Prologue A Past Revealed

The dark plains of Auria, were constantly under the assault of thunder storms. Rain never halted the destruction of mountains. Winds that could tear a man from his feet were the least of the problems that travelers would face if they even dared to enter Auria. Many evils inhabited this land. Beasts that were thought to have disappeared in myth. Spirits that preyed upon the living would drive any weak minded being to the brink of insanity just to watch their own hands kill themselves. This was a land of evil.
In the very center of this land was a castle. The only place safe from the evils of Auria. It was safe, because this is where these evils were created. The most evil of all beings resided here, Kil'Aru Aran, Dark Mage of Auria. His terror upon the vast land of Auria was never ending. Because of his immense power he became immortal. One of seven wizards ever to have achieved immortality, he was the last to live.
As time passed, fewer travelers entered Auria. All who knew the name Kil'Aru Aran feared for their lives. Those who felt that they were bold enough and had a strength greater than Kil'Aru Aran would enter the land of Auria from time to time. But even those who could live to reach the foot of the castle would end up killing themselves before going insane and giving their spirit and power to the Dark Mage.

Elsewhere in Tierenon, the great council of wizards were trying to find a way of destroying the dark mage. "He must be stopped, we have no choice. If we don't destroy him, he will destroy the whole world and remake it in his image. But how do we stop this great evil?" A man stepped from the shadows on the very edge of the great room, and two shadows remained behind him. "Dear Griye, why not send the three of us after Kil'Aru Aran? You know just as well as we do that we are the only ones alive that can stop him."
Griye stared at the man in astonishment. "B..Byar al'Diarra! I thought you died fighting the Great Army!" Byar laughed at the man's remark. "Me? Dead? HA! Not likely, at least not yet. My time has not yet come. We can take on Kil'Aru Aran, and destroy him. Even if it means that we die along with him." Griye eyed Byar warily. "We? Who are those two in the shadows behind you?" Griye's eyes looked about to pop out of his head as Byar's companions stepped forth from the shadows.
"It is I good Griye, Lucas Dren. And of course my sister, Kara Dren. The three of us can do what the whole three hundred of you can not. But not because the three of us are stronger than all of you." Kara stepped in front of her brother and spoke to the Council. "We know what must be done, and we will do it. Our lives would be a small price to pay in order to save the millions of lives that will be lost on the first day Kil'Aru Aran's forces are let loose. And we will sacrifice ourselves to prove that all lives already taken by the Dark Mage were not lost in vain." Kara stepped back into the shadows.
"Great Council of Tierenon, the Chosen will take down the Forsaken King. Kil'Aru Aran will die!" With that the three left the Council's presence and rode straight for the castle at Auria.

"So, the Chosen come for me. They will soon learn why I am the Forsaken King." A cry from the edge of the room tore Kil'Aru Aran's attention from the matter at hand. A baby was there lying in a cradle lined with skulls of men that had attempted to kill the Dark Mage. The frame was made of the bones of those same men. On the head of the child lay a crown with the sigil of Aran. The Rotting Corpse of Aran always struck fear in the hearts of Kil'Aru Aran's enemies. "Dear Dros, today you will die. But do not fret. When it comes time, you will be brought back to life with more power than you could ever dream of. And if today I die, my power will be added to yours. You will be more powerful than anyone or anything that has ever lived or that will ever live" Kil'Aru Aran laughed maniacally and held his boy up before him. Dros' mouth twisted into a sneer as his father drained him of his life and destroyed his body. The essence of Dros was drawn into the sigil on the crown, which the Dark Mage then put in a chest which he knew it would remain safe in.

"We are here. The castle of the Dark Mage. We will launch our assault from here. Summon all demons, elementals, creatures and sprites that you can! Cast all spells that you can that will destroy anything before them! ATTACK!" As Byar yelled forth the signal to attack, hundreds upon thousands of demons, elementals, creatures and sprites appeared from nowhere and began assaulting the castle. Byar, Lucas and Kara cast their most powerful spells devastating the castle.
Within minutes the castle was destroyed, but Kil'Aru Aran was not defeated. A voice rang through Auria. "You may have killed me, but I shall still win! You shall die where you stand! And my followers will spread the name of my son, Dros! In three thousand years, he will destroy the world!" As Kil'Aru Aran's voice faded, all the summoned entities fizzled out and died. The earth around the three launched into the air and created a dome of diamonds around them. No spell could touch the diamonds as the faded to black. Even today, the dome still stands there in the lost land of Auria. Inside are the last great wizards, and inside they shall remain until the new Chosen Ones come and free them.

