After explaining what had happened between the Demon Lord and her subordinate to the rest of the troops, Flannik also gave orders for a few other things and had some of the other plans start moving along.

As he was finishing a conversation with another one of his fellow officers, he sensed more than he saw, that the Demon Lord was approaching him.

"Anyways. See to it that the troops under you remain calm and cooperate with the goblins. They seem to mean us no harm now that the battle has ended. They might let us leave here soon, but I wish to discuss it and confirm with the Demon Lord, that if the things she has said to Lieuten-, No, correction: Captain Yamin, are true. If they are, I will send word to you immediately."

"Sir!" Said the young orc officer before hurry off to his duties assigned to him.

"So! Flannik? I hope you will forgive Artemis for her, let's call it, forceful actions?" The Demon Lord started off with pleasantries.

He smiled to himself at the sound of her high reedy voice. At the least, she seems to have calm down. He thought to himself. He kept up his smile as he turned back towards her.

"Of course. No lasting harm done. She had good intentions and probably saved lives with that." He told her honestly. "This one is sorry that he wasn't paying enough attention to the state of your aura."

"So that was a question I wanted to ask: Are you actually able to see my aura?" She questioned.

He took a deep breath. He knew that he couldn't keep dodging her questions, or giving her half answers. He just hoped that, if necessary, he wouldn't have to resort to his fall back plan.

"Yes... As a Shaman; this one has trained hard in the ways of controlling his aura. To the point that now, Flannik is able to perceive it."

"Perceive it? not see it?"

Flannik held up his hand to forestall any other questions this, knowledge thirsty Demon Lord would ask.

"It is not so much sight. As if it were: I would be currently blind, because all that surrounds us currently is your aura."

The Demon Lord had a very large look of surprise in her eyes. He was wondering if she was easy to read, and that is why she wore the mask and cloak, even on this hot afternoon. But before she could barrage him with more of her questions, he had one of his own.

"Who trained you to suppress your aura?" He asked her.

The Demon Lord looked down, as if a child who was being scolded.

"No one." She answered.

It was an answer that Flannik had almost guessed, but was still surprised to hear. Considering that they have no one that knows how to use magic, it only makes sense that they don't remember how to control their aura.

"This one thought as much. There is no need to feel a... what is the word? Upset?"

"I do though" The Demon Lord contradicted. "I hate that it is so large that I don't have control over it."

"HAHAHAHAHA! *COUGH COUGH COUGH*" Flannik had just accidentally let out his laugh as he heard the most absurd thing the Demon Lord said so far. Is that really what they think the problem is?! After his coughing fit and straightening himself up. He looked back up at the Demon Lord and Artemis look at him in confusion. Both of them had their heads slightly cocked to the side. What an adorable parent and child. He thought to himself.

He walked towards them before stopping short. He then made a move to sit, but the incessant wet-nurse attached to him said.

"Wait!" Creeping Ivy said to him. "L-L-L-let this one- I mean; let me go and get you a pillow or a blanket to sit on! I-I-I can't have my patient s-s-sitting on the h-hard ground."

"This one is fine! Flannik doesn't need-" But she was already gone before he could stop her. He looked back towards the other two goblins, who acted very much like normal people, if not a little silly. "Please tell Flannik that not everyone in your clan acts like her."

Artemis had moved her hand towards her mouth, as if to hide it.

"Well," She started to say. "Artemis knows her own mates do not act like that, but she also knows Creeping Ivy is a bit... desperate." She said with a slightly muffled voice that came from behind her hand.

The Demon Lord look up at the older female goblin, then towards Flannik. Her eyes suddenly went wide, then she started to do a double-take of her and back to Flannik; her eyes remaining wide the whole time.

"Oh My!-"

"Hush! let Artemis have her fun!" The older goblin scolded the Demon Lord.

Upon hearing his name from off to the side. Hush came bounding on over towards the two other goblins and Flannik. Flannik Saw the young boy start to wave his hands with words, and this inadvertently caused him to stiffen.

He is not a mage. He thought to himself. I need to stop letting myself get carried away when I see his hands moving as such. But then, another thought occurred to himself. How is it? that the goblins lost all knowledge on spellcrafting, their neighbor's language, but have somehow? retained the disciple of  speaking with their hands? it doesn't make sense!

But just as these thoughts were reaching their natural conclusion. Creeping Ivy was running back, he could sense her behind him.

"F-F-Flannik! I brought you some blankets and p-pi-pillows!?-"

"HEY!" Just as she was around him she tripped on the edge of the blanket she was carrying. Flannik instictively reached out and caught her from falling.

"Be careful! You mustn't injury yourself!" He scolded her. She was a clumsy one. He thought to himself again.

"..."

"....."

".........."

"...?" Creeping Ivy kept herself stiff as she just stayed in his grasp, not moving. What is with this goblin? Why is she just staring at me and not moving? "Is Creeping Ivy okay?" Flannik finally ask her.

Not thinking about what she was holding, Creeping Ivy let go of the blankets and pillows hand had been holding.

"O-o-O-oOoh! Oh my! I-I-I'm s-so s-s-s-s-sOrRy!" She apologized quickly and then rushes away from Flannik in a panic.

After watching her take off, Flannik finds himself even more confused than he was before about her. She cries at the drop of a water skin in pouring rain. Apologizes for everything. Stumbles over herself. And I swear I am better at her own language than she is?! I don't think I shalt understand that Ivy.

As Flannik turns back to look at his other three goblin companions; with the exception of the Demon Lord who wore a face covering, all of them had a different facial expression while looking at him.

"What?!" He asked them.

"Nothing." Said Artemis. "Nothing at all~."

Flannik did not believe her words for the amount of food they would be worth. But he also was realizing it was better to not argue with her, much like it had been to not argue with Gragnueok. He just reached down with a grunt and grabbed the pillows that Creeping Ivy had brought him. After seating himself and getting comfortable her gives his attention back to the Demon Lord.

"Now then, what was the last thing said?"

The Demon Lord's gaze shifted from wide eyed to serious, at the change of conversation.

"I believe that I was just telling you about the fact that no one had trained me to suppress my aura, and the fact that is was to large for me to Suppress."

