“Next!”
Julian realised that he’d reached the front of the queue. Now that he was closer, he could see the sign reading ‘New Student Support’, with a depiction of a smiling man. The man sitting at the desk was a shorter, scholarly looking fellow with glasses on, and the expression on his face was anything but smiling. Glasses that he was currently glaring at him through. No doubt it had been a long day.
He walked up to the desk, starting to open his mouth when he was suddenly interrupted.
“Name?” snapped the man, tapping his pencil impatiently against the desk. Julian was taken aback, but spoke up, lest he incur further wrath.
“Julian… Julian Renning… sir.” he stammered, as the man began flipping through the pages of the book before him. He suddenly wondered if there had perhaps been a mistake, and that he hadn’t been admitted to the Royal Mages’ College after all. His unfounded fears were soon assuaged, however, as the man stopped flipping, pointing at an entry two-thirds of the way down the page.
“Renning… Julian! Let’s see here…” the bespectacled man muttered to himself, as he read across the rows. “Royal Mages’ College of South Stravenium… isn’t that good for you.”
He turned the book around and handed the pencil over to him, long finger pointing to a box on the page.
“Just sign here for me please, and then I can get you on your way.”
Julian took the proffered pencil, quickly scratching out his signature on the thick paper. As he handed it back, the man didn’t even bother looking at him, instead pulling open a filing cabinet from under his desk. He rifled through it, before pulling out a piece of paper that seemed to be a map. The man at the desk smacked it down onto the table, spinning it to face Julian in a move that he’d obviously done many times before.
“We are here,” he said, pointing to a red circle that said HERE “Luckily for you your college is a walking distance away. Follow this line, that’ll take you to the College of South Stravenium.”
The man traced his finger along a line that weaved through the streets outlined on the map. He pushed the paper towards the young man, beckoning him to take it. Julian picked it up, and started to stammer out a thank you when the man spoke up once more.
“Exit over there,” he said, pointing to a large gateway. “Any questions? No? Fantastic. Have a great day.”
The man smiled, a sickeningly sweet grimace that didn’t reach his eyes. He was obviously done here.
“Th-thanks.” Julian said, picking up the map and walking towards the exit. He was going to have a hard time constantly checking it while carrying two suitcases, but he supposed it could be much worse. While this wasn’t the only train station in Stravenium, it was the only one that the train through Vardenton stopped at. If he’d been assigned to a College that was further north he would have to have navigated the sprawling public transport system of the city. He would have to investigate that someday, it was the only thing quite like it in the whole kingdom, none of the other cities or towns were really big enough to warrant anything similar. But after spending his whole day on a train, Julian was glad to be close to his destination.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
It was slow going through the city streets. While easily walkable, it wasn’t like the College was around the corner from the train station. He was forced to constantly stop and verify the street he was on with the map, and almost got lost a few times. The streets were bustling with energy and life, people were walking in and out of shops as the work day wrapped up, and Julian kept hearing snatches of conversations, mundane windows into a tiny percentage of the people who lived in this grand city's lives. As he turned the second last corner, he noticed something that instantly made his heart leap. Coming towards him from the other end of the street were a group of 3 imposing figures facing off against a raggedy looking man holding a rusty dagger. Their blue hoods were lined with segmented pieces of metal, and the robes that wrapped around their torsos were clad with expertly crafted armour pieces that looked like they’d be able to take a serious beating. Strapped to their backs were long spears with a wicked looking point, and at each of their waists was a longsword. The King’s Guard, charged to keep peace on the streets of Stravenium.
It was due to this elite fighting force that the city, as big as it was, hadn’t devolved into sheer chaos. While crime existed, like it did everywhere, there were no especially dangerous areas, no slums where crime gangs reigned supreme as they did in some of the poorer cities of the Kingdom. This was because of one simple reason. Every member of the King’s Guard was a Runebearer.
A magic user.
“Stand down!” bellowed one of the blue robed soldiers. The dagger wielder snarled, and his eyes began to glow with power.
Julian didn’t know much about magic, nothing beyond the basics. But it seemed he was about to get his first practical demonstration. A blue robed man stretched his hand out, and a blue glow flared from his fingertips. The dagger flew from the hand of the criminal they were facing off against, blade pointing towards the guard. In a smooth practised movement, the man stepped aside and grabbed it by the handle. Simultaneously, a woman in blue stomped her foot, sending a short blue shockwave travelling out from beneath her, causing the ragged man to stumble to the ground. The third member of the King’s Guard swiftly clapped a pair of cuffs on the man, and the glow faded from his eyes as he sealed them with magic. No doubt the handcuffs were designed to restrict the flow of magic within the body, rendering Runes useless.
The King’s Guard picked the man up, no doubt carrying him off to be thrown into a cell. That was the reason Stravenium was so safe. Low level petty criminals were dealt with swiftly and effectively, as the Guard, effectively made up of former Delvers and elite soldiers, were extremely overpowered when it came to the level of most street thugs, even those with Runes.
The three King’s Guard members strode off, one of their number carrying the man over his shoulder. Julian could only watch in shock and awe. Would he one day command such fantastical abilities as those? Even though it had been a relatively uneventful showing by Stravenium standards, hence why the other people in the street had barely reacted, it was the first time he’d seen real battle magic used. Everyone who was a mage in Vardenton used their magic for mining, with Runes specifically built around drilling gaping holes into the ground. It didn’t really make for exciting entertainment. What he’d just seen, however, was a taste of what he wanted to one day be able to do.
Once more, Julian picked up his suitcases and headed down to the end of the street. If he hadn’t completely read the map wrong, he should be turning onto the street that housed the Royal Mages’ College of South Stravenium. He only had just over an hour before the deadline outlined in his acceptance letter passed, so he hoped that he somehow hadn’t been given the wrong map.
Luckily, turning the corner put those fears to rest. It stood out straight away, an imposing, yet beautiful blackstone building clad in soft dark wood. He could see a great many young man and women entering in front of him, and putting all that aside, huge characters spelled out “Royal Mages’ College” in the old script.
He had made it.
Julian strode forward, almost giddy with excitement, especially after the encounter with the Runebearers earlier. He was going to become a Runebearer, and after that, he was going to join the ranks of the Delvers.
It was time to begin his new life.