The Darkest Night Faelian - Age 8

In the verdant green plains and lush forests of the continent of Alfheim, there was a small bowl-shaped valle housing the village of !runwich" !ecause of its rather isolated nature, onl humans resided within its borders" The other races of #berron all resided in more distant parts of Alfheim$ e%cept for the elves who lived in a forest some da &s 'ourne awa " (owever these #lves were a ver secluded and secretive group, and as such were regarded with fear and suspicion b the townsfolk of !runwich" In this respect, Faelian was an incredibl unusual villager of the town" )ith a half-elf father and human mother, he had a particularl bi*arre appearance in comparison to the other villagers" )hile a little small in build, Faelian had an almost ethereal appearance, his hair falling into natural black curls and his prominent ears boasting of #lvish descent all served to give him a ver e%otic appearance" !lessed with an affinit for magic his e es glowed with a m sterious and bewitching light" +n top of all of these features, Faelian was a prodig , possessing a heightened intelligence as well as superb ph sical capabilities" It was onl natural then, that all the other children of !runwich, hated the little fucker" ,heers could be heard from a small clearing 'ust outside the village&s area, awa from pr ing e es" The children redoubled their cheers as ! ron&s fist cracked against the side of Faelian&s face for what felt like the hundredth time" !ruises peppered the side of Faelian&s face, tilting his head to the side he spit out a broken tooth, while continuing to stare defiantl at ! ron" Two other children older than Faelian restrained him while ! ron continued his beating" Honestly, why are they even cheering? It's not like its hard to hit a target that's being held. Imbeciles, all of them. Did they really think I was that stupid to be caught into their so-called ambush? mateurs. Faelian had known for several da s that ! ron and his cronies were planning on ambushing him" (owever because the desperatel needed some attention, the had told most of the other children in the village that the were putting on a show with Faelian as the star" )hat was particularl galling was that the thought this made them stronger" That the were smarter" That the were better than him" !ime to end this farce" Faelian started to chuckle which turned into a laugh that rocked his entire bod "

! ron swung another punch into Faelian&s gut which caused him to gasp, as he roared into his face, -)hat&s so funn , ou little bitch./0 -1ust that such a big gu like ou needs the help of 2 other people to hold a little gu like me down" Are ou that afraid of me. +r are ou 'ust so incredibl uncoordinated because our mother tried to abort ou.0 The clearing went dead silent, Faelian could almost see the gears turning in the moron&s head as he tried to process the insult" ,la ton and 3orris, the two that were holding Faelian, were badl tr ing to suppress smiles" A 4uick laugh coming from one of the onlookers was 4uickl silenced as ! ron shot a furious stare towards him" 5lancing around at the silent crowd, ! ron gave a short retort,-6ou&ve got magic" It&s not like it would be a fair fight0 -I have the potential for magic" 7lus even if I tried to do an thing, wouldn&t our lacke s 'ust restrain me. ,ome on, ever one here knows the real reason ou&re doing this is because that ou&re the real bitch"0 That did the trick, as ! ron&s e es went dead with cold fur , -I ain&t afraid of nothin&, ou fucking fair 0 growled ! ron" 8ignalling to ,la ton and 3orris, the hands holding Faelian released their vice-like grip on his hands" The children moved back, giving room for the two bo s" )ith a resigned look on his face, Faelian settled into a read stance" The crowd murmured with e%citement, knowing Faelian was gifted in fighting as well" 6et ! ron outweighed the smaller child several times in pure muscle and seemed to tower over Faelian" Faelian broke the silence first, -)hat&s wrong, ! ron. Are ou scar-0 Faelian was cut off as ! ron suddenl charged him and tackled him to the ground" "hase #, start. The children cheered as the two struggled on the ground, each tr ing to beat the other into submission" 3ost were cheering for ! ron who seemed to be prevailing over Faelian as he began to fall underneath ! ron&s blows" ! ron had succeeded in pinning him onto the ground and was straddling his chest, landing blow after blow against Faelian who was desperatel fending off his attacks" No one noticed though, as Faelian slipped a small herb in ! ron&s back pocket" "restidigitation, enhance smell" $nd "hase #. 8uddenl , Faelian stopped pretending to buckle underneath ! ron&s attacks and started his own counter-attack" 9aising his legs as ! ron began another series of punches, the older bo stumbled midwa and fell to the ground, bracing his impact with both hands" Faelian hooked his hands around the crook of one arm and collapsed it at

the 'oint" )ith his balance destro ed, ! ron tilted to the trapped arm&s side, allowing his left leg to be trapped b Faelian&s" !ime for my second spell to get to work. Invisible hand. ! ron recogni*ed the danger too late, as Faelian threw his weight to one side, the force of the sudden shift in weight combined with a ver slight nudge from the Invisible (and allowed the Faelian to reverse the positions" !efore ! ron could come to his senses, Faelian&s hand shot out and sank deep into ! ron&s solar ple%us" 5rimacing with pain, ! ron&s efforts ceased momentaril as Faelian 'umped off his chest and backed awa from him" %ome on, hurry up. !his is going to be a bit hard if he gets up from that" As if to answer his pra ers, one of the girls in crowd suddenl shrieked, -Dire bear/0 #ver one turned towards where she was shakil pointing and started to scream themselves" The form of the dire bear emerged from the dense thicket, hulking and massive in scope" It was also pissed" )ith a blood-curdling roar, the dire bear charged for the group of children" All at once the clearing became a fren* of movement with children screaming and scrambling to get awa from the bear" 8ome ran blindl deeper into the forest, others ran towards the village to get help" As children ran all around it, the dire bear started to rapidl sniff the air and found an apparent source of pre as it charged towards the centre where Faelian and ! ron were" ! ron was still picking himself up when he saw the bear coming for them, his face draining of all color" Faelian shouted, -! ron, run/ I&ll distract it/0 picking up a large rock from the ground and throwing it at the bear" (e might as well have thrown some grass at the bear, for all the good it did, as the bear seemed to unable to feel it as it continued its mad rush" Faelian threw himself out of the wa as the bear charged, 'aws snapping at the air where he 'ust was" )arned b Faelian&s cr , ! ron had picked himself up and was starting to run towards the trees when he suddenl slipped on the grass" !hank you invisible hand" )hile Faelian had a mask of terror 'ust like the other kids who were still watching the scene unfold with horror, inside he was laughing" The bear stopped over ! ron&s prone form and started to sniff him" ! ron had stopped moving altogether, some part of his mind remembering that one should pla dead when dealing with bears" This might have worked if Faelian hadn&t slipped a small clipping of Amoranthus into ! ron&s pocket" Amoranthus gave bears such a nast case of the munchies and when enhanced b 7restidigitation, it caused the bear to be worked into a fairl savage fren* " &ye-bye, &yron.

