I reawakened on a bed of grass lined in dew. My side felt sore as my stolen catalyst was stashed at the side I had slept on, so I drew it out to massage where it had left a mark. The catalyst was shaped like an uppercase T, about a foot in height. The two arms curved upward, topped by a floating eye, like the construct that tried to cast magic on me. The bottom was pointed, as if meant to stab with, though I knew it was not the primary function of this weapon. Now that I had the time and light, I stored it in my backpack. The eye seemed to stare at me, giving me all the more reason to stow it away. I could see the Deadlands behind me, and now that the sun was out, finding the way north to my Kingdom would be an easy task.
Glancing up through a hole in the trees, I saw something float overhead. I followed it, going directly north, almost hitting a tree as I gazed upwards. I ran in the direction I thought it was heading, as it veered out of the way of oncoming trees. I barely got a glimpse of it, though it was purple in colour. It looked like something black was trailing behind like a set of ribbons, though they were too thin to see what they really were.
Hunger was slowing me down, as little as I wanted to admit it. I stopped briefly to conjure some icy mist into my mouth to drink. Looking up, I saw the flying creature and realized it had turned slightly in midair, much more sharply than I thought it could. The purple mass flew out of my range of vision, its speed like a taunt to my lack thereof. I could see mostly plains, though a house in the line of trees caught my attention.
Over what felt like an hour, I slowly made the painful walk there, knocked on the door and did my best to look presentable. From inside, I heard a confused shout before the door opened a crack, only one blue eye visible.
"Who are you?" His voice was like running a bar of gold over a sheet of gravel.
Keeping my mind together, I responded, "Vienna the hungry."
He thought for a second, with eye half-closed. "Vienna? That's hardly a common name for a beggar. And what is anyone doing out here?"
I fell forward a little, at the accusation. "I'm on the way home from a quest. I was sent to kill the dark mage, Vyl--"
The door swung fully open. "Then come in! He's given me far too much trouble as well."
The house was simply laid out, most of it a single room that was as large as the room I slept in at home, furnished with a bed, a table and a bench. I looked back, to see who I had just walked past, but I didn't see much of anything at all. His dark cape covered most of his form, and with the hood down I could only see his eyes. His hair was short and black, a studded black mask of tough cloth covering the bottom half of his face. What little I could see of his clothing was of similar materials, mostly cloth and leather. "I don't have much, but I'll be right back."
He slipped through the door like sand through a tightly gripped fist. I waited on the bench at the wooden table, looking out the window in thought. I had only a few questions, the first being how this black-armored man was so quickly accepting of me. His enmity with Vylath was evident, though the reason was beyond me. Niko had simply spoken of the power of his catalyst, and sent me on a two-day mission to retrieve it. I realized in my haste to fulfill the challenge, I had not asked for payment, only desiring to be a part of this exceptional group.
Vuldeem had opened my eyes. My magic was different from most on a fundamental level, and further understanding of magic fell short to experience. The man returned, and while his black cloak was stained a dark red, my focus shifted to the two chickens he was carrying and their feathers of a similar colour. I turned my head to look, not moving from my seat. "Did you just steal those?"
"Close enough." He threw them down on the smooth stone countertop in his small cooking area, using a knife built for combat to cut the chickens apart. "They ran away. They thought they could peck my eyes out. They were wrong." His words were simple, like Osseous, but hid a layer of intelligence. His language was straightforward, as if he hardly had time to be social.
"Who are you?" I tried to make conversation as I watched him efficiently cut chunks of meat off the bones, throwing them into a wide metal bowl fastened to a shaft.
"Shikasu. Assassin for the Knight. He gave me a job, told me to come here. Wanted Vylath dead." With a stone and a piece of metal, Shikasu lit a flame under the bowl, pieces of chicken lining it to slowly cook inside. Shikasu turned his head towards me to ask a single critical question. "You did kill him, didn't you?"
I laughed slightly. "If a tower collapsing on him won't kill him, I don't know what will."
I could see Shikaku's eyes widen. "The tower's gone? That's not my style of work. They'll think it was some outside force, but the Knight will have gotten what he wanted."
"The Knight?" My curiosity was intensifying. "What Lord does he serve?"
