Orders of Magic Book One

Orders Of Magic: Book 1, Dawn of Darkness

A lone shack grand in itself compared to other shacks stood tall atop the mountain of R'prise. In the dwelling a man lived for many years alone with little to no contact with the outside world. Some in a nearby village would bring him food and supplies in exchange for help with problems they had. The man was much older then he appeared and was very wise. He sat at the table in front of the fireplace arched in polished stone the glow of the fire flickered against its surface. He sat with his back to the door with a scroll on the table next to his plate of cheese and bread and a jug of water, a crack could be heard outside the window. The man raised his eyes looking to the fire, his eyes closed as if he was deep in thought when the door slowly opened. "So it begins.." said the man sitting at the table when from the shadow of the door into the glow of the fire a sword fell through the air when the man stood pushing the chair with the back of his legs. The seat flew back smashing into the sword barer and the man twisted turning his back to the fire, his robes flapped behind him as he turned raising his hand toward the fire closing his hand into a fist and thrusting it toward the sword. The fire cracked and hissed as it leapt out of the fireplace and through the air striking the sword barer sending him flying back bursting into flames falling back to the ground as ashes.

 The man walked toward the door twisting his head around the bend seeing four other men clad in dark robes with silver blood trim. Each of the dark robed men held a staff of different design but each with bones and a small skull at the top of the long jagged wooden shaft. Each of them slammed the end of their staves into the ground and stepped back and the ground broke as claws ripped their way up out of the very underworld itself. The creatures stood in front of the robed men, their decayed rotting flesh falling from their bones and the smell of death filled the air. The man in the shack quickly came about and made his way to a corner next to the now dead fireplace. He waved his hand over the corner from top to bottom and as his hand passed a long staff of shimmering green which seemed to be made of twisted metal vines. At the top of the staff a dense orb held in place by the twisted vines spread over it, with still enough showing so the majority of the crystal orb could be seen.

 The man grabbed the staff and turned back toward the door, he walked to the cabnet next to it opening it and pulling large pouch and a book placing the book into the pouch and putting it over his head and stepping through the door looking at the men and the creatures standing just off the porch. He tossed his staff to his left hand and throwing his hand at the creatures spreading his hand as far as he could a burst of magic flooded from his hand sending the creatures flying back, landing on their backs and side twisting and contorting to get back up to their feet. The man lifted his staff above his head in his right hand tilted with the orb over him as the shaft fell off to the side. The orb grew bright with a blinding white light and the creatures flinched and fell to the ground again covering their faces with paws and sharp claws.

 The man walked down the stairs and looked around seeing the four men standing blocking the only path away from the shack. The man slammed his staff into the ground the light flashing and the ground rumbled and shook as rocks fell from a ledge near the shack. "I am Zethran The Green, High Wizard of The First Order. You shall let me pass!" He said as the air itself seemed to charge with static and tremble about them. The robed men stood their ground raising their staves and smashing their tips to the ground send up a cloud of dirt and dust. The light from Zethrans staff faded into the cloud and growls echoed as the creatures once again began to move. Zethran thrust his staff forward and swiped it level with the ground casting a massive wave of air wiping across the area clearing the cloud away. Seeing the creatures rushing at him lips curled back as massive fangs chomped at the air.

 Zethran swung his staff striking one of the beasts and with a loud crack it fell to the ground with a whimper. The other three creatures lunged at Zethran and he raised his hand toward them and opened his fist send a pulse of magic force at them pushing them back. The men charged at him pulling out large daggers made of sharpened bone. Zethran raised his hand and grasped the air as if grabbing something and one of the men froze where he stood, not even his robes shuttered in the breeze. He opened his hand pulling it back as little shimmers of light formed and followed back into his palm, he pushed it forward and a bolt of lightning cracked through the air blinding the men briefly as it struck one sending him flying back down the path. The other two had just about reached him when he flipped his staff blocking the blade, as the two met the staff shimmered and began to shrink. The end opened and a blade emerged and formed between the vines.

