by The Ranger
"How may I assist you, Master Wizard?" the boy asked.
"I have no time to return to my home, so I need you to escort my daughter here," Uros commanded. "Be sure she brings her medicine, as I doubt there is another herbalist within the walls that can recreate my brews."
"As you wish," the guard meekly answered, scurrying away.
"We'll keep a watchful eye on things here, Master Wizard, so you need not worry yourself," Lacerne reassured him. "And I'm sure she will be comfortable— she is, after all, already accustomed to your student's poor attitude."
"What she must grow accustomed to is the castle," Lucan added, through half-smiling lips. "She may very well live here one day."
Lacerne clenched his fists at his sides and straightened his back awkwardly as his brother tried to contain his laughter. He had come to know Ursula through his brother and had developed an affection for her— one he thought she reciprocated. While that much was true, he still felt it was improper to address such things in front of her father.
"Yes, well," Uros muttered uncomfortably. "I should begin making preparations for our departure."
"So I suppose this is it for some time then, eh, Master?" Lucan lamented. "Well, I promise to train vigorously until we see each other again."
The young prince extended his hand out to him, and the wizard grasped it happily.
"I expect nothing less," he smiled. "Be sure not to burn anything to the ground, and do not call upon Divine Light until the mark has fully healed, yes?"
Lacerne raised his eyebrows, turning to glance at his brother curiously.
"Of course, Master," Lucan agreed, bowing his head low for a moment. "I will be careful."
The mage smiled and patted Lacerne's shoulder as he turned to leave. They watched the large man trudge away, and silence followed after him. A few seconds passed before Lacerne whipped around to face his younger brother.
"I had almost forgotten!" he exclaimed. "Show me!"
Lucan grinned mischievously and rolled up his sleeve. There now sat something new on his forearm, just below the mark of his first Blessing. Etched into his skin like a brand was a circle, and within it, there laid three rays. Its appearance could be compared to a scar, but Lacerne knew that was not at all what it was.
"It's healing quite slowly," the younger prince whispered. "But, once the scarring fades, I'll have the ability to call upon restorative magic."
They watched the mark closely and saw that a gold light flickered within it for a brief moment before it dissipated again.
"I remember receiving your letter… you were so excited about gaining a new Blessing," the elder prince smirked. "Well, all I can hope for is that you, my troublesome brother, don't abuse this one too."
"Certainly, Stern. Hah!" Lucan chuckled. "I'll do my best."
Lacerne laughed heartily with his sibling, slinging his arm across his shoulder as the two turned toward a new day.
Chapter One
Khora
The smell of burnt flesh clung tightly to the air around them as the ashes settled on the ground. Khora's chest heaved while a stream of tears fell down her cheeks. She attempted to move, to fight, but she was held in place by Tala's vines. She was sure she could hear Edmund screaming, but it seemed muffled to her, far and away. The only thing she could hear clearly was the Ancient's laughter.
"That… is my vengeance fulfilled," Tala hissed, a bright gleam in her yellow eyes.
The nature spirit stared at what had been the Prince for a moment longer before shifting her gaze to Richard. Khora turned her head to look at him. He was still, his eyes focused on the ground where his friend had been standing only seconds earlier. He wore no expression; his shallow breaths were the only evidence he still lived.
"Now, to complete my promise," Tala sighed.
The vines began to recede back into the cracks in the ground where they had sprouted from. Edmund slashed at them haphazardly with his small axe and proceeded to scurry backward towards Ranger. Richard fell flatly on his stomach and made no attempt to raise himself. Khora, however, shared no such plans.
When released from Tala's grip, she dove for her spear before quickly rising and pivoting on her heel. She faced Tala once again and pulled back her arm, slamming it forward an instant later. Her spear cut through the musty air and flew towards the nature spirit's face.
Tala raised her hand to catch the incoming weapon, but it slipped through her fingers and embedded itself in her eye. The Ancient made no sound nor moved against them, but she simply plucked the spear from her eye and tossed it back onto the ground. It clattered across the dusty stones as the aged creature turned her attention to the young woman before her.
"Your insolence will not go unanswered a second time," Tala warned.
"Y-you evil, vile monst-" Khora attempted to scream.
She fell to her knee and grabbed the sides of her head tightly. An intense agony swept across her mind as a flood of sharp jabs pulsed throughout her skull. While she had never had her head split open by an axe, this is how she assumed it might feel.
Khora attempted to resist the sensation, but any effort to do so resulted in increased pain; she worried her skull might erupt if she fought against it any further.
"You frustrate me," Tala muttered.
The nature spirit turned back to Richard and flicked her fingers. The stone below him cracked and crumbled, and from deep beneath it, thin grassroots reached towards the surface. They formed a bed under his body, and it grew taller in every passing second. It pushed Richard upwards, higher and higher into the air until he was nearly at eye level with Tala herself.
Khora fought against her instincts and lifted her head high enough to see her friend. She feared what Tala might do to him.
The nature spirit approached her captive and gingerly reached towards his head. The tip of her gigantic finger settled slowly on the back of his skull.
"You have all but given up; I see that plainly. I doubt you would protest if I took this moment to end your miserable existence," Tala whispered.
