

Grandelyn

Dionne Lee Nelson

Grandelyn

Copyright © 2012 Dionne Lee Nelson

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the copyright owner. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Illustrations and covers: David Padilla and Dionne Lee Nelson

For more information about the author, please visit dionneleenelson.com

ISBN-13:978-1470079604

ISBN-10:1470079607

Printed in the United States of America

To the big and beautiful and to anyone who has ever felt less than....

-Dionne

Contents

Prologue

The History

The Mystery of Kalos

The Revealing

Origins of the Soul Realm

Beginning of the War

Kalos and the Defeated Minions

The Journey

Kalos the Beckoning

The Land of Grandelyn

The Minions Search

Amazing

Elai

Solitaire

The Dark Palace

The Journey Ends

Transitioning

 The Empire and the Warrior's Ball

Ariyah and the Ig

Restoration

The Crowning of the Queen

Grandelyn Now

Ferocities Now

Alarmed

Revelation

A Vision

Solution to the Problem

Preparations

The Battle

Epilogue

# Prologue

610 A.D.

It was dawn. Between the white dunes stood a woman over six feet tall and almost as round as the Earth. Adding to her girth was the unborn child she carried. Out of breath from running, the woman stood concentrating, stolen sword in hand. In her dirty tattered beige clothing, she took a savage fighter's stance, wielding the sword up to shield her chest. As she heard the sand ripple from behind her, her ears perked up like a cat. Her eyes scanned every direction, making sure to protect all her sides. Once again she heard the sand ripple.

A gust of wind blew as the first metal-clad soldier leapt toward her. She swung the sword, blocking his oncoming blow to her face. Quickly she turned as a second soldier leapt at her from the side. She swiped at his feet. He grabbed her and put her in a choke hold but as she kicked the first soldier she thrust her sword into the other soldier's throat. He screamed and fell over in pain as blood began to spill on the beautiful white sand. The soldiers were angrier now. They thought this mission was going to be easy, but not with this woman. She would not be going down without a fight.

Back in her fighter's stance, the wind began to pickup as sand flew around rapidly. By now four more soldiers came to the dunes. Her heart began to race harder because she knew this was the fight of her life. Being sure to guard the growing baby in her stomach; she timed herself for the first attack. Two soldiers lunged at her. She began to spin around, using her sword like a helicopter propeller. Blood and body parts splattered against the earth. A war cry came from another soldier as he ran toward her in hopes of landing a punch or a kick. But every move he made was either blocked or counterattacked. At 350 pounds, this woman fought like a samurai warrior.

Yet another soldier threw daggers at her. They struck both her arm and leg. But she kept fighting. She threw her sword at the soldier, and it found its mark in his unguarded chest.

With three dead soldiers down and a fourth badly wounded, she thought she had won the fight. Suddenly she felt the ground rumble. Breathing deeply as blood and sweat glistened on her caramel skin, her ears were soon filled with the sound of galloping horses. She quickly got back into fight stance and the soldiers on black horses appeared. She knew she could take them all on.

The wounded soldier pointed toward her and cried out "She's with child! There! Look! She's with child! Attack her belly!" With that, the fighter in her became the mother and she dropped the sword, shielding her stomach with her big brown arms.

"Charge!" The horse soldiers rushed toward the woman, throwing darts that struck her back and legs. One soldier landed a star dagger in her stomach. She cried out in pain, and went down trying to protect her baby. She fell forward but continued to hold her belly. She cradled herself. The soldiers hog tied her, strapped her to four horses and carried her away. The immense pain and worry became too much for her, and she passed out. The once beautiful white dunes, considered a primary attraction of a majestic land of beauty, were now covered with a trail of blood. It served as a reminder that the location is where a fight began. And perhaps as a sign that many more were to come.
Chapter 1

# The History

In the remote country of Mandune sits Grandelyn. Often referred to by locals and visitors as "the land of the big and beautiful", or "the place of the massive and great". Grandelyn is a city famous for its statuesque warriors. But it is equally famous for the physique of its people. Big-breasted, wide hipped, rotund bottomed, puffy women. Thick-legged, pot bellied, strong, ample men.

Grandelyn is home to those who were once enslaved by the treacherous city of Ferocities. A little more than 25 years ago, the multicultural Ferocities was ruled by the mighty Emperor Kalos and his many minions. They called themselves the Savage Kingdom. The Savage Kingdom's mission was to capture and imprison the poor in order to build a bigger and better land for themselves.

The poor, the impoverished, the slaves; Queen Ariyah was born among them. Born to a mother whom was living in the lower burrells of Ferocities during the seize, Ariyah would be the product of years of heartache, strife, and the eminent war.

The poverty-stricken lower burrells of Ferocities was dominated by many immigrants from other countries who migrated to Mandune with promises of better jobs and wealthier land. When the country's leader, Garren Ickbar, died before he could sign a treaty to allow work from foreigners in his country, all the promises had been broken. This forced the immigrants to merge into a small portion of unoccupied land within Ferocities. Those lucky enough to find work toiled in low-paying jobs as dishwashers, fence builders, farmers, and clothing weavers.

One of these "fortunate ones" was Crystaline Alia. Crystaline worked as both a candle-maker and bird trainer. Despite this, she struggled to make ends meet. She lived in a wooden hut like the rest of her neighbors in the lower burrell. In spite of the struggles of being a poor single 35-year old woman, Crystaline was generally in good spirits. She was giving and very helpful to those around her.

Crystaline was known around the destitute portion for her big, bright, beautiful, smile...her long, thick, coarse hair...her smooth honey brown skin...and for her unique physique. People often wondered how Crystaline maintained a full figure while everyone in the lower burrell barely had enough to eat. They knew she was just as poor as they were and yet she had such a healthy stature. She was also very tall for a female, so many male suitors wanted her. But Crystaline was widowed and expecting a child, so finding a new companion was the furthest thing from her mind. The secret of her healthy stature was one that she was not yet ready to reveal.

Though life for the impoverished living in the lower burrell was tough, it was about to get a lot tougher. Because they were seen as insignificant, all of the lower burrell citizens were captured and forced into slavery for Kalos and the Savage Kingdom. The first four years of captivity was hard. The newly enslaved people were treated terribly. They were branded. Each and every slave, young and old, had the letters 'SK' scorched into their skin, behind their right shoulder blades. This made it easy to identify them as the Savage Kingdom's captives. The slaves were often beaten, ridiculed, severely punished and starved. When they were given food to eat, they were served potatoes, mashed and mixed with peanut butter paste. The only reason this meal was given to them was to give them energy to continue to work each day. If ever defiant, the slaves, both adults and children, were stripped naked and beaten with leather whips that had been fashioned with metal hook tassels. The ultimate punishment to the rebellious was being smashed by the Boulder Guillotine. But with the type of fear that Kalos the Emperor had instilled in them, the Boulder Guillotine was never needed.

This imprisonment was especially hard for Crystaline. A woman who was completely use to her own independence was now made to adhere to a cruel person's rules. She didn't take the treatment lightly. Crystaline was a very defiant slave. She tried many times to escape but was often caught and severely beaten. Because of her big stature, sometimes her captors would isolate and starve her. By the time she could join the slaves again she was skinny, all except her pregnant belly.

Crystaline had the war wounds to prove her defiance. Her once flawless, smooth brown skin was now scarred and bruised from lashes and other beatings. But none of those things killed her spirit; instead she grew stronger and more determined.

Crystaline knew that she was too far along in her final trimester to attempt another escape. One day while she was out in the vineyard, she went into labor. Typically when a woman goes into labor she is taken to the kingdom's laboratory to give birth inside the dingy ragged oval bath tub. Crystaline had too much dignity and refused to bring her child into the world like a wounded dog.

Mr. Toplin, Crystaline's good friend, begged her to reconsider this position. "You're about to have to this baby, Crystaline. We have to get you inside." Her water broke and further stained her dirty, tattered dress. She resisted.

"No, I want to have my baby out here, surrounded by all of you. My friends, I want you to share this joy with me." She breathed heavily trying to ignore the painful contractions.

Vanka, Crystaline's Reemian best friend, attempted to take charge of the situation. "Okay, well lay down, chile. You don't want the baby to come bustin' out on its head, now do you?" Those who had gathered nearby collected grass and leaves and gently laid Crystaline down.

The contractions were getting closer and more severe as Vanka instructed Crystaline on how to breathe. Mr. Toplin could see from a distance that the main minions, Zodner and Semp, were watching the group from the kingdom's tall tower balcony.

"Is there a way to hurry this up?" he urged. "The soldiers are watching."

"Be easy. We can't just reach in and rip de' baby out. It's coming soon." Vanka scolded. Crystaline's panting sped up and she began pushing harder as she gripped Mr. Toplin and Mr. Crowesh's hands. Mr. Toplin looked to the tower again to find that the two soldiers were mounting their horses and making their way to the vineyard. He nodded to Mr. Crowesh, who lifted his head long enough to see the same sight.

"Ummm...Crystaline you may want to push that thing out of there. They're coming." Mr. Crowesh's raspy voice said calmly. And with that Crystaline gave a final hard push and a loud scream. The circle was filled with the angelic cries of the baby.

Vanka gave a reassuring look to the new mother. "It's a girl, Crystaline! She's beautiful." The exhausted Crystaline held her new daughter closely, and was overjoyed by the sight. The baby looked very healthy and surprisingly chubby given that Crystaline was being starved by her captors. The infant was truly a beauty. She had creamy caramel brown skin, smooth and shiny jet black hair, pretty oval eyes that were puffy and wet with tears, and pouty pink lips.

Crystaline kissed the baby on the forehead and instantly she stopped crying. There was an instant connection between the two. She looked the baby over and said, "Hmmm...I think I'll call you...Ariyah." And with that, the baby fell asleep at her bosom.

The moment of joy was interrupted with the kick of dust into their faces by the horses that stopped abruptly before the slaves. They looked up to find Zodner and Semp looking down on them from horseback.

"What do you peasants think you're doing?" Semp asked with a look of disgust. His metal mask was lopsided and his long messy blonde hair covered his eyes.

"What does it look like?" Crystaline sassed.

"You know that you are to give birth inside the castle walls. The Emperor is not going to like that you soiled his precious vineyard with your mess." The pompous Zodner whined. The surrounding slaves continued to be in awe of the infant that was lying peacefully in her mother's arms. The two minions did not like that they were being ignored.

"Alright break this up. Give us the baby." Zodner commanded. Crystaline grasped her baby tightly.

"Absolutely not. You cannot have my child." She argued. Zodner was flabbergasted at the audacity of her defiance.

"No? You need to get back to work."

"Work? You can't expect her to work after she just gave birth to de' chile." Vanka pleaded.

"You shut up, peasant!" Semp shouted. Crystaline held even tighter to Ariyah as she knew she wasn't going to give her baby to these evil men.

"Now, Crystaline, you can either give us the baby or its back to the Wall for you." Zodner threatened.

The Wall was another torturous punishment for the rebellious. The defiant slave would be chained to the Wall face first, arms up. In this position, the slave was pelted in the back with rocks and half-bricks. Crystaline knew this punishment all too well. The polka-dotted scars on her back showed she was a constant victim of the Wall.

As Crystaline continued to lie in the grass and holding her daughter, Sarah observed from the vineyard. Sarah was a slave who sometimes worked in the baby cages to take care of the infants or toddlers. She could see that Crystaline wasn't going to back down. Not wishing to witness a new mother being abused, she approached the scene and intervened.

"Crystaline, give the baby to me and I'll care for her in the cages." Crystaline didn't want Ariyah to be locked up in a cage like an animal, but she no longer had a home for her as she was a captive herself. She'd rather see her with Sarah than with the soldiers. Crystaline looked at Ariyah once more, kissed her forehead and gently gave her to Sarah.

Sarah quickly walked the baby to the cages and stayed with her. Zodner and Semp forced Crystaline to get up and continue to work in the vineyard. Weak, bloodied and in intense pain, Crystaline did what she had to do. The other slaves helped her get through the day's work.

The next four years were quiet but painful ones. Each year the slaves would get weaker and wearier – and the abuse and torture got worse. Ferocities grew in size as the slaves' work allowed for more plowed land and continuous farming, making the Savage Kingdom bigger and more dominant than any other land in Mandune.

By now Crystaline had mellowed. Since Ariyah was a toddler of five, she knew she had to be strong for her daughter. It angered her that Ariyah had to be raised in slavery. She couldn't accept the fact that her child, along with the other slave children, had to be subject to the overwork and terrors of the land. It made her even angrier that she wasn't even allowed to sleep with her child at the end of a long hard day. Just like all slave children, Ariyah was made to sleep in a cage, while the adults slept in the nooks outside.

Ariyah's cage-mates were a boy named Orraco and a girl named Sheevar. Orraco had been sleeping in the cages since he was two and Ariyah and Sheevar were both infants. All the slave children from the Savage Kingdom had to sleep there. Children from every race and culture were all stuffed inside, sometimes four at a time. This way of life was normal for them. They never knew the luxury of freedom, even if impoverished. Orraco, whose family was from a small country called Jai and migrated to Mandune in hopes of finding better employment, was an adventurous young boy. He was very overprotective of both Ariyah and Sheevar and he always felt the need to show his bravado. Orraco was two when the seize occurred, and both of his parents were slain trying to protect him. The Savage Kingdom minions took him and held him with the other orphaned children to be made and trained into slaves. Sheevar, Ariyah's other best friend, was a pleasant five year old. After hearing about the great abundance of jobs, her family had migrated to Mandune from The Land of Livian a decade before the seize. They were poor and living in the lower burrell of Ferocities with the others. Sheevar's mother, Sylvia, was a brilliant artist, but often times she would have to paint with mud because they couldn't afford paint; this limited her ability to make money. Her father, Mr. Bandi, was a hen collector. He collected hens and sold them to the local chef's in order to make ends meet. After becoming slaves, her mother became pregnant and died in childbirth without medical attention. Mr. Bandi was allowed to raise Sheevar with the help of the other female slaves. But the harsh labor and abuse of the Savage Kingdom minions caused him to fall of a heart attack by age 69.

Despite all of this, Sheevar was an optimistic child. She always had a smile on her face, framed by her beautiful curly golden locks. She was a nurturer by nature. When Orraco and Sheevar became Ariyah's cage-mates, Vanka felt sorry for the two orphaned children and decided to be their caretaker. From that point forward, the three slave children were inseparable.

Ferocities was a very cold and windy city. Because the adults were made to sleep outside in the nooks - often without blankets – illness was rampant. There were many deaths because of the lack of medical attention. It was especially painful when the babies or young ones would die from sickness. These atrocities stirred up the need in Crystaline to be free, and gave her more fuel to try to do something about their predicament.
Chapter 2

#  The Mystery of Kalos

Through the years, Kalos the Emperor was growing crueler toward his slaves. Kalos was the type that seemed to be evil and corrupt for no reason at all. No one had ever seen what he looked like. His face was always covered with an iron mask. There were no openings in his mask at all. No slits for his eyes, no holes for his nostrils and no gap for his mouth. Those around him wondered how he could even breathe or see. The look only added to his eerie image. Attached to his mask was a long, skinny ponytail that sat high atop his head and swung in every direction as he moved. His tall lanky body was always covered in a large black and gray cloak garment, with silver sandals on his feet.

Kalos took joy in others' pain. Young and old, age did not matter. He was a selfish man who allowed greed and power to corrupt him. Before becoming the Emperor of Ferocities, Kalos was a knight in the kingdom of another high power land in Mandune. He was wealthy there, had domain to almost anything and everything the king allowed and was highly respected. But his dark heart wanted more. Being a highly regarded knight wasn't good enough for him; he wanted to be the king. Because the king would not abdicate his throne, Kalos took something very dear and precious from him. The outcome was pain, heartache and destruction to the land.

Because of his evil ways, Kalos was banned from a prestigious position. Being a vengeful person, motivated him in his quest for power. He vowed never to answer to anyone, not even to the gods above. So he made his way to the City of Ferocities, killed its leaders and dominated the land for himself and his minions.

Kalos took pride in his land. The terrain of Ferocities was completely covered in marigolds. It was the children's job to plant marigold seeds all over the land. Kalos had an obsession with marigolds. It seemed unusual for such an evil man to have such a deep love of something so beautiful. But not even the innocence and beauty of a marigold could stop the evil running through his veins.

The slave children of Ferocities were made to do the dangerous and often times deadly task of catching pythons and cobras. These snakes were captured to become pets to Kalos and to those who lived in the kingdom. Once, Ariyah, Sheevar and Orraco were out in the fields with the other children trying to find small baby pythons because they were the least dangerous. Ariyah became hungry and began missing Crystaline. She wanted to go to the palace where her mother was doing her daily duties. The kingdom rules for the children were whoever found the biggest adult cobra or python was allowed to stop working for the rest of the day. So even though catching the baby reptiles was safer, catching the adults allowed them to quit. Ariyah had spotted a long, adult yellow python dangling in the tree. She knew if she got it she could go back to be with her mother.

"Sheevar, look over there" she said with all the excitement of a five year old. Sheevar stopped working to look into that direction.

"Are you mad, Ariyah?" Her little voice squeaked. "You can't get him. He'll eat you alive" she cautioned.

But Ariyah, who was all too determined, did not listen. She defiantly ran over to the tree and tried to find a way to get that snake down from its branches. Sheevar threw her basket down and cried, "Orraco, she's going to get herself killed!"

Ariyah could see him from the corner of her eye running, bare-chested, to her direction. But she tried to speed up because she didn't want him to stop her. Orraco felt because he was two years older than the girls that he was like their father.

"Ariyah get away from it. He'll attack you!" He screamed.

She just wanted to capture the snake and get back to the palace. All the other children stopped working and ran to see the action. Ariyah began to climb up the tree branches and she grabbed the snake by its tail. The python whipped its head around and snapped at her, causing her to fall backward onto the ground. She fell hard with a thud.

Sheevar was crying in horror. "Get her, Orraco! Please get her!"

The snake was slithering quickly to Ariyah as she tried to get up. It got to her foot and snapped at her heel, just missing it by a few inches. Orraco was able to grab the snake by its neck. He walked to her with disappointment.

"You could've really gotten hurt, Ariyah." He shook his head and walked back to the palace with the captured snake.

All the excitement had died down and everyone went back to work. Ariyah felt very foolish and was afraid her mother would find out what happened. She didn't want to get scolded. She only wanted to make her mother proud, and doing something so dangerous would get her paddled. Sheevar continued to bawl as she hugged Ariyah and was thankful for her safety. The kingdom minions gathered around their work area to investigate the commotion, but were now just atop their black horses and ridiculing the children.

Zodner and Semp, the main officers of the Savage Kingdom, were perhaps the cruelest of the minions. They seemed to enjoy making the slaves grovel. Zodner, the brunette with the big hump of a nose and a hairy mole under his chin, was the more intelligent of the two. He was very obedient to Kalos and always made sure to stay on his good side, wherever that was. He made most of the decisions. Semp, the blonde simpleton, was very argumentative, and that usually got him abused by Kalos as well as Zodner.

The other soldiers did not like these two and could never understand why Kalos appointed them as the higher-ups. They not only bullied the slaves but they tried to bully the other soldiers as well, often ending in brutal beatings of the two.

After all the chaos, the children were sent to eat in the dark and cold cob-web filled cafeteria to be served the usual potato and peanut paste meal with the bitter water or curdled milk. Ariyah spotted her mother sitting at the adult table with Vanka, Mr. Toplin and Mr. Crowesh. She ran over excitedly, yet anxious over the repercussions of her earlier snake tirade.

"Mother, please don't be angry with me" She whimpered, thinking that Orraco had squealed about the python incident.

"Ariyah, what are you talking about?" Crystaline asked, embracing her.

Ariyah looked at Orraco, who was sitting with the children. He did the hush motion and shook his head.

"Oh, don't be angry because you haven't seen me all day." Ariyah smiled and gave Crystaline a big hug and kiss.

"Oh, chile, go sit with the kids." Vanka chuckled. Crystaline gave Ariyah a mischievous smile and playfully smacked her butt towards the children's table.

Ariyah sat in front of Orraco and gave him the biggest snaggletooth smile to thank him for not telling. Orraco smiled, pulled a piece of green mold off of his hard biscuit, and said "Don't make a habit of it. Next time I won't be so nice."

After the slaves ate, it was bed time. The soldiers were gathering the children in single file line and preparing to take them to the cages. Crystaline grabbed Ariyah by the arm and took her to the nooks to be with her and the other adults. Crystaline had grown tired of her child sleeping in a cage like an animal. She was determined that from now on Ariyah would sleep outside in the nooks with her and she would use her tall, frail, under-nourished body as a blanket. Ariyah liked it that way. Now she could be with her mother and she could stretch out her growing limbs.

The minions did not like Crystaline making these decisions for herself, but sometimes they grew tired of her antics and just let her have her way. Kalos hated that he could not get Crystaline to break. He would inflict much pain on her, have her beaten, starved and even locked in a dungeon. But through all these things he could not get her to even cry. She was strong, and for that he despised her. He hated her more than any of the other slaves. Crystaline did everything that could and should have seen her sent to the Boulder Guillotine. But for reasons unknown to anyone, she was never sent there.

Crystaline had her reasons for not crying, at least not at the hands of Kalos. A promise she made to herself a long time ago would stop her from ever shedding a tear from this man. She also swore that she would never reveal the reason for this to anyone. But the truth would one day reveal itself.

At night, Kalos would go to his gray throne room that sat high on the kingdom tower, and contemplate many things. His thoughts would usually include Crystaline. How best to destroy this woman? To kill her would simply be too easy. He wanted to break her. He knew no one could be this strong, so he thought of ways to destroy her mind. His mission in life was to have the praise and obedience of everyone in his empire. It wasn't enough to have 99% of the kingdom doing that. And to know that Crystaline was that 1% that did not scurry with fear of him made him very uneasy. Noire, his black cobra, came and slithered to his side and wrapped himself around Kalos' leg. What no one knew was that Kalos had a huge trick up his wicked sleeve.

Chapter 3

#  The Revealing

If the weather permitted, Kalos would sometimes allow the children to work with their parents in the vineyard and fields. The fields of Ferocities were filled with sickly people working in windy conditions. But this particular day, the sun was out and allowed for a warm breeze.

Crystaline and Ariyah were with the other slaves, planting marigold seeds in the fields. As Ariyah combed the dirt, she saw that her mother had stopped working. Crystaline put down her tools and took a warriors fight stance. Then taking deep calculated breaths, she began to spin, kick, punch, and block. Her long brown arms flailed in the air in a controlled rhythm. She continued to repeat this sequence.

Ariyah stopped working and watched with intrigue as her mother flawlessly fought an invisible enemy. Crystaline was in a trance. She was concentrating so hard. Ariyah pondered what could be behind this. The other slaves stopped and watched in awe as well. They too were intrigued by what she was doing.

Crystaline was repeating special martial arts that she'd learned unbeknownst to anyone. Her audience watched in captivation as her ragged beige dress twirled in the air from every spin and high kick. To the others, she was fighting an invisible enemy. But to her the enemy was all too real.

"Crystaline, stop! The eyes watch you." Mr. Crowesh hissed through his scraggly long brown beard.

The warning broke Crystaline out of her trance. She looked toward the balcony tower of the palace. Kalos and his two henchmen, Zodner and Semp, stood there watching her intently. She knew she had been caught, but she did not look away. The slaves were frightened for her as Kalos and Crystaline stared each other down. Their hatred for each other was obvious. All was quiet and no one dared to breathe as the two continued to glare at their targets.

Crystaline's brown skin glistened with sweat as her long black hair whipped wildly in the wind. Kalos' metal mask remained still as the wind blew his black cloak garment back and forth. The stare down continued, seemingly in slow motion. Young Ariyah's heart raced with fear, and she felt it would stop completely if someone did not make a move soon.

Sensing no fear or intimidation from Crystaline, Kalos finally gave up and slowly turned to walk back into the palace. His henchmen followed behind. When Crystaline turned back around to the fields, the eyes that had been gazing upon her in awe now looked on in disappointment. Now she was seen as a potential nuisance and their fascination was gone. They returned to their work, wanting to stay in Kalos's good graces.

Crystaline didn't care what they thought. She was strong-willed and was fully prepared to carry this burden. Ariyah was proud of her, but worried as well. Crystaline was an ambitious one and there would be many more times like this. And though the other slaves looked up to her, they never had the kind of gull and confidence to do what she did. So they wanted to keep their distance from her.

While the others were busy being obedient, Crystaline was working hard to get out of this situation. Because of Crystaline's access to the entire kingdom, Crystaline often would sneak away from her duties and become involved in other activities. Restricted activities. Crystaline would sneak and watch the Savage Kingdom's fighting masters, Orah and Tunsei, practice and train the Ferocities army. Orah and Tunsei were masters of a rare form of fighting called staggito. The Staggito style of fighting consists of rapid hits to the neck, head, and ear region, while doing slow bottom attacks to the opponent. This style of fighting confuses the opponent because they do not know how to counterattack. A specific form of the hand while using the Staggito technique can cause deafness due to the strong blows to the ear, while a hit to the neck and head can be deadly. It's a very intricate and deadly form of fighting that if done correctly can kill with a single hit.

Crystaline had been secretly watching and studying Orah and Tunsei for a few years. She soon learned how to fight just as well (if not better) as they did. After the fighting gurus left Ferocities for good to tour, she also learned how to use weapons. While she was on duty cleaning the master fight room, Crystaline would sneak and practice the staggito moves using their swords. Doing staggito with swords was even more dangerous. The fast motion of the hands made the swords look like that of motor blades and would shred to pieces anyone or anything in its way.

During this time, Crystaline was also gaining weight again. The slaves were still being starved, eating little to nothing. Yet she was getting plump. Just like before, when they all lived in the lower burrell, observers could not understand how she managed to gain weight. Kalos was confused as well. Month by month slaves were overworked and underfed, but Crystaline just kept gaining weight.

The extra weight did not result in Crystaline becoming slow, somber, or lazy. In fact she had more energy and strength than anyone else. Despite doing more work than the others, she routinely snuck off into the woods to perfect her fight style.

She also had a secret that she was ready to reveal to her daughter. Many nights, Ariyah would wake up in the nooks to find Crystaline gone. Cold and confused, she would be too afraid to get up to look for her. She'd lift her head, look at all the shivering, emaciated adults lying there and lie right back down. She'd snuggle up to Sheevar (who was now allowed to sleep in the nooks as well) and Vanka, and try to fall back to sleep.

Whenever Crystaline left, she did so without anyone even knowing that she was gone. Kalos spent his nights training his pet snakes to fight each other, while the soldiers were lazy and often slept next to their posts. The slaves were exhausted from hard days of work. This all gave Crystaline time to escape for the night. Exactly where she ran off to each night was a secret she was not yet ready to reveal. She always managed to get back to Ferocities before the afternoon wake up call.

One night, after making sure everyone was asleep, Crystaline awoke Ariyah. They crept down to a creek that was off the side of the kingdom domain. Freezing and very much afraid of being caught Ariyah asked, "What are we doing here, mama?"

Eagerly and cautiously, Crystaline pulled a strange fruit out of her brown pouch. "It's called a fafura." A big smile adorned her now chubby face. Ariyah had seen every fruit (even though she was forbidden to eat them); oranges, apples, bananas, grapes but she had never seen a fafura. It was round with white rind, but when peeled the inside was sapphire blue. It was beautiful.

"Here eat some." Crystaline urged. Ariyah pulled a slice from it and ate. She thought it was the best thing she'd ever tasted in her young life. It had a sweet citrus taste to it. Still hungry, Ariyah grabbed the rest out of her mother's hand and devoured the rare fruit. Crystaline smiled in delight.

"Where did you get this?" Ariyah asked charmed.

"Ariyah, it's the most beautiful place on Earth. You've never seen anything like it, there's no place like it and no one knows about it." Crystaline explained in wonderment. Ariyah looked up to her mother as she craved for more fafura.

Crystaline stood in the frame of the big silver moon, head held high. She felt a complete sense of empowerment. Looking to the sky wistfully she said, "I call it Grandelyn." Ariyah's mouth was dripping with blue pulps as she wanted to know more.

"Grandelyn? Why?" She asked.

"Because this place is beyond amazing. It has golden skies, purple water, white sand, and all the fafura you can eat!" Crystaline grabbed Ariyah and began tickling her. The two giggled as Ariyah playfully pushed her away. Ariyah looked over Crystaline, who was now 269 lbs, closely, and still couldn't understand the weight gain.

"Well mama, why did you get so huge?" she asked.

"It's the fafura. It's a very healthy fruit and can do what no other fruit in the world can."

"But it's making you fat, mama!"

"No, baby. Not fat, great. It's making me great." She was so confident and had such a strong sense of herself, and Ariyah wanted to emulate that. She wanted to be just like her mother.

"I'm going to get us all there." Her tone was now more serious. She looked deep into Ariyah's eyes and grabbed her daughter's small cold hands. "We've had enough of this place and it will soon be time to go."

Ariyah was somewhat confused. Ferocities and the Savage Kingdom was all she knew. Slavery was all she knew, so to hear her mother speak of leaving made her a bit afraid. But it was also something about her confidence that allowed Ariyah to know that everything was going to be alright.

Suddenly Crystaline shoved Ariyah backwards causing her to fall hard on her back. The stunned five-year-old looked at her mother in confusion as tears began to well in her eyes. "Mother? Mother, why wou..."

"Get up." Crystaline coldly demanded.

"But..." Ariyah's cheeks were now wet with tears.

"Get up now." Crystaline sternly commanded with a stone face. Afraid and shocked, Ariyah slowly stood to her feet as her mother towered over her. "Wipe those tears. You will never give them the satisfaction of seeing you cry. Never. Only hold your head up high and toughen up."

Crystaline had to be hard like this. As many times that she was abused and ridiculed, she never cried. For that Kalos despised her. She wanted to instill that same strength in her child. "Now put them up." Crystaline put her big arms up in defense and attack position. Ariyah wiped her eyes and put her small arms up. "Now kick."

"What?" Ariyah asked, thinking this was absurd. Crystaline then gave her a swift sidekick causing her to fall again. When she felt the tears beginning to rise, she looked at her mother, breathed as deep as she could and the tears dried up. She got back on her feet and back in position. "Now kick." She obeyed. "Kick, kick, double kick!" Crystaline excitedly whispered out. "Left kick, right kick, swing punch, block!"

Ariyah followed all the instructions perfectly. She caught on faster than Crystaline expected. This made her so proud. To know that she was teaching her daughter self defense in the highest position, made her feel accomplished in a way. Over the course of that night – and many nights that followed – Crystaline taught Ariyah amazing things. She taught her not only how to fight, but how to meditate. She shared with Ariyah how a free mind can take on any obstacle.

Having a relaxed mind allowed them to become more confident and stronger as they continued to learn together. Each night, while the others slept, they would go back down to the creek and train. Ariyah thought it was amazing to see such a large woman doing flips and dips while twirling her makeshift weapons like batons. Ariyah was given sticks as pretend swords as Crystaline taught her how to attack and counterattack her invisible enemies. Though Ariyah had caught on to the staggito style, she was a bit envious about a particular move that she could not catch onto. Crystaline had perfected a move using a sword or two (or sticks in this case) like rotors. She could spin incredibly fast, using the swords to slice and dice anything that came in her way. Ariyah practiced and practiced this move but just could not quite master it.

Crystaline just smiled. "It's okay, cherub, you'll get it in due time." Joy and strength grew within Ariyah as her little brown arms and legs jolted around beating her invisible adversary. Crystaline was very rough with her. She felt that she had to be. She knew that the enemy would not have any mercy on her, so she had to prepare Ariyah to be strong and fight back. They would tackle each other on the ground, and each time Crystaline's massive body would nearly crush her child. But by then Ariyah had eaten quite a few fafuras herself and was getting hefty too.

Crystaline was making Ariyah into a warrior. The fafura gave Ariyah god-like energy and strength, and the young child felt she could handle anything. They had to be careful that Kalos and his minions didn't catch them training, for they could be killed for such behavior. Staggito fighting was cherished in Ferocities, primarily because not many people could do it. Many of Ferocities' soldiers couldn't even do it. So if Crystaline and Ariyah were caught learning that, they'd likely be off to the Boulder Guillotine.

After seeing the success she had with training Ariyah, Crystaline decided it was time to teach the others. She had to be careful about this though. She had to find the slaves that could be trusted. She couldn't afford to have someone reveal her plans. Crystaline started with Vanka. She gave Vanka the fafura to eat, and they snuck down to the creek at night to train. Next she taught Mr. Toplin and Mr. Crowesh. Then Sarah. And so it continued.

While Crystaline spent her time secretly teaching the adults, Ariyah used her time to train some of the kids. She taught Sheevar and Orraco how to fight first. They were captivated to see how chubby she had gotten and how she had learned to fight so well. Especially Orraco, who was a rambunctious boy and took a deep interest in learning how to fight. They caught on very fast, for the minds of children are like sponges.