*SNORT* Flannik snorted a short laugh at that again. He knew he shouldn't laugh at their ignorance, but he couldn't help it.

"... But before we get back to that conversation, something has reminded me of something; and we need to address it: Why do you go stiff when you see Hush wave his hands?"

Dragon crap! She noticed! He berated himself for letting his guard down. But he also supposes that maybe trying to sneak something past this Demon Lord may have been futile to begin with.

"That, Demon Lord. Goes back to an even more previous conversation we had; but this time, Flannik will cut it short. Demon Lord, this one scares Flannik."

She gave nod that she understood.

"But the reason Demon Lord scares Flannik, is because of how powerful this one already is: Demon Lord, Flannik does not wish to teach this one about magic, because this one is scared of how the Demon Lord would use it."

"I see..." Crystaria answered him with a phrase and a nod.

"The oath that Flannik wishes from the Demon Lord: is that if Flannik teaches this one. That this one spares our tribe any sort of retribution for your anger at having attacked you today." Flannik then moved from a seated position to a bowing position with his head lowered towards the ground. "Flannik can only offer this one's own life and the life of these men here, that you would spare our home."

"Oh geez!" Crystaria moans in frustration. She reaches up through her hood, to rubs her forehead for the headache forming. "I think I understand what is going on." She then walks up to kneeling, bowing Flannik. She reaches down to lift his head by his forehead while telling him. "Get up."

"Let me get this straight so that we're all on the same page- I mean; so that we are all of the same mind." Crystaria says to him as he looks at her in the eyes.

"You are under the impression that I am angry for you coming her and attacking our land an invading and trying to kill me, correct?" She asks him. Flannik nods, confirming her suspicions.

"No. That is not the case." She informs him. A look of confusion passes quickly across his face before he could keep it straight. "No. what I am mad about: is the pointless death and fighting that had to happen today; that is what I am most angry about." She took a deep breath and readied herself for a speal.

"To sum up... well, everything. Is that yes, I will be seeking recompense for what happened today. But it won't be with more death." A look a relief passed through the orc's eyes upon hearing this. "That doesn't mean it will be cheap. But I am by no means a tyrant. But make no mistake; I am angry about this. If you hadn't gone off the rails and yelled and me, making me think that the orcs were a bunch of savages. If your brother would have talked with me first rationally first instead of attacking me. I might not have sprung the trap, dropping tonnes... I mean, dropping the stone walls on you all."
She spared him a look a sympathy for what she was about to say to him next."Your brother said to me, that he wanted to crate a utopia of all the races. He asked me right before... he died... That he wanted me to lead your people to greatness. I am not sure I am the right person to be leading anyone honestly. But I did make a promise to him." She reached out patted Flannik on the shoulder.
"We can't take back the actions we've done that lead to this moment. All we can do is try our best, and make better decisions afterwords. I want someone else to lead the orcs, I don't think I am the right person. I will hand that over to who you recommend, his daughter; if she doesn't hate me to much I guess, for you know... But that's besides the point. What I can do, is what I am doing for the goblins, to show you all a better way to live, to teach you how to advance. I don't want to conquer or rule over all the nations in this world. If anything, I want to help them and bring a peace that will stop all the wars from happening. Even though, that totally sounds unrealistic, even to my own ears."

She stands back up right and reaches out a hand in front of herself for Flannik to take.

"I swear, as the Demon Lord: that the recompense that I will ask of the orc tribe of the Graggomire plains, will not be over your means to repay." She gave him a smile. Although, as she did. She thought it was wasted for her to do so with her mouth covered; she just hoped to reached her eyes and he was able to see it.

But to her relief, it did. Flannik gave a smile in return and reached his hand out to shake hers.

"This one thanks you for your oath. But Flannik has to say, you're a strange goblin, Demon Lord.Very human like with how the Demon Lord conduct themselves."

The older goblin Artemis, gives a snort and a laugh from behind the Demon Lord. Which only makes Flannik confused. But the Demon Lord just gives him another smile; or at least, he thinks she does. Her eyes seemed to squint a little more from her smiling mouth.

"I'll take that as a complement Flannik; but now! I believe I have done as you asked. Will you start explaining why Hush scares you and the other orcs? And why you're being so prevaricating."

"..." He opened his mouth to ask what the word meant, but realized that the Demon Lord didn't seem like she wanted anything but the answer she was seeking at the moment. "Very well. The reason we feared him when he showed up, was because he spoke with his hands."

"I gathered as much, but I want to know why that is?" She said as she dropped his hand and took a step back, giving both of them a little more breathing room.

"Ummm.... to put it simply. That is how you cast a spell."

"WAIT WHAT?!" Both Crystaria and Artemis exclaimed at the same time. All three of them had wide eyes. But Hush's mouth had fallen completely open. He was now staring down at his own hands in wonderment. Their combined shout of exclamation startled Flannik.

"Y-Yes. It is not so simple as that, but that is how one would cast a spell." After he tells them that, he composes himself before making the comment. "But it surprises Flannik that, although these one's have forgotten our language, and forgotten magic, that these ones have retained the ancient knowledge of Spellcrafting."

"Spellcrafting?" Artemis questions.

"Yes. The knowledge of how to spell out the words of the ancient magi language into words through one's hands."

"Ancient?... Magi?... Language?" Crystaria repeats each part Flannik just said, as it not only confused her, but it also made her very sad that it was probably something very unrelated to ASL, that she taught the goblins.

"Mmm, that is right." Flannik said. "It is the origin language that all other languages are derived from. Those words hold power in them, and along with the knowledge with how to spell the words out and the proper hand motions that spell the words. This one is able to cast a spell." He told them.

"So!... that means you can't use another's language words or spelling? it has to has to be this ancient magi language?!" Crystaria asks desperately.

What she asked sort of confused Flannik a bit.

"Well... Yes? This one doesn't understand the Demon Lord's question?"

"What part?"

"What does the Demon Lord mean, another's words or spelling?"

"Really? how do you write your words?" She asks Flannik.

"The same as all the other races." He tells her.

"Wait a minute?! WHAT?!" She practically yells.

"Are you telling me that all the races share a common alphabet?"

"What is an alpha-"

"I mean! same way of writing!"

