“Your willingness to discuss this matter pleases me. Although I must warn against any attempt at diversion or stalling. My men are prepared to conquer Galimdor over this matter,” it was signed by the Grand Cleric Bartholomew.
“Imprudent little man. He thinks he can bully us into giving up those innocent children. The Wizards can train them just fine. I am ready to ride to battle at your word,” Paul’s eyes shone with fury.
“Perhaps we should meet before striking with our swords. Come, I want you at my side for this meeting,” she waved Paul toward her.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, my Queen,” he put an emphasis on “my” when he spoke.
She smiled at him before turning to leave the tent. I mustn’t let my imagination run away with me, she thought, though this may be my only chance to be with him. She shook off the thought and hoped that the real Paul would mirror the feelings of this one. The two traveled the short distance between the camps and took their seats at the small table set forth for the discussions. They could see Grand Cleric Bartholomew and his small group of guards coming down from the Holy Order’s camp. It seemed that the leader of the Holy Order wanted to bring some backup for his bullying tactics. Emily gritted her teeth and promised to herself that she would not allow them to bully her. It surprised her for a moment, but she was beginning to understand why they had left her alone for the past two months. She had often envied Paul for his ability to stand up to others, but now she was exhibiting those same traits.
“I see you’ve brought your lapdog,” Bartholomew said as he sat down.
“And you’ve brought a whole kennel full,” Emily replied.
“Only as many as I felt necessary. I intend to leave with a promise from you about these children. It is far too dangerous to let them learn magic from anyone other than the Holy Order.”
“I will allow no such thing. You will see our kingdoms at war before you see me surrendering innocent children to the likes of you!”
“A pity, I had hoped it would not come to this,” Bartholomew turned to address his men, “Kill them!”
Paul pushed the table onto Bartholomew and then leaped up from his seat. He pulled his sword and stabbed at one of the cleric’s guards. The Holy Order camp erupted in cheers as their army charged down the hill. Emily stood up slowly and raised her staff into the air. She slammed it into the ground with as much force as she could muster. The ground where it struck began to crack and the cracks quickly widened and multiplied. Paul jumped backward as the earth began to swallow up the guards he was fighting. The earth shook with great force as the cracks expanded into massive crevasses. Emily smiled as the majority of the Holy Order troops were swallowed up by her spell. The room around her quickly changed back to the empty one that she had originally entered. She felt as though she were supposed to exit the door she had entered from and headed for it. On the other side of the door, she met with several Wizards.
“Well done, Emily. There are not many who complete all five tasks. The first four are designed to test your ability with magic, though it could be argued that the fourth plays into which group we will place you into. It is, however, the fifth test that solidifies your group. Do you have any guesses as to which group we are placing you in?” The eldest of the Wizards, Kadegar, asked.
“I don’t know enough about them to make such a guess,” she replied.
“That is nothing to be ashamed of. We have decided that you are to be placed in the Royal Wizard group. Though you could fit into multiple groups, we thought this one to be best. Welcome to the Isle of Magic.”
*
Janessa waved off her servants and slumped onto her bed. The demands were getting to be too much for her. Between the dragons and her people, they had a new request almost every day. Even Rodric’s pledges to assist her in her work were beginning to grate on her nerves. She hadn’t felt the fool when she accepted leading her people, but now she was beginning to wish she had passed on the offer. I should be free to roam the lands, she thought as she lay on the bed. She let out a sigh when she heard the knock on the door. “Come in,” she said as she rose from the bed and straightened her attire. It had taken weeks for them to convince her to wear something befitting of a royal. That was still something she was getting used to. Her old position gave her the freedom to choose her own attire. Being the Queen of the Gloomvale Isles felt more like a chore than an honor.
“I know you ordered that we not disturb you, but something has come up,” one of the servants, a young man who seemed afraid of her, was peeking out from behind the door.
“I said you could enter, Benjamin,” Janessa’s voice showed no emotion.
“My apologies, your highness. My family wanted me to be a knight, but when I showed no skill at combat they sent me to be a servant. It is not a job I relish, but I will do the best I can with my abilities.”
“You are a fine lad that has nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, I might have more use for you than the others. What is this news you have to bring me?” She took a seat at her desk and began to rummage through the drawers.
“One of the outlying islands is pushing for independence from you, my Queen. They claim that your consorting with dragons will not only lead to your own downfall, but to the downfall of the Gloomvale Isles as well.”
“Who is their leader?” Janessa asked.
“You will not be pleased,” Benjamin paused for a moment, afraid of upsetting her, “Your uncle, Sir Tarick.”
The news hit Janessa like a dagger. She stumbled backward and nearly fell to the floor. The man who had been like a father to her was now completely against her. Benjamin stepped forward to assist her, but she pushed him away. This cannot be happening, she thought as she staggered to the window. Her kingdom lay stretched out before her. The people had always been more than fair to her. They loved her and made it well-known. When her parents had died, more than just her uncle stepped forward to take their place. Ultimately, Sir Tarick and his wife were chosen as her caretakers. Even when she started attending the conclave, they still saw to it that she was well taken care of. She needed to know why he had turned on her so quickly.
