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[Dath]

Prologue
The Beginning of the End

It is the year four hundred and humankind was living on the country of Asvaina. There were two main countries in Asvaina, Arithia and Borgher. Arithia specialized in their military prowess. They were especially strong, bringing a fight to the enemy on horseback and alongside wyverns. Borgher was especially gifted in the art of necromancy, or the summoning of the spirits of the dead to aid in combat. There were several smaller countries, such as Dimithian, who specialized in training the world’s mages for fighting, and gathering knowledge and the last country of Asvaina was Dormay. Dormay trained the strongest archers, with pinpoint accuracy, and deadly precision. However, a fifth country was founded after a power dispute in Borgher in two ninety five. It was named Nori, after the founder of the country, Norris the Conqueror. After founding the country, Norris became a legend turning it from a country that knew nothing but war, into a country of peace and prosperity. None of the other countries fought with Nori. Nori was a country of knowledge, with scholars of every kind traveling long and hard to read at the famed libraries of Canaway, the capital of Nori. The year four hundred was not a peaceful one. Borgher, the country of dark magic and necromancy, has invaded Arithia, conquering each territory easily. It is inevitable that Arithia will fall, but will hope arise?

“Sir, the enemy forces have defeated the knights of Arithia and have gotten past our cavalry on the drawbridge. The foe has invaded the castle. We are using the last of our knights to prevent the enemy from gathering here, in the throne room. Sir, you should escape, using the side exit.” The knight declared, as he bowed to the king.

The King sighed. He clutched his silvery grey hair with his hands and shouted in despair,
“Is there no hope for peace? Are we to live our lives in terror, always looking behind us as if there was a foe to cut us down as we pass by?”

“Your Majesty; please use this time to escape.” The knight repeated.

“No. However, my son still remains in this room with me. Will you take him away, so that he might survive this? There must still be a hope for this kingdom, even if I do not survive. He will be the missing heir to this kingdom.” The King replied, handing his baby son to the knight. The baby slept in his blanket, and gurgled in his sleep. The King looked at him lovingly for a moment; savoring the times he had with him, and finally let him go. The pain etched onto his face as the boy left his arms “Now, if you would, you must take him away.”

“Your Majesty, I must protest, I,” The knight said, as he was cut off. The sounds of combat were getting closer.

“Please, this is your last request from your King.” The King commanded, talking in a deep voice. “Take my son, and allow him to live.” The King said.

“But, what of yourself, Your Majesty?” The Knight responded.

“I can make no guarantee that I will live. I stay behind to see if there is any way that we can stop this war. Alas, I’m sure that Damian will make me suffer long.” The King said, speaking of the king of Borgher. “You do not have any more time left. If you do not do this, than…” The King trailed off. In the doorway stood the King of Borgher, Damian, lord of necromancy. The King got his sword out, and stood up from his throne. Suddenly there was a breeze in the room, making the capes of the three men flutter. “Go,” was all the King spoke.

The Knight felt his knees go weak just looking at the King of Borgher. Tall, strong, and even handsome, the King of Borgher was a man to be respected, even if he was the enemy. The Knight began to walk away. Damian didn’t even notice. All he cared about was the King.

“Ah…Mark, my good friend, it’s been very long.” Damian spoke, etching each word into Mark’s brain.

“Not long enough, it seems.” Mark replied.

“Now, now, I am the one who holds the key to your survival. I’d say it’s in your good interest to listen.” Damian said, grabbing onto Mark’s shoulder, and beginning to walk away. The Knight walked towards the secret path and pressed a button on the throne. The wall next to the throne began to slide away, revealing an escape route. The Knight began to walk in it, and took one last look at his King, before he pressed a button on the inside of the entrance, and the door closed again.

