Heals and Hits

http://healsandhits.blogspot.com/

Check it out! It's Cody's and my blog about our duo.

Post 81: Project Mannequin

Hey guys! In a rare count of events, its Ellie EmeraldVault, great family friend of the Drake family. I'm here with a little news.

1st, I will be launching my own blog!!! It will be called Emerald Spring, and will be launched in late December-early 2011.

2nd, I am having my own crafting project! Its called Project Mannequin, and it is my journey to craft a female and male mannequin. Anytime I get work done on the project, I will either:

a) make a new post
b) edit this post (if it was done today)

I have made Initiate Crafter today, and have the quest Legend of Two Rings from Toshio (??). I don't have the 10,000 gold for the recipes, so I will post a form below if you wanna farm for gold in CL (will be accepting help on Central, more info below).

So, before you go, this may end up being my longest post without a story, so sit tight with some fries and a milkshake, and stay tuned for more information.

Today, I will post ALL of the reagents I must have to complete the project:

10 Seraph treasure cards (90% accuracy, 390-450 damage)
8 shadow oil
2 crystal vial
80 ore
30 fossil
25 scrap iron
15 black pearl
48 leather straps
10 Vampire treasure cards (85% accuracy, 375 steal)
80 stone block
30 diamond
25 black lotus
15 spring
48 bronze gear

I will edit this post later if I have any updates. Oh, up on Emerald Spring, will be a brand new story, but won't be updated so much. It will be VERY long, and will be entitled Ellie's Journey, and tells a fictional history about Ellie, including family life, social life, and relationships with the people around her. Expect Ellie's Journey on the blog after a few days and after the first post. It will start with her birth (in the Prologue) and end with her Legendary status (part ??). Ellie's Journey 2 will be about Ellie beyond level 60. Since it'll take me a while to write Ellie's Journey, the 8th (?) world should be out (whether its storyline or sidequest) by the time its time to write Ellie's Journey 2.

Anyway, I'll be setting up Emerald Spring very soon, and will give you status updates online!

Take Care,
Ellie EmeraldVault

P.S. Ellie's name might be slightly different in the Ellie's Journey Saga.

My New Story "War of the Spiral"

Will post this on W101 Central.

Chapter One

The War Begins

Third Person Point of View

FOUR FRIENDS RAN quickly to the battle circle at Oyotomi the Defiler to complete their quest. Their names were Savannah Hexsong, Autumn Earthgem, Lucas Mistheart, and James Mythwielder. Each friend was garbed in school symbols of their school, and wielded a sword of their opposite school (Savannah had a Death Sword).

“Lamina lance!” Savannah shouted. Immediately, a tan and maroon blade appeared over Lucas’s head, swirling around him like a tornado.

“Lucernam!” Autumn chanted. Like with Savannah and the Balanceblade, a green and brown charm with a yellow star appeared and surrounded her head in a flurry of sparks.

“Lamina tempestate!” Lucas muttered. A Stormblade appeared above his head and circled him in a burst of white sparks like the gentle snowfalls his friend loved.

The battle continued. Savannah continued to buff Lucas, while Autumn healed Savannah and James, who were constantly attacked. In the end, Lucas ended the battle with a very strong Triton, which happened to be his personal record. He praised the boost his gear had, and the group turned in their quest.

Savannah’s Point of View

AFTER TURNING in my quest, I ended up level 42, Alhazred sending a tutorial tip to learn Hydra. However, I didn’t want to stop and interrupt our good streak to get Hydra, so I told them we could just move along.

Questing went swiftly after that, we went through the dungeons, defeated the bosses, and were a perfect group until the Cyrus Drake quest.

My sister Emma constantly bragged about her high leveled-ness at home. When she defeated Cyrus, she complained about how she had to solo a 5,000 health boss of her own school and how it took her three tries. Nevertheless, I shrugged it off and didn’t think about that until now, when it was my turn.

Autumn’s sister Cassandra told her that she and Valdus (her boyfriend) defeated Cyrus together by having Valdus start and Cassandra pop in after a few rounds. So, we naturally came up with the same strategy, only to fail.

Our plan was to have Autumn start, followed by me, then James, then Lucas, but something got mixed up, and it ended up with me and Lucas and Autumn with James. Luckily, I had crowns to afford a Life henchman who constantly healed us while we pummeled Cyrus over the ten minute battle.

Our group finally met up in the Tower Archives. Autumn and James had a late start, but they told me that with a simple prism, Autumn and James killed Cyrus with a bladed Centaur and a largely trapped Ninja Pig (respectively).

“So, was your battle as easy as ours?” Autumn asked panting at the fact she had to run all the way there.

“Yeah, I got a Life henchman to heal us while we used Judgement, Triton, Stormzilla, and company,” I replied.

For a moment, Autumn turned around and pulled something out of her purse. After three seconds, she turned around and announced, “Ambrose has something really urgent.” Our jaws dropped.

Autumn’s Point of View

WHEN WE GOT to the Commons, things were mysteriously quiet. I didn’t see as many lower levels as usual, or hear scammers running towards me begging for Crowns. When we got to the gate in front of Ambrose’s house, we were teleported inside. I saw Ambrose nearly quaking with an urge of panic.

“W-w-w-w-e m-m-m-ay be t-t-t-t-o-o-o l-l-l-l-la-a-a-t-t-t-t-e-e-e,” Ambrose stuttered. I was surprised and scared. I had never seen Ambrose be so scared like this.

“Someone is betraying us,” he managed to say without stuttering on every syllable. He had now gone pale, and his normal Tempest-blue eyes were now a strange black. He never even told us his eye color could change.

“Ambrose, what’s going on?” Savannah asked him while he whimpered. He jumped back and nearly fell in all the books when the door slammed open to reveal a sinister figure we had never seen before, but I had heard of in stories.

The figure looked nearly like a fallen angel. She had beautiful onyx hair that was amazing compared to my normal black hair. Her pale skin seemed to glimmer and her dark eyeliner made her look like a vampire, along with the blood red lipstick. She wore a black Necromancer-seeming garment. She had a long, flowing black dress (like Youkai’s Robe of Premise) with all sorts of Death seeming things: symbols, skulls, scythes, tombstones, etc. along with orange, red, yellow, and white. She held a black staff with a curved top and a black orb at the top that was seemingly alive.

“We meet again, Ambrose,” the figure said in a low tone. Her voice sounded like a dog dying combined with 75% of an angel’s voice. Now we knew why he was whimpering.

“Sephlana,” he stuttered. It was hurting me to just watch him quiver like this.

“Yes, it’s me. So now that I have returned from Celestia, I shall take control of your precious little City you’ve treasured forever,” Sephlana growled. In a flurry of Death symbols, Sephlana disappeared, and I could hear commotion outside.

“It has begun,” Ambrose muttered.

“What has begun?” James and Lucas asked simultaneously.

“The War of the Spiral.”

More News on The Ruffian [movie]

From http://wizfilms.wizspot.wiz/theruffianmovie.

Title: The Ruffian
Release Date (WC): December 10, 2010
Rating: W-13 (WC) for thematic elements, language, violence, and a scene of gore, WG (KT, MB, MS, DS, CL) for thematic elements, mild language, and mild fantasy and action violence
Cast:
Darby LionCloud as Alia Dawn
Luke SoulSong as Charlie LifeCloud
Shanna Whisper as Rowan HexSong
Engineer Montgomery as The Engineer
Blaze Willow as Young Engineer
Alia Dawn as Alyssa Dawn
Charlie LifeCloud as Marcus "Mark, Marky" Dawn
Rowan HexSong as Sylvia Dawn
Kayla Drake as Annawisp Mysteria
Rion as Mysterio
Tagline: You know what they say: If you love something let it go. But if you could be killed by having it, what do you do?
Plot: Alia Dawn finds out that her Krokotopian cat Misemos is actually a Ruffian. During the time of peril and near Ruffian Genocide, can Alia and her friends Charlie and Rowan protect Misemos from being murdered by the population of [human] Marleybone and capture by Annawisp and Mysterio? Find out in The Ruffian, the movie based on the best-selling novel by E.L. Warthsbury.
Rolling Wand review: 94/100
Rotten Gobblers review: 26/30
Ron and Emmett review: 9/10
Video Game release: December 14, 2010
Video Game rating: WT, W-10+
Score release: December 15, 2010

Hey guys!

So, guys, remember this post Iridian made?

Marleybone Mysteries
The Sands of Balance
The Amazing Save
Welcome to the Museum?
Spiral Spirit
The Mystery of the Black Shadow, pt. 1
The Mystery of the Black Shadow, pt. 2 (separate from pt. 1)
MooShu Culture
Underwater in Celestia
(COMING JUNE 19!) The Original Source of Magic
(COMING JULY 26!) Wizard's Folly
(COMING AUGUST 28!) The Mysteries of Grizzleheim

The Nobles-My Favorite!
The Ruffian
The Scurrier
(COMING JUNE 19!) The Gearhead: A Dark Side of Midnight

The Noble Princess of Celestia (sequel to The Nobles)
(COMING AUGUST 26!) The Crabs and the Angels

Well, I have some sequels for these stories!

For Marleybone Mysteries, the new books are:
Aquamole: Story of the Lost Water Moles
The Celestian Submersible
New Technology
The Great Gardening Guide
(coming this January) Molly Mysterious (the final book)

The Nobles is finished, but movies are coming out! The movie for The Ruffian comes out on December 10 in Wizard City, MooShu, and Celestia, December 13 in Marleybone, December 14 in Krokotopia, and December 20 in DragonSpyre and Grizzleheim.

The Noble Princess of Celestia was only meant to be one book, but its movie is coming out straight to DVD everywhere on December 14 for a range of 14-20 dollars.

Anyway, I am starting something new on Central: Spiral History (lessons)! They will chronicle important events from our history, and the first installment (from the Celestian series) will be about the destruction of the Water Mole village (near boss that drops Stellar Protector statue) by some rebellious bears. Here is an excerpt.

After the incident, the population dwindled from 84,789,261 to only 84. Some are above land, while others are part of the W.M. Society of Marleybone.

The Emperor of MooShu: by Iridian and I

Iridian and I decided to co-write a story about a girl named Miranda and her friends's journey throught the Spiral. I will post the chapters I wrote, she'll post hers, and we'll both have it archived. It can also be reached here on fanfiction.net. Now, enjoy!

Celestia Reveal #11

Welcome to the long awaited return of my blog! Todays topic is the Celestia Reveal. I'd like to point out a post from Central by Wizard101 Talk, which explains what the other figures are. Anyway, isn't that starfish so cute?

DIARY OF A SORCERESS IS CLOSED

I am closing the site until either later this year or 2011. It will be COMPLETELY redone when its open. Thanks for listening.

The War of the Wizards and News!

Finally, a post. On central, I'm doing a rewrite of a story. It combines these two:

Story One
Story Two


The Story will be called "The Guardians of Celestia."

Snapshots

These are some pictures I took.
1. A Tempest pet. Level 48 combination of Wraith and Stormzilla.
2. Tempest pet's stats
3. Me and Uber Wife (Bailey) as twins!!!

NO MY WINGS!

Well, I was teleporting to a friend while equipping my wings and a message came up saying they would be equipped when I stepped outside. Well, now my wings are gone!

Samantha Hits Grandmaster!

After a good few months or year, Samantha Drake is finally a Grandmaster!
I'm still working on getting her grand gear look. I'm finally a Multi-Grand person! :D

Krokotopia Exploration

This play will be out tomorrow! Its a play about Krokotopia.

Host: Cameron HexBlade
Date: Friday, June 11, 2010
Time: 5:00EST
Plot: The adventure of 3 friends exploring Krokotopia for an ancient tomb in a tale of action, adventure, and drama.
Teleport Person: Erin EmeraldHunter and Suri MoonSong in Golem Court at 4:45EST Vampire Area One and Two
Please talk in PMs ONLY

NOTICE: You will be removed after you have reached the performance.

OMG

I was farming with Cassandra GriffinDreamer (left), Bailey SkyStaff, and Blaze MistShard, along with random people that joined. Anyway, I got two fire serpents so far, I'll keep ya updated.

A Little Busy with Story of the Week #9

Well, I'll be a little busy fixing the paragraphing, but I will announce this week's story of the week will be The Most Powerful Spells of All by Alia LotusPetal. When I finish the paragraphing, I will delete this post and replace it with story of the week.

The New Deck

I changed up her deck. I'll change for other things.

Samantha Earns Power Nova!

After a few hours of hard work, she finally has Power Nova! Here are the pics:

This is her look until she gets ALL of her level 50 gear look. (Youkai's Hat of Kindness, Youkai's Cloak of Kindness, and Death Oni's Introverted Shoes)





I would like to thank:
Blaze ThunderEyes (a few side-quests before level 48)
Kestrel ShadowThistle (Ideyoshi and Plague Oni)
Chris DarkCrafter (Plague Oni)

The Myth Princess!

I created a blog for just Iridian. Here is The Myth Princess blog.

Iridian says: Summer Reading!

Hey guys, Iridian here. I'm here to talk about some books I loved that you might like too! These books are available at the Wizard City and Krokotopia (in scroll form) Libraries. You can also obtain them from the 4 Secret Bookstores in MB, MS, DS, and GH and I would be happy to point them out for you. They should also be available in the Celestia Library.

Wizard School Vacation: May 28, 2010-September 12, 2010
Wizard Christmas Vacation: December 17, 2010-January 7, 2011
Wizard Spring Break: April 4, 2011-April 15, 2011


Marleybone Mysteries
The Sands of Balance
The Amazing Save
Welcome to the Museum?
Spiral Spirit
The Mystery of the Black Shadow, pt. 1
The Mystery of the Black Shadow, pt. 2 (separate from pt. 1)
MooShu Culture
Underwater in Celestia
(COMING JUNE 19!) The Original Source of Magic
(COMING JULY 26!) Wizard's Folly
(COMING AUGUST 28!) The Mysteries of Grizzleheim

The Nobles-My Favorite!
The Ruffian
The Scurrier
(COMING JUNE 19!) The Gearhead: A Dark Side of Midnight

The Noble Princess of Celestia (sequel to The Nobles)
(COMING AUGUST 26!) The Crabs and the Angels

Yay!

Me and Wolf just got the Life Banshee while farming with Blaze.

Written Pet List (60th Post!)

I decided to write this pet list from Central on my blog.

WIZARD CITY
Myth Sprite from Rattlebones in Unicorn Way
Blue Banshee from Lord Nightshade in Haunted Cave

KROKOTOPIA
Life Banshee from King Uro Ahnic in Ahnic Family Tomb
Life Troll from Krokopatra in Temple of Storms
Green Cat Thug (Crown Pet Drop) from Serket Guardian in Tomb of the Beguiler

MARLEYBONE
Storm Serpent from Clanker in Katzenstein's Lab
Brown Rat Magician from Dr. Von Katzenstein in Katzenstein's Lab
White Rat Magician from from Spike the Crusher in Big Ben

MOOSHU
Diseased Wildclaw (Crown Pet Drop) from Yakedo in Crimson Fields
Death Ninja from Yakedo in Crimson Fields
Myth Leprechaun from Kanago in Cave of Solitude
Life Scarab from Plague Oni in Shiritaki Temple
Crabling (Crown Pet Drop) from Crazed Forest Spirit in Ancient Burial Grounds
Myth Treant from Oakheart in Village of Sorrow
Red Banshee from Akuji in Tree of Life
War Helephant from Youkai in Tree of Life
Death Bat from Kagemoosha in Tree of Life
Leprechaun from Death Oni in Tree of Life

DRAGONSPYRE
Ianthine Spectre (Crown Pet Drop) from Gurtok Demon in Plaza of Conquests
Storm Snowman from Sea Lord in Plaza of Conquests
Death Minotaur from Karuvian Scargiver in Plaza of Conquests
Death Cyclops from General Greystone in Plaza of Conquests
Skeletal Warrior from Viktor Snowcrusher in The Drake Hatchery
Frostzilla from Silver Sentinel in The Labyrinth
Pale Maiden (Crown Pet Drop) from Vladimir Darkflame in The Labyrinth
Boss Banshee from Vladimir Darkflame in The Labyrinth
Fire Serpent from Boris Blackrock in The Crucible
Queen Spider from Yeva Spiderkeeper in The Crystal Grove

GRIZZLEHEIM
Mustard Troll from Fleshrender in Vigrid Roughland
Storm Cat from Hirkir in Mirkholm Keep
Life Minotaur from Brownwood Tormentor in Helgrind Warren
Lifebat from Grettir in Winterdeep Warren
Death Troll from Jotun in Hall of Valor
Zombie from Lokar in Hall of Valor
Silver Colossus from Runed Devastator in Hall of Valor
Ice Bird from Nightwing in Ravenscar
Firebat from Gurtok Barrier Demon in Ravenscar
Silverback Wildclaw from 4 Raven Elders in Ravenscar

Story of the Week #7-8, A Double Feature! Part 2: Tales from Celestial Bodies

This is part 2 of the Story of the Week Double Feature: Tales from Celestial Bodies.

"You will lose, Andrew Firerider. You will lose everything." Those were the words the Dark Lord had just said to me, and it echoed in my mind a thousand times. The Dark Lord has weakened me, and I gaze upon him from where I fell. His face was full of anger, but at the same time he was full of joy because he thought he would defeat me. My vision was fading, and my world was going black, as memories flooded through my brain. I realized that I must be so weak, and I was having a final glance at my life before I died.

And here is what I saw:

A portal opened in Merle Ambrose's office, and out of it came me. I finally was accepted into Ravenwood School of Magical Arts. Merle Ambrose gave me the warm introduction, and told me that he believes that I can conquer Malistaire. He told me who Malistaire was, and I did not believe I had it in me to do so.

I next saw myself standing next to Dalia Falmea, as she gave me my wand, deck, and spellbook.

Next I was at Unicorn Way at my first fight.

The new memory was a memory of me defeating Lord Nightshade. I went to Merle Ambrose, and he told me I will soon become a powerful wizard! He then allowed me to go to Krokotopia.

I then saw Manders, Krokotolians, and all the memories of Krokotopia. I saw myself in the Palace of Fire, in the Hall of Champions, and finally I saw myself defeating Krokopatra.

Next I was in Marleybone. In one memory I was on those airplane devices they used in Marleybone. I was fighting gangs of cats, and soon I found myself face to face against Meowiarty, with Malistaire watching over the duel.

I went back to Merle Ambrose. He told me my new mission : receive the key to Dragonspyre from the emperor of Mooshu. Malistaire was in Dragonspyre, and I had to reach him before it was too late!

I saw myself next to the sick emperor, taking the vow to protect and heal him at all costs. Suddenly I was fighting the Jade Oni, and once I defeated him and healed the emperor, I received the key to Dragonspyre.

Cyrus Drake was informing me that I need to find my way to the Crown of Fire and stop Malistaire from summoning the great Dragon Titan which destroyed Dragonspyre so many years before. Malistaire planned on using the Krokonomicon to awaken the Dragon Titan to bring back his wife to life.

Wait, you don't know what the Krokonomicon is! And that's an important part of my tale! Well, I found out about the Krokonomicon in Krokotopia. The Krokonomicon was a book full of powerful magic. Malistaire got ahold of the Krokonomicon, and plans on using it to bring back his wife, Sylvia Drake, to life. Seems very nice, but here's the problem: The Dragon Titan is difficult to keep under control, and it will destroy all of Dragonspyre. Again.

I then found myself at the Crown of Fire, fighting Malistaire. I defeated him, and it was an extremely difficult battle. These memories rushed by quickly, but after that the memories started coming slowly and in full detail.

When I defeated Malistaire, Cyrus Drake held up the crystal which held the memory of Sylvia Drake. Sylvia came to Malistaire as a ghost, and told him that it was nonsense for him to try to have control over the Dragon Titan. All that Sylvia wants is for Malistaire to become a good person, to regret what he did, and join her in the afterlife. Malistaire realizes what a fool he was, and says that he wants nothing else than to join Sylvia in the afterlife. And they then faded together.

I found the Krokonomicon on the floor. I brought it to Merle Ambrose to see what he will do. I thought my dark and dangerous adventure was finished, but I was wrong.

"Andrew Firerider, you have done it! You have defeated Malistaire Drake, and you have even made him a good person at the last second! Take this Krokonomicon and bring it to the library in Krokotopia. The librarian will tell you what to do," said Merle Ambrose.

"I don't understand why I am bringing the Krokonomicon to Krokotopia! Don't you want to examine it?"

"Of course I do, but the time has not yet come. I am currently extremely busy, and I need to find out some information about the Krokonomicon before we study it. By Bartleby, you wouldn't even believe how upset these kids are now that they can't defeat Malistaire anymore! I keep telling them they can fight the Jade Oni because you stored his memory in a crystal, but apparently the Jade Oni isn't so popular!"

I went to Krokotopia, and the librarian said how happy he was that I succeeded. He opened up a secret room that led to the basement of the library, and told me to put the book on the shelf down there. He said that the shelf was special, and only the person who puts a book or something else there can take it out of the shelf again. That way, no evil forces can seize the Krokonomicon.

I went to the basement, but I was greeted by two ghosts. One was life and the other was death. They were not so easy, but after all I had been through, I was able to defeat them. I wondered why a library would keep two ghosts down there, but I then found my answer.

"The Dark Lord will capture the Krokonomicon, and he will destroy you!" said the ghosts before they faded away. They also left a shining silver key, which I took.

I put the Krokonomicon on the shelf, and asked the librarian how two ghosts managed to get into his library! He was just as puzzled as I was! I decided to tell this to Merle Ambrose.

"I fear that dark times will once again arise. The Dark Lord is a powerful evil person, more powerful than Malistaire or anyone else you have faced. I do not know why he wants the Krokonomicon, but it cannot be good. This key is the one key in existence to Celestia, home of the golden watch. Take this key, and see what awaits you."

As I was about to leave, Merle Ambrose said one more thing.

"By the way, Celestia is also the home of all the spirits. I believe you will encounter an old friend there, Malistaire."

And with that, I went on my journey to Celestia, not knowing at all what will happen to me.

~

As I stepped out of the Spiral door, the first thing that I saw was an enormous room in front of me. The room was so enormous that I couldn't even see how far it stretched out. The room was pure white. Next I saw ghosts. But these were not the ghosts that many wizards find themselves dealing in battles, known as Undead. These were the ghosts of the afterlife, and each ghost looked like the person did in the regular life, except ghostly. That means they were transparent and all that stuff.

I walked through the room, feeling uncomfortable between all the ghosts. I then saw two familiar figures.

"Well what do you know! It seems like Andrew Firerider just couldn't resist seeing us!" said Malistaire Drake as I approached him.

"My dear Malistaire, please remember that he is your friend now, and we must be kind to him," said Sylvia Drake.

"Of course, my precious Sylvia! Andrew, what brings you to the Chamber of Spirits?" asked Malistaire.

"The Chamber of Spirits? I supposed that is what this room is called?" I asked.

"Yes. This is the Chamber of Spirits, where the afterlife go. You are in the world Celestia, home of the first golden watch. " said Malistaire.

"Yes, I have heard about this golden watch. What is so special about it?" I asked.

