Chapter 6

The heroes arrived at Grado Keep, looking up at the massive castle. Everything seemed quiet and peaceful, with a soft breeze blowing. Nothing more. No guards patrolling the castle perimeter, no signs of life at all. It was rather unsettling for the group.

"Huh...I thought there'd be soldiers on patrol or something," Gerik remarked.

"There's no one here..." Myrrh said. "I can't sense a thing."

"Perfect. Let's take advantage of it and go inside." Without waiting for a response from the others, Gerik began to move towards the main gate.

Myrrh watched him nervously. "I...I have a bad feeling about this. It could be a trap..."

"We've no other options before us," Saleh told her. "If something happens, we'll deal with it."

Myrrh smiled slightly. "I know you will. It's...reassuring to hear that."

The group walked a ways down the corridors. Long and winding, the interior of Grado Keep was more complex than the main castles of the other continents. It made sense, given that Grado was the largest nation in Magvel.

"Wow...I'd forgotten how complex this place was," Gerik said. "What exactly are we looking for?"

"There has to be a library or a study hall somewhere..." Saleh said.

Ephraim nodded. "From what I remember, Lyon conducted his studies in the lower levels. Knoll told us everything after we found him in the dungeon."

Ewan snapped his fingers. "Oh yeah! Knoll was one of Prince Lyon's top researchers, wasn't he?"

"Well, I guess we'll head for the lower levels then," Saleh said. "We should do like before, and leave the rest here to secure our escape route, or warn us of any danger."

"Right," Gerik agreed. "We'll wait right here for ya."

"Let's go, Ewan." Saleh headed down the corridor, then took the door leading to the lower level of the castle, with Ewan faithfully at his side.

Ephraim watched the pair leave, waiting until they were out of sight. "I'm going to do a quick survey of the rest of the castle. I'll be back shortly."

As he began to leave, Eirika moved to catch up with him. "Let me come with you!"

"No," Ephraim said abruptly. "You stay with the others. If something happens, I'm counting on you to lead everyone to safety."

Eirika stepped back, somewhat startled and disappointed. "All right, Brother...if you say so..."

"Um...Ephraim..." Myrrh approached him carefully. "...May I go with you?"

Ephraim paused, fixing her with a long stare for responding. "All right. You may come."

With that, he left the corridor, entering one of the rooms at random with Myrrh in tow. Eirika watched him, confused. Why would he let Myrrh follow him, and not her? But then again, his reason made sense. Myrrh was never one to be a leader figure. Eirika had her experience with leadership already. Now it was just Eirika, Tana, and Gerik waiting in the corridor.

"Don't worry, ladies," Gerik said. "I've got you covered."

Tana couldn't help but giggle. "Thank you, Commander Gerik."

Saleh and Ewan pushed a door open and stepped into a room, where tall shelves lined the walls, stuffed with hardback books.

"Here it is!" Ewan said. "Wow, we've got a lot of books to go through."

"We need not read all of them," Saleh told him. "There should be only one or two that would best match our interests. I'll start over here, and you look through that shelf."

"Okay!"

Ewan ran to the back wall, while Saleh went to the shelf on the right. Saleh pulled out a few books, skimming over a few pages before deciding they were irrelevant and putting them back. A few more books later, he found one with some notes regarding the Sacred Stones research.

"Ah, this one will do..."

He took that book to the table in the center of the room and began to read it more thoroughly.

"Let's see..." Ewan picked out a book and scanned a page or two. "Nope!" He tossed it over his shoulder and then picked out another one. "How about this one? Nope!" He tossed that one over his shoulder as well. "Hmm...nope!" Yet another book flew over his shoulder.

Saleh continued to study his book, painfully aware of the books that were plopping on the floor around him, but doing his best to ignore them. That is, until a book hit him in the back of the head. Saleh simply set his book down and glanced back.

"Ewan, enough!"

Ewan gulped. Before long, most of the books had been emptied from the shelf and were now scattered about on the floor. "Sorry..."

Saleh just shook his head. "Never mind. Have you found anything?"

"Um..." Ewan picked up one of the last remaining books on the shelf and skimmed through it. "Oh, here's something written by Knoll!"

"All right, bring it over here, and we'll look through it."

Ewan closed the book, then took a peek at the crevice behind the shelf. "I think I see something back here."

"What is it?"

"Um...I can't tell..."

"Then we shouldn't worry about it. Let's continue."

"Right!" Ewan went to join Saleh at the table. "What did you find, Teacher?"

"It looks like Prince Lyon's journal," Saleh said. "He's reflected on his studies, and his feelings regarding his responsibility, and his father's death. Grado's Sacred Stone had the Demon King's soul imprisoned within it, so Prince Lyon wanted to use his power to resurrect his father."

