... how is it that I can't detect you?' The Assasin was already gone. 'Hmph... Perfect Hide. He's going to be a formiddable opponent when this is over. He raised his wand again, and this time, rose into the air. He held both hands outward, and began to speak. His voice seemed to be amplified magically, as it echoed all around the city walls and gates.

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'Now, Holy City of Prontera... cower before the might of the Baphomet! The war has began! By the end of tonight, the world and Kingdom of Ragnarok, will be mine, hail me, your Ruler! Grand Mage Radium!' Heraus stopped in his tracks. He could see the Baphomet before him. 'Radium..? Is that you?' Another shadow stopped beside him. 'Heraus, what is it? Focus, its coming.' Heraus nodded. 'I don;t think that's the biggest of our problems. Norm! Nana! YipMan! Battle formations. I want your Asuras up and ready in two minutes.' The three figures behind him dashed forward in unison. He looked to his left at the last figure. 'Lexy, stay with me. I need you to cast Deluge in these three areas here. I'll set up my Land Protector. Don't forget to turn Energy Coat on. The Baphomet is not an easy target. Now go, my apprentice.' Lexy nodded, and dashed forward. Heraus stood up, and raised his Book. He reached inside his robe and took out 3 yellow gemstones, and placed them on the ground. Then, he began to draw an alchemic circle around the gems, until it formed a sign. He closed his eyes. 'Land Protector!!'. A heavy blast of energy emitted from the ground, just as the Baphomet entered attacking range. It was blown back by a white barricade that engulfed the entire area. Heraus looked at the huge beast, as it roared and raised its Schyte, hitting the white barricade hard, but to no avail. Heraus stood up. He took another red gemstone and placed it on the ground, then drew another quick symbol around it. 'Safety Wall!' A line of red glowing walls appeared behind the white barricade, and enveloping him and Lexy as well. 'Now... Radium... let's do this.'

From atop the raised platform not far away, Radium looked down at the feat before him. 'The Perfect Defence... Heraus the Scholar. We meet again, old friend.. we meet again.'

Chapter 2 Orc Hero (Luci, Crepe, Xenon)

The chilly wind etched its way past the rice fields of gold and yellow, swaying them as it did. The sun above added its warm rays to the sparkle, as the wind blew gently, picking up a lone maple leaf in its wake. It lifted it, and then blew it higher, higher, and higher still… until it got caught in the rift. Then, like a poker card caught in mid air, the leaf began to turn, faster, and faster, and faster, in a 360 degree rotation. Then, in an instant, it split in half, and the wind stopped, so did the swaying of the wheat plants.

Not far away, a lone shadow stood up. In his hand, he held a sparkling object. As he moved out of the shadows of the willows and into the sunlight, it was revealed to be a thin, rectangular object that fitted just right in his hand. It was a card.

‘Are you sure its here?’ Two more shadows appeared behind him. ‘Yes, Lucifier.. I am sure.’ The third shadow moved forward. It stepped out into the open field, and under the glistening sun her hair seemed to glisten under the rays of light. She was wearing a brass plate, and she reached behind her to pull out a long, curved bow. The first shadow looked up. “Crepe…. Be careful.’ The Hunter nooded, and then she dashed forward into the whaet fields, and out of sight. Lucifier looked uneasy, and he sat down under the willow. ‘Hmph… you sure she’s going to make it back alive? Its an MVP we’re hunting here…’ The first shadow turned towards him, and as he did, a ray of sunlight caught it in the face. He was wearing a metallic contraption that glittered under the rays. It jutted out of his eyes, almost mechanic like. The binocular-man looked straight at Lucifier. ‘Of course… I trained her myself.’ Lucifier piffed. ‘Whatever you say Xenon… heh. But I still say we wait and see.’ As he finished his sentence, he opened the palm of his hands. A faint glow of bluish light emerged in slow succession, then slowly gathering and the small dot became bigger, and bigger, until it formed a sphere in his hand. He lifted the sphere, and closed his eyes. The sphere floated upwards and then stopped in mid air. Lucifier suddenly shouted ‘Dangerous Soul Collect!’ The sphere vibrated, and then, a bright glow emitted from it. It began to vibrate harder, and hten, in an instant, split into five same spheres. It floated around Lucifier. Xenon shook his head. ‘Why can’t you be like a normal monk and call those spheres out one by one? That’s cheating.’ Lucifier layed back, putting both hands behind his head. ‘Neh… I prefer my method better. Its faster this way.’ Xenon replied ‘One of these days, someone is gonna catch u off guard doing that summoning thing. Its taking too much delay… its dangerous.’ Both of them kept silent for a few moments. Then, Lucifier spoke. ‘I’ll take my chances.’