 The chilled air rang with the clashing of swords as the foul odor of death became so strong about them. Zethran turned seeing the three creatures coming up behind him, he spun around with such speed the swords image echoed and sliced into the first beast. Blood splashed as the sword flew and Zethran raised his hand, waved it to the right sending the creature flying into a broken tree limb piercing its heart the creature went limp. The two men stood back as the other creature thrashed about, each of them raising their skull mounted staves crossing them over each other. The power in them whistled through the air as it barreled down on Zethran. He turned toward the sound seeing that massive dark beam of magic thundering toward him, his hand flew up just before it reached him. The beam stopped only inches from his hand, the sound of thumping rumble behind him. He turned again seeing the remaining three beast coming at him streams of foam fell from their jagged teeth. He flipped his sword with the blade facing the ground and the crystal orb above he closed his eyes as it began to glow with a dim green light the creatures dove at him striking a shield that formed around him. With each hit his face strained and his arms buckled slightly.

 He was down to one knee and his arms were nearly against his body, with his eyes closed as beads of sweat began rolling down his forehead. He began speaking softly under his breath as his hands began to tremble. His eyes went wide as a glow of green shimmered in them he stood forcing his hands out blasting the shield outward in every direction striking all the creatures and the two men. He spun the sword as it turned back into the staff and slammed the bottom into the ground, with a massive flash of bright white light he ran as the others blocked the light with their hands. He jumped off the edge of the mountain facing the palms of his hands to the ground and waves of magic energy pulsed at the next level of the path. His fall slowed as he set down on the path below a ring of dirt and dust flew up around him. He wiped his hand across the front of him clearing the dust from his path and walked through it, turning back at the cloud of dust he jabbed the staff into the ground and released it from his grip staying in place. He rolled his hands in front of him as him he was gathering energy and forming it, the dust cloud in front of him began to form and shape as he did. He thrust his hands up and to the side and the cloud flew up into the air and over the edge. The sound of coughing and hacking echoed and he turned back grabbing the staff and making his way down the mountain.

 Walking along the road as the steady thump of his staff hitting the ground sounded about him. The greenish white glow from the crystal lit the darkness. Light shimmered through the tree tops and he waved his hand over the crystal and the green hue faded back into the crystal and vanished. The ground trembled beneath his feet and stones jumped and shook around him. From the woods three massive mutated horses with long fangs and sharp claws with a bulk about their bodies. From atop them two men and a woman jumped down. The two men pulled swords which glowed black and seemed to suck in light leaving none around them. The woman stepped forward her eyes blacker then night her skin paled as the jet black hair fell upon her face, the dark robe shifted about her legs as she walked toward him.

The woman raised her hand her long black finger nails spread and her palm out to him, Zethran fell to the ground with a loud grunt of pain. Vanes bulged on his neck and forehead as his staff fell from his hand slapping the ground with a sharp crack. With his last ounce of strength he lifted his hand and pushed it at the woman and a pulse of green energy flew at her striking her side sending her flying back into the mount. The two men charged at him, swords waving in the air. Zethran grabbed his staff and pushed himself up flinging the top of the staff forward one of the men flew back. The other came to Zethran and swung his sword. Zethran lifted his staff blocking the strike and thrusting his hand forward throwing the man back into the other. The woman ran toward him again and he lifted the staff and a wave of green light fell around him from the crystal. She threw both her hand up at him and dense black light flooded out to him the impact against the green wave pushed him back several paces. The wave rippled and churned as the blackness enveloped it. Zethran pushed the staff forward and the green wave formed in front of him cupping around the blackness holding it back. â€œI know what you are now and you cannot defeat me. I am Zethran The Green Wizard of the First Order, you will not win!â€ he thrust the staff forward and the cupped blackness shot back to her and the green wave wrapped around her and held her in her own blackness.

