Story Reborn !

[Prototype]

Good, but lacking owls.

Whether that's a negative is a matter of opinion

[Dux_Tell31]

SOOOOooooo many words! 0.0

[Iv121]

Chapter 15 - Highwind

Spoiler:

The early light rays shined on Kail’s sleeping bag. He met the dawn with open eyes, it was hard to sleep after what happened yesterday. He watched over the camp almost half night until he couldn’t sit anymore and he finally woke up Elian, but even after that he couldn’t fall asleep. It seemed like Elian felt quite the same as he watched the camp straight until dawn, they didn’t wake up Liana. “It’s dawn now, we should keep going” said Elian and they began to fold the camp.

The road went over the valley below them. Old, big trees grew around the mountain but Kail could see grassy plains further away. “We should see it any moment now” said Elian. They passed a curve in the mountain when a beautiful scenery revealed itself before Kail. On the further side of the mountain he could see a huge city. The city was built on the steep mountain slope. It consisted of dozens of high, thin towers, going up into the sky. Between those towers Kail could see bridges and walkways, alcoves and terraces. The city went higher and higher around a bigger tower which towered above them all, with a giant hawk statue above it. On the other side Kail could see another big tower near what looked like a market. “It is beautiful” “More like annoying, going all those stairs all the time …” “Don’t listen to him, it’s a nice view from out there and a it’s fun to glide around “ “Maybe for you because you’re an air mage …”



They closed to the city gates. Kail could see four guards standing near it. Their armor was different from the Legionary armor – They wore a light chainmail cuirass with white cloth covering it. They wore pointy iron helmets and held wooden spears with a thin iron blade on top. The gate lead to a long plaza, passing between the thinner towers and through the bigger one. “It’s quite quiet here “ Kail noted “most of the people go the market area on the other side of the city, the rest are spread between all those corridors in the towers so it is really not crowded here”. They began to go up one of the streets to the upper levels, then entered a big door. It led to an alcove with a view over the city. They kept going up. “You can describe the city as a bunch of walkways and corridors leading to small courtyards and the big plazas on each main level”. They went out to another plaza and kept going towards the main tower. “What’s on top of this tower ?” “The city council. They won’t let you in so you better stay down here” “Hang out around this plaza and we will show you the city” said Liana and they went into the tower. “At least I’ll always find my way back to this big tower, unless I manage to get lost in those alcoves” he thought and began to walk.

Most of the people around wore white cloths like he did, with occasional golden patterns on the cloths. The Lumians had a very distinct appearance. Some of them had blond hair, some had black one, most of them had blue eyes. They were mostly average in size. The men had similar short haircuts to the Alderian ones which helped Kail to blend in. Suddenly he turned around to see two Lumian guards standing in front of him “we are ordered to arrest you, follow us” “Arrest me ? For what ?” one of the guards pushed him silently with the spear and he began walking. They went towards another high tower. Above it Kail could see big birds landing and taking off periodically. “Maybe it is where they hold those windhawks” he thought. They went down the tower to the holding cells “Get in” one of the guards pushed him into the cell and locked the door. Kail looked around the cell – a bed and a small wooden table was all of the furniture he had. Near the bed was a thin window , Kail could look out of it but couldn’t pass through it. He could see the market down from there. What was he arrested for ? IS it because he’s a foreigner ? Does it have anything to do with Elian and Liana ? or the men in black armor ? Probably he’ll find out soon. Should he try to escape ? He has an important task but yet he could get Elian and Liana in trouble if they figure he came with them. He should probably wait until he knows his crime. After a while a guard came to the door and pushed a plate with food through the door. “Why am I arrested ?” he asked “By the request of the Neferonian Ambassador “ he answered and went out.

The sun began to set down outside. Kail looked out of the window at the market district. The merchants began to close their stands and go home. Lights began to appear on the nearby towers. The city began to prepare for the night, he should be preparing too. Suddenly he heard the iron door opening on the far side of the corridor. “You are out of your mind ! You know what will happen if you do that ?!” Kail could see Elian and Liana closing to the door. “Hang in there we’ll get your out of here” “You are going to get everyone in trouble” “I won’t if nobody will know” “I don’t want you to get in trouble because of me” said Kail “See? He doesn’t want to go , now lets leave …” Laina gave an angry look at Elian and he shut up. She took out a key ring and opened the door “Follow me”. They ran down the tower and out to one of the walkways. “The gates are well guarded at this time so you better leave through the port” “Where’s all of the guards ? “ Kail wondered as he didn’t see any in the tower at all “Just go”. They reached the market district gate when suddenly a few men appeared in the gate. It was a man coated in a red tunic, escorted by four other men in red steel armor. “I see you’re not happy with our hospitality, I bet those idiots will get a better cell for you on our ship” said the man in red tunic. The guards around the gate began to point their spears towards Kail. Two guards went forward to arrest Kail. Suddenly Liana stepped forward to protect him. “Liana what are you doing ? Get out of there !” shouted Elian. “You are rebelling against my will ? The punishment for rebelling against the Neferonian empire is death ! Burn them .” The red guards prepared fire balls in their hands but suddenly another man stepped forward. He began to point his spear at the red guards “Back off or I will kill you” “You back off councillor or else you are a rebel as well.” “You are not welcome here anymore, guards show them the way to their ship.” The white guards moved their spears from Kail to the men in red. “So be it, I will return councillor but next time we meet you will be chained in front of me on the remnants of your burnt city” The man in red tunic turned away and walked to the port. They went on the airship that stood in the dock and the airship began to slowly move away.

