Morning Hall
DING!
Morning already?
Clouds moved past the tower window, concealing the streets below form view. The sun rose behind a curtain of fog as the young stallion attempted to free himself from the pile of blankets he had managed to wrap himself in during the night. His dreams had kept him twisting and turning throughout the night, with only the most technical definition of rest occurring. The bell tower down below tolled once again, marking the hour to be 9:00.
Finally managing to escape his bed, he nodded toward the candles lining the walls, lighting them with a silent spell as he searched for his cloak. The light coming through his window this morning was minuscule, with the cloud cover from the encroaching storm blocking out all but the slightest hint of sunlight. On a clear day he could have looked out and beheld the entirety of the valley's landscape for miles around, tracing the river down below from its mouth all the way to the mist-covered peak which marked its source.
He would normally have been treated to the sight of the local gryphon population going about their daily tasks along the rigged peaks to the south while the pegasi of the drums of the northern minotaur tribes echoed down through the valley. Today, though the drums were coming through faintly in the distance, the clouds blocked any chance of seeing the gryphons' splendid performance. He did not dwell on the matter too long, however. The moment he donned his uniform cloak he ran off toward the door and down the long winding staircase to the main castle below.
With his white and gold drape trailing behind him he descended the stairs two at a time. Excited would not even come close to describing his mood this morning, and he had little luck attempting to contain his anticipation for even a second. This proved to be only a momentary issue when he nearly crashed headlong into a cleaning-mare who was making her way up the same narrow staircase as he bounded down it. Coming within inches of colliding, the young wizard jumped up at the last moment and allowed a quickly concocted spell to carry him over the horrified earth pony and her cleaning supplies. He did not have time to apologize for the scare and simply continued his mad dash down the steps, leaving her to wonder for the rest of the day why it was she put up with the horned mischief makers who inhabited the upper towers.
Upon reaching the main floor the sorcerer was greeted by the sight of an entire battalion of earth pony warriors leaving through the main antechamber. Ushering them out, surrounded by a small brigade of white-cloaked unicorns, was quite possibly the greatest sorcerer of the age, and one whom the young upstart was so looking forward to finally getting to meet. He turned back as the last of the warriors left the castle to return to their homeland far to the west, bidding them all a fond farewell and much luck on their journey home.
He wore a vast cloak of black and blue which trailed behind him as he walked back to the center of the chamber. Upon shone a map of the night sky with stars and planets blazing in bright silver patterns while the moon began its arduous journey into the heavens. Bells lined the base of the cape, jingling lightly with every step. Upon his head sat the massive hat of a grand master of the Council, the ruling class of the unicorn kingdom. And at the base of his noble face hung the short trimmings of a grey-white beard which had won him his nickname.
I'll grow one twice as long one day. Ardent the Bearded they'll call me! He could see it now: a glorious testament to both age and wisdom, nearly reaching to the floor and matching his black and white mane in both color and silky texture. I'll have to earn the name of course, though. And that will take something truly memorable to accomplish, considering who I'd be winning such a title away from.
Star Swirl had arrived at the humble little fortress town only a few weeks prior but had had little trouble making his presence known in that short time. In just the first week alone he had managed to turn the minotaurs' bloodthirsty attention away from the from the castle, seal an alliance between their kind and the mages, and use that newfound friendship to quell what could have been a massive uprising of the earth pony population in the lower village. A contingent of no less than thirty armed and armored bulls now patrolled the streets and causeways from dusk to dawn while another group kept guard from strategic points along the walls twenty-four hours a day.
And all that had been accomplished with only the most simple spellwork imaginable. The majority of the changes had been the result of nothing more than his incredible ability to charm and talk things over with anyone around him, with threats and bribes never once having to be made. It was a change for the better from the way the old head wizard had done things and it was something which had one him Ardent's immediate respect.
Alright, you can do this. Just go up to him, bow, and say it. You went over the lines so many times last night you could probably do this in your sleep! Now come on... just...... move!
His hooves stayed planted to the ground right where he had touched down at the bottom of the stairs. His legs were shaking, but he could not get them to move to save his life. A tired looking group of trainee medical mages made their way through the massive entry hall, bowing and greeting the grand master as they passed him. He returned their "Good morning"'s with a respectful salutation of his own, making eye contact with each new mage as they came by. The group passed the trembling young sorcerer as they began their ascent up the stairs without saying a word; though he was certain he heard more than one snicker as they went by.
It was a moment later that a soft voice finally whispered in his ear and managed to break his paranoid trance. "Just go up and talk to him. He's really nice and I'm sure he's eager to meet you. Stop being so nervous and just get it over with!"
He did not turn to see who it was, he did not need to. That same voice had been following him around asking question, giving advice, and jumping on his back for the better part of seven years. And today, he could not have been more thankful to have it there. "Don't you think I would if I could? But this isn't someone I can just rush up and awkwardly introduce myself to. I have to be dignified, clam, collected. I need to make a good first impression here."
"Your knees are shaking."
"Hence why I can't just go up and talk to him..."
"We just learned finished learning a spell to stop heart attacks. Want me to try it on you? It should bring your heart rate to a nice even beat... Although I did sort of break about a dozen of the water balloons they had us practice on before I got it right, sooo..."
"No no, I'll be fine... Just gotta stand here a little longer... and wait it out..."
