The Witch of Whitestone

Chapter 1: Ch. 1 Beginnings



Stars filled the evening sky as Moren shivered from the chill of the crisp winter night air. She walked down an unfamiliar dark alley only illuminated by a few lanterns hanging on a nearby wall every 30 feet, casting long shadows that melded into the darkness. Moren couldn't remember how she got here or where she was, but she knew that something was telling her to go down the alley. No, something was calling to her like a siren's melody.

The only sounds that reached Moren's ears were the echoes from her boots clicking on the stone street and her heart trying to beat out of her chest from the building tension of the unnatural stillness. She pulled her cloak tighter to her chest as her breath fogged the air in front of her. Moren glanced back to see the empty alley and quickened her pace to reach the other side.

"Hello, child." A disembodied voice greeted Moren from the shadows.

Moren whipped her head in all directions to try and find where the voice was coming from, but she didn't see anyone. "Who's there?" She demanded and quickly went for her belt for a weapon, but her hand came up empty. "What do you want from me?" Moren peeked at her waist to see her weapons were gone. This caused her to almost panic and made her heart pound even faster at being unarmed with an unknown threat lurking in the darkness.

A white radiant sphere illuminated the dark alley like the sun rising in the early hours of dawn, causing Moren to shield her eyes from the sudden appearance of the intense light. The glow continued to burn brighter until everything was illuminated by its radiance. "I see your embers burning brightly, Moren," The voice said in a more feminine and lyrical tone. We shall meet very soon, little ember."

"What are you talking about?" Moren asked as the light started burning more luminous with each passing moment. "Who are you?"

The sphere remained silent until the light grew so harsh that Moren closed her eyes to avoid going blind.

 

"Lady Moren, it's time to wake up." A voice said momentarily before opening the curtain and filling the large room with light.

Moren groaned as the sunlight overwhelmed her, as her dream was still fresh in her mind. "Five more minutes, Mika." She groaned, pulling the blanket over her head. Moren had gotten lost in a book about famous adventures. The book told of her adventures from almost 200 years ago. She had stumbled upon it in a box of ancient books in a bookstore. Moren had also found a copy of the famous Dragon Love, printed over two centuries ago. Moren had the foresight to tuck that book underneath her bed to keep anyone from knowing she was reading such an inappropriate novel for a young woman of her standing.

"I can't do that, Lady Moren," Mika giggled and shook her head at her charge's usual morning antics. "Breakfast will be ready soon, and your lessons will start after you finish eating because your parents want you ready for the ball tonight."

Moren grumbled louder as she remembered what was going on tonight. Her Father had made a significant business deal for the city, and as a reward, the Marquis had invited her Father to the extravagant Masquerade ball. "Lucky me." She muttered, tossing off her heavy blanket and revealing her loose-fitting shirt and pants before heaving her legs over the edge of the bed. "Let's get to breakfast before my mother has a meltdown." She shivered as her bare feet touched the cold stone floor. "Give me a few minutes to freshen up."

"Of course, Lady Moren," Mika replied with a polite bow. "I will arrange your morning training attire."

Moren beamed at her handmaiden. "What would I do without you?" She asked rhetorically before entering her large bathroom that could fit a dozen people. She flipped a switch on the wall and paused a moment for the bulb to flicker on before washing her face and looking into the lavish mirror at her reflection. Moren ran her fingers through her long black hair that reached halfway down her back, which was still wild and matted from sleep, and she grabbed one of her finer brushes to make it more presentable.

She was taller than most of the other heiresses from the noble families of Damali, standing at 6'2 with an athletic figure thanks to her combat instructor. Moren was nowhere near as muscular as the local barbarian tribe members who came to the city for supplies once or twice a month but had enough muscle on her body that the other heirs noticed. The only thing that annoyed Moren was her above-average chest, which made the other women gossip about her when they thought she couldn't hear them or when she was in earshot to ensure Moren heard their hateful insults. Her deep emerald green eyes looked over her appearance before pulling her hair into a loose ponytail with a dark green ribbon to keep it in place.