Moments later, he heard a couple shouts, a bang, and light began to pool out of every nook and cranny. The Knight held onto the baby’s eyes with both of his hands; shielding away the pain from the light with his hand. The light started to stream in front of his own eyes, blinding him, and carving a feeling of pain into his skull. The Knight began to curse, as his strength failed him, and he fell to his knees, but still holding onto the boy. He began to walk, still on his knees, towards the exit. As he took each step, it became harder to move towards the next, and his body grew heavy. As he reached the end, he heard whispers and talking of people. He held out the baby boy to the voices, and as the bundle was lifted from his hand, the light finally took his eyes away. He shrieked with pain, and soon all he could see was the darkness. He fell to his stomach, and stopped moving all together. The commoners and villagers began to whisper as Jasper, the town blacksmith held the boy.

“What should we do with this child?” One of the elderly women spoke up.

“I will have no part of him,” One of the men said, which of whom, Jasper couldn’t tell, “He’s a cursed child, he caused the death of that good knight right there.” The other villagers began to agree, and their voices grew louder.

“Now, now, I’ll have none of that,” Jasper brashly spoke, looking at the boy. “He looks healthy enough, I’ll take him.” He added.

“Well, all right Jasper. The burden is now yours to bear, no matter how difficult it may get.” One of the women spoke up.

“I understand that, I’ll take good care of him.” Jasper said, starting to walk off towards his cottage. “I think I’ll name you…Kevin. That’s a good name, for a good boy.” Jasper added, as he walked into his house, and closed the door.

The last glimpses of sun shrunk beneath the hill, encasing the land in the darkness that was soon to come.

[Dath]

Chapter 1
16 Years Later

Kevin walked into the little cottage that had been his home for nearly two decades. He immediately heard the clanging of the hammers at work and knew that his Uncle was home.

“You’re finally home?” Jasper shouted, yelling over the noise of hammers hitting the anvil and sword.

“Yeah,” The sixteen year old man replied, “I left my sword here.” Kevin said, walking around, looking for his blade.

“You mean the one I made for you? It’s right here.” Jasper shouted, stopping his work, and pulling out Kevin’s sword.

“Thanks Uncle Jasper!” Kevin exclaimed, grabbing the sword by the hilt, and running out of there.

“Now hold on! Where do you think your taking that….?” Jasper shouted, but the boy was gone. Jasper shook his head, that boy was going to be a headache for someone. Jasper was about to get back to work, when an earsplitting shriek cut him off. He grabbed one of his swords, and dashed outside. One of the villagers, Chuck, who was one of Jasper’s closest friends and milk brother, came running towards him.
“Jasper, bandits are attacking the main gate. We need your help to defeat them. The militia is severely outnumbered and we need more men.” Chuck shouted, running towards the gate. Jasper slowly ran after him, and when he got there, he unsheathed his sword.

This is going to be more difficult than I thought. Jasper thought to himself. There are at least fifteen or sixteen bandits here.

On the other side of the battlefield, one of the bandits was shouting to his leader. “Hey, Skull, we got some company!” the bandit grunted.

“Show them how the bandits of Nional fight!” Skull shouted, declaring his tribe name. All of the bandits began to charge the gate. The last few militia men were slaughtered as arrows raining from top-knot archers fell down upon them and speared them to death. Chuck grabbed one of the bandits and threw him to the ground, stabbing him at the same time. One of the bandits threw a torch threw a window, and suddenly all of Jasper’s worldly possessions were burning. Jasper ran towards the brigand, intent of slaying the man. The bandit attacked him, and lucky for Jasper that his sword was where it was. The sword edge cut through the wood handle, leaving only a short wooden club in the hands of the bandit. The bandit laughed, expecting the axe rebound off the sword and slay the man he fought. When that didn’t happen, the bandit looked down at his axe and grunted. At that same time, Jasper launched a sweep with his sword that ended the life of that brigand.

Jasper looked around. It appeared that the rest of the bandits were hiding, or he had gone so far out of the area that they were out of sight. He began to walk back, when he ran into Kevin, who was holding his sword in his familiar backwards grip, and the edge of the sword bloodied up.

“Kevin, are you all right!?” Jasper exclaimed, staring at Kevin’s sword.

“I’m fine, but a bandit caught me back by the house and attacked me. He’s gone now.” Kevin said, a little disoriented from the close encounter.

