[@Dragonsong!]
It was pleasant walking through Sirantil Valley during the daytime, a myriad of green hues and the vibrant aromas of spring. Assumedly, the Alveron Family Estate was somewhere in this vast wilderness, an odd place, Jace thought, for a farm. His father'd never talked much about his grandparents, past the fact that they were good people. Nevertheless, he couldn't stem the sense of worry creeping over him as his journey progressed: what if the authorities had apprehended them? It'd become known after his father's murder that Aven was a mage, and the consequences of that could have trickled up to his Grandparents.
Jace shook his head absently, as if to rid himself of the negativity. They'd be fine, he was sure of it. He'd get to the estate, and they'd be there, having waited so long to meet their Grandson, grieving over the loss of their boy. He hoped that maybe his presence could put their minds at ease somewhat, knowing that he didn't die without legacy, nor without reason. Mother knew him best, and she'd said that he died as he lived: helping people. Jace believed that with all his heart, and the idea moved him onward. If he was to follow in his Father's footsteps, he'd need to become stronger still, until even the Mordecai could not bring him down.
He stopped his relentless march late in the day, the pack on his shoulders yielding a generous amount of rations, more than he'd need for a journey twice as long. If there was anything Jace loved, it was overeating! He sat against the base of a large Oak, digging into Jerky and taking a swill from one Of his canteens. You could never be too prepared, he'd learned, when traveling. Not everyone could just turn inanimate objects into food, Dad. He grinned, imagining the faux haughty expression Aven would've made to the comment. It was hard to get over, but he knew his Father didn't want any of them to waste their lives grieving, that wasn't what Aven stood for. Jace would become the man he needed to be, and the first step lie in Sirantil Valley, he could feel it.
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"Ow!"
Jasper's voice echoed out over the meadow and she winced, rubbing at the gash she'd just opened up in her calf. "Gods damnit!" she hissed. "Oh- I hate nature!" She kicked the jagged branch that had ripped through her breeches with a scowl.
Beast-speaker and mage she may be, but she had been raised a city girl. And it showed. No matter how much of her life she spent tramping through the wilderness, it never seemed to get any easier.
"Fuck all kinds of duck," she growled as she stomped out of the treeline of the little grove she'd been fighting her way through and onto the main path. And froze.
There was someone sitting under the large tree just down the path. Someone very much within earshot.
Oh, fuck me!
"Fuck all kinds of duck!"
It must have been the phraseology, the mere abruptness and forwardness of the individual emerging from the literal woodwork of the forest that made Jace's eyebrows skyrocket mid-bite of beef. He took a small pause to scan the person in question, a young girl, likely not reached her second decade. Well, to his eye, anyway: it seemed the more women he met, the less he knew about the correlation between age and appearance, a battle he long since retreated from. Removing the nearly cleaved-through jerky from his mouth, he waved, calling out with a small grin, "I'd be careful about that, ducks have corkscrew genitalia, pretty gross, if you ask me." He caught sight of her leg, the blood starting to seep into her clothes. "Are you alright?"
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Jasper's cheeks flushed red and she scowled in the stranger's directions. "I'm fine, thank you," she snapped back curtly.
Then her eyes widened and she blinked at him. "Wait...how in the entire fuck do you know what duck genitalia looks like?"
Jace gave a hearty laugh at the implication, lowering his meal to his lap. "My Father had a strange penchant for offhand knowledge, and he shared that little tidbit with me one day to get a laugh out of me. It worked, but even more so when I happened upon a text on animal biology in Serendipity, and would you believe it, it had a detailed sketch!" He broke into another fit, before taking a bite out of the beef. "Well, anyway, nice talking to you! I'd get that leg wrapped up before nightfall, the smell of blood can attract some pretty nasty creatures."
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"Hmph." Jaz stared at him a moment longer, then shrugged it off. "Could say the same to you," she pointed out as she sat herself beside the narrow road and started rummaging in her pack. She knew she had bandages in there somewhere. "You're just a fine prize, sitting out here with no protection."
