Ring of Power

Chapter 16: The Ring

     The sun rose high above the buildings in Elensdor and cast a pinkish glow across the morning sky. The outline of the town was magnified by the sunrise and the two teens anticipated their arrival to the famed town.
     Emerald was so excited that they finally made it to Elensdor because since she had lived in the forest her whole life, she had never really experienced true rural life. She took off running for the tall gates ahead and Xavier followed her lead, trying to keep up as best as he could.
     Emerald reached the gates and decided to catch her breath while she waited for Xavier. They walked into the midst of the large village together and a look of amazement was all they could muster at the sight.
     They were facing a huge market place, lined by all sorts of personal stands where you could buy anything you needed. There was jewelry and fabric, fruits and vegetables, weapons and armour, and tons more. Emerald and Xavier became overwhelmed with excitement and new-found energy. They went up and down row upon row of items and objects, forgetting why they had come here. They stopped and browsed each and every stand, just looking in awe.
     As they passed a jewelry stand, Emerald thought she saw something familiar and felt a pull, an urge, to turn back and see what it was. She turned and looked back at the jewelry table. Xavier, noticing her movement from the corner of his eye, stopped to wait.
She immediately laid her eyes on a ring with an Amethyst cut in the shape of a diamond. A beautiful gold arch connected the right side of the band to the top right of the stone and on the left side, another gold arch was connected to the bottom of the stone from the initial band. Where the arches met the band on either side, there was a circular white diamond. The band itself was decorated with a beautiful emerald flower design, which was engraved into the ring band. Emerald instantly recognized it as her mother's ring, but the flower design when her mother was wearing it was red, somehow it had changed to emerald.
     "How much for this ring?" Emerald asked, pointing to the ring but never taking her eyes off it.
     "I'll take two silver." The woman running the stand replied.
     Emerald looked at Xavier and he pulled two silver coins from his pocket. He handed them to the woman; she nodded her thanks and placed the coins in a small cloth hand bag.
     Emerald reached for the ring with a shaking hand, picked it up, and put it on her right ring finger. She looked up in shock as her whole body was covered with a warm sensation and it felt as if she was being pricked by thousands of tiny needles all over her body. Pictures flashed before her eyes. First there was the ring on an outstretched hand; then she saw The Wraith, his body enveloped in a pure black cloak and red glowing eyes that seemed to stare straight through her, causing the needles to prod deeper into her skin. Suddenly the prodding ceased, the ring began to glow brightly and The Wraith cowered and backed away from the light, his face converting in pain as he was eliminated once and for all.
     As the pictures ceased, she realized the ring had shown her it's power and that it was indeed intended to defeat The Wraith, but one thing the ring didn't show her, was how to use the power it contained within.
     Emerald swayed on her feet, light headed from the effect of the ring. Xavier put his arms out to steady her and gave her a worried look. She smiled and nodded at him, confirming that she was alright and that this was what they were searching for.

     Arigorn knew there was something special about this day the moment he awoke. He watched from his lonely tower in the Duke's castle, as he always did, the town and the people below. He watched them mill around the market and buy the goods they needed in their homes, but for some reason today felt different, he felt like he needed to be down in all the chaos.
     He knew about the ring and the power it held. He knew that someday the Chosen One destined to destroy The Wraith would find the ring and carry out his destiny.
     He knew the famed ring was in Elensdor, he could feel it by the power it emitted. He had started to feel its presence a few weeks ago, and he had gone in search of it, finally he came across a jewelry stand in the market, locating the ring among the other jewelry by its power. He could see the stand from his window, for it was quite close to the castle. Every day he watched the people come to the stand and waited for the ring to be placed on their finger, waited for the power to be released by the ring and accepted by the person who would now possess it, but every day not a single person had found the right item.
     He pulled on his long dark cloak and grabbed his wizards staff, which did more for his balance than for anything else, and set off for the town centre, just hoping today he would find The One. He weaved his way through the crowds of people until he stopped near the jewelry stand. He saw a young girl and boy approach the stand, they didn't look familiar and he wondered where they had come from.
     They looked at the jewelry then turned away, but the girl soon turned back. He watched carefully as she picked up a ring and placed it on her finger. As soon as she did, Arigorn felt the power of the ring activate and move through the girl, he saw her blank stare then saw her stumble. He knew it was the ring showing her its true purposed and he couldn't believe his eyes. It was her. After all these years the Chosen One was a girl. That didn't matter though, The Wraith would finally be stopped.
     He pushed through the crowd until he stood before the two youngsters, the boys arms still around the girl from where she lost her balance. Emerald looked up at the tall stranger with wonder.
     "How may we help you, sir." She asked the man before her.
