A little less then a year after the start of the 'March of Destruction', the fighting halted for a while. Up to this point, the 'Darshin' had liberated all of the Erathi villages and outposts. The Erathi have scattered throughout the continent, but are mostly in large groups. Some are hiding in old mines, some in the various forests, some went to the Sincaal Valley, and the rest fled to the sea, searching for a new continent to inhabit. The survivors from Hymlen stuck together for the most part, and took up hiding in the old Kymshaal mining complex, located northeast of Hymlen. Among the inhabitants were the King and Queen of Erath, expecting a child within the next few days.

The group in the mining complex had only been in hiding for about two weeks, and was currently awaiting a report from the scouts. Two main issues overwhelmed the majority of the conversations. The first being guesses as to what the scouts would report, and the second being of the soon to be born child of Karana. The rumors of what happened to the other Erath spread from the worst of possibilities to the best. Those with optimistic hopes felt that Hymlen had fared worse then the other cities, and had been the only to fall. Those on the other end of the spectrum felt that Hymlen was lucky, and that less survived from the other cities. Everyone, however, felt that they still had a chance of survival, as well as victory. The expected child was seen as an omen of sorts. If he or she were to live healthy for at least one year, the Erath would definitely win the war. On the other hand, if the child were to perish before its first birthday, the surviving Erath would have no chance at wining the war. And the third possibility, if the child was alive but sickly, the Erath would win the war, but their race would die out shortly after. On the thirteenth day into the stay, the first of the Hymlen curiosities would be answered.

"My Lord, My Lady," began Kra'Skaii, bowing slighting to Coromath and Karana. "I come with the report from the scouts."

"Welcome Kra'. What do ye have to report?" questioned the queen.

"'Tis nay exactly good news... but it is better then most had expected. No city, town, or outpost is under Erathi control anymore, but few groups are currently in danger. Only a handful died through the attacks, but many more were injured. The Darshin troops are both scattered and slightly lessened, but so are we. The survivors have fled to the forests, other mines, the seas, and those from Inzail to the Sincaal Valley. If we are lucky, we may have the Sincaal as allies by the time fighting starts up again."

"I've heard much worse since this forsaken war began. Let us hope we have newfound allies when the time comes, but until them, let us inform the others of your findings." The king gave one of his first smiles since news of the first attack was given to him as he led his wife and Kra'Skaii into the main chamber of the complex. Upon entering the chamber, Coromath got the attention of the group, and told the news he had just received.

After the speech, Karana spoke to Coromath, "I am weary from the day. I am going to rest before the evening meal."

"Rest well, my dear. And may your dream be a sweet dream... for all of us," replied the king.

The next week or so was fairly quiet, except for the discussions over the expected child. On the third day of the seventeenth week of the year, the child entered into the Erathi world. There were a few abnormalities in the child from the typical Erath. The most noticeable was her darker bronze skin, as opposed to the standard paler peach color. In addition to the skin, her ears were tilted back slightly, and had more of a point to them. The combination of blue eyes and dark brown hair was also an oddity, but not unheard of before. Most gained a new view as to what the child symbolized. Almost everyone agreed that the birth was a symbol of safety within the complex, and of good fortune, for at least as long as the group's stay in the mines, despite what may be in store after that. From the talk, the mother decided upon the name "Yan'Chi". Yan being the Erathi term for good, and Chi being the Erathi term for future.

"'Tis a fitting name, especially for a girl with a brighter and better tomorrow to look forward to," said Coromath to his wife.

Over the next two years, very little occurred. Every once and a while, a small and swift attack would be made on the Darshin located at the mining village of Kymshaal, located east of the mining complex, and the farming village of Inzail, located north of the Sincaal valley. Through these attacks, only two Erathi died. One was a Hymlen Palace Guard, the other a fisherman from Upper Kintar. The Darshin, however, lost a total of 35.

Four days after the second birthday of Yan'Chi, attacks on Kymshaal were greatly increased. The battles went astonishingly well, especially considering that the Erathi were outnumbered 3 to 2, and only a little more then a dozen had much experience in fighting at all. In the matter of a month and a half, Kymshaal was liberated from the Darshin forces. Throughout the fighting, very little damage was done to the Erathi forces. Half a dozen were injured enough to take them out of the fighting for a few days, four were more seriously injured, and one nearly killed.

"M'Lord, Kymshaal is back in Erathi control. One more of our men has been severely injured, and we are nay yet sure if he will survive." After he finished speaking, Kra'Skaii bowed slightly to the queen and to Yan'Chi, whom had just entered the room.

"Alright, bring us more news on the wounded when ye can. Have any scouts reported seeing any Darshin reinforcements headed towards Kymshaal yet?" questioned Coromath.

"Nay, none have been seen near the city save those who have recently fled. One belief is that they are focusing efforts on rebuilding the cities, and don't have much desire for a smaller city like Kymshaal right now."

"Alright... I will try to check on all the wounded later today. I'll send some construction crews into Kymshaal in a little bit to start repairing and creating new barracks and defenses."