"Celestia is inhabited by people other than ghosts of the afterlife. They created the first watch, and it was golden, but did more than just tell time. You may recall the teleportation stones of Dragonspyre. These are similar. The golden watches were used to tell time and also to teleport from place to place. Other functions were created in their golden watches as well, such as giving the ability to boost one's powers if he wears it," said Sylvia Drake.

"Wow! That sounds amazing! Do they still have these golden watches today?" I asked.

"Yes they do. There are special craftsmen who are capable of making them. They live in the villages of Celestia. It is said, however, that the first golden watch has special abilities beyond any other watches that were made, and can be found somewhere in Celestia, but no one knows where," said Malistaire Drake.

"Anyway, why you are here? Was it only the curiosity of golden watches that made you come here?" asked Sylvia Drake.

"No. Do you know anyone named the Dark Lord?" I asked.

"The Dark Lord! Why would a young wizard like you want to know about him?" asked Sylvia Drake.

"Sylvia, this young wizard is the same wizard who defeated me. I think we can tell him about the Dark Lord," said Malistaire Drake.

"Very well then. The Dark Lord is a powerful evil person, who set up his fortress and army in Celestia. He is the one who keeps all of us ghosts inside the Chamber of Spirits, and we hate him for it, because we want to leave and experience the rest of Celestia!" said Sylvia Drake.

"Wait a second! His name sounds familiar" I said.

A memory came back to me. I had just defeated Krokopatra, and before she faded she said that the Dark Lord awakened her, and the Dark Lord will rule. I thought she was referring to Malistaire, but I see how wrong I was. I told this to Malistaire and Sylvia.

"I don't know why the Dark Lord has done this, but perhaps he wanted the Krokonomicon just like me," Malistaire said.

"He sure did!" I said to them. I then told them about my encounter with the ghosts in the library.

"Oh dear! I fear that the Dark Lord wants the Krokonomicon to rule the Spiral!" said Malistaire.

"Wow this is sounding just like your tale!" I said.

"This is no time for jokes. You must defeat the Dark Lord and his army before he takes over the Spiral!" said Malistaire.

"I have done this too many times. One more time can't hurt. Tell me where to begin," I said.

"This may be your hardest adventure yet. The Dark Lord is situated on a large island in Celestia, which can only be reached by the golden watch's teleportation ability," said Malistaire.

"Why can't I just fly to the island on my Drake?" I asked.

"The island is too far away, and the Drake would be too tired. It will also be very difficult to get a Drake through the Spiral Door. And, there is a force field around the island created by the Dark Lord's magic which prevents anything from reaching the island. The only way is to teleport there," said Malistaire.

"But first you will have to find a way out of the Chamber of Spirits. You will need to go to Marleybone, and bring back some fireworks or explosives to destroy the wall of the Chamber of Spirits. It is the Dark Lord who set up the chamber, but I believe that fireworks or explosives can destroy the wall" said Sylvia Drake.

"Great! I'm on my way," I said.

I then travelled to Marleybone to try and find some fireworks or explosives. I didn't think it would be too difficult.

Oh, I was extremely wrong!

~

I stepped out of the Spiral Chamber and into Marleybone. I saw many dogs gaping at me that I came back, and they appeared extemely happy. I decided to pay a visit to my good friend, Sherlock Bones, on Barker Street.

Sherlock Bones was so amazed to see me again! "You just couldn't resist coming back to our wonderful world, eh? The Royal Police Force can use your help, but first you must tell us why you are here."

"There is another dark wizard, named the Dark Lord, who wishes to take over the Spiral. Have you heard the tale of when I defeated Malistaire?" I asked.

"Of course I heard what events happened to you after you left! And I am so happy that Malistaire has turned good. But if you wish to only warn us of the Dark Lord, I think you have wasted your time. If you tell this to the dogs of Marleybone, they will become frightened!" said Sherlock Bones.

"That is not why I am currently here, but I may have to eventually tell them. Do you have any fireworks or explosives I can borrow?" I asked.

"Why, Andrew Firerider, you always come just at the nick of time! There is currently a powerful O'Leary gang that has captured some explosives and they plan on using it to destroy the cells of Newgate Prison and release all the prisoners! The Royal Police Force can sure use your help," said Sherlock.

"Piece of cake. I've already been to Newgate Prison one time, and I have seen those cells. Do you have any idea of where this O'Leary gang is located?" I asked.

"My detective squad is currently trying to figure that out. Please have dinner with us here. I will invite the Mayor, and you will have rest for some while," said Sherlock Bones.

"Ok, but then I must continue with my quest," I said.

It wasn't long before the dogs of Marleybone heard that I was here. There was a whole parade, and everyone was cheering. Well, not everyone. The cats were immensely dissapointed that I came back, and I believe that I struck terror into their hearts, which is good for me, because it will be easier for me to obtain the explosives.

The Mayor came to where Sherlock Bones and I were, and we had supper together. We talked, and I explained about my journey, and I heard something that I couldn't believe! Here is what happened:

"You know, Sherlock Bones, there is a fictional character back on Earth where I am from named Sherlock Holmes," I said.

"Oh really? Is he a dog like me?" Sherlock Holmes asked.

"No, he's a human, but he is fake. A man named Sir Arthur Conan Doyle put him in his stories. And you know what else? Sherlock Holmes solves mysteries like you!" I said.

"It is not surprising. I don't suppose that he lives on Barker Street also?" said Sherlock Bones.

"Not surprising? What do you mean? And he doesn't live on Barker Street. Instead, he lives on Baker Street. I didn't think that it was just an ordinary coincidence when I first met you," I said.

"It is not a coincidence at all. I one time travelled to Earth and met Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I see that he decided to put me in his books. But this has nothing to do with your tale," said Sherlock Bones.

"No it doesn't. And speaking of my tale, has your detective squad figured out where this O'Leary gang is situated?" I asked.

"Have you seen anyone besides the Mayor come here? How would I know if they figured it out?" asked Sherlock Bones.

Call it irony, but at that same moment a bunch of dogs came into the room, and whispered something into Sherlock Bones' ear.

"Well, what do you know! They found out," said Sherlock Bones. "The leader of this O'Leary gang is a fearsome cat named Purrtafear. His tower is located at the end of Newgate Prison, near the place you faced the Agony Wraith on your last adventure."

"I hope to see you soon," I said as I rushed out the door to Newgate Prison.

I went all the way to the end of the prison and found many buildings. This certainly didn't help. However, I saw a few cats entering one building, so I decided that must be the one where Purrtafear is.

I was correct, and I entered the building.

"Well hello, Andrew Firerider. I have heard of you from those weak gangs of cats. I assure you, I am much tougher than they are, and I will destroy you," said Purrtafear.

"Yeah yeah yeah. That's what they all said. Listen, you're in Marleybone, and I defeated dragons from Dragonspyre, you can't be that difficult. Oh, and have you ever though about changing your name? It is extremely odd," I said.

" Have you ever though about changing your name? It is extremely odd," he mimicked me. "Well too bad. Live with it! Or I should say, DIE WITH IT!"

At that second the battle began. Just like I expected, it was an easy battle. That wasn't what shocked me. What shocked me was what came next.

"YOU ARE TOO LATE!!! I HAVE ALREADY ORDERED MY GANG TO START USING THE EXPLOSIVES ON THE CELLS!!!! HAHAHAHA!!!!" said Purrtafear before he faded away.

"Wow that sounds really familiar to what happened in the Ironworks! The boss said that he already began the raid, but I was able to stop it, so we will see who wins," I said.

I was pretty confident that I would stop the gang in time, but then I heard an extremely loud sound that shook the roof I was walking on. The gang already began using the explosives! I rushed to the cells of the prison, and couldn't believe it. For once in my life, I was too late!

But then another side of me came out. "You are Andrew Firerider. You have defeated Malistaire, and you will defeat the Dark Lord! Have courage, you can do this," I said to myself.

I saw many cats in front of me. There was a large bag full of explosives next to them. They had already destroyed Cell 1, and freed the prisoner there, and now they were working on Cell 2. But here's the good thing about Newgate Prison. Each cell is situated on a piece of land that comes out of the floor. Therefore, between each cell there is a dark abyss. I simply used some of my moves that I learnt from Earth. I pushed the cats off the cells and into the dark abyss. Cell 2 was almost destroyed, and I knew that the prisoner would escape. I therefore chased him into Cell 3, where he couldn't escape. Then I went back to the first prisoner that escaped, and did the same thing. Now the prisoners were all locked up. I took the bag of explosives, and went back to Sherlock Bones.

"Congratulations! You have done it," said Sherlock Bones.

"It wasn't that difficult," I said. I decided not to tell him about the two broken cells they would have to fix. Let them figure that out on their own!

"Well, I must be going back to Celestia. Good luck with the cats!" I said.

And with that, I travelled to Celestia, realizing I still had a long journey ahead of me.

~

As I stepped out of the Spiral Door, I was greeted by Malistaire and Sylvia Drake.

"Hello again! Have you gotten the explosives?" asked Malistaire.

"No, I'm just carrying around this big bag for no reason," I said sarcastically. "Of course I got the explosives!"

"Excellent! Let's head over to the wall of the Chamber of Spirits, and then you can set the explosives off."

We walked toward the edge of the Chamber of Spirits, and we stood a few feet away from the wall.

"Explosives won't harm ghosts like us here, but you better stand a few feet away so you don't kill yourself and end up here in ghost form!" said Sylvia.

"Yes, I was about to do that," I said, as I moved a few feet away.

Many ghosts gathered around. They were so surprised to see a real living soul here, especially one holding explosives in his hand!

I threw one explosive at the wall. KABOOM!!! It made a nice hole in the wall, but not enough.

"The Dark Lord was the one who created the walls of this chamber, and it will take many explosives to knock down the wall," said Malistaire.

"More fun for me!" I said. "Hey, you want to know what I would like to know! How do you know so much about this world if you've only been here for such a short time?"

"First of all, there were ghosts here that have been here since the Dark Lord put up the walls, and I talked to them. Second of all, Sylvia has been here a while also, and she told me a lot. But that's not important. Knock that wall down," said Malistaire.

"Of course! Leave me to all the dirty work," I said as I threw another explosive at the wall.

KABOOM!!! KABOOM!!! KABOOM!!! KABOOM!!! KABOOM!!!

Eventually there was a huge hole in the wall, and many ghosts crowded around it and went through the hole, happy to be free.

"Wait, if you're a ghost, how come you couldn't just move through the wall?" I asked.

"I told you before. This wall was made by the Dark Lord. It's protected by special magic," said Malistaire.

"Of course! The Dark Lord put magic on the wall so no ghosts can go through it but explosives can destroy it! What type of magic is that!" I asked.

"Do not question the magic of the Dark Lord. His magic and evil is far more powerful than anything you've ever faced," said Malistaire.

"Yeah yeah yeah. Everyone told me the same thing when I fought you," I said.

"Well I am quite honored," said Malistaire.

"Now if you don't mind, what am I supposed to do next?" I asked.

"I believe that the next thing is to find the golden watch, but I am sure that the Dark Lord has put many obstacles in our course," said Sylvia.

"Something just popped into my mind. Won't the Dark Lord realize all the ghosts have gone?" I asked.

"Yes he will, but they will be dispersed throughout all of Celestia and he will never get them all back again," said Malistaire.

"And why did he imprison them in the first place?" I asked.

"Where do you come up with these questions?! said Malistaire. The Dark Lord is a cruel person, and he decided to imprison the ghosts."

We stepped out of the hole, and I was amazed to see how wonderful the world of Celestia was. The air was as pure as Mooshu, and the sky was pure blue. All the roads and buildings were crystal white, just like the color of the walls and floor in the Chamber of Spirits.

A road lay of us straight ahead. It was the only road, so we travelled on it. After a few minutes, many other roads came out of this road, but they all led to different islands, which I realized must be some towns.

"These roads that come out of the main road lead to different towns. We must continue travelling on the main road," said Sylvia.

"And where does the main road lead?" I asked.

In response to that Malistaire said, "You'll see soon enough."

"Oh goody, I love surprises," I said sarcastically.

After a few more minutes of travelling on the main road I saw a large circle, or what appeared to be a roof, with three ghosts on it. However, these ghosts were different. These were the ghosts known as Undead, and not the ghosts of Celesetia. On the roof there was a staircase leading to a lower floor, shaped in a circle also, and then a staircase on that floor leading farther down, and so on. Each floor had more and more fearsome creatures on it.

"Is this the surprise?" I asked.

"It sure is. This is what is known as The Tower of Thrills. You must fight your way through it if you want to get to the Dark Lord's island," Malistaire said.

"Wait. You said that I have to fight. I'm assuming that ghosts can't fight," I said.

"Correct. Only Undead, such as on that roof. But be careful. These are powerful minions, and soon you will be facing wraiths on The Tower of Thrills," said Sylvia.

"Well, I'm about to give them thrills!" I said as I entered the first duel on The Tower of Thrills.

The ghosts on the first floor weren't so difficult, and neither were the ghosts on the second floor. But on the third floor, I met ghosts that were black, unlike the first two floors which had ghosts that were white. After a couple of floors I found myself facing wraiths, and on the last floor I was low on health but I defeated the boss known as Perilaker.

On the last floor, there was a great semicircle coming out of the ground, with a hole in one of the sides. It looked like the teleportation objects in Dragonspyre, where you put crystals into the portal and you are teleported to someplace.

"Great job," said Sylvia. "We now need to go to one of the villages and receive a golden watch."

"Wait a second! Why did we have to come all this way first? Why couldn't we go to the village first?" I asked.

"If you were carrying a golden watch with you, and you lost, one of the ghosts may have taken it, and then you would receive your doom," said Malistaire.

"Oh. I hate doom. Well, to the villages!" I said.

"Yes, let's go right away. Time is of the essence," said Malistaire.

"Um, I basically just said that we are leaving right now, in case you didn't here," I told Malistaire.

"Yes, I just wanted it to sound dramatic," said Malistaire.

"Whatever you say, dear Malistaire," said Sylvia.

And so, we went back onto the road and to the villages.

And the adventure continued again.

~

We went back to the cobblestone street, and chose one of the side streets. It looked bigger than the rest and had more people, so we figured it must be the main village.

It definitely was the main village! It was huge! Not as big as the Chamber of Spirits, but it was large for a village!

The homes were amazingly created; each one had a different design than the other. However, each one stood on white tall pillars. Each home were painted white and looked pure, as if only good people live in this village.

And in fact, ONLY good people lived in that village!

"Excuse me kind sir, where can we find a golden watch?" asked Sylvia, to someone on the street.

"Holy ghost! How did you escape from the Chamber of Spirits?" asked the boy. "If the Dark Lord finds out, we will be all doomed."

"Why does everyone say the word doom? It brings such a negative feeling!" I said.

"Do not fear, for Malistaire is here!" said Malistaire.

"Malistaire! Oh no! I heard about you! You tried to conquer the Spiral! Step away from me, fiend!" said the boy.

"Perhaps you should let me handle this," I said

"Yes. I feel more comfortable talking to a living soul," said the boy.

"Hey!" said Malistaire, taken aback by this statement.

"No offense," said the boy.

"Oh sure! Just say no offense and I’m supposed to forgive you," said Malistaire.

"Yeah, that's basically why I just said no offense," the boy said.

"Incompetent little fool!" said Malistaire.

"Silence! Stop using lines that only bad guys use. Next thing you know you will be talking to us about how glorious and powerful you are, as all the bad guys do. We must accomplish our mission! So where can we find a golden watch?" I asked.

"In the shopping center of course!" said the boy.

"And where is the shopping center?" I asked.

"It's located in the middle of the town - can't miss it! It's between Celestia Avenue and Shopping Avenue," said the boy.

"That really helps me!" I said sarcastically. "As you can see, I am not from around here. Can you show me the way?" I asked.

"Of course! As long as the fiend doesn't bite!" the boy said.

"Hey! And don't say no offense!" said Malistaire.

"No offense. I always thought Malistaire would be much tougher than this," said the boy.

"There's no use arguing Malistaire. Just let it be," said Sylvia.

"You're lucky I have a nice enough wife like Sylvia to stop me," said Malistaire.

And so we went together to the shopping center.

The shopping center was huge! It was composed of so many shops, and I had no clue how we would find which shop we needed! The shops were painte gold, and they varied in size. Some were small while others were the size of factories!

"Follow me, and you will find the golden watch store," said the boy.

We followed him for a while through the Shopping District, gaping at it's marvelence. There were food stands (without pretzels or hot dogs!), souvenir shops, clothing outlets and the list went on and on. If my mom or sister was here, they would feel as if they were in heaven!

Finally we arrived at our destination.

It was a shop painted bright gold, more gold than all the others. It had only one floor, but it was huge. The shelves were painted bright white, and it's contents consisted of bright golden watches. There must have been a thousand watches in that store! How were we ever going to find the correct watch.

There were grand white steps leading up to the shop. There was a pillar on each of the four corners of the shop, painted gold. It was a sight to behold!

"Well, I have done my job. I better be off now," said the boy as he hurried away. "Make sure to be careful with the fiend," he added.

"I AM NOT A FIEND!" said an infuriated Malistaire.

"Well I don't expect you to admit it!" said the boy, and then he disappeared among the throng of people.

"Don't worry, he only knew you by your past self. Not your present self," said Sylvia, trying to comfort Malistaire.

"Well he's only a boy. I don't mind that much," said Malistaire, still with a red face and looking as if steam might pop out of his head any second!

"Anyway, let's take a look at this shop," I said.

As we approached the shop, I saw a sign that said "Daniel's Golden Watch Shop - New and Old, They're All Here!"

We went into the shop and gazed around the many shelves in the room. Some of the watches looked fairly simple, some looked like a watch from Earth, and some looked extremely complex.

"May I help you with anything?" said a voice behind me.

"Yes, we need a powerful golden watch," I said.

"Ah. I will help you. I am Daniel, the owner of this store. What do you need a powerful watch for?" he asked.

"To take down the Dark Lord once and for all," I said.

"Oh. Many brave warriors have said that, but there are no tales that they have brought back, and that is because they never came back. But I cannot turn a customer down. You need the golden watch for the teleportation rings I assume," said Daniel.

"Yes, we need one that can power it," I said.

"I figured that if you want to reach the Dark Lord, you were going to use the teleportation rings. As far as I know, there is no other way in order to reach him," said Daniel.

"Does that mean that you have a watch suitable for us?" I asked.

"Unfortunatley, no. I know nothing of the kind, nor do I have anything so powerful. As far as the residents of Celestia are concerned, those types of watches are only myths. Perhaps they existed before our time, but I regret that I have nothing for you," said Daniel.

"Excuse me? Did I hear you correctly," I asked.

"I don't know. What did you hear?" asked Daniel.

"I heard that you don't have any watches that I can use. But didn't you say that people tried defeating the Dark Lord?" I asked.

"When did I say that?" asked Daniel.

"When you told me that brave warriors tried to defeat the Dark Lord but there are no tales about them because they never came back," I said.

"Oh yes, now I remember. Those were only tales told before our time. As I said before, maybe there really was such a watch before, so maybe people tried defeating the Dark Lord a long time ago. However, presently, we know nothing about it, and they are only tales and myths in our culture," said Daniel.

"Oh," I said, feeling downcast. I should've known that this adventure would not be so easy.

"However, your cause is a good one, and I respect that. I most sincerely wish that you are successful. I will give you my most powerful golden watch for free because of that," said Daniel.

"Thank you so much, because we don't even have Celestian money!" I said.

Daniel gave me his most powerful golden watch, and it gleamed in the afternoon sun as I took it outside. It was a large watch, and had many buttons on the side. I didn't know how to set it to tell time, but I didn't need the watch to do that!

"What do you plan on doing with this?" asked Malistaire.

"I'm going to Dragonspyre to get myself a crystal to bring more energy to the watch, then I will have a scientist from Marleybone hook the watch up with the crystal so the crystal will transfer its energy to the watch, and then I will see what happens next," I said.

In case you have never been to Dragonspyre, Dragonspyre is famous for the Dragon Titan and for its powerful crystals. Marleybone is a world of technology, scientists, and cat thugs.

I went to Dragonspyre, and headed towards the Crystal Grove. Sure enough, I found a large enough crystal that I thought would be able to power the watch enough. I then brought it to Marleybone.

"Back again! Why are you here this time?" asked Sherlock Bones, as he saw me stepping out of the Spiral Chamber.

"I couldn't resist seeing this world again," I said.

"Really?" asked Sherlock.

"No! I need to speak with your best scientist," I said.

"Well that would have to be C.H. Waggs!" said Sherlock, not releasing any sign of gloom from my previous statement. "You can find him by Kensington Park. After you got all those horrible clockwork golems out of Kensington Park, he enjoys hanging around there," said Sherlock.

In case you don't know, Kensington Park is a side quest in Marleybone in which a Clockwork Golem named Stoker takes control and tries to conquer all of Marleybone using other Clockwork Golems. C.H. Waggs created Stoker, but it malfunctioned and caused that whole problem.

I went to Kensington Park, and sure enough I found C.H. Waggs.

"Hello again, Andrew Firerider. Thank you for rescuing me from those Clockwork Golems that took advantage of me!," said C.H. Waggs.

"You're quite welcome. I was told you are the best scientist in Marleybone. Please tell me if you can hook this crystal to this golden watch so that the energy from the crystal will transfer into the golden watch," I said.

"I can, but it may take a while. I will need to make the golden watch be able to accept the energy without exploding, but I will do it as quickly as I can," he said. "Imagine what would happen if all of a sudden a burst of energy was transferred into the watch! You would have some explosion!"

"Thank you so much, but you can take your time. I'd rather that it works than it explodes!" I said.

And so, C.H. Waggs took apart the watch and added something to it in order that it will accept the new energy transfer. I'm no mechanic, so don't even ask me what it was. I probably wouldn't know even if I was a mechanic, because this was Marleybone technology.

As C.H. Waggs was doing all this, I told him my tale. At the end, I had a brilliant shining golden watch with a large red crystal on top of it. It looked almost comic.

"In order to transfer the energy from the crystal into the golden watch, you will need to hook up the watch to a great energy source," said C.H. Waggs.

"Thank you so much! I hope I have the honor to speak with you one day for a longer time while you are relaxing," I said.

"Please, Andrew Firerider, the honor is mine," said C.H. Waggs, as I departed from the Ironworks.

I knew exactly what my energy source would be. The teleportation ring!

I went back to Celestia and towards the Tower of Thrills. There were no more monsters on this tower to attack me, and I quickly went towards the last floor where the teleportation ring is.

"Let's hope this works!" I said, as I put the golden watch into the hole where it went.

There was a great noise, and the whole ground shook. First I saw the crystal lighting up, and I realized it must have been transfering energy to the watch. Then the golden watch started to light up and gave off an incredible luminous light. Then static appeared across the teleportation ring, and eventually the hole was filled with what I can only describe as a bright blue substance.

Then all of a sudden, the crystal stopped glowing, and the golden watch also stopped shining. The portal hole was still there.

"Do you think it's safe to take out the watch?" I asked.

"I am not sure. The worst thing that would happen is the portal hole would close, but I believe that the portal hole was designed to stay open for a few minutes, so give it your best shot!" said Sylvia.