At least none that she could see. Which didn't mean much, all considered- after all, her own deadliest weapons were invisible until invoked.
Jace smiled, putting a hand on his chest. "You think I'm a prize? Well, that's awfully kind of you, Miss, though I'd pity any wild beast that tried to take me." He pulled down the sleeve of his robe, pulling on the skin underneath. "Nothing but bone, I'm afraid." The hearty bite of meat that followed spoke to a logical contrary, but upon inspection, the youth was indeed quite gaunt. He chewed and swallowed quickly. "I'd be worried more about a young woman traveling alone without a weapon, though. I don't suppose you've lost your party?"
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“Who says I don’t have a weapon?” There was still a good bit of distance between them, so she cocked her head instead of quirking an eyebrow. In a shuffle of movement with practiced subtly to hide from prying eyes, she suddenly held a short bladed dagger in one hand.
Just as quickly as it appeared, it was tucked back into the sheath strapped to the small of bed back. A rather blatan warning that she was more dangerous than she looked, if he tried anything.
Jace raised his hands in a non-threatening gesture. "Fair enough, I misjudged. I guess you're better equipped than me, I don't bring weapons to travel. Too cumbersome, detracts from the amount of rations I can carry." He smiles once more, and pulls out another piece of jerky, having finished the prior.
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Jasper didn't bother to reply, pulling out a few scraps of bandaging and rolling up her trousers to get a look at the cut on her leg. She hissed as she dabbed at it, trying to clean it a bit before she wrapped it up.
Jace closed up his pack, leaning against the sturdy wood, and looked up at the evening sun. The discussion seemed to be over, nothing much to be gained from prying any further. Besides, getting sidetracked wouldn't do him any good, he needed to find the Alveron Family Estate as quickly as possible... wait.
"Excuse me, you wouldn't have happened to come across a large Noble estate in your travels here, have you?" If this girl knew the whereabouts of the estate, he could likely cut his search time in half, maybe more!
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Her head snapped up and she stared at him.
"...You're kidding, right? Do I look like the kinda girl who visits noble estates to you?" She gestured to herself with a pointed quirk of her eyebrow.
Dropping a bit of the snark, she added. "Maybe back northwest a bit. I'm not sure, I've been steering clear of the main roads."
Jace shrugged. "It was worth the asking, at least. Thank you, Miss." She was a feisty one, that was for certain: a sharp blade and a sharper tongue. He wasn't so different, he assumed, but that was besides the point.
Jace yawned, and scootched away from the oak, proceeding to draw a large circle around himself in the dirt. With a few muttered words, a slightly dark magical barrier rose from the circle, rising high into the sky. Visible within the shaded barrier, Jace laid his head against the wall, so in case someone dispelled the barrier, he'd wake up.
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Jasper snorted at being called "Miss". When she glanced over again, her eyes widened and she shot to her feet, ignoring the twinge of pain from her leg.
Stupid son of a- "Oi!" She stomped toward the barrier, glowering. "You crazy?! What the hells do you think you're doing?"
Jace opened one eye, glancing at the steaming girl. "Hoping to get some sleep, though I suppose that's out of the question. This is a protective barrier, it's take a very competent mage to dispel it, and physical force is essentially moot, a full grown dragon would take a few hits to break it." He closed his eye once more.
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Growling, Jasper resisted the urge to smack the barrier. That wouldn't be helpful to anyone. "Do you have any idea where the fuck you are?" she hissed. "What do you think would happen if a mordecai patrol happened down the road, huh? Gods, do you have a death wish?!"
And...why the hell did she care? She should just move on, get as much distance between herself and any obvious signs of magic as she could. But she stood her ground, glowering.
It was possible he was just an idiot, and he didn't deserve to die for that. Or get sent to a mage camp, gods forbid.
