Mageia BoundIn the dream, Lanala saw a beautiful, blonde-haired woman with pointed ears. She had a wonderful singing voice and strummed a stringed instrument, a lute most likely, to a happy crowd of patrons in a tavern. She didn’t recognize the place but the dream then shifted to someplace she did recognize.
Mageia. The island that housed Langiit, a city in the sky above Esterlin. The island she supposedly came from. She once again saw the beautiful, blonde-haired bard there, inspecting books and mumbling to herself. She seemed drawn to the place and found herself in a library of sorts. But the woman didn’t see the looming shadows creeping up behind her. Lanala wanted to shout out, to warn her somehow... but she didn’t have a voice. And she wasn’t in Mageia. She knew she was dreaming, at home in bed, and she could do nothing as the woman became engulfed in the shadows that patrolled the cursed, magical city, and left nothing behind. Even the book she had open on the table h
Vacation Planning“Lanala, we’ve been over this….”
“And I have yet to hear a good reason why we can’t go. Things are quiet now. Most of our enemies have been dealt with. What’s stopping us?”
“We still haven’t found a way to get our guest home….”
Lathiira padded silently into the shared dining room to the sound of a discussion between her hostesses. Lanala and Artema sat at the table, eating and rehashing an old argument to her trained ear.
“Your guest can go home whenever you find her company intolerable,” Lathiira chimed in from where she leaned against the door frame, smiling gently. “Getting back has never been a problem. Getting back quickly and safely even. I have however enjoyed the company and the time spent studying.”
Both women started at the bard’s words, neither having heard her arrival.
“It’s poor manners to sneak up on your host,” Artema griped.
“Indeed it is. But if
The Substitute TeacherArtema has asked the three of them to a special training session but none of them expected to see the pretty blonde woman standing there beside their leader. The green tunic and breeches, black leather boots, green cloak, and thin sword at her hip told them she was the same sort of adventurer as the rest of them. But, based on her pointed ears and something different in the shape of her shining green eyes, they could tell she wasn’t from anywhere around Esterlin.
Standing beside Artema, dressed in her short white, sleeveless dress, purple vest and knee high sandals, the woman looked positively tiny. Her mighty arms stood folded, bright green eyes scowling, the purple haired warrior waited for them to stop in front of them before speaking.
The three she had asked to come could easily guess what sort of training they were in for. Luna, standing tall with perfect ebony skin, long pale blue hair tied back in a braid, grey eyes, was the first to stop in front of them. Her silken dress
Substitute Teacher Two: Hands-On TrainingLathiira watched her three students arrive with the patience of experience. First to enter the training room was Elyn. She was easy to spot, as her bright orange hair and pale skin let her stand out in any crowd. She flowed quickly into the room in a silk dress, red with black trim. Behind her came Luna and Mirelle, pale blue hair down around Luna’s shoulders seeming to almost flow into Mirelle’s mint green tresses as they walked together. The elf was pleased that Luna wore a green dress nearly the color of her wife’s hair, while Mirelle kept to green and brown for her dress.
“Glad you made it,” the bard said warmly. “Luna, Mirelle, I want you barefoot for this lesson. Elyn, you may do so if you like or not, as you choose.”
This earned quick looks of confusion, but the ladies complied. Luna left her sandals by the door even as Elyn and Mirelle left their boots beside Lathiira’s own. “Interesting,” Elyn noted with a smile.
The
Substitute Teacher Three: Rewarding the Assistant“I think I’ll go with tying up the teacher,” Elyn said with a grin.
Lathiira blinked. “I’m surprised you didn’t want tied up, honestly.”
“I can get that here easily enough,” Elyn explained. “But opportunities to tie up beautiful elven bards? Those don’t happen every day.”
“Fair enough,” Lathiira laughed. “Before we go ahead, let me at least check on your friends first.”
“I’ll wait here.” Elyn agreed. As the bard departed, she saw Elyn looking over the scroll again thoughtfully.
Lathiira stuck her head into the training room and beamed a smile. “How are you two doing?”
Luna chose that moment to tug her hands from behind her back. Mirelle pulled her gag down and smiled at the teacher. “Pretty well! What you taught us really helped.”
“Good. Finish your escapes; you’ve got plenty of time. I’m going to be busy with Elyn for a while.