9oaring once again at having found the tantali*ing source of the smell that had called it, the bear opened its 'aws and sank its fangs into ! ron&s flesh" The bear hungril tore into ! ron&s bod , his screams splitting the air which became heav with the scent of blood" Finall it appeared that the beast had found the plant it had so desperatel desired and devoured it greedil " 'ell, I think it found it at least. Hopefully the soporific I mi(ed in with the plant is enough " 8ure enough, the beast began to swa as the soporific took effect and it fell heavil to the ground" The bear was still snoring peacefull when several grave-looking guards were led into the clearing b still cr ing children" The guards surrounded the beast and stabbed into with their lances, killing the bear instantl as their weapons pierced its organs" As an remaining threat, Faelian smiled and succumbed to the in'uries he had sustained and all the magic he had used and fell into a peaceful sleep" 8everal da s later, the village was recovering from the initial uproar of ! ron&s savage death" 8everal villages had looked upon Faelian to blame, but were 4uickl shamed into silence as several of the children said he had leapt to ! ron&s defence even though he was being bullied b the older child" ! ron&s mother had even come to Faelian and thanked him in tears for tr ing to help her son even though he had treated Faelian so badl " 7la ing the part of the guilt survivor, Faelian had turned from an ob'ect of fear and suspicion and into the village hero overnight" (is parents showered him with praise and affection and the children who had once looked on with apath at his treatment now worshipped him" !hey do not even reali)e that this world is better off without scum like &yron, that he should have been taken care of a long time ago. *ow they praise me for coming to his defence and for playing the part of the foolish hero. :ooking over the crowd of children following him, he noticed 3orris and ,la ton hanging back, looking shame-faced" The other kids have apparentl begun shunning them, as the once did to Faelian" &ut I am better, I will not be petty against those who were cowed into service by people like &yron. )alking over to the two with a smile, 3orris and ,la ton showed incredulous looks that began to turn into hopeful e%pressions" &ecause I am better, I will re-shape everything else to be better. "eople are simple creatures after all and they need a guiding hand. 'hy shouldn't it be mine?

3aelaeran ; Age 2<=

It's the same dream again. I see D+, and Dark,hadow dispatching the insectile enemies that have suddenly ambushed us. -a.orge is kneeling by the small boy they were about to devour, tending to his wounds. s I pour arrow after arrow into the swarm of monsters, we hear the faint sobs of a second child somewhere further ahead. /-eave this place to us0 Hurry up and find the other kid, 1reyskull02 -a.orge yells. I'm running through these damn corridors in this 3eep, my head filled with the sound of the child's cries. &ut I'm not fast enough. I'm never fast enough. I round the bend in the corridor 4ust in time to see my own failure5 as she stares back at me, cold and unblinking. 3aelaeran came out of his Trance suddenl , his chest heaving with frantic breaths with the terrible memor still burning fresh in his mind" 3aelaeran was sitting at the edge of a d ing campfire in a clearing with four other people" 8haking off the dream, 3aelaeran fed more kindling to the fire, stoking its flames so it burned bright once more" The wood crackled and snapped all the more loudl in the dead of the night, et his new companions continued their peaceful snoring" 3ost of them, an wa " -(aving trouble sleeping.0 murmured one his companions whom 3aelaeran thought was still asleep" -"""I&m an #ladrin, we don&t need to sleep"0 answered 3aelaeran" The small issue of semantics elicited a laugh from his companion, now sitting up from his bedroll and turning to face 3aelaeran, -Fine, then" (aving trouble trancing.0 -It&s nothing to worr about" 5o back to sleep" I&ll keep watch0 -Ahh, don&t be like that" ,ome on, let&s get to know each other" I barel know more than our name, uh-0 -3aelaeran, although I lost m right to use that name a while ago" Now it&s 5re skull"0 answered 3aelaeran" -+uch, how did ou manage that. 6ou lose a dice roll or something.0 bantered the man, but seeing 3aelaeran&s sudden change in e%pression, he changed the sub'ect, -)ell in case ou forgot, the name&s :ightovius" I&m a paladin0 said :ightovius, puffing out his chest proudl " -I didn&t forget0 I totally forgot his name"

-)ell here&s a little bit of info that I didn&t give out during orientation" I&m immortal"0 said :ightovius in a conspiratorial tone" ,uriosit pi4ued, 3aelaran asked, -!ut ou&re human"""aren&t ou.0 his hand sidling towards his dagger as he continued to converse with :ightovius" -)hoa, whoa" :et&s calm down, I am human >kind of? so there&s no reason to turn into 3r" 8tabb " I can e%plain ever thing"0 4uickl reassured :ight" ,learing his throat a bit, :ightovius began, -IN T(# !#5INNIN5"""0 @ hours later, 3aelaeran had an entire plan of how he was going to kill himself as fast as possible so he didn&t have to listen to :ightovius& life stor an longer" Indeed, 3aelaeran&s hand was alread reaching towards 3ason, planning to take himself along with 3ason out together when :ightovius finall said, -Finall , after countless generations of struggle, m famil had discovered the formula for the Infinite #li%ir" 8o ou see, m current form is a result of that incredible potion"0 finished :ightovius with a smile" It took a few moments to reali*e that :ightovius had finall stopped talking" The part of 3alaeran&s brain then 4uickl provided the answer that all sentient creatures gave when the want to end a conversation as fast as possible, -)ow/ That was reall interesting/ Thanks for sharing0 enthused 3aelearan" -Think nothing of the sort, friend/0 said :ight amiabl " -That being said, I still need some sleep like most creatures, so I&ll trouble ou to keep watch for the rest of the morning"0 And with that, :ightovius walked back over to his bedroll and sank into a deep sleep" The dream of 8hadowfell Aeep still haunted his mind, but the conversation with :ight had left him so tired that 3aelaeran 4uickl resumed his Trance" Thankfull , there was no dream this time"

6unning through the halls of the keep, I can hear her pleas for help. ,he knows that someone has saved her brother, that there are people coming to rescue her. !here's so many of these insect bastards in the way, every time I kill one, two more take it's place. I'm getting tired5 I've already teleported 7 times in this battle, one more is beyond my reach. .unny, considering all I needed was one more.

I'm going around the corner and again I see that I'm too late. I kill the enemies surrounding her in a blind fury, but she does not stir. /1reyskull, we need to go02 says D+. /-eave her, we need to get this kid out of here02 I get up and can only mutter two words, /I'm sorry.2 It had been almost one ear since 3aelaeran had parted from his former companions, though the had all promised to meet each other once again in the town that the had saved together" For 3aelaeran, he simpl wanted to get as far awa from 8hadowfell as possible, and once far enough, devote himself to training" 8trength, speed, skill$ power was his greatest desire" #nough power, so he would never fail again" 6et onl a few months later after parting from his friends did 3aelaeran find himself in a new adventuring part " Including himself and :ightovius, there were B other membersC (elvinth, a dwarven warrior$ A ala, an #lven cleric$ and Nathaniel, a novelist" #ver one has agreed to 'ourne together on the mission the had been given in the town of 9orikstead" A week&s 'ourne la a large network of caves where a group of goblins had taken up residence and were making raids against the village" #ver time the villagers had tried to go after the goblins, the had lost them in the comple% cave s stem" ,ompared to 8hadowfell, this was an e%tremel trivial and almost boring 4uest to embark upon" (owever, one fact had caught 3aelaeran&s attention" In addition to the supplies the goblins had made off with, one grieving couple had lost their child to the raiders and were desperatel searching for wa to retrieve her" 3aelaeran knew this would not erase his failure, but perhaps it might ease his troubled conscience" -Two goblins, spotted ahead" Nathaniel" I think this is it bo s and girls"0 whispered

The adventuring group were currentl hiding in a dense cluster of trees, peering out into an open clearing where two goblins were conversing with each other" -)hat are the sa ing.0 said :ightovius" -3 5oblin isn&t good enough to translate at the speed their going0 replied Nathaniel -I thought ou were a novelist" 8houldn&t ou be able to understand all

languages.0 asked 3aelaeran -For the last time, I&m not a novelist" I&m a bard"0 said Nathaniel in e%asperated tones" (e then 4uickl added, -)ell I&m not a novelist et an wa , I&m still working on m book0 -I did like what ou had wrote so far, does it have a name et.0 said :ightovius in pleasant tones" -I&m thinking of calling it -89 1rey ,hades0" Nathaniel, 4uickl losing interest in the goblins" )hat do ou think.0 asked

