Bit of a longer chapter.
Ideally I want the other chapters to reach this length or longer, but with the way they're written it got a bit hard for me to cut somewhere in the middle.
I'll try my hardest! Any feedback helps!
Well then, good day!
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Intermission 1:
Fates Wheel Turn
*-*-*-*-*
"Zzz...grhnk!" The majestic sound of a snoring demon lord echoed in the chapel he resided in.
"Nnh...?" He turned his head to look around with tired eyes -still half asleep. The roof was high enough and the columns that aided the walls in holding the building intact was spacious enough to let a creature with wings such as himself fly around. The absense of the usual banners hanging down from torches pinning the walls made the sleepy heDemon lord uncomfortable
"Elgor..." The deep voice echoed, and another demon -looking like a 2metre tall human with a crooked back and large wings which extended from where the scapula normally would be on a human and bat-like features that cursed its face- came flying in.
A gargoyle.
The gargoyle didn't speak, however, as it landed and kneeled in front of the red four-poster bed that belonged to its master. It would be unforgivable had it done so, and wouldn't end with just a missing limb. Even if it was possible to regenerate over time for the gargoyle, the pain just wasn't something it wished for.
"I felt..." The demon lord yawned, then looked at the kneeling figure in front of his bed. "a great magic power just now. What do you think?"
"I shall organize thy clothes immediately for departure, master!" Elgor couldn't assume anything else.
For three-hundred years his master had been sleeping. And now a power recognized by him had appeared? It was obvious the current demon lord wished to depart and find its source.
"No... No... I shall go back to sleep for now." The demon lord yawned once again. "Geez, it's bloody cold outside!"
"..."
"And try to see if you can decorate this Place a bit more... welcoming. When you got time, of course."
"Master?" Elgor was perplexed, but still looked down on the stone floor in order to not infuriate its master any more than for just now having spoken without permission. Nothing happened either way.
"You... Go find out about the source and bring me the results. I... Shall... Zzz..."
Silence filled the room for a moment.
"...Master?"
The gargoyle looked up and saw the 'sleeping beauty' with his right hand's thumb in his mouth. An evil grin crept up on Elgor's face, who then bowed and left the chapel by flight after announcing in a sneering voice. "As you wish, master."
*-*-*-*-*
"...And for the hero's celebration on the twentyfourth nigth of the fifth moon we have..."
Andrigor the third sat on the throne as he burrowed his tired face into his large hands, doing the best he can to stay awake from his advisors long informative speech. Becoming king at the age of sixteen, Andrigor have tried his utmost in political matters for the sake of his people. For twenty years it has been peaceful. For twenty years, his kingdom had prospered. But for twenty years, it has been boring. With no friends or family at his side, the king couldn't help but call his current life mundane.
'But there was that one old man... whatever happened to hi-'
"M-M-M-MY L-LIEGE!"
A walking brown robe reported in. No, something, someone, was wearing the robe, albeit in a very weird way.
A smile formed on the kings countenance
'Oh right! That's what he's been doing! Speak of the devil...'
Excited for something unexpected as well as an easy excuse to postpone his duties, Andrigor rose up from his throne to greet his only friend. Despite almost double his age, he couldn't see the only person who treated him normally as anything else. A friend was what the king needed. 'I might need to find myself a family soon, too...' Andrigor thought, then spoke out in a happy and sturdy voice, beaming with confidence.
"Larsus! My dear, old, friend. You look exhausted. Calm down and explain what it is that is important enough to make even you grant me honorifics."
"Y-YOUR EXCELLENCY! SIR!"
"..." The king gave a reprimanding look.
"...Andy..." Larsus said quietly while looking around to make sure nobody tried to make his old body one head shorter, then turned his head back to Andrigor as an excited smile creeped up.
"The bed blew up."
"..."
"..."
"The bed did WHAT!?"
Andrigor couldn't believe his ears. Even the three guards -wearing a weapon of their training. Clad in simple chainmail and an iron helmet probably related with a bucket somewhere- that was stationed around the room aswell as the kings advisor that still stood next to the red, cushioned throne looked confused over their liege's outburst.
Forming an even greater smile, Larsus confirmed joyfully -now almost shouting. "The bed blew up! Ah! You know the experiment I told you about five years ago? The one with the mysterious glyph marked on the ground? For five years now I've been-"
Andrigor put up his left hand in a motion to stop, while planting his face into his right.
"Tell me in a way I... We, can understand." He motioned with his left hand towards the four other people in the room -all still with their mouths agape from the unthinkable scene infront of them. "Even if you are still considered a prodigy, no- ESPECIALLY because you are still considered a prodigy, even among the other generations, telling me your bed suddenly blew up one day will not make me understand. You have kept silent all these years. Start from the beginning."
"Right! Well, since I parted from your side..."
*-*-*-*-*
Finally having a clue for where a world-rune was placed, Larsus walked slowly inside a forest. Even if he was a sage, the forests of Egitar were not a joke.
The world-runes, named for their existence that dated back even before his own grandfather, were definitely man-made. But as old and indestructible as the stories had told, nobody had any idea of who or what could have made them, thus believing the earth itself created these national treasures, and along with it, the name world-runes were brought up.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
The average human couldn't know any better though. Education was scarce -and so reading- which meant that children stories about the legendary world-runes was all they had access to. Larsus knew better. Having heard it directly from his grandfather when he was still a brat, Larsus knew that such elaborate and permanent markings around the world most likely was some great tool used in the age of war.
