**************************
"How much farther?!" Jeremy grunted.
"Have patience!!! We're almost there!!" Oriona replied. Trasalia was flying ahead of everyone while Liami fluttered around the still unconsious prince.
"Is thy prince going to be OK?" the little faerie asked.
"He should be OK. He'll wake up soon," Oriona replied.
"Passed out for four hours would have me worried too. But if he could survive losing his memory and fighting like that, then he should be OK," Jeremy replied. "Then again, what does a lesser faerie know?"
"I know plenty!!!" Liami snapped.
"Yeah right."
"You two stop it!! You've done nothing but bicker since we left! Stop it now!!" Oriona demanded.
"She started it!" Jeremy replied, pointing at the angry Liami.
"No, you started it!"
"ENOUGH!!!!" Oriona screamed. The two went silent and even Trasalia stopped flying. "If you bicker anymore, I will leave you her and you can go off on your own!! Do you want that, Jeremy?"
".........No."
"Liami?"
"I go where thy prince goes."
"Good... Now let's get back to what we were doing," Oriona said when Trasalia landed on the ground and walked over to Oriona. The little dragon sighed and lowered her head. "It's OK, Trasalia. We'll get Myna back, don't you worry." The dragon looked up at the centaur and she smiled.
[Thanks alot Oriona. And I've got good news. Ranimorth is just over this ridge!] Jeremyriantho ran ahead through the thick foliage leapt for joy.
"Yahoo!! We did it!! We made it to Ranimorth!"
"Good, now we can treat the prince. My back's starting to kill me," Oriona said, gazing at the kingdom. "It certainly is bigger than the Windgold kingdom. I wonder if they're willing to help us."
"Oh they will. We've gone too far into this quest to back off now!" Jeremy replied, shaking his head. "OK, time to go down the hill. You better hold onto the kid." WIth that, Jeremy leapt off the ridge and skidded down the sloping cliff to the bottom.
"The elf is crazy!!" Liami gasped. She looked back and shrieked seeign Oriona leap into the air and skidding down the cliff just as Jeremy did. "Oh no!! Is thy prince injured?" she cried, fluttering down to them along with Trasalia.
"The kid is fine. Now let's go..." Jeremy began, when Liami pulled his hair.
"You have to wait!! How are we ever going to get into the kingdom! It's all walled up!!"
"You better let go of me lesser faerie or you'll be in big trouble!!!" Jeremy snarled, grabbing the little faerie.
"Excuse me..." Everyone turned to a young girl around 11 years old with short teal hair and in a pink tunic with a violet robe. "Would anyone of you happen to be Prince Riant Sorchar of the kingdom of Windgold?"
"He's currenly unavailable right now," Jeremy replied.
"Why is that?"
"He's unconsious," he said, pointing to the prince on Oriona's back. The girl gasped.
"Oh my! Quick, we must take him in!" Oriona followed the girl along with Trasalia and Liami.
"Just...who are you again?" Jeremy called out, following them into the sanctuary of the closed-in kingdom.
The prince's eyes slowly opened and he slowly began to regain his focus of his vision. He looked up and saw a little girl in a pink dress with short teal hair—the same girl from before. Riant screamed and shoved her away.
"Relax kid. This is Lauren, a princess of Ranimorth. She treated you while you were asleep," Jeremy explained.
"You're...a princess?" Riant asked.
"Surprised, huh? To tell you the truth, my older sister gets more recognition than I do, so it's common that you wouldn't know me," Lauren explained.
"You're sister?"
"She wishes to have you all meet with her for supper in an hour. It's good thing you've awakened Prince Riant. Everyone here at the castle was worried about you."
"Wait a minute. Back up for a minute. When did we reach Ranimorth?"
"A few hours ago actually," Jeremy replied.
"Myna...where's Myna?!"
"Slow down, kid! We haven't found Myna yet. We've been concentrating so much to get here."
"Your friends told me about what happened. I'm so sorry Prince Riant. We'll do all in our power to help you in your quest," Lauren replied.
"You know what happened?" Riant asked, sitting up on the side of the bed.
"Some of our kingdom's merchants saw everything happen. Since then, we've been trying to find you."
"I'm with you so far, but explain to me Jeremy. What is it going to take to make you finally go after Myna?"
"What do you mean?" he asked, stepping back.
"Myna is our ally and is now in the hands of the Blank Mage. Does she even matter to you, or must he take everyone else away before you're satisfied?" Riant demanded, standing up and stomping towards him.