“Don’t worry, these are brigand. They attacked us, in any way, so if you killed a couple it wouldn’t really matter.” Jasper reassured Kevin.

“I guess so. Where are the others?” Kevin asked Jasper.

“Up ahead, I was fighting one and I got too far away. I hope Chuck’s alright.” Jasper whispered. Kevin nodded his head in agreement, and the two started to walk in the original direction. When they got there, they noticed that Chuck was still fighting the bandits. Three more bandit bodies littered the road, all streaked with blood. Suddenly, as the duo grew closer, an object of high moving speed crashed into Chuck. It was an arrow, and it was lodged firmly in Chuck’s throat. He gaped in surprise, but surprisingly didn’t fall over. The three bandits he had been fighting fell over one another to kill him. A couple of strokes later, Chuck fell on his back, right into the arms of Jasper and Kevin.

“Ja….Jasper? Kevin? Is that you?” Chuck said, tears forming in the corner of his eyes. “Kill these bandits for me…will you? Make sure they don’t harm Polly….” Chuck said, speaking of his wife, and finally breathed his last. Lying Chuck’s still warm body on the ground, Jasper got up, fury radiating through every portion of his body. There would be no mercy for these brigands, not after what they had done.

“Kevin, you take the one on the right, I’ll take the one on the left.” Jasper whispered. He ran towards his victim, this one being a mercenary, and the sword of the two men clashed together. Forcing the sword of the enemy closer to his own head, Jasper grimaced at what was about to be done. With one sweep of his blade, he sliced through the bridge of his enemy’s nose, and through the left eye. The mercenary leapt back in pain, and right at that moment, Jasper ran him through the stomach, and let the body fall to the ground.

Meanwhile, Kevin walked towards his enemy, a brigand. The axe fighter leapt towards Kevin, intending to finish him off with one stroke of his axe. Kevin jumped to the side, and charged, slicing with his blade. The blade cut through the flesh of his foe, and the bandit writhed in pain. Kevin slashed once more with his sword, and the head of the fallen bandit fell to the ground with a soft thud, the body following later. Kevin stepped back in horror at what he had done. Moments later, a blond archer dressed in green garb walked up to Kevin.

“Hey!” He called to Kevin. “Are you and that guy the ones taking on these bandits?” He asked.

“Yes, my Uncle and I are protecting this village.” Kevin responded, hoping that this archer wasn’t an enemy. He readied his sword, in case he needed a quick strike to finish off his foe.

“Point that somewhere else, will you?” The archer said, slightly annoyed. “I’m here to help you. My name’s Robin.” Robin said, a smile sliding on his face. “These bandits destroyed my home, several months ago. I want revenge. What’s your name?”
“Well, we could use the help. And I’m Kevin, and that is Jasper.” Kevin admitted, biting his lip.

“It’s agreed. I’ll help.” Robin said, pulling an arrow loose, and striking the third brigand in the back as he started to run. The bandit collapsed as blood poured out of the wound. As far as anyone could see, the leader, Skull, was the only one left.
“I’ll take ya all on! Those other idiots may have died, but I can guarantee you that I will carve your skull outta your head today.” Skull declared, pulling his axe out. He ran to Jasper, and slashed with his axe. Jasper blocked it with his sword, and slammed the hilt of his own sword into Skull’s nose. It cracked, and blood started to flow. Skull grabbed his nose with the hand not holding his axe and cursed a couple times.
“Heh, you have some skill, but not enough to take out Skull!” Skull cried, slashing at Kevin this time. Kevin blocked the attack, but he didn’t have enough strength or experience that Jasper had. The sword slipped from his hands and landed on the ground near him. Skull grinned, and raised his axe over his head to finish him off. He fell over a minute later, an arrow stuck in his leg, causing him to fall over. Kevin looked over his shoulder, and noticed Robin, his bow still held in his arm.

“Thanks Robin. If that had hit me, I don’t know if I would have made it.” Kevin sighed in relief, picking up his sword.

