Chapter 3-Impressions
Luareth awoke with a start. She pushed herself up but her hands couldn't get a firm hold in the sand. Sand? Luareth knew she had landed on grass after teleporting here, where did the sand come from? She looked down at the sand as the events of last night rolled through her head.
Subtly at first, the sand began to run together. Luareth felt her hands slip, not across the sand, but into it. The sand grew transparent and reflective yet it supported Luareth's weight. The current began to hasten until what used to be sand gurgled around Luareth's wrists and knees. And then the bottom was gone, Luareth shrieked despite herself as she plummeted into the newly formed lake. The water was cold, its frigid grasp squeezing the breath out of her. And then it was sand, then grass, the same Luareth had felt when she first landed. She stood, her clothes soaked and icy, and movement caught her eye.
They looked about her age; three youths wore monochromatic cloaks, wrapped around them like skin, and annoyed expressions.
The first was a boy, full build and grayish white hair that dribbled out of the neck of the cloak, shrouded in a metallic silver cloak that reflected the light sharply. His hands orbited around a clump of metal suspended in front of him.
A soft but annoyed voice floated on the air, "I hope you have a good reason for that, I need more beauty sleep." Luareth looked at the speaker, the third youth, and her breath left her. She was beautiful, a thin maiden in a white cloak and soft brown hair.
Another in a dark red cloak, thin but muscular with short red hair that blended with the cloak, shouted to Nessi, "What was that for? I was in the middle of a dream."
Nessi walked into the clearing, her sapphire cloak billowing behind her and ebony blue tunic clad to her, "We have a guest and I thought you should meet her."
The same voice tickled the air, "What's the big deal about her? She doesn't have any magic and she doesn't look like a fighter."
"Elah, be patient and wait for events to play out," Nessi scolded. She continued, with a hint of sadness, "Not even I can see everything. However, become good friends, she's the one of legend."
"Wow, so you're the one?" Elah leaned closer to Luareth, "I'm Elah, the group's medic."
Luareth was about to ask before Nessi shouted, "Elah and Tingit, you're first up. Please try not to kill each other. Then Luareth, show Demn what you can do." Luareth and Demn sat down on a hill to watch the training and wait. They were within hearing range of Tingit and Elah, and Luareth hoped they wouldn't be affected by the spells.
Tingit, the young man in the red cloak, glared at Elah and grinned, "I've wanted to do this for a long time."
Elah sighed, "Keep waiting, you're going to lose." White energy flowed from her into a single arc and shaped itself into a human form. The creation wore a darkened smock and wielded a hammer with a thick iron head. Tingit pointed to the summoned creature and jets of flame shot from his fingers. Cries of pain echoes on the air as Elah glowed white again.
Points of white formed in the air and each one began to move precisely in the air, outline a grid in the air. Tingit could only watch as blocks of marble formed from the grid and formed a high wall and four similar walls formed around Elah. From inside the fortress, a bright glow lit up the sky as Elah rose to the ramparts of the castle. Elah summoned human archers for the castle, who rained down arrows when Tingit sent a team of deformed and rambunctious green goblins to destroy it.
Luareth turned her attentions to Demn. He sat on the hillside, impossibly quiet, staring at the hunk of metal suspended between his hands. Suddenly the hunk of metal began to flatten and square up.
The freshly formed tablet floated in front of Luareth and she slowly reached out to touch it. As she watched, engraved letters appeared on the tablet "You do know why you're here, don't you?"
"Actually, I have no idea," Luareth responded, relieved that maybe something would make sense now.
The words appeared on the tablet hardly faster that Luareth could comprehend them but much faster that she could believe them. 'You will be able to absorb and steal powers from others. This will make you both a coveted ally and a malevolent foe at the same time.'
An explosion rocked the ground and Luareth looked down at the duel. The battle for Elah's magical castle had begun with several Firebeasts slamming into the gate and now hordes of Orcs, Goblins, and a few small dragons charged toward the wall in a massive campaign. Rains of arrows, bolts, and oil cut away the ranks of the attacking creatures. Luareth knew she would never forget that scene of death, bodies strewn around the field, many still twitching as others trampled over them to meet the same fate.