"He is his own Lord. Lord of The Realm of Void," came the answer, sounding as cold as the world he spoke of. I sat there in silence until the meal was cooked. Shikasu produced two plates, sliding his mask off to eat. What I could see of his skin was pale, most likely due to lack of sun.
I ate much faster than would be befitting a noble, but I was hungry. I then rose from my seat, now having the energy to keep going. "That's all I'll need, thank you."
"Good luck," he replied, closing the door behind me as I left. Formalities didn't seem like his type of language.
I walked on, ever closer to my Kingdom. I carried nothing to eat, hoping I could return home on what food I had in my stomach. Once again, over my head flew a few more purple spots, all heading in the same northern direction as I.
One of them flew low to the ground, still faster than I was walking. As it approached, I could see it was carrying a strange, elongated furry creature, much like a large ferret. Its fur was the black, shiny colour of polished lead. Four pairs of spider legs uncurled from its sides, each set separated by two tentacles that stuck out at its sides like snakes. It fell, rolling as it hit the ground. As it rose to stand at its full height of two feet, and spinning around to face me, I could see a large single eye on its face, no mouth in sight.
It reared up, tentacles folding in. I stuck my rapier out, pointing it directly at the jumping ferret-like creature. It cleared my rapier, all eight legs walking up it with precision. I was thankful I had my dagger, running a slash right along the blade. An inch closer and I would have been sharpening it. The dark creature fell off, and I lunged down and stabbed towards the ground. I heard a sharp squeak, rapier sliding through its lung.
"Who knew something this decorative could be this functional?" I thought, using my long coat to clean off the dark purple blood that looked like it was flecked with gold inside, though most likely it was something else entirely. I kept walking, seeing more of the purple dots converge. I almost raised my hand for an ice shard, deciding against the sudden provocation. Instead I focused my ice magic inwards, creating a mist of ice inside my stomach. My thirst vanished. Another unidentified creature swooped low. flying ever lower, to the point where I could see from its purple form, thin black strands, acting as arms, setting a rock on the ground. The rock opened, its four corners extending like arms and legs, a single eye flashing into place as it got into formation. This small stone golem walked towards me, fast enough to be a threat, but not too fast for me to dodge around past its side. I stored up internal power with a fleeting memory of talking to Alinda in the halls on the way from class to class. I didn't remember the day it was on, but I strongly remembered the event Itself.
My hand felt charged with ice, small spikes of it forming on the sides of my hand, and I conjured it inside the golem. It slowed, something obviously wrong inside its rock form, before the central stone cracked in half. The eye rune fizzled out, and the golem was no longer a threat to me. I felt much more powerful to deal with any threat, with magic I had discovered not even a week ago.
My Kingdom's walls were standing as they should be, in spite of the approaching siege. The flying purple dots just stopped, floating in place which allowed me passage to inside the walls. The Kingdom's Entrance Guards looked more heavily armed and armored today. Four halberdiers stood guard, two on each side, backed up by a duo of archers. None of them said anything, simply allowing me to pass. I walked on in silence until I heard my own name called. I turned my head up, and saw Xaaven looking down from the top of the wall. "What is it?" I shouted upwards, confused as to what any of the Wizards were doing here.
"Good, you're back! Bramwell needs you at the castle," called Xaaven.
"The castle?" I thought, "Has he really become royalty?" I ran, sensing the urgency. No doubt Xaaven saw my intended direction. I passed at least five Castle Guards, one of them a full-fledged knight. Being the largest building in the city, the castle was easily observed, and I could see both Tenka and Beatrice on the top of it. Tenka was in more armor this time, a short curtain of chain mail on her free left arm. Her right hand was empty, though a scabbard for a curved blade was at her side. They were positioned over the gateway, on either side of the drawbridge, supported by archers. A phalanx of armored guards, mostly carrying maces and halberds, lined the path. Seeing the King's regal red carpet extended before me, I thought, "Finally, I can see my King."
The armor he wore was a deep crimson, banded in black interlocking plates. While being royalty, his crown was a mere silver circlet with a large ruby stone set into the front. The weapon at the side of his throne was far more imposing: a 9-foot pike of mystical-looking red metal. A flag, much like a banner, flew just below its head, a vivid orange flame on a background of deep red. Its edges were rimmed with gold strips, somehow woven into the fabric of the flag, and its head looked off-white in colour, as if it was made of bone. The edges were serrated, merely held on with a metal casing, a smithing technique I had seen with no other weapon. King Erlic sat on his throne, eyes wide open through his helm. I knelt before him, as a knight or noble should do for a King, stating my intentions in plain speech. "I'm here for Bramwell."
