The Apprentice

by Thomas Rouxville

  Rue almost said, “sorry for your loss,” but stopped herself. It wouldn't have been right. It would have been almost cruel. She had just lost someone too, and it was torture. If someone said those words to her, she would have been livid. No one could possibly know the pain that someone else went through when losing a loved one.

  They walked down the road, crossing their fingers that the next village would not have dead piled outside of its gates. Of course, that was too much to ask for. Within an hour, they came to the next village, and instead of a pile of bodies, there was a giant pit – a mass grave. The stench of rotting flesh came back in full force, and once again, Rue covered her face. How could the people inside these villages bear it? Was there nothing that could be done? Perhaps not. Far too many people had perished in such a short amount of time. These people would not have the resources to give them all proper burials, nor would they be able to even haul all of the bodies far enough away. There was nowhere to take them anyway. Their germs would contaminate farms, and the rivers and lakes.

  “It's so sad,” Rue said.

  Abigast nodded. “I wish there was something that could be done.”

  “Maybe they'll be able to properly bury them, one by one,” Rue said. She knew that wouldn't happen. It was more likely that their bodies would be burned in this grave, so they would be nothing but a pile of ashes. She didn't want to be around when that happened.

  “At least the plague is over,” a man said, that Rue hadn't noticed before. He was standing over the pit, looking into it. “We couldn't have dug anything bigger than this if we lost anyone else.”

  “How many people did you lose?” Rue asked. She knew it probably wasn't the best question to ask, after all, who wanted to be reminded of how many people they had lost, but she just blurted it out, hardly thinking.

  “Too many to count,” the man replied. “At least over a hundred though. Everyone in the village lost at least one family member.” A tear fell from his eye. “I lost my wife.”

  “I lost my best friend,” Rue said. “I know that doesn't compare-”

  “I don't want your pity.”

  “I don't pity you,” Rue said. “I just want you to know that we're all in pain. We're all suffering. And though none of us can fully understand everyone else's situations, we are still all in the same situation.”

  The man stared at her. “I wish I would have gone with her; I wish I got the plague too.”

  “That's no way to think! You should be glad that the plague is gone, that so many lives were saved!”

  “Let's just go, Rue,” Abigast said. “There are still days until we get to Slyfort, we can't delay.” Abigast pulled on her shoulder.

  Rue reluctantly went with him. “I wanted to tell the man about Thane,” she said. “I should have.”

  “That man is drowning in his own grief. He wouldn't be able to understand Thane's sacrifice.”

  “I wish I could tell everyone about Thane's sacrifice.”

  They continued walking, running into other villages along the way. When night came, the two set up camp on the side of the road, preferring not to go into an inn. Rue didn't want to take the chance of encountering another person like the man they had met earlier. It was too disheartening to see people that way. She couldn't imagine wanting to take her own life because she had lost someone. Thane's death made her want to be stronger, it made her want to live her life to the fullest.

  Thane's sacrifice was worth so much. Just in the span of a day, Rue had seen so many people, alive, healthy and well. They weren't happy, but they were alive, and that mattered. The effects of the plague would last for a long time, perhaps the Kingdom would never forget, but because of Thane, the Kingdom still existed. If not for him, everyone would have perished. Someday, people would heal, and they would find happiness again. Rue would find happiness too, no matter how strong the pain was right now.

  “May I eat?” Abigast asked.

  Rue pulled out some food from her knapsack. “I suppose we don't have to ration it since there are villages everywhere. I guess I over-prepared.”

  “Over-preparing is better than under-preparing,” Abigast said as he took a bite into an apple. “And who knows, the journey isn't over yet, we may still run into an adventure.”

  “I'll take running into anything over finding yet another pile of dead bodies,” Rue said.

  As she tried to sleep that night, her mind did not wander from the images she had seen that day. She could think of nothing else. And just as she hadn't slept for nights, she again did not sleep. Her energy was running very low.

  “Are you asleep?” She asked Abigast.

  He stirred. “I was. Now I am awake. What is it, Rue?”

