Enchanters: The Rising of Alympia

1 (The Dead Village)

Chapter 1

The last thing I expected was to find a village with a dead lord. I had heard lords were dying all around because some men were trying to restart the monarchy system but I hadn't actually been to a village with a dead lord. I suppose I should've been shocked, but I kind of just shrugged it off and went to find the plaza.

I know it seems rude to call the village dead but that's what it was. With no lord and news of people trying to restart the monarchy, no one was going to volunteer to be the new lord so this village was dead. Disappointing really.

"Okay, it's not disappointing," I muttered as I stood at the entrance of the village. An hour had passed since I'd arrived and I had yet to find the plaza. The village was small and it had no plaza. What kind of shit is this? Why would you kill the lord of a village that doesn't have a plaza? Seemed like a waste to me.

The sun was saying goodbye by the time I had made up my mind that this village was a waste of time. Groaning, I started looking around for an inn before remembering that there wasn't. Wow, a village with no plaza or inn. What a useless village.

I was making my way out of the village when a man with silver hair and a sword stopped me. His sword wasn't out, rather in its sheath but I still put my hand behind my back and prepared an energy ball.

"Yes?" I asked the man.

"Sorry," he said, "you looked like someone."

"Oh," I dispelled the energy ball, "that's it?"

"Yes, I apologize for the inconvenience," he bowed from his waist and turned to leave.

This is my chance! "Excuse me," I said.

He turned around, "Yes?"

"Are you a resident here?" I asked.

"Yes. In fact, I am the head guard," he explained.

"Oh, I see. I was wondering if you had a place where I could stay overnight."

He sighed, "Sadly, we do not have an inn in this village. The late Lord Sorono had many great plans for our future but," he cleared his throat, "there is a house atop that hill. I could go there with you."

"Um, yes, thank you." Anything to not waste my magic.

"Of course," he gave a small nod.

We started making our way through the small village. There was a silence between us. It wasn't awkward. Actually, it felt quite natural. I was hoping it would stay but he decided to break the peace by asking a question.

"Are you a mage?"

"Yes, I am. Why do you ask? Are you one yourself?" I inquired.

"No. The person who you looked like was a mage," he revealed.

"Who is this person?" I asked.

"No one important," he said quickly.

She's important if you keep bringing her up, I wanted to say but managed to keep my mouth shut.

Walking up the hill was a tedious job. If I planned on staying here, I would definitely need to add stairs in. They would be a lot easier to climb than a muddy hill. Much cleaner, too.

Standing on top of the hill, I could see the whole village. It was much larger than seemed but still small for a village. It had a nice farm area with three houses for farmers in the west and a small guard station in the east. If there were to be a plaza added it would be in the southeast. A dock in the southwest along with an inn and this village would be able to sustain itself.

"It's rather dark up here," I said. "Tenebri could spawn."

"My apologies but no man lives here so we do not have it lit," he explained.

"No worries," I said. "Let me show you my magic."

I put my hand in front of me and the feeling which I hold dearly came flowing through my body. It landed in my hand and a small ball of light and dark was created. It left my palm and flew to many places on the hill and fell into the mud. From them, sprouted many glowing rectangular prisms.

"Mages are allowed in this village, yes?" I asked after my little light show was done. I glanced at him to make sure he hadn't drawn his weapon.

"Yes, of course, and even if they weren't, I doubt we would be able to win a fight against you," he said calmly.

"Have confidence," I said.

"What kind of magic do you use?" he asked.

"Chaos magic," I answered.

"Cha...os magic?" he repeated, but slowly. "What kind of magic is that?"

I hummed but gave no official response or answer. He looked like he wanted to ask another question but I faked a yawn and that made him bid me a good night. As he walked down the hill, the ground underneath his feet started changing and rearranging. Soon, he was walking down stairs made of stone.

He stopped and looked back at me but I ignored him and went into the house. It was dark inside but there were torches. Instead of lighting them, I turned them into the same starstone as the ones that dotted the hill.

The first floor had a kitchen and a dining room, along with a bathroom. I was making my way up to the second when someone knocked on the door exactly five times. Ah, the head guard.

I put my right hand behind my back again and prepared an energy ball before opening the door. Opening the door with my left hand, I was fully prepared for an ambush but it was just the head guard. With no one. He was panting hard. A strand of his sliver-looking hair was covering one of his eyes. He looked like a mess.

"I hope," he said through shallow breaths, "that you choose to stay in the village."

His words caught me completely off guard. The energy ball faded and my hand landed on my side. No one had ever asked me, a mage, to stay in their village. I mean, they'd never told me to get out either but still.

I know mages are more accepted nowadays but with all the people cursing out magic users and witches, his words truly held meaning in my heart.

"I'll consider it," I said softly.

He smiled, "thank you."

The conversation was over so I closed the door and made my way upstairs. There were two rooms upstairs; I went to the one on the right. It was rather plain looking with a simple queen-sized bed, a nightstand and, you guessed it, torches.

I honestly couldn't believe places were still using torches when moonstones and starstones existed. You could literally mine them.

Does this village even have a miner? I shook my head and pushed away the thought. I needed some sleep.

But before I went to bed, I checked the two doors in the room. One led to a small walk-in closet and the other to a bathroom with a toilet, sink, and a stone bathtub. Using my magic, I filled the bathtub with water. I think I was going to take a bath before going to sleep. 

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Okay so this chapter was written in 2019 and obviously my writing style has changed since then so yeah.