The Reluctant Mage: Book One in the Zandar Series (5 page)

“Interesting,” his uncle said. “Well, we better get upstairs and get some sleep. We are in a bunk room at the back of the hall. You got the top bunk.” He said with a smile.

The next morning they set out before most travelers hit the road. Their plan was to get just beyond some ruins of an old village uncle Kris said was little more than rubble. There was a light fog in the air as was typical the closer they got the coast. Marko unpacked his wool cloak and buckled it on. There was no reason to arrive to the orphanage with a cold.

They rode into a hilly area comprised mostly of slate. Uncle Kris said that the Universite had a giant compound within its walls where the grounds were entirely covered in slate. The hills caused the road to turn sharply periodically to save the road builder from blasting through the tough rock.

As they made one particularly sharp turn to the right, they came across a man standing in the center of the road.

“Welcome travelers,” the bearded man said with a smile. “Today is a fine day, isn’t it? Well, fine for me and my men, that is. Today is the day that we relieve you of your money and supplies.”

“We don’t want any trouble. We are on the Emperor’s business,” his uncle said. “Just let us pass.”

The man’s smile faded as he listed to Marko’s uncle. “Well, well, well, an Imperial lackey. Hey boys, come out and greet the Emperor’s man.”

Marko looked behind him as three men walked onto the road. Like the man in front of him, they looked disheveled. Their clothes were threadbare. Their swords, however, looked to be in good condition.

“Hey Morris,” said one of the men behind him. “I don’t want any Imperials that can report us. I think we need to take more than their money.”

The man named Morris chuckled. “I see your point. Sorry my new friends. This really isn’t your day.” He slowly drew his sword and began walking towards them.

“Marko, I hate to say this, but I need you to hold off that man as long as you can. I will take on the men behind us.” With that he turned his back to Marko and drew his sword.

Marko had just drawn his sword when the leader swung at him. Marko remembered the appropriate block for the strike. The loud clash of the two swords hitting each other was deafening. Marko felt the impact to his arm because he did not deflect the block correctly.
Concentrate
he told himself. The man tried a low sweep to Marko’s legs which he did a better job of deflecting. He could not back up because his uncle was right behind him engaged with the other men.

Marko decided to go on the offensive and lunged straight with his short sword. The man looked surprised as he parried Marko’s stroke. Then his face showed pain as Marko’s foot drove into the man’s left kneecap. Marko’s father had taught him that combat was not about playing by any man’s rules but your own.

Marko heard what sounded like wolves chasing galloping horses. As he turned around, he was shoved to the ground by one of the men behind him. Two of the men ran passed Marko in a sprint.

Whoosh
. Both men were engulfed in flames so bright and hot that Marko had to look away. What he saw were three men on horseback abruptly coming to a halt. Marko immediately recognized one of the men by his black cloak. The Imperial Mage leaped of his horse and knelt down next to Marko’s uncle. In all the fighting, Marko did not notice the condition of his uncle. He had a large gash down the left side of his chest and a cut on his left thigh.

“Milkon!” the mage ordered. “Tie that man up next to the boy.”

The mage looked down at Marko’s uncle. He pulled a cloth back from his pocket and dropped a blue gem into his hand. Suddenly a soft blue glow surrounded the mage’s hand. He moved his hand over his uncle’s chest wound and began a chant in some language Marko had never heard before. Marko saw a thin blue line connect the mage’s hand to his uncle’s chest. A moment later his uncle’s bleeding stopped. He thought he saw the wound close a little bit, but he was sure his uncle seemed more at ease. His eyes were closed but he somehow seemed peaceful.

The mage sat down on the ground and put the gem back into the pouch. He gave a slow sigh and stared at the ground. “He will be ready to travel tomorrow.” He seemed to say to himself. Then he looked at Marko, “You are the ones from the inn last night?”

“Yes, sir” said Marko tentatively. “We were on our way to Rau City, when these men stopped us. If you had not come by, I am sure they would have killed us. Will my uncle be all right?”

The mage looked down at his uncle before answering. “Your uncle will be ok. His ribs protected him from any lethal damage. I am not a trained healer, but I was able to stop his bleeding and expedite his natural healing process.”

He looked up to Marko and his eyes peered into him. “I sensed you on the road. I recognized your signature from the inn. Are you carrying anything that is very old or something someone important gave to you?”

Marko thought about what the mage was asking. If he told him about the necklace, would the mage take it? “I have this old sword my uncle gave to me.” Marko unsheathed the blade and offered it to the mage handle first.

The mage took it and studied it for a moment. “No, this has no signature, although it appears to be very old.”

“Wait.” Marko said. “My uncle and I just came from a cave that is very old. My uncle said he is working for the Imperial Council and is doing research there.”