Moren stepped out of the bathroom, wrapped in a large gray towel, and saw Mika almost finished making her bed with masterful movements. Mika had already cleaned the rest of the room, and her dirty laundry was placed in the basket next to the door.

Mika Mistwalker was a Half-Elf who was like a mother to her. She was in her late 60s but barely looked thirty due to her mixed heritage, dark brown hair in a tight bun, and amber eyes that always sparkled with life. Mika's slightly pointed ears pointed to her race with ease. She was shorter than Moren, barely reaching 5'2, and had a petite build. Mika wore a simple black dress that marked her as a handmaiden. The only piece of jewelry that Mika was allowed to wear was a silver collar around her neck that told everyone she was an indentured servant with the Ravenheart seal carved into the collar.

Mika had gotten into financial trouble before Moren was born. Mika's son, Matthew, became gravely ill from a rare disease, and the medicine to save his life was expensive. Mika had been a simple clerk, and her husband had been a dock worker for the Ravenheart family for several years, and their combined pay was just enough to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies. After a lengthy discussion with her husband, they both knew that saving their son's life required her to take out a large amount of gold from the only person they knew had that kind of money, her employer, Lord Ravenhart. They quickly fell behind on the steep payments until Mika volunteered to work off their debt and was forced to look after Moren as her caretaker since she was a baby.

Moren would frequently slip gold coins into Mika's pockets when she wasn't looking to help her pay off her debt quicker, and be freed from her horrible family for good, and be able to join her family back in Vey'Lathis. Moren ensured her father accepted any extra payments and made sure her father gave Mika receipts when she could make additional payments.

"Do you need some help, Mika?" Moren asked after watching the Half-Elf woman finish her task. She always offered to help the woman who raised her with her chores.

"No, but you need to get dressed and get to breakfast, my Lady." Mika lightly chastised with a smile, then stared at Moren before pointing to the clock on the wall. "Let me help you get ready before you're late."

Moren wore a dark red tunic with black pants, a gold strip down her legs, a black belt with matching suspenders, and polished black boots with silver buckles. The last thing she grabbed was her family ring. It was a gold band with a flying raven engraved in black. "Finished," Moren said, giving Mika a playful wink. "It's time to face the Lord and Lady of the house."

"After you, Lady Moren," Mika replied wryly.

 

Moren walked through the enormous house and passed numerous rooms filled with expensive art or decorations to show off the family's wealth. Many of the rooms were just for show as her parents worked to climb the social ladder of the nobles to stand above the other houses. Brass and silver pipes ran through the house to run electricity throughout. It was added that about 15 years ago, her Father insisted on updating the manor after the new steam pipes and electrical lines became safe and were installed in the Marquis home.

She arrived in the oversized dining room, which had an elongated table that easily seated twenty people. Only two occupants sat on opposite ends in silence.

Moren's Father, Jayden, was a heavy-set man of average height with thinning black hair and a thick mustache that looked odd on the man's round face. Her Father had once been a handsome man in his youth but had let the lavish lifestyle of being a Lord make him into the overweight man sitting at the table today. He wore an embellished blue military coat with gold buttons straining to hold the man's girth in place. He wore various gold medals pinned to his chest and articulated a myriad of stories of his own creation and how he earned them in conflicts or feats of bravery. The man was an expert liar and a shrewd businessman who managed to grease enough palms to run his many competitors that also imported goods into bankruptcy. His public persona was polite and kind, but behind closed doors, the man was cruel and abusive to those who angered him or those who were beneath him.

Moren had to hide her disgust after watching him dig into his food like a pig at the trough. She nibbled on a piece of toast while glancing down at the other end of the table to see her Mother reading a large stack of letters. From the different styles and colors of the envelopes, Moren had to guess they were various party invitations. She rolled her eyes and ate before they noticed her arrival.

Vifra was born in Ethos on the continent of Vey'Lathis, where her family was poor, and she did odd jobs to survive in the city's brutal underworld. Vifra worked as a thief and a spy for the highest bidder until she botched a big job for an influential family and fled to the Driftveil Coast. Shortly after her arrival, she met her future husband, and together, they used their combined talents to force their way into the noble society in Damali. Despite her faux mask of being a Lady of Noble 'birth', she is skilled with a dagger, getting the information from her 'targets' that she needs with threats, and uses that knowledge to leverage deals to add more money and prestige to the Ravenheart name.

