Book I: A Feast of Flames
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Chapter 1
Breathe. Then breathe some more. Then a little more. Then exhale.
Mona looked at himself in the mirror. The clothes he was wearing didn't fit his body, nor the current style of the Steel Kingdom. But his father was a stickler for these things.
"As nobles, even if we live far from the center of Steel and are amongst the sparse, we should live as nobles do." Mona repeated the words back to himself he had heard the day before. The Aurum Duchy was an expanse of rather poor hilly farmland northwest of the capital of the Steel Kingdom, in the far reaches of the Faulkner Continent. While they had a shoreline, the development was poor. After all, who would want to travel so far north? All the business was closer to the south, where the adjacent Hale continent was located.
The first Aurum, Signor Aurum, was a man who earned his loyalty in the days the Steel monarchy could still fashion themselves as emperors, winning the expanse of land they had now. The land was still fertile then, but frequent droughts had brought the little positives of this distant land into the sorry state it was now. Food was rare, hunting was difficult, and even the potentially of mining was expensive and hard to locate. But still, this was home, and so the Aurums persisted, along with the few people who lived nearby, distant relatives of the original retainers to their family.
Aurum was born at the turn of the sunset, his coming of age ceremony would begin soon after. His mother passed the previous spring, and now his father grew more deeply invested into the niceties of the event. Being an only child, Mona would alone stand before the power statue and his guests as he too inherited the power of Metal as each Aurum prior. Sturdy, rigid, conductive.
As one reached their coming of age ceremony, they would receive their first connection to the power of the world, the mana in the plane. Beyond the common five of Fire, Earth, Water, Wind, Metal, there also existed the rare 4: Light, Dark, Evil, and Divine. Most individuals would receive a minor power with common talent, leading to largely a normal life with a tiny benefit if anything. Being of the Aurum family, Mona would have decent talent in Metal, and would inherit the family's Aurum arts in defending their territory.
Mona sighed. The dress his father gave him felt too loose, his small frame refusing to fill our the fit. The sun shone on the faded prismatic trimmings, glinting like old metal in the setting rays. The dress looked fine, if not for the feel it could be reduced by a few sizes to fit more snugly. If not for the expenses for his mother's funeral, perhaps they could have gotten it. Or was it rather Mona didn't want to cause greater trouble for his father. Putting on the last of the furnishings, Mona took one more glance, before setting for the door.
The great hall was bit a distance further in the estate. The sound of Mona's steps creaked against the aging floors, nary an attendant walked back and forth in the halls. Most of the help in their home was likely busy in the hall, helping his father set up all the trappings of the event, so it was understandable why no one would be around. Mona thought to call out to one of the attendants to help check if nothing was amiss with how he dressed, but before he could open his mouth to speak the maid had already dashed pass the beam of the lighting fixture and disappeared behind the corner.
"Well... Hopefully everything is set then." Mona sped up his pace, going into a speedy walk, the meter of his feet crossing across the hallways. After a few turns, and pass a few anxious attendants, Mona found himself in the inner courtyard, the sun splashing his sun with its final glimmers of light before night arrived. The Bonded trees dotted the stone pathway to the opposite end, where the doors of the great hall awaited. Atop each tree a blaze of golden yellow leaves sprung from each tree, the subtle sent of metal filling the air. Being their family had strength in Metal, his forebearers added a variety of treasures and items to steadily support the development of their family's internal attunement to Metal. But to Mona, these trees reminded him of the age of the estate as a whole. Anyone could tell the trees needed pruning, but a specialist would cost plenty and have to come from the capital. Add this to the list to another of the many little details the family had to slowly give up on. Perhaps if their family had Earth or Water energy, they could recoup the land with their energy alone, but Metal was best for combat and fortifications, and so all the Aurum could do is pray for the land to recover, and perhaps their family could prosper.
Mona let his hand rest on the door. It's now or never. After taking a long exhale, Mona forced the anxiety out of his body before he pushed open the large and heavy door.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
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The door shut itself behind him, the sound of the rising crickets quickly extinguished. The entryway to the main hall was just before him, with a few attendants pausing to take glances at the newcomer. A bit of worry was visible on some of their faces before the head maid Martha made her way closer.
"Young sire." The older maid made a slight greeting, following traditional Steel customs. Her dress was folded and fresh, cleansed from top to bottom. It was clear Mona's father had given them instructions as well, as Mona was a bit lost by the gestures presented to him. The clothing Martha was wearing, tinted in silver and gold, differed from her typical black and brown. Her greying hairs were neatly combed away, her gaze a bit fixated on Mona's dress.
