Chapter One –
Ellywick cursed softly as another oafish human collided with her, nearly causing her to drop the sealed letter she carried as she worked her way through the bustling crowd. Making it through the gathered throng of petitioners in the palace courtyard was always the most challenging part of her daily route from the Wizards' Tower to the Arcane Academy on the other side of town, and today was no exception. Being a gnome in a human city, almost two feet shorter than its average inhabitant, was challenge enough on its own; a constant blend of mocking jibes, being treated like a child, and getting knocked to the ground when they didn't see her. Forcing her way past the desperate men seeking an audience with the Baron, each sincerely believing his problems to be more pressing than everyone else's, made her life all the harder.
But still, she'd come to embrace the advantages that her slender build and gnomish grace gave her in the city. She could make her way through crowds more quickly and easily than its common inhabitants, who rarely paid her any mind. It was that ease of travel that had resulted in her current employment with the Arcane Brotherhood, delivering messages and other goods between its many buildings and towers. It wasn't the dreamy life she'd imagined for herself when she'd struck out on her own and moved to the city, but they fed her and kept a roof over her head, and paid her enough that she could begin saving toward the life she dreamed of. Reassuringly, she patted the little bulge of her coin-purse where it was pressed between her thigh and soft woolen leggings. It wasn't enough yet, but it was a beginning. In time, it would be her admission to the Academy itself.
At long last, she pushed her way past the edge of the crowd and into the winding alley that weaved between the guild halls. The cacophony of the courtyard was replaced by almost perfect silence, save for the sounds of her soft leather boots on the stone street. At this time of morning, the guild district was always abandoned, its members either jockeying for position to air their grievances in the courtyard or hawking their wares in the Market Square. She picked up her pace, feeling as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders as she left the crowd behind and followed the familiar path between the impressive buildings.
"Veknara Endashi Ohklamm" A man's voice suddenly began speaking from the shaded entryway of one of the buildings.
The words themselves were meaningless to Ellywick. But from her many hours spent listening in as the Academy students practiced, she recognized the pattern of speech and the intonation as that of a spell being cast. A quizzical expression on her face, she turned just in time to see a young, blond man step from the shadows, wearing the formal robes of an initiate of the Arcane Brotherhood. She took a half-step back, more confused than afraid, as he lifted his cupped hands to his lips and then blew out across them, sending a fluttering cloud of rose petals out to swirl in the air around her.
The magical energy of the cloud seeped into Ellywick almost instantly. She opened her mouth to speak, but was consumed by an overwhelming need to sleep before she could utter a word. The sealed missive fluttered from her hand to join the softly falling flower petals as she fell abruptly to her knees. Struggling to keep her eyes open, she tried to focus on the initiate as he approached, watching through her shrinking field of vision as he uncoiled a tasseled, rope-like belt from around his waist. She recognized the magic as a sleep spell, one of the basic spells taught to initiates, though this knowledge did not help her to resist its effects or to understand why it was being cast upon her. Her mind reeling, she sprawled forward onto her stomach, unable to remain kneeling or to keep her eyes open any longer as she succumbed fully to the magical slumber.