The Apprentice Sorcerer: The Caldronian Guild

by Andrew G. Wood

  After a wave from the king two men dressed in Royal Livery stepped forward, although only one spoke, “We are here to discuss the recent incident between members of the City Guard and those of the Guild,” the man spoke loudly but clearly. He went on to tell them that this was a hearing and not a criminal prosecution, although if the king decided to take action on hearing the evidence being presented, then he would do so. Leo noticed that as the man spoke one of the brown robed figures of the Literary guild was busy scribbling down everything being said, although quite how the man could possibly write as fast as the man speaking, he did not know.

  The man talking droned on for several minutes, as they were told of the unacceptable spectacle that had taken place in the city. The King was apparently very displeased with both factions for letting such a thing take place in full view of the public, although not as angry as he felt that his own people had been fighting each other. “The king will listen to your testimonies to decide how best to move forward from this incident,” the man eventually said, before regimentally turning around and walking off to one side.

  The second figure, dressed in the royal livery then stepped forward to take control of proceedings. “The City Guard will speak first and give their version of events,” he said gesturing for the Commander of the City Guard to step forth and speak. Leo looked over to the other side of the room, and was certain they were all staring at him, as if he was the one to blame for them all being there.

  One by one, the soldiers of the guard stepped forward and gave their version of events, and although Leo was certain half of what they said never actually happened, he was beginning to doubt his own recollection of what had occurred. The first face that Leo actually recognised was that of a sorcerer, one who had been sat behind a desk, and one that had allegedly been injured in his escape. “The boy attacked us without provocation,” he said, “I am still suffering the after effects of it,” he added.

  “Rubbish,” Leo uttered under his breath, although it was quite clearly not as quiet as he had first thought, as several heads turned his way, and the man at the front of the room, intervened, “You will have your say, please remain silent, and keep your opinions in the meantime to yourself.” Suitably admonished, Leo, rather bashfully dropped his head, “Sorry,” he said.

  If the City Guard was to be believed, Leo and his friends had blatantly destroyed a market stall, and when the guard had attended to oversee matters, he had firstly resisted arrest, before being taken away. He had then attacked the two arresting sorcerers, as well as the third man sat behind the desk.

  During the consequent hunting down of this criminal, the two other sorcery apprentices had interfered with them carrying out justice, but more importantly Kian, as a Guild Master, had done likewise. Leo just shrugged, not actually believing what was being said, but did notice no mention was made of Daron’s arrival, nor the way in which he had dealt with the situation at the time. Perhaps making wild accusations against the King’s Sorcerer was an argument the guard thought they might not win. This had Leo thinking that perhaps with Daron on his side, things might not be as bleak as he was beginning to think.

  King Haldar, dressed in his fine clothes, seemed interested in what was being said, unlike Alec who was sat beside Leo, yawning or at least trying to cover his mouth whilst doing so. To be fair to his friend, he also thought the process was indeed rather tedious, which each man standing, spouting the same lies as the previous one. He was just beginning to think that every guard in the city was going to be paraded in and have their say, when the proceedings came to a sudden halt.

  Leo and the others wondered what was going on, as the warrior stood aside the king stepped forth and started whispering in the man’s ear. “Daron, we have a situation developing. This hearing is adjourned until further notice,” The king said loudly, before immediately heading for the doorway he had used to make his entrance. Daron immediately stood, and looked down at Leo and the others, “Kian please take Mason, Jake and Alec back to the guild,” he asked the Master.

  “What about me Sir?” Leo asked realising his name had not been mentioned.

  “You come with me,” Daron said as started walking off, “And don’t make me regret it,” he added looking over his shoulder.

  Leo paid little heed to those on the other side of the room, who watched on and stared his direction as he followed the King’s Sorcerer out of the hallway. Quickening his pace a little and stepping up beside him, “What is going on Sir?” Leo asked still thinking it better to use the correct protocol, despite them being out of earshot of anybody else. “No idea Leo,” the man said as he headed down one corridor, before turning sharply left to lead on down another. Leo was constantly amazed at just how many corridors criss-crossed others in the palace buildings, and was glad he had Daron to show him the way to wherever it was they were going.

  The walk was a short one, and Daron knocked on a door and entered despite no one shouting for him to enter, “Come on in, please stay quiet, speak when asked to do so,” he said as they stepped inside. Leo looked up to see the king sat behind a desk, and aside from the warrior behind him, there were several other faces he did not recognise, all apparently staring back at him. “For those of you who do not know already, this is Leo,” he was surprised to hear the king introduce him.

  Leo stood still, frozen to the spot as a man, probably in his twenties and dressed in the strange garb worn by all rangers, stepped up and walked around him, as if inspecting a prize cow. “One so young, is he really as powerful as you say?” The man asked turning to look at Daron. “He is, and I am quite certain he does not wish to be gawped at,” the King’s Sorcerer replied a little tartly. The ranger bowed his head a little, “Please Leo accept my apologies, I meant no offence,” he said taking a few steps backwards, “It is not often we come across such a phenomenon as you,” he added with a smile. Leo gave a nervous nod, and forced a smile in return.

