Work Text
Past, present and future. We look to our past to make choices in our present. To change, or create our future. But what do they do, to those who see? We are forgotten, blamed, tossed aside. Told in no uncertain terms that we are not welcome. And yet, who do they turn to when all hope is falling? Who do they beg to tell them of what comes next?
Each choice has an outcome. Every change creates ripples in time. Each moment of life and of death can change the slightest thing. We are told to keep them silent, to keep them hidden. For anything can happen when one tries to change their own fate, their own future.
It is our choices that change our future. That defines it. That creates it. Our choices change our world for the better. Or for worse. It is not us who inherit our choices, not us who inherit our future. It is our children, and their children, and their children.
What comes next is a choice, created by all others before it. A choice that I have seen made countless times. Dark clouds cover the horizon, and I am scared. Scared for those who will come after, scared that our choices have created a future where life cannot live. But these are our choices. Our lives. Our paths.
My name is Mariik, eldest of three. Child of Chor, timekeeper and seer of all. This is my story.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A whisper hanging on a thread, a silent town, a fading breath. The bitter wind shudders like icy callused hands, never stopping, never warming. Trees that look like someone painted frost stand out alone amid the frozen tundra. Mountains tower, securing the isolation of a silent academy that holds its breath only waiting for what comes next. The eyes of students of many ages gaze out at the darkness that slowly creeps closer.
The ever-looming darkness hovers above the mountains, like a face amid the darkening clouds. Its armored men hold back grins; their bodies armed, waiting for the thunderous signal to begin. A ragged breath catches in cold lungs; a silent cry erupts from a raw throat. A thunder strike and yells that echo in deaf ears pour down. The men pound down the mountainside swinging wild swords and killing all those who stand in their path. Daylights gaze shatters, the world spins out of control turning faster and faster, and just as suddenly as it had begun, it stopped. In the battles place stood three doors, with no difference between them then what lay beyond. Tears stain the face of one, who’s shaky hand reaches out to grasp a handle.
‘
Not yet little Seer. Soon you will have to choose. But not yet, there are piece’s I’ve yet to arrange.
’ A smoke-filled whisper hangs on a thread as the doors turn to wisps of pitch black smoke.
Gasping, wide eyes pull off blankets as they stare around the room looking for any signs of dreams that linger. Green hair sticks to a sweat drenched face, and sounds from the swords clashing still echo in barely pointed ears. A final gasp, a calming breath and feet press to the wooden ground of a slightly stuffy room. Windows carry the morning light, and softly the morning birds cry. The pounding on the door jostles the leftover pieces from his mind as a golden haired girl opens the rickety wooden door.
“Hurry up brother, mother is serving breakfast in a second. And then we have to get going, I don’t want to be late.” The gold hair vanishes as the door closes before Mariik can open his mouth to answer her. Lightly standing on small feet, Mariik heads for the door.
Quickly running a still barely shaking hand through his forest green hair, Mariik grasps the handle from the door to the room. Reminding him all too much of the overlooking choice of the day. A short breath and he pulls his shoulders back opening the door and heading down the worn stairs with false confidence. There serving breakfast stands his mother by the table, her pale blue hair tied tightly into a bun that sits at the back of her head. Her dress is freshly ironed, the creases stand out only slightly.
His father sits at the table across from her. Dark green hair covered by a hat that looks like it should have been replaced years ago. Patches line the edges of his clothes as well, as if he couldn’t afford to get them properly repaired. It wasn’t as if they couldn’t either, in the largest house in the small village of Heathen, Mariik’s family was quite well off. His father’s laugh booms around the room to something Mariik’s older brother says.
Alin, with his blue hair sits beside their father. His clothes still hold stains from his training, his posture still holding back pain. He had only gotten back two weeks prior but already fit back into the mismatched family with ease. Something Mariik felt as if he could never do.
Enna, with her golden hair steps out from behind their mother. The perfect daughter, her dress ending at the ankles showing the well worn leather boots. Twins, with Mariik being the younger by a full hour. In the back of his mind a whisper of a memory lies just out of reach of a child with grey hair and pale blue eyes calling for him.
“Ah I see Enna did have some success in waking you Mariik. Already at your choosing day oh my, you two grow up much too fast.” The elderly face of his mother calms him only slightly, bringing him out of his contemplation. “Two months past 14. Oh, I hope they give you two good choices. It would hurt this poor old woman’s heart to hear that they gave you the choice of Servant or Cook. Stuck in a dreary old castle all day.” A booming laugh comes from across the table where his Father sits.
