Chapter 10
Alandris was avoiding me—I was sure. Pretentious, maybe, to assume as much, but his conveniently timed absence from classes definitely supported the idea.
In his place, the next highest ranked Mage, Felydrin, Alandris’s right hand, was charged with taking over our training.
Another person I didn’t fully trust watching over me for the day. Lovely.
He looked a bit older than Alandris, visible in the sharper lines and faint creases on his face.
Though, a ‘bit’ could be the difference of a hundred years between Elves.
He was no less handsome. Copper hair grazed the tops of his shoulders, loose and wild.
His eyes, busy assessing our group, were the color of moss, deep green and dotted with brown.
All the Elves I’d met so far were approaching sheer physical perfection.
Which, in truth, was very much annoying and incredibly unfair.
Felydrin’s next words brought my attention back to the class. “Today shall be a bit different from what you’ve experienced thus far. I’ve been given free rein to have you study whatever I’d like, and so I’ve chosen something from my area of expertise.”
A few of the Mages groaned in exasperation, including Luelle, which gave me serious concerns about what exactly he intended us to do.
Luelle tugged me closer and whispered, “Grand Magus Felydrin is well versed in magical traps. They expend a lot of energy to create and maintain, and are only useful in specific circumstances, so few Mages practice that particular subset of magic. But he’s obsessed.”
Felydrin continued, “I understand that most of you battle-hungry Mages dislike learning trap magic, so I won’t force you.
However, knowing how to detect and avoid them is important for any Mage.
” He tilted his head with an amused smile.
“Which is why… I’ve prepared something outside. A bit of a game, if you will.”
The mood of the class shifted in an instant. Grumbled complaints turned into gasps of excitement and anticipation. Those known for competitiveness already wore smug looks, predicting their win before the contest began.
“See! It’s not so bad to take a class from me every now and then, is it?” Felydrin grinned and moved to the door, waving for us to follow behind. “I may even have a reward for the first to clear my game.”
We did not dawdle on the way to the front of the Consortium.
We were near running through the halls. Curiosity had gotten the better of me.
I found I was no longer worried over any pre-existing suspicions I’d had of Felydrin.
There was a fair chance he wasn’t involved in Alandris’s plots.
I could enjoy a game. It was a learning experience.
We stopped abruptly and found ourselves face to face with the deep, lush forest to the west of the Consortium.
They aptly named it the Towering Wilds, because of the abundance of giant sequoia and its completely uncultivated state.
Because the Wilds had a rock coastline unsuitable for fishing and docking, no one ever made a path.
For so long, the people of Nil’Faerith had utilized the smaller forests around the island for wood, it became a taboo to alter the Towering Wild’s natural beauty.
It was not abandoned by any means. Both the villagers and Mages enjoyed exploring the woods or reading a good book under its shade, but no axe would ever touch its trees.
My fondness for botany had inspired me to read its history, studying what sort of plants I could expect within, but I’d never taken the dive to explore it.
It was beautiful, but any time I neared the edge, I felt a strange presence.
Like a songstress singing to me, lulling me to submission, with a smooth and comforting voice.
Come inside, child. The same tug pulled at me now, but I stayed grounded in reality, my arm comfortably tucked under Elle’s as I turned my attention back to Felydrin.
“The rules are simple. I’ve hidden some harmless traps within the Wilds.
Your goal is to make it through the forest and reach the coastline on the other side.
” He shrugged a shoulder as if it was the simplest task imaginable.
“Activating any will alert me, and you’ll be out of the game.
The first to join me on the other side can have their pick from a selection of enchanted items I’ve set aside for today. ”
Quinn’s voice broke through the murmurs of stirring. “What if we beat you to the end?”
Felydrin scrunched his nose, perplexed, paused, and then opened his mouth in understanding. “Ah. It was a joke. I see. You do have quite the sense of humor, Quinn.”
I had to swallow my laughter as Quinn’s face turned red, and he sputtered something about Felydrin being an idiot.
