Regent King Esocilies was enraged. Nay, enraged was hardly the correct term for the intense wave of anger and hatred he was feeling at this moment.

He stared out over the courtyard, watching as the Assassins were brutally executed for their failure. Regiments of soldiers surrounded them, beating them with clubs, staining the sandy grass scrub with their blood.

He bristled as he turned away from the scene, hands clenched until the leather covering them was taunt, his rapier tapping against his leg. Guards quickly fell in step behind him, several nearly nude women fanning him with large pond fronds.

He shed his clothing as he entered the next massive chamber, nearly half the days water supply going into the bath here. His body tensed as he dipped into the chilled liquid, glaring forward and drifting about. Several of the Royal Mage’s Cadre stood nearby, at the ready to answer any questions.

He waded to the edge, slowly dragging on a hookah. He slowly peered to the Mage’s Cadre, the small squad glancing over. Supreme Wizard Errigo spoke first, coughing softly beforehand. “... Yes, your Highness?”

The king took another drag, drumming his fingers on the edge of the pool. “Well? Can you locate The Ark?”

Errigo clenched and unclenched his fist, sweat trickling down the back of his neck. “Well, sir. The Ark is... Cloaked. There is likely a traitor among the Cadre--”

He was cut off, the King letting out a rage filled cry. He pointed at the Wizard. “Out! All of you! You remain out until you find the damned Ark, or I’ll have your head!” He closed his fist, turning and glaring off toward the wall.

“Skalor. Come to me.” Slowly, shadows shifted and warped in the corner of the room, a tall, slim figure emerging. His lower face was covered by a mask, his gauntlets covered in chain around the knuckles, long, serrated and curved blades in their scabbards, his cloak flowing behind him, seeming to ripple through reality.

“You called, Your Highness?” His eyes flicked to the man in the water, body relaxed. Esocilies rubbed at his chin, vaguely aware of the stubble beginning to bloom there. “Yes. I want you to observe the Cadre. I don’t trust them. Their recent activity has been.. Less than commendable.”

The Assassin adjusted his hood. “... Do you feel my services are necessary for... observation?” Esocilies sighed softly, lowering chin-deep into the cooling water. “Indeed. The Assassin’s Cadre don’t know near as much about Magokenisis and its practitioners than you.”

The man nodded, bowing slightly. “Of course, Great king. The duty you ask shall be done of me. I shall observe the Mage Cadre, and nothing else. Unless you have more orders for me?”


Esocilies exhaled slowly, another thin fog of the Hookah smoke covering the surface of the water. “No, thats not all. When the Cadre have secured Ark, I want you to eliminate them. All of them. They’ve become... Untrustworthy.”

The Assassin bowed low again, cloak beginning to flicker away. “As you command, My King. I will do as you wish. The Cadre shall not live to the next dawn after The Ark is secure.”

He rippled away, the King slowly sinking in the water- Secure in the thought that all was well, his mind numbing into blissful sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Supreme Wizard Errigo lay quietly in his lounge chair, the sweet chocolate scent of Red Cactus floating about the room, lazily entwining with the various objects.

His eyes opened suddenly, flaring with energy of Magokenisis. He stood suddenly, pacing up a spiraling flight of stairs, emerging in the massive domed chambers of the lesser Mages.

Errigo raised his voice, the words booming around the room, echoing around. His students looked up, eyes wide, looking exhausted. The King had been working them hard- Constantly attempting find the source of The Ark’s energy. But it leaked too much from The Path, left too much residue to pinpoint its position.

It was like trying to find a dry spot in a hurricane. The exact positioning of the Ark was impossible-- And locating an approximate location was difficult. It was like watching a thousand mages, all calling from the Path at the same time.

“The King has found it fit to send his Dog to observe us. He will be here shortly. Be careful about the information you speak whilst working, or away from the chamber. I am going to speak to The Seer. Do not bother me.”

He turned in silence, storming down the spiraling stair well for nearly a quarter of an hour, coming to heavy doors, guarded by plate-covered statues, arcane energy flowing about them.


He passed through, ignoring the quiet groaning that the statues made. It silenced as they recognized his presence, doors closing behind him.

The seer was large, in height. She was tall, but lean, her eyes wrapped. What appeared to be a small pool of stars and moons flowed under her platform, black, non-reflective liquid flowing from the arms of his chair.

She raised her head, her face young, the only sign of aging at the corners of her mouth, which seemed to drag down into an eternal frown. Her eyes were covered, her robe tattered and threadbare despite her royal status.

The Supreme Wizard knelt, beginning to speak. “High Seer, I come--”

He was interrupted, the Seer slowly standing. Her voice was rough and tired, her body equally so. “... You come to seek knowledge I am forbidden to give, under the penalty of my demise.”

