Prologue

A Royal Scheme To End Them All

Ziran approached the great alter with caution; he knew if he stepped falsely, he would instantly awaken the tree guardians. His head was downcast for that very reason as he watched his own tapered, narrow foot press lightly upon a rune-etched stone. The next rune in the sequence was 'Ersha' the great black bird.

Again he watched cautiously, as the ball of his white-blue foot tapped the square tile untrustingly. Slowly but surely, he made his way across the room to the great alter. Although Ziran had been to see the great elf lord Nvernias many times before, the grand splendor of the room in which he was now standing never failed to amaze him.

The whole room, like much of the castle, was made purely out of square stone tiles. However, a beautiful, evergreen ivy filled this room, dangling from the high ceiling and walls. The floor of the throne room was composed of the same smooth stones, only with runes engraved upon them bearing the many different animals of the Evergreen Forest. The floor gave way every twenty feet or so to large, circular holes that allowed for the trees to peak through. The trees mostly feathered off into treetops, since Ziran now stood in the topmost room of the elven castle. The room had the distinct feel of a forest, and was furthered even more by the throne at the back. The throne itself was at least eighteen feet tall and shaped like an enormous armchair. The entire throne had been carved out of pure jade and donned oak-leaf etchings, and was dotted with occasional emerald for decorations. Indeed the room was beautiful, but it was deadly as well. Perhaps the danger was what kept most of the dark elves from visiting their king; that or the fear of him ….

The dangers of the room were numerous. Firstly, to get to the throne itself unharmed, there was a specific code of runes that one had to step on in a certain order. If you so much as brushed a wrong stone, you were subjected to death by means of whatever trap lie connected to that rune. Ziran cringed involuntarily. There were spikes that came up out of the floor, the ceiling came down, arrows shot out of the walls, poisonous gases sprayed out from around the edges of the tiles, various curses and magics, and of course the tree guardians…. Most outsiders wouldn't know, but the trees in the room came alive and became quite fearsome foes when the elf lord summoned them.

Ziran reached the throne and bowed low before the regal dark elf before him. Two heavily armored dark elves stood on either side of the King and glowered at him through their black-iron masks. The one to the left of Lord Nvernias spoke in a menacing and gruff voice,"State your business to your majesty, and make it quick".

Ziran lowered his head humbly so that his sheet of long, sleek navy blue-black hair fell into his face. He spoke quickly."Ziran BlackMoon, here on my Lord's summons."

Although he could not see, Ziran heard both guards turn to Lord Nvernias.

"At ease guards. Arise Ziran, I've a task for you."

Ziran found his feet and did a standing bow, lingering several moments longer than he should have.

"I've not the time for formalities BlackMoon," Lord Nvernias snapped.

Ziran frowned."Forgive me, exalted one, I am your servant. Ask what you will of me."

Ziran took a quick glance at Lord Nvernias. He was just as menacing as Ziran had last seen him three days ago. Because dark elves were naturally tall, it was not unusual for Lord Nvernias to be his height of 7' 3". As common though this extreme of height was, Lord Nvernias' only added to his menacing appearance. Lord Nvernias was clad from head to toe in his usual pure black velvet mage robe, which was accompanied by a large golden breast plate that had been fastened over it. The large skull, made purely from white diamonds that adorned his breastplate matched the king's skin tone perfectly. Lord Nvernias' skin was pale white, with only traces of the normal elfish blue. These attributes, coupled with his sharp and pointed features made him look somewhat vampirish. His long, slender, and pointed elf ears fell back midway into his purely black hair, which stretched all the way to the small of his back. Lord Nvernias' body was lean and yet, definitely muscular as years of warfare had shaped it to be. Despite years of battles, somehow his magic had also preserved his skin and kept it constantly smooth, unscarred, and youthful.

Lord Nvernias locked his cold, chilling black eyes upon Ziran, and let them linger there for a moment. Those empty, pitiless eyes sent a shiver through Ziran's spine before he involuntarily looked away. Lord Nvernias clapped his hands sharply."Leave us now," he said with his sly, dangerous drawl.