Luareth stood and gasped, suppressing a scream but her feet didn't move. Tingit laughed; "Look at her. The savior of the world can't even stand death. I don't think she's ever seen it before."
Light exploded from inside the castle and the center of light appeared to be Elah as she rose out of the castle borne on freshly created wings. In her hands, white lightning crackled, and each flap of her wings stirred the divinity of the world. Her cloak was gone, replaced by thick steel armor.
Movement caught her eye, snapped her attention away from the battle below. Nessi was there, sitting down above Demn on the hill. Luareth spoke out to her, "Why have you brought me here?"
"All things in time. Demn, I have a job for you. Fly to the Elf Haven and see if you can get them to move. They won't, but we can say we tried. Leave at nightfall and if I'm not there, god help them. I've got some people to see and then I'll be there. You two, stop this foolishness, we've got somewhere to go." Demn nodded. The plate of metal Luareth had forgotten that she still held, wriggled itself out of her grasp and hovered in front of them. It began unfolding, shaping and warping.
Luareth felt a hand on her shoulder. It was cold and inhuman and it tore her around until she could only see Nessi's face, "You and I have some errands to do before we go to the capitol. Behave yourself and you'll survive. You're a wanted person, the one person that can save or destroy this forsaken place."
Tingit and Elah stepped up behind Luareth and a blue mist began to envelop them. Luareth stole one last look at Demn, soaring away on top of a giant bird to warn the elves about who knows what. Nessi knows what, Luareth thought bitterly, and she won't save them. Luareth felt the heat of anger wash through her and then the ice of Nessi's teleportation spell.
The four of them now stood in the middle of the desert. Tingit grinned as the four of them began walking, "I love it when new people come here. I love to hear them scream."
"Amateur," Nessi whispered, "You've got a lot to learn." Luareth was about to say something when the ground fell away. Luareth felt the sand well up her cloak, filling her mouth. Luareth coughed out the sand, but filled her lungs immediately.
Then it was gone. They were now in a tunnel, completely hollow circular. This tunnel could only have been the work of some gigantic beast. Tingit shook his head, "I can't believe she didn't scream. Elah screamed her first time. Ouch." The dirt beneath Tingit's feet turned to caltrops, twisted metal barbs that dug through the soles of Tingit's boots. Luareth looked at Elah, who grinned. For the first time since Luareth had met Nessi or any of the others, she felt good.
"Tingit, be more careful who you anger," Nessi scolded as she hovered over the spikes, "No one is powerless and you aren't all powerful. Stay here, you three, I'll find the person we're here to see. Tingit, no fighting with Elah." Nessi projected the tone of a tired mother, and Luareth could see why. Tingit teased Elah like so many older brothers did to their sisters in the Haven.
The Haven. A flood of memories of her youth, the good, the bad, and the mischievous, and then what Nessi had told Demn. She cried out to Nessi, but she was gone. Luareth knew too well that Nessi had used some type of spell, probably similar to the one that had brought then here, but it was unnerving anyway.
Tingit sat down and picked the metal barbs out of his boots, muttering to himself. Elah pulled Luareth away from him and spoke in a whisper, "I want you to be really careful with these people."
Luareth was not surprised, "The Archmage of our village called me the One when she was fighting with Nessi. Do you know what that means?"
Elah looked into the darkness, "I don't know exactly, but you will become more powerful then anyone. And when the time comes, destroy Nessi and that Nightwere monstrosity. During the Great Wars, each one has killed and destroyed thousands of lives. Together they have done the unthinkable," Elah pulled away, "No one deserves to die, not like that. There is always another way." Elah returned slowly and sat down across from Tingit, bowing her head to sob.
Luareth watched with wide eyes. Tingit laughed, "She's still bitter about her family. We've all lost something. The thing that makes each of us unique is how we embrace power. You have your own choice to make; you can let your power corrupt you or you can entrust your life to those it has corrupted."
Luareth turned away from Elah to look at Tingit squarely; "There must be an better way; a way to master power without being consumed by it."
Tingit smiled bittersweetly, as if he found something ironic, and turned away, "Some of us need to lose more before we see the truth."
