EDIT: Sorry I haven't uploaded the next chapters yet. Midterms have put a damper on things.
I have been writing this story at school for about a month now, and I just typed up the first chapter. I will warn everyone now that my spelling and grammar are not perfect, so don't expect them to be.
NOTES: The periods at the beginning of lines is to try to help indent. I don't know why but the forum seems to want to remove all my indentations.
Some credit goes to Gael. He helped me with word choice and gave me someone to bounce ideas off of.
These are the symbols (I'm not the best in paint either. If you want to improve these, or any illustration, please do!) and descriptions for the established clans and various other groups:
The Flaürs -(Fla - OORS) (Caps = accent)
Bloodline of purely fire mages.
Spread far and thin across the lands. Current largest gathering is in the RRA.
Often child geniuses, but these talented youths often meet an untimely demise.
Older Flaürs exist, but are quite rare.
Common defining features : Short black or red hair. Brown or green eyes.
Myths/legends about the clan - One day they will be saved from the tyrrany of the Rivaris by a 10 year old boy with red eyes.
The Rivaris -(ri-VA-rees)
Bloodline of purely water mages.
More common than Flaürs or Grusts. Society's upper and ruling classes.
Their magic enables them to live hundreds of years.
Rarely have children.
Common defining features: Gray hair. Ice (often in their hair. Women use their magic to make ice jewelry.).
There are no truely common features, however. Powerful Rivari's are able to hide their age. They may look as young as 1/30th their true age.
Current ruling class since the 0 year "of our era". (OOE)
The Grusts (-)
The least common of all the established clans.
Untill they lost power they were a pure wind magic bloodline. Now they often mate and settle down with murrels.
Were the ruling class from around 100 years before "our era" to the beggining "of our era", when the Rivaris conquored them and established their own empire.
Generally nomadic.
Common defining features: None. Grusts are hard to differenciate from murrels because many of them have murrel parents.
In Pure Grusts: Long wavy hair. Slightly large, pointy ears. Silver hair with a tint of green. (Not gray.)
Pure Grusts are VERY rare. There are still a few of them though.
The Kolems: (KO - lems)
Lineage of pure rock magicians.
Do NOT assosiate with anyone who is not a kolem.
Live in a system of tunnels in and under Mt. Dorin.
Common defining features: Not many know, for few have seen a live kolem. Rumor has it that they have dark skin, but not much else is known.
The Shocks - (-)
Lineage of pure electricity magicians.
In your world, most Shocks would be classified as "schizophenic".
They were often imprisoned for murder. When the Rivaris took ruling power, the Shocks were cured of their mental condition by having their magic sealed.
Common defining features: None for magicians who have had their magic sealed. They are now just murrels.
Before they were sealed: Burns. Lots and lots of burns. Shocks magic, while the most powerful of any known magic, often was bloodthursty and violent. When a shock refused to listen to the voices, his own magic would zap him.
The Rainari - (ra - EE - na - ree)
Liniage of a Shock/murrel combination.
Few are schizophrenic, though occasionally many may have seisures.
The Rainari are the current recognized electric type clan.
They want to find all shocks and try to remove the seals that keep their mental disorders at bay.
Currently the Rainari are fugitives becuase they are wanted by the Rivaris.
The Rivaris see them as a threat and they will continue to persecute them untill they are no longer a threat.
Murrels - (MURR -els)
A murrel is the term for a person who does not belong to a clan. The usually have little or no magical talent. The rare ones that do are usually limited to parlour tricks. Rarely, murrels can breed new clans, but the Rivaris don't want them to know that. The murrels are the current working class, and the Rivaris don't want to give them a shred of dignity.
The Burners:
A new fire/wind clan. They are rivals with the older Flaür clan.
The burners currently only have one strong group in the near south east.
Here is a map of the area. I realize it is very poorly drawn and for that I apologise. Maybe one day Ill clean it up, but it still can give you an idea of how the world is laid out.
And now for the story:
CHAPTER 1:
Ruben Tolem was a 14 year old Murrel with short, spiky, brown hair, green eyes, and a fair complexion who was slightly short of stature. Though he grew up in a small rural town named Erdin like all the other Murrels he knew, Ruben was always a bit different. He never knew his father for one. Though his mother, Mary, did a good enough job raising him, Ruben always felt a bit jealous of other families. But today was different. Today, Ruben turned 15 and became a man. But, he was getting a bit ahead of himself, for it was still quite early in the morning. After a healthy breakfast of cooked beef and rancid weed, Ruben stood up and walked out the door. As he was heading out his mother called out to him.
... "Ruben! Wait come back!" She called. Ruben walked back inside. "Now look," his mother continued, "You're 15 now. It's time you learned about your father."
... "What about him?" Ruben asked as he yawned. He was still only half awake and he was in no mood to get a lecture.
... "There is something I haven't told you." His mother answered. "Go talk to Russel. He knew your father longer than I did."
