The Young Magician

other firmly in place. These spells remained, and their presence added to the complexity of the whole. Samuel began to realise that the entire scene was becoming two enormous opposing spells, interlocked and set to break the other. The opponents had to be quick-witted and experienced in every way, for they could not see any dangers approaching, as Samuel could, but had to depend on vast experience to sense what spells were summoned and how to match them.

Curiously, however, Samuel noted that each spell was double-cast: cast again upon itself, inside out. He had never seen such a thing and wondered why they would do it like that. Perhaps it was some secret method of the Grand Masters’ for making their spells more powerful. It must have some great purpose, for casting in such a manner was twice as slow as usual.

Quicker and quicker, the two men summoned their power and cast out spell after spell into the matrix of magic. The ancient old Grand Master Du looked almost lifeless, although his lips quivered as he murmured to himself and his fingers trembled on his cane, as if they gestured at his spells ever so slightly.

Anthem, however, began to have a slightly worried expression, and Samuel was sure he could see more sweat running down the man’s brow. His magical sphere was now only melon-sized and it was quickly diminishing.

A movement caught Samuel’s eye, and a tentacle of magic was once again creeping across the room. It affixed itself to the ancient Grand Master Du and at once began to draw out his energy. Old Anthem now bore a hint of optimism.

Some students began to yawn as time wore on, for it seemed the two old men were standing idly. Samuel, however, was fascinated by the complex battle of spells at work. Even the older Masters, content to sit at the back of the hall and chat all night, were now watching on eagerly, for this was finally something they were interested in. They could feel all the spells at work and appreciate the high degree of skill involved. They chatted enthusiastically and commented on the tactics in use. Samuel only wished he could hear what they were saying.

Then, like water spontaneously breaking through a riverbank, Grand Master Du’s spells began collapsing back towards him. Anthem’s magic destroyed each one of Grand Master Du’s spells that it touched, quicker and quicker as his spells surged forward. In the last instant, Grand Master Du yelped in effort and stepped back, using his last scraps of magic to throw up a great shielding spell that Samuel could barely have managed given a day. Anthem’s spells crashed as one into the old man’s barrier and the room boomed with thunder, causing the solid beams overhead to groan and creak. The air itself warped and shuddered as Grand Master Du was engulfed by magic. Samuel thought the frail, old man would surely be vaporised, but when the spells had all subsided, the old man merely groaned and climbed back to his feet with the aid of his cane.

‘Oh, bugger!’ the old man swore with obvious annoyance and the entire hall began laughing out loud.

Samuel was dumbfounded. Surely such power should have destroyed the old man’s body, but then he realised: the double-casting! Normally, such great magic would have destroyed any living thing, but their spells were double-cast. The second, inverse spell was a mirror image of the first, resulting in a spell that would negate itself upon realisation. In this way, two magicians could obviously play the Magician’s Game without fear of physical injury. It was ingenious!

‘Congratulations, Anthem, you scoundrel’ Grand Master Du said. ‘You beat me again! I don’t know how you do it, but I’ll best you yet one day!’ And with that he hobbled back to his seat

‘Very well,’ Anthem then said to the audience. He had released the remains of his magical sphere and it was now floating up by the ceiling where it was rapidly dissipating. ‘I hope you all learned something tonight. I trust all the new Adept will realise they don’t have long left here in the School of Magic and will apply themselves to their studies with all their fortitude. For those Adept who have graduated tonight, I want to welcome you as Masters of the Order of Magicians. You have a great responsibility upon your shoulders. The Order was founded anew at the end of the Imperial War, so that magic could become a symbol of civilisation and a tool of peace for all of Amandia. We live by the grace of our great Emperor, but remember always that magic is for the better good of man. Let us remember that magic should only be used in the defence of peace and that one magician should never use magic against another.’

With that, the shield spell around them was released and Samuel realised the graduation was over. The audience began to file outside, but Samuel’s head was full of all the spells he had seen that night. He was full of excitement and twitching to find some time alone so he could begin practising everything he could remember. Most intriguing of all was Grand Master Anthem’s devious spell of sapping. It was a truly ingenious method to beat almost any magician, even if they were more powerful. In fact, the more powerful they were, the better, as it meant there was more power for the taking. It seemed that Grand Master Anthem was truly the most powerful magician in the Empire.

CHAPTER SIX

Playing with Mage-Fire

The air was buzzing with excitement as all the graduated apprentices carried their belongings into one of the Adept bunkhouses. It was nearly a duplicate of the dormitory they had just left, yet the atmosphere was very different-it somehow felt full of maturity and dignity. While they had just left a room full of boys laughing and playing games, here, solemn faces inspected their new roommates thoughtfully.

Samuel dropped his bundle onto a tightly made bed and sat on its edge, testing its properties. He separated his belongings and placed them into the sturdy drawers on the floor. He had a drawer for each category of items- clothes, study materials, personal effects-whereas, in the apprentice dormitory, he had only had one modest chest for everything. He then lay back and sighed, watching the dust motes glide gently through the beams of light overhead. Everything felt like it was falling into place.

Lessons began again early the very next day and, as they filed out of the school behind Master Glim, a group of wide-eyed youngsters-new apprentices still in their colourful attire from the outside world-wandered in, gawking in marvel at their new surrounds. Samuel wondered if he had looked that foolish when he had first come to the school. He remembered the looks all the old Masters had given him on that first day-no doubt he had.

Master Glim led them on a long walk out of the city near to a quiet farmhouse on the north bank of the Bardlebrook River, far from the calls and noises of the city. The sound of fishing nets slapping the water was the only noise to pester them, along with the occasional grunts of the fishermen pulling them back in, rocking about in their tiny boats. Master Glim took them through many of the fundamental summoning stances, demonstrating the most effective ways to shift from one to another. Some students were better suited to certain stances, while other stances suited different situations, or even moods of the magician. It was all very mundane for Samuel, as they had done it many times, yet, as always, he followed closely. He felt he was virtually perfect at the twenty-eight stances-he could feel the weaves of power running along his skin and through his bones-but he was always aware that he could align himself slightly better still and draw a few last remnants of magic from the ether, or move more quickly, more efficiently. There was always something for him to improve.

‘Move into Waterfall Stance,’ Master Glim then instructed. He made a few comments to some of the lagging students; then he continued, assuming the position himself for all to see. Waterfall Stance was a tall stance, with the legs straight and together and the arms lifted high above, as if reaching up to fetch something from a high shelf. ‘Now, observe.’ And he lifted one leg high, bent at the knee. One arm came down to point straight ahead. Samuel could see the aura around him shimmer upon reaching this new position and move more quickly, as if agitated. ‘Waterfall Stance can become a focussing stance, Bowman Stance, very easily. It is much better for casting spells, especially those that must be cast at a distance.’

With that, everyone followed his example. He led them through all the summoning stances again and showed them a focussing variation of each. Each one had some benefit or purpose. Dragon Stance could become Breathing Dragon Stance, for fire-based spells, or Flying Dragon Stance, for spells of quickness, or Enlightened Dragon Stance for divination. They practised long and hard on that day, their very first day as Adept. Samuel had been hoping there would be more of a change than just his title, and he was not disappointed. He was pleased to learn that their education would accelerate even further from this point on. They would learn spells and methods reserved only for those students who had passed their apprenticeship and had proven their dedication to the Order of