I’ve learned a very important lesson regarding mages during my time in their company.

Mages fight dirty. My countrymen fought with melee weaponry, swords and maces and spears, and the like. But mages used spells that could wipe out a whole company of men with a wave of the hand. Even a dragon could be brought down with magic. Mages possessed far too much power for one person. It made them arrogant. Ironic for an Ishmarian to make that accusation, but true all the same.

Take away a mage’s staff and he becomes helpless. Get too close to a mage and she can’t defend herself. A mage bleeds as readily as any other man, and when they have no armor nor muscles to carry said armor, they tend to bleed more easily.

Every teacher I had growing up, from statecraft to combat training, told me that those who lost respect for their strength lost the respect of their peers. The ultimate lesson of this came during my berserker training. My instructor, without even entering the berserker trance, bested another berserker who had been getting full of himself as of late. My instructor had warned us against the perils of thinking ourselves invincible while he had his foot planted on the offender’s neck.

It had been the reason why Eliza had been such a deadly foe. Unlike our siblings, she had taken her power to new heights without thinking herself unstoppable. She had nearly killed Kuro during our fight back in the Ishmarian Arena, and fought Alverd and I to a standstill. I thought of the vision in the crystal ball, her poised to run me through, and I shuddered. If I knew Eliza, she was likely still training feverishly, awaiting her chance at a rematch against us.

It didn’t seem fair that mages were born with the inherent power to use magic. Ishmarian soldiers had to train day and night to hone themselves into the warriors who were feared across Selarune. We had to maintain that training to keep ourselves in tip top shape, for a blade that is not properly maintained grows dull and useless. Mages may have had to learn how to use their magic, but simply having that power from birth gave rise to a kind of entitlement that differed from the one displayed by my own countrymen.

I was lying on my bed in the lavish room Sheena had assigned to me at the Ivory Palace, trying to visualize the fighting style of McFarlane’s combat mages. Visualization was a technique my instructor had taught me early on and served several purposes: the first was to foster the ability to analyze a fighting style based on observation and memory, and the second to act as a kind of meditative exercise.

With my eyes closed, I slowed my breathing, trying to recreate the scene in my mind’s eye. The way McFarlane’s soldiers seemed to flow with, rather than against, the force of their attackers told me they had to be masters of not only predicting attacks but also reacting to them. What can I take away from this? What techniques can I make work for me? The way they seemed to lean into a spin, or twirl to add extra force to an attack was something I already knew how to do, but their ability to deflect with a staff then pivot into an attack was something that intrigued me. Hard to recreate with my maul, sadly. The weight is centered at the top rather than evenly distributed, but maybe I can make that work for me?

After a while, though, I lost focus and found myself thinking more about the behavior of the Council and Sheena’s manipulative behavior. Was her clumsy tumble down the steps of her throne room an accident, or just a calculated ploy to feed us a false image? She’d already demonstrated a devious side to her when she pointed out that she was now Alverd’s employer. Everything about her was a paradox. I didn’t know if she was just some air headed bimbo or a cunning master of manipulation.

Maybe she’s both, I realized. Maybe she just has a different perception of what she thinks up in her head and what actually happens when it plays out for real. Not that it made things better, though.

This line of thought was an issue only because of what happened when she gave out assignments for guard duty earlier today after the divination ritual. She insisted on Alverd being right outside her bedroom door. Lord Albrecht wasn’t fond of that idea. Sheena had waited until none of the Council members were present before proudly announcing her decision. The older gentleman had leaned down so that he could look his niece in the eye, a stern and disapproving tone creeping into his voice.

“Sheena, dear, must I remind you that having a man you barely know stationed right outside your bedchamber is the height of impropriety? Your chamber only has one entrance, and it can easily be guarded at the end of the hallway where the normal guards are posted. While I know this knight won’t do anything to jeopardize your… virtue, I simply must protest.” He sighed in exasperation. “I don’t need to grow any more gray hair on account of worrying about you and your flights of fancy. Please, just indulge your paranoid uncle just this once.”

