.Elementals.

-5-

When the preparations were done I headed back to my quarter.

In my mirror I took time the cleans my clothes of any dirt, odor and stains I might have sustained working on the ballroom since despite it all the others did like to mess around when Belladonna was not looking. Forming the mess, mostly dirt, in a compact ball held together by magic as it hovered over my hand, simply chucked out the open window.

With a wave of my hand all my messy hair spikes leaned down and all faces forwards, looking almost like forming waves in the ocean.

I hummed in approval and sat on my bed and taking out a 'jewelry box' type of wooden box out of the fake stone in the wall that was just an elaborate secret chamber for our most valuable stuff.

I passed my hand over my braid, the unmovable beads to others sliding down like water to me and I opened the box with many more of them inside.

Each bead wore a different marking, binding a different spell to it, I put the 'charm of luck' made for my old family back on with ease, magic guiding the bead before I let it go and it stuck there.

I also put back in my own good luck charm.

Searching around I picked out a few I might want.

One had the spell 'hear me not' engraved into it, all those considered my enemies wouldn't be able to spy on me as it helped me hide my every move, my every intention from them, I didn't vanish or anything I could just make no info on me readable, writable and shareable.

Another was 'dragon's sight' doing what the name said, giving me the sight of dragons because despite my eyes being one of them I saw like every other human, this let me tap in the visual capacities of the dragon kind.

I put the rest of the beads away, having four in right now with the place for two more.

I put the box away in the hidden wall piece and with a last look in the mirror I was off, if a court mage didn't attend what image would it paint of her Majesty? She has one of the biggest arsenal of mages under her orders at six of us, if one didn't come it would be seen.

Each of us had a name given to us by the people: Calypso was black beauty, Em was marshes man, Leo was earth whisperer, Amalia was daughter of mountain, Belladonna was deadly flower and I was the silver dragon, each of us having titles as in thirteen years we've been here we had come in handy many times, mostly in the harsh winter months where, for example, even if the driest of dirt could Em make plant grown and I thaw out ponds and wells.
Some places of the queendom relied entirely on us mages to make it through these harsh times.

"I see you are ready sister." I bowed my head slightly as I looked back at Calypso when I heard her speak to me, her neck decorated by a golden necklace with three blue skarlatines, blue stones only the mines from her home could produce, a pricey gift.

"Indeed Calypso, lets walk together." She bowed back at me, a leg shifted behind the other and her whole torso bending a little, similar but different form of greeting from her home land.

I let her hook her arm in mine as we walked up to the castle.
The guards at the door were completely armored up, the insignia plastered on their breastplates, they lifted their spears from the X formation from in front of the entrance and turned a quarter turn, pushing the door open to let us in.

There were already nobleman, merchants and monarchs around since all those working for the queen in any way or associated to her were invited; just like the daughter of the town's shoemaker, she was was the one tasked with making the queen's intricate shoes so it lead to her being invited too.

"Court mage Calypso and court mage Mystery dear guests." Each new arrival was announced by the head butler, few know Mystery is just a name I was given in consequence of my silence when asked.

The queen and her family were the center of attention as I could see, walking down the red carpeted stairs that lead in the big room from the door.

The two youngest, prince Mirrel and princess Meridith weren't alongside their mother and siblings, mingling with with the nobles, me being one years senior to the twin royals would have never guess they weren't older if I didn't know better.

Their life was complicated and at times a bore but I would find myself watching them train with the blade or with wisdom in their courses of the evening, princess and heir to the throne Audrey was the most captivating of the four.

She wasn't frail looking like her sister but neither did she look too imposing, using this to her advantage to trick the men she trained alongside, she stood shorter then me by two fingers and had the grace and fierceness of her mother burning in her eyes alongside some unfortunate doubt instilled by the many people that wanted Eleric on the throne.

Her hair, like the rest of the royal family, was a chestnut brown but none had the same eye color because of the ritual.

There was long ago a war all know about, where humanity almost died out and where that mage appeared, this place being the last strong hold of humanity is visible in its history.
All but one race was out for our life at the times, the dragons had joined on our behalf and with their help and the mage's, we had pushed back and lived since that day, every new ruler to take the throne of Solor would present themselves to the dragons and if the dragons deem them worthy it is after that that they gain their eye color change to prove their passage of the test and that the dragon will support them in another war.

Eleric's eyes were the dull blue of failure, the youngest were green and blue, both light colors showing a potential possibility for them to take the throne if something were to happen, the queen was radiant dark green that reminded you of nature and the princess finally, her eyes shown with a purple not seen in generations, a stable and powerful bond to the dragon kind but despite it all some still wanted Eleric to rule.

The queens dress had the colors of nature, its greens, yellows and brown, as if the spirit of the land the land had manifested itself in her, a golden head piece a circlet designed like vines intertwining rested on her head.

Eleric and the youngest Mirrel wore the dark green and black of the guard, the get up out of uniforms were based on.

Princesses Audrey and Meridith wore less grandiose dressed then their mother but their grace wasn't affected by it, simple dress of rich green with leaves sown in it with golden string.

She wore a green dragon stone necklace which should have blended into the green material but like scales of a dragon it shown brightly, signifying her connection to dragons in another way, I only had this type of jewelry because of the queen's and Belladonna's suspicion after a small mess up of my part of the ritual where a dragon spoke of me and I had a reaction, those two knew I could understand dragon tongue that second while it took others a few days to notice which reinforced their ideas of why I trained separately with Belladonna at times.

"You've grown into fine young women since I've last seen you my dear mages." The queen greeted us with a low bow of her head but enough to keep eye contact as the queen shouldn't bow low enough for her to not be able to see her subjects.

"It has been more than a decade my queen and yet you still look as splendid as ever." Calypso said, doing her homeland bow but much lower in a way she couldn't look in the queen's eyes if she tried.

The mages and the queen rarely met despite how important we were, Calypso was a big too exaggerating with that decade, we had seen her ten times total.

"Majesty." I greeted, bowing my head to my chin but tilted to the side slightly so I never lost eye contact with her, blatant disrespect in the most respectful way, she knew of my grudge: that I would never forgive her from taking me away from my family but I could respect her choices. She gave me food, an education and a life goal but that is one thing I would never forget.

The prince chocked on his glass of wine as the princess covered her mouth with wide eyes as I lifted my head, no one would dare to do this to her Majesty and they had never seen anyone try any of the sort but this was the only disrespect I'd ever show the queen.

"Still as focused on the past I see." The queen said with her lips pulling in an elegant smile.

"Always." I said with a soft nod of my head.