#zeh'ave

[awritingcaitlin]

Rinnie is entirely unconcerned about her previously broken arm. That's theramancers for you.

“What happened to you?” Zeh’ave asked.

“Oh, broke my arm,” Rinnie said. “Someone stepped on it.”

“And your shirt?”

“They had to cut that to put my arm back together,” Rinnie replied around a mouthful of roll. “Shame, too, I like this shirt.”

“I shit you not, I’m actually good at mending torn clothing,” Zeh’ave said.

“How?” Rinnie asked. “You make your clothing out of your spirit essence.”

“I needed a hobby at one point,” Zeh’ave said. “Just remembered it.”

“Well, okay then.”

#my writing #cure for the queen #rinnie #zeh'ave

[forevermagik]

Worldbuilding June Day 16

Magic! Oh man can I talk about magic all day! Like... really... I can... so buckle your seatbelts and prepare for this ride!

Magic used to be intrinsic on Tyrysius, and even now, though magic is not nearly as prevalent, it’s still a very real deal on Tyrysius and everything somehow manages to relate back to magic. 

Population of the planet: ~300,000,000

Percentage of fully-fledged mages: 1 in 1000. So about 300,000 on the whole planet.

Of the remaining ~299,700,000 people on the planet: probably only 1 in 10,000 of them have not a single drop of magic at all. 

Everyone else has some degree of magic. Even if it’s only enough to produce a really clear image on a telestone, or they can light candles but that’s it, or they have faster-than-average reflexes. 

You’ll see lots of small time mages that are good at one or two particular things. Say they happen to be really good at making shields, or their telekinesis is unrivaled. Something.

Magic is hard on Tyrysius. It requires a massive amount of energy to come from the caster, or for some sort of material to share the cost. Magic is gritty. Even healing isn’t nice and clean. 

A mage’s power level is pretty set, not counting power fluctuations during puberty. Children might seem to have more power, but it’s usually a lack of control, they meant to light the candle, but instead lit the curtains. Divine intervention can, of course, change this. Regardless of the amount of juice a mage has, the longer they live, the more control they get in the areas they can and do practice. Fully-fledged elf mages over 500 years old are scary. Fully-fledged elf mages over 1000 years old are scarier. 

Mages can always tell if another mage is nearby if they bother to look. However, lesser presences can go unnoticed in the presence of other magics nearby. The ability to sense magical auras is an art worth refining. With enough looking, mages can sense magical workings, pinpoint magical constructs, and other similar conventions.

[For example, Rinnie can see the shield over Berthingtonn with only a little extra effort. When she starts actively searching for magical auras in general, the shield is a constant thing around her.]

Elemental magic is one of the most obvious manifestations of magic. Pyromancy is the magic of fire. Hydromancy is the magic of water. Aeromancy is the magic of air. Tyrnamancy (named after Tyrysius) is the magic of the earth. Cryomancy is the magic of cold and freezing. Thermomancy is the magic specifically of heat and warmth. Though the term cryomancy is used when ice is involved, thermomancy is disappearing in favor of simple pyromancy. Astrapimancy is the magic of electricity. Some people can only tap into one element. Among those people, some mages are stronger than others. Other people can utilize multiple elements, to varying degrees of intensity. 

[Rinnie is really good at pyromancy. She’s also good at hydromancy and is working on her astrapimancy. Julian is purely a pyromancer.] 

There are also magics like fosimancy-the magic of light, skotamancy-the magic of darkness (this one isn’t very common anymore actually), dynamancy-the magic of force. These magics in general are less common because people don’t put practice into them due to them being highly specialized and therefore other types of magic (and thus expenses of energy) can be used to make close approximations. 

Backing up a little though, elementals inherently can use some of their element’s magic. Or something really close to it anyway. A lot of elementals are mages, but some aren’t. Some are actually really powerful mages and can achieve spells and types of magic well beyond things that relate to their element. 

[Zeh’ave, for example, though she is very good at spells involving air and lightning (a permutation of air and fire), can also do strict pyromancy as well as other spells like telekinesis and object-summoning.]

Healing magic is called theramancy. Theramancers aren’t terribly common. Only fully-fledged mages can be theramancers (though not all choose to.) But there are enough of them to create a “There’s Always a Healer” mentality. People are thus much less concerned about small injuries. I’ll get more into this tomorrow with medicine. Interestingly, Berthingtonn only has half a dozen theramancers and they are highly aware of their own shortage. The University of Himmelmauer has the highest-ranked theramancers in the world. All theramancers in Edanshe have to go to medical school through the military, so the doctors can be called upon at any point for wartime. Like I was saying earlier, healing is gritty. Theramancy forces the body to go through the healing process much faster than it was prepared to do. Things like bullets can get sealed inside if they’re not removed before the theramancer closes the wound. Oftentimes, it’s best if a theramancer works alongside a non-magical doctor so mistakes like this don’t get made.

Necromancy is not generally practiced in most civilizations. That said, no one’s going to stop a battle mage from inflicting a pain spell or using a spell that functions like a knife wound. Raising corpses on the battlefield is really hard and impractical.

Psychomancy is a complicated area. Telepathy is common practice among mages. Mage couples and families will often have entire conversations in their heads for an extra degree of privacy and it takes as much effort as talking, so why not? Legally speaking, telepathic conversations are treated as private conversation and cannot be brought into court as evidence as anything more than hearsay. Mind-reading is generally frowned upon, though that doesn’t stop psychologists from doing it in certain situations anyway. Forcibly going into someone’s mind and changing the way they think is illegal in most countries--but not Perinathia and Eswaisil. 

Illusions and glamours happen. I wouldn’t consider it common, but making something appear as something it’s not does indeed happen. There’s not really a true invisibility spell, more like a blending-in spell. The thing about illusions is that all it takes is a stronger mage to see through it and break it down if they so choose. 

Personal shields are common. Most mages if they have the juice will learn how to make one just as a matter of personal safety. Shields can be anything from a small quarter-dome of solidified air and magic to a fully anchored-to-the-ground globe surrounding the caster and others surrounding them if they choose. The shields can be used to repel magical and/or physical attacks. In order for it to stop all sorts of attacks, the shield has to have an elemental component, and a spiritual component. 

A shield to cover a whole battalion, or even something as small as a squadron is nearly impossible. Once they start getting that big, they require large amounts of mages with crystals and whatnot for augmentation. 

