Finally, Stoelians have the power to manipulate the earth around them. The origin of this power, within the prevailing theory as to the origin of magic in humans, seems quite blatantly obvious. Stoele is plagued by flying creatures, including regular beasts, Cored, and Fants, as well as powerful creatures that roam Stoele’s rocky shelves and plains. With this, the Stoelians were driven underground as, even among the gigantic Driller Worms, the merciless, grotesquely large Excavator Moles, and the other creatures that roam through the power’s depths, it was far safer beneath the surface of the earth than above it. Finding refuge under the ground, it should come as no surprise that they gained the ability to manipulate the earth around them.
Excerpt: A History of Magic – Galen Cletus
Erin woke up feeling surprisingly well, considering the huge head injury that she knew she’d taken. As she opened her eyes, already having judged there were no enemies on her level nearby through her hearing, she found herself in a very familiar healing room. In some of Erin’s less than enviable training, she’d had to wake up in this room a number of times. While the Dawnblaze estate did have its own healing room, not all of Erin’s training had been conducted within the estate’s grounds, such as her interrogation resistance training. This time, however, Erin waking up in this room was a far more pleasant occasion as it meant they’d succeeded and, somehow, had been taken back to the capital of Arikar.
Slowly, Erin sat up and took stock of her condition, analysing her body and assessing any injuries that may remain. Thankfully, everything seemed to be working perfectly, which was to be expected of the royal physicians, and the only things Erin was suffering from were minor hunger and thirst. Seeing a pitcher of water on her bedside table, Erin poured herself a glass and slowly sipped from the cup, letting the water trickle slowly down her throat. One more glass later and Erin determined that she’d let the water settle into her parched throat before drinking any more. From there, Erin swung her legs over the edge of the bed and slowly stood up, testing her body before moving any further.
Dressed in a loose gown, Erin picked a pile of clothes off of a chair that sat next to her bed and accessed the small recess that served as a private changing room. Erin quickly stripped down to her underclothes before dressing herself in the clothing that had been left at her bedside. Opening up the door, Erin folded her gown neatly and placed it on the bed. Slowly, Erin began to test her mobility by stretching, finding everything was working fine, before moving onto some basic strength testing with pushups, pullups, situps, and a lot more. Of course, Erin didn’t do nearly enough to stress her enhanced strength with the mundane exercises, but they were more than enough to let her know everything was fine.
As Erin went to sit back down, the door to the room opened to reveal Kaiden Bloodletter; crown prince and childhood friend of Erin, “Oh.” Kaiden sounded mildly surprised, “You’re up?”
“How astute, Kaiden.” Erin had to fight a smile down and the slightly older boy suddenly kicked into motion, having processed Erin being up and about.
“What are you doing up? You should be resting until the healers say otherwise. You don’t have a clean bill of health yet.”
Erin raised an eyebrow and smirked slightly, “I’m perfectly capable of testing myself to determine if I require any more rest. As it is, though, I’m fine. There isn’t anything wrong with me.”
Kaiden sighed, “You’re right.” The prince paused for a second before amending something, “As always.” Before Erin could respond, though, he continued on, “But that doesn’t mean I have to like it. You should be getting some rest. You’ve only just recovered from a traumatic head injury, even if the healers can work with magic to remove the damage.”
“Kaiden.” Erin looked the prince in the eyes, placing her hand on his shoulder to get his attention, “I’m fine. Really.” Suddenly, the door burst open, and Sammath swaggered through.
Catching sight of Kaiden and Erin, he froze like a deer that had caught scent of a hunter, “Uhhh. Sorry. Was I interrupting something.” Sammath pointed his thumb over his shoulder, “I can leave if you want.” Erin rolled her eyes as Kaiden blushed lightly, red colouring his lightly tanned cheeks. Clearing reading Erin’s reaction, Sammath rescinded his offer, “Or not. I can stay if that’s what you prefer. I’m not really into exhibitionism myself but whatever floats your boat.” Sammath shrugged and moved to sit down on the bed as Kaiden flamed up and Erin felt a small amount of heat in her own cheeks.
