Wind howled through the night carrying with it a scent that would change the world. A tall Shade raised his head and sniffed the air.

The Shade softly growled, a hunger tinting his maroon eyes. Hunger for triumph and renown. The king will reward him greatly for this capture and the egg would finally be return to its rightful owner. In his eyes it was a win-win situation for him and the king. His nose sampled the air again, detecting the subtle scent of his targets.

An Urgal shuffled to his side, to his great displeasure, and spoke in its guttural way.

"Lord, we are ready for the ambush."

"Very well, now return to your position. Stop what's coming down that trail…or die." As the Urgal moved away, the Shade curled his nose in disgust, the creatures smelled terrible, like rotten meat. But they were tools and he knew how to use tools. A smile curled his lips as he tested the wind, they were upwind of the three figures to his great pleasure.

He looked around the tree he hid behind, his eyes enhancing the faint moonlight so it seemed like sunshine. He searched for his prey.

A few moments passed before they finally came into view. Three snow white horses, regal and powerful beyond normal limitations. Their pelts like sliver in the light of the moon. But the Shade could care less for the beasts, for his true interest lay in their riders. A single elf sat upon each of the horses, their demeanor was regal as their mounts, and each wore a black cloak concealing their body structure. Their faces were uncovered and held high, like birds.

On the first horse sat a female elf, her face angular and poised. A sword decorated her hip, a bow sat strung along her back. In the final place in line, a male elf sat. An elegant helmet, artistically wrought in gold and amber, sat upon his brow. A long spear rested in his right hand, and a dagger on the same side decorated his belt.

The Shade's focus fell on the elf in the middle of the procession. A male with long hair, black as a raven's feathers, sat on the middle horse. His face held a strange regality, even among elves. He constantly twisted in the saddle, as if reassuring himself that something was there. At a single command, the guards switched places, and they continued onward.

The Shade smiled to himself, a grim twisting of his lips that would have made the Urgals uneasy, had they been able to see in the dim light. The elves continued until the first two in the line passed the first groups of Urgals, and another smile, this one savage and dark spread across his face. His muscles tensed, ready to strike, fingers clenching around the hilt of his sword. Had he been a simple mortal, his knuckles would have broken from the strain. Every muscle in his body coiled, like a fierce predator ready to kill.

Suddenly the wind changed direction, and the Urgals fetid scent washed over the elves and their mounts. The startled horses froze and the elves tensed. A wicked howl rose from the Shades throat,

"Now!" A blast of crimson light illuminated the night air.

The female elf shouted a command, and the tall male shot forward on his horse. Flying ahead of the fray. The Shade watched as the Urgals fell on the elves, their arrows easily piercing their armor. A cry of anguish echoed in the night, and upon seeing the source to be the dark haired male elf at the sight of his companions, he turned and gave chase.

The Shade sat atop a formation of rock, allowing his unobstructed view of the forest. He raised his pale hand and commanded in a strange language.

"Boetq istalri!" A swath of forest burst into flame. The Shade repeated this several times, until he had sectioned a swath of forest over a league across off. The flames eagerly ate at the trunks and branches of the trees, and he surveyed the forest yet again.

A blast of brilliant blue light illuminated the trees for a moment, a pained scream followed and echoed endlessly in the night air. The Shades powerful eyesight allowed him to survey the scene; the elf had blasted three Urgals with the blue light, and the Shade could see the skin and flesh of the Urgals melting away. Lips curling into another wicked smile, the Shade judged the distance to the ground and leapt to the front of the elf. The elf slid to a sudden stop, his features contorted in hatred, black Urgal blood covered his sword's blade. The Shade stretched his hand out towards the elf man, his smile holding nothing but malice. The elf turned to retreat the way he came, only to see the Urgals had closed his escape route.

"Get him," commanded the Shade, and the Urgals surged forward. The elf reached into his pack and withdrew from it a single green colored stone, which reflected the angry orange glow of the flame. His lips formed frantic words and raised the stone above his head. The Shade's eyes widened in panic and he screamed,

"Garjzla!"

A ball of blood colored fire exploded from his outstretched hand, flying faster than an arrow straight at the elf man. But as fast as it was, it was not fast enough, and the stone vanished in a ball of sapphire light. A moment later the fire smashed into the tall slender elf full on in the chest. The elf collapsed as a single long and evil howl ripped through the night air. An oath promising retribution, pain, and never ending sorrow, spoken only in a language he knew, left the lips of the Shade. In anger he flung the sword at a tree, and it buried itself halfway through the trunk. He uttered a single word and nine balls of red light flew through the air, striking the Urgals in their muscled chests and killing them instantly.

He mounted his black warhorse, which he had hidden nearby, and threw the elf over the saddle behind him. He rode to the edge of the flaming ring. Quenching what was in front of him, he left the rest to burn.

(Ok, now I know what some of you are thinking. That this is too close to the actual chapter to not be plagiarism. I have to tell you that I went purely from memory writing this chapter. Next chapter will be Arya's discovery of the green egg, and I will be changing a lot more of the story. Thank you, and remember feedback is welcome. BW16 †,..,†)