

# The Legend Of Man

# Destiny Awaits

# written by: Alistair Sutherland

## TABLE OF CONTENTS

## Chapter 1: The Missing Masters.................. 3

## Chapter 2: Pains of Leadership..................... 26

## Chapter 3: The Betrayal............................. 44

## Chapter 4: From Bad to Worse..................... 67

## Chapter 5: Here We Stand........................... 90

## Chapter 6: Pride....................................... 117

## Chapter 7: The Unknown............................. 137

## Chapter 8: What Lies Ahead......................... 154

## Chapter 9: War On The Hill.......................... 171

## Chapter 10: Ends and Beginnings.................... 192

## Chapter 11: Seeking the Truth........................ 208

## Chapter 12: A Night to Remember................... 228

### Chapter 1: Missing Masters

In the land of Etheria a group of Mages watched over the known lands. They were only known as the Council.

For centuries the Mages of Heavstat did not push their great powers onto the people they watched but did their best to push or steer them. They only intervened, when the moment was right.

The council resided in Heavstat a place of immense magical power.

Heavstat was also a school; this was where children with magical gifts were sent to learn to perfect their gifts.

Heavstat sat in a valley between two large mountain ranges; that stretched for miles in either direction. No one got to Heavstat without passing through a single path where these two magnificent mountains met. The path led straight into the valley.

The way through the path was guarded by two massive towers at the entrance and exit of the hidden path. At the top of these towers were elemental crystals that were powerful enough to incinerate anything, living or dead.

Heavstat itself sat on a large rock that hovered high above an enormous hole in the ground, from this hole great energy flowed upward through Heavstat. Its tall gray walls stood out against the dark brown rock that it sat on.

At the top of Heavstat two spiral towards rose upwards, watch posts that were always looking for anyone that entered the valley. All along the walls, small openings let the outside light inside. Heavstat was a magnificent castle in the sky. Far and wide people would seek to find it, but only a few ever made it to the mountains, even fewer made it into the valley. Only those the Mages themselves considered worthy ever saw it.

The people of Xyrene one of the farthest cities had called for help from the Council.

The city was being attacked by a vast army of mercenaries and assassins calling themselves The Horde of Sorzad. No doubt named after one of the most notorious Assassin's to ever live.

Sorzad had been killed after a fair trial held in the capital of Xyrene.

The council called a meeting of its elders.

"The city will be taken by nightfall if we do not intervene," a small Asian Mage said in long silk robes, he had a long-twisted mustache.

He was standing in the middle of a room.

The rest of the Mages were sitting at a table that was squared; the table encircled the Asian Mage.

"It isn't our place to intervene in the going on of others," Another mage said he was sitting in one of the chairs on the outside of the square table.

At the head of the table sat two Mages, that looked at each other.

"We can't just watch while the whole city is slaughtered," one of them spoke "It wouldn't be right," one said to the other.

The other sat there in silence contemplating what the other had said.

"We will help, but only to help. We will do nothing more than protect. Do not attack!" He ordered. "Illuscious, Wong, Trabias, the three of you will go. There is no need for us to send any more than that," he said as the Asian Mage and two others bowed and began to leave the white room.

"I will join them it was me that they asked for," the other Mage began to say.

"As you wish Merladio," the mage said.

Merladio got up and bowed at the other Mages in the room.

Merladio was one of the elders of Heavstat, he was thin, with dark brown hair, unlike most of the other Mages he did not have a beard, his hair fell naturally downward just past his shoulders, his eyes were green. He left the room with the other three Mages walking behind him.

"Now onto other matters," The Mage continued.

Outside the four wizards began their descent down some stairs when a young student ran up to them.

"Master Merladio," the young man began to say.

"Cannot speak now Cayaison, urgent matters press the hour, maybe when I return," Merladio said as he continued his path.

The young student stopped as he watched them go.

"It must have been urgent if he didn't stop to talk," a young woman came up to Cayaison.

"He has never brushed me off like that before," Cayaison said worriedly.

They walked back to a bench lining the large hallway.

"I wanted to show him my grades. I think he would have liked them," Cayaison said looking down the hall in the direction that they went.

"Everyone would like to have them they are excellent," the young girl said. "I wish I could do as good as you when I have to take my tests."

"You will do fine Alixia, you are doing much better than I was doing when I was at your level," he smiled at her.

"We are only a year apart Cayaison you don't have to make it sound like you are that more advanced than I am," she smiled.

At that moment, the head Mage came down the stairs followed by the other Mages from the meeting.

"There is Master Friidian maybe he would like to see your grades," Alixia said pointing at him.

Cayaison seemed nervous. "I don't think he likes me much. He always has something bad to say about what I am doing."

"Go on. You need a Master's approval to take up Advanced Magic, and what other way to advance than the approval from the Grand Master?" She smiled pushing him off the bench.

He began to walk towards Master Friidian he looked back at Alixia who had her fingers crossed.

"Master Friidian," Cayaison said his voice barely audible.

One of the other Mages nodded in his direction which made Friidian turn around.

Friidian did not like Cayaison unlike most of the other Master's who thought of Cayaison as a promising student and maybe a member of the Heavstat council in the future.

He was brash, and Friidian hated it. His hair which was a dark black always looked messy, his face dirty, he was too tall and too big to be a Mage.

Although all of the students no matter the age wore brown robes and sandals. Cayaison always looked messy, his robe looked frayed and worn, more than any other student.

"What is it Cayaison?" Friidian said his voice sounded annoyed.

"Sorry to have bothered you, I will go..." Cayaison began to say; he turned to go.

"You have already stopped our conversation; you might as well finish what you had to ask," Friidian said.

"Well it's just that I have got my grades and wanted to get approval to go to the advanced magic classes," Cayaison said.

The other Mages began to whisper among themselves.

Friidian turned to them.

"We will talk more about today's matters later gentlemen," he said turning and grabbing Cayaison's grade parchment. "Let's see," he said looking at them. "You are doing good in all classes and extraordinary well in hand magic, not so well in non-verbal magic."

He looked over the parchment at Cayaison.

Cayaison felt his knee's shaking. "Well, it is just that I cannot seem to concentrate hard enough to..." Cayaison began to say.

"No excuses, as a Mage you must never give an excuse for something you cannot do, it is, or it isn't there is no reason for either," Friidian said as they had reached the center hall. "I will permit you to go to Advanced Defense against Physical attacks, and Advanced Elements, as well as Advanced Physical Attacks, as for Hand Magic and Non-Verbal you will need to retake both. I will not advance you in one without the other," he passed the parchment back to Cayaison. "Is that understood?"

Cayaison took back his parchments, seemingly disappointed. "Yes Master," he said.

"Well I bid you good day," Friidian said as he Turned and headed into the center of the hall where a blue circle lit under his feet carrying him upwards.

Cayaison watched him leave. Cayaison didn't feel the same hatred for Friidian than he had for him. He didn't know why Friidian felt the way he did.

Cayaison did not understand Friidian. From the first day, it seemed the old Master had it out for him and never once praised or congratulated him.

Alixia came running up to him. "Well? What did he say?" she sounded excited.

"He advanced me in some of them not all," Cayaison said with his head low.

"Which ones do you have to take again," She asked.

"I have to take Hand Magic and Non-Verbal Magic over again," he said.

"No, you are good at Hand Magic it would be a waste for you to retake it," she said shockingly.

"Well, he said I cannot take an advanced class in one without taking it in the other as well," Cayaison said they began to walk back into the hallway.

"Well he may be right, it makes sense when you think of it that way," she said.

"I bet if I had talked to Master Merladio he would have advanced me into all of them except Non-verbal," Cayaison growled. "Where could he have gone in such a hurry?"

Alixia looked around then looked at a piece of paper. "We are going to be late for History of Magic," she said running off.

Cayaison quickly followed. They ran through the empty halls then turned one corner and up a small flight of stairs until they had reached a broad wooden door.

They pushed it open and slowly walked inside.

"Glad the two of you can join us. We were just about to start," a giant Mage said

He was the biggest of all the Masters. Some of the students said it was the number of sweet rolls he ate that made him so big. His voice boomed out of a small mouth hidden by a beard of pure black.

Even though he looked, menacing everyone knew he was a gentle and soft-spoken man.

"Find a seat, and we will get started," the teacher said.

Cayaison and Alixia found a seat near the back.

"Since we have students that arrived late. I will start over," the teacher said.

"My name is Visiroux," he said with a wave of his hand the words Visiroux appeared in the air written in a soft white light, they floated just above his head before they disappeared. "My specialty is visions of the past and present."

Immediately a hand shot in the air. "Are you as good as Master Friidian in seeing the past and the future?" a young child asked.

At this Visiroux laughed. "No, my dear boy, not even close," He replied as he walked around the class. "I can only show visions of the past, and only based on what we have heard or have speculated on, I cannot show or see what really happened," he said. "As I was saying I will be showing you the History of Magic and hopefully by showing you its history. It will help you in knowing how to handle it."

He then grabbed a book and began to chant over it, the wooden desks in front of each student opened. A small book came out of each of them. They all closed at the same time, and the books landed on top.

"Now if you would turn to the first page you will see a Mage his name is Wizardar Tumanous. Can anyone tell me what they have heard about him?" he said as a small picture of the Mage they were looking at appeared in the air.

A young woman raised her hand.

"Yes?" he pointed at her.

"He was the first human that we know to have used magic," she stated.

"Correct!" Visiroux smiled. "Wizardar was a human not like many of you. Wizardar as much as we have figured out was not known to have any such ancestors or family to have passed on their ability."

Cayaison raised his hand. "How was he able to use magic if there was no magic in his blood?" he asked.

"Good question as we all know those without magic in their blood cannot use magic the way we do. It is only when magic is in our blood that we can perform things like,"

The teacher raised his hands and began to float off the ground.

"Levitate," he said then he lowered to the ground.

"And..." he moved his hands as small white horses danced across the tables. "Create visions."

The class was in awe.

"All of this is possible because of the magic that courses through my blood and my whole body," Visiroux smiled as he looked at his students.

The class was silent and were hanging on each word he was saying.

"Today we will visit the day Wizardar used magic for the first time. Now remember in these visions you will not be able to talk or touch anything, it is only an idea of what happened based on readings in books," Visiroux smiled.

Everybody in the class was on edge.

"Now everybody come into this circle," he said as he picked up his staff and made a circle on the ground.

They all rushed at him.

"Cayaison, since you are the oldest you will watch over everybody, is that understood?" he said with a severe look.

"Yes Master," Cayaison smiled anxiously to see Wizardar.

"And off you go," Visiroux said as he whirled his staff.

The children and young adults span in circles before stopping in a wood clearing.

The kids began to look around Cayaison held one as Alixia pulled on another.

"Stay in the circle everybody we are only here to look," Cayaison said.

At that moment, two young boys came running into the clearing.

"He's coming we have to hide!" one said.

"Climb the tree!" the other shouted.

The two boys began to climb, as a man with a dog came running into the clearing.

"I am going to get you kids!" the man shouted stopping in the clearing.

The dog spun around in a circle and rushed towards one of the trees.

"Get down from there you will hurt yourselves," the man said this time with care in his voice. "Come on I will not harm you. I just wanted to scare you is all!" the man said pulling back on the dog. "Sit!" he barked at the dog.

"How do I know you won't hurt my friend or me?" The little boy in the tree asked.

"I'm a farmer; I don't want to hurt you. Now please come down from that tree," the farmer pleaded.

"I am coming down," the little boy said as he began to come down from the tree, the farmer stepped away.

"Are you hurt?" the farmer asked as the boy came down to the ground.

"We are sorry we trespassed on your property sir," the little boy said.

"Ah, it's alright, now where is your friend?" the farmer said.

"Wizardar it is safe, you can come down now!" the little boy shouted.

"You sure?" a voice said.

"Yes, now get down here," The farmer said.

There was a rustling of movement. They could barely make out the young boy coming down from a tall tree. His foot slipped, and he began to fall the farmer made a move to catch him. Even Cayaison acting on instinct made a move to save the kid, just before the child hit the ground he stopped he began to float for a while then softly fell to the ground.

The farmer and the other boy stood there for a while not believing their eyes.

Wizardar stood up and looked at the farmer his eyes were watering.

"What did I do?" small Wizardar began to cry.

"It's alright let's get you home to your mother," the farmer said picking up the young child. "Come on you too," he said motioning to the other child.

The students began to spin again and found themselves back inside the classroom.

"Did we enjoy our trip?" Visiroux asked.

The students made their way to their chairs.

"Yes," Cayaison answered.

"Any questions?" asked Visiroux he could see everybody's mind was elsewhere.

Then a hand shot up. "What happened afterward?" the child asked.

"We are not completely sure. What we do know is that many other things happened to Wizardar, all of which he had no control over."

The class fell silent as all the kids were deep in thought.

Visiroux walked to the front of the class where he watched the puzzled looks of the students.

Then another hand shot into the air.

"But like you said earlier no one could perform magic without it being in their blood," The child said.

The rest of the class looked at Visiroux for the answer.

"Well you're correct," Visiroux smiled. "No one can perform magic without a hint of magic inside them. But as you have seen some are born with the talent to perform basic spells," He looked at each of them. "This is why we have the test before you get to Heavstat so those with talent, can come and learn to enhance their abilities and as their talents grow magic becomes part of them."

Cayaison raised his hand. "Can someone that just has the talent be as powerful as someone with magic inside them?"

Visiroux smiled. "Even though Wizardar was the first human, that we know of to use magic he was not the most powerful Mage."

"Were there any others that could use magic before him?" a child asked.

"Many, but they were of other races," Visiroux replied.

A loud bell chimed

"Well, that is the end of today's class," Visiroux said.

A sigh of disappointment filled the class.

"If you have time before your next class, try to perform the basic spell you saw in the vision," Visiroux said.

"That is easy," a child said.

"Without a chant or a staff or no hand movements either," Visiroux said smiling.

The class fell silent.

"Do not do it alone or from too high!" Visiroux said dismissing his class.

Once they got out of the classroom, Alixia and Cayaison walked together down the large hall towards their next class.

The halls were enormous in size they had large archways spanning from one side to the other.

Light shone in from the tops of the ceiling down to the floor, from small openings lining the walls.

Large mosaics of Mages dueling evil Wizards or of Mages battling large fiery demons lined the walls in stone.

Hand carved dragons made up door archways to some of the classes other depicted serpents or spiders or of friendly gnomes and dwarfs.

Many students had got lost in the halls staring at these pictures and craftsmanship. They would stare for hours forgetting about classes.

Cayaison found that one of the carvings was one colossal carving that he traced down the entire length of a hallway. It had taken him one whole week to look at it thoroughly.

Like most of the older students, Cayaison had gotten tired of looking at the pictures and carvings, but he still stood in awe at the massive staircase that led up to the council's chambers in one of the towers.

"That was the best class I ever had!" Alixia said breaking the silence that had fallen over them since they had left the classroom.

Cayaison smiled. Even though Alixia was a younger student than him, he found her funny, which was the reason they had become close friends.

She was taller than him, probably one of the tallest women in all Heavstat. Her hair was long and curly brown, she did not draw many looks from many of the other students, mainly because she was taller than most of the men and boys.

"It was the first class of this year. You are going to have plenty more," Cayaison shrugged.

"We'll have you had many classes like that?" Alixia asked.

"No, I have not," he answered knowing this was a setup.

"Well then it stands to reason that this was your best class too," she spun around on her heels.

They soon reached the main hall which was circular with winding stairs this was the primary way to get up and down Heavstat.

Every hall leads to this one. Flowing through the center of the staircases was a swirling purple light. The rumor around the school was if it ever stopped Heavstat would fall.

They stood at one of the many landings that were scattered up and down the stairs. Many students stopped on these large landings to read, try some of their skills or play games.

One young teen came up to them. "I am looking for The Magical Arts class. Do you know which floor it is on?" he asked.

"Go up to the fourth landing then look at the marker, and it will tell you how far you have to go down the hall," Cayaison answered.

"Marker?" the teen asked.

Alixia pointed to a giant stone Mage standing just inside the archway of the hall behind them. In his right arm, he held a large book with the names of classes found in that hallway and what room.

"Oh, I have never noticed them," the teen smiled then ran up the nearest stairs.

"What class do you have next?" Cayaison asked her.

She picked out a roll of parchment and looked it over. "Earth Magic," she said smiling.

"That's a good class," Cayaison nodded.

The loud bell chimed only once which meant if no student was on their way to class they had better be on their way.

Students began to rush everywhere.

"What class do you have?" Alixia shouted over the loud ruckus that had begun.

"Physical Defense," he said.

She laughed. "Have fun," she turned to run down the stairs.

"Hey, Alixia!" Cayaison shouted.

She turned to look at him as he moved his hands next to a potted plant a small dirt hand waved at Alixia from the soil.

"Show off!" she shouted then ran down the stairs.

Cayaison was going to be late again. He began running up the stairs to the fifth landing. As he got up to the level, he wanted. A young man was standing there waiting for him.

"Hey Dawain," he said as he joined the young man.

"How is Alixia?" Dawain asked.

Dawain never would admit that he had a thing for Alixia. He did not want to pursue anything mainly because he knew she liked Cayaison. And on the other hand, he knew she was out of his reach.

He was short not just short but very short. At least he wasn't pudgy or fat, he always told himself, his hair was a dark blonde.

Cayaison and Dawain had hit it off right from the start. They had joined the same week. Cayaison first then Dawain.

"She is good, I just saw her off to her next class," Cayaison answered.

They began to walk down the halls together.

"Looking forward to our class?" Dawain asked.

"Whoever looks forward to Physical Defense Classes?" Cayaison said sarcastically.

Dawain nodded his agreement they made their way slowly to their class, where there was a line of students just outside the door.

"Well looks like we made it in time," Dawain said.

"Master Wong was with Master Merladio downstairs just before first class. They looked like they were in a hurry," Cayaison said.

Just then the door opened, and the students began to enter.

Cayaison and Dawain where the last to enter.

The room was circular. On the walls, there were torches that filled the dark room with a faint orange glow. The room sunk downward by a set of rings, on each of these rings were benches students began to sit on these benches.

The lowest part of the chamber was a semi-circle. Of which the floor was made up of wood chips and gravel. On the far wall, there was a dark black hole. As the students began to settle the Teacher stood from one of the lowest ring.

"Welcome class my name is Tunadas," he said smiling.

Cayaison immediately recognized that he wasn't a Master by the color of his robes. He seemed to look a little older than Cayaison, but his face was thin, his hair a light blonde, light blue eyes and a very arrogant demeanor to him.

"Where is Master Wong?" a student asked.

"Master Wong is away. I will be taking his class until he returns," Tunadas said with a grin. "Where did he leave off can anyone tell me?"

Cayaison could tell that he was not going to like this teacher, something about his grin and smile told Cayaison he was not to be trusted.

"This guy is going to be a pain," Cayaison whispered to Dawain who stifled a laugh.

"Dawain isn't it?" Tunadas asked immediately.

"Yes Sir," Dawain answered.

"Why don't you come down here and show us how to defend ourselves against an Orc Invader?" Tunadas asked smiling.

"But sir we haven't reached the Orc's, yet we are still on ..." a student began to say.

"A high-class man like Dawain can handle himself against an Orc Invader right Dawain?" he said.

Dawain began to descend the rings.

"Right," Dawain said with a worried voice.

Cayaison shot an angry glance at Tunadas who returned it with a smile.

Tunadas sat on the lowest ring. Dawain readied himself he stood in the pit looking at the vast black hole that was in front of him.

"Let me know when you are ready," Tunadas said with a smirk on his face.

Dawain nodded back at him.

"Here it comes," Tunadas smiled.

Dawain's heart was beating right out of his chest, he had not faced an Orc Invader he had read all there was about beating them but never faced one.

There was a loud grunt from the black hole then there was a glint of light.

Dawain took a step back. The most ferocious opponent he had faced was a Bearaman; he had spent most of the next week in bed bruised.

Out from the hole came a large green Orc, heavily clad in armor and a broad ax.

The whole room took a deep breath. Tunadas smiled looking back up at Cayaison. Cayaison stared down at his friend.

"Weak spot is it's back... weak spot is the back," Dawain whispered to himself.

He could quickly do this if he could use magic, a simple confusion spell is all he would need.

The Orc roared at him then charged swinging its ax. Dawain parried the first swing and ducked as the Orc spun around with another swing.

"Good move Dawain," Tunadas shouted. "But avoiding it won't defeat it," he added.

"Yes sir," Dawain said through gritted teeth.

He was running out of options soon the Invader will go berserk and swing his ax harder and faster.

The invader roared at him as it rushed at him with its ax held in both hands high above his head, this was Dawain's chance he blocked the high incoming attack with his staff, then kicked the invader in the chest pushing it backward.

The angry Orc rushed once more with a downward swing, but Dawain rolled out the way, quickly lodging his staff between the Orc's feet forcing it to trip.

Dawain moved fast jumping on top of the Orc grabbing his staff, then holding it on both sides under the chin of the Orc he began to pull back as hard as he could until he heard a loud pop.

The Orc let out a loud scream then its body fell limp.

The class began to clap and cheer as Dawain slowly got up still watching the Orc's body for any movement.

"You can relax Dawain!" Tunadas said. "Class, once an Orc's back has been broken its whole body will go limp essentially it is still alive, but it is unable to move or attack," Tunadas added.

Dawain climbed the stone circles until he got back to his seat next to Cayaison.

"Good one!" Cayaison said greeting his friend.

"I thought it was going to chop my head off, when I did that roll!" Dawain said visibly shaken.

"Came pretty close," Cayaison smiled pushing his friend.

They both knew they couldn't be mortally hurt in this class, but they could be severely wounded If the ax did make contact, it could break the skin and cause bleeding. But it couldn't kill.

"Who is next?" Tunadas asked as the Orc's body disappeared.

There were no volunteers.

"All right then I will pick someone," Tunadas said as he looked around the room he then pointed to a scared young kid to his right.

The kid slowly got up then began to walk down the stone steps to the pit.

Cayaison recognized the kid and raised his hand. Tunadas looked over at him but did not acknowledge him.

Cayaison got agitated, "Sir. Mirnadun is a second year he cannot take on an Orc. He is still fighting Grobucs!" Cayaison said aloud.

"Cayaison is it?" Tunadas asked with his now devilish smile.

"Yes sir," Cayaison replied watching Mirnadun who was quivering in the pit. "Let me teach my class, or you can leave," Tunadas said turning to face Mirnadun. "You ready?" Tunadas asked the frightened child.

But before the kid could answer Tunadas had sat down and began to focus on the hole.

Mirnadun was scared he had never battled anything as big or as violent he was still learning how to parry attacks from classmates.

Soon the giant Orc came from out of the hole roaring at him.

Cayaison looked at Dawain. "We have to help him," he whispered.

Dawain nodded his approval.

"When I give you the signal you know what to do," Cayaison said in a whisper.

Tunadas who was still focusing on the Orc did not notice their conversation.

Cayaison began to focus all his attention on Mirnadun who was running in circles trying to evade the Orc.

"You will only make it go berserk that much faster by running," Tunadas said with his usual snide voice.

Mirnadun began to cry his tears started to fill his eyes when he heard.

"Duck!"

Mirnadun immediately ducked.

"Cayaison!" Tunadas turned and shouted at Cayaison who was standing.

"If you interfere one more time, I will have you removed from this class!" Tunadas visibly annoyed said through gritted teeth.

Cayaison slowly sat he knew he could not help Mirnadun from outside the class.

Mirnadun took this time to wipe his tears to clear his eyes.

"Shall we continue?" Tunadas asked as he began to focus on the Orc who was standing still and breathing heavy as Tunadas started to focus again.

The Orc began to move again.

Mirnadun looked up at Cayaison that is when Cayaison smiled he had him.

"Mirnadun," he said lower than a whisper.

Mirnadun heard Cayaison inside his head.

"Do not be scared follow my instructions and I will help you out of this," Cayaison said.

Mirnadun nodded his head. Cayaison watched the Orc he had Mirnadun now all he had to do was avoid the Orc.

"Raise your staff in front of you," Cayaison directed.

Mirnadun raised his staff slowly in front of him.

"Remember the Parry techniques?"

Mirnadun nodded.

"That is all I will have you do,"

Mirnadun smiled this he could do, he thought to himself.

The Orc rushed him swinging the ax.

"Left Parry" Cayaison thought.

Mirnadun quickly reacted parrying the attack to the left.

"Back away" Cayaison ordered.

Mirnadun slowly backed away.

The Orc grew furious, it charged at him.

"Bull Charge," Cayaison thought.

Instantly Mirnadun tucked his hands into his body tightly and spun around.

The body of the Orc passed Mirnadun by only a few inches.

Mirnadun now feeling bolder smiled at the Orc.

Cayaison smiled. "On the next charge," he whispered to Dawain.

Dawain nodded looking at the Orc.

The Orc span around it was berserk its eyes glowed a bright red.

"Do not be scared," Cayaison assured Mirnadun. "Get ready do exactly what you saw Dawain do when you see the opening."

Mirnadun nodded. The Orc charged again.

At this Dawain lowered his hand close to the floor and waved. The ground beneath the Orc shifted causing it to fall face first.

"Now!" Cayaison ordered.

With quick reflexes Mirnadun jumped on top of the Orc swinging his staff beneath the Orc's chin he began to pull back with all his might until he heard the loud pop.

At this, the whole class erupted in cheers and claps.

Cayaison and Dawain looked at each and smiled.

Tunadas was furious he looked up at Cayaison and Dawain who were clapping along with the class.

"Good one Mirnadun it was fortunate the Orc tripped," Tunadas said still looking at Dawain and Cayaison.

Mirnadun climbed the stairs to his seat.

"Yes sir, I got lucky," Mirnadun answered as his friends patted him on his back.

"Well class it was eventful," Tunadas said dismissing them earlier than usual.

There was no dispute from any of the students as they began to spill out of the room.

"Cayaison could you stay? I will like to talk to you," Tunadas said.

Cayaison nodded to Dawain who stopped in the doorway. He turned around to face the teacher.

Tunadas looked the student over. "I just have a few questions I will like to ask you?" Tunadas asked his face showed his annoyance, but he still smiled.

"Yes sir," Cayaison answered if this teacher was going to be sarcastic. Cayaison knew that Tunadas was no match.

"How did you like the class?" Tunadas asked as they sat on one of the benches.

"It was good not like one of Master Wong's classes, but you are just learning the students, not like Master Wong who knows all of us," Cayaison said with a smile.

"How do you suppose the Orc tripped?" Tunadas asked.

His patience was growing thin with this student.

"It is documented that Orc's while being powerful and almost unstoppable during a berserk rage have been known to make mistakes," Cayaison again smiled answering the question with a straight face.

"Liar!" Tunadas shouted standing up he could not help himself he was furious.

"Sir?" Cayaison answered his straight face was making matters worse, and he knew it, he was counting on the teacher's anger to cloud his judgment.

"You tripped the Orc. I was controlling it!" Tunadas said he was not going to be made a fool by this student.

"Then maybe you made a mistake sir, you are not a Master, and I have seen Master Wong make mistakes so..." Cayaison began to say before he was interrupted.

"I did not make a mistake!" Tunadas shouted, "And I do not need you to reminded that I am not a Master."

"Well sir, if you think I tripped the Orc you could make a truth stone," Cayaison said shrugging his shoulders.

"Yes... I will do just that!" Tunadas said reaching into his pocket and retrieving a stone.

He chanted holding the stone then placed it into Cayaison outstretched hand.

"Now if you lie the stone will go red hot and burn you!" Tunadas smiled.

"And if I tell the truth nothing will happen," Cayaison added.

Tunadas shrugged this off he was smiling he finally had this student beat he knew he did not make a mistake, so that meant this student had tripped the Orc.

"Did you trip or cause the Orc to fall?" Tunadas said staring at the stone.

Cayaison smiled "No, I did not," he answered.

The stone stayed its standard color.

"Leave my class!" Tunadas said turning around.

"Sir?" Cayaison said with a cautious tone in his voice.

"Go!" Tunadas shouted.

Cayaison left the room.

Outside the class, Dawain was waiting on the other side of the hall. Cayaison nodded towards the end of the hall. He did not want Tunadas to come out the class and see them together. It would be easy to put the scenario together if that happened.

They walked down the hall with Cayaison leading with a large gap between them as soon as they were out of visual range of the class.

Dawain ran and caught up with him. "Here are your books," Dawain said handing the books over to a furious Cayaison.

When they finally stopped in the main hall, Mirnadun who was walking behind them came up to Cayaison.

"Thank you," he said.

Cayaison looked at him. "For what you did a good job by yourself," he replied with a slightly louder ton, he winked at the younger classmen.

Mirnadun nodded and ran down the hall.

Now it was just Dawain and Cayaison standing in the main hall.

"That was close," Dawain said.

"Too close," Cayaison said as they walked towards one of the lunch halls.

The lunch hall was a room with a lot of circular tables scattered throughout. The tables each had four chairs around them.

Dawain and Cayaison sat at one of these tables. Looking around the room, they noticed that many of the students were finishing their meals and heading to their next class.

"Looks like we came just in time," Dawain laughed.

An elderly lady came to the table. "What will it be?"

She was one of the few humans that lived in Heavstat. Many of the humans that came to Heavstat were either seeking refuge or parents of students that stayed on as help.

"Just Bread and some Milk," Cayaison smiled back at the lady.

"Will be right up," she said waving her hand. She went to the back, a short time later, she returned with a loaf of bread and a large jug of milk.

"Thank you," Dawain nodded to the lady as she left.

"So it looks like we are not the only ones having lunch late," a lady's voice said.

They turned around to see a red-headed lady coming to them, joined by Alixia and a tall, muscular young man.

Violetta was the redhead, she and Cayaison knew each other from Dermasca which was one of the many Mage schools that held the test for Heavstat entry.

She was very slender and everywhere she went she got looks from both men and younger students. Her hair changed color often by way of magic, but she was always fond of her natural red hair. Her eyes stayed natural green. Violetta was slightly smaller in height to Cayaison but taller than Dawain which made him uncomfortable around her.

Rameus was very tall and muscular built for a Mage, he looked like he should be a warrior or a knight, but he had the blood of a Mage, which made him comfortable in Heavstat. His hair was pitch black and cut short, his eyes a dark brown.

"I met them in the hall, we had a feeling you would be here," Alixia said as they sat down.

Now that all the friends were together they began to talk about their classes.

"How did you keep the stone from turning hot?" Violetta asked.

"It did not turn hot because I was telling the truth," Cayaison responded while he ate his bread.

"But you did make the Orc trip!" Alixia said.

"No, I did not," Cayaison said still smiling.

"I did," Dawain said "Granted it was Cayaison's idea, but he did not trip the Orc over, and that was the question Tunadas asked," Dawain laughed.

They all laughed except Alixia. "That was pretty close. What if he had asked. Did you help Mirnadun in anyway shape or form?" Alixia asked.

"Then I would have told him, yes I did," Cayaison smiled. "But he was too angry to think, and that was what I was counting on."

"Well, you got off lucky this time!" Alixia said furiously.

Cayaison shook it off and looked at Rameus. "What class did you guys come from?"

Rameus sat up in his seat. "The worst one," he replied shaking his head.

"Shape Shifting," Violetta said smiling. "He hates it." she smiled looking at him. "But he loves the animal morphing class," she shrugged.

"Well, it can't be any worse than Physical Defense!" Dawain said rubbing his shoulders.

"I wish I could still take that class," Rameus smiled.

Rameus was the only student in Heavstat's history to pass all the physical defense classes in one year.

Master Wong had never seen a student that had mastered physical defense techniques as fast as Rameus.

"Well we all cannot be as big and physical as you are," Dawain laughed.

"I for one love Shape Shifting," Violetta told them as she shook her head, her red hair began to shiver and turn to raven black.

"That is very good," Alixia smiled clapping her hands.

Cayaison smiled. "Come on you can do better you have been taking that class longer than I have and I could do better."

"Prove it!" they all said in unison.

"Fine, I will," Cayaison smiled. He put down his mug and began to concentrate first his messy hair started to straighten, this was a vast improvement. Then his face began to change his natural brown eyes started to go blue soon he was totally unrecognizable.

"TA DA!" he said smiling.

"Show Off!" they all said as he violently shook his head returning to his usual self.

"But I can only do my face, it's strange. Master Trabias can always tell it is me, he said the nose is never right," Cayaison said puzzled as he held his nose.

"Master Friidian said I was doing great and will become a great Shape Shifting mage one day!" Violetta rejoiced.

"He said I would not make it in the shape-shifting class and should think about dropping it," Rameus growled.

"Master Friidian was teaching your class today?" Cayaison asked.

"Yes, he said Master Trabias was away on Council business and will not be returning for some time," Violetta replied.

Cayaison looked at Alixia.

"We saw Master Trabias with Master Merladio, and Master Wong leaving earlier today remember?" Cayaison said.

Alixia nodded. "Yes, and Master Illuscious was with them."

Cayaison quickly looked around the room and saw the student he wanted. "Mirnadun!" he whispered.

The young student did not hear him as he was talking with some of his friends.

Rameus broke a piece of his bread off and threw it at the young student.

Mirnadun looked up, the elder class men all called him over.

"Don't you have Deceit, Distraction, and Illusions for your next class?" Cayaison asked.

"Yes, I do," Mirnadun said, he was stuttering, he had never been called over by elder classmen before.

Cayaison grabbed a piece of parchment. "Alixia, enchant it so he can write me later?" Cayaison asked.

"No! I will get in trouble if someone finds out they will know who enchanted it," she said folding her arms.

They all groaned.

"Come on Alixia where is your sense of adventure? Don't you want to know if Illuscious is missing too?" Violetta asked.

Dawain was looking at the elderly lady who was in the corner of the room talking to some teachers.

"Hurry!" he whispered.

"Why don't you enchant it?" Alexia asked.

"I failed Enchantment!" Cayaison said.

"Badly!" Violetta smiled.

"Don't!" Cayaison said pointing at her.

"We will have to hear the story later," Dawain whispered again.

"Give it to me," Alixia said pulling the parchment towards her.

They all watched the teachers as Alixia began to chant in a low voice with her hand over the parchment.

She opened her eyes. "There, take it!" she said throwing the parchment back to Cayaison.

"Thank you," Cayaison said ripping it in half. "You know what to do?" Cayaison asked Mirnadun.

"No," Mirnadun said in a low voice.

"That is fine. We will show you," Violetta said reassuring the young student.

Alixia took one half of the parchment, she wrote the words "Hi Cayaison," on it and showed it to Mirnadun slowly the words disappeared and reappeared on Cayaison's piece of paper.

"See?" Cayaison said showing him.

The young student was awestruck.

"Now you got to remember to write in short sentences and give it time to seep through," Alixia said.

"Also give me time to read it before you write the next sentence," Cayaison said.

Mirnadun took the piece of parchment. "What will I be writing?" Mirnadun asked.

"Easy just tell me if Master Illuscious is teaching the class," Cayaison said.

" I can do that," Mirnadun said. "I will not tell anyone," he smiled standing up.

Rameus quickly grabbed him. "Don't tell anyone. Just your friends they will need to keep an eye out for you," He said in a low voice.

Mirnadun was shaking

"Let him go Rameus your scaring him!" Violetta scolded her large friend.

Mirnadun quickly ran over to his friends he did not sit down but motioned for them to get out of the hall.

"We can get into a lot of trouble for this," Alixia said as she relaxed in her seat.

Dawain turned in his seat so he could face them. "We aren't doing anything wrong," he smiled.

"You two already interfered in a teacher's class. Alixia Enchanted a parchment outside of the enchant class. We are getting a younger student to spy on a Master. And we are snooping into the Council's actions!" Violetta shrugged "No we are not doing anything wrong."

They all fell silent the last one could get them expelled, and they all knew it. One thing that wasn't tolerated by all Heavstat's rules was no interfering or questioning the Council.

The bell sounded again.

"Back to class, I guess," Rameus said breaking the silence, they all stood up.

"I got a free class," Cayaison said.

"So, do I," Violetta replied.

"Well we better get to our classes then," Alixia said as she led the other two out of the hall.

"We should find someplace we can hide and wait for Mirnadun's answer," Cayaison said.

"You sure do ask for trouble don't you Cayaison?" Violetta shook her head as she hurried to catch up with her friend.

"No, I just need to know," he said as he made his way to the center hall.

They both stopped on some stairs leading upward, they stopped on one of the landings, then gently pushed on the wall. They walked through the wall and appeared on the outside of Heavstat on a stone balcony looking over the rest of the school.

Only a few upper-classmen knew about the secret balconies that were all over the school. From here one could see the lower segments of Heavstat.

The stables were directly under them. A few feet away from the stables was the courtyard where they practiced lightning bolts and other harmful spells.

Cayaison could still see the remnants of his last smite spell down on the wall, which was still charred.

"Can you keep a secret?" Cayaison asked as if he was in a daze. He was staring out at the towering mountains in the distance.

Violetta looked at her friend. "Of course, Cayaison. We have known each other the longest out of the group you can tell me anything."

Cayaison looked into the distance. "Something bad is coming, I can feel it," he looked back at his friend.

She looked at him with worry in her face. "I believe you, I know I shouldn't, but I do," she replied. "How bad is it going to be?" she asked now looking out.

"Bad a lot of people are going to get hurt, and some will even die," he sounded low and scared. "That's why I need to know where the other Masters are I need to know if it is coming," Cayaison said with a serious look on his face.

"Well, I am sure Mirnadun will contact you soon," Violetta said.

Cayaison took out the parchment and opened it.

There in the parchment written in ink "Illuscious not here."

Cayaison looked at Violetta then wrote, "Burn me outside of class."

"Well that confirms it all the Masters I saw leaving together early this morning are not here," Cayaison said as he held the parchment in his fingers "ignituas" he whispered as the parchment ignited in flames the ashes flew up into the air.

They walked back into the hall.

"What now?" Violetta asked.

"Need to think," he whispered.

"The stables?" she asked.

Cayaison smiled.

They began to make their way down to the stables.

### Chapter 2: The Pains of Leadership

Heavstat sat in a valley between the mountains of Hirachrand and the most treacherous mountains of Vernascull. Many people had ventured to find Heavstat most of them never made it past the mountains.

The mountain ridges covered a significant amount of territory making it too dangerous, and too far of a journey.

Others tried to get to Heavstat the only path into the vast valley. They met their end between the two towers that guarded it. Many believed the mountains themselves had been brought up from the ground by the Mages who had created Heavstat.

Since Heavstat floated high above the ground, students were not allowed or able to leave the floating fortress. A large part of Heavstat's lower grounds was made up of a large garden, that went to the edge of Heavstat's platform.

There was a magical barrier around this garden that made students believe that they had left Heavstat and were back on the ground. It also gave the Illusion that the students were walking for miles.

Cayaison and Violetta had come here to walk their horses. Older students were able to pick out horses as future companions. They were not allowed to ride them until their final exams.

"If it is true that those Masters have gone where do you think they went?" Violetta asked as she led her light gray and black spotted horse around the garden.

"I have never seen a group of Masters leave together like that. They usually leave one at a time," Cayaison said walking his dark brown horse.

Cayaison had named his horse the moment he saw it. The poor horse was the smallest of the group. Cayaison didn't care about that; he knew that he wanted him. Now he was one of the strongest and fastest horse's the stable master had ever seen. It loved Cayaison, who had come down every day to see it for the last six years.

"I am sure we cannot just go up to Master Friidian and ask him, where they went," Violetta said.

Cayaison shot her a look.

"Well what are you thinking Cayaison, you know the rules just as well as I do," she said to him.

"Someone other than Master Friidian must know where they went," Cayaison said.

Violetta's face dropped, she had stopped walking.

"What is it?" Cayaison said turning around to look at her; she nodded in the other direction.

Cayaison saw what she was looking at two of Master Friidian's assistants were making their way towards them, the stable master was following them, and she didn't seem to happy.

"Cayaison, Violetta. Master Friidian would like to see the both of you," One of the assistants said in a stern voice.

The closest one gripped Violetta hard by the arm the other grabbed Cayaison.

"Stop right there!" The stable master shouted.

The two men turned to the old woman.

"This is my class, and these are my students you will not treat them like that. They are perfectly able to walk up to Friidian's chambers on their own. You can walk behind them and make sure that they get there!" The stable master said her face was shaking with anger.

The two men let go of Cayaison and Violetta.

"Now you two head to Master Friidian's chambers, no stopping off on the way," she smiled.

"Yes Ma'am," Cayaison and Violetta replied in unison. They began to walk back the way they came.

The stable master took the leads for the horses and started to follow behind.

When they finally walked up all the stairs, they were both exhausted, but the two men behind them showed no signs of exhaustion. No one had ever seen these assistants sweat or show any emotions. Some students even had speculated that they were summoned creatures that only look human.

The only time anyone saw them was when Friidian needed them to do something or to get someone.

Once they entered Master Friidian's room, they noticed that Mirnadun was sitting in one of the seat's he rushed towards them. Violetta greeted him with a hug.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

"I did burn it!" he said. He was quite scared.

The two men walked away from them, the door locked behind them with a loud click. They walked to the back of the room and stood by Master Friidian's desk.

Violetta walked back to one of the many seats lining the wall next to the door. While Cayaison looked around the room, he had never been up to this chamber before.

It was much different than Master Merladio's room.

This room had a lifted ceiling with pictures of winged beings that looked like humans. Except that they were light blue and were dancing around and playing instruments.

The walls had slots in it. Each slot was had parchments overflowing and nearly falling to the floor. Some of them were so dusty that they had spider webs on them.

On the far back wall on either side, stairs led up to a walkway that went up and nearly touched the ceiling. Hovering just above Friidian's desk was a giant crystal ball. Cayaison tried to stare at it, but it to cloudy inside to make anything out.

Cayaison guessed that Friidian used the walkway to get close to the ball so that he could see things that were happening all around the world.

He looked back to Mirnadun, who was explaining, to Violetta, what had happened. It seemed after he had burned the parchment, another student in the class had gone back to the teacher, telling the teacher what he had seen.

"They must have found the ashes then put it back together," Violetta said to him as he sat next to her.

At that time, Dawain, Rameus, and Alixia came into the room followed by Master Friidian and Tunadas.

"Great," Cayaison whispered to himself.

"You may leave," Friidian said to the two men.

They walked out of the door. Cayaison swore he heard a slight puffing sound as they exited. Master Friidian sat at his large desk; Tunadas stood beside him as his protector.

"Do you know why I have called you here?" Friidian asked looking at them.

Friidian sat there but looked down on them as if they were nothing. His gray eyes peered through his long dark gray hair that covered the top of his face. His eyes shifted towards Cayaison, then to the rest of the group.

Friidian was getting old he knew he didn't have much time left to sit on the council as it's leader. But before he passed on the leadership role to Merladio, he would make sure Heavstat and the rest of the world were free of the corrupt. His age and weaknesses would have to wait for now he had these interfering students to deal with at this time.

"Yes," Cayaison said standing up. He walked in front of his friends. "It was my idea no others," he continued.

"That's very courageous of you to take the blame young Cayaison," Friidian said he didn't even turn his eye's towards him. He didn't want to give Cayaison the satisfaction of acknowledgment.

"Your friends have their thoughts and can make up their minds, and they have free will. They could have said yes or no to your so-called idea," Tunadas added.

"That is true. We could have, but we did not. Mirnadun is not to blame we talked him into it," Alixia came forward to say.

"I also threatened him if he did not do what we told him," Rameus said stepping forward.

"I told him the parchment was cursed if he told anyone about our plans," Violetta said.

Tunadas smiled.

"And what did you do Dawain?" he looked over at the silent one.

"Well, I kept an eye out for any teachers that would like to pretend to know what is going on," Dawain smiled back at him.

An instant flash of anger shot across Tunadas's face.

"Control your anger Tunadas," Friidian said calmly.

"Mirnadun you are free to go but be warned, if you ever do anything like this again you will not get off this easily," Friidian said to the young child.

"Yes Master," Mirnadun bowed, he looked over at Cayaison, who nodded at him.

Mirnadun ran for the door and exited. Master Friidian stood up.

"Cayaison it looks like you are the leader of this group," he said.

Cayaison did not say a word.

"Is that silence? You were all talk, in Master Tunadas's class," he continued, he walked so that he was face to face with young mage.

"He is not a Master," Cayaison said through gritted teeth.

"Isn't he? Are you sure?" Master Friidian said waving his hands back at Tunadas whose shiny blue robes turned to a royal red color. "Now is he?"

"Yes," Cayaison replied.

"Now would you like to play the truth stone game with me?" Friidian asked as he circled them all they stood still like pillars of stone.

"No," Cayaison said again in a low voice.

"I could not hear you," Friidian said with his calm voice.

"No Master!" Cayaison shouted angrily.

With an unknown speed, Friidian moved in front of Cayaison.

"You will not raise your voice at me!" he snapped.

Cayaison looked away from him.

"Is that understood?" Friidian said.

Cayaison nodded. He knew he was no match for a Master like Friidian, but Tunadas he had already proven he was smarter than him. How he wished Master Merladio was here.

"Dawain, please tell me what happened in Master Tunadas's class," Friidian said calmly walking towards Dawain, who was behind Cayaison.

Dawain looked over at Cayaison.

"Do not look at your leader for advice he cannot help you. It's best if you tell the truth," Friidian smiled standing at the side of Dawain.

Cayaison span around, "That incident was my idea also."

"If you do not stay silent I will have to silence you Cayaison is that understood?" Friidian said.

"But you cannot punish him for something I told him to do," Cayaison shouted at Friidian.

"Silencio!" Friidian shouted.

Cayaison's mouth was moving, but no words were audible.

"Now Dawain," Friidian said.

Even though Cayaison was made silent, he began to walk towards Friidian.

"Stifricus!" Tunadas shouted. Cayaison fell to the floor unable to move.

"Thank you Master Tunadas," Friidian smiled "And in case any of you has any ideas" He slowly waved his hand in each of their direction. All of them fell to the floor unable to move. "I don't have time for your childish antics!"

Friidian turned then walked back to the desk.

"I know all that happens in my school," he sat down looking down at them. "You are student's you will not disrupt class because you think the teacher is wrong, and you especially will not ask or try to find out what I or any of the other members of the council are up to!" He said angered. "You will stay this way for the rest of the class hour to think of what you did," he said picking up some parchments and signing them.

For what seemed like hours, Cayaison and his friends lay on the floor unable to move or talk, but they could think and could see each other.

Cayaison's temper was climbing with every minute. Unlike the others, he had fallen hard. That was not his primary reason for being angry; his view was of Master Friidian and the newly promoted Master Tunadas.

The bell rang loudly, and for a few moments, Friidian didn't seem to make any moves to free them. Minutes passed, and still, he made no move to release them. Then with a single wave of his hand, they were free to move.

"Hopefully, you took the time to think about what happened here, and I hope you have learned your lesson," Friidian said waving his hand again the door swung open.

Cayaison looked at the Grand Master with such anger it filled the room.

"Is there something you want to say Cayaison?" Friidian asked.

"No Master," Cayaison said, as he calmed his self then he turned toward the door. Once outside he blew. "How dare he do that to us!" Cayaison shouted.

"Is he able to do that?" Dawain asked.

"I don't see why not, he is the Master of the School since Merladio is out," Alixia said she was scared, she looked back up the stairs to see if he was back there listening.

"I guess your fine with this are you?" Cayaison said to her.

"No!" she screamed back at him. She began to cry.

"Listen Cayaison you can't scream at us for following your directions," Rameus said.

"Your right Rameus," Cayaison said calming down.

He held Alixia close. "I'm sorry," he apologized, but his apology was meant for all of them.

"Like Tunadas said we have free will, you might be the group leader. Even though I don't remember voting for you," Dawain said smiling.

"We can say yes or no to you," Violetta said.

"What now?" Cayaison asked changing the subject.

"It's the end of school we can do anything we want really," Alixia said wiping her tears.

"If you don't mind I want to go outside for a bit," Rameus said "Lying on the cold floor makes me want to run around for a while," he finished as he waved at them.

"Yeah think I will join him," Dawain said "Rameus wait!" he ran to catch up to him.

"I think I will go study," Alixia said. "Get my mind off this all."

She walked away not looking back.

"Aren't you going to tell them?" Violetta asked.

"About what?" Cayaison asked.

"About your feelings and the reason, you want to know where the council members are?" She told him.

"No, not today maybe tomorrow," He said.

Violetta nodded at him "I think that is a wise thing to do," They began to walk their different ways. "Cayaison you're a good leader, we all think so, or we wouldn't follow you."

"Thank you," he replied.

Cayaison had a lot to think about, so he began to walk. He was not walking to get anywhere he just wanted to clear his mind. When he finally did look up, he found himself outside of Visiroux's class he looked at the large doors. Slowly he pushed on them to see if they were open.

"Master Visiroux?" he said as he entered.

There was no response. Cayaison walked down the center of the room looking at the chairs and the tables. It was calm and quiet in the room just what he was looking for, he took a seat and began to let his thoughts take over him. He remembered his younger years.

Cayaison and his brother were outside of their house in the town of Acetrioem. It was a small trade town. He remembered many people coming to trade and buy goods from the merchants.

He recalled the two of them were fishing in the small lake just at the back of the house. Cayaison was the oldest of the two. He remembered his mom rushing towards them screaming something. It was then he saw something in the sky just above her. It was a giant ball of fire it crashed down onto their house. It exploded loudly sending burning pieces of wood everywhere.

They ran towards their mother, she was on the ground face down, with a large piece of wood stuck in her back.

"Hello!" he heard as he shook himself free of the memory.

It was Master Visiroux he was shaking him.

"You were dreaming," he said sitting down on the chair that was closest to him.

"Yes, I was reliving a moment, a memory. It's the only thing I can remember before I went to my first mage school," Cayaison said still in a dreamy state.

"Want to talk about it?" Visiroux asked.

As much as Cayaison wanted too, there was nothing to talk about Acetrioem was attacked by the Orcs. It had been destroyed. He had lost both of his parents in that massacre. Cayaison and his brother were the only survivors.

Cayaison and his brother had fled into the lake, where they hid until the Orcs had left. A few days later they were both found walking along the roadsides. The rest was known by all. His brother became a blacksmith; he had found out he had mage blood coursing through him.

"No sir there is nothing to talk about," Cayaison said standing up.

Suddenly Master Visiroux stopped in thought. "Come on," he said standing up. "There is a school meeting in the great hall."

Cayaison knew that all the Masters could talk to each other through thought alone. Master Friidian must have told all the Masters about the meeting in that one moment.

The Great Hall was in the lowest part of Heavstat just above the stables and the large garden. It was the biggest of all the rooms. Its ceiling was flat, not vaulted nor did it have any mirrors or majestic paintings.

This room was mainly used when the Masters and teachers wanted to discuss pressing matters that concerned the school. If there was a meeting, it was something that Master Friidian or Master Merladio wanted the whole school to know.

There were no windows either, the only light in the hall, came from a few candle chandeliers that hung from the ceiling down the center of the room. The openings at the top, where the walls met the roof, were to let air into the room. Long rows of benches lined the room with tables in front.

The students began to pile in and take seats on the benches. All the seats faced the front, where there was another long table but with individuals chair behind it.

The Master's began to take these positions as the teachers sat with the students. Cayaison found his group and started to head towards them, but two teachers blocked his path.

"Find a seat please," one of the teachers said.

Cayaison looked past the teacher and saw that more teachers were separating the rest of them. He turned around and hoped that Rameus will not make a big deal out of this. Cayaison found a seat and sat down looking around he saw that they were all remaining calm and had taken place.

Master Friidian was the last to enter, behind him came Master Tunadas and then Master Frugaal, a skinny lady with long gray hair. He had never been in any of her classes but knew that she was a mean old woman he had once heard a classmate describe her.

"Teachers, are these all the students from the seventh level upwards?" Master Friidian asked.

The teachers all nodded.

"Then I shall begin," he coughed then tapped his throat softly. "Can you all hear me?" his voice boomed loudly through the room.

"Yes," Most of the students said.

"It has come to my attention that groups are forming among you. While there is no rule against this and the forming of groups will not affect your workload any. I strongly suggest that you pick your groups wisely, there are bad groups, and there are good groups."

He looked around and found Cayaison.

"You will not be punished for forming groups. The leader of your group will be responsible and liable for suspension or even full dismissal from Heavstat, based on your group's actions!" he smiled still with his eyes on Cayaison. "Is that understood?" he asked the room, but his eyes locked onto Cayaison.

"Yes!" was the answer from most of the students again.

Cayaison, however, did not say a word.

"I do not believe all of you answered!" Master Friidian said

Cayaison grew furious.

"Yes Master!" they all said Cayaison included, he was smart enough not to test Friidian again.

Friidian nodded his approval and took his eyes off of him.

Master Tunadas now stood up and looked at the students. Cayaison again felt the same anger growing inside him.

"Greetings Students," he began with that sinister smile. "I will just like to bring up a small matter, while there are some Masters away on Council errands, there will be replacement teachers taking their place."

He kept smiling while he talked but his eyes began to look around, and Cayaison knew he was looking for him. But they stopped on someone else.

Cayaison turned to look at who, he followed the line of sight and found the person, it was Dawain.

"Even though these teachers are only replacements. They should be treated as though they are the primary teachers. Those that do not follow will be liable for punishment deemed fit by the teacher, the actions of today will go unpunished, starting tomorrow these rules will be enforced," Tunadas turned and sat.

Now it was the old woman's turn to talk. Cayaison thought smiling slightly.

"This is the last message of the day, as Master Friidian had touched on before, the forming of groups is not against any of Heavstat's rules. In fact, many Mages in the past had formed large groups in and outside of Heavstat. The one strict rule of Heavstat is that actions taken by the council are not of any student's concern, students do not need to interfere in affairs of the council or of its going on's."

She scanned the room. She was not looking for anyone, but just to see the faces of the students.

"The punishment for this rule has been changed by the three senior members of the Council at present Master Friidian, Myself and Master Grentton," she said.

Master Grentton was on the far side of the Master's table. He was a senior man who most said was just as old as Heavstat itself, which was impossible, since no one knew precisely when Heavstat was created.

