Chapter 129: The Eye of the Storm
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Chapter 129: The Eye of the Storm
The Eye of the Storm
His introduction to water magic at an end, Martel waited with the other novices in the entrance hall for his new teacher. Soon, a man wearing a purple robe with white patterns approached with such forceful steps, it almost felt like he was trying to cause a collision.
His movement came to an abrupt halt one pace away from the novices. "You must be my newest victims! I am Master Gilbert, Master of Air. With me!" He turned around and strode out of the entrance hall, leaving his students to run after him.
Out on the streets, their teacher steered directly south along the main street, setting the same brisk pace as before. All the while, he talked without pause.
"Unlike Mistress Vana, I will not be dragging you all over the city lesson after lesson. But there is one point of interest to visit where air magic is concerned. Should one of you young folks join our esteemed company, you may find yourselves working in just this place."
Passing through the market district, more people filled the streets, and the novices struggled to evade traffic while keeping up with their teacher. He did not appear to have any such trouble as walkers-by almost seemed to part before him, making Martel wonder if the mage used magic to simply push people aside.
"Now, any air acolyte can aspire to three different positions. Windmage, seamage, or stormmage. The names explain themselves I imagine, and the latter two regrettably do require a certain skill in water as well. Keep that in mind when you consider the wondrous opportunities that air magic offers you."
The teacher's next words were lost in the noise of a donkey braying while men unloaded goods from its back; forced to walk around, Martel could only find Master Gilbert thanks to his long hair flowing in every direction as if a whirlwind of its own.
They moved from the market district to the harbour, and Martel felt a sudden spike of anxiety. If they continued down this road, it would lead them straight past The Broken Crown. He tried to calm himself; he had been masked during his fights, nobody had any reason to be looking for him at this hour, and if anyone tried anything, a master of the Lyceum accompanied him. Assuming Martel could keep up. He pulled up the hood of his robe, dragging up what little anonymity he could from it, and hurried after his teacher.
~
Once they had traversed the harbour district without incident, reaching the docks, Martel breathed a little easier and pulled down his hood. Their destination soon became apparent. A small promontory extended further south, protecting the port from storms. Upon it was built a lighthouse, guiding ships to safety.
Master Gilbert unlocked the door and turned around suddenly, looking at his students. "Everyone here? How many did we start with?"
"Four of us, master," Martel replied.
The teacher pointed his finger at each of them, counting loudly until he reached four. "Excellent. Follow me!"
"He summons the storm, obviously! Imagine a foreign vessel, approaching ours to do battle! Suddenly, lightning strikes to set their sails aflame!" The wind blowing Master Gilbert's long hair in every direction served well to underline his words. "The sea roars and thrashes against the wooden planks of their ship. They run out their oars to escape, but a terrible maelstrom grips and rips them to shreds!"
The conjured image did sound magnificent, but also dreadful. Martel disliked the idea of having a wondrous gift like magic, only to use it for pure destruction. It was easier to destroy than build, after all.
"I was a stormmage for twenty years," their teacher remarked. "Who knows? Maybe one of you has what it takes. For now, back to the school!"
~
Leaving the lighthouse to walk back through the harbour, Martel got an idea. He wondered if he should ask for permission, but Master Gilbert already strode ahead with little regard for who did or did not follow him. Making a quick decision, Martel turn east and headed towards the Khivan enclave.
Luck favoured him; he found Shadi at the small temple square, enjoying the sun. They both smiled, and he waved as he approached. "That's fortunate, running into you here."
She laughed a little. "I am working, so to say. Spending some hours away from the house so my dad doesn't wonder how I earn silver if I'm home all the time."
"Right, yeah. Listen, tomorrow, some of my friends are doing a prize fight in the copper lanes. Would you like to see it with me? Like a proper night out. I'll take you out, I mean," he explained awkwardly.
"That sounds exciting," she replied, though her expression looked doubtful. "But the copper lanes, that's far from home, and not so safe after dark."
"I'll walk with you both ways," he promised. "You don't have to worry if you're with me."
"Alright." She smiled at him. "Tomorrow. Let's just meet here, by the fountain. When?"
"I'll be here at seventh bell."
"Great. See you then."
He gave Shadi a quick goodbye and hurried away to make it home to the Lyceum before his next class, already looking forward to tomorrow evening.L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Ñøv€l--B1n.