Ewan read through some pages of his own book. "It says here that the dark mages were able to see some ripples in time and see the future! Wow, that was cool!"

Saleh raised an eye. "Really?"

"Yeah, check it out!" Ewan handed him the open book.

"Hmm..." Saleh took the book while pushing Lyon's journal towards his pupil.

We have tried to disprove the visions we have seen, but the more we try, the more vivid the visions become. Prince Lyon believes we can use the Sacred Stone to stop this catastrophe, or at least evacuate the citizens to safety. As much as I would like to help, I cannot help but feel these misgivings. Meddling with the Sacred Stone's power could have consequences that may be far worse. We will proceed anyway. Somehow, venturing into the unknown always intrigues me. I just pray that we will be successful.

- Knoll

Saleh merely shook his head upon reading the entry.

"This is really sad," Ewan said as he looked over Lyon's journal.

I just can't do it. I'm not worthy of being Grado's ruler. I'm not strong like Eirika or Ephraim. I need you, Father. I'll bring you back again. We can use the Sacred Stone's power to revive you. It will work out. Right, Father?

- Lyon

"Prince Lyon truly felt powerless without his father," Saleh remarked. "But I am curious about this catastrophe that Knoll spoke of."

"Wasn't there a huge earthquake in Grado after the war?" Ewan asked. "Maybe that's what he was talking about. Did he really see that happening before it actually happened?"

"Apparently so..." Saleh read on in Knoll's journal.

While we thank the gods that the Demon King has been defeated, the catastrophe that we have foreseen has occurred. Many say it is our divine punishment for meddling with the forbidden power of the Sacred Stone. They may be right, but...was this war not punishment enough? With both the emperor and the prince gone, Grado has no ruler. There is nothing left for me anymore. I will do what I can to restore Grado and then...I will be gone...forever.

- Knoll

"Knoll..." Saleh paused, curious about Knoll's fate, but almost certain that it was a tragic one.

"Whoa..." Ewan read yet another page of Lyon's journal. "This page is almost creepy."

He turned it around for Saleh to see. One thing Saleh noticed was that, not only was the writing much bolder than the previous pages, but it also did not have Lyon's signature at the end.

It is done. My father lives again, the Dark Stone is created, and Grado's Sacred Stone has been destroyed. Now to begin the next phase, the invasion of Renais, followed by the other continents. All of the Sacred Stones will be destroyed, the nations conquered. All of Magvel will be mine to rule. First Magvel, and then the entire world!

Ha ha ha!

Saleh frowned. "That was not Prince Lyon writing..."

"It's the Demon King's writing, isn't it?" Ewan asked.

"Indeed."

"Okay, so...how are we going to stop him?"

"Hmm..." Saleh pondered for a moment. "Sealing him away was not enough to end his threat. We should have learned that last time."

"Right. We thought that destroying his body would do it. But it didn't. So now what?"

Saleh sighed. There was only one more method he could think of. "Banishment."

Ewan blinked. "Banishment?"

"If we could banish him to another time, another place...we may be able to be rid of him for good. Perhaps if we could expand on these time ripples that Knoll spoke of..."

"So we can send him through time?"

"Hopefully not just through time, but into a dimension far separate from our own."

Ewan twisted his mouth. "That's going to be tricky. Knoll was experienced with dark magic, and he said he could only read the ripples, and that's it. I've studied a bit of dark magic myself, and you can do a lot of scary things with it."

Saleh raised an eye at him. "You've practiced with dark magic?"

"Oops..." Ewan giggled sheepishly, embarrassed that he'd let the cat out of the bag without even realizing it. "Only a little...you're not mad, are you?"

"Of course not. I was surprised is all. What you study is your choice. It is not my right to dictate the path you choose."

"Ah, okay. You know what, Teacher? You're awesome! I love all these moments where we can just study together and talk about magic."

Saleh smiled slightly. "Indeed. We must make the most of these moments, especially in times like these."

"So...how do we banish the Demon King?" Ewan asked, getting back to business. "Is there a spell or something?"

"There must be..." Saleh said.

However, as he flipped over Knoll's journal, he caught sight of a scroll that has been slipped inside the back cover. Curious, Saleh pulled it out and read the incantation. Sure enough, it was a spell to open a portal to the abyss. Preceding the incantation was a letter of sorts.

To whomever holds this scroll:

While our efforts to seal away the Demon King have been successful, we are almost certain that he will return one day. This scroll has been written as a more permanent solution to end his thread forever. However, none of us are able to utilize it. It requires a person of great power, far beyond our capability. It is my hope that those of you in the distant future will reach that level of power. It is an even greater hope that you will have no need of this scroll. But if you do, I wish you the best of luck. We will be watching you from the afterlife.