Noticing where she was looking, Mona made a movement to his clothes. "Father's clothes, they're too big. I tried a few things, but its pretty big." The words left Mona's lips, along with a clear sense of tiredness. He stubbornly tried to find a way to make the width of the clothes smaller without damaging the fabrics, but none of his attempts did little than give him a headache.
Martha's complexion improved hearing his words. A slight smile even came on. Seeing the young man's flustering made her sigh inside. She had worked for the family for three generations, her family since before the current patriarch, but Mona's youthful troubles helped quell her worries. Martha was worried the passing of her lady would affect the event. Mona's mother had a large place in the hearts and minds of everyone in the household, and she was concerned that Mona's mind would be fixated on the first, and perhaps most important event of his life, without his mother being present. She shuffled closer to the young noble.
"One moment young sire."
"Hmm?" Mona looked at Martha's hands. A piece of ribbon transfixed in his gaze, appearing out of nowhere.
"This should work as a temporary solution. Just no sudden movements, unless you want it fall apart."
The maid's steady hands quickly got to work. Martha directed Mona to move his arms, carefully tying the piece of cloth ever so carefully between the layers of his complicated dress, vanishing the ribbon while adjusting the large clothing to better fit Mona's frame. The nearby attendants felt a smile crawl up their faces seeing Martha at work; like magic Mona now better fit their image of the young lord of the Aurum household.
Mona looked at his clothing, steadily making slow movements, noticing the dress held in place.
"Thank you." The pieces of clothing felt well at long last.
Martha simply smiled in response, gesturing Mona in the direction of the great hall. "The Lord is waiting for you, young Sire. Don't make him wait any more than necessary."
The rest of the attendants stood out of Mona's way, opening up a path to the larger room. Upon entry, Mona took in the entire view.
The last bits of sunlight had long disappeared, the slight twinkles of starlight streamed into the hall. Tables were set before him, and a bit further ahead was space before the small Mana obelisk. The small ebbing of power from that device could be felt from the entrance, steady and soothing. Mana, or qi, or power, or energy, the name differed based on the location but was the energy of all things. It came in many forms, but the Mana obelisk was a small device that released it in its primary form. The statue had the visage of a forgotten figure. Atop the right hand was a small sphere, which the user would grasp with both their own, the left hand was raised to the sky, the area from which a Mana flame would arise, signaling the type of power to come from the individual in question. For the Aurum family, the flame would have a color of steely gold, matching their namesake. According to his father, the statue resembled the old God of Mana, but the story was from before writing was widespread so no one could verify it was true.
Each table had a set of chairs, along with plates and dishware. While a bit lacking for nobility, the hall was well clean and kept for the time Mona would reveal himself to the Aurum Duchy, and the Steel Kingdom as a whole. Dusk was quickly approaching, the light of the Fire and Light devices alit in the room steadily growing in strength. Right before the obelisk was the grand table the Aurum family would eat with those in their inner circle. His mind didn't forget to notice the missing seat, its occupant no longer of this earth.
The shadows cast by various objects in the room caused by the lighting fixtures steadily stretched across the room. At one point this hall was more beautiful, his father said. Hand painted art covered each wall, the tables were more ornate, and not a hint of darkness could be found in the past. But such was the life of a declining noble family. The increasing costs ate away at any attempts to maintain the glorious past.
Mona felt the gloom of his history rise up his throat. His father's insistence on tradition had slowly rubbed off on him, and he thought to his future as a son of Aurum. Not long would it be before he was wedded and had children of his own. Could he bring his family back? The idea plagued each member of the family since the last greatest Aurum Salazar, a genius cut short by tragedy and disease.
Marriage. I forgot about that, I had to get married. The thought returned back to his mind, bewilderment filling his existence. The weight of the future was finally coming crashing down on him.
Fortunately, this wasn't for long. The sound of the great hall's doors swung open once again. Mona turned around, seeing his father in eagerness chatting away with the arriving nobles from the Frasner and Mythril families nearby, along with the two heads of the Aurum branch families. All at once, his eyes caught a glimpse of his son's figure, and an ecstatic smile crossed over his face. Joy in his eyes, he left the guests as he rushed forward, bear hugging his son.
"Mona, I didn't think you would come ahead of us!" The towering figure of his father held him close, his only family left on this earth. The smile grew wider, seeing Mona fill out his old ceremonial robes.
"Are you well? Shall we begin the Feast of Flames?"