"Ok, here I go. And if I get electrocuted, please tell my family that I love them, and please remember that you will all be doomed now that no one can stop the Dark Lord," I said sarcastically.

"Well that's a very nice encouraging thought!" said Sylvia.

I pulled out the golden watch from the hole, and braced myself for electricity to surge throughout my body and have to live with frizzy mad scientist hair for the rest of my life.

Ok, maybe that's a little too much to think about! But none of that happpened. Like Sylvia said, the portal hole stayed open.

"Ok, the portal is open, now to the Dark Lord's island!" I said, charging at the portal hole as if I was in a movie or story. I went through the portal and was teleportated someplace extremely cold, with four mountains, covered with ice at the top, looming up in the distance.

"Do you think he will be upset once he finds out there are many more obstacles and adventures before he reaches the Dark Lord?" asked Sylvia.

"A little," said Malistaire.

And then Malistaire and Sylvia stepped through the portal also.

That's what really fascinated me. A ghost, which can move through objects, can travel through a teleportation ring! Beats me!

Anyway, there we all were standing by the teleportation ring we just exited from, gaping at the four mountains ahead of us.

"Is that the Dark Lord's fortress?" I asked.

"I didn't tell you this yet, but we still have many more places to go and adventures to face before we reach the Dark Lord," said Malistaire.

"You're kidding, right?" I asked.

"Unfortunately, no," said Malistaire.

And so, the adventure continued…

~

"Oh, it sure is cold here," I said.

"You're a fire wizard. You can heat yourself up," said Sylvia.

“I am, but it takes a little energy. What about you ghosts? Do you feel heat or cold?" I asked.

"We don't feel either of those. We are quite comfortable here," said Malistaire.

"What's the deal with you ghosts being able to move through objects, but also being able to carry those bags?" I asked.

I forgot to mention this before, but when we received the golden watch from Daniel, he also gave us food, blankets, and other supplies for the journey. It was very generous of him, but I don't blame him wanting to be free of the Dark Lord living in his home world.

"Well, ghosts are able to move through walls or other objects if they like, but can also pick up or touch objects if they want to. All they need to do is think about it and it works. It's very cool," Malistaire said.

"Yeah, but I think more people would prefer being alive than being a ghost," Sylvia said.

Soon the mountains ahead were becoming closer and closer. I now saw them much better than before. They were not short, but not tall, and were covered with snow all over. It appeared to me that the first one's top was covered with frozen ice!

"I think we better take a look around this place," said Malistaire. "See if we can find anything valuable to get to the next place."

We went past the four mountains, and it took a while. Each mountain wasn't right next to each other, but we were able to get past them.

Then we saw a teleportation ring, but much different than the previous one. This one had five slots - one for the golden watch, but we couldn't figure out what the other four were for.

"Hmm," said Malistaire, “I think we will need to conduct a little investigating in the mountains."

"I like how you said we. Knowing my luck, it's probably going to be just me.

"Well, I'm sorry; I was just trying to make you feel better until we got there!" Malistaire said.

We went back to the first mountain, and we headed towards the icy top.

"How do you plan on breaking the ice?" asked Sylvia.

"You see! It's always up to me!" I said. "I will heat up the middle of the ice, melt it, and then climb down through that. It will take too much energy to heat and melt the whole thing.

"All right. We will be waiting right here for you," said Malistaire.

"Oh, that's so kind and generous of you," I said sarcastically.

I melted the middle of the ice, and then started climbing down into the mountain. Far below was a huge pile of snow, and I had no clue how long it went on for.

I climbed down the mountain by hanging onto the edges, and trust me, I'm no mountain climber. It was not easy.

All of a sudden the mountain started shaking. The snow started moving. I was about to witness a snow mountain explode. Similar to a volcano, but snow. This was not good.

I was losing my grip on the wall, and I fell down towards the snow. But then I saw a huge hole in the ground - a passageway in the mountain.

Before I fell past it, I gripped onto the hole, and then climbed through. Then the mountain exploded. Tons and tons and tons and tons and pounds of snow exploded through the volcano. I wonder what Malistaire and Sylvia were thinking.

Well I’ll tell you what they were thinking.

"I knew that boy would do it! He has gotten us what we need, by making the mountain explode! I knew we can trust it to that boy," said Sylvia.

"Yes, normally I would think a mountain exploding is bad, but knowing that Andrew Firerider is down there, it must have been because of him for a good purpose," said Malistaire.

The sad part is that they were being serious!

So now I was safe and secure in my hole. Well, not really. As the snow was erupting out of the mountain, it was also coming into my hole.

I started running through the hole to avoid the snow, but the snow was so fast. I knew it would catch up and sweep me away.

But then again, it's only snow. It's not like it was magma.

Then I turned around to see how close it was to me, and instead of snow, I saw magma.

No, I'm just kidding. I still saw snow. I turned back, and saw that the hole ended soon, but it wasn't a dead end. There was a floor underneath where the hole ended.

Then the snow caught up with me. I expected it to be the opposite of a volcano - freezing cold snow that can freeze you instantly. I guess I have a big imagination.

It wasn't anything like that. It was regular snow, but still, a pyromancer doesn't like snow too much. The snow swept me through the hole, and out onto the floor underneath.

And in the center of that room, was a shining, bright blue pedestal. And on top of the pedestal was a glowing, magnificent, luminous, blue crystal.

It gave off such a light that I had to shield my eyes at first. I realized that the four slots in the teleportation rings were four slots to put crystals in. There must be a crystal in each mountain!

I took the crystal off the pedestal, expecting some booby trap to kill me. As I said before, I have an over reactive imagination.

Nothing happened. At the other end of the room was another hole. I climbed up to the hole, and the hole led me out of the mountain. I was on the opposite side of where Malistaire and Sylvia were, but that was all right. I can walk.

The mountain was covered with snow because of the eruption. It reminded me of the exact opposite of a volcano. Instead of lava, there was snow!

I went to Malistaire and Sylvia, showed them the crystal, and explained my hypothesis.

"Wait, so the mountain erupting wasn't because of you?" asked Sylvia.

"Um, no. Why would I make a mountain erupt?" I asked.

"Um…no reason," said Sylvia.

"I don't believe you, but I don't really care," I said. "I need to get the crystals from the other mountains."

"Ha! You said I," Malistaire said.

"Oh grow up and be quiet!" I said.

We headed to the second mountain, and I saw the top frozen again. I melted the middle, climbed down, and was very careful, because I expected the mountain to erupt any second.

But it never did. I thought that the first mountain might have erupted as a trap, but I realized it was just unlucky timing.

I saw the hole in the mountain, climbed through it, went out the other end, took the crystal, and then went out the mountain.

"Well that was certainly much easier than the first one!" I said.

And the third mountain went the same way.

"All right! It looks like we will have the fourth crystal in no time!" Sylvia said.

Oh yeah, I wish!

As we approached the fourth mountain, we saw a large group of trolls and goblins heading towards the top. They looked tougher than any other troll I have fought. I never fought a goblin before, but they looked tough!

"Oh boy! I knew this wasn't going to be easy!" I said.

"The Dark Lord must have sent them to take the crystals away so you can't reach him," Malistaire said.

"So the Dark Lord knows about me? How?" I asked.

"Either special magic or spies," Malistaire said. "Whichever one, you still can't get into the mountain from the top. You will need to find another way in, and fast - before the trolls and goblins reach the crystal," said Malistaire.

"Yeah! Sounds like fun," I said sarcastically.

The adventure continued…

~

I was faced with a difficult dilemma. How would I get inside the mountain without the enemy seeing me?

You're probably laughing at me because the answer is so obvious, but when you're on a quest such as this one and your life and everyone else's is at risk, it's hard to think. Nothing seems so simple.

Well, eventually the answer hit me.

"Wait a second… I came out of the mountains from a hole in the side. Not from the top!" I said.

"Aha! I think I catch your drift," said Malistaire.

"What do you think I am going to do?" I asked Malistaire, wanting to know if he actually knew the answer which seemed so difficult to me.

"You're going to go into the hole and then make the mountain erupt!" Malistaire said.

"Um… no. But what is it with you and eruptive mountains?" I asked.

"You mean that wasn't the answer? Well then please tell me the answer Mr. I-can-solve-any-problem-without-making-a-mountain-erupt-because-I'm-so-awesome-and-smart," said Malistaire.

"Well, thank you for that compliment. I'm going to go into the hole in the mountain (known as a vent in science), crawl through the tunnel and into the chamber where the crystal is, and then retrieve the crystal" I said.

"That's a genius plan!" Malistaire said.

Let's face it, Malistaire is really not smart!

It seemed like a simple enough plan. But as I said before, nothing is so simple on an adventure.

I approached the hole and made sure to stay hidden from the trolls and goblins going into the mountain through the top (known as a crater in science).

I ran through the tunnel because I knew that if I was too late, the trolls and goblins would reach the crystal before me. At the time I went into the hole the last of the group entered the mountain.

Time was running out.

I reached the chamber where the crystal was, and saw the brilliant light that was shining from it. There was no one else in the chamber. The crystal was mine!

Ok… that sounded evil.

I approached the crystal but I heard a large, turbulent noise. The whole ground shook and trembled.

You may recall that in the other mountains I climbed down through the top, found a tunnel, found the chamber with the crystal, and then crawled out through another tunnel.

Well, the trolls and goblins came through the first hole I mentioned.

"Garg aah!" said a huge, green, ugly troll that must have been their leader. This troll was a huge, equipped with a large, brown, spiky club. The rest of the trolls were also fearsome.

I never faced a goblin before this, so this was my first encounter with them. They were black, skinny, ugly looking creatures with lots of spiky armor.

I don't know what garg aah meant, but I don't think it meant, "Hello human. We come in peace."

The ruckus that was made was from the stomping of the group's feet as they went through the tunnel. Now I was facing them.

"Dark Lord wants crystal. Dark Lord wants you. Grokalukabok smash you. Grokalukabok deliver you to Dark Lord with crystal," said the leader, who I assumed was called Grokalukabok.

"Oh I don't think so! You will never receive this crystal without a fight! By the way, you may want to see an English teacher to improve your English," I said.

"Garg laa ook ahh!" said Grokalukabok, which was troll for, “I will destroy you and then boil you up with roast chicken and eat you for supper."

Grokalukabok stepped right up to me and we entered the dueling circle.

It was unlucky timing, because at that second there was another loud noise, but this was different. This was coming from the mountain.

I recognized this noise from another place. But from where?

Then I remembered. This was the noise the first mountain made when it erupted. I was fighting in a mountain that was about to erupt.

Grokalukabok also realized this, because he let out a series of shouts and yells.

I was almost done with the duel, I just needed to put some more traps on Grokalukabok and then a helephant would finish him off

But I had to do it before the mountain erupted.

All the trolls and goblins were gathering around this fight, wondering what would happen.

Then a chunk of rock fell off the wall from the eruption. This mountain was about to explode, and things were going to get ugly.

"Say goodbye!" I said.

"If I die in this mountain from the eruption, so will you!" said Grokalukabok.

"I wasn't talking about death from the eruption!" I said.

"So what were you talking about?" asked Grokalukabok.

You probably know already, but trolls are not smart at all.

"I was talking about this!" I said, as I cast the fire symbol to summon helephant.

"Hahahaha! You are defeated!" I said.

Then I fizzled.

"Hahahaha! Your plan backfired!" said Grokalukabok, and then he cast a Minotaur.

It did a lot of damage, but I was still alive.

But I was running out of time.

The next round I summoned helephant, and Grokalukabok was defeated!

"Garg ak laduka nooooooooo!" said Grokalukabok, which is troll for, "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

I may have defeated Grokalukabok, but the mountain was about to be destroyed.

Now the trolls and goblins were extremely terrified that their leader was defeated, and they ran away in the first hole.

I knew that's a big mistake, since that's where the eruption was most severe.

If you recall, when the first mountain erupted, I escaped into the hole, but the snow in the mountain flowed through the hole and carried me into the chamber with the crystal.

I knew that any second the snow would come flowing out of the hole, but this time I wasn't scared. I knew it was just snow, and wouldn't harm me that much, even though snow is the opposite of my school.

I started running through the tunnel that I entered the current mountain, and the trembling and shaking was so great. The eruption was taking place right there and then.

As I was running through the tunnel, the snow came.

Huge piles of snow piled on top of each other on layers came rushing towards me. I feared I would be buried inside the snow.

The snow carried me along, but the exit wasn't that far away. If the exit was farther, then maybe the snow would have engulfed me.

When the snow and I came out of the tunnel, the snow went in all different directions, so I was able to move freely and not be carried by snow.

I met up with Malistaire and Sylvia again. If Malistaire says one more thing about me exploding a mountain, I will become so frustrated!

"What happened? This time I am certain that you exploded the mountain!" said Malistaire.

Oh boy! Here we go again.

"Garg ak laduka nooooooooo" I said, imitating Grokalukabok.

"What in the Spiral does that mean?" asked Sylvia.

I explained to them everything that happened, and they were impressed.

"This will definitely go down in the story and history books," Sylvia said.

"Only if the adventure is a success," I said.

"It will be," Sylvia stated.

I sure hoped!

We headed towards the other side of the island where we saw the next teleportation ring.

I put in the golden watch, and three crystals, and I was about to put in the fourth one, when out of the snow came two Colossuses.

"Uch I don't want to fight anymore!" I said.

I guess I sounded a little bit like a baby, but after all I've done, I wasn't in the mood to fight!

"Do not fear! We are not here to hurt you," one of them said.

"We saw you come here the first time, but we did not say anything. We thought you would go away," the other one said.

"And why is that?" I asked.

"Because you didn't have the necessary crystals to go through the teleportation ring," the first one said.

"That's a good reason," I said, not knowing what they were going to say next

"Now that you have the necessary crystals, we must warn you," the second one said.

"Warn me of what?" I asked.

"The danger you will face next," the first one said.

"When I came here, I knew I would face danger. This is no surprise to me," I said.

"The next place you will be going is a place known as the Treacherous Forest," the second one said.

"It's exactly what it sounds like. It's a treacherous forest," the first one said.

"The forest is alive. The trees move, and paths in the forest are constantly changing. The forest is infested with all types of creatures, and you must be careful," the second one said.

"Are you ready to take on what faces you next?" asked the first one.

"Not really, but I must do it for the Spiral," I said.

"Then place the fourth crystal into the teleportation ring, and go to the Treacherous Forest," the second one said.

I put the fourth crystal in, and the blue substance filled up the teleportation ring.

"You are now leaving Thaumaturge Island. Your destination is the Treacherous Forest. Hope you make it alive!" the fire one said.

And with that pleasant and cheery statement, I stepped through the teleportation ring and into the forest.

And the adventure continued…

~

As I stepped out of the teleportation ring, I looked around at my surroundings.

Everywhere that I looked I saw only trees. But it wasn't as the Colossuses described. These trees were skinny, with lots of sunlight coming through their branches.

"This place must be a misnomer. It's not treacherous at all!" I remarked.

"Don't be so sure," Sylvia answered back.

"Why is that?"

"Because this is only the beginning of the forest. As the forest progresses, the trees will get thicker, causing less sunlight to escape through their branches and into the forest," Sylvia explained.

"Hmm. That makes sense. I'm sure we will be experiencing many dangers before long," I said.

"That's not all. I've heard rumors that the trees in this forest move and talk," Malistaire stated.

"Move? Talk? That's some pretty deep magic that someone put over this forest," I said.

"It could just be the nature of the forest. Everything in this forest talks - from the trees to the animals, to the ground we are on now. Or at least that's what I've heard," Malistaire told me.

"Well, we will soon put that myth to the test," I said. "Although I'm sure it's true if this place is known as the Treacherous Forest."

We traveled on a little, experiencing no perils.

Yet.

The trees began to get a little bit thicker, but not too much. I tried moving between two trees, but the trees lowered their branches to block my path.

"So the rumor is true!" I exclaimed.

"The great Malistaire never lies!" Malistaire remarked.

"Yes, I'm sure you're the honest Abe of the wizards," I said sarcastically.

"Who is this honest Abe that you speak of?" Malistaire asked.

"Oh forget it. You grew up in Wizard City. I grew up on Earth until I was accepted as a student here," I said. "My concern right now is how to get through the trees."

"Oh well that's simple enough!" Malistaire told me. "Just go through another tree."

I went to the tree next to it, but the trees simply lowered their branches, blocking me from passing between them.

Then an idea sparked in my head, but I did not say it for fear that the trees would hear it and simply block me off again.

I started running, thinking that I would run fast enough and then instantly move between two trees and catch them off guard.

However, everywhere I ran, the trees lowered their branches, like a row of dominoes. There was no place I can go.

I turned around, thinking maybe I can travel by a different route.

But the trees that I came out of had their branches lowered, making me trapped in.

"Oh no! We're trapped!" Sylvia pointed out.

"Well thank you for pointing out the obvious," I sarcastically added. "Now how are we going to get out of here?"

"You must figure out a way, and quickly!" Malistaire exclaimed, due to the new peril that was awaiting us.

The trees started moving in, and coming closer to me. Pretty soon they would crush me.

Then an idea ignited in my mind.

"I've got the perfect solution! I know exactly how to get out of here!" I exclaimed happily.

I stretched out my palms and held them out in front of me.

"Powers of fire, I call upon you in this hour of need. Ignite my palms on fire, so I can set that fire to those leaves," I chanted.

All of a sudden, my palms were on fire! I held up my palms to one tree, and the tree grew scared of the fire that could burn it down.

The tree backed away in fear and raised its branches for me to pass through.

"Genius!" remarked Malistaire.

"Magnificent!" exclaimed Sylvia.

I then turned around and faced all the other trees. They backed away from the fire and held up their branches for me to pass through.

"You may be wondering how I did that. As I'm sure you know, in advanced wizardry class you learn how to make up your own spells," I explained.

"Correct," Malistaire said.

"Well, I simply made up my own spell for that!" I remarked.

"That was an amazing move," Sylvia told me.

As we traveled more in the forest, I kept my hands ablaze, and all the trees backed away in fear and let me pass.

"Haha! This forest isn't so treacherous anymore!" I remarked happily.

I thought that was my only adventure I would face in the forest. But you know my luck better than that.

Eventually, the trees became thicker and thicker, and the air became heavier and heavier, making it harder to breathe.

I needed a place to sit down, rest, and eat. I was exhausted and hungry - not a good combination.

As we traveled on, we saw a nice clearing. A place with no trees - just ground.

"I need to rest and eat for a few minutes. Let's head over to that clearing," I said.

"No problem," Sylvia stated.

We headed towards the clearing, and I sat down for a few minutes and ate. Although it wasn't a full meal, I still felt revived.

When I finished eating, I heard a hissing sound in the distance.

"What was that?" I asked alarmed.

I heard the hissing sound again, and again. Each time it came closer to me.

I realized what it was. It was a snake.

I turned around and found myself face to face with a big, green snake that looked as if it could devour me in one swallow.

"Back off, or I will kill you!" I warned the snake.

"Oh no! Nice wizard like you wouldn't harm Kralutch," the snake named Kralutch hissed at me. "Nice wizard like you have compassion on poor, hungry Kralutch."

"Wait… you talk?" I asked, amazed.

"Of course I talk! Everything in this forest talks!" Kralutch hissed at me.

"That's what I told you," Malistaire stated.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you," I told Kralutch.

"Because Kralutch has valuable information for nice wizard - that is, if nice wizard doesn't hurt Kralutch."

"I won't hurt you. What type of information can you have that I need?"

"I can show you how to get out of this forest," Kralutch said.

This made me extremely happy. I was finally going to escape!

"Do you really trust this snake that he will tell the truth?" Sylvia asked.

"It's the only choice we have," I said. "Kralutch, I won't hurt you. How do we get out of here?"

Kralutch turned his head and pointed east.

"Travel through there, and you will reach the end of the forest."

"Thank you so much," I said. "Now we can finally escape!"

"I can't believe you trust this snake!" Sylvia exclaimed.

"I told you, it's the only choice we have."

Out of all the trees and animals in that forest, the snake was more cunning than any of them. The snake wanted to lead me to my doom, but I did not know of it.

We traveled in the direction the snake told us, and the air got heavier and heavier. I didn't think much of it at first, because I knew it would happen as we got deeper into the forest.

Then the trees started to get thicker and thicker, until we approached a great oak tree.

This oak tree must have had a trunk with a diameter of 50 feet, and its branches were longer and higher than any other tree's branches.

As we approached the oak tree, the air became even heavier.

Then I dropped to the floor, fast asleep.

NOTE: Due to the fact that Andrew Firerider is currently asleep, and his sleep will make a boring tale, I will tell this from a narrator's point of view.

Malistaire and Sylvia rushed over to Andrew's side, distressed at this great loss.

"Andrew! Wake up!" they said, shaking Andrew, but it did not work.

The air that was around this great oak tree was put there by evil magic, and it only affected Andrew. Not ghosts.

"We have to do something! And quickly!" Malistaire exclaimed, pointing to a group of green goblins heading towards them.

The goblins were also unaffected by the strange air around the tree.

"Hide, and we will follow from a distance," Sylvia whispered.

They went off to the side, and saw the goblin's leader step up to Andrew and yell out in the goblin language.

"Lark akdrea daret dafk!"

Translation: Look at this wonderful piece of fresh meat that we have found. Let's take it prisoner, put it to work in our town, and after ten years we will cook it or fry it or mince it or boil it and have it for breakfast or brunch or lunch lupper or supper. What good luck has befallen us that we have found something like this in our path! Rejoice, goblins, for today is a happy day for all of us!

Goblins tend to speak in their own language, although they do know English.

Another goblin stepped forward and put metal chains around Andrew's hands.

Then another goblin stepped forward, and they both dragged Andrew Firerider across the ground as they traveled along with their fellow goblins.

The goblins gave a loud yell of joy, and then continued moving on. Malistaire and Sylvia followed at a distance.

As they moved farther and farther away, Andrew Firerider began to wake up.

NOTE: I will now write from Andrew's perspective.

"Urrrrrrrrrr," I groaned. I was so tired. "Where am I?"

I looked around my surroundings, and quickly realized I fell asleep and I am now a prisoner.

But where were Malistaire and Sylvia?

I could not find them, no matter how hard I looked.

That's because they were following from a distance, but were remaining unseen.

The goblins saw that I woke up, and they decided to sing a song in English to terrify me.

It did its job. Here is a portion of that song, sung in the goblin's horrible, screeching voice:

"Smash! Clash! Make a gash!
Grab! Grip! Pinch and nab!
And down to Goblin town you go
Ha ha, my lad!

Snap! Clap! Crack a back!
Gongs and Tongs! Drills and thongs!
And down to Goblin town you go
Ha ha, my lad!

Swish! Smack! Whip and crack!
Yammer and bleat! Batter and beat!
Work, work! Don't dare to lurk!
While Goblins laugh, you will work,
Round and round, far underground,
Down to Goblin town you go,
Ha ha, my lad!"

And so, the goblins sung and traveled on, but then stopped. A shrill sound was in the air, and from behind the trees came another group of goblins.

But these goblins were different. These were black, with armor on them, and spikes protruding from the armor.

I remembered them from Thaumaturge Island - these were the goblins of the Dark Lord.

