Chapter One

He remembered when it happened.

Alex the Mercury Adept ran up the slope of Mt. Aleph. "The Golden Sun…the very quintessence of Alchemy's power!" he cried. "It's beginning! Wait for me! Please wait! Wait until I reach the peak of Mt. Aleph!"

Isaac's party of eight were at the top of the Mars Lighthouse, and the Mars Star had entered the beacon. Now, with all four lighthouses lit, they gathered strength. The Mercury Lighthouse lit up, firing a beam at Mt. Aleph. The Venus Lighthouse lit up, firing a beam at Mt. Aleph. The Jupiter Lighthouse lit up, firing a beam at Mt. Aleph. The Mars Lighthouse lit up, firing a beam at Mt. Aleph. Together, the four beams joined together and formed a mighty sphere of golden light, the Golden Sun, the coming of Alchemy upon the world.

Alex finally reached the summit. Before him was the Golden Sun, the ball of light before him. He bathed in its glow, feeling his power increasing already.

"At last! I have it!" Alex declared. "Eternal life…and limitless power! At last, the power of nature is mine to control as I will! Rise, storms! Rise up and unleash your might upon Vale and the foothills of Mt. Aleph!"

Alex stood atop Mt. Aleph, the Golden Sun blazing before him. Its rays fell over his body, and he took in its power, its might, his Psynergy overflowing. He was truly invincible now.

Or so he thought.

"That's odd…I should have limitless power…" He looked at his hands, and felt nothing. He felt as though this new strength was being stripped away from him, here at the very end of his journey…

The Wise One flew over to him. Alex did not recognize the floating ball of rock, the single eye that pierced through his mind.

"Wh-who are you?" Alex demanded.

"I am called the Wise One…" the Wise One stated simply.

"The Wise One?" Alex asked, recognizing the name. "Vale's protector?"

"You wish to have limitless power?" the Wise One asked.

"Wish to?" Alex snapped. "I just got it!"

"No," the Wise One said. "Your power is nearly limitless, but it has boundaries."

"Nearly limitless?" Alex laughed. "You speak in riddles. Can't you see? The power is mine!"

"Yes," the Wise One said. "You have nearly endless life. And your Psynergy is…somewhat stronger."

"If you are trying to anger me, have a little taste of exactly how much power I have attained!" Alex yelled. Thrusting forth his hands he attempted to unleash his full strength upon the Wise One. His body lit up, and waves flew over him.

"Look at me!" Alex yelled for all to hear. "My body is brimming with power!"

The Wise One was then showered in waves of Psynergy. Alex felt his feet swept out from under him and he fell to the ground. He was then lifted into the air, hovering a few feet above the ground.

"How?" Alex cried. "What's going on? I should be all-powerful! How can you defeat me?"

Alex was then lifted higher and thrown down upon the ground. He tasted blood in his mouth.

"You are not all-powerful, Alex," the Wise One explained. "Your power has its limits, as does your life."

"This cannot be!" Alex cried. "Who is responsible for this treachery? Who has robbed me of my dream?"

"I, the Wise One, imbued the Mars Star with some of the power of the forming Golden Sun," said the Wise One calmly. "It rests even now in the hands of young Isaac."

"Why?" Alex snapped.

Just then, the earth itself began to rumble wildly, and Alex was knocked off his feet again. He sat back up, absolutely furious.

"The heavens are changing, Alex!" the Wise One warned. "You must flee now!"

"Wha – what?" Alex cried.

"Mt. Aleph will soon be drawn into the heart of the earth!" the Wise One explained hastily. You must flee or join it forever!"

"Flee?" Alex scoffed. "I can't flee! I can't even move!"

"Ah, yes," the Wise One said. "You now see the limits of your power. If you are swallowed by the earth, you may not survive. If you survive, perhaps we will meet again someday…"

The Wise One then flew off into the distance. Alex watched helplessly as the Wise One left him, and he was alone, forsaken by the earth. He was a member of the Mercury Clan, and he had turned his back on them for power. The Golden Sun had not given him what he desired. He had not received limitless power.

As Mt. Aleph sank down into the earth, Alex looked around him, watching as everything closed in on him. Mt. Aleph sank and sank and slowly Alex was plunged down into darkness, into shadow and the foreboding doom.

Soon all was black. Alex sat in nothingness, unable to move, left alone with his thoughts. The sound of rumbling was ominous. Finally, after many hours it halted, and he was left alone, still alive, but cut off from all civilization.

He had been there for six weeks. He had had many dreams, and it all pointed to one person –

Isaac.

With new purpose, Alex focused his strengths. He became stronger, became able to move around. Soon, he was able to walk, and then, after much work and a long time he was able to function as he had before. He was no longer bound to the earth.

Alex looked up. He knew that he had been swallowed by the mountain, and his only escape was to go up, to go back to the surface, and to gain the power that he lusted for so very much. His lust for power drove him on as he began to the slow climb to the surface. Robbed of his vision in the long dark he had to feel around for footholds and anything in the ruin could bring him back to open air as he climbed the ragged rock wall higher and higher, closer and closer to freedom.

Finally, after many hours, he broke through the surface and emerged from the ruins of Mt. Aleph. He took a deep breath and breathed fresh air at last, the fresh air of Weyard. He had escaped from the earth.

Alex's new life started this day. Finally, his dreams, his visions, were close in their coming. He knew that he would bring his retribution upon Weyard. And he would raise his own empire, one that would never end.

And so was the beginning of the wane of humanity.