'Matthew,' Ines called in the darkness.

The more they neared their destination, the more the black magic was getting stronger. They had spent the whole day walking, trying to cover as much ground as they could. They had crossed the deep forest, hiked past cliffs and rock mounds, and right then they were entering the dark lands.

The elves wearily walked ahead, dragging their feet over the snow. Even though they had been trained to resist the power of magic, Ines could see they were affected by it. She glanced at Matthew again and was worried by the stiff manner of his movements.

'Every step is harder than the last one. It's like I'm being pulled down,' he said.

'Maybe we should—'

'No, it's fine,' he held a hand up. 'We haven't got so far just to turn back now.'

Ines nodded in agreement and kept walking beside him. A long quiet stretched out, the smallest sounds coming thunderous. In silence they trode, each of them alone with their own worries. Nothing lived there, no bird, no plant, only the hard snow and the wind.

The sky was a giant spiral of midnight blacks where no star could ever show, and every step they took led them deeper into the darkness. Ines understood their unease and nervousness. Once they set foot on those cursed grounds, there was no way but forward.

Ahead, in the shadowy valleys of the unknown, Ines noticed a small dot that stood out from its surroundings. She peered carefully at it and soon enough, after they had got closer, she realised it was a mountainous structure that seemed to have cheated the ravages of time.

'Look!' she said and pointed to their doom.

The others glanced up and immediately shared knowing looks. As they quickened their pace, Ines felt for the first time that they were finally getting somewhere, not just blindly hunting for signs in the gloomy valleys. She tightened her coat over her chest and marched on.

. . . . .

The old building, or rather what was left of it, was a mass of broken towers and crumbling stones. Empty windows stared down at them, like a thousand pairs of hostile eyes. Spires cut into the midnight sky, and twisted beams of stone sprouted from shattered roofs, boring into the ground.

The four of them crept between walls so high, they had to crane their necks to see the sky over the ruins. Wherever they looked, the grandeur the place used to posses seemed more like a dream than reality. All those centuries of light and life would forever be silenced. There was no future to imagine, only dust.

Ines wondered if they were next. If their homeland was next in line to become an empty ruin, void of people, a ghostly echo for those who came long after to witness its desolation. She sighed in thought and made a promise to herself not to let that happen.

After a while's search, they were eventually met with a wide archway that would have been the entrance of the structure. Half of the metal door had fallen, while the other was still hanging from its broken hinges. Matthew signaled her to go first, and Ines cautiously entered the dark building.

A long hallway stretched before them, gloomy, chilly and bare. Its ceiling had collapsed in several places and the floor was covered with fallen stones, dust and snow. They quietly passed through it, reaching a circular spiral of stairs that seemed to have no end.

'From what we've seen so far, I think this structure used to be a palace,' Landos' voice pierced the silence of the room, and the others hummed in agreement.

Ines stood in the centre of the dizzying stairs and felt an icy breath of air upon her face as she looked up at the never-ending ascent. Where could they lead to?, she thought and began taking the steps one by one.

Although the second flood was better than the one below, it still carried marks of decay. It consisted of a great open area and another hallway that led away to more rooms. The walls were full of holes and the huge crystal chandeliers that used to illuminate the interior lied on the floor, smashed and half buried under the snow.

'Here must be the ballroom,' Inerma said.

'Maybe the stories I've heard are true,' Matthew said skeptically. 'That this was a palace. The throne stayed empty, the kingdom was crashed, and the people fled to the west.'

'Yeah. I hope we won't share the same fate.'

'Come on,' Ines nudged them. 'This place is empty. Let's look somewhere else.'

'You're leaving so soon?' a familiar voice made her stop on her tracks and whip her head around.

The rogue elf they were searching for stood before them with his hands clasped behind his back. He didn't try to hide his satisfaction and acted like he wasn't fazed by their arrival. His eyes were as cold as ice, staring at them without any emotion in them.

He didn't show the least of regret for what was going on beyond the mountain range. Ines felt distaste for his indifference towards the suffering people, or anything beyond his interests, but she reminded herself that the man smirking at her was a most dangerous villain. She would have to be cautious.

'Look who we have here,' he mused. 'Thank you for coming here and making my life easier.'

'I should have guessed you were hiding like a coward,' she spit at him with venom.

'I wanted to have some fun first. You know the game of cat and mouse?'

'We are not in the mood to play your little games.'

The elf dismissed her with a light chuckle. 'Did you get a tour of the palace?' he asked them. 'It used to be a beautiful place. It's a shame it crumbled away. A city in tears. All those people running for their lives, screaming and wailing.'

Ines suddenly had the urge to charge at him and punch his pathetic face, but Matthew, sensing her anger, put a hand on her shoulder before she completely lost it. They needed to get as much information as possible.

'Of course, it was not easy,' the man went on proudly. 'It took months before they killed each other and left the throne for myself.'

'You are to blame for their mutual killings?' Inerma said through gritted teeth.

'The king's family was already in shambles. I merely had to point them to the right direction.'

'You destroyed this place. And for what reason?' Ines asked angrily.

The elf pretended to think about it before he finally gave an answer. 'Oh, I know. Because they deserved it! They deserved even worse! I did them a favour. They were ungrateful bastards, and there will always be people like them.'

'Yeah, people mess up, and then things get better, until they mess up again. That's life,' Landos argued.

'Not unless I put an end to this vicious cycle.'

'Yeah, by killing thousands of innocent people who have never harmed anyone.'

'You are blinded by your insanity,' Ines added.

'You can either stand by me and help me execute my plan or be the next ones to die.' The moment those words escaped from his lips, he brought his hands to the front. They were burning with silver-blue flames that didn't seem to scorch his pale skin. Ines didn't want to test the damage they could cause.

'Do you hear yourself?' Matthew said.

'You are insane,' Ines murmured.

'Call me whatever you wa—'

'And do what?' Matthew cut him off. 'Give out some weapons and make them like zombies? Is that your masterful plan?'

The man chuckled again, a whizzing sound coming out of his throat. It made her blood run cold. 'You humans are so naive. You wouldn't even look beyond that.' He started taking tentative steps towards Matthew. His expression was one of arrogance, like he enjoyed boasting about his intelligent plan. Maybe that was his weakness, his overconfidence and assurance.

Ines glanced at Matthew who was closely observing the enemy. He sensed her gaze on him and turned to her, his eyes giving her a knowing look. He was thinking the same thing as her.

'I'll break it down to you,' the elf spoke as if he was lecturing them. 'The first step is infiltration. Then, you won't have to try too hard to fight them, because they will have already been defeated from the inside. All the rest are just a piece of cake.'

'Do you think we will let you endanger more people's lives?' Landos clenched his fists in aggravation.

'It is inevitable. There is nothing you can do to stop it!' His loud voice filled the empty ballroom and run to meet the ceaseless wind through the broken windows all around them.

Ines knew they couldn't knock some sense into him. His madness was incurable. She was aware that if they didn't stop him right then and there when he was outnumbered, they wouldn't stand a chance in overpowering him separately.

Her right hand automatically touched the hilt of her sword. There wouldn't be any better chance than that. She took a deep breath and prayed she was right. 'At least I will have tried,' she whispered and charged at him.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A/N: I'm dyiiiiing. Give me a star to raise me from the dead, or else I fear there won't be another chapter! HEEELP!!!

Phrase of chapter: damnant quod non intellegunt / they condemn what they do not understand - Quintilianus