"I will kill all who oppose me..." King Chiron.

In the sixth year of King Chiron, the hero Norman Guildon, leader of the mercenary group the White Crows, stood up against the evil king, but was quickly defeated when Chiron opened the Gate to the Abyss. Now, demons have poured forth from the gate into the land of Challen, ravaging the landscape and destroying everything in their path. Norman has fled from Challen's capital of Ariakan to seek the fabled Armor of Lost Glories, leaving the land to the mercy of the demons.

The King, however, never believed that he could lose control of his demons. He did. No longer is he the evil king that he has been known to be, but Aleph, Lord of Demons. He has vowed to kill all who oppose him, including Norman, his own brother. He has become the most feared being on Challen. Even the dark elves have receded into the Forest of Ash to avoid him, with the exception of the assassin Zhan Dathka.

It has been rumored that eight brave adventurers have left their hometown, traveling to the capital, though intent is unknown.

The time to choose has come: Aid the people, or hasten the destruction of the beautiful land of Challen? Travel to Ariakan to destroy the King, or ally yourself with him? The choice is up to you.
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Species:
Elf (Long Life) : Renowned for their woodscraft and their ability to communicate with beasts around them.

Dark Elf (Long life): Usually known as cruel and heartless, sterotyped as assassins, but there have been a few goodly dark elves...

Dwarf (Extended Life): Brave creatures with a great sense of humor, known to do a variety of jobs...

Human: Known as completely unpredictable by the other races

Orc: Mainly known as big dumb brutes, orcs can be surprising when in combat.

Vilsh (Long Life): Much like elves, but much larger. Many are known for their mastery of magic and blade, usually known as swords for hire.
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Character Sheet:

Neo Name: (you should know this)
Character Name: (what is your character known as?)
Gender: (male or female?)
Species: (Elf, Dark Elf, Dwarf, Human, Orc, or Vilsh)
Age: (how old is your character? (NOTE: species marked with "long life" live for longer than 500 years while "extended life lives up to 300.
Home City: (which of the listed cities is your character from? NOTE: if you don't want a hometown, simply put "Wanderer")
Appearance: (what do you look like/wear?)
Personality: (what is your character like?)
Affiliation: (with or against the demons?)
Weapon(s): (no more than three) (name, if so desired)
Enchantment: (what effects does your weapon(s) have?)
Job: (what do you do for a living? (mage, assassin, merchant, etc.)
Family: (any alive?)
Biography: (give a little background on your character)
Other: (any other information you would like to share about your character)
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Known Cities and Status
Human:
Ariakan: completely overrun by demons, almost impossible to infultrate.
Adornath: destroyed. Used by many refugees as shelter
Natrator: Hidden in the desert, still intact.
Xerina: Only remaining fortress. Still, as of yet, unknown to demons
Merid: Conquered. One of the many points from which the hordes of demons strike from.
Sori: destroyed but still in use by soldiers.
Dorina: Hidden in the Helsva Mountains
Ferix: Still living normally, but in fear of a demon strike...

Elven:
Norca: destroyed, all remnants of life gone
Enta: Still intact, currently besiged by demons
Ropta: destroyed along the coast. No life.
Ysta: Hidden in the Forest of Ash
Boru: destroyed, still in use by refugees

Dark Elven:
Aetola: Destroyed decades ago, it is rumored that there still may be many wonderous weapons and artifacts lying buried beneath the ruins...

Dwarven:
Korak: Still hidden within the Helsva Mountains
Ultar: Rumored to be on the Dead Isle...
Jinipe: Conquered, used by demon scout parties

Orc:
Putya: Gone, moved into the Helsva Mountains
Oopartan: Besieged by demons, still intact
Garrt: Gone, completely destroyed

Vilsh:
Untara: Held intact by Dreven's plight to Chiron. Ruled by demons
Awert: destroyed, all remaining soldiers sent to Therran
Therran: Only remaining Free Vilshian city, used as final defense fortress, seeking help from other races

RULES:
1) Forum Wide Rules
2) NO GODMODDING
3) No spam. All spam will be deleted.
4) No flaming! Reasons are obvious
5) No killing (or taking control of) other player's characters without permission
6) NO double-posting. Give other players a chance to react
7) DO NOT join if you are going to quit later on.
8) MOST OF ALL: Have fun! Don't get carried away with petty rivalries here. It's all for fun!
NOTES: This is [M] rated, so it's pretty much everything goes. However, please keep sexual content to a MINIMUM (if any at all) and keep all expletives on a tasteful level
Before I accept your request, you must somehow convince that you have, in fact, read ALL of the rules.
ADDED: If you feel so inclined, you may switch your affiliation (i.e. if you are... persuaded by a dark character...)

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Demons:
Graarl: Large and powerful, can crush many with its sheer weight, but has very low intelligence.

Hytu: Sentient and quick thinking, can shriek high enough to break the sound barrier, stunning foes

Mytu: Advanced version of the Hytu, much smarter and far more powerful. Also has wings to fly.

Serk: Dog-like, these can think of nothing more than the kill. Regarded by most as a Hellhound.

Kizel: Humanoid. Known by many as "the demon spellcasters" though almost all demons have inate fire abilities.

Siren: Humanoid demons with feminine attributes, can take on the guise of a woman to seduce men into defenseless situations (succubus)

Roika: Most stand near 18' and are excessively hard to kill alone. Use their brute force to quickly overwhelm opponents.

Oparen: Generals in demon armies. Nearly impossible to kill, even with numbers. Not commonly seen and have far greater powers than Kizels.

Phalret: Only five are known to exist. They are the reincarnated souls of the Dragon Lords of old and have assumed grotesque dragon forms. None of them have any known weaknesses, though man has given them the Dragon Lord names: Pyra, Lord of Fire. Venus, Lord of Earth. Caelum, Lord of the Sky. Hydra, Lord of Water. Nocturnal, Lord of Darkness.

Aleph: The Lord of All Demons. Possessed Chiron and sends his commands through this corporeal form. Seen only twice with no known weaknesses.


This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 16 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 17 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 17 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 19 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 19 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 20 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 24 2007.

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Jan 03 2008.