The Wizard glanced up, a smirk playing at his face. “Indeed.”

The seer chuckled, lowering herself into his throne. “Do you know how useless it is to impose a death penalty on one that already knows the exact moment he will breathe her last?”

Errigo couldn’t contain a small bout of laughter, shaking his head. “I can only imagine the fruitlessness of that, High Seer.” The rough girl waved a hand, continuing. “Sit. And you shall know.”

Kya wept.

It was all she could do to manage that. There were so many enemies, everywhere- all after the Ark, all after her life.

She didn’t weep for the loss of her life, but instead, out of sheer frustration. Several of the Assassins moved towards her again- She stood quickly, swinging her blade in a wide arc- The blindly charging soldiers falling quickly, blood splattering her further.

Her injured leg send wafts of pain through her body, causing her to stumble suddenly. In a flash, several blows from metal clubs dinged her armor, dropping her to the ground.

A blast of light struck the swarm of Assassins around her, lighting them ablaze, turning them into a maelstrom of screams of and fiery cries. Kya reared her good leg, kicking it through the torso of one of the attackers, separating it from his legs. She dashed through the gap in the circle, watching the rest crumble slowly, sending a thankful nod to Y’voras.

The Dwarf, meanwhile, was having no problems to mention. He charged into a crowd of the weak soldiers, bowling them over with a fear-inspiring battle shout, his axe cleaving through bone and sinew, blood dotting his armor. He lost the axe in the throat of an attacker, pushing it forward and unsheathing an elaborate skinning knife- challenging the ring of men that was gathering around him.

Kya fell back to back with Y’voras, screaming over the seemingly constant rushing noise in her ears. “We can’t hold them off forever- Not even the Dwarf can do that!” She ducked under a hammer swipe from one of the men, thrusting her blade up, wedging the steel between the ball joint in his elbow. The arm dislocated, and, with a flourish, came off.

She straightened carefully, crying out in pain as a well-used dagger sliced through the skin beside her eye, blood trickling slowly. She kicked wildly against her attacker as the red liquid stung her eyes, nearly blinding her- Smiling inwardly as she felt the soft flesh of lips and the buckle of two rows of teeth, and heard a cry of pain.

Then, the sensation set in. Her knees began to wobble- Her sword hand relaxing, blade slipping from her grip. She opened her eyes, vision fixating on one object before focusing on something else; not allowing her to get her barrings. With a final gasp, Kya collapsed onto the hot sand, content to let the desert take her.

Y’voras growled low, a sudden torrent of wind and slicing hail pouring down, utterly decimating the attacking force. Trewthan had long resorted to what appeared to be a hammer and icepick to dispatch of his foes, ramming the pick through skulls, and the hammer into limbs.

The mage suddenly looked up, raising his hand, a small ball of energy beginning to flicker in it. The dwarf quickly recognized the motions and skittered to Kya, covering her with his cloak, beginning to work thick wads of wool cloth out of his pockets.

He shoved them in her ears- Doing the same to his own, laying his head down and waiting.

The Mage, meanwhile, continued to charge the ball. The air around him sizzled with heat, those foolish enough to step forward bursting into flames, violently flailing as he slammed the ball into the ground- A twister of flame and rock churning through the desert, wafting over Kya and Trewthan.

The Assassins screamed in pain- their weapons melting in the onslaught, the sheer force of the burning winds ripping them asunder, their bodies splaying blood that quickly evaporated.

Y’voras continued channeling the energy, several tremors shaking the ground, sand collapsing away, giving heed to a massive ruin, slowly raising out of the ground, glowing brightly.

Trewthan rolled over, screaming at the mage. “Th’ hell is going on!? This didn’t happen last time! This didn’t bloody happen last time!”

The wizard was too deep in concentration to notice until the last second what was happening. The ruin blurred and flared in light, and in an explosion of light and energy, they were gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kya awoke for the third time that day, grasping for her sword. Her eyes flew open as she stood, twirled, and tumbled, vomiting hard. She gasped for a moment, leaning on the frame of whatever it was she’d awoken by.

She finally straightened, deciding to investigate just that. After a few, tumbling steps, she peered up at the frame of some sort of magical device. It was simple- two stone pillars jutting from the ground, with a third crossing over the top, a pair of snakes engraved on the top bar, with a shared head. A blue orb pulsed in the maw of the engraving, seeming to call to Kya.


She advanced slowly towards the gateway, eyes wide, mouth agape. In a flurry of movement, Y’voras shot from the side, tackling her by the waist. The wizard stood slowly, panting as the frame vibrated violently. It cracked and wore away, suddenly exploding in a maelstrom of light and fire.

