OoO( 28 )OoO

All of Hook Coast could be found outside the bandit fortress the next day. And as soon as the cullis gates began to work, many more gathered at the abandoned fort. Everybody who saw the sight was instantly awed. The stone walls on the inside barely stood and looked like some mad beast had clawed visciously at them. There stood a giant crater in the ground where the attack had originated from, and all the stone that suffered too much of the attack had discentigrated to nothingness. Looking at it, it was hard to believe that the previous day it had been inhabited by a thousand of bandits.

Lyle lay in bed at his house in Hook Coast. He stirred slightly as a hand stroked his cheek, then opened his eyes. He looked into the green eyes of the person lying next to him. Alex stared back at him with a smile on her face. Smiling back, Lyle said, "Good morning."

"Yes it is." she said as she covered her naked form. Lyle scooted closer and wrapped his arms around her. She merely layed her head against his chest and sighed happily.

OoOoO

The Hook Coast cullis gate exploded to life as somebody burst through it and sprinted across the snow. He turned as he got out into the open and dashed to the nearest house. As soon as he reached the door, he began to pound on it with all his might. "Lyle! Lyle where are you!" he shouted.

The girl got up from her makeshift bed and walked to the door. Wiping sleep from her eyes, she opened the door and looked at the dark haired mage. "What are you banging on the door for? You woke Samba up." she said.

Van looked down at the little girl confusedly. "Who are you?" he asked.

She glared at him. "Who am I? Who are you? You came knocking on our door!" she shouted.

Van was about to respond when Lyle jumped down the entire set of stairs and looked at him. "Van!"

"Lyle!" shouted Van. "What the hell where you doing attacking that fortress by yourself? You could have been killed you idiot!" shouted the mage as he grabbed Lyle's shoulders.

Lyle smirked and sniffed with mock tears. "I never knew you cared about me so much." he said, making Aerika giggle.

Van glared at him. "Answer the question Lyle. Why didn't you come for help when you decided to attack them?"

"I guarantee in about ten seconds you are going to forget you asked me that question." said Lyle smiling.

"What the hell are you talking about?" he asked irritatedly. Lyle whistled loudly and Van looked at him, then at the stairs where he heard footsteps. His vision locked onto the woman as she descended the staircase and stopped in front of him.

She smiled slightly and looked into his eyes. "Hi Van..." she said timidly.

Van looked at her for a moment when he suddenly recognized her. His mouth opened slightly to say something, but he wasn't able to say anything. He just stepped forward and grabbed her. Pulling her close, he stared at her. "A-Alex...?" he said. She nodded and tears instantly came to the mages eyes. He stared at her for a moment longer before embracing her tightly.

"Wow, you know big sister too?" asked Aerika.

Lyle looked at her. "Yeah, we grew up with her." he said. "But she disappeared and we didn't know what to do."

Aerika thought for a second, then said, "I don't know what I would do if she disappeared either."

Alex walked over to the little girl and hugged her tightly. "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." she said.

OoOoO

A figure stood in the forest far north of Bowerstone, waiting. He turned and stared at a tree in front of him.

Glaring at the tree, he grabbed his sword and slashed at it visciously, sending bark and wood shavings flying in all directions. Soon, the tree strained under the weight of its upper body and fell over with a loud snap.

"You have quite a temper." said a voice behind the figure.

Turning around, the man glared at the red hooded swordsman. "What do you know? You have no idea what I've been through!" he shouted.

"Now now, patience is a virtue. So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked.

"I want in on your little plot against Sabre." said the man.

"What do you mean?" asked the ghost voice.

"Don't play stupid! I know you are planning something! And I want in! I want to take my revenge on him for disgracing me in front of Albion!" he shouted. Jack stared at him silently.

"Ah yes, you were in the Arena! Were you not?" he asked. Then, Jack started laughing out loud. "You were the one who was defeated by his own weapon! And too bad, you were so close to killing Lyle too. But, I'm afraid that you had no chance against Lyle anyway." he said.