Ariyah had taught some of the other children as well, but all training came with a warning. If someone was caught practicing staggito by Kalos and his men, they would have to be killed by the fellow slaves. This rule was to make sure that there would be no traitors. Fortunately they all knew to keep quiet and to only train at night while the entire kingdom was presumed asleep.

The eating of the fafuras and training went on for 2 and one half years. Each and every last slave had perfected the style and they had all gained a sufficient amount of weight – to the utter shock of Kalos. He could not fathom their healthiness, since they were living in such dire straits. The slaves grew hefty and rotund, some bigger than others. Yet they all still grew very plump, and they had all become a secret army.

Kalos had no idea what they had been up to. The slaves agreed to behave in an obedient fashion, so as to not to give any reason for the soldiers to suspect anything. But with such drastic changes to their bodies, it was just a matter of time before Kalos would want to investigate.

Kalos had conjured up a new task for them all. A task to protect what would become the origin of their imminent fight and eventual journey.

Chapter 4

#  Origins of the Soul Realm

Kalos had recently uncovered a bronze medallion locket. This locket was a key to a very special entity. Apparently the Savage Kingdom was built atop of an old graveyard. However, this wasn't any ordinary graveyard filled with the rotting flesh of dead corpses. This graveyard was a portal that pulled energy from both Heaven and Hell, causing friction between the spheres. This friction created a phenomenon known as the 'Soul Realm' within the center of the Earth.

The Soul Realm's origin was a complex one. It started with two faithful warlocks, Vladimir and Ingal. Vladimir wanted a deep connection with the gods and wanted their love and acceptance on the Earth. Ingal was more cynical. He was amazed by the powers of devils and felt that the power of the evil ones could give him his heart's desires.

The two warlocks wanted to have access to both portals. Ingal had opened the gates of Hell and evil began to dominate the Earth. So Vladimir begged the gods to intervene and open their heavenly gates to stop the evil. When both gates were opened, a massive vertical friction from the energies was created. A massive beaming light – of both good and evil – dominated the land of what was to be Ferocities.

This Soul Realm was and is to this very day incredibly dangerous. It acts much like the human ego. If the ego gets too big, particularly within the wrong person, the results can be devastating. Similarly, whatever gets pulled into the Soul Realm becomes bigger and more grandiose, depending on the intentions of the provider. For example, if a greedy man throws a coin into the Soul Realm, millions more would find their way to the other side. Or if an undesirable woman longed for a mate, she could spray her favorite scent into the portal and dozens of men would be in pursuit of her. In turn, if a hungry father who only wanted food to give to his family placed a bread crumb inside, he and his family would be fed for an entire year. The results vary depending on the intentions of the provider.

In these earlier days, Ingal was using the portal more than Vladimir. He put magic spells inside the portal to ask for more evil in the world as well as world domination. As the Earth's evil grew, Vladimir discovered what Ingal was doing and realized that the Soul Realm needed to be closed. But he had no clue how to do this, because neither of the energies was going to give up. The gods would never stop trying to protect the Earth and the devils were not about to stop attacking now that their gates were opened.

Because this portal was entirely too dangerous to have exposed to the world, Vladimir came up with a plan to hide the entity. Ingal – who was now half demon – knew Vladimir was trying to get rid of the Soul Realm. He attacked Vladimir, stabbing him in the stomach and chest five times. Ingal became blood drunk and celebrated with the demons that were rapidly coming from his body. They circled Vladimir's dying body; teasing and taunting him as he fought to take his final breaths. Ingal danced happily with the demons. As he did, Vladimir pulled out a small potion bottle. Struggling to breathe and gurgling blood he whispered, "Let he who taketh my life turn to dust." He threw the bottle, hitting Ingal directly in the mouth. Instantly Ingal turned into brown dust and blew away. The demons turned into dust as well.

He knew having this portal was detrimental to the Universe, so he began to implement his plan from before. He conjured up a spell and made a statue of a limbless woman on a pedestal to plug up the tension of the portal. With that, the beaming light was gone. He took off his bronze medallion and cast a spell on it. He spoke almost breathlessly. "Whoever possesses this locket will have the power to move the Earth. Please release it to the deserving or don't be found at all." He had enough strength to place the medallion on the neck of the statue. Then he fell backwards and died.

The Soul Realm remained hidden under that statue for centuries. Mandune had not yet been founded, so the statue sat alone in the land stifling a powerful secret. But now the portal had become reopened. Behind the Savage Kingdom, construction was being done to build another part to the palace building.

Zodner and Semp came busting into Kalos' ward as he fed Noire. Almost completely out of breath, they panted heavily as they announced the news.

"Emperor! Emperor! At least 50 of your men have been killed!" Kalos sat up in his seat, his mask hiding whatever expression he had.

"What happened?" He asked.

"The constructors were working and suddenly an explosion of light blasted them away!" Kalos was puzzled. He didn't know what they were talking about. He quickly went out to the construction site and saw a bloody massacre of men's body parts everywhere. Only a few managed to get away from the damage. The strong beaming light was gushing from the sky into the ground.

"What is this?" Kalos asked, compelled to get closer.

"We don't know, Emperor, but it came from nowhere, and look what it's done to our men!" Zodner cried. Kalos didn't care about the men. He was intrigued by this light. An injured soldier limped to Kalos.

"Emperor, I found this over by a broken statue in the field. I think this may have something to do with it." The soldier placed a dusty bronze medallion into Kalos' hands. Kalos studied the jewelry. It had a carving of a Woolly mammoth's face on it. He began to feel a powerful sense from this necklace.

"A couple of the workers accidentally knocked over that woman statue and that's when the light blasted through. This was hanging from it." The soldier continued. Kalos sent him away and looked to the light again. He was smitten by the force that was coming from this unusual site. He immediately ran back to the palace and demanded to speak to his personal wizard. After the wizard studied the light and the medallion, he let Kalos know what the Soul Realm was, it's origin and that the medallion was its one and only key. From then on Kalos wore the medallion around his neck at all times. With this key, Kalos now knew that anything that gets pulled into that portal gets transported into that locket. He wanted to make sure no one else in the land or the world could gain access to it.

Chapter 5

#  Beginning of the War

Out of fear that someone would find his discovery, Kalos' new burden for the slaves was to build a shield to cover the newly discovered Soul Realm. Day and night, the slaves were to use brick and cement mix to build a dome shaped cover over this portal. They were placed into different groups and were assigned specific tasks. The women were to mix the mortar, the children were to carry the extremely heavy ready-made cinder blocks and bricks to the men, and the men would slather on the mortar and begin laying the brick down in a building pattern. The Soul Realm was massive however, and it took six months to finish only one side of the shield. Kalos grew extremely paranoid that his precious portal would be found, and became convinced that the slaves weren't working quickly enough. It was then when he decided to use his Soul Realm for the first time.

Late one night, Zodner and Semp were instructed to bring Mr. Toplin to the palace. They made their way to the dirt nook where Mr. Toplin was sleeping, and struggled to pull him up from the ground. They tied his big arms to the hooks on the saddle of the horse and dragged him forward as their horses galloped away.

Crystaline yelled from behind. "Where are you taking him? He has done nothing wrong!" She pleaded with frustration.

"It's alright, Crystal. I'll be back by morning." Mr. Toplin calmly assured her as the horses sped faster, causing him to run with them.

He was brought to Kalos, who was standing in the field behind the palace next to the half-built shield. Kalos was standing with his back facing them and his cloak flailing in the wind. The light from the portal illuminated his silver faceless mask as Noire wrapped himself around his left thigh.

"Drop him" Kalos demanded, still facing the portal. Mr. Toplin was pushed to the ground and laughed at. Slowly Kalos turned around and towered over Mr. Toplin, who was struggling to stand. Kalos stood quietly, his blank mask staring into a worried Mr. Toplin.

"You wanted to see me, sir?" He stuttered. Kalos said nothing. The wind was painfully beating against their skin from the force of the Soul Realm. Finally Kalos broke his silence.

"Tell me, Toplin. How long do you think it will take to complete this shield?" He asked with a hiss.

"I don't know, sir. It could take years. I don't even know if it can be shielded. It is coming from the sky." Kalos was silent again. He looked Mr. Toplin over, curious of his appearance.

"You, like the others, have gotten very grotesque. Do you care to tell me how that happened?" Mr. Toplin, who used to be a very tall, slender, dark-skinned man, was now pot-bellied and big-armed with a thick shiny bald head. He looked very strong to Kalos. That is exactly what Kalos liked about him. But he still wanted to know about the weight gain. Mr. Toplin had no intention of sharing the secret of the beloved fafura. So he remained silent. Kalos realized that Mr. Toplin would not reveal the secret.

"So you don't think this great beam of light can be hidden, huh?' Kalos asked with a hidden smile. Mr. Toplin shook his head. "Toplin, do you know what this is?"

"No, sir, but it must be something important if you want to hide it."

"Yes, and I need to hide it quickly. I just don't think you all can do it in a substantial amount of time. Maybe I need to hire new workers."

"Well I don't know where you'll get that. We are the best workers you have and will ever get." Mr. Toplin said taking pride and adapting to his role as a slave.

"Well we'll have to just see about that." Suddenly with a big force, Kalos kicked Mr. Toplin into the portal. The wretched screams of Mr. Toplin didn't last long. Kalos looked anxiously inside to see what would happen. But he didn't see anything at all. There was no sparks, no lightening, no noise, nothing.

"Worthless! It doesn't work at all!" He screamed at Zodner and Semp. He began kicking the shield and the palace walls, when suddenly thick pressure began to weigh his neck down. "What is going on?" he asked. He ripped the medallion off and threw it to the ground. They couldn't believe what they saw.

In the next few weeks, the slaves continued to work tirelessly on the shield. Each day was the same routine. Mixing the mortar, carrying the bricks, and laying the pattern down; all while being starved to bring their weight back down. They worked hard like this as the force of the portal whipped through their skin, causing many lacerations to the slaves. They soon noticed that new slaves had begun to work there. They knew these slaves were not from among their ranks because they were too skinny. The new slaves all looked like each other, like they were all the same person except some were as light as the day and some were as dark as the night. They were clothed in new, crisp white linens, not the shabby, tattered, beige rags that the old slaves wore. Although these slaves had never been seen before, they all still looked very familiar.

That's when Crystaline began to connect the dots. Ever since Zodner and Semp came to take Mr. Toplin away, he had not been seen. She suddenly realized that all these slaves resembled him, men and women. It was obvious to her that Kalos had used his portal on Mr. Toplin.

On that night after Kalos ripped the medallion from his neck and threw it to the ground, the locket opened when suddenly a man popped out. Zodner and Semp became afraid. The man was tall, dark, skinny, bald, and he had white eyes. He was naked and he had a hard time standing up straight. His body was flimsy, like that of a newborn baby. But his legs kept moving, though wobbly. He looked like a skinny corpse version of Mr. Toplin. Kalos stood back and watched in both disgust and amazement at what just appeared. Kalos slowly walked to this being. Noire was erect and ready to lunge.

"What is your name? What are you?" He asked. The being let out an incoherent, lazy, somber moan.

"Emperor, what is going on?" Zodner asked with fear.

"I'm not sure." Suddenly another man popped out of the medallion. He looked just like the first one. Then another man popped out looking like the first two except he was white. Then a woman popped out looking like the beings before her and she looked like Mr. Toplin too. More and more of these beings popped out of that locket, all recreations of Mr. Toplin. Then Kalos realized these were his desires. He wanted more slaves to build the shield to the portal and when he kicked Mr. Toplin inside; his desires came into the locket. He didn't expect them to look like that, but was happy to know that the portal did work.

The courtyards and terrains were filled with these somber almost zombie-like Toplin re-creations. They did not speak, they marched back and forth mixing mortar, carrying bricks and cinder blocks, and laying the rest of the foundation for the surrounding shield. They looked like well-dressed corpses, and their appearance frightened many of the children. Crystaline was heartbroken to know that her friend was sacrificed for such a selfish reason. As the new slaves continued working on the shield, Crystaline held a secret gathering on the unfinished side of the realm.

"Do you see this?" Mr. Crowesh asked in disbelief, his pale forehead wrinkling up with perplexity.

"Yes, Jon, I see. And I also see that this thing is the cause." Crystaline answered with dread in her voice. "This thing is evil. Well at least that's what it's being used for. Kalos has perverted this energy and nothing good can become of it."

"My ancestors spoke of a presence such as this." Vanka chimed in. "Back home in the Reema Islands, my great-grandmother used to tell us stories of a source that could grant wishes, be they good or evil. She told us that only the key-holder could use it, and if the key was to get into the wrong hands all of man-kind could be doomed." Everyone listened closely to Vanka's deep voice recall her story. "I never would have thought that the stories were true and I certainly never would've imagined the energies she spoke of would be here in Mandune or Ferocities." As Vanka continued to speak, Ariyah could see the minions, walking their horses, getting closer to their circle. "Emperor Kalos is a cruel man and all of his intentions are wrong. We have to do something soon before it's too late." Vanka whispered.

Crystaline realized time would soon be closing in on them. "I know. We must..."

"Hey, Pigs!" A loud thunderous voice boomed, interrupting Crystaline and startling everyone. Zodner was sitting on top of his big black horse, glaring down at them. "Break this little union up now. The Emperor doesn't like it." Crystaline looked at him with revolt. They didn't move, which flustered Zodner. With his silver feather helmet sliding slightly down his forehead, he shouted "Don't start with me, Crystaline." He directed his anger to their obvious leader. "You don't want a few thrashings, now do you?" as he reached for his leather and metal whip.

Ariyah squirmed as she grasped her mother's arm in fear. Crystaline could feel her anguish. She looked to her friends and gave a head nod signaling for them to obey. They all got up and began walking back to their designated working areas. "Zodner continued taunting Crystaline as he trailed after them. "I don't know why Emperor has yet to slay you. I just don't understand, but you'll get what's coming to you soon enough."

Crystaline went back to the women's area with the re-creation slaves and she watched them closely. Ariyah stayed close to Sheevar and Orraco as they worked as a team to help carry the bricks to the shield area. Ariyah worriedly watched her mother from a distance.

"I have a feeling that something really bad is going to happen, friends. And I am afraid." Sheevar's little chubby body delicately hugged her and Orraco stroked her back in comfort.

"Whatever happens, Ariyah, I'll protect you" Orraco bravely promised. Her words were all too true. As the night time fell, they could hear the minions yelling at the re-creation slaves. Some were getting thrashed with the whips for not listening or understanding their directions. All that could be heard was the teasing from the minions and the loud screams of torture and gibberish coming from the slaves. Ariyah was shaking with fear inside the dirt nook. Crystaline felt her. She turned over and put her big burly arms around Ariyah.

"Its okay, Ariyah. Mother's here. Sleep, cherub, sleep." Her voice was so comforting to the frightened child. Ariyah watched her mother's big beautiful face gaze at hers in such a loving and reassured way. She, to Ariyah, looked like an angel from the Heavens. Ariyah was able to fall asleep again even though temperatures had dropped outside and the wind was blowing fiercely. The warmth of Crystaline's ample body soothed her right back to sleep.

As dawn approached the slaves were awakened to the horrific sounds of the minion's barks. "Get up! Get up, you vile peons! Get up!" Semp galloped back and forth on his horse, across their nooks was yelling. The men, women, and children all shot up out of their dirt beds. "Bring them out too!" Semp continued to bark out orders, his big nose wet with mucous from the cold temperatures outside. The other minions went to the cages to let the sleeping children out. "All of you get to the courtyard now!" He swung his whip viciously in the air. "The Emperor wishes to see you." Semp then began to cackle as he quickly galloped his horse back to the courtyard of the palace, his blonde pony-tail whipping wildy behind him. Everyone looked worried and frightened.

"Crystaline, what's happening?" Vanka asked, holding Sheevar and Orraco.

"I don't know. But we are surely about to find out." Ariyah grabbed hold of Sheevar's hand, which was tightly holding Oracco's. Ariyah also held onto her mother's arm and refused to let go as they began making their way nervously to the courtyard. The slaves came in droves. The courtyard was filled with all of them and they were met with the stillness and eeriness of Kalos, who was sitting quietly on top of his black horse. His usual mask was blank, which frightened the slaves more as they could not tell what he was thinking.

After they finished packing into the courtyard, Zodner yelled out, "Quiet! Quiet, you slaves! The Emperor has something to say." The courtyard became pin-drop quiet. Kalos and his horse walked toward the shivering slaves and then stopped. They all looked at each other with concern as Kalos just sat there waiting.

"How long did you think I would let the betrayal last?" His deep nearly muffled voice suddenly boomed through his closed mask. No one dared to answer him as they were not quite sure what he meant. "I gave you all a place to stay. Jobs. Food to eat. And this is how you choose to repay me?" He continued as his horse went back and forth in front of them. "Me? Your lord, your king? I could have slaughtered you all a long time ago, but I kept your lives and you scheme behind my back?" He seemed to search right through them with his eyes, maybe searching for answers.

"No one has yet to tell me how you all have gained so much weight." He looked through them again. "We've starved you. We have taken pleasure in starving you... and yet you still have all become fat, worthless peasants. Now tell me how does one manage to do such a thing?" The slaves remained quiet. No one was going to give up the secret. His blank mask remained still.

"Very well." He broke his silence. "I have concocted a little plan of my own." The slaves began to look at each other and the mumbling began.

"Quiet!" Zodner yelled out thrashing his whip again.

"Since I can no longer trust you, I have acquired new slaves. They're better slaves and they work harder than you. You are now expendable, and will be disposed of immediately... starting with the children."

Cries and screams rang out as the minions violently came through and began to tear the children away from their mothers and fathers. The first 12 children were pulled to the edge of the courtyard terrain and thrown off the rocky cliff. Ariyah grabbed Crystaline's leg in horror. More cries of terror and anguish filled the courtyard. Crystaline grasped Ariyah with a look of fear on her face. The sight of the children being thrown to their deaths shot a pain of fear through all the parents.

"They're going to kill us." Vanka said desperately in her thick accent. Sheevar and Orraco held on tight to Ariyah as she continued to lock onto her mother. Mr. Crowesh's heavy pale body rushed over to Crystaline and Vanka.

"What are we going to do, Crystaline?" He asked franticly. Although Crystaline wasn't prepared, she remained calm as she observed what was happening. More children were being snatched away and thrown to their deaths, leaving behind horrified loved ones. She was trying to focus. She was looking for possible escape routes when one of the soldiers bum-rushed into their section and grabbed hold of Ariyah's arm. Ariyah screamed as he began trying to pull her away, his grip tremendously firm. Crystaline cut her focus and used her big body to bump him back. Stumbling backwards, he gave Crystaline the look of audacity. He tried to reach around her again to get to Ariyah and she bumped him even harder and further back, like a charging bull. He stared at her and she stared him down in true defiance, breathing heavy and getting ready. He couldn't believe the amount of strength she had.

Growing flustered the soldier yelled, "Move, you arrogant wench!" And with that he charged through her, grabbed Ariyah's arm and tried to carry her away, all while Sheevar and Orraco striking him. Crystaline reached around him and grabbed his heavy metal sword. She came up with a forceful uppercut blow jamming the sword into his jaw. The soldier dropped Ariyah and wrapped his hands around his bloody throat before perishing face-first in the dirt.

With that, it had begun. Crystaline went on a rampage. "Slaves, do as I have taught you! GO!" Remembering all the skills Crystaline had trained them in; the slaves began to fight back as the horse-ridden metal clad soldiers rushed in on them with swinging swords. A horse soldier was charging right at Crystaline. She took her sword, jammed the horse in the throat and swiped through, tearing his whole head in half. The soldier fell backwards off of the horse. Crystaline threw the sword like a dagger, striking him in the chest. Two more minions ran to attack her. One punched her in the face, temporarily dazing her. She recovered and she kicked him in the throat, knocking him down to the ground. The second minion kicked her in the leg, but she quickly regained her balance, grabbed him by the head and swiftly twisted it, snapping his neck.

Through all the chaos, Ariyah watched in amazement as her mother took each and every oncoming opponent and defeated him. She was so preoccupied watching her mother that she didn't see the minion running towards her. He went to grapple her but she ducked and gave him a forceful kick in his side. He toppled over. She was in warrior position now. Another minion ran to attack her. He charged at her but she sidestepped him and gave a forceful and deliberate swift blow to his throat. He died instantly. Ariyah had achieved one of the deadly staggito moves.

As Crystaline fought her enemies, she would occasionally look over to Ariyah to make sure she was handling herself well. When she saw that Ariyah was proving her warrior skills, Crystaline continued to wreak havoc. Sheevar and Orraco were each battling minions. Vanka and Mr. Crowesh were handling themselves well too. They were giving the Savage Kingdom the fight of their lives.

The bloodied soldiers could see who the slave's leader was and they chose to attack her at once. While Crystaline was simultaneously slaying 3 minions, 10 horse-ridden soldiers barged through. One of the horses kicked her in the head, knocking her to the ground. No one could help her. The slaves were still fighting minions off themselves.

"Bring her to me!" Kalos demanded fiercely. The horse-kick to the head made Crystaline very dizzy, and she struggled to gain composure as the minions and soldiers tied her to the back of the 10 horses.

"Mother!" Ariyah screamed out as they rode her up the road to the back entrance of the palace. "Mother!" She called out again. Suddenly she was met with a kick to the face and knocked down to the ground by another minion. Dazed and shocked, Ariyah got up, wiped the blood from her nose and charged him with a jump and kneed him in the chin. As his head went backward, she came down with her elbow to his throat, crushing his Adam's apple and killing him. She looked around for more approaching minions. They were all being handled by the other slaves.

"Ariyah!" She heard her name being called in the mist of the chaos. She looked around. It was Vanka.

"Ariyah, come on. Come with me" she called out. Ariyah ran through the crowd to follow her when a minion pounced on her. He smashed her young body into the ground. He was laughing with glee as he put all his weight onto her, making it difficult to breathe. Ariyah recalled her training, when Crystaline would smash her into to the ground with all her weight. Remembering how Crystaline taught her to respond, she bit into his chest as hard as her teeth would allow, kneed him in the groin, and then flipped his body over her. Now on top, she then straddled him and punched his nose up into his brain, killing him.

Ariyah rose up, looked at her surroundings, straightened her ragged clothing and continued to run to Vanka. Vanka took her by the hand as they ran up the same back road that Crystaline had been taken. Mr. Crowesh followed.

When they got to the back of the palace, they could hear Crystaline's screams of torture. She had apparently fought them off as much as she could, seeing how most of the soldiers were bloody and sprawled out on the ground. But they had overtaken her and strapped her to the Boulder Guillotine. Kalos was laughing in delight, still on top of his horse. Vanka, Mr. Crowesh and Ariyah were hiding behind part of the palace tower wall. They were very close to the Soul Realm portal on the unfinished side of the shield. The re-creation slaves were pacing around the shield franticly, with no direction at all. They seemed to be distressed by all the chaos but lacked the mental capacity to understand it.

"Oh no, Vanka, they're going to kill her." Ariyah wept quietly. Vanka remained quiet as she continued to look on. Kalos got down from his horse and walked over to Crystaline, who was struggling to get out of the base of the trap door. He knelt down and they seemed to be having a small argument. Kalos suddenly took off his mask, but the beam from the bright sun created a dark shadow that kept his face covered.

"You have always been my most rebellious slave. I have spared you for too long. Your time is up, Crystaline." Crystaline struggled to un-wrap her wrists from the metal belts holding them.

"I had every right to disobey you. You are an evil man and the day will come when you will rot like the corpses of those you have killed." She spoke through gritted teeth. "What you did to me and many others will come back to you tenfold. What you did to me will never be forgotten. May it always haunt you." He stared down at her, and remained speechless. The chilled wind and portal force moved debris all around them. She stared back, blood trickling from her lips and skin. He looked away and walked off.

"Let it drop!" Kalos commanded.

"Mother!" Ariyah cried out running from their hideout.

Vanka called out, trying to stop her. Crystaline, who saw Ariyah running toward her, panicked as she didn't want Kalos or the soldiers to harm her. Unable to stop her daughter, Crystaline had a look of defeat as she knew her life would be over soon and no one could help her now. Kalos moved to attack Ariyah. But before he could pass the Boulder Guillotine, Crystaline managed to forcefully grab the bottom of his cloak garment through the arm loops. He lost his balance and fell to his knees, immediately next to her. She grabbed him by his collar, where his medallion was hanging, and shouted out "And with my death I commend my spirit into the Soul Realm!" She snatched the medallion off his neck and threw it backwards to Ariyah. "Remember all I have taught you, Ariyah! Now run!"

Ariyah quickly ran back to Vanka and Mr. Crowesh, minions following, but she just had to look back once more. As she did, the soldiers cut the netting rope down and the 10 ton boulder came crashing down onto Crystaline's head, blood splattering everywhere. Ariyah screamed as she watched the minions rushing closer to her.

"Come on, Ariyah!" Mr. Crowesh yelled, tugging at her arm.

"Get my medallion back!" Kalos screamed, running toward them as well. There was no more time for tears, they had to move fast. . They ran back down to the courtyard where the other slaves were still fighting, and soon all of the minions were defeated.

"Slaves, go! Go! GO!" Mr. Crowesh commanded as he knocked a soldier off of his horse and grabbed as many children as he could to begin the ride off and out of the kingdom. Vanka grabbed a horse, and together with Ariyah, Sheevar, and Orraco they began to ride out of the kingdom as well. The others followed suit and soon the slaves had taken enough horses and were able to escape. Tired, out of breath and without transportation, the Savage Kingdom soldiers and minions stopped chasing the runaways. The Savage Kingdom had been defeated, and Ariyah was in possession of the great Emperor's most sacred possession – his medallion. She didn't really understand why her mother had given it to her just yet. The runaway slaves rode out of the Savage Kingdom and the City of Ferocities. They didn't quite know where they were going, but they were surely on the right track.

Chapter 6

#  Kalos and the Defeated Minions

Kalos' thick metallic sandals crushed the earth beneath him. He paced the courtyard that had just witnessed his defeat, stepping over and on the massacred bodies of his own soldiers and slaves. The remaining minions were afraid to approach him; no one wanted to feel his wrath. Zodner and Semp cowered in the corner of the palace tower and watched Kalos stroke the ripped collar where his precious medallion once laid. Kalos was quiet, and it was not immediately clear where his thoughts were. He slowly walked over to a slain horse that still had the sword that had killed it in its neck. He placed his sandal on the horse and ripped the sword out, blood dripping onto his leg and cloak. Kalos' blank mask stared into the stained reflection of the sword.

"You!" His deep voice zipped across the courtyard to the cowardly men, pointing his sword at them. "How could you have let my medallion go? You let them get away." The trembling men stuttered while trying to speak.

"Em...Emperor, if I may speak, they were just too fast for us" Zodner stammered.

"How could those fat animals, outrun you? You should have taken them on." Kalos continued to accuse as he paced back and forth.

"With all due respect, Emperor, you have failed to catch them as well" Semp said. Kalos bare mask turned in his direction. Semp immediately knew he had made a mistake. Kalos marched slowly and sternly to Semp and stood in front of him, his tall lanky body towering over the minion.

"I could not catch them because I was busy with their leader. You on the other hand had more than enough time to seize them and you wasted the opportunity." Kalos then rammed his masked head into Semp's face, breaking his nose. "Watch your mouth, minion, or you'll be laid out right here like the rest of your pathetic army." Kalos quickly turned away, leaving Semp to slide down the wall in pain and fear. Zodner and the others were sure to keep their mouths closed.

Kalos stormed back up the road leading to the back of the palace, where Crystaline's body was still attached to the Boulder Guillotine. He looked in anger and disgust at her lifeless blood-soaked body. In an act of frustration, he kicked her headless body with all the fury he had left.

"You! You always gave me hell!" He shouted to her remains. The re-creation slaves were frightened as they mindlessly bumped into each other trying to find a place to hide. They were still near the unfinished shield exposing the vertical portal that Kalos so desperately desired. "What use are you to me now?" He shouted to the Soul Realm. He knew without that medallion that his passions could not be fulfilled. "Minions, we must get that medallion back now!" He looked deep into the portal and cried out. "For without it Ferocities will become nothing!" He then delivered a powerful kick to the nearest re-creation slave, knocking him into the portal. This spontaneously killed all of the re-creation slaves.

Chapter 7

# The Journey

The escaped slaves made their way far enough from Ferocities to safely take a break. The horses were tired and the slaves were thirsty. They came upon a small village called Nashre'. It was a poor village with many huts for homes, and there weren't many people there. But those that were treated the foreigners with much kindness. They gave the runaway slaves fresh water from their wells and allowed them to sleep inside and outside of their huts. The ex-slaves were used to sleeping outside so they didn't mind.

Mr. Crowesh, still drenched in sweat and blood, saw a small broken well in the middle of the land, right between two small huts. His legs sore from fighting and riding, he limped over to the well. The metal spoon used for getting the water was lodged between the cracked brick and crushed handle holder. He struggled to unleash the spoon from the holder. An old man, blind in one eye, balding and dressed in a shredded tan robe, peacefully limped with his twisted cane over to the well. He signaled for his young teenage daughter to cater to Mr. Crowesh.

The young dark-haired maiden quickly rushed over to help. She smiled at him and took over the handle. She jiggled it a bit and twisted it and the spoon was let loose. Mr. Crowesh smiled with embarrassment.

"It gets a little tricky." Her soft voice said. She scooped up a cup full and placed it to his bloodied cracked lips. He ravenously drank from it. With his thirst quenched, his attention turned to the heat. He sought to pour the cool water on himself. He tore off his ragged shirt, exposing his SK brand mark.

The old one-eyed blind man, the father of the Nashre' village, curiously asked with his hoarse voice, "You all are from Ferocities? You're all slaves?" There was a bit of fear in his voice.

Mr. Crowesh gulped more water, wiped the water from his tattered and bloody beard and said, "Not anymore, old man. Not anymore." The old man smiled with relief.

The Nashreans were very courteous to the ex-slaves. They gave them plenty of bread and water to eat before letting them retire for the night. The group, still shaken from battle, created a bon-fire to keep them warm. As everyone sat around recounting what had happened almost a day ago, Ariyah turned her back to them. She didn't want them to see her mourn. She cried quietly as she held onto the very last thing her mother would ever give her. Sheevar, sad merely because her best friend was sad, rested her head on Ariyah's back to comfort her. Orraco put his arm around her shoulders. But there would be no comforting the child this time. Her mother was gone and she was never coming back.

Vanka could see that the child was hurting, so she came over and took her by the hand. She led Ariyah out into the land away from everyone else. Ariyah began to cry, Vanka watched on diligently.

"I know, Ariyah...you have every right to feel the way you do" she said, grabbing Ariyah and holding her close.

"She should be here with us too. But she's gone. She's gone!" Ariyah sobbed more, really feeling Crystaline's absence now.

"No child, she is here with us; she's not gone at all" Vanka said reassuringly.

Ariyah looked to her in confusion. "I don't understand."

Vanka knelt down. "When they killed your mother, I saw her spirit go into the Soul Realm" she explained. "That is why she gave you Kalos' medallion. She's in there." Vanka tapped on the bronze locket. Ariyah's damp eyes looked down at the necklace in disbelief. Vanka nodded with a smile on her face.

"Whatever goes into that Soul Realm goes into this locket" she continued to explain. "That is why I do not weep for Crystaline, chile, because she is still with us." She took the medallion and tied it gently around Ariyah's neck. A warm calming feeling came over her body as Ariyah stroked the oval ornament. A smile was upon her face as she gazed at it.

"But you must understand, this is a very powerful thing you have here. Remember it can be used for both good and evil purposes." Vanka grew more serious. "Because your mother is inside, you mustn't corrupt it. And may it never leave your side." That was almost too much caution for her eight-year-old mind. She shook her head no. She didn't even want to use it. But just knowing that her mother was in there, closer to her than she ever knew was good enough for her. She felt so much better and her tears stopped.

"Now the place where Crystaline got the fafuras, what is it called?" Vanka asked. Preoccupied with caressing the medallion, Ariyah remembered.

"Grandelyn; mother called it Grandelyn" she answered with a big smile.

"Grandelyn? Okay. Well she always said we would get there, but we don't know where it is."

"Well I know that Mother used to say you would know it was Grandelyn when the blue sky turned gold, the water purple, and the sand white" Ariyah recounted. "She also said to look for the green palm trees with the white ball fruit hanging from it." That was the only characteristics of Grandelyn Crystaline had left behind. She never gave any direction to where this place was. The escapees didn't know how far it was or which direction to continue on. When Vanka and Ariyah went back to their people at the bon-fire, they told Mr. Crowesh what they had discussed. He then asked the young dark-haired maiden from the water well if she had ever heard of Grandelyn.

"I have never heard of a place called Grandelyn, but I do know of the palm tree that bridges the brown sand lands to the white sand land. That is a part of Mandune that is not visited at all. It is forbidden."

"Why is it forbidden?" Mr. Crowesh asked.

