How the mage wars began

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Kestrad
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How the mage wars began

Post by Kestrad »

"The topic of today's lecture will be the Mage Wars," Professor Cjarsa announced to her history class, noting with an internal smile how her usually unenthusiastic class almost as one straightened, listening more attentively. Few topics caught students' imaginations so thoroughly, with its many tales of heroes and villains. More importantly, the blanks in historic record were many, leaving much to the imagination.

"No one is certain exactly how the Wars began," Cjarsa began, diving straight into her lesson. "The most common story, however, involves much coincidence, and one particular young mage..."

***

Lilith sighed silently, sweating over her pot as the simple potion she was mixing for class failed for the umpteenth time. Despite her best efforts, it simply refused to turn the right color, though she swore she followed the instructions to the letter.

Master Bellart, the potions instructor, frowned deeply as he approached, sending Lilith into more of a panic as she tried everything she could think of to turn her potion golden instead of scarlet. She was already barely scraping by in her other classes. She couldn't afford to fail this one! But to her surprise, the potions master did not reprimand her. Quite the opposite, in fact. He scooped up a small vial of her potion and held it up for the rest of the class to see.

"Lilith's potion here is the correct color," he announced, holding up a hand to forestall the class's protests. "I told you it should be gold, but had you followed the instructions properly, it should turn red. The rest of you decided to dye yours golden. With potentially catastrophic results, I might add. The dying agent makes the potion unstable and likely to explode." With that, he waved his hand, and the pots of golden liquid, spelled for such occasions, all emptied.

Now, if circumstances had been just slightly different, this moment wouldn't even warrant a footnote in a history book. But it just so happened that Lilith was the daughter of Synara's archmage, and relations between the city and the Keep had recently soured when the city's previous archmage had suddenly died over a dinner to discuss a treaty with the Keepl's archmage. In those days Synara paid tribute to the Keep, for protection, and was considered under the Keep's delegation. But by the beginning of the Wars, the relationship had become extremely strained.

So Lilith, at the most impulsive age, surreptitiously gathered a vial of her safe potion and added a pinch of golden dye to it. A week later, her opportunity came, as the Keep's archmage toured the creature markets. Lilith threw the potion at him, and the die for war was cast. Peace between Synara and the Keep was no longer negotiable.

***

"Today," Cjarsa finished, "The Synarans hail Lilith as a liberator, for it was during the Mage Wars that the city became free, even if her existence may simply be legend. The Keep does its best to discredit her existence. The two places have long ago made peace with each other, but remember - the greatest of circumstances may hinge on the smallest of things."
Kestrad has been eaten by life. She'll probably pop back in occasionally.
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