To Keep Us Safe
Well, Laurie was writing, so I thought I would post a little bit of creative writing that I did for a new character I made on Sinari.
To Keep Us Safe
“When you’re home again, Rahdrey, we can take long walks with the baby and show her everything we both enjoy so much. The river is high this year, and the water is almost touching our picnic knoll. Eldris loves sitting in the grass and watching the squirrels gather nuts.”
“Sir, people live in those houses.” Homes built of wood and stone, designed to withstand the constant cold winds coming off the Niveus Sea. The roofs were made of wooden shingles, cheap to manufacture and easy to replace when faulty.
“The enemy lives in those houses. This is war, Corporal.” The captain was leaning over the rail of the airship, clawed hands gripping the wood and watching the action below while calculating targets. “This is an order, Olson. Attack! They’re waiting on us. Now!”
Rahdrey swallowed a lump in his throat and began chanting. The spell words were quiet in the beginning, spoken as little more than a whisper, but as the strength of the magic began to build within him the words became more powerful. The staff he gripped tightly began to smolder, fire growing upon the end of it, bound to the gem anchored at the head. It roiled to be free, fighting against the confinement as a living creature might, but Rahdrey continued to feed into it. He tried not to think about what he was doing, only that he must.
“I worry for you everyday, but I know you’re fighting to keep us safe and make our life better. Word comes in weekly of the preparations, soldiers being sent all along the borders and while I know not where you are, the liaison assures me that my letters are getting to you. He says that secrecy is important to keep you all safer, and while I wish I could at least know where you’re going I understand why they will not tell us.”
Regular fire might not have burned so hotly or spread so quickly, but magical fire is far more determined and needs no fuel to cause destruction. The fireball blasted into the large house, masonry and glass exploding into the street from the impact. The flames grasped onto anything flammable and devoured the timber with a ravenous appetite. The winds off the salty waters fanned the flames, carrying them to neighboring buildings and spreading the bane. Ama’til was caught completely unaware just an hour earlier when the assault began, and as more mages added their fire it seemed the entire city was burning.
After the third ball of fire slammed into a target, Rahdrey had stopped thinking about the morality of the attack and concentrated entirely on the task before him. There were ten targets and he had to pace himself, but also keep each strike as powerful as he could manage. The more the sorcerers could accomplish from the air, the less the ground soldiers would face when they broke through the wall.
“I miss you more than words can say, my love. The leaves are all turning such brilliant colors here at the house. Orange and red, like fire, a deep brown like your daughter’s eyes. She has your eyes, I’m sure of it, and such a sweet smile that will melt your heart when you see it.”
The flames stretched, as if reaching for the airships flying overhead. They sent black clouds swirling up to the grey haze of the morning. It filled the sky with pillars of smoke to mark the battle taking place, beacons visible for miles in every direction. Rahdrey was a specialist in fire magic. He had been so proud of his abilities, thinking that it was something he could tell stories about to his daughter when she grew bigger.
“It’s very quiet with all the men gone. It’s strange to see the bars so empty at night.”
Rahdrey still wasn’t certain how the entire attack was planned or put into motion, a great orchestration that he only began to realize earlier in the morning. Two days ago he was training in Kel’leer. His sergeant instructed him to join up with an airship crew that had arrived in the city several hours earlier in the day. He was briefed that night on what was expected, fireballs aimed at specific targets from the air. The next day they were traveling south to Ama’til and now it seemed that every mage that was able to summon a fireball was in the air and bombing the city.
“ Please write to me Rahdrey. I haven’t heard anything in months and I used to get your letters every week. I need to know that you’re safe, that our daughter has a father still. I’m trying not to worry but I fear you’ve gone on some dangerous mission and I may never hear from you again.”
To Keep Us Safe
“When you’re home again, Rahdrey, we can take long walks with the baby and show her everything we both enjoy so much. The river is high this year, and the water is almost touching our picnic knoll. Eldris loves sitting in the grass and watching the squirrels gather nuts.”
“Sir, people live in those houses.” Homes built of wood and stone, designed to withstand the constant cold winds coming off the Niveus Sea. The roofs were made of wooden shingles, cheap to manufacture and easy to replace when faulty.
“The enemy lives in those houses. This is war, Corporal.” The captain was leaning over the rail of the airship, clawed hands gripping the wood and watching the action below while calculating targets. “This is an order, Olson. Attack! They’re waiting on us. Now!”
Rahdrey swallowed a lump in his throat and began chanting. The spell words were quiet in the beginning, spoken as little more than a whisper, but as the strength of the magic began to build within him the words became more powerful. The staff he gripped tightly began to smolder, fire growing upon the end of it, bound to the gem anchored at the head. It roiled to be free, fighting against the confinement as a living creature might, but Rahdrey continued to feed into it. He tried not to think about what he was doing, only that he must.
“I worry for you everyday, but I know you’re fighting to keep us safe and make our life better. Word comes in weekly of the preparations, soldiers being sent all along the borders and while I know not where you are, the liaison assures me that my letters are getting to you. He says that secrecy is important to keep you all safer, and while I wish I could at least know where you’re going I understand why they will not tell us.”
Regular fire might not have burned so hotly or spread so quickly, but magical fire is far more determined and needs no fuel to cause destruction. The fireball blasted into the large house, masonry and glass exploding into the street from the impact. The flames grasped onto anything flammable and devoured the timber with a ravenous appetite. The winds off the salty waters fanned the flames, carrying them to neighboring buildings and spreading the bane. Ama’til was caught completely unaware just an hour earlier when the assault began, and as more mages added their fire it seemed the entire city was burning.
After the third ball of fire slammed into a target, Rahdrey had stopped thinking about the morality of the attack and concentrated entirely on the task before him. There were ten targets and he had to pace himself, but also keep each strike as powerful as he could manage. The more the sorcerers could accomplish from the air, the less the ground soldiers would face when they broke through the wall.
“I miss you more than words can say, my love. The leaves are all turning such brilliant colors here at the house. Orange and red, like fire, a deep brown like your daughter’s eyes. She has your eyes, I’m sure of it, and such a sweet smile that will melt your heart when you see it.”
The flames stretched, as if reaching for the airships flying overhead. They sent black clouds swirling up to the grey haze of the morning. It filled the sky with pillars of smoke to mark the battle taking place, beacons visible for miles in every direction. Rahdrey was a specialist in fire magic. He had been so proud of his abilities, thinking that it was something he could tell stories about to his daughter when she grew bigger.
“It’s very quiet with all the men gone. It’s strange to see the bars so empty at night.”
Rahdrey still wasn’t certain how the entire attack was planned or put into motion, a great orchestration that he only began to realize earlier in the morning. Two days ago he was training in Kel’leer. His sergeant instructed him to join up with an airship crew that had arrived in the city several hours earlier in the day. He was briefed that night on what was expected, fireballs aimed at specific targets from the air. The next day they were traveling south to Ama’til and now it seemed that every mage that was able to summon a fireball was in the air and bombing the city.
“ Please write to me Rahdrey. I haven’t heard anything in months and I used to get your letters every week. I need to know that you’re safe, that our daughter has a father still. I’m trying not to worry but I fear you’ve gone on some dangerous mission and I may never hear from you again.”