She rose carefully, panting and glaring at the caster. “And tell me, Royal, just where in the Gates are we!?” Kya threw a hand out, motioning to the wide breath of forest they seemed to have appeared in- trees bowed over and lit ablaze by the portal’s sudden creation into the world, the energies having splintered and burnt them away.

The Sergeant gripped a boot dagger, pointing it accusingly at the mage, her eyes narrowed with suspicion. Even as a rebel, Y’voras was a member of the Mage’s Cadre, and the royal division, at that. The Wizard’s eyes were wide with fear, his forehead damp with sweat.

“I assure you, Sergeant, I haven’t the slightest idea where we were. The Relic, whatever it was, must have taken us here.” He kept his hands raised in defense, cowering slightly under the point of the weapon.

Her words were sharp and clear. “And the Ark? Did it secure the Ark!? And what about Trewthan?” The absence of the Dwarf was obvious. The normally pungent stench of obsidian and diamond that wafted around him was long gone- They’d not smelt it since they arrived.

The Wizard’s hands dropped to her sides, his hands loose. Slowly, his mind was starting to clear. The runes, sticking out in his mind- Eyes widening. The careful, obvious marks the runes made, the glow, it was suddenly apparent.

“My Gods, Sergeant! That was a Elven Device!” He cradled his head in his hands, squeezing his eyes shut. “The fact that it went active is a sign of The Dragon’s Awakening, the time where Dragons will roam the world once again, to take their throne back from us mortals that had the audacity to try and rule here.”

Kya wasn’t listening. She hadn’t been for awhile- Her jaw was slack, eyes glistening with fear. She stared forward, pointing into the sky, where a massive, scale covered creature was slowly raising into the sky, fire and smoke trailing after it.

Skalor grimaced as he removed his blade from betwixt the Mage’s ribs, dropping the acolyte from the tower rampart he was walking on. He twirled his dagger, shoving it in his boot, slowly moving away from the battle.

His arm burned with the vengeance of the now dead sorcerer, the acolyte having gotten in a single good spell before he was quickly dispatched. Skalor dug a bit of dark tobacco from his belt, shoving it between his teeth and bottom lip.

The effects took hold quickly, his body numbing to the pain he felt as he jumped from the banisters of a spiraling stairwell. His cloak billowed, swallowing him up as he landed in the King’s bath chamber, his voice booming- the king tossing off a slave maiden to listen.

“Skalor, for the last time, stop booming into here unannounced.” He sank beneath the rippling water, the mans excessive weight obvious from the place Skalor was standing. The Assassin had grown weary of this job quickly- Why he couldn’t enslave the Mage’s Cadre to finding the Ark, and severe them once they had done their job, was above him.

“Apologies, my lord. I was simply coming to inform you I have struck down another of the Cadre’s more prominent acolytes.” The man was more terse than usual, clenching his fists, lips a thin line.

The King took a long drag off his Hookah, the smell drifting around and weaving through the air, once again settling on the water. “Very well.. And of the master, Errigo?”

The Assassin let out a yawn, slowly settling cross-legged on the floor, lowering his mask and speaking clearly. “You have informed me, several times, whilst under the influence of Blackgum, not to kill Errigo until the Ark has been located, as to ensure his ability to locate the materials we need to destroy it.”
The regent puffed his chest, drumming his fingers on the side of the bath. He stared at the Assassin, gripping the pool suddenly.

“I want Errigo to avert his priorities to finding that object, Skalor. If he is doing anything other than that, eating, or sleeping, convince him to do otherwise.” He leaned back, snapping his fingers, a large roast being dragged before him. He began devouring it, talking to Skalor through the giant bites.

“And the rest of those wizards. Whatever they’re doing, stop ‘em. Redirect all effort to finding my Ark, Skalor.”

The Assassin nodded, standing and covering his face with his mask once more, nodding and speaking, voice muffled and distorted into a rough rasp. “Of course, my liege. It shall be done.”

He stepped back through his cloak, and was gone.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Errigo’s meeting with the prophet had been revealing, to say the least. He’d learned much- Nothing that he could discuss with anyone, but information that he would be able to use, none the less.

He bowed his head respectively to the Seer, throwing open the chamber doors, the Sentinels groaning again until they recognized him, freezing once more.

The stairwell seemed more foreboding than usual- Several torches having fallen unlit, spiderwebs looking more and more sinister as he climbed. He mumbled as he reached the top and heard voices, tensing before throwing the chamber door open.

Blades were unleashed as he entered, pointed at him. He recognized several soldiers of the Assassin’s Cadre staring him down; including the King’s own lapdog, Skalor.

“May I ask, Skalor, to what do we owe this brilliant interruption?” He was slowly growing irate, his face reddening with rage. The garments he wore were damp with sweat, the room being several degrees above normal.

