The temple was dark. I couldn't see much of anything, but I knew there was no going back. I turned on my flashlight and drew my M1911, and began walking forward. There was a tunnel ahead that went far underground. I followed the tunnel for about a mile when my flashlight suddenly flickered and went out. "Damn it." I muttered. I stumbled in the dark and followed the path slowly. Suddenly, up ahead, I saw a light. I followed the light through the dark until I reached it. It was a torch, and when I picked it up, a voice whispered quietly.

Behind you...

I quickly turned around, and Shadowfax was staring face to face with me. 

"Boo." he spoke softly, and I fell back onto the ground, dropping the torch, which went out. I got up slowly, and now I could see a little better. I continued to follow the tunnel as it twisted and turned. Suddenly, the floor stopped in a cliff. 

"Damn it!" I muttered louder. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around, and Shadowfax was once again standing in front of me. "It's you!" I shouted, backing up, careful of the ledge. "You killed my father!" I said, angry. 

"Ah. So you've finally started on your journey to revive the Guild of Heroes. How lovely." He said. "I cannot allow that." He said sternly, raising his sword. I backed away from him, but my feet lost their hold on the ground and I fell off the cliff.

I suddenly woke up and realized I was in my bedroom. There was a knock at the door, so I got up to open it. Standing in the doorway was Scout, and behind him were Cupa and Timeist. "You okay?" Timeist asked. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bad..." 

I trailed off when I saw the red glow behind him. "What?" Scout asked, but he was cut off as Shadowfax's sword pierced through his chest. 

He groaned and fell to the floor, a puddle of blood forming under him. "No...no!" I groaned, backing away. 

With a slice, Shadowfax decapitated Timeist, and his head fell in front of me. "This can't be happening!" I was terrified. 

"RANGER!!! HELP!!!" Cupa cried, and gunshots rang in the hallway. I backed away, holding my head in my hands. Cupa cried out in pain as she was cut down, and then Shadowfax came for me. 

"Did you think I did not know this day would come!!" Shadowfax shouted in anger. "I knew it would come! And I also knew that I would have to kill you if you would not join me!" I ran away from him, but he was faster. I fell to the ground, looking up at him in fear. With a swing of his sword, he cut me down.

I woke up again, and I was back in the tunnel. "Just... A vision..." I sighed. "Not real..." Suddenly, I ran into something and fell down. I looked up, and saw Shadowfax. 

"I assure you, I am real." He spoke. "I think it's time I finally ended you." He said, raising his sword. 

"No." I said, standing up. 

"You don't want to kill me because I'm not with you," I said as Shadowfax backed up. 

(none of this makes sense...)

"You want to kill me because you're afraid!" Shadowfax fell down in fear. Shadowfax covered his face with his hands. "Aren't you going to kill me?" Shadowfax asked in fear.

"No."

Shadowfax slowly got up, and raised his sword. I closed my eyes, completely calm. "I do not fear you as you fear me." I said quietly. Shadowfax looked at me in anger and frustration. I repeated the phrase multiple times until Shadowfax became annoyed. With a cry of anger, he swung his sword at me.

"I am not afraid."

As the words left my mouth, Shadowfax began to disappear, and his sword phased through me, clattering to the ground. As I looked at the sword, it too, began to dissolve into dust. I heard faint clapping from behind me. I turned around, and saw a ghostly, bearded figure. "Well done, Ranger. Well done." I looked at him in confusion. "Who are you?" I asked.

"I am your father- Your Real Father."

I gasped. "You mean you're a ghost." I corrected him. He chuckled. "You're just like me- when I was your age. I'm so glad I can finally meet you." He smiled, and I smiled in return. He approached me. "So you finally completed the trials of fear?" He asked. 

"If that's the shit I just went through- then yeah." I replied. 

"You are ready." My father said. He turned to the left, and swiped his hand at a wall. The whole place began to rumble, and a doorway opened up in the wall, revealing a bright ray of blinding light. "What's in there?" I asked. My father turned to me, and looked me in the eyes. 

"Your destiny." He said solemnly. I turned towards the light. I took a deep breath and exhaled. Then, I slowly walked into the room and was consumed by the light.

When I could see again, I was in a circular room that was brightly lit from a hole in the ceiling. In the center of the room was a pedestal with a sword stuck in it. I walked up to it, and read the encryption written on the pedestal.

Dark Bane

I grasped the hilt of the sword and pulled. The sword wouldn't budge. "Damn." I said, and let go. I cracked my knuckles and yanked harder. After pulling as hard as I could, the blade slid out of the pedestal. 

It had an elegant, jewel-encrusted hilt with a wing-edged guard. The blade was a shimmering blue color. As I studied it closer, I realized it was a very thin, yet hard sheet of crystal. It began to glow as I pointed it at the sky, and I was once again engulfed in light.