The councillor looked at the Kail and Liana. “What have you done … “ he looked with anger at them “It’s not their fault father it was my idea” said Elian. The councillor looked at Elian “I didn’t expect it to come from you, I’m disappointed, and you, I don’t know who you are or why they want you but you did enough trouble to our city, you must leave. Prepare the city, they will come with the dawn I want every man who can hold a sword in this city at the main plaza, the women, children and elders should be fortified in the main tower.” “Will the Odelians be here on time ? “ asked Elian “I think we’re on our own”

Kail began to walk towards the city gate. Liana ran after him. “I’m sorry I got you into this, I should have staid in the cell” “It’s not your fault, who knows what terrible things they could do to you” “Why do the Neferonians want to attack you ? I thought you all live in peace beyond the portal” “It’s not that simple. The Neferonians and the Odelians are in a war for a long time now. The Lumians tried to stay out of this war, we are aligned with the Neferonins. We pay them taxes and they don’t touch us and let us live in peace. As the war began more fierce the Neferonians raised their taxes and demanded our people for work in their mines and fortresses. The council decided that it was too much and we secretly forge an alliance with the Odelians and the Neferonian rebels” “To join with another empire, so that you pay them the same taxes all over again ?” “That’s how it works, we are too small to oppose the Neferonians alone. That’s why me and Elian went to the east, we delivered the agreement” “Why you ? Don’t you have ambassadors for that ?” “The city is watched by Neferonian spies. We couldn’t risk those plans being revealed so instead they sent us to the Odelians, nobody would suspect us.” “Is it true that your father is a councillor ?” “Yes, he is the high councillor, he oversees the city” “I don’t want to cause more trouble, you should go and I should take Lightwing and Twinkle and move on, it was nice to meet you.” “You too.”

Kail went back to Varus Gate. The road looked differently now, maybe because his mood changed from excitement to frustration and anger at himself. He managed in a couple of days not only blow up all of his plans but also blow up a city in the process. He wished he could go back in time and never go with them, to be alone and not to trouble anyone. He finally reached Varus Gate. He went to the house of Mr. Norle. The sun began slowly to go up in the sky. He knocked on the door and the old man opened it “Oh it’s you, I hope the trip was nice for you” Kail could see Twinkle sleeping on the far side of the room, he suddenly jumped up and flew towards Kail, chirping with excitement “Let’s go to visit your bigger friend”. Mr. Norle opened the barn door. Lightwing was sleeping there on a bunch of hay. He opened his eyes and closed to Kail. He snooped around him and then put his head on Kail “I missed you too guys” “They have quite a nice temper, the big guy eats a lot of fish but the small guy is just gold, I’ve got enough fish for him, myself and for selling some at the market.” Lightwing groaned with approval, burping out some white flames at the floor “I might have fed him too much, he almost burnt down the house” “Thank you for taking care of them” Kail took off the white robe and put the black tunic back on him.

Kail climbed on Lightwing and prepared to leave he looked at the rising sun, then looked the other way towards the city. He could see black dots floating in the sky “They must be the Neferonian airships ! Wish I could do anything for them” Mr. Norle looked up in the sky “This can’t be good, they tend to fight over small and insignificant things, but if those things caused such a mess they are not that insignificant after all” Kail looked at the ships. “Maybe I could do something for them, If I caused this mess I can get them out of it, every sword counts” he though. “Thank you again Mr. Norle “ Two light taps and the dragon was in the air. Twinkle jumped onto Kail’s shoulder and they were ready to go” “The sun is almost up we must hurry” he said and Lightwing began to fly towards the city. “I remember how my father told me about the dragon raiders, how the dived on the Garrens blowing them up with energy balls.” Lightwing burped some white flames again “That burping you have, try to make it bigger, get some more air in.” Lightwing filled his lungs with air. “Now the master said the energy comes from our souls and not our muscles or stomach, try to imagine it coming from your mouth, I trust you can” Lightwing gave a short groan, filled his lungs with air again and then sent it out of his mouth. In a loud, almost whistling roar the white energy ball flew out of the dragon’s mouth.

High councillor Tonle was standing on the main tower, looking at the closing airships “The bough the whole third fleet, if those ships close to our city they will turn it into burning ruins. We need to focus one ship at a time and we must not let them reach the city.” “I want to help father” said Elian “You already did enough, go down and don’t leave the safe zone.” “I want to fight !” “You are too young, go down”. The windhawks began to fly towards the closing fleet. “Those are not the light trading airships we are used to have here, they are almost twice their size, their balloons are covered in steel plating and the deck is filed with turrets and bombs. It won’t be easy”. Below him in an alcove stood Elian and Liana .They listened closely to the talk above them and watched closely at the closing fleet. “You think they will manage to stop them ? “ asked Liana “Do you want me to be optimistic or real ?” “You’re always pessimistic …” The first windhawks closed to an airship. The riders held something in their hands, they closed to the airships when fireballs and arrows began to fly at them. They tried to outmanoeuvre the incoming fire but it was too fierce, the windhawks turned back and went up for another run. This time they began to dive from above. The fire was not as fierce as it was below the airship. The windhawks closed to the airship and the riders attached the square things to the ship’s hull “Stick bombs, I guess they shouldn’t have left us those” said Elian. The windhawks flew away and the bombs went off. The carefully placed bombs detached the deck from the air balloon and the ship began to fall “get some !” said Elian “Quiet ! You want our father to hear us ? “. The windhwaks closed to another ship. This time the fire came from multiple ships. The windhawks barely managed to get high enough and began their dive. The riders attached the bombs and they went off. The deck almost fell off but one of the charges didn’t break the steel and the deck began to hag down chaotically from the air balloon , slowly descending to the ground. “here goes another one !”

