Chapter 1 - A New Mage
“Ignite!” The twelve-year-old boy wrinkled his nose, staring intensely with forest-green eyes at the pile of tinder at his feet. He held his open palm a few inches above the pile for a few more seconds, hoping, just hoping that he would see a flame. Not even a wisp of smoke appeared.
“Why will this not work,” the boy ran his hand through his messy brown hair after a long sigh. He sat down on a nearby rock and pulled a piece of worn parchment paper out of his raggedy tunic, adding to his scribbled notes with a charcoal stick.
“Two years. Two years to the day, and I still can’t make a simple flame. Guess I have to do it the old-fashioned way.” After placing a piece of firewood flat on the ground, the boy took a thin stick and began rolling it back and forth between his palms, using the friction to generate heat. Before the tinder could catch flame, his ears picked up the sound of a group of voices approaching. The familiar, dirty faces of the village boys in their ripped and stained clothing was no welcome sight to him.
“Oh hey, look. It’s Talynn, wearing that same dorky hat as always,” said the leader of the group, a tall and bulky teenager whose face seemed to be stuck in a permanent sneer.
“Shut it, Aiden. It’s not a dorky hat. This is the traditional garb of a mage,” Talynn adjusted the wide, circular-brimmed hat with a pointed top that was a bit too large for his body.
“Oh, the little bookworm still fancies himself to be a mage?”
“Were you practicing ‘magic’ again?” The boys said with mocking hand gestures.
“It’s not ‘magic’, you just call it that because you don’t understand it. There’s nothing mystical or supernatural about lumi. You can explain it all scientifically. A mage is just someone who studies and uses lumi.”
“Whatever, you’re just a weak little bookworm with his head in the clouds.”
“Stop calling me that!” Talynn raised his voice sharply.
“Oh yeah? Are you going to use your magic powers against us? Cause you definitely can’t win in a real fight.”
“Fine, I’ll show you what a mage can do!” Talynn extended his arm and started channeling the lumi within him into his hand. A faint yellow aura began to form above his palm, distorting light like the heat off of a fire. The village boys stepped back uneasily as the sleeve of Talynn’s coat began to whip about, the air around it beginning to stir.
“Ignite!” Talynn shouted. The yellow aura coalesced into a single point, creating a small flash of light before vanishing. The air stopped moving. The yellow glow disappeared. Nothing happened.
“Come on, ignite!” Talynn looked down, desperately trying to force more lumi into his hand, but he had expended too much in his last attempt. After a few seconds of silence, Aiden gave a derisive snort.
“Is that’s it? And you’re supposed to be a mage? Pathetic. You really have no talent in anything.”
“Mark my words; I will be a great fire mage someday. And I’ll go out and explore the world while you nitwits are stuck in this stupid little village!”
“Who are you calling nitwit?” Aiden rushed forward and grabbed Talynn by the torn collar of his coat.
“Enough!” Called out a young, but strong voice. A dark-blonde haired, blue-eyed boy approached the group, his height and build that of someone several years older than his actual age.
“Lucky you. Mavence is here to save you again,” Aiden muttered as he slowly released Talynn.
“You two, stop picking fights,” Mavence forcibly separated them further.
“Get off me. It’s not my fault he’s such a talentless loser,” Aiden used his minuscule height advantage to glare down at Mavence.
“I’m warning you, Aiden. Stop talking.”
“Oh yeah? What are you gonna do Mavence, defend this worthless worm your whole life?”
Quite finished, Mavence slammed his fist into Aiden’s jaw, the following impact his head made on the dirt ground seemingly worse than the blow itself. His group of lackeys winced.
“Call him a worthless worm one more time and I’ll make sure that you spend more time in the dirt than a real worm. Now get out of here, all of you.”
“Sorry you had to save me again,” Talynn said with a sigh as he and Mavence watched the group of boys depart.
“Don’t worry about it. You’re my friend, I’ll beat up as many people as I have to. Just try not to start so many fights.”
“To be fair, I didn’t start that one. I was just sitting here practicing lumi transformation when those jerks walked up and started picking on me.”
“Still obsessed with magic, huh?”
“Yep. I still want to be a great fire mage someday. I can channel lumi energy pretty well, but I can’t actually transform it into an element,” Talynn kicked the dirt in frustration. “I’ve read every single book in the village library but I still can’t figure it out.”
“You read all three books?”
“All three of them. I don’t know, Mav. Maybe they’re right. Maybe I don’t have the talent to become a mage. All I have three books in a tiny village with no school. Sometimes I feel like my life wasn’t meant for much.”