Another Mage stepped forward to ask, “how will you know who has triggered a trap?”
The same expression rose to Felydrin’s face once more. “How wouldn’t I know? It is my magic, after all. If you’d like, I’d be happy to teach a class centered on magical traps. It’s very intensive work. You would learn a lot.”
The Mage sighed. “Never mind….”
“Well, then, with that all settled, I will add that you’re welcome to work in pairs or as a team, but there can only be one winner. Ah, and no fighting. Do not be brutes.”
I spared a glance at Elle and nodded my head, a silent cue of my intention to partner with her.
Much to my dismay, she returned the gesture with a shake of her head and an apologetic pout. “I’m sorry, but I really want to win,” she whispered.
Well, there went that plan. I was going to have to face the forest on my own.
It was roughly a two-hour hike to the coast, but accounting for the traps, it would likely take at least an additional two hours.
It wasn’t as if I would be entirely alone, anyway.
I had the sounds of detritus crunching beneath my boots, the repetitive buzzing of insects, and the soft rustling of leaves to accompany me.
I stared into the great expanse of the Towering Wilds, taking a deep breath to steady myself. Our mark to start was a loud whistle on the wind, but what spurred me to move forward was a squeeze on my shoulder, and the whispered words of good luck.
I committed to a steady pace while most of the class rushed into the forest. I was well aware of my ability.
If I didn’t take things slowly, I’d not make it halfway before I set off one of Felydrin’s traps.
While I had little confidence in being crowned victor, I didn’t want to perform so poorly it’d be another embarrassment.
Easing my way through the dense wood, I scanned the ground with each step, hoping I’d recognize some telltale sign of magic by sight alone.
I lost track of time, carefully avoiding anything that appeared unnatural.
Given the position of the sun, I was likely less than halfway to the end.
To my knowledge, I’d not triggered any traps, but I wasn’t certain it would be obvious if I had.
With a bit of regained confidence, I picked up my pace.
Something akin to a hum, yet somehow darker, began to buzz softly in my ears. With every step I took, the sound grew louder, and my body reacted as though I were being pricked with pins. I was slick with cold sweat, shivering despite the mild temperature.
“Hello?” I called out hesitantly.
The only answer was the sound of the forest.
I was paranoid, then. “I really, really hate this.”
But I didn’t dare stop. The only thing worse than being left alone in the Wilds was being left alone in the dark.
I shifted my route, veering off course for some time before adjusting myself back to my original path.
The humming had ceased after I’d gotten farther away, and the tightness in my muscles instantly relaxed.
The sun was gradually growing closer to the horizon. There were a few hours left before it set, so I maintained my pace, not rushed for time. I felt similar awful sensations as I progressed, but was now using them as a guide. Was this part of the magic?
As I approached another area where the humming began, I sought a way out, but each direction, even back the way I’d come, led to the sound growing louder.
With no other option, I pushed forward until the feeling grew almost unbearable.
Gasping for breath, I dropped into a squat and clutched the sides of my head.
“Stop!” I shouted to the wind. “Please stop.”
The forest floor became shattering glass beneath my feet.
I could feel my magic curling around me in a protective cocoon while shadowy claws ripped into the ground.
They were pushing against some force I was only vaguely aware of.
The more magic I used, the more trails of inky black stained my hands, raw with the pain of a burn.
But it stopped. The humming stopped, and with it disappeared my shadows.
When my vision came back into focus, all was exactly as it had been. Sunlight creeping through a canopy of trees, painting the ground beneath me in a golden glow. The only evidence that anything had occurred at all was the disturbed detritus looking torn apart by a rabid animal.
I stood, my knees wobbling, and caught my balance against a rough tree trunk. Loud footsteps caught my attention, and I swiveled my head to see Arch Magus Felydrin barreling towards me, arms flailing about.
He skirted to a stop in front of me, leaned over, and steadied his panting breath. His voice was surprisingly clear and calm by the time he asked, “what happened? Are you hurt?”