"Y-Y-Yes..." He looked back and forth from the goblins in-front of himself. "Did you goblins really not know this?"

"..." Artemis was quiet until now before say. "It was never something our father's and mother's cared to pass down. The last mage of all the goblins on Graggomire mountain, was my mate's mother. She fought in the last war against the Allied races. Most goblins my age or older were but children, or goblins that were left behind and didn't join the war for one reason or another. The elders that stayed died off quickly and didn't pass anything on. And as Flannik probably knows, no one from the last crusade of the Dark Races returned from that battle."

Flannik's eyes went wide hearing this.

"This one sees. Your clans have been losing themselves of everything they are each generation, is that right?"

"Sounds like it..." Artemis says with a shrug. "Doesn't matter so much now though. Maybe it was a bad thing before, but now that Crysta- Artemis means, the Demon Lord; now that she is here. Things have become much better. We are learning. Eating better. Doing more than surviving and stealing from others." She explained to Flannik.

Flannik blinked at this information.

"Was this why the clans of the goblins in the valley of Graggomire mountain were empty leading here?"

"Yes," Artemis answers. "The Demon Lord here." She said while moving over and dropping her hand on top of Crystaria's head. "Sent an invitation to all other clans to come and join ours in creating a community; as she called it. So that she could teach us a better was to live."

"This one sees..." Flannik says astounded.

Crystaria moves away from under Artemis's hand and waves her off.

"I didn't do all that much. I have been just trying to help people." But she focuses back onto Flannik. "But to get back on track; could you show me what some of your words look like?"

Flannik nodded and reached down to start spelling a word in the dirt.

"These are the way to spell fire."

All three of them came closer and look down at what Flannik had started to write. After he finished, it looked like nothing Crystaria had seen in her previous world. It was a little reminiscent of Aramaic or something Jewish she thought, maybe with a little bit of Japanese thrown into the mix.

And as soon as she had this thought; an epiphany came to her.

"Wait! Flannik?"

"Yes?"

"Did you say this spells fire? like as in: this is the only way to write out how to spell the word fire?" She asked him to confirm something on her mind.

"Yes; this is the way it is spelled using the Magi's language."

"And there are no other components used with how this is spelled for other words?"

"There are, but only in?... the goblin words fail this one here... tandem? together?"

"How so?!" She said, her heart racing, excitement coursing through her veins.

"Well? If this one uses this word for fire here, and this word for wood and camp here: You would end up spelling the word camp fire."

"Okay, not where I thought you were going with that, but now I know how your words and structure is built! YAY!" She jumped with joy at having learn something new.

Flannik looked at her confusion, but was happy for her excitement to learn.

"So, Flannik?! This word for fire, or any of the three of them. They can't be broken down further can they? like they have parts or other components to them?"

"Broken down? Flannik isn't sure of what the Demon Lord means?"

"Actually, for once, Artemis does." Artemis says aloud drawing the attention of their small group back towards her. "Crysta; the Demon Lord. is asking if I could for instance," She reaches down and draws a line through the middle of the word fire. "Break up the word fire and make other things from it: Other words." She told Flannik.

"No!" He told her. "You mustn't change or break the words like that ever! they are precisely as they are for each word that can be spoken! If you are trying to cast a spell with the word fire, you must not only know how to spell it with your hands using ancient language of the magi, but also know how to spell it on paper before spelling it with this one's hands!" He grouses and lectures Artemis.

"So that means if there is another way to make the word fire; would it be possible to create a fire with those words?"

"HAHAhahahah! *COUGH COUGH COUGH* HAhahaha! *COUGH COUGH* Little Demon Lord!" Flannik bursts into laughter at the most absurd thing he had ever heard. "There is no other means of writing or spelling in existence. That is the basic principle of how languages work! This one knows you are ignorant for being so young, and that your knowledge within your goblin clans have been lost for years. But there is nothing like what the Demon Lord is asking for." He regretfully informs her.

But even after Flannik calms down, he had expected the Demon Lord, or even the older goblin to kick up a fuss at his rude behavior. Rather than that. The older goblin, Artemis, had a knowing smile on her face; which she and the Demon Lord were sharing a knowing look between each other.
After watching them Flannik couldn't help but ask.

"What? does something Flannik says seem funny to you? Do these one's think that Flannik is wrong in someway?" He asks them, a little perturbed by their behavior.

"No!..." Crystaria starts to say. "But also yes..."

"What?!" Flannik questions her.

"Here, let me go get something and I will be right back."

"Be right back? Demon-" But before he could finish what he was saying, she was gone.

This time, it was Artemis's turn to laugh.

"Artemis told you Soft-Cheeks. You should get used to the fast pace the Demon Lord walks. It is faster to get used to her ideas, than it is to get her to listen to ours." She told him.

"That was her walk?!" He said, both misunderstanding and completely understanding what she was saying. "Please tell this one that this one is joking?! The speed she moves at cannot be a walking speed!"

"..." Artemis put a hand on her chin as she thought about it. "Actually? I am not sure?"

"......" Flannik had no words for what she just said. He was beginning to realize that maybe it had be an even more foolish venture to challenge the Demon Lord that he had first thought. At the on set of the journey, he and his brother thought that maybe they would lose at least half of their men to the Demon Lord in order to bring it down. And after meeting the Demon Lord, Flannik thought there was no chance that their army of two-thousand elite soldiers would be enough.

But now?! He questioned if the whole army would have been enough, or if the whole of the forces of the Dark Races combined could stop her.

A few minutes of silence goes by while the group waits for the Demon Lord's return.

"Hey Hush! Hey Artemis!" Yells a voice from not to far off.

They turn their heads to see a cloaked individual waving at them, heading their way.

Hush stiffens upon seeing his sister heading their way. Artemis smiles slowly to herself.

"Hi Breeze!" Artemis shouts a greeting in return. "Guess what?!"

Hush grabs Artemis's arm to get her attention. Which makes Artemis look down and glare at his hand on his arm. He immediately lets go of her, then starts signing and pleading for his life.

"OHHHhhh. *TSK* Sorry Hushy..." Artemis says to him while he is signing; she also reaches up and pinches his cheek like a naughty child. "I am not very good at sign language." She said with a smile on her face, her eyes still slanted as she started at his face. "Let me get your sister over her to help me translate for you." She tells him. Hush starts going pale as his sister gets ever closer.

