A quick note: this is set on Tyranix, which is what planeswalkers call the world. However, those who live on the plane know it as Ordren, though they rarely use that word as talking about The Order is generally sufficient. The other plane featured is Acharu, which is the plane that won that Plane Creation Contest.
Alive
The library was always Jalen's favorite place in Caliastor. Still a novice, he read as many books as he could, memorizing the history of The Order. Someday, he hoped to become an inquisitor in the great city of Prachtstadt.
He was engrossed into a first hand account of the last days of the Flamekin when the messenger came. The young vedalken mumbled a greeting, handing the scroll to Jalen before running off on another errand. Smiling at the youth, Jalen unrolled the scroll, scanning the message. He was to accompany Grand Inquisitor Salnik to Casnir, assisting him in any way required. Jalen had heard of Casnir, though he only knew it as one of the most remote cities on Ordren.
~~
Grand Inquisitor Salnik was an ancient rhox lich, and he claimed to have learned from Savox himself. While Jalen found this doubtful, it was heresy to question a Grand Inquisitor, so he wisely kept quiet. There were ten kithkin traveling with them, bearing the closed fist symbol of the Crusaders, along with three rhox Champions in heavy armor. The only other humans were two young scribes.
After the first day, Jalen had given up trying to engage the rhox and kithkin in conversation, but the scribes were very outgoing. Through them he learned that no word had come from Casnir for more than a month, and they were to learn why. They suspected that something had damaged the causeway, and Jalen couldn't see any reason to disagree. The causeways were hundreds of years old, and they fell into disrepair on occasion.
It was several days before they got close to Casnir. The first sign that something was wrong were the strange shadows on the walls as they approached Casnir. While they couldn't see through the crystal walls and ceiling of the causeway, the light was shadowed in a way that none of them had seen before. The rhox shifted uneasily in their armor, gripping their warhammers tightly as the kithkin spread out into a defensive perimeter around Salnik. The gate lay shattered, twisted shards of metal scattered across the ground. Even amongst this destruction, the strangest thing was the light, tinted green. Jalen took a step forward, and then the world exploded.
There were wild folk all around them, crashing through what should have been indestructible crystal as if it was paper. The bravery of the kithkin was impressive, but they fell quickly, taken by surprise. Their sacrifice was not in vain, as the rhox Champions were able to join the battle, slaying the wild folk with every swing of their mighty hammers. Within moments, the strange creatures had fled.
“Strange. I've never seen anything quite like them.” Salnik crouched by one of the bodies, prodding at it with his staff. “It appears to be made of wood. Some sort of human tree. What do you think of that, scribes?” He glanced around quickly. “Oh, bother. Well, I suppose you'll do, novice.”
Confused, Jalen glanced at the scribes he had brought with us. They had been pinned to the ground by some sort of spear. He took advantage of the moment of peace to empty the contents of his stomach by the side of the road.
“Come, novice, no time for that. Something strange is happening, and I suspect our answers lie past that gate. Take one of their scrolls, and record everything that happens. Now, let us proceed.”
The city had been replaced by an orchard, though it was unlike any orchard Jalen had ever seen. There were trees growing on every surface, with no planning apparent. They grew so thickly that their leaves blocked the sun, and they didn't seem to serve any purpose.
“Well, it seems the rebels have found a new weapon.” Salnik looked worried.
“It feels like green magic, but how could that be possible?”
“It is not, novice. Perhaps a new application of healing magic is at work here.” Salnik didn't seem to believe his own words, but it seemed unwise to question him. “In any case, I believe we are about to be attacked again.” He made a sharp gesture, and light washed over the area, revealing the wild folk that had been sneaking closer.
In that instant, the world exploded with action, and it was all Jalen could do to simply put up his simple protective spells, shielding himself from harm as the Champions charged into battle. However, the wide streets worked to the wild folk's advantage, allowing them to slip around the rhox and attack from behind. While the champions still fought with honor, selling their lives' dearly, they had fallen within minutes of engaging the enemy. Then Salnik joined the battle.
It was awe inspiring to watch him fight, casting a spell with every movement, as the wild folk fell to the ground wrapped in chains of light or simply vanished. None could approach him, and he seemed calm in the middle of the maelstrom of light he had conjured. It was then that the giant appeared.
Towering over Salnik, the largest of the wild folk Jalen had seen stalked out of the trees, wielding a club as large as Salnik. As he walked towards the Grand Inquisitor, the other wild folk fled back to trees. Salnik seemed pleased, and turned to focus the full might of his magic on this new threat.
“Einsperren.” Salnik pointed his staff at the giant, and chains of light enveloped it. Salnik smiled and began to turn back towards Jalen when the chains simply slid off the giant. Salnik frowned.
“Verschwinden!“ The motes of light that this spawned clung to the giant's flesh for a moment before being disspelled in the breeze, and the giant continued his advance. Salnik snarled, and a dozen more spells sprung from his staff, all sliding of its body. At the last moment, Salnik managed to raise a shield, but the giant's club smashed through it like glass.
Jalen stumbled back, feeling as if the blow had struck him. The giant pulled his club back for a second blow, but Jalen never saw it strike. There was a sharp pain, and then he saw no more.
~~
Jalen stared at the ground as the wild folk dragged him to the center of town, certain that he was about to die. He had watched them call up plants to destroy the last remnants of Salnik and his guards, and was simply waiting for them to do the same to him. It was only with great reluctance that he stood when they released him, facing what was once the center of government in Casnir, but was now a gigantic tree.
Jalen waited, but the creatures simply stood silently behind him, watching the tree. Confused, he turned back to see that the wood was warping, forming itself into a humanoid shape. It stepped away from the tree, its features gradually gaining definition, until he stood before a wooden mirror of himself. It opened its eyes and spoke in his voice. “What are you?“ Jalen screamed, and the world disintegrated around him.
~~
Jalen found himself drifting through the air, surrounded by branches, marveling at the world around him. He wasn't entirely clear on how he had arrived there, but for the moment it seemed unimportant.
Idly, Jalen wondered how long he had been drifting here. It couldn't have been very long, as he wasn't feeling thirsty yet, but the clouds made it difficult to follow the sun. There was something wrong with how he was drifting through the air, and there was something he was supposed to be doing, but he couldn't quite remember it. Perhaps the ground, far below him, would hold the answers he needed.
It was difficult to keep track of time, but Jalen thought it must have been at least an hour of drifting before he found the truth. He could hardly comprehend it, but the ground was a tree more massive than should be possible. It was widely known that the magic of the orchards was weak and insignificant, barely worth studying. But then, what was this power he felt all around him?
Jalen had thought he knew green mana, but Serin was a stream compared to the ocean of power before him. He remembered Casnir and Salnik, and the ferocity of the wild creatures. Jalen knelt on the tree, drawing out its power, finally understanding why he was alive. His home was broken, and he would fix it.
When he opened his eyes, he was standing in front of his wooden replica once more. It was unmoved, though it had been hours since he had left. It spoke once more. “What are you?“
“I am Jalen Cor, and I intend to fix this world.“ It smiled.
“Good. Let's get started.“
No comments:
Post a Comment