Neo Name: Zhan Dathka
Character Name: Kyle Sindara
Gender: Male
Species: Elf
Appearance: Blonde hair with almond colored eyes, no stubble, usually seen wearing a light layer of chainmail and a deep blue cloak. Has a pair of leather-backed chainmail gauntlets that can burst into flames.
Personality: Mysterious, insightful, usually serious, also known to be kind and has a great sense of humor
Age: Around 68
Hometown: Enta
Affiliation: Against the Demons
Weapon(s): Longbow (Skree), Dual Ranger Knives (Terra and Jarkl)
Enchantment: Skree- when command word it uttered, it can extend into a rope to cross great expanses. Terra- When stabbed into the ground, it can cause cracks to trip enemies or raise rocks in order to climb walls. Jarkl- has a chance to pierce any armor, no matter how thick.
Job: Ranger
Family: Brother: Rorek the outcast, traveling with Norman Guildon
Biography: Lived most of his life in the city of Enta, until his little brother Shil was killed in a goblin raid while scouting. Left soon after Rorek was outcast for killing the commander who sent Shil out into the forest. Kyle began to live the next 30 years in the Forest of Ash.
Other: (any other information you would like to share about your character)

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Neo Name: Zhan Dathka
Character Name: Zhan Dathka (Used only for moving the story along. Other players may only have 1 character)
Gender: Male
Species: Dark Elf
Age: 85
Hometown: Aetola
Appearance: White hair and coal black skin, slender but has compact muscles. Has red, piercing eyes and vampiric fangs. When seen, wears black chainmail, black sleeveless tunic, black breeches and a midnight cloak.
Personality: Cold and heartless, only Dreven Endara has ever seen his softer side.
Affiliation: With the Demons
Weapon(s): Longbow (simple), long dagger (Frostbite), longsword (Scorn)
Enchantment: Frostbite- Ability to freeze blood if impailed or freeze water to allow easy crossing. Scorn- burn any victim cut by its wicked, serrated edge.
Job: Assassin
Family: Zerith Dathka: only remaining family and Zhan's rival. Considers his partner, Dreven, his only brother
Biography: When he was 34, he helped the Dark Blades kill the leader of Aetola, the city of dark elves: his father. He then killed every member of the Blades and teamed up with Dreven to become the most feared assassins on Challen
Other: None

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Neo Name: Dajay
Character Name: Xi Iklostrongilos
Gender: Male
Species: Human
Age: 21
Home City: Ariakan
Appearance: Average height. Short Black hair streaked with gold. Very pale skin, almost white. Always looks like he's in deep thought. Wears a black robe. Golden eyes.
Personality: Is always thinking about something. Intelligent. Can get incredibly angry.
Affiliation: With the demons
Weapon: An obsidian dagger (Gladiumbrarum) and A diamond dagger (Gladilucum) A fusion of Gladiumbrarum and Gladilucum (Gladeis)
Enchantment: Can attack shadows and do damage to the creator of it (Gladiumbrarum) Can increase in size in light and block it (Gladilucum) Can create absolute light or darkness and travels along it(Gladeis)
Job: None
Family: All presumed dead
Biography: Stays, as one of the only humans left, in Ariakan, staying alive, as he has a strong bond with it. Never knew any of his family. Can't remember anything before he was 16. Including how he got his daggers
Other: That's all I got

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Neo Name: Tiger of Wu
Character Name: Flugoc Negria
Gender: Male
Species: Orc
Age: 42
Home City: Gaart
Appearance: Standing at 5 foot 4, Flugoc looks as though he is made of muscles. He wears dark colours and has his hammer strapped across his back. He has many battle scars all over his body and has no hair on his face or chin.
Personality: Angry, Untrusting, Cynical and Strong Willed
Affiliation: Against the demons
Weapon(s): A small survival dagger at his waist and a huge battle hammer called Holy Light
Enchantment: Holy Light is an ancient weapon entrusted to the orcs of Gaart to protect. When beings from the abyss are near it glows a white light and while this light is glowing its power grows tenfold... but it comes with a price. It can only be wielded when it has a holy mission, but when that mission is complete the weapon goes back up to the gods and the wielder dies.
Job: Ex-Soldier for Gaart
Family: All dead
Biography: The demons attacked the town of Gaart while Flugocs unit was away hunting animals for a celebratory feast, celebrating another year of keeping the Holy Light safe. When the unit returned the demons had killed everyone in Gaart and begun to tear down the city. Most of the unit was killed on arrival, but Flugoc ran through the demons and made it into the temple, where the Holy Light was kept. He grabbed it, disregarding his own fate, and killed a quarter of the demons with the hammers mighty power. The rest of the demons fled in fear. After seeing everyone and everything dead, Flugoc swore he would rid the world of demons by any means necessary.
Other: Holy Light may not be the only weapon of the gods to be placed on the earth.

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Neo Name: Rust
Character Name: Ayreon
Gender: Male
Species: Vilsh
Age: 199
Home City: Untara
Appearance: Ayreon is 6'7" and very well built. He has deep brown hair has been grown out very long compared to human standards. His skin is still fresh, no wrinkles or blemishes can be seen, except for a large scar that runs down his cheek. His gray eyes have been known to change colors slightly depending on his mood.
Personality: Due to his "young" age, Ayreon can be reckless at times. He does what he can to help out people in need, having been helped numerous times back in his home city.
Affiliation: Against the demons
Weapon(s): A pair of scimitars named Aquis and Fireburst respectively. Aquis is a light blueish-gray color while Fireburst is a bright orange. The two are considered some of the oldest weapons forged by mortal hands.
Enchantment: Aquis is a sword of water. If pitted against normal weaponry, it will pass right through the weapon if it's defending. The sword seems to know when it needs to be solid or liquid. Fireburst will alight the blood of Ayreon's enemies if it's orange blade comes in contact with even a single drop of blood still inside the body. Fireburst was forged as the polar opposite of Scorn, meant to be the only weapon capable of standing up to the evil blade.
Job: He has quit all mercenary jobs in order to go after the desecrators of his homeland.
Family: Alive in Therran
Biography: Although he was born and raised in Untara, he left to explore the world soon after he passed a century in age. He acquired his scimitars during the Seige of Untara, when the demons had stormed the castle. In his adrenaline rush, Ayreon jumped in in order to find the blades, knowing that they must never be used against the Vilsh. In reward for his bravery, the Vilsh elders who had also escaped lent him the scimitars. But only if he used their power to end the demon threat.