"Whoa now, don't get angry with me. We agreed that we would search for Myna after we reached Ranimorth."
"I should tear your head off right now...!" Riant shouted, but Lauren grabbed his shoulders.
"Please prince, you need to rest for tonight. You're not fully recovered," she said, leading him away from Jeremy. Riant sighed and sat back down on the bed, his hands buried in his raven hair. "Jeremy, if you will come with me..." Lauren said after bowing to Riant and walking out of the room. Jeremy took one last look at the prince.
"Don't hold a grudge against us, kid. We promise to go after Myna, but we must wait. We don't even know where to start."
"Just go away!" Riant exclaimed.
"As you wish, kid," Jeremy replied, closing the door behind him.
"My name is not 'kid'!!" Riant shouted, grabbing a pillow and throwing it at the door. Riant grabbed another pillow and started punching it in rage. "First my mother, now my best friend!! What more can happen now?!"
"I'm just as worried as you are, but we have more important things to think about," Jeremy said behind the door, listening to the prince go off in a blind rage. He brushed back some of his silvery hair away from his face. "Now where did that lovely princess go?"
"My goodness!! Big sis, what are you doing?!" Lauren shouted, seeing plates of food out on the table.
"I'm hungry! I'm eating!!" a girl with wavy seagreen hair down to her waist and in a blue dress whined.
"You should wait for the others at least!! You really have no manners, Ulinae!!"
"Hey! I'm gonna be queen soon, so you better watch your mouth! Who owns two kingdoms?" Ulinae shouted.
"Who always cleans up after you?" Lauren retorted.
"Who is the most gorgeous lady in all the castle?!"
"Who's the only lady here that takes responsibility?!" The doors opened and Oriona, Jeremy, Liami, Trasalia, and Riant stepped forward.
"Are we interrupting anything?" Oriona asked.
"Not at all. As you see, dinner is prepared. And I would like you all to meet..." Lauren began.
"You and you!!! What are your names?" Ulinae interrupted, pointing at Jeremy and Riant.
"Um, my name is Jeremyriantho, but you can call me Jeremy for short."
"Let me guess, you're Riant of Windgold?"
"That's right, but how did you know?" the prince asked. She laughed loudly.
"I know everything because I'm a genius!!!"
"My sister, Ulinae Strykeway," Lauren finished.
"That's Princess Ulinae!!"
"That brat is a princess?" Riant questioned.
"Apparantly so," Jeremy replied.
"I'm not talking to you!!"
"Riant Sorchar, I heard what happened. That's quite a story. So what are you planning to do now?" Ulinae asked. Riant glanced at Jeremy and growled.
"Return to Windgold." Everyone gasped and Liami fluttered to him, ready to speak, but he held his hand up in silence. "I was brought here against my will. One of our allies have been taken and I am the only one willing to search for her."
"I hate to burst your bubble, Riant, but Windgold in under the orders of a new queen. If I'm not mistaken, her name is Daniya," Ulinae replied. Everyone nearly fell to the floor in shock.
"You're lying!!"
"For once she's not lying. Everyone here saw her create a new Royal Seal for the kingdom," Lauren replied. Riant gazed at her in confusion. "Royal Seals are actually crystals that created power shields to protect the kingdom. Each crystal represents the current king or queen reigning over the kingdom. The old seal must be vanished in order to create a new one."
"What does that mean?" Oriona asked.
"The heir to the throne must shatter the crystal and create a new one using the power of the kingdom. Once the new crystal is created, a new shield is created. It shows the power between the ruler and the kingdom."
"New shields can been seen by all and last night we saw a new shield being created over the Windgold kingdom. We sent some of our kingdom's best spies to investigate and they have told us that the new queen goes by the name of Daniya," Ulinae said. "I've heard that you have some problems with her, so I've decided to join you guys on your quest."
"We appreciate everything, Ulinae, but other lives are at stake," Riant said.
"You don't have to fear prince. We saw a rogue mage pass through this kingdom with a young girl," Lauren said.
"That's Myna!!" Liami cried. "Where has she been taken to?"
"We've seen him in the underwater caverns just below this castle. I'm sure you'll find your friend there."
"Alright!! I'll take you all to the caverns!!" Ulinae said, jumping around.
"Can't we just leave her behind?" Jeremy whined.
"That's the underwater caverns? I can't see a thing!!" Jeremy said, gazing down at the entrance of the caverns from the castle floors.
"I guess so," Ulinae replied.
"What do you mean 'you guess so?' Haven't you been down here?"
