| The Fairies Forward Once, long ago, in a world much like our own, all lived in peace. Everything was a part of nature, and every creature accepted that, living happy, fulfilled lives. Until Vandermast came. Vandermast was an evil man. Abandoned as a child, he learned to ruthlessly fend for himself. Sick and half-starved, he depended on his natural magic for defense and to steal what he needed to survive. He survived his childhood and became a man with a strong will and even stronger magic. He used it to convince thousands of warriors and bandits to come together under his control. Those who served him served until they died. He held prisoners and tortured them in the most horrible ways. Some he killed, some he let go to spread the tales of his evil. People missing limbs, or organs. The lucky ones had deformed hands or feet, from having had each bone individually broken and fingernails pulled out. People to be pitied. Yet the wretches did their jobs, and did them well. And so Vandermast was known and he feared across the land. Maybe he wasn�t as great or as evil as people say, maybe he was. He certainly had the reputation for it. He was a powerful student of the Dark Arts, a wizard by class. But he was not worthy of that title. He was, as mentioned, honorless and evil. And he and his expanding empire were conquering the land of Laguinia. This land is one of magic, one of creatures beyond the imagination and beyond explanation. This is a tale of how one girl, with the help and guidance of the good and wise, grew up to rival Vandermast and stand up for the land, and the creatures, that she had grown to love. A story of a girl... Chapter I Once a woman and a man were to have a baby. They went to the oracle, Brisen, to see if she could see their child's future. A girl. She had said. A girl with overwhelming divine influence about her. The parents were told a day would come when they would have to give up their precious daughter, but to the good of the land. Soon after, a child was born, and named Astra after the stars that shown so brightly upon her birth. She had brown hair, rosy cheeks, and beautiful hazel eyes. Many years passed, and her parents got worried about the oracle's prophecy. They didn't want to give up the daughter which they loved so much. So they decided to move far from their village to the countryside, deep in the forest. She grew up there, and she would run through the woods and jump across the streams every day. She loved to be outdoors. So after awhile, the fairies got used to seeing her running around. They also knew, that the day would come that they would have to take her out of her home, out of the care of her parents, and begin to prepare the girl for the confrontation to come. One day, in the time in her life when she was a young woman, she was resting after a taking a swim in a nearby lake. While sitting back against a tree trunk, she saw a deer. She'd seen many since she'd lived in the woods, but her curious mind was fascinated anyhow. They always seemed to disappear right when she seemed to get close. She crept up behind a tree, and slowly walked towards the deer. "Come on," she said in a whisper, "I won't hurt you" The deer, which had been drinking from the stream, now turned around and eyed the girl. They both stood perfectly still in anticipation of the moment. Then the deer ran, and Astra after it. She chased it for what seemed like miles, and finally Astra gave up. She lay down on the leaves and grass in happy satisfaction. Soon, her exhaustion got to her, and she fell asleep. "Aaaaaaaaaaassssstttttrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaa......." It was a sound almost on the wind, but enough to wake her up. She sat up straight as a board in the pitch black darkness of the night. The forest was still. This heightened her fear further. No frogs croaking or owls hooting, just silence. " Aaaaaaaaaaassssstttttrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaa......." There it was again. Almost on the wind, but not. She started to feel an eerie sense that someone was watching her and the little hairs all over her body stood up. She dared not move. But then, she felt a warmth. Like a comfort, that she was safe, and that she had nothing to worry about. It came from inside her, and was so great that she smiled. In the distance she thought she saw lanterns moving through the trees, and assumed her parents were looking for her, but these could not be, because they were moving too wildly. Soon many of these started to appear. Little lights, like fireflies, but with visible human-like bodies. They moved toward her slowly, and she was filled with a sense of being among friends. A pleasure she had never really felt before. She noticed that one of the lights was much brighter than the rest and was moving much faster. Soon, she could see it had a human shape. What was it, she thought. But somehow she felt in her mind that it would all be explained, that she should not worry. The light came right up to her, but it was small. It was two feet from her nose, and she could see it clearly. It was a girl, but it was no ordinary girl. She had a glowing light around her, and a pale face, but with rosy red cheeks, like her own. The most beautiful part though, was her wings. They were big considering the size of her body. They were wonderful, gossamer. They glistened when they moved, and made the fairy seem like a goddess. It was a fairy, Astra knew this from descriptions in stories. And then it spoke. "My name is Nimue,� she said, and her voice was soft as silk. "I am queen of the fairies. Do not worry, we are friends," she said with a smile. But Astra could tell something was wrong. The gentle smile was hiding something. "We come to you as was prophesized before your birth. You are the chosen of the Gods. We look to you for help now, Astra, for we are all in grave danger." She waited for an answer, so Astra managed to squeak out through her astonishment, "I will do what I can Lady Fairy. What danger do you speak of?