Blood Ties

Chapter 4: Slippery Slopes & Secret Passages

The cobweb-ridden passage dampened with the smell of mildew. More than that the passage reeked of blood. There were no stairs to speak of as the passage wound downward in a sloping fashion. The group kept moving deeper and deeper into the subterranean levels of the castle. Walking in utter silence, following the glow of Ivan's wand, only their footsteps could be heard scuffing against the slippery stone.

Eventually after what seemed like an endless walk, they came out into a cavernous space. In its center was an oval table with seven chairs for seven kingdoms. Plastered on the walls were mosaics of each kingdom. Tacked against some were old battle formations from the age old war. Trisa recognized them from school. Battle history was somewhat of an important topic for future officials to know. It sickened her to know that it was taught with the expectation they'd one day have to use such knowledge. Trisa guessed that day had come.

She couldn't dwell on the nauseous feeling in her stomach because something else piqued her interest; another map plastered to the wall, it showed a land mass across the Augean Ocean. No doubt the land of the Barbarians. It wasn't something they taught common people of the Seven Kingdoms. Very few officials actually saw the map, this was from the school of thought that if you couldn't see it, then it didn't concern you. The idea was to prevent people from venturing towards an unknown territory. For those unfortunate people who wanted to leave the kingdoms to venture to a new land taking their magic with them, it'd be near impossible not knowing which side of the sea it laid. 
Of course, there were the soldiers of the kingdoms guard, but they were put under forgetfulness spells, memory draughts, and for those with violent tempers amnesia curses. Trisa shivered at the thought of being put under a curse. They were the worst kind of magic saved for criminals and national security. She had to wonder why was it so important to hide the map? What did the kingdoms have to fear? Their subjects hated the Barbarians since the Old Ages prejudice against them was insurmountable. Barbaric sympathizers had long since died out. It would mean war if sympathizers still existed. War that was the reason wasn't it? If subjects of the kingdoms didn't know the people of the Barbarian genre, they couldn't very well sympathize with them, could they? No magic, no war, and more importantly no synthetics. 
If the Barbarians were evil and crude as the kingdoms said then what should be the problem?

Trisa couldn't think of an answer before Ivan called her back to the table. In its center was an ornate golden goblet. Etched into the sides of the goblet were the insignias of the Seven Kingdoms. The sun for the People of Light, and a rounded potions bottle for Eden. A fish's tale for the Merfolk, then two wands forming an X for the Wizards, a man with a beast's face for Druids, and two intertwined bodies one in shadow as a representation of the Soul Shifters. Finally, an upward palm with magical energy radiating off in smoke like form for Magi.

Ivan tapped his wand on the rim of the goblet as if he were playing a percussion instrument. Trisa saw a green flash out of the goblet, and it held steady as translucent images began to form. Things that Trisa never saw flashed before her eyes. It was the other side!
Gritty men were laboring on something Trisa couldn't quite conceive, like an idea she'd never been exposed to fully. It looked to be an object of some kind cast in what she thought must have been some kind of metal. "What you see before you is the Barbarian craft of synthetics. Somehow they have started again; it was thought that knowledge of all synthetic crafts had been destroyed in the Old Ages. The Barbarians have somehow managed to rekindle this awful practice." Ivan narrated to the destruction in the magic images. Balls of fire shot out of the strange weapon; the Barbarians had made, killing numerous men of the Guard.

"Hadn't patrols been monitoring all barbaric activity? How had it gotten past the kingdoms that this hazardous creation existed? Hadn't someone been paying attention?" Trisa realized she was posing these questions aloud, through gritted teeth, her anger seething. Those guard members had been killed in the line of honorable duty. "Monstrous." Her eyes began to sting as she saw Magi of the seventh bodies engulfed in flames. They rolled on the ground writhing in agony.