"Well my father told me it had something to do with a king who ruled there. I think he had it sealed off by using evil spirits. Those who try to pass the white lands would be cursed." Everyone looked confused. Mr. Crowesh didn't want to become a cursed human trying to get to a land he had never even really heard about.

"Maybe we should find another land to migrate on. Hey, maybe this one. We could become Nashreans." He suggested. The escapees began to groan in detest to his idea. They wanted to go to the beautiful unique land they were promised.

"No, we will continue on and find the place Crystaline told us to go" Vanka said.

Throwing his hands up in defeat, Mr. Crowesh huffed, "Well can you tell us in which direction are these trees?"

"Yes, if you continue going North-West you are sure to find it" the maiden answered kindly.

"Well alright. In the morning we will set to find the trees." Mr. Crowesh said before dozing off to sleep.

Sheevar, Orraco, and Ariyah nuzzled together. Before Ariyah closed her eyes, she rubbed her medallion.

"Mother, I wish you were here to guide us. But I know now that you are closer to me now than ever before. I love you and I'll stay strong." She kissed the medallion and fell asleep.

They peacefully slept in the dirt piles, to the music of nearby nocturnal creatures. Dawn had yet to appear, but Ariyah was compelled to wake up and get moving. It was as though something was forcing her to get up. She jolted out of her sleep, covered in ants. As she brushed them off, she began to feel a vibration in her chest. She realized it was the medallion. It was buzzing calmly yet continuously. Alarmed, she woke Vanka.

"Vanka, I think we should go now." she said with haste.

"What's wrong, chile?" She asked with concern, still groggy.

"I don't know I just got this really big feeling that we should go right now." Vanka looked at her then she looked at the medallion. She knew the concern burdening Ariyah had to have been from Crystaline.

"Okay then everybody up. Let's go." Vanka gave orders. They began to groan and complain while staggering to stand to their feet. Quickly the escapees thanked all of the Nashreans for their hospitality, got back on their horses, and began to travel in a northwestern direction. Ariyah couldn't explain the feeling but it was like a nudge in her heart saying they needed to leave that place as soon as possible. As they continued their travels, the sun was beginning to come out and the heat of the sun was blazing against their skin. They were from the cold city of Ferocities, so they were not accustomed to the heat of the sun. Their skin did not react well to it. They became itchy, blistery, and swollen in their limbs. The roads they traveled rarely had water or any form of greenery; no trees, plants, or even grass. At least if they could find an aloe plant, they could have used it to soothe their skin. But every road and land was empty and they were forced to continue. There was no way they could go back now. Why would they want to? Skin plagues from the sun were not pleasant, but they were easier to deal with than the death and carnage back in the Savage Kingdom. They continued on. After traveling the deserts for awhile, the complaints began. They were traveling such long distances, only if Crystaline had been able to reveal a quicker way to the white sand land. But they would have to struggle to find it on their own.

"When will we get there?" A complaint was shouted. It was too hot to answer. "We've been going for a very long time." Another continued to whine.

"Hush up, chile...this is better than being one of Kalos' slaves any day" Vanka scolded. Riding the horse in the oppressive heat was making Ariyah drowsy, but something suddenly caught her eye.

"There. Look!" She exclaimed. It was a big palm tree and behind it were the white sand dunes. Vanka sped the horse up to it. On the tall tree was something very familiar to all of them.

"Fafuras!" Ariyah said in delight. "This is it, everyone!" she jumped off of the horse and sluggishly ran to the tree. Everyone hopped off their horses and looked up to the tall tree.

"Wow...that's the fruit Mother gave us!" Ariyah smiled with joy. Usually fafuras didn't grow on this tree. It was a sign to the escapees to keep going. Getting the fruit would not only quench their thirst but also give them energy to go on. Mr. Crowesh tried to shake the tree, but the fafuras did not drop. Orraco found a rock on the ground. He threw it at the tree and knocked two down.

"Good idea, Rac. Everybody, find a rock or pebble and let's get this fruit down!" Mr. Crowesh said with excitement. They each began searching for throwing objects, then started their assault on the tree. Ultimately they were able to bring down at least 13 fafuras.

"Okay everyone, we have to split this up evenly. There are more of us than the fruit, so be considerate to the women and the children." Mr. Crowesh ordered. Vanka peeled away the white rhines, tore off the blue slices and divided them between all 352 hungry travelers. After eating the fruit they all began to get a sudden surge of energy. They felt great; even the blisters no longer bothered them.

"This tree and white sands mean that we are not far from our destination." Mr. Crowesh said straddling back on his horse. "Let's go." They began to ride again. They felt refreshed and the once agonizing journey soon felt like a fun adventure. They began to laugh and joke about the battle they had won against the Savage Kingdom. They started to notice that the dry air became cool, moist, and fresh. They were soon surrounded by more beautiful white sand dunes. The average blue sky was now turning gold.

"Oh my. This is it!" Ariyah said as, from afar, she saw the most beautiful place she had ever seen. They saw many more palm trees, with the fafuras hanging from them. They also saw red, orange and pink flowers and plants placed delicately throughout the land. They could see from a distance a rocky cliff gushing out a purple waterfall. Behind it were two mountains; both had large black buildings on them. They dismounted their horses and tried to find an opening to get inside. There was a white gate guarding this land.

"It must be occupied." Vanka was clearly confused. "Who else would build a gate like this?" As she reached out to touch the gate, a light blue spark sent a shock to her arm. Vanka screamed out in pain.

While a few members of the group tended to Vanka, others examined the gate more closely. It looked scaly and had many ridges on it. Occasional sparks suggested that some type of energy surrounded it. "Do not touch the bars of this gate! You will be harmed by its energy!" Mr. Crowesh yelled out cautiously to the others as he wrapped his arm around Vanka's wounded limb. It was obvious that this place was designed to keep away trespassers.

They continued to move forth, making sure not to get too close to the deadly barrier. Ariyah curiously began to follow the gates direction to find the opening. The white poles just kept getting wider and thicker. More pointy scales appeared and more blue lights accumulated on what looked like bars. "What is this?" she whispered to herself in confusion. Her eyes traveled upward as the base became thicker and formed an arch. She stepped back and gasped at what was there before her.

Chapter 8

#  Kalos the Beckoning

"I want you to look everywhere for them." Kalos growled, sitting down harshly in his throne. The night sky was now beginning to set and his shadow from the flickering flame of the fire place was towering over the entire room. "Everywhere, do you understand? Every nook and cranny, behind every rock, on top of every mountain." Kalos then threw a pouch filled with silver coins at Zodner's head. Zodner nearly fell over trying to catch them. "Do not come back until you have them in your dirty, cruddy palms." The minions nervously nodded. Kalos casually waved them away. "Now leave me."

Zodner and Semp bowed and stumbled over each other trying to get away from the Emperor's throne. After being dismissed into the night, Zodner and Semp eagerly barged out of the Savage Kingdom atop of their black horses, trampling over marigolds as they traveled through the nearly deserted Ferocities. They needed to know if the slaves had retreated back to the lower burrells of the city. All of the old huts and homes, in which the slaves were seized 10 years ago, were now dilapidated and withering away. Holding their torches, they checked every home and alley. Every basement, old blacksmiths work shacks and even the old market stands with rotted fruits and vegetables.

"They must have left Ferocities completely, Semp" Zodner proclaimed as he surveyed the dark vacant atmosphere, "because it can't possibly be this hard to find those pigs."

"I know, but they are very puzzling people. I mean did you see how they fought back?" Semp acknowledged, his nose completely black from being broken.

"Yes. It's like they trained their whole lives." The two minions trailed the lower burrells one last time to be sure of its emptiness. Only the rats and gnats inhabited that portion of the land, and the entire lower burrell was completely deserted. "Either way we must find them, fore if we don't the Emperor will do us great harm" Zodner warned. Semp rolled his eyes and scoffed at the comment.

"You of all people should know that very well" Zodner teased, pinching Semp's nose. Semp let out a scream of pain as he pushed Zodner's hand away. His horse became startled and quickly bolted away, carrying Semp on it. Zodner laughed at the amusing sight of Semp screaming for help while bouncing uncontrollably on the frightened horse. "Wait for me, Semp! Wait for me!" He cackled, chasing after them.

Meanwhile Kalos sat in his dark throne room, overlooking the tower. He stroked Noire, as he sat somberly on his throne. He could see gray rain clouds begin to bellow in. He sat there with both sadness and determination in his heart. He watched as the blood began to dry on the Boulder Guillotine.

"This isn't over, Crystaline" He growled to himself. "Your daughter is as good as dead." He switched his eyes to the vertical portal that peacefully vibrated up and down from the sky to the earth, it's beautiful enticing light illuminating the whole kingdom. An overwhelming feeling of defeat had gotten to him and he couldn't stand to look at it anymore. He threw his metal cup at the door and shattered the glass. By now the dark gray clouds had begun to drizzle with rain. He stormed upstairs to his cold isolated bedroom, Noire quickly slithering behind him.

Chapter 9

#  The Land of Grandelyn

Ariyah gasped at the frightening sight before her eyes. The white gate was actually the bodies of two albino Siamese twin dragons. "Oh my, Vanka..." she whimpered quietly, being sure not to scream. When Vanka ran to the entrance where Ariyah was, she was just as startled. This place was guarded by the gigantic white dragons, who appeared to be sleeping. They were attached to each other by their stomachs, and their wings and tails served as the gate to the entire island.

"I've never seen such a thing." Vanka marveled. The other escapees came to the entrance and they gasped as well. The two beings were an amazing sight to see. They were still, huge, scaly and silent. They looked like two bright white statues, except that they were breathing.

"I never even knew these things existed" Mr. Crowesh said, carelessly patting the dragons on the stomach (the only part that was not electrically-charged). As they all gazed at these intriguing beings, two-year old, Remi (the youngest child of the escaped slave children) wanted to get a closer look at the gate. He ran his little pale body up to the front gate and grabbed hold of the bottom of the wing.

"Ooh mama, look" he squealed with joy. He squeezed and poked the gate in wonderment. "Wow!" He squealed again.

"Umm... Remi, get away from that" His mother Shema nervously said.

"Ooh look" Remi said, still smiling as he squeezed the belly with more force. With a sudden jolt and rumble, one of the dragons ripped its body away from its twin, breaking its stature from gate to battle stance. It whipped its head around, eyes set ablaze with a fiery orange color as it roared.

Everyone's mouth dropped. Trembling with fear, the escapees carefully backed away from the gate. The second dragon let out a high-pitched squeal and broke away from the gate frame completely. The group was in a state of sheer panic as the two creatures walked menacingly toward them. The children began to cry and hold on to their parents. Mr. Crowesh slowly and carefully tried to pull Ariyah away from the front as the two creatures approached. Remi cried, flailing his arms in horror.

"Mommy, get it away!" He cried. This noise of the squealing child agitated the dragons. They both lifted their bodies on their hind legs, rearing wildly like a horse. Through their pale white bodies, there was a bright orange and yellow glow emanating from their stomachs. Gray smoke escaped from their lips as the glow became bigger. "Oh my, they're going to blow fire at us!" Mr. Crowesh alarmed. "Run! Get out of the way!"

Everyone began running and screaming. Many of the black horses that were brought along from the Savage Kingdom ran away, leaving the escapees stranded. The men pulled the woman and children back as the dragons stormed after them. Ariyah tried to keep up with them, but tripped on a rock and fell on her face.

"Ariyah!" Orraco called out to her. He tried to get to her but one of the adults pulled him back. Ariyah slowly turned over, her eyes blurry and face now burning with pain as blood dripped from her nose. One of the dragons stood over her and reared once more, while the other boiled up fire in its belly again preparing to flame throw. She knew this was the end for her. She knew no one could help her now. She just closed her eyes tightly and waited for the fire to scorch and melt away her flesh.

"Oh Lord, not de' baby!" Vanka begged in the background. As the first dragon was about to come crashing down on Ariyah, a light flashed in its eyes, temporarily blinding it. The flash came from the medallion around Ariyah's neck. The second dragon came to get a closer look at the flashing light. It circled around Ariyah, stepping further away. It seemed to be inspecting. The first dragon circled around her too, after regaining its eyesight. It did an investigation of its own as well. Ariyah continued to lie still in the white sand, making sure not to make any sudden moves.

Bloody and soaked with perspiration and fear, Ariyah shouted over to the people "What are they doing?"

"I don't know" A puzzled Vanka answered.

The dragons became calm and the fire within their bellies simmered. The first dragon looked at the medallion again. It looked at its twin and they both knelt down graciously before Ariyah. She sat up in confusion.

"What are they doing?" She asked once again.

"It looks like they're bowing to you, Ariyah" Sheevar chuckled. Looking at the top of the heads of these two massive dragons, Ariyah realized they were doing just that. Her fear turned into relief. She worked up the courage, crawled over to them and gently stroked the tops of their heads. The first dragon stuck its nose out to her, wanting her to hold it so it could help lift her to her feet. The escapees looked at these frightening creatures in amazement. Only a few moments ago they were ready to kill Ariyah, now they were helping her stand. While she stood in pure amazement, the dragons studied her and her medallion. The first dragon directed her back to the opening of the land where they were guarding.

"It wants us to follow them" Ariyah called out. The ex-slaves were very apprehensive, but the other dragon gently stepped to them and persuaded them to come inside too. Ariyah didn't know what it was about the medallion that calmed them, but it worked.

As it guided her inside, the land was even more beautiful than she first thought. The white sand led directly to the mainland, and the purple body of water looked as big as the sea. Behind the waters was the space that looked like a city that had already been established. Tall buildings, small buildings and paved roads all occupied the back of the gorgeous unique purple water. There were many palm trees aligning the land, which was massive; too big to see everything. Ariyah stood in awe as the others followed. The dragon nudged her from behind. It wanted her to explore more.

Fafuras were in almost every tree, and some were growing in bushes. The waves of the purple water cascaded forward in quick rushes. Ariyah was compelled to touch it.

"Wait for me, Ariyah" Sheevar's small voice called out as she ran. Orraco followed.

"This place is amazing!" Ariyah exclaimed. As the children were running toward the water, something caught Ariyah's eye.

"Look at that" Orraco said. Three small zebras with wings, one with black sheer wings and the other two with white sheer wings on them, stepped toward them.

"What are they?" Ariyah asked in amazement. The creatures seemed very timid. Their black zebra stripes sparkled like dark onyx and their white skin glowed brightly. Their wings were strong and sturdy, and looked like they were made out of the best fabric money could buy. Ariyah anxiously walked over to the one with the black wings. It was the bigger and more dominant one.

"Be careful, Ariyah" Orraco said, being protective as usual. It backed away a little, not sure of her intentions. "Come here, I won't hurt you" Ariyah called to it. The creature looked at its two friends, they too were very shy.

"Come here" Ariyah said with a smiled. The zebra slowly walked to her. Ariyah stroked its mane as it rested its head in her chubby chest. It nuzzled its face in hers, and moved in closer to get a full embrace from her. She had won him over.

Sheevar and Orraco went to the other two. The children had gained their trust. Vanka came to join them.

"What do we have here?" She asked.

"They're zebras with wings" Sheevar said with excitement as she continued to snuggle the animal.

"I see. They are beautiful. Everything about this place is beautiful." Vanka said while stroking them, exposing the dark burn now across her forearm. As many other children ran over to explore the new discovery, Vanka questioned Ariyah.

"So what are you going to call these creatures?"

Puzzled, Ariyah said, "Why would I need to name them? I'm sure God already has identification for them."

"Yes, well we are on a new land where we don't know what to call anything and God isn't here to let us know, so you name them" Vanka egged on. "I'm sure Crystaline would have."

Exuberated, Ariyah looked at the beautiful beings and said "Zebralings! These will be called zebralings."

Everyone looked at her in approval. She looked again at the purple water, it still intrigued her. She walked over to the edge of the sand border where the water washed on shore. She looked inside, her brown eyes roaming the entire waters. It was the clearest water she had ever witnessed. She could see directly to the bottom. There were white fish and sea life swimming inside. She wanted to get inside to catch one and study it. When she dipped her feet in, energy instantly left her body. Helpless, she fell over.

"Ariyah!" Orraco yelled. He ran to her and helped her up. Vanka held Ariyah in her arms. "Ariyah, what happened? What's wrong, baby?" Ariyah was feeling very light-headed. "I don't know. I just put my foot into the water and became very weak." She was feeling incredibly drowsy. The bewildered crowd thought it would be best to stay away from the purple water until they could investigate more about this land and the effects it may have.

Chapter 10

#  The Minions Search

Though Zodner and Semp were not ready to travel the long distances to find the slaves, they knew they could never return to the Savage Kingdom without them. They knew the hard work they had ahead of them and started by leaving the city and traveling east. Mandune was a small country that only consisted of two major cities, The City of Ferocities and the newly re-founded Grandelyn (which had been blocked off and vacant for over a decade now). The remainder of the country was a variety many small towns and villages. Their eastward journey took Zodner and Semp to a small town called Warush. It was a wealthy town and the people there did pretty well for themselves. The town's residents included successful farmers, vineyard owners and bottlers, shoemakers, and clothiers. The citizens of Warush kept to themselves and weren't keen to outsiders. So when Zodner and Semp galloped onto their land, they were very easy to spot. The two looked at this land of green pastures in amazement. They wondered how such a small community could have so much.

A nearby farmer casually walked up to the two visitors. His dark balding hair, sackcloth pants, and bare feet were a stark contrast to the armor and weaponry of Zodner and Semp.

"Is there something I can help you with, sirs?" The farmer looked at them suspiciously as he asked.

"Yes, peasant, we are looking for a group of fat people" Semp carelessly blurted out, studying his glove and avoiding eye contact.

The farmer became offended. "Peasant? No, sir, I assure you we are no peasants here. But we would appreciate it if you would leave our land." Semp scoffed at the man.

"Look, you trite! We are on a mission from our Emperor Kalos to find a group of disobedient slaves. Now have you seen them?" The farmer became even more insulted.

"I would advise you both to leave." The man warned. Zodner and Semp looked at each other and laughed.

"And what exactly are you going to do if we don't?" Zodner challenged, spit coming from his mouth.

The farmer pulled out a hatchet and whistled, signaling for more of his people to come. Within seconds, other farmers with farming tools came over, accompanied by barbers with razors and knives, bottlers with glass bottles and others. The makeshift army surrounded Zodner and Semp and their horses. The two looked dumb-founded.

"So no help from the peasants?" Semp blurted out again.

With that, the people began to charge the two, running after them with weapons in hand. Zodner and Semp galloped all the way out of the town of Warush.

"You idiot!" Zodner said angrily to Semp who was now quiet. The two were now safe and back on empty roads, though they were not sure where they led.

"I didn't know they would be so sensitive." Semp said, defending himself.

"This is why your nose looks the way it does now. You don't know how to keep your mouth shut." Zodner continued to complain.

There would be more trips like these as they went through several towns, villages and lands. They came across a village where there was nothing but alligators and possums, but no people. Another was nothing but water. There was a swamp, then a lake, then a river, and eventually what looked like a sea.

"They definitely couldn't be here. They would've all drowned." Zodner chuckled.

The next land they arrived at was completely snow-covered. They had never seen snow before; the accompanying cold had them freezing. Their horses were freezing too, and were unable to trek through the snow. Zodner and Semp had to drag their bodies out of that land into the heated roads until they became unthawed.

Their travels throughout the east and south took a total of nine months. They were slowly dying from dehydration; the horses as well. They had sores and blisters all over their bodies from the mixed weather conditions that each land presented. The horses were weak and skinny. To satisfy their hunger they cooked dead birds found along the road, with the help of fires provided by the sun and a few sticks found on the side of the road. They were even forced to backtrack their trails to the land of all water to quench their thirst.

"Zodner, we have been out here for months and we don't have anything to show for it." Semp complained.

"Yes, but we can't return without them, Semp. You know that."

"I know, but I'm starving. We haven't had a good cooked meal in many months, our horses are perishing and we look like death is upon us" Semp whined. Is this even worth the 50 coins the Emperor has given us?"

"It's either this or we remain homeless forever" Zodner solemnly proclaimed. "Since we have traveled the entire east and south of Mandune, we must go forth to the west and north. They have to be out there somewhere."

They made the harsh travel back towards the west. Fortunately along the way a crew of villagers riding oxen-driven carts spotted the haggard men on the side of the road.

"You men look like you could use some help" The first driver said cheerfully.

"Yes, sir. Our horses are dying and we can't hold on much longer" Semp pleaded.

"Well where are you, men, headed?" The passenger asked.

"Out west. We want to go west." Zodner said enthusiastically.

It just so happened that the villagers were heading west as well. "Well we don't have much food, but the food and water we have should be enough for you and your horses." The driver explained.

Zodner and Semp, graciously thanked the men. The villagers gave them food and drink and helped board them into their carts. They traveled for at least two more months, as the villagers took short cuts, before getting to a small land at the beginning border of the west side of Mandune.

"We must end our journey together here, men." The courteous driver said to them. The villagers had to take another route to continue onto their own path. Zodner and Semp were very thankful. By now they were well fed, their thirsts quenched and their horses now stable and filled with energy. They were able to continue on their own now. The problem was they were dropped off on a land that wasn't inhabited by anyone or anything. It was barren desert. Zodner looked at his compass and anxiously led the way. As they rode along the paths, a black image that was far way caught Semp's eye. He squinted his eyes and said. "Is that a horse?"

"Don't be preposterous. We are the only ones here." Zodner scolded.

Semp squinted harder. "No, look. That is a horse."

"I think you are hallucinating. That is simply a mirage in your mind."

Semp, becoming frustrated, kicked his horse and sped up to the distant image. When he got closer he yelled excitedly. "See I told you it was a horse!"

Zodner followed. He could see a dying horse lying on the ground in the sand. And two more that had died already behind it.

"Wow are those our horses?" Zodner questioned. They reached out to the dehydrated dying horse and checked the back of its ear, revealing the SK symbol.

"This is one of ours." Semp discovered. "These are the ones the slaves stole from us." The remaining horses, five in all, looked very sickly and were on the verge of dying. There were only five horses left out of the 51 that were taken by the slaves. After they had ran away from the scare of the white Siamese twin dragons of Grandelyn, this is where they stayed.

"This means they are near." Zodner thought. The two couldn't take seeing their once beloved horses in agony, so they put all 5 of them out of their misery by breaking their necks. They left their bodies and continued west. Not quite sure of their destination or direction, it took Zodner and Semp a week to stumble upon the small village of Nashre'.

"Look at this place of peasantry" Semp scoffed in a haughty way.

"Just don't call them that, okay? I don't feel like being chased out again." Zodner pleaded.

"I'll try, but I loathe people like this." Semp said, spitting on the ground.

The old haggard dressed man with the one blind eye saw their arrival. He limped over peacefully to the men.

"Is there something that I can help you with?" He asked humbly, afraid because he knew they were from Ferocities.

"Yes, peasan... I mean, sir" Semp corrected himself. "We were sent out to find our fat slaves." Semp nonchalantly said. The old man gasped. His young dark-haired maiden daughter came over to her dad.

"What's wrong, Father?" She asked.

"These gentlemen are looking for those people that we catered to a few months ago" he said with fear.

"Well they did come by here months ago, but we don't know where they have gone" The maiden explained.

"You wouldn't lie to us now would you?" Semp said while slowly pulling out his sword.

"They did say they were looking for a place. I can't remember the name." She pondered.

"Remember, girl!" Semp threatened. She paced through her mind trying to recall the name of the land.

"It was Gremlin or Greenland..." she stuttered.

"Gremlin? Greenland? Stop your foolishness, girl!" Semp demanded getting angry. The old man feared for his daughter's life.

"Remember, child. Remember." He encouraged her softly.

"Grandelyn!" She suddenly remembered. "They were looking for a place called Grandelyn." The two minions looked at their maps and couldn't find such a place.

"It doesn't exist." Zodner said in disbelief.

"That's what we told them, but they were also looking for the tree that bridges the brown sand lands and the white sand lands. You shouldn't go there, but if you find that tree you may be able to find them." The young maiden suggested. Zodner and Semp looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders and turned to gallop out of Nashre'.

"Just continue North-West!" She called out to them, hoping to never see them again.

Zodner and Semp, now extremely exhausted from the brutal traveling they had endured for almost a year, traveled for one more day before finding the same isolated palm tree that did stand between the brown sand lands and the white sand lands on the opposite side.

"Zodner, look. Do you think that could possibly be the tree that peasant maiden spoke of?" Semp asked studying the full bloom tree. They noticed the fafuras still growing on them. They had never seen these fruits. Zodner found a rock and threw it up at the tree. One of the fafuras fell.

"What is this? Is this even fruit? I've never seen a fruit like this." He peeled the white rhine back revealing the blue citrus slices.

"This is unusual." Semp said as he pulled off a slice and tasted it. "It's pretty good..."

"Let me taste." Zodner snatched the fruit and ate. "It is really good but we have no time to eat. We have to find the slaves."

Zodner gave the rest of the fruit to the horses and crossed over to the white sands. There was no attack from the evil spirits that once dominated this crossroads. After the escapees had crossed over with Crystaline in the medallion, that spell was broken. This meant that anyone could walk into that forbidden area. What the men didn't know was that they were a lot closer to their destination then they thought. As they continued riding, Zodner curiously eyed Semp.

"Is it just me or do you look a little thicker than before?"

Chapter 11

# Amazing

A mere week had passed but the escaped slaves had already become accustomed to Grandelyn. They wanted to erase all memory of the torture they had all endured at the hands of the Savage Kingdom. This wasn't easy; they were still wearing the ragged beige pants and tattered sleeveless shirts from their enslavement. But they were determined to move on. Though they loved being on the beach mainland with all the white sand, purple water, palm trees, and zebralings; the dark city behind the waters was calling to be explored. They decided the time had come to do just that.

It was quite a bit of distance from the beach mainland. Mr. Crowesh, Vanka, Sheevar, Orraco, and Ariyah lead the way, traveling with the zebralings. As they traveled toward the dark city, they were able to see more of Grandelyn's majestic beauty. There were clusters of palm trees aligned on the trails of the land like a leafy runway. Unusual insects flew around their heads. Orraco caught one. It was a spider-butterfly.

"Wow look at this, Ariyah" Orraco called out, throwing the insect on her. She screamed and chased after him.

White and yellow scorpions roamed the sand of the earth. Big spiders, nearly the size of the children's feet, were found next to the forests of Grandelyn. There were rhinoceroses living there. They had inhabited the grasslands on the other side of the waters. They hid when they saw the foreigners passing by. Knowing that rhinos can also be very territorial, Vanka advised that everyone keep their distance.

This land was filled with all kinds of creatures. The albino Siamese twin dragons gate and the zebralings were some of the more fantastic. But there were also green frogs and white frogs hopping around, white and black alligators going in and out of the purple waters, and many tropical birds flying around the bright golden sky. This place was truly unique.

When the group arrived at the dark city, they discovered that the place had been abandoned. This was the part of Grandelyn that was not so majestic. The air was thick, gray and cruddy. The brick roads were dirtied with tar and black ash. The small houses and buildings leading into the city were covered in black ash as well. The group felt that the place was creepy. There was no sign of life anywhere; at least not human life. They found a baby zebraling lying in what looked like a park. It was struggling to breathe. Ariyah, concerned, ran to it. She wiped the dust away from its eyes.

"Please help it. Get it down to the mainland." she begged out loud. One of the elders took the young zebraling away. The trees that held the fafuras were withered away, only branches stuck out. Old fafuras that had shriveled up and rotted down to their blue core were scattered in the streets. The escapees were afraid to enter the buildings they found. The air was humid, and the more they walked the harder it became to breathe. Through the grayness of this part of the land, they could still see the rocky cliff pouring the pretty purple waterfall from it. And behind that, the gray mountains that held those two buildings were also ash and tar covered.

"I wonder what happened here." Mr. Crowesh said, making a smiley face in the ground with the dust covered streets.

"I don't know but whatever it was, it was reckless." A voice behind in the dust said. It was very depressing in that part of the land and they decided that was enough for the day. Each day after that, they would break up into several groups and travel around the massive land, seeing what else was there to discover. Since this was the place that they were going to live they needed to find resources in order to begin rebuilding life there. They didn't know or understand what could've possibly happened to the people that were there before them. To have an entire city covered in tar and ash was puzzling to them.

Since this city had become deserted, it was time for renovations. The men went about to seek other fruits and vegetables; anything besides the fafuras. The children went to explore insects, amphibians, and other living creatures. In the process of searching through Grandelyn, a unique rock was discovered by Dr. Henry O'Crey and Mr. Demi. While on a trip with one of the groups Mr. Demi stumbled upon a gray sparkly rock lodged in one of the mountains. He brought it down to Dr. Henry, who studied it. Dr. Henry and his wife Mary O'Crey, practiced medicine and some science in the Land of Livian before moving to Mandune. They fell on hard times and had to live in the lower burrells with the poor. After studying it, he discovered that this rock was covered in a strong element called Zitheranium. He let Mr. Demi, who was a blacksmith and craftsman before the seize, know that the rock could be melted down into a form of metal. Zitheranium, when broken down, is as strong as the likes of steel and maybe even stronger than titanium. It was very solid and the escapees would come to use it in many ways later on. The Zitheranium rock was brought down to the beach mainland with the rest of the discoveries.

Dr. Henry O'Crey and Dr. George Malloy also did studies on the purple water, which they now called the Sea of Amethyst, and they discovered why Ariyah had become weak after stepping into it. The doctors had each person touch, taste, and stand completely in the water. The experiments showed that they all experienced the same reaction. They would feel the energy leave their body and they would become tired, sluggish, and a little weak. After the studies and experiments were conducted, Dr. Malloy, Dr. Henry and Dr. Mary O'Crey made the discovery that the Sea of Amethyst was used to slow down the effects of the fafura. Though eating the fafuras made them strong, and energetic, the side effects were that they'd keep getting bigger in size. The Sea of Amethyst was needed to balance out the effects of the fafura. Dr. Malloy said that it was not safe to drink. The water would slow down their functioning organs and eventually bring them to stop completely. Because it was healthy to eat fafura, they kept it as a part of their daily diet. But in order to use the water without digesting it, they only needed to be in it. Too much exposure to the water would prevent the effects of the fafura, so the doctors decided that they would bathe in the Sea of Amethyst once a month just to balance everything out. For awhile they got their drinking water from a very small village that allowed them to get water and milk from their land. They were very generous to the uniquely big people and they befriended them.

Grandelyn offered more traditional food as well. There was a field that offered fruits and vegetables; corn, beets, lettuce, carrots, and all the healthy things.

The group had fun with their discoveries. They found the sites to be fascinating soon they began fixing the abandoned city. The group of 352 took comfort in each other again. They all slept in huddles and protected each other from the unknown. There were no more worries. They peacefully took each day at a time and enjoyed whatever they found.

Chapter12

# Elai

The twin dragons allowed the escapees to inhabit the land and they stood as their gate and protectors. The zebralings became used to the children and they would ride them around the land as if they were horses. While everyone took time to explore the greatness of Grandelyn, Ariyah managed to find something great herself. Vanka was the guardian to Orraco, Sheevar and Ariyah. She promised Crystaline that if anything was to happen to her that she would take full responsibility for Ariyah. One morning while Vanka and the other women went to gather food to cook that day, Ariyah decided that she should go looking around the far off forests of Grandelyn. Sheevar and Orraco were to follow along. The forests were just as beautiful as the beach of the land. It was a forest of palm trees and fafura plants. Different flowers everywhere; lotus', water lilies, orchids, begonias, and rattlesnake flowers filled the area peacefully.

"Ooh I want to pick these so that I can put them in my collection" Sheevar squealed. She adored flowers, especially blue roses, and on every trip around the land she would pick them and put them in her basket.

"Look at this one, Ariyah" She picked up a magnificent fuchsia flower.

"That would look beautiful in your hair" Ariyah said, putting one inside Sheevar's curly blond hair and then one in her own thick long ponytail. As the two girls marveled at it, Orraco, who was bored, came over and snatched the flower out of their hands. He put it in his dark hair and began prancing around.

"Ooh look at me. I like flowers because I'm so girly. Ooh I'm such a girl." He playfully mocked them.

"Give that back!" Sheevar demanded.

"No, because I'm too much of a girl. I just need my flowers." He teased again.

"I'm warning you, Orraco, give it back". Sheevar threatened, dropping her basket to the ground.

"No, I'm warning you that I'm not going to do anything because I'm too much of a girl." He girlishly teased and then blew raspberries at them. Sheevar and Ariyah gave each other a devilish look because they both knew what they had to do.

"Let's get him!" Ariyah said as they charged after him. Orraco dropped the flowers and began running. They were close on his tail but he was just too fast for them. Ariyah had a plan.

"Sheevar, you go on the lower left side and hide and I'll go on the upper right side!" She called out to as they continued running.

"You got it!" Sheevar called back.

