Chapter 1- The First Sight

Crickets began chirping together in their round of evening chorus. Four travelers hiked single-file along the well-worn dirt path, gazing off at the fire-golden sunset painted behind the tops of the trees ahead, and the purple clouds that hung low on the horizon.

"Can we stop to rest, Auric? My feet are sore, and all this walking isn't helping my blisters any," said Racti.

Auric sighed and came to a halt, motioning for the others around him to do the same. He turned and tried to direct a stern look at the young dark-haired man who had spoken, but found himself smiling instead.

Racti sat on the ground, rubbing his feet. His face was a mask of agony. As he opened his flask and poured the cool water over his reddened soles, he pointedly ignored the laughter of his companions.

Tannyr, whose laughter resembled a barking sheepdog, was the worst of all. "Serves you right for wagering your shoes with that braggart back at the last tavern, Racti," the dwarf grunted, scratching his long, bushy beard.

Racti looked up at the dwarf and grinned sheepishly. "Well, I had no idea that there was going to be a bear in that cave. The bet was unfair."

The others laughed even harder.

Chuckling, Auric patted his young friend on the shoulder. "Sure, Racti, we'll rest." The day had indeed been long. They had been up since first light and had been walking over hilly terrain all day. As leader of this expedition, it was his duty to see to it that each member of his team was well rested and fit to travel. The time might soon come when they wouldn't have such luxury. It wasn't long before the campfire was lit off the side of the road.

Auric reached into his cloak and withdrew a folded piece of paper. The document was crinkled around the edges and yellowed with age. He could feel the eyes of his companions on him as he studied the map in his hands. Around him a cool, early evening breeze stirred the trees, bringing the forest to life. An owl hooted in the distance.

Night was coming.

Following Racti's example, Tannyr lowered himself to the ground, absently patting his pockets for his pipe. Auric's dwarven friend understood the value of patience and Auric suspected that it was the foundation of his reputation as a strong and resourceful warrior.

Zengrath, the fourth member of the group, selected a nearby boulder and carefully wrapped himself in his long robes before sitting on it. Auric smiled to himself, knowing that the elderly wizard would sooner stand on his head than sit on the ground. He was far happier in his study, surrounded by the books he studied endlessly, than out in the forest.

As Auric watched, the old man steepled his long, gnarled fingers, lowered his head and began to chant softly. The words were carried away with the wind, but Auric knew that they formed the powerful spells that Zengrath forever practiced in his quest to perfect his control over his powers. Just as Tannyr's strength and skill were integral to the group's survival, Zengrath's wisdom and spells would - he hoped - serve them well when called upon.

And then there was Racti.

"Hey, Zengrath! Look at this..." the young man began excitedly.

"Hush, Racti," Auric said. "Leave him be."

Racti rolled his eyes and stomped away, acting more like a child than like the sturdy accomplished thief that he was. The young man's enthusiasm and playfulness often worried Auric. Controlling him was a problem, and Auric was sometimes at a loss to explain the concept of death to a young man who met all challenges with the belief that he would live forever. For now though, Racti remained the joker who amused his friends just as well as he could pick a pocket.

Auric walked over to where Tannyr was seated and knelt beside him, holding out the map on which he had marked a red X at their current location.

"So far so good, old friend." He looked up from the parchment and glanced ahead to the mountains looming overhead. "But the map becomes unclear from this point on."

"Aye," said the dwarf, blowing out a stream of fragrant pipe smoke. "That it does. I suppose you're looking for my advice." He grinned.

Auric smiled and looked to the map once more. He rested his finger on a point. "What about this area here? Should we go around it?"

Tannyr leaned forward and squinted as he studied the intricate drawing in the rapidly fading light. Puffs of white smoke billowed from his mouth while he analyzed the document; a moment later his eyes lit up. "That's the central mountain home of the Rockcrest Dwarves, an ancient clan who were here long before my people came to this area. They were a lively bunch, I can tell you. When I was a child, my grandfather told us many stories of their adventures. They built a maze of tunnels that pushed through the mountain. I say we take this direct route through those mountains, north and then west."

Auric watched the dwarf trace the proposed route with his forefinger. "Very well, then. First thing tomorrow, that's the route we'll take."

"No!" Zengrath cried suddenly from behind them. Both men turned to stare at the old wizard, who was leaning heavily on his staff, his long face pale with worry and fear. Even Racti broke out of his sulk to look expectantly at the old man.

"The north is dangerous territory!" Zengrath said ominously. "No, I won't go there. I say we first head west, and avoid the north until absolutely necessary."