"Nope. Never!" Jeremy fell over in frustration.
"Well that's some help!!"
"Ulinae, your sister told me that these caverns are so dark that you can't even see the flame if you light a torch. How are we supposed to get through there?" Oriona asked.
"I can help." Everyone turned to face Lauren and a young man with black hair and robes.
"Oh no! Not him!! Not him!!" Ulinae cried.
"If you need a guide, Blandir Goldman can assist you. He has explored these caverns before and has the ability to see through the darkness," Lauren explained.
"Why him?! Why the Batata?!"
"Don't call me that!" Blandir replied.
"Batata!! Batata!! BATATA!!!!" Ulinae chanted.
"Alright, if you can see through the darkness, fine. Lead us," Riant said.
"Don't worry. There is light at the end of the caverns. But we must make haste. The darkness is so intense that if you stay for over 3 days, you'll become blind," Blandir explained.
"Really? Three days is all we have?" Oriona asked.
"Did I say 3 days? I did, didn't I?" Ulinae sighed.
"Pardon him. He can be really dense sometimes!"
"Well, we better be going. I'll show you the way. Follow!!" Blandir said, hopping into the caverns.
"He's crazy!! Almost like you," Jeremy said, glancing at Ulinae and following him. Ulinae huffed and everyone one by one hopped into the caverns.
"Lauren, you know what to do while I'm gone," Ulinae said.
"Yes I do. I'll protect this kingdom with my life. Be careful sister."
"Good luck, Lauren. Don't cause too much havoc," Ulinae said, smiling before she hopped in too.
"You can see through thy darkness?" Liami asked.
"Yes I can. Now, we go right," Blandir replied.
"Right?"
"Did I say right? I meant left!!"
"Right? Left? Which one is it?!" Jeremy shouted. "And you better know where you're going!! If I end up blind here, you will be in big trouble!!"
"We go right," Blandir gulped. Everyone slowly walked through the caverns, groping the walls to make sure they don't get lost. Blandir was kinda unreliable in everyone's eyes. "Watch out for rocks and stalagmites. They can really be painfull..."
"Ouch!!" Ulinae cried.
"I said watch out for them."
"Hey!! You're the one with the brilliant eyes here!! You could have at least told me!!!" she yelled, her high-pitched voice echoing throughout the caverns. Everyone heard a rumble and the ground began to quake. Suddenly, everyone collapsed to the ground along with cavern walls.
"Is everyone present and accounted for?" Blandir asked.
"What?"
"Is everyone here?" he clarified.
"I think so. What happen to thy caverns?" Liami asked.
"Ulinae's high-pitched voice must've caused the walls to crumble."
"These walls must be very fragile," the lesser faerie squeaked.
"Or was it my voice that did that?" Blandir questioned to himself.
"OW!! Somebody bit me!!" Oriona cried.
"Sorry. Thought you were Jeremy," Riant grumbled.
"Hey!!! Who slapped me?!" Ulinae cried.
"Excuse me, I thought you were the kid," Jeremy replied. "Hey tour guide. Mind helping us out here?" Blandir helped everyone to their feet, brushing off dust and checking for any injuries.
"It seems that everyone is OK. We should continue..."
"But I'm tired!!!!" Ulinae cried.
"Alright, fine! We'll continue for about an hour or so, and then we'll all rest," Oriona decided. "OK Blandir, lead us." Everyone headed straight. Now they HAD to rely on Blandir, since the walls were now crumbled to the floor.
"My feet are killing me!!" Ulinae complained. "Are we there yet?"
"We're about half-way through. But there's still a long way to go," Blandir said.
"This place......seems so familiar somehow..." Jeremy said.
"Really? Have you been here?"
"I don't think so, but yet...I have?"
"We'll worry about that later. We have to walk through these caverns first," Oriona said.
"Hey, hey, hey!!! Is that light?!" Ulinae cried.
{I think so. But I thought you said light was further down.}
"I did? I don't remember saying that. The second half of the caverns is always lit up," Blandir said. Everyone grumbled and approached the light.
"Where's it coming from?" Riant asked, trying to find the source.
"I'm not exactly sure, but we must be close to Watertide. That city is always lit up!!" Ulinae said.
"Watertide? The underwater kingdom?!" Jeremy questioned.
"Yep. I'm ruler there too!!! I am a mermaid after all. That's why I've never been here. I can hop into the water and swim over to Watertide," Ulinae giggled. "But enough of that. Now we can rest!!"
