Sign: Snake
Buffs: Serpent’s Kiss (Romance twice as easy)
Debuffs: Curse of the Unspecified (Start the game with no gender, no name, and no other identifying feature)
Daily Card: Train to the City (Travel lightly, travel easily. All travel is 15% faster).
EXP: 1,164
Alchemy
Coagula (LVL 0, 24 SKP)
Solvé (LVL 0, 19 SKP)
Theoria (LVL 0, 23 SKP)
Botany
Tending (LVL 0, 5 SKP)
?
?
Cooking
Fire (LVL 0, 26 SKP)
Water (LVL 0, 11 SKP)
?
Homesteading
Fire Tending (LVL 0, 7 SKP)
Tidying (LVL 1, 5 SKP)
Dirt Buster: The magical branch of Purification lends this Sorcerer the ability to ‘Bust Dirt.’ Dust and grime accumulate at a infinitesimally slow rate on objects you have cleaned.
?
Speech
Logic (LVL 1, 13 SKP)
Rhetoric: The magical branch of Entreatment lends this Sorcerer the ability to heightened ‘Rhetoric.’ The structure of your arguments is smooth, regular and orthogonal. Spirits and people are more likely to agree with you.
Linguistics (LVL 0, 17 SKP)
Cajoling (LVL 0, 10 SKP)
Total SKP: 175
Inventory:
Auros: 0
Cards of Destiny: 5 of ?? Discovered
Names: 3
Vitas, The Wind Thief (Sparrow)
Gillygad, The Stiched-Up Wonder (Pitchfork)
Zinia, The Serpent’s Caress (Snake)
And just like that, I was back to the house on Austere Way.
I crossed the threshold into the familiar front room, trailing after Tess.
She had come to Mr. Beaugiron’s house, I found out later, due to a letter he had sent. While I was enjoying coffee and rifling through his puzzle books, Solomon Beaugiron had sent his dove with a quick message, enquiring when the Sorceress herself would visit him; it alerted Tess of my location.
She strode into Mr. Beaugiron’s house, full of height and confidence, but seeing Mr. Beaugiron made her falter. Tess quickly gathered herself, and said in a commanding voice.
“I’m here to collect my Apprentice.” She fixed me with a meaningful stare. Was I supposed to understand what it meant?
Solomon slowly stood up, and approached the Sorceress.
“Mistress, it has been so long…” he said, “Seeing you again after all these years, it is a rare delight.”
I wouldn’t have believed it was possible, but Tess blushed very deeply. She recovered, somewhat, but some of that confidence she always carried with her was lost.
“Right. Well, it’s nice to see you, too. I must go. Quickly.”
She added the last bit, and looked straight at me.
I didn’t want to go with her, but I didn’t think I had a choice in the matter.
“Won’t you stay for a little?” Solomon asked. He looked so sad now. I felt pity for him, but apparently Tess did not.
“I believe my Apprentice came over for just a quick visit. We don’t intend to stay longer.” She glared at me.
“Uh yeah, I was just popping by … for a visit. Definitely.” I said under the heat of her glare. That was not what was going on, but I played along.
“Tess, really, I think there are things we must discuss. The way that things ended…” Solomon started, but Tess stopped listening.
She strode over to me, grabbed the scruff of my collar like I was an errant puppy, and made her way out of the cottage with me in tow.
“No, I really can’t Solomon. Some other time.” She said over her shoulder.
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It turned out Tess had a horse! He was standing just outside the cottage. A beautiful, charcoal gray steed. I didn’t know much about horses, so I couldn’t identify the breed.
There was some kind of leather cover over his face. I didn’t like that! I’m sure it was not comfortable for the animal.
“Get on.” Tess said, as we approached the horse. I hesitated. How was I supposed to do that exactly?
I heard Tess heave an exasperated sigh, and I was suddenly being hoisted up. I wiggled with indignation, but did manage to throw one leg over the horse, and I was in the saddle! She gracefully planted herself behind me, and took the reins, her arms easily reaching around me. She was tall enough that she could see the road over my head.
I looked down trying to find a place to put my feet. That’s when I noticed something very weird.
Tess wasn't wearing shoes. She had a pair of black socks on her feet, which she fitted through the stirrups. It was odd, but I decided now was not the right time to interrogate her on her fashion choices.
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We only rode for several hours. It had taken me days to get as far as I did, but the return journey was that much faster on horseback.
I couldn't compare it to anything, as I don’t think I’ve ever been on horseback, but the journey was entirely too smooth, and fast. I wondered if Tess had somehow enchanted her horse?
“Hey, you know, I wasn’t actually just visiting Mr. Beaugiron…” I started to say, as we rode out of the woods., but my mouth sealed itself!
I heard the Sorceress’s voice above my shoulder.