Jace sighed, propping himself up once again. He leaned over to the side she was berating him from. "We're in Sirantil Valley, in Connloath, the worst thing to happen to mages since the Fell Curse erupted. The difference is, Mordecai don't scare me, and fifty Adhara could dance a jig around this thing and it wouldn't even wiggle." He stands to his feet, stretching. "Ugh, now I'm awake. Anyway, you shouldn't be worried about me, you're the mage outside a circle of power." He grinned wolfishly. If she asked, he'd let her in, of course, a matter of courtesy for a fellow mage. He could tell she'd never ask, though.
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Jasper froze, then scowled and made a rude gesture in his direction.
"You are an idiot," she decided, scoffing, and shouldered her pack. "Alright, have fun with your false sense of superiority. I'm out of here." She turned her back and started off down the trail, shoulders hunched slightly against a sudden gust of wind.
The muffled sound of metal on dirt rose from the distance down the trail, by the volume, at least ten people. Jace's eyes slowly widened, and he put his hand on the wall of the circle, causing it to drop. He quickly packed the few items he'd removed and started high tailing it in the opposite direction, toward the northwest. He had more reasons than one to drop the barrier, though he rationalized that the main reason was that they were heading toward where the girl guessed the Estate to be. "Well, see you!"
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What?
Oh hells no.
"Shit!" Cursing her luck, Jasper wheeled around and started after him, praying it wasn't actually soldiers on the road. "You know running just makes you look more suspicious," she panted as she glanced back over her shoulder.
Jace's chest heaved as she caught up to him. It was terribly obvious he wasn't used to strenuous physical activity. "I'm already terribly suspicious, I have a wanted poster! Plus, I wasn't going to actually test my Circle against the possibility of five or more swords at once." His mouth made a line, a sheepish look dawning over his face. "By my math, it could theoretically withstand a dragon, but it's never actually been tested against strong physical attacks."
Behind them, the footsteps slowly drifted off into the wind. Whoever was behind them, they were not in any particular hurry.
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Yep.
He was an idiot.
Jasper looked behind with an annoyed hiss, then grabbed at the young man's arm. "Alright- this house you're trying to get to, would they hide you?"
As much as her instincts were telling her to, she couldn't just leave the poor kid. If she could at least get him someone he'd be safe, she could go on her merry way without the memory of him haunting her for the rest of her life.
The moment Jasper touched his arm, her magic would begin to drain out of her. Jace quickly jerked away, the motion almost causing him to trip. Luckily, he reacted fast enough that she wouldn't have lost much. "They hid my father for years, but I'm not going there to hide! I'm going there to make sure _they're_ okay." He had a strong feeling the girl had some misconception about him, but the current situation wasn't one to discuss it.
•-•-•-•-•-•
As they left their alleged pursuers in the dust, the small party of adventurers a few minutes behind them stopped for a rest. A tall redheaded woman leaned exhaustively against a familiar oak. "Why are we in this terrible place anyway? Weren't you listening to Valera's warnings, they kill mages like stray animals here!"
The lead of the party, a tall man with short, white hair waved the comment away. "We won't be here long enough for that to matter. Our mission is simple, just stay on alert."
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"Either way!" Jasper snapped a glare in his direction as she continued urging him along. She'd felt the strange tugging from his touch, so she didn't try physically pulling him again- she'd think about the details of that later. "Look, as long as we're off the road, I don't care. Let's just move."
Jace picked up his pace as much as possible, getting them far down the road. In the distance, as she'd surmised, a large village, with an estate at the far edge appeared on the horizon. Jace stopped, his breath completely gone at that point. "Ha... ha... can we... take a breather..." Jace couldn't remember the last time he was so out of breath. Well, scratch that, the dodge training he went through with Aven was at least as intensive, if not a bit more periodic. "We... could have... just hid..."