Their leader stepped forward and spoke to the leader of the group that held me prisoner.

"Krae!" said the leader of the black goblins.

Translation: That prisoner is ours, as we are sent by the Dark Lord, and we must fulfill his command. Send him over to us, and we won't bother you any more. On the contrary - we will reward you with great riches and prizes.

"Lae!" said the leader of the green goblins that held me prisoner.

Translation: This prisoner is ours, as we have found him first. But please travel along with us for a little while, and when we stop for a break, we will discuss this matter.

And so, the two bands of goblins joined together and traveled through the forest even more.

Eventually, the goblins stopped to rest and discuss what to do with me. They put me on the side, but I was pretty much weak less. I couldn't escape, because my hands were tied together, so that wouldn't help me much, and I was too weak to melt the metal.

Then Malistaire and Sylvia came closer to me, and I was so relieved to see them!

But we were in mourning, because we knew that we were finished, and we did not speak.

The green goblins said I was their prisoner, but the black goblins wanted to take me as their prisoner.

You can imagine what happens when a beastly, monstrous race such as these goblins fight. War breaks out between them.

All the goblins pulled out their swords and attacked the other group. The fighting was so immense, and it came closer to me.

Then, one goblin fell dead right next to me. His sword was on top of him, and I seized this opportunity to escape.

I dragged myself across the ground and onto the dead goblin's body. All the other goblins were too busy fighting to notice me.

I rubbed the handcuffs across the sword of the dead goblin, and the handcuffs started to break.

I rubbed and rubbed, and eventually, the handcuffs came off. I was free!

"Quickly! Let's go now!" I whispered to Malistaire and Sylvia, and we ran away from the battle scene.

Although I was not there to see the conclusion of the battle, I knew that after a few minutes they would realize I was gone, and then regret the fighting. But I would be too far away by then.

"Let's hope that's all the adventure we will face in this forest!" I cheerfully said.

After we traveled through the forest, I decided to stop by a tree and rest a few minutes.

My rest was undisturbed…that is, only for a few minutes.

A howling sound was heard a few yards away.

And then another howling sound in the opposite direction.

Soon my surroundings were filled with many howling sounds.

"Wolves! This must be their meeting spot! Quickly, hide!" Malistaire said.

Malistaire and Sylvia flew up to the treetops (they're ghosts, and they can fly through the air, which is why they tend to hover above ground), but I was left alone on the ground.

I lit my hands on fire again, and showed it to the tree. He got the idea not to mess with me.

I extinguished the fire from my hands, and then started climbing up the tree.

I was pretty high up, and I hid myself between the leaves and the branches, just before the wolves came around my tree.

These wolves spoke in English, so I don't need to translate.

One wolf, the leader, came towards my tree and looked up at where I was.

"I can't see you, but I can smell you. I know you're in that tree. It's better to come down than us having to surround that tree until you come down. We won't give up," howled the leader.

I didn't say anything, because I didn't want them to hear me, but what could they possibly do? I was up in a tree, and they were down on the ground.

Still, I realized that I didn't want to spend the next few hours up in a tree terrified. I needed to conjure up an idea, and fast.

I then realized something. Most of the time, I had been using fire to escape from my adventures. What if I did that this time?

I summoned the fire to my hands, but not before whispering to the tree that I wasn't going to burn it down. The last thing I needed was for a wild tree that can move while I'm in it.

"Hey, wolves! Get some of this!" I shouted at them, throwing down fireballs onto them.

"Awoooooooooo! Get the fire off! Get it off!" shrieked the leader, who was hit smack on the back by my fireball.

I then continued to throw more and more at the other wolves, until they were all howling in pain.

To extinguish the flames, they tried rolling on their backs, but that was all right with me. It kept them distracted, and even if they noticed me descending from the tree, they would still be terrified of me.

And so, I climbed down from the tree, and traveled more through the forest.

That was an "easy peril" compared to the other dangers I faced.

"Let's continue on our journey through this treacherous forest," I said, finally realizing how it got its name.

And so we traveled on and on, until finally I saw a big ring coming out of the ground.

"The teleportation ring!" I exclaimed, so happy that I was finally going to get out of here.

I should have known better that I was still going to have to face another adventure.

In the teleportation ring was a single hole; it was for the golden watch.

Behind the teleportation ring was a huge tree, looking similar to a Dryad, but much more grim and evil looking.

I rushed towards the teleportation ring to put the golden watch inside the hole, but the tree immediately came to life.

"Where do you think you're going?" it said in a singsong voice.

"I think I'm going out of here. Actually, I KNOW I'm going out of here," I answered. "Toodaloo!"

The tree didn't like that. Not one bit.

The tree's branches came swooping down at me with such great speed and threw me a few feet away.

I was badly injured.

Then the tree started to move and approached me.

It raised its branches, and prepared to cast them down on me.

It lowered its branches, and they were about to hit me, but I rolled over to the side.

I ran towards the teleportation ring, and then one of the branches hit my back and sent me falling onto the ground.

The pain was immense.

I continued to run towards the teleportation ring, and I put the golden watch in.

The teleportation ring hummed to life, and the blue substance was forming.

The tree gave one final attack at me.

It reached down and grabbed me in its hand.

That's right - this tree had a hand.

It started to squeeze me, and it was too much. I was in pain, and I knew I wasn't going to make it out alive.

"Hahahaha! You will never escape from here!" the tree laughed at me.

"Oh…Yes…I…Think…I…Will…" I said in between groans.

Then I summoned the remaining energy I had, and sparked a fire on the hand that was holding me.

The tree yelled in pain, and released me from its grasp, and I fell hard to the floor.

"Uch this can't be happening," I said, as my vision started to fade.

I knew what was happening - I was so badly injured, that I was losing consciousness.

The next step would be death.

Weakly, I stepped up to the teleportation ring, with the shouts of the screaming tree. I stepped through the teleportation ring, and found myself in a new terrain.

Malistaire and Sylvia were next to me, and everything was blurry because of my eyesight.

I saw some creatures approaching me, but I could not see what they were. They could have been friendly or hostile, but at that second, I faded into unconsciousness.

~

"Ohhhhhhh" I groaned, as I woke up in a state of exhaustion.

I was exhausted, and I didn't know where I was. I looked around at the room I was in. It appeared to be a large tent, with much furniture.

Perhaps you can describe it as a "modern tent."

Still, I didn't know if I was safe or in enemy boundaries.

I was on a comfortable bed, with leaves that were sewed amazingly together as a blanket. I realized that I must be in friendly territory, or I was dreaming.

Or it was reverse psychology.

I groaned a second time from the thoughts of reverse psychology and from my exhaustion. My fight with the tree took a lot out of me.

Someone must have heard my groan, because the door of the tent opened up, and in walked a magestic satyr, flute and all.

In case you don't know, a satyr is a hybrid between a goat and a man+. It is also a life spell.

"Hello," the satyr announced. "Welcome to Satyr Island - a place of rebirth, healing, and friendship. We found you come out of the teleportation ring, just as you collapsed and drifted into unconsciousness."

"Well I'm happy that I didn't end up in enemy hands," I replied with relief.

"You have slept all day and night," the satyr continued speaking. "During that time my friends and I have healed you. Do you not feel better?"

"I'm still tired, but my back is healed," I answered. "I have suffered through much, including a live tree that attacked me and threw me onto the ground, causing great pain in my back."

"But you are better now. Your fatigue should wear away soon. All of us fellow satyrs are waiting to hear your tale, and where you came from. Of course, those two ghosts told us a lot, but we are waiting for your account."

"I'm sure that whatever those two ghosts have said is the truth. But I will gladly tell you my tale, and then I must be off," I declared.

The satyr led me out of the tent, and into the village, where it was broad daylight. The sun was shining cheefully in the sky, as if the Spiral wasn't in danger of the Dark Lord.

Many satyrs were travelling upon the roads, and tents were set up alongside the roads.

We reached a place in the town were many chairs were set up, along with a huge statue of a satyr. I realized this was the town center.

There were many satyrs sitting down on the chairs. They were chatting with each other, eating, and relaxing.

Malistaire and Sylvia were there also. But what amazed me was someone else sitting down in the town center.

A wizard, dressed in diviner robes.

These satyrs saw me approaching, and welcomed me in.

"Please, tell us your tale," one of the satyrs begged.

"All right, I will. But first, I would like to know who that storm wizard is, and how you got here," I answered, tilting my head in the direction of the diviner.

"Oh me? Well I am on the same adventure as you, but how I got here is a different story than yours, I assume. My name is Shanna the great and awesome diviner," the diviner named Shanna announced proudly.

"That's an interesting title. Please proceed with your story," I said.

"One ordinary day, I woke up in the morning and went down to have breakfast and a cup of coffee. All of a sudden, I heard a chair being pulled back, and I lifted up my eyes to find two Colossuses sitting down opposite me."

"I know those two colossuses! I met them on Thaumaturge Island," I exclaimed with delight.

"I was shocked when I saw these two colossuses at my table. What in the Spiral were they doing here? I was so taken aback with shock that I spilled my coffee on the table!"

"Oh no!" I shrieked. "I can imagine the result of coffee being spilled near two colossuses, who belong to the school of ice."

"The two colossuses shouted in fear, stood up, and ran to the edge of the room. I was also yelling at the fact that there were two colossuses in my room!

Basically, we were both yelling.

'Who are you?' I yelled.

'Mystical guardians, sent to inform you about an adventure you will soon be going on. We mean you no harm!' the colossuses yelled back.

'I don't mean you any harm either. What is this adventure you speak about?' I said more calmly.

'An adventure of strength, courage, and will. There is an evil person, known as the Dark Lord, who has set up his fortress in Celestia. There is a man named Andrew Firerider who is currently on this quest, but he can't do it alone.'

'Count me in! I've always been waiting for an adventure. It is time that Shanna the great and awesome diviner is known to the world!'

'And so, the two colossuses warned me of the danger I would be facing, and I agreed to go on the quest, and then all of a sudden I was teleported to this place. I realize now it must have been because you too were also here, since I found out that you came out of the teleportation ring, and the satyrs were healing you.'

'Well that's my story. Now please tell me yours,'" Shanna requested of me.

"Ok. I will. And I am most happy to find out that I have a new companion on this journey," I began, and then I told my adventure.

When I was finished, the satyrs and Shanna gave me a respected look, knowing all that I went through.

"Well, we must be off. Time is of the essence, as I like to say," I concluded.

"Ok, and thanks for the visit. Let us show you the way to the teleportation ring," one of the satyrs announced.

"We will greatly miss you and your tale. Make sure to come back when you are done to tell us all about it!" another one proclaimed.

That's very nice, but I need to make sure to make it through this adventure before I can come back!

And so, the satyrs led the way to a great tree, about the size of Bartleby, but in the female form.

I remembered Bartleby telling me of his sister, the Great Raven.

"Are you the Great Raven?" I asked this great tree.

"Yes I am. I assume you know my brother, Bartleby," the Great Raven answered

"Yes I do. He is a great tree. You should be proud to be his sister," I told the Great Raven.

At that the Great Raven smiled, probably recalling some happy memories.

"I am. Inside of me, you will find the teleportation ring. Put the golden watch in it, and you will be teleported to a great desert. I don't know much about it, but I do have one clue that I heard to find the next teleportation ring: X marks the spot."

"Ok! Thank you so much! I will send Bartleby my regards," I announced.

I was very optimistic to think I would make it through the adventure.

Malistaire, Sylvia, Shanna, and I went inside the Great Raven, found the teleportation ring, put the golden watch into the teleportation ring, and then teleported.

The terrain was just as the Great Raven described: a harsh, empty, barren desert.

It was awfully hot in this desert, but nonetheless we traveled on, drinking our canteens when we were thirsty, and resting when we were tired.

We traveled on a little bit more, until eventually we saw the sand moving. But it wasn't from the wind - this was moving on its own, forming many shapes.

Then I saw what it formed. Eight sand colossuses stood in front of me, blocking my path.

A sand colossus is similar to a regular colossus, but is made out of sand.

"I think we will have to fight," I told Shanna as I entered a battle against four of them.

I was expecting Shanna to attack the other four, but instead I heard a loud thunder sound.

I turned my head around to see four sand colossuses dead in their tracks - they were struck by lightning from Shanna!

I finished my battle, and then said to Shanna in awe, "You can do that?"

"Yes," Shanna replied. "They don't call me Shanna the great and awesome diviner for no reason!"

"Um, who exactly calls you that?" I inquired.

"Me, myself, and I."

"Riiiiiiiiiight."

Anyway, I was still amazed by the lightning. What a powerful wizard! Makes for a good companion.

I'm not going to bore you with the boring details of our travels in this desert. The main thing is that after a while we reached a place in the ground with a big X on it.

"Well that was simple enough! I guess the teleportation ring is buried here under all this sand!" I declared happily.

We dug under the sand a little, only to find a small box. We opened it, and the result was catastrophic.

Out of the box came a spinning whirlpool, with shapes that seemed to be Undead in it. Evil laughter was coming from them, and the landscape was changing also.

I now found myself in a dark graveyard, surrounded by Undead who were laughing evilly and creeping me out.

"Oh come on!" I yelled.

We traveled through the cemetery, with the Undead all around us, fearing for our lives. Their laughter now shrieked to a hyena's laugh.

We approached what seemed to be a large, black tower in the middle of the cemetery, with a fearsome looking ghoul in front of its doorway.

"You want to approach the tower, eh? Well I won't let you!" the ghoul said.

I didn't know what was in the tower, and I didn't say anything. If the ghoul wants to fight, then let it. Shanna and I will surely defeat it!

"My name is Dung. FEAR ME!!!" shrieked Dung.

"Why? Because you smell?" I sneered.

At that, Dung became very angry, and formed the battle circle.

And so, Shanna and I fought Dung, and defeated him. I was quite impressed by Shanna's storm strength.

When Dung was defeated, all the Undead gave a loud cry, and yelled in the air greatly. My ears hurt from the shrieking.

Then the Undead started to surround Shanna, Malistaire, Sylvia, and I, and put chains around our hands. They must have been special chains, because they were able to go onto Malistaire and Sylvia's ghost hands.

The Undead carried us away to a black building nearby, where there were many rooms. In those rooms were cells.

They put Shanna in one cell, and I memorized where that was. They put Malistaire and Sylvia in another cell, and I again memorized where that was.

Now it was just me and a few Undead. I remembered what Shanna did to those Sand Colossuses. I planned on doing something similar.

Here was the problem - I never did something like that before.

This was a spur of the moment type of spell. I never practiced this spell; I didn't even know if it existed!

You see, you can make up spells, but you have to be a powerful wizard to do that.

I took Shanna's idea, but made it a little different, as you will see.

I focused all my energy into this spell, and then my version of the spell I created worked! A flame erupted from inside each of the Undead, and they gave a large cry as the fire spread throughout their spectral bodies.

The Undead collapsed on the floor dead.

"There goes the Un from Undead. Now you're just Dead," I remarked.

I rushed to Malistaire and Sylvia's cell, which was the closest, to free them.

What I found there were two Undead chanting an incantation from a spell book, while Malistaire and Sylvia were tied to the wall with chains.

It didn't look as if the Undead were saying a spell to help Malistaire and Sylvia.

Malistaire and Sylvia were happy to see me, by the look on their face. They knew I would rescue them.

The Undead saw a change on the faces of Malistaire and Sylvia, and turned ar ound and saw me.

"How are ya?" I comically asked the Undead.

I caused the fire to erupt from within the Undead, and they gave a large shout before they died.

This spell made me exhausted, and I was probably too weak to do it again in Shanna's cell, but I went there anyway. I had to do the best I could.

On the way, I asked Malistaire and Sylvia what the two Undead were doing to them.

"They were trying to turn us into Undead like them. And trust me, we didn't want that to happen. Luckily you came to save us just in time."

"That's me. Everyone's savior," I sighed.

Maybe I should've been a little bit nicer. I mean, how were two ghosts supposed to free themselves. It's just that I was exhausted.

We rushed to Shanna's room, and found her locked up, but there were no Undead in the room. They probably went off to do some errand.

Shanna was locked up behind metal bars that kept her prisoner, and acted as a cell.

I was thinking of putting my hands on fire and melting the metal bars that kept her prisoner, but I was too exhausted. I would never have been able to pull of a spell like that.

Luckily for me, these Undead weren't too smart, and left the key to Shanna's cell on a table by the cell. They probably left it there thinking no one would break in.

They apparently didn't know me.

"Over there! The key!" Shanna pointed out to me.

I grabbed the key, and unlocked Shanna's cell. We rushed out towards the hall, to find two Undead patrolling the corridor.

You know me already. Nothing is simple on an adventure.

Especially if I'm on it.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!" yelled one of the Undead.

"Alert! Alert! We have a prisoner escape in process! Alert! Alert!" shouted the Undead.

But it was too late for them! Lo and behold, Shanna caused the lighting that she summoned earlier to attack them, and in an instant they were gone!

All that remained of them were tiny ashes. That's some spell that Shanna knows!

"Quickly! The rest of the Undead here must have heard the alarm!" warned Sylvia.

We rushed out of the building into the graveyard. We ran down the path in the graveyard and into the tower.

In the tower, we found a long stairway leading up.

"Wait here," warned Malistaire. "Let Sylvia and I investigate the top floor, so you know what you are getting yourself into."

"All right," I agreed.

Malistaire and Sylvia went up the stairs, and hid behind the railing before the last floor.

"There is a teleportation ring here. But it is guarded by so many Undead, that I can't count them," said a voice sounding like Malistaire in my head.

Head text is a thing known to even beginning wizards. It is a way to communicate with people, whether they are an inch away, or a galaxy away!

But I didn't know that ghosts could do that!

"We will distract the Undead by chasing them around. These Undead are ghosts, so they can fly. We will make them fly away from the building, and then you can enter the teleportation ring," said Sylvia in my head.

"Sounds like a plan to me!" I responded.

I told the plan to Shanna, and she agreed to follow the plan.

Malistaire and Sylvia made their appearance to the Undead, and I heard a large yell from the Undead. These Undead were amazed that someone other than themselves were at the top floor, and didn't know what to do.

"Come up the stairs, and go into the teleportation ring. Quickly! Let's not wait for the grass to grow," said Malistaire in my head this time.

I wanted to tell Malistaire to relax, and I was coming; he just had to give me a chance. No reason to put in that part about the grass growing.

Shanna and I ran up the stairs, to find Undead flying frantically around outside, being chased by Malistaire and Sylvia.

It was a ghost chase! A pretty comic sight if you ask me.

I put the golden watch inside the teleportation ring, and the blue substance filled up the teleportation ring.

Malistaire and Sylvia rushed at me to enter the teleportation ring, so I ran through, followed by Shanna.

My new surroundings consisted of the ocean shore and the ocean nearby, with ferocious sharks in the water.

Another adventure I would soon experience.

Right before the teleportation ring closed, Malistaire and Sylvia came through.

But they weren't alone. A few Undead managed to go through with them.

And the adventure still continued…

~

"Rah! Rah!" yelled the Undead with the delight of escaping through the teleportation ring to defeat me.

At least they thought they would defeat me. They didn't know they were messing with Andrew Firerider and Shanna the great and awesome diviner!

"Shanna, let's give them a fight the old-fashioned way," I declared.

"With pleasure," Shanna laughed.

Now the Undead didn't look too happy! We entered the battle circle, and defeated them easily.

"From past experiences, this won't be the only adventure we will face here," I sighed.

"Speaking of that, where are we?" Shanna inquired curiously.

That was a good question. Where exactly were we?

I took a look around at our surroundings, and Shanna, Malistaire, and Sylvia did the same.

"It appears that we are on some type of beach," Malistaire pointed out.

"Yes indeed. And there is the ocean, with a great ship anchored to shore," I announced.

It was all true. We were on the shore of a beach, with a great ocean in front of us. There was a huge ship, with white sails, and a great hulk, at the shore.

There was no where else to go but onto the ship and to sail through the ocean.

"Well, onto the ship we go. Does anyone know anything about sailing?" Shanna asked.

"I do. I took a course in ships and sailing when I was younger. I still remember it though," Malistaire told us.

"All right. Let's go onto the ship, explore it, and then you can teach us how to sail it," I told Malistaire.

"Sounds like a plan," agreed Sylvia.

We went aboard the ship to the place where the "steering wheel" was.

"Yes, I can most definitely teach you how to use this. It is not that complicated," Malistaire said, and showed us how to use it.

When he was done, I said, "Let's explore the rest of the ship, and see if there is anything valuable."

We found a flight of stairs in the ship, and descended it. There was a long passageway, with many rooms.

The rooms ranged from bedrooms to bathrooms to living rooms to dining rooms.

"Well this is too good to be true! It is unfortunate that the teleportation ring isn't here also," I wished.

At that Shanna laughed. "It wouldn't be an adventure if the teleportation ring was here!"

Malistaire, Sylvia, and I looked at her with an annoyed look - she had no clue what we had gone through, and if she did, she would take back that last statement.

"Well, seeing as there is no teleportation ring here, I assume we must sail the ocean in search of it. Malistaire, steer the wheel," I commanded.

"Aye aye captain," Malistaire said, like a baby.

"Aye aye captain? Seriously? That's what you say?" I sneered.

Malistaire went to the above deck, and the ship started to move. We were on our voyage!

It was still daytime, so we came up with shifts to steer the ship. I was taking the next shift, but I decided to rest first.

Everyone did the same. I mean, face it, we were exhausted. This adventure was taking a lot out of us.

The question was, how much will it take out of us, and will we make it to the end?

All of a sudden Malistaire came running down yelling at the top of his lungs.

"Aaaaaaaaaah! Aaaaaaaaaaaaah! Aaaaaaaaaaaah!" he shrieked.

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat? Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat? Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?" I replied.

"Sharks! Here! Now!"

"Who? Where? When?" I asked, not understanding what he said.

"There are sharks that are approaching the ship at high speed. If we don't do something now, they will destroy the ship, and doom shall fall upon us!"

"Oh goody, the 'doom' word. Shanna!" I hollered. "Are you ready for your next adventure?"

"Of course!" Shanna replied. "I couldn't be more excited.

"That feeling will wear away eventually," I told Shanna.

We all rushed towards the top deck, to find a group of sharks, about 30 feet away, rushing towards the ship with hungry faces.

I don't know about you, but the thought of a shark eating me is not a pleasant thought.

"Well what do ya know? The sharks are having a party and didn't invite me!" I sarcastically stated. "I feel so offended."

"Quickly! We must conjure up some magic. I will heat up the waters to burn the sharks, but they are so spread out, I don't know how effective it will be," I said.

"Do not fear. I will combine my power of electricity and storm with your power of fire," Shanna declared.

I didn't know how this would turn out, but I would soon see!

I started heating up the waters, and I saw it boiling. But it was taking too much energy out of me.

Shanna decided to act, and I saw small bits of electricity crackling inside the water. These small pieces became larger and larger and larger, and eventually spread farther out.

While this process was continuing, Shanna was sending thunderbolts from the heaven and hitting the sharks.

Trust me, that taught the sharks a lesson in humiliation.

With the extreme heat from the water, and the electricity and thunder attacking them, the sharks gave a loud wailing noise, and many were killed. The ocean was filled with red, and the sharks then gave up. They moved someplace else in the ocean, knowing not to mess with us.

