CHAPTER TWO
In the beginning of the trip, Raniim, Pikarri, and Xentra found themselves in a plight. On the way to the Plains of Viridia, the three representatives of the light kingdom encountered a bit of…turbulence. The top halves of the orbs of transportation were one-way windows. From these they saw what had commenced the uproar they were experiencing. It was none other than the formidable fighters from the wind palace, attacking within the sky.
Unknown to their feathered foes, the orbs had a protective field, stopping all melee type attacks. They found out this little tidbit of information after a myriad of failed attempts. Since this trial and error displeased the warriors of wind, they thought of a different approach to knock all those from the light realm to a devastating demise.
Falcoy, the leader of the aerial assault, led his team in a mid-air attack. Instead of head-on strikes, they made their attacks more indirect. Their wings flung gusts of wind at the orbs, trying to knock them off course. Disqualification would be the fate of any who did not arrive at the destination promptly. Those from the skies above wanted to make sure that happened, by steering the orbs astray. The orbs tossed and tumbled as their enemies gradually succeeded.
Realizing how futile their attempts were, they tried harder. Between the wind representatives, the orbs slowly traveled. Using their power of wind, the trio created an air stream. This extreme concentration of wind caused a whirlwind of sorts to materialize. From inside the orbs, Xentra became rather apprehensive and Pikarri receiving the urge to get out the sphere and fight. Raniim was more of a fatalist than they were, so he just sat in silence. He was upset about the situation indeed, but he knew it would be more dangerous to venture outside the orb than wait within. The three were toppling around, trapped in the triangulated tornado powered by their adversaries.
As if a higher power answered their prayers, something picked off the gaggle of wind combatants. First, Falcoy was hit, breaking the link and the whirlwind by extension. One by one, they fell, as if hit with a hard blow to the abdomen. The gales of wind that bombarded the orbs lessened to a gentle zephyr. The wind representatives fled, apparently frightened. At the departure of their enemies, Xentra shared identical expressions with his fellow delegates, even though they could not see one another: great surprise and relief. On the other hand, Raniim remained quite calm through the minor ordeal. Over the horizon, they could view the outskirts of the plains. This meant many things that day, but for them it meant, at least temporarily, safety.
Upon their landing, the three come together, hoping that no one else would have caught them off guard. Raniim led the others two to the gathering spot, his luminous blade on the ready. The first ones they met were those of the earth empire, Gronig, a human-wolf hybrid-often known as a canine warrior, Ammoza, the amazon of the group, and Rutan, their druid and mage of sorts. Even though Rutan posed no threat to Xentra, the sorcerer of light still thought him formidable. Regardless, Xentra knew that he would not have to worry because the kingdoms would bring mages of all types into the competition.
Each elemental realm had its own quarters, to accommodate its team until the events began. The tents, which were supposed to endure until the next day, for those representing the realm of light had a faint glow of yellow about them. Nearby, the brigands from the kingdom of darkness emerged characteristically from the shadows. Vetramos, the leader of their pack, led the way, intending to intimidate the competition. As they contemptuously approached, Raniim stepped out in front of the other two, looking adamant and hoping for a fight.
"What do you three want?" Raniim threatened in a grave tone. Flemmik, elite undead on Vetramos' left, flinched slightly. Raniim smirked at the sight of this.
Seeming offended at Raniim's smirk, Vetramos swiftly unsheathed his ebony katana, tinted maroon with the dried blood of paladins slain by its blade, into a striking position. "Back off-or you'll get some of this, just like all the other paladins that crossed my path."
Raniim remained, unflinching. Vetramos charged, ready to strike the paladin where he stood. A mysterious gale struck the dark warrior and thrashed him to the ground. He struggled but finally returned to an upright position. At this point, Vetramos was eyeing Pikarri and her wings. They gave no indication of movement. Pikarri seemed as surprised about his attack as Vetramos himself. He did not know exactly what, but he staggered away-not wanting to find out, the other two following. Raniim glared after the beaten and mortified reps from the darkness territory, following ominously with his eyes.
Raniim looked back at Xentra and Pikarri, bemused at the shocked expressions upon their faces. Raniim greatly impressed them by his boldness and control in the situation. Xentra, still awed by Raniim's performance, watched those from the darkness kingdom abscond, all the while knowing that the next time will be much different and hoping he would be as much in control as Raniim was this time.
Blaming the others for apparent impudence, Vetramos tugged them back to their designated area, infuriated by the encounter. He began plotting his revenge, all the while admonishing the other two for their bumbling performance.
