“...bizarre. I can’t help but feel…oh, Ru! Is there something you need, dear?” Rune’s mother was in the middle of a conversation with his father before she noticed him enter his father’s study room.
“Congratulations on your rise to Warder, my boy. I’m proud of you!” Rune’s father said from behind the pile of paper on his table. His smile seemed strained, and his eyes looked tired. It reminded him of the time the famine had struck major parts of the province and his father had toiled away, conducting meetings, consulting other provinces and sleeping and eating very little.
Rune gave his parents a small bow. He could sense something was bothering his parents.
“Have you decided on a suitable Auraweaver guard I can take with me to the Party?” Rune didn’t question the air around his parents. If they wanted to tell him what was troubling them, they would do it without him asking for it. And had it been something of significant concern, he would have heard it from his guards.
Rune’s parents didn’t reply. They looked at each other and he could tell that they were exchanging words through their eyes. It couldn’t be worse than a ‘No’, right? There was time until the Party and he could join his father in looking for suitable candidates.
“About that,” Rune’s mother started as she nervously looked between him and his father, “We won’t be participating this year.”
What? Won’t be participating?
“The Hawthorne family has been summoned to the Capital. We’ll be leaving in a week,” Rune’s father informed.
“On such short notice? Why? Has something happened? Are the other families called in too?” Rune found himself taking a seat on an armchair. He didn’t think he could have this conversation standing up.
“We don’t know why. I reckon it has to do with the Draconyx rebels. Although, they hardly pose a threat. If only the Emperor would put in the proper effort….”
Draconyx rebels. Rune recalled hearing about them in the council meetings that his father conducted. That was all he knew, their name, as he’d spent most of the meeting aloof and lost in thought.
“We aren’t being called in to take care of them, are we? Why us of all the other families? If the Emperor wants to clear these threats, why not ask the Ashenforge or Auralith family? They rank higher than us.”
“We are just assuming here, Rune. We do not know why and the only way to find out is to heed the summon. You should start packing.”His father paused, looking at him. “Or not. You can stay back.”
“I don’t want to stay back. I want to go to Valentine’s Party. All my friends are eligible to participate now. I rose to Warder too! If I don’t attend then the next time would be in 5 years and I can’t wait that long!” Rune was internally preparing himself to fight with his parents. He was confident in convincing his mother but his father would protest strongly and-
“Fine. You can go. But Solario and Luna would go with you,” His father softened his stance as he rubbed his temples.
Rune blinked.
“What? Don’t look at me like that. We didn’t want to bring you to the Capital. It’s crawling with Sentinels and all the corrupt elements. Neither did we want to leave you alone here. Even with Solario and Luna guarding you, it was a risky gamble. At least at Valentine’s, you would be surrounded by people we know.”
Rune could hug his father. When he paid attention to his shoulders, he hadn’t realised that his body had gone rigid in preparation for an ugly verbal battle with his father. He let out a shaky breath and hugged his mother instead. She patted him on the back and in that moment, Rune was glad to be born to his parents.
“But wait. What about an Auraweaver guard or any Auraweaver? Who will I be pairing up with for the Party?” Rune said as he stepped back from his mother and turned towards his father. He already had Solario and Luna but they were Sentinels and hence he couldn’t pair up with either of them.
“There’s no rule that says you must participate in pairs. It’s just how it has always been done,” his father said and judging by the tone, Rune could tell that he had had enough questions for the day and anymore and Rune would only get vague, short replies as answers.
“I do agree that going to Valentine’s party solo is daunting and might feel a bit peculiar, but don’t underestimate the growth and experience it can bring. Who knows what surprises await?” Rune’s mother added with a smile.
Rune could see why his parents were married to each other.
He considered their words and with each growing second, found the prospect more and more appealing.
“Done. I’ll go solo.”
***
The towers of the small castle that sat on the Airship shot into the sky, ready to scrape the clouds. Rune stood a few feet away as workers gathered around the ship, readying it for flight. He observed a group of workers carrying big olive sails towards the ship, a group that replaced planks with new ones, a group that carried papers and checked the controls and so on. All in all, the Grim Spectre was being prepared to carry him and his guards to Valentine’s party. He buzzed with excitement and could feel it building up in his body. Rune decided to take a walk to shrug off the excess energy.
He spotted his father, a looming figure of power and authority, talking with Rune’s two guards, Solario and Luna. Rune’s father bested the two Auraweavers in height as he towered over them. Rune could tell he was giving them instructions about the Party and how to protect him as Solario and Luna listened with rapt attention. Had it only been Solario his father was talking to, Rune couldn’t have guessed what they were talking about as the Auraweaver always observed the world with a serious and stoic expression. Luna, however, was the opposite of him. She took life in stride and her solution to most problems was brute force. She only wore a formal demeanour when she was being addressed by Rune’s parents or any other family member who was higher in ranking.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
Rune decided to join them.
“...his guards. Ah, there’s my boy,” Rune’s father beamed as Solario and Luna turned to look at him.
“Are you ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be, Father,” Rune said as he stood beside his father.
Rune had unfortunately not inherited his father’s height. He was still two heads shorter than him. Even Solario stood only a head’s difference from his father and Luna was about the same height as Rune. It used to bother him in the past, but Rune had long overcome it. Height didn’t matter if one had the skills.