Auric slowly rose to his feet, hoping that the calm expression on his face hid the confusion in his mind. Zengrath's objection was reasonable. Though Tannyr claimed to know the mountains well, part of Auric suspected that most of this knowledge came from myths and legend.

"The danger lies only on the surface of the mountains," Tannyr spoke up, pushing himself to his feet as well. "I know of a passage that goes through the kingdom of the Rockcrest Dwarves. I learned about it while I was a soldier in my grandfather's army. The clan built corridors right through the mountain range to allow for a safer and easier passage." He stopped and tugged on his beard in thought.

Zengrath grunted as he started off in the direction of a small brook they had crossed earlier.

"Wait, Zengrath," Auric sighed. "Why shouldn't we take the underground path? It sounds safe to me."

The wizard stopped and turned to Auric. "I don't know just yet, but I have read about evil powers manifesting deep within those foul catacombs and tunnels. And even at this distance I can feel something radiating from the mountains."

"Tannyr, do you know anything else about this passage?" Auric asked, noticing the thoughtful expression on the dwarf's face.

"No," Tannyr replied. "For a moment I thought there was something else, as Zengrath mentioned, but I was mistaken."

Auric pondered for a moment. "It's decided," he asserted. "We'll travel by way of Tannyr's passage."

Racti cocked an eyebrow, and then, mimicking Zengrath's dry, ancient voice, he said, "Excellent - a mountain adventure."

Tannyr grinned and clapped Auric on the shoulder. "The boy's right. A mountain adventure indeed! Mark my words, Auric, tomorrow you'll see that we will be perfectly safe in my route."

"I'm sure I will, Tannyr," Auric said. "Now, let us make camp and rest. It's been a long day."

He fell silent then, knowing that sleep wouldn't come for him that night. A sense of foreboding plagued Auric, especially with Zengrath's mention of danger. However, their fate had been decided and they would have to meet it head on, for better or for worse.

* * *

As the others sat around the campfire and told stories, Zengrath sat on a log by the brook, chewing on a hazelnut. The nut seemed to clear his head, and Zengrath closed his eyes and meditated again. Something nearby gave off strange vibrations, but they were too vague for the wizard to tell what it was. He stood up and waded across the brook to the other side, where there was a small cleft in some nearby rocks.

Zengrath peered inside, and saw that there appeared to be the remains of a room built underground. He moved away some of the rocks that he could lift, and he slipped into the hole in the cleft. The old man wished he was as young and nimble as Racti, but he managed to get through.

The room was unlit save for the moonlight coming in through the hole. Groping around, Zengrath found a torch in a bracket on the wall. He touched the wrapped part of the torch (which felt rather soggy - Zengrath hoped it would still light) and the torch caught flame.

The room was nearly empty; only scattered trash littered the floor. Something in that litter, however, seemed to be emitting those vibrations he had felt outside. Coughing lightly, he rustled through the litter (despite his apprehensions about going through garbage) and found a few peculiar items, apparently artifacts or tools of some sort.

One was in the shape of a small hand sickle, made out of wood. The others appeared broken, or he couldn't tell their purpose. Whatever they were, Zengrath felt they had some importance, and when he returned from this journey he would have them appraised or disenchanted.

He climbed back out of the hole, which was surprisingly easier than going in, and returned to his sleeping friends. He decided against mentioning his findings until a later time. For now, he would focus his concentration on the mountains ahead, and what it was that lay deep beneath them.

* * *

Night settled in, and the moonlight silvered Auric's long white hair. A soft breeze rustled the needles of the tree under which he sat. Lying back with his hands clasped behind his head, Auric took in the fresh, crisp smell of the pine. He closed his eyes, thinking of the reason he came on this journey in the first place.

The devastation of Corwen was complete. He closed his eyes and saw every detail again; the black and charred remains of buildings and trees were vividly painted in his mind. Thick, black smoke still billowed into the sky from the remains. Massacred bodies, bloody and burned, lay scattered in the streets, which were littered with ash and pieces of splintered wood. Soft whimpers of pain and screams of terror had caused Auric to grimace. They had not arrived in time. Only an army could have done this, Auric thought. He had a good idea who was leading this army of death and destruction. He had sent for his friends and together they spent days wandering through Corwen searching the rubble for the living - cleaning and bandaging wounds, digging graves and burying the dead - offering what little help and comfort they could to these people.

Auric sighed and rolled to his side, propping his arm under his head and wrapping his cloak around his body, clenching his jaw as the images lingered.

Suddenly, a raspy voice began to cloud his mind. "Auric, you fool, you know you can never stand up to me and my men. You are always going to be two steps behind, and will only ever see the injured, dead and ravaged. If you come for me, you will die." Auric sat upright and looked around to see where the voice came from. A misty image of an elf with slate-colored skin and wavy white hair stood behind him, dressed for battle in black mail. Auric recognized the image instantly.

