Short story - Hearts of Stone and Ice, Part I
Although being utterly combative, it was so hard for him to court a woman. Hundreds of women left the brave warrior because his heart seemed to belong to his swords rather than to them. After the king - like all his subjects had abandoned hope on his hundredth birthday, he suddenly met the most beautiful woman he had ever seen; not because she spent hours in front of the mirror, but because she could wield a sword. The couple married not much later, and the young queen gave him twins, two girls: Petra and Isa. Their happiness was unfortunately short-lived. Right after birth, the queen died and Aldevar was devastated with grief. For the first time, the brave king felt scared. He knew that, because of his age, he did not have long to live, and he did not dare to imagine how his daughters would live without parents and without his protection.
From the farthest corners of the country, he invited the six best magicians. Each of them were skilled in one element: the water witch tame the most dashing seas, the firemaster controlled the hottest flames, the wind fairy defied the most powerful storms, the forest elf withheld the heaviest earthquakes, the lord of light looked through the most dazzling rays of sunshine and the sorcerer of the dark dominated the darkest forces. All six swore allegiance to the king, his daughters, and the empire. They became Aldevar's greatest confidants.
That allegiance, however, came to a breach. The citizens saw that Aldevar often stayed in the company of five of the six magicians. Melanis, the sorcerer of the dark, found his power in the moonlight. During the day, he was too weak to attend the king's outings and meetings, and at night people, became afraid of him because he supposedly sneaked through the streets. One night Melanis kneeled before Aldevar, and he explained his situation. He begged him to plan the meetings at another time, but the king who understood so little of magic refused. He always spent the evening with his girls, and nothing would replace that. Aldevar barked that Melanis had to find a solution himself; after all, he was one of the best magicians of the realm.
Three more times, Melanis begged the king, but every time Aldevar roared that the evening was for his girls and that the wizard himself had to find a solution. The good sorcerer of the dark did not want to take the wrath of the king and listened. During the day he withdrew, and at night he studied the dark magic. His nature forbade him from doing anything else. People didn't understand him. They found the man who wandered the streets alone at night scary. Adults gave him dirty looks, and taught their children to stay far away from him. His five friends did not worry about him; they did not want to interfere in the dislike that the citizens had for the sorcerer. They feared they were going to be their next target.
Every night, Melanis saw fewer and fewer people walking around the streets. As soon as the poor dark sorcerer approached, the night owls blew out their candles, the pubs closed their doors, and even the most miserable wanderer hid from “the dangerous man". Only, he wasn't dangerous. The man just wanted to talk to someone, and show what brilliant miracles he could perform in the darkness. After weeks of solitude, Melanis no longer interested in magic. All he could do was cry next to an equally lonely tree in the woods. No one understood him, and that left a cold in his heart.
