Here's Chapter 1 of the story.

This is the last part I'll be posting here to give you guys a sense & scope on what the story's about. Again, this version may or may not appear like this in the final version. If you guys liked the prologue & Chapter 1 & want to find out what happens, then purchase the book when it get released.

Just letting you guys know that the book's in the heavy editing process & are waiting for the illustrations to be submitted. If I get those, I probably post them here to let you get a sense on the world I created.

Read it & tell me what you guys think of it!



Chapter 1
Monastery Woes

The dawn of twilight sets in motion the beginnings of bloodshed. Humans, elves, monsters, & various others clash with sword & magic. The field of wheat sways slowly in the wind back & forth. The field strains with shot arrows from expert marksmen, dead bodies from all sides, & splatters of blood from their lifeless corpses.

Two black mages dressed in blue & two enraged dragons blast fireballs at each other. Soldiers get third degree burns all over their bodies from the aftermath. Two dwarfs swing down on three minotaurs on their heads with their battle hammers. They nod at each other before one of them gets impaled in the back by a precision dagger. The dwarf falls over dead. The other gasps in shock over his fallen comrade & runs to cover ground from the attackers.

A trio of archers atop their horses fire ice arrows at dragons & hippogriffs flying about. The arrows strike them directly in the hearts. The ice magic freezes their hearts from the inside which quickly spreads. The hippogriffs screech out in pain as do the dragons. Their bodies fall due to the increased weight. The impact of the crash smashes their bodies into chunks of ice flying over the battlefield.

An army of orcs & trolls clash with spiked clubs & ax blades. A troll knocks four orc heads clean off & kicks them away from their bodies. The troll gives a sadistic grin towards his next victim & swings down his ax at the chest. Two more trolls are slaughtered down by a group of orc's spiked clubs.

A white mage tries healing her wounded party in battle. She looks up witnessing a powerful enraged dark crystallized dragon flying over their fiery field casting a huge shadow below. Half-elves & the like look up above them.

Crystallized fireballs fly fast in a downward spiral towards the battlefield. The area explodes in flames. The impact of the explosion kills hundreds of Halflings trying to defend themselves with their powers. Humans & elves alike get their legs & arms burned off. The screams of the dead fills the air & madness takes hold of the ones caught in the crossfire.

* * *
“Come on, we're almost to the Monk Monastery,” Twila said.

“No need to remind us,” Brighton spat. “We're hurrying as fast as we can here.”

“Less talking. More running,” Ernold said.

Twila's a powerful mage that specializes in ice magic. Her long brown hair tied in a red ribbon & her eyes sparkle like diamonds in the sky. She's known to be the motherly type while at the same time has a crazy fun side on her as well. Twila's the best when it comes to teaching new beginners about the basis of magic which made Ernold adore her.

On the other hand of things lies Brighton, the one that specializes in the mastery of double katanas. His short wavy hair & green eyes makes him stand out from most guys. Twila & Ernold both knew that Brighton tends to take his katana training more seriously.
Maybe a bit too serious for either of their taste. If one were to take a close look at Brighton & Ernold, one would think that they are brothers by relation or something similar since they look almost identical to each other.

Ernold's rocking the innate ability to harness & master powerful dark magic much like his grandparents before him being born with the dark magic genetic. The most distinct feature is the black mustache on his face which took him three years to grow out in the shape he wanted.

Brighton, Twila, & Ernold run through the tall evergreen getting as far away from the main bloodshed as possible. Brighton carries an unconscious child on his back. They could feel the imminent danger nor far behind them & knew they must make it no matter what.

Lightning pierces above them. Three gryphons are shot down by flaming arrows crashing towards the ground a few feet behind them. A loose tree branch breaks off from another strike of lightning. Ernold whips out his dark magic staff to break the huge branch in half. The dark crystallized enraged dragon beast fires its lethal crystallized breath at them not far from their location.

“Keep running,” Brighton said propping up the child.

“No need to tell us twice,” Ernold spat.

Brighton slides under a fallen branch with the child still in tow on his back. Ernold manages to succeed as well. Twila slides under & out but trips over an uprooted tree root. Her magic staff gets knocked out of her hands. She tries getting herself up but the tree root wraps itself around her leg keeping her in place.

“Guys, a little help over here,” Twila pleaded.

Brighton & Ernold turn around to see the same enraged dragon beast fire its lethal breath at Twila. The sparkling black flames burns her body. The heat kept Brighton & Ernold back from getting anywhere near her to help.
Ernold casts his magic but Brighton stops him remembering that magic is useless in these types of situations. Twila screams out in intense pain. She could feel her body slowly turn into a pure dark crystal statue.