Orraco was so far ahead that he had not seen what the girls' plan was. When he turned around to see how far they were he saw that no one was chasing him. He stopped sprinting as his eyes searched the forest for them.

"Ariyah? Sheevar?" He called out. They were hiding behind the opposite side of the bushes as they watched him closely. "Sheevar? Ariyah? Where are you, girls?" He called out again. He was starting to get worried. When he walked into the middle path of their ambush, he called out again.

"Okay, girls, it's not funny anymore! Come out!" The forest was quiet except for the crickets singing. Ariyah tried hard not to giggle as they watched him sweat with worry.

"Girls?" He said quietly. Ariyah threw her arm in the air as a signal to Sheevar to come out and charge. She let out a war cry as they ran from behind the bushes and jumped on him. They wrestled him to the ground. Ariyah grabbed his arms and sat on his back. His 10 year old ample body writhed from side to side and she couldn't get a good grip on him.

"Sheevar, help me!" she laughed. She sat on his legs and pulled them backwards and Ariyah did the same to his arms. He cried out in defeat. "Say you're sorry." Ariyah demanded.

"Never!" he defied. Sheevar and Ariyah both pulled his limbs back further. "Say you're sorry!" She demanded again.

"Okay, okay I'm sorry." He cried out in pain.

"And promise you won't pick on us for being girls anymore." she demanded.

"Okay!"

"And you are going to pick me more flowers." Sheevar demanded.

"I will not do such a thing." He defied again. They brought his limbs back even further. He screamed out.

"Okay, I will get you more flowers!"

"Do you promise?" They both asked.

"Yes, I bloody promise. Now let go!" He begged. Feeling their victory they got off of him. They giggled with each other as they watched Orraco pull himself from the ground. He looked at them pitifully.

"You mustn't tell anyone of this" he said, straightening his clothing.

"Your secret is safe with us, your highness." Ariyah said teasing him.

The three continued their journey into the woods. Sheevar continued to pick flowers while Orraco picked up a salamander and fed it crickets. Ariyah didn't know exactly what she was looking for but she was bored because she was the only one without a pet or a hobby of some sort. All she had to look at was the gloomy medallion her mother was in. They ended up finding a stream.

"Look, it has clear water" she said as they walked over to the rocky ground.

"Is it drinkable?" Orraco asked.

"I don't know but let's see" Ariyah said trying to step inside to taste it. Orraco pulled her back.

"No, let me do it. It could be dangerous." He placed his palm inside the clear stream and took a gulp from it. He studied the water and moved his lips around a bit. "It seems fine to me, but I don't want you two to drink it yet. Let's just tell the adults about it to be sure." He pulled them away from the rocky stream.

The golden sky was getting darker signaling evening's approach. It was time for the children to head back to the mainland. They ran through the woods again, playing and chasing each other, trying to see who was the fastest. Ariyah realized that the stream would be hard to find again if they didn't have a mark somewhere.

"Wait!" she called out to them. She saw a tree and a small pebble and decided it would be good to carve the words STREAM on it so that the adults would know which way to go to study the water. As she began carving the letters into the bark, she heard some squawking. They looked around and didn't see anything. But as she continued, she saw a dark shadow across the tree and then she felt something heavy on her shoulder. Orraco and Sheevar gasped. Ariyah slowly turned her head to her shoulder only to see two yellow clawed feet perched on it. She looked up and it was a young eagle. A white eagle with a black head and black wings had landed on her shoulder.

"Wow look at that! He likes you." Orraco said in awe.

"Yes, I see." she said nervously. She was too stiff to move. The beautiful bird began to lovingly nudge his head on Ariyah's. It was pleasant. But she had never encountered such a thing and really just wanted him off of her. "Goodbye now, Mr. Birdie." She nervously placed him on a bush.

"Let's go before we get an ear full from the adults." Orraco said. The children began walking when the eagle flew on Ariyah's shoulder again.

"You again?" she said in annoyance.

"I think he wants to be with you Ariyah" Sheevar said. Ariyah swung herself to get the bird off of her again. He flew up and then perched himself on her again. She tried to run from it but he was in pursuit of her. He stalked her but not seeking harm, just her affection. She realized there would be no getting rid of him so she gave in. Besides she wouldn't have to be bored anymore. While Sheevar would collect her flowers and Orraco fed his salamander, she decided she would have an eagle as a pet. Plus with his black head, amber eyes, and pure white body she thought he was kind of cute.

"Okay then. Very well." She repositioned him on her shoulder so that his claws didn't dig into her skin so much. "I think I'll call you...Elai." The eagle began to flap with excitement. He liked it. Elai was a special eagle. He had the ability to understand humans. He had been in Grandelyn since the beginning, almost a decade ago. He was around when the city of Grandelyn was a thriving, majestic kingdom full of life; human life, as well as the unique animals that were still there. Being a city of royalty, Elai's family of eagles were guardians of the land, flying daily over the skies, watching to make sure there were no intruders. He knew the royal family before the destruction occurred. He knew so much, but he couldn't tell his new friend any of it. He could only befriend her and hopefully one day guide her to the truth. He showed the children a shortcut to get back to the mainland quickly. When they got back, Vanka was not pleased to see that Ariyah had brought back a pet with her.

"You can't have a wild animal, Ariyah. These things are dangerous." She said trying to brush him away. Ariyah guarded Elai and put him on her forearm away from her.

"No, Vanka, he's a sweetheart. He likes me a lot. He's special." Vanka watched how Elai fluttered all over and around Ariyah and how much of a smile he brought to her face.

"Okay you can keep it. But just keep him away from me." She said going back with the other adults to test the stream. Elai and Ariyah stayed behind and played the rest of the evening. He chased her around and even slept on her back at the end of the night. Elai ended up becoming more than just a pet to Ariyah, he became her best and most loyal friend.

Chapter 13

# Solitaire

Kalos stood silently in the east wing of his palace. It was a dark domain facing the unshielded portion of the Soul Realm. He stood looking out the wide balcony entrance. The drizzling rain that started almost a year ago had now become a constant monsoon. Ferocities, once a city filled with cool winds and mild sunshine, was now a dark and gloomy place. And the rain just would not stop. The dead and rotted bodies of the slaves and slain soldiers left behind were now decayed bones after being eaten by vultures. Kalos remained in the shadows of the room while reflections of the rain went across his mask. The state of his depression had deepened. He stopped wearing his long cloak garment and walked solemnly around in only his black harem underwear. He took his long black hair out of its usual high ponytail and it now laid wildly all over his head. He no longer cared about his appearance. All the things he ever wanted, all of his desired achievements could not be fulfilled. All the money, fame, glory, hopes of a bigger and better land, and the desire to have a bigger army, none of them could be achieved because he was without his "magic genie".

It didn't help that there was no sign of the sun anymore. Even at the days earliest hours it remained dark and wet. The only reminder of what used to be was the abundance of marigold flowers that still remained intact all over the terrain.

Kalos rubbed his collarbone where the medallion had once laid. He became red hot, his smooth tan muscular body glistened with perspiration, as he felt the anger boil within him. He hastily removed his mask, the darkness of the shadows covered his face. He pressed his face and hands desperately against the glass pane of the balcony door. His hazel eyes widened as they caught the light from the portal and parts of the moon. Watching the Soul Realm, he felt his long black cobra slide up his leg. "Not now, Noire." He said, kicking the reptile off of him. The shunned snake respectfully listened and slithered against the wall. Kalos' heart began to thud painfully as he wished desperately to use that portal that teased and taunted him daily. His body was completely drenched in sweat, yet goose bumps covered his nearly naked body from the coolness outside. His eyes blackened with more hate than he had ever known. Pure hate and revenge consumed him. Three more snakes slithered into the dark cold room and wrapped themselves up his leg. Then 5 more crawled in and clung to him. They covered his entire body. They just dangled on him like branches to a tree. He was too saddened and possessed by evil to remove them.

Noire became jealous and viciously bit and knocked the snakes off of him. He then wrapped himself snugly around Kalos' neck, tongue hissing against his cheek in comfort to Kalos. Kalos' dark eyes rode along with the vision of the Soul Realm and it's teasing presence. A surviving soldier cautiously approached him in the eerie room.

"Emperor, is there anything I can do for you?" He humbly asked. Kalos turned to the soldier and shook his head slowly. His small crooked smile was seen through the shadows that made the soldier shutter.

"No. There is nothing you can do for me. Now leave." He turned his back around to face the dark corroded world before him. The soldier went away quickly. Kalos drew in a deep breath.

"Eventually I will have my way. And on that day there will be hell to pay." He began to chuckle. Then he began to cackle as more snakes entered in the room. They all wrapped themselves around his body as the moonlit wall showed his wicked snake-filled silhouette.
Chapter 14

#  The Dark Palace

Little by little the ex-slaves made their way through the still city behind the Sea of Amethyst. They were now calling it Ash City. Daily they would each assign a group of 8 to begin the cleaning and rebuilding process to certain parts of the blackened city. Cleaning buckets adorned the streets of Ash City as Ariyah, Sheevar, Orraco, Vanka, and Mr. Crowesh made their way up to the gray mountain paths. The children used the zebralings to carry them up the roads leading to the distant mountains. They had to cover their faces with cloths to avoid the toxic dust from entering their noses.

They made it to the first mountain where there was a very tall and wide building. The thick dust stung their eyes as they squinted to look over the building. As Mr. Crowesh was getting ready to try and barge through the main door, the sight of the other building on the slightly higher mountain caught Ariyah's eye.

"No! Wait! Can we look at that building over there first?" She asked excitedly. Mr. Crowesh was still tired from the journey it took to get to this mountain. He didn't want to travel another distance because a child asked him to.

"Ariyah, we just got here, honey. Let's work on this building first and then next week we can, ok?" said Mr. Crowesh as he wiped the sweat and dust from his brow. He began ramming his big body into the door. Ariyah looked at the other building again. It looked like a castle or palace, and she was really intrigued by it. Her medallion began to vibrate. The warm sensation of her mother's vibrating made her even more anxious.

"Please?" She whined.

"Ariyah, we said next week" Vanka said sternly. Ariyah was sad and continued to look at the palace longingly as she massaged her medallion. Vanka watched the expression on the child's face and she began to feel bad for her. Watching the connection between Ariyah and locket made her think about the promise she had made to Crystaline before she died. The promise was to always be there for Ariyah and to care for her. She did not want the child to be sad.

Mr. Crowesh was forcefully barging into the locked door. "Can I get a little help over here, Vanka? Orraco, I need your help too." Mr. Crowesh called out. Vanka tapped his shoulder and pointed at Ariyah, who was still watching the palace. Mr. Crowesh looked at Vanka in annoyance and he shook his head at her.

"What harm can it do? It's only a few more miles. Maybe it's something we should see." Vanka persuaded. He gave another look at Ariyah and Vanka and chuckled heartedly.

"I can't believe this. I am being ordered around by a woman and a child. The men will never let me live it down. Come on." He picked up his bucket and they began to travel the road towards the palace. Ariyah was happy they listened to her wishes.

Actually the mountain wasn't as far as it had appeared. They had arrived in front of the building after only 15 minutes traveling by zebraling. The building was destroyed. Throughout the damage of the whole city, this building got it the worst. The entire place was covered in tar and coats of black ash. The long oval windows were busted out, the pillars holding up the entrance were cracked and broken in pieces, the pool leading to the walkway had rubble laying in it, and the trees that were once there had all fallen over and withered. Gnats and locusts dominated the air surrounding the place. When they finally managed to get through to the entrance they found that unlike the other building, this door was easy to barge into. When Mr. Crowesh and Orraco rammed through the rotted wooden door, big thick clouds of smoke and small debris clouded their view. They all coughed. There was nothing inside except darkness and the occasional glimmers of light that shown through the cracked and broken windows. The smell of burnt sulfur and rotting fruit dominated the aroma. As they stepped inside, glass crushed under their sandals. Dead rodents lay in the shadows, ripped curtains coated in ash adorned the high windows, and the smell of mildewed carpets eroded their nostrils. This looked like the place where all the chaos began; there was so much damage.

Sheevar ran to get next to Ariyah and held her arm tightly. Vanka stumbled over a velvet stool and Orraco was caught in a thick cobweb. Mr. Crowesh dropped his bucket in defeat.

"This place needs more than a bucket of soap and water. This needs an army of cleaners and reconstruction." The destruction everywhere did not seem to affect Ariyah at all. In fact, the more she saw, the more deeply she wanted to delve into it. The medallion was vibrating calmly and that made Ariyah feel safe there. She continued to walk the dark hallways through the direction of the beams of light let in.

Soon, Ariyah made her way to what looked like a throne room. The marble tile was terribly cracked and broken as well as covered in tar. There were tarnished chairs thrown all over the room and the purple carpet leading to the throne podium was scorched. Wow...this is a palace! Ariyah thought as she walked to the throne. She stepped on the podium and lifted the fallen throne. She caressed the velvet backrest, covering her palms in soot. She looked around the room as she wondered what king used to live here and what nation of people he overseen. As her eyes searched the room, she could see a small piece of paper caught in one of the window panes, fluttering in the wind. She could hear Sheevar calling her from another room, but she ignored her. Ariyah pulled one of the tarnished chairs up to the window and tried to un-jam the paper. As she pulled at it, it ripped, causing Ariyah to fall backwards onto the dirty floor.

Recovering from the fall, she looked at the paper and saw that it was a picture. It was a realistic painting of what looked like a king. The man in the painting was thin, very young, maybe the age of 21, and very handsome. He was dressed in a white suit with a gold sash across the jacket. The sash had five green and red army medallions pinned on it. His head had a gold ruby encrusted crown on it. His thick black hair was cut to his head perfectly. He looked to be of an Island ancestry. In the painting he looked like he was holding someone, but that's where the photo was ripped. Ariyah was intrigued by this man. She wondered who he was and what happened to him. As she went to roam around more, Orraco and Sheevar came to the entrance.

"We've been looking all over for you; it's time to go" Orraco said. Ariyah was disappointed. She wanted to stay and look for more clues as to who this person was. But she knew that if she didn't leave, Vanka would have her hide. She put the picture down her shirt and ran out of the room. Ariyah knew this was a place that she had to explore again. What no one knew was that this place held a very dark yet special secret. A secret tied to the chaos that Ferocities now was.

Chapter 15

#  The Journey Ends

As the two minions continued galloping their horses in the direction that their compass displayed, the dry brown desert started to appear white and the air became cool and moist. While they advanced they looked up to the sky and began to notice the blue sky turning bright gold.

"Look at the sky, Semp. It's looks like 14 karat gold!" Zodner said. As they moved forth they began to see the riveting palm trees, big green bushes and distant gray mountains. They also saw a building on top of the mountains.

"Look there!" Semp pointed ahead. They kicked their horses to go faster to the site. They could see that land was in fact where the dark-haired maiden said it may be. As they approached, they could see the purple water flow rapidly from one of the land's distant cliffs.

"Is that purple water, Zodner?"

"It sure looks like it."

"I've never seen anything like it." The two men were truly amazed. They could see, even before they got close, that this land was massive. It looked like a small country to them. They looked at the foot prints leading to the side of the land where the abundance of trees were and part of the white gate. Just then they heard laughter. The men got off of their horses and began to investigate. When they came to the scaly gate, Semp placed his hand on the gate bar. The energy from the white bar struck through his arm. He yelled out in pain. Zodner ran to his side.

"This bloody thing shocked me!" He complained. Zodner pulled him away from the gate. They peeped through the gate and could not believe their eyes. They looked at each other with a sense of accomplishment. From their vantage point, they could see the ex-slaves down by the Sea of Amethyst on the beach mainland.

"That's them, Zodner! It's the slaves!" Semp said, rubbing his hands together.

"Are you sure, Semp? Because that could be anyone, right?" Zodner asked, already suspecting the truth but too anxious to be completely sure.

"Yes, I am certain of it" Semp assured. "See...that one is Margaret... and look! There goes her son, Richet'." The two men were so proud of themselves for finally ending their treacherous journey and finding what they were looking for.

"Now let's go get them" Zodner said, getting his sword ready.

"How do we get in this place? We'll be scorched to death by this gate alone." Semp swiped at the scaly gate.

"We've got to find the main gate entrance, you idiot."

Semp threw his sword down in anger. "You know what, Zodner, I am bloody sick of you and your insults. After we bring the slaves back I am never speaking to you again."

"Let's just go get them and we can fight about it later, alright?"

The men began to follow the scaly white bars of the gate, careful not to touch them. As they walked by they could see more of the ex-slaves going about their business.

"This is going to be great. Kalos is really going to respect us after we bring these pigs home. He may even make us main sergeants." Semp boasted proudly.

"Aren't we already main sergeants?" Zodner asked being condescending.

"Yes, but he'll like us even more."

They followed the length of the gate until they got to the main entrance. Semp began to push but the door would not budge. He tried harder, to no avail. As Semp struggled, Zodner began stuttering nervously as he pointed upward.

"Uhhh... Semp...look."

Semp gave another rough push to the door. As he did, he heard a hissing sound. He looked around and saw nothing. Then looked up and saw what had Zodner so nervous.

The glaring opened eyes of the albino Siamese twin dragons were glowing with fire. Semp's mouth dropped in horror and he began to slowly back up. One of the dragons opened its mouth to roar at him. Semp screamed and tried to run away from them. The dragons ripped away from each other, breaking from their frame, and charged the frightened men.

"What is that? I've never seen such a thing!" Semp cried out. The burning fire in the dragons bellies began to glow and the black and gray smoke seeped from their lips and nostrils.

"Never mind that! RUN!" Zodner yelled. The horses ran away, leaving the two minions to follow. Some of the ex slaves heard the commotion from outside the gates and went to investigate. They discovered that it was the minions from the Savage Kingdom.

Zodner and Semp could hear the loud running thuds of the dragons feet behind them. The squealing from the massive creatures was calling for them and the men knew they couldn't outrun them, so they jumped into a nearby bushel. The men trembled as the dragons looked for them. They could hear the heavy breathing from the creatures and could smell the burning embers. The dragons soon gave up their search, unable to find the trespassers. They returned to the gate entrance of Grandelyn.

Once convinced that the creatures were gone, the men crawled out of their hiding place and quickly went to recover their horses. They then decided it was time to finally return to Ferocities.

A month went by and Zodner and Semp were able to secure another ride from a group of carriage-riding farmers heading east. When they arrived back to Ferocities, they found that their beloved city had drastically changed – for the worse. The bright skies were now dark gray. There was a steady downfall of rain, making the ground soggy and muddy. The streets were filled with snakes of all kinds, both big and small.

"Look at our place! I barely recognize it." Zodner said. The men let the horses roam for cover as they ran to the palace for shelter. They really wanted to see their Emperor and tell him about the journey they had. They found him in his throne room, obsessively looking at the Soul Realm. He was completely covered in wet snakes, and was stroking Noire. The image disturbed the minions, but nevertheless they let him know that they did find the slaves.

"So where are they?" Kalos growled through his chipped teeth. Semp got down on one knee and knelt down before Kalos.

"We couldn't reach them because two enormous dragons were guarding them; these creatures tried to kill us, my Emperor."

Kalos allowed a small black snake to crawl up his ear and into his wet matted hair.

"Dragons? You expect me to believe there are dragons?" Kalos scoffed.

"But Emperor, please listen..."

"Just accept your incompetence and leave me" Kalos commanded. The minions knew that they couldn't allow that horrid journey of theirs to all be for nothing.

"We really did see them, my Emperor; they reside in a land called Grandelyn" Zodner intervened while also bowing before Kalos. Kalos looked to them quickly as if he knew what they were talking about.

"Grandelyn?" He asked. "Would you be able to lead me there?"

The two confirmed that they could. Of course, neither one of them wanted to make that long trip again, especially because they had just gotten back home. They only wanted to relax.

Kalos rose, snakes dropping to a pile at his feet. He hastily walked onto the wet balcony, his eyes roaming the Soul Realm with determination. As the rain splashed against his bare body, the wicked smile came upon his pale wet face. He turned back to the minions.

"If these peasants are where you say they are, then let's go get my medallion!"
Chapter 16

#  Transitioning

Eight years had gone by since the ex-slaves fled the City of Ferocities. By now they were calling themselves Grandenites, and they had finally strived and built upon their great colony. For the first few years of their independence, many of the Grandenites took jobs working in other cities and lands. Whatever wages they received were brought back to Grandelyn and saved until they had enough money to buy their own resources to live and build with. They purchased cows to provide milk, and as well as other farm animals. Yarn and many clothing materials were bought for the seamstresses to make clothing for the people. They bought tools and other building materials to begin forming and fixing Ash City.

Cautious of the fact that the Savage Kingdom now knew of their whereabouts, and mindful of the possibilities of another seize, the Grandenites remained prepared. Each day young Ariyah, now a blossoming, pretty, plump, 16 year old, reviewed all the training her mother taught her as a child. She took the heavy task upon herself to train the rest of the Grandenites in case of another attack.

Quickly the years had gone by. In the process, Grandelyn no longer looked like a remote beach land but instead a beautiful functioning city which still held the majestic sites of the unique land. The children became teenagers, marriages took place, and new children were born. The big building on the first mountain was converted into a school for both children and adults, named the Empire. It was there that the people learned both academics and battle training.

Properties were neatly landscaped, and small buildings and homes were either renovated or built. After working for others for so long, the Grandenites were happy to create their own jobs. Buildings were constructed for the doctors, blacksmiths, craftsmen, and architects of the city. The people had made progress and they knew there would be no turning back.

To ensure that their rough past was forgotten, the Grandenites desired to remove the SK branding from behind their right shoulders. Daily the women would take a jagged rock and harshly scrape away the damaged skin. As the flesh slowly began to fade away, an aloe plant was then used to soothe and heal the wounds from the disgraced symbol. All the SK brands began to fade. Except that of Ariyah's. No matter how many times the jagged rock and aloe session was done, Ariyah's just wouldn't fade. She was saddened by her permanent mark, but she dealt with it and continued to explore life.

Every morning at dawn, during the same hours her mother used to train her, Ariyah would eat her daily dose of fafura. Then she would meditate. Her form of meditation consisted of full body stretching and balancing skills. She would practice long handstands. She showed great acrobatic flexibility with her stretch stances; though not quite able to reach her feet on top of her head. But that was a goal she was trying to reach. In the dark blue sky of the dawn as Elai soared high above her, her full figured shadow would display across the grounds as she stretched and meditated. The astonishing determination and greatness of a self made warrior and riveting young lady, Ariyah had every defying trait of her mother and she worked hard to mirror herself after Crystaline. After her morning meditations, she would feverishly massage her medallion in hopes Crystaline would respond. Every once in awhile Ariyah would feel her move inside the bronze locket and that movement made her feel at peace. She could then begin her day with ease.

For the majority of citizens, mornings began at the Empire. The elders of Grandelyn would take the younger children up to the small gray mountain, named Mount Edgemoore, where the school was. The zebralings were used as their transportation. Then the teenagers followed along. Sheevar, who also grew into a beautiful ample teenager, would walk with Ariyah to The Empire every morning. She always adorned her curly blonde hair with a crown of blue roses, which many of the young men grew fond of. The two beauties would walk alongside the others up Mount Edgemoore.

Each student of the Empire learned arithmetic, the alphabet (to those who didn't know them) and science. Vanka gave basic life lessons and wisdom classes. The craftsmen of Ash City taught the young male Grandenites how to make defense weapons and build shacks for the zebralings and other creatures. This helped prepare the males to become strong, independent men.

With all the fantastic things that were occurring in Grandelyn, the main thing that each citizen desired to have was a palace; a kind of fortress. A statement, that proclaimed 'we are here...and we have overcome!' The architects of all the work that had been done to date were Mr. Vanhinkel, Mr. Johanssen, and Mr. Walter B. Victor. These men realized that the old damaged palace on the mountain behind Mount Edgemoore (now called Ribbon Rock) could be reconstructed. They drew out the plan and set about rebuilding. The development would take years, but everyone was more than happy to wait for such a thing. They wanted Ash City to be the most envied city to ever exist. Whatever it was before no longer mattered. Only what it was going to become. They wanted Grandelyn to be the most desired place on Earth. Because then they could take pride in knowing where they came from and where they ended up and they could forever be proud. History books could be made about them, plaques and statues could be made in their honor; their story would be like no other. Since they knew others would not accept them looking the way they did, they strived to be the best and most unique, sought after land. They had no idea just how sought after they were.

Chapter 17

#  The Empire and the Warrior's Ball

Meanwhile, the teaching of the minds continued at The Empire. Miss Emberely was setting up the teenage class (ages 13 – 19) for the day's lessons. She waited for the line of round and rotund bodies dressed in their school uniforms of brown hooded gowns and slacks to enter. Suddenly the loud thumping and thudding of stamping feet vibrated the floors. Miss Emberely began to smile. They were here. Headed by Ariyah and Sheevar, one by one, then two by two, then rushing each other to get through the doors; the excited teens ran to get inside the peach and gold painted classroom. They quickly took to their seats with hands folded and waited for the teacher to begin. Miss Emberely, who was young herself (about 22), looked around the classroom and realized there were three empty seats.

"Where are they?" Miss Emberely asked, fixing her blonde tresses.

"They should be coming now. They were right behind us." Orraco answered, putting his foot on the back of Ariyah's chair in his usual attempt to tease her. Before Miss Emberely could say anything, a tremendous rumbling interrupted her. The painted floral pictures on the wall began to wobble and the fruit left on Miss Emberely's desk rolled onto the wooden floor.

"I told you I'd beat you here! I win!" The high pitched cheer of a girl's voice rang out. Soon a very hefty young girl with bright red hair ran into the room. She was followed by two boys who were heavier than her and they too had bright red hair.

"No fair. You cheated going up the ramp." One of the boys complained.

"Oh stop your bloody bickering and accept your defeat, Damien" the girl teased.

The bickering continued as they entered the classroom. The three 13 year olds, Damien, Demetrius, and Dalia were triplets. They were the youngest and rowdiest of the class. But they were also the biggest of all the young ones of Grandelyn. Everyone knew the "Triple D's" as they were called. They were very popular throughout the land because of their playful and adventurous personalities, as well as their famous fiery red hair.

"Alright enough, you three! Get to your seats." Miss Emberely intervened.

"Yes, ma'am." The triplets wobbled to the back desks that were especially made for their huge bodies. Miss Emberely was now able to begin.

"Good morning class." She said cheerfully. "Good morning Misses Emberely" They replied in unison.

"I felt today would be a good day to learn mathematics." A rush of groans from disdained teenagers quickly filled the room." What is the problem now?" Miss Emberely chuckled.

"We don't want to learn numbers. We want to continue our battle training." Rashad complained.

"Battle training means nothing if you're a stupid warrior. Yes, it's good to train your body, but it's even better to train your mind."

"Yes, thank you." Ariyah erupted with annoyance from her classmates.

"Oh shut up, teacher's pet." They called out. Ariyah always had more of a mature mind than the others. She was a natural born leader just like her mother. Though they were annoyed by her favoritism, the teens as well as the adults had the utmost respect for her. She was the head of defense, and readily shared her superb fighting skills with everyone else. But she was also very respectful and humble.

Ariyah was liked by everyone. Almost everyone, that is. Phyliscia didn't jump on the Ariyah bandwagon. With raven-dark hair, blue eyes, big fluffy bosoms and full shiny red lips, Phyliscia was considered by most to be the most beautiful girl in class. She never liked the amount of attention that was given to Ariyah. Phyliscia was tired of hearing how wonderful...or how sweet...or how strong, ambitious, smart, courageous, or talented Ariyah is. She was tired of hearing about the mystery surrounding that ugly metal medallion around her neck. She was tired of hearing the young jittery boys talk about how they wish Ariyah would give them the time of day.

But most of all, Phyliscia was tired of everyone turning to Ariyah for advice. It annoyed her that peopled flocked to her as if she was some kind of god. Even when Phyliscia was back in the Savage Kingdom as a child, her own mother disliked Crystaline for the exact same reasons. Phyliscia wanted to keep her distance from Ariyah as much as possible.

Still ignoring Miss Emberely's desire to start the lesson, the class continued with other distractions. "We have to get ready for the Warrior's Ball!" Dalia said with excitement. The class was filled with excited voices about that notion. The Warrior's Ball was the biggest event of the land. It was held every year at the Empire, in the glass dome room at the top of the building. Regally decorated, music played and the best food was served from the best chefs of Grandelyn. The Warrior's Ball is when everyone dresses in their best clothes. The focus of the event is for the students to show off the moves they have learned from their sensei Ariyah. It is a time for awards to be given, some sparring between students and students to sensei, and the final act of the night - Ariyah demonstrating whatever new fighting moves she created. She is the main event and her admirer's always cannot wait for the show. This year would be no different.

Rashad, Orraco's best friend, was one who was real excited. Rashad was a big muscular guy with a big gut. He was built like a bull. He was very into physical training, wrestling, grappling, and anything physical. He was a very aggressive and handsome young man and got the attention of many of the girls. He had dark chocolate skin, dark carefully cropped hair and goatee, bright teeth and dimples. He admired the strength and technical side of Ariyah. He couldn't believe that a female could have such skill. But he never tried to approach her because he knew that someone else had his heart set on her.

Orraco needed a date for the Warrior's Ball. He already knew who he wanted to ask, he was just extremely nervous to ask her. He playfully tapped his sandal on the back of Ariyah's chair again and he even yanked her hair.

"Orraco! Will you stop it?" She said getting annoyed with his immature antics.

"Will you grow up?" Sheevar turned to him in Ariyah's defense.

"Blow it out of your ear, Sheevar!" He replied back. Rashad began to laugh out loud.

"You need to shut up too, Rashad!"

Sheevar and Rashad began to argue as Miss Emberely, tried to regain control of her class. As they argued, Orraco turned his head to the right and could see that Phyliscia was staring at him. Her icy blue eyes caught his and the plumpness of her full lips caught his full attention. She leaned back slightly in her chair, perking up her cleavage through the top of her brown hooded gown. He swallowed hard and began to shyly smile. She gave a half smile and took her hair down from the firm updo it was in; letting her wavy raven locks hang. The two couldn't take their eyes off of each other despite the arguing chaos around them. Despite her great beauty, Orraco had never noticed Phyliscia in this way before. He was always too concentrated on another girl, a special girl. But Phyliscia always noticed Orraco. She had a crush on him for at least a year, but he was always spending time with Ariyah and Sheevar and those were two people she did not want to be around.

Phyliscia began to stroke her lips with her pen. Her pale skin glowing, she knew what she was doing was working. She had his 18 year old hormones in motion. Finally she gave him a wink and she knew he was hers.

"Hey, Orraco," Rashad's deep voice boomed. "Get your sister. She is wrecking my nerves."

"Oh shove it, Rashad!" Sheevar sassed. Finally the school organ played as the sign that class was over. Miss Emberely had gotten nowhere with these raging teens. Ariyah felt bad and went over to console her. Orraco could see that Phyliscia was still staring at him as if waiting for him. Some of the boys were already asking girls to be their dates for the Ball. He knew he needed to make his move now. He looked up and saw a guy playfully wrestling and tickling Ariyah. He quickly went over to them and pulled the boy away from her. The young man wanted to attack him but after studying Orraco's height and strong girth he thought better of it and walked away. Orraco began to smile.

"Ariyah, I have something I need to ask you." "Can you make it quick because I have to get down to the Spar Gym to set up for today's training and I am late." "Well I was wondering..." Sheevar came over and butt bumped Orraco in a desk. "That's for letting your mean friend talk to me like that. Doesn't he know a lady when he sees one? You two are jerks." She complained. Orraco was now annoyed. "Ariyah..." "I have got to go. We'll talk later, ok?" And she ran out of the classroom. Frustrated, Orraco got out of the seat. He looked up and saw that Phyliscia was standing against the wall, cleavage completely out, waiting for him with a smirk.

The golden sky had finally died down for the night as the star-riddled indigo sky dominated. The glass dome room was filled with the light of bright lights, a buffet table with every food imaginable, the sound of music, and laughter from people having a great time. Zebralings were parked outside as they rode people up Mount Edgemoore to The Empire. The citizens came in droves; all dressed in the finest silks and satins, gold and rubies, pin curls and freshly shaven heads. Everyone was ready to enjoy the night. Vanka, dressed in an orange strapless gown, with her braids pinned in an elegant updo, was standing on stage with Mr. Crowesh. For his part, Mr. Crowesh was finally well-groomed. He loved his brown beard and grew it long to shape it like a pointed arrow. He was dressed in a black pants suit with the royal blue armor vest. They were the hosts of the evening. They announced the musicians, the event's itinerary, and told jokes at the podium.

