Tia:

Continuing…

Tia's head still throbbed a little, and she was already dreading the idea of having to return. The new environment and scenery of the city hardly distracted her from the headache.

Green Lily Inn was quite cozy. She followed her parents inside, two other groups of what looked like only men sat eating and drinking merrily.

The room was dimly lit as evening settled in, torches on wooden walls separated by windows that viewed into the Shallows.

In its center, it had two long tables and chairs that sat parallel like a mess hall, with a bar on its left and stairs opposite the main entrance that Tia assumed led to the rooms. Tore approached the barkeep, who stood behind the bar,

“I was told we had the building to ourselves.” His tone was gruff and serious,

“It was that way, but a new party joined at the last moment, I would have informed you but you were late.” The barkeep tried to assure the large man.

Tore peered at him much like he had the strange man in red, Ayther.

“I don’t want interruptions. If my family complains once, I see that I should hold you responsible?” He asked, putting his palm on the bench. The wooden top creaked from the pressure.

“On my name, Tarvis, I promise we will accommodate all your needs.”

The man's face had a smile only a sly businessman could obtain, a shrewd expression Tia remembered vividly from her days moving up the chain in the scientific scene. He was of decent build with a comically large spruce moustache that swirled at either end, yet he still paled in size to Tore. Whose shadow loomed over the barkeeps tightly-fit black button-down shirt.

Satisfied with his reaction, Tore takes a key offered by the barkeep and lets up on the counter, leaving a slight handprint indent on the wooden top. Tarvis, who hadn’t reacted to any of Tore's intimidation, made a slightly puzzled expression, but it faded just as quickly.

Tia titles her head, analyzing the marking on the counter. Strangely, she could sense Mana running through the woods on the bar. The lines of mana read similarly to the protection spell his mother had cast.

Tore turned away from Tarvis and began walking towards the stairs, Hera silently following behind him.

The room was still abuzz with noise. The other patrons, now that she could get a better look, were filthy in comparison to the other citizens she had seen; ragged clothes and dirt on their skin.

She reasoned that these were residents of the shallows and that the shallows must be an impoverished region of the city, and that was probably their motivator in their criminal actions.

She hurriedly walked behind her mother and waved to Tiago to follow suit as he walked to look out the windows.

Tiago turned and walked over slowly, a quizzical look on his face.

“What's the matter with you?” Tia asked,

“Nothing.” he shrugged,

He brushed past her and walked up the stairs. ‘God, he's a weirdo’, She thought to herself as they walked up the stairs.

The inn only had 12 rooms down one large hallway. Tore put a key in a door in the hallway center, number 6. Then, he turned to Tiago and threw a room key to him. Tiago catches it easily, reading the number 7 on its face. The room was parallel to the one his father had opened.

“That’s the room you and Tia will stay in. I suggest ye get ready for sleep now.”

Tiago nodded his head and walked over to the door, turning the key in its lock, it clicked, and slowly, the door swung open. Tiago walked in, Tia following closely behind.

She looked around the room, and as she was about to walk past Tiago, he put his arm out. Not reacting in time, she bumped into it. Almost falling backward.

“What was that for?!” she demanded,

“I’m gonna investigate the room.” He didn’t even look in her direction.

Instead, he started searching the room. The room had a small window opposite its entrance, with two beds two its left and right and a chest for clothing in its center.

Tiago began slowly, frisking through the room. Beginning with the beds. Tia stared at him blankly. She knew he had been told he had to watch out for her during this trip, but this felt excessive.

“You know, if I were in danger, Father wouldn’t let us stay here.”

Tiago ignored her, opening the chest and feeling its bottom. Tia sighed and took a step left to sit on the bed when Tiago put his hand out suddenly, signalling her not to move. She let out a snort of derision, folding her arms. Tiago moved on from the chest to the right bed.

Tia then got a fantastic idea, she unfolded her arm and faked a yawn, raising her arm and imbuing mana into a familiar pattern. Her arm outstretched, she smiled, parting her lips.

“Water torrent.”

Tiago, hearing these words, snapped his attention onto Tia as a small blue ring appeared above his head, a bucket's worth of water gushed downwards, but Tiago was too quick. He quickly rolled forward, changing the angle of the ring. The water blasts forward towards Tiago, who is crouching in front of Tia. He springs into the air off his crouched leg into a backflip. The water completely misses its target and douses Tia in water. Tiago lands softly on his feet, a stupid grin plastering his face.

She raised her drenched arms, a scowl across her face.

