“Well all of their soldiers were male” Chews replied. “Who would reject using enemy soldiers as slave labor?”
“What about the women they capture?” Sawyer asked. “There had to be the odd woman caught doing bad things sometimes.”
“A mage was caught” Chews replied. “She was inexperienced but studied under our greatest mage. She wants to stay, I doubt she would ever go back to Colten or whatever they are calling that place now. Not when she has so much power and is getting ready to be released on her own. She was a nobody and now she has an estate in Maduro complete with a slave and servants.”
“You mean to tell me that sour faced girl out there is from Colten?” Sawyer asked.
“Keep your voice down” Chews replied. “These walls have ears, not every mage guard you see here is a friend, even if we are sworn to protect you.”
“What do you mean by that?” Sawyer asked.
“We were also picked because we are as loyal to the Queen and the High Mage as we are to our own mothers” Chews replied. “The breaking process is extensive, just because I am telling you all of this doesn’t mean I wouldn’t kill you on command. What it does mean is that I wouldn’t steer you wrong unless ordered to do so, many of the others here would though. You can’t really trust any of us unless your plans and our orders align.”
“Good information to know” Sawyer admitted. “I am a big enough idiot to believe the best in people instead of what is reality.”
“Don’t mention it” Chews replied.
CHAPTER 3
Sawyer woke up just before the sun and walked outside of his room door, two guards that he hadn’t seen before were there nodding off until his door opened. Sawyer looked at them for a moment and started heading for the door to the inn, before he could get there the two guards behind him grabbed at him and another guard that was posted up by the door drew his sword.
“Where do you think you are going mage?” the guard by the door said tightening his stare.
“Outside” Sawyer replied.
“The High Mage made it clear that you were not going anywhere” the guard replied.
“I am going outside to practice” Sawyer replied after giving a deep sigh. “If it is so important to you, then come outside with me. Keep your little watch and keep your swords drawn or your crossbows leveled at me.”
“Practice what?” the guard replied puzzled.
“My sword” Sawyer replied. “I don’t want to get rusty.”
“What would you need a sword for?” the guard asked.
“The same thing you would, to protect myself” Sawyer replied.
“But you have us here” the guard replied.
“Why would I trust a bunch of men who drew their weapons on me to protect my life?” Sawyer asked. “That sounds idiotic, only blade I trust is my own. Now get out of my way, if you would like I can go get my staff and move you out of the way.”
Sawyer watched as the guard stepped aside but a gave a signal to the men behind him. Sawyer walked outside and was not surprised it was still very dark. He needed the exercise to clear his mind, from there he could think of a plan. Sawyer started out by doing jumping exercises to increase his leg strength, it would keep him in shape so he could move quickly if he had to make a strike or dodge one. Sawyer’s style of fighting was based on the counter attack, he was tall and normally had more range than his opponent did. The sword Sawyer used gave him an even better advantage, it was a little thinner than it should have been but he added three inches in length. While Sawyer had to always buy specialized scabbards for the weapon it was more than worth it. The particular blade he carried around though hadn’t seen any combat, he only had it made two weeks before Elena’s betrayal. The wooden practice sword he had made just like it though showed instant results, normally he could only best his father in sparring about once every twenty times, now though they were pretty evenly matched with his father having a slight advantage due to experience and strength. Marlon used to be part of the old king’s elite guard and was a sword master. Even if he was getting older there were not many that could beat him. After the leg exercises Sawyer went into his forms with the blade, his father had taught him a good swordsman didn’t necessarily have to be bulky, the muscles used in fighting needed explosiveness more than anything. The only muscles that needed to be worked out for massive strength were the forearms, they were responsible for grip strength. Sawyer though could work those out anywhere, he didn’t need any space or special place. Sawyer thought he had been outside for at least two hours when he noticed the sun was starting to come up, he had blanked out his mind and had come up with the semblance of a plan.
Sawyer was sure when the moment came he could get away from the two mages and their mage guard, he could do things they hadn’t yet seen. Sawyer could cast without opening his mouth, all he needed to do was think of the spell he wanted, it made him much quicker than they were. He also had a sizable amount of magical energy that they might not be expecting, even if he didn’t use his magic stealing and relied on his own reserves, Sawyer doubted he would run out of magic. Sawyer would still need a plan after that, where would he go? The fact that he was a mage would come out and he would continously run into the same situation again and again until he either killed all the mages or died himself. Going back through Sale to get to Aft also wasn’t going to happen, Sawyer thought about going to the part of the former kingdom of Colten that was going to be under Aft rule but the infrastructure and government wasn’t set up yet. No way they could protect him there, surrounded on all sides by potential enemies. Perdomo was his best bet, the other kingdom was too close to the real enemy even if it was where the old capital used to stand. Sawyer would stay in Perdomo but try to distance himself from the High Mage, something about her he didn’t trust. The High Mage was great at concealing her feelings and trying to be welcoming but her apprentice gave it away, the girl was too snobby and quick to use violence. While Sawyer himself never minded a good scrap he normally did not try to start one just to show his superiority. The fact that the High Mage and her apprentice got along well made Sawyer think of one of the sayings his father used to tell him, birds of a feather often flock together.