Kaiden spluttered slightly and Erin picked up the response, “That isn’t what’s happening here, Sammath. Unlike you, I’m not an improper vagabond. This is a concerned friend trying to make the other get some rest.”
Sammath lay down on the bed, kicking his feet in the air, “Well that’s boring.”
Kaiden managed to get a grip on his emotions as Sammath stared at the ceiling and Erin looked the prince over properly. When he’d entered the room, he’d been a little too anxious about Erin for her to truly look him over and, as Erin took him in, she realised that he wasn’t looking as healthy as he’d looked before she’d left. Dark bags hung under his red eyes, like a cloak draped over someone’s shoulders, and his hair had grown slightly wild. A small layer of stubble had grown to cover his chin and, while it wasn’t full growth, it clearly wasn’t just from one day.
Erin frowned at the prince, whispering quietly enough that she knew Sammath’s unenhanced hearing wouldn’t pick it up from the bed, but Kaiden’s would, “You haven’t been taking care of yourself.”
Kaiden looked down and away, wringing his hands slightly, “I’ve just been a little caught up in helping mum with work, especially on top of training.”
“Kaiden…” Erin’s tone was low, and he looked up a little bit.
“I know, I know.”
Erin lifted Kaiden’s head so that his eyes met hers, “You clearly don’t know, Kaiden. Your mother, the queen, is at the Queen Stage. Her body has been enhanced to far beyond any mortal capacity and she can continue working for days without any ill effects. You, on the other hand, are barely beyond mortal. You’ve only scratched the surface of your body’s potential and need at least six hours of sleep a day. Don’t try to keep up with someone who could probably kill you just by exhaling hard enough because you’ll just end up driving yourself into the ground.”
“You sound like my mother.” Kaiden muttered.
“Good. I’ll take that as a compliment. She’s a wonderful, intelligent person and a great queen.”
“Not to mention probably listening to this conversation,” Kaiden interjected, “way to stroke her ego.”
“Now go and get some sleep and clean yourself up. You look like shit.”
Kaiden gaped at Erin, “Now you really sound like my mother.”
Erin laughed, pointing to the door and gently pushing Kaiden towards it, “Go.”
Sammath bolted upright, “What was that?”
Erin looked over to the Volkarian, already slightly tired of his shenanigans, “What was what?”
“That thing that came out of your mouth. It’s never happened before.”
Erin frowned at Sammath, “Words? A command? I do believe I’ve given you both, before.”
Sammath shook his head emphatically, “No. A laugh. Who are you and what have you done with Erin. The prince was right. You clearly do need some rest. You got his so hard that you gained a sense of humour.” Erin gave Sammath a flat look and left the room, leaving Sammath to call out after her, “No. Erin, wait. You need to lie down. Maybe grab a drink of water. I’ll call the healers back and we’ll see what they can do for you!”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
Eventually, Sammath’s voice faded into the distance as Erin strode down familiar halls. Carpeted stone floors passed beneath Erin’s feet as she walked past door after door, passing by tapestries, windows, and paintings on her path to the palace gardens. Numerous servants bustled past her, bowing as she strode the halls, and she nodded to them all in acknowledgement. Erin’s walk brought her to one of the palace’s large doors, made of large planks, bound in iron, and kept open during the day for ease of access and she stepped outside.
Erin was greeted by hundreds of beds of flowers of every colour, blooming even in the autumn. Evergreen hedges separated the gardens into smaller sections and beautifully sculpted topiaries. Animals flitted about, birds flying between trees and singing loudly, and bees buzzed about between flowers and their hives. Erin took a deep breath of the air, heavy with pollen, and admired the magic that went into keeping this garden alive and blooming all through the year. Even when it snowed, hailed, or stormed, the gardeners and landscapers ensured that the garden was well-maintained. Normally, this would be impossible and unhealthy, but magic could do many, many things.
Erin wandered through the garden, feeling a soft breeze of warm, magically-heated air caress her skin. Spying a bench, Erin took a seat and closed her eyes, letting her head fall back and she just listened to the sounds around her and let the sun fall on her face. A small whisper of sound from clothing rustling on the bench brought Erin back to the present and she opened her eyes, finding a woman sitting on the bench next to her.
