Project Arosia
Chapter 1: Whispers of A Bygone Age
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The voice echoed within Agni's head, awakening him from his sleep. He rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms, unaware that Vartan was sitting beside him.
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He looked out into the open as the wind gently swept through the trees. “do you believe the Fire Soul is out there?" he asked Agni.
The question confused Agni. After all, Vartan was the one who told all the stories. "Vartan, aren't you the one who-" he was immediately interrupted by another group passing along.
“Good luck to you guys!” The stranger shouted, “See you suckers at sunset!”
“I know what I said,” Vartan continued the conversation,
“Back then, I had no idea that a dozen people would run off into the forest in search of some mythical powers.”
“They are not a myth, though, are they?” Agni asked as he tried to keep up with him.
Vartan let out a sigh as they walked further along. “They are not.”
Agni laughed, “Even if they were, I would follow you anywhere!.”
Although Vartan was visibly old, he was still the most experienced in elemental combat. Not everyone knew this, and once in a while, some cocky stranger would attempt to challenge the frail old man only to fail. Although the power of a god’s soul sounded enticing, Agni's only care was tagging alongside Vartan in hopes of being taught more sorcery. In the last couple of days, however, it was more of a hassle trying to get up and search for something he did not care about.
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After hours of exploring, the group finally gave up and returned to camp, gathering small hunts.
The entire field was filled with people returning from their disappointing searches, only gathering to converse or duel. Although competition for the god’s soul was apparent, everyone gathered in one area to rest.
All sorts of conversations filled the camp. Most went quiet as Vartan passed along in respect to the powerful sorcerer.
Crowds gathered around Vartan once he sat down next to a campfire.
“Fine,” he chuckled as everyone stared, anticipating a story.
Agni leaned in and listened intently.
He ignited a small fireball that took the shape of a warrior. Everyone gasped in amazement.
Long ago, the God of Fire protected the village from the Lord of the Abyss.” Vartan's face turned stern. Everyone grew slightly uncomfortable as the winds lightly picked up.
“Known as Argus, the God of the Winds. The fallen God attempted to harm our people, but the God of Fire repelled his attack, eventually succumbing to the injuries that he sustained."
He let the small fireball disintegrate in his hand as he finished the story.
There was a long silence that followed. The small crowd that had gathered waited for another story. The chirping crickets and the fire crackling were all that could be heard.
“That will be all for now, folks,” Vartan spoke, breaking the silence. “Be extra careful tonight…… A full moon will be upon us soon. The creatures of the dark will soon roam more frequently. “
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As people headed to sleep, Agni stayed behind and sat next to the comfort of the fire with Vartan.
He began to play with the flame and held some in his palm. Vartan watched as Agni played around. He grabbed his shoulder when he was about to cast another spell, “Remember what we talked about, kid.”
Agni looked down and quickly extinguished the flame.
“I know, but I promise I can control it,” he reassured Vartan.
“Not tonight. We must head to sleep now.”
Disappointed, Agni extinguished the flame in his other hand and got up. As he walked back to his tent, he suddenly stopped.
"Agnii-" a voice whispered out. Agni quickly began to look around.
Vartan noticed Agni’s confusion and began to look around as well.
“Everything all right?” he asked as he grabbed his staff.
“It’s……..nothing,” he responded, looking over his shoulder.
“I will see you in the morning. Good night, Vartan.” he ran off to his tent before Vartan could say a word.
Once inside his tent, he began to freak out.
Am I going crazy?
Where is this coming from?
Who would be trying to mess with me?
Thoughts raced across his mind. He tried to think of someone who could be toying with him, but he was exhausted. He fell asleep without realization.
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In his dream, he found himself on a patch of snow,
The cold winds violently swayed the trees. Agni began to shiver from the cold. He tried to warm his hands up without success. The harsh tundra was something he had never experienced before.
Though extremely cold, he continued walking when he suddenly heard the familiar whisper again.
“Son of fire and flame”
He turned around in anger
Behind him, he saw a giant snowy mountain. Its peak reached high into the sky.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!" He shouted. Before he could yell again, the voice again called out to him, this time even louder in his head.
“Agni,” the voice echoed.
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“Agni!” Vartan shouted.
Agni shot up and frantically began to look around. He felt his heart pounding. Confused, he began to question Vartan. “What’s going on?.. What are you doing here?”
Vartan grabbed Agni’s shoulder. “You were yelling.”
He looked him in the eyes and tried to reassure him. “It’s okay, Agni.”
