Journeyman Assassin

by Brian Keller

  Chapter 35

  As they walked back to the Guild, Felis was observing Cooper and Kolrem. The Guild House was still a few minutes’ walk when Felis told Lash and Rayna to lead Boyd and walk a little further ahead. Once there was a little distance between the two groups, Felis spoke to the two boys, “You both completed an assignment tonight. And you both killed in cold blood, as ordered.” Cooper looked at Kolrem in surprise, he hadn’t known that Kolrem had killed anyone this night. Felis continued to speak, “When I got approval to bring you boys along, the Guildmaster gave me two specific tasks. First, I was to ensure that each of you took a life, under the watchful eye of an Adept. My second task was contingent on each of you completing the first. I disagree with this, as only the Master Assassins and a couple of the Adepts know what I am now directed to reveal to you… my primary functions for the Guild.” Felis let silence follow that statement and after a few seconds Kolrem finally spoke, “Your primary function isn’t killing, sir?” Felis’ only reply was, “We’ll speak more once we’re inside. Assassins are used for more than just killing.” They walked the rest of the way in silence, and remained silent as they passed through the halls of the Guild, until they reached the Etiquette/Scenarios classroom. Felis led them inside and they seated themselves in a ‘living room’ area that had a false fireplace. Once seated, Felis spoke in a quiet but conversational tone, “The reports of me being a bloodthirsty killer are a complete sham. Those stories are tolerated, encouraged even, to conceal what I actually do. I am a student.” With this last statement he adopted a softened expression and wide, innocent smile. In that instant, even the air in the room seemed to taste cleaner. Cooper felt the change instantly and glanced around the immediate surroundings, knowing there was something unnatural about it. His eyes swiftly snapped back to center on Felis, “You’re doing this.” Kolrem looked confused, “He’s doing what? What are you talking about?” Felis smiled. It was a smile that said he knew something. “Yes. I have a powerful affinity for Nature. I can actually affect the space around me to an extent. If I am able to concentrate fully, I can almost become invisible but that is very tiring and I’ve already done that once tonight.” His eyes centered on Cooper, “I did that on the night we met, but you somehow knew that something in the room wasn’t right. You didn’t detect me. You sensed the magic.” Kolrem was still confused, and getting frustrated, “This is really weird. I feel calm yet uncomfortable at the same time. What are you a student of, sir?” Cooper felt the air in the space return to normal as Felis turned to face Kolrem, “Magic. At the university.” Cooper observed, “So that’s where you go when you’re gone for days at a time?” Felis nodded, “Yes. An entire world away, but just on the other side of a wall.” He took a breath, a sure sign that he had much to say, “A few years ago, I was sent to the college to learn about Talent manipulation and Spell Lore. My Talent, along with lessons learned in this room, allowed me to set my teachers and classmates at ease, and I was able to attend a few higher level classes. The material in these classes is theoretical. The professor I’m currently studying under teaches only courses that deal with Affinity Theory, the rest of his time is spent with research and experiments intended to validate his theories. Much of my time is spent assisting with his research. Everyone knows that all people have some kind of elemental affinity, but different people Manifest different capacities with different elements. This is referred to as Talent, because it’s whatever occurs naturally, without practice. Some of the old tomes and much of this professor’s recent research seems to indicate that every person has some kind of affinity for ALL elements.” Felis stopped again, as if to further arrange his thoughts, then continued, “Manifestation reveals the elements that the person has the sufficient affinity, or natural Talent, to manipulate. It’s as if there’s some kind of threshold. As long as the affinity is powerful enough to exceed the threshold, they will be able to display some kind of Talent relating to that element. Some can manipulate internally like someone using Fire to increase their speed, or to be unaffected by cold, or Nature affecting your healing rate. Others can display abilities externally like a swordsmith using Fire to heat metal to the perfect temperature or me using Nature to affect perceptions in a small space. And still others exhibit the ability to manipulate some element both internally and externally. When you consider that some might Manifest strongly enough to manipulate more than one element, internally or externally or both, the possible combinations almost defy description. The current accepted theory suggests that anyone can improve their existing Talent to manipulate an element through continued practice and study as long as they have sufficient affinity. It is this premise that explains why the university even exists. Now pay particular attention to this next bit. The studies conducted by my current professor seem to indicate that anyone can improve manipulation of ANY element through practice and study, it’s simply a matter of somehow working to exceed the threshold. What remains unclear, however, is how a person might affect an element. Using my Nature ability as an example, I cannot currently increase my healing rate. Even though the theory suggests that I might, with study and practice, be able to internalize Nature in some way, there is no guarantee that any internalization would be in the form of healing power. Studies of several ancient scrolls combined with knowledge gained during recent research, has led a few scholars to believe in the soundness of this threshold theory. However, it’s still only a Theory. But imagine… all people having the ability to manipulate all elements, both internally and externally…? The implications stagger the mind. Now, there are mages doing research on this kind of thing all the time, and they are better attuned and much more versed about this material than you or I could ever conceive, but my question is this: do they already know about this? Have they already proven this to be true but are concealing it in order to maintain their illusion of power and control?”

