The Apprentice to Zdrell

by David K Bennett

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  After some time he caught up with Feldor just as he knocked on a door at the end of the corridor. Jonny heard nothing, but apparently, Feldor did, for he opened the door and stepped in. Jonny followed slowly.

  They entered a large room, easily as big as the home he had been born in, with a high ceiling, which nevertheless felt crowded. The walls on three sides of the room had bookshelves that reached nearly to the ceiling, all filled with books, small wooden boxes, gleaming silver orbs, and other strange objects. The fourth wall had a large window that reached the ceiling as well, flanked by two smaller bookshelves that were, if anything, more crammed than the others with books, papers and writing implements. The faint glow from the nearly dark sky cast an eerie light over the unlit parts of the room.

  Two large candelabras stood with squat candles burning to either side of the large desk that sat in front of the window. Behind the desk littered with papers and large books, one of which he was studying, sat the legend Jonny had never seen before, the ruler of Salaways, Master Magician Silurian.

  The Master looked up from the book and said, “Ah good, Feldor, you’re here. And you have the new boy with you. Excellent. What are we calling him?”

  “I have decided to call him Jonny, Master Silurian,” Lord Feldor replied. “Unless you have something else in mind for him.”

  “No, Jonny, Jonny, that will do just fine. Bring him up closer where I can look at him better and see if the feeling I have had the last couple of days is right, or if it is just indigestion.”

  As Jonny stepped forward at Feldor’s urging, he got his first look at the legendary ruler of Salaways. He had stood as Jonny approached, and Jonny saw a very tall thin man, well over six feet. He had a fringe of pure white hair that ringed his mostly bald head and came together into a long ponytail going down his back. His mustache and closely trimmed beard were white as well.

  Master Silurian’s piercing blue eyes seemed to bore right through him. Jonny was surprised to see Master Silurian did not have the lines and wrinkles Jonny associated with older people. In fact, Jonny had seen many men in their forties who had faces that looked older than this man, who he had heard was at least a hundred and fifty years old, and was possibly much older. But for the hair, Jonny would have assumed him to be a man in his early thirties, the age Jonny’s father had been when he died.

  The Master motioned for both Feldor and Jonny to sit in two chairs set in front of the desk. He turned to Lord Feldor. “Were there any problems finding the boy and securing his release?”

  “Not really. That odious swine of a slaver kept me waiting for over an hour, but I understand I have young Jonny here to thank for that,” he said motioning towards the boy, who was now trying to shrink into non-existence in his chair.

  Silurian raised an eyebrow. “Don’t be afraid. I am not mad at you. I am sure you had good reason for making it hard for that rogue, Murdoc, to track you down.”

  Jonny was surprised that the Master was not upset. His fears eased slightly, but he said nothing.

  Master Silurian turned back to Lord Feldor.

  “If you do not need me further,” Feldor said, “I have several matters I would like to attend to before dinner.”

  “Well, go then. Jonny and I can have our chat here, just the two of us. And he can show me all the magic tricks he knows,” Master Silurian said with a twinkle in his eye.

  Feldor got up to leave, and Jonny wanted to beg to go with him. His heart was pounding wildly, while his chest was so tight, he felt he could hardly breathe. He did not know any magic. He did not know much of anything. He could just barely read, and that only because his father had started teaching him at a very young age.

  Jonny pulled his legs up to his chest and said in a small voice, “But I don’t know any magic tricks.”

  The Master smiled as he then got up and came around the desk and sat in the chair Feldor had just left for him.

  “There is no need to be afraid. I know you have not been doing any real magic tricks or things you think of as such, or I would already have heard of it. But do you have something you can do, something you would do to amuse the other boys when you had time to play in the bazaar?”

  For some reason he could not explain, Jonny relaxed a little bit. This man seemed to be truly a kind sort, and Jonny sensed no threat behind his words. Unlike his time with Murdoc, Jonny did not think he would be punished if he failed.

  He thought for a moment and said, “Well, there was this one game we sometimes played in the bazaar that I could always win,” Jonny began. “Till no one would play me any more. It’s not much . . .”

  “Show it to me, Jonny. I am most anxious to see it.”

  “Well, first you have to have a big coin, like this one.” Jonny dug in his bundle for his old brass coin. “This one’s not worth anything here, but it works great for this game.”

  Jonny got off his chair, knelt down on the floor, and set the coin on its edge, holding it upright with his left index finger. “First you take a coin, like this . . ., and you set it spinning,” he said as he flicked the edge of the coin with his right index finger. “Then you see who can keep the coin from falling over the longest.”

  As he spoke, the coin spun, winking in the light from the candles. After a few seconds, the spinning slowed and it fell to the floor.

  “My trick,” Jonny continued, “is that I can keep it spinning longer than anybody else can.”

  He set the coin up again and flicked it as he did before. Only this time he hit it harder and spun it faster. Jonny put his hands on his knees as he knelt before the coin and stared at it with intense concentration. Initially, the coin slowed as it had before, but then the spin began to stabilize. The coin continued to spin, and it neither sped up nor slowed down, but stayed spinning in the same place, at the same rate, for a very long time.