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Neo Name: themanyouwanttobe
Character Name: Rhomus Tald
Gender: He claims he's male but you never really know with Dwarves.
Race: Dwarf
Age: 137 years, 7 months, and 21 days. Dwarves keep track of this sort of thing.
Home City: Korak
Appearance: He has bushy dark hair and a beard reaching down to his waist. He is 3 feet, 5 inches of Dwarven muscle, easily as strong as even the largest human. He wears his own specially made plate armour that gives him the ease of movement of a leather tunic but the protection of a full steel suit, thanks to it's complex design. He rarely removes it even to sleep.
Personality: Explosive, he may be your best friend at one moment and at your neck the next because of a comment about his height. He doesn't take much other than himself too seriously. If he could leave the Demon issue alone he would, if he knew they would leave his mountain in peace.
Affiliation: Against the Demons
Weapons: A two-headed war axe with a spear-tip on the end that he wears on his back. He has affectionately named this Chopper. Also, he has a smaller single-headed axe he wears at his right hip he uses for throwing and unarmored enemies. He calls this one Hacker. Used more as a tool than a weapon, he has a dagger worn at his left hip. He calls this Poker.
Enchatnment: Chopper triples the force Rhomus swings it with, which is already significant. Hacker will return to Rhomus' hand after he has thrown it, even if it is embedded firmly in someone's spine. Poker simply never dulls which is useful because Rhomus uses it a lot for carving.
Job: Inventor
Family: His father, Rhemus, is a member of the Dwarven ruling guild and his mother, Alhom, died in Jinipe. He also has a child, Rhamus, who is a blacksmith's apprentice.
Biography: After his compulsory military training as a youth, he became the apprentice to the greatest inventor in Dwarven history, Holim. When his mother was killed by demons his father appealed to the ruling guild that Dwarves become involved in the conflict. Though a decision had not yet been reached, Rhomus took it upon himself to set out on his own.
Other: Rhomus has never seen any other race before. He has an ingrained mistrust of humans and an awe of elves.

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Neo Name: Eternale Animato
Character Name: Lana Fair
Gender: Female
Species: Elf
Age: 77
Home City: Enta
Appearance: Tall, slim, tan complexion, green eyes, with long skinny legs perfect for her job. Has long dark straight hair that she puts in a ponytail and goes down to her hips. Wears green corset, fingerless gloves, skirt, and knee-high leather studded boots. She carries her Daggers in a belt around her waist and her crossbow on her back.
Personality: When she is thinking or hunting, she is extremely passive and quiet. However, she can also be very loud and upbeat. Sadly, these days, there have been rare times to laugh.
Affiliation: Against Demons
Weapon(s): Crossbow (shoots Daggers) and a Javelin
Enchantment: Paralysis, when the javelin injects into the skin, the body can go rigid. Same for daggered crossbow.
Job: Ranger
Family: No
Biography: Recently, her hometown has been ravaged and she lost her family. She has decided to go on the move and has become a wanderer. She is a skilled hunter and fends for herself each day. She is looking for anyone who can help her stop the demons.
Other: Likes to sit when sleeping.

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Neo Name: Kyinnla
Character Name: Ariana "Aria" Stern
Gender: Female
Species: Vilsh
Age: 92
Home City: Awert
Appearance: Aria
Personality: Aria is head strong, so it takes a lot to change her mind. She is usually quiet while she's thinking and will snap at whoever breaks her concentration. Once you gain Aria's trust, she will be loyal until something is done to break it. Otherwise, she's loyal until the day she dies.
Affiliation: Against the demons
Weapon(s): A heavy sword about twice the size of her arm. It has a teardrop hole near the tip of the weapon. There are designs special to her family which used to own a successful blacksmith shop until the demons came.
Enchantment: The amethyst gems in her sword clears her mind and keeps it sharp. It also protects against minor spells.
Job: A healer
Family: An older half-sister named Carissa. She hates Aria for some reason unknown to her. Aria stays out of her half-sister's way, but is curious to why Carissa absolutely despises her. She even tried to kill Aria shortly after their mother and both of their father died. The next closest thing to family is her friend, Chythe.
Biography: Aria was the only child of her parent's affair. Her mother left her on her father's doorstep and never came back. She had a husband and little Carissa to return to. Her father raised Aria alone and trained her to take over the family business. She always planned on it until the demons attacked and destroyed everything. Aria only had the clothes on her back and her sword. With that she traveled to Therran and learned the art of healing to make a living.
Other: None.

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Neo Name:Entei luver
Character Name: Chythe Acidai
Gender:Male
Species:Vilsh
Age:93
Home City: Therran
Appearance:Wears a black cloak usually and underneath he wears chainmail and has golden gauntlets.Has brown hair and blue eyes and is 6'3.
Personality: He is calm and caring but during battle is fearless and ferocious.
Affiliation:Against the demons
Weapon(s):A longsword called 'Axis'
Enchantment:It is unbreakable and grants strength to the user.
Job:Is a general is the Therran Army.
Family:His family is all dead;all he has left is his close friend and he hopes more,Aria......
Biography: Was born and raised in Therran and almost out of nowhere was promoted to General
Other: None.

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Neo Name: Methian
Character Name: Elendell
Gender: Male
Species: Dark Elf
Age: 242
Home City: Aetola
Appearance: Tall, slim, snow white hair, black skin, wears leather leggings, boots, and gloves with a chainmail cuirass underneath a traveler's cloak. Wears a personal invention called 'glasses', plates of clear glass mounted on a frame to allow you to see better. Long scar stretching from one ear to another, leaving the impression of a permanent smile. Emerald green eyes.
Personality: Loud and uproarious in good company, quick to act, suspicious of others motives, prefers to keep to himself, good sense of humor, very protective of his dog Temira.
Affiliation: Against
Weapon(s): A small crystal dagger named Rathia, after his wife; throwing daggers; steel shortsword
Enchantment: Rathia cannot break, self sharpening, and burns anyone besides Elendell; shortsword has a feather-light charm.
Job: Traveler
Family: All dead.
Biography: Left his hometown of Aetola to travel the world with his wife and his dog . While wandering down a road at night, an orc attacked and killed his wife and leaving him with a hideous scar along his face. This left him a serious depression for a few years. He recently started traveling again.
Other: He is a violent drunk, hates orcs with a passion, protects his dog at all costs, keeps his dagger Rathia hanging from his neck, refuses to fight with it.