Suddenly, there was a quick rustle of leaves. In a godly quick movement, Xenon pulled up a curved bow. Lucifier held his hands on one of the spheres and pushed it forward, it came into his hand, and the other four spheres repositioned themselves quickly around him. Both aimed at the same direction. A huge shadow appeared not far from the willow they were hiding under. Just then, they could see Crepe dashing in front of the huge thing. As it came closer, Lucifier began to laugh. ‘Gahaha… that’s exactly what I mean, she’s not ready.’ Xenon kept silent.’ Hmph..’ He stood up, and drew an arrow from his quiver.

The huge Orc Hero began running at Crepe like crazy. Panting, and holding her left arm, she dashed as fast as she could forward as it clobbered her with its huge sowrd, missing its target. Her dislocated shoulder was more than she could bear. The forest started to fan out, and they came to an open field. She could see the willow tree just ahead of her. Her feet burned under the pain. Her bow was still clinging to her her back, but without both arms, she was pretty much not in fighting condition. If there was anything Xenon taught her, it was that you life mattered the most. She dashed forward quickly, but the Orc Hero was faster. It caught up to her, and in one gigantic swing, it hit her right in the back. ‘Garhhhh!’ Crepe tumbled to the ground, landing sideways on a piece of grass. The Orc Hero roared loudly at the sight of Crepe’s fall, and raised its sword to finish the job. The blow connected not with his intented target, however, but at a bluish sphere. Lucifier scratched his head with his left hand, and the other hand held outwards, connecting to a blue sphere that was at the Orc Hero’s sword. The Orc Hero roared in anger. They both discharged. Lucifier jumped onto a nearby tree and then quickly dashed forward towards the Orc Hero. The Orc Hero was too fast, however, and it pummeled the ground where Lucifier was, cracking it. Crepe screamed ‘Lucifier..!!!’

‘What?’ Crepe stopped, and looked up. There, on the shoulder of the Orc Hero, was Lucifier, a blue sphere in his hand. Three more spheres were floating around him. Crepe yelled ‘That wasn’t funny~!!!’ Lucifier laughed ‘Hahaha~ It was to me!!’ The Orc Hero turned to grab Lucifier. Just as it did, Lucifier yelled ‘Body Relocation!’ A blue sphere disappeared, and Lucifier disappeared and reappeared again on the ground just below the Orc Hero. The Orc Hero was mad now. It howled so loud that the trees began to tremble. Lucifier cringed. ‘Tsk… Not good. We have to end this, now!’ It began to turn white and glow. Lucifier dashed towards the back. ‘Buy me some time, Xenon!’ As he said that, a volley of arrows shoot out from behind Lucifier and hit the Orc Hero square in the face. Its skin, however was too thick, and most of the arrows rebounded off its skin. The glowing was getting brighter now. Lucifier turned behind him. ‘Xenonnnn….!!! Now!!!’