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Chapter 129: The Eye of the Storm
The Eye of the Storm
His introduction to water magic at an end, Martel waited with the other novices in the entrance hall for his new teacher. Soon, a man wearing a purple robe with white patterns approached with such forceful steps, it almost felt like he was trying to cause a collision.
His movement came to an abrupt halt one pace away from the novices. "You must be my newest victims! I am Master Gilbert, Master of Air. With me!" He turned around and strode out of the entrance hall, leaving his students to run after him.
Out on the streets, their teacher steered directly south along the main street, setting the same brisk pace as before. All the while, he talked without pause.
"Unlike Mistress Vana, I will not be dragging you all over the city lesson after lesson. But there is one point of interest to visit where air magic is concerned. Should one of you young folks join our esteemed company, you may find yourselves working in just this place."
Passing through the market district, more people filled the streets, and the novices struggled to evade traffic while keeping up with their teacher. He did not appear to have any such trouble as walkers-by almost seemed to part before him, making Martel wonder if the mage used magic to simply push people aside.
"Now, any air acolyte can aspire to three different positions. Windmage, seamage, or stormmage. The names explain themselves I imagine, and the latter two regrettably do require a certain skill in water as well. Keep that in mind when you consider the wondrous opportunities that air magic offers you."
The teacher's next words were lost in the noise of a donkey braying while men unloaded goods from its back; forced to walk around, Martel could only find Master Gilbert thanks to his long hair flowing in every direction as if a whirlwind of its own.
They moved from the market district to the harbour, and Martel felt a sudden spike of anxiety. If they continued down this road, it would lead them straight past The Broken Crown. He tried to calm himself; he had been masked during his fights, nobody had any reason to be looking for him at this hour, and if anyone tried anything, a master of the Lyceum accompanied him. Assuming Martel could keep up. He pulled up the hood of his robe, dragging up what little anonymity he could from it, and hurried after his teacher.
~
Once they had traversed the harbour district without incident, reaching the docks, Martel breathed a little easier and pulled down his hood. Their destination soon became apparent. A small promontory extended further south, protecting the port from storms. Upon it was built a lighthouse, guiding ships to safety.
Master Gilbert unlocked the door and turned around suddenly, looking at his students. "Everyone here? How many did we start with?"
"Four of us, master," Martel replied.
The teacher pointed his finger at each of them, counting loudly until he reached four. "Excellent. Follow me!"
"He summons the storm, obviously! Imagine a foreign vessel, approaching ours to do battle! Suddenly, lightning strikes to set their sails aflame!" The wind blowing Master Gilbert's long hair in every direction served well to underline his words. "The sea roars and thrashes against the wooden planks of their ship. They run out their oars to escape, but a terrible maelstrom grips and rips them to shreds!"
The conjured image did sound magnificent, but also dreadful. Martel disliked the idea of having a wondrous gift like magic, only to use it for pure destruction. It was easier to destroy than build, after all.
"I was a stormmage for twenty years," their teacher remarked. "Who knows? Maybe one of you has what it takes. For now, back to the school!"
~
Leaving the lighthouse to walk back through the harbour, Martel got an idea. He wondered if he should ask for permission, but Master Gilbert already strode ahead with little regard for who did or did not follow him. Making a quick decision, Martel turn east and headed towards the Khivan enclave.
Luck favoured him; he found Shadi at the small temple square, enjoying the sun. They both smiled, and he waved as he approached. "That's fortunate, running into you here."
She laughed a little. "I am working, so to say. Spending some hours away from the house so my dad doesn't wonder how I earn silver if I'm home all the time."
"Right, yeah. Listen, tomorrow, some of my friends are doing a prize fight in the copper lanes. Would you like to see it with me? Like a proper night out. I'll take you out, I mean," he explained awkwardly.
"That sounds exciting," she replied, though her expression looked doubtful. "But the copper lanes, that's far from home, and not so safe after dark."
"I'll walk with you both ways," he promised. "You don't have to worry if you're with me."
"Alright." She smiled at him. "Tomorrow. Let's just meet here, by the fountain. When?"
"I'll be here at seventh bell."
"Great. See you then."
He gave Shadi a quick goodbye and hurried away to make it home to the Lyceum before his next class, already looking forward to tomorrow evening.L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Ñøv€l--B1n.