Opon hearing this, Ruben simply turned around again and left, this time without interruptions. As he headed down the street, Ruben overheard some gossip.
... "I hear that the Burners have no food right now." One man said.
... "It serves them right." Another man replied. "They burn so much wood that the ash poisons the land. Chokes any crops to death."
... "Do you think they'll attack us for our food?" The first man asked.
Ruben didn't want to hear the answer. He kept moving, this time trying to ignore the idle chatter of the streets. Ruben got distracted
be by a vendor and ran right into someone.
... "My apologies sir." Ruben said out of reflex. The man was wearing untattered clothes. Ruben had learned long ago this meant that the man was a Rivari baron. The nobleman ignored Ruben, but his bodyguards took the opertunity to threaten Ruben.
... "Don't bother us again boy, or you won't live to see tomorrow's dawn." One guard said, clutching a knife.
Ruben nodded and apologized again. He knew they were serious, noblemen could execute any Murrel they pleased. Even if the "offender" simply looked at the baron funny, he could be hung. Ruben didn't hang around. He decided it would be safer to take the back alley route to Russel's Mansion. As Ruben ran through the damp, muddy alleyways where little light makes it through the overlapping thatch roofs above, He remembered the times his old friends played games of find the magician or baron and assassin. Before long, Ruben arrived at Russel's mansion. Immidiately, Russel's caretaker and butler Marty opened the door. The tall muscular butler stood before Ruben. His black hair was greasy as ever.
... "What buisness do you hav-...." Marty started to say, but he was cut off.
... "Oh look! It's Ruben!" Russel intejected politely. Russel was a red haired man in his forties. Quite old for this period; Murrels usually died around 35. His razor whit had been sharpened by time.
... "Hey Russel, do you have a moment?" Ruben asked, ignoring the butler.
... "Hold thy tongue boy! My master is quite busy! " Marty replied as if Ruben was asking him.
... "Calm down Marty. You know that this boy is the son of John Kolem." Russel reminded Marty. "You have no right to talk to him so rudely." Russel turned to Ruben. "I apologise for my butler's rudeness." Marty bowed and tried to look humble.
... "My sincere apologies Ruben." Marty said softly. "Recently a young boy like yourself brought a threat from the local Burners."
... "You were threatened?" Ruben gasped. Russel sighed.
... "Come inside. We should talk." Russel said in reply. As they walked down the many corrodors of Russel's enormous mansion, Ruben couldn't help but notice that Russel's mood seemed different from when they had last talked, only a few days earlier. As long as Ruben could remember, Russel had always been energetic and friendly. Whenever Ruben felt sad because he wanted a father-figure, he would always turn to Russel. Several times in the past, he had shown up at Russels doorstep crying, and only a few minutes later, Russel would make him laugh, give him candy, and play games. That's why the change in Russel's mood was so shocking to Ruben. It made the seriousness of the treat Marty had mentioned seem much greater. Russel noticed that he was making Ruben depressed too.
... "Hey Ruben, look around." Russel said. "I never let you go down this hallway before. It leads to my parlour and workshop."
... "And the basement." Marty added. Ruben jumped, he had forgotten about Marty's presence. This made Russel chuckle.
... "Yes." Russel said as he finished chuckling. "The basement is this way as well."
As they continued walking. Ruben noticed a series of portraits. The men in these portraits all bore similarity to Russel.
... "They look like me, don't they?" Russel asked. Ruben nodded. "They are my ancestors. The great Flaürs who built this mansion and gave me such wealth."
As he said this, they arrived at the parlour. Ruben sat down across from Russel. Marty walked off in some direction. Ruben failed to notice which way.
... "I suppose I should tell you why I came today." Ruben said. "Today is my 15th birthday. My mother mentioned that I needed to learn about my father and that I should ask you." Russel's face grew more serious.
... "Hmm. I suppose it is time. Today you become a man, after all." Russel said calmly. He stared deeply at Ruben. "How much have you heard?" He asked.
... "Not much." Ruben replied in defeat. "Just that he left Erdin as soon as I was born."
... "I see," Russel said, "I suppose I should start from the beginning." He took a deep breath. "I've known your father langer than anyone else. Even longer than your mother, infact, if it weren't for me, the two of them would never have met. That's probably why she sent you here."
... "What was my father's name?" Ruben asked, impatiently.
... "John Kolem." Russel said.
... "No..." Ruben said, shocked. "No, he couldn't be. A kolem would never leave Mt. Dorin!"
... "He was exiled. They took his magic. He was barely alive when I met him. It was a rainy day in the outskirts of the town far east of here called Pordin." Russel answered.
... "Isn't Pordin directly controlled by the Rivari's? Why were you there? You're a Flaür! They would've hung you!"
Ruben replied.
