Chapter 1

Hey, how's everybody? I re-wrote this chapter because I found there was too much info jammed into it. It should be better now, so enjoy and don't forget to review!

Purple eyes watched from behind the dense undergrowth of the dark forest watched her prey scramble to get away from an unknown threat it could not see. The child watched silently, cracking a smile at the prey's attempt to run away. She felt it's fear, it's terror, it's desire to survive. She followed it soundlessly, not uttering a word or a single sound except the soft whisper of the magik language. Black hair was rustled in the wind, the trees blocked any powerful winds from harming the child, but allowed a small breeze to carry her hair through the darkening sky.

It was twilight, but the child didn't mind. She was used to being avoided and even taught to laugh and taunt her prey if it ever tried to run away or intimidate her. Her family was rejected from society for the sole purpose that they used Dark Magic. After a while, the child's family was also known for murder, even if it was accidental, but the villagers didn't care at this point. It was just another reason to throw the 'Dragon' Family out of the village for good.

A few years had passed since then, and the child reflected deeply on the matter, still on the hunt for her terrified prey. She crept through the woods and accidently stepped on a twig, causing all the nearest animals to get agitated. Some ran like cowards. She closed her eyes and listened, waiting. She waited for the sounds of terror, the sounds of fleeing prey, the sound of rushing feet, the sounds of heavy breathing, but nothing came to her ears. This confused the child, as she believed she was relatively deep in the forest, but she was wrong. She could hear the sound of burning wood nearby, as well as the start of a heavy rainfall. She looked around, wanting to find the source of the sound, but when she looked up to the sky she gasped in horror.

The sky was on fire, almost literally as the rain reflected the glow of the flames engulfing a wooden house. The beautiful twilight turned to yellow, then orange and finally a deep red. Tears welled up in her violet eyes as she ran towards the burning structure that was her home. Her family was inside, but she couldn't find the courage to say or do anything. The child slumped down on to the wet grass and sat in front of her burning house, wanting to do anything, but was unable to even move as she cried. Her parents had tried to make her tough, to never cry, but this was too much for the child to withstand. Losing a friend was acceptable, but her family... Dark hair stuck to her face from the rain that descended endlessly from the sky. She had gone playing out later than usual when she knew she wasn't supposed to and came back to find her family's house on fire. No one was found, no bodies, no ashes, no bones, nothing. In the morning, nothing was salvageable.

The child turned her back on the house, finding no need in crying anymore, and headed towards the closest village she could find. However, it wasn't as welcoming as she'd thought it would've been. Everyone either walked right by her, gave her a glance she knew was hatred, or even beat her up before leaving. In the distance, a lonely tower could be seen, standing alone in the forest. She came across a few animals, a few werewolves attacked her along her way to the lonely tower, but she managed to bypass all her obstacles. When she made it to the tower, she soon forgot about the village. She forgot about everything. All she wanted was to be alone, all she ever wanted was to thrive and surpass everything that lived. She wanted to be the greatest Dark Mage in the land of Ars Magika, just like her mother was. The child strode near the tower, walking what seemed like miles over what felt like hours. She didn't know what to think after she saw the fire. She would've stopped it, but she didn't know how. Even the rain had only seemed to intensify the fire instead of putting it out. All she ever wanted was to do something right, but she couldn't. She was born in a family of Darkness, and there for looked down upon by the other kids. Even the adults. She wanted to be useful, but her brothers reminded her that she was useless. When she saw the fire, she felt useless, she wanted to hide from it. She didn't know how to react, she didn't know what to do. Only now did she know her brothers were right.

When the child finally reached the tower, she had found more than just an empty building. She had found more than just solitude. She had found Spell Tomes, robes, and even a new life for herself. Now, she could finally do someone useful. She could do something. She had been told her whole life she was meant for darkness, and maybe now was the time to embrace it.

A few years later...

A lone figure tread through the gravel roads that would lead her to her house, the tall tower in the distance could be seen in the darkening sky. Her robes swished around her ankles and just touched the gravel road. She was glad not to have to worry about chasing people out of the vast forest she had come to own, as the tower's powerful dark aura kept them away and the rumors about it kept them at bay. Not that it mattered much to her, they were already scared of her, with or without the rumors. Her name was enough to send a town into panic, her figure enough to send a town into emergency lock down, and her voice enough to actually clear a town. She looked at the sky and noticing the darkness descending rather quickly, picked up her pace.

She went down the road at a slow jog, wanting more than ever to get her hands on the legendary artifacts that were rumored to have reappeared once again. The excitement got the best of her and she started to run, even if she didn't need or want to. When word moved around that a bunch of Dark Mages had found a legendary artifact, she decided to gather more information for herself to use and the closest place to find that information so happened to be in town. She found it insulting that people claimed them as a myth, a children's tale to scare them into cowering from the arcane arts, but she knew better. She knew that they were real. She had proof, and she wanted to keep it a secret. Right now, she was like every other Dark Mage, hungry for the power and knowledge that these artifacts were rumored to hold. Her information on them was low and limited, and she was on the hunt for anything that could direct her to one of the legendary artifacts.

