The Guardian's Apprentice (Beyond the Veil)

by J. Michael Radcliffe

  “Well, well, my pretty. It’s about time. You’ve kept me waiting for over an hour now,” he said, not bothering to look in her direction.

  “I am sorry, my master,” she gasped. She was still out of breath from her long flight. “I ran afoul of storms to the south –”

  “I really don’t care about your troubles, Nisha, I only want the information you carry,” he snapped.

  “Yes, my master” she said. She hopped from the statue and morphed to her normal, human self. She put her delicate hand into the sleeve of her black robes and pulled out a small stone tablet. Trembling slightly, she handed it to Cedric. “You will find all of the information you requested contained within the runestone; simply utter the incantation to unlock it.”

  “Excellent,” he replied as he took the small stone tablet from her and pocketed it in his robes. “Return to your animal form.”

  “But Master, I am allowed only one transfiguration to human form each day. If I morph again now I will not be allowed to transform again until tomorrow,” she pleaded.

  He turned to face his assistant, his cold grey eyes boring straight through her. “You are indentured into my service and you will do as I say, unless you would prefer I petition the Council to make you a permanent addition to the ranks of the administrative staff.”

  “As you wish, Master,” she said, head bowed. She knew better than to test his patience and before her tears could reach the ground, she transformed and flew off in the direction of the castle’s main tower.

  ***

  Cedric smiled as he watched her fly away. Nisha was quite a resourceful assistant, but she must learn her place if she expected to earn her freedom in this lifetime. He sat down on a small bench in the shadows of the oak and pulled the runestone from his robes. Passing his hand over the small obsidian rectangle, he muttered ‘erkennen.’ With a quiet flash, letters began appearing on the stone, looking as if they were written with liquid fire. Cedric read the information quickly, scanning through the bits about Keegan’s family, bloodline, magical experience, etc. He paused briefly over the psyche profile and career section, noting that the young man had failed to maintain any lasting relationship with a female. He continued through the information until he reached the end, but it had been of much less use than he had hoped. The one thing it did tell him was that until now, the boy had no discernable magical talent and had led a mediocre existence. Muttering ‘skjule’ he waved his hand back over the tablet and the writing vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Pocketing the runestone, he rose from the bench and headed back to his chambers lost in thought.

  ###

  Chapter 11 - Politics

  In the ornate hall of the Council, the current Guardian sat stroking his beard, listening quietly while the other members of the Council had a heated exchange regarding the status of his job.

  “The Council made its choice over a fortnight ago! Either he accepts his place as Head of this Council or he forfeits!” shouted Portia, her fiery temper getting the better of her.

  “Now, now, Portia,” said Phineas’ friend Alexander. “We are all anxious to move on with the business at hand, but the rules of this Council are quite clear. You know very well that the Guardian has thirty days to present his apprentice for approval by the Council. Phineas still has time remaining, whether you agree with it or not.”

  Portia shot him a glance that would freeze mercury.

  “Fah! This is just his way of trying to prevent our order from ascending to the leadership position and you know it! You know as well as I do that if he steps aside, he does so not only for himself but his order as well, at which time it falls to us to lead the Council!”

  Phineas truly thought he saw a wisp of smoke coming from Portia’s ears; she knew that in all likelihood, she would be the chosen one should he step aside. Cedric had been nominated twice before, but could not find enough support to be elected. What she didn’t know or would never admit to, was that she would serve only as a puppet for Cedric.

  “That simply is not the case, Portia,” said Ducat. “Phineas has chosen his successor; we are merely awaiting his arrival.”

  “And where is this so-called successor?”

  “Traveling.”

  “Bullsh-”

  “Portia!” snapped Phineas as he rose to his feet, interrupting what was to be a lengthy stream of expletives directed at his friend. “My apprentice is chosen and that is final. If you would like to know his whereabouts, perhaps you should ask your learned colleague, Councilor Thornback. If I’m not mistaken, he arranged for the boy to be ‘tested’ before he arrived.”