Master Grentton was a former Head of Heavstat before Master Friidian had taken over. Getting old in years even for a Mage of his power he had given the position up.

"The new punishment is immediate removal from Heavstat and the stripping of all magic with the Kytac Crystals," Frugaal finished.

There was a loud gasp from all of the students even Cayaison thought today's punishment was easy compared to the new one. Whispers began to fill the room Frugaal began to raise her hand to silence everyone, but Friidian stood up.

Frugaal sat back down the whispers began to quiet.

"Now talk among yourselves this is a lot to take in," Friidian said smiling.

Immediately chatter filled the room even the teachers began to talk to other teachers after a few moments Friidian clapped his hands.

"That is enough, the hour is late, and we all need to rest for tomorrow," he slowly made his way to the door and out of the room.

The rest of the Masters followed. If Heavstat looked gloomy in the day, the nighttime hours made it scary.

Gormmatt the caretaker, a hunchbacked Gnoll, now tamed and living somewhere inside Heavstat, was going around lighting candles. The rule of thumb was if you ever saw him you were to turn and walk the other way.

Gnoll's even tamed still liked to eat raw meat, and Gormmatt was no exception, he had been known to attack students if they came to close to him.

This night, however, the meeting had taken long, and Gormmatt had already done the students living quarters and was now upstairs lighting the class levels.

Students were strictly not allowed to be upstairs after nightfall, ghosts and other dark creatures roamed Heavstat at night looking for students. The magic that gave Heavstat the ability to float, as well as to enable the Master's their excellent skills, also enticed other magical and dark creatures to it.

Cayaison himself had once seen a Dark Man, outside of his room. They fed on the blood of humans and were able to turn into bats even mist at times. He had seen it in the Students quarters, it did not rush at him, but kept walking away from him.

Dawain had one time ventured off outside the student's quarters and saw a ghost of a woman half eaten.

Heavstat was not a safe place once the sun had fallen and everyone knew it. After they had left the great hall, the students grouped all together with the higher classmen up front and behind the younger students.

Jacobsien was the oldest of all the students; he was nearly due to be tested. If he passed, he could choose to stay as a teacher, or leave Heavstat and pursue his own pursuits.

He was a tall boy with straight black hair and broad shoulders. He took the lead followed by a few other upper-class men.

Cayaison and his group took the rear they strolled up the stairs. The glowing purple light of the fairies could be seen flying and swirling around it.

"Come on Hernard!" a girl said to a small boy.

Rameus walked up to catch up to them the little boy had fallen on the stairs and was too scared to move.

"What is it?" Rameus asked.

"It's my brother," the girl said.

"He is scared of the fairies," she pointed up at them.

Rameus looked at the small boy.

"They will not hurt you, as long as you don't stare at them or stop them from dancing," he said pulling the boy up.

"Really?" the boy asked.

"Yes! Now get a move on before something else hears your whimpering!" the girl said pulling her brother towards her.

After all the younger students had been walked to their rooms, Cayaison and his friends were making their rounds just to make sure there were no lingering kids before they shut the main door to the student quarters. When they came along Jacobsien and his friends.

"Nice work Cayaison!" Jacobsien said as they passed each other.

"What exactly does that mean?" Cayaison turned to ask.

The two of them had never gotten along. Most of Jacobsien's friends did not like Cayaison or his friends. The two groups had kept their distance from each other for a while."

"You know exactly what I mean, sticking your nose where it doesn't belong!" Jacobsien said.

Cayaison smiled "There was a time I was scared of you," he said as he walked closer towards his elder classmen. "Everybody talked about you when I got here, how you already had mastered most of the magic forms at such a young age, how you would make a great Master one day," Cayaison continued. "Now look at you the teacher's pet, one year from the big test and you are scared of me and what I will do," Cayaison laughed. "You are not worth our time anymore."

Cayaison turned and walked away from Jacobsien, who stood there.

"I'm not scared of you Cayaison!" he shouted back, but the tone of his voice wasn't making him sound brave.

The truth of the matter was that Jacobsien was scared, even though he was older than Cayaison. Most of the younger students looked up to him, not for his magic, but for the actions he did and the words he told them when they were scared.

Jacobsien knew that Cayaison's group now only five strong will eventually get bigger and more prominent in the years to come.

Cayaison and his friends walked together, and they began to talk to each other.

"Kytac Crystals!" Dawain said a bit louder than he wanted to.

"They drain the magic out of the body and the blood!" Alixia said.

She looked visibly shaken by that meeting. Cayaison nodded.

"We will have to be more cautious of our actions from now on," Violetta said.

"What actions?" Alixia asked. "Did you not hear?" She looked at all of them. "We shouldn't do anything!" Alixia pleaded.

"You're right!" Cayaison nodded.

He knew he still wanted to know what the Council was doing. But not if it meant that any of his friends could be expelled or even worse, stripped of their magic. There was a slight groan coming from one of the corridors.

"Gormmatt must be making the second round!" Rameus stated.

They all nodded.

"We will talk tomorrow," Cayaison said.

The morning came fast. Cayaison was the first to get to the food hall. The others slowly trickled in.

"Cayaison!" a voice shouted from across the room.

They all looked around to see a man running to them.

"Master Freimier says his class will be down on the walls today," the man said as he bowed and walked away.

"Great," Cayaison said sarcastically.

"What class is that?" Alixia asked.

"Projection and Projectiles," Cayaison said while yawning.

He got up and bid them a good morning before heading down to the lower shelf.

"Today's class we will be projecting an image of ourselves while the rest of the class will try to hit the real person," Master Freimier said.

The sun was beating down on them. They were wearing their brown robes which made them twice as hot.

"Remember only to use, the stun spells!" Master Freimier warned. "Anyone using harmful spells will get the same spell sent back to them by me!"

Master Freimier was one of the youngest Master's. He stood tall and thin. But his beard was showing some signs of gray. His hair was a dark brown.

"Who will like to go first?" he asked.

One student shot his hand into the sky.

"Enter the maze," Freimier said.

The student took off running. The walls as they were called, were just that. Lot's of walls raised in different locations to form a short maze.

"Ready!" the student shouted.

"Jacobsien?" Freimier smiled and motioned for him to enter the maze.

There was some commotion and what sounded like a few smite spells being fired around. Then there was quiet. The first student came out with a few bruises.

"He got me," he sounded defeated.

"Who is next?" Freimier asked.

Cayaison smiled then shot his hand up.

"Anybody?" Freimier asked again. He knew about the many feuds between Cayaison and Jacobsien. Many of the walls had been scorched a dark black because of the two of them going at it.

"If I have to come in there after the two of you. Both of you will be going to the infirmary!" he warned.

"Might be worth it," Cayaison said under his breath.

"Cayaison's coming in!" Freimier warned.

Cayaison smiled. He took a slow walk through the maze, the last time he came in here after Jacobsien he had received a dazzler to the head, which made him dizzy. This time, there was nothing. He turned another corner still nothing.

Then he saw Jacobsien standing with his back against a wall looking the other way.

"Nice try!" Cayaison said quickly turning around. He dodged a smite spell coming for him.

"I knew it would be you!" Jacobsien yelled at him.

"You really thought, I would let you take the top student?" Cayaison laughed.

He wanted to take out some of his anger from yesterday. He knew he couldn't go up to Friidian and fire off a few harmful spells. The next logical choice was Jacobsien.

"You're a joke!" Jacobsien said through gritted teeth.

Cayaison looked over at his nemesis.

Jacobsien was taller than Cayaison by a few inches. Jacobsien always seemed to look neat cut compared to Cayaison's messy look. His dark black hair was clean and never out of place. He was well built. Not as big as Rameus, not by a long shot.

Most of the women called him handsome. They had also said something was wrong with his eyes. Some people said his eyes always made him look like he was up to something. Even now they were shifting side to side, looking for weakness.

"You two have three minutes before I come in!" Freimier warned.

"Three minutes?" Cayaison smiled. "Think one of us could defeat the other in that amount of time?"

Jacobsien launched two more smite spells that hit Cayaison.

"Ha!" Jacobsien shouted at Cayaison, who was lying on the floor. "Now who is the top student!" he gloated down at Cayaison.

But Cayaison was smiling.

"My turn!" Cayaison said through gritted teeth.

The image of Cayaison on the floor disappeared. Jacobsien turned around to see Cayaison standing there with his hands glowing. The real Cayaison launched two spells. Jacobsien was too close to dodge both attacks hit him hard, he fell to the floor stunned and unable to move.

"Too easy!" Cayaison knelt, shaking his head.

"His down!" Cayaison yelled.

Freimier came in. He looked down at Jacobsien.

"I only used stun spells, like you said," Cayaison smiled as he walked past the Master.

Freimier touched Jacobsien. The stunning spell wore off.

"Go to the infirmary," Freimier said. "Looks like you took a hard fall."

Jacobsien pushed the Master aside; he walked through the rest of the class.

"This isn't over Cayaison!" he shouted.

"Remember next time more Projections! Fewer Projectiles!" Cayaison shouted at him.

"Cayaison!" Freimier yelled.

"I know," Cayaison said.

He walked back into the maze.

"Next," Cayaison smiled.

This time, most of the class shot their hands up. They knew Cayaison would go light on them. After the class, most of the students were gathered around Cayaison as he gave them ideas on how to make better projections.

Master Freimier fumed and walked away.

"Remember Tanier," Cayaison said. "When you turn a corner, send a projection first. For a split second, you can see what it can. That's how I got you hiding behind the stone."

The student smiled and nodded.

Cayaison met up with his friends later that day, after a few other classes.

"I heard you sent Jacobsien to the infirmary again," Alixia scolded.

"I needed to vent some anger," Cayaison shrugged.

One of Friidian's assistants came up to them in the hallway.

"Master Friidian would like to see you," it said looking at Cayaison.

Cayaison nodded. The others began to follow.

"Just Cayaison," it said.

"We will be at the usual place," Violetta said.

Cayaison nodded with a smile. He followed the assistant up the stairs.

"Do you guys, even have names?" Cayaison asked.

The assistant said nothing. They all looked the same, same height, same build. They wore dark green robes. And to most students, they smelt like ash.

Cayaison entered the room. Friidian was standing on the walkway.

"Leave us," Friidian said.

The assistant nodded then walked out of the room. Cayaison listened, sure enough, the same puffing sound was heard.

"No, I don't name them," Friidian said. "They're extensions of myself," he said as he came down the stairs.

Cayaison smiled. "We thought as much," Cayaison said.

"We?" Friidian asked. "Ah yes, your group," he said sitting down.

He looked over at Cayaison as he always did.

"Take a seat," Friidian said.

Cayaison sat, he knew better than to question the Grand Master.

"What do you call yourselves?" Friidian asked.

"We do not call ourselves anything," Cayaison said honestly.

Friidian nodded. "There was a group like yours," Friidian nodded as he sat back in his chair. "When I was your age," Friidian smiled.

He picked up a parchment then pushed it over to Cayaison.

"The Dark Ternion?" Cayaison asked as he looked at the parchment.

"The Dark Three!" Friidian said aloud. "Three friends, they did everything together. They even went to the same room at night."

Friidian stood up.

"They ate together, went to the same classes, shared the same interests. Then," Friidian said as he stood behind Cayaison.

"They left together, not graduating. They just left stated that they had learned enough and left," Friidian smiled.

He stood at the front of his table.

"Do you know what happened to them?" he asked Cayaison.

"No Master," Cayaison said shaking his head.

"Of course, you do, you have heard of them," he put out a finger.

"Tiras," he said as he made a T, that hovered in the air. It was made of a golden light. "Toran," another T that touched the other T at an angle, "Timan," the other T finished the circle. Then he drew a circle around all of them.

Cayaison's face dropped. It was the symbol for the most dangerous Warlocks in all of the known territories.

"The Tribunal?" Cayaison said.

"Exactly!" Friidian shouted.

"Now you see why all groups are watched and accounted for in Heavstat, and why we the Masters have thought of a strict penalty for those that form groups," Friidian said as he returned to his chair.

"But..." Cayaison said still staring at the glowing symbol still floating above him.

"But you won't become a group like them?" Friidian said.

Cayaison nodded. Still in fear.

"The Master's at the time thought the same thing They were even told that by those three," Friidian said as he pointed at the symbol. "Nothing would happen, and that they were just friends."

Cayaison shook. He had heard of them. Everyone had heard of them.

"Now go," Friidian said. "Remember what I have told you and think of what your group is capable of doing, together."

Cayaison stood up and ran out of the room. He didn't stop running until he got to the regular place.

"What is it?" Rameus said.

Cayaison was white as a ghost.

"The Tribunal!" he said.

The others looked around expecting something.

"They started here!" Cayaison said sitting down.

After a few moments, Cayaison calmed down. He told them what Friidian had said to him. They all sat down on the bench lining the wall of the student quarters hallway.

"I mean, together we are capable of..." Dawain said but stopped shaking his head.

"A lot!" Alixia finished the sentence. "We all specialize in different magic," she looked at all of them. "Together we could even be more dangerous than them."

"But that doesn't mean...." Rameus said shaking his head.

They all knew what The Tribunal had done throughout the lands. They were nearly as bad as the Orcs. Even the Orcs themselves feared The Tribunal.

"I need to think," Cayaison said.

"We all do," Alixia said.

They all got up and went their separate ways.

### Chapter 3: The Betrayal

Cayaison awoke early in the morning. He had the sharpest pain throbbing within his head. As he sat up, he held both sides of his head. Cayaison had never felt pain like this before and wondered how he got it.

Slowly he stood up but then fell to the floor hard. He got up on his knees, the pain sharpened and caused him to fall back onto all fours. He tried to stand up again, this time, another strike of pain hit him so hard he fell backward onto the bed.

Cayaison knew the cause of the pain was a mental attack. Somebody was attacking him through his mind, but who and why he couldn't think clear enough to get an answer. He knew one thing, he had to remain calm and clear his thoughts. The more he thought, about the pain the more it would hurt.

The moment he began to clear his mind the attack ended, "Strange," he said to himself.

His room was like any other student's room. It was small. Near to the back it had a place where the water came in from a small hole in the wall, this was where they could wash.

Cayaison washed his face as fast as he could, he grabbed his robes and ran out of his room.

As usual, currently the student quarters were empty. Many students wanted to get to the food hall as quickly as possible; others just liked a later start.

When he got to the main corridor, he looked around, whoever had attacked him had to be close. He saw no one that struck him to be an attacker; then he saw a male student running down the hall he was holding his head.

Cayaison ran after him. He chased him down one hall, then saw him stop and enter a room. When Cayaison approached the room, he tried to open it; the door was locked. He knew this place. It was the apprentice's room.

Only the students who had been chosen by a Master, to be an apprentice could open it. He knocked on the door, but there was no answer.

"Cayaison?" he heard from behind him.

A Master stood behind him.

"Yes, Master Freimier," Cayaison said bowing out the way.

The Master walked to the door. Turned then looked at Cayaison, who looked troubled.

"Is there something I can help you with?" Master Freimier asked.

Cayaison looked at the door then back to the Master, not knowing if the Master will tell Friidian or not he decided to play it safe.

"No, I thought I would catch Master Visiroux before class, but it can wait," he said bowing then walking away.

Thoughts flew through Cayaison's head. He looked at their meeting place, none of his friends were there yet. It was still a bit early. They were most likely just getting up.

He went back to his room; he lay on his bed looking up at the morning sun coming through the small opening at the top of the wall.

Who would try to attack him and for what purpose? He knew of only one person, Jacobsien, but what was the reason and why now? Maybe it was because of the events down by the walls.

He shook the thoughts out of his head. Cayaison had dreamed of the same thing last night, the same dream he had every night for a very long time.

A massive battle of many races. It took place near a dark tower, the land itself was black almost burnt, just as black as the sky itself. In the dream, he was looking down on the ground, as if he was flying towards the battle. He had always tried to stop himself from seeing the rest. But it never worked.

He slowly got up rinsed off his face, then grabbed his staff. He walked out of his room. The hallway was busy with kids and other students who were talking to each other and running here and there.

The others would be waiting for him in the primary food hall for breakfast.

"I did not get anything from him, Master. The only thing I got was, he thinks something is going on with the missing Masters," a young man said.

He was sitting in a chair in Friidian's office he was nervous.

"We will have to do something about Cayaison," Master Freimier said standing behind the young man. "He saw my apprentice going to our meeting place."

Friidian sat behind his desk and looked at the young man.

"I can take care of myself, Master," the young man said. "I have friends that will help me."

When Friidian heard this, he sat up in his chair. "Are you part of the group that is currently at ends with Cayaison's?" Friidian asked.

To which the young man nodded.

"It is the reason I agreed to Master Freimier's request," the young man replied.

Friidian smiled he saw an opening, something that could help him, get rid of Cayaison's continued interference.

"Are there more like you that would agree to do more to help us rid ourselves of Cayaison and his group?" Friidian asked.

To which the young man nodded.

"Get them, bring them here," he said. "If they are in a class show the teacher this, and they will let them leave. If Cayaison or any of his friends are in the class do nothing," Friidian said as he wrote on a piece of paper. He handed it over to the young man.

"Yes, Master Friidian," the man said as he left the room.

Freimier looked at him leave then turned to Friidian.

"Cayaison and Jacobsien are always at ends. I have told you about their fights, many times. Why do you show interest now?" he asked.

Friidian sat back. "My visions of the future are ripe with him interfering. He will see things and try to stop us. We cannot have that," he said through gritted teeth.

"Yes Master," Freimier said bowing and exiting the room.

Friidian stared up into the crystal ball above him; it began to glow brighter and brighter until the light filled the whole room.

"He will not stop me," Friidian said as the intense light consumed him.

Far away from Heavstat, Master Merladio sat in a room. With members of the cities, ruling members. The fighting had taken a toll, some of them looked like they hadn't slept in days. They were talking about the events that led up to the attack. He was in the room with three of the elders and Master Wong.

The city was small. The citizens had no way of defending themselves. According to the elder's, everything seemed fine, then some of the citizens began to be killed off silently. The guards had found a lone assassin. They had imprisoned him when he confessed to the killings. He did not give a reason as to why he killed the people.

The assassin had been hung after the trial. Then the attacks began. It didn't take long for them to realize that they hung their leader. The army was relentless.

Merladio sat and listened to their side of the story and what they wanted off the council members. Merladio said he would consult with the others and return with their decision.

As he walked outside Trabias came up to him.

"I have walked the perimeter of the city, most of the damage is concentrated on the wall and the lookout towers."

Trabias was one of the council's planners, usually, if the council did anything, Trabias would be the one to make the battle plan. He was a tall but stout man. He had short dark brown hair. With brown eyes. His robes hung tight on him, especially around his stomach.

"The way they were talking it seemed they were under constant barrage," Trabias said looking over at the large wall.

Master Wong walked up to them. "Has anyone noticed anything suspicious about this town?"

Master Wong was the only Asian Mage as far as anyone knew. He had no memory of his life before Merladio, and the other Masters found him during a routine visit to one of the oldest Mage towers.

They had found him in the corner of one of the rooms, with no memory or knowledge of how he got there. They quickly discovered that his knowledge of the magical arts was profound for any student or teacher.

The mystery was how he got there and where did he come from, the Mage Tower had been vacant for centuries. Their last visit had only been months before, and he had not been there at the time.

Wong was of average height, gaunt, he had long black hair that he kept in a long ponytail, going down his back, he had a long beard that he also held tied in a tail that went down to his mid-chest.

"No, we have not," Merladio said looking around.

He started looking for something suspicious. Then it came to him. He saw women and children walking around, most of them seemed scared; others were looking right at them.

"There are no men?" he said looking into the stores and houses that lined the walls of the small city.

Wong nodded. "I have walked all around. I cannot find one man except for..." Wong began to say.

"The elders?" Merladio said looking back at the small house that they had just left. The elders were still inside.

"Has anyone seen Illuscious?" Trabias asked.

To which the other two shook their heads.

"Not since we arrived," Merladio replied.

Something was very wrong. Illuscious was the Master of Illusions and mind control, and this all seemed wrong. He had been acting very anxious and nervous for weeks now. Merladio had meant to talk to him about that, but when he had the first chance to, they had been contacted by the elders of this village.

"How did we get contacted this time?" he asked looking at Master Wong.

"By letter, then I opened a channel, I talked with them through the link," Wong replied.

He was visibly thinking. "The wall is real," Trabias said as if knowing where Merladio's thoughts were taking him.

"So is the village," Wong said. "But the damage..." he said looking closely at the damaged buildings as he concentrated the buildings began to shimmer.

"It's a trap," Merladio said in a low voice.

Merladio was the first to react he shook. He took his hands out from under the robe sleeves. Both lit on fire.

"Now, now!" a voice shouted from beyond the wall.

It was a female voice. The large doors swung open. A tall lady began to walk forward she was dressed in a dark leather outfit with two swords, one in each hand.

"You start throwing those fireballs of yours everywhere. Who do you think will get hurt, when I give the order to start firing real boulders into this village?" the lady said as she got near them.

"Denessa," Merladio said recognizing an old student of Heavstat.

He nodded at Trabias, who was getting ready to attack. He relaxed, as did Wong. Denessa clapped her hands, and men poured into the village from every angle.

They had chains made of Kytac Crystals. Immediately the Masters began to recoil. The bright purple chains glowed and shimmered in the daylight.

"Oh relax, we did not make them from pure crystals we have other uses for the larger ones," Denessa said backing away from the chains. "They have enough power within them to keep those skills of yours dormant until we need you."

The men grabbed each of the Mages. "Be careful with that one!" she said looking at Wong. "Any moves from you and boulders start flying," Denessa laughed.

Wong nodded his defeat, as fast as he was, he could not reach her to stop whatever signal she had in mind.

"Look you have won," Trabias said as his chains were put on, he felt weaker immediately.

He watched as the other two had their chains put on, the men wrapped the chains, once around the Mage's waist, then their chest then they were tied to their hands behind their back.

Immediately the two of them fell silent.

"Put them in the basement," Denessa said.

Few of the men led the mages towards one of the buildings. Merladio looked back one last time. A woman approached Denessa.

"You said if we did what you said, you would give us back our men and children," she said shaking.

Denessa looked at her. "I said that?" she said looking back at one of her men.

The man nodded.

"I guessed I did," she shrugged.

Denessa quickly grabbed the lady's head and snapped it around fast there was a loud snap, the female's body fell limp to the floor.

"Does anybody else want to tell me what I have already said?" she shouted to the rest of the women in the village.

None of them said anything.

"You will get your men and your loud, annoying children back when I am ready to give them back!" Denessa he yelled. "Now do as my men tell you and not a single word out of any of you!"

Merladio shook his head as he was taken inside of the building.

Denessa stepped over the body on the floor, then walked towards the small house where the elders were, she walked inside looking at them still sitting at the table. They stood up.

"Is it done?" they asked.

"Yes," she replied shutting the door.

The elders looked at each other and nodded. The room shimmered, and they disappeared. Illuscious stood in the place of the table, the elders and the room were just an illusion. Instead, there was a crystal ball in the back of the room.

"Your grandfather will be proud of your success," Illuscious smiled.

He turned to the large crystal ball. The room was small it had no other furniture. Like all the other houses, this one was made of stone and mud tightly packed together.

The roof was made, with long planks of wood. Straw and animal skin was thrown on top of the wood to keep the weather out.

"Master?" Illuscious said putting his hand on the ball. It began to glow bright white.

"Is it done?" Friidian's voice said from the crystal.

"Yes, all three are taken care of," Illuscious replied.

"Then the first part is done," Friidian said. "Is Denessa there?"

"Yes, I am here," Denessa said moving forward.

"You have done well. Remember everything that I told you? Keep your anger under control. I will be joining you soon," Friidian said.

"I will," she replied.

"Illuscious, come back to Heavstat. Your skills will be needed here," Friidian finished, and the ball stopped glowing.

Illuscious looked over at Denessa. She walked out of the room and into the village. Illuscious followed.

"He will join you soon," he said to her.

"Not soon enough. I do not know how long I can control it," Denessa said as she put an outstretched hand, a dark glow emitted from it. "The darkness inside me is growing, I cannot control it. Soon I will be back to being as lost and as confused as you had found me," she said looking away.

"We will not let that happen," Illuscious said. He had mentored Denessa while she was at Heavstat. Keeping the secret that Friidian had a child from all those that would ask about her.

Friidian had met a woman on one of his breaks. When he was many years younger than he was now, they had fallen for each other; the result was a child.

Friidian feared that if the child had magic in it, that it would follow in his footsteps. He had tried to kill the child, but the woman had escaped him, with the child.

When Friidian returned to Heavstat, he had ordered Illuscious to find the women and child and kill them both. Illuscious had found them but could not bring himself to kill them. Instead, he hid them from Friidian.

On his return, he told Friidian what he had done. Friidian lashed out in anger, nearly killing Illuscious. He questioned Illuscious many times to find out where he had hidden them. But Illuscious never gave him the location.

Since that time Friidian kept Illuscious close to him, soon the two Mages formed a bonding friendship.

It was many years later that Denessa came to Heavstat. She told Illuscious about her father, the son of Friidian. She said how her father grew up hating Friidian for what he had done to his mother.

When Illuscious asked the whereabouts of her father she broke down, she told him, she had to kill him, or he would have killed her. She said the darkness overcame him one night and, in his anger,, he had threatened to kill her. Denessa was scared, she struck out to defend herself, but killed him instead.

Illuscious felt sorry for her. He brought her to Friidian, who taught her to harness the dark magic inside her and bend it to her will.

When Denessa seriously injured two students out of anger, she was expelled from Heavstat. Since that time, she had stayed hidden from everybody fearing what she was capable of doing. Until Illuscious found her again.

He had found her in a dark place. It was up to Illuscious to hunt down stories of Mages using their magic for personal gain. Denessa had been using her dark magic to scare people out of money and personal belongings. She had been a shell of the woman that now stood in front of him.

Her dark black hair hung down to her shoulders. Her piercing blue eyes looked back at him. He had told her of Friidian's plans to take control of Heavstat and then to rid the world of the weak humans. She volunteered to follow her grandfather's idea.

"You better get back," she said closing her hand. "You do not want to keep him waiting," she looked away.

Illuscious nodded then walked away. She stood there in the middle of the city. With her hands on her swords. Once she knew he was far away, and nowhere near the town, she began to smile.

"Bring my army inside the walls!" she shouted.

Denessa was smiling because deep down she wanted the darkness to take over her. She was going to show her grandfather precisely what she can do with her magic. She had no plan of following her grandfather. She had him and his pet right where she wanted them.

Large war machines made their way into the village, the women and children came out of their hiding places.

One of the women walked towards Denessa.

"Did you have to kill Messa?" she asked.

The lady took off her cloth clothing revealing the same leather outfit underneath the garments, which Denessa was wearing. The children began to take their clothes off each showing the same black leather.

Denessa laughed. "Messa?" she said to the female corpse on the ground.

The female body slowly stirred, then it got up to its feet. The former dead body began to laugh. As Messa stood there, she took out a broken branch from under her clothing.

"You should know I would never kill one of our family, unnecessary," Denessa said to the lady.

The men came into the central courtyard, closing the gate behind them. She turned to all the people gathered around her.

"As all of you know, my father had heard that his father Friidian, had tried to kill him and my grandmother. He failed at that attempt. My dad then formed our family to avenge that failed attempt!" she shouted.

"He spent his whole life training every one of you and your families. Families that have and were deceived by the promises that the council had given you, but never received."

They began to nod as she spoke.

"We will kill Friidian, and with his death, my father's wish will be fulfilled. Then with a weakened school of students and teachers, we will attack Heavstat and make them pay!" she said to the loud uproar of her army.

Friidian sat in his chair staring at the students that were sitting in chairs lined against the wall facing him. There was twelve of them in total. Jacobsien was one of them.

"This is all of your group?" Friidian asked him.

"No. Not all of them, but most of them. Some of the students have come to us just to get back at Cayaison," Jacobsien replied. "He is not the most likable person, some will have you believe," Jacobsien said with a smirk.

Friidian nodded. "What I have planned for you to do, is against all the rules of Heavstat," Friidian said standing up. "War is coming to this land and right now this instant you will have to pick a side."

None of the students made a move or showed any sign of movement.

"No offense Master," Jacobsien said. "All of us have been breaking Heavstat rules for years. If what you are saying is true, then maybe we can offer you some help,"

Friidian nodded. Everything was going better than he had planned.

"We would need some protection though and some assurances that the other Masters will not stop us," Jacobsien said.

"If you do what I say. I promise no one will interfere," Friidian said approaching Jacobsien.

"Then what do you want us to do?" Jacobsien asked. Friidian smiled.

The two of them leaned close and began to talk.

Cayaison and his friends sat in the dining hall, pondering about the day's events. All of them had seen students, teachers, and Masters leave their classes, and not return. These were not typical events.

Also, Cayaison's mind attack had everybody on edge.

"What do you think it could be about?" Violetta asked. She had been sitting in quiet for too long. "First the attack, then all of this?"

Rameus shuffled in his seat folding his arms. "Do I have to point out that most of the students that left are from Jacobsien's group?"

To which there was silence. Cayaison looked over at them all. "I know,"

It was evident that something was wrong. It had started when he tried prying into the council members whereabouts.

"Maybe it is just a coincidence?" Alixia said shrugging. "Maybe we are reading into all this wrong. Seeing things that we want to see?" she said looking at everyone.

The look on all their faces told her, they were not thinking the same as her.

"Well, Jacobsien is right over there. Just go over there and ask him," she nodded over to Jacobsien, who was standing by the door.

Cayaison looked over at him then stood up and walked over towards him.

"Is he going?" Dawain asked.

Cayaison had reached Jacobsien, they both began talking.

"Looks like it," Rameus said.

The two were talking then smiling.

"I think that is a good sign, right?" Dawain said, "Smiling is always a good sign."

Cayaison began walking back.

"I think so," Violetta replied.

Cayaison sat back down. They all looked at him. He had a smirk on his face.

"Well?" Violetta asked breaking the silence.

"He is up to something, and he is not afraid of letting us know," Cayaison said. "When I walked up to him he was not surprised at all in fact. He wanted me to. It seems a Master has given him and his friends a task. Jacobsien says that things are about to change around here."

"What was the smile about?" Rameus asked. "Nothing you said so far makes me want to smile or laugh."

They all nodded.

"Because he challenged us!" Cayaison said. "If he tried to hide it, then it would be different, he came right out and said it. That makes it a challenge to find out what exactly is going on."

Cayaison loved challenges. He loved to get to the bottom of any problem.

"And here comes the speech," Alixia said sitting back in her chair.

"Well, it is a challenge. We can find out what he is doing and who told him to do it," Cayaison said.

"Friidian," Dawain said.

"I am sure of it, but we got to prove it," Cayaison responded.

"No Friidian," Dawain pointed to the door.

They all turned around. They could see the Grand Master talking to Jacobsien, then Jacobsien nodded and walked away. Friidian looked in their direction then made his way towards them. Friidian grabbed a chair and sat next to Cayaison. He looked Cayaison straight in the face.

"I am aware of the conversation my apprentice had with you moments ago," Friidian said. Cayaison did not respond. "I will make this crystal clear," he said, stopping to look at all of them.

"Stay out of it! What is happening in Heavstat is my concern, I ordered some changes to be made, and none of those changes involve any of the students. Am I understood?" he asked to which everyone nodded.

They did not want to face his wrath a second time.

"Good. Continue with what you were doing," he said as he got up.

They watched him leave the hall.

"Well that was creepy," Violetta said. "And if you all do not mind I am going to go," she said getting up.

They all got up, except Cayaison.

"Why would he do that?" Cayaison asked.

They all shook their heads and walked away. They left Cayaison alone with his thoughts.

The rest of the day went without any problems for Cayaison, except that it was bothering him that Friidian had talked to them in such a way. It had made him wonder. What changes were going to come to Heavstat?

It was Cayaison's turn to be on night duty; he made his rounds around the lower-class men's rooms to make sure they were all there. On his way back to his room he saw a hooded figure walking down the hall. He began to follow when he saw another and then another they were walking out of the hall and into another corridor.

Cayaison followed them, but since this corridor was circular, he kept hiding to make sure they would not see him. They stopped outside of the same Apprentice room as before. They all waited for a while then entered. Cayaison went up to the door to listen but could not hear anything.

The last bell chimed, and the flames on the candles began to flicker. He quickly started to run back to his room. If he did not make it back in time, the flames would be gone. The creatures of the night would start to roam around Heavstat. He was near to his room when he fell.

Looking around he could not see why he had fallen, but as he tried to get up, he was held down by something.

Cayaison tried again. He had got up to his feet, but then he felt like he had been lifted up then thrown against the wall. He was under attack again. He tried to move, but he felt like he got kicked in the stomach, then hit while he was down.

Then it started, he felt like there were people all around him beating down on him. He looked at the flames they were dying down, but the beating did not stop. Then it went dark, the beatings suddenly stopped.

Cayaison was left alone in the dark. He began to hear strange noises. He was lost, the attack had him all turned around in the darkness and could not see which way which was.

"Fieroo!" he shouted throwing a small fireball out of his hand. It lighted the path before him, hitting a nearby wall he followed the glow the fire had made against the wall. He was close to his room, that is when he sat it. A dark man.

Cayaison's heart stopped. He tried to keep still and prevent himself from breathing. There was nowhere to go. All the student's rooms were magically sealed until the morning. Cayaison knew he could pound on the doors all he wanted. The student inside would not hear him.

Cayaison was so close to his room all he had to do was make it to the door without being seen, he began to run. The dark man had not noticed him yet. He slammed his shoulder against the door; he slammed it closed after he entered. He heard the magical spell seal his door.

He fell to the bed. Raising his robe, he saw there were already bruises all over his chest. He laid back on the bed passing out from the pain.

The morning came fast, but Cayaison did not wake or stir. There was a loud knocking on the door, which made him sit up.

"Time to get up your late," a loud voice said.

Cayaison began to get up. He held his ribs, they were sore, taking a look at his chest he could see the dark marks all over his body. Quickly grabbing his robes, he knew the next knock would not be a warning. He did not want to get in any more trouble than he already was.

Cayaison made his way into the hallway and followed the other students. He tried to show no sign of the pain that was tearing away at his chest and back.

He saw his friends in the main hall and motioned for them to come to him. He found a bench in a corner then sat down bracing himself against the wall.

"What is wrong with you?" Dawain asked. Seeing Cayaison in pain.

Slowly Cayaison pulled his robe open just a little bit. Alixia looked around. She blocked anybody's view of him.

"It happened last night on the way back to my room," Cayaison said pulling his robe down.

The others shook their heads.

"Who did it?" Violetta asked. She already knew the answer, but she wanted to hear it. Cayaison braced himself against the wall.

"I do not know, they were using magic to hide," he said through gritted teeth.

They all shook their heads.

"We need to get you to the cleric's," Alixia said reaching for Cayaison.

"No!" Rameus said. "If we do that they will know they got to us, and then they will know our weakness," he reached for Cayaison.

Cayaison nodded. Rameus picked him up and braced him.

"We need to make it look like an accident in front of everyone," Rameus stated firmly.

He began walking towards the stairs.

"Why?" Violetta asked.

"You want to find out who did it?" Cayaison asked.

Violetta nodded.

"Then look for reactions," he said nodding at Rameus who let him go.

"Talk to you guys later. I am running late!" Cayaison shouted.

The others nodded then began to walk away. Cayaison turned and bumped into another student.

"Sorry," he said spinning around.

The kid's face went from annoyance to terror as Cayaison was facing him, with his back turned to the stairs. The child reached out for him, but it was too late. Cayaison fell backward down the stairs. He used a small spell to increase his momentum.

The main hall was filled with people looking down the stairs as Cayaison tumbled down many stairs before stopping entirely unconscious.

Violetta stood behind a statue watching everyone's reaction when she saw a few students angrily turn around and exit the hall. She then followed the rest of her friends to be by Cayaison's side.

The cleric ward was never empty. There was always a student that had done a spell wrong or tried a charm that got a body part wrong or hurt or even misplaced.

The clerics ran back and forth through the stone rooms. Beds lined each room. Each of the rooms served a purpose. Cayaison was in a place for nonmagical injuries.

It was at the end of the day when his friends could come to see him. Friidian and the other Masters made sure they finished their classes.

Alixia was the first to enter the small room. Not many students hurt themselves the usual way. So Cayaison was the only one in the room. Rameus blocked the doorway as the others sat by Cayaison's bed.

"Was it who we thought?" he asked Violetta.

She nodded. "They have been silent all day," she said. "It seems you ruined their plans somehow."

"They wanted to invoke fear," Cayaison said sitting up in his bed. "If I went around in pain from an unknown attacker that had attacked me at night, without knowing who did it. That would cause fear to take over the school."

He still was in pain, but it was tolerable.

"But now that people think I got these bruises from being clumsy, they have to rethink their plans and come up with something else," Cayaison said.

"What is their plan?" Dawain asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Rameus said. "The Masters are up to something and its big. So big that the students will notice," he said still at his place by the door. "Jacobsien and his clan have been to Friidian's office. No doubt, Friidian wants them to play distraction so that the students will not know what the Masters are doing."

"No!" Alixia said aloud. "Do you remember what happened to us the last time we got in between Friidian and the other Master's?"

They all shook their heads.

"I remember being on that cold floor not being able to move," she said.

"What do you want us to do?" Cayaison asked. "Sit by and watch? Students will be hurt. You know Jacobsien, if he has been given free reign, this ward will soon be filled with students with worse injuries than mine!" he said sitting further up, but then fell back down holding his stomach.

"You need to rest," Violetta said, "We all need to think things over before we do anything," She stood up and gathered everyone by the door. "We will see you tomorrow, and we will bring books," she said loud enough so others could hear.

Cayaison laid in the room alone. He wondered what was going on in Heavstat. Then he heard it, it was very slight, but it had happened, he tried to ignore it. Then he heard it again. Someone else was in the room they were breathing hard, no doubt trying to concentrate on their breathing.

He took a quick glance outside the room many of the clerics were busy running to and fro. He was on his own. How long had the person been in the room did they hear him and his friends.

No, they could not have been in here. Rameus had excellent hearing, ever since he was able to morph his ears. He would have heard them. Whoever had come in had entered after they had left.

His mind raced on how to bring whoever it was out of hiding.

"Turning out the candle now," a cleric said entering the room. "Sleep well," she said as she started to blow out the candles that lined the room.

He wanted to stop her, but if he did, it would tip his hand, and the person would know that Cayaison knew they were there.

"Can I get some water?" Cayaison asked. "My throat is dry" he slightly coughed to emphasize his point.

"Of course," she said. She stopped at the last candle, leaving it lit.

She went out of the room bringing back a large bucket with a small flask, as she got close to Cayaison, he rushed at her, grabbing the bucket from her hand.

He quickly spun in a complete circle tossing the water out of the bucket.

"Freezia!" he shouted loudly.

The water coming out of the bucket quickly turned into ice shards. One of the shards cut the person who was standing against the far wall. The man quickly ran out of the room knocking over clerics as he left the ward.

Cayaison collapsed onto his bed. Later that night. Cayaison awoke to see Friidian looking down at him.

"Finally, you awaken," the Grand Master said.

Cayaison sat up. It was still night; that meant he had only slept for a few hours.

"Seems you have angered other people, not just me," he began to say as he took a seat on a chair by the bed.

Cayaison looked around.

"Fear not, it is only us in the room," he said as if he was reading Cayaison's thoughts.

"Who was it?" Cayaison asked. He knew he would not get a truthful answer.

"The other Masters and I are looking into it," Friidian replied patting the sheets.

He looked back at the door, other clerics and students were standing there listening to them. That was when Cayaison realized this was a show. Friidian did not care for his safety, but if the Grand Master just brushed an attack like this away, he would lose the trust of not only his students but the other teachers as well.

Something told Cayaison that he should play along.

"Thank you, Master, I feel much safer knowing that you and the others care for my safety," Cayaison said

He was aware that Friidian would hate to hear him be kind. Friidian cast him a quick glare.

"I would like to rest now. Is there a charm or spell that would prevent others from getting in the room?" Cayaison asked with a smile.

"I know of one that will keep you, safe. If it is all right with you?" the cleric asked looking at Friidian.

"Of course," Friidian said as he left the room.

The cleric muttered a few words before exiting the room.

Friidian knew the charm well, but to break it would warn the person that enchanted the room and also mark whoever broke the enchantment with a bright glow that all could see.

Friidian knew he would be able to break it without any repercussion but to teach someone how, would take time, the time he did not have. For now, the boy was safe.

He turned on his heels and exited the ward. "Follow quietly!" he whispered, there was no one near him.

As soon as he was sure he was out of view of everyone and out of hearing range, he waved his hand. Jacobsien stood before him, visible for all to see.

"Do I send another to..." he began to say before Friidian smacked him across the face.

"I said to leave him be for the night. Did I not?" Friidian barked.

Jacobsien returned the anger with a look.

"Do not look at me like that! I know many things child that would make you scream in pain, without making a single sound!" Friidian's face trembled with anger.

"Yes Master," Jacobsien looked away. "I just meant to do him harm like you said, after his stunt with the stairs the chaos and fear you wanted..." Jacobsien began to say, but Friidian turned his back.

"You underestimate Cayaison he is smart, but you have to be smarter!" Friidian said.

Friidian looked out into the dark valley from one of the many arches that lined the hallway. The moonlit sky beamed down on him. He seemed like a man full of thought.

Jacobsien looked through another arch at him.

"Maybe it's not Cayaison I should attack?" he looked over at the Grand Master, who nodded back at him.

"Do it. Whatever it takes, I cannot be disturbed again," Friidian said walking away.

Jacobsien smiled. He slid his hand down his body. He disappeared leaving only the shadows in the hallway.

The morning light broke through the small openings that littered the cleric ward's walls. Cayaison sat up and looked around. The clerics were still busy running back and forth outside his door.

"Go on. You are free to go," one of the clerics said as she passed his door.

Cayaison nodded as he slowly stood, he felt no pain in his chest. Slowly he peeled away the cloth wraps that covered his chest all the way down to his waist. He was surprised to see that there was no scarring or swelling. He grabbed his robe and quickly left the ward.

Just outside of the ward, at the beginning of the hallway, his friends were waiting for him.

"They told us they were letting you go today," Alixia said greeting him first.

He nodded throwing his robe over his clothes. He would get appropriately changed when he got to his room.

"So how does it feel to be whole again?" Rameus asked.

They began to stroll fearing Cayaison was not up to his usual self.

"Feels great!" Cayaison said leaning against one of the arches.

The hallway was long; it circled most of the upper levels of Heavstat. Masters were the only one who usually used the higher levels. The cleric ward was up here, and some said the armory was too, but no one could ever find it.

Arches lined the wall on the outer side, the inner wall was solid, behind it was the ward as well as other rooms that no one knew how to enter except for the Masters.

Only a few hours ago unbeknownst to Cayaison, Friidian had looked out the same arch he was now leaning on.

"Another student was attacked last night," Dawain blurted out.

"Dawain!" Violetta shouted back at him. "We were going to wait for the right time," she said looking back at Cayaison.

"What? How?" Cayaison said as he put his last shoe on his foot.

"No one knows. Same thing that happened to you," Dawain shrugged. "Poor kid did not stand a chance. Almost got eaten by a dark man before Jacobsien saved him," Dawain said as they resumed their walk.

"Jacobsien saved him?" Cayaison asked.

To which, they all nodded.

"Friidian made him a mentor, right there and then!" Rameus said with a disgusted look on his face.

Mentors were just a level under teachers in the grand scheme of things. Now that Jacobsien was a mentor he could tell any student what to do. They would have no choice but to do it or face punishment.

Also meant that Cayaison could not question Jacobsien's motives or whereabouts. They finally reached the staircase that went down to the lower levels.

"Wait," Cayaison said.

He stopped and looked out into the valley.

"We know something is happening with the...." he began to say.

"No!" Alixia shouted. "We are not going to talk about this." she grabbed Cayaison's arm looking at him. "You just got out of the infirmary. You were beaten badly because you questioned the Masters. Rameus just got kicked out of the training rooms. Dawain got a rock thrown at him yesterday after leaving class, and I have been called names, under people's breath, just loud enough so I can hear and no one else. So, No!"

Cayaison looked at the others who looked away.

"Is this right?" he asked.

No one answered. Rameus loved the training rooms; it was where he would go to beast out, as he liked to call it.

"I do not know what to say," Cayaison said as he shook his head.

Had his curiosity put his friends in danger. He now saw a lump on the side of Dawain's face. Alixia was almost in tears.

"You're right," he said. "When the other Masters get back they can see what is going on, and they will take care of it," he said.

Alixia smiled. "Thank you," she said turning to walk down the stairs.

The others followed.

"You're such a liar," Violetta whispered. As she walked away, only Cayaison heard her.

"Yes," he nodded. "This way none of you get hurt. Only me," he said as he walked past her.

They made their way to the main hall.

"I am going to get changed and get cleaned up. I meet you guys for lunch later," he said waving to them as he ran down the steps to the student rooms.

They barely had time to say anything before he was already gone.

"Does anyone believe him?" Dawain asked.

They all shook their heads and went to their classes. Cayaison did go to his room, he cleaned himself up, got fresh clothes and a clean robe.

When he got out of his room he went to the first student, he could find.

"Do you know where that kid got attacked?" he asked.

The kid looked scared then pointed down the hall.

"Thanks," he said as he ran down the hall.

He looked here and there for any sign of attack. But could not find anything.

"Well, this is not a surprise," A familiar voice said from behind him.

Cayaison stopped took a deep breath then turned around.

"You should be in class," Jacobsien said he had three of his friends with him.

"I was just ..." Cayaison began to say.

"He is a mentor now," one of the friends said. "So when he says something, it is not a request or a question," the friend pushed Cayaison.

"Leaving. I was just leaving," Cayaison said.

He was smart enough to know this was a losing situation. Cayaison turned around walking away, looking back he could see Jacobsien and his friends laughing.

They had won this battle, Cayaison thought, but soon he would have the upper hand.

The rest of the day went smoothly for Cayaison except after every class it seemed he saw one of Jacobsien's friends.

Were they making sure of his whereabouts? Where were his friends? Dawain had missed two classes, and usually, Alixia would meet him everywhere. But he had seen no sign of any of them.

He was getting worried, so he decided to skip his last class and go to their usual meeting place in the main hall, just to see if they had left a message for him.

As he began to walk, two of Jacobsien's friends stopped him.

"Alchemy is that way!" one of them said.

Cayaison smiled now he knew something was going on.

"I forgot a book in my room. I was just going to get it," he lied.

The two of them looked at each other as if they were trying to figure out what to do. Cayaison pushed past them. They watched him walk away, but when Cayaison looked back, they were gone.

"Where could they go that fast in the middle of a hallway?" he thought to himself.

Cayaison ignored it; he kept walking. Everywhere he went he felt like he was being watched, but the halls were empty most of the students had already reached their classes.

As he entered the main hall, he looked around, but there were only a few students and some teachers. He quickly ran down the nearby stairs to the landing. He took another quick look then he pushed his way through the secret opening.

Violetta quickly grabbed him outside.

"Where have you been?" she asked.

She was visibly shaken.

"I was about to ask you the same thing!" Cayaison said.

She quickly shook her head. "We have to hurry," she said suddenly standing on the ledge. "You do remember the shortcut, down right?" she asked as she jumped.

"Of course," he said jumping on the ledge then jumped off.

They both fell fast towards the stables below, but just as they were about to hit the stable roof. They both yelled out the magic spell to slow their decent, just like Wizardar had done centuries ago. They landed softly on the roof, they walked towards the ceiling hatch then climbed down.

Alixia slapped him hard. "We were scared!"

"Ouch," he said as he looked at Dawain and Rameus.

"What do you mean, you guys were the ones not showing up!" Cayaison said.

"No, we showed up to lunch, and after all the classes you were not there," Rameus replied.

"Wait," Cayaison said he thought back to his day.

He had gone to lunch no one had been there. Not even the lunch ladies. He had been the only one, the only time he had seen anybody was in the classes. As soon as he had come out of all classes, there were no one, no students, nobody.

"Self-defense class," he said to Dawain.

"I was there," Dawain said.

Cayaison walked around the stable. A spell had been put on him so that he would not see specific people and they would not see him. As if she read his thoughts Violetta began chanting.

"No, they could not have," Alixia said. She began to circle Cayaison. "Were there students following you all day? They would have had to stay close to you to keep the spell active, and renew it," she said looking for any charm.

How did he not see it? When he got pushed earlier, he felt the collar of his robe. There was a small charm pinned to the inside of it. Rameus grabbed it from him and crushed it in his hand.

"Well that would tell whoever had pinned it on you, that you destroyed it, and that we can see each other now," Violetta said.

Dawain looked up.

"And where you are," he said.

"We should go," Alixia said. "I am sure we aren't the only ones to have jumped down here."

Violetta and Cayaison shook their heads in unison. They had learned it from higher class men who had taught them before they left. It was no secret at all. They made their way back up the halls to the main corridor that leads to the main hall.

They were met on the way by a kid who was standing still, looking at them. She was out of breath.

"I found you at last," she said.

"Who?" Dawain.

"You!" the young girl said pointing at Cayaison. "Mirnadun has been hurt! Hurry!" she said running back up the stairs.

Cayaison and his friends ran up to the Cleric ward. They were met outside of the ward by Jacobsien and a few of his friends.

"All of you are out of class, what are you doing here?" Jacobsien asked sternly.

His friends took a step towards them.

"We came to see a friend, and we have a break between classes," Alixia quickly said before Cayaison or any of the others could talk.

Jacobsien looked at his friends then nodded.

"Until break is over," he said.

Alixia nodded. They walked in and found Mirnadun his face was severely injured.

"It happened in Alchemy, one of the flasks just exploded, while he was holding it," the girl said.

"How bad is it?" Cayaison asked one of the clerics.

"He will have a scar, but I am sure we can find a spell to hide it," she smiled.

They looked him over. It did not look that painful, but he was sleeping.

"We will come back later," Alixia said nodding over at Jacobsien, who had already begun to walk their way.

When Cayaison started walking towards the door, he walked just past Jacobsien and his group.

"It is sad about your friend. If only someone had been there to warn him," Jacobsien said.

Cayaison stepped close to him. "One more of my friends ends up in here!" Cayaison said threatening Jacobsien.

"And you will do what exactly?" Jacobsien replied. "Lie on the floor helpless again?" he laughed as Dawain and Rameus pulled Cayaison back.

They walked away, but Alixia looked back at Jacobsien.

She wondered how things got like this she remembered when she first came to the school Jacobsien and Cayaison were just arguing about ordinary things. They had never been friends, but they could work together, now the thought of the two of them in the same room would make anyone cringe.

"You cannot threaten him," Alixia said as she joined them.

"And why not?" Cayaison replied.

Cayaison was furious. He knew precisely what Jacobsien meant when he said someone should have been there. They had hurt Mirnadun because he was not in the class.

Did this mean they would hurt more people if he missed another class?

"Because he has the backing of all the Masters now," Violetta answered.

"Exactly," Alixia said. "We cannot do anything now. We will have to wait," she said.

Cayaison stopped. "You mean you want to do something about this?" he asked.

Alixia nodded. She knew they were the only ones that could. But how they were going to do it, she did not know, not at this moment.

"Let's go to classes like usual if we do not show, I am sure more of our friends will get hurt," she said to which they all agreed.

"We cannot be seen together either," Rameus said.

Nodding to one of the higher levels in the main hall. They could see some of Jacobsien's group staring down at them.

"I will contact the rest of you when I find a place we can meet," he said.

They all nodded. Rameus was excellent at going places without being seen. Even for his massive size, his animal instincts made him fast and cunning. They all walked away from each other.

From the top level, Friidian stared down at them. He watched as they all walked away from each other.

"So, it begins," he said to himself.

### Chapter 4: From Bad to Worse

In a dark basement, the people of Xyrene had made a makeshift prison. The metal bars were thin. The prison door hung loosely by a chain to one side. The lock was rusty and looked like it was about to fall to dust.

This prison was not meant to keep an average human inside. It was built by men that were in a hurry. Its prisoners lay on the floor too weak to move. Merladio, Trabias, and Wong had been laying on the cold stone floor since they were thrown down onto the ground with the Kytac crystals wrapped around them.

Master Wong had been exaggerating his weakness. Even though the crystals had drained him of all his magic, he still had more than enough physical energy to do what he needed to get them out.

As one of the men guarding them turned to leave. Wong snapped his wrist hard against the floor, the pain made him wince, but he needed his hand to be limp, so it could make its way through one of the links in the chain. He had been practicing this for two days now. He almost had it down perfectly.

Each day the guard would leave to grab their breakfast, leaving only one behind. Wong's limp wrist slowly pulled its way free from the chain. The guard did not pay them any attention. They were on the floor weak and helpless, so he thought.

Wong snapped his wrist back, wincing as he did it. It was done. One hand was now free of the chains. He used it to get the other hand free; He kept an eye on the guard. From his position, laying just behind Trabias he could see the guard.

Trabias had not moved since they had put them in here. His skin was almost gray. The crystals had drained him of all his magic barely keeping him alive.

Merladio was doing only slightly better. Wong had been impressed by the sure will of Merladio. He had to be chained again after he nearly broke free.

The other guard returned with their breakfast, as usual, they sat down at a small table in the corner to eat, each with their backs to them. Wong hurried, snapping the chain crystals off Trabias's hands.

Quickly he lay back down as one of the guards turned no doubt hearing the loud snap. Trabias's color began to return to him slowly. Looking back at Wong he nodded. He kept his hands behind him as he slowly swirled his finger around in small circles.

A slight draft began to fill the room. The guards started to shiver.

"Did you leave the door open again?" one of the guards asked.

"Well I was carrying both dishes," the other said as he got up to head back upstairs.

The guard shook his head as he continued to eat.

Trabias slid up to Merladio quickly breaking the chains silently. Merladio was quicker to recover. He motioned a fast motion at the guard who fell unconscious. The other guard came down. Merladio quickly reacted, with a quick spell he lifted the man off his feet.

Wong stood up kicking hard at the locked door. The door swung open. He punched the hovering man in the stomach. The guard fell to the floor.

