Prologue: Change
Author: Namila de Fleur
28.08
It was stirring, boiling right under the surface, here and there breaking free in uncontrolled bouts of magic. Silently, patiently it caressed ancient stones, places of lore, points of power. All over the British Isles and at ancient sights on the Continent magic was stirring. The Magical Ministries of Europe (MME) had long since given up on trying to prosecute all such uncontrolled feats of wizardry. Feverishly Unspeakables of various nations banded together to investigate, in hopes of finding a reason for the phenomenon while those who ought not to know were obliviated.
The public was unaware of the awakening power and neither muggle nor wizard folk noticed the subtle shift in the atmosphere. Tension was coiling but the great mass of people had long since taken on the foolish habit of ignoring these subtle indicators of change. Therefore the slightly brighter gleam on the archaic Stones of Stonehenge, the inperceptible mists at Tintagel, Cornwall, the sudden growth of hedges in the Forbidden Forest or the even eerier play of shadows in some ancient ritual places on the Continent escaped their notice. That is to said most of them went oblivious, most of them but a few.
In the shadows of a cottage upon the Isle of Anglesey an elderly woman stood calmly gazing into the distance. Her grey eyes were unfocused, her face serene while dark green robes danced upon a breeze. A small tinkling sound accompanied each move of the witch's garment, emitting from a small glass ball upon her neck. In silence she let her senses spread, feeling the magic humming upon the breeze. The time was close. The Call would be issued soon. The Order was assembling. Turning to her side the old woman stroked the black plumage of her beloved raven. The bird gave a squawk of discomfort and ruffled his feathers. A small smile graced the crone's lips. "You can feel it too, can't you, Mephisto? Change is upon us. The fighters are rising. The time for us to rise from the obscurity of time is nearly upon us…"