“Aye, but you know woman that we can’t choose that life for them. They give them three choices, even if those are two of ‘em they still got one more. ‘Sides they’re our youngest. I bet that Mariik’ll be a Knight. Or even a Mercenary like Alin here. And I bet Enna’ll get Bard or Scholar, be nice to have something like that ‘round here.” The ‘unlike Mariik’s creepy visions’ was silent but he could still feel the words lying hidden under the tensions. Enna winces as she takes a seat waiting for Mariik to sit beside her patiently. “But we mustn’t focus on that now. We won’t see them for four long years; best get those goodbyes out of the way.”
“Can’t that wait till after breakfast? The road will still be there for them, but this will all get cold if we wait much longer.” Alin’s voice shatters the slowly saddening silence from their parents. Letting out a quiet laugh, their mother grabs a wooden spoon serving out the oatmeal breakfast for the five of them. Small berries get dropped on top, decorating the plain grey oatmeal with reds and blues. Mariik stares at it slightly, his stomach warning him against eating anything. Instead he looked up around the home he’d spent his entire childhood in.
His father’s bag sat by the door, filled to the brim with trade goods. Even as a travelling merchant he had always been there despite leaving for days if not weeks at a time. Mariik knew his mother despised how long his father could be gone but it wasn’t like there were many trading stalls in Heathen. With only seven houses, it wasn’t like traders were much needed there. Even then you could only trade in the nearest town so many times before even that got old.
His mother’s fishing pole lay in a tangled mess from having not been used beside his father’s bag. He didn’t know why his mother never fished anymore, he had rarely seen her fish when he was a child, but now it was another artifact in the already ancient house. It wasn’t like there was no use for it either, the village of Heathen was a fishing village after all.
Alin’s great sword, gleaming with fresh polish sat on a wooden table on the other side of the door. His elder sibling had never talked of his time at the Mercenary Cove, many of those who trained to be fighters of any kind didn’t. But Alin was different in a way Mariik couldn’t place. He talked and joked, but smiles on the blue haired Mercenary rarely appeared now, laughter was more common from Alin winning at a sword fight between them. His eyes held shadows Mariik didn’t even know could exist from someone who has yet to see war.
But no one questioned it, so who was he to question what the eldest of the siblings did and didn’t do.
Enna’s leather bag sat beside their fathers, tiny in comparison. He wasn’t at all surprised that she’d already been packed. If he remembered correctly she had been packed since they got back from the winter school. She always was eager to have things done before they were needed, but Mariik got the feeling that her packing was more her desperate need to get out of the house. He couldn’t blame her either, their father expected him to be a Knight? The image of the polished shields flickered into his mind's eye from his vision earlier, him being a Knight was not going to ever happen.
The kitchen lay in a spotless manner along the wall where the rickety old door creaked open. Cracks that his father tried to fix every once in a while, stuck out along the pale grey stone where windows had been formed. Bricks showed their faces through the cracks and holes in the plaster. A sigh from his father jolted him from his thoughts, and his eyes made their way to his father’s figure.
“Alright. Well, as I’d best get on the road,” His father stood up and held his arms out expecting a hug. Mariik stood hugging his father fiercely, before letting his sister hug their father. “I’ll see you in four years children. You be good, make good choices, ya hear.
Whatever your life turns out to be, I’ll support you. Now.” With bleary eyes, his father untangled their arms and headed for the door. As he grabbed his bag he turned back towards them and softly smiled. “I’ll be back by summer solstice, two months from now as long as I don’t get caught up on the road.” Nodding, Mariik’s father turned toward the door and in one movement was gone.
“I had best get all this cleaned up, Mariik, why don’t you go get changed into more formal clothes. We can’t have you showing up to the choosing hall looking like you just woke up. Alin, help me with the dishes, would you?” His mother stood up starting to collect the dishes as Mariik looked down at himself. It was true; he did look like he just stumbled out of bed and so with light feet Mariik headed back up the stairs noting the bookcases on the far wall of the sitting area outside his room. Inside sat two beds, each on one side of the room, with a window to separate them. Quickly, as morning’s light would soon pass and the path to Maiden was a long one, Mariik changed into his more formal attire grabbing the small bag he had packed only days before.
Small things, like his brush and toy whistle from when he was younger sat in the bag, along with food for the road and one extra set of clothes. Although technically not supposed to bring items from home, small things were often accepted as they could easily be travelled with, and you were never sure just how far you would have to travel. The choice of cook or servant alone would be just over a week of travel to the capitol where he would train under one of the chefs there. Whereas the choice of merchant could get him training under a merchant right there in the town of Maiden. But wherever he went Mariik needed to pack light and head out soon.