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Jasper bit back a groan and herded him off the road as he just about collapsed. "Gods, pretty boy, pull it together," she grumbled- a little out of breath herself but not exactly willing to show it.
She glanced back down the road, then up toward the estate, where he seemed to be trying to get to. Her brow furrowed.
She'd planned to just leave him somewhere he'd be safe and take off, but if those people back down the road had even a chance of knowing her, either from wanted posters or some kind of informant...
Maybe she'd be better off laying low for a while too.
Jace slumped against a bush, not even bothering to find a solid surface to rest on. Running was hard, and they'd done a hell of a lot of it. "You know... I don't think... we ever introduced ourselves." He raised a hand in exhausted greeting. "I'm Jace Kilandre-Alveron, a magic eater.... whew... Can I ask your name, Miss?" It was strange to not know her name for so long after meeting her, the thought just never crossed his mind. A breach of etiquette, to be sure, though she didn't seem the type to sweat the small stuff.
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She eyed his hand warily and took a step back, but gave him a sharp nod of acknowledgement. "Jasper," she responded curtly, eyes still watching the trail behind them warily. "And you'd probably do well not to announce abilities like that out in the open where anyone could hear."
Jace waved the chide away, his breath slowly recovering. "Nice to meet you, Jasper. As for keeping secrets, that hardly matters at this point. I'm already a wanted mage, revealing my name is enough to convict me for anyone who would actually attack me. Besides," He leaned off the shrubbery, moving to a crouching position, "It was obvious from your actions that you're a mage as well. It's very pertinent information for a fellow mage to know that if they touch me, they'll be quickly drained of their magic power." He'd started to learn to control the ability, but he still couldn't turn it off, persay.
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Jasper gave an even warier look, if that was possible. "And so you just decide to...what? Traipse around Connlaoth? Do you have a death wish, or are you just stupid?"
Her brow furrowed as she tried to follow a trail of logic that didn't add up. "Hang on- if you "eat" magic, how can you use it?" She unconsciously lowered her voice as she asked the question, as though afraid they'd be overheard.
Jace smiled, and made a circle in the air with his finger, and a black light trailed behind it. "You're exactly right, if I tried to use magic, I would just absorb it. What I use is a physical form of power, not exactly 'magic' as it's defined. It's what let's me galavant around Connloath without caring too much, as even an Adhara can't prevent that physicality."
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"Oooookay." She took a step back, frowning. "That's...profoundly creepy. But useful, I guess." With a shrug, she threw another glanced behind them and then curled her fingers at him in a "get moving" gesture.
"Come on, you seem to have your breath back. We should keep moving."
Jace glanced over at the Estate, through the trees. "Unsettling, maybe. It's not a power I would have chosen, but you don't get to choose these kinds of things." He shook his head at her gesture. "I'd rather just teleport, I have a decent excess of magic from Serendipity." He offered his hand out, and what looked to be a light film of magic surrounded it. "I might drain a small bit of magic from you, but probably no more than a mundane spell's worth. This barrier mitigates the effect of my body somewhat."
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Jasper eyed him warily. Her hand moved to the knife at the small of her back as the other reached out to take his.
"If I get even a hint of malice from you, I'll slit your throat so fast you won't realize you're dead," she warned him with a scowl as her fingers touched his.
Jace chuckled at the idea, taking her hand. Only a trickle of magic seemed to drain from her as she touched him. "if I wanted to kill you, Jasper, the last thing I'd do is let you near me."
With that, an odd wavering in the air around them spoke of powers at work, and the next moment, the scenery around them changed, bringing them in front of a large Manor. On the front hung a banner with a tongue of flame surrounded by laurels embroidered on it, the symbol of the Alveron Family. Jace whistled, letting go of Jasper's hand. "Dad grew up here? Talk about privilege, you could house a whole platoon in there!"
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Her stomach lurched and she staggered slightly from the vertigo as she snatched her hand back to her chest. Gods, she hated teleportation.