Skalor chuckled softly; his mask causing the strange, disturbing distortion as it usually did. “The King has ordered all resources redirected to finding his ark. The Mages seem to be under the impression that its going in the vault once we acquire it.” He stepped to the side, a bloodied wizard being dragged to the front of the crowd.

“And they seem to be researching on how its used.” He raised a hand, slicing the wizard’s throat. Blood poured down the front of his garment; staining it a deep crimson as the man fell forward.

Errigo tensed slightly, hands flickering with energy. The man had been a pupil of Errigo’s- One with a rather large family. He remained silent, hands clenching and unclenching.

The Assassin chuckled softly, kicking the body as he turned to leave- windmilling his arms as the tower shook violently, shuddering from the ground up. Errigo made his way towards one of the many windows that dotted the room, peering out.

He stepped back quickly, eyes as wide as dinner plates, pointing. The Assassins shoved him to the side, and Skalor was already half through his cloak as he turned.

A dragon was jetting its way upwards through the sky- A species that hadn’t been seen in the past 1,000 years.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Sergeant felt anxiety slowly taking over her body. Anxiety caused by the massive, overwhelming knowledge. Her mind groped desperately for some sort of understanding, finding nothing except an intense urge of sleep.

Y’voras was hardly any help. He was deep in his books and maps, removing a small bird from seemingly midair. He threw it up, closing his eyes at it ascended, stepping back and letting out a startled cry.

Kya glanced up wearily, staring him down. “What is it now, Wizard? If you say we’ve traveled through time at some point, I’m throwing you into a well.”

The wizard shook his head, glancing to the Red Sun soldier. “Hardly, Sergeant. We’re hardly a day’s walk from the Capital.”

Errigo and Skalor had started moving before their minds caught up. The Assassin had departed some time ago, as the city fell into chaos. The Dragon was circling high above the city, but had yet to attack- But the mere sight of one was enough to invoke panic into the citizenship.

Most were cowering inside, barricading themselves into their homes and stores, waiting for destruction. The High Guard had been mobilized- Initially, to defend against the dragon, but now, to defend against the surge of enraged citizenship that was beating at their shields and armor, trying to get answers from the government that had none.

Going with his better judgement, Errigo had sealed the library shut from the inside, the flood of fearful homeless and down-on-their luck would have to find a new place to cower, the work being done here was too important to harbor them. Acolytes were already tripping over themselves, scouring ancient scrolls and tomes for clues to why the dragon may have returned.

Suddenly, Errigo stopped mid-research. He raised his head, peering out over the balcony he was studying on.

The dragon had stopped circling. It had raised its massive head, maw leaking magma and flames as it opened, a massive, powerful ball of energy and intense magic beginning to form in its jaws.

Errigo turned and shoved past his awestruck guards, hands ablaze with energy. He closed his eyes as he flung open the door to the throne, having crossed the halls of the palace in fast, bounding, teleporting steps, pointing to the Throne.

There was a surge of energy in front of him, Skalor existing himself into the room. Magic and steel collided as decades of fury and hate flowed from both. Errigo felt himself raise off the ground, just in time to flip over one of Skalor’s charging attacks, the assassin flickering and reappearing, facing down the wizard.

Errigo flung his hand up, a massive, deadly pulse of energy tearing across the throne room at the Assassin. Statues of the King collapsed down, tapestries flying wildly, panes of glass exploding outwards. The Assassin crossed his blades, charging.

The explosion was legendary, the entire half of the throne room being devastated as a hell storm of steel and arcana energy was unleashed. Errigo and Skalor both warped about the room- Errigo remaining on the offensive, Skalor desperately blocking magical attacks and trying to get the kill shot in on the sorcerer.

Finally, Errigo faltered- Unable to time a strike correctly, the Assassin appeared in front of him, the twisted dagger he used driving itself into the stone wall behind him.

“Think about your next action,” Errigo spoke, pointing to the Dragon. “The king planned this. He knows my Cadre will be able to protect the throne. Remember, those years ago.”

Skalor disregarded the words, for now, the twisted blade diving at Errigo again.

The wizard flickered just out of reach, a pair of daggers crackling to life in his hands. His eyes narrowed, slowly dropping into a combat stance as Skalor stared.

The Assassin froze, slowly eyeing the wizard up. He turned, overlooking the city- In the heat of their battle, they’d found their way to the high rooftops of the city, only slightly lower than where the Dragon was hovering.

“I am aware, Brother, of his plans. But it is inevitable.” The assassin turned to face down the wizard, gripping his daggers tight. “For the nation to be reborn in excellence, there must be sacrifice. If I must die so that we will grow, so be it.”

