Unknown

There it was again. I thought to myself. Feeling the ever so familiar tug that has been calling to me for over 11 years now. It has definitely gotten stronger.

“What’s gotten stronger, brother?” I hear the thoughts of my brother inside my mind. With a slight shake of my head I look across the table at him.

“Your shields are down you know.” He says a slight smirk across his face.

I snort quietly but make no effort to raise my mental shields. There’s no need at the present moment. It’s another peaceful morning. My brother and I sit across from each other at the grand table that I built. Around us several of our friends and companions are waking up and going about their morning rituals. It’s a familiar and peaceful scene to me.

Using the special telepathic connection I have my with my brother I say, “That’s the second time today that she’s called me.”

“Ah,” he says, “but what’s this about getting stronger? Surely something as trivial as this is nothing compared to the ‘Great Riros.’” The smirk on his face grows slightly larger as he eyes twinkle mischievously.

I take a sip out of the mug I’m holding, savoring the special brew, before replying, “Well its nothing more than a nagging feeling in the back of my mind, but it has grown over the years. It used to be just a small itch that you couldn’t quite scratch.”

My brother’s face turns more serious, the mischievous twinkle turning into a sharp piercing gaze. He leans forward resting his arms on the table. His own mug held in his hands. “Is it that time?”

I shake my head again, “Not quite, it would take her possibly the next 100 years in order to be more than a brief annoyance. But she has reached a point where if I were to respond, it would be very difficult to return.”

He takes a sip from his rug, “I still don’t understand how she was able to make such a connection in the first place. You said she was a small child when she first reached out to you.”

“She was,” I say interrupting his flow of thoughts, “I resisted the connection at first, but the constant cry for help was just something I couldn’t ignore.”

“You can’t save them all, Riros,” he says one last time before sitting back in his chair.

I’m not trying to, I think to myself, raising up some of my mental barriers and blocking out my brother from his intrusions. I sit there sipping on my mug, letting my own thoughts churn for the moment.

Fortunately today is an off day for me and the rest of the group of companions that my brother and I lovingly refer to as our “Crew”. So the day passes mostly uneventfully. There’s a few sparring matches with some of the rowdier members of the Crew. But for the most part everyone is relaxing in the grand hall that we call home.

With free time readily available I turn my thoughts toward myself and study the strange source of mana that has been pouring into me steadily over the past 11 years. Every day the source grows larger. Several discussions with my brother and others of the more magically inclined members of our family have led me to believe that she has tied up a significant portion of her mana pool in an attempt to actually summon me to wherever she is. The mana pool that she used to call me last time was pitiful compared to this, and as such she only ended up calling forth a fraction of my actual essence. Which was an interesting experience in itself..

This time though the amount of mana she has poured through our connection into me should be enough to actually pull all of me away from her. If I let her. The connection that she created seems to be similar to the one that my brother and I have, except that I also pick up on her emotions. Fortunately it seems that even the most simple of my mental barriers that I have in place prevent her from picking up on anything that I send out.

While I am contemplating the effects of the connection, I feel a growing sense of foreboding coming from the connection itself. Standing up quickly from where I was lounging I look to the other chair where my brother is relaxing. He looks up from the article he was reading and once his eyes meet mine, he understands.

All of a sudden I feel panic coming through the connection, and three words echo through my mind, I’m being attacked.

Nodding to my brother I stop resisting the call and close my eyes, letting all the girl’s mana that was coursing through me take over and I feel myself shift. Except this time I make sure all of me shifts. There is a distortion that happens around me, as if all my senses are being shifted and pulled in ways that they aren’t meant to, and then it is over.

I know it is over because I feel a faint breeze against my skin, and I can smell the familiar yet slightly off smell of grass and woods and plants. I open my eyes and find myself standing in a small clearing. It is night time outside, I’m standing in the middle of a pathway with some lights lighting up parts of the path. Off in the distance there is a hall of some kind full of life and I can hear faint echoes of chatter and people. Looking around me there is no sign of her.

Where is she? I think to myself.

I take a closer look at my immediate surroundings and see signs of a small scuffle. Also there is some kind of liquid splashed on the ground. It doesn’t appear to be blood. I dip one of my fingers and the liquid and take a small taste.

A disinfectant of some kind. I think, possibly to throw off someone’s tracks. I study the scene for a few more moments. Then I give a sigh. Looks like I’m going to have to try and locate her through the connection.

