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Finally everyone was inside the tower. Nimros took one last look outside, then he shut the door and locked it. He noticed that Lynn was looking out a window, and so he rushed over and quickly closed the curtains and told her to step away from it. He then went back over to the chosen ones, where he took a deep breath.

"Okay... You all are probably wondering why I rushed you all inside to avoid what seemed to be a rain cloud and cold wind," he said. "Well, it's a lot more than--" He was cut off when a fierce wind suddenly blew outside, and it could be heard throughout the tower. A shadow was also distinguishable through the window curtains. Then another shadow, and another. A few seonds later, the shadows were gone and the wind had stopped howling. Nimros slowly went over to the curtains and peeked outside. The clouds were starting to part a littl.e

"Very well... As I said, that 'raincloud' was more than a raincloud; it was the feared Winged Skells of Tianech. They are horrible creatures that look like small wyverns, except they are made completely out of bone and darkness. They can blend into dark places, which is why it looked like a raincloud. They can also spur fear by the fierce cold winds we experienced." Nimros paused and paced around the entrance hall.

"The Winged Skells came here because they are commonly used as scouts for the Emperor. They usually do not come in this far into the west which is why I was surprised. I also rushed you in here because I do not think the Emperor knows yet, and having the Skells see you could damage the possibility of success."

Lynn wondered idly if her brother-in-law was related to the Skells in any way. It would explain the familiar chilly feeling the Skells were giving her. Of course, that was a ridiculous thought. She wondered how Mynn was doing. Mynn would be worried about why Lynn wasn't home. Lynn decided she was just concerned about her sister.

'So what are we going to do?' she asked abruptly.

Kuyyra frowned. The Winged Skells sounded familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place why they had. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that she was one of... The Chosen, or whatever they were supposed to be called?

A sudden thought occured to her, and she gasped in horror. "If... by some chance they do know that we exist, but don't know where we are... is there a possibility they will search out our families?"

[Dragonfire - I'll be gone from the 9th and will come back on the 13th, so could go look after Seferia from tomorrow til the 12th? Thanks!]

Nimros turned towards Lynn. "Well, there's nothing you can do about the Skells right now, as you all are much too weak for them. But, for the bigger problem, it's simple: you seven are going to make the trek from here to the border between the Empire and the Allied Kingdoms, and eventually into the Empire. And to let you all know, I will not be making the journey with you. I am too old to be making a long trek, and I must stay here and make sure the Empire does not try to do anything behind your backs. Instead, Rolanth will be leading you."

Upon hearing Kuyyra's comment, Nimros thought a moment, then spoke "Well, even if the Emperor did know the Chosen Ones were indeed here, it would be hard for him to find out your names and your families. But, if your families are in danger, you will know because your elements are imbedded in you in the deepest levels possible."

"Now, you all must be tired. Please go to your rooms and rest up. You will all be leaving just after the break of dawn."

Achmed nodded and went quickly to his room. There was no way in ^#(( that the Emperor could get to the people he cared about even if he did know. They were far, FAR away. The Emperor should have more sence then to attack a enormously fortified country accross an ocean, shouldn't he? Ah well, the army can hadle itself even if that happens. Achmed let the air that he had been using to clean out his robe disipitate, a tinge of red faintly visible for a fleeting second. Achmed was asleep quickly, tired from last night's sleeplessness and todays training. This elemental stuff was a bit harder than just normal fighting.

In her room, Lynn sat on her bed, her arms wrapped around her legs and her chin resting on her knees. The curtains were drawn, presumably to prevent the Skells from seeing the Chosen Ones. The only light she had was the flickering flame of a candle on her table.

She was a Chosen One, huh.

The events of the past few days had happened all too quickly for Lynn to comprehend. As she did whenever she was confused, which was not often, she became submissive and listened carefully to the instructions she had been given. Obeying the orders Nimros had given was her one sure anchor that she was still here, in this world.

