by Ivan Kal
Ashara felt sick. She turned around and walked out of the forge, and before she realized it she was on the streets, breathing heavily.
She just didn’t know what to do, didn’t know how she could contribute. After she left Amaranthine her plan had been to find a place at a merchant house, over time earn enough to start on her own, then grow her business and eventually revive her family’s name, gaining wealth and influence along the way. But now, she had all that already. Kyarra had given her a wealthy estate that the crown had taken back from a noble who had been a traitor, and she was in business with the merchant house Olos. Haris Olos was her partner, and they had a fleet of ships. But there was not much for her to do there, or at least not enough that she felt like she was actually doing something of worth.
She had everything that she could ever want, but she didn’t know what to do with it all. Perhaps it would be best for her to forget about Kyarra and Vin, to leave them to be together and focus on being just a merchant. She could still do great things; she just wouldn’t be responsible for the fate of the world.
A part of her wondered what the future would even bring. Was Vin right? Were the Arashan going to come? And if they did, how long would it take them to conquer?
Vin told her that his world had fallen in a few years, but she also knew that it was far smaller than Enosia. Could these Arashan really stand against the armies of the world? She didn’t know, but she couldn’t imagine anything so powerful. She believed Vin, but she also knew that he didn’t really know much aside from his spirit arts. Could they really trust his words?
Ashara walked the streets, making way toward her home without even realizing it. Her mind was filled with thoughts that made her chest hurt. It was like this every day: she feared getting up from her bed, and dreaded going to it at night because she couldn’t fall asleep. She was all alone in the world, and it was her fault. She was the one who caused her father to take his own life, for that alone she knew that she was damned. She deserved nothing, was worthless.
She wondered what would’ve happened had she agreed to what Kyarra had said, back when they had been hiding in the Free Cities, if she had agreed to share her with Vin. Would he have agreed to that, and would the three of them be together now? Or what if she had told Vin to stand aside when he had come to her and told her that he was willing? Would he resent her? Would Kyarra?
She didn’t know, but she couldn’t help but think on all the possibilities. She knew that she was tormenting herself, that she should find a way to be useful, to do something. It was all just so hard.
She reached her home, a large, white-marble estate, twice as large as what her family had previously owned. She entered the mansion, the caretaker greeting her. A maid bowed to her as she made her way to her room. Ashara didn’t stop until she reached her bed. She curled up beneath the covers, and tears came down her face.
She was alone.
CHAPTER TEN
KYARRA
Five Years Ago
Kyarra stepped out of the glare of the trans-location spell, feeling a bit disoriented for a moment. She had used Tourran’s newly constructed trans-location platform, a joint construction from the Mages Guild and her city. Nearly every capital city on the continent had one, each operated by Guild mages, and as the relations improved between Tourran and Academy City, the seat of the Mages Guild, a few perks that Tourran had been denied for a long time were now available. The platform was a small, round stone plate, warded with teleportation glyphs which allowed for travel between it and the Academy City, and it could be used by anyone, mage or not—provided they could pay the cost, of course.
Kyarra shook off the disorientation of being teleported by someone else's power and took a step forward. Two of her guards stood behind her, and Master Galera walked next to her.
“Your Majesty, welcome to Academy City!” She gestured with her arm, and Kyarra looked at the sight stretching before her. The platforms were at the edges of the city, so as to limit their security threat, but beyond she saw the mountain and the white towers built into it. She remembered this sight, though she had never seen it herself. Her hand tightened around the round golden medallion hanging from her neck. It used to belong to Ovar, her guardian—the man that had been like a father to her, who had known her for more than a single lifetime. It was a medallion that the guardians of the Eternal Soul had kept protected for countless years, keeping the charge given to them by her first life.
The medallion was a message from Vardun Con Aroch, an explanation of why he had done all the things he did. A sending of his thoughts and future visions. It was a confirmation of Vin’s warnings about the Arashan.
The city looked different than it had in Vardun’s vision, which was only natural. It had been a long time since he was alive. The city had grown, and what had once been just a small town at the base of the mountain with towers soaring above, was now a massive city that surrounded the mountain and spread in all directions. But the towers were still the same. They were built into the mountainside looking like they had almost grown out of it. Built with white stone, they reflected the early morning light in all directions, nearly blinding Kyarra.
“It is impressive,” Kyarra said as Galera led them away from the platform.
“There is no city greater in the world,” the woman said proudly.
Kyarra didn’t know if that was true, but then again her experience was fairly limited. Spending your entire life bound to the walls of a single city could do that to a person. She just nodded at her words.
“The Council had arranged for a carriage to take us to the Academy.” Galera guided them out of the sectioned-off area where the platforms were located. She flashed her guild badge and they were allowed through the series of guard posts.
Kyarra was actually surprised at how much security the Guild put in place, but she figured that the platforms could be serious security threats. They couldn’t transport more than two dozen people, if they were packed tightly on a platform, but that didn’t mean that they couldn’t be used to execute an attack—although Kyarra had been assured that the platform was secured against being tampered with or used by anyone who wasn’t an authorized Guild trans-location mage.
