Fantasy: Prologue

Fantasy

Chapter 1

         The morning was early, and the sun remained asleep waiting to rise. As far as he was concerned, Dan was the only person walking on the dirt road leading to Fez. He looked towards both sides of the road. Both were filled with homes, and they appeared clustered due to how close they were to one another. The sloppy, square structures were also considerably close to the road. Upon walking out of the front door, the owner would find himself one step away from standing on the road. Luckily, it was thick enough so getting by was not impossible, although traveling during the day was still painful because people filled the roads in attempt to complete their daily labor, whether it be traveling farmers, wandering merchants, or lumberjacks carrying obnoxiously sized carriages through the middle of the road. This is why Dan decided to wake up unusually early and travel to Fez. In fact, he did not even sleep.

         Cider was the name of the city he traveled through, and it was also where he lived as a child. Most civilians in the nation of Heartland lived in Cider. It was for those who were not branched with the Omniscient Union, a force who studied in university to guarantee the safety of the nation and eventually colonize a new nation. Dan was heading towards Fez, the home of the Omniscient Union, to finally be placed into a group of like-minded colonists.

         Dan graduated from the university several months ago, but he lacked the mastery of magic. Magic was one of the most important elements taught in university, and though able to cast a few basic spells, Dan lacked the ability to use any particular form of it. A successful student would be adept at using something such as Manipulation, Psionic, Transportation, and Energy types. No student could usually do more than one of those types, and most only had the capacity to do a few spells within the classification; however, Dan could not perform any form of special magic. Outside of forming flames, manipulating some nearby water, and kicking dirt, he was incapable of using magic. This would have put him in the position of a flunking student if it were not for his mastery of using practical weapons.

         Though important, magic was not the only aspect that counted towards passing. The ability to use weapons such as blades, axes, bows, and crossbows were an option for those who struggled with magic, and Dan mastered the ability to use any physical weapon. It was a skill he eagerly invested in during his childhood, but his lack in the use of magic did set him back. The University declared his failure to harness a specific brand of magic ultimately made him a weak link for the Omniscient Union, and he would only be applicable when a member of an existing colonist group had become deceased and required a replacement.

         Magic was so vastly stressed upon because it is what Heartland considered to be the next step into immortality. It is what crowned humanity as the god of the world. Struggling to properly use magic could make humanity's eternal force weaker, and the nation of Heartland was particular about only accepting individuals who possessed a mighty force. Dan barely proved his force by substituting what he lacked in magic with what he mastered in physical combat, but the University still rendered him has being a replacement.

         This did not bother him though. Dan spent the past several months with his family and friends. He studied in Fez for two years, and neither his family nor friends had time to visit him. Having time to spend with everyone he loved was a golden opportunity for him; however, he was indefinitely excited about joining a colonist group and claiming new land for the people of Heartland.

         Fez and Cider were the only cities within Heartland, and they were surrounded by walls coated with a magical barrier to keep the plague out. The plague nearly wiped humanity out three centuries ago. It was a result of a magic type known as necromancy. Decades after humanity discovered magic, a dedicated mage experimented with it until he learned an ability allowing him to reanimate the corpse of a horse. At first, the horse only lived for seconds, but the eager mage experimented and practiced until he could present an undead horse that could live for a week. Awed by this discovery, others came to study this new breed of magic. Eventually, necromancy was practiced on human corpses. Man claimed it would be humanity's final step into immortality, but the revival of the corpses resulted in a plague that nearly destroyed the entire species.  Heartland was, perhaps, the only remaining nation. Several mages managed to utilize a unistone that covered the walls of Heartland with a force field, keeping the plague from breaking through. Centuries later, Heartland is substantially increasing in population, and the desire to colonize new land is growing.

         The objective of discovering and building upon new land excited Dan, but he was aware of the results his career had. It was certain he would witness death, and he would probably see many friends die. He also accepted the high possibility of his own death. The plague was no simple matter to be trifled with. The reliance on a magical barrier was more than enough evidence to support that. He could die within his first day of traveling into the wilderness, but he was more concerned about the fate of the people he would fight with. Witnessing others pass away was a battle of its own, and he wanted to protect his comrades. They would become his new family in the darkness.

