Now we come to Em's story (or rather, my version of it). This proved rather challenging as, out of the four legendary heroes, it seems that Em had the most ordinary life. All the same, I hope you enjoy my interpretation.

Rudiks Hollow, a small dwarven town where dwarves went about their daily lives. One particularly important part of their lives happened to mining, in which they could find valuable gems and crystals, which they either sold to the highest bidder, or used as a power source for their various machines. Two such dwarves happened to be two of the best engineers in town, Malachite and Emerald Goldenbraid.

Malachite was definitely a stubborn and, at times, cranky dwarf. Nevertheless, he was a family man first and foremost, as he would always greet his family the moment he walked in the door from work. His two sons, Ferrus and Halite, were usually the first to greet him, clinging to his legs as soon as he walked in. His wife, Citrine Goldenbraid, always gave him a kiss. And then there's his daughter and partner in crime, Emerald, who, he seemed to have the strongest bond with. Together, their engineering were unmatched, having won first place for every fair… except one.

It was a very bright, sunny day, and all seemed to be perfectly serene in Rudiks Hollow. Well, All silence was broken with a small explosion, coming from the basement of the Goldenbraid's basement.

"By the Hammer of Harmon!" Cried out Malachite, as he was hacking and coughing through the smoke. Turns out he and Em, who was about thirteen at the time, were working on a mech of some sort for an upcoming battle fair. Em used a fire extinguisher to put out some minor flames, giving a few coughs herself beforehand.

"Well, I can safely say that could have gone better." Em remarked.

"It's got to be that blasted power coupler. We'll have to tinker around with them a little later, frankly I could use a break." Malachite could not help but wipe a few drops of sweat off his forehead. As it turned out, they've been working all day.

"Alrighty Dad, just glyph me when you're ready, I need some fresh air."

"Just don't be out too long, Pootinkle."

Em always cringed at that. That nickname was cute back when she was a young nugget. But as a teen, it became embarrassing. All the same, she still exchanged a few hugs with her Father, still close as ever to him. After which, she went on her way, whistling, almost every step of the way.

During her walk, Em couldn't help but look around Rudiks Hollow. Everything seemed so peaceful, so relaxing, so… boring. Over the years, Em's ordinary life seemed rather underwhelming. That's not to say she didn't enjoy her life, her family were very dear to her. Yet, very little ever really happens in this simple town. There were the fairs, which she looked forward too every year, yet even that seemed to be pretty commonplace to her. "Man, I wish something a little... different would happen." she sighed.

She then looked to the skies at the sound of a griffin screech. She gazed in wonder as the griffins soared through the skies without a care in the world. Em had always been fascinated by these majestic beasts. Point in fact, she often thought about being a griffin wrangler one day, if the whole engineering thing didn't work out.

Suddenly, Em noticed several moving trucks down in a rather fancy looking house. "New Neighbors?" She thought. In such a small town, this was definitely interesting, something new at least. Even more interesting was the cargo that the dwarven movers were hoisting, for they were machines, which seemed steam powered no less. "Must be inventors. Are they here for the Battle Fair?"

Soon enough, these new neighbors emerged from their vehicles and to inspect their new surroundings. They were dwarves alright, though they seemed different than most other dwarves. They wore funny hats with goggles, and sported what appeared to be victorian attire. "Dwarven steampunks, now I've seen everything." Em thought out loud.

One of the new neighbors in particular, a young dwarf about Em's age, was the last to step out, and decided to take a small stroll herself, while her parents set everything up. The young dwarf was a bout an inch taller than Em, and she wore a dark red victorian style dress with some yellowish stripes along the front, word hat with goggles strapped to it. Her expression wasn't exactly a friendly one. Point in fact, it practically spelled arrogance. Nevertheless, Em thought it would be appropriate to give her a friendly welcome.

"Howdy neighbor!" Em said, waving as she approached.

"Um, hi." The young neighbor said, in a deadpan tone. "And you are?"

