A/N: Surprise! A new story! (Well, maybe not too surprising for my long-time readers, lol) Still, I have two others that I am so close to finishing, but somehow, this one and one other have wholly invaded my mind. I figured I could get at least the beginning out so I could focus on the others. I hope you enjoy!

Prologue

The group of hikers managed to finally top the ridge they had been fighting for most of the morning. None of them could immediately find the words to describe what they saw. The forest at the bottom of the rise had been breathtaking in its diversity, but the top was even lusher. The sounds of the forest were the only things heard for several minutes.

After taking it all in, the group split up to explore the surrounding area. None of them went so far that they could not at least see their companions, but they each were looking for different things. Several of them went to see if they could identify some of the local flora. One of their numbers headed toward a particularly tall tree. The woman had noted that the canopy towered over all the others by a good deal. She wanted to see if the roots spread just as far.

She looked back once to make sure her companions were still in sight before she pushed past the last bush, and the cleared area around the tree was exposed. Nothing was able to grow in the tangle that spread from the trunk. The woman was in awe at the sheer size of every part of the behemoth in front of her.

It took her a few moments, but eventually, she made her way closer. She had to push herself up and over the roots that twisted together. It was even more awe-inspiring when she thought about the fact that what she was climbing was only the barest part of them. The rest were all under the earth and burrowing even deeper.

She made it nearly to the massive trunk when her gaze was caught by a trick of the light. She looked around to see where the shaft had come down from. The canopy was tight enough that she didn't think it would have been possible. Still, she knew there had been light from somewhere.

When she didn't see anything above, she started looking to see if there was something reflective that might have caught and amplified the little bit of light that did filter down. She finally found something in between two of the roots that were closest to her. It took a little maneuvering, but she managed to lower herself down into the crack. When she was at the bottom, she looked around again, and it didn't take her long to locate the thing that had caught her eye.

She let out a soft gasp when she saw that it was some sort of stone. She had never heard of anything that glowed like it, but that didn't stop her from picking it up. It was slightly warm to the touch. She wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but it almost seemed as though the light brightened when her fingers first brushed against it.

She barely stood all the way before her attention was yanked up at the sound of the limbs creaking above her. She gasped at the sight of the giant tree swaying. It had her trying to scramble back to the others. She made it to the top of a knot of roots before she was stopped by the sight of what seemed to be a wall of dirt. The closest of the smaller trees already looked like they were being ripped to shreds, and the resulting dirt was being flung up into the whipping wind.

She wasn't sure how she had managed to not be flung off, but the wind seemed to be circling the tree at a distance. It was far enough away that she hardly felt the effects, but there was no way she could get past it. She barely saw the rest of her friends through a break in the dirt. Thankfully, they did not seem to be affected by the wind either, though they could not reach her any more than she could them. She saw them gesturing wildly in her direction, but she couldn't hear them.

It wasn't until the ground under her feet started shaking that her worry turned into fear. She dropped and tried to keep hold of the root she had been standing on, but the whole maze seemed to have developed a life of its own. The entire twisted complex seemed to writhe, and it was not long before she was shaken off.

The woman screamed as she fell. The probability of her being crushed under debris was more than likely. The last thought she had before she blacked out was a hope that it would be quick. She didn't want to linger in pain. Her eyes were shut too tightly to see the brief flash of light as she plummeted into the darkness.

The rest of the group stood outside what seemed to be a barrier of dirt and limbs. None of them could get close enough to even try to rescue the woman that had gone to explore the tree. Several of them caught sight of her standing just on the other side, but there was no way for them to reach her. Though they did try to call out reassurances that they would keep trying.

They all fell back when a blast seemed to come from the very center of the whirlwind. They could not see what happened, but they did notice that the top of the giant tree started leaning dangerously. As much as they wanted to stay and help, they all knew it would be impossible if the tree fell on them. They immediately ran to the edge of the rise to at least climb down to a relatively safe position until the disaster calmed.

Since none of them stayed around, they did not see what happened next. Not that they could have seen through the dirt-filled wind. The blast had been caused by the center of the tree blasting outward. If the rest of the phenomena could have been explained by freak weather, this was beyond the pale. It almost seemed as though there had been something explosive buried deep within the trunk.

It was even stranger that the tree did not fall immediately. Instead, the remaining top portion was suspended in midair. When the pieces of the trunk finally all fell, a man was revealed. He was floating with his hands crossed over his chest. His eyes snapped open suddenly, and a feral smile crossed his face.

He floated out from the center of the remains of the tree and looked around. His smirk widened into a predatory grin. His deep voice was smooth when he finally spoke. "Ah, the time has come. Finally, I will take what should have been mine all along."

He didn't bother looking around again before he raised his palm high. He then drew it down with a sharp gesture. A line of light appeared to follow the motion, which then expanded into a circle. A soft chuckle could be heard as the man stepped into the light and disappeared.

As soon as he was gone, the remaining pieces of the tree fell into a humongous hole that the shifting earth had created. The top of the canopy was barely more than a couple of dozen feet above ground level when it came to rest. The wind also died down. The area looked as though it had suffered from both a hurricane and an earthquake all at the same time.

It was nearly an hour later that the rest of the group decided to confront the rise once again after all sound had ceased. Only a few animals had even been brave enough to return to their usual activities. The sight that greeted them was as though it was another place altogether.

They picked their way over downed trees and mounds of upturned earth until they reached the edge of the gaping hole the massive forest monarch had fallen into. A couple of the females started to cry, and soft whispers could be heard from the others as they tried to reassure them. Though they made promises to have a rescue effort made, none of them believed they would ever see their friend again. Even if they did find her, there was no way she could have survived the disaster in front of them.

A/N2: As you can tell, this will have two OCs. Fair warning, it might throw things into a bit of chaos, but it should be fun. Thanks for reading, and cheers!