Quill

62. Looking for Group

Martel woke feeling a little deflated. He had looked forward all fiveday to see Shadi, and his anticipation had only increased when he found out about the play. Now he felt separated from yet another important person in his life.

He did his work in the apothecary with a muted expression, following instructions from Mistress Rana as usual. "You are quiet," she remarked. "Good I hope that means you are listening intently. Because with all the fools getting injured at these celebrations, w...

61. Cobbled Streets

On Solday, Martel reflected on the past fiveday. He had attended celebrations in two mansions and eaten more expensive food than he ever knew could be found together, he had proven his magic against more advanced students and in front of Morcaster's nobility, he had seen a play inspired by his own deeds, enjoying another party after that, and tonight he intended to repeat the experience with Shadi. It felt like five years of good fortune crammed into just five days.

Solstice celebration...

60. Stranger than Fiction

The bare stone walls of the Lyceum felt dull compared to the decorated marble halls where Martel had spent twice an evening this fiveday. Not only the ornaments, but the lack of music, rich foods, and any sign of festivities despite this being summer solstice. The Lyceum could only boast of one thing; it had magic. As he arrived in class, Martel found a seat and waited for Master Fenrick to begin this Manday's lesson.

"The fiends of the Nether." Their teacher glanced over the classroom....

59. Encore

The four duellists entered the centre of the hall with all eyes on them. "Martel, let me have your knife. I will subdue Guillaume and we can handle the battlemage together. You just distract her until then."

Having no better plan in mind, Martel silently gave his knife to Eleanor. Opposite them, Cheval drew his dagger with a smirk, clearly relishing the situation. The battlemage simply looked angry, her hands already glowing red with magic.

"Begin!" Lord Fontaine called out.

58. A Challenger Appears

Glunday morning passed quietly, Martel tending to his chores and classes as usual. Tonight was the feast at Eleanor's home, but he did not feel nervous the way he had before Maximillian's; nothing would be required of him, after all. He would show up, eat as much of their expensive food as he could, and maybe even enjoy himself in Eleanor's company, assuming she had time for him. He gathered there would be other students and mages, which on one hand made him feel less out of place; on the oth...

57. Plays in Motion

When Martel woke, the events of yesterday felt more like a dream, but a pair of black shoes next to his own boots dispelled any such notion. He opened the drawer to look at his borrowed garments. Inside his commode, the clothes lay neatly folded together. The value of the silk shirt alone made him uncomfortable. Martel pushed the drawer shut and got ready for breakfast and kitchen duty.

~

Since he spent breakfast helping, Martel only saw Maximilian at lunch. "Hullo. Last night was...

56. Marbled Performance

As Martel and Maximilian descended the stairs to the grand hall, they had a perfect view of the ongoing celebration. Across the wide space, tables stood scattered, decked with food and drink. In small groups, the guests congregated around these, supplying themselves with all manners of nourishment. While some of it looked recognisable to Martel, he could not claim to know the dishes. Various kinds of roasted fowls, for instance, but stuffed with vegetables. He reached out to grab a boiled egg...

55. Clothes Make the Mage

Shortly after the first bell had awakened the Lyceum, Martel heard a knock on his door. This had happened only a few times, and he wondered at the occasion. Dressed just in his long nightshirt, he unbolted and opened his door. On the other side, he found Maximilian. "Good, come with me. The tailor is waiting."

"Tailor? I have clothes," Martel replied confused.

The young nobleman gave him a look. "Martel, you are not attending my father's feast in a plain, brown robe. Not to mentio...

54. The Gifts of Friendship

Summer might have arrived with the promise of celebrations throughout the city, but Martel still had his ordinary schedule to get through. That meant two hours working for Master Jerome on Soldays. His tasks had started to become more interesting, though. Because of his work for Mistress Rana, Martel had been entrusted to help making ink. The process resembled what he had learned to do in the apothecary, preparing ingredients and adding them step by step. Gallnuts, sap, vitriol, and water mix...

53. Early Days of Summer

For more than a month, Martel barely left the school except to spend an hour or two with Shadi on Soldays. He practised his magic diligently, chasing the elusive mastery of air. He worked every day in the apothecary, learning about the properties of the different reagents he prepared. He found time to help Master Jerome on occasion with different chores, earning a few pieces of silver for himself. And the days lengthened until summer solstice was upon the city of Morcaster.