"Name's Emerald Goldenbraid. Welcome to the Jewel of The North! Aka, Rudiks Hollow. Yeah, it's not much, but I hope that—"

"Yeah, yeah, that's nice. Name's Elysia Crane. Remember that, cuz I'll the talk of the town once I win the Battle Fair."

"Um… okay."

Em wasn't sure what to say at first. This Elysia person seemed pretty snobby and egotistical, the kind of person Em wouldn't give a passing glance to. Then again, perhaps this was just a show, just to spark some friendly competition. With that, she tried to keep the conversation going.

"You know, I'm entering the Fair too. I've won first place for five years in a row."

"Really?" Elysia seemed pretty interested after hearing that… or worried.

"Yup. Me and my Dad are pretty good engineers. Just last year we-"

"Um, yeah that's cool. Say, why don't you show me what you've got at your place? I'd love to see it."

"Like right now? Yeah totally! Here, right this way. Gotta warn ya, it's gonna be hard to top this beauty."

"Oh... I'm sure." Elysia wore a pretty devious smile after that. What was she planning?

Not too long after introductions, Em took Elysia to her abode. From the moment she walked in, Elysia seemed underwhelmed by this bland looking home. Elysia's house was filled with all sorts of fancy gadgetry, and was almost laboratory-like. This, however, seemed like just a normal home. Maybe she was worried for nothing. Yet, she couldn't take any chances. She had to see what Em had in store for this year's fair.

"Hey Mom!" Yelled Em. "We've got company!"

"That's nice Em, do you need refreshments?" Asked Citrine. Em gave Elysia a look that asked, "well?", to which Elysia nodded her head no.

"No thanks Mom, I'm just gonna show her my work real quick." And so the two young dwarves made their way to Em's garage. "Yo Dad, you around?" No one answered. "He must be getting some spare parts. At any rate, welcome to my garage. Sorry it's a bit messy, still trying to work a few kinks to this beaut."

Elysia seemed admittedly impressed. A state of the art mech suit, enchanted hydrolics and a solaryite drill tip.

"Wow this is… something." Was all Elysia could say.

"Yup. I've had it for a while now, took first place every time. The solaryite drill tip is a new addition, guaranteed to make short work of solaryite, just like that." Em snapped her finger to emphasize. "Problem is the power coupler. It's been on the fritz lately, hopefully we can get it fixed before the fair tomorrow.

"Yeah…" Elysia suddenly had a sneaky idea. "Say, I think I have replacement coupler for you right here."

"Really?"

"Yes, brand spanking new." Elysia took said coupler out of a bag that she had been carrying with her. "This should perk it up in no time."

"Wow! Yeah that'll do it, thanks Elysia!"

"No problem, what's a fair without a good competition?" Elysia said as she looked at her watch. "Well, time for me to go. See you at the fair. And… good luck."

"Likewise." Em went to work on the suit a little more, hoping to test the new power coupler. Meanwhile, Elysia wore a very smug grin. What was she up to?

Just like that, the day of the Battle Fair had already come. Many dwarves and their children have gathered just for the occasion. Ready and waiting, all the participants wait with anticipation for the judges to look at their marvelous work. Among was Em and Malachite, the former of which seemed to be shaking like a rattlesnake's rattle.

"What's wrong Pootinkle? Still not worried we'll lose are ya?" Asked Malachite

"First of all, don't call me Pootinkle. Second, yes! What if we don't win this?!"

"You act like this every year. Don't worry, we'll win just like every year."

Malachite placed his hand on Em's shoulder for assurance, which seemed to comfort the young dwarf a great deal. But, in truth, Malachite was just as worried. True they won the last few fairs, but that was because they never had to compete against steampunks before. The Cranes indeed seemed like fierce competitors, with their fancy gadgetry and all, almost every moment he dreaded to see what was behind their curtain. But even more nerve racking were the judges, for among them was a very special guest.

"Attention participants!" The announcer said. "Look alive because the judges are here! Everyone give a warm welcome to Cedric Stone, Anthracite Saphire, and a special welcome to Queen Kassandra Goodfey!"