“Good, good. We’ll be leaving shortly after you. Do you like the new Airship?” Rune’s father asked as he looked at Grim Spectre with workers all over it like ants in an anthill.
“It’s neat. Could have used a better name though.”
“You think so?” Rune’s father said and judging by his tone Rune could tell that his father did not agree and nothing would change his mind.
“It is a week’s travel. If all goes well you might even reach in 5 days. What are you planning on doing while travelling?”
“Training with Solario and Luna. I just recently became a Warder. My friends have been at that level for months now and must have a good grip on their new abilities. I need to hone mine.”
“As you should. Now, I’ll go join your mother. She demanded I help her with what we’ll be wearing when in the Capital. I will never understand that woman. Wouldn’t what we wear here suffice?” Rune’s father sighed before he bid the three of them goodbye and left.
Rune turned towards his two guards. Luna slumped her shoulders which she’d squared in the presence of his father while Solaria’s stance remained the same, stoic and serious. Rune stared at the inkwork featuring a sun that took up the entire space of Solario’s forehead and wondered if it would crinkle if the man broke his rigid expression.
“Hey, Solario. Why do you have that particular inkwork on your forehead again? I forgot why.” Rune blushed sheepishly as he waved at them to start walking.
“It’s the mark of my family, young master. The Sunslaver family,” Solario said, unbothered by the fact that Rune had forgotten this part of him.
“It’s funny considering your Dark affinity. Your family uses Dark Aura and yet you have the sun in your name,” Luna commented as she pranced around Solario. The duo looked like a sulking grandmother who was out on a walk with her zealous, five-year-old granddaughter.
Rune droned out Luna’s voice as she drove into mindless chatter. He almost felt bad for Solario who had to spend the most time alone with her. Solario looked like it didn’t bother him as usual. The man’s face didn’t betray anything.
As the three of them walked out of the Airship hangar, Rune pooled Natural Aura into his eyes. The world transitioned into swirling patterns of different colours in response. The Grim Spectre was a bland, dark spot in his vision, the ship’s body stripped bare of its normal colours leaving behind a dark husk. This time tomorrow the Airship would be a blazing body of gold and grey in the air instead as it would carry him to his destination. Solario and Luna too were bland spots on a dark background as they had tight veils around their Aura cores preventing any Aura leakage. Rune himself could hide his Aura presence but his skill needed honing. It was nothing but crude compared to the skills of his two Auraweaver guards and his parents.
“Young master, I’d like to remind you that now that you’re a Warder, you can use the Mirror,” Solario reminded.
Rune’s mouth hung open in realisation and he briskly fished out a palm-sized, ornate mirror and levelled it to his face. The decorative frame featured miniature Arcanebeasts and flowers and vines in a unique blend. The woodwork was smooth to the touch and the mirror was enchanted to prevent scratches and damage. In Rune’s Aura sight, the mirror was yet another dark, lifeless spot but as he channelled Natural Aura into the object, guiding it from his hands into the handle, swirling patterns of white Aura bloomed like flowers in it and travelled upward into the frame that held the mirror. Inside, as Rune’s senses informed him, were 4 different artefacts embedded just behind the mirror in an orderly fashion and each one was different from the other. They too were dark, lifeless spots on a dark background. When his father had given this mirror to him, he’d explained that the 4 tiny, cube-like artefacts each had 3 siblings. These siblings were put in other mirrors like the one he was holding and given to certain people.
Rune’s eyes started to strain under the effects of his Aura sight and he had to let go. The last thing he’d seen before the world reverted to its original colours was that as the White Aura snaked into the mirror, it split into three tendrils and entered the 3 tiny artefacts. The artefacts had gained a White glow and something had snapped into place.
As he eagerly peered into the mirror, Solario guided Rune by the elbow to sit down on a bench laid out in the garden. The garden? When had they gotten there? Rune’s eyes widened as the mirror’s surface turned ethereal white and a few seconds passed before a familiar face started to become visible and the white glow started to fade.
When the white glow wholly disappeared, a young man with black hair stared back through his hooded eyes.
“Rune!” Mavros Auralith exclaimed warmly.
“Mavvy!” Rune couldn’t control the laughter that spilt out of him.
Both friends spent a minute laughing before Rune cupped his smile with his palm in an attempt to banish the mirth.
“So, finally a Warder, huh? I knew you could do it,” Mavros stated proudly, the ghost of a smile lingering on his lips.
“Thank you for believing in me, Mav,”
“I always did. Now, when are you leaving for Valentine’s? The others have already left as they live further away than us. We will be leaving tomorrow,” Mavros said as he positioned his own mirror against something out of sight and sat back on a chair.
The others had left already? That explained why the mirror only connected to just Mavros and not the others as it should have. Travelling restricted the reach of the mirror.
“I’ll be leaving tomorrow as well. Where’s your brother? I had expected Cassian to be the one to answer and not you.”
“Cass is away. He’s been living with this girl’s family for a week now. Her parents are completely enamoured with him. My parents think he’ll marry this one, but I know he won’t. It’s just another chase for him,” Mavros sighed, bearing the entire burden of his brother’s antics. “Forget that. How does being a Warder feel?”
“It’s so new! There are so many subtle changes!” Rune began.
Solario and Luna stood behind the bench, smiling at the innocence of their young master as he explained his observations animatedly to his friend.