Vifra only stood 5' 5 and had a slim build with scarcely any curves. Her blonde hair was shoulder length, and her narrow face and high cheekbones made her look like a rat. Her Mother wore too much make-up to match the other wives' beauty, but they were only nice to her out of fear of her wrath. Vifra was suspected in the fall of several lesser-known families that crossed her, but no one could prove she was behind it. Her violet dress was gaudy with gold and silver trim, and she wore several bracelets and rings with large expensive stones.

Moren always thought she was adopted because she looked nothing like her parents, and she was completely different from them in multiple ways. She preferred studying history and magic rather than attending lavish parties and finding new ways to mistreat those of non-human heritage like her parents preferred to do. They were trying to marry her to a wealthy family's son, but all their previous attempts had failed. Moren discreetly donated some of her allowances to several places that needed the funds, like the orphanage on the coastline. She treated the few members of the staff who raised and cared for her with adoration and respect as her real family. She paid for her private trainer to teach her how to fight despite her Mother's insults about being "too manly to attract a proper husband." Moren wanted to be strong enough to fight for her dreams and not be a helpless maiden.

Her Father had "found" her a magical instructor who hardly taught her any true magic beyond a few cantrips and one spell she had mastered ages ago. Moren was sure her father had paid the man to drag his feet to keep her from leaving for a magical enclave for one essential reason. He needed Moren to be available for a marriage contract when an agreement was reached with a proper family.

Moren had turned 16 a few months back, and she knew that time was running out. Her parent had been pushing harder in recent weeks for her to find a suitable spouse and marry into an influential family to make more noteworthy connections they could use to attain more dominion over the import business and secure them as an ally to the Marquis's family, that was their last actual competition in the Port.

This had led to Moren doing her best to ruin matches without it being her fault. One incident involved a young man who was a known womanizer, and her idiot parents tried to pair her up with him. The match was found in a closet with a young maid with his pants down. Moren slipped him a small potion she brewed that left the man dazed, and she had also bribed said maid beforehand. The boy's parents punished their son for his shameful behavior, and the maid, on the other hand, was sent away without being punished.

The constant failures enraged her Mother greatly.

Moren was buying time until she could find a way to escape her family's reach without leaving a way for them to track her down and force her to return home. She had been saving her allowance and managed to pocket several valuable jewels, coins, and rings her parents had forgotten about over the years to fund her escape. Moren had already paid for her passage on an airship leaving Damali at the end of the month for Ethos's Port in Vey'Lathis. Moren overheard her parents discussing an important meeting that would likely take all day. It would be the perfect cover for her to leave the house before they noticed she was gone.

All she needed was to make it to the end of the month. Only two short weeks remained for Moren to finish her preparations, and she would vanish to another continent when the transport ship departed Damali with her onboard.

Moren had been close to her Uncle Jace in her youth, but after he left his Paladin order, he met with her Father on a surprise visit. Several nights after his arrival almost six years ago, Jayden and Jace had a furious argument behind closed doors, and her Uncle left without another word. She had heard rumors that he had become a powerful noble in Ethos with his new non-human wife. Her parents forbade her from sending her Uncle any letters after hearing the rumors that Uncle Jace had "disgraced" the family name by marrying a non-human as his second wife.

Moren planned to find her Uncle when she arrived in Ethos to prepare for the next leg of her journey.

"Nice of you to join us, daughter," Jayden said loud enough for his voice to carry across the enormous room. "We have a busy day, and I expect you to have your lessons completed by early afternoon at the latest. You must be ready to leave for the Marquis party before dinner. I have ordered a new dress that will arrive by lunch for you to wear for the evening."

"Yes, Father," Moren replied in a courteous voice. She finished her breakfast and set the fork down on the plate. Mika arrived a moment later and took the plate from the table. "Thank you."

