1 Chapter 1

Stella waited outside the king's tent, pacing back and forth while absentmindedly chewing her thumbnail. Her mid-length, sandy blonde hair kept falling into her cornflower blue eyes. Freckles graced her nose and cheeks. The knights who stood outside the tent each looked at each other with a good-natured sigh. Stella turned and placed her hands on her hips, looking the men over. She was on the thicker side for sure, having gained muscle from being on the campaign for so long. She was happy to have curves in all the right places, it made for her sticking her hip out with a bit of attitude more satisfying.

"Stella, this meeting could go all day, standing out here isn't going to make it move any faster." the first knight, Royce, said. He was a large man at almost 7 ', bronze skinned with long, crow black hair. A true warrior from the tribes to the south. He had one lone griffin feather tied to a braid on the side of his face. It barely covered the long scar that tugged at the corner of his mouth, given to him by the same griffin whose feather he wore. He smiled warmly at Stella.

"The war is finally over! Why not go and join the celebration? I have been listening to them singing songs since noon. You know Joseph is sloshed already. Go enjoy yourself!"

"Indeed, Stella. Between you and Ludis, this victory would not have even been possible. Go, relax!" Cade, the second knight, always looked short when standing next to his giant companion. He was slender with almost white, blonde hair and light blue eyes. Just like the sky. They could not be further apart in personality, but they always worked well together.

Stella looked at them both with exasperation. She was a mage first, and her master was the kingdom's head mage, Ludis. The king and Ludis had been in the meeting all morning, and she was getting tired of waiting. Ludis was trying to convince the king to let them go out on another reconnaissance. Stella and Ludis both could still feel power in the old enemy camp, long since wiped out by their troops. But the mages that had caused so much death and destruction were dead. Why could they still feel power emanating from the castle ruins the enemies had made their home? She knew the king was not stupid. So, why the delay in agreeing to let them go? Just as she was about to deliver a tart response about Joseph's drinking habits, the tent flap came open. Ludis and the king-King Malik Eden the 4th-emerged. All three subjects immediately knelt. He was also tall-did this country not make short men? Still shorter than Royce, he still seemed to tower over them all. Malik, too, had fair sandy hair and cornflower blue eyes. The constant exposure to the sun had brought out his freckles, and his skin now had a golden tan. Stella stared at her brother's feet, until she was given permission to rise. She saw the small look of exasperation at the formal display quickly hidden behind his regal mask.

" Please, stand, all. Especially my sister. Estella, how many times must I ask you not to do that?"

"Every time brother dear. A mage owes all to the liege they serve."

Knowing it annoyed Malik when she pointed out her status as a mage, Stella winked at her brother as Ludis covered a small smile. As a mage, even though under the tutelage of Ludis- Stella was now exempt from l the prompt of being a princess. Her status as a mage gave her just as much power and control as a man, and she was grateful. No one could force her hand in anything. Stella looked over at Ludis, waiting for some news. Ludis was a small woman, with the top of her head barely coming to the king's chest. Her shoulder-length black hair curled over her forehead, almost covering her violet eyes. She was soft-spoken but could still be commanding when needed. When Ludis talked, people listened. She looked up at the king, and then back to Stella.

"The king has agreed that we may investigate but, we must take a small party with us."

"Royce-gather Benjamín, Joseph and Rickard. You and Cade will also accompany them to the castle. Take direction from Ludis in this." The king spoke quickly, already moving to walk towards a messenger that had just arrived. Not before Stella noticed how his eyes moved over Ludis, now talking to Cade-detailing the tools and equipment that needed to be gathered. Royce had already started walking to the mess hall, muttering that the men in question were toasted already. Stella filed the look away, meaning to ask her king about it later in private. Ludis, now finished, waved Cade off while calling "We meet at North Gate in an hour!"

Turning, she finally sighed and sagged against Stella's shoulder, the girl wrapped an arm around her comrade and dear friend. The women started walking towards their tents, asking a passing page to saddle their horses and bring them to their quarters. As he took off to complete his task, Stella nudged Ludis expectantly.

Ludis finally spoke. "The meeting took forever because the king wanted to come with us. I finally convinced him that though the power was the strongest we have ever felt, we can sense that it has remained dormant for a long time. Whatever it is. The object hasn't moved for 1500 years at least. I still feel this was the source of the enemy mages power, though." Stella nodded, agreeing. Her brother did not need to run so mindlessly rampant through the ruins. He was their king. There could still be stragglers of the enemy enforcement looking to regain this power they lost. They needed to retain the object before the enemy could retrieve it.

The war had raged for centuries-with their king and their fathers before them-leading the kingdom against the Men of the Grey. Their ancestors had fought them since the beginning of their history, with the conflict coming to a head 1500 years ago, turning to all-out war. All the crumbling scrolls and textbooks in the capitals' library speak of the Grey Men. Legends say they turned gray because of an ancient power they stole. Since the ancient power was for only those whose blood was of the Fae- it turned their skin gray and rotted their bodies and minds. Legends and campfire stories. The Fae was a legend even 1500 years ago. There were so many stories about them that it would be impossible to know one, even if it stood there, looking you right in the face. This power they sensed, could be the source of the grey men's power? If that was the case, then it needed to be destroyed to keep them from coming back and starting the war all over again. Stella frowned, the anxiety of these years clutching her heart. I will never let them return. Never. Her thoughts swirling around that one promise, Ludis and Stella quietly packed their tools.