Leif hadn’t slept well. His mind had bounced between excitement at finding a wizard and concern that he’d been followed. He didn’t know how Vigo had known but he intended to find out. Meanwhile, the other man had slept like a stone on the bed across the room.

  Leif woke in the morning to find Vigo had already left. After dressing and packing his things, Leif left his room and found Vigo down in the common room. Leif took the seat across from the large wizard.

  Vigo had already begun eating and was reading a book titled ‘Aage’s Illuminations’. He looked up from the pages to say, “Good morning,” before returning to his meal. Leif returned the greeting, and they ate the rest of the meal in silence.

  After breakfast they packed their things and departed the town of Varburg on the northwards road. The light rain from the day before had mercifully stopped but the air was still quite cool. The rain was light enough and short enough that the road hadn’t turned to mud. Leif had always liked the rain. It always made him appreciate the sun. His mind returned to Vigo, his new traveling companion.

  Vigo sat tall on his horse. A long dark cloak fell down around his shoulders. The look on his face was one of quiet confidence; it was as if he was at peace with himself and his surroundings, with nothing that caused him doubt or fear. Leif rode Emir slightly behind Vigo, hesitant to disrupt the reverie that the wizard seemed to be enjoying.

  Leif examined the two ornate swords that were strapped to Vigo’s back. The two hilts stuck up over his right shoulder. Both handles were long enough to be grasped with two hands. One of the blades was broader, longer, and certainly heavier than the other. The guard on the hilt was slight and without ornamentation. The second sword was closer to the size of Leif’s own blade. The hilt was inlaid with a gold design that started at the pommel and wound up the handle and across the guard. The guard itself curved ever so slightly towards the blade. Leif wondered if carrying two blades was truly worth the extra weight on his back and if a second blade actually gave him an edge in a confrontation.

  It wasn’t until they passed the last of the small Varburg cottages that Leif finally gathered the courage and asked, “What makes you think I was followed?”

  “I know you were followed. Whether you still are is another story.” He paused for a moment, as he patted the neck of his horse. “Before the destruction of the dome, the Guild operated on a network that spanned the continent.”

  “It worked. It was slow but it was effective. There were well known and established points in every city, town and country with systems and routes for messages and communications. The Guild was run on this network. It was impossible to stop because if something happened to one group there were alternative routes. It was magic without magic. It worked.”

  “I know you were followed because parts of the network are still active. Rondo’s Inn for example, with its not so subtle name. Early in your journey there was someone asking after you, where you were headed. They’ve been following ever since, not quite able to catch you since you didn’t even know where you were headed and the network wouldn’t normally be forthcoming with that information.

  “I was notified of your quest and came to intercept you at Rondo’s. I arrived shortly before you did, which is when Rondo told me you were followed.”

  “Only my mother and sisters knew I was leaving. I was quiet about it.” said Leif, “So what do we do? Wait for them to catch up or try to outrun them?”

  “I don’t expect it to be a problem.” said Vigo quietly.

  Leif was annoyed. He’d just met the man, but Vigo was neither forthcoming with information nor did he seem interested in a conversation. Meanwhile, Leif was bursting with questions about his follower, his training, and about Vigo himself. He wanted to continue questioning the wizard but didn’t want to annoy him.

  Leif focused his attention on the Foerstian countryside. Most of what he saw was large swaths of grassland with occasional hills or rocky outcroppings. The rest was sprawling tracks of forest. The road they walked mostly curved around the woods but occasionally the road builders had been forced to cut right through.

  The pair continued riding in silence until midday when they stopped and dismounted where a stream passed close to the road. They rested the horses for a period and let them drink from the stream. Vigo handed Leif some strips of dried, salted beef. After the horses were sufficiently hydrated, Vigo finally spoke, “It will take us four days to make it to Sersk. From there we’ll board a ship to Danaria.”

  Vigo and Leif continued on, leading their horses on foot to allow them to continue to rest. Leif decided not to bring up his follower again but took the opportunity to ask, “Will the training begin once we arrive?”

  “Why wait?” Vigo turned to Leif with a casual indifference.

  Leif tried to hide his excitement. “I agree, I am ready. Shall we begin?”

  “Membership in the guild requires a payment of 100 Danarian gold marks, or 120 Maedish gold sovereigns. Training happens at the Master’s discretion and pace following the acceptance of the Guild apprenticeship membership fee.”

  Leif reached back into his saddlebags and withdrew a hefty sack of coins. He dropped the sack into Vigo’s upturned palm. Vigo opened the sack and eyed the coins inside. He put the sack into his own saddlebags, mounted his horse, and took off at a run.

