Finding the Chosen Ones

New Age Wonder

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A/N: Hola mis amigos! Sorry it's so late but I got another chapter of Finding the Chosen Ones p. And yes there is Rowen goodness. ;P. Anyway here we go.

So they where poised to defend themselves from the dozens of archers ready to kill. Sages had drawn his bow while Anubis and Ryo unsheathed their own swords, (which was conveniently bought at the market place). Kento bared his fangs and was about to pounce on the offenders, as was White Blaze.

Mia felt a migraine coming on.

'Of all the things to happen now,' she though with a sigh. She had been through too much to be truly distressed by this now. Instead of becoming defensive, she sat on the ground raised her hands and declared, "I give up."

"Huh?" To say the least, the others were surprised.

"I give up," she repeated in exasperation, all of this was getting to her head. What she wouldn't give for a nice warm bed in an nice cottage with food on the table. A lot of food. 'Chicken, pork, and carrot stew… I'm salivating.'

"Mia are you OK?" Anubis asked concerned looking at the exhausted girl.

Mia didn't respond but she felt a chill run up her back and her world turned black. The next thing she saw was stars, lots of them. It almost felt serene looking at the bright lights shimmer in the never ending sky.

'Chosen child of the starts," she thought though only half interested. She could feel herself levitating gracefully from the ground. In fact quite far from the ground, was she floating? She saw the moon morph slowly into a handsome face and on impulse, she slapped it as hard as she could.

"Well that wasn't necessary," said a mature yet youthful voice. It belonged to a man that was the same age as her other 'friends' with bright azure eyes and dark blue hair. He was holding her in place on top of his white stallion in front of the menacing army.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly. After glancing him over again, she got a feeling that she had seen him from somewhere.

"If you two are done I would like to know if we are free to move without getting shot at," Ryo said huffily.

"Stand down men. Now let me introduce myself. I am General Rowen of the sixth army," the man/boy ordered the archers. Mia wondering how such a young man obtained such a power but then she glanced at his clothes. They where heavy and elaborate, made of the finest silk, something only royalty would wear.

"Oh!" Mia said and jumped down from the horse in a rush but offered no bow or formalities. The man raised and eyebrow at her actions.

"Does this mean you will leave us to our travels now?" Sage asked growing impatient and somewhat irritable the Mia and stranger interaction.

Rowen looked at him and stood strait, "No I'm afraid not. You see you are trespassing on our land and considering the situation my particular unit is working in, that would punishable by death. However, I've taken account your party and I sincerely doubt you are spies of any sort. I need time to think out your sentence so in the meantime you and you party will be prisoners of mine."

He made a signal with a motion of his hands and everyone including White Blaze was in heavy shackles. They slowly lead them away one by one and Mia's friends, thankfully, put up little resistance. Mia was once again sitting in front of Rowen on his steed and they where slowly trotting away.

"Where exactly is you town?" Mia asked curiously.

"Fort. My town was burned down," he said gravely, "And you will see soon enough."

The ride did not end soon, it was not until the sun hid in the thickets of the trees that Mia took sight of a silhouetted figure in the distance. It was a strong solid built structure surrounded by a thick off white stone wall that stood intimidatingly. Even from far away Mia could see numerous rows of archers with their bows trained at them.

"Cautious bunch aren't they?" Anubis muttered uncomfortably.

"We have to be," the boy said, "We are the last stronghold in the outskirts of Balaria. "

Mia tensed at the words, "Balaria?"

"Yes, and age old country. A couple of years ago it was ambushed by a mysterious force that crushed it to the ground. We are trying to gather information about them and kill them off but that seemed to be a failure. This is the last base we have here in the desolate country; it stands where my town use to preside. Myunseer," he said almost sadly.

'Now I know why he looks familiar!' Mia thought coming to a revelation, 'Cousin Rowen. Who would have thought he was a chosen one.' Her thoughts where interrupted by her pessimistic nagging of her other side, 'I hope he doesn't recognize me.'

Mia unconsciously shifted farther away from him staring intensely at the fort, 'Fight eh? What a coincidence.' She grabbed the jewel with all her might.

After a large commotion, the fort doors began to open slowly, but the archers still kept their bows drawn. As soon as it was wide enough the scouts (assuming that they where) made their way in quickly. They where then immediately searched, including Rowen, and then took all of the group's weapons. Needless to say, Anubis was furious about them taking away his father's sword.