Duchess Kassari Stormcaller

Where is that child, I think to myself, she should have returned by now. Looking about the party it has gotten late enough that people are starting to trickle out. The whole night I had been fielding questions about where she had gone and I could only tell them that she had stepped out to get some fresh air. Of course not all those that wanted to see her had benign intentions. Speaking of which, one of those people are now approaching me. Although this one is definitely trouble.

A large giant of a man approaches. His pure white hair spilling over his shoulder and down his back. Vibrant green eyes stare at me intently. He is wearing a dark violet silk tunic with silk pants. Emblazoned above his left breast is the wrapped ivy strand of the Ivy Throne.

I wish that husband of mine was here, he would be able to take care of this situation. I think to myself, as Dolveran Carheim Wostrauss stops in front of me.

“Kassari Stormcaller,” he says using my rank rather than my title, “Where is your daughter?”

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“Dolveran Wostrauss, I am not sure, she may have retired for the eveni-” I am interrupted before I can even finish the sentence.

“Feh, why would she retire before she even has a chance to present herself to everyone?” He says waving one of his large arms as if to encompass the rest of the partygoers.

“You must understand Dolveran, that when a Stormcaller comes into their own power it can be a very taxing undertaking.” I say.

He lets out a huff of derision, “You call attacking the grandson of the Ivy Royalty a taxing undertaking? By the Throne’s woman. If I hadn’t trained my son in Whasshi-level barrier magic he would be nothing but a pulp against the door.”

By now tension was starting to grow in the hall itself. Wostrauss’s voice could be heard quite clearly, cutting through the burble of conversation. The hall grew quiet as many of the individuals waited to hear my response.

“I would hardly call that being smashed to a pulp. Your son’s friends seemed to be just fine and they had no barrier magic to protect themselves. I’ll admit that I had hoped for her to gain her powers in another fashion, but the Storm magic for which we get our name is one that is based on our emotions.” I say feeling the rising of my own frustration at the man before me. I could feel the movement of the air around me. A breeze started to ripple throughout the hall, while outside storm clouds gathered, hidden by the night sky.

Dolveran Wostrauss seemed to be feeding off the tension that was developing as he said, “So you’re saying that I should dismiss this outright attack against my son as nothing more than an emotional fancy? So if she were to attack and kill another, we should just dismiss it as nothing more than an emotional fit?”

He was winding himself up. This whole situation put him in his element. I knew that this was going to take a while, and the whole time he would be attempting to not only get me to capitulate but also to get the other individuals here to agree with him. He was always playing the politics.

Why do you have to be gone Darien. I think again.

In the middle of his tirade everyone stops. Everyone is frozen in fear. Even I myself feel small beads of sweat starting to trickle down my spine. Everyone here remembers this sense of dread and sense of powerlessness. Not even Wostrauss in front of me can move as I watch his eyes widen in surprise, and the fear take over his face. Even amidst my own fear I allow myself a small smile at seeing Wostrauss affected.

Three figures appear in our midst. Three flowing white robes flap at the winds my own fear is producing. One of the individuals, a shorter female with flowing black hair claps her hands together and almost immediately the pressure is lessened. I see what looks like a burning seal floating in the air before her, before my own view is obscured by another of the white robed figures.

I come to my senses to see standing before me the Cinder Royalty himself. His almost reddish almost black skin radiating warmth. I look up into his eyes as he takes his hand into mine. They are like glowing embers, ready to burst into flame at any moment. I hear his voice, he seems to be speaking to me, but I can’t tell what he’s saying. I try to focus on his words now that the menacing presence has lessened it comes to me easier.

“Valeria, I need you to control your emotions. Valeria hear my words. Valeria, I need you to hear me.” He is saying. Repeating the same phrases until finally he sees that I am understanding him.

As I do I finally hear the roaring of the air around me, the wind is coming in so fiercely that it has blown out the tall windows and is whipping all around us. I feel the storm outside as it is raging across the city, the elements having reacted to my own fear.

Nodding my head at him, I take my hand out of his and try to steady my own emotions. Slowly my breathing comes under control and the winds and pressure from outside fade to but a dull roar. The still present presence of powerlessness and fear preventing me from fully calming the storm down.

“Thank you Valeria,” The Cinder Royalty says to me, his tone reminds me of a more peaceful time, a time in which the Cinder Throne was but a glimmer of a dream in his eyes. A time when it was just three of us playing in the fields of the Cinder Lands.

