WARNING: Contains spoilers for the end of the Thirteenth Lords of Chaos and for The Collector side storyline! Read at your own risk! I do not own AQW or the image used for the cover. Takes place after the Ancient Evils second storyline has begun.

Drakath wanted to be just like them, once.

He wasn't always a crazy Champion of Chaos. Well, he technically isn't the Champion of Chaos anymore after the Queen came into power, but you get the drift.

Anyway, that aside, you may be wondering who exactly Drakath once wanted to be like.

The Hero. That's who. Ironic, no? Considering the two use to be the worst of enemies. They still sort of are. Although said Hero is now a bit busy dealing with the Queen at the moment, but that's not really important to the story right now.

Drakath once wanted to be a hero just like them. Although when he was trapped in that odd display case so long ago with Will and Fred and a mysterious Hero, when he grew up, he wanted to follow their example. He was amazed by their prowess with their sword and with the magic they cast, and of course, their bravery. They never seemed to be afraid of anything that stood in their way.

But the Hero always seemed to know something he didn't. Whenever he proclaimed that he wanted to be like them, there was always a hint of skepticism on the hero's face, but they still went along with it. Back then, he thought nothing of it. They probably thought he was too young, or something. It wasn't like the hero was a time traveler and knew that he would become like this when he grew older. No, it was impossible. It had to be due to his age. He told himself that he'd show them who was too young. He would never, ever be put into such a situation ever again if he could help it. Never again would he be taken as a helpless little hostage. Too bad that didn't stop the Queen from using him as her own personal little puppet. But that too isn't relevant to the story at the moment.

Only now does he realize the sheer irony of it all, and he thinks he finally may have found out why the Hero seemed so skeptical. But could that Hero really be the same one who defeated him in the Chaos Realm not so long ago? The same former Chaos Lord? The Eternal Dragon of Time? So much for the mysterious Hero not being a time traveler when in reality, they were time itself. But that's assuming that it actually was them and not some other random Hero who got roped into the mess. Deep down, though, Drakath knew it had to be them. They even dressed similarly. Used the same type of magic, swung their sword the same way.

The main thing that kept him doubtful, though, was if they knew what he would soon become, then why were they so kind to them as a child? Drakath wasn't sure if he'd ever truly find the answer to that. Maybe it was because their morals wouldn't allow them to be. The Hero has always been defined by their morals. Even though the Hero mainly uses necromancy to combat their foes, they always treat the undead they summon with respect, even allowing them to speak unlike those like Gravelyn and so many other necromancers. And even when the King attacked them relentlessly with chaos magic, even as the Hero fought back, for they had no other choice, they still refused to deal the final blow. I guess if the Hero did things like that, then maybe it wouldn't be too crazy to consider that it was in fact them who saved them from The Collector.

If only things had turned out differently.