The floor echoed the shrill clatter of footsteps. Following her sumptuous gait, one by one, followed the servants, lined up perfectly, dazzled by her aura. She moved forward and joined her king, seated on the throne, not far away.
Head tilted back, his long white hair graced his shoulders, cascading down his cold face. His eyes, with their almost white pupils, swept the room with an icy gaze. The queen in front of him approached with all her characteristic grace. He beckoned her to join him.
Sublimely, the two rulers were seated side by side on the most sumptuous seats in the kingdom, their superb stature dominating the assembly in front of them. The king motioned for the visitors to enter, and with a slow clang of doors opening, an army of soldiers ushered in a curious figure.
A magnificent woman walked with a throbbing step, her long hair, ending in smoke as black as night, danced behind her back. Advancing with the most fascinating grace, every person in the room watched the step of this seductive and mysterious woman. She raised her arm, causing a multitude of dark particles to appear like black stars, which then fell to the ground. In puddles, strange creatures were born from these drops of black smoke.
One by one, these beings, with their shapeless arms and ghostly faces, rose up.
Surprised by these invocations, the soldiers suddenly took up their positions, ready to attack and defend their king and queen. The king waved his hand, indicating that there was no need to act. Resolute, the soldiers lowered their weapons, resigning themselves and staying out of the way of this terrifying army of shadows emerging before their astonished eyes.
"You may speak." The king enunciated in a clear, strict voice.
The bewitching woman began to smile, freezing the bodies of all the subjects in this immense assembly observing this no less unique scene. With a respectful shake of her head, she stooped to politely greet the powerful rulers in front of her. The army of strange shadow beings followed her in a respectful bow.
She lowered her face slightly again, her light-colored eyes seeming so dark, her hair floating slightly, tracing a thick black smoke. As she rose to her feet, the woman readjusted her position and locked her gaze in that of the two rulers facing her.
"Thank you for receiving me at this dark time. I am Hel. Hel Osvaelrix."
Smoke thickened and silence enveloped the room.
Everything had now begun, and it was impossible to see an end to such a beginning.
At Orpheion, the news had been taken with surprising joy by the students. Everyone wanted to prove their worth, and to travel to the remote regions of Pinevale, accessible only trough a deep and dangerous cave, was a feat of strength.
Pinevale was a kind of valley filled with dark trees, a den of bandits, wild beasts and monsters, each more dangerous than the last. It was quite usual for Orpheion to send its students to training camp, at least once a year. However, the choice had never been Pinevale, but rather huge areas such as the Scorchfang Peaks or the Glacian Forest in north-central Parvana.
This time, the camp would be held in a week's time, after a well-deserved vacation, and in an area of Kaelian territory little known to the students. The duration of this stay was rather uncertain, sometimes stretching from a week to several months.
Another brand-new element had been put in place in view of the criticality of the situation: as the students usually leave in classes of the same year, it had been decided to send them in three classes at a time, with one class of each level each time. Devion understood that, once again, he would have to deal with his "friends" from the Scholar Assembly, and probably all of them. Fortunately, the stay was generally separated by level, and he hoped from the bottom of his being that he would see as little as possible of that awful character Caspian Robertson.
"Packing already?" Devion watched Sol bustle around their room, hurriedly filling his enormous bag.
"I'm leaving." He straightened up, forcing his things so the bag could close. "I'm going to see my parents for the week, then I'll be back for the training camp."
"I guess I'll be by myself then."
"Oh Devion, I-"
"Don't worry. It'll also do me good to be in this academy when it's emptier and I'm not getting stared at in every hallway."
Devion threw himself onto his bed and stared at the ceiling, his thoughts lost in a flood of worry he didn't dare confess. The young boy was afraid, extremely afraid, but he would never say this, at least not out loud, but probably to himself, and perhaps against his will, to this surprising animal that now followed him everywhere and seemed to constantly impose itself in his head.
Adrian Robertson hadn't made a new appearance since the events that now dated back a good two weeks. Devion had tried to contact him, but to no avail; clearly, the man would only appear when he really wanted to, and had left as his legacy this magnificent panther named Umbra.
Umbra was a curious animal, very calm and docile. She followed Devion absolutely everywhere, day and night, and at all hours. The young magician found her quite amazing, even though she was very clingy and extremely intrusive. She rarely made any noise, confining herself to grunts or more conventional animal noises.
What was more complicated was the space she took up. As big as a more conventional panther, Umbra usually slept between the two roommates' beds, much to the annoyance of the two students, who struggled to get out of their beds and avoid stepping on the creature.
In the mornings, Devion had got into the habit of arguing with Umbra so that she wouldn't follow him to class and would stay quietly in their room. Most of the time, the animal respected and obeyed the dark-haired man, but the rest of the time Devion found his new pet waiting for him outside the door of a classroom. It was safe to say that, with a reputation that had already grown in just three months at Orpheion, Devion had acquired a new one: that of owning a mythical creature that obeyed his every word.
"Have a safe trip then." Devion had straightened up facing his friend, who was quickly packing away his small, overflowing suitcase. "Bring me back some souvenirs."