I was happy with our victory, but was it right to kill the sharks in such a gruesome and bloody way? Well, there was really no time, and that was all we could do. But it is not up for me to decide judgement.

"That will teach them not to mess with Shanna the great and awesome diviner!" Shanna proclaimed out loud.

"And Andrew Firerider," I added. "Don't forget me."

"By the way, where did you ever learn such spells?" I inquired of Shanna.

"Super advanced diviner class for grandmaster diviners. I learnt my most powerful spells there, even if they didn't come in card form."

"Ah," I replied.

Sylvia, seeing our exhausted state from the spells, decided to take the next shift so that I could rest.

I was quite grateful of Sylvia, and thanked her many times. I then headed off to my quarters, and took a nice, long rest, in which I revived my strength.

If only I didn't have to wake up to another fearful adventure.

After everything I had been fighting, and all the adventures I was in, I never knew which one might be my last. I didn't want ANY of them to be my last.

With that "reassuring" thought, I continued to lie down on my bed, and it was getting darker and darker. Night was coming rapidly. The stars started to emerge, and I knew that soon something in the dark would lurch out and attack us.

Probably my imagination.

My door opened up, and in walked Shanna.

"It's your shift. Come on," she told me.

I sighed, not wanting to do anything. But I got up, and took my shift.

Surprisingly, it was pretty boring. Nothing happened. No adventure at all.

After my shift was over, I went to Malistaire's room, and told him that it was his turn for the shift. I then walked back to my room, and fell asleep in a deep sleep.

Darkness was what I saw in my dream. I was standing in the middle of darkness. And in the darkness I saw a bright light emerging, and gradually growing bigger. A light was shining through the darkness. Out of the light came two colossuses. I recognized them from Thaumaturge Island, and the ones that spoke to Shanna to bring her on this adventure.

"Who summoned you to help us? We are all very grateful, but how did you get here?" I asked them, a question I've wanted the answer for a long time.

"Perhaps you will learn that in another time. The players in this adventure are not just your crew and the Dark Lord. There is a third person. He summoned us."

A third person. I pondered over that and who it could be. But really I had no clue.

"We will guide you through your journey, even if you don't see us. We will be there when you need us, even if you don't know it," one of the Colossuses said.

"But this adventure is your destiny, and not ours. We will only help you in times of desperate peril. The adventure is for you to experience. It is your destiny, whether you like it or not, or whether you are defeated or not," the other Colossus stated.

"I thank you helping us in our times of darkness. If only you could be with us all the time," I told them.

"We will visit you in dreams like this to give you support. And sometimes, just sometimes, we might even make our appearance known to you."

The other Colossus continued this statement. "However, if you manage to reach the Dark Lord before night comes, then we won't be able to visit you again."

"But just remember, and make sure to remember, for this will keep you sustained. We will always be there for you, and we will always help you."

"Thank you for those words of encouragement," I replied.

"Oh, and be very careful when you go to sleep. The Dark Lord can enter your dreams and give you nightmares to the worst extent, just like we are entering your dreams right now."

"So I shouldn't go to sleep? That's impossible!" I exclaimed.

"We never said not to. We just said to try and conquer your dreams. And remember, we will always be there for you. Even though you may never know it."

And with that last statement, they faded away from my dream.

"No! Wait! Come back!" I yelled. "There's so much more I want to ask you about."

Only silence. What would I ever do?

As the two Colossuses faded away, the light began to shrunk, until I was enveloped in darkness.

But lo and behold! A whirlpool emerged out of nowhere, and started spinning and spinning. It spun into a wizard, wrapped around in a dark cloak, with a dark staff. It seemed that darkness radiated from him.

He chuckled at me, and raised his staff. The top of the staff started glowing in an orb-like shape.

"This will be your fate if you dare approach the Dark Lord," he said.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" I screamed, as the Dark Lord slammed the bottom of his staff onto the ground, and from the orb protruded a long stick of flashing, blinding light. It resembled a lightning bat when it attacks with the ray of electricity.

The shaft of light rained down upon me, and I fell to the floor, defeated by this mystical energy.

The Dark Lord chuckled a few more times, kicked me, spat on me, and then left.

I was then aware of someone shaking me, and I woke up from my dream, to find Sylvia shaking me, and telling me to wake up.

I groaned. "It's my shift already?" I complained.

"No, we have a worse situation," Sylvia frantically explained. "We are approaching a fast moving whirlpool, and it looks as if it will swallow us."

I jumped out of bed, knowing that I was needed on the deck. "Well why didn't you just say so?" I asked.

We rushed to the top of the deck, where an amazing sight took place before my eyes.

"Holy ninja pig!" I gasped.

It was raining, and a great storm was above the sea. There were huge waves, as tall as towers. And in the center of it all, a giant whirlpool was spinning and spinning.

And our ship was entering the whirlpool.

I remembered my dream, and how the whirlpool spun itself into the Dark Lord. This better not happen here.

"Get ready for a bumpy ride," I warned. "Hold onto whatever you can."

We ran towards the railings and the mast of the ship, trying to grab hold of whatever we could so we didn't go flying when we entered the whirlpool.

"Is there nothing we can do?" screamed Shanna.

To that I replied, "I am afraid not. The end is near."

We approached the whirlpool even more.

And some more.

And finally, the whirlpool swallowed the ship.

"WHOA WHOA WHOA WHOA!!!!!" we all screamed.

The ship was spinning around in the whirlpool, and reached the bottom.

Bottom? Do whirlpools have bottoms?

We were amazed to find ourselves on dry land, surrounded by the spinning whirlpool.

And then, inside the waters of the whirlpool, we saw a group of huge tritons, with their scepters and all.

And they didn't look too pleased.

"WHO DARES ENTER THE DOMAIN OF THE ALKRE TRITONS?" one triton, who must have been their leader, boomed.

We immediately cowered under their existence.

"Please, O mighty triton, ruler of the ocean, allow us to pass. We mean no harm, nor did we know that this was your domain," I politely said.

"FOOL! NO ONE SAILS THESE WATERS AND DOES NOT KNOW ABOUT THE ALKRE TRITONS! WE WILL SMASH YOU AND CLOBBER YOU TO BITS," the leader shouted.

A smaller triton, younger of age, approached the leader, and said, "Perhaps these wizards are telling the truth. Perhaps they mean no harm, and perhaps we can let them pass."

"HOW DARE YOU UNDERESTIMATE THESE WIZARDS! WIZARDS MEAN NOTHING BUT HARM!"

"Please, O mighty triton, leader of the Alkre Tritons, what can we do to pass?" I inquired.

"HAHAHAHA! FOOL! THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO EXCEPT PRAY THAT THE MIGHTY ZEUS, THE STORM LORD, COMES DOWN FROM THE HEAVENS AND ALLOWS YOU TO PASS, WHICH WOULDN'T HAPPEN IN A MILLION YEARS!"

An idea formed in my head, and I sneaked away towards Shanna to tell her about it.

"WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING, PUNY WIZARD?" the triton yelled.

"Listen, Shanna," I whispered. "He said we need Zeus, the Storm Lord, to let us pass. Well, why don't you summon the spell Storm Lord and command it to tell the triton to let us pass?"

"Good idea," Shanna whispered back, and she went off to the side, out of view from the tritons, so she could summon Storm Lord, and make it seem as if he really came himself.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, TINY WIZARD?" the triton boomed, as he raised his scepter, ready to strike us. The scepter started glowing, and a blinding light was on the top of the scepter. Soon the light would strike down upon us, as in my dream.

"NO! Stop!" the smaller triton commanded, reaching for the scepter to prevent the leader from striking us. "Maybe they really didn't know that we live here. Maybe they really do come in peace. Why can't we just let them pass?!"

At that the leader grew outraged. "YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THESE WIZARDS! WIZARDS ONLY COME TO HARM US AND HUNT US DOWN!"

And then, out of the heavens, on a great cloud, came Zeus, the Storm Lord, summoned by Shanna.

"The wizards mean you no harm," said Zeus in a great booming voice. "Let them pass, my faithful minions!"

The tritons, seeing their lord, bowed at his sight.

"Your command is fulfilled," the leader said. "We are sorry for not trusting you," the leader said, pointing at us. "And you too," the leader announced, pointing at the smaller triton.

The tritons were filled with great awe that the mighty Zeus, the Storm Lord, would support us. The tritons gave respect to us, and also feared us a little.

And so, the tritons lifted up the ship, and placed it on the waters above. The storm stopped, the waves subdued, and the whirlpool vanished.

And so, we got through another adventure in this sea which I named the Celestial Sea.

And so, we went through the rest of the night, taking shifts. No adventure occurred during nighttime, and I didn't even fall back asleep. It was early morning when our adventure with the tritons occurred, so I was able to remain awake. I was too scared to fall asleep and have the Dark Lord enter my dreams.

I needed to learn how to conquer my dreams.

I remembered everything that happened in my dream. If the Dark Lord was able to defeat me so easily in my dream, would it be the same in real life?

These were questions that I had no answer to, but perhaps I didn't want to know the answer.

Morning came, and I was sitting down in my room, when all of a sudden the door barged open and in walked Shanna.

"Quickly! There is a HUGE kraken outside, on a huge rock, about to attack us. We are approaching it soon."

"Another adventure? Seriously? You can't give me a break!" I sarcastically stated.

I rushed up to the deck, and found a huge kraken in front of us, with its spear raised, ready to strike down on us.

"Oh boy!" I yelled.

The kraken gave a loud yell, reached down to the deck, and grabbed both Shanna and I.

Malistaire and Sylvia were left on the deck gaping in awe, not doing anything to save us.

I lit my hand on fire, to burn the kraken, but it had barely any impact on this huge kraken.

"SHANNA! QUICKLY! THINK OF SOMETHING! DO SOMETHING!" I shouted.

"I don't know what to do!" Shanna shouted back.

The kraken laughed, lifted his arms, opened his mouth, and was about to eat us, when he gave a loud cry.

He yelled a second time.

"Shanna, what did you do?"

The kraken shouted even louder again.

"Nothing! I don't know what's going on!" Shanna answered.

The kraken yelled again, and then collapsed into the ocean, releasing us from its grasp.

We fell into the ocean with it, but the only difference was we were alive, and the kraken wasn't.

We swam to the surface, and then drew in breath. All of a sudden, something grabbed onto our arms, and we turned around to see skeletal pirates in the water.

"Aah!" we yelled, at this unexpected sight. We found chains around our wrists, but that wasn't the worst of it.

A huge, black ship, with black sails, was coming into the distance. It was a pirate ship, equipped with cannons and all. It must have been the cannons that killed the kraken.

And that wasn't the worst of it either. On the pirate ship were many pirates cheering at us being taken prisoner.

And that wasn't the worst of it either! We were being carried to the pirate ship.

That's pretty much the worst of it.

The pirates forced us roughly onto the ship, where we found Malistaire and Sylvia there also, handcuffed by magical handcuffs that work on ghosts.

I remembered these types of handcuffs from the death town.

The pirates put on an amusement show, and threw all types of items at us. We were humiliated.

"The Dark Lord requests your presence. We will deliver you to him, but I don't think he wants any resistment, so I will make you weak!" one of the pirates said, who was the leader.

At that, the pirates gave a loud cheer, banged many items together to make a loud ruckus, and found great amusement in us.

The leader formed the battle circle, and Shanna and I entered it.

He wasn't too tough of a skeletal pirate, and we defeated him. But, just like it was with Dung, the skeletal pirates gave a loud cry that their leader was defeated, clanged their shields together, made a loud ruckus, and then jumped on top of us.

Great! Now we were captured prisoner again.

They carried us forcefully to separate quarters, where we were locked up.

I decided to chat with Shanna in our minds, and see what was happening in her room.

"Nothing much. I'm locked up in here, and I fear something bad will happen soon," was her reply.

"The feeling is mutual," I answered.

Then I remembered what the ghosts were doing to Malistaire and Sylvia back in the graveyard. They put them in magical handcuffs that worked on ghosts, and tried to turn them into Undead. Perhaps the pirates were doing the same!

I had to check up on Malistaire and Sylvia. I chatted with them in our minds, and they said that they were locked up in a room, all by themselves.

Well that was a relief. Now I just needed to find a way out of here!

But there was no way. I tried melting my handcuffs, but they wouldn't melt. Shanna also said that there was nothing she could do.

And so, we waited and waited on our voyage to death.

Eventually, the door to my room was slammed open, and in walked five skeletal pirates.

"Our journey is complete. Once we punch in the right code to the teleportation ring, we will bring you to the Dark Lord!" one pirate said evilly.

The pirates dragged me out of the room, and onto the deck, but I was thinking about what he said.

There was a code to put into the teleportation ring? Perhaps based on the code, that's where you are teleported! It's too bad I didn't know the code to the Dark Lord, or this adventure would've ended much sooner.

No matter, I was going there now. But it wasn't how I planned. I was a prisoner being taken there.

On the deck, I found Shanna, Malistaire, and Sylvia, all in handcuffs.

"You are no harm to us anymore. Soon you will have to answer to the Dark Lord. If we take these handcuffs off of you, it will be much easier for you to move, which will save us a lot of time. But don't try anything sneaky, or we will know!" one of the pirates warned.

And with that, the pirates took off the handcuffs, but gripped our hands firmly, with great suspicion that we would try to sneak away.

They led us down to the shore, where there was a teleportation ring. I recognized now that there were numbers on it, probably used as the codes.

A pirate went to the teleportation ring, and started pressing the letters around the ring. Each letter lit up, forming the code to the Dark Lord's fortress. The pirate then took out a golden watch.

I remembered what Malistaire told me when I first encountered him in the Chamber of Spirits. The first golden watch created was the most powerful. This must have been it!

I watched as the pirate put the golden watch into the teleportation ring, and the blue substance started to fill up the ring.

All of a sudden, a loud cry let loose in the band of the skeletal pirates.

I turned around to find little, ugly creatures jumping off the trees on the shore and attacking the skeletal pirates.

There were tons of these little creatures.

I didn't even know what they were! They were tiny, gray, slimy creatures that started attacking the pirates with spears and swords.

I ran away from the skeletal pirates, and hid from these creatures. Shanna, Malistaire, and Sylvia joined me by the sidelines.

A horrible battle took place, in which all the pirates were defeated. The creatures turned around, and spotted us.

"Shanna, I have an idea! I learnt this spell in super advanced pyromancy class for grandmaster pyromancers. Watch and behold the fury of fire!" I announced.

I summoned up all my courage, and then performed one of the most difficult and most powerful spells I ever learnt.

A fire circle started forming around me, similar to wyldfire. The circle grew bigger and bigger and bigger, until finally it burst in all directions, engulfing the creatures in flames.

"Whoa! What type of spell is that?" Shanna asked, amazed.

"A very difficult spell," I answered. "It starts out as a tiny fire circle around me, and then grows bigger, and then attacks all surrounding enemies."

"That's awesome, but let's head through the teleportation ring before it closes!"

And so, Shanna, Malistaire, Sylvia, and I rushed through the teleportation ring, which led to the Dark Lord's domain, right before the ring closed.

This was the final stand.

Or so I hoped…

~

PART 11 NOT HERE

~

The Dark Lord had done what his weak minions had failed to do. He had done what Malistaire and so many other bosses failed to do.

He had defeated Andrew Firerider once and for all! Never again would he have to be bothered by that pest! The Dark Lord will destroy the Spiral!!!!!

"Goblins, trolls, wraiths, ghosts, grendels, and other useless minions," the Dark Lord began, "today is a day of great happiness. Today is the day that Andrew Firerider was finally defeated. He was a weak wizard, and we will proceed to destroy the Spiral!!!!!"

The Dark Lord gave a loud victory yell, and the creatures and minions did the same. There was a loud commotion in the Dark Lord's arena. Swords, shields, metal, and creatures' heads were being banged together. Creatures were yelling at the top of their lungs, even the ghosts that didn't have lungs.

The Dark Lord waited for the noise to die down.

In a loud, booming voice he announced, "Due to our great accomplishment, and in honor of this, we will be having a feast and a party! We will go to our great friend, Jotun, the mighty grendel, located in Nidavellir, for a smashing feast."

The creatures gave another loud yell of joy.

"And then, WE WILL DESTROY THE SPIRAL!!!!!!!!!!!"

Goblins were jumping up and down, ghosts were giving evil laughs, trolls were throwing their clubs aimlessly in the air, grendels were giving little fits of joy, wraiths were absorbing the life out of trolls, and everyone was happy. Besides the dead trolls.

"TODAY WE DINE IN HAPPINESS!!!!!! AND TOMORROW WE DESTROY THE SPIRAL!!!!!"

The creatures gave another loud yell.

And so, the Dark Lord and some of his favorite creatures and minions went to Grizzleheim, where terror struck the very hearts of the bears. Other minions were left to watch over the Dark Lord's fortress.

As the Dark Lord entered Grizzleheim, the bears stopped their work, and backed away in fear. The Dark Lord gave an evil laugh, and then lit the wooden fence surrounding the shopping center on fire.

The bears were outraged, but they were scared of the Dark Lord.

A loud cry arose from the bears, who couldn't bear to witness their shopping center being destroyed. Not only that, but the king's palace was in the shopping center.

As the Dark Lord moved away, the bears drew water from the rivers and extinguished the fires. But they saw the Dark Lord's strength, and knew that they would lose.

The Dark Lord next proceeded to Nidavellir, where he saw the grendel named Grumlik in the entranceway. Grumlik was full of fear also.

"Ah, greetings Dark Lord! I'm sure that you destroyed that pest Andrew Firerider quite easily!" Grumlik nervously stated.

"Yes, I destroyed Andrew Firerider, which is something you grendels were unable to do."

Grumlik put his hands over his face in protection, but the Dark Lord did nothing to him. He simply pushed Grumlik to the side and proceeded to the Hall of Valor, where Jotun lives.

"My good friend, the Dark Lord! How do you fare? Your visit is of course for good news, I assume," Jotun greeted the Dark Lord, also in fear.

"I, the mighty Dark Lord, have defeated Andrew Firerider, once and for all!" the Dark Lord stated. "And need I remind you that you were unable to defeat him?"

"That may be true, but his visit was unexpected. You knew that he was coming, but I don't deny that you are mightier and stronger than me," Jotun added when he saw the Dark Lord raising his staff in anger.

Jotun continued, "As you know, Andrew Firerider thought he defeated me. I merely played dead, and he soon left. Haha, Andrew Firerider! He was a fool, and is now defeated thanks to you!"

"I came here before to rally the grendels to my side. You turned some over to me, and we had a feast. I believe that this occasion also calls for a feast," the Dark Lord told Jotun.

Jotun, in fear, told the Dark Lord that he would gladly organize a feast, and they should sit down at his high table and make themselves at home.

And so, the Dark Lord and his minions sat down at Jotun's fanciest table, and were served a great feast.

"As you already know, I plan on destroying the Spiral," the Dark Lord began talking.

All of the minions and Jotun and his grendels were quiet. Their eyes were fixed upon the Dark Lord, out of mostly fear - not respect.

That was the Dark Lord's weakness. His minions feared him; they didn't respect him.

"I will be using a powerful spell from the Krokonomicon that will destroy the world I am on. It will destroy the whole world besides me and my minions. I will do so by setting up a special border around us so the spell won't affect us.

Earthquakes and cracks will appear in the world's surface; ocean waves will rise to the shore in great tsunamis; buildings will collapse; trees will fall; destruction will litter the air.

I will eventually come to Grizzleheim and do the same thing. You must make sure to have all of your grendels in Nidavellir, otherwise they will be destroyed."

"LONG LIVE THE DARK LORD! HE IS MIGHTY AND POWERFUL!!!!" Jotun declared.

At that moment, a great sound was heard throughout Nidavellir. A huge hole suddenly appeared in the wall, and a big, green thing was peering through it.

It was the Gobbler King!

Praised be the Gobbler King, for he is mighty and powerful. He is huge in size, and will gobble anything he sees.

And as you already know, this was a feast!

"I THOUGHT I TOUGHT YOU A LESSON!!" the Gobbler King yelled at Jotun and the Dark Lord, as his saliva dripped down on them. "IF YOU ARE EVER GOING TO HAVE A FEAST LIKE THIS, YOU MUST INVITE ME! I TOLD YOU THAT AT THE FIRST FEAST!!"

And then, the Gobbler King took the entire table, lifted it up, and emptied all the food on it into his stomach.

"BYE BYE!!!"

And the Gobbler King left happily now that he had his food.

You may be wondering what are all of these references to the "first feast." But we will get up to that in due time.

"Uck! Gobbler saliva," Jotun moaned.

When the Gobbler King came back to Wizard City, he told Headmaster Ambrose all that he heard the Dark Lord saying. He told Headmaster Ambrose that the Dark Lord will destroy the Spiral, and that Andrew Firerider was dead.

"Woe and doom shall now befall us! Although the Dark Lord is my age, I am much older physically. I can't fight him," Headmaster Ambrose sadly announced.

All of the teachers in Ravenwood gave a loud cry, and so did the students. The cries reached Unicorn Way, and Olde Town, and Triton Avenue, and everywhere in Wizard City.

Wizard City had their hopes down already, because they knew the end was near.

Headmaster Ambrose sat down and thought of all the plans and techniques he can use to defeat the Dark Lord. He did much research, and had the assistance of everyone in Wizard City. But no one could conjure up an idea.

Anyway, back to the Dark Lord.

"Well I see that this feast is over. It is time for the destruction of the Spiral to begin!!!!!" the Dark Lord declared.

The Dark Lord's minions gave a loud yell of joy, and banged their swords, shields, armor, and heads together.

They then proceeded back to the Dark Lord's fortress in Celestia.

The minions entered the secret passageway that was hidden from Andrew Firerider, and the Dark Lord continued to his throne room, where he locked the door, and placed sixty-two candles for meditation.

The Dark Lord then reached for the Krokonomicon which was on a small table next to him, and opened it up to Page 283, which explained how to destroy a world.

The Dark Lord recited a powerful incantation that was written in the Krokonomicon.

"Spirits of life, and spirits of death, enter my body, and take away my soul. Carry it away, and let me see, for I am blindsighted, and need to see. I need to see. I need to see. SHOW ME!!!!!"

The Dark Lord had absolutely no clue what he was saying. The Krokonomicon actually put a safety device inside of this spell so that people wouldn't destroy a world so quickly. This incantation made the Dark Lord see his whole life, with the hopes that he would see all the good and decide not to destroy the world.

But the heart of the Dark Lord was like a rock. He would not change his mind; not even if he was offered 5 trillion gold.

Not even if he was offered Andrew Firerider's body to hang as a wall piece above his bed.

And so, the Dark Lord was put into a deep slumber, in which he saw his whole life in memories.

It was just as Andrew Firerider saw his life in memories.

It was the fifth month in the year 4285; the month of Yerach. It was nightime, and it was a full moon. A couple was in a hospital in Sunken City, and the life wizards were helping a woman give birth.

A new-born baby came out of the woman, and darkness shone off of him.

He would be a necromancer. The new parents were thankful that he would be a necromancer just like them, and were thankful that they had a son.