  “I haven't slept in days.”

  Abigast mumbled something incoherent. “Now sleep,” he said.

  “What did you say just now?” Rue yawned.

  “It was a spell.”

  Suddenly, Rue was out, asleep at long last.

  Chapter 3

  As early morning came and sunlight began to hit the ground, Rue stirred, awaking after the best sleep she’d had in a long time. She stretched and yawned, looking over at Abigast. “Are you awake?” She whispered.

  Her answer was a loud snore. Rue sat up and rifled through the knapsack, looking over the supplies they had already consumed on the trip. There was still plenty of food left, and there would be enough to last the remaining two days. She had over-prepared, but having extra supplies was better than having too few. Besides, who knew how long this trip would actually last? Adaranth could very well be in hiding somewhere, forcing Rue and Abigast to go searching all over the Kingdom for him.

  Of course, Rue hoped that wasn’t the case. She hoped that this would go as smoothly as possible, with no problems. She hoped killing Adaranth would be simple, as simple as killing had been for Thane. But she knew it wouldn’t be; nothing would be as simple for her as it was for Thane. She was not a killer; she had no idea how she was going to be able to bring herself to take a human life.

  “Abigast, wake up. The sun’s up, it’s time to go,” Rue said, trying to take her mind off of killing the Prince.

  Abigast sighed. “Just a few more minutes, an old man needs to rest,” he mumbled.

  “There’s no time to rest,” Rue said. “We need to get to Slyfort as soon as possible. You said you could handle this journey. Don’t make me turn around and drag you back to Maplefrost.”

  Abigast stared at her. “Someone is a bit grumpy this morning.”

  “I’m just stressed out is all,” Rue said. “I can’t stop thinking about facing Adaranth. How am I going to do it?”

  “You can figure it out when you get to him,” Abigast replied.

  Rue laughed. “Excuse me? Figure it out when I get to him? You know that’s not how I do things, Abigast. Where’s your wisdom?”

  “Traveling makes me tired – a tired man makes for a less wise man.” He stood up now, slowly putting on a cloak to keep warm now that the protection of the sleeping bag was gone. He shivered slightly, and Rue noticed how frail Abigast truly was. He was not the type of person who usually appeared so weak looking. His beard and thick robes and wise words gave him the illusion of being a very strong, powerful wizard. He was certainly strong and powerful, there was no doubt about that, but his body was not the same as it once was. In the years since Rue had known him, Abigast had become gaunter. And maybe even more so since Thane’s death.

  “I’m sorry, Rue. I’m trying not to let you down. I’m trying to be the best help that I can. Trying not to be a burden.” Abigast looked at the ground.

  “You’re not a burden, I promise,” Rue said, suddenly feeling a bit guilty for acting harshly towards him. She couldn’t take her stress out on him, he didn’t deserve that. He was probably just as stressed out and sad and frustrated as she was. He felt responsible for Thane’s death. He felt like a burden for coming on this journey with Rue. And who knew what else he felt? Despite knowing Abigast for years, R
ue realized that she didn’t actually know a lot about him. He was a mystery, just as all wizards were, and Rue had never tried to learn everything about him. If he wanted her to know something, he would tell her.

  “Let’s get going now, you can eat while we walk,” Rue said, again trying to clear her mind.

  Abigast pulled a fruit from the knapsack and began to take bites into it. “Rue?” He asked.

  “Yes?”

  “Is it okay if I tell you something I’ve never told you before?”

  Rue raised a brow. The look on Abigast’s face was serious – he had something important to say. “Of course,” Rue said.

  “Sluforn – the wizard Thane killed – that was my brother.”

  It was like someone had just punched Rue. She couldn’t process this information.

  “Are you going to say anything?”

  “I-I why didn’t you say anything before? Why didn’t you tell Thane that?” Rue couldn’t believe it. “I didn’t know you even knew Sluforn.”

  “Well, I didn’t think it was important enough to tell,” Abigast said. “There was so much going on with Thane, that I didn’t think it was the right time to drop something like that. It would have made everything more difficult.”