“If you were to tell me that you had run away, and were trying to abscond with a Guild Grimoire, I would be bound to take the Grimoire from you, and leave you on the street. But I really don’t think that’s what you were doing.” She said.
My mouth unsealed itself.
“Nope, not at all. I was just in the neighborhood, and wanted to thank Mr. B for the tea he sent.” I answered. If she wanted both of us to play this charade, I was fine with it. Maybe I wouldn’t get in trouble for running away?
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
“Right.” She answered.
“By the way, why did Mr. Beaugiron get excommunicated?” I asked her. I had been wondering about the lonely man who lived in a forest. I felt bad for him.
“Excommunicated?” She chuckled. “Is that what he told you?”
“Yea, did he lie?”
“Not exactly. More like skirted the truth.” She said, then added in a low, bitter murmur, “In that delightful way of his.”
I didn’t say anything, hoping that Tess would fill in the rest of the story.
It took a few minutes, but eventually she started talking again.
“He and I were both coming up in the Guild together. Not long after we earned our Master Sorcerer title, he went and had an affair with the Queen. When King Godfrey found out, he went ballistic. Nearly kicked every Sorcerer out of the Capital. The Guild scrambled together, and promised they would punish Solomon. They imprisoned him under the ‘Conduct Unbecoming of a Guildsman’ clause, which was really stretching the definition, but regardless…” Tess said.
“Then what happened?” I was listening raptly. Solomon had been imprisoned? That didn’t seem fair, to have to face such severe punishment for getting romantically involved with someone.
“He served a sentence for several years. Let me tell you, a dungeon does not agree with Solomon. Then, King Godfrey, who was in poor health for many years, died. The Queen had the Guild free Solomon, but obviously, he burned all his bridges in the Guild, and they told him to make himself scarce. So, yes, now he’s ‘excommunicated.’ And living in that cottage entirely too close to where I've lived for nearly my whole life.”
“Huh.” Was all I had to say. I sensed that there was something unresolved between Solomon and Tess, but surely, it wasn’t my place to get involved.
What I really wanted to know about was what answer she had arrived at regarding my failed initiation. Was she bringing me back to her house in order to kick me out again? Or, had she reconsidered, and was maybe willing to give me another chance?
I opened my mouth many times, and almost asked the question, but I chickened out every time.
I understood a little bit more about Tess, as well. If this Guild was willing to throw Solomon into a cell just for having an affair, I certainly didn’t want to provoke their displeasure. She, likewise, probably didn't either. And if that was true, if the Sorceress was being careful not to go against the grain of the Guild, then my prospects at having my failed initiation overturned didn’t appear too bright.
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While we were galloping on Tess’s horse, country houses and fields going by, I thought I felt something wriggle in my pocket. I flinched, and the Sorceress quickly told me to be still.
“You don’t want to fall off.” She said, keeping her arms tight on the horse's reins.
“Sorry.” I said, but I had no idea what had been in my pocket that was capable of movement. Had something crawled in there while I slept in the woods? It was not a very comfortable thought.
I tried to ignore it, but the wriggling came again, and I couldn’t just keep still. I testily reached my fingers into my pocket, and felt around. There were three small, spherical shapes. The Belladonna berries! I had forgotten about them. I had picked them off the plant when I packed my sheet sack full of food. I thought they might be useful on the road in case I wanted to reach out to my Sign’s Patron, Zinia.
Why were they wriggling? Now that I knew what it was, the movement felt like a tiny serpent had been coiled in there. I wondered if Zinia was trying to reach out to me. Perhaps I should eat one of the berries now?
When I thought it through, I decided I didn’t want to get sick to my stomach while riding a horse, with the Sorceress right behind me. Maybe she was inclined to look kindly on my initiation after all. If I puked on her, it would certainly ruin any good will she might have left for me.
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Once we were outside the door of the house on Austere Way, Tess gracefully hopped off the gray horse. She held out an arm, and using that as leverage, I managed to scramble down. While I was collecting myself, I noticed Tess go behind me. Whirling around, I was surprised to find the large horse gone! Tess bent over and picked something up.
A pair of charcoal colored boots lay in the dusty street. She gathered them up, and led the way to the front door.
I was stupefied. Where had the horse gone? It took me a few moments, and then I realized that Tess must have performed Sorcery. Despite everything, I was extremely impressed. If that kind of power was in store for me, I would try really hard to convince this woman that she should keep me as an Apprentice!
Truthfully, now that we were back to the house, I felt somewhat relieved. I did not enjoy the brief stint of being a vagabond. I much preferred sleeping next to a blazing warm hearth, with Aleister and Cheerful by my side. It made me all the more nervous, regarding Tess's decision on my initiation.
Of course, I had no way of knowing if fortune would favor me. Would Tess keep me, or would she take the Grimoire back, and send me back out to wander the open roads? I knew now that I would much prefer the first option.
