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Deacon Drake

The Beginning of a New End
(Part Three of "The Long and Winding Road")

[shortened version]

There is nothing left to say.
The stone floor feels cold under my face.
I never thought the Empath Abbey
would be my final resting place.

How I could have been so foolish
to even come to the call,
evades me even now as I lay down
and my life begins to pall.

My blood turns cold when it hits the floor
and I slowly close my eyes.
"I let him find me..." my mind runs o'er
and my body slowly dies...

When Steel Skye received the invitation something didn't quite feel right. The parchment that was tied to the falcon's leg was scribbled quickly, as if the letter was not thought out before it was written. It was an invitation from an anonymous "officer" as he or she deemed themselves for a small alliance against the Orcs. Steel, knowing that his small force of scouts held no chance to face the large army of orcs, had no choice but to consider it.

The unknown officer wanted to meet at the Empath Abbey in Yew. Steel found this odd, as even though it was in Trammel, the city of Yew in Felucca was the homeland of the orcs. But he went on.

When he arrived at the Abbey, there was not a soul in sight. The entire building was dark, cold, and surprisingly humid. The large wooden doors creaked loudly, echoing through the massive building as they moved. Steel took ten steps into the Abbey and stopped to look around for any sign of life.

As he turned around to exit, knowing something was wrong, the double doors quickly slammed shut, the loud bang echoing almost eternally through the halls. Without hesitation, one word crossed Steel's mind: run.

The man had guarded the Abbey enough to know all of its secrets. One example was the hidden door set in stone in the Altar Room. As Steel began to run toward the back of the Abbey, he noticed an odd sensation. His boots made no sound as they struck the stone floor. It felt almost as if he were dead.

Steel was less than twenty feet from the metal door when he felt the oddest sensation. The coldness of the Abbey was instantly dispelled by an intense warmth that seemed to be radiating form the Altar Room. Steel tried to turn and run, knowing what the heat was coming from, but it was too late.

In a flash of fire and molten rock, the metal door exploded off its frame and was sent rolling in the air like a cannon ball. Steel could feel his arm searing as the red-hot door struck it. He was knocked to the floor, unable to breath in the heat, and unable to look away from the horrid sight before him.

The Altar Room was on fire. In the frame of the doorway, a massive figure was attempting to force its way through the small doorway. The smoking creature spread its wings and advanced on Steel. He recognized it as the mythical demon, Kronus. He had only seen the being once before, but recognized it easily.

He's been raised. Steel got on his feet and sprinted to the front, in hopes of his momentum forcing the large doors off the hinges, when he was stopped suddenly by a man in front of him. The man was about average height and build, and was wearing a dark robe and cloak with a bear mask on his head. His face was unforgettable, a cold scowl never leaving it and a goatee in the shape of the letter "W" covering his chin.

Steel didn't have time o recognize his old friend, the Dreamer. With a cold "Hello," the archmage forced a long, slender dagger into Steel's gut. Without a change in facial expression, the mage turned and walked away.

Steel wanted to stand and fight the mage, but he couldn't. He could already feel the runes on the blade burning, sending a mystical poison through his body. Within seconds, he collapsed, unable to move, unable to think... unable to feel.

As if a spreading flood, the horrible images of the dark, twisted Abbey began to correct itself. The building was lit instantly, the flaming Altar Room was restored, and the demon vanished without a trace. He was in the Abbey, in broad daylight as it had always been, his blood creating a dark red pool around him. The building was no longer empty, as monks and citizens came from their rooms, yawning as if they had been asleep.

A woman screamed and a throng of people surrounded the body of Steel. One monk bent down by the man and felt for a pulse, looking ready to give care.

"He's dead..."
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