Ch1-2: The Apprentice

The writing stick made a wild scree as the teacher drew across the board, finishing the last leg of the diagram’s triangle. A mass of indigo arrows, circles and words sprawled all over the white writing-platter. The man at the board indicated the top tip of the triangle with a double tap of the stick.

“This scribble here represents Lord Zemi Dreigiau — please excuse my lack of drawing skills,” the teacher gave a sheepish grin. “I’m a healer, not an artist.”

A few snickers met his ear as he turned towards the students. A small white curl escaped the confines of his violet cap, just at the peak of his forehead. His friendly green eyes observed their reactions, working to warm up the discussion. They were a group of young people, all newcomers to the city Nefol — it was his responsibility to ease their jitters and introduce them to their new home.

He tapped at another corner of the triangle.

“Here we have the Dragon Apprentices,” his gentle gaze slipped from face to face for effect. “That may be you one day. But only if you train hard to pass the Trial of Meeting.”

The tip of the stick rested on the last corner of the triangle.

“This is where everyone else sits in the equation — including yourself. We are all students of life, for time is an unending trial of discovery. However, only a few will become a Myfyriwr, an Apprentice of the Arweinydd.”

A hand lifted in the middle of the class. The teacher pointed to it with his stick, pleased to have questions so early in the lecture.

“Who are the Arweinydd? How are we supposed to learn from them?” asked a hesitant voice.

A tranquil smile crossed his face in response, “The Arweinydd aren’t so much a ‘who’ as a ‘what.’ It’s my opinion that they don’t exist as a “self”… not like you and I do. No one is certain of exactly what they are. We do know there are many of them and they don’t appear to originate from our world.”

His stick indicated the vastness of the darkening night sky through the window.

“As for learning from them — there is a way. Though of all the Arweinydd that we think exist, there’s only one that has shown interest in reaching out to our people. And that would be Lord Zemi Dreigiau.”

“The others don’t like us?” the innocent question came from the right side of the class.

The words came with a pondering look, “I don’t know that the concept of ‘liking’ and ‘not liking’ is relevant to their kind. From what we’ve come to understand, they work somewhat differently than we do. Even in the most basic of things.”

A different voice rose this time, “Why should we want to learn anything from an Arweinydd at all?”

The query was met with stifled giggles in the back of the room.

“No, no. Good question,” the Apprentice joined them with a good natured laugh, templing his fingertips together thoughtfully. “Why? Well, it’s like asking why learn how to walk and talk from your parents.”

Curious eyes watched him, mulling over the answer. So he continued.

“What do you have to lose by learning all that you can?” he leaned back tapping the stick against his leg. “The more knowledge you have, the more strength you’ll have. The better you know how things work, the better you can make things work. Knowledge is the key to opening every door in life. That is why this School in Nefol was established. And the knowledge that Lord Zemi Dreigiau shares with us far exceeds anything that our people could have found on our own.”

“But why would he teach us?”

There was a momentary pause, then a slow sincere answer, “I… am not certain. I have never asked him.”

“You’ve talked to him?”

“Why, of course! I believe he enjoys speaking with us as much as we enjoy learning from him.”

“Where is he? How can we talk to him?”

“He exists a different plane of existence than our own,” the man began to pace slowly in front of the drawing board. “The only place we can speak to him is the Host Gate. There, his image and words can cross the boundaries into our world. But even there, he doesn’t manifest in the physical manner that you or I do.”

“If he’s so powerful, then why can’t he come into our world without the Host Gate?” a hand from the far side of the room rose along with words of doubt.

The teacher gave a grim look, “Lord Zemi Dreigiau has his reasons for the things he does. Perhaps he doesn’t really need to. After all, his natural being is one of spirit, not of material.”

An indigo sketch of something that resembled trees began to form upon the surface of the board as he turned to draw.

“It’s by adopting his methods of planting and tending that we found ways of conserving food long enough to be able to make it through the winters without a yearly migration. He’s helped us understand our lands and given us knowledge of the beasts of our world – both dangerous and gentle. And he has never asked for anything in return.”

The Apprentice opened his arms with a soft smile.

“Nothing. We at the School of Nefol honor him as students should honor their Master. We strive to learn and understand all that that he offers to bring to our knowl-”

The class turned to look as a persistent and heavy-handed knock sounded at the door. The teacher gave a slight scowl, trying to ignore the interruption the best as he could. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the knock came again.

