It Started With a Wedding
It's dark. I'm alone. In the distance there's a pinpoint of light and from it I can hear something. A voice I think, but I can't distinguish or understand it. I walk towards the light, it gradually grows larger until I can see a silhouette. The silhouette of a boy. As I draw closer, he turns to me. Silver hair. And eyes… What colour were they? The light engulfs my vision.
I opened my eyes to grey skies. I sat upright and felt the light breeze on my cheeks. It had the slightest chill to it's edge, which was to be expected up in the mountains, even in the early summer weeks.
"Same dream…" It was always the same dream. And always ended at exactly the same moment. The only thing that ever changed was that as I had grown and aged, the boy did too. He was alway my age. I had the dream so often I could recall it perfectly in my mind but I could never remember the boy's eyes. An eagle was screeching somewhere above me, drawing my attention away from the strange recurring dream and back to the real world. My world. I got to my feet and the breeze turned to wind as I stood on the overhang, looking out on my valley. My gaze stretching from the pass all the way across the forests, fields and villages down to the sea which was a dark, steely grey that morning. The sun was trying to break through the cloud cover but to no avail. Luckily it didn't feel like it was going to rain. I took a deep breath through my nose, smelling the pine trees and the faint hint of sea-salt before my gaze was drawn to an old fortress with a bell tower that had released its eleven O'clock toll. 'Eleven already. I better get back.' taking in the view once more, spotting the eagle that had called a minute earlier, I turned and made my way to the cave entrance that concealed a natural stairway. It wasn't much of a stairway, and required climbing skills more than simply cautious steps but it meant that overhang was all mine. As I reached the bottom of the shaft, I continued along a tunnel until i was met with daylight and trees. Tied to an old oak, was my ride back; a black shire horse, by the name of Jet. He was the biggest horse in the stables, strong and well tempered. And my favourite. I always rode him. And he was the only one who knew the secret entrance to my overhang other than me. I greeted him with a stroke to his muzzle and a few lumps of sugar. He whinnied his appreciation as I untied his reins and pulled myself up onto his back. "Ready to go home, boy?" He snorted and started into the woods at a trot, gradually getting up to a canter. Jet loved to run. So did I, but I couldn't get back in time on my own. I was thankful the journey home wasn't through dense forest, it meant I didn't have to worry about low hanging branches and the canopy was thin enough that a calming green light filtered through. Up ahead, I noticed a clearing full of flowers. "Whoa, boy."
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Jet was all settled in the stables and I jogged through the large wooden gates of the abbey into the entrance courtyard. The whole place was bustling with life, I had to practically dance my way through the groups of people rushing to and fro in order to get to the main hall. It looked completely different, covered in decorative flowers and great sashes of fine white fabrics strung along the walls and between the chandeliers and sconces. The long tables were laden with bouquets and silverware, set out in a giant square so that there was a large space in the center of the hall. I was busy taking in the elegant yet rustic decor when a voice called out to me.
"Raven!" I turned to see an older woman with greying hair pulled back into a tight bun and wearing modest robes. Her facial features were sharp and her lips were thin yet her almost black eyes radiated a surprising warmth. "Did you really think today was a day to go galloping off into the woods? Oh look at the state of you!" She strode over to me and started dusting off my shoulders. I held up the bunch of flowers I'd collected from the clearing in the forest. Yellow flowers mostly, like marigolds and chrysanthemums with white elderflowers to balance the brightness.
"I thought the bride might want a fresh bouquet of her favourite flowers on her wedding day." The stern gaze Mika was giving me melted into a warm smile as she carefully took the flora from me.
"That's very sweet, dear. They're lovely, I'll get them ready for the ceremony." I smiled, nodded and turned to leave the room but she grabbed the collar of my top. "After I get you ready for the ceremony, young lady." I grumbled as she dragged me through an exit. After she released me I followed her through many corridors until we reached the vestry where two people were already waiting. My two best friends, Kaz and Caddie. Kaz was a pale-skinned brunette with olive green eyes, skinny and lanky, while Caddie was a curly haired ginger with bronze skin and sandy eyes, short and curvy. Both of them were wearing sunny yellow dresses that finished below their knees, cream open-toed heels and had their hair styled prettily, decorated with tiny yellow and white flowers woven into braids.