Malachite's heart just sank after that last judge. What was the Queen of Drake City doing here? Was it for publicity? To mingle with the commoners? One was certain, his heart was racing. Em caught wind of his anxiety. Now she was the one placing her hand on his shoulders, assuring him all would be well. That was all the assurance he needed, after looking at her innocent yet confident purple eyes.

Cedric Stone was a pretty snobby judge. He looked a bit like Malachite, only he had a black beard and hair, and wore glasses, and a fancy suit as well. Anthracite Redfire was a bit thinner than most other dwarves, and her hair was red like a ruby. She seemed kinder than Cedric, though her expectations were still high. Queen Goodfey was still getting accustomed to this environment, she had never been around this many dwarves before. All the same, she still kept a strong demeanor, and pressed on.

After seeing a few other contestants, the Judges were going to see Malachite and Em. Elysia caught wind of this, seeing her chance to eliminate certain competition. Turns out, the power coupler she gave to Em had a small chip on it that would cause it to fail. All she had to do was push a button, and that's it.

"Well Goldenbraids, looks like you're next." Cedric said, and a deep yet elegant tone.

"With what wonder did you come up with this year?" Anthracite asked.

"Well, I am proud to present our Mech Suit here." Malachite presented, showing the Mech in all its glory.

Queen Goodfey looked pretty impressed, the design was top topnotch. Cedric and Anthracite seemed impressed as well, though mechs were not anything new to them. However, the solaryite drill caught their attention.

"How does the drill work?" Inquired Cedric.

"Enchanted hydraulics! Guaranteed to cut right through solaryite, or your money back." Em got inside the Mech to prove her point. There was a bit of solaryite that Malachite mines which they used to test the drill. Sure enough, it made short work of the rare ore. So far, things seem to be going smoothly. Em wore a smile on her face, it seemed that first place was as good as theirs.

Then it happened. Elysia pushed the button, and the power coupler failed. The Mech was rendered motionless, Em couldn't move it. Malachite rushed over to help her out of it. Both were shocked by the sudden fail, everything seemed to be working so well. They then turn to the judges, awaiting their rating. Kassandra gave it an eight, however the other two gave it a seven and a half. Em felt disheartened, a full record of straight nines, come to a halt. Malachite placed a hand on her shoulder, though he too seemed disheartened.

Then the judges went to Elysia and her family. Sure enough, they wowed the crowd with their invention, a massive solaryite powered war aircraft. It didn't seem like a flying ship. In fact, it seemed to have wings, almost like a bird. It was also significantly smaller, possibly for greater speed, and its torpedo-like shape certainly helps with wind resistance.

Anthracite and Cedric seemed excited for this new invention. Kassandra, however, could see the look of arrogance in the Cranes eyes. Clearly, they were in this for publicity and fame, not for the fun of it. Yet, she couldn't let her morals cloud her judgment. She gave them a nine, yet the other two judges gave them a ten.

"I believe we have our winner. First place, goes to the Cranes!" Declared Cedric. And just like that, there were thunderous applause.

"I just don't understand." Em thought to herself under her breath. "I tested the Mech just last night, it should have worked fine! Not to mention, Elysia gave me a new…"

Suddenly, Em was starting to put two and two together. Elysia gave her the coupler, and it fails on them. And, low and behold, the Cranes won first place. Coincidence? Certainly not. After all was said and done, Elysia went off the stage, where Em caught up with her afterwards.

"Oh Em! Good effort back there, it's just too bad that my power coupler didn't work out."

"Stop playing games! I know you rigged that coupler to fail. But why?"

"Aw Em I'd never do that. I'm really sorry, I thought it would… help."

Em suddenly felt a little bad, for she could swear that she saw Elysia tear up. Perhaps she was a little quick to accuse.

"Oh my goblin, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"It's alright. I should've have tested it." Elysia then pulled something out of her bag, a gift for Em it seemed. "No hard feelings?"

"Awe, Elysia." Em starts to open the gift. "You shouldn't ha—"

Without warning, a the gift lightly exploded in her face, leaving her covered in soot, causing the crowd to fall silent for a moment. Elysia started laughed pretty hysterically, followed by almost the whole crowd. Em was looking around her. Everyone… laughing at her. Tears began forming in her eyes.

