In the kingdom of Salamish, on the southern coast of the spice road a city named Port Al-Asar is located. There is a bazaar filled with people selling fruits, blacksmiths selling their wares and other items a lone beggar sits alone on the side atop one of the many squares leading from the bazaar into the labyrinthine city of Port Al-Asar. Her name is Alicia Solic and she sits quietly alone on the stairs with a beggars bowl, waiting for any donations.
"Mommy, why does that girl have her eyes covered, that was she can't see anything." A small boy asked his mum a few metres away from the beggar. The mother answered that she don't know, but she is probably blind.
Alicia, listening to the pair of mother and son sighs and fixes her hood and cape to protect her body from the intense sun. Her clothing is dirty and in rags, needing sewing in the past for tears and rips in the material. Wearing several layers to cover her whole body in mismatching colors of grey, dark brown and teal, the teal colored dress the only sign of a former rich life, being a rare color in the port town of Al-Asar. Her hands and forearms wrapped in old bandages to cover old wounds, her complexion unusually fair for living in Salamish, her hair raven black and held together with the bandages covering her eyes, she can't remember her eye color anymore, since the accident.
Alicia thinks back for the hundredth time to the day everything went wrong. She was once a student of Ave Ludum, a prestigious academy for students learning about magic. She was not the greatest student, but she had great ambition and mediocre talent for the wind of water, a rare and sought after trait in the desert country of Salamish. Her future was set, get her diploma from the academy and thereafter join the royal mage unit where she would help the citizens of the country.
But during an experiment a rival of hers, a girl name Juni, a novice mage pledged to the wind of fire, sabotaged Alicia's workplace and the crystals she was working on exploded, shattering into pieces and pierced her arms as she tried to protect her body. A few pieces were too fast and impacted her eyes, blinding her instantly. She passed out due to the pain and when she woke up a total darkness welcomed her as she heard the female doctor beside her noticed her awakening.
"Thank Aine you are awake, we thought your injuries would be too severe and you would never wake up." The female doctor said, holding the shaking hand off Alicia tightly.
"What do you mean doctor, where am I and how long have I been out?" Alicia asked, her nervousness increasing gradually.
"You are currently at the infirmary, you were caught in a magical explosion caused by an experiment gone awry. your arms have been severely damaged but were saved, but you currently have crystal shards stuck in your arms. Your eyes however took a lot more damage, they were both struck by charged crystal shards filled with the wind of fire and couldn't be rescued. I'm sorry for your loss Ms. Solic." The doctor explained Alicias situation and her worst fear had come true, she indeed had lost her eyesight and she couldn't use magic anymore due to the shards implanted in her arms.
due to her injuries Alicia was not allowed to continue her study at Ave Ludum, and that leads to her current situation, being a blind beggar sitting Alone at the bazaar.
“Hey Sol, how’s today’s salvage.” A short boy, around nine years old with scruffy black hair and brown eyes walked up to Alicia, looking at the nearly empty bowl, only containing five copper coins.
"Hi Gadget, as usual most people don't care about us beggars, even more the blind kind. Hows your day been at the dockyard?" Alicia asked.
"The same, the dockmaster is strict as usual, but we had to leave work early due to one of the ships had a major breakdown due to the scaffolding breaking, injuring three people. Horrible." Gadget answered, feeling down due to his friends being injured but a little happy due to leaving work early.
"Oh, okay. send my regard to them." Alicia said. "What time is it by the way?" Alicia asked.
"Its seven soon, the bazaar is closing soon, do you need anything?" Gadget asked, following their usual routine where he did Alicias shopping.
"You can buy a loaf of bread and some fruit, I need dinner and breakfast for tomorrow." Alicia answered while taking out a few coppers from one of her inside pockets alongside the ones in her bowl.
"Don't you need more Sol, you seem to have eaten a lot less since a few weeks ago." Gadget asked, concerned with his friends health.
"Its alright, the spice merchants haven't arrived yet so us beggars don't receive many donations." Alicia explained.
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Taking the few coppers from Alicias hand Gadget walked back to the bazaar to get the wares Alicia asked for. While waiting for her friends Alicia began chanting several minor spells to try her connection with the winds again, but to no avail her connection is gone since the accident.
"The mana in my body seem to evaporate once the mana reaches the forearms where the crystals are embedded. Further testing of the crystals are required." She thought. "Perhaps if I can remove the shards the mana can correctly circulate towards the end points and I can use magic again, this theory must be tested further."
Before Alicia could theorize further she could hear the tiny footsteps of a person, looking up to show that she hears him Gadget returns with the goods.
"Its your lucky day Sol, the baker gave us two loaves of bread and the gentle women gave us a dozen fruits. You can have a feast tonight." Gadget expressed with glee.
"Thats really good, you can take one of the loaves, you have helped me a lot these past months Gadget." Alicia told her friend, thankful for his help.
"No Sol, you need to eat more. Since we first met you have gotten a lot thinner, you have to eat more." Gadget refused her offer.