Errigo felt his body tense up, closing his eyes, slowly opening them. Wind beat at both his and Skalor’s cloaks, sun giving the rooftop- And indeed, the whole city, a pale, golden glow.

“No one has to die, Skalor! The entire concept of death for reconstruction is a foolish one!” He was screaming, now. He hadn’t realized he was, nor why. However, when his throat grew scratchy, he blinked, listening rather than speaking.

Skalor was staring, away from Errigo now. His jaw was slack, his eyes wide, daggers falling from his hands. They clattered unheard on the rooftop, a loud, tremendous roaring that threatened to collapse buildings, with how it was shaking the ground.

The wizard slowly turned his head, eyes widening to dinner plate size as he took a step back.

On the horizon, an army had gathered. Dwarves, Elves, Men- It seemed all the races of the world were represented. They weren’t many, but they were the source of the noise.

They all held horns, and were blowing them. Loudly. The Dragon took notice, its wings erecting to full span, nearly blotting out the sky.

The end had come.

Trewthan let out a low groan, slowly standing and peering around, his head throbbing from the inside. Whatever that damned Sorcerer had done, he was going to repay it ten fold when he figured out how to get out of here.

Where he was would also be a good start.

The Dwarf reasoned he was in some sort of cave. Perhaps a coastal grotto of some kind, judging from the damp smell of mildew and saltwater. He took a deep breath, beginning to trudge his way down the nearest, and only, tunnel.

His plate boots echoed off the cavern walls. Slowly, the tunnel expanded out into a massive, dome-roofed room, a pedestal sitting in the center.

The pedestal held a small, glowing orb. Mist seemed to pour from it, a soothing, warm mist that enveloped Trewthan as he approached. He stumbled, and nearly fell- managing his way up stairs that were concealed by the orb, finally climbing until he was just slightly above the Orb, staring down at it. He reached down, slowly scooping the warm, welcoming thing into his hand.

His head throbbed violently as it touched his skin, sending images pounding through his head. The city, a Dragon, an Assassin and Wizard, an army, the Ark.

It froze on the Ark, showing Y’voras and Kya on the outskirts of the Capitol, army at their back. The robed man offered the small ark to Kya, Trewthan finally getting a good look at it.

It wasn’t large- a perfect cube if Trewthan ever saw one. Roses embedded on all four sides, the blooms reaching up to the top square of the cube. In the center of all of the blooms was a large circle, glowing brightly.

Suddenly, circles emitted from the center of the circle, as if it was filled with liquid. Arcane streams rapidly lurched from the circle, surrounding Kya and Y’voras.

The streams squeezed, and the duo vanished into nothing. The orb in Trewthan’s hand shook, Y’voras and Kya appearing in the chamber, startled and confused. Slowly, the Ark, which had remained behind, began to consume more soldiers, who appeared in the chamber.

“Trewthan!” The girl was the first to call out, darting to him. Y’voras wasn’t far behind, barraging him with questions he was unable to answer.

All he was able to do was give the Orb to Y’voras. “Ah’ feel like, this ‘s supposed t’ be yours.” The wizard nodded, strangely understanding. A massive gust of wind beat through the chamber suddenly, the Ark arriving- the top opening.

Slowly, two weapons raised. An axe, ornate, a steel handle and Obsidian-edged, dwarven in craft. Slowly, Trewthan approached, taking it. He relished in its light nature, despite the heavy look of it.

The second weapon dwarfed the Axe’s appearance. It was a long, razor-sharp weapon, silver and shined. Up the blade was a bright, golden engraving of vines, gold roses etched on them.

Slowly, Kya approached. The weapon was nearly flung at her, attaching to her hand. The handle felt smooth, cloth straps carefully covering it to reduce the reverb of strikes. She reach for her former blade- Suddenly aware that it hadn’t come with her.

She continued peering at the blade, finally sighing and placing it in her scabbard. Words weren’t needed to be spoke- Everyone was thinking the same. How to escape their seeming imprisonment within the chamber. Trewthan explained.

“Ah’... Dunno how t’ get out. The only other way to go ‘s down th’ tunnel. And there’s nothing there but a little bit of ocean water that’s leaked in.” He shrugged. “Sorry.”

No one responded, only investigated their surroundings. According to the Courier, this was all that remained of The Red armies. Meaning this was their last stand, but so far... It wasn’t going well.

The chamber shook, the armies preparing quickly. Trewthan pointed towards the back wall. It began to collapse- No, fade away was a better term. Chunks of wall levitated away from the rock, disappearing, slowly revealing a young man, threadbare robe covering his body, flanked by Royal Cadre.

“I believe,” he stated calmly, a smile playing at his lips. “You are in need of my assistance. And the City is in rather dire need of your assistance, Liberator of All, Lord of Whitecrest, High-Mage of the Elves.”