  Portia glared at the Guardian but knew better than to continue her verbal attack; to do so would only weaken Cedric’s hand. “If this is true, then matters stand better than I thought; the boy should be tested before he arrives and I applaud Master Thornback for his progressive thinking,” she said, nodding approvingly in the dark mage’s direction.

  “Tested perhaps. Not killed,” muttered Council member Nelson Merak, one of the Grey order.

  “I resent that, Merak,” snapped Cedric. “The test I chose is appropriate to gauge his skills, wits and magical abilities. If he fails the test then his continued existence is immaterial to me; his only worth is as an apprentice.”

  “We all know that if it weren’t for the Oracle’s ability to fry you to a crisp you would’ve seized power long ago. Killing an apprentice-to-be is merely an inconvenience,” Merak chided.

  “Killing a coward whose order sits on the cusp, unable to choose a path in this life is an inconvenience. Killing an apprentice-to-be is entertainment,” hissed the dark wizard.

  Merak started to rise to his feet, hand on his wand, but Councilor Ducat grabbed his arm.

  “Stop it, both of you!” he snapped. “I’m sure the boy will pass this ‘test’ and survive to present himself before us. Now stop acting like two children fighting in a playground before the Oracle incinerates you both!

  Merak sat slowly down in his chair, muttering under his breath while Cedric sat looking highly amused.

  “May I suggest, ladies and gentlemen,” said Councilor Ducat, “that we adjourn until notified of the arrival of the applicant? Master Whitestone, will you be so kind as to inform us of his arrival?”

  “It would be my deepest pleasure, Counselor. Furthermore I second your motion for adjournment.”

  “Very well; I have a motion and a second. Any against? No? Well then, until we reconvene my friends,” said Ducat as he rapped the gavel on the table. The members of the various orders all rose and, after separating into their respective groups, moved off to the exits. The founders were wise enough, those many years ago, to plan for the segregation of the various sects. Time had shown that the less contact they had with one another the better, as the dark wizards hated everyone, the order of White Magic hated the users of the Dark Arts and the order of the Grey were ambivalent about the other two. All had agreed however that the Council Chamber was neutral territory, where differences were supposedly put aside in the interest of the greater good of the magical world.

  Alexander walked over to Phineas, who had remained seated. “Your apprentice will be here within the allotted time, won’t he?” he said, a pleading look in his eyes.

  “Yes,” Phineas sighed. “The boy will be here,” he said as he rose from his seat. “He will be here in time; I would stake my life on it.” He turned and raised his staff towards the ceiling. With a small gesture, a bright blue portal snapped open, drew the wizard up in a flash and snapped shut again.

  Ducat starred up towards the now absent portal and replied darkly, “You already have staked your life on it, my old friend; you just don’t know it yet.”

  ###

  Chapter 12 – The Dragon’s Pawn

  The first thing Keegan remembered thinking when he came to was that the giant had gouged out his eyes. After a moment of panic, he realized he must be in a cave or dungeon far away from the light, as the darkness was so black he couldn’t
see his own nose. He could hear water dripping somewhere in the distance and the air was cool and moist, so he guessed the giant had taken him to some hideout in the lower reaches of the mountains near the forest. He felt of his right hand and whispered a heartfelt prayer of thanks that the creature had neglected to remove his ring; “Anstrahlen,” he whispered, raising his hand close to his mouth. Even though the light was quite dim by normal standards, it was as blinding as a searchlight to Keegan. He had no idea how long he had been out. Judging by the size of the lump on his left temple, he had been hit hard. He gave his eyes a moment to adjust to the light and then tried to get a view of his surroundings. He seemed to be in a large room of sorts that appeared to have been carved out of solid rock. There was a rough-hewn wooden door set into the wall on the far side and there were no windows, nor any furniture to be seen. Looking upward, Keegan strained to see the ceiling but it was lost in the darkness, somewhere high above. Judging by the number of bones littering the floor, the room had obviously been occupied before. Keegan walked over to the door and examined it more closely. It appeared to be a heavy oak door with iron bindings. He pulled hard on the handle but it wouldn’t budge.

