Chapter 1 : The Prophecy

"Moshka Xenos!"A tree bark in lonely Evergreen Wood cracked open to reveal a hidden door at the sound of the spell.Rain was beating down hard on the spellcaster's face and thunder roared every now and then.It was the darkest night that had ever occured in Evergreen Wood.

The spellcaster,a young elf by the name of Kallos, slowly opened the old wooden door which creaked loudly as if none have pushed it for a long time now."Finally you've came,"a voice was to be heard issuing from one of the inner rooms,"come now and sit beside me ,my young friend,let this old fool explain everything that has confused you for the last 15 years."Kallos entered and found himself in a simply decorated room that only has a table and a chair.As he entered the door closed magically behind him and everything went dark.

Lifting up his arm,he whispered,"Brahsna!".Immediately a wisp of fire sprang into life and danced merrily upon his palm,illuminating the whole room.With the light produced,he found his way into the next room and found the source of the voice - an old elf that was lying on a large oak bed.Despite the fact that he is dying,he still have the eyes that shone like stars in the night sky.Kallos grabbed a chair and sat beside him.

After a few breath-taking moments,the dying elf finally started to speak."Kallos,15 years ago you had noticed something unusual happening to our kind,that we had started to age with time.People were starting to get tired easily and energy seemed to be drained out of them with every single second spent.I,myself the Elder Druid of our kind,am also another victim of this disease,as I worked day and night to find out what's happening to us,age acted on me quicker than anyone else.Finally,a few days ago,I found the source of this disease,but the weariness of the 15 years of finding the source of the disease had made me immobile and beyond all hope of recovering.That's why I've sent you a message to come here."

"What could've done this to us?We,who inhabited this place since the first dawn,had always been wary to our surroundings and under the protection of the Elder Tree!"said Kallos,"Through the years we endured, we had found out and eliminated all our weaknesses and our inabilities!We,the elves,had also found out how to control a portion of the tree's power which gave us the source of life and made us immortal."Suddenly,he stopped.After a brief moment of thinking, he spoke again,"Is the Elder Tree disturbed?"

"Ahh.Finally after all these years,you've found the answer!",said the Elder Druid.

"Only because you've told me what was happening to our kind and that I thank you."said Kallos."But what could've disturbed the sacred tree?The tree which gave us life,strength and immortality!Its powers still we cannot control fully,only an equally powerful force could've disturbed it,but such force is impossible to exist in this world!"

"There's where you're wrong,young one,for you see,such power existed and weakened the power of the Elder Tree,as I had found a few years ago.I traced this force back to its root and tried to vanquish it forever and restore the power of the tree,"said the Elder Druid,"however,my efforts were fruitless.Somehow,our enemies,the Orcs had found this force before us.They had make use of this power which gave them demonic powers in return of their servitude.Yes,this power have its own mind and consciousness.The Orcs had been doing its every bidding since the past 15 years."

"Opposing to the force we all know and held dear,this force seeks for more power and dominance of all living beings in this world.If it is not stopped,this world will soon turn into chaos and who knows what will happen next.Years before the Elder Tree is disturbed,I made a prophecy concerning the future of our land and the world far beyond our borders.As usual,I became One with the stars above and they gave me a series of complicated codes which only the most skilled druid could decipher.So I gathered all the druids that were famous for their abilities in deciphering codes and tried to solve this puzzle.We worked for a year trying to unscramble these codes.Finally,we had found the answer and the result gave us a real shock because it prophecised doom and destruction.We thought that we deciphered it wrongly so we tried again,but the results came out the same and we knew immediately that there's no time to lose if we were to change the future.That's why I left Evergreen Wood suddenly 15 years ago."

After a short pause,he continued to speak,"We packed all our needs and began our journey towards the nothernmost part of this world,where it is rumoured to be the source of evil since the very beginning of this world.This journey took lives of many elven druids as some were unable to withstand the harsh weathers and climates of that land."

Suddenly,anger filled the aged druid,flames were in his eyes and it seemed likely to burst out of the druid's eyes any moment.Through gritted teeth the druid continued,"But the others!They were ambushed by the the Orcs while we were resting after days of travelling.THOSE MONGRELS!If I have the chance of meeting them again,I WILL SHOW NO MERCY!I WILL SLAUGHTER THEM LIKE THE PIGS THEY ARE!Cough...Cough."