On a larger scale, we have the shields around entire towns in Schmiedland, Perinathia, the Yurels, etc. To include the giant shields over cities like Himmelmauer, Shaddrach, and Haedleign. And then there’s Berthingtonn’s legendary shield...

There’s also circles and wards. Circles can be created to keep some sort of energy or physical mass in, or the same things out. Wards can let the caster know when someone’s crossed it, prevent the person from crossing a threshold to begin with, and similar manners of things. Additionally, there are spells to muffle conversations or make it seem like the conversation is something else (such spells use a bit of illusory magic.) 

Telekinesis is the magic of moving things with your mind. Mages can use telekinesis to carry heavy things or make backpacks seem lighter. Ironically, however, if the backpack is on their own back, the spell will take more energy than it would to just lug the weight of a backpack. Mages in the military have been known to put up a telekinesis spell to lighten others’ packs in exchange for not carrying one of their own, however. 

[Rinnie uses telekinesis frequently. Not the bit about backpacks, but having suitcases trail behind her with a mixture of telekinesis and maybe aeromancy for additional steering and control. Whenever she does her gunsmithing, she has the tools hover in front of her face so she never has to touch anything hot.] 

Teleportation is illegal in most societies. It’s also highly dangerous and that’s why it’s illegal. If not careful, the teleporting mage can splice themself into a building, or another person--instantly killing all involved. Civilized countries have realized this and put laws in place. Granted, it’s hard to catch someone teleporting and often the punishment for teleporting is miscalculating where they’re going and they end up dead anyway.  

A loophole to this, however, is if a mage has the juice and the inclination, they may summon small belongings of theirs to them on a whim over short distances. This spell must be highly refined and practiced frequently, however. Powerful enough elementals will do this to keep their belongings intact after they’ve dissipated. 

Stasis spells are useful for keeping flowers “blooming” for longer periods of time, or keeping evidence in it’s current state before examination, etc. They’re incredibly useful. Certain medically-induced comas involve stasis so that the body doesn’t deteriorate before it can be seen. However, it requires a lot of theramancy to achieve. 

Time travelling is not achievable. Time slowing and hastening is, but after seeing what it can do when compounded over many years and people (generally soldiers) are dying faster because they spent so much time on the battlefield being hastened, the practice fell out of vogue. 

Summoning magic is something that many mages can do, but most fully-fledged or otherwise powerful mages choose not to because there are other things they could be using the energy for. Mages who are strictly summoners are in high demand to summon spirits to power spiritech. 

Oracles aren’t very common at all. Within the 300,000 fully-fledged mages, ~30 of those are oracles. ~10 of them will be fully functional people with little issues. Oracles are very likely to go bonkers. Often they will die in infancy. Even more will die during teenage suicide. If they make it past that, they’re either going to be bonkers in a good way or a bad way. The older an oracle gets, the better coping mechanisms they have. Countries like to track and horde their oracles. Oftentimes, oracles will end up working for the military or the government. 

Though the combustion engine has been created, airplanes are still powered entirely by magic. Fighter aircraft are usually controlled by an astrapimancer or two. When Killian was a pilot in the military, he flew the aircraft while two astrapimancers powered it. Aircraft powerers are generally mages who didn’t have the juice to be a full battle mage or a battle mage pilot. They usually specialize in astrapimancy because that’s where the quick aircraft are. Mages who can’t specialize in astrapimancy, but instead say, pyromancy, end up working on bigger ships with bigger engines. 

Battle Mages are terrifying beings. They are fully-fledged mages or at least something close. They learn all they can about of the art of destructive magic and also the art of supporting magic. There is specific training dedicated to “this is how you kill, and if you see a mage on the other side, you better make that mofo a target.” Mages will go for the other mages and entire battles can be lost or won depending on what went down between the mages. A lot of what combat mages do is cancel each other out. Spells, counterspells, and things like that. Battle mages have to be able to think really quickly and have fast reflexes. They have to protect the troops while also get past the mage who’s doing the exact same thing on the other side. Full-fledged mages tend to be officers. One element people can show up everywhere.

Battle Mage Pilots are worse than terrifying. These guys are the guys who can power their engines, cast spells while travelling 600kts in the air, and still do everything else in the plane. They’re utilizing communication and conventional weapons, too. They’re the most dangerous guys on the battlefield. As soon as one notices that something is wrong with another mage’s shields, that weakness is getting attacked by whatever can be thrown at them. 

[The Queen of Schmiedland has enough juice to have become a Battle Mage Pilot, but her airsickness case prevented her from becoming an effective pilot. She moved to a “ground” job on the big battleships in the ocean as a Battle Mage/Commander there.]

Most magitech is created in a way that allows everyone, even the people who don’t have an ounce of juice in their blood, to use. Most runes to enhance weapons enhance the weapon and not the person, so they’re usable. (Though there are some personalization runes that do require the user to have some magic.) 

Runes in general aren’t really magitech. They’re simply enhancing enchantments that has a physical object as a focus and a driver. Runes can be for protection, for small enchantments like making a gun keep from overheating, or keeping a coat from staining. 

Telestones are created to be used by everyone. People with less magic have fuzzy images in greys and sepias. People with more magic can refine the size of the projection, make it clearer, make it in full color, etc. If one person in a conversation is a powerful mage, they can enhance the connection on the other end if they think about it. 

City shields are managed by engineers magical and not. 

Targeting systems in aircraft and military vehicles will have the standard sights, but then mages will have the option of projecting a holosight in front/around them, if they choose to expend the energy. 

Alchemists are an in-between sort of mage. They have juice, but their “magic” is best expressed in the enchanting and imbuing of potions, serums, medicines, poisons, and bombs. Most countries require you have an “Alchemists Licence” to practice their craft and sell their wares since there are so many things that can go into alchemy. Mica’s family takes great pride in the tried and trueness of their recipes. 

Alchemy works alongside other magic. In medicine, alchemists are able to make personalized prescriptions for patients at the doctor’s request. Alchemists in the military are good at whipping things together quickly. Sometimes their creations are sanctioned, other times they’re squashed. Many merchant families with alchemists (including several Dwarf Trading Clans) will sell alchemical creations alongside more conventional ones. Mica’s family in particular has several alchemists and thus they have a lot more alchemy than the average merchant. 

Alchemy isn’t as gritty as magic in some regards. It can produce pretty miraculous results and much of true alchemy does have an actual affect on the body. Of course, many “alchemists” will sell placebo wares and make a lot of money off it. Barring that, alchemy is a great bridge when there isn’t a mage nearby. Alchemy can also be achieved with less energy expended because there are so many ingredients to share the cost. 