The three looked at each other and nodded they were now talking to each other in their minds.

"How many are out there?" Merladio asked.

"We cannot tell," Trabias replied

Wong closed his eyes, opening his mind to the surroundings. He heard footsteps above him they were going away from him.

"We should go now," he said as they ran for the stairs.

When they got outside they looked around the small town had changed entirely in the two days that had been imprisoned. Most of the buildings were destroyed and in their place were pits of fire. Many of the villagers were working in these pits. They were making weapons. There were also arming large catapults.

"They are preparing for war," Trabias said he was stating the obvious.

They began to walk slowly away from the villagers, so far no one had noticed them. The people were busy running around making their weapons and training.

Merladio could not believe they had kids running training drills in the far corner. He started to think who they would be going to fight, but that was obvious when he gave it a second thought. They apparently wanted them out of the way, which meant they were going to attack Heavstat.

Many had tried to attack Heavstat all had failed. The mountains on either side were too high to climb, and the elemental sentinels guarded the path between them. If they ever made it through. Many of the old guardians that were in the valley were sure to destroy any trespassers. So why did these villagers think any differently?

Merladio and the other two Masters made it to the wall of the town. Looking up at it, they had no other choice but to climb over it.

"Trabias you first," Merladio said.

To which Wong shook his head.

"Neither of you is in shape to fight the guards on the other side," he said as he ran towards the wall scaling it quickly.

Wong's magic was skill based. He could cast spells that were physical boosts to himself, lowered the natural abilities of whoever he was facing.

The three guards did not stand a chance. Wong strolled towards them he cast a small spell to boosted his speed with a few short words.

He rushed towards the first guard before the man could even think, Wong, kicked him in the chest then elbowed the back of his head. The man fell to the floor unconscious. The other two only had seen a blur of what seemed like a man, but as they tried to react, it felt like they were moving through a thick fog.

Wong jumped, and spin kicked the next one who flipped over onto his stomach, he reached forward for the other one who had his back to him, he pulled him back then chopped his neck.

By the time Trabias and Merladio had scaled the wall, the three bodies were well hidden.

They looked back at the village, behind that stone wall was an army. They needed to warn Heavstat. But first, they needed time to rest and get themselves back up to speed. Even Wong was feeling dizzy after using the small amount of the magic he had used.

"I saw a river not far from here," Trabias said, he was good at remembering landmarks. "It is not far from the Summon stones."

The summoning stones were a collection of rocks and large stones that had been formed many centuries ago by the most powerful mages.

They were able to transport people many distances within seconds. Not many people knew how they worked or how many they were. The only problem was they took a lot of magic to work. The three of them were in no shape to use the stones.

"As soon as they find out we are gone, they will send people to the stones," Merladio said.

As they walked through the forest, a loud bell rang from behind them.

"It is too late," Merladio said.

It would mean death or be recaptured if they went back to the stones now he thought.

"We should take the long way back," Merladio suggested to which the other two agreed.

It would take a couple of days to reach the next cluster of stones, but it was the only way. Hopefully, their pursuers did not know where the other stones were. It would take weeks to get back to Heavstat if they tried to go without using the stones.

There was a loud snap as the other guard's body fell to the floor. This time there was no pretending Denessa stood over the bodies of the guards.

"Burn them!" she said.

Two men grabbed the bodies dragging them up the stairs.

"We should send our riders for the stones," Messa said standing by her side.

Denessa nodded. "I doubt they will head there now," Denessa said. "They no doubt heard the alarm."

She stared at one of the other men in the corner. He was visibly shaking.

"Make yourself useful before I decide you should join the other two!" she shouted at him.

The man hurried upstairs.

"We should have tied Wong to the wall," Denessa said

"We did not know he was..." Messa began to say.

"I did!" Denessa shouted back. "I let my need for vengeance cloud my judgment, and now they are free. They will try to head for Heavstat," she said facing Messa. "I must warn my grandfather," she said with a horrid look on her face.

The two of them began to go back upstairs.

"Why not let them get back to Heavstat?" Mess shrugged, "When they see what your grandfather has done with the place. They might do our job for us."

Denessa smiled. "Do you want them to do our job? What my father trained us for?" she asked to her second in command.

Messa shook her head.

"I was wrong," Messa said as Denessa walked into one of the few reaming standing buildings.

"No, you were right. I would love to be there to see the look on my grandfather's face," she smiled. "But his downfall will come at my hands and No one else! Now go tend to the trainees," she said looking back at the crystal in the far room. "I have to talk to my grandfather," she said as Messa walked away.

Friidian was upset when he heard the news. Jacobsien seemed like the only person he could trust. The apprentice had turned Heavstat upside down. Teachers, Masters, and Students were concerned and distrustful of each other. The cleric wing was filled with patients.

Friidian had to intervene to get things in order. He canceled classes until the Masters could find out who was doing all of this. Chaos ran rampant, and the students were in the halls doing as they pleased. More students had joined Jacobsien's group.

Now Merladio and the others were free. They would come to Heavstat and bring order back to his chaos. Then they will find out what he had planned.

Friidian shook his head. He could not have that. He waved his hand at the big crystal it shimmered then showed a map of the area where Denessa had lost the three Masters.

Trabias would no doubt want to head for the river and follow it down, but if they did that. Merladio would know it would be a dead end if they were caught in the open. Wong would want to double back and take the summoning stones by force. Merladio will not let them do that in their weakened state. He would head for the new summoning stones.

Friidian and Merladio had found a covered area just a few years ago. Underneath the fallen trees and underbrush, they saw the stones but did not have time to reactivate them. Instead, they mentally marked the place and headed back to Heavstat, they had planned to come back but never had the chance.

If he sent Denessa's forces there, it would no doubt tip his hand. Merladio would know it was Friidian who had set them up. He looked at the documents on his table, the chaos down in the halls. He was not ready yet. He waved his hand again. Denessa's face peered back at him.

"Head into the forsaken woods, there are summoning stones there," he said as he showed her the map. She looked at the map from her side of the crystal.

"Yes grandfather," she said and nodded.

The crystal went blank, and Friidian stood alone. How had things gone so wrong? He asked himself. He only wanted them out of the way until he could talk to them. Show them what he was doing was the right thing to do. He knew Merladio, he knew him well. He knew his old friend would blame the curse. They always blame the curse.

Ever since Heavstat was founded, the Grand Master had always had one vision, that vision would send the Master down a dark path, which would eventually consume him or turn him crazy.

Master Grentton had warned him about the visions when he stepped down. The elder masters at the time had forced Grentton to step down after his mental health began to spiral downward.

Friidian felt if he had not sent Trabias, Wong, and Merladio away they would do the same. He was not crazy or cursed, the visions were right. It was up to him to make sure they never came to be.

Friidian walked out of his room, into the fresh morning air. Somewhere out there his plans were being fulfilled by other loyal friends and associates he had made through the years. It was up to him to make sure Heavstat was in no shape to intervene once he left.

Illuscious came to stand beside him.

"You should have stayed with Denessa," Friidian said.

"My place has always been with you Master," Illuscious replied. "I have sent some of the carrion ravagers to aide her."

Friidian nodded. The Carrions were large birds only found in this area. That would surely let Merladio and the others know of Friidian's involvement.

"We will need to bring the timeline forward. Make sure the others are ready to move when I say," Friidian said.

Illuscious nodded then turned and walked away. Friidian stood alone. He knew deep down that Denessa, and her helpers will only hold the three masters for so long, he had to prepare for them, and an avoidable fight with his old friend Merladio.

The days had not gone so well for Cayaison and his friends. After the classes had been canceled the five of them had settled to teaching each other skills they had perfected, which led to many other students coming to them for aid. They had accepted the other students. When Jacobsien had learned of their actions, Alixia told him they were keeping their minds occupied.

They were trying to keep many of the students under their watchful eye. Too many students had been hurt to pass off as accidents. If Jacobsien were behind the accidents, he would have to show himself eventually.

The number of students had grown so large that their classes, where held down by the stables. The stable master even participated sometimes. Cayaison thought she was holding back for some reason or not telling them something.

"That is all for today," Violetta said to the students as they all picked up their scrolls and headed for the staircases. "Remember same time tomorrow and make sure you head straight to your rooms. No messing around in the halls!" she ordered with a stern voice.

"I will go make sure the younger ones get back safely," Rameus said.

Violetta nodded.

Alixia looked up at the great Heavstat that loomed above her. Even though it looked and felt like they were on the ground with stones, grass, and dirt all around them, everyone knew they were on Heavstat's lowest platform.

Below them was a significant drop to the real ground. This platform circled the perimeter of Heavstat. It had been made for students to get away from their classes, also so they could stretch their legs. Looming above them was the constant reminder that they had not entirely left their school.

"What is on that mind of yours today?" Cayaison asked dragging a cloth across his face.

He had just finished showing a bunch of the students some self-defense techniques he had learned from Master Wong.

"The attacks," she said pointing at Heavstat. "I know the magic barrier surrounding it protects the outside. So that is how the white stones stay white, but what about the inside?" she said turning to face him.

He looked puzzled.

"How does it stay clean?" she asked. "There are thousands of students running back and forth dropping paper, ink or what other things they do, but have you ever seen any of it?" she asked.

Violetta and Dawain had heard the conversation.

"Now that you say that," Dawain said. "A few months ago, I dropped a mug of milk, I went to get a cloth to pick it up, but when I came back it was gone, and the mug was on the table. I thought one of the lunch ladies must have picked it up," he shrugged.

Violetta turned to face the large school.

"So what are you thinking Alixia?" she asked.

"The caretakers," she said.

They all smiled it was a rumor as old as Heavstat. Supposedly retired Masters or students that did not make it to graduation could volunteer to be caretakers of Heavstat. The story said that these people were permanently enchanted to be invisible to the eye. Their job was to maintain Heavstat, even to enforce the rules of Heavstat.

No one had seen or heard them. Many had tried to see one or get a caretaker to show themselves, but nothing had ever come of it. So it stayed a rumor.

"How many things have we all done to prove they exist?" Cayaison smiled.

"Countless," Violetta said

Cayaison and Violetta had done many things to get the caretakers to show. They had dropped things, just to walk away and hide in a corner to see if some magic person would show up to pick it up. Or they would try to break one of the rules just to see if someone would show up to stop them. Most of the time they would get caught by one of the Masters.

"I know, but hear me out," Alixia said. "They may not act right away, and I am sure they know we are watching and listening. What if they are walking among us? Say as a student or as a Master?"

This made them stop smiling, and they all began to think.

"Wilkins!" Violetta and Cayaison said at the same time.

"He has been here as long as I can remember, he has never graduated although he is a student," Violetta said.

"I have never seen him in any class," Cayaison said. "I just thought he was just not picking up the art of magic," he shrugged.

They all sat there and started to think of names of people they had seen around for years, also any that seemed never to grow old or do anything that seemed relevant. By the time night was nearly upon them they had come up with over fourteen names.

"We will look into this more tomorrow, but it is a start. Good thinking Alixia!" Cayaison said as they rushed up the stairs before the night settled in.

The morning crept in like it always did. Cayaison had already woken up. He had waited long enough. He slowly made his way to the main hallway when Violetta caught up to him.

"Sleep well?" she asked fully knowing the answer.

"No. Did you?" Cayaison replied.

"Not at all," she said.

All Violetta could think of was the caretakers. If they were around them always, were they really behind all the accidents and why would they side with Jacobsien? As if sensing all the questions she was asking herself. Cayaison laughed.

"Been asking myself those questions too," he said.

They reached their usual bench and waited for the others. As usual, Rameus was the last one to show.

"Alixia have you done any more thinking about how they are doing all this?" Dawain asked.

Alixia shook her head. "I came up with the problem," she said. "Up to you to solve it."

"I will solve it," Rameus said as he walked away from them. "Menan can I have a word!" he shouted at one of the names they had thought of last night.

The old man looked back in shock. Usually, the students ignored him.

"Of course," the old man said visibly shaken.

The others got up and walked over.

"Are you a caretaker?" Rameus asked he was never one to be subtle.

"What?" Menan replied looking around.

"A caretaker," Cayaison intervened.

The look on the man's face told it all. He was scared.

"You should not ask such questions," The man turned to walk away, but Dawain blocked his path, there were not many students around, especially since classes had been canceled.

"I think that is a yes," Violetta said.

Menan looked back at her with shock.

"No... I did not say that," he said shaking his finger at her.

"Why are the caretakers attacking the students?" Alixia asked.

"We would... I mean they would never do that. Whoever they are," Menan said.

He shook his head in defeat. It was not the first time a student had found the truth about their secret, but usually, a Master would appear and help them out of the situation, but no Master was going to come to his aide not now anyway.

"Someone has been using our spell and have been causing the accidents. We have tried to find out who but they are good at hiding their tracks," Menan said with a deep sigh.

"Give us the spell, we can find them," Cayaison said.

The others nodded. Even Alixia had grown tired of playing it safe. All of them wanted to go on the offensive for a change.

Menan looked at them. "I will have to ask some of the others. But I do not see a problem, most of us like what you have been doing with the other students," Menan said.

"Meet at the stables tonight, and we will have your answer," a voice said from nowhere.

Menan smiled another caretaker had been listening to the conversation. Menan waved as he disappeared.

"How?" Cayaison said looking around, but there was no one there.

Then he remembered Jacobsien and two of his friends had done the same thing.

"Jacobsien and his friends must have taken the spell," he said out loud.

Alixia shot him a glance. He nodded.

"We should get some rest. If we are to find whoever is doing all of this, I am sure they meet at night," Rameus said.

To which, they all nodded their agreement.

The group woke up near nightfall, meeting at the top of the staircase. They made sure no one had followed them. When they were sure they were alone, they walked down the stairs to the stables slowly. Together they walked into the stables, no one was there, but they could feel a significant presence.

"Anyone there?" Alixia asked.

Slowly figures came out of nowhere standing in a large circle around them. They were all dressed in black robes with their hoods up. Cayaison remembered this was the same attire that Jacobsien and his friends now wore. One of the hooded figures stepped forward.

"You already know one of our members and since you know who it was," the figure walked around them. "We had to let him go," the figure said almost with remorse in his voice.

"Where did he go?" Alixia asked.

Another walked forward.

"That is not of your concern, he is no longer in Heavstat," it said as the other backed into its place in the circle. "We are the caretakers, we have always looked after Heavstat, as well as the students and Masters," the figure said. "It is not the concern of any of the occupants to know who we are, or how we conduct our duties," this one said then backed into its place.

"However recent events have made us realize that we cannot handle this threat to Heavstat," another one said as it stepped forward. Cayaison stepped forward.

"Someone has found out how you go unseen and is using it against you?" Cayaison said.

To which there was silence.

"You cannot go after these people without giving up who you are," Cayaison said.

Again, there was silence.

"Show us how, and we will find out who they are, then you can..." Dawain began to say.

"When you find them," one of the figures said.

"We will deal with them," the rest said as one.

One of them dropped a small parchment on the floor then they all disappeared.

Cayaison reached down, picking it up, it was a spell, a very easy spell. They gathered around him, each of them nodded as he began to speak the words on the parchment. Nothing seemed to happen they were still in the stable.

"Did it work?" Alixia asked.

"Let us find out," Rameus said as he walked toward the staircase. They slowly followed.

"Anyone feel like they are moving faster?" Dawain asked.

The rest of them acknowledge that they did feel like they were moving faster. It felt like they were floating, but they could feel the floor under their feet. When they reached the main hallway, no one was there, which was not a surprise it was late.

They did not realize how late it was until they saw a dark man walking the hallway. It looked around then went down another hall.

"It did not see us," Cayaison said.

They nodded back at him.

"So where would Jacobsien and the others be?" Alixia asked.

They stood in the hall thinking for a moment, none of them could come up with an answer. Then it dawned on them; it was very late, everybody including Jacobsien and his friends would be sleeping.

Cayaison nodded, he re-read the chant, nothing seemed to happen, but then the Dark man came back down the hall, it made a face bearing its teeth.

They all stood their ground knowing that together they could defend themselves. It nodded its defeat and disappeared. The friends went to their separate rooms making sure the magic seal locked them inside.

The morning would come soon, and they would find out what Jacobsien was up too. They all slowly fell asleep thinking about what the new day would bring.

Denessa stepped out into the darkness. The forest had enveloped the summoning stones in its dark grip. Four of her men were guarding the large stones. She looked up at them. A small pillar stood in the middle of a stone clearing. Three large stones spun in opposites of each other above the pillar.

"When did he say they will get here?" Messa asked from behind Denessa.

"It will be here," Denessa replied

As the stones stopped spinning, they formed a perfect circle then dropped to the floor. A bright light shone from the ring as two men walked through the bright light. Behind them came a horse-drawn cart. When the carriage and the men had moved out of the circle, the stones shot back into the air and began to spin again.

"Here it is ma'am," one of the men said.

He pulled the large black canvas from over the back of the cart. There were four large cages in the back of the cart. Each cage had a large bird inside.

"Carrion ravagers," one of Denessa's men said.

He backed up away from the cart. The large birds eyed her. Their evil black eyes fell upon her.

"Do not show fear," Denessa said. "They feed on fear, if you give in they will grow bigger and break their cages, you will surely be the first to die," she said looking at the birds in awe.

Denessa had only read about them when she was in Heavstat. Now she looked upon them. Their large black bodies, with the rim of their eyes laced with a blood red color. In the pitch black of night, their dark bodies, almost blended in except for their eyes. Even though they were black, they pierced through the darkness.

"Release them," She smiled.

"We were told..." one of the men said.

"I don't care what you were told," Denessa snarled at the man. "I am telling you to release them."

"Ma'am do you have a piece of their clothing?" one of the men asked.

"Yes," Denessa replied as she took a piece of cloth out from a pocket. "It was taken off the wall when one of them climbed it," she said handing it to the man.

"Aye it will do," he said.

He shook it in front of each cage, which angered the large birds.

"Step back," he said, as he took a giant hammer and hit a pin on each cage.

The birds walked out of their cages and onto the floor, their large heads went back and forth, their beaks were also a dark black, their talons scraped along the stone ground with a loud clicking sound.

They stood as high as a grown man's waist. They continued to look around, then as if speaking to each other their wings opened, and with one flap, all four of the birds flew into the night.

Denessa looked around, but she could not see them all she could hear was the flapping of their wings.

"Now I know why they call them Night Devil's," she smiled as she looked in the air.

Somewhere up there four devil birds were on their way to attack her enemies.

Trabias had started a small fire. The others brought small amounts of wood to pile onto it. Although most of their magic had returned to them, it would still be a full day before they were back to what they would consider normal.

Merladio sat down next to a tree, he was thinking of the day ahead, they were only a few hours away from the summoning stones he had found with Friidian. It would take all of them to reactivate them, and that would take up most of the day.

With their pursuers not far behind them, this was only going to be a short rest. They had tried to keep their magic use to a minimum just using it to traverse the large river and to cross a deep ravine. They sat in silence in a small circle, Trabias nearest to the fire in case anyone came close, so he could quickly put it out. Merladio sat near his tree with the line of sight in one direction and Wong on the opposite side of him.

Slowly the day's events took over them, and they all drifted asleep.

Merladio was the first to stir, he sat up and began to listen, quickly he woke the others.

"Do you hear that?" he said as they all awoke.

The others stopped shuffling around and began to listen. There was nothing to be heard, no movement from any of the nocturnal animals they had heard before. They got to their feet. The silence from the other creatures could only mean one thing a large predator was in the area. But what could make every animal stop and lay still? Then they heard it, at first it was slight, but it began to get louder.

Merladio motioned to them to kneel he knew what it was and if he was right, it was too late to run. He put his hands near to the fire. The noise was getting closer almost right above them now.

"Run when I say," he whispered.

He waited until they were right on top of them.

"Now!" he shouted as he drew the fire into his hand and expelled into the air, a large flame erupted out of his hands as the large birds became engulfed by the fire.

Merladio and the others raced off.

"Ravagers!" Trabias said as he looked back at the birds flapping their wings and writhing on the forest floor.

"Keep running that will only slow them down!" Merladio shouted.

The fear from the other animals would only heal the ravagers much faster.

Wong was ahead of them dodging and weaving through the thick underbrush of the large trees around them.

"Keep close to Wong," Merladio said.

Merladio understood the path that Wong was taking, the large birds could not fly through the thick branches of the large trees above, so they would have to fly over or walk through.

He took a quick glance behind them, the glare from the ravagers burning bodies had gone. Merladio did not doubt that the birds were after them again. Large movements on the ground told him they were running to them.

Even though most birds could not run, ravagers could. They had small claws at the end of their wings. When their wings folded close to their bodies, the claws acted like little feet.

Merladio knew that if the ravagers had been sent to kill them, it only meant that Friidian and other Masters of Heavstat were involved. In Merladio also knew that heading for the new summoning stones were going to be a trap.

Merladio had no choice. He had to go to them, more now than before. If Friidian wanted them far away from Heavstat, it only meant the students were in trouble. He quickly turned around his hand lit with a fiery ball of fire, he launched it out at one of the large movements running towards them. He missed, but it served its purpose the one thing all animals feared more than the ravagers, was fire. In a hurry, small birds and other animals ran away from the blaze.

"That should stop them from growing," he said to himself as he joined the others.

They had stopped at the edge of a clearing.

"What is it?" Merladio asked.

When he got closer, he realized they were at the top of a cliff. The forest stopped here, giving way to a broad cliff face.

If they were at full strength, they could effortlessly float down or fight their way past the ravagers. As it was the latest use of his magic had nearly made Merladio too weak to stand.

"Climb down. I will fight them," Wong said preparing himself.

The ravagers now circled them. Their large eyes, looking from one Master to the other.

"No, you take Trabias and go," Merladio said as he stepped in front of them.

The two Masters did not make a move.

"That was not a request!" Merladio said looking back at them.

Suddenly a dark mass fell from the sky, plummeting down in front of them, it then turned into a giant worg bear and began to fight the ravagers.

The bear was much larger than most bears its claws tore through the first Ravager, another ravager jumped at it, but the bear caught it in mid-air and snapped its neck. The last ravager backed off and flew away. The bear turned to them, then began to shapeshift again.

"Masters?" a young lady said.

She wore green leather. Her hair was long and brown. She was very short but slender. The green leather showed off her female physique very well. She bowed in front of them.

"Lexia?" Master Wong said pleased as he embraced his best student.

"What do you mean? You do not know who she was?" a man screamed at another man.

They were at the summoning stones. The two men were arguing as Denessa, and two of her members pulled themselves off the ground.

"What happened?" Denessa asked.

She remembered the stones spinning and a portal opening as two men came through. Then there was a woman behind them. She didn't look like the two men ahead of her.

Once they were through, the woman quickly attacked the two men that had come with her, with a large staff, she hurled the staff at Denessa. Before Denessa could think to retaliate, the staff had hit the ground. It sent a wave of energy through the earth sending everyone off of their feet. Then the woman flew away in the shape of a bird.

"Lexia!" she screamed out loud.

Denessa remembered her former friend at Heavstat. The two of them were inseparable at one point when Denessa got expelled, Lexia left Heavstat to be with her friend. The two traveled around together for a while until Lexia found out what Denessa was plotting. Denessa had tried to recruit Lexia, but she disappeared one night, never to be seen again until tonight.

"You two!" she screamed at the men "Go back to Heavstat and inform..." as she was talking the stones began to move again.

"What now?" Messa asked preparing herself for whatever came through the portal.

A large man dressed in Masters robes stepped through the portal, massive hog beasts came walking behind him, four of them in total.

"Master Grendor!" the two men said in fear.

"Where are my ravagers?" Grendor asked looking around.

Grendor was a very tall man, taller than most Masters. His hair was bald with scars on his scalp. He had another massive scar in the shape of a claw scratch over his right eye, which made the eye completely white. The robe fell off one shoulder. It was torn and shredded in some areas.

"I told them to send the ravagers after the Masters!" Denessa said as the portal closed.

"Ah, you must be Denessa," Grendor said displeased. "Did they tell you to wait for me, so I could mentor the birds in case the Master's fought back?"

Denessa said nothing. He pushed past her. He looked into the sky as if searching for them.

"Two are dead, and one is badly hurt, I will have to kill it," he said looking back at her. "Gather four of your fastest riders," he said as if ordering a child. "I will take care of this new threat. Myself."

Lexia had shapeshifted into to a Great Hawk, flying the Masters down one at a time.

"I should have known!" Merladio said cursing himself.

Lexia had filled them in on everything she knew. It seemed Lexia had made her way back to Heavstat with Wong's help. There she found out what Denessa had been planning with her grandfather. She waited until the right time to make her presence known.

Merladio knew when Denessa was in Heavstat. Friidian had paid too much attention to her. First, he thought it was just a mentor and student relationship, like what he had with Cayaison. But now to hear they were related.

"None of us did," Trabias said, he looked up at the towering cliff.

Merladio was angry. Friidian and the others that were involved had fooled him. He had thought that he had talked Friidian into letting him come with the others, but now it seemed it was his plan all the time.

"If Grendor is behind the animal attacks, that cliff will not stop him," Trabias said.

"How far are these stones, Master?" Lexia said visibly exhausted.

"You cannot carry us, you are exhausted, and we will need you to defend us in the event of an attack," Wong said.

To which the others nodded. They began to walk with Merladio leading the way. The ground ahead was made up of thin, tall grass.

"We will leave tracks on this ground, they will easily follow," Trabias said looking behind them.

"Try not to break any branches or leaves, and I will take care of the tracks," Lexia smiled.

Lexia's dark brown hair and blue eyes gave way to a fox's face as she shifted form again. She walked behind the masters brushing her tail back and forth covering their tracks.

They had traversed a large area when they began to hear the loud noise. Trabias was in front.

"We must hurry," he said he knew that sound.

It was the reason he had moved to ban Grendor from the animal cages. Grendor had used his magic to change the sizes and behavior of animals. The ravagers were a direct example of his meddling. But his prize work were the hogs. He had made them as large as horses, which increased their anger, and their strength. And now they were bearing down on them.

"I will stay and fight them!" Lexia said as she turned back to a human form. "It will give you time," she said looking around waiting for any sign of their attackers.

"You will lose," Wong said knowing the hogs very well.

Grendor had paraded them around when he first made them. All of the Masters told him it was wrong to play with nature this way. He was instantly banned from using his magic again and forced to be a worker in the stables until he had learned the error of his ways.

It would seem Friidian had freed him from his banishment.

"Quick lie on the floor," Trabias said.

They all fell flat on the floor, Trabias cast a concealment spell over them. To the untrained eye, they looked like mud and muck among the wet grass.

The boars and their riders crashed through the small trees ahead of them. There were two of them, then from the other way, two more came. The boars sniffed the air as the riders looked around.

"Did you see them?" one of the riders shouted to the others.

"No!" they shouted back.

"They must be hiding!" one shouted,

The boars sniffed the air and began to shake and grunt in another direction.

"That way!" the man shouted as they ran away.

"All clear," Trabias said as they stood up. "We have to get to a safe place for the night."

"When I flew overhead to find you I saw some gnarled thorn tree's up ahead. It should keep us safe until morning," Lexia said.

They nodded and began to follow.

The morning did not come fast enough for Cayaison. He had spent most of the night tossing and turning. He was anxious to find Jacobsien. As soon as the morning arrived, he was the first one out of his room. He wandered the halls looking for any sign of the others, but they were still in their rooms.

It was another day of no classes, as usual, the other Masters had ignored Cayaison when he had asked them why the classes were canceled. They always told him the same thing, that he had to ask Grand Master Friidian who was unreachable at this time.

Cayaison returned to the student halls where he saw the others finally out of their rooms.

"How long have you been up?" Violetta asked.

Cayaison smiled knowing they would make fun of him if he told them he had not slept at all.

"So where should we start?" Dawain asked.

Dawain wanted to get this out of the way. He disliked seeing Heavstat like this. It was disturbing him more than any of the others. Seeing the students walking around as if they were lost, or some of them never came out of their rooms, scared they would get hurt.

"I was thinking of the Master's room and chambers," Cayaison said looking at them to see a reaction. They nodded.

"I agree," Violetta said, she had been thinking the same.

Jacobsien must have got the spell from a Master. It would make the most sense that they would be up there, away from prying eyes. Alixia was the first to start walking towards the stairs.

"I just want to get this over with," she said as she walked faster.

When they reached the Master's level, they stood in a circle, pulling up the hoods on their robes as Cayaison chanted the incantation. They looked around to make sure it was working when they were satisfied they began to stroll towards the Master's room. One of the Masters came out of the room stared right at them. Alixia was scared that he had seen them, but when he walked directly passed them.

"Can they walk through us?" Dawain asked.

"We better avoid them," Rameus said. "So, we do not find out."

Rameus grabbed the door, but the handle slipped through his hand. He tried again, but he could not move it. Cayaison tried he could not touch it either when he tried to reach for the wall. His hand went through it. He smiled and walked forward finding himself inside the room.

It was a large circular room with tall chairs lining the walls. Cayaison had walked right through the chairs. In the center of the room he could see Master Tunadas, he was talking to other Masters in the room. Cayaison could not hear what he was saying.

Cayaison cursed himself for using the spell. He could not hear what they were saying. He could not hear, touch or smell anything. He saw the burning candles on tables that were around the room, but the air did not smell like fire. The others came into the room through the wall.

"What is he saying?" Cayaison asked.

Alixia walked right up to him until she was face to face with him.

"He is talking about Grand Master Friidian," she said watching his lips.

Tunadas seemed angry like he was trying to drive a point home to the few Masters in the room.

"Cayaison!" she said loudly and scared. "He is talking about war!" she said following him as he turned to each of the Masters pointing to them.

"He wants them to do their parts," she said shaking her head. "They have a specific duty, he wants to make sure they are doing it," she said as Master Tunadas walked out of the circle. "What is going on?" she asked.

"Nothing you should worry yourselves about," a voice said from the far corner.

It was one of Jacobsien's friends. He took off running out of the room straight through the wall.

"Rameus!" Cayaison yelled.

Rameus was already running after him.

Rameus shapeshifted into his beast form. He caught up with the kid in the hallway he leaped for him, hoping that he could touch others that were under the cover spell.

He tackled the kid to the floor, then roared in his face. The kid held his hands up.

There were other people in the hallway, but none of them saw or heard what was going on right in front of them. Cayaison and the others caught up to him.

"Let him up," Cayaison said.

The kid stood up.

"Nathan, right?" Cayaison said.

The kid nodded. Nathan was in his fourth year at Heavstat which meant he could be anywhere from sixteen to twenty years old. But he looked like he was twelve. Magic would soon slow his aging down further.

"I will not tell you anything," Nathan said.

Rameus shifted back to his human form.

Nathan took this opportunity to take himself out of the spell by quickly speaking the canceling words. Cayaison tried to reach him before he finished, but it was too late. One of the Master's saw him and promptly escorted him off this level.

All they could do was watch. There was clapping from the other side of the hall. It was Jacobsien and more of his group they were walking towards him.

"You finally figured it out," Jacobsien said smiling. "I would have thought you were going to but much soon than this, but better late than, never right?"

There was twelve of them. They thought their numbers could scare Cayaison and his group. Cayaison and his friends stood their ground.

"Do you remember when we first came, he had that big boil on his face from alchemy class?" Violetta said. Cayaison laughed.

"So that is where he got that scar from?" Alixia said pointing at Jacobsien's face.

One of Jacobsien's friends grabbed her hand to which Dawain pushed his hand out as fast as he could the young man flew back hitting the far wall, forcing one of the tall candle stands to fall to the floor. People in the hallway looked at it, then all around looking for what had caused it to fall.

"Seems like we can touch things, we just have to be angry enough," Rameus said. "Well I sure can get angry," he said as his eyes began to glow.

"Enough!" a voice bellowed down the hallway.

It was Friidian. He said a few words and the two groups came into everyone's sight.

"The cover spell is broken," he said out loud. "Cayaison leave this ward and never return for your own good," he turned around. "You can tell the watcher's whatever you want to tell them. I have put actions into motion, not even they can stop."

Cayaison and his group slowly walked down the hallway. Masters looked at them, but then the watchers came up the hall. The lead watcher stopped at the staircase. It dropped its hood.

"It has been a while Friidian," the man said It was an elderly man his face was wrinkled, and he seemed frail but very powerful at the same time.

"Arthais," Friidian said.

It was a voice Cayaison had never heard. It had a hint of fear.

"You know there is no floor in this place that I do not have say over?" Arthais said.

The name rang loud in Cayaison's head, but he could not remember where he had heard it.

"It cannot be him," Alixia whispered.

"I know the rules of this place, but I choose not to abide by them anymore. If you choose to force them upon me you know where to find me," Friidian said,

Friidian looked at the Masters and Jacobsien's group. In a blink of an eye, they all disappeared. Arthais shook his head.

"He has grown to be very powerful," Arthais said.

The old man walked towards Cayaison. The other watchers began to search the hallway for anyone left behind.

"Your him," Alixia smiled.

Arthais smiled and nodded.

"Cayaison he is one of the original architects of Heavstat!" she almost shouted.

Cayaison finally remembered where he had seen the name. It was on the bottom of his favorite painting in the great hall. It showed a Mage fighting the sizeable eternal dragon. It was said they fought for three days, at the end of the fight, the dragon gave the Mage eternal life.

He had always thought it was just a story. But here he was the eternal Mage Arthais. Cayaison's legs suddenly felt weak.

"We have much to do in very little time," Arthais said.

Arthais had his followers, the Watchers, gather all the children, students and any of the Masters and teachers not loyal to Friidian into the great hall. He waited until they closed the doors. His long gray beard hung to his chest. He looked like he was in deep thought.

Anybody looking at him would think how this old man was still alive. His years showed in every wrinkle on his face and hands. But everyone in the hall knew this was the most powerful Mage there ever was.

"Is this everyone?" he gently whispered to Cayaison who stood by his side. Cayaison nodded. Cayaison looked behind him. His friends stood there nodding.

"Yes Master," Cayaison whispered back.

Arthais nodded. He cleared his throat with a single cough. And with a voice that boomed through the hall. He began to speak.

"Tonight, is the darkest night in Heavstat's history. One of its Masters has betrayed us all. We will correct this. I need all teachers and Masters to keep the students safe inside this hall. My followers and I will confront Friidian. No matter what happens those doors must not be open from the inside. Only we can break the seal from the outside," he said, and with that, he pulled his hood over his head and began to walk out.

"We will be right beside you," Cayaison said. He and his friends began to follow.

"No Cayaison this is not your battle to fight, there will be a time for you to confront your former Master, tonight is not that night," Arthais said his gray eyes met with the young pupil.

Arthais saw so much of himself in this child. "You will do great things Cayaison, remember to follow your first thoughts, do not allow doubt to influence your actions," he said before turning around.

Arthais nodded at the two watchers at the door. They walked out, the huge doors closed behind them. Then a magic seal was heard sealing the doors.

Friidian stood at his doors as he heard the two summoned guards fall to the ground. He knew who was behind those doors. He had been awaiting this confrontation for many years. The doors blew open, flying off their hinges. Arthais stood there looking back at him.

"I see you found me," Friidian said.

"I expect you have been waiting for me?" Arthais said as he entered the room.

Arthais looked around the room. This place had been his room for many years when Heavstat was in its younger years.

"A lot has changed since I was last in this room," he looked at the rows of books and scrolls.

Then he looked at the large sphere.

"And some things have not," he said staring at it.

"I do not know why you will not join me. Surely you can see that the humans are a threat to all?" Friidian said.

Arthais nodded. "If you have lived as long as I have, then you will know the future is not written in stone, but in sand and so it is easily changed," Arthais replied.

Friidian smiled. "I will make sure that it will change. And that you cannot stop!" Friidian backed away from Arthais.

"I do not plan on stopping you Friidian. I leave that to the young ones," Arthais said as he pulled up the sleeves of his robe. "You will not get what you seek, in the great hall," At this Friidian gritted his teeth.

"Should have known you hid it there, I will tear that hall apart!" Friidian said.

Friidian launched a flurry of massive ice shards at Arthais from his hands. Arthais blinked his eyes, he disappeared and reappeared beside Friidian. With a simple hand gesture, a gust of wind launched Friidian across the room.

"Child! I have fought many battles there is nothing you can do that I have not seen. So use your spell already and get this over with!" Arthais shouted down at Friidian.

Friidian smiled.

"You know, but you still came?" Friidian slowly stood.

Arthais covered his hands back up and stood there looking at the sphere.

"We all have our time to die. I had known when my time was going to come, and who was going to kill me," Arthais said with a smile on his face. "Since the day you stepped inside this school, I knew this day was coming, and I never tried to stop it," Arthais said. "Instead I spent that time planning for what happens after my death, so be warned. Anything that you have planned for I have set plans to impede you at every step!"

Friidian's face twisted into pure hate. He began to chant the spell. Arthais fell to his knee's as his powers were drawn out of him and into Friidian.

Arthais now lay on the floor as Friidian rose into the air, his body was now filled with the powers of the eternal mage. He slowly lowered himself to the floor as Arthais's body turned to dust under his robes.

Friidian looked around, then he got angry, not only was he supposed to get all of the Mages power, but he was supposed to get his memories. He was supposed to remember everything the Mage had gone through, but he could only could remember everything from the moment Arthais walked into the room.

"No!" Friidian screamed.

He tried to remember the most powerful spells the Mage had used or created; nothing came to him. Only the memories of this room. He quickly turned around to the sphere instead of being pure white. It was now gray and dull.

"You poured your memories into it!" he shouted down at the withered dust on the floor.

The sphere fell off its stone altar, cracking under the weight of the Mage's memories. It rolled across the floor before stopping at the far wall, it split into two pieces then fell apart. Friidian screamed he was furious. He slammed the doors open his followers stood there looking at him.

"Find the Watchers, all of them. Kill them all," he said.

"Yes Master, but they have placed an unbreakable seal on the great hall doors," one of the followers said.

"Then torture them, until they give you the spell to break it!" Friidian shouted.

There was something in the great hall that the elder Mage had hidden from all. Friidian wanted it, without it, all of this was a big waste of time. He strode forward making his way to the great hall. Somehow someway those doors will be opened.

### Chapter 5: Here We Stand. Here We Fall

The night crept in slowly. From their vantage point, they could see all around the summoning stones. Grendor had brought more beasts to aide him.

"I thought you said they were not active?" Wong asked.

Merladio looked over at the scene. Friidian must have sent another Master to help Grendor activate the stones. He looked around. There was no way to get to the stones without being seen.

A small rodent came up to them. They were hiding in tall bushes just in front of the clearing. The rodent began to shift forms.

"It is hard to get any closer," Lexia said retaking her human form. "They have magic wards to detect any source of magic, including my shapeshifting."

Merladio knew that it had to be Friidian's doing. He had been thinking about Friidian all night. Now he was entirely sure that his friend had to be stopped.

"They will be guarding both stone locations now," he said. He knew the others were thinking of going back to the other stones.

"We need a diversion. Then two of us could get through easily," Trabias said.

"That means two of us would be the bait?" Wong asked.

Wong knew it would have to be Merladio and himself to go through. If things were as bad as they thought back at Heavstat, the only real way to fight Friidian and his followers would be for their most potent threats to make it through.

"Good luck Master," Lexia said.

Trabias and Lexia were already beginning to walk through the bushes towards the camp.

"Follow my lead," Trabias said as he started to run forward.

Trabias's primary ability was lightning. And on a night like this one, he was at his most dangerous. Arcs of lightning shot out of his hands destroying two wagons of supplies. Lexia had no other magic abilities except for shapeshifting.

"Run!" Trabias shouted.

Groups of men and women began to run after them. Lexia shapeshifted into a wolf and bolted for the forest line.

"Let's go," Merladio said.

The two Masters walked towards the stones. There was only a handful of people left behind. They were no match for the two Masters.

As Merladio activated the stones, Wong stood guard for any members that would return. A figure broke the forest line; Wong prepared himself for combat. It was Lexia she was running back in human form.

"What happened?" Wong asked.

"Trabias said he could handle them. He said I should stay with you," She looked wounded.

Wong tried to look at it. But she shook her head.

"It isn't too bad. I think I hurt myself," Lexia tried to smile. "Too much shapeshifting!" she shrugged.

The stones began to turn again.

"They are ready," Merladio said.

The three of them ran towards the swirling light. There was a flash of bright light, then it disappeared. They found themselves just below Heavstat. It was floating way above them.

"It never ceases to amaze me," Lexia said as she looked up.

Lexia could see the whole thing. Heavstat, the building, sat on a massive rough rock. It was the size of a small mountain. The rock floated above a large hole in the ground. Lexia stepped forward to look down the hole. Wong pulled her back.

"If you look at the pure energy that keeps it afloat you will be mesmerized and fall in," he said to her.

"The raw power will tear you apart slowly," Merladio said. "The pain will feel like it will never end and go on for eternity, but it will only take a day for you to be shredded to nothing."

Merladio began waving his hands in circles. It started slowly, then began to build, the air around them began to stir. Slowly the three of them were lifted into the air.

The three of them landed at the main entrance to Heavstat. This area was where the rock met the school. The flat surface of the rock gave way to stairs that led up to the main door of Heavstat. Anybody that had permission to enter Heavstat came through here. At this moment though it was blocked by teachers and Masters loyal to Friidian.

"Take my staff," Wong said producing a small staff from under his robes. "Do not shapeshift if you do not have to," Wong said as he and Merladio walked forward.

Lexia held the staff in her hands the staff's magic extended itself to its full length. She held it at her side. She had learned many different styles of attacks and defenses. She knew these were Masters she would have to be very good to defend herself against these people.

"Keep behind us!" Wong said as the wave of attackers began their attack.

Lexia tried to keep up the best she could, getting the people that fell through the cracks of Merladio's and Wong's attacks. One of the teachers attacked her with vines that came from the ground. She jumped free of them, floating through the air. She landed behind him. She spun around knocking him to the ground with the end of the staff. She jumped again bring the staff down on top of him. She turned to see that for her one victory. Merladio and Wong had many.

Bodies lay on the floor. Lexia tried to keep an eye on Wong but he seemed to be everywhere, disappearing and appearing, she knew it was a spell that was making him move faster than her eyes could see. She ran to catch up with them now near the school doors.

While the three of them were fighting to get inside Heavstat, Friidian was struggling to get inside the great hall. He was furious, his followers had captured and tortured all the Watchers, none of them had given up the spell that held the doors closed.

"Master!" one of his followers ran up to him as he stood outside the great hall. "Merladio and the others have reached the entrance. We are being pushed back," the follower said.

Friidian looked back at him with anger in his eyes.

"What are you doing here?" he walked towards the man. "Who would you rather face, them or me!"

The man turned on his heels, running down the hallway. The other followers around Friidian backed away from him.

"There must be one of them inside!" Friidian shouted.

The memories of the eternal Mage were just out of reach, every time he thought he had a something, it would disappear. Friidian guessed it would take a lot of time before he would have the ability to remember everything. But time was not an option. He was aware that in a few moments. Merladio and the others would come for him.

Inside the great hall. Cayaison stood by the door while the others tried to comfort the younger kids. He could make out Friidian's voice but no others. When he heard the mention of Merladio, he got excited. His Master was coming, and by Friidian's reaction, he was in Heavstat.

"We need to talk," A young man came up to him.

Cayaison nodded. He had heard that Friidian had thought there was a Watcher inside the hall. They moved against one of the far walls away from the rows of chairs.

"The ward on the door, I can break it, but only from the inside."

"Why are you telling me this now?" Cayaison asked.

"Before Arthais passed, he told us one of his plans," the man said. "He put the ward on the door and sealed us in," the man said looking around to make sure no one could hear him. "He sealed us in because of you!"

This shocked Cayaison. Why me?" he asked.

"Arthais knew this day would come; he knew one day the visions would be too much for a Grand Master to take, so he set a plan into action. A plan you must carry out!" he said. "Somewhere in this room is the first part of that plan. But only you can find it," the man looked around.

Cayaison began to look, all he saw was the familiar faces, the rows of seats. The Master's table in the back of the room nothing seemed out of place.

"He said it would take time," the man said as if he knew what Cayaison was thinking.

Cayaison nodded.

"Cayaison!" Dawain shouted from the door. Cayaison ran over to the door. "It went quiet," Dawain said as they both put their ears against the door.

"What have you done. Friidian?" Merladio asked as he strolled towards his best friend.

Friidian's followers stepped aside as Merladio and Friidian met face to face.

"What other Grand Master's should have done years ago!" Friidian said unafraid.

Merladio studied the chaos that was rampant in the hallway. Dead bodies of the Watchers lay bleeding out on the floor. Scorched marks of spells that had bounced off the protection ward scarred the roof and adjacent walls. Friidian stood there putting his face up high as he watched Merladio looked around at the chaos and damage he had caused.

"All of this because of your visions?" Merladio said as he circled his friend. "You killed the Watchers and put Heavstat into ruin because of your visions!"

Merladio was more telling his friend more than he was asking. He walked closer to the door.

"Cayaison?" he asked, knowing that if anyone could keep the other students and teachers of Heavstat safe, it would be his best pupil.

"Yes, Master?" Cayaison answered.

"How many are left?" Merladio asked looking back at Friidian.

Cayaison and his friends counted the remaining people in the hall.

"Forty-one teachers, Five Masters, and three hundred students," Cayaison replied with a low voice.

Even Friidian cringed at the number of students.

"But I saw Visiroux take some students and teachers into his classroom," Violetta said.

"Thank you, Violetta," Merladio said.

He walked closer to Friidian.

"It is over," he said as he lay a hand on his friend.

"No!" Friidian shouted. "I am not defeated!" he shouted as he Shrugged Merladio's hand off him.

"You have killed hundreds of students, and a countless number of Masters!" Merladio shouted back at him. "It is over!" he backed away from Friidian.

The Grand Master shook his head.

"Master be careful he has taken the life of Arthais. I think he took his powers too!" Cayaison shouted through the door.

Merladio turned around quickly facing Friidian.

"All of the Grand Masters saw the visions. What makes you any different?" Merladio shouted.

"They did not see them as I did. They did not interpret them as I have. I see all. And now it falls to me. As it always has, to fix things before they go wrong!" Friidian shouted.

Both of Friidian's hands shot forward, an arc of dark lightning shot out making its way towards Merladio, who disappeared and re-appeared behind Friidian.

"So, it's true!" Friidian said laughing. "Arthais did have the real power of the storm," he laughed louder, looking at his hands. "You said it was over. I think it is just beginning!"

Friidian turned quickly and fired another bolt at Merladio, but again he had disappeared before it hit him.

"Arthais warned me about you," Merladio said. "He told me how to defeat his magical attacks," Merladio said shaking his head. "At the time, I had wondered why."

He circled his arms as he uttered the chant Arthais had told him. The next bolt hit him. It did not affect him. The lightning circled his body then went into the ground.

"No!" Friidian said. "That old man will give me all his secrets!" Friidian shouted as he pushed both hands out as arcs of lightning shot out.

Merladio stood his ground as the light from the lightning filled the halls, the very walls trembled as thunder boomed inside. Everyone in the corridor shielded their eyes and ears from the flashes of the lightning and the loud cracks of thunder.

"You will not stop me!" Friidian said over the crackling of the lightning.

"You have lost all of your sanity," Merladio said calmly. "I tried to convince you to stop," he said as the lightning cracked and broke all around him. "I tried to reason with you!"

Merladio held his hand close then shot it out. A single fireball shot out of it. It hit Friidian sending him flying across the hall. He landed and skidded to a stop. Friidian's follower went to his side.

"You are no longer allowed to stay in Heavstat!" he said aloud. "As the new Grand Master, I ban you and your followers out of Heavstat!"

As if Heavstat itself was alive it began to shake.

"You will no longer be able to use the spells that were given to you while inside these walls. I strip you of all experience you had while you were Grand Master!" Merladio said.

Friidian chuckled. "I taught you those words when I dismissed the last Grand Master," he said. "They mean nothing to me!" he said as he stood up.

"No one will ever mention you in these walls again. Any memory of you and any of your followers will be erased from the great hall!" Merladio said.

Cayaison looked at the writings on the back wall. Friidian's name disappeared from the roster of Masters. Many other names began to fade as well.

"You are now an enemy of all that have and ever will graduate from this place," Merladio continued.

"No!" Friidian said. "You and the rest of your kind will be my enemy. I will hunt you down and kill you. Humanity is a disease, and I will wipe it clean from this world!" Friidian countered.

"You will now be expelled!" Merladio said.

Heavstat shook one more time as Friidian, and his followers were forcefully removed from Heavstat by the powers that held it above the abyss. Merladio fell to the floor.

Merladio breathed slowly as he looked around. It was done. Heavstat was safe again for now. He turned his attention to Wong and Lexia.

"Search for any teachers and students. All of Friidian's followers should have been expelled but be careful," he said gravely.

They both nodded and walked away. Merladio walked towards the door.

"Did you erect this ward Cayaison?" he said.

He put his hand out and felt the barrier between himself and the door.

"No," Cayaison replied. "Arthais did. One of the Watchers is in here, and he can take it down,"

There was a low muttering then the ward fell and with it, the giant wooden door crumbled. Cayaison stepped over what remained of the large door.

He looked into the eyes of his Master, who nodded back at him.

"It is over," Merladio said.

Merladio walked into the great hall. Students came out of hiding.

"We will keep them all here until we are sure there are no remnants of Friidian's followers," he said to Cayaison. He looked over at Dawain and the others. "I can see that you all have done well. Keeping the others safe and for that I am thankful."

"There is something I must tell you," Cayaison said.

Merladio shook his head.

"There will be time," Merladio replied. "For now, let us focus on safeguarding a path to the cleric ward," Merladio said

"You four stay here. No one enters the hall except for myself and Master Wong. Is that understood?" he said to Dawain and the others.

All four of them nodded. Merladio and Cayaison began to walk away.

"Now what is it you have to say?" Merladio said as they started to walk towards the cleric ward.

Cayaison told him about the events that led up to today's battle, even what Jacobsien and his group had done. Lastly, he repeated what the man in the hall had said.

"It would seem that Arthais knew this day would come and has set forth a grand plan for you," Merladio smiled.

Merladio had always admired Arthais, even though he had never seen the reason for many things the great Mage did.

"But why me?" Cayaison asked.

Merladio shrugged. "I have never seen any of the visions any of the Grand Master's have had," Merladio said. "Now that I am Grand Master, I may see them..." he broke off as he looked at the barred door of the cleric ward.

They both ran towards the door.

"Hello?" Cayaison said as he reached the door first. He immediately felt the fire ward on the door.

"Stand back those flames will burn even you!" the matron yelled through the door.

Merladio stepped forward and placed his hand on the door. The flames roared then died down quickly.

"It is me, Merladio. I have returned and have expelled Friidian and his followers from Heavstat. I am coming in," he said.

Merladio pushed the door open slowly. The matron stood there with her staff in front of her.

"Merladio!" she screamed, rushing forward.

The large lady engulfed Merladio in a hug that nearly squeezed all the air out of the thin man.

"Glad to see you too Matron," he said as she let him go. "We have wounded. I have safeguarded a path between here and the great hall. I must make sure more paths to this level are cleared first. Please be ready for them," Merladio said.

Cayaison nodded at the matron.

"Good to see you alive Cayaison," she said. "Many of us thought that Friidian would have killed you on sight!"

Cayaison smiled nervously. "I am certain he would have," He looked back down the hall.

Merladio was near to the staircase. He turned and ran down the hall to catch up to him.

"We need to safeguard more paths. There will be time to talk later," Merladio said in a stern voice.

There was something on his mind. Cayaison could see that whatever it was it tearing him from the inside out.

"Master may I ask?" he began to say before he was interrupted.

"It was supposed to be me," Merladio said. "I was expected to be Grand Master," he shook his head. "Friidian saw that I was too scared to take the mantle. He decided to take it," Merladio stopped he looked at Cayaison straight in the eyes. "We are at war Cayaison. Do not let your guard down for one instant!"

They were walking towards the dorm rooms. They heard a loud popping noise as they turned a corner. Merladio nodded his head.

"The banishment spell."

"Someone was hiding?" Cayaison asked.

Cayaison had heard about the spell but never seen it work. It only worked against the people near the caster. All others were safe, if they did not encounter any person present when the spell was first cast.

Since both Merladio and Cayaison were near the original casting any person they came close to that was intended to be banished, would be affected.

"And that was the sound of them being banished," Cayaison nodded. Now he understood why they were walking the halls.

"I will do another Banishing spell in the cafeteria, and the Master's room. We will gather as many people as we can for each spell," Merladio said.

"What are the visions of?" Cayaison asked. Merladio stopped walking.

"As I said, I had never had them. I have been told that they are of the future. A future that shows humans destroying the world around them."

They turned a corner that lead to another corridor.

"When many of the races are gone, they leave humans alone in this world. At first, they prosper, creating great cities forming vast civilizations. It is then that greed and jealousy eventually lead the humans to fear and anger. They begin to fear the unknown and hate each other. All of those emotions start the downfall of humankind, even though they reach great heights of achievement, anger, and fear will keep consuming them."

Cayaison nodded. Everyone knew that the elves would eventually leave to follow their ancestors the high elves. The Dwarves were always digging into the ground. They were trying to return to the vast world below, from which their history had told them it was there that they were forged. Eventually, the world would be left to the humans.

"What about Arthais?" Cayaison asked. "He was a Grand Master. Why did he not give in to the visions?"

"Arthais was never truly a Grand Master. During the great Mage battles. He had taken up the charge of Heavstat, but he was not given the mantle of Grand Master," Merladio said.

Merladio looked around the halls. "It is getting darker, we must think about safeguarding a place to stay for the night," he said. "The rooms are not safe yet. Have all the kids stay in the great hall for tonight."

"Hurry!" Merladio said. Merladio knew the creatures that haunted Heavstat at night would prey upon any of the stray children hiding anywhere they could.

Cayaison did not hesitate. Without the Watchers spell, he was vulnerable to any of the many creatures that would come into Heavstat. He jumped the stairs clearing as many as he could. He saw the great hall thankfully Master Wong had reached there before him.

"I have gotten as many as I can," Wong said. "I only hope the rest have found a safe place for the night."