“sir we lost two ships “ said one of the guards to the ambassador “Tighten the ships together, they cannot withstand our firepower” he said, holding his short pointy beard. “Soon enough we burn that place to hell and get that boy in our hands”. The windhawks closed to another airship. They tried to get up for a dive but the fire from the ships was too heavy and they backed off “Sir the fire is too heavy, our windhawks can’t reach the ships.” “signal them to retreat, we’ll send them in again when they close to the outer tower”. The ships began to close to the city. “Sir they are closing to the tower” “Signal them to shoot”. The guards in the outer tower began to fill the weapons. “They are closing to the outer tower, they will fire explosive bolts at them with their own ballistas “ said Elian “Ballistas ?” “Those big bows they have on Neferonian battleships, we bought a few of those three months ago” “I see you’re still digging in father’s office” “I need to know those things if I want to lead this place one day…” . “Sir the ships are in range !” “Signal them to fire”. The ballistas fired at the closest ship. The bolts hit the hull but the strong steel held the deck in place. The airship began to turn it’s flank towards the tower. The gunners hit the ship again with no results, the ship opened fire. The explosive bolts hit the tower. “They shoot the tower sir” “Keep firing !”. Meanwhile the windhawks prepared to dive on the ship again. The tower drew all of the fire and the hawks flew straight for the ship. The riders attached the charges and flew away. The charges went off and the ship fell apart. “Third down !”. The ships began to turn their flanks to the tower one by one and firing at it “They almost ran out of bolts and the ships are shooting the tower” “Signal them to fall back” said High councillor Tonle. The windhawks began their dive on another ship but the ships noticed them and began to fire. “The fire is too heavy there is no way we can stop them !” “Sir one of the ships is leaving formation and heading towards the city !” The high councillor ran towards the edge of the tower too see clearer the airship flying past the other ones towards the city “It’s loaded with bombs !” The windhawks flew towards the ship but the fire from the decks was too heavy, “They can’t dive on it !” They looked at the airship closing to the city helplessly. Suddenly the heard a whistling noise “Is that the bombs ? Where are they falling ? “ Elian looked at the ship when suddenly a large explosion happened on the deck. “Over there sir “ one of the guards pointed at a fast moving dot in the sky. “It’s Kail” they heard somewhere below them. Kail turned around and prepared to go for another run “Are you ready ? “ the dragon roared and prepared for the dive. Elian heard another whistling sound and another explosion appeared on the ship. The ship began to fall down. “It is smoking !” said Elian. “I’ve never seen such this much of a firepower in a single bird” said the high councillor. “Sir they just blew up another ship !” The ambassador looked closely at the dragon passing for another run “Shoot it down !”. Kail began to close to the ships when fireballs began to fly towards him from all directions Kail tried to pass between them. He quickly created a force shield in front of Lightwing. Lightwing created another energy ball and they flew away. The energy ball hit the ship deck and it began to smoke “We have fire on one of the ships !” “Shoot him !” . Lightwing flew higher above the ships where they couldn’t shoot him. “Let’s go for the tail now !” Lightwing dived at the ship below him. The fireballs began to fly at them again, Kail shielded Lightwing and he casted another energy ball. It hit the Tail of the ship. The ship lost control and began to turn left, crashing into another ship. “We’ve lost two more !” the ambassador looked at the remaining fleet “Turn the ships back, fall back ! This battle is not over.” The ships began to turn around. “You did it !” said Kail, Lightwing gave a short groan. Suddenly he began to fall down. Kail created a force field and tried to keep Lightwing afloat. They closed to the city and Lightwing crashed into the market district. Kail ran towards Lightwing. He was exhausted and barely moved his head. “You did well, you need to rest now”. Guards began to run towards the market district with high councillor Tonle, Liana and Elian.

Kail set down near the window looking at the city. He changed the cell for a comfortable room at the main tower. He heard a knocking on the door. Liana entered the room and set down near Kail “They said Lightwing will be alright. He is exhausted and needs time to recover but he wasn’t hurt during the fall”. High councillor Tonle was standing near the edge of the main tower, looking at the work in the market district. The outer tower was in a bad shape and needed repairs. “We won it father.” Said Elian closing to his father “Not just yet, the Neferonians will return in greater force once they have the ships to spare but by that time our alliance with the Odelians will be stronger and we will be ready. Today we celebrate , but tomorrow we prepare for war. “




The end of fifteenth chapter.

[Iv121]

Sry I didn't write anything for over a week now, I'm in some sort of writer's crisis right now ... It's not that I can't write my story I know how it unfolds but I sort of question what I did before that and the direction I'm taking.

[Tunnelthunder]

Still going good.