Divine magic is the one type of magic that seems effortless to the various beings on the planet. That’s because the gods have vastly more amounts of magic than the average person. Still, many gods will feel large expenses of power. Divine magic is magic on the large scale. Berthingtonn’s Wall and Shield were Divine in nature. Portal bags were achieved through divine magic, because an interdimensional bag that can move around but hold way more than it should is not something that the average wizard could create today. 

Divine intervention is generally believed to be something that happens infrequently these days. However, there are several instances of it on Tyrysius if you know where to look.

Astrals, every one of them from the kid who’s great-great-great-great-great-great-great-granddad was someone’s angel and she’s just so happened to spout a couple of traits, to the halfsie who’s mom is literally a demon and he’s got a lot of demonic traits roaring around in him. These are the people that others look to for answers about the gods. Even the ones who do eventually ascend to full angels or demons don’t have the answers. Or if they get them they don’t share. All astrals can utilize some sort of divine or extraplanar magic--sometimes they just don’t know how they do it. Some astrals end up being very powerful mages, some are just assholes who can do a lot of little things with no effort expended, and some are low-time mages whose magic only works the way they want it to sometimes. 

I also want to mention that sometimes mages can do magic where instead of pulling from their energy reserves, they bet the spell on their life force. Utilizing one’s life force in the spell makes it a lot more powerful and infinitely more likely to succeed. It’s not something mages want to do frequently, because they’ll kill themselves doing this. Elves are more likely to do it than humans because elves have more life to live. 

#magik writes #wbj2017 #worldbuildingjune #rinnie #killian #mica #zeh'ave #the queen of schmiedland

[awritingcaitlin]

A scene years in the making...

Riela took another sip of water. “I didn’t work for Mama Cass for ten years for nothing,” she said.

“Mmm,” Reyna said. “And what did the Great Abbess teach you?”

Riela smirked and licked her lips. She stood and grabbed her tenth shot, plus a few extras from on the table that other people weren’t going to take. She carefully placed the shot glasses between the fingers of her right hand, canting it so that the shot held between her third and fourth fingers was the highest, and the one between her thumb and forefinger was the lowest.

“This I’ve got to see,” Zeh’ave murmured.

Riela tilted her hand carefully above her mouth, angling it in such a way that the liquor from the top glass fell into the second glass, which then fell into the third, then the fourth before pouring into her mouth. She did the entire trick so smoothly, and just slow enough so that everyone could see.

A single drop gathered on the rim of the bottom glass. Riela licked it off and winked at Adler.

#my writing #cure for the queen #riela #zeh'ave #nathaniel

[awritingcaitlin]

Ciara is a mage, but she doesn't think about the specifics

“Hang onto this so you can be inside the shield,” she said. “Sorry because I know that’s inconvenient, but it’s the best we can do until they can reprogram the shields.”

“How long will that be?” Zeh’ave asked.

“I dunno,” Ciara scoffed. “Do I look like a shield mage to you?”

“Is it spiritech?” Rinnie asked.

“Fuck if I know,” Ciara replied.

#my writing #cure for the queen #ciara #zeh'ave #rinnie

[awritingcaitlin]

✨Rinnie is a sassy sorceress who doesn't ever want to admit she had feelings ever. But she is also bamf and capable of healing magic, though she'd much rather light stuff on fire.

📙Nathaniel the poor tired grad student who is also a Marine on a mission. He *doesn't* get paid enough for this and just wants that nice peaceful life. It would be such a shame if a war were to happen...

🔪Riela, my knife-wielding barmaid who knows way more about religion than she lets on. She has about 50 million secrets from her past so good luck figuring them all out. But she's also a hopeless romantic who dreams of getting swept off her feet.

🍺Killian, Captain of the Queen's Guard. On a mission to save said dying Queen. Has a YOLO attitude and pulls no punches. He also never seems to sleep for very long.

📘Taryn, Rinnie's bodyguard with benefits. Never actually intended to get feelings. Ended up in way over her head in a few things. Wicked smart and perceptive.

🧪Mica, resident kooky alchemist. Took a cognizance potion that one time and now her brain has filing cabinets inside for all sorts of information. Very good at chemical and alchemical reactions. Escaped from pirates, does *not* want to go home and get married.

🍎 Paul, the soft-spoken Marine who doesn't feel it is appropriate to take on too much responsibility, but will step up should the occasion come up. He grew up on a farm and is an apple cider snob.

🍻 Mama Cass, the wise sage. Older than she looks. Older than seems possible. She knows what kind of drink you want without asking. Unbelievably kind. Seen it all before. Her face holds a smile and doesn't seem to know how to do anything else.

⭐Ilani my beloved oracle. She has visions of the future and knows what will come true. Yet she does not let this hold her back. She is loving and unbelievably patient. She has such a rigid set of morals that has never let her down.

👊 Roderick, the man who punched an admiral and still got a commission. He plays a mean game of Royal Will. Such a strategist. Plays darts when he's thinking.

🧝‍♂️ Kanjo, the character who changed entire arcs with his inclusion. The dirty mage who can brawl with the best then clean up and be a gentleman - sometimes. Perpetually a staff NCO. A realist. Drives fast motorcycles.

🧝‍♀️Kiyo my darling bartender. Who can mix a drink whole only half paying attention. Who can make sushi in her sleep. Who knows that the ocean will take your cares away. Who was creating whirlpools and waterspouts by age twelve. Dirty mage tricks.

🌠Thea. Woman on a mission. Believes she's doing the right thing. Immensely powerful. Older than she looks and she looks immortal. But she has dark secrets no one can know. And she begs forgiveness from the one who does.

🟡Cael. Protector. Warrior. Quiet. He's an incredibly smart tactician. You will never beat him at chess. He's seen it all and more. Will follow those he loves to the death.

🌟Ciara, my darling child. I say, knowing she's in her 30s. Brute force magic. Very powerful. Can weaponize her magic to deadly degrees. No shame. Looks like she can kill you and will actually kill you. Fiercely protective. Loves deeply. Dreams of settling down one day.

🌬️Zeh'ave, the air elemental with amnesia. Does not remember who she was before. Had to learn how to function again and still does not have full control of her powers. Lightning fast with magic, has a strong sense of self preservation.

💙Lily, the kick ass demonic astral. Can shapeshift but prefers her resting form in it's blue, tailed, horned, and hooved glory. Did a huge service to the state when she was younger. Was raised on the streets but knows how to pretend to be proper.