Still, Kyarra made a mental note to increase security on Tourran’s side.
They entered the carriage and were immediately on their way. Kyarra was alone inside the cabin with Galera, and her guards took their places outside with the driver. Galera thankfully noticed that Kyarra was thinking and left her in peace. As the carriage took them down the streets, Kyarra looked out of the window watching the people, thinking. Her mind wandered back to a few days ago, when she and Vin had sat in his workshop, working on combining her magic and his to enchant his weapons. She hadn’t felt so free in a long time. She was doing what she wanted, and she was happy not thinking about her kingdom or the threat of the Lashian Empire. There had only been him and her.
And when he kissed her… She couldn’t get it out of her mind. A part of her was guilty, because while she cared for Vin, she cared for Ashara, too. She remembered the hurt in his eyes when she had pulled away. She didn’t want to do anything that would hurt Ashara, and certainly not behind her back. She knew that the three of them had to have a serious talk, but it always seemed like there was something more important that required her attention…or it was just her putting things off. She couldn’t choose between them, and she didn’t want to force the issue.
She pushed those thoughts away and focused on what was in front of her.
Everywhere she looked, she saw pristine streets, spells built into the foundations of buildings. Everything here ran on magic. It made sense, as this was the center of magic on the continent, even perhaps on the world. The people looked happy, without a care in the world.
And now Kyarra was coming to take that peace away from them.
Again, she wondered if she should’ve brought Vin with her, have him speak to the Council. But she knew that he was not someone who was mindful o
f politics, and already she was having difficulties between him and her other nobles. Vin didn’t care for anyone’s authority, as in his mind he had a right simply because he was strong. She wondered what kind of a twisted world his home had been if that was how they decided who ruled. They had no kings, no noble houses. It confused her to no end every time he tried to explain his world to her.
She knew too that bringing Vin here could end very badly. His way of using anima was powerful, and something never before seen. She worried that the mages here would wish to detain him, study him, and she didn’t have enough political power in Academy City to prevent it. Coming by herself, almost alone, was risk enough. She counted on the Council not wanting to risk her using her fragment if they tried something. The world was still afraid of what fragment-bearers could do, as they had been ever since a battle between two had cracked a continent into pieces.
It took them almost an hour to reach the base of the mountain, illustrating just how large the city was. They stopped in a large courtyard and stepped out of the carriage, where they were met by a short man wearing white robes, who bowed low to Kyarra.
“Your Majesty, welcome to the Academy of Magical Arts. The Council is gathered and are awaiting your presence,” the man said, then gestured for them to follow.
Kyarra felt a touch of fear. She was about to enter the hall where her first life had once been the Archmage, the seat of his power. Now, they were all hostile toward her. The Council might be willing to expand their relations, but she doubted that they had forgotten that they lost a fragment of power when Vardun had decided to do as he had. But she had no choice—they needed the Council’s help. Her attempts to bring monarchs of other nations on the continent to her side had been largely unsuccessful. Amaranthine, who had the greatest interest in preventing Lashian Empire from extending its influence, were willing to stand aside and wait on the deliberations of the Council, especially since Tourran was now back in Tourran control, and they didn’t really need to go to war. She hadn’t told any of them about the Arashan, focusing instead on the threat of the Lashian Empire. She didn’t even know how to begin convincing them of the true threat without sounding insane.
Hopefully the Council would listen to her, as they were the only ones who could convince the various nations that the threat was real. Academy City was a neutral player, or at least it was supposed to be. They provided mage advisers to nearly every monarch in the world.
The man led them to a small square room built inside a wall and Kyarra realized that it was one of the famous elevators. As soon as they entered and the doors closed behind them, the man walked over to a small metal plate that was enchanted with various wards and activated them. The floor started moving upward, but Kyarra’s mind was too engrossed with the spell-work going on around them to really enjoy it. There were so many tiny spells interwoven together, perfectly synchronized. She was so lost in studying the flow of anima that she didn’t realize it when they reached their destination.
She shook her head as they stepped out into an open courtyard. Kyarra cast her eyes over the short walls and saw that they were high up the mountain. The city stretched below them, people moving around were just specks of black shapes, like ants. The man led them to a grand arched doorway, with guards standing on each side. They opened the two doors for them, and as they walked past, Kyarra noticed that their gear was highly enchanted with wards. She felt a pang of embarrassment that her guards had no such enchantments. She added another mental note to see about getting enchanted gear for her palace guard.
They walked through a long series of hallways, the walls adorned with works of art and all illuminated by mage-light orbs trapped in small glass containers. Finally they reached their destination: another set of doors, wooden and adorned with engravings and jewels of all kinds. The guardsmen in front of it stood unmoving as they were led to the doors, which opened by themselves to allow them in.
The man stopped just a few steps inside and spoke.