The men charged at him again with the blackness around the swords whipping and breaking as flames through the air. Zethran gripped the staff with both hands and slammed its end into the ground and a ring of green fire burst out of the ground around him. He planted the staff next to him as it stood next to him, he opened his hands palms facing down at the fire he raised his hand up slowly and flung them at the men. As he did the ring of fire lifted and flew at the men clashing with them sending them flying back in two burning balls of flesh and flame. Zethran walked forward leaving the staff standing in the burnt circle and coming to the field of green energy and blackness inside. He placed each hand on either side of the green orb about an inch away and closed his eyes, whispering under his breath while little streaks of lightning reached out caressing the orb.

As the lightning felt the outer skin of the orb and small particles of light flowed between the orb and floated into his hand. Clouds rumbled and gathered above him and heavy wind blew about him and lightning flew down from the clouds striking him and his head flew back as his eyes lit with a bright green glow that flooded out of him. The orb collapsed and the woman laid on the ground breathing softly with eyes closed. "Your power is mine now. Return to where ever it is you came from and tell your master he will not win this fight." Zethran turned back and walked toward his staff grabbing it and continuing forward on his way.

Zethran followed the road, walking over a grassed over mound he saw a woman mounted on a golden mare. She held a shimmering bow with golden cord as her hand swung to her back pulling an arrow as golden as her bow. She slapped it to the bow with fluid motion pulling it back and releasing it. As the arrow flew from the bow the golden shimmer sparked and the arrow lit with golden light and split and struck four men. The men taken off their feet by the impact falling back to the ground with a thud, their black and red chainmail rang through the air as the metal collided.

He looked back to the woman leaping off the mare and rushing toward a group of men hurtling over the next ridge toward her. She pulled down two glowing short swords from under her quiver, the swords steal glinted in the sun light. Zethran reached back tugging his cloak as it fell from his back he held it up and looked to it as the cloth began to melt and reform as shimmers of steal began to grow from it and in seconds the green cloak became a shimmering green sword. He held the sword in his right hand and the staff in his left as he charged in behind the woman. He eyes watched as she ran toward the men, her locks of slightly curled golden brown hair flowed in the wind.

She broke upon the group of men as water upon the beach and her sword swung fiercely and splatters of nearly black blood covered her blades. He came up beside her his sword clashed down on a man cutting down his shoulder with thunderous force. His staff lifted high above him whistled as it fell through the air with a loud crack as it met with another man's head. He twisted as his sword flowed with his arm blocking a strike as his staff followed colliding with the wielder. He looked to the woman and their eyes met. Zethrans eyes widened as he looked into her sparkling blue eyes he felt as if his soul began to tingle and his breath left him as his lips split. He could feel his heart begin to beat even faster in his chest. He was mesmerized by her beauty mere seconds had passed though he felt as though he had been gazing at her for hours. Her eyes left his and widened he twisted again his sword rang through the air and sliced into a man with his sword raised cutting him down.

The woman threw her swords striking two men as they fell back to the ground. She pulled two arrows from behind her and tossed them. They shimmered and split as before striking several of the men. They flew back thudding to the ground their mail dinged and chimed as it hit the ground. Zethran lifted his sword to the sky and green lightning struck it and the glowing sword shimmered with streams of lightning swirling about it. He thrust it forward the lightning flew from it impacting a group of the men hurtling them back setting them aflame. With the final strikes the two prevailed and the battle was won. The woman's breath was heavy and deep as her chest heaved Zethran could not help but noticed the sweat as it trickled down her voluptuously curved bosom. She walked toward him and his eyes shot up to hers and he bowed slightly. "Zethran The Green, Wizard of The First Order" she looked to him, her eyes running up and down his body and at the staff. "So you are. I am TyRana of The Order of The Golden Arrow. Thank you for your help." She smiled, her sweat dampened skin glistened in the sun making her all the more beautiful as she herself glowed.