[Iv121]

For those of you who don’t remember anymore or didn’t read at all ( ) here’s the story so far:

Spoiler:

Kail is an 18 years old boy who has left his home on his trial given by his master. He goes towards the old portal leading out of Alderon to the realms of humans where the Alderians once wandered. As he goes to the portal he meets Lightwing – a wild void dragon of unknown origin and Twinkle – a wandering light. When he goes through the portal he meets two other humans – Elian and Liana. Both were Lumians on a secret mission. They ask Kail not to attract attention to them but Kail decides to take Lightwing for a flight, revealing their location to a new threat.

Kail was attacked by people in heavy black armor and ran away. As they kept moving they didn’t know their were followed by a flying vessel of big proportions – the dark star, a crystalline structure that served prince Telion. He tries to catch them on the dark star and take the shard yet Kail manages to escape and save Elian and Liana. He activates the shard revealing it’s true power, damaging the dark star. Prince Telion takes parts for repair from the Neferonian ambassador who discovers the existence of the shard.

Meanwhile Kail reaches Highwind , one of the Lumian cities and home to Elian and Liana. As he wanders the street he is arrested by Lumian guards. Liana comes to save Kail from the prison and help him escape but they are caught by a man who happens to be Neferonian ambassador (Whom I gonna name soon when I get the right name ) . The ambassador demands that Kail will be given to him but Liana steps in his way. The ambassador orders to kill her and take Kail but then the high councillor steps in to protect them. The ambassador leaves the city promising to burn it to ashes. It turns out Liana and Elian were the children of the high councillor who sent them to deliver as secret pact with the Neferonian rebels and the Odelians against the Neferonian empire but help won’t arrive on time, Highwind was on it’s own. Kail who wasn’t welcome in Highwind anymore decided to return to Highwind to aid in the defence of the city against the Neferonians. He manages to destroy some airships that weren’t designed for a fight against a void dragon but Lightwing was exhausted and fell down in the city. Now Kail has to plan his next move to find the remaining shards and find the guardian while Lightwing recovers from the fight and understand the meaning of the prophesy his master gave him and the shard …

Also I do understand that some people can’t read it all because it’s too long (aka they’re lazy ) so in the text I put white arrows. Those arrows divide the text into small chucks that are easier to read while not breaking the pace of the story. If you read it all you will notice it is really much shorter than it looks like and with those chucks its really a piece of cake, enjoy .

Chapter 16 - The Sceptre

Spoiler:

Kail went up the watch tower. It was the same tower where he was kept captive and where the city watch barracks were. The spiral staircase finally came to an end and Kail walked into a tall hall. The hall was divided into levels with a big empty space in the middle. The bottom floor where Kail stood was filled with arcs leading to the outside world. A Windhawk flew through one of the arcs and went up through the middle. The higher floors were the Windhawk cages. Kai went up another staircase a few levels up. Lightwing was sleeping on one of the ledges. The Windhawks clearly annoyed by his presence set in the corners as far as possible from the unknown beast. One brave Windhawk closed to examine the dragon. As soon as he began to walk towards Lightwing he opened his eyes and gave a look at the Windhawk. The terrified bird ran away. Suddenly he stood up and gave a happy roar as he saw Kail closing towards him. The birds who were already terrified by his presence began to pile up in a corner on the other side of the level. “How do you feel friend ?” he asked and petted his neck. Lightwing was still in bad shape after the battle and it would take some time before he will be able to fly again. “I shouldn’t have forced you to do all of that” he said. “I wonder how did you do those energy balls. It will take you time to recover so I can use this time to figure it out”. He set down with Lightwing for a while and then went out.

==>

The sun was still rising in the sky and the city was just waking up. Kail went back to the main tower. He probably took the longest route possible. The city was a real maze with the small walkways, alcoves and staircases but luckily the tower was visible from almost any place outside. He didn’t practice void magic for a long time now so he began to search for an empty place to practice. He went around the edge of the plaza looking down on the city. There were quiet gardens and squares below him. He didn’t bother to find a route down and just dashed over the wall to a small grass garden. A street went through it’s edge but it seemed to be empty.

“Lightwing was creating nice energy balls back there, I think I can replicate them” he thought. Lightwing took a deep breath before casting but the master said our power doesn’t come from our bodies. Kail was confused but decided to replicate the same moves and see what happens. Kail began to breathe deeply. What should he do now ? He didn’t know. He kept breathing deeply, set down and began to think. The look from the garden was quite nice. Kail could see the big towers and the small people on the walkways, hurrying somewhere ... The air was quite fresh so high on the mountain. Kail felt amazingly calm. Suddenly he understood. He was breathing to effect his soul and not his body, to calm and focus. He stood up. It all begins with a float of energy, but not a force field, he want to use the energy itself. He began to take air in, trying to guide the energy through his body. Suddenly a glowing white ball appeared between his hands, expanding as his lungs were expending, then he let the air out in a single burst and pushed the ball away. The energy ball flew away into the air. “I get it !” he jumped up. He heard a cheerful chirping behind him. “Twinkle how the hell did you find me? I thought you were sleeping” twinkle did a circle around Kail and set down on his shoulder. “Oh right you have that energy vision, you see life essences. Maybe I should learn a bit from you too”. Suddenly he flew away out of the garden “Where are you going ? “ Kail ran after him. The street was a walkway near the wall. Twinkle finally stopped near one of the planters and dived into it. “A strawberry bush of course …” he nodded and set down on the edge on the walkway.