"Did you really think I'd give my own competition a chance to win? You're an even bigger idiot than I thought." Elysia said, still laughing quite hard.

Em could not fight back the tears anymore. Without a second thought, she ran away, crying. Malachite tried to stop her, but the young dwarf was too fast for him. Malachite seemed very angry at the laughing crowd, especially that brat Elysia. He had a good mind to to tell the Cranes off. Yet, before he could…

"Enough!" Shouted Kassandra Goodfey, clearly repulsed by the behavior. All the dwarves fell silent, all seemed intimidated now, especially the Cranes. "You all should be ashamed, making that poor girl cry. We won't speak of this any further. Forget what you saw, and go about your business."

And so the dwarves had. Though the Queen didn't have much authority outside of Drake City, she was still a highly respected individual, and no one dared argued.

"Thank you your majesty." Said Malachite, as he approached. "Honestly, I'm glad someone shut them up, and that someone didn't have to be me."

"I just hope your daughter is alright Mr. Goldenbraid. Actually, I was hoping to speak with her, once she calmed down."

Malachite was very curious of what the Queen wanted with his daughter. Yet, seeing that she helped silence the crowd, he supposed it would do no harm.

Back at Em's place, Em was crying in her pillow, her face still riddled with soot. A subtle knock on the door startled her a little. Part of her wanted to yell at them to leave. However, she could use a little company to share her feelings with.

"Come in." Em said, her voice still breaking. The door opened, sure enough it was her parents.

"Em?" Citrine spoke, approaching her daughter to comfort her. Em hugged her more tightly than she ever intended to, but Citrine didn't seem to mind, as she did her best to calm her down. After a long moment of silence, it was time to talk. "I know you had a rough day sweetie. But, there's a special someone who would like to speak with you." When Queen Kassandra walked in, Em was genuinely surprised to see her.

"Emerald." Said the Queen. "You have my deepest empathy for what happened at the Fair today. If it's any consolation, I do prefer your Mech over anything those pompous Cranes have to offer. Actually, I do have a proposition for you, should you choose to accept it."

After a very long conversation, Em could believe her luck. The Queen of Drake City wanting her to work at the palace? Almost too good to be true. Finally, a place where she could find her potential! Yet, she took a look at her parents for a moment. They looked somewhat saddened. She knew they would rather her not leave the nest so soon. Malachite especially had big plans for her in the family business. Malachite and Daughter, that was the grand plan indeed. Yet, the choice was hers, no one was forcing her to do anything. After a while of thinking, she came to her decision...

It was quite a long ways to Drake City, but Em and the Queen had made it to the Royal Palace. Once she had made it too her room, Em almost immediately began unpacking. She was excited for her first day in the job the following day, even if she was starting out as The Royal Griffin Wrangler. As she started unpacking, she uncovered a picture of her and Malachite, winning their first trophy at their first fair together. She looked at it longingly, though she was uncertain of what her father would think of her as a griffin wrangler. Perhaps it's best her family doesn't know for now. Suddenly she heard a subtle knock in the door.

"Hello?" Said a voice. Em looked out her open door and saw a rather tall, thin teenage girl with pale skin, very long auburn hair worn in a ponytail, violet eyes, and a green dress and white jacket. In addition, she also wore a gold tiara.

"H-hello." Em said shyly. "Are you… Princess Arkayna?"

"Yeah. But you can just call me Arkayna, no need to be formal." The Princess said. "May I come in?"

"Oh yeah uh, sure your highness... I mean… Arkayna."

Arkayna couldn't help but chuckle a bit. She came in sat beside Em.

"And what's your name?"

"Emerald Goldenbraid. Or just Em for short."

"Well Em. I hope you like it here. You have quite a bit to look forward to."

Wow this one turned out to be longer than I was expecting. To those who are wondering, I decided to name Queen Goodfey Kassandra since we never did get to hear her first name, though hopefully the comics will shed some light on that. But I digress, as always, feel free to share your thoughts and leave a review, I hope you enjoyed.