The mage gave my uncle and appraising look. “Well, if he is on Council business then we need to get him back to the city. We have a wagon back a ways. You both will be travelling in it. Just tie your mule to it and he’ll be ok.”

The mage stood up and grabbed the bound leader of the bandits. “Are you working alone or with another group?” he demanded.

The man looked up to the mage and said. “I’m not going to tell you Imperials nothing!”

The mage sighed for the second time in as many minutes and said, “You then are found guilty of attempted murder of two Imperial citizens. Your sentence is death to be carried out immediately.” The man’s throat just opened up in front of Marko’s eyes and he fell to the ground. Marko looked at the mage who was already standing up and putting a dagger back into his sheath. Marko never even saw the stroke that killed the man.

Several minutes later Marko heard a wagon rumble up the road. An older Imperial soldier was driving the horses and pulled to a stop. At that point the other two soldiers had put his uncle into a makeshift gurney. They gingerly carried it to the wagon and slid him in the back. “Hop up there young man.” said the cheery driver. “We’d best be keeping up with the Kapetan.”

“I’m Kaplan Dremir,” said the man has he helped Marko up.

“Thank you, sir. I’m Marko.”

“Good manners on you, but I’m no sir. Save those for officers. Just call me Kaplan”.

“Yes sir, I mean, Kaplan. Thank the Maker that you happened along when you did.”

“No coincidence there Marko. We have been looking for those bandits for several weeks. They are never where they ought to be. The Kapetan said something about you two not moving on the road. That’s when they took off and left me in their dust.”

“Why was a mage looking for bandits? I thought they were too busy fighting the King’s army.”

“Well that’s usually the case, but these bandits killed one of the most prominent merchants in Rau City. The Emperor could not let that go unpunished. More and more bandits are plying their trade as troops are pushed to the front lines. There just aren’t enough men to patrol the whole Empire. What was it that you two were doing out here by yourselves?”

“We are going to Rau City. My uncle works for the Empire and was going back to report. He is a professor at the Universite.”

The guard’s eyes got bigger. “So he is a mage, too?” he asked.

“No, he does not have any magic. He lectures on history. Well, he did. Now he does research. I helped him before I knew I was going to the Imperial Orphanage.”

“The orphanage? Good for you. That is where I got my start.”

They spent the rest of the day talking about the war and what he should expect at the orphanage. Every mark or so, they checked on his uncle who was still sleeping soundly.

Just as the sun began to set, they saw the mage and two riders camped at the side of the road. The Kaplan told Marko that he would be sleeping in the wagon with his uncle. After a quick meal he ventured back to the wagon and sat on the bench. He noticed that the mage was joking with the two men. He did not seem like the killer that incinerated two men or executed the leader in the blink of an eye. If it wasn’t for his clothes being different from the soldiers he would assume he was another guard on patrol. This did not fit with the image Marko had for Imperial Mages. He assumed they were all seven feet tall, travelled alone and conjured fire with a flick of the wrist. Well, some of his assumptions were true. He did not actually see the mage shoot fire from his hands, but how else could it have happened?
He will ask the Kaplan about it
he told himself before drifting off to a much needed sleep.

His dream started like others. He was in a large bedchamber. The ceiling was at least twenty feet tall and supported with well-oiled rafters. Next to him was a small table with only one chair. On it was a goblet and a pitcher of what looked like water. On the far side of the room was a tall, golden mirror. Marko walked over to it. He had been in this chamber before, but he had never seen a mirror.

Marko’s image stared back at him. There was nothing unusual about his face but he was wearing a shimmering, silver robe. When he looked back up at his face, he saw a smile. “Welcome, Marko, I have been waiting to speak with you.”

Marko did a double take. His image talked to him but he did not move his mouth.

“I know this seems a bit strange, Marko, but this is the only way I can talk to you right now.”

Well, at least this dream is fun
, he thought.
Might as well see where this goes.

“Ah, hello there. I should already know what I am going to say to myself. Let’s see, what is the secret to life?”

“You can’t know what I am going to say Marko, because I am not you. By the way, no one knows the secret to life.”

Marko just stared at his image and waited.

“Good. I think you are starting to get it. We don’t have much time. You are going to wake up soon.”

“Who are you?”

“For now, let’s discuss what I am. I am that necklace around your neck. Or, more specifically, I am a spirit that resides inside the crystal in your necklace.”

“If you are a spirit, then why didn’t you talk to me in my dreams when I first put you on?”

“I have been sleeping for many years. There is no useful purpose in lying in a dark hallway. I awoke when you picked me up. Still, it was not until you used magic that I fully regained my senses. Until then, all I could do was influence your dreams.”

“Wait. Those dreams were not mine? And what do you mean about me using magic? I don’t have any magic. Oh, wait. There was an Imperial Mage that took out some bandits and healed my uncle. Did you wake up when that happened?”