Below him was a square. The green planters surrounded the stone floor. In the middle he could see an interesting sight. He saw two persons in the middle of the square. He recognized one – It was Liana while the other one was a robed old man. He held a large sceptre in his hands. The sceptre was quite decorated with ivory and gold. On the top he could see two golden wings. The old man watched as Liana casted air magic all around her. Step by step the repeated the memorized and practiced moves with amazing accuracy. She threw small whirlwinds and air streams with temper, almost furiously. “Faster , more accuracy !” the man shouted. “I guess it’s her master, don’t you think Twinkle ?” Twinkle was too busy eating the strawberries. “More strength !” Liana increased the speed of her moves, each strike became more powerful. She stroke again and again trying to make each strike faster and faster. Suddenly the master stopped her “Enough. Have a look at your moves, how awkward they are. You strike again and again but nothing is left from the strike, empty. Your hands are not in the right position, your body moves slowly. How many times should we repeat this again ? Is that all what you have ? You disgrace the holy art of air magic. It is enough for today.” The master turned around and went away leaving Liana standing there. She kept standing there until the master left, Kail couldn’t see any emotions on her face. Suddenly she turned around and began to walk and then run. Kail jumped down to the square and went after her.

He went into a walkway near the square. Liana was sitting on the edge, he could hear her cry. He closed to Liana “Are you alright ?”. Liana turned around surprised “What are you doing here ?” She quickly wiped her tears “I just went by and … I saw you going here and …” “I’m alright” she said and smiled to him, trying to hide the tears. “It’s fine”. He set down near her “What’s the problem ? “ “I … I just can’t reach my master’s expectations ... that’s it, it’s not a big deal” tears began to appear in her eyes again. “I think you did quite well there” “Really ? You just say it so I feel better right …” “No really, I don’t understand in it but it looked very good” “I wish it was true but … nevermind” she stood up “we should go for lunch”.

==>


Kail was invited for the first time for a meal with the high councillor’s family. They lived in one of the towers near the main one. The house wasn’t as large as Kail would expect from a family with such high position but it was bigger than the average house. The entrance door led to a big open room. The walls were covered with tapestry and shelves with books and dishes stood by them. There was a burning fireplace in the corner of the room and a big table in the middle. The dishes for the lunch were on the table but the food was not yet brought. Kail was warmly welcomed by the high councillor and invited to the table. He set in the front of the table with his wife to his right. The place to his right remained empty and Elian took the seat next to it while Liana set in front of him on the left. Kail set in the end of the table as the guest. Finally he heard a knocking on the door “I apologize for being late” Kail turned around to see the same old man – Liana’s master. He went to the table and set down near the councillor .

The councillor called for their servant to bring the food. The food brought to the table looked quite elegant and varied yet was served in simple dishes. Although they seemed to be silver they weren’t like the fancy dishes used by richer Alderian families. “So what is your name traveller ?” asked the councillor “Kail, Kail son of Mark of the … Sceptii family” he answered, taking out the “great” before the family name, there was not much to the Sceptii family. “Where are you from, Kail son of Mark ?”. Kail felt a bit uncomfortable . He tried to show good manners and be as polite as possible. “From the forests of Alderon” “Alderon … it is an odd name, where is it … Alderon ?” “Beyond the great portal to those lands” he carefully answered. He looked at the food on the table. He wanted to try it out yet was afraid to show bad manners. On the other hand he might offend the councillor by not eating his food. He carefully began to fill his plate with a bit from each bowl. The councillor looked at him closely as if he was some sort of an exotic creature. “Is that your dragon ?” asked the councillor “Yes, his name is Lightwing” Kail carefully answered. He looked at the others sitting around and tried to eat similarly. He knew how to wield a fork but when there are four of them it’s hard to use them properly.

The Councillor kept looking at Kail “You returned back to this city even though there is nothing in common between you and us. That is an admirable deed. I would like to give you a proposal. We are now in a state of open war with the Neferonians and we need all help we can get. Maybe that is why we are not so different after all. Join us – Remain here with me to protect this city” Kail felt uncomfortable with the Councillor’s suggestion “Unfortunately I have my own mission ahead of me …” but the councillor wasn’t listening “Actually with you in our forces we could do much more than just protecting this city, you inspire troops, threaten enemies and can take on so many airships alone, together with the Lumain flight groups you can open us a way for a quick strike right at the heart of the enemy.” “No sir I won’t be able to help you” the councillor noticed the refusal. “Let me explain you something… We are about to enter a war with a big enemy – the Neferonians. If we cannot make a quick push we will be forced to fight a long war against them, just like the Odelians , the war we tried to escape for so long until I had enough of it. We will loose many people and you can help us end it all !” “I can’t sir , I’m just a single rider, Lightwing barely survived the last encounter, I can’t just force him through it again and besides I have a mission and I can’t loose time” the councillor set quietly, thinking. “Is there anything I can do to change your mind ?” “I don’t think so” “And what if we help you with that mission ? “. Kail looked surprised at the councillor “I’m not sure you can …” “think about it” he said.

The food was cleared from the table and Kail was ready to go. He looked again at the old man sitting next to the councillor. He stood up and went towards the door. Elian accompanied him to the door. “Who is the old man next to your father ?” “Oh it’s our grandfather, he is the great airmaster of the city.” Answered Elian as he opened the door.

