Chapter 3: Smoke on the Horizon

Welcome to Writers Realm!
This is a community dedicated to writing, what it takes to be a writer. Anyone can join! We'd love to see you around the site. Take part in our writing discussions, give feedback on stories posted and maybe share some of your own! But don't think you have to be a writer to join Writers Realm - there are plenty of other forums. Take part in a club or play a forum game with us. We're all friendly and we'd love to welcome you into our community!
Click here to register! Completely free of charge.

Chapter 3: Smoke on the Horizon; Thaddeus Series-Secret of the Forest
Topic Started: May 1 2008, 11:44 PM (256 Views)
Mythic	May 1 2008, 11:44 PM Post #1
Fantasy Writer Posts: 342 Group: Writers+ Member #9 Joined: Mar 23, 2008	I like this chapter. So I dont have much to say, its not perfect, so tell me what you think. ^_^ Chapter 3 Smoke on the Horizon Thaddeus woke up. He had had one of the best sleeps he had ever had. Opening his door, Thaddeus strolled out of his room, and stopped in front of the door in the center of the wall. As he stepped inside, he noticed the purest white balcony, its railings curved, sprinkled with gold. The whole balcony seemed to be shimmering, like the sky, its golden color lighting up Thaddeus’s face. But the view was what struck awe into Thaddeus. Before his eyes was the sun-the glimmering sun-rising over the Bradshaw Forest. It was beautiful. Glowing more than the golden room, shining brighter than the sky or balcony, its light covering the whole forest as far as the eye could see. I should get up Ballard thought, still half asleep, snoring. I can feel the suns glow on my face. But I am still sleepy… What is that noise! Truman yelled in his mind. It sounds like a horse dying, or a cross between a cow and a-I don’t know! I cannot sleep in this racket. He noticed a feeling of warmth fall upon him as if a light had come upon his face. Hmm? “Oh no!” yelled Truman, soaring out of bed as he saw the light glinting through the window, “The sun is rising!” Truman rushed out of the room, but paused as he saw the balcony door open. He stepped inside. “Everything is so perfect,” Thaddeus whispered, “As perfect as can be.” Thaddeus took a deep breath. “There isn’t a soul in sight; everyone is still asleep. I-“ Thaddeus sniffed the air. “What is that smell, I wonder?” A trail of black clouds caught Thaddeus’s eye. “A forest fire!” he exclaimed, “We will never be able to cross! Bradshaw will burn, and Hedda’s warriors will crawl through the flames like drunken beasts of hell! Truman reached the balcony, and sensed Thaddeus’s fear and worry. “What is wrong, Thaddeus?” he asked. “The forest has caught fire!” Thaddeus bellowed, “We are dead men!” Truman showed his shock, which was soon replaced with a new concern. “The source of the smoke is not from the trees-the wind is blowing it across the sky. Are you sure the fire is from the forest?” “No. I am not.” Thaddeus scanned the trail of smoke with his fierce brown eyes. His eyes then widened and he looked like he was about to choke. “That is no forest fire!” he hollered, “That is Darinople burning!” “What?!” screamed Truman, “We must get Ballard, I am afraid there will be a delay on the attack of Hildegard. We must save that town!” “The Queen’s orders-“ “-They can wait. Besides, you are still a messenger; do you not have the obligation to convey to Hypatia what is occurring there? “I suppose so. It isn’t wrong-“ “Then let’s go!” Truman moved toward Ballard’s door. “Ballard!” he yelled as he pounded on the door to the bedroom, “Get up!” “Just five more minutes,” came a yawn from inside. “There is no time! Darinople is on fire!” There was no response. “Ballard-“ “Just go.” Ballard sped out of his room, Truman and Thaddeus quick to follow. The group got up and ran down the flights of stairs frantically, nearly killing a few servants, of them Pia. Seeing them coming, she simply stopped and gazed. Truman noticed her stare and stopped. “Go on,” she whispered faintly, and ascended the stairs once more. Truman brushed off the encounter and caught up. As they ran down he steps of the majestic white castle, they realized that Hypatia and Titus had not seen the smoke, to busy to look out a window or balcony, or still asleep. As the trio reached the gates of Orville, they heard a faint flickering sound, most likely fire, and paused quickly as they went out the main gates to look at the castle once more, ignoring the puzzled guards, not thinking to look behind them for dangers. **** As Thaddeus, Truman, and Ballard neared the town, screaming