Chapter 1 of THE SEARCH
Booted feet paced heavily. The captain of the king’s royal army muttered profanities under her breath then addressed the three teens in front of her.
“His Highness, because he never married, has set a rather strange task upon you three. Good King Danté wishes for you to travel the land of Ishka in search of a worthy heir, following the ancient traditions.
“His Highness has come up with three tasks for you to give possible candidates. If they can pass the first two, bring them here with you when you return.” The youngest of the three, Lani, looked confused.
“What if they fail a task?” she voiced, fidgeting. The captain leveled her gaze at the young Mage.
“Strand them where they are.” The captain’s voice was cold. Lani gasped.
"But sir! That's cruel, even for His Highness!" Captain Gwendolyn's eyes narrowed, but that didn't deter Lani from continuing. "If it were up to me, I'd escort them back to their hometown! They could possibly die if they get left out in the wild like that! Then who's fault would it be? Mine! I'm not going to--" The teenager next to Lani elbowed her sharply in the ribs.
"Shut up. Kindness will get you nowhere." Lani's best friend, Adare the Warrior, silenced the Mage. "At least not here." She added under her breath, adjusting her eye patch. Lani pouted, but fell silent.
"Especially be on the look out for the gray eyes of the Wind People. There have been rumors that those that went into hiding years ago are resurfacing. Dismissed." Captain Gwendolyn folded her arms behind her back and stomped out of the conference room. Florimel the Empath burst out laughing.
"This is gonna be so much fun! I've been waiting for an excuse to get out of this disease riddled capital!" The three stood, and without hesitation, Lani spoke up again.
"How can you say that about Bangkjal*? It isn't disease ridden, it's perfectly fine!" Florimel frowned exaggeratedly.
"How can you say it isn't disease ridden, you haven't lived here your whole life, nor have you lost your mother to one of the many diseases you can get here!" Lani turned her back on Florimel, both cloak and hair swishing violently.
"I've lived here for eleven years without seeing either of my parents, so that must count for something, and I never lost my mother to anything because my mother wasn't a street corner mistress." the Mage snapped. Florimel shrieked and launched herself at Lani, but was caught by Adare.
"HOW DARE YOU! MY MOTHER WASN'T A STREET MISTRESS! TAKE IT BACK!" She howled, struggling against Adare's Warrior-strength hold. Lani hauled most of her thick hair over her shoulder and ran her fingers through it.
"No." Lani turned back to the other two. "Let's find a healer before we leave." She addressed Adare. The Warrior glared at her two friends.
"First you have to come here." Adare restrained the still-seething Florimel with one hand on her tunic. Lani took a hesitant step towards the Warrior. Adare used her free hand to whack Lani upside the head. "What in Hades are you thinking?! Getting upset because you can't take people home if they fail and then turning around and attacking Florimel? Get your head on straight, then we'll find a healer!"
*Bangkjal is pronounced Bank-zhal
“His Highness, because he never married, has set a rather strange task upon you three. Good King Danté wishes for you to travel the land of Ishka in search of a worthy heir, following the ancient traditions.
“His Highness has come up with three tasks for you to give possible candidates. If they can pass the first two, bring them here with you when you return.” The youngest of the three, Lani, looked confused.
“What if they fail a task?” she voiced, fidgeting. The captain leveled her gaze at the young Mage.
“Strand them where they are.” The captain’s voice was cold. Lani gasped.
"But sir! That's cruel, even for His Highness!" Captain Gwendolyn's eyes narrowed, but that didn't deter Lani from continuing. "If it were up to me, I'd escort them back to their hometown! They could possibly die if they get left out in the wild like that! Then who's fault would it be? Mine! I'm not going to--" The teenager next to Lani elbowed her sharply in the ribs.
"Shut up. Kindness will get you nowhere." Lani's best friend, Adare the Warrior, silenced the Mage. "At least not here." She added under her breath, adjusting her eye patch. Lani pouted, but fell silent.
"Especially be on the look out for the gray eyes of the Wind People. There have been rumors that those that went into hiding years ago are resurfacing. Dismissed." Captain Gwendolyn folded her arms behind her back and stomped out of the conference room. Florimel the Empath burst out laughing.
"This is gonna be so much fun! I've been waiting for an excuse to get out of this disease riddled capital!" The three stood, and without hesitation, Lani spoke up again.
"How can you say that about Bangkjal*? It isn't disease ridden, it's perfectly fine!" Florimel frowned exaggeratedly.
"How can you say it isn't disease ridden, you haven't lived here your whole life, nor have you lost your mother to one of the many diseases you can get here!" Lani turned her back on Florimel, both cloak and hair swishing violently.
"I've lived here for eleven years without seeing either of my parents, so that must count for something, and I never lost my mother to anything because my mother wasn't a street corner mistress." the Mage snapped. Florimel shrieked and launched herself at Lani, but was caught by Adare.
"HOW DARE YOU! MY MOTHER WASN'T A STREET MISTRESS! TAKE IT BACK!" She howled, struggling against Adare's Warrior-strength hold. Lani hauled most of her thick hair over her shoulder and ran her fingers through it.
"No." Lani turned back to the other two. "Let's find a healer before we leave." She addressed Adare. The Warrior glared at her two friends.
"First you have to come here." Adare restrained the still-seething Florimel with one hand on her tunic. Lani took a hesitant step towards the Warrior. Adare used her free hand to whack Lani upside the head. "What in Hades are you thinking?! Getting upset because you can't take people home if they fail and then turning around and attacking Florimel? Get your head on straight, then we'll find a healer!"
*Bangkjal is pronounced Bank-zhal