5000 years ago…

                When the land was still ruled by magick and creatures of the myths roamed free, a massive war broke out.

                The West and The East fought over the control of the land of Al-ey-arich – the land that harboured the greatest eternal magick and the land that brought life to the people of the East.

                Consumed with the greed for power and hatred towards the prosperity of the East Lord, the Empress of the West, the Light Bearer launched a surprise attack on the East Land.

                And the war began.

                The East Emperor, the mighty Dragon Lord Yi-Fan was a very intelligent young man. His defence was not one to be attempted with. Easily he deflected the Light Bearer’s attack.

                But the witch was not one with a bendable will. Her will to fight and her consuming desire to overthrow the young king blinded her rational mind. Evil had become the master of the West Queen.

Her conduit, the Time Tripper allowed her to possess the upper hand in the war. But the Dragon Lord managed to counter her attacks and find weaknesses in her tactics.

                Enraged, the Light Bearer challenged the king to a dual-till-death in the land of Al-ey-arich.

                Her conditions, the two must fight against one another – without mercy.

                ‘For if we win, all of East must bow down to us and Al-ey-arich will you give to us,’ the witch uttered arrogantly, ‘for if Your Lordship honours the victory, we will accept most willingly.’

                The Empress of the East, the Lady Chan-Yue who bore the symbol of the Phoenix feared for her king’s safety. She pleaded and begged for the Dragon Lord to ease her terrible musings but the king’s mind was set. He was a man of honour and he had given the Light Bearer his words.

                ‘I beg thee, my lord…Do you not love me? I beg thee, my husband, to war you must not! If you away, take me with you, my Lord King!’

                However, the war was still at its peak. The Dragon Lord and his empress descended into Al-ey-arich in full armour. The Lady of the Fire was still perturbed. She couldn’t help her anxiety and fear. She was a strong being – her Phoenix as strong as her mate’s Dragon. They were the Fire Breathers. Together, they were strong.

                Alas, the war began and the young king fought – majestically and stealthily. And found the Light Bearer he did.

Away from his men and into the grounds of the Empress of the West.

                However, the king miscalculated his enemy’s plan and was trapped by the witch and her forces. The witch was never true to her oath.

He was surrounded. He was outnumbered. He was trapped. He was at the Light Bearer’s mercy.

With a gleeful smirk, the Light Bearer delivered the last blow to the heart of the Dragon Lord.

‘Victory is ours!’ the witch cackled and ordered her army to destroy every single Eastern soldier that came their way.

The moment the Dragonlord’s heart was struck…

A dull pain stabbed the heart of the Fire Bender.

And she knew – her nightmares, her worst fear had come true.

Swirling her head in search or her missing mate, the Phoenix panicked and barked orders to her men.

‘Find my husband! Find my lord!’

And found him, she did. When her eyes laid upon the battered body of her warrior, the Phoenix let out a shrill shriek that pierced fright into the hearts of every men.     

Ever so gently, the weeping Queen cradled her King’s marred and bloodied face. Her sobs broken and her slender fingers brushed over the matted hair of her lord. She closed her eyes and cried.

‘Chan-Yue…’ the king called out to his beloved.

‘My Lord, my life...’

‘Let me see thy face, my Chan-Yue,’ the Dragon Lord commanded.

‘Yi-Fan,’ she sobbed.

‘Smile for me, love,’ the king managed a smile…before the light in his eyes faded.

Shocked, the young Queen wailed and begged for the man she devoted her life to to come back. The Phoenix let out an anguished shrill and fire erupted from the ground and burned every single one of the enemy’s army.

With fire burning in her eyes the Queen transformed into her natural form. Her long hair became red flames dancing and her wings covered her frame.

‘I curse this land…I curse every soul in this land to be engulfed in my grief. My fire will destroy your souls and all the evil it brings. I despise all of you! I curse all! Die! I curse this land – deserted it will be and never will any survive if this land is entered! I curse all!’

The sorrow made the Queen stronger and her power reached all. In a blink of an eye, all had perished, including the Light Bearer.

All that was left was the fallen Dragon Lord and the exhausted Phoenix. Still angered and saddened, the Queen wept again. Broken forever.

‘NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!’

~~~

Chanyeol gasped as he sat up on his bed. His hair wet from perspiration and his heart was frantic. He was crying in his sleep and his heart suddenly ached. In the darkness of his room, the young man tried to brush away the fear brought about from his nightmare. The man was shaking and sobbing.  

“It’s just a dream…it’s just a dream,” he chanted as he brought his knees to his chest and buried his head. But it all felt so real. He felt the emotions. He felt the pain. He felt the love.

He felt…lost.   

He had been having these sorts of dreams the eve he turned twenty-one and he couldn’t figure them out. He was always happy in his previous dreams but this one was a nightmare from hell. Was this all the memories of his past life? Was it even possible? Did all of these occurrences that only happened in the TV were actually real? And they happened to him. He couldn't explain it away as simply the product of his subconscious mind, when the dreams were so vivid and continuous. He wasn't that imaginative of a person. The theory of having dreams of a past life became more and more appealing. 

One thing he always knew was that. 

He was Chan-Yue.

A Fire Bender that was born with the soul of a Phoenix.

The mate of Yi-Fan the Dragon Lord, the fallen Emperor of the East.