"There you are, Raven!" Caddie exclaimed. She was always a little dramatic with her actions and expressions so she had her hands on her hips in a huff.
"We were wondering if you were gonna turn up in time." Kaz chuckled, holding up a third yellow dress. I took it and went behind a screen to get dressed as Mika left the room to go attend to the bride. "So what took you so long?" Kaz called from the other side.
"I just lost track of time and then picked some flowers for Beka. You know how much she loves marigolds and elderflower." I shed my clothes and donned the yellow dress, chucking them in a pile before coming out .
"Aaw you look pretty!" Caddie squealed. But then her face frowned. "But we can improve… a lot."
"Gee thanks." She walked up to me as I fiddled and adjusted the dress, and pulled me into a chair.
"Shut it, we haven't got a lot of time." She started brushing the knots out of my short, black hair and putting small braids into it, adding the small flowers, working away like a mad woman. "Kaz, shoes." Kaz started putting the cream heels on my feet and Caddie moved onto dusting a little powder on my cheeks and applying a layer of mascara. I wasn't big on makeup but it was a special occasion; our guild master's daughter was getting married. We were all a big family, cliche as it sounds, and Beka really was like an older sister to me. So for her to be getting married was a strange thing for everyone. "I bet she looks beautiful!"
"That's the idea, dummy. Now get a move on, we gotta wait beside the altar." After a final check, Caddie deemed us ready to go into the chapel and handed me and Kaz our clusters of white hydrangeas, picking up her own as we made our way out and waited in the full chapel. The entire guild was there. Mika was waiting behind the altar to officiate her daughter's wedding. Two of my other best friends were stood across from us in dress trousers and white shirts next to the groom, Kyran. Reno had removed his goggles and pulled his red hair away from his face for the occasion and Rude had a fresh pair of shades. Music started to play and everyone rose as from the back of the chapel, the oak doors swung open and down the aisle walked master, Jak, with his daughter, Beka, on his arm.
"She looks beautiful." Caddie whispered to us. She really did. The old man seemed close to tears but was happy as he gave her away to Kyran, his large moustache groomed immaculately. He sat in the front row, grey eyes shining as the ceremony began. It was short and simple but heartfelt and the guild was eager to start celebrating. The festivities continued in the great hall where a large feast was served and everyone danced, laughed and cheered to celebrate the happy couple who were sat at the head table with Jak, Mika and they're younger son, Ejay as well as the other high ranking members of the guild. Everyone was there too; no one had taken any jobs or trips, they all wanted to be there. After a few of the younger members had been sent to bed, the older ones started drinking properly and in true family style, the hall was filled with raucous laughter and a couple small, friendly brawls broke out. It wasn't particularly late that I went of to bed, the little booze I'd drunk was enough to make me drowsy and the excitement of the day had thoroughly taken it out of me. My room wasn't especially large, ornate or filled. It was pretty empty save for the bed, a chest, a desk and chair, and one old, large rug that covered the majority of the floor space. A few drawings, rudimentary art supplies, books and a guitar were my only personal belongings I had in the room. And stashed away in a draw was a locket shaped like a crescent moon that had nothing inside. But I still treasured it. It was the only thing I had from my family. My first one. Many members of the guild either sought adventure, strength and fame or, for whatever reason, they had no families to call their own. I fell into the latter category, being orphaned when I was still an infant. I was never told what happened exactly, people didn't like to talk about it and seemed to think I was better off not knowing too much, but I had heard many rumors from a curse, to an attack. They all meant the same thing to me; my family had been taken from me by someone. Someone was to blame. It was probably ill-advised but I dug into the matter, how could I not? And I found out it was an ex-member of the guild who had betrayed my family. I never found out who, only that they had once been a close friend of my father. I didn't know much about my parents, only that my father was a member of the guild, training as a SOLDIER and that he was known as one of the strongest. That's why I chose to follow the path of the SOLDIER, so that I might keep some part of him alive. I was strong too. Perhaps the best of my age. And that was what I wanted, to make him proud. I barely knew anything about my mother, and I was told I had had a brother too, but all I knew about them was their names. It frustrated me, but I learned early on that I wouldn't be told anything I didn't need to know until Jak deemed it so. He was a good man. A wise man. So I trusted his judgment but there was always a need to know more about where I came from. Even if it wasn't where I became me. I shed the dress, the flowers and braids in my hair long gone as were the shoes, and slipped into something a little more comfortable before slipping into bed and drifting off to a repeat of the dream I had so often.