-I like it, but ma be ou should change up the order of the words in the title-0 began :ightovius" -)ould ou idiots shut up./ The &re going to hear us/0 furiousl whispered A ala" 8eeing her cheeks burn red in anger, the three 4uickl dropped the sub'ect and focused again on the goblins in the clearing" 8eeing her B companions table the moronic conversation, she said in grateful tones, -)ell I&m glad ou aren&t making a ruckus for once (elvinth-0 3aelaeran, :ight and Nathaniel turned their heads towards A ala and was about to ask wh she had suddenl stopped talking when the all reali*ed something at once" (elvinth wasn&t with them" -(e wouldn&t"""0 started :ight -(e isn&t reall going to"""0 began Nathaniel -(e is"0 gluml intoned 3aelaeran and A ala -8DDDDD,AAAA 366666 DIIIII,AAA, 6+D 5+!:INNN !A8TA9D8/0 shouted (elvinth with glee, as he swung into the open glade towards the pair of astonished goblins" 'here the fuck did he find a vine to swing on?0 Near to the ape% of his swing, (elvinth let go of the vine he was holding onto and crashed feet-first into one goblin" The goblin slid on the ground, (elvinth somehow managing to keep his balance on top of the goblin&s chest" )hen the finall came to a stop, (elvinth drew his battle a%e and brained the goblin" At this time, the other goblin had re-asserted himself and was charging towards (elvinth, blade alread drawn" 7lucking an arrow from his 4uiver, 3aelaeran 4uickl took aim and fired at the

goblin" The arrow sailed across the glade and sank itself, deep into the goblin&s knee, who collapsed with a startled cr " -Do ou gu s mind telling the idiot off. I want to check if an one else heard him0 said 3aelaeran" -7eople in the ne%t continent, probabl heard him"0 muttered Nathaniel" -)e&ll take care of it, go and check it out0 3aelaeran sank back behind the group and started to search the surrounding area, checking for signs of an one who ma have heard the confrontation" After about =< minutes, 3aelaeran was satisfied with the results of his search, as far as he could tell, no one else had been in the glade to hear (elvinth" (owever, there were traces of a wellconcealed, but fairl worn out path that bore goblin tracks" 9eturning to the clearing, he saw a still fuming A ala angril shouting at (elvinth" -I can&t !#:I#E# ou would do this-No, I can completel believe ou would do something like this/ )hat if there were more than 2 goblins lurking in the forest. (uh./ 6ou could have died, ou could have gotten us killed/"""0 barel pausing between sentences, A ala continued her loud tirade" (elvinth was standing there looking abashed and fairl frightened, as he listened to the lecture" 8haking his head, 3aelaeran walked over to Nathaniel and :ightovius who were 4uestioning the goblin" -Ask him if there are an more of his friends hiding in the forest"0 said :ightovius" -(apa sherpa sherpa" Aruk no 7aris (ilton.0 asked Nathaniel in the 5oblin tongue" -Narpa creme brulee, durka durka"0 replied the goblin in a pained voice" -(e sa s that he and his friend were the onl ones assigned to this area for toda "0 translated Nathaniel" -Toda . 3eaning that there are regular guard patrols.0 pondered :ightovius" -It would appear to be so" I found a hidden trail that looked fairl used and was covered in goblin tracks"0supplied 3aelaeran as he 'oined the conversation" -Nice work"0 nodded :ightovius" -Now ask him where the trail leads and what defences can e%pect to find there"0

-3ocha pots de creme, a sherpa durka Tom ,ruise durka.0 asked Nathaniel" -8trawberr savarin"0 shortl replied the goblin with a wicked smile on his face" -(e sa s to go fuck ourself0 replied Nathaniel -Aind of figured that&s what he said"0 laughed :ightovius" -5uess he won&t be of much use an longer then"0 Drawing his blade, :ightovius stabbed the goblin through the e e, killing him instantl " Nathaniel 'umped awa from the sudden killing of the goblin" -"""8orr , warn me a bit before ou do that"0 said Nathaniel in a 4uiet voice" -I apologi*e, I&ve found during m life that its best to eliminate an potential threats as fast as possible"0 said :ightovius with a sad smile" Turning to 3aelaeran, :ightovius asked, -Do ou mind taking Nathaniel over to A ala and seeing if he can calm her down. I think her elling might alert the ne%t guard patrol"0 -8ure, but what are ou going to do.0 -I&m going to bur these goblins"0 :ightovius said as he took one end of the goblins bod and started dragging him towards the forest -)h not 'ust hide them from the ne%t guard patrol.0 asked 3aelaeran )ith a secret smile appearing on his face :ightovius looked at 3aelaeran and Nathaniel, -Another thing I&ve learned is to treat our enemies with respect" The kind of business we do is dirt enough as it is"0

3a be the were luck or all of the goblins decided that this path was too concealed for an one to notice it, but there were almost no enemies on the wa to the cavern" The few goblins the did meet were easil avoided, as the saw no reason to hide the amount of noise the were making, and so did not notice the stealth part creeping past them" )hen the arrived at the cavern, night had full fallen, and the few goblins that might have been on guard were snoring peacefull at the cavern&s entrance" +nl when the were past the guards and 3aelaeran was sure that there was no one around them in their immediate vicinit did he give the all-clear" 5athering together, the spoke in hushed tones"

-Alright, let&s go through the ob'ectives again" +neC Find and eliminate the leader of all these goblins, killing all of them ma not be necessar " TwoC :ocate an of the captured villagers and retrieve them from harm&s wa "0 4uickl summari*ed :ightovius" -8houldn&t we find the villagers first and get them out as fast as possible.0 said 3aelaeran" -)e might not be able to"0 said A ala sadl " -:eaving this cavern with several villagers in tow, puts us at risk of being caught"0 -Fine, I&ll take the risk m self" 6ou gu s go on ahead and kill the goblin leader" I&ll look for the villagers0 gruffl stated 3aelaeran" 8hocked looks appeared on ever one&s faces, all of them began to raise their voices before Nathaniel 4uickl reminded them to keep themselves 4uiet" 9egaining control of the situation, :ightovius 4uietl said, -)e need a tracker for this mission to work" 6ou&re the onl one we&ve got"0 -Not true, Nathaniel is a decent tracker himself"0 4uickl inter'ected 3aelaeran" -I&m not trained for it like ou are, though0 said Nathaniel -The onl reason I signed on for this mission was to help these villagers get out of here safel " If the leader himself is in m wa during m mission to find these people, great, I&ll kill himself" +therwise I do not care"0 finished 3aelaeran" -6er a daft fool, bo if ou think ou can do this on our own"0 growled (elvinth" -I need to do this" I can&t let her die again"0 said 3aelaeran" -(er. Do ou know some of these people who were taken.0 asked A ala" -No-I mean, I 'ust-0 started 3aelaeran as he 4uickl tried to cover up his slip of the tongue when :ightovius suddenl said, -Is this the person ou keep calling to in our nightmares.0 8eeing their ga*es fall on him, 3aelaeran&s mouth went dr as he rasped, -I don&t know what ou&re talking about" I don&t call out to an one0 -No ou don&t, but ou keep apologi*ing to someone over and over"0 calml stated :ightovius" -)ho is she.0