Once again Mariik headed down the worn steps and stopped at the bottom watching as his mother finished with the dishes of that morning. Alin sat at the table once more his great sword perched on the table in front of him as he cleaned it again. It was a morning and nightly ritual it seemed for the elder sibling. Something most likely ingrained into him from his four years of training. Mariik walked past them both, slightly waving farewell to his mother as he left his childhood home.
The front steps looked out at the docks where ratty old fishing boats lay swaying with the wind. The fishers of the village had already headed out for the morning fishing, Mariik could see the tiny dots of their boats on the horizon. Others milled about the village, Kani’s father carried the seeds to plant for the new planting, and the lone weaver held her child in her arms. Mariik nodded at them as he went looking around for the only other child his and his sisters age in the village.
Kani, with her long grey hair, was Mariik’s long time best friend. Impatient at the best of times and with a solid two months between them, they had been friends since they were born. As Mariik reached the gates to the village, Kani stood up from her spot on the grass standing beside Enna who, contrary to Kani, was standing patiently waiting for him.
“Not leaving without us I hope?” Kani’s soft voice contradicted her posture, in all ways meant for a fighter.
“Of course, not Kani. How could I even consider leaving without you? After all we all have to be at the choosing hall today.” Mariik’s question caught Kani off guard, the twinkle in her eye betraying her annoyance.
“So, which of us will lead through the forest? We might have to run, it is nearly mid-morn after all.”
Kani smirked before running into the forest along the dirt path. “I’ll race you to the waterfall! Hurry up slowpoke!” She called over her shoulder laughing as Mariik sprinted to keep up. The path led deep into the forest between Heathen and Maiden, one of the [zp] being a waterfall that fell down the cliff where the path turned into a climb.
In the end it was Kani that beat the twins, unsurprisingly to both of them. It had been a hard and long race, two hours of pure running. They panted for breath beside the river where the waterfall fell. Cool blue water rushed against his hands as Mariik quickly washed away the sweat from running. Enna stood silently staring at the path back to Heathen, he could only imagine what was going through his sister's mind. Kani on the other hand had sat down beside a tree pulling an apple from her pack.
“Mariik?” Enna’s voice was quiet, her hands twisting around each other frantically as Mariik looked up and over at her. “Yeah?”
“What father said this morning. Do you think he’d really support us no matter what we choose?” Mariik could practically feel the worry and nervous fear that Enna felt as she said this, he didn’t want to doubt his father but there were things that he just couldn’t deny about him.
“I don’t know. On one hand I want to say yes, he always would. But,” Mariik stood up as he said this, quickly wiping away the excess water from his face. Enna turned around, her face tight with worry. Eye’s staring down into the ground, letting her hair fall into her eyes.
“But it’s father and we really can’t know for certain what he thinks or feels.” She was talking about how every once in a while, he’d come home ranting about the newest choices someone had made and how that changed everything. At the time it hadn’t been concerning but Mariik could see where she was coming from, neither parent much like him after all.
“Yeah. What makes you bring it up?” His mind went to a million answers right away, the most obvious glaring at him right in the eye. Their father had said he’d make a great knight and she’d make a great bard. But Enna hated being forced to read, and despised books that were dry and just on history.
“He said he thought you’d make a good knight and I’d make a good bard. I don’t. I don’t want to be a bard, or a scholar. I only ever went to the stupid winter classes ‘cause you went and, and-” Mariik hugged his sister tightly, silently cursing his father for the careless words he said earlier that morning. Enna hugged him back tightly resting her head on his shoulder.
“If you don’t want to be a bard, then don’t be a bard. You’d make an amazing knight Sister. And quite frankly I know I won’t be a knight or a mercenary. I hate fighting with swords, I’m kinda hoping for Magi to be fair.” His words were quiet, only Enna would ever hear them. Untangling themselves they grabbed their bags, looking around slightly for the grey haired nymph that was their best friend.
“Oi you two! We gotta keep going! We’re gonna be late!” Kani called to them from the top of a tree, waving her hands slightly. Mariik shook his head as he ran forward following Kani as she jumped from tree to tree, Enna bringing up the rear. If they were lucky they’d make Maiden by sundown.
By evening the three had reached the cobblestones of the streets of Maiden. Lamps on the corners of streets only just now being lit. Windows of red brick houses shined with candle and lamp light. The people within sitting down to the final meal of the day. Looking at one another, Mariik, Kani and Enna raced down the streets of Maiden easily. Although they had not grown up there, it was where they went to school for the weeks between the first snowfall and first bloom. So, they knew the town fairly well and quickly reached the old well-kept wooden doors of the entrance to the choosing hall.
