Brioche pranced around Lios as he practiced his sword work. Winter was on its last legs and giving way to spring with flowers blooming and leaves sprouting on trees. The small tan fox flitted between his steps, aiming to trip him up, her tiny fangs loosely pressing into his skin - enough to leave an indent for a few seconds but not enough to draw any blood.
She yipped excitedly as he dodged around her, the sound of music and the bubbling river bouncing off the rocks and trees around them. Sweat dripped down Lios’s shirtless back as he completed the movements for his longsword. He had already completed the other weapon trainings for the morning, and this was his last. He completed the movements right on time, Rose’s lute trailing off on the last notes of her latest song, with the sun directly overhead.
Almost time. Lios thought excitedly as he rested his sword on a rock. It was nearing his birthday. He was nearly eight, which meant that the spring festival was underway. It had actually started a few days prior, but he had been busy during the days with work and training, and only today did he give himself time to visit the festival.
Bri whined in protest as he stopped training, or rather playing, with her and started to make his way to the rushing river. While Arborton didn’t see much snow, the spring rains were certainly helping to feed the river. This area was not great for baths, but Lios was already feeling too lazy for a proper one, anyway. Instead, he dunked a rough towel into the river and used the wet cloth to wipe the sweat and dust that had accumulated from his skin.
“Hurry Uppppp Liosssss!” Rose called out from behind him, letting out a soft giggle. She had turned nine a few weeks ago, their birthdays eerily close together.
Lios looked over his shoulder at her and stuck his tongue out, blowing a raspberry at her in protest. “The festival isn’t going anywhere, you know. Would you prefer I stink like sweat all day?”
In response, the young girl hopped over, laughing as she got close and sniffed him. “You don’t smell like anything, so come onnnn!” She latched onto his right arm and tugged on him, dragging him to his pile of training weapons and his shirt.
Lios grumbled playfully but let her drag him along, Brioche following them out of the rocky clearing, weaving between their feet, trying to trip them and force them to stay longer. They were fairly used to her antics and thus were not forced to stay, avoiding her well much to her consternation. Within minutes they were passing by the clearing in which she made her den, and she darted off after they gave her plenty of scratches and love.
Emerging from the forest, Lios and Rose walked to his home’s back door, the sound of knives on a cutting board escaping the doorway before they entered.
“Come in, I just have to put this all away and get something real quick.” Lios said to his friend. In all the years they had been friends, neither of them had been inside the other’s home, not for any reason but the fact they both spent most of their time outside.
She came in timidly, taking off her high leather boots at the entryway so as not to track any mud into the house. The chopping knives stopped as they entered, Lios following Rose’s lead and removing his muddied boots.
“Well, Lios, are you going to introduce me to your friend? Hmm?” Elaine asked playfully from behind the counter, scooping celery, carrots and onion into a hot metal pot.
“So impatient!” Lios snapped back equally playfully. “This is Rose. Rose, this is my mom.”
He didn’t wait for a response, hearing the two greet each other, and instead went to drop his things off in his room. He stowed all of his training steel and bath supplies before snatching up his coin pouch and tying it to his belt, tucking it into his pants to lessen the chance of a pickpocket getting to it. Such crime was fairly uncommon in Arborton; it simply wasn’t a large enough city to have an abundance of small-time criminals. This being said, the rate of such crimes skyrocketed during festivals. There were more opportunities for the street rats to take advantage of.
The air was still a touch chilly when he wasn’t training, so he also pulled a light leather jacket over his plain white tunic, very much looking a peasant but a decently dressed one. Nodding to himself, he stepped back out into the main living area, where Lios’s mom was chatting with Rose, who was now sitting at the table.
“Lios, come sit for a quick lunch before you go, okay?” His mother called out upon seeing him. “Then you can go on your little date with Rosey here!”
Lios groaned internally. It seemed parents felt a need to try to embarrass their children regardless of the world in which they lived. “It’s not a... whatever.”
Rose giggled as he sat beside her, a flush of pink rising to his cheeks. “LiLi, can I drop my stuff off here till we get back?” She asked, trying and failing to hide her amusement.
