Alexandros Buchelof awoke in a strange location. His surroundings were that of an immense cave, and huge stalagmites and stalactites were all around him. Alexandros groaned and tried moving, but he felt tight chains pulling sharply against his thin armor, forcing him to remain motionless. His boots brushed against the rough ground slightly, and he realized that he was hanging midair, not standing directly on the ground itself.

A strange liquid that was similar in appearance to swamp water had formed a large, circular pool in the center of the cave. Alexandros' vision was slightly distorted, but now it was coming rapidly back into focus, as was his memory. The Imperial Guard soldier had been captured by Black Knights when he was walking down a lonely path south of Draynor Village, with the Wizards' Tower just minutes away. He had managed to fight the two Knights who had ambushed him off, but when he arrived at the Tower, that was when he received a huge shock…

Alexandros Buchelof walked into the first floor of the Wizards' Tower. It was strangely eerie that no wizard was in sight. His sharp eyes, always on the lookout for any sign of danger, swiftly scanned the large room. The tidy study was empty, as well as the tables in the center of the room. Something was wrong. Wise wizards don't normally disappear without danger. That was when he realized it. He quickly spun around in time to see the door he had locked behind him burst open violently; a black knight wielding a Black 2 hander sword charged in. Without warning, the knight slashed down at Alex, who easily evaded the blow and cracked his enemy's skull with one smash of his powerful Dragon Battleaxe. He distinctly headed for the wooden staircase, and quickly ran up, just as five more knights entered the first floor.

"Hey, Roberto is dead!" Alexandros heard one of the knights yell in surprise.

"From the looks of it, he died from a blow to the skull," another one replied calmly. "I never knew wizards are using axes now."

Alexandros hurried his footsteps as he rushed up the endless staircase tiredly; he heard rapid steps behind him and shot a quick glance behind his shoulder, shuddering as he saw the five knights charging up after him. Alexandros finally stepped onto the second floor landing, and rushed into the first door he saw. He tightly locked it behind him and waited as he heard the knights arrive.

"Where's that warrior guy?"

"He probably went upstairs. And from the looks of his armor, he's a Burthorpe Imperial Guard!"

"An Imperial Guard? Egad, that must mean he's against Falador! We can't let that happen, can we?"

"All right, Bobby, shut up. Let's head upstairs, and we'll chop his head off when we find his sorry self hiding!" With that, the five knights thumped up the stairs.

Alexandros sat down on a comfortable plush chair and sighed in relief. However, a look of confusion crossed his face as he thought. Why did the Black Knights mention enemies of Falador as bad? Can it be that they've actually become allies with the White Knights? Nah…not likely…As Alex rose up from the chair, flexing his muscles, a voice surprised him, causing the soldier to jump almost a foot in the air.

"Who are you?" a blue-robed wizard demanded.

Ah, it's just a wizard. "Well, sir, my name's Alexandros Buchelof. You may call me Alex if you want. Anyway, I was sent here by my commander Joxcaite to request urgent help. We've been battling against our nemesis the Mountain Trolls for so long it's hard to keep track. Some magic users might be useful. Of course, you'll be redeemed for your help if you agree; I know the economy's bad, but we may be able to work out some kind of contract."

The wizard shook his head. "No chance."

"Why not?" Alex asked, confused. "Please, my job is at stake! If we don't manage to defeat the trolls, the Imperial Guard will be forced to disband, just like the Ardougne Slayer Force!"

"It's not that simple. We want to help; it's just that there's only a few of us remaining. Our leader, Head Wizard Rosheil, was captured by a few of those evil Black Knights several days ago; we're now short of runes due to the economic crisis, and we barely have any means of defense against the Kinshra now. I'm sorry, but so be it. The Guard would have to separate."

Alexandros punched an oak table in anger. The wizard placed a calm hand on his shaking shoulder. "Now, now, Alex, just calm down. We may be able to work out a deal if you rescue Rosheil from his prison. But that's not all…"

"All right, wizard, tell me what you require!"

"Try to get some of the death runes the black knights stole from us back. If we acquire them again, we may be able to fight off the Kinshra, and then we'd have enough time to assist your commander."

"Shouldn't be a problem. By the way, what's your name?"

"I'm Kondaz Gana."

"Well, Kondaz, I'll see what I can do." With that, Alexandros opened the door and headed out. It was after leaving the Tower that Alexandros suddenly remembered the black knights. He started to run, but he felt the flat side of a 2 hander sword crash onto his head, knocking him out. Alexandros could've easily defeated the knight who ambushed him, but he was too slow, lost in his own thoughts.

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What should I do now? I know I'm in a cave of some kind, but where is it? I hope Rosheil is here, too, so I can free him if possible, Alexandros thought grimly. He tried using his strength to rip out the chains, but slumped back after failing several times. At least the knights didn't take his battleaxe, as it was still stuffed in its holder. They're idiotic, the Imperial Guard decided.