About nearly nine square miles away under the willow tree, Xenon took aim at the beast. From where he was, both Lucifier and Crepe looked like tiny ants jumping and yelling as a huge potato size thing was beating them up. ‘Hmph… noob.’ He pulled the string of the bow back all the way, and said in a low voice. ‘Phantom.. Arrow.’ The arrow he was pulling began to glow and sear with heat. It finally caught the shape of a cross and was vibrating with a strong energy pulse. He let go, and the arrow flew out from the bow and hit the Orc Hero in the head in a split second. The Orc Hero howled, and the glowing white light stopped. Just then, Lucifier yelled, ‘Dangerous Soul Collect!’ A few moments later, the spheres increased to five again and floated around him. Then, he pounded the ground with huge force. The ground broke and debris flew into the air, leaving a small crater. ‘Critical Explosion!’ All five spheres disappeared instantaneously, and merged into his body. He began to turn red, and suddenly, his whole body erupted of energy. A huge amount of mana emitted from him, as the area around him began to tremble and shake. ‘Crepe! Find some cover, NOW!’ Crepe limped upwards, and just as she jumped behind a huge willow tree, there was a huge explosion.

‘Asura… STRIKE!!!’

A huge glow of light erupted where the Orc Hero was, and Lucifier was seen dashing at it, his palms held together and a huge ball of energy was hitting the MVP at its chest. The light imploded, and then, with great might, erupted. The area around the MVP was obliterated, trees uprooted and the ground cracked up and shattered. The glow died down, and there, before her eyes, the Orc Hero wobbled, slowly, then fell to the ground. Far away, Xenon shielded his eyes from the blinding light. ‘Hmph… show off.’

Chapter 1 Jerr's Story

The name’s Jerry. Jerry Felious. But my friends and parents call me Jerr, because that’s the way they treat me around this parts. I don’t get mad at it or anything, though. I know they don’t mean it. Like many of you, I am an ordinary kid, who lives an ordinary life. My parents are farmers, and well, we basically live off the land. My dad’s a goat herder. He gets the milk from goats up on the Vein’s mountains, and sometimes, if he’s lucky, gets rough eluniums from the creatures there. Most of the men in my village do the same thing. They call themselves Sand Poachers. I never knew what that meant until my friend Julian told me that his dad fights creatures made out of sand in those places. I never believed him though. I mean, people made out of sand? That’s just wrong. My mom doesn’t really do much, not as an occupation that is. She stays home, and helps us with our daily stuff. Cleaning the house, washing the dishes, cooking the meals. You know, the routine stuff moms do.But we are pretty poor. Not poor like ‘we cant afford clothes and a small house’, but poor like’we cant really afford to eat the grains we plant’. Dad’s crops aren’t really what you might call ‘fertile’, not when you grow them on he hillside of a rocky Yellowstone mountain. I live in a small village called Brasilis, north of the Rune Midgrad Kingdom. If you’re not from around here, then I ought to welcome you to my world. Welcome, to the Kingdom of Ragnarok.

I’m not what you might call the most popular kid around. I’m already 10, but I’m still kinda small for kids my size. That’s why people pick on me. “hey look its Jerr…’ ‘Haha it’s the Jerr kid’. ‘Hey Jerr… mind if we… Jeer u around?’ And that sums up my life here in Brasilis. My friend Julian’s different. He’s huge. Actually, no… he’s huge in a bad way, more.. well.. let’s just leave it at chubby. He hates it when I call him fat or anything. We’re pretty tight. I mean we go to the river every evening to look at the passing fish and sometimes, if we’re lucky, we can get a glimpse of the Peco Pecos that appear to drink from the Forest across the river. Its called the Forest of Death, though. Pretty morbid name, huh? Yea I know. But legend has it, that a really scary beast lives inside of the forest. Many of us aren’t allowed to go near that place. Once, a boy name Hicks came running back into the village, saying that he saw something near the river. But by the time the villagers got to the river bank, it was already gone. He kept muttering something about a big, shiny beast. They told him there was no such thing, and the case was brushed aside. But I know its out there. The beast they call the Grand Peco.