"Why were all these men attacking you?" He ask as he looked into her eyes seeing the worry and glimmers of strength in them. In those seconds before she spoke he had learned much about her just from what her eyes had held. She walked closer and just passing him pulling her swords from the two men. "They saw me and knew I was with The Golden Arrow, They have been trying to find us for months, attacking any of us they could find, they had killed my companion a few days ago and took her arrow." She looked at him with much sarrow in her eyes at remembering what had happen to her sister of the order. She stood from her crouch and replaced the swords to their sheaths. "I don't understand, why would they want an arrow? Are they where the magic comes from you used?" Zethran bent over pulling an arrow from a soldier, his hand folded around it as his magic probed it with thin threads of energy. He shook his head sensing only tiny amounts of magic in the arrow. "The arrows in the wrong hands can lead someone to our hidden city. No one has come to our city that was not in the order for over a thousand years." She lifted her arm with her right hand facing down a glow of golden light emerged and se waved her hand over the battle and each of the arrows began to glow and suddenly were gone. Before he knew what had happened the arrows appeared in her quiver.

After nearly two hours of talking and discussing the events of the last few days the two decided to set up a camp for the night since it was already getting dark. Zethran had gone about setting up magical shields and safeguards to prevent any unknown attacks during the night while they slept. TyRana had begun setting up her bed roll and getting a few things of dry wood to set up a fire so they would be warm and have something to eat before they went to sleep. Zethran walked over and crouched down next to the small fire ring that TyRana had built while he was setting up the protection. He lifted his hand and pulled his fingers together and pointed them at the small pieces of wood and a small stream of liquid like flames erupted and set the wood on fire.

With the now completed make shift camp with the two bed rolls TyRana had placed a few things of dried meat over the fire to warm and a pot of some sort of liquid was starting to boil. She ripped some leaves and dropped them in the small pot and with a wooden spoon mixed them into the liquid. Zethran leaned forward toward the pot and with a long slow inhale through his nose he sighed. "Oh, what are you making that smells wonderful?" TyRana looked up from her work and grinned at him. "It's an old secret, passed down to me from my mother and to her by her mother for many generations." She said as she looked back down the to the pot as she now pulled the dried meat and with a small blade cut it and let it drop into what Zethran assumed was a soup or stew of some kind.

The next morning the two woke at nearly the same time, Zethran leaned in toward the pot. "Is there any of that delicious soup left?" TyRana rubbed her eyes and smoothed her light golden brown hair and throwing it over her shoulder and checking the front over her dress which was cut low making sure everything was covered and fixed properly. She looked up to him meeting his eyes and with a smile she shook her head. "No you finished it with your third bowl last nightâ€¦" TyRana stopped talking just as Zethran put his hand to the ground to get up and as his palm touched the ground his head jerked to the side and he closed his eyes. She looked to him wondering what had just happened and went to move to him to see if he was ok. His eyes opened wide and he looked to her then toward the south. "Pack everything quickly, there is a large number of horse riders coming right at us they will get here soon we need to leave. Now."

They both shot to their feet and with fluid waves of his hand things started flying and rolling and filling into his shoulder pouch. TyRana rushed gathering her few things that she hadn't repacked last night and kept looking toward the south. "How do you know someone is coming, or who it is?" She asked with the most noticeable mark of panic in her voice. "With my Katra, my magical force. I have a constant feel of things around me, like how a spider can sense when a fly enters its web. My Katra is the same way. It allows me to sense and feel things around me without actually seeing them." She nodded and lifted her bags back over her golden mare. "Sounds like that would be a handy thing to be able to do. "She jumped up onto the horse and lowered her hand to him to help pull him up. He got on the horse and pointed to the east. "That way, as fast as we can go." With a click of her tongue and a pat to the side of the horses neck they were off.

