A Crucible of Souls (Book One of the Sorcery Ascendant Sequence) (43 page)

Eventually he looked up.
“
Sit, please,
”
he said in a quiet but firm tone.

Elpidia sat in the chair in front of the desk, trembling hands clasped in her lap.

“
I’ll forgive your tardiness,
”
he continued.
“
I know what the unfamiliar streets can be like. But I trust this will be the last time?
”

“
I’m sorry. I’ll know to leave a little earlier next time.
”

“
Indeed. Anyway, to business. I’m sure you have more valuable things to do with your time than chat with me.
”

Elpidia gulped, wondering how to broach the subject.

The Big Man obviously noted her discomfort.
“
Let me start.
”
He leaned his elbows on the desk.
“
You need someone killed.
”

“
Oh, no,
”
gasped Elpidia, shocked.
“
Nothing like that.
”

“
I was misinformed. What is it that brings you to my humble office?
”

Elpidia swallowed, suppressing a cough.
“
I need someone’s blood,
”
she blurted.

“
All of it?
”

“
What? No, just a small amount. For my experiments.
”

Looking her up and down, the Big Man then returned her gaze with a quizzical look.
“
I don’t mean to turn away business, but… have you thought of asking this person for it?
”

“
Of course I have. I just can’t convince him, though.
”

“
I assume you don’t want this man harmed?
”

“
No. I might need more blood later.
”

Chuckling, the Big Man shook his head.
“
I’m not acquainted with drawing blood. We would need to hire a physiker, one who doesn’t ask questions when enough ducats are provided.
”

“
I could do it, but…
”
She broke off, hesitating.

“
You don’t want to be around when it happens? I’m guessing the whole business makes you uneasy.
”

“
It’s necessary, though.
”

“
I’m sure it is. Let’s talk price.
”
Gazing at the ceiling, he pursed his lips and moved his head from side to side as if calculating.
“
Twenty gold ducats.
”

“
What?
”
screeched Elpidia.

The Big Man spread his hands.
“
It’s harder than killing someone. I’ll need at least two men, a soporific to render the man unconscious, and a physiker willing to do the job. All cost ducats.
”

She could sell some of her equipment… No, it’s necessary for her research and she’d still be short the ducats. Elpidia wrung her hands, tears in her eyes.
“
But… I don’t have that much.
”

“
Then you need to convince the man to give you his blood.
”

“
Argh,
”
growled Elpidia. She stood and stomped to the door and left, leaving the man chuckling to himself and shaking his head.

Chapter Thirty-One

An apprentice sidled up besides Caldan. He was at least five years younger than Caldan and a good deal shorter. All of the apprentices around him were younger and shorter, another thing that singled him out and separated him from their groups.

The young boy brushed back a lock of wavy blond hair from his eyes.
“
Any idea why the classroom is locked?
”
he asked. A few of the other apprentices turned at the question.

“
I have no idea,
”
said Caldan.

“
We thought, well, I thought they might have told you something since you are… you know… older.
”

Caldan shook his head.
“
No, they don’t tell me any more than they tell you. I’m just another apprentice.
”

The rest of the apprentices turned back to waiting in the hall outside the classroom, except the one who had asked him the question. He had a curious look on his face.

“
Just another apprentice,
”
the boy mimicked and gave a short laugh.
“
No one your age would be accepted unless they judged you had exceptional talent.
”

Caldan shrugged.
“
Anyone with talent is usually found earlier than me, that’s all. There isn’t anything special about me.
”

The boy looked unconvinced.

“
Look,
”
said Caldan.
“
In and around the major cities, children are tested young.
”
The boy nodded.
“
And if they show signs of talent, they’re offered an apprenticeship. There’s no mystery that in out-of-the-way places there are children and adults who were never tested and have talent but don’t know it.
”

“
I guess so.
”

“
So there isn’t anything special about me. In fact, I’m at a disadvantage. You have years to learn and take in all you can here. I’ve started late and way behind anyone my age.
”

“
But what about…
”

The boy cut off as Master Theunisen approached. He withdrew a key ring held to his belt by a chain and unlocked the door. He ushered them inside and closed and locked the door after them. The apprentices moved to their desks, eager to find out what was going on. Most readied pens and paper to write down whatever they thought relevant.