Kya was the first to speak up. “I’m... sorry, what? None of those people are here, Seer.”

The young man smiled again, leaning on his staff. “My apologies. I’ve gotten ahead of myself. However, what I say is true, Kingslayer.” He banged his staff on the ground; stairs slowly appearing behind him.

“Everything we know is about to end, dear.”

Errigo and Skalor had fallen back into combat.

Sparks and magic flew as they collided, Skalor’s dagger failing to penetrate a silver shield Errigo flung up at the last moment. The wind of the blast flung his cloak back, however, Errigo energizing the shield with a purple lighting, Skalor screaming and flying back, twitching for a moment.

He regained his composure as a pillar of flame fell from the sky, called down by Errigo’s magic. He quickly rolled out of the way, Errigo screaming in pain as a volley of throwing daggers riddled his midsection.

He’d called up a shield at the last moment, stopping them from penetrating anything vital... But they still hurt like hell.

He growled low, a gust of wind snagging the next volley that came his way. They exploded violently as they were blown into town. The stakes had just gotten higher- Skalor was now aiming to kill.

Errigo closed his eyes, raising a fist covered with flame. A massive funnel of liquid fire shot from his hand, covering Skalor- The Assassin starting to scream as it burned at his flesh.

Slowly, the Wizard approached, believing Skalor defeated with that spell. Suddenly, however, he felt a violent pain pulsing from his back, and a copper taste filled his mouth.

The burned Assassin vanished in a gust of wind, and two cackles became one. “You lose, Wizard. Looks like brute force finally won out.”

The wizard couldn’t help a smile. Blood trickled down his chin as he opened his mouth to speak, the Assassin suddenly being blasted back by magical energy.

The Assassin cried out as he fell from the rooftop, smashing into one just by the Dragon’s head. The dragon seemed unable to see him, not turning from his destruction of the Market Row, flooding the street with magma and acidic gas.

Skalor shied away from the beast, Errigo slowly materializing before him. The wizard raised his hands casually.

“I’ve cloaked us this whole time, Skalor. Waiting for the battle to break. But you took it too far.” He stared down at the cowering Assassin, who, for the first time, was showing fear.

“I am a Pyromancer, Skalor.” The Dragon began to turn its head, eyes flickering recognition. “Do you know what my one aspiration is?”

The dragon’s head drew back. “To become one with the flame.”

Magma and flames flooded the rooftop, consuming Errigo in an instant. He closed his eyes, dying silently- The Assassin’s screams reaching the throne room, where King Esocilies cowered.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Esocilies raised his arms, his armor fitting tightly, sweat pouring down his neck. He hefted his longsword, staring at it, a servant strapping his Aegis to his arm, his golden armor sparkling and shining in the late afternoon sun that drifted through the broken windows of the throne room.

Errigo had done a number on the palace in his last stand against Skalor. The King was still adjusting to the loss of his Assassin, opening his mouth several times to call on the cloaked figure, but remembering he was smoldering atop a building on the other side of the city.

He slammed his helmet on his head, his guards falling into step as he advanced towards the Mage Academy, attached to the Palace by a high bridge. It was where Errigo had come from- The spire in the center of it being headquarters of the Royal Mage Cadre.

His armies accompanied him, their own armor ashen and soot-covered from fighting in the streets against the Dragon. They slammed through the doors of the Cadre, slowly surrounding the pedestal all six hundred mages had been forced onto, Assassins holding them at spear point.

“Attention, Royal Cadre of the Kingdom!” The King’s voice bellowed, his soldiers stiffening at it. “You have been, due to your leader Errigo, convicted of High Treason against your glorious king! The punishment of this, is death!”

He raised his hands, speaking louder. “After I welcome you spellcasters into my Kingdom, you rebel against me! Even as I give your Seer a place to reside!”

He waved a hand. “No more! Soon, your Seer shall be here- To witness your deaths!”

Slowly, the seer emerged from her room, smiling softly. “Good evening, your Majesty. I’m afraid I have to counteract your request. While I’m certain my most loyal mages would gladly die at your request, there is a small group of people that object to your rule. And have the means to end it.”

She stepped aside, the entirety of the Army of the Red Shield swarming through the doors, surrounding the seer in a protective manner.

At the head was the King’s own general, Kya. His manner changed, to that of a fearful, wounded, and enraged animal. “You damned whore! I’ll see you hanging from my palace bridge!”

The seer spoke up again. “Oh, and. I regret to inform you, but the mage’s guild has consciously decided it is in bad taste to further support your legislature.”

Y’voras raised his hand. Outside, there was a tremendous explosion- The stone bridge connecting the Mage’s Academy to the Palace falling apart, nay, completely unexisting, the chunks of stone falling a ways and then sizzling into nothing.