Thanking him, Alicia stood up from the stairs and Gadget walked over and held Alicias hand to keep her from falling. Walking back to her home they had a small conversation about Gadget's work, arriving at the door of Alicias home Gadget handed over the small basket with bread and fruits.
"Every time I help you home, I'm always impressed how you can live in such a small home." Gadget said looking at the tiny windowless home belonging to Alicia.
"Well, when you are blind you don't really care for outer appearances." Alicia explained, a small laughter escaped her lips.
Thanking Gadget once again for the help she heard the footsteps slowly disappear she walked over to the doorknob, fishing out a small key from one of her inner pockets she slowly turned the key and with a clack the lock opened. Inside the small house there were few belongings, a table with two chairs standing to the right of the entrance, with a small kitchen alongside the right wall. Along the left wall a bed was located with a small coffer at the end of the frame, where Alicia stores a few belongings and spare bandages for her arms and eyes.
Walking inside the house and closing the door she went over to her bed, sat down and began taking off her outer clothes and her bandages. Wearing the teal colored dress and her bandage over her eyes she could clearly hear the two necklaces around her ear clinking, the only memory of her parents. The longer necklace a dark silver chain with a pendant of a circle with seven gemstones embedded, the symbol of Aine, the greater god of magic. The other pendant, a shorter one with a pendant of a large feather with two names inscribed into it, Celine and Amas, her parents name.
Standing up she goes over to the kitchen and begins making a stew with the ingredients in her kitchen along with the food Gadget got for her, keeping it simple with a bland broth and some fruits and dry meat for flavor this has become a routine for Alicia since she moved here a few months ago.
While the stew was getting ready she took one of the loaves of bread and began tearing it into small pieces, adding half of it to the stew and the rest to have for dinner. Sitting down with a bowl of stew and the rest of the bread she began eating it, contemplating her next steps.
"If we further this theory, if it's true that the shards are disconnecting the connection between the end points and the mana I may be able to use. Or if I use my mana to overcharge the crystals I may be able to fry the mana circuitry in the crystals and thereafter use mana again." She talked to herself while stirring the spoon in her bowl off stew. Choosing to test her theory over the past few days she cleans the bowl and lay down in her bed, quickly falling asleep.
Over the next few days her usual routine followed with sitting at the stairs near the bazaar, asking for donations from charitable people and talk with Gadget when he gets down with his job at the docks. She had tried to remove the shards during the evenings but the intense pain caused her to option for the other theory, to pump as much mana as possible. A week after she began her theory she once again met up with Gadget and asked him for help, reluctantly he agreed and while at her home she removed her bandages on her arms and Gadget let out a loud gasp by the display before him.
"Hey Sol, what did you do to your arms?! Before the crystals were murky, a dark blue color but now they are shining brilliantly, like jewels on your arms." Gadget explained what he saw, astonished by the brilliant display before him.
"Are you saying they have been charged?" Alicia asked.
"I don't know what charged means, but they don't look like the shards before." Gadget explained, confused by her question since he doesn't know a lot about magic.
"That is incredible, what gemstones can you see?" Alicia asked, a feeling of joy plastered in her mind that she might fix her problems. Thinking that only sapphire blue would be there since she was a connected to the wind of water.
"I can see a lot of different stones, sapphire, ruby, emerald, jade, citrine, opal and onyx are visible, but some minor ones are weird stones I don't recognize." Gadget said the stones he could recognize while tapping on the stone when the name was said.
"..." Alicia was silent, contemplating what gadget had just said.
"What did you just say? Isn't there only sapphire?!" Alicia shocked raised her voice, surprising Gadget, he had never seen Alicia this flustered before.
"No Sol, there are seven main gemstones on your arms, and some minor ones I don't recognize, what is happening? Is this bad?" Gadget asked, scared for his friend.
"No, no Gadget, this is wonderful news. I can finally use magic again!" As she assured him that everything was alright she waved her two hands in the air in the familiar pattern and from Gadgets perspective a rainbow of colors exploded in the centre of the room and in these seven colors small animals created purely of magic danced around the room in a swirling vortex of brilliance. Gadget was filled with happiness from the display and joy for his friend that she can finally return to her normal life. Watching for a few moments he looks over at Alicia and he sees that tears are falling down her cheeks. Assuming that something happened she rushes over, grabs her hand and asks if something happened.
"I... I can see again." Alicia stammered out, joy and shock trembled her voice.
"What do you mean you can see again?" Gadget asked.
" I can show you." as she spoke she began untying the bandage over her eyes, letting it drop to the ground. Gadget audibly gasped at the sight. What he saw was the usual face of Alicia, but instead of the usual eye cover a brilliant pair of icy blue eyes looked at him, piercing his soul. All around the eyes are the similar looking crystals as the ones on her arm, in the same colors of brilliant shine.
"I can't really see you, but I can see your aura and the mana in all living beings. Meaning... I'm no longer blind." As she explained her situation Gadget walked over and gave her a big hug.
"Im happy for you Sol." Gadget said joyfully.
"Thank you my dear friend." Alicia responded, wrapping her arms around him.