Page 3 of Legends of Sorcery
Arion knew he should tell Zallon about the stone, but the wizard seemed to have other things on his mind and so Arion chose not to bother him with the accident that had occurred, trying to tell himself it had nothing to do with putting off the fate that would be bestowed upon him when Zallon found out.
Chapter 2
A week went by and there was no change in Arion's life. One day rolled into another until at last Zallon came to him with a proposition.
"Arion, as you know, in two weeks you will reach your twentieth year. I have placed the request to the King to elevate you officially to Apprentice of Magic at that time. As my apprentice, you will swear your allegiance to a life of celibacy where you will devote the rest of your days to the study of magic. You will be privy to all the knowledge I will pass to you, the history of the kingdom, the legends of sorcery, and will continue to improve and practice magic for the good of Gavalon. I know this comes as no surprise to you, but I am excited to move towards making it official. I am not getting any younger and the sooner you have the knowledge and understanding I can give you, the safer Gavalon will be. If you choose not to accept the role, it will sadden me greatly, but that is your choice and yours alone to make. It is not an easy life, but it is a rewarding one."
Arion had known most of his life that this would be the path he would take. When he was younger, he had attended the common school with other children of Gavalon, but as he reached maturity, Zallon had pulled him to begin private tutoring. Even at that time he had explained that it was for his own protection and purity. While he knew the rules, he had never understood them and asked again.
"Zallon, why the need for celibacy? I've never truly understood it. Can you explain that to me?"
"As High Keeper of Magic, Arion, you will be in charge of the safety of all the people of Gavalon. Magic can be good, but it can also be evil when used in the wrong ways. Not having any worldly attachments keeps you pure of heart and unable to be corrupted. That is why it is so important. Imagine if the kingdom were in trouble and an evil person found that you were married or had children and they took them from you to ensure you would follow their orders and not do what was best for the kingdom. It would leave Gavalon in a very bad place. You are a protector, and those personal ties will only make your job all the harder. It is not in your human nature to tell the evil doer to slaughter your children if he must in order to ensure you do what is necessary to save the throne."
"The throne or the kingdom, Zallon? While we currently have a just and loving King, is it not possible that the throne could be corrupted? If that is the case should I not serve the people of the kingdom over the man that sits on the throne?"
"Ah, a very wise question, Arion. You would be correct in that determination. It is the Kingdom of Gavalon we truly serve and protect, no single man or woman."
"And truly, Zallon, when was the last evil that bestowed this kingdom? Or all Amaria for that matter? The seven kingdoms of Amaria have largely been at peace for many centuries, have they not?"
"This is true, Arion, but as you begin your proper training you will learn that that was not always the case. A great evil once divided Amaria into the seven kingdoms we know today. It is but one of the legends you will learn."
"That was still a very long time ago. We have measures in place today to ensure nothing like that ever happens again."
"This too is true, however for Gavalon, the High Keeper of Magic is just one of those measures, as you will learn should you choose to accept the role I will offer you on your twentieth year."
Arion considered this. A life of celibacy was a lot to ask. He was a man, after all, and had already experienced the desires of the flesh despite Zallon's attempt at keeping him from all females. It was rare but Arion did go into town from time to time and he was not immune to the opposite sex. Still, it was a good life to be offered and he felt up the task, even knowing it would not be an easy life, but one full of temptations, not just by women, but by the magic itself.
While Zallon hadn't said so, Arion already knew the temptation of magic. It wasn't hard to grasp that a life of celibacy was also a practice in patience and determination necessary to master the control of magic.
It was something he would need to consider long and hard before accepting the position, though there was no doubt in Arion's mind that he would.
A lot could happen in two weeks, but in that moment, Arion was certain about his destiny.
Each day as part of Arion’s training he worked directly with Zallon on mixing potions. Arion wanted to move on to casting spells, but so far Zallon would not budge and only allowed his young steward to mix certain potions and only under observation.
A courier arrived from the King, interrupting the potion they were working on and causing Arion to spill a little too much cherry blossom into the clear spirit he’d already poured. He wasn’t sure exactly what he was making, as Zallon always told him those sorts of questions should be saved for when he was an actual apprentice, instead, the old wizard just spouted off ingredients and portions for Arion to put together without any rhyme or reason. He could be making Zallon’s afternoon tea for all Arion knew.
“It’s urgent news from the King,” the courier said.
Zallon sighed. “It always is. What is it this time?”
“Princess Valaria. . .”
Zallon cut the boy off. “Princess Valaria has gone missing, again.”
“No sir. This time she came back on her own, very upset.”
“I have nothing to help with an overly emotional child,” Zallon muttered under his breath.
“No sir,” the courier said again. “She was upset because she found a unicorn in the woods. He did not appear to be injured but acted sick.”
“Sick?” Zallon asked.
“Yes sir, sick,” the courier confirmed.
“But unicorns do not get sick. Their healing properties are extraordinary. I’ve studied them myself for many decades.”
“Yes sir, that was why the King is so concerned and wishes you to investigate for yourself.”
