1 Prologue - The story so far...

The encore of blight plagued the lands those seek for refuge and new places to call home. A shuddering of demons brought war on the kingdom of Bethel. Bethel was the neighboring kingdom of Kal' author. Bethel was ruled by King Jiyrn (Ji - rin ), the half brother of Kelsh (Kel - sh), the King of Kal' author, an archmage. Jiyrn and Kelsh didn't get along. Both are sons of the first king of Bethel, Darian (Day - rin). Darian was the most strategic, tactical, and dangerous man to be opposed on the battlefield. Many of the other kingdoms feared him. With his military power and leadership, he was a severe threat. But, unlike most fearless kings, he had a heart for his people. He was the king known for being on the front lines with his men, and at every battle, he endured. Darian wasn't born into royalty like his sons were. He was knighted from a former kingdom that fell in the war of the elves many years ago. His people loved and respected him under the rumors of an affair that rose to the court. Queen Siyla ( Si - la) was of such remarkable beauty. Her long loose golden curls wrapped around her soft porcelain face highlighted with her gemmed emerald eyes. She was fragile and elegant, moved with such grace around the palace, unlike her husband with Darian towered over his queen. Darian was a very ruggish man with his long straight coal smut-colored hair with his smokey gray eyes. His skin was the color of mahogany, extensive for his stance unlike most men, and his armor was mainly always crafted by the dwarves of the mountains in the far west of the shire.

Darian visited that shire quite often; to much surprise, he found a maiden who worked around the forge. Her name was Ester. She wasn't like most women of the kingdom; she was very different. She was of elvish blood, which she belonged to the Magi in the Circle of the Foreseekers. She had long auburn hair that was always in a braid, just hugging her lower waist. Her skin was more golden yellow, as the sun always kissed her skin with a glow setting sunset. Her eyes were of an ember flame, pale reddish-brown color that twinkled with the light blanketed them. She was of a pear shape, seeing she was half-human, but she did take her height from her elvish heritage. Darian didn't ever believe in love at first sight, seeing how he did marry Queen Siyla was due to saving a neighboring kingdom from war, and she served as a peace offering to unite the kingdoms. But, the first glance he took of Ester, he knew she was the love of his life.

Years passed - And the peace was slowly coming to an end with the rumors of a bastard son being borne of royal blood. Queen Siyla had just given birth to the heir to the throne, Jiyrin. He was born very ill and was taken by the Magi for healing. As the news was brought to Darian, who had traveled to the shire that morning after not visiting for almost a year. The queen sent a squire to retrieve Darian that night, but what the squire didn't expect was to find his king with a mistress. Ester was hasty when relaying the news to Darian about her son she had given birth to just only days ago. She hadn't given the boy a name yet and asked Darian to name his son. The name they, of course, agreed on was Kelsh.

Kelsh was the name of the dwarf who took Darian in and trained him as a squire and later on was Bethel's forge master. Aside from being Darian's personal blacksmith, he was much of a father figure to him as well. Kelsh also took in Ester after the war when Darian was sent in to kill the Elves of the neighboring kingdom. She worked alongside him making weapons and armor, but he kept her well-hidden, knowing that humans believed all the elves were slaughtered within that bloodbath. Elves were a proud set of people and became much of the humans' allies with healing, magic, and amazing apothecaries. That was ruined when rumors arise about elf magi poisoning the king. Which was deemed untrue years later - much after the elves taught the humans magic as well. With this power, they also taught them what was forbidden and the weapons of war within their teachings. Much malicious behavior, their own teachings became their executer. Of course, Darian was a mere lad of the age of 15 when he was drafted into the war, didn't much question any ambitions of the king. Darian wanted to become a knight, and he believed this was his path from advancing from the squire. Much like his marriage to the queen, their love did unite something that could become the start of a redemption or an execution.