Luareth awoke with a start. She pushed herself up but her hands couldn't get a firm hold in the sand. Sand? Luareth knew she had landed on grass after teleporting here, where did the sand come from? She looked down at the sand as the events of last night rolled through her head.
Subtly at first, the sand began to run together. Luareth felt her hands slip, not across the sand, but into it. The sand grew transparent and reflective yet it supported Luareth's weight. The current began to hasten until what used to be sand gurgled around Luareth's wrists and knees. And then the bottom was gone, Luareth shrieked despite herself as she plummeted into the newly formed lake. The water was cold, its frigid grasp squeezing the breath out of her. And then it was sand, then grass, the same Luareth had felt when she first landed. She stood, her clothes soaked and icy, and movement caught her eye.
They looked about her age; three youths wore monochromatic cloaks, wrapped around them like skin, and annoyed expressions.
The first was a boy, full build and grayish white hair that dribbled out of the neck of the cloak, shrouded in a metallic silver cloak that reflected the light sharply. His hands orbited around a clump of metal suspended in front of him.
A soft but annoyed voice floated on the air, "I hope you have a good reason for that, I need more beauty sleep." Luareth looked at the speaker, the third youth, and her breath left her. She was beautiful, a thin maiden in a white cloak and soft brown hair.
Another in a dark red cloak, thin but muscular with short red hair that blended with the cloak, shouted to Nessi, "What was that for? I was in the middle of a dream."
Nessi walked into the clearing, her sapphire cloak billowing behind her and ebony blue tunic clad to her, "We have a guest and I thought you should meet her."
The same voice tickled the air, "What's the big deal about her? She doesn't have any magic and she doesn't look like a fighter."
"Elah, be patient and wait for events to play out," Nessi scolded. She continued, with a hint of sadness, "Not even I can see everything. However, become good friends, she's the one of legend."
"Wow, so you're the one?" Elah leaned closer to Luareth, "I'm Elah, the group's medic."
Luareth was about to ask before Nessi shouted, "Elah and Tingit, you're first up. Please try not to kill each other. Then Luareth, show Demn what you can do." Luareth and Demn sat down on a hill to watch the training and wait. They were within hearing range of Tingit and Elah, and Luareth hoped they wouldn't be affected by the spells.
Tingit, the young man in the red cloak, glared at Elah and grinned, "I've wanted to do this for a long time."
Elah sighed, "Keep waiting, you're going to lose." White energy flowed from her into a single arc and shaped itself into a human form. The creation wore a darkened smock and wielded a hammer with a thick iron head. Tingit pointed to the summoned creature and jets of flame shot from his fingers. Cries of pain echoes on the air as Elah glowed white again.
Points of white formed in the air and each one began to move precisely in the air, outline a grid in the air. Tingit could only watch as blocks of marble formed from the grid and formed a high wall and four similar walls formed around Elah. From inside the fortress, a bright glow lit up the sky as Elah rose to the ramparts of the castle. Elah summoned human archers for the castle, who rained down arrows when Tingit sent a team of deformed and rambunctious green goblins to destroy it.
Luareth turned her attentions to Demn. He sat on the hillside, impossibly quiet, staring at the hunk of metal suspended between his hands. Suddenly the hunk of metal began to flatten and square up.
The freshly formed tablet floated in front of Luareth and she slowly reached out to touch it. As she watched, engraved letters appeared on the tablet "You do know why you're here, don't you?"
"Actually, I have no idea," Luareth responded, relieved that maybe something would make sense now.
The words appeared on the tablet hardly faster that Luareth could comprehend them but much faster that she could believe them. 'You will be able to absorb and steal powers from others. This will make you both a coveted ally and a malevolent foe at the same time.'
An explosion rocked the ground and Luareth looked down at the duel. The battle for Elah's magical castle had begun with several Firebeasts slamming into the gate and now hordes of Orcs, Goblins, and a few small dragons charged toward the wall in a massive campaign. Rains of arrows, bolts, and oil cut away the ranks of the attacking creatures. Luareth knew she would never forget that scene of death, bodies strewn around the field, many still twitching as others trampled over them to meet the same fate.
