Storm and Stone Ch. 01

"Rawn, you should not let this upset you so. I understand how shocking it must be to you, but consider the news I just received. I'm not sure if I should be insulted that we are mere fantasy or a game to someone else out there, or flattered that the universe finds beings like all of us interesting enough to make our way into the imaginations of people on worlds we will never know without events like what happened to you."

"Besides," she continued, "I believe you may live much longer than you think. Never before has a human walked this world who possessed the power of an ogre, the resilience of an orc, and speed that not even an elf could hope to match on their best day. To me, that speaks of a greater player in the game of our futures because even you admit that you cannot perform the works on your world that you accomplish here. We will find the one who brought you here and, with good fortune, find the answers that we all seek."

She traced a finger slowly over Arawn's jawline from ear to chin, then she took his hand and kissed his cheek.

"Come now. Enough of this maudlin nonsense. Let us rejoin everyone before they break to rest."

"Kissed by a beautiful elf maiden, that's one off my bucket list" Arawn joked.

While Amevina was filled with pride that he found her beautiful, she still gave him a strange look. "What is a bucket list, Arawn?"

Arawn laughed. "A bucket list... well, it comes from a frivolous Earth term for dying called... kicking the bucket. A Bucket list is a list of things you want to do, or experience, before you die."

There was a moment of deep thought on her delicate features, followed by conflict... almost as if she was making an important decision, then everything came together in her mind and at that moment, she graced his ears with the most beautiful laughter he had ever heard.

"I think that might be the strangest compliment that I have ever been given. I have something for you. Now just relax, do not move a muscle, and this will be over in a moment. This won't harm you in any way, we just need to do something about these clothes."

Before Rawn could ask what was wrong with his clothes, Amevina released his hand and stepped back a few paces.

The elf's eyes began to glow as she raised her arms and waved them with practiced ease in a pattern she knew by heart. She chanted in a tongue unlike any that Arawn had ever heard, then the light show began. Lines of sigils and arcane symbols streamed from her hands and lips and then coiled around him without making contact. His clothes glowed brighter and brighter until he was forced to look away, and when the light was finally gone, he found himself dressed quite differently. Gone was the sliced up denim jeans and tee shirt, replaced by a breathtaking tooled suit of matte black, hooded leather armor complete with a matching hooded cloak and mask that reminded him of a ninja. The shoulders were adorned with tooled images of dragons crouched and ready to strike, teeth bared in a vicious warning. The chest was similarly adorned, though only with the head of a roaring dragon in the center. Arawn admired the intricate labyrinth patterns that adorned the rest of the armor. A pair of elven longswords hung from his hip. Arawn reached up and pulled the hood back from his head.

"There we go, all done. Now you look like the warrior that you are."

"Amevina...this is amazing! You can't even find anything this intricate at the festivals! Thank you so mu... hey, what did you do to my eyes? It's like daylight out here again."

There was her heartbreakingly beautiful laughter again.

"It is one of several enchantments on the armor. So long as you wear that armor, you will always see everything in the light of day."

"Ooooh, nice. I like that a lot."

Arawn decided to take a chance and gave her a big hug. Another laugh... a man could get used to this.

"This is crazy, that makes three items off my bucket list in one day..." Arawn mused.

A bemused smile crossed her features, "Three? Where did the other two come from?"

"Well, I'm wearing what has to be the most beautiful set of leather armor I've ever seen, and not only do the blades match it, but it's all enchanted. I'm actually wearing magical armor! Best of all, it was given to me by the very elf that kissed me. That's one..." he told her with a wry grin. "And two? I finally got to see real magic. I had no idea you could see all those arcane symbols and magic circles streaming from your hands and mouth as you worked the spell."

Amevina's confusion deepened as she wondered if his stay on her world had begun to affect his mind. Nothing left her hands when she cast a spell, people could not see magic. Though, she had to admit, the crux of what he had said was true. Her understanding of the spell was that the energy left her and surrounded the subject before it exchanged the garments between the two locations; the garments in question being armor on a rack at her home, and the clothes that Arawn wore a moment ago.

