A/N: This is a fanfic that I wrote 9 months ago, and was among the first few fanfics written back then when Ossyria was not even out yet. This fanfic has been posted on the largest maplestory forum has been and still stands as the highest read fanfic on the site. (keke self praise)
This story took over 4 months to finish, and has helped me launch my writing career. I had planned to post this here on when I finished (about 5 months ago), but back then there was no maplestory section. So I thank Fazar (he has a fanfic here too) for telling me about this place, and so now I post it here. Too bad I've quitted maplestory due to school problems, and the story might be abit outdated. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy my work.

Flames of the Uprising

By: SicXer

Prologue

Unstirred for a hundred year, the dust and stones of past battles that had been forgotten in time, now stirred with a new presence. The walls, stained with the scars of an ancient struggle, now stood as a testament of time, never creaking nor crumbling. But now, in the dead silence of a world that had never seen the light of day, an echo rang against the walls, something that had not been heard in these parts for long before memory served.

The sediments of the ground stirred, and a blinding light pierced the darkness of the temple. The light came from a staff, wielded by a mighty mage. Cautiously, he stepped into the gloom of the forgotten temple. Not daring to make a sound, he gave a signal, and with him followed two men and a woman. In the hands of one of the man, gleamed a mighty sword of gold and silver, its mighty presence felt in the shadows of the caves. The other man stepped forward, wielding a sharp dagger. His nimbleness surpassed anyone else, and he leaped through the rocky terrain of the temple. Close behind came the woman, not to be disregarded, for her skills in marksmanship could not be surpassed. As she loaded an arrow into her bow, the arrow began to glow with the power of light, as the mage blew holy powers into it. With a powerful shot, the arrow flew into the tunnel, shattering the darkness and breathing new life into the forgotten temple of the ancients.

Into the depths of the tunnel, the arrow flew. Eventually, even the power of light stretched beyond the mage's hold, and it was swallowed by the enveloping shadows. Once again, the four relied on the light of the mage, and with the courage and trust they had with each other, they stepped into the darkness of the unknown.

As they descended into the darkness, the light illuminated the walls of the passage. As strong and stable as the walls were, long cracks could be seen running along the lengths of the wall. These were not created by natural causes, but by a creature whose claws could crush even the toughest of metals. The group knew this, but none spoke of it. They silently descended deeper into the darkness. A crackling was heard from the side, and the group immediately faced the source of the sound, with weapons drawn. Where they expected a beast that would threaten their lives, they found a skeleton of a fallen warrior. None dared to speak, as they slowly withdrew from the scene. This stood as a sign from within, of the power of the beast that they so willingly faced. They had to peel their eyes away from it, but as they turned on to advance into the liar of the beast, the light cast their eyes upon something that would never leave their thoughts. Sprawled in front of them, in a great hall, lay the corpses of a thousand dead. With bodies spread out over the entire floor, the group had to push through the bodies of fallen comrades. They still had faith in their strengths, but as they passed the massacre they lay amongst them, they hearts fell with the sinking feelings of dread.

They had now entered the great caves that lay beyond the temple. The legendary Sanctuary made of blue limestone that glittered even without the presence of light. Great pillars stood as a testimony of a time long past, when great events were held within these walls, where men would prepare for battle, and stand within these halls as a final stronghold against their enemies. Invincible, they thought they were, as no beast nor creature could penetrate their heavy defenses, but they were in for a surprise. In a massive attack on a scale these men had never seen before, the forces of Victoria Island swarmed in. At first, the creatures were held back, but a shadow slowly descended upon them. A beast that none had seen before, now stood before them. No arrow could penetrate its hide; no sword could inflict a wound. Leading its army of beast, it stormed the Sanctuary. With a single arm, it swiped the defenses of the Sanctuary, and with the other arm, a ball of flame grew, and in a powerful swing, it hurled its deadly fireball. Men were instantly vaporized, and the will of the men to fight gone with it. In a single day, they stronghold of the sanctuary was overtaken, and men retreated to the corners on Victoria Island, treating the wounded and recovering from the massive battle. All able bodied men were summoned to stand ready against any attacks that might be sent from the fallen Sanctuary, but nothing came. And so, a hundred years later, men had settled on the shorelines of the island, ever ready to face an attack from the Sanctuary. Once in a while, someone would venture into the depths of the tunnels, trying to seek out the truth of the attack that had become a legend, but no one ever returned.

