The Mage Wars

The Great Kingdom of Vanora

28 Lepus of the year 13004

Ahead of us, a few miles away, is the gate to Olacaryn, the capital city of Vanora. From here, the details of the gate are stunning. Each brick appears as pristine as it was hewn from the earth ten thousand years ago.

The sigil of Vanora is carved into the keystone. It's said that the first King of Vanora carved the sigil into the stone himself. King Vesryn was said to have been a talented male. When he took up the mantle of King, it was said he spent hours creating a new sigil for Vanora. It's been used for six generations and likely more to come.

I urge Hunter into a gallop. My companions gallop after us. The ground we travel upon dries faster as we progress toward the city's outer wall. We slow to a trot, to gape at the marvellous stone gate. Intricate details were engraved in the stone. Many resemble metal plating or vines crawling upwards toward the keystone.

Vanoraian architecture is grand and intricate. It's not hard to imagine why Vanora's capital city was the Spirit King Olacaryn's favourite summerhouse. Hence, the city was named Olacaryn after the male became the spirit king.

My group would have made it to the castle before Kaelen's if not for my body deciding to overload with magic. I passed out the second Hunter stepped onto Vanora's soil. Thankfully, Galen was there to catch me before I fell to the ground.

Damned Lei Lines.

We weave through the lower town, heading for the upper town. Upon first look, all the houses look the same, as if the masons and builders built one home and used magic to create the rest out of that one originally built.

Slate stones line the walls and reach midway up the second floor. From there, lighter stone works its way up to the roof. The second floor is defined by the jutting out second, not but a foot or two. It's a similar design to the houses in the lower town of Caelora, Vespera.

The houses stand close together. This design would cause the streets to heat in the summer. But it would provide respite from the harsh wind in winter. Or, if one is not careful, a wind tunnel could form.

As we move through the lower town, the houses start to separate. They become squat. More refined work shows. Personal engravings in the stone appear on cornerstones. The differences between the lower and middle towns are not staggering. But they are apparent as you travel. The differences between the middle and upper towns are jarring.

The simple houses spread out and make way for taller houses with space enough to travel four abreast on horseback. It's nearly unbelievable that this much room exists between houses in the upper town and not the lower towns. A flaw that should be fixed.

A constant is the moss that has started to grow in the grout but not in excess. I'd have thought there would be barnacles and seaweed stuck to the buildings, not to mention the smell. The port in Caelora sometimes has a gust of wind that blows the smells of the day up the coast. It's known that seaweed doesn't keep in the heat, and with summer days away, Vanora should smell.

Yet it doesn't. Not like it should. It's more musty than anything, which is odd.

The buildings have little to no wear or tear. The water must not have had an impact on the buildings. They're not even wet... Elysia protected them. How many spells did she have time to weave before she died?

Father never mentioned she was such an accomplished mage. Yes, she was a spirit mage, but the spirits chose who amung us is worthy, not by the amount of power we wield.

The sweet smell of burning wood fills my nose before I see it rise above the rooftops. That must be them. Who else would be in Olacaryn, Vanora? No one.

Hunter and I trot through the town until I catch a whiff of his scent. Then Hunter breaks into a gallop. The closer we get, the thicker Kaelen's scent gets. We race down a main road, through a square and toward the castle.

Kaelen yells my name when he sees me. He and his company have set up several feet from a lone standing arch in front of the castle gate.

I reach the group and dismount. Kaelen squeezes me in a hug. This is exhilarating. Even more than when I became Father's heir.

My company enters the gap between the castle and the upper town moments later. We greet our friends and take a few minutes to catch up. Kaelen and Sir Haedyn made stew. I hope it's as good as Galen's. Otherwise, Galen will want to cook the rest of the time we're here.

We dig in, and then Galen asks about the castle.

"We decided we'd wait for your group," Kaelen says, taking Altair's empty bowl. My brother decided he would wash the dishes with his magic. Make our lives easier, allowing our groups to get reacquainted.

"Tomorrow, we need to be on high alert. More spells could be threaded into the heart of Vanora's Castle." Sir Haedyn says, swallowing a mouth full of stew. He reaches for the pot and plops it in his lap. He looks around and begins eating right from the pot. A drop of stew slides down his chin.

"We don't know what other spells Elysia threw up as she battled Korbin," I mutter.

"Precisely." The knight points at me with his wooden spoon. He plops the spoon into his mouth and grins.

Sir Haedyn finishes off the stew. Or rather, tries to. He eats until he's content. He stares widely at the pot before belching into his elbow as if that gesture will make it more polite. At least he's trying.

Sir Haedyn looks at my cousin. He nods and gestures to the pot in his lap. Neirin nods enthusiastically. The knight leans forward and passes the pot of stew to Neirin. My cousin immediately digs in.

Neirin gets his love of food and his near-endless appetite from Uncle Carys. Father mentioned that Uncle Carys loved to snack when he and his siblings were young, All the time. It was rare to see the young fae without food of some type in hand.

It's a miracle neither the knight, my cousin, nor my uncle are fat. Or at least chubby with how much food they inhale. All well, that would have been a sight to see. They would have been adorable, chubby. Like a baby but fully grown.

It's said that on the human continent, the kings there grow fat from lack of exercise and an excess of indulgence. But that could be a rumour started to make the humans look weak.