- Grado

"Ah...this is it. This is what we need."

"So we got it?" Ewan asked.

"Yes...though apparently it takes great power to use."

"Well, we have nothing to worry about then. You're powerful enough to get it to work!"

Saleh shook his head. He hadn't seen himself as anything special compared to anyone else. Ewan had always been incredibly biased towards him. What Saleh saw in Ewan, however, was far greater.

"I'm not so sure about that..." Saleh said.

"What do you mean?" Ewan asked.

"Do you remember why I agreed to teach you magic? You have always had an incredible potential. I believe...that you may have surpassed me already."

"Me? Really? Do you believe that, Teacher?"

"Yes. If anyone among us can cast this spell, it will be you."

Ewan moved closer, looking at the gibberish text. "Wow...it looks tough. I don't know if I can do it...or if I'm really powerful enough..."

"All we would ask is that you try. If it doesn't work, we'll find another way."

Saleh and Ewan got up, taking the scroll and both journals with them, and leaving the study hall.

Meanwhile, Ephraim led the way down the empty hall as Myrrh trailed behind him nervously. Somehow, the young dragonkin had the feeling that something was wrong. But the question was, what?

Ephraim turned suddenly, walking through a random door, leading to a bedroom.

"This seems as good a place as any," he remarked.

Myrrh glanced around, studying the room carefully. Other than being a gorgeous bedroom, she couldn't see anything significant. "To do what?" she asked lightly.

Without a word, Ephraim sat on the floor. He brought out the Sacred Stone, gazing at it longingly, stroking its surface slowly with his thumb.

"Ephraim...?" Myrrh was growing more worried by the second.

Another few moments of this passed by without a word from the Renais prince. Eventually he held the stone closer, bringing his other hand on top of it. And then he began to press his hands together, crushing the stone between them. Myrrh's eyes widened as she watched the powder sprinkle from between Ephraim's hands. When Ephraim opened his hands, nothing was left of the stone but a fine line of dust, which he brushed his hands together to clean off.

"Ephraim..." Myrrh's eyes were still wide. "Wh-Why did you do that...?"

Ephraim finally answered her. "We've no need of that chunk of rock. The Sacred Stones serve no purpose now."

"What do you mean? How are we supposed to...?"

"The only stone I need is the Dark Stone. If memory serves, it should be right where Lyon left it."

Myrrh fell silent. She found two things odd about his words. His sudden need for the Dark Stone, and the fact that he said "I," and not "we." Additionally, she had felt the energy from him from the moment he had crushed the stone. A strong surge of dark energy, stronger than what she had sensed from everyone else under the evil influence so far. Upon realizing this, she began to back away slowly, her knees trembling.

Ephraim glanced back at her and then stood up to face her. He looked down upon her, his face expressionless, with no concern for her fear.

"What's wrong, Myrrh?" he asked softly, almost taunting. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Myrrh continued to back up. "You're..."

She couldn't bring herself to say it. I have to tell the others, she thought.

So she turned on her heels and dashed out of the room as fast as she could.

Ephraim didn't pursue right away. Instead he brought his fingers to his temple and closed his eyes, concentrating for a moment. When that moment passed, Ephraim opened his eyes, smirking, and then calmly left the room.

Eirika, Tana, and Gerik were still sitting in the corridor, wringing their hands when Saleh and Ewan returned.

"Hey, guess what!?" Ewan called excitedly.

Tana perked up. "Did you find something!?"

"Yeah, check this out!" Ewan waved the scroll for everyone to see. "It's a spell to banish the Demon King! All we have to do is use the Sacred Stone and recite the incantation, and he's – BAM – outta here!"

"All right!" Gerik couldn't help but laugh at Ewan's excitement.

Saleh, however, was frowning. "Where's Lady Myrrh?"

"Ah, she went for a walk with Prince Ephraim," Gerik told him. "She's fine."

But right at that moment, Myrrh burst out through the door in a panic, running over to Eirika and nearly collapsing on her, panting. "Mistress Eirika!"

"Myrrh? What is it?" Eirika asked, steadying her.

"It's Ephraim! He's...he's..."

The others shot nervous glances at one another. They already sensed the urgency in Myrrh's voice. Had Ephraim become brainwashed like everyone else?

Before Myrrh could explain further, Ephraim emerged from the same door.

"Everyone, you'd better get out of here. This castle will be under attack soon."

"Soon...?" Gerik asked.

Unless the castle was already surrounded, there was no way to know that.

Saleh fixed Ephraim with a look. "How do you know this?"