  “Daron is very protective over his young protégée,” The king said, “Come on Leo, move over here with the others,” he added, gesturing for him to sit. Leo looked across to Daron, as if seeking approval, who in turn gave the slightest nod just to verify he should do as was asked.

  Leo listened carefully, as the king spoke first, and it took a little while for him to realise what they were talking about. If he understood things correctly, the nation of Caldronia was at war, and had been fighting off attacks for a few weeks now. “Samuel, what do the rangers report?” The king asked, aiming the question at the young ranger who had previously spoken to Leo.

  Leo watched as the man stood, and after clearing his throat, explained the latest intelligence. Apparently several small groups of Belarians, made up from sorcerers, soldiers and some strange creatures, the ranger referred to as imps, had been tracked leaving that nation and crossing over into Caldronia. Feeling very much out of place and somewhat out of his depth, unsure as to why he was actually in this room, Leo was content to sit quietly and let the others do the talking.

  “You think these small groups, raiding parties?” the king asked looking at the ranger, although it was clear the question was open to all.

  “Perhaps,” the Warrior stood beside the king said speaking first.

  “If so, we cannot spread our forces out to defend all the outlying towns and villages,” said a man dressed in a standard soldier’s uniform, probably Leo thought, some captain or something of the royal guard, but not a man he had seen before.

  Leo watched as the king continually tapped his fingers on the surface of his desk as if nervous about the entire situation. Despite trying not to look, his eyes were constantly drawn to the young ranger, well not the man directly, but the clothes he wore. He thought it quite fascinating how the man’s clothes, appeared to blend in with the wall behind, and Leo was quite sure if the hood was pulled over the man’s head, he would barely be able to see him at all.

  It had been a long morning, and Leo tried his hardest not to yawn. Despite the main hearing in the hall n
ot lasting long, this meeting in the king’s study seemed to go on forever, and he was beginning to wonder if he would be allowed to be excused. With him not having much to eat at breakfast, his stomach was reminding him as such, by grumbling a little louder than usual.

  His attention was quickly drawn back to those conversing in the room however, when he heard the king make a suggestion. Well in truth, Leo thought it sounded as much a question to the others as much as anything. “We do not have the numbers to keep the city safe and send our own hunting parties down to intercept this threat,” the King had said. However, it was the part that had been spoken next that got Leo’s undivided attention, “Perhaps we can send out the best of our guild apprentices…”

  It was clear all the others in the room were uncertain how to answer, and it was actually Daron who spoke. “Despite not being involved directly with the guild for some years, I guess perhaps we could pick the best and finest, enough to perhaps make a few squads,” he said looking to the others for their thoughts.

  “A mix of soldiers, perhaps a sorcerer, a healer, a couple of rangers and warriors, maybe fifteen or twenty to a group,” came a voice from across the other side of the room, as Leo’s head turned first one way then the other as he followed to look at those who spoke.

  He for one was surprised, not only was the country at war, but the fact they were now seriously considering sending those in the guild out to fight. He personally thought it a completely stupid idea, and did for a second or two at least think about letting his opinion be heard, that was until he remembered Daron’s rather stern warning as they had entered. Leo was also a little shocked to see Daron appear to be the main supporter of this actually happening, “It is what we train them for after all,” he heard the man say, which Leo thought was probably true. Why else train rangers and warriors if not to fight, and why else would they be teaching people like him to cast shields and fire blasts of energy, if not to one day make use of that skill.

  Chapter 17.

  “What of him?” came the words Leo had never thought would be aimed his way. Leo looked around the room, as to a man every person looked his direction. “He is a little poor at shielding, but his offensive abilities are probably as powerful as any I have ever seen,” Daron said slowly walking the few paces across the room towards him. Leo looked up at the elderly sorcerer, “Me? Oh I’m quite sure I’m not ready for anything like this…I thought you were thinking about sending the older apprentices…I have only been here a matter of weeks,” he said before realising he was waffling.

  “Oh and he has a distinct lack of self-confidence in his own abilities,” Daron added.

  Leo looked around the room for an ally, and thought he had found it in the Captain, “Perhaps such an offensive weapon would be better utilised defending the city?” the man said, “And in the meantime he could gain more training,” he added.

  “Yes, what that man said,” Leo added, not entirely sure he should be speaking at all, although nobody told him otherwise. “I think,” the King said standing and talking over a few of the other voices, “I think, that perhaps in the current situation, it might be better if we do send Leo out of the city, at least for a while.”

  Leo slowly stood, his mouth gaping, shocked at what he had just heard, as all thoughts of lunch and hunger seemed to vanish away. Surely they could not expect him to go and fight, and yet here they all were discussing his future and talking about him as if he was not even in the same room. He felt a comforting arm around his shoulder and realised Daron was stood right beside him, “Come on lad,” he said gesturing for the door.

