deal before they reached the door. Inside, the
teacher was lecturing on the era Dengel lived in.
This one in particular
was about Dengel's role in the War of Taeh's Vengeance. It might as well have
been a sleep spell because half the class was drowsy. By the second half of the
lecture, Revas was curled up in his seat with his tail swishing peacefully and
Oito slept upright with his tongue slithering in and out. Only Norej and Annala
remained attentive.
“…was contracted by the
second half brother's cousin of the region's headman for a means in which to
conduct the Siege of Lluspha,” the teacher droned. “The Founder of Magic then
replied–”
“Bow down to my
superior greatness!”
A sphere of darkness
hit the center of the room and burst into all-consuming blackness. Instantly,
the light in the room died and a gust of wind blew out of nowhere. It scattered
papers, threw pencils, and tossed hair.
“I who controls the
night itself, I who created magic, I who have an ego the size of a mountain!
Dengel Tymh!”
A ball of mana flashed
into being above the teacher's desk. Its glow slowly grew until the students
could see someone molding it in his hands.
“Nature's beauty, I
call...” The person clapped his hands together and light shone between the
cracks of his fingers. “Now behold! The wonder of it all!” The mage spread his
hands and a butterfly of light soared into the class. It made one circuit and
alighted on Annala's head. “Looks like my butterfly has found a flower, and a
beautiful one at that.” She blushed.
The mage dismissed it
all with a theatrical wave of his right hand and light returned to the room.
Without the darkness to hide him, everyone saw the figure in a black cloak.
“That was Dengel's real life. He's remembered as a Founder of Magic but he earned his living doing
special effects for aristocrats.” Eric tore off the cloak to reveal a colorful
and pointed hat hidden underneath. “He was one step below Court Jester because
he didn't have the privilege of mocking the king. He was a sycophant instead.”
The teacher looked at him.
“You must have been the vessel I heard about.”
“ Landlord and I
thought I could add some spice to your lecture so your students will learn
something – or stay awake, if nothing else.”
The teacher frowned.
“I'm sure you know a lot about Dengel, but you have not been hired to teach
this class.”
“Actually, I have. A
generous student thought the class would benefit from a primary source.” He
made a grand gesture with his arms and shouted, “Look at the teacher if you
would like to see me act out Lluspha!”
The students, who had
been awakened by Eric's entrance, looked to the teacher for an explanation.
“It's unanimous then.” Eric looked over his shoulder at the teacher and
shrugged. “Sorry, chief. The tribe has spoken.”
“Wait a –”
“From the memories of a
magic villain.” Eric swung his staff in a circle. “Reveal the story and make it
thrillin’!”
A trail of mana
streamed out of his staff and concentrated in a sphere of light. The sphere
grew into a screen big enough for all to see. Inside was the viewpoint of someone
standing on a hill overlooking a valley. To their right and left were soldiers
and directly ahead was a fortified town.
“This is the Siege of
Llupsha as Dengel told me, every day, for a whole month.”
Within the sphere, a
pair of hands and arms whirled about in mysterious patterns and a voice called
out words in a language no one recognized.
“That's gibberish, in
case you were wondering. Dengel said his clients were impressed by his ‘magical
language.’”
Dengel traced a circle
around the town, said a word with an air of finality, and a fifty-foot chunk of
rock arose out of the ground, snapping tree roots and grinding stone. Within
minutes, the town of Llupsha was a prison. Dengel's company were the guards,
and his patron the warden. The sphere zoomed in on the rock walls and
teacher was lecturing on the era Dengel lived in.
This one in particular
was about Dengel's role in the War of Taeh's Vengeance. It might as well have
been a sleep spell because half the class was drowsy. By the second half of the
lecture, Revas was curled up in his seat with his tail swishing peacefully and
Oito slept upright with his tongue slithering in and out. Only Norej and Annala
remained attentive.
“…was contracted by the
second half brother's cousin of the region's headman for a means in which to
conduct the Siege of Lluspha,” the teacher droned. “The Founder of Magic then
replied–”
“Bow down to my
superior greatness!”
A sphere of darkness
hit the center of the room and burst into all-consuming blackness. Instantly,
the light in the room died and a gust of wind blew out of nowhere. It scattered
papers, threw pencils, and tossed hair.
“I who controls the
night itself, I who created magic, I who have an ego the size of a mountain!
Dengel Tymh!”
A ball of mana flashed
into being above the teacher's desk. Its glow slowly grew until the students
could see someone molding it in his hands.
“Nature's beauty, I
call...” The person clapped his hands together and light shone between the
cracks of his fingers. “Now behold! The wonder of it all!” The mage spread his
hands and a butterfly of light soared into the class. It made one circuit and
alighted on Annala's head. “Looks like my butterfly has found a flower, and a
beautiful one at that.” She blushed.
The mage dismissed it
all with a theatrical wave of his right hand and light returned to the room.
Without the darkness to hide him, everyone saw the figure in a black cloak.
“That was Dengel's real life. He's remembered as a Founder of Magic but he earned his living doing
special effects for aristocrats.” Eric tore off the cloak to reveal a colorful
and pointed hat hidden underneath. “He was one step below Court Jester because
he didn't have the privilege of mocking the king. He was a sycophant instead.”
The teacher looked at him.
“You must have been the vessel I heard about.”
“ Landlord and I
thought I could add some spice to your lecture so your students will learn
something – or stay awake, if nothing else.”
The teacher frowned.
“I'm sure you know a lot about Dengel, but you have not been hired to teach
this class.”
“Actually, I have. A
generous student thought the class would benefit from a primary source.” He
made a grand gesture with his arms and shouted, “Look at the teacher if you
would like to see me act out Lluspha!”
The students, who had
been awakened by Eric's entrance, looked to the teacher for an explanation.
“It's unanimous then.” Eric looked over his shoulder at the teacher and
shrugged. “Sorry, chief. The tribe has spoken.”
“Wait a –”
“From the memories of a
magic villain.” Eric swung his staff in a circle. “Reveal the story and make it
thrillin’!”
A trail of mana
streamed out of his staff and concentrated in a sphere of light. The sphere
grew into a screen big enough for all to see. Inside was the viewpoint of someone
standing on a hill overlooking a valley. To their right and left were soldiers
and directly ahead was a fortified town.
“This is the Siege of
Llupsha as Dengel told me, every day, for a whole month.”
Within the sphere, a
pair of hands and arms whirled about in mysterious patterns and a voice called
out words in a language no one recognized.
“That's gibberish, in
case you were wondering. Dengel said his clients were impressed by his ‘magical
language.’”
Dengel traced a circle
around the town, said a word with an air of finality, and a fifty-foot chunk of
rock arose out of the ground, snapping tree roots and grinding stone. Within
minutes, the town of Llupsha was a prison. Dengel's company were the guards,
and his patron the warden. The sphere zoomed in on the rock walls and
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