Before he could answer, his mother chuckled softly from across the room. “LiLi? And he says it isn’t a date?” She said quietly under breath, but the duo still heard her. Rose laughed loudly, snorting at Lios’s expression as he sank deep into his chair.
For god’s sake, I’m not even eight... Ughhh. The boy thought to himself, smartly keeping his thoughts to himself.
“Yeah, I can put your stuff in my room.” He stood up, happy to distract himself from the awkwardness. Quickly, he stowed her lute and journals of loose paper in his bedroom and returned.
Despite having only been gone for a few moments, there was a plate waiting for him when he returned. On it was a sandwich, a bit of suncitra fruit - a cross between a grapefruit and an orange, and Lios’s favorite- and some long white vegetables that weren't quite asparagus but were close enough to it that that’s what Lios translated its name to.
“Thank you, ma!” he called out excitedly. He had been prepared to buy food for him and Rose at the festival, and he surely still would, but now he could spend less. Which meant he could spend more on his books if he found one that sufficed.
The three of them made idle conversation as they ate. Elaine asked Rose about her parents, and it was then that Lios learned Darren the smith was her uncle. Her father used to work as a carpenter but now owned a quaint tavern, and her mother served drinks there. It was also the first time he had heard about her elder brother, who had left Arborton shortly before Lios had met her to go to the Lumina Academy located in North Draxom. Rose hardly talked about her home life, though Lios supposed he was the same, so much of this was his first time hearing of it. He was mildly surprised her parents could afford to send her brother to the Lumina Academy.
This was not the first time Lios had heard of the various academies, but he had mostly forgotten about them. More schooling didn’t appeal to him. Maybe far in the future he would consider it, but he still remembered the boring lectures in his past life and had no desire to relive them.
It didn’t take the trio very long to finish their food. Once they did, Lios and Rose got up to leave only to be stopped by Elaine. “Wait, wait, wait. Before you go, your father and I got you a gift for your birthday!”
“Mom, my birthday isn’t for a few weeks,” Lios protested slightly, for some reason embarrassed to be doted on in front of his friend. It didn’t help that he hadn’t expected to get anything. Gift giving on birthdays wasn't a common thing, at least in his family.
“And if I didn’t give it to you now, you’d just go and buy it yourself at the festival, so go on open it up!” Elaine smiled as she pulled a rectangular object wrapped in butcher's paper from behind the counter and handed it to Lios.
“You didn't have to...” he said as he took it from her, already having a decent idea of what it was. He didn’t waste time with further protests, though, his excitement bleeding through as he ripped open the package. Inside he found not one but two different books. One of them had a cracked leather cover and yellow musty pages, while the other was filled with thick eggshell white vellum pages and its front cover was relatively new. The books were quite large.
The older one was stained a fading green and had flaky golden letters spelling out ‘Runecrafting, Using Lexico Runes’ with no author listed. Lios gently set it down so he could take a closer look at the second book too. The newer book, which was a bit heavier, had a black cover with silver letters. Its title was ‘Introduction to Lexico Runewrit’ by one Alizard M. Riche.
It took a fair amount more willpower than Lios wanted to admit stopping himself from opening the books at that moment. He was eager to start studying, eager to start learning magic, to the point it was almost painful to tear his eyes from them. He blinked, his eyelids wetting his eyes as they dragged the joyous tears that had started to develop, before setting the book down and wrapping his mother in his arms eagerly.
“Thank you, Mom, thank you, thank you!” he exclaimed excitedly as she wrapped him up and chuckled. Rose behind him awkwardly kicked at the ground in a fidget.
“You're welcome, Lios. Just don’t blow yourself up with them... But for now... well, it isn’t polite to leave a lady waiting, is it?” She couldn’t help teasing the two children again. Of course, she knew they weren’t at an age where it really mattered, but it was still fun to tease them.
“You may have a point...” He sighed somewhat begrudgingly as he pulled away from the hug and picked up his books. “Let me put these away and we can go to the festival!” He waited not for a reply and returned moments later, having set them on his bed.
After that, the duo left his house and started toward the city proper. On their way, they saw mostly sparse decorations around people’s homes and along the streets, gradually growing more involved the closer to the festivities they got. Soon they were emerging from a side street into a fully decorated town square.
