Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » JadeHawk's Apprentice (closed)

The door to the tower creeks open. The tower is empty and dead just as it was on the outside. Only bones & broken things fill the room. Nothing more disappointing than coming all this way for nothing. A board below the two adventures starts to rattle under their feet. Vara pokes her head up from the floorboards in a dark hooded robe, her hair brushing over her shoulders as she peers to the two adventures.

"Yees? What can I do for you two young ladies? Vara pauses and looks between the adventurers. "Haven't you ever seen an old tower this with bones and broken stuff all around and a woman peering out of the floorboards at you?" Vara blinks at the two girls and their responses.

Laverna started to wonder if this was just an old haunted tower, and seeing the bones on the floor wasn't making her feel any better about it. She was starting to question her letter, "I wonder if my letter is actually re-" Laverna didn't finish her sentence because just then she felt the floorboard quake beneath her feet.
She cried out in surprise and stumbled backwards as the shape of a persons head emerged. She gaped at the mysterious woman as she spoke to them.
"Sorry," Laverna said, "but I believe this is my first time seeing someone come out of the floor..."

Avalon laughed softly " as many time i saw my dad to that im not shocked, Hello" She said in greeting to the women in the tower " i have seen many odd places in my life this is nothing diferant"

Vara nods slowly at Avalon's words. A big smile on Vara's face. "Oh good. Good!" Vara climbs out of the floor and plants her feet on the same floor as the two strangers. Vara is inches taller than the other two. Vara looks to the strangers. "Hello. My name is Vara JadeHawk. I am the caretaker of this strange tower. What are you two strangers here for?" Vara seemed like an ordinary woman, but she has the name of the mage that one would look for!

JadeHawk's hair was hidden under her hood, but blonde locks can be seen peeking out of her hood and embracing her face. Vara's body is not petite in the slightest. She is rather large in size and quite fit. Her outfit leaves much to the imagination though.

Could this woman be the powerful mage that resides in this broken tower?

" im searching for an old building or something that my father help build up many years ago.. maybe this tower is what i seek.Douse the name Kava mean anything to you?" she asked as she looked around.

Seeing that Avalon didn't seem in the slightest bit surprised by this sudden meeting, she tried to compose herself. She looked up at the woman who calls herself Vara JadeHawk. Laverna spoke up, "I am looking for the writer of this note, you wouldn't be the sender, would you?" She pulled out her note she had tucked away in a pocket on her vest. "I was instructed to come to a tower in the forest, but I wasn't expecting this," she glanced around the tower once again.
Laverna looked back at Vara, "I am trying to find a master who will train me in the art of magic."

Vara crosses her arms and nods twice to Avalon. "Kava, yes I remember. We split up a long time ago due to some issues. If he is your father, then I can see that he taught you better then his father taught him." Vara takes time to take the note from Laverna's hand and look at it "As for you, you seem to be a top notch novy." Vara reads over the note carefully, looking literally between the lines. "Well, it surely looks like a hoax, I'll give my college that much." Vara looks back up to Laverna "Allow me to explain to the both of you."

Vara puts her paper to the side "A little history for you both first. About two or so hundred years ago, the peoples of humanity had many smaller civilizations than they do now. They enlisted the help of a group of mages, some of the best froma great academy city called "The Tempest"!" Vara puts her arms out and shows her palms open to gesture the right tone. "Mages from the tempest told everyone about their skills. Before long they helped the peoples and their needs for a greater militry system. Competitions were held in all combat fields known to humans. The mages excelled at them, and before long, every small human kingdom gave the winning mages gold to make an army of mages." Vara sits down on a barrel and rests her chin on her knuckle. "Phew, I still have a bit to explain..."

Laverna felt frustration boiling up over the fact the her letter may be fake. Why would they do this to her? But before she could act on her frustration, Vara had begun talking about the history with the mages.
She listened to her explain about the academy, and then the army. "That would be a strong army," she commented. "Is that academy still around today?"

Avalon nodded and smiled " Its good to finely meet someone who knew my father" she said brushing her hair out of her face. " my father taught me much, but there is much he did not teach me" she said.

Vara nods to Laverna and her comments "Mhm! It would be an all powerful army." Vara raised her arms "And a whole pile of magic dust and destruction would lay in their wake if used for war! The Academy, the letter and Kava will come up in this story for sure!"

"Each nation of peoples had their own champions to make armies for them, some had archers, some warriors, but most had mages. So the archers taught their people to shoot arrows in a years time, completely mastering archery. Warriors did just the same, mastering in all sorts of weaponry and strength. But mages cost more than just basic weaponry. The mages required books and scribes, magic tables, reagents, a whole plethora of tools. Then the mages had to teach a bunch of trainees how to channel their magical ability. By the end of the year, only a dozen out of each nation knew how to cast a simple fireball for twice the cost of an army. They needed time and money that the nations did not wish to give up. Leaders became furious at the mages. Before long the mages from the Tempest had come to cities for various reasons and they showed off their magical abilities, becoming very well known."