Shuffling slightly between their feet Mariik made to open the door, when on its own accord it swung open.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Blinking back slight looks of shock, the two shrugged their shoulders and entered the building. Casting looks everywhere, for only a few were allowed in before their choosing and even fewer could stay after. It was a small room with a hallway leading away nearly directly in front of them. Two doors could just barely be made from the shadows that lingered between them. No sound came from that direction, and very little light came from the hall. Within the room that the two stood in, lay fourteen chairs, each pushed up against the wall that lay on the left. Across from the chairs sat two small tables, one held a small bucket of water and a small platter of bread rolls. The other was stacked with papers and books, and it was there that an elderly man sat watching them.
He gestured patiently for them to take a seat on one of the chairs. The three closest to the hall were taken by others who waited for their turn to come. Kani headed over to the three other fourteen-year old’s introducing herself and him in one breath. The girl closest to the hall had lilac coloured hair, accentuated by storm grey eyes that appeared to pierce into the very soul. Her clothes were native to the southern mining village of Monté, a grey tunic with brown pants and hard leather boots.
The other two were quite obviously twins, as rare as they were. Both boys had pitch black hair and paler than white skin, as if they had never seen the sun. With that complexion and the way their eyes darted around the room it was fair to assume that they hailed from the cavernous town of Necromantilis. Very few who came from there ended up in anyplace else than the Rogue Tower. Which coincidentally was placed just outside the entrance.
Mariik was about to join in on the ongoing conversation about the forests that covered the mountains around the mining village when the creaking of a door opening turned all five pairs of eyes to the hallway. An old man, far older than the one who sat at the paper covered table, exited one of the rooms from the hallway. Following him out was a rather distressed girl. Her flame coloured hair fell in a veil that covered her face, although tear stains could still be seen. Lilac hair frowned at the flame haired girl as the door opened.
None of them knew just what had made her cry from her choices as before they could speculate the elderly man gestured for lilac hair to follow him into the dark room. The four didn’t speak for a few minutes sitting in silence waiting withholding breaths. Eventually words came easily to the four once more, though with a bit more apprehension this time.
The next time a door opened was half an hour after the first one had opened. This time one of the three elderly men led out a boy with shoulder length white hair. He smirked at the four before exiting the building. This time one of the twins was called forth. Each seemed reluctant to go, but eventually the quieter one stood up and followed him. The other sat watching the door mournfully.
Lilac hair came out of her choosing room when all light from the sky had faded and only candles lit up the room. Kani waved slightly to her new friend as she left the building with her head held high. The second twin left and Kani and Mariik were left in a slightly uncomfortable silence. By the time the first twin came out Kani had fallen asleep on Mariik’s shoulder.
Mariik gently shook her awake and watched as she left into her choosing room. They waved and just before the door closed a passing thought occurred to him. Would he ever see her again? Would they ever talk, or laugh, or joke with each other ever again? These thoughts plagued his mind for the time being but was shaken out of them when the second twin left. His choosing began now.
The room was dark, even with the eerie glow of the rocks to the left of the room. He knew that they would change soon enough and would help him visualize his choices. A small stone table sat in front of him, the elderly man already seated across from him. His nervousness must have been showing on his face for the man patiently gestured for him to take a seat with a small smile and nod. A lone candle sat on the table as Mariik sat, revealing the intricate stories of choosing before is own amid the grey stone.
“Welcome, Mariik, to your choosing. Your three choices will be revealed shortly, and as you should be well aware, you must choose one of them. No matter what they may be. Before the choosing begins however, do you have any questions young man?” The elderly man’s voice wasn’t anything like he had pictured. Clear where he thought it would be raspy. Calm when he thought it would be loud.
Mariik thought for a minute before shaking his head in the negative. “I’ve no questions.” He stated, seeing as the man seemed to require a verbal reply to his question.
“Very well, let the choosing, Begin.” At the end of the man’s words, as if some spell had been lifted from the room the three stones he had seen earlier flickered in form and shifted.
One red stone, with flickering light seemed to give hope of knowledge and power. A blank shield but one obviously of the knights promised protection and glory. And a pair of daggers that gave a feeling of mischief and skill. Each lay on a separate table, and while Mariik stood affixed on the three choices the old man muttered to himself. Most that had entered this room had been greeted with similar choices. Very few times in the recorded history had this happened and almost all of them were followed by a terror that shook the land. He dragged himself out of his thoughts watching Mariik go over the choices again and again.
