Chapter 6

A piercing squeal pierced the air the following morning and the group scrambled out of their tents in a panicked feud. Groggy and still in their nightgowns, the siblings gawked while a wild boar was tearing around camp with an entire battalion of citizens chasings frantically after it. The beast was red and black, caked in swamp mud, with a crazed look and long mold covered gnarly tusks. The huge creature bucked off one person that had landed on him, spun around, and with another roar, charged at the group full speed. They managed to dodge him somehow. Lucian and Denarha, finally grasping what was going on, just started laughing breathless. They had never seen such shenanigans. Lucorrian shook himself awake and immediately started to scramble around in his bag. Raggedy white nightgown flowing in the wind, he charged at the beast with a lasso in hand. While the boar was distracted by its chasers, Lucorrian roped it around the neck and front legs. As soon as it was down, five people piled on it to hold it still, while another ended its life swiftly. "What a glorious feast this beast will bring!" one of them hollered. Lucian let out a gasp at their bruteness. He had just seen such a creature for the first time ever, a pure spirit of nature, and poof, it was gone. Quayzar saw his disturbance and addressed him with solace. "His spirit goes back to the universe to be reborn again, but his body stays behind to become part of the tribe." And then the guard walked off to the group of people.

The group of siblings took about an hour to get ready and eat breakfast before the Tribal Leader approached and primed them for the promised battle. He led them to a fairly clear forest grove several yards out from the main camp. Having already beat the promiscuous Lucorrian, everyone wanted to fight Lucian. Quayzar had called dibs on the first battle and took his stance at the far end of the field holding a mace. Lucian had agreed to fair, no elemental fights, with anyone who wished to challenge him. The Water Tribe leader had been mildly amused when his captain of the guard was quickly defeated. He was a large brute with rather slow reflexes whilst wielding an adequate heavy weapon. Such a tool was designed more for hard one hit knockouts, but young Lucian was too fast. He swiftly had dodged several attacks and soon had the man on his knees with a knife to his throat.

The Leader was next. He gave his opponent a short applause and walked over to his side of the court. He closed his eyes a minute and took a few deep breaths, centering himself. He then sharply opened his eyes and took his stance. Not showing a bit of his age, he ran forward at Lucian, who did not expect such speed. Before he could react, there was a hand on his chest, a foot behind his knee, and then he was knocked out of breath onto the ground. His attacker laughed and mocked him. "I thought you knew everything," he sneered. Lucian groaned, regaining his breath, hauled himself to his feet, completely covered in mud. "And I thought you were old," he retorted. The Leader smiled and ran at him again, but this time Lucian was ready. He quickly side stepped as if he saw in slow motion, and laid a hard karate chop across his opponent's back. Then Lucian spun around and tackled the disoriented man. Now it was a mud wrestling match, no weapons, pure fists flying. The Tribe Leader suddenly grabbed Lucian's face and head-butted him and then threw a right uppercut across his face. While dazed, the Leader put Lucian in a headlock and told him to yield. Lucian let out a low growl and wretched his body backwards and then sharply forward, flipping the Leader over his head and slamming him on the ground. Finally having knocked his opponent unconscious, Lucian sat down huffing and puffing from such a vigorous fight.

The following morning the group bid adieu to their hosts and their friend Star, thanking them for their great amount of assistance. It was a gloomy day however, misty clouds completely covering the sky. The entire trip back to the Kingdom there was a light rain and the occasional crack of thunder. The clouds became thicker and all the more angry the closer they came. The guards that greeted them at the Kingdom gate were hostile at the sight of the albino, until Lucorrian flashed his royal emblem. The group quickly rushed to the Queen at the site of nearly everyone inside the wall running about in chaos.

"What in Purgatory is going on around this place?!" Lucorrian yelled across the grand room. "I was gone less than a week!" His mother rushed over and gave him a brief hug and quickly spoke. "Not two days after you left, a darkness fell upon our land. The citizens with our walls started going mad, starting riots. We lost half of the guards. Did you both a least achieve your mission?" Clearing his throat, Lucian stepped forward, still in his monk robes. "Yes they did," he said respectfully with a tone of wisdom beyond his years. He then placed his arm across his waist and bowed over. The Queen was a little taken back at how well mannered her stepson was. She wasn't sure what to expect, but she had had a more savage outcast image in her head like from the tales of the island. "You will have to forgive me, I was not imagining someone of such scholarly standing. If you don't mind me saying so, you have a very similar brave stance and bearing to that of your father; somber but attention commanding."

Lucian for the first time ever looked a little taken back. He had been trained to pre-acknowledge any threats or forthcoming situations, but he never saw maybe anything other than a callus tone coming from his abandoning father's wife. He knew nothing about the late King other than what he gathered from Lucorrian's brief stories on the journey there. He wasn't even entirely sure if it was a true complement or not so he just gave her a light hearted smile. "Please excuse me for being a bit forward ma'am, but it seems the Gods had intentions for me to come to your aid. Tell me, what do you know of dark elemental magics?" "Uhh... Only that it's evil, soul burning sorcery practiced only by damned creatures." "Well, from what chaos I gathered on the way in here, someone has placed a dark curse on the Kingdom." "Well, can you help us counteract it?!" Lucorrian suddenly blurted out in panic. With a dreadful tone the Queen added "we simply have no knowledge on it in the Kingdom, just a claim that it exists." A solemn expression went across Lucian's face. "I'm afraid I don't know much either. That corrupting knowledge was reserved for the elders." He turned, "Brother, we must travel North to consult the ancient masters in the Black Hills. Maybe you can call in reserve forces or something from the Earth Tribe until we get back?" Lucorrain sent a servant by carriage immediately to send word for soldiers, though there weren't many horses left from the famine riots. Denarha elected to stay behind, claiming she had had enough travel for now.

Saying goodbye to their sister and Queen Altria, the two boys set off urgently towards the North. They shared a single black stallion dubbed Hades, neither of them willing to acknowledge the bad omen of them riding Death's pony. They had only heard tales of the land that they headed to. It was said to be an ageless wasteland of bare jagged cliffs shrouded in spells, plagued by dragons, and playing host to a biting wind that carried the curdling screeches of the demonic warlock's victims. Galloping up through the Earth Tribe's border Lucorrian yelled to the guards "Prince Lucorrian and Lucian passing through!" The pair didn't even stop for greetings or their renowned food, their mission was far too urgent.