"Of course."
"By the way!" The brunet stepped forward with an elbow on his thigh to show his interest. "Where do your parents live?"
Sol paused and looked for a moment at his bag and the belongings scattered on his bed that he hadn't yet been able to put away.
"In Onhav."
Onhav was a quiet little town in a valley in the middle of the Kaelian lands. Renowned for its peace and quiet and the hospitality of its inhabitants, Onhav was in an advantageous location for many merchants. As it was not located in the capital, Valterys, accommodation was less expensive, but it was close to Port Astrion, the central Kaelian trading zone, located in Valterys to the south. Port Astrion was also known, in addition to being a hub of trade in Thepra, as the only port of call to the neighboring kingdom of Erebus.
The city of Onhav was, so to speak, highly prized for its location, but above all, an ideal city.
Devion smiled and layed down again, watching his friend as he finished adjusting his gear. He thought he would be bored without the strange gray-haired boy who had become his most faithful companion in Orpheion. Sol, despite his shy and reserved nature, was a very kind and talented boy and Devion had learned to trust him.
"Aaaah! I feel so guilty!" Sol threw off the garment in his hand and lay half on his bed with his head back and both arms supporting him. "It pisses me off to leave you all alone here."
"I told you it was okay, Sol."
"You can't change your nature, can you?" Sol huffed and let out a quiet laugh. "Let's just say I've always been very compassionate."
Devion straightened up, a sneer forming on his face, and without Sol being able to cry out, the latter found himself with a pillow in his face.
"No room for the sensitive here!" Devion replied.
"Ah! If you want to play. I'm all yours, Dev!" Sol also climbed onto his bed, sending his belongings flying and crashing to the floor, happily responding to his roommate's invitation to a pillow fight.
Among the unfortunate students remaining at Orpheion during the week-long school vacation, Violet Tanaka was one of the respondents to this call. After all, staying at the institute would allow her to study and perfect her spells, so what was the point of going back to Swanton anyway, only to find herself bored to death in the Kaelian west countryside?
Unluckily, Charly had gone home to Parvana for the vacations, so she was on her own for the long week. But never mind! She'd always been alone, so it didn't matter, a boy she'd known for a few months wasn't going to change a thing.
"Hello Violet, how are you today?" The librarian had smiled at her as usual and Violet had politely replied before calmly returning to her usual seat in the back of the institute's library.
On this first day of vacation, the weather was fine and the girl had even thought that it was almost a shame to lock herself in and that being outside would, possibly, have been more pleasant. She quickly dismissed the idea, stood up and headed for her favorite bookshelf, "Accounts and Histories of Magic". For once, she had trouble finding one to her liking, or was it because she'd already read them all?
The student's attention was drawn to a book with a bright red cover and magnificent gold binding. She grabbed it, reading its title aloud, and sat down on the floor to leaf through it in more detail.
"Tales of King Altharion Morwynn."
Violet's throat tightened and her vision blurred as she turned the pages of the book. Flashes appeared before her eyes and she painfully continued reading a book she already knew by heart.
"Violet!" The little boy shouted, running through the house, a book almost bigger than him in his hands. "Violet, read me a story."
"Ren, you don't shout and you say 'please' when you're a polite little boy."
"Violet, please read me a story!"
The girl then sat down next to her younger brother and took in her hands the large book with the superb red cover that Ren had previously been holding. "Tales of King Altharion Morwynn" was inscribed on the cover in golden letters.
"I didn't know you were such a fan of our former king, Ren."
"King Altharion, King Altharion, King Altharion!"
Violet laughed and began reading, counting the tales of Kaelor's former ruler. Gradually, her little brother fell asleep in total peace. Looking at the adorable, calming little boy lying on the crib, Violet thought how lucky she was and wondered what she had done to deserve such a great little brother.
The following events then showed her that peace and joy had their limits.
"I'm sorry, the diagnosis is formal. Ren is suffering from the Curse of the Dormant Scar. It's a disease that appears when a magician begins his second awakening without succeeding in making his scar appear correctly."
Violet sitting in the color next to the frame couldn't believe her ears. Her beloved little brother, her treasure, her everything, was sick.
"What's going to happen to him?" Violet's mother asked, sobbing into her husband's arms.
"Your son will remain in a vegetative state. We have, to this day, no treatment for this ailment."
Silent tears streamed down Violet's face without her being able to control them. Then the girl resigned herself to letting her sadness burst out in a terrible, nervous sob.
Her parents heard their daughter and came out of the room where they'd been earlier, looking with disgust at the little girl with two pink pigtails and tear-stained glasses.
Her father stepped forward and disdainfully grabbed her by the collar. Her shirt pulled up slightly, revealing the scar on her ribs.
"You're cursed, Violet. Magic is cursed. You must go far away from us. We're going to send you to Orpheion."
"Are you all right?" A strange boy with pale green eyes looked down at the girl sitting on the floor.
Violet quickly dried her tears and with a hesitant but quick step picked up her things and put the book back in its place. She resumed her usual snobbish air and adjusted her glasses.
"Yes, I'm fine." Giving Devion one last look, she then left the library.