"Huh? what is up?" Breeze asks as she makes her way towards them.

Artemis turns and smiles widely for Breeze.

"Breeze! my wonderful Lieutenant of the scouts! How are you?" She asks her enthusiastically.

Breeze at his point, knew something was terribly wrong. Her brother was sweating profusely, looking every bit as nervous the time he got caught sneaking down to the river to peek at the females.

"Breeze- I mean; I am fine... how are you Ge- I mean Artemis?"

"Oh, I am fine." Artemis says flatly "And it is so wonderful to hear you doing well! Because I have great news! You!" She overemphasized the word you to illustrate her point. "And Your brother, are to go do forty laps around the forest train coarse before sunset.... right now."

Artemis watched as as Breeze couldn't believe her ears. Her face morphed from trepidation from when Artemis started talking, to panic, to horrified, and now slack-jawed. Her eyes were as large as pot lids. Artemis did everything in her power to try not to laugh.

Breeze's face contorted quickly to a murderous gaze as she switched her focus to her brother. He stiffened further as her sight locked on him. "HUSH!" She screamed "I'll kill you!" She then charged at him.

He tried signing at her, but quickly realized it was a futile effort. He turned and started running as fast as he could towards the forest for the training area. He knew the faster they finished the faster he also might be forgiven, and if nothing else, his sister might be to tired to hurt him to much.

Artemis watched while laughing the whole time of Hush being chased up hill towards the village by his sister, with Breeze behind him pound on his back whenever he slowed down; with her yelling at him about how he had completely ruined her date to night: along with other expletives.

Flannik watched this with great interest for many reason. That the goblins didn't seem to act or behave at all like how he remember them being during the war. And that he was sure, as of that moment: that this older goblin named Artemis, was by far the single most fear goblin next to the Demon Lord on Graggomire mountain.

Just a few moments later, Crystaria showed up caring a tome and the chalkboard with some chalk.

"I'm back!" She announced unnecessarily. She looked around for Hush after she arrived. "Where did Hush go?"

Artemis just smiled at her.

Crystaria just frowned at that and let it go.

"Anyways!" She quickly decided to switch back to the previous subject from before she left.

She laid the tome down in-front of Flannik and opened it up.

"This is one of the first books I was shown when I arrived at this village." She told him. She then opened it up towards the middle of the book. "And these are the characters; the symbols, that you used to write, yes?" She asked him.

"AH! What a nice treasure the Demon Lord has here!" He told her.

"So you can read this?!" She asked hopefully.

"In a way, yes..." He said with a smile as he studied the page that was laid open in-front of him.

"... In a way?"

"Yes... This is an elven history book of sorts."

"Elven? Wait?! history?!" She said disappointed.

"Yes... does the Demon Lord see here?" He said pointing at the page. "See how the words flow from the left to the right, making their way around the top right of the page at first, flowing around from the edge, while they continue to make their way towards the center of the tome?"

"YES! yes! I see it!" She said to him to show that she was listening.

"This is a distinct way elves of the race of the Allied Races write their tomes." He informed her. If she wasn't wearing her mask, he would have noticed that she had just lost all sort of motivation on what was written. Her eyes had taken on a dull look to them. But Flannik was to busy looking at the pages. "This is a sort of history; memoir of an elf."

"... So you can read elven? or you can speak it?"

"HAHAHA!" Started to laugh. "*COUGH COUGH* Of course this one can't read their noodle writing! And Flannik doesn't know one word of elvish." He told her.

"But!-" She started to ask him why, or how he knew it was elvish then, or how he knew what the book was about.

"Flannik can guess this one's questions." He then pointed at a few part in the book. "The way it is written is telling. That is what makes it elvish." He explained.

"But I thought you said you all used the same writing?!" She asked in an almost petulant manner.

"We do. But... let me see. AH! here! found it." He told her.

She looked to where his finger was pointing. She recognized it right away.

"That's-!"

"Yes! The ancient magi word for fire." He told her. "The words are the same, but they are used differently from every race." He explained. "This word in the ancient magi language means fire; or "MORLUNKNALONK". He looked up from the page to her, before finishing his explanation. "But in the orcish language it is used as; kunplob, we use this word as feces: because the shape of the word looks like feces being excreted."

Crystaria looked back down towards the book, or in reality towards the ground in defeat.

All this time... I thought it was a spell book! I thought I would one day find out what was said in there and create wondrous magic spells! I just want the ground to open up and swallow me whole now...

Flannik was looking at the Demon Lord on their hands and knees in concern.

Artemis walked up to the orc and slapped him firmly on the back of the head. Flannik was so caught off guard by this, that he almost fell over.

"What was that for!?" He demanded.

"Look at what you did to her. You've broken our poor, caring, and sensitive Demon Lord." As she was saying this, she was making her way towards Crystaria and picked her up in her arms. "There, there, Demon Lord. Every thing will be okay!"

Crystaria mumble into Artemis's shoulder. "Stop treating me like a child for your amusement! *SNIFF*" Despite her petulant complaint, she was very much sad at having found out that the book was worthless. She let herself be spoiled from Artemis for show for a time, while she felt sorry herself.

"I can't believe I had been hoping that it was some sort of spell book!" She groaned into Artemis's shoulder. She then lightly tapped her shoulder, indicating she wanted down. At this point, Flannik felt like he had entered into some sort of live entertainment theater that he wasn't even sure what it was about. He had never heard of a Demon Lord acting or behaving in such a way.

"Alright! enough theatrics! As fun as and depressing as that was to find out that book was worthless. I still have something to show you Flannik." She then reached down to grab the hand held chalkboard and the chalk. "So, you showed us your words, let us show you ours." She told him

She then started writing out the word fire on it then laid the board down for Flannik to see.

"This is the how we write here in goblin country!" She said with a drawl, for no other purpose than to entertain herself.

"...................." Flannik couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Something wrong?" Crystaria asked him after he didn't say anything.

"What is this?! What does it say?!" He demanded.

"This? This is the word, fire, and how to spell it using the En- I mean the Goblin alphabet."