Wait a second.
"Dad?" She blinked at him, then her eyes went wide. She looked from the manor rising before them to Jace and back. "You're related to these people?!"
Jace paused, turning and raising an eyebrow. "Of course I'm related to them, why else would I be coming here? They're my Grandparents, though I admit we've never actually met." He pulled out a patch of cloth, emblazoned with the same emblem as the banner. "Well, shall we?" He strides forward and knocks on the door.
Only a moment passed before a neatly dressed maid opened the door. She was young, maybe twenty five or so, held the door half open. She have the two of them a once over. "Sir, this is the Manor of Lord and Lady Alveron. Do you have an appointment?" A quick flash of the emblem, and the maid's eyes went wide. "Y-y-young master?! Please, please, come in!"
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Young master?
Young master?!
Oi. Maybe she'd be better off hoofing it.
But...those guards might still be on the road. Gods damnit. Hoping no one would question her presence- as unlikely as that was- Jasper shuffled awkwardly behind Jace, trying to almost hide behind his frame.
Jace stepped into the manor, taking a good look around at the interior. It was incredibly lavish, the kind of finery you'd expect in a noble household. However, the number of servants seemed lacking. In fact, it seemed abandoned by noble standard, the young maid being the only person in sight besides them.
The maid shuffled around nervously, a slight panic in her eyes. What was she to do? They'd received a letter from Master Aven decades ago about his progeny, but hadn't heard since: twins, Elenoir and Jace. The young man was obviously Jace, bearing a striking resemblance to the Late Master Aven. That meant...! She quickly spun and bowed to the two of them. "Welcome home at last, Master Jace, Lady Elenoir! I am Pella, Lady Alveron's personal attendant. Please, make yourselves at home, and if there is anything you need, do not hesitate to call!"
Jace's eyebrows raised. That was right, they'd never actually met Elenoir, so Pella was assuming Jasper was his twin. He wouldn't correct her, as it worked in their favor for the moment. It'd be much easier to explain to his grandparents than Pella, she seemed stressed enough already.
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Jasper's eyes widened and she whipped her head around to glare at Jace. "Lady Who?" she growled under her breath.
She wasn't stupid enough to outright tell the maid she was wrong- if they thought she was some lady or another maybe they'd be more willing to let her hide out for a couple of days. But that didn't mean she had to like it.
Jace gave Jasper a, 'Just go with it' look. "Thank you, Pella: in fact, there is something you could do. I'd like to meet my Grandparents, if they're here."
Pella nodded ferociously. "Of course, sir! I'll let them know of your arrival immediately!" She took off running of the long spiral stairs of the lobby, leaving the two of them alone.
Jace turned to Jasper. "I'll explain the situation to my family, you don't need to pretend to be my sister or anything of the sort. If there's anything we Alveron's despise, it's purposeful deception."
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"Oh, great." Jasper glowered at him. "Well, you Alverons have a fun little family reunion, I'll just get out of your hair-"
She glanced back over her shoulder and her scowl deepened. "...As soon as it's safe."
Jace raised an eyebrow. "Come to think of it, why are you even here? I could be wrong, of course, but you don't look particularly Connloathian." The idea was preposterous that any mage would willingly enter or stay in Connloath without some ulterior motive.
Before she could answer, though, two figures appeared from the hallway at the apex of the stairs: a large, aged man with a trimmed but full grey beard, and an old woman with a cane, her other arm locked in the old man's. A booming voice echoed through the hall, centered around the man. "Jace, Elenoir! It's about time you stopped by!" Even in his age, there was a liveliness to the man's visage, and the duo began to descend the stairs.
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She scowled, ready to snip back a biting retort about how that wasn't any of his gods-damned business, but then the old geezers appeared at the top of those ridiculously massive stairs.
"When exactly are you planning on telling them I'm not your sister?" she hissed under her breath, watching the elderly couple warily.