*Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Quest VI Realms of Revelation. I simply created this for my enjoyment and not profit. The original story belongs to Yugi Hori and Square Enix.

It was a warm summer night. A full moon and stars glittered in the night sky like diamonds on a purple velvet dress, accompanied by the sounds of chirping crickets. The night was quiet and peaceful as a night should be, but it wouldn't be that way for long.

A seventeen year old boy with unnaturally spiky blue hair and well-developed muscles opened his chocolate-brown eyes, and then squeezed them shut again. The boy wore a turquoise jacket with an orange tunic underneath. He wore a golden clasp on his right arm and neck, small gold hoop earrings, and fingerless black leather gloves.

The boy flipped on to his side, trying to chase the dark thoughts that filled his head like thunderclouds. He blinked his eyes open once more and to take in the sight, trying to soak up and enjoy these few precious moments of peace before the nightmare began.

The boy's scabbard lay next to him and a small campfire sputtered in the center. Next to the fire sat a young woman with long blond hair, a blue and white silk dress, and a golden ribbon that seemed to float around her like a halo. She was poking the dying flame with a twig. With a sigh, the boy yawned and sat up. The blond woman stopped poking the fire and looked at him with calm, gentle mint green eyes that seemed to say "Everything's going to be fine."

"Trouble sleeping?" asked the woman with a voice soft as wind chimes. The boy placed his hand on the back of his neck to ease his anxiety.

"Yeah, I guess…" he replied softly, his voice clear and crisp as spring water. The woman simply shrugged.

"It's only natural. The time is almost at hand after all." she said. She darted her eyes across the camp, searching for something. "Now where did he get to?" asked the woman. "He went to check the path ahead but that was some time ago…" As if on cue, an enormous, muscular, tan man hopped into view. He wore a dark vest, gray pants, and a pink mohawk. The boy grinned as he saw the man. The man crossed his beefy arms and winked at the boy.

"Ahoy! Are you two done sawin' logs?" asked the man in a hearty brass voice. "I was out reconnin… uh… re-reconnerin…"

"You mean 'scouting', right?" corrected the boy.

"Err… yeah, scoutin'! Ain't no doubt about it; this is definitely the place." He turned to the boy, who was rubbing the last bit of sleep from his eyes.

"You got enough rest? It's high time we shove off." said the man. The blond woman flicked some hair out of her face and stood up next to the man.

"He's right. We've nothing to gain from dallying here. It's been a long journey, but our goal is finally in sight. We have no choice but to press on." she said firmly. The boy nodded in agreement.

"Let's do this, Storm! The Dread Fiend ain't gonna defeat himself." The man laughed and gave Storm a hearty slap on the back, then walked away. The blond woman turned to him saying,

"The fate of the entire world rests in our hands. If we can emerge victorious, peace will be restored. Come, Storm. We must go." The blond woman walked to a clearing.

"Alright, I'll catch up with you in a moment." said Storm. He picked up his scabbard and drew his sword, which glistened sliver in the moonlight, and looked at his reflection on the blade. He was going to come back from this battle alive, people depended on him. He had to. Storm withdrew the blade back into its scabbard and slipped it on to his back. Storm extinguished the fire and kicked the scorched wood and ash into the woods, making sure there was no evidence of a camp there. Then, he followed his friends into a clearing.

Storm emerged into a large grey ravine with gloomy thunder clouds underneath. He was excited about the upcoming battle, but couldn't help being a little anxious too. What if things didn't go as planned? What if he didn't return? Storm shook his head at himself to think such silly things. He brushed his anxiety away and approached the woman. He tapped her on the shoulder saying, "I'm ready."

The woman's eyes were no longer green and gentle, but now hard pieces of jade that glittered in the moonlight. "The last leg of our journey awaits us." said the woman with an icy edge to her voice. She reached into her leather bag and took out a gold ocarina. "If the legends are true, all that is left is to play this ocarina." The woman walked to the edge of the ravine while Storm and the man watched from a distance. She tossed it into the air and caught it like an expert. "Well… here goes nothing." she whispered. The woman placed her lips to the ocarina's mouthpiece and began to play a hauntingly, beautiful song.

The music filled Storm's body with a deep sense of calm and then, like a sigh, left him. Beautiful… thought Storm as he ran over to meet the woman while the man followed suit. There was a pause.

Suddenly, a faint roar pierced the still night air and the little party looked up. A silhouette of a large creature circled the moon and flapped down to meet them. The creature was a dragon with flashing emerald-green eyes, golden scales, bronze wings, and two long horns that looked like they were carved from black marble.

The dragon roared once more to announce its arrival and moved a little closer to the edge of the ravine. Storm hopped on first, then the woman, and, with a little hesitation, the man jumped on last. Storm ran his hands down the dragon's neck. It didn't even feel like real flesh, it felt more like steel. The dragon cocked its ear towards him, waiting for commands.