Well, you see, the Peco Pecos are birds, large birds at that. Many of them are wild and untrained. But Pecos can be great modes of transportation. And that makes them worth a lot. But they are not easy to catch, though. Many of these birds can be aggressive, and when they do, they call more of their kind to attack any intruders. Many of the villagers would round some of them up anyway, stray ones, and sell them to the market in the city of High Brasilis down the dirt path. The High Citadel, as they call it, home to the rich and powerful in this region of land. I’ve been there before only twice in my life. Once as a boy to be baptized by the Holy Church. Its not as grand as the Grand Cathedral in the city centre, where all the rich boys go. We farmer’s boys make do with the Holy Church outside the city walls. But hey, that was as close as I got to the High city. The second time was much better.

My father had to run an errand in the town market, which was inside the city. I asked if I could tag along, and he said yes. We made it through the gates and I was mesmerized by what I saw. High towers that could touch the sky. Huge fountains that spewed wine and water. An array of stalls and shops that sold mouth watering food. The market itself was no ordinary feat. It was as tall as the towers of Glast Heim (Julian told me this, and he showed me a picture of the ruin towers once), and as wide as a hundred wheat fields back in the village. We walked inside, and it was the most exotic place I’ve ever seen. They sold items ranging from odd looking weapons, to potions, to food stocks, accessories, jewellery. There was even an old man selling funny looking hats. I remember one that looked just like a golden fox. But dad didn’t give me the time to wander around. We just dropped off the wheat to a dark skinned guy named Erl. He was a farmer too, from another village, the village of Burna. There were many villages around the city, but ours was the closest to the High Citadel.

On the way out of the market however, dad suddenly placed his hand firmly on my shoulder as we walked. I turn around and look at him. He pulled out a small sack from inside his pocket, and gave it to me. Curious, I took it from him. He smiled, as I pulled out a glittering stone from inside it. ‘An oridecon! Dad…’ I looked at him. He just laughed. ‘Its worth something around this parts. Here, take this to the merchant over there and see how much it’s worth. Then buy something for yourself. Don’t spend it all, okay? I saw the way you were looking at that hat back there. I’ll wait for you in the caravan.’

I watched him walk towards the caravan, smiling all the way. I couldn’t believe it. My very first journey to the city, and my very first purchase! I was still smiling as I walked toward the merchant my dad pointed at. The merchant’s tent was huge and grand looking. In front of the stall was a plank that read ‘B>Ores, Refined or otherwise’. There was a bell on the counter, and I rang it. A few moments later, a young man came out of the tent, and looked down at me.

‘Hey there, little fella. What can I do ya for?’ I looked at him, and then slowly reached for the Oridecon inside my jacket pocket. I placed It on the counter. The young man gave a small smirk as he identified it. ‘You’ve got yourself a nice piece of ore right here, young fella. Sturdy, strong. The weight’s good too. But…’ MY heart stopped a beat. “But what?’ The young man looked at me slowly. ‘It’s a fake.’

I was almost teary eyed. ‘Are.. are you sure? But my dad…’ The young man ignored me. ‘Your dad must have made a mistake himself. Tell you what. I’ll take this off your hands for 50 zenies. It’s a fake, so I’m doin you a favour here, pal.’ I was dumbstuck. I was supposed to get a good price for it. Dad said it could get a good price, and by that it had to over 2000z. The hat was almost 200 zenies. Now not only wont I get the hat, I had to break the news to dad. ‘Well.. ok..okay then.’ The young man pulled out a small box, and took out 5 pieces of silver. ‘Here ya…’

Just then, a sharp, high pitch noise voice came out of nowhere, and the box slammed shut. I was in awe. The young man was furious, and looked around. ‘Who the hell did that?!’ he shouted. ‘I did.’ The sound came from just behind me. I looked back, and saw the image of an old man towering above me. He was wearing a funny looking hat, and a cape. In his hand he held what looked to me like a wooden contraption, but with strings in the middle of it.

