Deep inside a cave in the Kalmor region stood a figure dressed in a dark cloak and holding a staff in his right hand. Standing before him was a stone with a symbol on it. This symbol is the seal to another realm that Gutoro Sen used to seal away strong warriors and monsters that he didn’t wish to kill. They would be imprisoned in this realm for the rest of their lives. The symbol was a circle with a triangle in the center, and from each point where the triangle touched the circle, a line moved out about 2 feet and formed another circle with a six sided star in the middle. In between the outer circles, there were curved lines connecting them.

The cloaked figure placed his staff on the ground and held a black book in his hand. He placed his free hand on the center circle and began to read from the book: "Once you looked away until a day untold in a realm of darkness, you slept. Until this day, you shall awaken from a slumber so deep as I speak your name and release you from such a burden. "Come forth, oh great warrior Septom, your new master calls. "Release God's Hand Seal." Instantly, the symbol began to glow a dark purple, which then shot out behind him, and a figure emerged kneeling.

This seal would be used to his advantage, releasing those warriors of old to do his bidding and exact his revenge; the kingdoms of this continent would fall, and the world would bow at his feet.

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The sound of metal banging against each other could be heard through the mountain air. A girl was barely holding her own against a man as she managed to block a strike from above. The male then pulled back his sword and made a horizontal slash toward her, which she was able to dodge by stooping down, and she immediately countered with an upward slash, causing him to jump in order to avoid the attack. She didn't give him time to rest, instead charging in with her black hair swaying behind her and her purple eyes locked on him, her sword flying with a barrage of attacks. The male figure easily dodged the attacks with little effort.

“Come on, Lyca, is that all you have?” With a smile on his face, the male said while blocking one of her attacks.

This was one of their weekly trainings. Lucas, her brother, would always take her to the top of the mountain to train three times a week, ever since they moved to the nearby town.

Lyca gritted her teeth against each other as she tried to push her brother back. He held his ground. Stepping back, he used his sister's force against her, causing her to lose her footing and stumble forward Lucas drove his knee into her stomach, causing her to groan in pain and fall to her knees. He followed through with a right kick to her head, which she managed to block with her left forearm. Pushing away his leg, she immediately sprang to her feet and made two back flips to gain some distance between her brother and herself. Her dark, black hair was blowing across her face while she watched Lucas, waiting for him to make a move. She took a defensive stance with her slim body.

"What's the matter, getting scared? You know you'll never defeat me like that," he said with a smile.

I had to get close to him. I know I can beat him with my speed.

"If you're not coming, Ly, then here I come." He grunted. Lucas made two quick side steps and then a dash for his sister.

"Here he comes; he's predictable like this," Lyca thought.

Lucas thrust his blade forward one, two, and three times, and he continued. Lyca parried them away with much effort. "How long can you block, sis?" Lucas smiled.

"Don't worry about me, brother; this time I'll definitely defeat you." She replied.

Lyca continued to block, waiting for the right time to strike. Her brother then switched his attack to a vertical swipe left and right, which Lyca dodged by falling to her back and rolling over to her feet.

"Here it comes," she thought as her brother moved in with a downward slash. -Now Lyca.-

She blocked his attack, throwing him off balance; she could see the surprise in his light brown eyes and mouth wide open, then Lyca executed a low sweep kick to his left foot, causing him to fall to the ground.

I can't lose to her yet. He thought Looking up at the blue sky with not a cloud in sight, he closed his eyes and took a breath. He could smell the cold air of the mountains and feel it as it went through his nostrils. He could also feel the grass in his free hand.

"Astelisa!" he shouted.

Lyca was just about to finish the fight when she heard her brother shout the words, and roots erupted from the ground, constricting her movements and wrapping themselves around her.

"No fair!" she screamed, unable to move. "I thought you said you wouldn't use any special techniques." "You know I still haven’t unlocked my heiki."

"Well, I can't let you beat me now, can I? And besides, you can never trust your opponents in battle, no matter what they say. ""That's another lesson for you." He laughed, seeing Lyca's pale skin getting red with anger. She was only eighteen years old and already very skilled with a blade. He watched over her carefully; all they had was each other, and he would do whatever it took to protect her. Lyca watched as her brother approached her, his sword in his right hand, the silver blade glinting against the beams of the sun. She could almost make out the enchantment on it, but couldn't understand why she was unable to read it. He was dressed in black pants that were torn at the knees from the various training sessions they had. His short sleeved shirt was pressing against his chest from the wind blowing against him; he was about five feet eight inches tall, while Lyca stood a mere five feet three inches. Her lips were as pink as the day she was born. "Maybe next time," he said, kissing her on the forehead and looking her in her purple eyes. He whispered and gently released her from the roots, placing her feet on the ground.

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"You're right, I'll beat you the next time." Lyca said, laughing. Lucas couldn't help but smile, removing his sister's hair from her face and placing it behind her ears. "Let's go, sis." They departed along the path down the mountainside towards the nearby town where they lived, and while departing, Lucas sensed a strange power and the distance of malicious intent.

I sense something of great evil is coming, and no matter what, I must protect Lyca. I will stop whatever it is.