As the squire approached with the news of the queen, learning of the endeavors of his king, he spoke on how she had given birth just this morning to a son. Darian was excited for both of his children, to which he did love both of his sons, but he couldn't help to look back at Ester, knowing how he had placed her into something complicated. Had they learned she was part elvish blood and how his bastard son was of heritage, they would hunt them. Knowing he was king, he knew he couldn't keep them safe forever. The squire choked on his message of the heir being born with illness how the Magi spoke of no healing nor cure for the disease. Ester saw Darian shake of loss of color; she knew she had to do something. Darian and Ester disagreed for days on the idea of her coming into the kingdom to heal his son. As three moons passed, finally agreeing, they traveled together into a calm dark night.

Holding Kelsh tightly, they approached Bethel through the courtyard; the town's people glared at Ester with hatred. She forgot to wrap her ears with the band that Kelsh gave her as a child. Darian spoke out and silenced the crowds, but you can still feel the anger within the air. Horror consumed her as she swallowed her face and knew there wasn't turning back. They went to the tower where the Magi resigned in, and upon reaching the sanctum, Darian was greeted with such hatred from Siyla. She screamed and shoved him about how his son would pass and how this was his fault. Darian sat in silence and knew what he did was wrong, but no regret reflected on his face. But only instead, he looked back at Ester and his son Kelsh with a soft smile. Siyla caught this behavior, and much suspicion rose with anger. Ester did in fact heal Siyla's son, Jiyrin. As Siyla, eager with curiosity, saw that Kelsh looked very much like Darian. Kelsh had coal wavy hair and ashen slate grey eyes with more yellow sun-kissed skin, much like Ester. She looked at Jiryin, how he looked more of her than Darian. He had fair pale skin, light aquamarine eyes, and was very thin. Upon looking back at Kelsh, she realized his ears were oddly shaped and were like Ester, showing the elvish features. She knew Darian had an affair, that this abomination was to be born of royal blood, that Jiyrin wasn't the true heir. There was something she had to do to save her kingdom, legacy, and marriage- she spoke to the Magi, who gave her a book of forbidden spells of Elvish Magic. To which that book was the key weapon in destroying the elves in battle during the war.

Darian was sent out on a patrol mission in the middle west of the kingdom. While on his mission, Silya and the Magi plotted to kill Ester and Kelsh; in the mere room next door, the squire who overheard the plot to over through the king and his love sought out to warn Ester. But, he was far too late. She was bleeding out on the palace floor; she smiled at the lad, she asked him a question.

"Am I a monster to you?"

Very confused, the lad looked down at her and spoke no. She smiled: She pointed to the room across the hall, drawing her last breath. The squire gently placed her head down from his lap and began to rush to the room. He opened the door to find Kelsh in a slumber peacefully. He grabbed the child, and settled up, and rode off into the night. Darian arrives just moments after to find the love of his life covered in crimson that painted the floors of his home. Darian knew what had happened, struggling and staggering horror to see his son, Kelsh; Slyia had driven him into madness with the loss of his family and finished him with a poison-tipped dagger. Rolling in despair, Darian glanced up to see Sylia's smirk of envy that corrupted her. She giggled, leaned down to whisper something into his ear- Darian's eyes lit up with rage and hatred. His cry was known to have echoed through the city. Ester's humming of Kelsh was to be whispered throughout the breezes in the kingdom. As life began to leave his eyes, Darian knew Kelsh had to be alive, prayed to the Gods that he would arise and claim what is his own.

The squire approached the shire and the dwarves that accompanied it. A gray-bearded dwarf with dark stone brown eyes approached the lad.

He spoke, "Ey Darian's boy?"

The squire just nodded, glancing down at the sleeping child.

"Let me see ey lad?" The dwarf combed through his beard. A piece of parchment was attached to the inside of the blanket; the dwarf pulled it out and began to read it.

Upon finishing it, he asked, "And you are?"

The squire swallowed, "I am Aether, sir."