Mages of the North: The Adventure Begins

Chapter 26

After the sun had set, the senior members of the Mist City Mages Guildhall gathered around a large circular table on the fifth floor to discuss the events that had transpired that day. The room was fairly dark and only illuminated by a handful of candles. Seven members of the guild, including Etrix and Elizabeth, sat with large notebooks in front of them. They had discussed a number of political and economic topics regarding Fiorra and the guild itself, as well as new policies put in place by the Arch-Mage, the leader of the Mages Guild. They had debated and argued over whether or not the Arch-Mage was going in the right direction, but eventually moved on to other topics.

As one of the unnamed mages slid his finger down a list of new members who had joined, his eyes widened a little when he saw a familiar name. "Wait a minute...is this who I think it is? No, it can't be."

"What is it?" Elizabeth, who was sitting next to the man asked.

"This list I'm reading...one of the names is Floris Fetcher. This...this isn't who I'm thinking of, is it?" The man asked, looking curiously at Elizabeth.

Elizabeth was about to answer but was cut off by Etrix, who was sitting at the far end of the table, "That name is not deceiving you. Floris Fetcher from Fiorra's South Swamp has in fact joined the guild."

The man stared at Etrix with a mix of emotions in his eyes. He was silent at first, but eventually looked down at his list again, "Really! The legend himself? Here?! This is the best news I've heard in a long time!"

Elizabeth smiled and nodded, then looked at the rest of the mages around her, "Yes, there's no question the Mages Guild has just welcomed a very promising new student. I'd be willing to bet he might be one of the greatest alchemists the guild has ever had, and he's still so young."

"His potions have saved a great number of people over the years. There's no doubt in my mind he'll be a welcomed addition to the guild." Said another female mage.

The man continued down the list a bit, then looked at Elizabeth again, "What about his friend, Alvis? Anything special about him?"

Elizabeth shook her head, "No, I'm afraid not. Or...at least not that I could see, anyway. Floris told me that he and Alvis grew up together and about what happened to their village, so Alvis really didn't have much of an option but to follow Floris here. However, I did see a certain fire in his eyes. With the proper training and some patience...actually, a lot of patience...we might be able to make something of him."

"What do you mean?" The man asked curiously.

Elizabeth sighed deeply and leaned back in her chair as the thought about her response, then leaned forward again as she replied, "I'm not one to be rude or anything, but Alvis has the IQ of a rock...if not lower. He doesn't even know how to read yet, which is a major set back for him. When I was giving them the tour, Alvis was very excited about the possibility of learning actual magic and I'm not one for crushing a child's' dreams, but...he might be a lost cause."

"I wouldn't be too sure of that, Elizabeth." Etrix said from across the room, "I've seen it many times. The most unlikely student turns out to become one of the best mages of their class. One of the policies the Mages Guild has followed now is letting a student find out what works for them. If Alvis cannot read, there is nothing to stop him from finding something else that works for him. Maybe he'll be willing to learn after showing him a demonstration of what a mage can do. Or, it might be as simple as someone needing to read the book to him. It's not his fault he grew up where he did and I'm sure he had his own roles to play in his village. Floris was the village healer and the alchemist, so learning how to read and write was a must for him. But Alvis might have been more of a hunter or scout, so learning to read wasn't all that important to him. The people who live in the swamp tend to not survive for very long and are trapped in their own world, still living in mud huts. We cannot expect a huge deal from a background such as Alvis' when it comes to our modern-day standards."

"I see your point, Etrix. However...there was something else I wanted to speak about." Elizabeth said a little cautiously.

"What is it?" Etrix asked.

Elizabeth bowed her head respectfully, then continued, "It's just...these two are going through a few major transitions. They're going from the world they knew, to learning about the outside world and now learning about the Mages Guild. The guild compared to the outside world is...rather advanced to put it simply. But even the outside world is completely different from what they used to know. I was thinking...maybe we should assign them, someone, to act as a guide across Fiorra. If they're left on their own, they could end up getting into a lot of trouble."

Etrix grabbed his chin as he thought about Elizabeth's words. He couldn't deny that she had a fair point, and it couldn't hurt to assign someone to them who knows the land a little better. He thought for a few more seconds, then looked at Elizabeth and asked, "I see your point. However, we need to think of someone who might match their personalities. Is there anything you can tell me about Floris and Alvis as individuals? Like, what are they interested in or curious about?"

Elizabeth thought back to the tour she took the boys on and thought about some specific things they said. She then looked at Etrix as she replied, "I know Floris is interested in history. He seemed very curious about learning more about Fiorra's past and learning about the world as it is now. Alvis, on the other hand...I'm not sure. Maybe we could assign someone who can teach him in better detail about magic?"

Etrix grabbed his chin again as he thought, "Hmm...that's a tough one." He pondered for a bit longer, but he started to smile under his mask. He then looked up at Elizabeth, "I've got it. I know just the person to assign to them."

"Who?" Elizabeth and the other man asked curiously at the same time.

"Kathrina." Etrix said simply, "Kathrina Katherine."

Elizabeths' eyes widened a little and a small smile curved her lips, "That's honestly not a bad choice. Kathrina is one of our more promising students." She then looked at the man beside her and had him pull out a page going over Kathrinas' personal information.

The man flipped through his book for a while until he found what he was looking for, "Let's see...information on Kathrina Katherine: She's a Restoration or healer mage and knows some fairly advanced spells for her current skill, but she lacks any kind of offensive magic. She has some of the best control of magic in her age group and knows how to cast efficiently without wasting any of her magica, and also claims to be an aspiring historian." He frowned a little when he reached another topic about her character, "However...there's nothing written about her history. Where she came from, who her family was...nothing."

"Hmm...that's a little odd." Elizabeth said in a slightly confused tone but shook it off as she resumed talking, "That aside, I think she's a very good fit for Floris and Alvis. Almost a perfect match."

Etrix nodded, "I agree. If there are no objections, then I'll form their team up tomorrow." He looked around the table at each member but didn't meet anyone who objected, "Fine. I'll make the arrangements first thing in the morning."

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