Sheena wasn’t happy, but she eventually gave in to his pleading. “Fine, fine. If it helps you sleep better at night, Uncle, I’ll have Sir Alverd wait out in the hall with his companions.” She looked a little crestfallen.

I wasn’t born yesterday. I knew exactly why she was disappointed. Even if her intentions weren’t that raunchy I wouldn’t have put it past her to try and lure Alverd into her room to talk his ear off. The thought of it soon drowned out any peace of mind and I could feel my teeth clench together.

“Why am I standing guard? Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I’m really curious as to why you think I should be doing something so strange.” I was genuinely confused as to why Sheena wanted me to stand watch, given my heritage and all.

She waved her hand and smirked. “I’m testing you. If I’m to trust you, what better way to prove that trust is well-founded than to put my life in your hands? If someone comes to kill me, you’ll be my last line of defense. I think you’ll do just fine, though.” The smirk turned into a crooked grin that was becoming way too frequent for my taste.

And so, the hallway was where the three of us stayed. The area was shaped like something Kuro called a tuning fork: the hallway leading to Sheena’s room was the handle, with the two prongs being the twin staircases leading down to the foyer below, with us standing in the junction where the two stairways met. Her door was only about twenty-five feet away.

The room windows were made of a special glass that neither magic nor blade could break without resorting to great force. It was also five stories above the ground with sheer walls making up the length of the tower that housed said room, making scaling the outside nearly impossible. The hallway was a natural chokepoint, according to Kuro. “Provided we cover the two stairways and maintain the high ground, we’ll have a clear advantage,” he assured me. I was too tired to argue, and to be honest he seemed very confident, so I didn’t bother pushing the topic any further.

It was shortly before midnight when I wrapped up my patrol outside the foyer for about the fourth time. Kuro had turned the small area in front of the Witch-Queen’s bedchamber into a miniature fortress. He had large, thick wooden tables propped on their sides, all the better to shield from projectiles of the magical, and possibly non-magical, variety. He was also talking to a group of royal guardsmen, about six in total. I walked over to deliver my report and see what he was telling them.

Kuro was giving out orders. “I want you to split into groups of three, and start patrolling the floor below. Make sure you always remain in sight of each other. Assassins try to separate guards so they can eliminate them silently, one by one. Report any strange noises, and watch each other’s backs. Now get out there and report back to me after you’ve finished your sweep.” He made a dismissive gesture and the six guards marched away. Huh, so even Kuro can sound competent when he’s in his element. Who knew?

Kuro saw me approach and hailed me. “Hey. You find anything on your sweep?”

I shook my head. “No, nothing. I sent the two guards I was with to watch the east corridor. We didn’t even hear a peep. Are you sure that something is gonna happen tonight?” I leaned on one of the wooden “barricades”, giving him a look of skepticism. “Say, where’s Alverd?”

Kuro’s face scrunched up. “About that…” He looked over his shoulder, at the door that led to Sheena’s bedchamber. “Turns out the Witch-Queen is more devious than we thought. She asked Alverd to come check on her every so often. He’s been in her room for about five minutes now.” His expression turned sour. “I know Alverd isn’t the type to take advantage of women, even if that’s what they want him to do. That’s the only reason I allowed him to go in there.”

I climbed over the table and joined him. “Are you sure?” I asked. He placed his staff against the barricade and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Yeah. Besides, I’m sure you need an ear right now. Something’s bothering you, and I think I know what it is.”

Sometimes Kuro is just a little too perceptive. And yet, sometimes not nearly enough. I sat on the balcony railing, placing my maul on the ground. “There are two things, actually. Care to try and guess them?” I decided to make Kuro work for it, just to see how good at reading me he actually was.

He took a moment to collect his thoughts. “So, first and foremost? You must have seen something pretty nasty during the divination ritual.” I sighed. He’s playing the safe game for now. I figured he’d ask about Sheena first, but if I could figure things out, so could he. But I did want to discuss what I’d seen, because I had found it disturbing.

