The First War Mage: Skyline Trials

It turned out that the Harvest Festival was exactly what it sounded like—A multiple week-long festival that filled the streets of Ferilis until the harvest season came to an end.

Tulip had been quick to explain it as she pulled herself from the water first, having by far the least modesty out of any in the water other than Akemi. She pulled herself out so suddenly and quickly that she barely gave me or Silva any time to turn away and save ourselves the embarrassment.

Silva was at least kinder, giving me a moment to turn away before she pulled herself out, wrapped herself in a towel and left.

Then there was just me—I followed the same motion as Silva, getting out at about the same time as Akemi arrived at the shore. We both got out, Akemi shaking herself dry while I tenderly patted down my hair before wrapping the towel around myself and leaving.

Thankfully by the time I got to the changing room Tulip and Silva were both more or less decent. Silva had just finished tucking the folds of her dress—A Kimono—Together, pulling a strap around that bound them at her midriff.

I blinked in surprise, noticing that Tulip and even my own set of clothes were of the same style. A high cut kimono of different colors, each one ended at about the hip while the sleeves were cut to shoulder length. Tulip's was colored a deep black, Silva's a fiery red and my own a rich purple. Alongside them, as the Kimono didn't nearly cover enough, there were a pair of comfortable leggings with each offered dress.

"Carmine left you all a gift too?" I wondered aloud as I approached my pile of clothes. I was thankful when I saw a section with hanging curtains that I could hide behind while dressing.

"Yeah, it almost looks like she had them prepared in advance—These are really high quality." Tulip answered, running a hand over the soft silken robes at her shoulders.

"I could have never afforded these back home…" I heard Silva mutter under her breath as I pulled the curtains shut behind me.

"Come to think of it, I've never heard of you before Silva—" Tulip trailed off, her wonder evident in her voice.

"I'd… rather not talk about it." Silva audibly shuttered in response to Tulip.

Before Tulip could press for further answers I stepped free from the curtains, spinning in place before I looked at them with a smile.

"What do you think?" I asked, a smile written plain across my face as I stopped.

Putting the Kimono on I was able to take in a lot more of the details, the black ribbing that attached the dress together accenting the purple colors brilliantly. The back was meanwhile embroidered with a distinctly familiar symbol, a pair of twin stormclouds and four bolts of lightning outlining the distinctive "V" shape of my insignia.

"You look great!" Tulip gave her approval with a nod of her head. Silva shook her head in agreement, speaking rather softly.

"You do look nice, honestly, your hair being so long works for you." Silva practically whispered her agreement.

"Mmm, I still think it's a mess," I sighed, glancing over my shoulder at the frayed ends that hung just below my mid back. I really had to wonder how bad my hair had looked for the last year, being bunched and knotted so intensely that it barely reached my neck.

"Nothing saying I can get it to look better later—But let's get going already!" Tulip began waving emphatically, barely waiting for us to follow before she started out of the changing room.

As I moved to follow her Akemi ran up, leaping from the bench onto my shoulder in a single motion. She gave a small, approving yip as she folded herself around my neck, nearly blending in with my hair.

"Guess I'm really outvoted, huh?" Despite the sigh which followed my words, a smile was planted firmly on my face. Maybe I could accept how I looked, for now at least.

Akemi gave her yip of agreement, bringing a giggle from me as I followed close behind the others.

It wasn't particularly hard to make our way out of the Estate, the wing in which we had all been housed was the outermost section of the three layered structure.

There was another wall and outpost that barred us from entering any of the innermost sections of the estate. The outermost wall spread all the way out to the base of the hill the estate sat upon, blocking it off from the rest of the sprawling city below.

Ferilis was far from the grandeur of Arcadia, its walls only spreading maybe a quarter of the span that the capitol did—Yet, despite the seemingly inferior stature, the city was more than equal in outright beauty.

Streets were lined with curved formations of evenly spaced buildings, homes with low walls to hide their gardens from outside view. Markets lay open to the flood of traffic that looked like nothing more than an indistinct mass from the distance.

"Wow—" I trailed off as the city came into full view. We had stopped at the front gates of the Estate, the only place that had any guards so far.

On either side of the otherwise open gate sat two guards, both of them were clad in the armor I had long since been familiar with seeing. Gold tinged plates covered their most vital areas with deep black leather covering the joints and less vital regions of the body. Over their shoulders was a black cape with a multi-colored flower emboldened in its center.

"Halt," The first guard spoke, turning his arm out to stop us. "As guests of the estate, you must inform us of your plans of travel." He sounded bored more than anything, repeating well-practiced lines that seemed to have no real intent behind them.

"We're going out into the city to partake in the festival," Tulip answered immediately, giving a slight bow of her head. "Is there anything of interest we should know about?" She asked a beat later.