... "Exactly. At the time, the Flaürs still had strong leadership. The clan wanted information on Rivari actions." said Russel. "It was a dangerous job, but it was necessary."
... "So how did you meet my father?" Ruben asked, still quite confused.
... "One day when I was out collecting wood, I saw a hut constructed from fallen branches. I was using a magical flame razor spell to chop the trees, so if anyone saw me, I was in trouble. I approached the hut with a clear intention of killing the person inside if needed." Russel said. "When I approached the hut, I saw your father sleeping, and boy was he a sorry sight!" He chuckled for a few moments. "He was so thin, that even though a few minutes I was prepared to murder him, I felt pity."
... "So what did you do next?" Ruben inquired.
... "Because I felt pity, I caught and cooked some fish from the nearby brook. When he woke up, it didn't take long for us to become friends." Russel answed.
... "Did you stay in Pordin and continue your mission, or did you abandon it?" Ruben asked.
... "Well, my mission only required my to stay two more days. Your dad agreed to wait so we could travel together." Russel smiled. "He didn't have much choice."
... "I see." said Ruben, still trying to understand all he had been told.
... "To make a long story short, I discovered a way to get his magic back, but this was not till years later. I believe it was not long after you had been born. Your father knew he would be hunted down b the Rivaris because of our esape from Pordin. Oh! I'm sorry, I skipped that part. In order to escape, your father took blame for some things I did. They put a tracking spell on him. He left to protect you and your mother."
... "I think...." Ruben took a breath. "I think I understand, but where did my father go?"
... "I asked him many times," Russel said in a depressed tone, "but he wouldn't tell me. I don't even know where he is."
... "I'm sorry." Ruben apologised,
... "Don't be." Russel said. "It isn't your fault."
There was complete silence for a while. Minutes passed, but finally Russel said something.
... "There is one more thing you should know." He pulled out some pieces of parchment and started rumaging through them. Finally he pulled out a single tattered sheet.
... "Here it is! Look at his." Russel said as he pushed the parchment over to Ruben.
... "Do you see this symbol here?" Russel inquired.
... "Yeah. It looks like a clan symbol, but I've never seen one like it before." Ruben answered.
... "Look at the back of your left hand." Suggested Russel.
... "Yes, I know I have a scar there. It's been there as long as I can remember." Replied ruben.
... "I had to do that to you when you were born." Russel explained.
... "I don't follow." Said Ruben, confused.
... "That symbol there was on your hand when you were born." Said Russel. "Do you realize what that means?"
... "It means I'm not a Murrel?" Said Ruben, hesitantly.
... "It means you are the first of a new clan!" Russel explained. "It is a new symbol, and right now you are the only person in the world with that crest."
... "But magicians who have their crests destroyed never gain any power!" Said Ruben in despair.
... "That would be true," Russel agreed, "if it were truly destroyed. Give me your hand, Ruben"
Ruben held out his hand. Russel had his eyes closed as he performed this incantation:
... "O false burn, thy false curse.
... Break this spell, this curse reverse!
... This lie made truth with broken tooth,
... Take this wrong, wrong too long.
... To make it right, take my might.
... Take this token, lie be broken!"
At the same moment that his chant finished, a light green flame lit on Ruben's hand. Soon after there was a loud crack. When Ruben looked around, he saw that one of Russel's teeth was now lieing on the tabel. Normally he would've been horrified, but Russel;s calm smile eased his fears.
... "Don't worry, I have plenty of teeth." Russel laughed. Marty, who apparently had returned gave Russel a thick rag to stop the bleeding. Russel refused. Instead he snapped his thumb alight and cauterized the gaping hole in his mouth.
... "Hey Ruben," Russel said after his mouth stopped bleeding, "look at your hand."
As ordered, Ruben looked at his hand again. The very same symbol that had been on the old sheet of parchment was now on his hand!
... "This can't be real." Ruben exclaimed in disbelief.
... "Oh, it's real." Said Russel. "You must've figured out why you were sent here on your 15th birthday by now right?"
... "15 years old is the age when young magicians are apprenticed to an older clan member." Answered Ruben.
... "Correct." Seaid Russel with a still quite bloody smile. Russel had to recauterize his mouth.
... "But if I am the first of a new clan, I have no person eligible to be my master." Complained Rubem.
... "You fool!" Scolded Marty, "Do you really think my master is the kind of person to abandon the first of a clan or the child of an old friend?"
... "But.." Ruben started to say, but he was interrupted.
... "But no one knows how to train you?" Russel laughed.
... "It may be true that no one knows any incantations that you can use,-" Russel stopped to wipe the blood off his mouth and cauterize his wound yet again. "That my be true, but I still have alot of experience that you can learn from. Training under me is far better tahn trying to start out by yourself"
... "But apprentices of the Flaür clan are basically prisoners!" Ruben said in fear. "I've heard you could be captive for more than six weeks!"
... "Don't worry." Marty said with a smile. "We'll keep you comfortable."