Before the master cleared his throat, the murmurings and shuffling of the apprentices died to silence. Theunisen raised an eyebrow and, though it was no longer necessary, cleared his throat loudly.

“
It seems that isn’t needed today,
”
he said, and a few of the apprentices chuckled.
“
Here we are again. You’re probably wondering why the door was locked, so without further delay…
”
He opened a drawer in his desk and removed a narrow wooden box covered in inlaid metal runes.

Caldan could feel the master access his well, and what felt to him like a number of wards on the box were disarmed. He caught the faint scent of lemons. Why lemons? He glanced around, but no one else was sniffing. He shrugged and brought his attention back to what the master had to say.

“
The lesson today is on shielding,
”
announced Theunisen. He opened the box to reveal rows of metal amulets. All of the same size and shape, they were lined up one by one in slots built into the inside of the box.

Gasps came from the apprentices. Caldan grinned. Finally, they were going to study a talent he was interested in.

Theunisen ran a finger along the amulets then looked out at his audience.

“
The good news is that you’re all sufficiently advanced to begin training in shielding yourselves, which is no small achievement. But the bad news — and isn’t there always?
”
he chuckled,
“
— it’s going to take a long time for you to master this skill, for even the most basic of shields.
”
He paused as if to let that sink in.

Caldan knew he’d be ahead of the other apprentices since he understood all the theory of various shields and had experimented himself with a shield
crafting
already. The question was whether he should let on he knew. While the master continued to explain the amulets and how today’s lesson would proceed, his voice faded into the background as Caldan considered his options.

He needed to learn how to shield himself — it was essential if he were to wear his
trinket
to study it effectively. Extra lessons from a few of the senior journeymen had done wonders in developing his skill, but he was missing something, he was sure. He could hold a basic physical shield for an instant but never longer than that. The effort it took to maintain the energies flowing around him through the
crafting
soon caused a pain in his head, and after a few attempts he developed a headache. The journeyman mentioned ‘transference’ and ‘the
shaping
loop’ but wouldn’t be drawn further. Caldan couldn’t figure out what he was doing wrong, and it was frustrating to be so close. He suspected his tutors held something back.

Theunisen walked among the apprentices, stopping at each one to hand out a shielding amulet. As he did, he continued an explanation of the lesson. The amulet felt cool in Caldan’s palm.

“
The reason the door was locked today, you can probably guess, unless you have been asleep during most of your classes.
”
He smiled wryly.
“
These amulets are valuable, having been crafted a long time ago at great expense. They are true
craftings
, and what I mean is that the best metals were used to create them, and the masters who made them were among the best of their time. They have lasted over a hundred years, and are expected last many more centuries, not as long as
trinkets
, but long enough.
”

He handed an amulet to the last apprentice then returned to his desk.

“
All amulets are to be accounted for, by me, at the end of each class. You’ll be allowed to use them during the class, but at the end of each session they are to be returned, no exceptions.
”

Caldan examined the amulet in his hand and found it not so different to the one he had secreted in his room. Of a much better quality, but the runes and bindings used were similar. At least he knew the one he had bought should be sufficient to create a shield and he hadn’t been sold a flawed
crafting
.

Theunisen continued.
“
From now on, many of your lessons will involve using
craftings
, all of which are valuable and will be kept under lock and key before and after lessons. The next few months are where the talented and the not so talented will be separated out. Those that can translate theory to practice are not rare, but it is the strength and quality of your
crafting
that will be assessed. Some,
”
he glanced at Caldan,
“
have already shown some aptitude but must not become complacent. Stretching yourself can lead to great progress but also has its risks. Needless to say, I don’t need to tell you the penalties for attempting to steal any of these
craftings
will be severe.
”

A few of the apprentices nodded. Why anyone would want to steal an amulet here was beyond Caldan. Well, no… why someone would was obvious; why they thought they could get away with it wasn’t.