could be heard, along with the clink-clink of heavy boots. “Dark Soldiers of Hedda!” Truman whispered, “How did they get here? Be cautious! It is a raiding party. They most likely have an Ognyan.” “A what?” Ballard whispered, and Thaddeus also looked at Truman quizzically. “Ognyans are beasts of Hedda. Avoid them, best you can, but do not attack them. They only die if you pierce their top-middle eye. Oh, and remember, avoid-“ “Hey!” a deep voice said, almost inhuman, “What are you doing?” “Dark Soldiers,” Thaddeus gasped, “Five of them! Run!” Thaddeus ran through the streets of the town, followed by Truman and Ballard, buildings aflame. They twisted many corners, and turned many turns. Thaddeus looked back and saw that the soldiers were still chasing them. They turned another corner, and then stopped at a dead end in a musty alley. “I can’t believe it,” Ballard chuckled, “We are going to die in the place were Thaddeus started his part of this hopeless quest.” The Dark Soldiers lifted their swords. Each of them chanted a strange curse, something like, “cinaed,” and purple flames erupted from their swords. Just as they were about to strike, a hand beckoned to the trio from the house near them and they quickly ran into a door. Whoever beckoned them closed the door and chained it-five times. Thaddeus looked down at their rescuer as he stood on the wooden floor. He was a short little man, but he was as plump as a watermelon. He had black hair and a very short beard on his round little head. He wore purple clothing, arms and back covered with a brown cloak. His beady eyes stared at the men at his door, and as he pulled up his belt, Thaddeus noticed a dagger gleaming in it. The dagger was the most magnificent dagger Thaddeus had ever seen. It shined with gold at the hilt, and the jagged, silver iron blade glowed like a candle. The most amazing thing about the dagger, though, was the red and black jewels lining the hilt and blade. “Hello my friends, the man grunted. “Or, at least you should consider me your friend since I have saved you. Now, you must have questions. I know them. One, you want to know who I am, two, you want to know why I saved you. Well, my name is Mussek, and I am a merchant of this town. This is my house, and I think we should leave it quickly.” Mussek pointed toward the door, and Thaddeus realized the Dark Soldiers had already broken three chains off of it. “I saved you, well, for two reasons. One, I don’t like to see people die, two, I don’t like to see people die especially because of those blasted Dark Soldiers sent by Hedda. I now suggest we leave?” Mussek once again pointed toward the door, now only one lock remaining. Thaddeus, Ballard, and Truman nodded, and followed the waddling merchant to a door in the very back of his stone house, concealed behind a large cabinet. “Let us escape here,” he ordered, and began to run through the doorway. As he walked through the hidden door, Thaddeus noticed that it did not lead outside, but instead it lead to a staircase going down into the depths of the merchants house. “Go on, move the cabinet back before you come down!” Mussek hissed to Ballard. “And close the door too. Do you want those soldiers to find us?” Ballard obeyed, grabbed a handle at the back of the cabinet, and as he closed the door, all was darkness. Nothing could be seen. In the dark, however, Ballard, Truman, and Thaddeus felt something rustling through their packs. Before anyone could say anything, horrid sounds filled everyone’s ears. There was a crash. Splintered wood and the clink of a chain were heard above them. “Hey!” boomed a soldier’s voice. “What’s this? Oops, I broke it! Wait! What’s this? Oops! I broke this too. How dreadful!” Laughter could be heard from upstairs. So sinister was the laughter that it gave Thaddeus a chill and made Truman wince. Ballard had heard worse. The voice of a dark soldier was not human, and very few even thought that dark soldiers were human at all. “Mussek, I, they’re-“ “Shh!” Mussek told Truman in a harsh whisper. “They’ll hear us. This way, quick!” “Someone was going through my pack,” Truman said, frightened. “Did a soldier manage to get in here?” “No!” Ballard whispered. “Bats.” Truman shuddered as he followed Ballard’s pointing finger to a pair of gleaming eyes and black wings hanging in a corner. Mussek led them to another door, and after unbolting it seven times he opened it. Once again, a set of stairs was revealed, this time going up, not down. It was comforting to realize that light was ahead, for you could see it through a third doorway, beckoning. One last