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Dawn’s radiant light spread across the rolling scape of green, while painting the stars that dared peek out from above, with a dim hue of light blue. A great and distant land spanned for miles, it glowed with color, and even the air seemed as though it were thrilled with magic. The essence of life filled the very air. Every breath taken brought a sensation of energy to the corners of any being present, and to those travelers near and far, Camelot’s air was simply energizing.
A breath was taken, clean, crisp... Ahhh. Every breath was a miracle, some sort of simple magic to be thankful for. After all, it’s usually the simple magic in the world, that is the most profound, and it is the most profound things that are easily overlooked.
Gusts of freshly ecstatic wind found themselves tumbling toward an island in the distance, the land, somehow floating high above the ground, was gently swept with the gust of air, bringing the billowing white clouds along with it.. On it grew a city, of brick, mortar, and mages galore. The city, hidden in the clouds, was shrouded in a foggy swath, as smooth and pristine as milk, with only a few spears of dark, disembodied shapes, piercing into mushy clumps of froth.
Within another instant, the clouds were carried off, revealing the stone city once more, this time, condensation had been left on the bricks, giving them a beautifully incandescent texture as the sun’s early light breached the city with its warmth.
Caira tried to focus on this, while her heart ran at a hundred miles per hour in her chest, thumping loudly, sporadically, explosively, as though it were going to burst out of her chest. The tension showed on her face and stained her skin with a sleek film of sweat, which was instantly chilled by the breeze that was easily encountered so far above.
The motion of great and powerful wings flapped in the corners of her eyes and sent a shudder through her body as she felt her muscles clench and unclench every time the feathers seemed to move, arch, or curve in a certain -and seemingly unpredictable- direction. A dry gulp was gathered in her throat, and with a coarsely uncomfortable sensation, the fear-stricken girl tried to dampen her tongue, but only managed to induce what felt like a chisel scraping the sides of her throat. She nearly gagged and clenched on tightly to the Pegasus’s reins. Meanwhile, wisps of the horse-like mane whipped her face violently.
Caira was rather tolerant when it came to leaving her comfort zone, but heights were one thing she would never get over. To someone who may have been watching, it would have been a sight like none other. A youthful girl, holding onto the the saddle for dear life, while leaning toward the neck of the beast for support, eyes closed, brows taught, all while holding a peculiar looking iguana in her right arm.
The lizard was squirming, but whether it was because the girl was holding him too tightly, or if he too, borne with no wings, was afraid of falling, would remain a mystery. His forked tongue hissed from beyond his scaly lips as he peered through his narrowed eyes, and deemed that finally they were at their destination.
The island of Dalaran, as the girl had promised all those moons ago. Finally, the lizard was relieved, and was practically dancing in his little clawed paws. His tail swatted against Caira’s flank, rousing her from her terrified stupor. She parted a single violet eye, and was alerted that they were nearing their destination.
The wind bit into her eye, causing hot rain to bubble up, before pouring out the blurred lines from the corners of her sight. The sound of her teeth grinding together overruled that of the wind, but Caira, in all her heigh-fueled-fright was still tempted to look past her toes.
It was dizzying. The swirl of trees so far below her, that they appeared to be but blades of grass. Her stomach twirled, butterflies surged, and the sickness she had suppressed for so long nearly forced its way out of her. From beyond her the toe of her boot, which was placed “safely” in the stirrups of the leather saddle, and very well digging into the mystical beast’s ribs.
Vertigo was upon her. Streaks of color came together and created a massive tornado in her mind. The world was spinning, or maybe she was, it didn’t matter because no matter how hard she held on she could not stop. Her eyes had pressed closed now, while her hair became a spiraling hurricane, which was more closely in appearance to a black mob. There was no sense of direction in the world behind her eyelids, only darkness, and that deep rotten void in the depths of her stomach. The taste in her mouth was that of blood, for in the turmoil and chaos, she had bitten her cheek so hard, it broke flesh.
“What do you think you’re doing?! You’re gonna get us KILLED!” The panic transcended the iguana’s crystal, which allowed him to talk in her mind. “If I had arms I’d drive this thing A LOT safer, an’ even if I was as afraid of heights as you are, but hey, not all of us can be Primes, making us immortal! You literally have nothing to fear!”
Caira gulped. Falling. She saw herself lose her grip on the pegasus’s mane, tumbling far below its enchanted hooves. Wings still flapping majestically while she, felt the wind on her hair, saw the blur of the sky and the ground mesh together, and suddenly trees. Broken branches -or bones. Suddenly, eternal silence.
