Withering
Chapter 1
It was night, the pale moon pierced the black clouds and shimmered against the lakes surface, at the centre of the lake stood a colossal stone tower, with its peak nestled deep within the lifeless clouds. The rain attacked the stone tower and drenched everything in the surrounding area. Inside the huge tower the echo of the rain hitting the stone walls was muffled and almost silent. The tower was warmer than outside in the vicious storm but not by much, however the giant fireplaces provided just enough heat and light to the cold, dark tower. Next to one of the fireplaces was a desk cluttered with lots of books on the schools of magic and how to cast advanced spells, amongst the books and research notes was elf resting his head gently on the desk. The elf had light golden brown hair and a dark blue robe with brown fittings, he snored gently and peacefully.
'Antus wake up!' shouted a short haired human from behind Antus 'wake up lazy' the human shook Antus, pulling him out of his daze.
'What do you want Keeran?' groaned Antus finally waking up. He opened his eyes, revealing his bright blue eyes that concealed innocence and curiosity.
'I really need to talk to you' Keeran whispered he then looked around the room suspiciously. 'I have decided I need to leave the tower for my research and I was wondering if you would like to come with me' Keeran pulled out a piece parchment that was torn and blackened as if it was hundreds of years old. 'I have found…' he stopped and quickly shoved the parchment back into his pocket, his head spun round towards the door where a group of mages were talking.
'What's wrong? What have you found?' Antus said with a concerned rather than curious look on his face. He tried to take the parchment from Keeran's pocket.
'Nothing, forget I mentioned it' Keeran snapped covering his pocket. Keeran stormed out of the room pushing passed a Templar on the way.
'Watch it' the Templar shouted as he removed his helmet. The Templar had short black hair and bright blue eyes that stood out against his black stubble. 'You're Antus right?' he asked pointing towards Antus, who just sat there nodding. 'The Knight Commander requires your presence' he said in a polite though rehearsed manner.
'The Knight Commander, what for?' Antus asked, worrying that it was something bad. Antus was always worried that Knight Commander Greagoir was going to make every mage tranquil, especially after what happened with Uldred. The Templar could see that Antus was worried and tried to comfort him.
'Hey, it's nothing bad don't worry' the Templar said patting Antus on the back. Antus got a different feeling from this Templar, normally when a Templar touched him or talked to him he felt scared. But when this Templar touched him he felt safe. 'I'm Matthias by the way' said the Templar as he escorted Antus to Greagoir.
'Knight Commander, Antus is here' Matthias declared before standing at Greagoir's side.
'Welcome Antus, you are probably wondering why I have called you here.' Greagoir said quietly shutting the door. 'We have noticed your friend Keeran acting very strange lately, and we would like to know why'
'I don't why' Antus replied as he sat on the chair Matthias provided for him.
'Sir, I don't think he's lying' Matthias stated scoping Antus' face.
'Well, we can't be too careful, especially after what happened with Uldred and that Jowan boy.' Greagoir quickly spun round as the door flew open.
'Greagoir! What is the meaning of this?' Irving shouted glaring at Antus and then back at Greagoir. 'You can't go round interrogating every mage you see fit'
'It wasn't what you think First Enchanter' Antus exclaimed taking the words right out of Greagoir's mouth, leaving him astonished. 'We were all just taking about the recent weather over some tea' Antus joked. Matthias snickered before receiving a frozen glare from Greagoir.
'First Enchanter, I was just asking Antus about his friend Keeran' Greagoir stated completely ignoring Antus previous comment 'he has been acting strangely, and those books you confiscated from the library are missing.'
'I know they are missing, but that doesn't give you the right to go around accusing mages, it could be one of the Templars' Irving knew he had struck a nerve by Greagoir's icy stare and the way his fist clenched suddenly.
'I was only being cautious; you don't seem to be doing anything about this' Greagoir stated coldly. Suddenly a loud explosion echoed throughout the halls followed by the sounds of battle cries.
'What in the Maker's name is going on out there' Greagoir shouted as he and Matthias ran out the door.
'You should go too' Irving whispered as he sat down clutching his chest.
'First Enchanter, Are you alright?' Antus asked, quickly helping Irving onto the chair.
'I'm afraid old age had caught up with me, I'm not as young as I used to be' Irving sighed.
The sound of battle continued to ring out against the stone. Irving pushed Antus towards the door and asked him to find out what was happening. As Antus left Irving's office he saw a group of mages hurling fireballs towards the Templars. The tower was in chaos. It was impossible to tell which mages started it. The Templars saw all the mages as a target and the mages who were innocent quickly got slaughtered or were forced to defend themselves.
'Antus, over here' called Matthias as he defended against the oncoming spells.
'What happened?' Antus asked dodging fire and lightning that shot past.
'I don't know, the Knight Commander rushed after the mage who started it, but then the other mages joined in. It's a massacre' Matthias shouted as he pulled Antus behind his shield. Antus stood up and erected a barrier around the doorway in which the stood.
'We have to find out who started this before there are no mages left to save' Antus yelled as he picked up a dead Templars shield and ran for the stairs followed by Matthias.