"Riant. Wake up Riant." The prince stirred in his sleep. "Riant. It's me. Wake up Riant!"
"If this is another prank, Jeremy, I swear I will..." he began, but was cut off. Standing in front of him was a man that look just like Riant. "F-Father?! Is that you Father?" The mad nodded and began to walk deeper into the caverns. "Wait!! Father, wait for me!!"
Riant and his father were surrounded by glistening crystals when the prince stopped running. "Father...I can't believe you're alive! You've been here this whole time?"
His father was silent. "Father, the Blank Mage has taken mother and Myna. Please Father, I need your help. Come with me," Riant begged, holding out his hand. His father began to laugh. "Father? Why are you laughing?"
"I'm not your father, prince. I needed to lure you in somehow. I knew choosing your late Father would work like a charm."
"Who are you?! Pull off that disguise!!" Riant demanded, reaching for his sword. The image shattered and there stood a man with short black hair and in shadowy robes. In his hand was a large, silver rapier.
"To answer your question, prince, my name is Kage, Keeper of the Dead."
"Kage, huh? So you're associated with the Blank Mage too?!"
"You and I are enemies, but I have no ties with the rogue mages," Kage replied.
"You're a liar!!" Riant shouted, ripping out his sword and charging at him. Kage stepped out of the way and swiped his sword up. Riant collapsed to the ground, his right arm bleeding. Riant growled and leapt into the air. His sword almost hit Kage's head, but he dodged that one too. Riant swung his sword and clashed with Kage's sword. Kage swung upward, slicing Riant's left arm at the same time.
"How pathetic. You're no match for rogue mages. You nearly died from one after all," Kage said. But Riant wasn't going to give up that easily. He stood up, trying to ignore the pain from his wounds and held his sword up to his face. He closed his eyes and searched deep within himself.
I can't fight him with my sword, so I need to use magic. But what do I have? I don't remember... he thought. Kage smiled seeing the blade of the prince's sword beginning to shine. Suddenly, small water streams began to flow around the sword.
Interesting. Let's see how his magic is like... Kage thought. Riant opened his eyes and Kage was surrounded by the water streams. The water crashed down on him, but no damage. Riant gasped seeing a strange symbol appear below him.
"What the...?!" Riant was surrounded by white magic streams.
"Is that what I think it is?" Kage asked himself. Riant's eyes glistened and he charged at the Keeper of the Dead, swinging his sword up, slicing Kage's arms and left cheek. "So you can fight after all. But I'm still stronger than you. I believe you can hold the rogue mages off for now, but until you defeat me, you will never defeat Blank Mage."
"What the hell do you want?!"
"I don't have alot of time to tell you, so I'll summarize. I am the Keeper of the Dead, which means I have power over the dead, including your father. I've held this power for years, but it wasn't until after the Silver Wars when rogue mages began to take my power and use it for their own purposes."
"So it's revenge you're after. Why bother with us when you can fight them yourself?" Riant asked.
"I would, but the mage's keep draining my power little by little each day. Someday, I may never have any power. That's why I fought you. I can see a great power within your soul, Riant. And within your comrades. I know you have the power to fight the rogue mages. You just need to know how to use it. It will be a while before the final fight."
"So now what?" Kage walked behind the crystals that laid within the caverns.
"To the continent in the east..." With that, Kage slipped into the shadows and vanished.
"Is he our enemy? Or our ally?"
"Riant!! Where are you?!" Ulinae shouted. "Riant!! Where did you go?"
"Ulinae?"
"There you are!!" Ulinae cried, running over to him. "We were so worried about you!"
"Are you hurt?" Oriona asked.
"I'm just fine. But where did Jeremy go?" Ulinae's eyes grew wide.
"Uh...I think he wandered off!!"
"That's so like him!"
"We have to find Jeremy before we can continue," Oriona said. "Hey look! There are his footprints! And they lead to that cave!!" Everyone ran intot he cave and found that it was surrounded by beautiful blue crystal with a small waterfall running through it.
"So that's where the light come from? The light from Watertide comes here. But where's the stupid elf?" Riant asked. Everyone silenced they they heard a muffled noise. Liami flew to the waterfall and peeked behind it.
"I found thy elf, but I think he's crying."
"Crying?! JEREMY?!" Oriona cried. Everyone raced behind the waterfall and was shocked. There was a large silver cross with crystal-like flowers surrounding it. And kneeling before the large cross, Jeremyriantho, the powerful and determined half-elf, crying.