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Neo Name: My Clock
Character Name: Lurgrel
Gender: male
Species: Vilsh (sp?)
Age: 226
Home City: Wanderer
Appearance: Wheres white robes with a hood he uses to completely covers his face the robes are trimmed with a blood red colour to show the corruption of his once pure soul. He has eyes the colour of blood, he is bald, his face is covered in burn scars which eridicates all other features of his face. He is about 6ft
Personality: He is very smart and he looks down on all everyone except for the demon king and dragons. If you ever meet him he will appear to underestimate you but in fact he treats everyone as equal fighting abilty to himself or better just incase. He often seems bored if you talk to him
Affiliation: With the Demons
Weapon(s): He has a staff about quite a bit taller than himself. It is made of an unknown demon substance similar to glass but alot stronger. On top of the staff is a carving of a famous demon mage's face leering and showing many sharp teeth. He also has a short dagger made of the same material in a leather sheath around his waist on the hilt is the same demon.
Enchantment: For the staff it has the enchantment that if he feeds some of his blood into the mouth he gains the abilty to leave his body enter that of others for 30 minutes making him able to suggest things and sift through memories of other peoples minds. for the dagger is he feeds his blood into the mouth he is able to talk to other demons and they can talk to him for 30 minutes
Job: Demon mage ( he can cast magic but the spells are darker)
Family: Mother in a human refuge, father and brother dead becasue he slayed them to prove he was worthy of his quite high rank in the demon force
Biography: When he wass much younger he trained to be a mage under a trainer but e wasn't happy with the power this gave him. The demon who's staff he had was observing the place he was in to spy on te mage trainer and noticed Lurgrel's lust for power so entered his mind and showed him dreams of immense power he could have if he followed the demons. Lurgrel was tempting and invoked the demon power in him and followed that path ever since.
Other: He loves cats and is always acompinied by a cat that he gave demon power to.

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Neo Name: yumivonshippo2
Character Name: Lena Harkoram
Gender: Female
Species: Human
Age: 25
Home City: Merid
Appearence: Long white hair pulled back into a ponytail. She has dark blue eyes and has a scar on her right arm. She wears a red top with a bronze armor skirt. She also wears a blood red ruby on her neck.
Personality: Lena is a dark and vicious person who shows no mercy in combat. She is wise, calm and quiet. Lena never lets her feelings show, in fact, nobody has ever seem her feelings show.
Affiliation: With the Demons
Weapons: A black steel longsword called Fudoro, which she crafted when she was only 15.
Enchantment: Fudoro is a sword that when Lena feels endangered, will turn into a sword of fire.
Job: Sword crafting, also in the military.
Family: Only known existing is her brother Gorda, who is against the demons.
Biography: Lena was born in Ariakan, and she was against demons. But when she was only 4 years old, demons attacked her family and killed everyone except her and her brother. Instead, they ran away and lived alone for 3 years in Dorina. Finally, Lena gave up on her brother and joined the demons. She was raised to show no fear and to kill anyone against them.
Other: N/A


This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Jan 03 2008.

And so it begins...

Kyle tried to slow his own breathing as he leaned against the tree, trying to hear the gutteral voices of the demons just ahead. There were two of them, a Graarl and a Hytu. He glanced up at the perpetually black sky that now hung over Challen, spewing forth from the Abyssal gate in Ariakan. He tensed and gripped his knives tightly as the two drew nearer.

"No see why wait," the Graarl complained. "City ready to fall. We go now!"

"No," the Hytu replied, speaking fluently. "The Master has not yet commanded our attack. We must wait for orders. Until then, we shall find something to do."

"Why?" the Graarl continued to whine. "Me wants dem tasty elvies! Feel the crunch of der bones in me tee-"

Kyle took his chance and spun around the tree, dagger slicing neatly up into the Graarl's brain, dropping it where it stood. Green blood and ichor began to ooze from the demon's head as it gurgled through its last few moments. He turned to face the Hytu, knives at the ready, and almost slipped in the thick layer of ash that blanketed the ground. Just as he regained his balance, the demon opened its grotesque mouth and gave a horrible shriek. Kyle dropped his daggers and clutched his ears, trying to block out the noise. The noise got louder and louder as the Hytu slowly stalked towards him, driving him to his knees. Yellow saliva dripped from its drooling maw as it gazed at its meal. It struck towards him with its serpentine head, only to find and arrow spiking through the roof of its mouth.

The beast's screams intensified, nearly destroying the young elf's sensitive ears. Kyle gritted his teeth against the pain and grimly gripped Jarkl with renewed determination. He leapt onto the beast's back and drove his knife through the top of the demon's ugly head. The Hytu began to thrash around, trying to dislodge his attacker. Only sheer will kept the elf clinging to the sharp spike protruding from its head. He drove his dagger down once more and twisted. As quickly as it had begun, the beast's shrieks quieted.

Kyle rolled off the beast and withdrew his dagger, sheathing it at his left hip. He then retrieved Terra from beneath the ashes at his feet and began to run towards the city of Enta.

"I must warn the others," he said to himself as the wind howled around him. "We must send for help."

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Alepth sat on his large obsidian throne, staring at the massive scrying mirror opposite him. Kyle was running through the forest as fast as he could, but he was still miles from Enta. Aleph's lips parted in a smirk, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth. He glanced over to the scowling dark elf standing next to him, a fire of recognition in his red eyes.

"Who is he?" Aleph demanded, his voice little more than a snarl.

"Kyle Sindara," Zhan said distastefully. "The brother of Rorek the outcast."

"He knows too much," Aleph replied at length. "Send for Lord Nocturnal. It is time to move against the city of Enta."

Zhan smirked, revealing a small pair of gleaming white, half vampire fangs.

"As you wish," he said, turning to leave the room, "my Lord."

This message was edited by Zhan Dathka on Dec 16 2007.

Rhomus looked back at the gates of Korak, his home. He was travelling with a group of Dwarven merchants on their way to the nearby Human city of Dorina. It was up to the Dwarves to do the traveling because of their own reluctance to allow any other race in their city. The merchants were thankful to have an extra axe along for the journey in these dangerous times even in the protection of the mountains. Rhomus, having never ventured outside the Korak himself, was thankful to have a guide to the human city.

Regardless of his apprehension, he did not hesitate to join in when the merchants began singing a traveling song to pass the time. It was an amusing tune about an old Dwarf who had forgotten how to get home and ended up spending the last of his years looking for a way back. Something only a Dwarf would find funny.

There were five other Dwarves and an ox pulling a cart who were making the journey. Rhomus hadn't asked their names and they hadn't told him. It wasn't necessarily rude, just unnecessary. They weren't unfriendly either, in fact their dealings with Humans had made them downright outgoing by Dwarven standards. Rhomus didn't mind, he would have to get used to much weirder if he was going to meet Humans and perhaps even Elves. Unfortunately, his first interaction with Humans was not destined to leave a good impression.

The group's singing abruptly stopped as a group of six tall hooded figures appeared around a bend in the mountain trail. Rhomus looked at them, intrigued, and wondered what business they had heading towards Korak. Without warning they stopped, blocking the path ahead. One of the Dwarves grabbed the ox's reigns.