For some reason, the faces of many flashed before her eyes. Merik’s unhappy yet fulfilling ending, the ending for his son, Tom, those she had met such as TBG on her adventures in Camelot. And then there were those, like that poor man who’s notebook she still had, that had been condemned to the Underverse for a fate worse than death. She knew that now. And he had sacrificed more than his life for her, at the very beginning of her arrival in this realm. Despite how she had thought she filled her debt to him, Caira felt a grieving deep within her heart. Somber emotion clouded her consciousness, and then a storm of light crackled before her eyes once more. She took a breath and recognized the scent, it was life.
Her eyes rolled around in her head, expecting to be looking at either the sky or the ground immortalized by her paralysis, unable to lift a single finger, and yet, here they were, she blinked unable to believe it. The sky still streaked by, the wings of the pegasus flapped loudly in her ears, almost as loud as the roar of the harsh, grating wind. Caira’s head tossed around, and then looked at the iguana, who had begun his counter argument.
“Wasn’t meeting Omni enough for you? Maybe he should’ve given you flying lessons or something! Surely you guys must’ve talked about...” Karn trailed off, unsure, especially to see that her eyes had no longer trained on him though he was ‘speaking’ and in her violet eyes that crazed panic had left them.
She had hallucinated, or imagined, her death. In fact, falling to it. It was not that she had overcome her fear by simply experiencing it at its worst, but she now seemed a bit more acclimatized to death, because now she remembered that even she had killed a man.
“Omni informed me of the information I had been searching for all my life,” Caira’s eyes, oddly serene and aware, fixed on the iguana’s now, “I will admit, it was an odd experience for me, meeting the deity of this world, however, it was a difficult experience for me. I was certainly awestricken when I saw him, and recognized his eyeless face from when I was pulled from my world.”
Before Karn could reply, or Caira get her bearings and be re-infused with fear, a startling “clap clap!” of hooves meeting stone reminded them why they were here. The girl gulped, trying to bring some moisture to her now very dry throat and tongue, she winced as she felt the sensation slither down her throat like cool fire.
“So Karn, where is it?” Caira asked, though the question was forgotten as her eyes took in the beautiful island once more. It was easier now, since she was on the ground.
Stone buildings climbed nearly as high as the sky, as bits of cloud weaved in and out of the highest pillars and buildings. Shacks and stone houses lined the streets, each having a purpose, and along the bustling streets of Dalaran, there was an aromatic scent drifting through. As though someone were baking fresh bread, and for the first time, her mouth watered. Her feet began shuffling through the streets, while Karn had to work hard to follow her.
It was an odd sight, a girl with violet eyes, and distinguished black hair dodging in and out of people in the street, while an iguana tried with all his might to follow her -an iguana, mind you, with a very rare and enchanted stone attached to his head by mere string. Some people’s eyes shimmered to the blue light of the stone as Karn yelped, “Ayryn, come back!” Other’s lunged for the lizard, though at the speed he was going, it was easy for him to dodge left or right.
Caira heard the shouting and turned to look over her shoulder as someone with a wand had seized Karn in the air. The girl blinked, curious as she saw the lizard levitating a few feet off of the ground. It did not appear that the witch was going to harm him, and in fact, she started to carry him away.
“Stop, unhand that lizard!” Caira shouted, but she had chosen the wrong words, for the witch’s hands were not touching Karn. A small smile slithered over the woman’s disappearing face, and the prime was forced to follow the woman as Caira cursed her own impudence.
She was lead not very far, on the next street over, there was a small little shack, personalized by the numerous amounts of assorted and abstract objects inside. Caira was suspicious to enter through the doorway itself, it could’ve been bewitched, however the door was closing and Caira had to make a split decision. Stay or leave.
The purple eyed girl lunged inside, and her head rammed into a large wooden cabinet, items stacked upon it now clattered to the ground as Caira grasped her skull which wreathed in pain. She was covered in soot and dirt from being on the ground, and the stains of the powder showed against her sleek black attire.
Caira shuffled dizzily and rose to her feet, still clenching her teeth to stop the throbbing sensation from reaching past her head. It worked, though she had to squint for the next few moments. The room seemed bigger on the inside, it had definitely been bewitched or cast by an enlarging charm. A cloud of dust had been summoned by her fall, adding to the mystery of the place. Caira could no longer see where the witch had gone, but she could hear the old woman coughing. In fact, it sounded like she was hacking up a hairball.
“Ugh, I would open a window but I’ve got to get down to business.” the woman said from a distant corner of the room, bringing Caira’s attention to the wooden door that had slammed behind her, and now the shutters that had done the same. The edges of the panelling looked frayed and used, and Caira didn’t even have to try to see that there would be no opening them for the remainder of her visit.