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The first rays of sunlight poured into my room, stirring me from my slumber. I liked to get up early, it's why I asked for a room that faced East. I stretched out, groaning as I did so and rolled out of the bed. For me, there was nothing like an early morning training session followed by a leisurely ride so I made my way through the corridors of the barracks to the training courtyard. There were a couple passed out members of the guild in the hallways and alcoves on the way, having hit the booze a little too hard the night before. At least the yard was quiet and empty. As much as I enjoyed the rowdy mealtimes and boisterous comradery, I still preferred peace and quiet in solitude. Especially when training. Yes, sparring was a vital part of getting better, but there was definitely something very therapeutic about beating a wooden dummy. I picked up a training sword, blunt so as not to damage the equipment too badly, and started practising. I was there for a couple of hours, the sun steadily rising and a very few people started to stir, lights coming on in windows but no one bothered me. Nothing disturbed me until the bell for breakfast rang, and my stomach replied. Barely anyone was in the still half decorated, half trashed hall, slouched over their food suffering from the night before. It made for an unusually quiet breakfast. Until my master's young son, Ejay ran up behind me and shouted,
"Sneak attack!" I simply moved out of the way as he brought down his wooden sword on the table. "I missed!?"
"If you're gonna sneak up on someone, maybe you should try not announcing you're attacking them?" I smiled and ruffled his blonde spikes.
"I'll get you off guard one day, Raven!" He sat next to me and grabbed a full plate of food. He was at that age where he was just starting to grow into a young man.
"Not if you keep shouting like that, you won't." I chuckled.
"But it gets me psyched up, y'know?"
"How about I give you a training session after we eat? We can go see Shae and improve our sneaking skills." He nodded eagerly and began wolfing down his food. We were back in the training courtyard within half an hour. Only a couple of people were there, one of them being Shae. Shae was a woman in her early thirties, with hair the colour of pine leaves, sleek and long. She had defined features throughout her body, small, toned muscles, but strong. Her eyes were a light grey, almost white, giving the deceiving impression she was blind. Ironic considering she had some of the sharpest eyes in the guild. When she spoke, her voice had an unnatural gravelly texture to it but wasn't unkind.
"The bird and boy. What can I do for you today?"
"Morning, Shae. Ejay needs to learn the art of stealth without shouting about it. His balance could use a little work too." She smirked.
"Really now? I suppose I'd better get started if we want to make any progress before sunset tonight." It was a simple set of exercises we went through; a set I'd been taught by Shae a couple of year prior, but even the basics needed practising and maintaining. Learning how to use weight placement to move silently and balancing in low positions while still travelling, then marrying the two together to create a basic sneaking tactic. It took Ejay a little longer to get the hang of the crouched walking, having not exercised the correct muscles in the correct way to be used to that. But there was time for that, and while he was still young and frustrated, he never complained. "Now it's one thing to sneak up on someone, but it's equally important to be able to know when you're the target. You'll hear people talk of sixth senses and instincts, and you can choose to believe what you will. But there is some truth to the rumors. Instinct is within us all, and while we've learnt to ignore it for the most part, it's actually an important tool. Using instinct can take an enemy by surprise and it can save your life. Close your eyes and tap into your other senses. You feel that?" Always one to keep my senses sharp and intune, I joined in.