Brighton & Ernold witness the horrible sight at the dark crystals taking over Twila's body. She breaks into tiny pieces & sucked into the dragon's flaring nostrils. Purple smoke billows from his snout & smiles at the personal destruction. He flies away giving off a mighty roar to make Ernold cover his ears. Brighton seemed immune to the sound as he drops down to his knees in despair & slams his fist hard to the ground.

“Damnit,” Brighton grits through his teeth.

Ernold runs over to pick up the child who was thankfully still unconscious. He sees his best friend still in distress over his wife's sudden demise. Brighton felt hopeless that neither of them couldn't do anything to save her. Ernold knew that even though Brighton's hurting emotionally, they needed to keep moving before the beast returns.

“Brighton, there's no time. We can mourn for her later but right now, we have to get going for the sake of Sorrin's safety. I'm sure if she were still alive, Twila would want us to ensure Sorrin's safety.”

Brighton doesn't even respond to his friend's words. He wipes his face to compose himself & holds back the tears in his eyes. He gets up feeling a sense of enragement with blood lust in his eyes. Brighton unsheathes his swords from his back leaving Ernold confused. He turns to face his friend with the fire of determination in his eyes for vengeance.

“Ernold, you'll have to finish the mission alone. I have a personal score to settle with that damn bastard,” Brighton said with cooling anger.

“Brighton, are you nuts?” Ernold asked shocked. “You can't possibly be thinking of taking on that thing alone. You could be killed for your foolish attempt.”

Lightning pierces the sky as to emphasize his point.

“You think I don't know that? I have to do something & I refuse to just stand & do nothing,” Brighton said.

“I know but I just don't want to lose another friend. Not like before,” Ernold said sadly.

“No need to worry. I'm stronger than what you give me credit for,” Brighton said proudly.

“And that worries me,” Ernold whispers.

“You say something?” Brighton asked.

“Nope. Nothing at all.”

Brighton digs into his bag & hands Ernold an envelope with a letter addressed to Sorrin folded inside. His & Twila's names are written in gold ink cursive. Ernold reluctantly takes the envelope from his hands. The two could hear trees being knocked over in the distance by the beast's wing flaps. The enraged dragon roars again & hurls fireballs sparking the timbers in flames.

“Get going & don't worry about me. I won't go dying on ya,” Brighton said.

“You got it old friend.”

They flash each other a smile & nod before running off in opposite directions. The storm clouds loosens the heavy downpour of rain turning the dirt to mud. Ernold keeps running doing his best to not look back. He avoid slipping on the mud puddles forming. He rubs Sorrin's head softly looking around his surroundings to detect any future danger that might come for them. Ernold pants feeling the burn on his legs from running a marathon but knew that he can't stop now at this point.

Ernold hops across the rocks above the river & arrive at a set of tall double wooden gates which has cat iron bars on the sides. The two wall lampposts on the sides of the walls flicker in the storm. Ernold sets Sorrin down under the awning & uses the staff to focus his mind on dark magic.

Three dark energy beams surrounds his body morphing himself into a white tiger monk with a brown cloak to boot. Ernold checks himself being satisfied with the disguise that no one at the Monk Monastery will be able to recognize him. He picks up Sorrin & run towards the gates to knock on them three times. Two monks, a black bear & black rhino answer but the rhino looked suspiciously at Ernold's appearance.

“Yes, what is it Ernold?” Zane asked annoyed.

“What are you talking about? I'm not Ernold. I'm...”

“Don't even try fooling us with that disguise Ernold. We know it's you,” Cyrus said.

“What gave it away?”

“For starters, your body positively reeks of dark magic & from the way it smells, we knew that it could only be you,” Cyrus nonchalantly said.

“Not to mention, your attempts to disguise your voice isn't even subtle enough to fool anyone that knows you personally,” Zane said.

“Just transform back to your regular self & talk to us normally. God, I don't even know why you bother to change into that,” Cyrus said. “And besides, white isn't your color.”

“For once, I have to concede on Cyrus' point. You look kinda ridiculous like that,” Zane said.

“What do you mean for one? Are you telling me that you always disagreed with everything I do?” Cyrus asked surprised.

“Not everything. Just on what you do. And say. And eat. And wear. And...”

“Okay this is going nowhere,” Ernold said.

Ernold uses his magic & snaps his fingers to morph back into his human form much to the monks' relief.

“Alright fine but pray tell, why are you here & not with the others at the battlefront?” Cyrus asked.

“No time to explain but Sorrin here is in grave danger & needs a place where he can be safe for the time being,” Ernold said.