,omprehension came to ever one&s faces, and something like pit came over A ala&s" The silence was unbearable, it was too much" 1ust when he was about to e%plain ever thing, the sound of hobnailed boots scraping against the floor sounded across the cavern" -5oblins/0 franticall whispered 3aelaeran to the group" !hank 1od. )ith a look that said this conversation wasn&t over, the turned and readied their weapons" The voices of the goblins came nearer and nearer" -Durka almond souflee, 9obert Downe 1r"0 laughed one goblin" -,repes shurpa sherpa 3organ Freeman"0 laughed the other" Hopefully this battle takes a long time. :aybe they'll forget the conversation we 4ust had. 3aelaeran said sarcasticall to himself"

As it turns out, it appeared that the sudden appearance of the goblins made ever one sta on their guards and table the conversation for a later date" Although it appeared it was :ightovius who had made them drop the sub'ect" ! a tacit agreement between them, 3aelaeran was busil anal *ing each of the branching tunnels and choosing the one that looked like it had the most traffic going through them" Finall , the tracks led to a large branching point between two fairl large tunnels" The left tunnel had mostl goblin tracks, including one pair that looked much larger than the others" The right tunnel had similar tracks, e%cept that these tracks made a deeper impression than the others" This implied that the goblins had either gained a sudden amount of weight in the last =< metres, or that the were carr ing something with them" As if to confirm his suspicions, he found a lone strand of human hair la ing on the ground" (olding it up to his group, the all reali*ed that the villagers and leader the were looking for might be in completel opposite areas" -8o"0 said 3aelaeran, -I believe, I&ll be taking this tunnel0 'erking hsi thumb towards the right tunnel" -6ou don&t have to make us choose, we all know which tunnel we&re going through0 gruffl replied :ightovius" -I&m glad we understand each other then"0 shortl answered 3aelaeran" 8wivelling around, he walked into the right tunnel onl to stop as he heard several sets

of footsteps behidn him" Turning back around, he asked with a confused e%pression,0""")hat are ou doing.0 -)ell ou see, Nathaniel here got a bit of dust in his e es and its reall interfering with his tracking skills"0 said :ightovius in a morose voice, though he broke out into a grin as he said so" -And ou know I&m not a ver good tracker0 added Nathaniel with a laugh" -8o we figured it&d be better to follow ou, so we don&t end up getting lost"0 e%plained A ala with a wide smile" -6eah, I can&t follow all of this subtle bullshit" Face it #ladrin, ou&re stuck with us"0 grunted (elvinth" -"""Thanks0 replied 3aelaeran, tr ing to keep the surprise from showing, he 4uickl turned around once again" :ightovius clapped him on the shoulder and said in a 'ocular tone, -,ome on, ou stupid asshole" +bviousl we&re going to get the villagers" 3ight be a bit harder if we get them first, but he , I like a good fight ever now and then"0

I was dreaming again of that awful 3eep, but it was fairly different this time. *o enemies could be seen, or for that matter, my companions. $ven the cries of the girl had ceased. ,till, my feet carried me around that familiar corner and there she was. ,itting there on a little stone, awful wounds covering her body, still I did not look away. /;ou didn't reach me in time2 she said sadly. /...*o, I didn't. I tried to get you as fast as I could but it wasn't enough.2 calmly replied :aelaeran. /;ou couldn't save me. &ut you didn't kill me either.2 she replied with a sad smile. /*o. I didn't.2

-,heers/0 shouted the adventuring part , as the clapped their mugs together" The village of 9orikstead was in a 'ubilant mood, the villagers had onl 'ust backed down from their praise of the group before the innkeeper shooed them awa to allow the part to en'o their meal"

-8o" )as this enough to satisf

ou.0 asked :ightovius"

-Not as good as I thought it&d be"""but this helped- ou all helped a lot, so thanks/0 sincerel said 3aelaeran" -6ou know, he keeps thanking us" 8eems like we did 4uite a lot of work on this mission, eh (elvinth.0 said Nathaniel with a sl smile" -A e" I think that means we&re entitled to his share of the treasure we found"0 agreed (elvinth" -)hoa, let&s not be too hast here" I mean I did help 4uite a bit with the big boss"0 hastil coming to his own defence" (e was acutel aware of the weight of the new bow and longsword on his person as he tried to 'ustif his take of the treasure" 8eeing his panicked look, the four burst out laughing" The celebration continued long into the night and 3aelaeran had one final issue to remaining to him" (elvinth had passed out with the barmaid behind the counter and A ala and Nathaniel had retreated upstairs to their rooms" :ightovius was still nursing a cup of beer in the corner" -I need a favor"0 started 3aelaeran" -I figured as much"0 setting down his cup" -It&s wh I didn&t get nearl as drunk"0 -3 old group, the one I told ou about is having a get together soon"0 -And ou want me to go in our stead"0 -Take 3ason with ou,0 holding out his pet rock and passing it to :ightovius, who e%amined it with an amused e%pression" -And tell them, that 5re skull sent ou"0 -And what should I sa to e%plain our absence.0 -An thing" I can&t go back to them now" I need to train m self0 -A group would alwa s be wiser decision, ou know.0 -I do" 6ou gu s proved that to me" !ut this is something I need to figure out for m self"0 -Is this the part where ou make a sudden e%it into the night.F

-6ou catch on fast0 hefting a bag onto his shoulder as he said so" -)ell I am =<< ears older than ou"0 laughed :ightovius" -Don&t ou think the &ll be pissed.0 -)here I&m going the won&t be able to 'oin me" 7lus, apart from m new weapons, I left the rest of m share of the treasure"0 -)ho&s room.0 -(elvinth&s"0 -8mart" )here are ou planning on heading that&s so e%clusive an wa .0 -Not on a solo 4uest if that&s what ou&re wondering"0 -Then.0 -I need a place to learn how to use this0 patting his longsword, -)ell, properl an wa 0 added 3aelaeran with a laugh after thinking about it" -If ou don&t stop beating around the bush and tell me where, I&m going to have to beat ou to death"0 said :ightovius with a somewhat serious e%pression" :aughing, 3aelaeran gave a one word answer as he stepped out into the nightC -(ome"0

Faelian ; Age 2G
!astion was in deep shit" As a member of the +rder of 8iamorphe, named after the great goddess herself, he was obligated to complete his mission at all costs" (owever, this opponent proved to be much more dangerous than initial reports, which were alread fairl worr ing" )ho would&ve thought some unknown !ladsinger would gather such a strong following. It&s not as if he had a particularl large following, but the members he did have were all fanaticall lo al, perceiving him to be the third incarnation of Amaunator, god of the 8un" 6et his master had told him that he was a deceiver, a weaver of lies, determined to bring corruption to all races" )hat !astion

hadn&t be told is that he was also a ver competent fighter" A silk voice emanated pierced the darkness of the room, -)hen I heard that the +rder was coming after me personall , I was 4uite worried"0 Faelian passed a hairsbreadth awa from the paladin and casuall slashed him across the face" The paladin reeled with shock and swung blindl at the air" 6ather glad I learned Invisibility. -)here are ou coward./0 shouted the paladin, his voice tinged more fear than anger, -,ome out and face me like a man/0" ctivate 1host ,ound !astion heard the footsteps coming this time and waited, baiting the bastard to attack" -Is this all the great Faelian amounts to. I thought ou were a lot better than this/0 flipping his sword into a reverse grip, the paladin thrust it behind him with a shocking amount of speed" Triumph initiall etched ever part of his face as it slowl replaced with dawning horror as he reali*ed that his sword was meeting no resistance" Faelian shimmered into view in front of !astion, -Nice tr " I hope our friends are better than this"0 mocked Faelian, stabbing his sword into !astion&s heart" As !astion sank slowl to the floor, the doors to the room burst open, flooding it with light" (is B commanders came running into the room, bloodied, out-breath, but otherwise unharmed" -Faelian/ Are ou alright./0 franticall asked 3orris" -)e heard the fighting-0 started 5rant" -And we thought that ,ommander !astion, who had been leading the charge, might&ve snuck in"0 finished 5race" The all fell silent when the saw the bod of said commander l ing in a pool of his own blood at Faelian&s feet" )ith looks of awe and admiration, the three respectfull kneeled before Faelian" -+h, come on gu s" 8top with the formalities, pick ourselves up, I took care of the problem as ou can see"0 reassured Faelian with a laugh and a smile" The accepted it, feeling grateful for his kind words and luck for his smile" ll too easy" Fi%ing his face into an angr e%pression, 3orris angril declared, -The +rder will pa double in blood for the amount the spilled tonight/0" )hile the gave no similar outbursts, both 5race and 5rant agreed with a sharp nod of their heads and a fierce e%pression on their faces" -It won&t matter what the do" !ecause I&ve finall finished deciphering the 8crolls of Tamw n that we retrieved from them a month ago"0 stated Faelian"