"Stop thanking the help," Vifra snarled at her daughter with a disapproving scowl. "It is her job. She doesn't deserve praise for merely doing what is expected of an indentured servant." She took a sip of her tea and shook her head. "You better not embarrass your father or me tonight at the Marquis home, or else there will be hell to pay."

Moren bit back a snide remark. Not out of respect or affection for her Mother, she knew Vifra would retaliate against Mika or add more money to her debt if something went missing or broke. Vifra had done so in the past. "Yes, Mother," She said with as much control as she could to keep from spitting the words out in anger. Moren stood up from the table and headed to the training grounds to work off some of her frustration and distract her from this evening's events.

 

Moren reached the training area and dismissed Mika to do the rest of her morning chores while smirking at her trainer, who grumbled about the brisk morning air as winter was not far away. "Morning, Master Silvereyes." She greeted the stout dwarf.

Thordin Silvereyes was built like your average dwarf, with his short stature and powerful muscles from working as a blacksmith. He was a skilled fighter and had been alive for 150 years. His brown hair was turning gray, matching his long braided beard, woven in various colors of silver and gold beads. Thordin always wore thick black boots, brown pants, and a gray undershirt covered by a dented silver breastplate.

"Morning, Lass," Thordin grunted as he threw the training spear at his student. "Are you ready to get your arse whooped?" He grabbed for his own wooden spear, leaning against a nearby wall.

"Sure thing, old man." Moren teased her teacher with a playful smile and flourished her training spear. "I'll take it easy on you so you don't break a hip."

Thordin chuckled. "You're gonna pay for that, Lassie." He said before preparing to start the session with a battle cry. "FOR THE SILVEREYES!"

 

Over the next hour, Moren was put through her paces with spear training and additional lessons with a dagger and sickle. She was exhausted by the end of the session but felt a lot better after working out her aggravation from dealing with her horrid parents.

"Very good," Thordin said, ending the session. "You are one of my best students." He started to pack the training equipment and shot his student a grin. "Still a decade too early to beat me lass."

Moren rolled her eyes and wiped the sweat from her face. "I know Master Silvereyes," She replied with a tired smile. "You tell me that after every session with you." Moren knew she would be sore and bruised during her next lesson, but it helped her relax after dealing with her Mother's cruel nature. She reached into her pocket and tossed a small pouch toward the dwarf. "Your lesson payment and for my order."

Thordin quickly caught the pouch, shook it, and listened to the coins clink before putting the money in his pocket. "It will be finished by the end of the week." He said, hoisting the bag of training weapons over his shoulder. "Do I want to know what you are planning?"

 

Moren gave him a wary look and slowly shook her head. "The less you know, the better." She said softly. "I don't want my family coming after you."

Thordin snorted and shook her head. "I appreciate it, Lass, but dwarves are made of sturdy stuff." He tapped his breastplate with his knuckles and headed for the door. "See you in a few days."

"See you then," Moren replied with a melancholy smile as the dwarf disappeared down the empty hallway. She sighed as Mika returned with a glass of water and what looked to be a tasty snack of cherry tart pastries. "Thanks."

"You have a few minutes before your Magic Instructor arrives," Mika said with a motherly smile. "I figured some cool water and a few honey cakes would perk you up."

Moren looked around before pulling the older woman into a hug. "I can't thank you enough for looking after me," Moren muttered as she felt Mika return her hug. "You are the only reason I am still sane."

"I know, sweetie," Mika whispered, patting Moren on her back. "Your Mother is having me watched closely by her staff right now, and I don't want to give her any more reason to add more coins to my debt for badmouthing her when I am close to paying it off."

Moren nodded her head and took a bite of her snack. "Thanks for the warning," She said after taking a bite of her pastry. "Are you still planning to go to Vey'Lathis to be with your family after you pay off the last of your debt?"

"Yes, my husband got a job as one of the council guards in Ethos, and my son is doing well with my relatives. He started as an apprentice in a magic shop near their house." Mika explained as she brightened while talking about her family.

Moren ate her snack and let Mika gush over her family from the latest letter she received. She was more than a little jealous of how much Mika's family loved her even when they lived on another continent and respected how much Mika sacrificed for her son to take care of her. Moren knew her parents wouldn't have done that if their roles were reversed. She was a bartering tool for her parents to use when they saw fit to marry her off for power. Nothing more.