Agni felt his heartbeat calm down. His eyes filled with tears the more he tried to hold them back.
“I don’t know what’s happening to me, Vartan.”
A member popped his head through the door as Vartan was about to question him.
“Sorry to bother you both, but we must get moving.”
Vartan sighed, “We will talk about this some other time.” he patted the kid on the head and exited the tent.
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The search continued. Agni kept to himself the entire day as Vartan followed behind. The sun hovered over the horizon, concluding another disappointing search. Once again, the group began to do either two things: Talk or practice their sorcery.
Although the searches were often a letdown, they did not stop people from having a good time. A very knowledgeable sorcerer, Richie, began to quiet people down as he prepared to make an announcement.
“My companions! Firstly, I would like to thank everyone for participating in this search! OBVIOUSLY…….it seems we could not find the power of our beloved god of fire in time…… That pillar which most of us thought was housing a god soul…. Turned out to be nothing!.” he looked down in disappointment as he finished his sentence.
He signaled towards the sky, with the glistening moon standing above the clouds.
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Groans were heard from within the crowd.
A clear grin formed across his face as he saw the disappointed faces.
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The crowd cheered and dispersed before Richie could finish his announcement.
“Please be careful!!” his words were drowned by the crowds of people chattering.
As usual, Agni sat close to Vartan, and both watched as people began to duel.
Although most of the group’s sorcery was weak, a fireball could still knock someone back and inflict pain. Without the armor everyone wore, it would probably cause significant injuries. Richie started to recklessly challenge other people. Each one refused, as he was one of the strongest casters in Yankton. He walked over and suddenly stopped when he saw a possible competitor.
“Come on, Vartan, humor me.” pleaded Richie, eager to fight.
Vartan continued to drink as if he heard nothing. He avoided his intense gaze, choosing instead to look out into the distance.
“Fair enough,” Richie commented. He looked at Agni, who was busy watching the others duel in the field.
“Yoohoo,” Richie tried to get his attention, waving his hand in front of Agni’s face. Startled, Agni looked in confusion.
“What do you want?”
“Well, Mr. Agni, it appears that you have been asked to duel, and your opponent is I” Richie informed him.
“Would you kindly accept the challenge, oh great and mighty Agni?
Agni looked to Vartan, who shook his head.
“Ah, let the kid have some fun, old man. I’m not going to hurt him!” Richie placed his hand on Vartans back. He quickly took it off when Vartan looked him straight in the eye.
The kid sat there, conflicted. He carefully tried not to look at Vartan and instead stared at the ground.
Everyone quietly awaited his response. He caved into the pressure of all the eyes staring at him.
“ I’ll do it.”
They both got into positions away from each other. Crowds of people all began to gather around, eager to watch.
Agni stood still, waiting for Richie’s instructions.
“Would you like to attack first?!” Richie shouted in the distance.
“The honor is all yours!” Agni quickly responded. He waited for Richie to commence his first attack. The dirt around Richie began to levitate. His hand began to glow a faint yellow. The outlines of his veins could be seen from the intense light emanating from his fist. He raised his arm toward Agni, and a small beam shot out.
Although using wind spells was deeply detested and frowned upon, it was the easiest element to use when blocking all sorts of attacks. In response, Agni quickly threw his hands outwards, and a wave of wind shot out. Despite the quick reaction, he had not harnessed enough strength for a strong block. The energy beam passed through and knocked him to the ground.
Agni tried to recover his breath. Looking around at the people chanting, he noticed Vartan looking concerned. "I’m okay!” he shouted, still trying to recover his breath. He dusted off his black pants, which were now covered with dirt.
“Let’s go again!” he shouted to Richie, who kindly obliged.
Richie began to cast the same spell, and this time, Agni was able to block it. He counterattacked with a powerful beam of water that Richie effortlessly dodged. After the failed attack, the kid attempted to create a water orb and shot it before his opponent could regain footing.
Richie caught the orb and held it in his hand. The crowd went wild. People around the village were not used to seeing a top caster use his power.
He swiftly shot the orb back before Agni could shield himself and knocked him to the ground again.
Does this guy only know how to start with one spell? Agni thought to himself.
This time, he got up quickly. The side of his ribs throbbed in pain, but he could not let himself go down without at least one win. Richie started with the same attack, and Agni again deflected it with the wind. This time, he quickly tried an earth-based attack instead of using a water spell. As he began to channel, a fireball zoomed straight toward him. Panicked, he threw out his hands to block it but was too slow. It shot straight at him and knocked him down.