Silently, the King pointed a gauntlet-covered hand. I followed its path, towards some downward stairs. A door was open, and I could hear Bramwell's inspiring voice rise from a room below.
"Vienna? I thought you had died out there. Do join us."
I turned down the stairs and into the room below, and sat down beside Niko. Bramwell was seated on a large carved chair at the head of a wooden table with a select group of nobles around him, as might be expected for one of his ambition. Sitting next to Bramwell, Niko sat on the other side of me, simply observing.
"I have been chosen by the King as the Kingdom's military commander in the wake of the attack by these creatures. Soon after you departed for the catalyst, scouts reported purple creatures floating around. Too quickly, they occupied Tirwood. We failed to liberate it, as they seemed to resist magic. We have too many captives, including someone who looked like he might be another user of a bizarre magic, almost like yours."
This was a lot to take in, with little hope of interruption. I felt guilt for the first time in my adventures, for simply taking Magicbane and not recovering Vylath's catalyst fast enough. I swallowed, concealing my guilt with hope. I slid my pack off, placing the catalyst on the table. "I have it here now. This catalyst was a challenge to acquire, as burying a dark Mage under his own tower was no easy task."
Niko picked it up and looked it over. "This is exactly as I imagined it." He carefully pocketed the catalyst. "Thank you, Vienna. I'd reward with a book of magic to those who completed this challenge, but you hardly seem like the type to learn anything from one of those.
"We have little time," Bramwell sharply cut in, "and we need a way to deal with the enemy overhead. You've proven your competency, Vienna, so I ask for your help once again, to capture one of the creatures. Niko has theorized about these creatures."
Niko nodded in agreement. "By dissecting one of the floating creatures, we could gain knowledge of their source of levitation, and we'd like you to test the result, Vienna, as the only one of us deserving enough." Even though only Niko spoke, and Bramwell had no part in this order, I felt compelled to obey.
"On my way." I got up from the wooden chair, focused on my goal. Halfway across the room, I felt a hand on my shoulder. This slowed me down and turned me towards its owner, someone I hadn't seen in days. "Kamon?" I couldn't believe who met me here!
"Where were you?" she asked out of worry. "I thought you were dead on the ground!"
I remembered a few days ago, falling off the wooden vehicle and ending up unconscious at Silverglint.
"I could easily ask you the same. I was recovered by Tenka, who you may or may not have met, and sent on a mission." My mention of Tenka reminded me of another goal I had, before going out to fight. I started to leave, Kamon understanding my actions. I found stairs up, to right over the castle entrance where I saw Tenka on the roof. I walked in front of her, veering to the side so her view of the battle wasn't obstructed.
"You're back?" she asked, any shyness she had before, gone.
"Yes, I am. What has happened in my absence?"
Tenka looked over the front of the castle. "It was wonderful. Bramwell and I spent so much time together."
I cut off whatever imaginings she was having. "In terms of Bramwell's power and the purple entities?"
Thankfully, Tenka answered. "Bramwell was given command of the Castle Guards, thanks to the skills of Wizards under him. They've been given a big house near the castle, and Bramwell and I have a room inside it..."
I knew as soon as she thought of him for too long, conversation would grind to a halt. With that information, and most likely lack thereof, all I could do was leave for the front gates. I was close to home, and my parents somehow didn't find me in spite of their probable searches. As worried as they predictably were, they would not understand my mission and do nothing but slow me down. Xaaven watched me pass through the gates, as a guard was meant to do. I walked around the outside of the walls, towards the forest. As the trees got thicker, so did my cover.
"These floating creatures will have a hard time seeing me here," I thought, aiming a bolt of ice upwards through a small hole in the leaves above. My eyes on a Beholder, I opened my hand and fired, an ice shard following my gaze.