Breathing fast and loudly the druid tried to calm down.After a few moments,the rage that was in him subsided."Sorry about that,I was carried away.That feeling you can never understand,until you've experienced it for yourself.Anyway,that's how I've found out the source of the disturbance of the Elder Tree.Unlike all the other powers,this power is visible and seems to be taking a shape of an oversized sea serpent.It had gathered a lot of troops when we found it and it was impossible for us to break its defence and destroy it forever.So,we decided to spy on them.It was years after that when it finally noticed out existance."A grin was stretched across his face,as if he was making fun of their carelessness.

"What's so funny?"asked Kallos,though he already knew the answer.

"Though they were strongly built and powerful,the Orcs had always been careless and unwary and this had cost them a lifetime.During the years of spying,we had gathered a lot of information regarding their weaknesses and strategies.We had also gathered enough information to cause havoc to the Orcs before we escaped with ease."Laughter filled the room after he finished his sentence.

It was only a moment after that the atmosphere became solemn again.The druid continued,"Almost all of the information gathered were bad news for us.From the news we heard from travellers,we found out that the evil power had been recruiting armies from the villages near their stronghold.I believe by now more than a thousand men had been recruited.These men are not the Man we know,they are more sinister and lusts for power and dominance just like the Orcs.Despite the fact that they are smaller and weaker,they are not to be overlooked.These men proved to be more of a use to the evil pwer right now than the Orcs.They had been busy designing and constructing weapons and armours to be used in wars in the future.They had also been supplying war strategies to the Orcs ever since the first batch of Man joined forces with the Orcs.Spies were also sent out to gather information on other lands,and sadly,including ours."

"More sadly I say this to you,they had gathered more information from us that I had ever thought possible."The Elder Druid added on.

"But this cannot be!Nothing could've passed our sentinels unseen.I,too,had always been patroling the borders of our lands and scouts were everywhere within our lands."said Kallos.Confusion and fear was in his eyes as he was saying that.

"I can explain this.Over the peaceful years,laziness had befallen our sentinels and worse,some of them are even corrupted by power and greed.This force has a power of controlling people's minds and the results are quite obvious.After years of spying,I had noticed that some of their spies are the ones we know,or I can say,once knew.The Dark Side had successfully influenced their minds."said the Elder Druid.After saying that,he closed his eyes and teardrops were to be found on the very edge of his eyes.

With tears upon his face,he opened his eyes and started to speak once again."I never thought I would see the day that the elves fall to the Dark Side."

Sadness was in Kallos's heart too.He walked around the room,trying to suppress that feeling.After a few moments of silence,Kallos spoke."The betrayers were slain a few days ago and worst of all,by my own hands!Nothing could ever wash away the elven blood that spilled on my hands and sword that day."Unable to withstand the sadness anymore,he roared.

It continued to rain heavily outside and frequent thunders was to be heard.The Elder Druid lifted up his hand and touched Kallos and a bright light was emitted as soon as their skins touched.A warmth flowed through Kallos's body.He felt relaxed and the sadness subsided.

"Those that were slain WILL be avenged!"said Kallos.

"Do not be hasty!Hasty will be your downfall and everything we had done will be wasted.As you can see,the prophecy we made had a twist.It said that only someone who is the bravest and who has the ability to lead a party can stop Doomsday from happening."said the Elder Druid."After selecting over thousands of elves,we had chosen you to be the one,for you had done many deeds for the sake of the elves which required both bravery and wisdom,also,you are well-known for your prowess in leading armies and hunting down adversaries.All these abilities of yours made you stand out of the crowd-to be the one stopping the havoc that has yet to come."

Kallos knew that he was the Chosen One.The hero who would save the world from utter destruction and doom,but if he should fail to achieve the goal,he would be the zero who brought shame to all of his kind.At least who will know of his failure when everyone he knew was slaughtered because he failed to protect them?

"Now Kallos,I have said what I needed to say.You now have to decide whether you will accept this task and endure much pain and agony or you can choose the other way-to refuse to go on.If you refuse to go,we will find another to replace you,don't you worry,but the time needed to choose another would cost us dearly and might miss the chance to stop it,forever."said the Elder Druid."Our fate lies in your hands now,young one."He closed his eyes after that.Perhaps he was patiently waiting for Kallos' answer or perhaps he was resting his mind from all the talking and recalling of memories,nobody knows for sure.

Kallos said nothing at this point,he simply nodded.He knew the seriousness of this situation and that it was time for him to choose,and fast.Kallos wondered why it was so hard to choose for him.Normally,he would volunteer to do these kinds of things but now,he couldn't make up his mind.Did he value his life more than the life of others?"No,no!"thought Kallos,"I will be the Chosen One!"But another thought was occuring in his mind too,telling him to choose the other path.Time goes inexorably by.It was a few minutes later when Kallos made up his mind and began to speak,or was it hours,Kallos couldn't tell because it was pitch black in that little circular room and time did not seem to be ticking away there.

