by R. W. Weston
"I will have to keep an eye on this boy myself," he thought as he sat there, still wondering if the council had made the right decision.
Chapter 7
Apprenticeship Begins
hat night Roland slept like a baby. He knew he had done well on his tests, and when Maglin came in to tell him that the council wanted to meet with him in the morning, he knew it was good news. He dreamt of home and being with his father, helping on the farm and in the wood shop. He knew that it was just a slight case of homesickness and it would pass, besides he was about to learn to become a wizard.
Ty was happy that Morlela was able to come and visit with him that night, she was in a sad mood, and he didn't know why. They sat and talked some more about what she was doing there and why. Her father had fallen considerably ill a few cycles back and was laid up in bed.
With no sons to care for the farm the family was in dire need of help. When a wizard of journey status came by, they asked for his assistance in healing. They were a poor family, but proud and although they had no money to pay the wizard, they offered their eldest daughter to work for them.
It was agreed that when she reached an age to leave home she would journey to the meadow in the center of the forest. There she would be taken to where she could work off the debt owed.
"Will you please tell me why you don't seem happy tonight? Last night you were all smiles, and tonight it seems as if you are someone completely different?"
"You have not heard then," she replied. "Your friend has finished his testing, it usually lasts a few weeks, but he learned in the four days. That must mean he passed all his tests, or they feel he will not make it. If that is the case tonight is the last night you will be here, for some reason they are afraid of him, and since you came with him they will send you away to if he is not admitted."
"Listen, everything will work out fine, they have to let him in. Maglin said they would," he said, now upset that this may be his last night here, even worse he had really fallen for Morlela.
"I have an idea; we may get in trouble for this but for me it will be worth the risk, remember that fountain in the middle of the labyrinth?"
"Yeah, what about it?"
"Let's go sit by it and look at the stars, it will be romantic."
She brought a couple of the robes that the servants wore, and together they left the dormitory. At night there are very few people out on the grounds, mainly because they all need their sleep for the next day's activities. They traveled quickly through the bushes. They arrived at the fountain a little after full dark, the stars shining like a million fireflies floating around against a black canvas.
The dome of magic didn’t hide the illusion from inside you could see the clear night sky; the moon was full and shown like a giant beacon in the middle of a black lake. The two of them sat next to the fountain for most of the night, it wasn’t until pre-dawn that they decide to go back to their rooms. They were afraid that someone would see them and report them to the house master.
"Ty, will you promise to do something for me?" she asked.
"Sure anything," he answered.
"If you are sent out today, will you promise to come to my fathers’ house in two cycle’s time? I will be home by then and I want you to meet my father. I would also like to see you again. Will you promise me that?"
"Yes, I would be honored to, but let's just hope that I'm able to stay, at least a little while longer."
"Thank you," she said, giving him a hug.
He stood just a little taller than she did; they were close enough that when they faced each other they could almost see into the others eyes. As they separated from their hug, they kissed. It was the first one for both of them, so it was naturally a little odd. But it was pleasant enough. With that they parted ways, each returning to their own room.
The council had been up early that day, discussing once again the fate of Roland. He was summoned by Maglin a little after first light. They walked down the long hallway in silence. He didn’t see nearly the amount of servants and workers as normal. "Something must be going to happen," he thought to himself. There was not much more time for idle thought for they were now in front of the large doors to the summons hall.
"Presenting Wizard Maglin, seeker and trainer, and Roland der Causland apprentice applicant," came the cry from inside as the two guards on the outside swung the doors open. The admitting council was already seated at the front of the room. Roland now knew who they were from his testing, he stood tall and proud as they walked through the doors.
"Roland der Causland, present yourself before the council," Petron called out. He walked to the middle of the room and bowed to one knee.
"You have been tested by the masters of the elements, we as a council have come to a decision on what is best for the order and for the fate of the world," there was a pause, the room was now so quiet that it appeared everybody was holding their breath waiting for the outcome. "We are going to allow you to train," there was an audible release of the air they were holding.
"We will allow you to stay under strict guidelines that you must follow. We are afraid that you cannot leave us just yet and the further advanced you become in your training the chances of leaving alive are not in your favor. We will not jeopardize the world for one person, we know that you can become very powerful, we only desire for that power to be used for the benefit of mankind as it was intended."
"You will stay on a rigorous schedule of training. I have been told that you will most likely learn quickly. But be warned we will know if you try and access the power without the supervision of a trainer or wizard. Is all this understood?" Petron said with a patient voice.
"The terms are agreeable Wizard Petron, I will be happy to follow all that you require and be grateful for all that you can teach me," he humbly replied.
