"My lord, we have brought her."

He looked up from admiring the golden throne he had just made. "Bring her in."

Two guards entered, dragging a woman by both arms. After she was brought in front of him, they pushed her to her knees roughly and stretched her arms behind her.

She glared at him, her lips pursed. "What do you want?"

The man merely just strode to her and grabbed her chin with both fingers, yanking her face upward, forcing her to meet his eyes. "What a beauty..."

"Let go of me!" She tried to escape his grasp by turning her face away but he tightened his grip on her.

"What I want?" he hissed, bringing his face an inch from hers. Her eyes were swimming in tears.

The corner of his lip went up in a smirk as he released her. He strode toward the throne and then sat down majestically. "Tell me where it is."

"What do you mean where it is?" the woman asked, surprised.

"Huh? Playing dumb with me? Hit her!"

The two men released her. The first man punched in the head and she fell onto her stomach. The second man stomped on her back and she screamed. She quickly curled into a ball and protected her head from the repeated blows. After a minute he said, "Stop! Lift her up."

They grabbed her arms and brought her to her knees.

"Now, answer me!"

The woman looked at the ground blankly. A hint of blood was on her lips. Her hair was all over the place. She said nothing.

"Oh... I see. Well, if you don't care about yourself, at least you must care about your daughter. Let's see...her name is Renae, right?"

Her eyes suddenly lit up with anger as she made eye contact. "What did you do to her? Please, don't hurt her! She has nothing to do with this!"

He smirked. "Now you understand. So tell me...Where. Is. It?"

"What?"

"THE MANUSCRIPT! THE ONE THAT CAN LET ME HAVE POWER."

The woman blinked in confusion.

The man was breathing heavily, taking a deep breath, he said, "You were an oracle, you should know what I'm talking about."

She said nothing but instead looked at the ground. "That was before,"she mumbled.

"Oh I know," he clapped his hands. "You used to be an oracle, but then you predicted something the king didn't like, and as a result, he demoted you to a commoner."

She looked at him but said nothing.

"If you tell me where the manuscript is, I will let you free."

She started shaking her head. "I-I can't!"

"What do you mean, you can't? You are the oracle!"

"I can't. I can't. I can't," the woman said, each time she said it, she shook her head more and more. She seemed on the verge of going insane.

Feeling his patience run out, he yelled, "WHY CAN'T YOU?"

"I can't. I can't," she shook her head continuously, as if she did not hear him.

He looked around angrily. Finally he said, "If you don't tell me, I'll kill your daughter."

At this, she immediately stopped repeating herself and crawled on her knees toward him. "Please don't hurt her! You can't hurt her. Please! I'm begging you!"

He stood tall and elegantly, looking down his nose at her. "If you want me to spare her, tell me where it is!"

"But I can't or else..." she covered her ears and her eyes went wild.

"OR ELSE WHAT? SPEAK UP!"

"The curse!" Her eyes went crazy.

"Well," he said as he paused to consider her words. He sat down on the throne again and said calmly, "You can decide if your daughter is more important or if the curse is more important."

Her eyes looked around wildly.

Seeing her indecisiveness, he said, "Very well, bring the child in!"

A young maid entered carrying a small bundle of white. "Waaaa!" It was the cry of a baby.

"Renae? Is that my daughter's cry?" The woman looked around frantically, trying to find the source. When she saw the bundle in the maid's arms, she rose and was about to run to her, but the two guards beside her whipped out their swords and pointed it at her neck.

"If you want your daughter to live,"the man said, pacing slowly around the room. "Tell me where it is."

The woman stayed silent, her eyes on the floor.

"Ignoring me? Very well! Bring me a sword!" A sword was handed to him. He looked at the maid and told her, "Come closer." The maid hesitated.

"I said come closer!"

She obliged obediently.

"Place it on the floor."

She obeyed and placed the child on the floor and took a few steps back.

He looked at the woman. "I will kill this infant right in front of you."

The woman didn't answer. He looked at her and smirked. "Very well." He walked toward the child and unsheathed the sword. Bringing it over his head, he was about to strike.

"Wait! I'll tell you! Let my child live!" She was weeping.

He sheathed his sword and said, "Continue."

"It's in the monastery on the mountain of Shenedow. Please...spare my child," she begged.

He sighed. "It was that easy." He sheathed his sword. "Don't worry, I will keep her alive."

He nodded toward the guards. One guard quickly drew his sword and slashed her neck. Her bloodied head fell to the ground with a thump.

He turned away and said, "Dispose of her body."

"Yes lord."

"In a couple of hours, I shall be the king of the world and no one can stop me!" He stretched his arms out as he envisioned the land that he would own.

"WAAAAA!"

"What is that noise?" he snapped.

He glanced toward the source. The baby was still on the ground. "Pick that thing up!" he ordered. Immediately, the maid picked up the infant and started coddling it.