"I was there, one thousand years ago, watching the assault on the castle. I watched helplessly as Byar, Lucas, and Kara were enveloped by the black diamonds, and I heard there last breaths. Now that time has passed, and a new age has come, we await the coming of the new Chosen Ones. I , Kasas, shall find them."

1 A Man of Darkness

Our story begins in a land that time has long forgotten. A land shrouded in mystery. A land lost in myth. This land was known as Tier.
In the northern region of Tier, was a country known as Sinar. Now in Sinar, there was a grand farming town where every harvest was plentiful. This town was called Kar.
In Kar, there lived an ordinary couple who lived just on the edge of town. After years of marriage, they bore a son which they named Kace. He was very extraordinary. He bore no resemblance to the tanned skin, dark hair, and dark eyes of his father and mother. He had pale skin, silvery hair, and green eyes.
As Kace grew older, he was always taller than his friends of the same age. He became interested in magic, archery, and the art of the sword. When Kace discovered that he was extremely good in magic, he poured all his available time into studying it. He learned that he could use his magic to create weapons that he could make disappear when he was finished with them.
Kace seemed to age differently than everyone else. By his seventeenth anniversary of birth, he was taller than all else in town, even if not by much, but he still resembled a boy of thirteen.
One cold and dark day, Kace and his father, Jera, were going into town to sell their crops. Jera was a tall man, but his son was taller than him by a bit. Jera was tanned by all his work in the sun. His dark brown hair was tied behind his neck, and he wore a wide brimmed hat that shadowed his face and hid most of what was around them from his vision. His clothes were relatively clean, considering that they were his only clean clothes. His boots were tall, almost to his knees, and the tops were turned down making them only reach the mid region of his shin. Kace's clothes were much cleaner, thanks to magic of course. His long silvery hair was set the same as his father's, his clothes were a dark brown, and his boots a light tan, only reaching his mid shin, but because the tops were turned down, they were not much higher than his ankles. Unlike his father however, he wore a long brown cloak which he held tightly to him to fight the cold.
Something on the side of the road caught Kace's eye. When he looked, there wasn't anything there. The breeze became a dust filled wind and Kace hid his eyes from it. When he looked back to the woods along the roadside, a man garbed in black stood staring directly at him. Kace turned to tell his father, "Pa, there is a man watching us from the woods. He is wearing all black." Jera laughed and said, "Your eyes are playing tricks on you this morning, Kace. Just put it out of your mind." Kace snorted at his father's response. "I know what I saw." Jera ignored Kace and continued talking. "Besides, Tyr and Miere will want to see you when we get into town." Jera put just a bit too much emphasis on Miere's name than Kace would have liked.
Tyr and Miere were Kace's closest friends, and also quite good with magic. Tyr was Miere's older brother. Tyr was one year older than Kace, he was a head shorter, and a bit stocky as well. He had brown hair, and mischievous brown eyes that seemed to twinkle when he was getting in trouble, or lying to get out of it. His skin was between a fair milky color and that of Kace's parents. Tyr dressed like most farmer's sons would, drab brown clothing, with more stains than years that the owner has ever heard of. Miere was Kace's age, almost two heads shorter, and extraordinarily beautiful. She had fiery red hair, and bluish-gray eyes. She dressed just like any farmer's daughter would. She always wore a somewhat fine wool dress, with a blouse to match. Everyone knew how much Kace and Miere loved each other, but only Jera joked about it.
When Kace and his father got to town, they went to the marketplace. It was rather small, but considering the size of the town, it was a large area. Kace looked at all the things for sale as Jera tried to sell or barter with his crops. Jera was very good at convincing and bringing up the value of the crops that he sold.
As the contents of the wagon neared the bottom, Kace became quite anxious to go see Tyr and Miere. Mostly Miere, and Jera knew it. "Pa, hurry up. You are taking much longer than normal." Jera chuckled at Kace and moved on to the next vendor. Kace listened to his father and the vendor try to bargain each other into bankruptcy.
"My crops are the best in the region, you know this. You've bought from me before and given twice as much. And my crops are much better this time around." The vendor scratched his head. "Jera, I understand that, but times are rough. The outside world is taxing us vendors. We have so little, we lose money even if we sell an item for twice its value. I can only offer seven bits." Jera sighed, "I'll go no lower than ten bits, it's the least I can sell my crops for. Otherwise there won't be any next year." Kace caught his father's lie, but it was for three bits more. He let it slide.
As Kace and his father moved on and out of the marketplace, Kace sighed at his father. "Pa, I thought you said that lying was a bad thing? Why did you lie?" Jera looked at his son, "That vendor is a good liar, he knew I would wear him down, and he had to make his lie more believable so I wouldn't try to get fifteen bits. Selling crops and wares is a game filled with lies and deceptions. He knew that I was lying, just as I knew he was lying." Kace's look of utter confusion forced a laugh out of Jera. "You'll understand when you get older, my boy ."
As Kace and Jera walked toward the town square, Jera turned to Kace and said, "Go play with your friends while I talk to the council of Kar." Kace nodded and immediately ran off to look for Tyr and Miere, well mostly for Miere. He stopped to take a look around Kar. The buildings were old, but not entirely worn. A good portion of the houses had been standing for more than five generations. Some, like the mayor's house, the Council Hall, and the library, had been standing for an unknown period of time. All of the homes were built similar, but not completely alike. They were all one floor, and quite long. Long enough for there to be two rooms lengthwise. No house has more than five rooms. There just simply wasn't enough space to put more rooms onto a house, never mind a new house.
Kar was only a good sized meadow, completely surrounded by trees. The trees grew sparse and finally split at the three roads out of town. The house closest to the forest was a good fifty paces away. Kace always remembered Kar as being a large place, but he could visit everyone in town and still have plenty of time before he had to return home. There were only twenty-two buildings, not including the shacks set up in the marketplace. Kace looked around in amazement. "I can not believe Kar is celebrating its three-hundred-fiftieth year."
Kace returned to searching for his friends. He eventually found them on the green near the mayor's house. Tyr nudged Miere and they both waved to Kace. He returned the wave and said, "How fares this end of town?" Tyr chuckled a bit, "Always using the "noble's" language, aren't ya Kace?" Tyr paused. and became much more quiet. "Things may seem to be fine, but something is wrong. Everything is going well, and people are being so nice to myself and Miere, but I saw something that chilled me to the bone." Kace listened intently as his friend spoke. "I saw a man, clothed completely in black, watching me last night. All he did was stare, it was spooky. I looked around to see if he could be looking at someone else. When I found no one, I turned back and he was gone . . ." Tyr noticed that he was quivering and he regained control of himself and continued. "I told some of the other kids in town, and my ma and pa. They didn't believe me. They said that I must've been tired and I had a day dream."
Miere looked at Kace with fear in her eyes. "I saw the same man this morning. He sat atop a black gelding. Both he and his horse were watching me from the edge of the forest. His eyes seem to be peering through me and at my spirit. I have never been so afraid." Miere looked as if she was about to cry as she told of her experience with the black clad man. "I told my ma and pa, and they said that I was seeing things." A lone tear fell down her cheek and she wiped it away.
"I saw him as well. This morning . . . on my way here. His clothes were so dark I thought I was seeing things. But when I saw his eyes, I knew he was real and that he was staring at me." Kace lowered his voice. "My pa didn't believe me . . ." Kace became silent as a man wearing all black clothes, riding a black gelding rode right by them and to the Council Hall. At the door, he stepped down and went right in. Kace looked at Tyr, and then at Miere. All three looked shocked and said: "That's him!", at the same time.