“I think life is whatever you make it. And I think we need to make it out of this place. Think about it Talynn, there’s probably a huge world out there past these mountains that we’d never get to see unless we left.”673Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5gIBpgAv9
“I wish it weren’t nearly impossible to leave this place. But from how brutal people say the path down is and how few visitors we have, I don’t think it’s something we can do just yet. When we’re older, maybe.”
“Don’t give me that ‘maybe’. When we’re older for sure. Hey, aren’t you supposed to be at old man Kerrick’s pasture right now?”
“Oh shoot, I forgot again. Gotta go, later Mav,” Talynn waved goodbye with one hand while using the other to hold his hat in place as he ran up the steep, winding dirt path a short distance from the village square.
“Talynn! You’re late again,” yelled an aged voice as Talynn reached the top of the mesa overlooking the village. Despite being nearly a century old, the old shepherd was surprisingly spry, hobbling about with the assistance of his walking staff with impressive speed.
“Sorry sir! Got caught up in an… altercation with the other village boys.”
“Did they beat you up again?”
“What? No, of course not. I can defend my-”
“Mavence stopped them, didn’t he?” Kerrick interrupted.
“Yeah, he did,” Talynn sighed.
“At least you have one good friend. But you’re still in trouble with me! You came to me asking if you can herd my novis for coin. I’m not going to pay you if you don’t actually herd them.”
“I know, I know. I’ll guard them with my life, I swear.”
“Especially watch that purple one, you hear? In all my years, I’ve only seen a few purple novis. Do you know how much natural purple cotton is worth these days? It’d sell for a pretty penny in the capitol. Those noble folk are crazy for it.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on them. Nothing’s going to happen to them. Nothing ever happens around here anyways.”
“Don’t be too sure of yourself. Back in my day, Aedon was at war with every kingdom near and far. Always a fight happening. Imps assassinating noblemen. Belcanis slaughtering folk like the beasts they are. Raiders pillaging little villages just like ours. You could hardly go a month without losing livestock back then,” Kerrick said while stroking his long, white and wispy beard.
“Yeah, but that was all ages ago,” Talynn waved his hand dismissively. “Now everything is one big empire. No more monsters and marauders roaming about.”
“Well, I still expect you to show up on time. Might not be a war, but I still have to pay taxes to the emperor. Speaking of which, I hear they’re having a festival for the inauguration of the emperor’s daughter tomorrow. Big ceremony and all that. Didn’t you say you wanted to visit the capitol?”
“I do, I’ve never been to Albustone! I’ll bet they have tons of books there. Maybe I could finally find a book that’ll help me figure out how to transmute lumi into the fire element. Then I’ll be one step closer to throwing fireballs,” Talynn said with an evil grin.
“Why don’t you go tomorrow?”
“Isn’t the path down the mountain incredibly dangerous? Almost impossible?”
“Oh, young one,” Kerrick said with a hearty laugh. “Of course it’s not impossible. That’s just what we tell the children so they don’t try to sneak out on their own. It’s mildly dangerous at best.”
“Well, either way, I don’t have enough coin yet,” Talynn shrugged. “I’m saving up. That’s why I asked you for this job.”
“Here, take this, young man. This should cover your food, journey, and a stack of books,” Kerrick handed Talynn a pouch full of gold coins. “And bring Mavence with you, the road is long. Safety in numbers.”
“What? Really? Are you sure? What about your novis?” Talynn looked in the pouch incredulously, never having seen that much coin in his life.
“I’ve been watching novis for almost a century, I can do it one more day. You’re a good lad. Go have fun with your friend. See the city and enjoy the festival. Take it from an old man; you’re only young once. Make sure you have plenty of adventures before you get old and gray. ”
“You got it, sir. You’re the best!” Talynn gave Kerrick a hug and then ran off to tell Mavence.
“Tomorrow, your adventure begins. But don’t forget, you’re watching my novis as soon as you get back!”
The next morning, Talynn and Mavence woke up early and met at the edge of the village before the sun rose. Equipped with a knapsack filled with wheat loaves and skin bottles filled with stream water, the pair set off. Over a mountain pass so cold that you could see your breath in the middle of summer. Skirting along the edges of stony cliffs. Snaking through the ravines between mountains. Finally at the foot of the mountain range that they called home, the pair looked back on their progress.
“You know what I just realized Mav?” Talynn said as they took off their worn sandals and reclined on the grass atop a hill, admiring the mountains from a perspective they had never seen before.
“What?”