  Leo let himself be led out of the room, leaving the others in there still talking, as he headed off down the corridor. “I think it would do you good to have a few weeks out of the city, and like the King says, you’re not exactly flavour of the month as far as the City Guard are concerned are you?” Leo sighed, he supposed not, “I am quite happy staying in the guild grounds, you don’t have to kick me out of the city,” he replied, feeling a little emotional.

  Daron stopped and faced the youngster beside him, “Look Leo, let us get this straight. Nobody is kicking you out of the city, although it does make things a little easier, for the king especially, if you are not around for a little while.” Leo stared the old man in the eyes, not sure as to what was going to happen, and although Daron continued talking, the words did not really sink in. Apparently Leo’s actions whilst being arrested had put the king in a very awkward position, and had he just gone with the flow instead of reacting like he did, the situation would have ended much simpler than it had of done.

  As a result of him escaping the arresting guards, not to mention injuring them in the process, he had forced the king to act; that being the hearing that had partly taken place that morning. The ruler was basically going to have to break his own laws, to protect Leo from being punished further, something which might have caused unrest with the guard, and something that the king did not want, especially in the current circumstances.

  The trip back to the guild was over all too soon, as Daron escorted him all the way into the main building. “Please keep his to yourself for now. I know you will want to tell your friends, but I must ask you to refrain from doing so, at least until the king had had time to pass the order through,” he said. Leo nodded his understanding, with a rather sorrowful looking face. Daron looked at him, “Come on, cheer up Leo. Think of this as an adventure…and trust me when I say you really need to believe in your own abilities.” With those last words of wisdom, Leo stood in the foyer and watched the King’s Sorcerer slowly walk back through the main doors and out of sight.

  After looking several directions Leo’s next move was for the dining hall. He was certain none of the others would be there just yet, as they would likely be in lessons, and if truth were told, he thought he probably would not make good company anyway.

  The dining room, was as he had expected mostly empty, although he did notice a few apprentices here and there scattered around the room. He spotted a black robe of a sorcerer a few tables down from the one he had decided to sit at, and noticed the lad wearing it was also donning the red belt of a more experienced apprentice, perhaps a third year. As one of the dining room serving girls came over to place a plate down in front of him, Leo pondered about what was going to happen.

  Was the older boy sat just ten yards away from him going to be another selected to go out into one of the squads to fight? Perhaps in a few weeks that same person might be dead, killed in action, fighting a war he probably did not know even existed yet. Come to think of it, would he even still be alive in a few weeks? He had come to the guild thinking his life had changed so dramatically for the better, and yet here he was now contemplating about his own end.

  After picking up a lunch of cold meats, cheese and a few slices of bread, and swilling it down with a cup of sweetened tea, Leo was at a loss on what he should do next. Was he supposed to go to the dorm and pack away his few items, ready to leave for battle at a moment’s notice? At least time he would actually have a chance to do that, not that he had much to take. Or perhaps he should go and find his friends, who would, or at least should, still be in their lessons.

  After a short while just wandering along the corridor, Leo eventually decided on the latter. After all, if he was to be sent out in one of these squads that the king was on about making, he would probably not see them for a while, or perhaps even ever again, a sombre thought he did not adhere kindly too. He headed towards the door of the classroom he was supposed to be in if he had been in lessons, and paused before opening it. He listened a while and could here Master Ayleen talking, and although because she spoke a little quieter than perhaps the other Masters, Leo could only make out some of what she was saying.

  After taking a deep breath, quickly followed by several more, Leo eventually pushed the door open, and though he tried to be quiet in doing so, everybody in the class immediately turned to face him. He smiled as the faces of friends all looked his way, before h
e heard Ayleen, “Oh hello Leo, have they finished with you, come on in and sit down,” she said, waving her hand out just slightly for him to find a seat.

  He looked first straight toward Mia, and although his first step took him her direction, he quickly veered slightly to the left, as Mason and Jake shuffled over slightly so he could squeeze in next to them. “We were just discussing the uses of magic Leo,” he heard Master Ayleen tell him, as he sat down. He looked up at her as if an indication he was now listening, and she smiled his way, and if he were not mistaken it appeared to be a look of pity. Did she know what awaited him? How could she, after all Ayleen had not been in the meeting, which was as far as he was aware supposed to be kept secret, for now at least. The again he thought, Ayleen was a Guild Master, and perhaps the same restrictions did not really apply to her.

  He listened a while at first, before contributing to the lesson. Ayleen had obviously set them the task of finding uses for magic once an apprentice had left the guild, and as a result she was making a short list on the chalkboard at the front. Farming and construction were already up on the board, as Mia raised her hand, and unusually for her, waited to be asked to speak, “Oh and of course magicians can help the healers, like we did with the sheep,” she said, “Before someone exploded it everywhere,” she added glancing just ever so slightly Leo’s direction.