The Camelot soldier would have drawn her sword and announced ‘Stop! You’re attacking and attempting to kidnap a soldier of Camelot!’ but the time for that had passed, and Caira did not feel the witch was a danger. It hardly seemed necessary, and at this time, the clouds of dust had begun to settle. Caira cleared her throat, and was surprised to hear her voice rumble with such vigor.
“Ah yes, come closer dear,” Caira’s ears pinpointed the witch’s call and crept closer, though she kept an alert tenseness in her shoulders and was ready to either draw her sword, or immobilize her enemy at any moment.
“Take a seat dear,” the woman said again, and the dust had faded to the point where she could see the witch clearly. On her head she wore a particularly purple hat, it was pointed, but was worn as kind of a cylinder atop her head. Around her face was a layer of short white hair, sitting on her nose were a pair of spectacles, now with the gold edges covered by dust. The robes she was wearing matched the violet blue of the woman’s hat, and she was sitting in front of a table, with a single chair left vacant right in front of Caira, “Don’t be shy.”
On the table was a signature crystal ball, there was a white, luminous light swirling inside, reminding Caira of the Oververse and Nexus’s hue. Over the table was a red cloth, and sitting there, looking either lame or dead, was Karn. His head leaned against the table, his eyes had closed, and his green scales were looking more sickly than ever and turning into a grotesquely vile green.
Caira’s eyes caught this and widened, “What’re you doing to him?!”
“Isn’t this what you came here for?” the witch’s hands had extended above the lizard and curled threateningly in the air.
“I..” Caira paused and the witch was eager to complete her sentence.
“You’ve come to rescue this man from his terrible fate. You have come long and far, young one. Very far.” the woman’s eyes narrowed, as though suspicious, but she never asked a follow up question, “My name is Moony, and I’m more than just a fortune teller. You, my dear, are lucky you found me in time.”
The blue stone had been removed from the lizard’s head and placed on the table to the right of the lizard. “It’s strange magic, but dark magic usually is. You want to make him man again, do you not?”
Caira hesitated. It was what he wanted. Who was Caira to protest?
A small nod found itself on her chin.
Moony continued. “Very well, but I cannot foresee the distant implications it may bring. You see, Miss Caira, this lizard should be dead.”
“Dead?” her mouth hung open, growing dry again.
“Dead. Had he not been made a lizard, he most certainly would be. You see, there was a raid, a sort of attack, and a curse befell this man. To escape, before he could be condemned to death, he cast his own wand on himself, and such was his will to live, that he was able to survive. He has been living in his own hell ever since. It strikes me, however, how fate has found you both together. You wouldn’t normally have been traveling in the dunes, yet, both of you were condemned to death, and yet you lived to tell the tale, together.” another smile coiled on the woman’s thin lips as her wrinkles molded together on the outlines of her thin face.
“Can you.. Cure him?” Caira wouldn’t admit it to herself, but she had grown fond of the little bugger.
“Yes, I can. But I cannot guarantee his survival when he becomes a man again. It depends on how deep the curse has woven into his soul. That’s why I ask, if it’s his wish to become man again,” her eyes suddenly flicked with immeasurable sharpness to Caira’s, “Because his wish could bring his own death.”
Caira gulped, “He’s been, he’s been using that stone on his head to communicate with me. I thought that he’d been an evil wizard, one that nearly killed me, and he still very well could be, however, we shall see, won’t we? When he’s turned back?”
“Very well.” the witch sighed, almost as though she had anticipated the results of her question, but was morally or contractually obligated to reiterate them. “Brace yourself, girl.”
...
A sudden flash of immense light blinded the Prime, and even as she tried to cease the burning by using her palms as a mask over her eyelids, still, it did not help. It was several moments before Caira could see once again, and when she did, she did not recognize the site.
She was still in the precious little shack that Moony called ‘home’ but now, Moony’s eyes were closed, resembling the dead or nearly dying. Caira gasped, and was about to lunge for the woman, and shake her awake, mostly due to her own fright. To the witch’s left though, was a man, standing tall, and covered in smudges of dirt and sand. Around him, as though he could not fasten it fast enough, was a mysterious-looking robe. It was obvious, more or less, that though Caira had not seen it, the magic Moony cast, had indeed returned her lizard friend into man once again.
As a man, he did not look as Caira expected. Karn looked nothing like a lizard. Not even his eyes had the same tint. Instead, they were a luminous blue, he had not aged in his lizard form, and even so, it was almost as though being trapped in a lizard’s skin out in the desert was all just a bad dream. There was, however, a starting beard sprouting from the man’s sharp chin. It was about four or five inches long, un-groomed. It occurred to Caira that she was staring at the man who had been in the desert, and had just been attacked. She wondered if he remembered her, though he had seen her with a lizard’s diamond eyes.
