Crystal Castle

Grace drummed her fingers on the counter-top while she waited. The Mason’s clerk had been looking for her order for almost five minutes and she was beginning to lose patience.

“Found it!” the young man called out from the forest of shelves. Grace heard hurried footsteps on the stone floor as he rushed to the counter. He placed a faded, frail sheet of paper on the counter. The heading on top of the worn note said, ‘Deed of Ownership’ in large letters with several paragraphs of fine print under it. “Anything else I can help you with?” he asked.

“No thank you,” Grace shook her head. She touched the yellowing paper then it disappeared into her inventory. “Just came for this,” she smiled and turned to leave.

“Thank you!” Grace heard him call out as she stepped out of the Mason’s guild. The city square was bustling with activity and she had no trouble arranging a ride to the Quarts Plains.

“You sure this is your stop?” the wagon master asked as Grace stepped out of the carriage. He gestured at the purple, crystalline plain that ran to the horizon. “There’s no one around.” Grace nodded.

“There will be,” she said. “Thanks but I’ll be fine.” She had been working toward this day for almost three years. Grace walked on the glassy, violet surface opposite of the wagon.  Once it was out of sight she smiled and held her hand out to make the worn note appear in her grasp.

“I did it,” she sighed and tossed the sheet into the air. A transparent menu slate appeared in front of her.

“Guild Name?” the slate asked.

“Magi-Knights,” Grace answered. The slate disintegrated; then, in an instant, a giant purple, crystalline castle burst upward out of the plain.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *