The Guardians

Chapter 1

Lyra Mahariel listened to the storm as it raged outside the cave. She wished it would storm forever, that way she wouldn't be compelled to carry out her mission. The flames of the fire held no warmth for the young girl. She was dressed in a tattered dress that had once been green and brown. She'd mended the skirt many times but the hem was slowly coming apart. It had once been to her ankles, now it was at her calf, showing her ankle-high boots. She sat on a rock, watching the flames dance, her staff propped nearby. As she watched the flames dance, she absently ran her fingers across the magical collar around her neck. Ancient runes were inlaid on its surface and a pale blue glow emitted from it, a sign that the spell it held was active. Lyra was the victim of a binding spell, making her a slave of the caster. And this wasn't any normal binding spell. This was the binding spell unique to Alora, the most powerful sorceress in all of Veloce and one feared by even the Paladins, warriors who feared no magic. And no matter how hard she fought against her, in the end, she had no choice but to do her bidding. She was far from broken, but any hope of freedom had faded a long time ago. Lyra knew the only way to break the spell was to kill Alora, kill Lyra, have a sorcerer as powerful or more so remove it, or for Alora herself to remove it. Lyra knew that Alora would never free her and no one could hope to kill her. No one was as powerful as the sorceress and Lyra had no wish to die. Thus she had no hope of freedom. She sighed and stood, going to the mouth of the cave she'd taken shelter in and watched the rain as it poured sideways, watched the lightning dance across the sky and listened to the thunder crash, its rumblings causing the ground and rock to tremble. Some of the rain found its way into the cave to her, but she didn't move away or brush the water from her skin. She only brushed the strands of her reddish-brown hair that had escaped from its binds from her face. As she watched the storm, a thought crept into her mind and she wrestled with that thought for some time, wondering if it would even work. She then made a decision that would change her life forever: she would find the Paladins and she would ask their help. Lyra knew that Alora could only command her through the binding spell. But the one loophole was she couldn't track her, thus she would never know she was among the Paladins. As long as someone didn't tell her. Smiling to herself, Lyra left the cave's mouth and went to try to find sleep. The next few days would be long. She would make for the Paladin's base or find one of the patrols, whichever came first. And only hoped they would show her mercy and not kill her once they saw the collar.

~~~

Talish Gemini frowned at his fellow Paladins as they played a dice game. They were supposed to be on patrol, not gallivanting around and gambling with each other. One of his companions looked up and saw his frown.

"Lighten up, Talish," he said. "Elin's patrol came through here two days ago. She saw no sign of anything."

"A lot can happen in two days," Talish answered with a snort.

"The only thing out here are a few Guardians and not many are stupid enough to try to attack a Guardian." He went back to the game.

Talish shook his head, saddened by the others' lack of caring and duty. He was proud to be a Paladin and had worked hard to join their ranks. His blue eyes scanned the area around their little camp, his plate armor wet from the drizzle that had fallen earlier in the day. His shield, emblazoned with a flame, the symbol of the Paladins, was on his back. His broadsword hung at his hip. Like the others, he could weld magic when he so desired, but he much preferred to use his sword and shield. Many thought that they didn't fear magic because they were immune to its effects, but in truth, it was because they were powerful spellcasters in their own right that didn't need to channel their magic through traditional means. Those that hated their gifts used them to enhance their strength, while the very small handful that embraced their gift used it when they needed it. None of them flaunted that they were spellcasters. Talish was one of the former. He'd been orphaned at a young age and when his gift was discovered, one of the thugs that had plucked him off the street to pickpocket for him used it to his advantage, forcing him to do things with it that Talish was ashamed of and never spoke of to anyone, save First Knight Mathros Palini. The Paladins found him after he'd purposely botched one of the missions and was nearly beaten to death by the thug. They rescued him and Mathros himself took the boy under his wing. Talish resented his gift and blamed it for his misfortunes as a child. A rustling pulled him from his thoughts and he placed a hand on his sword.