Forgotten Mage

by D. W. Jackson

  “Why?” Bren asked, not understanding Cass’s sudden change in demeanor. Bren was looking forward to training with a Katanaga weapon master.

  “I am not near stupid enough to think that the mage’s Tower does not have its own challenges. Where the martial school will push you past physical exhaustion, the Tower will in mental,” Cass replied, giving Bren a worried look. “Every few years, we have a mage that trains with us for a time, but they normally quit fairly fast. I think less than half a dozen have finished a year since the schools founding.

  “I see… Then wish me luck,” Bren said after a long moment of uneasy silence.

  “That I will, and I hope in the days that follow, you will not look too badly on me for my part in your double studies,” Cass said with a weak smile.

  “Oh I might curse your name late at night when my body and mind begin to fall apart,” Bren said, earning a worried look from Cass. “If you want to keep that from happening, then you better give me a hand when you can,” Bren added with a wry grin.

  “That I will do, as long as it does not involve those two ladies from earlier. I wish to live a long life and they seem the kind that would shorten it dramatically.”

  The rest of the walk back to the Tower, the two exchanged stories. Cass was interested in Ben’s father, but when it was obvious the subject touched on a sore spot, he quickly dropped it. When it came to Cass’s father, it seemed that he was a royal guard for King Killian and had fought alongside the former Warmaster in the war.

  As they approached the Tower, Bren saw a very opposing and very mad looking vathari mage waiting on him. Bren looked over to Cass, who gave the mage a shocked look. “I think it is time for me to head back to the training grounds,” He said, stopping mid-stride.

  “You’re leaving me now?” Bren asked in a half joking plead.

  “This is one battle you will have to fight on your own,” Cass said, before dropping back and disappearing into the distance at a fast pace.

  Bren turned his attention back to the vathari mage. “Hi,” Bren said, trying to sound cheerful.

  “Where have you been?” Phena asked in a loud and demanding voice. “Master Sae-Thae has been asking after you all afternoon.”

  “I was out with a friend,” Bren replied, trying to walk past Phena.

  “Next time you want to go gallivanting all over town, let someone know. I don’t fancy being sent to look for you,” Phena said, grabbing his shoulder for the second time that day.

  Bren had tried to be nice, he had tried to work with her, but Phena didn’t seem to care one bit. It was as if she thought the world revolved around her, just like a spoiled princess he knew. He had dealt with it his whole life had been forced to deal with it. “Then don’t,” Bren said, knocking her hand away. “Just because you think Sae-Thae should spend every second of his life devoted to you, doesn’t mean you have to take it out on the rest of us just because he doesn’t. If you have a problem, why don’t you take it up with him?”

  Phena stepped aside and let Bren pass without another word, though he could have sworn that he noticed a small smile on her lips. He had the urge to turn around to take a second look, but instead began the long climb up the stairs to his room. Bren didn’t know what Sae-Thae wanted, but he was too tired to care and he was sure that it could wait until morning.

  “I see that your boy has a little more backbone where women are concerned,” Humanius said with a deep laugh. “I feel better that you are getting to know your son in some small way, though I doubt what the future will bring will be as warming as these moments. Cherish them while you may.”

  “What do you mean?” Thad asked, turning his head toward the god. In his countless hours sitting, watching his son, the god had said little that did not hold meaning and the words he had just spoke could have meant a great many things. None of them good.

  “I told you how our people found a way to make ourselves more powerful, but there is much more to it. The cycle of life is similar to the flow of a great river. At the start of life, we borrow a small portion of power from the ether. When we die, that power returns, along with what experiences we have gathered during our time. Magic is the physical form of that ether,” the god said

  “I don’t see what that has to do with my son,” Thad said, getting to his feet angrily.

