Chapter 6

“I’ve been robbed.”

“Hehehehe,” Xavi’s laughter annoyed him even more than usual, “You said you wanted a beast, but this is glorious. Stupid human. How much did the beast tamer take you for again, oh mighty Master Dreamwhisper?”

“Shut up, Xavi.” he groaned

“Oh, come now, master, it was not that much over the usual price for such a beast. Reaching the southern gate will only take us an extra week.” Xavi let loose another high-pitched laugh.

Rather than responding, he just groaned. An hour ago, he had found the merchant he was looking for and entered the usual barter. He had hoped to save some coin on a sturdy mount and cart for their trip; rather than saving coin, he had paid 120 gold for the thing. That was three times what it should have been.

With the guards shutting down Holmberg, the merchants took the opportunity to enact the ‘supply and demand’ tactic and raised their prices for everyone stuck outside the gates. Over five hundred people were stranded at this gate alone.

Currently, they were sitting on a small cart a few miles down the road. They were being pulled by an incredibly harry beast that was a cross between a tortoise and a hippopotamus. It had short, fat legs and a wide body that shook the ground with each step. The beast stood roughly five feet tall and had deep brown fur covering its slightly matted body. And it smelled like it had never touched water in its entire existence, making the experience worse. It kept clicking its beak and shaking its blunt head in defiance every time Silas tried prodding the stubborn animal to move faster.

The merchant had told him it was called a Muskox. It was a magically evolved creature capable of stamina and strength spells, making it perfect for hauling. To Silas, it was just a bastardized chimera that had been magically altered to take on the worst traits of both species. It was slow, but he had to admit that it was strong.

He let go of his annoyance and looked to take in his surroundings. To the right of the road stood a large grove of tall and robust trees. They were covered with short, finger-wide leaves, and the trees were lined with game trails and natural shrubbery. The green, yellow, and orange trees swayed in the breeze over the rolling hills that led to the open world of the north. He could hear the wildlife far off in the distance, setting down for the day.

In contrast to the right, the left was a desolate open field of brown grass where Holmberg's stone and wooden walls stood one hundred yards away.

Sometime later, when the sun hung low, he heard the first rustle of leaves nearby. Silas readied himself for a fight but was stopped by Xavi.

“Master, wait.” Placing a clawed hand on his shoulder. His wings were tucked close to his body. “Oh look, your first kniphorn,” Xavi said with an evil smile as a large horned animal pushed its way out of the low-hanging branches. “First blood goes to you, master. Make it quick.”

Silas stepped off the cart with conviction and pulled out the blade. As soon as he did, the kniphorn’s eyes turned dark green and gold, exuding nature and life mana. It let out a screeching call and charged at him.

Silas ran diagonally away from the cart to draw the creature away. Once it was ten feet away, he shifted direction and planted his foot. The next second, the beast lowered its head and tried to swipe at him with its ebony horn as it passed. Silas was quicker and ducked under the pass, then drove his sword into its heart from behind its shoulder. With a gush of blood, the kniphorn flew past him, pulling out the blade. It fell and slid across the dirt till finally skidding to a halt, going still after a moment as the last of its life-blood left its body.

“No wonder you worship the excrement gods. Are you capable of not turning every situation into a mess, or are you just that stupid?” Xavi said flatly.

“What are you talking about, imp? That was a perfect kill against a charging beast, and with a blade, no less. It could not have been more perfect.”

“Yes, but you are here to train your spell work, not the blade. Collect the corpse, and we move on.”

“How do you expect me to know the spells if you do not train me first?” He asked angrily.

Xavi sighed. “Humans. Close your eyes and feel the power inside you. Let the flames of what was given flow through your body. Pull that power from your core, through your channels, and direct it into your palm. Build it until you cannot hold it any longer, then release it. It is like your mage light, but take control and hold it.”

Silas took a few calming breaths and sat to search for his core.

With his little mana, he had never truly felt his core before, but after some time, his mind was drawn to a warmth in his chest just below his heart. He moved his mana sense around until he finally pinpointed the space.

He reached in with his mind and found the flame. It burned low with green and purple wisps like a match in the wind about to extinguish. The more he focused, the brightness of the flame increased. After he felt comfortable, he attempted to move the flame down his channel into his shoulder. It did not burn like back in the abandoned home, but he could still feel the pain as it moved down his arm. Once it reached his hand, he stopped and envisioned a ball of flame. He held that feeling in place, trying to build it further.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

After what felt like an hour of pain, he finally opened his eyes to see a bright green ball, fingers clenched around it. A large smile found his face, and without a thought, he threw his hand out and released the spell. The ball shot forward three feet before falling limply to the ground and disappearing.

Xavi broke out into a full-body laugh, unable to talk. When he finally regained himself, he said, “Now that is what I imagine your teenage years were like!” rolling around laughing again.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, he started again, “A full two minutes of building, and that was all you got. This time, push harder and control the release. It will help. We will camp here for the night, and once you have finished setting up, we will continue your practice until you get it right.”

With an annoyed grunt, he got to work.