“I think old man Kerrick said to go left, not right. If we took a left after that mountain pass, there’s a dirt road that looks way easier than what we just went through for the past three hours.”
“I told you we should have gone left! You had one job, Talynn. I hate you,” Mavence threw a fistful of grass at his friend.
“At least it’s all flat from here. Should probably take us two hours or so,” Talynn said between large bites of his wheat bread. “Onward!”
The rest of their journey went by uneventfully as they walked along the straight dirt path for roughly ten miles. Eventually, they spotted a bright spot on the horizon. As they drew closer, the spot began to take shape. Massive sixty foot tall walls made of light-tan stone encircled the vast area of the city. Guards in magnificent polished iron armor with gold accents and armed with halberds were evenly stationed on the battlements and towers.
“Welcome to Albustone city, capitol of the Aedonian empire,” a jolly man welcomed the pair as they crossed over the lowered drawbridge. “Tell me, young lads, what is your business here today?”
“To see the festival and buy some books!” Talynn replied in a dialect he now realized was much less formal than those of cityfolk.
“Excellent. Now, before you enter, the imperial guard will check your effects for weapons. Nothing to worry about, standard protocol, ” the man nodded for the guards to approach. After inspecting their meager possessions, the guards nodded back to the customs official.
“Perfect. You’ll find the marketplace at the center of the city on this side of the river, and the inauguration begins at noon. Enjoy your stay,” the man bowed cordially.
“Thank you, kind sir. Come on Mav, let’s go!”
“Right behind you!”
Wealth and luxury overflowed around them. Houses made of light-tan stone and expensive dark wood framing lined the smooth light-gray cobblestone streets. Men wore vests and doublets over ruffled white shirts, women wore flare-sleeved gowns, and children ran about in multi-colored tunics. On the far side of the city lay an immense castle, with grand towers reaching into the sky. But the thing that caught their attention the most were the delicious aromas.
“Talynn. Are you smelling what I’m smelling?”
“Way ahead of you. I think we’ve found the marketplace!” The pair sprinted into the open public square, crowded with merchants, vendors, and commonfolk. With mouths watering, they ran from booth to booth, trying to make the critical decision of what to stuff their faces with first. Having picked their first prizes, the pair sat down under a planted tree.
“You have to try this Mav. Oat bread with sweet zapis honey. I didn’t know bread could taste this good,” said Talynn, crumbs flying everywhere as he devoured the bread.
“Try this hoggeth meat on a stick. It tastes so much better than the rodents we eat at home,” Mavence held out the wood skewer for Talynn to sample.
“Oh man, do you see that? They put some sort of sweet glaze on the meat that makes it taste even more amazing. Why is food here so much better?”
“Ice blends, come get your ice blends! Fresh shaved ice with sweet berries,” shouted a vendor pulling around a small cart. “What about you young lads, care for a cool treat on a hot day?”
“Sounds great to me!” Talynn stood up and handed the vendor a few gold coins. “Whoa, what is that?”
“Oh this little case here with the glowing rocks? It freezes the blended berries and water. This lux stone here provides the lumi, and this muto stone transmutes that energy into the ice element. Then, I use this stick here which uses the wind element to air-slice the ice into shaved bits,” the man showed Talynn what looked like a metal handle with a U-shape attached at the end.
“And enjoy!” The man handed two ice blends in small cups to Talynn and Mavence. The cool ice paired with sweet berry juice was thoroughly refreshing.
“Man, I could get used to this. So what’s next?”
“Time for the actual reason for this trip. Books! Hey sir,” Talynn ran up to the nearest vendor. “Where can I find someone who sells books on lumi?”
“Lumi, eh? I wouldn’t bother learning that sorta thing, if ya ask me,” the man said, stroking his large black beard. “Tough to learn on your own, and you’d be hard pressed to find anyone to teach you magic these days unless you’re in the emperor’s guard.”
“Well, I’m a determined person, I’ll find a way. I’m gonna be a great mage one day, no matter what. So where can I find the books?”
“I like your spirit, lad. Go a couple streets that way, just past the blacksmiths.”
“Blacksmiths? Yes! Come on, let’s go,” Mavence grabbed Talynn’s arm and began running, bubbling over with excitement. “Maybe I can finally get a real weapon!”
The sounds of the crowded square with vendors advertising their food and wares were replaced by the loud clanking of dozens of blacksmiths hammering away at their creations.