“It’s not problem, Kevin.” Robin said, closing one of his eyes closed in concentration.
Skull groaned, his moans becoming shouts as he pulled the arrow out of his thigh. He tossed it to the side, and tested his leg. It was strong enough to fight on. He noticed that both men were coming closer towards him, and the archer was taking aim. He leapt towards Jasper, but couldn’t get through Jasper’s defensive parries. Kevin slashed at Skull’s head, so Skull ducked and tackled Kevin. Kevin was surprised, and dropped his sword. Skull raised his axe to finish Kevin off, and Kevin gasped. He grabbed his sword, and swung, hitting flesh and bone. Skull groaned, and fell off Kevin. Kevin got up, and stretched his arms out. He kicked Skull to see if there was any reaction. Skull did not move at all, nor did he show any other signs of life.
“Kevin!? Are you alright?” Jasper asked, running towards Kevin. Robin also moved towards Kevin.

“Yeah, I’m fine…” Kevin trailed off, feeling strange. A sudden pain rippled from his shoulder blades, and Kevin sank to his knees. He felt his back, and felt an arrow. He looked over at Robin, feeling betrayed. Robin pointed an arrow straight at Kevin, and fired. Kevin felt the ground rise to greet him, and he blacked out.

[Tino]

It's generally a good story, but there are some grammar and spelling mistakes here and there (threw instead of through, and other things similar to it). I also believe you've confused Jasper and Kevin a bit at the start of chapter 1 :/

[Dath]

Grr..thought I got all the spelling mistakes...

But where at the start of Ch. 1? I just read through it and everything looked pretty good.

[Tino]

Sorry, I just misread that part. Simply ignore that comment

[Sothe]

Good story, very very interesting.

[Tino]

[Dath]

Surprisingly, I was re-reading this through, and I got into the story again, so I'll begin this up again. Odd...huh?

Chapter 2
The Awakening


Robin pointed an arrow straight at Kevin, and fired. Kevin felt the ground rise to greet him, and he blacked out. Robin fired the arrow, and it sailed far over Kevin’s head. Jasper gasped, and looked behind Kevin. Standing fifty feet away, was another archer, who was falling back, arrow lodged in his throat.

“Jasper, make sure Kevin is alright!” Robin said, putting his bow on a custom strap on his back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, in the Kingdom of Borgher, the self declared Emperor of the Continent stood, addressing his four finest knights.

“Knights of Borgher, you are the hammers driving the nails of success into this continent. You four are the strongest warriors on the continent, aside from me.” The Emperor stated, holding his arms out wide. Garon, the silent Berserker, stood dutifully, awaiting his orders. Connor, the Bishop, tossed his long red hair behind his head and grinned. Zack, the Hero, frowned, and looked down. The last warrior was , the Sage. “You four will continue to serve me, no matter the order.” He warned, looking straight at Zack. “However, there is a new threat arising. A small town boy living in Arghdor, a small town in Arithia, poses a threat to my kingdom. Find the boy, and bring him to me. His name is Kevin.” The Emperor finished. Slowly, one by one, the knights left the throne room.

This isn’t what I imagined would happen. The Emperor is a mad-man. There is a reason that the continent was ruled by several rulers, instead of one. When I joined, I thought that glory and combat were suitable for a ruler. Now that I’ve achieved the rank of General, I know that this Emperor is making all of the wrong choices…, Zack thought to himself, as he walked to his room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kevin….Kevin, wake up… Kevin heard as he opened his eyes. The lights in the room were cut off, and he noticed at once that his back was stiff and scarred. It hurt to twist his back.

“Ow...” He moaned, looking around, suddenly remembering Robin’s ‘betrayal.’

“You awake?” A glum voice spoke. It was Jasper, and his eyes were swollen, as if he had been crying for the last hour.

“Uncle….Jasper, what happened?” Kevin asked, attempting to throw off the sleepiness that he felt.

“Just broke the news to Polly, about Chuck.” Jasper spoke up. “It was terrible, lots of screaming and shouting and crying.”

“I….I’m sorry.” Kevin condoled.