"Jera, I don't know what we are going to do about this whole situation. Kasas said that he would be here on this very day. No one wants them to leave with him, but we have no choice, it is their destiny to go." The mayor of town was a tall man, he towered over all except Kace, who was his height. His dark brown hair was a bit messy, but it always was. His clothes looked like that of a well off farmer. They were clean and looked brand new. No doubt that he had just bought them within the past few days. Jera scowled at the mayor. "Jon, you and I have been friends for a very long time. You know how I feel about letting Kace leave! I won't allow it! I don't care about his destiny, I won't let him walk blindly to his death!" Jon sighed and hung his head close to the table. "Dear friend, I understand just how you feel. Even you remember that Kasas came for my son and daughter all those years ago. I hated to see them go, but I knew that they would be better off in a place where they could reach their greatest potential. I still regret letting them go, but I am comforted by the fact that I know they are happy where they are."
Jera's scowl grew deeper and much darker. As he opened his mouth to speak, the door flew open and a man dressed completely in black stepped inside. He turned to the door to close it. As he turned back, he removed his hood and smiled at the council. Jon stood and grabbed the man's hand in welcome. "Friend Kasas, it is good to see you again." Kasas was an old man. His gray hair covered very little of his head. His face made him look much younger than he actually was, which still made him look at least sixty-five years of age. His black cloak and clothes looked worn and old, showing just how poor the old peddler truly was. "It is good to see you too, friend Jon." Kasas peered over at Jera and became much more solemn. "And to you as well, friend Jera." Jera returned Kasas' smile with a deep and dark scowl.
Kasas walked to the front of the room so that all the members of the council could see and hear him. "Today is the day that I must take the three Chosen Ones with me. I know it will be hard for all of you to see them go. Especially for you Jera, and you too Jemres. I know you two will miss them more than anyone else present." Jemres stood to address Kasas. "I will miss my son and daughter very much, I will never forget them, I will always be in your debt for doing this for them, and I will never forgive you for doing this to them." Jemres sat down and glared at Kasas.
Kasas looked down at Jera, who then stood and spoke. "I understand what Kace must do, but I do not want this for him. I know he is different, just as Tyr and Miere are. But why? Why now? How could you possibly have known fifteen years ago, that they would be needed today?" Jera began to tear up, but he did not sit nor did he lose his composure.
"All of you know that the three children must come with me to serve a higher purpose. But I never told you what this purpose was. I will tell you now." Kasas paused and took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "A great evil has been resurrected and no one who has tried to defeat this evil has been powerful enough. No one that has ever lived has been powerful enough to destroy this great evil. Until now. I knew when I came in contact with these three children that they would have immense magical power. A power never seen before, one that will never be seen again." Kasas knew that he wasn't well liked because of what had to do.
Jon stood and motioned for all the others to stand. "Friend Kasas, I remember that you said the three will not be forced to leave. You said that it was their choice to leave or not. Does that still apply now?" Jera and Jemres heaved great sighs of relief that something good was remembered. Kasas tapped his chin in thought. "Yes, the Council of Twelve has stated that I can take no one that will not come willingly. In no instance am I allowed to break that rule, with penalty of death if I do. So, if they do not want to leave, they stay."
Jera fell back into his chair his eyes began to visibly water. Jemres just let out another giant sigh. Jon walked Kasas to the door and said, "Then I ask you to speak to the children to get their view on all of this." Kasas walked with Jon to the door. As he entered the doorway, he spoke. "There is one mandatory thing that I know you will mind, but it is a small price to pay compared to their leaving." Jera fixed a new glare on Kasas. "What is this mandatory thing? TELL ME!" The peddler shifted on his feet and tried not to look at Jera. "They must go see Algor and receive the Tomes of the Citadels. Even if they decide not to leave now, the pull from each of the Citadels will eventually pull them from your grasp. But that pull will take years to become significant. I will go speak to the children now." Kasas left the room knowing he was well hated now.
As he left the Council Hall, he stopped and heaved out a long breath. "I don't like my job. Watchers get all the blame." He stared at his palms and the sign of a Watcher, an open eye staring out into the world. Knowing he was a Watcher, Kasas knew that he could never die, could never be killed, and must do as the Council of Twelve told him. The orders from the Twelve were always to be followed without question. Kasas may have said that his penalty would have been death, but because he could not be killed it would have been far worse: two-hundred years of torture.