After listening to Mika for a while, Moren finished her snack and drained the last of the water before standing up. "That was delicious," She beamed at her handmaiden. "I want to hear more about your family after my lessons."

"Of course, my Lady," Mika replied with a polite bow and picked up the dirty dishes.

 

Moren was doing her best not to fall asleep as she listened to the same lecture for the third time in a week. Her Father hired a thin, frail-looking man in his forties with blonde hair and brown eyes who feared his own shadow. Mathis Ironborn was the son of the current Master of the Wizards Tower in Damali. Mathis was an intelligent man and was well-versed in arcane knowledge, but the local Lords and Ladies had cowled him into keeping dangerous studies away from their children. Another issue with the tower was that it was on a severe decline since the creation of the Arcane Engine by a group of Artificers nearly 170 years ago. With the rise of technology and the mastery of steam power for the city, more magically adept individuals were going into Artificer's trades or apprenticeships rather than the illustrious Arcane tower.

Moren had learned only a few spells from the man, such as Minor Manifestation, a simple cantrip with multiple uses, and Scorching Bolt, a fire spell she could cast repeatedly. She had learned to cast Spiritbond by tricking the man into showing her the spell and practiced in her room until she mastered it. It took a while since she could only cast it once a day. She gained a tawny horned owl named Luna, who was one of her few true friends. Since Luna was a summoned spirit, she didn't need to eat or sleep like regular animals. Luna would always watch over her while she slept.

Moren knew her Father had hired him to keep her busy until he found a match for her and didn't want her to become too strong to rebel against his plans. It had happened to several other heiresses that he tutored. They would receive lessons until they were matched with someone, and their lessons ended with them being too weak to fight back against their husband's demands. Moren was also convinced that Mathias had been promoted because of who his father was and not on his own merit due to incompetence.

This resulted in Moren spending countless hours learning everything she could about magic, potions, runes, and history from the various bookstores she had acquired in secret to keep from being completely ignorant when she finally escaped her prison.

"That will complete our lesson for the day," Mathis stated in a bored tone. "We shall pick up where we left off next week." The man closed his book and quickly made his escape. He almost knocked Mika over but changed directions at the last moment to avoid her.

"How are you doing, dear?" Mika asked with a sympathetic smile.

Moren gave her a bored expression. "I'd rather someone drown me in the ocean and have crabs eat my face than be bored out of my mind listening to that man stutter and repeat himself over and over again." She stood up to stretch her back and sighed in relief when several vertebrae popped. "Will my parent be joining me for lunch?"

"Your Mother has told her staff she has a headache and is resting until the party," Mika reported with a roll of her eyes. "Your Father has gone to an important meeting in the city and won't be back until just before the party."

Moren shook her head in disappointment. "Mother will be drinking and napping for the afternoon, and Father will see his current Mistress at his favorite brothel." She scoffed while listing off her parents' vices and knew they didn't love one another. "Then I will have lunch in my room and relax until Mother awakens from her stupor to start getting dressed for the party."

Mika snorted into her hand. "Behave, Lady Moren." She lightly scolded in case other staff members heard her. "I dropped off your lunch in your room. Please relax until then. I will help get you dressed for the party."

"What would I do without you, Mika?" Moren asked the woman rhetorically and hugged her before heading to her room to work on her escape plan.

Mika just chuckled.

 

Moren entered her room and quickly ate lunch before moving to her closet door. She pulled a bronze key out of her pocket and unlocked the door. The closet was more like another room than an actual closet space. It was roughly the size of her room, and one wall was filled with her clothes, and on the back wall was her bookshelf packed with books she had collected over the years, and the last two walls were large workbenches covered with potion ingredients and bottles filled with various liquids. Some were health potions, some were antidotes to various poisons, and some were potions that would enhance her abilities in speed or strength. The bulb above her hummed, allowing her to inspect the various potions to ensure they were the right color and consistency.