  Rue shook her head. “I would have appreciated it if you told me sooner.”

  “I understand how you feel; it wasn’t right of me to keep that to myself.”

  “How are you doing then?” Rue asked. “It can’t be easy, losing a brother.”

  “It’s not as bad as it could have been,” Abigast said. “We never really did get along.”

  “I’m sorry,” Rue said.

  Abigast cleared his throat. “Sluforn and I grew up in the castle, groomed to be future court wizards. We trained and practiced spells together, had the same tutors, mentors, guides. It wasn’t supposed to be a competition, but it was. Everything was a competition with Sluforn. He wasn’t satisfied unless he was the best, unless he was perfect. He would beat himself up at night if he didn’t do perfectly. If he didn’t do better than me.” Abigast sighed. “We were both supposed to work for the royal family. We were supposed to help each other and be friends with each other, but it was never that way. It was constant bickering and arguing. We got into more than one actual fight. It got so bad that one night I walked into my room with a broken nose and a gash on my cheek. Sluforn would have been happy if I was dead, but I wouldn’t let him kill me. The royal family saw what was going on, but rather than trying to get us to get along, they decided they would only hire one of us. The other would still get to live in the castle and work for other nobles, but of course, that wasn’t an appealing option for either of us. We wanted to be as far away as possible from each other. So, when it came time for the royal family to decide who they would hire, I left. It was obvious they would pick Sluforn. He was always the better wizard. Maybe it was natural talent, or maybe it was just because he was too proud to lose, but nevertheless, he was hired.”

  “And you ended up in Maplefrost?” Rue asked.

  “I traveled the Kingdom for years, doing what I do in Maplefrost now. I wanted to help people, I wanted to use my powers as a wizard for good. Sluforn never wanted good, he only cared about himself, only cared about furthering his own status and gaining more power. I guess it made sense the royal family picked him, after all, they were exactly the same. A whole lot of awful people. Even if they would have wanted to hire me, I’m not quite sure if I could have accepted the job. I saw a lot of things growing up in that castle. A lot of corruption and darkness. It was almost painful to watch all of that go on and not be able to do anything about it. There were so many times when I wanted to speak up, to tell people that the very rulers they trusted were evil.”

  “Was the King evil?” Rue asked.

  Abigast shook his head. “He wasn’t the best man, but he wasn’t anywhere near as bad as his son. I wonder honestly if he knew how bad Adaranth was. And if he did, did he care?”

  “How did you escape all of that? How did you move on?”

  “I didn’t escape,” Abigast said. “I think about those years in the castle every day. I think about a childhood spent doing nothing but training. I think of my brother bullying me. I think about having to keep my mouth shut about all of the corruption that went on behind closed doors. I’m glad that I left it all behind though, I’m glad I left before Adaranth took over. There’s no way I could have stayed there and retained my sanity when Adaranth started ruling.”

  “Your brother, do you think he created the plague to be evil?”

  Abigast nodded. “I have no doubt that that’s why. He may have claimed it was to spite Adaranth for kicking him out of the castle, but it was just another part of Sluforn’s general selfishness. He thought that if he couldn’t have power, then no one else deserved power either. He would have the entire Kingdom die before letting anyone be more powerful than him.”

  “So he would be angry to find out that Adaranth survived,” Rue said.

  “He would be furious. Sluforn enjoyed violence, he was a sadist. He like seeing people in pain, watching them suffer. He wanted Adaranth to suffer more than anyone else, he wanted him to watch his Kingdom crumble until there was nothing left.”

  “But he failed.”

  “Good thing he isn’t around then,” Abigast said. “Or he probably would have destroyed the entire Kingdom in the span of a few hours.”

  “Sluforn had that kind of power?”

