[Arcadian]

The morning was cold as the sun split in half on the horizon. One glowing ball of fire rose in the sky, and the other crept along the sea towards the coastal city of Eijer. From nearby settlements, folks of all shapes and sizes were converging on the town, for it was a day of celebration. The Prince would be returning from across the water today, with his new Princess.

The royal magecourt has been preparing the Balance Gate for an hour now, concentrating on opening a path through the veiled Realm. Across the sea, the Princess' own circle of ritualists were doing the same. In fact, the Prince has a bet with his father that his fiancé's team can open their end before his.

Boredom had just started to settle into the crowd when the first spark of the Gate appeared. Its crackle muffled the soft gasps of awe, before widening into a circular window of shadow and fog. It was large enough to drive a carriage through – though thankfully one of those wouldn't be needed. The swift travel through the Balance Realm will take only an hour, instead of the months at sea it would take.

The mages breathed deeply, now. The power needed to open such a wormhole was great, but once the Gate opened it was relatively easy to keep it that way. The Realm tended to act on its own, and drain the energy of those who dared to tamper with it. The travelers were safe, but the mages would be drained into a coma if it lasted too long.

The waiting started again, after the initial enjoyment of seeing magical energies amid a forbidden spiritual doorway died off. Patrons found themselves entranced by the spell's natural aesthetics – if you could call them that – but even the slowest mind soon found something else to watch.

Few paid enough attention to notice the Royal Guard begin to move towards the mages. The spellcasters seemed relieved, for their legs and their brains ached with their duty. The young royals were due back any moment now, apparently.

Folks started getting excited when the Gate began to widen. The tired mages didn't even notice until the King walked into their circle and pointed. They all stirred back to life, just as the Prince and Princess emerged in a sprint into the physical world.

“CLOSE THE GATE! FOR THE LOVE OF THE GODS!”

The Princess fell to her feet, in a cloud of dust, as the Gate began to widen further and the mages began to groan in mental pain. Her lover easily picked her off the ground and carried her past the ritual circle and towards the castle. The King looked around in confusion as his guards rushed in.

“There is something big... coming from the Realm! Hurry brothers, close it!” A mage barked as the group began to concentrate on ending the spell. The guards brought their weapons to bear, and the King's sword started to shimmer when he wielded it. The Gate was half as tall as the castle's walls, now.

The beast's head burst forth, and promptly ate the closest guard's legs. Then the screaming and the panicking struck, and it wrenched its serpentine neck up to see what was going on. It had died a week ago, and had manifested into a new body when the Balance Gate was opened, seeking an easy way into the physical world, with plenty of food. The two royals were too quick for it to catch, but it followed with purpose.

Its roar set the mages back a few moments in their attempt to close the Gate. Unfortunately, this was enough time for a breath of flame to torch the closest guards. The King would have perished as well, had he not walked over to a mage who was simply bubbling at the mouth. His sword sliced the head from the shoulders, and the Gate snapped shut, severing the sea serpent's neck.

A sickening thud echoed off the castle as the head landed next to the King. He promptly laughed. “Didn't I just slay you?”
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Bamf! Claw! Fang!
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[Dark Stalion]

Hehe, that's funny.
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My Website, My Blog and Myspace Musician's Page

[Alex W]

Nice ending! Heh... interesting scenario on all sorts of levels.
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<homestar14> What is the first thing that need to be coded?
<Alex||> the intro video where thugs steal your girlfriend and you come out of the garage

[skeith]

that was awesome!..^^..i hope stuff like that can happen in genesis ^^
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[note: i usually go by vahn..why i used skeith on here..iono.]

[gavanw]

yep we were talking about the usage of portals