“It’s all right, I guess. Chuck would have wanted to go out in battle, anyways.” Jasper said, slumping in his chair.
“So...Where is Robin?” Kevin said, practically spitting the name out.

“You think that Robin shot you? No, there was a second bandit, an archer. He aimed and shot you, Robin saved you.” Jasper explained.

“Oh…I didn’t know.” Kevin said, thinking back.

“Hm…anyway, what’s our next move, what’s our next move…” Jasper said, thinking.

“Next move? Why do we have to move?” Kevin asked.

“Kevin, do you even know where we are?” Jasper said suddenly.

“Uh…no. I’m guessing by your tone that we’re not in Arghdor anymore?” Kevin asked.

“No, the town was burned down.” Jasper said, thinking back again.

“What? But we…we defeated all of the bandits!” Kevin exclaimed suddenly.

“I thought so too. But I guess there was one more left, and he sneaked through. He set one of the buildings down, and between that fire, and the fire set in our house, the entire village was gone, too late to save.” Jasper said glumly.

“So everyone’s gone…?” Kevin asked.

“No, Robin and I managed to round everyone in the town up. We’re living in Clavin now, the city of thieves and pickpockets.” Jasper said, looking around as if one was near him.

“Clavin? A town? I’ve never been to a town before.” Kevin said.

“Oh, that’s right; you’ve only lived in Arghdor. A town is a great place, save this town at least.” Jasper explained.

“Yeah,” Kevin muttered looking out of the window. “But it’s so big….” He said in awe.

“Why don’t you go and take a look around the city,” Jasper said, standing up and stretching his legs. “Meanwhile, I will go make myself useful and search about this so called “Emperor,” and what his plans are,” Jasper said, making sure his sword was in its sheath on his side. “You be good, and stay out of trouble,” He warned to Kevin, before leaving.

[Riadansen]

haha good story cant wait to read more =D

[Dath]

Thanks, next chapter should be up by tomorrow.

[Mankut]

Great story, can't wait till you post more!

[Dath]

Next chapter up, tomorrow. Hope you can hold out...

Which is pretty stupid for me to say, since you've been holding out since April 28th, so...yeah.

[Dath]

Chapter 3
Of Mice and Men

Kevin nodded as the door closed behind Jasper. He stood up, only to be greeted by a huge head rush. His vision turned dark again, and he opened his eyes and found himself staring at the floor. He stood up with a groan, and tried walking. He was good now; the arrow wound had been completely healed. He walked out the door that Jasper had just left, just minutes ago. As soon as he closed the door behind him, he bumped into a man. The man was wearing sand brown rags that matched his untidy hair. However, his eyes were bright blue and beamed with a seemingly bright glean.

“Pardon your step, my friend,” The man said, laughing as Kevin nearly bumped into him.

“Oh..! My...I’m sorry, sir,” Kevin said, his face getting hot.

“It’s quite alright! No need to get embarrassed. The name’s Ash,” Ash said, pulling out his hand. As he did, his rags pulled aside, allowing Kevin to see what lay underneath. Kevin tensed; underneath the rags was the insignia of the country of Borgher; this man was a Borgher spy, or soldier! Kevin thought back to all the times that Jasper had told him never to trust a Borgherian…

“Never trust those back stabbing Borgherians. I hear that they torture enemy civilians for information. They burn down buildings, towns, entire cities just for their lord,” Jasper had explained to the only twelve year old Kevin. Kevin gazed up with a childlike fascination, to which Jasper smiled to, “Luckily, you’ll never have to worry about that…”

Kevin shook his hands with the Borgher agent; he couldn’t show any signs that he knew that he was a Borgherian. “My name is Kevin, Ash. So, what brings you down to Clavin, Ash?” Kevin probed, looking for an answer.

“Oh…you know. Work. It’s such a pain, dragging me all the way down here, but I have to…” Ash said, cutting himself off before he said too much, “But, you know, it’s just a lot of work. What about you? Are you a resident of Clavin?” He asked Kevin.

Kevin shook his head, “No, me and my…Uncle are just passing through here,” Kevin said, cautiously.

