Once there was a kingdom amongst mountains rich with ore, crystals, and various other precious minerals. The king and queen had a daughter named Viridis and a son named Kamourlo. Both children were the picture of royalty. They were experts in etiquette at the early ages of five, and their tutors had nothing but praise for their other educational efforts. Vir, as she is commonly called by those close to her, is proficient in the musical arts, favoring piano and violin. Kam is a tad mischievous, but never lets his fun go too far.

The King was a just and wise ruler, despite his age. He was not overly young, but some thought he possessed the wisdom of those much older than he.

The queen was the face of the kingdom, and behind the scenes, has her hand in almost every decision made by the king. Her presence negates the job of the royal advisers, who really are just figureheads.

We enter this story in the royal audience chamber, where the king sits attentively relaxed on his high dais, jeweled rings sparkling in the evening sunset. A man in a hooded cloak bows respectfully before him. It is plain that he has traveled a great distance.

"My liege, I have come upon news that may interest you greatly." the man says. The king nods politely for the man to elaborate. "There is rumored to be a great treasure, in a secret chamber underneath the royal mines. Few know about it. The miners keep it a great secret. But, as you well know, your majesty, great secrets can only be so great as to be known by many." The king lets the man regain his breath before speaking in a neutral tone.

"It is well known by kingdoms far and wide the riches contained in my mountains and hills. It is most certainly one of the main reasons we have an elite military force to secure it, and thus keep the kingdom safe from invasion. I am well aware of what comes out of those mines. I'm sure what you have to tell me will not be as alarming as you seem to think." The man lowers his head briefly, acknowledging the king's words before speaking.

"Yes sire, I understand that full well. But what makes this treasure different, even from that which is naturally contained within your rich mines, is that it is most certainly not natural, and was actually placed there." There was a pause as the king lifted an eyebrow in renewed interest. "Long, long ago, you see, sire." the man amended. The king leaned forward in his lofty throne. Taking advantage of his wife's absence from court while visiting relatives, he wanted to know everything about this treasure before she could draw her plans around it. "Now, I am not positive on the accuracy of this rumor, as I'm sure it's visited many a tavern, but it is said the treasure was placed in the mountain by a creature unlike any other. This monster made its den in the very mountain where the treasure lies, and rumor has it that the way to the treasure can be found somewhere in the royal mines." The spy paused his tale to hear the king's opinion.

"This story...is quite incredible, were it true. But I have to say, and wouldn't you think also, sir, that it sounds a bit far from reality?" the king replied. A servant appeared to hand the king a goblet of wine, but not before tasting it himself, of course.

"Aye, majesty. I too believed it the stuff of children's tales, but it happened to make its way to me through the word of a miner who claims to have actually seen strange activity occurring in the mines while working. He spoke of strange lights, not like eyes, glowing bright and then fading, of phantom whispers to follow a disembodied voice, and a strange pulsing coming from the cave walls. Thinking it very strange indeed, I did some investigating of my own. I was led by the miner I spoke to, into the caves where they dug for precious gems, and the phenomena was not shy of making itself known." The king thought for a moment.

"How can you be certain these occurrences aren't the result of a jest of some kind?" he asked his spy.

"Your majesty, with all due respect, I know what I saw, and I know with a grand certainty those things couldn't be falsified by any human means." The king's eyes searched the walls of the chamber in curiosity.

"Very well. Then it is decided. I will go in search of this treasure. But I have a task for you. Go forth through the kingdoms and ensure the populace this rumor was completely falsified by bored workers looking to stir up intrigue. No one, and I mean no one, is to know where I've gone. Or it will be you who goes, and not quietly at that. Am I clear?" the king asked.

"As crystal." the spy replied.

Elsewhere in the castle, Princess Vir sat at her elaborate writing desk, which was strewn with a variety of small sparkling stones. She held one up to the light of the setting sun, while her maid Alima sat repairing one of the princess' fine gowns. "Garnet. This one is dark. It could probably be cut into many different things. What do you think Alima?" Vir asked, turning to her maid. Alima paused in her work to respond to the princess.

"Yes milady, 'tis a very beautiful stone. I believe the same color as this dress here. Wouldn't you say?" The princess' face fell slightly as she cast her eyes down to peer at the dress Alima was mending. It was damaged a couple weeks ago when snuck out of a ball held by the queen in an attempt to introduce her to eligible gentlemen to marry. Vir always loved exploring the rocky landscape outside the castle walls, especially after Alima agreed to bring her various crystals she happened to find on her days off. On the day of the party, she wheedled her way around various bachelors all trying to win her favor in some strange way or other. Love was a foreign concept to Vir. She knew what love should be, should look like, but she had yet to feel it with anyone with whom she could consider as a suitable marriage partner. So far, all the men she'd met were greedy nobles who all had an agenda under the roses and pearls they handed her. Making her way to the doors leading out the courtyard, she managed to sneak out without alerting anyone. To the guards posted outside, she claimed she was taking a short walk in the castle gardens to cool off. Alima was there to chaperone.

At the edge of the garden, Vir crouched through a hole in a bush, where Alima agreed to wait for her. That night, she'd managed to collect many stones of her own, including some with some very strange shapes in them. She later showed them to her tutor, who confirmed they were called 'fossils'.

"These rocks contain creatures and plant life that, slowly after their death, they were encased in earth and that solidified to preserve the shape of the thing therein. Quite fascinating, I agree, princess." Vir's tutor, Jasnor, was very supportive of her curious nature, despite the queen's desire for the princess to focus mainly on royal duties. Vir and Jasnor had a mutual agreement not to share anything deemed 'unsuitable' by the queen, to her.

The next morning after the spy's arrival, Vir made her way to the private dining room reserved for the royal family. She was surprised to see her father not there. He was usually the first of them to arrive to meals, as he loves food. She let a servant pull out a chair for her, before gracefully sweeping her skirts underneath her, and sitting. The queen had returned from visiting her cousin, and was contentedly sipping tea at table when Vir arrived. Kamourlo would join them soon after.

"Where is father?" Vir asked. The queen replied,

"Your father has been called to aid in the capture of a petty criminal causing a bit of annoyance to the court. He should return within the next week or two." That didn't sound right. Why would father be policing a common criminal? He has men aplenty to take care of that.

"Why is he doing that when he has men perfectly capable of handling it?" Vir asked. Kam also thought it strange. "Normally he tells us of things like this before he up and disappears. Strange." he said. The queen nodded.

"I agree. But all I have is this letter he left at the bedside." She procured the letter for her children to peruse.

Dear Family,

The actions of a persistent criminal have been brought to my attention. He is accused of constantly stealing valuables and has yet to be captured after quite a while. I have left for a short while to aid my men in the search. I will report with news as soon as I can.

Forever yours,
King Londronan Enesortia