After what seemed like hours TyRana pulled back on the strap and the horse slowed and came to a stop. They both slid off the horse, Zethran went right to the ground hovering his hand less than an inch from it and closed his eyes. TyRana was at work getting water from a large skin and pouring it into a bowl for the horse and looking around hearing a small stream nearby pulled the horse to it and let her drink and graze while TyRana filled the water skins again. Zethran walked up behind them and sat on a fallen log. "We should be ok for a while but I don't think we should both sleep at the same time tonight. We can rest for a while then we need to get moving again." She turned to him and sat on a log across from him. "And where would we be going, if I can ask?" He looked into her eyes and then looked passed her off into the clearing beyond the trees and in the distance there was a shimmer of light from the edge of a mountain side. He pointed at it and looked back to her and when she looked back to him he spoke. "The Wizard's Keep, it is a stronghold for the wizards and their apprentices. There should still be many people there. If we keep this pace we should get there before nightfall tomorrow."

 She looked back again then turned to him and why are we going there?, "How do we know these people are after us?, you or me? They could just be travelling toward us when you sensed them." Zethran lowered his head and shook it. "No, I know who it was these people would kill us both if they could and that would be after they torture us and get every drop of information from us. They are Necros, demonic types of magic wielders able to raise and control dead creatures and bodies to fight. I sensed many people but an even larger number of creatures." After resting for nearly an hour the two set out again headed toward the Wizard's Keep.

The two were on the horse and riding hard toward the Keep for several hours when finally coming to a large open field. They slowed s they emerged from the thin line of trees taking in the area and looking around not seeing much of anything other than a few bushes here and there they left the wooded area. Just as they cleared the trees and were going down a small slope in the grass the ground began to tremble and the horse bucked throwing them both to the ground. As they hit the ground a massive crack stretched across the ground just in front of them and deformed creatures began pouring out of it as if the underworld was being emptied. They both jumped to their feet and turned to head back into the trees but were stopped by the force that was chasing them.

TyRana flung arrows in every direction striking groups of the creatures at the same time sending them flying back and crashing to the ground with large empty thuds. Zethran threw his hands up over and over raising protective shields stopping the Necros and creatures from reaching them. Both were tiring quickly with the efforts of keeping this many enemies at bay. With one last force of effort Zethran threw both hands up raising a final shield and fell to his knees. "We can't keep doing it this way." He stood again moving his hands together and forming a circle as they moved. From his palms waves of lightning and liquid flames flowed coming together into a large ball that kept growing with each wave that flowed from his hands. He thrust his hands forward in the direction of the Wizard's Keep which was close enough now to make up some of the larger details of the massive castle like structure built into the side of a mountain. From the sphere shot out a huge stream of twirling flames and green lighting burning and crackling with power leaving nothing but a charred wake behind it.

Zethran grabbed her arm and pulled her into a run and turning back shot another massive bolt of blinding green lightning aimed at the ground before the huge army of Necros and undead creatures. Chunks of rock and ground flew into the air and with a wave of his hand rushed into the crowed and with bone cracking force struck them sending them back into more of the creatures. With one last ounce of strength Zethran broke apart into millions of if tiny dust like flecks and as his hand holding TyRana joined the rest of him she too was pulled into a cloud of dust and the two flew with the speed of the quickest wind toward the keep. Making it nearly there the cloud that was Zethran and TyRana crumbled to the ground and split as the two forms were remade rolling across the ground. TyRana forced herself up after the rough tumble holding her shoulder and with a limp turned seeing Zethran lying a few feet away. She rushed to him and knelt beside him rolling him onto his back and placing a hand on his chest.

She lowered to him turning her head to listen to his breathing hearing it was shallow she rose looking around seeing a man running toward them coming from the keep. "Can you help us? we were attacked by Necros and dead dead creatures. He brought us here somehow but we both fell to the ground and I think he got hurt." The man nodded to her. "I will do what I can but we need to get back into the keep. It hasn't been safe to be out here alone lately even with the sentries out." He got down next to him and looked at Zethrans face and with a sharp inhale. "This is Zethran!" He threw his hand up and a ball of green light flew into the air. Before long a few more flew up from the keep, then more and in minutes there were dozens slowly falling back down.