� The queen of the fairies looked up at the trees and the visible stars in between the tree canopy, and said, "Its Vandermast. I�m sure you�ve heard of him. We are receiving reports that he is getting closer to our forest each day. If he arrives, he will wipe out the trees and creatures, and leave only barren land. He will destroy or enslave us, and our home." As she looked at the fairy, Astra could see her glowing yellow eyes grow glazed with tears. This saddened her so, that she began to feel her own eyes grow misty. She had heard her father talk about this Vandermast. How his army was growing close. The local farmers and the villagers were going to form a militia, and try to stop him if he reached Magicka Forest, their home. "The gods have blessed you with a gift." Nimue stated. "A gift? What gift?" Astra asked. "You will be our light in a time of darkness, a savior and gentle soul among savages. Now is the time for a hero to be born." " A hero�" Astra asked with suspicion. " Yes. You, Astra, will be our hero." Chapter II �What? I�m sorry, I can�t be a hero. Listen, I�m just a girl, I would love to help you but I�m afraid the only �gift� that I have is to kick that Vandermast�s shins if he comes close enough!� �Astra, you�re our only hope! You do have a gift. You must find it inside you, please, just try.� By now, Astra was realizing that maybe the fairy lady was right. Inside of her, she had somehow known this would happen. She had always been different from all the other children that she had known back in the village. And on nights she would stay up and listen to her parents talking about a prophecy and about her going away. She was realizing what it meant, taking on this task, her single life could save thousands. She knew she had to agree, but at that moment the confrontation hadn�t left her much time to ponder the effects of that decision. Maybe that was part of that gift, perhaps it was a package that she would have to open with time, but if she had wondered what would happen if she agreed, like leaving her home and her parents, it was likely she would have declined. �Yes,� she said, torn. �I�ll help you. But I don�t know much. How can I do anything when I don�t know anything about war?� �That you must not worry about. You will learn everything there is to know, in time. There is a cottage not far from here. We will lead you and you can stay there for the night. Get a good night�s sleep, for tomorrow a long journey awaits you.� And so she hiked through the forest with a strange company. Her mind was swimming with thoughts of her parents and this situation, but it seemed to all be a dream, and with this conclusion she figured she would soon wake up at her house, so there was not a thing to worry about� she was so tired anyway. Soon enough they got to the homely cottage. She remembered seeing chimney-smoke through the trees, and then light through the windows. There was a lady� she looked nice enough� ah, a bed. The second her head hit the pillow she was asleep. * * * * * Her rest was rudely interrupted by a voice from above. She opened her eyes, and they focused on a wrinkled old face. Astra let out a horrified gasp as she sat up. �Oh dearie! I didn�t mean to scare you,� She said. �I made breakfast?� �Oh, wow. No, no I�m not supposed to be here,� Astra stammered. By now the memories of the night before were flooding back to her. She looked around to see she was laying on a soft bed within a small room. She could see through the single window that it was barely light out. �I thought you agreed to help us!� �Yeah, well�� She mumbled. Her parents were probably dying of worry. She had to get home, but� she had to stay. All that thinking was giving her a headache. She clasped her forehead with her hands and shook her head. �I don�t know. I did make a promise� What about my parents?� �I believe they have been notified about what we�re up to. I understand it must be very hard for you, but it�s a great and noble thing yer doin� Astra. The name�s Rose by the way� �I see you know who I am, so� nice to meet you.� �The pleasure�s all mine. Come and eat somethin� dearie. You have a long day ahead of ya. Balen�s already getting� the horse ready.� Their conversation continued as Astra got out of bed and walked through the hall into the kitchen. �Where am I going, do you know?� She asked. �I think South? Maybe? I�m really not sure, I know wherever it is, is where you�ll begin getting your training.� Astra sat down at the table in Rose�s homely kitchen and was presented with a plate full of bacon and eggs. �Oh yeah?� she said with a mouthful of food, �what exactly will I be learning?� |