The little children, dressed in poufy dresses and little tailored suits, played in a designated area with little lambs and harp players, while the older teens made their way inside. Rashad and his date Delmar both came in dressed in silver while behind them Orraco (dressed in a white suit with red military stripes) came in with Phyliscia. Orraco was proud to have Phyliscia on his arm. She was stunning tonight. Her dark hair was pulled up and pinned in sexy little ringlets that adorned the top of her head. She had on a red silk gown with a plunging neckline, which exposed all of her double D cleavage down to the red sheer covering of her belly button. Her big hips and ample bottom gave great cause for the attention they were both getting. They looked good together despite the obvious height difference. While Orraco was an average 5'9, Phyliscia was an overwhelming 6'1 with sandals on. But nonetheless, they made a very handsome couple. The other admiring teens gathered around Orraco and Rashad and their dates.

Phyliscia loved the attention she was getting, from not only Orraco but the people as well. She felt like a queen until she heard the voices. "Hi, Ariyah!" "Look its Ariyah!" "Aw she looks so pretty." It was almost in unison. Phyliscia moved her small following apart to get a glimpse of what everyone was so excited about. Ariyah humbly strolled into the glass dome room, pulling Sheevar by the arm with her. Orraco, whom was drinking punch, nearly choked on his drink when he saw her.

Ariyah entered nervously. She as a tom boy most of her life, was used to wearing pants and shorts. Tonight was be the first time she dressed like a young woman. She pulled her hair up into a high bun, had her eyebrows carefully arched, and her dress was beautiful. Some mumbled under their breath that maybe the dress was a little too provocative for a 16 year old. Ariyah had developed into a beautiful teenager and her body was curvier than anyone had remembered. Her black sheer, rhinestone embroidered dress complimented every curve on her body.

"They're all staring at you, lady." Teased Sheevar, whom was looking rather ravishing herself, in her blue empire waist gown and straightened blonde hair.

"But I just feel so uncomfortable. I knew I shouldn't have listened to you and wore this thing." Ariyah complained through gritted teeth. Everyone was staring at her, but with admiration. They couldn't believe that this little lady was the one who got them out of the Savage Kingdom. To watch her grow up made them proud. Everyone soon continued to party and socialize, while Ariyah and Sheevar walked around the ballroom floor. Orraco hadn't taken his brown eyes off of her since she came in and apparently neither had Phyliscia. Even with Rashad trying to talk to him, Orraco was in a daze and Phyliscia didn't appreciate the attention being taken off of her.

"Alright, citizens of Grandelyn, Oh does it feel good to say that?" Vanka squealed in her thick accent. "It is now time for de' students to start off de' sparring matches. Let us all see how much you have learned." Two of the youngest students of The Empire, Emma and Raul, both five years old, walked to the black and gold circular marble floor at the bottom of the stage. The guests formed a crowd around the lower stage to watch.

Excited, Ariyah ran and stood next to the circle stage for encouragement and support for the young children. Barefoot, they were dressed in white nylon cat suits. Their protruding bellies and little hefty thighs filled out their uniforms. The first two combatants assumed a fight stance. Arms up and guarding their face and sides, the children were ready to display their skill. Vanka gave a head nod. Two horns blasted loudly in a quick melody, and a male's voice belted out the words, "GO!"

The two went at it. At first Emma was getting the best of Raul. Her chubby little red fists were clobbering the little boy as he missed every opportunity to block her attacks. The cheers and jeers of the audience amped the children up even more. Emma moved to kick Raul in his shin, when he remembered what Ariyah had taught him. He swiftly hopped up and landed on her foot, pulled her backwards by her strawberry blonde ponytail, and forced his knee into her abdomen, securing her to the floor. The match was over. The applause rang out in the glass dome room as the children stood to their feet to bow. Defeated, Emma's lip began to tremble as she put her head down in loser's shame. Ariyah rushed over to her and hugged her.

"No, no. Don't you shed a tear. A warrior doesn't cry. They only try harder and get better. Now pick your head up and walk away proudly. You both did well." Emma sniffed hard and gave a toothless smile and walked away with Raul holding hands. The applause still rang out for the youth's effort.

The next rounds consisted of sparring between a pair of 10 year olds, 16 year olds, and then 20 year olds. It was now time for sparring with the sensei, Ariyah. But not before she would share with the citizens the new fighting moves she had developed. She didn't even bother to change out of her gown. She was a warrior at heart and would fight and teach wearing anything. Ariyah stood in the middle of the marble circle. More of the crowd gathered to surround her. Rashad was front and center watching anxiously. Orraco stood off to the side to watch her attentively. Phyliscia had a tight grip on his arm; her face in a scowl.

Poised standing straight on one leg and the other bended and foot attached to her knee, Ariyah bowed her head and placed her hands together. She seemed to be concentrating. She took 3 quick deep breaths and swiftly kicked her leg out in front of her and swooped it around in a big circular motion. She did it repeatedly to show how to kick and block the opponent with one leg. Then she sprang out and began to move hastily doing multiple jabs, kicks, ducking, tumbling, and spinning hits. She used imaginary weapons to defeat her imaginary enemies. She was smooth and confident and moved as though she was dancing. She had the audience in almost a trance. Many commented under their breath that she reminded them of Crystaline.

Ariyah's dress whipped wildly with every kick and turn. She did a final spin and ended with a courteous bow. The applause filled the room as Ariyah looked to all the smiling faces staring back at her. Standing out among those faces was one that wasn't smiling. Phyliscia's icy blue eyes were cutting deep into Ariyah, who humbly avoided staring in her direction.

Orraco, who was excited and whistling loudly with Rashad, was yanked harshly by the arm by Phyliscia. He stopped and questioned her annoyance. She walked away from him and found a chair to sit in away from the crowd.

"Alright. She did such a great job, didn't she, Grandenites?" Vanka said on the podium, clearly very proud of Ariyah. Mr. Crowesh climbed back onto the podium as well.

"It is now time for a brave soul to take on this beautiful young lady; student to sensei." He said. The crowd became quiet and heads turned because no one wanted to be called out. "I mean I would do it but I don't want to hurt the young lady." Mr. Crowesh joked, knowing he wasn't on Ariyah's skill level. No one wanted to embarrass themselves by going up against Ariyah, so no one volunteered.

Understanding their insecurity, Ariyah simply bowed and stepped away. Rashad and Orraco followed her to the punch table. Phyliscia watched the whole time. Some male pursuers came to her but she quickly brushed them away. Her heart was beating fast with fury as she watched Orraco swoon all over Ariyah. She could see through the crowd that they were laughing together, while Rashad and Sheevar teased each other. Delmar was behaving very affectionately with Rashad, and Phyliscia only wished she could be that supportive - but her hatred was getting the best of her. She spotted the rusty old medallion hanging from Ariyah's neck, and she wanted to rip it away.

"Then maybe she wouldn't be so special." She said to herself. She was becoming drunk with jealousy and anger. Phyliscia stared down at her carefully painted fingernails and when she looked back up her anger exploded. Sheevar had playfully taken Rashad's face and kissed his cheek as hard as she could, then she turned and did the same to Orraco. Then the two switched, Ariyah had taken Orraco's cheek and kissed as hard as she could; leaving him laughing hysterically and with a big lip mark on his pale face and Rashad ducked from further attack. Phyliscia quickly got up from her seat and made her way to the playful circle. She abruptly grabbed Orraco's arm and wrapped hers around his bear bellied waist. The circle of laughter quickly ended with everyone feeling overshadowed by Phyliscia's negativity. She just stood there and eyed Ariyah down, towering over Ariyah's 5'2 frame.

"Having fun everyone?" She asked with a smug smile on her radiant face.

"We were until you came over here." Sheevar sassed. Ariyah looked at Sheevar to cool it.

"Really?" She raised her eyebrow and ignored Sheevar. "So you think you're the only one around here who can do special things, do you?" Ariyah chose to ignore Phyliscia and looked to get out of the circle.

"Maybe all of us weren't blessed with a mother who could do crazy things like yours. We should all be so lucky." Phyliscia called out. Orraco tried to shush her. She just blew him off. Ariyah tried to walk away, but was pushed in the back.

"Don't walk away from me, Ariyah. What makes you so special? Is it that?" she asked, pointing to the medallion.

"Don't touch me again." Ariyah demanded calmly.

"What are you going to do about it?" Phyliscia asked. "Now tell me what makes you so damn special. Is it this?" Phyliscia grabbed Ariyah's medallion and tried to rip it from her neck. Ariyah gave Phyliscia two quick forceful punches to the chest, grabbed both her arms and kicked out her legs; causing Phyliscia to fall to her knees. Ariyah then grabbed her hair backwards and pulled with all her strength. Phyliscia was wrapped around Ariyah's arm like a pretzel.

"I don't want to hurt you!" Ariyah screamed out trying to hold back all the rage that had built inside of her. "I don't want to hurt you, Phyliscia. We need to stick together, but if you ever do that again I will be forced to break every bone in your body." Ariyah flung Phyliscia forward and briskly walked out to the glass balcony.

The crowd gathered around Phyliscia, who was still on the ground rubbing her arms and legs in agony. Sheevar laughed and ran out to the balcony to console Ariyah. Rashad had to turn his head to shield his chuckling. Orraco, disappointed in her actions, tried to help her stand to her feet.

Ariyah was leaning over the golden framed balcony bar and looked down at the gray bricked, zebraling-covered ground below. Her heart was still beating a mile a minute and she was taking slow deep breaths to calm down. The cool air was soothing against her heated face. She hadn't been that angry since the death of her mother. She was shocked that another Grandenite would try to attack their own. After all they had gone through at the hands of the enemies.

Sheevar cautiously walked behind Ariyah and gave her a quick playful tickle to the side, startling her.

"Are you ok?"

"Sheevar, what was that about? I just don't understand. I have never done anything to that girl and yet she hates me...it's like she's a part of the Savage Kingdom. It hurts my heart."

"Why are you so down about it? You taught her a very pricey lesson." Sheevar giggled.

"It's not funny, Sheevar. We are Grandenites. We're supposed to stick together. I didn't want to hurt her and I want for everyone to get along." Ariyah's heart began to race with anxiety again as she complained about the altercation. "We must always remember where we came from and where we can go back to if we are divided. Do you agree?" Sheevar solemnly shrugged her shoulders. She didn't particularly care for Phyliscia and her bad attitude anyway, so the fight in her mind was justified. She knew if it was her, she would've done a lot worse to Phyliscia. But she knew that Ariyah was very passionate about their land, so she allowed her to vent.

The two girls heard loud flapping above them. It was Elai flying towards the balcony to Ariyah. He fluttered around her hung head and landed on her left shoulder. He nuzzled her head but she kept looking down. Sheevar stroked the top of his head and his yellow beak.

"Well I'm going to go back inside and enjoy the rest of this party. Don't let this get you down, Ariyah. Whether you know it or not, you did the right thing." Then she turned to walk back inside the glass dome room to the curious nosy spectators awaiting. She wanted to enjoy her night but she just couldn't let the situation go. It bothered her that it all came down to an altercation. She was about the uplifting of her people, not throwing them down. While Elai tried his best to console her, her medallion began to smoothly vibrate against her chest. Ariyah hadn't felt that in a long time. The sensation of that cold metal around her neck moving with her mother's love helped her to immediately calm down.

"Thank you, Mother. I needed that." She smiled. The medallion continued to buzz silently as the three spent time together alone on the balcony. Ariyah looked over the whole land of Grandelyn and Ash City. Watching the calmness of the albino Siamese Twin Dragons, the sparkling Sea of Amethyst, and the white sand and she felt at peace. Her mother was there to console her and she was able to continue her night without a problem, especially because Orraco and Phyliscia had left. Her admirers saw to it that she would laugh and dance the night away.

Chapter 18

#  Ariyah and the Ig

One day after school and female battle training, Ariyah decided to relax by taking a walk. She quickly went home to change from her school uniform, the dreaded long brown hooded gown and sandals, into her favorite silk turquoise harem jumpsuit. She grabbed her red pouch that was nearly full with findings from previous walks; seashells, unique pebbles, silver coins, rare colorful leaves, and teeth from unknown creatures. She hastily ran to the door.

"Vanka, I will be back soon." Ariyah said, trying to rush out before Vanka could question her.

"Where will you be, chile?" Vanka inquired anyway.

"I'm going to walk through the Idle Forest." Ariyah explained. There were still other parts of Grandelyn that hadn't been touched and the Idle Forest was one of them. This forest was very dark and far from the beach mainland. Ariyah wanted to touch every part of the land. Knowing all too well the ambitiousness of Ariyah, Vanka shook her head with displeasure.

"Take Orraco with you." Vanka demanded sternly.

"Aww Vanka, he'll only slow me down." Ariyah whined.

"Take him. Or at least take Sheevar." "Sheevar is still at The Empire helping the children." "Take someone because it's never safe to go anywhere alone." Vanka advised. Ariyah huffed and rolled her eyes in frustration.

"Okay, okay stop with the lecturing. I'll find Orraco." Vanka smacked Ariyah in the butt with a stack of cut bark for sassing her. Ariyah rushed out the door and went to look for Orraco. As she went out to the beach mainland, she looked into the direction of the Idle Forest. She could see the dark green trees from a distance. A smile came upon her face. She dug through her pouch and grabbed her compass. As she was going to defiantly head toward the east of the land alone, she could see the line of young and old males, dressed in white and black armor, trailing from Mount Edgemoore. Looking through the droves of men, Ariyah spotted the handsome young tan-skinned man, with beautiful dark almond shaped eyes and short black cropped hair that shaped the thickness of his head and face. The white and black body armor clung to his hefty body made Orraco look like a great knight. He removed his black zitheranium head piece. He met her with an adoring yet guilty smile. He still felt bad for the way Phyliscia treated her.

"Hey Ariyah." He spoke softly.

"Can you go with me to the Idle Forest?"Ariyah asked.

"Oh I can't. I have to train with Mr. Crowesh and the other men." He answered clearly disappointed.

"Come on. You can do that anytime. After all I am the one that taught them everything they know." She teased. He looked tempted but his other obligations stopped him.

"I can't" he answered. Ariyah was disappointed. "Ask Rashad, he's free." Orraco suggested.

It didn't matter to Ariyah. She wanted to go to the forest by herself anyway and this was her excuse to do so.

"Its okay, Rocky. Go teach the men everything I have blessed you with." She joked. He smiled and ran to be with the other men. Ariyah watched them all march away before turning east to go toward the Idle Forest. She found one of the older, bigger zebralings and traveled away from the beach mainland. The zebraling with the black sheer wings took Ariyah to the front of the forest. She tied it up to a tree and assured it that she'd be right back.

The forest, like the rest of Grandelyn, was beautiful. It was a mix of palm and pine trees, with white sand and green grass everywhere. The brightness of the white sand ensured that it would never get too dark inside the forest. Ariyah reached for her red pouch again, looking for other special items to collect. She began her journey deeper into the forest.

As she walked along, she heard a squawking sound. She looked up to the sky. It was Elai flying in circles above her in the forest.

"I see you, Elai, but right now I travel alone." She said. He faithfully remained in the air. She proceeded to move forward. The medallion on her chest began to vibrate. She placed her hand gently on the locket and soothed it. "Its okay, Mother. I just want to see what's out here." She began walking deeper into the woods. The trees were magnificent. They were shiny and vibrant. Some were fruit trees, containing mangos, kiwi, coconuts, and of course fafuras. A big yellow centipede crawling up a tree trunk caught Ariyah's eye. She picked it up and examined it. "Wow you look very different than the ones back in Ferocities" she said, watching his little legs writhing around. She let him go and continued her walk. The dry sand crunched loudly under Ariyah's golden sandals as she moved forward. The cool breeze of the early evening rushed over her, arousing her senses and giving her even more energy to continue her exploration.

The white sand was dirty, dark and muddy. As the area grew darker, her medallion vibrated even more. "Calm down, Mother." Upon walking into the deep part of the woods, Ariyah saw a large black building with the two cracked, black marble pillars at the eerie dark entrance. On the top of the building was a sign written in a foreign language. The sign read: Indigenous. Ariyah looked at the place curiously. "I wonder who used to live here" she said to herself.

She grabbed a broken tar-covered branch and, using a rock to provide a spark, was able to start a flame on it, creating a makeshift torch. As she entered the gloomy building, the stomp of her foot created a cloud of dust that rushed into her nostrils. Ariyah sneezed, causing a huge echo to vibrate throughout the lonely architecture. Trying to feel her way through the seemingly empty structure, Ariyah placed her hand on the old cracked wall and she felt deep grooves. She used the light from her torch to see what it was. She was amazed at what was before her. It was carved scrolls and images on the wall. She turned around to look at the other wall and there were more foreign carvings. As she studied the carved drawings on each wall, she desired to know what they meant. The images showed a great monster with a huge opened mouth and jagged teeth. The beast was shown to be battling seamen. There were foreign words written all around it. Ariyah placed the torch over the wall. "What is this? What does this say?" She whispered feeling the text with fingers. There were more carved images and words along the next wall. She slid her hand across the writings, only wondering more what these things could mean.

Broken flooring crushed under her feet as she made her way through the darkness of the unknown. A cool breeze brushed against her skin as she roamed deeper inside. She could hear Elai's squawking echoing from outside, but she went forth. Her curiosity drove her as she turned every corner in the building. Around nearly every corner there was a new wall of carvings.

The deeper inside she went, the more humid it became. After awhile she realized that this place was a maze. With every part of the building, each wall of the maze was filled with the foreign writings and drawings of this big lonesome monster defeating army battles. There was a big picture of the monster towering over a battlefield, massacring its enemies. While trailing through the opaque darkness of the area in front of her, Ariyah could see a big ray of light from the sky outside. She reached a part of the maze where the roof of the building was missing. This allowed light to come inside this dark dungeon of a place. The cool air from outside blew out her torch. Her eyes began to burn from the strain of looking through the dark and the irritating smoke from the extinguished torch. She threw the stick down and used her hands as her guide to walk her way through the rest of the building.

She came up against something solid. She felt the object over. It didn't feel like a wall exactly, but it was as hard as concrete. She tried to push her way through. But her efforts were in vain. She used the light from the exposed roof to see what was blocking her. She squinted her eyes really hard. The sunlit beam from outside showed two big yellow eyes peering through the darkness. Ariyah wasn't sure of what she was seeing so she brought her face in closer and peered in to get a better look. A roar blasted through her ears.

Jumping with fear, Ariyah swiftly moved back. A dark shadow rose up slowly. Ariyah's heart began to beat wildly as she tried to back away carefully. Whatever was in front of her took in three deep heavy breaths and let out an ear-piercing wail. The massive figure lunged at her.

Ariyah screamed and she turned and ran. Being chased by the unknown, unseen menace, Ariyah smashed into the walls that created the maze. She could not see where she was going at all. She could hear the loud thunderous thumping and roaring gaining on her. She continued to bump into the ragged walls before her as she was getting lost in the maze. Whatever was chasing her smacked into the confusing walls as well.

She found herself facing a blocked wall and was unsure which direction to go. The beast crashed into an exposed wall behind her and swiped at her. It was able to grab hold of her long ponytail. After digging her nails into its hand, Ariyah was able to break away from its grasp. She continued running, in whatever direction was closest to her. With each turn she hoped there was an open entrance.

The monster was gaining momentum. "I can't get out!" she screamed. The creature roared loudly again, actually rumbling the foundation of the building. Once again she found herself locked into a part of the maze. The massive grotesque shadow lunged at her, but she managed to duck again and crawl under him, getting her out of that corner. From a distance she could see the light leading to the entrance. The beast was still roaring like a lion; the thumping of its feet caused the entire place to shake as though it was amidst an earthquake.

She noticed one of the carved images from earlier and realized that she was close to the beginning. She could now feel the heat of the creature's breath on her back. Finally, she saw the lit opening of the building. With all her might, and as much speed as she could gain, she quickly jolted out, springing up and slamming into the ground outside.

As she rolled away from the building, Elai flew down to be with her. She saw the building shaking and she could hear what sounded like the stampede of 100 elephants. Whatever was chasing her leaped out head first and crashed through the front entrance. She couldn't believe her eyes. A massive, beige-colored ogre was lodged between the pillars of the entrance. It roared, exposing yellow, crooked teeth. Ariyah and Elai were startled. It tried to break through the solid pillars but to no avail. After awhile all the ferocious roaring turned into helpless whimpering. It was stuck.

Bewildered, Ariyah went from terrified to concerned. She rose up and slowly walked toward it. Elai flew all around her head trying to stop her from going to it. The ogre continued to whimper like a wounded dog. As she reached out to touch it, it eyed her cautiously, snarled, and then roared at her again. Startled, she tried again. Elai flapped his wings frantically. Ariyah put her hand up, signaling everything is okay.

"Calm down. I'm trying to help you." She went to touch it again as it was unsure of her. She grabbed hold of its neck. It was still trying to snap at her but she scolded it.

"Look if you don't stop I won't be able to help you. You want to get out, don't you?" The ogre looked at her with anger, but could see the sincerity in her eyes. He calmed down and obeyed her. Ariyah threw her pouch down and drove her hands into the wedges between the ogre's neck and the black pillars. She wiggled deeper into the spaces so that she could get a good grip on it. She slowly began to pull at his massive head, wiggling it back and forth until she could feel it begin to loosen up. As she kept pulling, he began to roar out in pain. His yellow eyes were welling up with tears.

"What's wrong?" Ariyah questioned. She could see its huge arms flailing behind the pillars trying to point to the problem. "Is it your neck?" she asked. It hopelessly nodded. "Okay don't worry." She pulled even more. It was in obvious pain so she wanted to hurry this up. She gave one last good yank and she pulled his head through the opening of the pillars, falling back on the ground. He was able to get the rest of his body out. She looked down at her pant leg and she saw a puddle of blood. She checked to see if it was her, but it wasn't. She looked up at the 12 foot massive ogre, in all of its nakedness, and she saw the blood spurting from the gash in his neck. There was a broken piece of the pillar sticking out when he crashed through, and the jagged piece ripped through his neck when Ariyah tried to pull him out. He was howling in pain.

"Let me fix that." Ariyah got up and went to get a few leaves. She gathered enough to press against the gash. She then picked up some muddy sand and patched the leaves to his neck. She emptied her pouch and used it as a bandage, wrapping it around his neck. "This should stop the bleeding." She smiled at him reassuringly.

He stared at her with adoration and gratefulness. Ariyah was the first human to ever treat him with such kindness, even after he tried to kill her. He began to bow down before her. She looked at him with confusion. "What are you doing?" She chuckled. He continued to kneel with his head toward the ground in honor of her. She didn't know what to say. Elai had flown down and perched himself on her shoulder. Ariyah told the ogre to stand. He complied.

"What is your name?" She asked nervously. "Igwomwom magooshlin tari..." The ogre's language was complete gibberish to Ariyah. She was filled with confusion. "Igwomwom? I'm sorry I just don't understand you." She said apologetically. He seemed hurt by their great language barrier. "How about I just call you the Ig?" He shrugged his shoulders. There was so much more she wanted to know about him and in turn there was so much the Ig wanted to tell her.

The sky was getting dark and it was best that Ariyah get home soon. She didn't want to leave him and he didn't want her to leave. "I have to go now but I promise you I will visit you right here every day." He seemed to understand that. "Come, Elai, let's go." She began to run out of the forest. She turned back to him, "I promise!" and she untied the tired zebraling waiting on the other side and rode home. The Ig watched his new companion leave. He looked at the crushed entrance to the black crypt building and knew he would never have to be trapped in there again. And to make sure, he revved up all his strength and kicked the pillars down, causing the front of the foundation to crash down into a pile of rubble. He smirked. Instead of running off with his freedom he decided to stay right where he was discovered. He waited patiently for the return of his new friend.

Ariyah didn't tell the Grandenites of her discovery. She didn't want them to panic and perhaps harm the ogre. But she did keep her promise, and she and Elai visited the Ig daily after school and battle training. The three became extremely close. The Ig was unable to eat regular human food, as it was too small for his massive frame, so Ariyah took him to a section of the land where there were mountain lions that he could feast on. They developed their own sign language that only they could understand. It took awhile before they could break that barrier but the first step in the development was Ariyah teaching him her name. Ariyah came back to the Idle Forest where the Ig continued to stay. Each time, he was excited to see her.

One day, she returned with a bundle of rye. She sat on the ground and signaled for him to do the same. He plopped on the ground, causing thunderous shaking. "Not so hard." Ariyah laughed. Both sitting in lotus position, Ariyah pointed to herself repeatedly. The Ig nodded acknowledging that she was talking about herself. Then she made the letter A with her fingers. "Ah..." She sounded out the letter and then she pointed to the bundle of rye. "Rye..." Then she made the letter A again. "Ah....Rye...Ah." She pointed to herself, made the A letters, pointed to rye and made A again. She repeated this 5 times. Although the Ig did not say anything, he nodded to let her know he understood.

Eventually they mastered their sign language and through this, the Ig would tell Ariyah his story. For decades the humans always tried to attack the ogre and his species because they didn't know what these monsters were. Many wars were started between the ogre and his human enemies because of the misinformation of this indigenous species. Unfortunately in their last battle, his entire species was massacred. He was captured, brought to the then isolated Grandelyn and ultimately locked inside the isolated maze crypt. The people of that time carved the images on the maze walls. They wanted to tell the story of why this ogre was locked away. The scrolls and images showed the humans at war with the species and showed the humans losing. The deeper walls within the maze showed the human's victory over the ogres.

The maze was to lead to the proof of the defeat of the ogres. He would be their trophy. He had been locked inside for 15 years.

He knew nothing about Grandelyn, he was just placed there and forgotten about among the forsaken woods. Ariyah desired strongly to have him come to the mainland with the others but she could not trust their human reactions.

No longer wanting the ogre to be cold, homeless, and naked, she knew he needed at least a pair of shorts big enough to cover his huge frame, which Ariyah estimated to stand about 12 feet tall and weigh as much as 800 pounds. She asked one of the best seamstresses from the mainland, the fiery red-head and buxom Cori, to make a pair of black shorts that could potentially fit an elephant. Cori was puzzled by such a request. Ariyah didn't want to give up her secret so she just explained that they would be used for teaching the students how to battle with armor and baggy clothing. Cori wasn't a part of the warrior clan being trained so she believed her. But making such clothing would be expensive and required a lot of material. Ariyah agreed to work for Cori for 5 months as her assistant and store maid to pay off her debt.

Not only did Ariyah work to pay for the Ig's clothing she also had to persuade the architects of the land to build a building or cave in the Idle Forest. The men didn't want to, because they saw no reason to do such a thing. They knew no one in their right mind would go in there and they had no clue that she went there daily. Ariyah told them that the mountain lions in the forest were trying to attack the zebralings around that area, and the zebralings needed a place to hide. The zebralings were cherished there so the men built a 3 story stable. She worked with them to get their resources and supplies. After seven months went by Ariyah was able to surprise the Ig with his new home and a new pair of crisp black shorts. He was very thankful to her for her kindness. He loved his new space and shorts.

Saddened, Ariyah told the Ig "I can't come back for awhile. The humans have done so much to reply to my crazy requests and I don't want them to become suspicious of you." She spoke and signed. The Ig, who was stroking Elai, became sad as well. He understood. She rode out of the Idle Forest quickly because she didn't want to see the look on his face. But as she rode away she could hear the loud roars and wails from the Ig. She only hoped that the people couldn't hear him from the city.
Chapter 19

#  Restoration

Brown sand and dust flew around aimlessly as 25 galloping black horses pulled the strong black and silver carriage that was holding Kalos. Fully clothed in his regular attire and holding Noire in his lap, Kalos was now on a mission. After the minions told Kalos of their discovery, he made plans to see what this Grandelyn place was. But it would take 8 years for him to get there. The Savage Kingdom's horses and many of his strongest soldiers had all died of pneumonia and other illnesses due to the continuous monsoon in Ferocities. Even Kalos was very ill for awhile.

Kalos took the men that remained and tried to bully lands whom had horses and healthy men. But by then Kalos and his withering army was no longer feared by the other lands. Each year that passed, more deaths in his legion occurred. His depression had consumed him and he was no longer a threat to anyone. He was defeated by his own slaves, and his medallion was gone. It was going to be hell to get it back, he realized.

Eventually he found a land that had respected him, or rather his legend. He found a land called Torren. It was a very dry and deserted land, a huge departure and relief from Ferocities. Upon their arrival, the place looked completely empty. But as Kalos stood in the center of the sun-ridden land, a short, jaundice-eyed, charcoal- colored being crawled from behind a leafless bush. Kalos and his men jerked back as they didn't know what this thing was that was coming towards them. This thing outstretched its arm to the men and collapsed.

"What is THAT, Emperor?" Zodner asked with disgust.

"The hell if I know. Come on. There is nothing here for us to see." Kalos turned to leave. A buzzing sound ripped through their ears, sending the Savage Kingdom soldiers to their knees holding their ears in agony. The only one who was unaffected was Kalos and that was because of his mask. He turned back around to see a swarm of these creatures standing before him, crowding around the first whom collapsed. Kalos looked puzzled. What were these hideous things laid upon his covered eyes? It was about 50 of these dark, charcoal, skinny, crispy leaky eyed beings. Some were tall but the others were very short. They looked like burnt pieces of bacon with legs. Kalos was both sickened and intrigued by these things.

"There is only one who can see with no eyes and that is you, Kalos, Emperor of Ferocities and son of Mandune" Said the smallest one of the bunch. His deep voice surprised Kalos.

"You know of me?" Kalos asked with uneasiness.

"Yes, Master. We have heard about you for years. No one can do what you do, or conceal what you have founded." It sounded like this being knew way more than he should have.

"Who?...What are you?"

"I am Vysera. We are the Torrids. As you can see we inhabit this land of Torren. We don't have much but we are strong in unity." This small Torrid seemed to be the one in charge of the rest. He spoke with a lot of wisdom and he kept Kalos's attention. "We know that you have found something special that can not only make your dreams come true, but ours as well."

"What do you mean?"

"LOOK AT US!" His voice boomed like the crackling of thunder, as everyone shook with fear. "We do not wish to stay like this. It's painful. Only you can take us out of our misery." Kalos was very confused. Vysera realized that. He slowly limped over to Semp whom was trying desperately to get away from this thing.

"What, what are you doing?" The small Torrid grabbed Semp's arm. Semp began to scream out, as smoke and embers began to spark out of Semp's arm. "Emperor, make him stop!" The Torrid menacingly dragged Semp to Kalos' boots as he stared deep into Kalos's mask.

"You see this? Do you see how much pain this man is in? Well that is us. Every day, all day. We are filled with the anguish of burning flesh. We are living with the bellows of Hell inside of us and we want to make it stop NOW!" Thick wads of spit and slobber flew from the Torrid's burnt mouth as he lashed out in anger. The other Torrids in the back looked ready to attack as mucus poured from them as well. Even Kalos became a bit afraid, though no one could tell.

"Well what do you want from me?"

"You have the key to change it all. You have what many have been searching decades for." It took a minute before Kalos to realize what the Torrid was talking about.

"Do you mean the Soul Realm medallion?"

"Yes!" Vysera flung Semp's arm away. "The Soul Realm can take this pain away, Master."

"I no longer have it."

"WHAT?" The ripping buzzing sound occurred again, causing everyone to shield their ears in suffering again. The small Torrid stood to Kalos as if he was the same size. "Where is it?"

"My slaves stole my medallion from me and are now fugitives. I was trying to find them but lost my brigade along the way." The Torrids looked at each in defeat. They could no longer live in those bodies; bodies which were cursed decades ago due to the chaos caused by the Soul Realm. Vysera turned back to Kalos.

"If we join in unity we can help you get the medallion back. If we do this, will you free us of our distress?"

"You have my word" Kalos said, removing his mask and staring into the sickly eyes of the Torrid.

"Then, Master, let us get you what you deserve." The Torrids made an alliance with the Savage Kingdom and they set out to find Grandelyn and destroy their enemies there.

Kalos boarded his black horse-drawn carriages, gathered up the 20 remaining soldiers and a few of the bigger Torrids and began the rocky trip towards North-West. By now Zodner and Semp had known the directions well, and the aid of the 25 galloping horses helped make the trip quicker than before. It only took a day and a half before they found the outside palm tree with the fafuras.

"See Emperor, these are the weird fruits we told you about" Zodner said.

"Give some to me." Kalos demanded. Semp ran to the tree, hit it with a near- by rock and two fell out. Kalos studied the fruit through his mask and said nothing. "Continue." he called out.

The horses continued to gallop along the way. By afternoon they pulled up to see the peaceful albino dragons in their rightful positions.

"See those are the dragons we spoke of" Zodner said. Kalos eyed the massive beings and became annoyed.

"That is just the gates' design, you idiots!" He yelled through his mask.

"No, sir, when you touch them they break apart and attack." Semp voiced nervously.