"Mmm," The guard trailed off, clearly thinking over his answer. "Most of the city folk are at the north gate, it seems after the four of you made such explosive entrances that they're excited to see who else arrives early." He answered with a tone that spoke of the grin on his face.

"Take care of yourselves girls, the Mistress doesn't need the reputation of letting the Princess get kidnapped for a second time in her lands." With a chuckle the guard stepped aside.

I couldn't hold back the giggle that came from his comment—Silva couldn't either, a soft set of laughs coming from her while Tulip's face lit up into a faint red color.

"We'll be back by sundown!" I supplied for the guard as I began walking, Tulip rising out of her stupor a moment after to follow and take the lead again.

The sun was barely even reaching its peak at midday—We had hours to spend in the city, hours that I was already starting to look forward to.

"I think the markets were in the northern quarter too, so do we want to just head that way?" Tulip offered her plan of action, once she received an affirmative nod from Silva and I we began into the city proper.

By the time we reached the city the streets were already packed. The section nearest to Carmine's estate were almost exclusively high class homes, the types of abodes I would expect to see from merchants and nobility.

They bore high walls, blocking any view of what lay behind them in the sprawling single-story structures. Yet despite this fact, dozens of what I could only assume to be servants were running around outside of the walls, cleaning the stones to polished perfection.

The streets themselves were filled with people, many of them dressed in a similar fashion to what the three of us had been given. Most of the women were wearing far more modest kimonos, while the men were wearing a mixture of suits and high quality robes that seemed to reflect the type of work they did.

I was rather thankful for the clothes Carmine had given us. Knowing now that even if they were certainly more colorful and less modest than the other inhabitants of the city, they wouldn't stand out nearly as much as our school uniforms would have.

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"Over here!" I was pulled from my musings by Tulip's voice, her excited voice drawing my gaze to where she pointed.

Sure enough there was something worth seeing—Fire was erupting from the streets, blasting into the air with the echoes of drums.

People crowded the streets, deafening murmurs overlapping one another. All of them were joyous, filling the streets with an electric energy that was contagious. The Harvest Festival lay before us, ready to welcome us into its full embrace.

Countless people were filling the bustling streets, stalls laying open with steaming food and innumerable other goods. The masses embedded and flowed from the stalls, shifting around on an endless hunt for their next prize.

The central square itself was filled with the frenzy of festivities. The performers who marched to the drums, flags and poles spinning and spiraling to create patterns of impossibly planned complexities.

The banners trailed with lights, each etching out intricate patterns that told their own stories. A warrior, a field of flowers and a beast. They stood opposed, moving through motions of practiced combat—It was like a routine, a formality they had known for centuries.

"How are they doing all of that?" I asked as Tulip began moving into the throngs of people.

"Magic," Tulip answered worthlessly, her shoulders raising marginally into a slight shrug. Silva let out a snort—Quickly turning into an all out fit of giggles when she saw the daggers I glared at Tulip's back.

"Can we just go and enjoy the festival?" Silva asked in a pleadingly disarming voice. Theaters that soon spread from all of us lightened the mood in moments, sending us into the festival with smiles on our faces.

"How much more must you put in place?" A man asked from across Carmine's desk, bringing her roaring headache up to full frontal focus once more.

"I told you, I'm preparing for every possibility," Carmine snapped, taking a long breath before adding; "Or at least as many as I can physically plan for."

Her gaze slowly traveled down to the old book at her desk, the plain nature—Raw hide exterior, all of it was so plain and yet so important at the same time.

"And yet you're banking on the slimmest possible chance of victory possible?" The man growled in response—The only reason he wasn't spitting at her as he spoke was thanks to the helmet covering his face.

"Its the only victory where we actually win, anything else and they'll find numerous reasons to contradict our claim," Carmine sighed, placing a hand on the book a moment before it disappeared.

"Just keep the girl safe, alright?" The man spoke wearily. "You know as well as I, the Armesters are not to be crossed." His dreadfilled warning accented his turn, leaving an otherwise wordless exit in his wake.

"I can only hope this all works out…" Carmine sighed out. She raised her hands covering her face, leaning back in her chair with a loud creak. "Knowing that girl… there's no telling how it will go." Yet, before Carmine could even deign to relax, a guard came charging through the door.

"Miss Carmine! I've just received a report that one of your guests has assaulted multiple city guards!" The man declared his statement, one which left Carmine with a renewed and roaring headache.

"Take me to her." Carmine spoke as she stood. It was a fire to put out, one she absolutely could not sit on.

Tulip, Silva and myself had all split apart from each other to explore the festival. Silva had been the first to move away, claiming that she had specific sights she wanted to go to. Tulip on the other hand had long since gotten distracted with the innumerable shops, especially the ones which sold fancy clothing.

I on the other hand had moved to follow the most interesting shows with Akemi gladly hiding on my shoulders. The show I was currently watching had been the most interesting one all day. It was composed of two distinct characters—Both played by mages—They were swordsmen, holding gently curved blades not unlike the one Carmine had shown me.