"Alphaet!? Goblin writing?!..." He was astounded. No one in the history of the world had ever created their own form of writing before. At the least, none that any other race had shared or that he heard.

"Yes!" Crystaria said proudly. "Here! This is what I was trying to ask you earlier." She then picked up the board and wiped away the word. She then wrote F I R E, I R E, and the F E A R.

She then turned the board back over and laid it in-front of Flannik.

"See this? This is fire, like I should you a second ago." She pointed at the word and waited for Flannik to nod that he understood. "But here, is the word, ire, which if you don't know what that means-"

"This one does!" He said quickly so that she would continue.

"-that as you can see. The letters, which are each of those characters there." She taught him while point at each letter. "When each one are put together, they form a word; See this one here?" She asked him, which he nodded. "That one is the word fear." She explained. "It has to of the same letters, but-"

"But they make out completely different words!" He shouted in absolute astonishment.

"Yes! You got it! You pick this up quick." She praised him.

Flannik, on his burnt, bandaged hands and aching knees. He trembled with both fear and excitement as looked down upon the board set in-front of him in wonder.

This was it! Flannik realized to himself. This is why this goblin was chosen out of all the creatures and races of the Dark God's races! This is why this Demon Lord is so terrifyingly amazing! Not their raw power! Not their aura! Their knowledge! I must have it!

He whip his head up from look at the board.

"Demon Lord!" He shouted.

Startled by the manic look on his face, Crystaria took a hesitant step back.

"Yes?" She answered cautiously.

"Make this one your disciple!"

For the at least the fifth time that day, Crystaria mind was lost. Out of everything she had expected. That was not one of them.

Artemis on the other hand lost it. She started laughing the moment that words finished on Soft-Cheek's lips.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

".........................."

Flannik had yet to break eye contact with the Demon Lord as he waited for her answer, as he rested on his hands and knees.

How did this happen?! Crystaria questioned in her own mind. When and how did it come to this?! Should I have actually just held a banquette here instead and welcomed the orcs with a banner and the words written on them?! Could that have made the difference?! What the actual fuck is going on here?!?!

After about another minute or some of intense staring from Flannik, uncontrollable laughter from Artemis, and mental breakdown from Crystaria. They were interrupted by Creeping Ivy who had returned after some much needed time to recuperate from her close encounter from Flannik.

She was look at the scene in front of her in bewilderment.

"U-U-Ummm? Is everything alright here?!"

At the sound of her voice both Flannik and Crystaria were startled in place, and Artemis started to make an effort to pull herself together.

"I, ummm.... yes!" Crystaria finally answer her. "Everything is fine?..." And even thought it was, she wasn't at all sure it was. She looked back towards Flannik, despite who was still on his hands and knees, was still staring at Crystaria.
After clearing her throat, and preparing herself she gave her response to Flannik.

"Flannik, I am not someone who can like, take you on as a disciple! I don't even have anything to teach you like that!" She told him.

"But you do-" He began to refute, but was interrupted.

"But I don't!" She told him firmly. "If you wish to learn my way of spelling with our alphabet. Then you may. We can even teach you the proper; or in this case, the NEW proper way, to speak goblin." She told him.

"But!-"

"Flannik, listen." She got serious and had a stern look on her face. "I am to young to be taking someone with your age and wisdom on as my own disciple. I have things I can teach you, and I am fine with that. I have plenty I am still teaching the goblins. But I have more to learn in this world then I have to teach others. Do you understand?"

Flannik realized that no amount of begging was going to get him anywhere.

"*SIGH* Fine. This one is not happy about this arrangement, but this one realizes that to get what he wants, he might have to work slowly."

Crystaria smiled at that. She didn't mind persistence, it was a form for dedication.

"That is fine then. But now, how about going back to my original questions? So, now that you know we are working with a different sort of words and why to construct them, I even know signs strictly for hand motions that work with the goblin alphabet. Could that be used to cast a spell?" She asked him. Her blood pumping at the thought for being so close to casting magic.

"Maybe?"

Okay... Not really the answer I was hoping for.

"Maybe?" Crystaria repeated.

Flannik sat back up, and as he did so, Creeping Ivy came over to check his bandages and wounds. He shrugged at he return question to his ambiguous answer.

"This one is not sure. It is possible, but never has there been a way to utilize words that were not part of the original ancient magi language."

"I see... But what is the trick to it then?"

"The?... Trick?..." He asked confused.

"Yeah? the process? How do you cast spells?"

"..." He looked down at his hands that we currently being look at by Creeping Ivy, as she was applying new ointment to his hands, so that she could get ready to wrap new bandages. "This one will not be able to show you how this one preforms his way of spells with his hands like this." He said lamentingly.

"Well? Why not just explain it the best you can?"

But Flannik shook his head.

"It is not so easy, Demon Lord. For one, has to be able to control their aura; which this one has claimed that no one has taught the Demon Lord yet." He said to her as way of explanation. "For two, this one has to knew precisely how to spell the words with their hands, while they channel their aura through their hands, while picturing the words as their would be written on a page, you preform hand movements that match up to those words, all the while holding a mental image of how this one wants to spell to form."

"Really? Well that doesn't sound to bad." Crystaria said with confidence.

Hearing this made Flannik felt like she had not listened to him at all.

"let's see..." Crystaria said to herself as she turned and walked away from the group for about five feet or so. "First, channel the aura." She started to recite everything she had just been told. "Second, hold a mental image of how I want the spell to preform." She looked out across the way at the mountain in the distance, towards the horizon. "Next is to spell out the words with my hands just like they would be written on the page. Seems simple enough..." She said with more confidence than she felt. She let the aura she had been training on her own, fill her and travel down to her hand.

"What in the name of the dark god?!" She heard Flannik say, but ignored him.

She then wrote out, "Blow up the top of that mountain" with sign language: making sure to go slow so she did it one-hundred percent correctly.

"STOP!" Flannik shouted behind her, as he rushed to stop her.

"Huh?" She said as she turned to look at him.

But in that moment, a red circle appeared in-front of Crystaria, bright with light that, made the area around her feel dimmer by comparison. The magical neon floating red ring held the words and sentence inside it, looped in circle, then surrounded by another inner circle. A small red flame appeared in the center of the spell that quickly started rotating and gaining speed, drawing in air from it's surroundings.
And just as soon as it appeared, it launched off.

