Chapter 1: A storm is gathering

Long ago in a land far way, there was King Haou, a simple king but he was ambitious, he had a dream of a peace that would cover the land for generations and everyone in would prosper. His grand palace's towers and walls were made of finest blue marble. Adorned with the purest gold and grandest of sapphires. It was called the Palace of a Thousand Sapphires. He conquered his enemies without lifting a single sword.

But enough about him. This story is not about him, it is about his grandson who is promised to the granddaughter of a king in neighboring kingdom.

Alexis sighs as her skin was on fire under her lover's touch as he skillfully remove her clothes. She runs her fingers through his brown hair. His lips kiss along her jaw line and down her neck to her collard bone sending chills up and down her spine. His hand caresses her breast through her white lacy bra. Alexis arches up against his touch and his chest. Grinding her hips against his getting a moan to escape his lips as other hand ran up her thigh. She claim his lips in kiss that was everlastingly passionate and hungrily brought out his lust in its full intensely as he pushes her down onto the bed behind her.

But as he climb on top of her, room's walls and roof split open leaving the two lover, the floor which the bed sits, and the stars above. She looks up to see a group of stars shine brighter than the rest, they soon connected by lines of fire that formed a symbol that she did not know. The symbol became brighter and brighter as burn itself into her memory. Then her lover becomes a ray of light that shoots up to the symbol.

She wakes up in her bed still in her suite inside the Great Palace Direwul, Alexis is the King's granddaughter and the Heiress to his throne and the Kingdom. "Why do I keep having this dream, and what does it mean?" She asks as she rest her forehead in her hands. Alexis get out of her bed and opens the door to the balcony. She can see all of her grandfather's city, Palace City; the palace with its pearl white walls and towers shining in the morning light, the road lined with orange trees that lead from the palace to the grand market of High City, the tinker workshops of Middle City, she can just make out the bridge that leads to Lower City where much of the district is covered by the trees that hides away most of it beneath their branches not allowing anything to reach past them to the sky above, and where the city's scanty-born stay. The palace sits in the foothills where two mountain ranges meet, these mountain ranges form the sides the valley that Palace City resides in with the three minor cities extending south down into the valley. At the very end of the valley you will find the port town of Rustnail. Alexis has never seen the sea, she has only seen the inside of the palace walls.

She walks into the Castle Wizard Bastion's lab. "Princess Alexis, are you here for your lessons with Master Bastion?" Bastion assistant ask standing up from his workstation.

"Kinda Jesse, I wish if I may ask Maestro Bastion something."

"Is that Princess Alexis, Jesse?" The Castle Mage ask as he came out from behind some curtains, "Ah Princess, what do I owe this pleasure, if I remember correctly you do not have lessons today?"

"Dreams, Maestro Bastion." Alexis replies with cheeks rosy, the dream replays in her mind.

"A Dream you say, dream about your future husband, or your upcoming birthday party, or maybe the day that you become Queen of the kingdom." He asks with a hand to his chin.

"There is a boy that I only ever see in the dream, then room that we are in breaks apart and the stars appear above me and boy, then fiery lines connect the stars to form a symbol. When the symbol is complete the boy is pull up to the symbol on a ray of golden light."

"Interesting, when did you start having this dream?"

"Two weeks ago maybe."

"So it started around time of the new moon. Unfortunately Astrologic and dream symbols are not one of my strong suit. But I think I heard of one that lives in Lower City that could help." the Maestro said as he got his cloak and got a cloak for the princess and handed it to her, "Here you go My Lady." when he see the confuse look her face, "You're going with me."

"What, me outside of the palace? It will never happen, the royal guard will not let me leave,"

"You leave that to me, princess." the Maestro says with a sly smile.

Mean while down in Lower City. A orphan named Jaden is punch by another and falls into the mud, "Come on you stinking high-born, get up and fight like a real man," The other orphan said as he kicked Jaden again across his ribs, that cause black spots to appear in Jaden's vision, He looks up that the boy who was standing over with his scanty-born mark clearly in view, which was three horizontal lines just below the corner of his right eye, and his forest green hair that went to his shoulders.

(It me explain low-born and scanty-born is anyone who is not of royal or noble birth, both have a identification mark on their face that is place at the time of their birth, the only difference is that the scanty-born are the poorest of the poor and tend to have odd hair colors, and hate anyone who is high-born. Okay back to what is going on.)

"Tommy! He coming, Zane coming this way" another boy comes up to the boy that was kicking Jaden who's name was Tommy, the cold feeling of fear came over him as he said, "Lets get out of here." Tom and the others ran away right before a tall boy with blue green hair, teal color eyes, and a serious look on his face that never disappeared, came around the corner and sees Jaden laying in the mud.

Zane shook his head and says, "Let me guess Tommy and his robots huh?"

"Yeah it was them, but it does not matter anyway,"

"Why does it not matter Jay?"

"I don't know why exactly, but something tells me its not worth it and his hits don't hurt for long, as soon as he leaves so does the pain, he treats me the same as everyone else so it doesn't mean anything to me, I over heard an old man once call me 'one without father mark' what does that mean?"

Zane put his right hand to his mark which is three vertical lines on the right side of his jaw line, "He means you don't have one of these, a identification mark, it show everyone who your father is. Either you're Royalty...," Zane looked Jaden right in the eye, only to find a blank stare looking back at him.

"So what does that mean?" Jaden asks.

Zane sighs "Jaden, Jaden, Jaden, what are we going to do with you."