As the group looked upon the Sanctuary, they see a sight that no one had ever escaped from. Huge beast, taller then anything they had ever seen, were storming around the Sanctuary. A spear was in their hands, with the tip of a crescent moon. Their bodies pulsated with glowing energy, and as they walked, the grounds shook with the tremendous power of the beast. Even a single one of this monster stood as a commanding presence that deters even the bravest of men from passing. And before the group, three stood in the way. The magician extinguished his light, as the room itself glowed with the bluish light of the walls. Then, he turned around, looked at his disheveled teammates, and said, "Let's go." With that, the group stepped into the open, facing the monsters that stood before them. Simultaneously, the beast noticed them, and raised their spears. A lightning pulse shot through their arms, traveling through the spears, causing the crescent spearheads to glow with the charged energy of the beast. With a mighty force, they spear was jabbed into the ground, and a shockwave of electricity expanded around them, but this did not deter the group. They ran straight through the nova of shock, and immediately felt a charge of energy pulse up through their veins, stunning them with a powerful knock back. But the magician chanted a few words, and with the power of light, they felt the energy return to their bodies, and they pressed on, charging straight towards the beast. The archer stood at the back, and fired a continuous chain of arrows at the head of one of the beast. Summoning the powers of light, the magician shot a bolt of holy energy into the heart of the beast. The beast was stunned, and the warrior took this moment to charge straight at it, and with a powerful leap, he plunged the sword into the heart of the beast. With a powerful howl, it fell onto the ground. With blood dripping from his sword, the warrior turned to the other two beasts. They had charged up their spears again, but before they could attack, hails of knives were thrown straight towards the beast. This stunned one of them, but the other managed to slam a powerful charge straight into the ground and with this force, it slammed the warrior back and knocked him back. The mage raised his staff, and with a powerful swipe, he sent two powerful cuts flying towards the beast. It struck it, and cut the beast's chest. With great marksmanship, arrows and throwing knives were aimed at the creature's heart; at with its wounds severe to such an extent, it finally fell. The final beast, already weakened by the surprise attack of the bandit, was easily slain. Wiping the blood from their faces, they stepped through their triumphant battlefield with a new sense of hope in their hearts. But they knew well enough, that the battle was far from over.

The heart of the Sanctuary. A massive circular cave that gleamed with gems that had been embedded into the limestone walls. A place of honor, a room of the mighty kings of the past. But that was a long time ago. Now, they head of the king was staked at the entrance of the room, a sign of the power of the creature that lay within. Not even the mightiest of men had faced it without a painful death. And now, as these four walked into they room; they could feel its presence. The room started to glow a bright red, as the mighty beast rose from below, its wings boring its great mass into the air. Its size was unrivaled, towering over the puny humans that dared to challenge it. It stared at them, its eyes burning straight into their hearts. And then it let out a massive roar, blasting the group backwards. The sound was deafening, and it cut into their very soul. Terror, it was, that struck them. The fear of this beast was more then enough to destroy them all. They lay on the floor, fear stricken, eyes shut tight. The beast approached them, looking straight at the bandit, who had been hit the hardest. He had speed, but against a beast like this, even his agility had come to no use, and with a single stomp, the beast stepped on him, crunching the person beneath its feet. It let out another triumphant roar, for it knew that once again, it would reign victorious. But it searing streak of light pierced its wing. It turned around, and before it stood the mage, wielding the power of light. With a searing force, another holy beam was shot at the beast, striking it on the chest. For a moment, it was taken aback, but this only fueled its wraith. A flame grew in its left arm, a flame so powerful, it blinded the mage, and before the power of the beast, he could only watch as the searing heat slammed into his body, instantly killing him. Only the warrior and the archer now lay on the ground. In a final feeble attempt to complete what he was meant to do, the warrior picked up his sword, and with a shaky hand, drove the sword into the leg of the beast with his full strength. But it did nothing more then a scratch. The archer gave a final shot at the beast, emptying her barrel of arrows, but no arrow pierced the hide of the beast. Knowing that they had fallen, like many comrades before them, they finally lay down with a final gasp of air, as they watched the beast raise its claws in triumphant, and drove its claws into their bodies. There, they were left to die, as the beast backed off into the shadow of its liar, leaving yet another mark of its dominance. Here, upon the central core of Victoria Island, within the deepest liar of the Sanctuary, undefeated and growing in strength, laid the Barlog of Victoria.