Gen-chan: ..I'm Baaaaack!

Thatz: Jeeze. Kill me now please

Rath: *Takes out his sword*

Thatz: Eeep! Heh heh just kiddin` *starts backing away*

Gen-chan: Whatever, anyways, as much as I hate doing this I really have no desire whatsoever to be sued sooooo, here it is. I do not own any of the Dragon Knights or anyone else for that matter except for my peeps.

Rath: *pops up out of nowhere* that's all folks, enjoy the show.er.story.

@@@@@@@@ The Fires Within: Chapter 1 New Discoveries, Deadly Past By Gen-chan

It was a peaceful day in Draqueen, the sun shining, the birds chirping, the glass shattering. and the deafening chaos erupting throughout the castle. With much anticipation the grand ball was to take place that night, in honor of the Dragon Knights return, and the whole castle staff was in an up- roar preparing for the guests. Seemingly un-aware of his surroundings a young man casually strolled down the long halls lost in thought. His long, golden blonde hair swayed softly in the slight breeze obscuring his light blue eyes. His winkled forest-green tunic looked as if it had been slept in along with his equally wrinkled silky cream-colored shirt. His leisurely stroll came to an abrupt stop outside a largely ornate door. The young man sighed softly to himself, collecting his wits, before quickly knocking on the wooden panel. A muffled `Come in` was his only reply as he once again thought over his next move before entering. The Dragon Lords chambers were not nearly as ornate as the doors guarding their entrance. The sitting room was furnished in dark cherry-wood furniture with only a little bit of gilt adorning two chairs and a small table in the corner. A large window let in a massive amount of morning light and a light breeze. Giant tapestries decorated the walls, depicting scenes of peaceful forests and soothing waves. The room's previous occupant sat in one of the two chairs reading a rather large leather-bound book. The overall peaceful atmosphere of the room was a calming sensation to the young mans nerves.

"Ah. Rune, come in come in. Make yourself comfortable." The Dragon Lord spoke in a soothing voice as he gracefully set the book on the table and stood up to greet his guest. The Lord was casually dressed in a light red tunic over a light green silk shirt. (A/N: No this is not for Christmas I just happen to like those colors is all.heh anywayz.) His soft brown pants fit snugly and his cape was discarded over the chair to his left. The warm smile on his lips slowly slid away once he saw his friend's state of disarray. "I say Rune; you look terrible, what's wrong?"

"Well," Rune started, "You see I haven't been able to get much sleep since I got back."

"Why ever not?"

"Something has been tugging at the back of my mind for the last few weeks and it's been driving me insane. I can't eat, I can't sleep, and I just can't seem to do anything short of worry that I'm forgetting something important." The Dragon Lord nodded slowly, quietly urging the young Dragon Knight on. "You've found something then, I presume. Something you think I should know about." It was not a question more a voiced thought.

"Yes. And it worries me greatly."

"I see. Perhaps it would be best if you sat down, I have a feeling this is going to take some time." He said gesturing to the other chair.

"Thank you." Rune said politely bowing to the Lord before sitting. "I think it would be best if I start from the beginning."

@*@*@*@*@*@*@*

"I'm board."

"You're always board."

"I wanna go hunt some demons!"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Aw, come on Th---"

"God damn it Rath I said NO!"

"Fine. Geeze you're no fun."

The red haired Knight silently rubbed his temples in frustration as his fellow Dragon Knight began to sulk in the corner, again.

"What the hells you're problem today Rath? You're more annoying than usual."

His only response was that of a small pink tongue poking out at him from across the room. With a small sigh and a shake of his head Thatz quietly went back to the large map he was deciphering. Quickly deciding that his companion was now to boring to spend any more time on, Rath quietly slipped out of the room. The light morning breeze softly caressed his face as he started to head back to his chambers before changing his mind and making a sharp left turn towards the gardens. The servants scurried to and fro throughout the halls mindfully avoiding the Dragon Knight as he slowly wandered towards the gardens. All he really wanted to do was go back to his rooms and sleep the rest of the day, for he had no care whatsoever to attend the party although he knew he was going to have to. But tired or not, something seemed to be pulling him towards the gardens instead. It didn't feel like magic or else he would have been more wary, instead something inside of him seemed to push him in that direction. Rath looked at the sky to determine what time it was and how long he'd have to sleep if he just turned around right then and there, but something caught his eye before he had the chance to carry out that thought. Once Rath stepped from the threshold of the castle onto the springy green grass of the royal gardens he knew something was wrong.

"What the. where the heck is everyone?"

The entire garden was silent. No birds sang. No people laughed. No wind blew. It felt.dead. An almost silent shuffle of grass behind him made Rath jump. Before he was even back onto the ground his sword was out and he was poised for battle. To the untrained eye the ground before him would have been empty, but if Rath had had and `untrained eye` he would had been killed by demons long ago. The slight un-natural shifting of the shadows, gave away the position of the garden's new occupant.

"Who are you?" Rath asked warily. "What is it you want with me?"

A low chuckle rose from the Shadow Creature that sent a chill down Rath's spine.

"It is time."

"Time? Time for what?" Rath asked indignantly. Before the Shadow Creature could answer, a scalding pain shot through his body. Rath heard a distant blood-curdling scream before passing out completely. But not before realizing that it was he who had let out that terrifying screech. @@@@@@@@@@

Gen-chan: Well how was it? Bad? Good? Review and tell me k?

Rath: Ja ne minna-san! ^o^