Ascension

The Druid Tree's mighty boughs were heavily laden with snow and icicles, though the inner-part of the tree was quite warm. Magical fires were ablaze on all the levels of the mighty tree, keeping it nice and warm, but they did not burn its bark. On the highest level of the tree a figure cloaked in dark green stood looking out over the land, when a vampire approached him.

"Excuse me, my lord. I have come to give me report", said the vampire, kneeling down before him.

"I have come to report that everything is going according to plan in my sector", said the vampire, with an evil grin. "Most of the inhabitants of Windy Bluff are dead, due to the weather"

"Very good. Now we just have to wait for the other scouts to report back, and then we can proceed as planned", said the cloaked figure, with a smile that sent a chill down the vampire's spine. "Lets hope your four brothers bring back as good a report as yours, Reth"

"I'm sure they will, Lord Theloth, I'm sure they will", said Reth, with a smug expression upon his face..

The desert city of Phatep was better off than the other cities of the Realm. The Kithan mountains shielded the desert from the blizzards that had been taking place, but it was still covered in a fair amount of snow. The knight, Gelltor, was walking through the Central Plaza when a strange looking figure caught his eye to the east. Gelltor came to the conclusion that it was a vampire by the way it was moving.

"So, this city is still populated...it must be due to the mountain range. I better report back to Theloth", the vampire said to himself. He turned and started walking for the east gate.

"Good day", said Gelltor, with a smile as he approached the vampire. "I am Gelltor Vengro of the Knighthood. May I help you find something or someone?"

The tall vampire spun around and said, "I'm known as Lerinn, and yes, there is something that you do for me...you can drop dead"

Lerinn drew his blade and lunged at Gelltor with fangs bared. Gelltor unsheathed Righteousness and parried the vampire's attack in one quick motion. He then slashed his right leg, and smashed him in his stomach with the hilt of his sword. The vampire fell to his knees shrieking in pain.

"I...was sent here...by...Lord Theloth. The greatest...druid...in the world. Soon, the whole... Realm...will be under...his command", said Lerinn, struggling to get the words out of his mouth.

"Yes, that...is...correct. I was the...one assigned to...this sector..." gurgled Lerinn. "I am...to defeat any...who get...in the-" Lerinn's sentence was cut short as an arrow pierce through his heart, ending his life.

Gelltor looked around for who had shot him, and spotted another figure just outside the east gate. He then turned into wisps of fine mist and disappeared.

He probably shot him, so that he would not reveal any more information, thought Gelltor.

He turned to walk back to his guild hall, when he saw another, more familiar figure running across the snow covered Central Plaza with another person in pursuit.

"Stop, thief! I'll have your head if you do not pay for those cookies that you stole!" yelled Ramses, the owner of the food and provisions shop.

The thief paid no mind to him, he just kept running. He wasn't paying attention in the direction he was running and he ran right into Gelltor, falling down into the snow at his feet.

"Ah, Gelltor, It's you. Do you think I could borrow some gold?" asked the thief, with a smile. He rose to his feet, dusting the snow off of his clothing, and popped another cookie into his mouth. "I need to pay for these cookies", he said spitting cookie crumbs everywhere, as he talked with his mouth full.

Gelltor sighed. "Akar, when will you learn that you canât go around stealing cookies?"

"It won't happen again, I promise. Come on, friend, let me borrow the gold", said Akar.

Just then Ramses caught up to them. "I have you now, thief! Pay up or I will report you to Olpus and the Royal Guards!" he said angrily.

"Take it easy, Ramses, I'll take care of it", said Gelltor. "How much does he owe you?"

"Oh, Gelltor, I didn't see you there, I was so blinded by rage. How are you?" said Ramses.

"To answer your second question, he owes me six-thousand gold from all the times he has filched cookies from my shop", exclaimed the shopkeeper.

"Wow, that's a lot, but I suppose I'll have to pay it", said Gelltor, as he handed him a small brown pouch filled with gold coins.

The shopkeeper then thanked Gelltor and shot a glare at Akar, and walked back toward his shop at the end of the Parade of Nobles. Gelltor and Akar then started to walk to the stables, so that Gelltor could get his horse and go looking for Theloth. The knight asked his friend if he had heard anything of Theloth. Akar did not know anything but he said he would help in any way he could.

"Well, here we are", said Gelltor. They were standing in front of the stables. "I'll see you later, I guess"

"What!? Don't think you are getting rid of me that easily...I'm coming with you", Akar said with a big grin.