  Leif stood in the middle of the road, holding his horse’s reins, in shock. He watched as Vigo raced away from him. He should have waited. He should have asked for evidence that Vigo, if that was his name, was actually a wizard. How could he have been such a fool? The money he’d given Vigo was what he’d brought for the membership payment. He didn’t have enough money left to cover another. He felt panic building in his chest.

  Leif watched as Vigo continued until he pulled up and stopped at the peak of a hill in the road. Vigo looked back at him. Leif mounted Emir and galloped towards the big wizard. Vigo’s face wore a smirk.

  “What was that about?” Leif shouted towards him, frustration evident.

  “That was hilarious. I couldn’t resist.”

  Leif looked away, trying to hide both his annoyance and his sudden relief.

  “It’s okay to have a sense of humor, Leif.”

  Leif was suddenly very concerned about the situation he’d gotten himself into and the man he had just apprenticed himself with.

  Vigo took a deep breath and the two of them continued up the road. “We’re too far from the next town to make it before dark so we camp tonight. We’ll begin our training then.”

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Leif watched the grass-lined road. The sky was an unblemished light blue. The air was cool and comfortable. They passed various travelers heading south, mostly merchants or small caravans of wagons. None gave them more than a nod or a wave. Vigo watched them intently as they passed.

  When the sun touched the horizon to the west, Vigo pulled off the road towards one of the many glades that speckled the countryside. They dismounted within the small grove of trees and prepared to camp for the night.

  As they both unrolled their bedrolls and prepared for the evening, Vigo began, “Magic is simple. It doesn’t take long to train a wizard in the fundamentals, and guide him to the point where he understands how it works, and can use it like any other part of his body. Once you grasp it, mastery comes down to practice and experience just like every other worthwhile endeavor.”

  “Practice and experience are a requirement for every wizard but there is also no substitute for innate talent. Some can master their ability quickly and easily. Some require more time. Unfortunately, our time lis limited so I’m going to push you towards mastery faster than trainees usually are pushed. For your sake, I hope you’re a quick learner.”

  “Why?”

  “We live in an increasingly dangerous world, Leif, and we need powerful allies. I believe war is inevitable. The scale of which hasn’t been seen in some time.”

  Leif hesitated, “I’m not here to be a soldier.”

  “You are a free man but sometimes our fates are chosen for us. The only thing you need to concern yourself with is becoming a bloody good wizard as quickly as possible.” Vigo looked at him with an unreadable expression.

  “What war?” It was not unusual to hear of some conflict somewhere on the continent between two lords or even two kings. But they always seemed so far away, almost like something out of a story.

  “Penth, Leif. It is not a rumor. The reports are not exaggerated. We are quickly coming to the point where the kingdoms of Aren will have to respond.”

  Leif was curious but did not want to give Vigo that impression. He shifted the conversation back to his training, “So how do I know what to do?”

  “You watch, and you listen, and you practice,” said Vigo. His face had taken on a look more serious than usual. “Hand me your canteen, I’ll fill our water in the stream. Make a pit for the fire.”

  Leif used the spade from his pack to create the small pit and set to collecting the bits of wood and logs around their campsite. He was organizing them in and around his pit when an unfamiliar but amiable voice spoke up behind him.

  “Room for another traveler by your fire, friend?” the stranger asked.

  Leif turned to see a man standing just inside the edge of the clearing. His head was hooded but his face was clearly visible. His hands held a fully extended bow with an arrow nocked and aimed directly at Leif.

  Before Leif could react or call for help, the stranger released the arrow. Time seemed to slow for Leif as he tried to follow the dart the short distance through the air. He threw his hands up to block his face and body but the impact never came. The arrow had slowed to a stop in the air before him, then dropped and bounced into the packed dirt.

  Leif and the stranger looked at each other in confusion for a moment before the stranger raced to draw another arrow from his quiver. He knocked it and began to draw back his bowstring. This time, the bow kept bending, seemingly of its own accord until it snapped. The man dropped it in surprise and confusion and pranced away from it as it clattered to the earth.

  He looked back to Leif suspiciously and drew the sword from his hip. He stepped towards Leif who drew his own sword from its scabbard. Leif didn’t know who the man was or why he was being attacked but he wasn’t going to sit and let it happen without a sword in his hand.

  “You’re making it difficult not to kill you.” Leif heard Vigo say from behind his right shoulder. The stranger stopped walking, having noticed that Vigo had stepped out of the trees and returned to Leif’s side.