     "Follow me." Arigorn said. He smiled at them and looked down at the ring, indicating that he knew something about it.
     Xavier shot a questioning glance at Emerald as they followed the big man through the crowd. Emerald looked down at the ring and then at the stranger leading them through the crowd of people.
     He was about seven feet tall and very small around the middle. He wore a long black cloak like Emerald's, but his was more worn and used. His face was thin but friendly with sunken cheeks and high cheekbones. He had a small gray beard and eyes to match. He carried a long, twisted white wooden staff with a red ruby in the top and he leaned on it for support. The ruby in the top was protected by two thin white pieces of wood that wound around it and came to a point above. He moved quickly through the crowds for an older man and weaved through the streets in the town.
     He took them up and into the sandstone castle through a gate double the size of a normal man, turning left toward a narrow flight of winding steps. They went up, seemingly forever, until they finally reached the top of the tower and entered a small dark room. It was cluttered with potion glasses and shelves full of spell books. There was a small table against the back wall next to the window and a tall bookcase next to it. There was a smaller round table in the right corner, under the shelf of books, with four chairs surrounding it. The man sat in one and gestured for them to sit down as well.
     "I am Arigorn, and as you can tell I am a sorcerer. Who might you be?" Arigorn asked once they were all seated at the small round table.
     Xavier looked at Emerald cautiously, he didn't trust this man.
     Arigorn caught the look and said, "I am a friend and I know about the ring of power. I can help you with its power and can teach you how to use and control it to defeat The Wraith."
     Emerald nodded at Xavier and smiled. She knew she needed help and had a feeling she was in the right place to receive that help.
     He nodded his understanding and she began.
     "I'm Emerald and this is my friend Xavier." She said.
     "How did you find the ring?" He asked, "Many have searched but have never found their prize."
     "I first saw it when I was a little girl. My mother wore it and when I noticed it on her finger she told me not to ask about it. I looked for it after her passing and soon gave up my search. Then one night an old man visited me in a clearing in the forest. He told me to search for the ring, but I didn't know where to look. I started to have strange dreams about this town and here we are. When I found the ring I put it on and these pictures started to appear in my head."
     "Yes, that was the ring showing you its power and transferring it into you. I have studied the ring and its history for some time now and can help you learn to understand and use the power so one day you can destroy The Wraith once and for all, but first you must know the world's history and how it fits before you learn how to use the ring.
     "Before the Wars of the World, the Old World was a beautiful, peaceful place. The government assigned 15 elves to uncover the magic of the world. They were called the Magic Seekers and the magic they were looking for was a natural magic that came from the earth that you could see or hold in your hand; only the elves knew it existed and only they could handle it. They could sense the magic when they got close to it. Today we call this the magic of old. When the Seekers finally found and gathered all the old magic, they had to figure out how to use it.
      "They created four different tests to see what this magic could do since they knew very little about this natural elven magic, but they did know that each substance of magic matched with one or more of the elements; earth, wind, fire, and water. The Seekers found hundreds of kinds of the magic and after they tested them all they decided to present their findings to the king.
     "The king was quite impressed but he wanted to keep the ancient magic a secret and he wanted the Seekers to continue their experiments. Most of the Magic Seekers agreed with the king, but one in particular Seeker disagreed with the king and refused to keep the magic hidden and to only test it, not use it. He thought that the magic needed to be used, not just tested and locked away. The Seeker was named Riddik.
     "Riddik snuck into the chamber where the magic was locked away and stole a handful or so of each kind. He used it quite often and after a time the magic started to affect his mental and physical form. He was soon transformed into a dark beast because of his greed for power, and because he used it so often it became dangerous, which no one knew until it had already happened. Riddik was barely human and he began to not need the magic to use its power, he was so overcome by it that it was now a part of him.
     "The king decided to gather the remaining Magic Seekers in hope that they would be able to use the magic against Riddik and destroy him before he became too strong. However, by using the magic for so long he became more superior to the original magic. He could also control and use it far better than the others since it had become part of him. He defeated the Seekers and headed for the kingdom, wanting to take over the kingdom and turn it toward darkness and magic. The Seekers regained their feet and warned the king. An army was prepared and they stood up to Riddik, but it wasn't strong enough and the Magic Seekers knew what they had to do. They gathered up all the magic and gave it to all the elves that were willing to fight. The humans had to do without since they couldn't use the magic at the time. Even with all the elves using the magic, it was barely strong enough to completely destroy Riddik, but at the time they didn't know that, and it was only temporary.