Outraged, Merik swung both swords at the man. But, Jack vanished like smoke. Looking around, Merik searched frantically for the red cloak. Then, a razor sharp edge came in contact with his throat. He dared not move, incase the blade cut his windpipe.

"It's not wise to anger me dear boy. I am far older than you and have much more experience in the game of life and death." said Jack as he held the blade up.

As he lifted his chin, Merik swore he could feel Jack's cold gaze burning through the back of his head. "A moment ago, you said that I had no chance of defeating him. Why?" he asked.

"Simple. Lyle had help." said the dark warrior.

"You mean the girls?" asked Merik.

"No, not quite as useless. You see, when his life is threatened, Lyle can become quite the killer. Deep inside of him is a power that can take control of him and destroy nearly anything in his path. Had your weapon not come from the fire and hit you, you would be dead right now." he said.

"What is this power? And how can I obtain it?" asked the warrior.

Jack sighed mournfully. "Well, it seems that our little hero has made some sort of deal with the devil. The only power strong enough and evil enough to conjur that dragon would be from Skorm himself. As for obtaining it, if such a thing were possible, don't you think that I would have done it by now?" he asked. Dropping his blade from the warriors throat, he thrust his foot forward and kicked Merik; sending the warrior to the ground. "As for your offer, we shall see. I will see if you have what it takes to fight him again. Now, follow me." he said, then walked towards the dark building in the distance.

OoOoO

Lyle had taken a walk with Alex after visiting the guild. The guildmaster was extatic to see Alex alive and well, as were many of her old friends. Together, they spent hours walking through the guild forest, remembering their first mission together, and all that followed. They were a pair that couldn't be stopped. Lyle then looked at the sun and remembered that he had to meet Theresa.

"Oh, can I come? I've never met your sister before!" shouted Alex excitedly.

"Of course you can. I'm sure she would love to meet you too." he said smiling brightly.

Alex smiled and grabbed his arm, then began walking with him towards Barrow Fields. "Want to take the scenic route?" she asked.

Lyle looked at her. "Through Darkwood?" he asked. She nodded and he smiled. "Sure, why not?" he asked. And together, they walked through the forest like two sentinals, killing all of the dark creatures that crossed their paths. They were truly unbeatable together. They both made it through Darkwood unscathed and smiling. Until they reached Barrow Fields.

There in the center of the small encampment was a troll made of stone. Both warriors stared at it in surprise as it swung its massive arm and sent a terrified merchant soaring past them. Lyle drew his sword and went to charge the beast, but Alex held him back. He turned and looked at her. "What are you doing? If we don't stop it, its going to kill them all!" he said frantically.

"Please, let me take care of this one." she said. Lyle looked at her a moment, then nodded. Pulling the giant bow off her back again, she took an arrow and aimed.

"But, its made of stone! That arrow isn't going to do anything." he said. But the archer stayed silent. Then, when the troll turned to them, she fired. The arrow flew so fast that it could barely be seen. Then, it buried itself halfway inside the troll between two stones on its stomach. The troll roared, then pulled the tiny object out and threw it aside. Taking one step forward, a stone on its leg fell out. Looking down, the troll heard another thud as a stone on its back came loose and fell as well. Suddenly, the troll roared one last time, then fell to shambles where it stood.

Lyle's jaw dropped when he saw that a single arrow had dismantled a rock troll. Alex smiled at him. "Impressed?" she asked.

He stayed silent for a while, then remarked, "Maybe we should write that spot down..." She giggled and he shook out of his daze. "How did you learn to do that?" he asked as he looked at her.

She smiled. "Well, after I was attacked by the troll, I lost me memory of everything before I reawoke. But, even with my memory gone, I couldn't explain the utter hatred that I had for trolls. Every time I saw one I would become enraged and put every ounce of will I had into destroying them. Eventually I became so good that I could take them out with one shot." she said.

"Amazing..." said Lyle.

Alex blushed brightly. "R-Really?" she asked.