"Flygin Darkbreed..."

"You always wanted to play leader," Flygin taunted. "What have you accomplished so far? You certainly did nothing to save the last village," Flygin taunted. Auric leapt to his feet and drew his sword in a quick fluid motion, but stopped and shook off the vision of the dark elf. Looking around a second time, he reminded himself that Flygin was only a hallucination, and then sheathed his weapon.

Auric felt the need to walk, to be alone for a while. As he wandered among the firs and pines, Auric's mind wandered to his love, the elf-maid, Shandara. He had left her without a word for his quest - but surely she would understand the burning within that required him to set out for vengeance. He hadn't wanted to worry her about his facing, almost single-handedly, the ones who had ravaged her town and now he felt a pang of guilt for leaving her to worry.

Auric stopped at the nearby stream. He ran his hands through the cool water, envisioning the last time he had seen his beloved. It was a night not unlike this one with Shandara and himself dancing together in the Whispering Wood back home. His heart flip-flopped in his chest, remembering her eyes. With her pain and suffering masked behind her smile, they danced and found comfort in each other's presence. He began to dream of her melodic voice whistling through the air and asking him to abandon his quest and return to her.

"I can't do that!" Auric moaned in agony, fists clenched against his heart. He looked into the water, and an altered reflection appeared there. The ears, face and hair were no longer his own. He shook off the illusion. The reflection showed his normal image again. Auric knew it was the human part of him that caused his momentary rage at Flygin, but it was his elven side that encouraged him to forget his rage and continue onward.

"Can't do what?" asked a familiar voice from behind him. Auric turned to see Zengrath smiling at him, the wizard's gray eyes just peeking from under his floppy cap. It was a comforting sight to Auric, and a familiar one since his adolescent years.

"Nothing, nothing," Auric answered, "just nothing at all." Auric started for the camp, not looking back to see whether or not Zengrath was following. He already knew why Zengrath had come to see him.

"So you really think that Tannyr's way is the best?"

"I don't know. The reason I brought him along is because I trust him," Auric replied, shrugging. As Zengrath walked back to the camp, Auric realized that he had just relied on Tannyr's judgment over Zengrath's. He wished he could have taken back those words. Auric returned to the tree, a dull, empty ache gnawing at his soul. Sleep came easier than he had thought earlier. Purging the earlier dreams from his mind, Auric curled up under a tree and dozed off.

* * *

Racti was the first to wake the next morning. He began an unusual set of morning activities. It was a ritual started by his great-grandfather, who had been the greatest thief of his time, which had saved his own life, so he passed it on.

First, he hung by his arms from a large branch of a tree, to "stretch the ache out of my back," and then he practiced throwing his dagger at a tree to make sure his arms were still quick enough to suit him. After twenty minutes of this, he started a small fire to cook himself eggs, and then headed to the stream to wash his face. He tied his long black hair into a ponytail to prevent it from getting wet, and knelt by the stream.

Suddenly, the soft morning breeze that was blowing changed; a gust of wind caused large ripples to form in the stream. Through the ripples in the water, Racti swore he saw the reflection of a large dragon in the sky. Disbelieving what he had seen, he looked up into the sky, and gave a startled gasp.

The dragon's shiny silver skin glimmered as it reflected the sunlight. Its long, pointed muzzle looked strong enough to crush bone. A mane of fur surrounded its neck. The dragon soared northward, its body moving in an up and down undulating motion. Racti trembled at the sight of the dragon's massive bluish-lavender wings against its body. He had never seen this type of dragon before; it was the legendary silver dragon.

"Au-Auric!"

No, it can't be. Not here. Racti rushed back to the sleeping party. He scrambled and tripped over brambles and shrubs, almost kicking over the cooking eggs when he reached the campsite. Panting in shock, he stopped at the tree where Auric was sleeping, and started shaking him frantically. "Auric! Auric! Come and look! You'll never guess what I saw!"

Auric rolled over, grumbling about being disturbed from his slumber so soon. "Not another one of those demon anteaters again, is it? I told you..." Auric stopped short, noticing something was different in Racti's eyes. It wasn't his usual anteater joke. "What did you see?"

"I saw a silver dragon!"

Auric could also detect fear in his voice. Silver dragons had never been seen on the continent of Kulnor. Only one verified sighting in the world had occurred, and that was on a continent further west. Racti stood away from the trees and peered up into the sky, trying to catch one more glimpse of the magnificent beast.

Tannyr and Zengrath, who were awakened by Racti's commotion, listened to his story. "Silver dragons. Humph!" Tannyr grunted, shaking his head. He didn't believe in the legend. "Old wives' tales..."

