Red Eclipse

Chapter 5 - Goddesses and Sentinels

Elowen and Amara walked through the hot, scorched city of Aurorin. The city was bustling with noise. Merchants on every street, children playing on every corner, and horses moving slowly through the street. "Master what was that?" asked Amara. Elowen shook his head. "I told him many, many, many times that this would happen. You heard me. But he never listened and now look at him." Elowen said in a sad tone. "But I don't understand. It didn't seem like Soren was being disrespectful. It seemed like he really just wants what's best for the people." said Amara. "Exactly, by saying what he thought was best for the country he inadvertently implied that the king did not know what was best, and took it as a sign of disrespect." said Elowen.

As they continued walking, two citizens of Aurorin spat at them. "What was that about?" asked Amara with disgust in her face. "The public has mass disapproval of the Sentinels. They feel as though we are a waste of tax money." replied Elowen. "What but why? We are called in to do the hard jobs?" asked Elowen. "While that may be true, a very large portion of our country's tax money goes towards the Moonsworn Sentinels. Our training takes years. The weapons we use are quite advanced, and very spendy." said Elowen.

"Well, maybe if there weren't so many festivals we would have more tax money." Amara said as she rolled her eyes. "Look, it's no secret the country isn't doing well right now. I mean look at Marina Bay. There are many cities that are just like it in Azuraan, and only a handful of them are doing well like Aurorin." replied Elowen. They continued walking. "Why hasn't the king done anything about it?" asked Amara. "What can he do? His father had an incredibly difficult time and he was twice the man the king is. Look, I've known Lethobos for years. I can't imagine the kind of stress he is under right now." said Elowen.

"Well, I know one thing is for sure. Drinking and whoring won't solve his problems." said Amara sarcastically. Elowen stopped and stared at Amara. "If you keep talking like that you'll end up like Soren." said Elowen sternly. "Sorry Master." replied Amara. "You know, you both can stop calling me Master. Just because I brought you into the Sentinels doesn't mean you have to keep calling me that. After all, you both are more my children than you are my pupils." laughed Elowen. Amara smiled as she gave Elowen a hug.

"Can I ask you something?" asked Elowen. Amara nodded. "How was Soren during the Sentinel trainingng and what did it entail? I know it changed a lot since I went through it. Plus I was only instructing there on and off. I had to leave on those missions to the isles if you remember." asked Elowen. "Well, the beginning almost broke us. We were completely torn apart mentally. During the initial six months, or the first stage we underwent intense physical conditioning. The instructors told us we had to be in peak physical condition if we were to be Sentinels. Many other initiates dropped out from this part alone, at least half. "

"Every morning we ran a lap around the walls of the Aurorin. The running wasn't the problem. It was the damn sand. It was horrible to keep your footing. The sun beat down on you like a drum. We then partook in weapons drills and martial arts. Soren was a natural, probably from the training you gave him as a kid. I was the one who had problems." said Amara. Elowen laughed. "Yes, I did. I wanted to make sure if he was ever in the same situation like with the pirates, he would be able to take care of himself." said Elowen.

Amara sighed. "Yeah well he was definitely a prodigy. It took a few months, but I got the hang of it. After a while I was able to keep up with the other initiates in combat. I was even able to defeat a few of them myself. The fourth month in we were introduced to freerunning. I fell flat on my face so many times. The drills were interesting because they were on actual rooftops in Aurorin. Not on the ground with obstacles. It really immersed you. Again, Soren was a natural. "

"At the six month mark they told us we would be transitioning from Physical training into Lunar Celesturgy mastery. This was by far the hardest part for me. I hadn't practiced Celesturgy ever. It was confusing to me that all incantations could be classified into two categories: Arcanist incantations which used dark energy, and Mysticar incantations which used light energy. They explained to us the bread and butter of every Sentinel came down to five basic incantations: The first one being Abigo, which is a mysticar incantation of repulsion. Tempestes, which is an arcanist incantation. It launches a slicing wind at an opponent. It can be lethal. The third is Noxvisio. A mysticar incantation that allows us to see in the night. Fourth is Umbradomina, which is an arcanist incantation that allows us to bend the shadows and allow us to remain unseen. Lastly is Noctisguard, a mysticar incantation that provides us with a ward of protection."