Mariik stood in front of the daggers, in his mind he could see himself grow to become the most fearsome rogues in all the land. No material item not even gold would be safe from his sticky fingers. He could almost taste the victory that would come with every successful heist. But no, while he could see it he couldn’t justify himself being a thief. He would never feel right with himself stealing what could go to others. A small part of his brain whispered back that he could just give that which he stole to the poor. No, he had made up his mind. He would not choose to fall to the greed that came with the daggers of a rogue.
The shield sparkled with the light of the candle and as Mariik looked into the surface he could see his own face reflected onto it. He had longed for adventure his whole life as well as to fight for the greater good. The images from his dreams from the past year came back in an instant and with a disgusted look settling upon his face he stepped away. There was no way he would willingly join the darkness. Even if it was just a dream, though Mariik was fairly certain it wasn’t, he would only ever see the darkness surrounding the Knights for as long as he lived.
That brought him to the red stone. The stone that promised knowledge above all else. It glimmered and the light that glanced off seemed to dance in the shadow. With reaching fingers he brushed against the surface expecting it to be harsh and cold but instead it was smooth and warm. As if a small coal lived inside. He nodded to himself, he would be satisfied with this choice. Magi. That was where his path would lead.
“Magi then.” The elders voice shocked him for a second reminding Mariik of the other person in the room. “May you gain the knowledge that you may require in the coming years.” Mariik nodded confirming his choice and waited for the instructions that were sure to follow. “I will lead you to the doors, from there you will head to the school house, and await dawn where you will be lead to your new home by one of the Magi.” True to his word, the elderly man led Mariik to the doors and went back to the room they had just left.
The streets were dark as he left and Mariik assumed it was around midnight as he made his way to the schoolhouse. No one looked over as he entered, most asleep on bedrolls or using their cloaks for pillows. Kani was fast asleep far over to the corner surrounded by others, each using another for a pillow. Taking a seat by the door, Mariik rested his head back against the wooden wall wondering what would happen come dawn. He knew that the Magi were taught their skills far to the north, but the exact location was unknown. Only the Magi themselves knew where he would be headed.
Dreamless sleep was granted to him that night with nothing but sweet darkness to greet him. No whispers held in shadow, no swords clashing upon steel. Not even a colour, it appeared to Mariik as if even the Divine Chor favored him and his choice that night. Or perhaps it was just the calm before the storm. Whatever it was, Mariik was overjoyed when he awoke that morning feeling more rested than he had in a month.
It was those who chose Knight that left first before Mariik had awoken, even the Mercenaries had left before dawn. Those that were left were either heading for places to find apprenticeships or were waiting ever patiently for the people who would lead them to their new homes. By mid-morn nearly everyone had left for the road. Craftsmen and Artisans would head for Andress, while Hunters left for Lintel or Forint. Even those who become the Last had left following their new teachers. By evening only three remained. Himself and two girls. The fire-hair and a girl with bright pink hair, the kind you would only find on blossoms.
The three of them waited for what seemed like eternity. Awaiting the one who would lead them away. Daylight had faded by the time a man in sunset orange opened the door and quickly gestured for them to follow.
“Quickly, quickly now. Lots of ground to cover, not much time. Come, come.” The three followed him to where six horses lay waiting, already saddled. “Hop on up, I hope you all know how to ride, as unlikely as that is.” The girl with fire-hair frowned at the man, jumping up onto a sand coloured horse.
“Just because we hail from the south does not mean we are dumb or stupid. We were given the choice of Magi and all of us took it. Deal with it.” It was the first time Mariik had heard her talk and smirked at the tone in her voice before pulling himself onto a midnight coloured mare. While not common at all in the south, most learned at least how to ride a pony or a deer.
“Of course, of course. I meant no offense. The last Magi will be joining us at the Academy. Follow me. We’ll be camping several times in the forests before we get there. Long ways to go you see.” With that comment the strange man began to ride out of Maiden clearly expecting the rest of them to follow. If the road was as long as the man said, Mariik only hoped that there wouldn’t be that many attacks on the road from wild animals.
He had heard stories from his father of large bears that attacked those who were unwary on the road. Of innocent people suddenly going missing between Castillion and Maiden. Mariik was grateful of one thing however, that it wasn’t along the border that they were riding.
The border between [?] and Aclyon was dangerous, as warriors from the war-torn land would attack citizens travelling alongside it’s border. It had been centuries from the last full-blown attack along the border, and even longer from the last war, but the people of Aclyon stood wary of what might come while their backs were turned. It was why so many trained to fight, Rogues, Mercenaries, even Knights took just under half of those who choose every year.