The three stood staring at each other in utter silence. Each was more scared than the last and could not form any words. Tyr glanced back at the Council Hall door and saw that the man clad in black had exited and had begun to walk towards them. They were so stricken with fear that they could not even run. Kace seized control over his emotions and approached the man. "Who the hell do you think you are? Why did you spy on us?" The man slapped Kace on the back and laughed. "I apologise for spying on you three, but it was of some great importance. My name is Kasas, I come here every seven or so years to peddle my wares in the market. You probably saw me last year, but I always wear black when it is matters this important. Let's see . . . Last year I wore bright blue and yellow, does that help at all?" Miere nodded and smiled. "I bought a beautiful doll from you last year. I remember you." Tyr nodded in agreement. "I remember now too!" Kace looked quizzically at the peddler, "Why aren't you peddling now? And what is of such great importance?"
Kasas went from gleeful to complete seriousness. "It is a matter of the utmost importance, and it involves the three of you. But this is not something you have to do. Before I tell you anything more, there is someone I wish for you to visit. He is a very weak, but very wise old wizard. He knows more magic than most, and he can teach you much. He lives close by. I can give you a map." Kasas gave a folded map to Kace, and headed back to his horse. "I'll be here when you come back, you're families already know where you are going and why. I told them everything." He mounted his horse and rode it off towards the center of town at a dead gallop.
Kace, Miere, and Tyr looked at each other questioningly. "What the hell are we supposed to do now?" Miere looked at her brother oddly, "Go see the wizard of course. Isn't that what we are supposed to do?" She looked to Kace for help. "Yes . . . yes. We're off to see the wizard." Kace unfolded the map and began to look it over. There was an "X" next to an old hut not more than one and a half miles from the town center.
Kace began to scowl at the map. "That bastard," he whispered as he charged off to the town inn. "Meet me back here in fifteen minutes, I need a few things before we leave!" Kace continued running until he got to the inn. As he walked in, he noticed that it was much more empty than usual. All ten rooms were usually occupied at all times. But now only the two most expensive ones were, he shrugged it off and walked into the kitchen. He pulled out three bits that his father gave him from the crop sales. "Miss Averen? Can I buy some bread and water? Me and my friends are going camping tonight, we need a few supplies." Miss Averen, the cook at the inn came out from a back room. She wasn't an old woman, only ten or so years older than Kace. She was the best cook in town. She was a hand or two shorter than Kace, and had a blonde braid down past her knees. She had a pretty face that fit her better than most body. She always wore old clothes with some stains in them because she didn't want to ruin her newer dresses.