“Excuse me, are you selling any big swords?” Mavence asked as he approached one of the booths. The young blacksmith had a short beard and long hair tied into a low ponytail. He remained silent as he replaced the lux stone powering the fire of his forge. Finally, he turned his attention to Mavence, leaning forward and placing his elbows on his table as he addressed the young boy.
“We can’t sell longswords or other large weapons like spears, polearms, halberds, maces, and battle axes unless you’re in the imperial guard. But, we can sell you knives and short swords.”
“Shortsword it is then.”
“That’ll be forty gold coin for the sword and sheath.”
“Done,” Talynn deposited the coins on the table.
“Awesome. Thank you sir,” Mavence nodded politely, throwing the sheath strap over his shoulder before departing.
“Look at this, Talynn, a real iron sword with a sheath! It has weight to it, not like those sticks we used to play with. It may not be my dream sword, but it’s a start,” Mavence said with a giddy energy as he admired the sword.
“It fits you perfectly. Now I need to find myself some good books.”
Talynn’s search quickly landed him a pile of books from various vendors down the street. As he was about to reconvene with Mavence, who was browsing various melee weapons, a voice called to him.
“Hey you! Come here, kid,” a heavyset vendor from further down the street beckoned to Talynn, his tone warm and fatherly. “You wear the traditional hat of a mage, I see. Ever heard of lux chalk?”
“Nope, what’s that?” Talynn eagerly hurried over and dropped his books onto the vendor’s table.
“Watch this,” the vendor took a cylindrical piece of silvery gray chalk and drew a large circle on the table. After sketching different geometric patterns within it, the vendor channeled his lumi into the tip of his finger and touched the edge of the circle. A yellow light began racing through the patterns in the chalk before starting to swirl and focus into a point a few inches above.
“Whoa!” Talynn exclaimed as a spinning ball of fire the size of an apple burst into existence for a few seconds before vanishing in a puff of smoke.
“See that? A simple fireball spell. With lux chalk, you can draw an inscription and activate it using your lumi energy. It’s used to help people learn how to channel and transform lumi. It’s not as compact or powerful as a muto stone, and the inscription is consumed once you activate it , but it’s a great teaching tool for beginners. And, if you buy a stick of chalk now, I’ll throw in a free booklet of inscriptions. How does that sound?”
“I’ll take it!” Talynn staggered back to Mavence, struggling to carry the pile of goods in his arms.
“Here, let me stick these in your bag. Man, I’m so excited to try this out,” Talynn eagerly thumbed through the book of inscriptions. “Flame spells, ice trap spells, shock spells, wind cutter spells, it has it all!”
“Satisfied yet?”
“Yep,” Talynn nodded to Mavence. “I’m too tired to watch a festival. Let’s just go home. I think we can take a shortcut through this alley.”
“That dark and shady one that smells rancid?” Mavence wrinkled his nose.
“Yeah, but if it smells that bad then it probably means it’s empty, which means we can cut through the crowd.”
“Great idea. Nothing bad ever happens in a dark alleyway,” Mavence rolled his eyes. As the pair began worked their way between wooden crates and piles of garbage, the late morning light of the sun became as dark as dusk. The noise of the crowded marketplace around them was suddenly muffled, as if it lay behind a thick oak door.
“Talynn, stop! What is this? Everything’s dark, is this some kind of spell?” Mavence tugged on his friend’s arm and pulled them behind a crate, speaking in a low voice.
“I dunno, I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“I don’t like this. Let’s get out of here,” Mavence started to stand up, but Talynn yanked him back to their hiding spot, holding his finger to his lips in in a hush sign. They slowly peeked around the corner of the crate and beheld a short male figure in a dark green cloak walking through the opposite side of the alley.
“The field is up, imp. We can do business,” said a lone street vendor in the middle of the hidden alleyway. His booth was smaller than the ones on the public streets, the sides covered with ragged cloth so that one had to be directly in front of the booth to see inside.
“I’d recommend not referring to a Furvusian as an ‘imp’. We take offense to that,” the cloaked figure said testily.
“Look, I’m not here to make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. I’m here to make some coin. You gonna buy my wares or complain about your hurt feelings?”
“Don’t test my patience, human. You have my package?”
“That I do. Two unlocked muto stones, one fire, and one ice, as requested. I expect payment in full, seeing as how the cost to craft these stones and smuggle them into the city is quite high,” said the vendor, pointing to the trade table with his thick, grimy hands.
“Are these the real deal?”
“Of course. Handmade these myself. They look like normal muto stones, but their lumi regulator has been removed,” the vendor held the unlocked stones next to a set of normal stones, their appearance identical. “Far higher power levels than city regulations allow. Just remember not to activate them at the same time when they’re close to one another. If they start to resonate it will cause stress fractures in the stone, at which point one or both will probably explode.”