It had been during this long journey to Castillion that Mariik learned his companion’s names and homes. Fire-hair, he quickly found out after nearly being pummeled for calling her that, was named Trill and was from Monte, and if it hadn’t been for the choices that the choosing had given her she wouldn’t even be on that stretch of the road. Though, she hadn’t claimed that her choosing had been messed up as Mariik had been expecting. On the contrary she seemed to be, while unhappy, content with her choice.
The girl with the pink hair had interrupted him before he could call her blossom-top as he had been intending, stating quite clearly that her name was Poppy. She came from Kriston, the small village on the island across from Heathen. Its people did bits of everything, most only coming to the mainland to chose before heading back after their training.
The Magi led them through the forests of Anu, five days and four long terror filled nights past as they travelled. Soon however, as the light of dawn broke through the branches did they see the city of Castillion.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The scent that came from the streets was barely tolerable. The constant crying and coughing grated on one’s ears, enough that they wished they went deaf. Castillion was the city of plague for a reason and many tried to avoid all contact with it. Dead bodies lined the streets, some with boils, others with grey ashen skin that marked blood loss. Those who were not dead walked stiffly through the city, trying against odds to forget those who did not make it.
Beggars ran up to the group many times, begging for anything that they might spare. On several occasions they were told to just hand over what they had. At those times the Magi leading them would flash magic, usually a small fire above his hand, and those that would be thieves would quickly leave or find themselves with burning flesh. Glares towards them came from all sides, calls of derogatory words were lashed out as the four of them moved through the city.
It was after a particular man had called out to Poppy that she spoke up with a saddened voice. “Why do they hate us so much? What did we ever do to them?”
Mariik’s eyes dimmed for only a second, his arm going numb as it did when he saw something. There in the past stood the castle and its grounds that made up Castillion. Worn stones made up the walls and cobbled streets, wood from the forests nearby created houses. In the daylight it was magnificent, standing almost taller than the palace in Andress. Children danced and played in the streets, merchants called to those who passed their stalls and it was for once safe.
Evening brought darkness, and though children were called in and merchants took down their wares it was still as safe as it had been with the suns bright light. To the south however came the whisper that Mariik had only heard in his darkest dreams. As he watched in horror the dark knights poisoned the land, killing all plants and soiling the planet for centuries to come. Dawn broke once again, though this time to sorrow and fear. Children and elders had died in the night, walls decaying at speeds they thought impossible.
The citizens of Castillion saw the fields where the poison had started, those that came from the south had always been enemies and so they drew to the conclusion, no Glycon soldier could make it this far to their minds. Hate spread from every person to every child that had survived in a matter of minutes. The only thing that spared the south from their rage was the war they had been called to fight.
Trill was loudly arguing with the Magi when Mariik came back to his own time. He hummed slightly, trying to figure out what he had missed.
“-nno as my witness! We should never have entered this divine forsaken city! For all we know we could end up catching whatever sickness infests this place! As it is Mariik looks as if he’s about to pass out! We should quickly leave, there’s no reason to stop in such a sickly place!” Trill called forward to the Magi who was sternly ignoring her outburst. Leaning over to Poppy who looked at him with curious eyes he nodded his head forward towards the two in a silent question.
“What happened?” Poppy shifted slightly in her saddle before answering in the same tone.
“After I asked my question, well you looked as if you were about to fall asleep. Trill asked why they were here, and the Magi said that southerners like us were unlikely to understand. It’s been going on like this for a few minutes now.” Mariik nodded to her words, looking around at the buildings of Castillion.
“Ah. Oh and I think I know the answer to your question.” Poppy looked over at Mariik with a sense of apprehension and dread. “Glycon poisoned the land, back during the seven years war. Only they poisoned the south portion and so Castillion drew the conclusion that we were responsible. They never got over their rage and hatred.”
“How do you know this?” Mariik squirmed in his saddle slightly. Before he could answer however Poppy already knew what he was about to say. “Your a child of Chor aren’t you? You tricked me into thinking you were so kind and generous and now you pull this? How dare you. Stay away from me!” Poppy barely spared him another glance before riding ahead swiftly taking Trill’s place beside the Magi.
“So what did you do?” Mariik sighed, first Poppy now Trill. “She looked as if she was about to start screaming. So what did you say to her?”
“What do you know of the Children of Chor?” It was a simple enough question, though it had a tendency to make people flinch back and turn a different direction. With Trill however, nothing happened besides a slight shrug.