😈Ashora, another kick ass demonic astral. Lives as a mercenary. Styles her hair around her horns. Super strong, super fast. Loves the adventure.

🔫Cami, the prisoner. Currently in a high security prison for her supposed safety because no one knows what to do about the fact that she's possessed by a dragon.

⚕️Aravae, the doctor who has learned to play ruthless political games in order to survive. She knows the ins and outs of political, legal, and medical spheres. Looks like a cinnamon roll, probably won't kill you. Hates direct confrontation. Will end the fight.

👧🏾Janna, sweet Janna. Giggly and boisterous. Just wants to set herself apart from her large family. Always kind, very perceptive.

👦🏽 Adrian, the quiet cook. Young and wide eyed. Dreams of a better future. Bakes really good bread. Saving up money for someone special.

🧒🏼Sean, the even quieter waiter. Works the graveyard shift. His day starts around noon and he goes straight from closing up the tavern to the fish market to buy fish for the next day. Lives at the tavern though, so it makes it easier.

#my characters #rinnie #nathaniel #riela #killian #taryn #mica #mama cass #paul #ilani #roderick #kanjo #kiyo #thea #cael #ciara #zeh'ave #lily #ashora #cami #aravae #janna #adrian #sean

[awritingcaitlin]

[Z] 🤩 FACE WITH STARRY EYES — is your oc a planner, or are they more spontaneous in their actions?

Zeh'ave is spontaneous but she wants to be a planner. Like she is built to be a planner but she absolutely cannot remember a plan to save her neck so she ends up being spontaneous.

In her immense defense, she does have brain damage.

However, if someone gives her a plan, she will be able to stick to it for the duration of the plan.

Thanks for asking! Zeh'ave was a really interesting one to have this question on.

OC Detail Asks

#ask games #oc details #zeh'ave

[awritingcaitlin]

📝 find the word tag 📝

I was tagged a while ago by @pinespittinink with the words: above, bloom, crystal, sun, and wrist. (Thank you for the tag I do love doing these!!!)

All snippets are from Cure for the Queen (Not currently working on this one but I am thinking about it fondly.)

💨ABOVE💨

Killian opened up the door across the hall to the cabin the others had set up in.

“Well, isn’t that a sight,” he mused.

“I think the air elemental is broken,” Kanjo said.

Nathaniel looked around the others to see what was going on. It required that he look up, however. Though one of the beds was already set up, Zeh’ave was not sleeping on it. Rather, she was sleeping nearly affixed to the ceiling, like a helium balloon.

“Aren’t air elementals supposed to not do that?” Mica asked, cocking her head to one side.

“Generally speaking, yes,” Killian chuckled. “They risk floating away. Some of them, however, clearly don’t care.”

He reached over and poked Zeh’ave on the shoulder. She stirred slightly. Her eyes opened and she seemed completely unsurprised that she floated even above Killian’s eye-level.

🥀BLOOM🥀

Zeh’ave came and stopped before her.

“Are you okay, hon?” she asked. “Did you get hit?”

Rinnie swallowed and straightened. “No, I didn’t get hit. It’s just…” she massaged her right temple while pressing the hockey stick to her left.

“Do you need to sit out?” Zeh’ave asked.

Rinnie thought about sitting out. But then she realized that was just an invitation to let the voice continue talking. Instead, she focused on something her mother had told her. That she always bloomed where she was planted. And, sure, hockey was an afternoon and not a duty station, but she could figure it out. Or at least try.

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I can figure this out.”

Mica squealed and there was a little bit of cheering. It took Rinnie several seconds to realize that they’d scored a goal.

“Guess we’re resetting,” Zeh’ave said. Then she skated off.

💎CRYSTAL💎

Riela was trying not to be completely mortified that she was looking at little crystals for the purpose of it becoming birth control. She knew that functionally, this would work the same as the Potion, and would actually be more effective in the long run.

“How long will this last?” Riela asked.

“I tell people a year, it’s probably longer.”

“You don’t know for sure?”

“We would make them at Temple for people all the time,” Rinnie explained. “And we’d tell people a year, in part so that we could get more money when they came back for a new one or for us to re-enchant, and in part to protect our asses against anyone saying it stopped working early. But it’ll definitely work for a year.”

That was an interesting fact about Evianne’s Temples Riela knew now.

🔆SUN🔆

After another half an hour or so of walking, Kanjo noticed the cold seeping through his boots. He wiggled his toes a little, channeling some heat through them. He’d need to be careful not to spend too much energy on this. However, he didn’t like the idea of hypothermia, either. He didn’t have fancy theramancy to recover from that by himself.

Killian started a call-and-answer marching chant. Something to pass the time, make the walk go faster. It didn’t get Kanjo’s mind off of Rin, however. Not when it was obvious she was in pain again now that they were walking.

The bar song turned into a shanty, back to a chant. The sun was high overhead. It reflected off the snow, making Kanjo squint.

They kept walking.

⚡WRIST⚡

Rinnie pressed her back to the column and took a second to breathe. They’d made it to the great room, where there was quite the scrum.

“Fuck that air elemental in particular,” she grunted. She was not that good with lightning.

“Can you get him with fire?” Taryn hissed.

“He’s too fast.”

As she spoke, a lightning bolt shot passed her left arm. She cringed.

Then she had to control herself from jumping as lightning came from overhead.

Except, it wasn’t aimed at her. It was aimed in the direction the first bolt of lightning came from.

“Hi,” Zeh’ave said.

Rinnie’s eyebrows tried to join her hairline. She hadn’t expected Zeh’ave to show up.

Zeh’ave smirked, as if she’d known that was what was going through Rinnie’s head.

She twitched her wrist and sent another bolt of lightning.

Tagging: @muddshadow, @kashacreates, @tananaphone, @sentfromwolves, and anyone else who wants to do it! Your words are: open, stop, look, heat, and breathe.

#tag game #my writing #cure for the queen #killian #kanjo #nathaniel #zeh'ave #mica #rinnie #riela #taryn

[awritingcaitlin]

🎵Find the Word Game🎵

Thank you @sentfromwolves for the tag!

My words are: prey, break, smooth, pour, and needle

I'll be tagging @jess-p-edits, @circa-specturgia, @italicised, @botanistweak, and @sentfromwolves (reverse uno!) for the words: stutter, safe, starve/starving, sea, strum

Snippets are from Cure for the Queen under the cut!