CHAPTER 2 4th moon-cycle of the year, otherwise known as the month of Layona, the 16th day, a Reap day*, in the year 1042 OOE.
Dear Journal:
Today marks the second to last day of my training with Russel. He said that I have a test today, and that it is very important that I pass. It is still quite early in the morning, so I was reading some older entries in this journal and remembering these past six weeks. I had almost forgotten just how terrified I was at first. When I started, I had no knowledge of magic at all, but I guess for someone who, untill now thought he was a Murrel, that should have been expected. Untill I grasped the concept of composing incantations I was very sure Russel was crazy. I now know that his methods have been proven by many generations of Flaürs, but at the time all I could think about was surviving. Shortly after agreeing to the aprenticeship, Russel led me down ancient stone stairs and ressurrected remenants of hallways untill we reached a large open room. I can remember it clearly:
... "This room is huge!" I said. The sound of my voice echoed on the walls. I looked around. The room was definately quite spacious. Even more peculiar though, were the walls and floor. The walls were made of a different stone from the hallway. The hallway had been made of many fist sized or slightly larger stones fit together. This room was built out of massive stone blocks. Each stone was several feet wide and a few feet tall. Even more unusual was the floor. It was sand! At first I had thought it was just a think coating of dust, but opon closer inspection, it was really sand. I walked to the other side of the room to inspect one of the walls. It seemed to be made of sandstone, and a reddish sandstone at that.
... "Don't get too comfortable Ruben." Russel warned. I had only turned around just in time to notice that Russel was casting a spell. Though I didn't quite catch what he was saying this time, I did know that it didn't look good for me. I had heard stories of legendary magicians when I was much younger and I remembered that attack spells must be cast while staring at the target. That was exactly what Russel was doing. Instinct threw my body on the ground the moment his mouth stopped moving. In the same instant, Russel cupped his hand around his mouth and blew fire at the spot where I had been standing.
... "Are you trying to kill me?" I screamed. Russel just replied, calm as ever,
... "No, if I were, you would be dead right now."
... "You just blew fire at me!" I said hysterically.
... "You wanted to be a magician." Russel said sternly. "You can't back out now." He started another incantation.
... "What does trying to cook me have to do with learning magic?" I said in a panic as I ran away to what I thought was a safe distance. This time Russel aimed his flame at the floor. As his flame met the sand floor, the sand melted and bubbled. Russel performed another incantation when his flame stopped. When he finished, the melted sand that hadn't quite set into glass just yet started collapsing in on itself. It all seemed to be drawn into some sort of rod-like shape, then before my eyes, it turned into a pale orange tinted glass sword. Now I was panicing. In that moment I was sure I had no way to defend myself, but then I remembered the crest on my hand. Sadly, what happened afterwards I have no recollection of. When I woke up, I was in the bed Russel had given me. After asking me how I felt, Russel filled me in.
... "So, you said you don't remember anything after you looked at your hand?" Russel asked. I nodded yes. He sighed. "Alright listen: after you looked at your hand, you seemed like you suddenly figured something out. As I rushed torward you, you wispered this." Russel handed me a piece of parchment. It read as follows:
... "Little pieces, of the land
... Fine powdry dust, we call sand
... Thee shall do, as I say,
... Hear my call, and obey.
... Form together, in a wall
... Quite thinkly packed, strong and tall.
... Take my strength; my heat shall pass
... To turn thee, sand, into glass."
... As I read, I was in disbelief. Russel told me I could never forget it, that my life may depend on it. Then, as if he hadn't tried to kill me yesterday, he cheered up and asked if I wanted anything to eat. I refused, and tried to stand up, but he stopped me. He got stern again.
... "Look at your arm." He ordered. So I did. When I looked, it was frozen solid!
... "What happened?" I asked, now completely in shock.
... "Your spell worked." he replied. "In magic, nothing is free. Incantations can order magic to do things, but in order for them to work, they must contain two thing: a goal and a cost. You defined your goal as a strong glass shield, but your cost was body heat. You cast the spell with your arm, and because the cost was far too high, it froze solid. Don't worry though, Marty is fetching some troll root to make thaw tea. That'll thaw your arm out."
My arm was still worrying me, but his sincere smile eased my fears a bit. I agreed to wait in bed.
... "You really were a mess then, weren't you?" Russel said suddenly. Ruben nearly jumped out of his skin.
... "When did you come in?" Ruben said, still quite surprised.
... "Oh, a few minutes ago. I didn't want to interrupt." Russel replied.
... "You know, that spell is still by far the most costly and dangerous spell I've ever used. Why did you put so much importance on remembering it?" Ruben asked.
... "That may be true, but it also is a life saving spell." Russel answered. "Remember when you first went back to see what happened?" Russel grabbed the journal.
... 3rd moon cycle, otherwise known as the month of Sanna, the 4th day of the cycle, a growday.