Master Wong stayed outside of the room. Cayaison heard Master Wong enable a charm on parts of the door that could stand. Then there was silence. Suddenly a loud booming voice was heard. It was Merladio.

"Any teacher or student that can hear my voice. The halls are not safe tonight. I am releasing the charms in all classrooms. Please enter them now. When the moon is full, I will re-charm them. To any of Friidian's followers. If you are found helping a child, I will release the banishment spell off of you. I will be forgiving only once, take this chance to right the wrongs you have made."

Cayaison smiled. Dawain looked at them puzzled.

"The classrooms are charmed at the end of each day so that a student cannot get a book or parchments that will help him get ahead of the rest of the class," Violetta said. "Master Merladio has lifted that charm so that students can enter. They will be safe inside the classroom."

"But so could a Teacher or a Master that was loyal to Friidian," Dawain said.

"If one does, they would only be letting Master Merladio know where they are since they would have to go through the enchanted door to get in," Violetta replied.

Cayaison looked around the room. Arthais had put something in this hall. Something for Cayaison to find, if it was something for him to find. Did that mean no one else could see it?

That would mean that there was something in here that only he could see and no one else could. How long ago did he put it in here? Everything looked the same. All the paintings, the murals, the candles. Everything seemed the same as when he... that was it. Cayaison smiled.

Arthais had planned this before Cayaison got here. Whatever it was it had to be something put in here way before Cayaison came. Something that would never stand out until the time was right. Instead of looking for something different, he should be looking for something that had not changed since he came here.

The others gathered around him. They searched for hours. Everything seemed normal. The moon crept higher into the night sky. Most of the students in the hall fell asleep. Cayaison went to the remnants of the door. Master Wong was still awake keeping a watchful eye.

"Merladio and Visiroux have found more students. They are safe in the food hall," Wong said sensing the young student's presence. Cayaison stood next to him. "What is on your mind?"

"Arthais," Cayaison said. "He could have stopped Friidian."

Cayaison knew the eternal mage, could have easily defeated Friidian and his followers by himself.

"So the question on your mind is. Why didn't he?" Master Wong said.

Cayaison nodded.

"That is for you to find out. Nobody can truthfully answer that question but you," the Master said. "For years I spent wandering that tower. I walked every inch, picked up every stone. To find out where I had come from, how did I get there. Then it came to me. I was here for a reason. I had been found for a reason."

"What is the reason?" Cayaison asked.

The Master shrugged. "I will know when the time comes, until then, I will not look anymore," he smiled. "Now get some rest, you and others will have to watch the students while the other Masters and I rest tomorrow."

Cayaison nodded. He laid down next to his friends.

"Someone put something over the rock," Dawain said as he shifted.

To which there was agreed moans.

"What rock?" Cayaison said.

"That one!" Alixia said pointing at the large glowing rock, in a small hole in the far wall.

"That is not a rock, that is the crystal of Guidian," Cayaison said laying down, resting his head on the makeshift pillow.

"No. It is the first rock that the makers of Heavstat picked up when they started to make the school," a student said.

To which others agreed. "Well, I was told. Guidian was the first Mage to graduate, from Heavstat, when he did he created the crystal to say thanks to all the teachers," Cayaison said.

To which no one agreed. Alixia shot up from her lying position.

"That is it!" Alixia said. "Who gave you the walk?"

"Fulimer," Cayaison said shooting up from his spot. Fulimer had been a Watcher.

"He told you something, which you would never think was important. And to the rest of us. It's just a rock, so we would not see it as important," she said walking towards it.

Everybody sat up as Cayaison walked towards the glowing rock.

"But if Friidian, was looking for it. Why did he not see it?" Dawain asked.

"It's a rock. I am sure when he took the entry walk. He was told the same story," a student said. "Friidian was looking for something big or magical. A rock that glows in the dark would not spark his interest."

Cayaison nodded. Arthais had been here a long time before Friidian came. He could have placed this rock here then told a story about it. That passed down through the centuries. Friidian would know no different than anyone else. When Cayaison came, Arthais would have ordered one of his Watchers to tell Cayaison a different story. Now when the two stories came together, only his would be different.

Cayaison reached out for it. When he touched it, the glow got brighter and brighter until it filled the whole room. Then Cayaison disappeared.

"Hello Cayaison," Arthais said.

They were outside of Heavstat on one of the mountain ridges. They were on a small stone clearing on one of the highest peaks. The view was breathtaking. Cayaison could see the valley down below. Heavstat looked small from up here. He turned around. He could not see anything on the other side of the mountain. There was a dense fog covering the land.

"But you are dead?" Cayaison said turning back to Arthais.

"That I am," Arthais nodded. "Sit," the great Mage said.

A bench appeared from nowhere. Cayaison sat on it, looking up at the old Mage. Arthais waited. He watched the young student, looking up at him with so many questions he didn't know where to start.

"Why me?" Cayaison asked.

"Why any of us?" Arthais replied. "It is rude to answer a question, with a question. But I will explain," the great Mage smiled. "Why was I chosen to be the greatest Mage in history? Why was Friidian the Grand Master currently? Why is it that only the Grand Masters can see the visions? Would it not be easier for all the Masters to see the visions so that they could share it?"

Cayaison nodded. He understood. It was like Master Wong said. No answer could be given by anyone else. He had to find that reason himself.

"What do I do?" Cayaison asked.

"That I can answer," Arthais said. "The coalition has to be reformed. Darkness is coming to all of the lands, and no one is safe," Arthais said looking over the land. "Even I cannot see a way out of it," he said as if trying to peer through the clouds and the fog.

"Friidian?" Cayaison asked.

"Friidian is just the start of the darkness. More will follow," Arthais said.

The sky began to rumble. The clouds overhead got dark. A storm was coming.

"Now go. I cannot hold back my death any longer," the great Mage said.

With that, Cayaison found himself back in the grand hall. He fell to the floor. Merladio kneeled beside him.

"The Coalition," Cayaison said before he fell asleep.

It was days later when Cayaison finally awoke, when he got up he found himself in the cleric ward. Alixia was sitting in a chair next to his bed she was sleeping. Cayaison sat up and looked around.

"What happened?" he asked.

Alixia stirred then awoke. "You have been sleeping," she said. "Seems your body needed it," she smiled.

She got up and got his robe. It was an apprentice robe. The blue color of the gown shimmered as she put it on the bed.

"Merladio said to see him. When you are ready," she smiled then left the room.

Cayaison walked out of the ward. When he looked down over the balcony, he could see that classes had returned. He knew the classrooms would be full especially with fewer teachers and Masters to teach the classes. He was glad to see things were returning to some routine.

At least that part of Friidian's plan had been foiled. Heavstat was no longer in chaos. He knocked on the Grand Master's room door.

"Come in," Merladio said.

Cayaison entered. Books were sprawled all over the floor. The room was a mess, compared to how Friidian had it.

"I am looking for anything that would give me an idea of what Friidian was planning or has planned."

The new Grand Master was on his knee's looking through a book when he finished flipping through it. He threw the book over his shoulder just to pick another up.

"How long was I sleeping?" Cayaison said looking at the mess.

"Three days," Merladio said. As he looked through another book.

"The Coalition?" Cayaison said remembering his conversation with Arthais.

"The Coalition has been dead, for centuries. There was a reason for it back then. It was easier to form because it was needed. Now it would be impossible," Merladio said standing up.

"Arthais said there is a darkness coming, something that he could not see a way to stop. He said the Coalition was the only way," Cayaison said trying to get through to his master.

Merladio stood up then made his way to his chair. The same chair that Friidian had sat in when he had punished Cayaison and his friends. He motioned for Cayaison to sit in the chair across from him.

"Friidian's followers are still out there. They have been out there, doing his bidding. Two villages have fallen in the three days that you have been asleep. He is marching on to Dungledoir. If we do not stop him now and, he reaches that fortress. He will have a strong place from which he can launch an attack on any town," Merladio said. "We cannot talk about the Coalition right now."

"What was it?" Cayaison asked. He had never heard about the Coalition, just the name.

Merladio sighed. He knew Cayaison. He knew that he would never let go of this subject.

"The Coalition was the alliance of all the noble races. The Humans, Elves and the Dwarves. It was formed to face the true threat of the Orc's." Merladio sat back in his chair. "When the Dark Creator created the Orc's, they were beyond count. They started fires, destroying everything in their path. The Coalition was formed out of need. They managed to reduce the threat of the Orc's," Merladio leaned forward.

Merladio took a deep breath. He hadn't talked about this subject in a very long time. Some of what happened he barely remembered.

"After the dark wars had been won, the races argued and fought each other on everything, from land ownership, they even argued about what they should do with the masses of gold that the Orc's had raided. So, it fell apart."

All of this had happened before Merladio was born. But he knew about it, from other Masters. The coalition was part of the history of the land.

"That was over three hundred years. There are a few Dwarves and Elves that are still alive from that time," Merladio said. "They will not reform the coalition because of one Mage," Merladio shook his head.

Cayaison stood up in silence. "What do you think we should do?" Cayaison asked.

"The human town of Haegersmeade is not far from Dungledoir. If we can notify them, they should have a chance of holding them back. We will go there and help them defeat Friidian," Merladio said looking down at a map.

Cayaison nodded, then walked out of the room.

"You know it is unwise to try and fool him," Wong said from behind a bookshelf.

"It is not intentional," Merladio said. "Have you found out anything?"

"We still not know why Friidian, does not meet with the others. He is heading in the other direction," Wong said. "The others seem to be waiting for a signal,"

"We have to be prepared for anything. We cannot let Friidian have Dungledoir," Merladio said. They both looked at the map.

Dungledoir was a military fortress that had been built on top of a large hill. There was only one way up the hill. The opposite side was a sheer cliff. Many had tried to take the fortress, but none of them had ever succeeded. Whole armies had been decimated at the foot of that hill.

Now Friidian had his eyes set on it. The now abandoned fortress lay silent. The massive gates had been locked from the inside, many years ago. This fortress is where Friidian had seen his war start from, inside these walls he will wait for the first attack, then he will seek his revenge on Heavstat.

"Where is Denessa?" Friidian asked Grendor.

Friidian and some of the Masters had made it Dungledoir ahead of the others. Grendor had been the messenger between the two groups. The large man had ridden one of his boar beasts to death to get here.

"Two days away. At the most," Grendor said. "Her army is trying to stay clear of patrols from Tuetilege and Namath," he said. "It was unwise of you to destroy those two villages," the man stated. To which others shrank away from him.

"Nothing I do is unwise. I drew attention from her. She would not have made it that far if I had not," Friidian said. "Now see to your animals, we will need them soon," he said dismissing the large man.

"You should not let him talk that way to you," Illuscious said.

They had walked up the only path up the hill, finally reaching the gates.

Friidian looked at the wall that surrounded the city. It still looked in good shape, even though there were cracks scattered along it. Some of the significant rocks from the top had fallen.

"He is a means to an end. He can talk the way he wants. For now," Friidian replied.He turned to face the Frugaal, who was by his side.

"How well do you know your demons?"

She smiled. "Well enough for what we will face in there."

Frugaal waved her hands at the large gate, the chains on the other side holding the gate closed, fell to the floor. They walked on foot into the abandoned city.

It was a small town. It was after all just for the military. There were skeletal bodies littered everywhere. The houses themselves were made from stone and mud. The elements were doing what they wanted to them. Some of them were barely standing.

They made their way towards the small castle. The pebbled streets were decaying, the rocks gave way and crushed under their feet. When they reached the back of the city, the small castle looked down upon them.

It had been built into the back of the hill. Small steps made the way up to the door. The stone stairs cracked, and pieces fell off of them as they were stepped on, Friidian pushed the door open. They walked into the hall of the castle. Illuscious began to feel like he was being watched.

The throne room was empty. Spider webs and dust had claimed every inch of this once great hall. The skeletal remains of the guards, which died in this room protecting their king lay at the foot of the steps leading up to the throne.

"Do you feel it?" Friidian said to Frugaal.

Frugaal nodded. Something was watching them. Friidian reached the throne. Still sitting on it, was the remains of Direthian. He pushed the skeleton off the throne. The crown fell off the head of the once proud king, bouncing its way down the stairs making a loud clanging noise as it hit each step.

A sizeable lizard-like creature fell from the roof, landing on the throne room floor. It had a long fat tail that filled the back half of the room. Even though the room was dark, it's dark green eyes, pierced through the darkness. It tossed its head back and forth looking at the intruders. Its skin was a golden brown. On all four of its legs, large claws clicked as it moved forward across the stone ground.

"Well?" Friidian said to Frugaal.

Frugaal nodded, then began walking towards the creature. She had no fear of this thing. It started to speak, but its words were of a time long passed.

"It says, you are unwise to trespass, in its territory," she said smiling back at Friidian.

"That is the second time. Someone has said I am unwise," Friidian said sitting down on the now vacant throne. "Tell it. That we are not scared."

"I speak, your tongue," the creature said. "It is a weak language, it does nothing to invoke fear!" it moved forward again.

Grendor stepped in front of it. He carried a broad two-handed ax.

"Step closer, and you will know the meaning of fear!" He said with the ax over his shoulder.

"As you can see. My followers are not like the last humans you faced. We do not fear you. As such you have no powers over us," Friidian said. "There are many villages, filled with people that would fear you, and they are not far from here," Friidian said.

The creature seemed to be thinking. Frugaal stepped forward. She took to her knees then began writing an ancient spell in chalk on the ground. The lizard backed away from the outline as if something had scared it.

"You know of the sealing spell and the return spell," it said with fear in its voice.

"Yes," Friidian said. He stood up and began walking down the stairs. He stopped at the outline. "I can either free you," He said walking over to one side of the outline. "Or send you back from where you came."

The creature stood its ground. "Then send me back. I do not fear either," it said returning to its spot. It looked down at Friidian. "I will return."

Friidian smiled. "I do not doubt that. I cannot kill you. I do not have that kind of power. Yet," Friidian said.

Friidian looked up at the massive demon creature. He took out a small blade from his pocket. He cut the inside of his hand. He placed his hand on one of the chants on the ground. The creature reared itself onto its back legs. It began to shrink then shapeshift into an old man.

The old man wore golden brown armor. His hair was gray, and it looked like pieces of thin string hanging off his face and over his eyes. His eyes kept their dark green glow. His armor looked faded.

"You freed me?" the man said. "Why?" the man said walking up to Friidian.

"You can serve me well," Friidian smiled. The man bowed.

"I will serve," the old man said.

"Good. For now, you rest. Being stuck in that form. Must have had its consequences. Tomorrow I have plans," Friidian said walking out into the town.

The man bowed again walking away. Grendor walked up to Friidian.

"You should have killed it!" he said.

Friidian turned with speed that was new to him. He grabbed Grendor by the throat, lifting the large man off his feet.

"You do not tell me what I must and must not do. I freed you from your punishment for one reason, and that was for your animals. I can find someone else to do that. Question me again, and I will kill you instead," Friidian released him. Grendor fell to the floor.

"Yes Master," Grendor smiled.

The giant of a man stood to his feet. Looking down into Friidian's eyes the two stood their ground, staring at each other.

"There is the man. That freed me. I was wondering if I would see him again. Or if Merladio had scared him into hiding!" He picked up his ax and walked away.

Friidian smiled.

Grendor was right. He had been thrown off by Merladio. He did not expect his friend to banish him. He had thought that he would have been asked to leave.

After Merladio had banished them from Heavstat, they had been ported to the end of the valley far away from Heavstat. The first night, they had spent there waiting for other followers to be banished.

That night Friidian spent all of it staring into the distance at Heavstat. He saw the bright light that came from the great hall. He knew that it meant Cayaison had found the artifact.

The one thing that all the Grand Masters had looked for, The Guidian Crystal. It was said to have the ability to talk to the dead. He had wanted to speak to one of the greatest Grand Masters. One of the only Mages that rivaled Arthais, but as Arthais was good at heart, this Master was pure evil.

Now he could not. He could not ask the questions that he wanted to ask. When Friidian decided to go on this path, the path that would get him banished from Heavstat. He knew he would have to do many things, things that would lead him to do bad things. Seeing that light took away one question. He would never get to ask his father if it was worth it.

Friidian visions of him taking this path were not without holes. Certain things he saw with crystal clear clarity, other elements he saw the result of without knowing the previous action. He knew that he and his followers were going to leave Heavstat. The next step was to lead them here. The villages he had attacked were not in the visions.

"Master?" Illuscious said. "Jacobsien has sent the signal," he pointed to the sky.

A bright light rose up into the sky across the horizon. Friidian had ordered Jacobsien and his group to stay behind and wait for any others that got banished from Heavstat. If a day went by that, no one came. Then that would be all of them.

"Shall I send the signal to join us?" Illuscious asked. Friidian nodded.

Surely the other villages would have seen it. It was too late Dungledoir was theirs. Most of the land knew what had happened here. They would not come to take it from him. He looked over at the demon laying on the floor next to the wall of the houses, they both smiled at each other.

The old man began to sleep. Dark wisps of smoke came out of the demon's body they made their way into the air.

"Sleep well," Friidian said looking out into the darkness. He knew for miles around. Nobody would sleep well. The fear monger was on his side. "Let the nightmares begin," he smiled.

Friidian returned to the castle. He looked around. The city walls even though they seemed formidable, they still needed some rebuilding. In some parts, the stones looked weak.

"I can do something about that," Tunadas said.

Before now the young Master had decided to stay silent. He knew his place. He began to wave his hands back and forth.

"How is it that we still have the spells and knowledge from Heavstat. I thought the banishment spell, would rip us of them?" he asked.

Years of neglect slowly began to disappear from the wall in front of him. The stones began to show signs of being renewed.

Friidian smiled. "I amended the banishment spell years ago," he said. "I never told anyone."

Friidian knew that he would be leaving Heavstat, so he had to make sure that he remembered everything, he also needed to make sure that whoever came with him would be prepared.

The first banishing spell was created many years ago. It was meant to stop anybody leaving Heavstat from using what they have learned while in Heavstat for personal gain, or to cause harm to others. The Masters at the time didn't want a repeat of the Tribunal.

Friidian had changed it, with the help of Frugaal and two other Masters. Instead of ripping a person of their knowledge it now weakened them to the point they couldn't walk or move if they left the valley. It was the real reason they had stayed where they were for the night.

Friidian had told them that it was to see if anyone else was coming but the truth was if they had left that marker. They would not move for days maybe even weeks. He had to have time to remove that effect from them all.

"What about Arthais?" Tunadas asked. "You said you would have his memories, his powers."

Tunadas knew what he was doing. There were many of the followers that had been asking these questions. They had been too scared to ask directly. If Tunadas asked then, they would get answered. He was not afraid of his Master.

"Arthais was a smart old man," Friidian said taking a seat on a large fallen stone. "I had significantly underestimated him," Friidian said remembering the last encounter with the Mage. "He poured his memories, and all of his magic into the seeing crystal. The one thing that could hold such knowledge."

Friidian smiled as he recalled seeing the massive crystal ball fall and crack into dust.

"Even it, could not stand the number of memories that Arthais possessed," he looked up at Tunadas, who had finished two sections of the wall.

"What else do the others ask?" Friidian asked.

Tunadas smiled. "You know me well Master," He turned around, facing another wall. "They want to know if everything is going to plan," he looked down at his Master.

"What do you tell them. My apprentice," Friidian said looking at Tunadas's work.

"I tell them, the truth. It is not our right to question your planning. Those that are here share your thoughts. We followed you not because of who you are, or what you were. Most of us have seen the true nature of humans. We see their towns filled with fear. I have seen firsthand how they fear us. Everyone knows fear only leads to anger, and anger leads to war," Tunadas said.

He turned to look at Friidian. "If we had stayed in Heavstat, we would've been bound by its laws. We can't hurt the innocent. What if the innocent turns on us. What are we supposed to do?"

"Fight back!" Friidian responded. "I assure you. Then you can convince the rest. This fight is a fight we will win!" Friidian said standing up.

Frugaal walked up to him. "Grendor has something he wants to show you," she said, "Something to do with the horses," she smiled.

"When Jacobsien's group get here. Teach some of them how to do that. I want this city ready for our forces," Friidian said. He began to walk away. "Oh, and Tunadas, two things," he said walking back towards his apprentice. "The next time someone asks you about my plans. Kill them!" he said.

Tunadas smiled and nodded. He watched as Friidian began to walk away. "The other?"

"Pay particular attention to the dungeons, we will need them very soon," Friidian said.

Friidian found Grendor standing over the demon. The demon's eyes were shaking around behind his eyelids. Then the beast sprang up.

"I have found a town full of humans," it said.

"Then why are you awake?" Friidian said walking past him.

"I can have them?" the old man said.

"You can have them all," Friidian said as he and Grendor walked away.

The demon laughed as it laid back down. It fell asleep again as the wisps of darkness got swept away into the air again.

"Well?" Grendor said gesturing to the horses. Friidian looked at them. A smile crept across his face.

"You should have been a creator," Friidian smiled.

The horse's skin looked burnt. Their insides were nearly visible except for a few patches of burnt skin. Their eyes glowed a dark red.

"What did you do to them?" Friidian said as he walked closer to them.

"I removed all of their natural instincts. Their fears, their doubts. Now If you wanted to ride into a lake of fire, they would go. They have no more of their free will," Grendor said. "I also gave them more stamina, from the boars. The boars did not survive the ritual. The good news." he crossed his arms. "I can do this to any horse we come across," Grendor smiled.

Friidian nodded his approval. "Tell everyone to rest. We have a big day for us tomorrow," he ordered.

King Forian woke up from a horrible nightmare. He looked to his side and breathed a sigh of relief, his wife Tessia was still alive and still asleep. She was sweating and shaking in her sleep.

"Tessia. Wake up my dear," he said shaking her.

His wife shot straight up. "It was a dream. Thank the creators. It was a dream," she said embracing her husband. Forian ran to the large windows across from their bed.

"What is it dear?" she said.

Forian looked at the sky squinting his eyes. Then he saw it the faint wisps of the dark smoke.

"The fear monger," he said to himself. He ran to the doors. The guards posted outside awoke from their sleep. "Wake the town. Call a meeting of the generals. Now!" he ordered.

The guards ran off to get their commanders. The king opened his large wardrobe. He began to put on his armor.

"Lucas, you are scaring me," his wife quivered in the bed.

"Good," he said as he buckled his armor closed tightly around him. "Rather you be scared of me, than your dreams," he walked out of the room as maidens came to the chamber. "Do not let her go to sleep, no one goes to sleep!" he shouted as he walked away.

Friidian was laying in the bed of the old king when he heard it. He ran to a nearby window that looked over the valley. It was bells, loud bells. The alarm bells of the closest town rang loudly through the night.

"Forian!" he said through gritted teeth.

Tunadas came bursting into the room. "You are well," he said as if he was worried.

"Wake Grendor," Friidian said. "I am in need of his horses," he said looking over the valley.

Forian looked over his guards in the main hall. They looked tired and ready to fall.

"I know you're tired," he said walking in front of them. "I know some of you had dreams that..."

He could not think of a word to describe the dreams they were having.

"An evil has reawakened in Dungledoir," he said as gasps sounded throughout the ranks.

The Generals tried to hush their men. The king waved his hands at his men.

"I know all of you have heard the rumors and the stories and thought they were not true. I assure you they are."

"What do we do sire?" one of the men asked.

"Nothing. We cannot fight this evil, with swords and might. But we can keep it at bay. Go into the town, make sure no one sleeps. Do whatever you must to keep everyone awake. Even yourselves," he ordered.

The men ran out into the town. The king looked at his generals. "I must contact the council," The King said.

Haegersmeade was a small town. It's low stone walls protected it from the outside evils of this land. It was meant to be a forward post for the city of Storamgrade.

Many families began to move there to be closer to the sons, brothers, fathers, that manned the outpost. A magistrate was sent to oversee the growing small town and report back to Storamgrade. Eventually, it became a town of families. They walled the city in, making buildings that the soldiers could stay in, then they built small huts and buildings.

It stood as it did then, an outpost, no larger than a small village. King Forian had appointed himself king. His father had been the magistrate after his father had died. It was Lucas's birthright to be the magistrate, but he hated the word, so he called himself King from the first day of his succession.

Now he wished he had not taken the mantle. Everyone that came to Haegersmeade knew of the story of Dungledoir. He was only a young boy when his father had told him of the evil that lurked in that fortress. He was told if it ever happened that he would have to contact the council.

Forian looked into the crystal ball. He let his mind wander until he heard the voice of one of the Masters. He let them know what was going on. The young Master told him they would send someone right away. With this done he went down to the town. Unknown to him a sinister person was just outside the walls looking to get in.

The fear monger stood just outside the gates to Haegersmeade. It had nearly got in. But the link to the person had been broken when they were awakened. Now with no dreams to let it into the city, it was left to find another way to get in. It had walked around the small town, even though he could climb the low wall, there were symbols all over preventing it from even touching anything.

It looked back in the direction of Dungledoir, the hill was only a shadow in the distance. The Mage there would harm it if it returned without being successful. It feared no one, living or dead, but the Mage could do things to it that was not pleasant. All it needed was one person to give in to their fears or fall asleep then it would be able to get into this town.

It remembered how it got into Dungledoir, a dying soldier, cursed the army of Dungledoir with his last breath. That is when it first awoke; it healed the soldier of his wounds. Still weakened by the travel from the underworld to the top world, it needed the soldier. At first, they rode into a small town the soldier let it feed on the fears of the homeless until it was strong enough.

When it returned to Dungledoir, it fed on everyone. Families turned on each other, even the King himself turned on his family, killing his wife and daughter. When the whole town turned on its King, he took his loyal guard and barricaded themselves within the throne room. The king being paranoid that the guard would turn on him, poisoned the drinking water, slowly all the guards died.

Outside the throne room, the citizens killed each other leaving no one. That was when it finally went inside, showing the King what it had done. The King maddened by this took his life with his own sword. It was then that one of the Mages came into the throne room, they chanted a spell that would keep the demon locked inside those walls for as long as they stood.

If Friidian had not come, it would have died of hunger. It had not fed on fear in many years. Now it would feed until it was strong enough, then it would show the Mage, the meaning of fear.

The morning sun broke through the skies. The citizens of Haegersmeade had not slept. They had kept themselves up by singing and dancing. The King had opened the emergency food storage. They were having a party of sorts in the town square. The King had joined them and seemed to be the life of the party. He walked around them making sure everyone was awake.

"Sire, I cannot do it," one of his subjects said.

The king rushed over to the man.

"Sire, He is my father," a young woman said. "He has had the sickness for two days. The cleric said he must rest," she cried trying to keep her father awake.

The king nodded. He motioned for a guard. "Give me your sword," the King said.

The soldier reluctantly gave the king his sword.

"Sire!" the woman shouted.

Guards pulled her away from her father.

"Do you remember the stories of what happened those years ago," Forian asked the man loud enough for everyone to hear.

Forian put the tip of the sword against the man's throat. The man slowly stood up. "Yes sire," the man said nodding.

"What I do now, is stop that from happening again," the King said with tears filling his eyes.

"Do it sire. I want my daughter to live," The man said holding his hands out to the side.

"What is your name brave man?"

"Sirean Hogeran, Son of Mathean Hogeran!" the man said loud and proud.

"What is this man's name?" the king asked loud.

The rest of the town shouted his name as the King pushed the sword forward. The man's limp body fell to the floor. The King dropped the sword. His eyes filled with tears.

"I did not take pleasure in killing that brave man. He died so that none of you have to," he said walking among them. "What is outside that wall, is evil, it is pure fear. It will take hold of you if you let it. And once it is in here, it will not leave, it will show no mercy, it will force you to kill your own, it will feed on your fear and grow stronger."

They all listened to him.

"But help is on the way, and when it is over. I will lay down my mantle as King, and I will go to Storamgrade and face my punishment for killing your father," he said looking at the woman holding the dead body of her father. "But until then, I will do what I must to keep that evil out. That is my duty as...." he said before he stopped.

Forian looked down at his chest, a small ring of blood began to form. Then he fell forward. An arrow had pierced through him. On top one of the buildings, a lady dressed in all black stood with a bow and arrow.

"Feed on them now!" she shouted with laughter in her voice.

The woman aimed again and fired on the crowd of citizens. The fear monger chuckled with laughter as the smell of fear filled his nostrils. He took his reptilian form then crashed through the gates.

Messa laughed as the citizens and soldiers ran around trying to hide. She jumped down from the building walking towards the creature.

"Why have you helped me?" it asked, looking down at the young lady.

"Friidian sends help to those that would aid him. As you feed on these pitiful excuses for humans, you will do well to remember that," Messa said with a smile.

"Tell Friidian, I will follow him, until the end of his days!" it said still looking to and fro with wild eyes as the citizens hid throughout the city their fear overwhelming them.

"Your word. Demon!" she said holding out a piece of cloth, on it was a symbol.

"Your Mage knows of the old ways," it said reverting to its human form.

Messa held out a dagger. The demon cut his hand; green blood leaked out of the cut, it placed its hand on the cloth.

"You have what you came for, now let me eat!" it said as it changed back.

Messa nodded, walking out of the town. She mounted one of Grendor's burnt horses and rode off.

Messa came back into Dungledoir. She dropped down from the burnt horse. Friidian greeted her at the gates. She looked him in the face.

"It is done!" she growled.

"Now, now child," he smiled. "No reason to be mad," he laughed as they walked back into the city.

The city was busy now with Denessa's army. They had arrived early. Grendor had sent his wild horses to aid them in their return. His skill over animals was increasing since he was not under the watchful eye of the council.

"You got what you wanted. Release Denessa!" Messa said.

"You do not give orders!" Illuscious said.

As they got into the small building that once belonged to the king. They went downstairs. Denessa and Jacobsien were now chained to the wall inside their tiny cells.

"The two of you thought you could deceive me," he laughed.

Illuscious laughed with him.

"From the moment I met your grandmother, I knew this day would come. I saw it happen. I planned for it!" Friidian said. He looked at Denessa. "I knew I was going to have a son, I wanted him to hate me, I planned for his escape," he looked over at Illuscious.

Denessa's wild eyes met Illuscious.

"He did not know. It was part of my plan after everything was set in motion when I knew it could not be stopped. I told him," Friidian said.

"Why?" Jacobsien asked.

"Because I wanted your father to make his army. My army!" Friidian replied. "I knew my son would have twins. And that one day, one of them would come to throw me off the scent of the other one."

He looked at Denessa then Jacobsien.

"That one would do whatever I told them so that they could gain my trust." he smiled.

Looking at Jacobsien.

"Nothing you have planned for will come about," he said walking away. "Your father's wishes will not come true," he said as he climbed the staircase leading up.

Messa stood there. With an angry look on her face.

"We will not follow him," she said to Denessa.

"You will too," Jacobsien said. "Not at first but you will," he was smiling. Denessa looked over at him. "I have a plan."

By nightfall, there was no one left alive in the small town. Two horses came running up to its now shattered gate.

"We are too late," Visiroux said as he dropped down from his horse.

The sight made him cringe inside. The huts and small houses were burned down. There were bodies laid out all over the ground. The second Master dropped down.

"An Ingniot!" he said looking around.

Visiroux nodded.

"They usually take their time, this one must have been starved," the Master said.

He was a younger Master, recently brought up to the Masters class. A few of the elder students and teachers were given the rank of Masters.

"This one is gone already," Visiroux said. "It was in a hurry."

The bodies were skinny, and their skin was pale, almost transparent.

"Can you see where it went Hertan?" Visiroux said even though he knew the answer.

Hertan concentrated his eyes closed then re-opened them. This ability he had was his specialty he could see recent events in any given location.

"I see it," he said looking at the town square. "You were right it was in a hurry. All the things I know about Ingniots say they take pleasure in the feast of fear. This one had been starved it took no joy, in its victim's deaths."

Hertan walked around as if he was following something. To Visiroux, he looked like a man possessed. But Hertan could see the demon as clear as if he was there.

"It's skin is more brown than gold," Hertan said as he walked around "From house to house it fed. After it finished eating, it burned the place," Hertan stopped. "Something called to it. It ran back to Dungledoir." Hertan said his eyes closed then reopened, returning to their standard brown color.

"Just what we wanted to hear," a female voice said from behind them.

The two Masters turned around. Three guardsmen from Storamgrade, still on their horses stood just outside the burnt ruins. One of them dropped from their horse.

"As usual, the council is too late," the officer said.

The woman took off the bright silver helmet. Her long brown hair fell from underneath it.

"We got the message a few hours ago. We came as fast as we could," Visiroux said.

"You should have killed that thing years ago. Instead, you imprisoned it. Made it hungry. Now look!" the woman said walking past them.

"We do not kill things, for doing what comes naturally to them. An Ingniot will feed on fear, just as you and I eat food," Visiroux said.

"Why do we need to explain ourselves to these..." Hertan began to say.

"These what?" the lady guard said rushing up to him.

Visiroux shook his head. Hertan said nothing.

"We got the message from your new Grand Master. We know that Friidian, as he is called, has gone rogue, he has also said that the one called Friidian, has decided that humans are not worth keeping alive anymore. Do you two share the same ideals?"

The two Masters shook their heads.

"Sergeant, we saw what we needed. We should return to camp," one of the other guards said.

"Right!" she said putting her helmet back on.

"Camp?" Visiroux asked.

"We have a camp nearby, with a regiment of soldiers. We will finish what you could not!" she said climbing onto her horse.

"Wait, you do not intend on fighting..." Hertan began to say.

"Storamgrade has had some time to plan an attack on an impenetrable fortress, and as for the Mages inside."

She picked up her shield. Kytac crystals could be seen inside the metal.

"We have been planning for a fight against them too!" she turned her horse around, and they rode away.

"Seems Friidian was right. The humans were beginning to fear us, and that there forming a plan to attack Heavstat," Hertan said.

"Do not jump to conclusions," Visiroux said. "We must go back to Heavstat. We need to tell Merladio of these events," he said climbing onto his horse.

Deep down he knew the young master was right. By all the signs, it had seemed that the humans of Storamgrade had been planning a way to fight the Mages of Heavstat.

### Chapter 6: Pride

Sergeant Elieane stood inside of her white tent. Slowly she took off her helmet. Her hair fell to her shoulders. Elieane was one of the youngest leaders of the Storamgrade officers. The other officers inside the tent did not acknowledge her. Most of them were her senior as well as more seasoned in the art of warfare.

Elieane coughed to get their attention as they looked down at a table with a large map.

"What is it Elieane?" one of the Generals said over to her.

"I have just come from Haegersmeade. All the citizens are dead. The demon has fled, no doubt it has rejoined its Master at Dungledoir," she reported.

"As we thought. Friidian has taken Dungledoir and released the demon," another General said.

"We will march onto Dungledoir, at first light," The first General said.

Elieane looked at them with hate in her eyes. They always looked down on her. She had passed the trials, and lead men into battle, she had earned the right to be here.

"Also, there were two Masters there," she added.

This news got their attention they turned around to look at her. Their armor visible to her now. How she longed to put on the colored crests of the generals. It was a bright silver, with blue trims around the edges, but most of all it had the Storamgrade seal on the chest.

"Did you talk to them?" one of them asked.

"What did you tell them?" the other asked her.

She looked away.

"Nothing," she lied.

"She told them everything," another said looking at her with disgust. "She can't even look at us."

The General looked at her as if she was dirt on his shoe. They all nodded. Why had she told them about the Masters? Her eyes told them everything.

"Did you show them your shield?" The first general asked. "They were Masters, did they used a spell on you so that you would talk to them?"

Elieane looked away. They hadn't used a spell. She had told them everything without being coerced.

"Bah! Still a child!' the other said. "Leave us!" he ordered.

Elieane bowed then turned around exiting the white tent. She cursed herself for being arrogant. Why did she let her pride take over her like that? They were only Masters.

Tents and small huts filled the area. Soldiers trained in the roped off circle just in front of the main tent. They were preparing for battle. She had given away vital information. If the generals saw fit, they could reduce her a rank or even worse send her back to Storamgrade in disgrace.

"Sergeant Elieane!" a soldier shouted. "There is a message for you!" he said racing off to another tent.

Elieane followed him. The tent was empty except for a giant circular glass ball floating above a golden statue of a woman.

"Hello father," she said.

He looked at her from inside the crystal ball. She could tell he wasn't happy.

"Elieane," he said in a stern voice. "I just heard some news that troubles me."

She bit her tongue. The Generals also had a communication crystal in their tent. No doubt they had already sent word of what she had done.

"Father I did not..." she began to say.

For all her accomplishments it seemed she was still a child in her father's eye.

"Do not make excuses, I am tired of your excuses," he shouted.

The communication crystal back in Storamgrade was in the King's war room. He collected himself looking around.

"You will assist the generals; they have my permission to strip you of your title and return you to the rank of soldier."

"But..." she began to say with tears in her eyes.

"Elieane!" he shouted at her.

It was not a soldier's place to talk to their commanding officer the way she did. She stood at attention and nodded.

"Yes sir," she said.

"We will talk when you return," he said the Crystal went back to its cloudy natural state.

Elieane wanted to cry, to fall to the floor and burst into tears. Instead, she marched out of the tent straight towards the main tent. One of the generals met her at the entrance. He took the metallic officer pins that punctured her armor out of their placing. She saluted him. Then returned to the soldier's tent.

Elieane sat in silence on a makeshift bed made of wood and straw. Other soldiers walked past her. Soldiers she once commanded now did not even look at her. Just like wildfire, the word had spread throughout the camp.

"I warned you," a voice said from behind her.

Elieane turned to see one of the men that had come with her to Haegersmeade standing there. He had the Sergeant pins on his armor. She quickly got up.

"Follow me," he said.

They walked back out. The sun was going down, most of the other soldiers had retreated to their tents.

"How bad is it?" she asked.

Elieane knew the way things worked. She had given vital information to a potential enemy.

"Not as bad as it could be," the man turned to her. "General Rafiel wanted to send you back to Storamgrade alone and by foot," he said.

Elieane grimaced, the way back was full of perils, even by horse. It had taken the regiment five days to get here if she was to go by foot and alone. She shook her head.

"A death sentence," she said.

The man nodded. There was no way she could do it, or even attempt it. Elieane would instead be killed by another soldier than face that fate.

"They agreed not to do that. Mostly because they knew your father would have their heads," the man said.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Do not thank anyone yet," he said stepping forward. "Remove your armor."

Elieane bit her lip. She could not believe this. She was getting demoted even further. She slowly unhooked the breastplate off her chest piece. The Sergeant took it from her. She then unclasped the arm guards from the shoulder straps. Her bare arms were pale white due to not seeing the light of day for many days. She pulled the breastplate with the straps over her head and dropped them to the floor.

Other soldiers gathered around. They had not seen a full demotion in years. Her white shirt bore the stains of the past few days. Patches of dirt and sweat from walking and riding riddled the white shirt. Her breasts were nearly visible through the soft material. The man stepped forward.

"You can turn away from them," he said trying to hide her from the sight of the observers.

Elieane shook her head. He stepped back. She looked over at the Generals. They were standing at the entrance of the main tent. She grabbed the clasps for the leg guards and pulled them away one by one, not taking her eyes off of them.

Even though she had done this to herself, as Generals they could end this, they could tell her to do this in private, but they did not. No doubt they had ordered the Sergeant to bring her outside.

Elieane pulled the leg guards off and dropped them onto the pile. She stood there with just a shirt, and soldier leggings, lastly, she took the boots off. Now she was entirely out of her armor. She stood with her head high. Not taking her eyes off them.

"Elieane Toramad, you are no longer a member of the elite guard of Storamgrade, you are now a citizen. As we are too far from Storamgrade for you to safely return, you will serve the guard as we see fit until we return!" The Sergeant said aloud. "If this does not suit you, you are free to leave on your own accord, and find your way back to Storamgrade."

Elieane nodded.

"I can use a hand with the horses," A man shouted stepping forward.

It was one of the men. That had served directly under her. She nodded at him.

"I will help," she said.

Elieane walked over to him. Soldiers parted out of her way as she walked towards him. The others dispersed as the scene was over. The Sergeant picked up the armor.

"Thank you," Elieane said.

The man gave Elieane some clothes. They smelled horrible. Elieane turned her face away from them. The smell made her stomach turn.

"Sorry, it is all I have," he said.

They were near the horses, near to the front of the camp, standing next to the cart that kept the hay.

"Citizen's away from the city are treated..." he began to say.

"I know. We are at war. I know the rules," Elieane said smiling at him. "Go. I can manage," she said climbing into the back of the wagon.

The man nodded. He walked off towards the soldier's tent. She lay on the hay, looking up at the night sky. Things had changed from a few days ago. She still wondered why she had told the Mages everything. If she had kept quiet, she would have kept her rank and her respect. She closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Visiroux and Hertan had just reached the stones as the night fell. They looked around to make sure they were not followed. When they were sure, they were alone. Together they activated the stones, to bring them back to Heavstat. The stones began to spin, and the portal opened then they stepped through. Merladio was waiting for them on the other side.

"What has happened?" he said looking at their faces.

He knew something had gone wrong.

"Haegersmeade is lost to us along with all of its citizens," Hertan said.

Merladio bowed his head.

"The army of Storamgrade has formed and is on it's way to Dungledoir," Visiroux said.

To which, Merladio looked up.

"They will be slaughtered," Visiroux said.

"I will talk to them," Merladio said.

Visiroux shook his head. "You are Grand Master now. Unless the situation worsens, your place is here."

Hertan nodded.

Even though Hertan was new to being a master, he knew that the Grand Master could not leave Heavstat, unless he had no choice. To go now would send the teachers and students into a state of panic.

"I will go back," Hertan said. "I know I am new, maybe they will not be so harsh, to a new Master," he said.

"I will send another with you," Merladio said.

"I will wait for them," Hertan nodded.

Hertan watched as Visiroux and Merladio shot upward into the sky. As they landed, Visiroux looked at Merladio.

"There is another matter. I want to talk to you about," Visiroux said.

"The call for help," Merladio said.

He had been thinking about it.

"If you get Wong, I will look into the matter, with your permission," Visiroux said.

Merladio nodded. "Be discreet, remember the banishment spell has worn off. Anyone you face now must be dealt with," Merladio said.

Visiroux nodded. He went down a corridor. He had not gone for when the person he was looking for bumped into him.

"Lucious," he smiled.

Lucious was another new Master. She had been a teacher. She was skilled in many languages as well as seeing into the thoughts of others without prying.

"Yes Master," Lucious said.

"You are a Master now, you do not need to call me Master," Visiroux said.

He looked around the narrow corridor.

"I was on my way to the crystal," she admitted.

Lucious had been put on crystal duty until she was ready for a new class. The Heavstat communication crystal sat in one of the rooms at the very top of Heavstat. The crystal was as large as a small child. It sat in the middle of the room. Heavstat monitored for incoming calls for help regularly. Many calls went unanswered, a lot of the calls for help came from people asking for rain, or other simple things.

"I will walk with you," Visiroux said.

They walked down the corridor. It had no pictures or any carvings this place was only for Masters. They walked up a narrow stairway into the crystal room. The crystal's glow filled the room with bright blue light. A master was standing by it.

"Thank you for watching," Lucious said.

The other master left.

"What is it you want to talk about?" she said looking over at Visiroux.

He smiled. "Still the best at recognizing the signs."

She shrugged.

"It is about the call for Haegersmeade," Visiroux said.

"It came from the King, he was fearful. I gave the call to Lexia," Lucious said. "You were too late to save them?"

"Yes, we were. I have to talk to Lexia," he said turning around.

"Visiroux. There was plenty of time for you to get there. I do not know when she gave the information to you," Lucious said. "Unless she gave it to you later than she should."

"If I did not know any better, I would say you could read minds," Visiroux said as he closed the door.

Lexia had been nursing her injuries from the fight that took Heavstat back. She had been seen going to and fro from the cleric's ward. Visiroux stood in the main hallway. He was concentrating on the hall that led to the cleric's ward.

He began to ask around. Some of the students had seen Lexia heading for the student quarters. He waited just outside the entrance to the hallway. He had asked many students about Lexia's whereabouts. He had also asked them to ask others. When they asked why he said, the matron wanted to see her.

Visiroux's ability to see visions was not like Hertan's. Hertan could see things that had happened a few hours after they had occurred. But only for a limited time. Visiroux could see things crystal clear, just moments after they happened. If someone else had seen it, he could see through their eyes. With so many people remembering where they had seen her, there was no doubt; he would be seeing her soon.

Visiroux stood outside the student's corridor Lexia's vision came to him. She stood in front of him like a ghost. Whoever had seen her, had seen her recently. He began to follow her as she walked down the hall. There were other students around, but they didn't see her. Only Visiroux could. Then she stopped. She was outside of a room. Then it disappeared. No doubt the student that had seen her had walked away. Visiroux knew this room; it belonged to Cayaison.

"What would you want with Cayaison?" Visiroux asked.

It would be easy to find Cayaison he was teaching Projection and Projectiles classes since Master Fremier had joined with Friidian. Visiroux turned to walk away when he felt a sharp pain in his stomach.

"Always prying. You should pay more attention to your surroundings and not your visions," a voice said.

Visiroux fell to the floor. He was bleeding out. He vaguely heard someone shapeshifting, then his eyes closed for the last time.

Merladio stood over the body of his former friend. He looked peaceful lying in the bed. Merladio was angry, but he had to hide it. Someone had killed his best friend. Only a few people knew that he was dead.

Merladio had gone to find Cayaison when he came across the body of Visiroux. It was lucky that the classes were in so that no student had seen him lying on the floor. Merladio had hidden the body in a room then went to the cleric ward, with the matron's help they had summoned the corpse here.

The killer would expect the school to break into chaos and fear. The students would think one of Friidian's followers was still here, and they were killing people.

Merladio was not going to let that happen. Visiroux had stumbled onto something outside of Cayaison's room.

"Make sure no one comes in here," Merladio said.

The matron nodded. He was going to talk to Cayaison. Maybe he could shed some light on what happened. Merladio left the ward he saw Lucious standing by the staircase.

"Hello," he said.

"We need to talk," she said.

She walked away from the Grand Master and into a storage room. Merladio followed her.

"I know what happened to Visiroux," she said as soon as he entered the room.

"How?" he began to ask.

Merladio already knew the answer. Any of the clerics could have passed her in the hall. Even though Lucious could not read minds, she could tell by someone's body language as well as the tones of people's voices what they were thinking or about to say.

"Never mind."

"He had come to me earlier today. And by the looks of it, you know why" Lucious said.

Her blue eyes looked deep into Merladio's. She could see the pain he was in, and she could see that the burden of Grand Master weighed him down. She could also see the anger.

"You need to step away from this."

"I cannot do that. Visiroux was more than a friend. We came here together. We were close at the beginning; our paths began to differ, then things happened," Merladio said. "But we always had that connection, that friendship and now it is gone," he said in anger as a blast of ice shot out of his hand smashing a crate full of wheat.

Lucious backed away.

"Sorry," he said.

"Step away from this, let me handle this," she said.

Merladio nodded his agreement. He was too close to this. He would get in the way, and his anger was already getting out of control.

"Talk to Cayaison. It happened outside his room," Merladio said. "I will be downstairs."

Lucious walked out of the room. She started heading for the classrooms. As always she got stares from the other students. Her name fitted her well. She had always hated her name. Her blonde hair fell past shoulders, and all the robes she tried on made her features prominent.

Now that she wore red, it did nothing to help with the looks that she got. Lucious saw Cayaison with his friends going into the lunch hall. She ran a little faster to get to them.

"Cayaison. A word please," she whispered.

Cayaison nodded. His friends stopped.

"They can come to," she could see on his face. Anything she would tell him, he would tell them.

"Master Lucious," Cayaison said.

They got to a place in the hall that they could not be seen or heard. She told them about Visiroux. They did not take it well.

"Who did this!" Rameus growled.

His eyes flared a bright yellow. Lucious could tell if given a chance the beast inside of this young man would tear everyone apart.

"You need to see Grimare in the morning," she said to Rameus.

They all looked at her. Grimare was a teacher. She only taught students who had lost control of their abilities.

"I have control," Rameus said folding his arms.

"No, you do not. I can read that creature inside you. It wants out. Badly!" she stood in front of him. "How long?"

Rameus looked at the others. They had a look of concern in their eyes.

"Two weeks," he said. He took a deep sigh.

"Where?" she asked.

"In the courtyard. After hours," he said.

They looked at him. Cayaison now stood by his friend.

"You should have told us," Cayaison said. "What creature is it?"

"All of them," Rameus said. "It began with just the wolf, but then they all wanted out. I let them, but only one at a time. Then I stopped when everything around here went crazy. Now it feels like they all want out at the same time!"

Again, his eyes flared. Cayaison looked over at Violetta.

"Take him to the clerics, maybe they can help," he said.

"I want to help," Rameus said.

"Now is not the time," Cayaison said He put his hands on his friend's shoulders. They put their heads. Together.

"You are my brother, first and foremost. We are a family. You are sick, and that comes first. When you are better, then you can help. But for now, you listen," Cayaison said.

Violetta took Rameus by the hand. They began to walk away.

"Cayaison find this person. Visiroux was the best Master in this place!" Rameus stated as he walked away.

"I Promise," Cayaison said. He turned to Lucious. She had tears in her eyes.

"Now I know why they follow you. Now I know why Friidian feared you and Arthais respected you. You are going to do great things," she said to Cayaison. "I will follow you too."

Cayaison stood there speechless along with Dawain and Alixia. They could not believe it a Master had asked to join their group.

"What about Visiroux?" Dawain asked.

The reminder that their favorite teacher and Master was now dead snapped all of them back to the present.

"The last thing he said to me was, he was going to talk to Lexia," Lucious said.

Cayaison nodded. He had seen Lexia only a few moments ago. She had been heading downstairs.

"Shortcut?" Alixia said.

Dawain and Cayaison nodded. They started to run towards the main hall.

"You cannot come with us," Cayaison said to Lucious. "You are a Master..."

"And as a Master. Merladio has told me to look into this matter," Lucious said

Lucious pushed past Cayaison. She pushed the secret path open.

"Coming?" she asked.

Cayaison and the others stepped onto the balcony. As usual, they stood on the ledge, then jumped off. Cayaison was surprised that Lucious was taking this so seriously. When she had been a teacher, she had taught Potions and Elixirs.

Everybody could see teaching was not her passion, but she made people laugh, and the classes were enjoyable. Since she had become a Master, she was now stern, and vicious.

They spoke the spell to slow them down and landed softly on the roof, of the stables. Underneath them, they could hear Lexia. She was talking to the stable hand. Lucious walked to the edge of the roof.

"Fine. I will just take it then," Lexia said.

A burst of light came from under them.

"That is enough," Lucious said as she jumped down.

The three friends quickly joined her. They confronted Lexia as she was trying to get on a horse.

"Trabias!" Lucious said.

Slowly Lexia turned around.

"I knew as soon as Merladio made you Master, I would have to move my plans up," Trabias said.

He shapeshifted from Lexia to himself.

"The body never lies," Lucious said. "I thought there was something odd about you before."

"Oh, I was not trying to hide from you. On the contrary, I have been planning for you," Trabias said.

Before Cayaison could react, Trabias waved his hands in a circle, a ring of lightning surrounded them. Alixia quickly jumped out of the ring before it disappeared. When it dissipated, it carried Cayaison, Lucious, and Dawain with it.

Trabias had his back to her.

"Where did you send them?" she said sternly.

"How did you get out!" he was visibly shocked.

"I chose nature for my primary ability," she said raising her hand. "I may not be good at earth magic yet. But I am good with wood!" she said raising her hand.

The wood holding the roof up began to sprout limbs, which came down like large hands they grabbed Trabias.

"Little girl!" Trabias shouted as the wooden arms held him captive in the air. "You have a lot to learn!" he shouted.

Bolts of lightning came down striking the limbs. Trabias dropped to the floor, but the flash of lightning had scared the horses away.

"There is nothing more you can teach me," Alixia said.

Alixia did not know where Cayaison, Dawain, and Luscious were but she knew she could not take Trabias down by herself. She looked at him then smiled.

"What are you smiling for?" he asked.

"Something Visiroux had taught me," she said as she ran straight at him.

She jumped just in time to miss another one of his lightning strikes. She grabbed a wooden beam that was going across the barn and used both of her feet to kick him. He fell to the floor cursing at her, as he got up he shot another bolt at her, but it went straight through her.

"Visions little girl?" Trabias said. "I feel insulted!"

"Wait until I tell Merladio. Who killed his friend, then we will see how you feel," Alixia said.

She was already on the steps. She began to run as fast as she could. It was already getting late. Alixia knew Merladio was in the cleric ward, to get there she would have to go all the way up to the top.

Alixia heard him running behind her. There was no way she could make it to the top, without help. She ran towards the main hall. Hopefully, there was still students and teachers there. That could help her.

When she got into the main hall, there was no one there. She could hear him coming up the stairs. There was only one other option. She had to get to her room. She began to run up the stairs.

"Little girl!" he said looking at her run. "There is nowhere for you to go!"

Trabias shot out another bolt of lightning up the stairs at her. It narrowly missed her. It scorched the wall beside her. Alixia looked back at him. He was standing by a plant. She reached out for it. The plant began to grow, the sharp branches wrapped around him, squeezing him.

Alixia turned around running down the student hall towards her room. She knew the plant would not hold a Master like Trabias for long. She stopped short of her room. There it was standing there. She tried not to make a sound. She even held her breath.

"Now you are just annoying!" Trabias shouted down the curved hallway at her.

He had not seen what she had seen yet. Slowly she stepped in front of it, blocking his view. She did not know why she did it, but she did. She slowly began to walk backward. She tried not to look back.

"Why did you side with Friidian?" she asked with fear in her voice.

"Why?" Trabias asked. "Why not?" he said gloating.

Trabias had her right where he wanted her. She was scared. He could see the fear in her eyes.

"Merladio is too soft. The humans are always asking for our help," he said waving some of his hair out of his face. "Then when we give them help, they never say thank you. They argue among themselves, only to turn around and bring more trouble upon themselves. They cannot be trusted!" he said holding out his hand.

"Wait!" Alixia said.

She was near her door now. She could feel the Dark Man's breath. It was right behind her. She jumped as another appeared, it was coming around the corner, behind Trabias.