"Fly." whispered Storm and pointed towards a gloomy shape in the distance. The dragon roared once more and flapped its powerful wings up into the night. Then, with great speed, flew towards the direction Storm had pointed. The man looked sick and hung on to the dragon's sides for dear life. The woman was silent and her expression was unreadable as she stared at the rapidly approaching castle. Storm smiled and laughed with glee as he grasped the mighty beast's horns and felt the wind whip past his body. Within minutes, the little group was circling the highest tower of an ugly, crumbling castle.

"Land here." Storm commanded. The dragon gave him a toothy grin and descended towards the castle entrance.

The little party entered the castle and emerged into a nicely decorated vestibule with a red velvet carpet, purple satin curtains, and white marble candle holders. Storm and his friends wandered the room and tried opening a few doors, but, to their dismay, would stay firmly shut no matter how hard they pushed or pulled.

"Hey." The man whispered loudly. "Look what I've found." It was an entrance, swung wide open seeming to welcome visitors.

"Nice work." Storm whispered to the man and he beckoned the others to follow him. As he went through the entrance suspicion prickled at the back of his neck. Why was this door open and the others were firmly shut. Storm pushed this thought to the back of his mind as the group walked in silence through a nicely decorated foyer.

The Dread Fiend should really think about being an interior designer, Storm thought to himself. The woman quickly walked up to his side.

"Storm?" said she.

"Yes?" Storm replied.

The woman looked around suspiciously and whispered, "Have you noticed we haven't seen a single monster yet?"

Storm narrowed his eyes. "Come to think of it, I hadn't seen a single monster ever since we camped, not even a Slime…"

"Do you think it's a trap?"

He didn't say anything. Finally, Storm replied, "If I were the Dread Fiend, I would set traps, or maybe he got so scared of us coming he just abandoned the castle altogether."

"Mmmm…"

The group ascended some stone stairs and they found themselves face-to-face with a large, ghastly looking door. It was made of black wood, with a gold symbol on the front, and brass handles. Storm reached for one of the brass handles, but the woman stopped him.

"Storm wait!"

His hand froze in midair. "What is it?" he asked.

"The Dread Fiend awaits us beyond this door, I can sense it." The woman replied.

"It's do or die time Storm. Are you ready?" said the man. Storm smiled confidently.

"Ready as I'll ever be." said Storm and he pushed open the door.

The group cautiously walked into the room, which was full of some sort of thick, sliver mist. Storm cautiously walked forward and turned around to see if his friends were following him. To his surprise, they weren't there.

Suddenly, the doors shut tight behind him, enveloping the room in darkness.

"Wha- What's going on!?" Storm heard the woman scream.

"What's with this mist? I can't see a damned thing! Storm! Storm, where are you?!" the man yelled.

"I'm over here!" Storm yelled back.

"Where's here? This damned mist!" the man yelled. Storm suddenly realized he had absolutely no idea where he was. He could be in the middle of the room or in the back, he had no clue. Struggling to keep calm, Storm drew his sword and yelled his challenge.

"Dread Fiend! Quit hiding and show yourself Whoa!" His feet were suddenly lifted off the ground and it felt as if an invisible rope was attached to his chest and pulling him upward. Shocked, Storm dropped his sword, which landed on the ground with a noisy clatter. He heard the man scream but still couldn't see him.

Panic welled up inside him as he struggled to get free. But Storm's body was frozen in a painful, unnatural position. For Storm, it was difficult to breathe.

He was suddenly drawn in sharply towards (what seemed) a purple velvet throne. Slowly lifting his head, he saw blood-red eyes that seemed to stare into his soul.

"Storm!" the woman screamed in a sort of strangled way. Storm coughed harshly but couldn't reply. The red eyes narrowed in amusement as a harsh, croakey voice filled the dark room.

"Blar-har-har! Did you really think it would be this easy? Fools! Prepare to spend the rest of eternity as useless lumps of stone!"

"Damn you… to hell… Murdaw…." Storm managed to choke out the words.

The red eyes bobbed back and forth and chanted something in a demonic language Storm couldn't understand. He suddenly began to spin round' and round'. He grimaced at his sealed fate. The woman was right all along, they were walking directly into a trap. Storm had been blind to it all.

Suddenly, he couldn't feel his legs. He looked down and, to Storm's horror; saw that his legs have been turned entirely into stone. The stone was quickly creeping up his chest. Storm opened his mouth to scream, but his jaw was suddenly frozen in place. Blackness enclosed his vision and he could feel himself falling…falling…falling…. He suddenly landed on something painfully hard and heard a scream. "Aaaaaagh!"

xxxxx

(Hope you enjoyed this, R&R, Thanks! -Halfmoon22)