  After several minutes of this had passed, the Master spoke up, “That’s enough, Jonny. That is a very good trick. You can let it fall down now.”

  Jonny let out a sigh of relief. He had not moved a muscle since he placed his hands on his knees, and there were beads of sweat on his forehead. As soon as he relaxed, the coin began to slow and wobble. Within seconds, it fell to the floor.

  “Wow, that was hard. I don’t think I’ve ever kept one going that long before.”

  “That was very good, Jonny,” the Master said. “May I see the coin that you used?”

  “Sure. Everyone says it isn’t worth anything here. That’s the only reason I’ve got it.”

  The master picked up the coin and examined it very carefully. “Can you do it with other coins, or is it only this one?”

  “Uh, I can do it with just about any coin,” said Jonny. “But it’s easier if it’s bigger and heavier. I did a gold piece once. It was really easy, but I only got to do that once.”

  “Well Jonny, you may not know it, but you have just made me a very happy man.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you have just proven to me that my feelings were right. You can do magic. And if you can do it with this with no training, I have great hopes for what you can do once you have received some.”

  “You mean I just did magic?” Jonny stared at Master Silurian with disbelief.

  “Yes, yes you did, Jonny. Not only that, but you did it in a way I never would have thought to do. I could not have done it the way you did, until I saw you do it just now. You have already just shown me something new. I thank you.”

  Jonny was stunned. He had done magic. He had also done something the greatest wizard in the land said that he could not have done.

  “You really mean you couldn’t have done that trick I just did?”

  “Jonny, I could have made the coin spin. However, the type of magic I would have used to do it would have been completely different from the way you did. It would have taken me more to get set up. Of course, the way I would have set it up, it would still be spinning there now. Once I started it spinning, I would also n
ot have had to concentrate on it as you did, but, as I say, that would have been a completely different kind of magic. What you did, I have never seen done that way before. You truly are a natural magician.”

  Jonny sat back on his heels, amazed and confused. He had no idea that he had been doing magic. It made him feel the best he had felt since before his parents died. It made him feel, for once, happy.

  The Master got up from his chair and headed for the door. “Come, it is time for dinner. We will eat and see if we can’t get some flesh on those bones of yours. I will also introduce you to the other apprentices and the journeymen.”

  With that, he held the door for Jonny. The Master locked the door behind them. They walked down the corridor towards the sounds of many voices and the smell of food that made Jonny’s mouth water.

  Chapter 5

  As hungry as he was, Jonny was only barely aware of the path they took to get to the great hall where several tables were already piled high with food. He had actually done magic! He felt as if he were floating. He hoped this would not all turn out to be a dream where he woke up to the reality of life as a slave.

  As they entered the hall, the babble of conversation died down and all heads turned in their direction.

  “I want you all to look over here and pay special attention,” The Master began. “This is our new apprentice, Jonny. He has just showed me a magic trick the likes of which I have never seen before.”

  As he said this last part, the attention of everyone in the room focused on Jonny. He could feel their eyes examining him. Not all the attention was friendly.

  “He will be under my special tutelage,” The Master continued. “And . . .” he paused, sweeping his gaze around the room, “He is not to be bothered or molested in any way. He has just been freed from slavery. I will not countenance any improper behavior from any of you towards him. I am sure you all know what I mean. You are all warned, so you will be without excuse.”

  As he delivered these words, Master Silurian glared meaningfully towards certain of the older boys. His look was fearsome, not the kindly look Jonny remembered at all.

  The Master scanned the assembled faces, nodded, then the fierce look left his face as it relaxed into a smile. “Jonny, let me introduce you to the boys and staff,” The Master said, pointing to various people and naming them, and what they did.

  It was all too much for Jonny to take in; there were over seventy people in the room in total. He smiled and returned the nods of the boys and young men who were introduced to him, but their names simply did not register. He was still too giddy. The Master introduced him as if he was some visiting wizard from a far country, to be given special care and consideration. Only The Master, Lord Feldor, Jonny and one other Journeyman wizard were seated at the head table. There were three other long trestle tables with at least twenty boys at each.

  Several of the boys looked at him with barely concealed hostility and resentment. He had seen the look before. Many of these boys were not going to be his friends. Some of them might already be his enemies. If he were not already feeling so disconnected, their looks might have scared him.

  He knew in the back of his mind that this would not all be easy, but he also knew The Master had extended his special protection to him. He hoped it would be enough.

  There was more food at this meal than Jonny had seen in the last two years: meats, breads, potatoes, apples, pastries, and pies. He was sitting next to his new master, being offered anything he wanted.

  He ate so much he thought he would burst. Twice Master Silurian had to caution him to slow down the speed he was stuffing food in his mouth. The last two years had taught him to eat fast, before someone bigger came to take the food he had. In the end, when he could eat no more, he sat back. He was so full, he was not sure whether it felt good, or if he was going to be sick.

  Smiling, the master turned to him and said, “So, you can be filled.” He laughed. “For a moment I was unsure of whether you would ever stop. I have seen boys twice your size not able to eat as much as you have. I just hope this is only because of how little you’ve eaten recently.”