door, bolted only once, was the final obstacle. It opened, and the darkness ended. Outside was another alleyway, and Thaddeus realized that it was close to his home. My home! Thaddeus thought. “Ballard, Truman!” Thaddeus yelled, “We must get to my house!” Truman then turned around to thank the merchant, but he was not there. That’s odd, Truman thought, he was there a minute ago… As Truman turned around, he noticed Thaddeus and Ballard were already running to the home of his companion. He quickly rushed after them. When Truman got to Thaddeus’s house, however, he noticed horribly that it was on fire. “Oh no,” he heard Truman say, “What…no...” Thaddeus had knelt down beside his burning house, and exclaimed, “Who could have set this town on fire! What creature did this?” “An Ognyan,” said a whisper. Thaddeus turned to see Truman standing beside him. Ognyans are fire- breathing beasts. I have never actually seen one, but I have read of their horrible doings. They only die, remember, if you pierce their top-middle eye. Ballard grunted. “How many of them do you think there are?” “At least two. Maybe three, but most likely two.” “So, it’ll be easy to get rid of two, right?” “Well…” “Great! I guess that means it won’t.” Ballard sighed. “Hey, you three!” came a rough hiss from behind. Thaddeus, Ballard, and Truman all turned around to face three Dark Soldiers. “Three-on-three,” Ballard grunted, “I call the one on the left!” Before anyone could do anything, Ballard charged at the soldier on the left, drew out his sword, and swung at the warrior’s head. The soldier pared the attack with stunning agility and with a clash everyone went into fighting. Truman struck one of the Dark Soldiers in the shoulder with an arrow, and started firing more arrows at the one who he had struck. Thaddeus grabbed his bow and started firing arrows at another warrior. But the cold black armor of the dark soldiers reflected each arrow. “We can’t last much longer!” he bellowed, “Our arrows do not seem to harm them much. I can use a sword, but I prefer the bow. We need an idea, quick!” Truman’s face brightened. “I have an idea!” he exclaimed, “Dip-“ In that instant, the soldiers said something in the magic tongue. “Cinaed!” they all roared. Instantly, each of their swords erupted in purple flame, and they started attacking fiercer than ever, advancing. “Um, guys?” Ballard said, “Help! I only called the one on the left!” The soldiers were swinging their swords ferociously, and Ballard could not hang on much longer. “Your idea?” Thaddeus asked. “Put your arrows into the flaming wood of your house!” Truman explained, “Stick the wood to the arrow! Hurry!” Thaddeus ran to the burning house and dipped an arrow in the burning wood, and pulled a small piece out. Thaddeus then fired the arrow at one of the Dark Soldiers attacking Ballard. It struck. From then on, all things seemed to go slowly. The Dark Soldier’s armor somehow erupted in flame, covering his entire body. The effect of the fire-on-metal formed embers that moved silently to the next Dark Soldier, who screeched like a crow when they crept up its helmet, burned his face, and destroyed his armor. The third Dark Soldier then swung his sword rapidly at Ballard. Ballard pared the attacks, and then was struck in the back with the spiked hilt of the glowing black sword. “Ballard!” Thaddeus yelled; his voice filled with hate, as if haunted by bad memories. The deadly warrior turned his head toward Thaddeus. Ballard lay on the floor, wheezing softly. Thaddeus pulled out his sword, firing one last burning arrow at the evil man. It missed its mark. Distracted, the Dark Soldier did not see the man rushing towards him like a bull. Thaddeus yelled as he struck the last warrior on the waist, and then stabbed him in the heart, the shear force able to rip through the weakened armor. The soldier looked up at him, and turned to dust. “What in the name of God," Thaddeus whispered. “The Dark Soldiers must turn into dust when you strike their heart,” Truman said. The others that burned are just smoldering ashes, not dust. It is obvious that these Dark Soldiers that we battled were magi. Weak magi, but magi nonetheless. The other men in the raiding party could also be magi raiders, but these were very weak. The weakest dark magi are vulnerable when exposed to fire-they are usually used as…meals for the Ognyans. No one knows why.” “We need to help Ballard now Truman,” Thaddeus replied. Truman nodded. They walked over to Ballard, and thought he was dead, until he coughed, and managed some words. “In my pack,” he managed to choke