“You first,” I told him.

He sighed, but he spoke anyway. “I don’t really know what to make of what I saw. I saw… someone, in a cloak. I couldn’t see their face. But I could tell it was a woman by her voice. She said that not knowing is like a slow death, but certainty is poison you have to live with.” He shrugged, then motioned at me. “Pretty sure it has to do with thoughts I’ve had about being orphaned. Nothing new there. How about you?”

I took a deep breath to steel myself. “I saw myself in battle with Eliza. But not as we were back in Ishmar not too long ago. It was a different battle. We were fighting in the throne room of the Castle of Brimstone… and Eliza was Queen, crown and all. But something was off about her. She looked even more crazed than usual. I don’t know how to put it in words.” I saw Kuro scowl.

“Pretty sure your sister was bereft of any inkling of sanity before we even arrived in Ishmar. If that wound Alverd gave her hasn’t finished her off, there’s no telling how mad she is now. I suppose hoping for her to get her throat slit in the middle of the night is off the table, seeing as how your people don’t believe in assassination.”

I seized upon that to prevent him from asking about my attitude toward Sheena. “So, you and Alverd seem to know a thing or two about preventing assassinations. Not exactly something someone reads in a book, is it?” I was genuinely curious. Knowing little about the topic itself, I wanted to know everything about it that I could, and since he was in such an accommodating mood, I figured I might as well strike while the tooth metal was hot.

I’d never had to deal with assassins. First and foremost, it was the coward’s way to ensure one’s ascendancy to the throne. It was even worse when the assassin was never apprehended, because then the blame could fall on any of the royal family, thus staining all of their reputations. Second, assassins did not have the ability to deal with dragons; their lightweight weaponry and equipment ensured that they could do no harm to our constant companions. Training an assassin was a waste of time and an admission of weakness.

Kuro didn’t pick up on my attempt to change the subject at all, which was good. He launched right into it. “Well, Alverd and I have learned a few things working with other mercenaries over the years. We’ve never assassinated anyone, mind you. We’ve prevented a few, though. Just merchants who pissed off the wrong people, nobody of any consequence. Assassins, they’re all the same. Just a bunch of heavily armed opportunists. Lazy as hell. Predictable, too.”

The young mage pulled out a map of the floor that had been provided by Lord Albrecht. “I’ve already ruled out the windows. I tested them earlier, and they held up to my elemancy, so any assassins who somehow manage to climb the five stories of sheer castle wall won’t get in that way. So I’ve fortified the chokepoints in the halls, scheduled patrols and made sure that at no point are any of the guardsmen alone. Assassins will always attack targets of opportunity. And they’ll do it from the shadows, so that they won’t be seen.”

He motioned to the torches lining the hall. “Every torch on this floor has been lit. There won’t be any place for the assassins to hide, and all of the guards know to signal for help the moment that they see anyone out of place. Visibility is an assassin’s worst enemy. If we force them to make themselves known, we turn this into a fair fight. And if there’s one thing assassins loathe, it’s a fair fight. Buggers are terrible at those.” He chuckled to himself as he folded the map and put it back into his pocket.

Then his face hardened, and a frown appeared. “Now, if only the high and mighty Witch-Queen would let Alverd do his bloody job instead of bending his ear about sweet nothings, then I would be utterly convinced that our security is impenetrable.” His tone went straight into disdain in a second. “Honestly, what is that woman thinking?”

I thought at first that this could be a trap. A way for Kuro to suss out my resentment towards her without seeming too ready to pounce on me about it. “Yeah. She doesn’t seem to care much that something could happen. Did you see the way she fought out on the street? She had no problem sending that giant wolf beast of hers to kill those assassins.”

He nodded in agreement. “You know, I asked Lord Albrecht about that. He said that Sheena has been fighting off assassins since she was six. Six! Can you believe that? She might have more blood on her hands than me or Alverd. And that’s saying something. When I was six, I could barely conjure a tiny spark, much less a gigantic bolt of lightning.” He jutted out his lip. “I guess after a while, you just… adjust. Like with Alverd and I. Eventually the act of killing didn’t faze us the way it did when we spilt blood for the first time.”