“A bit but not much. Aren’t they those people that Werkenna supposedly hates for they have the opportunity to see into the future and change other people's choices.” Mariik nodded to Trill’s answer.
“Well you’re half right. Children of Chor are typically gifted one of three things. The ability to see into the past; The Second Eyes, the ability to see the present; First Eyes and finally the ability to see into the future; the Third Eyes. There are also those, such as me, who are classified as Fourth Eyes, or those born with ability for all three. People state that they are always so horrible, specifically the Third Eyes, because they are seen to have the ability to change things. What people don’t understand is that with everyones choices, things are always changing. I could see you have bread tomorrow for breakfast, but say you choose to have a biscuit instead. That small choice changes thousands of things. I can’t tell you how tomorrow will go. Not fully. However, there are events that are marked as things that are likely to happen no matter the choice that is made. These we call the Direct Future. But it’s a one in a million chance that what I see is a Direct Future.” Mariik replied. Trill nodded in understanding glancing up at Poppy who had given her a dirty look.
“Don’t listen to this idiot. Children of Chor are abominations that should have never been granted a place in our society.” Poppy commented as the group of four slowly came to a stop in front of an old building.
It was made of the same stone as the rest of the city, falling apart quite rapidly. Two boys stood up among the group of maybe ten students. One with unusual brown hair and another with lime green.
“Magi?” At the Magi’s nod the brown haired one grabbed two horses from beside the building. They pulled themselves onto the horses with ease and off the group went.
They were a few miles from Castillion when conversation was struck up once again, it was then that Mariik found out the names of the two latest companions.
The brown haired one was named Evan and came from the forest town of Forint. He had mentioned several times that he was the only kid in his family of four that hadn’t been given the choice of Hunter. Not that Mariik was surprised. Indred, on the other hand, was born and raised in Castillion. His lime-green hair was something of a common theme in Castillion, most if not all children there being born with it.
Poppy had continued to ignore him for the next five days they were on the road for. The forest gave way to the hills on the third day and the hills became mountains the next. Soon, half a days ride from the northern mountain city of Kindred, did the group come to the Academy.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The main building of the academy was made of worn stone in all shapes and sizes. It was a two story building but already it was larger than any Mariik had seen before. On both sides stood towers, nearly twice the main buildings height. It was to the tower on the right that they were headed.
The inside of the tower was plain, no distinctive color or decoration on the lower floors could clearly be seen. The Magi leading them stopped in the center of the floor they had entered in, the final student taking a step forward. She was pale with platinum-blonde hair that fell far down her back.
“Welcome, students of Magi. This tower shall be your home and your sanctuary for the next four years. Girls, your rooms are on the floor above. Boys, your rooms are here on this floor. There are rules that you will abide by in your time here. First, the room you are given is yours and yours alone. Another student is not to be allowed in. For emergency purposes, a Master will be granted the ability only when the student inside requires aid. Second, you are required to be here between the hours of nine in the evening and five in the morning. Finally, there is to be no magic performed without a Master watching until you become Masters yourselves. Understood?” The rules given seemed reasonable to Mariik, as well as the rest of the students. The Magi nodded sternly once before continuing his speech.
“Breakfast is at six, it ends at eight when classes begin. Lunch is between eleven and twelve. Dinner is from five until seven. You are welcome to choose between any of the rooms on your floor. Please choose a room and get changed into the provided clothes. If they do not fit, we will find a set for you to wear. After you have all changed I will lead you to the main hall for the opening ceremonies. Now off with you.”
The three doors on their floor looked eerily similar to those in his dream. They were made of wood and stained dark brown each with an identical small metal doorknob. Evan had edged away during the speech of the Magi towards the door farthest from the stairs. Indred claimed the room opposite Evans which left Mariik for the middle room.
The room was simplistic and as plain as the tower outside. A bed was sitting to the right of the room beside the small window. It was covered in a cream blanket on the rickety wooden frame. That however wasn't what had captured Mariiks attention, across from the bed sat a tall bookshelf that stretched from floor to ceiling.
It was filled to the brim with all sorts of books on magic and it's uses. Books on alchemy lined the middle shelf, while theory lined the shelf below it. A call to hurry up from outside reminded him of his task and with quick movements had changed out of his normal attire and into the clothes provided. The light green shirt was slightly too big on Mariik’s body though the grey pants fit perfectly.
