Chapter 1 – As Leaves Begin to Fall

…Six months earlier…

A wind rose from the far edges of the world. It blew over the raging oceans, carrying with it the scent of fresh water and salt as it reached the landmass that was the continent of Zamor. It passed through the forests, where the trees raced to reach the sky, over the capital city several days of travel worth of distance east from the coast, then eventually filled the wings of an airship, carrying it forward for a while before it went on its own way again.

A young man stood on the deck of the airship, leaning against the railing. The scent of fresh water the wind carried with it reached his nostrils. He took a deep breath, enjoying the foreign, yet enjoyable scent. The wind tugged at his shoulder-length crimson hair before it passed, leaving him with an odd, yet familiar sensation.

The ship’s wooden body creaked as it began its descent towards the small village of Lunum. The cloth wings of the airship retracted halfway, and its nose slowly turned down.

The young man braced himself as the airship sped up, diving below the clouds. He narrowed his eyes and watched the crew run around as they made sure everything was in order. While at first glance their fast, almost erratic actions could be interpreted as panic, he knew that this was nothing but a seasoned crew being efficient with their time.

“All passengers, please brace yourselves for our final descent!” A woman’s voice echoed through the crystals attached to the mast. “We are about to land at Lunum!”

Excitement rushed through his veins. His vision became clearer, and his hearing sharpened. He could smell the resin used to protect the wooden body of the ship from the weather, and taste the salt in the air, still lingering around the airship. He felt alive and basked in that sensation, enjoying every second of it as the airship descended.

The fast descent came to an almost abrupt halt as soon as the treetops reached the bottom of the airship. The young man kept his balance with ease but heard the surprised shout of a woman behind him. A young woman wearing the same military uniform as him had fallen down.

He reluctantly let go of the railing and walked away from the edge. “Are you alright?” he asked as he offered her his hand.

She took his hand with a smile. “I’m fine, thank you.” Once she was up on her feet, she brushed her skirt with the back of her hands.

“You aren’t hurt then?” He asked, just to make sure. This wasn’t a passenger ship, so it wasn’t safe and neat like one. It had rough corners and sharp edges, and the floor of the upper deck certainly didn’t lack its fair share of dangerous spots, no thanks to upheaved planks.

“Only my pride.” She admitted with an embarrassed smile. With a flick of her finger, she pushed her short hair behind her ears, then offered her hand. “Where are my manners? My name is Willow Aulorn, thank you for helping me.”

He took her hand without hesitation. “Midhir Induen, it’s a pleasure to meet you miss Aulorn.” He glanced at her chest. On the left side of her chest, right on her heart was a symbol embroidered in golden threads – A single, upside-down sword in a circle. “I see we are in the same class. Year one in Practical Combat and Strategy, right?”

She nodded with a prideful smile and raised her chin. “Yes!” Her eyes suddenly widened as she grasped at Midhir’s arm. Not a moment later, the airship settled on the ground, accompanied by a series of creaks, and a rather sudden descent of about half a meter.

“They could certainly pilot this thing a bit smoother,” Midhir grumbled. The crew was experienced, and the airship was reliable, but this certainly was what his sister would call a ‘bumpy ride’.

“Certainly,” She pulled her hand back. “Sorry, I didn’t want to fall down again.” Blood rushed to her cheeks as she showed a slightly embarrassed smile. “You should call me by my name since we’ll be classmates. Do you mind if I call you Midhir too?”

“Not at all. Willow, right? Lady Willow, if I’m not mistaken. Forgive my lapse in memory earlier, but the Aulorn name is quite well known in some circles.” The Lustrous Blademaster was well known to most in the capital, and every swordsman had heard of his name. Lady Willow was clearly his kin – either his daughter, or another close relative since she looked strikingly similar to him.

“I’m not really a noble,” She waved her hand dismissively. “And neither is my father, so just call me by my name.” She looked behind Midhir. “I suppose it’s time we disembark. Shall we?”

“After you,” Midhir stepped aside, then walked beside her. She was indeed not a noble – not in the traditional sense. But such things hardly mattered in the Solus Military Academy. What mattered here was dedication, power, and resolve.

They disembarked the rather old-looking airship, recovered their luggage from behind the vessel, then left the landing area. As with all towns in the Eldorian Empire, the small town of Lunum also had an airway station. It was a large, impressive building constructed at the outskirts of the town. All airships coming to the town landed there, so it served as the main transport hub of Lunum.

Once they left the airway station, they were met with a small plaza, decorated with cherry blossom trees and a large, round fountain. It was quite a lively place – birds drank from the fountain and chirped from the tree branches, while the town children ran around beneath the trees, shouting and giggling. The buildings around the plaza were mostly shops and cafes, and while none were crowded, there was the occasional patron sitting and enjoying the first days of autumn with a cup of their beverage of choice.

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The streets stretched in three directions from the Plaza. Towards east were small town homes. They seemed cozy with their stone walls and sloped roofs made from wooden shingles. Some of the houses’ chimneys were already releasing plumes of smoke, marking the start of autumn.

The road going west was the mountain road that eventually connected to the highways leading from the capital city to Bareon, the City of Roses. It snaked through the forests and the mountainous terrain, and probably didn’t survive the last few winters. Since the airway station was constructed, no one had a reason to use that road anymore, so it wasn’t maintained.