Suddenly I remembered something. “Oh right. You were gonna ask Sheena a question out on the street the other day. What was it?” I wanted to know, as everything I’d seen so far of Algrustos was alien to me, and I wanted to understand my surroundings better.

He leaned in close and whispered to me. “I asked Lord Albrecht earlier today. Apparently, Sheena’s ancestors made a deal with a powerful spirit. That’s what allowed her to do magic without a staff the other night. It’s an exceedingly rare thing, because not every spirit is willing to make those kinds of contracts with mortals. I think Lord Albrecht mentioned that her full magic powers manifested earlier than most mages, so she became an assassination target right after she took the throne at only six years old. She had to survive her first assassination attempt mere days after her decision not to redeclare war on Ishmar.”

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He raised his hand and scratched at his chin. “But if she’s been killing that long, it couldn’t have been good for her. Maybe that act of hers is just a way to hide the pain, or the guilt. I would say we just give her the benefit of the doubt, but if she keeps on interfering with my plan, I may have to just drag Alverd out of there myself. You agree?”

“Yeah. Queen or not, she’s making our job harder, not easier. After all, you two still owe me big. If anything, you should be taking orders from me, not her. Isn’t that how mercenaries work? One contract at a time? Isn’t she breaking some “cardinal rule” of yours or something?” I realized too late that I’d voiced my insecurity about the matter. I looked at Kuro squarely, trying to gauge his reaction.

His eyebrow raised slowly. “Ah, I see. So that’s what it’s about, then. You’re not happy about this arrangement. Well, neither am I, but if it bothers you so much, maybe you ought to-“ He was interrupted by a gust of wind that flew down the corridor from behind me. The gust flew past me, past Kuro, and doused all of the torches along the way, leaving only the moonlight from the windows.

Then the screaming started.

It came from down the corridor, and it wasn’t long before the sounds of battle followed. The guards were combat mages, clothed in their not-metal armor and wielding their long staves, and yet I didn’t think they would be of much help in this situation. The sudden loss of the light would’ve been enough distraction to take several guards out. Then there was the sound of something distinctly out of place for the setting

The sound of metal clashing.

Someone decided to play by different rules than everyone else. Rather than try a magical assault on Sheena, these new assassins were going to go with a different tack; with good old fashioned steel. The sounds got louder, and I heard a cry of pain from the end of the hall. Kuro threw himself against the barricade and yelled at the top of his lungs. “Alverd! Gods be damned, Alverd, get your armored arse out here now!”

There was a crash from behind us, and a few seconds later, Alverd emerged from the door we were standing in front of, his sword drawn and his shield leveled. “Where are they? How many?” He yelled. Then Sheena came running up behind him. She was dressed in a dark red silk nightgown that left a great deal of her shoulders and far too much of her damn legs utterly bare, hardly attire for her to be running around in.

She ran up to Alverd and grabbed onto him. “Are they here? Oh, Sir Alverd! Protect me, good sir knight!” Mother Evros, she sure knows how to lay it on thick. Too thick, honestly. Who does she think she’s fooling with that song and dance?

There wasn’t time for me to say anything. The foyer door below us burst open and a pair of assassins with wands came through. In the space of a second, they both pointed wands in our direction.

Alverd brought up his shield, and when the two mage assassins sent twin streaks of blue light racing forward, he braced himself. The two streaks slammed into the shield, bouncing off with no effect. They redirected into the ceiling and made a small explosion that shook the now doused torches, but nothing else. Kuro peeked his head over the barricade and took aim with his staff. A golden bolt of lightning sailed out of the tip, striking one of the mages and sending him reeling from the blow.

Before the other mage could react, he received an ice lance that pierced through his chest like a nail into wood. I looked behind me and saw that Sheena had her hand pointed in the assassin’s direction, frost wafting from her palm. Alverd quickly pushed her back into the safety of the doorway.