As dawn arrived, many of the groups emerged from their tents, already appearing prepared for the trials and tribulations of the day to come. Xentra and the others joined the rest in the Viridian Hall. Upon their entrance, they found the hall more elegant and spacious than that of their home, back in their own kingdom. Each team has its own sitting quarters, just as they did living ones. The three sat and waited for things to quiet down, so it could start. The groups sat around the room according to their region's relation to the plains.
A sole individual approached the center, apparently to speak. The being was not visible beneath their cloak. Their voice also gave no indication of gender. Nevertheless, they spoke with command and pride, if not without some zeal," Today, we shall begin on the journey to what might just be the finish for many of you here. The race shall last six days, the final having the victor declared. It shall commence in the Kingdom of Earth. It is illicit to fight with another team within those boundaries, or even here for that matter. Throughout these lands, you will all face various dangers that will test not only your audacity, but your intellect as well. This will especially come into play within the orders of the water territories, " With that, the being looked in Aquion's direction, turned back, and then finished its speech," However, there will be a last minute twist in the departure implemented. Before the day is done, there shall be a small show talent from a representative from each group present. This decides in what order they depart."
After saying this, the shrouded individual descended from the stand and out of the hall. Caused by his words, much of those assembled there looked from one to another, speaking about what kind of display of talent they must show. At the table that sat the light reps, there was a unanimous vote that if they had a choice in the matter, Raniim would be the one to show his skills. Xentra was too unsure of his own abilities and Gryffa thought highly of Raniim's. Raniim was too modest to vote to do the feat but agreed nonetheless when the other two nominated him for the position. They left the hall wondering what was yet to come.
Striding into the open area between the quartering portions of Viridian Plains, Pikarri and the others saw some kind of stadium, conjured by countless mages working together on building different portions. One sorceress, dressed in crimson robes, spotted Xentra, still adorned in all white attire, and pulled him away to help with construction before Pikarri or Raniim had a chance to react. They did not pursue the sorceress, due to other, more appealing, distractions. Raniim was engrossed in watching a swordfight nearby. Pikarri observed winged combat in the skies above and flew high, for a better view.
After a few minutes with this new mage, Xentra recognized her as the spell caster representing the fire realm. He then realized that must have been how it was for them all: a warrior, mage, and strange creature of some sort. Xentra turned to the fire sorceress and asked her for himself, "Who are you?"
Taking off her hood, she looked quite radiant. She answered with a soft yet confident tone, "They call me Ember, but I thought it would be obvious, considering my robes. After all, it is apparent that you hail from Light Kingdom, due to your colors. That is how is for all of the representatives. It is an easy giveaway really." Ember led Xentra to an area where tents covered the ground, without even asking for his own name, and continued, "In case you did not know, all of the mages around here are assisting in the preparation for the grand test of skill, to exhibit our power."
Xentra stood there for a moment, stunned. It took a couple of seconds to grasp the concept, but when he did, he had immediate anxiety. "Does this mean that the test of skill that enigmatic person said at the gathering was meant for the MAGES?!"
Surprised to his shock, Ember replied nonchalantly, "Yes, the rest of us were told about it. I have no idea why you were not. I guess it was due to your group's early exit. I am not certain."
The two commenced to lifting the tents and moving them over to a better spot. Xentra made the initial levitation and Ember conjured a layer of flames beneath the tent, causing hot air to rise within and by extension, control the movement of the tent thereafter, but it was Xentra who made the landing for tent. They continued this process for about an hour so, all the while Eria, hailing from the aquatic empire, cautiously watched them.
When they finished their work, Ember and Xentra found that they were the last to do so. Afterward, they sat down to a late lunch. The pair were sitting at a plain picnic table and the same mysterious person whop gave the speech earlier came at the end. With a wave of their hand, they conjured a surfeit of food, not able for anyone to consume in a lifetime. The individual then sat down at an end spot. Mages from all the other kingdoms joined them as well. There was enough room for four to a side and a seat at each end.
Before the arcanists had much time to eat, a strong breeze blew at the spot where Xentra and Ember sat. One last person sat. There was only one seat open anyway. This newcomer to the table was obviously a mage too, due to his outward clothing of silver wizardly robes. He had a head topped with lush, flowing ebony hair. He was moderately tan and had strange yellow-gold eyes. He seated himself with silent ease, started eating as if he were merely late, and did not want to disturb the party by declaring his presence. As soon as he noticed the wind blowing, almost unnaturally, he glanced upward, toward a specific spot in the sky, as if looking intently at something. The sorcerer smirked and switched his attention back to his food.
