Author's Note: This story is based in the same world as in the story "Howling Roar" by VaylenKnight7. I have permission from the author to use the idea world, but the story is completely mine. This is my first time writing a story of this caliber, so please don't flame or leave horrible comments. But constructive criticism is welcome. Enjoy Chapter 2!
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Sierra entered the tent she and Langston shared, he had dropped her off there earlier while he made secondary rounds around the camp and to have his men escort the Queen back to the main camp after everything was clear and safe. She felt tired and drained from the whole event, thanks to the collar being put around her neck again, but it was something she was told to do; something she had to do...
"Lady Kia..." she said to herself as she rubbed a finger across one of the red jewels as she walked over to the medium sized tub, wanting wash off the dust and residue from the mist she collected on her. Her mind thought back to why she had to wear the leather collar, thinking back to the kingdom she once served...
...
"Sierra! Sierra!! Where are you off to in a hurry?" Elise, one of girls from the near by bakery shouted out to her and she ducked and dodged her way around the busy street. A 16 year old Sierra looked back behind her, waving her hand to Elise as she kept running.
"I'm off to see my teacher, I'll come back to see you later!" She shouted back as she barely dodged another person. She was excited for today's events. Lady Kia had invited her to her laboratory for the first time in 5 years of teaching her. She had wondered what the inside of Lady Kia's laboratory would be like. Would it be aglow with magical potions and elixirs? Maybe the walls and tables would be covered in ancient scrolls, spells never heard of! She giggled to herself as she almost started to skip the rest of the way to her mentor's lab.
The sorceress's lab was located on the outskirts of town for the obvious reasons; the creation of new spells, but in case they had dangerous side effects or went wrong and exploded it wouldn't harm any villagers. Sierra's home with her mother was a good ways from Lady Kia's but she didn't mind the sprint once she was on less crowded streets. She couldn't wait for what her teacher had in store for her, she just knew it was something...something great!
The small fortress like structure came into view, the young panther-kin slowing down her stride and finally coming to a stop in front of the large iron doors. She gulped a bit, her excitement now turning into nervousness as she played with the tip of one of the many braids in her hair; a habit of hers when she was nervous. Realizing she was stalling, she mentally slap her hand down and again raised it up, taking a hold of the door knocker, lifting the heavy metal hoop and slamming it down against the iron door. After a moment, the door suddenly opened, just enough for her enter. Taking the hint, she quickly slipped in the opening made for her, the door just as quickly shut behind her.
Sierra took in the surroundings around her, the room she was in was well lit, but she saw no sign of her mentor. "Lady Kia? Lady Kia??" She called out, but no response was heard in the large room, "Maybe she's upstairs..." she mused to herself as she looked around a bit more. Beautiful deep red tapestries hung from the walls, giving the room a bit of color, whatever the cloths didn't cover there was ceiling to floor bookcases filled with books, there was no room left to put away any other books but the few that were unlucky to get put on the selves were set neatly on a large oaken hall table that set underneath an mirror with two marble carved ornaments on each side of the books to hold them in place. To say the least, Sierra was a bit disappointed that Lady Kia's lab was so clean, so uncluttered. She thought it would have been more of a mess or least a table with different potions and a few books shattered here and there; she sighed a bit, her nervousness dissipating a bit from the clean sight. "Lady Kia??" she yelled out a bit louder, this time her call didn't go unanswered.
"Come upstairs, Sierra, and hurry!" her heard her teacher shout out to her, her voice a bit muffled; she guessed the sorceress was in another room. Sierra made her way to the stairs, taking them two at time. Her teacher's call seemed urgent and she didn't want to make her wait. Ruby eyes looked around at the multiple doors when she made it to the top of the stairs, unsure of which door Lady Kia called from.
"Lady Kia? Which--?"
"Last door to the right, get in there now, child!" Lady Kia said quickly from the room she was working in. Sierra quickly made her way to the room and entered just as quickly, seeing her mentor on the floor on her hands and knees, drawing a magical seal. She examined the room closely, it being the room she had imagined in her mind; cluttered with books, scrolls and all the like, but then her eyes focused on item in the center of the magical seal. A black coffin? Sierra stared at the offending piece of furniture, her mind not able to focus on anything else. Not even when Lady Kia stood up from her hands and knees and started to call her name. "...rra? Sierra!" the teacher's voice finally came into her ears and she shook her head lightly and looked to her, her eyes questioning.