"Shut up! You insignificant little girl!" he said lowering his hand. "I have always hated you!" he said. "Always being so right, all the time. Do you ever get tired of trying to do the right thing!" he said through gritted teeth. "No wonder your group of friends always baby you!"

Those words hurt Alixia. She knew the group always looked out of for her, even Dawain. At first, she thought it was because she was new to the group. Now she didn't know why they kept it up. She looked at the door, then back at him.

"I was going to do the right thing. But now, you are on your own!" Alixia shouted.

She rushed towards her door. Narrowly escaping the grasp of the Dark Man that was behind her. She reached her door. It opened with a crash. She pushed it closed.

"I'm in!" she shouted. Hoping the spell that kept the door closed, would work. She heard the charm seal the door. She walked back and sat on her bed. Just beneath the door she could see bright flashes of light.

The charm that sealed the door also kept noise out. But from the flashes, Alixia could tell Trabias was trying to fight the two Dark Men off. But she knew he would fail. Even with his abilities as a Master, he could not win against two Dark Men.

Alixia watched the door until the lights stopped, she lay down on the bed. She had just seen the death of a Master. Even though he had meant her harm, the thought that she had caused his death, crashed over her. She began to cry.

The night went slow for Alixia; she did not sleep much. She heard the familiar sound of the sealing chant leaving the door. She waited until the screams stopped. Somebody had found Trabias's body. She could hear them just outside her door.

"Alixia?" Cayaison called for her.

Alixia ran to the door, opening it. Cayaison walked in closing the door behind him. She sat back on the bed.

"How bad is it?" she asked.

"I think you know," Cayaison said sitting down next to her.

Alixia nodded. The dark men drained their victims of all their blood. She could imagine how bad it was.

"I thought he was going to kill me," she said.

Alixia told him everything, how she got away. How she ran to find help, but could not find anyone. Then she told him what happened outside her room.

"He sent us to the dungeon," Cayaison said. "No one was there. It was only this morning that someone released us."

Alixia was trying to make sense of what was going on. She had just killed a Master.

"I killed him," she said with tears in her eyes.

"No. They did," Cayaison said. "You just tricked him," he said trying to comfort her.

"Stop!" she yelled. "Stop trying to shield me. Every time things get bad. You always try to shield me from it," She said to Cayaison. "You do not do it with any of the others. Why me?" she said as she stood up and looked at him.

"You want the truth?" Cayaison said.

Things were getting worse. He knew he could not shield her forever. She folded her arms and nodded at him. Cayaison opened the door and grabbed her arm, he pulled her off the bed then pushed her out of the room. Alixia stood over the drained body of Trabias. Instantly she fell to the floor and began crying.

"That is why!" he said.

All the other students had left the corridor it was just Dawain, Violetta, Rameus, and Luscious, standing there.

"Cayaison," Violetta said in a quiet whisper.

"You always think you can handle the tough things. But you can't," Cayaison said. "It is going to get a lot worse!"

He knelt beside her. "I'm Sorry, we have to shield you. You are the brightest out of all us. We need you to think clearly so that we can do what we do," he said. "One of us should have done this."

"You cannot be there all the time, can you?" Alixia said wiping the tears from her eyes.

Alixia took a deep breath then stood up. "Any of you?" she said to the others. "Eventually, this will happen again!" she said looking up at Cayaison, who had stood up. "You say it is going to get worse. How much worse?"

"He has been having visions of the future," Lucious said.

The others looked at him. He shook his head at Lucious.

"I was going to tell them when the time was right. If you are going to be part of this group, you have to understand one thing. I do not hide things unless I see a reason to do so," Cayaison said louder than he intended.

Luscious looked away. No one had talked to her the way Cayaison did. Especially from men of her age. They were always shy and scared to speak their mind around her.

"What about me?" a voice said coming down the hallway. "What was your reason for hiding your visions from me?" Merladio said.

Merladio walked towards them with the Matron and two clerics by her side.

"Master Merladio," Cayaison said.

The others backed away from him. The clerics gathered around the body of Trabias.

"I killed him," Alixia said.

"Hardly," the matron replied. "Unless you have become a Dark Woman," she said.

The Matron was a big woman. Many had thought that she was just a human at first. The way she talked and acted. She had proved them wrong. She knew her way around the healing magics, better than anyone in Heavstat.

The Matron poured a clear liquid on the body. The liquid quickly began to burn away what remained of Trabia's body. It took only seconds before there was nothing left.

"Just in case, they left any of their venom in him," she said. "We are done here. If there is nothing left for us?" she said looking at Merladio.

"Thank You, matron," Merladio said.

The clerics left.

"Well?" Merladio asked.

Cayaison looked down the hall.

"Can we talk in your room?" Cayaison asked.

"You are all invited to the Master's Hall. Get cleaned up and ready. All the remaining Masters will be there," Merladio said. "Lucious? Is there something you want to tell me?"

"I know it is against the rules. I would like to go back to being a student. I am choosing to join Cayaison's group," she said. Merladio smiled.

"Something tells me that you have just made the best decision since you stepped into this school," Merladio said.

Merladio waved his hand, the red robe that Luscious was wearing turned back to brown.

"I will be waiting for you all in the Master's Hall," he said as he walked away.

"I will miss the red," Dawain said smiling.

"I will not. The looks were getting too much," Luscious said.

"Well I hope all of us look as good as you did in red," Violetta said with a smile.

Cayaison shuffled.

"What is it?" Alixia asked.

"This is it," he said. "The start of my vision, it shows us, in the Master's Hall. I do not know what I say. But it changes everything," Cayaison said staring at them. "Things are about to get dangerous. For all of us," he said there were tears in his eyes.

"We are together, that's all that counts," Rameus said. "We took on Friidian and his followers together. We will take on whatever comes our way. Together."

They all nodded. Dawain began to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Cayaison asked.

"Well if I am going to face the Masters and whatever bad thing is heading our way. I am going to get a new robe and do something with my hair as well other things. Might as well be good and ready? If it is as bad as you say we might not get another chance," he smiled with a shrug.

They all ran up to him and gave him a big hug. He always knew what to say and when to say it. To make everyone feel better.

Lucious was the first one to the Master's Hall door. She had only been inside once. That was when they had made her a Master. Dawain came up the stairs and began smiling.

"Nice robe!" Lucious said.

Dawain smiled. He had cut his hair. Even though it was still a mess, it looked a lot better than before. He had chosen an adventurer's robe. It had leather parts at the elbows and along the sides.

"Also got the pants," Dawain said. He reached down to the bottom of his robe. Luscious put her hand up to stop him.

"I will take your word for it," she said.

"Cost me a few bronzes. I was saving for the Illusionary teacher's robe when I got to be a teacher. I figured might as well spend it now," he said.

He kept looking at her. "You cut your hair too," he said.

"No," she said smiling. "It is the belt you are noticing. Try not to be one of the others that don't know how to act around me. If we are to be together in this group, at least speak your mind," she said looking at Dawain.

Dawain nodded. "You are right. I am sorry. Yes, it is the belt it has done a lot for your figure," he said apologizing.

"Thank you. Was that hard?" Alixia said.

She had gotten a bronzed belt that made it easier for her to cast her smite spells. It stopped the robe from raising and tugging on her arms.

The only downfall was that it slimmed her waist and made her chest look even more prominent, not that it needed to. She had also run some water through her hair.

"No, actually it was not," Dawain said.

Dawain knew it would be much harder not to stare at her now. Rameus and Cayaison both came up at the same time. Cayaison had also gotten a new robe. He had also got a new belt. Rameus looked the same except he had cut the sleeves off the robe. His arms bulged outwards.

"Nice arms," Luscious said.

"Nice..." Rameus began to say.

"Belt. Say belt," Dawain said, smiling back at Luscious.

"Yes Belt," Rameus said.

They both laughed. Luscious shook her head but smiled. Alixia and Violetta were the last. Violetta wore her robe but had cut some of it away from her neck. She had her natural dark red hair. Alexia was the only one that had not changed anything about her.

"I did not see a reason," she said. "If I see I need to make a difference later, I will, but I can do what I do like this."

Cayaison nodded. They all stood at the door.

"I have one question before we go in," Dawain said. "Trabias was there at the banishment spell. Why did he not get banished, like the others?"

The others looked at him just as puzzled as he was.

"He was going to the cleric ward a lot. Friidian must have given him something that kept him here. Also, to keep him from being noticed, while he was Lexia. Whatever it was, it must have caused him a lot of pain," Luscious said.

They nodded. It was the best explanation. And, the only thing that explained it.

"Anybody else nervous?" Violetta asked. "After this moment. We will not be the same. I don't know about you. But I feel nervous," she said smiling.

"So that is what I am feeling," Alixia smiled.

They all laughed.

"Ready," she said at Cayaison.

They all nodded at him.

"Well, here we go," Cayaison said as he grabbed the door handle and pushed it open.

Lexia sat in the back of the dungeon. She had been hauled everywhere by her captors since the night Trabias had defeated her. They treated her like a sack of potatoes, carrying her in a cage.

Friidian had placed an enchanted necklace on her so that she could not shapeshift. Now she looked over at the two other people in the dungeon. They were brother and sister, from what she had gathered so far. The brother was whispering something to his sister.

"If you two are prisoners. Would it not help, if you informed a fellow prisoner of an escape plan?" she said.

"Shut it Lexia!" the female said.

That voice, she knew that voice. "Denessa?" Lexia asked peering through the darkness that filled her side of the dungeon.

Friidian had seen to it, that no light shone on her side. Being able to shapeshift had left Lexia a keen knowledge of the animal kingdom, there were many animals she could call on for help.

"I said shut it!" Denessa screamed. Lexia laughed.

"Well I am glad that you are down here too," Lexia said. "Where you are supposed to be!" she sat back on the floor with her back against the wall. "And that must mean that the brother is little Jacobsien," she said smiling.

"Do I know you?" Jacobsien asked.

"Oh. I know of you," Lexia said. "Denessa used to talk about her family all the time."

"Lexia! I am warning you for the last time," Denessa said as she came into view.

They were in separate cells within the dungeon, but Denessa's was closer, to Lexia's than to Jacobsien's.

"Do your worse!" Lexia said smiling. "I dare you!" she said challenging Denessa.

Denessa's dark arm began to glow, but then she was sent flying back. Lexia laughed louder as she heard Denessa cursing. "You still don't pay attention," she said between laughs.

"Friidian charmed the cages," Jacobsien said. "No magic," he said looking at his sister.

"I was taught by Master Wong. You think this necklace would have held me back from escaping?" Lexia said with a giant smile.

"Doesn't matter you are as good as dead!" Denessa shouted back bitterly.

"Same could be said for the two of you," a voice said coming down the stairs.

It was the demon. It did not look old anymore. It was a young man. There was quiet in the dungeon as they saw it walk towards them. Its armor did not seem dull anymore. It was a bright gold.

"It is amazing how a good feeding, fills me with new powers, and new fears to feed on!" he said as he walked towards Lexia's side of the dungeon. "But you do not fear me," he said looking down at her.

"No. I know all about you. It was a part of my teaching to become a Demon Slayer. After I had left Heavstat," Lexia said standing up.

She pulled up her sleeves. The demon backed off.

"Thought so," she said pulling her sleeves back over the blue marks that ran up her arms.

"When it is time for you to die. I will gladly tear your head off your shoulders!" The demon said with its eyes glaring at her. "Your kind is the reason we stay hidden," it said turning its attention to the twins.

"But you two. I could feed on the fear from you two. But Friidian has plans for the two of you," it said as it walked close to their cell.

"I am not scared of you," Jacobsien said. His voice did not convey what he was saying.

"Oh really?" The demon said. It walked through the bars. "If you did not, I would not be able to touch you!" he said. "I can only touch or feed on those that have fear in them."

It reached out, putting its hand on Jacobsien's head.

"And you. Have a lot of fear!"

Jacobsien turned his head. The demon went out of the bars, then into Denessa's part of the dungeon.

"You on the other hand, you are not afraid of me. But you do fear..." It stopped as it looked into her eyes. "Friidian," he said as he sniffed the air.

Its hand trembled as it tried to touch her.

"Do you think your brother's plan of turning the other Mages against Friidian could work?" it asked her.

Denessa looked at her brother.

"Answer!" it yelled at her.

"No!" she said shaking her head.

"Good answer," it said.

It turned its attention back to Jacobsien. "But you do have the makings of someone that could cause a lot of trouble. Trouble for my new Master," it said.

It touched Jacobsien.

"I cannot have that!"

Its armor flashed a bright golden light. Jacobsien disappeared. The demon looked weak again. His body was that of older gentlemen.

"I will have to feed again," it said as it made its way to the stairs.

"What did you do!" Denessa screamed at it.

But it did not answer. She repeatedly yelled at it, while Lexia sat on the floor and laughed.

### Chapter 7: The Unknown

Cayaison was the first to enter the Master's room. It was the enormous room that he had ever seen in Heavstat. There was a significantly sized table in the center of the room. Cayaison and his friends looked at the walls, carved into the stone wall, were images of Masters. Some of them they recognized most of them they didn't.

Cayaison looked back at his friends, they were in awe, at what they were seeing. This room told the history of Heavstat, from the past to the present. Candles lined the room just above their heads.

"Welcome to the inner sanctum of the Masters," Merladio said with a smile on his face.

Merladio had walked into the room from a door that appeared seemingly from nowhere. Other Masters began to come into the room from doors that seemed to appear out of nowhere. They all took seats on the outside of the large table.

"Alixia, Dawain, Rameus, Violetta, and Lucious, please take a seat," Master Wong said.

They all looked at Cayaison, who nodded at them. They circled to the other side of the table. Cayaison stepped into the center. He coughed and looked at all the Masters and his friends.

"I do not know where to start exactly," Cayaison said nervously.

There was so much to say about his visions.

"How long have you had them?" one of the Masters asked.

"Ever since the Orc attack on my home," Cayaison said.

"Start there," Merladio said.

"As you all know. My hometown of Acetrioem was attacked by Orc's," he began. "My brother and I were the only known survivors. It was shortly after that event that I began to have my visions. First, they started small. I began to see what people were going to do, just a few days before they did them."

"That is what got the attention of the teachers of Dermasca?" Merladio asked.

"Yes. The teachers from Dermasca came to test my brother and me. My brother had no mage blood, but I did. After arriving at Dermasca. My visions began to increase, both in duration and accuracy."

"Did you tell any of the teachers?" one of the Masters asked.

"Yes. They thought I would be a prophet. Or a Teller," Cayaison said. "Then the visions began to get dark. I had told a friend; he had convinced me that what I was seeing was dark magic. I had heard that Mages that could see or use dark magic were sent away. So, I kept them to myself."

Merladio shook his head. "This is why, I have fought hard against sending young students, to Virmuscull," Merladio said to the other Masters "Not every mage that has seen evil visions or uses magic in the wrong way is a warlock."

To which some agreed, while others shook their heads.

"Continue," Merladio said.

"I kept my vision to myself, which made it worse. Eventually, it began to get clearer, to the point, I felt like I was there," Cayaison said he wrapped his arms around himself.

"You are safe with us," Wong said.

Cayaison looked vulnerable. Merladio had never seen his prized student like this. He looked like a small lost child. It was as if he was reliving something terrible.

"We are here too," Rameus said.

Cayaison smiled and took another breath. "When I got here. I kept my secret from everybody I knew that the teachers, as well as the Masters, would be looking for bad students," Cayaison said. "It was not until recently I had told someone about it," he looked over at Violetta.

"I wish you had told me sooner," Violetta said. "I would have told you to say something to Visiroux."

"Yes. Visiroux would have been the best person to talk to," Merladio added.

"How often do you have these visions?" Wong asked.

"Every night," Cayaison said. Again, wrapping his arms around himself. "I have tried everything!" he said looking at Merladio. "They will not stop."

"We will get to the bottom of this," Merladio assured him. "Are we all in agreement? We must see these visions?" he asked the others.

They all agreed.

"How?" Cayaison asked.

"Remember the circle? Visiroux had in his class?" Merladio asked.

Cayaison nodded. When he looked down, he saw it. He was standing in what looked like the same circle. "But this worked when we went into it. Not Visiroux," Cayaison said.

"This is different. It looks similar, some of the writing is different. We have written it so that we can see what is happening to you. Through your eyes," Merladio said.

Merladio placed his hand on a small carved circle in front of him. The rest of the Master's did the same. Cayaison looked at his friends. They all nodded at him.

"We will be with you this time," Alixia said.

Cayaison closed his eyes.

At first, there was nothing, just darkness, and silence. Cayaison knew this silence. He got himself ready for what he knew was coming. Then it happened his body jerked as if it was something was dragging him downward. He hit the ground hard. When he looked down at the ground, it was full of ash and dirt.

There were loud noises everywhere. Cayaison slowly rolled onto his back. Keeping his eyes closed, he coughed as the air returned to his lungs. He knew what those noises were. He wanted to stay here in the darkness. But he knew that he had to open his eyes. He took a deep breath then looked up at the darkened sky.

Pillars of dark smoke had made the sky dark. The air smelled of dead bodies, ash, and fire. Cayaison stood up looking around. The first thing he always saw, were the ships, hundreds of boats, all on fire. Some of them were out in the ocean, and others were on the beach.

Then a ball of fire shot across the sky; it flew over his head. It hit a ship. The ship exploded into pieces as bodies flew into the air. He was not near the beach, but he could see dead bodies floating in the red water. Red with the blood of so many that had been killed. He turned around to look at what he knew was there.

Far in the distance was a tower, that nearly touched the sky. At the top of the tower, dark creatures flew in circles. Breathing giant pillars of fire down to the ground. On the ground, thousands of Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Centaur, Orcs, Trolls and Minotaurs. All fought creatures that must have come from someone's nightmare. There was crying and screaming as bodies were brought to the back of the fight. Their bodies were torn and shredded.

Then it happened a bright light surrounded him. His body was pulled forward again. This time he was in a small room. A figure was standing by a small pillar with carved writing on it. On the post, there was a book on it.

Cayaison couldn't make the person out. It looked like a shadow, the shadow figure looked at Cayaison, then began laughing.

A dark figure stood behind Cayaison holding a massive sword to his neck. The shadow standing at the pillar began to chant, a dark spell ripped itself from the book, then shot upwards to the top of the tower.

Both figures disappeared leaving Cayaison alone. Cayaison shook his head. He did not want to look outside. He knew if the Master were going to help him get to the bottom of this vision, he knew that he had to show them everything.

Cayaison slowly stood up he walked to one of the archways. Down on the ground. Bodies were lying all over, all of them dead. All the races were dead. He closed his eyes as he usually did. His body flew over the world slowly.

First, he flew over Heavstat, all of the students, the teachers and Masters lay on the floor dead. Next came Storamgrade, all its citizens lay dead on the ground. Wherever his body went, there was nothing but dead bodies. Then his body stopped, he stood alone in the middle of a field. The sky began to darken as pure darkness encroached all around him, coming from every direction. It encompassed the whole world; a sinister laugh roared from within the dark.

He fell to the floor.

"Cayaison!" Alixia shouted. She was looking down on him. He was back in the Master's room. Everybody stood over him.

"Did you see?" he asked. Cayaison slowly got himself to his feet. The look on their faces said it all. They had seen it. "What does it mean?" he asked.

"I do not know. The figure casting the spell. That is Friidian," Merladio nodded. "I would recognize that silhouette anywhere."

"The creatures, flying around the tower are Bahamut's," Wong said he looked visibly shaken. "I do not know, how I know but I do. I have never been so scared of anything like that in my life. I know that they are terrible, horrific creatures. With no loyalties to anyone. For them to protect that tower, something evil must be controlling them."

"Has anyone seen the tower before?" another Master asked.

"Yes," Dawain said. "You will not like where I saw it," he shook his head. He slowly stood up from his chair. "Is there a faster way down to the dungeon?" he asked looking at everyone.

They had all gathered down in the dark dungeons. Rows of small rooms, with barred doors, lined the walls. These cells used to hold many of the Warlocks that were going to be sent to Virmuscull. These days they were all empty.

"This one," Dawain said. "I saw it inside here. After Trabias sent us down to the dungeons."

Each of the prison walls was lined with small Kytac Crystals. The cells doors were made with them, making it impossible for any Master or prisoner to use magic to get in or out of the dungeons.

They had walked all the way down. None of them wanted to be down here. Cayaison felt weak. He had always felt vulnerable after he had one of his visions but sharing the images with everybody had made him weaker. Also, being so close to the Kytac Crystals was not helping him.

"This is no place for him. Take him back up," Merladio ordered.

"I can..." Cayaison began to say feebly.

"That was not a request!" Rameus said.

Rameus lifted Cayaison over his shoulders. Even though the crystals were weakening Rameus, this was his friend, his brother. It would take a lot more than gems to make him too weak to get him to safety.

"I got him," Rameus said to Alixia, who was offering to help him. "You are needed here. Make sure you know what is going on in his visions. You are the smartest of all us, do what you do best."

Alixia nodded as she watched Rameus carry Cayaison out of the dungeons and up the stairs.

The large man carrying the keys opened the door to the prison Dawain had pointed out. They all looked inside. It was just like any other room down here. The crystals that glowed in the darkness sprinkled the room like purple stars.

"It is in the far back, near to the floor," Dawain said. "I fell off the bed. That's when I saw it. I had thought it was a drawing that someone had done to pass the time. When I saw it in the vision, I knew had seen that tower before."

Dawain took a deep breath then walked in. The crystals had an immediate effect. His head began to pound. He also started to feel light headed, but he pushed forward. The other Masters came into the small room.

"We cannot all fit," Merladio said.

"Here," Violetta said.

She had a dull lump of coal and a parchment.

"I like to draw in my spare time," she shrugged.

Merladio reached for them.

"No. I will do it," Violetta said to Merladio as she pushed past them.

"I have felt the drain of the crystals before. I can last longer," Merladio said.

She turned to him with a glare that could melt the most hardened metal.

"My best friend has been having visions of the most horrific thing. That has ever happened in history. A vision that has turned most of you pale white. He did not tell anyone, not even me. There could be countless of crystals in that room. I am doing it. Besides, when was the last time you used these?" she said as she held them up.

Merladio nodded his defeat.

"Show me where Dawain," Violetta said.

The two of them walked into the room. Even though Dawain was getting light-headed, he pushed forward until he got there.

"Down at the bottom," he said as they reached the corner of the room.

"Go back," she said.

Dawain laid down. "Right here. You draw. I will hold the parchment," he said.

As Violetta looked at it, she couldn't help but marvel at the detail. She took the small piece of charcoal then began to rub it against the parchment. Whoever had carved this into the wall, must have been laying down against the wall. She looked over at Dawain. He was sweating. The two of them were feeling weaker. But they had to do this.

Cayaison would not leave until he had got every detail if he was here. She was his best friend, they shared so many secrets, so many thoughts, but to have that vision in his head. Violetta shook her head. Focus she thought, this would help the Masters find out what Cayaison's vision meant, and maybe help him to stop having them.

"That is all of it," Dawain said.

Violetta looked at the parchment then the carving she nodded back at Dawain letting she was satisfied that they had got all of it. They turned to go back, but the door looked so far away. Holding each other's hand, they began to crawl back. They felt hands grab them and pull them forward.

It had taken a while, slowly Violetta started to feel like herself. She looked around. She was in one of the food halls. Dawain was sitting next to her. She looked over at another table. The Masters were all hovering over a large piece of parchment. She slowly stood up.

"Whoever carved this, had plenty of time," one of them said.

Violetta looked at the parchment. It was her parchment. But they had expanded it.

"Careful," Master Wong said. He caught her as she nearly lost her balance. "Maybe we should take you to the cleric ward?" he said looking at the others.

"You made it bigger," Violetta said as she pushed off Master Wong.

"Yes, I had them increase the size," Alixia said. "The detail is much better at this size."

Violetta moved over to Alixia's side.

"Look these lines that we previously had thought were clouds, are the creatures we saw," she said as she pointed to the Bahamut's circling the tower.

"It still tells us nothing about this tower. Or where it is," Merladio said.

Merladio was not looking at it. He had looked at it enough. Nothing about it was different from the vision he had seen. A tower near to the ocean. On an island, that he had never seen. There were many maps of the known world. No island like the one in the vision existed on any of them.

That tower was vital to Friidian's plan of killing every race in existence. The darkness that followed, what was that. Everyone looked at Merladio.

"Hang it, in the main hall," he said. "Make sure everyone in Heavstat knows where it is if they know anything about this tower or the island it is on. They need to come to one of us."

They all nodded. "We now know, what Friidian plans," Merladio said.

"How do we know that this is a vision of the future?" one of the Masters asked.

"It is," Merladio said. "He started to have these visions before; he saw Friidian. None of us can doubt that it was Friidian that cast the spell in the vision," He looked at them.

"Who was in that cell. Who could have carved that?" Dawain asked. "Who could keep themselves awake and aware of themselves, while in there?" he asked.

The others looked at each other. Dawain was right. If it had been a Mage or something with magic in their blood, like a Warlock. They wouldn't be able to concentrate let alone carve a detailed picture into the stone wall.

"There has only been one human to be imprisoned here at Heavstat," Merladio said. "That was way before my time here."

"Hurran?" An old lady said she had been setting up the tables for lunch. "Sorry. I try not to listen to what goes on around here. But..." she said as she went back to taking the chairs down from the tables.

"Hurran?" Merladio asked.

"Yes. I heard rumors about him. My grandmother used to tell me stories of this place as a child," she said.

The lady looked at them. They were listening to her. Usually, the students, teachers, and Masters paid her no attention. But now they were listening to her. She coughed to clear her throat.

"Rumor was he was one of us. A helper," she said. "Cleaning, Cooking, Washing the robes."

She took a seat across from them.

"One day he went into the Grand Master's room, to clean when he accidentally touched the big white sphere in there. After that, he went crazy. They say he started screaming, then the killing started. He would kill the children in their sleep."

She looked over at them. They were still hooked on every word she was saying.

"This was before the locking spell mind you. So, the doors to the student's room were never locked. He kept saying he had to kill the bad one. They locked him in the dungeon until some Dwarves took him to what was the place called?" she said thinking to herself.

"Gall?," Merladio finished for her.

"Yes! That is the place!" she said. "Well like I said, it was a rumor," she got up to carry on her work.

"When was your grandmother here?" Alixia asked.

"Oh, she was never here," the old lady said. "She had heard it when she was a child, the story just got passed down through the family," she smiled and walked away.

"The locking spell has been in Heavstat for over three hundred years," Lucious said.

She had just come into the room as the lady was talking.

"She is telling the truth. She did hear that from her grandmother," she said looking at the old woman.

"So, a human that was here over three hundred years ago," Merladio said. "I have been here for only one hundred and seventy-five. Which is longer than any of you."

"What about Friidian? How long was he here for?" Alixia asked.

"He was only here for six more years than me," Merladio replied.

"The stable master?" Violetta said as she stood upwards.

"Justine?" Merladio said, his eyes widened. "She was the Grand Master's apprentice before Friidian's Master," they stood up, making their way down to the stables.

"How is he?" Violetta asked Lucious.

Luscious had joined Rameus shortly after they had got the parchment up to the hall. She knew nothing of maps or the sort, so she decided to check on Cayaison.

"Rameus is staying with him, keeping him up there. You know Cayaison, always trying to get into the middle of everything. Rameus said I would be helping more if I was down here with the rest of you."

"What are you asking?" Justine shouted.

The Masters and the students had interrupted her as she was taking care of the horses. They all kept talking at once.

Justine was an ancient Mage, probably one of the oldest still alive. All she wanted from the rest of her life, was to stay hidden. Stay out of the world and tend to her horses. Now, these people tried to drag her back into it.

"Justine, I know the rule. I know we are to leave you out of everything to do with the Council. A student has been having these visions," Merladio said as he quieted the others and motioned for them to step back.

"So. What has that got to do with me?" Justine looked back at him. She liked Merladio. He was not hell-bent on power like his friend.

"Do you know what happened up in the school?" Merladio asked.

"Yes. I am not that dumb. Your best friend tore up the place. Looking for something Arthais had left." she said. "Arthais, I always knew he had plans for this place," she said with a smile.

"Well. This student found it, but before the student came to Heavstat. He had been having visions of this," he called for the parchment.

Merladio laid the parchment on the ground. Justine looked at it but dismissed it. Then her face changed as she looked at it again. She dropped the brush that she was holding to brush the horse.

"It cannot be!" she said. Her face turned white with fear. "The Tower of Arowak!" she said falling to the floor studying the parchment. "A student is having a vision of this?"

The stable felt different. A power the Masters had never felt before filled the entire place. Each of them took a step back away from her.

"Who?" she asked.

"It is Cayaison," Violetta said.

"Where is he?" Justine asked. "Never mind. I know," Justine said, she closed her eyes. Before everyone could blink, Justine disappeared.

The Master's entered the Cleric Wing. They saw Justine standing by the bed. Rameus rushed to them.

"She just appeared," Rameus said. "Just like that," he said, flicking his fingers.

Merladio nodded. He can do the same thing. But not to this distance. He motioned for everyone to stay back. Something was different about her now. She was staring at Cayaison, who was asleep.

"We burned all the books; we thought we had got rid of everything that had mentioned that place," she said looking down at Cayaison. "I am sorry for what I have to do."

Justine raised her hand a sharp knife appeared in it. Merladio thrust his hand outward the blade appeared in his hand.

"No!" he yelled. "The students in this place are under my protection!"

Justine turned to face him. "I am older than you and much stronger than Friidian. What chance do you stand against me?" she said.

Her eyes were full of tears.

"You do not want to kill him," Lucious said.

"Do not read me, child!" Justine said shaking her head. "You will read something, that will make you tear your own eyes out," she said looking at Lucious.

"She is telling the truth. There is something she is not telling. And it scares me," Lucious said to Merladio.

"He shared the vision, with all of us. It showed Friidian reaching this Tower, and releasing a spell," Violetta said. "Do you intend to kill all of us?"

"No," Justine said shaking her head. She strolled to a chair then sat down. She looked up at all of them. "He cannot know about it. How?" She fell to the floor. "We did everything they told us to do. We should be safe," she muttered.

"Tell us," Cayaison said. He had woken up. He got off the bed and looked at her. "It is time, for us to know," he said holding his hand for her.

"Not here," Justine said as she looked at the others.

Justine blinked her eyes. They found themselves in the dark. They could not see anything. Merladio said a few words. A large light began to float in the air.

Cayaison could see everyone. Merladio and the other Masters were with him as well as all of his friends. They were in a room of sorts. It was more of a meeting place.

"This is where the original council met," Justine said.

Merladio pushed his hands slowly outward, the ball of light floated higher into the air.

"We are inside of the rock, which holds up Heavstat," Justine said.

They all looked around them. There was no doors or openings anywhere. It seemed that whoever made this place didn't want anyone to enter or to leave.

"They made this opening inside the rock, as Heavstat began to build itself, into what it is now," she said shaking her head. "Arthais stood right there," she said pointing to a circle on the floor. "The others stood around him."

"But Arthais..." Cayaison began to say.

"Forget everything Arthais has told you about his time in Heavstat. His teachings you can remember, but his time and what he did here. Forget. He lied. They all lied," she said shaking her head. "I will talk. All of you will listen, or we will go back, and I will never tell you what happened."

"Heavstat was not made, they found it. And on the contrary, it is not a building. It is alive. That is the reason they created the rock, then put it under the building. So, they could speak without it knowing what was said," she said looking at them.

"We do not know how old it is, or how it came to be. A few members of the council believed that Heavstat was created by the creators, others thought that it was here before the creators. Either way, it was found here, floating," she looked at them.

There was disbelief. Justin could see it in some of the faces. She sighed. Justine shook her head. She didn't have time to care about what they believed or didn't.

"When you go back up there things will begin to change. It will treat you differently. It will be aware that you know about it. It will not harm you, but you will see the differences. So, doubt me now if you will, but know this. It means no harm. My stable is on the rock. The rock is the one place you can go where it cannot reach you."

Dawain raised his hand. She nodded at him. "Who found it?" he asked.

"Arthais was the first to see it. He had been searching for it," she said. "Who knows about the five things of existence that are believed to be created before the time of the creators?"

"You are talking about the Unknowns. The rock of Graebor, The wondering Giant. But I thought there were only two?" Merladio replied.

"We destroyed all knowledge of the others. There are others. But for now, let's talk about the five."

Justin knelt to the floor. She drew two triangles, then a tower. "Heavstat is one, it's sister Torbora is the other, and The Tower of Arowak is the last," Justin explained as she looked up at the people gathered before her. "The rock and the giant are not dangerous," she said smiling. "But these three," she shook her head. "In the wrong hands, they could be very dangerous," she said with fear in her eyes.

"Heavstat has a sister? I have never heard about these Unknowns," A Master said. She didn't believe any of this.

"Yes. It is still lost to the world. We think she was destroyed in the war between the creators and the old ones," she said.

They all knew about the war that had separated the land masses.

"The rock is a large land mass off the coast of Graebor, which you can always see. No boat or creature has ever landed on it, not even the birds. It moves whenever it feels the presence of another being." Merladio said.

"It's a creature," Justine said. "It just wants to be left alone. Dreaza, one of the founding Mages, spoke to it many centuries ago. She created a spell that made her walk on water. She followed it for years before it stopped and talked to her. It had a partner, one of the creators felt jealous of the relationship and made the partner part of Graebor, so that is why it stays close. It is immortal, and it should be left alone," she explained.

"I will make sure the rest of the world, knows to leave it alone," Merladio said.

"The giant," she smiled. "Is blind," she shrugged. "He likes to walk around. We have outlined the paths he walks, with large stones. If no building or person is on the path when he walks by he will cause no harm," she said. "He is a friend. I have spoken to him on many occasions."

"I have never heard of him," the Master said again. "When does he walk close to Heavstat?"

"He should be around these parts in forty years, he walks very slow," she said.

"What has this got to do with the Tower?" Violetta retorted.

"Right," Alixia agreed.

"The Tower is the most dangerous," Justine said. "It is covered in darkness all the time. It is said, that the creators, were created from it. We did not know if this was true or not when we did find it. We found that any spell, any thought, anything you can summon. Will come about," she said. "Not only just there, but around the whole world."

"Friidian's spell," Violetta said. "If he gets there, he can cast a spell that will encompass the whole world?" she asked.

Justine nodded. "But any spell released from the tower. Releases the darkness around it," Justine said. "The creators trapped the darkness there, using the same magic the tower uses to create. They used it to trap the darkness. But they had help in doing it. The old ones." she said shaking her head.

"Wait!" Rameus said shaking his head. "Everyone knows, the old ones and the Creators were enemies!" he said. "Parents still tell the children, lightning and thunder are the two of them fighting."

"Yes. They were. They put their differences aside, so together they could trap the darkness at the tower," she said. "It is the only thing keeping it from taking over."

"The darkness that sweeps the land at the end of the vision," Alixia said.

"Friidian does not know about the darkness. Or he would not go to the tower. He only wants to stop the humans, not to kill all life around the whole world." Merladio said.

"Something along the way pushes him towards it," Cayaison said. "The other figure in the vision."

"I must see this vision," Justine said to him.

"One of us can show you," Violetta said. "He cannot go through that again!" she said stepping forward.

"I will be fine, she has to see it from me," Cayaison said.

Justine grabbed Cayaison's head. First, there was nothing. Then she began to shake slowly. They watched the two of them in silence before she let go.

"It is the Tower. The darkness has released a disciple to help it get free," she said shaking her head. "With the creators gone. And the old ones dead. If the darkness gets free, there will be nothing to stop it."

"If Friidian releases the spell, there would be nothing to conquer. Why would the darkness want to rule over a world with no life?" Lucious asked.

"The darkness consumes, it will destroy this world, then move on to another and another. It does not want to rule. It wants to devour," Justine replied.

"So now we not only have to stop Friidian, but we have to stop this darkness too?" Dawain said. He shook his head.

"No, if we stop Friidian. We stop it." Cayaison said.

"What about the tower?" Merladio asked. "Can it be destroyed without releasing the darkness?"

"No. Destroying the tower. Destroys everything created by it," she said.

"The creators," Alixia said. "And in turn us."

"Whoever made these Unknowns, knew what they were doing," Dawain said shaking his head.

"We will get some rest. Then talk about this later," Merladio said. "We have been up all night. We are tired, and we need to rest."

Most of the others nodded their agreement. They could all use some time to take in what they had heard.

"The way back is over there," she said as she pointed to one of the walls a passage appeared. Wong stayed still he had been looking at her the whole time.

"What is it?" Merladio said.

"She is not coming," Wong said.

"I knew you would be the one to figure it out," Justine smiled.

"She has been fading from the moment we came down here," Wong said.

Wong was right Justine seemed almost transparent now.

"I had only enough energy to tell the story. It would seem," Justine said.

Alixia hit her head. "I was too busy listening to put it together," She said as she got near Justine. "Time."

"She has been saying "we," all this time," Alixia said. "I thought it was her and the other council members," she said. "But it's not. Is it?" she asked.

Justine shook her head.

"There is no way another council member from that time, could be alive," Alixia said.

"Who are you?" Merladio asked.

"I am the last member of the Guardians of Knowledge," she said.

They all stepped back. The Guardians of Knowledge were rumored to be the first creations created by the creators. They were meant to keep all the knowledge of what the creators did so that the creators would never forget what they had created.

"I found Arthais and followed him as his apprentice at first, then as a friend, then as his shadow," she said walking away. "When he left Heavstat I remained, he told me to make sure that no one knew the truth about his involvement with Heavstat. Or the Unknowns."

"Why are you fading?" Cayaison asked.

"I must return to where I came. The Tower," she said. "When the creators left, they took the other guardians with them. I stayed behind because of my fascination with what may become of the smaller races."

The entity known as Justine smiled looking back on them. She had enjoyed the company of the humans over all the other races. They fascinated her, with their curiosity, but she had also disliked their fear, it had led them to do terrible things.

"Now that the knowledge that has kept me grounded to Heavstat is gone. The Tower is calling me back. I have no choice but to go. Stop Friidian, and the disciple or all will come to an end," she said as she faded to nothing.

They stood there in silence. They had been in the presence of a guardian. They all walked upwards. The narrow corridor spiraled upwards. A light could be seen ahead of them. As they exited, they found themselves at the entrance of Heavstat. When they walked away from the large hole in the wall, it seemed to disappear.

"The spell wore off," Merladio said.

The morning light was coming down on them as they made their way into the school.

"So, this school it is..." Rameus began to say.

Violetta held a finger to her mouth. "Not here."

"We don't know if anything she said was the truth," one of the Masters said.

There was a light argument between all of them until Merladio clapped his hand loudly. "Get some rest all of you. We will discuss this at length later."

To which all of them nodded. Cayaison and the others headed back to their rooms.

Cayaison entered his room. He felt better about the future. He wasn't the only one that knew about his visions. Now when he had one he would not feel so alone, maybe now he could look at the images in depth. Perhaps he could see something he had never seen before.

Merladio rested his head on the pillow. He had left one of the other Masters to take care of the affairs of the school for the day. As he laid there, he wondered about the past events. Everything he knew about this school and the council had been shattered.

The council had once been thought of a way to look over the rest of the races, as a protector. Now he knew they were formed because of these Unknowns. To make sure they did not fall into the wrong hands. This school he thought was to enrich, and train Mages, was alive, and the council had been put here to look over it. How could things return to normal now that he knew all of this?

There was a gentle knock on his door.

"Come in," he said sitting himself up.

One of the clerks came into the dimly lit room.

"Master," the clerk said.

"What is it?" Merladio said annoyed that his rest had been interrupted.

"It is Hertan and Domas," the clerk said. "The army it is on the move, towards Dungledoir," the clerk said.

"The fools!" Merladio said, throwing off his covers, jumping out of his bed.

"Where did you send him!" Friidian yelled.

The demon lay weakened on the floor. It barely lifted its head to look up at him.

"It is too weak," Frugaal answered. "It will need to feed again if you want it to answer," she looked down at it. "Whatever it did to the young man, it drained him of all its powers."

"Which means it was powerful," Friidian said. He bent down to look at it.

"You will answer me, and if the answer offends me. You will wish I left you where I found you," Friidian stood up, then headed down to the dungeon.

Denessa looked at her grandfather as he entered the dungeons. She hated him with everything she had, but she feared him just as much.

"It did not tell me what it did to Jacobsien, but when it does. I will find him and bring him back. Then I will make an example of him to your soldiers, but until then," he said as he motioned to Grendor to open the cell door.

Denessa tried to put up a fight. She was no match for the brute strength of Grendor. Friidian looked back at Lexia. She did not flinch or look away. He knew eventually he would have to deal with her. Trabias would know what to do with her. For now, he had other matters.

"It has dawned on me that many of you have decided you will not fight by my side," Friidian said as he stared down at Denessa's loyal army.

Friidian stood on the roof of one of the buildings. The roof was flat., with stairs that led down to the ground below. On the roof with him was some of his followers as well as all the other Masters. Grendor still had Denessa tight within his massive arms. Some of the followers stood with children in front of them.

"As much as I admire your loyalty. You should bear this in mind. I already know you will," Friidian smiled. "I have seen it. You may not believe that you will, you might even say you don't have a reason to fight beside me," he looked behind him as he motioned towards two, of his followers they brought three children towards him. "I will give you that reason."

Many of the members below held their breath.

"You see, the reason I choose to attempt to kill my son. Was so that he will not feel like he had a family, so he would create one. And he did," Friidian yelled. "No army ever created fights together as strong or as hard for a kingdom. But they would fight to the death for their family, for their friends."

He smiled as he grabbed one of the children he held it up and over the edge.

"If you do not fight for me. You will fight for the lives of your children!"

Friidian looked back at Denessa, who was struggling to free herself from Grendor's grip. "Let her go," he ordered.

Grendor let her go, but as he did. Friidian released the child. Denessa ran as fast as she launched herself over the edge of the building. She managed to catch the child just before it hit the ground. Denessa managed to turn herself around landing flat on her back. She slammed onto the ground hard her body lay limp as her people gathered around her. She opened her arms. The child got up, then ran towards its parent.

They all looked up at Friidian as he held another child.

"Do I have your loyalty?"

They all began to kneel.

"Give them back their children," he said.

The other followers released the children. He looked down at Denessa and smiled. She looked back up at him. Her fear had increased he knew she would do this.

"Treat her wounds, then bring her to me," Friidian said turning around.

Grendor smiled as he jumped off the roof, he landed next to Denessa, some of the people, that were trying to help her backed away. He quickly picked her up and tossed her limp body over his shoulder.

"They only follow you now because of fear. Not loyalty," Tunadas said as he walked down the stairs next to his master.

"Fear is a great thing. It will keep them in line. But I will make them trust me. Then they will be loyal. Then and only then. Will we win this war."

They both stopped, then looked at each other. Friidian smiled.

"The child I dropped," he said. "Make sure his parents are taken care of, do it as if you are hiding your actions from me," he smiled. "If they fear me, then they will trust you."

Tunadas smiled. "When the time comes. Will you kill me?"

Tunadas knew that if he were to do this, eventually to make an example, he would have to face Friidian's wrath.

Friidian smiled. He left Tunadas alone to think.

### Chapter 8: What Lies Ahead

Friidian sat at a table. The table was long but fragile. It was in one of the smaller houses. He had not slept well in the past few days. Everything had been going just as he had seen in his visions, except for one thing. Trabias should have been back by now; he was to get a few things from Friidian's chamber, then he was to be here.

Without Trabias planning for the upcoming war would be difficult. Storamgrade's elite legion will be at the gate of this city in days. Friidian needed Trabias, but he had other things to deal with right now.

Frugaal brought the demon into the room. The room was dim, but he could see that she must have fed him some of the few senior men and women. He looked back to his original state. Friidian nodded for it to sit.

"Before we start," the demon said. "I did not oppose you."

"If I thought you had. You would not be sitting here," Friidian said.

Friidian motioned for Frugaal to leave them. The demon did not like this. It shifted in its chair as it watched Frugaal leave. Friidian sat forward putting his hands on the table.

The demon turned its attention to Friidian. There was no fear in this Mage which meant it could not touch him or hurt him. Even with his powers returned to him. It knew it was no match for Friidian and his growing abilities.

"Now that we are alone. I have one question." Friidian said. "Where?"

The demon looked back at him. "The dark lands where he can't interfere with you and what you are planning."

"Good," Friidian had planned on making an example of Jacobsien if the demon had already done that then there was no point in being mad.

"Things are going as I planned. I did not need the interruptions of an ignorant, smart-mouthed know it all."

"You look tired," The demon said as he sat back in its chair.

"It will pass," Friidian smiled. "As soon as Arthais's powers become aware to me, I will be able to sleep."

"That Mage is well known, even to my kind," The demon said. It shook its head. "If you do indeed have his abilities, no force will be able to stop you."

Friidian nodded as he closed his eyes. He did have all the eternal Mage's powers and spells. The knowledge to use them, however, was just beyond him. Every time he got close to understanding one, it would change or fade.

"There is something. I want you to do," Friidian said.

"Anything." The demon replied.

"There is a follower of mine who is missing. Use your knowledge of the dark men within Heavstat to find him," Friidian said.

The demon smiled. "To do that, I would have to awaken powers within me that will change me for the worse. I will no longer be bound to your pet Warlock," he said, as he looked to where Frugaal had gone."

"And if you do anything to harm her or any of my followers. Do you think you can get away from me?" Friidian said

Friidian closed then reopened his eyes. The demon fell off the chair. Friidian stood up. The beast was pulled across the floor by an unseen force.

"What is this? The demon shouted.

It tried to claw at the ground. It attempted to shapeshift to the lizard, but it couldn't. It finally stopped at Friidian's feet. Friidian knelt and looked into the demon's eyes

"You should know something about me," Friidian said. "My father was a Warlock, and my mother was a Mage. One day in a fit of anger he killed my mom and nearly killed me. I managed to stop him, and what I mean by stopping him, I mean I killed him. I have no regrets or feelings about this. But his name you would know."

The demon looked at him with fear in its face. Friidian smiled then whispered in its ear.

"Dothsan."

The response in the demon's eyes was precisely what Friidian wanted.

"I am his son, and some of his knowledge of the demon world has fallen to me. Especially now that Arthais's powers are in me," Friidian said. He sat back down.

The demon stood.

"So, the other Warlock was to throw me off," it said. It looked back at the other door. "You were the real threat to me," it smiled.

It bowed. "You truly are a Master," It turned away from him. "I will do as you say. Until the time comes when you do not need me."

Then it turned to face Friidian.

"But remember this. If you betray me like your father had betrayed many of the demons he summoned. I will find a way to kill you."

It walked out of the door and into the open. Frugaal returned to the room she had been listening to the conversation from the other room.

"You play with real dark magic, with that one. If it talks to more demons like you have asked it to, they will come looking for you," she said. "Your father. Did you have to mention his name?"

"I have not spoken that name since I was a child," he said. "It invoked fear into it. And now it will plan for its next move. There is a chance a slim one. That the demon I am looking for will hear about what I have said, and what I did. And if it does," Friidian smiled. "We will fear nothing, but everyone will fear us."

A man ran into the room. "The army from Storamgrade is on its way," he said.

Friidian stood. "Well, we should get ready for their arrival."

Grendor stood near the gate. Most of the army had gathered near him. Even though they feared Friidian, most of them had grown to like Grendor. He was the only one among Friidian's group that was honest with them. He did not like them. He did not respect them, and he did not claim either.

"Most of you will die today," he shouted at them. "Some of you might not even make it through the gate," he smiled. "Bare this in mind, if you use this chance to run, to escape. My carrions will kill you before you make it down the hill!" he said as he pointed upwards.

The large birds were circling overhead. Friidian walked towards them.

"They will not run," Friidian said. "They have been waiting for a moment like this to test their training," he walked through their ranks. "Some of them will even surprise you," he said to Grendor. "That I am sure of," he looked back at them. "You may hate me, and for that, I am truly sorry."

"No, you are not," a voice said.

The lines moved as Denessa stood there with help from Messa and two others. She had hate in her eyes.

"Your healer said I would never walk on my own again," Denessa said, the two people by her side helped her walk gingerly forward. "You knew I would jump to save that child. You knew what was going to happen to me."

Denessa had once feared this man. That fear had now turned to hate. She tried to raise her hand. It trembled as she moved it.

"I can barely move without pain coursing through my body," Denessa said to her people. "He made an example of me. Do not let him make an example of you. Use your hatred for him. Against those out there. When the time comes, we will have our revenge on him."

Denessa pushed off her helpers. She stood there shaking for a few moments as she stood a few feet from Friidian. Grendor stepped towards her. Friidian pushed him back.

"You are right," Friidian said. "I did make an example of you. It was meant to be your brother, not you."

Denessa's body trembled, her eyes began tearing not from emotion, but from the pain that coursed through her body. She looked directly at Friidian willing him to fall dead. Friidian reached forward and grabbed her as she nearly fell.

"I promise you this," he whispered to her. "Your followers will come to no harm from me or any of us, as long as they do as I say."

Denessa shook her head. "We are human. If what you are doing is to wipe humans from this land, then what about us?" she asked, pushing off him.

"I will set land aside for you. From there you can do as you please," he replied. "Just a warning, if you intend to carry on plotting to kill me, then I will kill all of you!" he said loud enough for all of them to hear.

"Then we have no choice," a man said. He looked at the rest. "You have my sword till that time comes."

Others began to fall to one knee. Messa was one of the very few that refused to kneel. Denessa turned to her and nodded. That was when she bowed, but to Denessa not to Friidian.

"I will follow her. Not you," Messa said.

Messa walked forward, she looked at Friidian, then at Grendor.

"Remember this because I will only say it once. Harm Denessa or anyone again. And I will kill you!" she turned around, grabbing Denessa by the hip. "Let's go."

Messa stopped to look at the others. They were still on their knees.

"Do as he tells you, for now. Fight for him, kill for him. But do not trust him!" Messa said, they all stood.

Two others helped her carry Denessa back.

"Want me to kill her?" Grendor whispered.

Friidian smiled and shook his head. "I don't think you could if you tried," Friidian smiled. "There is something I am missing with that one."

He knew there was something about Messa, something he should have seen or remembered from his visions, but he could not remember now.

The Demon stood at the entrance to the path that led into the valley where Heavstat floated over. The Sun was still at its highest point.

It had taken a demon portal to get here. Demon's used portals to travel from the underworld to the top world. Only a few of them could move through these portals freely without the Mages of Heavstat and Vermascull tracking them.

Using the portals had taken its toll on the demon. It had used up most of its energy. At its strongest, it could have been inside Heavstat already. Beyond the dangers of Heavstat protection. It was much weaker now because of the length of time he had been trapped. Getting close to Heavstat would take some doing.

It looked up at the two massive towers on either side of the path. It knew that it could not pass between them. Even in its many forms, it wouldn't be able to fool the magic within these towers. They would strike him down in any form it took. It walked as close as it dared towards them.

Beyond them, it could see the light from the great valley, and somewhere in there was Heavstat. The path was barren with rock walls on either side that lead up to the enormous mountains that formed the canyon. It knew it had to pass these two then the other two on the other side.

The towers stood tall. They were built to stand the test of time. There was not a mark on them. Skeletal bodies of various races littered the ground between the two towers. There were no openings carved into them, which meant there was no way to get inside, the stones that made up the walls were too small and too sharp to climb. It could try to fly over them as mist, but it knew that they would still sense its presence.

It stood there for a moment not moving. Its mind opened to the surroundings. It could feel the lizards crawling, the birds flying around. Far off it could sense a spider making a web. The spider was what it needed. It was beyond both towers. It reached out to the spider then crushed its mind with its own. His body fell limp as it had now possessed the body of the spider. It crawled along the wall of the path and into the valley. It needed something that was faster. The spider moved to slow for its purpose.

Once in the valley, the spider stopped moving for a moment it was motionless. It dropped dead as a bird flew overhead, this was much faster. The bird soared high above Heavstat circling the school. It could not sense any of the dark men. The sun was still out. They must be somewhere close.

It flew lower that was when it felt them. They were somewhere inside the large hole under Heavstat. It could not use the body of the bird to dive down into the magic that came out of the hole. It would not only kill the bird without a body to go into it would die along with it.

Then he saw it, an insect that had been changed by the magic. It possessed it; the bird's body fell to the ground. The giant insect made its way down into the hole where it made its way into a cave. This cave was where it had sensed the dark men. No doubt they came to this cave during the day. The demon needed its own body, but it could not get it here.

"What are you doing here?" a voice boomed in the darkness.

The insect backed away from the darkness. Then it stopped and began to shake.

"You came all this way," the voice boomed.

One of the dark men stepped forward out of the darkness.

"You came to see my acolytes?" the voice came out of the dark man's mouth, but the demon knew something was speaking through it. "You need your body to talk." it looked away.

The insect exploded as the demon came out of the remains of the insect. It was back inside its body.

"How?" it asked. Knowing that it had left its actual body far from here.

"You do not need to know," the voice boomed. "Who sent you?" the dark man said circling the demon its feet did not touch the ground, they hovered inches above it.

"His name is Friidian," the demon said, out of pure fear.

Whatever was inside the figure in front of him was stronger than it.

"Ah, so the Mage. Wants to know what happened to his lackey?" the voice said.

"Yes. But how...?" The demon said.

The body of the dark man fell to the floor. A shadow moved towards it.

"Gremoar!" the demon said, it bowed to one knee. "I thought the Slayers had killed you!"

The figure of a demon began to walk towards it. This demon had dark gray skin with black horned spikes sticking out of the sides of its body. It's dark black eyes looked back at the gold demon.

"They came close," Gremoar said. "So, the Mage freed you from your prison. Now he tries to play a game with you?" it asked.

"He uses knowledge from his father," the demon said. Gremoar smiled.

"Go back to him. Tell him that his lackey is dead. Also, tell him that I will see him soon," Gremoar said. "His father was the one that freed me from the Elves and their Slayers. I owe his family more than any other demon. Whatever you think of him you will put aside."

Gremoar towered over the Ingniot demon as a grown man towers over a child. The giant demon looked down upon it, then lifted it off the ground by its neck.

