Transcendental Misappropriation (Book One of the Pentacle Series)

by Roharp17

  "You lie," declared a blond hair boy near him.

  "I am not lying and can prove it," Danny said, turning to the boy accusing him.

  Wizard August shared the boy’s expression of doubt and said, "Yes, well, initiate Creek can demonstrate his plethora of affinities when we begin spell training."

  The other boys looked at Danny suspiciously before ignoring him completely.

  A bell rang in the distance and an initiate walked up to our group, "That's everyone then, no one else will be joining you."

  "Thank you initiate, everyone gather around. That was the bell for supper. Tomorrow at dawn I expect you all in my lecture hall, room number seven, by dawn. You will find I do not take kindly to tardiness. Good night initiates," Wizard Augusts said, and turned and strolled toward the tower through the entrance to the inner circle.

  Danny was turning to head towards the dining hall when he heard his name.

  "Creek, wait up," the tall boy with the two affinities.

  Danny paused and turned to look at him warily. A number of the other students from his new class followed behind him.

  As he reached Danny, he stuck out his hand amicably and said, "Hi, I'm Harold Peak."

  "Nice to meet you Peak," Danny said following his use of last names.

  "Since we are all going to be in the same class why don't we eat together," smiled Peak.

  "Sure, why not," Danny said as he tried to think up with a very reason not to.

  They began walking towards the dining hall in a large group. The other students from the arena were all moving in smaller groups.

  Peak moved up alongside Danny and asked, "So where does your family live?"

  "They live off the main street halfway between the city gates and the inner ones," Danny said.

  "Interesting, I haven't spoken to too many kids outside the inner walls. So your mom came from the Creek family? I think I heard they were moving up in the city," Peak guessed.

  "I'm honestly not sure about moving up in the city. My mother joined a Trio with Sarah Creek. My family runs a store along the main street near our house," Danny replied.

  Another boy butted in shocked, "Your mother isn't even the head of your family, just a Trio member!"

  "Yes, that's right... She is an accomplished leather crafter. If I understand correctly, her leather bags are currently popular with the women within the inner walls," said Danny, defending his mother.

  Another boy's eyes grew big, "Your mother is that Creek! Do you think you could get her to make a bag for my mother? I need to get back in my mother's good graces and I overheard her saying she wanted one, but they are hard to get."

  Danny was about to reply when Peak interrupted, looking annoyed, "You can talk about bags with Creek later. I heard about your mother too, now that I think about it. I heard you have a brother that could sell the Grand Council their own Council Chambers, and have them believing it better than it was before. I hear many of the great families are looking to snatch him away as soon as he comes of age. Maybe I could be persuaded to introduce him to some of our... lesser branch families."

  "I seriously doubt I could sell the Council Chambers back to ALL of them. Oh, and I appreciate the offer for assistance in introducing me around. The head of my household said I'm already booked up on offers from families from the inner walls. Well that was before I became an initiate," Danny said, pretending to be bored and ignorant to Peaks personal jabs. If this pompous noble wanted to belittle someone, he was going to have to look elsewhere.

  Peak face lost all subtlety and turned harsh. Calling out so the others in his group could hear, he said, "Well, I suddenly remembered that mother said that I when I came here. I shouldn't associate with any of the outer wall trash. Sorry Creek, but you will have to eat on your own, the smell from the outer walls is upsetting my stomach."

  Peak didn't wait for my response and started walking ahead. As Peak and his group walked off, the boy who wanted a bag from my mother looked between me and the retreating group. He sent me an apologetic smile and ran after Peak's group.

  Danny stood there rolling his eyes, wondering what he had gotten himself into, arguing with children... He walked into the dining hall and noted it looked similar to a food court. There was a buffet style line for the free food. Peak and his gang were already in line for one of the fancy stalls set up along the side of the wall. Women and men were serving prepared meals. Peak noticed Danny walking over to the free line, and gave a smug smile.

  *Ignore the seven year old boy*, Danny said to himself.

  His turn came and he grabbed his portion of what looked like a bowl of porridge with chunks of meat, and a hunk of bread. There was milk and different teas set out. Danny poured a random tea and after trying it, remembered the name listed on the card in front of it.

  Looking around the hall he saw quite a few empty spots and sat at one of them. No one sat next to him and he didn't mind. He was full up on social interactions for the day. He ate slowly, actually enjoying the porridge. He didn't know what animal the meat was from, but it tasted like pork. After finishing the last of his tea he got up and returned to his room. The sun had fully set by the time he got to his dorm. Larger light crystals now illuminated the darkened paths between buildings. Inside, the dorm hallway was lit as well, with small light crystals on the walls. Closing the light in his room, he removed his clothes and climbed into bed.

  A note from Roharp17

  Edited

  Chapter 17

  In the distance Danny could hear someone ringing a bell. It was dark, but his eyes had adjusted and he could make out the furniture in his room from the faint light coming from under the door to his dorm room. Danny bolted up as he realized where he was and what the bell ringing meant. Was that the first bell or second, he thought frantically. Grabbing clothes in the dark, he was glad his uniform consisted of the same thing every day. Maybe that was by design. He almost forgot his new book bag before running down the hallway.