“Are you done?” Sawyer heard Chews voice coming from behind him. “Just looking at that made me tired, all that jumping around and swinging. It was like you blacked us all out of your mind, even the High Mage came outside to take a look and I don’t think you noticed her.”
“Losing focus in a fight could mean your life” Sawyer replied. “If I ever get struck down I don’t want to have any regrets that I didn’t train hard enough.”
“Can you do all of that in plate armor?” Chews asked.
“Where would I get plate from?” Sawyer asked. In reality his father had started him training in plate as soon as he got to Sale. It was extremely tiring but Sawyer thought he was getting better, he could outlast many that had always worn plate whenever they trained.
“You really weren’t rich back in Colten, were you Sarlon?” Chews asked.
“I come from poor but hard working people” Sawyer replied. “We may not have had everything we wanted but we had everything we needed.”
“Well the High Mage wanted to see you as soon as you were done” Chews replied. “We are supposed to have an early breakfast and move on out before the sun gets too high in the sky.”
Sawyer figured he might as well get whatever it was over with. Sawyer sheathed his sword and walked back inside, the cool air mixed with his sweat made him shiver a little as he walked inside. The High Mage was there along with her apprentice sitting at a table, it was obvious they had just finished eating. One of the guards tapped the table which made the High Mage look up at Sawyer as he went over to he table.
“Sarlon is it?” the high mage began.
“How do you know my name?” Sawyer replied.
“My guard told me” Tabitha said raising an eyebrow. “What can you tell me about yourself?”
“Y
ou mean other than not wanting to be here?” Sawyer replied.
“Yes” Tabitha said annoyed.
“I come from Colten and I am a mage like my father before me” Sawyer began. “My family died and I didn’t. I escaped because I didn’t want to be put to work like a slave for whatever kingdom captured me and I fled like an idiot right into the exact same situation. There aint really no more to tell after that.”
“It is not too bad here in Perdomo” Tabitha began. “If you play by the rules you could find yourself living a life of luxury, maybe you could even marry a noble.”
“I have a wife back home” Sawyer began. “I don’t need another relationship, if she aint dead then perhaps she will find her way here eventually or me to her.”
“That makes things interesting” Tabitha began. “This is not the news you want to hear but you should forget about her, at least while you are here. I am guessing you are a commoner, while you wouldn’t gain a title you could move into some very influential homes and be taken care of for the rest of your life.”
“I don’t mind taking care of myself” Sawyer began. “I can more than pull my own weight, I don’t need money or pampering.”
“You may see things differently when you get older” Tabitha began. “Your father, was he your instructor as well? I couldn’t help but notice you practicing with that sword, my men tell me you move like you know what you are doing.”
“He was” Sawyer replied. “Taught me all about the sword, I think I am a decent fighter.”
“What about your magic” Tabitha replied.
“We went over a few spells” Sawyer began. “Not too much though, that would be a good way to come to the attention of the King and be pressed into service for an eternity.”
“Well then I need to get you a proper master” Tabitha began. “The Queen would want to know about you as well. Like I said we have twenty one mages, only fifteen of them including you is of age and of that number, only five are men. The first thing we will do is get you a proper staff, you have to be tired of carrying that ugly bone thing around.”
“It is all I have left of my father” Sawyer replied. “I will not get rid of it.”
“Bone is notoriously difficult to concentrate with” Tabitha began. “It is a little better than using nothing at all. My staff is made of Snakewood, the densest wood known and only grown here in Perdomo and even then only in a particular orchard. It is naturally a knotty wood, horrible for building anything made for strength but perfect for casting with. The more knots in a staff, the easier it is to hold on to your thoughts which results in a quicker casting. That cow bone you are carrying around doesn’t have any knots and isnt very dense, the center is hollow. You can do so much more with one of these, the level of control is like comparing shooting an arrow at a barn three feet away compared to shooting an arrow at a wagon from 50 feet away. It is still likely a good archer could hit his mark but not with the accuracy and speed of anyone shooting at the barn”.
“I still want it” Sawyer replied. Sawyer had found out his real father’s thoughts on the staff, he believed it was made from dragon bone. Predator animals were better to use for materials than grazing animals, the problem was that predator animals normally didn’t have big enough bones for a staff which made prey animals better suited. Dragons had been dead for centuries if they ever existed but it didn’t change the fact Sawyer knew his staff was better than casting from any wooden one, dragons were believed to be magical creatures.
“If you say so” Tabitha replied. “Well we can get you much better clothes and other things you might want.”
“High Mage” Sawyer said.
“Yes Sarlon” Tabitha replied.
“You have nothing I want here” Sawyer began. “There is nothing you can say to make me think otherwise. I recognise my situation, I am not daft. I spent my life running from it in Colten, there are no riches or anything else that will make me like this situation. So can we stop pretending this is something I like or am going to like? I think it puts everything in the right perspective. Now what is going to happen to me?”