"Very well then your clothing will be removed and you will be placed in an apprentice’s room. Your training will begin in the morning, this will give you today to collect your thoughts and prepare yourself. For the time that is now ahead of you will not be easy."
He was led to a new part of the castle, higher up in one of the towers. These walls were not decorated with beautiful tapestries; they were just the cold stone. A small window here or there allowed in light and at night it was lit by candles placed in little niches along the wall. There was a solid wood door placed every few partels, most were open and the rooms vacant.
The room itself was unimpressive, a great deal smaller than the one he had been granted before. It was a small rectangular room with a small bed, a dresser with a vanity above it, and a small wash basin on it with a fairly large wardrobe. He opened it and found a large amount of the brown robes, trousers and white shirts that he had seen the other apprentices wearing. The only difference was a strip of blue cloth on all the openings of the robes, signifying he was an apprentice.
"The rest of your clothes are being destroyed, you will be required to dress in the clothes that have been provided there will be somebody here in the morning to collect you. Tomorrow you will be shown the way around and you will be given chores, along with your lessons. Rest well this night it will be your last," said the servant, leaving him alone in the room.
He lit the small candle that was sitting on the dresser and looked around the room. It wasn’t much to look at but this is what he would call home for a while. Inside the dresser he found some underclothes, amazingly they looked like they would fit him well. The robes were made of brown wool, at least on the outside; the inner lining was almost a silk, allowing the body to breathe in the warm day.
He got undressed and donned his new wardrobe. They fit him perfectly allowing him to move freely. He sat down on the bed and wondered what his training would be like. The tests went fairly easy for him, so the actual training couldn’t be much harder. He laid down and quickly fell asleep.
Ty was pacing the floor like a caged lion when Maglin came in to tell him that the council was allowing Roland to stay on as an appren
tice. He was told that he would be joining the servants in their quarters and would be required to work for his keep. Ty quickly accepted knowing that it would put him closer to Morlela.
The room that he was given was not as big as the one he had been in but there was still a large window facing an inner courtyard. He was required to replace his clothing and to wear only the clothing that was provided. It was for the sole purpose of being able to distinguish who he was to the house hold. He later found that he was put on the same work rotation as Morlela, and better yet there rooms were just a few doors from each other.
Belen der Andrel, head of the patlins and apprentice to Petron woke Roland up early the next morning. He didn’t give him much time to freshen up. When they walked out of the room he got a glimpse out one of the windows, the moon was just passing the night apex.
"What time is it?" asked Roland, trying to wake up, and not fall down the steep stairs.
"It's time for your orientation; we need to have it done before early dawn, that's when you will begin your chores."
Belen took him around the castle showing him the kitchens, laundry, stables, and living quarters of the wizards. He was given his assigned duties and expected to fulfill all that was required of him. He would start the day out by doing his chores, after which he would be given over to the scholars and religious men to be taught about the world.
The last thing of the day would be the magic. They do this deliberately to see if you can handle the stress of controlling magic when all your natural resources are used up.
"Can you tell me how many apprentices there are?" asked Roland.
"Sad to say there are very few, with you joining the ranks we have less than fifty. We have fewer patlins, and fewer journey. If we do not start getting more in then we will soon lose control over the Legion."
They went back to the kitchen to help the cook start breakfast. First light was just starting to appear, the night sky slowly giving way. It made him think of the times when he was back home, getting up at this time to help his father with the chores. He was put to washing the dishes; he never realized how many people where living there, until he had to start washing. He was surprised that a few of the pans where taller than he was and nearly twice as wide making it an unwanted and undesirable task.
Ty was given the opportunity to work out in the garden, having been raised in a woodshop he knew very little of gardening. That was something his mother and sisters would take care of. The overseers, as he would call them, were very patient with him. They showed him how to handle the small flowers so he would not destroy the roots. More than a few times he would intentionally do something wrong, that way Morlela would come over to help him out.
After cleaning for the entire morning Roland felt like he could sleep through the week, but he was not given the chance. He was taken to meet with Master Telm, master scholar. He was a quiet man; he was elderly but kept very well. When he talked you could almost hear the cycles of wisdom that he possessed.
"Master Telm, this is Apprentice Roland der Causland," said Belen, "he has come to learn the ways of the order, and to seek from your great knowledge of the past, present, and your thoughts of the future. Will you let him learn?"
"Let he who enters these walls, be of sound mind for understanding," said Master Telm.
His office was not a real office at all but the large library. Roland looked around the library; it appeared to be the size of the town square in Kirchwin. At times it amazed him how such a large building seemed to fit on the small island.
"Please take a seat apprentice," said Telm.