“Is that so? Where are you heading to?” Ash asked, looking down at Kevin. Though Ash may have only been a couple years older than Kevin, he still was somewhere near three of four inches taller than him.

“Well…We’re heading to…our home, in Arghdor,” Kevin said, grasping the handle of his sword, cautiously.

“Arghdor…Well, isn’t that interesting…Tell me, son, do you know of the Fighters of Freedom?” Ash asked, noting of Kevin’s cautious behavior.

Kevin nodded, “Isn’t that the anti-hunting group that attacks major hunting facilities and frees trapped and wounded animals?” He asked, releasing the handle of his sword.

Ash shook his head, “That’s just a cover up. The real purpose of our organization is to bring down the Emperor of Borgher, who is now using his power to claim lands that do not belong to him,” Ash explained, lowering his voice to a whisper.

“W…wait… our organization? You’re part of it!” Kevin exclaimed.

“Shh! Could you be any louder? I don’t think that those people heard you!” Ash exclaimed, pointing to a pair of soldiers on the other side of the street. Indeed, they had looked up at Kevin’s outburst, but had relaxed once more. “But on the other hand, yes, I am part of it. In fact, I helped establish the basis of the organization.” Ash said, standing up and pulling on Kevin’s hand. “Come. We have an outpost where you can hide out, at least until you, your friend, and your uncle can leave town.”

“You know who we are?” Kevin asked, confused.

“Yes I know who you are! I knew from the moment you said your name was Kevin. All soldiers and citizens of Borgher are trying their hardest to find you,” Ash spoke quietly again. “I’m posing as a Borgher soldier, for the moment, as my superiors ordered me to find you and your allies. They want to meet you very much, for what reason, I do not know,” Ash said. “That is why we must move as fast as we can. That reason, and the fact that we’ve been discovered,” Ash said, pointing behind Kevin. Kevin turned around to look, and noticed the two soldiers beginning to gather their weapons and pointing at Kevin and Ash. Ash, still posing as a soldier, went forward to meet them. The two soldiers began arguing, and suddenly, one of them struck. Ash met that soldiers spear on his shield, and slashed with his own, sending the man reeling, with a heavy gash to his throat, and crimson blood pouring out. The other soldier, stabbed at Ash’s side, and made contact. The spear drove into Ash’s armor, sending the fake soldier to his knees. The Borgher soldier grinned; the match was his, and so was a nice big bonus to his salary. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t see Ash raising his arm, or the spear that soon impaled him, and sent him to the afterlife. Ash came back, grasping his wounded side. Blood freely poured from it, and Ash’s face had paled.

“But…what about the bodies?” Kevin asked, as Ash began to walk ahead of him.

Ash turned around, and sighed, “There’s no point in hiding the bodies; for soldiers, an abandoned post is as much as a giveaway as a pile of corpses,” Kevin nodded, and began to follow him. Ash led him to an abandoned old warehouse, at the outskirts of the town. Ash pushed Kevin inside the door, despite his protests. Soldiers wearing the black and crimson armor of the Borgher Empire began to form in every direction. Ash cursed, and urged Kevin to move faster down the deserted hallway of the warehouse. It soon began a slight decline, and Kevin began gathering momentum. Suddenly, it turned into a flat plane, and another door was at the end. Kevin pushed the door open, and burst into a meeting room. All around him, sat soldiers wearing the armor of dark navy blue, which he guessed was the armor of the Rebel Army. A woman, the sole women, Kevin noted, stood from her chair.

“What is the meaning of this?” She demanded, looking from Kevin’s face, to Ash’s. Ash raced to her side, and whispered vigorously in her ear. She looked him in the face and asked, “Is this true?” He nodded, and pointed to Kevin, and began whispering again. Kevin took the time to look around; most of the soldiers were around the age of twenty, with some of the people in the chairs looking slightly older. One of the men sitting down had a bright black beard and a goatee. He didn’t look like he had much of a muscular build, so Kevin didn’t take him to be a soldier. The women cleared her throat, and Kevin jumped. He hadn’t realized that she was standing just in front of him.