  Racing past the front desk Wizard Dawn wasn't at his desk. Danny didn't wait and started rushing to the dining hall. He saw a few others like himself, but there was enough older boys walking slower to make him realize this must be the first bell.

  He grabbed breakfast, some sort of eggs and chili served in a bread bowl. He didn't want to be late so he ate at a steady pace before heading to class.

  Danny hadn't been past the middle, or second as it heard it called, circles before and slowed to check it out. As he looked left and right, he was shocked to see walls blocking him on either side. A door was placed on the outsides of both walls to his left and right. Wishing he had time to explore, he figured he would have to wait to find out more.

  In the predawn light Danny could see that the center, or inner, circle looked like a large version of the little parks thrown around the outer circle. Trees grew along the inner most wall, before thinning out to a grassy area littered with flowers. There was a paved area around the base of the tower came out about thirty meters and could probably hold a significant group of people, or a class, if needed. Maybe they would get to spend some of their lecture time out here.

  The lobby area of the wizard’s tower took up the entire first floor. The ceiling was over seven meters tall and Danny noticed light crystals of different colors, hung from the ceiling. The light crystals he had seen so far had all been white, so he wondered what caused these to be different colors. There were sitting areas everywhere in the lobby, and in the center was a water feature. Small waterfalls crisscrossed in elaborate patterns. As he walked around it to the south side, he realized they made an image of a robed man holding a glowing orb in one hand.

  Climbing the stairs to the second floor, one could see down the center of the tower at every floor. Murals lined the walls depicting different scenes of wizards casting or working. Danny couldn't help but feel like this place was older than the rest of the city. Finding room number seven, Danny entered to find himself one of the few early birds.

  Wizard Augu
st was there, looking up he noted Danny and went back to whatever he had been studying on his desk. The room was set up like a mini amphitheater. Each row had a long wooden desk with small chairs spaced every so often. Danny stood there for a second, before deciding there wasn't going to be assigned seating. He picked a chair in the back on the aisle leading to the door. Placing his book bag on the desk he looked inside and found some supplies he had seen in there yesterday. The bag only had one large opening on the outside, but his mother had lined the inside with smaller pockets. Pulling out some parchment and a charcoal stick, he almost missed a book that had been hidden in a pocket. Pulling it out he found the second volume in the series of the alchemy books he had previous purchased the first volume of. He remembered his parents telling him the books becoming increasingly expensive. He made a mental note to thank them next holiday. He took the book out and began reading.

  A loud banging on a desk brought his attention to the front of the class. Danny looked up to see everyone from last night scattered around the room. Peak and his group sat in the very middle, and they took a bit of time to settle down.

  "Quiet down everyone. As I said last night, I am Wizard August. I am to be your instructor during your initiate level training. I hold the right to kick you out of my class for any reason. You all showed promising aptitude by accessing your mental sanctuaries on the first night. In light of this I shall be holding you to a higher standard than the other groups." August looked around the room as if expecting them to fail him right then somehow. "Before we can begin any practical applications on magic we must first understand its history and the history of our world. I will not bore you with too many specifics, but only cover those points I believe relevant. Who here has not read the note left by the Grand Magi, in their sanctuaries?"

  When no one replied August continued, "After the events known as the Great Cataclysm, the great civilizations of the major races of the world were thrown down.

  The elves that survived had hidden deep in their enchanted forest far to the north past the Great Forest. Elves are by nature inherently magical. They call their wizards druids. From birth they are gifted with magic and specialize in magics of water, earth, and nature. Though, it is important to note, we have encountered elves with affinity in each of the elements.

  The dwarves resisted annihilation in their strongholds deep within the mountain, to the northwest, they call home. The dwarves originally only mined the mountains for precious stones and minerals, they have sense stayed hidden in their mountain to the northwest. While dwarves are not inherently magical, they have had great craftsmen that tap into their mana sources. The methods in which they do this is not understood as, unlike the elves, they are a secretive race. They are able to create enchanted weapons and armor of unparalleled strength. These enchanted items have only been gifted to the other races, as they refuse to sell them.

  The beastmen survived through sheer numbers and their ability to survive the harshest climates, like the deserts to the southwest. Some recovered historical documents mention a joined beastman government ruled by a collection of elders from various tribes. While some tribes are rumored to have been annihilated, enough variations remain to fracture them in a never ending struggle for power. Beastmen affinities vary from tribe to tribe and not much is known about their shamans, as they are usually referred. Beastmen are savage and are known to attack our smaller villages and settlements without warning. Due to their fractured nature, negotiating with them has not proved fruitful.

  Lastly, are the humans. Once at the pinnacle of magical achievement, even now we struggle to regain our lost heritage. After the Great Cataclysm, only a few remote villages remained untouched. With the Cataclysmic dead of natural causes, or by the hands of our allies, humans spread out to reclaim what we lost. Like the beastmen, we were a fractured people. Lost was our knowledge on accessing mana. Our peoples fought with purely martial means. Over a thousand years ago, a leader emerged to gather the various factions of humans together as one. Her family was renamed after the crown placed upon her head, Diadem. Our nation and capital where named after her and Diadem's success was owed to the discovery of the ancient keys.