Everything was so surreal. Ever since she had fallen through that hole, Lynn had felt out of touch with herself. Her body moved and functioned according to whatever was required of her, but Lynn, the real Lynn, seemed to be hiding somewhere in the back of her mind, watching in confusion. Now that she finally had some time alone, the old Lynn was trying to make a connection with the new Lynn. There seemed to be a gap in her memory of who she was, disorientated as she had been in the last few days.

As the memories came back, she understood more clearly what being a Chosen One really meant. At the time of her transformation, she had thought it was all a dream and hadn't really paid attention to what Nimros was saying. Now that she felt in full possession of her wits, she began to realize the immense task that had been thrust upon her -- no, she corrected herself, the task that she had chosen to undertake. She had volunteered to fight the Empire.

And here Lynn had been thinking that she would never have to do anything for the kings and their households again. She smiled drily. Even though she had no idea what had been happening to her, she had still managed to ask to eat the bread from her bakery. It was a small thing to rejoice over, but she had noted with pleasure that their bakery's bread was not the best in the country. So much for the head baker's boasting -- not that she would get a chance to tell him so anytime soon.

She shivered, but this time it wasn't from the Skells.

If only she had known what she was doing at the time, she thought with sudden fierce regret, then she would at least have demanded sufficient wealth to last a lifetime. She could have asked the kings of Sezentur to take care of her sister (and Lowis, if Mynn insisted) while Lynn was gone. Give her a better home to live in, better clothes to wear, better everything so that Mynn wouldn't need to worry about how to make ends meet. She had enough problems already, what with expecting a baby and a permanently antagonistic husband. Meanwhile, Lynn was staying in the most luxurious room she had ever been in, barring the palace, a room as large as their entire cabin back home.

Lynn wondered if it was still too late to ask. She stood up, then sat back down on the edge of her bed. She didn't know where she could find Nimros at this time of night. Still, he was a mage, wasn't he? Perhaps he would hear her if she just spoke, and if he couldn't, well, she'd ask again in the morning.

'Nimros,' she addressed the wall. 'Hey, Nimros.' She stopped, feeling foolish, then decided to persevere. 'Would you mind asking the kings to take care of my sister while I'm gone? She's going to have a baby soon and our home isn't the best place in the world to have one in, so nicer accomodation, and enough money to live off would be nice. Please tell her not to worry about me and that I got another job.' She paused, not knowing what to say. 'Well... Good night.'

She blew out the candle and climbed back into bed.

So Lynn was a Chosen One, was she? Then she'd better get a good night's rest before they left the next day.

Hikaru obidiently went to her room. Sitting down on the bed, she glared at her armor. Not exactly in the way, but beening clumsy and not quite used to armor, she had thought it would have been more a pain. It was metal, and it looked like metal, but to Hikaru it seemed like soft cloth.
Well, it IS made for me, she thought yawning. The candles in the room flickered, making shadows dance on the wall. She shivered inwardly and created a small fire ball, leaving it floating in the air near the ceiling.
She felt restless, and paced the room while practicing some spells. Hikaru hadn't used as much of her powers as the others and was used to using loads of magic in one day. She wanted to try things out, make sure she could use everything properly.
Could she make her flames not burn things she didn't want to burn? Could she control fire that wasn't from her? Hikaru made a mental note to ask Nimros.

To sleep, she thought enthusiastically. Hikaru was about to jump back to the soft looking bed, when she realised that she still had her armor on. She sighed and unstrapped her sword, leaning against the wall next to the bed. Looking back at her armor, she wondered how she would take it off. Remembering how the flames had formed the armor, she shrugged. It was worth trying.
Hikaru tryed her best to imagine the flames again. It didn't work. Next she tried thinking that she wanted to take her armor off. It seemed to have worked, as the armor turned into flames and was sucked into her chain necklace. She was back into the clothes she had been in when she had left that morning.
Feeling satisfied, she got in to the bed. Counting the hours until the time they would probably be woken up, she nodded. It was just enough for her.
She tucked her head under the covers, putting out the candles and the fire ball, and was asleep in a few moments