🎶NEEDLE🎶

It wasn’t ice.

“Hoarfrost.” Killian spoke the word like a swear.

The phonograph in the corner stuttered. Zeh’ave looked over and saw the ice travel along the metallic parts, freezing the needle and scratching the poor record.

She breathed a couple of shallow breaths. The air was dry and painful. She contemplated briefly about going outside, but the metallic door to the outer platform was now frozen tight. Her body felt like she was being sucked dry.

“Either that hoarfrost wasn’t contained properly,” Killian said. “Or that’s how this heist is getting started.”

.

🥐PREY(ING)🥐

“We could go to Himmelmauer though,” Thea said. “We have a safehouse there to teleport into.”

Cael narrowed his eyes. “Why is that so tempting?”

“Because you just came out of major surgery and are starving,” she pointed out.

“Are you preying on a man when he’s weak?” Cael asked.

“Perhaps,” Thea said with the barest hint of a shrug. “But I do like to keep my word and I did say that I owed you.”

.

🚂BREAK(ING)🚂

“How did the attack on the train start?”

“One second I was relaxing in the back lounge, the next, the train came to a halting stop and then it was cold. Or maybe it was cold first and then the train stopped.”

“Okay,” the man said. “You remembered that fine enough. Who started shooting first?”

“Now that,” Zeh’ave said. “I don’t remember. I was mostly hiding out in a cabin trying to keep my essence from freezing and breaking off into tiny, tiny pieces.”

The soldier did not look amused at her description. She leveled him with a flat gaze. What was he honestly expecting to get from her? She knew jack squat.

.

💖SMOOTH💖

Rinnie went over to Mica’s bag and knelt down on the floor with it. She might have stolen clean clothes from Temple last night but they weren’t fit for whatever it was Killian was likely planning. And the clothes she’d been wearing before that were definitely dirty.

Seashells, Rinnie thought, using the password Kanjo had set up for her to access her things in the portal bag. Highly appropriate, all things considered.

She pulled out one of her nicer blouses, a layered skirt, a clean pair of stockings, and a fresh bra. She got dressed and went to the washroom with her toiletry bag to freshen up.

One look in the mirror and she grimaced at her hair. It was trying to go a dozen different directions and was still too short to look any sort of decent in her opinion. She dampened it and tried to smooth it into a consistent direction.

.

🎵POUR🎵

The music started changing slowly as Killian adjusted the tune to a reel. The other musicians kept up surreally. The fiddler picked up an accordion and joined in on that. Oh, to be versed in multiple instruments.

More people began to get up and dance. Rinnie sipped some more of her drink, waiting for the opportune moment. She tapped her foot to get a true feel for the music.

Killian looked right at her, the music continuing to pour out of him it seemed. He dared her to come back to the dance floor. Rinnie licked her lips hungrily.

The guitar strummed an enticing melody and Rinnie set her drink down. She took one step forward and the music seemed to slow. Killian bowed back and forth in short movements, almost lazily. His eyes shown and he anticipated her next move.

She looked away, playing coy. She stepped deliberately to the dance floor and then made her way to the center. Other people slowed, and even stopped to watch her.

Good. She lived to captivate an audience.

#find the word #tag game #my writing #cure for the queen #killian #zeh'ave #thea #cael #rinnie

[awritingcaitlin]

More than Anything Else

“How do you just get to an aircraft?” Rinnie asked. “Wouldn’t Kaniel do something to block them off?”

“Our beloved director got rid of all the pilots because he assumed he couldn’t trust us,” Johanna said.

“He would be correct,” Killian mused.

“He also hasn’t replaced us yet because it’s hard to replace pilots and air crew,” Johanna continued. “The rest of it comes down to pilot culture.”

“It’s because pilots and their crews all trust each other more than anything else,” Zeh’ave piped up.

-for @nosebleedclub's February writing prompt 26. more than anything

#writeblr #writeblr community #writing community #fantasy #sff #my writing #writing prompt answers #cure for the queen #killian #rinnie #zeh'ave

[awritingcaitlin]

writers self love day 6

for @writeblrfantasy‘s prompt: clothing

This one requires a bit of set up:

Riela stepped out. Her dress had the fashionable corseted look, a square neckline, elbow-length sleeves, and a gentle flair to the skirt. It looked gorgeous on Riela and she wouldn’t need to get it tailored either. Rinnie almost felt jealous.

Riela turned to show the back. “I probably could have laced it tighter.”

“You did a good job,” Mica said.

“It looks great,” Rinnie said.

“I don’t usually wear red,” Riela said, biting her lip. “Do you think I stand out too much.”

Rinnie laughed. “Not anymore than anyone else will. Trust me.”

Riela smiled. “I figured you would know.” She looked at herself in the mirror and ran her hands down the fabric. “It’s not too frivolous?” she asked. “I might not even be able to go.”

“Buy the dress,” Rinnie said. “It looks too good on you not to.”

Riela smiled in the mirror. “Okay,” she said. She smoothed the skirts one last time, then ducked back into the dressing room to change.

The above scene is from Siege of Berthingtonn (Book 2) where Riela’s buying the dress to wear to a gala she never got to go to. The dress almost got left behind when they fled Berthingtonn, but Mica grabs it last minute:

Rinnie’s room had been cleared of everything of value. Same with Nate and Paul and Killian’s rooms. Mica went to Riela’s room last, but wasn’t sure what to pack from there .The room already looked like it had been gone through. Then Mica noticed the red dress hanging on a peg by the door, almost as if Riela had tried it on recently.

“Ooh, she’ll be so mad if that gets left behind,” Mica said, taking it off its hanger.

She folded it loosely and put it in the bag. Satisfied she was being helpful, she trounced back downstairs.

Then in Cure for the Queen (Book 3) we get this:

Riela happened to be wearing a green shirt already. It wasn’t “Schmiedland-green,” but it was still green, just lighter.

“Pity that nice dress of yours is red,” Mica mused.

“Mica, I left that dress at the Tom.” Riela shook her head with a small pang of regret. “It’s long gone now.”

“No it’s not!” Mica said. “I packed it!”

“What?” Riela asked.

Mica started rummaging around in the bag. “Yeah, when I went back to the Tom because I’d forgotten something, I did a quick check of all of our rooms to see if anyone else had forgotten anything. And I saw your dress just hanging there and figured that since I didn’t have to worry about space…”

She pulled the dress in question out. Riela gasped.

Which then gets us to this scene later in the chapter:

“Holy shit,” Nathaniel breathed.

