The Forest Of Riodhir (BWWM)

Chapter 10: I Am Not A Good Person

Arya
Present Day

No words were passed between Cederic and I as we walked down the main gravel roads towards the large castle. The town was that of a labyrinth with roads intersecting and dividing in a complex web that lead to the center of the city. This was where the main castle stood. Cederic's pace quickened as we approached the steps leading into the castle walls.

"Head through this hallway and take a sharp right. That'll lead you to the artifact room. Gwen should join you moments later to walk you to your chambers. I have some business to attend to with Allister, I'll see you tomorrow morning." Cederic said quickly before disappearing through another dark hallway in the opposite direction. I clenched and relaxed my fingers, trying to rid myself from that feeling of disappointment.

I traveled down the scarcely lit corridor towards the doors, and did my best to make a mental map of the castle. The doors slowly opened before I was given the chance to knock, just like it had done earlier.

I would have to grow used to that.

The dark room stayed illuminated only by the rising of the moon as it began to take hold of the sky. The light illuminated the objects that lined the shelves on the walls. Most artifacts had thick layers of dust and web coating the exterior. None of the items looked like they'd been moved in years.

My hands graced the carvings from a clay vase that stood at the far end of the shelf. When I removed my fingers, a thick layer of dust had coated them.

The clay had begun to crack, creating a distortion of the images that looked to be carved in hundreds years ago. The figures were unrecognizably etched into the clay, yet the writing itself was quite visible. I had never seen writing like this before. My eyes drew from the letters to a small chest that was tucked behind the vase. My hands went to reach for it but the door hinges whined to life and Gweneth walked in. I quickly pulled away.

"Hello, my dear." Gweneth smiled, as she made her way towards me.

"Hello, Gweneth." I replied with a grin as I let her lead me to the chairs at the far end by the window. I had grown fond of Gweneth, she seemed to be the only one here that I never felt threatened around. Her eyes held so much sadness. I had this yearning to find out why.

"How was your day?" She asked, as we sat.

"Eventful." I smiled, recalling the events that had happened earlier. When I thought of Cederic, that smile faltered.

What had I done to him?

"There is so much history and work you must do before you begin to bend your Magik, but we're not sure how to go about it all," she explained, "most sorcerers learn about our history from a young age. You, my love, are truly impossible. You've lived 19 years under the Race of Men with no knowledge of our realms, yet you possess attributes we haven't seen in many, many years. It's clear that you are infact a sorcerer, but we are unsure as to the possibility of how. A Sorcerer cannot just awaken the powers, they must learn the art. This, as a result, has caused commotion within this realm and others."

"What do you mean?" I asked Gwen quietly.

"Much like the levels of intelligence in the race of Men, Sorcerers have a degree of Magik they can bend. This degree ranks the advanced Sorcerer from the beginners, but it takes years to learn how to convert and conjure more of your Magik energy.

"All Magik benders answer to the council, which is made up of the oldest Sorcerers in history. Because of their age, they possess the ability to utilize all their Magik flowing through them, making them the strongest and most feared Sorcerers within every realm. Every sorcerer that exists, lives in this forest between the realms, or at least that's what we believed until you appeared. There have been disputes within the councils of the other realms and this realm, arguing over your fate. You have proven to be the first problem that has been brought to the council in which they cannot solve, and by instinct, every race fears that of which they do not understand. You have taken the fundamentals of our history entirely, and burned them to ashes.