The road leading north went uphill for a short distance, passing by a couple of shops and a church, eventually ending up at the gates of the Solus Military Academy. Midhir and Willow followed this road, along with a few more people their age or a few years older, wearing similar uniforms. They were students of Solus and had all arrived via airship.

Midhir glanced around as they walked. For a small town like this, the people seemed to be thriving. The houses and streets were well-maintained, and there didn’t seem to be any homelessness or poverty. He turned his gaze to the church. Made of stone bricks, it was clean, well-maintained, and often used. The rose window above the metal reinforced wooden door depicted the Daughter as she offered a flower to the Sun.

“It’s pretty,” Willow commented after following his gaze. “The grand cathedral in An’Larion is much more impressive though.” She turned her gaze down, to a young woman standing in the middle of the street, looking at the church with an intense gaze. “What’s with her, I wonder?” She mumbled with just low enough of a voice that Midhir barely heard her.

“Let’s ask.” He approached the girl and shot a quick glance at the crest embroidered on the chest of her uniform. An upside-down sword in a circle, embroidered with golden threads, a symbol of their class and year. He then turned his gaze up, to her face.

She had a mystical, stunning beauty that certainly didn’t belong in the Empire. Her long, golden, braided hair glimmered under the bright sunlight. It easily reached below her knees, and had she not kept it braided, it would probably look like a curtain of gold that swept the floors behind her. The woman had a pale, freckled face, and wore round glasses that almost seemed too large for her small face. She had a petite build, so she was at least a head shorter than Midhir.

Upon noticing him, she quickly turned, clearly somewhat startled. Her green eyes opened wide, and her gaze darted from Midhir to Willow, then back at him. “Oh, hello.” She sheepishly spoke, quickly bowing her head. “Am I in the way? Sorry.” She motioned to take a few quick steps back, but Willow immediately shook her head.

“No, not at all!” She piped up, stepping forward with a beaming smile. “We’re in the same class,” She declared, pointing at the embroidery on their uniforms. “So, we thought why not introduce ourselves, get that out of the way, you know?” her cheerful demeanour seemed to have worked as the blonde girl smiled, and her tense shoulders visibly relaxed.

“I’m Willow Aulorn, and this is Midhir.” She pointed at him, then turned her gaze to the other girl.

“Arwen Maloid,” She introduced herself. “A pleasure to meet you.”

Was she a noble from some foreign land? Her surname was quite unusual, it didn’t sound like it belonged to Eldoria. Her features were also unusual, even exotic. No one in the Empire had such golden hair.

“The pleasure is ours,” He replied. He could ask about where she was from later, at a more appropriate time. “We were on our way to the Academy. Would you care to join us?”

Arwen shot a hesitant glance towards the church before nodding. “I’d like to,” she said with a polite smile, and joined them on the remaining part of their walk. “I didn’t see you on the airship,” She commented a brief moment later as they neared the tall wall surrounding Solus Academy. “Did you arrive on an earlier one, or…?” She let her voice trail off as her gaze turned from Midhir to Willow, then back at him.

“We were on the open deck.” Willow chuckled. “The view was quite amazing, but I must admit I wasn’t prepared for the rather shaky landing.”

“It’s quite fortunate no one was injured during the landing.” Arwen agreed with a rather vigorous nod. “We had quite a few people fall down at the lower decks as well. It has made me doubt myself, actually – I don’t think I wish to ride an airship again any time soon.”

Midhir shot her a glance. Airships were rarely piloted smoothly, since the technology was less than a decade old. There weren’t very many experienced pilots, and even they had to constantly readjust to new developments in technology and equipment. “Have you not flown on an airship before?”

Arwen shook her head. “No, this was my first time.”

“Don’t worry, not all of the pilots are as rude and careless as this one!” Willow piped up as they arrived at the gates.

Solus Military Academy was nested in a crater between the mountains overlooking the town of Lunum. The Academy itself was an old, repurposed castle – a remnant from ages past. The keep was repurposed to hold the classrooms, dorms, library, mess hall and kitchen, as well as the instructors’ quarters and the headmaster’s office and quarters.

The courtyards now served as training grounds, the watchtowers housed defensive crystal arrays and the dungeons were used as storage facilities. The tall, thick walls surrounding the castle were mostly destroyed by the weather and old wars across the centuries and were never rebuilt after the castle was turned into an academy. Instead, a two-meter high wall separated the academy grounds from Lunum.

“I didn’t see this from the airship!” Willow exclaimed wide eyed as they reached the entrance. The castle was situated in a crater, but Lunum was lower than the crater’s edge, so the castle hadn’t been visible up until now.

“I think the pilot intentionally kept this from view.” He replied absentmindedly.

The sights from the top of the crater were beautiful. He could see the lake bordering the western castle walls, and the forests surrounding it. The building itself was a testament to Eldoria’s history – battle scarred and repaired using whatever they found at the time, it now represented a variety of ages across the Empire’s history. The view filled him with awe, despite his upbringing.

“It’s quite breathtaking.” Arwen’s voice was but a whisper. “Full of… history.” She seemed to hesitate mid-sentence, but then perked herself up. “Let’s go, I want to take a closer look!” The excitement in her voice was palpable.

Midhir couldn’t help but smile. Arwen’s wonder-filled happiness was contagious. His pulse surged as they headed down the crater, along the stone paved road. He couldn’t wait to start the academic year.

Just imagining the thrill of new challengers was enough to make his heart race.