Lyle smiled and pulled off his metal gauntlet. Placing his bare hand on her cheek, he stared at her. She looked up at him and saw a look she had never seen come from him in her life. She didn't understand it at first, then she remembered seeing the same look somewhere else. In her own eyes when she was staring into a mirror and thinking of him. She then realized what she was seeing. He loved her, and now she knew it.

She nervously moved the blonde hair from her face and stared at him for a moment. "S-Shouldn't we be going to Grey Manor?" she asked. Lyle shook out of his trance, then nodded.

"Yeah, sorry. Got kinda lost." he said smiling a little. Together they both turned and walked towards the edge of Barrow Fields. Soon, the cheery and sunny atmosphere of the woods changed. The birds were gone, the sun disappeared, and the green changed to grey. Everything seemed to be choked of life in this section of the forest.

Alex looked around uncertainly. "Why is the forest like this?" she asked.

"It happens when a life is taken." said Lyle.

"But, lives are taken everywhere, not just here." she said. "Why do no other places look this way?"

"Because, a life being taken doesn't neccisarily mean that someone died. It means that the soul was so tortured by its murder that it stayed behind instead of going to Heaven or Hell. When that happens, the area around that soul begins to die unless there is more life around to sustain growth. This area has no more life. The animals fled, the inhabitants moved, and add to that the fact that someone was gruesomely murdered here, and you have this." he said.

"That's horrible!" she said. "Who would do such a thing?"

"Well, I'm hoping to find out myself. I'm wondering if this has something to do with Lady Grey." he said.

"You mean the mayor of Bowerstone? Why would she have anything to do with it?" asked Alex curiously.

Lyle said nothing for a moment. Then he spoke. "I don't know." he said. Together they walked until they reached a giant rotting house. It was large, but looked as if it had been through a terrible storm. As they approached, they could see a small figure sitting on the steps in front of the house.

"I was wondering when you would show up." said Theresa. "Who is that girl with you?" she asked.

Lyle stopped dead in his tracks. "H-How did you...?"

Theresa laughed a moment before she smiled. "My sight may be gone brother, but I have many other skills that more than make up for it." she said. "So, who is she?" she asked.

"This is Alex, my...uh..." he said, looking from his sister to Alex.

Alex smiled and walked forward. Grabbing the girls hand, she said, "I'm Lyle's close friend."

"I see. I also see that you two mean more to each other than just close friends." said the seer. She smiled triumphantly as she heard "Uh..." come from them both. "Am I not correct?" she asked.

"So, why did you call me here?" asked Lyle, violently changing the subject.

"I see. I called you here because I now know where mother is being held." she said, making Lyle's stomach lurch. "With the help of Maze's friend, the Archeologist, I was able to find her. She is being held at a place called Bargate Prison. Her life is dwindling Lyle, she needs our help." she said.

Lyle walked forward and placed a hand on his sisters shoulder. "Don't worry sis, I'll get her back." Suddenly, Theresa began to laugh. Lyle was confused. "What's so funny?" he asked.

She smiled and looked up at him. "You haven't called me 'sis' since we were children." she said. Lyle thought about it for a moment, then realized she was right.

"Huh, I guess not. It has been a while hasn't it?" he asked.

"A long while." she said. "Now then, how are we going to rescue mother? Surely a prison is going to be heavily guarded."

"Don't worry about it, just leave it to me. Alright?" he asked.

"I suppose, but what are you going to do?" she asked as she held his hand.

"I'm going to have a talk with this Archeologist and find a secret way inside, then I'm going to sneak her out. Of course, this operation would be a lot easier with Talon here..." he said to himself.

"Yes, certainly it would. But she is taking care of her own buisiness currently. She will be back soon." said Theresa.

Lyle looked at her startled. "How do you know this?" he asked.

"She had a talk with me about you. A very serious talk Lyle, I think you know what about." she said.

"Yeah, which is why I am here, isn't it?" he asked.

"Yes, I feel a very disturbing presence here in this house and I wish you to examine it for me before you leave. If Its not too much trouble."