"Really? Well let's just see." Kalos defiantly got out of the carriage and walked to the twins. He could see through the gigantic gates all the beautiful sites that all looked too familiar. He was able to see Ash City from there. Images started to zoom in his mind. Images of people, horses, citizens; young and old, popular stores and bakery shops, things that seemed to have been there from the past all crowded his mind. His eyes roamed upward and he saw it. He slowly removed his mask so that he could get a better look. His eyes were now gazing upon the mountain, where the tallest and biggest building of Ash City was. The palace. Memories flashed through his mind. But the palace that he was now gazing upon looked nothing like the palace he was remembering in his mind. The palace he was looking at was tar covered, dull, and broken; the pillars, the walkway, the windows, all looked destroyed from his view. The palace in his mind was vibrant with color. The broken pillars, once stood strong and tall as they were created from the best pearls and marble. The walkway was majestic with water flowing beautifully through its entrance. The stain glass windows had glowed bright and shiny from the sun. Green plants and palm trees crowded the décor of the palace. Tropical animals as well as zebras and tigers roamed the city. And the people. The people of every color and creed were kind, generous, and hard-working. All the things Kalos was not.

Kalos shook his head and put his mask back on. Grandelyn was still a curse in his mind. And looking at it now, it didn't look as almighty as it once did; it was in a state of ruin. This pleased him. He continued to look upon Ash City and the palace. From a distance, Kalos could see the Grandenite warriors coming from training. They were all well dressed in their black and white high defense gear and each was holding a sword and shield. They were sweating profusely from rigorous training. He was completely shocked; the last time he had seen these people they were his slaves. They were supposed to be wearing the ragged beige clothes that he supplied to them. They were supposed to be groveling at his feet to either praise him or beg for work. Now they looked tough and independent. They looked...great! But he would never let anyone know that's how he felt.

His eyes roamed back to the lower half of Ash City and he began to see more people. He glared at the regally-dressed hefty folks working and enjoying their newly formed lives. His heart raced. These are the people that killed my men and stole my medallion. He thought to himself. These people had made it without him and he loathed them even more for it. His eyes searched for the main one, Ariyah. But there was no sight of her. He wanted to try his luck with these Siamese twin dragons but thought better of it. Fixing his crooked mask, Kalos turned to his awaiting men.

"Let's go back" he said solemnly. He slowly marched back to his carriage and wrapped Noire around his neck.

"But, Master, what is wrong?" Vysera asked desperately. Kalos just ignored him and sat back in the carriage waiting to leave. Once again he felt defeated, but not for long. He now believed Zodner and Semp about the dragons. But now he needed more soldiers and a new plan to get inside that city to get his medallion back. After being in the beautiful atmosphere of Grandelyn and its wonderful dry yet cool weather, the Savage Kingdom returned to the dark, wet, and depressing Ferocities. Kalos demanded not to be disturbed. He and Noire sat on the soaked balcony of the palace tower. With Noire still wrapped around his neck, Kalos sat in a cherry wood rocking chair and contemplated to himself.

"So Crystaline got them to the 'promised land' huh? Clever." He began rocking harder in the chair. "But how?" he questioned. Obviously Kalos knew more about Grandelyn than he allowed his men to see. He pulled the fafuras out of his cloak's pocket. He studied them. These were the only things that didn't look familiar. He was afraid to eat one. He didn't want to ingest anything that was foreign to him. As he rocked and squeezed the fruit in his water glistened hands, flashbacks of his past began to creep into his mind.

He remembered...

The throne room was regal, with tall ceiling curtains made of purple velvet, and ceilings, pillars and floors made of white marble. Golden-framed chairs aligned the aisle on top of the strip of purple carpet that led from the door entry to the royal pedestal. There stood three knights at the foot of the king. The king was both youthful and handsome. He sat patiently on his pearl and purple velvet throne. His smooth golden skin and black cropped hair complimented his white and gold suit well. The king, even at his young age, was very humble and content in his position as he looked upon the men before him.

The three knights were each dressed in a different color of armor. One dressed in silver attire; sword and shield, the second one was in bronze attire; sword and shield, and the last one was dressed in black attire with silver sword and shield. The first two men were clearly years younger than the man in black. He was at least 45 years old, thin yet with a masculine build. The king smiled.

"I have granted you three, permission to guard the corridors of this palace." He said pleasantly.

"Yes, sire" The two younger knights obediently said. But the older knight was not pleased.

"I am capable of doing other things besides guarding your home and land." He argued. The younger knights bowed their heads and stepped back, leaving the black dressed knight alone in the center of the floor. The king became annoyed.

"What is your problem now, Kalos?"

"You know what it is." Kalos said with almost a growl. The young king had a look of uneasiness.

Kalos' thoughts broke as he listened to the continuous sounds of the drizzling rain splattering across his body.

Chapter 20

#  The Crowning of the Queen

The bright golden sky still hadn't come up fully as the morning began to break through. Ariyah was sleeping peacefully in the small dusty wooden room that she shared with Sheevar and Orraco. She was exhausted because she had spent most of the night teaching the elderly Grandenites (who were the most difficult to teach) the newest battle training moves. Though it was still so very early, subconsciously Ariyah could hear who she thought was the usual land workers outside. She could hear people talking and gathering as well. She could also hear Elai squawking loudly, but she figured it was just a dream and continued to rest.

Suddenly she heard the creek of her weak wooden door open and gust of cool air came through the room. "Ariyah, wake, chile'. Wake." She heard Vanka's accent softly in her ear. She could feel that Sheevar was no longer in bed with her. Sleepily she turned to see a Vanka standing before her, dressed very elegantly. She rubbed her eyes vigorously to get a better view. Vanka looked incredible, dressed in a red pleated gown with gold beads along the neck line, her body filling out every part of the dress. Her dreadlocks were braided into a crown wrapped around her head.

"Wow. Why are you dressed so fancy and so early?" Ariyah asked still groggy.

"You will see. Now get up." Vanka proudly demanded. Ariyah was still exhausted and cold, moving from the hay bed was not a pleasant option to her. "If you look over in the corner you will see a great present. Put it on and come outside. I'll be waiting." Vanka walked out of the room excitedly. Ariyah was confused, but she whipped the sack cloth comforter back and slowly got out of the bed. Feeling a bit sluggish, there was a small fafura on top of her dark wooden dresser. She peeled back the rhine, ate the sweet blue citrus fruit, and became energized.

After a nice long stretch, she noticed a sparkly green decorative box sitting in the corner rocking chair, and opened it. Inside was a beautiful white chiffon gown with silver crystals lining the belt of the dress as well as the neck line. Ariyah wondered why she was given this. She held the gown against her body and looked into a long cracked mirror in the room. She posed in it. She loved it. Sheevar stepped into the room.

"Great, you're up. Do you like it?" Sheevar asked, looking spectacular herself. She was dressed in the same gown as Vanka except her curly blonde hair was up as usual with the blue roses adorned in her hair.

"Yes, I do. But what is all this for?" Ariyah asked.

"It's a secret, but I guarantee you'll love it. Now sit. I've come to do your hair." Ariyah was still confused but she was enjoying the treatment. Outside the small cottage home, more people began to gather. The chatter of the people became loud, but all became quiet when finally the door slowly opened. Sheevar stepped out first and was followed by Ariyah. Ariyah looked incredible. Her body filled out the specially made gown that flowed in the wind. Her thick long black hair was beautifully curled at the top and straight at the bottom. Seeing all the people standing there so early in the morning shocked her. But she was met with smiles and looks of adoration. Ariyah turned to Sheevar, who was giggling, with a puzzled look.

"What's this?" Ariyah whispered. Sheevar just had a look of secrecy. One of the older gentlemen walked an adult zebraling with black sheer wings to Ariyah. She looked around still confused and looked to their faces for answers. She saw nothing but smiles and more smiles. Two more men walked to Ariyah, grabbed her by the hand and led her to the zebraling. The shine of the crystal sandals upon her feet sparkled brightly as she sat on top of the animal. The people gasped at her beauty as they separated and made a path for her. The men began to lead the way onto the main brick lined roads. As they rode through the streets of Ash City, every part was filled with well-dressed Grandenites all watching. All had smiles, even tears as they watched her ride past. She wrapped her medallion around her wrist like a bracelet and gripped it tightly as she nervously watched the people gawking at her.

The gold sky had fully risen by now. She couldn't understand what was happening. She could see that Sheevar was also on a zebraling that was going faster than hers and headed towards Mount Egdemoore. The shops that were usually closed at this time were now open as they all came to see this beautiful young woman being courted to the mountains. Ariyah thought she was going to Empire to either host another Warrior's Ball or teach more. But when the men led the zebraling past the Empire and went straight to Ribbon Rock, she became confused again. Elai was soaring high in the sky above, while everyone followed her trails.

Ariyah hadn't really been on Ribbon Rock since she was eight. She knew that the Grandenites were doing renovations for years on the palace.

"Oh that's it. Today is the unveiling of the new palace. That's why everyone is dressed up." She thought to herself. When they got on to the top of Ribbon Rock they were greeted by tall zitheranium metal gates, which read The Crystaria Palace of Grandelyn. Two round masculine guards dressed in black and white came out and opened the gates, allowing the men and Ariyah to ride through. A water walkway shimmering with fresh amethyst water led up to the palace doors which were made of pearl white and marble. Vanka, Sheevar, Orraco, Rashad, Miss Emberly, and Mr. Crowesh as well as the doctors, were all standing at the entrance of the palace all dressed in red. Orraco's heart began to beat quickly as he watched Ariyah sitting on the zebraling from a distance. His palms became sweaty as he straightened his red and black uniform. He couldn't stop smiling.

Orraco and Rashad, dressed in red and black uniforms, came to Ariyah and helped her down from the zebraling. Both walked her to the palace entrance. Ariyah couldn't believe her eyes as this once home of black tar and ash was now a vibrant fortress of beauty. They led her inside; what she saw left her speechless.

The palace was huge. It was filled with gold framed paintings of Grandelyn and all of its inhabitants. The floors were clean and white. They led her to the throne room where the turquoise (Ariyah's favorite color) curtains and carpet led to the pearl throne with turquoise velvet throne backing. The once broken and shattered oval windows were repaired and bright. She was led to the big balcony, which was decorated with red roses, overlooking all of Grandelyn. She could see that all of the citizens had made it to the top of Ribbon Rock and were crowded out in front of the palace. Ariyah, still clueless, was shaking as Vanka walked on to the balcony in front of her.

"What's going on?" Ariyah nervously whispered.

"Ariyah, as you know we've all come from such a long and tortured journey. And because of your mother, we were able to get stronger, fight back, survive, and become extremely independent people." Ariyah could see Elai soaring the bright golden sky in circles as the crowds of people below continued to gather. "Without Crystaline we would all still be in bondage." Vanka passionately squeezed Ariyah's hands in hers.

"Before she died, I promised to take you under my wings. And as I've watched you grow over these past 14 years, I see that all of Crystaline's qualities are in you. You are smart, beautiful, courageous, and a leader. You are a warrior. I don't know any woman that can do what you do, young or old." Tears began to well in Vanka's eyes. Ariyah looked to Sheevar, who was cradled in Orraco's arms and tearing up as well. Dr. O'Cray walked up to both of them, holding a black velvet pouch.

"If your mother had survived, we would have crowned her queen of this land. But you are the closest thing to her in both skill and leadership. Now we, all of Grandelyn, have decided to crown you our Queen. Do you accept?" Vanka got down on her knees and bowed. The tears rushed through Ariyah's eyes as she placed her hand over her mouth in shock. She was such a humble young lady that she tried to lift Vanka to her feet, but Vanka refused. Ariyah looked to everyone surrounding her and they all had a look of hope in their faces that she'd accept the proposal.

"Yes. Yes, I do accept!" Ariyah cried out loud. Dr. O'Cray opened the black pouch and poured out five clear rhinestones and adhesive into his hand. He removed her curly updo and instead of the traditional crown used in the lands of others, the five rhinestones were adhered to the middle part of her hair-line. This was a sign of leadership and royalty. After the placement of the rhinestones, Mr. Crowesh went to the balcony and shouted, "It is finished! We now have our Queen!" All of Grandelyn cheered and simultaneously bowed to their knees. Even Orraco and Sheevar were bowing.

This was such a heavy burden to take on but she was proud and ready for the task. Ariyah looked over at the massive crowd. All ex-slaves, they were now entrepreneurs...self sufficient...warriors...and it was because of the great things her mother instilled in her. She reached her arms in the air. "To the people of Grandelyn, I am honored that you have chosen me to be your Queen. Though we have become a great nation of people I will work hard to make us even greater. I will make you proud." Once again the crowd roared in approval.

From a distance, near the Idle Forest, Ariyah could see the Ig, whom was watching diligently and proudly. She waved to him and he nodded. Elai flew and perched himself on her right shoulder. Her medallion was buzzing wildly and that warmed her heart.

"Everyone stand to your feet!" Ariyah cheerfully commanded. Suddenly she ran out of the palace down to the bright silver zitheranium gates where the people were on the other side next to the main guards. The people cheered. "All hail, Ariyah! Queen of the Grandenites!" She was so humble that she tried to stop them from saying that. She looked at the tall barricading gates of steel and felt guilty.

"We have to get rid of the gates." Ariyah said.

"Your majesty?" One of the guards asked confused knowing how much work it took to build.

"Gates are to keep those away who are unwanted. If you all are truly my people you all are welcomed here and I'll never use a gate to keep you away." They all cheered, validating her decision.

Although only 21 years of age, Ariyah was very mature. She fulfilled every promise she made to the Grandenites. As the passing years continued to bring unique problems, she was always ready. She grew to become a very popular righteous Queen.

Chapter 21

#  Grandelyn Now

"Now punch, kick, and throw down your opponent. Repeat! Punch, kick, and throw down your enemy. Repeat!" From atop the high marble podium balcony, Queen Ariyah shouted instructions to her training warriors below. Queen Ariyah, now a full grown voluptuous woman and wise beyond her 25 years, was dressed in full training gear; white rhino-skin made body suit with zitheranium face and breast plate.

"Punch, punch, double punch! Left kick, right kick, and barge!" She commanded loudly.

In the training hall of the Empire, the big open oval windows helped the golden sun to illuminate the whole room, while the cool tropical air helped ventilate it. Where the Queen stood was like an elevated stage to her adoring fans. It was there where she would demonstrate not only all the moves her mother taught her, but ones she made of her own.

"Fold over your opponent and jab him in the back neck region. This should knock him unconscious or kill him. Either way you're doing it right." Her thickened sultry yet stern voice spoke as the womanly leader she was. As she instructed her people, many men sat back and eagerly watched. Queen Ariyah was oblivious to their affections for her. The mission was to train all of her citizens. She wanted the people, young and old; child and adult, to be just as strong and knowledgeable as she was.

"Sessions, I want to see each of you execute the staggito, the ryhan, and then we'll take a chance with something new." The exhausted Grandenite trainees groaned as they began to pair up. "No, no...none of that. A lazy warrior is a dead warrior, always remember that. Now if you need a drink of water or need to eat one of the fafura slices on the deck then do so, but there will be no complaining," Queen Ariyah removed her mask. She looked around the room as some of the trainees took a small break to quench their thirst. She looked to Damien, Dalia, and Demetrius who were playfully wrestling each other in the corner.

"Triplets, come." Ariyah called. Straightening themselves up in their white rhino-skin suits they fiercely wobbled to the center of the padded floor. Ariyah tightened her sweaty hair back as she began to call out.

"Okay, you three are special for many reasons. First, because there are three of you. Second, because you are very athletic. Third, because you all are the biggest of Grandelyn. You have more of an impact. I have a special move I want you three to learn and master. I'm going to simply call it The Steps. Demetrius, you are the biggest so you get down on all fours." Demetrius did as instructed and got on the padded white floor on his hands and knees. She told Damien to do the same but on top of Demetrius. He was to use his two swords as stilts so that he didn't fall off of Demetrius.

"Alright, Dalia, as you can see your brothers are in the form of steps. What I need you to do is to stand back and give yourself some running room. Then I want you to run up your brothers backs and jump off of Damien, allowing you to come down on your opponent with your sword and beheading him." Ariyah could see that Dalia was confused so she demonstrated. Ariyah could also see that Demetrius was struggling to keep his heavy 550 pound brother on his own 600 pound back, so she wanted to make this quick. Ariyah stood back and was getting into sprinting position, all of the students now watching attentively. She drew in three deep breaths and took off running full speed ahead; one step pouncing on Demetrius' back, the next foot on Damien's back and jumping off with her rod to show the cutting off the imaginary opponent's head. There was a thunderous applause echoing in the hall. Dalia looked in amazement at what her Queen did but she lacked the confidence to do so.

"Okay, Dalia, show me." Ariyah gave Dalia the steel rod and stood back to watch her attempt the move. Dalia removed her mask so she could see better. She began to sweat with fear. She stumbled trying to get into sprinting position.

"Can you hurry this up? My back is killing me!" Demetrius complained.

"Shut up, Deme! I'm bloody nervous, alright?" Dalia whined aloud. Ariyah placed her hand on Dalia's shoulder in assurance.

"You can do it. Just try." Dalia drew in a deep breath and zipped out quickly. She pounced on Demetrius' back but tumbled trying to step on Damien, causing all of them to crash down to the floor. The hall rang out with laughter causing the triplets to hang their heads low in embarrassment. Ariyah didn't like that. She waved her hand in the air and all became quiet.

"There is to be no laughing at the failed attempts of anyone here. We are to encourage one another. And always remember each of us has failed at something. Uplift each other." She helped the triplets to their feet and hugged them tightly showing her pride in their trying. "Ok sessions are over. You are dismissed." The warrior trainees each hugged their Queen and left out of the Empire hall. After hugging her last student, Ariyah looked over to the hall entrance and saw Orraco standing there with a smile on his handsome chubby face. She took off her mask and sweat dripped profusely down her smiling face. The trainees all greeted Orraco who walked over to the marble steps where Ariyah was struggling to remove her breastplate.

"Need some help?" he asked.

"It would be nice." She answered. He helped remove the thick zitheranium plate from her soaked body suit.

"So, my Queen, what is on the agenda today?" "Orraco, you know you don't have to call me your Queen. You are my brother. There is no need for that." She began carelessly undressing as she peeled the sticky rhino-skin suit off of her now bare body. This created a very uncomfortable position. Orraco, who was turning red, tried to look away as she continued to speak. "Today would be a good day to do our monthly cleansing in the Sea of Amethyst. What do you think?" Orraco couldn't answer as he tried desperately to look away. Elai, who was perched on the balcony window, covered his eyes with his wing. Orraco's face was beet red. Ariyah turned around as she finally put a robe on. She could see his uneasiness.

"What's wrong with you?" She chuckled.

"You were naked." He said with a nervous laugh.

"So? You've seen me like this many times."

"Yes, when we were children and you didn't have... those." He pointed to her exposed breasts. Ariyah looked down and began to laugh at his embarrassment. "

Orraco, my dear, I would've never known you to be so bashful." She threw her wet clothes in his face and ran out of the door. He began to chase her. They ran laughing from The Empire all the way to the Crystaria Palace, with Elai flying high behind them. In front of the palace entry water walkway, Orraco caught her and wrestled her to the ground but she managed to break free and ran inside. The two passed all the guards and children running the hallways. They stopped.

"All hail Ariyah. Queen of the Grandenites!" they shouted out of breath proudly to the Queen.

"Afternoon, children, but no running in the halls. We don't want to break anything, do we?" She kindly scolded. She looked them over with a smile and said, "Oh forget it. Run all you want. Be free." And she began to chase them. Afterwards she and Orraco walked back to her room where she could get a bath and change her clothes.

Ariyah's room was extravagant. There was a king size pillar columned bed with purple satin sheets. There were oval glass windows and a large balcony of gold trim décor on the ground work. White roses adorned her room in various vases and plants. The bathroom in her room was golden and decorated with the work of Grandelyn's greatest painter, Meesa Ortegal. .

Her assigned bathers got her daily bath water ready with pink bubbles already inside. She kindly dismissed them and turned to say, "Orraco, would you do the honors of bathing me?" Ariyah asked sentimentally. Once again caught off guard, he gulped heavily.

"Why not the bathers, Queen?"

"Because I need to talk to you. Some things have been bothering me." She removed her robe again. Orraco turned his head respectfully and allowed her to get inside the claw foot tub. He sat on the side of her golden tub with the high back rest. She handed him a soft sponge with vanilla scented soap oil on it and he began to scrub her back.

"What's on your mind?" He asked.

"I have a deep burden on me." She confessed. "Lately I feel like something devastating is going to happen."

"To whom, Queen?"

"I don't know. I don't know if it's going to happen to my land or to me, but something bad."

"Nothing could happen to you, Queen. You are the strongest, most skilled warrior I know. You single-handedly taught a nation of people to defend themselves masterfully. Nothing bad is going to happen to you."

"Yes, but even a skilled warrior is mortal. I just wish I could see the future." She became quiet as she sprinkled the warm water on her glistening brown skin. She looked at the medallion necklace wrapped around her wrist and became sad. "Also mother hasn't been active lately. She doesn't seem to be there anymore. I speak to her but it remains silent; no vibrations or anything." As Ariyah spoke Orraco couldn't help but to look at her smooth wet skin and want to kiss her. He saw her as perfect other than that terrible SK scar scorched into her skin. But he would never want to overstep his boundaries. He was her best friend and she trusted him. Besides he was still with Phyliscia and they had been going strong for the last nine years. But what Phyliscia didn't know was that Ariyah unknowingly still had his heart. He loved and cared for her deeply. He was there to listen to her and uplift her when she was down, which wasn't often.

"I'm sure everything will be fine. Even if there is some kind of threat, you have prepared us diligently. We're ready." He eagerly leaned over and gave her a kiss on the forehead, just as Sheevar barged into the bathroom. The two became startled as Ariyah ducked into the bath water.

"Should I leave you two alone?" Sheevar giggled teasingly. Orraco, a little disappointed, got up from the tub ledge. He walked towards Sheevar with a scowl.

"No" he said and threw the wet sponge in her face as he walked out of the bathroom.

"He's such a waste" Sheevar huffed, straightening her now wet hair. She looked at Ariyah, who was quietly caressing her medallion. She couldn't help but to see the saddened look on her face. "What's wrong, Queen?" Ariyah gave a quick frail smile.

"Nothing much. I just have a lot on my mind. Fretting about the future I guess." Sheevar, never one to be down for long and very optimistic, rushed over with a ready towel.

"Well the Queen mustn't worry for nothing. Now come." She helped Ariyah get out of the tub and walked her back into her bedroom. Ariyah's usual turquoise jumper and silver crystal sandals was laid out on the bed ready for her. "Ok we are supposed to do our monthly bathing in the Amethyst. Do you want us all to wait for you or shall we continue on?" Ariyah sat at her vanity and stared in the mirror solemnly. She looked deep into the mirror, past her own reflection, and into her mind which was severely troubled. She couldn't shake the feeling of imminent trouble brewing.

"Queen!" Sheevar shouted startling Ariyah out of her thoughts. "What do you want us to do?" Sheevar asked getting flustered.

"Go on. Begin without me." Ariyah turned back to the mirror. Sheevar couldn't figure out what was wrong with her dear friend, but she couldn't make her feel better so she left her alone.

Ariyah's mind began to race with many thoughts. Some of worry and some were pleasant. Though her heart was heavy, she took pride in knowing that she personally made her people strong and courageous. She was not the average Queen. She was active. She didn't just sit on her throne and let people cater to her. She was out there among her people. She ate with them, worked with them, let them stay in the Crystaria Palace with her, played with their children; she was her people. And for that they loved her. They all took pride in their land; Grandelyn. Grandelyn had come a long way from being the isolated deserted mass of land it was upon discovery. Grandelyn was now a very rich and successful land. With the success of businesses like Cori's salon, RedCore' and Mr. Edward's Bakery as well as the farming trade, Grandelyn was probably the most rich land in all of Mandune. Ash City was no longer the big ball of tar and ash but now a beautiful shiny clean city with the shiny gold Empire sitting high on top of Mount Edgemoore and the fortress of the Crystaria Palace blazing high on Ribbon Rock. This land made the others quite envious. Others wondered how a city of fat people could have such success. After all aren't fat people lazy? And don't they eat all the time? How could they be so productive? That was the perception of other lands. They couldn't grasp that these people didn't just lie around and eat. They thrived, were smart and skillful.

The jealousy and intrigue brought others to try to come to the city and see what the secret to their success could be. Each and every intruder was shocked when they tried to get through the gates, allowing the trespassers only to get far away envious looks into the city. Some small armies from distant lands even tried to invade Grandelyn, but the site of the Siamese Twin Dragons breaking apart to attack always sent the intruders scurrying away. Grandelyn, the forgotten land, was now the epitome of greatness and even more appreciated because it was lead by a young woman. No one knew that this land had a deep dark secret attached to it that only Crystaline knew. Eventually the secret would reveal itself.

Ariyah stood on her bedroom balcony peacefully as she watched her people crowded around and swimming in the Sea of Amethyst. They were all smiling and laughing, playing and embracing each other. This brought a smile to her face. She knew she needed to bathe in it as well but she didn't feel like being bothered and she really needed to meditate. Maybe if she did she could shake the gloomy feeling off.

She held her medallion to her face once more to see if Crystaline would move, but there was nothing. She sat in lotus position in the middle of the balcony stage floor, sat up straight, put her hands together, bowed her head, and her mind went blank. She took 3 deep breaths and began doing a straight hand stand. She held it. Her long hair covered her face as her arms shook trying to hold the weight of her heavy body. She straightened her legs and pointed her toes allowing the blood to rush to her head. This position felt good to her. The rush of the blood flow allowed her to relax. Her arms stopped wobbling as they strengthened to hold her still. She then began to fold her legs backwards so that her feet were above her head, something that she couldn't do before. Her toes were touching her head and she began to chuckle.

Then all of a sudden the memory of that ripped picture of the young king came back to her mind and she fell over with a thump. Her rhinestones popped off her scalp and she scraped her elbow on the harsh pavement of the balcony. She shot up from the floor and ran to her dresser. She opened it and searched through her jewelry box, seeing the edge of the picture she had hidden there. She looked at it and studied the picture again. This handsome man, creamy tanned colored, deep black hair, well dressed with his crown. She had always wondered who he was and why was his picture in what was now her home?

As Ariyah studied the photo, she felt a quick jolt from her medallion. She was shocked. She hadn't felt Crystaline for weeks, so the jolt kind of frightened her. The vibrations were very strong, almost frantic, but Ariyah didn't know what her mother was doing or trying to tell her. She just put the picture back into her dresser and walked out to the courtyard to get escorted out to the Sea of Amethyst. The vibrating stopped.

Chapter 22

#  Ferocities Now

The City of Ferocities was now known as the land of continuous rain. This area was not visited by the outside world. Nothing but the Savage Kingdom was there, with its starved animals and carcasses lying about. It was an eerie land; a wet wasteland. The dark metallic-colored sky's only light was from the ever beaming Soul Realm. Black crows and vultures stayed low on the ground due to the weight of the rain. The city was infested with snakes of all kind. They dominated the Savage Kingdom. The soldiers, all weak from starvation, no longer stood at attention. Instead they slumped to the ground.

Kalos' depression had left him emaciated as well. Everyone had resorted to eating the snakes and drinking the rain to stay alive. Ferocities still had no respect from other lands in Mandune, and the Torrids were extremely angry with Kalos for backing down from Grandelyn the first time they wanted to attack. The city was full of corrosion, mildew and mold, causing sickness throughout the land. The rain was relentless. But the Soul Realm was beaming brighter than ever; teasing Kalos and the Torrids with every stare.

Kalos was relaxing in his withering, mildewed throne room, when he decided to remove his musky mask. His wet black hair covered his face showing only his weak amber eyes. He was having a hard time breathing as anxiety was setting upon him. Noire slithered and wrapped himself around his chest, trying to comfort him, but was flung off in a fit of anger. Kalos put his head back as his mind began to wander.

The knight in black continued to snarl at the young king. The young king felt extremely uncomfortable and a tad guilty; though he had no reason to.

"You know very well what I want, Marquisa!" The knight barked.

"I can't give you that, Kalos. I cannot give you my throne. I won't." Kalos' dark amber eyes stared the young man down. His upper lip twitched trying to contain the force of rage rising in him.

"Fine." He broke his silence through gritted teeth. "Then I shall take my new position of knight with dignity and pride, your majesty." Kalos spoke with sarcasm. He bowed and turned to walk out of the throne room, leaving the king to feel extremely guilty. His connection to Kalos was a strong one and he loved him and didn't want to let him down. King Marquisa was the beloved king of Grandelyn more than 30 years ago. He was kind, handsome, humble, and giving. All the citizens loved and respected him. Kalos of course everyone hated, but King Marquisa wanted a title for him. King Marguisa longed for Kalos's love and respect, after all Kalos was his father. They had both found Grandelyn after escaping a land named Maru, when King Marquisa was a teenager. They had to escape because Kalos had wronged a black magic god there and his worshippers were sent out to kill him and his son. Marquisa's mother had been slain already and a bounty was put on their heads. They got away and became a part of the land that was not yet called Grandelyn, before it had become established. The people didn't like Kalos or his personality but they took to his son well. They liked his leadership skills even at such a young age. They thought he was smart and had great ideas on how to build Grandelyn up. They liked Marquisa so much that they made him king, causing Kalos to spite him every day.

Though Marquisa couldn't change how the people felt about him, he still wanted to please his father. Kalos' dark heart and need for power would come to stand in the way of that. King Marquisa only had two things that he cared deeply about. He wanted to be a great king to his nation and to love his fiancé with all of his heart and soul. He was set to marry a beautiful young lady. A woman highly respected and loved in Grandelyn as well, but that would be all destroyed. Grandelyn was a great place before the incident that would change everything and annihilate a nation.

The memory left his mind and he was right back in the humid room that smelled of curdled milk and rancid cheese; the piles of snake still surrounding him and coating his room. He was amped up now. The anger from his memory riled up a burst of evil energy and he was ready to release it. "Torrids! Come to me." He shouted. Soon three Torrids crawled to his room. A tall big one, a skinny one, and Vysera; all standing before Kalos; yellow eyes glowing and burnt and sickly.

"Yes, Master. You called?" Vysera hissed.

"I am ready. Tonight we attack!" He said with strength coming back to his voice. Kalos put on his mask and stepped on all the snakes beneath him, squashing them with every step.

"Yes. Most certainly, Master." The Torrid hissed rubbing his crispy hands together. They had the confidence to go after what they wanted and was stopping at nothing to get it.

Chapter 23

# Alarmed

Ariyah was in the back yard of the Crystaria Palace. She was lounging at her gold table and chair watching Elai chasing Adley around the back courtyard. Adley was Elai's new mate. She was discovered upon a trip to the stream where Ariyah found Elai years ago. Ariyah and Sheevar were taking a zebraling ride towards the stream for water when Elai, who was usually perched on Ariyah's shoulder, flew off in a frenzy.

"Elai! Elai! What is wrong?" Ariyah called after him very concerned. Her cries went ignored as Elai flew frantically through the forest, determined to catch whatever it was he was chasing. Sheevar and Ariyah sat on top of their zebralings in the middle of the forest confused. They could hear the wild whipping of the tree leaves as Elai's wings and his victim's bum rushed through them. As the two women watched in confusion, suddenly a huge black image bolted out passed them and crashed right to the white sand ground. It was a bird. An eagle and it looked like Elai except it was black with white wings, while Elai was white with black wings. It looked hurt as it flipped and turned on the sand. Elai then bolted out and flew down to the injured bird. He huddled over it studying it. The injured bird saw Elai and began to squawk angrily at him. It even started flapping the unharmed wing at Elai to fight him away. Ariyah got off her zebraling and crouched over the bird.

"Back away, Elai. This poor bird is hurt." She said with compassion. Ariyah went to pick the eagle up but it snapped its beak at her. "Look what you've done, Elai. You made this bird get hurt."

"I would stay away from that thing, Ariyah. It looks pretty angry." Sheevar chimed in, backing away from the scene. Elai was hopping around this bird almost anxiously. Ariyah saw this and became suspicious of why Elai, usually a calm bird, was acting this way. She picked up the snappy bird and flipped it over. A smile came across her face.

"No wonder you're acting this way. It's a girl." Ariyah and Sheevar began to laugh as they watched Elai go crazy over this bird. "Calm down, Elai...this is no way to approach a lady" Ariyah teased. She could see that the bird was in a lot of pain and wanted to help her. She carried the eagle back to the Crystaria Palace with her. There, she had a nurse bandage the bird's wing and care for it.

"Now you've really done it, Elai" Ariyah continued to tease him as they watched the bird lay sedated in one of the bedrooms. Elai put his head down in Ariyah's hair. "It's ok, buddy. She'll be fine." Then something occurred to Ariyah. Elai was always with her and never really ventured out on his own. She knew he must feel lonely. "Would you like me to keep her?" Elai began flapping his wings with excitement. "Ok we can keep her then. But you can't be so rough with her, she may just attack you." Ariyah nudged his bill. Ariyah set out to name her new bird. "What do you think of Adley, Elai?" He flapped his wings again with approval. "Adley and Elai...I like the way that sounds." Ariyah said proudly. "Let's just hope she likes you. You did cause her to break her wing."