8hock appeared on their faces and 5race tentativel asked with a small smile, -6ou mean""".0 -I&ve found the ,r stal of Astaroth"0

Faelian did not know how long ago the ,r stal of Astaroth was first brought into this world" :egends spoke of the 5ods imbuing the power of creation into its ver essence" +f course he regarded such tales as nonsense, Faelian dealed in fact" And the fact was that the ,r stal had enough owners that could be traced through the annals of histor " #ver single one of these owners had var ing tales about them, but the were all regarded as having greatl increased abilities$ magical or ph sical" )hen he first started this crusade, Faelian knew he would need something that would give him such a hold over other creatures that the would not dare oppose him" (is search had eventuall led him to stealing the 8crolls of Tamw n from the +rder of 8iamorphe" A hard decision to make, but he did not regret taking it" (e stood with all of his remaining followers, a paltr few compared to the numbers he had before the +rder" !ut the ones left were the strongest and brightest" nd most importantly, the most loyal " !efore them stood the ocean, awesome in it&s natural fur and power as it crashed against the rocks with devastating force" The temple it seemed was somewhere beneath the waves" -uckily we have enough magic to go around for everyone. -Faelian, sir" )ill ou not be needing the )ater !reathing spell.0 asked one of his mages" -!eing of Thaliessan blood, I can breathe underwater without worr " !ut thank ou for our concern0 said Faelian" 8he blushed and gave a fairl rapid repl before returning to the others who still needed the spell" 5lancing around at his B commanders who had 'oined b his side, -9ead .0 -6es, sir/0 shouted the three"

The Temple of Astaroth was a trul astonishing place, despite what the e%terior might suggest, the inside of the temple was incredibl e%travagant" The ceilings reached so high that onl darkness could be seen above, ever single pillar was covered with precious 'ewels" The marble floor gleamed with brilliance, hardl getting scuffed as

their boots travelled across its smooth surface" Above it all, the place suggested at an ver powerful magic source, for while the were deep beneath the ocean, not a drop of water could be seen" Faelian had chosen his followers well though, the did not ga*e at the 'ewels with greed, onl observed the area with a keen e e" !efore the had gotten through the vast door marking the end of the great hall the were in, one of Faelian&s minions shouted, -The +rder has found us/0 #ver one began to draw their weapons until 3orris barked a short order, -Team 3orris, gather around me and protect this entrance with our lives/0 :ooking towards Faelian and the rest of the group, he said, -5o, milord" )e will deal with these interlopers"0 Nodding in thanks, Faelian and the rest of the group rushed through the door and sealed it behind them" Not bothering to pause and surve the fantastic surrounding&s of the temple corridors, the group raced through the corridors" ,oming to another set of double doors, the found the entrance into the ne%t room sealed" Anal *ing it 4uickl , Faelian discovered the presence of a multi-la ered enchantment surrounding the door, that would take time" +nl a few minutes, reall for someone of Faelian&s skill, but the dull boom that emanated from behind them sounded like the +rder was closing in" 8eeing Faelian&s plight, 5rant 4uickl spoke up before Faelian had a chance to actuall re4uest it of them, -I will take m team to dela the +rder as long as I can" Faelian, do ou need an of m mages for help with the door.0 -The door is sealed so that onl one magic process can work on it at a time, so the wouldn&t be able to help0 e%plained Faelian" -!rother"0 said 5race, -Take m team as well, ou&ll need all the help ou can get"0 -8ister, I-Thank ou" 8ta safe"0 5rant replied, hugging his sister in farewell" -I&m with Faelian, no safer place in the world" )hen ou&re done with the +rder, hurr up back here so ou don&t miss an of the good parts0 winked 5race" 8miling, 5rant waved a hand in farewell as he led his team back down the corridors to confront the paladins 4uickl closing in to their location" 3inutes passed b as 5race nervousl paced back and forth between Faelian and the corridor" Finall after standing there, seemingl doing nothing, Faelian gave a short, -Aha/0" The two doors slowl swung open to reveal a dark and ominous looking antechamber" !athed in a soft light, sitting atop a pedestal was a small orb" Faelian looked upon it with wonder, moving towards it in slow, dream-like steps" )hile to 5race it looked

like a somewhat prett , but otherwise uninteresting orb, to Faelian&s magic-sensitive e es, the ,r stal of Astaroth was a thing of e%4uisite beaut " 7ulsating currents of magical energ wreathed the orb like a shroud, the energ swirled in all manner of fantastic shapes and colors" #ver pulse of these waves of energ , sent a light thrill through his bod , and he knew that the ,r stal wasn&t even active et" Faelian was so focused on the ,r stal that he didn&t notice the two doors he and 5race had entered through, close" 8tartled b the sudden noise, 5race ran back to the doors, desperatel tr ing to open them, but to no avail" Faelian didn&t see there was much of a problem, the ,r stal was all he reall needed" 3oving again towards the ,r stal, Faelian stretched out his hand and placed it atop the orb" At first, nothing happened, at least to 5race&s e es, and then the ,r stal began to shine with a white-hot light that nearl blinded her" -Faelian/0 she shouted" )hen the light faded, the first thing noticed as her e esight began to return was that the temperature had increased a fair amount" It had become unbearabl hot in this room in a matter of seconds, so much so that she was alread sweating from the sheer heat of it" The sudden change in environment 4uickl left her mind as she reali*ed that Faelian wasn&t standing alone at the altar an more" In front of him was a hulking figure, nearl double the si*e of the tallest Dragon-born she had ever seen" From the front, he looked almost human, apart from the burning red of his e es that gleamed with malevolence" From his back, though, 5race could see numerous spikes protruding from his bod , each dripping some sort of green substance from them that bubbled and hissed when it hit the floor" Demon0 )hen 5race had reached the altar, she saw Faelian had drawn his weapon and had settled into a read -stance" :eaping to his side, 5race had her broadsword at the read , a fierce e%pression directed at the demon" 8eeing the two warriors, the demon simpl laughed" -)ell done in finding this place, mortals" )ell done indeed"0 -6our map was a little hard to read"0 said Faelian in a eas tone" -)hen ou write maps with blood, it tends to fade prett fast on parchment0 laughed the demon" -Astaroth, I presume.0 asked Faelian -At our service0 answered the demon Astaroth, giving a mocking bow to Faelian" -6ou&re a rather clever fellow to figure it out that fast, aren&t ou.0 -6ou ma want to refrain from using pronouns in the future" Tends to give awa

