Present time
"So now we know.": Jon said, trying to find a comfortable position in one corner of the stable.
Shieena shivered and crawled deeper under the covers.
She looked at Jon and replied: “I don’t think so. Yes, they threw him in the well, but it's just a well. Even if it was pretty deep, he obviously survived. And remember what Liendara said, she said -I know what those kids did to you and we thought you were dead-. Didn't anyone check the fucking well? What? Oh, he fell into a well, yes, he's dead. Let's move on. And I mean, okay, they did what they did, but kill them for it? I don't understand. I can understand that Nio hates them, but you saw him. Every time he mentions their names, it’s not just hatred in his eyes. It's ... I have no word for it. Hate, agony, pain. He hunts them all over Raal. Why? And those scars on him, there's no way you're going to get something like that by falling. And then, there
SunbringerAs Nio travelled toward Canestor, he was unaware of the chaos he had created after breaking the magic bubble around Raal. After so much time the sun was moving again. In a split second, he changed something that most thought was immutable. The lands immersed in darkness were again pampered by the warm rays of the sun and people who had never seen the night were greeted by new and wondrous colours of the sunrise.After the initial shock and fear, and once the sky did not fall, the creatures in Raal began to adapt to the new situation. But Raal's rulers were not happy. At first, they didn’t know howand why this happened, whether the spell had finally faded or there was some new force they had to deal with. Or maybe an old force with a new weapon. No, they were not happy at all. The spy networks dug tirelessly, trying to find the culprit or culprits for the new situation, but failed.The high council of the elve
Present timeJon was worried about Shieena. He kept bothering Nioob about the goblin's welfare and she tried her best to convince him nothing in quarantine would happen to her. A goblin was considered property, and to harm someone’s property meant compensation. No dwarf wanted to part with his wallet. But Jon was not comforted. As Nio searched the market for information about Larin, Jon devised plans to free Shieena from dwarven hands. Lara was nowhere in sight.Five days after arriving in Canestor, Nio had no clue to Larin’s whereabouts. He was sitting in Nioob’s living room, sulking. Jon was on the sofa, devising another plan to free Shieena. Nioob brought tea and sat with them, quiet but curious. Nio was a few years younger than her, but she could not for the life of her see him as some all-powerful terrifying sorcerer. At this point, he looked more like a petulant child. But Lara was never wrong.She wondered
Nio’s storyHe was falling. His instincts kicked in and he desperately tried to grab the walls of the well. But there was nothing to grab. The interior of the well was smooth and flat. He closed his eyes and waited for the end. But the end did not come. He just kept falling and falling. He could not see anything and the well seemed to have no end.At first his body pounded against the walls, leaving him with more and more bruises, but after a while the well got wider. Even his fall began to slow. The air was much denser and unusually threatening.Nio tried not to think about Thea, but his broken heart just couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened, over and over again. He didn't understand. She loved him; he knew she loved him. And yet she killed him. Smiling.He felt a change in the air and something clawed at his leg. He felt a sharp pain and blood gushed from the newly formed wound. He tried to hit his at
Present time"AND? Who was he?”: Jon asked impatiently.Just as Nio was about to answer, the carriage that drove them to the capital stopped. A young dwarf stepped inside informing them that they had arrived. Nio’s story was cut short. Under cover of darkness, they entered the house and quickly hid in the attic. The young dwarf who drove them here told them to be quiet and wait. They did just that. A few hours later Lara arrived and the plan was set in motion.Nio was hidden in an empty barrel of wine, then driven, rolled, carried, and finally deposited in the basement of the palace. He didn't like this part of the plan. The inside of the barrel smelled horribly and he felt dizzy from the intense smell of wine. All the rolling didn't help either. After all the shaking and carrying stopped, a female dwarf knocked twice on the barrel and opened it. The dwarf, who introduced herself as Ia, showed him once again the bluepri
Nio’s storyNio stared at the gargantuan creature and fear gripped his heart. When he saw his huge hands and claws, he realized that his saviour was also his attacker."Now, now, elf. See? Life is ever so complicated, is it not?”: the creature said almost lazily."You're the one who attacked me, aren't you? But, but why? Why bring me to the brink of death just to save me?”: said Nio, feeling more confused and scared than ever."Ah, I was hungry. And when I felt a fly in the web, I went for it. Since I'm in this hole, hmm, who knows ... One hundred years, five hundred, more ... Time is not something you can keep track of down here. Anyway, I was very, very hungry. And just so you know, you are the one who woke me up. I slept blissfully, then bam, a little tasty elf above me, getting closer and closer.”: the creature responded with a big grin on its face.The monster had two curved black horns on
Present timeShieena sobbed softly. They were sitting in the living room of the safe house and Nio had just finished this part of the story. Shieena tried to imagine life in a dark pit for seven long years, but she couldn't. Her suffering and captivity, it all paled in comparison to Nio’s prison. How he managed to get out of it all without going completely crazy was inconceivable to her. Even Jon had a tear or two rolling down his cheeks. Shieena touched Nio's hand and he smiled at her."It's okay, little Shieena, I'm fine. It was bad, but I'm fine now. I still have my sanity. Most of the time.": he said with a sad smile.Lara was there too. She didn't know the whole story, but the part she had just heard stunned her. This elf was a bomb that could explode at any time. He said he wasn't crazy, but Lara wasn't quite sure. Crazy people don’t always act like crazy. She had to send a message to lady Sif.Meanwhile, i
Nio’s storyOne day, Dem announced in his usual rugged and hoarse voice that Nio was ready for the final step. He understood most of the elements well and Dem had only one more thing to teach him. Synergy. It was the purest and most powerful source of magic. Only those who have the ‘all spark’ could perform such magic. Instead of focusing his magic on one element, Nio had to learn how to focus his magic on all of them. It was also the hardest magic to master.He practiced on his surroundings. He focused first on the fire burning in the corner, and then on the small rock protruding from the wall. Then he added a piece of moss. Then a small worm in the ground. It seemed impossible. It was not. Just extremely difficult. As Dem taught him over and over again, Nio found his centre. And a whole new world opened up to him.He felt different energies in all the things around him, and as he focused more and more, something
Present time"After that, you ran into me and saved me, and soon after we saved Jon, right?": Shieena asked."Yes.": Nio replied."Here's what I don't understand:": Jon said, then continued: "What kind of tornado was that? And how did you recover in the well and in the hospital?”Nio hesitated for a moment, then said: “Mhm, I have no idea how I healed myself. Maybe, while I was unconscious, the body remembered and acted. I'm not sure. As for the tornado, I thought about it a lot. Here's what I think. That light I absorbed; I think it was his spark. Dem’s spark. That's what he wanted to do to me. And when I absorbed his spark, the two sparks reacted to each other and kind of melted together. And in that merger, the elements around me went crazy. That's what I think. I could be right. Or not. But that's the best theory I have. Not to mention that after I absorbed his spark, I felt stronger than ever. I mean m