The knight chuckled politely. "No, it is much too dangerous. It is best if you stayed here in Phatep. Who knows what the rest of the Realm looks like? This city is shield by the Kithan mountain range, so I'm sure the other cities and towns are worst off", explained Gelltor.

"Heh, I guess you won't take no for an answer, will you? Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you", said the elf.

"Yeah! Thank you, you won't regret it!" exclaimed Akar, happily. "Umm... Where are we going anyway?"

Two lithe vampires entered the Druid Tree and made their way to Lord Theloth's chamber. They both kneeled before him and gave their report of the sections of the Realm that they were assigned to.

"My sector was clear of all living things", said the smaller of the two vampires, with a smirk.

"Same here, sir. Nothing was stirring in my quadrant, either", exclaimed the other vampire.

"Good work, Mirath and Keda. We now just have to wait for Lerinn and Cendar to return. It won't be long before there are none left to oppose us, and the entire Realm will be ours!" said Theloth, with excitement.

Just then another vampire entered the chamber. "Lerinn won't be able to make it", the vampire hissed.

"Ah, Cendar, I was wondering when you would return. How was your quadrant?" asked Lord Theloth.

"It was fine, but that it the least of our worries", exclaimed Cendar. "I was forced to kill Lerinn, because he was giving information to a knight that had defeated him. Apparently, the Kithan mountains are acting as a barrier and is blocking most of the snow out of the desert region of Phatep"

"He is headed this way with a friend of his, they are both on horse back, and will arrive here shortly. I believe the knight's name is Gelltor Vengro", explained Cendar. "He will pay for what he did to our brother", he said, looking at his other brothers as he said this.

"Heh, we'll just have to teach those two a lesson that they will never forget", said Lord Theloth, with an evil grin.

Gelltor and Akar arrived at the base of the Druid Tree some time later. They looked up at it and were trying to decide what the best approach would be to enter the tree. They knew that there was an underground entrance, but it had been covered with snow and ice. They started to approach the massive tree, when a hidden door opened up in the trunk. Standing there was what appeared to be a druid flanked by four fearsome-looking vampires.

"I am here to tell you to leave this tree and return the Realm back to normal", said Gelltor sternly.

"Yeah, that's right!" spoke Akar, not wanting to be left out of the conversation.

The vampires burst into laughter. "Who is going to make us?" Keda ventured, boldly.

"Heh, you are a fool", smirked Theloth. He then motioned to the four vampires and said, "Kill the both, and then go and wipe out the city of Phatep" He then turned and walked back into the tree.

The vampires then drew their swords and leapt at the knight and thief. The vampires Cendar, Reth, and Mirath attacked Gelltor, while Keda engaged Akar. Gelltor quickly unsheathed Testament and parried the attacks of the three vampires.

"Looks like we found one that can actually fight", sneered Cendar. "We have the upper hand, though, because we can fly and these fools must contend with the thick layer snow"

Keda rushed Akar, but he dodged his attack with ease. Then he pulled out both of his daggers, and was about to circle around the vampire, when Keda landed a kick to his stomach. Akar dropped his daggers, and they sunk down into the snow. The vampire then slashed at the thief's face, but he dodged just in the nick of time, but tripped and fell face first into the snow. Keda was moving in for the kill, but Akar leapt up and threw a hand full of snow into the vampire's eyes. He then followed it up with a kick to his face, which sent the vampire sprawling into the trunk of the tree, where he slumped down. Akar then began to search for his missing weapons, which he found after a short while. As he stood back up Keda had regained his footing and thrust his blade into the thief's side. The vampire watched as Akar fell down into the snow, and was satisfied with his victory. He then turned and began to go to the aid of his brothers in the fight against Gelltor, when Akar stood back up and backstabbed the vampire. Keda shrieked with pain and surprise; the last thought that went through his mind was how the thief had survived his attack. The small bag of cookies that he had stolen were tied to his waist at his side, and had shielded the blow.

Meanwhile, Gelltor had been holding his own against the remaining vampire brothers. Cendar and Mirath charged Gelltor, while Reth cast attack spells on him from afar. The knight had his work cut out for him, as he had to dodge two vampires and avoid the spells of another. The elf then saw an opportunity emerge, and he took it. When Reth cast a lightning bolt, he moved out of the way and it hit Mirath. He then swung Testament in an arch and lobbed the head off the unsuspecting vampire. Cendar and Reth charged him from opposite directions in a rage, as they saw their comrade die. Gelltor ducked and Reth's blade went straight through Cendar's chest, killing him instantly. Then the knight bashed the last vampire and sent him crashing hard into the tree trunk, the force of the impact shattering his backbone.

