Neutral Parties
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Today was a very good day. Finally, after decades of trial and error, Hennig would finally earn the rewards he so desired. No, desired was too mild a word. Hennig knew he deserved success.
Long ago, nearly a century, Hennig had discovered a talent for magic. It was a rare talent. Legend said there were once many capable mages in the world. Now so few existed that most people no longer believed magic to be anything but myth. Legends claimed elves were all capable mages, but Hennig knew this was false. The only mage he had ever met was the man who had taken him as apprentice.
Lestericus had be an old man when Hennig, a boy of six, had been placed in his care. The old man had been given imperial permission to test the young of the city and claim any who displayed any talent. Everyone under the age of fifteen had been tested. Only Hennig had been chosen, taken from the family of some minor merchant he now barely remembered.
Being a mage’s apprentice had not be unpleasant. Hennig thought of the time fondly. Lestericus had required discipline and assigned daily chores but that was no different from the life he’d had before. It was not a life much different from those who chose to become indentured servants to pay a debt. Hennig did the chores Lestericus was growing too old to complete. In return, Lestericus fed, clothed and sheltered him. Even better, Hennig had been educated.
Hennig had learned to read first. Then the subjects branched out and multiplied. History, philosophy, mathematics, sciences, Lestericus seemed to know everything and expected his apprentice to soak it up like a dessicated sponge. Hennig had proven himself a proficient student mastering every subject set before him. Lestericus had beamed with pride when, on the tenth anniversary of the beginning of Hennig’s apprenticeship, he had finally given his student a first lesson in magic.
Lestericus had been very careful to insist on caution. To use a great deal of power or to use it frequently was to invite notice. To be noticed, his master had said, was to invite disaster. People feared what they did not understand and fearful men could become violent if confronted with their fears. So, to their neighbors, Lestericus was a prominent historian and sage, Hennig his student. Within the walls of Lestericus’ house, however, Hennig explored a world bigger than most others dreamed existed.
Hennig delved into worlds ruled by the natural elements, by forces of life and death, light and shadow. He learned the languages of the world, including dialects that had not been used in centuries. He memorized scores of runes and rituals.
It would be unfair to say Lestericus was never happy with Hennig’s education. The old sorcerer applauded and encourage Hennig’s accomplishments. There was always a push to learn more, progress faster. Lestericus was never satisfied. Hennig had been certain he could become a god without it being enough for his master.
Of course, there had been reason for it all. One day Hennig had returned from an errand to discover his master sprawled at the bottom of the stairs. The city guard had declared the death an accident, an old man’s tragic misstep. A few weeks later a bureaucrat of the courts interrupted his grief to deliver the deed to the house with a key. Lestericus had left a will leaving Hennig everything. For days, shock and grief sapped him of the will to do anything. Eventually, however, he ran out of food and clean dishes.
After cleaning the house and restocking the larder, Hennig finally examined the belongings the priests had returned after the death rites. The robes would fit well enough, though they were a little old and worn. There was a small coin purse, but the old man had apparently set aside a great deal of money. Thee was enough elsewhere that Hennig would have to put effort into losing the house. The only item of real interest was a key that did not fit any lock he was aware of.
For the next few weeks, Hennig spent some of his time searching the house for the lock the key matched. He hired a servant to clean, cook, and perform his old duties. He continued his studies, as much out of habit and a need to keep up his scholarly appearance than from any urge to learn. It was during a magical experiment that Hennig learned what they unlocked.
The experiment itself had little to do with the discovery except that it required Hennig use an enchantment that allowed him to see the flow of magical energies. When he copleted the rune for the enchantment and spoke the activation words the key, sitting on a table nearby, began to glow, a thin thread of energy leading from the key to the wall opposite the door. Henning grabbed the key and touched the spot ont he wall and the key passed through into some invisible keyhole. With a click and the creak of hinges, the panel opened to reveal a narrow stairwell.
Hennig descended the stairs with excitement. What treasure awaited below? What had Lestericus felt must be hidden, even from the apprentice he considered a son? The stairs led down past the basement and past an iron door that opened into the sewers. The magical key had connected a thread to the door as Hennig got close. The hinges of the door were well-greased and made no sounds as the door opened. From the other side, there was no way to see where door and sewer tunnel met. Without the key and the ability to see the magic, Hennig would never have known a door existed.
The stairs continued downward. Hennig expected a library or alchemical workshop. Instead he found a tomb. Several tombs, each a niche in rough-hewn rock.