Hello! Welcome to my first fanfic! It's based on Square-Enix's Dragon Quest 6. I wrote this based on my memory, so excuse me if Carver and Milly don't say exactly what they said in this part of the game. Just note that this was based on the DS remake, if it makes a difference. And this was written on a non-profit basis by me and me alone. Reviews greatly appreciated!

Prologue

As soon as I woke up, I knew something was wrong. Maybe it was the absence of my bed. Maybe it was the night (or perhaps it was just malevolently cloudy? It's hard to tell the difference.) sky above my head. Maybe it was the camping fire and unfamiliar young woman, who despite my previous statement, felt strangely familiar, right next to where I lay. Maybe it was the sword, lying right next to me. Maybe it was the fact that my hair was now spiky and blue. Whatever it was, I felt weird. I wasn't in my home. I wasn't in any place I even recognized! Where the hell was I? I sat up, gathering my thoughts.

"Trouble sleeping?"

The young woman had a voice like a hardened up nightingale. A nightingale that could fight. A nightingale that wouldn't take any shit from anyone. All I could do was nod.

"Don't worry about that, it's only natural, so close to the end," she said, sending chills down my spine. I didn't know what she was talking about, but still, chills.

"Where could he have got to? He went out hours ago!"

Once again, her voice mesmerized me, drew me in. There was something oddly seductive about her. Just as I was about to break free of my own gaze, I saw her hair. Beautiful, blonde, and the most delicate looking thing I've ever seen. But even more amazing than her hair or even her perfectly formed face and chestnut brown eyes, was her choice of clothing. It was very comfortable-looking, and very mobile. And yet, the way the colours and shapes flowed together created a very beautiful and appealing look. A ribbon flowed around her, seemingly as a part of her. I forced myself to concentrate on something else.

I eventually brought my attention to my own attire. It was almost as strange as my blue hair. I wore the clothes of something in between a peasant and a nobleman. I wore a long turquoise vest, under which an orange robe could be seen. I wore a belt with an unusual crest on the gold buckle. I also noticed I was wearing an earring, a kind of necklace that clasped on, and a small clasped-on bracer, all of which were gold. Besides that, were my fingerless gloves, my tall boots, and my scabbard, which was attached to a belt which I wore like an action hero wears an ammunition belt. I finally turned my attention to my body itself. My face felt about the same, and I was built like I usually was, with the exception that I had well-developed muscles across my body. Man, I looked like I could bend steel!

Just then, a very large, very muscular man bounded down from the trees.

"I've been doing some reconi... reconinin... some scouting, and it looks clear up ahead!" he said, in a loud voice suiting his large appearance. He wore a grey vest, and a sumo wrestler's... thing over the top of his shorts, which would have been full length on any normal-sized man but would dwarf his width. He had a relatively happy demeanour, and- WOAH!

His hair did not belong on this Earth. A thick, fierce, viciously spiky, PURPLE MOHAWK. It looked very sharp and weapon-like. Never mind his muscle-torn body, it looked like he could fell a tree with his hair!

"All set to go, eh Cyrus?"

I realized he was talking to me, despite the fact that my name wasn't Cyrus, it was... It was... Oh crap! I couldn't remember my name! Cyrus had an odd sense of familiarity though, as if the toned, blue-haired body was named Cyrus, but I wasn't.

"Yeah, I'm ready," I finally replied.

"Then let's go! The Dread Fiend ain't gonna defeat himself!"

The two others rushed out of the clearing, leaving me to briefly wonder about this "Dread Fiend".

I got up, and put out the fire. I headed out of the clearing, in the direction of the other two.

. . .

So much for reconnaissance. A short pathway through the trees led out to a cliff. And at the end, the young woman stood.

"This is it, Cyrus," she began. "If the legends are true, then all we need to do is play this ocarina."

Of course, I didn't know what she was talking about.

She tossed the ocarina up in the air, where it spun several times, shone like a star, and dropped back into her hands. Show off.

She began to play. A haunting melody flowed through my ears, danced through my mind, filled my soul with a soft, warm aura, and spiralled back out.

She stopped, and the sensation did also. As the emptiness of life without that music flowed back in, I heard a dull roar.

A large, golden dragon swooped down, and hovered next to the cliff. The young woman leapt on its back, and the burly guy and I followed suit.

The dragon roared once more, a noise far sweeter from a distance. It flapped it's mighty wings at a greater speed, and we were flying. The dragon took many a sharp curve or gentle rise followed by a steep and rapid descent. I suppose friendly dragons were the roller-coasters of medieval times.

After what seemed an age of unnecessary flying, the dragon finally deposited us at the bottom of an unnecessarily long staircase. At the top, a dark and foreboding castle. Behind us, at the bottom, was a sheer cliff face. Oh, joy.

. . .

After the hour long trek up the stairs, (okay, I exaggerate) we finally reached the dark and foreboding entranceway to the dark and foreboding castle. Second thoughts, anyone?

No one even blinked. We (or rather, everyone but me) knew what we were in for. We went inside.

The interior theme suited the cruel exterior. On the outside was dark grey and evil looking red and purple stones. The inside was, well, the same colour scheme, but the more vibrant colours were placed in the carpets and tapestries (or whatever those drape things are) along with a sickly green. It wasn't any better than outside, but instead of being blisteringly hot, it was a bone chilling cold. I shivered, both from the cold and from anticipation.

We ambled our way through the enormous castle. Over rugs, through doorways, climbing staircases, lacking the material for an epic poem or saga...

Lightning flashed as we left the stone roof behind, walking along a parapet, towards a large turret. It towered over us, like a tower, which it technically was.

We neared a dark and ominous door, and a deep feeling passed through me. What kind of feeling? It was... It was... It was indescribable. Words simply can't describe it. It was neither negative, nor positive, nor neutral. It was... It.

"Wait Cyrus! Murdaw awaits behind this door. I can feel it! Are you ready?"

For her, I was born ready. The problem was, I still wasn't sure what I was ready for. I nodded anyway.

"Yeah! What's the point of going through a door like this if you aren't ready to put up a fight afterwards?"

I shrugged. Without much thought, I pushed open the surprisingly light door, and went on through.

I had not gone ten paces before I realized my mistake.

We all abruptly stopped, suddenly feeling the even deeper chill of immobility. A mysterious silhouette observed us with distaste.

"So, you have finally made it here, eh? But it is too soon. You are not yet ready, any of you, to face me! Maybe living the rest of your lives as lifeless lumps of stone will teach you something!"

For a minute I thought he was going to say "living the rest of your lives on Lynx Fast Life Dot Com will fix that", after which I would wake up in front of the TV, realizing that I had seen that ad WAY too much. Sadly, I was wrong. This way felt more exciting though.

As I watched, the three of us (that is, all of us but the shadow) began spinning around and around and around...

Eventually, the burly guy turned into a statue, and vanished in a puff of evil-looking light. Shortly afterwards, the woman met Medusa's curse as well, and vanished in a similar flash. And finally, I felt my own body harden, and began to dissipate.

And the strangest thing crossed my mind. Despite the fact that I had never even been to America, the thought permanently changed my grimace into a smile.

I didn't think I was in Kansas anymore.

End of Prologue

So let me know what you think! Give me advice, tell me how much you love me, troll me, I don't care! (Except for the trolling, I HATE trolls!)