Ephraim's face suddenly darkened. "Because I summoned them here."

"What?"

"You poor fools. Did you honestly think you could win? The Sacred Stone is no more. You've already lost."

"Ephraim!" Eirika cried out, in shock. "What is the..."

"It's what I was trying to say..." Myrrh said. "Ephraim...he's been possessed by the Demon King."

"No!" Eirika ran over to Ephraim, throwing her hands on his shoulders, fighting tears. "Brother! Please tell me it's not true!"

She prayed that it was just a really bad joke, or a horrible nightmare that she would wake up from.

Ephraim averted his gaze for a moment. "I could..." But then he fixed his dark gaze on Eirika. "But that would be a lie!"

With a wide upward sweep of his arm, he threw Eirika's hands off his shoulders.

"No!" Eirika stood in complete shock, trembling, her defenses completely dropped.

Taking advantage of her vulnerable state, Ephraim stepped forward, throwing a hard kick to Eirika's gut, strong enough to send her flying back about ten feet. When she crashed on the ground, the others huddled around her. Gerik stood in front of the group, whipping out his sword in a more offensive pose.

Ephraim straightened himself, letting out a proud laugh. But it was not in his own voice. It was the voice of the Demon King himself. The prince vanished from the corridor, the Demon King's laughter echoing off the walls, making the heroes' blood run cold.

"Great Dragon..." Saleh muttered softly.

"Unbelievable..." Gerik added. "He took him right out from under our noses!"

Eirika was still hunched over on the floor, shaking and sobbing. "No..."

Tana tried her best to comfort her, massaging her shoulders and whispering to her.

"I don't know about you guys," Gerik said, "but I say we get the hell out of here now."

"I agree," Saleh said. "Let's go."

"Come on..." Tana shook Eirika gently, trying to help her up. Eirika pulled herself together and stood.

The group ran as fast as they could towards the main entrance, but upon setting foot outside, they came to a screeching halt. A whole army of red armored soldiers surrounded them.

"Uh-oh, busted..." Ewan muttered.

"Out of our way!" Gerik immediately went on the attack, swinging his sword at the soldiers on horseback.

"Gerik!" Saleh called, disappointed in such a reckless move. He gestured for Ewan and Myrrh to stay back, and they immediately complied, huddling together in the entranceway.

More soldiers moved in to attack; Tana and Eirika stepped out to fend them off. Saleh hung back in front of Ewan and Myrrh, waiting to provide offensive and healing support. As he watched, he could quickly see that this was a hopeless battle. There was no way the group could break through the army like this.

But then he had an idea. He recalled Ewan spotting something behind the shelf in the study hall. He couldn't think of anything that would be hidden behind a shelf except...perhaps a secret exit?

Saleh brought out his Elfire tome and cast his spell, laughing a large fireball that exploded in a pillar of dancing flames. The spell worked not only to take down some of the soldiers, but also grab his allies' attention.

"Everyone, back inside!" he called out.

Ewan and Myrrh turned and fled back into the castle. Eirika and Tana disengaged from their own battles and followed. The soldiers moved in to attempt to stop them, but Gerik twirled his sword in their direction to intimidate them and ward them off. Saleh launched a blast of lightning with his Thunder tome to stall the soldiers even more as the last pair entered the castle, slammed the door shut, and locked it. It wasn't long before the soldiers started pounding at the door.

"Follow me." Saleh led the group as they dashed down the corridor. Within a moment, the soldiers broke through the main entrance and ran inside after them. The group ran downstairs, where Saleh led them into the study hall where they had done their research. Again, once everyone was inside, they slammed the doors and barred them shut.

Gerik studied the room, noting all the books that had been scattered all over the floor. "Well, I see you two had a good time in here."

"That's very funny, Gerik," Saleh grumbled, clearly not in the mood for jokes. "Ewan, you said you saw something behind the shelf, correct?"

"Huh? Oh yeah!" Ewan replied.

Saleh went to inspect the shelf. "Gerik, help me pull this."

"Right." Gerik went to his side, and together, they began to pull the corner of the shelf away from the wall.

"That's enough," Saleh said, stopping. He wanted enough space to squeeze in, but not so much that it would be immediately noticeable from the doorway. As he squeezed in, he noticed a lone handle bolted into it. He pulled it aside, and sure enough, the wall slid aside, revealing a secret passageway.

"There's a passageway here," he said. "It's our only way out."

Suddenly, they heard the loud and incessant pounding on the door again.

"Hurry, let's go!" Gerik guided everyone else into the passageway before entering himself, pulling the shelf back as much as he could.

Once everyone was inside, the weary heroes began to make their escape.