the game a bit too fast"0 The demon rocked his head back and laughed deep and long, his laughter filled the chamber and sent waves of revulsion racing through 5race&s bod " -8o ou know of the game" !ut do ou know how to pla it.0 -This is the ,r stal of Astaroth, is it not. The same ,r stal that had given 3elkar the )ise and Aaravakos the !lighted their powers.0 -The ver same" +ne had received immense clarit and spellpower capabilities, another the use of a nearl all-powerful arm of demons at his beck and call"0 -)as there a price.0 -There is alwa s a price for power, dear child"0 said Astaroth with a beatific smile" -It depends on what ou want and how much ou&re willing to give up for it"0 -3elkar the )ise did have ver interesting powers"""0 said Faelian innocentl , hoping Astaroth would catch on" His wisdom had mainly derived from his mind-reading capabilities after all. Hm, seems like you know how to play the game after all...;ou are a very interesting mortal after all. $ven now, with his re<uest for open communication, you hide your real thoughts from me. I love it. 5race seeing Faelian converse with the demon easil , felt a sliver of fear course through her, but she trusted Faelian to do what was right" (e would never fall for this demon&s pack of lies$ Faelian was the light incarnate/ I'm glad we're off to such a good start. -et's talk terms shall we? =ery well. Faelian, while chatting with the demon became aware of 5race&s growing discomfort" )hile not breaking e e contact with the demon, he reached over with his free hand and s4uee*ed her own" Immediate relief came through 5race as the tension eased out of her, s4uee*ing her own hand in return, she gave an embarrassed smile" -8o, in order to get m destro ed"0 plans underwa " I need the +rder of 8iamorphe

-Interesting demand, and what will ou trade in return for it.0 -)hat will ou take.0

-Depends on our offer0 Thinking seriousl for a moment, Faelian settled on a decision, -3 magic" +r if that&s not enough, one of m senses"0 Astaroth licked his lips as his e es glowed with desire, -A trul valuable sacrifice that would be"0 delicatel tracing one of his claws along Faelian&s face, mimicking the motion of plucking his e es out" 5race trembled with anger, but seeing Faelian not react to the demon&s probing, she managed to keep from lashing out" -)ell, Astaroth.0 demanded Faelian" -6es, that would be a good sacrifice"0 agreed Astaroth" -!ut I think I have a better one" 5ive me the girl, and I&ll get rid of that hated +rder for ou0 his e es suddenl settling on 5race, locking her in place with the power of his ga*e" -No deal/0 sharpl inter'ected Faelian" Astaroth whipped his head towards Faelian, his face etched with pure rage" -This is a deal I&m offering to ou" I can simpl TAA# what I want without having to give ou an thing"0 -Tr it then" !ut if ou do, I&ll break the ,r stal"0 -5o ahead, it means nothing to me" It is simpl an artifact I created to tempt mortals to serving m whims"0 -It&s also the onl wa ou can make contact with this plane from our own" I know what our ilk is like, demon" Demons are compelled to be truthful in all of the dealings and follow up on ever stipulation of the contracter, provided that the agree" (owever, forcing a -deal0 upon an creature, is be ond our abilities or an other demon of our ken"0 -Then break it then" These doors are sealed b m power, when ou destro that +rb, it will dissipate from this place and the paladins will come in and kill ou both"0 -Then we&ll die as righteous mortals, demon/0 bravel stated 5race" 8he moved forward, her sword coming into contact with Astaroth&s chest" -)e will stand against ou demon$ against evil" )e&ll defeat the +rder of 8iamorphe because we have 'ustice on our side" And we will bring our light to the world, because Faelian is here/0 5race finished proudl " 8he didn&t even see Faelian&s blade come up and across her throat and as she sank to the floor, she wondered how the demon had managed to kill her"

-Do we have a deal then, Astaroth.0 said Faelian mildl , as he wiped 5race&s blood off his longsword" -)e do indeed, Faelian"0

The leader of the +rder of 8iamorphe, :ucius, had been seen his mages send wave after wave of spells against the double doors, but to no avail" It took them some time to reali*e that all of their magics were cancelling each other out, and onl one person could work on the door itself" (is men, a meagre =< in number now thanks to Faelian&s fanatical flock of fools, had informed him that it would take some time to get the doors open" I can only pray to our 1oddess that we reach him in time before he manages to undo the seal" 5riml surve ing his surroundings, he saw the man wounds on the surviving men he had and on himself" How can a man of such evil, inspire such faith in what appear to be decent men and women? He has only to speak a word and his corruption spreads to the very depths of one's heart " 8huddering, :ucius noticed that the mage&s work seemed to have been completed" The double doors leading into the ,r stal ,hamber slowl started to open" The room was filled with a soft white-light, stemming most curiousl from a person in the centre" It's him. :ucius& heart was filled with both fear and hate, as he shouted to his knights, -Huickl , paladins/ !efore he summons Astaroth/0 The men and women charged forward with a thunderous roar that filled the room, but were 4uickl stopped midwa into their charge as a large field of ice appeared before them" The doors closed behind the paladins as the figure rose from his kneeling position" Turning around, Faelian 4uietl said, -5entlemen" :adies" 6ou are a bit late to the part 0 (is e es gleamed with a red light, but the most frightening feature was the ,r stal that was embedded in Faelian&s right hand, glowing with that sickening white light" :ucius& mouth went dr , He's done it, he actually made a deal. -!ut, as it turns out" 6ou&ve arrived at e%actl the right time I needed ou"0 happil stated Faelian" -6ou see, I needed to conduct some e%periments, and the +rder would make perfect test sub'ects"0 Faelian disappeared from sight, all of the paladins cried in alarm" :ucius managed to calm them down and told them Faelian was probabl 'ust using one of his

tricks, -Detect invisibilit /0 shouted one of his mages" +thers took up the cr and soon the entire room was being scanned" -I don&t see-0 one mage began, his head sailing through the air before he got to finish" Three more paladins were killed in a flash as the each turned towards a comrade who gotten killed" !ut these were trained men and women, and the gathered together in a tight formation to prevent themselves from being picked off so easil " -I&ll give ou a freebie" )hen ou&re not using that Detect spell, I&m rushing into kill ou, and then sinking back into invisibilit "0 taunted Faelian ,omprehension dawned on :ucius& face,0(e&s moving too fast for us to follow, his ph sical powers were enhanced b the cr stal/0 -#%cellent deduction/0 came a delighted voice over to the right" A paladin blindl swung at the sound and lost his arm in doing so, cut off at the elbow" -+uch, ou know I didn&t lose an of m spellcasting powers" It&s not like I trade one aspect of m self for the other"0 -8hields up0 ordered :ucius, overriding the paladin&s fear of this phantom killer" -A sound strateg " An attack I make would be utterl ineffective, leaving me open to a fairl devastating counter-attack0 complimented Faelian, -6et ou still fail to grasp the bigger picture"0 -6ou mean our plan to rule the world/ To corrupt ever living thing who hears our poisonous words./0 shouted :ucius -I like to think of it as renovation" It&s not like I&m sending the world into war with each other, I&m making this place better"0 -For ou"0 supplied the paladin whose arm had been cut off" -)ell I am the better person" 3odelling after what I desire means molding the world into a better form"0 e%plained Faelian" -!ut I wouldn&t e%pect ou to understand, ou&re 'ust not built for it" Dnfortunatel that means I can&t have ou in this world" I digress though, when I said ou couldn&t grasp the bigger picture I wasn&t talking about m future goals, I was talking about the ,r stal"0 Faelian&s words reverberated through :ucius& mind as he 'umped awa from the paladin&s shouting, -8catter/ (is magic was enhanced too/0 !oo late. ,pectral ram.