One of the humans stepped forward. "Hey there little fellows. I'm sorry but I'm going to have to ask you to pay up."

The lead Merchant spoke up. "Pay what?"

"Why the border tariffs of course. You have to pay up when crossing into our land."

The Dwarven merchants laughed, Rhomus couldn't understand why. When his chuckles subsided, the lead merchant gave the Human who had spoke a stern look. "I could quote our entire trade agreement right here, son. No where does it say that a tariff has or ever will be in place. Our trader's guild made quite sure of that."

The human made a signal to the others and they all drew long knives. Rhomus had heard about these, he remembered that they were called swords. "Well then let's just say we're rewriting it."

Not to back down from a fight, the five merchant Dearves drew their axes and Rhomus drew Hacker. Not expecting the speed and strength from the people half their size, the humans were quickly taken care of. One tried to escape the carnage but Rhomus tossed Hacker into his spine effectively ending his career as a robber.

As he opened his hand to summon Hacker back he grunted. "Sure are brittle creatures, these humans. Are they all this treacherous.?"

The lead merchant shrugged as he cleared the path of human body parts. "Not all of them, but you never can tell for sure. Luckily these men appear to never have fought Dwarves before. Probably means they weren't making enough profit preying on human traders."

Once the road was cleared the Dwarves continued on their way. They didn't encounter another person, human or Dwarf until they reached Dorina. The traders exchanged their goodbyes with Rhomus as they went their separate ways at the gate. Them off to the market to sell their wares and him off to find someone who knew how to get to Jinipe.

One more step little Rabbit and you'll make a delicious meal

Lana stood high in a tree near the town of Enta and aimed her Crossbow at her prey way down below on the forest floor. She had been sitting in this tree for hours, pondering her life, as she does so often these days. Her family, her house, her routines...All shattered suddenly. She once again convinced herself that it was fate, and something good will happen because of this. For now, she thought, all she could do was wait. She was much too young to do anything alone. She new this.

She focused back on her lunch, the Rabbit. As she fired a dagger and the little rodent's skull, a large Serk jumped and seized the prey by the ears and swallowed it whole. It looked up at Lana next and started stalking toward the tree, sniffing its way toward her trail.

Oh shit. Not again...

Lana started to jump to next tree until the Serk had already jumped on her back and pulled her 100 feet to the ground. The Serk rolled off, its mouth covered in Rabbit blood. Lana took this moment of pause, pulling her javelin off her back-sash and flipped to the Serk. One stab was all it took. She didn't turn back after cleaning her javelin.

Lana decided she wasn't hungry anymore. She walked back to the tree stump and drifted off slowly while thinking about her old friends.

Kyle stumbled through Enta's gates, out of breath and on the verge of collapse. The guards, who hadn't seen the young elf for over 4 years, quickly overcame their shock and caught him before he struck the ground. Kyle gasped for air, not aided by the everpresent ash floating around him. He struggled to form words as the guards lay him down gently on the cobblestone, looking down at him with concerned looks.

"Kyle!" one exclaimed. "What's wrong?"

"The King!" Kyle managed to weeze. "I must see the King. Urgent and terrible news!"

The one who had spoken looked up at the other who wore a grim expression. He glanced at the coughing elf and finally nodded. The first guard slowly helped Kyle to his feet and helped him into the town gates.

"You're bleeding!" another guard exclaimed from the side. Kyle reached up and touched his blonde hair. It was matted with drying blood. He reached up farther and winced as he felt the large gash near the back of his head.

"It's nothing," he said with a grimace as his hand came away bloody. "Quickly, get me to the king."

"You sure?" the guard supporting him asked. Kyle just stared at him hard. "All right, kid. It's your funeral."

The two hastily made their way through the city, many curious glances thrown their way. Kyle noted that every citizen looked strained and the presence had grown much larger since he had left. Again he stared up at the black sky, cursing it as a new layer of ash began to fall from the ominous clouds of smoke. Lightning flashed in the distance as they turned down street after street. Kyle sighed at the sheer size of the place, and the massacre that would soon start. There was no possible way that they could hope to stand up against the ever present threat of the demons constantly pouring forth from the Abyss, all trying to make Challen their new domain. Water had become scarce, most having been contaminated by the ash soon after the initial swarm. Wizards had begun to hire themselves out to help purify the water; for a high price. Even after their divination, the spell would last no longer than a few weeks, causing the poor people to call upon the wizards again.

Kyle glanced over to the side and was shocked to see a small human family huddled around a tiny fire, trying to stay warm in the cold winter. Kyle began to notice more and more humans, something quite unheard of for Enta, who believed that all outsiders should be turned away.

"They cannot stay here," Kyle muttered to himself as they neared the palace.

"What was that?" the soldier asked, looking down into Kyle's almond eyes.

"Nothing," Kyle replied, staring at the palace. Suddenly, he broke free of the soldier, charging into the palace.

"Wait!" the soldier yelled after him. "We must-"

"No time!" Kyle yelled over his shoulder. He raced through corridor after corridor, finally finding the audience chamber where King Alzern sat upon his throne, listening to a man seeking a trade route between Enta and Dorina, hidden well within the Helsva Mountains.

"Your majesty!" Kyle yelled, interrupting the diplomat in the middle of his speech. The man turned to eye him with a fire of anger in his eyes.

"What do you want?" Alzern asked, clearly not recognizing the elf before him. "What is so important that you must interrupt this man?"

"Has it been so long, my father?" Kyle asked with a small sigh. "Do you not recognize your own son?"

"Kyle?" the king asked with disbelief in his voice. "Where-"

"We can talk about that later, father," Kyle said, obviously annoyed. "You must prepare the armies for war."

"And what threat nears us?" Alzern said, taking note of Kyle's bloody head.

"The demons," Kyle replied, finding it hard to stand. "I overheard two talking in the forest. They mean to move against Enta and soon."

"You OVERHEARD them?" the king asked skeptically. "They are sentient?"

"Quite," Kyle replied. "Ready the troops, for we've not much ti-"

There were screams from the city. Kyle stopped abruptly and stared up at the ceiling, dust falling on his upturned face.

"They are here," he said, defeat etched into his face. Suddenly, the ceiling completely caved in, revealing the hideous, serpentine head of Nocturnal, Demon Lord of Darkness.

"Gods above," Kyle whispered as the beast roared. Blackness spewed forth from its open mouth, enveloping the young elf. Soon, the elf knew no more...