“I know that weapon… it’s a musical instrument! You’re a bard aren’t you!’ the young man fumed. He looked up at the old man, banging his fists on the counter. ‘What is the meaning of this!’ The old man placed his hands on my shoulder, the way my father did. ‘Boy, you have been cheated. That man right there is trying to scam you off your hard earned money. Take the jewel back, and give it to me. I’ll give you 60,000 zenies for it.’ I was dumbstruck. ‘6… 60,000 zenies? But he said it was a fake.’

The young man jumped over the counter and into the open. He marched up to the old man, and stared him in the face. ‘What the hell do you mean, you old fart! Are you questioning my professionalism as an identifier? My family runs the best identifier stalls in the whole city! Now get lost before I call the guards!’ The old man didn’t seem to listen at all. ‘Boy…. In your hand here is what is known as a sacred stone. This is not any ordinary Oridecon. If you will, I can show you.’ The young man was furious now. ‘Why you little…’ He reached into his jacket and pulled out a short dagger.

There was a loud scream as some passers-by watched in horror as the young man lunged at the old man. He charged forward, and raised it into the air, aiming for the old man’s chest. As he did, the old man did something I’ve never seen or thought possible. He plucked a string from his instrument, and in an instant, the young man was caught frozen, in mid air. Just as the young man was about to hit the ground, the old man plucked another string, and the young man was hit backwards, in full force, crashing into the stall behind him. The impact was loud and clattering, sending pieces of wood flying in all directions.

The old man looked at me, and smiled. ‘Now… about that stone.’ I hesitated for a moment. But I sensed a warmth in the old man’s eyes, a feeling that I’ve never had before. Shivering but still in utter bewilderment, I ran to the back of the counter, crossing over the passed out young man’s body. I found it on the counter where I handed it to him, and gave it to the old man. He raised his voice a little and turned towards the crowd already gathering to see what the commotion was all about. ‘My dear citizens, before any of you go running off to warn the guards, let me prove my innocence and this boy’s trust in me.’ He looked at me and winked. Holding the stone, he placed it near the musical instrument. With a quick and utterly unbelievable speed, he began plucking his instrument, one by one at first, and then strumming it, then in quick succession playing it as if there were 10 hands doing it at the same time. A rhythmic melody played. As he did, the stone began to shiver and crack. Little pieces of rock emerged from within the cracks, and the glistening surface on the Oridecon began to disappear. The crowd looked in awe as the ore began to emit a bluish glow, and finally, as the old man stopped playing, the Oridecon, once glistening and shiny, was now even more brilliant looking. The Edges were longer and pointed outwards, like a diamond, just longer. The base of the stone was now covered in a blackish substance, but just the bottom part of it. The old man slowly picked it up, and held it out on his palm towards me. ‘Sacred Stone. An enriched Oridecon. It has almost five times the potential as an ordinary Oridecon, plus, they cant melt under the pressure of searing heat. The perfect enchantment for weapons.’ I looked at the thing. It was even more beautiful than it was before. The old man smiled. ‘You are a very lucky boy, you know that. I’ve lived long enough to see only two of these things. And the second came from you.’ He reached for his pocket, and held out a sack. ‘Theres between 60,000 to 70,000 zenies in here. I cant really remember, my memories not at all good.’ He chuckled, then winked at me, and turned towards the crowd behind him. ‘I believe I’m telling the truth then, ladies and gentlemen?’ He walked off, leaving behind a crowd of people still dumbstruck.

At the end of the day, I knew three things as I sat beside my father on the caravan on the journey home that night. First, no one reported the incident; not even the young man who later found out that many witnesses saw the old man turning the stone blue. Secondly, I got the hat I wanted, and my father was surprised yet joyful at the sight of the 72,395 zenies in that bag, minus the 200 I used to pay for the hat. I still smile when I remember that. Third and finally, I could not take my mind of the way the old man played that instrument. And funny enough, every time I remember these events, the same song he played still echoes in my head. So I’ve made up my mind. I’m going to be a bard, the moment I come of age.