  “Sluforn was the most powerful wizard I knew. I don’t believe there’s ever been a wizard with the kind of power he had. I was jealous when we were children. I would always watch him, performing spells flawlessly. He was doing advanced magic when were just seven years old. I didn’t start advanced magic until I was nearly fourteen, and even most wizards don’t get to it until their twenties.” Abigast looked up as if taking a trip to the past. “Sluforn worked tirelessly. I hardly remember him sleeping. He was always up until the sun came up, reciting incantations, performing spells, making sure he did it all right. I saw him mess up only once. When he realized I was watching, he tried to push me down a staircase. I’m sure Sluforn messed up more than that, but he made sure no one was around to watch it. There would have been hell to pay for people who saw his mistakes.”

  “Are you glad he’s gone?” Rue couldn’t tell by looking into Abigast’s eyes. The way he talked about Sluforn, it was obvious there wasn’t any love there, but they were still brothers. Perhaps there was still some kind of bond, despite Sluforn’s evil deeds.

  “I’m glad he’s gone, but I’m not glad about the way he went, starting a plague. Sometimes I wonder, if I would have tried harder to get through to him when we were young, maybe I could have prevented some of the things he did. Maybe I could have changed him for the better.”

  “You know you can’t change people, Abigast,” Rue said. “They can only change if they want to change.”

  “But he was insane,” Abigast said. “I could have gotten him some help or something. I could have cured his insanity.”

  “I’m sure you tried your best.”

  Abigast shrugged. “My best wasn’t good enough. Nothing I did was ever good enough.” Rue placed a hand on his shoulder. “That isn’t true, Abigast. You’re a brilliant wizard. I wouldn’t be your apprentice right now if I didn’t think you were good enough.”

  “You just chose me because there were no other wizards around,” Abigast said.

  “No! That isn’t true at all! I picked you because you’re the greatest wizard in this Kingdom. You do good, you help people. You make people happy. That’s all I ever want to do too, and I’m so incredibly thankful that I’m with you and that I wasn’t with your brother.”

  Abigast smiled slightly. “You mean that, Rue?”

  “Of course I mean it,” Rue said.

  “I’m glad.” Abigast smiled as they walked towards Slyfort.

  Chapter 4

  When the traveling pair finally reached Slyfort, about midday, Rue i
mmediately looked towards Abigast, wanting advice. He had been mostly quiet since telling her about Sluforn, he hadn’t said anything for almost an entire day. Now he was still quiet, even as they walked past the city gates.

  “What do we do now?” Rue asked.

  Abigast’s eyes were darting around the surrounding buildings, taking in the environment. “It’s been a long time since I was here,” he said. Rue imagined it must have been awful being back here in the place where his brother practically abused him. He lived a miserable life here with terrible memories, and now surely all of those memories were pouring back.

  “Are you okay?” Rue asked him concernedly.

  Abigast nodded. “I’m fine, let’s head to the castle.”

  “You don’t look fine; your face is so pale.”

  “I’ve been wearing a cloak over my head, of course it’s pale. I haven’t gotten the sun in days,” Abigast replied.

  “No – I mean you’re paler than usual,” Rue said. “You’re not happy being here, it’s obvious.”

  “I’ll be okay, I promise.” Abigast walked forward. “I want to go to the castle and see Princess Maia.”

  Rue’s eyes widened. “Are you suggesting we just march in there and find her? You know that’s impossible, Abigast. We’ll be killed. I’m sure the soldiers are taking extra caution, what with the plague just barely running rampant a few days ago.”

  “I’m not suggesting that we just run in there carelessly, Rue. Princess Maia could really help us; she’s on our side, I’m sure of it.”

  “How are you sure?” Rue asked.

  “I have connections with the castle. I’ve heard information about her. Maia hates her husband; she hates the corruption and the lifestyle she’s been living in the castle. Adaranth blames her for a lot, things that she certainly isn’t responsible for, but as you know, Adaranth is a very selfish, prideful person. He will not take responsibility for anything he’s caused.”

  “You have connections?!” Rue shook her head. “First you tell me Sluforn was your brother, and now you tell me you know what goes on in the castle? I’ve been trying to figure out what I was going to do when we got here. I’ve been worrying about it for days, and now you’re telling me you know what to do? Why didn’t you say anything before? Why did you let me worry so much? I’ve been going insane, Abigast!”