When Mariik got to the group he found that he was not the only one who had been slow. Maria, the girl who had travelled alone to the Academy was still up in her room fixing her appearance. It was another ten minutes before she came down the stairs slightly sullen about the constant nagging for her to hurry up. The Magi lead them through the snow draped field towards the main building they had seen first.
He lead them through the large doors into a dining hall where other students had already seated themselves at the round tables that dotted the area. Mariik could feel the stares of every other person in the room peering over at the six novices.
“Ah, thank you Master Joli. Novices, if you could take your seats.” One table was left for the six of them, over at the front of the room. “Welcome. To those old students, congratulations on beginning another year. To those new, we welcome you. Magi Academy is a place for knowledge to be learned and shared. Though it is also here to be used. Please give a warm welcome to our Masters, for they will be your teachers and tutors for this year. Now for the part I know you have all been eagerly anticipating, dinner.” With that the Archmagi waved a hand towards the serving doors and twelve servers came out with the food.
Buns from Sindred, fish from Heathen, venison from Forint and everything in between had been placed onto the decorative platters that had been put in front of them. Chatter started up from the other tables leaving the novices to sit in silence for a few moments longer. Poppy was the one to break the silence in the end, though her conversation topic was interesting.
“So, why’d everyone choose to come here? I personally wanted to get as far from the island as I could.” Maria looked over at Poppy with narrowed eyes, her lips pursing together in a frown.
“Do you not know that asking such a question so soon after a choosing is rude and inconsiderate. With that tone of voice too, the island of Kriston is a piece of land Aclyon may not even need in the coming years.” That brought in Indred who was staring at Maria at the end of her comment.
“Excuse me? Though Castillion may have a grudge against the south, do you not remember the basic History lessons from the last year? Kriston was brought in as an island of Aclyon because of the help it gave us during the seven years war. Much more than Monte did for that matter.” It was Trill’s turn to glare at Indred it seemed and she looked very angry at his comment.
“Monte was very helpful I’ll have you know. At least we can give stone from our quarries and valuable ore from our mines unlike Castillion! Everyone knows that it’s so plagued you can’t even breathe within a half mile. Though from how Evan speaks I might say you can get poisoned all the way to Forint!” Evans blinked a few times staring over at Trill.
“‘Scuse me?” Evan’s tone was incredulous, even with his accent he had made it perfectly clear. Trill glared back at Evan with a fierce eye.
“You heard me right.” Mariik’s head met his hands, he could feel a nasty headache coming on and if everyone could just be quiet for a second he might be able to think.
“All I ‘eard was a commen’ on Castillion’s plague and how it must have affected Forin’. How dare you! Forin’ is a perfectly good town, at least we don’ get pe’y nobles like Andress!”
“An-........ good! I wi-.....” Maria’s comment cut in and out as black spots danced in Mariik’s eyes. The headache was getting worse now, he could feel himself getting dizzier.
“Ho-.....” He couldn’t make out who commented next, though from the distant mumbles he could tell it had to be Indred. Mariik blinked a few times before finding himself surrounded by darkness.
“Hello Mariik. What a… surprise.” Mariik felt himself awaken standing up from the table he had just been sitting in. Though, the difference between reality and here was astounding. Darkness flooded the room, the only light being a single candle on the table he had just left. The voice he heard echoed around him, distantly he could make out the voices of his fellow novices.
“Who are you?” Mariik glanced around trying to find where the voice came from. “What do you want?”
“I am shadows and silence. Nights without the moon, and stars. I am Darkness itself. And as to what I want?” It chuckled, unnerving Mariik even more. “Why I want you. Though, not just yet. You’ll be mine soon enough. Especially with that choice of Magi...” With that the candle went out. Screams came out of the shadows, calls for help cried from the very wind that breathed through the cracks in the walls. It was the crackle of fire that worried Mariik the most though.
A light appeared out of the darkness, fighting with the shadows. “Mariik. Come here, you have lingered far from my gaze for long enough.” The light began to brighten chasing away the screams and cries. “You should not linger.” This voice was calmer than the last and gave a sense of familiarity.
“Why should I trust you anymore then the other one?” The presence of light calmed Mariik slightly as it spoke again.
“You should not linger Mariik, come, follow my voice and my light.” Mariik took a hesitant step forward before breaking out into a run towards where the light began. He stopped before taking the final step.
“You didn’t answer my question.” The second voice chuckled slightly.
“You will know in time.”
Mariik sat up suddenly blinking back the sight of the dark that still seemed to invade his vision. In the corner of his eyes he could just make out Poppy blinking furiously at the table. As the arguments around him picked up as they went in circles Mariik put his head into his hands. This was going to be a long year.