Caira was standing closer to Moony, her hand gently on the old witch’s shoulder, but her eyes had fixed on the once-lizard turned man. It struck her that he was nude under the robe, it struck her again that he had not been human for so long, that her staring wasn’t making the conversion any better. Lastly, she realized that the man was very attractive. His blue eyes clung to the edges of the room, and kept flashing between the many nooks of the cabinets of the room, to his very pale and strong hands. His face was gaunt and sun speckled, and his hair was dark around his face, though the tips had been whisked with sun and were therefore golden.
He looked like he was about to speak, and Caira grew startled, though she could not find the reason, and even still, the nervousness in her stomach grew into her very skeleton. She shook Moony, wanting to say ‘Wake up, wake up! There’s a strange man here’ but she found herself paralyzed and Moony still appeared to be asleep.
Now, Karn had come to his senses, and apparently recognized the distinct hue of her eyes, “Ayryn, Ayryn, is that really you?”
Before Caira knew it, his strong hands had been placed over her cheeks and a deep kiss sunk into her lips.
A moment later, he tore away, showing the brightest smile she had ever seen a man make, “Don’t you see? You’ve helped me get back to normal! Thank you... Thank you so much.” There were tears flooding in his eyes and once more Caira felt the prickle of his chin as kisses covered her cheeks and forehead. Caira blinked the kisses away, a bit confused and uncomfortable with the sudden bout of affection, and attempted to search his face once more, for similarities with the lizard.
“It’s me, Karn,” he persisted, “Don’t you recognize me?”
Caira pondered this for a moment, it was too convenient, all of it. “Not at all,” she said with a faded smile.
“Exactly!” he jumped, exuberant, and the robe he was wearing suddenly fell from his shoulders. Caira’s eyes widened. Apparently he hadn’t fastened it tightly enough, probably because he was still getting used to having fingers, and had forgotten how to tie a knot. The knight of camelot was so startled she barely turned away in time as he was able to retie his knot with a bit more precision.
Moony had stirred in her chair, and Caira was glad to divert her attention to the fortune teller, “Are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m not as young as I used to be. I trust you like my work, Karn?” she asked wistfully.
“Of course, I love it, thank you... How can I ever repay you?” he asked her, almost hopeful that she would give him a chance at redemption.
To Caira’s surprise, a scowl now made its way on Moony’s lips, “You, man, have made many mistakes. However your time as a lizard has taught you what it means to be human again, I should hope. For my payment, I will request this rare stone,” she held up the blue stone in her hand, “And that you will swear to this girl that you will repay her in any way she sees fit. Take care of her. You owe her more than your life.”
He blinked, and the dark atmosphere that Moony had created started to dissipate. “Now, you go and get tidied up, while me and... Ayryn here, have some tea.”
“But-”
“No talking back, I didn’t waste my magic on you to have an ungrateful boy in my home, unwilling to take a shower when he dreadfully needs one.” the old witch replied back.
Caira stood there, stunned. Then, the smell did reach her nose. It wasn’t unfamiliar, she was sure had the wind not washed most of the sand from her, she too would smell like one does after a trek or two in the desert. Moony pointed with her boney index finger up the stairs, and spoke in a commanding voice, “Towels are on the left, dear.”
Violet eyes hung on Moony while a teapot and two cups levitated towards them. “So, now that that’s done...”
Caira tilted her head, curious to where the conversation might lead, and mystified by the magic the old witch had displayed. “Boys can get ever so tiring. Still, it seems that one has taken a liking to you. But I believe your good deed has clouded his judgement, just a bit. He’s human now, as a lizard, he never had such complex emotions such as love, even if he thought he did.”
“He was probably hungry, you didn’t send him upstairs simply for a shower?” Caira asked.
“You’re a sharp girl, you know,” the witch’s pale eyes fixed on her, “No, I did not send him to bathe simply because he needs to. I had to get a moment alone with you, because I have a favor to ask of you.”
Caira blinked, “Go on, I’m in your debt as it is.”
“Hm, well, you see this stone?” Moony held the blue stone in her hand, and it glimmered with fresh life, “It’s dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands, and while there are many good wizards in Dalaran, there are many bad ones. They come out at night, and ever since...” something was muttered that Caira couldn’t quite hear, “Their forces have been growing. So, I have a request, that only a prime can do. But first... How was Omni?”
...