Luareth stood and gasped, suppressing a scream but her feet didn't move. Tingit laughed; "Look at her. The savior of the world can't even stand death. I don't think she's ever seen it before."
Light exploded from inside the castle and the center of light appeared to be Elah as she rose out of the castle borne on freshly created wings. In her hands, white lightning crackled, and each flap of her wings stirred the divinity of the world. Her cloak was gone, replaced by thick steel armor.
Movement caught her eye, snapped her attention away from the battle below. Nessi was there, sitting down above Demn on the hill. Luareth spoke out to her, "Why have you brought me here?"
"All things in time. Demn, I have a job for you. Fly to the Elf Haven and see if you can get them to move. They won't, but we can say we tried. Leave at nightfall and if I'm not there, god help them. I've got some people to see and then I'll be there. You two, stop this foolishness, we've got somewhere to go." Demn nodded. The plate of metal Luareth had forgotten that she still held, wriggled itself out of her grasp and hovered in front of them. It began unfolding, shaping and warping.
Luareth felt a hand on her shoulder. It was cold and inhuman and it tore her around until she could only see Nessi's face, "You and I have some errands to do before we go to the capitol. Behave yourself and you'll survive. You're a wanted person, the one person that can save or destroy this forsaken place."
Tingit and Elah stepped up behind Luareth and a blue mist began to envelop them. Luareth stole one last look at Demn, soaring away on top of a giant bird to warn the elves about who knows what. Nessi knows what, Luareth thought bitterly, and she won't save them. Luareth felt the heat of anger wash through her and then the ice of Nessi's teleportation spell.
The four of them now stood in the middle of the desert. Tingit grinned as the four of them began walking, "I love it when new people come here. I love to hear them scream."
"Amateur," Nessi whispered, "You've got a lot to learn." Luareth was about to say something when the ground fell away. Luareth felt the sand well up her cloak, filling her mouth. Luareth coughed out the sand, but filled her lungs immediately.
Then it was gone. They were now in a tunnel, completely hollow circular. This tunnel could only have been the work of some gigantic beast. Tingit shook his head, "I can't believe she didn't scream. Elah screamed her first time. Ouch." The dirt beneath Tingit's feet turned to caltrops, twisted metal barbs that dug through the soles of Tingit's boots. Luareth looked at Elah, who grinned. For the first time since Luareth had met Nessi or any of the others, she felt good.
"Tingit, be more careful who you anger," Nessi scolded as she hovered over the spikes, "No one is powerless and you aren't all powerful. Stay here, you three, I'll find the person we're here to see. Tingit, no fighting with Elah." Nessi projected the tone of a tired mother, and Luareth could see why. Tingit teased Elah like so many older brothers did to their sisters in the Haven.
The Haven. A flood of memories of her youth, the good, the bad, and the mischievous, and then what Nessi had told Demn. She cried out to Nessi, but she was gone. Luareth knew too well that Nessi had used some type of spell, probably similar to the one that had brought then here, but it was unnerving anyway.
Tingit sat down and picked the metal barbs out of his boots, muttering to himself. Elah pulled Luareth away from him and spoke in a whisper, "I want you to be really careful with these people."
Luareth was not surprised, "The Archmage of our village called me the One when she was fighting with Nessi. Do you know what that means?"
Elah looked into the darkness, "I don't know exactly, but you will become more powerful then anyone. And when the time comes, destroy Nessi and that Nightwere monstrosity. During the Great Wars, each one has killed and destroyed thousands of lives. Together they have done the unthinkable," Elah pulled away, "No one deserves to die, not like that. There is always another way." Elah returned slowly and sat down across from Tingit, bowing her head to sob.
Luareth watched with wide eyes. Tingit laughed, "She's still bitter about her family. We've all lost something. The thing that makes each of us unique is how we embrace power. You have your own choice to make; you can let your power corrupt you or you can entrust your life to those it has corrupted."
Luareth turned away from Elah to look at Tingit squarely; "There must be an better way; a way to master power without being consumed by it."
Tingit smiled bittersweetly, as if he found something ironic, and turned away, "Some of us need to lose more before we see the truth."