Seventy years they were married, and never had a son. Finally, the woman came to a powerful life wizard, Professor Sameul Lifewater, and Professor Samuel Lifewater cured her of the disease which prevented her from giving birth.

The woman's name was Sierra Deathrider. Her last name used to be Ashfog, but when she became married, she took the last name of her husband.

The man's name was Valkoor Deathrider.

Yes, they were related to Andrew Firerider, although they did not know it. They were distantly related, but they were still family.

The woman had two sisters: Cheryl Deaththorn, and Autumn Nightbreeze. They were both married with children of their own.

The man had two brothers and one sister; all of them being married. Their names were Joseph Deathrider, Jonothan Deathrider, and Rachel Deathmancer. They also had their own children.

So as you can see, this was a family of death, and they couldn't be more delighted to have a death son.

"But what should we name him?" asked Sierra Deathrider.

"How about Bob Deathrider? It's a nice, short name that I like," replied Valkoor Deathrider.

Actually, the true reason Valkoor Deathrider wanted this name was because Bob was Bob spelled backwards.

Sierra agreed on the name, the life wizards performed a few more healing spells on Sierra and the baby, and they then proceeded back to their home in Sunken City.

The following week they had a great feast at their house, in which they invited all their relatives.

Everyone was so happy to see the new-born baby, and they were overwhelmed with tears.

I will skip the feast and all the boring parts, but the Dark Lord saw these memories in full detail and very strongly. The Krokonomicon did so on purpose: it made the Dark Lord overwhelmed with happiness from what he saw.

When Bob Deathrider was only five years old, he summoned a Dark Sprite that chased away a scarecrow in Sunken City. Never before had such a feat been performed; Bob never even had any wizard training yet.

Wizard training begins at the age of twenty, and already Bob was summoning Dark Sprites.

It was a sign of a prodigy; a powerful wizard.

And although this family was a family of necromancers, they were still one of the best-known families for charity and goodness. Sierra and Valkoor hoped that Bob would grow up and use his remarkable powers for good.

At the age of ten Bob found a spell deck lying around the floor, and picked it up. He examined the spells, and decided to enter into a battle. But he wasn't trained. He didn't even know what to do with the cards.

Bob was easily defeated. He ended up in the Sunken City hospital, with his parents crying. They were scared that their only child would soon be gone.

Luckily, Bob was healed, but his parents knew that it was time to put him into Ravenwood. Otherwise, Bob would be too curious about card fighting and would enter another duel and be destroyed.

Besides, Bob was mighty and powerful. He would be able to handle it.

Bob was full of excitement. At the age of ten he was already entering Ravenwood. He knew that he would be the most powerful wizard, and he was eternally grateful.

The news was full of this. Headlines said "Two boys, age ten, already at Ravenwood."

That's right. Two boys.

Merle Ambrose was born in the same month as the Dark Lord, and was equally as powerful. But Merle Ambrose was a life wizard.

Bob entered his first day of Necromancy in Ravenwood. It was in the days when the Death school was still located on the Ravenwood campus. The death professor's name was Anthony Deathshard.

Bob was taking the class that everyone new to Necromancy took: Beginning Necromancy for Beginners.

In this class, they learnt about the school of Death, different overall technics, powerful death wizards, and their first spell: Dark Sprite.

Although Bob Deathrider already summoned a Dark Sprite, he learnt how to perfect it, and how to decrease the risk of fizzling. He learnt how to make it stronger, and to do his bidding.

After death class, he rushed outside, wanting to go home and showing his parents what he learnt. He wanted to make them proud. He loved his parents so much.

He saw Merle Ambrose coming out of life class, and talked to him.

"So I heard you were born in the same year and month as me," Bob commented.

"That's true," Merle replied. "And we're both wizards that started school before the normal time. I say that we stick together, be friends, and help each other out."

Bob heard this and loved the idea. Merle would be his first friend, and the same held true for Merle.

"Yes! Thank you so much! We will fight the forces of evil side by side. We will never abandon one another."

These were two young wizards with large dreams. They thought that fighting evil would be a glamourous life; little did they know what the outcome would be.

Merle and Bob became great friends, and advanced through their wizard studies side by side.

Bob quickly advanced to the top of his class, and so did Merle.

Normally, a wizard has to go to school for a year before he can face his first battle in Unicorn Way. But Bob and Merle were different. It only took them half the year to be trained enough.

Anthony Deathshard said to Bob one day in class, "See me after class."

Bob immediately panicked. Was he in trouble? He was terrified.

After class, Bob approached Anthony Deathshard and stated to him, "I didn't do it!"

Anthony looked at him puzzingly and said, "What didn't you do?"

Bob gave a sigh of relief, and said, "Oh! I thought I was in trouble!"

"No, of course not! If you were in trouble, I would've made you stand by the window and count the crows! I have been speaking with the life professor, Samuel Lifewater, and he told me that Merle Ambrose is advancing quickly through life class. I have heard that you are best friends with him."

"That is true. He and I are tight buds."

"You are also advancing quickly through death class. Both of you have enough experience to fight your first battle in Unicorn Way."

"OH MY GOODNESS!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!" Bob erupted in happiness.

"Don't thank me," Anthony told Bob. "Thank yourself. You have worked hard."

"When will we go to Unicorn Way?"

"First we have to have a special ceremony that we normally do at the end of the year when everyone else is ready for their first fight. But of course we have to do it for you and Merle."

"I'm so excited!!!"

"The ceremony will take place in Ravenwood, inside of Bartleby. I assume you have never been inside of him?"

"Never. This is the best day of my life!"

"In a week from now, on Sunday, at 3 hours after the sun rises, meet me in front of Bartleby. We will then proceed into him and conduct the ceremony."

"I am eternally grateful, Anthony Deathshard. You have been a great teacher."

"To make you even happier, Headmaster Duncan Stormblood will be performing the ceremony. It will gave you a chance to speak with him closeup. I'm sure you will be speaking with him much more in the future. I know you will be a powerful wizard. Make me proud."

"I will, Anthony Deathshard. I will represent the school of death as a strong school, a school of courage, and a caring and kind school. Many people associate the school of death with cruelty, and I will show the world this is not true!"

Bob turned to leave, but Anthony Deathshard added one more thing.

"Bring your parents. They are proud of you."

And so, Bob left the death class, and it was the happiest day of his life. He met with Merle outside in the Commons, and Merle told Bob that he was told the same thing from Samuel Lifewater.

They then departed to tell their parents about the news.

"Mom, Dad, guess what?" Bob exclaimed as he entered his house with a face full of joy.

"You and Merle are trained enough to fight your first battle in Unicorn Way and the ceremony is on Sunday?" his mom "guessed".

"How did you know?"

"Hahaha! Mothers know everything."

"No, really! How did you know?"

"A little crow told me."

Actually, Headmaster Duncan Stormblood stopped by her house that day and told her the good news. But there's nothing like striking fear into your child's heart to make them think you know what they are doing.

"We're going to need to pick out a suit, nice shoes, get a haircut, and we will be giving you a special present," Valkoor Deathrider said.

"Aww, a suit!" Bob moaned.

But what was this special present they were talking about? He didn't like surprises!

"Come on, I love both of you, what is the special present?"

"Hahaha! We can't tell you that! But you're going to love it! We arranged it with Merle's parents also."

Bob was wondering what it could be. A special death plaque in his room? He saw it in the bazaar and always wanted it. Or maybe a new hat? His hat was an old one.

But Bob didn't know, and so he didn't torture himself by trying to figure it out.

Finally, that Sunday came. Bob and Merle were with their families outside of Bartleby, and were all very eager. There were many other people there - students, teachers, and spectators, all amazed at this phenomenon.

Never before had such a thing occurred.

Finally, Headmaster Stormblood arrived with Anthony Deathshard and Samuel Lifewater. They commanded Bartleby to open his mouth, and they stepped through into Bartleby.

It was the first time Bob was inside Bartleby. It was magnificent. Leaves and branches grew everywhere, and there was such great light.

Of course, he would have much preferred a dark alley such as Sunken City, but he still admired Bartleby's magnificence.

"Students, teachers, parents, and spectators," Headmaster Stormblood began. "We come here today to honor two great students, mighty in power. One is a life wizard, and the other is a death wizard, but they are great friends. They were born in the same month, in the same year; it was only fate for them to be together. They are both brilliant students; the top of their class. They have risen quickly in their studies, and are talented enough to fight their first battle in Unicorn Way. We have come here today to honor them, and to perform the sacred ceremony that is performed at the time that students are ready to begin their first battle.

The name of the death wizard is Bob Deathrider."

A large applause arose from the stands.

"Let's go Bob!" his dad shouted.

"And the life wizard is called Merle Ambrose."

An equally loud cheer erupted from the stands.

"I now call both of them up together to receive an award of honor on their tremendous achievement. Bob Deathrider, please come and accept this award upon yourself."

Bob went to Headmaster Stormblood on the podium, shook his head, took the award, and said, "I would like to thank my teacher, parents, and my special friend, Merle Ambrose. Without their faith and confidence, none of this would be possible."

A loud and tremendous cheer erupted from the stands; it is said that all of Ravenwood was shaken by that cheer.

"Merle Ambrose, please come and accept this award upon yourself."

Merle did as commanded, and said something very similar to Bob.

"Now I believe that their parents had something special to give to them."

Bob's and Merle's parents reached into a large bag, and took out a set of wands and a set of spellbooks. They gave one wand, which was a life wand, to Bob, and the other wand, which was a death wand, to Merle.

"We are giving you opposite school wands for a purpose. It is a great technique to use. If you are fighting against a death enemy, your spells won't be so great, Bob. Therefore, use this life wand and weaken your enemies. The same is for you Merle. Nothing will stand in your path."

They then gave a death spellbook to Bob, which was able to hold 20 spells. So far, Bob only learnt Dark Sprite, Death Blade, and Ghoul, but he knew it would quickly fill up.

They gave an identical spellbook to Merle, but it was life.

"I would like to tell a story about the bonds of their friendship," Headmaster Stormblood announced.

The cheering quieted down, and Headmaster Stormblood began, "As many of you know, I am great friends with the myth professor, Professor Christopher Mythblood. We were friends since our childhood.

Many of you find this awkward. I'm storm, and he's myth. But it was just as with Bob and Merle. We did not let our schools stand in the way of our friendship.

We grew up to become powerful wizards, and fought the forces of evil side by side. One dark lord, Jack Ravenblood, was threatening to destroy all of Wizard City.

We reached his lair, and he told us 'There is no use trying to defeat me. You will surely die.'

I answered him back, and said, 'You are mistaken. We will defeat you. And that is because we have friendship and good on our side. And that is something that you don't have.

Therefore, I feel bad for you in a sense. You grew up without friendship or love from anyone. You then became evil based on your past experiences. You now call yourself Dark Lord. You had a dark life.

But I didn't. I grew up with a strong friendship. Even though people laughed and said that it is ridiculous for enemies of the schools to be friends, we sneered back at them when we became powerful.

And so, you will now be defeated, Jack Ravenblood.'

And we proceeded to defeat him. The point of my story is that I also had a strong friendship with an enemy of my school. But that didn't stand in my way. And I proceeded to tell this evil person about it, and about how he never grew up with it, and therefore turned evil.

So you can see the effects of a strong friendship and the effects of no friends. I hope that you stay strong friends. I have faith in both of you."

Bob and Merle approached Headmaster Stormblood, and shook his hands.

"And now, my fellow onlookers, it is time for Bob and Merle to conduct their first fight in Unicorn Way. This is a task that they must do alone, without spectators. The point is to see if they can function without the advice of others, and so many people will add pressure.

But I have faith in them that they will do just fine. And of course I will be there to make sure they don't get beaten up by a monster.

And now, Bob and Merle, we will proceed to Unicorn Way to your first fight."

Another loud cheer rose from the crowds, and confetti appeared magically. Magnificent fireworks lit up the Ravenwood sky, and wizards cast spells which made magical creatures appear out of nowhere, adding to the display.

The large crowd followed Headmaster Stormblood, Bob, and Merle to Unicorn Way, but Headmaster Stormblood summoned them off.

"They will be just fine on their own. I will look after them, but now you must go, as is the tradition."

The crowd left, and Bob and Merle were getting excited for their first fight.

Juan the Duelmaster ran out to greet them, with his sword in his hand and all ready for a fight.

" I have heard about you two amazing wizards," Juan greeted them. "I hope to be seeing you in the arena one day, making the top of the lists."

"I am sure they will also," Headmaster Stormblood told Juan. "But now is their first fight. And you know the tradition. You can't go with them."

"Yes, yes, I know. Good luck! I know you can do it!" Juan said.

Headmaster Stormblood, Bob, and Merle, continued down Unicorn Way, until Headmaster Stormblood said, "Now I will wait on the sidewalk as you choose a ghost to fight against. Go ahead, young wizards. You are valiant men."

"Ready Merle?" Bob asked Merle.

"Ready!"

"Let's do this!"

Bob and Merle ran over to a ghost, and entered a battle.

"This is so cool! They're life ghosts, so I'm going to use the death blade I got," Merle announced.

"Awesome! And I'll use dark sprite on them!" Bob replied.

Merle used his death blade which was only supposed to do 50 damage. But it actually did 90 damage, and killed one of the ghosts.

Headmaster Stormblood was amazed at this.

"They are truly powerful wizards. Never before had this occurred. I can't even do that!" he thought to himself.

Bob cast a dark sprite, which did 140 damage, more than it should, and killed the other ghost. They finished their first duel in one round.

"AMAZING! SUPERB! SPLENDID!" Headmaster Stormblood shouted.

"That was so cool," Bob and Merle both said.

It was a day of happiness, but it was destined for doom. At that moment, the skies turned black, and lightning illuminated the sky. A dark cloud was seen coming down from the sky, with a tall wizard on it.

The wizard was cloaked all in yellow, indicating that he was a myth wizard. He had a large staff, and didn't look too happy.

"Oh no no no!" Headmaster Stormblood groaned. "It is Ryan Mythlord, more commonly known as the Dark Lord. You have certainly heard of him."

"Yes we have. How could we not? He has recently rose to power, and is terrorizing Wizard City," Bob replied.

"You wizards wait here. I will follow Ryan and see where he is going," Headmaster Stormblood told them.

"No! We want to go with you! We will defeat him!" Merle said.

"No way!" Headmaster Stormblood replied. "It is too dangerous. You have only experienced one battle. Please do as I say, and you will grow up as powerful wizards."

Headmaster Stormblood looked into their eyes with a trusting look, and they nodded in return.

"I will message all the teachers to come to me. BUT DO NOT FOLLOW!"

Headmaster Stormblood turned around and ran to where Ryan Mythlord was traveling on his cloud. He messaged the teachers in his brain to come, and they all teleported to him.

Ryan Mythlord was heading towards the end of Unicorn Way, where a great wizard stadium was located.

"Are we just going to sit here and do nothing? We have to go!" Bob exclaimed.

"One hundred percent!" Merle answered.

Bob and Merle rushed after Headmaster Stormblood and the teachers to the end of Unicorn Way, where Ryan Mythlord was on his black cloud.

"HAHAHA WIZARD FOOLS! I WILL DESTROY ALL OF WIZARD CITY, AREA BY AREA, PIECE BY PIECE!!! WATCH AS YOU ARE DESTROYED!!" Ryan announced in a booming voice.

"Never!!! You will be defeated!!! Piece by PEACE!!" Headmaster Stormblood yelled back.

In reality, it wasn't going to be a peaceful battle, but Headmaster Stormblood wanted to show that things can be done peacefully, and that good prevails.

"HAHAHA!!!" Ryan shouted. "I AM THE DARK LORD, AND ALL SHALL FEAR ME!!!"

The teachers all crowded in to see what would happen next. Headmaster Stormblood took out his wand, ready for a battle.

"HAHAHA! I DON’T WANT A BATTLE! I WILL FINISH YOU THE EASY WAY!" Ryan boomed. "STARTING WITH THOSE TWO LITTLE WIZARDS WHOM THIS DAY OF CELEBRATION IS CENETERED ABOUT!"

Ryan Mythblood raised his staff, and a yellow orb formed in it. He was getting ready to attack.

Headmaster Stormblood turned around, just to make sure Bob and Merle weren't there. But of course they were.

"BOB, MERLE! GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Headmaster Stormblood shrieked.

But they weren't moving. They wanted to prove they were strong and could fight.

But it wasn't time for them yet. They would be defeated if someone didn't take measures.

"DO YOU HAVE SALAD IN YOUR HEAD?" Headmaster Stormblood furiously asked. "PROFESSOR SAMUEL LIFEWATER, CAST THE LIFE GOO YOU ONCE USED ON ME AS A SHIELD!"

"Right away sir!" Samuel Lifewater replied.

Samuel Lifewater formed the life symbol in the air, and sent his wand through it. A big, green goo covered both Bob and Merle from head to toe.

And at that same second, Ryan Mythlord slammed his staff down, and a blinding flash of yellow light came out of it and hit Bob.

But it had no effect. The goo protected him.

Ryan Mythlord was furious. He switched the attack to Merle.

Same result.

"NO MATTER! I WILL STILL WIN!" Ryan yelled.

Ryan started to cast the myth symbol, and then struck it with his wand. He cast the spell earthquake, and the ground started to move. Great cracks appeared in the ground, and some of the teachers fell over.

"PROFESSOR CHRISTOPHER MYTHBLOOD, GET RID OF THIS EARTHQUAKE! ALL OF THE OTHER TEACHERS, ATTACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Headmaster Stormblood gave the battle orders.

A great battle was underway, in which Professor Mythblood did his best to get rid of the earthquake. He was using all his force to stop it, and it took a lot out of him. For a few moments it would stop, and then Ryan Mythlord would win again for a few moments. That's how the myth battle took place.

Another battle took place with Headmaster Stormblood. He was clearing the sky of the darkness and the storm. After that, they would have light and motivation.

The ice professor used her energy to freeze the cloud Ryan Mythlord was on, so he couldn't move around.

The storm professor sent energy bolts from his wand to attack Ryan Mythlord, which was very effective, since storm does a boost on myth.

The life professor sent the goo around to everyone so they wouldn't be harmed.

The balance professor was casting different spells and attacking Ryan Mythlord.

The death professor was also casting different spells at Ryan Mythlord, but some of those spells were special ones that taunted him.

The fire professor lit the cloud Ryan Mythlord was on, which surrounded Ryan in a circle of flames. She paid careful attention not to let the flames hit him; she knew that Headmaster Stormblood had something special for him.

"Now you see the power of all the schools, and how defenseless you are!" Headmaster Stormblood announced. "It is time that you are defeated. Your reign has been short, and so should all of evil be short!"

"NEVER! I WILL DESTROY ALL OF YOU!!!" Ryan yelled.

But he was weak and surrounded. He would never win.

"It is better to give up!" Headmaster Stormblood decreed, as he sent a blast of lightning from his staff at Ryan Mythlord.

"NOOOOOOO!!!!" he yelled, as he was hit by the lightning. He collapsed on the cloud extremely weakened by the blast.

"FINISH HIM UP!!!" Headmaster Stormblood told the teachers.

The ice professor sent ice shards to attack him.

The storm professor sent some more energy bolts of out his wand.

The balance professor sent a judgement to announce that his fate was death.

The death professor surrounded Ryan in spirits that laughed at him and attacked him.

The fire professor engulfed him in flames.

The myth professor sent a giant Humongofrog to throw up on him.

The life professor sent a shower of leaves to fall down in victory.

Ryan Mythlord was defeated. His reign of terror had collapsed.

"That was amazing!!!" Bob told Headmaster Stormblood.

"Superb!" Merle added.

"That will soon be you one day," Headmaster Stormblood answered. "But more powerful, that I know."

The news quicly spread that the reign of Ryan Mythlord was over. Headmaster Stormblood and the teachers were congratulated, along with Bob and Merle on their first duel.

"What will be done about the huge cracks in the ground?" Bob asked Headmaster Stormblood.

"Those will be put to good use," Headmaster Stormblood replied. "The stadium is destroyed, but it is only fitting that we fill the area with the presence of life to commemorate this great victory. Professor Samuel Lifewater has a great friend, Lady Oriel, whom we will ask if she would like to reside in that area. We will fill the holes with hedges, and pixies, sprites, and all creatures belonging to life will fill the area with happiness."

And so, Lady Oriel moved into that area, which is today known as Hedgemaze.

And the wizardly adventures of Bob Deathrider and Merle Ambrose continued.

~

After their little encounter with Ryan Mythlord, Bob and Merle continued in their wizard studies.

After one year, Bob and Merle rose to level 25. After one year, the normal wizard rises to level 18.

But no one was shocked anymore. They were all used to this.

"You will be placed in the next class - Necromancy Level II," Professor Anthony Deathshard told Bob one day.

Bob was delighted to hear the good news.

"Which books do I need for this class?" Bob asked.

"You will need the book Necromancy Level II. You can easily find it in the Wizard City Library."

Bob was again full of joy that he was rising quickly through wizardry. In a few years he would be more powerful than all of the teachers!!!

Or so he wished. Hey, he was a boy with big dreams.

"Thank you so much Professor Deathshard!"

Bob headed towards the Wizard City Library, where he found the librarian, Harold Argleston, at his desk.

"I need the book Necromancy Level II."

"Ah, yes, I have heard of your great powers," Harold Argleston replied. "Just give me a moment to find the book."

Bob waited as Librarian Argleston went to one of the shelves and picked out a book.

"AH!!!!" Harold Argleston gave a loud cry.

"What happened?" said a worried Bob.

Bob thought it was a dark lord. Now Bob can finally prove his powers by defeating a dark lord!!!

"Nothing, I just tripped. I might've broken a few ribs and my skull. Nothing too terrible," Harold Argleston explained.

Librarian Argleston looked around a little longer for the book.

"Here you go! Necromancy Level II. Good luck in your studies!"

Bob proceeded to go outside to the Commons, when he found Merle entering the library.

"Merle, I just rose to Necromancy Level II!"

"No kidding!" Merle answered. "I just rose to Theurgy Level II!"

"That's amazing! Now we're on the same level as each other."

"Just wait here while I go get my book, then we can talk."

Merle received the book Theurgy Level II from Harold Argleston, and Bob and Merle went outside to the Commons.

There was a chilly breeze moving through the air, and all the trees were swaying from the wind. Just a moment ago it was sunny!

"This is strange," Bob commented. "An air of gloom is in the Commons."

"I suspect a new Dark Lord," Merle guessed.

Merle was correct. A large ice meteor came flying through the air and hit the ground. Tiny ice shards went flying through the air, breaking windows and glass.

A man was in the ice meteor, cloaked in the color blue. He had a large staff, which was also blue.

Little bits of snow were in a constant spinning motion around him.

This man was an ice wizard; a thaumaturge.

The man's head was facing the ground, but he lifted it up, and everyone was able to see his face. He stared at everyone, and then began to speak.

"Hey everyone, how are ya?" the man asked. "My name is Kane Icestorm, and I am the new Dark Lord. Fear me Wizard City, for I shall terrorize you for the next few years!"

"This guy doesn't seem too evil," Bob whispered to Merle.

Kane Icestorm gave an evil laugh, and then formed the ice symbol with his wand.

