• Two young men stood in the middle of the forest. The two traveled deeper into the forest than anyone ever had. Not an animal could be seen, the only thing heard was the sound of their armor as they walked. All was quiet when they arrived. "You see Riker, do you believe me now?" one said. Riker stood awestruck. Finally he replied. "Siegfried... you weren't lying. These... elf things. They exist."

    A familiar warmth surrounded Ephraim. As he opened his eyes, he discovered that he was enveloped by fire on all sides, but he did not burn. A strong and warlike voice soon reached out to him. "The inner workings of fate are not as they seem. Greetings, little warrior. I am Power, the second Voice. To be honest, I didn't think you'd arrive this quickly. I suppose Klaus' intervention sped things up. That was quite a show you put on. Blood splattered everywhere, cries of mercy, the satisfying screams of rage." Ephraim hung his head in shame. "I am... not proud of what I did." Ephraim admitted. Power simply laughed. "Ah, but you should be! You let hatred and rage, two of the most important things in battle, take over! Madness was wrong about you, your malice rivals even mine!" Power said with a certain hint of blood lust in his voice. Power continued to laugh, but he quickly quieted himself. "I think we've spoken long enough. The second trial shall now begin!"

    A flash of light engulfed Ephraim, which then began to fade, but not completely. Tinges of shadow began to seep into the light Several different scenes flashed before him. A lake, a village in flames, a mountain, an army, Ephraim saw all of these things. Ephraim then heard Power speak out again. 'What is this? Why isn't the trial star... you? WHY ARE YOU HERE? You're not going to stop us! DIE!" Power exclaimed. The shadow then started to fade away as another voice, demonic in tone, joined Power's. "I'd like to see you try to kill me. Aww, what's the matter, age catching up on you? C'mon, try to hit me. Is that all you got? Hah! You're not worth my time. I'll be back for him, you'll see." The demon's voice then disappeared, along with the shadows, and the light finally went away.

    Ephraim appeared outside the elven village once again, standing next to an unknown man. "Siegfried... we need to tell people about the elves." the man said. Ephraim was confused as to what was going on, but he recalled the first trial and thought he knew who this was. He decided to play along with the trial as usual. "And why would we do that... Riker?" Ephraim replied, hoping he had the right person. "Because, these things are abominations! We've only been here for a month and they're already starting to terrify me! I mean come on, they live in trees, they're abnormally strong, they're taller than either of us, and what the hell is wrong with their ears?!" Riker exclaimed. Ephraim was disgusted with him. "So what if they're different? They're still people like the both of us." Ephraim explained. Riker was steadily becoming more enraged. "I don't care, they're NOT NORMAL." Riker shouted.

    An elf began running towards them. "Wait, that's the girl from before... Arisha?" Ephraim thought. "What are you two talking about so far out from the village?" Arisha asked. Riker suddenly charged at her and slammed her against a tree, closing his grip on her windpipe and drawing his sword. "At least I know I'm stronger than you." Riker stated. Ephraim was shocked. "Riker, what the hell is wrong with you?!" Ephraim yelled. Riker laughed manically. "One death should send them a message, don't you think?" he asked. "I have to save her!" Ephraim thought, as he charged at Riker and struck a blow to the back of his head. Arisha fell to the ground unconscious. Riker looked back at Ephraim with a deep hatred in his eyes. "You... b*****d!" Riker cried out as he attacked Ephraim.

    Ephraim quickly drew his blade and blocked the attack. The battle was a non-stop flurry of swinging metal. "He's fast!" Ephraim thought. Riker was able to move through Ephraim's guard and land a blow to his shoulder. "ARGH! I'm lucky my armor absorbed most of that. One more blow like that though... I need to end this quickly! Maybe... that move Ricard taught me!" Ephraim decided, as he ran back at Riker at full speed. He swung his blade at Riker, who parried the attack, but Ephraim then quickly detached his iron sheath and struck a blow to Riker's temple. Riker fell to the ground and stayed there. Ephraim then ran to Arisha. "Are you okay? Come on, ANSWER ME!" Ephraim asked. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain move through his back. Coughing up blood, he turned to see Riker's blade piercing through him. "If I die... you're going with me." Riker said with his last breath. As Ephraim fell to the ground, a warm light began to envelope him.

    Ephraim reappeared in Power's chamber. Power then reached back out to him. "Well then, little warrior... THAT WAS GENIUS! Using the sheath as a weapon, I never would have thought of that! You have indeed proved yourself!" Power commended. Ephraim listened with a confused look on his face. "What's wrong boy? AH, Siegfried? Don't worry he's fine. You passed, didn't you? That's all that matters! Now then, I think you deserve some answers. Ask away!" Power commanded. Ephraim considered what he would ask for a long time before answering. "Tell me... who were you fighting?" he asked. Power gasped. "So you heard that? Not a big surprise. Well, I did say I would answer any question."

    Power began to explain. "That shadow that tried to take you... That was Darkness. He acts like he's one of the Voices, but he's really just a worm. That's all he is. Well, not exactly. He's much more serious than that. He is an agent of Ga'Raska. Who knows how he found out about our plan... Irregardless, that's all you need to know. Your job is to help straighten out Siegfried's life, that's it. The Second Trial is over. History has changed... but was it for the better? I suppose you'll find out. AH! One more piece of advice for you. While I said that hatred and rage are the keys to battle, there is one thing that's more important. Always remember who you are protecting. Never forget that. May your sword always blaze bright, little- no. Knight of Arcia. Goodbye." The light surrounded Ephraim again, and Power's flames soon faded from sight.