The Stone of the Gods

MATURE CONTENT WARNING: Not for children. Also, if one has a history of experiencing abuse, they might not want to read this. Just putting that out there.

Spoiler: Preface

I haven't written a story in quite a large chunk of time, so here it is. Please keep in mind that I'm not any sort of professional when it comes to this aisle of artistry, but I enjoy making them and came up with this one while I went to bed. Enjoy!

Also as a prior note, the world is entirely fictional, and thus, events do not coincide with real-life events.

The date above each chapter indicates the date I uploaded.

10/14/2017, edited 12/10/2017

Spoiler: Prologue

Prologue - The Sad Little Girl:

Romanwood, Petersbury - 14xx
This tale begins in a small village called Romanwood on the outskirts of the Kingdom of Elementia. A child named Ella Scarlet lived there with her parents. However, all was not right with them. Every time she even slightly disobeyed them, they would make a cut on her arm. Eventually, she became frustrated, looking at all the scars her horrible parents had given her.

She winced in the pain but no longer obeyed them. Again and again, they sliced. Soon, she became dizzy. They stopped, realizing it would be too dangerous to continue. Angered, they tossed her out the door and locked it behind them. In a mad dash, Ella clumsily ran away, leaving Romanwood behind.

Wandering the plains for days, an old mage named Zorius encountered her. His heart was torn at the sight of a lonely child wearing tattered clothes. He took her in as his apprentice and trained her, too, to be a mage. Growing up, she learned that, although her parents didn't want her, others did. She learned to forgive and forget, and, in her teenage years, visited Romanwood to buy clothing and food for her and her elder. At such a young age when she left, she had no memory of her parents' faces, just as they couldn't recognize her as she had grown.

10/14/2017

Spoiler: Chapter 1

Chapter 1 - The Talk Around Town:

One bright day, while on a supply run, she overheard a rumor of the townspeople, claiming to have seen some sort of legendary and magical artifact. She inquired as to what sort of artifact. Curious, as her guardian never mentioned such a thing. They responded by labeling the prize as a so-called "Stone of the Gods". Intrigued, she asked where it was. The response, while vague, shone light on the situation.

Four adventurers had arrived in town as a rest stop on their quest to find the Stone of the Gods. This excited the village folk, their lives were a simple day to day grind. The adventurers were staying in the Romanwing Inn at the North of Romanwood. With her interest piqued by this, Ella visited the Inn and used her powers to persuade the innkeeper to allow her entrance in the adventurers' room. However, this power was part of the gray area of magic that Zorius had warned could be a slippery slope to dark magic. The adventurers were frightened of the intruder whom they didn't expect. Ella used magic to show how useful she could be if they allowed her to join the quest. At first, they were unimpressed, but were interested when showed the more powerful spells in her arsenal. With a delicate combination of offensive, defensive, and supportive magic, she earned a spot in their quest.

She soon returned home to prepare for the next day. However, she forgot to ask Zorius if he approved of her plight. As she mentioned a quest for mythical objects, Zorius seemed to recollect his own adventures before his old age. He allowed her, but warned her to stay away from gray (and darker) spells. She promised him she would only use gray spells if absolutely necessary. As she left the next day, a tear came to his eye. He knew his time was coming to a close, and he likely would not see her again. Of course, he wouldn't tell her such a thing to damper her excitement.

11/9/2017

Spoiler: Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - The Preparations Begin:

Leaving Zorius behind for adventure, Ella visited the Romanwing Inn to join up with her new friends. Their first order of business, before leaving town, was to make sure they had enough resources for the trip. Ella already brought everything she needed, so the adventurers went out to town to gather supplies. While they were gone, Ella studied a few spells that may be important for the journey ahead.

But, something caught her eye. A spell she had never taken a notice to before. Unsure of what color of spell it was, she reviewed it. Zorius had taught her that differentiating between such colors was performed by viewing the supposed outcome. "If the effect be manipulative, highly dangerous, and unnatural, it must be discarded from your mind's eye". Zorius' teachings were simple. However, in her curiosity, she continued to read. "Will Charge: Allows one to focus their will to achieve their goal into associated colored power". Spells that indicated their effects relative to colors were deemed off-limits by her mentor. Although she had given the spell her consideration, she decided it would be wrong to use.

About an hour later, all of the members had returned to the inn. They quickly grabbed anything they needed from their room, and left, along with Ella, for their grand quest.