Khora clenched her jaw and pounded the ground with her bare fist, hoping to distract her mind long enough to rise. She cried out as the pain sharpened, forcing her onto her hands. It was no use.
"I've got you," Edmund whispered as he materialized at her side. "Lean on us…"
Ranger appeared at her right, and Khora set her hand on him to straighten herself as Edmund attempted to lift her. Their progress was slow, but they began to march closer and closer to their trapped ally.
Tala glanced at them before returning her attention to Richard.
"Pathetic little things— so unworthy of my attention," the Ancient murmured. "I will never understand why that scaled abomination has such great interest in so meager creatures as you…"
"Scaled abomination?" Khora whispered to herself, wondering what the nature spirit could be referring to.
"However, the insignificance of your people matters little," the Ancient continued. "For my powers are great, and with but a touch, I make you more than they could ever be. I make you what once was."
The grass tied itself around Richard's hand and raised it above his head. The tip of Tala's finger shimmered, and she pressed it into his palm. He began to flail and scream, and as he did, the cavern's lights grew bright until Khora was blinded and forced to look away.
After a few moments, the cavern started to dim, and Khora opened her eyes. The grass pillar had vanished; in front of her stood only Richard and the Ancient. She and Edmund scanned him carefully, and it seemed that he had been entirely rejuvenated. His injuries vanished, and he stood firmly in front of them— resolute beneath the giant creature's sight. The only visible difference was…
"My hand," Richard mumbled. "What did you do to my hand?"
Khora approached him and, from over his shoulder, peered into the palm of his right hand. At its center, a small brown seed had been implanted. Every so often, its seams would glow in the same manner Tala and Grim did.
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"I have imbued you with a portion of my power. It should be more than enough to defend your pitiful settlement, and it will return to me at the time of your death," the Ancient revealed.
Richard closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath. A second later, he whipped around towards the pile of ashes in front of them. He held his palm out to it and groaned as he did so. His arm began to tremble beneath the effort, but there was no discernible effect. Everything remained as it already was.
"Not that much power," Tala chided.
Anger flashed across Richard's eyes as he turned his face to glare at her, yet she did nothing but return his gaze with an absent look.
"You must hate me," she whispered. "Hate me for indulging your prince's request, and hate me for not reversing the very agreement he consented to. You spiteful things, so self-assured of your place in this realm; obliged by your own unwavering beliefs in yourselves and your virtue. So… deceived, by delusions of righteousness…"
The vines that had come together to form Tala began to disassemble as her voice trailed off and echoed across the cavern.
"My work is done— now leave this place. With luck, you shall all destroy each other," Tala wished, something that could be mistaken for a grin cracking across her lips. "Never return to me unless you wish to face my ire and accept your doom."
With that, she was gone, back into the earth from where she had come.
Khora peered into the cracks, but there was no sign of the Ancient. No indication that she had ever been there. Except, of course…
"Come on!" Richard screamed.
Khora turned back to see him standing over the Prince's remains, shaking his palm over them.
Edmund meekly made his way to him and tugged at his side.
"I'm sorry, Richard, but I don't think there's anything you can do now," he whispered, tears in his eyes. "I'm so sorry."
A horrible wail pierced the cave as Richard fell to his knees, his hands digging into the ashes in front of him. Khora trudged forward and kneeled beside him. She reached out, thinking of consoling her friend when a slight gleam stole her attention.
"What is that?" she asked, pointing forward. "There, among the ashes."
Richard sifted through them and found a small green gem. It was rounded and no bigger than a chicken's egg. It shone brighter than any jewel they had ever seen.
"Is that an emerald?" Edmund questioned. "What do we… what do we do with it?"
Richard looked at it intensely and sighed.
"It's all we have left," he answered before stuffing it into his pocket.
He rose to his feet and pushed past Khora and Edmund, moving towards the mouth of the cavern. Richard reached the passage back to the surface and turned to look upon his companions.
"I don't suppose you'll be staying here," he said flatly.
Khora and Edmund shared a look of confusion.
"Richard, are you well?" she asked. "We can take the time to mour-"
"No!" he snapped. "We don't have a reason to stay here any longer, and there's… there's work to be done. It's time we went home."
"I understand, Richard," Khora nodded. "Come now, Edmund. Let's go."
She joined him, with Edmund and his dog lagging behind them, and together they ascended the tunnel.
A ray of sunshine beckoned them forth out of the cave. This was the first suggestion that something was amiss.
"Sunlight?" Khora questioned.
"What's strange about sunlight?" Richard asked as he trudged along, eyes firmly ahead.
"It was night when we entered," she reminded him.
"It may have been closer to dawn than we thought," he returned. "I'm sure there's some-"
He fell silent as they reentered the world.
"In Izkar's name…" he whispered.
Ranger bound out ahead of them, his paws crashing into the caked snow in front of them.
"It… snowed?" Khora questioned, slicing through the slush with her spear.
"We couldn't have been here for more than an hour or two," Edmund assured them. "But… there's…"
They stared at their surroundings in bewilderment, only released from their trance by the sound of shifting stone. Khora turned in time to see the entrance of Tala's cave crumble back into the mountain, leaving no way to return below. She felt disquieted while she witnessed all traces of the cavern fade away.