"No, of course not." he said. "Well, I guess you should get back to the guild." he said as he turned to Alex. "Could you take her back and wait for me? I'll only be a little bit."

Alex nodded, then helped Theresa to her feet. Together, they walked away from the house and through the woods, back to Barrow Fields.

Lyle turned and looked at the house, scanning it up and down. "So, this is Grey's old house huh? Very depressing." he said, then walked up the stairs and inside. Everything inside was dying. The wood floor rotted underneath him, the rugs and curtains were torn and battered, and any furniture left behind was broken. He walked forward a little before he was startled by the sound of a chiming clock. He drew his sword and turned to the object, his heart racing. The grandfather clock chimed a few more times, then everything went silent. Lyle was about to put his sword away when a shadow raced from upstairs and along the wall.

It spread wide, turning the walls around him pure black. Then, hands started to emerge from the shadow, stretching out until they became arms. Tortured faces pulled through the barrier, revealing undead beings living within the anomoly. Soon, there was an army around him, dragging lifeless limbs along the creaky floor making their way towards the warrior.

Lyle attacked them wildly, swinging his sword and severing the rotted ligaments. He kicked out at one coming up behind him and it instantly shattered into human parts. Lyle was fast, very fast, but soon the numbers became too great. One of the zombies grabbed him from behind and tried to bite through his armor, only to shatter the already broken teeth within its mouth. Knocking the dead being off him, he reacted like he had done so many times in the past. Raising his fist, he punched the ground and fire blasted through the undead army, immediately vaporizing the rotting corpses. But, Lyle hadn't thought of the consequences. The floor was also destroyed, sending him falling into the darkness below.

OoOoO

After hitting the solid stone floor of the cellar, Lyle coughed and a cloud of dust rose, almost choking him. As he rose, he held his head sorely. "Oh man...why the hell do I keep landing on my head?" he asked as he looked around in the pitch blackness. Making some light with his fire spell, he looked around. Then, he began to frantically crawl backwards as he was surprised by a skeleton sitting against the wall in front of him.

When he finally realized that it wasn't going to attack him, he moved forward to examine it. He could easily tell that it was the body of a young woman, as well as her baby lying next to her. Her clothes were torn by a sickle shaped weapon. By the indention in the bone, he could see that the killer wasn't very strong, or accurate for that matter. This was done by an amateur. Then, he noticed the piece of paper she was holding. He grabbed the aging parchment and looked at it. The writing was very light, meaning that the woman was very labored when she wrote it, not having much strength to put into the letter. He began to read it to himself.

Whoever finds this letter, please grant me one

wish. Although I have undoubtedly passed on

by the time you read this, I beg you to fulfill my

plea. Please, find my killer and take vengeance

upon her. I was attacked by my sister, Elvyra Grey.

When my father announced that I would be taking

his place as mayor of Bowerstone, she went crazy.

My father died yesterday, and now my little sister

has attacked me. I got away mortally wounded and

hid down here in this cellar, but I can feel my life

slowly slipping away. I only fear for my daughter

Elena. Please, if you find her here, take care of her.

I can't write anymore. My candle is about to snuff

out, and I can't help but feel that my life will soon

follow. Please, I beg y...

Lyle noticed as the writing ended, that it scrawled across the parchment. Her arm had failed while she wrote the end of the note, leaving a trail of ink leading off of the paper. Lyle rolled up the parchment and tucked it away inside his pouch. Staring at the womans skeleton, he knelt next to her. Then he looked at the baby skeleton. Bowing his head to the woman, he began to speak.

"I'm very sorry that I wasn't able to save your daughter. But worry not about your sister. I will make sure that she never does this to anyone else." he said. Grabbing their bones, he carried them outside and began to dig graves for them in front of the house. When he finished, he wiped the dirt from his hands and stared at the two graves. Putting his gauntlets back onto his hands, he grabbed his weapons and walked away from the sad scene, not noticing the small flower beginning to bloom near the wooden cross at the head of the womans grave.