“Guess your first in the shower,” he sneers,

She turned slowly, swearing revenge in her head.

Opposite the window was a small room that jutted inwards from the bedroom door. This room was a shower and bathroom,

After getting dressed from her shower, she exited the bathroom. Still drying her hair with a towel, she finds Tiago with a small coil in hand, tying it across the bedroom door.

“What’s that for?”

“It's a surprise tool that will help us later.”

She stopped drying her hair, frowning at him with disappointment. ‘Is this guy serious?’ she thought.

Tiago finished tying off its end, pulling on it to secure it tightly. Standing up and admiring his work. Tia rolled her eyes and turned away, walking to her bed.

Hopping into its sheets, she hears the bathroom door open and the shower turn on. She yawns. For real this time, her headache had faded in the shower. The ride had really fatigued her. Her eyes felt heavy as sleep slowly entered her mind.

“For you a Nobel prize, Alisha Silver. Congratulations, with your work on liquid energy, the future is secure in your capable hands.”

Flashes of light of cameras on all sides, she stood before the podium. She had finally achieved it, something to live up to her family's legacy. She basked in her own glory, when suddenly shes ripped from the stage.

She now stood in front of her family home, the door opening itself with a creak. The whole home was ergonomic and environmentally friendly. Her old parents stood at the door, their lab coats and glasses on. Their arms open for an embrace; she stepped forward. She still had so much ambition, so many goals.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

‘You’ve done it. Now, there's nothing in your way.” A voice from behind her.

She knew that voice; Ashton Silver, her brother, stood behind her, still in his teens. He looked just as he always did, a little cheeky, and always a little sad.

Tia smiled triumphantly, straightening herself. Suddenly, her legs felt weak, and she fell down to her knees. She stared down at her hands, which had started shaking violently.

She sat no longer in her home but in the dark facility room. A gun planted squarely on her forehead. Her lips trembled. She felt fear.

Her brother now stood above her, arm raised,

“You failed, and now what? All that you have left behind was for nothing.”

His voice was cold, emotionless. He tightened his hand on the grip, pulling the trigger slowly, she winces. The pistol then flashed.

Tia screamed, sitting up straight, holding herself in a cross. Tiago leaped out of his bed, eyes scanning the room rapidly, and walked backwards towards her as he approached her bed.

“What's wrong?” he asked,

His attention was flying around the dark room. She couldn’t see anything.

“Nothing, I just had a bad dream…It really was nothing.” She slowed her breathing, she hadn’t even realized she was hyperventilating, she was panicked, a lot more than she expected.

“Whatever you say.” Tiago said, relaxing a little, walking towards the door.

“Where are you going?”

He opened the door quietly. Not even a creak. Light spilled in from the hallway torches.

“Just confirming something.” He closed the door behind him.

Tia, stared towards where the door was, her eyes readjusting to the darkness. It was very dark, and the room felt far emptier without Tiago there. Was she lonely? She had never felt it before.

She started to wonder about Tiago, if it really was her brother that night. Did he kill her?

She lay down deep into the covers of her bed. Holding on to the tops tightly, and closed her eyes again. Hoping to forget everything she had just eend and sleep soundly this time.

Her eyes fluttered open, bright morning light filled the room through the window. No dream this time.

She turned her head to find Tiago had already left. His bed left perfectly made. She got out of bed slowly, taking her time to get ready, noticing Tiago had left a magical training book at the foot of her bed, this makes her feel a little better. Eventually making her way downstairs.

Tiago was already feasting away at a rather large roasted lamb. Her admiration towards him quickly disappeared.

She politely asked for the tavern speciality, a sweet soup made with an assortment of locally grown herbs. It had a familiar taste as a few of the herbs were sourced from their small fiefdom.

She listened in as Tore talked to Tiago about the events of the sword competition.

“It's a fantastic show of power and sportsmanship among trainees and adventurers alike,” Tore rambled on,

“A great learning experience for you, I promise.”

“Will I see other Mana arts?” Tiago asked, talking between mouthfuls.

“Aye, but more commonly than that, you’ll see elemental magic with a hint of swordsmanship.”

Tiago looked confused by this response. But Tia understood,

“Basically magical fire power is typically the winning factor.” Tia interjected,

“Exactly, so I'm hoping we break through this barrier of yours because going in magicless is suicide.” Her father tried to sound hopeful.