I looked down at my hands before diverting my eyes. “I think… I don’t know exactly.”
He yanked my hand forth, leaving me no time to react, and turned my palm over in his grip. “Peculiar. You’ve utilized particularly potent magic, but it seems to take a hefty toll.”
Pulling my hand back, I replied, “I didn’t utilize anything. Whatever my magic did, it did on its own to protect me from whatever that trap was.”
Felydrin blinked slowly. “Nairu, the trap was nothing. Once the runes activated, you should have felt a slight tingling sensation which would dissipate a moment later. It was intended to record your magical signatures, so I would know if anyone lied about stepping on one,” he paused, “but in your case, it’s a bit different. ”
His lingering gaze on my hands, as if I were a specimen for study, made my voice tremble. “What does that mean?”
“Well, you ripped the magic of my trap to pieces. It didn’t dissipate it, you destroyed it.
It recorded nothing. I only knew to run here because I felt it shatter.
” He paced around the area, examining the chaos I’d caused.
“It’s one thing to dismantle a trap. You need finesse, knowledge, and patience.
It’s another thing entirely to do… what you did.
Impressive, though strange for a Mage of your caliber. ”
“I’m sorry I can’t be of more help, Arch Magus, but if it’s fine with you, I’d rather resign from this contest of yours.
” I looked up to meet his gaze to find his eyes had narrowed, and the emotion in them was flickering somewhere between curiosity and caution.
“Would you be willing to show me the way to the end?”
“Indeed. It wouldn’t be safe for you to continue. Follow me; my steps exactly. We need to pick up the pace to make it to the end before the others.”
If I knew one thing for certain, it was that word of what I’d done would make its way back to Alandris.
I’d accomplished nothing today except making the Mage I was suspicious of suspect me instead.
Though his impersonal assessment of me made me uncomfortable, Felydrin didn’t give any indication of being a bad person.
He was simply… awkward. A fountain of knowledge much like Luelle, but without the social graces and innate cheerful disposition.
Following Felydrin’s footsteps was easy enough, though he kept a quick pace and refused to stop for breaks.
I was so winded by the time we reached the coastline, I’d committed myself to setting up a physical training regimen.
When I saw him standing there with not a hair out of place, nor a bead of sweat on his skin, that’s when I decided; I was seriously out of shape.
Initially, I doubted we would return before anyone else, but Felydrin’s knowledge of where he’d hidden the traps saved us a significant amount of time. Even so, we weren’t waiting long before we came face to face with the winner: Quinn.
“How did you get here first?” he spat in my direction.
“I forfeited.”
His resulting sneer nearly made me lunge for him. “Not surprising in the slightest.”
Luelle’s voice sounded behind me, “says the man who only won by shouting out to me and causing me to stumble in the last stretch.”
“It’s all strategy.”
Felydrin cleared his throat. “Enough arguing. If Quinn did not physically touch you, then he is indeed the winner. I’ll allow you to choose your prize back at the Consortium.
If you wish to return on your own now, you may do so, but I will not be deactivating the traps until every last Mage has returned. ”
Quinn wandered off without another word.
“Shall we?” Elle asked, bumping me with her shoulder.
I offered a half smile. “I’d rather wait, if you don’t mind?”
“Of course not! I’d like to get a head start on the studying I need to do for our… thing, so I’ll be going ahead.”
There was no chance I was returning on my own while the traps were still active. Once Elle was on her way, I plopped myself down against a large rock and settled myself in to wait.
Felydrin moved to sit beside me. “I think it’s best if we keep what happened today between us.”
Now that I was not expecting. “I’d prefer that as well…. Could I ask why, though?”
“Ah, it’s nothing really,” he sighed. “But if you ever want to talk about your magic or test some theories, please come see me. Anytime.”
His answer gave me pause, but I responded cordially. “I appreciate it.”
Why was everyone so interested in my magic?