Dark black hair and red eyes, the signature traits of the Bloodletter family, were the first thing Erin noticed, but a straight nose, pale, flawless skin, and full, red lips followed quickly behind. Erin broke into a smile, “Aunty!” She exclaimed, hugging the woman.
Queen Anita Bloodletter, ruler of Arikar, Queen Stage Inheritor, and the woman simply known as The Bloodied One, smiled brightly and revealed her gleaming white teeth, “It’s very good to see you again, dear. How are you? How did your first mission go?”
Erin couldn’t do anything about her smile; it really was good to see the queen again, and the woman’s smile prevented Erin from schooling her face out; as Anita carefully hugged her back. Erin could feel the density of the queen’s muscles as she hugged Anita, ridiculous strength rippling powerfully beneath soft, supple skin. “It’s good to see you too, Aunt Anita. I’m doing well now, at least as well as can be expected after just coming out of the healer’s ward. As for my mission, I think it went well but it could have gone better. I was compromised very early on by Sammath, the Volkarian,” Queen Bloodletter nodded, “and he coerced me into rescuing Ashe, the Shinian, from being executed. Cab had killed some guards to feed and hung Ashe out to dry and accept the consequences, likely so that he could kill more people and feast again.”
“And Cab refers to Cababasi?” Erin nodded and the queen seemed to consider what she was going to say next for a few seconds, “Let’s come back to that, dear, because I don’t have the context that you do. For now, though, just keep going.”
Erin nodded and continued, “So Sammath threatened me by saying he’d reveal what he knew about me, which was very little, and that he’d report me to the guards if I didn’t help him. In kind, I recruited him to help me obtain incriminating documents detailing the person funding the camp. We had to escape the next day and break Ashe out…” Erin continued to detail her adventures with Sammath and Ashe to the queen, right up until the point where she and Ashe had launched an assault on the camp.
“This much I know, dear. Your father was watching from the sky the entire time as he wasn’t sure if Valour would appear or not.” Erin couldn’t remember anything after being knocked out but, from that alone, she was able to piece together what likely would have happened after she’d been knocked unconscious. Erin’s father would have likely flown down and incapacitated Valour, lethally if necessary, and prevented him from actually harming anyone in his rage. Emyr would have then called in transport for everyone and, likely, personally flown Erin, Ashe, and Sammath to the nearest city where they would have teleported. Emyr would have ensured that his daughter, the symbol of the union between the Sarin and Dawnblaze families, survived and also kept an eye on Cababasi by monitoring Ashe.
Erin’s smiled tightened slightly, “I probably should have expected that. From what I know of Valour, he isn’t someone to just take insults lying down and assaulting his camp was something that he certainly would have perceived as a slight.” Erin looked down at the ground, scuffing her feet slightly, “It probably got people killed. It would have gotten me killed, if father hadn’t been there. I’ve faced death before, but that was in a carefully controlled environment when I knew I wouldn’t die. This feels… different, somehow. I’m not particularly phased by it; my training has prepared me well; but it’s something that I need to consider going forward. I was reckless, this time, and I took risks that I wouldn’t take now. It was foolish-”
Anita’s hand came down on Erin’s shoulders, interrupting her recrimination. Erin glanced to the queen’s eyes as Bloodletter spoke, “All I’m hearing is that you went on your first mission and, from what I am hearing, adapted remarkably well to changing circumstances. In the face of adversity, you stood tall and succeeded. Your mission ended when you went to Trillden city but, instead of leaving the people in the camp to suffer at the hands of their captors for longer, you tried to do what you thought was right and tried to take matters into your own hands. Now, it is correct that you failed and your father had to step in, but nothing happened this time. Learn from your mistakes and move forward. Think about what you could have done differently if you were put into that situation again and, if something similar comes around, you’ll be better able to handle the circumstances.”
Erin nodded to the queen, “Thank you, Aunt Anita. Now, if I may, how many people died?”