The titanic force blew apart the formation of paladins" !ecause the were so tightl packed together, the impact made their in'uries devastating enough that even before the had the hit the far side of the chamber, the were alread dead" From his fallen position, :ucius was slowl lifted off the ground b a giant, spectral hand" The grip around his bod was so tight, that he could barel breathe" Appearing from the shadows, Faelian walked towards :ucius with a sad smile" -Almost, :ucius" If ou had made the connection earlier, ou could have saved them" For a few more seconds at least"0 :ucius was about to make a scathing repl when Faelian suddenl doubled over and succumbed to a violent coughing fit" ! the time he recovered, blood surrounded his lips and dotted his hands" The hand holding :ucius had barel lost none of it&s strength, but it was enough so that :ucius could get in a final word" -(a, hah" Despite all of our powers, all our strength, ou still trusted a demon" And that&s going to end up killing ou" As I&m sure ou alread found out0 laughed :ucius, tr ing to keep the pain of his in'uries out of his voice" To his great surprise, Faelian laughed with him, -6ou think I didn&t know what this place was. That onl our precious +rder someone had this knowledge to themselves.0 -6ou""" ou knew this was a demon&s lair0 -I knew this was a wa to get an incredibl powerful ob'ect made b a demon in a wi*ard&s lair to be specific"0 corrected Faelian" -6ou knowingl signed our soul over to a demon./0 gasped :ucius -+h nothing so cliched" )ell I did have to promise the whole soul bit, but onl according to a ver specific set of stipulations" First, that he&d onl have possession of m soul when I die a NATD9A: death" Death in battle, poison, or assassination were means m soul is off the table" 8econdl , m little coughing fit isn&t a result of the demon&s taint, but the product of going over m bod &s own natural limits"0 -)h would he ever agree to such terms.0 -)ell, I did give him a fairl large sacrifice" 8pecificall the +rder of 8iamorphe and m own group of followers" 8till ou&re right, these do seem to be unfair terms to him, until ou consider that m soul would be bound in service to his when I die"0

-6ou think he considers ou that important.0 sneered :ucius -(e told me he&d need someone of m calibre" !ig changes are occurring in the planes of the immortals, and we all have a role to pla "0 -6ou won&t succeed in our plan, taking over this world will take too long" 6ou&ll die long before that" +r our own powers will kill ou in the process of attempting to do so"0 -Huite, I haven&t e%actl worked out the solution to the first problem, but I do know the answer to the second"0 -)hich is.0 said :ucius with a growing fear" -The answer is the reason as to wh ou alone remain almost virtuall unharmed out of all our paladins" I have no doubt that ou led the charge against each of m commanders, and et ou curiousl remain mostl intact"0 - I have good healers0 said :ucius nervousl " -Those would help, but not to the e%tent of defeating the people I trained" No, ou have something else, and I&m going to take it from ou" 6ou can&t hide the amulet from m e es"0 -It won&t work for ou" #vil cannot possibl hope to use the Amulet of 9estoration for its purposes"0 growled :ucius, abandoning all pretence now" -(aven&t ou heard, :ucius.0 said Faelian sweetl , the spectral hand began to tighten around :ucius" (is ribs began to snap as all the veins in his bod stood out prominentl against the skin" -I&m one of the good gu s"0 The hand gave a final s4uee*e and :ucius e%ploded"

3aelaeran ; Age 2G=

89 years...has it really been that long? It's at times like these that immortality can be a burden making those afflicted with it insensitive to the natural flow of time. ,till, after training a brief bit with my father in the capital city, only a year had gone by. nd when I returned, I found my old and new friends, missing. !rapped within the "yramid of ,hadows.

Hopefully this will turn out to be the lead I'm looking for , thought 3aelaeran, as he ga*ed at the entrance to a ancient looking castle, situated at the border between the mortal world and the Fe wilds$ somehow in both planes at once" !he %astle of =yrellis" Not onl was it considered to be an unhol place b m people, as it was the stronghold of E rellis the !etra er, it was also fucking hard to find" The most fascinating part of the ,astle was that it never had a single location, it alwa s shifted to some other part of the vast Fe wilds" 6et the scrolls 3aelaeran had found l ing in an ancient librar he had found some ears ago told the tales of one #ladrin historian known as :irian" 8he had discovered 4uite b chance, the locations of several possible locations of the ,astle" 3aelaeran considered himself luck to find it on the third tr " !ime limit before the ne(t shift...only a few hours. I hope there's something on the "yramid in this place. nything not part of the castle when the shift occurs will get kicked out when it moves. It was probabl 'ust a coincidence, but 3aelaeran began to think the universe was working against him when he discovered that the ,astle was filled with monsters" Demonic creatures stalked the corridors, sometimes moving in pairs, but alwa s following the same route for some strange reason" 3aelaeran was able to sneak past the ma'orit of them, and surprise the rest" +ddl enough, if two monsters happened to meet along their route, and one monster was taken out, the other would keep walking along his route as if nothing had happened" "erhaps whatever strange magic that keeps this castle moving in a cyclical manner also affects the creatures living here. In this fashion, 3aelaeran made his wa to a section of the castle that thankfull contained a librar " (owever, the librar was not unoccupied, a figure was standing there facing 3aelaeran looking 'ust as surprised as he was" !oth recovered from their initial shock and readied their weapons" :agic glowing in the right hand, a sword in his left hand. bladesinger, this could be a problem. The figure also had a curiousl large protrusion embedded in his right hand, glowing with a faint light" The bladesinger in 4uestion looked to be a half-elf in his late G<&s, his entire head was covered in shockingl white hair with traces of age lining his face" Despite this, he seemed to vibrate with energ and power" -)ho are ou.0 asked 3aelaeran -I was about to ask the same of ou" !ut if we&re 'ust introducing ourselves, m name is Faelian"0 said the man" -Friendl .0

-Depends on what ou plan on doing with that arrow"0 -!ur ing it into our skull if ou&re not friendl "0 -(ah/ Fair enough" I&m here doing a little bit of research on Aaravakos the !lighted"0 -Nice to know we have similar agendas, I need info on the 7 ramid of 8hadows"0 -It seems then that we are both here looking for information, and N+T a fight, correct.0 -:ooks that wa " )eapons dropped at the same time.0 Nodding, Faelian withdrew his magic and sheathed his sword as 3aelaeran put awa his bow" -6ou probabl alread know that we&re on a time limit here, did ou find an thing on the 7 ramid of 8hadows.0 asked 3aelaeran" -Huite a bit actuall " The 7 ramid was actuall built before Aaravakos had lost that legendar battle with the #ladrin armies" Almost as if the demons knew he was going to fail at the final battle"0 Faelian e%plained, tossing an old book towards 3aelaeran as he did so" -Dnfortunatel that&s about all the information there is on the 7 ramid of 8hadows in that book0 added Faelian 3aelearan&s heart sank, as he clutched the book, thinking that this place was another dead end" -(owever, there might be another place we can check"0 said Faelian as he saw 3aelaeran&s de'ected e%pression" -The throne room" 3ore specificall the treasure vault behind the throne room"0 -Do ou think there&s something related to the 7 ramid of 8hadows in there.0 -I&m counting on it" An thing trul valuable would most likel be locked up there" Although, I&m hoping there will be something related to Aaravakos himself there"0 said Faelian" -)h didn&t ou go earlier. And what is our stake in this an wa .0 4uestioned 3aelaeran, suddenl supicious of Faelian&s intentions" The two began to walk towards the throne room"