  “Great...just bloody GREAT!” he shouted, collapsing in a heap against the door. “I never asked for this, dammit!” he shouted, twisting the ring off his finger and hurling it as hard as he could against the far wall. The ring landed with a clatter on the stone floor and Keegan realized with a jolt that he had never been able to remove it before now. As he watched, the light coming from it began to change color. It shifted to a dark, blood red and began to pulsate, almost as if it were angry. Suddenly there was a loud hissing sound and with a snap, the ring writhed and transformed itself into a dragon! The beast filled the far side of the room and was a dull red in color, except for its eyes, which glowed a bright green and gave off enough light to illuminate the room. Keegan also noticed that a large white gemstone was set in the beast’s forehead which matched the stone set into the ring itself.

  “How dare you!” the beast hissed, turning its great snout to face Keegan. It lowered itself to his eye level and snorted out a great billowing cloud of smoke smelling strongly of sulfur. “You are a disgrace to your family! For ten generations have the wizards of your clan carried me, and for ten generations has there been peace in the realm. Yet now, when darkness clouds the horizon and threatens both our worlds, I am to be wielded by a pathetic, weak minded little fool!”

  Keegan, not yet recovered from the shock of seeing his signet ring turn into a dragon, didn’t quite know what to say. “But…“

  “SILENCE!” the beast roared at him, shaking dust and small stones loose from the ceiling. It shifted into a sitting position and folded its wings close to its sides. “Your place is not to speak youngling; your place is to listen and to learn. Your place is not to question, but is to obey and follow the path that destiny has carved for you.”

  Keegan simply looked up at the great beast and nodded, not knowing what else to do.

  “I am called Nekk’ar, the shield of the Guardians. I was among the first of all dragons, though now my essence is all that remains. My bones crumbled to dust eons ago, however my spirit has remained behind to serve the light and fight the dark. I have been under enchantment as a golden ring for over a thousand years, since before the time of the great rebellion. I protect those of your bloodline who wield me as Guardian of the Veil and Keeper of the Portals. Your family is one of the three branches entrusted with the power to maintain the Veil and guard the Portals. To cast me aside is to cast aside your heritage, to shame your family and deny your destiny!”

  “But I’m not a wizard!” cried Keegan in frustration.

  “You are; you have just been too long in the realm of science and technology, where magic is neither accepted nor understood. Your mind has become numb and you have forgotten how to believe in magic. You think it is not possible, that this is all an illusion. You are as a newborn pup that has not yet opened his eyes to the world around him.”

  “Please understand Nekk’ar, I want to be more than I am. I want to make a difference for once in my life, but I don’t know how!” said Keegan emphatically. “I get confronted by a two-headed giant for the first time in my life and all I can manage to do is shine a flashlight on him.”

  “Wisdom is a function of time and experience, youngling. To walk you must first crawl, lest you do harm to yourself or others unintentionally. I intervene only in the gravest of times, when there is great risk to yourself or the realm; beyond that, you must use your skill and ability to survive. To summon me in battle or crisis, simply concentrate on the ring, willing your thoughts to mine. Your training in the magical arts will commence once you are confirmed as apprentice, not before.”

  “But how do I get confirmed as the apprentice if I’m trapped in a cave?!” asked Keegan incredulously.

  “For that you will rely on your skill; for if you cannot solve this simple puzzle you are not worthy to be an Apprentice. I leave you now, young one. Do not fail your destiny and do not attempt to discard me so carelessly next time,” said the beast.