  “You must understand the beginning to see the end,” Humanius replied calmly. “At the source, or what my people believe to be the center of all creation, there is a massive pool of ether. That well is called the pool of chaos. Everything is mixed, but as it spreads out, it separates into its primal forces, creating new life where none had been. My father did not just learn how to make us better at controlling the primal forces, he learned how to let us tap into the combined forces in the pool of chaos. This allows us to do much more than any being should be able and at the same time, obstructs the balance of ether. My father learned of this imbalance and stopped making new children with the power. In the end, less than a dozen were born as new gods, counting my sister and me. My father then locked away the knowledge on how to create new gods away from our people. This is what caused the war in our world, and in the end, caused our fathers downfall and death. As we escaped, we took with us the knowledge of creating new gods and vowed that we would never make the same mistakes of our father.”

  Humanius began pacing back and forth, wringing his hands tightly. “It would seem that my sister forgot that vow. As you were pulled in, it was my sister’s hand that reached for your son. She was not trying to capture him as you had thought at first. She infused a large amount of chaos energy into his body. It still lies dormant, running through his body and changing him. Though at the present, he does not know how to use it. That will change, and when he harnesses that power, he will be even stronger than my sister’s children.”

  “And?” Thad said, knowing that the god was still hiding something.

  “He has to die before he comes into his true inheritance. I have already sent my children to find him, and with the amount of power he is giving off, it will not be hard for them to locate him.”

  Thad didn’t think as he jumped to his feet and grabbed the god and tried to throw him to the ground. As soon as his hands touched the god’s skin, he found himself floating into the air and slamming hard into the ground. Amazingly, there was no pain as he hit the ground. He didn’t even feel as if the wind had been knocked out of him, but he still couldn’t make his body move. “Let go of me,” Thad demanded as he continued to struggle against the gods hold.

  “I understand your anger, but everything I do is for the sake of all who live in our world.”

  CHAPTER X

  Bren was abruptly awoken as he was pulled from his bed. As his eyes fluttered open as he tried to focus on who was in the room, but it was so dark he couldn’t see past the end of his nose. On instinct, Bren searched for his sword that he kept hanging at the end of his bed.

  “Master Sae-Thae has called for you and expects you to be in his chambers immediately,” An angry female voice said before his door was shut loudly.

  Touching one of the magical lights, Bren lit up the room and looked to his so called protector who still laid quietly on the ground. “I don’t see how my dad survived with you watching his back,” Bren said, slumping down on his bed, his hand over his chest trying to still his shaking body.

  In reply, Avalanche lifted her head a few inches from the ground and gave a loud happy bark. His mother had always swore that the creature was far smarter than she was given credit for, and Bren had always believed her. Not only was it smarter though, it also seemed to have a unique sense of humor. Bren thanked god that it was only Avalanche and none of the little nadarie had tagged along on the journey. The little fairies loved the rock hound and often came to visit her.

  Once his heartbeat had returned to normal, Bren quickly dressed in a set of dark grey robes that Sae-Thae had sent over. It wasn’t a very appealing color, but it was tradition that all low level mages wear the
m until they earned their place. Bren understood the system, but he wished they had picked a better color.

  After strapping on his sword, which looked out of place with his new attire, Bren grabbed Thuraman and made his way toward Master Sae-Thae’s office.

  Thad found the elder vathari sitting behind his desk with the Weapons Master from the day before, standing calmly in the corner of the room. Bren took a deep breath and walked slowly to the center of the room before taking a shallow bow. “Master, you requested my presence.”

  “Yes, it would seem that Weapons Master Jacob has come to petition you to train with them. As you know full well, magical training is very tiring and will leave you little time for other studies. Most of the arch mages frown on the use of weapons and they would look down on you, thinking that you were not taking your studies seriously,” Sae-Thae said, with little inflection in his voice.

  Bren let out a quiet breath as Sae-Thae spoke. The idea of training with a Katanaga Weapons Master was thrilling to him, but he didn’t want to attempt it at the same time he was trying to master magic. He was used to having a full schedule, but he wanted to try and enjoy himself a little while he was away from home.

