((GUESS WHAT I UPDATED

OK, the mission shall be explained now. I had to turn on the House Sets to motivate myself into writing, haha. (I'm sorry, I wanted to write this before I went crazy on KeroNatsu shipfics.)

Enjoy! Hetalia is not mine.))

The sparkling lemon-haired queen, Soli, spoke first. "It's great pleasure to see you again, Mr. Norway. We've been looking forward to seeing you."

"Same," Norway said simply, smiling softly.

"Is this the backup you told us about?" the brunette, Terra, inquired, smiling expectantly at the other Nordics.

"Well…"

"We sure are!" Denmark cut in loudly. "Hello, lovely ladies! My name is Denmark, the King of Northern Eur-" Denmark didn't get a chance to finish, as Norway's fist had connected with his face.

"Don't mind this joker," Norway said, annoyed. "But yes, they're my backup, sort of. This is Finland, Sweden, and my brother Iceland." Norway could practically feel the irritated glare he got from Iceland.

"Hello," the group said politely.

"We welcome you to the magic realm," the queens chorused.

"Anyway, I suppose you're wondering why we called you here, correct?" the silver-haired one, Stella, asked.

"Knowing what exactly is going on would be nice," Norway replied flatly.

Soli laughed. "Very well, then. Come along, we'll explain."

"Could we have an extended version?" Denmark asked. "We kinda know less about all this than Norge."

"Of course," Terra said, nodding. She beckoned for them to follow them into the one of the halls. They scurried after the royals, all eager to hear the story.

"Since the majority of you, barring Norway, haven't a clue what is among us, allow us to explain," Soli began. "Long, long ago, a short time after Norway had become a personification, a certain witch rose up. There are a lot of witches in our land, some good, some evil. But this witch, named Dracona, was especially terrible; she had gathered her two sisters to seize this castle and gain control of all the magical realm and possibly realms beyond, including yours. Norway assisted us in our quest to defeat her, which we did; we banished her into the far-away, darker regions of the magical realm and sealed her in an ancient castle. She has been there for more than 500 years."

"But, she escaped," continued Stella. "How, we are not sure, but she did. She is already in the process of releasing her sisters from their seals as well, and we have already gained news of her next plan."

"What kind of plan?" Norway asked through clenched teeth. The other Nordics could tell Norway was definitely not happy knowing one of the evils he had helped defeat had returned.

"As you know, there are a lot of dragons in our area," said Terra. "Maybe even some in yours-if I'm not mistaken, you all do believe in dragons at least?"

Denmark, Sweden, and Norway exchanged sly glances. Finland and Iceland looked at each other and shrugged.

"Well, there are five certain artifacts," said the quiet Selene. "The Dragon Artifacts. The Jewel, the Orb, the Belt, the Crown, and the Sword. If one gathered all the artifacts together, they would be able to control any and all dragons in the magical realm. They're very powerful, even when not put together."

"Let me guess," Iceland said, "This witch is after them?"

"Yes," said Stella. "Dracona knows dragons are one of the most powerful creatures in this land, so she knew that if she gained control of all the dragons and invaded us with them, we wouldn't stand a chance."

"And we wouldn't," concluded Soli.

Norway nodded curtly. "I see. What can we do, then?"

"Your mission," said Soli, "is to venture and gather the artifacts before Dracona and her sisters can reach them. Once you find them, you'll bring them back here so we can keep them safe. Understood?"

"Understood," Norway said.

"Understood!" the rest of the Nordics chimed in.

"But we must warn you," Selene added. "There are many, many perils here. You might encounter other witches, or sea monsters, or…"

"Don't worry about it, Selene," Norway assured. "We'll be fine, I'm sure. We always make it in the end."

"That's the attitude I was hoping for," Terra agreed. "Now hurry, Dracona is always on the move."

"Indeed," Norway said. He turned towards the door. "Farewell, girls. We shall return."

"Byyyyyyeeee!" Denmark and Finland called cheerfully while Iceland and Sweden waved.

"Come on, gang!" Denmark announced, leaping ahead as they exited the castle gates, "We have an adventure to go on!"

"You have no idea where we're going yet, you idiot," Norway grumbled.

"OK, so where are we going?"

"Mist Lake."

"Mist Lake?" Finland repeated.

"We'll be able to camp there for the night," said Norway. "It's nearby, and it's a pleasant place. It'll give us a head start into our journey, anyway."

"ONWARDS!" Denmark started running down the path, swinging his axe above his head.

"Get back here!"

((Dorks. XDD

First stop: Mist Lake! Our journey shall begin here. Don't worry, you'll get an idea of exactly how dangerous Dracona and her sisters are as the story progresses. Just hang tight!

Next Time on TotD: What will happen to our heroes at Mist Lake? Will they encounter their first monster? Will the author actually get her act together enough to write the next chapter? Stay tuned!))