A serial tale of a hero/ine whose Manifestation offers hope to an entire mythical species, and gives promise to many awakenings in a sleeping world very much like our own.

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I think two more does it for the setup...

-Arianrhod.
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"The Time of Renewal, according to Sidhe legends, is something that comes around once every couple thousand of years to replenish the amount of magic in the world," Llew began. "Normally, this coincides with the ebb and flow of magic which occurs naturally in this plane of existence, but the advent of the religiously-inspired terror of the Dark Ages caused the ebb to occur much, much quicker than the flow, as magic across Europe died out.

"You still had the shamans of Native American cultures, of course, and various mystics scattered throughout the Far East, but this was not enough in and of itself to keep the amount of magic in the world afloat, and eventually magic as a whole gave out near the end of the Middle Ages."

"Which would be around when the humans exterminated most of the mythic cultures, like the other dragon clans," I interrupted.

"Correct," Llew lilted. "Those who survived lay as lo and as quiet as they could, aware that the Time of Renewal would return to them their stolen prowess. Many of them plan amongst themselves for the Time of Renewal to also become a "Time of Retribution" against man.

"Of course, you know much of this. You also know -- or have guessed -- that there are also a number of mythic species like my Sidhe who believe, for good or ill, that humanity has grown since those dark days. Some of us, again including the Sidhe, as well as your black dragon clan, were associated closely with humanity since time immemorial. Others, however, have more recently come around to our way of thinking. We have formed an impromptu alliance with many of these, creating a loosely organized network that hopes to preserve some, if not all, of humanity, and live alongside them in relative harmony."

Llew took a breath, and then continued. "Each of us is our own individualized nation of people, though. For example, as queen of the Sidhe, I am invested with most of the power of my race, although the Council wields more than I, behind the scenes. None of our affiliates can order around my people; only I have that ability.

"Between us, however, there are some fears about a few of those who have joined our coalition. I very much worry -- and the Council agrees with me -- that some have allied themselves with us because they wish to see humanity survive as a slave race to the rest of us."

"Which is definitely not the idea," I added. Courtesy of Will Langton, I had no intention of allowing people like him -- human or not -- to gain control of anything worth more than two stones in a barrel.

"Indeed," Llew smiled. "So, you see, we are beset on all sides...even by those would call themselves friend. For the Time of Renewal does not work like many dare to hope. It is not merely the mythics who will regain magic once lost. Mankind itself will also once again be abuzz with magical forces. This creates a serious problem. Humanity's prejudice against non-humans is easily documented, and although there are a wide variety of exceptions, those in power are usually some of the worst. When humanity as a whole is attacked by many diverse species of mythics..." she trailed off sadly.

"They're going to come after everyone, not just those are the real bad guys," I finished for her.

She nodded. "And now you've thrown us even more of a curveball. By allying ourselves with you, the Sidhe will draw the ire of the other eight ur-dragons and their tribes. Obviously, Maoten and his reds have already made it known that they are aware of your existence, and disapprove of it."

"Pryandon said that Maoten had already convened with the other seven...and that they were in unanimous agreement that I was to be ended," I said somberly, remembering my...Aryllia's fight with the red in the skies.

"Quite so. The other races will not stand by us if we engage in a war with the united dragon tribes. I was...warned of this by the Council when I went to see them."

"I understand," I said morosely. "I will distance myself from you and try to help out as I can..."

"No, you won't," Llew interrupted harshly. "The decision has already been made. The Sidhe stand with the black dragon clan. It's quite elegant, actually. We don't have to worry about those who only wish to enslave humanity this way."

"What makes you so certain that I am trustworthy or worth it," I asked.

"Call it intuition. You have at your disposal the power of an ur-dragon. You might not know how to use it yet, but in time you will become exponentially more dangerous. It took all eight of the other ur-dragons to shackle Aryllia last time, and this time she will not be forced to stand alone. As far as your trustworthiness, I don't know. I just have a feeling that I need to help you," Llew finished simply.

"Well, I appreciate it. Without the assistance of the other races, though, I'm highly doubtful that we can stem the tide and ensure man's survival and coexistence."

Llew shrugged. "The others will come around in time...or they won't. Either way, we face losing odds. It's just that without them the losing will be that much more spectacular," she grinned madly.

"I never planned to go quietly," I grinned back.

She nodded, but still looked troubled. "What's on your mind?" I asked.

"A lot," she replied evasively. At my stern look, she frowned. "I'm worried about this vengeful impulse that you seem to have driving you. Yes, what Will Langton and his thugs were doing is unforgivable. At the same time, though, the power that you wield cannot be allowed to become corrupted. If you pursue vengeance, you will eventually become twisted and only care to save those of humanity that you deem worthy. And that's not our mission," she said firmly.

"Are you saying that those people deserve to be saved?" I demanded hotly.

"Are you saying that they don't?" Llew answered just as hotly, and continued: "What gives you the right to decide that, oh almighty dragon goddess? I know void and death and shadow are all your realms to judge, but when we're talking about saving the human species from everything that goes and has ever gone bump in the night, we can't allow such haughty decisions. You are always going to get the scum with the saints. There are no exceptions."