"What do you mean, see magic? One cannot see magic. If that were possible, countering spells in combat would be a simple matter of reading the symbols you claim to have seen and choosing the proper response. It does not work like that, I'm afraid. The only thing close to what you speak of is a magic detection spell, and that only reveals the presence of magic on the target of the spell as an aura. I believe that you saw something but, I am not sure what."

"Huh. Well... let's try an experiment. Cast a spell for something like, say... a torch flame, and hold it until I tell you to dismiss it. Oh, and work the spell slowly, please."

Amevina complied and lifted her left hand, palm up, while her right began to weave an intricate pattern over the upturned palm. Once again, the symbols streamed from her fingertips, only this time, they wove themselves into a three dimensional pattern that rotated about six inches above her palm. Arawn was awestruck, and his amazement at nothing almost broke Amevina's concentration when she looked up to check with him. He was so enraptured by the sight that he never noticed. When she spoke the trigger word, the pattern coalesced into an inverted pyramid, a stream of tiny glyphs began to rise up from her palm and the pyramid was engulfed in the flame of a torch. The stream of glyphs continued and Arawn guessed that this was the connection to her will which held the spell in place.

"This is so unreal. I can see you feeding the flame from your upturned palm. The flame was a strange weave of... glyphs and, I guess... sigils, until you said that word. Then it turned into a pyramid and bam! It burst into flame."

Then something about one of the glyphs caught his eye and he reached out with a finger.

"I wonder what this does..."

He reached out to the glyph with a finger and it passed right through, but he could feel the energy pass through flesh and bone to ascend into the flame above.

"Huh, I can't affect it, but I can feel the energy of the spell pass from you into the fire through my hand" he told her as he waved his hand back and forth in the space between for effect.

"Maybe if I could find a library, I could tell you what I'm seeing. Oh! I know!" His eyes lit up and he took her by the hand and half-dragged her back to the campfire. On the way, he stopped by his tent and pulled a sketch pad, and a pencil box from a separate section of his pack.

Everyone still relaxed around the fire and traded stories as the evening wound down. Arawn was oblivious to the stares he received as he sat down in his new attire, drawing supplies in hand, and went to work. Amevina gave her brother, Vorsah, a knowing smile as he glanced from her to Arawn in confusion. Vorsah frowned for a moment, then chuckled. He could always count on his dear sister for surprises. At least it will be entertaining when she introduces him to father, he thought to himself.

Arawn had been at his pad for a while, and the elf maiden noticed that he kept licking his lips, so she retrieved a flagon of mead and was about to place a hand on his shoulder when she saw what he was drawing and the hand went to her mouth instead. It was her. More specifically, it was her as she stood and held the torch spell for him to examine. He had captured every detail of her features. Did she really look that delicate to him? She seemed so frail in appearance, her frame was so slender, yet... even in his drawing there was an unspoken power and grace that shone through in her poise. She found herself taken aback by his skill, but her eyes bulged when they fell upon the glyphs and she could not stop the gasp that escaped her lips through the fingers that covered them.

"Vorsah, you must look at this. Arawn sees the elder tongue!" she called.

Arawn was glad he was finished by the time she came with the mead, her exclamation had brought everyone to their feet and they crowded around him to see the drawing. He removed the sheet from the sketchpad and held it up to Amevina to pass among the onlookers. In the flurry of movement, Arawn found himself separated from Amevina and was unable to ask just exactly what this elder tongue was. Meanwhile, Amevina's brother took one look at the sketch and stepped back away from the group and called out.

"Arawn Stonebrook, human of Earth, I would know the man who comes from another world and steals the heart of my only sister. My people have a long-held belief that a man's heart shows true in the manner by which he fights for honor instead of survival. By right of the armor you wear I challenge you to a proving. Since you are unaware of the customs here I shall inform you that this is not a fight to the death, it is a duel to first blood only. Serious injury during this contest is both disallowed and criminal among my people, so you can trust that I mean you no harm beyond the shallow cut that will end this fight. Do you accept?"

