Sol's Shine and the Kingdom of Terra

Prologue

 Somewhere within the Kingdom of Terra, a single elf stands on top of an old and ancient stone structure with many more stacked next to it, almost completing a circle. The shadows created next to these mysterious structures by the sun almost make it look like it was supposed to be a sundial. It was places like this that made Nico curious about Magnora's past and secrets.

Even still, the elf kept on standing where he was, watching and waiting for the dwarven-made steam train to come passing by. Nico suspected that the black box he held in his hand was also a part of the past or if it was from another world entirely. A snake crawls up his torso and along his arm. Nico calmly looks at its beady eyes. "How long must we keep running until we understand the truth?" Nico's dark attire along with his deep voice made everything around him feel gloomy. It wasn't as if he was trying to look intimidating but for the sake of being on the run, wearing anything bright and getting easily noticed was the last thing he wanted. Anyone who ever knew Nico in the first place would figure out that he was more weird than intimidating considering that he would often talk to snakes.

For as long as Nico remembers, ever since he ran away from the Kingdom of Wood seeking for answers, he couldn't find a single person that could help him understand the contents of the black box he carried. He wasn't quite sure what the contents inside of it meant, just that it looked like a long black strip of paper coiled up at two ends and he was able to view inside thanks to one translucent side of the box.

The front of the box had a written language on it that Nico couldn't understand either and it certainly didn't look like anything that would come from any of the five kingdoms. Nico looked back up from the box to watch the train tracks, waiting for his ride and thinking about his place in this world. His only friends were snakes but everyone else... he hated. Nico had no reason to return to the Kingdom of Wood since he deliberately ran away and betrayed them. Growing up, Nico didn't take kindly to the fact that the Kingdom of Wood was hated by almost everyone else but themselves. And for obvious reasons, Nico would hate the other four kingdoms as well since they still see the elves as enemies. If no one could trust Nico then Nico didn't have any reason to trust them back. If anything else, Nico was proud enough that he can stand alone without choosing any sides. It was just himself.

"The train is running late. Probably has something to do with the war." Nico talks to the snake on his arm again but the snake looks in the same direction he is as if it understood what they were waiting for. Although as they wait, more snakes slither up the stone structure and bind around his feet. He could only look down at them as if he knew what they were thinking. "Don't worry. Amaterasu and Bila are too busy to focus on me. It's the dwarves I should look out for." That's when he finally heard the whistle of a steam train in the far distance. The one he was waiting on.

The time of day was perfect as well. With the shadow being casted next to the stone structure he stood on, he was able to drop down and disappear into it. The shadow magic that Nico possessed would let him travel between two different shadows if they were at least in the same proximity. Nico still couldn't tell if it was like teleportation or if it was more like a self-made doorway. Either way, the magic he possessed would help him get on the oncoming train without a ticket.