The fury of her reply took me by surprise. "Since we're cleaning house, then, elf," I said meanly, "I want to know how you can afford to be so idealistic? Romanticism only goes so far in modern times. If you want to save some people, then I'm all for that. But when you start talking about saving every soul, I feel the need to point out that it's impossible. You aren't going to get everyone. People will die. I'd just prefer that the casualties are those who deserve to die," I said coldly.

"Like your little plan with Jackson?" Llew replied.

I felt like I'd been slapped in the face. "How the hell did you know about that?" I demanded.

"I know many things," she said haughtily. "I know that you really want to use the gholem to lure Jackson and the rest of Langton's assholes into a trap that will see them damned in society's eyes as well as fulfill the primary goal of killing your human self."

"And they SHOULD be damned," I roared back. "Jackson is a neo-Nazi. I don't know if you know anything about that, o great queen, but the people that he associates his beliefs with should be scourged off this planet for what they did."

"How does that make you any different from them?" Llew asked quietly. "I guess you wouldn't know this, but I was human, too. I Manifested a few years before you, but I traveled down the same path that you are now. I'm well aware of the history, and equally aware that you need to overcome it. If you don't...well, I'm sure that manflesh tastes good over a barbecue."

She's right, youngling Aryllia's voice came out of nowhere. This time, it seemed as though she had included Llew in our mental conversation as well, as I watched her tilt her head as though she was listening to a voice that wasn't really there.

"Aryllia, is that you?" she asked to the open air, confirming my suspicion.

Yes, little one. And now there are things that I must tell both of you

My quarrel with Llew was laid aside for the moment as a result of Aryllia's sudden appearance. After not hearing from her since the battle with Maoten, I had feared the worst, and was overjoyed to have her make contact.

"Where have you been?" I asked happily.

Here and there... Aryllia replied uneasily. But first: a warning. Annie, are you still planning on going through with this plan?

I shrugged. "I'm not sure any more, to be honest. Llew pointed out a couple of unsavory aspects to my idea, but I still believe that it's the right thing to do."

This does not surprise me, and is largely because of your Manifestation

The voice from nowhere paused for a moment before continuing.

What I am about to tell you two is something that predates both humanity and the Sidhe, and is mostly echoes from an older time. You might want to sit down for this one, Aryllia said dryly. With a start I realized that we had just been standing in the hallway this whole time.

"What a second," I said suddenly. "Where are my parents and my family? They should be home by now?"

"They're fine," Llew said soothingly. "They just had some shopping to do, and they wanted to do it without you. It was supposed to be a secret, but I guess you're the worrying type." I wasn't entirely sure that everything was alright as advertised, but I walked into the living room with Llew and sat down on one of the couches there.

Alright, Aryllia began. Some time after this world was created, myself and my eight brothers and sisters came into existence. Our origins remained a point of contention among us until I was shackled, and I would assume that they are still arguing about it to this day. The bottom line was that there were nine of us, and that we were each attracted to different aspects of creation:

As such, Llew, you will have to serve to balance her out. While I was a part of Annie, I was able to keep her instincts in check with my wisdom. However, now that I am a separate entity, I will no longer be able to do so.

"Wait, separate? What? When did this happen?" I asked furiously. I knew something was off, dammit, but I hadn't guessed that it was this serious!

Quite separate. The force of the attack that defeated Maoten was enough that it quite literally drove us apart, splitting our joined spirit in half. In a way, I really have to thank Maoten, Aryllia's disembodied voice chuckled.

"Why? Because now you don't have to listen to me bitch anymore?" I raged.

Aryllia's voice actually laughed at that. Funny, it sounds like I'm doing just that now regardless of our spiritual status, she said dryly. No, because it lets me do THIS

The room grew incredibly pitch dark, even though twilight had not yet fallen outside. I reached for the lamp at my side, and I heard Llew trying to conjure her silver magic to shine some light as well.

Fumbling with the switch took a moment, but I eventually managed to turn it on, revealing...nothing. The lamp's light could not penetrate this darkness, and from the cussing I heard across from me, I guessed that Llew's magic couldn't, either.

Not more than a minute of calling Aryllia's name later, the intense shadow began to dissipate. And it revealed that we were no longer the only two people in the house.

Standing in the hallway was a woman in a floor-length elegant black dress. She had long, raven hair that reached to her shoulders, and her eyes were equally dark in color. Her skin shone with a healthy luster, but was not an atypical tone like Llew's shining white. She strode across the room, with long, graceful legs stalking without a sound. As she passed me, I noticed with shock that she also sported a too-detailed tattoo of a black dragon on her left shoulder blade, even as I did. Without thinking, I reached back to touch it, and was surprised to notice that it was warm to the touch.

She sat down in a chair, and spoke in Aryllia's voice. "The sundering of our joined spirit means that you are now alone no longer.