==>

Kail entered his room in the main tower and set down on the bed. He should probably start to plan his trip while Lightwing recovers. For some reason he felt quite tired. He laid down on the bed, his eyes slowly closed and he fell asleep. A cold wind blew around him. Kail stood in a middle of a large hall with old cracked walls covered in unknown glyphs. In the middle of the room he saw a large light. He closed to the light. It gave out a warm, calming aura. Suddenly he heard a voice. It sounded familiar but he couldn’t recognize it. The voice whispered something but Kail couldn’t understand it. “What was it saying ? “ he looked at the light “Why can’t I understand what it said ?” “Know it’s ways” the light answered. The cold wind began to blow again around Kail and the room around him disappeared. Suddenly he woke up, holding the shard in his hand. The shard was slightly glowing. The glow disappeared and Kail looked around. It was evening outside.

Kail decided to go out. The fresh air will surely help him think. Twinkle was sleeping on the chair near Kail’s bed “Hope you have some good dreams”. He went back to the square he was at in the morning. The moonlight lit the stone floor in the middle of the square. When Kail closed to the square he noticed a person in the middle of it. Liana was standing there , in the middle of the square. She began to cast air magic. Her strikes seemed fast and powerful yet shaking. She seemed exited and restless. “I’ll pass it” she whispered to herself and began to strike again. The strikes became even faster “Eeerf why can’t I do it !!” she furiously set down. She turned back to see Kail standing behind her “It’s you …” “What are you doing here ?” he asked “Practicing my magic” she answered. “I don’t know much in air magic, but maybe you should clear your mind and do something else”. She looked at him for a bit then replied “I can’t, I don’t have time” “Are you in a hurry ?” “Yes, I must pass the challenge in the temple of air to get my air sceptre” “Your air sceptre ?” “It’s an artefact crafted for every air mage personally, it’s part of every air mage and I must get my own sceptre in order to become an air mage” “Is that the sceptre that your master is holding ?” “Yes, this is his air sceptre” “And when should you do the challenge ?” “Whenever I want” “and what happens if you fail ?” “I try again until I pass it” “So you have all the time you need” “No, I’m already late, air mages of my age should already get their sceptres …” “A few hours won’t change that, you should really calm down”. Liana looked at Kail then answered “Maybe you’re right”.

==>

They set down on the edge of the square. “So what are you supposed to do on the challenge ?” “I should bring one of the Windcatcher flowers in the temple to my master” “Is that it? “ “It’s not as easy as it sounds, you can see for yourself”. She stood on her fit and went through the square. Kail quickly followed after her. The street bended around the plaza above them and soon lead them to the other side of the city. From there Kail could see the third tower above the city. They passed a few streets, going through alcoves an bridges until they reached a large bridge leading to the third tower. “The temple of air is in that tower” she said and they went in. In front of them were large wooden doors with two large silver Windhawks who open their wings above the doors as if protecting them. They didn’t enter the closed door but instead went down a staircase in the marble floor. The staircase lead to another set of doors similar to the ones above. The doors lead to a large hall. It was a perfect marble sphere. In the middle of the sphere he could see a glowing object casting shadow on the hall. It was a plant with white flowers, surrounding a glowing crystalline rock. The plant gently floated right in the center of the sphere. “Is this the Windcatcher ?” “Yes, try to enter the room” Kail went forward towards the door. The spherical floor below him looked fine, he tried to slide down the wall. The second he passed the doorway he felt as a powerful wind pushes him out. Maybe foolishly he tried to use his whole weight to break through the wind but the wind pushed back even harder and threw him back through the doorway for Liana’s amusement. “Ouch” he replied as Liana was laughing at him slightly “Told you it’s not so easy”

“So how are you supposed to get in ?” asked Kail “I don’t know, this is part of the challenge. The wind inside the sphere blows all the time though it’s hard to hear it. I tried to push my way through it with my air magic many times but I always failed. I’m probably not strong enough yet, I need to be a more powerful mage” Kail looked at the room “for me it looks more like a puzzle, if something doesn’t work here it’s because it shouldn’t work here. Those sorts of things test your understanding of magic, like Aladarn’s trial, what are the basics of air magic, where does it come from ,and what is it ?”

Liana set down near the door. “Air magic … Air mages command the air around them, moving it , turning it into wind. There is a lot of things you need in order to do air magic, you need to feel it, change with it, swiftly move it, be it in some way… this is complicated” she looked with frustration on the spherical hall. “We should both catch a sleep” said Kail “Maybe …” she stood up and they went out of the temple.

Kail entered his room, Twinkle was sleeping on a chair. He slightly open his eye to see who came in and went back to sleep “Sleeping and eating all day eh Twinkle ?”. The warm bed invited to sleep and Kail soon fell asleep. The warm bed changed into a cold wind passing through the room, the same one he stood in before. The light kept glowing in the middle if the room. He could see the room more clearly now. Above the circular cracked walls he could see small arches that let the cold air in. The ceiling was supported by columns coming out of the walls , covering the room in a cone from the outside world. The floor was covered in a mosaic with faint colors. The tops of the columns were shaped like hawks with wings supporting the ceiling. “What is this room ? Why do I see it ?” Kail began to close to the glow in the middle of the room. It came from a pedestal in the middle of the room. He began to slowly close to the pedestal. He began to feel heat over his body. Covered in sweat he kept walking. Each step was harder and harder, it was hard to breathe and his body shook badly. The heat became unbearable and he began to choke. “I don’t want to be here ! Let me go !” he screamed. Suddenly the room faded away. He woke up in his bad. He was covered in hot sweat. The shard was slightly glowing in his hand. The glow began to fade and the room became dark again.

