Chapter Two

Trek of Pewter

As Riona slept, a whisper brushed through her mind, soft and unfamiliar. “Riona…” it called gently, like a breeze through leaves. “Riona…” The voice grew clearer, its tone more urgent. “Riona, you must seek it out. Seek out the truth. For you, for her, for all of us.” The final word crashed through her thoughts, louder now, insistent. “Riona!”

“Guh!” Riona jolts awake, breathing heavily.

She holds her head as a sharp pain washes over her. Truly the worst migraine she’s ever experienced. She runs to the bathroom and opens the medicine cabinet looking for some kind of healing elixir that can help this pain.

However, before she finds it, the pain subsides. She lets out a sigh of relief, muttering, “What the heck was that about?” She rubs her temples, still shaken. “And that voice… who was that?” Her mind races with questions, but she quickly shakes them off. “Ugh, whatever. Probably just another weird dream.” She tries to dismiss it, though she’s clearly unsettled. A sharp realization hits. “Damn, that hurt… Wait, crap! What time is it?!”

Riona pokes her head out of the bathroom and looks at the clock on the wall parallel to the door. It says Tuesday at 7:30 am, thirty minutes after she was supposed to arrive at the academy. Riona goes to a school called Vermilion Academy, she’s spent the last six years training to become the best knight of her state. She is considered by many as a teen prodigy for her natural skill in swordsmanship, even if Hendrick considers her impulsive. She’s been late for more days than you can count on four hands this school year. Panicking, Riona quickly throws on her squire uniform and runs out the door. 

By the time she makes it to the academy, it’s already 8 o'clock, she’s met at the door by the principal, Lady Astrid giving her a peculiar look saying, “Riona, you're an hour late. Do you care to explain?”

Riona attempts, “Um, well you see. I woke up with this really bad headache, so I went to the bathroom and-”

Lady Astrid interrupts, “And I don’t care anymore, just head to class. Your father will be hearing about this.”

Riona slouches her face as she walks away, thinking sarcastically, “Welp, I can’t wait to hear about that later.”

She walks into the classroom and is greeted by an irritating voice, “Well, look everyone, our star student! You're an hour late, you missed all of the first period. Not setting a very good example, are you there, Lady Riona.” The student says mockingly.

Riona keeping her composure says, “Good morning to you too Malachi.” She walks over to a different student who is completely engulfed in a book, not even realizing she entered the room. She knocks on his desk greeting him with a smile, “Morning Rowen.” She sits down on the desk next to him, “They didn’t start sparing yet did they?”

Rowen answers, “Oh, good morning Riona, sorry, I didn’t realize you walked in. I thought you were out sick today. Uh, no sparing isn’t for another fifteen minutes. Um, how- Um, how was your morning? You're late, did something happen?”

Riona responds, “Awful, not only did I wake up late, which never happens. I had this awful dream, well I guess the dream itself was more weird than awful but when I woke up from it I had this splitting headache like my head got stabbed with a flaming sword, and also my head was made out of butter. Mm, speaking of that I’m starving, I didn’t have any breakfast.”

Rowen, concerned, says, “Well you can’t spar on an empty stomach, that could be bad for you. Follow me. Ms. Monolith, can we head out for a moment?”

She gives them a thumbs up refusing to peel her eyes away from her paper. Rowen and Riona head into the hallways and start walking towards the cafeteria.

As they walk Riona breaks the silence, “Hey, can I ask you something?”

Rowen nervously obliges saying, “Uh, sure. What is it?”

“If you didn’t know where you came from but were still fine with who you are, would you still care to know?” Riona asked.

Rowen answers saying, “Oh, uh, well that's a doozy. I’d say it’s pretty much in every living thing's nature to want to know what’s happening. Confusion isn’t exactly a comforting state of mind.” Riona sighs before Rowen continues with a question of his own, “Are you- Are you talking about your birth parents?”

Riona nods saying, “Well it’s just that, I’m getting older. And it’s just becoming more difficult to live not knowing where I came from. I mean, I didn’t just pop into existence, did I?”

“I highly doubt that.” Rowen comments.