She came out and gave Kace a good smack over the head. "You little liar, I know where you are going. You and your friends are going to see that confounded old wizard out in the woods. I'll give the bread and water to you. Your pa wouldn't let me forget all that he has done for me if I charged you for it." Miss Averen gave Kace a satchel of bread and a big water skin filled to the brim. "Now go on, that wizard will be mad if you are late." She shoved Kace out the door before he could get another word in and closed it right behind him.
He ran off towards the place he told his friends he would meet them, he ran faster than he ever knew he could. He felt a strange presence that he knew was always with him. "SHUT UP!" Kace yelled at the presence and it faded to a shadow in his mind. He stopped to catch his breath. He had always wondered what that presence was. He knew it wasn't normal, because occasionally he heard someone speaking to him when no one else was around. He began running again as soon as he was able.

Kasas arrived at a dark little field well outside of town. The trees were so close to the hut in the center, it barely seemed like a field. The hut matched the field, dark and dreary. The trees were in much better condition than the hut, but upon entering it, it was lavish and filled with gold and silver trinkets. All the furniture was inlaid with gold. The place reeked of magic. The hut was an illusion for the grandeur of a house of the Twelve. Kasas walked straight to the darkened throne and knelt low.

"You have done well Kasas. The new Chosen Ones will fulfill their destiny and bring about a new age. So it is written, so it shall be done." Kasas stood. "Master Krifu, what if the prophecy is true? What if one of those three is the Gemini?"
Master Krifu stood and stepped into the light. He was an elderly man, but his presence spoke of an endless amount of wisdom. His clothes were expensive but not too lavish. His hair was all gray and was tied back in a tail. "Dear Kasas, if that prophecy is true, we are in much more peril than we could ever dream of. Demons already roam the land. If Dros is as powerful as we thought, this is nothing. But if his father died that fateful day, we are in more trouble than anyone could ever have imagined." Kasas bowed before master Krifu and left.

Master Krifu watched Kasas leave. "If he only knew just how much trouble we are actually in, he would have taken the children sooner to better prepare them. But they would have killed themselves with their power back then. Now that they have become young adults, they are much better equipped. May their destiny come to fruition, and their lives spared. They must succeed, or all is lost."

2 The Wizard Algor

Kace met up with Tyr and Miere in the spot he had told them. He showed them the bread and water. Tyr looked at Kace and said, "Now all we need are some horses." Kace laughed at Tyr. "You think we are going to be able to ride horses through a dense forest? HA! Not likely! We have to walk." Miere joined Kace's laughter and Tyr finally joined in laughing at himself.
The three took off to the very edge of town and stopped. "Miere, Tyr, Algor is a friend of mine. Until today, I never knew that he was a wizard. With all the books about magic that he has, I should have figured it out, but I never did. He is a good man, but be careful of what you do around him. I've always found him to be a bit paranoid." Tyr and Miere nodded at him, and the three continued walking.
The forest that they walked through had no paths. The trees were very close together making walking very difficult. The three walked for three hours only traveling half of the distance to the wizard's home. They finally stopped in a relatively open space. The trees separated for about five feet around a small square granite stone jutting up from the ground. The stone looked as if it had been placed there, but with no other stones like it around.
"I think we should stop here and have a bit to eat and drink." Kace sat down and handed out a bit of bread to Tyr and Miere. After all three had eaten, Kace passed the water skin around and each drank from it. Tyr brushed off his face and said, "These woods are much more thick than I remember. Are we going the right way?" Kace pulled out the map and began to review it again.
"We are going the right way. We are half of the way to the wizard's home." Kace stood and said, "It's time that we got moving again." Miere nodded and poked Tyr until he stood. The three resumed walking in the direction they had been traveling.