==>

The following morning he went back to the garden where Liana was practising. She was there again with the same old man. “Faster, more power ! Steady, I said steadier !” Liana was moving the wind around her in all directions, throwing it, blowing it, faster and harder with each strike. “Stop” he commanded “You are not feeling it, you can’t even keep up with the most basic moves ! Go to the basic stance and stop disappointing me.”. She began to cast magic again, her body shook and her moves were not steady. “Faster !” the master commanded but she couldn’t go any faster. She fell to the ground on her knees “Stand up, what are you? A crying baby ?! “. She couldn’t listen anymore and ran away from the garden “Eh stupid girl !” said the master “Why can’t you make me happy even once …” he sat down on a stone bench.
Kail closed to him “Good day sir” “Can I help you with something ?” “I … just saw your lesson with Liana and … I wanted to ask you why do you talk so harshly to her”. The old man looked at Kail then replied “Because this world is not a dolly house, if she wants to learn something she needs to be better, all the time !” “Haven’t you thought of , maybe taking another approach, encouraging her more ? “ “Listen boy … I was teaching for long enough to know there is no other approach. Discipline is one of the keys to success and no other approach is going to change that.” “Maybe she can’t do it ?” “Can’t ?! She doesn’t want to ...” “It’s not true !” “It is, your words cannot change it”. Kail left the master alone and went to follow Liana.

Liana was sitting on the edge of a small terrace. She was looking at the city, with a sad look. Kail set down near her. “Hey” he said and gave a smile at her “hey” she replied faking a quick smile “I saw you at the square, just came by to cheer you up” “Thanks” she said. “Why did you run away ?” “I … I don’t know what to say … I just felt I disgraced every value I was taught …”. The shadow of the master set motionlessly on the ledge above them “ The obedience, the respect towards the art of air magic … it all crumbles apart in my hands. My master … my grandfather hates me, I don’t stand up to his expectations , I just can’t do it. I just don’t want to do air magic anymore”. Was the master right after all ? Kail thought to himself ... “I talked with your grandfather and I just thought I should let you know he doesn’t hate you. He is just being harsh when he trains you. He said that all you need to do is to want to do it. Believe in what you do and don’t let anything turn you away, just believe.” Said Kail. Liana stood on her feet “All I need to do is to want to do it ? I don’t know … But I want to make my grandfather proud !” She ran back towards the square.

The master was still sitting on the bench. “Master, I beg your pardon for running away “ said Liana. The master looked at her then replied “It’s alright, stand up we have a lesson at hand”. He went to the middle of the square “Basic stance, steady legs straight body. Tunnel the air around you” Liana began to turn the air around her. Kail could feel the air blowing away from her “Forward, short streams one by one !” the master commanded. Liana began to send waves of air forward “Faster, more power !” He shouted. Liana put up pressure on the air and the waves became faster. “Good … Stronger moves, more accuracy !” he commanded. Liana kept casting magic, she gave all she could. “Don’t go against the wind, go with it your way !” Liana kept casting more and more. Her hands began to shake again, she felt tired. “Alright you did enough” said her master but she kept going. He closed to her and caught her hand “Enough for today, you are exhausted and can’t go on.” He dropped her hand and went out of the square “It is early for you to enter the chamber yet, you will need to practice more”

==>

“So how do you feel ? “ asked Kail “Tired” Liana replied and set down on the bench “but good. I’m just wondering how those things would help me to the flowers” “Maybe you just need a curtain level of knowledge to enter the chamber” said Kail. “The master said I’m not ready to enter the chamber but I feel I can, I must do it, just how ?” “You’ll figure it out, there is no need to rush it. The master said you’re not ready after all so I don’t think you should try to do this for now” “maybe … we should go for lunch“ she said.

Kail went to walk outside after lunch. The Lumians knew how to enjoy their life. The food was good and felt quite different and varied, brought by the trading caravans from lands far away. The streets were quiet and opened a stunning view on the city with many plazas, gardens and terraces. He kept walking until he reached the same garden where Liana used to practice. She stood there motionlessly, her eyes were closed and she breathed deeply. Kail closed to her “What are you doing ?” “thinking” she replied “The master said that I shouldn’t go against the wind and go with it my way, what does this mean ? If I can’t go against the wind I can’t go the way I want …” “Yes but what are you doing right now ?” “The master always said that your breath is the key for air magic.”. Kail thought about what Liana’s master said. “It’s only possible if the wind blows the way you want to go”. “I know what !” said Liana “He meant that I should make the wind go my way! That is what it means to be an air mage, but how can I do it ? Wait, you know what ? He didn’t mean just blowing air forward, he means literally moving the air around me ! How did I never think about it ?!”. She began to breathe deeper “Just like the air at my fingertips , move the air around me …”. The air began to form around her body. With each breath it tightened around her body. She rose her hands slowly, trying to feel the air around her. Her body began to rise with her hands ad her legs left the ground. She was floating above the ground “I … I did it !” she slowly returned herself to the ground. “It makes me feel a little tired, I should rest for a bit. I knew how to do so all time along but why never I tried to do this ? It’s amazing, now I’m ready to go to thechamber” “You know you shouldn’t ! The master said you’re not ready yet !” said Kail “It’s the only way I can impress my master” “You don’t need to ! He will be proud of you anyway.” But Liana wasn’t listening, she was eager to enter the temple.