-)hen I passed b the throne room, there were some fairl strong looking demons guarding the place" I had hoped that whatever I needed would be in this librar " And before ou showed up, I was planning on going there" To answer our second 4uestion, ou should know that Aaravakos was an e%ceptionall talented wi*ard in his own right" (e might have created something during his reign.0 -8uch as""".0 -An thing he did create would prove to be immensel valuable" And to accomplish m goals, I need strength" I&ve had more than a few failures because I lacked it0 muttered Faelian, adopting a far-awa look" 3aelaeran did not press further, as he knew the desire to overcome one&s own failings ver well" ,lapping Faelian on the shoulder, he said in a amiable tone, -)ell then, let&s get this part started"0 )ith what appeared to be a genuine smile on his face, Faelian agreed heartil , -:et&s do this"0

The throne room was awash with pools of blood$ @ of the smaller demons la dead at the pair&s feet" Two remained, but the towered over Faelian and 3aelaeran" -)e&ll use the plan we discussed, are ou read ./0 shouted Faelian -9ead /0 shouted back 3aelaeran, as he placed a hand on Faelian&s shoulder -)inter&s )rath/0 snarled Faelian" A fro*en chill came over the room as the two demons were encased in ice" It wouldn&t be enough to kill them, but it&d hold them in one place 'ust long enough, -Now/0 said Faelian as the pair disappeared" 3aelaeran&s teleport transported the two of them on top of the two demonic abominations massive bodies" The demons roared in confusion and anger, but were unable to stop the pair as the both were still encased in ice from the neck down" 6elling battle-cries at the same time, Faelian and 3aelaeran both plunged their longsword deep into the demon&s skulls" The demons roared in unison and broke free of their fro*en prison, grabbing for the mortals who had dared to invade their lair" !ut the were both off the demon&s head alread as soon as their swords were embedded into their skulls" 3aelaeran was on the ground facing the demons pouring arrow after arrow into the creatures bodies"

Furious at the wounds the were receiving the charged towards the small figure" Their faces lit up with a vicious delight as their claws swiped at 3aelaeran, onl to howl in confusion as he de%trousl slipped past their vicious swipes" The two demons crashed into each other as the desperatel grabbed for the #ladrin who had passed underneath them, screaming in fur as the fell to the ground" The did not notice or seem to care where the other creature had gone" Faelian saw 3aelaeran accomplish his task with aplomb" Faelian was above the two creatures, he had used his Dimension Door to teleport himself above them and Feather Fall to slow his descent, giving him a stable position to fire from" The cr stal in his right hand glowed with an unhol light as both of his hands, outstretched before him, started to crackle with electricit " Disappear. Twin balls of lightning sailed from Faelian&s hands and flew towards the swords still 'utting out of the demon&s skulls" The energ raced down the metal of the swords and into the demon&s brains" !oth of the monsters began to scream with pain as their limbs flailed in spastic motions, before the finall ceased" Their heads rolled back and the ceased their movement and finall died" 7reparing himself for the inevitable spasm that came with activating the ,r stal&s power, he doubled over with pain as he began coughing" The Amulet of 9estoration began its re'uvenating effect almost immediatel , but his old bod was beginning to slow down" No matter great it&s healing powers were, the couldn&t overcome the natural process" Faelian hoped he&d find something about mitigating this effect of the ,r stal within the vault, or at least some wa of prolonging his life" :ust be nice being an $ladrin 3aelaeran came over to his side immediatel and helped Faelian to his feet, his face lined with worr , -Are ou oka .0 -I am, 'ust not used to doing that much in m age"0 -6ou still kicked a lot of ass compared to most people0 -It&s a gift0 Faelian said with a smile" -Now let&s see if this ass-kicking was worth the trouble"0

The duo was standing outside of the ,astle, both somewhat crestfallen with their efforts" To be fair, the vault was filled with incredibl useful magical items so the

didn&t come awa empt -handed" !ut 3aelaeran had found no e%tra information on the 7 ramid of 8hadows and Faelian had found nothing on the ,r stal of Astaroth" The castle started to rock back and forth on its foundations, trembling with the effort as it suddenl disappeared from sight, leaving behind a empt field that betra ed no hint of the castle&s former presence" -)ell" That&s another dead end, time to move on0 3aelaeran said suddenl , and with more energ that Faelian would&ve thought" -(ow can ou be so cheerful. )e wasted all that time for nothing.0 said Faelian sullenl " -6ou&re right" !ut that does not mean we should spend our time moping about it"0 -A little should be e%pected though0 4ueried Faelian" -#ver second we spend dwelling over our failures, means losing time over what we could be doing instead"0 -And that is."""0 -For me, its looking for m friends" I can&t waste an time knowing that the &re trapped in that 7 ramid"0 Faelian absorbed that information silentl , accepting it" sincerel " -For what. 1ust giving advice to a friend"0 laughed 3aelaeran" -7erhaps if I had lived as long as ou, I would have such wisdom"0 :aughing, 3aelaeran said, -7lease, G< ears ago I would&ve been moping over this failure for about a ear"0 -)hat changed.0 -A human older than I am gave me some good advice"0 Faelian could hardl breathe when he heard this" Tr ing to keep the e%citement out of his voice, he tried to casuall ask, -(ow old are ou an wa .0 -(m. +h, I supposed I&d be about 2G= ears old now" 3ind ou, I&m still -Thanks"0 he said

considered to be little more than a child among m people"0 -!ut ou said this human was older than ou.0 -+h eah/ (e was telling me how he was part of some clan that had discovered the potion of immortalit or whatever" The gu droned on and on about how awesome the were"0 -Did he ever mention how the &d come upon such a wondrous formula.0 -7robabl , the onl thing I can remember is that he said his famil was situated somewhere in the mountains of the western part of the continent" 3a be the found a special plant there0 8miling, Faelian said, -Thank ou 3aelaeran0 stumbling over the unfamiliar name with his tongue, -For the advice I mean"0 -An time, friend"0 -That&s twice ou called me friend now"""0 Faelian chortled, rolling around the words in his mouth and accepting it" -)here are ou off to now.0 -!ack to m home, perhaps there was something e%tra about E rellis I missed" )hat about ou.0 -)ell, not obsessing over m failures for one thing"0 3aelaeran laughed and parted wa s with Faelian, his figure disappearing into the distance" !hank you my friend, you have given me a gift much more valuable than you seemed to have reali)ed. I hope that family remembers how to make that potion, but then again> I can be fairly persuasive.

:aelaeran was dreaming of a "yramid wreathed in shadows, near the ape( of the pyramid he could almost see the figures of his friends. s he watched them battle with a mysterious assailiant, the shadows covering the pyramid began to dissipate. !he "yramid disappeared from his view and he was standing in a field of flowers, 4ust outside of the %astle he e(plored with .aelian. beautiful, $ladrin woman stood between him and the castle. !all and regal in nature, she said in ma4estic tones, /;our friends have done the impossible, young $ladrin. ;ou should return to where they first disappeared from.2

/'ho are you?2 asked a bewildered :aelaeran. /?999 years ago, you would've called me a monster and betrayer of her own people. &ut now, you can call me a friend.2 said the woman with a smile. /!hank you...-ady =yrellis2 !he woman soon faded from view with a tinkling laugh, high and sweet.

Deep within the bowels of (ell, Astaroth laughed at how well his lord&s plan was going" Faelian would soon be molded into the perfect blade, read to strike when ever thing finall came together" The )ar of the 5ods had onl 'ust begun"