  Cooper and Kolrem remained silent, partly because the concepts were overwhelming and partly because they were uncertain whether Felis was done speaking and didn’t want to interrupt. After several seconds of silence Cooper observed, “There have been several instances when I have gone to visit Master Worthan outside of normal class hours. He often has some books or scrolls that he closes or conceals when I come in. You’re bringing research materials to him, aren’t you?” Felis smiled, “That is another service I perform for the Guild. Master Worthan and a few other accomplished scholars within the Guild will sometimes ask that I ‘keep my eyes open’ for manuscripts that pertain to certain topics they are interested in.”

  Kolrem had some questions of his own, “Sir, with the man poisoning Guild members dead now, do you think our classes will go back to normal?” Felis shook his head, “I doubt that man was the only one who was approached by this mysterious thin man, but at least now we have a better understanding of what we’re facing.” Kolrem considered this, and accepted it. He asked, “Then what about your reputation as a ruthless and bloodthirsty killer?” Felis grinned and shook his head, “Ruthless? I’ll accept that. Bloodthirsty? Untrue. In fact, I didn’t even kill anyone tonight. Lash, Rayna and the two of you did all the killing. The reputation stems from two sources: several years ago I was insulted and then further disrespected by a classmate who was angry because I was accepted as an Adept and he was not. When I confronted him, he became even more insulting so I dragged him to the Training Room to demonstrate to him the difference between an Enforcer and an Assassin. It took him a long time to heal. The second reason is because I am away “on assignment” on a daily basis, so as far as the ‘Guildees’ are concerned, any unexplained deaths that occur during my absences are attributed to me. I’ve done nothing to discourage these notions. If they believe I am out slaughtering the populace, then they are unaware of my true activities. Their false accusations become my alibi.” It took a moment for Cooper to resolve the fact that being thought of as a raging, bloodthirsty killer could be considered an alibi for being a student. Felis continued, “I do not feel that you should
be learning about any of this yet, but my opinions have been overruled. It isn’t that I doubt your ability to keep a secret, I’m sure that you can. I simply don’t believe you benefit from the knowledge, and therefore present a potential risk without any perceivable gain.”

  Felis stood, “Having said that, I have told you all that I was instructed to, and more. I will entertain no further questions or discussions tonight. If I hear any breath of what I’ve told you being discussed elsewhere, I’ll assume it came from you. I won’t take you to the Training Room to teach you a lesson. I’ll take you to the river.” There was no doubting his meaning, Cooper had helped Felis take Egil to the river last year.

  Felis left the room and the boys followed. All the way back to the bay the boys were silent, each caught up in his own thoughts, as each reviewed the events of the last seven hours. Cooper knew tonight’s kill wasn’t Kolrem’s first, but performing an execution felt different. He appeared to be handling it well enough. Cooper had hoped to feel some kind of satisfaction, or even vindication, after killing the man who’d slain Habbon. Cooper found the impact of that action paled in comparison to the sheer volume of information he now had to sort through. They remained quiet as they found their way to their beds, it might have been out of consideration for their roommates, or simply because neither felt ready to face the questions that would surely follow if roommates were awakened. Neither of them drifted off to sleep quickly. Cooper finally fell asleep while trying to recall whatever was still eluding him about the thin grey man.