“Milady! You’ll be safer in your room. Leave this to us.” She, however, was done with her little damsel routine. “I can help you! Let me go get my staff and I’ll prove it, sir knight!” She ran off to her bedroom.

Another group of assassins, three this time, came through. These others were carrying more traditional assassin weaponry: knives, daggers, a sword. While the Witch-Queen could probably deal with mages on her own, I doubted that she would be able to anticipate an attack from conventional mercenaries like these. Even with her unusual ability to use magic without a staff, fighting this many assassins alone would be tough. Fortunately for her, MY mercenaries are not cut-rate hacks like these fools.

I wasn’t surprised that mages would resort to such distasteful methods to solve their problems. Everything I had seen so far had done little to show me that mages preferred to hide behind pleasant conversation even while they sharpened daggers just out of sight. If they wanted to stoop so low as to hire assassins, then I wouldn’t stand for it.

I didn’t even need my berserker trance to deal with little cutthroats like these idiots. I vaulted over the barricade and made for the three new arrivals. The one closest to me waved his puny little knife at me, as if he thought that it would be enough to persuade me not to attack him. Not bloody likely. He stabbed at me with a great deal of speed, but I had raw power and the momentum of my fall to give me the edge. I swung my maul with both hands, the flat surface of its dragon tooth head turning the bones in his hand into gravel. He howled in pain as he dropped his knife. I spun, delivering a backhanded fist to his face to knock him out. He crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

The second assassin pulled out another dagger, then lunged at me. I was forced to step back to avoid his rapid thrusts. While I was dealing with him, the sword wielding assassin rushed past me, running up the stairway towards Alverd. Before he could even reach the barricade, however, a chest high wall of ice appeared from nowhere. The man crashed headlong into the wall and rebounded off of it, dropping his weapon and groaning. Unable to regain his footing, he tumbled down the stairs and landed in a heap at the bottom.

Sheena had reappeared in the doorframe, her long staff pointed in the man’s direction. Before he could get up, she started firing little blue blasts of ice, wrought from the air at the bladed tip of her staff. The assassin threw up his arm to shield himself from the barrage, his other hand searching for the hilt of his sword. Still clad in her nightgown, she advanced to the balcony, the intensity of her attacks increasing. By the time she reached the table propped against the railing, the man looked like a pincushion. He gave one last soft groan and lay still.

What unnerved me was that Sheena didn’t seem to care one bit that she had killed someone. Her face was inscrutable. When I killed my first living being, I felt sick to my stomach. I was still coping with the gravity of taking life, even now. If what Kuro had said was true, she would have been very much at peace with killing these men. Ice cold, just like her magic. A shiver ran down my spine, and it wasn’t because of the nearby ice wall.

I still had someone to deal with. My attacker, who had been distracted like me at Sheena’s arrival, chose to come at me with his twin daggers. My maul wasn’t built to deflect thrusting attacks, so I had no choice but to dance around him as he pistoned his arms frantically, never leaving an opening for me to exploit. Playing defense isn’t my strong suit, but he has to make a mistake eventually.

And then I found it. His weakness. He always tries to feint with his first thrust before aiming high with his follow-up. He left his legs and lower body unguarded. I wrapped both hands around the heft of my maul, and waited for him to swing again.

He lunged again, the knife in his right hand sailing towards my face at great speed. Remembering the way McFarlane’s man had moved with the direction of his attacker to seamlessly counterattack, I spun around the knife and swung my maul into his unprotected chest. He let out a loud “whoomph” noise as the air was pushed out of his lungs, and he fell to one knee. I swung again and let my maul find the side of his head. It wasn’t heavy enough to be a killing blow, though. I wanted to take these men alive, to find out who had hired them in the first place. The man hit the ground, moaning as he cradled his head.

Another group of assassins, three in number, came through the door; another man with a sword, and two men armed with both wands and daggers. Alverd climbed over the barricade as quickly as he could. Kuro shouted, “what’s the damn point of these things if we’re not going to use them properly?!” as Alverd charged past me towards the man with the sword.

