16 September 2022
This was both the beginning of my daily writing, and my introduction to Elsenaia. Definitely pretty rough in places, but it got the idea across well enough. I’m basically ignoring all reason for this opening bit, to be honest; I was writing this for fun, not to be serious. I did start taking it too seriously later, though.
“You’ve seen us, and so you all must perish.” The elven princess swept a cold gaze across us all, then turned to leave. The guards moved to carry out her orders.
Cries of alarm came from several of my companions, and I protested, “Oi, that seems a bit extreme, don’t you think?”
The princess whirled back to me, eyes blazing. “Extreme? After knowing what your people are capable of? I dare say it’s a mercy I don’t order worse.”
I glared back. “Well, I’m not sure exactly what you mean by my people, but regardless, it’s not like we’re all the same, you know? And it seems harsh to kill a bunch of people when our only crime is to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Her eyes flared at that, but she held out a hand, stopping the guards, and stalked up to me. “Very well, then,” she hissed, a dark smile curling at her lips. “Prove it.”
With one eyebrow raised, I asked, “And how do I do that?”
Her smile grew darker. “By letting me inside your head.”
“Eh? That’s it?” From the way she’s smugly folding her arms, it felt like she thought she’s asked for the impossible. “Does the spell hurt a lot or something?”
Her smile faded, and her forehead wrinkled. “Well, no.”
“Is this gonna make me your slave or something?”
“No, of course not!”
I glance at my other companions, who all shrug. “Then sure, why not? I mean, there’s some things I’m more than a little embarrassed about, but it doesn’t seem like that big a deal.”
The princess’s eyes just about bugged out of their sockets, and several of the guards’ jaws dropped. I chuckles, then thought for a moment. “Though, if you do find something you get mad about, don’t get mad at these guys for it, alright?” I extended my hand. “The name’s Nathan, by the way.”
The princess nervously accepted the handshake. “My name is Princess Elsenaia Haligwen Serassan, but you may call me Princess Elsenaia.”
“So, how does this work?” I sat, legs crossed, in the middle of a large magic circle.
Elsenaia’s head guard, a woman named Tairsi, replied, “The two of you will clasp hands, and after chanting the spell, the princess will enter your mind and see what manner of fírima you truly are.”
I nodded thoughtfully. “Anything else I should know?”
Tairsi paused. “When we said there was no pain, that is only partially true. The spell itself causes no pain; however, as the princess peers through them, your darkest secrets will be exposed to her, and your deepest traumas may be brought to the front of your mind, which can be…difficult, depending on the life you’ve had.” She sighed and smiled apologetically. “I do believe the princess, for all her thorny exterior, will do her best to spare you from anything too terrible, but it’s not an exact art.”
I grimaced and nodded. “The warning is appreciated.”
A short ways away, the princess argued with another guard, a dour-faced man with long hair graying at the temple. He gestured to me several times, but the princess simply sighed and shook her head. She said a few things in Elvish, which caused the guard to growl and look away.
The princess glanced over where my companions were being held. “Besides,” she said in English, “I made an oath, did I not?”
Without checking the man’s reaction, she strode over and sat down across from me. I eyed Tarisi and the other guards before I glanced back to the princess. “Everything alright?”
“It is fine.” She held out her hands to me. Once I’d grabbed them, she began to chant, and the runes incorporated into the circle began to glow a bright lavender light. I closed my eyes and tried to open my mind. Power surged around me, sweeping my consciousness away.