The force of its take off was enough to send Crystaria flying backwards into Flannik's arms.

Crystaria watched in both morbid curiosity and terror as she was final able to cast magic, but at the same time, realized what a horrifying mistake it was to start off with something destructive as practice.

The red fiery ball of death zoom across the horizon as it streaked towards it's target. It went so fast, that even Crystaria, who she was sure she could go as fast as mach-three or more. couldn't keep up with it. The little ball of death all so gave off a bright red glow from wherever it passed.
Soon it found its target. It smashed into the side of the mountain hundreds of miles away from where it started. Embedding itself at the peak and center of the mountain: just as Crystaria had imagined it.

Then as everyone on the mountain side of Graggomire mountain watched, another mountain appeared that day.

Red burning fire sprayed forth and billowed out of the mountain in the horizon. Forming a sort of inverted mountain of red hot fire and smoke. The explosion was so large that more than half of the mountain that it originated from was obliterated. The fiery smoke collom reach so high that it split the clouds and sky. The light from the blast so intense that it blotted out the sun; drowning all around for miles-and-miles with light that reminiscent of a campfire with its yellow, red and orange hues.

Crystaria looked on in horror as she realized what she had just done out of carelessness.

I just dropped a nuke.

She watched as the smoke not only rose, but fell and cascaded down the lower remaining half of the mountain she had obliterated.

I am a monster.

She slowly came back to herself as she heard someone walk up beside her. A soft caring hand had found its way onto her head. She knew its touch well.

"My god Artemis!.... What have I done?!" She asked in a sorrowful, tear filled whisper of regret. Her gaze not leaving the sight of her guilt and regret even as she was held by Flannik in his arms.

For almost a minute Artemis said nothing to her.

"Artemis?" She called out to her again. She then found her bravery to look up and hope for some sort of comfort from her caring friend.

But Artemis wasn't even looking at her. She had a hard look on her face that made Crystaria choke up at the sight of it. She looked like a mother that was completely stunned by what her child had just done. Disappointment mix with anger, and also a tad bit of regret.

This only brought out more fresh tear from Crystaria's eyes at this sight of Artemis's disapproval.

Not that I can fucking blame her! She berated herself.

After another or so minute of watching the horizon burn. Artemis still did not look at Crystaria when she said to her.

"You have just let the whole world know you're power." She told her simply.

 

---

 

Kore’anos, King of the Devlin empire, stared thoughtfully at the empty crystal of the Dark God.

Why? He questioned once again for the millionth time it seemed. Why was I rejected? Why wasn't I chosen?

Even as he asked this question is his mind at the grey crystal that seemed to float in the middle of the room. There was no answer for him within it: for there was nothing in it.
This crystal was filled; or was rather, void of anything. The crystal itself was a vacuum of sorts. Anything that got within an ilm of the crystal, was subsequently absorbed.

Spells. Swords. Potions.

It didn't matter what was thrown at it, nor how powerful it was. The crystal just seemed to erase anything that touched it.

Even the reason why it floated at all was a mystery to everyone in the empire.
Kore’anos had his men and mage working tirelessly on researching it. Yet no one was able to give him any sort of answers. The crystal just sat there floating and turning in place. Seemingly to mock Kore’anos.

Why do you not obey me!

For some reason, he felt a sick urge to reach out and crush the crystal with his bare hand.
And just as his hand was starting to rise, a voice from behind him brought him out of his reverie .

"Talking with the Void Crystal again my Lord?" Said the sweet seductive voice of one of his advisors.

Kore’anos breathed a long sigh, that was as much as a grunt.

"Shiva’nia... What is it that you want?" He said calmly, even though he was anything but.

"I have something interesting to show you my lord. I just figured that you would want to see."

"Do not play game with me today Shiva’nia, what is it." He demanded an answer.
But Shiva’nia just shook her head.

"Nothing I can say will be able to explain it. It will be better to just show you." She said as she pushed off of the wall with her wings and walked towards the double doors. All the while taking a sip from her crystal wine glass.Kore’anos gave another grunting sigh as he turned from where he had been standing for who knows how long, and followed the succubus.
As he followed her down the all towards where ever there destination was, he noticed that the light in the hall they were in was wrong.

"How long was I in the Crystal Chamber?" He questioned. There had been days where he had lost all track of time as he stared at the Void Crystal, looking at it for answers.

"Mmm... Not long, just a couple of hours~." She said coyly.

This only caused Kore’anos to become more annoyed and more confused as to why the light was the way it was.

He then looked south, towards the windows of the hall they were traveling it. He then stiffened and stopped in his tracks. He couldn't even describe what it was he was seeing.

"What in the Evil God?!" He whispered.

He heard a giggle come from in-front him.

"See? I told you it would be easier to just show you." Shiva’nia said to Kore’anos smugly.

He looked at her with blazing eyes, filled with anger.

"DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS?!" He yelled at her with all his pent-up frustrations.

"Of course I do," She said with a sip of her meal. "The Demon Lord has finally shown themselves." She informed him casually.

Kore’anos slammed his fist into the wall facing south. Making a hole about three yalms high and just as wide.

"THEN YOU KNOW WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE INFORMED ME IMMEDIATELY!" He yelled.

"*TSK* Calm down my Lord. I am one step ahead of you." She chided her Lord as he acted petulantly. "I called the advisors for an emergency meeting, I have already dispatched our scouts towards that fiery mountain, and I am currently in the middle of getting ready for any one of us to be sent towards that area." She said once more with an air a superiority. "AND..." She said with emphasis as she drew closer to him, to the point where her breasts were pressed against his chest. "I came to grab my Lord as soon as I was able." She looked up from below, staring into his hard set eyes. "Satisfied?" She asked coyly.

He breathed in through his nostrils, taking in her heady scent. He extended his wings to their full length, then wrapped them around them both before saying.

"Not yet I'm not: Not until I kill the bastard that has the Demon Lord's power..." He then took a moment to inspect her face. "But in the mean time," He lowered face to rest his lips near her ear. "Why don't you keep your Lord company before my advisors arrive?" He asked her with seduction.