Vara held her head low "So these not so tough magic users show off their abilities, their magical items, and flaunt how much better they are to every, either intentionally or otherwise, and..." Vara shrugs "Mages died, a small war broke out against the mages, angry nations banded together and destroyed the tempest along with any other mage city. Their hatred turned to hunger for power, their hunger for power turned them against each other in the end. The magical age had ended, and the age of barbarionism began. Give or take a hundred years and now we have the only human nations of Menneskets Jord in the west, The land of Chronos in the far north, The remaining land of Lurisca and the elves."

Vara Jadehawk sighs "Genocide befell our people."

Avalon nodded quietly " i remimber my father telling me about that." she said sighing a little looking down, she missed her father allot. Even if she never saw him much she still missed him now that he was gone.

The idea of using so many magical items was running through Laverna's imagination, and she wondered if, on her quest to learn magic, she might be able to use some of these items.
Laverna listened to the history that Vara was laying out before Avalon and herself. "But if they were all destroyed, then how would we be able to learn what is required to become a mage? Did they only read from books, or were there still some mages alive after that happened?"

Vara smiles and points her index finger in the air "Ah! but not all the mages died. Rumor has it that the Tempest still stands. Also all of the major nations around now, still have magical items for purposes of power. There was a nation that formed early on, they had great objects of power, however a group of barbarians attacked them, they say armies and armies came at them. This nation figured out how to use their magical item, it caused a great explosion that ruined their land and their people. They didn't know what they were doing!"

Vara sighs and leans back "But, some mages survive, many live in secret, absolute secret. Some work in a well known guild known as the tradecrafters guild. The only way to get to their bazaars, is to use magical portals to get there. Once there, you can trade large sums of currency to get help from mages or other crafts. Meanwhile there was an academy of mages that was recreated a long time ago. The first mages trained were small classes, consisting of me and Kava. There we, and other colleges became mages. But, things fell apart."

Vara leans back and crosses her arms "Mages are still around, I am one of the middle aged ones. Some mages live in cities, in deep secret. I live out here in secret, so the others send me anyone they trust to teach." Vara motions to Laverna.

Laverna rolled her eyes hearing about the nation using the magical item, "goes to show that powerful items like that shouldn't be put in the hands of amateurs."
Laverna listened to the rest of what Vara had to say. "So then my letter wasn't fake,and your the one that's going to be teaching me?" she asked.

avalon listen as they two spoke before she finely said something " thats all grate to know.. but.. Do you happen to know anything about what happen to my father? he went missing a few years ago and im afraid he may be.. " she did not complete her sentence as she looked down sadly

Vara re positions herself to sit on her legs and sit upright. "The academy disbanded, most likely before you were both born. Kava, along with other mages were forced to split up and not keep in touch. Others managed to come together again in secret."

Vara looks to Avalon "I don't know where your father is. If you plan to make it your quest to find him, then I can surely help you with that. Otherwise I have other things that will be coming up in the next few days. I will not be coming along to find Kava."

Vara rises and stretches "As for you Laverna." Vara stares down at Laverna "You seem to know a little bit about mages already. I think you could assist me in the coming week as I finish some tasks. I have much I can teach you about the world, and what is left of the mages. After this time, we may speak of assisting in your magical craft."

Vara looks back to Avalon "And if you find yourself looking for something to do to help the remaining mages, then I could sure use your help." Vara gives a thumbs up to Avalon.

This is more what Laverna was waiting for. At her home, she didn't have many chances to peruse her studies as a mage. "I'd be honored to assist you and learn all that I can, but what good is working in a old, ruined tower?" She asked. "Shouldn't we go with Avalon and look for the other mages?"

" i'll help you, Im sick of being along. " Avalon said as she leaned on her staff with a small yawn " besides, my father told me to always help ones before i help myself" she added

Vara stands up and exclaims "Mind your words! The both of you came to me. To my tower, I being the last representative of this group of mages. The other mages live quiet lives throughout the land, and I do not go knocking on their door for adventures sake. I also do not send others to them for things like this. You may learn more if you stick around me, but Kava left of his own accord, I would know if he resided anywhere in Lurisca."

Vara crosses her arms "Tomorrow I will be doing some errands, and we will be meeting a mage or two. I will have much to show, and I have much to do. On the other hand I also have some peculiar tracking I have my apprentice Draz-Dravius tracking something peculiar. Right now I will not be chasing after Kava, or meeting with all the mages. We do that once a year already."

Vara lifts up her floorboards and steps down some short wooden stairs and steps on the dirt foundation. "Your best bet is to stick with me, run errands and learn from me in time, or go with Draz-Dravius in search of this, power, or energy thing, I can't quite remember." Vara opens up a yellow, swirling wortex in the floor. She leisurely steps inside it, her legs being swallowed first. "Otherwise you can go elsewhere, being mage is tough cookies, you find the softest part, and nibble what you can." Vara continues down the wortex and is taken elsewhere.

Laverna looks down at her feet feeling apologetic. She's about to apologize to Vara before she disappeared through the swirling floor.
Laverna looked at Avalon, "am I supposed to follow her through there?" she asked the question to confirm her suspicion.