...... Dear journal,
... Today I inspected the training grounds in the basement for the first time since I blacked out. Russel finally let me out of bed. Turns out, troll root takes 24 hours to extract, and the tea takes 12 hours to cure a magical freezing. My arm still is quite weak and numb, but I can move all my fingers once again. Anyway, I finally went back to the training grounds. It was unbelievable. In the center of the room was a huge glass monolith. It stretched all the way from the floor to the cieling which was conservatively 10 yards. The monolith was approxamately the same in width as well. Additionally, it was over a foot and a half in thickness. Even more surprising though, were the large crystaline spikes that shot up from the floor. I also noted that most of the floor had been covered in a thin layer of glass. When I layed my left hand down on the glass floor, the crest on my handed glowed and a few crystal spikes shot up around my hand. I shivered, for the magic once again sucked out some body heat. I looked around for Russel, for already I had become acostommed to his appearing whenever I thought I was alone.
... "Hey," said Ruben, "You still do that."
... "It's far more fun than sitting around all day." Russel said, confident in his answer.
... "You don't believe that one bit." Ruben said, calling Russel's bluff. "Anyway, are you ready for today's test yet?"
... "Patience Ruben." Russel scolded. "Did you forget that Marty has to repair the damage you caused last time?"
... "Can you atleast tell me what I'm being tested on?" Ruben said, beggingly.
... "Not untill we begin." Russel answered.
... "Ugh." Ruben said in disgust."You always say that."
... "It's tradition." Russel replied.
... "That's your answer to everything." Ruben said, unimpressed. When he turned around, Russel was already gone. "I'm going to go mad because of him." Ruben realized he would never really know if Russel was there at all, which truly bugged him. Opon remembering that he was writing in his journal when he was interrupted, Ruben simply shrugged. "Just as well." And attempted to continue his task. Before he wrote a single word, Ruben heard Russel call for him. Ruben grabbed his enchanted glass light crystal and headed to the basement, where he was summoned. As Ruben climbed down the ancient stairs, one of the steps crumbled under his weight and he fell on his back. "Ow!" Ruben grunted. "My back still has burns from last reapday!" He heard Russel calling for him again. "Be more patient." Ruben barked. "I'm on my way." He stood back up and continued downwards. Not much later, he entered the basement. As usual, Marty was using his enormous strength and skills to repair the damage Ruben had caused. Ruben looked around. Save the spot Marty was working on, everything looked as if nothing had happened in hundreds of years. Finally Ruben saw Russel who was leaning against the wall across from Marty.
... "You called for me?" Ruben asked.
... "Yes," Russel said smiling. " Here take these." Russel handed Ruben a small leather pouch. It was decievingly heavy for its size, so much so that Ruben almost dropped it.
... "What's in this?" Ruben asked out of curiousity.
... "Take a look." He said. Ruben did as he was asked. It was filled to the brim with small, pale white crystals of irregular shapes.
... "What are these?" Ruben asked, even more confused.
... "They are elemental material." Russel answered proudly. "Your element."
... "Are you saying I can use them for incantation cost?" Ruben asked.
... "Exactly." Russel replied. Ruben looked back in the bag. There were so many! He grabbed one and turned to the one empty wall, away from Marty and Russel.
... "Take this crystal
... Make a missle."
Instantly, the crystal floated up from Ruben's hand. Then it split in two. Then it split again, and again, and again, and again, untill Ruben had long lost count of how many little needles there were. When Ruben whispered "Go." they all flew at blistering speeds and imbedded themselves deep in the wall. Satisfied, Ruben turned back to Russel.
................................ BOOM!!!!!!
The explosion knocked all three of the magicians over.
... "Curse my fate." said Marty. "Now I have to fix that too."
......................................
Chapter 3:...... "Burn, blaze, give us your light.
...... Ghastly flame, just take my might."
...... Soon after Russel whispered these words, a bright blue flame appeared in the center of the room. Bright as it was, it was still quite difficult to see through the thick dust and debris. Ruben was coughing violently, but he finally cought his breath.
...... "Hear my cry:
...... Purify!"
Slowly, the dust dissapeared, and eventually the air was clean again. Now that the situation calmed down a bit, Ruben turned back to Russel.
...... "Why didn't you warn me they would explode?" Ruben asked, still struggling to breath.
...... "I had no idea that they were so potent." Russel explained. "I was given that bag about a month ago. A page brought it to me, along with a letter."
...... "And you just trusted this random person who sent it to you?" Ruben asked.
...... "Well, it would be unfair to call them strangers." Russel laughed. "The letter was signed RRA."
...... "Who is RRA?" Ruben asked, completely lost.
...... "The RRA stands for Rivari Resistance Army. They aren't from around here." Russel explained. "They are from the an area far south west of here. Currently, the RRA is doing fairly well considering who they're up against. They used to only control a few small rural towns, but in the past few years they have expanded their border from Mercy, their capital on a pennensula along the South Ocean, to the top of the Rivari river delta. Their border expands far westward and a little north from there."