"My Lord!? Are you propositioning me?!" She asked in fake outrage.

"Every time." He said with a horny smile gracing his light blue face.

"Mmmm..." Shiva’nia moaned. "I think I can spare about twenty minutes or so before my meeting starts." She told him.

"Hmm. That is too bad," He told her. "Because I think we'll both be late then." He said as he picked her and pinned her to the wall, grinding against her.

"YES!" She shouted.

 

---

 

Several people of several different races were sitting around a table.

Each a leader of a different race and ruler of their respective lands.

"We all know why we're here today. So let us get on with this meeting." Said the impenitent gnome at the table. "We need to get this meeting going if we're going to be productive."

A loud sigh came from the person on the right on the Gnome.

"What?! You got a problem with what I said?" He accused his aviary winged neighbor sitting next to him.

"This one just finds Martin's impatient to be stifling." Said the Avian.

The Gnome slammed his fist on the table and then jumped up in his seat.

"You want to go bird brain?!" Martin said as he raised his fist, ready for a scuffle.

"Will you jus' settl' do'n and jus' stop makin' a ruckus, you daf' drunkard mercha't." Said the Dwarf to Martin's left.

Martin whipped around in his seat to stare daggers at the Dwarf. "You want to go now, you dandy rock chewer?!"

"ENOUGH!" Shouted the Dragonkin with aura in his voice, who sitting in the seat on the far side of the table away from the Gnome. "Save your petty fight for outside this counsel." He said in a much more subdued one of voice. He looked around this room of people and races gather together to see, not really friends, but cooperatives, striving for a peaceful coexistence... even if some would rather start a brawl with their neighbors.

"As you know," The Dragonkin said in a slow and melodic tone of voice. "That this meeting was called to discuss the recent destruction of Mount Dyarkoen; or as it is also know as, the Dark Elves mountain." He looked back and forth from the faces gathered. Most had solemn or grim expressions on their faces.
"As most are aware, this meeting was first called by the elves. Who have the closest region to the indecent." The Dragonkin looked towards the Elf King. "Lord Heyrian. You have the floor now. Please inform the rest of the counsel of your report."

The King of the Elves stood from his chair.

"Thank you for your introduction Fhemrim." King Heyrian said to his scaled friend. "As you are all most certainly aware of the incident in question. I won't bother going over what we all already know." As he said this, he picked up a piece of parchment and looked through it's contents.
"Just ten days ago, an unknown magical force destroyed the whole of Dyarkoen. I won't speak ambiguously. This can be none other than the work of the Demon King."

"Objection!" Said a bell like voice that came from another winged individual.

Fhemrim let out a drawn out sigh.

"Titania... This is not a trial. You can't object at his statement." Fhemrim tried explaining, once again, to the Fey ruler.

"WELL! I think I need too! Because the Elf is wrong!"

A large hand slammed the table.

"Damn it pixie! This is no time for your fun and games!" Growled the furred covered man, his cat like tail twitching in irritation.

"*KOFF*" Scoffs Titania "This isn't fun and games!" Shouted a voice, that even when yelling, wasn't unpleasant. "I am just trying to say that there are other beings in this world that could cause a mountain to vanish. It is ignorant that we just automatically put the blame of a destroyed mountain on the Demon King."

The Dwarf stood up at this.

" 'Hy'll i'm reluctan' to agr'e wit' the drago' fly wanna be. they is rig't. There is the great Devourer."

"Why thank you Dwarf! Maybe next time you're in my neck of the wood, we can play a game together!" Titania said to the Dwarf King with a sickeningly sweet smile, and an even sickeningly sweeter voice.

But the Dwarf King was having none of it.

"Never, not even on the treat to me beard. wou'd you ca'ch me ther'." He told them flatly.

"AHH! Where is your fun?!" They pouted.

"Can I-" But before the Elven King could say anything more.

"Will you people shut your constant flapping of your mouths!" Shouted the Chamberlain of the kingdom of the humans.

"..." Everyone there did shut their mouths at his words. But not for the reason he had thought they did.

"Good!" The Chamberlain said in a condescending manner. "If you don't mind elf, please finish what you were saying; oh and, some time today please? Some of us have Kingdoms to run."

"..." Heyrian gritted his teeth and made sure not to spout at the words he wanted to scream at the hateful human feces. "As I was saying before. We are sure this is the work of the Demon King. Because there have been no such sighting of the Devourer anywhere near our forests. Also from what our scout have gathered. That the most likely culprits is either the Lizen folk, the Dark Elves themselves, or the Orcs."

"What about the Minotaurs?" Asked the representative of the Beastman tribes. "They aren't that far off from the Orc's that they can't be ruled out of the equation." He proposed, but whether his was his own personal bias or not, nobody could really say.

But the Elven King was already shaking his head.

"Report of our from our far reaching scout have not reported any sort of movement from the Minotaurs; but you would know that, being the closet with your people's territories."

"Mmm... As lo as I am to admit it, you're right. The Minotaurs haven't been active recently. In fact, they have been the opposite. We've barely seen the horned bastards."

Heyrian nods at this assessment.

"While I agree that it is concerning that the Minotaurs lack of movements have been worrying. The active movements of the orcs and lizen folk, are concerning. The only reason we even put the Dark Elves on the list, is because it was their mountain. But it hardly seems like something someone would do to their own home."

"You sure it just ain't your own prejudice against those purple skinned freaks that got you suspecting them?" Accused the gnome.

Heyrian smiles at Martin's provocation.

"As sure as I am that you would suggest the goblins."

Martin jumps back up and slams both his fists on the table.

"It's always those green skinned, knife eared, sons-of-bitchs!"

There was a collective groan made from a couple of the counsel member from around the table.

"WHAT?! It is! I am sure of it this time!"

"Martin..." The Human Chamberlain called out the Gnome's name in frustration as he pinched the bridge of his nose between his eyes to relieve the pressure. "Everyone here has their own special prejudice against another of the Evil Races of the Evil God. But don't let it blind you to the truth."

"What truth?! That those little bastards are just lying in wait, building up their number, waiting to sweep across our lands and kill us all! There is some truth for ya!"