To my great surprise, Alverd’s sword didn’t carve straight through the other man’s weapon. Only one material could possibly be strong enough to stand up to a weapon like the Sword of Evros: another blade made of dragon tooth metal. It wasn’t easy to get a dragon tooth metal blade; they were given only to high ranking soldiers or royal bodyguards. Perhaps what Lord Kertouli had said about my country’s assassination attempt had some truth to it.

As Alverd and the sword wielder traded blows, the two men with wands sidestepped them and made for Kuro’s barricade. Waving their wands, they threw fireballs at him and me in a steady stream. Several of them impacted harmlessly against the makeshift barricade, and I even batted one aside using my maul. Still they pressed their attack, especially when they saw the Witch-Queen behind him.

Alverd was in top form. He parried another thrust by his attacker and countered by bashing his enemy with his shield. The man, off balance, tried to swing at Alverd but the attack sailed through empty air. Alverd dodged to the left, smacked the assassin in the face again with his shield, and then thrust the Sword of Evros through his chest. As the now lifeless assassin slumped to the ground, Alverd turned around and rushed at the two mages who had gotten around him.

He caught up with the first one just as the man raised his wand to fire. The Sword of Evros ran him through as easily as if it were cutting parchment. The wand fell from the man’s hand, and he made a choked gurgle as his life left his body. Alverd planted his boot on the man’s back, then pushed to yank his sword free of the man’s back.

Sheena rushed past Kuro and mantled the barricade, much to his growing annoyance. She ran forward to engage the last of the assassins with her bladed staff. Swinging it with expert precision, she slashed the bladed head across the man’s legs, forcing him to his knees. She was uniquely graceful, her movements fluid and flexible. In a way, she was even a better fighter than Captain McFarlane, remaining calm and collected even as she handled the staff like a seasoned martial artist.

When the man fell to his knees, Sheena placed the bladed edge of her staff against the man’s throat. “You’ve lost, assassin. Tell me who sent you and you may yet live.” There was ice in her tone, and she sounded nothing like the air-headed woman I had met in the throne room only a day or so ago. When the man made no effort to answer, she pressed the blade against his neck harder, and a tiny drop of blood came leaking out of the newly formed cut.

Then he started to laugh. Just like Bloodface, his laughter did not stop and possessed no reason or rhyme.

Then we looked at his hands, and saw the wand start glowing.

The light from the wand was blinding, and it only got brighter. The wand began to shake, vibrating intensely, as the glowing increased. The man stared the Witch-Queen in the eye, still barking mad. Alverd leaped across the room, pulling Sheena behind him, and angling his shield towards the man’s coming attack.

Then Kuro sprang in front of us all, a shimmering blue ball of light growing from the tip of his staff. He thrust the staff forward, and a dome of bright blue energy blazed into existence. I recognized his shielding spell, as he had used it several times during our escapades in Ishmar. Mother Evros, will it be enough?

Then came the explosion, and everything went dark for a moment.

When I came to, I was half-buried under a pile of rocks. Kuro’s barricade was smashed to bits, and there was a new hole in the wall where the suicidal assassin had cast his final spell. I looked around, in a daze, unable to focus on anything clearly. Someone pulled the heavy rock I was pinned under off of me. It was Alverd. Sheena was clinging to him tightly, as though holding on for dear life. She was covered in soot and dust from the destruction of the wall.

Alverd held out his hand. “Are you alright, Princess?” I took his hand and pulled myself up from the floor.

“Yes, I’m fine.” I replied, a bit too snippy than was necessary. Alverd began to fuss over Sheena. Aside from being shaken by the gravity of the situation, she seemed to be fine. When we went to find Kuro, we found him in quite a predicament.

Kuro had been buried in a small pile of rubble where a section of the wall had collapsed on him. He was in no obvious danger, but the collapse had pinned his legs and he had no hope of moving the heavy stones on his own. His staff lay just out of reach, but it definitely looked like it had seen better days. It was cracked all along its length. Kuro himself didn’t seem to be in pain, but he looked furious. When the three of us came over to him, he started whining.