The Beholder fell into the forest canopy, pushing some trees aside and landing on the ground with a thump. I grabbed it under my arm, ducking behind some bushes. Three of the flying purple creatures descended, and I held my breath so as to not be seen by them. They searched around, a single large white eye on each, a striking contrast against their purple flesh. All three flew skyward, but before they did so, I saw them look at each other and nod, as if in acknowledgment.
Carrying this piece of critical knowledge, I ran back to the castle. I kept my kill close, to hide it as best I could from the prying, floating eyes. Getting almost through the gates, I saw a mostly green-clad being dart into the forest that I had just come out of. I ran into the castle, hardly caring about my level of energy, and set the Beholder down on the table in the Great Room where I had seen Bramwell last. He was still there, in serious conversation with Kamon. Niko sat and listened, though when he saw me drop off my kill, he nodded and I slid the dead thing towards him. I left for the forest, hoping the mysterious, green-clad figure would still be there.
My hopes were right, as I saw dual metal claws extending from a green cloak. They slashed together, blocking a purple-tinted sword held by a humanoid creature armored in leather, with plates of metal of the same colour. It looked like a goblin with a dull orange skin, though having the height of a human, and appearing more intelligent. I cast ice magic, freezing the ground below it. The green-cloaked fighter jumped onto the goblin, piercing its heart with a metal claw. It turned, lowering its hood upon seeing me. Two horns poked out of thick brown hair, and I knew exactly who I was looking at. Selaria of Tirwood.
"How did you get here?" I started, stopping at her response.
"Vuldeem told me about these attacking creatures. He keeps a Beholder himself, though I think it's joined its friends by now. I saw them go south to your Kingdom, and I followed to bring myself closer to them." Selaria took off her green cloak, and I could see her true form. Ears like a deer stuck out below her horns, a small metal ring in each. Around her neck was a chain of brown shiny stones, a sharp red shape right in the center. What looked like leather armor covered the top half of her torso, a wide belt of green cloth around the bottom. Her upper arms were bare, though her lower arms were covered in a green cloth wrapping, connected to her claw gloves, now faintly stained with blood.
She set off, allowing me to follow. I saw over her shoulder a group of these goblin-like creatures, all sitting around a fire. Selaria looked behind her and whispered, "You think we can take them?"
I nodded, having more than enough power to do what I wanted. I cast another sheet of ice on the ground, alerting the attention of a guard, a bolt of frozen water slowing down another. His allies charged, losing footing on the unexpected frost, as Selaria delivered repeated slashes with her claws. We crept closer, pulling open a nearby tent. A small Beholder slept inside, having fewer tentacles than those I had seen before. Holding my breath, I aimed my most careful ice magic yet. Slowly, I forced the heat out of the creature, the Beholder's eye remaining shut.
I picked it up, the cold purple mass unmoving, and again made my quiet way to the Kingdom gates. Xaaven and the unnamed guards by the gate must have been confused as to why I had come in and out five times in the past hour, twice with a purple orb under my arm. I returned to the castle where Elric was talking to Niko. I listened, waiting for an opportunity to speak, when I heard Elric speak of a place to carry out experiments.
Niko left, and I trailed him, hoping the Beholder wouldn't wake up now. Niko descended, taking a flight of stairs at the far corner of the Throne Room, then turning to go down another. I guessed we weren't even under the castle anymore, but somewhere under the ground below a noble's house. We reached a dead end. Niko said a word that I could only assume meant "unlocking," and the stone door slid aside. Adjusting my rapier, I barely made it through, Beholder in hand. "I recovered a beholder. It's alive this time," I whispered, Niko jumping at the sudden words.
"Thank you," He said shakily, taking up a scalpel. He thought for a second, remembered a word, and pointed the scalpel into the Beholder. It then looked to be in an even deeper sleep, unawakened by the blade cutting into its side. I quietly left, not wanting to awaken this thing. Having nothing to do while Niko figured out the flotation ability of these creatures, I said the words of 'towards home', and headed towards home.
Only when I was halfway out of the castle did the notion hit me. "My parents will be worried sick," I thought, "but I'd rather not face a rant." I kept walking out of the castle, looking for the community sleeping room that I heard of from Tenka. I found it momentarily, built into the castle wall. I took an unmarked bed near the back of the room, sat down, and tried to clear my head. I guessed Niko would need the rest of the day and all night to research and sleep, if he slept at all today. Beatrice entered the room about a half an hour later and saw me looking at a wall of the room, thinking.