“Let the people know that I will be making a trip. Contact the masters at the conclave, let them know that I will be seeking their council when I return,” she left the window with a renewed vigor.
“Will that be all, milady?” Benjamin asked.
“Keep your eyes and ears open, Benjamin. I need to know how my people feel. I’ve been too engrossed in my work. The conclave will be wondering why I haven’t visited. Towns will begin to suspect that I no longer care about them. When I return from speaking to my uncle, I must find assistants. Have Rodric meet me here when I return.”
A Time of Changes
Emily stood in the middle of the giant room. The room was lined with students from several different groups. At the far end of the hall, Kadegar stood with the rest of the experts. They waited as Emily made her way toward them. It was strange to be at the center of such a ceremony. Rolin had made a point to stay away from such grand ceremonies upon acceptance of a single student. He felt that such things should be saved for more important events. It was, however, standard for him to recognize each student in some way or another. Often times, he would speak about students before or after another important announcement. It would take some getting used to before Emily could truly feel comfortable at the Isle of Magic. She pushed the feeling away and embraced the situation before her. Her father had always had a knack for making things grand and this helped her to remember the good times she shared with him. She looked up to see that Kadegar was preparing to speak to the crowd.
“Today, we accept another into the fold. Her name is Emily and we’ve placed her in the Royal Wizards. It is our hope that, with our training, she will be able to bring some sense of balance to Canai. I know that many of you worry about the future of our lands, but I assure you that we are doing everything we can to see that things return to normal. We understand that your f
amilies are out there, as are some of ours. This makes it even more imperative that we stick together as Wizards. I have sensed that the future will be unsteady, but together we can make it through,” Kadegar gave a big smile when he finished speaking.
The newly accepted student looked at the Supreme Wizard with much interest. He seemed to look much younger than he was. Emily would have guessed him to be in his forties, but the stories said otherwise. She knew that he was older than even Rolin. It was no surprise that this powerful Wizard looked younger than his age, but the extent of how young he looked gave her pause. Rolin had warned her that there were dangerous paths to lengthening one’s life and she began to wonder if Kadegar would go as far as to use one of them. She looked up at the Supreme Wizard for guidance on what to do next. He motioned for her to turn to the crowd and she followed his suggestion. She took a deep breath as she looked out over the crowd. They looked all looked at her in amazement, though she knew now why. Kadegar cleared his throat before addressing the crowd.
“Emily will now be given a moment to speak her mind. It has been some time since a Royal Wizard has been accepted into our number, I suggest you listen to her,” He gave her a nod after he spoke.
“It is a privilege to be here among all of you. I only wish that it could have come at a better time. Canai has become a dangerous place of late and I have every intention of seeing that changed. Many of you will disagree with me, but I believe it is time for us to extend our influence beyond the Isle of Magic. Owyn taught me a great deal about knowledge, but Rolin taught me that we must use that knowledge for it to be effective. Knowledge alone cannot make a difference. I know that some of you do not care to spread peace to the world, but that is my goal,” Emily summoned up all the lessons she had learned as a child and spoke with as much authority as she could muster.
Kadegar watched the responses from the audience. The majority seemed to be in favor of what she had said, but there were pockets of those who disagreed. Emily glanced up at the Supreme Wizard, wondering what he thought of her speech. He gave no indication of whether or not he approved. One of the other experts stepped forward and began to speak to the crowd about the coming changes. It was strange for Emily to see how things worked on the Isle of Magic. She had been used to the way things were in the Galimdorian conclave. Owyn, much like Rolin, preferred to have the experts treat the students as equals rather than underlings. Kadegar had a different approach. He cared about the learning aspect, but allowed each of the experts a wide swath of teaching styles. The Supreme Wizard was the ultimate authority, but he did not treat the island like a school. Rolin and the others followed his lead in this, except that Kadegar saw his location as a kingdom. He was not just the authority in teaching magic, but also in every aspect of island life.
Emily took a deep breath as she made her way to the side of the room. Kadegar had left in a rather abrupt manner after observing the crowd’s reaction to her speech. She had heard the lectures on classes over a dozen times and cared only about getting to her new quarters. Each of the factions within the Isle of Magic had their own tower. Kadegar rarely gave them recognition beyond calling them “groups,” but some of them were influential. Emily remembered back to when Owyn and Rolin were discussing their time on the island. The Royal Wizards were not named for their connections to royalty or their ability to rule, as Emily had once thought, but rather for their mentality. As with most rulers, the Royal Wizards knew how to contend with the wants and needs of those under them. Elementalists were of the mind that they needed to stick together to not be overpowered by the stronger groups. Dark Wizards specialized in death and dark magic, alienating themselves from much of the other factions. Wizards of the Light focused on light magic. There were other factions that Emily had heard of, but none were as prominent as those four.