His image shrugged its shoulders. “I cannot see what you see unless it is in your dreams. I am a spirit, not a ghost. A spirit can only be awoken with the use of magic. We are companions of mages, not civilians.”

“Civilians, you mean non-mages?”

“Anyone who cannot use magic is of no of interest to us. They cannot battle. You are waking up. We will talk again soon.”

The next day went much the same as the rest of the week. The only change was that his uncle regained consciousness. He was still too weak to sit up, but he was able to participate in conversations with Marko and the Kaplan. Marko had no more strange dreams that week.

With this uncle awake, Marko felt more comfortable asking the Kaplan questions about the mage. As it turns out his name was Cyan. Like most mages working for the Empire, he came from an aristocratic family. Cyan’s father was the governor of Knin, a city in the eastern part of the Empire. “Don’t let his upbringing fool you.” The Kaplan said. “He has spent five years in service to the Emperor. He’s shed his blue blood long ago.”

For the rest of the week, he only saw the mage and soldiers at evening camp. They spent the days scouting ahead of the wagon. Since the soldiers’ mission was complete with the elimination of the bandits, they were travelling in the same direction as Marko and his uncle. They reported to the Regional Commander stationed in Rau City and saw it as their duty to see that Marko’s uncle was delivered safely to the Council.

During the afternoon of the seventh day of their journey, Marko finally saw the enormous wall surrounding Rau City. Even from a distance, he could tell that the city was massive. They spent over six marks travelling and the city became bigger and bigger.

“You’re not likely to see anything bigger than that in your lifetime.” The Kaplan said. “Less of course you visit the King’s city when we take it over. Kastav City is even bigger.”

Just before they arrived at the main gate, the wagon and riders turned left and approached a smaller, well-guarded gate. “This is the military entrance,” interjected his uncle. “We are in luck to be travelling with these soldiers. It can take all morning waiting in line to get admitted to the city.”

Sure enough, the guard at the smaller gate saluted mage Cyan when he approached. All of them were ushered through the gate without so much as a second look.

Once they went through the gate, they entered a large courtyard. Marko could see what looked like barracks lined up in all directions.
The amount of soldiers that must live here would dwarf those of most villages,
he thought. Everything looked chaotic until Marko began analyzing his surroundings. Everyone was moving, but with purpose. He saw whole platoons of soldiers marching in formation, cavalry soldiers drilling in fields, and what he could only guess to be cannon being dragged on some sort of wagon behind horses. His father had told him about these new devices. They were supposed to be the new weapon of the war but both sides found them to be very inaccurate and difficult to move. He said that cannon were best deployed in large field engagements, but lately the war had been made up of skirmishes. Some of the border forts, however, had them as a fixed defense.

“I have orders to deliver you personally to the Council, but my guess is that you would like to check in at an inn first?”

“Yes, and thank you, Kaplan,” his uncle said. “Can you deliver us to the Ashford Inn?”

It took them nearly half a mark to just exit the Army compound. When they did, they entered what appeared to be a guild neighborhood. Marko’s uncle said that many tradesman set up shop here so that they could do work for the Army. Unlike the previous town they visited, Rau City’s streets were straight as an arrow.  Streets that went east and west were numbered. Some of the streets heading north towards the castle in the center of the City were lettered but others had regular names. His uncle said that any name he read represented a hero to the Empire. These were all Emperor’s Cross recipients. As a new recipient earned a Cross, a street would be renamed.  His uncle thought there were around twenty-two heroes of the Empire, two of them common soldiers.

The wagon stopped at a very impressive looking inn. There were four ornate columns holding up a two story roof. There was a balcony on the second floor with several men and women sitting at small tables drinking what appeared to be tea. Marko looked down at his clothing, self-conscious of how he looked after so much time on the road. He began to dust off any dirt he found on his faded tunic.

A hand grabbed his arm and he looked up at this uncle. “Every person you see in this inn is on the Emperor’s business Marko. Don’t worry about how you look and the other guests won’t either. We all have different roles to play in service. No role is less important than the others.”

True to his uncle’s word, no one seemed to stare at them when they walked into the ornate lobby. “Welcome back Professor!” said a small, well dressed man as they approach the counter. “Are you all right? It looks like the road was not too kind to you?”

Marko’s uncle had made a remarkable recovery since the attack. He walked with obvious stiffness, but his cuts were now just red lines on his chest and leg.

“Let’s just say that I am glad to be back, Proprietor Slade. It was the dream of sleeping in one of your beds that kept me going,” he said with a chuckle. “This is my nephew Marko. He will be staying with me tonight.”

The proprietor bowed slightly to Marko and said, “Welcome to you too, young gentleman.”