"Brace yourself for my first act!!!" Kane announced.

"Oh, so now he's a magician!" Bob whispered again to Merle.

All eyes were fixed upon Kane, wondering what he was about to do.

The wand hit the ice symbol, and five large Colossuses appeared out of thin air, and surrounded Kane Icestorm.

"Until next time, Wizard City!"

Kane grabbed onto the end of his cloak, and swung it around his body. He vanished in an instant, and all that was left were five Colossuses, that were ready to destroy the Commons.

The Colossuses gave a loud yell, and one picked up a tree that was in the Commons. He swung it around his head, and threw it at Headmaster Stormblood's tower.

The other Colossuses ran towards the headmaster's tower, and picked up large chunks of stone from the pavement and from the fence around the tower. They threw the stone and iron fence around the doorway so that Headmaster Duncan Stormblood could not exit.

"Merle, we have to do something!" Bob shrieked.

"Yes, but it's too many for a duel," Merle answered. "We will have to summon creatures and use wand spells. We will prove that we are mighty wizards!"

They approached the Colossuses from behind, and hid behind a tree.

"One, two, three!" Bob whispered to Merle.

They spun around and faced the Colossuses. Bob made the death symbol in the air, and struck it with his wand. A vampire came out, and attacked one of the Colossuses.

Merle did the same, except he summoned a leprechaun. The vampire attacked one Colossus and started draining its life away, while the leprechaun threw gold at the Colossus, which hurt the Colossus greatly.

The Colossus gave a loud shriek.

One colossus down, four more to go.

But now the Colossuses saw what was going on. They were preparing themselves also.

One of them moved towards Bob and Merle, and swung its sword at them.

Bob and Merle ducked, and the sword missed them by an inch.

Bob and Merle both attacked that Colossus using their wand spell, but it wasn't even close to strong enough.

By that time, the teachers in Ravenwood had heard what had happened, and rushed to Bob's and Merle's aid.

"Quickly! We must dispose of these Colossuses!" the storm professor stated.

The storm professor sent lightning from the sky to hit the Colossuses, while the fire professor made a fire burn inside each of the Colossuses.

From just a few spells, the Colossuses soon collapsed to the floor, and melted away.

Bob and Merle gave a loud sigh, because they knew that they weren't going to be heroes from this battle.

"We must remove these rocks that are blocking Headmaster Stormblood's tower," Professor Anthony Deathshard announced.

"Yes, of course. Let me handle this," said the myth professor, Professor Christopher Mythblood.

He summoned a strong Minotaur, which picked up each of the rocks and threw it to the side.

"Now let's see how Headmaster Stormblood is," Professor Lifewater proclaimed.

They entered the headmaster's tower, to find Headmaster Stormblood perfectly fine.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Headmaster Stormblood told them. "I heard a loud commotion outside, and I tried to leave this building, but the entrance was blocked!"

"Why didn't you try teleporting?" Professor Mythblood asked.

Headmaster Stormblood's face grew red. "I can't believe I didn't even think of this!"

Actually, he did think of that, but he was too lazy for a fight.

"Anyway, what exactly happened?" Headmaster Stormblood asked.

"Truthfully, headmaster, we honestly don't know. You better ask Bob and Merle; they were there before us," Professor Mythblood said.

"Bob, Merle, what happened?"

And so, Bob and Merle told Headmaster Stormblood how there was a new Dark Lord on the loose.

"By Bartleby! Now we have another Dark Lord to take care of!" Headmaster Stormblood groaned. "No matter, we will solve this issue. You two go back to your studies."

Bob and Merle did as they were commanded, and quickly advanced through their wizard studies.

Soon they got to adventure through the different worlds. They saw Krokotopia, Marleybone, Mooshu, Dragonspyre, Celestia, Grizzleheim, Candy Land, Kent, Bigrol, Kafdsfagafsdg, and more!

Soon Bob and Merle reached Level 120, and they were ready to graduate. It had been seven years since their first day at Ravenwood; they were now 17 years old.

The normal wizard must go to school for 13 years before they can graduate.

But Kane Icestorm was still terrorizing Wizard City, and was still the Dark Lord. More than once had he tried to eliminate Bob and Merle, but he never succeeded.

"Bob, you are an extraordinary wizard," Professor Deathshard told Bob one day after class. "It is time that you graduate with Merle from Ravenwood this year."

"No way!" Bob replied. "I can't believe this! This is so amazing!"

"Yes, it is true. At the end of this year, you and Merle will graduate with the graduating class of 4302. You are expected to write a speech and represent the school of necromancy, of course, since you are a powerful wizard."

"This is unbelievable! It will be hard leaving my studies. The excitement of learning a new spell is such a great feeling!" Bob said.

"Who ever said anything about leaving your studies?" Professor Deathshard asked. "There are still so many powerful spells which you have not yet learnt. You can always pick up a powerful necromancy book from the library, and learn some spells. And perhaps you will even be the next death teacher."

"You're right!" Bob exclaimed. "I would love to be the death teacher. But only after you, of course!"

"Or what about headmaster? Perhaps you will be the next headmaster!" Professor Deathshard suggested.

Bob pondered over this; it was a tough decision. But he didn’t need to worry about it now! He was graduating.

Bob met with Merle outside, who received the same message from Professor Samuel Lifewater.

"So I guess this is it! After seven years of friendship, we finally graduate," Merle told Bob.

"Yes, but we will stick together. After we graduate we will become heroes, and we will show the whole Spiral who we are!"

"Bob, the Spiral already knows who we are!"

Bob chuckled at the joke Merle made.

Graduation day finally came. It was the beginning of summer, and Bob and Merle were graduating with the class of 4302.

Both Bob and Merle gave a speech, and were greeted by a loud applause from the audience.

They talked about the makings of a powerful wizard, their friendship together, and other wizardly stuff.

I would love to include their speech, but that is not what this story is about. It is not significant in any way to the plot of this tale.

"And now, I would like to congratulate the class of 4302, who has come far in their wizard studies, and who are graduating today," Headmaster Duncan Stormblood began.

"As you all know, we at Ravenwood are quite honored to have two amazing students, Bob Deathrider, and Merle Ambrose. Their wizard studies have taken them far, and they will surely fight and defeat evil."

A loud cheer erupted from the audience, and wizards made leprechauns appear out of nowhere and sing little Irish songs.

Balloons magically appeared, and confetti dropped out of the skies. A dazzling array of fireworks created a pyrotechnic display.

Headmaster Stormblood waited for the cheering to quiet down.

"As I was saying, we are extremely honored to have them with us. It feels like yesterday that I first watched them in their first fight at Unicorn Way, in which a terrible disaster occurred. A dark lord, Ryan Mythlord, came down on a cloud and attacked Unicorn Way. The area of the destruction was filled with life, and is today known as Hedgemaze.

Bob and Merle were disappointed that they did not receive the chance to fight Ryan Mythlord. But as I told them, they were too young.

But now they are older and powerful wizards. They can surely fight evil and survive.

But it is not only them that are powerful. It is all of the graduates. They have all come a long way, and are now powerful wizards. 13 long years they spent at Ravenwood, and now they finally graduate.

It doesn't matter whether you are a theurgist, or a necromancer. Or whether you're a diviner or a conjurer. Or whether you're a pyromancer and a thaumaturge.

What matters is your personality, and how you use it. What matters is whether you do something for the good of society. What matters is how you use your life.

I gaze around the room today and I see a room full of graduates that are ready for the real world. It's a room full of graduates that are anxious to fight evil. But even if there are wizards that don't want to fight evil, they will contribute to society. I see potential in everyone in this room today.

Let's face it, not everyone wants to live a life of fighting evil. It is not a glamorous life. It is very risky. But no matter what you become, you must use your expertise or talent for good.

Take your life and your potential, and do the best you can, and see where it takes you. Because I know that it will take you down a good path.

And I can rest assured that this graduating class will do only good."

An even louder cheer and applause rose from the audience. Not only were leprechauns spreading joy, but imps were appearing, and so were magical seraphs. Satyrs were playing their instruments, and a storm lord descended from the sky to add to the spectacle. Two dragons flew down from the sky also; one to the right of the stage, and one to the left. A frost giant towered high above the back of the stage, while an Orthrus was playing fetch with a goblin's head. Peaceful wraiths, if any wraiths can be peaceful, were lurking behind the bushes.

Ice wizards were using their powers to make icicles dangle off the curtains of the stage, while fire wizards made a great bonfire that burned bright in the sky.

All types of wizards were using their powers to add to the wonderful display.

A great celebration party soon followed, and everyone was happy.

It was a happy day, but it was destined for doom.

Some of Bob's and Merle's friends were having a private party to celebrate their graduation. Bob and Merle both went, and returned home late at night.

They both went right to sleep, not realizing that their entire family was missing.

Bob Deathrider woke up the next morning to find no one at his house. His entire family was missing.

Bob was torn with grief. How could such a thing occur?

He went down to the kitchen, where he found a note on the table:

Dear Bob Deathrider,

I believe that we have encountered one another many times in the past. You have always escaped my grasp, but now I have more power than ever before!

I have a large army of minions, and a great prison camp. I have taken your entire family hostage.

If you ever want to see them again, come to me in Celestia.

From your worst enemy/nemesis/nightmare/opponent/adversary

The Dark Lord

A.K.A. Kane Icestorm

P.S. I did the same to Merle Ambrose. You better make sure he's with you, or he won't be a happy bean!

"Happy bean?" Bob thought to himself.

But there were more important issues than dark lords using horrible phrases. Both his and Merle's families were missing.

"Merle! Are you there?" he asked Merle in his brain.

"Yes, but I can't talk now," Merle responded. "My family is missing. I have to go hunt down Kane Icestorm."

"Yes, I know that your family is missing. So is mine. Sweet as honey will be revenge when we crush that Kane Icestorm. We will be heroes, and no one will mess with us. I'm coming over to your house."

And then, Bob Deathrider burst out in tears. His entire family was missing. His mom and dad, who waited seventy years until he was born. His cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents, who were always so kind to him.

And now they were gone. What if he didn't save them? Bob Deathrider couldn't bear the thought.

He was a 17 year old wizard, and already had to face evil people who enjoy nothing besides watching the world burn.

There are some people that are evil for a reason. Perhaps they want to take revenge on someone. Then there are others who are evil for the simple reason that all they care about is watching the world burn to a crisp. Whether it be actually destroying a world, or whether it be assembling a group of minions to wreck havoc and damage the core of society.

Kane Icestorm belonged to the second group. Bob Deathrider continued to cry.

Bob Deathrider felt one of his tears being lifted away from his face. He looked down, and saw a dark sprite next to him.

Another dark sprite popped out of the air, and soon another, and another, until the whole room was filled with dark sprites.

A life wizard would be terrified, but Bob Deathrider was a death wizard. He enjoyed the company of the dark sprites.

"I see the spirits of death are with me," Bob said. "They have come to bring me luck. My journey will be successful. I will crush Kane Icestorm and melt his world!"

Bob Deathrider rushed outdoors, where he was met by a cool breeze.

"Spirits of death, I call upon you at this time! Accompany me on my journey, and allow me to ride through the air on the wings of death!"

This was a very powerful incantation, which allowed Bob Deathrider to fly through the air on what appeared to be "wind." But in fact, they were spirits of death.

If a wizard who is not a necromancer is met by the spirits of death, he better panic! But if a necromancer is met by the spirits of death, it brings him no harm.

Unless he's about to die. Then he should panic.

Bob Deathrider felt the wind beating against his face as he rode from Sunken City to Unicorn Way. He heard the wind whistle and shriek, as he rode his majestic flight.

"Look! There goes Bob Deathrider, that famous and powerful wizard we've all been hearing about!" said bystanders.

Bob Deathrider stopped his flight at Unicorn Way, where Merle Ambrose abode.

"Now it is time to bring down Kane Icestorm once and for all!" Bob announced. "I will let you ride on the wings of death, but have no fear!"

"Certainly. Do you think we should tell Headmaster Stormblood?" Merle asked.

"Never!" Bob replied. "He would say that we are inexperienced. We can handle this on our own. And I want to be the one who watches Kane Icestorm slowly and painfully die."

"Sounds lovely," Merle replied. "And now, to Celestia."

And so, they rode on the wings of death to Bartleby, and entered inside him. They used the spiral chamber to go to Celestia, and it was at a time when the Chamber of Spirits did not exist yet.

Bob and Merle were familiar with Celestia, and had an easy time navigating around.

"Why do you think he chose Celestia?" Bob curiously asked Merle.

"That's easy. All the different landforms!" Merle replied. "There's an island with volcanoes that erupt snow, a large forest, an island with life creatures, a labyrinth, and so much more. It's the perfect place for an evil kingdom!"

"Let's go ask the villagers if they know where Kane Icestorm is. As you said Merle, Celestia is large and has many landforms. I don't know where we would begin!"

"I agree, but first we must descend from the sky and travel by foot. Otherwise, the villagers will fear us," Merle said.

"You're right."

They descended from the skies, and began the rocky road to the Celestian village. It was a time when the roads were rocky and Celestia did not have a fully developed society.

To pass the time, they started singing.
(Fast paced beat)
"In the merry month of Tishrey, from my home I started
Left the wizards from the city, nearly broken hearted
I left where I was born, to banish ghosts and goblins
In a brand new pair of boots, I rattled over the bogs
And now I was on my way, on the rocky road to Celestia

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the ghost, and turn it
Down the rocky road
And all the ways to Celestia
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra

In the streets I now travel, I find it such a pity
To be deprived of such a view, of the magnificent city
Then I took a stroll, all among the quality
I heard some voices in the wind, perhaps my own locality
But still I looked behind, no voices could I find
And I continued on my way, on the rocky road to Celestia

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the ghost, and turn it
Down the rocky road
And all the ways to Celestia
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra

From there I got away, my soul never failin'
My foot on the pavement, as I saw the city
People shouted loudly, perhaps it was a cheer
They were happy to see us, again in Celestia
And so we finished our way, on the rocky road to Celestia

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the ghost, and turn it
Down the rocky road
And all the ways to Celestia
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra

Hey!

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the ghost, and turn it
Down the rocky road
And all the ways to Celestia
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra


They traveled to the village, where they went to the famous gold watch shop in the town center. It was owned by Isaac; Daniel's grandfather.

"Hello there!" Isaac called to them. He recognized them from previous times they visited Celestia. "Is your visit a good one?"

"Unfortunately, no," Merle began. "Our families have been captured by the dark lord, Kane Icestorm, but we are determined to destroy him."

"Kane Icestorm? In Celestia? Oh dear! The Dark Lord is in Celestia! Woe shall fall upon us!" Isaac stated with a worried look in his eyes.

"That's where you're wrong," Bob told Isaac.

"Wrong?" Isaac asked.

"Yes, you're wrong," Bob repeated.

"And how am I wrong? Based on what you told me, the Dark Lord is here and he will crush us all with a mighty blow and he will be a thorn in our sides and an obstacle to us."

"That would be true, but only if I and Merle weren't here. We will put a stop to his evil reign!"

"Unfortunately, we were hoping the Celestians saw him, so we would have a clue of where to find him," Merle explained.

"I'm sorry, but no one saw him. He must have moved secretly. This new news is new to me, and is tragic also," Isaac sadly announced.

"Don't fear, we will find him," Bob said. "Well, we better be off. Time is of the essence!"

And then Bob began the incantation.

"Spirits of death, I call upon you at this time! Accompany me on my journey, and allow me to ride through the air on the wings of death!"

Bob and Merle were lifted in the air, and they waved goodbye to Isaac and the Celestians.

"First stop, Thaumaturge Island!" Merle proclaimed.

Bob and Merle had been to Celestia before, but never fully had they searched or seen all the islands. Now they would begin a full search over every inch of the surface and below the surface to find Kane Icestorm.

Their only worry was that the note was fake, and Kane Icestorm was not in Celestia.

They rode on the wings of death to Thaumaturge Island, where they stopped their ride and surveyed the ground.

"There are those four mountains!" Bob remarked. "I remember them from our previous visit here."

"I guess we better check inside each of them," Merle said.

They headed towards the first one, where they found the icy slope difficult to navigate.

"This would make the perfect lair for an ice wizard," Bob commented.

They found that the top of the mountain wasn't covered with ice, which was lucky for them. When Andrew Firerider went to Thaumaturge Island, he had to melt the ice.

"Well, let's start exploring!" Bob announced.

They rode on the spirits of death, which was much easier than climbing the walls. They saw a large floor of snow that was huge in height. They couldn't see the bottom; just a thick layer of snow coming closer and closer as they rode further down the mountain.

"If I'm not mistaken, there should be a hole somewhere here that we can enter," Merle remarked.

He remembered it from the last time they were at Celestia.

They searched around for the hole a little bit more, and eventually found it. They rode through the hole swiftly, but silently, in case Kane Icestorm was there.

As they reached the end, Bob shouted, "Have at you, Kane Icestorm!"

He grabbed his staff and pointed it at the direction of the chamber they were entering, but Kane Icestorm wasn't there.

All that was there was a large room with a crystal on a pedestal. They knew that the crystal was for the teleportation rings, but since they were riding in the air, they didn't need it.

They sighed that they couldn't find Kane Icestorm.

"Well, onto the next mountain. Let's hope it doesn't take all day," Bob gloomily announced.

And so, they headed towards the second mountain with no luck.

And they headed towards the third mountain with no luck.

But something peculiar happened at the fourth mountain. The same thing that happened to Andrew Firerider.

The second and third mountains are extinct, meaning they can't erupt. The first mountain is dormant, meaning it erupts after a long time. The fourth mountain is highly active, meaning it erupts a lot.

When they first got there, they found a thick layer of ice covering the top.

"What are we going to do?" Bob asked.

"Let me handle this," Merle said.

Merle formed the life symbol in the air, and tapped it with his wand. All of a sudden, a large tree erupted from under the ice, which broke the layer of ice. Merle banished the tree, and they were able to enter.

Again, they couldn't find Kane Icestorm.

As they were exiting the fourth mountain, it erupted a violent eruption.

"RUN!!!!" Merle warned.

Well, they weren't running. They were riding on spirits. But Bob made the spirits go even faster.

It was an amazing sight! Two wizards riding through the air while an avalanche of snow was closing in behind them.

This was a violent eruption, and the mountain was erupting snow quickly.

"LOOK! THERE'S THE EXIT! WE CAN MAKE IT!" Bob shouted.

A bright light was ahead, which was the exit. They rode out, but the avalanche of snow finally caught up with them.

Piles and piles of snow were on top of them, and they weren't too pleased.

The snow was too thick and stretched for too many miles for them to be able to walk out of it. They would soon suffocate.

"We're not going to die on my watch!" Bob exclaimed.

"SPIRITS OF DEATH! I SUMMON YOU AT ALL HASTE, AT THIS HOUR OF NEED! ACCOMPANY ME AS WE ESCAPE FROM THIS TORTURE, AND BRING US OUT WITH ALL SPEED AND HASTE! AM I NOT BOB DEATHRIDER, THE MASTER OF DEATH? I CALL UPON YOU! ANSWER ME!"

The wind was howling loudly, as Bob and Merle were lifted into the air and were flying vertically at a ninety degree angle.

"YEEHAW!" Merle exclaimed.

The spirits of death carried them out of the snow so quickly that they escaped in only 23 seconds and 10 milliseconds.

"Well, that's one place out of our list. Next, to Krog!" Merle proclaimed.

Krog is another name for the Treacherous Forest. At this time, the trees weren't alive, and it wasn't treacherous. But there were bands of goblins and wolves and other creatures.

They rode in the air to Krog, and eventually reached it.

"Let's hope Kane Icestorm is located here," Merle stated.

They journeyed through Krog without facing any adventures or threat. Remember, this forest wasn't treacherous at the time.

They saw some goblins and other creatures, but these creatures were too scared of these fearsome looking wizards that were level 120.

The two wizards searched every cave, every nook and cranny, but found nothing.

All of a sudden, they felt metal placed on their hands. They looked down at their hands, and saw handcuffs.

"WHAT IS GOING ON?" said a frustrated Bob.

"HEHEHEHEHE! THE DARK LORD WILL DEFEAT YOU ALL!" said a pleased goblin.

They turned around to see a large group of goblins.

"Oh boy, this can't be good," said Merle.

"These handcuffs are indestructible. Don't try anything sneaky, or you will be killed. Understood?" asked the goblin.

The two wizards nodded their heads.

The goblin then grabbed the hair of both of them, and banged their heads together.

"Ow!" Bob and Merle groaned.

"Carry them off!" the goblin told the other goblins.

The goblins began to carry them away, with screeching yells of joy.

They led them to a certain spot in Krog, with a lot of leaves on the floor.

The goblins began to push the leaves away, and a large hole was in the forest floor.

"Get in!" a goblin yelled to Bob and Merle.

A goblin pushed them down the hole, as the other goblins descended it safely.

Bob and Merle reached the floor with a loud thump, and rows of torches illuminated a long hall.

"Proceed!" a goblin yelled at them.

Bob and Merle started to walk down the entrance, and they saw a large, brightly-lit room.

There was a large throne in the back of the room, and on it sat Kane Icestorm. The throne was amazingly decorated with pictures of frost giants, colossuses, and pictures of ice.

Icicles hung from the throne, and large shards of ice were hanging on the edges. Two lion statues were placed on the throne - one to the left, and one to the right.

There were many grand steps leading up to the throne, all in the color blue, with streaks of gold. On each step were another two lions - one to the left, and one to the right.

"I see you have a particular interest in lions," Bob sarcastically remarked.

They learnt many things in Ravenwood; one being to calm down in the face of danger. Bob was using jokes as his defense.

"Hahaha," Kane gave an evil laugh. "That was hilarious. That was so funny that I fell off my dinosaur."

"Dinosaur? How old are you?" Bob replied.

"HAHAHAHA! You two are the only threats that stand in my way, and you will soon be eliminated.

I have a small shack that I will put you both in, with two beds. I hope it's comfortable enough for you two."

He gave another evil laugh.

"I will put you to work in my underground dominion. Your first task will be to take clay, heat it in the oven until it turns into brick, take the brick out of the oven, clean the oven, and at the end of the day, you must carry all of the bricks by hand to my factories.

If you think it's an easy job, just wait and see!"

"You're despicable!" Merle shouted. "What about our family?"

"Ah yes, the lovely family. Don't worry, they are doing equally as difficult work. Along with other wizards I have captured over the years."

Bob growled at Kane, and Kane laughed again.

"I see that you're overly hyper, and that you enjoy laughing," Bob told Kane Icestorm. "If you want, I know a really good psychiatrist that might be able to help. Although, your issue is probably too much to handle!"

"SEND THEM AWAY, AT ONCE!" Kane Icestorm ordered a goblin. "And take their staff away from them and give it to me!"

A goblin grabbed their staffs from them, and gave it to Kane Icestorm.

Kane froze the staffs so much, that when he touched it, the staffs shattered into a million shards of ice.

"HAHAHAHA!" Kane Icestorm evilly laughed.

A goblin dragged them through a long corridor, until they were "outdoors." Really, they were underground, but it was outdoors for underground. I hope that's not too confusing. Before they were in a room, and now they're not.