Queen Bloodletter’s smile fell slightly, “Are you sure you’d like to know?” Erin nodded, steeling herself for the guilt she was already beginning to feel, as her own smile fell slightly. Anita sighed, weariness streaking her face, “Very well, then. In your initial assault, no one died. Your diversion was quite effective. All of the active guards reacted to repel the threat that you represented. The overseer killed one person who was in his path when he tried to fight you. When Valour assaulted the camp, he was neutralised quickly enough that no one was harmed but, when I send soldiers to the camp to take in the displaced slaves, there were a few guards who’d returned to the camp and two people died before the soldiers could act.
Erin pursed her lips, closed her eyes, and nodded as she processed that. Ultimately, three people was not a large number, but that didn’t mean that the loss wasn’t felt. Three unique, individual people had been lost because Erin was either not strong enough, smart enough, or skilled enough to save their lives and they would forever mark her memory; push her to grow stronger to save more people; just like all of the people she knew she wouldn’t be able to save in the future. If Sammath had potentially been there, he could have stopped them, but that was Erin’s fault, too. Erin was the one that had given Sammath the information that he’d used to expand his Concept, which led to the guards searching for them, which meant that the guards weren’t stopped, and the people died.
Erin knew Sammath would blame himself, which was fair; he did demand to have the information; but Erin was also responsible. Erin opened her eyes with a deep breath, grinding the guilt down and turning it to drive as she’d been taught. She would grow stronger and she would be able to save more people in the future.
“Thank you for telling me this.” The queen gave Erin a tight-lipped smile and just nodded. As one, both the queen and Erin looked towards the garden entrance as Ashe came into view.
Erin raised a hand in greeting and Ashe hesitantly stepped forward, “I, uhhh. I was told that I should come here to meet someone.”
Queen Bloodletter nodded and stood up, “That would be me. I asked the servants to send you here whenever they next saw you. It’s nice to meet you, young man. Erin said your name was Ashe, is that right?”
“Uhh, yes ma’am. Please forgive me but I don’t know who you are.”
“My name is Anita Bloodletter-” Ashe suddenly paled and immediately dropped to the floor, pressing his forehead into the ground so hard that Erin thought he’d probably dented the dirt, “and you don’t need to bow down to me like this. A friend of Erin’s is a friend of mine, or at the very least a well-regarded acquaintance.”
“I’m sorry, Queen Bloodletter.” Ashe pushed himself off the ground, instead bowing at the waist, “I didn’t mean to offend you. Please forgive me.”
Erin met the queen’s gaze, spying the weariness in the queen’s expression. Anita sighed, standing and pulling Ashe up, holding him high enough that his feet dangled just above the ground, “Stand up straight. I may be a queen, but you’re not a citizen of Arikar. You do not bow to myself or any of my subjects. Is that clear?”
Ashe made to bow his understanding but caught himself partway through, instead bobbing his head in an awkward half-bow, half-nod that had the queen rolling her eyes in Erin’s direction. Erin cracked a smile lightly at the queen and shrugged her shoulders. “Yes, Queen Bloodletter.”
“Very well. You and I have some things to discuss.” Ashe looked up, his eyes wide and his mouth opening slightly. Ashe looked to Erin, a cry for help written across his face, but it was quickly shut down as Anita spoke again, “Would you mind leaving us alone, Erin?”
Erin nodded, “Of course, Aunt Anita.” Erin rose from her seat and gave the queen a quick hug.
“Thank you, dear.” Erin pulled away from the hug and Anita smiled gently at Erin, “Thank you for getting Kaiden to get some rest, as well. I swear the only time he doesn’t listen to me is when I tell him to stop working or go have fun. When you’re not around, it gets even worse. He’d work himself to death if you weren’t around to force some sense into him.”
Erin smiled, “You’re welcome, and it’s my pleasure. He is my friend, after all.”
Erin turned to leave, meaning to give the queen and Ashe some space, but Anita spoke up one last time, “By the way, Erin. It wasn’t your father that stopped Valour.” Erin’s brows drew together like a waistband on pants whose drawstrings were being pulled before her eyes suddenly widened in revelation and shock. Tapping her chin, Erin nodded to the queen and walked off, deep in thought.
If Erin's father didn’t stop Valour, then maybe Cab cares more than he cares to admit, even to himself.