     "Many were killed in the battle against Riddik and a sparse few humans were left alive. The remaining Seekers collected what was left of the magic and all the books and charts on it and locked it away in separate chests forever, telling the elves that they were just imagining the magic because of their unimaginable victory. But some of the magic was kept alive, more simple and hand-made magic, that wasn't as dangerous. Many became magicians and sorcerers, finding the magic easy to work with and thinking it would be able to help the world as a whole. Even some men were able to use and take care of the magic and some were even honored to become Seekers. Sadly, after the war magic was viewed by many in fear and hate. Some towns hated the practice so much that if you were caught practicing it, you were killed.
     "To the dismay of the people, the young king was killed during this Great War and one of the Seekers stepped up and took his place at the throne. You probably know about him; Tyreen our 'Founding Father' so to speak.
     "He outlived all the other Seekers and became the last one of the original Seekers who knew where the magic was hidden. He also created an object that was so strong that it would destroy any evil, which is the ring. He knew The Wraith, what the elves began calling him, was still alive and he would return; and when he did he wanted the world to be prepared. He advised a small group of Seekers, men and elves, and through the generations the secrets of the old magic and the history of the ring have been passed down through them.
     "The Wraith has now returned to the land and has become King of Tyreenion, but he does not live in the city. He has messengers and advisors who live in the castle. About a day north of here there is an old tower that in the Old World was a magnificent sight and was used for a sentry post. Now, the tower is inhabited by The Wraith and his evil has turned the tower dark."
     There was a long moment of silence as Emerald and Xavier contemplated what they had been told. Xavier knew that Arigorn's story didn't match with how he learned it, but he understood why. No one in the entire kingdom, but a select few, even knew that magic existed, but ge thought it might have been for the best.
     "Are you one of the Seekers?" Emerald asked, piecing it all together.
     "Yes. I am the descendant of Bytharamue, one of the kings personal Seekers. The secrets have been passed down through his generation, but I am the first to become a Sorcerer. Most of my family did not want anything to do with magic, they kept the secrets alive but that is all they wanted to do. I on the other hand have been fascinated by it since I was a young boy." Arigorn replied, a slight smile crossed his lips as he thought back to his childhood, then it was replaced by a look of sadness, "But I have no sons nor daughters to pass the secrets to, so the knowledge that my generation had dies with me. Fortunately, there are more that have reproduced so the secrets will persist."
     "What has been done with these 'secrets'?" Xavier asked, a bit skeptically but also curious.
     "I can only tell you that each descendent has hidden the secrets in their own way; therefore, when the next generation receives the information, it is transferred to a new location and becomes harder to locate."
     Emerald nodded silently, not sure what else to say. The silence continued on for a few moments, then Emerald asked:
     "How are you going to teach me to use the ring?"
     "It is not something that can be easily described. Meet me in the chamber next to the royal garden at first light tomorrow. Then I will help you to begin to use the rings power. Now you must rest, you have had a long journey and tomorrow will be rough. Flynn, one of the Duke's servants will show you to your rooms." Arigorn waved toward the door and a skinny boy walked into the room.
      He looked no older than the two teens and he had on a light blue shirt over brown trousers. The clothes looked about two sizes too big for him. His face was small and triangular with a pointed chin. His eyes and hair were dark brown, but his eyes had a joyful spark in them.
     The boy bowed at Arigorn and smiled at the other two. He pointed an outstretched arm at the door and the two teens followed him out into the corridor. They descended down the winding stairs and across the giant throne room. On the other side of the hall there was a small wooden door under the landing to the second floor. It was dimly lit and as they entered the hall on the other side, it was not any better.
     The boy stopped about halfway down the hall and turned to the two guests.
     "My master believes you to be nothing more than servants, and for that I am sorry. He requests that you stay here in servant quarters and keep out of his way. This is your room ma'am." he said pointing to the door on the right side of the hallway. Then he pointed to the one on the left and said, "And this is yours sir."
     "Thank you." Emerald said, and she smiled at him.
     "There are fresh garments on the beds and water to bathe in. I will be back in the morning to help you find your whereabouts in the castle." Flynn bowed once more, turned, and walked back toward the door.
     Emerald looked at Xavier and shrugged, she wondered why the Duke of Elensdor didn't believe them to be any better than mere servants. They each turned and went into their rooms, although they were nothing special, they were better than nothing at all.
     Emerald went in and surveyed her surroundings. Like the hall outside, the room was dimly lit. There was a small bed against the far wall, a wardrobe in the right hand corner, a bath and a curtain in the left corner, and a table in the back close to the bed. It wasn't the best but it was better than the forest floor so she could learn to live with it.
     She took a quick bath to get the dirt from the road off of her skin, then she changed into the light-weight night dress that had been laid out for her and she slipped into the bed. She sighed, the mattress was much more comfortable than a bed of leaves on the forest floor back home. In moments, she was fast asleep.