The Other Apprentice

10-1 | Power and Passion

Quinn clutched the mane of her horse. Her heart was pounding as she looked behind her to see the pack of snarling darkhounds chasing her. Armored riders with spears sat astride a pair of them, barely visible in the cloud of darkness that surrounded the creatures.

"The ni'vilae. The army of the Dusklord." She could hear Madrigal's voice but couldn't see him as she spurred her horse faster. "For three millennia, they have warred with their brethren, the al'vilae, who seek to separate our world from theirs."

She reached for the hilt of her sword for comfort, but it was not there. Looking ahead, she could see the tower and knew she needed to get there. It was still too far away. Her horse whined in protest as the hazy forms of bogwisps burst out of the fog and reached at her with sharp talons and glowing eyes. No, they aren't real! She ducked as the hazy semblance of an arm slashed over her head.

"What their kind has in power, they lack in passion." The disembodied voice of the wizard continued. "They do not possess our zeal, our vision, our tenacity. In short, they have no imagination. It is these qualities that make humans distinct."

She could hear the baying howls of the darkhounds and knew there were even darker shapes behind them. They seemed tenacious enough. Another bogwisp burst out of the fog ahead of her, slashing at her arm as she drew nearer to the tower. She winced in pain but kept riding. She needed to get to the tower but didn't know why.

Her horse let out a pained cry as the darkhounds leaped upon it. Her horse fell to the ground as the beasts tore at it. She pulled herself free, and ran toward the tower, her leg once again dark with blood. Suddenly, Valryk stood beside her just outside of the tower, spear in hand. "Go!"

She lurched with pain into the tower as Valryk fended off the entire pack, alone and outnumbered. Within moments, the beasts tore him to pieces. She screamed as she ran up the stairs. There were more steps than she remembered.

Madrigal's voice echoed through the tower as she climbed. "The al'vilae entrust wizards with power in order to guard the veil that was raised after the Duskwar, to separate our worlds. The ni'vilae seek to make pacts with humanity to aid their war against the al'vilae. This must not be allowed."

Taloned hands reached out of the stone as she ran past them, grabbing her arm and pulling at her hair. She broke free, in tears, moving her way to the top of the tower. Somewhere outside, Valryk was dead. Tenet was dead. And if she didn't get to the top of the tower, she would be dead too.

Without explanation, she suddenly found herself on the roof of the tower. It was no longer a crumbling ruin. The tower stood whole and tall above the plain. Looking out, she could see one half of the field plunged into darkness, filled with tens of thousands of monsters and soldiers clad in ebon armor. On the other half of the field, sunlight glinted on the armor and pikes of armies of humans and al'vilae who stood unified to oppose them.

Madrigal now stood beside her, surveying the scene. "The Dusklord was born of passion and power, knowing the strengths of our kind and theirs. Only through the unified efforts of our kinds was the Dusklord defeated. But it is only with separation that we can ensure there will never be another Dusklord."

A massive form rose above the battle, absorbing the motes of darkness and the sunlight into a dark, nebulous form possessing burning eyes. The ground shook as the titan roared and erupted into a storm of blackened birds of prey and smoky dragons.

The war around Quinn shifted from one vision of war to another. Al'vilae against ni'vilae, humans against creatures of darkness, human kingdoms clashing with each other. At one point, she even saw the colors and standards of Lytgard as it warred against Kemura. Other times, the armies appeared to be from an empire which hadn't stood in over a thousand years. But the cycle of war was constant. As it turned to a battle of armies against wizards, she turned to Madrigal, tears in her eyes. "Make it stop!"

Madrigal shook his head. "I'm better at starting wars than I am at ending them. It has to be you, Quinn. Only you can stop the wars."

"I don't know how!" Quinn watched the senseless destruction and death of the surrounding war. Everyone was dying. Humans, al'vilae and ni'vilae alike. "How do I stop it?"

"By becoming a wizard, Quinn. Only then can you put an end to all of this."

The storm clouds above her grew angrier, spinning slowly as they flashed with lightning and crackled with thunder. "No! I can't!" She felt like she was about to retch.

"You must! You must do this! Or their deaths will count for nothing! And more will die! All of us will die! Seize the magic, Quinn!"

Suddenly, she felt the power coursing through her veins. Her hair moved of its own accord as she lifted inches above the stone. It had all seemed so impossible. But suddenly, everything was easy. It was obvious what she needed to do.

The war outside froze in place, like pieces on a hexat board. Another war erupted inside of Quinn as she fought against this power that she didn't want. Electricity crackled at her fingertips. She shook her head, willing it to go away. And then suddenly she yelled, her voice booming across the landscape. "No!" Her voice echoed and rebounded across the land, filling with power and energy. Again, she heard it. "No! No! No!" The clouds unleashed a torrent of lightning, tearing through all the soldiers and monsters surrounding the tower, including the humans. As the power tore through their ranks, she knew it had come from her.

Soon, the battlefield was a graveyard. Everything around her was dead. The war had ended. She stood alone. She wasn't sure where Madrigal had gone, but she knew all of this had been her doing.

To her horror, the trees started wilting and dying. The grass turned grey and bleak as the land became lifeless. A rain of snails fell from the clouds all around the tower.

Quinn woke up in her bed back in Stillbrook, damp with sweat, her hair caked to her face. Widdershanks sat up in surprise at the foot of her bed, chittering nervously.

She called the ferret over, stroking his fur as he curled up in a tight circle on her chest. "It's alright, Widdershanks. It was just a dream." She wasn't sure if she was attempting to reassure the ferret or herself.

Once her heart was beating normally again, she picked Widdershanks up and slid out of bed. She set him down on the vanity as she poured water from the pitcher into her basin, which she used to splash her face.

Moments later, dressed and with Widdershanks riding her shoulder, she came down the stairs of the tower. Dawn was still less than an hour away. Valryk was sitting at the table eating a breakfast that smelled of eggs, baked apples, and cinnamon. Her stomach growled.

Wordlessly, the soldier stood from his seat and filled another bowl, which he set down across the table from him. Quinn smiled, taking the seat, digging in hungrily.

After she and Widdershanks had both finished their breakfast, Quinn broke the silence. "I want to know the truth, Valryk. Are you really here to protect Madrigal?"

Valryk shook his head. "I am not."

Quinn felt a rush of validation. "Why is he lying about you?"

The soldier tilted his head. "Madrigal has not lied. He cannot."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "He's lied ever since I got here. He said you are his guard. You just said yourself you're not here to protect him."

Valryk gathered up the bowls and rose from the table. "There are dungeons in your homeland. Are they guarded?"

"Of course. But that's a diff—" Quinn cut herself off, realizing the truth of his words. "You're not here to guard Madrigal from anyone else. You're here to guard everyone else from Madrigal."

Valryk gave a slight nod. "It is so. I serve as an'zai. The al'vilae sent me to ensure that the wizard Madrigal does not again become what he once was."

Quinn stumbled to find the words. "And if he does?"

Valryk spoke calmly, emotionless, as he washed the bowls. "Then I will kill him."