“So, you are Kevin,” it was more of a statement than a question. The women spoke with a heavy accent, one of which Kevin couldn’t place.

“Yes, my name is Kevin. I have come here looking for protection against the Empire of Borgher,” Kevin said, feeling braver with each syllable spoken.

“Well, you will find none here,” The women said, crushing Kevin’s dreams. Ash too, looked crestfallen. “However, you may go to the capital of Nori, Canaway, if you can make it, however. It is a long and dangerous trek through the Ardious Mountains, unless you prefer going through Borgher, and cutting through the Ardious Mountains,” The women said. “Our headquarters lies in Canaway, where some of our greatest men and women are, scholars and peasants alike,” She said. “To ensure your survival, I will grant you Ash and Norman, as your guides,” She said, pointing to the man with the bright black beard and goatee. He looked up at the mention of his name, and waved. “Norman is one of our finest tacticians, and has some basic skills in anima magic,” She added.

“If I may ask, who are you?” Kevin asked the women. The women chuckled for a moment before answering.

“I am Ankara. I am the old Prophet of Truth for Arithia, before the accursed Emperor decided that he doesn’t need a truth telling prophet. So he had me banished,” She spat out. “Now, I am just a rising star in the Rebel Army,” She added. Kevin nodded, and Ash grabbed his arm.

“Come. You too, Norman!” He yelled over his shoulder. Norman jumped and grabbed his books from his chair. He stumbled over the hem of his robes, and hurried to Kevin’s side. He grabbed onto Kevin’s hand, and began vigorously shaking it.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Sir Kevin,” Norman spoke eagerly.

“It…it’s just Kevin. It’s nice meeting you too, I guess,” Kevin said, shaking Norman’s arm back. Norman nodded, and adjusted his slipping glasses back onto the bridge of his nose. Kevin walked ahead, to where Ash was leading the way. “Ash, are you going to be alright with your wound?” He asked, looking at Ash. Ash just laughed.

“My wound was healed. A cleric healed me at the base,” He laughed, showing Kevin his side. It was true; the wound had completely healed, there wasn’t a trace of it.
“Well, that’s good news…What about the battalion of soldiers outside the walls? Is the Rebel Army going to deal with them?” Kevin asked.

Ash nodded, “Madame Ankara has sent men to deal with them. She is very talented, for one her age,” Ash explained. They arrived at the end of the hallway. “Come, we have a side exit here that we can take. Norman! Which route would serve our interests better; going through the Ardious Mountain range, or snaking across the edge of Borgher, to Nori?” He asked.

Norman waddled over, his eyes half closed in concentration. “I believe that if we go to the Mountain range, we won’t make it to the other side. The Ardious Mountains are a set of high peaking mountains with bitterly cold passes, and treacherous footing. Though, Borgher won’t be any easier. We’ll be hunted at every pass…” Norman said, his voice trailing off.

Ash and Kevin looked at each other and Ash shrugged, “Well, I guess we’re heading through Borgher. Norman! Send a fire bird to Kevin’s uncle telling him what happened and where to meet us at,” Ash instructed.

“Ash, what’s a fire bird?” Kevin asked, as Norman complied, and left.

“A fire bird is what the Rebel Army uses to communicate over long distances. It’s essentially a burst of anima fire magic, taken in the shape of a bird, that can be used to sound your voice over long distances of space,” Ash explained. Kevin nodded, understanding. The three men raced through the doors, and out of the Rebel Army encampment.

Meanwhile

The Emperor paced in his throne room; his finest bishops and druids couldn’t explain what was happening. His Shadow Knight, the finest artificial knight in the kingdom, was malfunctioning. The druids had muttered something about the source of the knight’s dark power wasn’t of pure of heart. The Emperor had countered with the fact that the human source of the power was the purest man in all of Asvaina. The druids had shrugged, and said that they would keep at it. The Emperor was nervous for once; if his dark knight was created, it would be his finest soldier, knight, and assassin, all in one. Suddenly, the door to the throne room burst open, and a man dressed in dark black garb walked in. He was clouded in dark energy, which seemed to blur his movement. He had a dark aura that glowed intensely behind him. He walked straight up to the Emperor, without any fear or hesitation, and bent one knee.

