The Sorcerer's Abyss (The Sorcerer's Path) (57 page)

“Birkar!” Magn cried out as he watched his friend go into some sort of seizure.

He watched his friend thrash about for just a few seconds before he went still, gasping for breath.

“Birkar, are you all right?” Magn asked as he helped the man to his feet.

Birkar nodded. “I’m fine.”

“What happened? What is wrong with your eyes? They glow blue!”

Magn gasped as Birkar’s skinning knife plunged into his guts. The Rook dispassionately watched the corpse fall to the ground, the hot blood painting an expanding crimson circle beneath him until freezing solid in just seconds. The Rook looked out at the frozen wasteland, nothing but snow and ice as far as he could see. Packing up as much food and supplies as he could drag on the sled, the Rook turned south and started the beginning of a very long walk in search of his prey.

***

The boys and girls surrounding the two duelists laughed and encouraged the much smaller boy as he landed another strike against his opponent. Daebian’s foe significantly out-massed him, so he relied on his speed and skill to worry away at Daniel’s defenses and landed several light blows while dancing away from the bigger boy’s slower but powerful strokes.

Daniel flicked his eyes at the other martial students, their good-natured laughter and ribbing feeling like needles under his skin. Anger at being bested by a kid nearly five years his junior, in size anyway, stoked the fires of his notoriously short temper. It did not help that even though Daebian looked like a ten-year-old, he was still only five and already a better swordsman.

With a shout of frustrated anger, Daniel charged in, ignoring another light strike against his shoulder, and used his bulk to bash away at Daebian’s defenses. Daebian found himself quickly retreating as Daniel’s fury-driven slashes set his arm tingling from the vibrations ringing through his wooden sword and into his body.

Daebian caught his heel and tripped as he backpedaled. He landed heavily onto his back, a grunt escaping his lips as the unyielding ground forced the air from his lungs. This should have declared an end to the mock battle, but Daniel, his anger clouding his judgment, pressed on and chopped at the defeated boy on the ground.

Daebian rolled to his side and covered his head as a pair of strokes abused his right shoulder, deeply bruising him even through the thickly padded training armor they wore. Several onlookers leapt to his defense and pulled Daniel away before he could elicit further punishment.

Snapped out of his fury, Daniel was able to enjoy his victory. “Good fight, but you’re still too small to beat me. Maybe when you’re bigger. That should only take a couple of weeks, you freak!”

“Come on, Dan, that’s not right,” one of the boys who pulled him off admonished. “That’s Azerick’s son after all.”

“What do I care? He is a freak,” Daniel replied cruelly.

“That’s okay,” Daebian said with a smile as he got up and dusted himself off. “I am getting bigger, and I look forward to a rematch. It’s getting late and time for me to get going.”

Daebian waved at everyone as he left the practice field. He absolutely loved sparring, but none of the kids his size proved much of a challenge, so he often chose bigger, stronger, and more experienced students to fight. Daniel was bigger than most he fought, but he knew the boy would not take it easy on him like so many others did, and he needed a true challenge to get better. The rudeness was uncalled for, however.

The evening’s dinner was winding down as the original school faculty sat around the big dining table and discussed the issues of the day. It had been two years since The Academy took over, and the transition was not going well.

“Did you speak with the council today?” Rusty asked Magus Allister.

Allister’s face darkened. “I did, and I got the same answer I have been getting the past two years. They need more time to gauge the ability of the students, and most of the students need far more general education before raising the level of applied magic.”

“Many of the children do lack in a fundamental education compared to those attending The Academy,” Rusty replied.

“That is because every student at The Academy comes from a family who can afford private tutors! Every student in our applied magic class can read, write, and cipher well enough! They have an understanding of magical theory and history, and their knowledge grows daily. Harvey is intentionally strangling the advancement of magic in this school and I will not stand for it! Our most advanced students are learning little more than an Academy novice, and our novices are learning nothing at all!”

“Maybe everyone just needs a little more time,” Joshua said. “I imagine there is still some fear at The Academy given the fact that the only previous source of structured magic education outside of The Academy was at the Black Tower.”

“It’s not about time, it’s all about desire,” Allister snapped.

The dining hall door swung open and Daebian took a seat at the table.

Miranda looked crossly at her son. “Daebian, where have you been all evening? Your supper is long cold.”

“Sorry, mother. I got distracted and lost track of time.”

“Did you lose track of the sun as well? It set over an hour ago.”

Daebian just smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Daebian barely finished half his meal when one of the older martial students burst into the room

“Excuse me, but there has been an accident on the wall,” the young man exclaimed excitedly.

“What happened?”Aggie asked.

“Someone fell, and he’s hurt bad. Evan and Brother Thomas are with him at the infirmary and me to inform you.”

Allister and Miranda stood abruptly and made haste to the infirmary. They arrived to find the field surgeon, Alex, and Brother Thomas next to the bed of a young man.

“What happened?” Allister asked.

Alex turned and answered, “He was on sentry duty. Apparently a stone gave way and he fell.”

“Will he be all right?” Miranda asked fretfully.

“He will recover from the fall,” Brother Thomas told them. “The biggest concern is that the stone landed on his arm and crushed it. It was everything Evan and I could do to save it. It is doubtful he will ever use it again, which is unfortunate since it was his sword arm.”

“What is his name?” Allister inquired.

“That’s Daniel,” Daebian answered and stepped up to the bed. “We sparred today. I was looking forward to our next fight.”

Miranda laid a comforting hand on her son’s shoulder. “Pray for him, and he’ll get better soon. Come; let us leave him to his rest.”

“I think that is all we can do now,” Thomas agreed.

“Can I stay a moment longer, Mother? I would like to make him a poem.”

“All right, but just a minute.” Miranda gave her son a tight-lipped smile and led the others out of the room.

Daebian watched the others step away and leaned close to Daniel’s ear.

“A mighty warrior, so strong and tall,

So easily brought down by a little fall,

I’ll tell you about winning,

In this rhyme I am spinning,

And teach you a lesson you’ll never forget,

On the field, you may defeat me,

But if you make me your enemy,

Your prize will be a life of regret.”

Daebian had lain in wait for nearly an hour as Daniel performed his sentry duty. He knew every stone in the wall and hid in the shadows near one he knew to be loose and made looser by his efforts. When Daniel strode near, Daebian burst from his hiding spot and shoved the boy off the wall. He then finished prying out the loose stone block and used it to crush Daniel’s sword arm as he lay stunned on the ground.

Smiling contentedly, Daebian left the infirmary, crossed the grounds, and made for his room atop the new tower. As he reached the landing occupied by his mother’s rooms, he paused and glanced into her chamber. His father’s staff leaned in a corner within her solarium just as it had done for the past five years. As Daebian turned to walk away, a glimmer of movement caught his eye. When he turned back, the staff was gone.

Daebian tilted his head and pursed his lips in thought.

“The young prince, left all alone,

To care and tend to his mother.

The boy struggles to become a man.

The king gone, seemingly forever.

In his place, the prince does stand.

He does his best when put to the test,

But what happens when the king comes home?”

The End

A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR

I hope you enjoyed this tale and will try my other works. Feel free to look me up on Facebook! You can also check me out on my
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