Arawn found his feet and nudged his way through the shocked and confused crowd. Only the captain and the other elves understood what was going on. He stopped in front of the elf male and scratched his head.

"Well, for one... what do you mean steals her heart? And another thing, aside from being an absolute masterpiece of leathercraft, what's so special about it? Finally, what in the flying blue fuck makes you think I'm going to let you win?"

Arawn accentuated the final question with a cocky grin and opened the clasp that held the cloak. Amevina arrived at that moment and closed it and placed her hands over his while her brother laughed in the background at Arawn's cluelessness.

"Another of the enchantments on your gear is that it repairs itself overnight so long as the set is not completely destroyed." Amevina told him. "So, do not worry about my gift to you. Now, before you fight my brother, I need to confess the reason for this."

"Well that just doesn't sound ominous at all..." he joked.

That earned him a giggle. "Do not be silly, it is nothing so severe. I had the armor crafted especially for my husband."

Arawn stepped back and his jaw dropped in shock.

"Oh shit! He's not going to wanna kill me when he hears some strange human has been wearing his clothes, is he?"

"No, no, I don't have a husband..." she answered as she giggled again, joined in laughter by her brother. She was about to add something when he cut her off.

"So... you're a widow and I'm wearing a dead guy's armor?" Arawn gasped in shock.

The crowd worked to conceal their amusement at his antics, they wanted to see how this ended.

Amevina was now completely confused. "What? No, I'm not a... And for that matter, why wouldn't the armor of ..."

Arawn winked and a grin overtook his cheeks. Her eyes widened with surprise, then she growled and slapped his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to kiss her forehead while Vorsah and the crowd lost the fight to keep their laughter contained.

"I get it, and I'm flattered. Since your brother doesn't actually want to kill me, let me get this duel-proving-thing out of the way and we'll discuss this in more detail before lights-out, okay?"

Amevina had no idea what lights-out meant, but she nodded. "Very well, but be on your guard. My brother is among our finest fighters." She decided to up the ante and gripped the back of his head to plant a toe-curling kiss on the unsuspecting human. When the kiss ended, she spoke only one word... win.

Vorsah had collected himself by the time the pair had ended their exchange, and awaited Arawn with a smile.

"I have never seen my sister set so firmly on her heels before. I do not believe I shall forget that any time soon.. I thank you for that. Now, as you so charmingly put it... shall we get this duel-proving-thing out of the way?"

Arawn laughed and held up an index finger, "Eh, just one moment..." then he turned to the crowd. "I'm ashamed to admit this, but I could really use a good buckler. Does someone have one that I can borrow... pretty please with some sugar on top?"

He continued to draw chuckles, and Captain Grokan placed a hand on his shoulder soon after. When Arawn turned, the orc placed a large black metal disk shield into his hands.

"This is made of Orcish Blacksteel. It's larger, yes, but it is as light as a human buckler made from their steel and twice as durable. I carried this for my first fifty years as a soldier, from there I took up the great-axe. It served me well in the past, may it do the same for you in the future"

Arawn was surprised, and as he looked at the quality of the craftsmanship, he realized he couldn't accept the shield. Such a piece of craftsmanship belonged in the hands of the orc's son when he joined the ranks, and he humbly told the captain so. The big orc grinned and patted the great-axe strapped across his back, and even though his posture screamed that he was no threat, there is just very little about an orcish grin that looks friendly... something about the tusks.

"Ah, don't concern yourself over that, friend. I have no children yet. I took up the great-axe to honor my grandsire after his passing and it is his that I carry. That will be my gift to him. I want you to have that shield, consider it a gift to a friend. I have a feeling that you are going to need it after today."

The human slipped the shield onto his forearm and played with the straps a little to get a good fit, then he drew one of his new longswords and stepped up to Vorsah.

"I'm ready."

The elf, who had acquired his own buckler in the time between, nodded his assent and called out once more.

"Who will adjudicate?"

Without hesitation, the captain stepped forward and declared that he would oversee the match. Vorsah was surprised when Arawn saluted the captain, and quickly followed suit. When they saluted each other and squared off, the camp fell silent.