...... "So if they're in a war, then why would they send something so powerful to me?" Ruben inquired. "Wouldn't they need it more?
...... "Honestly, I have no idea how they got these stones, but the RRA likely had no use for them." Russel answered. "The real question is, how did they know you could use them? They might've gotten some tip saying I could use some unusual artifact like this, but no one but you, me or Marty should know about your magic." He stopped talking and drifted off into deep thought. In the silence, Ruben noticed Marty standing next to the recently destroyed wall. Realizing Russel no longer wished to be disturbed, Ruben walked over to Marty. At this moment, Marty has holding a chunk of the wall against the hole it had been blown out of and whispering something Ruben couldn't quite hear. Ruben realized this must be an incantation. Ruben sat and watched in awe of Marty's tremendous concentration. Minutes later, Marty finished his spell. Russel's flame grew dim and the room got much, much colder. Ruben's teeth started to chatter and he started shivering. He looked back, only to find Russel had left, probably to go look something up in his library. Marty seemed unaffected by the extreame cold. He simply stood there with his eyes closed. Suddenly, a dim orange light came from the cracks between the piece of wall and the part of the wall Marty was holding it in place. The light faded away as the cracks dissapeared and the piece was welded back into the wall. Marty, satisfied that the piece was securely back in the wall, started to walk over to another large chunk, when suddenly he fell over. Ruben immidiately rushed over.
...... "Russel!" Ruben screamed, "Russel help! Marty needs help!"
All Ruben's cries were in vain, however, for there was no responce. Ruben tried turning Marty over. The man was quite large, and very difficult to move, but with some struggle, Ruben succeded. He had no choice but to drag Marty upstairs. After a few minutes of pulling as hard as he could, Ruben only moved Marty a few feet. Ruben pulled out a crystal.
...... "As I pull this man with me
...... Make the ground here slippery."
A tiny pice of the crystal dissintegrated. Under Marty, the ground was covered by Ruben's glassy crystals. Now Ruben's job was much easier; before long he made it back to the first floor. Looking at Marty, Ruben realized his spell was no longer neccessary.
...... "This last spell I cast
...... Stop this foolish task."
Ruben's crystals that grew on the floor turned to mere dust, and were gone.
...... "Russel! I need help!" Ruben yelled once more. He looked around, but it was no use. Russel was nowhere to be found. Ruben grabbed the half-dissolved crystal he used in his previous spell.
...... "Russel is the man
...... Find which way he ran.
...... This crystal is the fee
...... To bring him back to me.
The crystal in Ruben's hand began to glow. It opened in a manner quite like a lotus in spring, but continued to bend backwards. Then these "petals" shot out some spikes. Then the crystal, now loosely resembling a spider, stood up. In the blink of an eye, it was gone. Meanwhile Ruben checked Marty's vital signs. He had a pulse and was breathing, but both were very weak. Most notable, Marty was quite cold.
...... "He used too much body heat for that spell!" Ruben said, thinking aloud. When he turned around, Russel was there.
...... "Russel! Finally you're here!" Ruben exclaimed. "Quick get that troll's root brew you made when I froze my arm."
But Russel ignored Ruben, and sat beside Marty. Ruben noticed Russel already had some troll's root brew. Russel carefully poured it down Marty's throat.
...... "He'll be fine." Russel said calmly. "Thanks for saving Marty. Don't worry about the test. You've already proven to me that you're a fine magician." He held up the crystal spider. "Good spell, this little guy. He walked right up to me, and scratched on my desk the words 'MARTY IS FREEZING', and then proceeded to lead the way to you. I grabbed the troll's root brew on my way."
After a few more minutes, color returned to Marty's face and he woke up. He repediately apologised for his mistake, and Russel helped him get to bed. Then he returned to Ruben.
...... "Ruben!" Russel said. "I had originally intended for you to learn it on your own, because I thought there was no way you'd be ready for it fast enough. Tomorrow meet me in the basement. I have one last thing to teach you. I'll show you the real power of those crystals and of a true magician."
...... These words echoed in Ruben's head that night. He knew how much he'd improved, but what could be so powerful that Russel would stress its importance so much? Ruben had a hard time sleeping that night; when morning came, Ruben had slept little. Since he was sitting in bed, awake when the sun rose, instead of sleeping in untill Russel came to wake him up, Ruben got out of bed. After a quick journal update describing the whole fiasco with the exploding crystals and Marty passing out, Ruben got up and left. He wandered around a bit, looking for Russel. It didn't take long to find him. Russel was in the kitchen standing next to the stove.
...... "Morning Russel." Ruben said, yawning.
...... "You're up early." Russel laughed. "I'm making scrambled cocatrice eggs for breakfast. Want some?"