Two hours later, the campsite was surrounded by burnt patches. Slowly, he was able to build the mana fast enough to cast defensively. Xavi would charge at him to keep him under pressure. He was ready to try it for real.

He stood in the dark outside the camp with his back facing a large tree they had been using as target practice. He had been working on constantly holding onto his core space to use a spell at any moment and had already seen a considerable curve in his ability.

“Now!” Xavi shouted.

Silas spun around and quickly constructed a ball of green flame in his hand. He threw it with all his strength straight at the tree. This time, the flaming ball rocketed through the air and slammed into the tree trunk, exploding in a ball of green light. Once he regained his sight, he looked at the tree.

Or what remained of the tree.

The remnants were scattered across a fifteen-foot radius from the impact. Silas looked on in shock at his accomplishment.

“Good, good.” Xavi laughed. “If you weren’t my master, I would say you need to start worshiping me rather than your shit gods for being the greatest teacher in the history of magic. But we all cannot get what we want.”

“Xavi, for the last time, I do not worship shit, so stop it.” He said, “Now, what other spells can I learn?”

The imp shot forward angrily, pointing a finger in his face, “You stupid human. You cast one halfway acceptable spell and somehow hit your target with meager strength, and you believe you are ready for more? Perfect, what I have shown you. Bloody yourself, and learn to cast multiple times with both hands. Only then will I be more open to you. Yes, this can be a potent spell, but you are in your infancy of casting it. Prove to me you should know more!”

“Halfway acceptable? Meager strength? I incinerated that tree!”

Xavi opened and closed his mouth several times, stopping himself from speaking. After a moment, he finally turned and shot off, disappearing into the night.

“Fine, run away! I don’t need you anyway!” Silas stormed back to camp and sat by the fire with a huff.

After roughly 20 minutes, he finally calmed down. He walked over to the cart for a drink of water and to check his map when he heard a rumbling noise building from the tree line. Not knowing what to expect, he built a flaming ball in his hand only to see Xavi burst through the trees with three kniphorns on his tail.

Once they reached the clearing, Xavi spun around and rapidly threw three green fireballs the size of a plum at the beasts.

The first ball to be released slammed into the closest kniphorn, removing its head. The second and third balls hit the others immediately after, one burning through the middle of its body, splitting it in two, and the last hitting in the jugular and destroying its entire spine. Blood and viscera exploded gruesomely, covering the area.

With his back to Silas, Xavi turned his head and flashed a gleaming smile at him.

Five more kniphorn quickly entered the clearing and charged as one; Xavi laughed.

Xavi formed another fireball the size of Silas’ head and threw it at the pack. It engulfed them all in a green blaze when it struck the middle. The entire clearing was lit up, and a second later, all that remained were five burnt corpses.

Xavi slowly flew over and sat on the cart next to Silas. “That is but a fraction of the power of a true Warlock. I am a familiar. Many realms call us different names: summons, soul-slaves, and many other terrible things. We prefer the former because we agree to be here and are not forced to do so, as some believe. As a familiar, I have access to your abilities directly; everything I can do, you can do better. I just know how to use it. That is why I am here. That is why all Warlocks have a familiar. This is why you need to listen to my instructions. If you do not, we will all die.”

Silas sat down and took a moment before responding, “You still have not told me what a Warlock is. What am I, and what is the mark?”

Xavi hopped down onto the log next to Silas. “I’m glad you finally asked Master Dreamwhisper. All sentient beings from all realms have searched for power through the ages. However, true power is held by the gods who rule over all. Each realm has its own gods, and for a god to grow in power, they need followers and believers. When a god grows strong enough, they can reach across the boundary of another and spread their influence.”

“Some beings are touched by gods and are, in turn, able to use all types of abilities, from spells to skills. In your realm, these people are called Battle Mages. Several millennia ago, there was one god who wanted more. He wanted to not only spread his influence but also invade the realms of other gods. To do this, he infused the ones touched by the gods with his power, and in turn, they were marked by him. Those marked ones would later become known as Warlocks. With the blessing of this god, they could use his power to expand theirs further than should be possible and use his abilities. You are the first marked one in many centuries.”

“Why was I chosen, and why did this god stop?” Silas asked.

“Some close to the gods say they rose against their betrayer and cast him out. Others say they ate him. Who honestly knows the truth? All I know is my god, our god, returned and bound me to you to aid in growing your power. What you do with the potential is up to you, but I intend to make you capable of slaughtering armies, conquering lands, or burning down the entire continent if you so wish.”

“What do my dreams mean? The ones that have haunted me since I was a child.”

“That I do not know, Master Dramwhisper. There have always been rumors about the god-touched and marked ones and their connections to the gods themselves, but there has not been an occurrence in so long that it is hard to say what it means. Maybe one day, if you speak to our god, you may ask.”

“One last question: Why have you said that we must hurry? What’s coming?”

Xavi sighed and looked up at the stars, “You are not yet ready, master. Until then, focus on getting stronger. Get some sleep. I will keep watch.”

Silas decided not to press him for answers, believing the imp would keep his word. He stood and walked to his bed roll. Before he laid down, he turned to his familiar. “Xavi?”

“Yes, master?”

“Thank you.”

“I am here to serve.”