"Anything happens to the Mage. I will tear you into so many pieces the lesser spawns will feed on you for centuries!"

The lower demon nodded.

"Now go!" Gremoar shouted.

The Ingniot demon disappeared, reappearing just outside of the range of the towers. A voice came from the mouth of a lizard next to it.

"You have been given the powers you wanted. Keep Friidian safe until I get to him. Do not fail me," it said "I have given you a name. You will be now known as Kreat. You will no longer need to feed."

The lizard said as it exploded as the high demon left its body.

Kreat looked at its new golden armor. It shone brightly in the sun. It no longer seemed faded.

"I will not fail you," Kreat said.

Golden wings sprung out of its back, with one significant flap of its new wings it flew into the air.

Cayaison looked around him. The world outside of Heavstat was entirely different to what he had thought it would be. Merladio had taken a few Masters, as well as Cayaison and his friends with him to offer any help to the army from Storamgrade. Cayaison was taking it all in, as they rode their horses towards the military's staging area.

"The air is different," Violetta said, with a smile. "Even when we rode our horses by the stables. It still smelled like the rest of Heavstat," she smiled as she took a deep breath.

Cayaison could tell that his horse liked the feel of the grass beneath its feet.

"Do not get too comfortable," Merladio said from ahead.

Up ahead was the large hill that sat Dungledoir. It was even more significant than Cayaison had expected.

"That is a hill?" Dawain said voicing all their thoughts.

It looked like a small mountain.

"The hill looks bigger from this angle for a reason. You will eventually see why," Hertan said, with a smile. He had joined them after he had told them of the advancement of the Storamgrade army.

"When we get to the Generals let me do the talking," Merladio ordered.

The grassy plain they were on started giving way to rocks and dirt. The horses began to show their dislike for the new terrain.

"We walk from here," Merladio said, he got down from his horse. "Our horses are not used to being worked this hard. To push them any further, would kill them."

Cayaison got down, as well as the others. One of the other Masters cast a spell hiding the horses from view.

"Relax they will not go anywhere," another Master said, as he walked past Cayaison.

They walked for what seemed like more than an hour before Cayaison realized they had been walking upwards. He looked back.

"Now I understand," Cayaison said slightly out of breath. "The hill is on a plateau, that's why it looks so big from below."

Hertan nodded. "Haegersmeade and Dungledoir indeed are on top of a slight plateau, it can't be seen from afar, but it is there," Hertan said.

"And felt." Dawain said, nearly out of breath. "Feel like I am climbing a mountain."

"I don't," Rameus said, from the front.

"Of course, you wouldn't," Dawain said, shaking his head.

When the ground leveled off, they could see that the hill wasn't as big as they had thought. Cayaison could understand why this hill had was chosen as a fortress.

It was rocky on all sides, even the way up to the top was covered with large rocks. This side of the hill was a steep cliff face all the way up. If anyone wanted to get up this way, it would be a long and treacherous climb. The other side was steep, but a much better option.

There was definitely a reason why no army had taken the base. It would take a lot of skill to traverse the path up to the fortress and fight at the same time.

At the bottom of the hill, they could see the Storamgrade army getting ready for their assault. From where the group stood, they could only see the wall surrounding Dungledoir. Merladio was walking towards the army base.

"Hold it right there!" a soldier said as they approached.

Cayaison could see two small tents. There was a line of overturned carts and wooden stakes that made up the small barricade that surrounded the camp.

"I wish to talk to one of your officers," Merladio said.

"Merladio!" a General yelled from the nearest of the tents.

The General signaled the soldier to let him in. Merladio and the others walked through the many rows of soldiers preparing for battle.

"Rafiel!" Merladio said, to the stern-faced General.

Cayaison looked the General over. His face was full of scars. His black hair was short with flakes of gray scattered all around it. He was tall, but not as tall as Rameus.

"What do you want Merladio?" Rafiel demanded, he stood just outside the tent.

"I wish to speak to you and the other Generals," Merladio said. "I think I deserve that much after all."

"Saving my family and the family of many of the soldiers here today. Has earned you and only you the right to make it through the barricade!" Rafiel shouted. "I have let you bring the rest of your kind through. So, do not give me that, deserve speech."

"What is going on?" another General said, coming out of the tent. "Merladio," he said as he saw the mage. "Come in."

"I was telling Merladio, that he and the others, were not..." Rafiel began to say.

The other General pushed forward. "Am I not in charge?" the General said barely audible through his gritted teeth. Rafiel nodded. "You are causing a scene in front of men that are about to fight for their lives!" the General said. "Do you have anything else to say?"

The General put his hand on his sword. Rafiel shook his head. The General turned his head.

"Come in old friend," the second General said to Merladio.

"If and only, it is fine with you. I wish to bring my apprentice in with me," Merladio said, he put a hand on Cayaison's shoulders.

"Of course," The General nodded.

"Thank you General Ishtmet," Merladio said.

As he said that Rameus's eyes went wide, anyone that studied the history of Storamgrade knew about Farron Ishtmet. He looked older than any of the pictures Cayaison had seen, his chin and the rest of his facial features looked the same.

Cayaison entered the large tent. Following behind the two Generals and Merladio. The Generals joined two others inside. They were standing at a large table.

"Everyone knows Merladio, and this is his apprentice..." Ishtmet began to say.

"Cayaison sir," Cayaison said putting his hand out. "Can I say it is an honor to meet you," Cayaison added.

Ishtmet shook his hand. "I wish it were on better terms," he said, he returned to stand next to the other Generals.

Rafiel pushed passed them.

"You have already met Rafiel; this is my second and third. General's Thornt and Tregon," he said as he pointed to the other two Generals.

"Let's get on with this!" Rafiel said as he stood at the table.

Cayaison could not stand him. He was rude, brutish and smelled. Tregon was the youngest he had short brown hair. He looked like he had not seen any battle.

While Thornt looked like he had seen too many, he was Ishtmet's second. His gray hair covered his scarred face, the light in his eyes had been dimmed a long time ago.

Ishtmet was the tallest, but he did not look as strong or as intimidating as Rafiel. His beard was the shade of snow, as well as his hair. The fire in his eyes was still roaring.

"Yes. Merladio. Why have you come?" Thornt asked.

Merladio stepped forward. "I am not here, to try and stop you," he began to say. "I only wish that I could have a few words with Friidian before things go too far."

"Probably to tell him about our plans or our numbers," Rafiel said.

"Go outside Rafiel. Your bitterness towards the Mages clouds your judgment." Tregon said.

To which the others agreed.

"If it weren't for your father, you would not be sitting so high and mighty Tregon," Rafiel said.

The two exchanged glances before Rafiel stormed out. Cayaison looked back at him as he left.

"Excuse Rafiel. After the war with the Ogres. Which we are in your debt," Thornt said looking at Merladio. "He lost a lot of men and a chance at a family. His wife to be and his battalion died from the plague the Ogres's left behind," Thornt shook his head.

"We warned you to burn their bodies further away from your villages," Merladio said.

Cayaison had read about the war with the Ogres. After the Mages of Heavstat had intervened on behalf of the humans, the battle had been won. The Mages then warned the humans, that the Ogres had ingested mushrooms that were poisonous to humans. They gave the humans advice that the bodies of the fallen Ogres were to be taken away from the villages.

Some of the human villages in their celebration began to burn the bodies before the armies could move them. This rash action resulted in a plague that spread without cure from village to village until it finally disappeared but at the cost of many lives.

"Yes, you did," Ishtmet said. "But to the matter at hand."

"Yes, I will like to talk to Friidian. Maybe I can talk him down. I hope to have one more chance to get through to him," Merladio said.

"To what end?" Tregon asked. "From what we have heard. He means to kill or end the threat of all humans. Is there anything you can say to him that would change his mind?"

"No," Merladio said. "I hope that what I will say. Will get us to the table to talk about the visions that he has seen and maybe persuade both sides to meet the middle ground," Merladio said.

"We have done nothing wrong!" Thornt said. "He is accusing the whole human race of crimes we have not committed yet," he shouted.

"I have to agree with Thornt on this," Ishtmet said.

To which Cayaison grabbed a stone mug from the table then dropped it. It shattered as it hit the floor.

"What the..." Tregon began to say.

"I did not know I was going to that today," Cayaison said. "If someone had told me this morning, that I would be in the tent of the great Generals of Storamgrade and for an unknown reason. I would drop a mug on the floor. I would have laughed in their face and called them a liar," Cayaison said. "But there it is," he said pointing at the broken pieces. "I stand here with you. Next to a broken mug."

"General Tregon," Cayaison said. Tregon looked at him. "How many times have you put your seal, on your armor?"

"Countless," Tregon said. "We take it off, when we take off our armor then put it back on, when we put it back on," Tregon shrugged.

"If I had told you this morning that you would put it on upside down. What would you have said?" Cayaison said.

"Absurd! I would never..." Tregon looked at his family seal on his breastplate. There it was upside down. "But!"

"I have cast no spell. Neither has my apprentice," Merladio said. "We couldn't if we tried," Merladio said as he pushed his hands forward. "As I walked through your ranks. I pulled a few of the crystals from the floor," Merladio said.

They both opened their hands, which had Kytac crystals in them. They had been holding on to them so tight their hands bled.

"You see Generals. Even though the actions that he is accusing you of, have not happened yet. Does not mean they will not occur," Merladio said.

Ishtmet knocked the crystals out of their hands.

"You harm yourselves. To make a point!" Ishtmet said furiously.

"We are on your side General. Do not forget that. All the Mages of Heavstat at this present time. Are on your side, we will fight by your side when the time comes. But the leader of this rebellion is a Mage, and I stand here asking you to give me a chance to speak to him. Mage to Mage. Please," Merladio pleaded.

Ishtmet looked at the other Generals who nodded.

"You will have your talk. But we will prepare for war just in case." Ishtmet said.

"Thank you. General," Merladio nodded, he began to walk out.

Cayaison followed him but stopped he closed his eyes, putting his hand out. The shards of stone began to piece themselves together reforming the mug.

"I am sorry sir," Cayaison said, as he exited the tent.

"Good work in there," Merladio said smiling. "I knew I made an excellent choice in trusting you," he said proudly.

"I am pleased, I rewarded your trust in me Master," Cayaison nodded.

"Something is heading this way," a soldier yelled.

He was pointing to the sky. A small figure flew overhead, then landed inside the walls of Dungledoir.

"What was that?" Rafiel asked.

"It Looked like the Ingniot, but they can't fly," Hertan said.

He began to concentrate. The soldiers around him looked at him, as his eyes opened showing their pale white color. They backed away from him scared.

"Relax," Alixia said to them. "He is using his abilities to see what just flew over us," she said as she calmed the soldiers down.

"What do you see Hertan?" Violetta asked.

"It is the Ingniot. It has wings," he said. "It is bright gold, now more polished than it should be," he said as his eyes closed then reopened. "It has been elevated. Only a Feragi Demon could do that."

"Did you hear that? They have demons fighting with them," a soldier said aloud.

"No one said anything about fighting demons!" another shouted.

By the time Merladio and Cayaison reached the bottom of the camp, most of the soldiers were panicking.

"What happened?" Rafiel shouted.

"They have demons fighting with them!" a soldier said.

"Demons? No one has seen a demon since the dark times," Rafiel said.

"Well, what killed the people at Haegersmeade?" a soldier asked.

"Yeah!" they screamed.

Rafiel began to say something. Ishtmet pushed his way through to the middle of the chaos.

"Yes!" he shouted. "They have demons. One demon."

To which there was a lot of mumbling and unrest.

"You have us," Merladio said. "We have fought demons before and we will again."

To which there was silence.

"Hertan show them."

Hertan stepped forward then pulled up the sleeves of his robe. Revealing the long twisting bright blue marks of a Demon Slayer.

"My family have slain demons for centuries. I was born to be a Demon Slayer. My ability to use minor magic, lead me to Heavstat. I have used the training I have gotten as a Mage to become better at killing demons. Many Slayers do not have the knowledge or the ability to use magic as I do. Trust me when I can say I can kill that demon."

The soldiers began to look at each other.

"It is an Ingniot at heart, even though it looks different now. It cannot become more than it's core," Hertan looked at the soldiers around him. He walked towards them. "It has gold armor that you cannot pierce with your weapons. But you can weaken it. Look at it do not back down from it. You will do more harm to it by standing your ground."

They began to nod.

"You see it. You call for me. I will take care of it."

"What say you?" Ishtmet asked. "Do we run back to Storamgrade? Or do we fight?" he asked.

There was an uproar of cheers.

"Leave their Mages to our Mages, and we will cut them down!" he roared.

Kreat landed in the middle of the troops his new wings folded against his body. There was a silent clap as Friidian moved towards him smiling.

"You knew he was there!" Kreat shouted at Friidian.

Friidian nodded.

"He could have killed me," Kreat said, through gritted teeth.

"I wanted him to know, where I was," Friidian said, with a smile. "If that meant you died in the process," Friidian shrugged. "So be it," he said, looking the demon in the eye.

"You play dangerously," Kreat said, approaching Friidian. "If he did not give me strict orders to keep you alive until he came. I would kill you right here."

"What else did he give you? Not just the wings and the bright color?" Friidian asked.

"No, he named me," Kreat said. "You will call me Kreat!"

"Ah," Friidian said. "He must have plans for you. If he gave you a name," Friidian said as he circled the new demon. "You must not need to feed anymore. But fear still strengthens you."

Friidian looked at Kreat more closely. Gone was the hunger in its eyes. Now they were brown. Its skin was a gold color that was bright, nearly matching the bright gold of its armor. Its hands were clenched, but he could see the new claws. Even though it stood like a human, had a face like a human. It was still a demon.

Friidian clapped. "He is smart!" Friidian smiled. "He turned you into a champion for my cause," Friidian laughed. "You will be the downfall of the human race," He stood close to Kreat. "I will not do that again," he nodded. "From this time forth, you will know everything I plan," he whispered. "Until he comes of course."

Friidian walked towards the gate. "Now I must talk to an old friend,"

He disappeared as he reached the gate. On the other side of the large gate. Friidian could see the might of the elite guard at the bottom of the hill. Walking up the hill was Merladio.

"Walking?" Friidian asked with a smile.

"I thought it would give me some time," Merladio said, as he reached his old friend.

"How is Heavstat?" Friidian asked as he walked towards Merladio.

"Better. Classes have resumed. I have promoted some of the high classmen to students and some of the teachers to Masters, to make up for the loss."

"Good," Friidian said, with a small smile on his face.

He looked down at the army ready to attack.

"We could end this," Merladio said, calmly looking at Friidian.

"Yes, we could," Friidian nodded. "The humans could surrender. We could see that they are all rounded up so that we can oversee their growth," Friidian said. "Make sure they do not overstep their bounds," he said furiously.

"That will not happen. They are not sheep or cattle. They are free to make their own decisions. As well as their own mistakes," Merladio said. "We made mistakes. Should we be punished, or be watched?" he said, to which Friidian raised his hand and brushed him away.

"When we make mistakes. We own up to them. We fix them!" Friidian said. "They, on the other hand, tend to blame someone else. They try to excuse themselves from all blame from all responsibility of their actions. Dungledoir is an excellent example," He shouted.

Friidian pointed at the city. "They! Opened a gate to the demon plane. Then blamed us for the demons being here!" Friidian shouted.

"One man did that, and now you use the same demon against them!" Merladio shouted back. "Did you not learn from your father's mistakes?" Merladio asked. "Wasn't it you who said. Demons are not to be trusted?"

"Do not spin my words against me. I know what I said. Yes, they are not to be trusted. But I know what they want. I know what fuels them. I know what drives them. They!" he said, he pointed towards the army below.

"They! I do not know. They are unpredictable, irresponsible. They do not even stick to their own laws. They feed on greed. They would hurt and kill each other for no reason, other than the land that they stand on, claiming it to be their own. No one owns the land!" he was furious. "Or do I have to remind you of how their great Storamgrade came to be?" Friidian asked he stood inches away from Merladio.

"No," Merladio said. "You do not," he did not need to be reminded of that horror.

"Thought as much," Friidian said. "That is the race you are defending. At their very core. They are weak, scared, and fear everything they do not understand," Friidian said. "But. They deem themselves worthy to tell everyone and everything that they as humans are powerful, that they are great, and they have the right to everything!" Friidian smiled, shaking his head.

He walked back, towards the city. Then rushed forward back to Merladio.

"Like the Dwarves! Their closest ally. They pushed the Dwarves out of Forandown, so that they could mine its gold!" Friidian said. "Their own allies!"

"But. If it weren't for them, The Dwarves would have died in Forandown. The deep cold would have killed them all!" Merladio said. "The elves of Therumsko would have died if it was not for the humans finding the deadly spores, within their forest," Merladio added.

Friidian shook his head.

"Yes, they do think highly of themselves, but for a good reason. They as a race have come a long way since the other races left them alone," Merladio said.

Friidian shook his head. "Petty accomplishments to the horrors that they will unleash," Friidian said.

The two high mages circled each other.

"I knew you would not see their faults, only their greatness," Friidian said.

"I do see their faults. You are right they are scared and frightened. So, were the other races. Did they not fight among themselves at the twilight of their youth?" Merladio asked.

"Yes! Yes, they did. But for the right reasons, they fought to grow, to evolve. Not over petty differences! And it will not change. They will continue fighting repeatedly for no reasonable reason. A difference of ideas, differences of opinions and even differences of how to live. They will fight and kill each other for nothing! And the world will suffer for it!"

Friidian shook his head.

"This is going nowhere. I only came here to see if you would say something different. We can talk for hours," Friidian said, he started heading back to the gate.

"What about the tower?" Merladio asked. "Is it your right to destroy everything?"

Friidian stopped in his tracks. He turned.

"Cayaison," he said as he turned around. "I have not seen or had any visions of a tower. I saw a vision of a child, kicking and screaming in his sleep, mentioning a tower," Friidian said. "What happens there?"

Friidian turned around with the look of desperation. Merladio could see it in his eyes. Friidian didn't know of the tower, not yet.

"I should not have brought it up," Merladio said, shaking his head. "Please, I beg of you. End this."

Merladio walked forward with tears in his eyes. He put his hands on Friidian's shoulders. He did not want the vision to come true.

"That bad?" Friidian said,

Friidian placed his hand on top of Merladio's. Merladio nodded.

"Good!" Friidian said as he smiled. He pulled Merladio's hands off him. "We will not see each other again, old friend," he said, he walked away. "I will always remember you. And what we had before this," Friidian said, he disappeared back behind the gate.

"As will I," Merladio said. He looked back at the army camp.

"Whenever you are ready," he said to Ishtmet as he appeared back at the tent. Ishtmet nodded.

"Master?" Cayaison asked. Merladio shook his head.

"Friidian is lost to us," Merladio said. "Prepare yourselves. We must fight against him now."

The other Masters, as well as the soldiers, began preparations for the attack. Merladio motioned for Cayaison to come closer.

"He did not know of the tower," Merladio whispered.

"Then it is not his intention to use it," Cayaison smiled.

He thought his vision would not come true if Friidian did not intend to use the tower.

"Not yet," Merladio said. "I fear that later actions will force him into using it."

Cayaison shook his head. "We must end this here," Cayaison said. He looked up at his master. "Can you fight him?"

Merladio knew the answer. Friidian had said they would not meet again. If they met on the battlefield, then it would go against what he had said. Merladio knew that Friidian had meant that he would die. Merladio was not scared of dying.

"He is my friend. I fought him in Heavstat, and it took all of me to defeat him then," Merladio lied.

"Then I will!" Cayaison said he walked away. "Keep the soldiers safe," Cayaison said as he walked towards the front lines.

Merladio didn't see Cayaison as the child; that came into Heavstat with so much fear and doubt. He now saw the young man; that would forge this world into a brand new one.

"Good luck."

### Chapter 9: War On The Hill

The sun was beginning to set, and the sky was darkening. Storamgrade's army had gathered at the base of the hill. They were ready to attack Friidian's forces. Four horses made their way to the front lines. They were pulling two large crossbows behind them. These monsters of humanity's engineering were created to bring down the gate.

When they were in place, the horses were detached from them. Giant spears were loaded into the front of each crossbow. At the head of each spear were eight sharp edges, each with rows of blades.

General Ishtmet smiled as the long spears aimed at the gate in front of them.

"Now these Mages will see what humans can do," he said. "Fire!"

Merladio stood near the middle of the soldiers that were on horseback. He watched as the machines shot their giant spears up the hill.

The two spears skewered the gate that had stood for decades, the same gate that had repelled thousands of men, but today two large spears head punctured it. When the spearheads had pierced through the metal of the gate, they twisted open. The eight sharp edges buried their blades into the metal, gripping the gate tightly.

"Well," Friidian smiled. "I always knew that they had torn the gate down. Never saw how " he said staring at the two large spearheads.

"Pull!" Ishtmet ordered.

Two strong men stood by each of the machines they began to turn wheels, the chains that were attached to the spears tightened as the chains came back into the crossbow. The slow creaking and grinding sound of the gate began to fill the air.

"Grendor!" Friidian said looking up.

Grendor grinned as he made a slight movement with his fingers. The large carrion birds began to dive downward.

"Incoming!" Rafiel shouted as he looked up.

"Archers!" Tregon yelled, he walked through the row of archers.

Together they all aimed their bows high at the birds diving towards them.

"Hold!" Tregon ordered.

The archers held staring up at the large birds.

"Hold!" he said waiting until they were in range. "Fire!"

A volley of arrows flew upwards into the air. The large birds were trapped in a sea of arrows. They were caught not able to fly down or out of the arrows. With their wings clipped and most of them significantly hurt they fell to the ground. Rafiel's grunts ran up to the birds, finishing them off with their swords.

"I will kill them all!" Grendor said pacing. "I will tear them apart. I will spit in their bodies as I tear their heads off with my hands!" He ran towards the gate.

Friidian smiled.

"You knew they would kill the birds," Kreat said. Looking t Friidian as they watched.

"Now he will kill without relying on his pets," Friidian said. "Ready yourself," he roared to the men and women around him. "The gate is about to fall."

Friidian looked at the bent gate; it put up one more second of resistance, then it flew off its hinges.

"Attack!" he ordered.

The men and women ran forward through the gate.

"Attack!" Ishtmet ordered as his soldiers ran up the hill.

Both sides crashed into other like water onto a rock. The soldiers and the black leather army clashed, swords hit swords; bodies hit bodies.

"This is war," Cayaison said, staring up at the madness. Blood spewed out of both sides.

"Not as heroic as your books make it out to be?" Thornt asked.

"Our books do not give all the details, none of us thought it was heroic," Alixia corrected him.

"I will lead my men up the side of the hill," Thornt said. "Hopefully, we will surprise your former Master and end this," he said, he led a small group of soldiers to flank the sides of the hill.

They disappeared into the brush and rocks at the edge of the path. Thornt and his men could barely be seen except for the slight movement of a brush here and there.

"We will wait for the other Masters to attack," Merladio said. "This part is not for us," he said staring at the carnage that was war.

"Not an archer," Grendor said, he swung his ax, slicing a soldier in half from the shoulder down. "Not an archer," another soldier swung his sword at the giant of a man. He caught it with one of his hands that was covered with leather. Grendor grabbed the head of the soldier, then swung his ax at the body, it split in half. "Where are the archers!" he shouted.

"He is a master!" Hertan shouted.

Merladio shook his head. "You wait for the Demon!" He nodded at two other Masters who ran up the hill to face Grendor.

"They are getting slaughtered," Violetta said.

The elite guard was indeed losing. The men and women of the black leathers were getting the upper hand.

"There!" Alixia pointed. "Tunadas is healing them," she pointed towards a rock, standing on the rock they all could see Tunadas casting healing spells.

"Alixia you can go," Merladio nodded.

"Lucious heal the guard," Merladio ordered.

Alixia ran off ducking and dodging.

"I will keep her safe," Dawain said. He ran off. He ran up the hill using his staff to block attacks that came for him.

"The rest of you help where you can," Merladio said. "Not you two!" he said to Cayaison and Hertan. "We still have to wait for the demon and Friidian to show their heads," he said to which the two nodded.

Violetta dodged a sword. She quickly spun herself sweeping the man off his feet with her staff. Alixia was close to Tunadas she began chanting spells that would counteract the spells he was casting.

"Foolish girl!" Frugaal said as she knocked Alixia back.

Alixia prepared herself.

"You think you can take on a Master?" Frugaal said.

"I already defeated one of you," Alixia said.

"It was you!" Frugaal said. "You're the one that killed Trabias. I will enjoy this."

"Are you all talk or are you going to fight?" Alixia said, with a smile.

The two exchanged smite spells as they ran toward each other. Alixia blocked another attack by spinning her staff as fast as she could.

"Terminatun!" Alixia yelled.

Frugaal's staff began to shake violently then small insects started to pour out of it. As she tried to shake her hand free from the staff, the more the bugs came out. Soon they covered her whole body. They chewed and ate at her. Alixia spun her staff as fast as she can, the insects flew away.

"I do not want to be responsible for the death of another Master," she said, looking down at Frugaal. "Do not push me to change my mind."

Alixia walked past Frugaal, who was on the ground writhing in pain. Tunadas was no longer on the stone. Alixia looked around for him but could not see him.

Dawain was having much better luck. He spotted Tunadas running through the bodies of people. He ran after him, then jumped pinning him to the ground.

"You!" Tunadas said, yelling up at him.

"Yeah me!" Dawain shrugged. "What can I say I am a pain in the..."

Tunadas pushed out his arms sending Dawain backward.

"Hope you liked, your small vacation from school," Tunadas said, as he stood up.

"I have always wanted to see how good you actually were," Dawain said, brushing off his robe.

Dawain held out his hand as his staff flew up back into it. Tunadas launched a volley of small stones and dirt at him from the ground. Dawain brushed them aside with a wind spell.

"You chose the wind," Tunadas laughed.

"Yeah what about it?" Dawain said,

Dawain stamped his foot hard into the ground then shot his hands forward. A large gust of wind shot forward towards Tunadas.

"So, did I," Tunadas said, with a smile. He put up his hand and with a single twist of it, the gust spun around and went for Dawain.

"But I am much better at it!"

He spun one of his fingers in a circle. The gust of wind circled Dawain trapping him inside it. Dawain fell to the ground as the air around him spun around him faster. He fell to the floor unable to breathe.

"School is out!" Tunadas said he walked back up the hill.

Dawain turned on his back trying to breathe but could not.

"Demon!" a soldier yelled.

Hertan looked, but could not see anything, then he saw it, the giant lizard had just come through the gate. It spun around knocking soldiers into the air with its tail.

Hertan ran up the hill evading would-be attackers. He had got half way up when he ran into Grendor bare-chested and covered in blood. He threw four staffs to the ground.

"Going somewhere?" he said. "The other Masters could not stop me," he said, as he smeared his bloody hand across his chest. "No one can!"

"I will like a try!" Rameus said.

He too was covered in blood. His face was covered with dark black fur. He had enormous teeth that looked like fangs coming out the sides of his mouth. His eyes were a deep yellow, with dark black pupils. His robes were tattered and torn. His fingernails were long and sharp.

"No! Find Lexia. I will need her help with the Demon," Hertan said. "That's an order!"

Rameus bowed then ran off.

"The two of you together might have stood a chance!" Grendor said.

With an evil smile on his face. Grendor swung his ax, it missed. Hertan took off his robe, leaving him bare-chested with brown leather pants. He held out his hands, two swords on the ground flew into each hand.

"If it is a fight you want!" Hertan said, through gritted teeth. The two big men launched themselves at each other.

"How long do you want us to stay out of this fight?" Cayaison asked.

Cayaison was looking at the field of battle. General Thornt and his men had been captured. Ishtmet was in a fight with a man dressed in all black. Dawain had just been rescued by Alixia. He could not see Violetta or Rameus. Lucious had found a perfect hiding spot between the two large machines. Her healing spells bounced around the battlefield, but it was not enough.

"We can jump in now, show our hand and let Friidian counter us. Is that what you want?" Merladio asked. "This is the beginning of your vision. We can end this here and now. Or we can let your vision come true," Merladio said, his eyes scouted the battlefield looking for Friidian. "It is horrible to watch these men give their lives. But we must," he said shaking his head.

Cayaison nodded. He knew his master was right. He hated waiting. He wanted to be out there, helping his friends.

Rameus had made his way into the city. He had turned himself into a small dog. He sniffed the air looking for the scent he wanted. He ran in and out of buildings until he found it. Then he moved into the most extensive building, then down the stairs. He turned himself back into a human.

"Rameus," Lexia said as she saw the dog turn to her little brother.

"Lexia," Rameus shouted.

"The apple does not fall from the tree," Lexia smiled. She had always wondered what kind of Mage her little brother would be.

"We have to hurry. There is a demon..." Rameus began to say.

"I know. I will take care of it. Once I get out there and face it," Lexia said.

"It has been named," Rameus warned her.

He took a metal bar from the floor and pried it between the bars. They both pulled on it.

"Got to love being small," Lexia said as she squeezed her way through the opening.

They both ran up the stairs. Lexia looked back she could see Messa standing on one of the roofs. The assassin looked down at her but did not move. Lexia nodded. Messa turned around then walked away.

"What was that about?" Rameus asked.

"The enemy of my enemy," Lexia said. She took the shape of a bird and flew into the air. Rameus followed.

"You're getting tired," Grendor said.

The two men had new cuts and bruises on them from fighting each other. Hertan looked into the air. He saw the two birds circling the giant demon.

"No Stalling," Hertan said as he moved out of the way.

Violetta had the two chains in each of her hands. She had taken them off the spearheads. They now were in her hands, that were glowing a bright green. She threw them at Grendor. The chains seemed to have lives of their own. They circled the large man, binding him.

"His all yours," Violetta said to Lucious.

Lucious nodded to the men next to the crossbows. Once again, they began to pull on the wheels of the machines. Grendor started to be pulled down the hill. He was kicking and screaming but was helpless to do anything.

Rameus and Lexia swooped down close to Hertan. He was approaching Kreat. The demon was still in its lizard form. It had just used its massive spiked tail to kill three of the elite guard.

"New play toys!" Kreat said, turning around to face Rameus, Lexia, and Hertan.

"Go Rameus," Lexia said. "You do not know the ways of the hunt," she said to her younger brother.

Rameus looked at Hertan then his sister.

"Don't worry yourself. Your sister will be fine. I have dealt with worse demons than this," Hertan said with a smile.

Hertan closed his eyes and focused. The rune marks on his chest and arms began to glow. Rameus ran down the hill, trying to help where he could. Lexia pulled up the sleeves of her robe.

"Wish I could take this thing off. But..." she said with a smirk, tugging on the robe.

"You will be okay. Stay beside me," Hertan said, he rushed forward the demon swung his tail, Hertan dived ahead managing to dodge it.

"Puny Slayers!" Kreat said,

It clawed out to Lexia she dodged it, then jumped into the air, she turned into a bird then flew into the air.

"She left you!" Kreat said, turning towards Hertan.

It walked forward towards him, not paying attention to the small bird in the sky. Hertan looked up, the bird pulled its wings into its body and dived towards the demon. Kreat did not notice until it was too late.

Lexia regained her human form a few feet above Kreat, landing on his back. She placed the glowing marks that were on her arm on its body. Kreat screamed as its body stiffened. It was paralyzed. Hertan rushed forward, he put a hand on the chest of the demon and began to chant.

"No!" Kreat screamed. "Master! I need you!" it screamed.

"That will be enough," Friidian said, he appeared out of nowhere.

With a wave of his hand, Hertan and Lexia were flung into the air and away from the demon.

"Cayaison!" Friidian shouted. "Come forward now!"

The fighting stopped as all looked at the Grand Master. Cayaison began to walk up the hill, ready to face Friidian. He passed Merladio, who nodded at him.

"There you are," Friidian said.

Cayaison nodded.

"Merladio told you why he could not face me?" Friidian asked.

"You told him not to, that in your visions. You two would never see each other face to face again?" Cayaison said. Keeping his eyes on him.

"There is that. But mostly because he was the one that banished me. Heavstat rules are stringent. Since he banished me, he can no longer attack me. If he does, he will also be banished from Heavstat," Friidian smiled. "He is now powerless against me," Friidian said, he faced Cayaison.

"Why does he not attack?" Dawain said. "He knows Cayaison cannot beat him."

"He is toying with him," Rameus said.

"No, he is scared," Alixia replied.

They had rejoined each other at the edge of the small half circle that had formed.

"All of these people here to watch you die!" Friidian said, with anger still facing Cayaison.

"I don't see Jacobsien," Cayaison said, with a smile.

"Ah. Your rival," Friidian said. "He is. Well, he is not here," Friidian said smiling. "He wasn't part of the plan."

"Am I?" Cayaison smiled. He knew the answer.

"Don't!" Friidian shouted in anger. "I may not be your Grand Master anymore. Do not think for a single second that I will not kill you," Friidian barked. "We are talking. Merladio wanted to talk, but I could not talk to him about visions. Since he had never had any."

"Stalling," Cayaison said.

Friidian's face got angrier his eyes were darting back and forth.

"You're stalling," Cayaison said. "The fight was turning in our favor," Cayaison said to himself. "Everybody go back down the hill!" Cayaison yelled.

The remaining members of the elite guard began to run down the hill. As Cayaison started to turn, he got stuck in place.

"I could have killed all of them!" Friidian said, looking down at the ground.

In the dark of the night, Cayaison and the others hadn't noticed that the ground was soaked. He looked back at the gate there on top of the broken gate were barrels of oil, that was still leaking. Cayaison looked at Friidian's Army.

"Oh, they would have been fine. They knew when to get out of the way," Friidian said calmly.

"This is an old trick!" Cayaison said as he whispered a few words. He felt his body return to him. He began to walk back down the hill.

"Next time we meet. No more tricks, no more talking," Cayaison said walking back down.

"Why not kill him now?" Frugaal asked.

"Not the time. We gain nothing from his death. Not now," Friidian said, he turned back. "Repair the gate. They will attack again in a few weeks," Friidian said, he walked back past the gate.

Tunadas nodded at him.

"They have Grendor," Kreat said. "Are we just going to..." he began to say before Friidian rushed at him.

"You cried out like a baby calling for its mother," Friidian said.

"They were about to..." Kreat began to say.

"I know what they were about to do," Friidian said. "Be gone. I do not want to look at you any longer."

Cayaison walked past the Generals who were arguing among themselves. Merladio approached Cayaison.

"Is that right?" Cayaison asked. "Are you powerless against him?" Cayaison asked.

"It is the reason I wanted to talk to him. To end this," Merladio said. "I cannot be banished from Heavstat. Not now," Merladio shook his head.

"Can you fight him, if you wanted to?" Cayaison said.

"Yes. If it comes to that I will," Merladio said. "You have my word."

"So that is it?" General Rafiel shouted. "We leave him in there!" he pointed up the hill. "He will repair and be twice as ready as he was. When we return!"

There were a few whispers from the other soldiers that had assembled close to him.

"What would you have us do General?" Tregon said. "Thornt is dead as well as over one hundred of our soldiers."

"The fight is lost!" Ishtmet said. "They have the high ground and the numbers! If we go now, he will light the oil, the moment we stepped on it!"

He looked over at Merladio, who nodded.

"We move to our forward base camp. Then regroup I will send word to Storamgrade for more men."

"We will head for Heavstat. I will bring more Masters." Merladio said.

"What good it will do us," a soldier said.

"Excuse me?" Hertan said he threw the four staffs to the ground. "These belonged to the other Masters, Mages that had fought beside you. We might not have lost a hundred like you, but we suffered. They were our friends, our brothers our family. So, watch your mouth."

"Tempers are high," Ishtmet said. "Nothing will come out of shouting at each other."

"How high can you aim those spears?" Alixia said.

She was standing beside the two machines.

"The gate is already down, by the morning they will have it up and be ready for us," Ishtmet said. "It won't work a second time."

"I don't mean to aim them at the gate," she replied.

Cayaison walked up to her.

"What do you see?" Cayaison said, looking up at the fortress.

"It's a bowl, right?" Alixia asked.

Alixia walked back to the Generals.

"When they built the city, they dug down from the top," she said, she cupped her hands together. "Then they cleared out the front of the bowl," she said bringing down her fingers. "Leaving the back alone and untouched because they knew an assault from behind would be suicide. So the only way to attack would be from the front," she said, she pointed upward at the back of the hill.

Cayaison saw it the rock lip surrounding the fortress. The General saw it too.

"We can hit that, not with the chains attached." He said, "How do we bring it down?"

"You hit it, give us a mark, we will bring it down," Cayaison said.

"Right then!" Rafiel shouted. "The nights not over!"

The soldiers rushed forward. They moved the overturned carts closer to the machines with all their might. The soldiers lifted the front of the large crossbows up and onto the barrier aiming them skyward.

"We will keep them at bay," Rafiel said. "Soon as they see those spears fly overhead. They will come with all their might," he said to Merladio.

"It will come down," Cayaison said he took a deep breath.

On top of the hill, Friidian's men were already lifting the bent and torn gate back up. Others looked down at the army they had just faced.

"What are they doing?" one of the black leather army men asked.

He was standing at the gate as the others lifted it back into place. Friidian had nearly made it back to the small building he had called his own. When one of the men came running to him.

"They are doing something with the spear machines," he said.

"Of course, they are. They are moving them, so they can take them back," Friidian said.

Kreat smiled as he looked back at the man.

"No, they are lifting the front up, placing them on the barrier," the man said.

"Why would they aim them up?" Kreat asked, with a smile then he and Friidian looked up.

There it was staring down back at them. The rocky wall hundreds of feet high above them. And encircling the whole city.

"They are going to bring it down!" Friidian shouted.

Those rocks would come down hard and fast. They would smash everything.

"Direthian you fool, you built your own tomb," he began to run back to the gate.

"Back to the gate!" Kreat yelled following his master.

The soldiers had already lifted the machines. They had loaded two new spears into them. Now they were pulling on the ropes that tightened them into place.

"Hear that!" Grendor said as a horn blew. "They are coming back to finish the job," he laughed from his spot on the floor chained to one of the barriers. "They will kill all of you this time."

"Shut him up!" Rafiel said.

The soldier nearest to Grendor hit him hard over the head with a stone block.

"Good," Rafiel said as he saw Grendor unconscious. "Now let's give these black leather wearing bastards, a fight," he said, he grabbed his axes then walked towards the barriers.

The remaining soldiers followed him.

"Here," Elieane said. She had been tending the horses throughout the fight. She said as she poured a liquid all over the front of the spears.

"It is dragons flame, it is highly flammable, and it will explode as hits anything."

"Go back to tending the horses!" Rafiel shouted.

Elieane began to turn around.

"No! You are needed here," Ishtmet said, throwing a sword at her. She caught it. "Protect the Mages. Let no one pass," he said to her.

She nodded her head, giving Rafiel a look that would kill.

Friidian and his men had reached the gate. They could see the soldiers standing in front of the barriers standing between them was Merladio and Hertan.

"Fly up and make sure those spears, do not hit the wall," he said to Kreat.

"I can't," Kreat replied. "The female got out enough of her chant to bind me to this form. It will be days until I fly again," he said looking at his back, the wings were gone.

"This should not be happening," he said. "Even in their next attack, they storm the gate, but we are already gone," he said mostly to himself. "Cayaison!"

Friidian shook his head then cursed Cayaison under his breath. He knew he should have killed that boy many times before today. Next time he would not hesitate to do so.

At the bottom of the hill, they heard the scream from Friidian.

"Not making friends are you," Violetta said, she stood ready.

Cayaison smiled.

"Remember moments before it hits. If you light it too soon, it will not explode," Elieane said.

They nodded at her as she took her stance in front of them.

"Ready! Fire!" Ishtmet said.

The two large men released the tightened chain. The spears flew out of the machines and upward. Cayaison and Violetta, who had both chosen fire as their primary spells. Stood ready keeping their eyes on the spears as they flew towards their target. The two good friends smiled at each other then they lit their hands with fire.

Friidian stood there he waited as well until they got into his visual range he opened his hands, firing a lightning bolt into the sky, his bolt was shout out of the air by another just like it.

Merladio stood at the bottom of the hill his hand outstretched.

"Just because I can't fight him doesn't mean I can't stop him," he smiled looking over at Cayaison. The spears flew passed the gate.

"Ready!" Ishtmet said looking at the two Mages.

They made the fire in their hands burn hotter.

"Aim," he said as they lifted their arms.

"Fire!"

They shot their hands forward throwing a fireball one after the other upwards. Balls of frost shot up to block them from beyond the wall, as Frugaal and the remaining Masters aimed their hand upwards to stop them. Two made it through soaring past the gate faster and faster.

The dark sky lit up with a loud explosion of sound and light as the spears lit just before hitting the wall. Large rocks fell from the wall.

"It is not down all the way!" Friidian yelled. "Attack them!" the army rushed out of the gate.

"Protect the Mages!" Ishtmet yelled as his army stood in front of the barriers, ready to defend themselves from the attack.

"Dawain, Hertan," Merladio yelled. "Gale force winds will knock it lose."

"Rameus, Lexia fly up high out of sight, circle back and do whatever you can from up there," he pointed to the loose rocks.

"Cayaison!" he nodded, he motioned to the ground.

Rameus and Lexia turned into birds then flew into the night sky. Dawain and Hertan began circling their hands. The wind started to pick up, flames all around the base camp began to flicker as the air around them became turbulent.

Cayaison and Merladio pulled their hands up and down, faster and faster as the ground itself began to shake slightly but became more violent.

"No! No! No!" Friidian shouted he looked behind him. The rocks were beginning to shake loose.

"We have to go!" Kreat said. He looked up and saw the shadow of two dire bears standing in the cracks clawing away at the rocks.

"We have lost!" he said, picking up his Master, who was still screaming.

Elieane was in the middle of fighting two men when a loud horn shook the air. The men looked at each other then ran to the side of the hill. They were retreating.

"To me!" Kreat yelled. "I have one spell left."

They all ran to him. As soon as they were all close to him, he jumped into the air. There was a rush of air then they were gone, all of them. The wall came crashing down.

Rameus and Lexia landed close to their friends. The ground rumbled as the large rocks crushed everything underneath them. Some of the more massive sized rocks made it to the gate. After the dust had settled everyone could see that Dungledoir was no more, it was just rubble and boulders. The army cheered loudly. They had won.

Later that night at the forward base camp. There was much celebrating, soldiers were drinking and dancing as others played music on instruments.

"Great job today General," Merladio said, they were inside of the General's tent.

"It is never a great job when I have lost so many," Ishtmet said. "I will tell the King that for now. Friidian's plans have been thwarted," he said, he picked up his mug.

"I will tell the other Masters back at Heavstat to send the King and his advisers all we know about Friidian's past actions," Merladio said.

Ishtmet nodded.

"And you," Tregon said. He walked towards Cayaison. "You might call this one your apprentice," He said looking at Merladio. "What I saw in his eyes tonight. Those were not apprentice eyes. You have leadership in you, your friends out there. They know it, and they will follow you to the ends of this world and into any of its darkest depths," Tregon said. "Be careful where you lead them."

Cayaison shook the young General's hand. "Thank you, And I will be careful. They are the world to me and more."

"Cayaison is no longer my apprentice," Merladio said. "When I get back I will have to ask the others. But I don't foresee a problem. I mean to make him a Master."

"General," a man said peering into the tent. "The men outside, they want to see you."

They all exited the tent. All the remaining and non-disabled soldiers had gathered around a massive fire made from one of the carts.

"And here is our great General now!" Rafiel said, in front of the fire.

"Speech. Speech. Speech." they all yelled.

Ishtmet raised his hands. They all fell silent.

"This is not the end. It is a great win, yes by all means it is. We have shown Friidian and his followers that the great city of Storamgrade our home. Will not bow, and it will not run." he said as they all nodded. "Just because we are humans, we are not the victims he thought we would be."

They all roared.

"But we have suffered significant losses tonight as well. We have friends and families that we have to go back to and tell the bad news too," he said lowering his head. "We will tell them, that their children, their brothers, their fathers. Fought hard, died bravely, heads high," he said lifting his cup.

They all shouted. Taking large chugs of their cups. To their fallen comrades.

"We have friends who are Mages, just like the ones we fought. That goes to show. Not all humans are evil. As well as not all Mages are our enemy," he raised his cup to Merladio and the others.

The fire shot high into the air as it formed the figure of Friidian.

"Great speech!" the flamed figure said.

"Relax. It is Illuscious," Merladio shouted. "He is probably just outside the camp," he said. "Hertan find him."

"By the time he finds my faithful servant, I would have finished what I have to say," Friidian's illusion said. "Nothing you have said is right. The battle was not a great win for Storamgrade, but a win for Heavstat."

The flame figure laughed loudly.

"If these Mages were not here. My demon would have torn your men to shreds, the man you have prisoner would have killed most of you. So, do not be so happy. Again, you have proven you are worthless. Nothing, less than nothing. The time will come when the whole world will see what a waste, humans are compared to the rest of us. Then they will side with me to erase your race from this world."

It looked to the side. No doubt Hertan had found Illuscious.

"Enjoy your night. Your nights, because from here on they are numbered, and the countdown begins now!"

The fire erupted skywards then died down. Everyone was silent. Hertan came running back.

"I found him, but he disappeared just before I got to him," He said breathing heavily.

"The damage is done," Cayaison said.

They looked at the soldiers. Their faces were full of mixed emotions, fear, anger, hate as well as others.

"Go to my tent," Ishtmet said. "They will not attack any of you tonight while you are in the General's tent."

"Aren't you coming?" Merladio asked.

"No. I must stay with my men," Ishtmet said. "Merladio," he nodded his head at Merladio.

The two whispered to each other as the others went into the tent. Merladio came into the tent and sealed the entrance with a spell.

"What did the General have to say?" Cayaison asked.

"Some things I cannot tell you here right now, but one thing he did say that I can," he said as he walked to the back of the tent. "We must leave now."

It was a few moments before the group stopped running. They looked back there was no sign of any followers.

"What did the General tell you?" Cayaison asked, this time, he had a grave look on his face.

"They had orders to kill any Mages, even if they stood with them," Merladio said, with a sigh. "It would seem that the King and his advisers are taking the threat by Friidian literal."

"Wait!" Hertan said. "We just fought by their side!" he shouted. "We lost four Masters tonight."

"They lost as well. Their men fought against Mages. The threat to kill all humans comes from a Mage. Did you not hear what Friidian said?" Alixia said. "He basically told all those men if it weren't for Mages they would all be dead," she said shaking her head.

"She is right," Cayaison said. "We have to stop Friidian, then and only then can we ask them not to fear or hate us," he said, shaking his head. "Friidian won tonight. He turned one of our allies against us."

They began to walk down the small incline towards the small clearing.

"The horses I can see them," Lexia said. "I thought you would have shrouded them," she said, as she approached them.

"Deacan did," Merladio said.

Everyone went silent.

"He was a good man, and a great Master," he said, he walked towards his horse.

"You two fly ahead," Cayaison said. "We don't want any more surprises," he said to Rameus and Lexia, who both nodded back at him.

Lucious and Violetta rode ahead. Dawain noticed what was going on a bit later than the others.

"I think I will ride along with them," he smiled, he sped up to catch up with the others.

"Who is going to start," Hertan said.

He said to the other two.

"I will," Cayaison said. "What are you not telling us?" he asked Merladio.

Merladio took a deep breath.

"Nothing tonight happened the way I thought," he said. "Dawain nearly died, we lost four of our top magic users."

"This is war. We are going to lose people. Some might be friends or even family," Hertan said.

"I know. I have been fighting wars for a long time," Merladio retorted.

"What the Grand Master is saying," Cayaison said. "This is the first battle, it should not have taken so much," Cayaison said. "On both sides."

The three of them looked forward all of them stuck in their own thoughts.

Deep inside a dark cave, small lamps sat on large crates that lined the walls of the cave. The cave used to be the entrance to a mine, the humans that had made this mine had long left it after it had run dry. Friidian and his followers had made this their second base after they had taken the small village of Toramire on their way to Dungledoir.

They had stayed in this mine for one night. It was here that Frugaal had set up a demonic stone in the wall. Friidian had told her to make sure that Kreat knew how to locate it.

Friidian was beyond mad. He fumed in a corner by himself sitting on one of the large crates as the other followers tended to the wounded and consoled those that had lost members.

"One of us should talk to him," Tunadas said, to the other Masters around him.

Kreat stood a few feet in front of him. They knew that the demon would not let anyone pass.

"No, we should leave him alone," Illuscious said. "He needs this time to form a plan."

They looked over at their leader who seemed more like he was mad than planning.

"Why did you save her?" Frugaal asked.

Looking over at Denessa still weak and feeble looking. She was propped up against a wall with Messa and two others watching over her.

"It was what he had asked of me," Illuscious said. "I do not question him. I only do what I am told to do."

One of the other Masters shook his head.

"He gave up Grendor but decided to rescue her. She can't even walk," Freimier said.

"Grendor was a fool!" Tunadas said. "He went in angry and paid for it," Tunadas smiled. "If he had thought like a Mage instead of an angry human. He would be here."

Friidian sat silently. He could hear most of the conversations that were happening around him. Denessa and her little group were debating on making a run for it the first chance they got. Denessa was against it. She did not want to leave any of her followers behind to be used in his war.

The group of Masters were questioning everything that was happening. Another group on the other side were thinking they were better off when they had not joined Denessa and her father in their fight for revenge.

But what he was listening to the silence coming from Kreat. It was deafening. The demon had not said a word since it had brought them all here. It was staying still not making any sign of movement.

"Say something," Friidian said.

Kreat turned to look at its master.

"I know you want to say something," Friidian said. "All of them have something to say," Friidian said looking at them.

"Do I look like one of them?" Kreat said. "We lost," he turned. "If that makes them want to tuck their tails in and run back to where they came from, then they don't know war," it folded its arms. "What we do next is what matters."

"Next?" Friidian laughed. "We should not be here. Not for two months. When we took Toramire it was so that I could fortify this mine," Friidian said. "When we get here, the demon that named you joins us. That is when the humans, fear us," he said standing up.

The demon roared in laughter. This sudden outburst made everyone look at it.

"Your big plan was for others to do the fighting and planning for you? Others like your dead Master and Gremoar? You think because your father freed him, that he will do your bidding? You know nothing about him," Kreat laughed.

It looked at all the humans inside the cave. They all looked scared, weak. They were looking for someone to lead them, tell them what to do, what to think. But most of all they looked like victims.

"You do know that he feeds on humans, as you feed on animal flesh?" Kreat smiled. "He might help you and I say might generously. If he does help you, there will be a price," he looked around at the people in the room. "And they look like payment."

"My father..." Friidian said.

"Your father freed a great demon, a Feragi demon no less," Kreat said. "Do you even know what he is?"

Kreat asked, but it was a general question.

"A Feragi demon is not bound by the laws of your world. It can change its appearance. It could walk among you, and you won't know its there until it eats you!" Kreat laughed.

It wasn't just telling Friidian now. It was talking to everyone that had gathered here. It wanted to let them know what danger their great leader was going to bring into their midst. Maybe then they will turn on him and kill him. Something it knew it couldn't do.

"They create lesser demons from the dead," it said. "Gremoar has made the dark men from the dead bodies of humans," it said. "So, when you die, you will become one of them, no longer human, not dead, but not alive and you will need to feed on blood. The blood in people, and you will need it constantly, always hungry for more. You will feed on your own family to satisfy the hunger."

Kreat smiled. He turned to Friidian.

"But you knew this!" it said.

"Tell them," Friidian said. "What comes with that hunger?" Friidian was folding his arms.

"You should have been a demon," Kreat said. Shaking its head, it now realized what Friidian was planning. He had made an army out of a large family. That will fight to the last one but also sacrifice themselves.

"When you turn, not only will you hunger," Kreat said. "You will become strong, stronger than any human, faster, able to do things no human could do."

"Will we be able to kill those that killed our son?" a crying mother said. Friidian stepped forward.

"Yes," Friidian said.

Her husband stood up.

"I make weapons. My son was the fighter," he said.

"When he turns you, you will be able to fight. All of you will. No matter how old, or weak," Friidian said. "He will turn you."

They all began to stand.

"But first you must die," a voice said. "Right?" Denessa said. She was standing with the help of some of her loyal followers. "Tell them," she urged. "They have to die."

"Yes," Friidian said. "You will have to die. But you can choose. You can die fighting or just die." Friidian said. "When you die, he will turn you and then, you will fight the people that killed you."

There was mumbling among them.

"Why are you even thinking about it?" Denessa asked. "He just led your family to their deaths, in his war."

"What about you?" a man said, standing up.

"He is right!" another said. "You wanted us to die for you so that we can avenge your family," the man said.

To which a lot of them agreed.

"Your family trained us. To be your vengeance!" a woman said. "What is the difference if my son had died in your war or his?" she asked.

Denessa looked at them.

"My war?" she said. "It was as much your war, as it was mine. Your family had suffered at the hands of the council as much as mine," she said. "They helped the ones they wanted and left others to die."

"What's the difference!" the lady screamed.

Denessa stood there not knowing what to say to a woman that had lost her son.

"He would have been brought back in mine," Friidian answered. "I won't lie to you. He would not be the same. He might not remember you. He might even try to feed on you," he said. "But he will be able to avenge himself and kill those that had killed him," Friidian said, looking at Denessa. "I may play with your lives, but at least I am honest."

"Then choose!" Denessa said.

She spoke to all of them.

"Yes. Choose!" Friidian said. "I have too much to do, to argue and fight over what is right and what is wrong with the lot of you."

Friidian went back to his corner. All of the Masters and the demon walked with him. Most of the others stood in their place, slowly the mother and her husband walked over to him.

There was a moment of silence, where everyone remained still. Then one by one most of the others began to walk over to Friidian except for the few loyal people around Denessa. She stood there with only a handful of what was left of her army.

"You are free to go," Friidian said. "We will not come after you," he said. "When this is all over. Wherever you have settled, I will leave you alone."

Denessa stared at him with pure hatred. Her loyal members began to pick up their belongings. Messa held her true leader up as the rest got ready to leave.

"I warn you now if you decide to join the humans. I will show no mercy!" Friidian said as he watched them begin to walk to the mouth of the cave.