'But inside a tower? And they still don't believe the runes where man-made? And a tower inside a forest? I should spot it soon right? Aren't towers supposed to be t-'
He didn't expect the own answer inside his head to be so correct. Almost missing the black structure, Larsus looked up at a tower that dwarfed the trees.
"...And I'm supposed to be climbing that... Right! Let's get to it you old man. You're close now!" Larsus encouraged himself with his most youthful attitude in order to ignore his old shaking knees. Unbeknownst to all, he was afraid of heights.
Grabbing ahold inbetween two bricks, he started climbing and close to fifteen minutes later of playing the 'Don't-you-dare-look-down, you-old-man!' game, he found a window large enough to enter. It was only once inside, he realized he could just normally have taken the stairs, as he looked straight onto a door inside the room with a dead-pan look in his old eyes. Later that day he began inhibiting the tower, and then, the research began.
*-*-*-*-*
"...Three years after I began inspecting the blue circle inside the room I have come to the conclusion that it is most likely used for teleportation magic. I do, however, not have any strong evidence besides a theory that the two lines symbolize north, west, south and east in order to navigate where to teleport, as during all these years nothing had actually made it activate."
"Until now..." Andrigor chipped in with an awestruck tone, completely immersed in the story.
The five listeners had gathered around the old man in a half-circle. Three knights, one advisor and one majestic friend -all listening with enthusiasm and fully opened eyes. It was a peculiar sight to see. Had anyone tried to enter the throne room, they would see a bunch of kids gathered around a campfire telling stories during their slumberparty, on the ground in the middle of the kingdoms most revered place. The knights had to stand up though, both to quickly assess and eliminate any potential threat, as well as because of their outfit, which was a shame.
Not something one would see every day.
"Until now." Larsus confirmed. "For three years I tried casting various kinds of magic onto it, all with the same result. Then for two years I tried using blood. Monsters from around the forest; bears, wolves and even small wyverns. They also gave the same result. Then, I tried human blood. Mine."
"And that worked?" The advisor asked this time with a thrilled voice -completely forgetting he was in the presence of his king.
"It had an effect." The old sage continued, nodding towards the man who asked. "The ring glowed for a second, and I thought the answer had finally come, but..." Larsus closed his eyes and sighed, hanging his head low. "Nothing happened... At this point I assumed it must have been broken, knowing well how old it might have been. So for the last six moons I have been writing my experiments and discoveries for the sake of passing them down should I not live through to see it. At that point I also re-organized the room, and moved my bed over the world-rune."
"Then..." One of the knights had opened his mouth. All five listeners gave off a sad feeling, realizing they may never live to see the miracle -completely forgetting the original reason for why the sage had stumbled into the throne room in the first place.
Larsus noticed the change of atmosphere, and grinned. He was waiting for this opportunity to drag out the best of their reactions.
"And then... Ten days ago, while I busily wrote away with the hot air seeping in through the opened window, I exhaustedly whiped off the sweat that had accumulated, and scattered it backwards. Some of them touched the edge of the magic circle that was not covered by the bed and lo' and behold! With the sound of a crack! A blue pillar of light was shining from the formation and my bed was destroyed and flown into the next corner before stopping! I, of course faithful to my friend and king, hastily ran down the stairs and out of the tower to report this as quickly as I could!"
Larsus couldn't have known that at the same time of the phenomenom, someone was drawing the same circle on a small, yellow piece of paper.
"..." Andrigor stared silently into Larsus eyes.
"..." The sage followed suit.
"...And you left this blue light, completely alone in the tower?"
"Why yes? I was the only one to research on this." Larsus was confused over Andrigor's question. Not that his expression showed that.
"YOU FOOL!" The king blurted out. "You damn old fool! What if someone else reaches the tower before us? It is impossible for us to be the only ones that know about this!"
"Ah! I-I D--Didn't T-Thi-"
With a sigh and another motion with his hands, similar to the one he gave earlier before the sage's explanation, Andrigor tried to express to his only friend that there was nothing that would happen because of the minor detail the sage missed, even if he was upset.
"Frieg..."
"Eh? Yes!?" The advisor snapped out of his shocked state -caused by no one else but the king's sudden outburst- and turned his head towards his liege that still looked into the sage's eyes.
"Get the hero here immediately, and send word that I need him personally for this mission."
"Straight away, Your Majesty!" Frieg stood up, bowed, and ran out of the throne room.
"And Larsus..." Andrigor looked at his aged friend's outfit. "How do you even manage to wear your robe upside-down? I'm amazed you could even get here within ten days. My friend... Let us go and catch up a bit more before the hero arrives. I have not seen you since forever."
The sage looked at his clothes. His eyes flared open, then sank down to their originally tired state.
"How about that... How indeed!" Larsus said with a raspy voice as he nodded, still looking at his own state.
*-*-*-*-*
Fifteen days after the strange sapphire blue light had ocurred, the elder of a close-by town at the outskirt of the vast forest, decided -unknowing how likeminded the other elders of various villages were- to send out a request to knights or strong villagers for investigation. As humans, they couldn't feel the strong magic which pulsed out of the forest on that fateful day, and now only remembered it as 'That heavenly light'.