“What?” Zeh’ave asked.

He didn’t respond, but she followed his gaze back to Riela. It took Zeh’ave an extra second to realize what was special. Riela was wearing a flowing red dress that looked a bit more formal than what was really called for, but if her intent was to get a reaction out of her boyfriend by doing so, she was getting it.

Lol, so that’s super elaborate and everything, but I just love that this all came together like this.

#my writing #writing prompts #writeblr #writeblr community #writing community #siege of berthingtonn #cure for the queen #riela #rinnie #mica #nathaniel #zeh'ave #12 days of writers self love

[awritingcaitlin]

👀find the word tag👀

@muddshadow was tagging passersby with the words clear, cold, crisp, crush, carry and I really love doing these so here we go:

These are all from Cure the Queen (Book 3) since that’s where I could find the word CRISP anywhere. Also, CtQ has better cold vibes.

CLEAR

Rinnie jabbed herself with the glucose shot and followed it with one of Mica’s Go serums. She was forcing her body to do more than it was ever designed to do. This might be more than she’d ever asked it to do ever. Including med school.

If she wasn’t careful, she was going to burn herself out. But also she couldn’t stop either. They were too close. There was too much at stake.

But she couldn’t burn out either.

The mages who weren’t also theramancers were starting to get bruises on their arms where they were jabbing themselves. Rinnie noted that even one of the corpsman had a few bruises on his arms that weren’t healing yet. Her own skin was still clear. For now.

COLD

Rinnie made her way to where the washroom was at the front of the car, since economy only had the one, not two like first class did.

It was vacant when she got there, so she let herself in and did a double-take in the mirror. She’d seen her hair pulled back before, but the braids were something else. They made her look, somehow, younger. Her ears were incredibly prominent with her hair pulled away. But she relished the compliments that she’d looked nice, and like her father’s daughter.

You have no idea what the blood can do that runs in your veins…

The voice left chills rolling down her spine and Rinnie was quick to turn on the sink and splash cold water on her face. All things considered, that was not the worst thing the voice could have said. It was cryptic and made her think.

But she didn’t want the voice in her head anymore either.

You have been blessed, child. Come to accept that.

Rinnie fought the sudden desire to punch the mirror. It was time to get back to everyone else before she went bonkers by herself. She pulled out her hemp vaper and took a long pull to calm what she could of her nerves.

CRISP

Her telestone pulsed, interrupting her from reading a time-bending plot that she was hoping wasn’t going to be too predictable.

She was surprised to find that it was Cael calling, rather than Mistress Thea.

“And to what do I owe this pleasure?” she asked as she answered.

“There’s something wrong with Thea,” Cael answered.

“Skipping the pleasantries, I see,” Miera mused.

More importantly, however, she noticed how his voice sounded raspy. And his collar was sitting weird. She narrowed her eyes.

“What, exactly, is wrong with our Mistress?” Miera asked.

“I don’t have an answer to that yet, which is why I’m calling you back for help.”

“What happened to your voice?”

“Training accident.”

The words were too crisp, too practiced. It was the cover up for what really happened. Miera pressed her tongue up against the backs of her front teeth, thinking.

“I take it that you mean this isn’t some physical malady then,” Miera said.

CRUSH

Ciara’s heart pounded. She didn’t bother looking through the peephole. Rinnie’s aura was a wild ride from start to finish and it’d been too long since Ciara had felt it pressed against her.

She opened the door excitedly. Rinnie was indeed standing at her front door.

“You’re back!” Ciara exclaimed.

Rinnie looked well. Her curls looked like a semi-sentient halo falling around her face. They were shorter than they’d been in the past.

Rinnie smiled at Ciara. “Go on,” she teased. “Get the part where you squeeze the life out of me out of the way.”

Ciara threw her arms around the elf woman and brought her into a bone-crushing hug. The foot in height difference meant that Ciara lifted Rinnie up by a bit. Still, Rinnie threw her arms around Ciara in return and squeezed with all her might. It was cute.

“We thought you dead,” Ciara said, unable to keep the thought from coming out of her mouth.

Rinnie shrugged. “That bit was a lot overstated.”

CARRY

“Hey,” Riela said quietly, trying to get Rinnie’s attention.

Rinnie didn’t respond.

Riela knew that she could carry her, she’d done it before. With a grimace she slid into position.

“Need help?” Zeh’ave asked.

“If she lights up, stop it,” Riela grunted, hoisting Rinnie up. It was hard without Nathaniel to help her.

“If she lights up with fire, I can’t,” Zeh’ave said.

“Fuck,” Riela swore. She got Rinnie up into the proper carry and began hobbling back to the cabin. Unlike before, when Rinnie was passed out from caster’s fatigue, she was not just dead weight this time. Her body kept convulsing and Riela had to struggle to keep her grip.

But, she didn’t try to cast anything in her sleep either.

I’m tagging @muddshadow, @pinespittinink, @sentfromwolves, @carrotblr, and anyone else who wants to with the words: bed, blanket, breath, bag, and before!

#tag game #my writing #cure the queen #rinnie #cael #miera #ciara #zeh'ave #riela

[awritingcaitlin]

🔍Find the Word Tag Game👀

Tagged once again by @mjjune on the dash with the words pill, slip, fabric, mist, necklace

Snippets are from Cure for the Queen! (Book 3).

Tagging @mjjune, @mr-writes, @saphoblin, and anyone else who wants to do this!

💃🏻SLIP💃🏻

“A round of Schmiedish Army Number Three for all the musicians!” Rinnie shouted. “My treat!” She turned to Zeh’ave. “Let me go settle that at the bar.”

Zeh’ave’s gaze followed Rinnie as she glided across the floor, slipping through patrons both dancing and not to get up to the bar. Zeh’ave herself went back to their table.

“Can she afford to just treat them like that?” Zeh’ave asked Rinnie’s uncle.

“Technically, she could afford to treat the whole tavern,” he answered. “But I’m guessing she remembered that it’s a bank holiday and that she doesn’t have that much cash on hand.”

“Oh,” Zeh’ave said.

🍻FABRIC🍻

The lone bartender, an old woman probably past a hundred, smiled at her over gold-rimmed glasses. She was stooped, but probably taller than Lily if she stood up straight. She wore layered skirts and a blouse, with a thick belt around her waist. Every bit of fabric was colorful.

Lily approached the bar, sliding past a table where an obvious astral of Rial sat. The man had glowing golden eyes, and an actual halo. Rial was a god of justice and purity. His astrals would think similarly. Lily pulled her hood closer and slowly let out a deep breath. She got to the bar and leaned against it.