Akar approached Gelltor after the fighting was complete. "Those guys were tough", said the thief. "Luckily, I still had some cookies left in my bag from earlier", grinned Akar.

"You fought well, Akar. Now we must find and defeat Theloth to end this", explained Gelltor.

The duo entered the Druid Tree through the hidden door which they saw Theloth go into. Then, they cautiously made their way through the many levels of the tree, searching for the druid. They finally found him in the chamber at the top of the tree.

"It's over, Theloth, your friends have been defeated", said Gelltor sternly. "Surrender, and your life will be spared"

"Friends? They were not my friends, they were my puppets", sneered Theloth. "I will not surrender to the likes of you, anyway. It is you who should be surrendering"

"Leave this guy to me, Gelltor, he doesn't look so tough", said Akar, confidently. He then rushed the druid with weapons drawn.

Theloth backhanded the thief and sent him flying out of the tree. "He is all yours, Gelltor", Akar yelled back, as he flew from the tree.

Theloth then hefted his massive wooden hammer, and began to utter strange verses under his breath. His muscles bulged, a barrier of wind encompassed him, and cascading torrents of energy surrounded him. Likewise, Gelltor enhanced his armor and laid the blessing of Tatianna upon himself. The druid then kicked off the battle by sending a flame dart in Gelltor's direction, which was easily dodged, but that was Theloth's intent. While the knight dodged that attacked, the druid summoned a blizzard which hit Gelltor hard, freezing his right gauntlet solid. The knight quickly removed it and delivered a mighty chop to Theloth's neck, which caused him to fall back choking. This attack triggered the shock shield and a lightning bolt hit Gelltor in the chest, and brought him to his knees. The druid then rushed in and delivered an elbow smash to the elfâs face, which sent him to the ground. Theloth lifted his massive wooden hammer, and was about to crush Gelltor's skull, when the knight uttered a quick prayer, and a bright flash of holy light surrounded him. This caused Theloth to go blind for a second, and Gelltor kicked him in his stomach and dodged the lightning bolt from his shield.

This one is stronger than I had expected. I'm going to have to use my trump card if I am to win this, but I need the time to build up the energy for it, thought Gelltor.

"Akar, I need you to hold this guy off for a minute or two, while I gather enough spiritual energy for my spiritual wrath spell", said Gelltor.

Akar engaged the druid, while Gelltor began to draw spiritual energy from all the living things in the Realm. There were not that many living things left in the lands, so this would prove to be a momentous task. Akar was doing surprising well against Theloth, he dodged many of his attacks spells, and kept circling him. He was growing quite tired, however, and could not keep it up for much longer.

"Play time is over", said Theloth, with a chuckle. He then summoned a massive whirlwind, which flung the thief into the wall, like a rag doll.

Akar lay at the base of the wall, unconscious. Upon seeing this, Gelltor's adrenaline began to rise, which gave him the last bit of energy he needed for his spell. He then began to utter a phrase under his breath, and a beam of iridescent holy energy shot forth from Gelltor's outstretched palm and it hit Theloth, destroying him instantly. Gelltor then rushed over to his fallen friendâs side, and healed his wounds.

"Yes, he is dead. You fought valiantly today, and I couldn't have done it without you", exclaimed Gelltor, with a smile.

The knight then helped his friend to his feet and they left the Druid Tree. Outside, the sun broke through the clouds and it began to feel like springtime, again. It would take it a couple of days to melt the snow, but everything looked to be in order. Even the people of lands who had collapsed due to the extreme temperatures, began to rise again, as if they were reborn into the world. The same went for the wildlife and plants. The two comrades mounted their horses and rode back the way they came, to Phatep. When they arrived, they parted ways, and Gelltor headed back to the Knighthood guild hall for some rest.

When he entered the hall he found that the Star Goddess, Tatianna, was waiting for him. He knelt down in reverence to the Goddess.

Tatianna smiled down at him. "You saved the Realm, and for that I shall make you a Hero"

Gelltor didn't know what to say, so he simply thanked the Goddess for bestowing such honor upon him. She then transferred him to her temple, where a ceremony was held in honor of Gelltor becoming an avatar.

Two weeks later all the snow and ice had melted away; the rivers returning to normal. The trees branches were no longer laden with snow, but with bright green leaves, and flowers were a bloom all over the lands. Indeed, the Realm had been saved, and everything was back to the way it should have been, for the time being.

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