Riona drops her head as she slowly starts softly crying, Rowen can tell she’s been struggling with this for a long time.

He nudges her arm and gently grabs her shoulders saying, “Hey, no matter where you came from you're still you, and you're still my best friend. You could be an animated piece of tree bark and that still wouldn’t change.”

Rowen wipes a tear from her eye as she smiles. Interrupting this tender moment is the sound of Riona’s growling stomach.

Rowen remarks, “Oh yeah, the cafe, let me go get you a sandwich or something before the bell rings, heh.”

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Meanwhile, at Cass’s house, she wakes up and immediately resumes the pondering of that stone she received.

She thinks to herself, “If he can teach me magic, then maybe that could be a step closer to learning more about myself.”

Cass’s role at home is to open up the family shop in the morning before serving customers, normally they sell carved goods such as sculptures and furniture. She follows this normal schedule most of the day, serving guests who walk in and sweeping the floors before her break. But during her break, she couldn't help but continue thinking about this calling stone. She picks up the stone and looks at it curiously, turning it around and looking at it from all sides. In her attempts to turn it on, she taps the top of it and it begins to light up and play a short jingle.

A voice comes out of the stone, “Huh, hello?”

Cass responds, “Um, hi. This is Thistle, right? It’s me, Cass.”

“Oh hi! Yes, this is Thistle. I had a feeling I’d hear from you again. So, you wanna learn more about magic?”

Cass excitedly responds, “Yes please!”

“Cool, meet me at those plains near the forest after you're done working, um, you know the ones,” Thistle says while thinking.

“The Fairground fields?” Cass questions.

“Oh, yeah, there. There's not more than one is there?” Thistle asks.

Cass responds, “No, I’m pretty sure that's the only one.”

Thistle sighs saying, “Oh, that’s a relief, heh.”

“Yeah, wait how did you know I was working?” Cass asks concerningly.

Thistle responds, “I can hear a bunch of footsteps and rummaging around in the background, the working part was just a guess, ha. Remember to put on noise suppression next time.”

“Oh sorry, um anyway Fairground Fields at 6 pm. Ok, see ya then.” Cass says before hanging up while squealing with glee.

After Cass finishes the rest of her shift, she puts back on her usual outfit and her mask as her parents leave for another overnight delivery, allowing her to sneak out of the house unnoticed. She went to the field and found Thistle waiting for her.

“Oh, there you are. Thought you’d be a no-show for a second there.” Thistle says in reaction to seeing her.

Cass responds, “Sorry, I had to wait for my parents to leave. They go on overnight deliveries every other day.”

Thistle questions, “Oh your parents, what kind of business do they own?”

“Oh, just like carpentry and stuff. People from pretty far away commission stuff that my dad makes.” Said, Cass.

“Interesting, so do they use some kind of vehicle for traveling that far?” Thistle questioned.

“Um, well we have a boat they use if there's too much water to fly over. They also have a carriage if they’re carrying anything too large.” Cass answered.

Thistle analyzes Cass and responds confused, “Fly?”

“Well yea, their avians.” Cass clarifies.

Thistle comments, “And you're not?”

Cass doesn’t respond and just gloomily lowers her head.

Thistle quickly changes the topic, “Um anyway, why don’t we start by showing me some of what you already know? Do you know any spells yet?”

Cass responds, “Um, not really. I mean I know spark, it’s this little fire spell, and I know a slasher spell, but that takes the wind out of me.”

Thistle puts his hand on his chin, “Hm, ok, we’ll practice that.” he pauses and looks at the bracelet on her right wrist before asking a different question, “Oh, you use an imbued object, right?”

Cass, confused, responds, “Imbued object?”

“Yeah they’re basically like my staff but smaller, most people buy them for self-defense,” he answers.

Cass lifts her wrist to her eye view and looks down at it, “Oh, is that what this is? Yeah, my parents gave it to me. It seemed to be why I could do magic, but I wasn’t sure.”

He continues, “Oh, I know the perfect first spell to teach you! This was my first as well, I call it, Safeguard! Although the people that taught me called it ‘Faris Force Field,’ it’s like a barrier that can protect you.” 