After the feasting, Xentra walked with Ember, looking for their comrades. They came across Raniim, in the thick of a fight. The paladin was soon triumphant, without much hardship it seemed. Raniim stepped down from the small stage, meant for melee battles, without have broken a sweat. He then joined the two mages in search of Pikarri, the third member of the light team.
Not too long after, the trio encountered a rather large sand arena. Shadows danced all around, all the while within its boundaries. This made the location of the combatants quite apparent. Ember looked up, now seeing the mid air battles taking place. Pikarri struck Myabi, a half human-half falcon hybrid, from behind. Myabi immediately plummeted into the sand with an audible thump. Pikarri victoriously descended. When Pikarri landed, she looked toward Raniim and Xentra, beaming with pride. Hardly exhausted at all, Xentra and Ember led the group back to the stadium.
As they arrived to the seats, Raniim and Pikarri sat, tired from their trying yet satisfying bellicose endeavors. The two spellcasters sat beside them. The mysterious wizard who came late to the mage feast before now stood atop the stage, ready to make an announcement.
The sorcerer began, "I apologize for my colleague's misleading ambiguity earlier today. For you see, the test of skill shall depend upon the team's mages." Raniim and Pikarri glanced apprehensively at Xentra, and then turned their gaze back to the stage when the man continued. "Alequys is my name and I will be judging your performances. They will depend on showmanship, style, and power. The order of a group's departure from the Viridian Plains relies on their mage out casting the others. To start things off, Ember, of the fire kingdom will come up and show her magic." With that, Alequys waved a hand toward Ember, instantly bringing her up to the stage. She landed gracefully while the judge vanished to a table down beneath, where he could ascertain a grand view.
Ember's performance began with her turning the stage into a lava pit, which awed much of the audience. She continued with a display of her ability to control such fiery forces. The flames danced merrily in the twilight air. As this spectacle happened, her eyes transformed into blazing embers in their sockets. This visage gave the impression of fury, along with great power. The fires commanded by her commenced to alter into shapes of various beasts-wolves, dragons, serpents, etc. The finale the fire sorceress presented was that of creating a conflagration counterpart, made entirely of flames. Ember and her doppelganger took a bow and then the twin dissipated. Ember exited the stage. A cloaked figure then led her to a special benched area, where those who had already done their part sat.
Alequys got an idea from Ember's performance and spoke it aloud. "Gathered from Ember's presentation, I shall make the stage fitting for each mage, becoming their own individual landscape and suiting their needs. This is the only true way to test the capabilities of each. As for the next contestant, any of the rest may volunteer."
Eria jettisoned out of the crowd and onto the stage, propelled by the force of a conjured geyser. With another wave of Aleuqys' hand, the stage transformed into a miniscule island, surrounded by water. Eria skillfully landed. After which, she swiftly eroded the little land there was, leaving the stage in complete aquatic environment. The water sorceress' piece was quite prompt and ended with a ballet, done by water dragons, conjured from the surrounding waves.
Rutan came up next. The arena on stage turned into a miniature forest of sorts. He manipulated the roots of the newly conjured trees to twist and turn in a pattern. This was apparently was supposed to impress, but it did no such thing. Realizing his folly, he showed off his defensive spells. It consisted of an earthen spider web. The webbing constructed out of an earth and rock compound while the spaces between were formed from moss and foliage. The web took a dome shape. The swiftness of his cast and the obvious protection it offered awed many. Before long, he dissolved the web and levitated the material up into the would-be sky. He shot a blast of green earth energy at it. This caused pleasant and gradual rainfall of sparkling jade specks. This was apparently the finale, for he stepped off the stage shortly afterward.
Within the excited crowd, who awaited the next presentation, three mages remained-those from the darkness, light, and wind kingdoms. While Pikarri, Raniim, and the others were still politely applauding Rutan's act, Xentra looked over at the other contestants, those who had already performed, at their seats. He saw relief, embedded in every pore of their visages. With every act on stage, he became increasingly anxious. What was worse was that he knew his time would come. He would soon have to go up there himself and present a show of his magical talents, which he feared he sorely lacked.
The day had been eventful enough for Alequys. Nevertheless, he thought a little more could not hurt. The first three performances were incredible. He hoped the rest would follow suit. It had been almost a full ten minutes and dusk was fading away ever so quickly. Alequys noticed the lack of volunteers to continue, so he motioned toward the nearest mage in his line of view, anticipating that person to be one of those who remained to perform. . This happened to be the light mage. Xentra glanced back in Alequys' direction when he discovered his short-term fate and gave a melancholy nod. The sorcerer of light plodded toward the stage and ascended to the platform awaiting him.….