Something Magic This Way Comes

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0><script> (function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){i['GoogleAnalyticsObject']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){ (i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o), m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m) })(window,document,'script','//www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js','ga'); ga('create', 'UA-47423994-1', 'fortunecity.ws'); ga('send', 'pageview'); </script> <center> <br> <div> <script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://ad.broadcaststation.net/ads/show_ad.php?width=728&height=90"></script> </div> </center> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Archives"><U><I>The Archives</I></U></A></div> <div> <I>Something Magic This Way Comes</I></div> <bR> <div> <U>Spyral</U></div> <bR> <div> The deep resonating sound of snoring echoed off the rock walls of the underground cavern where Ragnars Viking Longboat sat moored to the dock.  On board, the Viking lay in his hammock, which was lightly rocking back and forth, gently nudged by a slight cool breeze flowing in off the water.  All to quickly, the breeze became the only sound filling the cavern, as the snoring ceased.  The now empty hammock hung limply, blown even more by the soft breeze.</div> <bR> <div> The strong scents of various flavors of incense filled the room.  rae sat cross-legged in a cast circle, eyes closed yet oriented as if staring intently right through her very eyelids at a single pure white candle burning before her.  Reaching out with her inner energy, she felt her very life essence expanding to fill every corner of the room around her.  A millisecond too late, it alerted her to the strange.....pull that suddenly whisked her away...</div> <bR> <div> Kara walked through the hallways of the Farscape Mansion.  Rounding a corner, she narrowly avoided running into Sixth, who seemed intent in her latest copy of “SuperSpy” magazine, an interview with Vin Diesel was advertised on the cover.  Sixth passed without a word not noticing her near collision.  Kara just shook her head and continued on her way, not hearing the sudden sound of the magazine clumsily rattling to the floor.</div> <bR> <div> She had almost reached another intersection as Spyral and Mouse emerged into her path from one of the various gamerooms scattered around the mansion.</div> <bR> <div> “I still say that you can’t use a word like that in Scrabble.  If it even is a word.  At least in this part of the universe.”  the one-winged angel said to Mouse.</div> <bR> <div> “Of course it’s a word.  It’s a technical Chemist term, and it’s perfectly legal.  It’s not my fault that your vocabulary is lacking in the language of chemistry.”  Mouse returned.</div> <bR> <div> “Hey you two!” Kara said to the pair.  “What’s going on?”</div> <bR> <div> “Let’s get an impartial ruling,”  Spyral said. motioning to Kara.  “Have you ever heard the word ‘Electrovalence’?”</div> <bR> <div> “Sure,” she replied.  “It’s the numerical value of the electrical charge of an ion.”  she replied simply.</div> <bR> <div> Spyral just stared at Kara for a moment, then turned to look at Mouse, a hopeless look on his face.</div> <bR> <div> “Told You!”   Mouse said, sticking her tongue out at him, then smiling innocently.</div> <bR> <div> “ahhh...Get outa here ... both of ya.”  Spyral said.  shooing at them with his hands as he started to turn away and flee.  But the words had barely left his mouth when the two ladies simply vanished before the angels very eyes.</div> <bR> <div> “WHAT THE FRELL?!!”  Spyral said, stepping forward to the place where the ladies had stood only seconds before.  Then he too felt something take hold and the hallway became empty once again as the angel was too whisked away...</div> <bR> <bR> <div> The warmth of the sun felt good on his face as Spyral slowly cracked his eyes letting in the brightness of the....THREE SUNS?  As the realization of just what had happened came suddenly flooding back to him, he quickly sat up.  He was in a field of short, bright green grass.  Nearby was the tree line of a heavily wooded forest.  Scattered around the immediate area were some of the other ‘Scapers.  Quickly gaining his feet, the angel suddenly noticed something different about his clothing.</div> <bR> <div> What the ...?*  His previous attire of jeans, fleece pullover and Nikes was now replaced with soft brown leather breeches, and a soft leather shirt, over which he wore a breastplate of silver armour.  On his wrists he wore gauntlets of silver and on his lower legs silver leg armour.  Reaching behind him, he found a longbow of a dark mahogany and a hard leather quiver of arrows made of a hard white substance.  *Ivory?!* he realize.  He was shaken out of his own thoughts as he noticed the others beginning to rise.</div> <bR> <div> “Where the Frell are we?” came Sixths’ voice.  She was clad from head to toes in dull black leather armour.  In one hand she carried a spiked ball and chain mace.  In the other, a large black dagger whose serpentine blade was at least a foot and a half long.</div> <bR> <div> “Last I remember, I was in my hammock,” came the voice of Ragnar.  The big Viking was dressed in the animal skin attire of a mountain barbarian, complete with fur-lined boots.  Large spiked gauntlets were worn over his wrists and in each hand he carried a large bladed battle axe.  On his head we wore a metal cap with what looked like a pair of metal dragon wings extending from either side.  </div> <bR> <div> “Angel, is this an unannounced Astral Voyage?”  Mouse asked.  Mouse wore soft dark brown leather breeches, a white silken shirt with billowy sleeves, over which she wore a sleeveless vest of gleaming silver chainmail.  A small red cape billowed out slightly in the breeze behind her.  In her hand she carried a long thin gleaming silver sword.</div> <bR> <div> “If it is, it could have waited until after my meditation.” Rae add.  She was clad in a soft black and purple robe, covering a black catsuit of black material.  