~

"Wha...

52. Standing Against the Wind

Martel stood in the Hall of Elements, listening intently. After a full night's sleep, he felt a lot better and able to focus on his teacher's instructions.

"Air is the most intangible of the elements. It is everywhere, surrounding us, which can make it feel as if it is nowhere. For when you reach out with your magic, what exactly is there to grasp?" Master Alastair stared at Martel, letting the question sink in, before he continued. "For this reason, most mages struggle the most to lear...

51. Seeing the Signs

Martel did not appreciate this Solday morning. He had barely fallen asleep, it felt like, before the first bell rang. He continued to doze off in bed, nearly missing breakfast. He dragged his feet working for two hours in the washery; to his luck, Master Jerome did not supervise his work, being busy elsewhere in the workshop.

No such fortune followed him to the apothecary. Both Nora and Mistress Rana were present. As the latter began explaining Martel's task, he struggled to even keep h...

50. Cutting Strings

Maximilian had surprise on his side as he strolled through the shattered door, wielding a war hammer and a shield. Yet the Broken Blades were all veterans, accustomed to danger and swift to react. Recovering quickly, they grabbed the nearest weapon to fight back, whether club, sword, or spear. In the back, one man reached for bow and arrow.

A spear came against Maximilian, who deflected with his shield. At the same time, he brought his hammer down on the shaft of the spear with an empow...

49. The Broken Blades

Martel could not see, speak, or move. He felt the bandits carry him around before ungently dropping his body down again. The rumbling of wheels told him he lay in a cart, being transported somewhere. All the while, the leather string with golden coins tied to it choked his throat. Worse than his difficulty in breathing was the suffocation of his magic. As he had never been without his gift before, he had never known how its loss would feel. A chill had sunk into his bones. When he tried to re...

48. Strung Along

Arriving at the apothecary for his morning work, Martel once again met only Nora. "It's starting to feel like you're here more than Mistress Rana," he jested.

"Oh, she's here plenty except if she's out of the city to gather herbs and such," the apprentice remarked. "But I think she's waiting to see if you stick to it before investing more time in you. Not a lot who'd work one bell every day for free."

"I guess I'm not like a lot of people." Martel smiled.

"I suppose not. But...

47. A Cold Touch

Martel woke refreshed after a solid night's sleep, feeling good about himself. He had witnessed an injustice and used his power to correct it. Even his weak skills in magic had been enough to handle that thug and scare him off. He could only dream of what he might accomplish once his powers grew further.

In the apothecary, only Nora was present like yesterday. She greeted him and gave him some quick instructions on his work for the bell.

"Hey, I have a question for you," Martel sa...

46. Bread and Balm

Martel rarely if ever enjoyed his lessons in combat magic on Maldays, but today, he was more eager to get through them than usual. When he had made it home last night after visiting the homeless children, it had been after last bell, and Eleanor was already asleep. He tried to catch her alone at breakfast, but her friends did not allow that to happen, and Martel was not interested in discussing anything within earshot of them.

His first lesson and his work in the apothecary kept him bus...

45. The Monster Within

Hitherto, second bell on Peldays had been empty on Martel's schedule. Thanks to his new arrangement, those free hours were now devoted to the apothecary. When he arrived, he saw no trace of Mistress Rana; instead, her apprentice Nora waited for him.

"Hullo," he said cautiously.

"Hey there. Today it's just you and me, so I get to order you around." Her mirthful expression took the sting from her words.

"Alright. Is Mistress Rana teaching a class?"

"Nah, she is in the la...

44. What Ails the Heart

Next day was Solday and the resumption of Martel's regular schedule with the addition of his new daily task in the apothecary. First though, his old duty of assisting the artificer beckoned. Two hours of doing small works of maintenance followed. Dull, but Martel felt no need for excitement. Between the journey to the Stone of Archen and yesterday's troubling event, his appetite for adventure was sated. Still, he could not help but feel curious about what currently took place in the city, and...

43. Against the Stream

The journey home proved uneventful, which Martel was thankful for. The visit to the Stone of Archen had given him more excitement than he needed, even if the students themselves were to blame, himself included. And while Martel was no stranger to rough sleeping, he had gotten used to his own bed in his own room. Not to mention proper meals and freshly baked bread that the kitchens of the Lyceum could provide. As much as he respected Master Fenrick's knowledge of all matters arcane, his skills...