Vibrant vines blooming with flowers twisted amongst each other to create wondrous arches. The smells of grilling meats and baking bread, pastries and pies, fruit freshly cut, the smells of food intertwined all around them as they stepped into the town center proper. They mixed with the smell of flowers that surrounded them. Flowers-pink, blue, red, yellow and other colors-grew between each of the stalls.
There were stages sent here in the town center too. Lios could see a small crowd surrounding a jester of sorts, a man in colorful clothing dancing and juggling for the masses. A top-hat sat at the edge of the stage where patrons could leave a tip for him. On another stage, not too far from Lios and Rose, three men wearing audacious and gaudy clothes played instruments. There was no singing, but for many of the townsfolk that didn’t matter.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
The air was fairly tepid, but despite that, Lios saw many adults with rosy cheeks and mugs in their hands that smelled of mulled wine.
“Come on, let's go to the market square!” Rose said while tugging on Lios’s hand.
He followed after her, admiring the sights as he always did. Despite having eaten just a relatively short while ago, the two stopped at a stall to collect a few pastries. Lios’s coin purse lightened ever so slightly, but he had no regrets. They wound up getting something like a honeybun, but folded within the dough were various fruits, depending on which one they got. In total they tried four of them, the one filled with a violet berry being Lios’s favorite.
He was tempted to still buy a book or two on enchanting or runes, but stayed his hand, saving the coin for the next time instead. Still, they passed many stalls filled with strange goods from wandering traders. One man sat on a blanket on the cool ground selling wooden figurines. Another sold jewelry made from various monster and animal parts, primarily their bones, in combination with less organic materials such as metals and gems.
Clothing vendors sold bright-colored tunics and doublets, dresses and skirts. It was at these stalls that Rose spent the most time. Lios didn’t mind; it was fun to watch her checking out various outfits. Whenever she presented him with one, he would hem and haw, acting like he was a sort of fashion designer and going over every aspect of the outfit. He did so with a flamboyant flair that caused his friend to collapse in a fit of giggles after a while.
After spending around an hour looking at different outfits, they stopped before a group doing a dual performance. Half of their people were musicians and were playing a song that made Lios want to dance. The rest of their group did a sort of Cirque du Soleil act, combining dancing with gymnastics and performing nearly impossible feats of athleticism.
The two watched in wonder as they flipped through the air, twisted and twirled, bent over backwards. At one point, a man twisted himself in such a way Lios couldn't imagine him untangling himself. His neck twisted as though it were rubber, as did much else of his body. He made a show of acting as though he were stuck, acting panicked and frantic until one of his colleagues made to help him when he simply untwisted and stood right up without so much as a pop or crack of his bones. Lios couldn’t help but shudder at the thought of doing something like that himself.
They stayed and watched the performance for a good while before turning away and locating another food vendor. They weren’t necessarily hungry, but the smell of roasting meats, candied nuts, pastries and so much more wafted throughout the square and made it impossible to stop thinking about eating. So, a few coppers lighter, they walked around looking for another interesting performance with a pair of skewers of meat in both of their hands.
“Did you see the way he flipped? I swear he fell waaay slower than he should have. I wonder what his class was? And the guy who twisted himself all around. I didn’t even know that was possible.” Rose spoke excitedly about the last show between bites of a grilled meatball on a stick.
“Right? I wonder if I can get that flexible without a specific skill... I bet that kind of flexibility would help my sword skills!” Lios was equally excited, talking through a mouthful of marinated meat that tasted like lamb.
“Is that all you think about?” She teased and pushed into him with her shoulder playfully.
“No. I also think about magic and enchanting. And foxes. Brioche is very cute!” he replied with a laugh, sticking his tongue out at her.
“She is very cute,” Rose replied with a laugh of her own before tugging his shirt sleeve, precariously holding one of the skewers in the same hand but somehow not letting its honey sauce drip onto his shirt. “Let’s go see what’s happening over there?”
Lios looked where she was and nodded, seeing a small crowd beginning to gather. The two small children easily pushed through some legs and made their way to the front of the crowd, grateful it had only just started to develop, and came to a stop to see a large group of robed people bearing sticks. Two of them stood on the stage across from one another, clear animosity in their eyes, and held their sticks toward each other.