out. “Heal...” He then quieted. Truman rummaged through Ballard’s pack and found a small bottle. He looked at it, and in awe said, “The water of healing! How did Ballard come upon this? It is very rare, and, just like the essence of darkness, can only be extracted from certain mystical pools far off in the lands of Hedda. I wonder how found this. Thaddeus take off his shirt and locate the wound. The Dark Soldier’s sword hilts are spiked, so the wound is bleeding. Careful…” Truman looked at the injury and cringed. “Nasty little fellow,” he said to the gash. Truman then poured three drops of the healing essence on the wound and then said some sort of prayer. Soon after, there was a quick blink of bright light, and the blood seemed to run away back into the skin as the wound closed, leaving none but a small scar. Ballard blinked. “Thanks,” he said, slowly and cautiously rising then picking up his sword, soon to put his medicine away. “I suppose that we have done enough,” Truman sighed. There was a deep growl behind Thaddeus. Truman recognized the sound at once. “Duck!” he yelled. But it was too late. A horrible beast with many eyes stood on four legs behind Thaddeus. A large eye was centered at the top the middle of its head, and it roared as another one walked up behind it. The beasts were odd, looking mutated. They had the bodies of very large lions, but instead of fur, the creatures were covered with shades of grey and red feathers, shifting in the wind. “Ognyans!” Truman yelled in pain, but it was too late. The first Ognyan blew a blast of fire out of its mouth, about to scorch Thaddeus! * Selima and Saloma were sitting on a balcony on their castle with their parents, facing the opposite direction of Darinople. Instantly, they stood up, a dreadful expression of pain on their faces. “What is wrong?” Queen Hypatia yelled softly. The two princesses walked down the hallway and went to the balcony were Thaddeus had been that morning. The looked out at Darinople, gazing at it. Then, they saw Darinople as if they were in it, and looked at the terrible things happening. “What is happening!?” Titus bellowed as he and Hypatia ran up to theirs daughters. Blue and white light erupted from Saloma and Selima. “No…” Hypatia whispered. “I can’t believe it! That woman warned us, but…I cannot believe it!” “You don’t mean that it is true that-“ “Yes! Our daughters are the magi! The last two of the light!” Hypatia and Titus, overwhelmed by the building force, fell to the ground, watching in amazement as their daughters began to glow brighter than the rising sun over the Bradshaw. “Peace!” the princesses yelled at the same time. The light shot down toward Darinople, and then Saloma and Selima, the good magi-the light, collapsed to the ground. Edited by Mythic**, Oct 26 2008, 08:05 PM.
	I believe ...... Two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different. I believe....... That your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you. I believe. Do you?


Allyson	May 2 2008, 04:47 PM Post #2
Observer of all Posts: 2,337 Group: Root Administrator Member #1 Joined: Jan 29, 2008	I think this is one of the best chapters I've read of yours so far, Mythic. It sucked my in, and you did a good job of describing that little battle they had, and how Ballard was almost killed. But I didn't understand the part abuot the two daughters. There's more about that later in the book, right? Quote: I should get up Ballard thought, still half asleep, snoring. I can feel the suns glow on my face. But I am still sleepy… What is that noise! Truman yelled in his mind. I think there should be two spaces between this part, since it's changing point of views. Good job on chapter three!
	Check out my deviantART page!


Mythic	May 2 2008, 04:50 PM Post #3
Fantasy Writer Posts: 342 Group: Writers+ Member #9 Joined: Mar 23, 2008	There is more about the daughters in a later chapter describing the whole magi thing. Right spaces makes sense. Glad you enjoyed it! :D But who says someone isnt about to burn to death...hehe...when Hypatia mentioned the old woman however that is only mentioned by one other person in the book. Or two, all I know is it ties STOP I am spoiling it. Anyway, I will post the next few chapters including the Hedda one coming up. ^_^ Edited by Mythic, May 2 2008, 05:03 PM.
	I believe ...... Two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different. I believe....... That your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you. I believe. Do you?


1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)


« Previous Topic · Sneak Peaks · Next Topic »