Zane sighs trying to close the gates on Ernold but Cyrus puts his foot down stopping him. He glares at him before turning his attention to Ernold intrigued by what he said. The storm rumbles above & the rain turns into a light drizzle. Cyrus steps outside with a reluctant Zane following suit. Cyrus places his paw over Sorrin's head sensing something special about him. Cyrus wondered if he could possibly be safe here while Zane's worried about Sorrin's possibility of being an outcast once the war subsides.

Lightning pierces the night sky & the light drizzle subsides. Cyrus raises an eyebrow at Ernold trying to confirm the thing about Sorrin. Ernold remained silent but simply nods at him confirming Cyrus' suspicious. Zane's surprised at this as well.

“Where are the boy's parents?” Zane asked.

“Afraid that Twila's no more & Brighton ran off to face that beast alone,” Ernold said.

“Seriously? Didn't you at least try to stop him? That's a suicidal action he's taking.”

“Then you don't know him as well as I do Cyrus. When he usually gets an idea like that stuck in his head, it's almost impossible to change his mind otherwise,” Ernold chuckled.

“Fair point,” Zane said.

The two monks roll their eyes. Ernold's sadden at the thing he must do to ensure Sorrin's survival & safety for the future. He deeply wished he could take him far away to raise him as his own but knew that it wouldn't be what they wanted for him. Cyrus & Zane looked worried at Ernold not knowing what's wrong. Ernold hands the envelope to Cyrus & Zane takes Sorrin in his muscular arms.

“Something wrong?” Zane asked.

“Oh...nothing for you two to be worried about. It's just that Sorrin here won't realize for quite a long while about this way or anything that happened to his parents. I suppose though when he becomes old enough, he'll understand the situation long enough,” Ernold said.

“Understandable.”

“Anyway, when Sorrin's of age, make sure to give him that letter & be sure to keep him safe above all else. Oh & one more thing, be sure not to tell him that it was I who took him here. I don't want him knowing of my plans just yet.”

“What plans are you planning exactly?” Zane asked suspiciously.

“Can't reveal that. Wouldn't want to spoil the surprise but it'll be revealed soon enough in good time,” Ernold said.

“You're adamant on this?” Cyrus asked worried.

“Absolutely.”

“And what about you?” Zane asked.

“I'm gonna look for my friend Brighton to see if he's still alive or perhaps find what's left of him. I hope to Lunos that the former is right & not the latter,” Ernold said.

“Good luck with that,” Cyrus said.

“Thank you my friends.”

Cyrus & Zane nod & walk back inside shutting the gates behind them. Ernold could faintly head a strange humming noise coming from the other side. He hesitates to stay in the Monk Monastery but knew that it would be safer for Sorrin to stay there & for him to sway the danger of the dark crystallized dragon beast as far away from this place as possible. Ernold walks away a few feet looking back for one last time.

“Be safe Sorrin. The world will need of your abilities one day. Especially him.”

Ernold places a Cato mask over his eyes prepping himself for defensive combat. Lightning still pierces the sky though the rain stopped for the time being. He runs back towards the place where Twila once stood. He's surprised to find Brighton stumbling towards him. His clothes are torn in places & a bandaged wrapped around his forehead to reduce the bleeding. One of his swords is broken completely as his hair is partly singed.

“Rather surprised you're still alive despite your current condition,” Ernold said.

“I told you before, I don't go down that easily,” Brighton said smugly.

“Don't get smart with me,” Ernold retorted.

“I'm just saying you really need to have more faith in me that I'll make it through.”

“Can't say the same about your sword though,” Ernold said.

“Small price to pay for making it this far against him,” Brighton said.

They hear the roaring of the dark crystallized dragon beast in the nearby distance. They cover their ears to drown out the deafening noise. Ernold snaps his fingers repairing Brighton's broken sword back into one. The enraged beast flies around their heads in a circle before landing a few feet in front of them. Three of his horns are broken off. The beast snarls at them loudly while baring his sharp fangs & dripping white ooze from his snout. It glares at Brighton in particular.

“Looks like I pissed it off enough to come here to us,” Brighton said grinning.

“No shit Sherlock,” Ernold nonchalantly said. “Ready?”

“Like you need to ask me that.”

Ernold & Brighton nod at each other readied their weapons for defense. Bits of blood drips through Brighton's wrapped bandage. The beast takes a deep whiff sensing the blood coming from Brighton. He licks his lips in anticipation wanting to drink more of it. The duo study the beast's body trying to find a weakness to strike at directly. The beast's eyes became bloodshot red & has the look of blood lust on his face. Ernold notes the sun mark surrounding the beast's eyes.

“I don't like the way he's looking at me like that,” Brighton said.

“He doesn't have any other look otherwise. Just be on your guard with this one,” Ernold said.

“Yeah, don't need to tell me twice.”