The guards merely looked at him dumbly for a moment before hastily falling over themselves to obey them. Ziran watched them scramble carefully over to the large red-wood double doors and out into he hallway beyond.

Lord Nvernias scowled."Fools left the door open again, I guess I will teach them a lesson about careless later," he said cruelly with a slight smile playing at his lips.

Lord Nvernias waved his hand effortlessly and the heavy wooden doors slammed shut upon creaking hinges. He waved his other hand and a large wooden barricade magically picked itself up off the ground and slid into place behind the door."Now then," the dark elven king said, turning to face Ziran, "to business. Have a seat."

A large, leather armchair materialized beside Ziran and he hastily sat to avoid his knees from clattering. Ziran expected Lord Nvernias to sit as well, but he remained standing and started to pace. The King broke the silence at last.

"Have you ever read upon the dragon campaign, Ziran?" he asked quietly, apparently deep in thought.

Ziran racked his memory and found the knowledge there."Yes my Lord. The war between the humans and the winglies was it not?"

The King nodded."Yes, unfortunately the humans won and that's why we elves and other magical races have to hide in remote places…because they can't accept to be governed."

"But it was probably because of the brutality of the winglies that they feel that way," Ziran interjected stupidly.

"Do not interrupt me, Ziran!" Nvernias snapped. "But that's not the point. Can you tell me which you hate more? Humans or Winglies?" Lord Nvernias sneered. Ziran shook his head blankly, not understanding where this was going.

"I thought so. My point, Ziran, is that humans are not worthy of the position of power that they're in," the regal dark elf said suggestively.

"So my Lord, what are you saying?" Ziran asked quietly from his chair as he shifted uncomfortably.

"They should be eliminated. And when they are gone, the power that they hold will be given to the strongest magical race…."

"My Lord, kill the humans? All of them? There are not enough elves in the world to complete such a task!" Ziran cried out in shock before he could restrain himself.

Lord Nvernias scowled."I told you not interrupt me."

In one, swift movement the King had balled his fist and hit Ziran , catching him under the jaw. Ziran BlackMoon's body followed the motion of the punch; he soared headfirst out of his chair, arched over backwards, and landed ungracefully in a crumple heap in front of the Jade throne. Lord Nvernias grinned broadly.

"For a dark elf, and a general of my army, you are most un-agile. Now then…."

Ziran picked himself up off the floor and was wracked with pain so severe, that he fell to one knee cringing.

"Get up immediately or suffer a more painful strike. For a general of my army you are most pathetic!"

Ziran winced heavily as he picked himself up and clutched his broken jaw.

"A slight reminder for you to mind your tongue in the presence of your King. Now then, let me explain your orders. There is an object of great importance in the nearby water city of Furni, it is called the sun stone. Listen carefully, the stone is hidden somewhere within the town, and he only clue we've got as to its whereabouts is a line in an old journal that was recovered a few years ago. The text read:

And so the blazing stone of sun was set into the ocean's horizon, the city sinking into the water, forever gleaming to the hall and calling to its key.

You and your elite will find this stone for me, and when you have accomplished this, you will report back to me with the stone. You have half a year's time to find the stone, and I will be checking upon your progress every week. Take this," Lord Nvernias commanded as he held out a solid black wristband made of leather with a small skull made of diamonds fastened securely in the center. "You shall report to me through this. Push the skull down and throw the bracelet into the air. The skull will shriek when you are to report or are receiving a connection.

Ziran wordlessly took the communicator with apparent reluctance and gave Lord Nvernias a questioning look. Why me? Ziran thought to himself with an inward sigh.

Lord Nvernias actually smiled a cruel smile."Because you are in charge of my best tracking legion, Ziran. Oh, don't look so surprised, did you forget I have the ability to read minds?"

Ziran frowned with his bloody mouth."No, of course you didn't," the dark king said mockingly. "You and your troops shall leave the first thing tomorrow morning. If you should fail me, you shall die. No matter where you run, I will follow. However, if you succeed, and of course you will, you shall be rewarded with anything you desire. And if you succeed, the importance of the sun stone will soon become apparent to you. Yes…I see you questioning my objectives in your mind… Know this, the object you seek has the power to change lives and when given the right circumstances will do extraordinary things…now go. Prepare for your departure, and you're bleeding on my floor…." he said threateningly.