They moved in and out against each other, their motions trailing mystic lights in their wakes that gave the illusion of leaving doubles in their wakes. Their blades trailed and sparkled with the warring elements of fire and water, whenever they clashed blasts were left in the echoes.

There was some form of story to the wordless play, one which told a tale of why the two swordsmen fought—But I had really been more intrigued by the swordplay, barely paying any mind to the story whatsoever. The most I had gleaned was that some dishonorment preluded the fight, bringing the two men to this moment in time.

Yet, just as the swords clashed in a climax of the duel my head shot in another direction—A scream reached my ears, not one of joy, but of pain and fear that felt all too familiar.

"Was that even real?…" I began to silently wonder as I glanced around, none of the other spectators had even reacted to the noise. But when the sound came again I was on my feet in an instant. It was a cry of pain, one that I could only barely hear. Despite that faint sound, I could feel it.

I turned through the crowd, quickly weaving my way between the gathered masses while the clangs of blades grew ever-more intense. The blade's clashes grew ever-louder behind me as I started into a jog, a distinct voice reaching my ears from behind the edges of an alleyway.

"Please!—I… I can return them, please! Ah!—" A feminine voice pleaded, just to be cut off but a metallic clack. Another echo came from the show behind me, the audience was starting to cheer.

"Shut it!" Another feminine voice ordered, muffled and tinny by the helm over her head. "Another word and I'll make certain you're sent to the mines." The Guards-woman hissed out. Another clash, the crowds grew louder yet.

"Please no!" The girl begged as I rounded the corner, keeping myself back to the edge of the alleyway as I took in the scene.

A guard stood, cornering a girl that looked about my age at the back of the alleyway. She was on her knees, a hand to her reddened face while tears fell from her eyes.

It hurt to look at the girl. She was frail, her skin taut over her jaw and shoulder. She wasn't anywhere near as frail as I had once been, but she wasn't much better than it either. Her head was covered with matted, pinkish hair that had two triangular shapes sticking out. It took me a moment to realize that those were her ears.

"A beastkin?" I thought while taking a step forward. Another explosive clash echoed out from behind me, sending the crowd into utterly deafening cheers.

"Why would I listen to the pleadings of a filthy beast?" The woman hissed again. She took an aggressive step forwards, her hand raised like she was prepared to strike the beastkin girl again.

"Hey!" I called out, quickly moving forwards even further. The woman stopped her hand, holding her clenched fist in place while her covered head turned to face me. The girl was on the other hand shivering, desperately kicking at the ground to back away even further despite already being against the wall.

"What do you want, girl?" The woman hissed out, turning around as she quickly composed herself. "This thief is to be arrested and taken in, there is nothing you are needed for." She added in a more respectful tone—I could almost feel how her gaze was trying to examine me.

"What did she steal?" I asked with a slight tilt of my head.

"What does it matter?" The woman snorted out. "A thief is a thief, they're all the same." She added with disinterest.

"Stealing food to not go hungry, and stealing jewelry for the grace of getting rich are very different." I stated, my voice doing little to hide how annoyed I already was at this woman.

"It was food! I was just trying to get a loaf of bread!—" The girl pleaded.

"Shut it!" The woman whirled around, her fist clenched with fury. I could see the magic forming in her grip, the strength that was now coursing through her veins. She was going to kill the girl, just for pleading her case.

I had to ignore the pain still aching in my muscles, the bone-deep sores that were far from fully recovered. Mana surged through my limbs, a current that launched my legs into action. The world was so slow for a moment, it was almost easy to walk up next to the woman, pull an arm back, and strike.

The world moved into full motion again an instant later, pain screamed through my body as wounds that hadn't even started to heal tore themselves open. I was just thankful that the crowds cheering were loud enough to keep the crack of the woman hitting the building drowned out.

The woman, unsurprisingly, was unconscious. My impact hadn't been that powerful, really only enough to push her—But the energy I unleashed into her body left her twitching on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Here… let's go and get you some food, alright?" I offered a hand to the girl. Her sapphire eyes were wide, a sort of amazement and thankfulness so intense that I could physically feel it wafted away from her. It was reassuring, especially when she took my hand and stood up slowly. "What's your name?"

"P-Panna." She sputtered out quickly.

"Nice to meet you Panna, I'm Kirin," It took Panna several moments, but eventually she was able to bring up a smile—One which I could once again feel the truth behind. "This will be a mess for me though…" I spoke with a dry chuckle, only now realizing that I had just assaulted a city guard. A city guard, wearing golden armor and the symbol of Carmine's family.

Panna's stomach was quick to roar its complaint, growling so loudly that it gave me a slight pause as I looked towards her. Her embarrassed blush sent me into a small fit of giggles, pausing only long enough for me to get a few words out.

"A mess I can work out after you get some food."