"Sir what are we to do with the prisoners?" questioned a solemn faced man in heavy leather.

"Take the men and the tiger to the prison. Take the girl and the boy to a more comfortable location and get them cleaned up."

Anubis sorted something about Mia being spoiled but went away peacefully as with the others.

Rowen then turned around and bowed formally to Mia and Yuli, "I will trust that you will find our accommodations quite satisfactory. Please if you mind, let my servants fix you up."

By 'fix you up' Mia guessed meant to make her clean. She looked down on her arms that where smudged with dirt and slime. True to her nature, she always tried to stay as clean as she could but she never could get out the seemingly permanent grass stains off her skin. She didn't give it much thought since she was constantly on the road and the people that she met where just as dirty as her.

She immediately was squashed between two burly men that escorted her and Yulie away in opposite ways.

"Mia! Eque nat Seum Te?" Yuli cried in fear. Mia! Where are they taking me?

"Sazthu min," she said soothingly as they she started up a long flight of stairs. Worry not.

Rowen looked perplexed at the strange conversation with the girl named Mia and that little boy. 'It sounded strangely like… Impossible. That's a dead language.' He ran the strange musing out of his head and walked off. He needed to think about the task at hand. Finding out about his new 'guests' would be first priority.

Taking a bath wasn't as enjoyable as it use to be. Or perhaps it's been too long that she had a handful of servants working hard to get her 'presentable.' She had thought she was going to drown, they where dunking her head into the water so much. Then they took what seemed like a porcupine and scrubbed the dirt off of her along with most of her skin.

The worst was their dealing with her hair. She always kept it braided it to hold it out of her face long ago and then never took it out. They tried to rip the hair tie out that seemed fused into her mahogany hair but it stood fast in the tangles of her long hair. They pulled with all their might despite the immediate opposition of Mia.

Frustrated they finally just cut her hair and Mia looked on sadly upon the decapitated braid that was thrown out the window. Her hair that once fell below her ankles now barely was reaching the mid her back. But that wasn't the end of it. Now they had to brush it.

Her companions could hear her yelps of pain in their dungeons below.

Mia was more then happy to scramble out of the bucket of icy water. She was quite surprised when she saw now that it had turned a murky brown, she had never thought of herself that dirty. Maybe she was use to it.

"Come now, it's time for you dress," the old maid said excitedly at the thought of dressing someone up. Mia guessed she didn't get much to do with just a fort full of men.

"No thanks," Mia said, "I got my, hey where's my dress?"

"You mean this… rat skin?" she asked holding it away from her as if it smelled. It most probably did too; it's been though a lot. Originally it was a long deep purple dress but Mia had cut it below the knees for easier journeys and from there it shrank until it went way above the knees and way to tight for her. The color was lost within the colors of the swamp, weed, and mud. The old maid chucked it away and instead brought in a new dress.

Mia was never a material person but she couldn't help but be awed at this dress. At the touch it felt cool and she almost thought it would run off her hands like water. It was a dark color that shimmered in the light, and it seemed to alternate from blue to green. It was long and slender and it looked like it fit like a glove.

Mia quickly slipped it on and sighed with pleasure. It felt wonderful. It might sound weird but after trudging along for years in the hard road in all kind of weather in a short, dirty, itchy dress simple things seem like luxuries. Indeed, she never thought she would ever again get use to this.

She loved the soft carpet under her feet, she loved being able to sit down on a plush chair instead of a hard rock, she loved being in a warm building. Mia then looked at her reflection on the water and for a second she paled.

She looked beautiful. The dress fit her wonderfully and brought out the colors of eyes that lay dormant next to the dirt on her face. Although she wasn't as pale as most would think fashionable the tint of her skin seemed to work wonders for her and her hair flowed silkily down her back. She looked pretty, she looked like a princess.

She resisted the urge to rip it off.

"I… I can't accept this," she said finally reaching for the hem of the dress to pull it off.

"Ah but you must m'lady," the fat maid said good naturally stringing a small necklace around her neck, "you must be outfitted properly for the banquet."

"Banquet?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yes, we always have one after the full moon, to celebrate the fifth fight," she said and then stopped herself from going on.