42. Burnt Children

The small band took a few branches from the campfire as torches and headed for the ruins. The dark hindered their progress. And they stumbled around a bit until they found the door that led down.

Light still streamed in from above as they entered the moon chamber. Without hesitation, Cheval stepped onto the sigil of the Jester. Alain joined him on the next symbol of the Warrior. All of them stared at Martel. Swallowing, he entered the beam of moonlight by taking the place of the Sage. S...

41. It was Pity Killed the Beast

Since they had arrived one day early, the small band had to spend a day waiting for the convergence. Master Fenrick kept them busy with various exercises as demanded by their teachers back at the Lyceum. In between, they gathered firewood and filled their waterskin, and they explored the ruins further. The latter did not yield any results such; anything of value had long since been removed. Only the subterranean chambers remained.

"What do you think is behind?" The question came from Ma...

40. On the Threshold

For another three days, they followed the wide road north until at last, Master Fenrick diverted their course west. Travelling on dirt roads, the land grew wild. As their teacher explained, this was no coincidence; people usually did not dare to dwell near Archen ruins, for good reason.

It took another day before they saw the first signs of civilisation. A broken stone ward, perhaps once used to offer directions to travellers; lying shattered in pieces, the reading could not be decipher...

39. On the Road

On the morning of their departure, Martel still felt a little apprehensive, but he assumed they were all in good hands with Master Fenrick. And out of six acolytes that he would be travelling with, two were his friends.

Of course, one was decidedly not his friend, but Cheval had kept a quiet attitude ever since his humiliation, especially with Maximilian around.

Once breakfast had been dealt with, Martel fetched his cloak and other warm clothes, his waterskin, and the large canvas...

38. The Question of Khiva

Note for Novices: I don't think I properly sent out email notifications about the last chapters being made available on your tier. So before you read this chapter, I suggest make sure you haven't accidentally skipped over any of the previous chapters. Sorry for the confusion, and enjoy the chapter!

 ~~

"Master Fenrick? You mentioned how magic is the same in different places, but we have different traditions." Martel looked at his teacher while most of his fellow stud...

37. Dancing Stars

"Master Alastair, may I ask a question?"

"Always." His teacher looked up from the pile of dirt in the Hall of Elements. "What is it?"

"Mistress Juliana told me yesterday we're going to some stone of Archen. What is that?"

"Ah, yes. Which teacher is taking you?"

"Master Fenrick, I believe it was."

"Good, good. He knows most."

Martel pushed the dirt with his foot. "But what's the trip for?"

"Didn't Mistress Juliana explain?"

"She said it was about...

36. Silver Lining

After the intense events of the faire, Martel was happy to wake up on an ordinary Solday. He looked forward to assisting Master Jerome and practise his magic according to his own schedule. Since he forgot his chore last Solday, Martel felt particularly eager to make up for it.

His task turned out quite ordinary. An enormous pile of big feathers from geese lay before him along with a knife. For the next bell, Martel sharpened them into quills. As it turned out, the school went through qu...

35. The Rooster and the Egg

Glunday passed with little excitement; as Manday came around, it promised to be eventful. It was the end of the spring faire. Besides the final revelry, the travelling players would perform their last play. But first, Martel had two lessons in theory of magic. The second of these could be a drag to get through, consisting of practical exercises to improve their magical endurance, but Martel looked forward to the first class of the day; every time, he learned about things he could never have i...

34. Shared Spoils

At breakfast, the same spectacle happened as last night's supper. Once Martel had taken a seat, novices and acolytes alike filled the table. A few asked eager questions of Martel, but his curt responses curtailed their inquisitive behaviour; he was not in the mood to relive the events.

"Move over." Maximilian's words made several of the students hurry to make room for him, allowing him to sit opposite Martel.

"Maximilian, how was it to fight a berserker?" someone asked.

"Qui...

33. Staying Grounded

His face still sore, Martel applied Eleanor's balm to his cheek as the first thing when he woke up, just as he had done yesterday when coming home. Relief came quickly and he sank back into bed, dozing for a while longer. Thankfully, his kitchen duties on Pelday lay at lunchtime, not breakfast.

He wolfed down a hearty meal an hour later and went to his first elemental lesson of the day. Compared to learning water, his first foray into magic, Martel found earth far more amenable. It resp...