When we stepped back inside Tess’s house, it was just as dirty as I remembered it. For a woman who seemed such a stickler about housekeeping, I wonder why she hadn’t cleaned anything herself? Or hired help?
“Just as filthy as I left it…” I murmured. I couldn’t help myself. But the Sorceress must have heard, and wheeled around.
“And I have just the Apprentice in mind to remedy that.” She said, “Come.”
She led the way up the stairs. I thought that maybe she was taking me to my modest bedroom, to clear out my things and leave; or maybe she was taking me to her room, so she could make me clean her sleeping space, before finally dismissing me.
Instead, we went to the library. Some of the bookshelves I had toppled while chasing Aleister had been righted, but it was still very dusty. Cobwebs stretched between ancient volumes, and the window could use a serious washing.
I didn’t see Cheerful or Aleister anywhere. Maybe they were both in the kitchen, which had become a favorite spot for all three of us.
In the library, I noticed that there was a writing desk, a chair and a lamp, tucked into a corner. It was a study nook. The desk now overflowed with volumes, which I had never seen in the house before.
They didn’t look like the standard fare of books to which I had become accustomed. Whereas most of the volumes in the library looked no younger than one hundred year old, the writing table was overflowing with what looked like technical manuals, with bright, white paper, and bound with cardstock. They looked freshly printed.
I walked over, and picked one up. Based on appearance alone, I couldn’t believe that these manuals had anything to do with Sorcery. But I was wrong.
The outer cover was completely blank, so I flipped to the first page and read.
GRAND GUILD OF SORCERY
OFFICE OF THE ESTEEMED GUILDMASTER
777 ROYAL DRIVE
CELINE CITY
CORR. NO. 6516154
18 APR
1361
From: The Office of the Coadjutant of the Esteemed Guildmaster Eugene Audrone (GM316)
To: All Sorcerers
Subj: PROMULGATION OF CASE STUDIES OF FAILED SORCERER’S INITIATIONS, THE CAUSES AND OUTCOMES OF WHICH ARE MANDATORY STUDY FOR INITIATING MASTERS.
Ref: (a)GMASTINST 1223.6D
(b)GMASTMANINIT 12.1A
1. In line with reference (a) and (b), this is an officially conducted study of the past 50 failed initiations of young Sorcerers into the Guild. As such, the following correspondence shall not be taken to be a governing document. Rather, it is a necessary study for all Masters who wish to proctor an initiation.
2. All Masters wishing to proctor an initiation shall become thoroughly familiarized with this correspondence. Failure to do so may jeopardize the results of an initiation.
It went on like that. I didn’t care much for the style. It was hard to follow, as I had never read anything this formal.
“That volume won’t be much help,” Tess told me, as I put the hefty manual back on the desk. “We can’t use anything in it as written instruction…” She held up the manual, and opened it to the first page, the only one I had read. She pointed her finger to the words, as she said it.
“The following correspondence shall not be taken to be a governing document. It says right there. So, this one won’t do any good.” She threw it back on the pile.
“Um, what are all these?” I said pointing to the stack of white and crisp volumes.
“These are Guild publications. Instructions, manuals, correspondences. All have to do with initiating an Apprentice.” Tess quickly explained.
There were at least twenty very heft volumes, and dozens more thinner, stapled instructions. I couldn't believe someone could write so much about any subject. Initiations must be taken very seriously by the Guild.
“While you were visiting Solomon,” Tess said, putting an emphasis on the word ‘visiting’, since we both understood that is not exactly what happened, “I have been re-reading these.”
“But why?” I asked unsure.
She blinked at me. It took her several moments to start talking again.
“I am convinced that the Midnight Game has indeed been played and won, here in this house.” She said, striking an official tone.
“So did I pass!?” I said, a raw rush of happiness flooding me. I would have a house again, a place to call home! I could keep brewing potions with my two animal friends. Maybe, I could even manage to brew one of better quality than Awful!
“It’s not so simple. On paper, I cannot make the case that you passed. Every initiation must ultimately be approved by the Guild before a Sorcerer is registered. I cannot make the Standard Evaluation Form show that you have passed.” Tess explained.
“Oh, I see. But, we could tell the Guild about the Midnight Game, right? That would change their minds?” I asked, hope still floating high in my heart.
Tess shook her head.
“It will take ages to convince the Guild of anything they do not wish to hear. That an Apprentice was able to defeat the Midnight Spirit… they will not want to buy it. Therefore, that is not the route we will be taking.” She said.
It was hard to keep my spirits high. Every time I thought I heard a piece of good news, the Sorceress shut me down.
“So then what can we do?” I asked her.
“I believe I have found a way forward for us.” The Sorceress said, and opened up a manual with a spine at least three inches in thickness. “Now, look here…”