"Really? What is it?" yelled his Moehog companion from behind another bush.

"It's... it's--EWWW! It's DUNG... gross!!!" Omar said, desperately trying to wipe off his hand.

"Again?" sighed Lucas. "That's all we ever find around here." He gave a swift kick to the nearest bush. "Hmmf. Let's stop wasting our NP by coming here. You never find anything goo-" Lucas stopped as he heard a strange "tink, tink" sound come from the bush he had just assaulted. A strange little orb fell, bouncing off the branches and onto the ground.

"Lucas? Luuuucas! What are you staring at?" asked the Grundo, approaching his friend.

"I-I don't know," he said, carefully picking up the shining orb and examining it. Omar leaned over his shoulder to get a better look.

"What a strange thing to find in a bush," commented the Grundo.

"It's absolutely... dazzling..." Lucas said slowly, gazing deeply into the orb.

"Uh, Lucas are you okay?" asked Omar, shaking his friend's shoulder lightly.

"Wha-? Oh! Uh, yeah. Just fine," said the Moehog shaking his head, as if to clear his thoughts. "Let's get going. There's a lot to see in Meridell."

Omar shrugged and followed his friend out of the berry fields...

"Sorry... it's just so very nice," Lucas said, shaking his head and stuffing the orb in his pack. They continued down the road, with Omar holding a one-sided conversation. Lucas seemed to be lost, as if staring into space. He could feel his hooves itching for the bag; he NEEDED to touch the orb...

"Here it is! The wonders of the Meridell market place!" Omar exclaimed cheerfully. "I'm hungry, Lucas. Why don't we get some food before going shopping, okay?"

Lucas looked hesitantly over at his friend. "Yeah, okay. L-Let's go." They began walking over to Merifoods, although Omar noticed a strange change in his friend; he was much more quiet then usual. At lunch the two sat over some flatbread, a bowl of chunky meaty stew, and some of the few berries they had picked that morning. Omar spluttered out some of the soup; it tasted foul. "Did you taste this stuff, Lucas? It tastes like old meatballs cooked in... I don't know what!" he blinked. Lucas was gone, as well as his pack. Must need some time alone. Maybe he's coming down with something, Omar thought to himself, starting on some berries.

Lucas stood off in the distance from the market place and its commotion. He just felt he needed to be alone. The Moehog ran across the grassy hills behind the food shoppe. It was a cool day, yet the sun still shone behind the clouds. After a bit of running, Lucas was quite tired, plus he knew it would take a bit of energy to go back to Omar. The food shoppe was nothing but a small square now.

Looking around, he saw nothing but endless farmland to his left and right, and a beautiful glade before him. Taking off his pack, Lucas began fishing inside of it until he found the orb. He was enchanted by its depths, its swirling beautiful depths, colorful and seeming to change with the light...

"Hello young pet, have you come for a quest?" spoke a beautiful, melodic voice...

...from a tall Earth Faerie with auburn hair streaked green. Her eyes were a deep emerald, and she seemed tranquil and kind. Her beauty dazzled Lucas, but his eyes dragged back down, returning to the orb. He was mesmerised by its swirling colours, thinking the Faerie plain beside it. He concentrated intently on the orb, not bothering to return the Faerie's greeting.

"I am Illusen," the Faerie said. She received no reply. "May I see?" she asked, bending over the Moehog and looking at the object clutched tightly in his hooves.

With some difficulty, she pried it away from him. When Illusen set her eyes upon the orb, she shrieked... dropping it as if she'd been burned. The orb rolled into a nearby bush. Lucas scrambled after it, scooping it up quickly and protectively holding it close.

Illusen regarded the little Moehog clearly. "So it has begun..." she mused. "I thought I would have more time, or even escape it completely... but apparently, that is not to be..." She grasped the Moehog by his hoof and led him deeper into her quiet glade.

Back in the cafe, Omar was sitting on a bench, groaning. He patted his distended stomach. "I'm stuffed," he said to no one in particular. He sat up with an effort. Lucas was still not back, and there was no sign of his friend anywhere. Omar heaved himself up off the bench and wandered into the bustling crowd, searching for his friend.

Unwittingly, he walked in the direction opposite of Illusen's Glade, taking him further and further from Lucas. As he progressed down the path, Omar became disheartened. "Where are you, Lucas?" he murmured. Sitting down to rest for a moment, he heard a sweet voice calling to him.

