Good Afternoon and woohoo to two days in a row of doing this at a reasonable hour! Here is my daily writing exercise and I am going to try *fingers crossed* to actually stick to 10-15 minutes.
Please leave your feedback and your own responses to the prompt. If you like what you are reading here, I would encourage you to check out not only my other Writing Prompts, but also my books as well!
Prompt: Your fantasy world is a planet with multiple suns. The story involves the aftermath of a war. A great celebration takes place. The story includes an ancient tree. The story also includes a wizard’s staff.
Genre: Fantasy
Source: Fantasy Plot Generator
Time Spent: 30 minutes
Word Count: 1081
Prompt: Your fantasy world is a planet with multiple suns. The story involves the aftermath of a war. A great celebration takes place. The story includes an ancient tree. The story also includes a wizard’s staff.
The city of Calbane was decorated with flags and streamers of many colors and from every quarter shouts and cheers could be heard. The War was over, a war so long that most people just knew it as The War, and for those that didn’t it had many names besides. It had been a war of magic, fought and led by mages, but many had fought in it besides, or else fought the various effects. The war had not just scarred the land, it had totally reshaped it, and now it had reshaped the heavens. No one who had witnessed the final confrontation between the Chthonic and Celestial Enclaves had lived to explain what happened, but in the end, both were totally gone and the single sun in the sky was not three.
Jadis and Ulon Veer and their friend Madin Taig sat on the edge one of the great, rocky hill which overlooked the city and observed the celebrations. They had been going on for nearly a week and showed no signs of slowing down. It was understandable, The War had grown worse and the actions of both Enclave more extreme and uncaring of the collateral damage, with each generation, but the three friend were worried. They were all apprentices with the Arboreal Enclave, which had remained neutral through The War and had attempted, when and where they could, to mitigate the damage that was being done. The three were unsure just how bad that final battle had been, but they had heard the hushed tones the senior of the senior wizards as they worked to understand what had happened and confirm whether the two belligerent enclaves were indeed gone, and they could see how twisted the landscape was as far as the eye could see, and feel chaos within the elements around them.
Jadis, Ulon, and Madin were going up to the summit of the tallest of the jagged hill to visit The Great Tree, magically tended and of unfathomable age, was what had protected Caldane throughout the war, and for time out of mind beforehand. Many rituals of their order took place at the tree, but it was the regular duty of apprentices to see to its basic needs. Taking their eyes off the celebration, they began to climb again, and reached Sacred Grove just as the second sun was setting and the third falling low in the sky. They began inspecting the tree and were soon shocked to find many of the leaves and branches withering and dying and each found a branch that broke off in their hands. This alarmed them all the more as they had inspected the tree just the previous week and had seen none of this.
The three apprentices came together slowly, processing what they were seeing, and when they were standing together they began to discuss, all talking over each other, as to what to do and what to tell the Enclave Masters. They were therefore startled at the voice behind them.
“So, it is as we feared,” wheezed an elderly sorcerer, leaning heavily on his staff, and hobbling toward the tree.
After a moments shock, all three apprentices bowed deeply, with Jadis stammering, “High Wizard Berrow, we had thought you gone to the gathering.”
The head of their enclave waived away the formality and croaked, “I was, but our meeting was cut short when we began to realize the full impact of what those fools had done. I risked coming back by portal, even though such magics have been dangerous for centuries now, for I had to check on the tree.”
“It was fine a week ago, Master,” interjected Madin.
“I know,” nodded the ancient mage. “this tree is showing us what will happen to our world.”
Seeing the puzzled faces on the apprentices, he added, “this tree is not only the symbol and duty of our Enclave, but it is also the very life of this whole world made manifest, and has ever been. That it is dying, and so quickly, confirms what the Gathering of Enclaves determine, that whatever the warring Enclaves did, they did not just rend the sun into three, but they have torn apart the very fabric of this world. If it is not stopped, then all will fall into chaos and destruction.”
Ulon was the first to speak up, “how could they possibly have done such a thing?”
High Wizard Berrow shook his head slowly, “that we do not know, but it must be discovered. . .where did those branches in your hands come from?”
The three briefly recounted coming up to check the tree, as was their assigned duty, finding the withering, and that those three branches broke off into their hands. The elderly man turned and regarded the huge and regal tree for a long moment before turning back to the three pupils.
“You two, Jadis and. . .Ulon? are siblings, are you not? And Ma-uh-Madin have known them since infancy, is that not so?
When the three nodded to confirm the Enclave Master was again silent for a moment before saying, “very well then. The High Seer of the Enclave of Forsight made a prophecy that three, working as one, would be our only hope. None of us know what that meant, but it seems the world has chosen. Young though you are, perhaps the creativity of youth is what we need. Either way, the tree has granted the staffs of wizards to you.”
Before the three stunned apprentices could recover themselves, Berrow croaked at them again, “Don’t just stand there, go down to the Enclave, tell them that what we have feared since The War began is coming to pass, and The Tree has chosen you. Say that I have commanded all senior mages to come up here and they are to provision you and help you fashion those branches into proper staffs. As soon as that is done you’ll have to head into the Great Desolation. We’ll do what we can to keep the Tree, and the world, alive.”
As the three young wizards, with a mixture of terror and excitement, scurried off down the hill, the High Wizard turned once more to The Tree and placed a withered hand on the vast truck of the tree. He closed his eyes and began reaching out his power, to do what he could to help the tree, as he did so he muttered, “I do hope you know what you are doing.”
Overran my goal, rather, but I had fun with this one.
I hope that you enjoyed! I would love to read your response to this prompt as well and also what you think of what I wrote! Also, please check out my books and socials! Following my page would also be greatly appreciated!
I hope you all have a wonderful day, get the chance to do or experience something creative, and I’ll catch you on the next one.
– Jon
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