She never understood how Tiago was struggling with Mana, she could feel and see that he had just as much mana passing through them as her. But when she observes him try and cast a spell, it's like the mana doesn’t even register that he exists and ignores all input.

She frowns, not much anyone can do about that. Forcing the procedure with sword arts seems to work.

Tia had been practicing a lot of different spells and had developed a basic understanding of Earth, Fire and Water, but wind wasn’t commonly used outside of artificer technology. This was a limiting factor.

Whilst being lost in thought she didn’t notice her mother signalling to her, she stood quickly and walked to her.

Her mother spoke to Tia in a low tone, just out of Tiagos earshot

“Your father and I are going to our meeting straight after breakfast, but when we return you and I will go shopping and I have a young lorde for you to meet.”

Tias' heart sank, she was only 8 there's no way she had already been decided on who to marry off to, she cannot be serious.

Hera noticing her less than ecstatic reaction attempts to assure her,

“It is merely a meeting between friends, his mother is a friend of mine and she believes you would get along,”

Tia was hardly convinced, she may be in a child's body but her brain is functionally almost perfectly she had outgrown her body's uncontrollable emotional responses, this “meeting” was the deplorable act of adults trying to set up their kids. She feigns a smile, but she can hardly hide her bitterness. A small twitch on her lips being the only giveaway.

After eating breakfast, her parents hurriedly left the tavern, Tia wasn’t in any rush. She was still mulling over her afternoon plans whilst poking at a mushroom in her bowl.

Tiago had finished even before her parents and had begun another day of oddities. Beginning by searching the entire room, every nook and cranny.

Eventually the barkeep decided he had enough and began attempting to reassure him that nothing was wrong. Obviously Tiago didn’t listen, and just stared at the poor man like he was a suspect. The barkeep smile was a hairpin away from a scowl. Tia didn’t blame him.

She then went off back to their room, shutting the door behind her and jumping onto her bed covers, opening a book she had left on its top, flipping through the pages of Tiagos spell training book Tore had brought for him.

Stopping on the page she was looking for, ‘Fireball beginner level offensive magic’. Her eyes shone with enthusiasm. It was her first spell that she could use to actually protect herself, she didn’t need some idiotic twin brother to protect her anyway.

A line pointing downward the mana bends at its bottom shooting left. She traced the air with her finger.

She had discovered a few more fundamental rules that she hadn’t previously realized. She already knew the symbols were consistent and recurring, working as a sort of magical alphabet. She would spell the word and the spell would activate.

However each symbol needed to act as an enclosed circuit, most mages would use mana circles and drawn symbols but this was already unnecessary to her. As long as she practised she could just close the circuits in her mind.

She moved her finger up again, curving the line right and back across itself left she then swiped her finger right. The mana narrowly missed its beginning circuit. The mana losing its strength and dissipating.

She sighed, another failed attempt. Realistically she didn’t really want to summon a fireball on her bed anyway, she turns to her left and points her finger at Tiagos bed picturing the beginning of the spell in her head again.

Tiago then busted through the door. Staring at her blankly with her hand raised in a finger gun, his puzzled expression makes Tia embarrassed and she drops her arm,

“What do you want?” She asked, crossing her arms.

“Nothing, just making sure you’re ok.”

Tia rolled her eyes,

“I’m fine, nothing is going to happen.” her voice filled with irritation.

“Ok well be careful in the hallway stay left,”

Tia raised an eyebrow as Tiago slowly walked out of the room, slowly shutting the door quietly

“Why?” She asked,

He stops to respond to her,

“I've set up trip wires and door traps.”

Her jaw drops,

Tiago turns to see her surprise.

“What?” He asks her, seemingly puzzled by the idea of it being strange to set up traps in an inn.

“Other people are staying here right now you know!?”

“Exactly,” He says, stepping back into the room and closing the door behind him.

“And they have neither come down to breakfast, nor left their rooms all morning. Additionally I checked the rooms they were supposed to be in and most were empty.”

He spoke quietly as if to not be heard from outside the room.

“Except two at the end of the hallway. They are magically locked. Why do they have magical locks when we don’t?”

She stared back at him, processing the information.

“Why didn’t you tell father?” She asked,

“I wanted to but the bartender was glaring at me the entire time and I don’t know what they’re capable of.”

She didn’t like this one bit. If their father couldn’t do anything she sure as hell couldn’t.

She opens her mouth to say something but stops suddenly as Tiago raises his finger to his lips. Signalling her to be quiet.

Footsteps can be heard faintly creaking slowly down the hallway. What the hell was she going to do?