Next to him Wostrauss is regaining himself. Seeing that the Cinder Royalty is standing before him talking to me, I watch as his face starts to heat up again, as he prepares to launch himself into a tirade

“If you will excuse me Your Royalty. But I have several grievances whi-”

The Cinder Royalty turns to face Wostrauss, and Wostrauss face turns back to the same pale it had earlier when the presence had arrived.

“Dolveran Wostrauss-vos, this is hardly the time or place for you to air your grievances. I expect you to hold your tongue until after the issue at hand is solved.” He says before turning back to me, “Valeria-vos I will need you to accompany the three of us as we move to the next step. Remember it will be important for you to remain in control.”

I nod my head hesitantly confused about why I must follow them, but before I can say anything the Cinder Royalty has already pulled me toward the other two Nelselphs. The black hair one I recognize as one of the Prior of the Onyx throne. She gives me a slight smile as she looks at me with her completely black eyes. The other individual I recognize almost immediately. He is the Prior to the Phoenix throne and arguably the most powerful individual alive in all of the Royalties of Eldesaria. His massive mane of bright red hair has streaks of gray running through it, and his eyes glow with a burning intensity which is completely startling after seeing the Cinder Royalties smoldering embers. He nods his head at me and with a clap of his hands teleports the four of us away from the hall.

Dralfey Altia

I wake up by falling out of the bench I was laying on. I hear the creak of floor boards above me. I try to sit myself up and find out two things. My hands and feet appear to be shackled together and I have a massive headache. Opening my eyes doesn’t help, because there’s nothing really to see. In the darkness that surrounds me I can only make out the vague shape of what looks like bars to my left and another shape that looks vaguely humanoid lying on a bench in front of me.

I try to remember how I got her and the only thing that seems to come to me through the fogginess and the pain is that Salaria and I were walking back to my family’s hall together. I heard Salaria stiffen in surprise and when I turned to look at her all I saw was a figure covered in black burst out of the underbrush towards Salaria. That figure hit her over the head with the butt of a dagger and then I myself was grabbed and…..and…….

Black, I think, Everything just goes black after that.

Looking around again I notice that my eyes seem to have adjusted a little better. Where exactly am I? Was I actually kidnapped? If so how did they get into the estate? So many questions, so little answers. My head is pounding. I feel something slick sliding down part of my face. I reach up touch it only to find that the moment I touch my face there is a searing pain throughout my head. Some of the liquid is on my finger and I give a tentative lick to taste it.

Blood.

That’s definitely not a good sign. Speaking of not a good sign, there’s something missing that I’m not understanding about the whole situation.

What is it that’s bothering me? It’s not the kidnapping is it? The more I think the more my head throbs. Leaning back against the bench I feel the cool stone against my back. I lie there for a little while longer trying to let the headache fade.

That’s when I my breath gets caught in my throat as this terrifying feeling of despair and powerlessness washes over me. My mind immediately remembers where this feeling is from. Eleven years ago comes flashing back immediately and I find myself as the same small child lying in her bed woken up by this presence. Unable to breathe or speak, only my heart beats echo in the ensuing quiet. I recall that feeling even now as my head is pounding in sync with the beat of my heart. Everything is quiet. Too afraid to even move I just lie there, every muscle in my body locked and the pounding in my head the only terrible constant against the unbearable pressure. One question resounding throughout my head, Why? Why is it back?

Only vaguely does it register that there are noises upstairs. The pounding is too much the fear is everywhere, all-encompassing soaking down into my very being, slowly ever so slowly I feel myself succumbing and everything starts to fall into darkness, true darkness, not the faint darkness that I am surrounded with.

There’s a touch on my shoulder. The pressure is gone instantly but the pounding remains, there’s so much relief that I let out a gasp as my body begins to try and breathe. My lungs greedily suck in as much air as they can and I swallow my own saliva and choke. Coughing, my lungs spasm and I fall forward. I stick my hand out and brace myself on the ground.

Wait. Wasn’t I shackled a moment ago? How come my hands and feet are free?

I open my eyes and everything around me seems to be glowing. I can tell that it is still dark outside and I can feel what I assume is dried blood now cake on my face. But why is everything glowing. I notice a glow even about myself as if some of what is glowing is being expelled by me.

Getting control of coughing, I breathe in deeply as the burning in my lungs starts to fade. I shift back and push my hair out of the way. I stop again frozen in place.

Squatting before me is an abyss. An unfathomable well of darkness. Even the faint glow that seems to be floating around and is coming off of me is being absorbed and devoured by this entity in front of me. The feeling of despair and helplessness starts to creep back in as the entity shifts and I meet its eyes.