“Her Majesty, Queen Kyarra Con Aroch, the Eternal Soul,” he announced to the room.
On the other side of the room was an arc of eleven seats, each more resembling a throne. The one in the middle had the tallest back and a dragon’s skull mounted on top of it. The current bearer of the title of Archmage, Eravon Lokheart, watched Kyarra with a blank expression as she approached. He had tanned skin, a few shades lighter than her own, and medium-length black hair that was pulled back from his face and combed toward the back of his head. His blue eyes almost shone even in the well-lit room.
Kyarra glanced at Galera, who stayed at the entrance, and then walked further into the room.
She didn’t know much about the Council members, other than their names and the nations that they hailed from. Although all who join the Council were supposed to be neutral and no longer tied to their nations, she could see that that was not the case. Most of the other mages wore clothing that was unique to their homelands, causing one person to stand out to Kyarra: the woman sitting to the right of the Archmage, Eleria Tou Benerof, sister to the Grand Marshal Darvo Tou Benerof and cousin to the Emperor. She wore a long black dress, clearly in the Lashian style.
Kyarra worried about what could happen with her presence. While the woman was supposed to be neutral, her connection to the Emperor made neutrality unlikely. But Kyarra had no choice—she only hoped that the other council members could be swayed to her side.
“Your Majesty,” the Archmage began. “The Council of the Mages Guild welcomes you to our city.”
“Thank you, Archmage,” Kyarra said.
“Master Galera has brought before us your claims.” The Archmage nodded over Kyarra’s shoulder. “You wish to present evidence of otherworldly invaders called the Arashan, who are in league with the Lashian Empire.”
Kyarra nodded, but before she could speak, a voice came from somewhere to the left. “Nonsense claims,” an overweight man sitting awkwardly in his chair said. The Archmage glared at him.
“Keep your comments to yourself, Mage Temor,” he told him. The man—Temor—grimaced, but didn’t otherwise speak.
The Archmage gestured at Kyarra. “Please forgive the intrusion. You may continue.”
Kyarra nodded and took a deep breath. She had to admit that she was intimidated by the people around her—which she guessed was the point. Monarchs rarely visited Academy City, and when they did it was never for long. If this was the treatment they were met, with she completely understood why that was.
“You are all aware of the invasion executed against Tourran by the Lashian Empire, as well as eyewitness reports of the assassination of the royal family of Tourran. Master Galera herself was present, and she can testify to the strength and skill of a small group of mages that helped in the attack.”
“She had, but this does not prove that they were from another world. They were Darji, were they not? They could’ve been Harasharan rogue mages,” the Archmage said slowly. Harashara was the island nation that had the biggest population of Darji—their homeland on this world, at least.
“Alone, no, but there are other pieces of evidence that contribute to my claim. During the gathering I had been incapacitated by something akin to a poison, which blocked me from reaching for my magic.”
That got a reaction from the council members. It had always been known that there was no means from preventing a mage from accessing their powers. It had been tried before, and all attempts had been unsuccessful.
Eleria Tou Benerof was the one to speak next. “There has never been any means of blocking a mage’s power.”
“It was a concoction that was slipped inside my drink, and I was told that it was something that the Arashan developed on their world and brought here with them. It evaded all my wards against poison,” Kyarra said.
Whispers and conversation erupted between the council members. These people had never worried that their magic could be taken away, and the idea that they could be robed of their power by a simple drink was hard for them to
take.
The Archmage raised his hand and the room quieted. “I assume that the source of this information was the man Master Galera informed us about. The one who claims to have arrived from another world.”
“Yes, Kai Zhao Vin. His world had been attacked and conquered by the Arashan. He managed to escape through the portal that sent the advanced Arashan agents to this world. He had been present during the meeting between the Arashan Commander and a Lashian representative—his description of that representative matches that of Grand Marshal Darvo Tou Benerof. He was present in Tourran during the invasion as well.” Kyarra glanced at Eleria, trying to measure her reaction at Kyarra’s accusation of her brother.
The Archmage glanced at Eleria, too, and she leaned forward in her seat. Surprisingly she didn’t seem angry at the accusation. “I cannot speak to my brother’s movements or actions, as I have no knowledge of them. However, since the unlawful invasion of Tourran by Lashian forces, I have been in contact with the Emperor. He has launched a full investigation in the matter, and assures us that he gave no orders for the invasion of Tourran. He believes it was executed by rogue elements in his Legions seeking to gain more power. My cousin has ambitions, and I, along with this council, have done our best to curtail his more dangerous ideas. I assure you he would not have risked the war with Amaranthine.”
Kyarra struggled to keep her response civil, as she could not afford to lose her temper. “Your brother was present in Tourran when the invasion happened,” Kyarra repeated.
“The Emperor assures me that Darvo had nothing to do with the invasion,” Eleria replied coolly. “In fact, he had been evacuated outside of the city by his guards the moment the attack was begun. He was the one who informed the Emperor of the invasion.”
