CHAPTER ONE

"It's to dangerous out here. We need to leave now!" Trapped in a caved in cavern two wolves were traveling through a canyon in search of a treasure that hasn't seen the light of day in 4,000 years. "If we leave now we won't get what we came here for. This treasure is going to be the biggest find ever! I need this!" The black haired wolf looked to his friend and placed his paw on his shoulder. "This could change the world as we know it." His friend sighed, "I've been with you these past few years and traveled with you to places I could have only dreamed of, but we are in over our heads here. There is a reason why people don't come here. Look at where we are! We have been trapped in this cave for three days, and we are down to our last rations with no way out of this mess." The black haired wolf knew this was true, but this was not just any treasure like the others. The story of this treasure has been passed down in his family for generations. Each generation has been looking for this and has always come up short. This is the closest anyone's been to finding it. He's going to be the one that finds it at whatever cost. "We will get out of here. I know it." He grabbed his lantern and went to the mouth of the cave where there were boulders blocking it. Looking for any sign of an exit as he has the past few days. "We're trapped here Alizir you know this as well as I do." His friend rubbed his paw through his hair and stood up to walk over to Alizir. "I know there's a way out of this, we've been through worse." Alizir unsheathed his sword and tried to use it as a way to pry his way through the cave in. "It's not going to work just like all the other times. We need to travel deeper into the cave and see if there is a shaft that'll open up to the outside." Frustrated, Alizir finally gave up. "Fine, let's do it Nickolai." They packed up their things and traversed into the darkness.

As they were walking down the cavern looking for any signs of a possible exit they both were thinking about how they got into this situation. They had been reading Alizir's family journal passed down generation to generation. Though the last entry was dated a hundred years ago. From what Alizr could gather his family had given up on the search believing it as never to have existed and lost in the legends of old. Alizir couldn't believe that. His great-granddad never lost faith in its existence. Ever since he could remember he had been entrusted with the journal at a young age, and he read it over a thousand times, or more. Searching through ancient texts that he could gather for any sign of its existence. He had come across Nicholai on one of his journeys in a village to the far north. It was an interesting interaction. He had gotten himself into some trouble in the ruins East of Nicholai's village. The local village spoke of an evil that lived among the ruins and no one dared enter them for fear of a curse would befall the ones that do. Alizir came into the village on an evening asking questions of the history and legends passed down about a treasure said to have powerful magical properties. No one truly knows the purpose it was made just that it had been lost thousands of years ago. The Elder of the village warned him not to enter the ruins saying those who have gone in there never came out. Alizir loved a challenge, and he had the motivation to take the risk. That next morning he left the local Inn preparing his mind for what he might find. 'This has got to be it… Everything points to this location. As he exited the village, he took in the beauty surrounding him. The sun shining upon the crystalized ground blanked by snow that came in the night. Ice forming on the barren trees and snow foxes standing underneath them. A cold wind from the north blowing past him he pulled his cloak over his head and walked down the road leading towards the cursed ruins. The land in the north was definitely worth seeing and Alizir never imagined his journey he set himself on would bring him to such amazing places. A mountain could be seen east from where he was and that is where he believed the Elder said the ruins lie. It appeared to be couple days walk there. As the day passed on sunset drew near. He found what appeared to be a dry spot under a grove of trees. He made his campsite and layed out his bedding. Before heading to bed he marked on the trees around him runes said to grant the person protection from dangers of the night. He has never witnessed such creatures of the night, but in the stories passed down to him spoke of such beings. Once he was finished, he blew out his lantern and put out the fire, and called it a night.

A loud scream pierced the once calm night. Woken from his slumber he quickly grabbed his gear and rushed to the location of what he believed the scream came from. His quiver and bow on his back and his sword at his side, he was ready for anything. Looking for what may have caused the noise he came into a clearing. A young female wolf lying near the center appeared to be injured. He rushed over to her side and looked her over for any noticeable injuries. He found some blood on her muzzle near her mouth. No signs of where it may have come from, or if it was even hers. "Miss, can you hear me?" She didn't move or show any sign that she knew he was there. He leaned in and checked to see if she was still breathing. Feeling the air move from her breathing she was still alive, but barely. The blood may have come from some internal injuries, but he couldn't check the inside of her mouth. "Miss if you can hear me, I'm going to get you to a safe place and out of the open." He picked her up and carried her to his campsite. 'Why was this young lady out in the middle of nowhere at night and what caused her to collapse in that clearing?' he pondered. He laid her down on his bedding and got the fire going again for some extra warmth. He made sure she was comfortable and he himself rested against the side of the tree till morning.