In his studying of spells and magic, Lios was fairly certain wands and staves were not a requirement, but they could be enchanted to act as foci or to enhance the power of the mana flowing through them. He watched with rapt attention as the duo eyed each other silently, wondering what caused them to look at each other like they were prepared to kill the other.
Between them stepped an older man with a long greying beard. On his head was a midnight blue hat with a wide brim and a flat top. It was closer to a sunhat or a pilgrim’s cap than a cowboy hat or top-hat, but was still of a style that Lios was unfamiliar with. He wore dark purple robes that continuously swirled with a blue pattern, almost as though it were an aurora crossing a midnight sky. White flecks sat within the blue as it moved and twisted in the robes. When he began speaking, his voice carried far further than it should have and sounded at the same volume to all who had heard it. He did not need to shout or raise his voice; instead, he spoke at a normal volume and allowed his magic to carry it to people’s ears. It had a deep timbre with a bit of gravel in the back as the man completed his words.
“Before we begin our demonstration, we would like to introduce ourselves. My name is Trenton B. Agorfort. I am the leading professor for the Wizards in Combat class at the esteemed Lumina Academy. Today I am honored to present my esteemed students ranging from first years all the way to seventh years.” He gestured behind him with an obvious grin beneath his grey beard. “These dedicated wizards are committed to showing you fine folk of Arborton exactly what our school represents and what it’s students are capable of. Now, you all in the front, if you value your eyebrows, you may wish to take a few steps back. I will be placing a ward at the edge of the stage, but it may not prevent heat from escaping. Now, without further ado, the first match of our night.
“We have a duo of first years who have a bit of a rivalry as I’m sure you could see. They may be inexperienced, but they are surely still serious combatants. Now, Ethan and Laurence, ready yourselves. I will step back to give you the space you need, and you know the signal to begin.” The old man stepped backwards until he was behind the combatants and raised his own wand.
With a flourish he swept it upwards, sparks cutting through the air at the wand’s tip. Immediately, the two wizards began to chant under their breaths. Despite being so close to them, Lios couldn’t tell what they were saying. He tried to read their lips, but even then he couldn’t decipher the words and decided they were likely in another language entirely, perhaps even an ancient one.
It took about five seconds for the one on the right, a teenager with startling silver hair and a wicked smirk on his face, to complete his spell first. Electricity flooded the air and a moment later, with Lios’s hair standing up from his proximity, a crackle snapped across the stage. A bolt of sky blue lightning sprang from the tip of the wizard’s twisted wand and crashed into his opponent's torso. A spattering of cheers rang out as the other boy fell backwards and crashed onto the ground, seemingly paralyzed. Shock was evident in his eyes as only his chest rose up and down, all other movements ceased. Some of the audience were not close or observant enough to see this, and muttering tore through the crowd as they speculated if he was alive.
Thankfully, any talk about his death was culled when he groaned in irritation and rose to his feet, a bit of smoke rising from his chest. He glared at his opponent before sighing and reaching out a hand to shake. The other boy took his hand graciously, but the wince from the orange-haired boy, the one who lost, told Lios the winner intentionally squeezed down on his opponent’s hand. Once again, Lios wondered about the rivalry, wondered what caused all of this drama.
The professor who had introduced them took to the front of the stage again, congratulating the winner with a twinkle in his eyes. He then introduced another duo of wizards from a higher grade. Their bout was a bit flashier than the previous one, but they solidified Lios’s choice in spell craft. They were entirely too focused on chanting, though some of their chants were only a few words, and he could see many openings from them physically.
Rose and Lios stayed and watched all the matches. All told, they only lasted about forty minutes before all seven pairs of students had had their chance. Each time, despite casting spells pretty efficiently, Lios spotted openings upon openings. He frowned, watching them. They mostly stood still until the fourth years, who started to move around, but they still had clumsy footwork. They at least were able to block their opponents’ spells and even dodge them.
The skill level gradually increased, and the seventh year's fight was certainly far better than the first. When they took the stage, Lios immediately felt a pressure washing out from the two of them. Unlike the first pair as well, they both acted amicably and shook hands before settling in and taking a serious expression.