The robe had little embroidered stars and comets that seemed to move as if animate somehow.  She held a staff with a large blue crystal at its top that glowed with a deep aura, in her right hand  and a thin ebony wand in her left.</div> <bR> <div> “Could have waited until after my bath,:  Artickat added as she stepped from behind the stunned angel.  She wore matching pants and shirt of soft white leather.  Running from ankle up to hip on both sides ran a line of wavy silver fur.  The same fur ran from wrist, the full length of her arm, stopping just short of her shoulder.  She also wore a light silver cloak with hood over her shoulders.  “I like the red riding hood look though, Angel,”  she said pulling the hood up onto her head....and immediately dimming out of existence.</div> <bR> <div> “Oh S#$T!”  Spyral said running to her.  “It’s happening again.”</div> <bR> <div> “HOW COOL IS THAT?!?”  came Artickats voice from ..... nowhere.  Her form then slowly came back into view,  as she let the hood fall to her shoulders once again.  “My compliments to the tailor.”  she added.</div> <bR> <div> “Oh WOW?  Where do I get one of those?”  Kara asked running forward.  She wore pants of soft grey leather, a soft woolen shirt of blue, covered over by a parka of a soft grey velvet-like material.  In her hand she carried a long dark brown staff topped at one end by a spiked metal ball, the other end capped by what looked like the head of a sledgehammer.</div> <bR> <div> “Guys!”  Spyral said, scanning their surroundings once again.  “This isn’t one of main!  However we got here, I had nothing to do with it.”</div> <bR> <div> “Then Who?!” Ragnar asked.</div> <bR> <div> “And How?” Sixth added</div> <bR> <div> “And Why?”  Mouse joined in.</div> <bR> <div> “All good questions,” came a voice from the edge of the tree line.  “Questions that I will be happy to answer for you.”  A small dwarven man in a small red robe that hung just above the ground, stirring the grass lightly as he walked towards then.  He carried a small gnarled staff of a deep rich brown color.  The ‘Scapers whirled to face him as he hobbled towards them.</div> <bR> <div> “You...brought us here?”  Kara asked.</div> <bR> <div> “It was necessary.”  the little man nodded.  “We need your help.”</div> <bR> <div> “Who is ‘We’ and who are you?”  Spyral asked.</div> <bR> <div> “What is this place?”   Mouse asked</div> <bR> <div> “My name is Falador,” the little man said. “And this,” he added spreading his arms wide, “This is Kaldorre.  A once great and magical land.  Now.....slowly dying,”  he said gravely.</div> <bR> <div> “Looks pretty good to me.” Artickat said looking at the lush landscape around her.</div> <bR> <div> “That is because you cannot yet see the decay.  It is eating from the inside out,:  Falador said.  “Without the magic flowing freely once again, the land will die, the creatures.... the people.:  The little man looked at them pleadingly.  “All the magic I had left, it took to bring you all here.  17 years it took for me to save up enough to locate beings like you, then bring you here.”</div> <bR> <div> “Against our will, you’re forgetting,”  Sixth added.</div> <bR> <div> “Please!  You must forgive me for that.  You are our only hope to restore the magic to our land.  You must understand that without it we are lost.”</div> <bR> <div> “All right, let’s just get a grip here,”  Spyral said, holding his arms up to get everyone’s attention.  “Just tell us what’s going on.”</div> <bR> <div> “For time immemorable the magic had existed for all to use.  The proper use of it was passed down from generation to generation.  Father to son, Mother to daughter.  It was a part of us all, and we a part of it.  Two centuries ago, an evil from a neighboring realm, beings who called themselves ‘Sentinels’ invaded, intent on draining the magic from our world and taking it back to their own.  We are a peaceful people, never have we had to fight another people.  But we tried.  Many of my people were slaughtered, but for not.  The Sentinels took what they wanted and left the land devastated.  The people... just as devastated.  What you see here, is the land healed by what little magic was left behind by the evil ones.”</div> <bR> <div> “So how can we help?”  Rae asked.  “If the magic is gone...”</div> <bR> <div> “Oh but it is not,”  Falador replied.  “At least .... not all of it.”</div> <bR> <div> “Explain.”  Ragnar said.</div> <bR> <div> “One of our greatest...that is one whom we thought was one of our greatest sorcerers. foresaw what was to come.  By use of powerful magic, he gathered a large amount of the very magical essence that once flowed up from the deep itself.  Magic to be kept safely unknown to the Sentinels, and to be released once they had left again.  Only....”</div> <bR> <div> “What happened?”  Mouse asked.</div> <bR> <div> “Lochinar was a deceiver.  He was the one who opened the portal, allowing the Sentinels to breach the barriers that existed between their world and ours.  A deal was struck between them.  They could freely take all that they wished, except that which he himself possessed.  That which he now possesses.  The last of the magic, that could save this land.....and it’s people.”</div> <bR> <div> “You don’t have anyone here that could fight him?  Take back whit is rightfully the peoples?”  KaraS asked.</div> <bR> <div> “There are none here who could stand against Lochinar and his magic.  That is why I searched for beings such as yourselves.  You each possess your own magic, living magic inside you.  Magic that even Lochinar can never hope to take from you.  Will you help us?” the wizened little man asked.</div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id245.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Something Magic....(1)"><U>Something Magic....(1)</U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" width=315 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="19915320.jpg" border=0 width="277" height="306" ALT="Found at The Dragon Archive" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="19b163f0.jpg" border=0 width="278" height="319" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </td> </tr></table></body>