“What is your bidding, my master,” The stranger’s voice came out dark and cold, no room for compassion or thoughtfulness could be salvaged from it. The Emperor’s only response was a deep throated chuckling that eventually grew to fully fledged laughter that seemed to boom from every corner of the Imperial Palace.

[Mankut]

You said Kevin talked to Ankara. Don't you mean Ash?

[Dath]

*Gack*

Nobody saw that. It'll just be our little secret, mkay?

[Seraphinox]

Wow, It's brilliant, very action packed and well paced. Needs moar comedy

Can't wait for more though

[Dath]

Comedy...hm...I'll try to work on that, I guess.

[Dath]

Short chapter.

Chapter 4
Betrayal


Jasper stood up; the bulletin he had been reading on the board said nothing that he already knew. A streak of red flashed in the peripheral of his vision. It was a small fiery shaped object floating in the air. A fire bird, Jasper realized.

“Are you Jasper?” A voice spoke from the bird. Jasper jumped in surprise.

“Y-yes, I am Jasper. May I help you?” He asked the small aflame bird.

“Yes, we have much to discuss…” The bird began, discussing all that had happened.

Meanwhile

“Your Majesty, I demand to know the truth!” A fury radiated voice spoke. The Emperor turned around, where he saw his top druid, Xizor, with his fists clenched.

“Xizor…what is the matter?” The Emperor asked, faking concern.

“You know what is wrong! Where is he! He is not ready for combat or missions yet! He still needs more time! You know this!” Xizor boomed.

“I take it that you are speaking of the Shadow Knight you have been creating for me?” The Emperor spoke, still faking interest in the conversation.

“Of course that’s who I am speaking of!” Xizor said, madness gleaming in his eyes. “I demand that he is to be brought here at once,” Xizor declared.

“You are in no position to demand anything, Xizor…” The Emperor said, speaking softly now. Xizor was about to ask what that meant, when a ring of darkness circled around Xizor’s feet.

“What the…” Xizor spoke softly as well, before the ring began rising up, and soon engulfed Xizor. When the dark aura faded, The Shadow Knight was behind him, with his sword drawn back.

“Well, you did ask for him…” The Emperor said, as he twitched his fore finger.

At that twitch, the Shadow Knight plunged the sword into Xizor’s back, until the tip emerged from Xizor’s chest, coated in crimson red blood. Xizor’s face paled, and his feet failed to support him. He tumbled over, his vision turning black, and the last words spoken to him were, “By the way, I’ve decided to name him Kram, after his…biggest supporter,” The Emperor spoke, cackling with laughter. Soon, Xizor faded, and ceased to exist, anymore. A single man stood, shrouded in the darkness, nearly out of the eye sight of the Emperor. His mouth opened in horror at what had happened to his mentor, and fled the sight of his mad lord and his most devoted follower.

Meanwhile

Robin paced around in his room. Numerous items lay scattered about, most of them were archery tools. He didn’t know where Jasper or Kevin was, but it didn’t matter. His mission was complete. He launched a dark orb into the air, a shadow orb. It glowed intensely for a moment, before revealing the face of the Shadow Knight.

“Have you done what I have asked,” Kram asked, his voice alive with malice.

“I...I have, My Lord. They were in Clavin, before they were aided by the Rebels,” Robin replied, looking down.

“You have done well. Return to the Capital, immediately,” The Dark Knight replied, cutting off the communication.

“Of course…” Robin replied, even though he was no longer speaking to Kram. He began to gather his things, and immediately set off for the Capital.

[Seraphinox]

Super Special Awesome Plot Twist?

Looks good, Keep up the good work. Good descriptive work.
(Meanwhile thousands of miles away)

[Dath]

Mhm...I'm working on the next chapter. I hope that it'll be up by...Friday, maybe.