Lios watched with rapt attention as the professor raised his wand, signaling the battle to begin. Immediately, the mage on the right withdrew a card from a pouch at his side. Lettering covering the face lit up with a golden glow. Whatever spell was inscribed on it activated, and the mage flicked his wrist, launching the card at his opponent. Flames streaked behind it as the card turned into a burning bird, its wings fluttering.
On the other side, the mage raised a staff and muttered a few words so fast that they seemed incoherent, giving rap artists a run for their money. A shield of spinning water appeared before him. The water seemed to flow from a clear crystal on the end of his stave, and blocked the rapidly approaching firebird. Steam erupted and blocked the view for many people, but Lios was close enough to see through it.
He watched another card light up, flying high in the sky. It seemed to vanish, and a mere second later a bolt of crackling lightning slammed down on the stage, cracking the wood and leaving it singed. The bolt’s target was nowhere to be seen. There seemed to be more steam surrounding the stage than should naturally occur from the bird and shield. Just as Lios had that thought, the second figure reappeared behind his peer.
Water seemed to flood the stage though it didn’t spill over, blocked as the barrier was still solid. The card mage looked down with idle concern before flinging a card at his feet. Just as it vanished into a spell, the water surrounding him began to freeze. Before it could take hold, though, a snake made of fire sprang into existence and lifted the wizard up above the water. It sizzled against the ice but did not relent.
The water wizard harrumphed audibly, causing a good number of the crowd to laugh, before raising his staff up high. He chanted a bit louder in a language unknown to Lios or Rose, or much of anyone in Arborton. His voice raised in volume as he chanted, the incantation giving his foe plenty of time to prepare new attacks. This time, three cards were flung at the water mage, lightning crackling from each of them before they transformed into birds like the first.
They flew like arrows, slamming into a quickly spun-up shield of ice that quickly shattered under the weight of the lightning. The water wizard finished his chant just as his shield fell apart, crumbling like an iceberg. Clouds formed a hundred feet above the young wizard, a lad who could be no older than twenty. They were dark, thick storm clouds, and they spun, swirling with him as a center point. For a few moments nothing happened, but then, as though receiving a hidden command, hail started raining down. Not only did it fall rapidly, but each drop of hail was angled to slam into the inscriptionist.
For his part, the other boy didn’t panic. He simply withdrew a pair of cards with a sigh, likely knowing how this fight would end up prior to agreeing to it. Lightning created a powerful barrier above him, intercepting the first dozen or so pieces of hail. The other card fizzled out of existence, burning to ash as flame leapt out from it toward the water wizard. Before it hit though, hail pelted the shield until it cracked and shattered. The inscriptionist let out a curse as he was then subjected to a hailstorm directed solely at him.
Within seconds of his shield breaking, he fell back to the ground, bruised and unconscious.
The professor gave a long-winded speech and advertised that their school was recruiting others interested in the arts of magic. Lios listened for a bit of it as the professor tried to sell the villagers on his prestigious school until Rose grew bored and dragged him away. He didn’t mind.
After that, the duo spent the rest of the festival playing various games, watching a few more performances, and-most importantly-consuming delicious fair food. Before long, the mid-afternoon sun shifted to two moons, and a blanket of stars washed over the sky. Knowing they would be admonished if they returned too late, the pair made their way back home and separated after Rose collected her things.
Instead of just going in and going to bed, however, Lios took one of his new books and sat out among the stars, leaning against the stones of their well. The moons shed enough light on this particularly clear night that the boy was able to read it without straining his eyes overmuch. Still, before he began to read, he spent a few minutes simply gazing up at the stars, attempting to find any constellations he might recognize.
I suppose I'm not even in the same galaxy... I wonder what Jess would think of the festivals here? The thoughts came unbidden; he had not called for them, and yet they stumbled through his head. A pang of sorrow flashed through him. He had, of course, had plenty of time to grieve his losses, but that didn’t mean he would be done grieving.
Attempting to escape the melancholy, Alexilios thought back to the battles between wizards, the image of the boy with the cards summoning birds of lightning and fire filling his mind as he turned his attention to his new book. Eagerly, with lettering just readable beneath the shine of the dual moons, the cover opened and the first page revealed itself.