Lana woke abruptly from a startling noise coming from Enta. She could tell something was wrong right away. She got on her feet quickly, though painfully, as her whole body was numb from her sleeping position. Suddenly, she could hear many noises and screams in her head, causing her to lose her balance initially. As she recovered, she focused her eyes toward the nearby town of Enta. It looked utterly chaotic.

I must have dosed off for a long time. What's going on?

Lana was worried and as she climbed the tree to get a better vantage point, she could see the imminent destruction that Enta was destined for ever since the other Elven towns have been taken over by demons. And then she saw it. The town of Enta was officially under siege by demons and here she was, standing in a tree as the other elves were fighting for their lives. She turned away slowly, for there was something there that she couldn't take her eyes off. She looked to the floor and jumped down near the dead Serk she stabbed earlier. A thought occurred to her suddenly...

Not Enta. Not while I'm alive. I can do something!

She checked her daggers, her crossbow, and her javelin tip. Her clothes and armor were fine. She had no open wounds. She was awake. She was ready. Suddenly, amidst all the chaotic sounds surrounding her and the forest, as if out of nowhere, her stomach grumbled loudly. Loud enough to startle a sleeping Bear.

How could I fight Demons and protect my home if I can't even get a decent meal around here?

For the first time in, what seemed like an eternity, she smiled. This smile gave her the confidence she needed, the strength that had been stampeded over and over again by heartache and despair, hunger and depression. After all, she had no will to survive after her family had departed. The wind blew through her long dark hair. It flowed behind her in a moment of stillness; an eternity of inner struggle caught up with her. For once, she had cried a tear. Her green eyes shut and she screamed in her head. Lana had lost everything and there was no one there to help her. She was smiling and crying at the same time. This made her laugh a little more. The will was restored, however, and she held her head tall, her javelin at the ready she started to creep towards Enta.

Today. Today is the day to take action. Far too long have I been standing by.

It didn't take the Dwarf long to find a recruiter. He had been walking through the street, wary of the Humans going about their business around him. He found himself walking into the town square where a group of heavily armed and armoured humans were gathered. They were all listening to a large man on a raised platform. Rhomus pushed his way to the front where he could get a good view.

"These demons have burned our brothers and ravaged our sisters. They have violated all that is good in this world. It is our duty, no, our right to send them back to the dark pit they came from!"

The crowd erupted in applause as he finished his speech.

As the noise died down he spoke again. "As I speak, our friends and allies the elves are under siege. At great risk to herself an elf from the fair city Enta has come to ask for our aid. I would have you listen to what she says."

A creature of unimaginable beauty ascended the platform. In a voice like silk she spoke to the gathered men. "It is not our way to ask other races for aid but in these desperate times we must not allow our arrogance to destroy us. My home is being burned, my people slaughtered. I..." she paused, "...implore your help."

The humans were silent. Then one loudmouth broke the silence. "What have you elves ever done to merit us risking our lives for you?"

The Elf could not answer.

Another spoke up. "Why should we value the lives of your people over ours?"

Again the Elf was silent.

A third from the back of the crowd shouted. "When have the mighty Elves ever shown us humans better than indifference?"

This time the large recruiter took the stand. "Watch what you say or you'll be dealing with me."

The Elf stopped him. "No, what they say is true. My people have never treated you with the respect you deserve. But this is an opportunity to change that. We will forever be in your debt if you fight with us."

Much of the crowd began walking away in search of a battalion headed to a besieged Human city. Within minutes all who remained were about thirty humans and a Dwarf. His revenge in Jinipe could wait, Rhomus felt a strange obligation to stand by this enchanting creature.

The Elven maiden looked defeatedly at the few people willing to fight for her cause. Composing herself, she spoke. "I am grateful for you who are willing to fight for a people to whom you owe nothing. Please prepare to leave as soon as possible, we may be too late already."

It didn't take long for the few recruits to get geared up and within an hour they had assembled on horseback at the gates. Rhomus had purchased a strong pony and a special Dwarven saddle. He was still getting used to the beast under him when they started off. He rode at the front of the column with the Elf and the Human commander. Through idle small talk that humans seemed to adore, he learned the man's name was Hershen and the Elf's was Saiel.

After only a few hours travel they turned a bend in the trail and there were no more mountains before them. Rhomus marveled at the distance. The land stretched out as far as he could see. He didn't have time to appreciate the sight for too long. After the rest of the soldiers rounded the bend they took off at a gallop towards Enta.

Ayreon watched from the edge of the city as the Phalret he knew as Nocturnal landed on the castle. A low growl escaped his throat, he knew what this meant. From down in the town, he started running as fast as he could towards Nocturnal. Due to his Vilsh blood, he was able to bypass most of the town in a matter of minutes. By the time he had made it to the castle, Nocturnal's head was all the way inside the room he had crushed.

The Vilsh jumped up at the castle and pulled his scimitars out of their sheathes that crossed his back. As he sailed through the air, he held the blades above his head, once he made contact with the castle walls the blades would go through the stone, holding him up. He started to climb up the walls with the blades, making his way up the castle by climbing with them. Soon he had made it to Nocturnal's tail. After letting Aquis' sheathe absorb the sword, he grabbed hold of the dragon's tail and started to climb.

This, of course, did not go unnoticed by the dragon. The head of the beast quickly became unlodged from the room and turned to see who this newest pest was. Ayreon kept climbing with the scimitar and his free hand until he was on top of the dragon's back. The beast's wings started beating as it started to take off in an attempt to dislodge the newcomer from it's back.

The dragon started beating it's giant wings, trying to use the gusts of wind to knock the powerful Vilsh off of it's back. Ayreon hung on as tight as he could to the large spikes on Nocturnal's back, the gusts doing nothing more than messing with the Vilsh's hair. From atop the dragon's back, Ayreon started looking down around the forest surrounding Enta. "C'mon Zhan... You gotta be here, this city is too important a kill for anything otherwise."

Ayreon kept looking until Nocturnal dictated otherwise. The dragon pivoted it's head so it could snap at the Vilsh. Ayreon took Fireburst and swung at Nocturnal's head; although the beast pulled it's head away, the bright orange blade still managed to cut through the scales and sprayed blood into the air.

The dragon howled in pain and started to shake violently. There would definitely be a scar left from that attack. But as the shaking stopped, Ayreon decided that he had to get off. Nocturnal was getting anxious, not something good. As Fireburst was sheathed, a surprise move by the dragon caused Ayreon to be thrown off. Luckily, he wasn't too far off of the ground when he was thrown.

