Post by Kiko on Feb 1, 2012 16:37:45 GMT -5
The cavernous banquet hall was bursting at the seams with hectic looking people. The annual Mid-winter ball in Karlshamn was not yet in full swing and already there were issues. Rival families could not sit next to each other, everyone must be fed simultaneously or risk offense that would backfire who knows where, and the mundane concerns of a major event; would there be enough ale, serving girls, or food.
Serenity escaped the crowed banquet hall, and the noise, her current companion quietly followed her to the gardens outside. Snow fell to upon the stone seats scattered in among the barren flower beds in fragile flakes; only existing for a single moment before melting away. She was a visitor here, and accorded much acclaim due to her magical talent, but that did not curtail her feelings of uneasiness.
Karlshamn’s prince and sponsor of the lavish ball was a scholar. Not just any scholar, either. His interests were devoted to gathering as much magical knowledge as possible. That, in and of itself, was not what caused her to worry, and she had to admit the surroundings were magnificent.
The port city boasted a wide natural river and a deep harbor that was the envy of its neighbors to the north; who had to cut through the ice to take anything to market. Plus, several modern buildings decorated Karlshamn’s main street; more than one house of worship for the devout, a huge library, a wondrous market district; with goods from every far away land, an elfish blacksmith, even an ingenious public conveyance that ran along the snowy ground pulled by teams of huge white elk. There was a mage school currently being renovated just outside the city boundaries, bracketing the institute of medicine on the opposite hillside, all the amenities for a civilized society and more. The port brought in the prosperous, curious, and welcomed hundreds of visitors from around the province; but it was by and large, a city of Magic and mages.
Picturesque, pristine, popular; normally, Serenity would fit into that atmosphere perfectly. She did fit in. She was lovely, well-spoken, and her manners were impeccable. She was currently a guest of the prince and his court with several suitors more than happy to grant her every whim should she ask. That did not curtail her feelings, either.
Serenity had come to Karlshamn to investigate rumors of foul magic. Rumors she had yet to get anyone reputable to talk about. Rumors of mages being stripped of their magic and never heard from again.