  “But, I don’t feel the same. As you know, I am a vathari mage, and we believe that every soldier, mage or not, should learn how to defend themselves in close quarters. As you know, you can’t officially become a student of the Mage’s Tower until the age of fifteen and you are still a year away from that. While I will train you and urge others to do the same when I am unable, I expect you to also train with Master Jacob every morning and more if time permits. Jacob has willingly accepted this compromise and has arrived to escort you to your first day of training.”

  Bren’s mind didn’t even have time to comprehend what was happening as Jacob grabbed him by the arm and led him from the room. He hadn’t even been able to get used to the Tower yet and now he would have to train. Even though he wasn’t overly pleased with the idea, he still felt a tingle of excitement in getting to train with a real Katanaga Weapons Master.

  Bren followed quietly behind Jacob as the large warrior led him back toward the training grounds. Everything was still dark, without even a hit of the sun on the horizon. “You will be here every morning before the sun rises to help maintain the weapons and armor used for practice. If you miss a single day, I will have you scrubbing them at night as well…do you understand?” Jacob asked as they neared the training grounds. Bren didn’t answer, choosing instead to nod his head.

  “I can’t hear a head shake boy, I expect an answer when I am talking to you…this isn’t the Tower where everyone dresses in robes and will coddle you when you make a mistake. If you mess up here, then you will mess up during a battle, and that will cost lives. I would suggest you keep that in mind.”

  “Here we are. The other trainees are already inside cleaning, so I suggest you get in there and give them a hand,” Jacob said, pushing Bren through the door and into a large building.

  It took a few moments for Bren’s eyes to adjust to the low light, but as it did, he could see hundreds of swords and armor hanging on the walls. Bren was amazed at the selection. They had everything from simple daggers to some exotic weapons that looked as if they would be impossible to wield.

  “Who are you?” A boy, about his age with sandy blonde hair and light brown skin asked.

  “Bren,” Bren answered, sticking out his hand.

  The other boy looked at Bren closely and gave a snort. “Why are you here, the Tower is on the other side of town?”

  “Weapons Master Jacob told me that this is where I should be. Cleaning weapons I believe,” Bren answered politely.

  The other boy threw a large shield at Bren, then a rag. “Try not to get your dress dirty,” The boy said laughing, which was quickly joined by the other boys in the room.

  Bren took a quick look around and noticed more than twenty others, all who seemed to be enjoying his discomfort. He had never been around many children his own age and didn’t quite understand the boy’s resentment toward him. Without saying a word, Bren took a seat on the ground and began polishing the heavy shield. He had spent countless hours cleaning weapons before, it was his weapons trainers go to move for when he made a mistake.

  After making sure that the shield was free of rust, and that the leather straps on the back were well oiled and none of them were damaged, Bren placed the shield back on the wall and grabbed the next thing he could find. This continued until the door opened again, and Jacob yelled that it was time to eat.

  “Bren, Merck, Tomas, you will be serving today so go wash yourselves up,” Jacob yelled. Bren quickly followed the other two boy’s, still unsure of where to go. Their idea of washing up, was a large bucket filled with near freezing water and a small cloth. Bren did his best to remove the smell of oil from his hands, but was forced to give up as the other boys rushed back toward the rest of the group who were hungrily awaiting their arrival.

  Bren was placed serving what appeared to be eggs, while the other two boys served a meat like substance and mashed potatoes. After everyone else was fed, the three boys filled their own plates and no sooner had they sat down then the weapon master started yelling for them to hurry up. Bren watched as the other two boys took two slices of bread and placed as much food as they could between them before choking it down in the blink of an eye. Bren tried to copy them, but found it a much more challenging task than it looked. His stomach still growling, Bren was forced to throw half his food away and join the others who were already forming up in straight lines.

  Jacob walked past every boy, checking them closely and pointing out small things, such as buttons on their uniforms that were not shined correctly or boots that looked too dull. Any boy who seemed to have made the slightest mistake in his attire was forced to do pushups, the number seeming arbitrary to Bren.