"Yes."he whispered in such a soft tone that can hardly be heard.

"Pardon?"replied the Elder Druid,though he heard what Kallos said.His hearing did not falter through the years as of most men would.

"YES!"repeated Kallos,but this time he spoke it out loudly and with a much determined voice."I will be the one to stop it and I shall not FAIL!"An aura was about him too,giving people courage and peace and making the foes shudder,though only the Elder Druid was nearby,everyone sensed it.

"Excellent!"cried the Elder Druid out of joy."But you do know the consequences if you fail?"

"Yes."replied Kallos in a confident sort of way."And I will accomplish the mission or die trying!"

"Good!"replied the aged druid."I have much confidence in you.There's a little more you need to know now that you've accepted the mission.From what we had gathered,this power is unstoppable once it has completed its transformation.So,you must kill it before the Lunar Eclipse that has yet to come 2 years later,according to what we had calculated."

"And fear not,young one.You will find a way to kill it before that time and you do not have to do it alone,I have asked our allies to help us as this is a matter of life and death for all who dwell in this world and they've agreed.Each of our ally will be sending one of their best warriors to aid you in your quest.They will arrive in this humble town early tomorrow morning."

"And I will greet them as heartily as I can get,"replied Kallos,though he did not seem to like the idea of involving others into this mess.

Pretending that he did not see the Kallos' facial expression,the Elder Druid carried on.

"This Journey is not as simple as it looks, Kallos,heed my words,be really careful as there are things out there that you've never seen before.Things that are so terrifying that it will even make the bravest and sturdiest elf run away of fear.Things of such a small girth that belied its immense strength and toughness,"said the Elder Druid.

As soon as the words reached Kallos' ears ,he felt a strange kind of warmth flowing throughout his body as he never did experienced before.These simple words of caring touched his heart deeply and as an elven warrior,he was taught not to be emotional since he was young , so no one ever did showed him any signs of loving and caring.

Not used to this kind of situations,Kallos simply nodded and prepared to make his way to the front door, assuming that all the things had been said and he knew everything that was to know about the Orcish Horde and their master - The Evil Spirit (as Kallos now calls it).

"WAIT!"cried out the Elder Druid."Before you leave, I have one last thing to say and to give."

Kallos paused for a while at the door and then returned to the Elder Druid's side.

"To make the task more acheivable,we,the Council of Evergreen Wood,have decided to give he-who-accepts-the-task our town's most prized possessions - The Moonlight Dagger(a dagger that was dipped into the essence of moonlight during its creation.The effects?No one knows.) and The Elder Bow ( it was named the Elder Bow because it is made from the wood from the Elder Tree itself.Legend says that one who wields this bow can hit a target within a 10-mile range with just a single pluck on the bowstring and enough accuracy or a little bit of luck.)

After he finished talking, two Wisp-of-the-Forests appeared out of thin air and upon Kallos' palms.As quickly as they appeared,they vanished again.They left two things in his hands,one was a dagger that is not longer than a Man's palm,the other was a bow which was incredibly light for its size and strength.

The dagger was sheathed in a reddish leather sheath when Kallos first looked at it.By the looks of the leather,it was the skin of the Red Drake(a dragon that was slain by an elven hero long ago).Kallos quickly took the dagger out of its case.Immediately,the room was filled with a silvery white light that was produced by the dagger itself.Now that he could see more clearly,he found out that a diamond shaped like a moon was embedded in the dagger's hilt.

Unable to withstand the blinding light anymore,he put the dagger back to its sheath and thought maybe it's time to test the Elder Bow.But then only he realized that no arrows were provided along with the bow."Maybe tomorrow,"he thought.

After thanking the Elder Druid for such gifts, he went out of the hidden little cottage in the tree bark.The rain had stopped now and the moon is waxing high in the sky.A light breeze flowed through Kallos' hair and face, making him felt refreshed.

Everything was quiet now except for the occasional sound of breaking twigs as Kallos made his way home and the dripping of water from the leaves.All along the way home, the Moonlight Dagger was shaking in Kallos' hand as if it hadn't made contact with moonlight for a long period now.

Kallos couldn't rest that night .As he watched the horizon of the sky slowly turns greyish white,he knew,that life would never be the same for him,from that moment on.

Prologue

I would like to thank my brother and others who gave me the inspiration and courage to write this novel.I've started to write this on 17th November 2008 as a way to pass my long and boring school holidays.

Everything is fictional and is not accorded to anything regarding elves and other mystical creatures.