"Oh yeah, I feel it!"
"The real challenge is being able to separate those senses and focus them while in a state of physical strain. Crouch on that beam." All three of us perched on the balance beam and tapped into our senses and almost immediately I got the feeling of being watched. The hair on the back of my neck prickled. I opened my eyes and looked up at the main gate. A terrifying woman was stood watching us. Sallow green skin, hawk yellow eyes, sharp red claws and two twisted horns atop her head, wrapped in black cloth like the rest of her. Shae was looking at her too, but the woman's eye contact was with me. I wasn't permitted to go on jobs or bounties higher than B rank due to my age, but I'd heard stories and this woman matched the characteristics of a forest fae of some kind. I was debating whether or not she was a threat, when Jak joined her side and beckoned me over.
"Ejay, keep practising with Shae." I hopped down and walked over to my master, and the fae. "Yes, Master?"
"Raven, could we have a word with you in private, please?" I looked at the woman again. Something about her was hiding it from me. I nodded slowly and followed him to a vacant study room. The woman was silent, but held a regal poise, chin raised, back straight. "Raven, I'd like you to meet Maleficent." I nodded curtly to her in greeting. I didn't fancy touching her. Even her name sounded menacing. "Maleficent is a sorceress." This piqued my interest. Magic was rare on our world, and though we were aware of other worlds' existence, we never interfered with closed off worlds, so magic never had a chance to come to our world. "A sorceress looking for a new student to teach."
"And, you think I'm a candidate?" It was true I had certain…. Abilities that couldn't be explained any other way but could this 'sorceress' really teach me how to control them and teach me real magic? Maleficent finally spoke.
"I sense a great power within you child. And power, no matter the nature of it, needs to have control. I can help you learn control over your powers, discover new abilities and explore more than you could ever hope to here. You will become great under my care."
"I have to leave?"
"It's your choice, Raven. But Maleficent has a safe environment for this kind of training and she can teach you things no one else in our world can. I believe it is a vital opportunity." My face must've fallen at the thought of leaving. I was so unsure. "Ahem, Maleficent, would you excuse us for a moment. Perhaps a few words between the two of us will ease her mind."
"Of course." Jak took me outside the room and down the corridor a little ways.
"I know what you're thinking, Raven. I agree. Maleficent is a very shifty character, and I don't know the nature of her training. But she is powerful and she's offering to help you. Can you… See anything?" Jak was referring to my ability to see the hearts of people around me at will. It was a gift I'd had as long as I can remember and I assumed it was linked to the 'great power' Maleficent sensed. I shook my head.
"It's not just that I can't see if she's lying or not, I can't see her heart at all. Something is concealing it. I don't trust her."
"Neither do I. But this is a chance you will never get again. She has another student, you won't be alone in this. You're strong. Learn what you can from her, learn what you can about her." I looked down and felt his large hand on my shoulder. "It's not forever. A few months just to see if it helps, a year at most. We'll discuss what to do next then." I took a deep breath and sighed.
"Okay. I'll go with her."
"You have a greater purpose than you'll find here, little one. I've always known it. You're made for great things." He patted my shoulder and walked me back to the room where Maleficent waited.
"I've decided I will go with you." She smiled, a sickly sweet smile that had a very untrustworthy undertone.
"Excellent, child. That makes me very happy dear."
"I won't have her leaving until this evening, Maleficent." Jak interjected. "After the guild has had a chance to say their goodbyes." She looked apprehensive at first but then nodded.
"Very well. I shall return to collect young Raven at nightfall. Please make sure you've collected your things and said your farewells. I won't tolerate tardiness." She left out of the door, followed by Jak and myself. Jak escorted her out of the guild grounds, while I returned to my room.