There was a large, gray field, with a large metal fence surrounding it. There were many rundown shacks in the field.

The goblin led them to one shack.

"Here is where you will stay," the goblin said.

"What about our handcuffs?" Merle asked.

"Live with it," the goblin replied.

The goblin pushed them inside the shack, where there were only two beds. Nothing else.

They were both forced to deal with the situation, and sat on the beds, having nothing else to do.

And they weren't comfortable beds either. They were stuffy, and extremely uncomfortable. There were no windows in the shack either.

They tried opening the door to the outside, but it was locked.

"Merle, what are we ever going to do?"

"I don't know Bob. I don't know."

They waited dreadfully long hours, until their door was pushed open.

A goblin came in, with a plate of bread.

"Here is your dinner," the goblin said.

The goblin put the plate down, and then left.

There was a loaf of bread, with cream cheese and margarine on the side. Although it wasn't the best dinner, it was awfully nice of Kane Icestorm.

"Why do you think he gave us a dinner like this? It's too fancy for slaves like us," Bob asked Merle.

"It's probably poisoned," Merle said, as he smeared cream cheese on his bread.

Bob took the margarine and smeared it on his bread.

They ate, and finished it up. There wasn't any poison in the bread.

"So what do you think the reason is now, Merle?"

"Well, we're his slaves, and we're supposed to do work for him. And it wouldn't be good if we were hungry and weak while we were doing work. We would never get the job done."

"Smart thinking Merle."

That was actually the correct reason.

They waited and waited, and eventually fell asleep.

Bob dreamt a dark dream, in which Kane Icestorm kept on popping up around him. Kane was laughing evilly, and Bob was frightened.

The nightmare just wouldn't end.

All of a sudden, they both woke up from their dreams early in the morning. The door to their room was open, with a goblin in the entrance.

"It is time for you to go to work. You must make 150 bricks by the end of the day. Get moving."

The goblin moved them along to the metal fence, where a large door stood. The goblin pulled out a key, and opened up the door.

A path led out from the door, and they traveled upon it. After long minutes, they eventually reached a small building.

"Get inside," the goblin gruffly stated.

They went inside, to find piles and piles of clay in bags, and a large oven in the room.

"Get started," the goblin told them, as he left.

Before the goblin left, he took off the handcuffs, so they can work.

"Don't even attempt to exit this building. It is protected by magic. If you dare exit, you will burst in flames," the goblin warned them.

And then the goblin left.

"Well, we better get started," Merle said.

"Hold on a second. I have a plan," Bob announced.

"What?"

"I know deep death magic. If we take a little bit of the clay to our shack, and we build it until it's very tall, I can use death magic to have a spirit enter inside and make it a golem."

"How are we going to conceal it?" Merle asked.

"That's easy. There's another death spell that can make items vanish. I will vanish them every day when we are done building it, and then the next day when we need to put more clay on it, I can make it reappear."

"That's genius!" Merle exclaimed. "But there's a way I can help also. There's a life spell that can make items grow. We will take the clay home, and I will use the spell to make it grow, so we will get done faster!"

"After the golem is made, I will command it to rip down the metal fence, and to attack Kane Icestorm and his minions. It will listen to its creator, which is me."

With their plan for freedom in mind, the two wizards got to work in making the bricks. Even though they didn't have their staffs with them, they were still able to do magic with their hands.

They took a piece of clay from the pile, and then took a bit off of the clay to save for the golem.

With a swish of his hands, Merle made the clay that would turn into brick larger, to make up for the clay they took for the golem.

They put it into the oven, and did the same to another piece of clay. And another. And another.

The oven was able to hold up to four pieces of clay. When the clay finally turned into bricks, they took the bricks out and put in more clay.

The bricks they put in separate bags that were in the room.

At the end of the day, they had made 150 bricks, and had a lot of clay stored in their pockets. Bob made the clay vanish, so no one would see it.

The door opened, and a goblin entered.

"Have you made 150 bricks?" the goblin asked.

"Yes," Bob answered.

"Take the bags of bricks you made, and come outside. Don't try anything sneaky; there's no way to escape."

Bob grabbed one bag of bricks, and Merle grabbed the other. The goblin led them outside, and down a path to a large factory.

"Leave them out here. Someone will come by and take it," the goblin told them.

Bob and Merle put down the heavy load.

"Now we will go back and get the other two bags," the goblin proclaimed.

There were still two more bags of bricks left.

They went, took the bags, and brought it to the factory.

"Now you will clean up the oven," the goblin announced.

Bob and Merle went back, and using their bare hands, scraped the oven clean.

"Now you can go back to your shack. Dinner will be served in a few hours."

The goblin led them back to their shack. They had worked a whole day, from sunrise until sunset, and were exhausted.

Bob used the spell to make the clay reappear. They poured it out of their pockets onto the floor.

"Spirits of death, it is I, Bob Deathrider, level 120 necromancer, calling upon you for your help. You have been with me on all my adventures, and I ask that you continue with this one. Here is a golem made out of clay, and I need it to come to life! Do my bidding, and bring this golem to life! Bring the golem to life! Bring the golem to life! Bring the golem to life!" Bob chanted.

A whishing sound was heard in the air, and the clay started to form into metal. The eyes of the golem started to move, and so did his body.

"YOU HAVE SUMMONED ME!" the golem announced.

"Yes I have! And you are a mighty golem. Throughout all of history, tales will be told about the Golem of Krog. I ask you now to do my bidding - DESTROY KANE ICESTORM!"

"AS YOU WISH, MASTER!" the golem shouted in a booming voice.

"AAH!!!!!" the golem yelled.

It wasn't a cry of pain; rather it was a charge!

The Golem of Krog charged forward, and broke down the wall of the shack. It started down the field, took the metal fence, and twisted it and broke it. He found the path that led to Kane Icestorm, and shouted right in Kane's face.

"OH MY GOODNESS!" a petrified Kane yelled.

"Say goodbye, Kane Icestorm. Your reign of terror is over!" Bob shouted.

The golem lifted Kane Icestorm right into the air with one hand, as all of Kane's minions watched, scared to death.

The golem threw Kane Icestorm across the room, where Kane Icestorm hit the wall and fell down in a slumped position. The golem took a piece of rock from the wall and threw it at Kane Icestorm.

That was the end of Kane Icestorm.

The Golem of Krog swung his hands around the room, destroying all the minions in the way. He then threw each lion statue off of the throne, one by one.

The golem next took each icicle, and threw it across the room. Finally, the golem took the throne, and smashed it into the wall.

The golem went down each path, and destroyed all of the minions that were there.

When every minion was destroyed, and Kane's lair was strewn with blood, Bob asked the spirits of death to stop the golem. Bob knew the golem would get out of control.

The golem stopped right in its tracks, and fell to the ground with a loud noise.

"Let's go, Merle! We have to find our families!"

They entered every shack, and freed all the people that were captive.

The shacks were locked from the inside; not from the outside.

Many of the wizards taken captive were in poor health, and were in great suffering. Their families were in poor health also.

Bob and Merle cried at the sight of their families, and led all the wizards back to Wizard City.

But it wasn't the end yet. Their families still needed healing.

There was much more to come in their adventures. Something that would twist the very fate of their lives.

~

Kane Icestorm has been defeated, but his aftermath was still around.

"Merle, look at all of these people we rescued," Bob commented as they led the people they rescued into Wizard City. "They're in serious need of medical attention."

"They have suffered in his dungeon much longer than us. We will take them at once to Unicorn Way."

Bob had spirits of death carry them to Wizard City, in case you're wondering how all those wounded people got there.

As Bob and Merle entered the Commons, spectators gathered to see them. They were gone for a few weeks, and people thought they were dead. Now, their amazing return excited everyone.

"They're back!!!" said one person.

"It appears that they defeated Kane! Look at all those people they rescued!"

Another person cried out in joy, "My son! My son! They rescued my son from Kane Icestorm! Bless them forever!"

Headmaster Duncan Stormblood soon heard the commotion, and rushed outside to find a large group of people looking at the sky.

Headmaster Stormblood lifted up his head, and saw Bob, Merle, and a large group of injured and abused people riding stealthily through the air.

"Bob! Merle! Over here!" Headmaster Stormblood shouted.

Bob and Merle saw Headmaster Stormblood on the ground, and waved their hands.

"Not now, headmaster! We got to take these people to the Unicorn Way Hospital for the Injured Wizard, otherwise known as the UWHIW. Meet us there!" Merle announced.

As Bob and Merle rode through the air to the UWHIW, Headmaster Stormblood called all the teachers to come and witness the new events.

Bob and Merle reached the UWHIW, which was located next to Hedgemaze. They carefully lowered down the floating people that they freed from slavery.

Merle put two fingers in his mouth, and gave a loud whistle. The life wizards in the UWHIW heard it, and rushed outside to take the injured people into the hospital.

As soon as everyone was inside the UWHIW and were receiving the medical attention they needed, Bob and Merle turned around to find Headmaster Stormblood and the professors outside of the hospital.

"Tell us your adventure," Headmaster Stormblood commanded. "Did you succeed in defeating Kane Icestorm? How come you didn't tell us that you were leaving? Do you even know the panic that the residents of Wizard City had when you didn't return for a while?"

"Woah woah woah. One question at a time," Bob began. "Yes, we succeeded in defeating Kane Icestorm. We didn't tell you that we were leaving because we were in a rush and knew that you would say that we are too inexperienced and that we couldn't go. And whether people panicked or not, we are back, and they are relieved."

"It's easy for you to say that. Try being headmaster and coping with a city full of panicked people!" Headmaster Stormblood replied.

Professor Deathshard had something to say about this. "With all due respect, headmaster, but is it not your job to deal with the people of this city in times of distress, sorrow, agony, and panick?"

Headmaster Stormblood turned to Professor Deathshard with an annoyed look at his face. He knew that Professor Deathshard was correct.

Merle sensed the tension in the atmosphere and decided to do something about it. "As for our adventure…"

All eyes were focused on Merle as he spoke. Merle gave a detailed account of the moment they found the letter in their homes to the flight to the UWHIW.

"And so you see, Kane Icestorm was crushed and defeated by a giant golem, and the people we freed were brought to the UWHIW," Merle concluded. Merle then let out a long breath, as it took him a while to say all of it.

"Hold your breath. You will most likely need to address the public about this," Headmaster Stormblood announced.

"As fun as that seems, our families are both in that hospital. We want to visit them right now," Bob declared.

"You may go," Headmaster Stormblood permitted.

"I believe my assistance is needed in the UWHIW," Professor Samuel Lifewater said. "I will go there and see what I can do."

Professor Lifewater, Bob, and Merle, headed into the large lobby of the UWHIW. Bob asked the clerk where his family was, and the clerk told him which room. Bob headed there immediately.

Bob pushed open the large door to the room in which his family was. The room was painted green, with pictures of leaves on the wall. The sunshine was flowing perfectly through the double-windows, and Bob felt uncomfortable in this room.

"Mom, Dad," Bob began.

His parents shifted their faces and used all their energy to look at him. Their faces then fell back on their pillow.

"I rescued you," Bob cried. He grasped their hands to comfort them and himself in these dark times.

Sierra Deathrider, Bob's mother, looked at him again.

"I know, I know. We are proud of you. Continue in that path, because we may not be here to direct you."

"No! No! Mom, Dad, please!"

But it was no use. His parents would soon die.

Where was Merle Ambrose when Bob needed him?

Bob rushed out the large door of the room into the hallway. He grabbed the collar of a life wizard and demanded to bring Merle Ambrose to heal his parents.

Bob rushed back into the room, where he waited impatiently. His tears fell onto his dark robe, and the life wizard soon came back.

"Where is Merle Ambrose?!" Bob yelled.

The life wizard was shocked from Bob's response. The life wizard only heard good tales of Bob Deathrider.

"Um um, I tried to get him, but he was busy healing his parents. He said that he needed to help his family, but he will come when he's done," the life wizard stammered.

Bob gave a loud yell. "AAH!!!! THAT DOESN'T HELP ME! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!"

The life wizard ran as if he had the Boots of the Comet on him. Bob sat down, and put his hands in his head, thinking of what he had just done.

Merle Ambrose wasn't coming. Bob knew he had to do something.

"I am the ruler of death! I will make sure my family doesn't die!" Bob announced.

Bob sensed that there were spirits or messengers of death in the room. They would soon strike his parents.

"Spirits of death!" Bob began. "Listen to me and do my bidding! Leave this room at once, and don't return anytime soon! I command you at once! Am I not Bob Deathrider, the ruler of death? LEAVE NOW!"

Bob waited for death to leave the room, but he still felt the presence of death.

Bob gave a loud shriek, and then he screamed, "MERLE AMBROSE!!!!!!!!!!!"

But Merle couldn't possibly hear Bob. They were twenty floors apart. As a matter of fact, Merle was on his way right then.

"Bob, you were the best child," his parents told him with all their strength. "Just as you made us proud, continue to make the Spiral proud. Be good."

The words of his parents seemed to linger in the air, and then Bob felt the presence of death exit the room.

He leaned over the beds his parents were in, and saw that they were dead.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Bob grieved.

Bob took his robe, and tore it apart. He gathered dust from the ground, and put it on his hat. He pulled his hat down over his face.

At that second, Merle Ambrose entered the room, and saw what happened. He ambled over to Bob, and put a hand on Bob's shoulder.

"It's ok, it's ok," Merle comforted Bob.

Bob took Merle's hand, twisted it, and then threw it off of Bob's shoulder.

"YOU!" he shouted.

"Me?" Merle asked.

"YOU! BECAUSE OF YOU, MY PARENTS ARE GONE!"

"Bob, have you gone nuts? There was nothing I could do! My family needed healing!"

But this wasn't good enough for Bob.

Bob sent a beam of darkness straight into Merle's stomach. Merle collided with the door and broke it down.

Doctors and people watched astonished at Merle Ambrose on the floor. They rushed over, and Bob disappeared through the crowd.

But on that day, Bob decided that he would have his revenge on Merle.

1 week, 3 days, 11 hours, 34 minutes, 10 milliseconds…

Bob still secretly hated Merle in his heart. But he didn't show any hatred towards Merle. Sometimes he would pull pranks on Merle, or he would grow extremely angry with Merle, but he would always cover up for it.

There was a knock at Bob's door. Bob peered through the window to find Merle Ambrose, in his green outfit as always.

"I see that you were cut by a wand on your pinky," Bob observed. "It seems as though you were scratching the finger with your wand, and the wand cut through the finger."

"Good observations Bob. You always were good at this stuff. But tell me, how exactly did you know that?" Merle asked.

"That's quite simple. You have a bandage on your pinky, and the way that your pinky is positioned can only be from a scratch through a wind."

Merle was amazed. "Interesting."

That's not the real reason Bob knew it. In truth, Bob stole Merle's wand and rigged it to cut Merle whenever he scratched his hand. Bob had been observing Merle's new habit of scratching his hand with his wand, and came up with this idea.

"Well, we got a more serious issue," Merle began. Merle entered inside, and began walking up and down the room.

"It appears that Kane Icestorm has left us more issues to deal with. You see, a person that we rescued has been released from the hospital yesterday. Her husband died in Kane's dungeon.

She was spotted in Krokotopia with a grim look on her face, and kicking the Manders. She was calling them names, and said that soon she would rule the Spiral.

Her name is Laura DarkGlen, and it appears that she bought some new clothes and a new staff yesterday when she was released. We must find out what she wants to do."

Bob listened closely to what Merle said. Perhaps he could have Merle deliberately killed in battle with Laura DarkGlen.

"Where in Krokotopia is she now?" Bob asked.

"I don't know Bob. We will have to ask the Manders. They last spotted her in the Oasis, but she is on the move."

"So what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Bob announced.

They rode through the air on spirits, and reached Krokotopia. They were greeted by a blue Mander named Zal'Kl!ak. Yes, there is an exclamation mark in his name.

"Greetings, friends. You have come to save us," Zal'K!ak said.

"Yes, we have come," Merel replied. "Where is Laura?"

Zal'K!ak pointed a shaky finger towards the Pyramid of the Sun.

"There," he announced.

Merle's and Bob's heads shifted towards the Pyramid of the Sun, where they found a woman running up the pyramid.

"She's going to fall off and get herself killed!" Merle proclaimed.

"It looks like she can handle the pyrmad," Zal'Kl!ak informed them.

"Well we better hurry. I wonder what she is planning to do," Bob stated.

They started running full speed ahead towards the pyramid. Bob would normally have them ride on spirits, but he had a special plan just for Merle.

The climb was difficult, because the pyramid was steep. But they were doing all they could to catch up to Laura.

Laura saw them running towards her, and yelled, "You will never stop me! I am Laura DarkGlen! Soon, the soul of my husband will be in my body with my soul, and we will conquer the Spiral as revenge that no one saved him before he died!"

Merle gasped loudly. "Two souls in one. That's deep and dark magic. She will be extremely powerful with two souls in her body."

"So we must stop her!" Bob announced, and ran forward. He was running faster than Merle, and was far ahead.

"Wait up Bob! I'm not as fast as you!" Merle shouted.

"Ok! I'm coming down to help you!" Bob replied.

This was all part of Bob's plan to defeat Merle Ambrose. Bob ran down the pyramid to Merle Ambrose, and stretched out his hand to help Merle Ambrose climb the pyramid.

Merle gripped Bob's hand, and Bob started dragging Merle on the pyramid.

"Oh no Merle! My hand is slipping!" Bob said.

Bob made his hand slowly slip off of Merle's, and Merle fell through the air for miles.

"NOOOOOOOO!" Merle desperately cried.

A slow smile formed on Bob's face, and Merle didn't see it. Merle was tumbling through the air, flipping all around. The ground was just a few feet below him.

But lo and behold! Merle made a thick pile of leaves form underneath him. It stretched from the ground a few feet into the air. Merle fell into the pile of leaves, and was saved.

"NOOOOOOO!" Bob shouted. Luckily, Merle didn't hear him. They were too far away.

Bob realized that his plan didn't work. But he would have his revenge one day. And not just on Merle, but on the whole Spiral.

Until this plan formed into reality, Bob had to pretend that he was good.

All of a sudden, Bob heard a light tap on his shoulder. He turned around and saw Laura DarkGlen facing him.

"Bye bye!" Laura mocked.

Bob was confused. What was she doing?

He soon found out. Laura took her staff and jabbed it into Bob's stomach, causing Bob to fall off the pyramid also.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Laura laughed.

Bob fell down miles through the air, until he landed onto the pile of leaves Merle created.

He summoned the spirits of death to bring Merle to where he was, and said, "I'm so sorry. I was losing my grip on you. I just realized that we could've used the spirits to reach Laura."

Merle dusted off some leaves from his robe. "Now you realize!"

"We must hurry and defeat Laura! She already reached the top of the pyramid," Bob announced.

They rode on the spirits and reached the top of the pyramid, where they saw an amazing sight. The sun was high in the sky, and Laura pointed her staff towards the sun. After reciting an incantation, the sun's rays shined directly onto the staff, and a gust of wind was moving through the air.

A cyclone of wind surrounded her and started to spin. When it cleared away, she announced in a deep voice, "I am Tyler DarkGlen, Laura's husband who perished in the dungeons of Kane Icestorm. No one came to save us, and when you reached Laura, I was already dead.

And so, I have come back from the dead and entered the body of my beloved Laura.

And now we will have our revenge on the Spiral! Surrender now, or suffer a terrible fate!"

All of a sudden, Bob remembered hearing something in class.

"Sometimes the soul of a spirit enters the body of the person he/she once loved," Professor Deathshard told the class. "THIS IS A KYBUKK!"

Bob knew that this was dark magic, and to remove a kybukk is extremely difficult. But Bob knew that he had to win. He wanted to kill Merle; he didn't want Laura to defeat Merle.

"Merle, did you hear her/him? I think we better surrender," said a sarcastic Bob.

"FOOLS! YOU WILL DIE!" Tyler proclaimed.

Tyler/Laura created a darkness to surround Bob and Merle. They couldn't see a thing.

Merle quickly got rid of the darkness using his own powers of life. Tyler/Laura grew upset.

"Merle, defend me!"

Bob had a plan in his mind. Merle went in front of Bob, and summoned all types of shields and barriers.

Bob was trying to have the kybukk removed. "Spirit of Tyler DarkGlen, listen to me, Bob Deathrider, ruler of death! Return to the afterlife, where you will find peace. A spirit can't function in the world of mortals!"

"NEVER! I WILL NEVER LEAVE LAURA DARKGLEN!" Tyler announced.

"But you must know that spirits aren't supposed to enter the mortal world! You can never find happiness here! And no one knew the location of Kane Icestorm to rescue you. Please listen to us!"

"FOOL! YOU WILL BE DESTROYED!"

Bob never learnt how to handle this in necromancy class. He was taught that a kybukk could be persuaded to leave. And here was a kybukk that wouldn't leave.

Not only that, but Bob had no training with kybukks! It's not like Ravenwood would have practive kybukks to practice on!

Bob had to turn away from Tyler, and ask the spirits.

"O powerful spirits! Behold, here is a spirit in the mortal world! Bring this spirit back to Celestia, the spirit world, where it will find peace and happiness. Bring this spirit to where all spirits belong! Am I not Bob Deathrider, ruler of death? Listen to my voice, and fulfill my command!"

"THAT'S IT! I'VE HAD IT WITH THOSE SHIELDS!" said an angry Tyler DarkGlen.

Using all of their energy combined, Tyler/Laura produced a dark energy beam that flowed from their staff and broke every single shield. Next it would hit Merle and Bob.

All of the Manders were gathered on the islands of Krokotopia and were witnessing this event. Soon, Merle and Bob would be destroyed, then Krokotopia, and then the Spiral.

But lo and behold! There was a chilly breeze in the air, and Merle, Bob, and Tyler/Laura heard voices. They couldn't hear exactly what the voices were saying; it was all mixed-up.

The wind passed Bob and Merle and headed straight towards Tyler/Laura. It went straight through them, and Tyler/Laura collapsed on the pyramid.

Merle rushed over and carried Laura's body off the pyramid. She needed healing; perhaps she will see some common sense later.

Bob followed Merle down the pyramid, where the Manders thanked them for everything they did.

They next went to Wizard City, where they put Laura in the UWHIW, and then departed to their homes.
Laura DarkGlen was unconscious as she lay in the UWHIW. But she was having a dream, in which she heard the voice of Tyler DarkGlen.

"Tyler? Is that you?" she called to the surrounding darkness.

"Laura, I may have been forced to exit your body, but I have come back to your mind. Laura, Bob was right. There was no way for me to function in the mortal world."

"No! I don't believe it!" Laura exclaimed.

"Sadly, it is true," Tyler continued. "Laura, there is no way we can be happy unless we're both mortal or we're both spirits. And there is no way to make me mortal. That is, there is no way without the Krokonomicon."

"So I'll find the Krokonomicon for you!" Laura said.

"No, no. You can't possibly search all of Krokotopia for the Krokonomicon. You would never find it."

"So what should I do?"

"Come to me in the spirit world. Let me take you there, and we can be there forever."

Laura DarkGlen let her mind fall into the hands of Tyler, and they departed to the spirit world, Celestia, together.