The bartender came over. “What can I get you?” she asked.

“Um,” Lily paused. She thought about the note, but also knew how thirsty she was. And her stomach growled. She opened her mouth to speak just as the bartender said:  

“A rum and cola it is!”

💧MIST💧

Screeeeeech.

Horns blared. The car swerved. Aravae had enough presence of self to shove all of her notes back into her bag. She dropped the pen though. No matter…

The car came to a shuddering halt. Aravae looked out the window, but didn’t see anything beyond lights and the misting of a scheduled rain.

“What an asshole!” her driver grunted. “They’ll give anyone a license these days!”

“Is the car all right?” Aravae asked. Her heart was pounding in her ears. It took all her effort to keep the tremors in her voice down.

“Yes,” the driver agreed.

“Good,” Aravae said. “Then if there is no reason to linger, we should keep going.”

“Agreed.”

📿NECKLACE📿

“Now let’s go get a chain and some metal to set it in,” Rinnie said. “I’m assuming you want a necklace? Though if you want something else, now’s the time to say.”

“Necklace is fine,” Riela said. She hadn’t thought much about what kind of jewelry the charm would be. “You’re gonna do that?”

Rinnie didn’t strike her as the type to know how to make jewelry.

“Yeah, of course.” Rinnie rolled her eyes. As if she’d read Riela’s mind, she replied, “Jewelry’s not my strong suit, but I have surgeon’s hands.”

💊PILL💊 - CW Drug Usage

Rin carefully reached to the center of the table where the water jug was and poured herself a glass. Then she pulled two pills out of her pocket and downed them. “What are those?” Adler asked.

“A mixture of methadone and clonidine,” Rin replied flatly. “Because withdrawals are a bitch.”

“And you’re just saying that for the world to hear?” Riela said. She looked a little green still, but whatever concoction Mica had given her was working.

“I’ve had a ward up since we sat down at this table,” Rin replied as if she were informing everyone what she had for breakfast. “Anyone around will assume we’re talking about the weather, though I’ll have to feed the spell with new ideas soon, otherwise it’s going to start sounding repetitive.”

“On the bright side, there’s a lot of weather to talk about,” Skythorn pointed out.

#tag game #find the word #my writing #cure for the queen #rinnie #zeh'ave #kanjo #lily #mama cass #aravae #riela #nathaniel

[awritingcaitlin]

contained improperly or

for @nosebleedclub‘s december writing prompt xx. contained

“Is it just me,” Zeh’ave asked. “Or is the train slowing?”

Killian was already sitting up straighter. He looked up at the intercom, though no announcement came out of it. He took a sharp intake of breath and then popped the cap back on his flask. “I’m going to go with either maintenance, weather, or a potential train heist.”

Zeh’ave sighed deeply.

There was a screeching noise as the train came to a shuddering halt. On instinct, Zeh’ave began hovering over the seat. Killian seemed to be prepared for the halt. Mica had to go diving for some scattered papers.

“I’m amending my earlier statement to either accident or train heist,” Killian said, standing up.

Mica stood too, shoving her papers into her bag. Zeh’ave drifted slightly higher. She was intrigued at what might be happening, but was also mildly disappointed that she wasn’t going to spend the rest of the evening getting drunk and snarking in Mica’s general direction.

There was the brief sound of an alarm claxon blaring before it was silenced. In its wake, came a soft crackling noise. The temperature dropped by at least ten degrees and Zeh’ave’s eyes went wide.

Before she could express what she’d noticed, she began to see ice crystals forming along the train’s metal ceiling. The ice traveled along the metal grated center of the car as well, and along the brass handrails.

It wasn’t ice.

“Hoarfrost.” Killian spoke the word like a swear.

The phonograph in the corner stuttered. Zeh’ave looked over and saw the ice travel along the metallic parts, freezing the needle and scratching the poor record.

She breathed a couple of shallow breaths. The air was dry and painful. She contemplated briefly about going outside, but the metallic door to the outer platform was now frozen tight. Her body felt like she was being sucked dry.

“Either that hoarfrost wasn’t contained properly,” Killian said. “Or that’s how this heist is getting started.”

#writeblr #fantasy #writeblr community #writing community #writing prompts #my writing #cure for the queen #killian #zeh'ave

[awritingcaitlin]

Am I running from my problems?

“Do you guys think I’m running away from my family?” Mica asked, out of the blue.

“Where did that come from?” Riela asked.

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. Like, did I make the right choice? Should I have stayed?”

“Pretty sure you’re the only one that can answer that,” Zeh’ave said. “Like, I know it was the right time for me to leave Trotsberg.”

“Yeah, but it’s not like you left behind a family!” Mica argued.

Zeh’ave pursed her lips. “Well, it’s not like I’d remember a family if I had them.”

Another person might have felt bad for bringing that up with Zeh’ave, Mica clearly didn’t notice. “Is this what avoiding my problems looks like? Am I avoiding my problems?”

“Yes,” Nathaniel said.

Right as Riela said, “What problem are you referring to specifically?”

Mica looked at Riela and Nathaniel in shocked horror.

“You guys really think that lowly of me?”

“It’s not that I think lowly of you, Mica,” Riela said. “It’s just that it’s really obvious that you’re running away from whatever family drama you were running away from back when you let the pirates kidnap you.”

Mica gulped visibly.

“Should I go back?” she asked, her voice barely a squeak.

“I don’t think that will solve the problem,” Nathaniel said. “You’ll probably just resent it.”

“You will,” Kanjo said. “You need to figure out what it is you’re actually running away from and then decide what you’re going to do about that.”

Mica licked her lips. “That’s a lot.”

“I’m not saying you have to make amends with your family, gods know I’ve seen some people who drop their families completely because they just don’t agree fundamentally. But you have to decide that for yourself.”

“Yeah,” Riela said. “None of us are going to tell you if you made the right choice coming with us instead of staying with your family.”

“But I will absolutely tell you that you’re running from your problems,” Nathaniel said.

Mica pouted, then sighed. “I guess I have some thinking to do. I’m going to go get some more food.”

@nosebleedclub’s writing prompt ii. i’ve been thinking

#my writing #writeblr #writing community #writeblr community #cure the queen #mica #riela #nathaniel #zeh'ave #kanjo

[awritingcaitlin]

find the word tag (again)

I was tagged in the crossfire by @muddshadow and let me just say thank you because I love doing these.