Kasas walked over to his horse. He turned back to look at the hut. For a second he thought he saw a grand house, but the hut returned the same instant. "So, Master Krifu lied to me. The power of the Twelve is fading. We are all in great danger. Kil'Aru'Aran did die that day. Times are rough. Well, just as Krifu said: "So it was written, so shall it be done." I wonder where all of this was written . . ." Kasas mounted his horse and began to ride at an easy pace.
He rode through the woods on a well trodden path, looking at the trees around him. Kasas again looked at his hands, and the sign of the Watcher. "This year will mark my five-thousandth anniversary of birth. If only I could have been born mortal. Curse this land!" The eyes on each of Kasas's palms began to glow a bright white. A voice rang through the air around him. The sound was pleasant, something one would listen to just because it sounds good. "Dear Kasas, you were chosen to be a Watcher. Not at random, or to punish you, but to reward all your good deeds in past lives. Do not give up now. You will be given a reward if these children succeed. Do everything in your power to keep them alive. They are more important than anyone knows." The voice faded and Kasas felt comforted. He put his hands back on the reins of his horse.
"A reward, eh? I'll take mortality over anything else." Kasas continued his ride back to Kar. He turned back to look at the hut, but it, and the clearing it had been in, were gone. Not a trace of either remained. Kasas laughed lightly, knowing that this was normal for the Twelve.

Master Krifu walked into an elaborate room with eleven men and women sitting around a crescent shaped table. The room wasn't very elaborate, but it was large and lit by countless candles, stand lamps, and other illuminating objects. The table was more elaborate than anything seen by all members of the Twelve. The crescent shaped table looked like a starlit sky. Every constellation known to man was represented in someway on the table. A vast expanse of room was taken up by this huge table. Equally distant from each point of the table, was a moon on the floor. In the very center of the moon was an elaborate chair.
"The Council of Twelve welcomes your return, Krifu. I take it things went well with our Watcher, Kasas?" Krifu walked to the empty chair at the table and took his seat. "Things did go well, but Kasas is growing weak. Our power is not holding well to him. This must be his last assignment. Sandren, he is beginning to question his position." Sandren looked at Krifu. She did not appear to be an old woman, but she was the oldest of the Twelve. Her three-hundred years as council leader just hinted at her actual age. She wore an elaborate robe, matching the table perfectly. Her only bit of jewelry was the Crescent Moon of the Council of Twelve. It was on a diamond chain around her neck. Her unaged face did not match her wisdom well. Her long green hair was held behind her pointed elven ears. "Yes, I heard him. I had to speak to him through his palms. I told him he would be rewarded if the children succeeded. But, we all know that most likely, they will not. Many will die, and Kasas will be destroyed before the Gemini is found." Sandren sat down in her chair.
Another stood and waved his hand at the unoccupied chair on the moon. "I, Breemont, have been charged with finding the Gemini. It has been too long since the last Gemini was born. Seventeen years ago, the Gemini was reborn. However, I do not know who he is. And it will be long before he presents himself." Breemont was dressed as flamboyantly as usual. His robe was made of thread-of-gold, his sleeves were much wider than necessary, and his belt was strewn with rubies, sapphires, and other precious and semi- precious stones.
The other nine in the Council of Twelve remained silent. They just stood and stared longingly at the empty chair of the Gemini. Krifu looked questioningly at Breemont and said, "What makes you so positive that the Gemini was born male this life? Gemini has been reborn countless times as a female child." Breemont scoffed at Krifu's remark. "I know because it was written on the Scroll of the Ages. It has never been wrong. In this life, the Gemini is male." Breemont, Krifu, and Sandren joined in the longing stares at the empty chair. All knew that if the Gemini died, all was lost. He was more important to the world than all three of the Chosen Ones.