Agni’s face reddened with shame. He could hear the others telling him to call off the duel and be done with it.
“No, not after that.” he thought to himself.
Vartan could tell that Agni was taking it personally. He tried calming him down, knowing what he was about to do.
“Don’t you dare do it, kid!” he shouted.
“I told you!” he yelled, “I can control it!”
Richie got in position again, smirking as he saw Agni readying up for another round.
“I’ll give you props, kid. You sure can take an ass beating.”
Agni tried not to laugh sarcastically at the remark and chose instead to remain quiet. The rowdy crowd began to mock Agni as he prepared himself. He tried to block out their comments and focus on the fight. His hands began to tremble.
Everything around him grew completely quiet. Agni thought about throwing a fireball at Richie but was distracted by a group member who fell to the ground, trying to get a better view of the fight. Richie took the opportunity and shot a beam of water at Agni before he could recollect his thoughts.
Not even the most skilled casters could have reacted in time. As the beam reached Agni, it instantly evaporated from a sudden blast of fire surrounding him. His eyes began to glow with fire as the explosion subsided. Richie was not impressed and began to harness power for a water spell, but Agni quickly retaliated. He stretched out his hand, and a fire stream burst and engulfed Richie, who tried to shield himself but was overwhelmed.
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The rowdy crowd grew silent as they watched Richie yelling for help. Some began to storm into the field to help when Vartan stopped them.
“DO NOT GO INTO THE FIELD!” He shouted, “UNLESS YOU WANT TO BE INCINERATED.” At first, Vartan could not bring himself to harm Agni. He quickly realized the only way to stop him would be with a spell, but he did not want to hurt the boy.
While he continued overpowering Richie with fire, others began to panic and cast their spells to stop him, but all failed. The fire was too intense. Suddenly, Agni found himself in a bubble of water. His fire was so fierce that the entire area began to be filled with steam as the water was reinforced around him.
What’s happening? Where am I?
His thoughts raced through his head as he regained consciousness. He suddenly panicked and tried to swim off the bubble, but it followed his movements. The more he struggled, the heavier his arms felt, and the more impossible it was to escape.
His breath was beginning to run out; he would soon drown.
The bubble he was trapped in suddenly burst, and Agni fell to the ground, drenched in water.
He began coughing it out of his lungs and overheard Richie cursing him in the distance.
“WHAT THE FUCK AGNI….. WHAT DID YOU DO?”
His arm had been scorched black. He continued to yell in pain as the others tried to help him.
“I’m sorry, kid.”
Agni turned to see Vartan standing with his staff still glowing from the spell.
“Wh-wh-what happened?” he asked in confusion.
Vartan looked concerned, “Do you not know what you just did?”
The truth was…He didn’t. The boy tried to recollect his memory, but the only thing he could remember was being on fire. Vartan wanted to help him up, but Agni bolted into the woods.
The voices of the others slowly faded as Agni ran further away. Soon enough, it was too dark for him to see.
Agni tried to hold in tears as he heard Vartan yelling for him in the distance. “Agni, I’m sorry!”
He eventually gave up and returned to the camp.
"He will be back eventually," He reassured the others.
As the boy sat next to a tree, he faintly heard the familiar whispers calling out to him as he drifted off to sleep.
“Agniiii…….” it called out.
Once again, he finds himself in a familiar place. The howling wind sways the snow-covered trees. This time, however, he does not feel the ice-cold winds jagging at his skin. The snow on the ground begins to melt as his bare feet touch the surface. While he peacefully walks, he is startled by the sudden roar of a beastly creature. It echoes through the forest endlessly. He begins to look around in fear. He sees a shadow in the distance, standing about 40 feet away. The young kid tries to determine what it is, but the blizzard is blocking his vision.
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The ground trembles with each step the mysterious shadow takes toward him, shaking the snow off the trees. Pretty soon, it is close enough for Agni to see it. Its giant glowing eyes stare down at him.
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He wakes up in a cold sweat.
“I’m still dreaming,” he thinks to himself.
Looking around, he does not see much. He realizes he’s inside a cave as he approaches the rocky wall and hears the blasting wind on the other side. He illuminates his surroundings with a small flame and begins to wander around. A narrow path leads to a giant crystallized rock hovering above. He stares in disbelief. As he is about to lean in for a closer look, the mysterious crystal suddenly begins to glow. He hears the voice more intensely in his head.
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The ground begins to tremble, and the dream fades slowly. It takes the young boy a second to recollect his memory. He lies there for a moment, regaining his consciousness. Once he is fully awake, he begins to realize something.
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