Morning came and the birds were chirping in their nests. Movement came from the tent and a soft voice spoke, "where...where am I?" Alizir woke to the sound of the voice sat up and walked over to the tent. Carefully he opened it up and saw the young wolf slowly raise herself. "Miss are you ok?" The young wolf had a look of fear, "Where am I and who are you? Where did you come from!" Alizir slowly rose his arms in a sign of reassurance, "Miss I found you in a clearing unconscious just on the other side of the trees. I brought you here to make sure you were safe and warm from the cold of the night. Do you have any idea how you ended up out there on your own? I found some blood on you, but couldn't figure out where it came from." A look of confusion showed on her face as she pondered everything. "I don't remember much, I know I was sent out to harvest some herbs that only appear at night and next thing I remember is seeing a dark shadow appear out of nowhere. Then I woke up here in this tent." Alizir walked over to her side and reached into his satchel for one of his potions, "Here drink this. This will make you feel better." She took it showing some trust for the stranger that saved her and drank it. Once she finished it she handed the empty bottle back to him. "I was warned to be careful in these woods and that there have been sightings of strange creatures that lurk under the shadow of the mountain. They have said these woods are cursed due to ancients that used to live in what is now the ruins near the base of the mountain. No one knows why that is the case, but no one ever goes there to seek the truth. Those that do never come back." She sat there in silence still recovering from the incidents from the night before. "Miss do you need me to take you back to the village." She stood up and nodded, "I should be fine as long as I take the main road. Traveling during the day is safe as long as we stick to the main roads. Thank you for the kindness you have shown me." After that, she left. Alizir packed up camp and continued on his way.

A few hours had passed and during that time he pondered over how that girl ended up out in that clearing. 'Her story is a strange one. What was this shadow being that snatched her up and why did she end up in that clearing? Where did that blood come from?' These things were a mystery to him and he may never find an answer. One thing he did know was his main mission was to finally solve the mystery that his family has been seeking answers for hundreds of years. He was finally here… There before him stood once a proud civilization now burnt to a crisp and buildings in rubble. 'I wonder what happened here to cause such destruction?' Alizir wondered as he walked through the streets. Everything around him looked like the life was sucked right out of it. Fog lay all around him and everything looked dark in the shadow of the mountain. Clouds were blocking out the sun as it continued and it appeared more snowfall was on its way. He pulled out his journal and sifted through his notes making sure this was indeed this was the place because nothing looked like would hold such a powerful object. A cold wind hit the back of his neck as he was reading through the pages and a low growl could be heard behind him. He slowly placed his journal back into his satchel and went to reach for the hilt of his sword. Slowly turning around he tried to catch what was behind him out of the corner of his eye, but when he got a good look behind him nothing was there. 'Weird, I could've sworn I heard something.' Shrugged it off he continued working his way through the ruined city. He reached what he believed was the religious site in the center of the city. 'If any clues that could point me in the right direction I can surely find them here.' When he reached the front entrance something felt off. Just like when he had heard that growl from earlier. He was quickly yanked inside the front doors by some unknown entity. A dark beast came crawling itself out of the ground. It had black liquid flowing out of its mouth and bat-like wings on its back. His body appeared to be covered in black fir and burnt flesh. 'What is this thing and where did it come from?' Alizir frightened for his life he quickly pulled his sword to the ready. 'I've come too far to call this the end of my journey!' He charged towards this devilish creature as it came soaring after him.A gust of wind came roaring at the flap of the creature's wings nearly knocking Alizir off his feet. Gripping the hilt of sword tightly he went for an upwards slash and barely missed it's face. The creature belted a deafening screech and swung its claws at his face. Alizir blocked the attack with his sword, but the force of the attack threw him at deadly speeds against the the walls of the room. Coughing up blood from the impact he struggled to stand back up. "I WILL END YOU DEMON!" Running with sheer will power. He leaped into the air angling his sword downward, as he aimed for the head of the creature. It wasn't enough. The creature was too quick. He was knocked out of the air and again thrown across the room. Barely able to open his eyes, all he could see was the creature walking towards him. He knew this was the end and as he was drifting off he saw a bright light fill the room, and that was it.

Birds chirping in the distance and the smell of freshly brewed coffee filled the air. Alizir's body ached all over and with barely any strength he sat up. He found bandages covering his body and confusion set in, 'Where am I and how did I end up here?' "Good morning!" A stranger entered the tent with a plate of food and a cup of coffee in his paws. "Here this should help you get to feeling better," He said as he offered Alizir food and drink. He accepted the offer but wasn't processing what was happening here. 'Is this the afterlife? Am I dead?' Alizir took a sip of the coffee and bit into some of the bread. 'Ahhh sweet black coffee and buttered bread. This is most definitely heaven.' He smiled like a little kid on Christmas day. "You took quite a beating back there. Not many people survive an attack from a banshee. You are quite an amazing person if I'm honest," the stranger chuckled. Taking another sip of his coffee, "Was that you who caused the light back there?" He pushed back some of his hair and gave a devilish smile, "You bet! Banshees aren't fans of daylight. You are lucky I was passing by and heard the commotion."

"Hey look a way out!" Alizir quickly looked up and saw Nicholai running towards what appeared to be daylight piercing through a crack in the cavern wall. Alizir smiled and shed a tear in his eye. Thinking what a great friend he made that day just a short few years ago. He ran towards his friend and they both walked into the daylight together. 'We are going to find this treasure and change the world together…'