The Birthright
Chapter 2
By: W.Bob Yankovic

Castle Caldera 1026 A.D.
	Today was a year. A year of nothing, a year of emptiness. The
young man slumped against the wall. His life was worthless now. He was
no longer who he was before he entered the lowest level of Castle
Caldera. He was now just a prisoner, a man restrained by metal. If he
could just find a way to escape, to regain what was his. The emmotions
and thoughts of his past life crept up on him. "It's mine!" he shouted
at the top of his lungs. He laid down on the cold hard stone floor that
served as his bed and fell asleep.
	He was awoken by a man standing in his room. The man was tall
but all of his features were covered by the hooded robe that adorned
his body. "I am here to offer you what is truly yours," the hooded man
said. With his eyes still not clear from the sleep he gazed at the man
trying to decifer who he was and how he got past the gaurds. "Do not
worry, I am a mere illusion. I am appearing to you only. Do you accept
my offer?" the robed man asked. From the ground the man nodded slowly.

Castle Dark Mist 1045 A.D.
	The Eyeless One leaned over and motioned for King Threais to
come closer. Threais abliged him and leaned over to put his ear close
enough to catch the whisper of the Eyeless One. "There is one man, if
you could persuade him to join your cause you would surely rule Artinea
as you believe that you should," the evil wizard said. Threais let a
small grin cross his face at the thought of taking his so called
rightful place at the throne.
	"Who is this man?" he asked the Eyeless One. The wizard simply
sat back in his chair and chuckled. "Tell me," Threais urged. This
casued another small chuckle from the Eyeless One. "Tell me or I will
run you through with a hundred swords!" Threais said as he flew into a
rage. He reached for the sword he had used before, but the Eyeless One
moved it out of his reach. Threais ran over to the gaurd he had thrown
the dagger at and freed it from the wall. He turned and flung it with
all of his might at the Eyeless One. To his surprise it sunk to the
hilt into the skull of the wizard.
	"Why did you do that?" the Eyeless One asked slowly. He reached
back and pulled the dagger from out of his head and began to toss it up
and down catching it by the handle. "All you had to do is ask me
nicely. The man you seek has no name. He has no identity. The only
thing that even proves that he is alive is his power. Yet you could
never reach where he is held, for it is in the bottom of the Castle
Caldera in northern Artinea," the Eyeless One said.

Castle Wave Crest 1045 A.D.
	"Where is he?" King Leoric asked the gaurd that stood at the
gate of the castle. The gaurd told Leoric of Thirayus' journey to the
Swamp of Ill Fortune and his hunt for the golden deer. Leoric sighed
heavily and told him to send a detatchment of gaurds to find him and
bring him back to the castle. The gaurd hurried off as the sun slowly
dropped below the horizon. Night was the worst time to be lost in the
Swamp. For night is when the Mage wandered the swamps looking for
people to play her tricks on. Tricks that usually lead to death.
	Leoric had always loved his son. But to his extreme dismay
Thirayus was a very poor subject to be his successor. "If only I had
yet another son," Leoric said with a hint of disgust in his voice. He
knew all to well that another son would just even further complicate
his already complicated situation. With the Festival now only a day and
a night away he wondered if Hellen had her dress made yet. He would ask
her in his letter tomorrow he thought as he turned to walk back up to
his bedroom. His thoughts once again shifted to the situation of his
child. He looked down to his ring, "Too many wear this crest already.
Some even without knowledge."