Ziran bowed instinctively and left without hesitation. Putting two and two together, he knew that the sun stone was probably going to be used to destroy the humans….

Lord Nvernais waited until Ziran was long gone and then effortlessly levitated into the air. Waving his hand, a pale blue mist drifted out and onto the throne room walls. Ice covered the smooth stones the minute the mist touched them. As Lord Nvernias hovered above the trapped floor he heard the clicking of arrows and all around him, cracks appeared in the ice walls with arrows trapped behind them. The traps had been both a bright and stupid idea, Nvernias thought. The arrows were set to shoot anything moving that was not on the ground, including him. He would have to magically alter them later. He reached the large doors and landed softly again.

Lord Nvernias wound his way through the snake-like corridors of the dark elven palace, passing several guards that immediately fell to their knees before him on his way to his chambers. He rounded a final corridor and came into the room of a circular tower that was seemingly empty except for two suits of black-iron armor on either side of the tower, a few randomly placed torches, and a small arched window framed in stone.

Lord Nvernias felt the breeze drift gently into his wafting hair from the open window before he stepped onto the window sill. He closed his eyes and stepped off the window ledge of the castle tower calmly. He opened his eyes and an invisible ledge held him suspended in the air. Lord Nvernias stepped up and was supported by another ledge of the invisible staircase. The King of dark elves continued walking up the staircase, his ebony hair billowing in the breeze, until he reached the cloud-line. The hazy mist that was a cloud swirled around him and then lifted him like a feather higher and higher into the clouds.

When the cloud elevator came to a halt, a great stone tower, that spiraled like a screw, loomed before Lord Nvernias. Upon reaching the doors, which were made solidly out of iron and produced many, protruding metal spikes, Lord Nvernias placed his hand on the doorknob, a human skull that started to shriek loudly but silenced upon his touch and lowered its jaw bone. A grotesque clicking sound was heard, followed by the opening of heavily barricaded doors. Lord Nvernias walked quietly up the winding staircase, despite the many live skeletons chained to the walls that ceased their screaming to watch him walk by.

At the end of the spiral staircase, lie yet another door. This door was solid jet-black in color, except for a small perfectly square gold plate with a small, oddly shaped keyhole. Lord Nvernias pulled back the hem of his black mage robe and pulled a small, ivory skull-shaped ring off his equally ivory-toned hand. Lord Nvernias inserted the skeletal face of his ring into the keyhole, and with a soft click, the door opened into a gloomy stone bedroom.

The stones of the walls that made up the frame of the room had been blackened by age, and now, supported quite a number of old, rusted chains and quite a few blood-stains. There was one window in the triangular room arched like the rest of the castle windows, but it was completely unseen through the thick, black velvet drapes. Although there was no window, parallel to the first set of drapes, on the opposite wall, was a second set, which shielded a small, petrified wood cabinet full of various powerful magic objects. Against the very backmost wall was a four-poster canopy bed, with a thin layer of transparent layer of silk before the thick black curtains on each side. There were two petrified wood nightstands on either side of the bed, one supported a large, dark crystal ball on a stand made out of bone, and the other table top donned a large stand, with two-skeletal stands holding a darkly attractive long-sword.

The entire blade was made of a raven tint of platinum and was razor-sharp and double-bladed all the way into the hilt. The wings of the hilt at the base of the blade twisted into spirals, with one spiral strand gold, the other black. Both ended in golden carvings of skulls with glistening obsidian eyes and mouths. Going up the hilt, the texture was the same as the wings; deep, and etched in spiral grooves of gold and onyx. The hilt of the sword ended in the same type of golden skull, only enlarged, on the pommel.

Lord Nvernias turned his back to his bed and began to unfasten the clasps of his breastplate. He had just finished unclasping his armor and held it in his right hand, when he spoke aloud, without moving.

"Having fun Kyrn? I should have known; you appear every other time than when you are summoned. You are more of a plague than an assistance," he snarled under his breath."What news, demoness? Hurry up, I'm in no disposition to listen to you ramble on about nothing, wasting my time," he continued coldly and irritably. Every time that she-demon appeared, she always gave him the worst headache he could only remove with magic.

