30 January 2013
Hello! This is my first entry in my 'Short Story-a-Month' project that I started! My first story is one part of an adventure novella, with 3 planned parts which will be written by the end of the year. I hope you enjoy, and please don't hesitate to give any constructive criticism or feedback in the comments :)
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The fire flickered in it's shallow pit, occasionally spitting embers that twisted and danced in the dawn's breeze. As it's glow began to wane, the young woman surveyed the outline of her camp and the steady glow her magical wards that traced around it's edges made. She lingered her gaze a little too long on the aura, which then caused her eyes to strain against the contrasting darkness that seemed to pervade the area. The faint circle pulsed around her like an aurora in an array of indescribable colours, swirling and writhing with the power of a thousand ancestral spirits. The light bathed the snow-capped trees surrounding the area in an unnatural shade of blue-green, which contrasted heavily with the orange glow of the fire. The light even reflected off the intricately-designed metal buckles on her breastplate, and a twinkle in the young woman's beautiful hazel eyes was the only obvious glimpse of femininity held in the stoic figure.
Braela wondered how long her magic would hold; dawn had only just arrived and she knew they would be upon her camp soon. Her wards were strong, but were they strong enough? She had more to do before she could move onwards though, so with some weary inevitability she pushed herself off of the ground and brushed her legs clean of debris. Her stomach groaned but she knew that before she could even think about breakfast she had to make sure her preparations were complete. She collected her belongings and then spent some time setting small snare traps; enough to slow her pursuers down long enough to put some distance between her and them. Her mission was of utmost importance and she refused to become just another shallow grave out in the wilderness. She then set about channeling her runes to make sure she had enough reserve to last her the next leg of her journey.
=//=
Like all Excubitors before her, Braela Stormstolt had been taught the ways of the Senti by the Prior in her village when she reached her thirteenth birthday. As a child she was precocious but also a quiet soul; not in the sense that she was shy but simply that she kept to herself. Her parents, Sophora and Barodor, saw the potential in her and so with the Prior's consent she learnt. Prior Alsoreth was a wizened man and yet was still a strong and imposing figure, so because of this he was able to keep watch over the village as well as serving as a competent tutor to any students who wished to learn the power of the Order.
Nyaborgar, the village that had cradled Braela as she grew up, sat in the shadow of Kallvarstad which was one of the major cities in the province. When she was young, Braela would stare out from her bedroom window at the lights and smoke that rose from behind the city walls and dreamt of the wondrous things that took place within. Prior Alsoreth would regularly visit Kallvarstad for supplies and meetings with the local Sentus' Order to get an idea of the goings on in the region and reports from the wider world on the continent's politics or any strange happenings. Sometimes the Prior would be called up to deal with issues in the area such as leading skirmishes against the evil races or cleansing an old Monarch's tomb. During that time Braela would resume life as an innocent young girl, learning at school and playing with the children of the village.
Braela was one of six students that Alsoreth taught; Nyaborgar being a large enough village to warrant that number of children being drafted as apprentice Excubitors. Alsoreth felt that the children he selected possessed enough of the precursory talents to become part of the Sentus Order so after permission had been acquired he began their training. He taught them various disciplines, including survival techniques, basic sword-fighting and most importantly, channeling. "All an Excubitor's strength lies in their Runes", the Prior said as he first showed his students a set of the small-ish stones. "Anybody magically-inclined can cast incantations and glamours, and powerful warlocks can even use staffs or wands to channel their power, but a true Excubitor uses Runes. Using Runes calls on the power of your ancestors and gathers their noble strength to aid you against your foe. With them, we stand watch over these lands and ensure that the world of men is not corrupted and is allowed to prosper", spoke the tutor. Alsoreth then held one hand up towards the stones and concentrated, and the students watched in awe as the Runes glowed and began to arc streams of light to his hand. Apparitions and wisps suddenly flew about the room and bright flashes of light exploded in the small hut to the amazement of the children, open-mouthed in wonder of what they saw before them. The Prior lowered his hand but still kept it outstretched, slowly raising his head and opening his eyes as a wry smile began to form on his ageing face. The visions faded, and the Runes continued to hover in place, twitching occasionally despite the intense lights emanating from them had ceased. Still, the glow around them remained and the ancient sigils remained etched into the polished rocks in a brilliant white light.
