Chapter 1

Nock arrow. Draw. Wait. A cool breeze brushed past Nyla as she waited for her chance, the tail of her arrow against her cheek. The forest of trees in front of her stood tall and daring, like an army of giants, waiting for her to make her move. The branches of the trees swayed in the wind and the leaves trembled, freeing themselves from their elevated residence. Nyla’s eyes widened as leaves began to drift down before her, like dancers swirling their way to the ground. There. Nyla released the arrow from its taunt prison and watched it as it soared through the air before striking a tree, three leaves pinned beneath the arrowhead.

Nyla Greene, daughter and second born to the clan leader of Lily Cove and Region, a determined, strong-willed young teen with fire in her eyes. Being the daughter of the clan leader came with all sorts of expectations, one of those being a quaint Lady. However, Nyla was the complete opposite of what people would expect. She was a warrior, a fighter, and a skilled Conjurer. Her hobbies included archery, swordplay, and combat training. Not what you would expect of a Lady, her secondary title whether she wanted it or not.

The people of her village knew all about her and her viewpoint of her status as Lady, so they dared not refer to her as Lady Nyla, instead they called her Sybil Nyla, her first title, being the daughter of the Preator.

“Nice shot, Filla.” Someone to her right praised her. She turned and smiled at her father who leaned against his bow, wedged into the ground.

Nyla’s father, Preator Oriel, was a tall and slender man with dark brown hair reaching his shoulders, the top half of which was tied behind his head with a thin blue ribbon. He wore a tight-fitted blue robe, the traditional attire in Melgaesia, which was fastened around his waist with a brown belt. The creases in the corners of his eyes became prominent with age but added to the other kind features of his face, like the gentle and loving smile he shined at her.

Oriel was the clan leader of Lily Region, the capital of which was Lily Cove. They resided in a large village safely hidden behind the wall of a mountain with a large lake near the palace and outskirts of the village. Behind the palace stood the large forest where Nyla spent most of her time training. Nyla, unlike her father, had jet-black hair which she tied up in a high pony, a blue ribbon tied around it. She also had bangs, framing her face, and the tips were tinted white. The one feature she shared with her father were her deep and dark brown eyes, full of mystery and mischief, as her father would always say. Nyla wore a black robe fastened around her middle with a silver strap of cloth and had another navy-blue robe hanging open over it, which flowed in the wind.

“I do believe that’s a new record,” Nyla said with a smug smile, lowering her bow.

“Mmm.” her father murmured unsurely. He then knocked his arrow before releasing it almost instantly, catching five leaves beneath its head. Nyla sighed and turned to look at her father annoyed. He began to chuckle. Footsteps made Nyla and her father turn around to see one of their servants making his way toward them.

“Preator Oriel, Sybil Nyla.” The servant greeted, “A messenger from Juno City has come and wishes to speak with you urgently. He said it was a serious matter.”

Juno City, the Capital of Juno Region, was situated on the furthest part of Melgaesia from Lily. The Region of Stone was its other name. A term that was rather ambiguous. It referred to how the region was embedded in rock, their main resource being their mines, but it also referred to how the best Conjurers originated from Juno. Harsh and skilled men who trained day and night to become the best. Nyla once had an instructor come all the from Juno City to train her. Let’s just say it was the most demanding few months of her life. However, though it is a region of rock and stability, its leader was less so.

Oriel and Nyla handed their bows over to the two servants, who accompanied them on their friendly yet competitive game of catching leaves. It only happened every other day when Oriel could spare the time. They made their way back to the palace where a man dressed in a red and black robe stood and waited.

Oriel made his way to his glossed wooden throne, which was shaped like an open water lily while Nyla took her place by his side. The floor beneath their feet was made from wood and the entrance to the throne room was a large open wall that consisted of several wooden doors that the servants opened every morning. Beyond the throne room stood the palace courtyard of grass and several cherry blossom trees where pink flowers bloomed. A large wooden gate shaped like the outline of a lily opened out to a road that led to the village.

“Preator, Sybil,” the messenger greeted with a bow, “I bring an invitation from Juno City. Preator Roland has summoned a meeting of the Five Clans.”

“Oh really?” Oriel chuckled, “What went missing this time?” he joked.

Preator Roland was known for his carefree and simple-minded spirit, leaving many to wonder how he had become clan leader in the first place. So much so that the last time he had summoned a meeting of the Five Clans was to inquire to as whether anyone had stolen his crown. His summoning became the joke of Melgaesia and very few people took him seriously from that meeting onwards.

“The piece of the Althea Sphere, Preator.” The messenger replied seriously, not appreciating the fact that his leader was made fun of before him. Oriel’s face turned hard as stone as he looked over at Nyla. The piece of the Althea Sphere was indeed no laughing matter. If it had gone missing or been stolen, it was an issue for all of Melgaesia. The pieces had enough power on their own to wreak a certain degree of havoc if one knew how to use it properly, no one dared to imagine how it would be if all the pieces were united again.

“We’re on our way.” The messenger bowed then clasped his forearm before he knelt and made contact with the ground with his palm. A red glowing patterned circle formed beneath him before he disappeared. A common teleportation method used mainly by the Juno Clan. “Get ready, we leave at once,” Nyla nodded and left the hall, several servants trailing after her.

After the preparations were made, Nyla and her father, along with several of their Guarde, made pace on horseback towards the furthest region, to attend the meeting of the five clans. A meeting of the five clans was no simple matter, it was only ever summoned in cases of great threat.

As per tradition, the clan that summoned this great meeting were to be the hosts. Nyla had been to Juno City once before. Without her father’s knowledge. Juno had annual competitions testing the skill, strength and stealth of any Conjurer who wished to compete. The prize was nothing except honor and praise, which was more than enough to boost anyone’s ego. Nyla managed to convince the Gaurde of her region, who were invited to the competition, to take her with them. She had heard of the prodigy Rowan Stone, one of the best Conjurers Juno had produced, and had wanted to challenge him to a duel. Only to find out that Rowan was the Preator’s son and was therefore forbidden to take part in the competition. When Preator Roland had discovered Nyla’s identity, he sent her back with an escort to Lily where her father waited to receive her. Ever since that day, Roland had fostered a certain distaste toward Nyla as she was not setting the example of a Lady, an example Roland had complained to Oriel about. Luckily her father did not share the same view and praised her for being a steadfast member of the Lily Clan who followed her aspirations and was lenient with his punishment for Nyla leaving without consent.

Nyla vowed to never visit Juno again. She didn’t want to face that pompous Preator again, but it would seem fate had other plans.