Disclaimer: I do not own maple story, it is a property of Wizet and Nexon.
Prologue
"In the beginning, before the human race had walked on this holy ground, a legendary creature lived peacefully in the deepest depth of the caverns. It was docile and unchanged by the passage of time. The Zakum was the guardian of balance and was responsible for the peace and harmony of all lands. Once this was achieved, the Zakum went dormant and would only awaken when the balance is broken…" The old man lowered his book looked at the eager youngsters in front of him. "At least that what the legend says."
"Soooo, what happened next grandpa?" asked one of the youngsters, also known as Athena.
"Well as I said it is only a legend and not to be taken too seriously," the old man replied. "If by any chance that the legend is real, the world today remains at a constant balance."
"What if the world becomes unbalanced and the legend was true?" Athena asked again with a hint of worry in her words.
A shadow crept behind the girl and arms reached for her shoulders. "Then the world will be destroyed," the figure uttered with an eerie voice.
Athena let out a screech before quickly turning around and slapping the figure who turned out to be one of her friends.
Another one of the youngsters with tanned skin let out a laugh on the two. "That was a good one Dark Lord. You were like oooooooooooo and she was like eeeeeeeek!! Its hilarious."
"Hmm. Dark Lord. I like it. From now on my new name is Dark Lord," says the other youngster with his cheek still red from the slap.
Athena turned and pointed at the tanned youngster. At the top of her lungs she scolded him. "And you should be ashamed of yourself for laughing at a sensitive and elegant girl like me. Your such a – such a…"
"A Balrog?" the tanned boy continued while making faces and strange noises. "That's because I danced and I danced and I danced with a Balrog in the night."
"That doesn't even make sense," she scowled.
"Now now. No need to be arguing amongst ourselves. We should instead get some sleep. The ship to Victoria leaves early tomorrow morning," said the last youth who was older and more mature than the other three.
The old man gave a small laugh before preparing to retire for the night. "You should listen to young Grendel here. The ship does leave early and your parents would worry if you're late."
They all bid each other goodnight and went of in their rooms to sleep.
Many years have passed since that cozy night in Maple Island. Now, four figures have appeared amidst the mist in Lith Harbor.
"So how long has it been?" A young woman's voice echoed within the early dawn of the town in the blanket of the mist. "I never thought that I'd hear from any of you again. The last time I've seen any of you was just after we waved goodbye to Grandpa Pierce."
"And so it was dear Athena. If I had know that things were about to turn out the way it did, then I would've suggested the boat to Lith as opposed to the one that runs to each of our towns," says an old man with a staff.
"It seems that you haven't changed one bit Grendel," this time it came from a dark figure that emerged from the mist. His face and entire body was covered in dark clothing and the only part he had exposed was his eyes, which showed the fatigue and pain that he had experienced.
"You appear to be fine-"
"Dark Lord," the dark figure said, abruptly cutting her off.
"I see… so the years have not been good to you as well."
"It was never been good for any of us since we separated," a tall man with tanned skin continued. His voice was deep yet strong. "I am now known as Dances with Balrog, even to you my friends. My former name seems too peaceful for this time."
Grendel paused briefly and looked at all of the others. "I guess that we have our first understanding, but the real reason we came here is, well, even if I don't say it, it should be obvious by now. Monsters have been more aggressive towards humans and their numbers have dramatically increased. I wanted to hear about your ideas on how we can solve this threat, as the four leaders of Victoria's leading cities." He spoke in a direct manner as he always did.
"A peace treaty sounds like the best option in our situation, however, the war has left many scars, both deep and light and some that will never heal," replied Dances with Balrog.
"People can be such ignorant fools. They won't easily accept one another, especially with the bloodfest around them." Dark Lord made a smirk from under his mask before speaking again. "Although, I am glad that those fools got rid of the warmongers whom we once regarded as the leaders of Victoria. Had they not beat me to it, I would have had to stain my hands with their foul blood."
"But do we have any ideas on how to unite our cities. No average rouge can just waltz into Henesys without getting ridiculed. The same is true for all the other classes to the different cities." Athena sighed. "Even at their death, those warmongers left us a big problem to solve."
"I have given it some thought. Right now the economy in Ellenia is getting worse everyday. As you know, Sixtopia is one of the leading helpers in Ellenia's economy, however, the war severely limited its routes and the ships were eventually used for combat. Currently, only 2 ships remain. The only hope to get us back on track is for an open trade to other places. I did not think that it was easy for our citizens to openly accept one another, however if trading will improve our economy more, it would be more widely accepted."
"That does sound to be an effective strategy. Why not work towards it. I'm sure that my warriors would not object. Though Perion developed resentment towards its fellow Victorians, a trade that would help to develop better armor is not something that they will easily turn down."
"My voice is the voice of Kerning. Grendel, your idea is fine with me. If they anyone objects then they will be run out of my city. I'll see to it personally."
Looking satisfied with the quick decisions made, Athena gave a simple nod. "So its settled. We will set up an open trade. Now all that's left is to make it official. Although a cease fire and trade is all that we can handle today, I am still glad that all of you are people I can trust."
"Still the sentimental type eh Athena? No matter how much we trust each other, we cannot force the will of others to do the same. It will take much time and work for them to even consider working with their enemies." Dark Lord looked at her straight and waited for a reply. Athena gave a positive smile which lifted the mood. "Hehe. You haven't changed one bit."
"I know I'm being idealistic, but if we don't take a step forward then who will? We are very fortunate that we strive for the same goal: peace in the island of Victoria"
"Agreed," the men said all at once. And with that, a new beginning for Victoria began to unfold.