  With a thunderclap, the dragon shrank and contorted back into the shape of a ring, which curled itself around Keegan’s finger. He gave it a tug and discovered that the ring was now so tightly wedged on his finger it could not be removed it. If he did not know better, he thought he could hear the echoing sound of the dragon chuckling at him.

  Keegan sat down near the door and thought for a moment. The fool of a giant had failed to notice Keegan’s belt, which contained the potions and powders prepared for his Journey by Phineas. He started rummaging through his pouches and began looking at the small vials of potions by the light of his ring. One vial was labeled ‘shrink,’ with the inscription ‘effects last approximately thirty minutes per drop’ in bright red letters. Keegan uncorked the little vial and sniffed at its contents. “Ugh! Smells like rotten eggs,” he said to himself. He shook the vial and splashed a drop on the bottom hinge of the door and was rewarded with a popping sound as the hinge shrank to the size of a paper clip and clattered to the floor. He quickly applied a drop to the top hinge then, careful to re-seal the vial and return it to the pouch; he pulled on the iron handle. With a loud scraping sound followed by a thud the door fell backwards into the room, narrowly missing Keegan on its way down. Easing out into the hallway, he was pleased to see that there were at least one or two torches guttering in the distance, providing him with enough light that he could safely extinguish his ring. There were no signs of life anywhere, let alone the two-headed beast that had brought him here. Keeping as close to the wall as possible, he made his way down the corridor towards the torches in the distance. There seemed to be an upward slope to the floor, so Keegan assumed he was going higher into the heart of the mountain. Reaching the end of the tunnel, he came to a stone archway leading into a cavernous room beyond. Putting hand to ear, he listened for any signs of life. Hearing none, Keegan crept around the corner. The room looked as if it had been abandoned for centuries. The stone pillars around the side of the room were all cracked, with some having collapsed completely. In the center of the room was a raised dais, with a coiled dragon carved into the floor. At the center of the carving was a large inset with a diamond pattern cut into the bottom. Keegan walked past the dais to the opposite side of the room; the only other entrance to the room was here, in the form of a towering double door that stood at least twenty feet tall and just as wide. Keegan put his ear against the door, straining to hear if there was anything on the other side.

  He could barely hear a faint thudding sound, but it seemed to be growing louder. Yes, it was definitely getting louder, a long ‘swishing’ sound like something being dragged across the stone floor, followed by a ‘thud.’ Suddenly Keegan realized in a panic that whatever was coming was large enough to shake the surrounding walls, for with each ‘thud’ dust fell to the floor. The noise was getting louder, so whatever the thing was it was obviously headed this way. Keegan l
ooked around the room for a place to conceal himself but there were few options. Suddenly remembering his pouch he reached in, grabbed the potion marked ‘stealth’ and ran behind a nearby column. Looking at the label, he read ‘One dram for every hour and the individual will match their surroundings.’

  Well, it’s better than being something’s lunch!

  He took a swig from the tiny bottle, hoping that a mouthful of the bitter liquid was something close to a ‘dram,’ whatever that might be. He was immediately sorry, as it tasted like a cross between charcoal and dirt. Putting the vial back in his pocket he pressed himself against the wall behind the column and waited. He began to feel a strange burning sensation over his entire body. Looking down, he was astonished to see his skin was now the exact same color as the rock wall behind him, complete with cracks to match those in the stones. Likewise, his robes had faded to the same color. He pressed himself tightly against the wall just as the massive wooden doors swung inward. Keegan jumped slightly when a bright blue column of flame shot from behind the doors and raked across the torches lining the far wall, setting them ablaze. With a loud dragging sound and several thunderous ‘thuds’ the creature hove into view; it was Brimstone, the great dragon who had stranded Keegan in the forest to begin with. The great beast half walked, half slithered to the far side of the room and curling into a ball like some gigantic housecat, settled to the floor with its head resting on its front talons. The dragon appeared to be staring intently at something standing just beyond Keegan’s view in the doorway when it spoke.

  “Well slave, what do you have to report?” hissed the great dragon.