Eladamir Castle 1045 A.D.
	"Welcome to my castle," Vhad the Farie King said to Byron and
Shamshir as they walked into his throne room. "I hope that your journey
was pleasant and full of ease," he added. Byron walked up and knelt in
front of Vhad and presented a letter from King Leoric that personally
invited Epiphon and Vhad to the Festival. The Farie King took it and
read it. "Well it seems that I must make a journey now doesn't it,"
Vhad said with a laugh. He was a strong built man, but like all faries
was short in stature. When Byron stood back up he overshadowed the king
by well over a foot.
	"Yes your majesty. We were sent by King Leoric to escort you
back to Castle Wave Crest in the morn. The great wizard Epiphon would
also be encouraged to come. We would like to have you there as we
celebrate twenty years of peace," Byron added. Shamshir was walking
around the sides of the room looking at pictures that hung on the wall.
He was obviously bored. He turned his attention to a side door as
Epiphon walked in escorted by two gaurds. He knelt to the King and
welcomed Byron. Then he walked over and began to gaze at Shamshir.
	"May I be so bold to ask what you are kind sir?" Epiphon asked
him in a very blunt manner. Shamshir was shocked at the farie's openess
and appearant cockyness.
	"I am a man. I was to be immortal. Instead I was
metamorphosized into the half man half wolf that you see before you.
And may I be so bold to ask who the shite are you?" Shamshir said with
an extremely angry tone. At this Epiphon laughed and waved his hand in
the air. Before him appeared a bear twice the size of the man. This
bear charged at Shamshir with all of his force. The beast-man only
growled and extended his claws which were razor sharp and two inches
long. He leaped into the air and cut a flip. He landed on top of the
bear and sunk his claws into his neck and spinal chord. The bear fell
to the ground and just as quickly as it appeared, it faded away in a
puff of smoke.
	"I am Epiphon, the Great Mage of the Faries. And it seems that
you are quite a warrior yourself," the mage laughed as he walked over
to Vhad who was now laughing at the ease of Shamshir's victory.
	"You are quite a warrior indeed. Most men run in fear when
faced with one of Epiphon's summons," The king said. Shamshir stood up,
walked up to the King, and licked the bear's blood off of his claws.
	"What is fear?" Shamshir said in an animal like growl. This
brought a laugh to the throat of both Vhad and Epiphon. The King noted
that he would feel very secure on his trip to Castle Wave Crest. He
ordered the gaurds at the door to show Shamshir and Byron to their
rooms. He yelled that he would see them in the morning as the huge
wooden doors creaked shut.

Swamps of Ill Fortune 1045 A.D.
	Thirayus ran through the darkness that now covered all that he
could survey. He knew the stories of the men who walked into the swamp
and never returned. He was determined to keep himself from sharing
their fate. The voice of the woman echoed through the woods again.
	"I know who you are!" she said softly. Thirayus stopped and
turned to see if the woman was behind him. To his surprise their was no
one. He was sure that the voice was right behind him. He turned and
tried to run again. After a step and a half he ran into what appeared
to be a very solid object. Then to his dismay the woman that he had
seen before stepped into his sight. She emitted a light glow that
illumuinated her slightly amidst the darkness.
	"Who are you?" Thirayus asked in a very shaky voice. He hoped
that she would not answer in the way he knew she would. When he was
knocked down by a blast of air when he tried to stand his fears were
confirmed. It was the Mage of Swamps. She was a demi-myth in her own
time. Many doubted that she even existed.
	"Now that you know who I am let me tell you who you are. You
are not who you think you are. Death should come to you know just for
your family's past. Your great father King Leoric is nothing more than
a common murderer. I will leave him to explain," the Mage of Swamps
said as her image faded. "And all that you saw of me was an illusion,"
I would never risk being seen in person," the voice said in the
darkness.
	"YOU LIE!" Thirayus screamed at her. He would not accept her
lies as truth. His father was a just and fair man. He would never kill
a man in cold blood. "YOU LIE!" He screamed again. As he slumped down
next to a tree he heard the voices of men calling.
	"Thirayus," the mens voices said in unison. "Thirayus," they
called again. The young prince stood to his feet and began to scream.
In no longer than five minutes the gaurd detatchment sent by the King
had found the Prince and began to lead him out. He told them his story,
but they dismissed it as a lie. He pleaded for them to believe him.
They all laughed and explained to him that the Mage of Swamps was not a
real person. He gave up his case and ceeded for the moment.
	Later on that night Prince Thirayus lay awake in his bead
staring at the ceiling. The words of the woman rang clear in his head.
"You are not who you think you are. Your father is nothing more than a
common murderer." He did not know which way to believe so he decided to
take up the issue again in the morn. He tossed in his bead for a few
more minutes and then drifted off to sleep.