"It's gone," Edmund gasped. "It's just… gone."
"Richard, did you see-" Khora began.
She looked towards him, but his attention was focused on the horizon. He stared at it, unblinking, with a strange look hanging in his eyes.
"Richard, what are y-" she tried to ask.
"Do you feel that?" he questioned.
"Feel what?" Edmund murmured.
Richard squinted his eyes and took a deep breath.
"Darkness," he whispered. "I feel it on the wind. Something is… ravaging these lands, something I didn't or couldn't perceive before. It's so close… so close."
Richard furrowed his brow and brought his hand to his face. He stared at the fragment of power that laid in his palm.
Khora heard something clink behind her and spun around in time to see Edmund waddle towards Richard. The edges of a blade sticking out from behind his back.
"If something horrible lies ahead of us," he began. "It's probably best that you take this."
Richard turned to see Edmund standing before him, with the Prince's sword in hand. He recoiled at the sight of it and took a few steps back.
"I-I-I can't take that," Richard stammered. "It's not— it's not meant for-"
"I've never really tried to force anyone to do anything, but if you don't take this from me, I'm going to swing it at you," Edmund threatened.
Khora closed the distance between them and placed her hand on his forearm.
"You do need a weapon, Richard," she reasoned. "If there is darkness ahead, we will have to face it. And we'll do it together."
The corners of his face seemed to contort for a moment, but they quickly recovered. He slowly reached for the blade and carefully gripped the handle. He looked back up at them as if waiting for a complaint, but there was none. Instead, silence followed him as he took a long breath and quickly fastened the sword to his belt. It seemed to fit well.
Khora felt a pang of regret sink into her heart when she looked at the blade hanging on his hip, but she closed her eyes and sent it away. She would have a private moment to grieve soon enough.
Khora wiped her eyes and began to descend the mountain ridge. Edmund and Ranger followed a step behind, but Richard lingered for a moment, his hand gripping the gem in his pocket tightly.
Chapter Two
Richard
While the mountain pass seemed much less perilous during the day, as its threats were mostly laid bare, the unexpected snowfall hid the ground and obscured their already treacherous path. This forced them to march slowly, with Khora volunteering to walk alone up ahead, tapping the terrain with her spear.
It was a slow process, but Richard paid it no mind. His attention was elsewhere.
He felt overwhelmed by every scent that drifted by and every sound the wind carried on its back. It was difficult to discern the various sensations that invaded his mind and even harder to focus on merely one. The best he could do was keep himself moving forward; with squinted eyes and clenched jaw, Richard trudged down the ridge behind Edmund and Ranger.
While his perception was flooded on all sides, he did manage to find a positive change. As soon as he began to make his way down the mountain, he realized how light everything seemed now. His armor, which had not been very heavy before, felt weightless. It was as if he had become untethered to the world around him, except, perhaps, for the blade clinging to his side. Of everything Richard carried, it was the only item that hung heavy.
Edmund stopped abruptly and turned back towards him.
"Did you hear that?" he asked. "I'm sure I heard something rustling."
Richard
struggled to grasp his words but understood them quickly enough. He had not heard anything, or more appropriately, had not stopped hearing things, and had no way of knowing what these sounds were. However, he carefully scanned their surroundings, and his eyes fell on the source of Edmund's mysterious sound.
"I see it," Richard announced.
Crouched between the brush and nearly hidden by the recent snow, there laid a cave lion. Its virtually white fur disguised it well, but Richard could still make out its features. It was nearly six-and-a-half feet long and, although stooped low, stood at three feet. It was small for its species, but that did not make it any less deadly. Richard had received an education on the most dangerous creatures that inhabited the lands around Azra, and the cave lion was among them. It could close the distance between them in moments and eviscerate them within seconds. Their only chance of survival would be to wound it grievously enough that it would be forced to flee before it reached them.
"What is it?" Khora asked, but her eyes quickly narrowed. "A lion…"
"Get ready," Richard whispered.
His hand drifted to the blade at his side, but he hesitated to grip the handle. A lump began to form in his throat, and sweat gathered on his brow. He couldn't bring himself to pull the sword. He thought of what else he might be able to do, and, in that instant, he met the lion's gaze.
His heart sank low, and a rigid fear shot through his muscles. He had almost begun to count the different ways he might be mauled when the beast lowered its eyes to the ground and began to slink away. It was gone.
"It just left?" Edmund questioned, axe in hand.
"Not for long," Khora guessed. "It will likely pounce when we've turned our backs. We must remain vigilant."
Richard stared at the tracks the creature had left behind and attempted to look beyond them.
"No," he said. "It won't bother us again."
"How do you know?" Khora asked.
He shook his head slightly.
"I just do," he answered, finally beginning to soften.
He could feel their eyes cutting into his back, stares filled with wonder and a shade of wariness. However, he paid it no mind; this was his new reality, and, he hoped, it would be what allowed them to overcome whatever dangers laid ahead. If only he could begin to learn the extent of this strange, new strength.