But as he fell, his head bounced off of one of the stone walls of the castle. All it took was impact to cause the Vilsh to be knocked out. His last thoughts before blackness asked Zhan where he was, and why was he doing what he was doing.

Xi was walking through the ruined building that used to be the theatre. It had been devastated by the demons, but the trap doors that had led under the theatre remained, and were filled with food, and a group of people that stayed in the once beautiful city. It had been a good thing though, the destruction, because the city had been filled to the brim with predjeduce and discrimination. The negative nature of the people next to the positive, beautiful nature of the city had been complete juxtaposition. When the demons arrived, those who had had cushy lives had been killed. It was a cleansing process.
He dropped through one of the trap doors.
"Xi, you shouldn't go out so much. You'll get killed."
"I paid my respects to the demons, they wouldn't kill a follower."
"Demons are fickle creatures. If I could, I'd have nothing to do with them!"
"That's because you stay away from power, from what you once had. You want to be weak."
"..."
"I paid my respects to Aleph himself. He has my loyalty."
"One day something bad will come of it."
"We're living in the present." At this remark, Xi walked to his 'bed'. It wasn't a real bed, it was just a small construction with tattered sheets. But it was what he had, and he made use of that. He lay his daggers on either side, and the dark and light came over him to keep him warm.
Xi was sure there were spirits in the daggers, a spirit of dark and a spirit of light. They had adopted him, took care of him, and in return he gave them blood.

quote Lylodile

Haha Paramore. Dajay is an emo girl

Zhan watched the Vilsh fall off of Nocturnal's back from his vantage point within one of the forest's tallest trees, not quite sure whether or not to be shocked at Ayreon's sudden appearance. Finally, the dark elf merely shrugged, leaned back against the tree trunk and folded his arms across his chest, watching the utter destruction of Enta impassively. His thoughts were still troubled.

"Why did he have to show?" Zhan asked, his handsome face twisted into a scowl. "Why must he always be the kink in my plan?"

With a heavy sigh, Zhan climbed down from the tree easily and jumped onto his horse. He began to gallop off towards Ariakan. He had to tell Dreven of his brother's fate. That prospect was not a pleasing one to the powerful elf.

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Kyle sat up with a groan, his blonde hair matted further by the presence of new blood. He looked down at the red pool he had been lying in and realized that he should be grateful he was even alive. He had come face to face with a Phalret demon and lived, even after being hit with its deadly breath. He looked around him and all those who had been meeting within the audience chamber lay dead. His father was slumped over his throne, the guards lay beside him, their eyes still widened with terror and the diplomat had a strange look upon his face. It took Kyle a moment to realize it was... satisfaction? That's when Kyle knew. The man had come to distract the king of the impending doom. Obviously, the reward promised had been a glorious afterlife. Kyle felt sick. He was brought to his senses by the screams of innocent citizens being horribly killed by the demon horde.

Kyle pushed himself to his feet and winced as his leg almost gave out. He glanced down at it and quickly looked away. Falling rocks and debris had sliced his leg down clear to the bone. He tore off his tunic and wrapped it tightly around the grievous wound. He nearly passed out from the pain and cried out more than once as he tightened the makeshift bandage

At least I'm not dead, he tought to himself catching his breath, but realized that he would be if he didn't get help soon. As fast as he could, he stumbled out of the palace and out into the chaos filled streets. Above him, Lord Nocturnal roared into the sky, but Kyle payed no attention to the behemoth. His only focus was on his escape. He hobbled over to the nearby city wall, hoping to find some break through which he could leave. Instead he saw a man lying next to the palace wall.

No, not a man, he decided. A... Vilsh?

Vilsh were quite rare in this part of Challen, and Kyle wondered why he had even bothered to help out the elven city when he clearly could have run. He sighed to himself, grabbed the Vilsh by the shoulders and began to drag the heavy man. He once again began to scan the walls when a thought came to him. He unsheathed Terra and braced himself against the coarse stone and uttered the command word. He then stabbed the knife into the wall, breaking a hole small enough to allow the two through, but would not let any demons follow. Unless they came over the walls. Kyle shuddered at the thought.

"Where... where is Zhan," the unconscious Vilsh muttered. Kyle stared at him incredulously.

"Zhan Dathka is somebody you DON'T want to meet," Kyle replied, though he knew the man could not hear him. An hour slowly dragged by and still Kyle carried the Vilsh. Finally, he could go no farther.

"This... this should be good," he mumbled, exhaustion and loss of blood bringing back the welcome darkness of sleep.

It didn't take long for the group of mercenaries to come across their first group of Demons. They were just as surprised as the Demons as they rounded a blind corner and literally ran into a squad or their enemy who was coming the other way. A few Hytu were trampled under the hooves of the galloping horses before they could jump out of the way. The rest quickly reacted and attacked.

Their group was comprised of mostly Graal and Hytu with one Mytu at the rear in command. The Demon's reactions were quicker than the Human's who were weary from the long ride. The Hytu leaped at the Humans. In front were Saiel the Elf and Hershen the commander who were able to dodge the incoming bodies and Rhomus the Dwarf whom the Demons flew completely over top of.

In the first few seconds of the attack, five humans had been knocked from their mounts and were being torn apart on the ground. In response, the rest of the mercenaries drew their weapons and charged, cutting down Graal and Hytu alike. The Mytu spread its wings and took off into the air. Rhomus stood on the back of his pony and jumped, catching the Demon by its leg and bringing it to the ground. It howled, forcing the Humans and the Elf to cringe but the dwarf, due to a mixture of his helmet, his hair, and his copious amounts of ear wax was more or less unaffected. As he brought the struggling Demon to the ground he drew Hacker from its loop at his side. In one powerful motion he slammed the flying creature to the ground with one hand and beheaded it with the other.

He put away Hacker and drew Chopper from the sling on his back. Making sure there were no allies nearby, he swung at everything that moved. Because of the amplified power, any demon who tried to block the attack simply had their weapon wrenched from their grip. Hytu and even Graal were being thrown back by the force of Chopper. In minutes Rhomus was surrounded by a pile of Demons.

He looked around and didn't immediately see the band of mercenaries. Then his gaze went down the path. They had left without him. Replacing Chopper on his back, he scrambled to get back on his pony then charged off to rejoin the group. He pushed his way straight to the front where Hershen and Saiel Rode.

Rhomus glared at the Human, just about ready to see another head roll. "What's the idea taking off without me, young man!"

Hershen looked at the Dwarf. "It seemed like you were handling yourself quite readily back there. We just didn't want to get in your way." The humans within earshot laughed.