“Noted,” the Furvusian man quickly tossed a large sack of gold coins onto the table and pulled back sleeves up on his cloak, revealing leather gauntlets covering his hands and forearms. He placed each stone into a metallic slot on the back of his palms, one glowing hot red and the other cold blue as he ran his lumi through them.
“I’m lowering the field now. I don’t want to know what you’re doing with them, you didn’t get them here, and we never talked. I can’t be seen doing business with an imp. Begone!”
“So be it. I have an appointment at noon I don’t want to miss.” As the cloaked man exited the alley the way he came, Talynn and Mavence scrambled out the other direction, running as fast as they could. The sunlight returned and the sounds of the crowd became as loud and crisp as before.
“Was it just me or did that whole thing look shady to you?” Mavence said between heavy breaths as they reached a good distance from the alley.
“Get it, because it was real dark in there-”
“Oh, shut up. Seriously, what were those guys talking about? I don’t understand this magic stuff.”
“Well from what that vendor who sold us the ice blend said, when you have a magic-powered tool or device, it’s usually powered by a lux stone or the user’s lumi, which then goes through a muto stone to transmute the lumi into elemental energy,” Talynn explained, drawing air diagrams with his fingers. “Then you can use that to do things like smelting, freezing, air slicing, and so on. Normally muto stones have a limit on how much lumi you can channel into them for safety, but if the safety limit was removed then…”
“Then what?”
“That’s the kind of thing you would use for a weapon, not a tool. I don’t think he’s doing anything good with those stones. He did say he has an appointment at noon. Wait, that’s when the inauguration starts! Come on, we need to tell the imperial guard.”
After finding the nearest guard and explaining the situation, they received only a hearty laugh.
“So you went into an alleyway where the sun was darkened and some evil person said they were going to do something bad. You kids have quite the active imagination. Go run along now and play,” the guard shooed them off.
“I’d say we should tell more guards, but I think the story will sound just as ridiculous to them,” Talynn said with a crestfallen face as they took a seat on the side of the road. “There’s only one thing we can do.”
“Stop them ourselves,” Mavence nodded.
“Do you think we can do it?”
“I’m strong and you’re smart. We can do it. I trust that clever brain of yours.”
“All right,” Talynn smiled. “Let’s head to the inauguration. We need to get as close to the emperor as possible.”
Cheering crowds and loud trumpets led the pair in the direction of the castle. As they weaved through the masses of people, at times resorting to crawling on their hands and knees, they slowly but surely made their way towards the front.
Over half a mile away, the Furvusian in the green cloak worked his way through the part of the crowd furthest from the castle. Two others of his kind followed in plain gray cloaks.
“We part here. Wait for my signal.”
“Yes, lord Zaphkos,” the two in the gray cloaks gave a slight bow and split up, taking different directions through the crowd.
“Welcome one and all,” the booming voice of the royal herald sounded out as the front gates of the castle opened. “Today is a momentous day for our people. A day we shall celebrate with festivals for years to come. And now, sons and daughters of Aedon, welcome the leader that brought peace to the five kingdoms, emperor Prosephius!”
The crowd replied with passionate ovation. As the castle gates opened, a long procession of imperial guards preceded the entrance of an elderly man accompanied by his two daughters. The emperor and his eldest daughter both were garbed in snow-white cloth with intricate gold inlays, also sharing the same platinum white hair but with amethyst purple eyes. The youngest daughter hard dark brown hair with cunning emerald-green eyes and a brown dress much plainer than that of her father and sister.
“Do you see that white-haired girl, Mav? I’ve never seen eyes that color before,” Talynn said as they reached the edge of the crowd just behind the barrier of imperial guards, less than fifty feet away from the royal family.
“That’s the most beautiful girl I’ve seen in my entire life,” Mavence replied as they stared with open mouths at the princess, nearly drooling on themselves.
“Welcome, sons and daughter of Aedon,” the emperor spoke in the voice of a loving grandfather. “Thank you for joining us in celebration of forty years of peace and unity amongst our empire. Through many pains and sacrifices, we have prevailed against the beast-like Belcanis and secured four of the sacred stones, ensuring the safety of not only our people, but the people of the four kingdoms that have joined us in our fight for peace and prosperity.”
The emperor paused, waiting for the crowd to finish its applaud.