"I have no reason to join them," Denessa said. "But all the reason I need to stop you!"

Frugaal walked forward.

"Here. Take this," she said handing over a large vial. "It will give you all your abilities back for a few hours. The more you take, the faster your body will get used to it, you will have to take more of it each time."

Denessa looked at the vial.

"It is not poison, I swear it," Frugaal said, backing away as one of the women took it from her.

"Thank you," Denessa said.

They walked her out of the cave. All of them had gone except Messa, who stood behind holding her bow and arrow in her hand. There was no talking as they all looked at the lone assassin. She looked at them with one arrow drawn in the bow.

"Are you going to tell me how you do not appear in my visions?" Friidian said standing up.

Messa said nothing but looked at him. He began to walk towards her. She let the arrow go. It embedded itself in the ground just a few inches away from his last footstep. She had another one drawn and aimed it.

"You still owe me demon!" she said.

The demon nodded.

"I cannot fight her until my debt is paid for the village," it said to Friidian.

"I do not intend you to," Friidian smiled.

"I trained most of your new followers. How many of them will die, without being brought back as mindless demons, before they get a hand on me," she said.

"You think of me wrong," Friidian said. "I do not want anyone to fight you," He took steps back. "There is something about you I am missing. All I want to know is what."

Messa took one step back, then looked out of the cave.

"You said you would not follow. Does it stand or was it a lie?" she asked.

"You have my word," Friidian smiled.

Messa turned and ran out into the night. Friidian smiled as the others began to settle back into their places leaving Friidian and the demon alone. Friidian laid down as the demon stood next to him.

"This was your plan all along," Kreat said. "Nothing has gone wrong. Has it?"

It leaned against the rock wall. Friidian rolled over with a smile on his face.

### Chapter 10: Ends and Beginnings

The morning sun rose, its amber light crept its way across the grass and up onto the leaves and into the trees. The light illuminated a lone female figure standing on a branch, her arms by her side.

In one hand she held a bow. The bow she owned was made of the most durable wood from a tree no human had ever seen. She was one of three ever to wield it. The string itself could not be pulled back by the strongest of men. To anyone that saw it they would say it was the most beautiful bow they had ever seen. In Messa's hands, it was one of the deadliest weapons ever created.

Messa stood perfectly still high off the ground. Her sight had not moved all night she looked at the entrance of the mine then looked downward. Denessa began to move slowly. Messa took one last look at the mine.

They had not gone far from the mine, it had been too dark to see, so they kept close to the cave for safety. Friidian had kept to his word. No one had followed them so far.

Messa jumped down falling a few feet down to the ground. The fall would have hurt many people, but she landed quietly.

"Morning," Denessa said. She sat up. Then looked around at the rest of the group, they were still sleeping. Messa moved to wake them Denessa stopped her.

"No, let them sleep," Denessa said.

She held the vial of liquid up. Messa shook her head.

"I know," Denessa said. She knew her second in command. The two had been through a lot. To some Messa was Denessa's shadow to Denessa, she was so much more.

"We cannot trust Frugaal. But when I was in Heavstat, she was one of the few people, that I liked,"

Denessa sat up, bracing herself against the tree. She winced in pain. Messa sighed.

"Wake the others at least," Messa said softly. "If anything happens, we might need to carry you somewhere and fast," she pleaded.

Denessa gave a slight nod. Slowly Messa woke the other four ladies and the one man that had come with them. They all looked at Denessa holding the vial.

"No, my lady," the youngest woman said. "Let me!" she said, reaching out for the bottle.

"No Marcia," Denessa said. "You are the fastest of us all. If anything happens I want you to run that way," she said pointing to the north past the mine. "Toramire lies that way. There is grass just around the small walls. It is used to cure many poisons. You will run there and gather as much as you can and bring it back."

Marcia jumped to her feet. "I will run there now," she said. "I will get some then come back, so we have some when you take it," she said pulling her long black hair into a ponytail.

"It is the smartest thing to do," the man said.

Messa nodded at Marcia, who took off running. She was fast, in a few moments she was gone from view.

"She is alone, what if..." Denessa said.

"You trained us all well," one of the other ladies said. "Marcia can take care of herself."

"Loran, Michia, Nathan," Messa said to the two ladies and the man. "Look through what we have and count it out into days. We need to know what we have and for how long."

Messa looked over at the other lady.

"Carmel, climb that tree and look out for Marcia."

They all got to work as Messa sat next to Denessa. "What are your plans?" she asked in a whisper.

Denessa straightened herself up. She looked at the others.

"Finding my brother," Denessa said. Messa nodded. "You agree?"

"Yes," Messa said. "The demon would not have sent him away if it had not seen something in him. Something even it knew was dangerous to Friidian."

"The dark lands," Nathan said. "Sorry, I have good hearing. I should not have been ears dropping," he apologized bowing his head.

Denessa looked over at him. "What about the Dark Lands?"

"That is where the demon sent him. Your brother, I mean. I overheard the demon talking to Friidian. That's where it told him. It had sent him,"

"The Dark Lands?" Denessa said. She looked at Messa.

The Dark Lands was what everyone called the lands beyond the lost sands, The farthest reaches of the map. A lot of people had ventured into the desert of sands. Some returned burnt and dehydrated. Only a few ever made it to the ends. Those that did always mentioned land covered in darkness as far as the eye could see. Some had said that it was the place where the Demons came up from the underworld.

"I must go," Denessa nodded her head.

They all looked at her.

"I will go with you," Messa said.

"We all will," Loran nodded. "But you must be honest with us from here on. Can you do that?"

"Yes, I can," Denessa nodded. "I can't be who I once was. With my back like this. The dark power within me has subsided."

Denessa held out her hand she opened it, but only a black wisp of energy emanated from it.

"I cannot protect you or fight like I once did," Denessa admitted, closing her fist tightly. She slumped back against the tree. "I am useless, without you all!"

"You are more than just dark magic. And much more than a fighter," Messa said. "You rallied a vast army. An army that stood up to the elite guard of Storamgrade," Messa smiled.

Denessa smiled back at her. "They were great, weren't they?"

She had not watched the fight on the hill. She had heard the cries and shouts from her place within one of the buildings. Messa had been her eyes. Messa had watched the fight from the top of the broken gate. She had not fired an arrow or helped either side.

"They were!" Messa replied. "You would have been proud."

"I was," Denessa said. "Until they turned on me!" she retorted.

"They did not turn on you. Just what you wanted from them," Messa replied. "You have ordered them, fought them, even killed some of them."

Denessa looked away. "I did all of that to make them stronger," Denessa argued. "To make them better, so they could fight."

"A fight they didn't want. Your father tricked them into the thought that they wanted it. They wanted to get away from the reach of the council. Not fight them."

Denessa looked at her bitterly. She knew her friend was right. She nodded.

"I have to be better, next time," Denessa nodded. "This time, I will make sure it is what they want as well," she looked at the rest of them.

They had sad looks on their face.

"What is it?" Messa asked as she stood up.

"We have food for six days that is if we keep to a plan," Nathan said.

He was the only man among them. A tall, dark-skinned man with short black hair. He talked with a slow deep voice. Although he was not of a large build like most of the men in the army, his skill with his daggers was unmatched by any of them.

"Six days," Denessa said. "We would have to hunt and scavenge for the rest until we get out of sight of the known towns."

"Then why the sad faces?" Messa asked.

"It is the water and rope," Loran said.

She was the oldest among them. Her hair was beginning to gray, her skin was pale and showed many wrinkles. She knew most of the land, she was also sagacious and spoke many of the languages spoken by the other races.

"We have enough water for two maybe three days. But if we are to..." Loran stopped and looked at Denessa.

"Carry me," Denessa nodded. "You don't have enough rope to make a stretcher," Denessa smiled.

Denessa looked at the vial it was her only option.

"She is coming!" Carmel shouted. "There are men behind her!" she yelled louder.

Messa immediately looked upward, in what seemed like one leap she was up in the trees. "Bandits," she cursed.

Messa made a small bird noise that she hoped Marcia could hear. To her amazement, Marcia heard and began running faster.

"That a girl," Messa smiled, jumping down from the tree.

"Save the arrows," Denessa said, throwing Messa a sword. "I want them alive."

Messa nodded as she ran out to meet them.

Marcia was tired her legs ached, her stomach was cramping, but she was still ahead of the two men.

Marcia had reached Toramire as she began picking the tall bluegrass. These two men attempted to jump her. First, they asked her for money, but when she told them, she did not have to give them. They tried to get payment in other ways. That is when she ran.

Marcia had heard the bird noise and knew it meant Messa had seen her. All she had to do was go to the second bird sound. Marcia listened for the call as she kept her pace steady. She heard it more precise this time. Changing her direction, she headed for a line of trees.

Messa laid in wait she saw Marcia run past her. Messa sprung out from hiding, leaping into the air. She kicked the first man in the face so hard that his body lifted off the ground, it flew forward before landing with a thud. The other man stopped just in front of Messa drawing his sword.

"What we got here then?" he said.

Messa always got this response from men she faced. They always saw the lady figure in tight dark leather. Her dark red hair was coming from under her hood. Her green eyes were barely visible under the shadow of the hood. Messa was not very tall, yet she was very slim. Men always underestimated her.

"Aren't you going to run?" he smiled.

He reeked of sweat and alcohol. Messa did not draw her sword. This man was no match for her. Denessa had ordered her to bring them both back alive. The first man was still groaning on the ground ahead. Most likely he had broken something from the fall.

This man would be joining him with three swings of his sword. He made a swing at her, but she dodged it to the side. Then he made a lunge at her she spun around and parried it away from her. Then he swung in a full arc for her head. She ducked under it and punched him hard in the mid stomach. He let go of his sword, falling to his knees, he vomited up the contents of his belly.

Messa kicked the hilt of his sword and grabbed it as it came off the ground. She took the handle of the sword then bashed into the back of his head.

Carmel was down from her spot in the trees, and Marcia was drinking some water when Denessa dragged the two bodies back to them. She let the bodies go as she reached the rest. Nathan quickly searched their bodies.

"More water," he said with a smile.

Denessa leaned over to look at them.

"You're their leader," one of the men said as he wiped the puke from his mouth. "A cripple?" he laughed.

Nathan quickly kicked him in the head. The man spat out blood as he returned to a sitting position.

"There is an army in the mine just behind us," Denessa said. "An army in which they intend on killing as many humans as possible," she muttered. "But to do that, most of them would be turned into dark men," she said, letting that sink in.

"Yeah?" the other man said. He was breathing heavy. "What has that got to do with us?"

"You do know of the dark men?" Denessa asked. "How they eat and drink?"

The two men looked at each other as they looked past the bushes at the cave.

"I need supplies. Supplies that you could either help me get, or I can hand you over as food, for their supplies."

The two men looked at each other.

"How we know you aren't bluffing?" one of them asked.

"She isn't," Loran said. "We left them last night," she said, stepping forward.

She lifted her arm there were bruises from the fight on the hill. She had tried to treat some of the fallen, but some of the soldiers from Storamgrade had found her. She was lucky that she got away before they killed her.

"They left me with a souvenir," she said.

The two men looked away the bruises were dark and purple.

"Which one will it be?" Denessa asked.

"There is a small village not too far from here," one of them said. "They have a small trade shop," he said. "It might not have everything you need, but it is a start."

"Weapons?" Nathan asked.

"The keeper has a sword, but he is only one man." the other said.

"Which way?" Marcia said she looked ready to run again.

"Not you," one of them said. "You're too pretty. They will see you coming a mile off."

"Plus, you're too loud," the other said. "Look. We may not look like much. But we are loyal," the man said. "You tell us what you want, and we will get it for you."

"Why?" Denessa asked.

"Payment," the other said. "We can notice desperate people when we see it." he looked at them. "And you lot are as desperate as they come," he smiled. "Also, we can tell you have a purpose. We have nothing, no families, nothing to tie us down. Let us come with you when the time is right. You will pay us for our help, then let us be on our way. No questions asked."

Denessa looked up at Messa. They were right. They were in a desperate position. Sure she could give these two up to Friidian for whatever supplies he could give them, but then he would know how desperate they were. He might even turn on them. He had said their paths should not cross again.

"What do you say?" the two men said standing up.

Nathan stood up with them. Denessa looked at the vial. She was in a desperate spot. But she was not beaten, she took the cork out of the top and took a deep swig. The liquid tasted vile.

The others rushed to her leaving the men standing there. She felt nothing at first; then she felt her toes wiggle then she moved one foot then the other. She lifted her knees and stood up. She walked over to the two men and put her hand out.

"You have a deal," she said, then she leaned in. "If you try and trick me. I will kill you myself," she whispered.

She opened her hand, the dark power inside her emanated from it. The others smiled, Messa nodded. For the moment she was back to normal, she knew it would not last.

The small village had only two guards, which were no match for any of Denessa's group. They found the trade shop and began to take what they wanted.

"Thieves!" an old lady shouted at them from the floor.

Nathan just looked away from her as he threw a few bags of wheat into the back of a wagon.

"Shut it old bag," one of the thieves spat down on her. "Or you will end up like them," he nodded to the two guards, who lay on the floor dead. She stopped looking at them.

Denessa stood outside with Messa they were watching the handful of villagers who they had gathered into the small square. There were only a few thatched houses made of wood, branches, and stone. The trade store was the most significant building they had. The rain was coming down on them. The sky was beginning to darken. It was a sure sign a storm was coming.

"We can't stay here," Messa said. "We would be vulnerable," she was stating the obvious.

Denessa was getting weak. It had taken them just over two hours to get here. They had already been here for too long. She guessed the potion was running its course. Denessa agreed, she was looking at two men that were in the stocks in the middle of the square.

Denessa walked towards them through the people on their hands and knees. The mud around the stocks smelt like feces and urine. She brought her hand up to her nose.

"What did you do?" she asked them.

Her boots were beginning to sink into the filth.

"Denessa," Marcia said running up to her mistress. "Your boots. You do not need to stand near these..." she pleaded.

Denessa held up one hand.

"I asked you a question," she stated to the two men.

"Stole from one of them," one man said.

"I stabbed a man," the other said.

Denessa nodded. She turned back to the crowd that was still on the floor. The others had finished inside the trade shop. Quickly she turned around back to the men. Her hand glowed a dark black. She then shot a black light at the stocks. There were silence and shock as people looked on. Slowly the two men stood up.

"You set us free?" one of the men asked.

"Yes, I did," Denessa replied. "You now have a choice. You can come with me, or you can go. If you decide to go, they will look for and eventually they will catch you again," she said, walking back towards the others.

"And with you?" one of them asked.

Denessa smiled. "We are heading for the Dark Lands. I cannot promise you that we will make it there. I can promise you that we will take what we want when we want. All the way there."

"I like the sound of that," one of them said, he walked towards her.

The other man stood there. He looked down at the people that had imprisoned him and made him make a mess of himself while they laughed and pointed at him.

"What about people like them. The people that we take from?" he asked.

"If they listen and stay out of our way. We will leave them. If they get in our way, we will kill them," Denessa replied.

The man nodded. "Works for me," he agreed.

"We are leaving. If you tell the wardens anything tell them the truth. We only killed those that got in the way," Messa shouted, she jumped onto a horse.

Marcia and Michia hopped up into the back of the wagon. They helped Denessa up. The others either walked or got onto horses. One of the men from the stocks stopped at one of the people on the ground, then kicked them. Carmel was the nearest to him. He looked at her.

"He was the one that put me in those..." he began to say.

She looked at him through her hazel eyes. Her dark blonde hair was in her face.

"Do I look like I care?" she asked.

The man was shocked.

"If you are going to do something then do it," she stared at him.

He stood there silent. He looked at the horses and the wagon leaving down the path.

"She said take what you want when you want. Did this man do you harm?" she asked.

He nodded.

"He wasn't in the way," a lady pleaded. "She said if we did not get in the way, you would not harm us."

"Well?" Carmel asked handing the man a dagger.

Denessa could see everything from her seated position in the back of the wagon. The man took the dagger.

"If you are going to do it. Make it quick. He does not need to suffer," Carmel said, she looked down at the man.

"Yes, he does," the murderer said.

He stabbed the man in the back of the neck. Blood poured out of the wound. The man began to choke on his own blood. Carmel nodded. She started to walk away.

"Your dagger," the man said, holding out the small knife.

"It's yours now," she replied. "You owe me a new one."

The man smiled.

"Reygan," he said holding out his hand.

Carmel just kept walking. Reygan smiled as they left the small village behind them.

Cayaison and the others had reached the town of Teryaon. A city shrouded by a spell, it was at the mouth of the path to Heavstat. Only those that honestly knew how to look for it could find it. To many people they city looked like a small forested area, a small hill, some had even seen a large hole in the ground.

Teryaon was a town that served Heavstat. Some of the humans that helped inside Heavstat had come from this city. Anything the Mages needed, whether it was food, clothes, or parchment paper, it all came from here. The tall brick wall around the town kept many things out, but also kept things inside.

Small creatures known as Raeb ran around the town wildly. These creatures were tiny. They had pale white skin with bright blue eyes. They ran upright on two feet. They had large white ears with pink ends.

The reason for these creatures was simple. They could hear everything for miles around in any direction. If they heard anything that seemed like it was related to Teryaon or Heavstat, they would climb the walls and began chanting. The spell that protected the town would be activated until the threat passed.

The humans of Teryaon fed and nurtured these small, vulnerable creatures. The town itself was human-made. The first Mages asked humans to make the city for defensive purposes. Eventually, the city grew more prominent; the humans stayed, and now it was the first line of defense for Heavstat.

"I never thought it would be this big," Violetta said. She walked down one of the many paths that were throughout the city. The ground was made up of a mix of large stones and sand. Towers of all kinds reached up to touch the sky.

"You never took the test?" Dawain asked.

He remembered coming here to take the test that most students had to take to enter Heavstat.

"No," Violetta answered. "Cayaison and I were tested before we came," she was in awe.

The town looked clean. Everything was in its place. Even the people looked happy and cheerful.

"Move," Dawain said, pushing Violetta out of the way as a small group of Raeb ran through.

"They are so small," she said. Watching as the group of Raeb turn a corner.

"Yes. We have to watch where we step," Hertan said.

Hertan was angry. He hated this town. They needed to get new robes. The ones they had on were torn, and blood-soaked. He didn't dislike the city itself. He hated the Raeb. They were a spawn of a demon. Even though the beast was long dead, these creatures as many had called them had its blood flowing through them.

"Let's get what we came for, so we can leave," he said, hurrying past them.

"Wish I went with Cayaison now," Violetta said, shaking her head.

Cayaison was taking things much lighter than his friend. They were going to talk to the magistrate. Alixia was at the stables feeding the horses. Rameus and his sister were outside of town. The one thing that could upset the Raeb were shapeshifters.

The magic that made Rameus and Lexia shift from one form to another made the Raeb scared. When they were afraid, they hid when they hid it could take months or even years for them to come out of hiding.

Cayaison and Merladio walked through a large hall. The floor was marbled with white stone. The long drapes hung from the walls, they were golden, with a vast Phoenix on them. The magistrate greeted them in the middle.

"It is an honor to have you here," he said.

"Honor to be here," Cayaison replied. "I didn't know Teryaon could be this beautiful."

"It is an illusion of course," The magistrate said. "The Raeb give the city the illusion you want to see. You have heard great stories of the city, so you see a great city," he smiled. "To the Grand Master and I as well as a few others we see the city as it is. One day you will too," he added. "For now, be happy with what you see."

"We came to let you know that many will be looking for Heavstat," Merladio said.

They sat at a brilliant white table, the chairs were white and felt so soft. Cayaison could not believe this was an illusion.

"The war?" the magistrate said.

He sat on the farthest side. He was a tall man. His beard was long and white. He wore a white robe with a gold rim around the edges. The buttons that went down the middle were gold and black.

"Even you?" Cayaison asked. Still in shock that this whole city was an illusion.

"Not me, but my attire, this room. Right now, we are in the basement of the town hall. Sitting at a small table," he shrugged.

"The war will keep going. Friidian was defeated, but he has turned the humans against us," Merladio said.

The magistrate sat back in the chair.

"We will have to keep the Raeb happy," he said.

"Doesn't Friidian know about the Raeb?" Cayaison asked. "Couldn't he just keep quiet, they will never hear him coming."

"The Raeb are immune to most magic of all kinds. And it is not just talking or speaking." The Magistrate explained. "They can sense the thoughts of all the known races, even animals."

"Once they sense danger to the city or Heavstat they cloak the city and the entrance to the path," he smiled. "Even Friidian cannot keep his innermost thoughts silent for miles; one single thought is all it takes," he said. "You can see how real the illusion is."

Cayaison nodded. He felt like he was in a great room, sitting at a grand table. He could feel everything around him.

"We must be heading back to Heavstat," Merladio said standing up. "The other Masters and I have a lot of planning to do."

"We will send word if anything happens," the magistrate said standing up. "Cayaison it was great meeting you again," he smiled.

"Again?" Cayaison asked puzzled.

He did not remember ever seeing the magistrate.

"I will explain later," Merladio answered.

They walked out of the room to meet the others, later as they had met with the others and had gathered the horses. Merladio explained the other abilities the Raeb had.

"You mean all students come to Teryaon?" Violetta asked.

"Yes. It is where the test is taken," Merladio replied.

He was smiling it was something he enjoyed. When he was told himself many years ago, he had the same reaction.

"But Dawain remembers," Violetta responded. "How come the rest of us don't remember?"

"The Raeb, they pick who remembers and who do not," Merladio shrugged. "No one knows why they do it or who they will pick," he said. "Chances are the moment you are out of sight of the town, some of you might not remember being there again the second time."

Instantly all of them turned around they could still see the tall brown walls of the city.

"I will miss those tall towers," Violetta said.

"What towers?" Cayaison asked.

"The towers," Violetta replied angrily. "How can you miss the towers?" she shook her head.

"There were no towers," Cayaison replied.

Merladio and Hertan pulled ahead as the rest of them argued about how they saw the town.

The soldiers of the elite guard were all packed and were on their way back to Storamgrade. Their morale was much lower than the night before. Many of them thought the Mages were to blame for the death of their comrades. A lot of them blamed Elieane. They felt that because of her the Mages were able to tell Friidian and the others to stay away from their crystal laced shields.

"Better ride in the back," Ishtmet said to Elieane.

He was not happy with her, in fact, he was furious. He had taught her everything she knew. She was supposed to be an officer of the elite guard. Her father could not save her from whatever punishment the high guard would put on her.

Elieane nodded, she walked to the back of the marching army. Most of the other soldiers shrugged her away when she tried to walk beside them, or if she tried to talk to them. Finally, it was the mortician that said she could ride with him. The smell was horrid, the bodies of the fallen were piled upon each other, they were covered with their colored cloaks, but the bright sun did nothing for the smell.

"Here," the mortician said.

He handed her some plugs.

"It won't take the smell away, but it will dull it," he smiled through rotten teeth.

Elieane put the plugs over her nose. She nodded back at him as the horses pulled the cart along. Buzzards flew above some would dive down to try and get at the bodies, archers would pick them off as they came down. The day got longer and hotter.

"We are running out of arrows," one of the archers said to Tregon.

"Let's stop, and we will gather wood to put over the top," Tregon replied. "I will ride ahead and tell the General."

"The archers are running out of arrows," he said to Ishtmet. The General nodded.

"We still have the valley to go through and then Torain Forest," he said scratching his beard.

The buzzards would be the least of his worries between the valley and the forest. The smell would get every scavenger for miles on their tail.

"We could send a few guards with the cart, through Iotmar Pass," Rafiel suggested. He pointed into the distance.

Iotmar pass was a huge rift that cut into the ground it went for miles; it traveled passed the broad valley as well as Torain forest. It was very treacherous. There was a steep drop inside the rift, the winds down there could pick up a man off his feet.

"The winds are down this time of year," Tregon added.

"The path will be barely able to fit a few. What if you come across someone coming the other way?" Ishtmet asked.

He knew very well it was the only logical answer. To leave the cart here to the wilds would be a disrespect to the soldiers that were dead. Their bodies would be picked apart by the elements and the scavengers.

"I will deal with that when it happens. Just wait for us at the end of the path," Rafiel stated as he rode back.

The large cart had large logs thrown over the top of it. The buzzards were still circling, but they could not attack from the top anymore.

"We are taking Iotmar pass!" Rafiel shouted as he reached them. "The rest of the garrison will meet us at the end. From there it is an easy path to Storamgrade."

He looked at the mortician. "You will go with the rest. I will take the reins," he ordered stepping up to take the reins.

"But I always have..." the poor old man said, as he was pulled down.

Elieane sat down quietly next to Rafiel. She looked down at the ground. She made a move to get down.

"Not you," Rafiel said in disgust. "You will travel with the men you betrayed. Because of you, they lay dead!"

The cart with a few guards on horseback went off the path and away from the rest of the militia. They made their way toward the pass.

They approached the drop to the rift, the ground ahead of them seemed to disappear. No one knew exactly how the breach came to be, but the rumors and stories were many, some were so far-fetched that they were unbelievable by any stretch of the imagination.

The elves had used it to transport goods to the humans during the great wars. The Orcs had used it to hide their troop movements. Now it was in human territory. Many traders used it to protect their goods from bandits.

Inside the rift there was a path, that was just wide enough for a horse-drawn cart. There was nowhere to hide once they got down there. On one side of the trail was a sheer cliff that stretched to the top of the rift, on the other was a drop, no light ever penetrated the drop far enough to see the bottom.

"Single file," Rafiel ordered as they got to the ramp that led down to the path.

The horses were nervous as they approached, the riders pushed their horses forward, slowly they began to make their way down.

"You sure?" Elieane began to ask.

Rafiel shot her a glance that told her to keep her mouth shut. They would be in the pass for almost two full days before they got out the other side. There was nowhere to stop or to set up camp this was going to be a long trip.

"Once nightfall comes we will..." she began to say.

"Did I ask for your opinion?" Rafiel looked at her with absolute hate. "We lost a General, because of you. If you want to think of something, think of what the high guard will do to you for that," he said with a slight smile on his face. "Your father won't be able to help you."

"He is friends with the king," one of the soldiers up front retorted.

"Eyes front," Rafiel ordered.

The small path was made of dirt and rocks, the cliff beside them had roots of long-dead tree's sticking out of it. They could barely see the sky as the path kept going downward. The drop was darker than night, looking down into it made a person feel empty inside.

The soldiers in front were riding in a single file, one after the other. The cart barely fit on the path. The wheels were very close to the edge of the drop. One slight mistake would cause it as well as anybody riding it to fall into the deep drop.

Elieane knew this was the reason they were down here. They were going to kill her, then throw her body down there. All six of the men the three in front and the three following behind the cart were loyal to Rafiel. She had no weapon to fight them off.

All they had to say that it was an accident, who was going to question it. Elieane smiled, then it turned into a small laugh. Knowing where you were going to die and when often caused some people to act differently. For her it was depressing. She began to cry.

"Shut up," Rafiel snapped at her.

"What are you going to tell my father?" she said, through her tears.

Rafiel smiled and nodded. "Always knew you were smarter than you lead on," he said, pulling back on the reigns. The cart stopped.

She looked at him, pulling herself together.

"Well?" she asked.

Elieane wiped the tears from her eyes. Then looked him in the eyes. She didn't want to seem weak to him. Not at her final moments.

"Bandits," Rafiel replied. One of the soldiers brought out some leather pieces soaked in blood. "They tried to rob us. We fought, you took a wrong step and..." he smiled, then looked over the edge.

Elieane smiled. "Thought of everything huh?"

She turned around to look at the path behind the cart. They were already too deep into the rift for her to run back. Then a plan came to mind.

"Fine," she nodded. Elieane stood up turning her back to the drop. "Just one thing."

"What?" Rafiel asked angrily.

"Tell him. I went down fighting," Elieane said.

"Fine," he nodded.

She took a step back then fell backward.

"She did it!" one of the soldiers said.

"No way!" another said, he poked his head over the edge.

Two feet grabbed him by the neck, then pulled him down. He screamed all the way down until there was silence.

Elieane had caught a root that was sticking out of the side of the edge. She swung her feet back and forth until she gained enough momentum to swing herself into the air. She twisted her body just enough to catch the edge of the path.

A soldier came at her, but she had already pulled herself up. She avoided his attack, then kicked him so hard he had to balance himself on the tip of his toes at the edge.

"Sorry," she said as she grabbed his sword then kicked him off.

The next one came at her she blocked the attack, then kicked his knee, he fell to one knee. She spun around and sliced his throat.

"Did you forget who taught me?" Elieane said, up to Rafiel, who had been sitting there.

He looked at the back of the cart. The path did not allow the three behind them to come on either side. They could not climb over the wagon. The logs on top were loose they would inevitably fall off.

"Give me an hour head start," Elieane shrugged her shoulders as she looked at him. She knew the three men behind the wagon were trapped back there. "I will tell the others you sent me ahead to scout, after the bandit attack."

"Or I could just kill you," Rafiel said, he eyed the soldiers behind him, crawling underneath the cart. He jumped forward between the horses. He took the two axes by his sides into his hand.

"Ishtmet may have trained you, but I know a lot of things the old man does not know," Rafiel said.

He began to attack her. Elieane parried as many attacks as she could, but she could not get an attack off. He was a fury of attacks from every direction. He took both axes and swung them hard she had to spin around to block the attack. He left himself open she put her foot between his legs tripping him to the floor.

"Not enough!" Elieane said, standing over him. She raised the sword to kill him. Then she saw and felt it. A sword had penetrated her chest. She dropped her sword she turned to see the soldiers. Another ran up slicing his sword across her stomach.

"Know your surroundings," Rafiel said.

Rafiel stood up. He looked at her as she fell to her knees. Blood poured out of her mouth as she looked at him stunned.

"You took out three men before you went," he nodded, picking up his axes. "Even I am impressed at that," he walked in front of her. "I will tell your father you put up a fight.

Elieane reached out to him trying to say something.

"What?" he said bowing to hear her.

She used the last of her energy to bite his ear.

"Bitch!" he shouted, he swung his ax.

Her head flew off her shoulders and down into the drop. He dragged her body and threw it down to join the head. The other men looked at him. He reached for his ear, but half of it was gone.

"I will tell your father you died like a child, screaming and begging for him!" he shouted down into the darkness. "You are nothing, were nothing. You won't be remembered! I will make sure of it!" he screamed down into the darkness as loud as he could.

General Ishtmet stood at the end of the path. He had sent two scouts down. They had orders to look for one hour, then come back. It had already been minutes over that. He looked up at the sun it was dying down.

Rafiel and the others had been down in the pass for just over three days. Ishtmet would give them until the end of this day before he would have to return the rest of his army to Storamgrade. He saw something moving down in the mist that now filled the rift. He couldn't see anything when he saw the two scouts coming up.

The cart followed behind them Ishtmet breathed a sigh of relief. But then his face dropped as he saw Rafiel's face and the other soldiers leading the horses with no riders.

"What happened?" he asked Rafiel as he got near.

Rafiel angrily threw the blood-soaked leathers to the floor.

"Bandits!" he yelled back at him. "I will explain when we get as far away from here as possible, " he said as he pushed the horses forward.

### Chapter 11: Seeking The Truth

With each step, he took the noise of his metal boots hitting the tiled floor of the cathedral rang out loud. He walked towards the back of the church passing the people praying in the row of benches. Each of them looked at him as he moved he did not look back at them.

When he reached the back door, he pushed it open. The vast graveyard spread out in front of him. He took a deep sigh, then began to walk among the graves. When he found the one he was looking for he knelt. He pulled a few weeds and dead flowers away from the tombstone.

"I know it has been a while," he said in a low voice. "I admit that it is because I know you would be mad at me," he looked at the name on the tombstone. "I failed our daughter," he admitted.

The name on the marker was Marthia Toramad. Commander Toramad sat down looking at the grave of his wife. He shook his head as tears filled his eyes.

"I know I promised you on your deathbed that I would look after our daughter," he said shaking his head. "You did not want her to become a soldier," he began to cry as he looked up at the sky.

"She fought me on everything. You would've have been proud of her. She had your stubbornness," the commander nodded once again looking at the gravestone. "Once she set her mind on something. That was it," he said with a smile. "She graduated top of her class."

Toramad shook his head as he took a deep breath.

"Our daughter is dead," he broke down. His eyes overflowed with the tears. "She died fighting bandits. Her body was thrown into the darkness of the drop," closing his eyes. "The priest says that her soul will be trapped down there," Toramad shook his head. "I don't believe that I won't believe that. She is a fighter, and she will fight her way out."

He looked up at the tombstone.

"I hope she finds her way to you," he could feel the presence of a person behind him. "I wish I had been a better father. And a much better husband," he nodded. Then he stood up.

"Commander," a knight said as he turned around.

"What is it?" Toramad asked.

The knight looked the commander over. He had never been this close to him. Toramad was much taller than most people thought. Toramad stood tall and broad. He wasn't muscular, but many that looked at him were immediately intimidated. His armor shone in the bright light of the sun. It's silver, and blue colorings were sharp and crisp. His hair although gray in color, was cut sharply. His eyes were looking right through him.

"I served with your daughter," the Knight said.

The commander could tell this knight was nervous.

"I was there when she told the Mages. Well, when she talked to them," The Knight stated.

The commander stared at him.

"Elieane did tell them more than she should have, but it was not how the Generals put it. She did not give away everything," the Knight added. "She definitely was not the reason that many of our soldiers lost their lives."

"Thank you," the commander replied. "I hope you will say something at her memorial," he began to walk away.

"That was not the reason I came to you," the Knight said a bit louder. The commander rushed back to him.

"We are in the middle of a graveyard. My wife lays right there. My daughter is at the bottom of the drop, or still falling into nothingness," the commander said, through gritted teeth, he was face to face with the knight. "Do you know what I had to give, just for her to have a memorial?" he said bitterly.

The Knight nodded.

"Yes Commander," he said with a straight face. "The night she was stripped of her rank, it was given to me. General Rafiel gave me the order to tell her to strip herself of her armor," the Knight said. "My stripes are on a pew inside the church because I did not want to come out here, with your daughters rank. I came to talk to you at this time because what I have to say can get me killed," the Knight said. The Commander looked at him.

"Sergeant Roders?" the commander asked.

The Sergeant nodded. The Commander had heard of this man from his daughter. She spoke very highly of him. She had said he was the noblest Knight she had met.

"I knew your father," the Commander said. He turned around looking over at the other graveyard for the military burials. "He was a great man," the Commander said.

"Thank you," Roders replied. "He spoke very highly of you," he nodded. "May we walk out of earshot," he said, looking back at the church.

The church sat in the far back of Storamgrade. The city walls were just behind it. The graveyard was placed just inside of the massive walls. They walked closer to the wall in silence. They stood at the farthest part of Storamgrade. The guards above them on the wall, could not hear them here.

"Speak," Toramad said.

"General Rafiel is a liar," Roders said without blinking. "I know Elieane. She would not go down without a fight," Roders snapped. "He had it out for her, way before we marched for Haegersmeade."

Toramad nodded. He knew that the General hated him, he also knew that the General took out his anger on his daughter, but he knew she would be mad at him if he did anything about it.

"What you are saying can get you hung," Toramad told him. "I could take you back right now, and have you hung before the sun has set!" Toramad scolded the Sergeant. "What do you have that will back up this claim?"

"This," Roders said, he brought out a piece of leather armor. "Rafiel said "This was a piece of armor from one of the bandits," he gave it to Toramad.

The Commander looked it over.

"If they were in a fight and that was torn or cut off, why are the edges so perfect?" Roders asked.

The Commander nodded. "Maybe he cut it off after the fight," The commander shook his head.

There was a loud ring of the bell.

"We will head back. I will not tell anyone of what you said," Toramad said. "Neither will you," Toramad ordered.

Roders nodded. They began to walk back into the city.

The memorial for those that had lost their lives at the battle on the hill. Was already on the way, inside the church when they walked in.

The church was one of the most significant buildings in the city. The windows were covered with red and gold curtains. The wood ceiling looked as new as the day the structure was made. The white walls consisted of the same bricks that made up the city walls.

There were three rows of pews one on each side with a row going down the middle. Each path from the front door to the back of the church had red and gold carpet. The rest of the floor was made up of cobbled stone.

At the back of the church, there was a single pew that faced the rest of the church. This pew was for the King and Queen. They sat in silence as they looked at the congregation of people that had gathered in front of them. Behind them sitting in individual chairs were the members of the High Guard.

These were members of the military that had held the highest rank of the army. After their service, or if they were permanently injured during their service to the kingdom, they were elected into the High Guard. Ishtmet and Toramad were already told that they would be joining the High Guard.

The High Minister was standing at his post just in front of the King and Queen. He was reading the names of the fallen soldiers.

The Commander took his place by the King at the front of the church. Roders stood in the back. After all the names were read the minister began to say the knight's prayer. It told of the first knight.

"He fought not for prestige, nor for the honor of his king. But for the people. The people that relied on his sword and shield to keep them safe. He fought days and nights in faraway lands. Never asking for help, never asking to return home. Then when he was finally struck a fatal blow, he asked for one thing."

The rest of the congregation joined in.

"To the gods above and to the creators beyond. Carry my soul to the next battlefield so that I can protect my people even in death."

The minister nodded.

"The names of the fallen Knights will be etched into the great walls behind the church and the barracks," he said. "The King has opened the vault for the family of those that have lost loved ones." he then looked at the King. "Now we go from a military perspective to a personal service."

The minister looked over at all the people gathered in the church. Most of the people that had gathered were of military background. Most of their families had members that had fought for this city, as well as died holding its integrity and security.

"It is the churches view that no death no matter how it came about is no less than any other," he said. "A death whether in battle or by illness is no less or no more than the other."

With that said, he left his place. King Voron stood up.

"The church is right," the King said. "The death of a citizen in a military war is not without honor. No matter what the personal views of any one person are," he took a deep breath.

"Bandits killed citizen Elieane Toramad after the battle at Dungledoir," the King said. "Her father the Commander has given up his post as Commander of the Elite Guard so that her grave can be placed near to her mother."

The King looked down at the podium. Then at the commander. He nodded with a slight smile. The King had known the commander for most of his life.

"I have granted this, not because of my relationship with the Commander, but because of his sacrifices to this city and its citizens in the past," he looked around. "If any wish to challenge this speak now," the way he was talking to the people before him it was more of a challenge than a question.

General Rafiel shifted in his seat but didn't make a move forward.

"With that..." The King began to say before being interrupted.

"My lord," Roders said, he began to walk forward through the pews.

"You wish to challenge Sergeant?" Ishtmet asked he stood in front of the King. With his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"No General. I wish to challenge the means of her death," Roders said.

The Sergeant turned to face the congregation, he took out his sword then threw it to the ground.

"On my family name, I challenge all of those present at the time of her death to state the truth of what happened down there, and place their sword on mine," Roders said.

He took off his stripes and cloak and gave it to the General.

"As I have challenged another member of the guard until the time comes where either my challenge has been fulfilled or denied. I place myself at the mercy of the High Guard," Roders surrendered and knelt.

The king moved forward. "Those not of military family birth, please exit the church," he shouted.

The King looked furiously down at Roders. The challenge was misplaced it was to be done in private. Among the military not in front of a congregation mourning the deaths of family members. Ishtmet looked down at Roders who still held his head down.

The large congregation thinned down to a small number of people.

"I should have your head," The King said through his teeth. "But your family and that sword, that you so carelessly threw to the floor have done more for this kingdom than many in this building," he said turning around.

"You cannot take this challenge seriously my lord," General Rafiel said. "He is not of the rank, to issue a challenge like this."

The king nodded. The General was right, even though the Sergeant had made a challenge it should have come from another General or Lieutenant. The King sat down on one of the benches, scratching his graying brown beard.

"I am still Commander until the sun goes down," Toramad said, looking outside the sun was low on the horizon. "What I say may or may not hold weight. But I would like to know how my daughter died," he expressed in a low voice.

The king nodded putting a hand on his friend.

"As the first General, and the next Commander. I would like to know how a citizen died under my command," Ishtmet said.

There were a few mumbles, but then it turned into a loud voice of agreement from the rest of the people. Rafiel was the first to shake his head. Two of the soldiers that were there at Elieane's death stood up, then ran for the exit.

"Do not let them leave!" The King shouted his voice boomed in the ample open space.

The knights that stood by the door stopped them from exiting. There was a single cough as one of the members of the High Guard stood up.

"We have something to say," he said.

The High Guard was the official military rulers of Storamgrade. Not even the King could overrule an agreement by all seven members of the High Guard. They had helped to elect Kings. Anything that had to do with the military might of Storamgrade went through them.

"Those present at the death of the citizen in question, must place their sword on the challenger's sword and speak the truth. Or they will face the sword of the King," the elderly man said, then he sat down.

The king nodded. Then walked forward he knelt in front of the members of the High Guard. The King and the Commander were the only members that could speak directly to the High Guard outside the war room. To many others, they were not to be talked to directly.

"I agree, with the High Guard," The King finally said.

"But this is not a military matter," Rafiel said, shaking his head. "The High Guard do not interfere in non-military matters," he objected.

"This is true," The King said. "But both the father of the challenger and the father of the citizen in question have high ranks within the army, both living and dead," he stepped forward close to the General. "Which makes this a military matter," he said through gritted teeth. "Now if I have to ask you again," he took his sword from its hilt "I will have your head here and now."

"We concede," two of the soldiers at the back said throwing their swords to the ground. "We throw ourselves at the mercy of the High Guard," they said falling to the floor.

"Arrest them," Ishtmet ordered.

General Rafiel shook his head. There was a commotion on the other side of the room.

"Doram has slit his throat," a soldier yelled. That was the other soldier that was present at Elieane's death.

Toramad stood up. Only the General was left, he either had to concede or tell the truth if the actions of the others spoke any words. It would seem they all had lied about the death of his daughter.

"Stand up Roders," Ishtmet ordered.

Roders nodded. He slowly stood.

"Face the General," Ishtmet ordered.

Roders walked down the small steps in the front of the minister's podium to stand in front of General Rafiel.

"I challenge you!" Roders said. Pointing at his sword still laying on the ground. "On my family name. To tell the people gathered in this room the truth," he shouted.

The General put his hands on the axes by his sides. To keep his honor, he would have to throw them down on top of the Seargents sword and tell them the truth, to lie on these axes was something he could not do.

They were given to him by his father, and he had got them from his father, their blades had been changed each time. The blades on them now had been forged with the hands of his father. He had planned to form new blades onto them and give them to his eldest son. Rafiel had never been married, the love of his life had died before they had the chance. He had no kids.

He took them from their hilts on his sides, He put on his plated gloves and grabbed the blades there was a latch that kept them in place on the handle which only his family knew how to work, he pushed on it. The blade dropped to the stone floor.

The loud clang of the metal hitting the stone floor filled the church. He kept his eye on Roders the whole time. Then the other blade hit the floor. He then dropped the hilts.

"You think your challenge changes anything? I did what I did. To save the rest of the guard," he said to Roders. "She was a traitor. She was weak!" he said turning to face the rest of the congregation. "I did what my family has always done."

Rafiel looked over at all of them he could see their judgment in their eyes. They were looking down at him as if he was dirt.

"My family has always done, what your families could never do! We have always been the ones to do what is right for most of this city."

Rafiel was speaking of his father who had killed many innocent people to stop the plague that captivated the city years ago. His father was hung shortly after giving him the axes.

"We are the true protectors of this city," he shouted. "Your daughter gave the Mages the knowledge that would have given us an advantage," he looked over at Toramad. "Because of her they told our enemies, and they were prepared for us."

"No!" Roders said, shaking his head. "We did not know they would have humans fighting on their side," he responded.

He turned to face the High Guard. Ishtmet quickly stood in front of him blocking his view from them.

"Elieane did tell them about the crystals in the shields. Even if she didn't, they had mercenaries, human mercenaries fighting for them. The crystals did not affect them. The few Mages that fought against us attacked from behind or at our sides," he said to which other soldiers gathered in the church began to nod. "The Mages that fought with us were weakened because of our shields."

"Speak to me lad," Ishtmet said so that Roders wouldn't look directly at the High Guard.

"You were there General. Some of us put our shields down, so the Mages on our side could fight!" Roders said. "I was one of them," he acknowledged. "It was not an advantage. It never was," he said turning back to face Rafiel. "You were mad at him, and took it all out on her," Roders said, pointing at Toramad.

"Enough!" the King yelled.

There was silence as the King began to talk to the High Guard. They spoke for a few moments. The church was dead silent. General Rafiel stared at Roders with hate in his eyes. His life was in the hands of the High Guard because of this man. That couldn't keep his mouth shut.

The King finally stood up after an extended period consulting with the High Guard. He walked towards General Rafiel.

"Since you are a General," the King said, "You get to choose. Hanging or by combat!"

"If I choose combat. If I win, do I go free?" Rafiel asked.

"If you win, you will be banished from Storamgrade," the king nodded. "But yes, you will be free."

Rafiel smiled. He looked at Roders. He was going to kill this man without breaking a sweat. "Combat."

"When I kill you. I will walk free," Rafiel said, he picked up the blades from the floor, putting them back on his ax's. "I will walk out of here. And I will forge a new guard! That will rival that of Storamgrade!"

Other people shook their head. There was no way Roders could win against Rafiel.

"It is not your choice of who you will fight," the King said.

This stunned Rafiel who glared at the king.

"It is the choice of the father, of the woman you killed," the King finished. "This is not a decision made by myself, but of the High Guard."

Toramad stood up. He walked over to the King and nodded. The king put his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Might as well kill me now!" Rafiel shouted.

No one in Storamgrade could fight Toramad and win. Even Ishtmet himself could not win a battle with the commander.

Toramad walked past Roders. "Pick up your sword," he smiled at Roders.

"Yes. Commander," Roders nodded picking up his sword.

Rafiel looked at Ishtmet then at the King. Both shook their heads at him.

"This is not supposed to happen!" he yelled. "You are using your friendship!" he yelled at the King.

"This is the order of the High Guard, and no one else," one of the members of the High Guard stood up and yelled.

"It was all right when you were going to fight the Sergeant," Toramad said taking his two swords from his sides, throwing them to the floor. "Is this better?"

Rafiel began to walk backward as the Commander walked toward him.

"Not in the church," a member of the High Guard ordered.

"He won't die in the church. He is not worthy of that," Toramad replied. He took to one knee.

"Maybe like this? Will this even it up for you?" Toramad asked.

Rafiel shook his head, then swung one of his ax's.

The Commander moved slightly making Rafiel miss. He stood up quickly hitting Rafiel in the chest with his shoulder.

Rafiel fell to the floor. The Commander grabbed the back of Rafiel's cloak. He began to drag the fallen General across the tiled floor.

"Door," Toramad said, calmly to the knights by the door.

They opened the doors. Toramad grabbed the cloak with both hands and pulled as hard as he could throwing Rafiel out of the church.

The General's armor clashed loudly on the stone stairs of the church. The noise startled everybody in the open air of the courtyard around the church.

Everybody in the market turned around. They saw one of their General's tumbling down the stairs of the church. Toramad took off his cloak handing it to a Knight.

"The day she was born the sun shone brightly in the sky," he shouted.

Rafiel stopped tumbling. His face was bloody. He was holding his side as he got up to his feet. He started walking down the rest of the stairs.

"Sorry," Rafiel said, holding out his hand out.

Toramad slowly walked down each step. "I was in a meeting with the High Guard and the King when the matron came running in," Toramad said, taking his gauntlets off. He threw them to the floor one at a time.

A Knight walking behind the commander picked them up. Rafiel stood up.

"I was angry at you. I took it out on Elieane. I am sorry," Rafiel yelled trying to find somewhere to hide the moment he got off the stairs.

There was nowhere to hide they were on the dirt ground of the open market. Rafiel went to one of the fruit merchants, hiding behind their wagon.

"Hanging!" he yelled out loudly.

The King stood by the entrance of the church. Toramad turned to look at his King.

"I choose to hang!" Rafiel yelled.

The King shook his head grabbing the doors to the church, he closed them and stood outside.

Toramad nodded.

"No, No, not like this," Rafiel pleaded, he looked up at the merchant who just shook their head in pity.

Toramad rushed at him. Rafiel threw a punch it missed its mark. Toramad threw Rafiel against the wagon. It tipped over spilling all the fruit over the dirty ground. Toramad reached into his pouch, taking out a few silver coins he gave them to the merchant, who bowed back at him.

Rafiel crawled along the floor. Other merchants and citizens got out of his way as he pleaded with them to help him.

"She was so beautiful when I picked her up," Toramad said. "She was so small, how could something so small be so powerful," he said as he walked towards him. "But then she grew, she grew so fast!"

The commander reached down quickly grabbing one of Rafiel's feet. He then turned around and began to walk towards the back of Storamgrade. The entire market was now following him as he dragged Rafiel behind him.

"I made a promise to her mother when she was on her deathbed. That our child would not become a knight," Toramad said.

Toramad dragged a kicking and screaming Rafiel through the housing center of Storamgrade, people in their homes looked out of their houses seeing their Commander dragging a General through the dirt and muck.

Rafiel kicked and screamed, but it was falling on deaf ears. His hands were trying to hold on to anything they could, but the commander kept pulling him harder. He grabbed onto a potted plant outside of one of the doors. He threw it at the commander, but it bounced off of him.

The citizens began to come out of their houses. They followed the growing crowd behind Toramad. Each one of them getting filled in on the past events by others that walked beside them.

"She wouldn't listen," Toramad said shaking his head.

When Toramad reached the back gate, the Knights at the gate looked at him confused they saw the people and Knights behind him. Roders took off running. He ran past the commander, as Roders passed the commander he looked at him. Tears rushed down his face. He looked like he was in a trance.

"I fought with her day and night pleading with her, not to follow my footsteps. I pleaded with her to follow her mother."

Roders explained everything as fast as he could. The Knights signaled to the men at the top of the wall. They began to pull on the wheels that lifted the large gate. Roders and the other knights moved out of the way just in time for the commander to pass them.

"I thought she would fail. I thought if I told everyone to push her hard, push her so that she would get hurt. I made sure she would be tired and sore every day in the hope that she would give up," he said as he entered the tunnel that led through the wall.

His voice echoed against the walls.

"You. Yourself pinned the graduation mark on her chest," he said, looking back at Rafiel, who was still crying and pleading.

The General's nails were blood raw from scratching against the ground.

"I had never been so proud of anyone when I heard that she was going to be a Sergeant," Toramad said, he dragged him further to the back of the orchard behind the city.

The King was on the top wall. He had known where his friend was taking him the moment the two of them locked eyes in the church. The King watched as Toramad dragged Rafiel into a small clearing in the orchard.

The King knew that a large tree had once stood there, it had been cut down after a storm had uprooted it. It was there that his friend had met his wife. The King looked down with tears in his eyes.

There was only a stump left of that big tree. The commander dragged Rafiel to the stump.

Rafiel also knew what had happened here. "I'm sorry," he said, but it was more a whisper.

Rafiel knew this was it. He was aware that this was where he was going to die. He had no fight in him. From the moment the commander hit him with his shoulder all the air in his lungs had escaped his body. When he fell down the stairs of the church, he had heard his shoulder separate. His hands were raw from being dragged.

"Your father," Toramad said. "Introduced us," he yelled. "I did not know you loved her too," he said looking down at Rafiel. "You did not mention anything. You should have said something before we got married. Before we had a child!" The commander shouted. "You should have challenged me!" he said, he picked up an ax that was leaning against a tree.

He pointed at all the people.

"They knew! You were angry at me!" he shouted. "But you did nothing to me!" he shouted. "Anytime I asked you about it. You always said it was in the past!" he yelled louder. "Close their eyes!" he yelled at the crowd.

The parents grabbed their kids and turned them away. The commander threw the ax it cleaved Rafiel's head in two. The ax stood upright in the stump.

The commander fell to the floor on his knees. The crowd went back to the city. Roders, Ishtmet, and Tregon stood by their commander. The King nodded, then walked away.

Cayaison was getting tired. He had walked this hallway way too many times to count, every time he had walked to the end, the whole place changed so that he was at the beginning. Each time it happened he would sigh and start over. He would have been mad, but this was now a daily occurrence since he had returned from the hill.

Cayaison took one more deep breath then began to walk down the hallway once again. He had tried every door, all of them were locked. He knew of this hallway it was the one he walked to get to his first class. Each door should have a classroom full of students behind it. He had knocked feverishly on many of the doors no one had ever answered.

Heavstat was making it clear that it oversaw their daily lives. It had started the night they got back. He had been sleeping as usual when he heard something that woke him up. He found himself laying on a bed of hay in the stables. He had spent most of the night trying to get back to his room but kept coming back to the stables. Every day since then he had come here instead of the stables.

When he walked to the end, he felt the familiar feeling of being dizzy. Then he was back at the beginning of the hallway. He took a deep sigh and sat down on one of the benches. He looked at the stairs that led up to this corridor. A familiar sound of feet could be heard coming up them.

"Hi Alixia," Cayaison said.

Alixia sighed shaking her head, then joined him on the seat.

"Where were you?" Cayaison asked.

"The great library," she shook her head. "I just went in to get a book, every time I left. I found myself back in there," she shook her head. "Until I sat down and gave up. Then I saw the stairs in the doorway," she threw up her hands in defeat.

"Hi Dawain," Cayaison said before he could see him.

It was always the same order of people. One of the doors opened in the hallway. Even though Cayaison had tried that door many times, it opened now. Dawain came out. He looked around, throwing his hands up.

"I give up!" he yelled. He walked over to them. "You guys too?" he asked when he reached them.

They nodded. Rameus came next more aggravated than the others. It seemed he had been stuck in his room since the morning. Violetta literally dropped from the roof. She grabbed onto the floor tightly. She had jumped off of the landing to get down to the stables she had been falling ever since. Luscious came from the stairs so tired that she fell to the floor.

They all felt the now familiar sense of dizziness as the hallway changed again, there was a door in front of them.

They all sighed as Cayaison got up he reached for the doorknob then opened it.

"Hello Merladio," they all said in unison as they came in.

Merladio waved at them as they took a seat on chairs or on the floor. He was behind his table looking over some scrolls and books. He had been in this room since they came back. He had made many attempts to leave but to no avail.