...... "No thanks, I'm not particularly hungry right now." Ruben said. "Is Marty feeling better?"
...... "Yes. He should be awake soon." Russel replied.
...... "That's good." Ruben said. Ruben was still half asleep, but he was mulling over the events of yesterday due to having just written them down in his journal. Suddenly it hit him.
...... "Hey Russel, is Marty a Flaür?" Ruben asked.
...... "Yes. He was apprenticed to me many years ago, but after he finished his training, he asked if he could be my servant. " Russel answered. " He never told me why, and I still have no idea, but I do know that he is my friend and a very trustworthy one."
Russel sat down to eat. Ruben decided to go pay Marty a visit. After almost getting lost in the many corridors and passages that run through Russel's house, he finally found Marty's room. It wasn't difficult once he was near though, for Marty's loud coughing could be heard from inside.
...... "Hey Marty," Ruben said, announcing his entrance into the room, "How are you feeling?"
...... "Not great." Marty replied between coughs. He then reached over and grabbed some medicine out of the dresser next to the bed. He chugged the thick, blackish looking fluid and put the container back in its place. Ruben looked around the room. It was quite plain. There were no decorations or windows. The only pieces of furnature were the bed, the dresser, a mirror, a chair, and a chest. Ruben sat down in the chair and pulled it closer to Marty's bed. Marty had by now stopped coughing long enough to catch his breath.
...... "Why did you come to visit me?" He asked. "Are you really that worried about me?"
...... "Well, I was worried about you," Ruben paused a moment. Marty didn't give him a chance to finish.
...... "But you want to ask me something?" He interjected. Immidiately, another coughing fit started. Ruben patiently waited for it to end, and a few minutes later, it did.
...... "I was wondering why you became Russel's servant." Ruben said.
...... "Ah yes." Marty said with a smile that revealed the nostalgia in the memories he was reliving. "I was apprenticed to him, just like you are now, but many years ago. After I graduated just like all of his other students, he sent me out into the wide world to do whatever I wanted. I headed north to Daret, and lived there as a merchant for a few years. I learned many things about the Rivari's you don't see here, but in the end I decided that I didn't want to live the rest of my life like that. I headed back to my hometown, which was a small town between here and Daret called Harin. When I got there, everything was gone. There was no sign of a fight, the town had simply been abandoned. I did the only thing I could think of, I continued on to Erdin, and asked to stay with Russel. When I arrived I was informed that the Rivari's were recruiting people from Harin, and the town was abandoned because no one wanted to serve in the military. Most of them had headed to Erdin, although some were captured by the Rivari's. My parents died trying to stop the Rivari soldiers from abducting a boy younger than you are right now, Ruben." He sighed, then began coughing again. Ruben fetched a rag for him to cough into and some water. Once he finished coughing he continued. "Anyway, I returned to Russel and told him everything that happened. I begged to be his servant. I told him he was the only family I had left. We may not be directly related, but I still consider him family. He agreed to let me work for him, and I've been staying here ever since."
...... "Wow." Ruben said. "You've had quite a hard life."
...... "I suppose so." Marty agreed. "While I have the energy to speak, let me relate to you a story the Rivari's tell in Daret. It isn't true, but I think it will help you understand what kind of world the Rivari's are trying to create. They tell the murrels that thousands of years ago, a great magician created each of the clan's leaders: Rafael Flaür, Maggie Grust, Norman Rivari, Parker Shock, and Hermy Kolem. Though the magician intended for the new magicians to work together, he made a mistake in making Norman Rivari more powerful than the others. Rafael claimed to be the strongest, but Norman quickly defeated him. Parker said that he would pledge his allegence to Norman, but Norman saw through Parker's lies. He wrapped Parker's head in water and nearly suffocated Parker to death before releasing him. Parker was horribly shaken, and was never a trustworthy servant to Norman. Eventually, he was disposed of. Hermy only wanted to be alone, but Norman said that if he wanted to be alone, he should go hide in a cave. That only left Maggie Grust. Maggie seemed harmless, but her carelessness ended up damaging many of Norman's plans. He soon disposed of her as well. The Great Magician then recognised Norman's superiority, and gave him a wife, and murrels who he would govern over. Again, the Great Magician made a mistake, for some of the murrels inherited the powers of those Norman had defeated, but being a benevolent leader, Norman allowed them to live as long as they stayed loyal to him. Now, there probably were magicians by those names who belonged to the respective clans, but they were not neccessarily the first. Each of the clans probably was started separately, and through some historical documents I've read here, I learned that before the Rivari's had power, the Grusts had ruled for many millenia, peacefully. Nothing about this story is true, except the idea that Rivari's believe they are vastly superior to all other magicians. That is their weakness. This arrogence of theirs is the reason they let the RRA get so big before taking them seriously."