         The sun finally began to rise, altering the tint of the sky. He had been walking for a few hours, and his exit from Cider was near. He planned to take a carriage, right outside of Cider's walls, and travel through a few plains that reserved places for farmers and lumberjacks before reaching the walls of Fez. He was relieved to have a home in Fez, for its environment was superior to Cider. Despite the houses still being clustered, there were not as many people clumped together on the roads. Crime was also almost non-existent in Fez because everyone living there learned respect for one another. Not only would they have to fight together, but everyone in Fez practically owned the same things. The only thing to separate them from each other was their preference in weapons. Other than that, everyone was paid the same, owned the same type of house, and ate the same type of food. The Omniscient Union was no place for criminals, and the king figured nobody would fight each other just to steal what they already have. Of course, the king and the Temple's Elders were exceptions to the equal distributions.

         There were going to be a lot of adjustments for Dan. He hoped his new group would approve of him. He understood how it could be hard for some to openly accept a new stranger into their group after the death of their friend, but Dan swore he would prove to be an honorable ally. Whatever the hardship may be, Dan would make sure they would eventually accept him as one of them.

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         Ace starred at the tombstone that marked the grave of Chealse. Just two weeks ago, they all had plans to venture into the wilderness and embark on thrilling adventures together. Now one of them was dead before they even left the walls of Heartland.  The other girls tried to ignore it in hope of keeping their joyful spirits, but Ace remained concerned. Chealse died from making a dangerous mistake in the middle of casting a spell.

Alice used augmentation, one of her unique abilities, to enhance Chealse's conjured tornado, and Chealse was not paying attention to the air filling her lungs. When a mage manipulates any form of air, their lungs may begin inflating due to unnoticed air developing inside them. Mages who use air to their advantage are taught how to avoid conjuring magic in their lungs, but Chealse was not paying attention; therefore, Alice's enhancement caused Chealse's lungs to instantaneously inflate and explode.

Ace was worried about how they would manage to survive against the plague. If they struggled maintaining their magic without being under pressure, how would they control themselves with numerous monsters trying to eat them? How long would they last? The thoughts concerned Ace, but she did not want to mention the grim concerns to everyone. After a few days of mourning, everyone seemed to return back to normal. She did not want to upset the other girls with doubts.

The sun fully rose, boasting its light upon the world. It was time for Ace to head back home, for she had a lot to prepare for. Not only would she be hosting a get together for the other girls by evening, but they also had to meet Chealse's replacement at noon. She wiped her worries away and headed back home.

         She walked for several minutes, enjoying the nature of the morning, before seeing her house. It looked like every other house in Fez. It was simply a big, grey block plopped onto the ground several yards away from other duplicates. The front of the building had a wooden door with two windows on both the left and right side of it. It was, perhaps, the most basic design any structure could have, but it did not bother Ace. It was more than suitable for living in.

Upon walking through her front door, she could see Esther sitting on a chair in the kitchen. The interior of the building was just as basic as the outside. There were no walls to separate the rooms. She was almost surprised by Esther's presence, but the surprise quickly faded away. She gave Esther her spare key because Esther did not get along with her family. They were not supportive of her becoming a colonist due to how dangerous it was. They wanted her to apply to the defense operations, which was there in case the magical barriers failed to keep the plague out. The job also dealt with people who proved to be a threat to others. Esther wanted to join her friends in exploring the wilderness, which caused family issues. This resulted in Ace allowing her to occasionally stay at her place.

Ace walked into the kitchen and grabbed a leather pouch lying on the counter. She took vegetables out of the bag and began to cut them for a salad. She almost forgot to say something to Esther, but then she began to wonder if Esther had another fight.

"Family problems?" Ace asked.

"No," Esther answered.

"Oh?"

"Where were you this morning? Visiting the dead?"

Ace frowned. Esther was always offensive with her words. She was also a cynic at her core, and it made some things more challenging to deal with. Chealse's death was one of those things.

"You know, starring at a grave does nothing. She can't hear anything you say to a chunk of rock with her name carved onto it. Magic doesn't expand that far," Esther said in an agitated tone.