  When Jacob reached him, the Weapons Master’s eyes widened and Bren could see the veins in his neck popping out. Then in a heartbeat, the man’s face was only inches from his own. “What in the nine hells do you think you’re doing boy? Where is your uniform?”

  “You didn’t give me one sir,” Bren answered, more than a little shocked.

  “So it is my fault that you don’t have half the brain to notice that everyone else was wearing the same thing? And who are you calling sir? Do I look like some little man sitting behind a counter, counting coins? I work for a living. You will address me as Weapons Master, am I understood? Now, I want to you drop and push until I get tired.”

  Not understanding what was happening, Bren did as he had been instructed. When his arms started to burn and large drops of sweat began to bead on his forehead, he arched his back. “Weapons Master, may I get up?” Bren asked in a strained voice.

  “Don’t tell me you’re already tired, you haven’t even done one pushup yet. If you had, I am sure you would have at least called it out loud, or do you expect me to stand here the whole time and count for you?”

  “One Weapons Master, two Weapons Master,” Bren said, counting as loud as he could though his voice was shaky and strained.

  Off to the side, Bren heard one of the other boys laugh lightly. The laugh was quickly followed by heavy footsteps. “You think this is funny? You spent all morning with him and yet none of you decided to tell him that he might need a uniform? You all set him up for failure!” Jacob yelled. “Bren on your feet.”

  Bren got to his feet, his breath coming in short gasps. “”Bren, these are your battle buddies. They are the ones that you would have to go into battle with. It doesn’t matter if you like them, but you will support them. If one of you fail, you all fail!” Jacob said, turning and yelling the last bit loudly. “All of you will run around the compound and I better not see one lagging behind, or so help me I will beat you all so badly that your grandchildren will come out with bruises!”

  Bren started to run with the group, but Jacob grabbed him. “No, you’re already dead, so you can lie there on the ground while they
run,” the Weapons Master said, forcing Bren to the ground. “No one man wins a war alone. It takes every soldier working together, otherwise everyone suffers.”

  After their third lap, a large group of older trainees started to come out from behind the building. “Cassius, take trainee Farlane here and make sure that he is properly outfitted!” Jacob yelled as the other group began to gather in the practice area.

  “Come with me Bren,” Cass said, giving him a knowing look.

  Cass led Bren inside the massive building and into what appeared to be a large room with numerous shelves, each housing different sets of clothes. “I see that Jacob has already got punishing you out of the way. Don’t take it personal, he had to show everyone that you were not going to be treated special,” Cass said, throwing Bren a pair of dark leather boots. “If these don’t fit, let me know….your boots will be your most valuable piece of clothing…If they don’t fit right, I promise you will regret it.”

  After nearly half an hour, Bren had four full sets of clothing and two pair of boots. The uniform was a dark burgundy, made of thin leather, they were the exact same thing that all of the other younger trainees wore. “When do I get those?” Bren asked, pointing to the numerous small leather designs on Cass’s uniform.

  “These are earned. You will learn that almost everything here is earned. These show what my skills are,” Cass said, pointing at the designs on his chest. “The ones on my shoulder are my rank within the Katanaga. Less than twenty percent of those who train here ever earn a rank…it is considered the highest honor. Considering your skill, I expect you to easily surpass the rest in your group. That is, unless yesterday was just a fluke,” Cass added, jokingly hitting Bren on the shoulder.

  “They don’t really seem to like me that much,” Bren said as he put on his new uniform.

  “I didn’t expect they would. They have each worked hard to earn their spot in the training program. Only those who the Weapons Master believes are good enough, or can become good enough to join the Katanaga are allowed to train here. Now, they see a young man, obviously a mage coming to the practice grounds late, and more than two weeks after training has formally started. You will have to prove to them that you belong and even then, they will resent you for your skill. It’s sad, but that is the way most people view others.”