He was staring over the horizon at the sunset, mixed with colors so beautiful he couldn't even begin to imagine them. Seeing the way the pink and purple mixed with the red and orange, and how the yellow from the sun caused it to glow with such passion, he saw Lyca also admiring the sunset. The calm before the storm

“Is there something wrong, Lu?” Lyca asked, seeing her brother gazing out in the distance.

"Oh no, everything is fine; I was just thinking about something," he replied with a smile.

Lyca walked ahead of her brother. She watched as the townspeople shopped and gossiped about things she didn't understand or didn’t care about. The only thing on her mind was reaching home, stuffing something down her throat, and changing into something clean. She was all sweaty and dirty from training with Lucas all day. The grime on her skin was already hard. She was in need of a bath. Trying to navigate her way through the city of Liasha was a trial on its own, especially at this hour when the city was crowded. At this time, the masses of people came out to town to get what they could eat, while the more privileged people went to their homes, and this made it harder as the streets seemed to shrink with the crowd. They passed a tall building with a sign that said Maverick's Paradise was made of a rather old material that looked like a type of dark-red wood that gave off a rather peculiar scent to hide the smell of the liquor coming from inside. She had always wondered where they had gotten it from.

"Brother, do you know what this type of wood is called and where it comes from?" She asked her brother.

"It's from an old tree that's said to be extinct now; it was said to be found deep within the forest of shadows."

She saw her brother looking at it curiously.

"Hey, Lyca, go on ahead; I'll catch up to you." He smiled and entered the building.

"Hey Lily, what are you doing just standing around?" Lyca turned around to see her best friend Emily grinning at her with an excited smile and two guards standing behind her. "So what'cha doing?"

"Oh, nothing." She replied with a smile. “I was just heading home to take a bath and change into something clean.”

They began walking as Emily told Lyca about her day and how her mom had bought her some new clothes. “Let’s go to my place. "I'm sure I have something that can fit you.”

Emily and Lyca were almost nothing alike, except maybe for their height. They had almost nothing in common. Emily always had a smile on her face and was an energetic and friendly person. She didn’t find it hard to make new friends where Lyca was and didn’t like talking much, but once someone tried to befriend her or talk to her, she would talk back and try her best to be friendly. Emily always wore something extravagant when Lyca saw her. This time she had on a blue sleeveless dress made of silk with a line of red rubies running down the side of her torso and into a split starting a little above the knee to the length of the dress, which stopped at her ankles. She wore a gold chain around her neck and a pair of emerald earrings matching the color of her eyes. Lyca noticed two extra bodyguards not far behind them, hiding just in case something went wrong.

"Not very good at stealth," she thought.

They continued their journey to Emily's house with no problems.

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Lucas heard Emily yell to his sister from outside the building. Emily always seems to be happy. The air inside was filled with the smell of smoke and liquor. The smell irritated his nose. Lucas never liked to smoke or drink. He was wondering why he had even entered the bar. It was the ominous feeling from earlier, the feeling that something was wrong. A presence he had never felt before was coming. He approached the bar and asked the bartender if Devon was there. The bartender took him around to the back, passing a fat man with a thick brown beard and two girls who appeared to be in their early twenties dancing on him with their tops off, exposing their breasts and pink nipples. He couldn't imagine his sister in a place like this. The well rounded man was squeezing one of the girls. Lucas turned his face away in disgust and wondered if the girls had any family and why they were even doing this kind of job. They continued walking towards the back, passing more topless girls.

Why does he even stay here? That was the next thing he thought as they reached a black door that had multiple locks, a plaque in the design of a lion's head with spikes going around its neck, and red rubies for eyes. Lucas felt like he was being watched. The bartender opened the door, and a slight gust of breeze came from the inside.

"You may enter Lucas." A voice proclaimed from within as the bartender motioned him forward.

I knew I was being watched.

Lucas entered the dark room, and the door closed behind him. The room was suddenly lit up, with blue flames surrounding the bottom edges where the floor met the wall. In front of him was a desk and a man sitting behind it. a scar over the left eye and another in the shape of an X on his right cheek. There was nothing hanging on the walls, just a pale room. "How can he stay in here?" Lucas wondered as he stepped forward.

"What brings you here, Lucas?" The man asked in a deep voice.

"Forgive me for bothering you, Devon, but I sensed a strange power earlier and wanted to know if you knew anything about it." Lucas asked with a look of worry on his face.

Devon began scratching behind the ear of the lion that lay next to him. Lucas observed as its tail turned into a blue flame. "Do you think I should tell him, buddy?" Devon spoke in a low tone as he questioned his lion. "Dark days are ahead, Lucas, and you must prepare her. You can not keep her from her true path. You have done well training her in the art of the blade, but you have kept her here for too long. My sources tell me about a mage to the west with powers comparable to yours, maybe even a member of the Queen's Guards.

Devon's psychic abilities have never been wrong before. - I must protect Lyca at all costs; she's the only family I have.

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It was now nightfall; the sky was filled with stars, and the moon was just making its way up to the sky to shine its light on the planet. On the mountain where Lyca and her brother trained earlier, there was a flash of light, and from that light emerged six figures. “So the child of prophecy is here in this city. "Bring her to me.” A figure in a dark cloak holding a staff spoke, and three of the other figures disappeared into the night.