Author note: Hey! For once I own everything, this is cool! ^-^ It's in like the mid-evil times (in a different world though) where dragons and fairies are there and black magic and everything like that is real, so ^_~ be nice and review!

THE JOURNEY
CHAP. 2
BY:
Vince, Vale, Fantasy Girl (Saturn Angels)

Althea paced around the long dusty road trying to come to a decision to enter the 'Dark Fortress' as people called it, or if it was wrong to go there at that hour (You see it was a quarter passed ten which is very late to the people of Zantacia, but she was not fearful of rousing Solveig, oh dear no. It was actually quite different from that, she was concerned that Solveig may be meditating, or Ambrose and Solveig working on another spell, it was dangerous to interrupt them at times such as those) She took a deep breath and summoned her courage. She walked to the door and taking hold of the knocker, knocked twice softly at first, but after no reply she knocked a bit louder, then louder. Finally the door opened a bit with a loud creak and Solveig looked out from the shadows inside. Once she recognized who it was she opened the door wider, Althea nodded her gratitude and stepped inside.

Inside it was dark, almost darker then it was outside. The only light was the soft, faint glow of candles, which were set around the room. The glow was unnerving, and less comforting then starlight to say the least, inside it was cold, very cold. The door creaked again when Solveig closed it.

"You wished to speak to me?" She asked softly as if not to disturb the silence, her words echoed strangely around them.

Althea nodded to confirm Solveig's comment, "I did."

Solveig cast her black hood so that Althea could see her full face, Solveig had extremely pale skin which was ghostly for she had not been outside unless it was night-time, and rarely when she was outside she always wore a hood to cover her face. Her eyes were cobalt, almost a violet color, she had dark hair that reached below her shoulder. She looked at Althea questioningly, "What of? You've never come to see me this late. You usually come in the day," she said still in a whisper.

Althea nodded once more, "Why are you whispering?" she asked in a normal tone.

Solveig held her fingers to her lips in a gesture of 'silence', "Do not disturb the silence, it is always listening," she mumbled barely audible to Althea's ears.

Althea drew her eyebrows close together and looked at Solveig strangely, "When was the last time you rested? I fear this intense training has gone to your head," she whispered.

Solveig looked at her and glared, "Resting is unimportant. The training is only intense to those who are weak," she muttered still not daring to raise her voice above a whisper.

Althea sighed, "You've never been like this before, what has happened?"

"You've come at a bad hour. You should leave," Solveig said ignoring her friend's question.

"...Solveig why? Why must you stay here? Why are you doing this? You torture yourself just to practice evil and unjust things! Why don't you come home?" Althea said almost on the brink of tears, she was after all very sensitive emotion-wise.

"You know nothing of what I do. You know not why I stay, and you need not ever know. We have been through this before. This is my home," Solveig hissed, "now get out."

Althea sighed sadly, "Good-bye then," she turned on her heel and left Solveig standing alone.

The door opened silently for it was drawn open quickly; there was no creak when it closed either, only a loud bang that could be heard all throughout fortress.

Solveig glanced at the closed door trying to ignore the guilt she felt, she knew she was a sensitive girl...yet she had never gotten angry with her like that. Althea was just trying to be kind and only wanted her to go back to their hometown of Batae. Solveig knew she should do something...run after her or something, if she didn't it could mean she'd lose her best and only friend. Before she got within two feet of the large oak door someone called her name, and she knew exactly who it was.

"Solveig. Where are you going? You have not accomplished you're new magic, yet..." Ambrose said coming from another room.

Solveig turned towards him and away from the door, Althea would have to wait until tomorrow, "It does not matter now Ambrose, let us continue..." She said with a brief smile.

Ambrose nodded and held out his hand to lead Solveig back into the Time Chamber (which is what they called the room in which they would learn new magic skills) "Come. We need to prepare"

Solveig nodded and took his hand without hesitation, and followed him back to the Time Chamber. She still felt guilty for snapping at Althea...indeed Althea was right, she was weary from training, and hadn't had any sleep for the last five nights. They were currently attempting at the impossible, they were learning a summoning magic, which would allow you to call, and control dragons. It took a lot of training, which Solveig was willing to give...her reason...her reason for it all will be revealed...at a later time.

Outside Althea waited a while, waited for Solveig to come out...to apologize, but no one came. Minutes passed and still nothing. After a while Althea abandoned all hope that Solveig would come out at all that night, it was wiser to go back to the castle, and perhaps...perhaps she would come back the next day? Maybe Solveig would feel better then. She nodded hoping that it would be true with all her heart. She continued her journey back to the castle by foot. It was to be a long night; she had some studying that she too must do. She hadn't yet learned the new healing magic, she needed to soon...she had a feeling something terrible was going to happen soon, she didn't know how soon, but soon was all she needed to know for now. It was probably going to happen around the time that the wedding was taking place.

She stopped dead in her tracks, "Solveig...Solveig practices Black Magic what if it is she that will ruin the peace?" It hurt her at the thought, if Solveig did that, knights and warriors would hunt her down...they wouldn't let her live. She shook her head, "No...Solveig only practices Black Magic...she does not use it...not for things like that," she continued walking then stopped once more and looked back at the large fortress behind her, "...But what if she will?" She continued walking though at a quicker pace, "That would explain why Solveig is so quick to temper, she is tired...tired and probably frightened. Ambrose...a sorcerer...an evil sorcerer...he is still young, he must not be devoid of all emotion? Surely he feels that if he does this many people would be killed? Probably himself too...is he blind to that fact?" She wondered aloud as her quick pace turned into a run, "If it is true...then I must learn that new healing magic quickly...surely no one can be that evil? Even Ambrose...it's just unthinkable..." she said, she would talk to herself when she was alone; or frightened, it helped calm her down made her feel less alone for some reason, and right now she needed nothing more then to be calm, and to think straight.

She made it to the castle before the strike of midnight; she rushed to her room quickly wondering why people had put so many stairs in a palace as she ran up them one by one. It took her five minutes to reach the top and when she had it took her no less then a second to rush into her quarters and find the book entitled, 'The Strongest Types of Healing Magic. For the Average White Mage' She grabbed it off the shelf of books and laid it on the table with a hard thud and began to read the content of the pages. If there was a time to learn that magic it was now, and now was the time to learn it. The fate of peace may just rest on her shoulders. But what if she was forced to fight Solveig? Or go against her? ...Would she fight her? ...Or would she help Solveig? Only time could tell...For now nothing was certain...nothing at all....