Braela was entranced by the Runes and the power they held from then on. Her keen fascination with the supernatural, coupled with her natural skill and guile regarding combat meant she learnt fast and progressed quickly. With Alsoreth's help, she even trained to become an Armiger, a junior rank in the Sentus Order. Nonetheless, it was a rank befitting children and teenagers of promise and Braela was no exception to this. Alsoreth would sometimes take Braela and her fellow pupils on occasional trips to Blackpine Wood, a forest outlying Nyaborgar, in the hopes of encountering beasts or creatures of unnatural origins. Purely meant as a training and teaching exercise, they would sometimes stumble across sprites and other lesser (and might I add harmless) magical entities on their travels. Alsoreth saw the children's security as paramount and so he always made sure he kept his Golem, a ten foot tall stone guardian powered by Runemagic, with them at all times. The figure towered above even the Prior, and ensured that Braela and the other students would be safe if they were to ever come under attack on one of these expeditions.
On one of these expeditions when the group were exploring in the forest, Aldor, one of the male students under Alsoreth's tutelage, discovered a cave at the bottom of a cliff face after breaking into a clearing. A boulder sat on the edge of the clearing as well as smaller debris which was scattered around the floor. He called for the others to follow and once assembled, the group shuffled towards the opening. It's mouth whistled and droned, indicating to Alsoreth that not only was this day a particularly windy one, but also that the cave led to somewhere else. Leading the group of tentative youths, Alsoreth halted their progress forwards and let their golem venture first into the blackness whilst he began to teach the group a basic illumination spell. "The Runes give an Excubitor not only a focus point but also act as a storage vessel for magicks. They are ancient magical tools and can hold great power and so first you must prove all of you are all worthy of them. I'm confident that each of you will though, so hopefully each of you will probably have a set of Runes for yourself!" said Alsoreth, smiling as the group clapped and chattered in excitement as they heard this news. "They are not toys, however, and are incredibly dangerous in the hands of the foolish, young ones." he added, sternly. The excitement stood firm in the dispositions of the children despite this addition, as children are predisposed to ignore comments like these in such situations. To add seriousness to his statement, he concentrated and suddenly the Runes in his hand exploded into flame which took the children aback in surprise, a couple even falling backwards over the small rocks which littered the floor. Once he had their full attention again, he quelled the Rune's fire and the small group broke into fits of laughter, Alsoreth continuing his teaching only after the giggles had died down.
As their tutor explained the intricacies of the spell further, the automaton lurched forwards towards the cave's maw, crushing small rocks and trampling mossy patches spread out around the front of the hole as the behemoth approached. Slowly the golem came to stand before the gaping void and as soon as it had confronted this dark barrier, it crossed the threshold just as quickly and disappeared into the entrance. The Prior glanced up from his lesson to look at the cave's mouth as this occurred, the elder hearing the echoing footsteps of the golem spilling out from the darkness as it travelled up the rocky passage.
Suddenly, the Golem was flung back down the tunnel and crashed onto the floor outside. The statue skidded along the rock and gravel as it landed, stopping about 15 feet away in plumes of dust. The children and tutor looked up through the rising cloud of debris as a massive, spindly leg poked out of the abyss and felt it's surroundings. Covered with wiry hairs both small and large, the needle-like appendage waved menacingly in the mid-morning air, almost surveying the area for prey. The colour drained from most of the children's faces and Ellsa, one of the younger girls in the group, screamed in terror as 3 more legs joined the first in coming out of the cave. Alsoreth looked to Braela, who was at 15 years of age one of the oldest students under his tutelage by this point, and commanded her to gather the children and take them somewhere safe. She nodded her understanding to her tutor, o
Short Story-A-Month; January • Opuss № I