  The morning arrived with the usual awkwardness that followed a well-publicized foray into the night. The roommates all had questions, as did classmates in the dining hall. Cooper was becoming used to it. Though he understood their curiosity, he was also beginning to resent their insistence. The questions soon sounded like his classmates were blaming him for not divulging details. Cooper’s answers began to sound like he was lashing back, “I don’t know what I am supposed to tell, what I might be allowed to tell, so I’m telling nothing.” The unreasonable question he’d been expecting finally arrived, delivered by an upperclassman Cooper hadn’t even met, “Well, why don’t you find out what you can tell?” Cooper turned to face him fully, with raised eyebrows he asked, “And who shall I ask for this permission?” The student’s reply was immediate, as was the revelation, “Well, the Master’s Council, I suppo-”, it was then that the student realized the ridiculousness and petty selfishness of what he was demanding. Cooper continued to press, “So, you’re suggesting that I barge into the Master’s Council and ask permission to divulge information so I can satisfy your curiosity? Is that what you’re telling me?” The upperclassman had already been turning to leave, realizing finally where his persistence was leading them. Cooper didn’t want to let it go, but realized he’d made his point. He just wished everyone in the Guild could’ve witnessed the verbal exchange because a few minutes later the questions started again. Cooper had heard the saying, “Misery loves company.” The fact that Kolrem was in the same situation as he was actually didn’t make him feel better at all. Boyd was fortunate to remain beneath notice, no one seemed to be making the connection that he’d played a role last night as well.

  Cooper felt more than a little relief when he finally reached Miss Camilla’s Anatomy classroom, at least in that space he felt secure in the knowledge that he was no longer the center of attention. His forearms and hands were still stiff and sore from yesterday’s labors in the Smithy, and properly holding his quill wasn’t a simple thing. Today’s lessons were particularly important. Miss Camilla was talking about blood vessels, how they were positioned in the human body and where to find many of the vessels that were important to him due to their vulnerability. Cooper glanced around the classroom and noticed that there were only a few others taking notes, the rest of his classmates were simply listening. Cooper wondered if those students understood the significance of today’s lesson, and if they did, how they expected to remember it all.

  Cooper enjoyed learning anatomy but was happy enough when class ended and he could set down his quill. In Mister Skran’s Advanced Combat class, Cooper could occupy his time with walking up and down the line of students taking aim with their bows. Mister Skran had different plans in mind. Today they began incorporating darts and throwing knives, and Kolrem and Cooper were still playing the role of his assistants. The boys were able to demonstrate passable technique but neither could throw with the force Mister Skran expected. Cooper felt they were doing well just to grasp the weapons and release them properly, but he didn’t give voice to his thoughts. Mister Skran pointed out specific target areas for these thrown weapons, “It takes considerable force to pierce even something so simple as leather armor. Thrown weapons are most effective when thrown at the groin, neck, and face. These areas require the most mobility, or will hamper visibility if heavily armored, so are often the most lightly armored, or where gaps in armor commonly may be found. One of the upper classmen made the observation, “Many of City Watch wear helmets and visors, sir.” It appeared that Mister Skran wanted to berate the student for interrupting him but he controlled the urge and replied, “I wouldn’t suggest using these weapons on a heavily armored opponent, and tangling with the City Watch would never be a course of action that I’d recommend; not because they are particularly skilled, but because there are so damned many of them. If you are being actively pursued by the City Watch, my recommendation would be to find a horse.” Cooper thought about that. He’d been pursued by the city watch, before he joined the Guild. The watchman had stopped pursuing him as soon as he was out of sight. Still, Mister Skran’s explanation was valid.

  Their combat teacher announced that once a student displayed that they could place five lethal arrows into a target within thirty seconds, he’d consider allowing them to train on a more advanced or exotic weapon. Mister Skran pointed over to a table on the far side of the room. On that table lay a sword, an axe, and a whip. Leaned against the table was a staff. Cooper was looking from weapon to weapon. He had little interest in the axe but all of the others appealed to him. The decision was easy, however. Salder Varen needed to use a sword. When Cooper looked over at Kolrem, he saw that Kolrem was already looking at him. Kolrem took his bow off his shoulder and flexed the bowstring and winked at Cooper before he started off toward the targets. Cooper shrugged and followed suit. He paused and asked Mister Skran, “From what distance, sir?” His teacher got an uncharacteristic glimmer in his eye and started to reply, then paused. He finally gave a sigh as he said, “From twenty paces, just like everyone else.” Two minutes later, Kolrem and Cooper were standing at the table admiring the sword. Within several minutes, both boys regretted their haste. Their hands and forearms were nowhere near ready for handling a sword today. Mister Skran directed them to practice some basic stances, thrusts and slashes. Cooper’s movements were sloppy, but he managed to finish the class without dropping the sword.