The other members of the group that had been to the center of the rock slowly came in each with their own story. They all felt the sudden dizziness then it went away.

"See you tomorrow," Merladio said, waving them goodbye without looking up at them.

He was in no mood to talk to them. He was too busy trying to find if any other situation like this had happened before and if it had how the Masters of the time got it to stop.

They all piled out of the room. These events were a daily occurrence. Some of them felt like they spent most of the day in one place. Others felt like it had just happened. There was no pattern to when it would happen or where. But it happened every day.

The group made their way to the food hall. "When does this end?" Rameus asked. He was highly annoyed.

"When Heavstat decides it has made its point," Alixia sighed.

Alixia was not as annoyed as the others. She was getting tired. She had not made it back to her room in four days.

Even though they met each other every day, things were becoming a constant annoyance. Alixia's not making it to her room was one of them. Luscious not finding the viewing crystal in any of the viewing rooms was another.

Cayaison, on the other hand, had it worse. He knew the moment he left this food hall. He would be back in that hallway. Waiting for it to start all over again.

Like Merladio, who was stuck in his chamber. Cayaison was stuck in that hallway. But unlike Merladio, he could leave it. He knew he was going to get food to take to Merladio as soon as he left the room he would be in the hallway.

"What is the significance of that hallway?" Violetta asked.

Cayaison shook his head. He had looked at every statue, every picture on the wall. Knocked and tried every door. There was nothing. He had even asked Merladio if anything had happened in that hallway.

The others in their own time had walked down the hallway and never seen Cayaison. They even tried many attempts at contact. Cayaison had left a note for anyone of them to pick up. He wrote on the walls in big letters with a piece of charcoal. The others never saw any of his writing. Every time it changed the words would disappear.

"Well I am tired," Alixia said standing up swiftly. "I don't know what room I will be in tonight, but I am going to bed," She looked back at Cayaison. "I am sorry," she said.

The others said their apologies and got up. Cayaison took a deep sigh, picked up the soup and bread. He grabbed the wall next to the door as the dizziness hit him. He then opened the door and walked towards Merladio.

"How are you holding up?" Merladio asked he looked up at Cayaison, who smiled back at him.

"Same."

Merladio watched Cayaison go to the door. He knew that Cayaison was already back in the hallway. He had tried to follow him. They had even decided to leave through the door at the same time. Last night Cayaison sought to sleep in the room with him. But he woke up to see Cayaison gone.

"What am I missing!" Merladio shouted slamming his hand down on the desk.

He had tried talking to Heavstat. When he did, he had told the school that, they were wrong for going down there. He had also decided to ask it, to do what it was doing to him and leave the others out of it. None of it worked.

"Are you done?" a voice said from behind him.

He looked around to look at who had said that. He stood up fast; he was staring at a ghost.

"Master Creaman?" he said, he looked at the Master that had greeted him on his first day in Heavstat. The person standing in front of him had been dead for many years.

"Well?" the man asked.

"Yes," Merladio said. "If it will stop this. Yes, I will acknowledge defeat," Merladio said, he sat down he was tired.

He wanted to get to a room where he could lie down on a bed. He also wanted to get cleaned up. He smelled bad. The man shook his head.

"I at least made it, a full week," Creaman smiled. The man took a seat across the table from Merladio.

"This has happened before, I knew it," Merladio said.

"Of course!" Creaman replied excitedly. "You think we are called Masters because we just wanted to be called that?" he shook his head. "This happens every generation. Heavstat throws it's temper tantrum to those that find out the truth," Creaman smiled. "It's a child you see."

Creaman nodded. "Some find out by accident," he shrugged. "Others by research," He picked up a few scrolls. "But you and the others," he shook his head. "Wrong, the bad way to find out."

Creaman stood up; he walked around the room.

"You should not have pushed that guardian," he shook his finger at Merladio. "You should have let it be!" he hissed. "Heavstat is one of the only things that can keep the Darkness at bay. Now you have made it aware of its existence."

"The Darkness?" Merladio asked.

"Yes!" Creaman yelled. "Are you even listening?" the old man said. "It hovers you see. It knows it exists, between all the other unknowns they keep it right where it is. The demons exist within it. It sends them out to test things, feel them out."

Creaman said moving his hands back and forth.

"A poke here. A nudge there," he said. "Never actually punching its way through, to our side. But now!" Creaman said. "Now you and your friend Friidian have gone and punched a hole! A big gaping one!"

Creaman threw scrolls into the air to make his point clear.

"But Cayaison and his visions?" Merladio asked.

"A vision?" Creaman shouted. "That's what started this? A vision!" Creaman smacked his own head. "Masters have been seeing visions, since the beginning of time. And before them, the elves had them, before them the dragons, and who knows what before them!"

Creaman yelled back at him.

"They are the projections of the creators. They are showing what you are not supposed to do!" Creaman said, now just across the table from him.

Merladio thought about it. As he remembered the vision, he looked at it from a protection point of view.

If he had not gone after Friidian, maybe he was supposed to let him win. It would have been a small victory.

But what he saw in that vision was a battle on a grand scale.

"The hill," Merladio said, shaking his head.

"Now he gets it!" Creaman snapped his fingers.

"If you left him on the hill. Let him win against the elite guard. He would have summoned his pet demon. Then you could have fought him. Won the day and it would have been all over," Creaman said.

Merladio got up. He should have let Friidian see the battle he had seen in his visions. Then he would not be so desperate.

"What vision did Friidian see?" Merladio asked.

"Two battles. One he won, and the other was between the demons and you and the other Masters. Sided with the human army. The last one he did not see the end of, to him, he thought there was no way his demons could lose," Creaman sat back down.

Merladio shook his head. "He doesn't know about the new promotions, I have made," Merladio said.

"How could he?" Creaman shook his head. "Has he ever paid attention to any of the graduating class?"

Merladio shook his head. He knew there were other demon hunters in Hertan's class. Cayaison's group were a formidable force.

"The demons would have lost," Merladio slumped back into his seat.

Creaman snapped his fingers. "Now you get it!" he smiled. "But now!" He stood back up. "The Darkness has seen the battle on the hill. Now it has instructed its pets. To go to Friidian, now he will seek out new ways to win."

Merladio shook his head. "His father," Merladio knew his old friend. "He will find the demon, which his father freed."

Creaman nodded. "In his vision, that demon gave him an army of undead. Now he will ask it for more. And when he does, the demon will return to the darkness, and get new orders."

"Kill all of us," Merladio shook his head.

Creaman nodded again.

"You and your pet students have set things in motion that could kill all life everywhere," Creaman stood. The old master began to fade.

"This is not a tantrum. This is punishment."

With that, he was gone.

Merladio put his head in his hands.

"What have we done!" he yelled.

Cayaison was having his own problems. He had laid down on the floor to sleep. He was awoken by a laugh. He looked up to see his father.

"So, this is where you have been hiding?" his father said, looking down at him.

Cayaison turned over. "My dad died a long time ago," he stated.

"Yes, he did," the figure of his father said.

"Then you are something else," Cayaison nodded.

"I was sent by Heavstat to..." the figure began to say.

"Expellious!" Cayaison shouted.

He had turned quickly extending his hand outward. A blast of fire came out of his hand surrounding the figure.

"A dark man," Cayaison said. He wasn't surprised. The creature cried out in fear then ran down the hall disappearing into the shadows.

"Arthais was wise to choose you," a voice said from somewhere down the hallway.

Cayaison stood up. He looked around for the voice.

"I will do better next time," the voice said, it sounded like it was going away from him.

"You know where I will be," Cayaison said as he laid back down.

When the group arrived together inside of Merladio's chamber, they all told stories of seeing people that were dead. They told each other about what these people said them. That they were already defeated, and what they had done would cause the death of everybody.

Cayaison waited until they all finished. "It was the Dark Men," Cayaison said standing up.

The others looked at him. Cayaison told them what had happened to him.

"You all gave up," Cayaison said. "It told you exactly what you wanted to hear."

Merladio shook his head.

"A powerful demon has come to Heavstat," he looked at Cayaison.

"It is not inside," Wong replied. "But very near."

"We cannot give in, or give up," Cayaison replied.

"It might be true that Heavstat, is throwing a tantrum. But it will end," Merladio nodded.

He knew he had failed once, but he wouldn't again.

"What if part of it is right?" Alixia asked. "Not all of it, of course. It showed itself as an old master for you," she said to Merladio. Then she looked at Cayaison. "Then a family member for you."

Luscious nodded. "All of the people mentioned tonight died dishonorably."

They all looked at her.

"Sorry," Luscious said.

"No, continue," Merladio nodded.

Luscious cleared her throat. "Master Creaman was killed in a battle with another Master, shortly after he left Heavstat. He had become a Warlock, and he was stealing life from the elderly."

They nodded.

"While Cayaison's father was seen fleeing from his house, leaving his sons and his wife to fend for themselves. He was later caught by the Orcs and then lead them to the hiding place of many women and children. The Orcs killed him shortly after."

Cayaison remembered the first time he had heard about his father's betrayal. Hearing it spoken out loud did more to make it real, than reading about it.

"The Demon," Wong replied.

"It is taking the shape of those, that have fallen in disgrace," Merladio said.

"We will see many of our fallen before this is all over," Cayaison said.

"We all must find Hertan and his class," Violetta said.

They were all in agreement, all of them would focus their attempts at reaching Hertan. The night came, and again most of them saw the dead rise again to tell them how they had failed. None of them backed down. Instead, they stood their ground.

When Dawain woke up, he found himself in his room. He quickly made his way out of his room. He ran down the halls passing many people then he saw one of the kids that they had taught down by stables.

"Come here," he said to the child. He gave the child a letter, to give to Hertan. "Now hurry, do not stop until you get there," Dawain said.

Dawain turned to walk back to one of his classes when he saw the kid running down the stairs towards him. The kid looked behind him as if confused.

Dawain shook his head.

"I just..." the kid began to say.

Dawain took the letter back from the boy.

"It should let you go now," Dawain said.

Confused the kid walked away, Dawain knew he would be stuck for the rest of the day on these stairs.

Trevan looked back. He could no longer see Dawain. He went about his usual day, not telling anyone about his encounter with Dawain. His next class was Divination as he got close to the stairs that lead up to the level his class was on, he took off running. Pushing people out of his way, he passed the hallway that led to his class,

"Master Hertan!" he yelled

Master Hertan saw the child running down the hall towards him. He turned to face the child.

"Rune now!" the kid yelled, throwing a piece of paper into the air.

Before the paper hit the ground, the child disappeared. Hertan picked the paper up. It was written in Merladio's handwriting.

It simply read:

Demons, Heavstat, Tantrum, Generations.

Hertan pulled off his robes. He touched his rune marks. They glowed brightly, he turned around and headed for his class.

"Marks, now!" he ordered.

All the students touched their rune marks.

"Demons are close, some might be in the school!" he said.

The class nodded.

"Get some sleep, tonight we go hunting," he said.

The class emptied. Hertan wrote a symbol on a piece of paper. For days now, he had felt Cayaison's presence every time he stepped out into the hall.

Hertan also knew of the secret meeting of the other Masters as well as Cayaison within the rock. Merladio had told Hertan to prepare for a day when things would change. For the few days that had passed he had told his students to prepare themselves for a night hunt. He exited the classroom, then pinned the note to the door.

"We will find you Cayaison," he said looking around. He then walked down the hallway.

Cayaison was sitting down looking down the hall. He was taking a breather before he began his walk back down it when he noticed something.

He walked over to one of the doors. There pinned by a demon bone was a letter. It had a symbol on it. Cayaison took it down and smiled.

"Thank you Hertan," he smiled.

He would not walk down this hall again. Cayaison sat down looking at the symbol and smiling. He knew enough of the demon language to understand what this symbol meant.

"Night of the Hunters," he said, to himself sitting back.

### Chapter 12: A Night To Remember

Hertan didn't get much sleep. His mind raced around the events that could unfold in the hours ahead of him. As a child, he had seen men from his village train for the hunt. His father was one of those men. It was on one of these nights on such a hunt. A young Hertan waited for his father to return, but he never did.

The elders of the village told Hertan that his father died a hero, that he had taken on the demon head held high. Hertan was full of pride for his father. The next day he was taken to the place of his father's death. It was the first time he had used his abilities.

Hertan saw the vicious Nuriea demon, a demon that camouflaged itself as an animal, then ate its victims. What he saw next made him sick to his stomach. All the Slayers from his village began to come from everywhere. They had cornered the demon. The Nuriea Demon was not alone. It was hunting with other demons of its kind.

The Slayers fought hard. Many were beaten and died fighting. Hertan saw his father, the man they had said was heroic and that who had leaped into battle to face the demon head on, he didn't see his father jump into action. He saw his father run away from the fight. Only to be torn to shreds by a demon that caught up to him from behind. He heard his father scream for help before being eaten alive.

Hertan told the elders what he saw and heard. Afterward, they began to train him harder. They called him their champion when Hertan was old enough to join the ranks of the Slayers. He touched the rune stone, a stone that had been passed down through the lineage of the Slayers.

When Hertan touched it, his skin burnt hot as the rune marks ran across his body. Burning the marks into his skin permanently marking him as a Demon Slayer. For his first hunt, he was sent to a faraway village where some Tris demons were turning humans into slaves.

Hertan didn't hesitate he ran into the heart of the village, killing demons with every swing of his ax. The other Slayers that were with him said the night turned to day with the glow of Hertan's rune marks. Hertan left his village to perfect his skill with his visions. But the Demon Slayer in him never faded, neither did the sight of his cowardly father.

Tonight, he would face one of the most dangerous demons the Slayers have ever encountered. Tonight, he would kill it, rip it's head from its shoulders so that he could bring it back to his village.

Hertan laid in his bed fully awake thinking of the task ahead of him. He didn't know what type of demon he would be facing. Many demons could make lower demons like the dark men. But he didn't know of a demon that could control them within Heavstat's walls.

When Hertan first came to Heavstat, he had begged the Masters for a chance to rid the school of the dark men. They had denied his request because the dark men served a purpose. They kept other creatures at bay. Because of them, the ghosts stayed in the lower halls. The fear of being eaten by a dark man kept students in their rooms instead of running freely through the halls at night.

Now they were the enemy of the school. Now he would kill all of them. Hertan knew that doing so would bring the real demon out of hiding. His only fear was that the beast that was controlling the dark men was the same demon that had given the Ingniot demon its wings. That would mean he would be facing a demon; no human had ever killed.

Hertan sat up in his bed, the light of the day came into his room from the openings at the top of the wall. He was never good at sleeping during the day. He needed the sleep so he could be ready for the night hunt.

"Still awake?" a voice asked in his head, it was the matron.

"Yes, I have never been good at sleeping during the day," he answered.

"I will send someone down with a night potion, it will calm your nerves, but it will not affect you too much, so you can't wake when you want to," she replied.

"Thank you," Hertan said, lying back down.

The matron had always been kind to him and his kind. Her family was slaughtered by demons. She knew the pain of not being able to fight something she could not understand. Getting into a demon's head was something only the Slayers could do.

When the first slayer picked up the blade of Girgashan, it fell upon them to rid the world of all demons no matter where they hid.

Girgashan was born an elf after one of the highest demons of them all attacked the Elven city. They turned the elven city into a nightmare. The lower demons used the elf children for disastrous experiments, turning the children into Elf-Demon hybrids. They used these abominations to find other elven cities.

After years of this had passed Girgashan tired of killing his brethren, he picked a weapon forged from the very pits he was created from; He used the sword to strike back at his creators. From that day, he taught others how to fight the demons until he disappeared down a dark hovel, never to be seen again.

Now the rune blade he had first used to kill the demons, was with the elves, rune stones were made from the rare metal found only in demon hovels.

When the Slayers reached the right age, they placed their hands on these stones. The dark energy burnt rune marks into the skin of the Slayer. These marks protected the Slayers from all demon spells. They also allowed the Slayers to stun and banish demons if they were placed directly on the skin of the demon. The marks were different to each hunter.

Hertan's marks stretched all over his body. None had seen such thick and long marks since the elves. It was a sign that he was destined to be the best demon hunters.

There was a knock on the door. Hertan got up to answer it, one of the matron's assistance stood there with a vial in her hand.

"Just one drop," she said as she gave it to him.

Hertan nodded, taking the vial. He closed the door then sat on his bed. He opened the bottle letting one drop of the light liquid fall to his tongue. As he laid back down, he could feel his body loosen. Slowly he drifted to sleep.

Friidian and his group had been busy the past few days. They had turned the cave into a formidable hideout. The rest of the army had made it to the cave, with the giant catapults now guarding the entrance to the cave. Men patrolled the surrounding area, as others inside trained hard for the fights ahead.

"Any more talks of doubts?" Friidian asked Tunadas.

They were sitting in one of the cave's old mining sections. A section that was now Friidian's. Here he had room for maps and a table.

"No," Tunadas replied. "There is more talk of this demon, a lot of them are eager to meet someone that can make them more powerful."

"Power," Friidian said, shaking his head. "Humans crave it in any form. They long for it. They need to feel more powerful than the others."

"It will lead to their downfall," Tunadas said.

"Not at first. First, they will use their new power to get rid of the other races. Then when there is no one to turn on, they will start fighting themselves. Then it will become the reason their world will come crashing down around them." Friidian said he was looking at a map. "Where did you say this village was ransacked?"

"Here," Tunadas said, he pointed to a spot on the map. "They took everything. Then they were seen heading this way."

Friidian nodded. "They are heading for the Dark Lands," he said, scratching his beard. "She must have heard where Kreat had sent her brother."

"Talking of the demon," Tunadas said. "Is it wise to keep him so close to you?" he asked. "Frugaal says he is powerful enough now, to break any holding spell she knows."

Friidian smiled, he had been waiting for his apprentice, to ask this. "You worry too much," he said with a smile. "The demon that gave him these new abilities is indebted to me and as such so is he. Without me, he would be the low demon he once was."

Tunadas nodded, still unsure of this pact his Master had with the demon. "If you don't mind, I will keep a close eye on him, just in case."

"Do what you feel you should do, be careful it is indebted to me, not you. I will not be held responsible if it decides that you are paying too much attention to it," Friidian warned.

Tunadas smiled, then walked out of the makeshift room, pulling the curtain aside as he left. Kreat entered. The curtain had been enchanted so no one could hear anything that took place on either side of it.

"He doesn't trust me," Kreat said, with a smile.

"I knew the enchantment wouldn't work on you," Friidian said.

"Human spells are weak, easy to get around," Kreat said. He stood across from Friidian.

"We are not humans; we stopped being humans..." Friidian began to say.

"You smell like them. You act like them. You even share the same feelings. Just because of the magic in your blood ages you slower and gives you abilities that they don't have. Does not separate the fact that you once were and still are human." Kreat said, challenging Friidian.

Friidian sat back in his chair, then began to clap. "I know what you are doing," he said, leaning forward. "If I strike at you, then you can kill me, you can tell him that it was I that attacked first."

Kreat folded his arms. The Mage had made him an errand boy, the moment its wings came back. Friidian had sent him this way and that, carrying notes to others within the Mages circle of cohorts.

"I might not be able to kill you, there are plenty of others out there," Kreat said.

"The more to turn when he gets here," Friidian said, with a shrug.

Kreat slammed his hand on the desk, then stormed out past the curtain. Friidian sat back in his chair, with a smile. But what Kreat said lingered in his mind. To him Mages were more than human, they were above them. Mages had done nothing like what the humans had. No Mage fought another Mage purely based on feelings, or fought wars based on who they thought was better.

Friidian stood up. He was angered at the mere thought. He pulled the curtain back, the room that they had set aside for him was down an old mine shaft. He walked up the shaft to the central part of the cave. Kreat stood there waiting for him. The demon had a smug look on his face.

"You look angered," Kreat said.

"Circle," Friidian said, passing the demon.

A circle had been made in the center of the main cave. This was where they trained. Some of the trainees were standing inside, battling each other with long staffs.

Friidian walked into the circle. The trainers rushed the trainees out of it. Kreat entered the loop on the other side. Everyone fell silent, as they watched intently.

"You sure, you want to do this," Kreat said, with a smug look on his face.

"You seem so sure of yourself," Friidian said, shaking his head.

"Spoken just like a human," Kreat said. "You say you don't base your actions on feelings. Now you fight me because I angered you."

Friidian stood up straight. "You think this rests on feelings?"

Kreat nodded back. The main hall was silent. Everyone had their eyes centered on Friidian and the demon.

"This is not based on feelings, it is based on loyalty," Friidian said, loud enough for everyone to hear.

The demon rushed at Friidian, disappearing before he got to him. Friidian turned around quick enough to grab the demon's hand as it attacked from behind. He swung the arm over his shoulder, launching the demon to the ground.

"For too long humans have put the Mages of the world in the same category as them," Friidian said.

The demon looked up at the Mage. He disappeared again. Each time he disappeared he left a small cloud of black smoke. This time Friidian blocked an attack from the demon from above his head. The demon had its wings out hovering just above Friidian with a gold sword in hand.

Friidian held the blade of the sword within his two hands. With a simple gesture of his face, the demon was sent backward, crashing and skidding across the floor. Friidian threw the sword to the ground.

"We are nothing like them. We may have been human before. But we are above them. We have seen the errors of our past, the mistakes we have made. We have learned from these mistakes, and we will never repeat them, more than any human can say now or ever," Friidian said, reaching out a hand towards the demon.

Kreat began to move towards Friidian. His face was full of fear. He remembered this feeling. It was when Friidian pulled him across the floor.

"How?" Kreat shouted.

"I am a Mage, but even more than that. I am Dereland Friidian, son of Duragon Friidian Supreme Warlock. You underestimated the amount of knowledge my father gave me before he died!" Friidian shouted.

Kreat span around in the air, floating towards the Mage. He disappeared again. The sword vanished with him. He reappeared just behind Friidian plunging the sword into the back of the Mage.

"You underestimate me," Kreat said. But his joy turned to horror, as the image of Friidian disappeared. From the hall, there was a single clap.

Everyone turned to see Friidian standing there. He had never entered the circle. He had been standing behind everyone. Watching his image fight the demon. He walked towards the ring. Everyone got out of his way, he kept clapping as he entered the circle.

"An image?" Kreat said.

"Projection," Friidian corrected. "Now think, think very carefully. If you barely managed to fight a projection to this point," he walked close enough to the demon. "What chance do you have against the real thing," he whispered into the demon's ear.

Kreat stood still. His sword fell to the floor. He was defeated before he even started.

"Good choice," Friidian said. He turned to look at everybody. "The main difference between Mages and humans, we know the difference between the fights we have to fight and the ones we don't. Not everything is life or death, wrong or right. Something that humans will never learn."

With that everybody went back to what they were doing. Some of the people gathered around were hoping the demon would have killed Friidian. The demon walked away. His sword disappeared from the floor. Tunadas and Illuscious walked towards their Master.

"Still worry about the demon being too close?" Friidian asked Tunadas.

"Not anymore, but I am sure it is thinking of another plan," Tunadas answered.

"No doubt," Illuscious said, looking at the demon. It was defeated for now.

One of the human warriors began to walk towards the three Mages. He looked at Friidian. "May I have a word?"

Friidian nodded at the other two. They walked away, leaving Friidian with the man. "What is it?" Friidian asked.

"Not here," the man said.

They walked back to Friidian's makeshift room.

"I have been appointed General by the rest, in the absence of Denessa and Messa," the man said, still standing.

"Ah," Friidian said, sitting down. "Sit," he pointed to the chair, across the table from him. "What can I do for the General of my army?"

"That is why I have come," The General said. "Your army," he sat down. "We were going to use your death, to take over Heavstat."

Friidian looked at this man. He was very muscular, tall with broad shoulders. His face was not like the others. There was no fear. There was only anger.

"And now, that I am not dead. And you aren't taking Heavstat, well not yet anyway," Friidian said, leaning forward.

"We want to know what's next?" The General asked. "Other than your plan to turn some of us into undead cannibals."

Friidian nodded. It was something they had a right to know. He had promised them he would not lie to them anymore. And the way he saw it, they had accepted their place by promoting someone within their ranks. He stood up, walking to the side of this General.

"Undead cannibals," Friidian nodded. "I like the sound of that. It is not my only plan. For now, we wait, until tomorrow that is when he will be here. Then he will turn some of you," he looked down at the General, who didn't like that. "Only those that want to be turned for now," Friidian reassured him.

"Those that don't want to?" the man asked.

"Don't have to," Friidian said, he shrugged. "I am not going to force it upon anyone when they still live. I will say this to you, here and now," he looked at the General face to face. "When they die, if they die, they will either be food or be turned."

The General nodded. "If they are dead, they have no say. They should have been stronger."

"I like you," Friidian clapped. "You know how these things go," Friidian nodded.

"Then we will wait until tomorrow," The General said, standing up. He began to walk towards the curtain.

"What is your name?" Friidian asked.

"Frantigan," The General replied.

"Frantigan, get rid of the black leathers, you're not part of that army anymore," Friidian said, sitting back down.

Frantigan nodded then left Friidian alone. Friidian sat in silence. He loved these moments. He had a lot to think about Arthais's memories kept racing around in his head, the Mage had planned for this it was evident to Friidian now.

Every time he seemed to get a grip on an ability it slipped out of his mind, for another to take its place. The only thing that had come out of the transference was his regular spells had increased in power. He also felt younger, stronger.

"I will find a way to defeat you," he said out loud, he was talking to the dead Mage. "When I do, I will make sure all of the humans pay for the pain you are putting me through."

He held onto his head as another spell got erased from his mind.

Rayenne Meridean sat in a chair, looking out the window of her chambers. The sun was going down. She loved how it made the city glow a bright orange. She felt her head tug back. She rolled her eyes.

"Sorry Ma'am," her chambermaid said as she held the brush in her hand. She was a new maid. The older one had been sick.

"You are fine," Rayenne said, she looked back at the city just below her.

The King entered the room. The young chambermaid looked at him. Rayenne didn't give her husband any attention. He took his crown off, putting it by the bed.

"Leave us," he said, the chambermaid got up giving the brush to the Queen.

"Come back in a few minutes," Rayenne said, she smiled at the young chambermaid. The young lady bowed to the King first then the Queen.

"Still mad at me, I see," the King said when the maid had left the room.

"Still observant as ever," Rayenne replied. She turned around so that she could look out the window. The sun was nearly down.

"What would you have me do?" the King said, blocking her view.

"Nothing," Rayenne replied. "You are the King what could you have done but watch one of your General's head split open like an apple," she replied as she stood up.

Even though Rafiel's death had happened was days ago. Queen Rayenne still had not forgiven her husband or the commander. She was appalled to hear that it was done in such a public manner. In front of so many, there weren't many people in the city that had not seen the inside of Rafiel's head.

"They should not have followed him," the King said, taking off his garments, he placed them on hooks by the door. "Many people in the city knew where he was going. They could have left him to what needed to be done," the King said, defending his friend, but he was also protecting the right of his commander. "Rafiel killed his daughter, what should he have done? Forgiven him?"

"No," Rayenne replied shaking her head. "Don't forget Elieane was my friend also," Rayenne said. "We were to have dinner when she got back," a tear rolled its way down Rayenne's face. Her heart pained her with the thought of her friend being tossed into the darkness of the rift. "I wanted him dead too. It should have been done the right way."

"It was a military matter, you have always said that you will stay out of military matters," the King said, putting on his bedclothes.

"Your military matters spilled out into the streets, which made it a non-military matter, and a public issue."

The King looked at his wife. She was a strong-willed woman. That was why he fell for her, but moments like these few days made him question that thought. "You will never see it the way a parent would. There is no point in arguing this any further."

Rayenne grabbed one of her shoes from the floor, then threw it at her husband. What he said hurt. He knew she was unable to have children of her own.

"Leave!" Rayenne yelled pointing towards the door. "Sleep with one of your mistresses," she knew her husband had been unfaithful to her. She also knew there were kids within the city that were his from these other women.

"Fine!" he yelled back at her. The King stormed out of the room. Rayenne fell face first into the bed, grabbing the covers she screamed as loud as she could into them.

The King started walking to his old room. It was on the other side of the castle. He hated how large this castle was. Without children it was a waste of space, his wife was unable to bear children. A result of the plague that had ravished so many.

It had left family lines unable to have children. His previous wife had given him two boys, both were now dead. The oldest was killed by his own foolishness with a sword, the other he shook his head. He pushed that memory out of his head, with the memory of his previous wife.

Rayenne thought there were children in the city that was his from his need to be with a woman. She was not wrong, but not wholly right. He knew of only three. He had done all he could for them. They were no longer in this city. He had given the mothers enough gold for them to be very wealthy as long as they left the city.

Voron entered his old room. This room had been where he and his former wife had slept. Rayenne would not enter this room. She said it belonged to the previous Queen. As the King walked around the chamber, he could still smell her. She loved the smell of jasmine. She sprayed herself with it every night. The bed, the clothes, the long drapes and the very walls smelt like her.

He opened another door it opened to a smaller room. This room belonged to the kids even though they had outgrown it at the time of their deaths. The King and his wife would come in here to look at the small beds.

The beds now were empty. The linens were cleaned daily, then put back. How he longed to hold a child again. He could denounce his marriage. It was his right as King. But Rayenne had the hearts of the citizens, even though the military had made this city the gleaming light of humanity. It was the citizens that made it flourish.

He went back to his old bed, lying down inside its covers. The smell of jasmine and the memories of his true love carried him to sleep.

"The King is not in his room," a maid said, she had entered the room of the commander.

"Thank you," Toramad sat at his desk, he was sharpening the blade of one of his swords. Something he did every night.

He knew why his friend was not in his bed. He had tried to talk to the Queen. She had not said one word to him. She had even ordered him to take himself out of her presence, something he had to do as he was the Commander. He looked down at the parchment. It was a direct order from the Queen of Storamgrade. It was to the Commander. It stated that he was to keep the person Loramus Toramad from talking to her. It also said if he couldn't do this then he was to relinquish his position as Commander.

Toramad knew he could take this to the King, or to the High Guard. Either of them would tear the order up, making it a nonfactor. But he knew she didn't do it as something to threaten him, or his position. She did it to keep him from talking about his daughter, her best friend. That he was able to do, so he kept it to himself.

The memories of the last days of his daughter were fresh in his mind. She was upset that she had been demoted. He had been so angry at her. He would do anything to take back the last few words he had said to her.

That was what had fueled his anger, when he had killed Rafiel, a man he had stepped on battlefields back to back, the two of them had fought together countless times. But he had killed his only daughter, for that he had to die.

"Will there be anything else?" the chambermaid asked, bringing the Commander back from his thoughts.

"No, that will be it," Toramad said, he nodded at her as she left.

Toramad had been with no other woman since his wife passed away. Many had tried to get the Commander's attention, but his heart had been broken, it had no feelings left for any other person other than his daughter, now she was gone. If it hadn't been for his vow to protect this city, he would leave this city, find a battle that could not be won so that he could join them.

The swords he was sharpening were given to him by the Commander before him. He had died on the battlefield. He had given them to Toramad with the understanding that they would only spill the blood of enemies of the city.

Alecron Neimarn had taught Toramad everything. He had taken an orphaned child into his home. Alecron never showed anyone that much love, except for this child and the city of Storamgrade.

There had been no warrior more feared than Alecron. It was said that even the elves had a name for Alecron, even though no human had ever heard it. Now the same was said about Toramad. He had never faced an equal on the battlefield. Just like the man that had taken him in as a child.

The swords were made from Dwarven metal. They had seen many battles. The blades had no scratches or dents. They looked they had just come out of the forge. These were the reasons for Toramad devotion to this city.

"When I can no longer hold these swords, I will join both of you, then we will be a family again," he said, putting the swords back in their sheaths.

Toramad laid in bed, but he didn't sleep. He had not slept in days. Instead, he listened to the city. He could hear the city breathe. He felt it pulse with life. He knew every sound it made. The city belonged to him, and he belonged to it.

The night began to creep over the valley. Hertan stood at the top of Heavstat. Usually one of the bird keepers would be up here, but it was getting late. The birds had been put away. The keepers were in their rooms. Heavstat was getting ready for another night. This night was going to be the last that anyone would fear the dark men. Hertan looked over at the mountains. They looked like giant shadows in the distance.

"We are ready," one of his students said, from behind him.

Hertan looked down the stairs at his students. How he wished Merladio had not sent Lexia away, he could do with another knowledgeable Slayer. Twelve of his oldest students stood ready for his command. They had shed themselves of their robes. Now they wore brown leather pants, with matching tops. Their arms showed their rune marks.

"Tonight, is a great night," Hertan said, walking among them. "Tonight, some of you will slay your first demon. Some of you will die by the hand of a demon."

They looked at each other. They had trained for this for most of their lives. Most of them came from different Demon Slayer packs. Death at the hands of a demon was an honor among the packs. To run from a demon meant exile.

"We may face a demon tonight that has yet to be defeated. One of the most powerful demons the darkness can send," Hertan said. "If we are victorious, we would have done something no human Demon Slayer has ever done," he said looking into their eyes. "No more will the Elves think of human Slayers as playthings. We will be equals."

They all cheered, raising their weapons into the air.

"Too long have they looked down past their noses at us. Coming into our packs, telling us what we should or shouldn't do," Hertan yelled. "After tonight they will shut their smug mouths, and leave us alone!" he roared.

They all yelled and cheered. Hertan lead them down into Heavstat. The darkness of the halls enveloped them.

"Runes," Hertan ordered.

Slowly the hall lit up with a bright blue light. The rune marks on their skins glowed brightly in the darkness. None of the candles inside Heavstat were lit, an order Hertan had given before he went to sleep. Tonight, they will hunt only by the light of their rune marks.

"One is close," one of them said.

"Drevan go ahead of us," Hertan ordered.

One of the students stopped, then closed his eyes. He could move his mind out of his body. This ability was what brought him to Heavstat. His mind went ahead of them in the dark, looking around corners. It saw three of them just ahead. Then it faded returning to his body.

"Three of them just ahead on the right," Drevan said.

The group slowly made their way forward. The dark men sensed their presence. The three of them ran forward attacking the group. In a fight of claws, teeth and sharp weapons. The hunters came out victorious. The bodies of the three dark men lay dead on the floor.

"We will burn them later," Hertan said. "Anyone bit?" he asked, looking at his students.

To get bitten by a dark man meant death. Quickly and instantly, this was the way of the hunt. There was no risking the lives of the pack. They looked at each other, checking the skin of the one next to them. The rune marks protected them from being infected by a scratch or a minor bite, but not from a full bite.

"Just scratches," one of them said.

"Good, we have much more to go."

This was Drevan's first hunt. He had been sent away from his pack village when he was very young. The village elders had seen the rune marks take hold of him at a very young age he had never touched the rune stone. It was a sign that he had been touched by Girgashan.

Not long after the rune marks appeared on his body, his ability came about. He walked the village during his sleep, the next morning he told his parents things he shouldn't have seen.

They knew of Hertan's ability. The pack leader came to Heavstat asking Merladio to take him in. He had resided in Heavstat ever since.

Now a young teen, the magic in his blood had just started to slow his aging. But tonight he still felt like that child. Looking down at the dead bodies on the floor, he was beginning to panic.

"Master," one of them said.

Hertan looked back; they had walked a few feet away from the dead bodies. Drevan still stood over them. Hertan motioned the rest to stop and lay low. He stepped back towards Drevan.

"I will not run," Drevan said, sensing his Master close to him.

"I know," Hertan said.

"They look human," Drevan said.

Apart from their pale white skin, their crystal bright eyes that were now charcoal black. The rest of their bodies looked human. Their fingers were longer, with sharp claws on end. Their teeth were more pointed than regular teeth. But to Drevan that had never seen one before, he didn't look at these differences. He saw the human body that the demon inside had taken.

"Take your sword," Hertan said, kneeling.

Drevan held his sword tightly, kneeling next to his Master.

"Slide it here," he said, pointing just below the neck of the nearest one.

Drevan pierced the skin of the dark man. Dark black blood poured out. It smelled horrid. The blood was dead.

"Cut down until you feel your blade stop," Hertan said, looking into the eyes of his student.

Hertan had taught each of his students, what the dark men were. But nothing ever prepared them for the truth. There was scraping noise as the blade scraped against something hard.

"That's it, now peel the skin back," Hertan said, "Don't let the blood touch your bare skin."

Drevan used the edge of his sword to peel the skin back. He jumped back nearly falling backward. There it was staring back at him. Another head was inside the chest of the dark man. This one was black with red eyes. That stared up at Drevan.

"That's what they are," Hertan said, "Look at it," he said pulling Drevan forward. "Inside every one of them is this. The body has long been dead. This demon is what keeps them alive, this is what eats and drinks the blood."

Drevan nodded his head fast, understanding now. They weren't human at all. They were puppets, controlled by a demon head. He stood up on his feet. He was a Demon Slayer. Fighting and killing these abominations was what he was trained to do.

"Sorry Master," he bowed looking at Hertan.

The two ran back to their pack mates. The group went through the halls, floor by floor. They killed all of the dark men they encountered, as the night went by their skills sharpened making the shorter.

"Dawain," Hertan said, shocked as Dawain just appeared out of thin air in front of them.

They had just cleared the room, next to the grand library. When he just appeared.

"How?" Dawain asked.

The group looked at each other.

"I was walking down this hallway. I didn't see you," Dawain said.

"The demon is losing its grip on Heavstat," Hertan said. "The hall's we have cleared," Hertan said looking back.

The halls might have students just being able to move freely around.

"Master! The Bodies!" Drevan said in shock.

The rest of the group looked back, if one of the students or the children were curious enough. They might touch the blood with their bare skin. It wouldn't turn them instantly, but it would kill them slowly. After their death, they would become a dark man.

Hertan began to make his way back.

"No," Dawain said.

He walked in front of Hertan, stopping the Demon Slayer.

"You must clear the rest of the halls," Dawain said.

He grabbed a scroll book, that was cast aside on the floor.

"Take this," Dawain said. He waved his hand over it, casting a small spell. "Tear a small piece of the page off, anytime you kill them, then lay it on them," Dawain said. "I will know where it is. I will come as soon as I can and burn them."

Hertan nodded, taking the parchment.

"I will go to the rest of the halls. Where did you start?" Dawain said walking backward.

"We started from the bird keepers, then worked down," Drevan said.

Dawain took off running. Within moments he was out of sight. The darkness enveloped him, then one candle lit, then another. He was lighting the way to safety.

Hertan nodded. Now he knew what he should do. After each hall was cleared, they waited. It took only moments for lost students to appear, the hunters pointed them towards the lit candles, telling them to follow them to safety.

The night dragged on. The pack was getting tired. With each slain dark man, a new section of Heavstat was taken away from the demon. They had no real magic, most of them could barely use the natural magic surrounding them. All of them could use the magic within their marks, that was their limit.

"We must rest," one of them said.

He collapsed to the floor. They had fought for hours without rest. It seemed that the number of dark men they encountered grew each time. The others stopped as well joining him on the floor. Hertan was tired as well. His arms were sore. His feet felt like they were on fire. Then he saw something walking towards them. He got up to his feet, ready to fight.

"Relax Hertan," the shadow figured said. "It is me," the shadowy figure came into the light of their runes.

"Master Wong," they all said, standing to their feet.

It was him. The illusion of the dark men being someone else, could not keep itself whole within the lights of the rune marks.

"Master," Hertan said.

Even though Hertan was a Master himself, he had always favored Master Wong. He had taught the young student so much in his first years. It was also Master Wong that had asked the rest of the council to make Hertan a Master.

"Dawain has been burning..." one of the students said.

Master Wong held his hand up, stopping the student.

"We will get to that," Master Wong said. "Now we must press on. I fear the demon is close. It has moved Cayaison to another part of the building. It senses that we are winning back Heavstat."

The group pushed forward with Master Wong by their side. The dark men they encountered were quickly defeated. Wong kept just out of their reach. His ability to slow them down, and speed the Slayers natural abilities gave them the edge they needed.

They reached Merladio's room. The door seemed to be covered in dark blood. No doubt the demon had made this its room. Wong stepped forward he pulled his hands backwards, then pushed them forward. There was a blast of wind that filled the hallway. It rushed past them with a force that made all of them fall forward. The door blasted open.

"Master, if the demon that I expect is in there..." Hertan said.

"I know," Wong said bowing.

He knew his magic would not affect a demon of that power. But he was not going to let these students meet such a beast, without trying to help them.

"You take the lead," Wong said to Hertan.

The leader of the Slayers approached the broken door, when they entered the room, what they saw shocked all of them.

Merladio was still sitting at his table while Cayaison sat across from him. They were both talking to each other. They didn't seem aware of the horror that was going on around them. Gremoar was hovering just above them. Black tentacles came out of his body spiraling downward and attaching themselves to their backs.

"Come in," Gremoar said with a sinister smile on his face. "I have been expecting you."

Hertan rushed forward he stopped short of the massive demon when many Dark Men dropped from above surrounding and protecting their master.

"Did you think you could free them so easily?" Gremoar laughed. "They are mine now. I will use the magic inside their bodies to create a never-ending supply of minions to do my bidding."

There was a sudden blur as Wong began to attack the Dark Men. Hertan saw glimpses of the Master as he dashed back and forth. Hitting and throwing the lower demon spawns. Then he suddenly stopped.

"I will focus on these. You and your class free Merladio and Cayaison!" he ordered before he seemed to disappear again.

Hertan nodded. "Attack quickly!"

The Slayers began their attack, leaping into the air to attack the demon. Gremoar was ready for them, as one approached him, he grabbed the student by the neck with a slight twist the student's limp body fell to the floor.

"You think I will be defeated that easily?" he laughed. "It took the Elves over a hundred years to trap me, what chance do you think you have?"

The high demon lowered itself to the floor. Hertan swung his ax the demon caught it, with its bare hand. Then punched Hertan in the stomach, Hertan fell forward his vision went cloudy as the demon punched him again. Then throw him backward. He felt his back hit the wall hard. Then he was on the floor.

He looked at his students attacking the demon. Their rune marks were useless against the demon. Some of them managed to get to the demon, but the marks did not stun or stop him as they should.

"Merladio, Cayaison," he said barely able to breathe.

The magical energy that Gremoar was taking from the Mages was preventing the runes from having the needed effect. He got back up to his feet still holding his stomach. Then Gremoar roared in pain as Drevan had cut one of the tentacles.

"The tentacles!" Drevan yelled. "Focus on the tentacles."

"Human waste!" Gremoar shouted. He reached out and grabbed Drevan by the neck.

"No!" Hertan shouted.

The Master picked up a fallen sword, throwing it with all his might at the demon's hand. The demon let Drevan go as the blade pierced its skin.

"What?" Gremoar yelled.

"I may not be a Slayer, but I know just enough to make you weaker," Merladio shouted.

He had been freed from the demon's grasp.

"No!" Gremoar yelled. He reached for Merladio, but the Mage disappeared out of sight, then reappeared next to Hertan.

"Gather them together. Attack as one, I will keep it busy," Merladio said before disappearing again.

"Stupid Mage!" Gremoar said, looking around the room.

It stumbled backward as Merladio appeared on the other side of the room, launching a volley of fireballs at the demon.

"Fire does not hurt a demon like me!"

Hertan rushed to the side of his fallen students, some of them were in bad shape. Cayaison was standing up now. He looked puzzled. Merladio must have vanished from his sight.

"We must free Cayaison," Hertan said as Merladio kept the demon angry.

Drevan nodded as he and two others made their way toward Gremoar. The demon was trying to get its hands on Merladio who was keeping just out of its grasp.

"When I get my hands on you, I will crush every bone in your body!" it yelled.

Merladio ducked under its reach but then was caught by one its spikes as it shot out of Gremoar's body. The large bone spike impaled Merladio to the wall. Gremoar came face to face with Merladio. It grabbed the Mages arm as Merladio tried to fire another magic spell.

The giant demon was huge compared to the humans attacking it. They barely reached its waist. It looked at Merladio with its dark red eyes. Using only one of its hands to pin the Mage against the wall.

"No more tricks!" Gremoar said snapping Merladio's arm.

Merladio screamed out in pain. Wong rushed to be by his side, but Gremoar caught him.

"I can see you!" Gremoar laughed.

His colossal hand grabbed Wong around the stomach. It threw the Master across the room. The Dark Men launched themselves at him as he skidded across the floor.

"Now I will tear you apart!" Gremoar said returning his focus on Merladio.

"Over here!" Hertan yelled still holding his stomach.

Drevan and the other two were in position just behind the table in the middle of the room. They needed Gremoar to turn around so his back, was to them.

"You're still alive. Good, I will enjoy biting into your flesh as you still live," Gremoar said dropping Merladio to the floor. He began to walk towards Hertan.

Drevan stood up, then jumped onto the table. He jumped higher as he swung his sword at the last tentacle coming from Gremoar's back. The demon lurched forward as the tentacle was cut free from its body. Drevan hit the floor hard.

"You insignificant wretch," Gremoar said turning to face Drevan.

"You're the voice I heard," Cayaison said.

Gremoar turned to look at Cayaison standing near to him. The small human was smiling up at him.

"I knew you would be big and ugly," Cayaison smiled.

"You!" Gremoar said lifting his fist to smash the human.

Cayaison held out both his hands, he didn't know how he knew how to use this spell, but at the moment it came to him as clear as using any other spell.

Gremoar stopped moving. His face was in shock.

"What?" Gremoar shouted. It was stuck. "Arthais!"

"Yeah, I finally remembered one of his spells," Cayaison said. "Hertan now will be a good time. I can't hold him like this for long,"

Hertan and the remaining hunters rushed towards the paralyzed demon, placing their rune marks on him.

"High banishing spell," Hertan said.

They all began to chant together. Their rune marks began to glow brightly.

"I have a spell of my own," Gremoar said. The high demon began to chant loudly.

Back at the mine, Kreat was brooding in one of the corners when his body stopped moving.

"Gremoar!" it yelled. "Master!"

Friidian came running around the corner looking at Kreat's body vanishing in front of him.

"Gremoar is trying to transfer his mind into my body," Kreat cried out.

Friidian smiled. "Why should I help you?"

Kreat looked at the Mage desperately. "If he succeeds he will be stuck in my body, with no way to create your army."

Friidian stopped smiling he knew that he needed that army. Then he heard a voice coming from Kreat's body.

"I can't hold him much longer."

That was the voice of Cayaison. Friidian snarled.

"That child is becoming a nuisance," Friidian said. "Go, I will pull you back," Friidian ordered. "When you get there, you are to take whatever you can from Gremoar before I pull you back."

Kreat looked at the Mage. He didn't trust him. He could leave him there to be banished forever.

"You have no choice," Friidian said. "I am your only option."

Kreat nodded, he stopped fighting the spell, his mind exited his body, traveling back to Gremoar. It could now see the room. Bodies were laying all over the floor. A human had its arms out holding Gremoar's body in place.

"Cayaison," Kreat said. But it was Gremoar's voice.

Cayaison looked up at the large demon. Its eyes were different. They weren't black and hollow anymore.

"What is happening?" Cayaison asked.

Hertan looked up. He also could see the difference.

"Gremoar is trying to take another demon's mind, so that he could take its body," Hertan said. "We must hurry!"

They began to chant faster.

Friidian stood looking at Kreat's body. The face had changed as well as the armor. It wasn't gold anymore but a crimson red.

"Gremoar I presume?" Friidian said with a smirk.

"Once the transfer is complete, I will serve you," Gremoar said.

"And what if I want you to create the army you promised my father?" Friidian asked.

Gremoar shook its head. "In this body, it will take years before I am powerful enough to.."

Friidian shook his head. That would not do. He needed that army.

"I will serve you better than the lower cast. I will be stronger, I know..."

"No!" Friidian yelled. "I need that army. I don't care what you know or what you are capable of in this body!"

Friidian started to chant holding out his hand.

"You dare defy me!" Gremoar yelled. "I will find you, and I will kill you, my debt to your family is gone if you send me back!"

Friidian smiled again. "Where you are going, that is not a threat."

Gremoar was back in his body, but he saw something in the room that could free him from being banished.

"It has changed again," Cayaison said he was physically weak, the spell that he was using was taking a toll on his body. His knees were beginning to give.

"One more moment Cayaison," Hertan pleaded. "We are nearly finished."

Cayaison nodded, he knew he could hold this demon a few more seconds.

There was a bright flash that filled the room which blinded everyone. Slowly everyone opened their eyes. Gremoar's body was gone as well as most of the Dark Men.

Cayaison looked around. He ran to Merladio's side. His Master was alive, but his arm looked broken. There were bruises all over his neck and face.

"Master Wong is alive as well, but we need to take him to the clerics fast," Drevan said.

A few of the other hunters shook their heads as they checked a few of their comrades. Cayaison lowered his head. Even though he knew, he couldn't have done anything to save them. He felt responsible for their deaths.

Hertan stood up he had knelt down to make sure the body of a fallen Dark Man was dead. When he got up, he turned to face Cayaison.

Cayaison face turned to horror, but it was too late. The Dark Man was not dead it shoved its hand through Hertan's body ripping his stomach out from behind. Hertan's body fell slowly to the floor.

"You think you can banish me?" Gremoar's voice came from the Dark Man's mouth.

It looked different its skin was more gray than white. Its hair was a jet black. There was a color to its eyes. It launched itself up to the balcony where the crystal ball used to be. It looked down at them with those eyes.

"I may be weak now, but I will find a way to get all of you back. It may take years or even centuries. But your children will feel my wrath!"

It then launched itself out of one of the openings near the ceiling. Out into the valley. They rushed to Hertan's side, but he was already dead.

Days later they all had gathered on the floor of the valley near to the hole below Heavstat. Merladio stood close to Cayaison as the bodies of the dead were brought to the edge. No one said anything. There were no words that could make them remember their fallen. One by one the bodies were dropped into the abyss of the dark hole.

Lexia had returned from her duty. She nodded to Drevan as she helped the young student with their teacher. They picked up the body of Hertan. That was covered with the red robe of the Master. Rameus brought the two ax's that Hertan had always used. Drevan shook his head.

"We will take them to his village," Drevan said.

Slowly the body was taken to the edge of the hole then dropped. They watched it fall until they could see nothing.

Once the bodies were taken care of, Drevan looked at all the remaining Slayers gathered around. "Make him proud," he said. "Make sure Heavstat is never again controlled by demons. But most of all do not let the fear of death scare you from doing what is right."

They all smiled and nodded at him. Lexia nodded. "I will carry on his teachings."

"He would want you to," Drevan nodded.

"After the war, we could go after that..." Merladio began to say.

Drevan shook his head. "That could take a while. We need to find it and fast before it turns more people into whatever it has become."

Merladio nodded. "If you ever need any help, you know how to reach us."

Lexia smiled. "When we get your word, the Slayers will be there, where you need us. You have made us all proud."

Drevan nodded. "Thank you, it is because of Hertan that We survived," he looked at the other two of the Slayers that helped him. "We will go to his village. They need to know the things he has accomplished. They need to know that a human has defeated a Feragi Demon."

"Do not tell them how I helped," Cayaison said. "They do not need to know that. He would have defeated the demon even without my help."

"If they ask the details I will tell them; I will not lie," Drevan said. "You deserve that much."

Drevan took the axes from Rameus. Then got onto his horse. Merladio and two other Masters activated the stones. Drevan took one last look at Heavstat floating high above him. Then he turned around and went through the portal followed by the others.

When they all got back up to Heavstat Merladio called all of them back to the Master's chamber. Everybody took a seat except for Cayaison and his group.

"The recent events have shown all of us gathered here that you six should no longer be considered students, or even teachers. You have shown us all that you are much more than that," Merladio said.

The other Masters nodded their head in agreement.

"We do not know what the future holds for us. Or what this war will bring to this land. But we are aware of one thing with the six of you fighting side by side there is nothing you can not do. The things you can accomplish together is unlimited, all of your destinies are intertwined with each other."

All of the Masters waved their hands. Cayaison and his friend's robes turned from brown to the bright red of the Masters.

They all cheered for them. Cayaison looked at his friends.

"I couldn't do anything without any of you," he said with a smile.

"I knew you were going to say that," Lucious said.

"I know something you don't know," Dawain said as he began walking backward.

"Don't!" Lucious said.

"I mean you could know that I am thinking it," Dawain said smiling.

They all smiled as they watched him walk backward out of the chamber. With Lucious following him.

"I am warning you Dawain!" she said.

"I mean do you actually know that I will say it, or do you just know I am thinking it?" Dawain said.

They followed them out into the hallway.

"Dawain!" Lucious said.

"There is something different about you. Is it your hair?" Dawain said as he took off running.

"That's it!" Lucious said as she chased after him.

They all started laughing as they heard the two of them exchanging words down the hall.

"Finally, you awaken," Friidian said staring down at Kreat.

Kreat had been asleep for many days. The toll of having Gremoar's memories made him pass out. Kreat sat up on the makeshift bed.

"So many memories," Kreat said holding its head.

"Your voice is different," Friidian said.

"That's because I am no longer a lower demon," Kreat said finally standing up. "I feel different, before I didn't need to breathe, but now."

Kreat walked around as if walking for the first time.

"I can smell the air. I can feel it entering my body."

Friidian smiled it was like watching a new life in front of him. But then he stopped laughing.

"What else can you do?"

"For you?" Kreat said. "Bring me a body."

Two men carried a dead body of one of the many they had killed on their outings. Kreat knelt next to it, then stabbed his hand into the stomach of the corpse. He looked up at Friidian with a smile on his face. The skin of the body began to turn a golden brown. Its face twisted into a lizard-like creature, claws started to come out of its fingertips. Then finally it sat up, then got to its feet.

"Who? How?" it said its forked tongue came in out of its mouth. "You killed me!" it launched itself at one of the men instantly killing him with its superior strength.

"Stop," Kreat said. "Do you remember your past life?"

The creature looked at Kreat through golden brown eyes, as if it was trying to remember. Then it shook its head.

"Just the moment of my death."

Friidian smiled, it was no Dark Man, but from what he saw he was impressed. Suddenly the man that the creature had killed sprang up from the floor. He was now one of these creatures. Friidian looked over at Kreat they both smiled.

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