They decided to have a meal at the inn only after they both took very warm baths in their room. Marko marveled at the tub that was in their side room. It had pipes that delivered hot water directly to the tub. His uncle tried to explain to him the concept of how it worked, but it seemed a difficult concept to grasp. Marko did not have to understand to enjoy it, though! He could have stayed in it all day.

During dinner they discussed Marko’s departure the next day. His uncle would introduce him to the headmaster and pay his tuition. He was told that he did not need to bring anything, as the orphanage would provide Marko’s uniforms and books. He said that a personal weapon would be acceptable. Marko could never imagine being parted from his uncle’s gift. It had saved his life once already.

His advice, as always, was short and to the point. “The next few years will allow you to cast your die in life. You will have the opportunity to find out where your talents lie. Study hard and listen to your teachers. Just as in life in general, this is a competition. You are competing against other students as well as yourself. Challenge yourself to do your best. That is all your family or the Empire expects of you.”

That evening the dream came to him again. He found himself in the same chamber and immediately walked to the mirror. “Are you still here?” he said looking at his image.

“Of course. As long as you have the necklace, I am always with you. We just have to use your dreams to communicate unless you want to use your magic.”

“I told you before, I don’t have magic. Anyway, who are you? Do you have a name?”

“I must have a name. The strange thing is that I can’t remember what I am called or used to be called. It is still very confusing to me. You can call me Stranac for now. I know you are Marko. At times I can even hear the names you call others in your mind.”

“You mentioned a battle before. Is that the dream I had about everything exploding?”

“I know that I train mages. Those dreams you had were my experiences. Whether mine personally or of those I trained, I don’t know. I wish I did. I am sorry, being asleep for so long has affected me.”

“You said that you train mages. That is not going to help me. Is there anything else you can do?”

Marko’s image seemed to smile. “Of course. Battle is more than magic. Battle is strategy, it is tactics, it is cavalry, it is infantry; it is more, always more yet never enough.”

Marko thought about that for a moment. “Well, I am not a general, but I do know how to fight. My uncle gave me an old Imperial blade. I am not bad with it. Can you teach me more?”

“Sword work? I have not taught that for a long time. It is only taught as a last resort; when the mage has exhausted his magic. But if you want to learn that first, very well.”

“I told you I am not a mage. How do you teach me anyway?”

“Pick up that weapon over there.”

Marko look where his image was pointing. On the small table rested a narrow sword. It was about three feet long but only an inch wide. The metal seemed to be twisted in some way.

Marko walked back to the mirror holding the unusual sword. “This does not look like any sword I know.”

“That is a rapier. It is the weapon of gentlemen. Think of the type of weapon you use.”

Marko thought of his short sword. When he looked down at his hands, he was now holding it. It looked exactly the same down to where the eagle was scratched off.

“Now that we have gotten that out of the way. I need you to ask me to enter your mind.”

“What do you mean? I am dreaming. You are already into my mind. Or at least I am dreaming you up. Same thing, really.”

His image chuckled. “Think what you will about who and what I am. That is not important now. I am limited in how intrusive I can be with your mind. To actually teach you the sword, I have to guide your movement. You will lose the ability to control your body. I will be in control. So, again may I enter your mind?”

“Well, I guess so. I still don’t…”

Marko’s sentence stopped. He looked at himself in the mirror but could not move. He tried to take a step away from the mirror but his legs would not obey.

“Don’t worry. You are all right. I am in control. Now I am going to start by taking you through a series of sword forms. This will loosen you up. If your mind is to learn, it must be confused. It must think that you are actually doing these forms. Your mind believes what you tell it. Now watch.”

To Marko, it was like he was in a wagon watching a teamster next to him drive. He experienced every move but he was just along for the ride. The first two forms looked familiar to Marko. They were forms his father taught him and ones he practiced regularly. The third was completely foreign. It involved as much kicking and punching with his elbows as it did thrusting and slashing with his sword.

By the time he/they were finished, he was thoroughly soaked. He also found that he was in control of his body. “I could tell you were not used to that last form. That was called the Ples. It allows you to fight in tight spaces and when you are so exhausted that you cannot deliver killing blows with you sword.”

“It was strange watching me do those moves. But how does that help me? I mean you were doing them. I will just forget when I wake up.”

“You will remember everything I did at a very deep level. The more that you perform a move, the easier it will be to both copy and decide when to use it. Now I want you to practice that last form. Try to remember exactly how I did it. If it does not feel right, then repeat from the last point that felt right.”

It took Marko at least three times longer to complete the form. He had to regularly repeat areas that did not feel right. When he was done, he was literally dripping wet.

“That was not bad for your first try. Having practice with the sword helped. It should also allow you to learn faster. When you practice in the real world, focus on your kicks. That is your biggest area of improvement. You should be able to control the exact point where your kicks do the most damage. Remember to end your kick past your target. If you are kicking a kneecap, end your kick behind your adversary’s knee.”