After checking her latest potion, she filled her vials and set them in the box before placing them into a large shoulder bag that had been enchanted into a bag with extradimensional storage space. It allowed her to store certain items in an interdimensional plane and hold more items than one person could typically carry.

Moren wanted to work on more advanced potions, but that required more sophisticated equipment beyond the basic kit, and her parents forbade her from learning how to make potions. She had taken advantage of one of their business meetings to sneak her alchemy kit into the house, and she had almost been discovered by her Mother's favorite maid, Clara. Thankfully, Mika has created a diversion long enough for Moren to slip past Clara.

"This will have to do," Moren muttered to herself. She wrote down her new potions in her journal for recordkeeping and blew out a breath. Moren knew arriving at Ethos would allow her to pursue several high-end potions and magical items. She wanted a decent stock before traveling across Vey'Lathis. According to her studies, the small towns and villages had very few potions available and would cost quite a bit of gold.

She froze when someone knocked on her closet door."

"Lady Moren," Mika's muffled voice said through the door. "Time for a bath and to start getting ready for the party."

"Just a moment, Mika," Moren replied, cleaning up her mess and slipping out of her closet. "Thank you for the reminder." She moved to the bathroom door and glanced back at Mika. "Are you sure I can't convince you to leave with me?" Mika had figured out her plan months ago and had chosen to be loyal to Moren rather than her parents. "I don't want to leave you here." Mika's safety had weighed heavy on Moren's heart about fleeing from Damali.

Mika gave the young girl she practically raised as her own child a motherly smile. "I'm almost done with my contract. I will miss you dearly, Moren, but I promised to repay the loan. I will honor my word as long as your Father keeps his." Mika said, patting Moren on the arm. "You are being smothered here by your parents and their attempts to marry you off for power. You deserve better, dear." Mika drew the taller girl into a loving hug. "You deserve to be free, Moren. Free to follow your dreams and to find real love."

Moren returned the hug and tried to blink away the tears. "I wish you were my real mother." She whispered back to the woman who raised and loved her like her own child.

"I would be proud to call you my daughter," Mika replied softly before clearing her throat. "Now, we must get you cleaned up. You smell terrible." She chuckled and pushed Moren towards the bath. "Move young lady. We need to get you looking presentable."

"Yes, Mother." Moren retorted with a mischievous smile.

 

After a meticulous bath, Moren dried off and started getting ready with Mika's assistance. Moren's long hair was put up in a tight bun held in place with a pair of silver hairpins. Mika added just a touch of make-up to enhance Moren's natural beauty. Moren's ears were double pierced and had a pair of ruby dangling earrings in the lower holes and silver rings in the upper hole. A simple silver necklace dangled around her neck. Moren stepped into a red corset dress that left her shoulder and upper back bare for all to see. The lower half of the dress went down to her ankles. Moren and Mika worked together to tighten the corset, and the cords were tied in an elegant knot. Mika slipped a pair of heeled shoes onto Moren's feet to finish the outfit.

Mika stepped back and let out a low whistle. "You are gorgeous," She beamed. "You are going to be the reason why multiple men are going to get slapped tonight by their wives and partners." She praised Moren and then tapped her chin. "Your Father is trying to show you off to potential suitors."

"No kidding." Moren groaned as her corset made her chest look more prominent, and it was hard for her to take a deep breath. "Can you grab me a shawl, please?" The last thing she wanted was to be ogled by a bunch of adolescent heirs and their fathers." Moren thought about the options she had to choose from. "Maybe the gold or silver one," Moren suggested while watching Luna flutter around the room before landing, sending a bored glare at her. "It's not fun for me either, but if I don't go, there will be hell to pay."

Luna let out an annoyed hoot.

"Definitely the gold one. It goes better with the red dress." Mika nodded her head and grabbed the shawl from a nearby drawer. "Here," She said, draping the cloth over Moren's shoulders and stepping back. "Perfect." Mika beamed at Moren. "I shall see you after the party. Just remember to breathe and be polite." She paused for a moment before adding with a slight grin. "Try not to punch anyone tonight.

"I make no promises." Moren laughed before heading down to meet her parents. "Besides, that creep had it coming for trying to look up my dress."

It was going to be a long night.

 

 

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