Kondaz sat back in his chair as another mage stepped up to him.

"Johan, I've got a bad feeling about this," Kondaz told the mage, who nodded in agreement to his superior. A tense expression appeared on Kondaz's tired face.

"What is it that you're feeling?"

"Something bad. It seems the Kinshra have a beast of power in their cave."

"What could it be?"

"No idea, but it might be a drag---no, no way. I just hope that Imperial Guard returns soon with good news," Kondaz finished, looking out of the wide window.

Back at the cave, Alexandros glanced around at the surroundings again. The cave was full of Black Knights, dressed in armor of pure black, with bloodstained 2 hander swords clasped in their heavily gloved hands. They were talking, joking, insulting, and conversing with each other. Suddenly, the voices grew hushed and the knights turned around to look at the other side of the cave. Alexandros strained his neck in an attempt to see, and gasped as he glimpsed a large blue shape emerging from the darkness. It was a monstrous dragon. It slowly edged closer, its clawed feet taking one step at a time, and soon it was only a few meters away, stopping abruptly. The beast had ruby-colored red eyes, and its widely opened mouth was full of jagged teeth, so sharp it made Alexandros think about the pain it'd cause sinking into his flesh. All of a sudden, the blue dragon let loose a large volley of fire which shot towards the imprisoned soldier, causing Alexandros to look away and shut his eyes in fear. The intense heat radiating from the flames touched Alexandros slightly, but the attack wasn't directed at him. It hit the wall next to him and a bloodcurdling scream rang out in the air. There was a stunned silence as the victim of the blast, now a completely scorched skeleton, dropped to the ground, lifeless. The knights began to cheer; and the dragon was led away by several burly knights, back into the darkness in which it came from.

"Oh my god," Alexandros muttered. "It seems the knights have trained their pet well."

"Ah, I'm afraid it'll be my turn soon," a frail voice spoke from the left. Alexandros turned around and noticed a wizard dressed in bloody robes chained up to the wall next to him for the first time.

"Who are you?" Alexandros asked.

"I'm a wizard, as you can probably tell from my robes. I used to be head wizard of the Wizard's Tower before my…ah…accident. Who are you, warrior?"

"I'm a soldier," Alexandros corrected. "But it's more or less the same thing. I'm an Imperial Guard member, sent to seek help from your tower."

"And you've been captured. It's all right, don't look so ashamed. A wizard of my caliber shouldn't be so easily drugged, either."

"I'm not laughing."

"I appreciate your understanding. How was my tower? Are the wizards all right when you left?"

"Well, yeah. They were all in good condition, but I actually only met one wizard face to face, his name was Kondaz. He was extremely worried about you."

"Kondaz, yes, yes. He was like a son to me; I'm glad he's okay."

"Those wizards miss you really much, you know."

"I expect. Anyway, we're currently in a cave somewhere to the west of Draynor Village. It's nicknamed, "The Black Hole."

"Well named, I think. Once you get captured, you won't easily escape."

"Yes, yes. The evil knights capture poor souls every day, and each day, one of them is incinerated by that dragon we saw earlier. I'm scheduled to be burned at the stake tomorrow."

"Can we escape in any way?"

"I'm afraid not. The Black Hole is hard to get out of; the knights are numerous and very vigilant, and of course there's that dragon. Although it's trained not to attack knights, it's very much welcome to burn outsiders at will. Just look at poor James; he tried to escape every day to no avail."

"Who's James?"

"A poor adventurer. He was burned today; the skeleton you saw."

"That's real bad luck. But I promise you, wizard, I'll find a way to escape, both you and me."

"That's very kind and brave of you, soldier. But as I said before, it's hard to escape. And may I ask you, please call me Rosheil."

"Wizard Rosheil, I am determined to escape. Don't worry, I'll find a way to leave this wretched place!"

"Well, good luck with your scheme, if you have one in mind. Just try to come back for me, all right?"

"Sure."

Alexandros looked up at the brown ceiling and watched the water drip into the filthy pool below from up high. The cave was quiet, and the black knights had left, apparently into their separate quarters. The Imperial Guard grinned and closed his eyes; it was time to think of a plan.

Meanwhile, a young mage stopped on the bridge leading towards the Wizards' Tower. He was clad in robes of lime green; in his left hand, he clutched a battered Guthix Book of Balance. But most interestingly of all was the bright glow emitting from a pocket in his robe; a solid, glowing stone was resting inside. Nicolas checked his map again.

"Wizards' Tower, just across the bridge. Check." As the mage continued strolling across the bridge, he did not notice a black knight steadily stalking him. What the knight didn't know, however, was the young mage's skill, hidden inside the completely charged rock.