Castle Wave Crest 1045 A.D.
	The waves of the ocean beat against the tall rocks that served
as the pedestal for Castle Wave Crest to sit upon. The sun peaked up
over the horizon and cast its light across the ocean. Inside the walls
of the Castle many people buzzed about doing morning chores or setting
up their booths for market. When the sun rose enough to shoot a few
rays of its light into the room of Prince Thirayus, it shown upon an
empty bed. The prince had not slept well. He had been haunted by the
voice of the Mage of Swamps and her alligations against his father. He
now waited only until the bell chimed in the tower of the castle to
signal the beginning of the day.
	Thirayus paced back and forth across his room and quoted to
himself the words of the Mage. "My father is no murderer. He is a King.
The people love him, they respect him. He has patience and kindness
like no other in the whole realm. Surely he could never commit a murder
in cold blood," the Prince said in a vain attempt to rid himself of the
torment.
	The bell rang out from the top of the tower and the Prince
rushed out of his room, knocking over the gaurd who was standing at his
door. He shouted an apology as he rushed to his father's chambers. As
he ran he planned out what he would say. He asked the question under
his breath a few times until it came out fairly easy. When he got to
the door of Leoric's chambers he flung open the doors and walked with a
purpose over to the desk where his father sat.
	"Good morning son," the king said with a smile. He looked up to
his son and saw that he was troubled. "What is it Thirayus?" he asked
with a hit of curiosity and concern. The Prince drew a deep breath and
closed his eyes. He mouthed a few lines then gazed at his father with
eyes that were as cold as ice.
	"Father, have you ever murdered a man in cold blood?" he spat
out. Leoric was taken drastically off gaurd and coughed a few times to
try to clear the cobb webs.
	"Son who put that crazy idea in your head, for I know my own
son would not bring false accusations against me. Tell me," the King
said. Thirayus then told the whole story about the swamp and the Mage
and her words that made such strong assumptions. Leoric slowly began to
take on a troubled look. He placed his face in his hands and rubbed
some of the sleep out of him. He looked up to his son who was now
almost crying due to the reaction of his father.
	"I have something to tell you Thirayus. It was never meant to
be revealed this way. It happened long ago before you were even born.
It is what the Mage of Swamps was talking about," Leoric said with
sorrow filling his voice. He could no longer hide his past from his
son. And soon it would be hard to hide it from anyone.

Road to Castle Wave Crest 1045 A.D.
	Dwerin and his crew had now transfered their mode of travel to
horses for the over land portion of their trip. He rode on top of a
pitch black horse that looked almost unearthly. The thoughts of his
past flooded his memory. He had betrayed King Threais to fight on the
side of King Leoric during the Great War. That was the known part of
the ordeal. "Greshan," Dwerin said under his breath. At that he shook
his head and tried to block the memory out of his mind.  An aid rode up
beside him and asked what he wanted. Dwerin simply responded that he
didn't say anything.
	Leoric was growing too popular with the people. Dwerin was
losing popularity with the lack of need for his awesome powers. He much
like Shamshir seeked to find more adventure and exitement. The Festival
that even now he traveled to would be remembered for ages to come. Not
just because it was the mark of Artinea's 20 years of peace, but also
for the spectacle that Dwerin hoped to accomplish while in the presence
of the King.
	It would truly be a date that would be remembered. And Dwerin
hoped to be a part of the memory.

Castle Dark Mist 1045 A.D.
	"We will need all of the soldiers we can find. Train the
townsfolk if you have to," King Threais said to his capitan of the
royal army of Levitan. "You, find me the three fastest horses in the
whole country. You, pack enough food and goods for a two weeks trip.
Let's hope it doesn't take that long. You, listen to the Eyeless One
and draw out a map to Castle Caldera. Leoric you will soon die. I will
kill you myself, with my own sword. You deserve it for what you did to
me so many years ago. The Great War will be nothing compared to the
devestation I will bring upon your country. You will fall. I will rule
the Two Kingdoms by myself. My power will be unmatched. Prepair
yourself, for we will strike on the very day that you celebrate and
make merry," Threais said in a cruel and low voice as he stared at the
group of nobles that lived in Levitan. The festival would be a great
day indeed. But for whom?