...... "I see...." Ruben said, mulling over all that had been said. "Well, I don't want to keep you awake any longer. I'll leave, so get some sleep Marty." Ruben walked out. He was still thinking about all the things Marty had told him. He headed back in the direction of his room, or so he thought. After getting lost a few times, his head bumped into something.
...... "Ow!" Ruben said, clutching his head. He looked up, it was a low beam, the same kind found throughout the whole house, only this one was much lower to the ground and didn't seem to be holding anything up. Ruben noticed something metal on top of it. He backed up to get a better look. It was a bird cage, and inside was a small bird. The bird was such an unusual color that Ruben couldn't help but stare at it. It was a bright gold color, with orange on the tips of its wings and around its legs. The bird was now staring intently back at Ruben. Suddenly, it caught fire! Ruben watched in horror as the bird burned to ashes, but after only one or two seconds the bird extinguished itself and seemed completely unharmed. Ruben fetched a chair and grabbed the bird's cage. He noticed that the bird, although unharmed by the fire, had created ash. Stranger still, was that the ash was a bright red color. Ruben collected some, and realized it was what Russel carried around in a pouch. The ash felt hot in his palm. Ruben put the bird back where he found it and pocketed the strange powder. He finally found his way and ended up back in the kitchen. Russel was now cleaning he dishes. Ruben retrieved the powder from his pocket and showed Russel.
...... "Oh, so you found Ember?" Russel asked.
...... "Is that what you named it?" Ruben asked. "What kind of bird is Ember anyway?"
...... "He's a phoenix" Russel replied. "Wasn't that obvious? Those ashes look fresh, so you must've seen him on fire."
...... "Yeah, but I thought that was my imagination. It was only for a moment anyway." Ruben answered. Ruben began to put the ashes back in his pocket but Russel grabbed them.
...... "I need those you know." Russel explained. "Phoenix ashes are my elemental material. Anyway, it's time for our daily spar, and this time I'll teach you something cool."
...... Not too much later Ruben and Russel were back in the spacious basement. Russel didn't waste any time. He whispered a few words so fast Ruben barely saw his mouth move. Instinctively, he dove out of the way as a fireball flew his direction.
...... "Now that I have your attention." Russel said as Ruben felt the back of his head to check to see if he was missing any hair. "Watch and do exactly what I am about to do."
Russel closed his eyes. He had a look of intense concentration. While he was meditating, he reached inside the pouch on his hips and grabbed a bit of the Phoenix ashes. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and yelled, "Transform!"
At the same moment, a light temporarily blinded Ruben. When he opened his eyes again, he saw that Russel was now engulfed in a bright orange and red flame. Then this being of fire spoke.
...... "Now you try." It said is a very crackly and distorted voice. "Dispell!" It then yelled, and dissapeared in a cloud of smoke. Ruben then heard Russel coughing and when the smoke cleared, he saw Russel standing there, completely covered in ash. "Don't just yell transform. Try your arm. Concentrate on your arm the entire time." Russel warned while brushing the ashes off his clothes and wiping his face off the best he could.
Ruben did as he was instructed. He reached into his leather pouch that housed the crystals he used to blow up the nearby wall only yesterday. He grabbed a few with his right hand and then closed his eyes. He concentrated very hard on his right arm and then yelled "Transform!". The crystals he was holding evaporated then started forming around his arm from his fingertips all the way up to his shoulder. The resulting crystal dust that now covered his arm started to expand, and expand untill his arm no longer resembled flesh. It's surface became hard and reflective. The crystals seemed to bunch up all around each joint in his fingers, wrist, and elbow. As the crystals expanded and hardened to a hardness not unlike diamond, further up his arm the transformation was not so successfull. As the crystals expanded in the area above the elbow, cracks formed and the process stopped before reaching Ruben's shoulder. Ruben thought it was done, but then he noticed that icicle like structures were growing out from his fingertips. These got thinner and thinner untill they had tapered off to a point. Ruben realized that the resulting claw was quite a deadly weapon, both for offence due to its sharpness, and defence because of its hardness. Impulsively, he turned around and swiped the wall. His claws cut through it like a hot knife through butter, leaving an impressive scratch mark on the wall that was quite deep. The resulting mark could have been made by an angry lion. Still not satisfied, Ruben made a fist and punched the wall he had just struck. At first, not much seemed to happen. Ruben left a small dent in the wall, not nearly as impressive as the claw mark. But Ruben had failed to notice the smaller cracks he had made that ran all throughout the wall. Before he could finish getting his hand out of the hole he had made in the wall, the cieling collapsed above him. Ruben was trapped for a few minutes before Russel managed to dig him out.
...... "I didn't expect you to do that much damage on your first try." Russel said after he finished digging Ruben out. "Obviously you don't need me to train you to use it. Go eat some dinner and get to bed. I'll clean up."
............... END CHAPTER 3
Thu Dec 30, 2010 4:02 pm