  As you know these keys were able to release the seal on a person’s mana. Unfortunately not everyone's seal is released during this process. At first Diadem chose to have everyone attempt to unlock their mana. The number of wizards grew but this was met with unforeseen consequence of weakening our people as a whole. In that first generation we were hit heavily by beastman raids, as they took notice of our weakness. The people rose up and declared Diadem unfit to rule. They demanded a council, not a single person, rule over them. Hearing their demands, Diadem choose to heed her people and sat equally on a council of twelve. The council knew that they couldn't do away with all mages, as the other races brought their own magics to bear on us frequently. We had to be able to fight back in kind. So the council gathered their husbands and proposed a plan. Their husbands agreed and the men used the ancient keys on their own sons as an example to their nation. So began the tradition of male only wizards in Diadem."

  One of the students up front raised their hand. At August's nod the student asked, "How many of the original council’s sons became wizards?"

  "One," August said as he looked around the room and brought his eyes back to the boy who asked the question.

  "If there are not anymore questions I believe it is time to go and begin your training," August said as he headed for the door.

  Danny had a ton of questions, but there was plenty of time to find out the answers to them later. He got up and followed behind the trail of students leaving the classroom. They left the tower and headed to the second circle. August lead them through one of the doors and down a flight of stairs. A long hallway stretched out into the distance and curved with the wall above. Light crystals hung from the ceiling at regular intervals. They came to a small foyer on the side with a wizard in black.

  "Listen up, this is where you will come to train your magic, when I give you time to do so. If you are told to go and train that is what you will be doing. If I find out you are sneaking off to sleep or play, you will be punished," August warned.

  After signing in with the wizard in black, August continued, "When coming in to train you will sign in with the healer in charge. They will be the ones to put you back together when you mess up. The group training rooms are intended for initiates. If you get injured in there, other initiates nearby can call for the healers help. Later, when I judge you are able to do so safely, you can choose to enter an individual room. In there you are on your own. I'm not your father and I will not be coming to check on you."

  They continued down the hallway to a specific door and entered into a large room. It reminded Danny of an indoor shooting range. Each lane was separated by a two meter high wall and crossed by another one meter wall. This created a firing box to cast spells towards the far end of the room. Light crystals were placed in various spots. Some clear covering he did not recognize, protected them from damage.

  Wizard August explained the purpose of the room as Danny expected. Then the Wizard took them to a corner where there was a small space with benches along the walls. Taking a piece of chalk out of his pocket, August wrote the runes for the five elements on the wall.

  "With access to your mental sanctuary and your mana unsealed, you should now recognize at least one of these runes. I am going to have each of you take a lane and for the briefest of moments focusing on the rune that matches one you have in your sanctuary. If you cast for too long you will overexert yourself. This can have undesirable consequences. If you plan to cast using the fire rune, we have special gloves you can wear, until you learn to cast full spells. Now pick your lane," said Wizard August.

  Many of the boys jumped up and ran to the nearest unoccupied lane. Peak and a few other initiates went with August to get gloves. Danny was suddenly relieved he had been too afraid of acquiring too much attention or burning his house down. Getting a pair
of gloves from Wizard Augustus, Danny approached an empty lane and put on his gloves. Listening, Danny didn't hear anyone else cast any magic. Danny cautiously continued to wait feeling frustrated as he had yet to hear anyone casting magic. Just when his curiosity had him giving in and casting first, he herd Wizard August call out to them to return to the area on the side.

  Once everyone had gathered, August said, "As you noticed, you were unable to cast any magic. This is because with the runes shown on the wall, you have only a piece of what is needed to cast a spell. When humans first discovered the ancient keys, they also discovered ancient spell books. These spell books detailed a list of runes used to cast spells. All spells are composed of a minimum of three components. The elemental rune, which you already have access too. The power rune, which specifies how much power the spell will use. The last rune that is required is the method rune, which details how the spell will be cast. The first spell I will teach you to cast is the lowest level ranged spell."

  Wizard August turned and drew two runes on the wall. Thinking back to the parchment and charcoal Danny had taken out in the room, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed. Everything he saw or read, was permanently added to my memory. He wouldn't need to take notes ever again.

  Wizard August finished drawing the runes and explained their functions, "This first rune, the power rune, gives the spell a tiny amount of power. This second rune, the method rune, casts the spell at distance once enough mana had entered the spell. Finally, this method rune shown on the wall allowed a user with a smaller amount of maximum mana in their body than what was needed for the spell, to still cast it. If the caster uses all their mana, this method rune requires them to wait until their natural mana regeneration eventually fills the spell.

  Note, your rate of mana regeneration is half the rate that mana flows through and out of your body. Everyone’s mana is unlocked at different rates and this rate is permanent. Now continued practice of mana will increase the amount of mana stored in one’s body. If two people with large amounts of maximum mana cast a small spell, the one with the largest flow of mana through their body will be able to cast more of the same spell in the shortest amount of time.