I’ll be tagging @pinespittinink, @sentfromwolves, @kashacreates and anyone else who wishes to do this! Your words are: WALK, ROOM, LAUGH, FRIEND, and WRONG.

All snippets here are from Cure the Queen! (I did Relic of the Gods last time.)

KIND

They kept walking.

Killian’s posture straightened. He looked behind them.

“What is it?” Adler asked.

“Might be our lucky day,” Killian said. “Smells like whiskey.”

“How can you even tell?” Riela muttered from behind Kanjo.

“How is whiskey going to help us?” Adler asked.

“Because if that’s the kind of truck I think it is,” Killian said. “We might have a ride.”

Kanjo was about to chastise the man on his bullshit, but bit his tongue. Hope could keep them walking for another mile.

Then, off in the distance behind them, Kanjo heard a vehicle approaching. He looked back, but he didn’t see anything yet. They were on a downslope now, limiting visibility behind them.

They walked for another five minutes. Kanjo got a crick in his neck looking back as much as he did. Finally, he caught sight of the truck. It was a giant one, with one of those combustion engines. Kanjo’d known it would have been that type of engine, given how loud the truck was.

Their walking place slowed, but didn’t halt completely. The truck caught up with them in a couple of minutes regardless. Killian flagged it down.

Kanjo got a closer look at the truck. The truck itself had tank treads on the back four drive wheels, and the front two had been replaced with wide skis for steering. The trailer was a flatbed, with one of those canvas coverings. It would hold six giant barrels of whiskey. Two remained.

MISS

“No third room,” Riela said. 

“If you two are trying to share a bed that badly, I don’t mind if you’re sleeping in the same room I’m in,” Rinnie said.

Riela slid into the seat in between Rinnie and Nathaniel. She raised an eyebrow at Rinnie.

“I’m not sure what to think of that,” she said.

Rinnie shrugged. “Can’t speak for Mica though.”

Riela flushed and looked down at her mug. Given everyone else’s sleeping arrangements, Riela and Nathaniel’d had the room to themselves the previous night. They could survive the night not in the same bed.

“Mmm, what’d I miss last night?” Rinnie said.

Riela looked up and saw that Paul was also flushed and trying not to look at the table where the demonic astral woman was sitting.

REALIZE

“Have you guys ever fought an air elemental before?” Zeh’ave called, laughter in her voice.

They all looked between each other, confused and mildly concerned.

“I didn’t think so,” Zeh’ave continued. “Or if you had, you’ve only done it in an enclosed room.”

They still looked confused. Zeh’ave was surprised she’d gotten this far. Maybe they were too shocked from their plan failing. Maybe they were just dumb. She decided she’d lay it all out for them.

“This shield is air permeable, and in a column. That smoke is going to rise up and blow away before it ever causes me a problem.”

The mage revealed himself. All of the men were tall and broad, but what differentiated this man from the other two was that he had hair. Both of the other guys were bald. Mage summoned a ball of crackling blue lightning. He threw it at Zeh’ave.

Zeh’ave laughed. She felt the lightning coming for her and she absorbed its power. The power in the shield was limited and the mage had just given it all to Zeh’ave.

“Lightning won’t do you any good against an air elemental!” she sang.

The mage realized his fuckup and motioned for the other two to get her.  

She needed to break the circle. But it was meant to keep her in. So she needed to get the mage to break the circle.

SAME

“What’s up with your friend anyway?” Ashora asked, looking across to the other cabin. Killian or Kanjo had closed the little blinds, preventing others from looking in half an hour or so ago, but Ashora had seen Rinnie passed out on one of the beds before that.

Nathaniel and Paul exchanged glances. Paul shrugged a little. Nathaniel took in a deep breath and swallowed. Riela pursed her lips.

Ashora cocked an eyebrow, examining the three of them. “And if you tell me that she’s hungover, I won’t believe you, but I’ll accept the answer because maybe it’s not my place to know.”

Nathaniel made the exact same face he made when he’d danced around the subject of being a Marine before he’d told anyone at the Tom. And the first person he’d told was Riela.

“She’s a shell-shocked caster,” Nathaniel said after a moment, with a deep sigh.

Ashora winced. “That’s rough,” she grunted. “Is she seeing someone about it?”

“That’s the plan in Schönestaffel,” Nathaniel answered.

Ashora nodded, satisfied with the answer. “May her troubles ease,” she murmured.

SHOULD

“What’s wrong with your memory?” Rinnie asked. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

There was a lilt to her voice and her face was scrunched up into Zeh’ave shoulder, which Zeh’ave was consciously trying to make more comfortable. Either she was doing a good job or Rinnie had dealt with air elementals before. Or she didn’t care. She was definitely doped out on a lot of things though.

“It’s always been like this,” Zeh’ave said with half a shrug. Killian passed her the flask again. “I remember at one point I was looking for someone. But I couldn’t tell you who they are. So I’ve just made a life for myself with what I do remember.”

“Not remembering things sucks,” Killian said.

“How would you know?” Zeh’ave asked. She took another drink.

He twiddled the metal spar in his fingers.

“Oh, yeah,” Zeh’ave mused. “That would do it. Wish my issues were that simple.”

“If you have a spike in your head, I can take it out,” Rinnie said, her words somewhat slurred now.

“I… don’t,” Zeh’ave said, frowning. “Maybe I shouldn’t pass you the flask.”

Faster than Zeh’ave assumed her capable of, Rinnie grabbed the flask from her. She took a swig, hiccupped, and passed the flask to… Mica! That was her name!

“I should know not to out-drink a Timernan,” Rinnie muttered.

#tag game #my writing #my characters #cure the queen #killian #nathaniel #riela #kanjo #rinnie #mica #zeh'ave #ashora #paul

[awritingcaitlin]

May 16 Prompt: Milk Moon

Once Zeh’ave was sure everyone had vacated the cabins, she exited the train herself.

The difference in temperature was negligible, though, if anything, it was actually warmer outside. Zeh’ave was mostly glad for the ambient moisture in the air. She joined the throng of others, heading northwest up the mountain.

She was impressed that she remembered it was northwest.

Rinnie, or perhaps one of the other mages, had summoned several glowing orbs for light. Just because the moons were both out tonight did not mean their light did much with the forest.

The air definitely felt cleaner outside of the train.

@nosebleedclub

#writeblr #writeblr community #writing community #my wriitng #maywritingprompt #cure the queen #zeh'ave #rinnie