Under his beard, Rhomus turned a bright red. He found his hand reaching for Hacker.

Saiel stopped him. "Our fight was not with them, nor is it with our allies. We must save our strength for the fight ahead if we hope to save my people. Your courage and strength today in the field of battle gives me hope of success in the future."

Rhomus felt his face turn another colour of red. He was extremely grateful for his beard. He looked ahead only to see smoke on the horizon. He looked back at Saiel whose perfect features were showing signs of worry. She drove her horse faster and the mercenaries followed suit.

As the company drew closer to Enta Rhomus could make out the shape of a castle and thought he could see a giant lizard crawling on it. He brushed off the notion as a trick of the smoke. Saiel abruptly halted the column causing more than a few horses to rear up in confusion. Rhomus looked down and saw her reason.

Two bodies were lying on the ground. One was an Elf and the other was a species Rhomus couldn't name. They were both bloody and he couldn't tell if they were alive. Saiel dropped to the ground and ran to the Elf's side, she placed her hand upon his chest and a relieved look came across her face. She took a handful of herbs out of a pouch at her side and crushed them in her hands. She then rubbed them into the Elf's wounds and bandaged them with white cloth she took from another. When she had finished with the Elf she tended to his companion though with significantly less care.

Once both the Elf and his companion were treated. Saiel stood and spoke to Hershen. "Enta is fallen, there is no point fighting. Please, help as many survivors as you can to escape."

Hershen didn't seem impressed at this but he nodded. "Yes, milady." He and the other Humans rode on to the city. Rhomus, however stayed put.

He dismounted and walked over to Saiel. "I take it you know these guys."

Saiel looked at him but didn't respond. Rhomus walked over to a nearby tree and sat down against it. He took out his pipe, standard equipment for all Dwarves, and filled it with some herbs he brought from home. With Poker he lit a stick with a flint and put the flame into the herbs. He relaxed and took a long draw of smoke. "You know Elf, if it wasn't for our habits we Dwarves would live as long as you.

Saiel didn't respond. She was kneeling next to the unconscious Elf, a worried look in her eyes.

He stirred, a slight moan came from his lips. Saiel helped him sit up as he came to consciousness. His eyes opened and he looked up at her with a confused expression on his face.

Her mouth broke into a beautiful smile. "Kyle."

Kyle stared dumbly at the... two elves before him? He frowned then shook his head, something he immediately regretted from the sharp pain in the back of his head. When he looked back up, he only saw one beautiful elf smiling down at him.

"Saiel!" he exclaimed, quite happy to see another friendly face. Something about her smile seemed strained though.

He smiled back anyways, not quite sure what was going on. He couldn't remember much before he blacked out in the ash covered field. He remembered running through the woods from...

"Enta!" Kyle shouted, his voice echoing uncomfortably in the forest. "I have to-"

Saiel quickly cupped a hand over his mouth to silence any further outbursts. Kyle calmed himself quickly looking forlornly in the direction of his home.

"It is gone," Saiel said sadly, a small tear finding its way down her face. "It could not stand against the might of the demon hordes."

"But... but..." Kyle stuttered, shock overcoming him. Enta, gone? It just couldn't be real. "This must be a dream. Our magic could fight off hordes of demons!"

Saiel knelt down next to Kyle and wrapped her arms around his bloody shoulders. Kyle just sat there, staring out into the blackness, not able to distinguish night from day. It didn't seem to matter anyways. The demons had come. They had made all days into one night. One endless, hellish night.

"We must get moving, Kyle," Saiel said, smoothing down some of Kyle's stray hair.

"What does it matter?" Kyle said, looking at her with his soot covered face. She could tell he was trying hard not to cry. "Enta is gone. We have no allies, nowhere to go-"

"We have each other," Saiel interrupted. "For that we should be grateful. Can you walk?"

She helped Kyle to his feet slowly, careful not to aggravate the horrible wound in his leg. She put his arm around her shoulders and he leaned heavily against her. They began to move off when Kyle remembered.

"Wait!" he exclaimed, pointing back at the fallen Vilsh. "Wait, we must help him."

"I have tended to his wounds," Saiel replied. "He should be fine."

"No," Kyle said firmly. "That I will not allow."

"Very well," Saiel said, looking to Rhomus. "Could you please give him a hand, sir dwarf?"

Rhomus hoisted the heavy Vilsh onto his back, though his boots and head nearly scraped the ground due to the dwarf's height. Rhomus grumbled to himself, but made no other complaints as the strange group began to find a safe location for camp where they could wait for the soldiers to return with the survivors.

Happy B-day to me!

========================================

Her town had fallen, besieged by demons. She had fought strongly, although she had felt as if there was more she could have done to help Enta. What was she but a mere young elf by herself? These were hordes of demons that flooded into Enta and she could hardly kill enough to make a difference. When she entered Enta full force, Lana had seen many unfamiliar faces, but the demons were easily recognizable as her main target.

A storm of Graarl turned to Lana as they quickly circled her small form. She closed her eyes and stood on one foot, spinning her crossbow full circle and stunned most of the demons quickly. One Graarl, significantly larger than the others did not feel her paralysis, however, and charged at her. Lana flew a few feet, but recovered quickly enough to stab her Javelin into the charging Graarl's right foot. Green blood oozed out as the Graarl fell to his feet and it seemed for a split second that panic overcame its once blood-thirsty eyes. There was no time to feel pity however, as another Graarl headed toward Lana with a look of vengeance. It started to lick its lips with its massive saliva-covered tongue.

Lana grabbed her Javelin and ran as fast as she could toward the Graarl, her anger swelling up. She was stopped short by the demon's giant flailing arm, however. A move she had not predicted from such a dumb beast. With the added momentum of her dash, Lana flew back to the gates of Enta.

She stood up slowly. The world around her paused for her and she could get a depressing view of her childhood vanishing from the ravaging demon attacks. This gate, where she used to flee from her family, scaring them half to death, to pop up the next second in a tree (always giving her brother a heart attack from her jump down on him). It was sad, but she had accepted it- she knew this was going to happen. Why had she even wasted her energy? Demons were too strong for her alone to handle...

~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`

"I'm sorry Enta..." Lana whispered to herself as she was walking away from Enta, ashamed of what she had done awhile back, when Enta was still freshly attacked.

In the distance, as she looked up and dried her tears on the cuff of her left glove, Lana saw some others heading toward her and others on the floor, wounded perhaps. She stepped toward the woods nearby and cried.