"Well, some believe it can," Ace responded trying to ignore Esther's opinions.

"Oh, yeah, and look where magic that revolves around the dead got us. Behind walls, hiding from dead people," Esther snapped.

"So, why are you here?" Ace asked trying change the direction of the conversation.

"I want to know how you feel about Chealse having a replacement."

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. Heartland requires a colonist group to have six people."

"What if it's a man?"

"What of it?"

"Well, weren't we aiming for an all girl group?"

Ace remembered the original idea the six girls came up with in their early years. They wanted to be an all girl group. It would be easy to do such a thing, seeing how the University encouraged friends and family being in the same group. It was assumed people would work more efficiently with people they knew. Taking advantage of this, the six girls signed themselves into the same group. The plan ran smoothly until the Chealse's incident occurred, but Ace did not care too much about their youthful ideals anymore.

"Shouldn't we be more concerned about important matters such as the new member being useful? We're too old to care about that trivial subject now, don't you think?" Ace flatly responded.

"True," Esther said, "and I also hear that replacements are usually weaker than the normal member. Hence the reason they are a replacement."

"That's what I worry about," Ace said.

"Still, though. I'm not going to be nice if it's a man,"

Ace couldn't help but let out short giggle and respond with, "Why not?"

"It would totally kill the atmosphere!" Esther exclaimed.

"I'm sure," Ace sarcastically said.

"It would! We would have to share tents with a perverted man!"

"Who said he would be a pervert?"

Esther starred at Ace for a short moment and then said, "Think about it. It would be one man in a tent with five other girls. I don't think a saint could control himself."

Ace laughed and then said, "You're being silly."

"Am I? Anyways, I also wanted to make sure you tried avoiding any conversations regarding Chealse tonight. Alice feels responsible for what happened."

"I'm aware."

"Okay. Are we going to invite the new member?"

Ace stopped cutting the vegetables and turned to look at Esther. The thought never crossed her mind. She did not want to leave the new member out; however, it would be awkward, especially if it was a man.

"Well, to be honest, I did not think about it. I don't see why not," Ace answered.

"Okay, then I will leave the invitation up to you," Esther said.

"Jenny will probably invite him or her before I even get the chance to,"

Esther nodded in agreement and said, "I have to go get the pig for tonight and get ready for greeting the new addition to our group. Bye."

Ace gave a thumbs up to Esther then returned to cutting the vegetables after she left. To be honest, Ace hoped the new member was a girl. The presence of a man among five girls would create awkward tensions in the environment. At the same time, she did not think it would matter as long as he was kind and skilled.

She grabbed a bowl and put all the cut vegetables into it. The salad consisted of lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, and onions. She would be getting cheese for it as well, but she had to bathe first. Her priority was making sure she would look presentable for the new member.

She walked towards the tub, which was practically next to the kitchen, and unbuttoned her black dress. After taking off her dress, she looked into the mirror hanging next to the tub. The mirror reflected her long black hair and blue eyes. She gazed at herself for a moment, wondering what the future held for her and her friends. She wondered if she would be good enough for them. They all looked at her as some kind of leader ever since they were children, but she questioned if she was capable to lead them through the wilderness.

She walked to her tub, which was already filled with water. She filled it before leaving to visit Chealse's grave. She put her hand in the water and concentrated on using magic to heat it up. She hated lukewarm water, and she never took the ability to manipulate water's heat for granted. Anyone could do it, but a lot were too careless to.

After heating the water, Ace stepped into the tub and sat down. She raised her knees, put her arms around them, and placed her chin in between them. She did not think anyone could replace Chealse, but she had to get over it. Though things would not be the same, Ace wanted to reassure everyone's happiness. They all should have been aware someone would eventually die. Being a colonist is the most dangerous job. Everyone should be prepared for the worst outcome, but Ace thought she could be the only one considering this. Like the other girls, she wanted to be a colonist for the thrill and adventure, but witnessing Chealse's death woke her up to reality. She hoped everyone was aware of what awaited them, and she hoped the new member was strong. They needed someone strong on their side, for what awaited them could only be described in nightmares.