The floor suddenly shook, windows blowing out- A massive talon tearing part of the wall out. The Seer adjusted herself, mages gathering around him, Y’voras included. “Come, Dwarf! The king is the duty of the Kingslayer. We must attend to the second part of the prophecy- Awakening of the Dragons.”

The dwarf peered at Kya. She gave him a hard nod, which sent him to the side of the seer. In a violent flash of energy, he, the Royal Army, the Red Shields, and the Mages, were gone.

Slowly, the King looked around the now empty dome. He carefully unsheathed his blade, raising his shield, trying his best to be menacing- Failing horribly.

Kya twirled her blade, dropping into her own combat stance. Her armor glinting in the streams of dusty light that filtered through the shattered windows, and broken bits of roof.

He charged first. Kya underestimated his speed- Receiving a sharp wound to her side, crying out. He worked the advantage- Blade colliding with hers several times, sparks flying as she was forced up the stairs to the pedestal.

He nearly tripped- Giving her enough time to duck under his shield and pierce his armor, leaving a nasty gash in his stomach. He let out a roar of anger and pain, slamming her with the shield.

She saw stars- falling back down the stairs, bouncing and crying out in pain. He followed her quickly, slamming his boot into the ground as she rolled just out of his reach. He slammed his blade towards her, Kya raising her own shield just in time to catch it. The tip embedded itself deep in her shield, allowing her to yank her arm back and drag him forward. She side-stepped and brought her blade down on his back, leaving another nasty gouge.

He spun in response, striking her once on her outstretched arm, nearly cutting to the bone. She screamed in pain, the King twirling and running the blade along the back of her leg, nearly cutting her hamstring.

She almost fumbled her blade, taking a step and bringing her shield up just in time to redoubt a strike from him, slinging her sword and leaving a deep, bloody strike running from his upper chest to lower side.

“You god-damned harlot! I’ll gut you like a fish!” He charged forward, slinging his blade wildly, starting to beat down her defenses, the blade digging deep into the shield several times.

Finally, she found her chance, parrying a strike and slinging down. He dodged by a hair, bringing his blade down on her shoulder. Her armor locked as she tensed, screaming in pain.

Kya brought her shield up, slamming it into his stomach. He was winded, stepping back half a step, parrying her next strike. She saw the opportunity to end it as the reverb from the strike made him raise his arm slightly.

She stabbed up, now. It dug into his armor, out his arm- Just missing his bone. The scream he released echoed about the room, Kya working her blade from him and twirling, bringing it full to cut deep into his side, likely striking against one of his ribs.

He fell to a knee, not yet defeated, though. He brought his shield up, ramming it full force into her leg. She lost footing on the blood slicked ground, knee bending inwards as the shield struck, a sickening crack resonating as she fell back.

“Bastard!” was all she had time to cry as she struck the ground, stars filling her vision. The king managed to stand, gripping his arm, panting. “I told you.. I’d get you.. Harlot.” He raised his boot, ready to bring it down on her neck.

Her arm swung wildly, digging the blade deep into his leg. He let out a cry of surprise and pain, instinctively trying to retreat from the girl. He only succeeded in dragging the blade deeper into his leg.

He faltered, falling to a knee, nearly face to face with Kya.

“Checkmate.”

She swung the blade up. Blood splayed onto her face as his head went flying, helmet clattering as it slammed onto the ground a few feet away, blood drenching her as the body fell back.

Kya let out a couple of ragged breaths. Her head fell back, eyes closing. For the first time in a long while, she slept soundly.

Y’voras and the entire mages Cadre were functioning as a single, thinking entity. The dragon was pursuing them on their Ethereal griffons, tearing apart the city with its massive, spiked tail.

Several of the mages raised into the air. They turned mid-rise, pelting the top of the dragon with icy bolts of magic, the beast roaring in annoyance. It was a distraction.

Slowly, Y’voras and the Seer dipped low, wings of their mounts skimming the streets. They separated at a junction in the road, circling around and regrouping, now riding at the dragon, which was raising into the air.

It let out a earth-shaking roar of pain as glacier-sized waves of frost slammed into it, the two mages circling each other and raising into the air, hands thrown up.

A massive drill of ice rammed into the beast, blood flooding towards the ground. The dragon raised itself, turning to drown the road in fire and magma. Several of the magisters fell, Y’voras and the Seer managing to dodge out of the way.

They separated again, the dragon dive-bombing, nearly slamming into them. The seer kept rising, raising a hand, clouds rolling across the sky. Purple energy slammed into the monstrous being, causing it to rear back, slamming into the ground. It slid into the town square, slowly raising and emitting another roar.