“Yeah, I kinda got that from the name, heh,” Cass responds.

Thistle demonstrates this by focusing his staff in the direction he wants the barrier to show up in. His staff begins to glow a light aqua mixed with yellow before a yellow barrier with hexagonal patterns on it appears in front of him.

“Now you try,” Thistle says with an optimistic smile.

Cass stares blankly, not even knowing where to begin.

“Oh, uh, hmm. I didn’t exactly explain that very well did I? Uh, try imagining that you're channeling your energy to the tips of your fingers, then try and push at an invisible wall.”

Cass tries again, this time connecting the tips of her fingers and quickly pushing outwards, following Thistle's instructions. A barrier starts to flicker in front of her before disappearing.

Thistle smiles, “Hey, that was pretty good!”

Cass smiles back, “Thanks!”

Thistle feels a vibration in his pocket and he stops smiling. 

He reaches into his pocket and takes out a small glowing tablet called a comwave, he starts talking to someone through the device.

“Hello?”

… 

“Oh, um I was a little busy, but we’re just finishing up.”

 … 

“Oh, that's great!”

 … 

“Yeah, I should be there in about a day and a half, Thanks for letting me know.”

 … 

“Mhm, I’ve just gotta grab the stuff from the city first.”

  … 

"OK, no problem, bye," Thistle hangs up.

Cass raises an eyebrow, "What was that all about?"

Thistle hesitates, then sighs, “Alright, but you have to promise not to freak out.”

Cass gives a playful salute, putting her fist over her heart, “Scout’s honor!”

Thistle glances around, then lowers his voice, “I’ve noticed a lot of the plants that rely on magic are dying fast—like something’s targeting them specifically. But it’s only happening to magical flora. I thought it was natural at first, but it’s spreading too quickly.”

Cass’s smile fades, “So… what are you thinking?”

“I wasn’t sure until I reached out to a friend from one of my old homes, the Scarlet Suburbs. They’ve been seeing the same thing over there, and they’re saying they might know more about it.

Cass’s eyes light up, curiosity overriding worry. Thistle raises an eyebrow, puzzled by her reaction.

Cass shouts, “Can I come with?!”

Thistle responds, “Um, I don’t know. You don’t really know many spells, plus, what about your parents?”

Cass continues to yell, “You can teach me more while we travel! And my parents won’t even mind, you said you're gonna be gone for a day and a half, they should be out that whole time! And, we can ask my friend Riona to come too. She’s super strong!”

Thistle thinks out loud, “Hmm, I could use the extra muscle. It should be a pretty simple path anyway.” He speaks louder, now actually addressing Cass, “Yeah sure! Let’s go get your friend.”

“Oh, um, she’s probably still in school right now actually. We can meet her at her house after her classes.”

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At Vermilion Academy, the bell rings, signaling students to gather on a wide balcony that serves as an open-air training hall. Each student receives additional protective gear—helmets with face guards and padded armor—to minimize accidents. Circles mark the ground across the balcony, designating sparring spots for each pair. Students choose partners and take their places within the circles, gripping their blades and settling into ready stances.Riona and Rowen stand together in one of the circles. As a whistle blows, the clashing of swords and rhythmic footwork fill the air as students begin their drills. They pause for a moment, shifting their swords from both hands to a single-handed grip as they settle into fighting stances, preparing to join the intense practice.

“You ready to fall again?” Riona teases.

Rowen chuckled, flashing a grin, “If falling to you means getting up for another round, then I'm more than ready for the encore.”

Riona blushes before Rowen launches himself towards her, thrusting his sword in her direction, though she dodges it.

“A clever person once told me, ‘Never let your guard down.’” Rowen quips, his tone light but his gaze focused.

Riona gives a determined smile before they continue. Rowen goes back to his side before they start again. Riona, with determination in her eyes, brandished a thin double-edged sword with a slight purple highlight on The hilt. The blade, sleek and deadly, glinted in the training hall's ambient sunlight. On the other side, Rowen, agile and focused, gripped a slender rapier, poised for precision and sharp thrusts. A playful smirk played on Rowen's face as they circled each other, the unspoken connection between them adding an intriguing dynamic to their duel.