0-0-0

The sky above sat dark and unwelcoming not broken by a star or moon. The sound of footsteps rustled around him then faded off. Dart's eyes opened the dark room not much better than his closed eyes. He stood slowly seeing nothing but dark.

"Where am I?" He asked in the utter darkness.

"He's awake." A voice said from somewhere far in front of him.

"He's awake." Another agreed.

"Who are you?!" Dart yelled infuriated.

He quickly grabbed for his broadsword and found it gone.

"Where is my sword?!" Dart asked louder and more enraged than before.

In the darkness his steel blade illuminated ten feet away, the only source of his light he focused on it. He took a step forward and felt something soft underneath, not grass, something wet.

Light flooded the area revealing a town, fires everywhere in it. It was the same town but somehow newer, fresher, and despite the horrid burning happier. He looked down at his feet to see a body of a man, halfway cut through his torso, the grotesque sight made Dart look back to his broadsword.

A man held the blade, his tight grip around the wrapped handle. He had long black hair and a sturdy frame concealed behind the clothes of a knight and red armor. The armor was ridged and had a gauntlet going down one arm. Dart stared in horror at the man's opponent. There before him, shrouded in darkness stood the Black Monster its shadowlike wings almost transparent in front of the blaze of the town. Dart froze as anger and fear overwhelmed him, the scene of his own town destroyed by the Black Monster flashed through his head. The Black Monster drew a sword and held it ready, almost uncaring.

"You will not take this town away from me!" The Knight said. "I will protect it with my life!"

"What a horrible life it is." The Black Monster growled. "Where is the moon child?"

"I will not tell. You will not have her." The Knight stood strong his sword at the ready.

"You will tell me or die." The Black Monster snarled.

"It is you who will die here fiend." The Knight said as the steel flashed through the air.

The Monster brought it's sword up to block the steel of the Knight. Dark flames swirled along the Monster's blade searing away the knight's metal. The Monster struck out a hand quickly gripping the knight by his neck.

"Tell me where the moon child is." The Black monster ordered.

"Go to hell."

The Knight kicked up the fiend and flipped over backwards to land in a low crouch. The Monster screamed as it sent dark flames forth to destroy the agile knight. The Knight jumped out of the way a second before and rolled to safety behind a crumbled wall.

"I am not a simple animal you fool!" The Black Monster roared sending a black fire ball to destroy the wall.

As the rubble showered down to the ground smoke shrouded the area.

"And yet you fell for a trap." The Knights voice said as he slammed a kick into the Monsters back.

The demon spun, its wings sending the Knight to the ground, scorching him where they touch.

"I tire of you." The Black Monster growled as its sword shoved through him. His mouth opened in a scream as he was engulfed by dark fire.

Then everything was black again, Dart standing in the darkness again anger distorting his feature into little more than an animal's.

"Where is he?!" He yelled.

"Gone. Long gone." A voice said from the darkness.

Suddenly he recognized the voice, it was the Innkeeper's.

"Innkeep where am I?" Dart said trying to control the rage that welled up inside him.

"In the darkness we cannot escape." The voice came again as the Innkeeper slowly materialized before him a dim light surrounding him.

Dart recognized him as the Innkeeper but one thing was wrong, beside the spectral glow the man hadn't legs, he just bobbed slowly in the air.

"What are you?" Dart asked all the rage gone at the sight of the cheerless phantom.

"A spirit doomed to walk the world till doomsday or until the job is completed." The ghost said as he slowly disappeared.

"What is this job?" Dart asked as the man came back into existence behind him.

"The Knights armor. Lance's armor. It was stolen by bandits after the Black Monster destroyed this town along with everyone in it." The ghoul softly wailed.

"I will bring this armor to you. Just let me out of this darkness. I must be free." Dart said looking through the transparent specter.

"My kind sir, how can we trust you?" The Innkeeper asked in a profoundly sincere manner, "We of the dead cannot trust the living."

"The Black Monster destroyed my town to." Dart said quietly.

"The bandits go by the name of The Sori-do gang." The ghost said as he slipped back out of existence.

Dart opened his eyes to see the entrance of the gray deserted town. The broadsword stood, stuck in the ground feet away. With a new sense of reason Dart walked forward and pulled the sword from the ground to rest on his shoulder. The handle felt warm as if some warrior had held and fought with it a second before. A cool breeze wafted by across the entrance of the town, tousling Dart's hair.

"Young warrior, go south." A voice muttered on the breeze, "There is where you will find your goal starts…In Tiber."

Dart nodded a quick nod as his jaw set and his chest strong.

"Tiber." He repeated as he stepped onto the road the town behind him disappearing.