The Land: Forging (Chaos Seeds Book 2)

THE LIGHT COURT

Figures moved at a stately pace along a white marble floor inlaid with veins of diamond. Others stood in their assigned places. The same places where they always stood. There did not need to be any concern for someone stepping out of place in the Light Court. Those roles had been established eons before, and had not changed. They would never change.

Three bells chimed to announce the arrival of a new figure to the Light Court. In practiced measure, everyone turned to acknowledge the High Chancellor. The tall figure stood dressed in raiment of spun platinum. He took exactly seven short steps forward in honor of the seven higher planes and stood quietly. His movement had placed him the center of a stylized golden sun set into the floor.

The Chancellor stood for the predetermined amount of time that all entrants to the Court had to wait. No one knew exactly why that amount of time was required, but that didn’t matter. It was simply the way things were done. That was enough for all present. And if it wasn’t… well then they had all learned to make it appear that it was enough. No one spoke, and no one moved.

Two bells chimed, and the Chancellor bowed deeply once. He then walked seven times seven steps forward into the Court. His precise stride brought him exactly to the center of another sun set into the pristine white marble. Once he stopped, the Chancellor bent into an elaborate bow, his head bent down. This one was created from the red crystal heart of a dying sun. The period of waiting began again. None spoke. The Light Court was the heart of power for the armies of Light. It had the pristine cleanliness of an operating room and the solemn gravity of a vigil.

After a period of time, a third bell tolled. The High Chancellor straightened and looked at his leader. The King of Light sat on his raised throne. The ivory chair was carved from the skull of a dragon god. It was well known that the King had enjoyed a good hunt before the Exile. His trophies festooned the walls of the Court. To the left of the throne was the tattered banner from the capital city that had once spanned several galaxies. To the right was the massive spiraled horn of an evolved unicorn. One urn that sat on a pedestal behind the King’s throne was rumored to be a stasis pod that contained the ashes of a phoenix that had heated a planet’s core. No one ever discussed how the King had reached the phoenix. It was also never discussed why, instead of a planet, there was now only an asteroid belt.

In a stately and regal voice, the King spoke, “The High Chancellor is welcomed back to the one and true Court. When last we spoke, I tasked you with discovering the source of the disturbances I have felt in The Land. I trust you have not come back without an answer.” The King’s voice did not change at all while speaking, but the threat of horror and agony was understood. In an unspoken law, more immutable that gravity, no one disappointed the King of Light. At least, no one did it twice.

The High Chancellor bowed once again. His arms flowed out to his sides in a slow flourish. When he stood, he brought his hands together in a steeple over his chest. “Indeed, my King. Since I was tasked with this assignment, I have turned my sole attention to The Land. At first, I detected nothing out of the ordinary. There were no changes or realignments of ley line energy. There were also no significant alterations in the Deep Magics. It was only when I began scanning for Higher Energies that I found something.”

The King spoke again, “Are you telling this Court that a denizen of The Land has discovered how to manipulate Chaos or Gravity?” The King did not even breathe into existence that one of the specks of life that inhabited The Land could have stumbled upon the ability to use any of the stronger Higher Energies, let alone the strongest, Time.

“Not exactly, my King,” the Chancellor replied. Seeing the King’s expression tighten slightly in impatience, he quickly continued. “There have been no spells cast or manipulations of the Higher Energies that I could detect. What I did sense, however, were trace amounts of raw Chaos in various locations around the world. The Land, of course, has various amounts of every magic in existence, but as you know, Chaos cannot remain in a stable form without a massive containment spell. So when I detected these sparks of energy and saw that they did not change in character, I was curious to say the least. As I watched the location where I had detected the Chaotic energies, I noticed that there had been changes in the status quo permeating most of those regions. Nothing large enough to disturb our plans, but changes nonetheless.”

The King’s nostrils flared ever so slightly. The Chancellor hastily corrected himself, “Of course I mean your plans, my King.” He wasted no more time moving past his faux pas. “Despite the changes in The Land being minor, I found it concerning that your majesty detected disturbances at the same time I have found these emanations of Higher Energy.”

“Where are these motes of Chaos coming from?”

“I have not yet discovered that, my King.”

“Have you not found anything else?” the King asked. The leader of the Light Court did not seem pleased with the Chancellor’s progress.

If the platinum clad being were mortal, he would have started sweating. As it was, he still felt a twinge of fear. “I will continue to study these areas, my Lord. I will divine more information, but something happened that I believed you should be made aware of immediately. A pixie chrysalis has been found. More than that, it has made its way into the hands of a Sprite Life Master.”

The King absorbed the information in silence.

“None of our agents are in the area. It is in a small section of The Land called the River Peninsula. At your order, I can start moving assets towards the region,” the High Chancellor continued.

The King just stared at him. The other members of the court looked at the High Chancellor, more than a few silently hoping for his death. Removal of someone from a position of power always opened the possibility for advancement after all. The Chancellor pretended to ignore the attention, not daring to look away from the dais. There was no movement for a long period of time, then a white-robed figure leaned forward and whispered into the King’s ear.

The Royal Chamberlain was the only other entity allowed near the throne. No one knew anything about him except that he was a close advisor to the King. His white robes and deep hood hid any clear view of his face or body. He was smaller than most other members of the Light Court, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t dangerous. Those who opposed the Chamberlain often found themselves on the wrong side of the King’s favor. Death was the best result that could be expected after that. If there was one other figure in the Court that the High Chancellor feared, it was the secretive figure in white.

The Chamberlain finished giving his advice, and then stepped back behind the throne once more. The King nodded to himself, lost in thought. When he looked at the High Chancellor again, he just thanked him for his service and bid him to continue watching The Land closely. The Chancellor bowed again and walked out of the Court. If his steps were not quite as slow and measured as before, no one watching would blame him.

The King had dismissed the weakling Chancellor from his mind and from the Court simultaneously. His thoughts were instead focused on an order he had given long ago. An order that he had pondered the utility of in the years since. Self-reflection and doubt were not feelings the King were accustomed to, but it did not change the fact that his decision to unleash a plague that wiped the entire pixie race from the face of The Land had seemed… wasteful.