"Touchy, touchy, Mr.-high-and-mighty-king…that's the problem with royalty, they are all so hurried. Stress will kill you, NV!" came a cackly, high-pitched, and feminine voice from behind the bed curtains.

"Silence! Enough of your feeble chatter! Get to the point or I will send you back to devildom!" Lord Nvernias snarled. His aura flared, and suddenly his fists burst magically into flame.

There was a hysterical, yet sarcastic gasp and then the front curtain of the bed parted. The demoness Kyrn peered out at him."Okay, fine. Sheesh!"

Kyrn's body was surprisingly human-like. She was about 5'8" tall and very slender. Her body curved like an hourglass and her rather large busts only added to the attractiveness of her figure. Her face was just as slender as her body right down to her chin, which was pointed. Her features were small, but rounded. Her nose was set high on her face as well as her cheeks. The high set of her face framed her pointed and slightly slanted dark black eyes. Her face was perfectly accompanied by her thin, pointy elfish ears and her thigh-length navy blue-black hair. However, unlike a human, her skin was ashen gray, her delicate-looking fingers and toes ended in long, sharp, and sloth-like claws; her dark, evil, black/red eyes were slanted and her thin, blue lips concealed pointy snake's fang teeth. In addition to these abnormalities, Kyrn also sported two thin, spiraling antelope's horns about a foot long each from her mid-forehead and a thick gray tail that ended in a bladed point; and the large, 20' wing span of her blue-folded, bat-like wings made her anything but human.

Kyrn stepped gracefully, or slinked rather, off Lord Nvernais' bed and straitened herself before him. Kyrn's outfit caught Lord Nvernias' attention. She was wearing a very short, purely black leather skirt that barely covered her buttocks and a low-cut, equally revealing leather corset. Her bare midriff was also exposed, showing a small ruby that she had placed in her belly button. Kryn caught wind of the elf lord's attentions and stretched herself flauntingly.

"You know, NV, I know just what you need to relax…." she said eyeing him lustfully.

Lord Nvernias glowered at her before tensing his fist threateningly."Yes, hearing your report might," he said with clear annoyance in his tone.

"Are you sure….?" She began playfully.

"NOW!" The regal dark elf through a fire-enhanced kick at the demoness that she barely dodged. The heat trail could still be felt. An ugly, varicose vein was throbbing in Lord Nvernias' temple as he slowly repeated himself. "The report, Kryn. Do not make me wait any longer, or you'd do well to leave here alive."

Kryn however, seemed unshaken."Fine, keep your robe on," she sighed.

"Start with the progress of our demon allies," he said impatiently.

"I have spoken with several off the head demons in the devildom and they are still uncertain as to the action that they will take. They say you must show proof that your plan will work before they will join you," Kryn said plainly.

Lord Nvernias frowned."A minor problem that will soon be remedied. They will support us once we have all the objects. What about the winglies?" Lord Nvernias asked, moving on.

Kyrn took a deep breath and continued with her report."Well, there aren't as many as we would have hoped, but there are a handful that support us."

Lord Nvernias' frown deepened."How much less?" he asked darkly.

Kryn looked down."About three-fourths less. The handful of them are also lead by someone else as well…his name is Dashen Bardel Jr. He said they would join you, but only if he could still command the winglies. . . ."

Lord Nvernias sneered."Less than half the number of winglies expected and on conditions! You were supposed to be promoting our ideals Kyrn! Not flirting in a local bar!" He raised his fist threateningly.

"It isn't my fault!" she protested, covering herself. "The market for ideals is not without competition! There was another person there, she was preaching love and understanding of humans--thinking about it makes me want to puke-- she was telling her story of how she traveled with humans. . . ."

"Why didn't you stop her?" Lord Nvernias snarled.

"Well . . . I . . .umm. . . There was this cute wingly guy behind her. . . ."

"IDOIT!"Lord Nvernias kicked Kryn again, catching her square in the midriff. She flew into the air and spread her demon wings to break the fall. She cringed and looked back at Lord Nvernias in terror.