“The sad reality of life, as all of you know, is that it does not last forever. There will be a day where I will no longer be amongst the living. One day my beloved daughter, princess Lumenaeva, will take my place and be your empress. May she rule with kindness, compassion, and strength. But for now, I bestow upon her the necklace of her late mother, the legendary jewel Lucidaros. The symbol of hope and peace for our empire. May its holy light protect her for eternity.”
The crowd cheered all the more as the emperor fastened the necklace around Lumenaeva. The cord was made of a simple brown leather holding the gemstone by an intricate knot. The stone itself looked as if a rough tanzanite were bright purple and in the shape of an octahedron, with a gentle, pulsing glow.
“Man, that stone she’s wearing is powerful. I can feel its lumi from here,” said Talynn.
“Really? I’m not lumi sensitive. What does it feel like?”
“It radiates this feeling of warmth and serenity. Like, if you were sitting by a fire on a cold night while someone softly plays the harp in the background.”
“To peace and prosperity!” Prosephius helds his hands in the air as the crowd erupted in an applause greater than any that had occurred thus far. As the cheering died down, a sinister voice echoed over the smooth cobblestone road.
“Peace and prosperity, you say? For whom? Certainly not the kingdoms you conquered. And certainly not my people.” Zaphkos pulled back the hood of his cloak, revealing his pointed ears, hooked nose, dark gray skin, and pale red eyes.
“Uh oh, that’s the guy!” Talynn and Mavence began scrambling through the crowd to get a better view.
“What is he talking about? Is that an imp?” The crowd murmured amongst themselves as they watched him approach the front of the castle from a distance. Imperial guards quickly began to form a wide circle around him, their halberds ready to strike.
“Oh good, the guards are closing in on him. We’re okay,” Mavence said as they slowed to a halt, watching as the guards around them streamed to the intruder.
Suddenly, one of the guards surrounding Zaphkos collapsed, his body twitching as it hit the ground. One of the gray cloaked Furvusians standing behind him twirled his bloodied dagger around his fingers. Orderly attack formation turned to a dissonant mess as the additional hostile targets entered the fray.
The cloth garments and curved daggers of Zaphkos’ two assassins afforded them much higher speed and agility than the heavily-armored guards wielding weighty halberds, allowing them targeting the separation between the guard’s plates of armor with pinpoint precision.
“For being soldiers of an empire, you lot sure are soft. This must not be the army that conquered the four kingdoms,” Zaphkos scoffed.
The crowds attending the ceremony fled in panic, people screaming while mothers desperately tried to find their children. As his men tore through the onslaught of imperial guards behind him, Zaphkos pulled back the sleeves of his cloak, revealing the unlocked muto stones inserted into the back of his gauntlets. The stone on his left hand began to glow orange as he channeled his lumi through it. With his arm extended, he opened his palm facing the growing band of guards placing themselves between him and the emperor.
“Burn.”
A great torrent of flames spewed out from Zaphkos’ hand in a wide cone, conflagrating the guards in his path. The smell of scorched flesh filled the air as the guards staggered about, trying to extinguish the flames seeping out of their armor. Zaphkos leapt over his victims and began sprinting towards the castle.
“Father, should we go inside?” The princesses clung to the emperor, their eyes filled with fear.
“We don’t know for certain if there are more of them lying in wait for us inside. It would be wisest to stay here for now,” Prosephius kneeled down and held his daughters in his arms. “Do not fret, the archmage should be here any second now.”
“And here I thought I’d get to relax and sip my tea inside today,” said a deep and authoritative voice. The archmage exited through one of the smaller side doors of the castle, his grand gray beard and royal purple robes gently catching the wind. The gold inlays on the robe bore the insignia of the emperor, and the large wooden staff in his hand held a brilliant stone at the end.
Zaphkos slowed as he neared the archmage standing at the top of the stairs leading up to the landing in front of the castle gates, obstructing his path.
“As the archmage of Albustone, it is my duty to protect and defend the king,” he boomed as Zaphkos approached from about a thirty yards away. “But I can’t guarantee you will survive after I’m done with you.”
Raising his staff heavenward, the archmage channeled his lumi into the stone and conjured three large orbs of fire orbiting around a central point, each about four feet in diameter.
“Now that’s a real fire spell! That guy is toast,” Talynn said to Mavence as they watched from the sidelines.
With a vindictive swing, the archmage’s staff launched the fiery orbs at Zaphkos, one after the other. Two of the orbs struck the ground as Zaphkos evaded them, leaving a large soot stains on the bright cobblestone after the flames spilled away.