"Vienna? How did you get in here? I didn't think you were a Wizard," she exclaimed.
"To my knowledge, I cannot say I am. Niko let me stay here, which I'll require for the night." Beatrice looked a bit confused but accepted it. She fell onto a bed, a short distance from mine. "What has fatigued you?" I asked.
"Stress..." Beatrice rolled over. "You've been seeing all the weird purple creatures too, right? Even just watching them overhead can be painful."
"Have I ever," I said, looking down at my rapier, half-unsheathing it to see the bloodstained blade. "They're camping around our walls now. A friend and I just removed a few, with ice and claw."
"Ice and claw? That sounds like a line in a play." Beatrice took some paper from her backpack. She slid a drawing towards me, black dusty lines made on plain paper. It flew across the floor, assisted by a gust of wind from a muttered incantation.
"What are those?" I picked up the paper, looking at her handiwork. "And did you create this?" I saw a circle of what looked like round shells, a larger thing in the middle. It looked like an abstract bug, single eye mounted on top of its head. I looked it over, seeing how the smaller bugs surrounded their master.
"I call those swarms. Not very creative, but it's what they do," Beatrice commented, after a minute of staring. I passed the drawing back to her. She slid it into her bag and exchanged it for another. I walked back to my bed, averting my eyes on the choice, to look it over on the bed I claimed. The bottom looked like a mass of tentacles, at least four more extending upwards like a very webbed hand. From inside the mass came a flexible-looking arm, crude mouth at the end.
"What ARE these..." I stared intensely at it, slightly disturbed by her handiwork. "Did you think these up?" Beatrice took the drawing back, laughing slightly.
"You think I could come up with these on my own? It gets boring when the Wizards are in separate places, and I'm isolated from the other people just for being a Wizard. There isn't anyone to talk to up on the towers, so I just draw what I can see. And whatever I can't, I make up. Feel free to look through them, though. These are what I saw."
At her suggestion, I took another sheet of her marked papers. This drawing looked like a ferret on spider legs, nearly jet-black against the off-white page. The lightest part of it was Its single eye, covering most of its face.
"I saw one of those when I was scouting yesterday," I said. "It came up to me and stared intensely. I held out my hand, getting close to its head, when it ran away and left a trail of black stuff." Beatrice looked through a few of her drawings, when my mind came to an ambiguous conclusion. "Why are you revealing your drawings to me? Many of my classmates would not even approach the thought." She took her drawing back, storing it carefully with the others, as not to bend or smudge it.
Beatrice smiled. "You seem like a cool person. I don't understand you that well, but you cast magic and are fun to talk with."
I felt confused and optimistic at the same time. "Well. Thank you. I hardly knew my speech was that enjoyable, especially in comparison to your leader." I don't know how long we spent in idle conversation. I told stories of my adventures, with the scaly people, the obsidian tower, and the enemy of the dark Wizard. More wizards filed in, some making a move to say something, though upon seeing Beatrice and I talking, backed off.
A few hours later, I noticed my own fatigue. I sat on the edge of my own bed, dropping my long coat off beside my bed. The minute it hit the floor, I heard the door open. Niko walked into the room, hands covered in a sticky-looking purple liquid. He was still carrying his scalpel, and spoke at a much faster pace than I had ever heard him speak. Something looked wrong with his eyes, though from this distance I couldn't tell what.
"I've figured out how that small beholder gains flight, examining and removing as many parts as I could from each one. If I had something to stick the parts onto, I know I could build a way for you to fly. Additionally, I'll need stronger magic, or some kind of focus..."
"How about some kind of gem?" Beatrice suggested, half-asleep. "My rapier," I thought. I drew it out, turning it around to see the ruby and sapphire in its hilt. I handed it to Niko, hilt-first, along with my backpack. All it had in it was paper, from the food eaten long before.
"Please, take these, if they will work. I'll be able to find another weapon." Niko walked out, muttering thanks. I hoped he wouldn't be challenged more than he needed to be, though I admired his dedication to do what he could in the face of the attacks on Redhelm. I returned to my bed and gradually fell asleep, thinking of what Niko could be maddening himself making.