"Tell me, what was this wingly's name? We'll have to teach her a lesson when our more pressing matters are settled."

"What?" Kryn squeaked.

"Her name Kryn!"

"Oh yes. . . Right. Some wingly named Meru . . ."

Lord Nvernais' rage exploded."Meru! MERU ZANUM!?! Kryn, she is a DRAGOON! This is most severe. I'll send Ziran to deal with her as well. . ."

The cowering demoness whimpered. "I guess I'll go now . . ." Kryn fluttered in the direction of the window, slightly hunched over.

Lord Nvernias pressed his thumb and forefinger to his temple and began rubbing his aching head."Not so fast, aren't you forgetting something?" The most important thing?"

Kryn winced with her back to him"Important thing? I. . . I don't think. . . oh yes. That. . . "

Lord Nvernias scowled.

"On with it, you ignorant she-devil!"

"Okay, okay, just don't hit me again, or I swear I'll just up and leave and you can plan your world domination by yourself!"

Lord Nvernias went livid."You moronic succubus! How dare you say such things to me! It was I who rescued you from your captivity! You are bound by sacred laws to serve me for eternity, therefore, such an action on your part is not possible!"

Kyrn's thin, blue lips twisted into a sinister smile."The fact that you will not allow me to leave means you need me. You wouldn't be half of what you are without me," she said proudly.

Lord Nvernias' face wrinkled with rage."You? Give me a grub worm! Anything BUT you! If it weren't for YOU and your stupid lust for every man you see I would already have all the divine objects! And if it weren't for ME, you'd still be in a crystal listening to old men, women, and children talk about the divine tree all day! Now, tell me about the Divine Dragoon and the Moonchild!"

Kyrn snorted; it seemed he had won the argument yet again."Fine. Well you'll undoubtedly pleased to hear that the Divine Dragoon spirit still exists and is still in the hands of the same sap that fought with it originally, Dart Feld. And equally good for you, the moonchild, Shana Feld, is his wife. And they are both in the same place, Seles. Happy now?"

Lord Nvernias said nothing, but looked away apparently deep in thought. His blank expression slowly turned sour.

Kryn sighed in frustration."What? I thought you'd be happy that you could kill two birds with one stone!"

Lord Nvernias replied quietly,"This may prove a definite challenge. . .Dart Feld is the warrior that killed Melbu Frahma. He is experienced in the use of the Divine Dragoon's powers and I doubt he would come with us quietly. To fight his powers would exhaust my resources. I also severely doubt his wife would surrender either, and he is sure to protect her. But may be. . . Since the moonchild's powers only activate when the host body is in danger, it would be possible to kidnap the woman while she is alone. Her powers wouldn't prevent her capture. . . . Once we have her, as a warrior, her husband is sure to come after her. . . . That settles it. Kryn, send a demon to spy on her, when she is alone, have it notify us. You may go now."

Kyrn breathed a sigh of relief. "Whatever you say." She opened the tower window and jumped out. Flapping her bat-like wings she resurfaced into the window view. "Two questions NV," she called out from the window.

"I thought I made your orders clear," he spat from where he still stood in front of his bed.

The airborne demoness was unfazed."You said this Meru I saw was another dragoon? So what of the other dragoons? And what makes you think that your plan will not turn out like Frahma's?"

"Because, unlike Frahma, who sought to pull the power into himself, I will pull the power into another and be the only one that can control them. If I am killed, the power will become chaotic and no one can kill the creature I can create. And as for the dragoons, throughout time, they have always had one major weakness. Their compassion for each other. The bodies may change, but the souls are the same. Do you really think they could kill one of their own? The one dragoon that had the strength to do so was destroyed. She sacrificed herself along with her lover to kill Melbu. The dark dragoon . . . Yes. And the red-eye dragoon too. I've done my homework and studied hard. It's been thirty years since Frahma's attempt to strip the humans from the power they can't handle or deserve. I've studied his mistakes and I will not repeat them," he hissed.

Kyrn shrugged."Got it all figured out then? That's something I like about you." She flew out of sight before he could reply.

It had been a long day and the King was still no closer to obtaining his objectives. The king finished undressing and went bed before anymore frustration could take hold.