Caira’s jaw dropped, the woman had put it so plainly, she was stunned, “I trust you didn’t get every single answer you were looking for, but it was enough to quench your curiosity’s thirst, yes?”
She could only nod.
“I see. Well, congratulations on finding him, young one. However, I regret to tell you that you have no time to rest, despite how rigorous your previous endeavor was. You see,” the witch spoke, still holding the glowing orb in her hand, “There has been a meteor shower...”
...
Some time passed before Caira could speak again, “And you’re saying, I’m what, destined to find one of these... these stars that have fallen?”
“I am,” the fortune teller spoke, in an all-knowing tone, “It intrigues me, because I can see your past so very clearly.”
Caira thought of what Omni had told her, what it all meant. Even her death had been delivered by the stars. Now she was immortal, and a second chance had been given.
“You see Caira, the stars have aligned, your destiny is held within one of these little stars. It just so happens that my old colleague happens to be a well-known astronomer. How about it, then? Will you take this challenge, and lead the way to your destiny?”
Caira frowned, “Do not misinterpret me, Moony, I will take the quest, because I’d hate to see something with that immense amount of magic fall into the wrong hands, and it does indeed fascinate me, because everything I have ever done has had that very theme. But, I will not do it for my destiny. No, because I know my destiny is in this very room. It follows me every single place I go, and it is carried from one moment I live to the next. I chose to believe that my fate is something I live with in the present, because I’m already living on stolen time.”
The Prime’s tone was solemn and cast a morose tune throughout the room. Moony seemed a bit impressed, but she would only let it show through the glittering of her pale eyes. “I see that my dear, and I wish you great luck.” the witch’s eyes fell on the satchel over the girl’s shoulder, “Now, aren’t those books a bit overdue?”
...
Caira stopped into the library and returned the books she read. Since she knew where the entrance was, it was easier for the Prime to retrace her memories and recalled the time she spent here on the floating island with Toybox Girl, in search of the legendary mage, Magus.
The witch followed Caira to the library. Moony seemed as though she were only tagging along to make sure the Prime did not leave her sight. The books had been submitted in a little slot, returned, and Moony handed her another huge stack. “You’ll need these if you think you are going to even find the dang things. Now, I’m not astronomer, however, reading up on these when you get the chance will be very informative. Plus, it seems they’ll all fit in your bag rather nicely.”
The books were pressed with ink, the heavy sound of a heavy stamp fell on the books individually, and the librarian’s assistant muttered to Caira that she had a late fee.
“Oh, yes, it would seem time works differently here,” Moony mentioned to Caira “They can’t allot for it even if you were in the Oververse.”
The shrew gaped, her stamp fell from her hand and clattered to the ground. Ink stains blotted the thick, intricate looking carpet and the witch brought out her wand, very amused and waved the end over the stain, as it was lifted into the air and returned to the glass vial. “You must be careful where you’re putting that,” Moony’s smile only grew as she read the shrew’s bemused expression.
After they had left, and all the books Moony had selected for Caira had safely hovered into the girl’s charmed bag, Moony leaned close to her ear, “I hope you don’t mind my volunteering that information, but me and that woman have had a bit of rivalry for many years.” she snickered, “I couldn’t help myself..”
Even fortune-tellers could be mischievous, it seemed. Caira shrugged to the old witch, but had assumed some stray ears had heard, and the thought of this prickled her spine. It was ironic to think that now, she could be hunted. Ironic because this was where it had all began. Magus. Toybox Girl. Caira’s hunt for Omni, and even the girl’s debt to the man who had saved her life. Even more-so now, she was beginning again.
Meeting Omni and her adventure in the dunes had surely changed her. She thought the value of a human life was more than she could fathom. She, a soldier of Camelot, had even freed one of the prisoners of this place. An immortal did not deserve to rot away in a cell. Hopefully, Caira thought, he would stay clear of this place, and go elsewhere. Maybe even he had learned his lesson. But she highly doubted that murderers could learn to undo their ways.
“Caira! What do you think you’re doing? Don’t you want to meet my astronomer friend?” the witch howled, however, it seemed her words were enchanted, and could only be heard by the Prime’s ears.
“Coming!” Caira shouted, and then, many eyes from people who had been meandering throughout the street, now turned at her, as though she had shouted right in their ears and disrupted their day, “Oops, sorry!” the girl muttered with a shy rush of color flushing on her cheeks and was off on her way, and quickly found her place at the witch’s side. Just in time too, for the witch was standing at an ominously hidden door, shrouded in shadow. It reminded her of the entrance to Dalaran, one had to know it was there, in order to approach it. The Prime was now even more grateful that she had a willing guide.
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