"Hello there... would you like to go on a quest?"

Omar looked deep into the purple eyes of a Dark Faerie. "I'm Jhudora," she said. "Will you accept my offer?"

Omar, never one to think things through, agreed. He smiled at the Faerie and said, "Sure..."

"Good," she said, her lips curling into a unfeeling smile. "I would like you to find the Orb of Filendia." Jhudora fluidly waved her hand in the air, forcing an image to appear out of nowhere. Omar looked on in awe; it was an orb that looked identical to the one Lucas had found earlier that day. "It is very dear to me, and I must it before sundown."

"The orb's here in Meridell... that's why you're here, isn't it?" Omar asked, slowly putting two and two together.

The Dark Faerie's smile widened slightly. "How very clever of you. I'm sure a smart Neopet such as yourself could figure out where to find it." Jhudora's compliment made Omar beam with pride. It obviously didn't take much to please this Grundo.

"I won't fail you. In fact, I think I know where your orb might be."

"Well, don't just stand there wasting time with that dumbfounded smile on your face... GET!!!" she snapped, her purple eyes glowing bright with rage.

Omar squeaked before running off in the opposite direction.

"Now young Moehog, tell me how you came by that orb," Illusen ordered as soon as they were safely in the deepest part of her glade. Lucas was once again distracted by the beautiful colors swirling in the orb. "Do not make me ask again, or I shall be cross."

Lucas did his best to tear his eyes away from the orb, but could only hold out for a few seconds. "I... found... it." came his broken response.

"Where?"

"What's it to you?" Lucas said, looking away from the orb with some effort.

"That is the Orb of Filendia; it is a very dangerous and powerful weapon. You must get rid of it before it pulls you in." Lucas ignored her. The Faerie said a silent prayer before grabbing the orb from his lap. She nearly passed out from the agony of its touch. With all the strength she could muster, Illusen threw it farther into the glades.

"Hey!" Lucas screamed before running to recover the orb.

"You must stay away from it, it is evil!" Illusen hollered towards his retreating back. She ran after him when she realized he had no intention of listening. Illusen caught up just as he was five feet from the dreaded orb. "Stop!" she screamed, tackling him with her own body. "The more you stare into it, the more it consumes your mind!"

"Get off!" Lucas struggled with such strength that it surprised Illusen. He threw her off and ran once more to retrieve his precious orb.

That's when it began to glow and spark...

...Lucas grabbed the orb and cupped it in his hooves. "It is so beautiful, so precious, no one will take it away from me" he muttered to himself as sparks from the orb flew into his eyes, Lucas merely blinked.

Illusen stood up. "Lucas, listen to me, let go of the orb, it is nothing but evil!" she cried. Slowly, Lucas turned around. Illusen gasped at the sight of the young Moehog, and ran from him. "It has happened!" she shrieked.

Lucas paid no attention. Instead, he stared deeper into the orb. He could see many vivid colours, but the clearest was a deep, deep purple. In fact, the colour shaped into two eyes... they seemed to be watching him. He thought nothing of it, and stared deeper.

Omar ran through Meridell searching for his companion, and the orb. Omar felt a strange desire to hold the orb. He'd only seen it once, but it really was so beautiful...

Omar shook himself. What was he thinking? He needed to give it to Jhudora- and fast by the looks of it.

He came to a clearing and sitting on a log, staring into the orb, was Lucas.

"Lucas!" he shouted to his friend, "Where have you been?" Lucas didn't bother looking up. Omar sighed and snatched the orb out of the Moehog's hooves.

"I need it, I'll explain later. Trust me, Lu." Omar said casually. He briefly got a glance at the beauty of the orb before the possessed Moehog screeched, and hit Omar hard on the head with his rock hard hooves. Omar fell to the ground.

He stared up and saw Lucas staring at the orb once more, and caught a sight that the dear Grundo would never forget. He stared at the eyes of Lucas, for they were the colour of a deep, deep purple...

"That orb-" Omar began-

"Is MINE!" screamed the Moehog, then shook his head wildly, as if shaking off something. "AAARRRGH!" screamed Lucas. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

Omar steadied his friend, and accidentally caught sight of the orb. "Wow," he whispered under his breath, "It's so beautiful."