"It was the fifth battle of Balaria for the control of this very fort, where young Rowen saved us," she said reluctantly.

Mia could see why it was weird to say; Rowen could not have been more then Mia's age when the battle for his town ensued. An impossible feat for a boy so young an age, but not a chosen one. Mia quickly dismissed herself. She wanted to see who Rowen was really.

The fort was, for the lack of a better word, huge. It was furnished extravagantly as if it where a castle and long winding hallways made it resemble somewhat of a maze. Mia was wondering if she could ever find him.

"Emiteone Alreskute," Mia heard a low humming voice with strange but foreign words. Mia walked quietly following the voice.

"Ezure Pent…" the voice grew louder and Mia could now understand what the voice was saying.

"I beg thee, hear my cry," Rowen, or Mia guessed was him, said, "Find me their name."

The room was enveloped in a strange light, not bright at all but unusually vibrant, almost as if it was humming. Then it seemed as if settled in a what seemed to be a cauldron. Rowen stood erect staring at the water which seemed to spiral upwards into the air and formed a mirror like, for the lack of a better word, thingy.

Upon the surface images emerged and then faded, but what was interesting to Mia was what the images where of. First it was Ryo and then a werewolf, Sage and then an elf, Cye and then a mermaid (or merman), and Kento and then a vampire.

"A searcher spell," she murmured quietly transfixed, but the next part would terrify her. Slowly the image turned to her own face and then slowly began to fade into another image.

A comforting warmth emitted from her necklace and calmed Mia down. Sure enough, the spell collapsed and the water spilled on the oak floor as Rowen cursed. Mia then strutted into the room as if defiant of what he was doing.

"A weak but a common spell to most magicians," she said startling Rowen, "I'm not surprised it fell."

"Weak perhaps if it was a magician doing it," he said stiffly, "However for a sorcerer…"

Mia was somewhat surprised, "Impossible. The youngest sorcerer alive is at least 10,000 years of age before the fall of Balaria."

"You are speaking to the only sorcerer borne after the collapse of the sky," he said grimly.

Perhaps you are slightly confused. You see there are three different categories of spell casters. Witches and Warlocks are ones that deal with mostly black arts and any human can obtain this power. Magicians and enchanters are another that don't use black arts and are weaker then the witches and wizards but also can be obtained by any person. Wizards are a myth, supposedly you can have the power of a witch and warlock and still retain you goodness of your heart. The last is, the most powerful, a sorcerer, and not everyone can be one, they have to be born into this.

However, during the eclipse of the seventh month year XXX, or 'the collapse of the sky' a sorcerer seemed to want to create a powerful and unknown spell. Legend has it that there was an explosion destroying half of Agertian (the planet) and magical creatures where no longer able the breed, and where slowly dying out (unless of course it was 'contagious, ie. Bite from a vampire.)

The first thought, of course, to rush through her hear was, Impossible. However with everything that had been going on she was more then inclined to believe him.

"Tch what a mess," she said shaking her head at the spilt water, "That's what you get for trying to meddle around on other people's personal business. Curiosity killed the cat general."

"If that is true then what seemed to be a threat then is now a death sentence. For you see now that I found some answers I am far beyond curious of why a lovely, and obviously one of education, young lady would travel with such dangerous creatures. Even more, why this young lady does not appear too long in my spell."

"You inquire to much," Mia said shortly unable the think of a good answer, "Your questions can not be answered. I am nothing more then a girl traveling with her friends."

"For right now," he said suspiciously, "I have half a mind to put you under custody. However, we have a feast to attend too. It wouldn't look right if you where not there with your friends."

He then, hooking his arm with hers tightly, walked her out of the room.

'Only a feast eh? Why do I feel like something big is about to go underway.'

A pale woman pale as the moonlight stood silently in the dark with a gem laced around her neck above her chest before the moonlight. Behind her three strong armor clad men stood as if they where dazed.

"Master Talpa says it will be soon," she said, her face never changing, "And when that happens I want you to kill all in sight except for the fourth death lord and the girl, Nasuti."

Her face contorted distinctly.

"I will kill her myself."

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A/N: Crappy yes but I did it. I really should work faster on this story. And (shameless plug) my Mia site. *New layout coming soon. :D. Anyway I hope you enjoyed it and I'm working on a picture to accompany it. I can't wait!