Chapter 21
Rena Walker walked through the streets of Tempest, one of the three cities of her homeland. The other two were Torrent and Winds. All three were of the nation of Avalon, a place ancient and old. The three cities were on the points of a triangle whose center was a temple made to hold one being and they made up the nation of Avalon.
Now most of the world had forgotten about them, infact they preferred it that way. Merlin had helped separate it with a layer of the Fringe and though it was situated in England, you could walk right through the area where it had been and pass right through it, in fact people lived there in their huts and cottages.
Magic still lived there, powerful and majestic, and was wielded by the mages and everyone else, though, only the most adept could wield its most awesome forces and earn the right to be titled mages. The temple in the center of the land was the tomb of a legend of his own time, a wielder of the blade Excalibur, King Arthur himself. Most of England had a myth about him returning alive, but a dead man cannot rise.
The legendary Excalibur was one of the seven blades, the mighty Dragon beast blade. It held the powers of the first true dragon, the White Wyrm itself. A powerful force that had unlocked powers within the king that were being rediscovered in the recent history of the world outside of Avalon. It was coming close to the time when the barrier would be breached, and the one would come here as a last hope.
The gift of Excalibur would be passed on to the one worthy enough to claim it from within the perils and pitfalls of the tomb. Merlin was frozen, apart from time there, and his spirit was still guiding the peoples of Avalon to this day nearly a millennia later. The magic also protected that area, a guardian barrier for the blade.
She, herself, had just completed the seven trials to become a mage, though she was just learning herself. Most people don't progress even close to the powers a mage holds, and what they had is wild, a random thing that a mage learns to truly harness, though never control.
She stepped through the entrance to the observation post, bowing the Master Nominus Luvale, the mage in charge of watching the outside world.
"So you have finally arrived," Nominus asked her as he settled into his chair, the orbs circling him each displaying an event around the planet that had piqued his interest, "I was beginning to worry."
"I'm sorry sir," Rena stammered, "I lost track of the time, my appologies."
"Well, you're here," the old and shriveled man laughed as he winked at her, "And without using the excuse countless wizards through the ages had, that we are never late or early, we are always on time."
"It was my fault sir."
"It is good for you to take responsibly my dear, but on to business."
"So what was I summoned here for?"
"Well, the blades are being uncovered, I am tracking four and an anomaly in the outside world."
"An anomaly?"
"Yes, the powers resonate as if there is another blade uncovered and bonded, but all seven blades are found in their place and the powers now show eight of them."
"So the prophecy is coming true then."
"It would seem so, but if so, I fear for our world."
"An intruder to our own refuge?"
"Yes, it could come to that, the council," the old mage shuddered, "Has asked me to send someone to make contact with one of the current wielders, though they left the choice up to me."
"And what was that choice, the rumors say that there are four wielders out there, and what you said seems to partially confirm that."
"Yes, four wielders, one about to wield two of them."
"Which ones will he use?"
"The Phoenix and soon the Unicorn."
"I assume that he is the one the legend proclaims as the angel?"
"I'm not sure, those prophecies always seem to be given by a drunken god who speaks in ruddy riddles, but he is the most likely current candidate."
"Then, when do I leave?"
"As soon as preparations are complete, and if you finish this you will receive your next promotion, to a full mage."
"Oh joy," she whispered, things were always difficult if they offered it as a chance for early promotion.
"You have clearance to use one of the Pegasus outside of the distortion field, you and your mount will be fitted with cloaking devices as you still haven't learned any invisibility spells beyond ones that completely cloak you to the point of making you blind a well."
"Yeah, they don't teach the other in the school unless you're being recruited by the intelligence units."
"It's a pity that you didn't happen to learn them," the man said with a knowing smile.
She smiled back, nearly everyone in the school learned them as fast as they could so that they could go places they were forbidden to enter.
"I'll go get ready now," Rena said as she headed out with a spring in her step. Her first chance to see the world.