Zaphkos made no effort to avoid the third, instead getting down on one knee and placing his right hand in front of him as if he were holding a shield. As the fire orb was about to strike him, a bright flash of blue radiated from his gauntlet. A cloud of steam exploded from the impact as the flames converged with a wall of ice and frigid air.
“He deflected an attack from an archmage? Not good. Mavence, get ready, I have an idea,” Talynn ran to the edge of the landing, a few yards from the top of the stairs. A book in left hand and lux chalk in his right, he began drawing on the cobblestone ground.
“Frost shield. Not bad, Furvusian, but no spell of yours can surprise me. Your reliance on muto stones allows you to only use one element at a time,” said the archmage as he strolled down the steps onto the same plane as his opponent. “So juvenile. Let me show you what a real mage can do.”
A faint yellow glow appeared in the archmage’s hand as he gathered lumi and hurled it at Zaphkos. The yellow aura faded and was replaced by the sound of a tempestuous wind. Unable to see any visible attack, Zaphkos looked about with a befuddled expression until he was suddenly thrown backward. He quickly returned to his feet, but his cloak now had a wide slit on the chest. He looked down at his exposed gray skin, blood beginning to pour from the laceration the wind had made to his chest.
“Your tricks bore me. Let’s see if you can predict something that isn’t one of the spells in your book. Steam shot!” The stones in both his gauntlets began to glow. He held his arms level with the archmage and brought palms together in a loud clap, but with a small hole where his middle and ring fingers didn’t contact.
A horrible high-pitched ringing filled the air as the stones began to resonate. The extreme heat and cold condensed the moisture in the air which was then superheated between the palms of his hands, generating a supersonic pressure wave that shot out in a straight line from the gaps between his fingers. The blast with the sound of a gunshot struck the archmage in the head, knocking him unconscious. Zaphkos kicked his body out of the way and walked up the stairs.
“Move, move!” Talynn and Mavence scrambled out of the way as he approached the emperor and his daughters on the opposite side of the landing close to the castle wall.
Zaphkos slowly pulled a pulsing blue crystal from his pocket, watching as waves of guards who had finally subdued his two assassins began rushing out of the castle towards him, trying to place themselves between him and the emperor.
“Talynn, what’s that glowing rock in his hand?” Mavence whispered.
“If it’s what it looks like, then it’s a runestone. Powerful lux crystals with inscriptions etched over them. You can use a complex spell just by combining your lumi with the lumi in the crystal. Stand back, I think he’s about to use it.”
“Behold, oh emperor, one of the jewels of my people. The people whose blood you spilled to attain your ‘peace’. A spell inscribed just for you,” Zaphkos took the runestone in his hand and raised it high above him, the stone beginning to levitate and glow brightly as he infused it with most of his remaining lumi. “Glacial prison!”
The runestone shattered into pieces, the fragments beginning to swirl about in a growing circle until it formed a ring around them. The shards hit the ground and rapidly formed giant sheets of ice which grew until Talynn, Mavence, the emperor, his daughters, and Zaphkos were all surrounded by a wall of thick ice twenty feet high. The air instantly became as cold as an arctic breeze.
“Well I guess you could say that was cool,” Talynn through chattering teeth.
“There’s nowhere to run now. Your guards can’t save you. The time has come for you to pay!” Zaphkos started to run at the emperor while his daughters screamed and held their eyes shut.
“Ice snare!” Talynn, twenty feet to the right of Zaphkos, slapped his hand against the ground. A yellow light began racing down a line of lux chalk and then into an inscription, tracing a circle with geometric shapes and letters inside around Zaphkos’ feet. In an instant, his feet were encased in ice up to his upper shins, rooting him to the ground.
“Looks like the time has come for you to pay… attention! Though, to be fair, lux chalk doesn’t stand out much from the shade of this cobblestone,” Talynn said with a cheeky smirk.
“Why you little-”
Mavence raced in with his short sword from the other side of Zaphkos, slicing the back of his thighs. As he came around for another pass, Zaphkos scooped up him, wrapping his hand around the boy’s throat and holding him in the air.
“Let go of my friend!” Talynn quickly drew an inscription and activated it, firing a thin bolt of lightning that shocked Zaphkos enough to let Mavence go.
“Get out of my way,” Zaphkos struck Mavence so hard that he was sent sliding backwards. Talynn quickly dragged him out of the way. The red muto stone on his gauntlet began to glow hot orange as Zaphkos prepared a devastating fire attack.
“I wanted to finish you off with my bare hands, but this will have to do.”
“Lumenaeva, face him and stand tall,” Prosephius maneuvered his daughter so she stood in front of him and her sister.