“Well, don’t just stand there! Help me! For the love of all that’s holy, get me out of here!” He looked so pathetic. I decided to tease him just a little. I put my foot on top of the pile, then leaned forward, kicking one of the rocks off the pile. I saw Kuro try to move the pile on his own, but his wimpy little arms didn’t even budge the stones. It was a little funny to watch, actually.

“You know, if you’re such a powerful mage and all, why can’t you just lift these rocks yourself, hm?”

Kuro scowled at me. “You know damn well why, you bloody twit! I’m just an apprentice and this isn’t my staff! And furthermore, your big fat foot is on top of me! Even if I were the most powerful mage in the world I still wouldn’t be able to lift your muscle-bound carcass off of me!”

I was just about to instruct Kuro in the proper use of his eyes when I heard Sheena gasp. Alverd and I both turned to look at her. She was cupping her head with her hands. “You are only an apprentice? And you wield a staff that does not belong to you? How did this come to be? It is… it is unthinkable! No wonder you’re so terrible at magic!” She laughed as she clapped her hands. “It all makes perfect sense now!”

Kuro’s expression looked like he had been stabbed with a molten hot poker iron. I had never seen such a crestfallen look on his face. It was utterly pathetic. Then the Witch-Queen continued.

“To be honest, I never really looked too closely at the two of you,” Sheena said, pointing to me and Kuro. “My attention was focused elsewhere. But if Sir Kuro here really is only an apprentice… that complicates things. He must undertake the Trials. I would feel much better knowing that he has completed them.” She started monologuing to herself in what she probably thought was a low whisper but what was easily audible to all of us, even over the wind whistling through the hole in the wall.

“Simply unbelievable. Irresponsible. For a mage apprentice of such an age to not have taken the Trials, much less not have their own familiar… it won’t do. It’s a wonder he’s survived as long as he has…”

Kuro looked ready to die. I think I could even see tears beginning to form in his eyes. Not that I blamed him, really. Even I have to admit that he doesn’t deserve this level of torture. After all, Sheena was mercilessly talking about him like some piece of meat while he was within earshot, and buried beneath a pile of rocks to boot. Mother Evros, read the room, lady.

I mean, I knew most of Kuro’s circumstances about why he had so many things working against him when he used magic. Yet despite that, I’d seen him risk his life to protect me and Alverd. Although the little bastard is a bit rough around the edges, I can’t fault his courage, at the very least. His poor judgment, maybe, but definitely not his nerve.

Ugh, I can’t believe I’m trying to justify defending him. What’s wrong with me? Fortunately, Alverd decided to come to his friend’s rescue. I preferred it that way. Alverd knew more about his best friend anyway. He’d know how to protect his friend without wounding his pride… or at least, what little pride he did have.

“I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t belittle my friend like that, Milady. It is true that he has a few issues, but he is my best friend, and a valuable ally.” He quickly changed the subject before she could reply. He could be smooth when he wanted to. “What would be entailed, then? How does a mage go about passing the Trials?”

Kuro finally opened his mouth. “The first part of a mage’s Trial is usually the same across all schools. The binding and taming of a familiar, or spirit animal. Like Kelda.” Kuro tried to shift the rocks again but failed.

Then he held his arms out. “Now could someone please get me out of here? I’m starting to lose feeling in my legs. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s that weird prickly sensation you get when you don’t have proper blood flow.” He looked like a toddler who wanted to be picked up. “Hop to it Alverd. Make yourself useful, for goodness' sake.”

With a grunt that was part irritation and part exertion, Alverd started to shift the rocks off of Kuro. After a few moments, Kuro was able to pull his legs free and stand up, slapping his robes to brush the dust off of himself. “On the subject of familiars, where would we go to find one? You can’t just conjure them out of thin air, you know. I mean, until you form a contract with one.”

Sheena’s crooked smile stretched across her face. “I know just the place.”