A soft snicker came from the back of the room as the door opened of its own accord, without the teacher’s welcome. Following that, a head poked bluntly into the room.

The intruder’s light green eyes were similar to the Apprentice’s, except for the lines of sternness that narrowed them tightly. Where the teacher’s expression was soft and friendly, this younger man’s mouth was curved down at the corners in a perpetual half-frown. The impatience of his expression spoke volumes… not a word needed to be exchanged between the two.

With a gentle sigh, the teacher turned to the class, “I believe that’s enough for today. We’ll pick up this question and answer session tomorrow.”

The class filed out, gathering books and cloaks, a line of cheerful chatter at being allowed out early. Once the room cleared, the Apprentice leaned back against his board with a face that juggled disgruntled concern.

“SoYa…” the other man began, speaking his older brother’s name.

“This had better be good Tsu,” the teacher sighed, massaging his temples. “It’s the third time this week my class has been cut short for one reason or another. First it was the false Nergh attack. Then it was–”

“Yeah. I’ve heard all about your terrible week. Sorry to say, it’s not about to get much better,” TsuYa’s dark frown scowled the importance of the situation.

“What’s going on?”

“AsaHi,” TsuYa’s frown turned grim.

The teacher’s eyes widened at the sound of his Promised’s name, “Is there some word?”

“More than that. They found her.”

AsaHi had a tendency to wander and explore — SoYa had always known that. She was, after all, born within the Gatherings. It was the nature of her people to move with the seasons and she often spent days traveling between the settlements.

However, this time, she had vanished without a word — nothing more than the nods of the students confirmed they saw her departure. When days began to turn into weeks, SoYa couldn’t help but worry. Those who were sent to search for her were unsuccessful in uncovering any clue of her passage.

“The found her?” SoYa echoed the words. “Is… is… she okay?”

“I don’t know. She’s asleep and no one’s been able to wake her up. It looks like she’s been asleep for a while,” came the slow answer.

“Where is she?” the Apprentice gathered up his belongings in a muddled rush.

TsuYa suddenly grasped his brother’s shoulders in both hands, giving him a slight shake. “SoYa. They found her in the Host Gate.”

SoYa froze, “Host Gate?”

“Yes,” the younger brother lowered his eyes for a long moment. “They found her with the Book of Ritual… she must have taken it. They think that she tried to summon Lord Zemi.”

“WHAT?” SoYa’s eyes widened. “Are you certain?”

TsuYa nodded curtly and repeated, “She had the Book of Ritual. There was no mistaking it.”

A low moan escaped from between half parted lips, “Noooo… why?”

“You know why,” the sharpness of the younger man’s eyes cut as he retorted. “She doesn’t believe Lord Zemi exists. Well, I suppose she had to find out the truth for herself.”

“How can you say it so…” SoYa’s brow furrowed at his brother’s disdain, then he turned to make his way towards the door.

TsuYa grabbed his brother’s arm a second time, stopping him. Warning was heavy in his voice, “She’s in big trouble, SoYa. You know the Council punishes non-Apprentices who try to enter the Gate, not to mention stealing the Book of Ritual and summoning the Patron without approval!”

“Stealing! She wasn’t–”

“She took the Book, SoYa,” his brother snapped back. “What else will they call it?”

“I…” SoYa felt a heaviness bottoming in the pit of his stomach.

“Look. Don’t get involved in this,” TsuYa’s lips curled back, “You’re pitting yourself up against the whole Council if you do. It’s just what they’d want to pin on you to get you out of the way. They’re already spreading rumors that Lord Zemi struck AsaHi down for her impudence. The gentlest thing that they’ll slap on her is banishment. And if you defend her, then son of the High Guide or not, you…”

SoYa’s voice was no more than a low mutter, “What do you expect me to do?”

“Stay out of it. You can’t do anything for her if she drags you down with her,” TsuYa crossed his arms with a huff. “The Council won’t miss a beat and you know it.”

“I just can’t do that!” without so much as a glance back, SoYa rushed out the door, books and papers scattering behind him.

His brother’s glittering eyes traced the white papers as they fluttered to rest on the floor. Then TsuYa’s low sigh filled the room, “SoYa, you’re such a fool.”

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