Chapter 129: The Eye of the StormThe Eye of the StormHis introduction to water magic at an end, Martel waited with the other novices in the entrance hall for his new teacher. Soon, a man wearing a purple robe with white patterns approached with such forceful steps, it almost felt like he was trying to cause a collision.His movement came to an abrupt halt one pace away from the novices. "You must be my newest victims! I am Master Gilbert, Master of Air. With me!" He turned around and strode out of the entrance hall, leaving his students to run after him.Out on the streets, their teacher steered directly south along the main street, setting the same brisk pace as before. All the while, he talked without pause."Unlike Mistress Vana, I will not be dragging you all over the city lesson after lesson. But there is one point of interest to visit where air magic is concerned. Should one of you young folks join our esteemed company, you may find yourselves working in just this place."Passing through the market district, more people filled the streets, and the novices struggled to evade traffic while keeping up with their teacher. He did not appear to have any such trouble as walkers-by almost seemed to part before him, making Martel wonder if the mage used magic to simply push people aside."Now, any air acolyte can aspire to three different positions. Windmage, seamage, or stormmage. The names explain themselves I imagine, and the latter two regrettably do require a certain skill in water as well. Keep that in mind when you consider the wondrous opportunities that air magic offers you."The teacher's next words were lost in the noise of a donkey braying while men unloaded goods from its back; forced to walk around, Martel could only find Master Gilbert thanks to his long hair flowing in every direction as if a whirlwind of its own.They moved from the market district to the harbour, and Martel felt a sudden spike of anxiety. If they continued down this road, it would lead them straight past The Broken Crown. He tried to calm himself; he had been masked during his fights, nobody had any reason to be looking for him at this hour, and if anyone tried anything, a master of the Lyceum accompanied him. Assuming Martel could keep up. He pulled up the hood of his robe, dragging up what little anonymity he could from it, and hurried after his teacher.~Once they had traversed the harbour district without incident, reaching the docks, Martel breathed a little easier and pulled down his hood. Their destination soon became apparent. A small promontory extended further south, protecting the port from storms. Upon it was built a lighthouse, guiding ships to safety.Master Gilbert unlocked the door and turned around suddenly, looking at his students. "Everyone here? How many did we start with?""Four of us, master," Martel replied.The teacher pointed his finger at each of them, counting loudly until he reached four. "Excellent. Follow me!""He summons the storm, obviously! Imagine a foreign vessel, approaching ours to do battle! Suddenly, lightning strikes to set their sails aflame!" The wind blowing Master Gilbert's long hair in every direction served well to underline his words. "The sea roars and thrashes against the wooden planks of their ship. They run out their oars to escape, but a terrible maelstrom grips and rips them to shreds!"The conjured image did sound magnificent, but also dreadful. Martel disliked the idea of having a wondrous gift like magic, only to use it for pure destruction. It was easier to destroy than build, after all."I was a stormmage for twenty years," their teacher remarked. "Who knows? Maybe one of you has what it takes. For now, back to the school!"~Leaving the lighthouse to walk back through the harbour, Martel got an idea. He wondered if he should ask for permission, but Master Gilbert already strode ahead with little regard for who did or did not follow him. Making a quick decision, Martel turn east and headed towards the Khivan enclave.Luck favoured him; he found Shadi at the small temple square, enjoying the sun. They both smiled, and he waved as he approached. "That's fortunate, running into you here."She laughed a little. "I am working, so to say. Spending some hours away from the house so my dad doesn't wonder how I earn silver if I'm home all the time.""Right, yeah. Listen, tomorrow, some of my friends are doing a prize fight in the copper lanes. Would you like to see it with me? Like a proper night out. I'll take you out, I mean," he explained awkwardly."That sounds exciting," she replied, though her expression looked doubtful. "But the copper lanes, that's far from home, and not so safe after dark.""I'll walk with you both ways," he promised. "You don't have to worry if you're with me.""Alright." She smiled at him. "Tomorrow. Let's just meet here, by the fountain. When?""I'll be here at seventh bell.""Great. See you then."He gave Shadi a quick goodbye and hurried away to make it home to the Lyceum before his next class, already looking forward to tomorrow evening.L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Nvl--B1n.