As she passed by a few houses, she caught a few exchanged words from the local villagers, speaking about something that peeked her interest in the slightest, she decided to slow her pace to listen.

"Have you heard? The Darkness in Ars Magika is returning to us. The Mages have started to turn on each other for their needless search of power and fame, calling themselves the Dark Clans, if I'm not mistaken. It's a pointless scandal, really." One of the villagers said, his voice was low but he couldn't hide his distaste for the Dark Mages from her. Her teeth showed as she smiled broadly, stopping her walk to lean on a nearby house to stay out of their sight and listen in. 'So, it's already started? The Dark Mages have finally decided to gather again?'

"Yeah, I also heard that they're looking for artifacts they call Puzzles. What a useless bunch, scrambling over each other for a little puzzle. They fight for power, but why the hell would they want a puzzle for? To calm themselves? What a bunch of netherbrains. But rumor around town says they're looking for someone with the name of 'Dragon'-" The villagers looked around, seeing nothing yet obviously feeling watched. A pair of purple eyes followed their every move and ears took in every word. After hearing the name, she smashed her fist against the wall she leaned on, making it crumble to dust as she furiously walked away.

She stalked pas a few houses, making the villagers inside cower in fear. She weaved through buildings, and eventually made it to her desired location. The library. She turned the handle and walked inside, closing the door gently behind her. The librarian was shaking but managed to compose himself enough to speak.

"He-hello...How can...How can I help..you?" He stuttered so terribly she turned to look at him, which only made him shake even more. She shook her shoulders before replying.

"I'm looking for a book. One that contains information, precise information, about the legendary artifacts. Surely you've heard of them, right?" She cooed, trying her best to make the librarian comfortable and feel less...threatened. However, her efforts only seemed to make him feel even more threatened. He nodded and turned towards his many book shelves behind him, looking through a few books before selecting one and handing it to her, his hands shaking madly. She smiled warmly and gently took the book from his shaking hands, first looking at the title.

"Artifacts Found Throughout Time." She took a moment to look at the design. It was covered with a berry blue coloured wool, with bronze boarders and letters. It was a decent size for a book that might contain information about what she was looking for, being about twice as big as the average book and absolutely full of pages, this was the type of book she was looking for. Overall, she already liked it and wanted to keep it, but she didn't want a fraud for a book. She gently opened the cover, smelling the scent of old pages and read through the table of contents. Satisfied, she flipped through a few pages and read the content. She nodded and closed the book, looking at the librarian while twirling an emerald between her fingers.

"Ho...How did...you...?" The librarian was shocked, pointing at her, then the emerald in her hands. She chuckled, making another appear in her hand, then another. The librarian's jaw would've touched the floor if it wasn't tied to his head. She twirled them, tossed them around, and even momentarily made them disappear.

"What do you say? Can I have this book?" She smiled, knowing he had taken the bait. She only had to wait for him to cave in. His green eyes were sparkling, and he was starting to drool over the counter, slowly tipping towards her. Then he composed himself.

"10 emeralds for the book." He said, that sparkle still in his eyes. The girl got her own sparkle in her eyes and she smiled devilishly, apparently he had gotten over his fear of her. She was going to change that.

"4."

"8."

"5."

"Deal." He said. The fear was completely gone from his voice. 'Greedy little bastard.' She made the desired jewels appear in her hand and he jumped up over the counter and grabbed them greedily, not bothering to look at them as he stored them away in his pocket. The girl laughed and walked out of the library, clutching her precious book to her chest. Suddenly, a loud scream came from the library and she laughed out loud, a few villagers moving as far back as they could from her. A name rang through the night, as well as a few other things, being yelled from somewhere behind her.

"It's her! It's her! IT'S ENDER DRAGON!"

"Children! Get away from her!"

"Someone save us!"

What was her reaction? What did she do? Well, Ender only stalked back down the path she came from, smiling when she heard the horrified screams that rang like music through the now dark land of Ars Magika. Her black and white robes dragged slightly across the gravel road, then through the forest ground as she exited the village and entered her domain, her home. She looked up, noticing the full moon. This only made her snicker, as the were-wolves were always on the hunt for prey, which sadly included humans. Their howling was sign that they were present in the forest she'd come to claim as her own.

She laughed once again, heading towards the tower that loomed in the distance, the tower that seemed to blend into the darkness and give off a power of its own.

Wow. It was nice to change some things. It makes it sound more... I don't know, maybe sinister? Interesting? You decide. Have fun, and I'll see you later!

-NilakantaDragonQueen619