He floats silently above the graves, with all the menace of a shadowy angel. The tombstones below him move by slowly, his eye watchful, looking for any movement, any disturbance.

He stops for a moment, gazing at a long shadow under a dead weeping willow, his red eyes glowing in the dark. One of the branches is caught on a fence, banging against the iron. He turns away, floating forward, his eyes focusing ahead of him.

It's a sad, lonely place, the ancient graveyard hidden in the heart of the Haunted Woods. No one really knows where it came from, but he guards it now, guards those who want to get in... and those who want to get out.

He is Magax, and his soul is older than the tallest trees, older than the greatest mountains. As he floats through the graveyard, he remembers the Vow he made, and the powers that Vow gave him. Everything comes with a price. For centuries, he was Neopia's greatest threat, a villain without equal... but all of that is behind him now. He is a changed Wocky. Never again would he embrace the darkness. Never...

Just then, he sensed movement. He spun to face it, his enhanced senses fixing in. Even on the darkest night, his eyes could see as clear as noon. In the heart of a clamourous battle, he could hear a cricket chewing on a leaf.

The figure was hiding behind a tombstone. He moved forward, with hands summoning his Darklight Axe. When he spun behind the stone, he didn't find a ghost, but a little lost Cybunny. "What are you doing here?" Magax asked, allowing his Darklight Axe to fade away. "Don't you know how dangerous it is out here?"

The Cybunny sniffed, her eyes wet and raw with tears. "I - I'm lost. We came out to the Carnival on a dare... and now..."

"What's your name?" Magax asked.

"Cheelee," the Cybunny said, still sniffing.

"We've got to get you out of here," he said, lifting the Cybunny from the cold ground. "No telling when Nox might show up."

The Cybunny shivered. "Hubrid Nox?" she asked.

Magax looked down. "What do you know..."

The Cybunny grinned, her eyes turning red. "I know a great deal about Hubrid Nox," she said, her grin spreading wide, sharp as a scimitar.

Magax tried to move, but the Cybunny moved faster. The next thing he knew, he was thrown through the air, slamming into a gravestone, and smashing it in half.

Magax tried to shake the pain out of his head, but before he could get steady, he saw the Cybunny changing before his eyes. Changing... changing into...

"Hubrid Nox!" Magax shouted.

The creature smiled. "Yes, foolish Magax. You are so easy to trick. Those of good hearts are always willing to drop their guard to protect an innocent." Nox laughed, a sound that echoed through the graveyard, its evil seeping into every tombstone, every grave. Then, he began to speak, casting a spell with his deep voice.

"Stop!" Magax said, trying to get to his feet. "What are you doing?"

Nox ignored him, continuing with the spell. Magax pushed himself to his feet, but it was already too late. Spirits rose up from the graves, their empty eyes glowing with abandon.

"What have you done?" Magax said, rising up into the air.

"An army of shades, spectres, and shadows to serve me!" Nox shouted, rising up above the dark cloud cover. "And their first act... will be to destroy you, my old servant."

Magax summoned his Darklight Axe once again. "I was once your slave," he said, "but no more!"

"You still seek redemption for your past?" Nox said, his form all but lost in the storm clouds. "Don't you know there is no forgiveness for you, Magax? The Faeries will never forgive the crimes you committed against them."

"Perhaps," Magax said, readying his weapon. "But, I have to try."