The tower for Emily’s new faction was one of the larger towers on the island. It was small in comparison to the tower that held Kadegar’s offices and living quarters. As the closest thing to a King on the island, his tower was more akin to a keep. His servants and advisers also had quarters in the tower. Emily entered the Royal Tower to find that it was nearly devoid of apprentices. Her faction consisted mostly of advanced Wizards. The ranking system ranked each person by his or her proficiency at each individual type of magic and their overall skill level. Beginner, intermediate, and expert were the three ranks for each type of magic. Any of the experts could lead a class in their school of magic and intermediate skilled Wizards were able to practice on their own. The overall ranking system held three ranks, novice, journeyman, and advanced. Emily had yet to be tested on the ranking system. Each of the factions had their own ranks within their faction as well. The Royal Wizards had a tier system that consisted of five levels. In order, the ranks were potential mage, mage-in-training, mage, learned mage, and Wizard. They reserved the right to withhold the title of Wizard until a member reached the top tier.
Emily was greeted by a fellow Wizard named Sheliana. She was average height with a slim build. Her smile made Emily feel as though they would be fast friends. The two continued talking as Sheliana showed the newcomer to her room. Each of the Royal Wizards had their own room, which was rare on the Isle of Magic. Emily, being the newest member of the faction, had the smallest room. It neighbored Sheliana’s room, as she was the second newest member. Emily invited her new friend into the room and was surprised to see that her belongings had already been moved. As was the Isle of Magic custom, upon being accepted into the ranks of a faction, her belongings were given to her new faction. Each faction had their own way of dealing with newcomers. Emily was glad that the Royal Wizards had taken care of her belongings and appointed the previous newcomer to help her become acclimated, though it was a strange feeling to be told the rules by one younger than her. The two discussed the Isle of Magic until Emily felt she could open her eyes no longer. Sheliana excused herself and Emily slumped down on her bed and fell asleep.
*
Gareth grimaced as he heard Leniya, Selena, and Miriel arguing. The two Druids were trying to recruit the former witch into their number, but Leniya saw it as betraying her people. There was a time when the former Grand Crusader would have seen the two groups as different, but his time spent with Leniya and her people had changed that. His entire life had been flipped upside down in a matter of months. Now he was even beginning to wonder if he was developing feelings for the former witch. He could not argue about her beauty, but it had been many years since he considered falling in love. His thoughts wandered as he continued to try to ignore the arguing. Leniya burst out of the tent and nearly ran him over. She stormed off as he realized what was going on.
“What happened?” He called after her.
“None of your business!” She yelled back at him.
He shook his head as he slowly stood up. The arguing had been going on for three days now. He had lost track of how many times a request of the Druid Council turned into an argument. Blasted Druids and their arguing, he thought as he watched her disappear into a tent. It wasn’t that he didn’t think they had the right to argue on the matter. Gareth felt that they were wasting valuable time that could be spent helping the dwarves. The others had been surprised when he first suggested it. Ector and Sev had already taken squads of elves to the dwarves, but the former Grand Crusader wondered if it would be enough. He had faced off against numerous enemies and knew that if they wanted to survive the coming war with either the dragons or the Holy Order, they would need to first defeat the orcs and their allies.
“A moment, if you will,” Ellesar poked his head of out the tent to address Gareth.
“Of course,” Gareth replied.
“These arguments have gone on long enough, but I cannot stop them alone.” The Druid stepped out of the tent.
“What would you like me to do?”
“You aren’t going to like it, but you must convince her to join the Druid Council. My family makes up the majority of the Council and our integrity is seen as lacking by
some. We need more members on the Council. I plan to ask Ector as well.”
“Perhaps if you opened up the Council to those who are not Druids.”
Ellesar nodded, but said nothing more. Gareth knew what it meant. The others would be hard to convince in the matter. A war council, the former Holy Order member thought as he turned away. It was the kind of compromise that people would agree with. He had no idea what the long-term effects of such a change would have, but he did know that the elves, Druids, and Rangers wouldn’t last long without better familiarizing themselves with war. His own place in all this was becoming quite clear. The Druids would be his advisers in the matter, while the elves and Rangers would act as his sword and shield. Whether he could successfully lead them against the dragons was unknown, but he knew that his knowledge of the Holy Order would come in handy. He threw back the flap of the tent and found Leniya lying face down on the bed with her face in the pillow.
“Go away!” She yelled when she heard his footsteps.
“If that is what you wish,” Gareth turned to leave.
“Wait, no. Don’t leave. I thought you were one of them.”
“All the same, you might not like what I have to say.”
“Try me,” she replied, wiping tears from her eyes.
“I want you to join the Council.”
“I will never be a Druid. My people need me, I will not betray them.”
“What if I convinced them to start another council?”
*
Septimus pored over the records that Leoth had given to him. He had been surprised to learn that the man had kept an account of every book that had entered or exited his library. The Emperor-to-be was turning out to be quite enigmatic. Thanos handed a piece of parchment to the Warlock. There was an underlined title halfway down the page. It read “Tome of Fire.” The column to the right of the title held information on who had taken this particular book. Septimus sighed as he put down the paper. One of the neighboring Warlords had taken the book in a raid several years ago. The Warlock turned back to the records and began looking through them again. Leoth had stayed true to his word and provided them with as much information on the tomes as he could find. They had been able to figure out the location of the “Tome of Fire,” and the “Tome of Air.” Each of the tomes was held by one of the Warlords.
The Tomes Of Magic Page 6