43 - This Means War
Three days had passed since the last time anyone had spoken with the Guardian after arriving back to Karazhan. There was still mystery where he had gone, Khadgar guessing it was to Tanaris again. He had noticed the Guardian was lightly layered in the same type dust found on his person this time as the last. Khadgar figured his mentor had made a return trip to settle unfinished business with the sand trolls, there.
He explained his theory to Niveah, which didn't seem to ease her any. Perhaps it was because it was mentioned the Guardian passed out right after arriving back.
The woman cocooned herself within her cloak and left the library to climb up the spiral stairs. She found the energy chamber door open and stepped inside, but saw Medivh no where. She did see Moroes gathering a few scattered about scrolls on the floor in the Guardian's private study beneath the second floor stairs. Behind him, the double wooden doors leading to the private chambers were wide open. Barely visible beneath a pile of blankets was Medivh. Locks of long red hair could be made out in the dimness of the room.
Niveah knelt down to help the steward in his tidying up the private study. She whispered, "How is he?"
Moroes hoped his smiling to reassure the worry stricken woman was working. A part of him knew better, though. She was too sharp to be so easily fooled. "He's resting."
She handed him a couple of scrolls. "Is he always like this?" He wasn't sure how to answer. "I've never seen him like this, but know there's been times where he's been absent. Is this why?"
"I can't really say. There are days he is well and others he is not. Why that is, I can not say for sure."
Niveah grimly nodded. Stirring from the bed and blankets jostling got both people's attention. "Moroes," came Medivh's gravely voice.
The steward got to his feet and sat his armful of scrolls down on the desk. "Yes, Guardian?"
In no way did the young woman mean to eavesdrop, but she was troubled. "What time is it?"
"It's mid afternoon."
Medivh groaned in getting up, his form hunched over in obvious pain. "Where is Khadgar?"
"Studying in the library last time I saw."
Niveah timidly approached the doorway to see the man be guided down the bed's stairs by his good friend. Medivh looked to the woman and softly smiled in relief. He questioned, trying to maintain some sort of dignity. "Shouldn't you be studying, too?"
She bit her bottom lip and shrugged. "I was worried about you and wanted to come check on you."
The words melted the Guardian. "I'm fine. Just a little tired, is all." His breaking away from Moroes's assistance suggested Niveah come to him. An outstretched hand welcomed her company as she met him in a loving hug. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. I always am."
"I can't help it," she snapped defensively.
Days turned into weeks and weeks into two months. The outside temperatures had dropped in favor of the winter's approach. Snow blanketed the stretches of Deadwind Pass, giving everything an enchanted wintery appeal.
Icicles clung to the overhead structures of the tower, Khadgar tossing fire spell after fire spell at some of the larger ones. The thicker icicles were more difficult to break off from their fixture.
On the other side of the terrace, Niveah did the same thing. She would back away from the suspected impact site to avoid being hit with any pieces of broken ice.
Cawing overhead became louder as a black raven descended to the terrace and Medivh take on his human form. He observed the two young people jumping back to avoid getting struck by falling ice.
He stood, deadpan in expression and hands behind his back. "Personal barriers also help protect against injury from foreign objects as well as spells."
Niveah rolled her eyes as Khadgar took the statement as advice. He formed a barrier around his person and resumed blasting icicles off the tower's overhangs. He would still jump back to avoid stray shards out of habit and reaction. After three icicles were broken off did he take comfort in his barrier's spell strength and stand his ground against falling ice.
Niveah was about to break off a smaller icicle when she felt a ball of frozen cold splat against the back of her head. She halted what she was doing to stare over her shoulder at the innocent appearing Guardian. He was rocking on his heels and gazing out at the Pass. She cut her eyes down on the man. His eyes shifted to watch her as he arched a brow in question.
She cocked a grin and was about to resume was she was doing when another snowball hit her between the shoulder blades. Knowing who it was doing it, she knelt down to scoop up a handful of snow.
"Okay," she stated. "You want to be that way, do you?"
She turned around to throw her snowball at the Guardian, but met panic instead. Controlled by a spell before him was a boulder sized snowball. He hurdled it at the woman and knocked her off her feet and to the ground.
"What was that," Medivh questioned. "I didn't quite catch that."
"I hate you," was mumbled back in return beneath the snow mound.
Icy blue eyes darted to apprentice. "Khadgar?"
The young man stopped what he was doing to stare at his mentor. "Yes Guardian?" In the blink of an eye, his personal barrier was dissipated and he made vulnerable.
Niveah finally got back to her feet after having melted the pile and yelled, "Run, Khadgar!" just a split second too late. He, too, was knocked to the ground by a snow boulder.
The woman grimaced for her friend's sake. Khadgar heaved a sigh and fought a hand free to wipe off his face. "With all due respect, Guardian... this means war."
Medivh gave a side nod of his head in acknowledgment. "I look forward to it."
Moroes studied the banquet table filled with a cooked lunch of honey ham, boiled vegetables and freshly baked bread. He smiled to himself and left the hall to find Khadgar and Niveah. As he recalled, they had been tasked by the Guardian to clear icicles off the tower's overhangs. Sometimes their frozen weight could be enough to cause damage to some of the weaker structures of the tower.
He pushed open the door to see a site something akin to child's play. He wasn't sure to be worried or relieved. On one end of the terrace was the Guardian sending volleys of snowballs at Khadgar and Niveah at the opposite end. The opposing sides had built up a small structure of ice to take cover behind to avoid being struck by the other's attack.
Beneath the young people's feet, the ground began to glow a soft blue. Neither were aware of this as they were too busy throwing snowballs while avoiding being hit with incoming ones. Moroes winced in knowing what was going to happen next wasn't going to be good.
Medivh's blue spelled hands were suddenly thrown downwards in motion. The spell he controlled sent down a wild flurry of snow down on the young people.
Both Khadgar and Niveah yelped at the spell's biting cold stealing their breath. In the middle of trying to avoid the merciless flurries, the young man yelled out a barrage of arcane to shatter the Guardian's protective structure. Niveah heated the air around her to melt the nearby fallen snow as Khadgar magically hoisted the water in the air. Eyes and hands glowing bright blue, he froze the beads of water and sent them straight at his mentor.
Medivh sent a cone of fire out before him, instantly melting the frozen beads. He sneered and was about to prepare for another spell when Moroes interrupted. "I thought everyone might like to know lunch is ready and waiting in the banquet hall." A small snow ball struck him in the face, Niveah giggling. "I could be mistaken, though."
Another snowball, this one slightly larger than the woman's, impacted the steward in the chest. Moroes instantly looked to the Guardian. His sinister smile aimed at Khadgar, the other man looking to the junior mage. Khadgar had taken a lesson from his mentor as he prepared his own snow boulder.
Moroes held his hands up to protest the impending attack. "No! No!" SPLAT! He sighed beneath the mound of snow pinning him to the ground.
Despite his current predicament, it was still a lot better than it had been in years past. Since Niveah's arrival to the tower and the Guardian admitting his feelings for her, things had greatly improved within Karazhan. The morale of the tower servants had more than doubled as work productivity also increased. Yes, he would take being buried under a pile of snow any day than the grueling drudgery of the typical day in the past. Moroes simply smiled and laughed to himself.
When things are going good, how much better can they get? Or worse...? It's getting close to that time to wrap this story up. I'm thinking one maybe two more chapters to tie in with the final two I've had written shortly before posting this little project. I didn't expect this story to go on this long. I figured 20 something chapters and that was it. Nope. Currently 43 with another two written and one to two left to write. Sheesh. I didn't know I could come up with that much stuff to write about this o.O