"My lord, what will you do with the child?" his advisor, Wilhelm asked.

He glanced at the bundle and said, "Leave it alive for now. I may find use for it later."

As Wilhelm saw the infant in the arms of the maid, his heart was pricked, for it was a little helpless creature. "My lord," he said.

"Yes, Wilhelm?"

"May I..."

"May you what? If you want to say something, say it. I don't have time for this."

"May I adopt the child? My wife and I have been wanting a child for as long as we can remember and—"

"Oh for Pete's sake! Take the thing! I don't care!"

"Thank you my lord," he said as he took the child from the maid and left, bringing it home.

******************************************

A cloaked figure stood in front of a door made of wood. He had snuck into the monastery stealthily and descended a treacherous set of stairs to arrive where he was now. He looked at the top of the door with this inscription:

"All who enter beware!

Lest you fall into the snare.

Beyond lies great power,

Beware lest you be devoured!"

The thought of power excited him, prompting him to kick the door. It did not budge an inch. He kicked it again and yielded the same result. He looked at his torch and then, without another second of hesitation, set fire to the door which immediately burst into flames. He leaped away from the blazing door as it cracked and popped. The middle of the door burnt a huge hole as the fire started to edge toward the sides of the door.

Suddenly, he heard a high pitched screech and saw a flash of a furry creature rushing out of the hole. Surprised, the cloaked figure dropped the torch, instantly putting out the light.

Unfortunately, the figure had already seen too much: the 10 inch-teeth, the sharp talons that could tear flesh with one slash, and the hungry animal eyes that were focused on him. He had scarcely pulled out his sword when he felt a searing pain in his shoulder. He screeched.

Enraged, he turned on the beast and started to slash it savagely. Upon receiving the stings, the beast became even more infuriated. Both fought savagely, blood spurted everywhere from both sides. For a while, they played a dangerous game of cat and mouse. When the beast lunged, he dodged, and when he lunged the beast dodged. It went on for a while until the figure knew that he would not survive the night if he kept on fighting. As the thought passed through his mind, he was suddenly thrown to his knees. He saw the beast leering at him with its hungry red eyes and charging toward him.

In a very desperate attempt, he reached back, pulled out his bow, notched an arrow, and shot at its heart. The arrow hit its mark and the beast screeched and twisted in agony. The figure suddenly was suspended in the air as the beast's body started to dissipate, leaving ashes. To his surprise the ashes started flowing into his body. He felt warmth all over and his energy returned. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground again. He looked at his shoulder where the beast had struck him and realized he was healed.

Looking through the doorway, he was astonished to see a soft blue light glow from within. He strolled through the now burnt door frame.

The world he stepped into had blue gemstones on the walls and emanated light. The ground was marble and without a single speck of dirt in sight. He tilted his head up and saw never-ending walls of the cave that glowed a soft blue. No ceiling was in sight.

About 10 feet in front of him stood an elaborately designed marble stand. It had a black serpentine on one side of the stand and a white one on the other side. Both intertwined with each other, but only from the bottom half of their bodies to their tails. Their heads were completely separate. He noticed that the marble stand was not solid white. On the side that had the black serpentine, the creature was carved on marble and the opposite was true too: the white serpentine was engraved in obsidian. On the stand lay a book. The figure confidently walked to the stand and tentatively picked it up.

The book was made of leather with golden borders. On the cover, was an image of a tree with its branches widespread and each entangled with other branches. Leaves were falling from the branches: they littered the ground and were decomposing.

The figure held the book tentatively while he caressed it. So... this was it. This book contained the power he was looking for. He cherished the moment a bit longer and finally, opened it slowly... and saw...

Nothing!

It was completely bare! Anger welled up in him as he turned page after page, hoping to see words of power. Where was the power? Was all his work and secrecy for nothing? Had his plan and manipulation been in vain? He flipped around frantically and was about to give up when he saw faint lettering. It was so faint that if not for his keen sight he would have missed it completely. The stones on the wall were bright enough for him to pick out the faint dent. He strained his eyes and finally was able to depict the words:

"With this curse, once said, once done.

Can't be evoked, inverted, or revoked.

Beware of the consequences,

for they could be dire.

Though you may be called,

Sire.

A cursed vow,

Can bring knees to bow.

A break of promise,

Deserves severe punishment.

Death to those who break,

A vow, a promise."

He knew then what he had to do. He read each word, line by line, slowly and with authority. While he read, the words in the book started to glow and when he reached the end, something strange started to happen.

Around him, the ground fell away and the walls started to shake violently. They fell and crumbled as they were sucked into an abyss. He was thrown to the floor because of the violent shakes. Out of nowhere, he suddenly felt hopeless and empty. "The world is pointless and cold," he heard a quiet gentle voice coo. He looked down and saw the floor he had fallen on start to crack. He felt the ground give way as he too, was sucked into the abyss. "Nooooooooooo!!!!" He screamed. Then darkness.