Ignoring Tannyr's remark, Auric stood and joined Racti, glancing to the sky as well. "Where'd the dragon fly off to, Racti?" Auric wanted to believe him. The awe Auric saw on Racti's face awoke a long dormant desire to pursue the dragon. He had heard wondrous dragon stories told to him by his mother and longed to chase the legends in hopes of making these stories a reality. However, he recalled his reflection in the stream the night before and wondered if the stream had also deceived Racti.

Racti pointed north to the mountain range. "He flew towards those mountains. I lost sight of him after that." Racti walked over to the fire and noticed that the eggs were burned. Frowning in disappointment, he sat near the fire, dumped the burnt offering into the fire and began cooking another egg.

"Then it's confirmed. We'll go through the mountains and avoid detection from above," Auric said, nodding. He felt more confident with his decision, and hoped the others felt the same way. Tannyr smiled, but Zengrath bowed his head and remained silent.

"I'll mark the route on our map, since I know the way." Tannyr held out his hand to Auric, who handed him the map. The half-elf and the dwarf sat by the tree discussing their proposed path. Racti ate his breakfast, then headed back to the stream, repeatedly looking back at Auric and Tannyr to see if they were going to stop him from bothering the wizard.

Zengrath sat alone on the bank of the stream, eyes closed. His legs were crossed, and he held his hands steepled in front of his face. Racti knew that something was definitely wrong with the wizard. Though Zengrath always kept to himself, he seemed very distant, as if shouldering a heavy burden.

Racti approached the silent old man, who opened his eyes and glared at him.

"How many times have I told you not to disturb me?" Zengrath finally said. "I prefer to be alone while I meditate."

"You're worried about those mountains, aren't you?" Racti sat down by Zengrath, ignoring the old man's words. "I know. They make me shiver too." Racti rubbed his arms briskly. "What is it about them that you don't like?"

"A good friend of mine, the wizard Normagus, was lost in those mountains. I feel they're more dangerous than most of us believe. Last night, I felt the Essence has been disrupted. There is a great evil dwelling in those mountains that is more powerful than an army could handle." Zengrath gazed off at the mountains in the distance, brooding. He felt the vibrations of the evil magic even now, and it sickened him. He coughed.

Racti didn't know much about the deep magic known as the Essence, but he did know it was enough to change Zengrath's behavior. "What kind of evil?"

"Well, you saw a silver dragon fly towards those mountains, right? I believe the dragon may have something to do with the evil."

Auric approached the thief and the mage. "What are you two chatting about?" Auric smiled, but then noticed the concern on Zengrath's face. He turned to Racti, giving him a penetrating stare. Racti knew exactly what that meant. The thief gave Zengrath a quick wave and scampered off in the direction of the camp.

Auric chuckled to himself, and then faced the wizard. "I haven't seen you like this in a long time. Is it another rift in the Essence?"

"Yes. I felt it last night while you were at the stream. That's why I prefer not to go through the mountains. There's an aura of intense evil surrounding that place. If we enter its domain, we could all be destroyed." Zengrath's voice was dry and foreboding. He coughed again

"We could destroy the evil by magic, and then..." Auric suddenly realized his foolishness. Despite his fascination with it, he knew he could never be a player in the ways of deep magic.

"Don't underestimate the Silence! It's stronger than anyone can imagine."

Auric shivered at the mention of the Silence. He knew that the ancient evil magic opposed the Essence in a natural balance. He didn't know, however, how strong either could be.

Zengrath sighed. "I've memorized a binding spell that perhaps," the wizard said, stressing this word, "may be strong enough to confine whatever lives in those mountains in a magical barrier. Maybe we can't destroy the evil, but we can restrict it."

His words settled Auric's mind to some extent. The wizard finally smiled the kind grandfatherly smile that Auric remembered. Auric thought back on his childhood, the way Zengrath used to calm his fears with the same smile. There was something about the wizard that had that effect on him.

Auric and Zengrath returned to the others and began packing their belongings for the trip. Zengrath felt a bit like a weight had been lifted, but a small burden still remained in his heart that made him feel uneasy.

* * *

The trip to the mountains was uneventful. By now the forest terrain had become so monotonous that even Auric grew tired of their surroundings. He longed for his den back home in Rhom's forest, which blossomed in great beauty at this time of year. This forest, on the other hand, depressed him. There were no living things about other than the trees and brambles, and even they seemed to be lacking life.

As Auric trod on, he glanced at the faces of his companions. Though he was glad they had joined him on this journey, Auric wondered if they knew how important, yet dangerous, this was to him.