The Fall of Eden

Chapter 1

Chapter I

A near century after The Blessing.

The warm summer breeze kissed Femi's cheeks as she sat on the first row of a small and empty amphitheater. Her curious brown eyes were glued to a spell book while her long chocolate brown hair danced in the wind. Her class trials on protection spells were tomorrow morning, so she had hoped to avoid any distractions. Unfortunately, Aiden and Damien saw this as an excellent opportunity to take center stage and show off their sparring.

Damien swung his broad sword towards Aiden's left shoulder. Aiden quickly raised one of his glimmering blades to block the attack. 

            "Is that really all you've got?" Aiden snickered.

Damien then spun his body while turning the hilt of his sword up, so not to kill Aiden, and slammed it into Aiden's rib cage.

            "Hardly." Damien replied.

The two carried on with their childish quarrel while Femi tried to keep to her studies. Only glancing up for brief moments to watch Aiden's movements. She couldn't deny it. She fancied him, but refused to show it.

Normally, the amphitheater was the best place she could go and study. It was just outside the castle gate. Greenery and red flowers grew between the grey stones of the theater and vines wrapped around the columns on the stage. It was as if nature had taken hold of the amphitheater to perform its own act. The columns held up large colorful banners, announcing the upcoming play which none of the three took any part in.

The three lived in the Kingdom of Eden. Eden rested in the northeastern corner of Transcend. It was a beautiful sanctuary of joy and tranquility, adorned with the many colors of nature. It was a fairly wealthy place that prided itself of educating and protecting its people. Many had traveled from distant lands to live behind its great walls. Eden was protected by mountains that wrapped around the eastern and southern border, while an impressive wall stretched across the western and northern edge. Enemies had yet to breach its defenses, and its residents within never sought to leave its protection. The kingdom remained the only land untouched by battle from the Fall of Peace, when the Northern and Southern Colonies of Transcend declared war on each other. That war had recently come to an end.

Eden's grassy and forested land was full of beautiful homes, waterfalls and rolling hills. Femi and her two friends lived in one of the small farm towns only a short walk from the castle. Outside of the castle, or Outer-Eden, was populated by farmland and civilian homes. However none of the homes betrayed the beautiful nature that hosted them. The nature that Eden resided in acted as a canvas while endless color sprouted within it. The trees painted a bright green; the flowers, a luscious red, raging blue, and superb purple; the sky set loose the bright embers of the sun. Yet, a cool breeze gently touched the skin, and calmed the heart. The homes fit nicely into the painting, creating a picture that only dreams can dream.

The castle sat tall and glorious at the northern most tip of Eden, along the wall. Behind the castle gates rested a great beauty. Towering structures reflected an autumn color. It was a place of riches, where lords and ladies went to fill their cup. Yet also a place where children in rags could be treated as equals. The capitol sat in the rear center of the castle walls in a brilliant keep. The school could also steal ones attention as it was tall and pointed. It aimed for the sky, as its teachers expected from their students. They taught students how to use their powers, and did well at it. Femi possessed great healing powers that were passed down from her mother, though her father was a Kinos fire warrior. Kinos blood was normally the more dominant gene so some of her class mates believed her mother was unfaithful.

            They teased her but it hardly bothered her. Especially since the teasing had stopped after her father's death. Aiden and Damien were her only loyal friends. Both were Kinoses, still young and ambitious. The two were foolish at times, but they would never betray her.