The much-anticipated night of Magical Gathering came faster than expected. All the Heralds, Herald Mages, and Trainees were forced to attend. There were all kinds of people, including a few fairy peoples who had been invited by Wören, the King's Own.
People flitted across the floor of the ballroom, to gather in the center of the room, where a large fountain was located.
The fairy peoples talked amongst themselves, and were easily the prettiest there. The fairies had a tendency to flutter across the floor and sweep someone that fancied them off their feet. Many of the Valdemar citizens were dressed in bright colors, and generally having a good time. The distinguished guests (mostly owners of castles and things) were dressed in extremely fancy gowns with long trails that came off of their crowns. Almost everyone was having a marvelous time. Almost.
The team of Herald Mages that were keeping a magical barrier on the palace were the least excited of all the guests. It was an honor to be chosen for the job of protecting the palace, but it was extremely boring and tedious. Yaeh and Zysny were starting to drift off when Yaeh suddenly jumped up. Zy gave her a strange look.
"What is it Yaeh?" Zy asked her sister.
"I'm not sure…but it seems to be pulsing throughout the city. Something is going to happen. Soon. I can just feel it. Wait I…" Yaeh became stiff and fell on the floor with a thud.
"Wonderful," mumbled Zy as everyone turned to look at the source of the noise. Zy felt her face turning red, and began to whistle a bit.
The guests however, were a tad alarmed. Zy herself was too, and was waiting for Yaeh to get up. Zy paced for a minute, before it sunk in that her sister was lying on the floor, and possibly not able to get up. She knelt down to her sister, and shook her. Yaeh let out a howl of a banshee. The ballroom suddenly was quiet.
Wören walked over quickly, took a look at Yaeh and turned on his heel to make an announcement to the guests.
"Please everyone take a seat. I wondered if perhaps what I believed might happen really would. It seems as though one of our Herald Mages has just suffered a Fore-Sight rush, and will have to be taken into extensive care. This means just what I thought it might. We, Valdemar, are unfortunately under attack."
"Great," Zysny remarked aloud without really thinking about it. Wören glared at her.
A small girl ran up to Wören with a scroll in hand.
"Master Wören, it is a message directly from the king. He wishes you to call the banquet off and…"
Wören cut the girl off with a sharp nod. He briefly skimmed the note and then called up a bit of his gift to make a light in the hall.
:Idiot. It's costing him to do that. He'll need it later. I can't trust him to take care of Yaeh, so I suppose that she's coming with me.:
Zysny's Companion, Qyeari was outside and responded quickly. :I can handle two easily. Quickly, though before Wören takes her into his care.:
:Right-o: Zysny lifted her sister over her shoulder, although it took a few tries. She practically threw Yaeh onto Qyeari. Once Zy and Yaeh were strapped into the saddle with the emergency buckles, Qyeari leapt into action.
Qyeari settled into a companion's gallop, which would have been as fast as the wind coming off the lake except for the fact that the wind was coming their direction, which slowed them down considerably.
:Odd. I can't seem to get through this wind. I can't understand why the wind is so strong. Wait. It's tainted. Magic tainted…strange…very odd.: Qyeari mused to herself.
:Ack. Just what we need.: Zy muttered mentally.
:What was that?: Qyeari paused and pawed the ground.
:What was what?: Zy asked.
:It's an energy swipe heading our way. Apparently, whoever is out there really needs power, and will take it by force if necessary. Fortunately, I'm immune to it, but I'll have to put a boundary up around you.:
:Quickly then:
Qyeari spread about her magic in the air, and for a moment, a peculiar buzzing passed through Zy's head.
:Odd.: She remarked.
:Indeed. Off we go.: Qyeari practically launched herself into a companion's gallop.
Zy held onto the reins tightly, and looked behind her. A steady light streamed from the palace they had just left. Apparently, things were getting interesting over there. She hoped it wasn't an attacker who had just set magical fire to the building. She couldn't worry about it now though, because her mind was solely filled with the idea of reaching the lake. She was sure that lake would have been the next word Yaeh would have said, if she hadn't gone into shock so quickly. Suddenly Zy wondered if it really was a good idea to take Yaeh with her. Something told her it was. Perhaps Yaeh was the key to something larger than Zy could understand. She could only ride as fast as her companion could carry her.