Kra'Skaii bowed to the king, and then walked over to the queen and princess. Kneeling in front of the child, Kra jokingly said, "Now don't you go causing any trouble now." He then stood up, bowed to the queen, and went back into the main hall.

At this point, the war looked to be in favor of the Erathi, but this favor doesn't last for long. Over the next two years, it was discovered that there were at least two thousand Darshin situated in Erathi cities. That number was quadruple that of the remaining Erathi. During these two years, Inzail was recaptured, and was reconstructed to act as a scout outpost. Other then that, the war remained fairly quiet. Shortly before her third birthday, Yan'Chi began taking lessons in the simpler magics of the realm.

"Alright little one... the first lesson for you is how to use that outfit of yours," said Aaril.

"Huh? Thaz nut majiks!" complained Yan'Chi.

"Oh, but it is. You see, that suit has the ability to change its appearance to blend in with your surroundings. At first, you'll only be able to make it change into solid colors, but with practice, you'll be able to blend it in with the most complex of surroundings."

"Oh... I seez."

"Alright... look at the wall behind you. Close your eyes, and imagine yourself blending in with the wall. Concentrate."

"Hrmph," Yan'Chi muttered after a short bit of concentrating. "It dun werk."

"Give it some time child. No magics are easy to learn," replied Aaril. "Especially those that don't require chants."

Over the next week and a half, Aaril kept Yan'Chi's focus on learning the magic within her clothing.

"Welcome back child. Today you get to learn your first chant."

"Whatz? But I'z juz giddin tha hang uf me drezz."

"Yes, but I'm afraid I can't be of much help in your learning that. You'll have to work on that on your own from now on."

"Ookie."

"I'm going to teach you a chant that will allow you to make objects disappear, and then reclaim them wherever you want."

"Oooo..."

"Here..." Aaril says as he hands Yan'Chi a piece of paper. "Hold this in one hand, and hold your other hand over the paper. Quietly say, 'Katim Sora'."

Yan'Chi did as he said, and then became shocked as the piece of paper disappeared. "EY!!! Wherez dem paperz gu?"

"Very good! You have transported them to place where they cannot be affected by anyone except yourself. If you want to get the paper back, hold one hand over the other, or over any surface, and then chant, 'Katim Renor'.

She did what Aaril told her to do once more, and was pleasantly surprised as the paper was now back in her hand.

"Amazing. Both parts of the spell on the first try. This spell will work and most small items, and with enough practice, you will be able to send multiple items away, and return them individually, or all at once."

Aaril helped Yan'Chi practice the spell of item safekeeping for three days, and then they went on to other spells. Yan'Chi learned many of the simpler spells of protection, weak healing spells, and a few basic attack spells. She was taught various magic spells and enchantments for about half a year, and then was taught a foreign language. Aaril taught Yan'Chi the language that those in the world of Britannia call common, English, or British. Two weeks before her fourth birthday, Yan'Chi was told why she was learning the language.

"And that is why we think it is safest for you to be sent to Britannia. It will soon become far too dangerous for a child of your importance here. We have no way of knowing if we will be able to keep you in a safe location during the war if we keep you in Erath. When the war ends, we will send for you to return home," Karana explained to her daughter.

"Bud Iz dun wanna gu. Iz can pertect myself juz finez."

"It will not be for too long child. You will be much safer in their world then you will be here," encouraged Coromath.

The child whined for the next two and a half weeks, complaining about having to leave. Three days after her birthday, she was sent via dimensional gate to a place in the land of Britannia known as Skara Brae, along with a note...

For the next year, nothing was seen or heard of Yan'Chi, and the war grew hectic. The Sincaal began fighting within the ranks of the Erathi, struggling to take each city, one by one. The death of a handful or two of Erathi and Sincaal accompanied every battle that was won, but the odds slowly moved in favor of them. After another quarter of a year worth of fighting, the west coast of Erath was liberated from the Darshin forces. The speed at which the war was progressing was far beyond what any had expected. It seemed luck was upon the Erathi as they worked to take back the land that was rightfully theirs. One battle after another, it seemed nothing could stop the Erath from taking back their land. Another half a year passed, and only one city was left to be recaptured, Hymlen, the capital of Erath. There was only one problem with the war being as fast as it was, the troops didn't have much time to rest after each battle. There were two hundred able to fight on each side at the start of the Battle of Hymlen. Fifty of the Erathi troops were Sincaal. The battle lasted two weeks, both sides suffering terrible losses. On the final day, only seventy were still able to fight, counting both sides. The Erathi had thirty, and the Darshin had forty. The fight lasted for two hours before the Darshin were overwhelmed. They lost half of the forces they started with that day, and took none of the Erathi troops out of battle. The Erathi accepted the surrender of the Darshin, and those that were still alive were sent back to the isle they came from. It took a month and a half before anyone got much rest from the war. Rebuilding of the cities began immediately. A day of rest was declared across the continent, and the day after, Yan'Chi was sent for.