The Gods' War

Chapter 6

        HE COULDN’T BELIEVE that she had beaten him so quickly. He had never seen a strategy like that. What he had first thought was chaos and confusion, turned out to be a well planned strategy. He had thought that he would beat her for sure. No wonder she was friends with Lucas.

        He had learned from others that she was one of Lucas’ friends. Adrian did not approve. He wondered why Lucas would be friends with her. Was it because she was the best wizard at fighting? Was it because she was so good at chess? He still did not think Lucas would really actually be her friend. To him, it was unthinkable.

        As the weeks passed, Adrian perfected his control over the elements. He had made his dorm room door a picture. He had used the elements to make his door look like a picture of a magnificent lake surrounded by palm trees in a desert land. He had gotten even better at his weapon skills and battle strategies, and Mr. Kirtley had gotten even meaner.

        To add insult to injury, he had learned that Lucas and Laura were in love. He didn’t like Laura at all. She had beaten him at chess; no mage could beat him at chess. But, then again, she was a wizard. He didn’t know why Lucas could ever love someone like her. She didn’t seem interested in her studies, as if she already knew it all. He wondered how she did know it. He suspected that she wasn’t just the best at weaponry; he suspected that she was deliberately holding back in the other subjects, to make people underestimate her, but not too much.

        Lucas never was the one for love. He was always open to finding it, but he never did. He always tried to love people, in a sense, but he never found someone who he could share his life with. Adrian was glad he had found someone, even if it was her.

        

Today was the day. The day when mages, who were qualified, received their bjeus. This meant that he had a whole new weapon to master, the toughest of them all.

        Adrian got ready for the day and then stepped out of his room and into the hallway. He went to the stairwell, and climbed up one flight. He had never gone further. Further, were dorms and classrooms of witches and warlocks, and then, wizards.

        He went to the assembly hall. Only the mages were invited to this assembly. It had almost nothing to do with their other magical counterparts. It was a rite of passage for all mages. When they earned their bjeu, they became warriors.

        All over the assembly hall mages sat in groups, chatting. Loafing on the stage stood a few of the mages that were at his level. He went over to join them. There were still more to come. The assembled mages on the stand were speaking nervously about which ones would not earn their bjeus, and have to wait another year. Adrian hoped he wasn’t one of them.

        His lifelong dream had been to be a warrior who fought with a bjeu. But, he had not then realized that he had to be a mage to earn a bjeu. His town, Digrael, was small and the townsfolk remained mostly ignorant to the world beyond except when merchants brought news from their towns.

        Matters of magic were little known or non-existent to them. That was why he had been confused when Mistress Colitz had told them that they were gifted with magic.

        All the mages had finally arrived to partake in the event. Mr. Kirtley would be telling them, and all the assembled mages, who had earned their bjeus, and who hadn’t. The mages at his level all lined up on the stage. On the left-hand side of the stage, was a rack of bjeus. If mages had been told they had earned them, they would go to the rack, and take one. A bjeu always felt right in the hands of its holder. No alterations ever needed making.