Captain Grokan called a start to the match and the pair erupted into a blur. The sound of wood and steel rang out into the night as they traded blocks and parries almost faster than the onlookers could follow. Then something changed.

Vorsah quickly found himself driven back by a flurry of blows. First he had to parry an outside cut to his left thigh, then the man's blade had flipped completely around and slapped against his shield. No sooner than his eyes were drawn to the sound than he felt a slap against his right bicep. Where had that come from? When his eyes darted back, they caught the flash of steel as Arawn's blade flipped back around once more and lightly tapped Vorsah on his left cheek. Arawn quickly withdrew a few steps and smiled. The elf reached up to touch the spot and looked at his hand to find no blood at all, then back up to Arawn, his confusion evident.

"Why? Twice, you could have ended it..." he asked.

Arawn's smile widened slightly.

"It's simple, Vorsah. You said you would know me. I may not be a trained swordsman, but I'm no stranger to the concept of the warrior spirit and martial honor. It would be poor form indeed to acquiesce to such a request and end the fight so soon. We've barely started the conversation. Besides, there is nobody back home as fast as you so this is fun."

Vorsah should not have been surprised, but he was. The human was perceptive and sought to give him exactly what he requested. He resolved that he would give this human his due in return. The elf straightened his back and saluted the human, then squared off once more. Arawn returned the gesture and again they engaged in battle.

Once again, the sounds of combat rang into the night and Arawn danced around the elf as he dodged, blocked, and parried the male's furious strikes. Vorsah had steadily tightened his game, however, and he gave no ground and offered no openings. At one point, Arawn barely managed to dive away and roll to his feet to avoid an overhand slice that would have ended the match had it connected with his shoulder. After what felt like hours, but in reality had only been about five minutes, Arawn found himself on the defensive. Vorsah had finally adapted to his style and began to drive him back with a series of rapid thrusts that Arawn barely managed to block and parry while losing ground. The elf closed the noose when he began a circular disarm maneuver against the human and left him hands-up at swordpoint. The crowd had been silent as they watched, enthralled by the action.

"Well fought, Arawn, but the day is mine. Do you yield?"

The human shook his head slowly as a sly smile overtook his features. He pointed to the hilt of the elf's sword.

"Check your hand."

Vorsah's eyes drifted down to his hand and what he saw made his jaw go slack. A very small trickle of blood dripped down his glove from a cut in the leather glove at the crook of his thumb. Vorsah pulled the glove free and sure enough, there was a small cut in the fleshy web that ran between the thumb and index finger. A stunned Captain Grokan declared Arawn the winner and the entire camp erupted in astonished celebration. The human had bested the elf!

"How?" was all the stunned elf could manage.

"I got lucky right when you started that spiral thing. I angled my blade so that the spin carried the tip of my sword into your hand before you could throw my sword away" Arawn explained.

"You are a dangerous man, Arawn Stonebrook of Earth." Vorsah muttered.

It was a furious and hard-fought win, and both sides were congratulated thoroughly before the crowd started to return and prepare to bed down for the night. Arawn thought he might have a dislocated shoulder from Kord. The enthusiastic ogre clapped him on the back so hard he almost saw stars. "Rawn sneaky!" he told the human with childlike glee. When everything had finally settled, Captain Grokan congratulated him and affirmed that he had made the right decision with the gift of that shield. Arawn thanked him and watched him walk back into the center of camp. That left Arawn standing with Amevina's arms around him, and Vorsah opposite her. Arawn peered around Amevina to look at Vorsah.

"Well brother-in-law, do I pass muster?"

Vorsah briefly wondered if his face might become stuck in this position if the human kept using such strange terms, then laughed off his confusion.

Arawn had to explain the concept of a brother-in-law to the elves while he retrieved his sword and fixed his new shield across the back of his cuirass, and Vorsah confirmed what he already knew: that his form was sloppy and he telegraphed his intent with every move. The elf gave him hope, when Vorsah told Arawn that he would be terrifying with the proper training and even suggested that he might be willing to do so. After her brother excused himself, Arawn found himself once again alone with Amevina.