Rena Walker walked through the streets of Tempest, one of the three cities of her homeland. The other two were Torrent and Winds. All three were of the nation of Avalon, a place ancient and old. The three cities were on the points of a triangle whose center was a temple made to hold one being and they made up the nation of Avalon.
Now most of the world had forgotten about them, infact they preferred it that way. Merlin had helped separate it with a layer of the Fringe and though it was situated in England, you could walk right through the area where it had been and pass right through it, in fact people lived there in their huts and cottages.
Magic still lived there, powerful and majestic, and was wielded by the mages and everyone else, though, only the most adept could wield its most awesome forces and earn the right to be titled mages. The temple in the center of the land was the tomb of a legend of his own time, a wielder of the blade Excalibur, King Arthur himself. Most of England had a myth about him returning alive, but a dead man cannot rise.
The legendary Excalibur was one of the seven blades, the mighty Dragon beast blade. It held the powers of the first true dragon, the White Wyrm itself. A powerful force that had unlocked powers within the king that were being rediscovered in the recent history of the world outside of Avalon. It was coming close to the time when the barrier would be breached, and the one would come here as a last hope.
The gift of Excalibur would be passed on to the one worthy enough to claim it from within the perils and pitfalls of the tomb. Merlin was frozen, apart from time there, and his spirit was still guiding the peoples of Avalon to this day nearly a millennia later. The magic also protected that area, a guardian barrier for the blade.
She, herself, had just completed the seven trials to become a mage, though she was just learning herself. Most people don't progress even close to the powers a mage holds, and what they had is wild, a random thing that a mage learns to truly harness, though never control.
She stepped through the entrance to the observation post, bowing the Master Nominus Luvale, the mage in charge of watching the outside world.
"So you have finally arrived," Nominus asked her as he settled into his chair, the orbs circling him each displaying an event around the planet that had piqued his interest, "I was beginning to worry."
"I'm sorry sir," Rena stammered, "I lost track of the time, my appologies."
"Well, you're here," the old and shriveled man laughed as he winked at her, "And without using the excuse countless wizards through the ages had, that we are never late or early, we are always on time."
"It was my fault sir."
"It is good for you to take responsibly my dear, but on to business."
"So what was I summoned here for?"
"Well, the blades are being uncovered, I am tracking four and an anomaly in the outside world."
"An anomaly?"
"Yes, the powers resonate as if there is another blade uncovered and bonded, but all seven blades are found in their place and the powers now show eight of them."
"So the prophecy is coming true then."
"It would seem so, but if so, I fear for our world."
"An intruder to our own refuge?"
"Yes, it could come to that, the council," the old mage shuddered, "Has asked me to send someone to make contact with one of the current wielders, though they left the choice up to me."
"And what was that choice, the rumors say that there are four wielders out there, and what you said seems to partially confirm that."
"Yes, four wielders, one about to wield two of them."
"Which ones will he use?"
"The Phoenix and soon the Unicorn."
"I assume that he is the one the legend proclaims as the angel?"
"I'm not sure, those prophecies always seem to be given by a drunken god who speaks in ruddy riddles, but he is the most likely current candidate."
"Then, when do I leave?"
"As soon as preparations are complete, and if you finish this you will receive your next promotion, to a full mage."
"Oh joy," she whispered, things were always difficult if they offered it as a chance for early promotion.
"You have clearance to use one of the Pegasus outside of the distortion field, you and your mount will be fitted with cloaking devices as you still haven't learned any invisibility spells beyond ones that completely cloak you to the point of making you blind a well."
"Yeah, they don't teach the other in the school unless you're being recruited by the intelligence units."
"It's a pity that you didn't happen to learn them," the man said with a knowing smile.
She smiled back, nearly everyone in the school learned them as fast as they could so that they could go places they were forbidden to enter.
"I'll go get ready now," Rena said as she headed out with a spring in her step. Her first chance to see the world.