*
People flitted across the floor of the ballroom, to gather in the center of the room, where a large fountain was located.
The fairy peoples talked amongst themselves, and were easily the prettiest there. The fairies had a tendency to flutter across the floor and sweep someone that fancied them off their feet. Many of the Valdemar citizens were dressed in bright colors, and generally having a good time. The distinguished guests (mostly owners of castles and things) were dressed in extremely fancy gowns with long trails that came off of their crowns. Almost everyone was having a marvelous time. Almost.
The team of Herald Mages that were keeping a magical barrier on the palace were the least excited of all the guests. It was an honor to be chosen for the job of protecting the palace, but it was extremely boring and tedious. Yaeh and Zysny were starting to drift off when Yaeh suddenly jumped up. Zy gave her a strange look.
"What is it Yaeh?" Zy asked her sister.
"I'm not sure…but it seems to be pulsing throughout the city. Something is going to happen. Soon. I can just feel it. Wait I…" Yaeh became stiff and fell on the floor with a thud.
"Wonderful," mumbled Zy as everyone turned to look at the source of the noise. Zy felt her face turning red, and began to whistle a bit.
The guests however, were a tad alarmed. Zy herself was too, and was waiting for Yaeh to get up. Zy paced for a minute, before it sunk in that her sister was lying on the floor, and possibly not able to get up. She knelt down to her sister, and shook her. Yaeh let out a howl of a banshee. The ballroom suddenly was quiet.
Wören walked over quickly, took a look at Yaeh and turned on his heel to make an announcement to the guests.
"Please everyone take a seat. I wondered if perhaps what I believed might happen really would. It seems as though one of our Herald Mages has just suffered a Fore-Sight rush, and will have to be taken into extensive care. This means just what I thought it might. We, Valdemar, are unfortunately under attack."
"Great," Zysny remarked aloud without really thinking about it. Wören glared at her.
A small girl ran up to Wören with a scroll in hand.
"Master Wören, it is a message directly from the king. He wishes you to call the banquet off and…"
Wören cut the girl off with a sharp nod. He briefly skimmed the note and then called up a bit of his gift to make a light in the hall.
:Idiot. It's costing him to do that. He'll need it later. I can't trust him to take care of Yaeh, so I suppose that she's coming with me.:
Zysny's Companion, Qyeari was outside and responded quickly. :I can handle two easily. Quickly, though before Wören takes her into his care.:
:Right-o: Zysny lifted her sister over her shoulder, although it took a few tries. She practically threw Yaeh onto Qyeari. Once Zy and Yaeh were strapped into the saddle with the emergency buckles, Qyeari leapt into action.
Qyeari settled into a companion's gallop, which would have been as fast as the wind coming off the lake except for the fact that the wind was coming their direction, which slowed them down considerably.
:Odd. I can't seem to get through this wind. I can't understand why the wind is so strong. Wait. It's tainted. Magic tainted…strange…very odd.: Qyeari mused to herself.
:Ack. Just what we need.: Zy muttered mentally.
:What was that?: Qyeari paused and pawed the ground.
:What was what?: Zy asked.
:It's an energy swipe heading our way. Apparently, whoever is out there really needs power, and will take it by force if necessary. Fortunately, I'm immune to it, but I'll have to put a boundary up around you.:
:Quickly then:
Qyeari spread about her magic in the air, and for a moment, a peculiar buzzing passed through Zy's head.
:Odd.: She remarked.
:Indeed. Off we go.: Qyeari practically launched herself into a companion's gallop.
Zy held onto the reins tightly, and looked behind her. A steady light streamed from the palace they had just left. Apparently, things were getting interesting over there. She hoped it wasn't an attacker who had just set magical fire to the building. She couldn't worry about it now though, because her mind was solely filled with the idea of reaching the lake. She was sure that lake would have been the next word Yaeh would have said, if she hadn't gone into shock so quickly. Suddenly Zy wondered if it really was a good idea to take Yaeh with her. Something told her it was. Perhaps Yaeh was the key to something larger than Zy could understand. She could only ride as fast as her companion could carry her.
*