"Oh well," Jaden looks down at his watch, "We better get going if we're gonna make it to Master Banner's lessons on time, for once."

"You're the only one of us who's never on time, and what has got you in such a happy mood today,"

"Oh nothing of importance. Things are just starting to look up at last." Jaden said as he folded arms behind his head and walk off. Zane stood for a moment then follow.

"That's right Jaden things are starting to look up, stars are aligning together, the eternal lovers are now ready to meet for the first time. The stage has been set, the players have been set, and things are about to change." a cloaked stranger says standing around the corner from where the scene between Jaden and the scanty boys. Then the pain hit her as she doubles over, a hand holding the spot where Tommy kick Jaden in the rips when he was down. "Jaden my lord I will gladly take this pain, if it means you feeling better as it is my sworn duty to shield you from pain."

"Yubel why do you that to yourself," someone says from behind her

She turns to the voice and answers, "King Haou told me to watch over and protect him from harm. You know this Captain Drake."

The other figure steps forward from the shadows wearing a royal blue hooded cloak with ivory white trim, which were the colors of the Kingdom of Neos' crest. The lower half of his face it covered by a cloth, so only his blue eyes were visible. "If I remember correctly, that doesn't mean taking all of his pain, it means only protecting him from fatal harm. It doesn't either of you any good by you taking all of his pain. It makes you too weak to protect him and him too dependent on your help. Now he will not be able to face what is to come." He stood next to her and looked at her sideways, "And know it is all your fault. Do you not remember when we found him surrounded by a circle of dead bandits, all had die from the same affliction, which I have yet to identified. the only thing I could come up with is an ancient magic spell. Wait...some one is coming. Hide!" The both of them disappear into the shadows, as Maestro Bastion and Princess Alexis came into view and headed off in the same direction as Zane and Jaden went.

Lyman Banner is the city's best alchemist, also a teacher to the city's orphans. He was sitting in candlelight and blend over a dusty old tome when he heard Jaden say, "Good morning teach what are we learning today." from the learning room in the front of his shop. He looks up at the door confuse. He walks into the room thinking it was one of his student's pranks that they like to play on each other. "Hiya teach so what are we learning today?"

"Uh Jaden? Are you feeling okay?" the alchemist asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be."

"Oh I don't know, how about the fact that you are still this happy even after you had a run in with Tommy and gang." Zane spoke up.

Professor Banner pull Zane to the side and asks, "Wait you are telling me that he got butt kicked Tommy and he still made it before every one else?" Zane just nodded yes, "What do you think, Star-people, or demon mind-control?"

"I don't know, but starting to miss the old Jaden, That smile, has not left his face sense I met up with him in the old carnival yard this morning."

"You do know I'm right here and can hear you." Jaden butts into their conversation.

"Okay what's going on with you then because this is not normal for you?" Mr. Banner asks as he started to ready the day's lesson.

"What can I say, I'd a great dream last night."

"You mean you had a great girl last night. What's her name?" the alchemist ask back

"NOOO!" Jaden yell

"Okay what was the dream about?"

But before Jaden could replied someone clear his throat from door, the three men turn to the door and see two figures standing just inside the door both wearing cloaks that hid their faces in the room's early morning light. The taller of the two, and the one that clear his throat, removed his hood to be reveled as the court maestro Bastion. "I'm Bastion Misawa the court's Maestro, I saw the Mages guild's mark on your sign outside and wish that you may be able to point us to the one they call Draik the Astro-wizard." Bastion's companion made a barely audible gasp when they locked eyes with Jaden.

"Yeah, He is lives in cabin in the foothills of the western side of the valley just a little ways down the King's road, Jaden go show them where it is."

"Yes professor,"

"So why are you looking for Old Man Dar?" Jaden ask as he walked down the path to the the road.

"Uh we...wait I thought his name was Draik?"

"That is just what everyone who doesn't know call him. He has a different name that each of his friends know him by. Don't ask me why he does that, for he has yet to tell me. So what are you needing Old Man Dar for, If it is alright that I ask?"

Bastion leaned to is companion who whispers, "Tell him that I am one the princess's handmaiden carry message from her to find the meaning a dream?"

Bastion did has told saying that she was a handmaiden of Princess Alexis, who has a question for the wise wizard.

"Oh that sounds like along the lines of Old Man Dar's normal commissions that he gets." Jaden said as he folded him arms behind head.

Alexis tugs on Bastion sleeve and whispers to him, "Bastion, he looks like the boy from my dream,"

"Best to keep that to ourselves for now okay?"

"Yeah you're right."

After about ten more minutes of walking Jaden stop and turns toward the west, "There it is, Old Man Dar's place is just up there, just follow that path and it will lead you right to his front door." He says while pointing everything out, "Well I need to get going if I'm going make it back for Mr Banner's lesson. See ya later." Jaden finishes before turning and takes off running back up the road.

Alexis watches as he soon disappears behind the trees that road wound through, So your name is Jaden, Alexis thought to herself.

Somewhere at the edge of the Dark Forest which lies at the southeastern edge of Lower City, it's also a known hideout for bandits. A young maiden is washing her family's clothes in the nearby creek river, when she hears rustling coming from the under brush, she grabs her knife, "Who's there, I have a knife and I-I k-know how use it." she says as she crosses the creek river to the underbrush, rustling stops as she pokes around. Finding nothing turns back to the creek, but something tackles her into the creek pinning her face down into water as a set of teeth bite into her neck and causes her blood spill into the flowing water turning it blood red. She never had a chance... to scream for help.