One warm, Dioni night,
Whispers were riding the breeze,
Speaking of a raid
To slay Demon Lords with ease.

And Celest made ready for dawn,
The time to show Nil the Light,
But amid the bustle of her kin,
A squire stood in fright.

Not knowing where she was going,
Or what challenges lay ahead,
She tightened her belt and gulped,
Filled with a threatening dread.

She watched them disappear,
In a bright, gleaming blaze,
One by one, in solemnity,
While she watched in a silent daze.

As the last few did vanish,
Rhoda nodded, and grabbed her sword,
And stepped quickly in line behind,
A stoic merian lord.

Light broke out around Rhoda,
In streams and flares of white,
She shielded her eyes as they traveled,
The light streaking; dazzlingly bright.

Finally, the trip had ended,
And not knowing where she had passed,
Rhoda uncovered her eyes,
To see this place at long last.

When the twisted, warped land
Met the young squire's view,
A horror enveloped her
To grotesque to be true.

The wasted, barren land
Was sick, tainted, and twisted,
Rhoda shut her ears to the sound
Of the screams that still persisted.

With a wrenching pit in her stomach,
Rhoda followed her guide,
To a rank, filthy pit,
Where the others stood in pride.

The Prince nodded and jumped inside,
Others followed suit,
Rhoda found herself tumbling,
In a truly nightmarish pursuit.

Images of terror and pain,
Filled young Rhoda's mind,
She stood up, slowly, quivering,
Not sure what she would find.

A short walk away,
And the company stood in a cave,
Rhoda gagged and turned away,
In a sorry attempt to be brave.

The seething mass of Gorgulu
Lay sprawled out throughout the lair,
Twitching and feeding hungrily
Amidst the stinking, tainted air.

The Prince breathed deep signaled,
To commence the grueling attack,
Rhoda joined in with her sword,
And watched the Gaping Maw fight back.

In less than a minute is was over,
The huge corpse was oozing black slime.
Shouts rang out through Nil,
Rhoda blanched as they ran out of time.

The hands gathered together to touch
A beautiful flaring box,
And poor Rhoda, in her fear,
Was left standing amidst the rocks.

Shaking and paling slightly,
Rhoda began to cry,
As the cackles and threats entered her ears...
She didn't want to die.

She didn't want to breathe her last,
She didn't want to end,
She didn't want to fall on Nil,
Without a single friend.

Rhoda dove back into the foul pit,
The terror lingering in her head,
Running as fast as she could
To the tainted swamp ahead.

With tears streaming down her face,
Rhoda jumped into the bog,
To be met with a faceful of mud,
And a blast of warm, sickly smog.

She lay there for several minutes,
Covered in the disgusting mud;
Hardly daring to breathe again
As she tasted dirt and blood.

Believing the danger to have passed,
She stood up on her feet,
Shrugging off the awful stench
And foul waves of heat.

Rhoda strode aimlessly
Through the bleak and rocky Plane,
She knelt down and began to weep
Unable to bear the pain.

As she gave up hope for all rescue,
A voice echoed through her head,
Rhoda wiped her eyes, sniffed,
And listened to what it said.

"Stand still, have no fear,
We know you are left behind,
I am coming to rescue you..."
The words echoed through her mind.

Rhoda felt a small tug on her chest
As light filled up the gloom,
And in a beautiful, sparkling beam,
The Prince entered the room.

He beckoned to young Rhoda,
Then bid her to make haste,
For even as they quietly spoke,
They were being chased.

Rhoda followed the merian Prince
As he touched his cubix once more,
They flew through the light,
Away from Nil and the war.

The memory of that sorrowful day
Was stuck in Rhoda's mind forever,
She promised herself to stay in the Light,
And never stray. Never.