Eventually Adley did like Elai and she loved Ariyah more. The two birds adapted well to each other and became inseparable. They would fly about all over Grandelyn and follow Ariyah around most days. The two ended up becoming the guardians of Grandelyn. They were to watch over the land and give fair warning to the citizens if intruders were coming.

Now here they were zooming over Ariyah as she sat at her table enjoying the cool breeze and the smell of fresh berries outside. She was a bit tired because she had spent the afternoon swimming in the Sea of Amethyst and she felt weak. Also the thought of that picture bothered her more. She couldn't understand why her mother was buzzing so wildly at the site of the picture earlier. It angered her that she would never be able to receive the other half of that ripped picture. The Crystaria Palace had been rebuilt and obviously the workers must have discarded it. She just wished she could get some kind of clue, something that could tell her about this place before they arrived. But there was no point in stressing over it now. All she could do was move on.

The sun was setting and she just wanted to relax. Then she heard a shaking from the bush behind her. She turned slowly to see what it was. It was Orraco. He had taken a shortcut to the back yard.

"Oh you scared me, Orraco...and there wouldn't have been anything that I could do because I'm so sluggish" she chuckled.

"I didn't mean to startle you, my Queen" he said almost bashfully.

"Is there something you wanted?" Ariyah asked as a servant came out to her with a drink of lemonade.

"I was wondering if I...if we...I would like to do a session with you." He finally managed to say. He was nervous and sweaty and it was obvious he had not partaken in the bathing because he was fully alert.

"A session? Now?" Ariyah was stunned and exhausted.

"Yes. I would like to spar with you." Ariyah couldn't understand his enthusiasm. Everyone in the land should have been resting or sleeping because of the draining strength of the Sea of Amethyst, but here he wanted to spar with the sensei, the queen!

"I don't know, Orraco. Not today. Maybe another time." She said putting her head back into the gold head rest and closing her eyes. Ever determined, Orraco knew how to persuade her.

"What? Are you scared, little girl? You don't want to spar because you are such a girl." He began to tease Ariyah in a girly voice just as he did when they were little.

"Excuse me?" Ariyah's eyes opened and she sat up as Elai and Adley both perched themselves on her shoulders.

"You don't want to spar with me because you know how good I've become. I think you're scared to see that I may just be better than you." Ariyah stared him down with a smirk. Even though she was a humble queen she couldn't help but to laugh at the very thought of one of her students being better than her.

"Ok, let's do it. Though I think you have an unfair advantage I'll entertain you." She got up quickly, flinging Adley and Elai from her. She didn't even change out of her turquoise jumpsuit. She just put on her zitheranium face mask and met him at the front courtyard. He had on his red and black soldier's uniform and he held a sword in his hand. The night sky had completely come down as the moon was full and seemingly close to the earth. Their shadows were high on the palace walls.

"I see you want to use real weapons to spar?" Ariyah asked with confidence yet confused.

"You can handle it, can't you?" Orraco teased.

"Let's find out." She slammed the face plate closed and charged at him. She was able to land five quick slaps to his face and neck and he ducked from the other swings. She charged him again and landed three kicks to his side and a forceful kick right to his stomach. He doubled over for a second but then recovered quickly. He got up still holding the sword in his hand. Ariyah's mission was to get that sword from his hand. She pretended to lung at the sword but instead stepped on both of his feet and barged him down with her elbow.

"Come on, Orraco. There's no way I'm beating you this easily. Not after the bath I had. Come on!" Ariyah teased walking around him. He was really trying but she was too good even in her somber state. They both got back into fighter stance. He was so intrigued by this woman; her strength, her agility, her mesmerizing face and humble persona. He was deeply in love and he wasn't sure what to do about it.

Whatever effect his feelings were having on him quickly disappeared as Ariyah charged at him. He ducked her swings and avoided her kicks. This time he kicked her legs, causing her to stumble forward. He used his body to catch her and push her backward to the palace wall, holding her there with the sword to her neck. Both breathing profusely, Ariyah was a little scared seeing this look in Orraco's eyes as he held the thick blade to her throat.

"Orraco, what are you doing?" She asked. He was breathing so deeply, so hard, so passionately that his breath had fogged up the metal surface on her face plate. She thought for sure that he was going to jab that sword into her neck. She didn't want to hurt her friend but she didn't know what was happening to him. He breathed harder as he got closer and closer to her face. He opened the latch to her face plate and he stared deep into her perplexed brown eyes. He calmed his breath as he went in for a kiss. Ariyah squealed in panic, no longer the warrior but a girl who'd never kissed anyone. She pushed him back.

"Orraco, what are you doing?" She protested.

"Ariyah, I have never felt this way about anyone in my entire life. I can't go one single day without thinking about you, or wanting to be with you. I need you, Ariyah." Ariyah was confused, shocked, and even a little embarrassed.

"We can't do this." She said slowly wiping her lips. Orraco became frustrated and furiously backed away from her.

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid of anything. I just don't see you like that. You're like my brother. You are my brother." He became angrier.

"I am not your brother! Crystaline's blood does not run through my veins." This sudden expression of love was too much for Ariyah. She had never been involved with any man in a romantic way. So to find out her best friend was in love with her was scary to her. She stood still, looking off to the side thinking about what had just happened. Orraco calmed down and got close to her again. He pressed his body up to hers' and he stared into her wandering eyes again. He searched for an answer in her eyes. He needed to know how she felt. He leaned in and pressed his soft lips against hers' again, but this time she didn't resist. She let it happen. She was too confused to fight it, she didn't want to hurt him, and a part of her enjoyed his lips. But then the kisses became stronger and deeper and it became too much for her. She pushed him away.

"I can't. I can't do this. I'm not ready for this. I'm sorry." She looked down to the ground. Orraco stood there glaring at Ariyah. He felt foolish and rejected. He really loved her and he finally stirred up the courage to tell her. And he failed. All he could do was stare. She could feel him staring at her and she lifted her eyes to say once more, "I'm sorry."

Orraco let his sword drop to the ground and he turned to leave. Then suddenly they heard the clambering footsteps of Grandenite soldiers. "Queen! Queen, we are being attacked!" One of the burly soldiers said frantically. Orraco turned back around to see what he was saying. "The Twins have broken apart and they are fighting away an army of men. Some of our soldiers are down there fighting as well." He said with fear.

"I have to get down there." Ariyah said running to the stables to get a zebraling.

"I'm coming with you!" Orraco said following her. They got on their zebralings and charged down to the beach mainland and the gates, Elai and Adley flying high above them. Ariyah could see the Twin Dragons squealing high and rearing at some people. It was dark and she couldn't see this army. Some of the Grandenites were successfully fighting these invaders. She was about get off of her zebraling to join the fight, but Orraco grabbed her by the arm.

"You can't go in there like that." She looked down at herself and realized she didn't have on her battle gear. She backed up and watched attentively as her people fought the intruders. She just couldn't get close enough to see who they were fighting. But then she saw a black horse with a silver mask on it and she remembered the horses from Ferocities had those. Kalos had finally decided to attack and she wasn't prepared. She wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to help but by the time she'd get to the Empire and back to the mainland the fight may be over. So she just watched helplessly.

The stomach of one of the dragons began to glow, and gray smoke began to billow from its lips. One of the intruding soldiers yelled, "It's going to set us on fire! Get out of the way!"

And the dragon did just that. A big gust of flames shot from its mouth and set four horses on fire and a dozen or so soldiers. The rest scurried away. After making sure their enemies were away, the Twins turned back around and put themselves together as a gate again.

The Grandenites came back in exhausted. They saw their queen sitting on a zebraling waiting for them. They were proud that she watched them protect the land, but she felt guilty for not helping. This was the first time since being Commander of Defense and Queen that she felt helpless and she didn't like the feeling. She held her arms out to her soldiers and said, "Next time I shall be prepared. I'll never let you fight alone again. I promise." They smiled, bowed and walked back to Ash City to find nurses and doctors.

Vanka, Mr. Crowesh and Sheevar were running from Ash City to see what chaos was happening. "Ariyah, Queen, is everything alright?" Vanka asked. Ariyah was so upset that she almost came to tears.

"I let my people down. I wasn't able to fight with them. I wasn't prepared." She looked through the electrical gate and saw the scorched bodies and horses and became determined. "But it won't ever happen again. Next time...there will be no next time." Then she rode her zebraling wildly back to the Crystaria Palace.

Ariyah sat at the vanity in her bedroom. She watched the rhinestones sparkle in the part of her hairline as her mind went everywhere. She was still disappointed in herself and she couldn't shake the feeling. Was that what she had been anticipating this whole time? Was that the attack that she had the strong feeling about? She looked down at the rusty medallion and stroked the Woolly mammoth carving on it. Once again Crystaline had been silent. No vibrations, no sensations, nothing. Ariyah didn't want to keep feeling helpless and hopeless. That was not her nature.

She looked at her closet door and remembered a gift that was given to her by Mr. Demi, the blacksmith and weapons maker. She went inside, picked up the heavy pink box and carried it to the bed. She opened it and inside was a beautiful gift. A gift suited for a warrior Queen. It was a 24 karat gold mace. She picked it up and it was a bit heavy. She thought it was gorgeous. This was the first time that she even really looked at it. When it was given to her, she didn't know what to do with it. So it stayed in the closet. But now she wanted to try it out.

She studied it. She was mesmerized by the long shiny gold chain that led to the spiky golden ball. There was a black suede handle for her hand and she loved the jewels that went across the ball. Emeralds, sapphires, rubies, and diamonds went along the base of the ball and the spikes were extremely pointy. She pricked her finger on one as she examined this weapon. She loved it, but she still didn't know how to use it. Her weapon of choice had always been the sword. That's what her mother trained her with and that's all she knew. But she was determined to master this weapon like she had done everything else. Then she also realized that if they were going to go into battle again they would need better riding animals. Zebaralings were delicate animals and wouldn't do well in warfare. She thought for awhile and then an idea came to her. She put on her white chiffon robe and headed down to where the rhinos inhabit.

Chapter 24

# Revelation

Kalos was angry. He was beyond angry. He had spent the early morning hours berating his minions and even became physically violent with them. He went as far as stabbing Semp in the shoulder just to calm down. He couldn't believe that they had all failed again. They had more men this time, more horses, and more weapons. Yet they returned defeated. The Torrids circled around him as they weren't sure if he'd try to attack them, but instead he just plopped down in his wet throne. Kalos began to bang the back of his head on the chair.

"Master, what would you have us to do now?" Vysera hissed kneeling before Kalos.

"I'd have you to leave me. Now!" The Torrids snarled at him and walked out of his room. Kalos was trying to calm down as he took deep breaths, but the wretched smell of mildew kept filling his nose causing him to cough violently. He took a deep breath and put his head back to rest. He was finally able to close his eyes when one of his sickly soldiers barged through the throne room entrance.

"Emperor, there is someone here who'd like to see you."

"Send them away" Kalos said, almost in a whisper.

"But sir, I think you'd want to see this." Kalos waved him in.

"Get in there!" The soldier pushed a person into the room. They were wearing a brown hooded gown that covered the face; it was the uniform from the Empire. This person was tall, full and voluptuous, and only dark strands of hair fell from the hood. Kalos looked confused.

"Remove your hood." Kalos demanded. The visitor lifted her head and pulled back her hood. It was Phyliscia. The minions, who had been slumped over, stood at attention. They found her to be very attractive. Kalos thought she was gorgeous too, but that was of no concern to him. She was dripping with rain as she stood in the middle of the dark room. She looked around at all the snakes that were slithering toward her. She moved around to get away from them.

"Who are you?" Kalos asked, staring through his mask.

"I am Phyliscia. Do I not look familiar to you?" she sassed. He looked her over. Phyliscia hadn't been to Ferocities since they escaped 17 years earlier and this was the first time she'd ever been in the throne room. She wasn't impressed.

"I can't say that you do" Kalos answered. He was very suspicious of her. "Well what do you want?"

"I have some information that you might like. I know that we have something of great value to you." She began to pace back and forth seductively as all the soldiers and snakes watched her every move. "And I know you'll probably never get it."

"Is that so?" Kalos asked menacingly as he sat up in his chair. Noire snapped and hissed at her. Phyliscia put her hands up so that she could explain herself.

"You see, the strength of Grandelyn is this." She pulled out a plump firm fafura. Kalos looked at it and saw that it was the same fruit that he had taken from the tree before. He realized that she was a Grandelyn citizen. She tossed the fruit to him. "This fruit right here does amazing things; if you eat it you get amazing energy and strength, among other things" she confessed. Kalos looked her over again. He liked her look. Her icy blue eyes and dark hair was intriguing to him. She seemed dark hearted and he liked that. He caressed the fruit and studied it.

"So why are you here?" Kalos asked suspiciously.

"Because I want to help you."

"Mmm... a traitor. I like. Go on." Kalos chuckled.

"You can't betray someone you were never loyal to." She said coldly.

"Why do you want to betray your Queen?" Kalos teased.

"Because, like you, I hate their Queen too."

"Their Queen? Isn't she your Queen too?"

"No! I'll never bow down to her. She isn't all that special." Phyliscia scoffed. Kalos began to chuckle.

"It sounds like someone's a little jealous of the Queen." He teased again. Phyliscia became angry and turned to walk out into the lonely hallway. But Kalos stopped her.

"Wait. I could use someone like you. How exactly can you help me?"

"I want to join your army. By the looks of things, it seems you could really use the help."

Kalos took off his mask. He tried to stand but was very weak. His legs wobbled in weakness. Noire had twirled around his head and slept as Kalos scooted his way to Phyliscia. Kalos face was slightly covered by his wet hair and sweat. He stood directly in front of her. The foul stench coming from Kalos' slippery body made Phyliscia gag.

"You say that the strength of Grandelyn is this crazy looking fruit here?"

"Yes, sir. You wouldn't believe what it can do for you."

Chapter 25

# A Vision

Ariyah tossed and turned violently in her sleep. Perspiration poured from her skin with every repositioning she did. Her hair was stuck to her skin and her sheets were wet with sweat. She was being tormented in her sleep. In her dreams, she saw a beautiful land...

The land looked just like Grandelyn. It was very still and calm. The water was still, the breeze was calm, and the earth was at peace. Then suddenly there was a quick explosion. White smoke, ash and tar filled the entire land. Then the scene reverted. The land was calm again. Ariyah was transparent and floating above everything as if she was a ghost. Suddenly a force was pulling her. She zipped pass the Sea of Amethyst and then jetted up to what was now the Crystaria Palace, but it looked completely different. It wasn't the remodeled version that she now lived in; it was older and elegant. Palm trees adorned on the sides of the walkway leading to the entrance and the water walkway sparkled in the bright golden sunlight. The door whipped open quickly and Ariyah flew right to the purple and ivory throne room with a king sitting on it. It was the king from the picture. He had on the same outfit from the picture; white pants suit with a red sash and red and green army pins on it. He was looking out the window. Ariyah wanted to walk to him and ask who he was, but the force zipped her upstairs to the corridor headed towards a room that looked familiar to the one Ariyah slept in. The room was bright. It was white with tulle adorned sheets and curtains. A woman was lying on the bed; a beautiful, tall woman wearing a red and crystal beaded gown. She had caramel skin, dark hair and a beautiful smile. She looked very familiar. Ariyah couldn't see all of her face because the beam from the sunlight shielded most of it. But Ariyah could see that she was beautiful. The woman was looking at what appeared to be a candle collection, putting them in order. She heard a knock on the door. The woman told the person to enter. Ariyah backed away from the door. It became dark in the brightly lit room as a shadow of a well dressed man stood before the woman. Her pleasant smile faded and panic took over her face. Ariyah couldn't see the man's face but he seemed familiar as well. The way he walked, the way his clothes fitted on his tall lanky body, the eeriness that came with his presence was too familiar. Suddenly the land began to shake. Everything became dark. The quake began to destroy everything. The golden sky darkened. The earth stopped shaking and everything became still and calm again. Dull light from outside entered in through the window allowing Ariyah to see the room again. The man zoomed past her, though in slow motion, she still couldn't catch his face. He left the bedroom; his black cloak whipping out the door behind him in slow motion. The woman on the bed, now slumped over and her dress torn, was crying. Ariyah went to run to her to comfort her, but the force began pulling her backwards out of the room. Ariyah reached out to her but wasn't strong enough to get to her. The force whipped Ariyah back to the throne room where the king was. The once bright room was now dark and gloomy and the king's head hung low in sadness. His white suit was dirty and mangled and his dark shiny hair was filled with gray dust. Ariyah knew it was her chance to speak to him. She stepped to him slowly. He didn't seem to see her there. She got closer as her foot crushed some fallen debris, causing the king to become startled. The young king's eyes widened in astonishment as he looked at Ariyah in disbelief. "Hey, who are you?" Ariyah asked curiously. He stood to his feet holding a white smoky ball and yelled to her, "You!" Then he threw down the ball which exploded.

The loud explosion jolted Ariyah awake. Her heart was beating fast and she couldn't catch her breath. Her medallion was buzzing wildly around her moist neck. Ariyah held it in her hand and caressed it. She was confused by the dream and quite disturbed. She looked around her bedroom and it was back to being her bedroom, not the all white tulle one. She caressed her bed and remembered the woman that was laying on it. Who was that? What did that man do to her?

Ariyah's medallion was buzzing stronger than ever. "What are you saying, Mother?" Ariyah asked frustrated. The dream she just had seemed more like a vision to Ariyah. She wondered if this is what happened to Ash City. The medallion was buzzing so hard that it was practically jumping from her chest. "Ok calm down, Mother. Calm down." Ariyah stroked the charm until Crystaline calmed down.

From her vanity mirror Ariyah could see the sun rising. She turned to her balcony window and saw Adley and Elai out fluttering around. She smiled and began to relax. Feeling a heavy burden from that weird dream she felt the need to meditate. She got on her bedroom floor and proceeded to do her headstand.

Chapter 26

#  Solution to the Problem

A brown horse galloped through the blasting rain, making its way to the gates of the Savage Kingdom. On top sat an old man covered from head to toe in a black cloak with a green and black hood that shielded his face from the rain. He was making the long trip to Ferocities to see Kalos.

Kalos was sitting in the throne room with Phyliscia. She now had her own throne, and getting her feet washed. Kalos watched intently; he was smitten by Phyliscia. From the moment she came to Ferocities and showed her dark side he fell for her. Now he made sure she was taken care of and spoiled. Phyliscia didn't mind the treatment. Though she was still deeply in love with Orraco she knew that Orraco's heart was not with her. She also knew that her knowledge of Ariyah, Grandelyn and the former slaves' training methods, she could help defeat Grandelyn. It was here at Ferocities where she could be Queen. Though she had no romantic feelings for Kalos, his power was inviting to her.

Zodner came into the throne room cautiously, not wanting to disturb the new couple.

"Emperor, you have a guest." Kalos, who was nuzzling his hard mask against Phyliscia's arm, began to chuckle.

"I've been getting a lot of visitors this week. My fame isn't fleeting after all. Send the visitor in." Zodner sent Semp to get the old man. The two minions directed the man into the throne room. He slowly entered the room, his long hood casting a shadow over his face. He was a very short man, hunched over with long gray unkempt hair creeping from his hood. He, like all visitors of this land, was drenched in rain.

"Who are you?" Kalos asked, as he watched an assistant wash Phyliscia's feet. The man did not answer.

"Who are you?" Kalos barked this time. The old man whipped his head up, his hood flinging from his head.

"You may want to speak nicely to me. I may have something that can help you." His said in a hoarse voice. With his hood removed, his ugly face was revealed. He had crooked teeth at the bottom and two missing teeth at the top. The middle of his head was bald, while his long curly gray hair hung low. He had olive colored skin that was very oily, and he had one hazel-colored eye and one dark brown one.

The visitor lifted a brown pouch and dangled it in the air. Kalos sat up straight and Phyliscia waved the assistants away. The old man walked toward them.

"Allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Yoser. I have heard through the grapevine that you are missing something very important to you." Kalos flung his head back in annoyance that somehow everyone knew about his failure. The old man began to laugh.

"Don't worry son, I have a way to help you get it back." Gnats gathered and began swarming all around his head. This same promise had been given to Kalos at least three times before. He was sick of promises and wanted results. The man could sense Kalos's distrust.

Yoser pulled a reddish-brown plant out of the pouch. "The peculiar fruit that is the strength of your enemies, well...this has the strength to overcome that. Allow me explain." Yoser lifted his hand, and a green mist formed around his palm. The fafura that was on the table behind Kalos flew to him. Everyone was shocked and speechless. The fafura was suspended in the air in front of Yoser.

"This is a rare and exquisite fruit. Nothing can stop the effects of this fruit, except for this." He went into his pocket and pulled out a handful of brown and red dust. He sprinkled it on the floating fafura and the fafura disintegrated. "The ugari plant is the only thing is the world that can stop the effects of the fafura right in its tracks. It will weaken your enemies by destroying the source of their strength." Kalos stood at attention; he was amazed at the site of the jade mist surrounding the disintegrated fafura. But he couldn't help but to wonder who this man was, why was he here and why he wanted to help him.

Yoser could sense Kalos' apprehension. He wiped his hands on his cloak and walked slowly toward Kalos' throne.

"I used to live in Grandelyn during King Marquisa's reign. He was a fine young man, very handsome and giving, but he didn't approve of my dark magic. So I was sent to live in a shack in the woods. From there I witnessed the destruction of Grandelyn. I saw everything unfold with my own two eyes." Yoser began talking through gritted teeth, which caused spit to spray from his mouth.

"I barely escaped with my life as I watched the king – your son – destroy our home." His voice was now filled with anger. Kalos listened quietly and Phyliscia squeezed his hand in fear.

"And why did the king do this? Because of the love for a woman. He destroyed an entire nation because he thought that the love of his life had given her body to another man." Yoser stepped closer and got into Kalos's face, staring him down hard.

"But you know very well that wasn't the case at all." He whispered. Chills went down Kalos' back. This man knew way too much. But Kalos didn't want to interrupt. He needed to know how much more he knew. Yoser stepped back and continued to speak, calmly this time.

"I was the only survivor. I was the only one who escaped the white explosion, and I assume it was only because of my black magic. But I no longer had a home. I traveled the lands of Mandune, never able to find a place to call home. I became a beggar on the streets; ridiculed and sometimes beaten for my disturbing looks. But I returned to what was left of Grandelyn. By now it was being guarded by dragons and evil spirits, so I stayed on the outskirts of the white sand lands. Pretty soon I found myself stalking Grandelyn, longing to be back inside the glorious land. I watched it daily, and often I'd see a woman who looked familiar to me. She was with child. She had tattered clothing and looked severely abused. She would come and talk to these dragons, and they allowed her to enter. She'd walk back out, holding these white fruits that had never been seen by anyone." Kalos was squirming with anger in his seat. Yoser paced back and forth as he spoke; his sandals squishing out water with each step.

"One day she dropped one of these fruits and I took it for myself. I studied this fruit carefully. I eventually discovered that this fruit was a power source, and it was making those who ate it, well... pudgy." He chuckled. "I conjured up a spell to combat all of its effects in the ugari plant. You want to know why I want to help? Because your son, the king, made me lose everything. These people that you once enslaved have now gained it all. I want what you want...revenge."

The whole room was quiet. Kalos couldn't speak and Phyliscia was afraid to. By now the minions had all snuck out of the room. They couldn't deal with the creepiness of this old man. Kalos knew this man had a lot of information and was probably the only one that could help him get what was rightfully his.

"Ok, old man, you seem to have all the answers. But tell me how can we get past those dragons? Your ugari plant won't help us one bit if we can't get past those." Yoser began to laugh gleefully as he spun around with joy.

"Don't fret, my son. I have taken care of that as well. Allow me to introduce you to my red angels." Yoser stood back and pulled out two blood red flowers, spit in his hands and flung the mucous onto the flowers. Phyliscia gagged at his actions.

"You won't be disgusted for long, my dear" he laughed. He waved his hands over the flowers in a figure eight motion as a red mist began to form. From this mist two red females appeared. Phyliscia's mouth dropped and Kalos removed his mask. The females were swaying back and forth and were moaning and groaning incoherently. Their heads were leaned to the side and mouths wide opened as the slurring continued during the complete formation into their bodies.

"Quiet, girls, quiet." Yoser urged. As they continued their transformation, more of their appearance became visible. They had pale white skin that had a red glaze coating over it. They had curly scarlet-colored hair. Even their eyes were red. Their lips were bright red and dry. They were dressed in red tight knee high lace dresses with red stockings and red heel ankle boots. They were frightening yet angelic-looking beings. The Emperor and his mistress were completely speechless.

"Introduce yourselves, girls." Yoser said proudly. One opened her mouth to speak but no one could understand her high pitched muffled echoing noise. She sounded like a whale singing under water. As each girl spoke, the other disappeared. Each sounded similar. Their bodies made zipping noises as they disappeared and reappeared. The Torrids who had entered the room didn't mind the sounds as they too could make deafening noises.

"Can you make them stop speaking?" Phyliscia asked, holding her ears. "Oh yes, mistress. I must apologize for their speech. They communicate better with their hands." Yoser explained. He hushed the red angels up. They stood still and looked straight up at the ceiling, hands at their sides.

"These are my pride and joy, Crimson and Carmine. They can get past those albino dragons. They can teleport through things undetected. They can lead us into Grandelyn. The rest is up to us." Kalos sat forward and looked the beings over. He put his mask back, but inside an evil smile came upon his wicked face. Yoser was a blessing in disguise. Finally they had a real plan, and maybe – just maybe – it would work this time.

Chapter 27

#  Preparations

#

It was before noon and Ariyah was alone at the Empire in the warrior's training room. For the past few days she'd been training extensively with her custom golden mace. She had injured herself a few times as her face, arms and legs were cut from the pointy spikes. But she didn't care; she was going to master this weapon. She spent hours upon hours feverishly practicing and swinging it in a rhythm. She whipped it from all angles, throwing and catching it; adding her own moves. Her hard work was paying off as she was doing well with it. She watched the reflection of her shadow on the wall, making sure she was effectively striking her invisible adversary. She studied her moves intensely.

Suddenly, the bang of the hard wooden door swinging open behind her startled her. She turned to look, breathing and sweating profusely. It was Orraco. He didn't know she would be there. They locked eyes and he turned to walk back out of the room.

"Orraco, wait. Come." He stopped in his tracks. He didn't want to come to her. He wanted to walk out of that room and slam the door behind him, but she was the queen so he couldn't be so rude. He slowly turned around, clinching his jaw. He stared at her unenthusiastically.

"I haven't seen you in awhile. You haven't been here to help me train these crazy folks. Are you ok?" She chuckled, getting closer.

"I've been around" he answered shortly.

"I've missed you around the palace. You haven't been talking to me." He couldn't talk to her. It was too painful. Her smile, the brightness of her eyes, her positive energy. It was too much, knowing they weren't his. She could sense his sadness.

"Orraco, can't we be friends?" She pleaded grabbing his hand and gently squeezing it. He stared desperately into her eyes. He could never just be her friend. It could never be like how it was. He'd rather walk away than face her daily knowing he couldn't have her. He watched her face, looking hopefully back at him. He bit his lip and looked around indecisively.

"Be careful with your face." He said solemnly as he caressed the fresh red scars on her eyes and cheeks. He turned and walked away. She was hurt. She felt guilty. She had lost one of her best friends and it pained her deeply. But she didn't have time to sulk; she had a class to teach. She could hear the loud footsteps of people gathering into the hallway. The door opened and the cheerful Grandenites began to pile into the warrior's training room, fully dressed in their brown jumpsuits training attire. They were excited to see their queen, since they hadn't seen her in awhile. They greeted her with love and admiration. That was enough to get her out of her funk. She smiled at the full class of dedicated people ready to work.

"Alright let's get started. Today we are going to work with something we have never used before. Thanks to Mr. Demi we have another great weapon to master."Ariyah's students stood at attention. She went to the podium and pulled out a small orange package. She un-wrapped it to reveal a black dagger with a loop at the end. It looked a small black pine tree with a loop.

"This, my people, is called a letal. It's amazing. There is no other word for it." Ariyah smiled. Ooh's and aah's came from the class as they all marveled at this small piece of iron. Ariyah instructed two men to remove the mirrors at the end of the room. The husky men obeyed, removing the double mirrors and revealing five wooden faceless dummies against the wall. These mannequins were only used when introducing children or the elderly to stagitto and ryhan. Ariyah strolled over to the dummies and dangled the letal in front of them.

"It is better for me to show you than to tell you." Quickly Ariyah whipped around and with all her might she threw the letal at the dummies. As she threw it, 10 individual daggers zipped out from it. Within seconds, one dagger was in the middle dummy, eight in the others and two in the walls behind them. The class all looked puzzled.

"Can anyone see what happened?" Ariyah tested.

"You threw one dagger and more came out" a student answered,

"Exactly. When you throw the letal, 10 more come out, striking multiple targets at once. If you master this, it can be done at different angles using different styles. We will be training with these today so let's split up."

The class broke up into groups to spar, to use their usual swords and to practice the letal. One student in particular caught on very fast to the letal. Michal, who was a young 18 year old boy and often trained with Orraco and Rashad's class, was fascinated by the letal. He began to use it effectively. He was able to use the weapon from different positions and angles. He mastered it very quickly. Ariyah was surprised and proud. She patted him on the back, took a moment to look over her groups and then continued to practice her mace.

Outside of the classroom, Orraco watched Ariyah through the cracked door. He knew he should've been inside training as well but he wasn't feeling into it. He was feeling lonely and even missed Phyliscia. He hadn't seen her in the past few weeks, but he was so devastated by Ariyah's rejection that he hadn't even noticed. He decided that if he could find her again, he'd make it right with her and marry her. After all, at least she loved him. He walked away and went to find Rashad.

Meanwhile in the old training room at Ferocities, Phyliscia was standing in front of a group of men. Men that used to abuse her family and friends, men that used to starve her and her family, men that used to make her sleep in cages as a child. She was now in charge of them. They stood attentively, fully suited in their armor wear, as she paced back and forth before them. She was wearing a metal cobra on top of her head signifying her as the Queen of Ferocities. She also wore a seductive violet gown, with silver crystal lining adorning her breasts and slits running up to her full pale white hips. The soldiers were attentive, but more so for her appearance than her lesson. But they dared not show it, for Kalos was watching them closely.

"We are at war, gentlemen; we must be prepared for the battle" Phyliscia said, staring down each soldier intensely. "They are strong, but we are getting stronger. They can fight, but we have magic on our side. We will get the medallion back. But perhaps in the process we can conquer Grandelyn, and it will be our land." As she preached, her icy eyes grew wide with excitement. The soldiers smiled as she paced back and forth. They were excited by her words but they were even more enamored by the sight of her ample bottom, which jiggled with every stride she took. They were smitten by her...and she was smitten by the power. Kalos sat on a throne behind her, watching his queen reveling in her newly found power. He stroked Noire slowly as he watched her in action, a chilling smile hidden underneath his mask.

"Get ready, my men, for we will conquer all. Now in position!" She shouted. "Punch! Punch! Double punch...Barge! Again!" Punch! Punch! Double punch...Barge! Again!" She was screaming so loudly that she was becoming hysterical. She said it faster and faster as the men struggled to keep up. She began laughing uncontrollably. Kalos observed and stroked Noire all the harder. The evil was filling him up again. He was no longer admiring his queen or his men in training, but dreaming of what was to come. He believed that this time the battle was at hand and the outcome inevitable.

Chapter 28

# The Battle

It was an hour before the dark indigo sky would turn gold again. All in the land had been quiet. The Sea of Amethyst was still, and a cool breeze cascaded through the city. The green leaves rippled with each stroke of wind and the twinkling of the stars above made Ash City shimmer like a crystal ball. A faint buzzing came from the Siamese Twin Dragons gate.

Two streaks of blood tracks zoomed up to the gates and stopped. The streaks soon transformed into Carmine and Crimson, Yoser's Red Angels. They were dressed differently than before. They were now wearing red leotards and red sandals, and their hair tied up in bright red ponytails. They looked up at the massive white dragons gating the land. Then they looked at each other and began to speak, again with sounds that sounded more like whale speak. They studied the gate, their red glass-like eyes holding the dragons still reflection in it. They looked at each other again and then they teleported to the other side of the gate, without ever disturbing the dragons. Once on the other side, Carmine and Crimson turned to make sure that the dragons were in their rightful position. The Red Angels looked around at the main beach land. They checked the bushes and the woods, zipping through each section by teleporting along the way. They could see Ash City from afar. They both turned their heads slowly to the left as they watched the city, which was still and calm. After watching it for a moment, they made their way toward Ash City.

Meanwhile Kalos and the others waited quietly in full armor with an army of soldiers in front of the Twin Dragon gate. The Ferocities troops were ready and had been increased in size. Whereas only 50 soldiers had remained in Ferocities, Yoser's magic made them into 500. Five hundred men, both real and man-made, waited. They were armed and ready for action. The Red Angels had teleported back to the gate.

"Well, girls, what did you see?" Yoser asked excitedly. They began to speak the unique language that only Yoser could understand.