They went down the staircase to the hall. The Windcatcher was still floating in the middle of the room surrounding the glowing stone. Liana closed to doorstep. She entered her hand into the stream. The air went around her hand as if it was water. She took a deep breath and dived into the chamber. The air hit her and began to push her out but she began to move it around her body, floating slowly towards the flower. Her body began to shake as the air blew hard at her. The closer she got to the flower the harder she was pushed back. Just a little more … she only had to reach one white flower and catch it. The hand closed to the flower. She exhausted and barely could keep up with the pressure. She caught the flower with the tips of her fingers when she ran out of power and the air pulled her backwards towards the wall. Liana pulled the last of her powers to slow herself and reach the door. The air pushed her quickly out of the room, she landed slowly on the floor then fell to the ground “I did it” “You did it indeed” Kail turned around to see the master standing behind them “Master … I …” “You made me proud. Not because of the flower but because you understood the key to air magic alone, that and because you’re my grandchild” he smiled “Let the work on the sceptre begin.”

==>


Liana stood at the workshop of the sceptre-master. The old man wore a white robe and held a large sceptre of his own. “The making of a sceptre begins with the material. There are many sorts of materials suitable for the sceptre, all give it different properties. It is up to you to choose the right material, choose carefully. Although your sceptre will be simple at first it will be this sceptre that will serve you all your life and symbolize your status as an air mage”. Liana examined the shelf with raw rods. She looked at each one of them but couldn’t find the one she wanted until her sight fell on a piece if raw wood lying in the side of the room. “What is this ?” the sceptre-master picked up the wood “It’s a Silverwood. I never made a sceptre out of it. It is a very rare type of wood. It bends well yet it’s strong and sturdy. Apart from that I do not know any of it’s magical properties and how well it goes with air magic.” “I want this one” said Liana “Are you sure ?” “Yes, I think so” “Than so be it.”. The sceptre master took the raw piece of wood and began to work on it. He carefully made a rod out of it and began to work on the sceptre itself. The simple rod began to take shape. The polished wood took a slightly silver color. The sceptre-master added a bronze relief spiralling across the sceptre and carved out patterns along it. The sceptre-master completed the sceptre and handed it to Liana “May this sceptre serve you well, it is the gift to those who know the art of air magic” “Your training is not done yet though” said the master “You need to learn how to use the sceptre to improve your magic, and I would also like to thank you young man for helping us” .

“So what are you going to do now? “ asked Kail “I need to learn how to use it first” said Liana “and use what I learned so far. It’s a bit different now, after I got the flower, thank you again for helping me get so far” “I was glad to help” he replied “And what are you going to do when Lightwing is going to recover ?” “I don’t know yet, but one thing is sure – I’m going to find the shards”


The end of sixteenth chapter.

It took me some time to get to this again. This is probably because I wasn’t too motivated to do it. I just felt that people didn’t read what I wrote and that lack of feedback made it impossible to improve my writing. To get some more feedback (and overall motivate myself) I added this section with questions. If you read the story I ask you to enter the sequence of answers for the questions (The numbers by the answers you want). If you don’t know or don’t want to answer type in a ‘-‘. I will also be glad for less robotic feedback if you have the time. A good way to do so would be to explain negative feedback.Thank you .

Spoiler:

Did the arrows help out with the reading ?
1. Yes, 2. No (If you didn’t use them answer if you think they help or not)

Was the High Councillor believable ? (dialog with Kail)
1.Yes, 2. No

Were Liana and her Grandfather believable ? (the conflict between them)
1. Yes, 2. No

Where was the challenge chamber ?
1. Main tower, 2. Guardian tower, 3. Air temple, 4. In the mountain.

Is the shard evil ?
1. Yes, 2. No

Is the High councillor evil ?
1.Yes, 2.No

Is the Prince evil ?
1.Yes, 2.No

Is the Neferonian Ambassador evil ?
1.Yes, 2.No

You still have the votes above BTW !

[Laserbilly]

It's too late now, but I'll set aside some time to read your story when I get the chance. I read the first paragraph of the 16th chapter and I'm intrigued. I'll let you know what I think when I've read it!

[Iv121]

I'm about to release the next chapter and still no replies

[Professor Fenway]

Nobody noticed the new vote tags? Damn. I thought people were more observant.

[Chairman_Tiel]

Look which option is winning.

[hyperlite]

You are mean.

[҉]

Look which option is winning.

With a whole two votes. The margin of error is way too large for the poll to mean anything. Something like that doesn't work well if you have less than a hundred people or so voting.

[Chairman_Tiel]

I didn't vote 1 -_-

Just pointing out that it's in the lead.

[hyperlite]

I was the only one who voted 10/10. N00bs don't know a good story when they see one.

[CommanderKobialka]

Look which option is winning.

With a whole two votes. The margin of error is way too large for the poll to mean anything. Something like that doesn't work well if you have less than a hundred people or so voting.

did you reply............ to yourself???