Soaring on Wings
Chapter 1: In which all is not well in Ingary…
By: RobinNAmon
Author's Note, Beginning: Hey everyone! Thank you so very much for the reviews you sent in for the Prologue. You all agreed the story seems promising, and I hope this chapter will elevate your expectations. If not, please provide me with some constructive criticism as to why it wasn't promising. Thank you and read on!
Disclaimer: The book, Howl's Moving Castle, is written by Diana Wynne Jones (a simply marvelous writer, if I do say so myself!). The movie, Howl's Moving Castle directed by Hayao Miyazaki, is based off of Mrs. Jones' book, but the two aren't one in the same. All of the characters from the book (and movie) are copyrighted to their respective authors/creators. (What imagination those people have, you know ;)!) Any new character names I create for my story belong to me, Becky, aka RobinNAmon. Please keep these copyrights in mind :D!
xXx
A black bird, maybe related to the crow, except a lot bigger, was soaring through the skies. The bird appeared to be very large, and it was because the bird was actually a human, who was a wizard.
The wizard was flying through clouds of darkness, soaring over burning cities and collapsing armies. It almost appeared as if a war being waged, but it was far from that.
As the wizard, appearing to have raven-colored hair and a smooth facial appearance, continued onwards, he came towards a wooden door. The door seemed to be just standing upright in the sky, with nothing to hold on to it. However, it was actually part of moving castle, but the castle was not anywhere in sight to someone who didn't know of it. The raven-haired man soared through the sky and went through the wooden door.
"Howl! You're back early; we were just about to go looking for you… and Sophie." The fire in the hearth announced to its newest visitor. With Sophie being mentioned, the man stopped in his tracks, returned to his human form instead of the bird-like one, and turned to face the fire demon with an angry look on his face,
"What do you mean, 'look for Sophie'? Is she not here?" The man replied in a concerned but furious manner.
"Whoa, whoa, chill out Howl. What I mean is… she went upstairs to take a warm bath after being soaked by the rain earlier today… and, well… I heard her go into her room, but she hasn't come out to prepare dinner yet, and that was over three hours ago." The demon tried to sound as natural as possible without upsetting the wizard even more.
Howl sighed in relief, "You scared me, Calcifer. I thought you meant she left or something. Don't ever do that again, okay? She's probably upstairs sleeping."
"But Howl! Why would Sophie fall asleep when she always likes to do things herself like making breakfast, dinner, and all that?" The fire demon spat at the wizard.
"All right! I'll go peer into her room to see if she's there, and then we've got some things to talk about regarding the aftermath of the war." Howl said, turning a bit serious as he spoke.
The fire demon decided to shut his mouth (or, stop talking, if he even had a mouth), realizing Howl had seen some things through the darkness that could frighten any normal person. He watched as Howl exited up the stairs, and he turned to Markl, who had seen he and Howl's argument,
"Markl, Howl will help you with that spell later. Why don't you go check on Sophie when Howl is back?" The ginger-headed boy nodded silently and left to go upstairs, replacing the book he borrowed from Howl's bookcase.
Howl had gone upstairs to check on Sophie, and it seemed she was, indeed, sleeping. He walked back down, noting Markl was making his way to Sophie's room and figured it was Calcifer's idea.
The raven-haired wizard plopped down onto the cozy chair in front of the fireplace, preparing to explain to the little fire what was going on throughout the land.
"It's not good, Calcifer. The war between our magical nation of Ingary and the technologically advanced Sitre is finished, but the other nations that were in war are still in war. Their war is near the boundaries of Ingary, and it stretches as far as Dolla. Their casualties increase, and the war, between the magic-wielding Bapin and Cicern, fears outbreak of the gruesome demons Ingary as tried to suppress for centuries. They rule the underworld and come into the evil man's heart. Even now, there are demons destroying nations, cities, and armies beyond the horizon. It's all just flames now."
"Howl, what about Market Chipping? During the war, it all exploded in flames, and Wizard Suliman's monsters destroyed it even further. What is being done to rebuild the city? Howl you do realize Sophie will be devastated if she learns of Market Chipping's condition." Calcifer said with a worry in his eyes.
"Sadly, it is gone. Nobody cares to be around the small town anymore, in fear something from the war… something sinister… still inhabits the place. King Ferdinand has not mentioned any interest in rebuilding the city yet, and the people who used to live in Market Chipping have moved on, but some want it rebuilt, and they'll stop at nothing to change the King's mind."
The wizard and fire demon looked towards the ground, realizing the peace treaties with Sitre were all right, but the reconstruction was not. All is not well in the land of Ingary…
Before the two companions had time to muse on the subject anymore, Sophie came bounding down the stairs in a cream-colored dress saying,
"Oh dear, oh dear! I'm so sorry! I didn't know I had even fallen asleep and... oh, dear, I'll get started on dinner right now. You all must be starving!"
An older woman came down the stairs a few minutes after Sophie. She had many wrinkles and appeared to be a bit heavy. Markl helped her down the stairs as he walked over to the wizard hoping to be helped with the spell he was assigned.
"Granny, it's good to see you… and Heen." The young brunette said as a furry blondish-haired dog came wheezing beside the older lady.
xXx
"King, it seems Howl has been snooping around Market Chipping and surrounding lands again through the Twilight Gate." A middle-aged man with a royal-looking scepter announced to another man, who was addressed as the King, was outfitted in a splendid red gown with jewels hanging around his neck. Then the King spoke,
"Ah, Suliman, you research well. Keep an eye on your former pupil. You never know what acts he could pull."
The Royal Wizard bowed graciously to the King before taking his leave through large maroon-colored doors down a long passageway out to wherever he planned on going.
xXx
Author's Note, End: Well, that's it! Maybe a little cliff-hanger, if you interpret this chapter's ending as that ;)! Again, thank you for reading, if you are :D. Reading and reviewing are fantastic (R&R!), but I won't force you. Please just remember that constructive criticism will really help me.
Thank you! See you next chapter: In which lies are created and schemes are revealed…