“W-what? Why? I’m scared father!”
“Trust me, my daughter.”
“Placing your own daughter in the line of fire? You really are despicable,” Zaphkos shook his head. “Now burn!”
Talynn’s heart sank as the emperor and his daughters were engulfed in the flames cascading from Zaphkos gauntlet. He held his arm up to shield his eyes from the blazing fire. As the stream of flames began to subside, something caught his eye.
Prosephius and his daughters were surrounded by a translucent turquoise sphere. In the center of the sphere, Lumenaeva levitated several feet above the ground, her eyes glowing an intense magenta while the Lucidaros stone on her necklace shined like a small star. Incensed at their resistance, Zaphkos channeled all of his remaining lumi into the stream of fire, turning the frigid air into a furnace.
“The shield won’t hold forever, lad!” Prosephius yelled to Talynn from within the sphere. Talynn looked around, frantically trying to think of a solution when his eyes settled on the blue stone in Zaphkos other gauntlet. Then it came to him.
“I may not be good at performing spells, but I do know how to channel lumi!” Talynn began crawling on his hands and knees, trying to get as close to Zaphkos as he could while the blazing heat burned his skin. Extending his right hand, Talynn focused his lumi. The familiar yellow aura began moving around his hands. He then forced his lumi in a straight line directly into the blue stone, pouring in every bit he had in order to make it go the distance.
The muto stone began to glow, emitting a high-pitched ringing that grew louder as the stones began to resonate. Finally, the stones ruptured. The lumi energy violently spiralled out of the shattered crystals .
“Time to move!” Mavence grabbed Talynn by the ankles and pulled him away as a vortex of fire and ice consumed Zaphkos, spinning wildly for several seconds before dispersing. All that remained of the Furvusian was a pile of ash. Cut off from its sources of energy, the wall of ice surrounding them quickly began to crumble and melt.
Talynn rolled onto his back and looked at Mavence both of them panting in exhaustion. Prosephius gently held Lumenaeva as she returned to the ground, the shield around them disappearing. She turned her head to look over at Talynn and Mavence with sleepy eyes.
“Thank you. Both of you.”
“Yes, thank you,” Prosephius bowed his head in gratitude. As he looked up, he saw the the crowds slowly start to return. The people were frightened, but curious, some trying to see over the perimeter that the imperial guard had formed around the scene. The emperor helped Lumenaeva to stand and tilted his head for her sister, Talynn, and Mavence to follow. “Come, my children.”
“Fear not, my people. The threat has been averted. Please, give the imperial guard a wide berth, it something children ought not to see,” Prosephius beckoned for the crowds to leave the guards be and approach the castle.
“What happened? Is the princess all right?” A person from the crowd shouted.
“We have yet to verify their identity, but needless to say a group of assassins had plotted to attack the royal family. But, the princess is in good health. Due, in part, to the determination of the imperial guard, but also to these two young men,” the emperor stepped aside to reveal Talynn and Mavence.
“What? But they are but young boys,” the crowd murmured.
“In all my years as a warrior and as a king, I have never met two young men as brave as these. They risked their lives to protect their princess. We are forever in your debt. Tell us, what are your names?”
“I’m Mavence.”
“And I’m Talynn.”
“You know, I think you two would make excellent knights. I surmise from your garb that you are not from Albustone. Tell me, what would your parents say if I offered to move them to to the capitol and have you two send to the finest schools to be trained as imperial knights?”
“We are orphans from a small village, we have no family.”
“Aw, they are but fatherless children,” the crowd let out a sympathetic coo.
“Well, I shall extend the invitation directly to you then. Will you stay as guests in my castle and be trained as knights of the empire?”
“Let me discuss this with my friend,” Talynn said, and then turned to whisper in Mavence’s ear. “What do you think, should we do it? I could finally learn to be a mage, and you could be a warrior!”
“Plus we’d get to see the princess more.”
“Even better,” Talynn nodded.
“We have decided, sir king! We shall accept your offer on the condition that we get lots of oat bread and hoggeth meat to eat,” Talynn turned and answered the emperor, to which the audience laughed.
“Very well young lads, I shall make sure of that. Shall we show our appreciation one more time for these young heroes?” The emperor shouted, raising applause once more before addressing the boys directly. “Now go, and prepare to train and study hard! Who knows, maybe one day you’ll make it into the Empress's guard.”
“What a day this has been,” Mavence said as one of the emperor’s attendants led them away.
“I guess old man Kerrick was right. Today our adventure begins.”
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