Chapter 1

"Mistress! Mistress! I have the discovered the most grievous of betrayals," says the young lady servant named Mary with long curly brunette hair and hazel eyes, who is visibly shaking.

"Please, Mary, speak of it so we may rectify the situation."

"Lady Avril, the Scepter of Power has been stolen!"

"WHAT!" Screams the pretty Princess of Azure with long straight brunette hair and soft and warm blue eyes jumping out of bed already dropping her nightgown. Her heart is pumping so hard and she is thinking so fast that everything begins to move in slow motion. "Call the Captain of the Guard at once and get me my battle outfit immediately. Now, Mary, do it at once! The safety of the world depends on it." Her own voice sounds to her as if it is hollow and coming from the abyss.

"Mistress, the Captain of the Guard has already been summoned. He will be here momentarily. I will grab your green tartan near knee length skirt with the dark green leggings and the deep blood red wine color shirt. Here, Mistress, put on your dark brown calf length traveling boots."

The very pretty sharp featured Princess is a fashion free spirit and her kingdom of Azure often leads the way for girls to dress pretty. The Princess's tartan skirts that are described as near knee length rest two marks above the knee as she gladly challenges any old beliefs that says the beauty that is woman must be buried under a pile of material, but she is not thinking about that now. The fate of the world rests in her hands and the decisions she makes in the very near future could either usher in another century of grandeur or end it all in a fiery explosion.

There is an explosive banging knock on the princess's door. "Enter!"

"Your Majesty, you have summoned me."

"The Scepter of Power has been stolen! Close the castle immediately and search it!"

"WHAT!" The six foot six blond-haired and blue-eyed very muscular forty-year-old Captain of the Guard screams. "I will close down the city, Lady Avril." And then he turns around and starts running down the long hall that is lined with paintings of former princesses and queens who were also the Protectors of the Scepter of Power. "To arms! To arms brothers and sisters our world Perennial is in danger."

Moments later the castle bells start echoing across the city and countryside.

Princess Avril turns to her most trusted and favored servant and friend, "Tell me what you know, Mary."

"As is my routine, Mistress, on my way here to wake you for the coming day I looked in on the Scepter of Power as I always do to give my praise to start off another day and it was gone. I could not believe my eyes. I ran up to the alter hoping that it had fallen off the display case. When I couldn't find it anywhere I ran here to you as fast as I could."

Princess Avril finishes lacing up her boots and stands up. The very fit princess may stand at only five foot two, but she is a well-trained master swordswoman and a very powerful sorceress to top it off.

Because Avril is of the Magic Kind that means she is tied into nature and creation. Though her hair is always very long, straight and naturally brunette, when her emotions get stirred up her hair changes color. Because the fate of the world now hangs in the balance she is annoyed and enraged so her hair is raven black and the tips are red. Through it all her soft and warm powerful blue eyes shine bright. The only thing that matches this princess's beauty is her heart and her mind.

"Here, Mistress, strap on your sword."

Just then a young houseboy comes running in with tears streaming down his cheeks. "Calm yourself, Brand."

"Yes, Mistress."

"Brand, run and get my horse ready."

"Yes, Lady Avril." And with that he is gone like a shot.

"Mary, I think I better bring my bow."

"At once, Mistress."

As the princess of Azure and her maiden Mary are hurrying down the long hall Avril stops and turns to her great grandmother's portrait who was also a Protector of the Scepter of Power and tears fill her eyes. Avril reaches out to the painting, touches it with reverence and says, "I'm sorry, grandmother. I will not bring down shame on the house of Serene or the Ophelia Coven, of that I promise the winds."

"Fear not, Mistress, we will find it."

Avril nods her head in appreciation for the kind words and they continue down the hall. With each portrait Avril passes she feels a surge of confidence and pride. As Avril is of the Ophelia Coven her powers are entwined with nature and positive thoughts breed positive energy. From every portrait of a woman who was a sister witch and chosen as the Protector of the Scepter of Power by destiny just like her she takes in an influx of power and belief.

About half way down the hall the Captain of the Guard with twenty other soldiers comes running at her full bore. The booted feet on the cold gray stone sounds like a stampede. Not even the fine red and gold carpet can soften their intent.

"Speak, Captain Jack."

"We have found a dead guard at one of the servants entrances, in fact through the Kitchen. The change of guard happened at two in the morning so we know it was stolen some time after that and between five when Mary discovered it missing."

"Three hours! They could be many leagues away by now. Send out a hundred patrols immediately and send messengers to all our Friendly nations and inform them of the grave danger we all now face."

"The patrols are already scouring the countryside, Mistress, but I will send both bird and rider to our Friends. They will mobilize with great force, Lady Avril, and we will return the Scepter of Power to you, my Princess. Our Friends will send their greatest warriors to stand at your side, milady."

"Please, Captain, scour the countryside and the world if need be and get my personal guard ready. I will go out myself also after I contact my sisters."

As Avril makes her way down the hall finally the last door on the left of the very long hall comes into view. Unless you are coming up the hall and then the door would be the first one on the right. Either way it is Avril's personal study and meditation room.

She none-to-gently throws opens the door, but still with reverence in her heart she kneels before a collage of soil, leaves, sticks, stones, precious gems and several bones of animal who died fulfilling their destiny. The power of the Ophelia Coven is directly tied into nature and the collage she now kneels before is a portal to that power and her coven.

On her knees in her green tartan skirt, with dark green leggings, and her deep red shirt she bows to the Focal Point of power of her coven. She reaches out and lays her shaking hand upon the creation and when she touches the collage it glitters with power and then she speaks these words, "Glistening diamonds of redemption come to me now for the need is dire."

When a soft warm wind starts blowing inside the room Princess Avril knows she is connected to creation and time. Avril's long, straight, back to brunette hair starts blowing about her as she continues saying, "Sisters, the Scepter of Power has been stolen and the world is in the gravest of dangers. Gather the coven and go to the Center.

"All must start putting positive vibrations into the Web of Existence so I will have the strength to endure any all trials and tribulations and save the world once more. Thank Our Mother for me as I must now take a direct hand." And with that Princess Avril pulls her hand from her coven's symbol of beauty and power and stands up and hurries out of the castle.