Lucas let him stare at it. "Soon," he muttered, "I, Filendia, will create an army of possessed Neopets. And from Meridell, I will advance on to Neopia Central, Mystery Island, and all the other worlds. "Muaa-" the Moehog fell over clutching his head and screaming. "WHAT IS IN MY HEAD?!? " he screeched loudly, smacking his head violently against the ground. His eyes flickered back to the amber brown they were. "Whew," he sighed. He saw Omar holding the orb. "Hey, what's that you got there?" asked Lucas, who recalled nothing that had happened in the last few hours. "Wow, it's... really... pret... ty..." he stared deeper and deeper into the orb, falling once again under its control.

This time, his friend Omar was right there with him. Illusen came out the bushes and saw the two hypnotized pets. "This is going to leave a mark," Illusen whispered. "Sorry." she held up her Leaf Shield and brought it down on their heads with a mighty clang. The two pets fell down, almost in perfect unison.

Illusen, careful not to look into the orb, picked up the swirling sphere and attempted to tamper with it. "I've got to fully release their minds," Illusen whispered. Eventually she gave in and looked into the orb. It was the only way to fix it.

And slowly, as Illusen worked the orb, although she did not know it, the deep magic of the orb of Filendia, sister of Jhudora, worked its way deeper and deeper into the honest, and peaceful mind of Illusen the Earth Faerie, Guardian of Meridell.

Jhudora was aware of the whole scene. She picked up her crystal ball, which she had stolen from the Hidden Tower and brought to Meridell. She cackled evilly...

..."Yes, sweet Illusen," Jhudora whispered. "Look into the orb." Jhudora then looked into the sky as she watched the clouds darken, becoming larger and more menacing. A sign of terrible things to come. "Just as the prophecy foretold. 'Only by the hands of a Faerie will the Faerie of the orb be released.'" Jhudora then spread her purple wings and prepared to fly. "Soon, my sister. We will be reunited."

The darkness began to fade from his sight as Lucas slowly awoke. His head throbbed as he struggled to stand on his hooves. "Mmm... wha.. what happened?" Then, his eyes fell upon Omar, who was still unconscious. "Omar!" he shouted, quickly trotting over and lifting his friend's head. "Omar! Wake up! Come on, buddy, speak to me!"

Soon, Omar too opened his eyes and looked at his friend. "Lucas? Ooww... what just happened?"

"I was about to ask you that!"

That's when Lucas saw a sight that was most frightening. It was Illusen, but she seemed... different. As did her glade. The sky grew dark and the winds picked up violently, as if a storm was brewing which was not in the forecast at all. Illusen's eyes became a clear shade of white, as sparks from the orb shot out everywhere. What was most surprising was that the orb no longer looked beautiful; it had reverted to its true form: evil.

"Illusen!" cried Lucas. "Illusen, let go of that... thing!" His words fell upon deaf ears, as a bright purple light suddenly erupted from the orb. Omar and Lucas had to shield their eyes from its brightness. A loud wailing pierced their ears as the winds blew faster.

When they opened their eyes, Omar and Lucas saw, in the smoke of the orb's sparks, a mysterious form begin to emerge. It looked like... a Faerie! A Dark Faerie with purple hair like Jhudora's, but with a white stripe instead of green. The Faerie looked behind her to see Illusen lying on the ground, unconscious. Beside her there was a round stone, similar to her former prison.

As the Faerie looked at her surroundings, she took no notice of the two Neopets running towards Illusen, checking to see if she was okay. Then, a cackling from far away fell upon their ears. Daring to look up, they saw Jhudora gliding down in front of the other Faerie.

"Filendia," whispered Jhudora.

"My sister!" cried Filendia as she embraced Jhudora. "At last, I am free!"

"Yes," said Jhudora as she pulled back from the hug. "I was going to free you myself, but thanks to these Neopets, Illusen saved me the trouble."

Filendia looked around her again. "Ugh... Meridell is so green and warm. Not at all like it used to be when I ruled."

"That will soon change, sister," said Jhudora with her famous grin. "Together, we will rule one land at a time, starting with this one. Soon, all of Neopia will be a Dark World once again!"

Filendia smiled, then turned towards the frightened Lucas and Omar. "I've been in that orb for so long, sister. Perhaps I should... test my powers a bit..."