He took his seat across the table from Telm who handed him a stack of papers to go through. All this involved his educational history, that of his family, as well as a detailed history of where he was from. Telm told him this was to help in understanding the growth of the country and where the new apprentices were coming from.
Laid out on the table was a large map of the world, some of the places he had never heard of. He wanted to see the whole world, to be able to experience all the different kind of customs there were. But for now he would have to be content to stay where he was.
Telm came back to the table with a large stack of books. "These my boy are the first things you will learn, this is the complete known history of the Norlarian Realm, dating back from the middle of the second age. I expect you to spend a few hours a day reading through these. By doing so you will learn all you need to know of the current leadership of this realm. And perhaps you may be able to help with its future."
Roland started reading, he found it interesting that the first accounts of history the entire land was part of this realm. It wasn’t until the end of the second age that the first civil war broke out and caused the dissention and separation of its people. He understood that many believed it was brought about by the supposed murder of the king.
He noticed that throughout the first book that history had a way of repeating itself. The people would be well off, and there would be peace in the land. Then a few of the lower class would feel the need for equality, a riot would ensue, and a part of the realm would break off.
The rest of that day was spent in the library; he was able to take his evening meals there. He had not realized how late it had gotten, finding the reading to be intriguing. When Telm came back into the room to tell him it was time for him to go see Belen to get his patlin mentor, it was time for his training in magic for the day.
Belen introduced him to Ariela; she was an older woman who had come to the house many cycles ago. She had never been able to advance from patlin status so she was give charge of many of the new apprentices to help guide them through the weeks of basic magical training, helping them to call and control the elements.
It was well past nightfall before she allowed him to return to his room, he would only have a few short hours of sleep before he was required to report to the kitchens again.
The next several weeks passed by the same. He would find himself either in the kitchens, laundry, or out in the gardens for most of daylight, he would then be taken back into the library to do his research. Through all this he discovered the mention of all different races. Including Elves, Trolls, and Dwarfs, there were many more mentioned but so few had any history. Each one of these races in turn left the humans for the lack of intelligence, or fear of annihilation with their barbaric way of life.
The Nolarian realm continued to retain the largest part of the land. In their arrogance many of the humans believed that the center of the kingdom is where the creator started time, and thus believing they are a chosen and elect race. The largest city in the realm was Nevel, which he found meant "Beginning of Time."
He found that the Nolarians produced most of the grains, fruits, and vegetables for the rest of the world. Although they had once been a united country over time they split apart by large wars. They now had peace between most of the separate realms. Trade was at the highest it had been in many decmen. The warm summers and strong winters had provided the water and good planting soil that was needed for production.
After he was finished with learning all there was about the realm Telm brought him another series of books containing the full history of the Brinkley realm. The history was not as extensive because it was newer, but it followed the same pattern. He had the realization that although people fought for fame and power, the strongest in all the nations were the farmers and working class. Without them the nation would cease to be strong and quickly diminish. To become a good leader someone would just have to know how to control this element.
The current leader of the Brinkly realm was, Duke Wilkern ar Quillin, who held his high seat in the city of Ulminin. Ulminin was known for their fine silks and linens. It was believed that the cloth makers raised special worms that would produce the finest of silks. Because cloth making was the principle source of income for the realm, they held their secrets tight on how they were able to create the color dyes.
The last of the human realms was
the Ullmin, won by the last battle in the sixth age by Hedro ven Ylia, his family have been the leaders of the realm ever since that time. Shrelak the capital of the realm was established as the major fishing port, because they bordered the Sea of Caporian, most of the men are fishermen.
He noticed a slight difference with the Ullminins, in the fact that they recorded the smallest amount of any civil disputes. Stemming from the reason that most of the men are fishermen and the sea is there common enemy and salvation. Each one has a great respect for their neighbor, being able to go out on the open sea and risk their life.
"Apprentice Roland," said a servant standing in the doorway. "Your presence is requested by Wizard Petron."
He stood up and followed. They walked in silence the entire way. He was wondering what Petron wanted with him. He had not broken any of the rules that were laid out before him when he was admitted. In fact he had been extra diligent in everything that was asked of him. When they got to his office the servant told him to wait while he announced that he had arrived.
He stood there for what seemed like an eternity, waiting for the servant to return and let him in. He jumped when the door started to move ever so slightly without a noise.
"Come in and sit," spoke a rough voice.
The headmasters office was the largest he had seen in the entire castle, the shades where closed, so the room was lit only by a small fire and a few candles. He had not seen Wizard Petron since the day he was admitted into the program. He took a seat in front of the large desk that Petron sat behind and quietly waited for him to speak.
"How is the training going for you apprentice?"