“You are very outspoken” Tabitha began. “Well we need to find you a master, after that you will begin your study. I don’t think that would be hard to do at all, there are only two apprentices in all of Colten. You still need to meet the Queen and we have to start training your own mage guard. Of course we still need to get you your medallion, those are the main three.”
“Can’t he just use Samson’s medallion?” Candace asked.
“No” Tabitha replied. “Samson is finishing up his time in Maduro and he will need his back, not that he is likely to learn anything.”
“Is that where he was sent?” Candace asked. “You should have told me, I think I would have liked to see his face while he was there.”
“Which is the reason I said nothing” Tabitha replied. “You have the chance to make a match with that one, if you would have went you would have just spoiled everything.”
“Why would he do that?” Candace replied. “The laws are plenty clear.”
“For someone like him, being in Maduro had to be soul crushing” Tabitha replied. “He went from being the Queen’s favorite to being taken down a few notches.”
“We both know the only reason he had the Queen’s favor is because Penelope or Phoebe is interested” Candace replied. “How am I supposed to compete with princesses?”
“Because you are a mage” Tabitha replied. “And you are prettier than both of them. Besides, I am sure you could share him if you wanted. The kingdom needs more mages and the easiest way to get more is from a union between two mages.”
“Master we both know whenever I am not your apprentice that I will be sent far away from the capital” Candace began. “That is the main reason they gave me a home in Maduro, to keep me pacified.”
“Well how about we go pick up Samson” Tabitha began. “He has to go back to the queen anyway and we are heading there.”
“Won't you get in trouble?” Candace asked.
“I am the High Mage” Tabitha replied. “And I am bringing back a new mage and one I knew they wanted anyway.”
“Thank you master” Candace replied.
“High Mage” Chews said entering the conversation. “I thought you said we don’t have to go back there for a while.”
“Oh get over yourself” Candace said dismissively. “Going to Maduro isn’t going to kill you.”
“I’d still rather not” Chews replied. “Can we wait for you outside city limits?”
“No” Tabitha replied. “Now get everything ready. Sarlon you missed your meal but I will have something packed up for you, right now you need to clean yourself up so we can hurry and get out of here. I want to be in Maduro in before the week is out and sleep on one of my own beds”.
CHAPTER 4
“Alright Sarlon, since we are traveling in a carriage there are only so many spells I feel comfortable with you doing since you are nothing but a hedge mage” Candace said.
“Hedge mage?” Sawyer asked.
“Someone that has never been taught the right way” Candace replied. “I doubt your family knew what they were doing and I am not going to risk my life finding out. Now the first spell we are going to do is called mage light. We will work our way up from there to other spells that I think you may find helpful that are not dangerous while we travel. But before we cast a spell, tell me what do you know about the power differences between mages.”
“Not much” Sawyer lied.
“Pretend water is magical energy” Candace began. “Some mages only have a cup of water while people like our High Mage could be considered a barrel of water. Some spells only require a very small amount of water to be spilled. Other spells could call for a bucket’s worth of water, the person holding the cup would be unable to perform them. We are not going to talk about affnities or anything else right now, just pure magical power.”
Sawyer listened to Candace go on about magic and listened a
s she told him everything he had already known. What Sawyer wanted to see though was what was in her spell book. Sawyer’s father was an extremely strong mage but his spell book skipped over a lot of spells Sawyer had learned elsewhere. The spell book he had memorized focused on combining affinities to make more powerful spells, it was heavy on specialization and negligent on the basics. Sawyer didn’t get a chance to actually finish the magic academy in Haven so he knew there were things he was not aware of.
Sawyer stayed to himself mostly, he ate alone at his own table and could tell the high mage wasn’t happy because of it but let him continue to do it. Sawyer practiced the spells Candace had shown him so far and pretended to be worse than he really was, sometimes mispronoucing words when in reality just a thought could have launched the spell. During any kind of rest Sawyer went at it with his sword, he thought he was close to perfecting his initial strike. His father had often taught him the first strike could end a sword duel against a superior opponent if delivered quickly and precisely, Sawyer could draw his weapon and strike quickly but only recently did he think it was getting close to perfection. Sawyer’s days were filled with riding in the carriage, practicing spells or going to sleep. He was horrible company for the two women and knew it, most of the time they spent their days either trying to teach him something new or gossiping about various mages or the princesses who it was obvious neither one of them really liked. Sawyer thought it was the fifth or sixth day when he notice Candace’s face light up with glee.
“Here is the best city in all of Perdomo” Candace said pointing to the city gates. “The city of Maduro which is quickly becoming known as the City of Mages. All of our female mages have a home or estate inside of the city. I have a sizable estate given to me by the Queen here complete with slaves.”
“I don’t think that is anything to brag about” Sawyer replied.
“I am sixteen with an estate and servants, how is that not something to brag about?” Candace replied.
The Mage of Mages 2 Page 3