With a quick glance at Theunisen, Caldan opened his well and used his senses to examine the amulet. As far as he could tell, it was virtually the same as his. Which meant the problem was with him, his understanding of the forces or a lack of ability or practice on his part.

“
Now.
”
Theunisen ’s voice brought him back, and Caldan focused his attention on what he was saying.
“
Concentrate. The theoretical classes have prepared you for this. It’s all a matter of putting what you have learned into practice.
”

Caldan had learned that converting theory to reality wasn’t easy.

Reaching into his drawer again, Theunisen produced another box. Inside, there was a line of wooden balls arranged in size, the smallest the size of a pea and the largest fist-sized. There was also another line of balls, these made of iron.

Theunisen removed the smallest wooden ball and held it up to the room between his finger and thumb.
“
If any of you create a shield and sustain it for more than a moment, we can use this ball to test it.
”
With a flick of his wrist, he sent the ball sailing over their heads, where it struck the back wall with a loud clack before dropping and rolling onto the floor.

“
Don’t worry,
”
he said.
“
It won’t hurt if it hits you, at least not much anyway.
”
He chuckled to himself.
“
If your shield holds, then we can test with the next size up. These balls are a gauge of how strong your shield is, from the smallest wooden ball to the largest iron ball. Shields need to be tested, and the only way is to subject them to a force. I’m afraid all of you might have some bruises over the next few months, and it will take months for you to master this
crafting
skill. Be prepared for hard work, and a little pain.
”
He pointed to the wooden ball sitting on the floor and with his other hand to the closest apprentice.
“
You, pick it up please.
”

The apprentice scrambled to obey. As he picked the ball up and turned to return it, Theunisen held a hand up, indicating for him to stop.

“
First, a demonstration.
”

There was a collective intake of breath from the apprentices. Seeing shielding sorcery was rare, unless you were able to perform it yourself.

Theunisen drew out one of the amulets. In the blink of an eye, Caldan could feel him open his well, and immediately he became surrounded in a haze, a bending and twisting of light similar to heat haze on a hot day. Apprentices gawked, and a few grinned.

“
The problem,
”
explained Theunisen,
“
is that it’s hard to see out of since it covers your eyes. You had better hope you don’t need to move much if you ever need to create a shield in defense. Now, throw the ball at me.
”

The apprentice holding the ball hesitated.

“
Come now, it wouldn’t hurt even if I didn’t have a shield.
”

With a glance around the room, the apprentice drew back his arm and tossed the ball towards Theunisen.

A wave of purple motes spread out on the shield from the impact. The ball dropped to the floor.

“
The sparkles you see is the energy dissipating. The momentum of the ball is transferred to the shield and is absorbed.
”

The haze winked out of existence, and Theunisen stood there smiling.
“
It took me a month to be able to shape that shield and somewhat longer to perfect maintaining it as long as I wanted.
”
There were groans from the apprentices.
“
Don’t be discouraged. It will come, you just have to keep working at it.
”

Months,
thought Caldan. He needed to work this out quickly. He was way behind apprentices his age. They had either failed the journeyman tests and left the guild or passed and moved up the ranks. And he needed to be able to wear his
trinket
.

Despite the sorcerers’ best efforts, there was a demand for
trinkets
beyond the ordinary, with active
trinkets
that could be used by non-sorcerers most in demand. Talk among the apprentices had some
trinkets
fetching up to tens of thousands of gold ducats in underground auctions. He needed to progress as quickly as he could to be able to shield himself, though a physical shield was only the start.

Theunisen rubbed his chin and scowled at the apprentices.
“
What’s the delay? Get to work!
”

Chair legs scraped on the floor as the apprentices shifted to comfortable positions, each holding their amulet tight in one hand. The room became quiet as they concentrated.

“
Here is where your lessons become harder,
”
instructed Theunisen.
“
Look at the amulet, the side with the linking runes and energy runes. You must turn theory into reality, and be able to maintain that reality for long periods of time. In the beginning, it will be hard, but over time it becomes easier until it requires little effort. Now, enough time wasted. Concentrate. If you have any questions, raise your hand and I’ll come over.
”