  The stranger didn’t respond but continued towards them, sword raised. His face had a look of determination. Next to him, Vigo drew the thinner sword from over his right shoulder and let out a breath of air in annoyance.

  Leif didn’t want to stand and wait for the stranger to come to him, nor did he want to force Vigo to handle the situation by himself. He held his sword out before him and stepped forward to meet the assailant.

  Leif hadn’t taken three steps when Vigo lifted his left hand towards the stranger with a smirk on his face. Suddenly, the stranger gasped, then lurched and flew towards them. His body had arched as if Vigo had tied an invisible string around his hips and pulled. At the last moment the stranger was able to bring his sword up towards Vigo. Vigo swung his own sword smoothly with his right hand, meeting the stranger’s blade. Upon the impact of the two swords, the stranger’s blade shattered. In the same fluid moment Vigo caught the stranger’s collar and lifted him up to his eye level, while he stuck his sword in the dirt next to him.

  “Why are you following us?” Vigo’s voice was deep and menacing and tense. As if he was holding back a storm by himself with only his will.

  Leif saw desperate fear in the stranger’s face. It was the face of someone who knew he was vastly outmatched. It was the face of someone who knew he had no hope of victory, and whose only chance now of survival was the mercy of his superior. As if mechanically, the man reached to his belt and drew his knife. Vigo smoothly reached out with his free right hand. He caught the wrist and torqued it up behind the stranger’s back. The stranger cried out in pain and dropped the knife.

  Leif felt foolish, standing with his sword out when Vigo’s abilities were so far beyond his own. He didn’t know what else to do but watch and listen.

  Vigo was about to repeat his question when a beam of light arced from out of the trees behind the stranger. It was white hot and bright as the sun. It reminded Leif of the lightning that fell during the summer storms in Maedelund. It seared across Leif’s vision. The beam raced across the clearing towards them.

  Vigo was fluid. He hurled the stranger aside then cast his hand towards the incoming beam. The air before Leif shimmered and solidified. The racing beam slammed into what had become a shield of air. Leif had never seen anything like it. He wished there was something he could do to help but he was afraid to move. He did not want to distract or disrupt Vigo’s magic.

  The beam pulsed and surged against the shield of air but the shield held. Leif watched Vigo who, beneath the sternness and focus, seemed to be enjoying himself.

  The light evaporated. Vigo dropped the shield. Standing at the source of the white-hot beam was another stranger. He was dressed like every other traveler they’d passed but given that he’d just shot lightning from his hands, was obviously trained as a wizard. Awestruck by the scene and power he was witness to, Leif wanted only to continue watching but forced himself to run to the first stranger, who lay mangled against a tree where Vigo had thrown him. The man was alive but clearly disoriented and trying to catch his breath. Leif rolled the stranger to his stomach. He put his knee in the stranger’s back and pressed his sword across the stranger’s neck to keep him from moving while he looked back to the confrontation.

  The wizard held both his hands up. He cracked an evil smile. Light appeared again in his palms and then another beam blasted outwards towards them. Vigo laughed, almost maniacally. He held his hand up and caught the beam of light in his palm. He grasped his sword handle, ripping it from the earth, and ran through the beam towards the wizard, the light dissipating in his hand as he went. He was fast. He made it to the wizard in two leaps and slammed his sword through the wizard’s chest. The light from his hands evaporated.

  Vigo was at Leif’s side a moment later. “Move.”

  Leif stood to make room as Vigo stabbed his sword back into the ground next to the man's gasping face, then planted his own knee into the center of the stranger’s back. The stranger coughed and choked. Vigo leaned in close to the man’s face, shifting more of his weight onto his knee which pressed into the man’s spine.

  Vigo pulled the man’s head up by his hair, “If you do not answer my questions, you are going to die. Why were you following us?”

  “Bounty hunter,” the stranger coughed out. “From Prince Magnus himself. It was a game. Competition to see who would get to you first. Don’t know why he’s after your friend. This isn’t the first time. He’d just give us names, pair us with a mage. I don’t know how many others there are. Please, I’ll leave. I beg you. It’s just a job. I won’t tell them where you are. I swear it.”

  “I believe you.” Vigo drew the dagger at his waist and pushed it between the man’s ribs into his heart. The stranger took a few short ragged breaths then went silent.

  Leif was shocked he’d just seen two men die. He was shocked by the ease at which Vigo had killed them. There was no hesitation in his actions. There was no remorse in his eyes.

  “So you didn’t believe him then?”