  Jonny happily nodded his agreement and blinked and yawned.

  “Ah, I see the food has got you feeling sleepy,” Master Silurian chuckled. “Well then, it’s best if we get you a place to sleep.” He looked over to one of the other tables where several boys were talking. “Roald, is there a place for Jonny in your room?”

  “Yes, Master,” replied the tall, thin shyly smiling boy.

  “Good, show young Jonny here the room and the privy while you’re at it so he can get to bed. He has had a long day, and he will need his strength for tomorrow.” The Master turned to Jonny and said, “Go with Roald. He will show you where things are and what to do. I will see you tomorrow, and we will see if you have any more tricks you can show me.”

  With that, The Master stood up and started walking towards a different door than the one by which he and Jonny had entered. Just before he left the room, he turned and smiled back at Jonny, shook his head and then said to Feldor, “Come, Feldor, we have much to discuss.” Feldor, who had been talking with two of the young men in the room, immediately got up and followed him.

  “Wow,” began Roald. “I’ve never seen The Master treat a newcomer like that. You must be something special.” Roald looked amazed and impressed. “I mean, really, The Master usually doesn’t even see new boys for a few days after they arrive. After they’ve, uh, um, . . . been broken in. But you, he might as well have said if anyone even touches you, he’ll flay them alive. Prodigious.”

  This whole outburst only puzzled Jonny. He knew what The Master had done must have been unusual, but Roald’s reaction made it seem like it was a once in a lifetime event. The confusion on his face must have been evident.

  “But you don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?” Roald said. Then talking more to himself he said, “Of course you don’t, and it’s really better you don’t.” A calculating look came on his face, and he brightened. “I bet that’s why The Master put you with me. I’ll show you how to stay out of trouble. Yes I will,” he said, now looking at Jonny again. “And we’ll be the best of friends! Come on. I’ll show you where the privies are and then get you set up for bed.”

  They left the great hall heading down a corridor and out and across into the main courtyard to where the privies were located. As soon as they had been mentioned, Jonny knew he very badly needed to relieve himself and was glad they stopped there first.

  After they finished in the privies, they walked to the opposite side of the cobbled courtyard and climbed a winding set of stairs that opened out onto a narrow corridor. They walked past several doors, until Roald opened one up and said, “Here we are, my own little home.”

  The large room looked like it had seen better days. At some point in the castle’s history, it had probably been officer’s quarters. It had two racks of solid bunk style beds with posts extending to the ceiling with three beds in each stack. There were clothes and other items strewn on the floor and dust coated nearly everything. Of the six available beds, only one looked to be in use. The others were without bedclothes. Two tall dusty and mostly empty bookshelves stood along opposite walls, with two large scarred wooden tables each with two chairs in the middle of the room.

  “There used to be three others in here with me,” Roald began. “One made Journeyman, Diego he’s now called, and the other two, they, uh finished their apprenticeships and, um, left. So, I’ve had the place all to myself for the last two weeks. It’s been great.” Jonny could see what Roald considered great. It certainly wasn’t cleanliness.

  Just then there was a sound behind them, and they both turned to see another boy coming in with blankets, sheets, and a pillow. “Feldor said you would be needing these things,” the blond-haired, freckled boy, said as he walked into the room, working to balance his load. “Where do you want me to put them?”

  Roald said, “Just set them anywhere. Jonny hasn’t decid
ed where he’s going to sleep yet.”

  The new boy ignored Roald’s remark, snorted, and gave Jonny a questioning glance. “Uh, just set them on that empty bunk over there,” Jonny said, indicating the one across from the one Roald was occupying.

  “That’s probably best,” the new boy said. “If you sleep over here there’s a chance Roald’s screams in the night won’t wake you.” He laughed. “That’s why he’s been in this room alone. No one else can get any sleep around him.”

  “You didn’t need to tell him that, Larin,” Roald muttered.

  “Yes I did. He might have thought there was something really wrong, when you woke him up with your screaming. Now, he’ll know that’s just what you do most nights.”

  “Do not!”

  “Do too,” Larin replied, not at all put off by Roald’s protest. “Only you don’t know it, because you sleep right through them, not that anyone else can.”

  Jonny found the whole conversation amusing, but was already too tired to care. “I think right now I could sleep through just about anything.”

  “Yeah, well that’s good enough. And don’t let Roald’s screams worry you. They don’t mean anything,” Larin said. He had already been working on putting the covers on Jonny’s bed the whole time the conversation had been going on. “There, I think you’re set. They didn’t give me a nightshirt for you, but I’m sure there’s one in the cupboard,” he said pointing to a cabinet beyond the bed. Jonny had failed to notice it earlier. “Have a good night. I’ll see you at breakfast.” With that, Larin smiled at Jonny and left, closing the door behind him.

  “He didn’t have to tell you about that,” Roald said, scowling at the closed door. “I’d have told you. But he is right. That’s why I’ve had the room to myself. I hope it doesn’t bother you too much.” He stared at the floor.