"OMAR!" he yelled, leaping forward, shielding his eyes from the brilliant light. The flames rose higher and higher, and the screams from within grew softer and softer. "OMAR!!! NOOOOOO!" screamed Lucas, backing away.

The flames suddenly went out as if they had been snuffed by magic; which, Lucas reminded himself, they probably had. There, in Omar's place was a horrid, ugly, mutated Grundo. It looked dully around then smiled up at Filendia. "Mahh queen." he said with a snort. She snarled with disgust and once again shot magic at him, this time the color of rancid green. When the flames stopped Omar sat there blinking on the ground-- as a SLORG!

Jhudora and her sister laughed harder than ever, and then turned towards the cowering Lucas. Suddenly, bravery swept over Lucas, and he stood up with a growl. "Turn my friend back, or else, Filendia!" he threatened, pawing at the ground and showing his small tusks. This only made the Dark Faeries laugh harder.

With strength not even Lucas himself could have predicted, the Moehog lunged towards Filendia and brought her down to the ground with a loud battle cry. He pounded at her with his hooves. "TURN MY FRIEND BACK!" he screamed over and over again. Lucas felt himself be lifted up and thrown against the tree by Jhudora's magic.

Weakly the small blue Moehog lifted his head and gave a cough. Filendia rose slowly as well, her purple eyes narrowed as she stepped sharply towards Lucas. She rose her finger. "I hope you like dung-- No, I think I'll make your death more painful than stinky!" she shouted, and a blast of black magic was sent from her finger.

But just as it was released, a green figure knocked hard into Filendia. She fell to the ground with an angry shriek. The black magic whipped through the air and crashed against the tree behind Lucas. The bark sizzled and turned black and burnt. Omar, as a green Grundo once again, leaped off of Filendia and ran to Lucas's side. The two huddled together as both Jhudora and Filendia approached them with anger in their purple eyes.

Suddenly Jhudora glanced over at her sister. "Was that spell made to be temporary?" she snapped. Filendia shook her head no.

"Well it was made to be broken-- really easily!" came a loud cry from behind the Dark Faeries. As soon as they turned around, a blast of green magic sent them spiraling through the air and smashing into a boulder.

Illusen stood proudly, and Omar and Lucas rushed to hide behind her legs. Filendia scowled. "YOU!" she spat. "I can't believe after all these years I'm meeting the one who imprisoned me, yet this time I will surely capture her. Perhaps I'll give her to Balthazar as a gift, hmm, what do you think, sister?"

Jhudora bared her sharp teeth. "Let's just destroy them all."

"Lucas, Omar, you have to get the shell of the orb Filendia was caught in. Bring it and press one on each of her feet!" whispered Illusen, as she sent a whip of green earth magic towards Jhudora and Filendia. They shrieked and leaped away, both sending blasts of powerful dark magic towards the other Faerie.

Lucas leaped for the stone with Omar behind him. He tapped it with his hoof and it fell apart in two slices. Both Pets took one and ran towards Filendia, who was concentrating so hard on Illusen, that she didn't see the two Pets until it was far too late.

Omar smashed his slice against Filendia's right foot, while Lucas did the same to her left. Screeching like a banshee, the Dark Faerie burst into purple magic, and was slowly sucked into the orb. Jhudora screeched and reached for her sister's hand, and, realized her mistake right after she made it.

Both Dark Faeries were yanked into the orb, which looked significantly bigger since the last time Omar had held it. Illusen snatched it up disgustedly, and threw it into a window of her cottage, magic controlling it so it landed in a box. The box's top snapped shut, as the three exhausted heroes watched, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Whoa." said Omar, breaking the silence.

"And that is why you should never trust strange artifacts you find. Bring it straight to someone who will tell you if it is alright or not to keep it." Illusen scolded Lucas gently.

The two pets hung their heads and nodded. "Well, we should be getting home." Omar said slowly. Illusen kissed them both on the forehead.

"Come visit me sometime," she said, smiling at the two brave pets.

They hadn't traveled very far when Lucas leaned down and picked up a golden coin hanging on a silver chain. It glinted beautifully in the setting sun. "Whatcha' got there, Lucas?" Omar asked from ahead. Lucas smiled with mischief.

"Nothing, Omar. Nothing at all."

The End