The dwarf saw his chance. He leapt from his position atop a high church steeple, slamming his axe through the air. Y’voras raised his staff, a powerful explosion of arcane energy flying at the dragon.

There was an ear-shattering explosion. The dragon began an infuriated roar, the axe cutting the noise short, the lighting causing a massive boom of thunder that blew windows inwards, and collapsed homes on themselves.

The dragon reared back, screeching in pain. Trewthan slammed into the ground, the cobblestone cracking under him as he stood and turned. The beast shook its head, stumbling back.

It focused on the Dwarf, flames and magma flooding the square slowly but surely. Trewthan moved quickly, clamoring atop the wreckage of a home, preparing his axe.

He let out an mind-shattering roar, adjusting his footing on the wreckage as the dragon charged. Another blast of lighting shot down, causing the dragon to fumble.

Trewthan leap, landing on the Dragon’s nose, and slinging down. In a thunderous roar of energy, the Axe forced itself deep into the dragons skull. With a final, loud whine, it thudded to the ground, blood leaking from it’s nostrils.

Silence fell over the square. Suddenly, an uproarious cheer broke from the square, mages whooping and hollering, the Dwarf leaning on his axe and panting.

Finally, it seemed, it was over. Thunder sounded, and a gentle rain poured over the land, the Dwarf dropping his axe and relishing in it, closing his eyes.

“Queen” Kya smiled softly, staring out over the rebuilt city. The people had accepted the death of the cruel Reagent King rather quickly, and the emancipation of the Elves and Dwarves from their bonds of slavery, which was, indeed, one of the main points of the war, was considered an improvement.

She slowly turned away from the balcony, treading quietly through the halls of the keep, adjusting the Kingslayer Blade on her hip. She opened the doors to the massive chamber of Ambassadors, the large, semi-circular benches empty.

In the center of the room, however, stood two familiar faces- Ambassadors from the Elf Forests of the South, no doubt sent by Y’voras, and several Dwarven Senators from Whitecrest, sent by Trewthan. She smiled and nodded, beginning to explain why the Arcanist Academy believed heavily that the Dragon Encroachment was occurring from the Westland.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, in the South, Y’voras studied, nose deep in a book on astrology. As it turned out, positioning of the stars and moons had a lot to do with the effectiveness of magic- A fact he was determined to prove to the academy.

He peered up as a knock resounded on his study door, waving his hand to open it- His quiet study being sundered into a loud chaos as several people rushed in at once. The Far Seer, his now wife, two young ones, and an ambassador from Kya of the North, informing him that the war of Dragons would begin soon.

He sighed at this, raising and fetching his staff from the closet, preparing his armor.

“You’re fighting, then?” asked the seer, peering to Y’voras with her creamy, sightless eyes.

“Of course, Yicandra. The War of Scales would be impossible without me. Ambassador! Inform the North-queen I’ll be there within two days travel.”

The ambassador saluted and hurried out, Y’voras continuing his preparations.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trewthan, meanwhile, sighed and stared out over the seemingly endless ocean. The King of Dwarves adjusted his axe, nodding to his royal guard.

He’d already received word about the War of Scales. He and 5 other boats, loaded down with nearly fifty thousand soldiers, were on their way to human lands to assist.

He stood, his polished white armor clanking as he stared out over the side, gripping the rail that stopped drunks from tumbling into the ocean at night.

As he stared over the horizon, Trewthan considered many things- Particularly, how many people wouldn’t be journeying back home to Whitecrest. As a child, he’d always dreamed of being king-- And now that he was one, he wished that it could go back to how it was.

He sighed again- Aware of how selfish the desire was, and shrugged it off, turning and delving beneath the ship’s deck. They’d hit land tomorrow and, according to Kya, be at war in a weeks time.

As he lay down and closed his eyes, he couldn’t help but smile.

A dwarf could never have too many trophies.



Slowly, Jorngen Shadebough moved through the broken halls of Northgate Altar. His robes swayed audibly in the strong gusts of wind that creaked through the broken panes, stepping over various bits of rubble.

The Altar was of a kingdom long past, but still able to be remembered. A time where Dragons roamed the sky freely, letting out roars and judging as they saw fit.

Jorngen was from that time. He slowly raised his hand, moving it over the black stone, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths as he felt the pulsing energy from deep within, vaguely aware of the whispers the stone seemed to incite when touched.

He smiled to himself. With the stones active, it meant the skybeasts could rule as they saw fit. He ran his fingers over the cool surface, fiery runes molding into existence.

The man stepped back, turning as shadows congealed behind him. He stared as shadows gained substance, massive, scaled men stepping out of them, taking the forms of humans shortly after.

Jorngen couldn’t with hold a bout of laughter.

Soon, Northgate would know true terror.