"What are they saying?' Kalos asked patiently.

"We can attack" Yoser answered with a jagged-tooth smile. Kalos smiled underneath his mask and waved his men to do their job. Two soldiers quietly stepped to the twin gate. At the count of three they took out their long sharp swords and jammed them deep inside the dragons' stomachs. The dragons ripped apart from each other, screeching in anger and pain as blood spilled out of them. A glow emanated from their wounded bellies as they blasted fire toward their attackers. They scorched and killed many of the men in front.

"Do something! They're going to kill us!" Zodner cried out.

"Not today they won't." Yoser said reassuringly. Yoser threw a green dust upon them which extinguished the fire and caused the dragons to choke. While they were gasping for air, the armed men stormed past them and into the land.

While taking their morning flight, Adley and Elai were the first to see the chaos. They circled the sky and squawked loudly. Their alarm startled Ariyah out of her sleep. Her heart was pounding fervently as metal footsteps made their way to her door. Palace guards swung her door open in panic. The first guard through the door made the announcement.

"Queen Ariyah, we are being attacked!"

"I know" Ariyah said calmly. She got out of bed with a tired yet prepared look on her face. She motioned for the guards to take the next step. As they ran out of the room to follow orders, Ariyah grabbed her robe and slippers and looked for her keys to the Empire. Outside, the horns began to blare loudly, signaling that Grandelyn was under attack. Ariyah rushed out of her room and out of the Crystaria Palace. She headed to the Empire to get into her armor. Many of the other warriors were rushing from Ash City to get there as well.

Meanwhile the Ferocities attackers had infiltrated the land. They came in horse-ridden and rode around the main beach land looking for a way into Ash City. Kalos, who came in last, saw the Crystaria Palace and grew confident.

"There. Make sure we get in there. I've got a Queen I need to greet." He said slyly.

"Charge!" Zodner yelled and, with that, the army ran past the Sea of Amethyst and toward Ash City. They were stopped in their tracks when they saw an army of rhinoceros-ridden Grandenites armed and ready for war. The Ferocities soldiers looked to each other as they were intimidated by the massive beasts facing them. Both sides eyed each other down. The sun was now coming up and the golden sky cascaded above the enemies. Orraco saw Phyliscia next to Kalos. He shook his head in disgust at her betrayal; in return she blew a red-lipped kiss to him.

Ariyah was front and center; sided by Orraco, Sheevar, Vanka, Mr. Crowesh and Michal. She pulled out her shiny gold mace and began to spin it above her head. Kalos lifted his sword and commanded his men forward. They eagerly complied. Ariyah swung harder and let out a deafening war cry, "Grandenites, GO!" They charged in, rhinos running ferociously toward the enemy. Both sides crashed into each other; swords swinging and rhinos stomping many. Ariyah's mace struck many Ferocities soldiers in their heads, knocking them to the ground. But she knew she couldn't properly defend herself or her people if she stayed on top of the rhinoceros.

"Grandenites, get down!" She yelled through her mask, swiftly kicking a soldier from off his horse. They obeyed their queen. The Grandenites pulled the Ferocities soldiers down, besting all those they met. Quickly the 500 attackers were going down in number.

Kalos backed away and watched the battle from a distance. He looked over to Vysera, whom was waiting with the other Torrids by the woods.

"Do what you came to do" Kalos said impatiently.

"Yes, Master" Vysera bowed and hissed. Vysera waved the other Torrids on and they ran forward. The Torrids grabbed the rhinoceroses and burned them. Most of the animals were killed.

"What are they?" Mr. Crowesh yelled, jabbing a soldier in the throat.

"I don't know, but they look demonic!" Rashad yelled, swiping his sword at them. Two of the biggest Torrids approached from behind, burning his arms to the bone. Rashad screamed out in agony. They threw him to the ground, then grabbed two more Grandenites and did the same to them. Dalia saw what the Torrids were doing. She also saw her brothers fighting within a close distance to her.

"Demetrius, Damian, look over there!" She yelled out. The two twin-smashed their adversary and ran to their sister. "Look at those bloody ratchet beings. Look what they're doing to us." She said.

"I've never seen those abominations. We've never been trained to fight such creatures." Damien doubted.

"I think we can do it" Dalia encouraged.

"You want to try that now? But we haven't perfected it." Demetrius said, looking around the chaotic surroundings.

"The Queen taught it to us for a reason. I know we can do it." Dalia said enthusiastically. The brothers looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders.

"Alright. Let's see what we're made of." Demetrius and Damien ran quickly behind the big Torrids and got on all fours, one on top of the other. Damien used his sword as stilts just as Ariyah had taught them. Dalia braced herself checking all of her surroundings, making sure she was clear. She took in a deep breath and zoomed full speed. She jumped on Demetrius' back and then on top of Damien and leapt off, coming down onto the big Torrids and severing both of their heads. They had successfully executed the maneuver that had come to be called "The Steps". The big Torrids disintegrated, black ash whisking into the air.

The Red Angels had teleported into the middle of the mayhem and began to attack as well. They zoomed through the battle, striking the Grandenites and tearing at their chest armor. The Grandenite warriors tried to attack them but soon realized they could not because the Red Angels were able to teleport out of the way.

Zodner spotted Mr. Crowesh in the action. He crept behind him and put him into a choke hold. He began to drag him backwards and they accidentally fell into the Sea of Amethyst. Instantly energy left their bodies. Zodner began to cough and he felt a bit dizzy. Mr. Crowesh, though used to being submerged in the Sea of Amethyst, panicked because he knew he was too weak to fight. Semp saw Zodner and he ran over to them.

"There is no time to frolic in the water. Get up and fight!" he yelled gullibly.

"Semp, you idiot! It's this water. It seems to have severely drained me."

Yoser, overheard this and also noticed Mr. Crowesh drained and lying tired in the water. He realized the disadvantage of the Sea of Amethyst.

"The water! The water! Push them into the water. It depletes them of energy!" Some of the soldiers began to do just that. The Ferocities soldiers began to overwhelm the Grandenites, and their force knocked them into the Sea of Amethyst. Mr. Crowesh was trying to free himself out of the water. He kept trying to pull himself up to the white sand surrounding the water. A Ferocities soldier came along and helped pull Mr. Crowesh out. Mr. Crowesh was confused but thankful. The soldier turned him on his back.

"I don't know why you're helping me but thank you" Mr. Crowesh said, trying to sit up. The soldier kicked him in the chest, throwing him to the ground, and then he thrust his sword into Mr. Crowesh's stomach. He let out a loud groan as blood spurt from his mouth. The soldier repeatedly stabbed him with the sword until Mr. Crowesh was bloodied and lifeless. Vanka cried out in horror. She ran over to him. Orraco had seen her running in that direction and realized that Mr. Crowesh was hurt badly. He ran over to him, barging into the soldier and knocking him to the ground. He grabbed the soldier by the head, twisted it and broke his neck. Orraco ran to be next to Vanka. She was weeping loudly as she looked over his lifeless bloodied body. Orraco was crushed because Mr. Crowesh was like a father to him. He and Vanka had both taken him and helped raise him into the man he had become. But there was no time to mourn.

It was harder to fight Ferocities because they had become familiar with the moves they knew. They also had a sorcerer working with them. This was truly a fight to the death. Orraco rose to continue the fight when suddenly he felt a hot painful jab in the back of his shoulder. He let out a cry of pain. He felt someone heavy on his back. It was Phyliscia. She had stabbed Orraco deep in his back with a kitana knife and jumped on his back.

"Hello, darling. I guess you had forgotten all about me." She dug the knife deeper into his shoulder. Her dark black hair hung in front of his face. He grabbed hold of it and with all his might he pulled and slammed her to the ground. Infuriated, she let out a scream. He tried to stomp on her but she avoided all his attacks. She struck him repeatedly and continued to jab her long red fingernails into the stab wound in his shoulder.

"I could've been your everything, Orraco. There's no way she could've ever loved you the way that I did. I bet she doesn't even realize how you feel about her. All she cares about is this forsaken land." She dug her fingers deep into his wound. He fell to his knees in agony, swiping at her but missing.

"Is it queens that you like, Orraco? Well I'm a queen now, and Ferocities will rise again. As you can see we are clearly beating you. We are one sword fight away from killing your beloved Ariyah and getting our medallion back. Then you will see the destruction of Grandelyn and all its inhabitants." She chuckled, digging deeper. Orraco could see Ariyah from afar fighting off some soldiers. He knew Phyliscia was right, that if they got that medallion all of the world that they knew would be destroyed. He could not picture life without Ariyah in it – no matter how rejected he felt. Orraco slowly reached for his sword.

"You know, Phyliscia, I was going to propose to you. I wanted to marry you." Phyliscia was stunned by his words and she released her grip.

"You're just saying that" she replied.

"No. I'm serious. You're right. Ariyah didn't want me and I didn't realize what I had in you. But you had left and now you're a traitor. You are Kalos' queen and not the woman I fell for." Phyliscia considered his words but didn't want to be played for a fool. She thought about all the times he had left her to be at Ariyah's side. How every conversation turned to Ariyah and her beauty, intelligence and humility. Angered, she again dug her fingers deep into his shoulder. This time Orraco head-butted her, elbowed her in the face, and slammed her to the ground. He pulled out his sword and jammed it deep into her chest. Her face grew pale and blood poured from her mouth.

"All this chaos for your precious queen" she said with her last breath. Then her skin became cold and her icy blue eyes went blank. A part of Orraco felt guilty, but the warrior in him could not feel for a traitor.

Two sword wielding soldiers on horses had Sheevar and Cori cornered between four other soldiers. The soldiers were trying to back the women into the water. They were smashed tightly together and Sheevar couldn't reach for her sword without cutting Cori. She screamed out in anger and frustration. The soldier on the horse began to laugh and taunt her. She could feel that they were going to fall back into the water and she knew that was going to be the death them.

"How do you like this, you piggly wench?" The soldier laughed. Suddenly a dagger landed in his eye. He stopped right in his tracks and his blood spurted on Sheevar and Cori. The soldier fell off the horse. The other soldiers behind the women were hit and they fell to the ground as well. Sheevar looked over and saw that it was Michal using the letal. She gave him a smile of relief. He ran over and helped pull her and Cori out of the chaos, then got back into position.

He saw another group of Ferocities soldiers trying to push more Grandenites into the water. Michal got down low and threw three letals with deadly accuracy. His targets fell before him.

While the Grandenites in the water were tired and weak, they were not completely over taken by Ferocities. Kalos, angered by this fact, stormed over to Yoser.

"We are losing! Where is all your magic when we need it?" Kalos scoffed.

"No worries, my boy. Watch and see." Yoser yanked a running soldier to him. He made the soldier drink a black liquid out of a red potion bottle. The soldier began to cough viciously and fell to the ground convulsing. Black smoke escaped from his writhing body. The black smoke formed into more armed and suited Ferocities soldiers. Soon one hundred new soldiers appeared. The potion army went into the battle immediately, and one hundred more would keep coming every 10 minutes.

"Queen, this is more than what we can handle. They're using magic." Orraco said, fighting alongside Ariyah.

"Remember, Orraco, we've been trained to take on all situations." Ariyah said, hitting a soldier with her mace. Orraco shook his head in disbelief of Ariyah's unshaken confidence. "Besides we're doing great!" she exclaimed confidently.

"There she is!" Semp yelled in anger, pointing at Ariyah. Zodner limped to the other side of her, still weak but ready to attack.

"You have no clue what your escape has put us through. Your army is failing and I want to take pleasure in ripping your heart out!" Semp began running full speed toward Ariyah with a spiked metal claw. Zodner jogged to attack her as well. Ariyah pushed Orraco back, dropped her mace, withdrew two swords and timed her next move As Semp and Zodner ran to overtake her, she spun around quickly using her swords like propellers. Her attackers were decapitated. Ariyah took pride in knowing that she had finally perfected Crystaline's complex fighting move. Orraco stood in shock as he watched his queen once again show her magnificence.

"I told you we were doing great." She smiled.

Yoser stood behind the chaos and yelled to four Ferocities soldiers. "Empty your containers!" With that, the soldiers took out five black canteens with fan propellers at the bottom. They opened the canteens and dispensed the ugari pollen into the air. The reddish-green pollen filled the air, falling onto the warriors. The Grandenites fell to the ground immediately. They coughed and writhed, becoming weaker than the Sea of Amethyst could ever make them.

"Queen, what has happened to us?" Orraco asked.

"I don't know, but I can't move. I'm paralyzed." Ariyah struggled to breathe. Then she felt her legs being pulled.

"Ariyah!" Sheevar screamed. Some Ferocities soldiers were dragging Ariyah away from her people and off to the side where Kalos could see her. No one could move to help their queen. The majority of the Grandenites were slumped over on the ground; those not compromised by the magic were busy fighting off the Torrids and The Red Angels.

White sand filled Ariyah's nostrils. She coughed and struggled to breathe. The rough terrain caused her tremendous pain as she was dragged along. Finally the journey came to an end. They dropped her legs. She groaned in pain and weariness.

"I want you to hurt her" a voice from above her said. It was Kalos. He wanted to see her break; something he was never able to get Crystaline to do. The soldiers began to viciously kick every part of her body. They dragged her around even more and flung her around like a rag doll. The soldiers were disrespecting the Grandenites queen right before their eyes and it was nothing they could do about it.

"Alright enough. Play time is over. Kill her so that I can get my medallion and we can be done with this place." Kalos said. Adley and Elai flew down and began to peck the soldiers' heads. The men swiped at the birds with their swords, striking Adley in the wing and slicing Elai's foot. Adley fell and Elai flew down, picked her up with his beak and flew her to safety.

"Hurry and kill her so we can go!" Kalos barked. The soldiers turned her on her back, and one of them lifted his sword to strike. Suddenly a thunderous rumble interrupted the action. Everyone froze, in fear and confusion. Thick trees thrashed violently and mighty dust crowded the horizon. The ground began to rumble and crack. More trees thrashed as the shadow grew closer and the monstrous thuds came quicker and faster. Now not only were trees thrashing in the air, but a few horses and soldiers as well. The sweat of the enemies began to drip like a faucet as they did not know what was approaching.

Running at full speed, running through and over the Ferocities soldiers, the Ig came storming onto the battlefield. He jumped up and tumbled over the army, stopping with a fierce roar that sounded like 10,000 angry lions; exposing all of his spit lined teeth. Many soldiers fainted, while others were crushed to death by the Ig's mighty hands.

"What is that?" Vanka cried. The Ig was wreaking havoc on the soldiers who had tried to hurt his friend. He was fast, strong and killed many of the Ferocities' soldiers with his bare hands. He bit into some of them, causing many human limbs to be scattered all over the main beach land. Kalos backed far away from the ogre. He had never seen anything like it, and he was petrified.

Yoser went off to the side where a field of trees was. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bottle filled with pink dust. He kissed it, put it inside the black canteen bottle and he dispensed the dust into the air. The pink dust fell onto the fighters as the pollen had. The Grandenites began to get their strength and energy back. They stood to their feet and were able to fight again. Afraid of the gigantic Ig at first, they could see that he was there to help them. But with 100 new soldiers appearing every 10 minutes, the Grandenites were once again overcome, even though the Ig was killing them as quickly as they developed. Kalos became furious. He stormed over to Yoser, whom was fumbling through his pockets for more potion bottles.

"What's happening? Why are they getting up? That damned ugari plant doesn't work!" Kalos furiously yelled at him.

"I don't know, Sire. I guess I didn't mix the contents well enough." Yoser said humbly with a smirk.

"Oh forget it. I will end this myself!" Kalos yelled, pushing Yoser to the side by his face. Kalos sought out Ariyah. He pulled out his sword and began stabbing anyone and anything in his way, even his own soldiers. He was tired of being made a fool. He was tired of empty promises. He was tired of being defeated. He was going to get that medallion and kill Ariyah even if it killed him.

The Torrids gathered around the Ig and began to burn him. He roared as they each took turns jumping on his massive body and burning his exposed skin. They got him to the ground, singeing him until his body became dark red and blistery. Soon some of his bones were exposed as flesh was burned away. From a short distance, Ariyah could see what the Torrids were doing. Angered, she head-butted a soldier and broke his neck. Then she ran towards the Torrids and the Ig. She swung her bloody mace viciously and knocked the Torrids off of him. She ran to the Ig. He was slumped over on the white sand, blood oozing from all over his gigantic body. She wasn't strong enough to lay him on his back, so she used her whole body to push his arm away from his face. He was still breathing, though faintly.

"Ig, I'm so sorry" she said, using the sign language they had developed. Her eyes were welling up. The Ig was going lifeless right before her eyes. He gave a weak smile. He raised his hand weakly, giving her the peace sign and a cradle rocking motion and he pointed towards the Idle Forest. Ariyah smiled as a tear dropped from her eye. The Ig let out one last mighty roar and then his eyes rolled to the back of his head. Ariyah placed her hand over her heart, looked toward the Idle Forest and kissed his hand. She got up and ran toward Ash City where she could see soldiers trying to get inside.

Kalos was still going on a manic rampage, slaughtering all in his path. He didn't even care when he saw Physlicia's dead body off to the side. He was on a mission. He saw Ariyah near the city, fighting his men. He ran through quickly to get to her. Ariyah was macing three soldiers; she then put her mace handle back into her armor belt to push them away from the gate. Kalos pushed her from behind and she fell face first into the brick road leading to the city. She got up quickly to see who had pushed her. And there it was Kalos and Ariyah, face to mask now. All the chaos going on behind them didn't matter at this point. It was a single battle now, against a man she hadn't seen since she was 8 years old. A man who took her mother away from her. All the pain and anger over the years consumed her as she watched Kalos towering over her. Though his eyes were shielded, the two locked glares in a vicious stare down. They moved around in a circle, carefully waiting for the other to make the first move.

Kalos sprung into action, leaping forward to attack her. Instead of backing away, Ariyah flung herself into him, knocking his sword out of his hand. Kalos began swinging his fists, trying to punch Ariyah with all the force in his body. She blocked, ducked and countered all of his attacks, then threw him harshly to the ground. Frustrated, Kalos pulled out another weapon. Ariyah was ready, though she didn't know what he was holding. She kept her hands up and close to her face and sides.

"You're just like your mother...and now you will die like her!" Kalos zipped around, flinging Noire forward and hitting Ariyah in the face. Her head flung back as Noire's fangs struck her in her forehead. Blood began to pour down the middle of her face. She was dazed and shocked. No one had ever been able to hit her in the face. Kalos swung Noire again. She leaped backwards avoiding the snake attack. She got back into her fighting stance, waiting for him to fling Noire again. Kalos was stroking Noire's to make sure he was ok. The snake slithered around his arm calmly. Ariyah tried to grab her mace, but the handle was stuck in her armor belt. Kalos seized the opportunity to overtake her. He ran to her and kicked her in the stomach. As she fell backwards, Kalos flung Noire. The snake wrapped himself around her neck. Kalos pulled Ariyah back to him. As she fell to her knees, Ariyah began to panic. He was strangling her. He began to laugh heartedly as he watched her brown face turn beet red. As she struggled to hit him in the face, she grabbed his mask and ripped it off.

Kalos' face was exposed. She had never seen his face before. He was beautiful, but had tremendous scarring in the corners of his eyes and across his thick lips. Ariyah looked at him as his amber eyes stared intensely into hers, waiting for them to go blank as he used Noire to strangle her. Ariyah couldn't get free and she could feel her body getting weak.

"Queen!" Orraco yelled in desperation as he ran to her aid. Two Torrids jumped in front of him and attacked him.

"Ariyah!" Sheevar cried trying to run to her. Carmine teleported in front of her and they began to fight. The Red Angels had multiplied and created a protective circle around Kalos and Ariyah and no one could get past them. Kalos laughed so hard and loud that he was becoming hoarse. The Grandenites were trying desperately to reach their queen, but were helpless. Defeated, Ariyah's eyes began to roll in the back of her head and her arms became limp. Kalos knew she was gone and he flung her body to the side on the ground. She laid there lifeless as Kalos hovered over her body searching for what took so long to obtain.

Ariyah had very little pulse as the medallion slid down to her lifeless hand. Suddenly the medallion began to vibrate, tremble, and then shake violently. "What in the..." Kalos looked puzzled at the quaking locket. As he went to reach for it a massive force of light busted the medallion open. There was Crystaline, on top of a woolly-mammoth, roaring and rearing gloriously in the air. The light blinded many people, and fear swept the onlookers.

Kalos stood back, his eyes and jaw wide with fear and amazement. Before him stood the woman he killed years ago. The woolly-mammoth came down and the illuminating light faded away. All was quiet as Crystaline jumped down from the massive beast. The people were mesmerized.

She was amazing to look at, as she had long bronze-colored hair and she was dressed in a flowing bronze colored gown. Her skin tone had even changed to copper-tone. She resembled a big bronze statue. Standing before the huge land of people, she looked around Grandelyn and remembered it. She loved what her people had done with the land. She gazed around and saw many people she recognized. She saw Vanka, whom was badly injured, and Sheevar and Orraco. Then she looked around and saw that Ariyah was lifeless on the ground behind her. She ran to her fallen daughter. She could see her cracked forehead and the rough strangulation marks around her neck. She put her hand on Ariyah's neck to feel for a pulse and it was extremely faint. She looked up to Kalos, still standing there gazing in astonishment. She placed her hand on her neck again and could no longer feel a pulse. Crystaline began to shake with anger.

"ARIYAH!" She screamed from the pit of her gut. The land shook and trembled with her booming voice. Trees fell to the ground, the waters rippled, the ground cracked as Crystaline created an earthquake. She stood to her feet, staring straight into Kalos. He remained frozen, unsure of what to do.

Crystaline's eyes turned completely grey and wind began to pick up fast. She clinched her jaw hard, targeting her prey. The winds picked up harder as white sand swirled aimlessly throughout the land. The people tried to scurry away. She let out a deep scream and ran at full speed towards Kalos. He leapt out of the way. She pulled energy from her mouth and threw a forceful mist ball at him. She missed and it exploded to the ground. She began to wreak havoc as she went on a rampage. She attacked all who wore black, using both her ball of energy and the stagitto moves she'd taught. She was faster and more powerful than she had ever been before. If the soldiers tried to get away she would raise her hand, causing the woolly-mammoth to shoot a liquid from its trunk that disintegrated their bodies. She used her force to pick up many soldiers, turning them upside down, slamming them on their heads; cracking their skulls and necks. Grandelyn was shaking and cracking from the Earth. The Red Angels had multiplied around Crystaline. Teleporting and zooming all around her, they tried to stop her rampage. But Crystaline was able to run just as fast as they could teleport.

She slowed down and studied the red apparitions. She looked for the real Carmine and Crimson because to kill the main ones is to kill all of them. They were rushing toward her. She'd fought them off just as she had battled years ago. The Red Angels were falling everywhere. The Grandenites were enamored by Crystaline's being. To watch the dead legend come alive and in action amazed them.

Crystaline could see the darker red beings and could tell they were the real Red Angels. She ran to them at sonic speed, grabbing Crimson by her ponytail. Carmine tried to attack her only to get a swift back kick to the throat. Crystaline held Crimson in a tight choke hold and then grabbed the skin of her skinny red neck and ripped her head off. The rest of Crimson's body fell to the ground and melted into a puddle of blood. Crystaline whipped around and grabbed Carmine by the face and ripped her head off; her body thus becoming a blood puddle too.

The Torrids ran to Crystaline but were cautious to attack. Vysera and the others hissed at her and made their deafening buzzing noises. The Grandenites and the soldiers all held their ears in pain and fell to the ground. Crystaline, unfazed by the noise, threw the Red Angels heads at them. Then she pulled energy from the sky and blasted the Torrids, turning them all into thick coats of black ash. Puddles of blood and charcoal substance ruined the white sand of Grandelyn.

The chaos was settling down as by now; Kalos was out of sight and all the attacking enemies were either dead or had escaped Crystaline's rampage. The Grandenites were able to get back on their feet. They watched as Crystaline calmed down. She could see no more attackers, and her glowing gray eyes became normal and brown again. She ran back to Ariyah, who was now in Orraco's arms.

Orraco was devastated. He was crying hard as he held Ariyah close to his chest; rocking her back and forth.

"She's dead" he cried, looking to Crystaline. Crystaline moved him out of the way and put Ariyah in her arms. She watched her lying still, looking peaceful as if she were sleeping. She had a flashback of the first time she cradled Ariyah in her arms in the middle of the marigold terrain after giving birth. She began to weep.

"Baby, wake up." She whimpered quietly. All the Grandenites put their heads down to mourn the loss of their queen. Crystaline looked at all of them and knew Ariyah couldn't leave them like this.

"Wake up." She demanded sternly. She said it again. Then Crystaline put her hands on Ariyah's chest and screamed with all her might. "Ariyah, WAKE UP!" Energy flew into Ariyah's body as the Earth quaked again. More trees fell onto the ground, the pavement in the city cracked even more and the golden sky turned gray and cloudy as the winds whipped like a hurricane. Ariyah's body jolted as life was brought back to her. She began to cough violently as she opened her eyes. She saw her mother standing over her.

"Mother?" She asked stunned and afraid. "Am I dead?"

"Not anymore."Orraco chuckled wiping his eyes. He helped her stand to her weary feet. Now looking face to face at her mother, Ariyah couldn't contain her happiness.

"Mother, is this really you?" Ariyah asked, tears welling up in her eyes. Crystaline gave her a dazzling smile as she fought back tears of her own.

"Yes, cherub." Ariyah looked to the ground at the opened medallion locket and knew that it was. She went to hug her but Crystaline's thick energy would not allow Ariyah to grasp her body. "You rescued me. How?"

"You have people to lead. These people need you, sweetheart. I've watched you grow and live by all that I have taught you and you have done so well. All the times I was silent with you, I was making you become the woman that I see standing before me now and I'm so proud of you." Ariyah was filled with pure joy. "It's so great to have you back again, Mother. We have so much catching up to do. Maybe now I can step down my throne to you and you can be the true Queen of Grandelyn." Crystaline's face became grim.

"No, cherub. I cannot stay. I came back to help you through, but you've done so well by yourself that you truly don't need me anymore." Ariyah's heart was broken. She had lost her mother at such a young age that she couldn't take seeing her go away again.

"But I do need you, Mother." Ariyah said as if she were a young child.

"I can no longer guide you or give you warnings or even visions. The heavens need me now. But know that I'll always be with you in here." Crystaline placed her strong touch on Ariyah's chest. Ariyah had no choice but to accept fate. But she knew that there was still a possibility the enemy would be back.

"But what about the medallion and the Soul Realm? Adversaries will just continue to fight us for it, whether it is from Ferocities or someplace else."

"No. The heavens will destroy it when I take it back with me. There will be no more Soul Realm." Though saddened, she had to go, Crystaline kept gazing over Ariyah with pride on her face. The light from the sky began to shine again as the woolly-mammoth began to roar and rear again.

"I must go now, Ariyah. But remember I'll always be with you...right here." She again stroked Ariyah's chest. Rhythmic horns began to play as the sky opened up. Crystaline climbed back on top of the woolly-mammoth and they began to float up. The Grandenites began waving goodbye to her as they shouted words of love and admiration.

"Goodbye, Mother" Ariyah whispered silently and her tears began to flow. Orraco took her into his arms and let her cry into his bloodied chest. "Remember, Ariyah. Look to your heart and there you will find me. I love you..." Crystaline and the mammoth were zipped into the sky and the sky closed. It began to rain, but it wasn't regular water raindrops. It was crystals. Everyone was amazed and overjoyed by this lovely sight. The children came running down to the main beach land from the safety of Ash City. They all began to rejoice. The battle was over. The battle was won.

Sheevar and Vanka ran to Ariyah and embraced her tightly. All the surviving warriors and citizens cheered and hugged each other. The slain were gathered into a pile and put next to the woods. Ariyah took off her zitheranium chest plate and bowed on one knee.

"To those whom we've lost today, I want to say thank you for fighting for what was yours. It was an honor being your queen and you will always be remembered. Let us all bow down and salute the fallen." All the Grandenites kneeled down and closed their eyes in mourning. Ariyah stood and held her hands out.

"To the survivors, we have done it! Everything we've worked hard for has been accomplished. Pat yourselves on the backs, my people and know that you have done a good deed."

The Grandenites stood and began to chant repeatedly, "All hail, Ariyah! Queen of the Grandenites!" holding their bloodied swords and shields in the air, they chanted in salute to their beloved queen. Ariyah looked to the sky and smiled; holding her chest. The chants became louder as they became drunk with victory. Ariyah turned around to face Orraco, whom was slouched over holding his side. She stood him up straight and gazed into his swollen eyes.

"Queen?" he asked, puzzled by her. She grabbed his face and began to passionately kiss him. The Grandenites began to cheer more and the chanting continued. Ariyah whipped around to face her people, holding her arm in the air in victory.

"Ok now let's get patched up!" Ariyah laughed. They picked her up and carried her above their shoulders toward Ash City. Orraco stayed behind, now blushing and caressing his lips. He was unconsciously smiling. Sheevar came behind him.

"Don't get excited. You're still a waste." She laughed as she put her arm around his waist and helped walk him to the city.

There was a huge yell throughout the halls of the Savage Kingdom. Kalos was infuriated. He had ripped apart his own clothing and he began to kill all the snakes that were slithering around. He paced back and forth across the wet molded carpet in the throne room, while Yoser sat at his work table studying his leaves. "We've lost. We've LOST!" He shouted kicking objects in his way.

"Did you really think we wouldn't?" Yoser said calmly.

"How can you be so calm?"

"I already knew the outcome. I knew everything that was going to happen." "What do you mean? You told me I'd get my medallion back. I've lost all my men, all my staff. Now there is no Soul Realm, no medallion. Nothing!"

"I lost my Red Angels. You win some, you lose some" Yoser said, shrugging his shoulders.

"How dare you? You promised to help me. You've done nothing!" Kalos barked.

"I gave you opportunity. Do you honestly think you could've made it into Grandelyn without my help?" Yoser said, getting into Kalos face.

"But we lost, you old gizzard imbecile!" Yoser placed his hand in the air, consequently shutting Kalos mouth with force. Kalos struggled to open his mouth and breathe.

"You watch your mouth with me. Without me you could not have done anything. You got your chance to kill the queen. It's not my fault her ghostly mother saved her." Yoser squeezed his fist tighter making it more painful for Kalos, as his teeth were digging into his lips. "Yes you lost but you're still alive, meaning you still have a chance to attack. You still seek revenge, just as I do." He then released his fist and Kalos could breathe and open his mouth again. "But now you leave that up to me." Yoser continued, straightening Kalos torn clothes. "This time she will come to us and we will get our revenge."

"She'll never come here. Never." Kalos doubted, walking out of the throne room.

"Oh she will, and when she does we will be ready." Yoser promised as he looked at his demented reflection in a cracked mirror on the wall.

# Epilogue

Grandelyn looked like it had been through hell. The ground was still cracked, the trees were still down, and blood soaked sand lined the main beach land. The slain were buried with golden metals placed on their coffins to show their duty was recognized. There would be no repairs anytime soon because most of the citizens were still in recovery. This included Ariyah.

Ariyah sat up straight in her bed, propped up by many pillows. Her arms and legs were wrapped with bandages and her forehead was stitched up and bandaged as well. Her servants were in the room helping to massage her body. Adley and Elai were even bandaged up and lying in special bird cages in Ariyah's room. As the servants took turns massaging hot vanilla oil onto Ariyah's body, there was a knock at the door. One of the servants answered to find a guard.

"Queen, you have mail. It was received a few hours ago." He said standing at attention.

"Thank you." Ariyah said humbly as she struggled to reach for the envelope. The envelope was crinkled like it had been wet and dried that way. She studied the peach colored envelope.

"Ladies, can you leave me for awhile?" she asked politely. They bowed and left the room. She slowly opened the letter with her free fingers and a glossy piece of paper fell out. Ariyah opened the note and read:

Dear Queen of Grandelyn, I have many answers that I know you have questions to. Let's start with this picture. See you on the other side.

Ariyah was baffled. She lifted the glossy paper and saw that it was a photo. Her mouth dropped in shock. In the photo was the same king from the picture she found years ago. But in it beside him was a thin Crystaline standing lovely and happy in his arms, with Kalos in black knight armor behind them. The banner in the photo read: King Marquisa and his new bride-to-be. You are invited to the special day. Ariyah gasped and dropped the photo into her lap. She looked out the window past the balcony, past the Sea of Amethyst, and over the Siamese Twin Dragon gate; she could see a dark cloud looming in the sky. Her heart began to beat with unease for she knew trouble was ahead.

D ionne Lee Nelson is the author of The Mafia Princess Diaries and The Mafia Princess Diaries: The Takeover series. Her first attempt with fantasy writing is with Grandelyn. She is currently working on the sequel. She lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her fiancé, daughter and their new Shih Tzu puppy, Oscar. To learn more about this author, visit www.dionneleenelson.com