"Martin..." Heyrian called out. "There hasn't been a Demon King Goblin, in over two-thousand years."

"That is my point! This is the time for it to happen!"

"As your father said: and as his fathers before him, Martin. And even then, that Goblin Demon King was slain by a fellow Evil Race of the Evil God. Which he was a much more note worthy Demon King."

"And?! I don't see your point?!"

Another collective groan ran through the group.

"The point Martin. Is that this is the supposed legendary Demon King of Legend. Or some bull shit like that." Said the representative of the Beastmen tribes.

"Shut up! All of you! you'll never know how terrifying a large scale pack of goblin raiders are; until they are swarming your own village!" He threatened them.

Titania let out a sigh.

"This is going no where." They then waved a single hand, moving their fingers only slightly. Then a tear and rift in space behind them opened up.

"TITANIA!" Shouted the normally soft voiced Dragonkin. "For the last time! Stop opening gateways in the middle of the counsel room! you could compromise our safety and security!"

"*PFFFTT*" they raspberried at the scaled member of the Allied Races. "Like anyone, other than a Fey would ever be able to follow through the portals we make. Besides, I am the strongest magic user in history! Who can compare to me?" They gloated. They then turned to leave through the portal they made, but were stopped by a comment that came from the table.

"But have you blown up a mountain before?"

This stopped Titania right in their tracks. They hated it. absolutely and unequivocally hated it. That there was someone out there that might be stronger at magic then themselves.

*HMPH!*

They harrumphed before leaving. Not bothering to dignify what was said with a response.

After Titania entered through the portal to leave, it immediately closed behind them.

Most of the other members of the Allied Races breathed a sigh of relief at just having Titania gone.

The Dwarf look across the Gnome, towards the Avian.

"Ar' you tryin' to get us all kill'd?!"

"It is the truth." They stated evenly.

"That doe'nt mean you aft'a rub their face in it! By the Gods of Light man! What if they jus' decided to pr've a point and blow this cast'e jus' to tr' and pr've you wron'? You ev'r thoug't 'bout that one?!"

"*SIGH* This one hates to admit it, but Titania has the right idea here." The Avian stood up from his chair and started walking around the table.

"Now jus' w'ere do you th'nk yo're goin'?" He asked his feathered friend and neighbor.

"Home Clive, home. This meeting has no purpose without any actual proof or evidence."

"But I-" The Elf King started to contradict him but was cut off.

"If you had any sort of solid proof, you would have presented it by now. Aviania will only send aid or help, when we know where it is needed." Said the king of the birdmen.

Right before leaving, he turned and looked at the Dwarf.

"This one will be leaving first. If you wish a ride home; this one suggests coming with this one."

"Ay ay, you feather f'r brains, I got it! I'm a comin'!" The Dwarf got up and also started heading towards the door with the Avian.

"Lord Clive!? Lord Edwind!? Where!?-" The door they were departing through slammed on Heyrian's words as the Lords of ground and sky left the meeting.

Silence reigned in the chamber as the last five members of the Allied races remained.

A sigh came out of the Beastmens mouth as he realized that the lunch- no -the bird man. He corrected himself; was right.

"Welp!" Said the Gnome as he stood up in his chair. "This has been fun; but it really hasn't." He then proceeded to walk across the table in blatant disregard for procedure. As he got down from the table and walked to the door, and grabbed a smaller handle attached to the larger door and opened that one to let himself out. "Bye, my fellow, would be rulers!" He departed with an insult.

This time, it was the human Chamberlain who sighed and spoke next.

"*TSK* Great meeting as always elf king." He got up and walked to the door. "I will send my people to gather the report you have made that were suppose to be for this meeting. I expect them within a week." As he said this, he left while slamming the door behind him.

After about a minute to be sure he was gone, the representative of the Beastmen spoke.

"Fuck that guy. What a fucking joke of a human being." He said in Elvish, just to be sure that if they were over heard, that they would be the only ones to understand each other.

"*SIGH* Chojos, please..." Heyrian replied in Elvish as well.

"Come on! You know for a fact that guy’s a shit head that needs to fuck off!" Chojos argued.

"I might agree. But it is unfortunate that the humans have the largest amount, of pretty much everything, that all of us other races need. Their is literally no reason to be making enemies out of our friends."

"No. There is. It is the simple fact that they are not our friends."

"You know you shouldn't generalize humans like that Chojos."

"Oh can't I!? They are as bad a locust and worse than goblins! They make slaves out of any race that tickles their fancy and we turn a blind eye to their miscreant behavior, only because it serves our purpose to be on their good side! GODDAMN IT!" He said with a slam of his fists on the table.

Fhemrim had his eyes closed and was resting once he realized that the meeting was slowly dissolving with the departure of Titania.
"Whatever happened to our good friend from the human territory?" He questioned is his slow and low melodic voice as he opened his eyes.

"Fuck if I know. I just know that this prick is probably the worst we've had it the past nine generations; maybe the worst!" While the Beastmen weren't any longer lived than the other species of humanoid decent. Chojos and their family remember through history what the other people of other races were like. They past down their dairies and history, whether that was oral or written. They made sure to remember those who were good to the: like the Elves and Dragonkin. And those who were not. Mainly the humans.

Nothing the other two were saying wasn't anything the Elf King hadn't thought himself. He was lost in his own thoughts, remembering his last Human friend, the great king Orlando the fifth. His subsequent generations had also been good people. But for some reason or another, this usurper had somehow seized all the power within the royal palace within the human kingdom and was running the place.

He was so distracted that he only noticed that the other two had gotten up, was when Fhemrim touched his shoulder as the other two were leaving.

He looked up at his old friend.

"You know who to call if you need help."

Heyrian smiled and nodded towards his scaly friend.

"I do. Take care of yourself."

Chojos clapped Heyrian's shoulder as he was passing by too and told him.

"I would say to call me if you need me. But I live to far away." He then looked at Fhemrim. "You watch over them, you got that? I can't have losing anymore good people around me."

Fhemrim gave a slow smile two his two friends.

"Of course... Like I would let anything happen to Heyrian."

"Thanks you two..."

Hearing this got Heyrian choked up. He was just thankful that he had such wonderful friends that were willing to help him when he was in need.