"Looks like he's leaving. You should go grab the door for him! You can introduce yourself while you hold it open, it'll be perfect! What better way to say 'I'm going to be the one serving you' than to be serving him while you meet him for the first time!"
"...Actually, thats not bad. Thanks, Meli, I'll see you after your lesson's done!" And with that he was off, leaving the little filly to happily skip back up the stairs to join the rest of her battalion. He'd have to remember to properly thank her for that later.
Sure enough Star Swirl and he guards were making their way toward the small oaken door which led to the nobles' quarter of the castle. Ardent quietly raced along the perimeter of the room just out of their line of sight, attempting to reach the door as casually as possible before his new master could. He made it without a moment to spare, with the little entourage arriving just a moment after him. He pretended not to notice them as he opened the door, his horn glowing faintly as the magic worked its way around the handle. Finally, as they came closer, he turned and acknowledged their presence as smoothly as he could manage.
"Oh, Master Star Swirl, I was just looking for you. My name is Ardent Flame and I'm to be your new steward!"
The master sorcerer looked the youth up and down before responding in a friendly, polite, and exceedingly welcoming tone. "You're legs are shaking, my boy. Been working up all night trying to think of a way to introduce yourself?"
YOU IDIOT! "Of course not."
"No?"
STOP LYING TO HIM! ITS OBVIOUS YOU HAVE BEEN! "No, no. I just happened by and thought 'What better chance to introduce myself?'"
"I see, you're certain you weren't standing in the corner by the stairs contemplating your next move for a good ten minutes just now?"
DON'T YOU DARE SAY NO TO THIS! HE CLEARLY SAW YOU! "...Ten minutes?"
"Ten minutes."
"Wow, uh, well... It really seemed like less than that..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"...I'll just be going now..."
"Nonsense, my boy! You did just fine! You think this is the first time I've intimidated a perspective steward just by standing there? Why do you think I keep these guards around? If you can work up the courage to approach me while I'm surrounded by a group of unicorns who are paid to act superior and disapproving to everyone around them, you clearly have what it takes to serve someone who is going to be surrounded by these snooty nobles every waking hour."
"You... you mean this was a test?"
"If you want to look at it that way. Personally I never much cared for tests. Think of this as just a judgement of character; and you passed without much difficulty. Though I must admit, that adorable little sister of your's may have said a few things to soften me up to you as her battalion walked by a minute ago. Regardless, the important thing is you're here now and we can continue with the day's business."
The relief he felt at that moment was enough to set his legs shaking once more. This time however, no one said a word about. He didn't even notice, himself. "Of course, sir. You must be very busy. What's first?"
"Breakfast. And you're going to be joining me at the head table today. Don't protest, I'll hear none of it. You'll have plenty of chances to serve me meals after this, but today I want you to fill me in on everything you think I should know about the going-ons around the castle here. If it helps, think of it as another test."
"I hate tests, sir."
"Thats a smart lad. Now, lets be off. I didn't get an ounce of sleep last night and I'm liable to pass out if I don't get something sweet in me in the next ten minutes."
And with that he was in. The group walked through the door together, one of the guards taking over the duty of holding it open as Ardent fell in with his new mentor. He would enjoy that meal more than any he had ever had in his life, spending more of it talking than eating while the grand master listened, questioned, and laughed as their conversation dragged on into the afternoon.
I'm REALLY going to have to find a way to thank her later.
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Next chapter is up, looking like this will be the typical length of the chapters for this story, with a few stretching into the 4k range. This seems to be just long enough to conclude each segment of the story without jumping too far into the next. Hope you guys enjoy it!
Another good chapter, some interesting species you have about the city. Star Swirl seems like a nice dude, as well. But, if I may, I'd like to point out that chapters can seem more visually appealing if you put spaces in between each paragraph. Given, I suppose that's more just a writing style, but for me personally it makes it look....better, I guess. Just my two bits.
Great chapter, I love the simple growth of ardent in this chapter compared to the cocksure and older version of himself in the previous ones.
Great use of imagery at the start as always :) but a few grammar and spelling mistakes if I were to be a nazi :3 looking forward to more of the story
Thank you both, I'm rereading it right now and trying to weed out all the grammatical errors I can find. I think I will definately space out the sentences a bit more, I've gotten used to reading it all crammed into word walls, so I can dedinately see where this will make things easier to look at.
Still not entirely sure just how big a role the other creatures (Griffons, minataurs, dragons, chimeras and the like) are going to play during the story, but i think its safe to say they will at least continue to show up in the Past chapters.
And please let me be perfectly clear about this: ANY critiques, criticism, suggestions, and corrections are very much welcome here. Anything you guys can bring to my attention can only make this a better story for everyone.
Was the song "Morning, U-Haul"?
2748913
Haha, unfortunately no. I may have removed a few words there in addition to a letter or two. "Born in a Mourning Hall," completely unrelated to the story itself in anyway but I felt I had to mention it for some reason in those authors notes... Oh well, its there now. New chapter In a couple days!
I lied :D The next chapter is up and it's a little shorter than the first two. However, it sets the stage for the rest of the Trial portion of the plot. Everything is in place, we can now get into the heart of the story from here on out. Expect to see some longer chapters, but possibly also a little longer wait in between updates. I'm going back to working on two other stories while I write this one so its going to be a bit too much to get a chapter out every other day or so. Rest assured, it will probably never be more than a week between chapters. Enjoy!